The Holy Grail of CDs

So, here it is. Finally. After months of trying to obtain a copy of what is becoming the Holy Grail of CDs: a box set of newly discovered live performances by Ella Fitzgerald from the early '60s, I finally have one in my hands. Yes, I am now the owner of Fitzgerald's "Twelve Nights in Hollywood."

I had a chance to buy a copy in November of last year at Soundscapes, one of Toronto's few remaining CD stores, but I didn't have enough money at the time, and when I returned to Soundscapes a week later, they were sold out. It was the same scenario on Amazon.com, which would quickly sell out of the set even when a new shipment came in. Who knew that a CD box set would be such a hot item in this digital age? I mean, who buys CDs anymore? And who buys box sets?

Surprisingly, there have been a number of excellent box sets released in the few years. Sony/Legacy has released some superb box sets on Roy Orbison, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Hall & Oates and Elvis Presley in recent years. Labels Atlantic Records, Motown and Warner Bros have released box sets covering their respective histories. I imagine the high prices for these sets give the record companies a good profit; otherwise, we wouldn't see so many box sets released these days.

But I'm most impressed by the success of Verve's "Ella Fitzgerald: Twelve Nights in Hollywood." There has been such a high demand for this collection of unreleased live performances by the legendary jazz vocalist. Fitzgerald's releases are readily available on CD (her Songbook series has been very successful on all formats from vinyl to CD), but this latest box set will surely be a collector's item. Word has it that Verve has only pressed a certain amount of copies, making this collection a limited edition.

I still buy CDs regularly, but the release of "Twelve Nights in Hollywood" has been a true event. Obviously, finding unreleased material by Fitzgerald is significant enough, but as with their previous releases of Fitzgerald's work, Verve has done a superb job with the packaging of this set. Now that it is in my hands, I cannot wait to listen to the four discs of Fitzgerald giving an intimate performance at the Crescendo in the early '60s.

Many music fans are willing to pay big money for this set. Perhaps you will, too, especially if you're a jazz fan. I'm sure this will be a CD set you will want in your collection.

That is, if you can find it.

Does Kate Beckinsale...

...look for scripts that scream "CRAP" on the front page?

Whiteout? Seriously??

A once promising actress, Beckinsale has pushed aside period pieces in favour of crappy horror films like the Underworld series and now the ridiculous looking Whiteout.

Going to the movies... is a pain

Remember the days when movies were $2.50? Okay, I am showing my age here, but I DO remember the days when movies were cheap.

And there were no cell phones. No blackberries.

When popcorn and a coke wasn't veering on $15.

When butter was free.

Ah... butter. Butter has become a contentious issue for me at the movies in the past few years. When movie theatres (namely, Cineplex) started charging fifty cents for a squirt of popcorn, it made butter-on-my-popcorn lovers roll their eyes, but they would fork over the fifty cents, nonetheless.

Now, butter (at Cineplex theatres) is 69 cents. But if you want "layered butter," you have to pay extra. Meaning, you have to pay for each squirt of butter. Ridiculous! (This is why I like AMC. they do not charge for butter - they have self-serve butter and you get UNLIMITED BUTTER!! Also, their popcorn is way better!)

By the time you get your layered butter, your order for a large combo is almost $20. It's crazy.

And when you get into the theatre, you have to deal with 20 minutes of bad commercials (what is with those cow/milk commercials?), obnoxious couples talking throughout the movie, people twittering/texting/CALLING people DURING the movie, people sneaking into the movie halfway or three-quarters into the movie (imagine someone sneaking into Empire Strikes Back AFTER Darth Vader has revealed himself as Luke's father - if this was 1980, I'm sure it would happen!).

Maybe I wax nostalgic for the '80s, but I don't remember going to the movies being such a pain until the last 10 to 15 years when prices became ridiculously high and patrons began bringing in every piece of hardware they could find into theatres.

I love going to the movies. I love the experience of enjoying a film WITH an audience. But I prefer watching a movie with an audience who wants to experience the film - not their cellphone, not their iPod or keep getting up and down from their seat. And the prices of movies (save for Rainbow Cinemas) has become a turn-off.

I have a projector at home. Perhaps I should watch my films at home.

And I can have as much butter as I want - without paying 69 cents per squirt.

Another sign your career is in decline...

"Now available at WALMART."

Kelly Clarkson - Already Gone?

For a pop star who was manufactured through the American Idol system, Kelly Clarkson is refreshingly honest.

Unlike so many artists who spin the typical record company PR, Clarkson remains blunt and down-to-earth, eight years into her career as the first - and most successful American Idol winner.

A few years ago, when Clarkson released My December, she and Clive Davis got into a public debate over the album's lack of commercial hits: Clarkson wanted to follow her heart as a serious songwriter, while Davis wanted Clarkson to record another album of monster radio hits, something she had done on her previous album, Breakaway. In the end, Clarkson stuck to her guns and was able to release the album she wanted. While the album was not as big a seller as Breakaway, Clarkson found new respect amongst fans for not being another record company puppet.

