Debut album arrives next month along with a national tour with Pretty And Nice plus Ted Leo & the Pharmacists.

By Blurt Staff

Just a few days ago we brought you word of how ex-Georgie James member Laura Burhenn was resuming performing and recording under the name Mynabirds, with a debut album due in April. Not to be outdone, Burhenn's former partner in Georgie James, John Davis (also late of Q And Not U) has just announced his return to the boards. He's calling the project Title Tracks, and in a preemptive move the debut full-length It Was Easy arrives Feb. 23 via Ernest Jenning, two months before Burhenn's.

We'll eschew speculation over the respective timings of these new releases, and anyway, Davis had apparently started writing for the project way back in early 2008, a number of months prior to the Georgie James breakup. It contains nine original songs and two covers (Bruce Springsteen's "Tougher Than The Rest" and The Byrds' "She Don't Care About Time"). The originals run the spectrum from the taut, angry "Every Little Bit Hurts," "Found Out" (both of which, in different recordings, were released as a single on Dischord Records in April 2009) and "Piles Of Paper" to the sunnier "Hello There" and "Steady Love" to the melancholy "At Fifteen," "No, Girl" and the title track.

Other than a turn from guest saxophonist Kriston Capps on "No, Girl," Davis plays all of the instruments on the record, a skill gained from his years as a drummer in Q And Not U and a guitarist/singer in Georgie James. Tracyanne Campbell of Camera Obscura guests on two songs as well, "No, Girl" and "Tougher Than The Rest."

It was recorded and produced by Nick Anderson along with Davis and Chad Clark at Brookland Studios and Silver Sonya Studios in the early months of 2009. Touring will follow throughout the spring of 2009 and on into the year, including stops in Austin for SXSW. For live shows, John is joined by his friends Nick Anderson on guitar, Michael Cotterman on bass and Andrew Black on drums.

Tour Dates:

2.11.10 Washington DC Black Cat w/ Pretty & Nice
2.14.10 Pittsburgh, PA Brillobox w/ Pretty & Nice
2.15.09 Dayton, OH South Park Tavern w/ Pretty & Nice
2.16.10 Pontiac, MI The Pike Room w/ Pretty & Nice
2.18.10 Chicago, IL The Hideout w/ Pretty & Nice
2.19.10 Madison, WI Der Rathskellar at Wisconsin Union w/ Pretty & Nice
2.20.10 St. Louis, MO The Firebird w/ Pretty & Nice
2.21.10 Memphis, TN Hi Tone Cafe w/ Pretty & Nice
2.23.10 Denton, TX Rubber Gloves w/ Pretty & Nice
2.24.10 Austin, TX The Mohawk w/ Pretty & Nice
2.26.10 Tallahassee, FL Club Downunder w/ Pretty & Nice
2.27.10 Orlando, FL Will's Pub w/ Pretty & Nice
2.28.10 Atlanta, GA Drunken Unicorn w/ Pretty & Nice
3.1.10 Chapel Hill, NC Local 506 w/ Pretty & Nice
3.2.10 Richmond, VA Gallery 5 w/ Pretty & Nice
3.3.10 Baltimore, MD Golden West Cafe w/ Gary B & The Notions, Pretty & Nice
3.4.10 Philadelphia, PA Kung Fu Knecktie w/ Pretty & Nice
3.5.10 Cambridge, MA Middle East Upstairs w/ Pretty & Nice, Gary B & The Notions
3.6.10 Brooklyn, NY Union Hall w/ Pretty & Nice, Gary B & The Notions
3.7.10 NY, NY Cake Shop w/ Pretty & Nice
3.11.10 Cleveland, OH Grog Shop w/ Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
3.12.10 Pontiac, MI The Crofoot w/ Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
3.13.10 Chicago, IL The Bottom Lounge w/ Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
3.14.10 Madison, WI High Noon Saloon w/ Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
3.15.10 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue w/ Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
3.17-20.10 Austin, TX SXSW

Mega-telethon tonight to be followed by auction-only Radiohead event Sunday in L.A., wherein even Ticketmaster gets into the spirit of giving.

By Fred Mills

Tonight's the night, and we're not talking Rod Stewart, either, so how about tearing yourself away from that new episode of iCarly or that scheduled Xbox Live session and tuning in to more than a dozen network and cable channels starting at 8 pm EST for the "Hope For Haiti" telethon.

