Wednesday, December 09, 2020

Sights and Sounds: Joe Walsh's Fourth Annual VetsAid 2020 Lineup; Creedence Clearwater Revival 180-Gram Vinyl reissues; Béla Fleck documentary

 More than a little news here to share!! Robert Kinsler


Joe Walsh presents updated final lineup and details for this Saturday's Festival Livestream –
His Fourth Annual VetsAid 2020 - Home For The Holidays:
 
NEARLY 50 PERFORMANCES AND APPEARANCES
FROM ARTISTS ACROSS THE USA INCLUDING:
 
NEVER BEFORE BROADCAST FROM THE VETSAID ARCHIVES:
SHERYL CROW, THE DOOBIE BROTHERS, HAIM, DON HENLEY,
JASON ISBELL AND THE 400 UNIT, BRAD PAISLEY, RINGO STARR,
JAMES TAYLOR, KEITH URBAN, JOE WALSH AND ZZ TOP
 
AND NEW PERFORMANCES AND/OR APPEARANCES FROM:
RYAN BINGHAM, JON BON JOVI, THE 5 BROWNS, JIMMY BUFFETT, 
DREW CAREY, KENNY CHESNEY, ALICE COOPER,
KENNY “BABYFACE” EDMONDS, MELISSA ETHERIDGE,
BRANDON FLOWERS, MARY GAUTHIER, VINCE GILL,
PATTY GRIFFIN, DARYL HALL, BEN HARPER,
JAMES HETFIELD, JEWEL, AMJAD ALI KHAN, AMAAN AND AYAAN, THE LUMINEERS, RICHARD MARX, TIM MCGRAW,
WILLIE NELSON AND THE BOYS, PHILLIP PHILLIPS,
NATHANIEL RATELIFF, JOSH RITTER, BLAKE SHELTON,
JAKE SHIMABUKURO, AMANDA SHIRES, GWEN STEFANI,
BILLY BOB THORNTON/THE BOXMASTERS, STEVEN VAN ZANDT,
EDDIE VEDDER, RUFUS WAINWRIGHT, 
JOE WALSH AND VERDINE WHITE 
  
VETSAID 2020: HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
TO BE STREAMED ONLINE DECEMBER 12, 2020
AND AVAILABLE FOR RESTREAM THROUGH DECEMBER 14, 2020
 
Tickets on-sale now at vetsaid.veeps.com






Wednesday, December 9, 2020 (Los Angeles, CA.) – Joe Walsh reveals the final artist lineup and details for this Saturday’s VetsAid 2020: Home for the Holidays today, boasting nearly 50 performances and appearances, the multi-hour music festival will raise sorely needed funds to veterans services groups across the country. Join Joe and his friends December 12 for a worldwide broadcast of unique performances, never-before-seen VetsAid footage from years past and great stories from some of the greatest musicians in the world. VetsAid is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee and multi-GRAMMY Award winning musician's national 501(c)3 non-profit veterans organization.
 
“Wow – what a show we have this year! Such a diverse and wonderful line up!” Walsh explains, “When you have something like this you humbly ask your friends and colleagues and hope a couple will sign on – kind of like going fishing – but this year everyone I asked said yes! And now it’s turned into a virtual music festival like no other. We know the plight of our vets is hard enough in the best of times, and they are especially vulnerable during this pandemic.
 
“I am proud of this nationwide tradition we’ve created and I’m so glad we can have this show during the holidays featuring all these artists that I love. I’ve got a great feeling about it and know fans will too. I hope it shows the Vets how many people care and want to help - I can’t think of a better way to remember and honor the men and women who have served our country this holiday season than by helping us raise funds to support their essential and basic needs.”   
  
This ticketed event will be streamed on December 12 starting at 6pm ET via vetsaid.veeps.com and will also be available for restream through December 14.
 
Tickets and merch bundles are available now at vetsaid.veeps.com and will be priced from $20 with discounts available for active duty military and veterans using the promo code VALOR.
 
Joe Walsh launched VetsAid on September 20, 2017 with an inaugural concert at the EagleBank Arena in Fairfax, VA. The second festival event was in Tacoma, WA and the third in Houston, TX.  VetsAid typically seeks to host the events in cities across the country with large veteran populations. The shows have included performances by musicians including James Taylor, Chris Stapleton, Don Henley, ZZ Top, Sheryl Crow, The Doobie Brothers, Zac Brown Band, Jason Isbell, Keith Urban, Haim, Gary Clark Jr. and Joe’s brother-in-law Ringo.
 
