The Daniel Hersog O Canada Jazz Orchestra has released their first digital music video, featuring the Canadian National Anthem “O Canada.” The video’s release comes just in time for Canada‘s July 1 Independence Day.
Daniel Hersog‘s 17-piece ensemble formed in response to the Coronavirus Pandemic. The group is comprised of Juno Award winners, Canadian jazz stars and a recipient of the Order of Canada. All 10 Canadian Providences are represented among these musicians that have come together to support each other during trying times.
Daniel Hersog, hailing from Vancouver, British Columbia, has quickly become a vital Jazz player as a trumpeter, composer and arranger. Hersog is currently receiving significant airplay, and international media attention for his newly released album Night Devoid of Stars released through Cellar Music Label.
Curbside Concerts, who bring the live music experience to you, will have a pair of shows in the Hamilton, NY area thanks to the Arts at the Palace and the Hamilton Movie Theater. Bringing back live music with proper precautions for COVID-19 in place, Curbside Concerts was recently launched in an Uber Eats style, with users able to use their phones to find local artists who will perform a live set at your address.
The partnership between Hamilton Movie Theater and Arts at the Palace is a strong effort to resume live music in a controlled setting. Artists will perform for four 30 minutes time slots each evening.
As they move about town we encourage the folks that booked them to sit on their porch or yard in a socially-distanced manor. “Free delivery” and a fun night interacting and listening to these local and regional musicians is our mission. After the first one last week, the artist Seth Becker of The Old Main said, “I’d like to keep doing this!” Sounds good to us. We encourage all communities to do this safely!
Sean Nevison, General Manager, Hamilton Movie Theater
On July 1 you’ll find Chris Eves and Johnny Jones, followed by Jes Sheldon and Mike Davis on July 8. In the event of rain, shows will be held on the following Thursday. For more information visit the Arts at The Palace website.
Few bands have a relationship with the state of New York like the Grateful Dead. Performing over 300 shows throughout the Empire State in a span of 28 years, the Grateful Dead made their mark starting with their first New York performance in Tompkins Square Park on June 1, 1967
In some ways, the Grateful Dead’s maiden trip to the East Coast via New York City mirrors the ongoing circumstances we see there and across the country today. The year was 1967, right in the heart of the Civil Rights Era. And, locally, tribal tensions were beginning to boil over as well, stirred by the wrestling of control over the communal jukebox that had become Tompkins Square Park, a public space in the Alphabet City section of the East Village.
Tompkins Square Park 6/1/67
This being the “Summer of Love,” San Francisco was not the only place towards which hippies were flocking. Those that had descended upon Manhattan’s Lower East Side grew fond of playing their congas and bongos at the park. Puerto Ricans, the neighborhood majority, wanted their music to be prevalent and the Black community also fought for control of the musical output. Over the last few weekends, fighting at the park had become rampant.
Most recently, 38 people were arrested at Tompkins Square Park on Memorial Day after being confronted by police for sitting on the grass where they were playing music, both park violations. Per a Village Voice article from June 8, 1967, “A couple of cops went over to the park and told the hippies to shut up and get off the grass. The kids laughed, and kept singing. The cops ordered them to leave. ‘They laughed at us,’ patrolman John Rodd explained. ‘That’s when the trouble began.’”
Throw in all the other issues that the summer of 1967 undoubtedly brought and it becomes clear that local police were in danger of losing their city, as far as popular opinion went, and needed to rethink their tactics. Maybe it was someone on the force who somehow had an early copy of the Grateful Dead’s eponymous first album, released just months earlier. Or maybe it was “Cream Puff War,” the album’s second single that was slowly beginning to garner some radio airplay, that had somehow made it to a patrolman’s ear. Whatever the root cause may have been, the Grateful Dead were about to be met with an interesting quid pro quo from the city in the effort of keeping the peace.
Grateful Dead playing Golden Gate Park, just a few months prior to their first East Coast trip
Although the band was still in its nascent stage, they were definitely on the local radar. This was made evident when they were greeted by two separate welcoming committees upon their arrival to the Big Apple, each with a distinct agenda. According to Rock Scully, one of the band’s early managers, they had drama as soon as they arrived at their hotel. According to his book, Living with the Dead: Twenty Years on the Bus with Garcia and the Grateful Dead, Scully and the band were greeted upon their arrival with one of the oldest tricks in the book.
