What Do Jimi Hendrix, Eminem and Coldplay All Have in Common?

March 17, 2010

 

You know you’ve made it big in the music industry if your face graces the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. Founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner, who is still editor and publisher, Rolling Stone is still considered the big-dog of the music journalism scene today.

The magazine mostly feature Billboard Chart hot musicians on it’s cover, but fairly represents pop, rap and rock music alike. Sometimes Rolling Stone switches things up and features actors on the cover, such as Jennifer Aniston, and frequently covers  in-depth political stories.

One thing with Rolling Stone is very consistent though- the photograph on the cover always ROCKS. I am a huge fan of photo-journalism, and of course love sending picute-texts. Sometimes a picture can describe so much more than a 2,000 word feature article can. Rolling Stone never fails to capture the true essence of the musicians in their cover-shots.

Here is what I present to my readers:  A two-part mini series of the greatest Rolling Stone covers from the 90’s and today. We’ll kick things off  with honoring the greatest rock and rap music <em>Rolling Stone covers and continue tomorrow with the hottest pop music covers.

Get ready to rock!

 

Jimi Hendrix- courtesy of RollingStone.com

1.) JIMI HENDRIX- Dubbed the greatest electric-guitarist of all-time by Rolling Stone, Hendrix did not make it on the cover of the magazine until 1992, despite the immense popularity he attained after headlining Woodstock in 1969 and untimely death in 1970. Oh well, better late than never. Rolling Stone chose a very appropriate photo of Hendrix for the cover.

Green Day. Courtesy of RollingStone.com.

2.) GREEN DAY- Ah, back to 1995 when Green Day’s music wasn’t so depressing. New fans listen up- the band’s older albums such as Dookie and Insomniac are a far cry away from the emotional ballads of American Idiot. Despite the music-style change, Green Day is still a huge influence to power-punk bands. And judging by this cover shot, the guys are loving every second of it.

Tupac. Courtesy of RollingStone.com.

3. TUPAC- The life and death of Tupac is depicted in this 1996 issue of Rolling Stone. The rap-king of the West Coast still has a substantial influence on the music-scene today. His “thug-life” nature but yet sweet-disposition is eloquently depicted in this somber picture.

Blink-182. RollingStone.com.

4. BLINK 182- Mark, Tom and Travis. Will there ever be a more dynamic trio than these three  hilariously-charming rockstars? The answer is no, Blink 182 has been owning the game since release of their debut album Cheshire Cat in 1994. With the success of Enema of the State, Blink was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone in 2000.  The original punks of alternative rock have dabbled in writing more serious music, but Blink-182′s wild attitude always shines through.

Eminem. Courtesy or RollingStone.com.

5.) EMINEM- He’s vicious, crude and bears no mercy when poking fun at other celebrities. But hey, atleast Eminem is honest! This foul-mouthed protege of Dr. Dre was undoubtedly the first “white-boy” to make it big in the rap-scene. Em showed fans in 2003 that he could not only write and deliver genius music, but could actually act too with the release of his movie 8 Mile. This was Marshall Mather’s second Rolling Stone cover.

Coldplay. Courtesy of RollingStone.com.

6.) COLDPLAY- This British band gained popularity in the US with the release of their 2000 album ParachutesColdplay won the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album shortly after. Lead singer and Gwenyth Paltrow’s hubby, Chris Martin, impresses listeners with his melodic voice and intimate songs. The always sharply-dressed blokes have won many Grammys since. Check out Coldplay’s newest album, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends.

Fall Out Boy. Courtesy of RollingStone.com.

7.) FALL OUT BOY- Despite their recent break-up, Fall Out Boy still has quite a few award-worthy albums under their studded-belts. Hailing from Chicago, Fall Out Boy wow-ed listeners with their first album Fall Out Boy’s Evening Out With Your Girlfriend in 2003. The band’s music went from High School break-ups woes to a much more distinguished sound with the release of their album Infinity on High in 2007. The success of this masterpiece earned Fall Out Boy a Rolling Stone cover shot and a new-found respect in the music world.


The GREAT Bamboozle.

March 1, 2010

The decision has been made.  I WILL be attending this year’s Bamboozle tour. Call me an emo-scenester all you want, but it will be me who has the last laugh while I am watching Weezer, Saves the Day, MGMT, Motion City Soundtrack and Minus the Bear (among many others) rock the f*ck out at the Meadowlands in NJ on May 2nd.

Courtesy of TheBamboozle.com.

What started as a three-day music festival in Asbury Park, NJ in 2003 has now evolved in to a country-wide tour. In addition to New Jersey, The Bamboozle roadshow now stops in Chicago and California. The line-up varies from state to state, and to be quite honest, New Jersey has the best line-up. I’m not just saying this because I’m partial to New Jersey (it’s my home-state and I first started going to The Bamboozle there in 2005), take a look at the line-up and decide for your self:

May 1st:

Saves the Day

Paramore

Drake

Angels & Airwaves

Bullet for my Valentine

Relient K

(This is just a list of my personal favorites, click here for the full line-up.)

May 2nd:

Weezer

MGMT

Girl Talk

Say Anything

Motion City Soundtrack

Kevin Devine

Piebald

Hey Monday

Minus the Bear

OK Go

(This is just a list of my personal favorites, click here for the full line-up.)

When I first started going to The Bamboozle in ’05, my friends and I would get tickets for all three days. Decked out in our studded-belts, converse and band-tees, we would hop around the festival seeing all of our favorite musicians, chasing cute boys in bands and trying to get autographs and pictures with as many band members as we could. Right before Fall Out Boy became huge, they performed at The Bamboozle in 2005. It was easily one of the best performances that I have ever seen AND I somehow managed to get a picture with drummer Andy Hurley.

Andy Hurley from Fall Out Boy. Courtesy of FriendsorEnemies.com.

Gosh I was so much cooler back then than I am now. Too bad I lost the picture, though.

Not wanting to (completely) relive my punk-kid days, I am only going to this year’s Bamboozle on Sunday, May 2nd. I don’t think my body can handle mosh-pits and crowd-surfing to that extent anymore.

I must stop and vent for a second though- it really bothers me when people won’t go to concerts of bands they love because of the “young punk-kids” that are going to be there. Yes, middle-schoolers with multiple piercings and mohawks are annoying, but should that stop some one from seeing a great performance? NO.  Just throw blunt-objects at them, sit back, relax and enjoy the show like I do!

Despite the masses of black-nail polish-wearing 14 year-olds who can’t even tell you what I Am The Movie is, I still plan on having a great time and seeing all of my favorite bands.  Check back in May for a full Bamboozle report!

And, for your viewing pleasure, I have included a few select pictures from my High School band-stalking days:

Motion City Soundtrack Concert in 2005. Me and my friends Ali, Lauren and Jackie with Justin Pierre, lead singer of MCS.

Me with Matt Watts and Tom Gryskewicz of the Starting Line at the Nokia Theatre in 2005.

Ben Jorgensen of Armor For Sleep and I outside of the Surf Club in Ortley Beach, NJ summer 2004.


Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.