HOLLYWOOD SONGS

Kinks - Celluloid Heroes - YouTube

► 5:26► 5:26

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 My buddy James just introduced me to a song about Hollywood I never knew about--thx kiddo!

Anyone who knows me knows how obsessed I am with HOLLYWOOD--I know my reincarnation is from someone in the 1930's or 1940's.

It's a matter of fact I want my ashes spread over the HOLLYWOOD sign (still can't decide which letter though--lol)

It's no wonder I gravitate towards all things film & Hollywood pop culture.

My favorite Madonna song--no surprise - is "VOGUE". This song tributes all the major players in Hollywood's golden era.

Along with -----------"VOGUE" ("Rita Hayworth gave good face...")
I also love------------ "JUST GO TO THE MOVIES" (Whenever you are down in the dumps, try putting on Judy's red pumps...."). This is from the musical "A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine"

Of course the old standard "HOORAY FOR HOLLYWOOD" is what most people know.

Yesterday my friend introduced me to The Kinks, "CELLULOID HEROES"...


Enjoy all of them (I just mentioned 3, there's a longer list) but definitely  listen to "CELLULOID HEREOS"--especially if you like less jazz hands & more rock. 


If you hear any other good ones make sure to let me know...

SINGER GARRY NOVIKOFF-WOW !!!

 




RUN AND HEAR THE MULTI-TALENTED GARRY NOVIKOFF !

If you're not lucky enough to hear him live ( he plays in and around NYC often),
 then go on  youtube and enjoy his many videos, they will brighten up your day.
You can also  hear him on cdbaby or spotify.

 To get a more comprehensive idea of this artist check out his website:
garrynovikoff.com 

BETTER YET, BUY HIS CD, "A NORMAL LIFE"...

TREAT YOURSELF TO HIS ADEPT PLAYING OF VARIOUS MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, CLEVER LYRICS AND  BEAUTIFUL VOICE...
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I was invited to a holiday party in December where the usual food, drink and pleasantries abounded.  I figured I'd put in my usual 2 hours and go home.

Suddenly my time at the party was happily extended as I sat mesmerized by the talents of this award winning singer, GARRY NOVIKOFF; he was a guest and treated us to a variety of songs from his extensive catalogue.
I wasn't alone. He turned an ordinary party into an "event".
We clamoured to buy his CD & now it's one of my new favorites.
Why many of his songs are not merely funny, but thoughtful and clever, is because there's always the element of surprise to them accompanied by catchy music in which you find yourself singing along to pretty quickly ("Dog on the Moon" or "Instant Passion").

  The song construction and melodies are layered; to me, this is  the sign of a true artist in the vain of a Cole Porter , Stephen Sondheim or Richard Rodgers.

NOVIKOFF then turns around reaches deep into his soul and tears your heart out with a song like "Lenny". When I watched him perform this on youtube, I wept. He embodies a young James Taylor singing that masterpiece.
Go ahead treat yourself to this performance and tell me I'm wrong...

I had recently seen the amazing Jimmy Webb and I found his opening act was a bit lame. This particular piano player was just that, a great piano player; however, his attempt to work in clever lyrics didn't work-at best they were one dimensional and not particularly creative. I hate to bring his lack of lyrical talent into his otherwise amazing tickling of the ivories but I do this only to say that within a few weeks I saw how it's really done by NOVIKOFF.

The only thing I regret is that I just found out about GARRY NOVIKOFF since after researching him I realize he's won numerous deserving awards and a multitude of great press from respected critics and fans alike.

Let's wrap this up by sayin' GARRY NOVIKOFF is a consummate performer.

Don't wait as long as I did to enjoy his talents.

"VOGUE" LAWSUIT WON -GO MADONNA & SHEP

 Madonna and Music Producer Win 'Vogue' Sampling Lawsuit

12:39 PM PST 11/18/2013 by Eriq Gardner 

The original lawsuit was filed in July by VMG Salsoul, the copyright owner of a 1976 composition called "Love Break." The plaintiff alleged that it was only through new technology that the "deliberately hidden" sampling had been detected.

