White Elephants and Lemonade: Kylie's All The Lovers

Marshmallows, a white elephant and an orgy on Grand Boulevard can only mean one thing Kylie's new video is here, and it smoking hot. Muchmusic.com have the online exclusive for Canada and then the Canadian TV broadcast premieres on Thursday. It will premiere in the USA on Wednesday on Yahoo.com. If you are lucky you might find it unofficially on Youtube before EMI takes it down. It will be up on Youtube officially before the end of the week.



The video features the Goddess Kylie never looking better on a pyramid/Mount Olympus of “lovers” making out with her at the top as she sings “All The Lovers, that came before they don't compare to you”. It has lots of guy/girl, girl/girl and guy/guy action, it's all pretty tame just kissing and touching with over a hundredth of white underwear clad people, but I can't help but wonder if the USA will censor or choose not to play it. The giant balloon elephant and her playfulness with her “lovers” point to not taking the video all too seriously. Fun, fabulous, and gorgeous all you can expect from a Kylie video.

You can vote for the song on http://www.chumfm.com.com for the next 2 days, on the right side of the page when you scroll down you'll see the new Kylie track ALL THE LOVERS. You need to listen to the song IN FULL and then vote.

Other places to vote
Montreal Virgin Radio: http://montreal.virginradio.ca/music
Calgary http://www.vibe985.com/shows/requests
Edmonton http://www.thebounce.ca/requests.asp

All The Lovers is released on the 13th June on Digital Download, and the 28th June on 2xCD and 7" Picture Disc Vinyl! Taken from the fantastic forthcoming album Aphrodite, CD released July 5th in the UK and July 6th in Canada and the USA, Digital Download, CD+DVD+Online Experience Edition and 12" Vinyl.


For all the latest Kylie news www.kyliecanada.com 

3 Diva’s To Compare

Philadelphia ended it’s week long LGBT Equality Forum in style with the Sunday Out at the Piazza at Northern Liberties. Closing the show was 3 new dance music pop divas.

First on stage was Samantha Marq, I love her song “Supergirl” (you can download it for free from her website www.samanthamarq.com  I ended up paying for it on Itunes, but I thought it was worth it.) Samantha was the one out of the 3 that impressed me the most, she's got a great voice. Like the others she just had a backing track for the music, but I could actually hear her sing, and the music and background vocals didn’t drown her out. She sang 2 other songs, one was a new one that didn’t really stand out but on the 3rd one she called people to come up on stage and dance with her and her rapper.


 You would think some artists might be afraid to do that but not Samantha. I find it funny that at this type of event everybody was so into showing off that they danced without interfering with her singing or performing. Speaking of namesakes she has a kind of Samantha Fox vibe in looks and music and she comes across as very friendly and sincere.

 Next up was  Kristine Elezaj, sorry to say she impressed me the least. Yes she is super hot especially in the skin tight glitter outfit and the DJ presenter kept remarking on it ad nauseam, but she reminded me too much of Britney Spears and even had the mic head set. Her dancers were fun but I’m not sure how much live singing she did and the backing track completely drowned her out. Her songs were OK but nothing blew me away.

The evening ended with the much anticipated Agnes Carlsson. In her home country of Sweden she won their version of American Idol in 2005 and has 3 albums and many top ten hits to her name. I liked her material the best. She sang “Love, Love, Love”, then her 2 dance stompers, “On and On”, and the #1 Billboard club hit “Release Me”. Her dancers were hot but again the backing track kind of drowned out her vocals, she has a great voice it was just hard to hear.

I loved that both Samantha and Kristine stayed around after their performances to talk to people and take pics, which I didn’t do because I waited for Agnes to come on hoping she would do the same, however after her performance she was hurriedly whisked away. There was only about a dozen people following after her down the street to take pics, not sure why she felt the need to leave so quickly, it’s wasn’t like a crowd of hundredths waiting around. I did follow the crowd, and was lucky enough to get a picture with her just before she motioned that she needed to go inside to fix her make-up, she said she would come back, but I wasn’t so sure, although her limousine seemed to be waiting outside. I managed to ask her when her album would be coming out in the USA, she had a hard time understanding me but finally responded “after the summer”. For now you can buy her single “Release Me” in various mixes on Itunes or Amazon. Outside of the album mix, I recommend the Jason Nevins Remix.

I hope the Equality Forum bring us more musical guests next year.

