TOP GRAMMY PERFORMANCES

1. LADY GAGA and ELTON JOHN

These two great performers didn't need sooty faces, an over the top stage or ridiculous outfits because the piano playing and vocals stood on their own. The way it should be for true artists!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTkgaKG3qdw

2. PINK

If you saw her Funhouse tour, then you know tonight's performance was nothing new. However, I'm so glad she opened more people's eyes to how good of a performer she is! This Philly girl is super talented and I've been trying to spread the gospel of Pink for years. Maybe America will finally figure out what Europe and Australia have known for years.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOzzygbKsiw

3. BEYONCE

She took a chance covering "You Oughta Know" and she owned it! I could have done without all the hair flipping, but her pipes and the musical arrangement landed her in my top 3.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzzlG8JKIvQ

FLOP OF THE NIGHT

I really hate to say this, but Taylor Swift and Stevie Nicks just didn't work. I still love you Stevie and please just let Lindsay buy the rights to your story.

-Tammy Good

FOR MATT NATHANSON FANS

On my flight from Los Angeles to San Francisco today I met Mark Weinberg, a very nice guy who turned out to be Matt Nathanson's longtime friend and collaborator. Weinberg was headed to the bay area to work on new material with Nathanson. No date for the new album is known, but it will probably arrive late 2010.

For those not familiar with Nathanson, he is a singer-songwriter best known for the hit "Come On Get Higher," co-written by Weinberg. The single peaked at number 59 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was later covered by Sugarland.

-Tammy Good

KATY PERRY WAKES UP VEGAS!

Unlike Three 6 Mafia (see previous post), Katy Perry knows how to host a party in Las Vegas!

Perry was the special guest at Haze nightclub Saturday and around 1 a.m. she brought her high energy self to the stage. Wearing a short sparkly dress, the newly engaged singer got the enthusiastic crowd singing along to her hits "Hot N Cold" and "Waking Up In Vegas."


She defiantly delivered for Haze and validated the beautiful crowds choice saying, "I hear Haze is the place to be!"







Upon exiting the stage, Perry was beaming as she took time to pose with fans.

-Tammy Good (entry and photo's)

ME AND........

Gabe Saporta from Cobra Starship (1/23/2010 @ Haze)

DISTASTEFUL APPEARANCE BY THREE 6 MAFIA

Some friends and I headed out to Rain, a club at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas last night to see DJ Z*Trip spin. Also on the bill were Memphis rappers Three 6 Mafia, who ended up doing more talking than rapping.

Mafia went on at 1:30 a.m. and literally performed one song. The rest of the time they made women show their breasts while they threw out CD's, handed out bottles of Grey Goose and told everyone including Z*Trip what to do. Their attitude was horrendous and their behavior was obnoxious.

I couldn't wait until the Oscar winners got off stage. Many at the club felt the same as the bar and bathrooms seemed to get more crowded and the dance floor emptied. Three 6 Mafia interrupted a perfectly good set by Z*Trip and the DJ never seemed to get the momentum back after their nonsense.

-Tammy Good

RADIOHEAD PLAYING HAITI BENEFIT

Radiohead is playing a benefit concert for Haiti this Sunday at the Music Box Fonda Theater in Los Angeles. Tickets are ONLY available via auction, which is running now through Saturday January 23rd at 11AM PST.

For details go to: http://www.ticketmaster.com/auction/09004434FC1C86AC/1/?tm_link=edp_auction

Update 1/25/2010: $500,000 raised at benefit show

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100126/ap_en_mu/us_music_radiohead_haiti

-Tammy Good

CHECK OUT DANIEL MERRIWEATHER!

I've had Daniel Merriweather's CD Love & War in my player ever since I picked it up in Paris last summer. The Aussie's major label debut saw Mark Ronson (Amy Winehouse, Lily Allen) produce an album filled with striking lyrics and soulful sounds.

I was so excited to see Merriweather's first LA show tonight and he didn't disappoint. His passion and unique voice captivated the sold out crowd as he belted out stirring renditions of "Chainsaw" and "Change" while mixing in covers of "You Don't Know What Love Is" and "Maybe I'm Amazed."

Love & War will not be released in the U.S. until February, but the single "Red" is currently available on iTunes. Keep your eye out for the album and defiantly listen to "Water And A Flame," his duet with Adele.

For more info visit http://www.danielmerriweather.com/us/home

Update 1/22/2010: Love & War goes platinum in U.K.

-Tammy Good (entry and photo's)

ALL IN THE RONSON FAMILY

DJ Samantha Ronson may only have become a household name in the last couple years, (thanks in part to the hounding paparazzi) but she's been around the DJ scene for years and music most of her life.

Ronson is the step daughter of Foreigner's Mick Jones and the sister of artist/producer/DJ Mark Ronson. And tonight she opened for Daniel Merriweater, the Aussie sensation who's signed to Mark's Allido Records.

Many may dismiss Samantha Ronson's skills, but she knows her way around the turntables. I've seen her spin several times in various environments and her mashups always stand out- tonight was NO exception. I'm not sure how many folks would mix "In The Air Tonight" with "Hypnotize" or G N' R with "Uptown Girl."

It's not surprising that she once said her brother and DJ AM taught her everything she knows, as I've been fortunate to have seen both perform. She possesses the two qualities that I like most in a DJ- she keeps the dance floor moving and she never opens her mouth.

