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Queen – Days of Our Lives Blu-ray review

retroDan — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 01:02:05 +0000

The BBC documentary on legendary rock band Queen titled Days of Our Lives is now out on Blu-ray/DVD here in the U.S. I had a chance to sit down and view the blu-ray over the weekend and I’m pleased to say that the two-part overview of the band’s musical career is very well done. All the major events are covered by archival footage and interviews both old and new. Surviving members Roger Taylor and Brian May do most of the talking. Bassist John Deacon declined to participate in the new documentary so archival interviews are used for his point of view. Of course Freddie Mercury is very much the focus of the program and there’s generous amount of live footage as well as interviews he had done in the past. For such an influential band, I would have preferred a more expansive look at their career along the lines of the “Beatles Anthology” but I guess the BBC only commissioned for a two hour program.

At least the Blu-ray features extra bonus footage for fans to enjoy – approximately 100 minutes more. The bulk of the extras are interview segments that were edited out of the original program due to time limitations. It would have been nice if the director went back and incorporated these into the documentary as an “expanded director’s cut” instead of having to view these separately but it is what it is.

I was very keen on viewing the segments about the post-86 era of the band. After the ’86 album “A Kind of Magic”, I didn’t follow Queen’s musical output as closely as their previous stuff so the stories behind the albums “The Miracle” and “Innuendo” are fairly new to me. Also the segment about Freddie’s last days in the studio was very moving.

Longtime fans probably already know the story inside and out but the documentary is so well done that it’s worth seeking out just to have it in their video collection. For casual and new fans of Queen, this is a must-buy!

Queen – Days of Our Lives – blu-ray content:
Eagle Rock Entertainment
Duration: 221 minutes

Main Feature:
Queen : Days of Our Lives (Part One)
Queen : Days of Our Lives (Part Two)

Bonus Features:

Additional Videos: new promo videos containing unseen rushes, performances and outtakes.
-Seven Seas of Rhye
-Killer Queen
-Somebody to Love
-We Are The Champions
-Crazy Little Thing Called Love
-Under Pressure
-Radio Ga Ga

Additional Sequences: featuring unseen interviews and archive footage, exclusive sequences that dig deeper into the history of Queen, and tell the stories that weren’t covered in the documentary.
-Queen: The Beginning
-Queen On Tour 1974-5
-Bohemian Rhapsody
-Working Together
-Leaving John Reid 1978
-Don’t Stop Me Now
-Flash Gordon
-Making Videos
-Scrabble Wars
-From Magic To The Miracle 1986-89
-Going Slightly Mad: Making Innuendo 1990-91
-Made In Heaven – 1995

Bonus Interviews: additional stories, taken from the interviews shot for this documentary with Brian May, Roger Taylor and Jim Beach.
-Return To Imperial College
-Brian’s Health Scare 1974
-Manager Jim Beach Meets The Band 1975
-B-Sides
-Freddie’s Outfits
-Another One Btes The Dust
-Song Writing Balance Changes 1980′s
-Freddie Legless!
-Highlander
-The Show Must Go On

The Darkness – Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us

retroDan — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 01:27:21 +0000

great to see these guys back together!! can’t wait for them to finish up their new album!!

catch the Darkness live:
Fri 02/03/12 Boston, MA Paradise Rock Club
Sat 02/04/12 New York, NY Irving Plaza Powered By Klipsch
Mon 02/06/12 New York, NY Irving Plaza Powered By Klipsch
Tue 02/07/12 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero Theatre
Wed 02/08/12 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
Fri 02/10/12 Detroit, MI St. Andrews Hall
Sat 02/11/12 Chicago, IL Metro / Smart Bar
Sun 02/12/12 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
Wed 02/15/12 Denver, CO Summit Music Hall
Fri 02/17/12 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues
Sat 02/18/12 Phoenix, AZ Celebrity Theatre
Sun 02/19/12 West Hollywood, CA House Of Blues
Tue 02/21/12 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore
Thu 02/23/12 Portland, OR Roseland Theater
Fri 02/24/12 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
Sat 02/25/12 Seattle, WA The Neptune

check out their official website to download “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us” for free!

STYX – The Grand Illusion & Pieces of Eight Live on DVD/blu-ray

retroDan — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:33:41 +0000

Out in stores this week is the DVD/Blu-ray of Styx performing The Grand Illusion & Pieces of Eight live in their entirety in concert. The live document was recorded back in 2010 at the Orpheum Theater in Memphis. The band featuring James Young, Tommy Shaw and Lawrence Gowan is a tremendous live act and it’s great to see this special album-show released for us fans to enjoy.