“I put the briefcase down on the front desk right next to me – it had all of our expense money in it – and the next thing I know somebody comes up and asks a question. I turn around and when I turn back, bang! the money’s gone. ” ~ Rock Scully
After returning to the hotel later that day, the band is greeted by the NYPD and Thomas Hoving, head of the Parks Department. Unsurprisingly, this was not a follow up for details to the heist from earlier in the day but, rather, a business proposal that would seem to benefit both sides. The Dead is presented with an offer to do the city “an honor” by playing an additional show at the bandshell in Central Park. As it stood, their only planned shows were a series of gigs slated to go down at the Village’s Cafe Au Go Go.
Who would say no to an extra show at such an esteemed locale in the most populated city in America? Surely, there had to be a catch. Well, there was. Now that the band had been buttered up, so to speak, the police then politely asked if they could give them “a hand with this little problem we’ve been having in Tompkins Square Park.”
The Grateful Dead may not have been a worldwide attraction yet, but they were known as a band that had no problems playing outdoors, and to great numbers at that. Word of the “Human Be-In,” a large outdoor show at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park in January which the Dead were prominently involved in, had clearly reached New York City. A band with mass appeal that played outside and catered to hippies would be just what the doctor ordered. Although, understandably, the band had their concerns about jumping into the local fray.
“We can’t even hang on to our per diems and they want us to sort out a gang war in Alphabet City? They must be desperate.”
Rock Scully, Living with the Dead: Twenty Years on the Bus with Garcia and The Grateful Dead
It became clear to the band that the caveat for being allowed to play Central Park was their assistance in this local matter. After some initial reluctance, they were nudged to accept after lead guitarist Jerry Garcia spoke up, seeing it as a chance for outsiders like them to bring another community together via music. In the name of harmony, the Dead encouraged all local bands and musicians to attend and share the stage with them.
So on June 1, the day after the Memorial Day skirmish, the Grateful Dead went down to Greenwich Village where they were given the royal treatment, hailed as foreign troubadours here to deliver peace. Per a Village Voice article from the following week, “A happy, scruffy parade of 80 marched down St. Mark’s Place, complete with police escort, to present the Dead with a white carnation key to the East Village, graciously accepted by Pigpen. And the Tompkins Square bandshell rocked with San Francisco glory until a noise complaint was lodged in the late afternoon.”
But true to the band’s initial vision, they were only a part of the festivities that drew some 3,000 people to the park over the course of the day. They played from 2 – 5 p.m. and delivered their signature sound of amplified rhythm and blues meshed with psychedelic rock that was being consumed by an East Coast audience for the very first time. A Newsday review claimed the music could be “heard for blocks in every direction.”
Tompkins Square Park video footage from 6/1/67 (no audio first two minutes)
Throughout the course of the day, music of all kinds filled the air in what had to be one of the largest, free musical gatherings in New York to date. The gathering, dubbed a “real-in,” was a successful mass protest of sorts, in response to the events from Memorial Day, signaling to the local authorities that the local community was capable of policing itself.
It was certainly highlighted by the Dead’s first East Coast gig, but they willingly shared the stage with The Fugs, a much more well known local act, as well as local Puerto Rican and Black musicians who had also assembled – a true “pop-up” festival with some San Francisco flair. The Grateful Dead’s collective mindset, especially Garcia’s, is perhaps best summed up by Scully and his take on the day’s proceedings. “ Then other musicians come up with their congas and marimbas and bongos and cowbells, and they see this isn’t a turf thing at all. Music is music as far as the Dead go. African music or Puerto Rican salsa, it don’t make no difference to Garcia.”
And so, the band’s long, strange relationship with the State of New York had begun – dropped into the middle of civil unrest in return for an unexpected show at Central Park. Both those shows and the following string of dates at Cafe Au Go Go went off without a hitch and the Dead had officially stamped New York City as its first East Coast mainstay. They would return many times and wind up playing shows in almost every region of the state – which we look forward to writing about and covering here in New York State Music’s “Golden Road” series.
