Posts by Luke Sacks

When I heard producer/director/writer John Hughes died yesterday, it took a few minutes to hit me. While his movies are literally a part of my every day life – I don’t think I go 24 hours without quoting Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, 16 Candles or the Breakfast Club – I realized I didn’t know anything about the man. And that’s how he wanted it. A notorious recluse, Hughes let his films speak for themselves and to this day, they represent some of the best movies ever written about teenagers. No special effects or slick language. No gratuitous sex or quick cuts. Mostly truth and laughs.

Along with the Bratpack, the Griswolds and the Donger, Hughes created some incredibly memorable musical scenes throughout the course of his career. Below is a small tribute.

1. Danke Schoen > Twist & Shout – Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986, Written/Directed by John Hughes)

I remember seeing this movie in the theaters and halfway through this scene, the place was absolutely rocking. Beginning with a schmaltzy snippet of the Wayne Newton classic Danke Schoen, a tune mentioned or hummed several times throughout the flick, the scene erupts into a complete throw down with the Beatles version of Twist & Shout. From Ferris’s own father shaking it in his office to the thousands of extras lining the Chicago street on which it was filmed, it’s hard to imagine people having more fun on a movie set and it shows. The dance crew is spectacular with their Thriller-like moves and I always get a kick out of the “vibrating man” who shakes so hard his hat falls off his head. I defy anyone to change the channel when this scene comes on. READ ON for four more musical scenes from JH’s movies…

It’s another good musical week for the Biography Channel which will air several musical profiles this week including an extended two-hour program dedicated to Frank Sinatra airing Thursday, August 6 at 9 am. Tuesday, August 4 [all times Eastern] Bon Jovi: Unplugged [Palladia 11AM] Robert Plant/Alison Krauss: Crossroads [Palladia 2PM] David Gilmour: Live in Gdansk […]

Biography offers a triple shot of rock music programming on Thursday night with profiles of Axl Rose & Guns n’ Roses (8PM), The Red Hot Chili Peppers (9PM) and Kurt Cobain & Nirvana (10PM). If you want to watch them all, just grab your kilt, sock and flannel shirt and you’ll feel right at home. […]

Woody Allen is a lot of things to a lot of people – actor, director, writer, comedian, creepy pervert. But he’s also a highly accomplished jazz musician as seen in Wild Man Blues airing Wednesday at Midnight on IFC. This documentary features Allen and his entourage, including now-wife and former step-daughter Soon-Yi Previn, on their […]

More than 1.5 million people were glued to their televisions on July 13, 1985 as some of the music world’s biggest stars took to stages in London and Philadelphia to help fight famine in Africa. VH1 Classic will air a special on Live Aid today, 24 years to the day after the event. The one-hour […]

It’s a good week for great music on the late night talk shows when you have David Letterman welcoming Connor Oberst’s newest project (Monday) and Levon Helm (Thursday). Death Cab for Cutie (Monday) and Andrew Bird (Tuesday) will hit Conan O’Brien. Jimmy Fallon will air a repeat from June 2 on Thursday featuring Paul Simon. […]

Fuse will re-air its four-part series on the Dave Matthews Band, Road to Big Whiskey, beginning Wednesday at 10pm. The series takes a personal look at the band and its music, including how they dealt with losing saxophonist and founding member LeRoi Moore along with tons of footage from the studio. Monday, June 29 [All Times […]

While not a movie about music, Stand by Me is certainly a musical film. Country Music Television will air the 1986 Rob Reiner classic based on the novel by Stephen King on Tuesday at 11PM. Not quite sure what is “Country” about this flick but it’s a great one that is heightened by the soundtrack […]

Phish will visit Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, a city with under 2,000 residents, tonight to play a venue – now called Post Gazette Pavilion – that has seen more than its share of bust outs and stellar performances over the years. There seems to be something about those pine trees at the back of the lawn that makes Phish want to deliver something special at this shed.

Having already pulled out Destiny Unbound and Curtis Loew at Fenway Park, When the Cactus is in Bloom in Asheville and Highway to Hell and oh yeah, Bruce Springsteen at Bonnaroo, one has to assume that something rare or new altogether will find a spot in the setlist tonight.

Phish’s first show at the then-Star Lake Amphitheatre was on 8/13/97 and they wasted no time in giving fans something rare with the only performance to date of Elton John’s Amoreena. That show also featured the third-ever Izabella, the fifth-ever Crosseyed and Painless and one of the funkiest Gumbos ever played.

• 8/13/1997: MP3s Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3 & Video Playlist

READ ON for a look at the other Burgettstown Phish shows…

If you aren’t Bonnaroo’ed out by the end of the weekend, Fuse will air a repeat of The Best of Bonnaroo 2008 this evening at 5PM EDT. So tune in for performances from the likes of Metallica as you are putting your camping gear away and scraping six layers of Tennessee mud off your flip […]

We’ve given each member of our team a chance to review one of Phish’s Summer Tour shows and this afternoon it’s Luke Sacks’ turn to share his thoughts on last night’s show added by some exceptional photos by our Jeremy Gordon. Be sure to follow the action live from the shows @YEMblog

I hadn’t been to Jones Beach since the last time Phish performed there 14 years ago and despite numerous trips there throughout my North Jersey teenage years, I couldn’t remember anything about it.

