Why I am Boycotting the Oscars Tomorrow Night:

My favorite part of the Oscar ceremonies is the red carpet - seeing who wears what and who makes a fool out of themselves by being an arrogant twerp and who seems like a sincerely nice person. But I won't be watching any of it tomorrow night because, as my friend, Pete, over at Blogness on the Edge of Town says so eloquently: this year the Oscar nominating committee really F'd Up.

Why? By leaving off what is CLEARLY one of the best movie track songs of the year. It deserved a nomination (I believe it deserved to win, but I am trying to keep my personal bias out of this as much as humanly possible).

Bruce wrote the theme song to "The Wrestler" after Mickey Rourke talked with him on the phone and told him about the movie. Bruce came through with a song that fits the movie like a glove, its perfect. Why then would the Academy not nominate it? I am not the only one who thinks this was a blatant snub, Rolling Stone agrees with me as do countless others who have seen the film and or heard the song.

Springsteen fan or not - does anyone think this song was not worthy of a nomination?  Did you see what WAS nominated?  Two songs from  Slumdog Millionaire tracks and Peter Gabriel’s “Down To Earth” from Wall-E.  (BTW Peter Gabriel is boycotting the Oscars too for his own reasons - you can read that over at Blogness).  Obviously once again its all about  power and politics in Hollywood and nothing to do with who deserves to win.  I wonder if the people who win these awards feel that way?  It must be as obvious to them as it is to us, right?

So....therefore, there will be one less person watching their silly show that obviously does not use talent and excellence as a criteria for their nominating process.

Buying Record Albums

Image by frotzed2 via Flickr I've been a bit nostalgic lately - probably because of you guys! Several of you have written about vinyl records. Oh how I miss vinyl! I still have a box of them and like to take them out and reminisce. CDs are convenient and all...but can you remember this experience:

Your favorite band has just come out with a new record. You drive (walk, bike, hithchike, take a bus) to the local music store. There were several music stores to choose from back then, but you had a favorite. Mine was Tower Records.

You enter the store, its HUGE. There is some loud music playing and all the employees are the epitome of cool (whatever that happened to look like for that particular era). My Tower had mostly musicians working there, skinny guys with waist length hair and pot leaves on their belt buckles.

Right in front was a display of that longed-for new album. You grabbed it and looked at both sides, barely able to keep from opening it in the store to see the liner notes. But now the adventure begins....rather than heading for the cashier to make a purchase, you enter the AISLES.

There are aisles and aisles of records albums. They are in alphabetical order according to genre. "Rock" takes up 75% of the store. You start with "A" and look through each section, browsing, seeking treasures, getting excited at those marked down prices on old records you always wanted.

Hours could pass during this time. You may notice some other browsers nearby or even strike up a conversation about a great concert you heard while you both stand in front of the "P" section fondly leafing through Pink Floyd, The Police, The Pretenders and Tom Petty.

You usually left with at least three new albums and hurried home for the unwrapping. Remember taking the cellophane off the cover? I used my finger nail to slice along the side and then ripped that stuff off. Then, if you were lucky, the album opened up and had artwork to see not only on front and back but INSIDE. You took out that sweet disc and gently put it on the turntable and sat reading the lyrics along with each new song.

I loved albums. I loved the art, the words, the process of buying them, bringing them home and playing them. I really need to invest in a turntable.

Our Mates Down Under

(this post title has the potential for being misinterpreted...so please read on)

HT to Bob Vinyl for pointing out this excellent article out of the Sydney Morning Herald. If I , a bit more energy and a lot more time I could easily see myself starting some kind of similar protest against TICKET SCALPERS. I ranted on my other blog about it. Apparently its an international problem but some Aussies are taking a stand and I applaud them. Hopefully it will be successful and we can do the same thing here.

This is so similar to what happens to me every time I want to see one of my favorite bands:

Melbourne university student Carl Hirst is one of many who has been
rallying eBay users to fight back against scalpers since tickets to the Sydney
and Melbourne concerts of Rage Against The Machine sold out within seconds after
going on sale at 9am last Thursday.
Within an hour, general admission floor
tickets, which had a face value of $111.70, were selling on eBay for over five
times that amount.

So, to Carl and the others I say "Good on you, mate! Don't give up!"

How did music change your life?

For those of us who love music, there are few things in life that compare to the exhilaration, the passion, the high or a good concert of even a good song on your radio. Of course one of the things that surpasses it (for me anyhow) is love/romance/intimacy.

