Posted by admin on 18 Sep 2009 | Tagged as: awards, events, meanings, news, politics, RIP, tip
The infobahn is alive with Susan Boyle’s rendition (nice word, eh?) of the Rolling Stones’ “Wild Horses”. There is an overwhelming opinion that Boyle has now recorded one of the definitive versions of the song. This, however, is seen as sacrilege by others, who cling to memories of the Stones and Gram Parsons. This sort [...]
Posted by admin on 17 Sep 2009 | Tagged as: meanings, tip
Widgets Amazon.frThe way music is licenced around the world means that I have no control over where the tracks I work on eventually crop up. As Perry Rose has played quite a lot in France, just about all his albums are available on Amazon France as MP3s. I have to say: Perry Rose is truly [...]
Posted by admin on 04 Aug 2009 | Tagged as: events, tip
I met Jack Stafford once (so in showbiz terms he’s “a dear friend”, when he sells a few more records I’ll bill him a “very dear friend”). He’s a Brit currently living in Amsterdam and playing about 200 shows a year. Two things strike me about this vid of “Cedar Room” from the album “Long [...]
Posted by admin on 26 Dec 2008 | Tagged as: events, news, tip
Long-time collaborator Perry Rose was invited to organise a special show during the summer. It sold out pretty quickly. The good news is that RTBF radio were on hand and recorded it, broadcasting it in two parts. The second part is going out on December 31 as part of the “Le Monde est un village” [...]
Posted by admin on 19 Dec 2008 | Tagged as: news, tip
For once, an old-fashioned singer-songwritery tip. Amanda Ghost is perhaps best-known for having co-written “You’re Beautiful” with James Blunt. She also wrote “Beautiful Liar” for Beyonce and Shakira. But as you’ll see from this and other tracks of hers, she’s a compelling singer and songwriter on her own.
Posted by admin on 28 Nov 2008 | Tagged as: meanings, politics, tip
With the shocking Mumbai attacks still playing out as I type this, I can’t help thinking back to other attacks and other wars with their cast of innocent victims. But attacks also leave witnesses. Nitin Sawhney and Natty appear together on the remarkable “Days of Fire”, the opening track on Sawhney’s latest album “London Undersound”. [...]
Posted by admin on 20 Nov 2008 | Tagged as: news, tip
With “Don’t Forget the Lyrics”, Singapore is now the 30th country to host a lyric-based TV competition. Along the lines of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?”, the game pushes contestants to sing the missing lines of songs. The prize at the end of the rainbow? A cool $500,000. The show is hosted by local [...]
Posted by admin on 07 Nov 2008 | Tagged as: news, tip
One of the very best vocalists I’ve ever worked with is hands down CB Milton. I’ve often asked people for news, as he slipped off the map. Producer Kristof Hermé put me on the trail again, leading me to the documentary “Playing for Change”. This superb extract of various musicians playing “Stand by Me” features [...]
Posted by admin on 03 Nov 2008 | Tagged as: news, tip
Grace Jones – Corporate Cannibal Eek! She’s back. This certainly beats the return of Britney. Grace Jones, the inimitable singer of “My Jamaican Guy” and “La vie en rose”, is back with an album called “Hurricane”. Although some of the tracks I heard are more in line with her minimal funk, this track stands out [...]
Posted by admin on 30 Sep 2008 | Tagged as: events, meanings, news, tip
They seem like more innocent days. Here is the British group 10cc with their 1974 hit “Wall Street Shuffle”. And if you’re looking for further proof of the power of a good lyric, 10cc provide it once again.