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News from the darkest corners of the
musical universe:
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Friday, December 28, 2007 ◦
In recent weeks, the Zappa Family Trust has taken legal action against Killuglyradio.com, a Frank Zappa fansite, as well as a bunch of non-profit Zappa tribute bands (Project/Object, Bogus Pomp) and the Zappanale festival.
Even if you're not much of an FZ fan, the topic at hand may be of interest to you as it's all about fair use versus copyright and mechanical licenses (bless the internet for there is now an expression for this type of behaviour as I'm sure you know: "to pull a Prince" - http://princefansunited.com).
In the case of Kill Ugly Radio, the webmaster had to remove long-out-of-print interview transcripts, Zappa quotes, even tiny little 100x100px thumbnails of Zappa album artwork in the discography section. The very mention of the name "Frank Zappa" has come under dispute! Non-profit tribute bands such as Project/Object, Bogus Pomp and Sheik Yerbouti have all received last-minute phonecalls from Gail Zappa ordering them to cancel gigs (we're talking little hole-in-the-wall type establishments such as Winchester, Cleveland, Ohio here).
Further more, "Zappanale", a (once again) non-profit Zappa festival in Germany which has in the past featured many Zappa alumni, organized by the Arf Society is now under attack as well.
It would appear that Gail Zappa (under the legal guise of the "ZFT") is effectively trying to kill off any unofficial website, tribute band, or festival -- the argument being that they are all in one way or another harmful to their business; when all they have ever attempted to do is to promote and keep the music of Frank Zappa alive. The crux of the biscuit is this: if she succeeds, Gail Zappa will have introduced a precedent -- one which might well affect any other fan site out there, be they Zappa related or not.
Some relevant links:
http://www.killuglyradio.com
http://united-mutations.com
http://www.idiotbastard.com/news.htm
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Thursday, December 27, 2007 ◦
Ruth Wallis, whose naughty musical numbers between the 1940s and 1960s inspired the musical revue, "Boobs! The Musical," died of Alzheimer's-related causes Dec. 22 in Wallingford, Conn. She was 87. She sang in the Isham Jones and Benny Goodman orchestras and became known as a risque singer during the 1950s. Some of her songs were banned from radio, and her records were confiscated by Australian customs during the 60s.
She made 10 comedy albums and appeared in Las Vegas, Miami and in Australia, London and New Zealand. Among her more than 150 songs were "The Dinghy Song," which sold 250,000 copies.
Shortly after her 83rd birthday, "Boobs! The Musical" (subtitled: The World According to Ruth Wallis) opened at the Triad Theater in New York and later transferred to Dillion's. The musical ran for nearly 300 performances with subsequent runs in New Orleans and Wichita.
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Friday, December 07, 2007 ◦
Karlheinz Stockhausen, 79, an avant-garde German composer who influenced a generation of musicians with pioneering electronic music and whose reputation was damaged by provocative statements about the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, died Dec. 5. Members of his family announced his death in Germany, but the cause was not reported.
In the 1950s, when he combined electronic sounds with the human voice and musical instruments, Mr. Stockhausen defined a new form of music. His influence was felt in classical music, jazz and pop, among musicians as diverse as Pierre Boulez, Miles Davis, the Grateful Dead and Bjork.
Full obit here.
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Saturday, December 01, 2007 ◦
Director Mitchell Kezin is working on a feature music documentary about " the fascinating underground world of alternative Christmas music...".
Read all about the film and the ways you can donate to help Mitchell take his project to the next stage on the official website Jingle Bell Rocks!
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