Jeff Healey's death shocking: bandmate
TORONTO - Acclaimed jazz and rock guitarist Jeff Healey was remembered Sunday as a musician of rare ability who had a wicked sense of humour and a generous nature as fans and bandmates mourned his death at age 41, following a battle with cancer.
Bandmates of Canadian rock and jazz legend Jeff Healey were among those shocked by the news of his death Sunday.
Healey died Sunday evening in a Toronto hospital surrounded by family and a bandmate, Colin Bray.
Bray, the bass player with Jeff Healey's jazz Wizards and the frontman's long-time friend, said he and many others expected the guitarist to rally from this latest illness.
"I don't think any of us thought this was going to happen," Bray said in a telephone interview. "We just thought he was going to bounce back as he always does."
Healey had battled with cancer since the age of one when a rare form of retinal cancer known as Retinoblastoma claimed his eyesight.
Bray said Healey had been hospitalized for a week and that his advanced lung cancer made his final hours difficult.
Healey had undergone numerous operations in recent years to remove tumours from his lungs and leg.
Bray and fellow bandmate Gary Scriven remembered their frontman as not only a world-class musician but an incredibly strong person with the capacity to motivate those he worked with.
Scriven called Healey inspirational and praised the boundless enthusiasm that allowed him to continue performing live only four weeks before his death.
"He drew his strength from somewhere, I don't know where, but it spread among the band and flowed into the audience," Scriven said.
Healey rose to stardom as the leader of the Jeff Healey Band, a rock-oriented trio that garnered a Juno award, international acclaim and platinum record sales with the 1988 album "See the Light."
But Bray and Scriven said Healey's true love was jazz, the genre that dominated his last three albums with the Jazz Wizards.
Healey's guitar prowess was characterized by a unique playing-style that saw him lay the instrument across his lap.
It led him to share stages with such rock luminaries as George Harrison, Stevie Ray Vaughan and B.B. King, but Bray said jazz allowed him to exercise his other instrumental talents such as trumpet and drums.
Healey's love of jazz also led him to host radio shows on the CBC and a local Toronto station where he spun long-forgotten numbers from his personal collection of over 30,000 vinyl records.
But Bray said his "best friend" saw himself first and foremost as an entertainer and said Healey seemed to derive therapeutic benefits from playing live shows.
Recalling Healey's weakened condition at his final performance on Feb. 2 in Sarnia, Ont., Bray said Healey seemed to draw strength as the set progressed.
"At the end of it, I can't believe how much better he looked. It was like blood to him."
Healey's death came weeks before the release of his first rock album in eight years.
"Mess of Blues" is slated for a North American release on April 22.
Healey is backed on the album by the resident band at Jeff Healey's Roadhouse, the blues club he founded and named after a 1989 Patrick Swayze movie in which he appeared.
The album features two live tracks recorded in the last few months of his life.
The Grammy-nominated musician is survived by his wife Christie and two children; daughter Rachel, 13 and son Derek, 3.
Funeral and memorial arrangements have not yet been announced.
The Couch Potato Report - March 1st, 2008
This week The Couch Potato Report peels some battles, a death AT a funeral, some animation and The Cid.
After a few very busy weeks, things have slowed down a bit, but I still have 6 releases to tell you about, beginning with this week's Hot Potato...Season Three of the Canadian comedy faux-reality television series KENNY VS. SPENNY.
KENNY VS. SPENNY is a series that originally aired on CBC and in each episode the two best friends and roommates - Kenny and Spenny - face each in different competitions.
There are 13 episodes in SEASON THREE and some of the competitions are funny, others are interesting, and there are also several that are so childish or stupid that you will just want to ignore.
Plus, Kenny is a bully who wins almost all of the competitions, and at times you will actually wonder why Spenny puts up with the things he does, including the weekly humiliations as he loses.
But there is something about those shows that makes you keep watching, long after you want to, but...if you are like me...you will be constantly asking yourself "Why am I watching this?!?!"
But I couldn't stop watching, and laughing, and I must admit, I was entertained!
Due to it's language, anything goes attitude, and content, KENNY VS. SPENNY isn't a show for everyone, but if you are looking for something uniquly stupid, immature, childish and addictively fun..., check out SEASON THREE and have some fun.
Or, if you prefer well written black comedies with a wry wit and a well placed sense of humour over gross out gags and immature friends, then you can skip Kenny and Spenny and check out DEATH AT A FUNERAL.
On the morning of their father's funeral, the family and friends of the deceased each arrive with his or her own set of problems issues and anxieties.
Plus...they are at a funeral!
Then comes the real shocker: a mysterious guest who threatens to unveil an earth-shattering family secret.
Black comedy is defined at that where topics and events that are usually treated seriously - like death - are treated in a humorous or satirical manner and DEATH AT A FUNERAL is a prime example of that.
If you like classic British Farce, then this is a film for you.
