Zappagram #4
Catch the B-52's farewell tour, The Doors + The Temptations = funky mashup, 3 things to look for in a new turntable
Zappagram is the mother of all music newsletters, covering the latest in music news, reviews, interviews, releases, discovery, history, and more.
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Hey everyone,
Can you believe it’s already May? Spring has sprung and, as usual, lots is happening in the world of music.
This week, I’d like to highly recommend two other great music newsletters run by friends of mine: On Repeat by Kevin Alexander and Shuffle Sundays by Leo Mascaro. Follow them for more great weekly music recommendations.
For more music-related content, please be sure to follow me on Instagram and Facebook.
Let’s dive in!
“That’s one of the great things about music: You can sing a song to 85,000 people, and they’ll sing it back for 85,000 different reasons.” ― Dave Grohl
Recent Essays
The latest music essays by Chris Zappa
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Things Are Great with Band of Horses
A return to greatness for Ben Bridwell & co.
Great Bands You Never Heard Of: Illiterate Light
If Band of Horses and My Morning Jacket had a love child
The Musical Genius of Aimee Mann
Music for slightly damaged and cynical romantics
Music News
The latest happenings in the world of music
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The B-52’s are busy once again, reuniting one last time for what they’re calling their farewell tour, and preparing for the 2023 release of a yet-untitled documentary executive produced by Fred Armisen. [via Stereogum]
Naomi Judd, the singer and television actress best known as the matriarch of country music duo the Judds, died on Saturday (April 30). She was 76 years old. [via Tennessean]
Paul McCartney blew the minds of concert attendees last week when he performed a duet with John Lennon on the 1970 Let It Be classic “I’ve Got a Feeling” by screening footage from the Beatles’ legendary 1969 rooftop gig atop the band’s Apple Corps HQ in London. Unlike other acts who’ve performed with deceased bandmates via hologram or other digital trickery, fan-shot video of the get back between the two felt downright heartwarming. [via Billboard]
T Bone Burnett unveiled a new analog audio format that he’s calling “the pinnacle of recorded sound.” Ionic Original is a one-of-a-kind disc that apparently surpasses the sonic fidelity of existing formats like vinyl, CD, or streaming. “An Ionic Original is the pinnacle of recorded sound,” Burnett said in a statement. “It is archival quality. It is future-proof.” [via AnalogPlanet]
A career-spanning documentary on ambient god Brian Eno is currently in the works and is slated for release sometime in 2023. [via Variety]
Willie Nelson celebrated his birthday on April 29th. Rolling Stone wished him a happy birthday on Instagram, except there was one problem—they wished him a happy 90th birthday, but Willie just turned 89. Singer Margo Price commented and said “y’all, 89” after which they corrected their mistake. Happy 89th Willie! [via Instagram]
Heavy Rotation
Great music, new and old, getting lots of spins
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NEW ALBUM
Faye Webster: Car Therapy Sessions [listen]
NEW ALBUM
Karen Elson: Green [listen]
THROWBACK ALBUM
El Vy: Return To The Moon [listen]
NEW SINGLE
Ryan Adams: “Take It Back” [listen]
NEW SINGLE
The Smile: “Free In The Knowledge” [listen]
THROWBACK SINGLE
Leonard Cohen: “The Future” [listen]
Video Spotlight
See it to believe it
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Who doesn’t love a good mashup? This one deftly mixes The Doors’ “Break on Through (To the Other Side)” with The Temptations’ “Shakey Ground” into a strange, yet funky combo that does not disappoint. [via YouTube]
New Releases
These albums have recently dropped
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- APRIL 29 -
Faye Webster
Car Therapy Sessions [listen]
Bloc Party
Alpha Games [listen]
Karen Elson
Green [listen]
Parov Stelar
Moonlight Love Affair [listen]
Röyksopp
Profound Mysteries [listen]
Skylar Grey
Skylar Grey [listen]
The Head And The Heart
Every Shade of Blue [listen]
Upcoming Releases
These albums are coming soon
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- MAY 6 -
