The legendary Who played yesterday during Super Bowl’s halftime. Singer Roger Daultry (65), and guitarist Pete Townshed (64), and drummer Zack Starkey (44 – Ringo’s son). Keith Moon the original explosive drummer was his godfather and reportably bought him his first set of drums). They played there hits, “Pinball Wizard”, “Baba O’Reilly”, “Who Are You?”, “See Me, Feel Me,” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again”. Here it is here.

I was lucky enough to see them at The Australian Grand Prix Melbourne 2009 and they rocked. What do you reckon of these old time rockers. Pete Townsend has some great guitar riffs to learn not to mention swinging arm style.

What do you think. Please leave a comment if you agree he’s one of the classic guitarists. To last the distance requires a lot.

Catch Ya

- Jimmi

The introductory flute riff of Men at Work’s 1982 “Down Under,” was found to infringe on “Kookaburra Sits In The Old Gum Tree,” copyright by the Federal Court in Sydney.

This was brought to light after it was used for a question on the Australian television pop quiz show Spicks and Specks.

Justice Peter Jacobson ruled that the band should pay back royalties. That is to be decided when the parties meet again February 25.

Marion Sinclair was the writer of “Kookaburra” and died in 1988. The publishing rights to her song are held by Larrikin Music, which sued Down Under’s songwriters, Colin Hay and Ron Strykert, and the song’s distributor, EMI.

Adam Simpson is Larrikin’s lawyer, who said that payment of 40-60 per cent of royalties are a possibility outside court.

Colin Hay explained that Men at Work’s flautist, Greg Ham, had “unconsciously referenced two bars of Kookaburra” during live shows after he joined the band in 1979, but said that the song had been written and performed a year before Ham joined the band.

He said he co-wrote “Down Under,” with Ron Strykert, some time in the winter of 1978. I remember because we had played the song at the Cricketers Arms Hotel in Richmond one Thursday night, and on the way home to Arthur’s Creek, just north of Melbourne, with Ron and my girlfriend, Linda, in the car, I fell asleep at the wheel and ran off the road into a ditch.”

“The song Down Under is my friend. It has always been my friend, ever since it was born. I have been playing it for over 30 years to audiences the world over and will no doubt play it for as long as I am able.”

“When I co-wrote Down Under back in 1978 I appropriated nothing from anyone else’s song. There was no Men At Work, there was no flute, yet the song existed. That’s the truth of it, because I was there, Norm Lurie was not, and neither was Justice Jacobson. Down Under lives in my heart and may, perhaps, live in yours. I claim it, and will continue to play it, for as long as you want to hear it.”

You can go here and read the full article -when you’re done make sure to come back and leave your opinion below. I like that….:-)

Talk to ya later!

– Jimmi

Taylor Swift Drops her Bundle

Commercial Success measurement?

Album of the Year: Fearless — Taylor Swift

Song of the Year: “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” — Thaddis Harrell, Beyoncé Knowles, Terius Nash & Christopher Stewart, songwriters (Beyoncé)

Best Solo Rock Performance: “Working on a Dream” — Bruce Springsteen

Record of the Year: “Use Somebody” — Kings of Leon

Best Country Album: Fearless — Taylor Swift

Best Rock Album: 21st Century Breakdown — Green Day

Best Hard Rock Performance: “War Machine” — AC/DC

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration: “Run This Town” — Jay-Z, Rihanna & Kanye West

Best Dance Recording: “Poker Face” — Lady Gaga

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance: “Halo” — Beyoncé

Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals: “Use Somebody” — Kings of Leon

Best New ArtistZac Brown Band

Best Electronic/Dance Album: The Fame — Lady Gaga

Best Alternative Music Album: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix — Phoenix

Best Contemporary R&B Album: I Am… Sasha Fierce — Beyoncé

Best Female R&B Vocal Performance: “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” — Beyoncé

Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals: “I Gotta Feeling” — The Black Eyed Peas

Best Rock Song: “Use Somebody” — Caleb Followill, Jared Followill, Matthew Followill & Nathan Followill, songwriters (Kings Of Leon)

Best Pop Vocal Album: The E.N.D. — The Black Eyed Peas

Best Male R&B Vocal Performance: “Pretty Wings” — Maxwell

Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals: “Blame It” — Jamie Foxx & T-Pain

Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance: “At Last” — Beyoncé

Best Rock Instrumental Performance: “A Day in the Life” — Jeff Beck

Best Urban/Alternative Performance: “Pearls” — India.Arie & Dobet Gnahore

Best R&B Song: “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)” — Thaddis Harrell, Beyoncé Knowles, Terius Nash & Christopher Stewart, songwriters (Beyoncé)

Best Rap Solo Performance: “D.O.A. (Death Of Auto-Tune)” — Jay-Z

Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group: “Crack a Bottle” — Eminem, Dr. Dre & 50 Cent

Best Rap Song: “Run This Town” — Jeff Bhasker, Shawn Carter, Robyn Fenty, Kanye West & Ernest Wilson, songwriters (Athanasios Alatas, songwriter) (Jay-Z, Rihanna & Kanye West)

Best Rap Album: Relapse — Eminem

Best Male Pop Vocal Performance: “Make It Mine” — Jason Mraz

Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals: “Lucky” — Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat

Best Female Country Vocal Performance: “White Horse” — Taylor Swift

Best Male Country Vocal Performance: “Sweet Thing” — Keith Urban

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album — Michael Bublé Meets Madison Square Garden — Michael Bublé

Best Metal Performance: “Dissident Aggressor” — Judas Priest

Best Country Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals: “I Run to You” — Lady Antebellum

