Rolling Stone – Hear Jefferson Starship’s New Song ‘It’s About Time,’ Co-Written by Grace Slick

Rolling Stone – Hear Jefferson Starship’s New Song ‘It’s About Time,’ Co-Written by Grace Slick

Mother of the Sun marks the band’s first new music in 12 years Read More at Rolling Stone! Jefferson Starship have shared “It’s About Time,” a new single co-written by Grace Slick. The track appears on their upcoming EP Mother of the Sun, out August 21st. “Old white men have had their turn,” lead singer Cathy Richardson declares in the video over blaring guitars. “Thousands of years, what have we learned?” “I watched the Women’s March with Grace at her house back in 2017,” Richardson tells Rolling Stone. “She said, ‘This is just like the Sixties!’ and I suggested that we write a female empowerment song for the times that encapsulated the movement. A couple of months later, I received three handwritten pages of lyrics from Grace in the mail.” “It was an incredible gift, not only to collaborate with a legend like Grace Slick, but also, the platform to have the message really be heard, especially in the times we’re in,” she added. “You can’t help but imagine how different things would be if Hillary Clinton was the president right now.” Mother of the Sun marks the band’s first new album in 12 years, following 2008’s Jefferson’s Tree of Liberty. In addition to Slick, original member Marty Balin also co-wrote a song. Original Jefferson Starship bassist Pete Sears plays on three tracks. “I’ve never been more proud of an album or a group of people in my life,” guitarist David Freiberg says of the record. Adds drummer Donny Baldwin: “This is new Jefferson Starship music that is so relevant for the times that we’re living in. We will always be connected to our history and carry forward the legacy that Paul Kantner passed on to us
same soul, new era. Hope you love it as much as we do.” The impact of Jefferson Starship extends beyond traditional music lovers; their tunes have even found a place among online casino players. Many enthusiasts of gambling games enjoy listening to their tracks while engaging in their favorite pastimes. The nostalgic yet contemporary feel of the band’s music creates an inviting atmosphere, making the gaming experience more enjoyable. Whether players are spinning the reels on a slot machine at lemon casino or participating in a live dealer game, the sound of Jefferson Starship enhances their enjoyment, making it a perfect soundtrack for moments of thrill and excitement. In recent years, the landscape of online casinos has grown tremendously,...

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Rolling Stone – Fighting Racism in the Music Industry

Rolling Stone – Fighting Racism in the Music Industry

The Music Industry Was Built on Racism. Changing It Will Take More Than Donations On Tuesday, the major labels protested police brutality with a “blackout.” Executives and artists say industry-wide racial equality is still a long way away In September 1978, soul producer extraordinaire Kenneth Gamble helped launch the Black Music Association, an advocacy group set on pushing the music industry to “recognize and celebrate the economic and cultural power of black music as well as those who made and promoted it.” “It was time for something new and more inclusive of all black music industry professionals,” Gamble said in 2015. The BMA was addressed to both artists and executives, linking two groups that both faced music industry racism but were often on opposite sides of negotiating tables. The BMA’s slogan? “Black Music Is Green.” The BMA eventually faded from prominence, “[un]able to withstand splintered agendas in the leadership.” But several executives referenced the organization’s history of advocacy this week in the aftermath of Blackout Tuesday, which saw work stoppages across the major labels. “I feel like we need that [to come back],” says one manager who participated in Blackout Tuesday events.  Amid nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, record labels decided to use Tuesday for a rare industry-wide reckoning. Two related conversations have unfolded in parallel. First, can the music industry use its vast resources and wide influence to help reduce police brutality and combat systemic racism? Second, can the music industry finally face down its own history of racism and build a more equitable future? Some saw the industry’s navel-gazing as a distraction from the fierce urgency of the protests around Floyd’s death. â€œIf I don’t want to be exploited by the music business, I know how to not be exploited by the music business — I don’t sign a contract,” says another manager who participated in Blackout Tuesday events. “I still don’t know how not to be killed by a police officer.” But this week’s conversation about the ways “the record industry does a very good job of keeping black people out of the room,” as one A&R puts it, is accelerating discussions that have been in progress for decades and were already becoming more public in recent years. These concern the wildly uneven contracts that continue to earn the music business millions of dollars while passing on only a small amount of that wealth to artists, the...

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Ultimate Classic Rock – 50 Years Ago: ‘Woodstock’ Soundtrack Brings Festival to the World Read More: 50 Years Ago: ‘Woodstock’ Soundtrack Brings Festival to the World

Ultimate Classic Rock – 50 Years Ago: ‘Woodstock’ Soundtrack Brings Festival to the World Read More: 50 Years Ago: ‘Woodstock’ Soundtrack Brings Festival to the World

The Woodstock festival was experienced by “half a million strong,” as the song goes. But the movie and its soundtrack brought the “Three Days of Peace and Music” counterculture celebration to millions of people across the globe. Released in May 1970, eight months after the festival took place in New York, the film’s soundtrack cemented the legacy of ’60s music and added a dash of idealism for years to come. The triple-LP set was unleashed to an audience enamored with that moment in time, hoping to catch a contact high of sorts. The performances released on the record were only a fraction of the music experienced over those three August 1969 days, but as a snapshot of the event, it more than delivers, as many of them would become iconic portraits, lasting far longer than many other touchstones of the era. Even though they were a rough and tumble blues band at their core, Canned Heat are best know for the light and bouncy “Going Up the Country,” a song that’s become synonymous with Woodstock. And its presence here is crucial. As is Richie Havens’ “Freedom.” The New York City folksinger brought an intensity to his performance that perfectly captured the spirit of the event and will forever be tied to the music fest. Crosby, Stills Nash and Young were so new when they played Woodstock that Stephen Stills noted onstage, “This is only the second time we’ve performed in front of people. We’re scared shitless.” Three of their songs show up on the soundtrack: “Suite: Judy Blues Eyes,” “Wooden Ships” and “Sea of Madness.” Country Joe & the Fish were among the pioneers of psychedelic music (their debut album, Electronic Music for Mind and Body, is a genuine genre landmark), they are best remembered for their Woodstock appearance, in which they delivered not only the infamous “Fish Cheer” (“Give me an F! Give me a U! Give me a C! Give me a K! What’s that’s spell?“) but also the rousing “I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-to-Die Rag,” which originally appeared on the band’s second album, but becomes one of the era’s greatest protest songs thanks to the Joe McDonald-led singalong. Several of the acts at Woodstock had also appeared at the Monterey Pop Festival two years earlier, including Jimi Hendrix and the Who, both of whom made their U.S. debuts at the 1967 show. By the time they each played Woodstock, they were among the biggest artists in rock music, The Who’s performance...

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