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Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of George Harrison’s “All Things Must Pass” with 2020 Remix of Title Track

Roger Friedman
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Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of George Harrison’s “All Things Must Pass” with 2020 Remix of Title Track

This weekend marks the 50th anniversary of one my favorite albums of all time, George Harrison’s “All Things Must Pass.” A real masterwork, “All Things Must Pass” was the first major album by any of the ex-Beatles. I can still remember buying the three LP box set (for a very expensive $12.99) at Korvette’s and clutching it until we got home. I had very heavy Koss headphones, and “My Sweet Lord” soared through them.

The title track was recorded for the Beatles originally but not released as a group track. It went on to anchor George’s release. Now Dhani Harrison and producer Paul Hicks are remixing–different than remastering– the whole album. They’ve started with this track. See how you like it. I think I prefer the 2014 remastering. The remixing makes the vocal sound a little strained and forward over the mournful instrumental. George was grieving the Beatles in that song. Who knows? Maybe I’ll get used to it.

Hicks also remixed the Stones’ “Goat Head Soup” box set this fall, and worked with Sean Lennon on the new John Lennon remixed “Gimme Some Truth” box set. I liked the former. I’ve only heard the latter on Spotify but it does sound bright and punchy. For Dhani and Hicks, the sonics of “My Sweet Lord” and “Awaiting on You All” and “What is Life” will really be the challenge. I look forward to hearing them.

No estate has done a better job than Dhani and his mom, Olivia, in preserving George Harrison’s legacy. The Harrisons are also releasing George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” on a 7” Milky Clear Single, individually numbered, exclusive to Record Store Day. This is a recreation of the Angola pressing of the 45 from 1970 with unique artwork. “My Sweet Lord” was originally released in November 1970 as a single, Harrison’s first as a solo artist, and topped charts worldwide; it was the biggest-selling single of 1971 in the UK. In America and Britain, the song was the first number one single by an ex-Beatle.

Former Appalachia Postmaster Praises Ron Howard’s “Hillbilly Elegy” For Telling the Truth and For Fine Performances

Roger Friedman
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Former Appalachia Postmaster Praises Ron Howard’s “Hillbilly Elegy” For Telling the Truth and For Fine Performances

EXCLUSIVE I wanted to review Ron Howard’s “Hillbilly Elegy,” which I enjoyed for its performances and intelligence. But then I started reading Film Twitter, and Rotten Tomatoes (where my review would be posted) and I’ll tell, I got scared. When the community turns against a film, it’s with a vengeance. Rarely have I read so much venom on the page.

Do I know anything about Appalachia? No. I never heard of this book or its author. But there is rage against both from people I’m not sure know more than I do about this subject.

What I do know is that Amy Adams and Glenn Close deliver top notch work in “Hillbilly Elegy,” as a drug addict mother and her no-nonsense practical mother. For one thing, they sure look like the real like women they’re playing. For another, the actresses’ innate talents are on display in abundance. If the seething toward author J. D. Vance weren’t so palpable, Adams and Close would be in the Oscar mix right up front.

So what to do? I had to find an expert, someone who knew something about this area. Enter Vonda Chancey, the retired Postmaster for Appalachia, who was in the thick of it for 26 years. She has even done little acting. (She was in “The Last Movie Star” with Burt Reynolds, directed by Adam Rifkin.) I found her online by accident. She has nothing to do with “Hillbilly Elegy,” other than reading the book and seeing the movie.

Vonda lives in Knoxville, Tennessee now, which she says is a “big step up” from her roots.  She was born in Grandy, Virginia but spent most of her life in Elkhorn City, Kentucky. She worked in the postal system for 26 years. Her accent is so thick, she says when she orders pizza “they think I’m Dolly Parton!” And she says everything she saw in the movie was true although “I liked the book better.”

First, the cinematic aspects: she says Glenn Close’s Maw-maw reminded her of her own mother. “She was fantastic. She even looked like her,” Vonda says. “She was a strong, mean woman.” Vonda says she’s known plenty of grandmothers who took in their kids’ children to save them. Vonda herself was a foster mother to children of a fellow employee lost custody of her kids. “I’ve always had a mind to help people,” she told me.

