AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Laura Bell Bundy

Artist:Laura Bell Bundy and Company
Song:Omigod You Guys
Album:Legally Blonde The Musical: Original Broadway Cast Recording




Though Laura Bell Bundy is now trying to become a country music star, she is primarily known for her work in Broadway musicals like Hairspray, Wicked and especially this musical adaptation of the popular 2001 film Legally Blonde. She was born Apr. 10, 1981 in Euclid, OH and grew up in Lexington, KY. She went to dancing school as a child and appeared in regional theater before appearing in the 1993 off-Broadway production of Ruthless! The Musical. After graduating from high school in 1999, she moved to New York and made her Broadway debut in Hairspray in 2002. She was also a standby in Wicked. Legally Blonde was a very popular 2001 film starring Reese Witherspoon as a sorority girl who goes to law school to win back her boyfriend. Adapting popular films to musicals is a common trend these days. Legally Blonde The Musical was written by Laurence O'Keefe and Neil Benjamin. O'Keefe had previously written Bat Boy: The Musical. Legally Blonde premiered on Broadway on Apr. 29, 2007. It was a big enough hit that MTV filmed it for broadcast. The show got positive reviews and was nominated for awards but didn't win any. Omigod You Guys is the opening number and along with Bundy features Tracy Jai Edwards, Asmeret Ghebremichael and Annaleigh Ashford and others. The Broadway production of Legally Blonde closed in Oct. 2008 and since then the show has been produced worldwide. Though Laura Bell Bundy had a recurring role in the sitcoms How I Met Your Mother and Hart of Dixie and has appeared on TV and in films, she signed with Mercury Records and released the CD Achin' and Shakin' Apr. 2010. It did OK but she didn't have the big country music hit she wanted. Her new single That's What Angels Do is from her upcoming CD Another Piece Of Me. She says growing up in Kentucky, country music was always her first love. I guess if country music doesn't work out, she can always return to Broadway. Here's Laura Bell Bundy and company performing Omigod You Guys from the MTV production of Legally Blonde The Musical.

Sara McMann vs Sheila Gaff added to UFC 159

Sheila Gaff with coach Andre Balschmieter

The Dutch website Ground And Pound reported this afternoon that German fighter Sheila Gaff has signed a four fight UFC deal and will face 2004 Olympic silver medalist Sara McMann on UFC 159 Apr. 27 at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ. Sara McMann won a silver medal for wrestling at the 2004 Olympics. Her MMA record is 6-0 and her last match was a win over Shayna Baszler on the July 28 Invicta show. One would think that she would want to use her wrestling to control the match. But for some reason she got it into her head that she wanted to be a kickboxer and it almost cost her that fight. I see fighters do this all the time. They go away from their specialty in the misguided desire to be a well rounded fighter. It never works. She was lucky to escape that fight with a win. Sara signed with Strikeforce and was supposed to fight in October but got injured. Sheila is only 23 years old but her record is 10-4-1 with six of her wins ending in some form of knockout. Her last fight was a ten second KO of Jennifer Maia on the Mar. 16 Cage Warriors show. Sheila is a very aggressive striker. But sometimes that aggression gets her in trouble. I recall watching her come out with guns a-blazing against Romy Ruyssen in 2010 and Romy took her down and submitted her with an armbar. Has she improved her ground game? All of Sheila's wins have come in the first round. She doesn't mess around. I would hope that Sara would want to take Sheila down as soon as possible. This will be Sheila's first fight in the US. It's a good signing because she is popular in Europe and the UFC wants to expand in Europe. And she is the first non-Strikeforce female fighter to sign with the UFC.