Unless you've been living in a cave for the past week you may have heard about it. "Hope For Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief" was put into motion by George Clooney two days after the Haitian earthquake; the actor lined up Springsteen, Bono, Sting and Wyclef Jean and partnered with MTV Networks, and from there it snowballed. Set to perform during the course of the two-hour telethon are those artists along with Beyoncé, Madonna, Jennifer Hudson, Mary J. Blige, Shakira, Kid Rock, Keith Urban, Coldplay, Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews, Justin Timberlake, Stevie Wonder, Jay-Z, Rihanna and Taylor Swift, from stages in New York, Los Angeles and London.

In fact, pretty much everyone but Kanye West will be playing - as announced yesterday, West was pointedly NOT invited. According to a report at Popeater.com, a source disclosed that the general consensus was that "after what [West] said on the Katrina telethon and the way he behaved at the MTV Video Music Awards, everyone agrees it's just best that he does not participate. Kayne has to make everything about himself. He will do anything to steal the spotlight and, well, this night it's just not about him."

Heck, folks should thrown in some extra cash with their donations by way of saying "Thanks!" for the non-inclusion of West!

Funds raised during the telethon will go to Oxfam America, Partners in Health, the Red Cross, UNICEF, United Nations World Food Programme, Yele Haiti Foundation and the Clinton Bush Haiti Foundation, so come on, folks, and open up your wallets.

Don't forget that money is the most important thing you can donate, and you should do it as directly and as immediately as possible. As we noted last week, organizing your own benefit concert and doing other things on a local level is all well and good - and it gives you a feel-good glow too, of course - such efforts, in the face of the sheer scale of destruction and misery in Haiti, don't really do much good compared to the direct donation strategy.

You can tune in tonight to CNN, BET, HBO, MTV, VH1, CMT, TNT, Showtime, Comedy Central and other stations. Meanwhile, you can make direct donations to:

www.hopeforhaitinow.com

877-99-HAITI (or text RGIVES to 50555)

At some point after the telethon, recordings of performances themselves will be available to purchase as downloads from iTunes, with proceeds going to the relief organizations.

***

Meanwhile, announced yesterday at the Radiohead website: the band will be performing at a special Haiti benefit Sunday night at The Fonda in L.A. The twist is that they are auctioning off the tickets via Ticketmaster, and as the current minimum bid (as of this writing) is clocking in at $250.00 per ticket, better check your credit card balances before bidding, and the auction closes tomorrow, Saturday morning at 11 am PST

According to the Radiohead site:

Radiohead for Haiti

We're doing a show this Sunday (24th January) to raise funds for the relief effort in Haiti. The venue is The Music Box Theatre at The Fonda in Los Angeles, doors at 7pm. All proceeds are going to the Oxfam Haiti relief fund. We're trying to raise as much money as possible, so tickets will be sold by auction at this site from 8pm tonight until 11am Saturday (PST):

http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/09004434FC1C86AC

We're in the middle of recording at the moment, so you'll be catching us on the fly.... but if you're up for it, then we are too.

Just to clarify times for ticket sales

Auction starts Thursday 21st January 08.00 pm PST
Auction ends Saturday 23rd January 11.00 am PST

Well, that's all clear now....

Worth noting: a message on the Ticketmaster page indicates that all proceeds including ticket fees will be donated. So for once, just this time, we won't refer to the organization by its preferred nickname, Ticketbastard.

Was he the REAL fifth Beatle? We say yeah, just maybe...

By Fred Mills

Sure, this news item is just an excuse to run the way-cool photo above. But we're also gonna go out on a limb and say that one of the most criminally overlooked recent releases has to be Voormann & Friends: A Sideman's Journey, an all-star session put together by bassist/graphic designer/producer Klaus Voormann. Yeah: THAT Klaus Voormann, best pal to the Beatles. You may have heard of him.

At any rate, the Journey album is a real delight, featuring a wealth of rock oldies, among them songs penned by members of the Beatles, and additionally boasting guest spots from Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney and Cat Stevens, among others. Our resident Voormann expert A.D. Amorosi serves up his thoughts on the album and the man's career to date, suggesting that rather than George Martin or Billy Preston (or even Pete Best), perhaps Voormann deserves the honor of being known as "the fifth Beatle." You can see what Amorosi has to say here.

The estimable Mr. Starr performs and takes questions at the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles this past week, Jan. 19.

