What a freakin' joke!! These guys have been rocking this planet for 35 years, yet once again they're denied their rightful place in rock'n'roll immortality. We're talking about a band that has garnered more gold records than any other American band.
Look, I don't hold anything against this year's inductees (Across 110th Street by Bobby Womack-is a cool tune) and you really can't argue the success of Genesis or Iggy Pop or even Abba (although an argument can be made that they were disco and not rock'n'roll) but I most certainly hold the judges responsible. These would include Bob Ezrin, Yusuf (Cat Stevens), Oscar nominee Thavi Phrasavath, Anastasia Brown and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame President Terry Stewart. I doubt if Ezrin cast a "nay" vote against KISS, since he did produce three of their albums. Those being 1976's Destroyer, 1981's (albeit confusing and crappy) Music from The Elder and 1992's Revenge. You would figure them being inducted would also make him look good; perhaps even a bit proud of his own accomplishments.
Seriously, this is an outrage. How many contemporary artists have these guys influenced, from Garth Brooks to how many people are they still playing to? Recently they sold out a Quebec City concert that 90, 000 people attended. In Brazil, they recently played to another 60, 000. And the beauty of them is they don't discriminate. They'll play to huge crowds in open-air stadiums or to an intimate crowd of 5,000 as they did last summer in Windsor, Ontario. Another distinguishing characteristic of the band (besides their longevity and success) is their sincere appreciation of their fans. For over 30 years, they have made no secret that their success is entirely due to the support of their KISS Army world-wide. At every concert they have, Paul Stanley ensures that he lets the crowd know they're the reason for the band's success and how much they're appreciated. He once said when asked what he would say to bands that are striving for elusive success, "They can make it. Why not? We did. The only people that say you can't make it are the people that are unwilling to try, or that have tried once and failed. You have to want it."
It undoubtedly didn't do them any good by pretty much insulting the institution that is the Hall a few years back, but really, should that matter? Their accomplishments and fan-base world-wide should be painfully obvious to anyone with half a brain that they deserve the recognition.
What a travesty of justice.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Sesame Street's 40th
Who out there can say that Sesame Street, that is celebrating it's 40th birthday on November 10th, was not their utmost favourite television show growing up. I still remember watching it at Auntie Nita's Nursery School in Winnipeg during the early 70's. My schoolmates and I would watch it in between naptime and playtime howling (even though not really getting the gags meant for adults and parents-which was and is part of it's charm)
All those great memories and laughs: the Golden "AN," Grover as a lovable, yet incompetent waiter, as well as his alter-ego, Super Grover, Oscar the Grouch (and don't forget his pet worm, Slimey) Big Bird and his "imaginary friend" Snuffelupagus, The Count, Cookie Monster, Kermit the Frog and of course, Bert & Ernie (who can forget the time they went to the Egyptian pyramid and Ernie performed a song & dance with a look-a-like statue? Bert, condescendingly treating him as if he were insane was the funniest part)
Up here in Canada, it is now called Sesame Park. The Cookie Monster is now the "Carrot Monster?" Oscar no longer lives in the trash can (out of respect for the homeless, apparently) and Bert & Ernie are M.I.A. for the most part. It sure isn't the Sesame Street I remember.
Does anybody remember these?
Have I missed anything?
More Sesame Street Vids
Too many vids on one page slowed them down too much, so voila, page 2:
The music:
The music:
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
KISS on Letterman
Here are the boys on The Late Show with David Letterman on the day of Sonic Boom's release, Oct. 6th.
Awesome!!
Awesome!!
Saturday, October 3, 2009
KISS Sonic Boom Tracks-One by One
Paul Stanley and Tommy Thayer talk Sonic Boom.
In stores in three days, Oct. 6th. WOO HOO!
And lifted directly from their website, kissonline.com, here are some Sonic Boom recording studio clips, via YouTube:
And since apparently only "rock journalists" get to listen to albums (sorry, CDs) before they are officially released to the public here is a review by journalist/author Sterling Whitaker:
September 16, 2009
For those of you who have been living on another planet for the past few months, Kiss is celebrating its 35th anniversary by releasing a new album entitled Sonic Boom in October, and the band has been hyping the new disc as the best Kiss has recorded since the heyday of its classic lineup with albums like Rock And Roll Over and Destroyer. I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical when I first heard that. After all, Kiss is a band whose output has been, uh, "somewhat uneven" over the years, to put it diplomatically, and Kiss hasn't exactly been shy about over-selling its work in the past, whether it was deserving or not.
Okay, okay, I admit it... I was wrong. It turns out Sonic Boom really is the album Kiss fans have been waiting for all these years. From its no-frills production (no apparent Pro Tools trickery here) to its uber-classic put-your-fist-in-the-air rock anthems, Sonic Boom is the most satisfying album by a "classic rock" artist I've heard since... honestly, since I don't know when. Sadly, it's kind of accepted that most bands that are 35 years into their career are going to release new work that is in no way comparable to the albums that made their legacy. Sonic Boom destroys that pre-conception by delivering an album as raw and vital as the best of Kiss' back catalog.