EAGLE ROCK ENTERTAINMENT TO RELEASE STYX: THE GRAND ILLUSION/PIECES OF EIGHT LIVE
DVD, BLU-RAY AND DVD/2CD OUT JANUARY 31

Two of the most beloved albums in the Styx catalog are 1977′s The Grand Illusion and 1978′s Pieces Of Eight. Now, Eagle Rock Entertainment will release Styx: The Grand Illusion/Pieces Of Eight Live on DVD, Blu-Ray, and DVD/2CD on January 31. This show was recorded November 9, 2010 at the historic Orpheum Theater in Memphis, Tennessee, on the tour that saw them perform both these albums in their entirety for the first time.

This 20-song two-hour and 11-minute presentation features stunning high-definition visuals accenting the complex musical arrangements recorded in DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby Digital 5.1, and LPCM Stereo. The staging of these two multi-platinum albums and the fevered response makes this concert a must for all Styx fans. The Grand Illusion/Pieces of Eight Live also includes the bonus feature “Putting On The Show,” an inside look at the people and equipment needed to stage such a massive spectacle.

Selling millions of records worldwide since their 1972 Chicago inception, Styx have branded themselves as one of the greatest American progressive rock bands. The current line-up consists of James “J.Y.” Young (vocals, guitars, keyboards); Tommy Shaw (vocals, guitars); Todd Sucherman (drums); Lawrence Gowan (vocals, keyboards); Ricky Phillips (bass, backing vocals) and Chuck Panozzo (bass guitar).

TrackListing:
1 Intro/1978
2 The Grand Illusion
3 Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
4 Superstars
5 Keyboard Interlude
6 Come Sail Away
7 Miss America
8 Man In The Wilderness
9 Castle Walls
10 The Grand Finale
11 Great White Hope
12 I’m O.K.
13 Sing For The Day
14 The Message
15 Lords Of The Ring
16 Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)
17 Queen Of Spades
18 Renegade
19 Keyboard Interlude
20 Pieces Of Eight
21 Aku-Aku

catch Styx live on tour:
Fri 02/03/12 Tacoma, WA Emerald Queen Casino
Sat 02/04/12 Coquitlam, BC Boulevard Casino
Fri 02/10/12 Henderson, NV Green Valley Ranch Resort & Spa
Sat 02/11/12 West Wendover, NV Peppermill Concert Hall
Fri 02/24/12 Baton Rouge, LA Texas Club
Sat 02/25/12 San Antonio, TX Cowboys Dancehall
Fri 03/02/12 Mount Pleasant, MI Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort
Fri 03/09/12 Miami, FL Magic City Casino
Sat 03/10/12 Silver Springs, FL Twin Oaks Amphitheatre

winners of Journey’s Greatest Hits Vol. 2 CDs

retroDan — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 23:11:02 +0000

Thanks again to all those that participated in the Journey Greatest Hits Vol. 2 giveaway on retroblog.

With all the embarrassing TMZ drama some members of Journey are having to deal with nowadays (i.e. Deen Castronovo, Neal Schon), it’s probably better for all of us fans to just focus on the past hits, you know what I mean?

I think Steve Perry did the right thing by bowing out gracefully back in 1996 and keeping his legacy intact. With all this “celeb sleaze” type attention Neal and Deen are getting, they are rapidly tarnishing the “brand” that the band worked so hard to build all these years. pretty sad I have to say.

Anyway, on to the winners! Congrats to : Mary R. (entry #153) and Lisa (entry #55)

You should be receiving an email from me. Be sure reply back with your full name and mailing address.

Thanks!

For those that didn’t win, don’t worry, you still have a chance at winning the new Queen Blu-ray/DVD (contest ends Feb 10th)

and don’t forget, Journey’s Greatest Hits Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 are both available via CDUniverse!!

Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles – DPAC concert review – January 2012

retroDan — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:20:27 +0000

When a local radio station gave me tickets to see Rain, a Beatles tribute band, I really didn’t know what to say at first. I mean, I’m a life-long Beatles fan and for me to see a Beatles cover band just felt sort of blasphemous, you know what I mean? Why should I support a band that makes a living off of music that they have absolutely nothing to do with?? Come on, I’d go see Paul or Ringo in a heartbeat but these guys??? I mean, who are these guys? Yes, I understand that Rain is one of the bigger Beatles tribute acts and they even did a stint on broadway. But, I just didn’t feel the need to see some faux-Beatles group.

