End of Spin Magazine

http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/29/spin-announces-layoffs-and-drops-nov-dec-issue/

The above link tells the story.  Spin will put out one more bi-monthly issue this year and then?  Well, who knows.  The article doesn't sound very optimistic.
That's too bad.  Earlier this year Spin went from a monthly music magazine to a glossy bi-monthly one.  And I don't care for it.  They shortened their review section, and to be honest, the magazine was a drag to get through.  Felt like I was reading an issue of Interview.

This isn't the first time the magazine has been on the ropes.  Years ago, it was close to closing but rebounded nicely.
I don't know about you but I still love reading good old fashioned paper magazines.  But they are dying.  At least American ones are.

The head of Buzzmedia Music tweeted that they are going to continue the print edition in 2013, but doesn't offer any more specifics.  Monthly, bi-, quarterly.  And besides, will it ever be like it once was?  I doubt it.

Fleetwood Mac Poll

Another poll, this one on Fleetwood Mac.  Top 20 songs, no solo stuff. Plus Top Albums.  As you can tell I'm partial to the Buckingham/Nicks era, just think that was their best era.  But I found room for 3 from  pre-B/N.
And there were others from that era that could have filled out a Top 30.

1.  Go Your Own Way
2.  Oh Well
3.  Dreams
4.  Rhiannon
5.  Chain
6.  Hold Me
7.  Black Magic Woman
8.  Chain
9.  You Make Loving Fun
10. Over My Head
11. Silver Springs  (live 1997 version)
12. Don't Stop
13. Landslide
14. Big Love
15. Gold Dust Woman
16. Hypnotized
17. Never Going Back Again
18. Say You Love Me
19. Second Hand News
20. Gypsy

Top 5 Albums

1,  Rumours
2.  Fleetwood Mac  (1975)
3.  Then Play On
4.  Mirage
5.  Tusk

Downloading.

It started with a post by an NPR intern, who wrote about how she never pays for music.  And then wrote about how she goes about getting it for free.
Then Ex-Camper Van Beethoven/Cracker leader David Lowery responded, telling the woman how wrong she was.

I definitely believe artists should get paid for their work.
When Napster was at its peak, though, I only used it to find forgotten singles.  Ones that never made it to CD.  And I was happy that I found most of what I was looking for.
To me the fault lied with the labels for not putting this stuff out there to begin with.  Had those songs been on CD, I would have gladly paid for it.

And, yes, I have made mixtapes for people.  That's the price I pay for having such a large, diverse collection of music.

Funny thing is, most of those songs are still not available anywhere today:  not on Itunes, Amazon or even on some sort of Import compilation.

So, yeah, try and support your favorite artist.  Buy music legally.  BUT, it there is something you just can't find, then find it anyway you can.

An article about this story, with links is below.


http://www.spinner.com/2012/06/19/cracker-david-lowery-npr-illegal-downloading/

Playlist for 7/21

Ray Parker Jr. - Other Woman/Woman Needs Love  (2012 reissues)
Kaiser Chiefs - Souvenir
Moody Blues - Long Distance Voyager
Dandy Warhols - This Machine
Otis Taylor - Contraband
Joey Ramone - Ya Know

American Idol Judges

"Be careful what you wish for", goes the classic cliche.  And trust me, that while I'm celebrating the firing of Steven Tyler and JLo (and hoping Randy Jackson gets dumped too), I know that just bringing in 3 or 4 new judges won't help the show, if the new judges are as bad as the old ones (save for Simon Cowell).

The only thing that saved the 2012 Idol season from becoming a complete judging disaster was mentor Jimmy Iovine.  Once he appeared during the live shows, JLo actually started critiquing the singers.  But it was too late.  And let's face it, most of these performances are mediocre.  There are only a few that stick out every week.  But the contestants don't need to push themselves to be better when the judges are heaping false praise on them.

You see the problem with AI judges is that once the show goes to its live format they wimp out.  Being in from on the contestants families and being in front of a big crowd neuters them.

Steven Tyler was a disgrace in 2012.  Half the time it looked like he was bored out of his mind, and his constant "that was just beautiful" phrase was nauseating.  As for the clueless Randy Jackson, how many times do we have to  hear him say that someone just gave one of the greatest performances in TV history?

Yet, I'm cautious.  These new judges could be kiss-ass just like the old ones. The new judges will give the show a boost.  That's what Tyler/JLo did in 2011.  But it will only be a matter of shows before we know whether we have a new Simon or a new Tyler.

Kitty Wells

There are singers who are trailblazer who some people know little about.  Kitty Wells was a giant in Country music, but I've always felt she went unappreciated.  While Loretta, Dolly and Tammy are often the most-cited influential female Country singers, Wells was there before them.  She had 35 Top 10 hits and 81 charted records.

So, her death is a good time for the uninitiated to go find her music.  Without her we may never have had the above 3 singers.  She was called the "Queen of Country Music" not because she was the first female singer to have hit records, but because she was the first to become a huge star in an era that was dominated chart-wise by men.

