Employee Picks

Ryan:

* Willie Nelson--Remember Me, Volume #1
* Harry Nilsson--Son of Schmilsson 
* Donnie Evil--Holiday That!
*OST--Muppets 
*Jonathan Coulton--Artificial Heart

Chelsea:

*Ma/Duncan/Meyer/Thile --Goat Rodeo
*Foster The People--Torches 
* Arlo Guthrie's butt on the back cover of that one album that Chelsea and Klaralyn are really into

Doc:

* Imelda May--Mayhem
* Original Soundtrack—Treme 
* St. Vincent--Strange Mercy
* My Brightest Diamond--All Things Will Unwind

Donnie:

* Mojo Nixon & Skid Roper
* Gary Neuman--Best of...
* OST--Hedwig & the Angry Inch

Red:
*Touchers--Blood Bath
*J-Model Ford--Don't Get  out Talkin' It
*Hanni El Khatib--Will The Guns Come Out  

Tol:


* B.U.T.—I Love You But...
* Cedric Kreklow--Sol

* Mojo Nixon/Skid Roper--Get Out of My Way


Klarlyn--

*Rage Against the Machine--Evil Empire
*Beastie Boys--Hot Sauce Committee Part 2
*LCD Soundsystem--This is Happening


Bueno:

Nick Lowe--"The Old Magic"
Dessa "Castor the Twin" ("New live arrangments of Dessa's Best Work!")
Wild Flag "Wild Flag" (featuring members of Sleater-Kinney!)
Mister Heavenly--Mister Heavenly (featuring members of Modest Mouse, Man Man, Island, & The Shins!)
Chemical Brothers --"Hannah Soundtrack"

New Releases

NEW RELEASES AVAILABLE AT

CACTUS RECORDS

10/25/11

Aiden, Casual, Circus Devils (Robert Pollard), Kelly Clarkson, Coldplay, Dead to Me, Deer Tick, Dirty Projectors + Bjork, DJ Cam, DJ/rupture, Thomas Dolby, Drake, El Rego (Daptone), Everlast, Flogging Molly (Dlx), Garrison Keillor, Toby Keith, Goapele, honeyhoney, Dntel, JC Brooks & Uptown Sound, Jedi Mind Tricks, Chris Joss, Justice, Yo-Yo Ma/Stuart Duncan/Edgar Meyer/Chris Thile, MF Doom (Dlx Re-issue), Raleigh Moncrief, Montgomery Gentry, Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out, Peggy Sue, Phantogram (ep), Popa Chubby, John Prine, Roots Manuva, She & Him (Xmas), Paul Simon (re-issues), Star F*&#ing Hipsters, Chip Taylor, Tom Waits, Scott Weiland (xmas), Brian Wilson (kids), Bill Wyman, (VA) Brdige School Benefit, more!

Rock News

--1980s/90s hair-metal mainstays Poison are being sued by obscure Illinois band Kid Rocker for allegedly plagiarizing a number of songs. According to papers filled with Illinois federal court by Billy McCarthy and James Stonich, members of Kid Rockers, Poison guitarist C.C. DeVille auditioned for them in the early '80, where he obtained a tape copy of Kid Rockers' material.  McCarthy and Stonich claim that their unreleased demo tape was used as a basis for hits from Poison including "Talk Dirty to Me," "Fallen Angel" and "I Won't Forget You."  The usual statute of limitations of plagiarism cases is three years, however recently new precedents have been set for "continuing wrong" in copyright cases, including a recent settlement that awarded former Procol Harum keyboardist Matthew Fisher back royalties for penning the organ part of the song Whiter Shade of Pale after thirty years. No reason was given by the members of Kid Rocker for their delay in filing the suit.

--Rapper Eminem recently revealed that he has lost five years of his memory due to the prescription sleep aid Ambien. The drug, which has been linked to "lost time," as well as activities such as "sleep eating" and "sleep driving," was only one of a number of drugs Eminem was taking at the time, he also claims to have taken "up to 60 Valium and 30 Vicodin pills a day." When Eminem decided to get clean in 2007 he called up rock icon Elton John to ask for help. “[Elton] usually calls me once a week to check on me, just to make sure I'm on the up-and-up.”

