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Stevo Music Man an avid listener of good sounds

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Stevo Music Man



Last Updated: 10/27/2009

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Tuesday, November 03, 2009 

Current mood:Reflective
Category: Music
File-sharers are big spenders too
People who download music illegally also spend an average of £77 a year buying it legitimately, a survey has found.
Those who claimed not to use peer-to-peer filesharing sites such as The Pirate Bay spent a yearly average of just £44.
Almost one in 10 of those questioned aged between 16 and 50 said they downloaded music illegally.
However, eight out of 10 of that group also bought CDs, vinyl and as MP3s.
A total of 1008 people in the UK took part in the online poll commissioned by researchers Demos.
Half the group (50%) accessed music officially via YouTube, and 22% listened to internet radio.
Napster, once a pioneer of music filesharing, was used by just 4%, with 21% saying they had not heard of it.
Music streaming service Spotify was used by 9% of the group, most of whom had not signed up for the paid-for premium service.
However, it was rated highly for being easy to use, convenient and providing access to a wide variety of music.
Right price
75% of 16-24 year olds said they were prepared to pay for MP3s. The optimum price for the survey group as a whole was 45 pence for an individual track, with just 2% saying they would pay more than £1.
Current chart topper Fight for this Love by Cheryl Cole is priced at 99 pence on iTunes in the UK, and 79 pence on Amazon.
"Politicians and music companies need to recognise that the nature of music consumption has changed and consumers are demanding lower prices and easier access to music," said Demos researcher Peter Bradwell.
It also raises questions about the draft Digital Economy bill, which is due to be submitted to parliament later this month and proposes disconnecting file-sharers who repeatedly break the law.
"The scale of unlawful file-sharing poses a real threat to the long-term sustainability of our creative industries," said a spokesman for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
"While surveys asking people about unlawful behaviour should be treated with caution, it's encouraging that the findings signal that the three-pronged approach set out by the Government this week - a mix of education, enforcement and attractive new commercial deals - provides the best way forward for industry and consumers."
Currently listening:
Bringing Home the Ashes
By The Wild Swans
Release date: 2008-06-09
9:51 PM 
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Sunday, November 01, 2009 

Current mood:Restful
Category: Music







John Foxx - In The Glow (2 CD)



Foo Fighters - Greatest Hits



Kings Of Convience - Declaration Of Dependence



Robbie Williams - Reality Killed The Video Star



Kraftwerk - Catalogue (8 CD Box Set)




More Albums Again Soon


Currently listening:
The Catalogue
By Kraftwerk
Release date: 2009-11-16
7:57 PM 
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Thursday, October 29, 2009 

Current mood:thrilled
Category: Music


I had been looking forward to seeing this concert for sometime, though sadly my daughter wasn't able to attend too. The Symphiny Hall as venue is great and I had great seats right in the front of the stalls. No support, but that wasn't important seeing this wonderful composer live was though.
The backing musicals entered via the audience and played their instruments to the intro song of 'Nightbook', his latest CD offering. Whilst Ludovico almost slipped onto the stage and sat at the Steinway piano.
He played extensively from this new album, with 'Lady Labyrinth' a noteable highlight, with two breaks in between. Each time a standing ovation was given by the partizan crowd, and rightly so. He had surrounded himself with some great musicians on stage.
The ultimate part of proceedings for me was a solo performance of 'Divenire', the song which brought me to the attention of this great man.
No sooner than it had started than I again slipped back into the hussle and bussle of the Birmingham city centre.
Currently listening:
Nightbook
By Ludovico Einaudi
Release date: 2009-10-05
8:00 AM 
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Sunday, October 25, 2009 