But a U.S. District Court judge in California has ruled on summary judgment that sampling of the Horn hit was "trivial," in that in could not be recognized.

"Having listened to the sound recordings of Chicago Bus Stop, Love Break and Vogue, the Court finds that no reasonable audience would find the sampled portions qualitatively or quantitatively significant in relation to the infringing work, nor would they recognize the appropriation," the ruling reads. "The Court finds that any sampling of the Horn Hit was de minimis or trivial."


 The ruling had the potential of addressing a standard set in a 2006 case involving a N.W.A. rap song that sampled a Funkadelic riff. In that case, Bridgeport Music v. Dimension Films, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals wouldn't tolerate the sampling and looping of a two-second guitar chord. An appeals court wrote at the time, "Get a license or do not sample. We do not see this as stifling creativity in any significant way."

 In the present case, U.S. District Judge Beverly O'Connell somewhat sidestepped the issue of whether a very brief sample could ever amount to copyright infringement, declining to adopt any bright-line rule from a different circuit. The judge added that it wasn't appropriate to apply that case because there wasn't clarity as to whether there was copying or independent creation or, indeed any sampling at all.

Here's the full ruling.
Said attorney Richard Busch, who represented the defendants: "We are thrilled with the decision and believe it is absolutely the right result."

LINDA RONSTADT WONT SING-PARKINSON'S DISEASE

 

 

 

Linda Ronstadt Discloses Her Battle With Parkinson’s Disease

(ONE OF THE SADDEST NEWS I'VE HEARD THIS YEAR)

Her classic/standards albums with Nelson Riddle remain as some of my favorites. She's from a bygone era where you really HAD to sing, not let a computer do it for you.

WE WISH HER WELL...

Posted on 08/23/2013 by Allan Fallow of "AARP"

"Legendary singer Linda Ronstadt, 67, told AARP today that she “can’t sing a note” because she suffers from Parkinson’s disease.

 Diagnosed eight months ago, Ronstadt began to show symptoms as long as eight years ago. But she ascribed her inability to sing to a tick bite (“my health has never recovered since then”), and believed the shaking in her hands resulted from shoulder surgery. 

In a wide-ranging interview with AARP’s music writer Alanna Nash to be published on aarp.org next week, Ronstadt revealed how she discovered that “there was something wrong” with her voice.

“I couldn’t sing,” she told Nash, “and I couldn’t figure out why. I knew it was mechanical. I knew it had to do with the muscles, but I thought it might have also had something to do with the tick disease that I had. And it didn’t occur to me to go to a neurologist. I think I’ve had it for seven or eight years already, because of the symptoms that I’ve had. Then I had a shoulder operation, so I thought that’s why my hands were trembling.

“Parkinson’s is very hard to diagnose, so when I finally went to a neurologist and he said, ‘Oh, you have Parkinson’s disease,’ I was completely shocked. I wouldn’t have suspected that in a million, billion years.

“No one can sing with Parkinson’s disease,” Ronstadt said. “No matter how hard you try.”
Ronstadt walks with the aid of poles when on uneven ground, and uses a wheelchair when she travels.

Although Ronstadt’s new memoir, Simple Dreams, will appear on September 17, it does not discuss her diagnosis, or the loss of her voice.

Ronstadt, who dated high profile men such as California Gov. Jerry Brown and George Lucas, helped shape the folk-rock music scene of the late 1960s and early 1970s. She started as lead singer of the Stone Poneys, then went on to achieve fame as a solo performer. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, and an Emmy..."

NEW SONG FOR STRAIGHT AND/OR GAY-LOVE

 

 Steve Grand's 'All-American Boy' Becomes A Gay-Themed Country Music Hit On YouTube

(BEAUTIFUL-YOU GOTTA HEAR IT!)

(NICE EYE CANDY TOO--YAY AMERICAN BOYS!) 

