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Something Borrowed, Something Blue 05/30/08

Folk and blues tunes provided a solid foundation for the classic rock bands of the 60s and 70s to draw from. Many tunes like "Midnight Special" got picked up by the British blues bands, and Led Zeppelin in particular has earned a reputation for "borrowing" (without giving credit) tunes from folks like Willie Dixon (well, to be fair, they gave him credit- after he sued)! Just check out

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Which Came First?

subtledude

Muddy Waters doing "You Need Love", aka "Whole Lotta Love" by Zep. Which Came First? DJ Crate draws a straight line from Leadbelly through Howlin' Wolf to Jimi Hendrix.

Once again, these "standards" are songs that truly stand the test of time, and are always ripe for a new interpretation.

Early Blues and Folk Songs meet the Rock World:
Crossroad Blues from The Complete Recordings by Robert Johnson
House of the Rising Sun from Bob Dylan
Shake 'em on Down from Shake 'Em On Down (Catfish) by Bukka White
Dust My Broom from Whose Muddy Shoes by Elmore James
Hound Dog from Elvis As Recorded At Madison Square Garden
Another Man Done Gone from Sings Ballads And Blues by Odetta
Goodnight Irene from Goodnight Irene by Leadbelly

- Jeff Thornton

Bursting With Juicy New Releases 05/27/08

There are some more new titles folks should hear. First up: Santogold, an artist from the U.S. who comes out of fronting a punk band, with a new CD that many compare to UK artists like M.I.A. (because the musical influences come from all over the place). It's a hot record.

Also new is the long-anticipated Third from Portishead, a band that spawned legions of imitators with their blend of trip-hop, soundtracks, dub, and the dark vocals of Beth Gibbons back in the mid-90s. This is a worthy follow-up to their previous work, no matter how long we've had to wait for it. In a similar moody vein, Barry Adamson has charted his own path with a sound informed by

film soundtracks, rockabilly, and everything else he likes, all on one album! His new release Back To The Cat is the culmination

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New Arrivals!

jthornton

of his efforts. Steve Winwood had almost fallen off my radar since his big Adult Contemporary hits of the 80s (I've always preferred the Traffic-era jams), but his new album Nine Lives is a return the the roots, with the feel of his early 70s stuff. He did something similar on his well-received 2003 album About Time,

also worth a listen. A sampling of these albums makes up the new DJ Crate New Arrivals, an easy & ideal way to hear all the best new releases. You should be warned that it also has Flight Of The Conchords, which could lead to dangerous laughter. Those crazy guys...

Other new titles of note:
Boo! by Was (Not Was)
Best Of Pablo Solo Masterpieces by Art Tatum
Lyfe Change by Lyfe Jennings
Maths And English by Dizzee Rascal

- Jeff Thornton

La Guitarra Flamenca 05/20/08

To complement the popular DJ Crate Nylon and Nails, which features prominent classical guitarists, BlueBeat user ericbenjaminbach has made La Guitarra Flamenca, which focuses on the traditional Spanish musical genre Flamenco, but with an emphasis on solo guitar. Flamenco has its roots in Southern Spain, where groups of persecuted gypsies

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La Guitarra Flamenca

ericbenjaminbach

expressed their strife through a combination of song and dance. This rich cultural tradition has survived for hundreds of years and continues to be celebrated as a deeply rhythmic, romantic and virtuosic art form.

La Guitarra Flamenca boasts such Flamenco masters as Carlos Montoya, Manitas De Plata, and Sabicas, all of whom play with remarkable passion and intensity.

More Latin American guitar music albums worth exploring:

Classic Williams: Romance Of The Guitar performed by John Williams (Guitar)
Piazzolla, Weiner compositions by Astor Piazzolla
Latin American Guitar performed by Eliot Fisk
Brouwer: Guitar Music, Vol.2 compositions by Leo Brouwer

- Eric Parson

Party Like It's 1983 + way cool new 30 second clips! 05/14/08

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Big Hair Days

seamonster

Hop in the Delorean and travel back to the days of leg warmers

and shoulder pads with the new DJ Crate

Big Hair Days by BlueBeat user seamonster. Of course, there's some Thriller (Exp) from Michael Jackson, some Cyndi Lauper and Eurythmics; you'll also hear a few you may have forgotten like Eddy Grant and Devo. Whether you remember the glory days of Miami Vice or weren't even born yet, let Phil Collins remind you how it was way back when, during the tragic hair mousse shortage of '84.