Amy Adams’ portrayal of the drug addicted mother? Also, excellent. “Very, very real,” Vonda says. “I’ve witnessed so much up there.”

Chancey talked me to a lot about the destruction drugs have caused in that part of the country. “Drugs destroyed the area. You don’t know what you’ll do to survive.”

We talked politics. The Obama Administration is credited with ending the coal industry, she said. And “nothing replaced it except drugs.” Is it Trump country, I asked? “Trump gave them hope,” she said, even though it came to nothing in the end.

“Now when I drive up my road I just see empty houses, either from death or the people just moved away.” Why does she think Appalachians don’t like the movie, I asked? “They’re very proudful people. These people aren’t begging. They don’t want a hand out. They want a hand.” She’s seen people wait on line patiently to get free toys for their kids.

Vonda met J.D. Vance once, briefly, at a book signing. But I can see she identifies with him, at least superficially. “I was an outside, I was rebellious,” she said. She was married briefly at 16 because her father told her she had to do it. She’s been married several times since then, but she got out. She says the movie is “accurate.”

“There are so many intelligent kids going to waste,” she told me. “There’s no mentoring, there’s nothing.” She adds: “You don’t know what you’ll do to survive.”

 

Eric Clapton Joins Van Morrison In Ridiculous Anti-Lockdown Song Because 260K Tears in Heaven Aren’t Enough

Roger Friedman
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Eric Clapton Joins Van Morrison In Ridiculous Anti-Lockdown Song Because 260K Tears in Heaven Aren’t Enough

Eric Clapton? Great blues guitarist? Not too bright otherwise.

Clapton has joined Van Morrison, another Mensa member, in his protest of the British lockdown to stop COVID from rising.

Apparently 260,000 victims in the US and 57,000 in the UK are not enough tears in heaven for Clapton. So on December 4th he and Morrison will release a single called “Stand and Deliver.” They’re mad because musicians can’t do live shows in the UK. They want everyone to return to halls, theaters, and bars to heave live music and maybe get the coronavirus.

The money raised from this single, Morrison says, will go to his fund to help musicians. That’s nice, but Van could just write a check to his own band, or to MusiCares and start a fund, or VH-1’s Save the Music or many other existing groups. Clapton could do the same thing.

It’s too bad these very revered musicians have turned out to be so stupid. It’s certainly a disappointment. But we have to just ignore them.

The quotes in their press release are hilarious.

Clapton: “There are many of us who support Van and his endeavors to save live music; he is an inspiration. We must stand up and be counted because we need to find a way out of this mess. The alternative is not worth thinking about. Live music might never recover.”

Live music, over live people. Clapton would do better to stay in the White Room.

Van: “Eric’s recording is fantastic and will clearly resonate with the many who share our frustrations,” said Morrison. “It is heart-breaking to see so many talented musicians lack any meaningful support from the government, but we want to reassure them that we are working hard every day to lobby for the return of live music, and to save our industry.”

These morons really think ‘live music’ has been taken away as some kind of punishment. Cry me a river. Maybe they should call Jackson Browne and all the musicians who got COVID last March after performing at the Beacon Theater. And while they’re at it, they can ask John Prine’s family how they feel.

Who Killed Elena Alves? “The Undoing” Mystery is the Guilty Pleasure of the Fall, Scoring 1.3 Mil Viewers on Sunday

Roger Friedman
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Who Killed Elena Alves? “The Undoing” Mystery is the Guilty Pleasure of the Fall, Scoring 1.3 Mil Viewers on Sunday

This past Sunday, 1.3 million people tuned into HBO to see penultimate Episode 5 of the limited series, “The Undoing.” You could hear a collective gasp all over the world, actually, (those ratings are just for the US) as the murder weapon in this mystery was discovered in an unexpected place.

So who killed Elena Alves? We’ll find out on Sunday. In the meantime, you have a few days to binge watch the guilty pleasure of the fall. Snobby reviewers have written doctoral papers about it, decrying the entitlement of the characters. But the audience loves it. On Sunday, “The Undoing” beat “Fear the Walking Dead,” among other cable shows. Real people love it. Some are obsessed with it.