Best Country Collaboration With Vocals: “I Told You So” — Carrie Underwood & Randy Travis

Best Country Song: “White Horse” — Liz Rose & Taylor Swift, songwriters (Taylor Swift)

Best Americana Album: Electric Dirt — Levon Helm

Best Contemporary Blues Album: Already Free — The Derek Trucks Band

Best Compilation Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media: Slumdog Millionaire — Various Artists, A.R. Rahman, producer

Best Song Written For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media: “Jai Ho” (From Slumdog Millionaire) — Gulzar, A.R. Rahman & Tanvi Shah, songwriters (A.R. Rahman, Sukhvinder Singh, Tanvi Shah, Mahalaxmi Iyer & Vijay Prakash)

Best Recording Package: Everything That Happens Will Happen Today — Stefan Sagmeister, art director (David Byrne & Brian Eno)

Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package: Neil Young Archives Vol. I (1963-1972) — Gary Burden, Jenice Heo & Neil Young, art directors (Neil Young)

Best Short Form Music Video: “Boom Boom Pow” — The Black Eyed Peas

Best Long Form Music Video: “The Beatles Love – All Together Now” — (Various Artists)

Best Comedy Album: A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift Of All! — Stephen Colbert

This brought to you by Rolling Stone Magazine

How To Write Songs

Songwriting is most definitely a skill. Here’s three good rules.

These should save much time and frustration to transform songwriting into an easy process .

Rule number one – Write it down

Get in a regular habit. It’s important to work on feeleings. anger, pain, sad, happy, excitement, nervousness, anxious, misery, impatience, relaxation, goofy, sophisticated, annoying, frustrating, antagonising, fancy, sexy, cool, pretty, smile, etc, etc… you get the point

Even if you’re not in love with your idea or word, write it down anyway. It is so much easier to work with “something!” than “nothing!” A blank piece of paper, can be very intimidating, particularly for the new writer. It doesn’t have to be a great idea to get you started — just write it down!

Rule number two – Don’t move on if you don’t like it

So, you have something written down, don’t move on to the next word, line, chord or whatever form you’re working, if you “dislike” what you wrote. You don’t have to like it, particularly, or think it’s the best you have ever written, you just have to not “dislike” it. Chances are if you dislike something right from the beginning, your feelings are not going to change.

So to restate, if you don’t “dislike” what I you wrote, then move on.

If, however, you do “dislike” what you wrote, then you stay there and work alternatives until you find something that you don’t “dislike” before moving on to rule number three.

Rule number three – Never change what’s on paper unless it’s absolutely, without a doubt, better

This one has saved a great deal of time. When you first start out you may be changing and never finishing what you were working on. So in order to stop all that inner struggle (and remembering that basically anything can work, if you work it) stick with your original idea and move on unless you are absolutely sold that a new idea is better.

Now, if you’re not satisfied with what you’ve got down on paper and you’re undecided about a new idea, you “try it ” for awhile. You still don’t change what you wrote on paper, but make a rough note in the margin, to remember your new idea. Then for a while, every time you play the song, or that section, play this new idea and see how you like it. (And so while you’re trying on this new idea, for a few days, a week, whatever — you move on in writing your song.)

These three rules are from John Pape.

Learn chord progressions.

Here’s an iPhone Guitar!! Japan-based Bird Electron announced the Ezison 100 yesterday. I suppose its in the shape af a guitar and you strap it on!

It is speaker for the iPhone (or iPod touch) that’s supposed to turn those devices into some kind of electric guitar. The Ezison 100 is (hand)made in Japan, with Bird Electron saying they used mainly wood and acrylic fiber in the production process.

Users are supposed to place their iPhone into the speaker’s housing and connect it with the speaker through the headphone jack. You can then run a guitar app on your iPhone (possibly jailbroken), for example “pocketguitar,” and pretend to be a real guitarist.

You can only get the speaker on Bird Electron’s Japanese website. (Not sure what only get the speaker means). It will go on sale on January 30 and is limited to 50 units. Cost $290 US Dollars! I am trying to imagine its use. If it sounds good (depends on the app I guess) impress a friend with something different. Make up a new melody. New stage act!

Brought to you from Crunchgear.

What are your top ten guitar solos? I admire this list.

1 Moonage Daydream – Mick Ronson

A sci-fi blowout: Ronson picks the song up and sends it spinning into outer space

2 Voodoo Child – Jimi Hendrix

Evil blues from the greatest rock guitarist ever.

3 Since I’ve Been Loving You – Jimmy Page

Passionate, desperate lyricism

4 Shine On You Crazy Diamond – David Gilmour

Moving, meditational, un-showy expression of melody and tone

5 Like A Hurricane – Neil Young

Not technically adept, Young can play one note like a primal force

6 Hotel California – Joe Walsh and Don Felder

Soaring, uplifting twin lead takes off into the ether

7 Purple Rain – Prince

Wild, fluid and free as his soulful vocals

8 While My Guitar Gently Weeps – Eric Clapton
Seamlessly integrated, Clapton weeps and wails all over George Harrison’s mournful melody

9 Love Spreads – John Squire

Bluesy slide work out to a funky beat gives Britpop wings

10 Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers – Jeff Beck

Heartfelt emotion on a Stevie Wonder cover from the most technically dazzling guitarist since Jimi NM

This is a compilation from Neil McCormick
which attracted a lot of brilliant feedback from Sean Grainger, David Fletcher and others.

Don’t be put off, slow down songs to break up their riffs, licks and chord progressions.