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I think a lot of people take Tom Petty for granted so it’s nice to be reminded of how talented this guy really is. Petty is a bonafide American Rock icon, no doubt. He has recorded fifteen studio albums, most of which went either gold or platinum. And he has toured, along with the Heartbreakers, extensively over the last three decades. Watching the newly released Damn the Torpedoes documentary just reaffirms why Petty and the Heartbreakers have had such a long career in the music business.

First of all, Damn the Torpedoes is Petty’s breakthrough album. It sat at the number two spot for seven weeks on the Billboard album chart and went on to sell over two million copies. With classic songs like “Don’t Do Me Like That”, “There Goes My Girl” and “Refugee”, the album has stood the test of time. And with producer Jimmy Iovine and engineer Shelly Yakus behind the recording console, the record still sounds great even to this day.

If you’ve never seen a “Classic Albums DVD” before, it’s essentially a detailed look back on how a particular album was put together with all the major contributors interviewed on camera. For this Damn The Torpedoes DVD- Petty, Yakus, Iovine, Mike Campbell, Benmont Tench and Ron Blair were brought into a recording studio to go over the multi-tracks of this album. For a “music nut” like me, it’s a huge treat to see and hear what went on “behind the scenes” especially concerning the songwriting and recording of it all.

Petty and Campbell obviously got most of the screentime but it was nice hearing insight from producer Iovine and from keyboardist Tench. It was a bit of a surprise to hear that Iovine demanded full live performances from the band in the studio instead of building songs track by track. But the interplay among the musicians really made the songs come alive which you may not have gotten if they had decided to record the album piece by piece.

Iovine also reveals the “secret” to the song “Refugee”. The key rhythmic ingredient, according to Iovine, is the *shaker* that was added by legendary musician Jim Keltner. Keltner just happened to be hanging out in the studio at the time and they got him to add a shaker to the track and it was like magical fairy dust sprinkled onto the song. heh. funny stuff.

Oh and speaking of “Refugee”, be sure to check the bonus material on the DVD. Studio engineer Yakus explains that the bass drum was intentionally recorded “out of phase” with the rest of the drums. And by doing so, the bass drum stood out in the overall mix, making it almost “pop out” from the speakers.

Another nugget from the bonus material, is Petty’s Rickenbacker guitar that’s featured on the album cover. It turns out that the Rickenbacker is actually Campbell’s. And get this, Campbell bought it used for only $150!! And by the serial number, he found out that it was the next guitar the shop made after they made George Harrison’s famous Rickenbacker. Man, I wonder if the original seller of that guitar ever found out what the guitar was really worth??

Anyway, there’s tons of neat info like that about the band and the album. It’s definitely worth viewing especially nowadays where professional recording studios are going the way of the dinosaur. The classic album series highlights the achievements that were done in a real recording studio using analog multi-track tapes. In this day and age of ProTools and bedroom recordings, a lot of these techniques and methods will unfortunately be lost. Can you imagine 20 years from now when the Classic Albums series features an album from 2010? The documentary will probably feature just some dude in a bedroom looking at waveforms on a computer screen. yikes!

retroGrade: A

Classic Albums: Damn the Torpedoes DVD
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
DVD U.S. release date: August 3, 2010
also available on Blu-Ray
running time: 98 minutes
Studio: Eagle Rock Entertainment
Directed by: Matthew Longfellow

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The Weepies are set to hit the road after a four year break from touring. They’ll be supporting their new album Be My Thrill which will hit the stores August 31st courtesy of Nettwerk Records. I’m looking forward to seeing them live. Hopefully Deb Talan and Steve Tannen will also include songs from their album Hideaway in their setlist since they didn’t get a chance to tour behind it back in 2008. It’s definitely a personal favorite of mine.

