Congrats Justin! (for Best New Artist and Best Alternative Album)

84 year old Tony Bennett w/ a 27 year old Amy Winehouse

The great Tony Bennett has a new album of Duets, titled Duets II, coming out on September 20th. The 17-track CD features boring names like Michael Buble, John Mayer and Sheryl Crow, and some interesing names like Willie Nelson and Lady Gaga, but most notably includes a duet with Amy Winehouse who unfortunately never had the chance to realize her full potential due to a sad past few years and her untimely death today (7/23/2011).

In a video interview (that you can watch HERE), Tony says "Amy Winehouse was my favorite to perform with on the whole album." He compares her to Dina Washington and says she had the butterflies and nervousness that all the greats like Frank Sinatra and Duke Ellington had. He talks about how they clicked and says he thought she really loved to perform (though you might not know it from recent live videos) (too much butterfly medicine). RIP Amy.

Winehouse hasn't released an album since 2006 hit "Back to Black". The album won five of six Grammys it was nominted for including Record of the Year (and Best New Artist). She also won at the Brits that year. She was nominated for the UK's Mercury Prize twice. In 2004 "Frank" lost to Franz Ferdinand. In 2006 she lost to the Klaxons (check out who was nominated this year). Whether or not Amy has any other unreleased material remains to be seen, though there were rumors that she also recently recorded a track with Cee Lo Green.

Speaking of duets, in Amy Winehouse's too-short career she also performed with Mick Jagger, Mos Def, Mark Ronson, sort of Ghostface, and probably others I missed.

The full tracklist and cover art for Tony's "Duets II", and a video of Amy performing with The Rolling Stones, below...

Continue reading "Amy Winehouse appears on soon-to-be-released Tony Bennett 'Duets' album, Tony loved working with her"

photos by Ryan Barkan

"His band is the same it's been for most of the last decade, with the guitarists Rusty Anderson and Brian Ray, the keyboardist Paul Wickens, and the drummer Abe Laboriel Jr.; in a way their canned grimaces and corny gestures seem perfect, because they illustrate how much of the audience might dream of playing if given the chance to get on stage with Mr. McCartney, showing off but hitting all the marks. It's a machine that doesn't change arrangements from year to year, mostly replicating the original versions, down to the string parts on "Eleanor Rigby" as recreated by Mr. Wickens' synthesizer. It's also a loud, clear, efficacious, and sometimes bashing band, aiming to the back rows." [NY Times]

Paul McCartney played the legendary Apollo last night, 12/13, to a house filled with Sirius XM subscribers and celebrties. If you are a satellite radio subscriber but didn't have a ticket, maybe you listened at home. Some pictures from the show and the full setlist below...

Continue reading "Paul McCartney played the Apollo Theater (pics & setlist)"

Sebastien Grainger @ Mercury Lounge, CMJ (more by Gabi Porter)

today in NYC
* DANCE
* Dr. Dog @ Webster Hall
* Peasant @ Public Asembly
* Silver Apples @ The Kitchen
* Diego Garcia @ the Living Room
* Nellie McKay @ Le Poisson Rouge
* Rosie Thomas @ the Living Room
* Q-Tip & The Cool Kids @ Highline Ballroom
* El Guincho & Lemonade @ (le) poisson rouge
* Stellastarr*, The Picture, & Princeton @ Pianos
* Sebastien Grainger & The Mountains @ Union Hall
* Felice Brothers, Bruce Hornsby, Dar Williams & James Hunter @ the Concert Hall

Alex Gomez RIP. If you don't know himn, you might remember him from Southpaw and other Brooklyn bars where he worked.

Diego Garcia of Elefant has a Tuesdays-in-December residency at the Living Room starting tonight. Stellastarr* kick off their five-night run at Pianos.

Upcoming shows at the Apollo Theater include Chrisette Michele on December 5th and Tony Bennett on the 16th.

Rosie Thomas also plays a holidy show at The Bell House tomorrow.

The Blip Festival is at The Bell House this weekend.

Cursive are playing some shows in January.

King Khan & BBQ play the WIRED store Wednesay.

Happy Birthday Britney Spears! Her new album is out today, and she's going on tour in 2009. NYC-area shows are at Nassau Coliseum on March 11th, and Prudential Center on the 13th. Both shows are with Pussycat Dolls.

Britney shares a birthday with Treach of Naughty By Nature.

The band Ringo Deathstarr performed at Cake Shop in September. Check out two videos from that show below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Tuesday? "

Tickets go on sale Saturday for almost every Wellmont Theatre show I listed plus a November 19h Tony Bennett one. Prices are listed at the Montclair, NJ venue's site.

Megadeth & friends (Gigantour) have two NYC shows scheduled at Hammerstein Ballroom this month. The April 22nd show is sold out. April 23rd is not. And for today only (starting at 10am), tickets for that 2nd show have been reduced to $25 (while supplies last).

Tony Bennett is playing a 'Boys and Girls Club' benefit at the Paramount Theatre in Asbury Park on June 28th. Tickets go on sale today (@ 10am). Other Tony shows are also listed at Ticketmaster.

Repetitious images captured Stevie Wonder's Madison Square Garden concert on Saturday because photographers were allowed only minutes to take pictures of Mr. Wonder, who performed with his daughter, Aisha Morris, and others. [NY Times]

"Stevie Wonder fans got more than they bargained for last night (Nov. 17), as Tony Bennett and Prince made surprise appearances during the R&B legend's sold-out show at New York's Madison Square Garden." [Billboard]

"...Yes, Prince came out to play guitar during "Superstition" but they pretty much buried his guitar in the mix until he took a solo which was short and nothing special. And honestly for what Prince has been doing lately to his fans on the internet i really hope people post pictures and videos of him from tonite all over the place. Tony Bennett on the other hand was great as he always is..." [Anonymous]