Music Industry News

Michael Jackson Returns to Disneyland in Captain EO Tribute

Source: Michael Ricci
February 23, 2010

Eight months after Michael Jackson's death, Disneyland on Tuesday will unveil Captain EO Tribute, a revamped and restored music video from the height of the pop stars fame.

Following the success of the This Is It concert film, Disney has decided to dust off the 23-year-old music video for a limited engagement at the Anaheim theme park. The 17-minute Captain EO cost an estimated $30 million to make and featured a star-studded list of credits, including executive producer George Lucas, ...

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Best Original Song Nominee List Missing a Few Songs of Note

Source: Michael Ricci
February 22, 2010

U2, Paul McCartney and Mary J. Blige are among those who miss out on the short list. While T Bone Burnett and Ryan Bingham are up for “Weary Kind (Theme From 'Crazy Heart')."

Oscar noms -- who got snubbed? By most criteria, Paul McCartney and U2 have little reason to regard French composers Reinhardt Wagner and Frank Thomas with envy. But Wagner and Thomas scored an Oscar nomination for best original song -- for “Loin de Paname" from ...

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Michael Giacchino Was a Crazed 9-Year-Old 'Star Wars' Geek

Source: Michael Ricci
February 22, 2010

When Michael Giacchino was in elementary school, all his friends were following the rock bands of the moment, notably Led Zeppelin, the Who and the Beatles.

But Giacchino admits that he was “pretty adverse" to rock 'n' roll. “I hate to admit it," he told me the other day, “but I was listening to a lot of stuff that my parents had. I loved Benny Goodman, Louie Prima, 'West Side Story' and 'The Jungle Book.' To me, Benny Goodman is ...

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Copenhagen's Legendary Jazzhus Montmartre to Re-Open May 2010

Source: Michael Ricci
February 22, 2010

Denmark's once legendary jazz club Montmartre re-opens in May 2010 in its original premises in Copenhagen. During the 1960s and 70s the club served as a European home for American giants like Ben Webster, Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz, Kenny Drew and many others.

The historic re-opening is initiated by the 46-year old Paris-based Danish jazz pianist Niels Lan Doky and his friend, media executive and entrepreneur Rune Bech (43). They will operate the club on a non-profit basis.

Re-opening this ...

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Say Goodbye to EMI

Source: Moses Supposes
February 22, 2010

Moses Avalon I know, I know. I'm usually the guy who's very Bullish on the condition of the music business, but this is one story even I cannot spin upward.

To save the beleaguered major label, EMI, its owner, Guy Hands has about a month to come up with about $150 Million to satisfy payroll and debts. In real estate terms, Hands is upside down on his house. He now owes more than he can sell the company for and ...

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EMI Says Abbey Road Studios NOT for Sale

Source: Michael Ricci
February 22, 2010

After nearly a week of public outcry over reports that Abbey Road Studios in London was up for sale, its owner, the financially troubled British record label EMI, has finally spoken. In a statement issued Sunday, EMI denied that the studio was being put on the market but confirmed that it was seeking financial help to save it. In the statement, which raises nearly as many questions as it answers, EMI said it had received an offer for Abbey Road ...

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Crate Digging: The Jazz Record Store as Endangered Species

Source: The Independent Ear by Willard Jenkins
February 21, 2010

The demise of four-wall record stores has been painful to many of certain generations, myself included. Leafing through the stacks or crate digging as its popularly referred to these days is the way many of us educated ourselves about various forms of music. There are indeed survivors of this demise, stalwart record dealers who I suspect will continue to serve those of us still fond of the tactile sensation of holding a physical recording and searching for verbal clues that ...

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Other Places: Studios and Sound

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey
February 21, 2010

In their list of priorities, most serious listeners put music's content before the quality of its sound. In one of our listening sessions at my house, I apologized to Paul Desmond for the scratchy surface of the old vinyl LP I was playing for him. “I don't care if it's recorded on cellophane strips," he said, “as long as I can hear what everybody's doing." Nonetheless, Desmond's own playback equipment was state of the art. He preferred first-class audio.

The ...

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