retroblog.net

Yes announces Jon Davison as replacement for Benoit David

retroDan — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:01:07 +0000

gah, it’s hard to keep up with these old gentlemen. man, talk about a revolving door. Legendary prog-rock group Yes recently announced that due to health issues, Benoit David won’t be touring with Yes in April and that Jon Davison will be stepping in as lead vocalist. Here’s the full text from the official facebook page:

Prog rock band YES were forced to cancel the last 3 shows of their European Tour in December due to the illness of lead vocalist Benoit David who has still not recovered. To avoid disappointing their fans on the forthcoming Australasian leg of their world tour, they have found a replacement singer.

Jon Davison will join YES as lead vocalist for the upcoming dates in New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, and Hawaii. YES really appreciate Jon Davison joining them for this leg of the tour and are sure this arrangement will satisfy all YES fans.

Jon Davison, who was recently part of Glass Hammer seems to be have the vocal chops to be able to take on Jon Anderson’s role. As a matter of fact, Davison’s vocal range is more in line with Jon Anderson’s than Benoit’s. …so, who knows. fans will definitely be watching the April Australasian leg of the tour very closely.

Rumor has it that Benoit David actually left the band last month. Of course nothing has been said officially but just like Oliver Wakeman’s sudden departure last year, it’s just “as per usual” for this band.

April 2012 dates so far..
04/01/12 Auckland, NZ Vector Arena
04/05/12 Perth, AUS Riverside Theatre
04/09/12 Byron Bay, AUS Bluesfest
04/11/12 Melbourne, AUS Palais Theatre
04/13/12 Sydney, AUS State Theatre
04/18/12 Tokyo, Japan
04/19/12 Tokyo, Japan
04/21/12 Osaka, Japan

and as of 07Feb12 – Here’s the current Yes lineup (subject to change, heh.):
Jon Davison: vocals
Steve Howe: guitar
Chris Squire: bass
Alan White: drums
Geoff Downes: keyboards

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Queen – Days of Our Lives Blu-ray review

retroDan — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 01:02:05 +0000

The BBC documentary on legendary rock band Queen titled Days of Our Lives is now out on Blu-ray/DVD here in the U.S. I had a chance to sit down and view the blu-ray over the weekend and I’m pleased to say that the two-part overview of the band’s musical career is very well done. All the major events are covered by archival footage and interviews both old and new. Surviving members Roger Taylor and Brian May do most of the talking. Bassist John Deacon declined to participate in the new documentary so archival interviews are used for his point of view. Of course Freddie Mercury is very much the focus of the program and there’s generous amount of live footage as well as interviews he had done in the past. For such an influential band, I would have preferred a more expansive look at their career along the lines of the “Beatles Anthology” but I guess the BBC only commissioned for a two hour program.

At least the Blu-ray features extra bonus footage for fans to enjoy – approximately 100 minutes more. The bulk of the extras are interview segments that were edited out of the original program due to time limitations. It would have been nice if the director went back and incorporated these into the documentary as an “expanded director’s cut” instead of having to view these separately but it is what it is.

I was very keen on viewing the segments about the post-86 era of the band. After the ’86 album “A Kind of Magic”, I didn’t follow Queen’s musical output as closely as their previous stuff so the stories behind the albums “The Miracle” and “Innuendo” are fairly new to me. Also the segment about Freddie’s last days in the studio was very moving.

Longtime fans probably already know the story inside and out but the documentary is so well done that it’s worth seeking out just to have it in their video collection. For casual and new fans of Queen, this is a must-buy!

Queen – Days of Our Lives – blu-ray content:
Eagle Rock Entertainment
Duration: 221 minutes

Main Feature:
Queen : Days of Our Lives (Part One)
Queen : Days of Our Lives (Part Two)

Bonus Features:

Additional Videos: new promo videos containing unseen rushes, performances and outtakes.
-Seven Seas of Rhye
-Killer Queen
-Somebody to Love
-We Are The Champions
-Crazy Little Thing Called Love
-Under Pressure
-Radio Ga Ga

Additional Sequences: featuring unseen interviews and archive footage, exclusive sequences that dig deeper into the history of Queen, and tell the stories that weren’t covered in the documentary.
-Queen: The Beginning
-Queen On Tour 1974-5
-Bohemian Rhapsody
-Working Together
-Leaving John Reid 1978
-Don’t Stop Me Now
-Flash Gordon
-Making Videos
-Scrabble Wars
-From Magic To The Miracle 1986-89
-Going Slightly Mad: Making Innuendo 1990-91
-Made In Heaven – 1995