(I LOVE ALL THE EYES REFERENCES; THE SOUL OF A PERSON, IN MY OPINION)

(GAY OR STRAIGHT,  WE ALL HAVE FALLEN FOR A PERSON WHO WAS KIND WHEN WE WERE VULNERABLE-I KNOW I'VE BEEN THERE OFTEN. THIS SONG REALLY RESONATED WITH ME & IT WILL WITH YOU)

LOS ANGELES (THE HUFFINGTON POST)
 By MICHAEL CIDONI LENNOX


The story was inspired by one of Grand's own.

"I was a 13-year-old boy (at camp)," noted the 23-year-old singer-songwriter, speaking by phone from his hometown Chicago.

 "One of my counselors was warm and strong and he took an interest in me — not sexually, but as a friend, and it really moved me.

 I remember leaving with a horrible ache in my heart."

 He's a musician without a record label, a card holder without any remaining credit. And the gig that supplies what he calls "food money" may now be in jeopardy.

But after events of the last week, Steve Grand said "I would die a happy man today," and not for the reasons he's suddenly getting attention.

Grand's first music video, for his country-tinged rock ballad "All-American Boy," was posted on YouTube last Tuesday.
By last night, it had exploded, attracting more than 400,000 total views — nothing for top-charting videos from big-name recording artists, but an impressive figure for one from a complete unknown whose only promotion has been internet buzz.

The video cost just $7,000, a fraction of the major-names' going rate, but it was a fortune to Grand, who came up with the entire budget himself by maxing out his only plastic to tell the video's story.

BOB DYLAN ADMITS HE CAN'T SING--DUH!

 

 

 

Published On: Wed, May 8th, 2013

By The Global Edition

Bob Dylan Acknowledges 50-Year-Long Hoax: My Lyrics Don’t Make Sense

 (NOTHING NEW TO ME--I NEVER GOT HIS SCREECHING-AT TIME I GOTTA ADMIT HE WROTE GOOD LYRICS)

Rock and roll legend, Bob Dylan, acknowledged in a recent interview that he has perpetuated an elaborate hoax on the public for more than fifty years. “I can’t sing, half of the time I don’t even say real words, I just mumble, and my lyrics make no sense.”

Dylan, born Robert Zimmerman, said it began innocently in a concert at the New York Coffee House, “The Bitter End” in 1962. “The audience was so stoned that when I started to play ‘This land is My Land’ for the eighth time, I started to mumble sounds. The audience went crazy. The critics said I was the ‘future of rock and roll’ so who am I to disappoint them? I was just giving the people what they wanted. 

”Dylan, often referred to as a “poetic genius”, claims he never knew what people were talking about. How profound is ‘don’t want to be a bum, you better chew gum. The pump don’t work ‘cause the vandals stole the handles’?” 

I just made up simple rhymes. Any child could have done what I did.

”The Rolling Stone interview was a promotion for the star’s recent autobiography “Buy This Book and the Charade Will Continue”.

The confession has had no apparent impact on the singer’s popularity, with his new book topping Amazon’s best-seller chart this week.

“Apparently, Lincoln was wrong. You can fool all of the people, all of the time,” Dylan added.

By TGE correspondent Jello Marx

SONG: "CLOUDS" & THE HEART BEHIND IT

 

 BESIDES THIS BEING A WONDERFULLY UPLIFTING STORY ABOUT A YOUNG MAN WHO KNEW HE WAS DYING AND DECIDED TO CELEBRATE LIFE & NOT DWELL ON HIS TERMINAL DISEASE ( Osteosarcoma).

THE SONG "CLOUDS" IS HEAVEN; TRULY BEAUTIFUL!
 IT'S FROM THE JOYFUL, HOPEFUL HEART OF ZACH SOBIECH.

WATCH IT ON YOUTUBE OR LISTEN TO IT FIRST-WOW!

