Category: Music

This Week in Pop Culture Roundup (Nov. 20, 2011)

Wizard of Oz

In case you were overwhelmed last week worrying about the NBA lockout or who is the sexiest man alive or the latest on Ashton Kutcher’s problems, below are some of the pop culture stories you might have missed.

———-Music———-

The heart-stopping, earth-shaking,…legendary E Street Band will tour with Bruce Springsteen in 2012 supporting a new album.

In a new interview, Michael Stipe explained why REM called it a day.
“The horror was if somebody Twittered or leaked it.”

Listen to Kate Bush’s new CD 50 Words for Snow on NPR First Listen.

Also on NPR, you may listen to Michael Jackson: Immortal, the new CD of Jackson songs for a Cirque du Soleil production.

The Los Angeles Times reported that Drake’s “Marvin’s Room,” on his new CD Take Care, was inspired by a visit from Stevie Wonder.

The New York Times reviewed the new album by Florence and the Machine.

The Chicago Tribune reviewed a performance by Fall Out Boy frontman Patrick Stump, who played “shiny funkified soulful pop” in promotion of new solo CD.

I like music critic Greil Marcus, so will have to check out his new book on The Doors that was reviewed in The New York Times at the link.

“I’ll be watching you.” Sting released a free app for the iPad that documents his career.

———-Movies———-

Brad Pitt plans to quit acting in three years. I guess they need to hurry up and film Oceans Fourteen.

Natalie Wood films Officials are investigating actress Natalie Wood’s drowning death from 30 years ago. Although initial reports claimed a yacht captain was blaming Woods’ then-husband actor Robert Wagner for the death, recent reports note that Wagner is not a suspect. But Christopher Walken, who was on the boat with the couple the night Woods died, has hired a lawyer.

Karl Slover, one of the last living actors who played one of the Munchkins in The Wizard of Oz, passed away Tuesday.

The new film The Great Flood features archival footage from the 1927 flood and music from Bill Frisell.

The screenwriter for “The Departed” picked his top 5 British crime and suspense films from the 1960s and 1970s.

Illumination Entertainment is planning a Woody Woodpecker film. (Thanks @VeryAw.) I grew up with the cartoons, so I’m excited that this overlooked character may be revived.

The Atlas Shrugged DVD was released with a back cover mistakenly saying the movie was from a novel of “self-sacrifice” instead of author Ayn Rand’s contrary philosophy of self-interest. Oops!

Andy Buckle’s Film Emporium blog wrote an interesting comparison between two epic World War II films, The Thin Red Line vs. Saving Private Ryan. (Thanks @buckle22.)

Johnny B. Goode! Last weekend, Michael J. Fox reenacted his guitar playing from Back to the Future at a charity event.

———-Television———-

Former first daughter Chelsea Clinton was hired by NBC News.

Charlie Rose is going from PBS to CBS, which is pairing him with Gayle King.

A new mid-season comedy on CBS, “iROB,” will feature Rob Schneider and Cheech Marin.

Ricky Gervais will be back as host of the Golden Globes.

———-History and Other Pop Culture News———-

The new CBS On the Road reported the sad and touching ending to the story of the friendship between Bella the dog and Tara the elephant: Have tissues handy. If you have not heard of Bella and Tara, you might first want to check out an earlier story about the animals.

“Sticks Like Magic!” CNN reports on the interesting background of the toy Colorforms, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this month. I had forgot about Colorforms, which I had as a kid.

Long-lost Air Force One tapes made the day JFK was killed were just discovered and put up for sale.

Nice to have some good sports-related news with Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos rescued safe from kidnappers.

The Houston Astros are moving to the American League. I’m still confused from the Brewers league switch in 1998.

Shout! Factory released a new 11-DVD set of Mr. Magoo cartoons, featuring the voice of Jim Backus.

Check out some New Guinness World Records for 2012.

What was your favorite pop culture story this week? Leave your two cents in the comments.

This Week in Pop Culture Roundup (Nov. 12, 2011)

Maybe this week you were distracted with an overload of stories about Herman Cain’s sexual harassment accusers, concerns about whether Justin Bieber is going to be a father, or the firing of Penn State Coach Joe Paterno. If you fall behind on the latest news you risk embarrassing yourself like Ashton Kutcher did. So check out these links to some of the stories you might have missed.

Music

Rapper Heavy D passed away. RIP.

rem part lies

NPR will let you listen to REM’s new 2-CD set, “Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage.”

Taylor Swift won Entertainer of the Year at the Country Music Association Awards.

Lady Gaga won four awards at last Sunday’s MTV European Music Awards show. And was that streaker a planned part of show?

Decemberists frontman Colin Meloy and his sister Maile Meloy each have released new young-adult novels.

Singer Andy Williams revealed he has bladder cancer.

Wednesday night, Bruce Springsteen performed at the 5th Annual Stand Up for Heroes show. Watch videos of his performance on Blogness.