2009 the year in music review

2009 the year in music review

2009 was an exciting year for music with acts like Lady Gaga busting on to the scene and bringing the dance/electronic sound so popular in Europe to the shores of the USA. Acts like Taylor Swift and The Black Eyed Peas dominated the Billboard charts breaking all kinds of records, and the reality shows like American Idol seemed to be revived with the likes of Adam Lambert.

Despite all the excitement I felt that the “album” suffered. Aside from my top 3 albums the rest of my top ten just kind of blends together and was kind of hard to place in order. I always feared that the digital age would make the “concept album” obsolete I hope that doesn't happen.

Lady GaGa continues to blow me away from her debut “The Fame” to her EP “The Fame Monster”. She has musical talent, style and can actually sing live. Mika has the talent but seem to be unable to break into the charts. Some efforts by established artists like Robbie Williams and Bananarama left me a bit disappointed, while The Pet Shop Boys and Whitney Houston delivered the goods. Reality stars Blake Lewis and Adam Lambert surprised me with their albums. Too bad Blake's sophomore album has got no support and barely sold.


Note qualifications: Lady GaGa The Fame was released in late 2008 but only gained recognition in the USA in 2009. Since she decided to release her 8 new tracks as a separate EP called The Fame Monster it qualifies as well and charted separately on the Billboard charts.


Top Albums of 2009



01 The Fame--Lady GaGa

A heaven of dance and electronic GaGa knows how to write a pop song with hooks and melodies that drag you right in. I have to admit I was first put off by "Just Dance" and "Poker Face" but the album is quite solid. My favourite tracks are the slower jams "Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)" , "Paparazzi", Summerboy and "Boys, Boys, Boys" her ode to Mötley Crüe's hit "Girls, Girls, Girls. Her version could well become a gay anthem. "Paper Gangsta" has a great melody and a driving keyboard line throughout the song that is just delicious, the lyrics “Sometimes I felt so Def in the Jam”, “don't want no paper gangsta won't sign no monkey papers I don't do funny business not interested in fakers” could the song be about her record deal with Def Jam that fell apart? The only odd song is the ballad "Brown Eyes" which seems lost on the record. 9/10


02 The Boy Who Knew Too Much--Mika

Mika knows how to write a catchy tune and his sophomore album delivers the good. Mika borrows the best from pop music, although sometime you have to wonder if he doesn't take too much, the opening track and first single “We Are Golden” sounds a lot like Belinda Carlisle's “Heaven Is A Place On Earth”. The album just gets better with the tongue and cheek cabaret style of “Blame It On The Girls” and the wonderful falsetto gem and possibly the best track “Rain ”. Mika's lyrics are not empty and have a kind of whimsical and satirical style on songs like “DR. John”, “ One Foot Boy” and the circus themed “Boy Toy”, but when you peal away the happy melodies you're left pondering what is he really talking about? “I See You” slows the album down along with the reggae style "Blue Eyes". “Good Girl Gone” sounds like he sampled the magic of Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys. Mika's music is probably too gay and sugar pop to be played on American radio stations but his albums are never boring, his music leaves you singing and dancing and wanting more. 9/10

03 Heatbreak On Vinyl--Blake Lewis

I never took him seriously but Mr. Lewis sophomore effort is a delicious slice of dance/electronica. The album is a throwback to the 80's without sounding dated. The music is catchy and has melodies to match the beats. Best track are the title track, a wink to those who remember the record store, “Binary Love”, “Sad Songs” and “Freak“."left My Baby For You” showcases Blake's hidden falsetto and sounds like it was plucked out of the early 80's techno era. “Rebel Without A Cause” sounds like a mix of Sting and reggae. The album is superbly produced, cohesive, and not in the way where all the tracks blend as one. Each has its own style. A shame the album sold so poorly and got no publicity. 8.5/10

04 I Look To You--Whitney Houston

“Million Dollar Bill” penned by Alicia Keys opens the album, a homage to the R & B groove of 70's and from there the album doesn't disappoint. Favourite track is Leon Russell's “A Song For You” which start off slow and builds to a dance floor anthem. There was a bit of confusion as to which song would be the first single, “I Didn't Know My Own Strength” penned by Diane Warren was a contender and then dropped in favour of “I Look To You”. I usually like Warren's song, the lyrics are very meaningful to Whitney but there is something off with the vocal arrangement, it's like the lyrics don't fit the music. When reviewing an artist with a voice like Whitney I usually concentrate on the songs because she's not a songwriter and is usually at the whim of her songwriters, but it's no secret that Whitney has abused her vocal chords probably from smoking drugs through the years. Her voice is not what it used to be, you expect her to soar or crescendo on some of the songs but it never seems to happen, whether it was written that way or not it leaves you wondering. On the positive side her voice has a new raspy edge to it which gives it character and life. Lyrics like “I've acted out my love in stages with ten thousand people watching” come across as autobiographical, you get the feeling that all the songs were written for her. You can't help but see the similarities to her life from the track “Nothing but Love” to the closing number “Salute” her swan song to Bobby Brown. “I Look To You” is great collection of songs and one of her most cohesive albums. 8/10

