The first segment of the series on jazz and bebop, produced by Quincy Jones Productions and directed by Moses Berkson, features L.A. jazz musician Terrace Martin as well as input from Quincy Jones himself. Martin delves into how the genre, birthed in New York City much like Basquiat, played a role in his artistic vision. The series includes works by bebop artists such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Max Roach. Music for this segment includes “Ornithology” by Parker, “Hot House” by Parker and Gillespie, “Ol Man Rebop” by Gillespie, and music from Martin’s Dinner Party.
The 34th Annual Tibet House US Benefit Concert Virtual Edition Featuring Eddie Vedder, Phoebe Bridgers, Brittany Howard and More
One of the longest-running and most renowned live cultural events in New York City, The 34th Annual Tibet House US Benefit Concert will return this year for a special virtual edition combining live and pre-recorded segments streaming via Mandolin, the premiere concert livestream platform for artists, venues, and fans on February 17, 2021. Tickets are available here.
For the first time ever, this year’s concert offers viewers around the world the unique opportunity to experience the warmth, sense of community, and amazing music the evening has provided for so many years at Carnegie Hall. Joining esteemed composer and artistic director Philip Glass, who once again curated this year’s line-up, will be Eddie Vedder, Phoebe Bridgers, Brittany Howard, Valerie June, Angélique Kidjo, Laurie Anderson, Tenzin Choegyal, Rubin Kodheli and many, many more to be announced soon. We are also deeply honored to announce that the concert will begin with a personal video message from His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.
There are few events that stand the test of time, and for more than three decades this annual event has been a standout. For over 33 years, this consistently sold-out concert has assembled some of the most legendary and exciting names in music and art, dazzling concertgoers with its unique mix of surprises and mesmerizing performances.
All proceeds support the work of Tibet House US, a non-profit educational institution and cultural embassy founded in 1987 at the request of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to ensure the survival of the unique Tibetan civilization.
Throughout its rich history, the one-of-a-kind Tibet House US Benefit Concert has had hundreds of world-class artists participate including Alabama Shakes, Patti Smith, Carly Simon, David Bowie, Stephen Colbert, Lou Reed, Sharon Jones, FKA twigs, The Roots, Jim James, The Flaming Lips, Vampire Weekend, St. Paul and the Broken Bones, Blood Orange, Sigur Ros, R.E.M, Emmylou Harris, Jon Batiste, Nathaniel Rateliff, Jason Isbell and many, many more. The event has garnered praise from many, including New York Times, Rolling Stone, Hollywood Reporter, Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, Associated Press, Billboard, Vogue and more.
Banned When First Released in the ’40s, Toronto’s TREVOR OWEN Offers His Take on “Horizontal”
The veteran Toronto-based musician Trevor Owen has just released his latest single, “Horizontal” — available now.
Though the groovy two minute-spanning number was released as Owen’s latest single, it’s actually a cover of the 1940s tune by the famed American lyricist Hal David. “Horizontal” was the first success David actually enjoyed in his lengthy career, though it was soon banned in Boston for being too risqué… “Where lying down was apparently considered controversial,” according to Owen. The song was co-written by David and Lou Ricca.
Along with “Horizontal,” Owen’s accompanying debut album And the Moon Rising features three other covers and six original tracks. It was released last January and produced by Marcus Vichert. Owen began recording the album in 2018 with engineer Braden Sauder at Marquee Sound in Toronto, and the record was mastered by Stephen Stepanic at João Carvalho Mastering.
As a young schoolboy, Owen made the decision to drop out of school back in the 1960s in order to pursue a career in music. He started playing in Yorkville clubs and pubs before landing gigs all across Canada. He played cover sets, his own original music, with bands and many other acts, until finally recording and releasing And the Moon Rising in 2020. His long-lasting career ended up paying for a post-secondary education, which resulted in him becoming a teacher in Toronto.
Watch Grateful Dead Perform on ‘Playboy After Dark’ After Being Secretly Dosed With LSD in 1969
While hanbging out in Los Angeles, as the Grateful Dead did from time to time during January 1969, the group performed two of their songs, “Mountains of the Moon” and “St. Stephen”, on the set of Playboy After Dark after secretly dosed with LSD. I’m sure they didn’t mind, but…
Hugh Hefner: I wonder if we could get you to do a number for us?
Jerry: Absolutely not.
Weezer’s New Album ‘Ok Human’ To Be Released January 29, 2021
Los Angeles, CA’s Weezer will release their fourteenth studio album, entitled OK Human, on Friday, January 29th on Crush Music/Atlantic. The album’s first single, “All My Favorite Songs,” can be heard below.
