Sunset Blvd. Records

12/08/2024

It Came From Sunset Blvd!
The Cinerama Dome

Few things symbolize Los Angeles better than a movie theatre, but there is not a single theatre in the city that can compare to the Cinerama Dome as an icon of modern architecture.
Designed by Welton Becket Associates in 1963, Cinerama Dome was inspired by Buckminster Fuller. The theater features as its centerpiece a geodesic dome of 316 interlocking concrete panels. The site of many Hollywood movie premieres, the Cinerama Dome has been described by the L.A. Times as “one of the finest theaters in America.” The Cinerama Dome was originally designed as a prototype to be used throughout the country to showcase the new Cinerama process, but only a few other Cinerama theatres were ever built. As a result, the Dome is a very rare example of a surviving, intact Cinerama theatre, retaining the curved screen that was required for the three-projector system.

Pacific Theatres founder, William R. Forman, announced the construction of the Cinerama Dome in July 1963 at a star-studded, ground-breaking ceremony where Spencer Tracy, Buddy Hackett, Mickey Rooney, Dick Shawn, Edie Adams, and Dorothy Provine donned hard hats, and, with picks and shovels, began construction. Forman had committed to United Artists that the theatre would be ready for the November 7, 1963, world premiere of the first movie filmed in the new 70mm, single-strip Cinerama process, Stanley Kramer's It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad, World. Working around the clock, the entire construction spanned only 16 weeks. The Cinerama Dome is the only concrete geodesic dome in the world. The theatre is made up of 316 individual hexagonal and pentagonal shapes in 16 different sizes. Each of these pieces is approximately 12 feet (3.7 metres) across and weighs around 7,500 pounds (3,400 kilograms). The theatre also has design elements such as a loge section with stadium seating, architecturally significant floating stairways, and, at the time of its opening, the largest contoured motion-picture screen in the world, measuring 32 ft (9.8 m) high and 86 ft (26 m) wide, with a maximum aspect ratio of 2.69:1

The It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World premiere (filmed in Ultra Panavision 70) marked the dawn of "single lens" Cinerama. Previously, Cinerama was known for its groundbreaking three-projector process. From 1963 until 2002, the Cinerama Dome never showed movies with the three-projector process. (The nearby Warner Cinerama at 6433 Hollywood Boulevard used the three-projector process until December 1964.) A unique "rectified" print was made with increased anamorphic compression towards the sides, which compensated for distortions that would otherwise be induced by Cinerama's deeply curved screen.

12/08/2024

Classic Album Of The Day
Roxy Music / Stranded (1973)
Roxy Music had their first UK No.1 album when 'Stranded' went to the top for one week. The sleeve featured Pl***oy's Playmate of The Year, model Marilyn Cole, (who was the magazines's first full-frontal n**e centerfold).

Stranded is the third album by English rock band Roxy Music, released in 1973 by Island Records (it was released by Atco Records in the United States). Stranded was the first Roxy Music album on which Bryan Ferry was not the sole songwriter, with multi-instrumentalist Andy Mackay and guitarist Phil Manzanera also making songwriting contributions. It is also their first album with keyboardist/violinist Eddie Jobson and bassist John Gustafson, who replaced Brian Eno and John Porter, respectively, after their departures following the release of their previous album For Your Pleasure.

Stranded reached number one on the UK albums chart. The track "Street Life" was released as a single and reached number 9 on the UK singles chart. In the US, Stranded charted at number 186.

The gatefold cover photograph was taken by Karl Stoecker and styled by Antony Price, and shows Pl***oy model Marilyn Cole. In an interview with the writer Tony Barrell in 2007, Cole recalled:

It was at a tiny studio, somewhere off the Edgware Road in London. I'd never even heard of Roxy Music. I very soon understood that I was in safe hands, among some very talented people. There was a red dress hanging up, and I thought, 'Ooh, good, I'm going to get to wear a really nice dress'... whereupon, as I'm having my make-up done, Antony comes in and starts ripping the dress – a hole there, a slash there. I was thinking, 'Oh no.' They stuck me on this big log and explained I was supposed to be stranded in a jungle, and then they started spraying me; they sprayed my hair gold, and there was a whole mist coming over me and the dress was getting wet in all the right places

Reviewing for Rolling Stone in 1974, Paul Gambaccini wrote: "Roxy Music can no longer be ignored by Americans. They may not achieve the commercial success they have in Britain, where Stranded reached Number One, but their artistic performance must be recognized. Stranded is an eloquent statement that there are still frontiers which American pop has not explored.