05 Yes--Pet Shop Boys

20 years later the boys are still putting out excellent pop music and remain masters at dance and electronica. This time around they hire Brian Higgins and his power machine Xenomania (Sugababes, Girls Aloud) to help co-write and produce some of the tracks. The team up produces a very cohesive, although sometimes homogenized modern pop album. Best tracks are “Did You See Me Coming?” with its beautiful guitar backing, “Beautiful People” and “Pandemonium” which sounds like classic Pet Shop Boys (think “Can You Forgive Her’). The album gets beautifully haunting with “All Over The World” a track that borrows from Tchaikovsky Nutcracker and the poetic war song “Building A Wall” where Neil sings "There's no where to defect to any more, I'm building a wall A fine wall Not so much to keep you out More to keep me in". Many have said this is their best since their 1993 album "Very" 8/10

06 The Fame Monster (EP)--Lady GaGa

GaGa was only suppose to write a few extra tracks as bonus songs for her debut album's re-release but after writing a few more she decided to release an EP of 8 tracks. From the explosive catchy “Bad Romance” the album is just as good as any full track CD. “Alejandro” has shades of ABBA, Speechless is an epic ballad and a huge hit in the waiting. The dancefloor burns up with the Depeche Mode flavoured “Dance In The Dark” and the Beyonce duet Telephone. GaGa has a way of mixing the best bits of pop music to create a unique vision and sound. 8/10


07 For Your Entertainment--Adam Lambert

Adam's debut album produces a mix of sound and vision, but lacks a bit of direction. “Music Again”, “Sure Fire Winner" and the Teddy Riley penned “Aftermath” follow the rock path and direction you would expect from him. “Sure Fire Winner” reminds me of the 80's stadium songs and “Pick You Up” throws a dash of Broadway into the mix. All songs would make great singles but instead his record label released the Britney-esque dance track “For Your Entertainment”, and the Pink penned track “Whataya Want from Me” which I think are horrible choices. My favourite song is the operatic ballad “Soaked”, Adam's vocals soar to epic proportions, the song is beautifully produced but probably not radio friendly. Linda Perry's pretty ballad “A Loaded Smile” slows the pace down. The album goes back into dance territory with “If I Had You" and the Lady GaGa catchy contribution “Fever”. The album closes with the opus 2012 film track ”Time For Miracles”. You can tell a lot of time and production went into this album and produced a pretty good effort from a karaoke contest winner. 7/10

08 Reality Killed The Video Star--Robbie Williams

I was looking forward to this album but I find it a bit underwhelming. Robbie says he's back to big ballads a la ”Angels” but the album is missing his signature spark, the kick he usually has. I love the opening track “Morning Sun” which he wrote last minute after Michael Jackson's death, and “Blasphemy” which he co-wrote with long time collaborator Guy Chambers, the song was actually a leftover from his Escapology album from 2003. I wish he would have gotten back with Chambers and written more songs. The rest of the album blurs together all very nice, but nice is the last thing you want on a Robbie Williams album. 6.5/10


09 Complete Me-Frankmuzik

Frankmusik remind me of Howard Jones, and the electronic artists of the 80's. His single “Confusion Girl” is an absolute delight and so much fun in an era of homogenised music. His songs are quirky and catchy like “Better Of As 2” and “3 Little Words”. “When Your Around”, which contains an interpolation of The Stranglers "Golden Brown" has a Depeche Mode quality to it. The album slows down with the tracks “Complete Me” and the more successful “Vacant Heart”. “Time Will Tell” mixes synths with borrowed loops from “Put The Needle On The Record”. He has a nice voice and his falsetto can be pretty but sometimes it can become grating. Unfortunately some of the music can come off sounding repetitive and annoying like the opening track “In Step”, “Gotta Boyfriend?” And “Done Done” where the synthesizers over power his voice too much, but how can I not like an artist who wrote a song called “Wonder Woman”. 6.5/10