Big Bad Blog Video Theatre-Ivelisse Velez vs Lei'D Tapa

Last night's TNA Gut Check featured former WWE developmental wrestler Ivelisse Velez vs Lei'D Tapa. So we all know this is a work pretending to be a shoot. So that means both girls have signed TNA contracts. but based on this match, I believe Ivelisse is ready for the main TNA roster. She has been a pro wrestler for nine years. I can't imagine why the WWE released her. It wasn't because of looks or talent because she has both. She is also training for MMA. She was supposed to make her MMA debut tonight but postponed it so she could concentrate on TNA Gutcheck. This means she could cross over to Bellator. Lei'D Tapa is six feet tall. She is from Tonga and is the niece of former WWF and WCW star The Barbarian. She has been a wrestler for two years but she looked very green to me. Someone that big is very awkward to work with. At first Lei'D used her size to overpower Ivelisse. But I thought Ivelisse did a very good job of adapting to the size difference. She is very smooth in the ring and she was obviously told to emphasize her MMA moves. And she won the match with a guillotine choke. The judging is next week. But I think Ivelisse Velez is ready for TNA now. Lei'D Tapa should probably go to OVW for more seasoning. She has potential but she needs to be smoother. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Rooftop Singers

Artist:The Rooftop Singers
Song:Walk Right In
Album:Best of the Vanguard Years





At the height of the 60s folk boom, The Rooftop Singers topped the charts with Walk Right In in 1963. They had mixed success after that until they split up in 1967. The leader of The Rooftop Singers was Erik Darling. He was born Sept. 25, 1933 in Baltimore and grew up in upstate New York. By his early 20s, Darling was a fixture on the New York folk music scene. He formed The Tunetellers which became The Tarriers and they had a top five hit with Banana Boat Song in 1957 before Harry Belafonte's version was recorded. BTW, actor Alan Arkin was a member of The Tarriers. Darling replaced Pete Seeger in The Weavers in 1958 and was replaced by Eric Weissberg in The Tarriers. Darling left The Weavers in 1962 and happened to hear blues pioneer Gus Cannon's 1929 recording of Walk Right In. He decided to form a group to record the song. Darling had already recorded a couple of solo albums for Vanguard Records. He brought in Bill Svanoe and jazz singer Lynne Taylor, an unusual choice because she had sung with Benny Goodman and Buddy Rich. Darling updated the lyrics and Walk Right In topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks in 1963. Gus Cannon was still alive so he made a lot of money from Walk Right In. They played the 1963 Newport Folk Festival. The success didn't last. Protest songs became popular in 1964 and Darling wasn't interested in protest songs. He was more interested in taking blues classics and updating them. Their 1965 single Tom Cat was banned from many radio stations due to suggestive lyrics. Lynne Taylor left the group in 1966 and was replaced by Mindy Stuart. She wasn't as good as Taylor and after recording one album with The Rooftop Singers, she was replaced by Patricia Street. Though The Rooftop Singers split up in 1967, Darling and Street continued to work as a duo and released the album The Possible Dream in 1975. This comp is a good intro to The Rooftop Singers music. Lynne Taylor died in 1982. Erik Darling continued to record folk music and even led the country group Border Town in the 90s. He died Aug. 3, 2008 at age 74. I think Erik Darling is an unsung legend of folk music. Here are The Rooftop Singers performing Walk Right In 1963.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bryan Adams

Artist:Bryan Adams
Song:(Everything I Do) I Do It For You
Album:Anthology





Canadian rocker Bryan Adams was very successful in the 80s and 90s. (Everything I Do) I Do It For You is one of his four number one hits. It is from the 1991 film Robin Hood, Prince Of Thieves. He still records occasionally but in recent years has become an acclaimed photographer. He was born Nov. 5, 1959 in Kingston, ON. His father was a Canadian diplomat so his family traveled the world when he was a child. After his parents divorce in 1973, he moved with his mother to Vancouver. Adams was 15 years old when he was lead singer of Sweeney Todd. They released an album in 1976. He met former Prism drummer Jim Vallance in 1978 and the two worked together for Adams' early career. Adams signed with A & M Records and released his debut album in 1980. His breakthrough album was Cuts Like A Knife in 1983. Straight From The Heart was his first top ten hit in the US. The 1984 album Reckless spawned several hit singles including his first number one hit Heaven. Adams' success continued but he split with Vallance in 1989. Adams formed a new partnership with veteran producer Robert "Mutt" Lange that proved to be even more successful. Robin Hood, Prince Of Thieves composer Michael Kamen contacted Adams and Lange about recording a song for the film. (Everything I Do) I Do It For You topped the Billboard Hot 100 for seven weeks in 1991 and it was a big worldwide hit. It was number one in England for 16 weeks. The song also won a Grammy for Best Song Written For A Motion Picture. Adams' other number one hits were All For Love in 1993 and Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman in 1995. You can get all his hits on this 2CD comp. Adams faded in the late 90s and hasn't had the same success in recent years. His most recent CD of new music was released in 2008. There was talk last year of new music but it hasn't happened. Adams is currently on a world tour. In recent years he has become an award winning fashion photographer. He is a member of the Order of Canada and has received awards for his charitable works. Here's the video for (Everything I Do) I Do It For You by Bryan Adams.

