The video
for "Man-Sized Wreath" is a commentary on modern media. A digital
stick figure is hounded and pursued by menacing blocks throughout. How many
times have we seen a story that won't subside or has a public, or private,
figure been stalked by the press or paparazzi?
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Friday, January 24, 2014
The Who: My Wife (1971)
"My
Wife" was the b-side to "Baba O'Riley" and is about a man that
lands in the drunk tank. His wife is pissed off because she believes he was
with another woman. It then recounts the efforts the man is thinking of taking
to save his life. The song features horns rather than the usual guitar solo.
Monday, January 20, 2014
The Screaming Trees: Nearly Lost You (1992)
Many thought Screaming Trees would be the
Seattle band to break big time. Instead, they are now a footnote in history
behind Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden. This was their one
big song, which appeared on their album Sweet Oblivion as well as the Singles
soundtrack.
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Smashing Pumpkins: Stand Inside Your Love (2000)
Originally, "Stand Inside Your Love"
was going to be neo-New Wave, but Billy Corgan decided to go classic Pumpkins.
The video was influenced by Oscar Wilde's Salome and led to a tiff with Sharon
Osbourne.
Saturday, January 18, 2014
The Rolling Stones: Memory Motel (1976)
Mick and
Keith share vocals on "Memory Motel", which is unusual for a Stones
record. It is also one of the longest Stones songs at over 7 minutes. The motel
itself is based on an establishment in Long Island, New York. The identity of
the woman in question is not known, but speculation ranges from Annie Liebovitz
to Carly Simon.
Friday, January 17, 2014
The Ronettes: Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2007
Ronnie
Spector and her sister Estelle Bennett began singing around 1950. The Ronettes
formed in 1957 with their cousins. Eventually, the group whittled down to three
including Ronnie, Estelle, and Nedra Talley. They began recording in the early
60s.
Their
singles flopped and they began playing the Peppermint Lounge. They were
successful at the club level, but were frustrated with their label. So, they
called Phil Spector, who signed the group.
Their
breakthrough hit (with Cher on backing vocals):
The
Ronettes began a steady decline as music changed. They did, however, open for
The Beatles in 1965.
The
Ronettes went through fits and starts, but eventually split. They reformed
after Ronnie's divorce from Phil, but eventually broke up again.
Ronnie
reemerged in 1986 with Eddie Money:
In 2001,
they won a judgment against Phil Spector for unpaid royalties.
After Amy
Winehouse's OD, Ronnie played a tribute...
Back to Black
(2011): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTdE9Zd3zQM
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Grandmaster Flash: Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2007
Grandmaster
Flash is a hip hop pioneer that created the first crossfader, the backspin,
scratching, and punch phrasing. He began DJing after high school and was the
first to use two turntables. Flash formed his own group in the mid-70s, which
eventually became the Furious Five. According to legend, one of the Furious
Five coined the term hip hop while imitating the cadence of marching soldiers.
They signed
their first record deal in 1979.
The first
scratching on record:
The Adventures of
Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel (1981): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXNzMVLqIHg
Their
signature hit. The video received MTV play.
The group
broke up over money disputes. They have reunited on occasion since. Grandmaster
Melle Mel led the group for a time.
Grandmaster
Flash now has a clothing line and hosts a satellite radio show.
Monday, January 13, 2014
R.E.M.: Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2007
R.E.M.: 1998-2011
Bill Berry quit REM in 1997. In 1998, the remaining members went to work in the studio.
Bill Berry quit REM in 1997. In 1998, the remaining members went to work in the studio.
Up (1998)
Lotus (1998): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu2jN3d2zzU
Up sold 2
million copies and was considered a failure.
They were
asked to write a theme song for the Andy Kaufman biopic Man on the Moon.
Reveal
(2001)
The critics
loved Reveal, international sales increased from Up, but remained the same in
the U.S. As a result, it was disappointing to Warner Bros.
Best of
1988-2003 (2003)
The next
album seemed to disappoint the band. Mike Mills said it was slower than they
expected and Peter Buck came within a hair of saying he hated it.
Around the
Sun (2004)
They
contributed to the Save Darfur campaign. Bill Berry rejoined the band for a
John Lennon cover.