The early reviews tried to compare it to “Big Little Lies” because the star is Nicole Kidman, who has never been better in anything. But the two series have nothing to do with each other. “The Undoing” is a page turning mystery that starts with a murder. Everyone is a suspect because Elena was the married mistress of Hugh Grant’s famous oncologist Jonathan Fraser. We find out he fathered her baby even though he’s married to Nicole’s Grace. They have a tween son, played by Noah Jupe. They are Upper East Side royalty. Nicole’s father, in the person of Donald Sutherland, is Wealthy and Powerful. Any of them could have killed Elena, but Jonathan stands trial.

And there are complications. Lily Rabe is a powerful female attorney and Grace’s bf. Did she do it? A lot of people think so. Her Sylvia likely had an affair with Jonathan, too. We may discover that this Sunday. Then there’s Sutherland’s Lion in Winter, Franklin Reinhardt. He despises Jonathan for being poor and lazy. Why cast Donald Sutherland if he didn’t do it? Then there’s also Rosemary Harris, who stole one scene playing Jonathan’s estranged mother. And don’t count out Elena’s cuckolded husband. He’s not happy either. Maybe the only person who didn’t do it is the police detective who’s investigating all this, played by Edgar Ramirez.

Of course, there’s always Grace. She was seen walking near the murder site around the time Elena was killed. She and Elena had a weird, semi-erotic near encounter before the death. Because Elena was hot, hot, hot, did I mention that? Everyone wants her. Kudos to Matilde deAngelis. She makes a lasting impression before succumbing to her attacker.

The murder weapon, by the way, is a large sculpting hammer. Some people say the writers are hitting us over the head with a hammer there are so many red herrings and Maguffins. But “The Undoing” couldn’t have come at a better time.

See you Sunday at 9!

 

Awards Could Bring Meryl Streep in Two Possible Best Actress Performances, One for the Oscars, One for the Globes

Roger Friedman
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Awards Could Bring Meryl Streep in Two Possible Best Actress Performances, One for the Oscars, One for the Globes

Meryl Streep, considered our greatest movie actress, is coming back to the awards circuit with two big performances next month. One could be for the Oscars, the other for the Golden Globes. Or both.

In Steven Soderbergh’s “Let Them All Talk” — streaming on HBO Max — Streep plays a Pulitzer Prize winning novelist who takes her two best college friends and her nephew on a “crossing” from New York to Southampton, England. Streep has 3 Oscars, Soderbergh has two, co-star Dianne Wiest has two, Candice Bergen has like 17 Emmy Awards, Lucas Hedges is the hot as a pistol young actor of the moment. You do the math.

And then there’s “The Prom,” based on the hit Broadway musical about a bunch of New York theater stars who arrive up in Indiana town to help a high school girl put on her prom when the school won’t let her bring a female date. Streep’s character, a Tony winner past her prime, was played on Broadway by Beth Leavel, who had one of the 6 Tony nominations the show garnered. (She should have won.) There’s an all star cast including Nicole Kidman and James Corden.

Reviewers are seeing “Let Them All Talk” now and screening “The Prom” on Sunday. It’s StreepFest 2021! That’s reason enough to be thankful!

CBS May Have to Cancel or Move “The Talk” in Ratings Chess Game to Keep “Drew Barrymore” Alive in the Afternoon

Roger Friedman
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CBS May Have to Cancel or Move “The Talk” in Ratings Chess Game to Keep “Drew Barrymore” Alive in the Afternoon

CBS Daytime is about to get an overhaul of some kind. Things are not working out as planned.

The biggest problem isn’t even “The Talk,” which has dropped in the ratings to 1.5 million viewers per day. The larger issue is what’s happening at 9am, when the CBS-owned “Drew Barrymore Show” is dying against “Live with Kelly and Ryan.”

Barrymore’s show kicked out the Judge Judy spin off “Hot Bench,” which currently has no station in New York. Even so, “Hot Bench” is a ratings hit with 1.7 million viewers. It held its own against Ripa and Seacrest at 9am. There’s no doubt WCBS wants it back at 9am.