Emi Fujino vs Monica Lovato added to May 19 PANCRASE show

Emi Fujino

PANCRASE announced today that they have added another women's match to the May 19 Differ Ariake show. Of course they already announced Rin Nakai vs Brenda Gonzales. In a match contracted for 52kg, Emi Fujino will face Monica Lovato. Fujino trains at WK Gods. Her record is 11-6 and her last fight was a loss to Ayaka Hamasaki on the Dec. 15 JEWELS show. Fujino debuted in 2004 and won her first eight fights. Since then she has struggled against a higher level of competition with losses to Hamasaki, Megumi Fujii and Kyoko Takabayashi. 13 of her 17 fights have gone to a decision. So though she defends well, she doesn't seem to be able to finish fights either. I think she is a good fighter but she has been unable to get to the next level. Monica Lovato trains at FIT NHB in Albuquerque, NM so she is a teammate to Brenda Gonzales. UFC fighter Tim Means trains both of them. Monica started out as a boxer and from 2004 to 2008 she compiled an 11-2 record and held a couple of titles. She switched to MMA and has a 5-3 record. Her last fight was a loss to Sarah Alpar on the May 12 King of the Cage show in Santa Fe, NM. Later in the year, Alpar lost to Gonzales. That's regional MMA for you. This will be Monica's second trip to Japan as she lost to WINDY Tomomi on the Sept. 5, 2010 PANCRASE show. Monica normally fights at 125lb so she is dropping to 115 for this fight. Fujino should be the favourite in this fight. I'm sure she is well aware of Monica's boxing skills.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Lee "Scratch" Perry

Artist:Lee "Scratch" Perry
Song:People Funny Boy
Album:Reggae Genius: 20 Upsetter Classics





Lee "Scratch" Perry is a living legend of Jamaican music known as the mad genius of reggae. The 1968 hit People Funny Boy is one of his biggest hits. He was born Rainford Hugh Perry Mar. 20, 1936 in Kendal, Jamaica. He started out in the late 50s as a record seller for Jamaican music pioneer Clement "Coxsone" Dodd at Studio One. Before long, Perry was producing records for Dodd. Perry left Studio One over money and went to work at Joe Gibbs' Wirl Records. But the same thing happened there and Perry left to start his own label Upsetter in 1968. People Funny Boy was his first single and it was a big hit in Jamaica. The song is based on The Pioneers hit Long Shot. And the lyrics are a tirade aimed at Joe Gibbs. You can hear Perry's infant son crying in the background. From there, Perry became one of the hottest producers in Jamaica. He recorded as Jah Lion, Super Ape and The Upsetter. He also produced early Bob Marley & The Wailers recording which led to them signing with Island Records. In the 70s he experimented with dub and produced the Junior Murvin classic Police and Thieves. Through all this, Perry has had mental health issues and drug and alcohol problems. His recording studio burned to the ground under suspicious circumstances. Perry signed with Trojan Records in 2002 and they have attempted to make sense out of his discography. This comp from the British label Spectrum is a good intro for newcomers. Lee "Scratch" Perry is still performing and recording today. Here's Lee "Scratch" Perry performing People Funny Boy from a 2001 live DVD.

