Every so often, a film or documentary arrives at just the right time to soothe the feelings that the daily stress of life can create. That’s the case with Alison Ellwood’s “Laurel Canyon,” a feature-length documentary about the Los Angeles folk/rock scene of the ‘60s and ‘70s that’s currently airing in two-parts on Epix.



I’ll be honest – my expectations weren’t very high. I have seen a few other documentaries about this era, but none of them ever seemed to quite bring into focus what I’d lived as a child. I grew up on Laurel Canyon Blvd, at the foot of the canyon area on the Valley side. But I was cautiously optimistic that this film would deliver and did it ever.



Most of the other documentaries I had seen on the topic always felt incomplete and left me wanting more. This docuseries brought all the unique elements into focus and transported me back to the idyllic period of my life known as “childhood.” Prior to this, only Jakob...

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Rubber Soul was the 6th album from The Beatles catalog. Released in December 1965, it contains fourteen songs, including two tracks withheld from the band’s album. The album was met with a highly favourable critical response and topped sales charts in the UK and the United States for several weeks. Tracks include Girland In My Life, which, according to John Lennon, was his “first real major piece of work” because it was the first time he wrote about his own life.

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It’s safe to say that with 250-300+ (more like 500) music videos to his credit, saying Jim Yukich is a great director is wildly understated. He’s accomplished a lot more as well, directing 1500+ episodes of “Chelsea Lately” over 7.5 years, over 60 episodes of ET over 6 months, plus 2 feature films. Add in his numerous awards, and he’s truly a force to be reckoned with.



We spoke for nearly two hours over a couple days, and with such an interesting, well-informed subject, it felt like 5 minutes. He was so gracious and kind, and answered every question, and then some. Rather than write my views, I am printing his vivid and very articulate responses.




What was it that inspired you to enter the music and entertainment field? 




“The Beatles changed life as we know it and were what originally interested me in music. I played in bands since 5th grade… I still play with 2 different bands.



Somehow my family had a super 8mm camera and I always liked filming all our family...

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“On Saturday, August 1, 1981, at 12:01 AM Eastern Time, MTV launched with the words “Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll,” spoken by John Lack, and played over footage of the first Space Shuttle launch countdown of Columbia (which took place earlier that year) and of the launch of Apollo 11.” And with those words, we entered a whole new era.



It was then that we were introduced to the five people who would shape and mold that blank canvas into what became the greatest social experiment of our generation. “Veejays” J.J. Jackson, Mark Goodman, Alan Hunter, Martha Quinn and Nina Blackwood would soon become daily visitors to our respective homes, bringing us that “whole new world.”



In a follow-up to our blog with early MTV...

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After watching “Get Back” with the Beatles for 468 minutes, my first thought is I’m not entirely sure this couldn’t have been just a tad bit shorter. Not that I totally didn’t enjoy it and get fully immersed in the entire 3-part documentary, but some of it became a little redundant and tedious. Right around the 2-hour mark on each of the three parts, I started looking to see just how much longer this was going to drag on. That being said, I hated for it to end!



Because of “Let It Be,” the film patched together from the mountains of footage shot by director Michael Lindsay Hogg right after the Beatles broke up, the rest of this fantastic footage almost didn’t see the light of day, and what a shame that would have been.



“Get Back,”...

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For the first time ever in my life, words have truly failed me. I have been trying to write this article since March 25 – the fateful day we lost Taylor Hawkins. What I wanted to express just simply would not come. But now – months later, I feel compelled to complete this – for Taylor, for his wife Alison, for his kids, and for Dave Grohl and the rest of the Foos. And always, for the fans!



Oliver Taylor Hawkins was born in Ft Worth, Texas, and moved to Laguna Beach, CA when he was only 4. Tay, as he was nicknamed, was your typical “California” boy, loving the sun, sand, and Pacific Ocean. Growing up in Orange County (the “O.C.”) gave Tay plenty of opportunity to discover who and what he wanted to be. “I was a fat, chubby, stupid kid...

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What are of the 5 Best Animated Christmas Shows? As a kid, I think we all had favorites, and I think many of us will agree with this list. From the 60s – 90s, these are the ones we feel have best stood the test of time.



Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (the TV Special)Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a 1964 Christmas Special that first aired Sunday, December 6, 1964. The special was based on the Johnny Marks song Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and tells the story of how Rudolph became the one to lead Santa’s sleigh. Since 1972, the special has aired exclusively on CBS, with the network unveiling a high-def, digitally remastered version of the program in 2005. Unlike other holiday specials that also air on several cable channels...