Reviewing for Creem in 1974, Robert Christgau found Ferry to be an "ambitious" but "oblique" artist and quoted New York artist Sidney Tillem's 1969 thesis on figurative art, "Aspects and Prospects", to conclude his review of the album: "By moral in the context of art I mean a style which executes the deeper social and psychological function of form, as opposed to a particular aspect of vanity called taste. Pop sensibility, pop consciousness, pop sentimentality have been invaluable in clarifying the provincialism and nostalgia that actually permeate a culture that has come to pride itself on sophistication. But they have not resulted in a new art simply because the requisite idealism has been lacking."

In a positive retrospective review, AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote of the album: "Under the direction of Bryan Ferry, Roxy moved toward[s] relatively straightforward territory, adding greater layers of piano and heavy guitars. Even without the washes of Eno's synthesizers, Roxy's music remains unsettling on occasion, yet in this new incarnation, they favor more measured material."

Although it was the first Roxy Music album made without Brian Eno, Eno later described it as one of his personal favourite albums by the group.

12/08/2024

Born On This Day In 1943 - Jim Morrison!
Jim Morrison singer and lyricist with The Doors who had the 1967 US No.1 single 'Light My Fire' and 1971 single 'Riders On The Storm'. Due to his wild personality and performances, he is regarded by some people as one of the most iconic, charismatic and pioneering frontmen in rock music history.

The End Of Jim Morrison:

Writer Jeff Giles at www.ultimateclassicrock.com has the story:
Jim Morrison's future with the Doors was clouded in uncertainty as 1970 faded into 1971, but all involved knew things couldn't continue the way they'd been going. Seeking a change and hoping to reorient himself emotionally and creatively, he left the U.S. for a sabbatical in Paris on March 11.

As tended to be the case with some of Morrison's more memorable decisions, the timing came at an inconvenient time for the Doors. The band had been ensconced in the studio since late 1970, working in the tracks for what would become their L.A. Woman album — and although sessions had been completed by the spring of 1971, the record was still being mixed when Morrison departed for Paris. While his bandmates might have wished he'd waited for the project to be finished, they knew he was unwell.

"In that photo you can see the impending demise of Jim Morrison," Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek later said of the L.A. Woman cover shoot. "He was sitting down because he was drunk. A psychic would have known that guy is on the way out. There was a great weight on him. He wasn’t the youthful poet I met on the beach at Venice."

Morrison's drinking had indeed gotten out of control during the L.A. Woman sessions — he was said to consume dozens of beers in a day, and was having problems completing lyrics and vocal tracks — and at first, it seemed like Paris might be part of the cure for what ailed him. After meeting up with longtime companion Pamela Courson at an apartment they'd rented in the city, he underwent at least a partial lifestyle change, walking the streets and losing some of the excess weight he'd put on in recent months.

Old habits die hard, however, and while Paris may have offered Morrison a somewhat quieter environment and idyllic scenery, the city was also in the midst of a headline-grabbing he**in epidemic in the early '70s — and by most accounts, he soon fell into a downward spiral, alternating between periods of creativity and substance abuse. Reportedly dogged by health problems that were exacerbated by the climate, Morrison embarked on a vacation within a vacation with Courson, visiting Toulouse and an assortment of cities along the way. But soon after returning in brighter spirits, he fell back into the Parisian nightlife.

The conflicting desires reflected in Morrison's behavior were borne out on a smaller scale in front of those who later professed to know him. "When he was sober he just looked like an American student on holiday. Very quiet and shy," Parisian acquaintance Gilles Yepremian later claimed. "Once he became drunk, he was a madman."

