LoveCat Music blogging at night

see the film "The Switch" with Other Viewz' song "Summer Night"

2010-08-29T12:39:00.000-07:00

Other Viewz "Summer Night" in the film "The Switch" (with Jennifer Aniston & Jason Bateman)

2010-08-22T14:47:00.000-07:00

this weekend please go see "The Switch" and listen for Other Viewz song "Summer Night"

in praise of BBC mini-series

2010-06-09T19:54:00.000-07:00

How many times have you wished that your favorite film was longer? (A sequel isn't the same because it comes 2 years or more later.)

Welcome to the BBC 6-hour dramas. This format is unique to England, and never caught on here in the U.S. It's resulted in some of the best TV shows of all time. In almost all cases, they're based on great novels. Here's our top 4 list:

1. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
2. A Very British Coup
3. Cambridge Spies
4. House Of Cards

What's your favorite?

2010-04-08T05:10:00.000-07:00

The power of music is still most under-appreciated.
Try to imagine today's "tech revolution" without music.

Computers in the home would not be 1/2 as fun without mp3s & videos
No one would need high-speed internet from cable companies for downloading
No one would buy CD burners or blank CDs.
Tower Records would be open.
Apple Computers would be a division of IBM.

Doesn't it feel like someone owes rock music a couple of billion dollars?

short comedy film with our song "Bidibodi Bidibu"

2009-09-02T13:48:00.000-07:00

out of Miami comes a new comedy video featuring our song "Bidibodi Bidibu" by the artist Bubbles from Milan, Italy. The film stars Matt Angel (My Super Psycho Sweet 16) and Julianna Guill (Friday the 13th (2009)). Go to FunnyOrDie to check it out.

Great Food Ordering Website

2009-08-27T15:28:00.001-07:00

You have to try this website. You can order online from thousands of great delivery and take-out restaurants. Most of the restaurants offer discounts only available through SeamlessWeb!

And now it's expanding beyond Manhattan into Brooklyn, Jersey, Boston, Philly, DC, San Fran, LA, Chicago, and London

Go to SeamlessWeb and thank me later.

film "Solitary Man" with Michael Douglas to feature songs by Eljuri and Mangana

2009-08-27T14:39:00.001-07:00

We're excited about the upcoming film "Solitary Man" starring Michael Douglas, Mary-Louise Parker and Susan Sarandon. The film features two latin songs from LoveCat Music:

Eljuri "Yo Soy"
Mangana "Conga Senores"

cover songs for July 4 movie or party

2009-07-03T11:28:00.001-07:00

cover songs for July 4

4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) - Ben E King
America - Yes
Philadelphia Freedom - Esther Phillips
Satisfaction - Paul Revere & The Raiders

though it's not a cover song, we recommend
Evan Olson's "This Is America"

Revenge is a dish best served cinematically

2009-07-02T12:04:00.000-07:00

Revenge is a great premise for a film. Everyone can relate because every one fantasizes about getting revenge. Here are 7 revenge films:

Burnt By The Sun (Russian)
Gangster Number 1 (the best revenge is NOT getting revenge)
The Godfather
Munich
Once Upon A Time In America
Point Black
Revenge Of The Nerds

Michael Jackson - fallen angel

2009-06-26T11:43:00.000-07:00

I remember when the Jackson 5 became superstars "overnight". Every girl in my class wanted to marry Michael. (The Partridge Family suddenly seemed very square.) The Saturday morning J5 cartoon series was must-see TV. (Did the Jacksons do their own voices?) Michael saw mommy kissing Santa Claus. Michael covered the song "Rockin' Robin" and made it better.

Michael was the ultimate Beatles fan. His collabo with Sir Paul, "Say Say Say" is a great song that should be covered soon. He adapted the Sgt. Pepper jacket and made it his own.

Graham Parker recorded a great cover version of "I Want You Back." Mariah Carey did "I'll Be There". Madder Rose did a sweet version of "Stop The Love You Save". No one has the nerve to cover "ABC" (but it's been sampled). MJ's initial Motown hits are my favorites. Respect.

good books about rock

2009-06-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

I'm reading two great music books:

1. Lonely Avenue - a bio of Doc Pomus, who co-wrote many rock classics including "This Magic Moment," "Viva Las Vegas," and "Save The Last Dance For Me."

