Have you ever seen something that makes your skin tingle and for some unknown reason provides you with a sense of unbridled peace and happiness? Gears working in perfect synchronization, a cake frosted with absolute precision, marbles rolling so smoothly it hurts. Something that is just…satisfying? Well here’s five solid minutes of that feeling.
BBC Doc Music Moguls: Masters of Pop Is GREAT
This is the secret, and untold, history of pop and rock from the men and women who pulled the strings behind the scenes – the producers, the managers and the PR giants.
Episode one tells the story of the maverick managers who controlled the careers of megastar artists, from Colonel Parker (Elvis) right the way up to Scooter Braun (Justin Bieber). Along the way are rollicking tales of industry legends like Led Zeppelin’s Peter Grant, and Don Arden, who managed the Small Faces, Black Sabbath and ELO. Narrated by Simon Napier-Bell, it also features contributions from Andrew Loog Oldham (the Rolling Stones), Jon Landau (Bruce Springsteen), Bill Curbishley (the Who), Paul McGuinness (U2) and Jonathan Dickins (Adele).
https://youtu.be/gyPJiey6vck
Part two of this enlightening series exploring the music business from behind the scenes looks at the music producers. These are the men and women who have created the signature sounds that have defined key periods in rock and pop history. Highlights include Trevor Horn on inventing the ‘Sound of the Eighties’, Lamont Dozier on Motown, and a TV first with legendary producer Tony Visconti taking us through David Bowie’s seminal song Heroes.
https://youtu.be/9sEUVJRw9qU
Part three of this illuminating series exploring the music business from behind the scenes takes a look at PR, the unseen force behind all the biggest musical acts in the world. With unique revelations, unseen footage and unrivalled access, it tells the story of the rise of PR within the music industry through the eyes of the people who lived it. Highlights include the PR campaigns behind superstars Jimi Hendrix, Taylor Swift and David Bowie.
https://youtu.be/AOoJd4xDQio
Disabled Musicians Use Ground-Breaking Technology To Create Music With Their Minds
Four members of a Paramusical Ensemble, who are unable to talk or move, are using ground-breaking technology to create music with the power of their minds. The University of Plymouth and the Royal Hospital for Neuro-Disability developed technology to read the electrical activity in the brain and used it to create the piece of music. The disabled musicians wear and EEG cap which reads electrical signals from their brain.
Via BBC
Remember View-Master? Take A Look At What It’s Like Now With Virtual Reality
Remember the View-Master? That red device purchased with “reels”, the thin cardboard disks containing seven stereoscopic 3-D pairs of small color photographs on film?
The View-Master system was introduced in 1939, four years after the advent of Kodachrome color film made the use of small high-quality photographic color images practical. Tourist attraction and travel views predominated in View-Master’s early lists of available reels, most of which were meant to be interesting to users of all ages.
Well, it’s been updated.
Step into an amazing virtual world with just three items: a View-Master viewer, an Experience Pack, and your compatible iOS or Android smartphone.
Then follow these few easy steps: Download and launch the Experience Pack app, which is available on the App Store or Google Play Store. Take your Pass Card, which is included in each Experience Pack, and scan on your smartphone to unlock the Experience. Then open your viewer, slide in your smartphone, take the viewer and look through it at the reel.
Star Wars Episode VIII Video Released With A List Of Cast Members
Cameras roll for the next chapter of the Star Wars saga, written and directed by Rian Johnson.
Star Wars: Episode VIII, released on December 15, 2017, continues the storylines introduced in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, welcomes back cast members Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, and Andy Serkis. New cast members will include Academy Award winner Benicio Del Toro, Academy Award nominee Laura Dern, and talented newcomer Kelly Marie Tran.
Tom Waits Streams New Track From Blind Willie Johnson Tribute Album
Legendary artist Tom Waits is streaming his new recording of Soul Of A Man from the forthcoming album God Don’t Never Change: The Songs Of Blind Willie Johnson on Soundcloud. Waits also recorded John The Revelator for the album.
