On August 4, 1958, Billboard Magazine revolutionized the music industry by publishing their first list tracking radio plays and sales of songs called the Hot 100. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Hot 100, Billboard plans to run a special feature about the chart each week on their website. For instance this week the magazine takes a chronological look at the Hot 100’s top song each year since 1958.
Some of these videos included in this week’s feature are absolute gold!
Before we leave you, check out this fantastic photo of Notre Dame hero/Cubs reliever Jeff Samardzija shaking hands with alt-country legend Jeff Tweedy of Wilco taken before the game at Chicago’s Wrigley Field on August 3:
Our good friend Scott Gordon taped Radiohead’s mind-blowing performances at the Hollywood Bowl on August 24 and 25 and has given us the go ahead to share them with our loyal readers. We’ve uploaded the tracks to Imeem for those of you who want to stream, but we’ve also got FLAC and 320kbps MP3 downloads for those of you who want to add these stellar recordings to your collection. As always, be sure to login/register at Imeem to stream the tracks in their entirety.
Night One:
READ ON to stream Night Two and to download the MP3s and FLACs…
After a break of over four years, Jam-pioneers Phish reunited this evening in New York City at the wedding of former road manager Brad Sands. The quartet treated the crowd to a three song set that included old standbys Suzy Greenberg, Julius and Waste. As if that wasn’t enough, shortly after Phish left the stage drummer Stewart Copeland of The Police joined the wedding band for Can’t Stand Losing You and The Meters’ Fire on the Bayou. Congratulations go out to Mr. and Mrs. Sands.
This isn’t the first time Phish reunited after a lengthy layoff at a wedding of a former employee. On December 1, 2001, the band members rocked out Wolfman’s Brother > Boogie On Reggae Woman and Loving Cup at the wedding of Dionysian’s Jason Colton shortly before the fourteen month-mark of their first hiatus. They also played at the wedding of Beth and Steve Drebber on August 12, 1989 as described by Kevin Shapiro for the August 1989 edition of This Month in Phish History:
After a steady spring and early summer of touring, Phish’s first performance in August was on the 12th at The Burlington Community Boathouse playing at friends Beth and Steve Drebber’s wedding reception. As a member of a local band, The Joneses, Steve got to know Phish, meeting Beth at a Phish concert in February of the previous year (see This Month in Phish History, February 1988). The Drebbers’ was one of only a few wedding gigs Phish played over the years. They performed a set of jazz standards followed by a more adventurous set of Phish originals and covers for the newlyweds. One of the covers was a wedding request for the band’s only performance of the Allman Brothers’ Blue Sky.
One clip from the wedding has surfaced on YouTube and we’re sure plenty of pictures from this monumental affair will surface in the upcoming days.
On Thursday night at the Park West in Chicago, former Tombstone Blues Band bassist Mike Gordon treated fans to a show that was unbelievably strange, even for eccentric Cactus. Gordon brought out stilt walkers with human puppets, jugglers, a hula hooper and other circus performers to help him act out the story behind Andleman’s Yard from his latest album, The Green Sparrow.
[All Photos By Joel Berk]
Joel Berk was on hand at Park West and here are his amazing photos:
Mike Gordon
9/4/08
Park West
Chicago, IL
O: Andelman’s Yard > Dig Further Down, Cruel World > Ain’t Love Funny, Andelman’s Yard > Morphing Again > Andelman’s Yard > Traveled Too Far, Things That Make You Go Hmmm > Andelman’s Yard > Voices, Andelman’s Yard > Another Door
READ ON for more photos and videos from the Mike Gordon Variety Show…
MTV has relaunched their high-definition channel as Palladia HD, and they’re celebrating the relaunch with a bevy of new live music specials. Up first is a clip show from July’s first annual Rothbury Festival featuring performances from John Mayer, Widespread Panic, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Primus and more.
Friday [all times Eastern]:
Stand Up To Cancer: Sheryl Crow [All Major Networks 8PM]
Rothbury 2008: DMB, Snoop, WSP [PLD HD 9PM]
Late Show w/ David Letterman: Steve Earle [CBS 11:35PM]
Jimmy Kimmel Live: Black Kids [ABC Midnight]
Saturday:
Soundstage: Michael McDonald [RAVE HD 2PM]
Live From Abbey Road: Brian Wilson [Sundance 6PM]
Isle of Wight ‘08: The Police, Sex Pistols [PLD HD 9PM]
Classic Albums: Dark Side of the Moon [VH1 Classic 11PM]
Sunday:
Private Sessions: Duran Duran [A&E 9AM]
Glastonbury ‘08: Raconteurs, Vampire Weekend [PLD HD 10AM]
HDNet Concert Series: 2005 Jammy Awards [1PM]
History of the Traveling Wilburys [Sundance 8:30PM]
Following on the heels of Mike Gordon’s Variety Show at Chicago’s Park West, Jim Pollock will be throwing open his doors to host a free art show on Saturday, September 6th from 11am-5pm. The show will highlight Pollock’s original artwork for bands such as Phish, Umphrey’s McGee, the Disco Biscuits and festivals such as the 10,000 Lakes Music & Arts Festival, Wakarusa & Summercamp. Head over to Jim’s site at PollockPrints.com for much more information on Saturday’s event.