Much of what transpired during Morrison's stay in the city has been shrouded in uncertainty over the years, with opposing accounts and diverging theories purporting to get at the heart of how he was feeling and what he intended to do next. According to drummer John Densmore, Morrison was happy with the finished version of L.A. Woman and planned to return to Los Angeles, although he hadn't yet decided when. With the Doors continuing to sell records and Morrison just a few months past his 27th birthday, there seemed to be plenty of time to figure out the details.

Sadly, he'd never make it back. On July 3, 1971, Morrison passed away, succumbing to heart failure before being found in the bathtub. The details surrounding Morrison's death have been the subject of countless investigations, with professionals and hardcore fans alike attempting to pry into the past and determine the exact circumstances that led to his passing.

Regardless of what really happened, the outcome remained the same. The Doors, after attempting to soldier on without Morrison for a few years and a pair of albums, finally disbanded — although they remained bound by the music they made during their time together, as well as the ever-expanding mystique surrounding the life and legacy of their fallen frontman.

"We don’t know what happened to Jim in Paris. To be honest, I don’t think we’re ever going to know," the late Manzarek once said. "Rumors, innuendoes, self-serving lies, psychic projections to justify inner needs and maladies, and just plain goofiness cloud the truth. There are too many conflicting theories."

Coda

Morrison died of heart failure in a bathtub in a Paris hotel room on 3rd July 1971. The events surrounding his death continue to be the subject of controversy, as no autopsy was performed on his body after death, and the exact cause of his death is disputed by many to this day.

Cover photo courtesy of Elektra Records & Beekman Archives

12/07/2024

The big, incredible, audible s.a.l.e. is on!
Available at all online stores and indie record stores worldwide!

12/07/2024

Christmas Music From Colorado's Purveyors Of Yacht Rock FIREFALL
Stream It here: https://tinyurl.com/2habayfh

12/07/2024

Americana Au Go Go
Coffee, the way it was meant to be enjoyed, from an unsanitized vending machine in your company's basement!

12/07/2024

It Happened On This Day
Singer-songwriter James Taylor released his self titled album on this day December 6, 1968; it was the first recording by a non-British artist released by Apple Records, and would also be Taylor's only release on that label.

Future Bruce Springsteen Manager Jon Landau wrote this review in Rolling Stone on April 19, 1969:
James Taylor is the kind of person I always thought the word folksinger referred to. He writes and sings songs that are reflections of his own life, and performs in them in his own style. All of his performances are marked by an eloquent simplicity. Mr. Taylor is not kicking out any jams. He seems to be more interested in soothing his troubled mind. In the process he will doubtless soothe a good many heads besides his own.
Taylor's music is a mix between country, blues, and some antique folk styles. Whichever idiom he is leaning on in any particular song, both his lyrics and his voice flow with a lyricism that connotes a deeply personal style. Taylor is aware of his mastery of his material and therefore tends to understate things. His reserve is a sign of his maturity. He sings with resonance and plays with grace; he refuses to let himself get lost in anything that obscures his identity as an artist.
Of the songs on the album, each seems to reflect a different shade of Taylor's style—although on first hearing the album may sound a bit repetitious. "Taking It In" has the simple beat and instrumentation common to most of the tracks, but watch the rhythm changes fly right past you on the third line of each verse: "Morning sing me a song/Afternoon bring it along/Nightime—show me a friend/say it again/send a good dream my way." Taylor is subtle enough to put this funky bit of syncopation across without making the listener raise his eyebrows.

In a similar way, Taylor is capable of making unusual chord changes while never jolting the ear. All such changes, whether rhythmic or melodic, are absorbed by Taylor's coherent and naturalistic lyrics and singing "Sunshine Sunshine," a lovely song about Taylor's sister Kate, is a marvelous example of his musical coherence.

"Knocking Around the Zoo" combines a subdued sense of humor with more naturalism. The son is about life in a mental hospital where "there's bars on all the windows and they're counting up spoons." "Something In the Way She Moves" is concerned with transcendence of a sort and is done without accompaniment. Again Taylor's restrained delivery contributes to the power of his presentation. He lets the melody, lyric, guitar, and voice speak for themselves. He doesn't hit you up with anything that isn't absolutely necessary to get the song across.

