In this in-depth interview from David Lynch Foundation Executive Director and Transcendental Meditation teacher Bob Roth’s SiriusXM radio show “Success Without Stress,” comedian Jerry Seinfeld discusses his 40+ years of practicing Transcendental Meditation, working in TV and “Night Guy.”
Video: The History of the ‘Muppet Show’
In the late 1960s, Jim Henson and his team head to the UK to make the “Muppet Show.” What they don’t know, is that they are about to make the most popular show in the world.
Logic Announces “The Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind Tour” This Fall
Today multi-platinum selling, Grammy nominated artist Logic announced a new North American tour kicking off this fall, “The Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Tour”. Produced by Live Nation, the outing will visit 26 cities across North America, making stops in Portland, Los Angeles, Miami, Atlanta, Toronto, Brooklyn, Chicago and more. Logic will be joined by special guests J.I.D and YBN Cordae.
Tickets go on sale to the general public starting Friday, May 17 at 10am local time at Ticketmaster.com. American Express® Card Members can purchase tickets in select markets before the general public beginning Tuesday, May 14 at 10am local time through Thursday, May 16 at 10pm local time.
Logic catapulted to fame with his now 5x platinum “1-800-273-8255 (National Suicide Prevention Lifeline)” featuring Alessia Cara and Khalid. The song garnered two Grammy nominations, including “Song of the Year,” was a Billboard Hot 100 hit, Top 10 at Pop Radio, #1 on Spotify, and #5 on Spotify Global. His most recent release, “Homicide” featuring Eminem, garnered over 30 million streams in one week and debuted at #1 on the Spotify US Charts upon release.
LOGIC 2019 TOUR DATES:
Oct 05 Vancouver, BC Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre
Oct 06 Portland, OR Moda Center
Oct 08 Seattle, WA WAMU Theater
Oct 11 San Diego, CA Viejas Arena
Oct 12 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Bowl
Oct 15 Salt Lake City, UT Maverik Center
Oct 13 San Francisco, CA Chase Center
Oct 16 Denver, CO Red Rocks Amphitheatre
Oct 18 Dallas, TX The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
Oct 19 Houston, TX Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land
Oct 22 Miami, FL AmericanAirlines Arena
Oct 23 Orlando, FL Addition Financial Arena
Oct 25 Atlanta, GA Infinite Energy Arena
Oct 26 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum Complex
Oct 27 Norfolk, VA Ted Constant Convocation Center
Oct 29 Philadelphia, PA The Met Philadelphia
Nov 01 Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun Arena*
Nov 02 Washington, DC EagleBank Arena
Nov 03 Allentown, PA PPL Center+
Nov 07 Pittsburgh, PA Petersen Events Center
Nov 08 Brooklyn, NY Barclays Center
Nov 10 Ypsilanti, MI EMU Convocation Center
Nov 12 Cleveland, OH Wolstein Center at CSU
Nov 13 Toronto, ON Scotiabank Arena
Nov 15 Chicago, IL Allstate Arena^
Nov 16 Madison, WI Coliseum at Alliant Energy Center
*Logic and YBN Cordae only
+Logic and J.I.D only
^Logic only
RE:SOUND and SOCAN Collaborate to Create Entandem
Co-owned and overseen by RE:SOUND and SOCAN, Entandem brings the music licensing now managed separately by each organization into a single, jointly-operated business. With Entandem, retailers, restaurants, nightclubs, fitness clubs and myriad other organizations that use music will be able to complete their legally-required licenses in a single transaction.
The new joint venture, which builds upon a successful 2017 pilot project that combined music licensing for both parent organizations via an online portal, will be launched in July 2019. Until launch, licensing will continue to be administered separately by RE:SOUND and SOCAN, without change.
“Entandem is all about simplicity,” said Ian MacKay, president of RE:SOUND. “For most businesses that use music, a single licensing organization means a simplified experience, by interacting with one organization instead of two, with one payment for both RE:SOUND and SOCAN music licenses, and one point of contact to answer questions and resolve issues.”
“It’s about time – literally,” said Jeff Stinco, member of Simple Plan and owner of Mangiafocco, one of the many great restaurants of Montréal. “Mangiafocco welcomes Entandem’s one-stop service because it will save us time. We strongly believe that the music we play at the restaurant brings value, otherwise we wouldn’t use it, and it’s only fair that the owners of the music that we license gain fair royalties for their work.”
A songwriter and performer who receives royalties from both RE:SOUND and SOCAN, Stinco added, “By making music licensing easier and more efficient, it will help put more of the value our music provides into the hands of rights-holders like me. It’s a big step forward for anyone seeking to build a sustainable career in music.”
Whether recorded or live music, it is the law in Canada that businesses must pay for the music they use so that those who made the music can be fairly compensated, just as restaurants pay food suppliers and nightclubs pay for the liquor they serve.
