Jean-Jacques Perrey, French composer and electronic music pioneer, died Friday at his home in Switzerland following a bout with lung cancer. He was 87. His daughter, Patricia Leroy, confirmed the musician’s death to Rolling Stone. “As the owner of indie label Oglio Records, I have had the pleasure of encountering hundreds of artists but I rarely have the opportunity to work with legends,” Oglio Records owner Carl Caprioglio, a friend of Perrey’s who released his 2006 album The Happy Electropop Music Machine, tells Rolling Stone. “Jean-Jacques Perrey is a legend and I am thankful I had the chance to help share his beautiful and uplifting music with the world. My heart goes out to his daughter Patricia, his recent musical collaborator Dana Countryman and to all of his many fans worldwide.” Perrey’s career in music started in the Fifties when he left medical school to craft musique concrete compositions. During this period, Perrey became … [Read more...] about Jean-Jacques Perrey, Electronic Music Pioneer, Dead at 87
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Watch One Direction Bring Intimate ‘Four’ Tracks to ‘SNL’
It’s still too early to say that One Direction have joined the ranks of Alec Baldwin and Christopher Walken as Saturday Night Live mainstays, but the British pop quintet are quickly becoming an annual tradition on SNL. For the third time in three years, 1D served as musical guest on Saturday Night Live, performing two Four tracks, “Night Changes” and “Ready to Run,” on the festive, Amy Adams-hosted episode, the last SNL of 2014. While One Direction’s “Night Changes” at the American Music Awards fell flat – Rolling Stone called that night’s lackluster performance “corny” – the laidback Four single worked much better within the more intimate confines of SNL‘s Studio 8H. Supported by what sounded like an army of Directioners in the SNL audience, the biggest pop band on the planet bounced back from early microphone trouble – in fact, both songs started out with hollow vocals … [Read more...] about Watch One Direction Bring Intimate ‘Four’ Tracks to ‘SNL’
Queen Pair 1984 Single ‘Thank God It’s Christmas’ With New Animated Video
Queen have paired their rare and festive 1984 single “Thank God It’s Christmas” with a new animated video. The visual, directed by animator Justin Moon, captures the holiday season through the perspective of an apartment building, with all the tenants celebrating Christmas in their own unique ways. At video’s end, the tenants congregate on the building’s roof to watch the snow fall and the Northern Lights. “Thank God It’s Christmas” was released as a non-album single in 1984, spending six months on the charts that holiday season before it was released on Queen’s Greatest Hits III in 1999. Brian May said of the re-release in a statement, “The video goes a little further by including a subtle reminder that we as humans now need to feel a responsibility for the welfare of ALL creatures on Earth – not just for our own benefit, and that of our grandchildren, but out of respect for the rights of the animals themselves.” … [Read more...] about Queen Pair 1984 Single ‘Thank God It’s Christmas’ With New Animated Video
Watch Niall Horan’s Electric Performance of ‘Nice To Meet Ya’ on ‘SNL’
Nearly five years after Niall Horan first performed on Saturday Night Live alongside One Direction, the singer returned to the series as a solo artist, serving as musical guest for the Scarlett Johansson-hosted episode. For his first set, Horan blistered through the lead single of his upcoming debut studio album “Nice To Meet Ya” in a Miami Vice-inspired suit. Horan delivered a confidently charming performance of the Brit-pop track with a backdrop of neon blue lights. Later in the show, the musician returned to Studio 8H in all black for a more subdued performance of his heartfelt ballad “Put a Little Love on Me,” accompanied by a piano and a violin. Horan also appeared in the sketch “Hot Tub Christmas,” where he played a cigarette smoking, sideburn-sporting ghost named “Big Jim” alongside Johansson and Cecily Strong, who played the ghosts of dead strippers. Together, they haunt a hot tub singing a bizarrely catchy song recalling how a … [Read more...] about Watch Niall Horan’s Electric Performance of ‘Nice To Meet Ya’ on ‘SNL’
Amy Adams on ‘SNL’: 3 Sketches You Have to See
It’s hard to believe that it has been well over six years since Amy Adams hosted Saturday Night Live for the very first time – she memorably battled then-cast member Kristen Wiig in her opening monologue, a jazzy little number that was unexpectedly resurrected during Adams’ latest round of hosting – because the Oscar-nominated actress slipped right back into the fold with nearly infectious energy and plenty of so-called “flash and sizzle.” Adams’ unique mix of wide-eyed charm and genuine talent was a cheery fit for the show’s annual Christmas show, the television sketch comedy equivalent of a big glass of hot cocoa. Delicious! The last episode of SNL for the 2014 calendar year was an appropriately festive one, but it was also an entry that included some big nods to uncomfortable current events, which just so happens to be SNL‘s sweet spot. Complete with a surprisingly large batch of returning talents – from former … [Read more...] about Amy Adams on ‘SNL’: 3 Sketches You Have to See