It carries me places that I wish I could go in "my real life" and one question that has haunted me for years is:

Would my life be different today if I had not spent my youth drenching myself in music and song? Would some of my expectations be more realistic? Did the romance and lure of the music have a negative affect - or is it "all good"?

I'd love to hear your thoughts if anyone "gets" what I am saying here.

Music Liberates

Let the music set you free....

I was reading this book today:

As usual, I was struck by what an intense, creative and passionate writer Bruce is. Many of his early songs had a theme of redemption or of liberation. He's quoted as saying:

"For me the greatest pop music was music of liberation: Bob Marley, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, James Brown, Public Enemy, the Clash, the Sex Pistols. Those were pop groups that liberated an enormous amount of people to be who they are."

and...

"Elvis Presley liberated our bodies, and Bob Dylan liberated our minds."

There's power in music. Both rhythms and lyrics can make you feel and think and want to do something - take some action, whether it be marching for peace, taking a drive, or making love.

Music can open our minds, deepen our souls and touch our hearts. I would shrivel up and die without it. I know not everyone can relate, some are moved more visually by art or literature but to me, a song is all three:

I see a story forming as I hear the words and feel the emotion behind the music.

There are so many songs I could list that move me this way. Share some of your, okay? Here's a few of mine:

Imagine - John Lennon

Shooting Star - Bad Co.

Backstreets - Bruce Springsteen

Still, You Turn Me On - Emmerson Lake and Palmer

One - U2

Layla - Derek & the Dominoes

My Immortal - Evanescence

Grace - Jeff Buckley

Stagefright - The Band

Melissa - The Allman Brothers

Since I've Been Loving You - Led Zeppelin

My Aim is True - Elvis Costello

Rock and Roll Band - Boston

Jungle Love - Steve Miller

Just Like a Woman - Bob Dylan

Free Fallin - Tom Petty

I will Remember You - Sara McLachlan

Paradise City - Guns and Roses

The Weeping Song - Nick Cave

Breakin Me - Jonny Lang

Tonight

Well, five minutes till I am off work - then later this evening I am going to go hear the same band I heard last week. They were SO GOOD. I've been listening to Stevie Ray this afternoon to get me in the mood.

What did you do tonight?

Pet Shop Boys Blast Bono

I read this over at U2 News:

Neil Tennant told the Daily Mirror: "I've always been against the ideas of rock stars lecturing people as if they know something the rest of us don't - it looks arrogant.

"It's not as if they have a private source of information. To state the obvious as if you are the only person that knows it is intellectually weak. Like Bono - he uses his celebrity, but in doing so he increases his celebrity. I'm never totally convinced that the rest of U2 feel comfortable with that."

Well, I do believe Neil has a point about making political statements, it bothers me when celebrities use their fame to sway voters that are not intelligent enough to think beyond "well Bruce Springsteen says I should vote for so and so, so I will" (you know I love Bruce, this is just the first example I thought of).

BUT.... What Bono does is TOTALLY DIFFERENT. Bono is not a political figure. He will sit down with any world leader in any country and have the same conversation with each of them - its about brining awareness to poverty and AIDS in Africa (mostly) and that is not a political issue.

Sure, he uses his celebrity to get attention for this but what's wrong with that? I think it's a great use of fame. Rather than partying at all the famous nightclubs, getting your face splashed across People for your latest arrest, addiction or affair, why not bring attention to suffering? He's made a HUGE difference by bringing awareness and raising funds to save lives. I can't see anything wrong with that!

So, note to Neil Tennant - I disagree with you.

(Who are The Pet Shop Boys anyhow? Aren't they a disco band from the 80's?)

Hands Across Amercia!

I didn't know that today was the 21st anniversary of this event until I made a visit to Becky's blog "The Pop Eye". Go check it out for some GREAT photos that will surely make you smile at the remembrance of the hairstyles and clothing of 1986! I tried to find my "Hand Across America" t-shirt but I think I recall using it to wash the car about 5 years ago....dang it, I hate it when I use memorabilia to wash the car.

Do any of you remember it, or better yet, participate???

I went with my brother, his wife, my sister, her best friend and my dog.

We had a cooler of beer because back then it just seemed "okay" to drink and drive. We were designated to stand on a street called Green River Drive in Corona, CA. It faced the Riverside/90 Fwy. so we had a constant flow of "audience" driving by and cheering us on.

I have to admit, there was something special about it. Standing there holding hands there were radios all turned to the same station, at we all sang "We are the World" together (even though that was not the official song - it was just so much more fun to sing!)

I wish I had photos, but Becky does so stop and check her out in her 80's attire! I know I had on the official t-shirt and everyone else in my group was wearing a concert, T. I think we represented Ozzy, The Stones, Def Lepard and Van Halen :)

I See Dead People - and They're Wearing Doc Martens...

