More record store developments

The funky and useful FOPP music chain just went bust in the UK. Here's a link to a Billboard story about the stores closing. It was always a good place to pick up Euro catalogue albums at 5 pounds or so -- cheap for London.

Meanwhile Rough Trade is going super-specialist with a mega-store in London's East End. This story from the London Sunday Times sadly went to bed before the news of FOPP folding broke, which is embarrassing because the piece cites FOPP as a model of how to run a record store in the internet age...

French Bulldog Shameless Exploitation

Two of New York's Power Pups, according to the July 8, 2007 New York Post. That's Francesca and Sharky with Martha Stewart.

Bryan Ferry signs CDs in New York

Click here to see video of Bryan Ferry signing CDs at J&R in lower Manhattan yesterday. Passers by thought we were in line to buy iPhones. Fools! Mr. Ferry very gracious and was forgiven for arriving a half-hour late in 90 degree weather.

Last night Ferry appeared on David Letterman for the first time since 1994 when he performed "Love Is the Drug," playing "Just Like Tom Thumb Blues" with Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra. This is a YouTube connection, so I don't know how long it will stay up.

Here's a wonderful site with clips of the tribute band Roxy Magic. Lead singer "Kevin" is a dead-ringer for Bryan.

Bryan Ferry, Channeling Bob Dylan -- Teri Gross interview with Ferry on NPR's Fresh Air.

Where Rock Lives Mott and Queen in NYC

Rollingstone.com/rockmaps is a cool idea on the Rolling Stone website. Using Google Maps they have pulled up street level images of famous rock'n' roll landmarks. Here's a special theatrical one. On May 9, 1974 British band Mott the Hoople played at Uris Theatre (at the time Broadway's largest theatre and since then re-named the Gershwin Theatre, home to the perennial "Wicked"), where they recorded half of the "Mott Live" album. What was more significant in rock 'n' roll history is that Queen opened for Mott, marking their US debut.

You will need Adobe Flash Player 9 to make this work.

Here's a great Super 8 movie from the Mott 1974 tour narrated by Morgan Fisher.

French Bulldog shameless exploitation

Guilty party: Chevrolet

Things that aren't in Tribeca anymore -- Chalk Attack

Summer of Love

At the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York there is an exhibit called "Summer of Love Art of the Psychedelic Era." It's fun. Take-away is that San Francisco did the best posters; London and LA had the better photographers. Everyone had interesting music. Great contrast with Bob Dylan headlining in Atlantic City 40 years later...

Here's a 10 second video featuring Janis Joplin's car which is parked in the Whitney yard. Give the link a few seconds to load, otherwise you will just get audio.

Things that aren't there any more

Record stores are so dodo. There used to be this great place "Steve's Sounds" -- a hole in the wall off the old Soho Market in London that sold promo and review copies of CDs for under ten pounds (OK when the dollar was stronger, and US prices were silly). I noticed it wasn't there anymore on my last visit to London. In the late 1970s, I picked up David Bowie orange RCA singles for fifty pence in the basement of this space.

And from north of the border.

Sam the Record Man, the one-time cross-Canada music store chain, will close its iconic downtown Toronto flagship location next month. Here's a report from the CBC. When the Canadian dollar was weaker it was a great place to pick up CDs very cheap. (Also there was an HMV store next door which kept prices competitive).

The Voice of Hudson

What Were They Thinking?

60 years ago today, the band were taught to play. Here is National Public Radio coverage.



I know, let's make a movie using documentary and archive footage about World War II with a soundtrack of late 70s popstars covering Beatles' songs. Here, in celebration of the 40th Anniversary of the release of "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band" is the coming attraction for Lou Reizner's "All This and World War II." And here is the Roll of Honor of those involved.

On Times Square

The Voice of Hudson

Old Grey Lady plugs Celluloid Skyline

On the New York Times website, Caryn James has put together some cool clips of New York in the movies in connection with an exhibit at Grand Central around the book "Celluloid Skyline."

Link to clips.

Virgin Front of Plane LHR to EWR

Stephen King's Best Rock Songs Ever in EW

Here's the link to the story with some fun youtube videos attached. Disagree with many, but some great.

24. In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida Iron Butterfly

23. Dead Flowers Rolling Stones

22. Needles and Pins The Searchers

21. I Get Around The Beach Boys

20. On the Dark Side John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band

19. You Never Can Tell Chuck Berry

18. I Want to Help You Ann The Lyres

17. Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress The Hollies

16. Don't Be Cruel Elvis Presley

15. Ain't No Fun (Waiting Around to be a Millionaire) AC/DC

14. Sixty Minute Man The Dominoes

13. Mass. Ave. Willie Alexander

12. The Girl Can't Help It Little Richard

11. She Loves You The Beatles

10. A Big Hunk o' Love Elvis Presley

9. Bip Bop Boom Mickey Hawks

8. Let's Have a Party Wanda Jackson

7. New Orleans Gary U.S. Bonds

6. Ramrod Bruce Springsteen

5. C'Mon Everybody Eddie Cochran

4. Stupid Cupid Connie Francis

3. Mystery Dance Elvis Costello

2. Burning Love Elvis Presley

1. Anarchy in the UK The Sex Pistols

A QUIZ

Who covered which of these songs? The Sex Pistols, Nighthawks, The Ramones, The Cast of Oil City Symphony, Patsy Cline, Peter Sellers, Jan & Dean, Cheap Trick, Jerry Lee Lewis, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers?

There may be multiple answers, i.e. songs may be covered by more than one artist. Here's the link to some of them.

Meanwhile, at the official Crowded House website, you can stream the band's new single which features a guess appearance by Johnny Marr. Thank you to Jefito for the head's up on this.

Elvis On Times Square and in your driveway

Well. As the music industry tries to deal with all sorts of upheavals, Declan MacManus makes one last gasp at exploiting the back catalogue and sets us some strategic corporate partnerships. With VISA being very active in promoting his current tour, he is also now selling cars -- not used, but the very smart Lexus, who must be trying to pitch to a boomer market who would probably prefer to be seen in a Mini.

Click Here


Happy/sad. I am very excited that the first ten years of Elvis Costello's career have been reissued by Hip-o records. Having bought this material on vinyl in several colors, as 45s, albums and cassettes, along with numerous permutations of sleeve design and packaging, on at least different five different labels (Stiff, Columbia, F-Beat, Radar, Rhino, etc.), I realise I have more than a dozen copies of some of these records. That's the really sad part. The Rhino doubles are still the best and most comprehensive and I presume they are now out of print. Here is a link to a Variety story about the Elvis comeback!

Here are some links to Charlie Rose interviews with Elvis.

2001

2002

2006

Las Vegas Carpets Unknown

Six degrees of Rock 'n' Roll

Thanks to Fred Dellar at Mojo here is a link to the "bandtoband" site. Find the common link between two bands through performing members. Couldn't make a link between Dusty Springfield and Roxy Music!

Carpets of Great Hotels

Carpet outside the Stomp theatre at the Aladdin/Planet Hollywood Hotel, Las Vegas
Carpet in the Snackalot area of the Grail Theatre at Wynn Las Vegas

Last Night coming back from Las Vegas

Continental 4:50PM flight, Seat 4B

British Airways Business LHR to JFK

Real Flowers in California

Fake Flowers in Las Vegas