10 Viva Bananarama

After 25 years I still love Bananarama, they don't take themselves too seriously and still produce fun pop music like their 2006 album “Drama”. Their follow up was supposed to be an album of cover tracks but they started writing so many new songs and changed their mind. Their new single “Loves Comes” produced by Ian Masterson delivers all the goods and was hopeful to a great album. “Love Don't Live Here” could make an OK single and “Dum Dum Boy” is fun but the rest of the album becomes a bit too homogenised and uses too much auto-tuning, I'd rather hear the girls voices and less manipulation, the song “Twisting” is just grating. I love some of the digital bonus tracks like the cover versions of “Voyage Voyage”, and “The Sound Of Silence”. 6/10


Singles of the year

01 Heartbreak On Vinyl----Blake Lewis
02 How Do You Sleep?----Jesse McCartney
03 We Are Golden----Mika
04 Confusion Girl----Frankmuzik
05 Bad Romance----Lady GaGa
06 Blame It On The Girls----Mika
07 Sad Song----Blake Lewis
08 Celebration----Madonna
09 Million Dollar Bill----Whitney Houston
10 Love Comes----Bananarama
11 Just Dance----Lady Gaga
12 Time For Miracles----Adam Lambert
13 About A Girl Sugababes
14 Evacuate The Dancefloor----Cascada
15 Did You See Me Coming----Pet Shop Boys

The Golden Boy

Mika "The Boy Who Knew Too Much" Album Review

Mika knows how to write a catchy tune and his sophomore album “The Boy Who Knew To Much” delivers the good. Mika borrows the best from pop music, although sometime you have to wonder if he doesn’t take too much, the opening track and first single “We Are Golden” sounds a lot like Belinda Carlisle’s “Heaven Is A Place On Earth”. The album just gets better with the tongue and cheek cabaret style of “Blame It On The Girls” and the wonderful falsetto gem and possibly the best track “Rain”. Mika’s lyrics are not empty and have a kind of whimsical and satirical style on songs like “DR. John”, “One Foot Boy” and the circus themed “Boy Toy”, but when you peal away the happy melodies you’re left pondering what is he really talking about? “I See You” slows the album down along with the reggae style "Blue Eyes". “Good Girl Gone” sounds like he sampled the magic of Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys. Mika’s music is probably too gay and sugar pop to be played on American radio stations but his albums are never boring, his music leaves you singing and dancing only wanting more.

The Boy Who Sang Too Much

Mika at the Electric Factory Philadelphia October 18th 2009

I have to start off by saying I really hate the venue, the sound at the Electric factory is not amazing and it's almost impossible to get to if you don’t have a car. Trying to cross under the vine expressway is dangerous (especially when the traffic lights are not working) and trying to get a taxi on the way back home was not fun.

The show starts with his band mates sitting on a couch with their backs to the audience (Mika if you are reading this you need to buy a new couch, this one is a bit torn and worn). They are watching cartoons on TV which gets interrupted by a newscaster played by actor Sir Ian McKellen (Lord Of The Rings) announcing that a lunched rocket ship is having technical difficulties, the next thing we see are the curtains opening, the band mates takes their places on a stage which is decorated with white orbs like planets hanging from the ceiling. An astronaut enters in one of those huge outfits from the late 60’s, he undresses to unveil none other then Mika himself in only a pair of white boxer shorts.



I was relieved when he dashed away to quickly dress up. The audience was filled with girls from the ages of 10-16, I was surrounded by them and their mothers, I felt out of place like I was at a Miley Cyrus concert.

Continuing on his love of the circus Mika was dressed in a splashy outfit part jester part rock star, he brought a huge suitcase on stage full of accessories with glasses and hats which he used throughout the show and for the song Boy Toy a marionette was brought up on stage. Mika puts on a very energetic show bopping from one side of the stage to the other, playing the piano and even using a garbage can as makeshift drums. On the opening song Relax he almost fell flat on his ass but quickly regained his posture and dusted himself off. The crappy sound of the Electric factory kind of drowned out his vocals but on songs like the beautiful Happy Endings from his debut LP he sounded great. For Big Girls Are Beautiful they plucked out 3 shapely girls from the audience before the show, dressed them in colourful outfits and had them dance on stage. Mika seemed impressed at how many people knew the words to album tracks like Billy Brown and One Foot Boy that have never hit the airwaves in the USA. Highlights included the fan favourite We Are Golden, Rain and Love Today, where he got everybody to close their eyes and jump up and down. I was horrified that he tried this, I kept my eyes open trying not to get crushed. Mika ended the concert like his previous tours with the song Lollipop with giant white balloon balls falling from the ceiling, and fans screaming for more.