What do you think of this new ad campaign:

Joe Strummer, Kurt Cobain new 'spokesmen' for Doc Martens

Apparently the ads will be out soon showing Joe Strummer, Kurt Cobain, Sid Vicious and Joey Ramone as angels wearing Doc Martens in heaven....

Is this a good marketing strategy - - or not?

Heroin, Suicide, Depression - Continued

Well, I have to get off this topic because its depressing me, and unfortunately I don't mean that sarcastically - it really is.

I know that certain people have a natural inclination toward depression and addiction. Those two things combined often lead to suicide. But there is something about the creative mind, the person who feels so deeply that they can't ignore the pain around them, and inside of them. The person that uses a powerful addicting drug to create a place where life feels good, or escaping permanately through death.

Of course, its not only the artistic types that "choose to leave this world" by numbing themselves or committing suicide. Every individual has his/her own reason.

Nevertheless, I do see a connection. Here is a list (too long to put on this post) if you are interested in the results of some of my research. It's not an all inclusive list, just some info I pulled, mostly off Wikipedia.

Heroin Addiction and Music - Part One

"Music is a beautiful opiate, if you don't take it too seriously."

~ Henry Miller

My posts on this blog are usually of a light-hearted nature, but sometimes a little seed on an idea is planted in my mind and, like it or not, I keep watering it until it grows into a blog post. I know exactly what I want to say, but it may take a few days to say it all. So here is part one.

The other night a friend mentioned Kurt Cobain. We talked about the impact Kurt's death had on a friend of his. Since then I've been thinking about the tragic connection between suicide, drug addiction and music. Call me "dark" but it intrigues me. I have a theory and believe it or not, Kurt had a similar one. I'm going to explore that theory here, even though this post probably belongs on one of my other blogs. I'll think about it.

For today I will leave you with two things:

- a paraphrased quote from Kurt that says, in his words, what I have been thinking about the last few days

- a list of songs about heroin

"Sometimes I envy people who are unintelligent and "easily amused". People, who are seemingly able to move through life without ever feeling sad or depressed. I've met a lot of those type of "dumb people,"they have a shitty job, they may be totally lonely...and yet, for some reason, they're happy."

I know there are a lot more, but these are ones that I like, my very favorite being:
"She Talks to Angels" — The Black Crowes

• 
  
• Neil Young : The Needle and the Damage Done
• Rolling Stones : Dead Flowers
• Red Hot Chilli Peppers : Under The Bridge
• Velvet Underground : Heroin
• Guns N' Roses : Mr Brownstone
• The La's: There She Goes
• Pink Floyd : Comfortably Numb
• Velvet Underground : Waiting for the Man
• The Ramones : Chinese Rock
• A Horse With No Name: America
• U2: Bad
• David Bowie/Iggy Pop: China Girl
• Lou Reed : Perfect Day
• James Taylor: Fire And Rain

As always, I look forward to your comments. I plan on going into this more tomorrow and will inlcude a list of musicians that died of a heroin overdose or struggled with heroin addiction.

20 Best Songs of 1970

Typically I only post when I am in the mood or something newsworthy happens, but I am going to try something some of you do and have a theme that I do once a week (for awhile).

So this is the first installment of:

My Favorite Songs From ________

I will start with 1970 go chronologically through 1980.
It's incredibly difficult to pick only ten top songs from a decade, so I picked 20.
Please feel free to leave SOME or ALL of your faves from 1970 in the comments.

(yes I know, many of you were not even born yet (Jeff), but I know you still appreciate the tunes). there's a video at the bottom of this list - I listened to his all records over and over till they wore out.

These are not in any order, just how I thought of them:

1. Layla Derek And The Dominos

2. Bridge Over Troubled Water Simon and Garfunkel

3. Let It Be Beatles

4. Lola Kinks

5. All Right Now Free

6. Black Magic Woman Santana

7. Maybe I'm Amazed Paul McCartney

8. American Woman Guess Who

9. The Long and Winding Road Beatles

10. Have You Ever Seen the Rain CCR

11. Moondance Van Morrison

12. Truckin' Grateful Dead

13. Roadhouse Blues Doors

14. If You Could Read My Mind Gordon Lightfoot

15. Immigrant Song Led Zeppelin

16. Lucky Man Emerson, Lake and Palmer

17. Wild World Cat Stevens

18. What Is Life George Harrison

19. After Midnight Eric Clapton

20. Green-Eyed Lady Sugarloaf