Setlist: June 1, 1967, Tompkins Square Park – Manhattan, NY (setlist is incomplete and approximate)
The Golden Road (to Unlimited Devotion), Dancin’ in the Streets, In the Midnight Hour, Beat it on Down the Line, Good Morning Little Schoolgirl, Cold Rain and Snow, Morning Dew, Viola Lee Blues
Bonus footage from the band’s performance at the “Human Be-In” in Golden Gate Park 1/14/67
The comedy world lost a giant today, as Carl Reiner passed away at age 98. Known for creating The Dick Van Dyke Show and directing comedies including Oh God! and The Jerk, few know that Reiner also dabbled in singing, notably opera music, part of two television performances that bookend his career.
Born in The Bronx to Jewish immigrant parents in 1920, Carl Reiner would go on to serve in the Army Air Force in World War II, before performing in Broadway musicals Inside U.S.A. and Alive and Kicking, among others, as well as the lead role in Call Me Mister. In 1950, he joined the cast of Sid Caesar’s Your Show of Shows, appearing on air in skits while also working alongside writers Mel Brooks and Neil Simon in the early years of their careers.
At 33 years of age, Reiner joined Caesar’s Hour in October 1955, Reiner would perform a selection from Pagliacci, with Sid Caesar in the role of Gallipacci (Canio in the original opera). Gallipacci and wife Rosa (Nedda), played by Nanette Fabray, are traveling in an art troupe, when Rosa falls in love with Emilio (Silvio), played by Reiner. The two make plans to elope, but a jealous Gallipacci discovers their plan. Watch below and listen for a young Don Pardo introducing the sketch.
Now compare a young Reiner, whose career was just getting started, to a 91 year old Reiner on Conan promoting his book “I Remember Me.” The two discussed how he was never able to perform opera for a career choice, and Conan offered him a chance to perform on the show that night. Reiner took the chance and sang from Pagliacci.
Rest in peace Carl Reiner, thanks for the laughs and for shining a light on your potential operatic career.
The latest release from the GarciaLive series brings bassist John Kahn together with Jerry Garcia on the duo’s winter tour stop at The Ritz in New York City on January 27, 1986. The collection includes a liner note essay by bluegrass virtuoso Billy Strings.
This performance at The Ritz was during the midpoint of their East Coast run, with Garcia and Kahn delighting the audience with a mix of Grateful Dead favorites, folk standards, and other staples from Garcia’s songbook. A laid-back yet passionate performance, Garcia’s mastery as a storyteller is on full display. As Billy Strings describes in the liner notes, Garcia “sings through the verses and picks through the melodies as if he is the man in the story. Delicate and deliberate.”
A sultry version of “Friend of the Devil” showcases Garcia’s soulful singing and his deep musical connection with Kahn. A pair of nods to Dylan are included in the show — “When I Paint My Masterpiece” and “Simple Twist of Fate.” Additional highlights include an upbeat “Bird Song” which Garcia & Kahn stretch out for the longest jam of the evening and a joyous “Ripple,” heard below.
Pre-order Vol.14 of GarciaLive here, and while supplies last, every CD pre-order via Garcia Family Provisions will receive a bonus CD featuring the duo’s show the next night, January 28, 1986 at The Ritz.
Set One: Deep Elem Blues, Little Sadie, Friend of the Devil, Oh Babe, It Ain’t No Lie, When I Paint My Masterpiece, Run for the Roses
Set Two: Dire Wolf, Simple Twist of Fate, Spike Driver Blues, Bird Song, Ripple
Based in Westchester, Raquel de Souza (Singer), Cat Lines (Fiddle), Luis Cruz (Guitar), Tommy Carlucci (Drummer), and Steve Riccio (Bass) are Raquel and the Wildflowers. This troupe have provided a breath of fresh air into the country/rock genre with Raquel’s first single “Run Towards The Highway” charting #32 on DRT top 50 Country Airplay charts in 2018.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rEvzv0d8sI
After the bands public debut in 2019 they have been on a marathon of performances. The band has opened for multi-platinum artist Andy Grammer, award winning band Skeeter Creek, international country star Jessica Lynn, performed at The Cutting Room for Lauren Davidson’s first “Urban Country Jam”, Daryl’s House, qualified for the “Battle Ground Talent Show Case” finals at West Point Eisenhower Theatre and much more.
Most recently the band played the virtual concert for the radio station BIG FROG 104, and have posted the lovely performance on their Facebook page. For this performance, the band played covers as well as some of their originals, “King of the Jungle”, “Hot July”, “Room 15”, in addition to soon to be released songs “At least that’s what they say” and “What’s Done is Done”
In addition to online shows, the band will be doing “front lawn concerts” where they will be available to play for private shows and can be booked through their contact list on their website.