That would move Barrymore — now suffering with just 600,000 viewers per morning —  to 2pm with other talk shows like Ellen DeGeneres and Kelly Clarkson. If Barrymore were in that slot, at least it could find a personality. Right now, the former movie actress is trying unsuccessfully to do topical shows for 9am and they don’t work.

So what about “The Talk”? Without the originator, Sarah Gilbert, “The Talk” is not a pedestrian mix. Sharon Osbourne rules the roost. But it’s doing half the numbers of “The View” on ABC and has no news value like that show. It may indeed be time to let “The Talk” go.

Let’s not forget it was invented to accommodate  Julie Chen because she was married to network chief Les Moonves. But they’re gone. And if “The Talk” isn’t getting the numbers of the beloved soap opera it killed, “As the World Turns”– which left the air with around 2.6 million — why keep it at all? At this point, Osbourne– if she wanted to– could start her own syndicated series and make more money.

Stay tuned…

“Saturday Night Live” Returns with December Shows Featuring Bruce Springsteen & E Street, Dua Lipa, Morgan Wallen

Roger Friedman
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“Saturday Night Live” Returns with December Shows Featuring Bruce Springsteen & E Street, Dua Lipa, Morgan Wallen

Lorne Michaels is pulling out all the big guns for December “Saturday Night Live.”

For December 12th, he’s got Timothee Chalamet hosting and — drum roll — Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. That’s mega.

December 5th has Jason Bateman hosting and Morgan Wallen getting a second crack at the show after being exposed to COVID a few weeks ago and missing the show.

December 19th, the last show of 2020, has “SNL” former castmate Kristen Wiig and hot pop star Dua Lipa. If Wiig comes, can Will Ferrell stay away? I hope not. And many others, it is hoped.

Note to Lorne: Let Bruce and E Street do three songs, two from “Letter to You,” and one greatest hit. Please.

Paul McCartney’s “McCartney III” Delayed by One Week to December 18th Over “Production Issues,” Single Issued Then Recalled

Roger Friedman
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Paul McCartney’s “McCartney III” Delayed by One Week to December 18th Over “Production Issues,” Single Issued Then Recalled

News about Paul McCartney’s “McCartney III”: It was supposed to be released on December 11th. Now it’s been delayed a week til December 18th because of “production issues.”

Strangely enough, earlier today I received an email link to three tracks from the album including “Find My Way.” I listened to them, read comments posted about the tracks from a couple of fans, and then the whole thing disappeared. Was it a mistake? Did the McCartney team not like the comments? I don’t know.

Anyway, all very strange. I really enjoyed “Find My Way” and the other two tracks. One of them was called “Winter.” “Find My Way” particularly stood out with very layered McCartney vocals. I was really impressed with his falsetto. But it was the melody and construction that I should emphasize. That more of these songs still exist in him is remarkable.

So we wait until they sort everything out.

PS Really, sometimes I feel like I’m losing my mind. Maybe I just imagined the whole thing.

Justin Bieber Sends Fans to New Sketchy “Church” After Hillsong-Carl Lentz Blow Up: “I’m not a religious man”

Roger Friedman
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Justin Bieber Sends Fans to New Sketchy “Church” After Hillsong-Carl Lentz Blow Up: “I’m not a religious man”

Justin Bieber, deeply uneducated, has recently suffered the loss of his most recent religious advisor, Carl Lentz from Hillsong Church. For years, Bieber palled around with Lentz, endorsed and supported Hillsong in New York. That was until Lentz recently admitting to cheating on his wife and getting fired from the church.

Now Bieber, who sings and whines about being lonely, and has a song called “Holy” in which he exploits Christian beliefs to sell records, is touting a new “church.” It’s called Churchome and it’s run by another old pastor pal, Judah Smith. They’ve known each other since 2005, when Justin’s mother– not the brightest bulb in the chandelier– brought him into their lives. Smith, in fact, introduced Bieber to Lentz.