Ronda Rousey and Danica Patrick have great weekends

Danica Patrick, Ronda Rousey

Though they are not alike, I have talked before about the main similarity between UFC Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey and NASCAR racer Danica Patrick. That's the ability to attract fans that would not normally watch NASCAR or UFC. Both ladies were very successful this past weekend in attracting casual fans. Danica won the Daytona 500 pole and then ran up front through most of the race until she dropped to an eighth place finish. I watched the race and it was a boring 500 miles of single file racing. Despite that, the Daytona 500 scored its highest rating since 2008. I think Danica should get a lot of credit for that ratings bump. It looks like Ronda Rousey got similar results for UFC 157. Dave Meltzer reported last night night that preliminary numbers indicate that UFC 157 did around 400,000 PPV buys. Apparently this has exceeded UFC expectations significantly. Remember it's her first PPV appearance and the first women's match on a UFC PPV. I would like to see what kind of rating she would draw on Fox. She is already on her way to being the biggest star in the UFC by the end of this year. There is also a rumour floating around that Ronda will make an appearance in the Hunger Games sequel. It would have been interesting if Ronda had lost. But I didn't think she was in any danger. As we saw in her loss to Marloes Coenen, Liz Carmouche is a good fighter who lacks the technique to finish an elite fighter. The fights were different but Liz lost both fights for the same reason. She made mistakes when she had the upper hand. And those mistakes cost her both fights. Her submission attempt certainly made the fight more interesting. She has to eliminate those mistakes. The bottom line is Ronda Rousey and Danica Patrick brought a lot of casual eyeballs to women's sports. I expect that to continue.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Blondie

Artist:Blondie
Song:Call Me
Album:Greatest Hits





Blondie was the most commercially successful band of the punk and new wave movement of the late 70s. They had four number one hits including Call Me in 1980. Lead singer Deborah Harry was born July 1, 1945 in Miami and grew up in Hawthorne, NJ. she moved to New York City to become a singer and worked as a waitress, go go dancer and Playboy bunny. She was a backup singer for The Wind and the Willows. They recorded one album for Capitol in 1967. In 1974 she joined The Stilettos and met guitarist Chris Stein. They began a relationship and started working together after The Stilettos split up. At first they were called Angel and the Snakes and settled on Blondie because that's what truck drivers yelled at Harry when she was walking down the street. Other band members were Jimmy Destri on keyboards, Gary Valentine on bass and Clem Burke on drums. They signed with Private Stock Records and released their debut album Blondie in 1976. But Private Stock was having financial problems. So they bought back their contract and signed with Chrysalis Records. At this point Blondie was a cult band and most of the buzz was about Deborah Harry's sex appeal. But they became a mainstream success with the 1978 album Parallel Lines and their first number one hit Heart Of Glass. Their were some complaints from fans that the song was too disco but Clem Burke said that was deliberate and credits Kraftwerk as a big influence. Call Me was Blondie's second number one hit. It was written for the soundtrack of the 1980 film American Gigolo. Film music composer Georgio Moroder wanted Stevie Nicks to write a song for the film. But she was unavailable. He gave an instrumental he had written to Harry and asked her to write lyrics. She says Call Me is about driving on the California coast. It topped the Billboard Hot 100 and was a worldwide hit. Blondie's two other number one hits were The Tide Is High and Rapture. You can get them all on this budget comp. The band took a break and Harry released a solo album. They split up in 1982 when Stein was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease pemphigus. Harry continued her solo career in 1986. Burke and Destri became session musicians. Blondie first reformed in 1997 and they continue to tour today. They released a CD in 2011. Blondie was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006 by Garbage lead singer Shirley Manson. So they were very influential. Here's the video for Call Me by Blondie.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Thompson Square

Artist:Thompson Square
Song:Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not
Album:Thompson Square





