Saturday, April 5, 2014

Pizza-Shell Game (or What Up, Dough?)

SID
3/24/2014

At the time of this writing…

Last night I watched a DVR'd replay of Aloe Blacc on the American version of NBC's hit The Voice. Aloe Blacc was serving as an assistant coach for "head-coach" Usher. As fate would have it, the song that the battling contestants were to sing for that night’s episode's head-to-head competition just so happened to be Blacc's "I'm the Man". What are the odds? More on this later. Providing a story of encouragement on the face of high criticism, Aloe discussed how he came about writing the hit song. He said that after Dr. Dre had slammed his songs, he  "…went home and wrote 'I'm the Man.'"—SSKIRRRRRRCHHHH!!!!! [cue tire screech]. WROTE?!? "…I'm the Man"?

For months I have heard this song playing as bumper music on one of my favorite television sports shows…ESPN's First Take as it was going to commercial. For those who're not familiar with the phrase bumper music, it's the 10 to 20 sec bit of music that's used to transition into and out of the commercials. As such, I would hear just the chorus of the song in question. For those who haven't heard it, the song sounds exactly like Elton John and Bernie Taupin's (ironically titled) "Your Song"

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

"Lettuce Produce" or "Producer or Reducer?"

Introducing SIDney Howard the opinionated. Last millennium, in the late part of the last decade of the last century, my nearly lifelong friends and collaborators (Mark Drummond and Aljay Boyd) launched an unfortunately now defunct full-interest music website: streetjamz.com. The invited me to pen an editorial corner. The following is the one that started the ...and SID Sez column that became the eaSS blog. Indulge and enjoy.  

Thursday, January 2, 2014

To Halve Undo Whole 'Til Deaf Do Us Part

 and SID Sez 120413

I usually fall asleep listening to talk radio. After one particularly great sleep, I remained in bed and watched Michael Jackson's "Ghost" video. While I wouldn't call it a disappointment, it wasn't as good as I would have hoped to see coming from the brain-trust of MJJ, Stephen King, and the great Stan Winston. Maybe (not just maybe) it was too long.

Checking my email I saw one of my favorite notices. From Amazon: $5 albums. Nowadays, $5 per platter is an incredible music buy. When I was a teenager buying vinyl, that was in the neighborhood of the going price of nice. …back when a dollar sort of was real money-like. Today, that's half the price of a new MP3. Today that's what I buy more readily than do I consume hardcopies. And why is that so? Convenience: the ultimate impulse buy. I purchased Raul Midon's first album from iTunes immediately after watching him perform on Late Night with David Letterman. A year or so before, when I heard of Chaka Khan's Classikhan album of classic song covers, I visited at least two stores to finally find it and purchase it at the price of $15.99 + 6% MI sales tax + the price of fuel and the wear and tear of aggravation.

Nowadays, the allure of vinyl sound and its comparatively bigger than life package presentation has recaptured the collectors' hearts. …at steep prices. … comparatively. Thinking about the state of music consumption today, I can make a three-way division of end uses.