My Morning Jacket's Acid Trip

Drugs.

Yes, drugs. They are everywhere: at the pharmacy, in your food, at school, on the television and even in your music. Drugs are an inevitable factor in life, but it is up to you whether to participate or not.

My Morning Jacket encourages listeners to get it “Outta My System” in their new drug fuelled video. And when I say drug fuelled, I mean I feel like my brain is in another dimension after watching it, really.

“Outta My System,” which was featured in their 2011 album, Circuital, stars an animated Jim James, the band’s front man, in what appears to be a fashionable replica of Nicki Minaj’s fuzzy boots. James travels through an animated extra-terrestrial dimension, meeting one-eyed owls, skulls and even meat grinders floating in space. Most impressive is Zach Galifianakis as the powerful wizard in the trippy cartoon world.

The ode is peaceful and dreamy, urging that James had to “learn to know how it feels, but that it ain’t real.”

James Frost, who has also worked with Radiohead and OK GO, directed the video. Check it out below, and make sure not to float off too far while viewing.

Foo Fighters, Black Keys and Neil Young Headlining NYC Charity Concert

The Foo Fighters, The Black Keys and Neil Young with Crazy Horse are joining forces with Band of Horses and K’naan in Central Park’s Global Festival.

This September 29^th at the park’s Great Lawn, Global Poverty Project is hosting this charity concert to defeat global poverty. But don’t jump to buy your tickets just yet.

GPP is holding a lottery of 54,000 tickets that concertgoers could join and work to earn points by signing up for the Global Citizen website or phone app. Earning points is as easy as signing petitions, making posts on your social media or even making charitable donations. After earning your points, you are in the running for winning two free tickets to the show.

The goal is to move more than 50,000 people to fight deep poverty and to generate at least $100,000 to the cause from charities, businesses and governments. Rumors circulate that The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and The Sumner Redstone Charity Foundations are largely footing the bill, along with groups such as UNICEF and Rotary International, according to Rolling Stone Magazine.

This benefit concert is a golden bridge to connect with the United Nations, who will be in town that particular day. “I think what’s exciting is all the world leaders are going to be in [New York City] that week for the United Nations meeting,” said Hugh Evans of GPP. “And this concert and the associated campaign will give us the opportunity to ask these world leaders to make a practical and tangible monetary commitments to the world’s poor and to achievement of the UN’s Millennium Development Goals.” Evans also noted that the concert is a “crescendo” to fighting poverty with the upcoming UN meeting so nearby.

All the participating bands are experienced with charitable work, and often perform for free for certain worthy events. “We are very proud to be lending a hand to such a creative, important event and are looking forward to adding to the noise in the big park and helping an effort toward reducing the global shame of deep poverty,” said the Foo Fighters to Rolling Stone.

Are you looking to get involved? Why not see some of America’s hottest acts while doing so. Check out the Global Citizen website now to get started for free!

Misquoted Bob Dylan Book Taken Off Bookshelves

In every writing class I have taken, the number one rule has always been “do not plagiarize or fabricate material.” It seems as if even professional journalists sometimes neglect the most basic of ethics.

The New Yorker staff writer and best selling author Jonah Lehrer resigned yesterday after being rightfully accused of misconstruing quotes by Bob Dylan in his latest novel Imagine: How Creativity Works, which details how neuroscience explains creative genius.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Lehrer’s publisher, will pull the book from bookshelves worldwide, as well as on the e-book market.

“It’s a hard thing to describe. It’s just this sense that you have something to say,” was a concocted quote from the book, where Dylan was supposed to be explaining the writing process on hit song “Like a Rolling Stone.”

The misquoted information was brought to the attention of Michael Moynihan, editor of Tablet, an online magazine. After he publically questioned Lehrer, the plagiarizer was un-wittedly found in the limelight.  

“The quotes in question either did not exist, were unintentional misquotes or represented improper combinations of previously existing quotes,” explained Lehrer. “But I told Mr. Moynihan that they were from archival interview footage provided to me by Dylan’s representatives.” 

He claimed to have had publicly inaccessible archives from Martin Scorsese’s 2005 documentary No Direction Home, among other sources. This is not the first time Lehrer has been accused of writing fabrications.

Well, sucks to suck, Jonah Lehrer. My journalism teacher would be very disappointed in you. Until then, here are some Dylan songs to enjoy.

"Don't Think Twice, It's Alright"

"Tangled Up in Blue"

"The Times They Are A-Changing"

"Mr. Tambourine Man"

"Ballad of a Thin Man" with the Grateful Dead. Great lesser known hit.

Remembering Jerry Garcia

Today would have been Jerry Garcia’s 70^th birthday.

The Grateful Dead was not just a band—they were an experience. I remember my dad telling me a story about his first Dead experience. As a young boy in 1973, he convinced his parents to let him take the car to a music festival. The Dead, of course, was the headlining act, along with two other bands. Once they arrived, they found themselves lost in a sea of cars, thousands and thousands of cars, waiting for the gates to open. They couldn’t gain access to the venue until the next morning, so my dad, together with his friend and their two dates, joined in with the agony of the wait.

