Music Archives

New York, June 19, 2008 – There was lots of pop music nostalgia at this year’s Songwriters' Hall of Fame induction ceremony, with honorees like the Coal Miner’s Daughter Loretta Lynn, the Lovin’ Spoonful’s John Sebastian, Canadian pop music queen Anne Murray and composer Alan Menken, who wrote the songs for Broadway and film musicals like Little Shop of Horrors, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin.  Inductee Albert Hammond, who wrote household-name ditties like “It Never Rains in Southern California”, had his son, The Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond, Jr., cheering him on at the gala.  These famed musicians did not have to sing on the big night; they were treated to top-shelf entertainment from the likes of John Legend, Lee Ann Womack and Natasha Bedingfield. 

Photos: Caroline Torem-Craig

New York, 17 June 2008 -- The last time Trans Am played the Knitting Factory they did so without their talismanic drummer Sebastian Thomson who had fallen ill.  Tuesday night, however Thomson was in rude health and wearing a gold "dookie" rope!  Thomson's band mates Nathan Means and Phil Manley were equally up to the task for the first of two shows they played at the Knitting Factory that evening. 

The three-piece rock band from Bethesda, Maryland has recorded eight full length albums over their dozen year history and has a sound that can be described as Kraftwerk meets AC/DC.  In addition to guitars, Trans Am make healthy use of vintage keyboards, but not in the gimmicky manner of Crystal Castles.  Twice during Trans Am's set they were joined by Sebastian's saxophonist brother Julian Thomson who peeled off the Futureworld's opening track "1999", and nicely set up the song that followed, "Television Eyes." 

Earlier in the evening Ex-Models shadow outfit Knyfe Hyts slashed their way through their own set in support of their simultaneous debut releases Knyfe Hyts and Sword of the Lord. - Damien Neva

Photos: Damien Neva

New York, June 12, 2008 – Remember those hot parties that Hennessy threw with even hotter musicians?  Well, the beverage is back.  Last night’s party celebrating Solange Knowles’ new ‘60s-inflected album, Sol-Angel and the Hadley Street Dreams, was the first of a series of dinners that Hennessy is doing with celebrities, we’re told. 

Beyonce’s little sister strutted around Tribeca eatery The Harrison in sky-high Miu-Miu stilettos, despite having broken her toe during a performance a few days previously.  A rep carried Solange’s protective boot so she could slip back into it after the cameras were off.  

Solange worked with some music-world VIPs like Cee-Lo, Pharrell Williams and Mark Ronson on the album, due out in August.

Ma and pa Tina and Matthew Knowles toasted their daughter at the bash.

Photos: Marion Curtis/STARPIX

New York, June 11, 2008 – Disney tried to keep the premiere of the Jonas Brothers’ movie Camp Rock under wraps with a weekday afternoon time slot, but the pop group’s rabid fans would not be deterred, and hundreds of screaming girls filled 54th Street in front of Manhattan’s Ziegfeld Theater.  But the studio complied by not enclosing the red carpet, giving swooning fans a full view of the Jonas boys.

The brothers swept into New York from a European tour specially to promote Camp Rock, which airs on June 20, just when  kids around the country will be heading off to summer camp.

East Rutherford, NJ, May 17, 2008 – Z100’s Zootopia concert brought a talented lineup of mostly young stars to the Izod Center in New Jersey on Saturday night.  Backstage, One Republic’s Ryan Tedder rolled around in a wheelchair – he’d ignored doctors’ orders and re-injured his Achilles’ tendon.  The reunited New Kids on the Block were on the roster – they can still sing, but they’re not kids like Jesse McCartney and the Jonas Brothers. 

Since this was the Izod Center, the company grabbed the opportunity, their Izod fragrance sponsored the concert and also spritzed the stars in the artists’ gift lounge. 

Tween queen Miley Cyrus had by far the most fun in the gift lounge.  Miley said she has to clean her own room!  So now she’ll have her iRobot Roomba to automatically vacuum.  Miley was happy to receive the Blackberry Pearl from T-Mobile – because she just lost her cell phone.  (Whoever finds it will make a fortune on eBay.)  Oh, and our Miley is growing up – she said the shirtless guy in the Izod fragrance ads is totally hot. 

The One Republic guys eyeballed those Roombas and confessed that their tour bus is messy.  “I feel like Mr. T”, Gavin DeGraw said as reps draped chains by Black & Blue Jewelry around his neck. 

And the Box Girls got everyone to answer weird questions - we learned that if Miley Cyrus was a guy, she would sit around in her boxers all day and play video games, Pierre Bouvier’s hidden talent is sandwich-making, and Kevin Jonas is great with kids.  Who knew?

Photos: Kristin Callahan

Miley Cyrus, Jonas Bros., Wahlberg photos: Wireimage

New York, May 16, 2008 – Students graduating from Manhattan School of Music on Friday surely must have ramped up their career ambitions when legends Billy Joel and Pete Seeger joined the festivities and received honorary degrees.  Folk singer Seeger had another commitment, so the first part of the ceremony was devoted to him – he received his honorary degree, and then got out his banjo and played and sang a song, and everyone sang along with him.  After that, the 89-year-old hurried out of Riverside Church still wearing the cap and gown!  The commencement proceedings then went on as planned. Billy Joel spoke to the students, and a jazz trio played his hit song New York State of Mind.

New York, 10 May 2008--Sixty minutes before Webster Hall was overrun by Saturday night clubgoers, East London's grime rapper Dizzee Rascal took to the stage and made good on his reputation as one of the UK's preeminent MC's. Saturday night was but the second date of a North American tour he is co-headlining with El-P in support of Dizzee's album Maths + English, which was released last month for the American market on El-P's record label Definitive Jux.

Dizzee Rascal was clearly hyped to be doing a show in New York, which during his set he acknowledged as the birthplace of hip hop. At one point he encouraged the crowd to form a dance circle in order to give b-boys and girls enough floor to break dance, but disappointingly, the crowd was not equal to Dizzee's vision of New York. Wild Style it was not, but to be fair this had less to do with Dizzee's cred than the dramatic demographic shift of hip hop and rap audiences over the last twenty-five years.

Earlier in the evening El-P had a chance to perform before a crowd more diverse than at last month's show at NYU. He was later joined by a now shaggy haired Aesop Rock to perform "We're Famous" and "Run the Numbers."

El-P and Dizzee Rascal will be on tour throughout North America through May 22nd. - Damien Neva

Photos: Damien Neva