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U2 Gives Away New Album NOW, Skip Charts, And Who Cares? No Money in CD Sales

Roger Friedman
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U2 Gives Away New Album NOW, Skip Charts, And Who Cares? No Money in CD Sales

U2 has released its new album to iTunes subscribers today like right now, to all 500 million of them. Songs of Innocence is the title. Sign up for iTunes– it’s free– and you can get the album free if you order it by October 13th. The album will not qualify for chart positions or RIAA certifications. And U2 is saying basically Who cares?

Album sales have vanished. The most U2 would sell in its first week, if they were very very lucky, would between 300,000 and 500,000 copies. And that’s being extremely optimistic. It’s not worth the price of printing them up. Just give it away, and make the money through publishing, which the group owns, and concert tours. LiveNation will soon announce a world wide tour that should net the group hundreds of millions of dollars.

It’s brilliant, and no different in concept than giving CDs to ticket buyers, which has been tried with Madonna and Prince. LiveNation has U2 under a 360 contract, they can simply build in the price of the album. Universal Music can collect on vinyl, a small amount of physical CDs, and streaming. My guess though is that “Songs of Innocence” will limited to streaming on iTunes Radio and not available on Spotify and other services.

Check mate.

Hats off to Guy Oseary who continues the tradition of taking U2 into brave new waters, started by Paul McGuinness.

Apple Launches New iPhones, iWatch with Sketchy Streaming Press Conference

Roger Friedman
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Apple Launches New iPhones, iWatch with Sketchy Streaming Press Conference

Apple has launched the new iPhones– a big one and a regular one. It has lots of nice features but it’s hard to say what’s going on. I have great Wifi here in Toronto on my iPad but the thing keeps freezing. Watching Apple’s streaming press conference is like sitting with dial up circa 2000. Oh well. The phones will be big hits I’m sure.

PS thanks to Jim Impoco at Newsweek:

UPDATE Joan Rivers: All Broadway Theaters Will Dim Lights Tonight after All

Roger Friedman
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UPDATE Joan Rivers: All Broadway Theaters Will Dim Lights Tonight after All

UPDATE Broadway League changed its mind after worst pr mistake in history. All Broadway houses will dim lights tonight for Joan Rivers.

EARLIER Tonight, 7 Broadway theaters will dim their lights for Joan Rivers. That’s five from the Jujamcyn chain, plus the New Amsterdam and the Helen Hayes.

But so far the Theater League, representing the Shuberts and the Nederlanders, have declined to join in. I am very disappointed, and we can only hope they change their minds. Charlotte St. Martin of the Theater League told the New York Times that Joan doesn’t meet the criteria for dimmed lights.

Ms. Martin sounds like she isn’t the brightest bulb in the chandelier of Broadway. She’s also tone deaf. Broadway box office is down, Ms. Martin. You need to create the most favorable environment for people to enjoy a very expensive New York experience.

Joan Rivers’ death touched a deep nerve She’s also a past Tony nominee, and received rave reviews when she appeared in Neil Simon’s “Broadway Bound.” Joan was also a tireless advocate of Broadway related causes. Clearly the League is tone deaf. It’s a big mistake. I hope it can be reversed before this evening.

Alicia Keys New Song “We Are Here”: Social Issues and a Catchy Hook

Roger Friedman
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Alicia Keys New Song “We Are Here”: Social Issues and a Catchy Hook

I go back and forth on Alicia Keys– too much sampling and “interpolating.” But I do like this song and it has a great message. “We Are Here” is from a new album expected in November. Alicia does love a good anthem. She must have been in a marching band once upon a time!

Post by Alicia Keys.

Hockey Great Wayne Gretzky on Daughter Paulina’s Engagement to Golfer Dustin Johnson

Roger Friedman
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Hockey Great Wayne Gretzky on Daughter Paulina’s Engagement to Golfer Dustin Johnson

I did get to meet Wayne Gretzky last night. WTH you ask? On the second floor of Toronto’s Soho House, I ambled over to a banquette and was introduced to 80s actress and pin up Janet Jones, beautiful and lovely as ever, who said, “Do you know my husband, Wayne?”

Hockey fans: what would you say? I’ve met just about everyone but Wayne freakin’ Gretzky? The greatest hockey player of all time? Now, that’s a star.

