Her new album, Soldier of Love, has been on repeat in my office for weeks since it has come out. Soothing, and like one of her lyrics from the last album, Lovers Rock, it is like "a soup to warm your soul."
''If you're only making an album every 10 years, it better be good,'' Sade says.
To read more of Jon Pareles' in depth interview from the Sydney Morning Herald click here.
My boys are back! This should put those nasty rumors to rest. Those lucky Europeans... Come back to the States!
After reports surfaced that Aerosmith would be performing WITH Steven Tyler at the UK's Download Festival this summer, the band has officially announced that they're back together AND going on tour!
The Cocked, Locked, Ready To Rock tour in the UK and Europe will begin in Sweden at the Rock Festival on June 10 and carry on throughout the continent. The tour schedule is as follows:
Sade has been on a media blitz since the release of her latest album Soldier of Love on February 9th. Here is the Grammy award winning artist singing on David Letterman.
She is one of my all time favorites. Sexy, sultry and a voice that just captivates you. Her last album was almost ten years ago and about the same time for the previous. She has always marched to her own beat and avoids the limelight. Her fans, as I do, are so happy she is back, like she never missed a beat.
Michael Jackson's former doctor has been charged with involuntary manslaughter by prosecutors in Los Angeles today. Dr Conrad Murray is expected to deny the charges in court. He faces up to four years in prison if convicted.
The King of Pop died at his home last June at the age of 50, his death was ruled as homicide, mainly caused by the anesthetic Propofol. A cocktail of drugs - including sedatives Midazolam and Diazepam, the painkiller Lidocaine and the stimulant Ephedrine - were also detected in his body, a coroner confirmed.
The statement came after several days of negotiations, where Dr Murray's lawyers tried to arrange for him to surrender to prosecutors in an attempt to avoid him being handcuffed and arrested.
Speaking before the charges were filed, the physician's defense lawyer, Ed Chernoff, said the doctor was prepared for the legal battle ahead. "We'll make bail, we'll plead not guilty and we'll fight like hell," he said.
Originally from Grenada, Dr Murray moved to the US and trained as a doctor. In 2000, he opened his own practice in Las Vegas, expanding with a second clinic in Houston in 2006. However, he encountered financial difficulties and reports suggest he filed for bankruptcy in 2002 while living in California.
Jackson hired Murray on a salary of more than $150,000 a month in May 2009. Yes, you read that right, it's not a typo - $150,000 a MONTH. Money can and does buy you whatever and/or whomever you want! Unfortunately for Michael, he didn't get the best for his money.
Their previous video of Thriller has over 38 million hits! Now the inmates are at it again. To celebrate the DVD release of the late Michael Jackson documentary This Is It, Jackson's choreographer Travis Payne and dancers Daniel Celebre and Dres Reid went to the Cebu Provincial Dentention and Rehabilitation Center and staged this FANTASTIC dance tribute to the pop star with 1,500 inmates to "They Don't Really Care About Us."
Check this out, it's pretty amazing....
1. Celine Dion, $747.9 million. Dion pulled in $522.2 million in concert-ticket sales for the decade. Adding $225.7 million worth of album sales during those same 10 years, she trumped all comers.
2. Kenny Chesney, $742 million. Close behind Dion was this road warrior, who toured hard and promoted records the old-fashioned way year in and year out. His total includes $455.6 million in concert ticket sales and $286.4 million in album revenue.
3. Dave Matthews Band, $737.4 million. Matthews' decade concert total of $529.1 million put him first on the list of top North American live music attractions of the decade, as calculated by the concert-tracking publication Pollstar. The band posted $208.3 million in album sales.
4. The Beatles, $627.3 million. Although the quartet disbanded 30 years before the decade began, the Beatles still managed to generate $392.3 million from sales of 30.2 million albums (using an average of $13 per album). We folded in the individual box office figures racked up by ex-Beatle Paul McCartney ($221.4 million) and Ringo Starr ($13.6 million), given that their concert audiences consist in large part of Beatles fans. The Fab Four also logged the single bestselling album of the decade, the "1" hits collection, with 11.5 million copies. And counting.
5. U2, $609.7 million. The Irish rock quartet brought in $391 million at the box office and $218.7 million in album sales.
6. Toby Keith, $591.9 million. The second of three country acts in the Top 10, the Oklahoma singer and songwriter logged $273.8 million on the concert trail, $318.1 million from album sales.
7. Bruce Springsteen, $588.3 million. On the road, both with the E Street Band and his various non-E Street tours, the Boss brought in $444.3 million. His album take: $144 million.
8. The Rolling Stones, $569.6 million. The Stones also benefited heavily from touring, earning $426.9 million at the box office in addition to $142.7 million in album sales.
9. Tim McGraw, $550.7 million. Strictly as a solo act, the country singer-songwriter ranks No. 14 on the list. But he toured several times with his wife, Faith Hill, during the decade. California being a community property state, we are awarding him half the revenue those outings generated. So his total includes $322 million in album sales, $133.7 million from his own tours and $95 million for his half of the McGraw-Hill shows.
