The travel company Expedia conducted a poll asking fliers to name the most annoying types of airplane passengers. Jimmy Kimmel was going to just read the list, but he thought it would be more interesting if the great Sir Patrick Stewart acted it out.
John Fogerty Announces “Fortunate Son” Autobiography Coming October 6th
Coming October 6, 2015, from Little, Brown and Company, is the long-anticipated memoir by JOHN FOGERTY, titled FORTUNATE SON: My Life, My Music. With JOHN FOGERTY writing hit after hit, Creedence Clearwater Revival burst on the music scene with an energy so bright, his songs outsold The Beatles in 1969. Then, just as quickly, that CCR fire burned out in a series of internal band struggles that left the music world without the influence of one of its brightest stars for over two decades.
“I’m excited to share my story and my life with you,” said Fogerty. “You’re going to hear where it all started, my passion to become the best musician I could be. You’ll travel down some rough roads, but that road leads to something beautiful. My book won’t be sugar coated! It’s all in there.”
Creedence Clearwater Revival is one of the most important and beloved bands in the history of Rock ‘n Roll, and the story that JOHN FOGERTY’s memoir tells will keep music lovers and avid readers captivated. FOGERTY wrote, sang, and produced the iconic classics “Born on the Bayou,” “Proud Mary,” “Bad Moon Rising,” and so many more. Now he reveals how he brought CCR to the top of the charts and how, one year later, CCR was falling apart. Their amazing talents and culturally-prophetic songs, however, have endured for decades despite the series of personal and legal issues. FORTUNATE SON takes readers from FOGERTY’s Northern California roots, through Creedence’s success, his retreat from music and public life, to FOGERTY’s hard-won revival as a solo artist who finally, through it all, found love.
JOHN FOGERTY was songwriter, lead singer, and lead guitarist for Creedence Clearwater Revival and is one of rock’s most influential musicians and writers. FOGERTY has been named one of the 100 Greatest Singers and one of the 100 Greatest Guitarists by Rolling Stone and his most recent album was named one of RS’s 10 Best Albums of 2013.
That Time Freddie Mercury Performed With The Royal Ballet in 1979
On October 7th, 1979 Freddie Mercury performed with the Royal Ballet. He had never done any ballet before, but it was something he had always wanted to try. The songs he had chosen to perform to were Bohemian Rhapsody and Crazy Little Thing Called Love. Songs were played by the orchestra with Freddie doing live vocals. Freddie’s first dance was Bohemian Rhapsody, and he performed with skill in front of a packed house of enthusiastic balletomanes, who loved him, and he received a standing ovation for both his cameo performances.
Video from that night is below.
SXSW offers 1,291 free songs from artists performing this year
These torrents include tracks that can be previewed on the SXSW website for SXSW 2015. This year’s includes 1,291 files totaling 8.42GB, making it the largest to date. Note that the filenames and ID3 tags were updated to properly reflect the artist names and song titles.
The first torrent was seeded February 18, 2015 and the second on March 12, 2015.
- SXSW_2015_Showcasing_Artists_Part1.torrent – 844 files – 5.41GB
- SXSW_2015_Showcasing_Artists_Part2.torrent – 447 files – 3.01GB
Note that 64 tracks that were included in the first torrent were no longer available on the SXSW website as of the release date of the second torrent. That list is here for reference.
SoundExchange, NPR And The Corporation For Public Broadcasting Ink Long-Term Agreement For Webcasting Royalty Rates
SoundExchange announced it has reached a settlement agreement with NPR and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) on royalty rates for the next five years for webcasting by public radio stations.
“We always prefer negotiated solutions with digital services, provided that they ensure appropriate payment to artists and rights holders. We are pleased that we have again reached an agreement with NPR and CPB. This agreement recognizes the unique circumstances and missions of these organizations, and compensates the creators of the music used in their programing,” said Michael Huppe, president and chief executive officer, SoundExchange.
“The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is pleased that we, together with NPR and SoundExchange have reached an agreement on Internet streaming of sound recordings by public radio stations funded by CPB that recognizes the unique nature of public radio and the vital service it provides to the American people,” said Pat Harrison, president and CEO, CPB.
“We are pleased to again collaborate with SoundExchange to come up with a framework for royalties that provides artists and rights holders with fair compensation while recognizing public radio’s distinctive public service and nonprofit operating model,” said NPR CEO Jarl Mohn. “The agreement is a testament to public radio’s significant contributions to musicians, artists, audiences and cultural programming in today’s dynamic music environment.”
This is SoundExchange’s second settlement agreement in five months with noncommercial webcasters. In October 2014, SoundExchange reached an agreement with College Broadcasters Inc., which represents college media outlets. The agreement ensures that noncommercial webcasters at colleges and other educational institutions will continue to have a consistent royalty framework and that the artists and rights holders who recorded the music that educational webcasters play are compensated.
The settlements, if adopted by the Copyright Royalty Board, will be in effect for the years 2016-2020.
Sony Music To Purchase Remaining Interest In The Orchard, The World’s Leading Independent Digital Distributor
Sony Music Entertainment announced that it has entered into an agreement with Dimensional Associates, LLC to acquire the remaining interest in The Orchard, the global independent music, video and film distribution company. The Orchard will continue to operate separately from Sony Music and will be led by its existing executive team.
