Chess Records: Blues Hits The Big Screen!
5:24 PM GMT 30/01/2008
One of America’s most iconic labels, Chess Records helped define modern music as we know it producing a dizzying array of artists that include Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Howlin’ Wolf, Etta James and Bo Diddley. And now the label, established by brothers Leonard and Phil Chess at the dawn of the ‘50s, is set to be immortalized in a Hollywood blockbuster.
The movie, entitled Cadillac Records (its title echoing the period during the birth of the label that saw the Chess brothers famously selling records from the trunk of their car), will see Beyoncé return to the big screen following her appearance in the 2006 Supremes-inspired Dreamgirls.
The former Destiny’s Child singer will play the role of Etta James, the Grammy-award winner whose Chess hits included Tell Mama and I’d Rather Go Blind. Elsewhere, Adrien Brody will play the role of Leonard Chess and Jeffrey Wright that of legendary bluesman Muddy Waters.
Written by Darnell Martin (famed for her work on 2001’s Prison Song, starring Qtip and Elvis Costello), Cadillac Records will start filming in March in New Jersey and Mississippi, with the film expected to be released next year via Sony BMG Film – a new wing of the Sony organization which is dedicated solely to music-led films.
Posted by Ross_Bennett at 5:24 PM GMT 30/01/2008
Source www.mojo4music.com
Glam for the 21st Century!!!!!!!!
MGMT
Lisa Holmes
An excercise in managing expectations
"Influenced by everyone from tour partners 'Of Montreal' to album producer David Fridmann who has worked with The Flaming Lips, MGMT are aiming for the ultimate mish mash."
As any self-respecting drone knows this band are in fact called ‘Management’ , not quite as thrilling a name as its consonant heavy abbreviation, but somehow quite appropriate.
Influenced by everyone from tour partners Of Montreal to album producer David Fridmann who has worked with The Flaming Lips, MGMT are aiming for the ultimate mish mash. Formed when the two members, Andrew Van Wyngarden and Ben Goldwasser met at Wesleyan University in Connecticut, and decided to create their own fantasy pop band. The result was MGMT’s blend of surreal cheese and trendy indie touchstones.
MGMT are a top tip for 2008, debut album ‘Oracular Spectacular’ is released at the end of January following rave reviews stateside. They wowed at CMJ 2007 and landed an unashamedly ‘sell out’ deal with Columbia. Judging by the prevalence of this statement it may just have a significant amount to do with the hype surrounding the band with rumours flying that they plan to rescue the major label’s credibility and return them to the glory days of top selling artists like Led Zeppelin – bands who weren’t afraid to earn big. Suffice to say MGMT are ambitious.
Still, there are no rock monster riffs in evidence on the album; it is, all in all, a rather fuzzy, glitzy, electronic, psych – mash up. Exactly like Bright Eyes backed by TV On The Radio on a mediocre day. It is a listen twice affair, due in part to the unobtrusive nature of the tracks, which (on first listen at least) go in one ear out the next. On closer inspection and at higher volume, a neatly sarcastic tone and ear for clean pop melodies amongst their dreaming spires becomes evident – specifically on standout tracks ‘Time To Pretend’ and ‘Kids’. The first track tells the tale of rock and roll cliché, with lyrics mentioning model wives and heroin addiction showcasing a dark satirical style.
MGMT are a good band and they have produced a solid album that at least in part deserves the hype, but, there is strong case that this band is simply on the right label at the right time.
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I loved Erykah Badu's debut album but personnaly believe she hasn't progressed much since, however, this video for a new song "Honey" is just great.
“This exciting release will happen before September,” says sources close to the band, “when ‘Amazing Journey: The Story of The Who’ will be released in Japan as a 3 x DVD set and will include the Kilburn and Coliseum gigs.”
Good news for all Who fans. For further developments of this and other Who-related stories, watch this space!
On browsing Tom Morton's superb blog I noticed that he has recently posted about Rory Gallagher and this prompted me to re-visit Rory again on this blog.
Rory was one of my main musical reference points and his two live albums from the early 70's gave me my everlasting love for live albums and gave me my first glimpse of the world of blues, though at that point my interest in him was mainly through his dexterity as a "rock" guitaist it would be a few years later before I became steeped in blues as genre entity.
"Live In Europe" and "Irish Tour '74" remain to the fore in my collection and iPod and are strongly recommended to one and all.
