Bob Dylan is one of rock’s most prolific artists, flaunting a massive and brilliant discography. At age 68, he’s been recording for years and probably has more than a few tracks he’s never bothered to release. For whatever reason, he’s chosen to lend one of these songs to America’s most popular show, “NCIS.”
Up until now, mustaches were just about the only thing Bob Dylan has had in common with TV cop shows. But on the November 3 episode of the CBS procedural drama “NCIS”, we’ll hear our very first taste of a long-unreleased Dylan song called “California”.
The song comes from the same sessions that produced Dylan’s 1965 acoustic/electric transitional classic Bringing It All Back Home, but it’s been unheard since then, sitting in the vault for the better part of a half-century. Maybe if they’d had “NCIS” back in 1965, we would’ve heard it a long time ago.
I’ve never seen the show, but I’ll be tuning in along with every other diehard Dylan fan.
Earlier this year, Ticketmaster and Live Nation attempted to merge companies. Since Ticketmaster is the largest ticketing distributer in the country, one could understand why the Justice Department would balk at a union with Live Nation, a huge concert promoter. Smaller production companies feel they would lose out on events if this deal goes through. They’re right, of course. The merger would create a ticketing powerhouse, one that has the ability to simultaneously sell and promote their own events. Negotiations may be starting back up in Washington, but they’re also receiving harsh criticism in the UK.
The U.K.’s Competition Commission issued a provisional ruling on Thursday that the union of the L.A.-based firms “could severely inhibit the entry of a major new competitor, CTS Eventim, into the U.K. ticketing market.”
The commission’s ruling echoes objections of witnesses who assailed the merger as anticompetitive at U.S. congressional hearings early this year.
Prior to the merger announcement in February, Bremen, Germany-based CTS agreed to provide ticketing for Live Nation’s British events, and it has enabled the U.S. promoter to operate a ticketing platform, which competes with Ticketmaster, in the U.S. since January.
A Live Nation-Ticketmaster alliance could erode CTS’ position in the U.K. market by cutting the number of tickets made available to the smaller firm, the commission said. “This could lead to higher net prices … and/or lower service quality or less innovation in the market,” the ruling stated.
Ticketmaster is one of the most hated companies in the world. They’re the schmucks that invented the 40 percent surcharge to see your favorite band. This deal wouldn’t benefit anybody but the companies. The bands, fans, and independent operators would all get screwed.
I never understood why venues didn’t just sell tickets exclusively in-house. I know you can buy tickets at the box office, but why can’t you also order them online? The venue would only have to hire a couple more employees to process the orders and send out the tickets. They’d tack on a surcharge to pay the staff, but it wouldn’t be as monstrous as they one utilized by Ticketmaster.
We all knew Michael Jackson and the Beatles couldn’t do it alone. Nielsen SoundScan third quarter numbers show that album sales are 11.1 percent lower than they were at this point last year. This marks the eighth time in nine years that record industry sales have fallen.
According to Reuters, 2009’s biggest seller so far has been Michael Jackson’s Number Ones compilation, which sold 1.8 million copies since the King of Pop’s death on June 25th. Sluggish sales can’t be blamed on a lack of marquee releases, though, as artists who have generally gone multiplatinum in the past — like Green Day, Eminem, Dave Matthews Band and U2 — have all put out high-profile releases this year. Eminem’s Relapse has led the charge with 1.4 million copies since its release in May. After 30 weeks on the Billboard chart, U2’s No Line on the Horizon reached platinum two weeks ago, while Green Day’s 21st Century Breakdown and DMB’s Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King have yet to pass the million copies sold mark.
Of course, many factors are to blame. With iTunes and other mp3 services, users can download songs individually, which will hurt flavor of the month bands who are hoping to cash in on their album. Also, you can listen to millions of songs on YouTube, usually streamed with artistic photo collages in the background of the videos. Torrents are still popular, despite the arrests of a few operators. Lastly, let’s not forget the rebirth of vinyl. It seems like younger generation are slowly realizing that music was better in the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s. They’re trying out their parents’ old vinyls and rummaging for more at record stores. Many labels have taken notice, and are now issuing new releases from their acts on the format. I’ve even seen the new Dinosaur Jr. album on vinyl. Unfortunately, it was around $20.
I’m one of those kids that became fed up with popular music. I already appreciated labels like Matador and Drag City, but I wanted to delve into these bands’ influences. After initially buying CDs, I quickly noticed how much cheaper old vinyls were. As time went went on, my dad slowly gave me his entire record collection. Overwhelmed, I have chosen to listen to them by artist in alphabetical order. Below is a recent gem I’ve unearthed. I’ll post more songs (courtesy of YouTube) in my vinyl journey when relevant. I’m grateful to the people that make these videos. Contrary to popular belief, I don’t have the time.
MTV has decided to air DJ AM’s reality show “Gone Too Far,” which wrapped production shortly before his tragic death in August. The eight-episode series will follow DJ AM as he aids drug addicts on their path to sobriety.
DJ AM knew all too well about the daily struggle of drug addiction. The late celebrity spinner (born Adam Goldstein), who died of an accidental drug overdose in August at age 36, spent his last few months filming an MTV series called “Gone Too Far,” in which he spoke candidly about his own addiction, his 11 years of sobriety and his desire to help other young addicts overcome their demons.
Now, with the consent and support of AM’s family, MTV will begin airing the eight-episode documentary series on Monday, October 12. The one-hour show will air at 10 p.m. ET/PT and chronicle the lives of young addicts, ages 20-25, who are offered a chance at recovery.
DJ AM was killed by what police are calling an “accidental overdose.” It’s strange to think that just under a year ago he and Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker survived a plane crash that killed four people. Unfortunately, DJ AM was unable to escape death twice.
While high-profile tours collapse under the weight of a headliner’s recent mistakes, at least the Boss continues to trudge throught the great American landscape. Only a week after Bruce Springsteen turned 60, he and his E Street Band kicked off their five-night stint at Giants Stadium with a new song paying homage to the institution. Seen above, “Wrecking Ball” poetically recounts the history of the New Jersey landmark but also adds an extra touch of whimsy. For Springsteen, a New Jersey native, the track also parallels a trip down memory lane, expressed in vivid images detailing his own storied career.
That’s not the only treat Springsteen gave me and tens of thousands of other fans last night (pictured), though. He opened the show with a brand-new song, “Wrecking Ball,” penned in tribute to Giants Stadium. “I was raised out of steel here in the swamps of Jersey, some misty years ago,” he began, eliciting loud cheers while strumming an electric guitar alone. As he reached the chorus, Springsteen seemed to be taunting the eroding force of time itself: “Bring on your wrecking ball/Come on, take your best shot/Let me see what you got/Bring on your wrecking ball.” (And was he really just talking about the stadium, or did I detect a more personal note of 60-year-old rock’n’roll defiance in there too?) When the full band kicked in a few moments later, Giants Stadium went wild for one of the last times ever. It was an inspiring start to another of the marathon three-hour shows Springsteen still manages to put on night after night.
These concerts will be last performances ever at the Meadowlands, which will be demolished in 2010 after the NFL calendar has concluded. I hope they play the song on repeat during the demolition.