Setlist

1. Relax
2. Big Girls Are Beautiful
3. Stuck in the Middle
4. Dr, John
5. Blue Eye
6. Touched You
7. Pick up off The Floor
8. One Foot Boy
9. Blame It On The Girls
10. Happy Endings
11. Billy Brown
12. I See You
13. Rain
14. Love Today
15. We Are Golden
16. Toy Boy
17. Grace Kelly
18. Lollipop

Like a pure white diamond she shines on and on…

Kylie Live at the Hammerstein Ballroom New York City October 12th & 13th

It’s hard to review Kylie Minogue’s North American tour without thinking I might be a bit biased, but after seeing over 70 plus concerts in my life I can easily say that her concert at the Hammerstein Ballroom on October 12th is one of the best show I have ever seen. From the moment she descended on a giant skull singing “Light Years” dressed in her finest sci-fi gear you were mesmerized into Kylie’s world. She doesn’t just stand there and sing, her show was a kaleidoscope of colours, sliding walls, visual projections, dancing, and performances that could give Madonna a run for her money. The show was like going to a Broadway play about Kylie’s life story, so much was happening that it was hard to take it all in one viewing. For someone who is not a dancer Kylie moved around a lot and performed acrobatics as her dancers carried her or as she walked on their hands in the air with ease as if she was gliding across the floor. Did I mention the shower scene with the guys? Enough said.

If anybody thought she can’t sing just listen to her on her ballad section with songs like “White Diamond” or “Confide in Me”, I was surprised myself at how great her voice was. I never thought I would hear in North America songs like the encore "Better The Devil You Know", or "Shocked", and "What Do I Have To Do" which were featured in the medley. The great surprise of the evening came towards the end when she was asking for requests and the audience started chanting “Your Disco Needs You”. She sang the full song acapella with the audience singing along and even doing the back up vocals, the look on her face was priceless, she even sang the opera part at the end which I didn’t think was her voice on the record, I was wrong. The show had an incredible set list, I couldn’t complain even if some key songs were missing. To make it special for her North American fans Kylie premiered a great new song from her forthcoming album called “Better Than Today”.

I saw the show again on her last night. This time she didn’t sing “Your Disco Needs You” but kept “The One” from the original set list and as a special gift sang the jazzed up version of “I Should Be So Lucky” before she ended with “Love At First Sight” where I was drowned in confetti singing “I’m in love, I’m in love…

I waited 20 years but it was well worth the wait.

Check out all the latest Kylie news at www.kyliecanada.com









SETLIST

LIGHT YEARS
SPEAKERPHONE
COME INTO MY WORLD
IN YOUR EYES

MEDLEY: Shocked / What Do I Have To Do? / Spinning Around
BETTER THEN TODAY New song

LIKE A DRUG
BOOMBOX / CAN'T GET YOU OUT OF MY HEAD
SLOW
2 HEARTS
RED BLOODED WOMAN (WHERE THE WILD ROSES GROW)
CHEER SQUAD SEGUE
WOW

WHITE DIAMOND
CONFIDE IN ME
I BELIEVE IN YOU

BURNING UP / VOGUE
THE LOCOMOTION
KIDS
IN MY ARMS

BETTER THE DEVIL YOU KNOW
YOUR DISCO NEEDS YOU (Acapella) (October 12th only)
THE ONE (October 13th only)
I SHOULD BE SO LUCKY (October 13th only)
LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT

It's A Celebration

“34 songs that changed the world” is the tag line to Madonna new Greatest Hits compilation coming out September 29th. Not sure if all those songs changed the world but Madonna did change the face of pop music and became the blueprint to many wannabe Diva’s and female singers.

I still remember Holiday rising up the Billboard Charts in 1983 and peaking at #16. I thought she was black because of Shannon's hit Let The Music Play which was out at the same time, the songs to me sounded similar and I knew Shannon’s was black so I assumed so was she. When Madonna released her next song Borderline I was shocked to see a blonde white woman in the video. Borderline was her first top ten hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and it just got better, by the time Lucky Star went top 5 they had to shelve her next album to let her first one run its course.

Like A Virgin exploded onto the scene in my graduating year of High School, I was completely hooked. The album produced 4 top 5 single, plus hits from elsewhere like the #1 movie tracks Crazy For You and my favorite dance song Into The Groove. Her Icon status was cemented with albums like True Blue which produced 5 top 5 singles and my favorite album Like A Prayer. Her songs like Express Yourself, La Isla Bonita, and Papa Don’t Preach were Iconic. Madonna could dance but could also write powerful songs with an emotional message like Live To Tell or Oh Father. She finished the 80’s with the gay dance anthem Vogue, a song that today still gets everybody on the dance floor. Her videos were groundbreaking and breathtaking and her concerts like the Blond Ambition tour were a spectacle. She pushed sexuality to the forefront but not as a victim but as a powerful woman in control of her sexuality.