Thompson Square is a husband and wife country music duo who made a big splash with their 2010 single Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not. Their second CD will be released next month. Kiefer Thompson is from Miami, OK and Shawna is from Chatom, AL. Both moved to Nashville and then met at a singing competition. As Shawna says, it seems cheesy but it was love at first sight. So they started playing shows together and this led to a record contract with Stoney Creek Records which is the sister label to Broken Bow Records. Their debut CD was produced by Jason Aldean's road band. Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not topped the Country Singles chart and reached #32 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song won the ACA award for breakthrough single of the year. Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not was written by Jim Collins and David Lee Murphy. Both guys were solo artists in the 90s and Murphy was fairly successful. Thompson Square's second CD Just Feels Good will be released Mar. 26, 2013. They are working with the same producers but it appears the duo is writing more of their own songs on this CD. If I Didn't Have You was the first single and it did OK. Here's the video for Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not by Thompson Square.

Ronda Rousey makes history at UFC 157

OK folks. I have the Ronda Rousey vs Liz Carmouche fight video right here on the Big Bad Blog. Even if you find it on Youtube, it will be deleted. I don't use Youtube. Not only was this match historic but it lived up to the pre-match hype. This was especially important because the match between Dan Henderson and Lyoto Machida that dopey whiners thought should be the main event was a dud. Anyone who still refuses to give credit to these two women isn't a real MMA fan. This fight hit a home run. The big question was what would Liz have for Ronda and would that make any difference. After Ronda's initial takedown, Liz managed to scramble on to Ronda's back and apply a standing rear naked choke. The funny part is that earlier in the show, Urijah Faber used the same hold to beat Ivan Menjivar. It's not that common but it was still fresh in people's minds. But if you watch very closely, you can see that Liz never gets the choke applied properly. And the problem was that UFC announcers Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan missed the call. If the choke had been applied properly for that length of time, Ronda would have been asleep. So Liz turns it into a neck crank. I've seen Shayna Baszler get a submission with a neck crank but not standing. So a standing neck crank is a very low percentage move unlikely to get a submission. And it didn't. After Ronda threw Liz, Liz stayed on her back. One would think she would want to get up. I'm not sure what she was trying to do but it didn't work. Ronda used a very slick move to control Liz and pound her head. Then with a minute left in the round, Ronda went to side control and of course the armbar. She had less time than last year with Miesha Tate. But Ronda was successful and it was over. Ronda Rousey is still the UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion. The one thing we saw here is Ronda can withstand adversity. I don't know if that will stop the haters. Probably not. Ronda's next challenger will be the winner of Miesha Tate vs Cat Zingano on Apr. 13. Other female fighters under UFC contract include Sara McMann, Alexis Davis, Sarah Kaufman, Germaine De Randamie, Julie Kedzie and Amanda Nunes. And supposedly they are looking at five more fighters. So we've come a long way from the first women's MMA show promoted by LLPW owner Shinobu Kandori back in 1996. And the first Hook 'N' Shoot show promoted by Jeff Osborne. The blood, sweat and tears shed by women's MMA pioneers like Megumi Yabushita, Marloes Coenen, Yuka Tsuji, Megumi Fujii and Tara LaRosa led to last night. This is just the beginning. Enjoy the video.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Blind Pilot

Artist:Blind Pilot
Song:We Are The Tide
Album:We Are The Tide





Blind Pilot started out as a folk duo in 2006 and then became a full band in 2009. We Are The Tide is their latest CD. They are from Portland, OR. Lead singer and guitarist Israel Nebeker and drummer Ryan Dobrowski first met in college in 2006 and started playing local clubs. They decided to move to Astoria, OR and record some demos. They released an EP and did a bike tour from Bellingham, WA to San Diego playing shows and selling CDs. When they returned home, they signed with local indie label Expunged Records and released the 2008 CD 3 Round and a Sound. Then they added four members and became a full band in 2009. They are Luke Ydstie on bass, Kati Claborn on banjo and dulcimer, Ian Krist on vibraphone and Dave Jorgensen on keyboards and trumpet. They were all on the CD but hadn't toured with Blind Pilot. In 2009 Blind Pilot toured the US and Europe opening for Gomez and Counting Crows. Then they toured with The Decemberists in 2010. They released an iTunes only live EP. This was not released on CD. And they toured music festivals. They finally returned home and We Are The Tide was released Sept. 2011. They recently appeared on Ellen on her birthday episode. Apparently they are her favourite band. Those who enjoy groups like The Decemberists should also enjoy Blind Pilot. I like the use of vibes, dulcimer and ukelele. It distinguishes them from other bands. We Are the Tide is available as a budget CD. Here is Blind Pilot performing We Are The Tide in the Bing Lounge Sept. 13, 2011.