"Bullfrog Blues" from the former is one of my all time favourite tracks and here is the video (not from this actual album performance) of the track as posted by Tom
In recent years Rory has become well represented on the DVD shelves and as such these releases are highly recommended.
If you are ever in Cork (highly recommended) make sure you visit "Taste".
Rory Gallagher is the man who, without question, spearheaded and influenced the entire Irish rock movement. Remarkably, nearly 11 years after his untimely passing in June 1995, Rory's music is as popular as ever with his legion on faithful followers.
Rory's music was his religion. The conviction and sincerity with which he projected it have assured him a place in rock history and earnt him critical acclaim as one of the greatest torchbearers of driving, effusive rock and blues. The new album augments what we already knew about Rory and multiplies it by performances that show him in a whole new light.
Born in 1948 in Ballyshannon and raised in Cork, Gallagher's rock 'n roll odyssey began at an early age when he saw Elvis Presley on TV and became inspired to get his first guitar. Rory would listen and learn from the likes of Lonnie Donegan, Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly, Chuck Berry, Muddy Waters and Jerry Lee Lewis, many of whom Rory went on to record with.
While still at school during his early teens, Rory began playing with professional show bands throughout Ireland, whose repertoires included all the popular hits of the day. Not musically satisfied with this, Rory converted his latter showband The Impact into a six-piece R'n'B outfit and headed for Hamburg in the mid-1960s. On arrival, this line-up was soon trimmed down to his first trio.
Rory went on to form Taste in 1967 a band who soon met with wide acclaim, and subsequently headed for London where they were an immediate success at London's famed Marquee Club, counting among their fans John Lennon.
When Taste disbanded at the end of 1970, Gallagher went on to a successful solo career. From his first solo album in 1971 through to 1990's acclaimed "Fresh Evidence" and beyond, Rory Gallagher sold many millions of albums worldwide and toured the globe several times, mounting more than 25 tours in the US alone.
Following extensive tours of Europe, throughout 1972, Rory followed up with the album "Live In Europe," a top ten triumph both in the UK and internationally. While touring the US solo for the first time, he was voted Melody Maker's Top Musician Of The Year, and to cap off 1972 "Live In Europe" became Rory's first gold album, and his second chart album success in the States.
In 1973 Rory changed the line-up of his band and released a further two successful albums, "Blueprint" and "Tattoo". Later in the same year he achieved another personal high when he was invited to guest on Muddy Waters' "London Sessions" album on Chess. At the end of '73, Rory toured his native Ireland, an almost legendary tour that happily was caught on film via a documentary made by Tony Palmer.
In 1974 The Rolling Stones invited Rory to Holland to record with them, following the departure of Mick Taylor. The film documentary of "Irish Tour 1974" was released in conjunction with a double live set also entitled "Irish Tour 1974" and soon became his most successful album ever in the US, winning worldwide acclaim and prompting a tour of the far East later in the year.
On his return, Rory was invited to guest on an album by yet another of his heroes, Jerry Lee Lewis (a double album recorded in London), and went on to the Montreux Jazz Festival to record with Albert King on his "Live In Montreux" album, then guested with jazz/blues giant Chris Barber.
Having completed his contract with Polydor, Rory signed with Chrysalis in 1975 and released "Against The Grain". After an extensive worldwide tour, Rory returned to the UK to headline the Reading Festival (one of his many performances at this festival for which Rory held the record during his lifetime for number of appearances).
"Calling Card" was recorded, with the aid of Roger Glover, at Musicland Studios in Munich, and charted worldwide on its release. Gallagher then returned to the States for yet another tour.
Rory made television history as the first ever artist to appear on Rockpalast, transmitted live to some fifteen countries with an estimated audience of 50 million. In 1978 he returned to Germany to record the critically acclaimed album "Photo-Finish" at Dieter Dierks' studios in Calogne. Following his lengthy worldwide tour, Rory returned to Dierks' Studios in '79, sticking with the same successful formula to record "Top Priority". The album was released and followed up with an extensive touring schedule which resulted, in 1980, with the landmark live album "Stage Struck".
In 1982, Rory released his final album for Chrysalis, "Jinx", released by PolyGram in the US, and then returned to where he was happiest, the stage, and a successful tour of the world.
After the return of his entire catalogue in 1985, Rory formed his own label and publishing company, Capo, and began recording the "Defender" album, released in 1987, which charted strongly in many countries. The 1990 release of "Fresh Evidence" saw Gallagher opening the ears of an even wider audience. Rory continued to tour with a new band he established in '93, until he fell seriously ill in Holland in January 1995.