So, after all of my whining and huffing & puffing, I ended up realizing that I could simply just do this for my ten year old son. Yes, chalking this whole thing up to my kid’s musical education gave me a reason to go to this show.

Anyway, Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles, were scheduled for two performances at the Durham Performing Arts Center this past week. My son and I attended the tuesday night show.

Essentially the show is a live recreation of the Beatles’ musical career from ’62 to ’70. In addition to the band playing and looking like the Beatles, there are elaborate stage setups, synchronized lighting and videos. The goal is to transport the audience back to the ’60′s. They even show TV commercials from the era on the video screens to set the mood.

Honestly, the concert was better than I expected. It all sounds cheesy on paper but the whole show was actually a fun experience. The band did a great job in trying to recreate all the sounds correctly which is a tough feat since most of the audience knows these tunes backwards and forwards. And kudos to the stage and lighting designers. The visuals were very well done and took the show beyond merely just being another run of the mill Beatles tribute night. There were four stage design changes to cover the major eras – “The Ed Sullivan Show” setup, “Shea Stadium”, “Sgt. Peppers” and the “Let it Be/Rooftop” setting.

It wasn’t all perfect though. There were some lyric flubs here and there, and the synths covering the string parts on “Yesterday” and “Eleanor Rigby” were mixed way too loud during the songs. And quite frankly the mimicry including the body movements/mannerisms and the heavy accents when speaking with the audience kinda got old after a while.

A highlight for me was during the “acoustic set” when they played songs like “Girl”, “In My Life” and “I’ve Just Seen a Face”. It felt a bit more natural during this set since it didn’t rely heavily on visuals or mimicry. It felt less constrained and they even did an extended guitar jam during “I’ve Just Seen a Face” which was a nice change of pace when everything else was almost a note for note carbon copy of the records.

All in all, my son and I had a fun night singing along to a bunch of Beatles tunes. Rain did a commendable job in recreating the look and sound of the liverpool lads. Nothing earth shattering here but it’s great to be able to share the experience with your kids.

retroGrade: B

Rain : A Tribute to the Beatles
at the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC)
January 17, 2012

the musicians (as far as I can recall from the band introductions at the end of the concert):
Steve Landes, Mac Ruffing, Tom Teeley, Douglas Cox and Chris Smallwood

the setlist at the January 17, 2012 show (again, I didn’t take extensive notes so I might be missing a couple songs…):
I Want To Hold Your Hand
All My Loving
This Boy
I Saw Her Standing There
A Hard Day’s Night
I’m Happy Just To Dance With You
Yesterday
I Feel Fine
Day Tripper
Twist and Shout
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
A Little Help From My Friends
Eleanor Rigby
Strawberry Fields
When I’m 64
Sgt. Pepper (reprise)
A Day In The Life

(intermission)

Hello Goodbye
I Am The Walrus
Girl
In My Life
Do You Want to Know a Secret
I’ve Just Seen a Face
Come Together
Get Back
Revolution
The End