2. Bill Graham's autobiography. An oral history with contributions from many, including Jerry Garcia, Pete Townshend and Robert Plant.

fave music biz books in alph. order:
Exploding - Warner Music story until 1980.
Laurel Canyon - by Barney Hoskins
Mansion On The Hill
The Operator - David Geffen bio

father's day songs

2009-06-24T12:01:00.001-07:00

this past sunday was father's day. If you were making a film about Father's Day, what songs would you consider?

Jermaine Jackson "Daddy's Home"
Horace Silver "Song for My Father"
John Mayer "Daughters"
Harry Nilsson "Daddy's Song"
John Lennon "Beautiful Boy"
Harry Chapin "Cats And The Cradle"
Cat Stevens "Father And Son"
Paul Simon "Slip Sliding Away"
Pearl Jam "Daughter"
and anything recorded by Freddy Lennon or Murray Wilson

and from our artists?
Evan Olson "Shining Son" and "Daddy's Little Girl"

Athenaeum's "Family Tree"

good links, especially to blogs

2009-06-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

Beach Boys outtakes sessions

Beatles covers from the Muppet Show

The Blog of Tim Ferriss

Casablance Records story (Neil Bogart, Cecil Holmes)

Cupcake Cafe

Vanity Fair list of News blogs

Gawker published in response

Lifehacker for blogging tips

Some of our favorite films are foreign

2009-06-13T21:02:00.000-07:00

Why make a top 10 list when you can make 5 shorter lists? That's what happened when we tried to list our top ten movies. One critic challenged our list and scoffed, "you like Sexy Beast more than The Godfather?" To him I ask, what good is another list with The Godfather, Citizen Kane, Close Encounters and all the other Usual Suspects? Our credo is to love films that do not typically make top 10 lists. And yes, I really like Sexy Beast.

Crime: a 4-way tie: The Long Good Friday [UK], Gangster No. 1 [UK], Prince Of The City [USA], Sexy Beast [UK].

Documentary: The Weather Underground [USA]

Drama: a 3-way tie: Naked [UK], Chuck And Buck [USA], Point Break [USA]

Historical Fiction: a tie: Burnt By The Sun [Russia], The Downfall [Germany].

Musical: Oliver [UK]

radio recommendation

2009-06-06T13:09:00.000-07:00

I enjoy KCRW's "On The Beat" program about the music industry. The host (Celia Hirschman) has a passion for the business and she knows her stuff.

KCRW has a lot of other good shows about the entertainment business. Respect!

enjoying TV's "Harper Island" - a 13 episode series

2009-06-05T11:52:00.001-07:00

We're enjoying TV's "Harper's Island," a 13 episode series on CBS. This whodunnit combines "Twin Peaks" with Agatha Christie. The show is from the producers of "Jericho," one of our favorite series cancelled too soon.

What to make of a 13 episode series? Well, we have seen a lot of short series on TV. Currently, if a series is cancelled mid-season, the producers try to wrap things up in a few final episodes in order to create a DVD package. With a pre-established 13 episode arc, the writers can craft a better overall story. And if a series is a big hit, the producers could bring back the characters in a new series, right?

organizing digital music

2009-05-27T10:37:00.001-07:00

Millions of people are digitizing and organizing their music collection. Until now, there has not been a standard system for organizing music. The book industry has the Library Of Congress system. It's time for music lovers to enjoy a similar system, so that collections can be standardized.

Surprise, we've been working on a system for two years. We're on version 3.0 of our MusiDrive with over 10,000 mp3s organized by genre, tempo, theme, and era. It's tough to sort songs, epecially because most songs are hybrids of different styles. But in which genre should they be sorted?

Latin Funk music. Should we file under Latin or Funk?
R&B Disco. file under dance or R&B?
Indie Acoustic

We have "tagged" all our mp3s with unique descriptions so it's easy to search for the right song. Email us and we can send you a link to the current MusiDrive.

songs for a school reunion

2009-05-26T19:30:00.000-07:00

Are you going to a school reunion or shooting a movie about one? Here are a few songs for the car ride:

"Be True To Your School" - The Beach Boys
"Kodachrome" - Paul Simon
"My Old School" - Steely Dan
a lot of songs from "Grease"

COVERS:
"I Can See Clearly Now" - Delbert McClinton
"Still Crazy After All These Years" - Ray Charles
"Photograph" - Camper Van Beethoven

And from LoveCat's catalog?
"Old Friends" - Evan Olson
"You Remember" - Madder Rose
"Friend Of Mine" - Map Of Wyoming
"Pack Up Your Memories" - The Men

new CDs: Damn, The Men, Natalie Poole

2009-05-22T07:47:00.000-07:00

We are releasing three very different rock CDs:

* The Men - a "two for". The CD will include their new album and their classic debut. 23 original retro-mod songs with a 1960s - 1970s fee.

