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Adele Booming At Radio, But Temporarily Knocked Off iTunes Top Spot by Moronic Anti-Biden Song

Roger Friedman
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Adele Booming At Radio, But Temporarily Knocked Off iTunes Top Spot by Moronic Anti-Biden Song

Adele’s “Easy On Me” is booming away at radio. The single has been added to the largest number of radio stations in existence, and getting played more than any other record by the hour. This is all according to MediaBase, which tracks song plays and stations.

According to Buzz Angle, “Easy On Me” is now nearing 600,000 copies sold, mostly from streaming. That’s not the same numbers as Adele’s singles from 2015, but it’s better than any other record for sale today or the last year.

Meantime, “Easy On Me” was knocked off its perch at number 1 on iTunes after 10 straight days. The temporary displacer is a moronic single called “Let’s Go Brandon!” by Bryson Gray Tyson, an anti-Biden record for anti-vaxxers. Idiots are pushing this piece of crap up the iTunes chart, but no one in their right mind would spend money on it. It’s not a song, or a record, it’s just garbage.

Adele will be back at number 1 by tomorrow.

Alec Baldwin Will Have to Lawyer Up in Movie Set Death as Killed Woman’s Husband Works for Top Legal Firm

Roger Friedman
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Alec Baldwin Will Have to Lawyer Up in Movie Set Death as Killed Woman’s Husband Works for Top Legal Firm

Now that the shock of what happened on the set of the movie “Rust” is wearing off, it’s time to lawyer up over the death of Halyna Hutchins and the shooting of Joel Souza.

Alec Baldwin is represented by former New York City deputy mayor Randy Mastro, a close friend and partner at Gibson Dunn. That famous firm does not handle criminal matters. Mastro is a litigation attorney, which will come in handy when the civil suits start flying. Since Baldwin in an Executive Producer on “Rust,” the odds are there will be lawsuits from everyone including the film’s insurance carrier.

Mastro is a master of negotiating. When he worked for Rudy Guiliani at City Hall it was Mastro who dismantled the Fulton Fish Market in the South Street Seaport, among other hot button issues. He and Alec just appeared together two weeks ago at the Hamptons Film Festival where they are both very involved. They could never have guessed this would be their next mutual project.

What complicates the situation is that the husband of the cinematographer who was killed, Matt Hutchins, is an LA – based entertainment attorney. Last March he joined the prestigious firm Latham & Watkins in mergers and acquisitions. According to his Linked In account, Hutchins– despite graduating from Harvard law School in 2010 — has knocked around the Hollywood law game quite a lot over the last decade. (He was editor in chief of the Harvard Law Journal when he was a student there.) His longest stint was from 2011 to 2015 at Skadden Arps, another top firm.

If Alec needs a criminal defense lawyer, his first choice would probably be Alan Abramson, who’s worked miracles for him before in cases like Baldwin’s skirmish with a photographer outside his Greenwich Village apartment.

As I broke here on Saturday, Baldwin spoke at the private memorial service for Halyna Hutchins before returning to New York. It doesn’t seem like “Rust” will resume shooting, and Baldwin has no other movies or TV shows coming up. He will certainly be advised to be extremely low profile until everything is resolved.

What Year Is it? Beatles Sell 60,000 Copies of $117 “Let It Be” Box Set, Enter Top 5 Albums, Bestselling Book, Too

Roger Friedman
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What Year Is it? Beatles Sell 60,000 Copies of $117 “Let It Be” Box Set, Enter Top 5 Albums, Bestselling Book, Too

What year is it?

1970?

The Beatles sold 60,000 copies of their “Let it Be” super deluxe edition box set last week. The collection enters the Billboard album chart at number 5, number 5 on the Buzz Angle chart, sits at number 9 on Amazon.

The set costs $117 and has 5 CDs. There are several versions, and they’re all over the charts as well. “Let it Be” was first released in May 1970.

Sixty thousand copies of a box set? These days, that’s like a million.

Adding to the box set success, “Get Back,” a companion back that Amazon is selling for $36, is on the New York Times best seller list this week at number 6.

The book is itself a companion to Peter Jackson’s three part documentary called “Get Back,” headed to Disney Plus streaming at the end of November. The documentary re-tells the making of the “Let it Be” documentary directed Michael Lindsay Hogg and released also in 1970.

And that’s not all: coming next Tuesday, November 2nd, is Paul McCartney’s “The Lyrics,” a two volume book collection of 154 lyrics with anecdotes. Amazon is selling it for $79.99 and the set is already number 46 on their best seller list with pre-orders.