2010 U.S. tour dates
10/10/2010 Los Angeles CA El Rey Theatre
10/13/2010 San Diego CA Winston’s
10/14/2010 San Juan Capistrano CA Coach House
10/15/2010 Visalia CA Fox Theatre
10/16/2010 San Francisco CA Great American Music Hall
10/17/2010 Chico CA El Rey Theatre
10/19/2010 Eugene OR John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts
10/20/2010 Portland OR Aladdin Theater
10/21/2010 Seattle WA City Arts Music Festival – The Crocodile
10/22/2010 Boise ID The Bouquet
10/23/2010 Salt Lake City UT The State Room
10/24/2010 Englewood CO The Gothic Theatre
10/26/2010 Iowa City IA The Englert Theater
10/27/2010 Minneapolis MN Cedar Cultural Center
10/28/2010 Madison WI High Noon Saloon
10/30/2010 Evanston IL SPACE
11/1/2010 Grand Rapids MI Ladies Literary Club
11/2/2010 Ann Arbor MI The Ark
11/3/2010 Cleveland OH Beachland Ballroom
11/5/2010 Philadelphia PA World Cafe Live
11/6/2010 Londonderry NH Tupelo Music Hall
11/7/2010 Boston MA Royale Nightclub
11/8/2010 Fairfield CT FTC Stage One
11/10/2010 New York NY Hiro Ballroom
11/11/2010 Falls Church VA The State Theatre
11/12/2010 Norfolk VA The Attucks Theater
11/14/2010 Charleston WV Mountain Stage
11/15/2010 Annapolis MD Rams Head On Stage
11/17/2010 Atlanta GA Variety Playhouse
11/19/2010 Dallas TX Lakewood Theater
11/20/2010 Austin TX Momo’s
11/23/2010 Phoenix AZ The Rhythm Room
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Thanks again to all those that participated in the Doors – When You’re Strange DVD giveaway.

all the entries (including all the retroblog facebook fans) were compiled into a spreadsheet and numbered sequentially. I then used random.org to produce a random number.

and without further ado – the winner of the When You’re Strange DVD is:

Belinda Moore

Congratulations! Please send me your mailing address and I’ll forward your info to the PR rep at Universal Music who will be sending the DVD directly to you.

OK, so that was fun!
Be on the look out for our next DVD drawing which should be posted in the coming weeks. and please join us on facebook to keep up to date on the latest happenings on retroblog as well as to qualify for future drawings & contests.

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Memphis Travel. All opinions are 100% mine.

Ever since the premiere of Jason Lee’s detective-dramedy Memphis Beat on TNT, I’ve been hankering for a roadtrip down to the town where Elvis Presley used to call home. There’s so much music history ingrained into Memphis. Besides Elvis and his Graceland home, Memphis is also known for both Johnny Cash and B.B. King starting their careers there. And don’t get me started on the many songs that have been written about the town. “Walking in Memphis” by Marc Cohn, “Wrong Side of Memphis” by Trisha Yearwood and “Graceland” by Paul Simon are just a few of many.

But when I often visit a town or city that I’m unfamiliar with, I find myself not really knowing where to start, you know what I mean? Thankfully there’s a Memphis-savvy travel guide where you can custom build an itinerary with all the important places to visit and experience. I really like the fact that you can click on the types of attractions you’re most interested in such as “Music & Memphis History”, “Outdoor Activity”, “Family Fun”, or “a bit of Everything” and the website instantly lists out relevant attractions. For instance, my custom 3 night itinerary includes – the Memphis Rock ‘n’ Soul Museum, Graceland (of course), Beale Street, the birthplace of Rock n Roll – Sun Studios. But say you’re interested in some “Family Fun”, the site suggests places like – The Memphis Zoo, a Carriage Ride through the historic downtown district, Mud Island River Park and a stop to enjoy some finger-licking Memphis style BBQ. The Memphis travel site is very well done and a great place to start when planning a visit to the “Home of the Blues”. While you’re on the website be sure to enter to win a trip package courtesy of the Memphis Convention & Visitors Bureau. They are giving away a trip every week so be sure to enter your name in the drawing. I personally picked the “Single & Friends” package since it includes an “American Dream Safari Tour”, tickets to the Rock n Soul Museum and dinner at BB Kings.

Come on, remember what resulted when Bono and the rest of U2 visited Memphis back in the 80′s. The power and history that’s found in Memphis, re-energized the irish band which led to some fantastic tracks on their album “Rattle and Hum”. If Bono found some much needed inspiration just by visiting Memphis, maybe you will too. Why not go and see?

I’ve been meaning to post about this ol’ boot, August Outtakes & Different Mixes, for a while now. The amount of enjoyment one would get from this 2-disc set largely depends on how one feels about Eric Clapton’s August album from 1986. I personally have a soft spot for the Phil Collins produced album. But I can definitely see how someone would get bored to tears from these “alternate mixes” when not having a strong connection with the source material. Frankly there aren’t major revelations here in this bootleg. Mainly you’ll find early takes of songs from the album that aren’t all that much different from the final product. “Lady From Verona” is the only song that I wasn’t familiar with but it’s essentially a throwaway with cringeworthy lyrics. “Wanna Make Love to You” is another outtake but most fans are familiar with this one since it ended up on the Crossroads box set. The rest of the boot is made up of alternate takes. I don’t know about other fans but I get a kick out of hearing demos and work-in-progress versions of familiar songs. It sort of gives you a glimpse of the creative process that went into the final versions.