The two most deeply affecting cuts are "Carolina On My Mind" and "Rainy Day Man." The latter is noteworthy for its melody, the excellent vocal background, and the perfection with which the simple but important transitions are made. "Carolina" is also a beautiful song and has, in addition, an absolutely perfect arrangement. The bass playing is extraordinary, as are the background vocals (done by James and producer Peter Asher), drums—just everything.

There is only one problem with this album: some of the production is superfluous. There are a few string arrangements that serve no real function. The horn arrangements sound a bit too British. And on some cuts, James' voice is not as "up front" as it should have been. These reservations notwithstanding, this album is the coolest breath of fresh air I've inhaled in a good long while. It knocks me out.

12/06/2024

It Came From Hollywood!
Bruce The Shark, the main antagonist of Jaws (1975), and the posthumous overarching antagonist of the rest of the franchise complains to director Steven Spielberg about dressing room conditions on the set of Jaws!

12/06/2024

Happy Birthday To Pete Buck (REM - b 1956)
He was a co-founder and the lead guitarist of the alternative rock band R.E.M.

Buck has also been at various times an official member of numerous 'side project' groups. These groups included Arthur Buck (with Joseph Arthur), Hindu Love Gods, The Minus 5, Tuatara, The Baseball Project, Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3, Tired Pony, The No-Ones, and Filthy Friends, each of which have released at least one full-length studio album. Additionally, the experimental combo Slow Music (which also features Fred Chalenor, Hector Zazou, Matt Chamberlain, Robert Fripp, and Bill Rieflin) have released an official live concert CD. Another side project group called Full Time Men released an EP while Buck was a member. As well, ad hoc "supergroups" Bingo Hand Job (Billy Bragg and R.E.M.), Musical Kings (Michelle Malone, Peter Buck, John Keane) and Nigel & The Crosses (Robyn Hitchcock, Peter Buck, Glenn Tilbrook and others) have each commercially released one track.

Buck also has a career as a record producer including releases by Uncle Tupelo, Vigilantes of Love, Dreams So Real, The Fleshtones, The Feelies, and The Jayhawks, as well as a session musician (for the likes of The Replacements, Billy Bragg, Decemberists and Eels

12/06/2024

Poster of The Day!
Great Fillmore Poster/Postcard by Wes Wilson from a concert dated in Mar 18, 1966.

The Mystery Trend
Big Brother and the Holding Company
Family Tree
Quicksilver Messenger Service
Gentlemen's Band
Great Society
The Skins

12/05/2024

Hey Pittsburgh THE SMITHEREENS are returning to JERGEL's
Wed. Dec 18 - Benefit For The Lemieux Cancer Foundation. Robin Wilson of Gin Blossoms is our special guest vocalist!
Get your tixs here: https://tinyurl.com/3sss6bd6

Buy your tickets for The Smithereens show at Jergel's Rhythm Grille on Wednesday, December 18 at 8p. Early Entry at 5p, GA at 6p.

12/05/2024

Words to live by boys and girls!

12/05/2024

Photo Finish
Another great photo from the portfolio of Rock Photographer
Baron Wolman ( check out Baron's work here: https://tinyurl.com/2nszcdzh )

American rock band Big Brother and The Holding Company (with their lead singer Janis Joplin) at the Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco, June 1968.

12/05/2024

the dandy warhols wrapped up their 30th Anniversary performances in los angles with another sold out show at the Moroccan. the tour continues with stops in San Francisco, Portland, Tacoma!

rockmaker is the latest lp & cd by the dandy warhols...... get it here: https://tinyurl.com/mr2h5knv

12/05/2024

Classic Album Thursday!
Tears For Fears / Songs From The Big Chair (1985)
A #1 in the U.S. - "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" becomes an International Hit

Songs from the Big Chair is the second studio album by the English band Tears for Fears, released on 25 February 1985 by Mercury Records, distributed by Phonogram Inc. A follow-up to the band's successful debut album, The Hurting (1983), Songs from the Big Chair was a significant departure from that album's dark, introspective synth-pop, featuring a more mainstream, guitar-based pop rock sound, sophisticated production values and diverse stylistic influences, while Roland Orzabal and Ian Stanley's lyrics displayed socially and politically conscious themes.

