This is an ad by Joe Walsh for RADD, the nonprofit organization that uses celebrity power to create positive attitudes about road safety.
“Hey how ya doing. This is Joe Walsh. I’m speaking on behalf of RADD. It’s okay to rock and roll right? But don’t drive home drunk. If you’re drunk call me up. I have a limo, I’ll come and get you. A public service message brought to you by the US Department of Transportation, RADD, the National Association of Broadcasters and the Ad Council.”
Tom Jones has lived a life worth writing about, and recently decided to take on the job himself. His new memoir, Tom Jones: Over the Top and Back, and traces his life from a tiny terrace house in a coal mining area of Wales to 20 years of superstardom — tours around the world, big productions in Las Vegas, a Bond movie theme and more. Perhaps most remarkably, it shows readers the origins of his career, when he was 16 and supporting a wife and baby. He is still married to that woman today.
“She knew that I wanted to be a singer when we were kids — and then, of course, we found out about the birds and the bees together,” Jones chuckles. “She said to me the other day, ‘You know, when you started with the hit records and everything and the TV shows, you said one day you’d slow down.’ She said, ‘When is this slowing down going to kick in, then?’ And I said, ‘Well, to be honest, I don’t think it will.'”
Jones also has a new album, Long Lost Suitcase of songs that span the range of styles he’s tackled over the years. He joined NPR’s Linda Wertheimer to discuss both projects; hear more of their conversation at the audio link.
New Order have come a long way since writing their earliest material in a rat-infested rehearsal rooms in the months that followed the death of Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis. It’s a journey that’s taken the band through using frogs for percussion, running a club, falling out without each other and much more.In August, 2015, New Order’s members – past and present – speak to Q’s Andrew Harrison in a career-traversing, oddity-exposing 21-page special. Feuding bandmates, a record label on the perpetual brink of bankruptcy, expensive drug habits and their triumphant return and more, here’s a few choice quotes that stood out…
“If you worked late, rats would appear looking for your sandwiches. We’d be up on chairs screaming, thinking they’d run up your trouser leg and bite your knackers. But it was a respite from the outside world, from everyone obsessing about Ian dying and trying to interview us. It was a bit of an umbrella.” – Bernard Sumner on the room in Salford where they wrote the first New Order material together
“We were literally trying all the sounds on the discs and eventually you’re like, ‘Hang on, frogs! This sounds alright.’ We did it all on instinct. Ok, you could say The Perfect Kiss, you’ve got to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a prince… If you wait long enough, we’ll come up with an explanation. That we’ve made up afterwards.” – Stephen Morris on the band’s adoption of percussive amphibians
“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be in a disco band. God knows, we did for years. These tunes just make you smile, don’t they? Joy Division would never, ever make something like that. Which is all the more reason for doing it.” – Stephen Morris on the disco elements brought to the their new album by bassist Tom Chapman
In celebration of the band’s 35th anniversary, this DVD/CD set is now made available. The DVD includes “Can Free Concert”, filmed by Robbie Mueller and directed by Peter Przygodda, in front of 10,000 spectators in Cologne in 1972. It also includes this one-minute clip of the brilliant Brian Eno giving tribute to the band.
John Travolta’s first California-filmed television role was as a fall victim in Emergency!, in September 1972, but his first significant movie role was as Billy Nolan, a bully who was goaded into playing a prank on Sissy Spacek’s character in the horror film Carrie. Around the same time, he landed his star-making role as Vinnie Barbarino in the TV sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter from 1975 to 1979, becoming a beloved character in one of my fave shows growing up. He played a cocky Italian-American, and “unofficial official” leader and resident heartthrob of the Sweathogs, and watching the screen test below, he was made for the role.
