The officially-unofficial Sony BMG Commercial Music Group promoblog for our friends in the media. New details on Legacy, Masterworks, Burgundy and other labels' artists and albums are updated often.
One hour of music and conversation to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this landmark moment in Elvis' career. Poduced by Joyride Media, hosted by Laura Cantrell.
Features music from the COMPLETE 68 COMEBACK SPECIAL 40th anniversary 4-CD box set in stores August 5.
One-hour radio special set to premiere in August 2008 celebrates the 40th anniversary of Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special. Original program director Steve Binder, guitarist Scotty Moore and others look back on how this became a turning point in Elvis' career, as well as one of the most iconic music specials in TV history.
This will be great programming for Elvis Week 2008 (Aug 11-17) to commemorate the week of Elvis' death. Here are some important links with more details:
Produced by Joyride Media and hosted by singer-songwriter Laura Cantrell - same team behind the acclaimed 2007 Elvis Specials THE EARLY YEARS, VIVA LAS VEGAS and HE TOUCHED ME (ELVIS' GOSPEL MUSIC).
THE COMPLETE 68 COMEBACK SPECIAL 4-cd box set:
New 4-CD box set in stores from Sony BMG Music on August 5, 2008 features the original "NBC TV Special" album tracks, plus music from all the live sessions, rare backstage rehearsal footage, and hard-to-find studio cuts that led to the original TV broadcast.
Here's a great clip from the '68 Comeback Special of Elvis and friends revisiting the first song they recorded...
NEW ONE-HOUR RADIO SPECIAL READY FOR JUNE 2008 BROADCASTS
In 1977 Dennis Wilson’s Pacific Ocean Blue became the first solo LP to be released by a member of the legendary Beach Boys. Dennis, the band’s surfer, drummer and free spirit, emerged from the shadow of his older brother, pop genius Brian Wilson, and shocked everyone with a sound and style unlike any other. More than 30 years later, it stands as one of the 1970s great cult-classic albums and a crucial puzzle-piece in the Wilson family's long musical history.
Throughout this one-hour special, Dennis Wilson's friends and family recall how he developed his musical voice - one that was full of surprises, but also one that reflected Wilson's dark, moody life. While acclaim grew for both his Beach Boys contributions and his solo material, Wilson's creative output was sadly stifled by his hard and fast lifestyle. His plans to follow Pacific Ocean Blue with an even grander album, Bambu, were left unfinished at the time of his drowning death in 1983, but many songs from those last sessions were filled with a hopefulness that belied his tragic decline.
Interview subjects include Brian Wilson, Dennis Wilson's first wife, Carole Bloom, former Beach Boys manager Jim Guercio, Pacific Ocean Blue co-producer Gregg Jakobson, and engineer Jon Hanlon, Bambu collaborator Carli Munoz, and journalist Anthony DeCurtis. We also hear from Dennis Wilson, himself, courtesy of a rare radio visit at the time Pacific Ocean Blue was released. Many tracks from that album, as well as the long lost Bambu sessions are heard throughout this one-hour program hosted by noted rock historian and Smithereens drummer Dennis Diken.
Producer: Joyride Media (Paul Chuffo and Joshua Jackson) Host: Dennis Diken Broadcast Window: Begins June 2008 Length: One-hour program with breaks for local spots Terms: Available for all USA radio broadcasters at no cost, no built-in barter spots Contacts: Andy Cahn, 212-833-6279, andy.cahn@sonybmg.com Eric Molk, 212-833-5389, eric.molk@sonybmg.com
Dennis Wilson - Pacific Ocean Blue(Legacy Edition) 2-CD set in stores June 17. More details online at pacificoceanblue.net. Here's a clip from the original "River Song" recording sessions.
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TIMINGS AND CUES
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59:00 Version:
1. Full Program (59:00)
0:00 - 20:00 Segment 1 In: "I just feel it's all in the heart and expressing yourself, and sharing that with other people..." Out: "I'm Dennis Diken, and you're listening to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue."
20:00 - 21:00 Break 1 with music bed 21:00 - 41:00 Segment 2 In: "Welcome back to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue. I'm Dennis Diken." Out: "I'm Dennis Diken, and you're listening to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue."
41:00 - 42:00 Break 2 with music bed 42:00 -- 59:00 Segment 3 In: "Welcome back to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue. I'm Dennis Diken." Out: "I'm Dennis Diken, and thanks for listening."
