commentary

Out in the Country

Posted by John on May 2, 2010
Posted in: commentary, news. Tagged: , . 6 Comments

Towleroad.com is reporting today that, after weeks of speculation, it will be Country singer Chely Wright coming out in this week’s issue of People magazine. While coming out stories seem to be popping up more and more frequently, this one should be interesting to watch develop.

The TMZ quote that Towleroad cites that “Wright is the first major Country artist ever to come out”, and several commenters argued that kd lang should be given that distinction. However, kd never had a big hit on the Country charts, with “I’m Down to My Last Cigarette” and “Full Moon Full of Love” being her only two top 40 Country hits at #21 and #22 respectively. Chely had a massive #1 record with “Single White Female”, which was pretty much everywhere Country music was played in 1999. Her most recent hit came in 2005 with “The Bumper of My SUV”, a powerful song that questioned the black and white responses to the war in Iraq. Chely caught a LOT of flak for this song from both sides of the debate because she wasn’t fully on one side or the other, but I respected her that much more for allowing gray into an otherwise black and white debate. The video below tells the whole story.

I have been a fan of Chely’s since the mid-90s, when “Shut Up and Drive”, her first Country top 20 record, proved to be my mantra after the breakup of my first serious relationship. Chely doesn’t have a problem fitting into the mainstream when she wants to, but there’s always a bit more depth to her music than many of her contemporaries, and the personal connection is usually quite evident. For me, one of the big missteps of her career was “Jezebel”, which was written by Jay DeMarcus from Rascal Flatts. It was kind of a fun song, but it sure didn’t strike me as Chely Wright song. I would much rather you listen to a song like “I Already Do” which connects much more directly with the listener. For some more highlights of her career, you have to check out Kevin’s recap at Country Universe.

So who knows how this plays out, but I wish her well. There have been a few country artists that have been out in the business without being out in public, so I don’t know that you can draw any full-fledged comparisons between them and Chely. Hopefully the people who have known and worked with Chely behind the scenes will continue to visibly support her now that she’s done keeping up a facade simply to be more widely accepted. If the first single from her new album Lifted Off the Ground that comes out this week is any indication, she’s got a lot of potential hits left in her.

Springing A Leak

Posted by John on April 24, 2010
Posted in: commentary, music industry, new releases. Tagged: , . 16 Comments

I woke up this morning to a tweet from @shayneTward (well, not PERSONALLY to me):

I find it disgusting that yet another 1 of my songs have been leaked. I ask all of u to not download or even listen 2 it in respect of me.!

Now there’s a conundrum for the Shayne Ward fan in your life. (Full disclosure if you didn’t already know it: I’m a fan). On one hand, a fan of an artist wants to help that person out and support whatever efforts will allow them to be successful. However, the flip side is that said fan wants to hear that leaked music as soon as possible. So what way do you go?

Leaks have become a completely different beast in the age of the Internet than they ever were in more analog times. My first “leak” was a vinyl copy of the Black Album in the late-80s that I got from a person who worked for a distributor. At the time, I thought I was being all rebellious and connected at the same time, but now I know that the bootleg was actually a promo copy of the aborted (at the time) album. It came as a fully packaged album, with a two-toned black cover, so I should have recognized the effort that went into the packaging. The Black Album was finally released in 1994, although by that time not nearly as many people cared.

So back to the leak at hand. I’ve already talked about two Shayne leaks last month, and as we get closer to the release of his third record, I am sure we will see more. While you want to think that the actions of someone you respect are on the up and up, I can’t help think that bringing attention to a track continues the conversation about the artist started by the first two leaks. Leaks have worked very well in building buzz for artists over the past few years (think Britney’s last two projects), so it isn’t a reach to wonder if the protest is to bring attention to the leak, because I didn’t know another track had leaked until Shayne told me so. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t, I suppose.

So here’s the question: given the circumstance, would you check out the leak, or would you leave it alone? I promise that I will share which way I went with it, but I’d like to see some of the feedback first.