IF YOU PURCHASE IT ON ITUNES THE PROCEEDS GO TO CHILDREN'S CANCER RESEARCH FUND

HIS STORY IS INSPIRING THE WORLD, I HOPE IT DOES THE SAME FOR YOU.
_______________________________________________________________________

(FROM THE CHILDREN'S CANCER FUND):
"Cancer may have taken Zach too soon, but he leaves a lasting legacy that most of us will never achieve.

 His message of love and hope delivered through infectious lyrics and memorable tunes have imprinted on the minds and hearts of millions around the world.

Zach became a beacon of light and benevolence in a world that sometimes weighs too heavily. In turn, he received a flood of well-wishes that helped him, and his loved ones, smile through tremendous pain and worry.

 He became the face of this rare disease and built tremendous awareness of the need for more research funding. Because of Zach, his family’s support, and the donations of thousands in his name, kids with osteosarcoma will have better outcomes in the future. This was a source of comfort to Zach in his last days, and will provide comfort to his family going forward.

 We also want to acknowledge Zach’s friends and A Firm Handshake band mates, Sammy Brown and Reed Redmond, who dedicated their time and energy to helping Zach achieve his music dreams. Our thoughts are also with Zach’s constant companion, and love of his life, girlfriend Amy Adamle..."


We’ll see you again, Zach, up in those clouds.
_____________________________________________________________________

MANY CELEBRITIES CONTRIBUTED TO MAKING HIS VIDEO

 The lineup included Ashley Tisdale, Colbie Caillat, Chris Pratt, Anna Faris, Jason Mraz, Sara Bareilles, Jenna Fischer, The Lumineers, Rachel Bilson, Ed Helms, Phillip Phillips, and others.


 ( SoulPancake also made a short documentary about the teen's journey, "My Last Days: Meet Zach Sobiech," which has collected over 66,000 views since it was uploaded last Friday.)

" 60 MINUTES" (CBS) MAY 19, 2013: WOW !!! 3 GREAT SEGMENTS

1-------PRIVACY GONE...
"A Face in the Crowd: Say goodbye to anonymity:
Over the last 10 years, the ability of computers to identify faces has gotten 100 times better, a million times faster, and exponentially cheaper.

Yet facial recognition technology is still a work in progress. While investigators in the Boston marathon bombing had multiple images of both suspects, the technology did not come up with a match. They were not identified by their faces, but by their fingerprints! Authorities won't say what went wrong. One possibility is that government data banks - through which the photos would've been searched - are not big enough.

As we discovered, the FBI is working on expanding its database. Businesses are tapping facial recognition to sell us stuff and computer scientists are upgrading the technology..."

(THIS IS NOT EVEN MENTIONING "GOOGLE GLASS"--WHICH OPERATES IN A SIMILAR FASHION: Essentially, Google Glass is a camera, display, touchpad, battery and microphone built into spectacle frames so that you can perch a display in your field of vision, film, take pictures, search and translate on the go...)
______________________________________________________________________

2------CAMP 14...
"-North Korean prisoner escaped after 23 brutal years
 By all accounts, a modern-day concentration camp, a secret prison hidden in the mountains, 50 miles from North Korea's capital, Pyongyang. It's called Camp 14, and according to human rights groups, it's part of the largest network of political prisons in the world today.

Some 150,000 people are believed to be doing hard labor on the brink of starvation in these hidden gulags. But it's not just those who have been accused of political crimes, it's their entire families -- grandparents, parents, and children -- a practice called "three generations of punishment."

North Korean prison escapee describes a life of hunger

Very little was known about Camp 14 until a young man showed up in South Korea with an extraordinary tale to tell. His name is Shin Dong-hyuk and, as we first reported in December, he said he had not only escaped from Camp 14, but he was born there. He's believed to be the only person born and raised in the camps who's ever escaped and lived to tell about it..."
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3------ RICHER NOW...
It's been almost four years since Michael Jackson died, but he continues to make headlines. Some of them coming out of a Los Angeles courtroom right now where his mother is suing for damages over his death from a powerful anesthetic in June 2009. But the headline of this story is that Michael Jackson is making more money after his death than he ever did when he was alive.