2. Promo Spot (0:30)
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54:00 version
1. Billboard (1:00) In: "I just feel it's all in the heart and expressing yourself, and sharing that with other people..." Out: "I'm Dennis Diken, and welcome to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue."
2. Segment 1 (17:00) In: "Welcome back to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue. I'm Dennis Diken." Out: "I'm Dennis Diken, and you're listening to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue."
3. Break 1 with music bed (1:00) 4. Segment 2 (18:00) In: "Welcome back to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue. I'm Dennis Diken." Out: "I'm Dennis Diken, and you're listening to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue."
5. Break 2 with music bed (1:00) 6. Segment 3 (16:00) In: "Welcome back to Dennis Wilson: Pacific Ocean Blue. I'm Dennis Diken." Out: "I'm Dennis Diken, and thanks for listening."
One-hour radio documentary pays tribute to American legend Waylon Jennings, tells the story behind his final concert at Nashville's Ryman Theatre, and features many musical highlights of that historic night.
Host: Laura Cantrell
Producer: Joyride Media (Paul Chuffo, Joshua Jackson)
Length: 54 or 59 minutes with breaks for local spots.
Broadcast Window: Begins July 20 2007
Terms: Available to all US-based radio broadcasters at no cost
By 2000, Waylon Jennings had over 40 years of experience on stage. He started as the bassist for Buddy Holly in the late 1950s, and over the years, Waylon continually grew as a musician and bandleader.
Health problems took their toll on Waylon in the 1990s. He suffered from emphysema, diabetes and had a mild stroke. Despite all that, Waylon wanted nothing more than to get back on stage. In early 2000, he put together a band with many of his favorite musicians, called it The Waymore Blues Band, and booked a show at Nashville's Ryman Theatre.
Waylon many not have known that it would be one of his last concerts. He may not have even cared. His only concern was to pull out all the stops and make this just as memorable as every other time he took the stage.
Throughout this hour, we'll hear many musical highlights of this historic evening, and comments from many of the people who made it possible - Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson, Bobby Bare, Chet Atkins, Cowboy Jack Clement, Billy Joe Shaver, his wife Jessi Colter, his son, Shooter Jennings, and even Waylon himself.
Waylon's classic compositions and covers heard throughout Never Say Die include "Good Hearted Woman," "I'm a Ramblin Man" with Montgomery Gentry, "Suspicious Minds" with Jessi Colter, "Can't You See" and "Trouble Man."
IN STORES JULY 24, 2007:
Waylon Jennings and the Waymore Blues Band - Never Say Die: The Final Concert Film - Live box set with the show on DVD and 2 CDs.
THE GAZILLIONTH (OR SO) MONTY PYTHON RADIO SPECIAL
A new one-hour Monty Python radio documentary hosted Keith Olbermann.
Host: Keith Olbermann Producer: Paul Chuffo & Joshua Jackson, Joyride Media Broadcast Window: Beings June 2007 Length: 54/59 minutes with breaks for local spots Terms: Available to all USA-based broadcasters at no cost
Timely for the 73rd Anniversary of the FCC on June 19, 2007
Monty Python debuted on the BBC nearly 40 years ago, and their mix of everything absurd, obscure and English has inspired generations comedians - from the professionals to the amateur line-quoters. Their skits, films and songs continue to be both poignant and funny today, whether experienced for the first or gazillionth time on TV, film, disc (plastic or vinyl), broadway or anytime a devoted fan is confronted with a cheese shop, a dead parrott or a shrubbery.
Between excerpts of their finest moments, Cast members Eric Idle, John Cleese and Terry Jones (with help from Python geek/historian Kim Howard Johnson) look back on the men, the myths, and legends behind them. Musician Mark Stewart analyzes the musical works that are equally as influential as their skits and films. Radio broadcasters Michael Berger and Jeff Prescott discuss Python's impact on concerned citizens of San Diego and the FCC. Carol Cleveland, a Python in everything but the title, adds what it's like to be a real woman.
The Gazillionth (or so) Monty Python Radio Special is hosted by television and radio personality Keith Olbermann. He can currently be seen and heard injecting Monty Python references into his coverage of news, politics and sports on The Countdown with Keith Olbermann (MSNBC), The Dan Patrick Show (ESPN Radio) and Football Night in America (NBC-TV).
Content advisories includes references to the human anatomy (bodyparts and ailments), ranging from clinical terminology from medical journals, textbooks and diagnoses, to English slang commonly featured in PBS broadcasts of classic BBC programs. Full transcripts, including song lyrics, can be provided on request.