Support Your Local Record Shop

Posted by John on April 17, 2010
Posted in: commentary, music industry, personal. Tagged: . 6 Comments

Tomorrow is the 2010 edition of Record Store Day, and I was going to go on about all the cool swag that you can pick up in the United States and in the United Kingdom tomorrow at your local independent shop. However, it dawned on me that I have never talked about record stores in terms of the thing that has developed my love of music more than anything else in my adult life: my time as a music store employee/manager.

Music store employees are a mixed bag of society, but they usually fall into three categories: students who are looking for money to go out and hang with friends, but who really don’t care where they work; people who have another interest in life, but really like music, and have a p/t record store job to feed their hobby; and the music geeks, who sometimes go as far as never holding any other job besides stocking and alphabetizing CDs. If you could make a living wage doing so, I would still be in the last category. Scratch that…if you could make a living wage and also enjoy the holidays, I would still be in that last category.

My first record store job was while I was in college at Record Theatre, which is still alive and kicking in Buffalo, although the stores I knew in Syracuse and Rochester have been closed for years. I helped open one of the stores in Syracuse in 1988, right around the time that CDs were just starting to get a hold on the market. One of my first vivid memories was cutting boxes open and stacking them at the front of the store in preparation for Christmas shoppers with titles like REM and Anita Baker. Anyone remember CD longboxes? They may have been an environmental disaster, but they were great for merchandising CDs.

One cool thing about record stores is that each store either attracts an army of fans of one type of music, or it attracts one fan of each genre. If you look at the title of this blog, you’ll see where my knowledge lays. People were pretty stunned that a 19-year-old kid had such a knowledge of not only current pop music, but of music dating back into the 60s. (Mom, if I’ve never thanked you for that, thanks.) I quickly became the go-to guy for singles, and I felt like I had found my calling. However, life (and school) took me out of town, and left that job.

Once I got out of school, my mission was to find a job in radio, but retail management called to pay the bills until then. There was a new Record Town/Saturday Matinee store in the mall I worked at, and I hounded them mercilessly to let me work at least part-time. About a year later, I got my chance, and took on a third-key management position. That started a 7 year run as a store manager for Record Town first, and then Camelot Music (which was then purchased by Record Town’s parent company). In fact, my first store of my own was a hole-in-the-wall Tape World in the Camillus Mall outside of Syracuse. It was more like Tape Alley than World, but it was mine. These stores were opened by the same company as Record Town in order to have a stronger presence within the same mall, and while I hated having such a small store, it set me up for bigger things within the company.

One great thing about my music management days is that they lead to me moving around a bit, and I got to see parts of the country that I didn’t even know that I wanted to see. I fell in love with western North Carolina and Asheville after having been in Greensboro for two years, I DIDN’T fall in love with Miami after having been stationed there for a mere seven months, and I met some of my most enduring friends during my two years living in Atlanta. I even had a false start in moving to Denver as a manager of a Blockbuster Music, but at the last minute I turned down the offer.

Anyone remember Blockbuster Music? Yeah…they’re gone, just like Camelot, Record Town, and Tape World. The remaining stores are now called FYE, and they are closing at least 100 of them a year, although they continue to hang in there, selling video games, DVDs, and any pop culture crap you can think of. That’s why Record Store Day is so important to me. These folks respect the music, and it is much more than a business. Believe me, if they were in it for the money, they wouldn’t be doing this. They do it for the love, and I respect that more than I can ever fully express. So get out and patronize your local music stores today and regularly. You never know what you will find. (I will be reporting back on my finds later today)

Random Notes – 03-08-10

Posted by John on April 8, 2010
Posted in: american idol, commentary, death, interview, music industry, videos, youtube. Tagged: , , . 4 Comments

– I have said in the past that I think Jason DeRulo’s “In My Head” would be a killer track live, and Jason showed and proved last night on American Idol‘s results show. It’s sad that the only reason I pay attention to Idol these days is for the guest appearances. Given how Usher’s “O.M.G.” and Diddy’s “Hello Good Morning” vaulted into the Hot 100 last week, there is a good chance that DeRulo will also make a big move next week, since it has more airplay than either of those tracks. As of right now, Jason is at #6 on iTunes’s Top Downloads, which will probably translate to a jump into the Top 3, but probably not #1.