I found it hilarious with one great moment following another.
DEATH AT A FUNERAL is a great film!!
Both DEATH AT A FUNERAL and KENNY VS. SPENNY feature people who get quite animated at times.
Our next three releases this week feature characters who are animated all the time.
Like The Smurfs!
Created on October 23rd, 1958, in Belgium The Smurfs are a group of small blue creatures who live in mushroom houses somewhere in the woods.
Their popularity as toys continues around the glode to this day, but it was the 1981 debut of their Saturday-morning cartoon that first made them famous in North America.
This two disc boxset THE SMURFS - SEASON ONE, VOLUME ONE includes the first 19 episodes from Season 1, along with The Smurfs Springtime Special and some other bonus features.
This show was fun then, and it is fun now!
If you loved The Smurfs when you are a kid...this is a perfect way to feel young again.
If you don't like animated Smurfs, how about cartoon cats? Or dynamically drawn dogs?
Well then, I have good news! The Walt Disney classics THE ARISTOCATS and 101 DALMATIONS are now available in new Special Edition DVDs!
As a kid, I could never understand why the voice of Baloo the Bear from THE JUNGLE BOOK was coming out of Thomas O'Malley the Orange Cat in THE ARITOCATS, or how THE RESUCERS' Miss Bianca was Duchess the white Cat...but as an adult, I now understand...and I have started to appreciate THE ARISTOCATS even more.
While not Disney's best animated film of all time....the jazzy fun of THE ARISTOCATS is great for us kids...of all ages....and it has never looked or sounded better than it does in this new SPECIAL EDITION DVD.
The TWO DISC PLATINUM EDITION of 101 DALMATIONS allows that film to look and sound incredible as well!
In addition to the still superb 1961 film, this PLATINUM EDITION features a wide array of features, including Virtual Dalmatians, 101 Pop-Up Trivia Facts, The Making Of 101 Dalmatians, Deleted Songs originally written for the film, and much more!
Beware, it also features even more Cruella De Vil too!!
Finally this week is another classic...and unlike THE ARISTOCATS and 101 DALMATIONS, this one is making it's debut on DVD.
This classic is the 1961 Charleton Heston/Sophia Loren film EL CID.
Heston plays The Cid, an 11th-century hero who drove the Moors from Spain.
While not as sweeping an epic as LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, EL CID does still have compelling and real characters, spectacular sets and costumes, sword fights and plenty of romance.
This is the type of film people are talking about when they say "They don't make 'em like that anymore!"
The new Three-Disc Limited Collector's Edition of EL CID looks fantastic, and it is NOW available on DVD along with the SPECIAL EDITION of THE ARISTOCATS, SEASON ONE, VOLUME ONE of the always fun SMURFS, the black comedy DEATH AT A FUNERAL and KENNY VS. SPENNY - SEASON THREE.
The 2 DISC PLATINUM EDITION of 101 DALMATIONS will be in stores on Tuesday.
Coming up in TWO WEEKS on the next Couch Potato Report
LOVE AND OTHER DILEMMAS is a Canadian comedy starring Gabrielle Miller, Lacey from CORNER GAS as a woman who insists her wedding day will be perfect, even though she's eight-months pregnant, been robbed, kidnapped and thinks her fiancé Henry is dead.
I will also talk about the Academy Award winning Best Picture of 2007 NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN; Steve Carrel is DAN IN REAL LIFE; Robin Williams headlines AUGUST RUSH; and JUSTICE LEAGUE - THE NEW FRONTIER is a great new animated movie featuring Superman, Batman AND Wonder Woman. in an origin story of how the Justice League first got together.
I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in fourteen days.
For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.
Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next time on The Couch!
Wal-Mart stirs CD pricing pot with multi-tiered plan
NEW YORK (Billboard) - The major music companies have been resistant to lowering their price on CDs, but now they may be dragged to that point: Wal-Mart, the largest retailer of music with an estimated 22 percent market share, has proposed a five-tiered pricing scheme that would allow the discounter to sell albums at even lower prices and require the labels to bear more of the costs.
According to sources, the Wal-Mart proposal would allow for a promotional program that could comprise the top 15 to 20 hottest titles, each at $10. The rest of the pricing structure, according to several music executives who spoke with Billboard, would have hits and current titles retailing for $12, top catalog at $9, midline catalog at $7 and budget product at $5. The move would also shift the store's pricing from its $9.88 and $13.88 model to rounder sales prices.
Executives at the Bentonville, Arkansas-based discounting giant wouldn't comment on the specifics of their promotion, but Wal-Mart divisional merchandise manager for home entertainment Jeff Maas acknowledged the proposal. "When you look at sales declines with physical product, and you have a category declining like it is, you have to make decisions about what the future looks like," he said. "If you have a business that is declining and you want to turn it around, it really takes looking at it from all angles."
Maas referenced the DVD business as a model for tiered pricing. "(It) has been around for years and has worked very well," he said.