Two highlights for me are the guide vocals done by Nathan East and Greg Phillinganes on “Grand Illusion” and “Miss You”. I’m not exactly sure why their vocals were recorded other than for an early run-through of the songs. Nevertheless, it’s a hoot listening to them singing along (presumably without the lyric sheet) filling in nonsense words to fit the melody. fun stuff. The second disc ends with subpar audio from Clapton’s live appearance on the TV show NightLife. Those two tracks aren’t really necessary since there are superior sounding live boots from Clapton’s 1986/87 tour.

So, is this an essential Clapton boot? not really. But if you’ve got a fondness for mid-80′s Clapton (plus the heavy-handed production style of Phil Collins), this boot is worth seeking out.

retroGrade: B

Eric Clapton
August Outtakes & Different Mixes
Duffy Records
recorded at Sunset Sound Studios in Los Angeles April/May 1986
sound quality : B+ (cassette tape quality)
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This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Charter. All opinions are 100% mine.

With the economy still struggling to recover, no one is spared from the effects of those ubiquitous budget cuts. Even our kids’ schools are having to let a portion of their staff go while class sizes continue to increase. It never ceases to amaze me how many students they can manage to fit in those small classrooms. yikes!

So it’s nice to see a company like Charter give back to the community. With their current laptop-a-day giveaway, Charter plans to provide 50 laptops to 2 schools. All you have to do is register online and nominate your favorite school by August 12. Be sure to proofread your entries because Charter will then choose 50 of the best nominations and open them up to a vote. The two schools with the most votes by September 20th will win 50 laptops each. Now, these aren’t just old hand-me-down laptops. Charter will be giving away Lenovo G555 brand laptops featuring 15.6″ screens, 160GB hard drives and 3GB of RAM. So it’s safe to say that these computers will be able to handle the demands of multimedia projects with ease. And besides winning these laptops for your favorite school, you can even win one for yourself.

As you may know, Charter Communications is the 4th largest cable operator in the U.S. and a leader in ultra high speed internet service. In select markets, they are currently offering internet speeds up to 60 Mbps. Now that’s what I’d call FAST. If you’re in need of cable TV, digital phone or internet service, Charter is offering some great online deals. As a matter of fact, if you order any of their services from Charter at this time, you’ll automatically be entered for a chance to win a laptop plus get $300 cash back. And as I mentioned earlier, you can also register to win on their website with no purchase necessary. So there’s no reason for you NOT to go over to their site to nominate your school in need. You can learn more about the back to school giveaway either by going to http://www.charter.com/laptop or by finding Charter on Facebook. Their customer service staff are very responsive on the facebook page so be sure to “Like” them to get in touch with their reps.

Eagle Rock Entertainment recently announced that they’ll be releasing Roy Orbison’s Last Concert on CD on August 10th, 2010. The December 4, 1988 show at the Front Row Theater in Highland Heights, Ohio was sadly the last for this legendary performer. Orbison died of a heart attack two days after the concert at the age of 52. Orbison was in the midst of a comeback at the time due to the popularity of his work with producer Jeff Lynne and The Traveling Wilburys.

Here’s the official press release:
ROY ORBISON: THE LAST CONCERT
An Intimate Experience – Live, Untouched, In Concert for the Last Time
Instantly recognizable in vocals, songwriting and style, Roy Orbison was a musical pioneer. One of the few artists to have worldwide recognition in all forms of music – pop, rock ‘n’ roll, spoken word, and country – he received Grammys in all categories, as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award. On August 10, Eagle Rock Entertainment will pay homage to Roy Orbison upon the release of The Last Concert CD [MSRP $13.98].

Originally released as a limited run via iTunes in 2008 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of his passing, The Last Concert is now available on CD for the first time. Recorded on December 4, 1988 just two days before his sudden death, this was the last time Roy ever performed. This collection of fourteen songs, including seven top ten singles, is the exact order of his show that evening. This includes one of the most loved Rock ‘n Roll songs ever, “Oh, Pretty Woman,” as well as his Grammy-Award Winning “Crying” and “Dream Baby.” This historic performance is untouched by mixing and enhancements – it’s pure, honest, unmistakable Roy.

Following Roy’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, in 1989, Roy became the second singer to ever simultaneously have two posthumous Top 5 albums (King of Hearts, Mystery Girl) on the Billboard charts (the first was Elvis Presley). In addition to his inductions into the Nashville Songwriter’s Hall of Fame and Nashville Walk Of Fame, Orbison was recently honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2008, the Library of Congress added “Oh, Pretty Woman” to the National Recording Registry.

The Last Concert CD is a rarity in these days and times because it is historically correct—it is a trip down memory lane, capturing one of the best rock ‘n roll singers of all time. You don’t really get to know an artist until you go to a live performance, and this particular concert, on December 4th, 1988 was the very last time that Roy Orbison performed. It is an incredible example of Roy’s on-stage presentation, in which he always gave stellar, near-chilling performances. It is a must-have in any record collection.
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This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of iNetVideo. All opinions are 100% mine.