The Beatles are never going away, thank god. They have turned into the classical music of our time. And remixed boxes of “Revolver” and “Rubber Soul” are still coming, I guess for 60th anniversaries. And so on.

Of course, all that”s left is the McCartney world tour celebrating his 80th birthday next June. And as touring ramps up with vaccine restrictions etc, there’s no doubt we’ll see Paul live again, soon. Count me in!

KPop Katastrophe for Sony Music: Mega Seller BTS Leaves for Universal Music, Taking Bread and “Butter” with Them

Roger Friedman
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KPop Katastrophe for Sony Music: Mega Seller BTS Leaves for Universal Music, Taking Bread and “Butter” with Them

Yikes.

Sony Music has lost a major recording deal to rival Universal. The Korean K Pop boy band BTS has made a gazillion dollar deal with Universal Music Group. They’re taking their bread and “Butter” — name of the massive hit single this year — to the world’s largest record company.

BTS had been with Sony and The Orchard since they made their presence known in the U.S. Frankly, Sony’s done a great job for them considering all things. They turned their song “Dynamite” and its album into blockbusters, and “Butter” earlier this year melted all over everything.

But BTS’s company, Hybe, bought Scooter Braun’s company earlier this summer for a billion bucks. All Scooter’s deals are at Universal, especially Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande. Word is that Braun flexed his UMG muscle to help this deal along.

Sony is doing just fine without BTS. They’ve got Adele about to land like several armies, plus Lil Nas X, Kid Laroi, and Dominic Fike is out there somewhere. Plus Springsteen will arrive with an E Street Band album next year before his big tour. And Beyonce is hovering with a “surprise”album.

But wow, there is no loyalty in the music biz.

“Saturday Night Live” Ratings Remain on the Low Side

Roger Friedman
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“Saturday Night Live” Ratings Remain on the Low Side

“Saturday Night Live” is in a ratings decline and last night was no different. The household overnights were 3.7 million. Total viewers will come in not much higher.

The show itself was top notch, I thought. Jason Sudeikis was an amiable host with many clever sketches. His monologue was touching, and maybe designed to remind viewers how much the show has meant to our culture. (So start watching again was the subliminal message.)

Brandi Carlile was the best musical guest in ages. What a difference when the musical guest is musical. Her performances were knockouts, lovely, for the record books. What a soaring, gorgeous voice!

Kate McKinnon is still AWOL. And some of the newer players haven’t made their mark yet. But James Austin Johnson has jumped in as Biden and in other sketches hitting the ground running. It’s like he’s always been on the show.

But viewership just down by a million year to year.  The show needs an extra spark.

 

Pop Star Ed Sheeran Tests Positive for COVID on Eve of Album Release, “SNL” Gig Likely Canceled

Roger Friedman
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Pop Star Ed Sheeran Tests Positive for COVID on Eve of Album Release, “SNL” Gig Likely Canceled

Talk about bad timing: pop star Ed Sheeran has tested positive for COVID in the UK.

Sheeran won’t be able to travel to the US for his November 5th gig on “Saturday Night Live.” The appearance was to promote his new “Equal” album coming next Friday, October 29th.

“SNL” could have him on live via Zoom or video link, but after the remote pandemic shows they were forced to do last year, it’s unlikely. Sheeran will have to reschedule.

So “SNL” needs a musical act to pair with host Kieran Culkin on November 5th. Adele is busy with CBS but there are plenty of people who need exposure, like Taylor Swift. We never see enough of her!

Sheeran wrote on Instagram:

“Hey guys. Quick note to tell you that I’ve sadly tested positive for Covid, so I’m now self-isolating and following government guidelines. It means that I’m now unable to plough ahead with any in person commitments for now, so I’ll be doing as many of my planned interviews/performances I can from my house. Apologies to anyone I’ve let down. Be safe everyone x”

The “Equal” album comes equipped with two big singles that have been filling the airwaves all summer: “Bad Habits” and “Shivers,” the latter he may have gotten from the COVID. Or from bad habits. Get well soon, Ed!

 

 

Box Office: “Dune” Spices Up the Box Office with Underwhelming $40 Million Weekend

Roger Friedman
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Box Office: “Dune” Spices Up the Box Office with Underwhelming $40 Million Weekend

“Dune” was the movie that was always coming and never did, then finally arrived with HBO Max attached to it.

We’ll never know how Denis Villeneuve’s beautifully made epic did on the home box, but in theaters it made $40 million from Thursday through Sunday. That’s not chump change but it’s also a little underwhelming for a $200 million movie.