Starting on Monday at noon, you can head over to NPR Music to enjoy a stream of Radiohead’s tour-closing performance at the Santa Barbara Bowl from August 28.
Nirvana’s Manager, Danny Goldberg, recently penned his memoir: Bumping Into Geniuses - My Life Inside the Rock N Roll Business, which details his dealings with A-level artists such as Patti Smith, KISS and Bruce Springsteen. Spinner shares a riveting excerpt from the book on the rise and fall of Kurt Cobain. We can’t wait to read the whole thing.
Neil Young will kick off his North American tour next month with DC4C and Wilco splitting opening slots for the 20 show run. In the midst of the first set of dates, Young will take up residency for two nights at the Shoreline Amphitheater for his annual Bridge School Benefit. This will be the 22nd year for the all-acoustic based show that aids children with severe physical impairments and complex communication needs at the school Young and his wife, Pegi, helped found.
No lineup or ticketing information has been revealed yet.
Here’s some more recently announced tours to consider…
N.E.R.D. & Common team up for a two month long jaunt (begins: 09/09)
Steel Train heads out a long cross-country headlining fall run (begins: 10/18)
Psychedelic hard-rocker Secret Machines return to the road for slew of dates (begins: 10/16)
Finally, that quirky bunch of Athens-based musicians known as the Elephant 6 Collective will band together this October for something they are billing the Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise Tour. The show is being described as “a big orchestra, variety show, silly happy thing” celebrating the music of Olivia Tremor Control, Elf Power, Circulatory System, The Music Tapes and more.
Yesterday, we welcomed photographer/journalist Mike Sherry into the Hidden Track Family to add some much needed coverage of the West Coast. For Mike’s first assignment he headed out to Morrison, Colorado for a wonderful weekend at arguably the world’s most beautiful music venue: Red Rocks.
The afternoon of day two saw a thunderstorm roll over just as doors opened, but as is often the case at Red Rocks the front blew through with plenty of time to spare and provided a rainbow payoff. Umphrey’s McGee hit the stage and got right down to business with Search 4, a newer tune with great drive and a bright feel that reminds me of Yes’ sound. The early crowd was treated to an extended set that showcased some of their strongest newer material, Higgins especially, rolling into a fan-pleasing sandwich of powerful classics: Divisions > Resolution > Divisions > JaJunk with a rowdy Pipeline and dance party Norwegian Wood jam thrown in the mix. By the time night had fallen, the bowl was full and rocking out as Umphrey’s closed with authority.
If all the music that had come before set the bar high, Gov’t Mule vaulted that light as a feather opening with Soulshine. Drummer Matt Abts was locked tight with Andy Hess, who had several standout moments on bass that kicked things up and kept the crowd’s feet moving. Likewise, Danny Louis sounded solid and funky on keys, while other times barnstorming with Warren’s soaring guitar. Another warm Red Rocks night was made even warmer by a sweet version of Dear Prudence with Brendan Bayliss from Umphrey’s sitting in on guitar, only to turn the amphitheater on its collective head with Black Sabbath’s War Pigs to finish the first set. Best of all was opening the second with When the Music’s Over. Mule didn’t just make the proverbial musical statement, they sent a ferociously fine proclamation into the night, capping off a splendid weekend at the best venue the outdoors has to offer.
Yesterday, Scotty offered up a fantastic B-List of albums hitting shelves this month that he’s looking forward to. I thought I’d continue along those lines today with a mix tape chocked full of music that is also being released in the coming months, as we see the leaves turn colors and our days grow shorter. So sit back and enjoy some Feel Good Hits For The Fall…
We kick things off with the first single off of Ray Lamontagne’s third album Gossip In The Grain. Here’s the emotive singer/songwriter with the soul-infused You Are The Best Thing. Next comes some straight ahead rock from the Kings Of Leon with Sex On Fire. From there we move into the gospel tinged Acid Tongue, the title track from the ever adorable Jenny Lewis’ sophomore effort, that features Chris Robinson, M. Ward and others on backing vocals. Then, we’ve got a couple from two former BtN artists Okkervil River with Singer Songwriter (which might be one of my favorite tunes of the year) and Blitzen Trapper with the rootsy, harmonica laced cut Furr. Finally, we close things out with some indie-piano-pop from Ben Folds with You Don’t Know Me which features vocals from Regina Spektor.