Getting a chance to see her may be difficult as she often spins invite only parties or places like Crown Bar, Teddy's and Apple with strict door policies. However, she's often in Vegas and Atlantic City so dress to impress and get your dance shoes ready because she's worth the price of admission.

-Tammy Good (entry and photo)

COACHELLA LINEUP ANNOUNCED

Jay-Z, Gorillaz, and Muse will headline the 2010 Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California. The legendary three day festival starts April 16th and will also include sets by MGMT, Vampire Weekend, Devo, Grace Jones and David Guetta.

Coachella has always delighted fans with unique performances and this year will be no different. Thom Yorke is slated to perform a solo set and bands like Faith No More and Sly & The Family Stone are set to reunite. Plus you just never know who will make their way on stage because you never know who is in the crowd hanging out.

All the artists for this years festival can be found at http://www.coachella.com/.

Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend Coachella this year. However, if you go, here are some artists (found in the small black print of the lineup page) that you may not have heard of that I would recommend checking out: Band of Skulls, Florence + the Machine, La Roux, Little Boots, The Big Pink and Shooter Jennings.

-Tammy Good

MUSICIANS TWEET FOR HAITI

Normally, musicians use Twitter as a publicity machine to promote their projects or to post random thoughts so we remember they exist. However, in the last 24 hours artists like Fred Durst, Pink, Mark Ronson, and Plushgun have all used Twitter for a different reason. They have used the social networking powerhouse to ask people to donate via text to organizations that are helping Haiti in this time of tragedy.

Exactly how much influence these musicians have on the public is hard to say, but overall Wednesday was, "the biggest day in the history of mobile giving in the U.S." per Verizon Wireless spokesman Jeffery Nelson. It is estimated that over $1 million was donated directly from mobile phones to the Red Cross alone.

God bless the folks of Haiti and thank you to the artists that spread the word via Twitter and other social networking outlets.

-Tammy Good

PATTI SMITH TO RELEASE MEMOIR

Just Kids, a book by the "Godmother of Punk" Patti Smith is being published on January 19th. The book explores her relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe and their artistic journey in New York City.

If you can't wait until the nineteenth the latest Rolling Stone offers excerpts from Just Kids, including this dandy -"I sat on the floor as Kris Kistofferson sang 'Me and Bobby McGee' to Janis. I was there for these moments, but so young I hardly recognized them."

THE RUNAWAYS DEBUTING AT SUNDANCE

After years of speculation, a biopic of The Runaways was finally filmed this past summer and will debut at Sundance Film Festival later this month. The Runaways, stars Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett and Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie. Focusing on Jett and Currie, the film chronicles the all-girl teenage rock bands formation, rise to fame, turbulent relations and hard partying ways.

The group only lasted five years, but they changed the way the world viewed female rock bands!

The movie hits theaters March 19, but here's a look at the trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlCK8nJDvHg

-Tammy Good

BETH HART IS IN THE STUDIO!

YES, Beth Hart is back in the studio working on new material.

Per her twitter:

1. Today was the 1st day of writing with the band!11:01 PM Jan 8th from web
2. In the studio with the band tomorrow. Gonna try and write some hard rock songs.9:53 AM Jan 7th from web

Exciting stuff! If you are not familiar with Beth Hart and her live show, here's a morsel. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHWYW6Tw67A

PASSION FOR PUNK

I LOVE PASSIONATE PEOPLE! And I especially love people that are passionate about music. Joe Sib, is one of those people- he's passionate about punk music.

I recently saw Sib's one man show CALIFORNIA CALLING, where he enthusiastically talks about how he discovered punk music and how that one day at a skate park changed his life. A life that is punk rock.

Sib has played in several bands including WAX and 22 Jacks. Today, he hosts Complete Control Radio, a show dedicated to you guessed it- punk music. Recent playlists included known artists like Bad Religion, Circle Jerks and The Ramones, but Sib also features up-and-coming bands like The Riverboat Gamblers and Dead To Me.

If you are into punk music and haven't heard the show, here you go:

http://www.completecontrolradio.com/pages/index.php

LAST 5 DOWNLOADS

FLORENCE + the MACHINE

"You've Got the Love"

"Drumming Song"

CAROLINA LIAR

"Show Me What I'm Looking for"

"I'm Not Over"

"Coming to Terms"

HAVE YOU HEARD JESSE MALIN?

If the answer to that question is NO, then I suggest you make it a YES.

I discovered Malin a few years ago at Austin City Limits Music Festival, but NOT by mistake. I did my homework. You can't go to a large music festival like ACL and just wonder around, you have to have a game plan. So I listened to all the artists in that time slot and I picked Jesse. I picked Jesse because of his unique voice and stirring lyrics.

Tonight, I got a chance to see him again, in a totally different environment. Tonight, Malin played to an intimate crowd at Largo, a small theater in Los Angeles. The setting was perfect- Malin alone on stage with the same Gibson guitar and Penn State t-shirt that I had seen him in a couple years ago, telling stories of his NYC childhood and CBGB days.

Malin is slated to release new material this spring, but don't wait until then. I recommend checking out "Brooklyn," "Aftermath," "Bastards Of Young" and "Broken Radio" his duet with Bruce Springsteen.

Enjoy :)

http://www.jessemalin.com/