Their fully released songs are available on all major music outlets and you can find Raquel and the Wildflowers on their Facebook, Instagram, and website.
After debuting atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart last week with new song “TROLLZ,” New York rappers 6ix9ine and Nicki Minaj have broken the all-time record for biggest fall from number one. Dropping to #34, the duo doubles the previous record-holder, The Weeknd’s “Heartless,” which fell to #17.
“TROLLZ” marked 6ix9ine’s first number-one single, and Minaj’s second. Earlier this year, she hopped onto a remix of Doja Cat’s viral hit “Say So” for her first. The success of “TROLLZ” has been historic in many ways: after spending the late 2010s mired in controversy and overshadowed by new talent, Nicki became the first female rapper to debut at #1 since Lauryn Hill’s 1998 “Doo Wop (That Thing),” and 6ix9ine beat the odds despite being blacklisted from radio as well as playlists curated by Spotify and Apple Music.
The accompanying music video, filmed at 6ix9ine’s home while under house arrest for racketeering, drug trafficking, and firearms offenses, has almost 160 million YouTube views and counting, and the single has sold 116,000 downloads, the highest figure since Taylor Swift’s “ME!” Both rappers took to Twitter to gloat about the successful debut:
Without industry support, “TROLLZ”’s number-one debut was almost entirely a fan-driven operation. This is admittedly impressive, but on second thought it bodes bleak for the future of chart-toppers. While never an indication of a song’s quality or cultural impact, going number-one once meant having the most popular song in the nation for a week or more.
Now, a devoted fanbase could theoretically get their idol’s song to the top of the chart without anyone else beyond their ranks actually listening to it, only to nosedive into oblivion the next week without having made its mark on popular culture and the general public. While claiming the coveted crest of the Hot 100 has historically been a prestigious accomplishment, this arguably causes the feat to lose its luster.
Discounts, merchandise bundles, and multiple versions are increasingly popular methods of boosting sales, and fan practices such as employing bots and VPNs to manipulate a song’s performance have potentially made the Hot 100 less representative of the masses’ tastes than ever before. While the latter has only been rumored in this instance, 6ix9ine and Minaj employed all of the former tactics: “TROLLZ” was discounted to 69 cents, sold alongside CDs, vinyls, and hoodies, and released with explicit, alternate, and clean versions.
Although 2020 is only halfway through, the year has already seen five Hot 100 number-one debuts, some of which proved to be similarly frontloaded: Travis Scott and Kid Cudi’s “The Scotts” fell to #12 the following week, and Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber’s “Stuck With U” plunged to #13. Since Billboard is constantly amending its rules amid the ever-evolving musical landscape, none of these artists or fanbases are technically ‘cheating’ by pulling out all the stops to ensure a number-one.
They still obtained the necessary sales, streams, and radio play (provided they aren’t blacklisted) required to top the chart. Unlike payola, the practice of record companies paying radio stations to play a song without disclosing the agreement, it’s perfectly legal for artists to go to 6ix9ine and Minaj’s lengths to top the Hot 100. But will those songs be remembered a year from now? Next week, even?
On June 29, The Broadway League announced that the Coronavirus shutdown would remain effective for Broadway theaters for the remainder of 2020.
Photo by Kate Glicksberg
On March 12, The Broadway League closed NYC’s shows after Governor Cuomo placed restrictions on mass gatherings. The theaters were supposed to only stay closed for a month. However, due to the ever-present threat of COVID-19, the date was pushed back several times. Now, shows will not be opening until January 3, 2021.
Broadway has gone dark before. Shows have been closed many times for strikes in 1919, 1964, and 1975, and all shows were closed for several days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. This hurt shows financially so much that several were not able to reopen after the shutdown ended. However, Broadway has never been closed this long before.
Much like the 9/11 shutdown, Broadway shows are being deeply hurt by this inactivity today. Hangmen and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf? will not be able to open in 2021. 31 productions were running in March, with 8 new shows in previews that were scheduled to officially open later this year. The Minutes, American Buffalo, and the long anticipated revival of The Music Man starring Sutton Foster and Hugh Jackman announced that their opening dates would be postponed. The Lincoln Center Theater and the Roundabout Theatre Company have released new Spring dates for their upcoming works.