Other Fun Stuff From the 80s:
Pac-Man
Rubik's Cube
Smurfs
Members Only
Aerobics
Breakdancing

Oh,

and by the way, we're, like, sooo-oo-o stoked to announce 30 second clips for our U.S. users! Omigod, it's so rad because now you can preview a song and, like, that totally helps you make the most awesome DJ Crates. Just click the play icon to the left of any album's track and, like, you get a bitchin' little 160kb clip! The quality of clips on those other music sites is grodie to the max, I mean, like, barf out! BlueBeat is, like, totally excellent, fer sure!

- The BlueBeat Crew

The New Crop 05/09/08

Out of the constant flood of new CDs passing through our offices, a few have really grabbed my attention. One of the coolest rock records out comes from the The Raconteurs , who most people already know is a supergroup featuring Jack White of the The White Stripes with Brendan Benson. With a range of influences (often evoking the best classic rock), this side-project is much more broad than what you might hear on a Stripes album.

In the recent past BlueBeat

poked fun at film stars who make records (check out the Movie Stars Rock KP), but there are a few multi-talented individuals who pull it off. She & Him combines indie hero M. Ward with actress Zooey Deschanel (of "Elf" and BlueBeat favorite "Almost Famous", among other films). Deschanel has been privately recording much of this material over the years, and the result is some charming indie pop.

The Heliocentrics present their release Out There, and the title pretty much sums it up: a sparse, spacey instrumental soundtrack of drums and keyboards that’s a real trip! Whoah. And over in kid’s music, there’s been a trend towards

hipper children’s records than we had in my youth. Baby Loves Hip Hop Presents The Dino-5 weaves together stories and songs performed by Butterfly of Digable Planets, Chali 2na (Jurassic 5) , and Scratch from The Roots, produced by Prince Paul. This follows the Baby Loves Jazz Go Baby Go CD with Sharon Jones and John Medeski, produced by trumpeter Steven Bernstein. Finally, the career of Willie Nelson is reviewed in the new box set One Hell Of A Ride. From burgeoning songwriter to one of the most popular performers of all time, his singular style defines "outlaw". Heck, he's got his own Killer Playlist, Willie: Original Outlaw here on BlueBeat.

Here are a few more recent releases:
Funplex by The B-52's
Antidotes by Foals
Move Every Muscle, Make Every Sound by De Novo Dahl
Funky Nassau: The Compass Point Story (Various Artists)
Shine by Anna Nalick
Live At The Bass Performance Hall by Lindsey Buckingham

- Jeff Thornton

C'mon Every Beatbox! 05/05/08

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CT boom box

ctoll

BlueBeat user ctoll has combed our music collection to create a new DJ Crate called CT boom box. It's a rocking blend of Punk, Funk, Hip-Hop, and Rock, with some real lost gems in there: from the early R&B of Ike Turner & His Kings Of Rhythm to Old School Vs New School, where top club DJs

remix classic hip-hop songs. How 'bout the roots reggae of Burning Spear, or some 2 Tone? Don't forget The Roots, indie rock pioneers Camper Van Beethoven or the late Stevie Ray Vaughan. Forget about whether it's this-or-that genre--this is a tribute to free-form radio. Just crank up the speakers and click your mouse- you won't have to flip the cassette on THIS boombox!

A few more artists in CT boom box:
The Clash

Medeski, Martin & Wood
Eric B & Rakim
Prince
Herbie Hancock
Bob Dylan
The Black Keys
Erykah Badu
The Aggrolites
The Reverend Horton Heat

- The BlueBeat Crew

Bird and Hawk 04/30/08

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Tenor Giants

greenbongo

No sound represents classic jazz like the saxophone. The leading

players have used this instrument to stretch the boundaries of the genre, exploring new musical pathways with only the power of their spirit and the human breath.

The history of the sax as lead instrument in jazz stretches from old school legends like Ben Webster and Sonny Rollins, through today's generation including Joshua Redman and Branford Marsalis. You don't have to visit a smoky New York City club at 1:00 am to hear some of the all-time great players; the pioneers of Bebop await in the new DJ Crate Tenor Giants.