For anyone keeping score at home: 2020 was going to be the year of Van Weezer — the big riffs rock album Weezer made as an homage to the metal bands they loved growing up — until, thanks to the global pandemic, it suddenly wasn’t. The entire time, however, Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo was busy at the piano, writing a very different album that took inspiration from another vital musical touchstone of his youth: The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds. Throughout the summer of Covid-19, he and the band — along with a 38 piece orchestra — chipped away at masked recording sessions using all analogue technology until the record was complete. The result is an album called OK Human — a cheeky nod to Radiohead’s technophobic future-trip OK Computer, but sounding nothing at all like that record.
Taking the listener bit by bit through parts of Cuomo’s every day, it’s a Technicolor symphonic spree that meditates on how over-and-under-connected we all are, particularly in a year where we can see each other with greater ease, but can’t be physically near each other at all. In addition to it being the first time Weezer have ever featured full orchestration on any of their records, OK Human is also packed to the brim with some of the best, most personal songs Cuomo has written in the last decade, all of which shine brighter and bolder with splashes of string and horn arrangements courtesy of album producer Jake Sinclair and arranger Rob Mathes. While showcasing Cuomo’s impeccable songwriting skills, OK Human also has shades of beloved albums of yore — not just Pet Sounds, but Harry Nilsson’s Nilsson Schmilsson; Randy Newman’s self-titled debut; the stacked harmonies of The Carpenters’ records; even tints of Francoise Hardy’s Message Personnel. It is possibly the only record ever created that waxes poetic on themes of loneliness, disconnection, and reaching middle age alongside references to Mrs. Dalloway, Blackpink, the La Brea Tar Pits, Audible, and vegetarian Indian takeout, among others.
It’s hard to imagine any other band who came up in the alt haze of the 90s creating a simply perfect orchestral pop album, but that is exactly what Weezer’s done; OK Human is a testament to the excellent, enduring melodies Cuomo has written since Weezer’s inception, and the ones he continues to write today.
Weezer will be touring this summer as part of the rescheduled Hella Mega tour alongside Green Day and Fall Out Boy; all tour dates are below.
OK Human track listing:
1. All My Favorite Songs
2. Aloo Gobi
3. Grapes of Wrath
4. Numbers
5. Playing My Piano
6. Mirror Image
7. Screens
8. Bird With A Broken Wing
9. Dead Roses
10. Everything Happens For A Reason
11. Here Comes The Rain
12. La Brea Tar Pits
Weezer tour dates:
7/14/21 Seattle, WA @ T-Mobile Park
7/17/21 Los Angeles, CA @ Dodger Stadium
7/18/21 San Diego, CA @ Petco Park
7/20/21 San Francisco, CA @ Oracle Park
7/24/21 Arlington, TX @ Globe Life Park
7/27/21 Atlanta, GA @ SunTrust Park
7/29/21 Houston, TX @ Minute Maid Park
7/31/21 Jacksonville, FL @ TIAA Bank Field
8/1/21 Miami, FL @ Hard Rock Stadium
8/4/21 New York, NY @ Citi Field
8/5/21 Boston, MA @ Fenway Park
8/8/21 Washington, DC @ Nationals Park
8/10/21 Detroit, MI @ Fox Theatre
8/13/21 Hershey, PA @ Hersheypark Stadium
8/15/21 Chicago, IL @ Wrigley Field
8/17/21 Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre
8/19/21 Pittsburgh, PA @ PNC Park
8/20/21 Philadelphia, PA @ Citizens Bank Park
8/23/21 Minneapolis, MN @ Target Field
8/25/21 Commerce City, CO @ Dick’s Sporting Goods Park
Documentary Follows Political Journey of D.O.A.’s Joe Keithley, Connections Between Music and Activism
Today, award-winning documentary filmmaker/director Scott Crawford (CREEM: America’s Only Rock’n’Roll Magazine) and producer Paul Rachman (American Hardcore) launched a Kickstarter campaign in support of their new project, Something Better Change. The film documents hardcore punk band D.O.A.’s frontman and lead guitarist Joey “Shithead” Keithley’s unprecedented political rise in his native Burnaby, BC Canada and his 2022 re-election journey while also exploring how music and activism often interlink via raising awareness about important social issues, inspiring people to get involved, and fostering real, dynamic change. Directed by Crawford, the documentary will also feature former U.S. Congressman Beto O’Rourke, Henry Rollins, Keith Morris (Circle Jerks), Duff McKagan (Guns and Roses), Ian MacKaye (Fugazi), Krist Novoselic (Nirvana), Jello Biafra (Dead Kennedys), and many more. You can support the doc through the film’s Kickstarter HERE.