 The most remarkable financial and image resurrection in pop culture history. And get a rare look at what Michael Jackson left behind. The Michael Jackson brand is alive and well. Well-paid that is. Extremely well-paid.

Barcelona, Spain. The 297th performance of the Michael Jackson IMMORTAL World Tour. Cirque du Soleil produces the show featuring their acrobats and contortionists, but Michael Jackson -- or at least his music -- is the star.

Backstage at Cirque du Soleil show ''Immortal''

John Branca: We sold 230,000 tickets in two days in Japan. We did 90,000 people in Moscow. 190,000 people in Mexico City alone..."

AMERICAN IDOL WINNER! MY PICK--YES!

 AFTER TRYING OUT 3 TIMES FOR "AMERICAN IDOL"

 I AM HONORED TO ANNOUNCE THE "AMERICAN IDOL" SEASON 12 WINNER:

CANDICE GLOVER
CANDICE GLOVER
CANDICE GLOVER
 


CANDICE GLOVER
CANDICE GLOVER
CANDICE GLOVER

WATCH OUT FOR THIS NEW STAR WILL BE SHINNING EVEN BRIGHTER IN THE FUTURE...

WEEKLY SHE GAVE ME CHILLS WHETHER BELTING OUT STANDARDS, POP SONGS OR HER ORIGINAL SONG, "I AM BEAUTIFUL".

I PREDICTED THIS WIN ALL ALONG; HOWEVER, THE AMERICAN PUBLIC HAS SURPRISED ME IN THE PAST SO I WAS NEVER 100% SURE. WHAT I WAS SURE ABOUT WAS THAT THIS WAS NEVER THE END OF THE ROAD FOR A TALENT AS HUGE AS CANDICE'S.

I OFTEN COMPARED HER TO THE AMAZING JENNIFER HUDSON AND TONIGHT THEY PERFORMED A DUET--IT WAS "HAIRS IN THE BACK OF MY NECK" FANTASTIC!!!

KUDOS CANDICE!
GODSPEED...

YOUR JOURNEY & WIN BROUGHT ME TO JOYFUL TEARS...YOUR VOICE AND THE SOUL YOU BRING TO EVERY SONG ROCKS!!!

 _______________

( Candice Rickelle Glover (born November 22, 1989) is an American singer from St. Helena Island, South Carolina. This makes her the fifth female winner ever to win American Idol)
_______________

KREE HARRISON (WHO AS A CHILD SANG ON THE OLD "ROSIE O'DONNELL SHOW") WAS THE RUNNER-UP.
NOT BAD KREE, MANY RUNNER-UPS HAVE MADE AN AMAZING CAREER AS WELL. GOOD LUCK.
GEEZ,  JENNIFER HUDSON CAME IN 7TH AND NOW LOOK AT HER.

 (you can download past performances of Candice Glover & the others now)

"COAL MINERS DAUGHTER" COMING TO BROADWAY-YAY!

 

 FINALLY , NOT ANOTHER REVIVAL !

New Girl's Zooey Deschanel to Play Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner's Daughter on Broadway

_________________________________

DESCHANEL IS NO STRANGER TO SINGING, BTW...

(She is a member of the folk duo "She & Him") 

_____________________________

 “Loretta Lynn and her music have been inspirations for me for as long as I can remember,” Deschanel also stated. “She is a true legend and to be chosen to play such an iconic woman is a dream come true.”

Coal Miner's Daughter follows Lynn's life from her impoverished Kentucky childhood to working her way to becoming known as the "First Lady of Country Music." Lynn first published her autobiography in 1976, with a film adaptation following in 1980. Sissy Spacek earned an Oscar for playing Lynn.