– I let out a small gasp when I read that punk visionary Malcolm McLaren passed away today from cancer. Even if you don’t know WHO Malcolm is, you at least have a sense that he was an important figure in the music industry in his time. While most folks know him as the man behind the rise of the Sex Pistols in the late 70s, my first contact was his early 80s experimentation with hip-hop on “Buffalo Gals” and “Double Dutch”. I have no doubt that my love of hip-hop comes from Malcolm taking a raw American musical genre and interpreting it in a way that made it much more accessible to the masses. How many people can say that they had an influential hand in two musical genres during their lifetime?

– Speaking of shocking, you MUST check out the interview over at DontStopThePop with a Swedish producer. No name is ever given, but who cares? Accusations of payoffs, favoritism and manipulation have always been considered a given to some degree here in the States as far back as the Payola scandal, but to hear the accusation surface about Sweden’s pop perfection industry just seems sacrilegious. If nothing else, it is a riveting interview to try and figure out who is gutsy enough to put the accusations out there.

– Remember what I said about ukeleles last week? In a sign that it is already overused, Gym Class Heroes frontman Travie McCoy (didn’t he used to be Travis?) debuts at #92 on the Hot 100 with “Billionaire”. Any good thought I had of tiny guitar flew out the window as the track started. Shark, meet ukelele.

In Defense of…

Posted by John on January 21, 2010
Posted in: commentary, singles, videos, youtube. Tagged: , , , , . 9 Comments

I’ve had a few things stuck in my head that didn’t really fill a whole entry, but these things must surface or else they will torment me. Proceed at your own risk, because this is in defense of…

…Jay Sean’s “Down” – This song seriously divides my brain, because in some ways, it seems like a copycat single, taking almost all of its cues from Chris Brown’s “Forever” and Ne-Yo’s “Closer”. Having said that, it’s pretty brilliant, and if given a second chance, I would include it on my Top Singles of 2009.

As an added bonus, here’s the version of “Down” performed by Nota that pretty much sealed the deal for them to win The Sing-Off back in December. A capella brilliance, if you ask me…

And because it doesn’t fit in anywhere else, also check out the SoCals’ version of Kelly Clarkson’s “Already Gone”. You Glee fans will love this!

…Creed’s “Rain” – Seriously? Creed? Trust…I’m freaked out by it, too. To give you the 10-second update, Creed was huge in the US during the late 90s and early 00s, watering down what used to be alternative rock, mixing in a tad of Christian sensibility, and selling a boatload of records. Scott Stapp left the group, they became Alter Bridge, but neither division did as well as they had when they were together, so this is the first single from the reunited group. I wanted to hate this song, I really did, but I have heard it on the radio a bunch, and it has grown on me. It has a Shinedown vibe to it, and it occasionally pops into my head. Before you write it off, just check out the song and give it a little bit of a chance.

…Jedward? – I despised everything I saw about Jed and Edward during their time on X Factor, and couldn’t believe they got as far as they did, but they performed on the National Television Awards this week in England, and I now get it. It’s not going to set the world on fire, but man, it’s fun. Spoiler alert…Vanilla Ice is even credible!

Random Notes – 11-19-09

Posted by John on November 20, 2009
Posted in: american idol, charts, commentary, music industry, singles, videos, youtube. Tagged: , , . 13 Comments

– Now that I’m on Twitter (@ConstantLearnin), I’m getting to see what I’ve been missing out on. While there are things about Twitter that drive me nutty (do I need to know that you’re watching “King of Queens”?), when used in a good context, it is a great way for an up-and-coming artist to build buzz for themselves. Courtesy of @PopMuse, here’s a sample of a new track from Chris that must be a result of this studio marathon that he’s been tweeting about at @ImChrisRich.