Throughout the 1980s, defining hardcore punk band D.O.A. helped solidify and pave the way for the explosion of politically active punk artists in modern culture alongside other legends such as Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Dead Kennedys, and Minor Threat. After decades of fighting against oppression, homelessness, and corporate greed via D.O.A.’s music and in his own personal life, in 2018 frontman Joey “Shithead” Keithley, ran for city council in his native hometown of Burnaby, B.C. With only a $7000 campaign budget on a Green Party ticket, he won, while also helping to unseat the former five-term mayor Derek Corrigan who once famously said, “I would never bend over to give a homeless person a dime because he might steal my watch.”
However, will Keithley’s message and DIY approach to campaigning resonate with voters in the upcoming Burnaby election of 2022? And how do the ethics and activism of music translate into political action? Win or lose, Something Better Change will document every step of Keithley’s campaigning for a second term as well as explore how music often serves as an introduction to social issues that inspire people to get involved and foster dynamic change.
As Keithley recently told Rolling Stone: “When Scott Crawford approached me about making a documentary, it wasn’t long before I saw that we shared the same vision, we both wanted tell the same story – that punk rock activism can take on any bullshit thrown our way and create results that really make a difference in our communities. When I started playing in D.O.A., I realized pretty quickly that the band was a great way to get people to listen to ideas and help to make this world a better place. Much like the band’s motto states: TALK minus ACTION = 0. I’m really getting a chance to see those positive changes in real time now that I’m an elected official.”
While punk rock’s upper echelon may no longer be as culturally seditious as they once were, the genre’s effect on a new generation of activists and aspiring politicians has never been clearer. “Not only have I been a longtime fan of D.O.A.,” director Scott Crawford states, “but Joe Keithley’s ‘David versus Goliath’ story of affecting change from within the political ecosystem is one that I think will resonate with audiences — especially given our current political climate. This is a film that will explore how music and activism continue to interlink, with music often serving as an introduction to social issues that inspire people to get involved and foster dynamic change.”
About the Filmmaker: Scott Crawford has been a documentary filmmaker for the last 10 years. His debut film was Salad Days: A Decade of Punk in Washington, DC and his second effort was the immensely popular CREEM: America’s Only Rock’n’Roll Magazine. Both films received critical acclaim and won multiple film festival awards across the globe.
Actor & Artist ANDREA RANKIN Releases Debut Alt-Pop “Tides Of Life” Album
Edmonton, AB-born, now Stratford, ON-based alt-pop artist Andrea Rankin is wading amongst the ebbs and flow of life with the release of her sparkling and ever-swathing debut, Tides — available now.
“This is a collection of songs that explores how our lives come to us in cycles… Or in seasons…,” Rankin muses of the offering. “We think feelings will stick around forever, but they crash like waves on the shores of our lives and move back out to the sea.”
An esteemed actor, singer, songwriter and pianist with three seasons at The Stratford Festival as both Ophelia in Hamlet and Hero in Much Ado About Nothing — as well as Bard on the Beach, The Citadel Theatre, Theatre Calgary, Shakespeare By the Bow, Edmonton and Alberta Opera, The Mayfield Dinner Theatre, and The Shakespeare Company — to her extensive credit, the multi-talented artist has crafted a decidedly unique and contemplative approach to her indie alt-pop sound.
With The Stratford Festival season pulled in mid-March due to COVID-19, Rankin channelled her creative energy with a series of releases — including breakthrough single, “Finally” (2020), as well as a holiday double-single in “Traditions” and “These Silent Nights” (2020).
The annum’s ultimate offering resulted in Tides, a six-track breakthrough sojourn through sensitive and cathartic observations of rugged themes around regret, falling in love, asking for help, and healing.
“This album feels like a time capsule, or a photograph,” the Edmonton, Alberta-raised, Stratford by way of Toronto based artist reveals. “There are breakups, moves, travels, new loves, growth, old friendships, and time in these songs.
“As a classically trained singer and pianist, I steered my proverbial ‘ship’ in an entirely new direction on Tides. I explored ethereal, delicate vocals and waves of playful arrangements with keyboards and synth.”