Current mood:Exhausted
Category: Music


Over the last couple of days I travelled down to the big smoke and saw 4 northern bands play to two packed houses. The first being Magazine along with the Doves as part of the BBC's Electric Proms 09 series of shows at the very nice Roundhouse (if you haven't been then I recommend you do so). Then last night at the O2's venue at Islington I saw The Comsat Angels supported by almost all but in name The Chameleons (John Lever's Second Skin - billed as).
Magazine well what a comeback they had this year and this show really showed what the music industry has missed for so many years. A band who could play and deliver a great set.
Doves played a typical set but with a twist having a Bulgarian choir backing them up. I must admit wasn't too sure if this would work, but on the whole it added to their songs.
John Lever's Second Skin, had the crowd jumping around just like it was 1982 again, the only problem was their set was too short and not enough space for Mark Burgess to move around.
Comsat Angels played a very varied set, billed as last gig ever! (we've all heard that before), it started slowly and to be honest they haven't aged well as some other acts from the same era. But by the end of the show they'd won me over again.
One thing all these bands had was banter with the crowd, and this added to two nights when the northern lads stole the country's capital.


Currently listening:
Script Of The Bridge (25th Anniversary Edition)
By The Chameleons
Release date: 2008-05-26
9:10 AM 
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Friday, October 23, 2009 

Current mood:Tired
Category: Music
This is really a plug for a great guy called Richard who trawls the web looking for stuff about the bands from that era, which I grew up in. Have a look and subscribe to his newsletter which comes out weekly (ok sometimes he gets way laid). The best way to describe his site is to read his notes below. To access his site click on the logo below.



'LIKE 'FRIENDS REUNITED' FOR YOUR RECORD COLLECTION!'
This is probably the best description I've heard that sums up what this website is all about!
This site is not really about the eighties - at least not in any sort of 'retro' way, it's actually about updating the eighties; putting people back in touch with the artists they loved then and reintroducing them to them as the artists they are today.
Sure there's an element of nostalgia involved - in a way you have to look back to begin to remember who was important to you then, and why they were important.
For me the eighties were 'mine' - the first period of my life I could really participate in and call my own. In 1980 I had just started secondary school and in 1990 I graduated from University and the time in between was really all about me - a period of my life when I was discovering who I was, what I liked and what I didn't like, and a period in my life where music was really important and I had the time to indulge in it... to listen to records over and over again, to discover live music and going out to clubs, to find the artists I could connect with whose music would become the soundtrack to my life.
Then you grow up don't you? All of a sudden the important things are getting a job, settling down, buying a house, starting a family, those sort of things.
Suddenly there's not the same time available for music - there are new artists to discover of course, but you've invested maybe ten years of your life in the music you grew up with (and at that point this equals around half your life!) - so you keep returning to the music you know best.
In the meantime of course the artists you love have also been growing up - some have gone on to further success and others haven't, but most of them continue to work as artists, and continue making music despite the fact that for many their audience has drifted away (remember, we're all settling down and getting jobs and establishing ourselves as adults!).
Until now. Now we're at a point - I think - where the generation of people who grew up through the eighties have finished establishing themselves and are settled down and we're starting to find the time and freedom to start rediscovering the music that was important to us and the artists who made it and we're curious about what these artists are doing today and how they sound.
And that's what this website is here for.
Currently listening:
Waiting for a Miracle
By The Comsat Angels
Release date: 2006-04-03
9:57 PM 
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Thursday, October 22, 2009 

Current mood:  frustrated
Category: MySpace

Well I have been at wars with them as usual as the site is becoming a nightmare! Firstly I complained about seeing Tom (yes the guy who invented MySpace), who kept appearing on my activity thing on my homepage - even though I deleted him ages ago. I got a standard reply and so I sent over 10 messages backwards and forwards with the reply - we can't delete it - rubbish!
Now on the homepage I have two bones of contention firstly the new add below the toolbar which is annoying as I keep accidently clicking on it - it's too close! Then there's the other advert at the top which keeps rolling down (no I don't want to view it).
Also I keep getting sidetracked to subscribe to Myspace email address - If wanted it I'd have selected it. Then there's this new 'Friends you may know', appearing everywhere. Why would I know or want to know a man from Venezula who keeps chickens? I think not (nothing against chicken farmers).
Doesn't MySpace even care what their public thinks anymore, if you complain - all you get is there automated email responses - which just alienates me from this site more and more.
Whilst I think about it they still haven't fixed the Calendar (been waiting 7 months now), the friends search defaults to 18 to 30 everytime still (most of my friends are oldies). Besides that I am fine!
Currently listening:
English Settlement
By XTC
Release date: 2001-06-11
6:30 PM 
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Wednesday, October 21, 2009 

Current mood:In Deep Thought
Category: Music

You can watch U2's California gig from the Irish rockers' 360 tour live on YouTube this weekend. Is this the shape of things to come? Well if it gives more access to music, then I'm for it. But will it be the big players who'll hog the net? Will the quality be any good? Will anyone bother to watch it, take England's football match away to Ukrane which attracted less than 25,000 subscribers, compared to the millions who watch on the TV.