How “Dune” will fare going forward is unknown, but it may pick up speed as people get more comfortable being out and about and in theaters. If you’re already going to sporting events, and other large gathering, a theater shouldn’t be much of a deterrent. And “Dune” is worth seeing on the big screen.

Elsewhere “No Time to Die” is up to $120 million after 3 weeks, and heading toward a comfy $150 million. “The Last Duel” is completely dead, and heading to a $150 million write off for Disney.

RIP Jay Black, Hitmaker of Jay Black and the Americans, Dead at 82

Roger Friedman
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RIP Jay Black, Hitmaker of Jay Black and the Americans, Dead at 82

Jay Blatt, known to the 60s generation as Jay Black, has died. He was 82. Jay Black and the Americans were real hitmakers. “This Magic Moment,” “Come a Little Bit Closer,” were just some of their hits.

A Facebook post from around 12 noon today says: “Today, we mourn the passing of David Blatt a/k/a Jay Black and we acknowledge the great successes we had with him both as a partner and as a lead singer. We shared both wonderful and very contentious times, and much like an ex-wife, we are so proud of the beautiful children we created. We’ll always remember The Voice.”

In the late 60s, at the end of the Americans’ run, soon to be Steely Dan partners Walter Becker and Donald Fagen worked as their back up band. Fagen told me years ago that they mostly toured state fairs.

But for most of the 60s, Jay Black’s Americans were hometown heroes in the New York area who ruled top 40 radio. Some of their other hits were “Cara Mia” and “Coming to America.” Their first hit was “She Cried,” and most of their hits were written by the legendary team of Mike Stoller and Jerry Leiber. The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2002.

Rest in peace, Jay. Thanks for everything.

UPDATE: Alec Baldwin Spoke at Private Memorial Service for Killed Cinematographer, Guests Included Wounded Director

Roger Friedman
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UPDATE: Alec Baldwin Spoke at Private Memorial Service for Killed Cinematographer, Guests Included Wounded Director

UPDATE

EXCLUSIVE

I’m told the memorial service last night at a Santa Fe hotel for 42 year old cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was, as expected, very emotional.

I’m also told that Alec Baldwin, who fired the gun that killed Hutchins, spoke to the cast, crew, and mourners. His words were termed as “heartfelt” by those who attended.

Director Joel Souza, who was shot when the bullet that was fired in Hutchins’ direction passed through her body and hit him, was there, as well. This man, like everyone else, must be in shock.

First assistant Dave Halls, whose name has figured in the chain of command for the loaded prop gun, was also at the memorial. Hannah Gutierrez, who was considered the film’s “armorer,” did not attend.

Most importantly, Hutchins’ husband, Matthew, and their son, were in attendance. Matthew told the assembled mourners that he’d lost his own mother to cancer earlier this year.

Hutchins posted to Twitter last night: “Halyna inspired us all with her passion and vision, and her legacy is too meaningful to encapsulate in words. Our loss is enormous, and we ask that the media please respect my family’s privacy as we process our grief. We thank everyone for sharing images and stories of her life.”

Baldwin left New Mexico after the service, presumably to join his wife Hilaria, and their six small children on Eastern Long Island. My sources say that there was “a sense” that the movie, “Rust,” would not resume production. It doesn’t seem possible that any of the people involved would return to that set.

A public memorial is set for tonight.

The Pleasures of the Rolling Stones’ “Tattoo You” 40th Anniversary: These Unreleased Tracks

Roger Friedman
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The Pleasures of the Rolling Stones’ “Tattoo You” 40th Anniversary: These Unreleased Tracks

There are many pleasures of the Rolling Stones’ new box set 40th anniversary edition of “Tattoo You.”

Among my favorite tracks are “It’s a Lie” and “Drift Away,” the latter a cover of Dobie Gray’s 1973 hit. What I didn’t know is that “Drift Away” had an earlier life in the 60s, and that it was written by Mentor Williams, brother of legendary songwriter Paul Williams, whose credits include “Rainy Days and Mondays” and “An Old Fastioned Love Song,” among his many hits. What a family!

There’s a whole CD in the box of these outtakes and unreleased songs besides the remixed version of the original album and a live album. “Tattoo You,” for most Stones fans, was the last great album in 1981. The whole next chapter has some great moments, but it’s not the same. Even “Tattoo You” was sort of cobbled together and created by Mick Jagger. So glad he did it, though.

There’s also a great version of “Start Me Up” in the box set. I can’t find it on YouTube but I’m including the Spotify link. I do love my Rolling Stones, especially “Brown Sugar,” even the version with Eric Clapton that came out a few years ago.

It’s a Lie:

Drift Away:

Start Me Up:

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