--What do you get for growing the world's largest rutabaga? Apparently a visit from Snoop Dogg. Sixty-eight year old Ian Neale of Cardiff (UK), who recently was awarded the record for his 85-plus pound rutabaga, was invited to come back stage when Snoop Dogg was in Cardiff on tour. Snoop said he was a bit of a "grower" himself and wanted to get tips from Neale. According Neale he and the rapper shared a "smoke" backstage, something Neale doesn't usually do. When asked if the smoke was tobacco, Neale simply said "No. It wasn't."

--R&B legend Etta James has announced that she will be retiring after the release of new album "The Dreamer" on November 14th. James has been in and out of the hospital in recent moth battling leukemia, heart troubles, and Alzheimer's, in a statement James said "I wish to thank all my fans who have shown me love and support over all these years. I love you all."

This Week In Rock History

1957—Before a show in Los Angeles, Elvis Presley is warned by the police not to shake his hip, or face an arrest for violating obscenity laws. The police tape the entire show for review, however Elvis is not charged.

1961—Brian Epstein, owner of the Liverpool-based North-End Music Store, receives a special order for the single My Bonnie by Tony Sheridan and The Beat-Makers. After listening to the recording, Epstein would track down the backing band, who played a daily lunchtime show at the Cavern Club. He was so “overwhelmed with their talent” that he immediately offered to manage the band. Epstein would remain manager of band, The Beatles, until his death in 1967.

1970—Doors front man Jim Morrison is sentenced to six months in jail and fined $500 for exposing himself during a concert in Miami. The case would still be on appeal when he died on July 3rd, 1971.

1970—John Lennon files suit against the US Government claiming his phone has been tapped and he is under constant, and unwarranted, surveillance.

1974—English folk-singer, Nick Drake, dies of an overdose of anti-depressants. While only releasing three, moderately successful, albums before his death, Drake would have a profound and lasting influence on future generations of songwriters and performers.

1975—Bruce Springsteen appears on the cover of both Time and Newsweek magazines.

1978—Just in time for Halloween, KISS is featured in an animated cartoon called "KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park" on NBC-TV.Watch it here!

1984—19 year old John D. McCollum shot himself with a .22 caliber handgun after spending the day listening to Ozzy Osbourne records. A year later, McCollum's parents sued Ozzy and CBS Records, alleging that the song "Suicide Solution" contributed to their son's death. The suit was eventually dismissed.

1988—John Forgerty, former lead-singer/songwriter for the band Creedence Clearwater Revival, is sued for plagiarizing himself. His former label Fantasy Records claims that the song “The Old Man Down The Road' from Forgerty's solo album Centerfield is too similar to the Forgerty-penned CCR hit “Run Through The Jungle.” The case is ultimately dismissed.

1991— Concert promoter Bill Graham, founder of San Francisco's legendary Fillmore West (which helped launch the careers of The Who, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Janis Joplin, The Band, Bob Dylan, The Allman Brothers Band, Jefferson Airplane , and The Grateful Dead) is killed when the helicopter he is flying in crashes into a transmission tower

1997—Johnny Cash announces that he has been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. This diagnosis will later prove to be wrong.

2008—Patti LaBelle is highly criticized after her rendition of the national anthem sung before game 4 of the World Series. During the performance LaBelle changes parts of the tune and a number of the lyrics, singing "sky lights last gleaming” (instead of twilight), “through the perilous flight” (instead of light) and “lamp parts” (instead of ramparts).See it here!

Tickets

Tickets Currently on Sale at

Cactus Records

Updated: December 8th, 2011

   DECEMBER

8th--Jeni Fleming Holiday Concert--Gallatin Gateway Inn--$17--$, CK, cc

14th--BFF Presents: Project Nim--Emerson--$5/$7--$ or CK

17th--Main Street Dance presents: Twas The Night Before Christmas--Wilson--$8/kids, $16/adult--$, CK, cc

  JANUARY

12th & 14th--Montana Chamber Society (Muir String Quartet)--Reynolds Recital Hall--$22 student/senior, $29 general admission--$, CK, cc

28th & 29th--The Infamous Stringdusters--Filling Station--$16 (per night,) $27 (both nights)--$, CK, cc 21+

  FEBRUARY


10th--Sweet Tooth Ball--Emerson--$25 single/$40 couples--$, CK, cc
 
  MARCH

 6th--G. Love & the Special Sauce--Emerson--$25--$ or cc, no checks

  APRIL

14th--Montana Chamber Society (Muir String Quartet)--Reynolds Recital Hall--$22 student/senior, $29 general admission--$, CK, cc

 

Employee Picks

Ryan:

* Jerry Reed--Super Hits
* Southern Culture on the Skids--Zombified
* Tom Waits--Bad As Me
* Devo--Are We Not Men?


