Voices at Large
Guitar Hero For Real
05 OCT 09 JOHN C. BRUENING
Concord Music Group is partnering with Yamaha Guitars, guitarist Lee Ritenour and several other sponsors to stage The Yamaha Six String Theory Guitar Competition, a worldwide guitar competition that could best be described as the International Axe-Master Olympics.
The Yamaha Six String Theory Guitar Competition - sponsored by Yamaha Guitars, CMG, Berklee College of Music, Monster Cable, D'Addario Strings and The Broad Stage - begins this month and runs through February 1, 2010. Aspiring guitar players from around the world are invited to submit performance videos (via YouTube) showcasing their chops in a variety of categories: rock, blues, jazz/fusion, country, acoustic and classical/flamenco.
Videos will be viewed by a panel of online judges, including Ritenour, and whittled down to six finalists - one from each category. Finalists will compete in a live performance at The Broad Stage in Los Angeles on March 10, 2010, to determine the grand prize winner.
The winner will be featured as a special guest on Ritenour's forthcoming String Theory album, scheduled for release on Concord Records/Monster Music in the summer of 2010. String Theory will be an original collaboration of some of the greatest guitar players in the world representing the aforementioned genres. The grand prize winner will also score a four-year, full-tuition scholarship to Berklee, concert dates with Ritenour during his 2010 word tour and endorsements from Yamaha, D'Addario and Monster Cable. Runners up will get Yamaha guitars, endorsements and additional goodies from D'Addario and Monster.
Get all the contest rules and other details at sixstringtheory.com. Then get busy polishing your scales and your image. You could be a six-string superstar by next spring... theoretically speaking.
-
Spellbinder
Lee Ritenour, from Smoke 'n' Mirrors
-
Is It You
Lee Ritenour, from Overtime
in this playlist.
New. Paul. McCartney.
30 SEP 09 JOEL AMSTERDAM
Ok ya'll, get comfortable. I got some news I think you'll be pretty interested in. On Nov. 17th, Hear Music/Concord Music Group brings you Good Evening New York City, Paul McCartney's musical christening of New York's Citi Field. Available in two formats -- a 3-disc (2 CD + 1 DVD) standard edition and a 4-disc (2 CD + 2 DVD) deluxe version -- it features dazzling performances of Beatles, Wings and solo classics from the former site of Shea Stadium, historic location of The Beatles' Landmark 1965 Concert... all shot in HD and recorded in sterling 5.1 surround. See, I wasn't kidding! Read the entire story here.
The Duchess Of Coolsville
18 SEP 09 DAVID VIENNA
Time magazine dubbed renowned singer/songwriter Rickie Lee Jones "The Duchess Of Coolsville" in 1979, just after her self-titled debut was released. By 1991, she'd scored two Grammys and had hits and albums on Billboard's Pop, Modern Rock and Contemporary Jazz charts. The Duchess' upcoming album, Balm In Gilead (Fantasy), features new songs written over the last two decades.
This year marks the 30th anniversary of Jones' recording career, which started with the hit "Chuck E.'s In Love." The 10-song Balm In Gilead offers fans an opportunity to reconnect with Jones, who influenced generations of songwriters and remains one of popular music's most respected artists, by serving up tracks conceived at different points in her life.
Jones said, "This record is unique because most of it was written over the last 20 years... Some were just written recently, most were finished recently but started a long time ago." The song "Wild Girl," for example, she started writing just before her 1989 release Flying Cowboys.
Balm In Gilead is set for release Nov. 3 and it is packed with guests such as Ben Harper, Alison Krauss, Vic Chesnutt and Victoria Williams. In the meantime, Jones has tour dates in the eastern U.S. throughout October with more dates to be announced soon.
Download This
04 AUG 09 DAVID VIENNA
Last month, we highlighted just a few of the out-of-print and titles available in the new Digital Only section. We'll continue to point out albums and cuts you should hear, but don't wait for us. If you haven't yet, peruse the section and check out rarities such as Red Garland's Soul Burnin' and Carla Thomas' Sugar. Oh, yeah. And did I mention all digital tracks from Concord Music Group are DRM-free? Well, they are. If you missed my first post about it, I'll recap.
The Digital Only section offers more than just out-of-print titles. You'll also find many titles from Ray Charles' stunning career, including Crying Time and Ray's Moods, available digitally for the first time ever. And if you're looking to explore, check out the new Six Pack series, which serves up tracks from artists like Wes Montgomery and The Dramatics.
Click through and read our writers' thoughts on some of these digital only sets. Keep checking back for more exclusive releases and collector's albums.
-
On Green Dolphin Street
Red Garland, from Soul Burnin'
-
I'm Trying
Carla Thomas, from Sugar
-
We Don't See Eye To Eye
Ray Charles, from Crying Time
-
It's A Man's World
Ray Charles, from Ray's Moods
-
Moanin'
Wes Montgomery, from Jazz Six Pack
-
Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get (45 Version)
The Dramatics, from Soul Six Pack
in this playlist.
BROWSE ARCHIVE OF VOICES AT LARGE