The album — to be issued on CD on February 26 and soon after on vinyl — features newly recorded versions of the iconic slide guitarist/vocalist’s most seminal material. In addition to Waits, Lucinda Williams, Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi, Cowboy Junkies, Blind Boys Of Alabama (with Jason Isbell on guitar), Sinéad O’Connor, Luther Dickinson featuring The Rising Star Fife & Drum Band, Maria McKee, and Rickie Lee Jones all deliver deeply moving interpretations of Johnson’s otherworldly “gospel blues” music.
Produced by Jeffrey Gaskill (producer of the twice Grammy-nominated compilation, Gotta Serve Somebody: The Gospel Songs of Bob Dylan), God Don’t Never Change: The Songs Of Blind Willie Johnson highlights the music of one of the greatest and most influential slide guitarists and vocalists who ever walked the Earth. Johnson sang his sanctified gospel lyrics with overwhelming intensity, his deep, raspy voice accompanying his haunting, blues-drenched guitar playing. Rock fans will no doubt recognize many of his songs which have been recorded over the years by artists ranging from Led Zeppelin to Eric Clapton to Bob Dylan. Johnson’s recording of John The Revelator was included in the Anthology Of American Folk Music, archivist Harry Smith’s 6-LP collection released in 1952 that set the folk revival of the 1960s into motion. God Don’t Never Change: The Songs Of Blind Willie Johnson is, according to Gaskill, “my life’s work.” The project was years in the making, and Gaskill is thrilled it’s ready to be released. “You gotta serve somebody,” he says, referencing his earlier compilation, “and I got the songs of Blind Willie Johnson.”
Blind Willie Johnson, whose life remains shrouded in mystery, was born in Pendleton, Texas in 1897 and grew up around Marlin, Texas, He recorded a total of 30 songs between 1927 and 1930 for Columbia, leaving behind a priceless legacy of the unforgettable music he created by marrying the raw, gospel fervor of his voice with the steely blues fire of his guitar. His songs were mostly traditional or came from hymnals, but when Johnson performed them, he transformed them with his soul-shaking voice and amazing slide guitar. Johnson was among the best-selling black gospel artists of the era, but the Great Depression ended his recording career. He continued traveling as a street singer, moving between Dallas, Galveston, Houston, Corpus Christi, San Antonio and finally to Beaumont, where he thundered out his street corner evangelism, spreading his sacred message through his transfixing music. He died in 1945 in Beaumont, Texas at the age of 48.
In 1977, NASA sent the Voyager 1 spacecraft on a one-way trip out of our galaxy and into the far recesses of outer space. The hope was that one day some other lifeform would come upon it and gain some insight into the essence of mankind. To that end, a gold record and player were included, featuring sounds and music to illuminate the human condition. Included on that record—along with a recording of a human heartbeat and music by Beethoven and Bach—was Blind Willie Johnson’s haunting and ethereal “Dark Was The Night—Cold Was The Ground,” a timeless representation of the humanity of Earth’s inhabitants.
Appropriately, a newly recorded version of “Dark Was The Night—Cold Was The Ground” (performed by Rickie Lee Jones) closes God Don’t Never Change: The Songs Of Blind Willie Johnson. The eleven-track album features inspired interpretations of the iconic slide guitarist/vocalist’s most seminal material. Tom Waits, Lucinda Williams, Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi, Cowboy Junkies, The Blind Boys Of Alabama (accompanied by Jason Isbell), Sinéad O’Connor, Luther Dickinson with The Rising Star Fife & Drum Band, Maria McKee, and Rickie Lee Jones all deliver deeply moving and highly personal reinventions of Johnson’s otherworldly “gospel blues” music.
Blind Willie Johnson recorded a total of 30 tracks for Columbia between 1927 and 1930, creating a priceless legacy. He created unforgettable music by marrying the gospel fervor of his vocals with the steely blues fire of his guitar. His songs were mostly traditional or came from hymnals, but when Johnson performed them, his soul-shaking voice and amazing slide guitar transformed each one into something wholly original.