Watch U2 live online on YouTube

YouTube has teamed up with U2 to stream this Sunday's gig at the Rose Bowl in California live online to an audience of millions worldwide.

The concert will be shown on the U2 official YouTube channel with ads around the songs and will be accompanied by a Twitter feed tracking the event.

After the concert, the full show will then be available to watch again on-demand. Viewing the footage live or after the event will be completely free.

The move, being dubbed U2ube, is the first time YouTube has shown live footage in this way and could pave the way for similar events in the future, YouTube's owners Google said.

The video-hosting site has been reluctant in the past to show live events on such a scale due to costs.

Last week YouTube signed up with Channel 4 to host all the shows from the TV channel's catch-up service 4oD in another unprecedented move. 

4:20 PM 
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Tuesday, October 20, 2009 

Current mood:Satisfied
Category: Music







Echo & The Bunnymen - Fountain



Bad Lieutenant - Never Cry Another Tear



Leonard Cohen - At The Isle Of Wight 1970



David Bowie - Space Oddity (40th Anniversary Edition)



Bauhaus - Mask (Box Set)




More Albums Again Soon


9:52 PM 
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Thursday, October 15, 2009 

Current mood:Thoughtful
Category: Movies, TV, Celebrities


Here are some of my fave theme tunes when I was a kid, many moons ago - I still love the Robinson Crusoe theme and recently found a whole CD full of the music from this show. The Flashing Blade was probably my favourite dubbed show whilst the Double Deckers was just plain UK kids fun.
As Magpie that brought me to the attention of Kate Bush, her first TV appearance.
There are 18 excerpts on here, and you need around 15 minutes to view them all.
What's your fave kids shows from way back?
4:41 AM 
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Wednesday, October 14, 2009 

Current mood:Tired
Category: Music


You may think who? But in pop quiz's around the country he's often the answer to who had the first UK number one single? Yes way before my time back in 1952 he sat proudly on the throne. I can only say I remember him from the Godfather which he sang the theme tune and starred at a character not unlike Frank Sinatra (who allegedly had Mafia connections).

Reported: 
US singer Al Martino, who scored the UK's first number one record, has died at the age of 82.
His song, Here In My Heart, took top spot when the New Musical Express introduced its chart in November 1952 and stayed there for nine weeks.
Martino, who also played Johnny Fontane in 1972 film The Godfather, died at his childhood home in Philadelphia.
The former bricklayer's other hits included Spanish Eyes, Can't Help Falling in Love and Volare.

Palladium comeback

He also recorded the title tune to The Godfather and reprised his role as the singer godson of Don Vito Corleone - played by Marlon Brando - in the 1990 sequel The Godfather Part III.

Martino - who was born Alfred Cini - also performed the track featured in the first film's wedding scene.

His character was said to be based on Frank Sinatra.

In 1952, the singer performed at the London Palladium and was planning a return for the 50th anniversary of his landmark hit, according to publicist Sandy Friedman.

The nine-week run of his UK hit has since been beaten by only four singles, including Everything I Do (I Do It For You) by Bryan Adams, which topped the chart for 16 weeks in 1991.

Here In My Heart remained his only UK number one, and his last brush with the chart came in 1973 with a re-release of Spanish Eyes.

The crooner's chart career in the US was stalled by the growth of rock'n'roll in the late 1950s, but he returned during the 1960s with a run of Billboard hits.

In the 1980s he left his record company and continued to perform on the club circuit.

His most recent album, Style, was made nine years ago.

5:52 PM 
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