Bonus Interviews: additional stories, taken from the interviews shot for this documentary with Brian May, Roger Taylor and Jim Beach.
-Return To Imperial College
-Brian’s Health Scare 1974
-Manager Jim Beach Meets The Band 1975
-B-Sides
-Freddie’s Outfits
-Another One Btes The Dust
-Song Writing Balance Changes 1980′s
-Freddie Legless!
-Highlander
-The Show Must Go On

special sale on Nexus S 4G and HTC EVO 3D ends Feb. 8th

RetroDan — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:00:28 +0000

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Sprint for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Sprint, the nation's third largest wireless provider, is currently offering deep discounts on two popular 4G smartphones. I'm sure Sprint is facing tough competition right now, not only from AT&T and Verizon but also the various pre-paid options offered on Sprint's very-own network which includes Virgin Mobile and Boost Mobile. What all that ultimately leads to are great deals for wireless consumers.

Right now, you can get a Nexus S™ 4G at no cost from Sprint with a new activation or the HTC EVO™ 3D for only $49.99 with a new activation.

The Nexus S™ 4G runs Android 2.3 "Gingerbread" on a 1GHz Samsung Hummingbird processor. The phone doesn't have a microSD slot but offers 14GB of on-board storage. The phone isn't "state of the art" in terms of features and processing power but for the average smartphone user, it'll do the job.

The HTC EVO™ 3D is newer than the Nexus S 4G and features the ability to display 3D images and video without the need for special glasses. The phone also features a Qualcomm dual-core, 1.2GHz MSM8660 Snapdragon processor and the latest version of HTC Sense over Android 2.3.3.

If you're in the market for a new phone on the Sprint network, be sure to check out this sale. The discount on these phones are only available until February 8th.

Lenovo Enhanced Multimedia Remote with keyboard N5902

RetroDan — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 09:01:27 +0000

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Lenovo for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

As more and more folks incorporate PCs into the family entertainment center, people are finding that the full sized keyboard is a bit too cumbersome for the family room. I mean, where do you store the thing when you're done with the keyboard? Thankfully the forward thinking designers at Lenovo has come up with a great solution for Home Theater PCs. It's the Lenovo Enhanced Multimedia Remote.

You can control your PC using this fully functional wireless hand-held device. It features a simple plug-in USB nano dongle that provides a wireless range of up to 30 feet. The remote is designed for thumb-keyboarding with an optical track-point for scrolling the pointer on the screen. There's also a touch sensitive scroll bar on the remote which helps you navigate pages up and down with ease.

Model N5902 is an improved version over the previous model N5901. Lenovo took note of all the feedback from users of N5901 and incorporated some of the features into this version. Two things that you'll notice right away is the matte finish (the previous piano finish was a fingerprint magnet) and the backlit keyboard. The backlit keyboard is definitely a must in home theaters. I also like the compact form factor which won't take up too much space when you set it aside.

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The Darkness – Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us

retroDan — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 01:27:21 +0000

great to see these guys back together!! can’t wait for them to finish up their new album!!

catch the Darkness live:
Fri 02/03/12 Boston, MA Paradise Rock Club
Sat 02/04/12 New York, NY Irving Plaza Powered By Klipsch
Mon 02/06/12 New York, NY Irving Plaza Powered By Klipsch
Tue 02/07/12 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero Theatre
Wed 02/08/12 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
Fri 02/10/12 Detroit, MI St. Andrews Hall
Sat 02/11/12 Chicago, IL Metro / Smart Bar
Sun 02/12/12 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
Wed 02/15/12 Denver, CO Summit Music Hall
Fri 02/17/12 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues
Sat 02/18/12 Phoenix, AZ Celebrity Theatre
Sun 02/19/12 West Hollywood, CA House Of Blues
Tue 02/21/12 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore
Thu 02/23/12 Portland, OR Roseland Theater
Fri 02/24/12 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
Sat 02/25/12 Seattle, WA The Neptune

check out their official website to download “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us” for free!