Smith was profiled last year in an excellent piece in Marie Claire. Since then, it’s been harder to get at Churchome’s financial records. But the piece details the Smith’s luxurious lifestyle: “Churchome, which operates as a 501c3 organization, purchased the 2,806-square-foot, four-bedroom home in 2016 for roughly $2.5 million as an investment in its future in Los Angeles. The church’s total revenue last year was about $20 million; $18.5 million of that came from “tithes,” traditionally a tenth of congregants’ incomes and offerings. (They are not required to donate.) Because Churchome is a nonprofit, it’s exempt from federal income tax.”

Bieber, just tonight, directed his fans to Churchome. He wrote: “As all of you know by now I am a Jesus guy. What you may not know is that I am not a religious man. I follow the teachings of Jesus and believe he is the Messiah. There are many things i have seen in churches that i strongly disagree with. Judgmental posture, exclusion, hatred, all in the name of Christianity. I want no part of that. What i do want is to love and look like Jesus and point people to his miraculous healing power. If you are interested in learning more about Jesus and his extraordinary ways visit the Churchome app free in the App Store”

The “Jesus guy” verbiage comes straight from Smith.

What scandal is brewing from Churchome? After the Hillsong disaster, one can only imagine. Bieber is basically a pigeon for all these “pastors” who see an almost illiterate, clueless rich kid from a broken home, with many doubts about his life and an admission of depression. Bieber is wearing a target on his back. These guys have the arrows.

The Weeknd Rails Against Recording Academy Following Biggest Snub Since Justin Timberlake’s 20/20: “The Grammys remain corrupt”

Roger Friedman
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The Weeknd Rails Against Recording Academy Following Biggest Snub Since Justin Timberlake’s 20/20: “The Grammys remain corrupt”

I cannot blame The Weeknd for being angry at his snub by the Grammys. He received not one nomination for his hit album, “After Hours.” This must have been especially confounding considering every awards “prognosticator” had him in first place for Album of the Year.

This evening he wrote on Twitter: “The Grammys remain corrupt. You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency…”

I have nothing but respect for Harvey Mason Jr., the acting head of the Academy who replaced Neil Portnow in last winter’s Deborah Dugan debacle. Mason has had a lot to deal with in the last ten months. He couldn’t have seen this coming. He said in a statement:  “We understand that The Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated,” he continues. “I was surprised and can empathize with what he’s feeling. His music this year was excellent, and his contributions to the music community and broader world are worthy of everyone’s admiration. We were thrilled when we found out he would be performing at the upcoming Super Bowl and we would have loved to have him also perform on the Grammy stage the weekend before.”

But this episode — which hearkens back to Justin Timberlake being wiped out for his monster-selling “20/20” album a few years ago — unfortunately shows there is a wrench in the voting. And just last year’s snub of Taylor Swift’s “Lover” album is a point of reference. Plus, this year, Luke Combs’s best selling country album, “What You See is What You Get” was completely overlooked. That’s not possible.

Obscure artists whose names most people have never heard popped in this morning’s Grammy nominations. It was kind of a joke. It’s one thing to celebrate new artists or those that are under appreciated. I’m very happy, for example, that Gregory Porter was recognized in R&B. But for deserving artists whose records sold well in a bad market, and were popular, to be omitted sounds like they were targeted. Or at least the others had an unseen hand helping them.

Every year that the Grammys have been around there have been odd winners and the wrong losers. Not to mitigate Norah Jones, but her debut album’s win over Bruce Springsteen’s “The Rising” has always gnawed at me. And going back further I can recall when Janis Ian’s “Between the Lines” beat– are you ready? — albums by Paul Simon, Elton John, Linda Ronstadt, and the Eagles. I was ready to sue someone. Just this past winter’s Billie Eilish sweep was extraordinary– and wrong.

But there it is. We’re stuck with it. There’s going to be more fallout over The Weeknd. It’s lucky there’s no audience this year for the show. I think a lot of people would have boycotted it. Was The Weeknd punished for his participation in Sunday’s “American Music Awards”? I would say yes. But we’ll never know for certain. Anyway, The Weeknd has the last laugh. He has a great album, wildly successful, and loved by millions. That’s all he really needs.

PS Surprised we haven’t heard from Kanye yet. He hasn’t Tweeted since November 4th, 20 days. Kim has his phone, obviously.

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