In searching for more info on this, I also came across an interview and free download that he did for *cough*Wal-Mart*choke*. “Floating Off the Ground” definitely fits into the current pop landscape, although trying to break through without a major label behind you can be tough. Just ask Elliot Yamin about that one. I’ve listened to the track about 10 times over the past two days, and it has me intrigued about the rest of his long-delayed new record, which is now supposed to be released in 2010. Get your guilt-free download of the song here (signup necessary to download). You can also check out the tune in the video posted below. I read somewhere that this is his new single, but I can’t believe that he would be giving away a single that he actually hopes gets him some chart action.

– One song that is showing a little bit of legs and has slowly grown on me is Michael Buble’s “Haven’t Met You Yet”, which has already been a top 5 hit in the UK. “Haven’t” is bulleted at #57 on the Hot 100, along with being top 5 at Adult Contemporary and top 30 on the Adult Top 40 chart. While it’s been pushed by appearances on Dancing with the Stars and Oprah, the song is a solid straight-ahead pop song without any gimmicks that you just don’t hear on the radio all that much, and deserves to be a hit.

Having said all of this, his record company has already announced that they are planning a re-issue of Crazy Love, which was only released 7 weeks ago. While I am glad that the record company is behind him, this re-issue craze is just getting out of hand. Here’s hoping that Lady GaGa is able to show the industry next week that a brand-new album is a better value to the consumer than just the same 10 tracks with a few new ones thrown in for good measure.

– I am pretty thrilled that after 19 months on the charts, Lady Antebellum is getting their moment to shine on the larger pop stage. Following their triumph at the Country Music Awards on the 11th, their self-titled debut bounds back up the Billboard 200 to #11, and their current single “Need You Now”, from the album of the same name due January 26th, leaps all the way up to #5 on the Hot 100 and #1 on the Country singles chart.

For those of you who are unfamiliar, the members of Lady Antebellum have some serious music business roots. Hillary Scott is the daughter of Linda Davis, who is most well-known from her duet with Reba McEntire on the original version of “Does He Love You”, and Charles Kelley is the brother of pop singer Josh Kelley. In fact, Josh actually helped the band out early on by letting them crash at his place and use his recording equipment as they were pursuing a recording contract. “Need You Now” is only their fourth single, but it is already their second Country #1. Look for them to partake in some Sugarland-like domination over the next few years.

GaGa: Too Much Too Soon?

Posted by John on November 18, 2009
Posted in: commentary, music industry, upcoming. Tagged: , . 19 Comments

If you even glance at music blogs once a month, there is no way that you have not experienced the GaGa firestorm that has consumed pop music lovers around the globe. It is pretty staggering to see just how pervasive she has become in the span of a year, especially when you take into account that her first single “Just Dance” didn’t even hit #1 in the US until this past January. Now, you can’t listen to a pop radio station an hour without hearing one of her five hits.

In reading Will-W’s review of The Fame Monster, due in stores and online November 23rd, I was struck first by his enthusiasm for the opus, but I started to wonder about her still-building popularity. Four top 10 singles is a huge year for any artist, but “Bad Romance” makes #5, and there are at least two more hits waiting in the wings. Should GaGa have left her monsters waiting to build some anticipation? Or did she do the right thing by striking while the iron is still hot? I know that this was supposed to be part of a re-issue (a practice I already have a huge bias against), but it appears that this has grown well beyond the original plan. “Bad Romance” is almost a given to hit #1 soon (possibly even in two weeks, once the EP hits, and Fame Monster may give Adam Lambert’s For Your Entertainment a run for the #1 album.

You know what song “Bad Romance” reminds of at times? Don’t laugh…New Kids on the Block’s “Step By Step”. And there’s a reason for that. After the huge response to Hangin’ Tough and the resulting tour, “Step” sounded like a huge, well, step ahead, with a much larger sound and an arena-inspiring chorus. “Step” is the one song of theirs from the 80s that actually holds up well. To me, there are a lot of comparison between NKOTB and GaGa right now (minus the branded bedsheets). Both seemed to come out of nowhere, both broke wide open globally, and both racked up multiple top 10 hits off of their breakthrough records (Hangin’ Tough was NKOTB’s 2nd album). And let’s not forget that they have already recorded together on the GaGa-penned “Big Girl Now”.

