swimming freestyle

Thriller ala Bollywood

A Bollywood take on Michael Jackson's "Thriller".  Uh, I'll take the Michael Jackson version please.

Michael Jackson's father; a study in grief

Not exactly the portrait of grief, here's Joe Jackson, Michael Jackson's father, being interviewed before last nights BET tribute to his son.

Good to know he's doing "great" and has the composure, given the difficult circumstances, to plug his new record label.

Yikes.  That probably gives some insight into the relationship between father and son.

Michael Jackson

The Los Angeles Times reported that Michael Jackson died this afternoon, reportedly after suffering a heart attack.     

A personal note; in his prime, the early to mid 1980's, Michael Jackson just seemed to have everything.  He was obviously a masterful performer and singer, but a nearly perfect pop composer as well.  He had this wonderful talent for writing these great, hummable songs that just seemed to capture the time. 

As he drifted into...eccentricity, I lost interest in him.  He may have still had all the gifts he had before, but his persona was, for me, just too off putting for me to stay interested. 

Michael Jackson seemed tragically stuck in time.  Still believing he was the "King of Pop" well after fashion, tastes and time had passed him by, he became a freakish caricature. 

But, damn, he was sure great in his time.

Autumn Story

A cool video by the Firekites using chalk animation:

Jack Peñate

I thought Jack Peñate's first cd was good stuff.  But he took a critical beating for what critics thought was a lack of ambition.  He's due out with a new record next week and The Times has given it four stars.

Perhaps the biggest triumph of Everything is New is that it has found a proper use for Peñate’s personality. The reason he was hurt by the reaction to his first album was that, deliberately or otherwise, he used his openness to try to mitigate the narrow horizons of his music. This time, his openness is the music

Here's the video for the new single.

Naomi Davis and the Gospel Queens

The NY Times had a great article yesterday on gospel singer Naomi Davis.  Ms. Davis began singing in the church choir as a young girl and has been singing gospel music for nearly sixty years.  What's unusual about Naomi Davis' story is that, despite the acclaim Davis has received, she's never made a full recording of her singing in all that time.  Until now.

...Naomi Davis could envision no life except singing. That vision lasted through day jobs and different states, through marriage and motherhood; for a time in the 1960s, she cleaned houses in two shifts before doing a soul show at a Brooklyn club called the Night Cap.

For the 20ish audiences that hear Mrs. Shelton and her group, the Gospel Queens, at Manhattan clubs like Joe’s Pub and the Fat Cat, her music arrives with a deceptive sense of newness. Deceptive because it is more like a time capsule from gospel’s heyday, recently unearthed and pried open.

Kenny Rankin

I was a fan and always felt Kenny Rankin was unique for his ability to combine jazz phrasing with a folk style. 

Kenny Rankin, a singer, songwriter and guitarist whose easygoing style straddled the worlds of pop, jazz and folk, died on Sunday in Los Angeles. He was 69 and lived in Los Angeles.

Singing in a soft, lilting voice and accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, Mr. Rankin was often categorized as an introspective singer-songwriter in the James Taylor mold. But he drew inspiration from a wide range of sources: the Brazilian singer João Gilberto was an acknowledged influence, as were Frank Sinatra and Johnny Mathis. And though he wrote a number of memorable songs — his “Peaceful” was a Top 20 hit for Helen Reddy in 1973, and other songs of his were recorded by the likes of Peggy Lee and Mel Tormé — he was best known as an interpreter of other people’s. (Link)

Koko Taylor, Queen of the Blues

A particularly sad passing.

Koko Taylor, a sharecropper's daughter whose regal bearing and powerful voice earned her the sobriquet "Queen of the Blues," has died after complications from surgery. She was 80

The break for Tennessee-born Taylor came in 1962, when arranger/composer Willie Dixon, impressed by her voice, got her a Chess recording contract and produced several singles (and two albums) for her, including the million-selling 1965 hit, "Wang Dang Doodle," which she called silly, but which launched her recording career.

"Blues is my life," Taylor once said. "It's a true feeling that comes from the heart, not something that just comes out of my mouth. Blues is what I love, and blues is what I always do."  (Link)

Here's a video of Koko Taylor singing "Wang Wang Doodle" featuring Little Walter on harmonica.

Silversun Pickups

Rolling Stone just included these guys in their "Hot" issue.  This video was apparently directed by actor/goofball Joaquin Phoenix.

Good stuff, huh?

Sonia Sotomayor ringtones

Mobile music site mSpot.com has pulled together a list of five ringtones to celebrate the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to be the next Supreme Court justice.

1.   Daughter of Justice - The Undecided
“We live in a world with so few answers, where is the justice that she seeks? Who will end this poverty?”

2.  Courthouse - Chris Isaak
“People take their places, down at the courthouse / People stand in line to see you fall.”

3.  Ladies' Choice - Zac Efron (from Hairspray)
“…shop around little darlin', I've got to be the Ladies' Choice, Ladies' Choice.”

4.  Judgement Day – Whitesnake
“With only love to light the way.. on the road to judgement day”

5.  She's the One - The Ramones
“Yeah yeah she's the one.. When I see her on the street, you know she makes my life complete”