Arcade Fire
We
Sharon Van Etten
We’ve Been Going About This All Wrong
Suki Waterhouse
I Can’t Let Go
- MAY 13 -
The Black Keys
Dropout Boogie
Florence and the Machine
Dance Fever
Monophonics
Sage Motel
The Smile
A Light For Attracting Attention
- MAY 20 -
Delta Spirit
One Is One
- MAY 27 -
Liam Gallagher
C’MON YOU KNOW
Wilco
Cruel Country
On the Horizon
Upcoming albums with no release date yet
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Smashing Pumpkins ♯ Butthole Surfers ♯ The Cure ♯ Lana Del Rey ♯ Todd Rundgren
Tour Dates
The latest tour announcements
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Aimee Mann ♯ B-52’s ♯Caamp ♯ Local Natives ♯ Lollapalooza ♯ Red Hot Chili Peppers ♯ Spoon ♯ Stevie Nicks ♯ Tears For Fears
On This Date
Musical happenings of historical significance
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April 26
Out on a day's shopping, Rod Stewart is robbed by a gunman of his $50k Porsche on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. (1982) ♯ Chris Mars, drummer for The Replacements, is born. (1961)
April 27
Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament is the victim of a robbery outside Southern Tracks Recording studios in Atlanta, where the band was recording. (2009) ♯ Kate Pierson of the B-52’s is born. (1948) ♯ Paul “Ace” Frehley of KISS is born. (1951)
April 28
Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth is born. (1953) ♯ Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band appear at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, the first time a rock band played the Opry since The Byrds in 1968. (1976)
April 29
Willie Nelson is born. (1933) ♯ After a gig in Memphis, Bruce Springsteen takes a cab to Elvis Presley's Graceland home and proceeds to climb over the wall. A security guard apprehends him. (1976)
April 30
Justin Vernon, frontman of Bon Iver, is born. (1981) ♯ American Blues legend Muddy Waters dies in his sleep at his home in Illinois, aged 68. (1983)
May 1
D'arcy Wretsky-Brown, bassist for Smashing Pumpkins, is born. (1968) ♯ Elton John becomes the first Western musician to perform in Israel. (1979)
May 2
Native American guitarist Link Wray is born. (1929) ♯ A security guard alerts police after a man wearing a wig, fake mustache, and false teeth walks into a Zales jewelry store in Simi Valley, California. Police arrived and detain the man, who turns out to be Michael Jackson wearing a disguise. (1989)
Off Topic
May or may not be music-related
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FILED UNDER: RUSH
Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson of Rush sit down for an interview in Toronto for House Of Strombo, to discuss Moving Pictures, the loss of Neil Peart, grieving in public, their new perspective on time, the music industry today, being booed off-stage, getting high before rehearsals, Taylor Hawkins, and more. [via YouTube]
FILED UNDER: PUNK AF
Pitchfork compiled what they’re calling the 20 best punk movies, ranging from documentary to fiction. Have you seen any of these? Did they leave out a good doc or film they should have included? [via Pitchfork]
FILED UNDER: TWEET THI$
Apparently, Elon Musk might start charging third-party websites to embed tweets from verified Twitter accounts. Hey, whatever man, I just want my Twitter account back. [via Consequence]
FILED UNDER: TURNTABLES
If you’re in the market for a record player, this TikTok covers three things to look for in a turntable. [via TikTok]
???
Question of the week
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Have you ever met a famous musician? Leave a response and let me know who it was, how it happened, and what they were like!
Thanks for reading!
If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share it with friends, and don’t forget to follow me on Instagram and Facebook for more great music-related content.
I hope your week rocks!
Peace and love,
CZ 🤘🏻
Zappagram #4
Huge thank you for the shoutout/mention! I really appreciate that. 😀
Somehow I’ve also decided that I “need” to see the B52s, so let the plotting commence!
Closest I’ve come to meeting a famous musician is delivering Ted Nugent’s guitar to baggage claim. I also bumped into Jane Wiedlin at the airport once as well.
Thank you so much for the mention, Chris! Keep up the good work! 🙌🏼