Amplifier
  • Thirty-five years after he delivered a Saturday Night Live monologue dressed like a turkey, Paul Simon proved he still has surprisingly sharp comedic timing as a "guest" on SNL's fake BET talk show What Up With That? this past weekend. We all saw the inevitable coming -- everyone gets played off What Up With That? as that is the whole point of What Up With That? -- but Simon underplayed his small part perfectly, and looked genuinely delighted when Kenan Thompson said something actually unexpected: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is exciting. Put your hands together, for another Lindsey Buckingham!" Fleetwood Mac's actual Lindsey Buckingham joined his alter ego (played by Bill Hader) onstage and fingerpicked a bit of "Big Love," thereby upstaging host Ed Helms, who'd plucked a mean banjo a few minutes earlier as Captain Sexy Banjo. Sorry, Ed Helms, but that was kinda the story of the night for you, wasn't it?

    Song One: "Rewrite"
    +2 for bringing what has to be a record five acoustic guitars

    Read More »from SNL GPA: Paul Simon Is Still Funny After All These Years
  • Only three people have appeared on Saturday Night Live more frequently than Paul Simon (Steve Martin, Alec Baldwin, and John Goodman). He hosted the show's second-ever episode on October 18, 1975. He performed with a genuine Beatle, George Harrison (not George Michael) the following year. He sang "Still Crazy After All These Years" while dressed like a turkey. In 1977, he borrowed many of the show's players for a show called The Paul Simon Special that was co-written by SNL's Lorne Michaels. He played on SNL's first episode back after 9/11. And he'll return to the Saturday Night Live stage tomorrow night for the 14th time alongside host Ed Helms. He will not be dressed as poultry, but he will be playing songs from his extremely well-received 12th studio album, So Beautiful or So What. But here's what it looked like when he did some of those other things:

    [Photo: Eugene Gologursky/WireImage.com]

    Read More »from Why Paul Simon Is a ‘Saturday Night Live’ God
  • What was the biggest song in America last week? Billboard says Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" because it topped two of their charts that measure the popularity of individual tracks -- Digital Songs ("The week's top-downloaded songs across all genres, ranked by sales data as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan") and the Hot 100 ("The week's most popular songs across all genres, ranked by radio airplay audience impressions as measured by Nielsen BDS, sales data as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan, and streaming activity data provided by online music sources").

    But if you strip away the politics that goes into determining what gets played on the radio (hold on to your hat -- it's not necessarily what people like best!) and the fact that not everyone can afford to buy downloaded music, you're left with the same question: What really was the most popular song in America last week?

    Google is attempting to answer that query with its new YouTube 100 chart, a ranking that looks at "official music

    Read More »from Hot or Not? YouTube 100 Ranks Site’s Biggest Songs
  • After a three-year break some will consider too long and many others might argue was not nearly long enough, Ashlee Simpson has returned to writing music. "Writing sesh on the balcony. My album doesn't seem so far away..." she tweeted yesterday. As you can see from the photo attached to her update, this writing session required the use of an acoustic guitar, a journal covered in butterflies, a piece of wicker outdoor furniture, the aforementioned balcony, and Samantha Ronson's hat.

    Do not gasp in horror: Ashlee Simpson's music is surprisingly good. It's better than it has a right to be. Her first two albums, 2004's Autobiography and 2005's I Am Me, were perfect of-the-moment crunch-pop, and her third disc, 2008's Bittersweet World, was a moderately successful attempt to go electro-rock. She had big names behind that LP (Timabaland, the Neptunes), but nobody bit, and after a stint on Broadway in Chicago, she retreated into life as Yoko Emo (a.k.a. Pete Wentz's wife).

    It's worth noting

    Read More »from Ashlee Simpson Writing New Songs in Butterfly Notebook
  • The track is Rock Mafia's "The Big Bang," and we have a sneaking suspicion producers picked it as Mob Wives' theme because the group has the word "mafia" in its name. Synergy!

    The Rock Mafia actually aren't really a group -- they're the songwriting/production team responsible for the insanely great Miley Cyrus song "See You Again." Note: One can despise Miley Cyrus and still enjoy this song, it is that good. You may also recognize Tim James and Antonina Armato from the current season of American Idol, as they've served as in-house producers who worked with Haley Reinhart, Lauren Alaina, and recently ousted James Durbin.

    Cyrus actually stars in the video for the soulful, swaggering "The Big Bang," which arrived in November 2010 with a bit of a bang because Cyrus had a mature (ahem) role in the clip. And if you're not watching VH1's Mob Wives on Sunday nights, you are missing out on some prime crazy and the chance to hear this awesome song Amy Winehouse should probably be singing

    Read More »from Do You Enjoy the Theme Song for ‘Mob Wives’?
  • Rumor had it Bob Dylan was denied permission to play in China. Magazines reported that when the folk legend did book shows there, the government limited his set list. Newspapers claimed tickets sold poorly for the gigs, and the Bard played to half-empty venues. Bob Dylan has heard all of you running your mouth. And he is not amused.

    In a very, very rare occurrence, Dylan wrote a statement addressed "To my fans and followers" on his website today that one may dare call a blog post. It is catty. "Allow me to clarify a couple of things about this so-called China controversy which has been going on for over a year," he begins -- OK, sir! -- before methodically denying all those accusations.

    As far as being refused permission to play in China...
    Dylan says that was the work of a shady promoter who was trying to coax him to come perform: "My guess is that the guy printed up tickets and made promises to certain groups without any agreements being made."