Entandem will administer the licensing process as RE:SOUND and SOCAN do today, bringing royalties to Canadian songwriters, composers, publishers, labels and performers. Music licenses will continue to be based on agreements with users or tariffs approved by the Copyright Board of Canada.
While Entandem will collect licenses for live performances and the general use of recorded music in public venues, RE:SOUND and SOCAN will continue to administer royalties separately for recorded music, for example on YouTube, social media, radio, television, movies and online streaming services in single-use or as copies. Background music suppliers will also continue to obtain licenses directly from RE:SOUND and SOCAN.
SOCAN CEO Eric Baptiste added: “RE:SOUND and SOCAN getting together for Entandem means a strengthened ability to reach more businesses that should be paying both music licenses that provide vital support to music creators, especially the emerging and middle-class ones. By making the process easier, we expect stronger engagement across the country and, with that, increased realization of earned royalties for Canada’s songwriters, composers, publishers, labels and performers.”
Entandem will be a partner with businesses that use music, helping them to use music more effectively, increased use of live music, improved audio systems and more, with the essential truth that, the better the music experience, the better the customer experience. An improved customer experience results in extended shopping, increased spending, loyalty and, importantly, recommending the business to others.
Entandem will be jointly owned and overseen by RE:SOUND and SOCAN. However, in its day-to-day activities, it will operate separately from the parent organizations, under separate management.
The new organization will operate nationwide and will have premises in both downtown Toronto and Montréal. Existing licensing teams from each company will come together in shared locations.
Further information about Entandem is available at the organization’s website here.
Dan Aykroyd, Paul Shaffer, David Wilcox And More Join The Legendary Downchild Blues Band For 50th Anniversary Party In Toronto
THE LEGENDARY DOWNCHILD BLUES BAND are throwing a hometown party in Toronto to celebrate their 50th Anniversary – and you’re all invited! The not-to-be-missed performance on Bloor Street is part of the Toronto International Jazz Festival on Saturday, June 22, 2019 at 9:00 Pm and the best part is it’s free.
Downchild will be joined on stage by the one and only, Mr. DAN AYKROYD of Blues Brothers and Ghostbusters fame! PAUL SHAFFER, perhaps best known as the musical director and band leader for the David Letterman show and The Blues Brothers live band, will also hit the stage with Downchild, alongside, Canadian blues-rock icon, David Wilcox and former Downchild alumni, American bluesman and 2019 Blues Music Award winner, Kenny Neal from Louisiana and Austin, TX based piano player Gene Taylor of Fabulous Thunderbirds. More surprise guests to be announced!
Watch a live performance of Downchild performing “Soulman’ with Dan Aykroyd for their 40th Anniversary at Massey Hall below.
It’s hard to believe it’s been half a century since, bandleader, songwriter, guitarist and harmonica player Donnie “Mr. Downchild” Walsh and his brother, the late Richard “Hock” Walsh, formed The Legendary DOWNCHILD Blues Band in Toronto, ON in June 1969.
From humble beginnings, DOWNCHILD performed their first gig at Grossman’s Tavern in Toronto. Fittingly, the band will return to the infamous juke joint for a rare, intimate club performance, to kick off their year-long 50th Anniversary Tour, with a SOLD-OUT show on June 19, 2019, that will no doubt go down in history.
Named after a Sonny Boy Williamson II song, DOWNCHILD’s story begins when Donnie “Mr. Downchild” Walsh was a mere teenager and got his first taste of Blues at a sweet 16 birthday party for his girlfriend. “I was absolutely amazed by the music and, like most people who heard blues, started looking for more,” says Donnie, who soon discovered artists like Muddy Waters, Jimmy Read, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy and B.B. King.
Inspired by those classic sounds, DOWNCHILD launched an unstoppable career that has included 18 albums, countless awards and sold-out shows around the globe. The band’s 1971 debut Bootleg, one of the first independent albums in Canada, was recorded in a makeshift studio in parking garage at Rochdale College. Soon after, they scored their first smash hit with a jumping version of Big Joe Turner’s classic “Flip Flop & Fly.”
“I was pretty lucky to get a hit record just a few years after starting the band. As I like to say, if you have a hit record, the rest is geography. You just get in the van and go, and that’s what we did. For the longest time, we played 250 to 300 dates a year,” says Donnie.
DOWNCHILD came to international prominence as the inspiration for Hollywood stars Dan Aykroyd and the late John Belushi’s smash film The Blues Brothers. In fact, two Downchild songs, “Shotgun Blues” and “(I Got Everything I Need) Almost” were even covered on The Blues Brothers’ 1978 multi-platinum album Briefcase Full of Blues.