Top Jazz Saxophone Players:
Coleman Hawkins
Dexter Gordon
Cannonball Adderley
John Coltrane
Lester Young
Charlie Parker
Gene Ammons
Ben Webster
Lou Donaldson
Hank Mobley

- Jeff Thornton

Roses in the Redwoods 04/25/08

Former members of the The Grateful Dead have announced that a 30-year accumulation

of the band’s memorabilia will be donated to the University of California, right here at our own Santa Cruz campus. The archive includes flyers, newsletters, and

art submitted by fans over the years (audio recordings are held by Rhino Records in LA). The campus’ Professor Fred Lieberman has taught courses on The Dead and The Beatles, and with the school’s reputation as one of the last vestiges of hippiedom, it’s a natural fit. A special reading room devoted to the collection is planned at McHenry Library, where we can soon

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Truckin' with the Dead

thethirdman

expect to see a lot more tie-dye (please, no incense in the library). Until the new room is built, we’ll make do with the new DJ Crate Truckin' with the Dead, with all the Deadhead favorites, and a few surprises. Don’t forget to bring your frisbee!

Some albums featuring Jerry Garcia:
Shady Grove
Well-Matched: The Best Of Merl Saunders & Jerry Garcia
So What
Without A Net
From The Mars Hotel
Garcia
The Jerry Garcia Collection, Vol.1: Legion Of Mary
The Pizza Tapes

- Jeff Thornton

Stop & Smell the Roses 04/14/08

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Psyche Pop Flowers

subtledude

Way back in the wild 60s, the Psychedelic Rock that developed on the fringes of the music world crept into the mainstream. The best-known examples of the psych

influence in pop are The Beatles, with albums like Sgt Pepper, and the Beach Boys’ mini-epic masterpiece Good Vibrations. These classics inspired a whole

new sound, where pop productions smoothed some of the garage punk edges of raw psychedelia. Just light up the incense, plug in the strobe light, and take an audio trip with the favorites and the obscurities in Psyche Pop Flowers, a new DJ Crate here on BlueBeat.

Bands featured in crate:
The Beatles
It's A Beautiful Day
The Lemon Pipers
Sagittarius
Status Quo
Tomorrow
The Monkees
Strawberry Alarm Clock

- Jeff Thornton

Back to the Lab 04/14/08

One recent Crate here on the Be the DJ page contains a tasty mix of current rock & pop, with a few classics thrown in.

LaBoRaToRy TuNeS was created by user OFPLAB, and the description says it’s "Some music to get the thru another day in the lab....". This intriguing sentence evokes images of safety goggles and white coats, with a head-nodding soundtrack from

Green Day, Weezer, and Led Zeppelin. But what are they doing in this "lab"? Are they the Dr. Frankenstein-type mad scientists of movies, working on their latest creation while listening to John Mayer? Are is this a

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LaBoRaToRy TuNeS

OFPLAB

pitch-dark photo lab, lit only by the sound of Gwen Stefani? Inquiring minds need to know! Whatever they’re working on, we hope they keep on rockin’, but don't knock over any test tubes while pumping their fists in the air. Remember: safety first!

Top Lab Rock Artists:
Goo Goo Dolls
No Doubt
Nickel Creek
Janis Joplin
The White Stripes
Rihanna
Fleetwood Mac
Norah Jones
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Rascal Flatts

- The BlueBeat Crew

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News

Something Borrowed, Something Blue 05/30/08

Bursting With Juicy New Releases 05/27/08

La Guitarra Flamenca 05/20/08

Party Like It's 1983 + way cool new 30 second clips! 05/14/08

The New Crop 05/09/08

C'mon Every Beatbox! 05/05/08

Bird and Hawk 04/30/08

Roses in the Redwoods 04/25/08

Stop & Smell the Roses 04/14/08

Back to the Lab 04/14/08

In the Media

Forbes.com07/29/08

Digital Media Wire07/24/08

International Herald Tribune07/16/08

T3 - The Gadget Website03/19/08

S.D. Watch01/27/08

Managing Rights Management by Bob Weber01/22/08

PR: Reuters01/17/08

PR: Yahoo! Finance07/18/07

PR: PRN Newswire05/10/07

Santa Cruz Sentinel04/07/07

The Huffington Post03/17/07

FMQB03/15/07

PR: Yahoo Finance03/07/07

PR: The Hill01/30/07

PR: Forbes04/27/06

PR: PRN Newswire02/22/06

Telephony Online02/22/06

PR: Hip Hop Press02/16/06

PR: SYS-CON Media01/31/06

The Star (Malaysia)09/21/05

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