Two matches added to Mar. 30 JEWELS show

Sugi Rock

JEWELS added two matches to their Mar. 30 Shin-kiba 1st Ring show. JEWELS Featherweight Champion Sugi Rock will face Celine. This match is contracted for 49kg and will be full MMA rules. Sugi Rock trains at WK AKZA. Her record is 8-1 and she lost to Jessica Penne on the Oct. 6 Invicta show. She will be looking to bounce back. Celine trains at Team Hellboy Hansen in Norway. her record is 3-11 and her last fight was a win over MIYOKO on the Dec. 15 JEWELS show. Celine normally fights at 51kg and this will be her first fight at the lighter weight. In a match contracted for 56kg. JEWELS matchmaker Yasuko Mogi will face Takumi Umehara. Mogi is freelance. Her record is 3-7 and her last fight was a loss to Keiko Tomita on the Dec. 15 JEWELS show. She is on a four fight losing streak. Umehara is making her MMA debut but she has been active in amateur grappling for a while. she trains at Zendokai. Stay tuned for more additions to this show.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Willie Colon

Artist:Willie Colon f/Ruben Blades
Song:Buscando Guayaba
Album:Siembra: 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition




Willie Colon is a legend of Latin music as a trombonist, bandleader, producer and arranger. He probably had his biggest commercial success as a bandleader in the 70s first with singer Hector Lavoe and then Ruben Blades. Blades would go on to a significant solo career. Colon was born Apr. 28, 1950 in The Bronx, NY. His parents were Puerto Rican immigrants. He started out playing the trumpet and switched to trombone influenced by Brecker Bros. trombonist Barry Rogers. He signed with Fania Records at age 15. When a singer failed to turn up for a recording session, Fania owner Johnny Pacheco suggested Hector Lavoe. And a successful partnership was born. It lasted until 1975 when Lavoe's unreliability due to drug addiction forced Colon to fire him. He still produced his albums. Colon first met Ruben Blades in 1969 but didn't work with him until after Lavoe was fired. The two had a very successful partnership. The 1978 album Siembra was their biggest seller. You can get it in a deluxe edition with bonus tracks. Blades left Fania for Elektra in 1984. The two would occasionally reunite but the split was not amicable. Colon continued to record his own music and produce other artists. He still performs and records occasionally but he is very active in New York City politics. He currently heads the Latin Media Entertainment Commission for NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Anyone interested in Latin music needs to check out Willie Colon. Here's Willie Colon featuring Ruben Blades performing Buscando Guayaba probably from the late 70s.

UFC 157 Primetime-Rousey vs Carmouche Part III

This third episode of UFC 157 Primetime concentrates on the mindsets of Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche leading up to tomorrow's historic fight. I don't know if it was just the way this was edited or Liz really believes this but it is made to look like Liz is underestimating Ronda's journey and determination. If she believes that, it's a huge mistake. I think both have gone through a lot of things that make them great athletes. But we have seen opponents underestimate Ronda before and we all know how that has turned out. Ronda doesn't seem to do that with any opponent. She thought Miesha Tate was a hypocrite but she thought Miesha would be a tough opponent. She doesn't devalue what Liz has been through in her life but Liz does devalue what Ronda has been through. I hear urgency in Ronda's voice but I didn't hear the same urgency from Liz. Like I said, maybe the show was manipulated in editing. I don't know. We'll find out tomorrow. It was nice to see Liz got to bring her mom and sister in to see the show. Enjoy the video.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Blind Melon

