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Monday, January 25, 2010

"So...What's New???"



Just as the TV blitz picks up, so does my job and my "work" writing takes over all of my "fun" writing time. For those of you hanging out and waiting around for whatever I was putting here, thanks!


OK, where were we: Right, Conan!



HE GOT COUCH TIME!!! The subject matter was yesterday's news to serious fans but who cares? Most of the audience learned something new about Barry after he did his one-song gig. Barry has taken a LOT of shots from Conan over the years and if there was a hatchet it got buried tonight and not in anyone's skull.
Songs for Haiti on A&E.
I got ripped off. Uverse started the show at 9 AM ET and Barry's bit was cut. Shit. YouTube here I come.
Even thought I wanted to see this gig, I didn't need a special to remind me about the need for aid in Haiti. My daughter's preschool, and the church associated with it are passing the hat for Catholic Relief Services and Columbian Charities.
Let these specials be a reminder to everybody: there but for the grace of God goes anyone in the world. Natural disasters can wipe out a community at any time. If you are in a position to give, then give. Just pick a reputable organization that you like and hit it. The American Red Cross is still helping Galveston Island recover from Hurricane Ike in 2008. You never know when you'll be on the receiving end of the aid.
The Today Show
Was anyone else nervous when they displayed a split screen of Barry and Ozzy Osbourne at about the 1:30:00 mark? They're both going to be on Jimmy Kimmel too. Someone's going to have fun with that.
The songs that I see live (on TV, same thing) are starting to grab me. When I went through the track list when it came out I didn't have any doubts that this would be good and Barry would do them well, but nothing was a real standout to get my attention. Even when I heard the audio clips. I'm not an Elvis fan, and I'm really not into hippies. (Hear that, Karen Carpenter?) But the Today Show and Conan brought something else out. It's the delivery, the playing to the camera, the reaction from the audience (or host, or stage crew even) that makes all the difference in the world. (Think of "Islands in the Stream" - the album version was good, but the live version with the complex parts for Kye and the girls brought the house down.)
Again, I'm glad to see more couch (OK, bar stool) time as well. The Today Show is always good about that with Barry, and he got multiple times throughout the four hours as well. In the last interview bit, Kristen Chenoweth was doing the honors. She had to dumb it down for the morning coffee klatch crowd but at least she knows her ass from a hole in the ground about performing on stage and was the only one in that room qualified to interview Barry IMNSHO.
So coming up is Rachel Ray (another show I'm really not into but I'd like to see what Barry does with it.) and Jimmy Kimmel (who is funny as hell and always worth staying up for. He's done some great interviews with Barry.)
So that's probably going to make the difference with this new record: live performance. Maybe a video collection or concert footage? Anyone? Beuller?

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