(encore)
Give Peace A Chance
Let It Be
Hey Jude

2012 Rain tour schedule:
Jan 25, 2012 Wheeling, West Virginia Capitol Music Hall
Jan 26, 2012 Hershey, PA Hershey Theatre
Jan 27, 2012 Providence, RI Providence PAC
Jan 28, 2012 Wallingford, CT Oakdale Theatre
Jan 29, 2012 Lowell, MA Lowell Memorial Auditorium
Jan 31, 2012 – Feb 5, 2012 Philadelphia, PA Academy of Music
Feb 8, 2012 – Feb 9, 2012 Flint, MI Whiting Auditorium
Feb 10, 2012 – Feb 11, 2012 Cleveland, OH Palace Theatre
Feb 12, 2012 Grand Rapids, MI DeVos Performing Hall
Feb 14, 2012 – Feb 16, 2012 Rochester, NY Auditorium Theatre
Feb 17, 2012 – Feb 19, 2012 Buffalo, NY Shea’s Performing Arts Center
Feb 21, 2012 Erie, PA Warner Theatre
Feb 22, 2012 – Feb 23, 2012 Elmira, NY Clemens Performing Arts Center
Feb 24, 2012 – Feb 26, 2012 Scranton, PA Scranton Cultural Center
Feb 29, 2012 Sioux Falls, SD Washington Pavilion
Mar 1, 2012 Milwaukee, WI Milwaukee Theatre
Mar 2, 2012 Madison, WI Overture Center
Mar 3, 2012 – Mar 4, 2012 Minneapolis, MN Orpheum Theater
Mar 13, 2012 Bellingham, WA Mount Baker Theatre
Mar 14, 2012 Kennewick, WA Toyota Center
Mar 15, 2012 Medford, OR Ginger Rogers
Mar 16, 2012 – Mar 18, 2012 Reno, NV Pioneer center
Mar 20, 2012 Albuquerque, NM Popejoy Hall
Mar 21, 2012 Colorado Springs, CO Pikes Peak Center
Mar 23, 2012 Boise, ID Morrison Center
Apr 11, 2012 – Apr 13, 2012 Boston, MA Wilbur Theatre
Apr 16, 2012 Charlotte, NC Belk Theatre
Apr 17, 2012 Bethlehem, PA Zoellner Arts Center
Apr 24, 2012 – Apr 29, 2012 Dallas, TX Music Hall at Fair Park
May 1, 2012 – May 6, 2012 Nashville, TN Andrew Jackson Hall
May 10, 2012 – May 12, 2012 Tempe, AZ Gammage Auditorium
May 15, 2012 – May 16, 2012 Des Moines, IA Civic Center of Greater Des Moines
May 17, 2012 Wausau, WI Grand Theatre
May 18, 2012 – May 19, 2012 Appleton, WI Fox Cities PAC
May 20, 2012 Cincinnati, OH Proctor and Gamble Hall

for more information, check out the band’s official website: RainTribute.com

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Queen – Days of Our Lives on Blu-Ray & DVD – to be released January 31 2012

retroDan — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 20:36:26 +0000

To finish-off their 40th anniversary reissue campaign, Queen will be releasing their definitive documentary titled Days of Our Lives on DVD and Blu-Ray here in the U.S. on January 31st.

Originally aired in the UK on BBC 2 back in May, the two-part documentary received glowing reviews from journalists and fans alike. But long-time fans weren’t completely satiated with the two hour TV special. They wanted more. So, maybe the new blu-ray release will help. Besides the complete documentary, the blu-ray will include bonus footage that adds up to approximately 100 more minutes.

Check out the official press release below…

Queen – Days Of Our Lives
THE DEFINITIVE DOCUMENTARY ON THE WORLD’S GREATEST ROCK BAND IS COMING TO THE U.S. on DVD AND BLU-RAY On January 31
To Be Released by Eagle Rock Entertainment through Eagle Vision

In 1971, four college students got together to form a rock band. Since then, that certain band called Queen have released 26 albums and sold over 300 million records worldwide. The popularity of Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon is stronger than ever 40 years on. On November 6, 2011, in front of an estimated TV audience of 1.2 billion they were honored with the Global Icon Award at the 2011 MTV EMA.

But for Queen the journey was no bed of roses. No pleasure cruise. Queen had their share of kicks in the face, but they came through – and this is how they did it.

Set against a backdrop of brilliant music and stunning live performances from every corner of the globe, Queen: Days of Our Lives – available in both Blu-Ray and standard DVD formats, brings Queen’s 40th Anniversary year to a close in suitably regal style.

Days Of Our Lives began as a two-part documentary produced by long-term Queen collaborators and life long fans Rhys Thomas (the comedian who famously broke the Mastermind all-time record points score with a specialist subject of Queen) and Simon Lupton, and directed by the renowned director Matt Casey. After 10 years of making Queen DVDs, Lupton and Thomas were asked by the band to produce the definitive 40th Anniversary documentary and after almost a year of painstaking research and editing, this was the result.

Split over two episodes, Part One covering 1970-80, Part Two 1980 – present day, the documentary is a genuine rollercoaster of rock and roll history.

In this film, for the first time, it is the band that tells their story. Featuring brand new interviews with Brian May and Roger Taylor and unseen archive footage – including their recently unearthed first ever TV performance – it is a compelling story told with intelligence, wit, plenty of humor and painful honesty.

Rhys Thomas comments, “We set out to make the definitive Queen documentary. It’s a funny, honest, inspiring and ultimately tragic account of ‘a certain band called Queen’, as told by the band themselves. We tell the story of four students who met in West London, slogged hard and conquered the world, ultimately changing rock music forever.”