The deal is aligned with Sony Corp.’s recently announced strategy identifying Sony Music as one of its growth businesses. Sony plans to proactively invest in and implement a variety of measures to promote growth across its entertainment businesses, including music.
The Orchard is focused on providing world-class digital distribution services for content creators including independent labels and filmmakers. It offers clients an end-to-end solution for music and video delivery to hundreds of services and digital storefronts worldwide, as well as efficient and transparent reporting of sales and revenue. The sales, digital marketing and business development offerings also included in The Orchard’s suite of services have helped it outpace the industry in growing revenue for its clients.
Sony Music became the majority investor in The Orchard in March 2012 following the merger of The Orchard with IODA, a Sony Music-owned digital distribution company. At that time, The Orchard became the digital distributor for RED and select catalogues from Sony Music affiliates outside of the U.S.
This investment in The Orchard will allow Sony Music to further enhance its relationships with distribution clients all over the world. It also will allow the companies to work more closely together to drive improvements throughout the digital supply chain and quality of revenue reporting. Sony Music remains committed to operating The Orchard independently with the goal of improving the revenue and profitability of its distribution clients.
Neil Young built “a barn roof” out of 200,000 copies of Comes A Time
From Uncut:
Neil Young has admitted he once bought thousands of copies of his own album and used them as shingles on the roof of his house.
Young, who recently launched his high quality digital Pono music player and service at South By South West in Austin, Texas revealed that a “mastering error” on the 1978 album Comes A Time left him dissatisfied with the release and forced him to take the existing copies off the market.
Asked if the story was true by Rolling Stone, Young replied: “The tape got damaged when it went through the airport or something. I had to go back and use a copy of the master — it was a copy, but it had better-sounding playback than the other one. No, no, I made a barn roof out of them. I used them as shingles.”
Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy Camp Is Coming To Toronto June 4-7 Featuring Aerosmith’s Joe Perry
The legendary Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp that has been making dreams come true in the U.S. for the past 18 years is now launching in Canada. With dates in Calgary (May 14-17) and Toronto (June 4-7), music lovers have the opportunity to move from spectator to stage, and share the limelight with industry heavy weights. The first-ever Canadian camp will take place in Calgary in May and features the rock legend, singer-songwriter, arena football co-owner of the LA KISS and media icon – Gene Simmons. Toronto hits the band stand in June and is helmed by Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famer and one of Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time, Aerosmith’s Joe Perry.
Joe Perry says, “I have a great time interacting with everyone who attends the camp. They are so stoked to get up and jam, it’s worth it to be there to experience the thrill they feel from the many accomplishments they’ve learned during their time spent at the Camp. Sharing in the excitement is a real rush for me too. Thanks for letting me be a part of the experience of the universal language of music.”
Gary Hoey (Jeff Beck, Peter Frampton, Ted Nugent and more) will join Perry as the musical director for the inaugural Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp in Toronto. Additional Rock Star Counsellors include: Mark Clarke (described as the Joe Cocker of Liverpool), Nick Catanese (Black Label Society), David Hull (Buddy Miles, Joe Cocker, Ted Nugent, The Joe Perry Project), Sass Jordan (JUNO Award winner, Canadian Idol Judge) and Gowan (vocalist & keyboard player for Styx), with more to be announced soon.
Over the span of four days, attendees fulfill their Rock ‘n’ Roll dreams and get a once-in-a-lifetime chance to jam with their idols. The Rock Star Counsellors mentor the enthusiasts to improve and perfect their instrument skills, vocals and Rock ‘n’ Roll stage presence. The Rock Campers – with guidance from the counsellors – write, record and rehearse an original song culminating with a final performance to a packed crowd in downtown Toronto on June 7.
Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp will exceed all expectations on both sides of the border with iconic headliners like: Jeff Beck, Brian Wilson (Beach Boys), Roger Daltrey (The Who), Warren Haynes (Allman Brothers, Gov’t Mule), Dave Davies (The Kinks), Bill Wyman (The Rolling Stones), Slash, Bret Michaels (Poison), Cheap Trick, Dr. John, George Thorogood, Jack Bruce (Cream), Joe Satriani, Joe Walsh, Meatloaf, Vince Neil (Motley Crue), Duff McKagan , (Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver), Michael Anthony (Van Halen), Def Leppard, Alice Cooper, Sammy Hagar and of course Gene Simmons (KISS) and Joe Perry (Aerosmith) – an exceptional experience where Rock ‘n’ Roll fantasy becomes reality.
JK Simmons on the music of “Whiplash”
Whiplash stars JK Simmons as terrifying jazz teacher Fletcher, who pushes ambitious student drummer Andrew to breaking point in the pursuit of greatness. Here’s his take on the music of the film, and his controversial role.
Johnny Cash’s Unused Theme Song for James Bond’s Thunderball
Country musician Johnny Cash also submitted a song to Eon productions titled “Thunderball” but it wasn’t used. The lyrics of Cash’s “Thunderball” describe the film’s story. The producers’ decision to change the film’s theme song so close to the release date meant that only some of the film’s soundtrack had been recorded for release on LP. You can find Cash’s “Thunderball” on the 2011 compilation Bootleg, Vol. 2: From Memphis to Hollywood.
…and here’s what the opening credits would have sounded and looked like, had they used Cash’s song.