Hat tip to commenter Rajmahall for mentioning “Barracuda” co-writer Roger Fisher’s reaction to the whole Sarah Palin controversy. More »
So Ann and Nancy Wilson haven’t really been too pleased that the folks in charge of the music at the Republican National Convention have decided to turn their 1977 song (and current plastic-guitar staple) “Barracuda” into a rallying cry for GOP vice-presidential nominee/unavoidable topic of Internet discussion/overly self-impressed speechifier Sarah Palin, who was affectionately (?) called Barracuda during her high-school days. (Earlier today, they released a statement saying that they’d sent the GOP a cease-and-desist notice telling them to stop playing the damn thing. Of course, that didn’t stop the Republicans, who played the song again after John McCain accepted his party’s Presidential nomination tonight–and this decision fired up Nancy Wilson so much, she rang up Entertainment Weekly‘s Whitney Pastorek to say, “I think it’s completely unfair to be so misrepresented… I feel completely fucked over.” Keep in mind, you’re talking about a song that’s been covered by Fergie here, so you know that it takes a lot to offend!
In a long-overdue bit of acknowledgement, Desmond Child–the man behind many of the finest in ’80s power ballads, as well as disco Kiss and Ricky Martin–will enter the Songwriters’ Hall Of Fame on Thursday, along with relatively minor songwriting figures as John Sebastian, Loretta Lynn, and Albert Hammond. Child tells the Miami Herald, “It was funny because I had been nominated twice before but I hadn’t made it, and I spoke to the heads of it and they said, ‘Well, we always thought you were too young to get it, but then we recently looked at your bio and realized you are old. You just looked young.” As most of his big-name collaborators are out touring this summer, Desmond Child has been forced “by default” to reunite his late ’70s combo Rouge for the ceremony. While it would be insane to try and list all of his greatest achievements (“Kiss The Rain”? “Born To Be My Baby”? “Shake Your Bon Bon”?), we’ve compiled a list of every ASCAP-registered song of his that features the word “love” in the title. Can you guess how many there are?
Mika’s “Grace Kelly,” which got the cover treatment from the famously cast-off Josiah Leming during last week’s Hollywood week episodes of American Idol, reappeared on the digital-tracks charts thanks to a 422% gain in sales; it sold 11,000 copies and came in at No. 133. More »
ARTIST: Celine Dion
SONG: “Alone”
WEB DEBUT: Sept. 28, 2007