Artist:Blind Melon
Song:No Rain
Album:The Best Of Blind Melon





Blind Melon burst onto the music scene in 1992 with No Rain. They looked like they were going to be very successful. But it all came to a screeching halt when lead singer Shannon Hoon died of a drug overdose in 1995. The band is still around but of course it's not the same. Blind Melon formed in 1990 when Mississippi natives Rogers Stevens (guitar) and Brad Smith (bass) moved to Los Angeles and met Indiana native Shannon Hoon (lead vocals). They added guitarist Christopher Thorn and brought in drummer Glen Graham from Mississippi. The name Blind Melon is from the Cheech & Chong character Blind Melon Chitlin, a spoof of Mississippi bluesmen like Blind Lemon Jefferson. A demo earned them a record deal with Capitol Records. The group was unhappy with their first recording sessions. So Capitol assigned them to Pearl Jam producer Rick Parashar. Their 1992 CD Blind Melon didn't sell at first. But the video for No Rain caught on at MTV and the song reached #20 on the Billboard Hot 100. It featured Heather DeLoach as Bee Girl. The song was also a hit internationally. Blind Melon reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 200 and was certified 4XPlatinum. Blind Melon recorded their second CD Soup in New Orleans. It wasn't as successful and Shannon Hoon was addicted to drugs and alcohol and was in and out of rehab. They went on tour against the advice of his drug counselor. Hoon was found dead of a cocaine overdose on the tour bus on Oct. 21, 1995 at age 28. The band attempted to find a lead vocalist but never did and split up in 1999. Thorn and Smith had already started a new band Unified Theory. This comp is a good intro to Blind Melon's music and it is available with a bonus DVD. Blind Melon reformed in 2006 with lead singer Travis Warren. They released a CD in 2008 but Warren left halfway through their tour and Blind Melon split up again. Warren returned in 2010 and though Blind Melon have no plans to record, they still tour. Here's the video for No Rain by Blind Melon.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Kaiser Chiefs

Artist:Kaiser Chiefs
Song:Ruby
Album:Souvenir





The Kaiser Chiefs have done very well in their native England. But they haven't had the same success here. Ruby has been their only number one hit in England to date. The band is from Leeds, England. Drummer Nick Hodgson, keyboard player Nick Baines and bassist Simon Rix were schoolmates in West Yorkshire. When Rix and Baines left for university in 1996, Hodgson remained in Leeds and met lead singer Ricky Wilson and guitarist Andrew White and formed the band Runston Parva. When Rix and Baines returned to Leeds, they became Parva and signed with the Beggars Banquet label Mantra. But the label was closed and Parva was dropped. Their one CD went nowhere. They had to change their name to get a fresh start. They are named after the South African soccer team Kaiser Chiefs. They signed with B-Unique Records which at the time was distributed by Atlantic in England and later switched to Polydor/Universal. Their 2005 debut CD Employment reached #2 on the UK Album chart and was certified Platinum. Singles like Oh My God and I Predict A Riot did very well. It won an NME Award for Best Album. Their 2007 CD Yours Truly, Angry Mob was released in the US on Motown. It got some airplay but if the band had toured the US and Motown got behind it, the Kaiser Chiefs could have been big. Ruby topped the UK chart and is their only number one hit to date. You may have heard Ruby in commercials for the restaurant chain Ruby Tuesday. The Kaiser Chiefs albums since then haven't been as successful though they are still active and continue to tour England. This comp has all their singles. Nick Hodgson left Kaiser Chiefs in Dec. 2012 and was replaced by Vijay Mistry. They are working on new music and have just started a UK tour. Here's the video for Ruby by Kaiser Chiefs.

