Sicko Mode

I had Covid. I’m fine now, thank you, but that’s where I’ve been the last couple weeks. It still exists. Numbers are thankfully trending downward here in New York, in the US and in the world, and the US has already, weirdly, announced an end date for the whole thing, May 11, which is a day before the next CATTLE DECAPITATION album comes out. But you can still catch it now and you’ll still be able to catch it then. If you, like me, are on salary and have decent health insurance, odds are you’ll be OK. If you’re one of the four members of the E STREET BAND who’s been infected in the three weeks since BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN went out on tour, you’re probably OK, too. But if you’re most touring musicians, if you’re, say, one of the guys in Cattle Decapitation, a positive test is a potential huge hit on your wallet, and your band’s wallet, too. Lost work days. Lost pay. Medical costs. It can ruin a tour. It *has* ruined tours. I ventured back out into the live music world last Thursday. Mask on—for me, for anyone near me, for everyone onstage. It is, still, the least I can do.

A.I. Write the Songs

I’ve got a lot of catching up to do with two-plus weeks of music news and stories, and I’ll be grouping them into themed bunches for the rest of this week. In today’s story mix you’ll find a number of pieces about artificial intelligence, which has been in the news a lot lately and will probably be in the news exponentially more in the weeks/months/years ahead. The stories will practically write themselves, as the saying goes, though in this case they may literally write themselves. Will the songs write (and publish and release and upload and stream and download) themselves, too? AI is, by all available evidence, a tempting—and useful—musical collaborator at this point, but a mediocre songwriter when left to its own devices. But what matters in creative circles is not always the same as what matters in business circles, and as my friend BILL WERDE warns in the latest edition of his essential weekly newletter, FULL RATE NO CAP, “Foundations shift slowly—and then all at once.”

On deck: Ticketing. The biz. Art and artists.

Etc Etc Etc

CHERIE HU charts the interlocking, overlapping, deeply interconnected world of music rights and tech companies. Like the networked zombies in THE LAST OF US, but scarier... Are 100,000 songs actually uploaded every day to all those services? Probably not... Are big record companies actively signing anti-semitic artists, and are streaming giants (OK, one really really big streaming giant) continuing to employ podcasting giants who say blatantly anti-semitic things? Probably yes... Is music television back? Ratings up for the GRAMMYS, the BRITS and the SUPER BOWL (RIHANNA concert included)... BILLBOARD's Power 100.

Rest in Peace

TRUGOY THE DOVE and BURT BACHARACH swam against the tides of two different eras of pop music while creating entirely new tides for pop to follow. The former, born David Jolicoeur in 1968, specialized in language and did his work in front of a microphone with his group, De La Soul, while the latter, born 40 years earlier, trafficked in music and worked behind the mic with a variety of lyricists and singers (most notably, Hal David and Dionne Warwick). They both made complex, intricate, high-IQ mini symphonies that landed with pillowy softness. Roller skating jams that were simultaneously difficult and easy. Raindrops of sound that kept fallin’ on your head from a dozen different directions. Pop gods, both, as anyone who has a heart and an ear has long known, and both hugely influential. Bacharach remained productive into his 90s and lived to 94. Trugoy, aka Plug Two, died at 54—less than three weeks before De La Soul’s longtime absence from the streaming music universe was finally to be corrected. The music will still arrive March 3; it will be a bittersweet celebration.

RIP also: New Orleans R&B and rock pioneer HUEY “PIANO” SMITH... South African rap star AKA, who was celebrated for his mix of hip-hop with local styles like amapiano and kwaito. He was murdered Feb. 10 in Durban... CHARLIE THOMAS, who joined the Drifters in 1958 and remained in versions of the group for more than 60 years. He sang lead on the hits “Sweets for My Sweet” and “When My Little Girl Is Smiling”... Memphis soul singer SPENCER WIGGINS... Film & TV composer GERALD FRIED, whose credits include “Roots,” the original “Star Trek” and five Stanley Kubrick films... This is a lovely tribute to celebrity publicist HOWARD BRAGMAN by country singer Chely Wright, whom he guided through her public coming out... British tech-house DJ NATHAN COLES... French pianist/composer ALAIN GORAGUER... LILLIAN WALKER-MOSS, founding member of ‘60s girl group the Exciters... Country songwriter/producer KYLE JACOBS, whose songs were recorded by Garth Brooks, Tim McGraw and by his wife, Kellie Pickler... Saxophonist/singer STEVE SOSTAK, of the Chicago experimental rock bands Sweep the Leg Johnny, Check Engine and ZZZZ... Graphic designer CARIN GOLDBERG, celebrated for her book and album covers including Madonna’s iconic debut and several classical albums... Aspiring Michigan rappers ARMANI “MARLEY WHOOP” KELLY and DANTE “B12” WICKER, who were reported missing along with their friend MONTOYA GIVENS after traveling to Detroit for a Jan. 21 show that never took place. Their bodies were found two weeks later in Highland Park, Mich.