STYX – The Grand Illusion & Pieces of Eight Live on DVD/blu-ray

retroDan — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:33:41 +0000

Out in stores this week is the DVD/Blu-ray of Styx performing The Grand Illusion & Pieces of Eight live in their entirety in concert. The live document was recorded back in 2010 at the Orpheum Theater in Memphis. The band featuring James Young, Tommy Shaw and Lawrence Gowan is a tremendous live act and it’s great to see this special album-show released for us fans to enjoy.

EAGLE ROCK ENTERTAINMENT TO RELEASE STYX: THE GRAND ILLUSION/PIECES OF EIGHT LIVE
DVD, BLU-RAY AND DVD/2CD OUT JANUARY 31

Two of the most beloved albums in the Styx catalog are 1977′s The Grand Illusion and 1978′s Pieces Of Eight. Now, Eagle Rock Entertainment will release Styx: The Grand Illusion/Pieces Of Eight Live on DVD, Blu-Ray, and DVD/2CD on January 31. This show was recorded November 9, 2010 at the historic Orpheum Theater in Memphis, Tennessee, on the tour that saw them perform both these albums in their entirety for the first time.

This 20-song two-hour and 11-minute presentation features stunning high-definition visuals accenting the complex musical arrangements recorded in DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby Digital 5.1, and LPCM Stereo. The staging of these two multi-platinum albums and the fevered response makes this concert a must for all Styx fans. The Grand Illusion/Pieces of Eight Live also includes the bonus feature “Putting On The Show,” an inside look at the people and equipment needed to stage such a massive spectacle.

Selling millions of records worldwide since their 1972 Chicago inception, Styx have branded themselves as one of the greatest American progressive rock bands. The current line-up consists of James “J.Y.” Young (vocals, guitars, keyboards); Tommy Shaw (vocals, guitars); Todd Sucherman (drums); Lawrence Gowan (vocals, keyboards); Ricky Phillips (bass, backing vocals) and Chuck Panozzo (bass guitar).

TrackListing:
1 Intro/1978
2 The Grand Illusion
3 Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
4 Superstars
5 Keyboard Interlude
6 Come Sail Away
7 Miss America
8 Man In The Wilderness
9 Castle Walls
10 The Grand Finale
11 Great White Hope
12 I’m O.K.
13 Sing For The Day
14 The Message
15 Lords Of The Ring
16 Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)
17 Queen Of Spades
18 Renegade
19 Keyboard Interlude
20 Pieces Of Eight
21 Aku-Aku

catch Styx live on tour:
Fri 02/03/12 Tacoma, WA Emerald Queen Casino
Sat 02/04/12 Coquitlam, BC Boulevard Casino
Fri 02/10/12 Henderson, NV Green Valley Ranch Resort & Spa
Sat 02/11/12 West Wendover, NV Peppermill Concert Hall
Fri 02/24/12 Baton Rouge, LA Texas Club
Sat 02/25/12 San Antonio, TX Cowboys Dancehall
Fri 03/02/12 Mount Pleasant, MI Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort
Fri 03/09/12 Miami, FL Magic City Casino
Sat 03/10/12 Silver Springs, FL Twin Oaks Amphitheatre

winners of Journey’s Greatest Hits Vol. 2 CDs

retroDan — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 23:11:02 +0000

Thanks again to all those that participated in the Journey Greatest Hits Vol. 2 giveaway on retroblog.

With all the embarrassing TMZ drama some members of Journey are having to deal with nowadays (i.e. Deen Castronovo, Neal Schon), it’s probably better for all of us fans to just focus on the past hits, you know what I mean?

I think Steve Perry did the right thing by bowing out gracefully back in 1996 and keeping his legacy intact. With all this “celeb sleaze” type attention Neal and Deen are getting, they are rapidly tarnishing the “brand” that the band worked so hard to build all these years. pretty sad I have to say.

Anyway, on to the winners! Congrats to : Mary R. (entry #153) and Lisa (entry #55)

You should be receiving an email from me. Be sure reply back with your full name and mailing address.

Thanks!