The main thing that sets this record from some of Kiss' uneven later studio efforts is that it has a true band identity. There are no pop songs from slick outside writers, and there isn't a cast of thousands providing instrumental augmentation to the members of Kiss. This is a record that was written and performed by the members of Kiss, for better or worse. In this case it's very much for the better. Sonic Boom has all of the hallmarks of a classic Kiss record; heavy guitar riffs informed by the melodic and harmonic pop craftsmanship of Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, powerful rock drumming, strong bass lines, and lyrical, well-crafted guitar solos. Gene Simmons' public persona and marketing savvy often overshadow the fact that he's a great bass player, and Sonic Boom is a return to the kind of melodic stylings that characterized the best of early Kiss. "Never Enough" and "Hot And Cold" contain some of Simmons' best work in decades.
As for Tommy Thayer, every track contains the kind of deliberate Ace Frehley-isms that could only come from someone who loves Kiss music as a fan first. Thayer's take on these songs is such a tasteful amalgam of classic Kiss licks, stylings, tone and phrasing that it will have some fans wondering what year it is. It's an approach that isn't so much gimmicky as it is timeless. Paul Stanley and Eric Singer round out the album's classic performances with contributions that are perfectly suited to each track. I'm sure there are going to be those naysaying critics who carp that with Sonic Boom, Kiss is shamelessly pandering to a particular demographic base by deliberately tailor-making a record to fit its needs. In fact, maybe that's exactly what they did. If so, then more power to 'em. If more bands would bother to make great records that their fans will actually like, then maybe guys like me wouldn't have to dread getting sent new work by older bands so much. I've been a Kiss fan since the mid-Seventies, and I can't imagine any Kiss fan not liking Sonic Boom.
In stores in three days, Oct. 6th. WOO HOO!
And lifted directly from their website, kissonline.com, here are some Sonic Boom recording studio clips, via YouTube:
And since apparently only "rock journalists" get to listen to albums (sorry, CDs) before they are officially released to the public here is a review by journalist/author Sterling Whitaker:
September 16, 2009
For those of you who have been living on another planet for the past few months, Kiss is celebrating its 35th anniversary by releasing a new album entitled Sonic Boom in October, and the band has been hyping the new disc as the best Kiss has recorded since the heyday of its classic lineup with albums like Rock And Roll Over and Destroyer. I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical when I first heard that. After all, Kiss is a band whose output has been, uh, "somewhat uneven" over the years, to put it diplomatically, and Kiss hasn't exactly been shy about over-selling its work in the past, whether it was deserving or not.
Okay, okay, I admit it... I was wrong. It turns out Sonic Boom really is the album Kiss fans have been waiting for all these years. From its no-frills production (no apparent Pro Tools trickery here) to its uber-classic put-your-fist-in-the-air rock anthems, Sonic Boom is the most satisfying album by a "classic rock" artist I've heard since... honestly, since I don't know when. Sadly, it's kind of accepted that most bands that are 35 years into their career are going to release new work that is in no way comparable to the albums that made their legacy. Sonic Boom destroys that pre-conception by delivering an album as raw and vital as the best of Kiss' back catalog.
The main thing that sets this record from some of Kiss' uneven later studio efforts is that it has a true band identity. There are no pop songs from slick outside writers, and there isn't a cast of thousands providing instrumental augmentation to the members of Kiss. This is a record that was written and performed by the members of Kiss, for better or worse. In this case it's very much for the better. Sonic Boom has all of the hallmarks of a classic Kiss record; heavy guitar riffs informed by the melodic and harmonic pop craftsmanship of Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, powerful rock drumming, strong bass lines, and lyrical, well-crafted guitar solos. Gene Simmons' public persona and marketing savvy often overshadow the fact that he's a great bass player, and Sonic Boom is a return to the kind of melodic stylings that characterized the best of early Kiss. "Never Enough" and "Hot And Cold" contain some of Simmons' best work in decades.
As for Tommy Thayer, every track contains the kind of deliberate Ace Frehley-isms that could only come from someone who loves Kiss music as a fan first. Thayer's take on these songs is such a tasteful amalgam of classic Kiss licks, stylings, tone and phrasing that it will have some fans wondering what year it is. It's an approach that isn't so much gimmicky as it is timeless. Paul Stanley and Eric Singer round out the album's classic performances with contributions that are perfectly suited to each track. I'm sure there are going to be those naysaying critics who carp that with Sonic Boom, Kiss is shamelessly pandering to a particular demographic base by deliberately tailor-making a record to fit its needs. In fact, maybe that's exactly what they did. If so, then more power to 'em. If more bands would bother to make great records that their fans will actually like, then maybe guys like me wouldn't have to dread getting sent new work by older bands so much. I've been a Kiss fan since the mid-Seventies, and I can't imagine any Kiss fan not liking Sonic Boom.
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