Hey folks,
While the Met Gala isn’t a music event, it is still a cultural event to behold, however needlessly extravagant it may be. And, of course, many artists were in attendance—from Billie Eilish to Rihanna to Phoebe Bridgers to Lil Das X (with his extremely sparkly booty.) Jared Leto even dressed as Karl Lagerfeld’s cat in a surprisingly realistic and convincing costume.
We also got the list of 2023’s inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Unsurprisingly, there were artists who rightfully made it in and others who perhaps shouldn’t have in place of some more deserving, but then the Rock Hall is a bit of a joke anyway and is, if nothing else, always a source of division amongst artists and fans alike.
I’ll be covering all this and more in this week’s episode so if you’re not already listening to the podcast, now’s the time to go subscribe.
If you’re enjoying the show and/or this newsletter, please tell your friends, enemies, distant cousins, accountants, bartenders, pharmacists, dental hygienists, and anyone else who will listen.
Ground control to reader: Take your protein pills. Put your helmet on.
This music newsletter ain’t gonna read itself.
“The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.”
—Bob Marley
ROCK THE VOTE
:: MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD
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WEEKLY PLAYLIST #56
:: NEW MUSIC EVERY WEEK
Featuring: Gordon Lightfoot, Bethany Cosentino, Amanda Greatorex, David Gray, Sonja Midtune, Ball Brigada, 26fix, Skye Wallace, Windser, Peter Gabriel, Danielle Ponder, Cowboy Junkies
MASTER PLAYLIST (ALL WEEKS)
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MUSIC NEWS
:: WHAT’S GOING ON
Gordon Lightfoot, Canadian Folk-Rock Troubadour, Dead at 84
Brilliant songwriter penned classics like "If You Could Read My Mind," "Early Morning Rain," and "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" [RollingStone]
Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino Goes Solo on New Song ‘It’s Fine’
The track appears on her new album, Natural Disaster, out July 28 [RollingStone]
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Reveals Class of 2023: Willie Nelson, Kate Bush, Missy Elliott, Sheryl Crow, Rage Against the Machine and More
George Michael and the Spinners also prevailed in balloting; others selected for induction by a select committee include Chaka Khan, Bernie Taupin, Don Cornelius, Al Kooper, Link Wray and DJ Kool Herc [Varie ty]
Ed Sheeran Wins “Thinking Out Loud” Copyright Trial
The suit claimed his 2014 hit ripped off Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" [Consequence]
Thurston Moore to Tell Sonic Youth Story in ‘Sonic Life’ Memoir
The guitarist's autobiography, which he calls "the product of intensive research and deep dives into my memories and emotions," due out in the fall [RollingStone]
The White Stripes’ Lyrics Collected in New Book
Arriving October 3 in hardback via Third Man Books [Pitchfork]
Taylor Swift Lands a Record 10 Albums in the Top 100 of Billboard 200 Chart
Among those 10 albums, nine are in the top 50, eight sit in the top 40, and three are in the top 10 [Billboard]
Minnesota to Rename Highway in Honor of Prince
And, yes, the signs will literally be purple [Consequence]
Keanu Reeves’ Band Dogstar Tease First New Album In 23 Years
The band launched an Instagram account last summer with a retro photo and a concise announcement: “We’re back.” [Stereogum]
Bachman–Turner Overdrive Guitarist Tim Bachman Dead at 71
His son, Ryder Bachman, confirmed the guitarist’s death on social media [RollingStone]
Rob Laakso, of Kurt Vile & The Violators, Dead at 44
Laasko was also a member of Swirlies and Mice Parade [Consequence]
Billy Corgan Paid Off Hacker to Prevent Leak of Smashing Pumpkins’ New Album
It came out of his own pocket six months before the album was released [Consequence]
Ted Nugent’s Birmingham, Al Show Cancelled Following Backlash
While dates aren't scheduled to begin until July, one show, in Birmingham, AL, has already been cancelled following intense backlash [BrooklytnVegan]
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OTHER NEWS
:: MAY OR MAY NOT BE MUSIC-RELATED
That’s Dr. Tom Petty to You
The late Heartbreakers leader will be recognized for his contributions to music with an honorary doctorate from the University of Florida [RollingStone]
Concert-Goer Has “Loud and Full Body Orgasm” During L.A. Philharmonic Performance
The orchestra "politely carried on" [NME]
Pixies Apologize for “Where Is My Mind?” Preemptively Turning Off Google Alarms
“Stop!” That’s the word that opens Pixies’ iconic “Where Is My Mind?” and it’s also the word that’s making some folks’ morning routines a little trickier. [Consequence]
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Z-REX
:: ZAPPA’S RECOMMENDATIONS
+ Legs McNeil writing about David Johansen and The New York Dolls in Personality Crisis: One Night Only published on Legsville.com
+ Bono, the Edge, and Zane Lowe take an exclusive look into the Sphere, Las Vegas's most innovative performance venue where they plan to take the stage at their residency starting in September.