When originally broadcast in the UK on BBC 2 across two nights in May of last year, Queen: Days of Our Lives was the highest rated TV show on in its slot, beating every other channel and peaking with 3 million viewers. It has been widely regarded as one of the finest rock documentaries made and the critical reaction was outstanding. “Funny that,” says Thomas, “considering Queen were always denounced by the press!”

“The Boys did a fantastic Job on this documentary … with little interference from us! I think this one will set the bench mark for years to come,” said Brian May.

Thomas explains the transfer of the original BBC documentary to DVD release: “When originally making the series it wasn’t easy condensing 40 years of Queen down to just two hours. In fact, there was so much more to be said and so much more to be seen. Thanks to Blu-Ray and DVD, so much more of that story can now be told…As the two documentaries worked so well, we resisted the idea of making an epic 3-hour ‘Extended Cut’. They are always boring, and as Freddie said to his manager Jim Beach in his last days: “Do anything you want with my music dear, but never make me boring!

“So rather than simply dump a load of ‘deleted scenes’ onto the DVD and Blu-Ray, Simon and I decided to edit them all with as much love, time and care as we put into the main documentary. What we have as a result is a great companion to the main story and some real gems, most notably covering the formation of the band and the making of the last three albums which was only touched upon in the televised version. For instance, we learn from Brian how John Deacon made a cut in ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ for the record company and Freddie’s reaction; the revelation that Freddie was not sober during the making of ‘Spread Your Wings’/'We Will Rock You’ in Roger’s back garden, and a hilarious sequence about Queen and their love of Scrabble.

“As well as the new sequences, there are 7 new videos. Excerpts were featured in the main documentary, but we have completed them, and here on DVD and Blu- Ray they appear in full.”
The Blu-Ray format allows for additional bonus material and therefore differs in content to the Standard DVD release. Please check credits for each release.

In addition to the standard documentary, check out the bonus material that’s on the blu-ray and DVD discs:

ADDITIONAL VIDEOS – Blu-Ray and Standard DVD (24 mins):
Seven Seas Of Rhye 2011: A compilation of all four Top Of The Pops and Rainbow Live performances from 1974 – all unseen
Killer Queen 2011: A compilation of two Top of The Pops performances, one the familiar 1974 Christmas Special, the other – discovered in the late British comedian Dick Emery’s private collection, hasn’t been seen since 1974, the original master tape wiped from the BBC archives.
Somebody To Love 2011: This is a new edit of the video using the four takes shot on the day, most of which has never before been seen.
We Are The Champions 2011: In 1977, cameras filmed Queen recording a new version of the song for the promo video. This video shows the band performing and mixing this unreleased version in two live takes. An instrumental version of this closed Part One of ‘Days of our Lives’. Here for the first time the video can be seen in its entirety.
Crazy Little Thing Called Love 2011: A new edit of the video compiled from the rushes including outtakes and unseen angles.
Under Pressure 2011: A new video intercutting Queen’s first live performance of the song in Montreal 81 and Queen + David Bowie at the Freddie Mercury Tribute.
Radio Ga Ga 2011: This new video includes unseen color footage from the 1984 Radio Ga Ga video shoot plus rushes and outtakes.

BONUS SEQUENCES – Blu-Ray (59 mins) / Standard DVD (21 mins only):
Queen: The Beginning: A detailed look at how Queen formed in 1971. Covering Smile, finding John Deacon, and the early struggles of the band.
Queen On Tour 1974-5: Featuring Queen at the Rainbow and unseen footage of the band touring Japan for the first time. Includes excerpts of ‘Now I’m Here’, ‘Killer Queen’ and ‘In The Lap Of The Gods’ live.
Bohemian Rhapsody: Brian reveals how John Deacon made a cut in ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ for the record company, only to be dismissed by Freddie: “Either it’s released in it’s entirety or not at all!.”
Working Together: The Band discuss their working relationship, including unheard archive of Queen having a “creative discussion!”
Leaving John Reid: An in-depth account of how the band left manager John Reid and set up Queen Productions – plus the revelation that Freddie was not sober during the making of ‘Spread Your Wings’/'We Will Rock You’ in Roger’s back garden.
Don’t Stop Me Now: Brian and Roger discuss ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ and the ‘Guitar Version’ discarded by Freddie.
Flash Gordon: A short sequence on the making of Queen’s first film soundtrack, ‘Flash Gordon’, plus an alternate promo video.
Making Videos: The band discuss the video making process, featuring lots of unseen outtakes.
Scrabble Wars: A hilarious sequence about Queen and their love of Scrabble. You will just have to watch!
From Magic to The Miracle: In the three years between A Kind Of Magic and The Miracle, the members of Queen went through some life changing experiences in their working and personal lives. This chapter sheds light on what went on behind closed doors.
Going Slightly Mad: The Making of Innuendo: In 1991 Queen hit the charts with a No.1 album and single, “Innuendo.” Creatively the band were reinvigorated, their material better than ever, but beneath the surface, they all had to face the fact that Freddie was seriously ill and time was running out.
Made In Heaven: Roger and Brian talk about the making of the last Queen album, Made In Heaven, working with Freddie in his final weeks, as well and working with the material he had recorded after he had passed away and the emotional distress it caused.
Return To Imperial: Brian returns to Imperial College and shows us around the college where he and Roger first met, formed Smile and ultimately Queen.