Chelsea:

*Ma/Duncan/Meyer/Thile --Goat Rodeo
*Kooks--Junk of the Heart
* Devil Makes Three--Stomp & Smash: Live

Doc:

* Imelda May--Mayhem
* Original Soundtrack—Treme 
* Jeff Bridges—Jeff Bridges
* My Brightest Diamond--All Things Will Unwind

Donnie:

* Mojo Nixon & Skid Roper
* Wreckless Erik--Hits, Miss, Rags & Tatters
* Leon Redbone--Champagne Charlie 

Red:
*Tom Waits--Bad as Me
*Joan Jett & the Blackhearts--Greatest Hits
*Hanni El Khatib--Will The Guns Come Out  

Tol:


* B.U.T.—I Love You But...
* Cedric Kreklow--Sol

* Cramps--Stay Sick

Klarlyn--

*U2--Joshua Tree
*Beastie Boys--Paul's Boutique
*Guns n' Roses--Appetite for Destruction


Bueno:

Nick Lowe--"The Old Magic"
Dessa "Castor the Twin" ("New live arrangments of Dessa's Best Work!")
Wild Flag "Wild Flag" (featuring members of Sleater-Kinney!)
Mister Heavenly--Mister Heavenly (featuring members of Modest Mouse, Man Man, Island, & The Shins!)
Chemical Brothers --"Hannah Soundtrack"

Rock News

--Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore have announced the end of their 27 year marriage. Releasing a statement, the band said they still plan on going ahead with their fall tour, with both Gordon and Moore slated to perform. The band's future after their schedule tour is yet to be determined. Gordon and Moore have one child together, a daughter, Coco Moore, 17.

--A tooth belonging to John Lennon is set to be auctioned off on November 5th. The tooth which Lennon gave to his housekeeper as a souvenir after learning her daughter was a Beatles fan, is expected to fetch around $16,000.

--Rapper Rick Ross lost consciousness on a flight from Fort Lauderdale to Memphis earlier this week. The rapper suffered a seizure on the flight, losing consciousness, and forcing the plane to make an emergency landing. Ross was treated by paramedics at the airport and rushed to Fort Lauderdale hospital. Ross was forced to cancel a gig in Greensboro, NC that evening, but is scheduled to take the stage again on Sunday in Los Angeles.

--Limp Bizkit front-man Fred Durst has reportedly signed a deal with CBS to develop and star in a new sitcom about an aging rock star and his family life. The sitcom, which Durst is also set to co-produce, is tentatively titled The Douchebag. It could appear on the CBS television as part of their new fall line-up.

--UB40 have gone bankrupt. Four members of the band, best known for their 1983 version of Neil Diamond's song Red, Red Wine, have been declared bankrupt after the failure of their record label DEP International. The band had recently lost their lead singer of thirty years, Ali Campbell, after Campbell became unhappy with the band's money management practices. Campbell said in a statement "This is the very reason why I left the band. This was my biggest fear when I was with them, that bankruptcy was going to happen and no one can say I didn't warn them."

--Rapper Soulja Boy has been arrested in Georgia after police found $70,000 worth of marijuana and cash in a vehicle in which he was riding. The 21 year-old star had what police are calling "a substantial amount" of marijuana, in addition to guns and money in the vehicle. He is being help in jail awaiting arraignment.

This Week In Rock History

1956—Elvis Presley is mobbed by zealous fans when he stops at a Memphis gas station. The gas station owner, Edd Hopper, angered at the disruption, slaps Elvis upside the head. In return, the King punches Hopper in the eye and lays out another gas station employee who attempts to jump into the fray.

1957—Paul McCartney plays on stage with John Lennon for the first time when he makes his debut as the lead guitarist of The Quarrymen.

1962—Bob Dylan records his self-titled first album in one day, for a total production cost of $400.

1964—Just over 5 years after former Crickets lead singer Buddy Holly's death in a plane crash (in a privately chartered Cessna), Holly's replacement in the Crickets, David Box, is killed when his privately chartered Cesna crashes.

1969—Paul McCartney holds a press conference to dismiss rumors that he was, in fact, dead.