While Wal-Mart's negotiations with the labels have yet to take place, the proposal is already causing agita at the majors. Some consider the proposal a non-starter, others say further negotiations might eventually yield a workable solution, and a few see it as appropriate, given the big picture.
"I don't think this is a Wal-Mart discussion," one top executive at a major label said. "I think this is a future-of-the-business discussion. Right now everyone is paralyzed."
Some executives raised the question of whether the Federal Trade Commission would take issue with such a program were it rolled out only to Wal-Mart. But one executive said, "Making it legal is not the difficult part. The difficult part is coming to terms with it."
Another top executive said, "The decision might come down to: Do we give up 20 percent of our business (i.e., Wal-Mart) in order to not lose the entire business?"
That question assumes that Wal-Mart would either penalize or stop doing business with a major that decides not to participate in the pricing program. Moreover, if all majors take a pass, some speculate that Wal-Mart could pull music entirely from the store.
This type of speculation abounds, although the Wal-Mart proposal was presented only as a starting point. One label executive said, "This sounds like the Hail Mary pass, and if it doesn't work, they could be out of the music business; or maybe they reduce music down to a couple of racks" from the 4,000 titles carried by Wal-Marts with larger selections.
Maas declined to rule out those possibilities, but said he'd rather look at how Wal-Mart can help a declining category. "The customer votes every single day in our stores, and based on what they want is how we merchandise our stores."
'Semi-Pro' scores $15M, tops box office
LOS ANGELES - Will Ferrell's basketball comedy "Semi-Pro" dribbled to the top of the weekend box office, but it fell short of his previous blockbuster openings in the sports spoof genre, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The New Line Cinema film, starring Ferrell as the owner of a fictional basketball franchise, grossed $15.3 million in its weekend debut. That was lackluster compared to Ferrell's 2006 NASCAR parody "Talledega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby," which opened at $47 million, and last year's figure skating comedy "Blades of Glory," which earned $33 million in its first weekend.
Box office analysts said "Semi-Pro" likely suffered because it was released during a normally slow season and was rated R, while "Talledega Nights" and "Blades of Glory" were rated PG-13.
"Will Ferrell is always a draw and audiences love him. But this particular weekend is not quite as strong as his earlier efforts," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box-office tracker Media By Numbers LLC.
New Line representatives declined to comment. Last week, media conglomerate Time Warner Inc. announced that New Line would be merged with its Warner Bros. Entertainment studio to cut costs and improve profitability.
Last weekend's top film, the Sony Pictures terrorism thriller "Vantage Point," dropped to second place with $13 million in ticket sales, bringing its two-week domestic total to $41 million.
Sony's new release "The Other Boleyn Girl" performed better than expected, opening at No. 4 with $8.3 million at 1,166 theaters. Its $7,118 per theater average outdistanced other movies in the marketplace.
The weekend's other opening, the Summit Entertainment fantasy romantic comedy "Penelope," debuted in eighth place with $4 million.
Box office revenues overall were down for the third straight week. The top 12 movies grossed $81 million, down 10 percent from last weekend and 25 percent from the same weekend in 2007.
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "Semi-Pro," $15.3 million.
2. "Vantage Point," $13 million.
3. "Spiderwick Chronicles," $8.8 million.
4. "The Other Boleyn Girl," $8.3 million
5. "Jumper," $7.6 million.
6. "Step Up 2 The Streets," $5.7 million.
7. "Fool's Gold," $4.7 million.
8. "Penelope," $4 million.
9. "No Country For Old Men," $4 million.
10. "Juno," $3.4 million.
BBC: Hell's Angels sought to kill Jagger
LONDON - Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger escaped an assassination plot hatched in 1969 by the Hells Angels, a new British Broadcasting Corp. documentary has claimed.
A program to be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Monday says the rock star was the target of the plot following a purported dispute with the motorcycle gang over concert security.
Jagger had vowed not to use Hells Angel members as bouncers following the death in December 1969 of an 18-year-old fan at a notorious free performance at Altamont Speedway in Northern California.
In return, gang members hatched a plan to kill Jagger at his holiday home in Long Island, New York, the BBC claimed.
"The Hells Angels were so angered by Jagger's treatment of them that they decided to kill him," Tom Mangold, the presenter of the program, was quoted as telling Britain's Sunday Telegraph newspaper.
He said the plan was disclosed during an interview with Mark Young, a former FBI officer, for the BBC's "The FBI at 100" documentary.
Mangold said the men tried to reach Jagger by sea. "The boat was hit by a storm and all of the men were thrown overboard," he was quoted as saying. They all survived but made no other attempt on his life, Mangold said.
It was not clear whether Jagger was ever informed of the alleged plot against him.
LD Communications, Jagger's publicists in Britain, did not immediately return calls requesting comment.
The Hells Angels have always denied any connection with the Altamont Speedway killing.