https://youtu.be/HmkDkwwRD6Q
How popular was this show? It had its own board game. Dig this commercial with lookalikes…
https://youtu.be/hW7T4RhyUps
The B-52’s were formed in 1976 when vocalist Cindy Wilson, her older brother and guitarist Ricky, organist and vocalist Kate Pierson, original drummer and percussionist Keith Strickland and cowbell player, poet and vocalist Fred Schneider played an impromptu musical jam session after sharing a tropical Flaming Volcano drink at a Chinese restaurant in Athens, Georgia. Other ideas they had to name their band were the “Tina-Trons” and “Felini’s Children”. When they first jammed, Strickland played guitar and Wilson played congas. They later played their first concert (with Wilson playing guitar) in 1977 at a Valentine’s Day party for their friends. This concert was just one year later, and the same year their first single, “Rock Lobster”, recorded for DB Records in 1978, was an underground success, selling over 2,000 copies in total. It would late be re-recorded and become a classic.
If you’ve lived the life, and I mean really lived this life, you can rock in your obituary, like Rick Rice. I didn’t know Mr. Rice, nor his family, but I will say that we can only hope to have as much fun and adventure in our own.
From The Yakim Herald:
Richard (Rick) Rice (59) walked with God Saturday August 15th, 2015. Rick died from complications resulting from being stubborn, refusing to go to the doctor, and raising hell for nearly six decades. A pulmonary embolism also played a minor role in his demise.
Rick was born and raised in Yakima, WA and spent over 40 years here in the valley before moving to Cincinnati, OH, Bakersfield, CA and eventually settling in Edgerton, WI.
Rick was widely recognized as the leader in his industry but his MOST cherished accomplishment was by far his three daughters, his “girls” Jeni Rice of Yakima, Diedre Twitty of Stanwood, and Shayla Cox of Renton. His girls were his whole world.
Rick never let an opportunity to laugh slip by. His witty humor greased his way through many a sticky situation. Oh the stories he had to tell! He orchestrated a truly legendary life. Never a dull moment with that man. Always dreaming. Dreaming of the future, dreaming of his next project, the wheels in his visionary mind never came to a stop. From his trips through the Amazon jungles searching for new super fruits to his endless lifetime of shenanigans – well everywhere he went. He lived his life to the fullest and he did it HIS way. With style and class baby!
Rick had IT. He exuded charisma, charm and style. Women noticed. Rick was married to Tea Rose (Rice) in 1977 and spent the next 25 years in a whirlwind love affair.
He was an avid competitor, earning a Golden Glove in boxing, black belt karate instructor for the police departments, received a wrestling scholarship to South West Oregon Community College and spent over 30+ years playing basketball at the YMCA. He was known by “Coach” Rice to some as he started his own youth wrestling team at Washington Middle School in the late 90’s and took his team to state.
His generous spirit knew no bounds.
Rick was survived in death by his three daughters, Jeni, Diedre, and Shayla, current wife Lynn Rice of Edgerton, WI, five grandchildren, brother Jerry Rice of El Segundo, CA, and sister Betty Rosencranz of Green Valley, AZ. Rick is reunited with his parents Sidney and Ella along with his bother Jim.
In lieu of flowers, Rick would be honored if you would do the unexpected and unsolicited act of kindness for someone else today in his name.
There will be no viewing since his family refuses to honor his request to have him standing in the corner of the room with a glass of Jack Daniels in his hand so he would appear natural to visitors.
Services will be held Saturday at August 29th at the Seasons Performance hall at 2 pm; he would be delighted if you come and share a story. A celebration of his life will follow.
Rick would like you to remember him in all his glory, drinking Grey Goose, laughing and telling lies. His larger-than-life persona and trademark jack-assery will not be forgotten.
THE MAN, THE MYTH, THE LEGEND. YOU ARE OUR WORLD AND WILL BE MISSED MORE THAN YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE. LOVE YOU DAD.