1972—Chuck Berry, over a decade after his musical heyday, has his first and only #1 record with the novelty tune My Ding-a-Ling, a song recorded live at a show for which Berry arrived over an hour-and-a-half late.

1974—Following a heated argument, Al Green's girlfriend, Mary Woodson, burst in on the soul singer in the bath and poured boiling grits over his head, causing third degree burns to his stomach, arms and back. Woodson would shoot herself moments after the attack.

1976—Keith Moon plays his final gig with The Who before entering rehab for alcoholism. Moon would die of an overdose of the drug Heminevrin, prescribed to him to help fight withdrawal from alcohol.

1980—Mark David Champan left his job as a security guard, signing himself out for the evening as John Lennon. Six weeks later, Champan would shoot and kill Lennon outside his New York City apartment.

This Week In Rock History

1939—Former scullery maid Eleanor Rigby passed away at the age of 45. Her grave, which is located just a few yards away from where a 15 year-old Paul McCartney first saw John Lennon perform at a village fete with his band The Quarrymen, has become a tourist attraction for Beatles fans despite McCartney’s insistence that he was unaware of the tombstone when he wrote the song Eleanor Rigby

1955—The Chrysler Corporation introduces high fidelity record players for their 1956 line-up of cars. The unit measured about four inches high and less than a foot wide and mounted under the instrument panel. The seven inch discs spun at 16 2/3 rpm and required almost three times the number of grooves per inch as an LP. A set of 35 classical recordings were available that provided between 45 and 60 minutes of uninterrupted music. The players would be discontinued in 1961.

1960—Ringo Starr fills in for Pete Best when The Beatles play back-up at a recording session for Rory Storm and The Hurricanes' guitarist, Wally Eymond, in the small Akustik studio in Hamburg, Germany. Nine copies of a song called "Summertime" were pressed onto 78 RPM acetate discs, though none are known to have survived.

1965—The Who release the song My Generation, in which singer Roger Daltrey stutters the lyrics to get them to fit the tempo of the music. The song was initially banned by BBC radio, not because of it’s political message, but because the BBC thought the song might prove offensive to people with a stutter.

1965—Jimi Hendrix signs his first recording contract which grants him a mere 1% on royalties with a $1 signing bonus.

1966—Grace Slick quits the local San Francisco band The Great Society (which featured her then husband Jerry Slick, as well as her brother Darby Slick) to join Jefferson Airplane. She replaces Signe Toly Anderson, who left the band to have a baby.

1970—FCC Commissioner Nicholas Johnson responds to Vice President Spiro Agnew's charge that Rock music drives young people to drugs, by playing Rock music during a speech, saying that Agnew would do well to listen to song lyrics to understand what's happening around the US.

1970—Janis Joplin's ashes are scattered off the coast of California.

1971—Concert goers attending a performance of former teen heartthrob Ricky Nelson at Madison Square Garden begin booing as security guards remove patrons for smoking marijuana. Nelson mistakenly believes he is being booed, and in response pens the song Garden Party, which contains the chorus line “You can’t please everyone, so you might as well please yourself.” The song would be one of Nelson’s biggest hits, and his first song to chart in nearly a decade.

1985—Ricky Wilson, guitarist and founding member of the B-52s, died of AIDS at the age of 32.

1991—The Beatles’ label Apple Corp. settle their trademark infringement suit against Apple Computers out-of-court for an undisclosed settlement rumored to be around $29 million.

1997—Almost 23 years to the day after first topping the charts with Annie’s Song, John Denver is killed when his homemade light aircraft runs out of gas and crashes off the coast of Monterey, California.

Rock News

--According to Queen guitarist Brain May the band are "in talks" with Lady Gaga to sing with them on an upcoming tour. Asked by the Daily Express about the possibility of Queen touring again, May indicated that the band had "...a bit of a singer problem, to put it mildly." Adding" I worked with Lady Gaga and she's very creative and is someone we've talked about [possibly] fronting the band."

--Former Weezer bassist Mickey Welsh had died of an apparent drug overdose while on tour in Chicago. Welsh, joined the band in 2001, replacing original bassist Matt Sharp, only to leave the band the following year. On September 26th Welsh posted on his Twitter "Dreamt I died in Chicago... (heart attack in my sleep.) Need to write my will" Welsh was 40. 

