So between today’s glacially paced news cycle and the fact that I spent most of the last four hours beating my head against the blog thanks some serious ISP issues–I will see you in hell, customer service department at Comcast–I would just like to take a brief moment to thank Mr. Dan Gibson for… More »
Of course, you, the Idolator reader, are anxiously awaiting the results of the Idolator poll so you can wrap up 2007 with a tidy bow and move on with your life. But in te meantime, you get the Top 5 tracks on Christian Adult Contemporary Radio for the year now fading in the rear view mirror of your sensible minivan. And consider this fact: each of these tracks were played at least 32,000 times on radio this year. That may seem like nothing compared to the 600,000+ spins “The Sweet Escape” pulled in 2007, but in our new Huckabee nation and with a much smaller pool of stations, 32,000 spins should make us collectively afraid. Deeply, deeply afraid.
ARTIST: Various Artists
TITLE: Beyond Hamsterdam: Baltimore Tracks From The Wire
RELEASE DATE: Jan. 8, 2008
WEB DEBUT: A while ago, I imagine, but I’m slow.
If a blog somewhere mentions a new Trina track, you can be assured that it will mentioned in this space by your guest editor. I get the feeling Cake & Ice Cream only posted the Trina’s “Look Back At Me” to use some wire photos they had laying around of Kenyon Martin’s birthday party, but still, the criminally underappreciated label Slip-N-Slide deserves whatever virtual ink it can garner, especially if it means I can present you with “Pull Over” from her first album, Da Baddest Bitch.
Every few months or so, it rains here in Phoenix, and inevitably, it’s quite an event, the highlight of the radio traffic reporter’s month, the lead story on the ten o’clock news, and the only allowable topic of workplace conversation. So when it rained last night, every radio station that could squeak it into their format seemed to have “November Rain” playing as I skipped around the dial. Get it? It’s November, and there’s rain! Hilarious. However, the nine minutes–less on the adult contemporary station that fade out early–of Axl and Slash brought up an important question: Which epic-imagery-filled Use Your Illusion-era video do you think is better, “November Rain” or “Don’t Cry”?
Certainly, there are perspectives to be offered on Prince’s recent attempt to reclaim his internet presence. Heck, we’ve offered our share. MSNBC’s “Netiquette” correspondent, Helen A.S. Popkin, decided to weigh in yesterday, and it seems that besides being a week or so behind on the facts, Popkin might have been dumped once while “Diamonds and Pearls” played in the background.The hyperbole flies by at top speed, and why wouldn’t it? Apparently, Prince was trying to ruin the entire process of listening to music itself!
With 123 million records sold and counting, a low-priced hit greatest hits package high on the charts, and nine consecutive sold out shows in Kansas City of all places, Garth Brooks would look ready for a comeback, and if you ask nearly any one in the Nashville wing of the music business, they’ll be happy to roll out the red carpet, shine his boots, pick up his dry-cleaning, buy a few copies of the new Trisha Yearwood–whatever it takes–to get Garth Brooks to come back and save their business model. It’s hard to imagine any artist who would hold this much power over high ranking business people, but even the vague hint that Garth Brooks might come back means “let the wild speculation and compliments begin!”
Former Village Voice Media employee Dan Gibson here again, filling in for Maura on my first guest-editing venture outside the cozy confines of a Monday and a weekend’s backlog of material to fall back on. More »
Appearances on the Trinity Broadcasting Network aside, John Tesh seems like a decent enough guy. Since his decision to pursue whatever you call his music fulltime, largely he’s been avoidable; his concert date at the performing arts center near my house last year came and went without incident. However, a newspaper interview previewing his show tonight in Fort Meyers, Florida unveiled a new angle to John Tesh’s plot for world domination that was previously hidden from public view: A forthcoming “dance” album.
Sometimes when you’re living the American cultural bubble, you forget to appreciate the great things about our country, and I’m sure if I spend some time thinking about it, I could come up with some. However, one of the Guardian‘s seemingly endless supply of music bloggers has taken that moment andposted an celebration of one of the truest American art forms: the hip-hop novelty dance hit. But what’s truly moving is writer Dave Stelfox’s dream of a better England–one with a Spongebob or Chicken Noodle Soup of its own.