It was late at night, and the crowd was restless. My dad wanted to sleep, hoping that time would slowly fade into morning. However, when he heard that familiar screeching sound of a guitar plugging into an amp, his head popped up.

Jerry Garcia was standing on a poorly built stage, with Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Mickey Hart and the rest of the group behind him. They were the only ones willing to put on a free pre-show for their awaiting and loyal fans. Something many bands, back then and today, would never dream of doing.

The Grateful Dead wasn’t just a band, they were an experience, and Jerry Garcia was their chief spokesperson. Since the Dead’s birth in 1965, they have endlessly toured for three decades, playing 2,314 shows. Jerry has been revered as one of the world’s greatest guitar players (Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him at lucky number 13!). His sound is a mix of bluegrass, country and early rock, and has enabled his band to skyrocket to the top of the psychedelic San Francisco scene.

In addition to his Dead feats, Garcia headed side projects, most famously The New Riders of the Purple Sage and The Jerry Garcia Band (great Beatles covers- he admitted "Dear Prudence" was one of his favorite songs). He worked as a solo artist and even collaborated with other bands. He helped Jefferson Airplane with their Surrealistic Pillow album, where he is named as their “spiritual advisor.” Garcia is remembered for being the first to truly cover Motown music in the early 1970’s, and is the most prolific Bob Dylan coverer (he also helped Dylan with a few albums as well).

Garcia died only 8 days after his 53^rd birthday. He had been struggling with his weight in addition to a severe addiction to heroin and cocaine. He died of a heart attack in a California drug rehabilitation facility on August 9, 1995.

In celebration, NCM Fathom Events will screen “The Grateful Dead Movie” at select movie theaters nationwide tonight only. Check out participating theaters here. 

The Grateful Dead were virtually the leaders of the San Fran Hippie Revolution, and continued to spread their free-spirited message around the world. Now all we have left are the recordings and memories.

Happy birthday, Jerry Garcia. We certainly do miss you. Take a listen to some great songs below, and please note that they are all live, as that is the only way you can listen to the Dead.

"New Minglewood Blues" - this blog's namesake

"Shakedown Street"

"Touch of Grey"

"Franklin's Tower"

"Dark Star"

"Jack Straw"

"Sugar Magnolia"

"Ripple"

"Good Lovin'"

"St. Stephen"

"Friend of the Devil"

"Casey Jones"

"Uncle John's Band"

"Bertha"

"Terrapin Station"

"Estimated Prophet"

"Fire on the Mountain"

"Scarlet Begonias"

"Me and My Uncle"

"Alabama Getaway"

"Eyes of the World" - one of my favorites

"Truckin'"

"The Golden Road"

"China Cat Sunflower/ I Know You Rider"

Courtney Love Schools Lana Del Rey

Courtney Love is a hot mess and, even though we won’t admit it, America loves her. She is long passed her hey-day as the lead vocalist for Hole, and that is quite obvious in her appearance. But despite Love's addiction issues and horrid plastic surgery, she has a loud mouth and won't hesitate to speak her mind, which I respect. And nothing was stopping her yesterday in regards to Lana Del Rey’s live cover of Nirvana’s “Heart Shaped Box.” (click to listen)

Del Rey, who I have never even heard of until this story went viral, is apparently a Kurt Cobain fan. She told a radio show last year that when she heard her first Nirvana song, it “stopped me dead in my tracks.”

Courtney Love, Cobain’s widow, obviously had something to say via twitter after Del Rey’s performance in Sydney last week.

Those tweets have since been deleted; also an “apology” tweet has been issued and erased as well.

“You are gorgeous and very talented, it was all in good humor love, it is true however bwahaa xc”

Sorry Lana Del Rey, you’ve been owned.

“Heart Shaped Box,” one of my favorite Nirvana songs, is from the band’s 1993 album In Utero. In a sense, I understand why Love felt the need to say something. After all, Cobain killed himself in 1994 after he feared he sold out and became too mainstream, amongst various other reasons. I'm sure Del Rey's cover is something he would not have been overly thrilled about. 

Regardless, here are some other cool Nirvana songs, so make sure you check them out! 

"Come As You Are"

"Rape Me"

"The Man Who Sold the World"- originally by David Bowie but I love this version

"About a Girl"

"Lithium"

"Drain You"

"Aneurysm"

"All Apologies"

"In Bloom"

"Smells Like Teen Spirit" - Obviously

Joplin's Biopic Does It Right

After 12 agonizing years, producer Peter Newman is finally able to take his Janis Joplin biopic off the backburner as production of Joplin will begin early next year.

Unlike the upcoming Jimi Hendrix biopic, All Is By My Side, Newman waited to ensure he would be able to utilize 21 of Joplin’s most endearing songs, including “Piece of My Heart,” for his indie film. Hendrix’s is relying on the Beatles’ catalog, a factor that will surely affect the biopic’s monetary success. The rights to her song, and virtually her life, coast a whopping $2.5 million. But surely, in the end, the high price will pay for itself.

Newman not only scored the rights to Joplin’s music, but to “Love, Janis,” a collection of letters from the singer published by her sister, Laura Joplin, and to Piece of My Heart, a book written by ex-Rolling Stone reporter David Dalton, who travelled with Joplin the last six months of her life.