VetsAid has raised nearly 1.5 million dollars and supports veterans and their families.

All net proceeds from the 2020 festival will go directly to the veterans’ services charities selected through a vetting process coordinated in tandem with the Combined Arms Institute.
 
For more information, please visit www.vetsaid.org.


CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL’S PENDULUM AND MARDI GRAS
SET FOR HALF-SPEED MASTERED 180-GRAM VINYL REISSUES

Band’s sixth and seventh studio albums include classic hits
“Have You Ever Seen the Rain,” “Hey Tonight,” and “Sweet Hitch-Hiker”


Click here to pre-order


Los Angeles, CA (December 9, 2020)—Craft Recordings continues their salute to the enduring musical legacy of Creedence Clearwater Revival with the release of half-speed mastered editions of the band’s two final albums: Pendulum, which was released exactly 50 years ago today (December 9, 1970), and their closing studio album, 1972’s Mardi Gras. Pressed on 180-gram vinyl and set for release February 12thboth records were mastered by the award-winning engineer Miles Showell at Abbey Road StudiosAvailable for pre-order beginning today, these audiophile-quality LPs come housed in beautifully crafted jackets (tip-on gatefold for Pendulum and embossed for Mardi Gras), replicating the albums’ original packaging.

Pendulum, which marked CCR’s second release of 1970—following Cosmo’s Factory—was a unique title in the band’s catalog for several reasons. First, the album was the group’s sole LP to feature all original material. Typically, CCR sprinkled covers of blues songs, traditional material, and rock ‘n’ roll standards into each of their albums, putting their own spin on classic favorites. Pendulum also found the guitar-heavy group expanding their sonic palate—experimenting with new sounds (including the use of saxophones, vocal choirs, and keyboards) and even venturing into psychedelia.

The quartet’s musical explorations paid off. Not only was Pendulum a critical success, but it also spawned two global Top Ten hits: the reflective “Have You Ever Seen the Rain” and the upbeat “Hey Tonight. The singles, released as a double A-side in 1971, peaked at No.8 on the Billboard Hot 100. Other highlights included the stomper “Molina, the bluesy “Pagan’s Groove” and the twangy “Sailor’s Lament.” Recently, “Have You Ever Seen the Rain” gained renewed popularity with the 2018 launch of a new official music video featuring Sasha Frolova, Jack Quaid, and Erin Moriarty (the latter two also featuring in Amazon’s smash hit series, The Boys), introducing the song to a new generation. To date, the video—available on the official CCR YouTube channel—has received over 61 million plays.

Creedence Clearwater Revival’s seventh and final studio album, 1972’s Mardi Gras, followed the departure of founding member and rhythm guitarist Tom Fogerty. The album, however, found the remaining trio of musicians taking a more collaborative approach to songwriting. Prior to Mardi Gras, frontman John Fogerty was the band’s creative leader—writing, arranging, and producing the majority of every album. For Mardi Gras, bassist Stu Cook and drummer Doug Clifford not only penned many of the tracks (including Cook’s hard-driving “Door to Door,” and Clifford’s rollicking “Tearin’ Up the Country”) but also sang on them. Other highlights off the album include a cover of the rockabilly classic “Hello Mary Lou,” as well as the Fogerty-penned rocker “Sweet Hitch-Hiker”—a Top Ten hit in the US, Australia, Canada, and across Europe. The poignant “Someday Never Comes,” meanwhile, marked the group’s final single.

While the band members went their separate ways after Mardi Gras, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s legacy only continued to grow. Today, CCR remains one of the best-selling groups of all time, thanks to their trove of generation-defining hits and their singular, roots-rock sound.

Roughly half a century later, CCR fans can enjoy a new vibrancy when they revisit Pendulum and Mardi Gras, thanks to the exacting process of half-speed mastering. Using high-res transfers from the original analog tapes, the process involves playing back the audio at half its recorded speed while the cutting lathe is also turned to half the desired playback speed. The technique allows more time to cut a micro-precise groove, resulting in more accuracy with frequency extremes and dynamic contrasts. The result on the turntables is an exceptional level of sonic clarity and punch.