By Jose Martinez / Photos by Becky Sapp, Wire Image

Time spent with a Beatle is as close as us mere mortals on this side of the Atlantic can get to royalty or a true rock & roll deity. There are rock & roll stars and then there are Beatles, and now there are only two of them left. It just doesn't get any bigger that that.

So imagine the electricity in the air as the GRAMMY Museum was preparing to host its Evening With Ringo Starr last night. Having hosted many of these intimate sessions with some of the world's most famous and popular musicians and icons (think Brian Wilson, Annie Lennox, Clive Davis) there was a buzz about the place as a record-setting sold out crowd of 200, tickets for the evening's event were gone in less than eight minutes, anxiously awaited Ringo.

Celebrating the release of his most recent effort, Y Not, Starr was in fine form during a Q&A session with GRAMMY Museum executive director Robert Santelli. Phrases like "big night" and "historic evening" were bantered about during the artist introduction. When talking about Y Not, the first solo record that Starr produced himself, he quipped, "It was the first time I could tell a guitarist what to do. I haven't had so much fun making a record."

Teaming up with former Beatle Paul McCartney on two tracks ("Peace Dream" and "Walk With You"), Starr shared stories of "that band I was in during the ‘60s." Talking about his All Star Band that includes the likes of Joe Walsh, Dave Stewart, Edgar Winter (in attendance, along with Max Weinberg), Starr joked, "They're great, but I'm the greatest."

A fan of "only American music" growing up in Liverpool, Starr, who has been a solo artist now for 40 years, confessed to being a musical "thief" always tempted to steal from his own material.

Joined onstage by Ben Harper, the discussion continued about the pair's collaboration on Y Not. "I keep saying don't wake me up," a very humble Harper gushed about his time working with Starr.

Then it was time to play and Starr and Harper and the Relentless 7 took on "Photograph," an early Starr solo hit, followed by the new track "Walk With You." Then Harper and his band played "I Will Not Be Broken" and "Up To You Now" with such powerful emotion it was mesmerizing.

Rejoined by Starr they played another new track, "The Other Side of Liverpool" which the affable singer/drummer had to stop and restart after singing the wrong line. "That's why [playing] live is great," he declared.

Finishing off with "A Little Help From My Friends" and a jam version of "Boys" the audience knew they had just witnessed something extremely special. Every once in a while you get that feeling that we're lucky to live in L.A., besides when the rest of the country is buried in snow and we're playing at the beach, and this was definitely one of those moments.

Blurt pays tribute to Joe Cocker's backing group - who weren't so bad on their own, either.

By Carl Hanni

The Grease Band: you've probably heard them, whether you know it or not. At least, if you listened to any British rock & roll in the 1970s. 

The Grease Band's self-titled debut was released in 1971, on Leon Russell's Shelter Records imprint, home to Freddie King and JJ Cale among others. A second one came out in 1975; I've never heard it, or even seen a copy. They were five Brits, vocalist and guitar ace Henry McCullough, guitar player Neil Hubbard, bass player Alan Spenner, drummer Bruce Rowlands and keyboard player/arranger/producer Chris Stainton, for some 70s reason listed as "Phil Harmonious Plunk" on the credits. Stainton also shares production credits on the record, along with the band and Nigel Thomas. 

By the time of this release The Grease Band had been working as Joe Cocker's back up band, appearing piecemeal on his debut With A Little Help From My Friends, wholly on his classic second release Joe Cocker!" and backing him up at his famous Woodstock appearance. Stainton was also a key member of Cocker's legendary mega band/traveling circus Mad Dogs & Englishmen tour and album in 1970. Furthermore, the band, minus Stainton, were the principal players on the original release of Jesus Christ Superstar, a musical footnote that seems mysteriously lost in the mists of time (no mention in All Music, etc.). 

Like many records of the time, The Grease Band is an uneven release, with at least one more or less forgettable number, a few mid-range ones and a few killer tracks. Why should you care, or why should I spend any time trying to make you care? Because on at least four or five of these tracks The Grease Band shows How It's Supposed To Be Done, and because The Grease Band had Henry McCullough and Chris Stainton, a pair of true adepts.   