Clarkson compromised a little by recording All I Ever Wanted, a more pop-leaning album than My December, and with the album's first hit single, My Life Would Suck Without You. The album's third single, Already Gone, is courting controversy because the single, written by Ryan Tedder, sounds similar to another song Tedder wrote for Beyonce, entitled Halo, and which was recently a Top 10 hit.

According to a CBC interview, Clarkson explains her side of the story:

We wrote about six songs together, four or five of them made the album. It was all fine and dandy. I’d never heard of a song called ‘Halo.’ Her album came out when my album was already being printed. No-one’s gonna be sittin’ at home, thinking ‘Man, Ryan Tedder gave Beyonce and Kelly the same track to write to.’ No, they’re just gonna be saying I ripped someone off. I called Ryan and said, ‘I don’t understand. Why would you do that?’”

Clarkson fought the record label from releasing it, but the song has been released to radio. Sure there are similarities, but Clarkson's vocal performance is strong - as usual. But, again, it shows Clarkson's courage in defying her record company. Some may call her ungrateful or bratty, but I find her refreshing and honest, traits you don't see in a mostly cookie-cutter pop world. It's even more surprising considering Clarkson comes from American Idol, which is about singing other people's songs and molding in one's self into America's fantasy of an ideal pop star.

There are rumours Clarkson may be dropped from her record label and Clive Davis' good graces. That would not be surprising, considering Clarkson appears unwilling to censor herself. I hope Kelly doesn't change.

Whitney's Return

Whitney Houston's long-awaited comeback is in full swing. And the most anticipated part of her return has been whether or not her voice is still there.

Of all the pop singers of the past 25 years, Houston has been considered "The Voice." More so than Celine Dion and Mariah Carey. In her prime, nobody could sing like Whitney.

Carey's voice has deteriorated in the past few years, surprisingly, thanks to her meltdown in 2001 and evidently not taking proper care of her voice. Dion is still a strong singer, but her style of singing is simply not heard on radio anymore.

Houston rose to fame like Dion with her powerhouse vocals and syrupy ballads, which simply don't fly on pop stations carrying the latest R&B/hip-hop hits from Beyonce, Rihanna, and Flo Rida. So far, three tracks have been leaked from Houston's upcoming album I Look to You, including the title track (written by R. Kelly) and "I Didn't Know My Own Strength" (written by Diane Warren). The latter track is typical Warren-style schmaltz: full of tired cliches about finding strength in one's self. I'm sure it's supposed to pull the heartstrings considering what Houston has been through for the past ten years, but the song is so syrupy, even Houston cannot sell it. The other problem is, sadly, Houston's voice has deteriorated - badly. Houston's creamy smooth vocals have been replaced by a roughness that suggests that the luster in her voice has completely disappeared.

The title track is a better song, and a reminder that despite his, um, extra-curricular activities, R. Kelly is a superb songwriter (he provided Michael Jackson with his last number-one hit in America, "You Are Not Alone.") But Houston's performance, while heartfelt, is hampered by her haggard voice. Despite the excellent production, nothing can distract from the fact that Houston's voice is in rough shape.

Like many, I was hoping Houston's comeback would be a triumph a la Tina Turner in the '80s, or even Carey's a few years back. I've got to give Houston credit for pulling her life together.

But there's no avoiding the fact, "The Voice" is gone.

Is Off the Wall Michael Jackson's best album?

As the world continues to grapple with Michael Jackson's death on June 25th, copies of his magnum opus, Thriller, and greatest hits collections continue to sell out on Amazon.com and in stores. But the one album that SHOULD be selling out is Off the Wall.

Recorded and released in 1979, Off the Wall wasn't Michael Jackson's first album, but it might as well have been. Jackson had already recorded a few albums when he was with Motown, but those albums were really just to sell singles and Jackson had no contribution to the song-writing or producing. Off the Wall was Jackson's first solo album on Epic Records, and produced by Quincy Jones, and it was the first album that showed Michael Jackson was more than just some teen pop star; he was a genuinely talented song-writer and performer. He wrote the album's first single, Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough, one of his most enduring hits, a song that effortlessly blends pop, soul and disco. But the rest of Off the Wall is just as good, just as funky and - yes - just as sexy.

While Thriller may get voted as Michael Jackson's best album, I would argue Off the Wall is the superior album. It's looser, funkier and more organic, whereas Thriller is more calculating, trying to be the biggest pop album ever (on many levels it does succeed), but Off the Wall is simply more fun. Try resisting the grooves of "Rock With You," "It's the Falling in Love," and the title track. And Jackson sings "She's Out of My Life" with pure emotion.

So, if you cannot find a copy of Thriller at HMV, and you don't own Off the Wall, pick up this album, Jackson's finest moment.