A Cheap Trick museum wants you to want it.

This “Desert Island Disc” discussion reminded us of Willie Nelson’s overlooked concept album Yesterday’s Wine. (via @grayflannelsuit)

Whatever gets the tooth fairy though the night: John Lennon’s tooth sold for more than $31,000.

New remasters from Pink Floyd were released and include alternate version of “Wish You Were Here.”

Movies

snow white
The new live-action Snow White will have 8 dwarves and many changes.

Snow White and the Huntsman will be released on June 1, 2012, but watch the trailer now. This ain’t your Disney version of Snow White.

Director Werner Herzog discussed his new film, Into the Abyss: A Tale of Death, A Tale of Life.

Seven years after the release of the excellent film Sideways director Alexander Payne released his follow-up film, The Descendants. I hear Oscar buzzing. . . .

Slate reconsidered Blue Velvet 25 years after the film’s release.

For Veterans Day, the Los Angeles Times chose the best war films from American cinema for each war.

The “Atlas Shrugged, Part 1″ producer is planning Part 2 despite the poor box office for the first movie.

Television
Piers Morgan quit “America’s Got Talent” to focus on another talent show: the 2012 presidential election. In related news, Howard Stern might join “America’s Got Talent.”

The producer of next year’s Oscar telecast, Brett Ratner, stepped down after making a stupid gay slur. After Ratner’s announcement, the Oscar host, Eddie Murphy, announced he would no longer host the show, apparently because he had only agreed to do the show because he had worked with Ratner on Tower Heist. Vegas just announced that the payout on bets for “Eddie Murphy wins an Oscar in the next decade” went up 1000%.

Regis Philbin’s last week on Live! with Regis and Kelly will include guests Kathie Lee Gifford, David Letterman and Tony Bennett.

13-year-old “X Factor” singer Rachel Crow started out life in a crack house before she was adopted. Although I had been favoring Josh Krajcik to win, Crow’s performance this week was probably the best of the group.

Other News
‘Family Circus’ creator Bil Keane died at age 89.

Slate had an interesting discussion of “The New Classics,” enduring books, films, ideas, etc. since 2000.

“This is Nixon unplugged“is how Historian Stanley Kutler described new recordings of the former president available online for the first time, including Nixon’s grand jury testimony.

In honor of Joe Frazier, who passed away, Life magazine presented a slideshow of never-seen photos from “The Fight of the Century” of Ali vs. Frazier in 1971

Two new biographies about Charles Dickens are out. In related news, I have had a two-volume Dickens biography on my shelf for more than a decade that I have yet to read. Now, I do not know where to start. Maybe I will watch a movie. . .

What was your favorite pop culture story this week? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • This Week in Pop Culture Roundup (4 Dec. 2011 Edition)
  • John Lennon and Paul Simon Presenting Grammy for Record of the Year
  • The Regurgitator and the Firecracker-Mouth-Guy on “America’s Got Talent”
  • And Then There Was One (Magician on AGT)
  • “Nebraska” Is More than Bruce Dern (Short Review)
  • Will Forte Takes a Serious Turn in “Nebraska”

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    Conrad Murray Convicted of Michael Jackson Homicide

    Michael Jackson Ben

    A jury convicted Dr. Conrad Murray of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson, who died on June 25, 2009. The judge will set a sentence that may range from probation to four years in prison.

    As in the case of Elvis Presley’s death, during recent weeks it has seemed that the way Michael Jackson died overshadowed his talent. But of course, Jackson’s own legal troubles and accusations against him had already put a stain on his life and career. Reading about how Jackson regularly took propofol intravenously to put him to sleep, one cannot help thinking about the troubled life starting with his difficult childhood where he was physically and emotionally abused. For today, though, it does not hurt to think about the music and the talent before it was tarnished by the sexual abuse allegations and the way he died.

    “Ben” was the title track on Michael Jackson’s second solo album, released in 1972 while he was still with the Jackson 5. As far as I know, it is the only song from a killer rat movie to be nominated for a Golden Globe and Academy Award. There will be those who say that Dr. Murray is a killer rat, but it appears more that he was just another piece of an ongoing tragedy.

  • Longing for the Freedom of My Chains: Dobie Gray’s “Loving Arms”
  • Chuck Jackson Was There Before Elvis: “Any Day Now”
  • Lisa Marie Presley and Elvis: “I Love You Because”
  • Townes Van Zandt Covered an Elvis Song About a Shrimp?
  • Did Elvis Perform “If I Can Dream” Facing a Christmas Stage As In Baz Luhrmann’s “Elvis” Move?
  • Morgan Wade: “Run” (Song of the Day)

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    Happy Birthday Joni Mitchell!