And because The Grease Band fully embody That Sound: that early ‘70s, warm, fabulously rich (here it comes...) ANALOG sound that folks are still trying to get back to. That sound is evident on the first track, a funky vamp on Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup's "My Baby Left Me" that sidles in and stands around for a few moments before suddenly picking up speed and wrapping itself around McCullough's ragged voice. But what you want out of this track is McCullough's knotty solo, a few short moments of biting, swooping blues-rock guitar candy with a brutal tone to turn others to stone. This little bit of guitar grease puts McCullough right in there with the other British blues-rock guitarists of the time, at least the likes of Rory Gallagher, Kim Simmons, Peter Green and Alvin Lee, if not quite Jeff Beck or Jimmy Page. 

McCullough's acoustic-based numbers like "Mistake No Doubt," "Let it be Gone" and "All I Wanna Do" are solid and well worth repeat listens, especially the ghostly chorus on "Mistake No Doubt." And the lovely gospel-folk "To The Lord" should have/could have run in the end credits to an episode of "Deadwood." But what The Grease Band really excel at is an original take on methodical, mid-tempo rocking, and  "Willie and the Pig"  "Laugh at the Judge" and "Jessie James" nail it to the barn door. "Willie and the Pig" is all snaky, buzzing guitars, multi-tracked keyboards and McCullough's nasally voice married to a sexy, flat beat.  "Jessie James" is a blues rocker w/a country undercurrent that sounds something like a kissing cousin to Fleetwood Mac's "Hi Ho Silver" that came out the year before on Kiln House. But "Laugh at the Judge" is the real ringer, a truly funky rocker that takes the famous Chuck Berry guitar riff, spins it on its ear and puts a funky groove and Stainton's rhythm organ underneath. By the end Stainton's top shelf/lead organ steals the show, hitting notes on the outro as high as any I've ever heard. The album ends w/the beautiful acoustic lament "The Visitor," with Stainton's organ (or maybe harmonium) again taking the lead.

Throughout the record Spenner and Rowlands' rhythm section is flexible, providing intuitive accompaniment to whatever comes their way. There's a cohesiveness evident from the time spent touring and recording together that really shows in how generally relaxed and together the band sounds. There's real joy in how they play together, also evident in the cover photos; these guys are obviously loose and having a good time.

McCullough went on to play in Wings w/Paul McCartney and record with Spooky Tooth, Roy Harper, Marianne Faithful and others. Spenner and Hubbard later played on records by Roxy Music; Stainton is a widely travelled player, playing on numerous releases by Eric Clapton + more by Cocker, Pete Townsend and many more. 

The Grease Band. Yes, they were. 

[Carl Hanni blogs for Blurt. Read his column "Sonic Reducer" here.]

Fifth time around's definitely the charm.

By Blurt Staff

MusicNOW Festival celebrates its 5th year of presenting exciting contemporary music in Cincinnati, Ohio, with three evenings of performances in the intimate 600-seat venue, Memorial Hall (1225 Elm Street)

The festival opens Tuesday, March 30^th with arresting harpist and songwriter Joanna Newsom (pictured). She will perform a handful of US concerts to celebrate the release of Have One on Me, her first release in four years.  Wednesday, March 31^st, St Vincent, led by composer, singer and guitar virtuoso Annie Clark, will present works from their widely acclaimed latest release, Actor, as well as new works venturing deeper into chamber arranging and composition. The same evening dynamic and engaging new music ensemble, Ymusic, will premiere the festival commission written by Clark. Inventive vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Justin Vernon, best known for his work with Bon Iver, presents a rare solo concert which is to be one of his few 2010 dates, to close the festival on April 1^st.

MusicNOW began in 2006 and was founded by Cincinnati native, Bryce Dessner (the National and Clogs) who continues to serve as the festivals' artistic director.

Festival Schedule:

Tuesday, March 30, 2010, 8pm: Joanna Newsom

Wednesday, March 31, 2010, 8pm: St. Vincent

Thursday, April 1, 2010, 8pm:  Justin Vernon            

Tickets are $20 for each concert. A $50 festival pass is available for all three evenings.

Tickets are available at the MusicNOW Festival website or by phone at 800-838-3006

[Photo Credit: Paul O'Valle]

Comedians and musicians including Zach Galifianakis, Janeane Garofalo, Britt Daniel and Justin Vernon.

By Blurt Staff

In addition to that Haiti fundraising telethon tonight and the Radiohead benefit we already told you about, word now arrives via Brooklyn Vegan that another rapidly-assembled benefit will be taking place this weekend. The Brooklyn-based music blog, in conjunction with Bowery Presents, is putting on "A Night of Comedy and Music to Benefit Haiti."