Madonna was definitely my pop goddess but by the 90’s she started getting too serious artistically and lose the carefree attitude she had. I found it hard supporting an artist that charges $400 a ticket. $32.50 in 1987 to see her Who’s That Girl tour does not equal $400 in 2009. Her Erotica album was OK but I never really liked Bedtime Stories. I became interested again with her 90’s opus Ray Of Light produced by William Orbit, by then it was hit or miss depending on which producer and songwriters she would use. Her best material in my opinion was in the 80’s with songwriters Stephen Bray and Patrick Leonard. I never liked French remixer Mirwais’s production on albums like Music and American Life. 2006 Confession On A Dancefloor produced by Stuart Price was a step in the right direction and a return to her past.

Madonna has ended her long contract with Warner music, her last studio album Hard Candy with Justin Timberlake and Timbaland came in with mixed review by critic and fans. While It’s not her best I thought it was better then some of her 90’s output. Celebration a 2 CD set is her last contractual album with Warner and I don’t envy the producers or management who had to decide which songs would make the final cut. Madonna fans have been bitching for years complaining about tracks that have been omitted from her previous compilations The Immaculate Collection and GHV2. She has sixty eight top 40 hits in the UK, forty eight in the USA, thirty seven have made the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, and twelve made it to # 1. Forty of her songs have topped the Billboard’s Hot Dance Club Songs Chart, the most by any artist ever. Let’s not start about which remix or edit of a particular song should be used. The fight about album version versus remixed 12”/dance version/extra beats, has been going on since Shep Pettibone remixed the entire Immaculate Collection CD.

Just as impressive if not more a DVD collection with 47 of her videos will also hit the store shelves. Did your favorite song, video and mix make the final cut?

CD1

01 Hung Up (Album Version) 5:36
02 Music (Album Version) 3:45
03 Vogue (Immaculate Collection Version) 5:16
04 4 Minutes (Radio Edit) 3:09
05 Holiday (Album Version) 6:08
06 Everybody (7" Edit) 4:11
07 Like A Virgin (Immaculate Collection Version) 3:09
08 Into The Groove (Album Version) 4:45
09 Like A Prayer (Album Version) 5:42
10 Ray Of Light (Radio Edit) 4:33
11 Sorry (Radio Edit) 3:58
12 Express Yourself (Immaculate Collection Version) 3:59
13 Open Your Heart (Immaculate Collection Version) 3:49
14 Borderline (Immaculate Collection Version) 3:58
15 Secret (Radio Edit) 4:28
16 Erotica (Radio Edit) 4:30
17 Justify My Love (Album Version) 4:54
18 Revolver 3:40

CD2

01 Dress You Up (Album Version) 4:02
02 Material Girl (Album Version) 4:00
03 La Isla Bonita (Album Version) 4:02
04 Papa Don't Preach (Album Version) 4:29
05 Lucky Star (Immaculate Collection Version) 3:39
06 Burning Up (Album/Video Version) 3:42
07 Crazy For You (Immaculate Collection Version) 3:44
08 Who's That Girl (Album Version) 3:58
09 Frozen (Album Version) 6:18
10 Miles Away (Radio Edit) 3:43
11 Take A Bow (Album Version) 5:20
12 Live To Tell (Album Version) 5:51
13 Beautiful Stranger (Album Version) 4:20
14 Hollywood (Album Version) 4:22
15 Die Another Day (Album Version) 4:36
16 Don't Tell Me (Radio Edit) 4:09
17 Cherish (Immaculate Collection Version) 3:50
18 Celebration 3:35


DVD Track Listing:

1) Burning Up
2) Lucky Star
3) Borderline
4) Like A Virgin
5) Material Girl
6) Crazy For You
7) Into The Groove
8) Live To Tell
9) Papa Don't Preach
10) True Blue
11) Open Your Heart
12) La Isla Bonita
13) Who's That Girl
14) Like A Prayer
15) Express Yourself
16) Cherish
17) Vogue
18) Justify My Love
19) Erotica
20) Deeper and Deeper
21) Rain
22) I'll Remember
23) Secret
24) Take A Bow
25) Bedtime Story
26) Human Nature
27) I Want You
28) You'll See
29) Frozen
30) Ray Of Light
31) The Power Of Good-Bye
32) Beautiful Stranger
33) American Pie
34) Music
35) Don't Tell Me
36) What It Feels Like For A Girl
37) Die Another Day
38) Hollywood
39) Love Profusion
40) Hung Up
41) Sorry
42) Get Together
43) Jump
44) 4 Minutes
45) Give It 2 Me
46) Miles Away
47) Celebration