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Any list of “Top 10 Christmas Movies” tends to be subject to both cheers and derision as these compilations are inevitably driven by the reader (or writer’s) tastes. This one’s no different. I chose movies that I felt best portrayed the true meaning of Christmas, in one way or another.  I didn’t put these together in any sort of specific order, other than that in which they came to mind:



ELF: This movie is one of my “musts” every Holiday Season. The plot is simple, a man named Buddy, who was raised from infancy as one of Santa’s Elves, comes to NYC as an adult to find his biological father.  Hilarity ensues as he spreads Christmas cheer in a world full of cynics. This movie is heartwarming and focuses on the true meaning of the...

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Being in a band can be so tough. When you’re writing songs, recording albums, touring the world, and doing it all with the same exact people day after day, relationships can become a little strained, to say the least. It’s like being in any family – you fight, you get mad, then you make up … most of the time.



Let’s start with the Rolling Stones, or more specifically the “Glimmer Twins” as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards are affectionately known. These two have obviously learned the art of “kiss and make up” pretty well, to withstand nearly 60 years together. From the 60s through today, the famed duo has had more than their fair share of differences, even doing solo albums during band breaks. In 2010, Richards decided to publish his...

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Turn, Turn, The Byrds were a California-based rock band in the 60s. The original (but very short-lived) lineup of the band consisted of Jim (Roger) McGuinn (lead guitar, vocals), Gene Clark (tambourine, vocals), David Crosby (rhythm guitar, vocals), Chris Hillman (bass guitar, vocals), and Michael Clarke (drums). In fact, Jim (Roger) McGuinn was the only member who remained consistently a part of the band.



The Byrds are considered by critics to be among the most influential rock acts of their era, even though their time as a “popular group” only lasted for a short period in the mid-60s and very early 70s. At one point, the band were even cited as being an inspiration to The Beatles who were the figureheads of this brave new world.



The nucleus of the Byrds formed in early 1964, when Jim McGuinn, Gene Clark, and David Crosby came together as a trio. Both Dickson and Clarke were added in at a later date in mid-64. But by early 1966 Clark had left due to problems associated with...

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I was scrolling through various sites earlier today, looking for interesting articles to post on Facebook, as I do daily. As always, I looked to “This Day in Music,” as I always find great content there. I came across a post in their “on this day” section about an Everly Brothers song from the 50s being banned on radio. Wait … what?!?!?!



Yes, in 1957 they banned the song “Wake Up Little Susie” by the Everly Brothers for “suggestive content.” So I started digging a little further. Lots of songs have been banned from radio play. Some are pretty self-explanatory. And some are just head scratchers. I always knew this, yet I’m still just a little gobsmacked.



Of course, you have the obvious ones – anything even slightly drug-related has always been frowned...

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Born and raised in the Queens area of New York to an Italian-American family, Anthony Dominick Benedetto, better known professionally as “Tony Bennett” truly has nothing left to prove. He’s now 95 years old, fighting Alzheimer’s, but not allowing this disease to keep him from living.



Bennett started singing at a very young age. By age 10 he was already singing and performed at the opening of the Triborough Bridge in July 1936. He began getting paid for singing at age 13, performing as a singing waiter in several Italian restaurants around his native Queens. He also developed an aptitude for drawing, creating caricatures for his class at PS 141. He attended New York’s School of Industrial Art where he studied painting and music but had to drop out at age 16 to help support his family. He set his sights on a professional singing career, performing as a singing waiter, playing, and winning amateur nights all around the...

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What can I possibly say about Charlie Watts that hasn’t already been said? The man was and still is, an icon, a legend. One of the greatest drummers to ever grace the stage.



Perhaps my favorite thing about him was his loyalty and faithfulness. Always a very private man, Watts even kept his marriage from the band initially. Concerned that his marriage would alienate the group’s infatuated teenage female fans, Watts decided to hardly tell anyone about it – including his fellow band members and the band’s manager.  I recently read in an article that Watts was faithful to his wife Shirley, and consistently refused sexual favors from groupies on the road.  It was said that when the group was invited to the Playboy Mansion in the 70s, Watts took advantage of Hugh Hefner’s game room instead of frolicking with the women. That was Charlie Watts – he truly marched to the beat of his own drum.



Charles Robert (Charlie) Watts was...

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