BONUS INTERVIEWS – Blu-Ray (19 mins). Not included on Standard DVD:
The Bonus Interview section contains various interesting, funny and insightful footage that didn’t fit into any particular sequence but was too great to leave on the cutting room floor.

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for more information, please check out Queen’s official website – QueenOnline.com

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OK, and for those of you still reading my post – I’ve got a treat for you. Thanks to Universal Music Group and Eagle Rock Entertainment, I can give away two copies of the new release, “Days of Our Lives”. Just register for the drawing using the rafflecopter widget below. Sometime after the drawing deadline, I’ll randomly choose two winners – one to receive a blu-ray version of Queen’s documentary and one to receive the DVD version.

good luck!

the contest ends February 10th, 2012 and is only open to U.S. residents.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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**Just to clarify**: You are required to leave a blog comment AND state your preference for DVD or blu-ray in order to fully register for this giveaway. I just noticed a few folks not doing both tasks. the other tasks on the rafflecopter widget are optional and are there for you to earn bonus entries. hope that helps!

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winners of the Bones Season 6 & The Love We Make DVDs

retroDan — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 00:44:05 +0000

Thanks again to all those that participated in my two recent giveaways here on retroblog. I wanted to test out the new rafflecopter widget to see if it’d make running giveaways a bit easier and I have to say that it definitely helped the whole process – especially listing out all the eligible entries and randomly picking out a winner. I also like the facebook/twitter integration. All in all, the widget worked out great and I will continue to use it for future giveaways.

As for the winners – here they are:

The winner of the BONES season 6 DVD is: Jeremy B.

The winner of Paul McCartney’s The Love We Make DVD is: Barbara W.

Congrats!

Stay tuned for more! and have a great weekend!

Journey – Greatest Hits Vol. 2 CD (2011) review and giveaway

retroDan — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 00:33:31 +0000

After 23 years and over 25 million copies sold, Journey’s Greatest Hits finally gets a second volume. It’s pretty much a no-brainer to release a “sequel” to one of rock’s best selling compilations. I’m just surprised it took the record label this long to do it. Anyway, the new release is titled, what else, Journey – Greatest Hits Vol. 2.

I’m happy to report that the new release doesn’t appear to be some sort of haphazardly put-together “money-grab”. In fact, none other than the great Steve Perry was on-hand for the remastering of this release. It has been said that Perry still has approval rights for anything related to Journey’s back catalog. Even though he hasn’t been the frontman for the band since 1996, it’s the Perry fronted-era that matters most, at least in terms of sales. And so just like the first volume, volume 2 focuses on Perry related material. Nothing from 1996 onward.

Now, it’d be hard for any band to top those 16 tracks from the first compilation. There’s just no-denying the power of classics like “Don’t Stop Believin’”, “Who’s Crying Now”, “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” and “Open Arms”. So, Volume 2 is a bit of a step down in terms of actual bona-fide “hits”. But as a companion piece to the first Greatest Hits disc, it actually works. Songs like “Stone in Love”, “After the Fall”, “Escape” and “Suzanne” stand up pretty well with the previous volume. There are a couple of odd choices that I personally would have changed out though. I would have chosen “Message of Love” instead of “When I Think of You” from the album “Trial by Fire”. And maybe something like “Why Can’t This Night Go On Forever” in place of “Good Morning Girl”. But it’s nice that “Little Girl” was included since it’s on the often overlooked soundtrack album “Dream After Dream”.