______________________________

Deschanel's many film and TV credits include Elf, Our Idiot Brother, 500 Days of Summer, All the Real Girls, Weeds, Failure to Launch, Yes Man, Almost Famous, Once Upon a Mattress and Your Highness. 

_____________________________

It’s a long way from Butcher Holler to Broadway in New York City," Lynn said in a statement. "I never imagined I’d see Coal Miner’s Daughter on a movie screen, and now I can’t believe it’s going to be on a stage for people to see. I’m going to be right there in the front row. And I know Zooey is going to be great – she sings and writes her own songs just like I do, and we even have the same color eyes!”

______________________________

 Deschanel lobbied for the role when the kernel of a Broadway show was being thought about by the show's team. They refused to consider Zooey till Lynn herself met Deschanel in Tennessee and anointed her for the role. Who's gonna argue with the great Loretta Lynn?

_______________________________

According to Lynn:

It’s a long way from Butcher Holler to Broadway in New York City," Lynn said in a statement. "I never imagined I’d see Coal Miner’s Daughter on a movie screen, and now I can’t believe it’s going to be on a stage for people to see. 

I’m going to be right there in the front row. And I know Zooey is going to be great – she sings and writes her own songs just like I do, and we even have the same color eyes!”

(read more on "Broadway Buzz" online)

WORLD RENOWNED DJ LOSES BATTLE W/ CANCER-R I P

 

 FROM A BLOVED FRIEND, JIMMY DEPRE:

Today the music industry has lost one of it's true heroes.


With a heavy heart I must now report that Peter Rauhofer has lost his battle with brain cancer.
He passed quietly today and is survived by his mother, Helga, who resides in Austria.

She will transport Peter back home to his final resting place there, but to all that knew Peter, his heart will always be in New York City.

It makes me sad, not only that I have lost a friend, but that the world has lost an amazing talent and that future generations will never get to understand the magic that Peter created night after night all over the world.

He is gone too soon but we will always have the vast body of music that Peter left for us.

Through his music, Peter will live forever. 

The brightest stars always burn out too soon. Peter, you were loved and you will be terribly missed. Goodbye my friend. Please rest in peace knowing that you have brought so much joy to so many of us. 

I ask that his true fans keep his legacy alive by sharing his music with anyone who may not have had the opportunity to experience it for themselves.

Clive Davis Comes Out as Bisexual

"Clive Davis has had a legendary professional career in the music business. Now, at 80, he is making an intimate personal revelation – that he is bisexual.

The longtime record producer, who was married and divorced twice, has spent the past 20 years in relationships with two men – a doctor for 13 years, and an unnamed partner for the past seven – he reveals in a new memoir, The Sound Track of My Life..."

LEGEND MAKER/HUMANITARIAN/VISIONARY/GENTLEMAN/CANDID/FELLOW ALUMNI OF NYU@ TISCH SCHOOL FOR THE ARTS...

KUDOS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



OFTEN DUBBED;
 "THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN EARS"




"Clive Davis (born April 4, 1932) is an American record producer and music industry executive. He has won five Grammy Awards and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer.^[1]
From 1967 to 1973, Davis was the President of Columbia Records. He was the founder and president of Arista Records from 1975 through 2000 until founding J Records. From 2002 until April 2008, Davis was the Chairman and CEO of the RCA Music Group (which included RCA Records, J Records and Arista Records), Chairman and CEO of J Records, and Chairman and CEO of BMG North America. Currently Davis is the Chief Creative Officer of Sony Music Entertainment.^[2] He currently plays a part in the careers of Aretha Franklin, Rod Stewart, Alicia Keys, Barry Manilow, Christina Aguilera, Carlos Santana, Kelly Clarkson, Leona Lewis and Jennifer Hudson. Davis is credited with bringing Whitney Houston to prominence.
Clive Davis is an alumnus of New York University, and the recorded music division of its Tisch School for the Arts is named after him..." (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

BARBRA STREISAND STORMS BROOKLYN

TO ADD TO THIS COMPLETE ARTICLE WOULD BE SELF INDULGENT & STUPID. JUST READ IT...