Both of these special pressings were previously released only as part of Creedence’s collectible, seven-LP The Studio Albums Collection box set, and follow standalone reissues of the band’s first five albums—available here.

Earlier this year, the three surviving members of CCR spoke with Uncut and reflected on their time in the band. “We didn’t get to where we got just falling off a log,” said John Fogerty, as he spoke of the band’s tireless work ethic. “It’s a wonderful thing to have a goal and then to attain it, more or less.” Stu Cook compared the band’s rise to “a rocket ride, we went up so fast. We burned until we burned out, in three-and-a-half years from start to finish.” But, while brief, those years together brought the group unparalleled creative achievement and global success. “We had a magic band,” recalled Doug Clifford. “We got high playing the music.” Fogerty added that he was “humbly pleased” knowing that, 50 years later, CCR’s music “is still relevant, that people still care about it. That’s just so satisfying.”

Pre-order Pendulum or Mardi Gras half-speed masters, with special bundles offered via the Craft Recordings store. A limited gold vinyl edition of Pendulum is also available exclusively via Vinyl, Me Please.


Tracklist - Pendulum:

Side A:
1. Pagan Baby
2. Sailor’s Lament
3. Chameleon
4. Have You Ever Seen the Rain
5. (Wish I Could) Hideaway

Side B:
6. Born to Move
7. Hey Tonight
8. It’s Just a Thought
9. Molina
10. Rude Awakening #2

Tracklist - Mardi Gras:

Side A:
1. Lookin’ for a Reason
2. Take It Like a Friend
3. Need Someone to Hold
4. Tearin’ Up the Country
5. Someday Never Comes

Side B:
1. What Are You Going to Do
2. Sail Away
4. Hello Mary Lou
5. Door to Door
6. Sweet Hitch-Hiker


FREE LIVESTREAM OF DOCUMENTARY FILM
THROW DOWN YOUR HEART
WITH Q&A FROM BÉLA AND DIRECTOR SASCHA PALADINO
 
TUNE IN FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11 @ 7:00PM ET
 
CELEBRATING GRAMMY® NOMINATION FOR BEST HISTORICAL ALBUM




Los Angeles, CA (December 9, 2020)─Bringing good cheer for the holidays, Béla Fleck and his brother, director Sascha Paladino, will be hosting a live screening of their acclaimed documentary film Throw Down Your Heart this Friday (12/11) at 7:00 pm ET via Facebook Live and YouTube. The free event, in association with NPR Live Sessions, the Americana Music Association, and co-presenter Folk Alliance International, will include an introduction from Béla followed by an interactive Q&A with Béla joined by Sascha.

Released earlier this year, Throw Down Your Heart: The Complete Africa Sessions is the comprehensive film and music collection from Béla Fleck’s remarkable journey across Africa to explore the roots of the banjo. The expanded collection includes the three-time GRAMMY®-winning albums Tales from the Acoustic Planet, Vol. 3—Africa Sessions and Africa Sessions Part 2: Unreleased Tracks, as well as a previously unreleased duo album with kora master Toumani Diabaté, titled The Ripple Effect. The package also offers the complete film Throw Down Your Heart, with commentary from Fleck and Paladino, along with 14 bonus performances.

The 3-CD/1-DVD boxed set, also available digitally, has been nominated for the 2021 Best Historical Album GRAMMY® Award.

Watch the trailer for the Throw Down Your Heart film here, or stream/order Throw Down Your Heart: The Complete Africa Sessions album here.