--Former New Order and Joy Division bassist Peter Hook has vowed to "F*ck over [the fellow members New Order] in any way possible." The comment came in reaction to an announcement that New Order would reunite for the first time since 2006 for two benefit shows without Hook. Despite the animosity, Hook says he's glad New Order are touring again, something he'd been advocating for years.  

--According to the website TMZ, record mogul Sean “Puff” Combs (aka Puffy, Puff Daddy, P-Diddy, Diddy) recently had his credit card numbers, passport information, and private phone number posted on an undisclosed website. The website also claimed that Combs was a member of the secret society The Illuminati. Earlier this year Combs topped a list of the worlds richest rappers, with a personal worth of over $475 million dollars. 

Rock News

--Scottish folk music legend, Bert Jansch, has passed away at the age of 67. Jansch, a
founding member of 60s/70s folk-rock band Pentangle, has been battling cancer for a
number of years, going into remission in 2008 long enough to perform in a Pentangle
reunion, co-headline a tour with Neil Young, as well as performing as part of Eric
Clapton’s 2010 Crossroads Festival. Jansch’s virtuosic guitar playing was a major
influence on players suck as Johnny Marr and Jimmy Page.

--Even death can’t stop Tupac from creating controversy. The rapper, who was shot
and killed in 1996, is featured in a sex tape set to be released online in the near future.
The tape, which was reportedly filmed in 1991, is said to show Tupac rapping to an
unreleased track, while holding a joint in one hand, a drink in the other, and being
gratified by a young woman all at the same time. The release of the tape is being held up,
not by the singer’s estate, but by two rival pornography companies currently involved in
a bidding war for the tape. The party releasing the tape has hinted that there may be more
footage along the same lines.

--The band Block Party has confirmed rumors that they are auditioning singers to
replace Kele Okereke. Okereke announced a few weeks ago that he spotted his former
bandmates heading into a studio without him, adding that he was unaware as to whether
he was still a member of the band or not. Guitarist Russel Lissack said there was no bad
blood between the other embers of the band and Okerekes, who is currently working on
solo projects.

--Scientists at Goldsmith University in London have recently conducted a study in
what makes a song “catchy.” During the research, they discovered that “sing-along
songs” contained four key elements: Long and detailed musical phrases, multiple pitch
changes in a song's 'hook', male vocalists, and higher male voices making a noticeable
vocal effort. They then used a test pool of over a thousand volunteers to determine
that Queen’s “We Are The Champions” is the catchiest song of all times. Other top
contenders were “YMCA” by The Village People and Europe’s “The Final Countdown.”

This Week In Rock History

THIS WEEK IN ROCK HISTORY

1957—Presales alone for Elvis Presley’s Christmas album number over 500,000, more than two-and-a-half times the number originally slated to be pressed.

1961—Bob Dylan makes his concert hall debut at New York's Carnegie Hall, earning $20 for the night. Of the 53 people that attended, most were friends. Tickets for the event sold for 75-cents

1962—Five years after quitting rock-&-roll to attend evangelical bible school with the aim of becoming a minister, Little Richard returns to a life of music.

1965—Johnny Cash was arrested crossing the Mexican border into El Paso, Texas after customs officials found hundreds of pills in his guitar case.

1966—During a Cream concert at Sussux University, drummer Ginger Baker launches into a 20-minute drum solo before collapsing from exhaustion. He is rushed to a local hospital where he recovers.

1967—Folksinger Woodie Guthrie passes away from Huntington's chorea.

1970—Just days after recording what would be her biggest hit (a cover version of Kris Kristopherson's country song Me & Bobby McGee), singer Janis Joplin dies of a heroin overdose. Joplin had been clean for months preceeding the recording session, but had gone back to using heroin in an attempt to reduce her intake of Southern Comfort, as she felt heavy drinking was negatively effecting her voice.

1978—Tammy Wynette, the popular Country music singer who cracked the Billboard Hot 100 in 1968 with Stand By Your Man, was abducted, beaten and held in her car for two hours by a kidnapper wearing a ski mask. He held a gun on her and forced her to drive 90 miles from Nashville, Tennessee. She was later released and the kidnapper escaped.

1995—Van Halen announces that former Extreme lead singer Gary Cherone was chosen as the new and, according to Eddie Van Halen, last lead singer of the group, replacing Sammy Hagar. Cherone's tenure with the band would last for one album.