R.E.M. has inked a multi-year, worldwide licensing agreement with Concord Bicycle Music for the band’s catalog that was recorded between 1988 and 2011, which includes the albums Green, Out of Time, Automatic For the People, Monster, New Adventures in Hi-Fi, and Up. Concord Bicycle plans to release deluxe reissues of the albums with bonus material and exclusive packaging on its Concord imprint. “The band and all at REMHQ [CQ] are very happy to be joining with Concord Bicycle Music for this next phase of curating and extending R.E.M.’s recorded legacy,” said R.E.M. manager Bertis Downs in a statement. “The albums covered by this agreement are some of the band’s most successful, both artistically and commercially, and we know the people at Concord share our enthusiasm about this partnership. We leave the Warner Bros. family, a great label where we are certainly grateful for some of our career highlights. But moving forward, we knew this was the right time to change it up and Concord is the right home for this key part of R.E.M.’s catalog.”
Via FMQB
Matt Andersen has been enthralling audiences with his one of a kind performance in North America, Europe and Australia for years. And in the last few he’s managed to net three Maple Blues Awards, a Memphis Blues Challenge win, a CIMA Road Gold Award, a European Blues Award, and a Juno Award nomination. A powerhouse performer with a giant soul-filled voice and commanding stage presence, Andersen has built a formidable following the old fashioned way – touring worldwide and letting the converted audiences and Andersen devotees spread his reputation through word of mouth.
Earlier this fall the award winning artist once again de-camped from his New Brunswick home – this time to record his upcoming eighth full-length album. Produced in New York with Commissioner Gordon (Joss Stone, Amy Winehouse, KRS-One), Honest Man follows up the JUNO Award nominated Weightless and sees the songwriter pushing himself into new territory. Blessed with a rich gospel soul voice and armed with a new set of songs, Matt Andersen found a perfect partner in crime with Commissioner Gordon.
“Gordon has worked with so many different people, like Santana and Quincy Jones, on so many historic albums,” says Andersen. “He has such a great approach and was able to tie-in so many new ideas to what I’ve done in the past without losing touch with my sound.”
From writing around drum beats to bringing in a cast of players including Andy Bassford (Toots and the Maytals, Burning Spear, Natalie Merchant) Benjamin Bouton (Ibibio Sound Machine), Josh David Barrett (The Wailers, Lauryn Hill), and Lenny Underwood (Mary J. Blige, Amy Winehouse), Honest Man expands on what we already know and love from Andersen and brings it to a new level.
“Gordon brought a drum beat to one of our first sessions that I loved, and I wrote ‘Let’s Get Back’ around it. When we tracked, we did it the same way as the others – myself on acoustic guitar, Benji on electric, Josh on bass. Using beats is something I never thought I would go for. But it was a lot of fun and I’m really excited with what we recorded. If I was left up to my own devices it would have been a very different record.”
Set for release on February 26 via True North Records, the ten songs that make up Honest Man explore both the political and the personal. The title track, co-written with Chris Kirby, was inspired by a US political cartoon while “Let’s Get Back”, co-penned with Andy Stochansky, has Andersen thinking about how his country as a nation has changed, but not for the better. “Who Are You Listening To?” was hatched with Ryan Hupman during a pre-election social media flood and emerges as a rally call for people to make up their own minds and not be swung by the ‘information’ we’re being fed.
On “All The Way”, written with Gordie Sampson, Andersen takes a more personal approach as he sings about the decision to fully commit to a relationship, while on the alluring piano ballad “I’m Giving In”, composed with Andy Stochansky and Jamie Hartman, he muses about the moments leading up to that commitment.
“The song ‘I’m Giving In’ was the final one that I needed to lay down vocals for,” recalls Andersen. “It was my last night in New York and the studio we were using was underneath a ballroom where Alicia Keys was rehearsing for a performance the next night. We managed to get the piano recorded in between the breaks of the rehearsal but had to skip the vocals. We went back to Gordon’s studio to listen back to the weeks’ work and enjoy a scotch when we decided to take a stab at recording the vocals. This was at 1am. It was a special way to wrap up the sessions with Gordon.”