10. Britney Spears, $494.3 million. Despite a rocky decade personally and professionally, Spears pulled in $195.7 million at the box office and sold $298.6 million worth of albums for the 10-year period.
These stats are taken from an article in the Los Angeles Times. For further information click here.
One of my all time favorite singer-songwriters, hero and an inspiration for my personal recovery is fighting the demons once again.
Steven Tyler issued an official statement saying that he is entering a rehabilitation facility for his addiction to prescription medication:
"With the help of my family and team of medical professionals, I am taking responsibility for the management of my pain and am eager to be back on the stage and in the recording studio with my band mates."
This might explain the erratic behavior, lack of interaction with band mates and recent firing of long time manager. I pray he gets the help he needs to live a sober final twilight.
Tyler's addiction arose from suffering many injuries over the last 10 years of performing. I feel like if he can come out of this again he can deliver some insightful lyrics once again.
Here are lyrics to one of my favorites, Amazing:
I kept the right ones out
And let the wrong ones in
Had an angel of mercy
To see me through all my sins
There were times in my life
When I was goin' insane
Tryin' to walk through the pain
And when I lost my grip
And I hit the floor
Yeah, I thought I could leave
But couldn't get out the door
I was so sick n' tired
Of livin' a lie
I was wishing that I would die
It's amazing
With the blink of an eye
You finally see the light
Oh it's amazing
When the moment arrives
You know you'll be alright
Yeah it's amazing
And I'm saying a prayer
For the desperate hearts tonight
That one last shot's a Permanent Vacation
And a how high can you fly with broken wings
Life's a journey - not a destination
And I just can't tell just what tomorrow brings
You have to learn to crawl
Before you learn to walk
But I just couldn't listen
To all that righteous talk oh yeah
I was out on the street
Just tryin' to survive
Scratchin' to stay alive
It's amazing
With the blink of an eye
You finally see the light
Oh it's amazing
When the moment arrives
That you know you'll be alright
Oh it's amazing
And I'm saying a prayer
For the desperate hearts tonight
As I sat at the reading table in my hotel room a favorite song played on my iPhone. Tracy Chapman has such a wonderful, rich voice and the lyrics usually hit home in one form or another - deep and always meaningful.
Listen and read the accompanying lyrics.
If you wait for me
Then I'll come for you
Although I've traveled far
I always hold a place for you in my heart
If you think of me
If you miss me once in awhile
Then I'll return to you
I'll return and fill that space in your heart
Remembering
Your touch
Your kiss
Your warm embrace
I'll find my way back to you
If you'll be waiting
If you dream of me
Like I dream of you
In a place that's warm and dark
In a place where I can feel the beating of your heart
Remembering
Your touch
Your kiss
Your warm embrace
I'll find my way back to you
If you'll be waiting
I've longed for you
And I have desired
To see your face your smile
To be with you wherever you are
Remembering
Your touch
Your kiss
Your warm embrace
I'll find my way back to you
Please say you'll be waiting
Together again
It would feel so good to be
In your arms
Where all my journeys end
If you can make a promise
If it's one that you can keep
I vow to come for you
If you wait for me
And say you'll hold
A place for me
In your heart.
He always delivers amazing songs, and this one even comes complete with an incredible video, which is filled with magical imagination and fantasy enhanced with swirling color and escapism. Enjoy and happy holidays!
Looking back, one my favorite bands has been Aerosmith. It all started with the rowdy swagger and style to the incredible and insightful lyrics, backed by rocking guitar, and a catalog of infamous songs - hit after hit, decade after decade. I feel they are my generations Beatles or Rolling Stones. Many feel the tug of war between them and Led Zeppelin, but I am team Aerosmith.
Well now I hear the buzz of multiple reports claiming that Steven Tyler has quit as lead singer of my legendary rock band, Aerosmith! Say it ain't so...Steven Tyler encountered a slew of injuries this year, including a broken shoulder in August after tumbling off the stage while performing, and guitarist Joe Perry says the two weren't in contact for a full month after the accident!
Perry has informed reporters that Tyler has "quit as far as I can tell."
He continues: "I don't know any more than you do about it. I got off the plane two nights ago. I saw online that Steven said that he was going to leave the band. I don't know for how long, indefinitely or whatever. Other than that, I don't know."
Perry explained that Tyler has been avoiding the group's phone calls for months now, but Joe has "learned to live with it."
"Frankly, the last few months I've been wanting not to rock the boat. I don't want him cancelling any more gigs," tells Joe. "We just kind of didn't want to call him out or anything and get him anymore pissed off, for whatever reason. So we just let things lie."
Perry says Aerosmith has plans to continue without Tyler and are looking for a new singer, not to replace Steven, rather to "move the Aerosmith… vibe up a notch."
That will never do for me... just call them another band.