Here’s the big difference, though. New Kids had a bit of a break from the charts between 1989 and 1990 (Christmas single “This One’s For the Children” excepted). There is no break for GaGa, who is still at #7 on the Hot 100 with “Paparazzi”. Even with a break, the NKOTB backlash started in 1990, and continued on through the next couple of years, culminating in 1992 when they were accused of lip-syncing music sung by other singers. The fact that “If You Go Away”, arguably their finest moment, only got to #16 that year in the US demonstrates how quickly the biggest group in the world can plummet. I am not wishing a similar backlash for GaGa, as I hope she keeps pushing boundaries for years to come. My concern is that the public at large may not be as dedicated to her longevity, and she will be left behind for the next flash in the pan.

So what do you all think? Too much too soon? Cash in while the demand is there? Some other option?

JLS vs Taio Cruz

Posted by John on October 16, 2009
Posted in: commentary, singles, videos, youtube. Tagged: , , . 11 Comments

Did some major turf war break out in the UK? Well, no. This is what happens when I am stuck in traffic with Radio 1. While I was grooving to “Break Your Heart”, my mind started thinking about Taio’s chances here in the US, and that lead to fellow UK R&B crooners JLS. So what are the chances of either of these acts even getting a chance to crack the American market, let along actually get a hit? Check out the breakdown below…

Taio Cruz – “Break Your Heart”
“Break Your Heart”, at least to my ear, sounds like a male version of “Just Dance” that doesn’t need Akon as a guest because, well, Taio handles that part of the equation just fine. This record would fit perfectly into the current pop landscape, and GaGa’s stratospheric rise proves that the marketplace is open to a complete unknown making it big. Is there a drawback to this record? Honestly, it would be Taio’s name. Could be a blessing or a curse. But that’s a minor drawback. If his A&R folks back in the UK aren’t already grooming him for the US, they should have their heads examined.

JLS – “Beat Again”
Even though these X Factor veterans are already on single #2 (“Everybody In Love”), the only chance they have of breaking in America right now is their upbeat jam “Beat Again”. Sadly, I don’t know that this is the environment to try and reinvigorate the boy band concept in the US, although the makeup of the band is perfect from a demographic standpoint. You’ve got the buff guy, the skinny one, the more realistically good looking dude, and the average joe. Someone for everyone!

Winner? Not even close. Taio should have a happy career ahead of him here in the US, as long as his handlers get it right.

VMA – Various Musical Attitudes

Posted by John on September 14, 2009
Posted in: awards, commentary, music industry. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 7 Comments

Kanye Taylor VMAIf you want a full, thoughtful recap of the VMAs, look no further than Rich’s amazing breakdown of the events (with some amazing screen caps) at fourfour, because he gets almost all of it. I disagree slightly on one or two points, but overall, he needs to get out of my head right now.

Having given you the full breakdown, there are a couple of things that I feel compelled to highlight.

– Madonna, for all of her bad choices of late, is being hailed as a class act for her introduction. Leave it to me to throw cold water on that one. Her intent may have been good, and I believe she was completely sincere in her commentary, but to create this intense bond via the similarities of their circumstances, and then use it to say “he was more fucked up than I will ever be, but I hold myself (and all of you) responsible for his downward spiral” seemed a tad arrogant to me.

Janet Scream VMA– I defeated myself with Janet, because the initial buzz made it sound like she was going to be the heart of this dance extravaganza, but cooler heads prevailed, and she did the most appropriate thing possible. The way they only used his part of the video dance scene, and then got the camera angle of her dancing with him in the right position, was perfection. My initial disappointment with the lack of Janet turned to relief that a) she didn’t embarrass herself; and b) she didn’t embarrass Michael.