The Gretzky’s are here in Toronto because Janet plays Mrs. Compson in James Franco’s film version of William Faulkner’s “The Sound and the Fury.” It’s a small part, she says, but the actress who starred in A League of their Own, A Chorus Line, and The Flamingo Kid is back! She came to Toronto with Wayne and their 21 year old baseball player son Trevor, who just finished minor league season with the Anaheim Angels.

The Gretzkys have five kids including 25 year old daughter Paulina, a stunner who’s also a trained singer. Paulina has made tabloid headlines for being engaged to rogue golfer Dustin Johnson. So how’s that working out? “We love him,” Wayne tells me. “I like him more than I like her,” he jokes. Does the NHL superstar ever golf with his son in law to be? “I’m not crazy,” he says. “Dustin’s the real thing.”

The Gretzky were out with young actor Jacob Loeb, a new Francophile, who plays Quentin in “S&F” and stars in Franco’s “Bukowski” as well and looks like a young James Franco. Nice guy, too.

Did I get my picture taken with Wayne Gretzky? No. Am I kicking myself now? Yes. What’s he up to these days? “Just following these people around,” he said, pointing to wife and son. It’s ok. He’s done just fine.

Jennifer Aniston Finally Makes a Real Movie and Divides Critics

Roger Friedman
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Jennifer Aniston Finally Makes a Real Movie and Divides Critics

Let them eat “Cake.” That seems to be the theme of yesterday’s premiere of “Cake,” a designer indie movie conceived to get Jennifer Aniston back into the world of acting. To that end, the film works: Aniston is very good. She’d be better if the movie were stronger, but that’s not the point. In the meantime, I see that everyone is divided about whether “Cake” has enough nutrition.

For most of the time as Claire, Aniston is padded to look like she doesn’t have a killer bod. Her hair is greasy and unkempt. She doesn’t wear glam make up, but added to her face are cosmetic scars to indicate she’s been in an accident. The director Daniel Barnz (real name Bernstein, he’s not a rapper or a skateboarder) does everything he can to make Aniston look stripped down and unplugged with just a hint that she could be hot at any moment.

Claire is a lawyer who’s estranged from her husband, played by the ubiquitous Chris Messina. (Did anyone think that after “Vicki Cristina Barcelona” and “Julie and Julia” Messina would be in every film?) Something’s happened, and in time we infer that her child has died. That plus the scars equals a car accident. Now Claire, isolated in her house, depends on her Mexican housekeeper (Adrianna Barazza). She’s also obsessed with the suicide of a fellow chronic pain support group member (Anna Kendrick) to the point where she befriends her husband (Sam Worthington from “Avatar”).

What can I say? I like Jennifer Aniston. If she were really unleashed as a sardonic bitch– what Claire is supposed to be– she’d win some awards. There are times in “Cake” when it seems as though as she’s going to go for it. But I guess there’s so much riding on the Big Picture of her career as a Movie Star that she’s not allowed to go all the way. What a shame.

Suffice to say that Claire will not become an unsympathetic character. Considering she’s a serious pill popper who drinks like crazy, there are possibilities of taking her in great directions. But they are not going to happen. In the end, Claire is allowed to do her hair, put on some lipstick, and be identified as a victim.

Will Aniston get an Oscar nomination? I have no idea. She does get credit for doing this after making a ton of mostly forgettable comedies. She can do more, this proves it. Maybe she’ll keep going.

PS Cameos from real life acting couple Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy, and Mamie Gummer– all underused.

Toronto: Jane Fonda Rocks an All Star Comedy Cast with Tina Fey, Jason Bateman

Roger Friedman
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Toronto: Jane Fonda Rocks an All Star Comedy Cast with Tina Fey, Jason Bateman

Did that title get your attention? Jane Fonda is 76 years old, and she’s never been better. The two time Oscar winner leads an all star cast in Warner Bros comedy “That’s Where I Leave You.” Shawn Levy directs Jonathan Tropper’s adaptation of his own hit novel.

The movie is more formulaic than Tropper’s book, but in the end it works even when you think the film is a little too “Parenthood” or “Brothers and Sisters.” That’s because Fonda is the rock solid comic center of this huge and talented ensemble including Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, the ubiquitous Adam Driver, Corey Stoll (who’s really taken off since playing Hemingway in “Midnight in Paris”), Rose Byrne, Connie Britton, Kathryn Hahn, Abigail Spencer, Debra Monk and Aaron Lazar.