It appears that is what the film is largely documenting, her last six months, though we will also see a few snippets from her early career. Janis was a wild rocker at the time, but soon suffered from her own demise when she overdosed on heroin in October 1970.

Newman and director Sean Durbin searched endlessly for the perfect leading woman—literally endlessly. They considered everyone from Zoey Deschanel to Pink, but eventually settled for Tony winner Nina Arianda.

“I’ve never in my life seen an actress walk on stage and convey the duality of vulnerability with overheated sexuality, which is what Janis was all about,” said Newman of Arianda. And rightly so. She was formerly the leading role in the off-Broadway hit, Venus in Furs, a sensual and rather seductive production.

Joplin was recently posthumously awarded a Walk of Fame star; you can see that post here.

Check out this live clip of Janis on the Dick Cavett show. I can’t wait to see this on the silver screen!

If you want to skip right to the interview, jump to 9 minutes 25 seconds

Rock and Roll Mugshots

First is Mick Jagger, my favorite Rolling Stone. Although he was arrested on multiple occasions, this particularly handsome mugshot was taken in 1967 after a drug raid was conducted on guitarist Keith Richard's house. Jagger was forced to spend a few nights in jail before they made bail. George Harrison  and John Lennon of the Beatles were also both arrested on similar charges. Police were notorious for these celebrity home drug raids in hopes to "deter" the swinging sixties' drug issues.

Jim Morrison was known for his poetry, his sultry voice and his wild antics. At a Miami, Fla concert in March of 1969, Morrison perhaps shared a little too much with his audience-- and by too much, we mean his private parts. Yes, Morrison allegedly whipped out his own "Lizard King" at that show, and was arrested the following year for indecent exposure and profanity. He and his bandmates denied these accusations. The state of Florida surprisingly pardoned him for this arrest in 2010. What would Jim have thought? Probably would have thought of it as an insult!

Having trouble recognizing this face? Probably because it is years before his limelight prime. Steve Tyler of Aerosmith was arrested at the age of 18 for possession of marijuana. Sure, he's been arrested numerous times for that very charge, but this was the first and, I guess, most monumental. 

Guitar God, Jimi Hendrix, was arrested at the Toronto, ONT Airport in May 1969 for possession of heroin and hashish. Why would he try to sneak that on board? Well, according to the story he told Canadian officials, a "well-meaning" fan slipped the junk into his luggage as a present. Some fan, huh? And some story. I don't know that I would believe it, knowing what I do about Hendrix, but the Canadian officials did and he was left off the hook.

Janis Joplin was arrested in Tampa, Fla on November 17, 1969, a year before her untimely death. The night before she was apparently on stage, verbally bashing the local police force. She was arrested the next night for disorderly conduct, however her case was overturned, as the judge deemed this as a simple exemplar of freedom of speech.

David Bowie, punk star Iggy Pop and two female companions were arrested in March 1976 for felony possession of a half an ounce of marijuana at the Americana Hotel in Rochester, NY. The group was there for a concert, having a little fun, until a hotel worker smelled the odor and called the coppers. They were all held in Monroe County Jail for a few hours until, well at least Bowie was, released. Charges on all four were eventually disposed. 

Sid Vicious, of the notorious Sex Pistols, has had quite an experience with jail time. Two months after he allegedly murdered his girlfirend, Nancy Spungen, he was arrested in December 1978 for "bottling" singer Patti Smith's brother, Todd, at a Skafish concert. He spent two months in prison, until dying of an overdose the day he was released. Now here's the controversy. A recent documentary tells the finding of a suicide note, detailing his plain with Spungen to jointly commit suicide, as a pact of sorts. Apparently, if this is true, Vicious survived his first attempt, and fulfilled his end of the pact after he ended his life (again, allegedly) after being released from jail.

 Trey Anastasio was the subject of Phish's 2006 hiatus when he was arrested for possession of a controlled substance and DWI drugs. He was stopped by police at 3:30am while driving through Whitehill, NY. After failing a sobriety test, police found Xanax, Percocet and Hydrocodone in his car, neither of the drugs prescribed to him. Although he spent some time in jail, he later credited this stint with the law as a wakeup call.

What celebrity mugshot list would be complete without Willie Nelson? The country star-marijuana advocate was arrested in November 2010 after his tour bus was stopped in Texas by US Border patrol. Six ounces of weed was found onboard! The checkpoint was routine, and supposedly, the odor was blatant. Nelson admitted the goods were his, was held briefly in jail, until being released after paying his $2,500 bail.

Lastly is the blue-eyed, 23-year-old Frank Sinatra, arrested in 1938 in New Jersey for charges of seduction and adultery. The FBI reports, "on the second and ninth days of November 1938 at the Borough of Lodi" and "under the promise of marriage," Sinatra "did then and there have sexual intercourse with the said compliant, who was then and there a single female of good repute." Well, let's just say this single female was not so much of good repute. The charges were dropped after authorities found that she was married.

For more mugshots, or more information on the ones listed above, check out Ultimate Classic Rock. An awesome website for classic rock news!