A documentary on the band, “Flip Flop & Fly – 40 Years of the Downchild Blues Band” was featured repeatedly on HBO Canada for two years, as one of their most popular documentaries ever.
The current lineup of DOWNCHILD features some of the most well-respected musicians in the country, who have performed together for over 25 years: Lead singer and harmonica player CHUCK JACKSON, PAT CAREY on tenor sax, MIKE FITZPATRICK on drums, GARY KENDALL on bass, and former American super-group rocker MICHAEL FONFARA (of Rhinoceros/Lou Reed fame) on keyboards.
www.downchild.com
50TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR DATES
19/06/19 Grossman’s Tavern (SOLD OUT) Toronto, ON
21/06/19 Rochester International Jazz Festival Rochester, NY**
22/06/19 Toronto International Jazz Festival Toronto, ON*
20/07/19 Porquis Rock N Blues Festival Porquis Junction, ON
17/08/19 Chenango Blues Festival Norwich, NY
29/08/19 Charles W. Stockey Centre Parry Sound, ON
28/09/19 Regent Theatre Oshawa, ON
18/10/19 McPherson Playhouse Victoria, BC
19/10/19 Sid Williams Theatre Courtenay, BC
20/10/19 The Port Theatre Nanaimo, BC
22/10/19 Tidemark Theatre Campbell River, BC
24/10/19 Kelowna Community Theatre Kelowna, BC
25/10/19 Charles Bailey Theatre Trail, BC
26/10/19 Key City Theatre Cranbrook, BC
30/10/19 Memorial Centre Theatre Red Deer, AB
01/11/19 Festival Place Sherwood Park, AB
05/11/19 Vic Juba Theatre Lloydminster, AB
08/11/19 Bella Concert Hall Calgary, AB
09/11/19 Esplanade Theatre Medicine Hat, AB***
12/11/19 Lyric Theatre Swift Current, SK
16/11/19 E.A. Rawlinson Centre Prince Albert, SK
21/11/19 FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre St. Catharines, ON
22/11/19 Showplace Performance Centre Peterborough, ON
23/11/19 Orillia Opera House Orillia, ON
29/11/19 National Arts Centre Ottawa, ON*
27/03/20 River Run Centre Guelph, ON
23/04/20 Capitol Theatre Moncton, NB
07/05/20 Richmond Hill Performing Arts Centre Richmond Hill, ON
* Featuring Dan Aykroyd, Paul Shaffer, David Wilcox, Kenny Neal, Gene Taylor
** Featuring Dan Aykroyd
*** Featuring Colin James
Lou Rawls lays down a funky track about the importance of taking high blood pressure medication
Get yourself tested, for Lou’s sake.
Artists who use the Mac to create music
From bedroom studio to stadium tour, the British music scene is alive. See the emerging and the iconic, the graft and the glory, a glimpse behind the scenes and behind the music.
Learn more about music on Mac here.
Photo Gallery: Marianas Trench with Scott Helman at Niagara Falls’ Rapids Theatre
All photos by Mini’s Memories. You can contact her at minismemories@hotmail.com
My Next Read: The Vinyl Frontier, The Story of the Voyager Golden Record
In 1977, a team led by the great Carl Sagan was put together to create a record that would travel to the stars on the back of NASA’s Voyager probe. They were responsible for creating a playlist of music, sounds and pictures that would represent not just humanity, but would also paint a picture of Earth for any future alien races that may come into contact with the probe. The Vinyl Frontier by Jonathan Scott tells the whole story of how the record was created, from when NASA first proposed the idea to Carl to when they were finally able watch the Golden Record rocket off into space on Voyager.
The final playlist contains music written and performed by well-known names such as Bach, Beethoven, Glenn Gould, Chuck Berry and Blind Willie Johnson, as well as music from China, India and more remote cultures such as a community in Small Malaita in the Solomon Islands. It also contained a message of peace from US president Jimmy Carter, a variety of scientific figures and dimensions, and instructions on how to use it for a variety of alien lifeforms. Each song, sound and picture that made the final cut onto the record has a story to tell.
Through interviews with all of the key players involved with the record, this book pieces together the whole story of the Golden Record. It addresses the myth that the Beatles were left off of the record because of copyright reasons and will include new information about US president Jimmy Carter’s role in the record, as well as many other fascinating insights that have never been reported before. It also tells the love story between Carl Sagan and the project’s creative director Ann Druyan that flourishes as the record is being created.
The Golden Record is more than just a time capsule. It is a unique combination of science and art, and a testament to the genius of its driving force, the great polymath Carl Sagan.
You can get it here.
Keanu Reeves Plays With Puppies While Answering Fan Questions
Keanu Reeves gives us the scoop on his favorite sandwich, his new Toy Story 4 character, and what that picture of him riding a horse in Brooklyn was all about.