– Speaking of Janet, after the show, she released a new song on her website that I am really enjoying. “Make Me” harkens back to that disco vibe of “All for You”, which leads me to believe that this is a product of her revived connection with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. More please!

– I’m torn on the best performance of the night. P!nk’s high-flying acrobatics to “Sober” were truly impressive, but for sheer fun and impact, Beyonce won me over with her army of “Single Ladies”. I got a bit of a kick out of Green Day inviting the entire audience up on the stage at the end of their song, too. Boos to the security gorillas dragging people off the stage after the invite.

Gaga Eminem VMA– Lady GaGa, meet the jumping shark. Jumping shark, here’s your next victim.

I actually LAUGHED at the “death” scene. The blood was so hilarious to me that I am sure people in the next house over heard my guffaws. Note to GaGa…if you’re going to simulate a death and hanging on a family-rated awards show, use some subtlety. This is coming from a fan, so don’t take this as just another hater. Just calling it as I see it.

One more thing…Eminem got what he deserved when he realized that he would HAVE to hug the Lady out of protocol. Karma’s a bitch, bitch.

– I’m sure this won’t be a surprise to anyone, but I will go to the movie theater to see This Is It. For as ghoulish as he looks in parts of the trailer for the movie, it’s going to be a spectacle, and I will be there to see it.

Gerard Butler VMA– If anyone is going to get a sales bounce out of this show, I am hoping it is Muse, who completely deserves it. They rocked it out, and I will be looking for the CD coming out tomorrow. Oh, and Gerard Butler introduced them. Just sayin’.

– One final note…reason #74 why we love Kelly Clarkson.

What I’ve Learned from (Dead) Michael Jackson

Posted by John on September 13, 2009
Posted in: commentary, death, personal, videos, youtube. Tagged: , , , . 7 Comments

MJ Rock VideoDoes it seem possible that we are going on three months since Michael Jackson died? It kind of boggles my mind, as it seems like only a couple of weeks ago we were inundated with non-stop coverage of the circus surrounding his death, with all the fixins. It’s easy to forget that the buzz around MJ prior to his early demise was whether his London-based concert would even see the light of day, let alone be turned into a highly-anticipated theatrical release. But through all of the craziness and sadness, there are some key lessons that I’ve been able to identify.

– The circus rolls on, even after you die – This one takes on two meanings in the wake of June 25th, as not only did the media become all-MJ, all the time, but they even reported mysterious MJ sightings, trying to link Michael to Elvis and Tupac. Not only did they report on every crumb of detail they could find out about Jackson’s life, they even tried to find an heir to the throne, as it was briefly reported that Kanye West had already identified himself as the new King of Pop (quickly disproven, but still).

Latoya Home Video– What you won’t do, do for fame – Dad is pimping side businesses, associates are rushing to publish tell-alls, and other family members are rush-releasing five-year-old recordings (see LeToya) and “tributes” (see Jermaine). I suppose it’s not a knock on anyone, but some of it just comes off a bit desperate. Even alleged son Omer Bhatti, who rumors have apparently floated for years about him being Michael’s love child, surfaced for the memorial service and even sat in the front row with the rest of the family. Tribute tour with all of his offspring is sure to follow.

– Good music evolves with you – I have a lot of Michael Jackson music in my library, but I hadn’t gone out of my way to listen to it specifically for quite a while. The surfacing of “Rock With You” remixed by Freemasons did cause me to revisit a bit of “Off the Wall” about two years ago, including the epic Frankie Knuckles remix of “Rock”, but that was a short-lived theme. Michael’s been pretty prominently in the mix for the past few months, though. There are songs that I have rediscovered (“P.Y.T” was somehow missing from my collection), songs that I have new appreciation for (“Stranger In Moscow”, for one), and songs that I feel vindicated for loving the first time around, regardless of what everyone else thought (“Blood on the Dancefloor”). No matter how deep into the catalog I go, though (“Farewell My Summer Love”, anyone?), nothing can top the pure joy of Knuckles’s interpretation of “Rock With You”.