Biography taken from www.rorygallagher.com
The Faces feature on the cover of the latest edition of Uncut which gives me a good enough excuse to post a couple of cover versions of their songs.
And now The Faces cover McCartney!
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- THE FACES plus free CD!
Boisterous boozers, committed hotel-wreckers… Rod and the boys were one of Britain’s most underrated bands. But who really killed off the loveable shock-haired rockers, and will they reform for that one last round? And this one’s on us: Ooh-La-La!, a 15-track, 100% goodtime selection of rock’n’roll in the spirit of The Faces, with Howlin Rain, Drive-By Truckers, The Hold Steady and more… - U2 ON FILM
From Live At Red Rocks to latest big-screen extravaganza U23D, we take a comprehensive cinematic history of the legendary Irish rock gods - THE BYRDS
By late ’67 the ‘American Beatles’ were in disarray – until Gram Parsons turned up and transformed them into good ol’ country boys... How musical history was made with Sweetheart Of The Rodeo - LES SAVY FAV
Tim Harrington, rambunctious costume-loving frontman of Brooklyn’s artpunk scene-makers, takes some long overdue credit - MIKE LOVE
Way back when, the Beach Boys’ odd man out chose good vibrations over drugs and darkness... Now poised to bring the Boys back to Britain, the long-vilified Love sheds light on how he got stuck with such a bad rap - AMERICAN MUSIC CLUB
“I don’t drink before I go on stage, because I go nuts!” Mark Eitzel, the criminally undervalued prince of disparate Americana, on his band’s new album and lineup - MADNESS
The north London Nutty Boys disagree about their best LPs
- THE LONDON ROCK’N’ROLL SHOW ’72
Wembley Stadium Snapshot Special: Teds, bonfires, American legends! See how Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry brought life to a grim UK capital
- Over 200 reviews!
- IN MUSIC
...your alphabetical guide to the month's key albums – new and reissued – including Drive-By Truckers, Nick Cave, Fela Kuti, Vampire Weekend, Hot Chip, Kelley Stoltz, Neon Neon, John Renbourn, Earth, Shelby Lynne, Goldfrapp, Morrissey, Nick Lowe and many, many more - IN FILM
…Red-hot Oscar favourite Daniel Day-Lewis talks to Uncut about his superb performance in our film of the month, There Will Be Blood, and John Cusack takes us through his singular film CV, from Con Air to Being John Malkovich and beyond. Plus Sweeney Todd, Juno, Be Kind Rewind, Al Pacino in Cruising, Robert Altman’s Short Cuts and more…
Archive TV footage of legendary rock artists such as Led Zeppelin, The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix is to be rescued from obselete Super8 and Betamax formats and cleaned up in a new deal between Rockworld.TV and the Infernal Machine music archive.
The Infernal Machine archive boasts unique footage including Beatles appearances on 60s German show Beat Club and Hendrix's two appearances on the Ed Sullivan show.
Aerosmith, The Who and The Grateful Dead also feature in the dense archive collection that Rockworld.TV now have access to the contents of.
The obselete formats will be transfered, remastered and collated into a new Classic Rock series of programming for broadcast on Rockworld.TV set to be ready later this year.
Pete Hadfield, co-founder and Joint CEO of Carnaby Media who own Rockworld.TV has said: "We are getting access to some of the most exciting music footage in existence, a great deal of which has rarely if ever been seen before, which make our broadcast offering even stronger than it is already."
More information about what archive footage will be treated will be available in due course, check back to uncut.co.uk for more information as we get it.
Rockworld.TV currently broadcasts on Sky Channel 368 and online at www.rockworld.TV
Source
John Martyn's 1973 album "Solid Air" is probably his biggest commercial hit, for today's Cover Story post I am going to give you the opportunnity to listen to one of the hidden gems on the album "Over The Hill" both in it's original form and also a live cover which is faithfull to the roots of the song by Chris and Rich Robinson from the Black Crows.
Gnarls Barkley's debut album "St Elsewhere" (note TV Show title) sold by the buckefull thanks to the genre cross over hit "Crazy".
They have a new album due in April titled "The Odd Couple" (again a TV Show title" from which the track "Run" has been leaked and can be listened to below......unless the Web Sheriff get's on my case again!