On one of two songs created with Donovan Woods called “One Good Song” Andersen sings about exactly that. He explains, “All songwriters desire to have that one good song that just gets everybody. Not necessarily a hit, but a song that when it’s heard you can’t help but listen. This song is about the journey we all take to get there.” There is no need at all for Matt Andersen to worry about one good song, Honest Man is a watershed album full of transcendent musical moments that should elevate the songwriter from internationally acclaimed to world renowned.
No stranger to the headlining spot during summer festival season, Andersen has shared the stage and toured with Bo Diddley, Buddy Guy, Greg Allman, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Randy Bachman, Little Feat, Jonny Lang, Serena Ryder, and more. Supporting the release of Honest Man Andersen will take to the road throughout February and March with a string of North American tour dates. Full tour dates can be found below.
Joining him on stage behind the drum set is Geoff Arsenault (Daniel Lanois, Matt Mays, Al Tuck, Mary Jane Lamond), a multifaceted artist with a soulful sensibility known for his generous and harmonious style. On bass and harmonica is the JUNO Award winning multi-instrumentalist and producer Steve Marriner (MonkeyJunk, Harry Manx). And taking up the guitar and keys is Chris Kirby (Wide Mouth Mason, Big Sugar), a 10-time ECMA nominee, 5 time Music Newfoundland Award winner, and in demand songwriter, co-writing with the likes of Tim Chaisson, Phil Churchill (The Once), Eddie Schwartz, Stephen Fearing, and many others.
HONEST MAN TRACK LIST
Break Away
The Gift
Honest Man
I’m Giving In
Quiet Company
Let’s Get Back
All the Way
Last Surrender
Who Are You Listening To?
One Good Song
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES
Feb 16 – Duncan, BC – Cowichan Performing Arts Centre
Feb 17 – Victoria, BC – University of Victoria Farquhar Auditorium
Feb 18 – Vancouver, BC – Vogue Theatre
Feb 19 – Kelowna, BC – Kelowna Community Theatre
Feb 20 – Banff, AB – The Banff Centre
Feb 21 – Edmonton, AB – Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
Feb 22 – Calgary, AB – Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
Feb 24 – Saskatoon, SK – Broadway Theatre
Feb 25 – Regina, SK – University of Regina Drake Hall
Feb 26 – Winnipeg, MB – Burton Cummings Theatre
Feb 27 – Guelph, ON – River Run Centre
Feb 28 – London, ON – Centennial Hall
Mar 1 – Kitchener, ON – Centre In The Square
Mar 2 – St. Catharines, ON – St. Catharines Performing Arts Centre
Mar 3 – Owen Sound, ON – Roxy Theatre
Mar 4 – Burlington, ON – Burlington Performing Arts Centre
Mar 5 – Toronto, ON – Massey Hall
Mar 6 – Orillia, ON – Orillia Opera House
Mar 8 – Port Hope, ON – Cameco Capitol Arts Centre
Mar 9 – Markham, ON – Flato Markham Theatre
Mar 10 – Kingston, ON – Grand Theatre
Mar 11 – Burlington, VT – Club Metronome
Mar 12 – Boston, MA – Club Passim
Mar 13 – Bethlehem, PA – Blast Furnace Blues Festival
Mar 14 – Vienna, VA – Jammin Java
Mar 15 – New London, CT – Garde Arts
Mar 16 – Portsmouth, NH – Birdseye
Mar 18 – New York City, NY – Rockwood Music Hall
Mar 19 – Philadelphia, PA – Tin Angel
Mar 20 – Fall River, MA – Narrows Center For The Arts
Mar 24 – Ottawa, ON – National Arts Centre
Mar 25 – Montreal, QC – L’Astral
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Eric Alper is a 6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week and has overseen the publicity campaigns for over 183 JUNO Award-nominated albums (and 16 in 2025), 45 Grammy-nominated albums, including 47 JUNO Award, 58 Canadian Folk Music Award, 126 Maple Blues Award-winning albums and is also truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.
Contact me: eric@thatericalper.com
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