One-hour radio documentary explores Johnny Cash's love for Gospel music, his roots in the church, and the stories behind his greatest Gospel recordings and performances.
Host: Rodney Crowell Producer: Joyride Media (Paul Chuffo, Joshua Jackson) Length: 59/54 minutes with two breaks for local spots Broadcast Window: Begins May 2007 Terms: Available to all US-based radio broadcasters at no cost Promotion: 0:30 promo spot included on CD
When a young man named Johnny Cash tried to get his first record deal, he told Sam Philips of Sun Records that he was a Gospel Singer. Philips said, “No Thanks,” but that didn’t stop Cash from recording and playing gospel songs. In time, Cash took his faith a lot further. He became a biblical scholar, a religious writer and even an ordained minister.
In this one-hour radio special, we’re going to hear about the spiritual world of Johnny Cash from family and friends. Interview subjects include his son, John Carter Cash, musicians Marty Stuart and Larry Gatlin and biographers Patrick Carr and Dave Urbanski.
Johnny Cash: Amazing Grace also contains more than a dozen of Cash’s best known gospel songs, including both traditional and original compositions. “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,” “Here Was a Man,” How Great Thou Art” and many more works are featured alongside stories of how Cash was inspired to record these timeless spirituals.
One-hour music intensive radio documentary about Sly & the Family Stone, their music, their turbulent history, and the indelible marks they left behind.
Host: Ben Fong-Torres Producer: Paul Chuffo & Joshua Jackson, Joyride Media Broadcast Window: Beings May 2007 Length: 54/59 minutes with breaks for local spots Terms: Available to all USA-based broadcasters at no cost
Seven musicians walked on the stage, some were black, some white, some were men, some women, and all of them were dressed in bright, colorful outfits. That was Sly and the Family Stone, and for seven wild years (1967-1974), they left a mark on music and culture that continues to inspire countless musicians - both black and white. Members changed, times got rough, but Sly and the Family Stone's sound and message of love and unity still speaks to the world today.
FAMILY AFFAIR is hosted by Ben Fong-Torres, and includes a wide range of Sly & the Family Stone tracks - from the big hits ("Dance to the Music," Everyday People," and others) to deep cuts from all their albums. Some songs accentuate the points made by the many interview subjects, others speak for themselves. All of them stand up as examples of Sly Stone's "watershed point in the development of rhythm and blues," as detailed by biographer and journalist Joel Selvin.
Band members Rose Stone, Larry Graham, Greg Errico and Andy Newmark provide rarely-heard, first-hand accounts of the zeniths and nadirs of Sly Stone's universe, taking us from their family roots to their mainstream success to later sessions "surrounded by really crazy people...out there in the twilight zone." Musicians Isaac Hayes and Chuck D, however, break down how music from all those episodes influence d Sly's contemporaries as well as future generations of musicians.
5/30 South Burlington, VT - Higher Ground 5/31 Boston, MA - Avalon 6/1 Providence, RI - Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel 6/2 Philadelphia, PA - Fillmore (soon-to-formerly-be TLA) 6/4 New York, NY - Fillmore New York At Irving Plaza 6/5 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club 6/7 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse 6/8 Asheville, NC - Orange Peel 6/9 Cincinnati, OH - Bogart's 6/10 Indianapolis, IN - The Vogue 6/12 Detroit, MI - Majestic Theatre 6/13 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre 6/14 Minneapolis, MN - Pantages Theatre
Violin vituoso Joshua Bell was featured in last weekend's Washington Post magazine as part of an experiement...
No one knew it, but the fiddler standing against a bare wall outside the Metro in an indoor arcade at the top of the escalators was one of the finest classical musicians in the world, playing some of the most elegant music ever written on one of the most valuable violins ever made. His performance was arranged by The Washington Post as an experiment in context, perception and priorities -- as well as an unblinking assessment of public taste: In a banal setting at an inconvenient time, would beauty transcend?
One-hour radio documentary about Elvis Presley's love for Gospel music, his roots in the church, and the stories behind his greatest Gospel recordings and performances.
This program is hosted by singer-songwriter Laura Cantrell and produced by Paul Chuffo (Joyride Media) - the same team behind the acclaimed Roy Orbison, Ralph Stanley and Charlie Poole radio specials.