As for the remastered sound – there’s noticeable EQ changes on some songs that help bring out some of the low end and soften some of the harshness of the high frequencies. For example “Suzanne” always sounded a bit “bright” on the original CD with not enough bottom so this remaster corrected this and now sounds more evened out. I wouldn’t say this is the “definitive” remaster in terms of perfect audio quality but sound engineer Robert Hadley along with Steve Perry succeeded in achieving a cohesive sound over all the various tracks on this compilation.

So, if you have GH Vol. 1 and want to go a bit deeper into Journey’s catalog, Greatest Hits Vol. 2 is a great buy. As for longtime Journey fans, you probably have all these tracks in your music library but you might still want to check it out for the updated remastered sound.

retroGrade: B

Journey – Greatest Hits Vol. 2
record label: Columbia/Legacy
released: November 2011
remastered by: Robert Hadley and Steve Perry at The Mastering Lab, Ojai, CA

TrackList
1 Stone in Love
2 After the Fall
3 Chain Reaction
4 The Party’s Over (Hopelessly in Love)
5 Escape
6 Still They Ride
7 Good Morning Girl
8 Stay Awhile
9 Suzanne
10 Feeling That Way
11 Anytime
12 Walks Like a Lady
13 Little Girl
14 Just the Same Way
15 Patiently
16 When I Think of You
17 Mother, Father (Live in Houston 1981)

Oh, yeah, and now about the CD giveaway. I’ve got TWO Journey Greatest Hits Vol. 2 CDs to giveaway! Just check out the “rafflecopter” widget on this page and follow the instructions on how to enter. The main requirement is to leave me a blog comment. But be sure to register via the widget since I’ll be using it to randomly draw out the winners. The deadline for this drawing is January 29, 2012. Thanks and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Bubble Pop by HyunA makes SPIN magazine’s 2011 Best of list

retroDan — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 19:34:17 +0000

wow, I never would have imagined that a K-pop song would land on one of Spin Magazine‘s year-end “Best-of” lists. But that’s how much the genre has infiltrated U.S. pop culture. amazing stuff. Congrats to korean singer HyunA for getting some mainstream exposure. Her song “Bubble Pop” is #9 on Spin’s 20 Best Songs of 2011.

You may not necessarily understand the words but HyunA’s definitely great to look at.

purchase HyunA’s mini-abum Bubble Pop! on CDUniverse.

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Oh, and check out her latest project titled Trouble Maker, a collaboration with BEAST’s Hyun Seung.

purchase Trouble Maker on CDUniverse.

Kim Wilde – They Don’t Know About Us (Kirsty MacColl cover)

retroDan — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 01:27:00 +0000

Can’t seem to get Kim Wilde‘s version of Kirsty MacColl’s “They Don’t Know” out of my head. Yes, I know it’s inferior to Kirsty’s original (plus she doesn’t even do the climactic “Baby!” in her version!) but I’ve got a soft spot for Kim Wilde. Come on, I was a young teen when “Kids in America” came out. Kim was a hottie. Nowadays, not so much… but she still sings like she did back then.

You’ve been around for such a long time now
Oh maybe I could leave you but I don’t know how
And why should I be lonely every night when I can be with you
Oh yes you make it right
And I don’t listen to the guys who say
That you’re bad for me and I should turn you away
‘Cos they don’t know about us and they’ve never heard of love

I get a feeling when I look at you
Wherever you go now I wanna be there too
They say we’re crazy but I just don’t care
And if they keep on talking still they get nowhere
So I don’t mind if they don’t understand when I look at you and you hold my hand
‘Cos they don’t know about us and they’ve never heard of love

Why should it matter to us if they don’t approve
We should just take our chances while we’ve got nothing to lose

Baby, there’s no need for living in the past
Now I’ve found good loving gonna make it last
I tell the others don’t bother me
‘Cos when they look at you they don’t see what I see
No I don’t listen to their wasted lines got my eyes wide open and I see the signs
But they don’t know about us and they’ve never heard of love

No I don’t listen to their wasted lines
Got my eyes wide open and I see the signs
But they don’t know about us and they’ve never heard of love
written by Kirsty MacColl

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and here’s Tracy Ullman’s version from back in the 80′s with a special cameo from Sir Paul.

and here’s yet another cover of Kirsty’s song… this one by Andrea Corr.