HIGHLIGHTS:

HER SON JASON SINGS A DUET W/ HER
HER BROTHER IS IN THE AUDIENCE
SHE GETS POLITICAL, USING HUMOR
SHE HAS A COLD (OY, OF COURSE SHE DRINKS CHICKEN SOUP)-PHILLY GOT THE BEST OF HER VOICE
CLOTHES BY DONNA KARAN
TOTALLY STREISAND
I WOULD HAVE LOVED TO HEAR HER MARVIN HAMLISCH TRIBUTE...,
HELLO BROOKLYN!

RAPPER /R&B SINGER, FRANK OCEAN, COMES OUT

 Frank Ocean, an R&B singer who is part of the hip hop collective Odd Future and who has also written songs for Justin Bieber, John Legend and Beyoncé, came out on his blog last night.
Ocean writes in part:

In the last year or 3 I've screamed at my creator, screamed at the clouds in the sky, for some explanation. Mercy maybe. For peace of mind to rain like manna somehow. 4 summer ago, I met somebody. I was 19 years old. He was too. We spent that summer, and the summer after, together. Everyday almost… Sleep I would often share with him. By the time I realized I was in love, it was malignant. It was hopeless. There was no escaping.

 The news comes just days after a review of Ocean's upcoming "Channel Orange" album claimed the singer "[opens] up about his sexuality on the album"


THANK YOU!
IN YOUR FILED IT'S TWICE AS BRAVE TO EXPRESS WHO YOU LOVE.
YOU'RE A GREAT EXAMPLE TO OUR YOUTH, ESPECIALLY

YOU GO ON BOY!!!!
TIGHT HUGSSSSSSS

UPDATE AUGUST 30, 2012--On SEPTEMBER 15th  FRANK OCEAN will be the musical guest on SNL (Seth MACFARLANE will host)..support him...thx

UPDATE: 09/10/2012-- AT THE VIDEO MUSIC AWARDS,  Frank Ocean delivered the most subtle performance of the night with a rendition of his "Thinkin' About You"
 
UPDATE: 02/10/2013--WINS FIRST EVER "URBAN ALBUM OF THE YEAR AWARD" (kicking Chris Brown's ass once again, nonviolently-Brown was up for the same award)

"AMERICAN IDOL" MINUS LOPEZ & TYLER

"Jennifer Lopez is the second judge in two days to say she's leaving "American Idol."

Her representative, Mark Young, said Friday that Lopez is ending her time on television's most popular show after two years. Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler said the same thing on Thursday..."

I'm not sure how I feel about this news. I still like "American Idol" (though less so than before). I still like Lopez & Tyler though I think what they amass in charm & likability they lack in constructive criticism-especially Steven Tyler.

I hated Simon Cowell's brash critiques on these poor youngsters--I often times agreed w./ his assessment but hated his delivery. He was pompous & mean; however Tyler was too predictably kind ( I would get the feeling he zoned out & just repeated the same rhetoric many times).

 Jennifer Lopez was better at giving specific areas for the contestants to work on so maybe she was a good maternal buffer for a Tyler replacement; alas, it won't be.

Actually, last season Randy Jackson came off as the "mean" one--go figure...

The show needs a straight shooter w/ experience in the music business. They use Jimmy Iovine as a mentor, why not bring him to the judges table?

FLEETWOOD MAC'S BOB WELCH TRAGIC DEATH--65

Bob Welch, who helped shape Fleetwood Mac’s sound, dies at 65 tragically from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

  Mr. Welch was a guitarist, vocalist and songwriter for Fleetwood Mac from 1971 to 1974. The band was formed in England in the late 1960s by guitarist Peter Green, and its name derived from two members of the group, drummer Mick Fleetwood and bassist John McVie.

Mr. Welch left the band in 1974, just before singer Stevie Nicks and guitarist Lindsey Buckingham joined the group. The reconstituted band had its breakthrough albums with “Fleetwood Mac” in 1975 and “Rumours” in 1977, both of which reached No. 1 and sold millions of copies.