Recorded at True North Recording Studios, the album was produced by Jesse Northey (Jesse & The Dandelions, Victory Pool, MGMT). “Jesse is an incredible producer, musician, and friend,” Rankin shares of Northey and their collaborative creation process. “Working on the album, it was just the two of us in the studio so we took our time drinking coffee and catching up.
“Ultimately it allowed us to approach each song with curiosity and humour.”
For “The Party,” that meant considering how “sometimes people enter our lives like it’s a house party,” Rankin says. “They trash the place — our hearts — and then leave before cleaning up their mess. It’s painful.
“Other times, we are that person to someone else. We’re all capable of being both the organ and the knife. This is true in relationships with others and also with ourselves. It can be difficult to make friends with yourself.”
Speaking of friends, Rankin penned “Blush and Bloom” for one who was experiencing a hard time, she shares. “I wanted it to feel like sun streaming through a window, or someone helping you get out of bed on a cold winter morning. I wanted to remind her of the beauty in simple things.
“‘Dizzy Moon’ is about falling quickly for someone and not being sure if they’re going to catch you,” she continues. “It’s about trusting someone before you’re sure if they can be trusted. It’s about wanting to know if someone is going to be a fleeting presence in your life or an anchor; not knowing if someone is ‘prose or a poem’ or a ‘lighthouse or a porch light.’”
In a complementary vein, “Heal” is about “developing a relationship with someone when you’ve both been hurt before,” she considers. “It’s about the fear of trusting someone and loving again and how, and the wondering of ‘if this will be love that heals or hurts you,’ and if this is the person you want to figure that out with.”
The album rounds out with “White Flag” and “Fine.” “This song is about a breaking point,” Rankin explains of the former. “It’s about admitting you’re hurting and can’t do it alone. It’s also about seeing collective, societal pain; I wrote it after the 2016 election and after I moved to a new city alone.
“‘Fine’ is about finding comfort in leaning on someone that’s really there for you. It’s about that feeling of being understood — either in a relationship with someone else or with yourself. It’s about knowing that you’re seen and loved, without conditions.
“In all, I hope these songs offer some comfort if the tides get too high,” Rankin extends. “I hope they’re a reminder that, in life, they’re only waves. They will wash away, and a new one will come.”
Tides Track Listing:
“The Party”
“Blush & Bloom”
“Dizzy Moon”
“Heal”
“White Flag”
“Fine”
Platinum-Selling CLASSICAL KIDS Releases First New Album in 20 Years – Gershwin’s Magic Key
Gershwin’s Magic Key is the first-ever educationally entertaining musical story introducing children to the extraordinary life and musical masterpieces of one of America’s greatest composers, conceived and produced by Chicago-based Classical Kids Music Education.
Gershwin’s Magic Key steps into New York City of the 1920s, where a newspaper boy has a chance encounter with George Gershwin, and they explore the many sights and sounds of the city. The music is magically woven into a 50-minute story as the characters share anecdotes and observations based on true incidents from the composer’s life. The recording features more than two dozen of Gershwin’s most popular compositions. Presenting history, drama, music and fun, this engaging musical story is designed to be enjoyed by the entire family.
Toronto, ON’s The Children’s Group is excited to release the studio recording of the Classical Kids LIVE! production, Gershwin’s Magic Key, featuring the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras and including the two actors featured in the original live concert, which premiered with the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
The award-winning Classical Kids Series has created new generations of classical music fans through its unique blend of dramatic stories based on historical fact and musical masterpieces by the world’s best-loved composers. Now with millions of recordings sold and over 100 prestigious awards and honors, including an unprecedented 6 JUNO Awards for Best Children’s Recording, Classical Kids is considered the leader at introducing children (and adults) to the lives and musical masterpieces of the great composers.
This recording is produced by Classical Kids Music Education, a non-profit organization that produces live stage adaptations of the Classical Kids audio series. More than 500 orchestras performing for over two million audience members around the world have presented these captivating and inspiring productions providing families with an exciting and educational point of entry into the world of music.
Classical Kids chose the acclaimed Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras to play for this project in order to increase the recording’s impact and inspire an excellence in young people – both those playing and those listening – to reach beyond themselves and their own potential.
Link to a behind the scenes video of the making of Gershwin’s Magic Key.
Gershwin’s Magic Key is available for pre-sale now though Children’s Group. Digital CDs and MP3s will be available on Feb. 25, 2021. Gershwin’s Magic Key will also be available as an Audiobook.