Accelerate
(2008)
Collapse
Into Now (2011)
Part Lies,
Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage 1982-2011 (2011)
Michael
Stipe and Chris Martin at Hurricane Sandy Relief (2012): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61J9zMn7RBk
REM
disbanded in 2011. They considered breaking up earlier, but felt they had
something to prove after Around the Sun. They achieved their final goal and
split. Peter has recorded a solo album and worked with Mike Mills on the
Baseball Project. Michael has been doing Michael things.
Sunday, January 12, 2014
R.E.M.: Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2007 part 2
R.E.M. (1987-1997)
REM broke
into the mainstream in 1987.
Document
(1987)
Stipe
worried that their breakthrough single was too mean spirited. At the same time,
he wanted to write a song with the word love in it without it being a typical
love song.
The album
also featured the band's most overtly political lyrics, which evolved in
reaction to Ronald Reagan.
Their
success led Rolling Stone magazine to declare REM "America's Best Rock n
Roll Band."
REM left
IRS for Warner Brothers when their contract expired.
IRS
released a "Best of" album Eponymous (1988) before REM left the
label.
Green
(1988)
Then,
everything changed. REM became one of the biggest bands in the universe.
Out of Time
(1991)
REM won a
boat load of awards for Out of Time, but did not tour.
Led
Zeppelin's John Paul Jones helped do some arraignments on REM's next album,
which focused on death and mortality.
Automatic
For The People (1992)
REM decided
not to tour and recorded another album, which was more guitar oriented.
Monster
(1994)
They
finally toured and recorded as they went along. The music industry, and REM,
was at its height. They signed the most lucrative contract in recording
history. The music industry would not survive the new millennium.
New
Adventures in Hi-Fi (1996)
Touring
proved amazingly taxing on REM. Bill Berry suffered from an aneurysm and
collapsed on stage. Michael Stipe had emergency hernia surgery. Mike Mills had
abdominal surgery. They also fired their manager after a sexual harassment
charge. In 1997, Berry decided to retire.
In the wake of Berry's announcement, Stipe compared REM to a
three-legged dog.
Saturday, January 11, 2014
R.E.M.: Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2007 part 1
R.E.M. 1980-1986
In 1980,
Michael Stipe met Peter Buck in an Athens, Georgia record store. The pair
discovered they shared similar musical tastes. They soon met Mike Mills and
Bill Berry, who were already playing music together. The four began playing
together and performed for the first time on April 5, 1980. They chose the
band's name out of a dictionary. They ushered in the Alternative music genre
out of Punk's ashes. Stipe's undecipherable vocals, Buck's unique jangle
guitar, Mills harmonies, and Berry's lyrical filtering and prescient drumming
marked the band's uniqueness.
R.E.M.
recorded their first song in 1981.
They
released an EP that IRS, RCA, and others took note of.
Chronic
Town (1982)
They turned
down RCA and signed with IRS Records in 1982. Their first album is considered
one of the great debuts of all time.
Murmur
(1983)
Reckoning
(1984)
Rough
recording sessions nearly broke the band up. Some critics noted that their
experiences in recording the album bleed into the work.
Fables of
the Reconstruction (1985)
Life's Rich
Pageant (1986)
IRS decided
to issue a record filled with songs from various sessions.
Dead Letter
Office (1986)
Monday, January 6, 2014
Van Halen: Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2007 part 3
Van Halen
auditioned singers after Hagar bolted and Roth imploded. They settled on
Extreme singer Gary Cherone.
Van Halen
III (1998)
Cherone
left in 1999 without incident and without completing the band's second album
with the singer. Fans did not accept Cherone or they were tired of the lead
singer carousel. Van Halen appeared dead.
Eddie had
hip surgery in the early 2000s and Van Halen was silent. They worked briefly
with Roth, but that fell through again. Hagar and Roth toured together in 2002,
which led to a feud between the two. Hagar rejoined the band in 2003.
The Best of
Both Worlds (2004)
The band
toured again, but tensions between Hagar and Van Halen resurfaced. Hagar left
the band again and Michael Anthony was replaced by Eddie's song Wolfgang. Roth
joined the band yet again for an album and tour.
A Different
Kind of Truth (2012)
As of
December 2013, the band is working on a new album. Hagar and Anthony work
together in the supergroup Chickenfoot and on other projects.
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