Whitney Houston has passed away at the age of 48. At this point, the cause of death or where she died has not been revealed. Despite all of her troubles in recent years, you cannot argue that she had a great talent. In the 1980s when she was on top of the world with songs such as “The Greatest Love of All,” it would have been hard to imagine the troubled last part of her career and her early death.
A previous post discussed the news that Eddie Manion will be playing saxophone along with Jake Clemons on the upcoming tour with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. It will be interesting to see how the two trade off on the solos, how often they play together, and whether they fill different parts on different nights.
Although nobody can replace Clarence Clemons, the previous post showed how Manion is able to tackle the epic “Jungleland” solo. If you are curious about Jake Clemons’s chops, here is his take on “Jungleland.” Note, though, that the guy who kind of looks like Bruce is not Bruce but Robert Philippi of the European cover band BruceBand. (Video starts at sax solo.)
Jake Clemons has the music in his blood, being the nephew of Clarence Clemons. Springsteen’s decision to include both the experienced Manion and the talented young Clemons seems like an inspired choice. But then again, the Boss usually does not let down his fans. And the inclusion of Jake Clemons, and Jake’s decision to join the band, seem consistent with the message of the new single, “We Take Care of Our Own.” 29 July 2012 Update: Jake Clemons played “Jungleland” with the E Street Band in Sweden last night.
What do you think of the addition of Jake Clemons to the band? Leave your two cents in the comments.
We previously wrote about Bruce Springsteen’s new single, “We Take Care of Our Own” from his upcoming album, Wrecking Ball, due to be released March 6. Today, an official video for the song was released. The video for the song addressing society’s economic hard times shows Springsteen by himself playing his guitar in what appears to be an abandoned house, intercut with scenes of us common folk, beginning in black and white and ending in color with a little ray of hope. Or as Clint Eastwood would sum up, “It’s halftime in America.” Check it out.
What do you think of the new video? Leave your two cents in the comments.
In February 1972, David Bowie first appeared onstage as Ziggy Stardust.
On February 10, 1972, the yet-to-be-superstar David Bowie stepped on the stage of The Toby Jug pub in London making his first appearance as Ziggy Stardust. At the time, Bowie had found some popularity with his song “Space Oddity” in 1969 and other work, but he had been searching for his own style and broader success. Bowie’s album about Ziggy, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, would not come out for six months after Ziggy’s first appearance.
Still, at least some of the sixty patrons of the pub recognized something big was happening. One audience member later recalled: “Bowie had brought theatre to a humble pub gig….I couldn’t blink for fear of missing something—nothing would ever be the same again.”
The alien rock star Ziggy arrived at the right time. The music of the album and Ziggy’s story of a rock star coming to earth and finding his destruction was perfect for the time. Rock music was changing, London was facing economic hard times, and the world was embraced by a Cold War. Bowie’s album went to number 5 on the U.K. Albums Charts (and number 75 in the U.S. n the Billboard 200).
Below is another 1972 performance from a little later in the year on June 21, 1972. The video features video from a Dunstable show synced with audio from another 1972 show. Check it out.
For more about Ziggy Stardust and his impact on society and music, check out this BBC documentary, David Bowie & The Story Of Ziggy Stardust. Among the interesting tidbits in the documentary, the narrator explains how Anthony Newley had an impact on Bowie.
On Wednesday night, actor Will Ferrell did the introductions for the visiting Chicago Bulls and the home team New Orleans Hornets. The introductions are pretty funny (“he majored in Econ but minored in looove”), and the NBA players seemed to take the jokes in good humor.
The New Orleans fans had fun, at least through the introductions. The Bulls won the game 90-67.
Was it good fun to have Will Ferrell do the introductions or was it a distraction from the game? Leave your two cents in the comments.