[All photos by Jeremy Gordon for Glide/HT]

Go to the food stands and they’ll hit you up $6 for a bottle of water. That I will now remember. The swampy murk to the left of the stage. That I will now remember. But the absolutely sick sound and fantastic show that Phish threw down on Thursday night will be the most memorable aspect of the evening for sure.

After the goofy a capella ditty Grind to open (giving everyone a chance to rush to their seats from under cover), a sparkling Divided Sky with a light rain falling got the show rolling and was played with appropriate sharpness and precision. The new song Ocelet followed and was 10 minutes of pure fun with Trey sounding incredibly sharp. Sounding a little bit like a Grateful Dead song, this song has a whole lot of potential and felt as if they had been playing it for years.

READ ON for more from Luke and Jeremy’s photos…

If you are a fan of the rock/jazz meld, Jeff Beck: Live at Ronnie Scott’s is a must watch. Palladia will air the special, which features footage from Beck’s series of 2007 shows at the London venue, on Wednesday at 5pm. From his early days as a member of the Yardbirds to the awesome Jeff […]

The artist formerly known as Cat Stevens makes the rounds this week as Yusuf Islam supports his new album, Roadsinger, with appearances on The Tonight Show (Wednesday) and Jimmy Fallon (Friday). Unlike most of Yusuf’s last discs, Roadsinger marks a return to form for the former pop star. Monday, May 11 [All times ET] Scissor […]

The AP is reporting that former Wilco multi-instrumentalist Jay Bennett is suing Jeff Tweedy for breach of contract surrounding payment for Bennett’s appearance in the 2002 documentary I Am Trying to Break Your Heart.

[via Rockpalast Archive]

Bennett, who was in Wilco from 1994-2001 and contributed to Being There, Summerteeth, both Mermaid Avenue albums and of course, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, claims in the lawsuit that he was compensated only in “infrequent partial payments” equal to 15 percent of Wilco’s income from sales and performances.

Now, I am certainly no copyright attorney. And I’m equally no expert on how actors and musicians are paid for their work in movies. So I’m not going to pontificate on what Bennett is legally entitled to. But aren’t there clear laws about this? Could the movie have even come out if Bennett hadn’t signed some agreements to determine compensation? What about Leroy Bach, who was also in the band during the filming of the movie but has subsequently been replaced – has he been paid more/less than Bennett for the movie?

READ ON for more of Luke’s thoughts on Bennett’s lawsuit…

This week’s Televised Tune features two Sundance Channel apperances by the legendary Herbie Hancock. On Tuesday at 11AM, Sundance will air Live From Abbey Road featuring Hancock and on Wednesday at 9PM, Elvis Costello will welcome Hancock to his Spectacle program in a repeat of a great episode that originally aired in February. In other Jazz […]

Wilco is making a previously unreleased cover of Woody Guthrie’s The Jolly Banker available on the band’s official website, www.wilcoworld.net. The band is asking for a $2 donation (or $100 if you are a rich banker-type) but you can download the track for free as long as you promise to “make it up” later. All […]

Jonathan Demme, better known for directing the Oscar-winning Silence of the Lambs and the Talking Heads’ masterpiece Stop Making Sense, documents Neil Young’s two 2005 shows at Nashville’s famed Ryman Auditorium for Heart of Gold (Thursday at 9PM on Palladia), one of the most underrated concert films ever. The first half features tunes from Young’s Prairie Wind while the […]

The Sundance Channel will air Loudquietloud, a critically-acclaimed documentary about the Pixies 2004 Reunion Tour on Monday at 4:50 pm ET. The flick contains concert footage, interviews and insights and most importantly, proves that the Pixies can still kick some ass. Monday, 4/20: Lenny Kravtiz: Unplugged [Palladia 3:30PM] The Pixies: Loudquietloud [Sundance 4:50PM] Tom Petty […]

On Thursday at 6pm, Ovation will air the awesome documentary Grateful Dawg, which chronicles the musical and personal relationship between Jerry Garcia and David Grisman. The film includes plenty of live music, but more interesting is the footage of them interacting with each other as friends or sitting in a living room plucking away on […]

After conquering one of their favorite arenas in Hampton, Phish will visit some familiar venues this summer and in the first of a two-part column, we’ll take a look at the band’s biggest triumphs at each place so far…

Jones Beach

Best Show: 7-23-93

I: Buried Alive > Rift -> Caravan, Nellie Kane, Maze, The Horse > Silent in the Morning, Punch You in the Eye, Runaway Jim, It’s Ice, Lawn Boy, Cavern

II: Also Sprach Zarathustra -> Poor Heart, Run Like an Antelope, Faht > My Friend My Friend, Uncle Pen, Big Ball Jam, You Enjoy Myself -> Big Black Furry Creature from Mars -> Chalk Dust Torture, Highway to Hell

E: Amazing Grace, Daniel

A solid first set, sprinkled with classics off of Rift, paved the way for an aggressive second set that opened with a typical-for-1993 length 2001 but exploded from there. Run Like an Antelope is especially ferocious with Trey bringing the jam back around with extra oomph. My Friend My Friend and a big YEM > BBFCM also highlight the second set.

Runners Up: 7-15-94, 6-28-95

READ ON for more of Luke’s list of Summer toppers…