Rock fans will no doubt recognize many of Johnson’s songs, which have been recorded over the years by artists ranging from Led Zeppelin to Eric Clapton to Bob Dylan. Johnson’s recording of “John The Revelator” was included in The Anthology Of American Folk Music, archivist Harry Smith’s six-LP collection released in 1952, that set the folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s into motion.
According to Luther Dickinson, “Blind Willie Johnson touches everybody. His music is so of the earth that it still sounds completely modern. It’s timeless and like nothing else ever recorded. If we could hip anybody to Blind Willie Johnson, their lives would be enriched for sure.”
Derek Trucks wholeheartedly agrees, saying, “I never heard a slide player, even to this day, play with that much emotion. I’ve only heard a few things that have hit me quite that strongly. There’s something so honest about his recordings. He’s one of the few handful of musicians whose music really feels sacred to me. Johnson’s songs, lyrics and the ability to pair the slide with the voice were amazing. It feels like it came out of a different world.”
Produced by Jeffrey Gaskill, God Don’t Never Change: The Songs Of Blind Willie Johnson highlights the music of one of the most charismatic and influential slide guitarists who ever walked the Earth. As Gaskill states, “Blind Willie Johnson’s music is imperishable. His music speaks to us as it laments the human condition; it speaks to us as it praises the steadfastness of an unchanging God. It travels through time with the same bold call of repentance that was once delivered to listeners on Texas street corners. Ultimately, it is the message that endures.” God Don’t Never Change: The Songs Of Blind Willie Johnson is, according to Gaskill, “my life’s work.” The project was years in the making, and Gaskill is thrilled that it’s finally ready to be released.
On God Don’t Never Change: The Songs Of Blind Willie Johnson, each artist sounds as if he or she was born to preach Johnson’s gospel. These eleven performances are a powerful and cohesive affirmation of faith as deep as the soul of a man, with an eternal message that is as boundless as the dark, cold night at the farthest edge of the universe.
God Don’t Never Change: The Songs Of Blind Willie Johnson
1) The Soul Of A Man (Tom Waits)
2) It’s Nobody’s Fault But Mine (Lucinda Williams)
3) Keep Your Lamp Trimmed And Burning ( )
4) Jesus Is Coming Soon (Cowboy Junkies)
5) Mother’s Children Have A Hard Time (Blind Boys of Alabama)
6) Trouble Will Soon Be Over (Sinéad O’Connor)
7) Bye And Bye I’m Going To See The King (Luther Dickinson featuring The Rising Star Fife & Drum Band)
8) God Don’t Never Change (Lucinda Williams)
9) John The Revelator (Tom Waits)
10) Let Your Light Shine On Me (Maria McKee)
11) Dark Was The Night–Cold Was The Ground (Rickie Lee Jones)
That Time The Who Recorded The ‘Batman’ Theme
The Who recorded a cover of the Batman theme in 1966. It was originally released on the EP Ready Steady Who, but has since been re-released as a bonus track on CD pressings of A Quick One. Composed by Neal Hefti, who is humorously credited with “word and music”, the song is built around a guitar hook with a twelve bar blues progression, using only three chords until the coda.
Uncovering the Power of Cover Songs on YouTube
Any music fan who flocks to YouTube to watch videos of their favorite artists has likely discovered the vast universe that exists on the platform devoted to cover songs. Before we delve any further into what this universe looks like and what it might mean for fans, artists, and music publishers, let’s ask the simplest question first: What is a cover song?
A cover song is any music performed or recorded by someone other than the artist who originally recorded, performed, or composed it. (There are legal nuances too complex to explore here, but quite simply, if you didn’t write the song, and you are performing the song, you are covering the song.)
For example, Taylor Swift’s most recent album, 1989, is a multi-platinum phenomenon that has remained pinned atop the Billboard album sales chart for nearly a year. Ryan Adams, a singer and songwriter—also popular, but not nearly in the same stratosphere as Swift—made news recently by releasing a song-for-song cover of Swift’s 1989. In other words, Adams’ version of 1989 is classified as an album comprised entirely of cover songs.
