http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8225731.stm

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/...

Morrissey that is! Had the great pleasure to see him in Hull last night (although the less said about the venue the better). Was my eighth time I think and, by a country mile, the best. I don't wish to debate his worth or why his band are not a patch on his previous combo - a point I strongly disagree with by the way (and I LOVE the Smiths). No, I wish to praise the mans voice. After all the stick Dylan gets for his failing pipes on this blog I wanted to say what a wondrous thing Moz's voice has become. Simply amazing and it just seems to be getting better and better. Am afraid the poster some way down here who sold his tickets has made a terrible mistake, Moz is as good as he's ever been and you owe it to yourself to see him in his (and the bands) current pomp.

"The problem is what's proven to be the successful part is the free bit."

I LOVE Spotify but the free option is really all you need so how can they keep going? Does anyone think this will work?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7971784.stm

Am ashamed to say I don't own any CD's despite admiring the guy for years. As he's come up in the Duffy thread below, which has SO incensed me tonight (jesus, she needs to cut that crap out right away before those pricks ruin her career), where should I start with Bill's stuff? iTunes is open and ready to go so please point me in the right direction. Cheers!

than this is STILL ****ing marvellous!

I've only just seen that yet another of rocks forgotten foot soldiers has passed away.

http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-dewey-martin6-2009feb06,0,7...

Spotify link here:

http://open.spotify.com/artist/3eskO5m0H4yiF64vRySBjr

Great band, great drummer.

and eventually he'll hang himself (hopefully).

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7873624.stm

I blog on here quite a lot about Springsteen and I make no apologies for that. Listening to his new album I have been move to tears listening to the The Last Carnival which is his tribute to Danny Federici. If you have any feelings for the E Street Band give it a listen, its quite simply one of the most moving songs I've ever heard. Danny's son Jason plays on the track. His dad would be proud.

Great interview with Bruce Springsteen and free download on the Observer site here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/jan/18/bruce-springsteen-interview

no idea if this Mark Hagen is the same one who posts here but great work any way!

In response to DrJ's blog re: 'Let's not buy any CD's' I have this to report. A couple of years ago I 'downgraded' my music system to a funky little Denon system that had all the whistles and bells that modern technology allows including a hard drive to store MP3's. Although the sound quality was less than I was used to, as i was by now mostly listening to music via my Mac with a reasonable pair of speakers attached I didn't really notice too much difference. I still bought a lot of CD's but once ripped to MP3 I rarely played the actual disc - something I'm guessing a lot on here can relate to. Why still buy the disc then when downloading is so cheap and easy you might ask. Well, I still want the actual 'record' with all that that brings in terms of sleeve and information, etc and I'm just too oldskool now to give up the collecting aspect I guess.

So to the point of this blog. A few weeks before christmas the Denon system began to get very temperamental to the point were I decided to replace it. However, having started to miss the sound quality I had before, I went for a separate amp & cd player and brought my old pair of Mission speakers down from the loft. I have always kept a turntable operational so I was good to go in time for a bit of R & R over the holiday period. Now I don't want to come over all Neil Young but the difference was a revelation! EVERYTHING sounded better! I'd bought the 'Kind Of Blue' 50th Anniversary boxset as a christmas present to myself and spent a lovely Sunday morning REALLY hearing this album for the first time in years. Wonderful! Incidentally, although I've have had this album for years it was the recent article in Word that made me stump up for the box, well worth £50 as its a gorgeous item and the DVD is fantastic.

I am now buying even MORE cd's than I was before AND actually playing them! Don't get me wrong, I still listen to a lot of music via my iPod and computer but rediscovering the sound quality that is missing from MP3's has been a joy.

So in conclusion. Let's all buy MORE cd's in 2009 - they ARE better than MP3's!

Was going to add this to the 'Best Gig of the Year' thread but I think he needs a thread of his own! The best gig I saw this year was Steve Earle at a criminally half full Sheffield City Hall. I wasn't a big fan until seeing him having only had a passing interest in his work although what I liked I REALLY liked. Anyway, it was a terrific night and his wife was a revelation too. If you get the chance and haven't seen him live then do it the next chance you get, you won't regret it. I certainly didn't! His early stuff is available on Amazon at under £4 quid each too and I heartily recommend 'The Collection' as a great introduction.

Have just been reading David's excellent blog while the clock ticks down toward home time and Word Blog contributor Archie has posted this link. It has to be seen to be believed. The guy is RIGHT on the money. Some of the tickers are funny too - check how much the Dow was worth at this time. I Goggled his prediction on gold and although not a $1000 an ounce it is at $800, a 30 year high! The guy is awesome and especially as he sticks to his guns while EVERYONE is laughing at him. Darling should get him on the first plane over here and give him whatever he asks for to plot the way forward!

http://www.amazon.com/Neil-Young-Archives-1963-1972/dp/B001B8PV4K/ref=sr...