“It’s about damn time somebody drew the line back!” 
 Pete Seeger

“This is a story of how Béla Fleck, America’s most celebrated banjoist, went on a quest in search of his musical soul mate’s African roots—and wound up discovering himself… Throw Down Your Heart is not just a stunning documentary and soundtrack, but an important work of artistic memory and conscience.” 
 Los Angeles Times

“Traditional African music turns out to suit him beautifully… At every turn Mr. Fleck works respectfully, learning and adapting, trusting sameness over difference.”
– The New York Times

“…a dazzling film. Throw Down Your Heart is proof positive that music is life.”
– Michael McKean

“With Throw Down Your Heart, Béla Fleck has contributed significantly to the history of the banjo, as well as inventing a style of music never before played on this great instrument.”
– Steve Martin

Throw Down Your Heart speaks to your heart all along the way, making the case, subtly but clearly, that we are connected… A beautiful, poignant and well-crafted film.”
– Zakir Hussain

“...inspiring, touching, and filled with moments that celebrate life. The connection between music and the essence of human existence has been beautifully captured…”
– Christopher Guest

“Today in the world everything seems to be about quantity, but I think the quality is the most important thing. This film is quality. I learned things that I did not know about Africa and African music. It will help social and cultural development... people without culture are people without soul!”
– Toumani Diabaté

“It’s the living of a dream. The genuine warmth, affinity, respect and love between Béla and the amazing African musicians he met is beautifully captured. Very inspiring and uplifting.”
– Chick Corea

“I thought it was so strange and moving and beautiful.”
– Neil Gaiman

“Love the movie! Beautiful and inspiring. In some of those improvs I asked myself, ‘How did he ever figure out where ‘one’ was?’... Great playing, and a stunning documentary.”
– Joe Satriani

Throw Down Your Heart is a passionate exploration of music and the connections it seems to instantly and effortlessly form between cultures. Hooray for Béla Fleck for packing up his banjo and taking it to Africa.”
– Ann Patchett

“It completely blew me away. I don’t think I have ever seen such a complete musician at work, what a joy it was to behold.”
– Billy Connolly


About Béla Fleck:
15-time GRAMMY® award winner Béla Fleck has reinvented the image and the sound of the banjo through a remarkable career in bluegrass, jazz, classical, pop and beyond, and has been nominated in more categories than any other artist in GRAMMY history.  

About Folk Alliance International:
Folk Alliance International (FAI) was founded in 1989 to connect folk music leaders aiming to sustain the community and genre. Today FAI is the leading international voice for folk music with a network of more than 3,000 members. Folk Alliance International’s mission is to serve, strengthen, and engage the global folk music community through preservation, presentation, and promotion. FAI defines folk broadly as “the music of the people” (reflective of any community they are from), and programs a diverse array of subgenres including, but not limited to Appalachian, Americana, Blues, Bluegrass, Celtic, Cajun, Global Roots, Hip-Hop, Old-Time, Singer-Songwriter, Spoken Word, Traditional, Zydeco, and various fusions.

About Rounder Records:
Rounder Records is one of the world's most historic Americana and bluegrass record labels. Rounder’s rich catalog includes critically-acclaimed offerings by iconic artists like Gregg Allman, Alison Krauss, and Steve Martin as well as rising stars Samantha Fish, Sierra Hull, I’m With Her, Sarah Jarosz, Ruston Kelly, the SteelDrivers, Billy Strings, and The War And Treaty. Rounder has consistently demonstrated a commitment to nurture and develop careers over the long haul—a number of artists who got their start at Rounder are still recording with the label today, including Jerry Douglas, Béla Fleck, and George Thorogood. A leader in the preservation of precious historic recordings, Rounder has brought the music of the Carter Family, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, and Jelly Roll Morton back to vibrant life and released epic anthologies from the Library of Congress and the Alan Lomax Collection that have been universally acclaimed.

About Craft Recordings:
Craft Recordings is home to one of the largest and most prestigious collections of master recordings and compositions in the world. Its rich and storied repertoire includes legendary artists such as Joan Baez, Ray Charles, John Coltrane, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Miles Davis, Bill Evans, Vince Guaraldi, John Lee Hooker, Little Richard, Nine Inch Nails, Thelonious Monk, Otis Redding, R.E.M. and Traveling Wilburys, to name just a few. Renowned imprints with catalogs issued under the Craft banner include Concord, Fania, Fantasy, Fearless, Milestone, Musart, Nitro, Prestige, Riverside, Rounder, Specialty, Stax, Sugar Hill, Vanguard, Vee-Jay and Victory, among many others. Craft creates thoughtfully curated packages, with a meticulous devotion to quality and a commitment to preservation—ensuring that these recordings endure for new generations to discover. Craft Recordings is the catalog label team for Concord Recorded Music. For more info, visitCraftRecordings.com and follow on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,YouTube, and Spotify


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