Rin Nakai's first PANCRASE title defense will be May 19

Rin Nakai at today's press conference

PANCRASE held a press conference today to announce Rin Nakai's first Queen of PANCRASE title defense will be May 19 at Differ Ariake. The challenger is Brenda Gonzales from New Mexico. She trains at FIT NHB with UFC fighter Tim Means. She is the current King Of The Cage Junior Flyweight Champion. She is also active as a boxer. Brenda's MMA record is 4-0 with three TKOs. She won her latest fight over Elsie Zwicker by second round TKO on the Dec. 1 KOTC show in Colorado. This is a big step up in competition for her as she has never fought anyone with a decent record. Her boxing record is 2-1 and she just lost to Amanda Crespin on Feb. 1 in New Mexico. So obviously there is a big experience gap. And the other thing is all of Brenda's fights have been at 125lb and this fight will be at 135. She's taller than Rin but who isn't. At the press conference, Rin said she has watched Brenda on video and believes Brenda is a strong puncher. But Rin also believes her own ground game is much stronger and that's what she will use to win. I think she expects to have a strength advantage. I agree with her.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bon Iver

Artist:Bon Iver
Song:Holocene
Album:Bon Iver, Bon Iver





Bon Iver started out as a backwoods folk music project for singer songwriter Justin Vernon. With his 2011 CD Bon Iver, Bon Iver, Vernon tried to turn it into more of a band instead of a one man show. He somehow got mainstream attention and Grammy awards. I think he's good but I'm not sure he merits more attention than any other folkie. Vernon was born Apr. 30, 1981 in Eau Claire, WI. He had some success on the local music scene in Raleigh, NC with the band DeYarmond Edison, Vernon's middle names. After releasing a couple of EPs, the band split up and the other members started a new band Megafaun. Vernon moved back to Wisconsin and spent the winter at his father's cabin in the woods. He decided to record there. The name Bon Iver is a French greeting meaning Good Winter used frequently on the popular TV series Northern Exposure. He recorded the 2007 CD For Emma, Forever Ago in that cabin himself. There was no band. Vernon never intended for the CD to get a wide release. But then bloggers started calling it the album of the year and it all snowballed from there. The 2011 CD Bon Iver, Bon Iver was even more successful. He brought in musicians to play so it wasn't just his voice. Some songs got radio play including Holocene. The CD is more commercial because it's more produced. It's not just Vernon in a cabin. He formed a touring band and did the music festival circuit. And he also won Best New Artist and Best Alternative Music Album Grammys. Holocene was nominated for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. After the 2012 tour was done, Vernon announced that Bon Iver was going on hiatus. He doesn't know yet if Bon Iver will return as a band or Vernon will go back to recording in his father's cabin. My guess is he would prefer the latter but he may be too famous for that. Here's the video for Holocene by Bon Iver.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Stills

Artist:The Stills
Song:Destroyer
Album:Without Feathers





When the Canadian band The Stills emerged in 2003, they were hailed for their post punk sound. But a major personnel change resulted in a change in direction to roots rock for the 2006 CD Without Feathers. Though the CD was more successful, conflict within the band led to their 2011 demise. The Stills were from Montreal and the band members went to school together. Tim Fletcher was lead singer, Greg Paquet was on guitar, Oliver Crowe was on bass and Dave Hamelin was on drums. They all played in other bands before forming the Stills in 2000. They signed with Vice Records and released the 2003 EP Rememberese and the 2004 CD Logic Will Break Your Heart. The band was hailed for their post punk sound and they opened for bands like Interpol. But then Greg Paquet left to go back to school. Hamelin took over on guitar and the band added keyboard player Liam O'Neil and drummer Julian Blais. It appears that Hamelin took a more active role in songwriting and vocals and Fletcher took a back seat to him. This resulted in a more mainstream rock sound that got them some radio airplay in the US. The Stills switched to Arts & Crafts records for the 2008 CD Oceans Will Rise. And though they won two Juno awards, The Stills announced their breakup in Apr. 2011 after Paquet returned in 2010. Hamelin and O'Neil have formed Eight and a Half with Justin Peroff of Broken Social Scene. Their debut CD was released last year. Without Feathers is available as a budget CD and is worth checking out. Here's the video for Destroyer by The Stills.