Scott Bernstein

Artists have used nudity in their work since the days of the Greek Empire, so it’s no surprise that a few rock bands have used images of the naked body on their album artwork. Some bands use nudity to stir controversy, while a few others actually summon artistic intent to make their naked decisions.

For a while during the ’70s and ’80s it seemed like every week there was a new controversy over album art, but we don’t hear about that as much anymore. Two big factors have led to a decline in artists submitting albums with graphic covers. First, the obvious: CDs have a much more limited space for album artwork than vinyl. But more importantly, Wal-Mart has taken over physical distribution of albums, and they don’t stand for anything with even a hint on controversy. Apparently no one ever takes off their clothes in Bentonville, Arkansas.

This week’s B List takes a look at 10 controversial album covers that would never find their way into the racks at Wal-Mart (and, hey, nice racks). Some of these are quite graphic, so we’re gonna post them all after the jump and issue a big fat Not Safe For Work warning before we get down to business. So read on for our quick study of titties and penises on album covers…

Nazz Nomad provides interesting tracks for us to check out on a regular basis over at Bleedin’ Out. Just this week he posted an interesting mix of bands his wife

How much does it suck to have a show scheduled in Boston this weekend during the World Series? Just ask a frustrated Ryan Montbleau…

The music industry hit a low point during the 1980s when nearly every band the record labels threw at us focused more on style than substance, makeup over music. Bands like Frankie Goes to Hollywood and Culture Club were more interested in selling their merchandise than concert tickets. The problem for those trendy bands is that once the trend was over, so were their careers.

Live touring bands didn’t have the same problem because they grew their fanbases organically. People that were into Stevie Ray Vaughan really liked his music and weren’t just interesting in buying a “Stevie Say Relax” T-shirt. This week we’ve got an all-new edition of Grousing The Aisles featuring four tremendous shows from the ’80s that have recently surfaced on the torrent sites.

Miles Davis 07/15/1984 FM [FLAC, MP3]

Since it seems so patently obvious to do so, we haven’t doused too much praise upon Miles Davis in our one-year existence, but we certainly recognize the legendary trumpet player’s contributions to both rock and jazz. Not only did Miles create incredible music, he also had a knack for discovering extremely talented musicians. One of those finds was John Scofield, who toured with Davis from 1983-87. Recently we came across a crispy Miles Davis recording from 1984 that features both Scofield and future Rolling Stones bass player Darryl Jones.

Miles was playing an accessible brand of jazz during the ’84 tour, but there were still plenty of mind-blowing improvisations each night. Scofield sounds great throughout the show, but the standout performer on this boot is Darryl Jones. Jones does a nice job of holding things down, while Scofield, Davis and keyboard player Robert Irving go nuts during a nasty version of Jean Pierre. Also of note are funky Miles/Scofield jam sessions in Code MD and Star People. Even Miles’ cover of Cyndi Lauper’s Time After Time sounds terrific on this awe-inspiring recording thanks to Jones’ beautiful fills. We highly recommend this one for even the most casual of jazz fans. Read on for three more great GTA downloads…

Sly Stone took himself higher than most, and the resultant burnout saw the funk legend living the life of a complete recluse. But the comeback trail beckons, and Sly and the Family Stone will make their first NYC appearance since 1974 on December 7th at B.B. King’s. How long Sly will actually take the stage that night remains to be seen. If the band’s recent European tour is any indication, don’t expect much more than 20 minutes worth of Sly singing inaudibly and banging on a keyboard. And oh yeah…expect to pay $85 for that opportunity.

• The space that was CBGB’s will now house an upscale designer boutique
• Bloggers are pissed that OiNK has been shuttered
• HT Friend Dan Alford looks at the recent Grateful Dead vault releases
• You’ve heard about Dumbledore: Vulture presents 10 Other Fictional Characters Who’s Outings Won’t Shock Us That Much
• Johnny Marr feels The Smiths will reunite sooner rather than later
• Mars Volta have announced both a New Year’s concert in San Francisco and a February release date for their new album
• Cake relaunches their Unlimited Sunshine traveling festival in December
• Wow, it’s been 22 friggin’ years? Glen Friedman shares photos and audio from his visit with the Beastie Boys in 1985
• Former NHL’er Shjon Podein tells us about how John LeClair got him into Phish towards the end of this ESPN article

And tickets for the upcoming Mighty Mighty Bosstones reunion concerts are harder to come by than World Series tickets. Who’s got my extraaaa?

