George Martin, the music producer who most famously worked with the Beatles, died at age 90 yesterday. Embed from Getty Images Ringo Starr first announced the news on Twitter. Paul McCartney made his statement here. To learn more about George’s interactions with the Beatles, you can read his memoir, All You Need Is Ears. But…
Beatles
All the Young Dudes
I’m quite proud of my habit of keeping pop-culture ephemera, such as this program from Madonna’s 1987 AIDS benefit concert and a Duran Duran ticket stub from the same year. However, my high-school friend Jim Begala wins the prize for keeping everything. Jim previously confirmed the exact date of a 1984 INXS concert for me,…
Year in Review: Concert Adventures in 2015
I usually blog about the concerts I go to, but I never wrote about the four shows I saw in November. My concert friend Jessie and I saw Marina and the Diamonds for the third time this year at Terminal 5 on November 10. As you can see from this video, we didn’t get there…
Merry Titmas!
On Christmas Day, I like to recycle a post that I did in 2008. Here it is. Why write a new Christmas Day post when I wrote the perfect one in 2008? Here is “Happy Holiday, Goyim!” again, with a new, working version of the video and a couple of other updated links: Every December…
Must-See TV
I’m sure you’ve heard the news about Miss Universe host Steve Harvey mistakenly announcing Miss Colombia as the winner of the pageant last night. He apologetically corrected himself, announcing Miss Philippines instead, as poor Miss Colombia stood there wearing the winner’s crown and sash. I nearly died of second-hand embarrassment for everyone involved, but I…
What Wendy Wore: Halloween With Ringo Starr
I like to catch Ringo Starr‘s show whenever he’s in town, so I got tickets for his October 31 concert at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn. I figured I’d dress the part of a Beatles fan in the “Mod girl” outfit I’d worn once before for Halloween. It wasn’t until last week that I realized I’d…
Flashback Friday: John Lennon’s Birthday
John Lennon would have turned 75 today. In December, it will be 35 years since he was shot to death outside his New York City apartment building. I still vividly remember my mother telling me the news the next morning. Today, the New York Times linked to its Nov. 9, 1980, interview of Lennon, which…
RIP, Cynthia Lennon
I am sad to see that John Lennon’s first wife, Cynthia, died today of cancer at age 75. In the 1980s, I read her book, A Twist of Lennon, again and again. I was always most interested in the Beatles’ early Liverpool and Hamburg days, and Cynthia had that covered. I wish I could find…
More Stevie Nicks, Plus Kanye, Rihanna and Paul McCartney
In yesterday’s post about this week’s Fleetwood Mac concert at Madison Square Garden, I mentioned that gorgeous Instagrammer Carrie Courogen was soooo front-row that she played Lindsey Buckingham’s guitar. Twice. Because I already posted the guitar picture, here’s a nice shot Carrie got of Stevie Nicks. The perfect halo of gold hair and lightning. A…
Concert Adventure, Part II: Eminem & Rihanna Monster Tour
I meant to follow up a couple of days ago on my initial post about going to see Eminem and Rihanna perform at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium for their Monster Tour … but I was at a loss for words! My gorgeous friend Jen and I had too much fun in the second row where,…