It takes place Saturday night (that's tomorrow, Jan. 23) at the Music Hall of Williamsburg starting at 8 pm. It will feature performances by Zach Galifianakis, Britt Daniel (of Spoon), Justin Vernon (Bon Iver), St. Vincent, Janeane Garofalo, Wyatt Cenac (of the Daily Show), the live debut of John Shade (ex Dave Godowsky) and "possibly more TBA."

Go to the Brooklyn Vegan site for more details, including ticketing info; tickets went on sale today at noon. According to the site, "100% of the proceeds will be split between an orphanage in Haiti (that Zach chose) and the Red Cross."

Incidentally, Pitchfork has a nice roundup of other goings-on around the world in relation to Haitian benefits. You can check out their report here.

Now that's what they call marketing! Acclaimed band has a new video, a new EP and some new shows.

By Blurt Staff

Cold War Kids have their new video "Audience" currently premiering at Aol/Spinner. It's part of the promotion for the new EP Behave Yourself released this week in stores. Watch BLURT very soon for an exclusive interview with the band.

They've also announced a handful of tour dates:

1/22 The Wiltern, Los Angeles
1/23 The Fillmore, San Francisco
1/28 BK Music Hall, NY
1/29 Terminal 5, NY (sold out)
1/30 Vic Theatre, Chicago

Well, it's only the middle of January... but we're just sayin'...  "This is gonna be 2010's Shins or Band of Horses, so mark these words."

By Jonah Flicker

Straight out of Palm Beach, Florida shoots the sure-as-shit contender for best album of this nascent new year, Surfer Blood's Astro Coast (Kanine). This is gonna be 2010's Shins or Band of Horses, so mark these words. Yes, it may be a little early for such proclamations, but these boys make lofty postulations like this easy. It's safe to assume the members of the band were raised on a steady diet of Weezer, The Pixies, Built To Spill, as well as various influences in the outer regions of indie rock. But they've managed to absorb all of this and more and regurgitate something all their own.

From the beginning chords of the album's opening tune, "Floating Vibes," the band makes its intent clear. Simple guitar lines augmented by bright and thick production will be employed, melodious and mellifluous vocals will ensue, and breezy themes of California dreams will occur. No tricks, no gimmicks will obscure the music (well, for the most part - "Take it Easy" tips its hat to Vampire Weekend, but only fleetingly). The song you've probably heard from this album already, "Swim," a barrage of power chords and reverb-coated vocals ecstatically urging you to "Swim to reach the end," is a great track, but it's really not all that representative of the magic found on the rest of the record. "Harmonix," after a brief guitar intro, builds into a restive number constructed sparingly of strummed harmonics (get it?) and yet another insanely catchy vocal refrain. "Twin Peaks," as lush and expansive as anything else on Astro Coast, sports a nifty chorus of matching guitar chords and vocal melody before launching into a syncopated chorus that sounds more like a party than a songwriting convention. The record's themes seem to revolve around personal experiences, references to band members' relationships, and exploring the farther reaches of the United States. Yet the appeal of Surfer Blood's music transports you right along, not an easy task for any band.

So how does this young band do it? Take a listen to "Anchorage" to fully understand what they are up to. A simple idea is made interesting through excellent recording and production - no shitgaze, this - and executed by an effusive bunch of rock musicians more concerned with quality than scoring scene points. They've got the chops to back up the hype, now let's see how they handle their first year in the spotlight.

In a manner of speaking, at least...

By Blurt Staff

One thing we've been diggin' a LOT lately is this recent Jerry Lee Lewis biography by author Joe Bonomo (who did a pretty swell Fleshtones bio awhile back too). Titled Jerry Lee Lewis: Lost and Found and published by the good folks at Continuum, it's reviewed by BLURT contributor David Greenberger here.

Meanwhile, though, since it's always a good day at BLURT  when we can drop the name of the mighty Jon Langford, we'd just like to point out that the Bonomo book front cover art for the Killer is derived from the above Langford rendering, which is swell all by itself. Check the book review link to compare 'em.

And for all you SXSW attendees, don't forget you can own a piece of Langford yourself if you pop into the Yard Dog Gallery down on South Congress in Austin: he's always got original pieces of art displayed and available for sale to the discriminating art aficionado....