ZEFR Insights has often written about how fans drive the most-viewed content on the platform. Normally, we highlight this essential fact as a roadmap for brands to maximize the potential of earned media to help shape and disseminate their message. But early on in the first decade of YouTube’s existence, the platform was initially known as a place where recent major pop stars first got their start. Fast forward to the 2.4 billion views (and still growing) sensation that is Psy’s “Gangnam Style,” and you can now find countless examples of music icons using YouTube to their advantage. (See also: Katy Perry, Lana Del Rey, Gotye, etc.) Justin Bieber, in particular, launched into the mainstream on the power of a cover song he uploaded back in 2007 that caught the attention of label executives and landed him a recording contract.
Via Zefr
Green Day’s ‘Basket Case’ Sung By 109 Movies You All Know And Love
Ross Thompson had some time on his hands, and edited together clips of words from 109 movies to sing “Basket Case” by Green Day.
https://youtu.be/akuQrq460NI
List of all movies used:
1 Star Wars Ep. V – The Empire Strikes Back
2 Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
3 Bride of Chucky
4 Point Break
5 Monty Python’s Life of Brian
6 Edge of Tomorrow
7 Troy
8 Sweet Home Alabama
9 UHF
10 Scream 4
11 300
12 Last Action Hero
13 Guardians of the Galaxy
14 Batman Begins
15 Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
16 The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
17 Before Sunset
18 Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
19 Ronin
20 Ali G Indahouse
21 Lethal Weapon 2
22 Alice in Wonderland
23 Spaceballs
24 The LEGO Movie
25 Blazing Saddles
26 Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over
27 Kick-Ass
28 The Departed
29 Pleasantville
30 Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
31 Mr. Deeds
32 The Breakfast Club
33 Mars Attacks
34 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
35 Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
36 Irrational Man
37 A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
38 The Godfather: Part III
39 Scary Movie
40 Monsters, Inc.
41 Whiplash
42 Superbad
43 Analyze This
44 The Master
45 Wall-E
46 Equilibrium
47 Star Wars Ep. II – Attack of the Clones
48 The Dark Knight
49 Mother & Child
50 Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
51 Bridesmaids
52 Ice Age
53 Assassins
54 Hook
55 Finding Nemo
56 Platoon
57 The Hangover
58 Donnie Darko
59 Heat
60 Robin Hood: Men in Tights
61 The Devil Wears Prada
62 Spider-Man 2
63 Kindergarten Cop
64 Slumdog Millionaire
65 The Lion King
66 The Lone Ranger
67 Raw Deal
68 Miracle
69 Star Wars Ep. IV: A New Hope
70 Boyz n The Hood
71 Tombstone
72 Psycho
73 Once Upon a Time in the West
74 The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
75 Training Day
76 Minions
77 The Maltese Falcon
78 For a Few Dollars More
79 Fight Club
80 Breakfast at Tiffany’s
81 The Expendables 2
82 The Great Mouse Detective
83 The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie
84 Back to the Future: Part II
85 Scarface
86 The Emperor’s New Groove
87 Ted
88 Austin Powers in Goldmember
89 The Muppet Christmas Carol
90 Liar Liar
91 Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
92 Life of Pi
93 Citizen Kane
94 The Magnificent Seven
95 The Blind Side
96 101 Dalmations
97 The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie
98 The Room
99 The Sword in the Stone
100 Three Amigos
101 The Queen
102 A League of Their Own
103 Independence Day
104 The Wrong Trousers
105 Cars
106 The Jungle Book
107 Goodfellas
108 Ben-Hur
109 Pinochhio
https://youtu.be/akuQrq460NI
You’ll Be Amazed At The Simpsons’ Movie References
In their 27 seasons (!!!), The Simpsons have exhilarated audiences with their eerily accurate homage to famous movies to make a point. The linage from Stanley Kubrick, Alfred Hitchcock, Francis Ford Coppola and Steven Spielberg to our favourite yellow characters begins here.