* Damn - the new CD with a lot of bonus tracks. Check out the videos for their new album.

* Natalie Poole - an pop-rock singer from Colorado, produced by Evan Olson.

singers turned actors? my favorites....

2009-05-18T10:55:00.000-07:00

in 1988 at the height of Kevin Costner's film career, Kevin really wanted to be... a rock star. On the set of "Bull Durham" he played tapes of his songs for the cast and crew. Kevin had a demo deal with a major label. The label elected not to do an album, which was awkward for all parties.

Here's an honor roll of our favorite rockers turned actors. To qualify, the musician should have starred in at least two films.

David Bowie - more films please
Ja Rule
LL Cool J
Mos Def
Kris Kristofferson - is "A Star Is Born" a rock movie?
Willie Nelson
Daniel Newman
Evan Seinfeld
Ringo Starr - more movies please
Sting
Steve Earle

Reagan Youth is back together and touring

2009-05-17T21:47:00.000-07:00

original members Paul, Al and Javier are back together with a new lead singer and performing as Reagan Youth. The shows are packed and exciting. The reunited band has already toured the USA and Europe. We will have new recordings soon.

we're looking for new original Latin music, especially reggaeton and latin hiphop

2009-05-17T07:25:00.000-07:00

LoveCat Music is working on new sampler CDs and we are looking for reggaeton and latin hiphop music. Please email finished masters only to LoveCatMusic@gmail.com

classic rock movies - did we leave any out?

2009-05-15T13:31:00.000-07:00

What qualifies a movie to be a "rock film"? It's not enough to just have a rock star act in the film. Rock music must be key to the plot and the film should have a lot of songs. Rock bands should be seen performing on screen. "The Hours And Times" is about John Lennon, but it's not a "rock film," is it? "That'll Be The Day" is a rock film because the cast includes two famous rockers and the plot takes places in the early 1960s British rock clubs. Here's our list, which we are still revising. [NOTE: concert films and documentaries are *not* on this list. We will write about them in a different blog post.]

A "Rock film" must have been written for the screen, like these: Absolute Beginners, The Harder They Come, That Thing You Do, Rock Star, True Stories.

There are many sub-genres of rock films:

ANIMATED: American Pop, The Point, Yellow Submarine
COMEDY (fictional band): Air Heads, The Blues Brothers, The Rocker, School Of Rock, Still Crazy, Tenacious D, Walk Hard (Dewey Cox)
COMEDY (real band): A Hard Day's Night, Help. COMPLETISTS ONLY: Head
MOCKUMENTARIES: Fubar, The Rutles (2 specials), Spinal Tap

DRAMA fictional rockers - UK, Eire: The Commitments, Desperate Teenage Lovedolls, The Fabulous Stains, Performance, Rock On (Bollywood), That'll Be The Day

DRAMA fictional rockers - USA: Eddie And The Cruisers, The Five Heartbeats, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, The Idolmaker, Phantom Of The Paradise, Prey For Rock And Roll, The Rose, The Velvet Goldmine

DRAMA RAP FILMS: 8 Mile, Feel the Noise, Krush Groove,

DRAMA: inspired by one artist: Across The Universe, Once, One Trick Pony, Quadrophenia, The Wall, Tommy. HON. MENTION: Detroit Rock City, Give My Regards To Broadstreet. COMPLETISTS ONLY: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, All This And World War II, Glitter.

DRAMA about rock fans: I Wanna Hold Your Hand, Rock And Roll High School, Rock Rock Rock

BIOPICS
1950s: American Hot Wax, Beyond The Sea, Buddy Holly Story, Cadillac Records, Great Balls Of Fire, La Bamba, Ray, Why Do Fools Fall In Love
1960s: The Doors, I'm Not There, Stoned Alone,
1970s: 24 Hour Party People, Control, Sid And Nancy,
1980s: ?
1990s: Notorious,

BIOPICS Beatles: Backbeat, Birth Of The Beatles, The Hours And Times, The Two Of Us
BIOPICS Weird: Lizstomania
BIOPICS TV: Dead Man's Curve, The Beach Boys, Cher, Elvis And Me, Elvis, The Jacksons, The Temptations

Non-Rock Biopics: Coal Miner's Daughter, Lady Sings The Blues, Selena, Walk The Line

Films with lots of songs, but *not* rock films: Almost Famous, American Graffiti, Cooley High, Dazed And Confused, High Fidelity, Nick And Norah's Infinite Playlist, Wayne's World.