His wife of 27 years, Wendy Armistead Welch, is his only known survivor.
“I never wanted to be a guitar gunslinger and a star,” Mr. Welch said in 2003. “I just wanted to make that great music.”

MADONNA'S PAYBACK?

Madonna takes on Gaga with 'Born This Way' mashup

"They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery, but Madonna's recent cover of Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" might not be seen as such.

While rehearsing for her M.D.N.A. tour, the Material Mom made it a point to mashup her classic song “Express Yourself” with Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way..."



"When Gaga first dropped the single, music fans were quick to point out the similarity between the two tracks, something that hasn't been lost on Madge.

"When I heard ['Born This Way'] on the radio, I said that sounds very familiar. It feels reductive," she told "20/20" earlier this year. "I certainly think she references me a lot in her work...

But, Madonna continued, she can't really take offense..."

  MDNA is the twelfth studio album by American recording artist Madonna, first released on March 23, 2012 by Interscope Records. It is also Madonna's first album not to be associated with Warner Bros. Records, the label she was signed to since 1982. As well as Madonna producing the album she worked with a variety of producers such as Alle Benassi, Benny Benassi, Demolition Crew, Free School, Michael Malih, Indiigo, William Orbit, Martin Solveig.


 

AMERICAN IDOL RUNNER-UP SALARY

• View PhotoFILE - In this May 23, 2012 file photo, finalists Phillip Phillips, left, and Jessica …

"LOS ANGELES (AP) — Coming in second on "American Idol" may still be a path to superstardom, but it no longer offers guaranteed paychecks worthy of the next pop idol or rock star.

Wednesday night's runner-up, 16-year-old Jessica Sanchez, doesn't have a definite shot at producing an album and could be paid as little as $30,000 in advances for recording singles, according to the "Idol" contract she and other Season 11 contestants signed earlier this year.
The agreement appears to be the first time in "Idol's" history that producers are not offering the show's runner-up an album deal that in previous years came with a guaranteed advance of at least $175,000, an Associated Press review of the Fox show's contracts reveals..."

But let's face it she will have endorsement deals and I have the sneaking suspicion that her future album will sell much more than the handsome Philip.

GLENN FREY (of "The Eagles") SINGS STANDARDS

Following in the steps of Rod Stewart & Paul McCartney, among others, The Eagles, Glenn Frey does a pretty good job singing standards in "AFTER HOURS".

 The best of this trend (Michael Buble aside) so far is , believe it or not, Seth Macfarlane (yes that Seth Macfarlane, creator & voices of "Family Guy"). This is truly a  renaissance man--what can't he do?

Macfarlane has by far the best voice but I gotta say Rod Stewart's 5 CDs have the best song choices (I am partial to Cole Porter and Stewart sings a lot of his music).

You really wanna kvetch? Dee Snider (TWISTED SISTER) has a BROADWAY CD; it's interesting if nothing else. He got lots of notables on board-good for him! I guess his 11 week run on the great white way in "ROCK OF AGES" got him hooked and made some connections for this album along the way.

GAY, BLACK, JEWISH RAPPER (Y-LOVE) COMES OUT

Jewish rapper Y-Love comes out publicly as gay

"In a move that he admits could cost him some fans, New York rapper Yitz “Y-Love” Jordan, considered "the first black Jewish MC," has come out publicly as a gay man of color.

"I feel like I have wasted years of my life worrying that my ‘public reputation’ will be negatively impacted by my identity," Jordan said in a statement. "Now that I'm over 30, I simply can't care as much about what people think, despite the prospect of alienating the community I dedicated my life to as an artist and a man. My hope is it will open their eyes – and hearts.

  Jordan is of Puerto Rican and Ethiopian descent, and converted to Hasidic Judaism in 2000 before going on to study at Jerusalem’s Ohr Somayach yeshiva..."