Whenever a big gig comes to Philadelphia you can count on WXPN to let us all join in the fun. WXPN will simulcast this evening’s My Morning Jacket show directly from the Festival Pier around 7:30PM. I know what I’m doing tonight.
Let’s take a look at what we missed this week…
Jambase talks to Apollo Sunshine about Shall Noise Upon
Finally, we’ve got another example of why Akon fucking sucks. During a performance in Guyana, the rapper took a swing at a female fan. Classy shit, buddy.
We’d like to welcome photographer/journalist Mike Sherry into the Hidden Track Family to add some much needed coverage of the West Coast. For Mike’s first assignment he headed out to Morrison, Colorado for a wonderful weekend at arguably the world’s most beautiful music venue: Red Rocks.
Red Rocks never fails to amaze the eyes & ears. It’s an iconic music destination, worth planning a visit just to see your favorite act perform, and moreso with a two-day billing of closely-tied bands. This Labor Day weekend I enjoyed two nights of outstanding music and fantastic access to photograph the action. RatDog kicked things off with a subdued Help on the Way, paced too slow for my liking (Bobby stopped Jay Lane’s first tempo) but eventually the energy picked up, thanks bigtime to an infusion of Derek Trucks’ bright slide on Loser & Warren Haynes’ rascally voice on Loose Lucy. Having a guitar sparring parter certainly seemed to fire up Mark Karan, and crowd got more responsive as the evening faded into night. Chants for Not Fade Away echoing between the rocks made the air feel especially nice & warm.
READ ON for more of Mike’s thoughts and stunning photos from Red Rocks…
Traditionally, September has always been a big month for the release of new albums and September 2008 is looking finer than Sarah Palin. For this week’s B List, I’ve put together a list of the nine September releases you’ve gotta hear.
One of my favorite albums of 2006 was Cowards and Robbers by the unknown at the time Cold War Kids. After seeing them steal the show at MSG last summer, where they opened for Muse, I realized these guys are the real deal: a band that produces amazing albums and bombastic live shows.
The Kids have been touring behind their latest album, Loyalty to Loyalty, and the new songs sound darker and groovier than the previous batch. Loyalty to Loyalty drops on September 23. For a taste of the new album check out the video for Something Is Not Right With Me on the Kids’ homepage.
READ ON for eight more terrific albums coming out this month…
Why are Taddy Porter futures going through the roof? Why was “bunk molly recipe” the third-most Googled term yesterday (behind Lauren Conrad and Kim Kardashian, of course)? And why can’t I find decent patchwork cloth anywhere within a 200 mile radius? What in the good name of lot mamas is going on here? Could it be…? Dare I say it – THE BRAHPHECY??
Yes, somebody call The Miz people, because I am laying down The Gauntlet. Phish is coming back. ANNOUNCEMENT IMMINENT!!!!!!!onehundredeleven!!!! First came word from the dude who works at a coffee shop in the town where Tom Marshall lives who said that Trey landscaped his house in Washington County with cacti. Then everyone but Fishman issued the infamous “non-denial denial” conformation. You know, like “Oh, we talk a lot. But only about chess.” (Yeah, right.) Then Trey announced that he’s hitting the (holiday) road with his band to test the waters again, I assume. But when two interesting bits of news from outside their camps hit the infowebules, I was forced to compost all of my Naturapet organic dog food: Panic and moe. will be taking time off in 2009.
Unfortunately, the popularity of this scene has dwindled pretty dramatically in recent years. It’s not 1998 anymore where fans can support three or four bands touring simultaneously. There’s just not enough wooks craving kind yummy garlic grilled cheeses in the 2000s, I guess. So it’s clear to me what these two bands are doing: They’re getting off the road to make room for the inevitable Phish Mach 3 (and The Dead, to a lesser extent) reunion. I’ve been a Panic fan since the early ’90s and will remain one to the very end, but longtime Spreadheads have to admit that tickets are much easier to come by these days than they used to be. I can’t imagine that demand will somehow rebound when major competition returns.
The Brahphacey is nigh. So enjoy sharing the groove in 2009, phans.
The Rolling Stones iconic tongue logo is arguable the famous and recognizable in all of rock and roll. The logo which first appeared on the band’s Sticky Fingers album, and was originally designed by John Pasche in 1970. So why this bit of rock history? Well, Pasche’s original design was sold at auction over the weekend for the hefty sum of $92,500 by the London-based Victoria and Albert Museum where it will hang.
Finally, indie-rockers The National have been ardent supporter of Democratic Presidential hopeful Barack Obama for quite some time now. The band designed and has been selling their Mr. November t-shirt, with 100% of the money going directly to the Obama campaign, since July. As a possible way of saying thank you to the band, their song Fake Empire can now be heard in an official campaign commercial, take a look and listen (via Product Shop NYC)…