With writer/director Robert Rodriguez’s reboot of the Predator series out in theaters now, I’ve had the urge of revisiting some of his other movies on DVD and blu-ray. Rodriguez is truly a Renaissance man in the film industry. Not only does he direct, write, edit and produce movies, he’s also a musician AND he can make a mean “puerco pibil” as chronicled in the extras section of the “Once Upon a Time in Mexico” DVD. Anyway, I’ve recently purchased some blu-ray movies from online retailer iNetVideo to help complete my Robert Rodriguez collection. I know there are better known retailers for DVDs but I’ve encountered some great prices lately at iNetVideo. They’ve got a great selection of blu-ray discs priced at $13.99 and lower. In addition, I’ve found some bargains in their DVD boxset clearance sale including “Heroes Season 3″ boxset for just $13.88. As for the Rodriguez titles, I snagged “Grindhouse – Planet Terror” on blu-ray for only $9.99 and the “Desperado” widescreen edition for just $5.49. now those are some great deals, I have to say. iNetVideo is definitely worth bookmarking for not just DVD purchases but also for video games and audio CDs as well. Oh and their blog, which can be found at http://blog.inetvideo.com, is a fun read for movie buffs and even features a monthly blu-ray player giveaway.

Even though I’m a long time fan of Trevor Horn’s work, I never took the time to seek out the second album by The Buggles, Adventures in Modern Recording. I guess I assumed that it was simply a throwaway album filled with leftover tracks after keyboardist Geoff Downes left the band in 1981. Well, recently I had the chance to listen to the new re-issue put out by Salvo/ZTT and I have to say that I’m pleasantly surprised by the material on the album. It’s actually very good. In fact, I prefer this Buggles album over their more well known debut, Age of Plastic.

It’s got Trevor Horn’s signature production touches all over it. The sounds and production techniques that Horn achieved here on this album obviously carried over to his subsequent production work with ABC, Yes (90125) and Frankie Goes to Hollywood. There are also precursors to his work with the Art Of Noise in the song “Vermillion Sands”. Just listen for the samples of a car crashing and the car engine turning over. very AON. Horn also does a “left turn” at the end of “Vermillion Sands” with an upbeat pseudo-big-band like instrumental which would fit right in on an AON album. definitely fun to view all of this in hindsight knowing what he achieved as a producer after his start in the Buggles.

10 bonus tracks are also included here on this release. Notables include “We Can Fly From Here” (which was considered for Yes’ Drama album), the 12″ mix of “I Am a Camera”

Yes, there isn’t another song as catchy as “Video Killed a Radio Star” here but taken as a whole, this album is far more satisfying than their first album. Definitely worth seeking out. Highlights include: Adventures in Modern Recording, Vermillion Sands, I Am A Camera, Lenny.

retroGrade: A

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This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of ampm. All opinions are 100% mine.

It’s always interesting to see the new and different ways businesses try to grab the attention of the modern day, tech-savvy consumer. It’s a monumental task to say the least since we’re all inundated with ads on a daily basis and have become a bit jaded toward these types of attention grabbing campaigns. Take for example the secret menu feature on ampm‘s facebook page. For those that don’t have a local ampm, they’re a convenience store that offer late night dining for those that get the munchies at 2 in the morning. Their sandwich offerings are basically self-serve so you’re free to be creative with your creations.
Now back to the facebook page – I’m all for “Liking” your favorites places and such but I hate those extra applications that ask for authorization to access your personal info. And unfortunately, ampm‘s secret menu tab is one of those privacy invading applications. Not a smart way to build trust among your fanbase. It’s a big “fail” in my book. Plus the secret menu app is just a fancy recipe book that simply lists some tasty sandwich creations. Take the Chili Conquistador for instance, which I do admit, looks pretty good. The Chili Conquistador includes a burger, chili and Spicy Funyuns. I think the Spicy Funyuns would actually go great with a burger. I would love to try it the next time I’m at ampm.
But as for the secret menu app on facebook? I like the whole concept of a secret menu but ampm needs to rethink the way the want to collect info on their customers.
For those that are curious about the secret menu, just head on over to their facebook fan page to check it out. Also, they’re unveiling five more secret menu items on the following dates: 7/26, 8/2, 8/9, 8/16, 8/30. And then on August 2nd, fans of ampm will be able to create their own versions of their favorites right on their facebook page.
Anyway, let me know what you think of the new secret menu app. got a favorite menu item? post ‘em in the comment section of this blog post!