    Today is the birthday of Joni Mitchell. To be honest, I do not have a lot of her music on my iPod, but of course I have the outstanding album Blue (1971) and know many of her songs. Mitchell was born in Fort MacLeod, Alberta, Canada in 1943. She had polio as a child, resulting in a hand impairment that led her to experiment with non-traditional guitar tunings. She was later named the greatest female guitarist of all time by Rolling Stone magazine.
    Joni Mitchell Big Yellow Taxi

    Mitchell’s album Ladies of the Canyon (1970) includes the song “Big Yellow Taxi,” which was a hit in Canada, Australia, and the UK, but was not a hit in the U.S. when originally released. Mitchell released a live version of the song several years later that had more success in the U.S. but the most successful version of the song was a cover by the Counting Crows with Vanessa Carlton released more than three decades after Mitchell’s original.

    The song’s most famous line was inspired by an actual event. Mitchell was visiting Hawaii when she opened the curtains in her hotel room in the morning to see beautiful mountains. She later recalled, “Then, I looked down and there was a parking lot as far as the eye could see, and it broke my heart … this blight on paradise. That’s when I sat down and wrote the song.”

    “Big Yellow Taxi” mirrors the growing concern with the environment during the 1970s. For example, the song refers to the pesticide DDT, which was banned in the U.S. three years after the song was released:

    Hey farmer farmer,
    Put away that DDT now;
    Give me spots on my apples,
    But leave me the birds and the bees.

    The song is brilliant in that it is not just a song about DDT. Mitchell ties together the environmental concerns with a personal story about “a big yellow taxi” that took away her “old man.” Although it is unclear from the song whether she lost her father or a lover, the message is clear. “That you don’t know what you’ve got / Til it’s gone.” The lesson works both for our personal lives and for the world.

    Unfortunately, Joni Mitchell, who suffers from Morgellon’s syndrome, does not record or perform anymore. While many of us might not have known what we had until it was gone, at least we can still watch old performances.

    Above is a live performance of “Big Yellow Taxi,” which Mitchell used to close her set at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival.

    What is your favorite Joni Mitchell song? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • The First Farm Aid
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  • Top 10 Depressing Holiday Songs

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    This Week in Pop Culture Roundup (Nov. 5, 2011)

    While you were too absorbed wondering whether or not Kim Kardashian’s wedding was a sham and in pondering the prospects of Herman Cain in light of the sexual harassment allegations, here are some of the pop culture stories you might have missed this week. Check out the links below.

    Movies

    FDR
    "An army without leaders is like a foot without a big toe." -- Stripes

    John Goodman and Justin Timberlake are in cast of upcoming Coen Brothers film about the 1960s folk scene, Inside Llewyn Davis.

    We have nothing to fear but . . . Bill Murray is playing Franklin D. Roosevelt in an upcoming film.

    Albert Brooks turned down roles in Dead Poets Society, Big, Pretty Woman, and Boogie Nights. Regarding the latter, he was up for the Burt Reynolds role, not the Mark Wahlberg role.

    What’s the story of Terrence Malick’s upcoming untitled film with Ben Affleck (in editing now)?

    The new James Bond film, featuring Javier Bardem as the villain, will be called “Skyfall.” I wonder if Bardem will flip a coin. I also wonder why the New York Daily News story at the link still has Bardem’s name misspelled in the headline a day after posting the story.

    James Franco plans to communicate with Tennessee Williams via Ouija Board.

    New movie “Tower Heist” make use of anger at Wall Street.

    In more serious film news, an Iranian appeals court overturned a sentence of prison and 90 lashes for actress Marzieh Vafamehr for appearing in a film.

    Music

    Director David Lynch is releasing his first music CD. Hear it on NPR.

    Writer-critic Chuck Klosterman wrote an article about the new Metallica and Lou Reed album . . . and how it relates to quarterback Tim Tebow.

    The official version of “Smile” from the Beach Boys was finally released. Also, here and you can stream all 40 tracks. (via @ThatEricAlper)

    Fallon spoofs Bieber. It’s not my baby, baby, baby. . .

    Liz Anderson, writer of several hit country songs for Merle Haggard and others, passed away. She co-wrote “I am a Lonesome Fugitive.”

    Television

    60 Minutes     commentator Andy Rooney passed away on Friday in New York City. Embedding is disabled, but you may watch his final regular appearance on 60 Minutes here.

    Ellen DeGeneres talked about her experience on American Idol in a new interview.

    Conan O’Brien officiated a gay wedding on his late-night show.

    The U.S. State Department is employing a secret weapon to teach tolerance in Pakistan: Sesame Street. But Elmo leaves Big Bird in U.S.

    What’s the deal with this missing Regis guy?” Jerry Seinfeld will be first guest host on Live! with Kelly.

    What was your favorite story this week? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Pop Culture Roundup for December 2012
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  • The First Farm Aid
  • How Does “Inside Llewyn Davis” Rank In the Coen Brothers Canon? (short review)
  • Lou Reed RIP: “Dirty Boulevard”
  • Red Band Trailer for Upcoming Coen Brothers’ Film: “Inside Llewyn Davis”

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