In the novel, the mother –in this clan that must sit shivah for their dad– doesn’t have such a big part. But with Fonda at the helm, Hillary Altman takes the lead. (Did you notice this happened on “Brothers and Sisters” when Sally Field as the mom became the focus?) Her laser like comic timing keeps the action moving. Hillary is wise and salty and very very sharp. She also has a secret that involves Debra Monk, one of the great utility players of Broadway, TV and cinema.

The movie played great, as they say. Warners should be happy. They got two big hits out of Toronto– this and “The Judge” with Robert Downey Jr.

Toronto: Beach Boy Brian Wilson Gets Standing Ovation for Outstanding Biopic

Roger Friedman
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Toronto: Beach Boy Brian Wilson Gets Standing Ovation for Outstanding Biopic

William Pohlad is mostly known as a movie producer and wealthy Minnesotan whose family owns the Twins. Now he can add feature film director to his resume. He’s done a great job making “Love and Mercy,” a terrific biopic about the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson. At last night’s premiere here in Toronto, Wilson and Pohlad and the film got a real standing ovation– actually two of them– because the film is so moving and well made.

“Love and Mercy” still needs some trimming. It’s got four opening sequences and gets a little muddled at the three quarter mark. But all that can be fixed easily. The good news is that Pohlad and screenwriter Oren Moverman have very smartly made a film on two tracks– Paul Dano plays Wilson circa 1966 as he’s discovering he’s really a musical genius that his father is abusive. And John Cusack plays Wilson around 1994-95, when he the brain addled artist was under the sway of a real life Rasputin named Dr. Eugene Landy. ( I met Wilson and Landy in 1994, and it was quite a scene.)

The other player in this film besides Dano and Cusack is Elizabeth Banks, who plays Wilson’s second, Melinda. The movie shows how Melinda helped rescue Brian from Landy’s grip. They’ve been married for 19 years. Banks simply glows throughout “Love and Mercy.” She, Dano, and Cusack do stand out work here.

Brian and Melinda were in the audience last night at the Elgin. I don’t know how Brian Wilson could sit through this story– I really hope he napped or zoned out. The man who’s written so many astonishing compositions, pop classics, and so on has really suffered all his life. He started hearing “voices” in his head in 1963, according to the film. After experimenting with drugs, Wilson fell in with Landy who drugged him to keep him under his control. And still he outlived his two talented Beach Boy brothers, Dennis and Carl.

The movie, by the way, won’t help Wilson family relations. Beach Boy Mike Love, a cousin, always known as a creep, comes off just that way.

Lions Gate has international rights, they may release “Love and Mercy” in the US if someone else doesn’t. The movie’s a hit, though. And it’s so great that Brian Wilson has gotten a decent film document of his enormous cultural legacy.

Pop: New One Direction Single “Fireproof” Here, New Album Coming

Roger Friedman
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1
Pop: New One Direction Single “Fireproof” Here, New Album Coming

One Direction is a boy band that you probably don’t care about. But this morning they announced their new release, the cleverly titled “Four.” Meaning it’s their fourth album. The single is called “Fireproof.” Here it is:

 

Catchy, huh? It’s good top 40. “Fireproof” has five listed authors. The first two are the most important: group members Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson. Are they the Lennon and McCartney of One Direction? We’ll see. But it is interesting that the group is now having songs written by members since in concert none of them play instruments — except Niall Horan, who sports a guitar for some songs.

The record business is in big trouble right now– the lowest sales numbers ever are being posted on the CD and digital download charts. The higher “sales” are for streaming and not owning the music. One Direction’s new release, set for November 17th, may tell the future of music sales as we know them.

Oscar Buzz for Eddie Redmayne Knockout Turn as Stephen Hawking

Roger Friedman
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0
Oscar Buzz for Eddie Redmayne Knockout Turn as Stephen Hawking

The big talk this morning in Toronto– the sensational performance by British actor Eddie Redmayne as genius physicist Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything.  A biopic similar to A Beautiful Mind, James Marsh’s emotional but uneven film relies on Redmayne to pull off this miracle of a performance. Hawking, now 72, has lived in a wheelchair with a severe form of ALS since his early 20s.  Redmayne conveys completely Hawking’s genius and his suffering very much as Daniel Day Lewis did something vaguely similar  in its physicality with My Left Foot.   Redmayne has already proven himself as a star in the making from “Les Miserables” and on Broadway with “Red.” This cinches it.  Bravo!

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