With a Wilted Relationship as a Muse, St. Catharines, ON’s KATHRYN SINOPOLI Releases New Single “Waterproof”
The coming of a new year often fills people with a great deal of hope and ambition to make a difference and do something noteworthy; whether that’s for themselves or others. Well, only one week in and Canadian pop singer Kathryn Sinopoli has already done just that, with a song by the name of “Waterproof” — available now.
With this track, not only has the St. Catharines-based artist managed to leave some of the demons of 2020 in her past, but she’s released possibly her most powerful and inspiring single to date.
Along with producer Derek Elliotson, Sinopoli penned “Waterproof” last August after experiencing what she said was a “long conversation with a counsellor.” The reflective, piano-driven ballad is about a personal relationship which didn’t work out, according to the singer/songwriter.
“Not sure where to place blame; knowing two parties are always guilty,” she adds in regards to the wilted relationship.
Not only do the heart-filled emotional instrumentals of “Waterproof” instill hope for the prosperity of a long-decaying romance in the listener, but Sinopoli’s raw, tear-jerking lyrics take it to the next level. It’s clear that the up-and-coming artist has no trouble connecting her passion — music — with her deepest, most personal feelings after hearing the emotional chorus. She sings: “(When) I was sinking in a sea of inadequacy / I was gasping hoping you would rescue me / I could see you on the shore / Wondering what you were waiting for / I’m sorry I thought you were waterproof.”
At the mere age of two, Sinopoli began singing, however, didn’t take her songwriting abilities seriously until she reached her early 20s. Finding few opportunities to grow her skills in her hometown of St. Catharines, Ontario, Sinopoli joined the Nashville Songwriters Association International, where she has been recognized as “One to Watch” and has polished her skills to create strong lyrical phrases and new melodies.
Kathryn Sinopoli released four singles last year, including “Head Space,” “Clean Hands,” “Lemonade,” and “Home for Christmas.” Following her release of “Home for Christmas” in November 2020, the breakout Ontarian star landed herself on the Canadian AC Billboard Chart at #40; on top of that, it became the #3 Most Active Indie song in Canada on the week of its initial release.
Former Lou Reed, Foreigner And Downchild Keyboardist MICHAEL FONFARA Dies At 74
Internationally renowned Canadian keyboard player, Michael Fonfara has died in a Toronto hospital on January 8, 2021, due to complications from his two-year battle with cancer. He was 74.
Born in Stevensville, ON, Canada in 1946, the former Lou Reed keyboardist/bandleader appeared on nine of Reed’s albums between 1974 and 2005, including his highest charting US album (#10) Sally Can’t Dance on RCA, as well as Rock and Roll Heart, Street Hassle, The Bells (which Fonfara executive produced) and Growing Up In Public that was co-written and co-produced by Fonfara for Clive Davis’ Arista Records in 1980.
A supremely talented musician, Fonfara loved many different styles of music, performing on British-American Rock band Foreigner’s iconic album 4, produced by Mutt Lange, including their Top 5 Billboard Hot 100 hit “Urgent”. He also recorded with The Everly Brothers, Rough Trade, Rhinoceros, Electric Flag and was a current and 30-year plus member of Canadian blues legends Downchild, who are perhaps best known as the inspiration for Hollywood stars Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi’s hit film The Blues Brothers, until his untimely death.
“He`s the best musician I`ve ever worked with,” states Downchild leader and co-founder Donnie Walsh. Bassist Gary Kendall echoes that sentiment “Yesterday we lost a brother, a band mate, a co-writer and a dear friend. If you met him, you loved him. A creative genius.”
Fonfara’s final recording was Downchild’s Live At The Toronto Jazz Festival, recorded at their 50th Anniversary party in 2019, where he performed live alongside special guests Dan Aykroyd, Paul Shaffer, David Wilcox, Kenny Neal, Gene Taylor and Erja Lyytinen. The new album was just released worldwide on October 16, 2020, as the final chapter of his illustrious career.
2018 Juno Award (Canadian equivalent of a Grammy Award) winners, Downchild, include some of the most well-respected musicians in Canada, who have performed together for over 25 years. Guitarist, harmonica player, leader and co-founder of the band, Donnie “Mr. Downchild” Walsh, lead singer and harmonica player Chuck Jackson, Pat Carey on tenor sax, Mike Fitzpatrick on drums, Gary Kendall on bass, and Michael Fonfara on keyboards.
Michael Fonfara is survived by his wife Avril, his daughters Ashley and Ciara and his grandchildren Brooklyn, Camden, Jamie, and Jaxon.