    Regarding alleged censorship...
    The

    Read More »from Bob Dylan Writes Catty Blog Post About ‘China Controversy’
  • Neutral Milk Hotel's 1998 album In the Aeroplane Over the Sea has not gone gold, which means it's sold less than 500,000 copies. But if everyone who heard the Velvet Underground started a band, everyone who bought a NMH album became a member of what is known as the Elite Media. Case in point: The band was a pivotal plot point on last night's Parks and Recreation

    Tom Haverford (Aziz Ansari) introduced a "dope new game show where I ask couples scandalous questions and they have to guess what the other one answered" -- otherwise known as The Newlywed Game -- called "Know Ya' Boo." Andy Dwyer (Chris Pratt) really should have known April Ludgate (Aubrey Plaza) was going to answer the question, "Which rock star would your lady get with?" with a somewhat obscure indie rocker because Aubrey Plaza has been in many projects that reference obscure indie rockers. She answered Jeff Mangum.

    Andy, like millions of Americans who are not thirtysomethings based in Brooklyn, did not know who this is.

    Read More »from Neutral Milk Hotel Make Primetime TV Debut
  • It took nearly a year, but Roger Waters made good on his promise to team up with former Pink Floyd bandmate David Gilmour for a performance of "Comfortably Numb," which is pretty much the only thing that could make Pink Floyd fans happier than word of previously unreleased recordings coming out this fall (big week for Pink Floyd fans!). Last night at London's O2 Arena -- now the official location of all of rock's most important reunions of groundbreaking bands with three surviving members -- Gilmour joined Waters for only the third time since 2005, playing guitar atop the giant wall that gets demolished over the course of the latter's The Wall Live shows like he did on the album's original tour in 1980. Pretty epic.

    "Comfortably Numb" was the sixth song in Waters' second set, and Gilmour took the stage again at the end of the night with a mandolin for a version of "Outside the Wall" that featured a second special guest: "By a strange and extremely happy coincidence, there is another

    Read More »from Pink Floyd Deliver That Reunion You’ve Been Asking For
  • Steven Tyler clutches a monkey during the first 25 seconds of his video for "(It) Feels So Good" -- that is not a euphemism. It actually happens. This monkey later drives a golf cart. There's a woman on a jet ski, an elephant, a melting disco ball, a pair of goggles, a bird of prey, a beefy shirtless man in a marching band hat, Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger, a game of pattycake, and a half-naked woman jumping around on a bed. In short, this video does not make a convincing case that Tyler is a sober man.

    Ray Kay -- a.k.a. the man who brought you Justin Bieber's "Baby," and more recently Britney Spears' "Till the World Ends" -- directed the video, which premiered on American Idol last night. We know he can work magic because he somehow coaxed Brit into making meaningful eye contact again, but he was probably hypnotized and/or tied up by Tyler's massive collection of mic-stand scarves and therefore powerless to fight Tyler's increasingly nutbar suggestions ("We need an archer. And a

    Read More »from ‘Feels So Good’ Video Makes Poor Case for Steven Tyler’s Sobriety
  • A final note on CommonGate, i.e. Republicans' attempt to paint mild-mannered, non-controversial, nattily dressed Chicago rapper Common as a saggy-jeaned, morally corrupt thug: Sarah Palin appeared on Fox News last night to discuss the non-issue, calling the White House's decision to invite Common to a poetry event "lacking of class and decency and all that's good about America." She also claimed to like classic hip-hop, you know, from the good ol' days when rhymes were as benign as, "I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast, but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast." (Which, if we're being fair, should mean she's a fan of Beastie Boys' "The Move," too.)

    "I'm saying this not a proponent of stifling any kind of free speech. I am obviously a proponent of free speech," she said. "I'm not anti-rap. In fact, like Bret Baier, I know the lyrics to 'Rapper's Delight,' too," she added, referring to the Fox News personality, who busted into the Sugarhill Gang's 1979 song at the Bob Hope

    Read More »from Sarah Palin Believes Hip-Hop Fell Off After 1979

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News for You

  • Palace sheds some light on Kate's baby plans

    LONDON (AP) — With Prince William and the former Kate Middleton expecting their first child in mid-July — and much of the world interested in the birth of a future monarch — the royals' office has released some of the couple's plans, although many details are still being kept private. Kate has made several public appearances recently but is expected to keep a low profile in the final weeks of her pregnancy. Here is the latest news about the infant who will, upon entering the world, be third in line for the British throne.

  • Mom: RI theater threw out disabled girl over noise

    NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (AP) — A woman says she and her 5-year-old developmentally disabled daughter were thrown out of a theater during a "Beauty and the Beast" performance because the girl was making giggling and humming noises she makes when she's happy.

  • Cher credits luck for her lengthy career

    UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. (AP) — Cher is no stranger to tabloid fodder.

  • Jenner: Kim Kardashian 'thrilled for the new baby'

    LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kris Jenner says her daughter Kim Kardashian is thrilled to have a new baby girl.

  • 'The Voice' Winner: Who Did the Experts Choose?

    By Jethro Nededog LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - NBC's "The Voice" will crown another winner on Tuesday night's finale. Season 4's three finalists - Daniellle Bradbury, Michelle Shamuel and The Swon Brothers - battled it out for the title on Monday's performance finale episode. Before the performances, coaches Blake Shelton, Adam Levine, Shakira and Usher performed The Beatles' "With A Little Help From My Friends." The Top 16 then got together for the second group performance of the night on Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros' "Home. ...

  • Miss Utah latest beauty queen to botch answer

    LAS VEGAS (AP) — Miss Utah Marissa Powell is the latest beauty queen to trip on national television, not over her gown, but during the interview segment.

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