Million Dollar Voice

Whitney Houston "I Look To You" album review

The album opens up with “Million Dollar Bill” penned by Alicia Keys, the song is a wonderful homage to the R & B groove of 70’s and from there the album doesn’t disappoint. My favourite track is Leon Russell’s “A Song For You” which start off slow and builds to a dance floor anthem. There was a bit of confusion as to which song would be the first single, “I Didn’t Know My Own Strength” penned by Diane Warren was a contender and then dropped in favour of “I look To You”. I usually like Warren’s song, the lyrics are very meaningful to Whitney but there is something off with the vocal arrangement, it’s like the lyrics don’t fit the music. The beautiful title track written by R. Kelly was kept for 10 years by Clive Davis until he felt it was right for Whitney, or rather until she cleaned herself up. When reviewing an artist with a voice like Whitney I usually concentrate on the songs because she’s not a songwriter and is usually at the whim of her songwriters, but it’s no secret that Whitney has abused her vocal chords probably from smoking drugs through the years. Her voice is not what it used to be, you expect her to soar or crescendo on some of the songs but it never seems to happen, whether it was written that way or not it leaves you wondering. On the positive side her voice has a new raspy edge to it which gives it character and life. Lyrics like “I've acted out my love in stages with ten thousand people watching” come across as autobiographical, you get the feeling that all the songs were written for her. You can’t help but see the similarities to her life from the track “Nothing but Love” to the closing number “Salute” her swan song to Bobby Brown. “I Look To You” is great little collection of songs and possibly one of her most cohesive albums.

Meet The Beatles

In the fall of 1980 I bought my first stereo system and record player with my bar mitzvah money. It was a Lloyd’s system I bought it from my uncle who worked for the company. I’m not actually sure if my mom let my uncle take my money or not, I remember her arguing with him about payment. My mother went out and bought me a few album albums as gifts, one was John Lennon’s “Double Fantasy” the other was “Meet The Beatles”. I was not yet born when Beatlemania hit the shores of North America but I knew who the Beatles were, and understood their place in history. I grew up hearing their songs everywhere. I remember my friend Victor playing their anthology songbook on guitar and singing along. Playing that 33 1/3 vinyl record in my living room for the first time was like being transported back to 1963, my enthusiasm for the recording industry only grew from there.

29 years later on September the 9th 2009 I went to my local record store, they were having a Beatles party and picked up the new remastered edition of “With The Beatles”. The nostalgia happened all over again. You might notice that while the picture on the album sleeves is the same the title and track listing is different, it’s almost a different album. When Capitol Records released the Beatles in North America they amalgamated some of their earlier original UK albums to create hybrid collections. Their first Capitol album in North America had songs from both the “Please Please Me” and “With The Beatles” LP, and the single “I Want to Hold Your Hand” which was not on any LP at the time. The US version “Meet The Beatles” was released on CD for the first time in 2004 as part of “The Capitol Albums, Volume 1” box set.

As I was writing this blog I was made aware that Canada had it own version called “Beatlemania With The Beatles” It has the same tracklisting as the UK version but the cover had added text on the front and it was only released in mono. Canada didn’t get any Beatles albums in stereo till 1965.

I’ve been hearing many people ask recently what is the difference between the Beatles mono and stereo LP’s? Is one better? To answer that question I referred to one of the Beatles biggest expert and fanatic my friend Andy G., here’s what he had to say....

“Neither is better, they’re just different. The thing is that unlike most bands, the Beatles didn't just use mix downs of the stereo versions for the mono releases, George Martin made completely different mixes. So the mono isn't just "like adding the two sides of the stereo together", some of them have different instrumentation, different speeds, different takes of the song even. For example on "With the Beatles", "Money" has a different intro in mono, and parts of the mono are from take 6 while the stereo is all take 7.

Some albums (or songs even) I prefer the mono version, some the stereo. There's no real "better" overall though. The mono and stereo versions of "With The Beatles" were actually originally released (in the UK) on the same day, the mono wasn't first.”

I’m happy that the Beatles are getting the remastered treatment, they deserve it, it sounds great and the photos and liner notes are superb, my only is gripe is that over the years I’ve collected many of the Beatles CD’s which were originally released in 1988. I don’t suppose that Capitol/ EMI Records would create an exchange policy? I guess not.