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NEW RELEASES
:: RECENTLY DROPPED MUSIC
Amanda Greatorex: Midnight Sea [listen]
Durand Jones: Wait Til I Get Over [listen]
Ed Sheeran: - (subtract) [listen]
Jenny Owen Youngs: Offair: From The Forest Floor [listen]
The Lemon Twigs: Everything Harmony [listen]
Olivia Jean: Raving Ghost [listen]
SBTRKT: The Rat Road [listen]
The Smashing Pumpkins: ATUM [listen]
Sqürl: Silver Haze [listen]
The Utopiates: The Sun Also Rises [listen]
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RELEASE RADAR
:: UPCOMING RELEASES
- MAY 12 -
Alison Goldfrapp: The Love Invention
Daft Punk: Random Access Memories (10th Anniversary Edition)
Dropkick Murphys: Okemah Rising
Esben & The Witch: Hold Sacred
Madison McFerrin: I Hope You Can Forgive Me
Moby: Resound NYC
- MAY 19 -
Dave Matthews Band: Walk Around the Moon
Graham Nash: Now
Lewis Capaldi: Broken by Desire to Be Heavenly Sent
Paul Simon: Seven Psalms
Raul Malo: Say Less
Sufjan Stevens, Timo Andres & Conor Hanick: Reflections
- MAY 26 -
Arlo Parks: My Soft Machine
The Exploding Hearts: Guitar Romantic
Sparks: The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte
- JUNE 2 -
Ben Folds: What Matters Most
Ben Harper: Wide Open Light
Bob Dylan: Shadow Kingdom
Cowboy Junkies: Such Ferocious Beauty
Foo Fighters: But Here We Are
Half Moon Run: Salt
John Mellencamp: Orpheus Descending
Louise Post (of Veruca Salt): Sleepwalker
Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats: What If I EP
Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds: Council Skies
Rancid: Tomorrow Never Comes
Rufus Wainwright: Folkocracy
- JUNE 9 -
The Boo Radleys: Eight
Christine and the Queens: Paranoia, Angels, True Love
Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit: Weathervanes
Jenny Lewis: Joy’All
Love and Rockets: My Sweet Twin
My Morning Jacket: MMJ Live Vol. 3: Bonnaroo 2004
Youth Lagoon: Heaven Is a Junkyard
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ON THIS DATE
:: MUSICAL HAPPENINGS OF HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
- MAY 8 -
Birthdays: Robert Johnson (1911) • Danny Whitten of Crazy Horse (1943) • Chris Frantz, drummer of Talking Heads & Philip Bailey of Earth, Wind & Fire (1951) • Alex Van Halen (1953) • Dave Rowntree, drummer of Blur (1964) • Martha Wainwright (1976) • Joe Bonamassa (1977) • The Beatles twelfth and final album, Let It Be was released. (1970) • A Los Angeles judge ruled against Tommy Lee and wife Pamela Anderson in their bid to keep Penthouse magazine from publishing still photos from an X-rated home movie that was stolen from their home. (1996)
- MAY 9 -
Birthdays: Dave Prater, of Sam & Dave (1937) • Richie Furay (1944) • Billy Joel (1949) • Dave Gahan (1962) • The Doors played at the Whisky A Go Go, West Hollywood, California auditioning for the position of the venue's house band. (1966) • Little Richard died of bone cancer at the age of 87. (2020)
- MAY 10 -
Birthdays: Donovan (1946) • Dave Mason (1947) • John Ritchie, a.k.a. Sid Vicious (1957) • Paul Hewson, a.k.a. Bono (1960) • Richard Patrick of NIN & Filter (1968) • The Rolling Stones recorded a version of “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” at Chess Studios in Chicago, with Brian Jones on harmonica. The band re-recorded it two days later at RCA Studios in Hollywood, with a different beat and the Gibson Maestro fuzzbox that Keith Richards had recently acquired. (1965)
- MAY 11 -
Birthdays: Irving Berlin (1888) • Eric Burdon (1941) • Butch Trucks (1947) • Christoph Schneider, drummer of Rammstein (1966) • The triple soundtrack album Woodstock was released in the US, going gold within two weeks. (1970) • Jamaican singer-songwriter Bob Marley died aged 36. (1981) • Jimi Hendrix Experience bassist Noel Redding died at his home in Ireland aged 57. (2003)
- MAY 12 -
Birthdays: Burt Bacharach (1928) • Steve Winwood & bassist Ivan Král who played with Blondie, Patti Smith and Iggy Pop (1948) • Billy Squier (1950) • Keyboardist, Greg Phillinganes (1956) • The Rolling Stones released Exile on Main Street. (1972)
- MAY 13 -
Birthdays: Ritchie Valens (1941) • Mary Wells (1943) • Magic Dick, harmonica, with American rock band The J Geils Band (1945) • Stevie Wonder (1950) • Alison Goldfrapp (1966) • Darius Rucker (1966) • Brian Patrick Carroll, a.k.a. Buckethead (1969) • Donald “Duck” Dunn, bassist with Booker T and the MG's died in his sleep after playing a show at the Blue Note night club in Tokyo the night before. (2012)
- MAY 14 -
Birthdays: Bobby Darin (1936) • Jack Bruce of Cream (1943) • Gene Cornish of The Rascals (1946) • David Byrne (1952) • Ian Astbury of The Cult (1962) • Mike Inez, bassist of Alice In Chains (1966) • Producer/multi-instrumentalist Greg Kurstin (1969) • Dan Auerbach (1979) • DJ/producer Martin Garrix (1996) • Frank Sinatra died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, aged 82, after suffering a heart attack. (1998) • Blues singer, songwriter and guitarist B.B. King died in his sleep, aged 89, after suffering a series of strokes caused by type 2 diabetes. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential blues guitarists of all time. (2015)
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CZ 🤘🏻
Zappagram #56: Damnit I think I've become a Swiftie