Via gaylesbroadwayrose.com
“The Broadway experience can be deeply personal but it is also, crucially, communal,” says Chairman of the Board of The Broadway League Thomas Schumacher. “Every single member of our community is eager to get back to work sharing stories that inspire our audience through the transformative power of a shared live experience. The safety of our cast, crew, orchestra and audience is our highest priority and we look forward to returning to our stages only when it’s safe to do so. One thing is for sure, when we return we will be stronger and more needed than ever.”
The theaters are expected to open with rolling dates starting on January 3, 2021. All tickets before this date are being refunded or exchanged. In the meantime, Broadway fans can watch the original Broadway cast recording of Hamilton on Disney+, which will be available for streaming on July 3.
Religious leaders from Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish and Jain denominations are urging Live Nation to remove Hindu-Buddhist-Jain statues that are located in various night clubs and requested a public apology. The statues are located in eight major US cities in the Foundation Room night-clubs in House of Blues and the religious leaders find them highly inappropriate.
Lord Parshvanatha in Foundation Room Chicago with masquerade ball mask in his lap. Photo from from Foundation Room Facebook page.
Foundation Room night clubs are a part of the “House of Blues” network of Live Nation Entertainment and are located in Anaheim, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, and New Orleans. Live Nation Entertainment’s network also includes Ticketmaster, bringing 40,000 shows and more than 100 festivals to life, selling 500 million tickets per year.
With Live Nation being such a large corporation and having a great deal of influence on the music world, and claiming to be the “world’s leading live entertainment company,” statues of Hindu-Buddhist-Jain icons adorning these music venues is out of line.
Leaders released a joint statement on June 26 saying that, “placing highly revered Hindu-Buddhist-Jain icons to adorn night-clubs was very disrespectful, out-of-line, prone to desecration by patrons, and could be disturbing to the adherents of these [Christian-Hindu-Buddhist-Jewish-Jain] faiths.” The group of religious leaders include: Greek Orthodox Priest Stephen R. Karcher, Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, prominent Buddhist Priest Matthew T. Fisher, well-known Jewish Rabbi ElizaBeth Webb Beyer, and renowned Jain leader Sulekh C. Jain.
President of Universal Society of Hinduism Rajan Zed highlighted that Hindu deities Lord Ganesha, Lord Shiva, Lord Rama, (among others) were meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to be thrown around loosely in a night-club for dramatic effects or a mercantile agenda. Devotees of these religions would see such denigration of sacred deities as hurtful.
Lord Ganesha at Foundation Room Houston with wine-glass in front of him. Photo from from Foundation Room Facebook page.
Sulekh C. Jain explained that the statues of Lord Mahavira and Lord Parshvanatha don’t belong in night-clubs and that they belonged in temples for veneration. He then suggested that Live Nation Entertainment could donate these to Jain temples in the USA and the Jain community would gladly pay for their transportation.
Albany’s revolutionary The Linda: WAMC’s Performing Arts Studio is once more changing the game. In an announcement today, The Linda has announced the launching of brand new virtual programming being dubbed ‘The Linda: Open for Take-Out Virtual Concert Series.’ Produced in collaboration with Troy’s video production company Chromoscope Pictures, the virtual concerts will take place Monday nights at 8 p.m. ET on The Linda’s Youtube channel and will be ticketed just like their regular shows.
“We realize that the impacts of COVID-19 have been dire for working musicians and the music industry as a whole. The goal of this series is to restart the local music economy by bringing a wide array of eclectic and diverse, local and regional musicians back to the stage in a safe environment and to provide fans with a professionally produced concert delivered directly to the safety and comfort of their homes”
First up in the series will be indie band Motorbike from Saratoga Springs on July 13 at 8 p.m. Their debut LP Victory Lap was released January 2019 delivering to fans and heartfelt hooks from the alternative rockers. Scheduled for July 20 is Girl Blue, a indie pop songstress from Long Island whose debut single “Fire Under Water” racked up over 2 million streaming plays. Canadian neosoul artist The Age will round out the initial lineup with a show on July 27.
Upon purchasing a stream, you will be sent a private YouTube link for each performance. For more information and updates regarding the series visit The Linda’s website or their social media pages.
Check out this stream and more through our series NY Stream and Support, where you’ll discover artists around the Empire State streaming nightly, and ways to support musicians and charitable groups close to home!