LiveDownloads sells live concert recordings from some of the biggest touring acts in the country, but they also feature smaller bands like The Wood Brothers.

Oliver and Chris Wood formed the aptly named Wood Brothers in 2005 after a long geographical separation kept the familial duo from collaborating. Their debut album, Ways Not To Lose, is a well-crafted collection of songs, but the band displays more passionate emotion and grit on the LiveDownloads recording of their show from the Newport Folk Festival on August 6th, 2006.

Oliver and Chris grew up in Boulder, Colorado, until each brother went their own way to start their careers as musicians. Chris settled in New York City, where he formed Medeski, Martin and Wood in 1991. Oliver’s path took him to Atlanta, where he honed his guitar and vocal stylings as the leader of King Johnson. The Wood Brothers reunited in 2005 to form a badass guitar/bass duo that blends a potent mixture of folk and blues, with a shot of jazz thrown in for good measure.

Read on after the jump for more of Scotty’s review and a link to download…

Eddie Vedder, Flea and Jack Irons have pulled out of this weekend’s Bridge School Benefit due to a personal family matter with one of the band members. Not to worry: My Morning Jacket has been added to a strong lineup that also includes Metallica, Neil Young and Tom Waits with the Kronos Quartet. So if you’re counting at home, MMJ has added the I’m Not There concert and the Bridge School Benefit since saying they were done for the year.

• The CMJ Festival apparently produced many highlights
• Phil Lesh tried to use his power as honorary mayor of Glens Falls to pardon Trey Anastasio this weekend
• Hopefully nobody will be censored by AT&T during their Vegoose webcast
• Stay Classy, Kid Rock: KR got arrested for fighting at Waffle House
• The Grateful Dead, The Doors, Led Zeppelin and other musicians won the dismissal of a countersuit by the owners of Wolfgang’s Vault
• Legendary singer Porter Wagoner, who recently opened for the White Stripes, has been diagnosed with cancer
• Find out everything you need to know about Neil Young
• Slate’s Carl Wilson responds to last week’s article in the New Yorker about the state of indie music and its lack of blackness
• Once again, Uncle Neddy lists the shows of the week

And read on after the jump for a great video of Bill Maher physically kicking hecklers out of his audience during Friday night’s live HBO show…

Friday [all times Eastern]: Classic Albums looks at Metallica’s Black Album [VH-1 Classic 8:00 PM] Bruce Hornsby and Ricky Skaggs combine forces for CMT’s Crossroads [MTV HD 12:00 AM] This

Save your pennies, kiddies, because Radiohead will head out on tour next year. According to Radiohead’s manager, the biggest band on the planet plans to hit larger venues both domestically

When I was seven years old my Uncle Bobby gave me a copy of Dave Marsh’s Book of Rock Lists, and I studied it harder than the Torah before my Bar Mitzvah. I’ve got a short attention span, so I loved being able to sit down for five minutes and learn all sorts of new things about rock and roll. And digesting all the lists in that book allowed my eight-year-old self to freak out the adults by telling them 20 things they didn’t know about Bruce Springsteen.

From the day Ace asked me to work with him on Hidden Track, I knew that I’d finally have a chance to share all of the lists I’ve made up in mind since my uncle gave me that book. Now let’s take a look at the 10 best B Lists of Hidden Track’s first year of existence. Click on the title to look back at the actual lists…

10. The B List: Brothers In Arms — 09/13/2007

Recently we put together a list of 10 favorite sets of brothers that jam together

Scott and Seth Avett [The Avett Brothers]

The Avett Brothers of Mount Pleasant, North Carolina may play instruments typically associated with bluegrass, but the sound that comes out is more Nirvana than Bill Monroe. Scott and Seth began writing songs together in 2000 and are beginning to gain national notoriety for their unique batch of originals. In May the boys made their television debut on Late Night with Conan O’Brien. The Avett Brothers will be on the road through the end of the year. Read on…