For those that didn’t win, don’t worry, you still have a chance at winning the new Queen Blu-ray/DVD (contest ends Feb 10th)

and don’t forget, Journey’s Greatest Hits Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 are both available via CDUniverse!!

enter to pimp your cube

RetroDan — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 22:00:27 +0000

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Contest Factory for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Time's almost up to register for the Pimp My Cube Contest. As I've mentioned last month, you can win one of three prize packages including a new computer system, new furnishings and even an espresso machine. Come on, what have you got to lose? All you have to do is submit a video of yourself and your cube explaining why your cube needs a makeover. The funnier, the better. The winning video will be based on votes as well as how compelling your story is. In addition to the grand prize, folks who register to vote for this contest, will be automatically entered in a drawing for a $200 gift card. So, anyone can win just for signing up. The majority of us all work in cubicles so we all know how drab and congestive these work environments can be. So, wouldn't it be nice to get a chance to spruce things up in your office space? add a little pizazz around your workspace. Well, get to work on the video because as I said at the beginning of this post, time's running out. The contest ends 1/31/12 at 12:00 pm so be sure to submit the video before then. Last I heard, there are only a few qualified entries, so your chances of winning are pretty good!

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Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles – DPAC concert review – January 2012

retroDan — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 03:20:27 +0000

When a local radio station gave me tickets to see Rain, a Beatles tribute band, I really didn’t know what to say at first. I mean, I’m a life-long Beatles fan and for me to see a Beatles cover band just felt sort of blasphemous, you know what I mean? Why should I support a band that makes a living off of music that they have absolutely nothing to do with?? Come on, I’d go see Paul or Ringo in a heartbeat but these guys??? I mean, who are these guys? Yes, I understand that Rain is one of the bigger Beatles tribute acts and they even did a stint on broadway. But, I just didn’t feel the need to see some faux-Beatles group.

So, after all of my whining and huffing & puffing, I ended up realizing that I could simply just do this for my ten year old son. Yes, chalking this whole thing up to my kid’s musical education gave me a reason to go to this show.

Anyway, Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles, were scheduled for two performances at the Durham Performing Arts Center this past week. My son and I attended the tuesday night show.

Essentially the show is a live recreation of the Beatles’ musical career from ’62 to ’70. In addition to the band playing and looking like the Beatles, there are elaborate stage setups, synchronized lighting and videos. The goal is to transport the audience back to the ’60′s. They even show TV commercials from the era on the video screens to set the mood.

Honestly, the concert was better than I expected. It all sounds cheesy on paper but the whole show was actually a fun experience. The band did a great job in trying to recreate all the sounds correctly which is a tough feat since most of the audience knows these tunes backwards and forwards. And kudos to the stage and lighting designers. The visuals were very well done and took the show beyond merely just being another run of the mill Beatles tribute night. There were four stage design changes to cover the major eras – “The Ed Sullivan Show” setup, “Shea Stadium”, “Sgt. Peppers” and the “Let it Be/Rooftop” setting.

It wasn’t all perfect though. There were some lyric flubs here and there, and the synths covering the string parts on “Yesterday” and “Eleanor Rigby” were mixed way too loud during the songs. And quite frankly the mimicry including the body movements/mannerisms and the heavy accents when speaking with the audience kinda got old after a while.

A highlight for me was during the “acoustic set” when they played songs like “Girl”, “In My Life” and “I’ve Just Seen a Face”. It felt a bit more natural during this set since it didn’t rely heavily on visuals or mimicry. It felt less constrained and they even did an extended guitar jam during “I’ve Just Seen a Face” which was a nice change of pace when everything else was almost a note for note carbon copy of the records.

All in all, my son and I had a fun night singing along to a bunch of Beatles tunes. Rain did a commendable job in recreating the look and sound of the liverpool lads. Nothing earth shattering here but it’s great to be able to share the experience with your kids.

retroGrade: B

Rain : A Tribute to the Beatles
at the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC)
January 17, 2012

the musicians (as far as I can recall from the band introductions at the end of the concert):
Steve Landes, Mac Ruffing, Tom Teeley, Douglas Cox and Chris Smallwood

the setlist at the January 17, 2012 show (again, I didn’t take extensive notes so I might be missing a couple songs…):
I Want To Hold Your Hand
All My Loving
This Boy
I Saw Her Standing There
A Hard Day’s Night
I’m Happy Just To Dance With You
Yesterday
I Feel Fine
Day Tripper
Twist and Shout
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
A Little Help From My Friends
Eleanor Rigby
Strawberry Fields
When I’m 64
Sgt. Pepper (reprise)
A Day In The Life

(intermission)