Almost rock films: Factory Girl, I Shot Andy Warhol, Nashville, Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid, Renaldo and Clara.

Broadway musicals on film but *not* rock films: DreamGirls, GodSpell, Grease, Hair, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Wiz.

We want a Jersey Boys movie!

See also wikipedia, although we disagree with 20% of their picks:

we just licensed a Euro-house song in the trailer for "Bruno" (with SBC)

2009-05-12T11:49:00.000-07:00

we've always loved Sascha Baron Cohen and were already excited about his upcoming "Brüno" film. Today we got a call to license one of our Euro-house songs in a trailer for "Brüno". A perfect match.

article about Happy Sanchez of The Latin Soul Syndicate

2009-05-12T07:53:00.001-07:00

Here's an article about Happy Sanchez of the Latin Soul Syndicate:

maybe you missed these films in the theater, but it's never too late to rent

2009-05-08T20:13:00.001-07:00

here's a list of excellent movies to rent:

The Deal 2005 (w Christian Slater)
Deception (w Hugh Grant)
A Guy Thing
Lord Of War
Lovely and Amazing
Narc (w Ray Liotta)
Prey For Rock N' Roll (w Gina Gershon)

we got a call from the police ("Law And Order")

2009-05-08T10:46:00.000-07:00

last week we got a call from the TV show "Law And Order" (the original). Their music detectives wanted to license two Latin songs for use in a recent episode. We complied, because we support the men in blue. And we gave them a cup of expresso.

Last year the show licensed a tribal house song from us. Respect!

Uma Thurman and Madder Rose song is in film "Motherhood"

2009-05-07T09:56:00.000-07:00

the upcoming film "Motherhood" stars Uma Thurman and Minnie Driver. Listen for Madder Rose's "Hello June Fool."

the film "Sherman's Way" has a song by Los Straitjackets

2009-05-06T22:14:00.000-07:00

Look out for the film "Sherman's Way" from director Craig Saavedra. The film will be released in July 2009 and includes a song by Los Straitjackets.

Evan Olson's video for "Everybody Loves Me"

2009-05-05T09:09:00.000-07:00

Evan Olson has 6 CDs of his own music on LoveCat. He also wrote and produced a CD for Natalie Poole, a singer now living in Denver. Here's a video for "Everybody Loves Me" from his CD "Able To Fly".

LoveCat Music recently licensed songs in these films

2009-05-04T21:30:00.000-07:00

Sometimes the kids ask us "what do you do when you're not blogging? how do you pay for those funky clothes?"

In alphabetical order, here are some films that recently licensed one or more songs from LoveCat Music: And Then Came Love, Big Stan, The Devil Wears Prada, The Incredible Hulk, Liberty Kid, The Lucky Ones, The Man in The Chair, Motherhood, You Don't Mess With The Zohan, War Inc.

ten songs in new film "The Slammin' Salmon" from comedy group Broken Lizard.

2009-04-11T20:57:00.000-07:00

We licensed ten songs in the new film "The Slammin' Salmon" produced by comedy group Broken Lizard. It's the fifth film by Broken Lizard. The jokes and music in all their films are top notch:

Beer Fest 2006
Club Dread 2004
Puddle Cruiser 1996
Super Troopers 2001

BTW, the soundtrack CDs for "Super Troopers" and "Beer Fest" each have great dance songs from LoveCat. 2009's "The Slammin' Salmon" is set in a restaurant. Please don't ask me about the two weeks I once worked in a restaurant....

Latin Soul Syndicate delivers their third CD...

2009-02-03T21:34:00.000-08:00

The L.S.S. are finishing their third CD "The Chicano Connection" and we can't wait to release it. Happy, Karl and crew have written their best salsa and hiphop songs. They've also created hot reggaeton, especially "La Negrita." Other songs recall the 1970s East Bay soul sound of Tower Of Power and War ("San Francisco" and "Peace And Love" ).

Surfing the web, we discovered a dance class in Atlanta had choreographed a special number to LSS' "Scratchero Y Tymbal".