Neil Young Poll

Another Poll, this time all things Neil Young.  Was able to include CSNY, Buffalo Springfield and even covers.

1.  Cinnamon Girl   

2.  Heart Of Gold   

3.  Old Man   

4/.  Mr. Soul  (Buffalo Springfield)    

5.  Helpless  (CSNY)    

6.  Down By The River   

7.  Comes A Time    

8.  Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere    

9.. Sugar Mountain    

10. Needle & The Damage Done    

11. Ohio   (CSNY)    

12 Harvest Moon    

13. Like A Hurricane   

14. Hey, Hey, My, My    

15. Long May You Run  (Stills-Young Band)                                                                                                   16. Lotta Love  (Nicolette Larson)   

17. I Am A Child  (Buffalo Springfield)   

18.. Only Love Can Break Your Heart   

19. Tonight's The Night    

20. Cowgirl In the Sand     

21. Love Is A Rose  (Linda Ronstadt)  

22.. Rockin' In The Free World     

23.. Expecting To Fly   (Buffalo Springfield)  

24. Powderfinger    

25. Philadelphia    

26. Cortez the Killer    

27. Hank to Hendrix     

28. Unknown Legend    

29.. Are You Ready For the Country  (Waylon Jennings)   

30. Dance Dance Dance  (Crazy Horse)  

Playlist for 7/14

Glen Hansard - Rhythm and Repose
Fiona Apple - Idler Wheel
Shawn Colvin -All Fall Down
Mary Chapin Carpneter - Ashes & Roses
Tedeschi Trucks Band - Everybody's Talkin'

Music Genius

Someone at Robert Christgau's Review blog Expert Witness tried to get a comments section going on the 10 Greatest Geniuses in Music History.  All genres included.  I almost took the bait,and then bailed because I couldn't stop at 10 and because I had trouble defining a genius.
Okay, Brian Wilson and Stevie Wonder. But is McCartney/Lennon?  Probably.  What about a Country giant like Hank Williams Sr?  Or are these types just great at what they did?  And why don't I have any Women on my rough draft?

Here's just a partial list of names, Jazz and some Classical artists, that I came up with.  It was only a rough draft:

Brian Wilson
Stevie Wonder
Ray Charles
Lennon/McCartney
John Coltrane
Miles Davis
Charlie Parker
Louis Armstrong
Beethoven
Mozart
Bach
Prince
Marvin Gaye
Sly Stone
Hank Williams Sr.
Phil Spector
Jimi Hendrix
Cole Porter
George Gershwin

etc., etc.......

Playlist for 7/7

Donna Summer - Four Seasons of Love
Donna Summer - I Remember Yesterday
Donna Summer - Once Upon A Time
Little Feat - Time Loves A Hero
Little Feat - Feats Don't Fail Me Now
Lowell George - Thanks I'll Eat It Here
Jimmie Vaughan - Blues Ballads & Favorites
Jimmie Vaughan - More Blues......

Andy Griffith & TV Themes

The death of Andy Griffith has me thinking about TV themes.  The Griffith TV theme is one of the most recognizable.  Surely it ranks Top 10 in TV theme history.  But what about others?  The Golden Age of TV themes disappeared years ago.  Nowadays you barely get a few seconds from a show's theme.  But this wasn't the case back in the day.  You almost got the whole song.

Below is a list, from my memory bank, of TV themes that I always thought were excellent.  Might have missed some.
All of these (I believe) were written specifically for the show, which is why I left off opening songs from the Sopranos, True Blood and even M*A*S*H.

Rockford Files
Magnum P.I.
Hill Street Blues
Mission Impossible
Hawaii 5-0
Happy Days
S.W.A.T.
Laverne & Shirley
Welcome Back Kotter
Barney Miller
I Love Lucy
Honeymooners
Dragnet
Twilight Zone
Barnaby Jones
Monkees
Star Trek
Bonanza
Beverly Hillbillies
Addams Family
Munsters
Gilligan's Island
Batman
Brady Bunch
Partridge Familyt
Jeffersons
All In The Family
Love Boat
WKRP In Cincinnati
Taxi
Dukes of Hazzard
Golden Girls
Cheers
X Files
Courtship of Eddie's Father
Get Smart
Muppet Show
Sesame Street
Friends
Peter Gunn
Miami Vice
High Chaparral
Mary Tyler Moore
Sanford & Son

Just Browsing

Every time I go to a famous musical city, whether Memphis or New Orleans, I always think I'm going to buy a whole bunch of regional cd's.  But it never turns out that way. I always come home empty-handed.  Same thing happens when I go to our local Blues Festival.  There's a CD stand there stuffed full of Blues/Soul stuff which I browse, but never buy.   Most of the music stores I went in down in Memphis and N.O. had high prices.  They were good stores, and browsing was fun, but just too high.

I also find that street musicians are just as good or entertaining as the ones inside bars or restaurants.