The album peaked at number two in the UK and at number one in the U.S., becoming a multi-platinum seller and the band's most successful studio album to date. The singles "Shout" and "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" both topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top 5 of the UK Singles Chart, while "Head over Heels", "Mothers Talk" and a live version of "I Believe" were also successful internationally. Receiving positive critical reviews upon release, Songs from the Big Chair has accrued lasting praise and has been named one of the 1980s' best albums and was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

The album was to be titled The Working Hour, but Roland Orzabal thought to change it to Songs from the Big Chair, a title derived from the 1976 American television film Sybil about a woman with multiple personality disorder who only feels safe when sitting in her analyst's "big chair." The title reflects the band's opinion that they were the targets of a hostile British music press.

In an interview for the 2006 deluxe-version booklet, Curt Smith noted: "We were very introverted on The Hurting; it was a very dark album. We found the need to be more outgoing on The Big Chair."

The band started to generate new material around the beginning of 1984. The first song written for the album was "Head over Heels", which the band played live during a tour undertaken between the two studio albums.

The album was recorded at The Wool Hall in 1984. Conceptually and musically, it further developed the band's sound from the previous studio album The Hurting (1983), reintroducing guitars to their electronic sound and imparting a lighter approach overall. Early songs written for the album included "Head over Heels" and "The Working Hour". "Mother's Talk" was released months before the album as a single. These songs, as well as "We Are Broken", were all performed on the Tears for Fears 1983 tour. The song "Shout" became a central work during the recording of the album, and the band and producer Chris Hughes spent months working on the track.

The album utilises many styles and influences, and progressive rock was cited as a primary influence on the album. "I Believe" was influenced by the songwriting of Robert Wyatt. "Broken" is a reworking of an earlier song and a live version is repeated at the end of "Head over Heels". The largely instrumental "Listen" has been described as a symphonic piece. Lyrically, the psychological themes on The Hurting were continued and extended to include a variety of themes such as politics, war, money and love.

Near the end of the completion of the album, Roland Orzabal played two simple chords on his acoustic guitar that formed the foundation of the song "Everybody Wants to Rule the World". Although he was initially not interested in working on it, Orzabal was convinced to write a song based on the two chords and he added the chorus line. The song was completed in about a week and was the last track recorded for the album.

12/05/2024

Paul McCartney Practices Safe S*x!
To set the stage we must go back to 1960. The Beatles are playing in Hamburg and becoming a big hit on the Reeperbahn, one of Hamburg's greatest areas for nightlife and sex.Hamburg is where the Beatles learned to grow up, and fast. Hamburg was also a prime destination for issues that the Beatles would have with the law.

beatlehistory.tumblr.com has the complete story:
Given their success at the Kaiserkeller club, the Beatles were offered another job at a different competing club titled the Top Ten Club, a job that they would accept. Their contract at the Kaiserkeller was ended by the clubs owner, prompting the famous Paul McCartney and Pete Best jail story. According to the Beatles Anthology the two Beatles lit a condom on fire on a brick wall in the theater for light or out of protest, enraging the owner and landing the two in jail where they would remain overnight until they would be deported the next morning. Whether it was actually a condom burnt or something else remains to be historically proven, but the jail experience remains a cemented fact in Beatle history.

Not one of the most glorious Beatles stories, it is one in which a young inexperienced Paul McCartney finds himself in jail for lighting on fire what was supposedly a condom in a former club. Thought it's almost an innocent act of rebellion by the Beatle, it is a memorable one. The act also shows what state the Beatles were in as performers before Brian Epstein came around as their manager, and acts as a testament of the changes that would follow in order to win over more refined London crowds.

For more Beatle Trivia check this out: https://www.tumblr.com/beatlehistory/62797379136/paul-mccartney-beatle-condom-burning

Photo courtesy of Beckman Archives.