"Religion always played an important part of Elvis' life and quest of his purpose in life. He was a searcher of knowledge and is a much more intelligent person than has been documented in history so far." - Jerry Schilling
MANY OF THE CLASSIC IMAGES OF ELVIS PRESLEY INVOLVE SOME SORT OF HIP SHAKING AND KNEE WOBBLING. AFTER ALL, HE WAS THE KING OF ROCK AND ROLL, AND WHAT HE ACCOMPLISHED IN HIS SHORT LIFE CHANGED MUSIC FOREVER.
BUT ALL THROUGH HIS CAREER, THERE WAS A SECOND TRACK. ELVIS WON THREE GRAMMYS IN HIS LIFE, AND NONE OF THEM FOR ROCK AND ROLL. ALL THREE WERE FOR RELIGIOUS RECORDINGS. ELVIS SANG A LOT OF GOSPEL MUSIC, AND IN THE NEXT HOUR, WE'RE GOING TO HEAR HOW DEEP THOSE GOSPEL ROOTS RAN.
WE'RE JOINED BY LIFELONG FRIEND AND ASSOCIATE JERRY SCHILLING, JOE MOSCHEO OF THE IMPERIALS QUARTET AND GORDON STOKER OF THE JORDANAIRES.
Host: Laura Cantrell
Producer: Paul Chuffo (Joyride Media)
Length: 59-min and 54-min versions available
Terms: Avail for all US radio broadcasters at no cost
Distribution: On CD or from PRX (click to preview or download audio)
There are no national spots built into the program
Broadcast window begins on Friday April 6
Song List: (* = music bed or excerpt).
*So High *Crying in the Chapel Swing Low, Sweet Chariot If the Lord Wasn't Walking By My Side *I, John Where Could I Go But To The Lord Milky White Way *His Hand in Mine Run On *Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho Take My Hand, Precious Lord Peace in the Valley *In My Father's House He Touched Me *Mansion on the Hill Amazing Grace You'll Never Walk Alone *Somebody Bigger Than You and I Bosom of Abraham *How Great Thou Art
All music is also featured on the new 2-CD set Elvis Presley: Ultimate Gospel in stores now from Sony BMG Music.
"Walter Reed" (2005) - Directed by Thomas Horne. Michael was shot on a green screen with a Nikon D70 and composited with still photographs of L.A. and Chicago, and edited together with archival footage.
"Try" (1997) - Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, features Phillip Seymour Hoffman, originally as a bonus feature on the Boogie Nights DVD.
"...'The Picture' supplements Farrar with Stax-like horns. It's another perfect setting, one he could (and should!) occupy for a full album." - Jesse Jarnow, Paste
Going for AAA adds now on "The Picture" (track #2)
3/26 The Nightlight - Bellingham, WA 3/27 Showbox - Seattle, WA 3/28 Crystal Ballroom - Portland, OR 3/30 The Fillmore - San Francisco, CA 3/31 Mystic Theatre - Petaluma, CA 4/3 El Rey Theatre - Los Angeles, CA 4/4 Belly Up - Solana Beach, CA 4/5 Rialto Theatre - Tucson, AZ 4/7 Fox Theatre - Boulder, CO 4/9 First Avenue - Minneapolis, MN 4/10 Vic Theatre - Chicago, IL 4/12 Mod Club - Toronto, ONT 4/13 Higher Ground - Burlington, VT 4/14 Pearl St. - Northampton, MA 4/15 Paradise - Boston, MA 4/18 Irving Plaza - New York, NY 4/19 Mr. Small’s - Pittsburgh, PA 4/20 Headliners - Louisville, KY 4/21 The Pageant - St. Louis, MO 5/1 George’s Majestic Lounge - Fayetteville, AR 5/2 Revolution Room - Little Rock, AR 5/3 Ridglea Theater - Ft. Worth, TX 5/4 Stubb’s - Austin, TX 5/5 Floore’s Country Store - Helotes, TX 5/6 Continental Club - Houston, TX 5/8 House of Blues - New Orleans, LA 5/9 Young Ave Deli - Memphis, TN 5/10 WorkPlay - Birmingham, AL 5/11 Variety Playhouse - Atlanta, GA 5/12 Crawfish Boil at Riverfront Park - Nashville, TN 5/14 Rhythm & Brews - Chattanooga, TN 5/15 The Orange Peel - Asheville, NC 5/16 Visulite - Charlotte, NC 5/17 9:30 Club - Washington, DC 5/18 Trocadero - Philadelphia, PA 5/19 BandTogether - Raleigh, NC See more details at their online ticket site
2007 marks the 30th anniversary of The Clash. Look for some new reissues and compilations later this year. In the meantime, here are some classic live performances, interviews and videos.
ELVIS PRESLEY