It is still fun to know that in this day of digital download and throw away electronics that buying and listening to an album originally released in 1963 can still be exciting.

With The Beatles
Side A
It Won't Be Long Lennon/McCartney
All I've Got To Do Lennon/McCartney
All My Loving Lennon/McCartney
Don't Bother Me Harrison
Little Child Lennon/McCartney
Till There Was You Wilson
Please Mr. Postman Holland

Side B
Roll Over Beethoven Berry
Hold Me Tight Lennon/McCartney
You Really Got A Hold On Me W. Robinson
I Wanna Be Your Man Lennon/McCartney
Devil In Her Heart Drapkin
Not A Second Time Wilson
Money Berry/Gordy/Bradford

Meet The Beatles
Side A (LP)
I Want To Hold Your Hand Lennon/McCartney
I Saw Her Standing There Lennon/McCartney
This Boy Lennon/McCartney
It Won't Be Long Lennon/McCartney
All I've Got To Do Lennon/McCartney
All My Loving Lennon/McCartney

Side B (LP)
Don't Bother Me Harrison
Little Child Lennon/McCartney
Till There Was You Wilson
Hold Me Tight Lennon/McCartney
I Wanna Be Your Man Lennon/McCartney
Not A Second Time Wilson

Atlantic City Boy

Pet Shop Boys Concert Review

Over 25 years in the business and the boys are still in top shape and can outdo many of their modern contemporaries. They put on a fabulous visual show but it started late and the sound wasn’t great. The doors opened at 8:00 but they didn't grace the stage till 9:50 and that was after their computer technician was testing and arranging the generated images on the screen for about 10 minutes. It was a small venue and it was great seeing them up close but the acoustics had too much bass and it almost drowned out Neil’s vocals, the venue with a low ceiling did not seem to be made for good sound.

They always have interesting set lists which include hits, fan favourites and lesser know songs. I would have replaced “Jealousy”, and the “Two Divided by Zero” medley which seem to lose momentum after Go West. The dancers, choreography and visuals were superb especially when the wall in “Building A Wall” came crashing down to reveal the back drop to “Go West”, who would have though that simple boxes could create such imagery. Many of the songs had bits and pieces of other songs, "Domino Dancing" is listed on the set list but it’s just a line or two from the song. There were so many mash ups I probably missed a few. I wish they would have sung the full version of “Closer To Heaven” which sounded beautiful in acapella. I was grateful that they added “New York City Boy” a favourite of mine which they never usually do. The crowd seem to go crazy for “Always On My Mind”, “Suburbia” and "Se A Vida E". They did 5 songs from the new album most went over well especially “All Over the World” (It would make a great single). “The Way It Used to Be” is nice on CD but it got lost in concert, I would have preferred to have heard “Beautiful People” which is being released as a single in Germany.

They did not sell out, I was able to buy tickets the night before and the room was not full. It was a strange crowd, there were some die hard fans but I don’t think Atlantic City was typical of their audiences. A fun visual concert, I’d be curious to see it in a different venue.


1. Heart
2. Did You See Me Coming?
3. Pandemonium/Can You Forgive Her?
4. Love etc.
5. Building a Wall/Integral
6. Go West
7. Two Divided by Zero/Why Don't We Live Together
8. New York City Boy
9. Always on My Mind
10. Closer to Heaven/Left to My Own Devices
11. Do I Have To?
12. The Way It Used to Be
13. Jealousy
14. Suburbia
15. All Over the World
16. Se A Vida E/Discoteca/Domino Dancing/Viva la Vida
17. It's a Sin
18. Being Boring
19. West End Girls

Love Comes: The Banana's are still FAB!

After 25 years there's no stopping these girls. Bananarama have signed a deal with Fascination Records (Girls Aloud, Sophie Ellis-Bextor) and are back with a fabulous new song Love Comes written by Sara, Keren and master dance producer Ian Masterson (Kylie & Dannii Minogue). Check out the FAB video, I can't wait for the album.



Love Comes is out September 6th and their 10th studio album Viva is out on the 14th. The album contains 7 new tracks written by the girl and 3 cover songs. As of now the album will be released in the UK, no word if it will be released in the USA or Canada but you can pre-order it along with the single on their site www.bananarama.co.uk/



Viva the tracklist

1. Love Comes
2. Love Don’t Live Here
3. Rapture
4. Seventeen
5. Twisting
6. Tell Me Tomorrow
7. The Runner
8. Extraordinary
9. Dum Dum Boy
10. S-S-S-Single Bed
11. We’ve Got The Night