Hello Goodbye
I Am The Walrus
Girl
In My Life
Do You Want to Know a Secret
I’ve Just Seen a Face
Come Together
Get Back
Revolution
The End

(encore)
Give Peace A Chance
Let It Be
Hey Jude

2012 Rain tour schedule:
Jan 25, 2012 Wheeling, West Virginia Capitol Music Hall
Jan 26, 2012 Hershey, PA Hershey Theatre
Jan 27, 2012 Providence, RI Providence PAC
Jan 28, 2012 Wallingford, CT Oakdale Theatre
Jan 29, 2012 Lowell, MA Lowell Memorial Auditorium
Jan 31, 2012 – Feb 5, 2012 Philadelphia, PA Academy of Music
Feb 8, 2012 – Feb 9, 2012 Flint, MI Whiting Auditorium
Feb 10, 2012 – Feb 11, 2012 Cleveland, OH Palace Theatre
Feb 12, 2012 Grand Rapids, MI DeVos Performing Hall
Feb 14, 2012 – Feb 16, 2012 Rochester, NY Auditorium Theatre
Feb 17, 2012 – Feb 19, 2012 Buffalo, NY Shea’s Performing Arts Center
Feb 21, 2012 Erie, PA Warner Theatre
Feb 22, 2012 – Feb 23, 2012 Elmira, NY Clemens Performing Arts Center
Feb 24, 2012 – Feb 26, 2012 Scranton, PA Scranton Cultural Center
Feb 29, 2012 Sioux Falls, SD Washington Pavilion
Mar 1, 2012 Milwaukee, WI Milwaukee Theatre
Mar 2, 2012 Madison, WI Overture Center
Mar 3, 2012 – Mar 4, 2012 Minneapolis, MN Orpheum Theater
Mar 13, 2012 Bellingham, WA Mount Baker Theatre
Mar 14, 2012 Kennewick, WA Toyota Center
Mar 15, 2012 Medford, OR Ginger Rogers
Mar 16, 2012 – Mar 18, 2012 Reno, NV Pioneer center
Mar 20, 2012 Albuquerque, NM Popejoy Hall
Mar 21, 2012 Colorado Springs, CO Pikes Peak Center
Mar 23, 2012 Boise, ID Morrison Center
Apr 11, 2012 – Apr 13, 2012 Boston, MA Wilbur Theatre
Apr 16, 2012 Charlotte, NC Belk Theatre
Apr 17, 2012 Bethlehem, PA Zoellner Arts Center
Apr 24, 2012 – Apr 29, 2012 Dallas, TX Music Hall at Fair Park
May 1, 2012 – May 6, 2012 Nashville, TN Andrew Jackson Hall
May 10, 2012 – May 12, 2012 Tempe, AZ Gammage Auditorium
May 15, 2012 – May 16, 2012 Des Moines, IA Civic Center of Greater Des Moines
May 17, 2012 Wausau, WI Grand Theatre
May 18, 2012 – May 19, 2012 Appleton, WI Fox Cities PAC
May 20, 2012 Cincinnati, OH Proctor and Gamble Hall

for more information, check out the band’s official website: RainTribute.com

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Walgreens Prescription Savings Club

RetroDan — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:00:28 +0000

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Walgreens for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

If you have school aged kids at home, you're probably in the midst of a heated battle against colds, germs or the dreaded flu bug. Even though we make sure our kids wash their hands thoroughly right when they get home from school, sometimes one of us would still catch something. I guess it just comes with the territory of having children and being a parent. But that doesn't mean we should give up the fight. Just stock up on remedies to keep cold and flu symptoms at bay. Thankfully there's always a Walgreens pharmacy nearby.

Walgreens is the nation's largest drugstore chain with over 7000 stores across the country. Their pharmacists are friendly and always available to answer questions. They offer flu shots and have a massive selection of items to keep you well.

As most of you know, getting prescriptions filled can get pretty expensive, even with generics. Thankfully Walgreens has implemented a new program called the Walgreens Prescription Savings Club. Just pay $10 to join, and you and your family can receive discounts on prescription medication for the rest of the year. The new program offers savings on more than 8,000 brand-name as well as generic medications. Discounts can also be applied to pet prescriptions, nebulizers and diabetic supplies.

If you want to keep up with the latest news, follow Walgreens on Twitter as well as Like Walgreens on Facebook.

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