So long, Annette Funicello

Annette Funicello, an original Mousketeer and star of many a beach blanket movie in the 1960s, has passed away, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Funicello, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1987 and became a spokeswoman for treatment of the disease, died Monday at Mercy Southwest Hospital in Bakersfield, Calif., the Walt Disney Co. announced. She has been absent from the public eye for many years.

Although single names were not in vogue at the time, her popularity was so wide and her personality so familiar that she was “Annette.” No last name needed.

The quintessence of innocence, mixed with dark good looks and beguiling charm, she was a male ideal and a female role model. Wholesome in the best sense, Funicello was drive-ins, sock hops, beach parties and malted milks -- the personification of a seemingly innocent era.
Here's a great clip of Annette with the Beach Boys:

Paul McCartney's Rock Show, Wings Over America set for re-release

I have a soft spot for the triple-vinyl Wings Over America LP, which captured Paul McCartney and his post-Beatles band at the high point of their fame in 1976.

Paul and group were in fine form, offering spirited renditions of Wings hits of the day and Beatles favorites, along with a couple oddities. It was a regular fixture on my turntable as a kid.

That same American tour was captured on film, too, as "Rock Show," featuring live footage from Wings' performance in Seattle's King Dome.

Now both album and film are set for re-release -- but not together.

Wings Over America will be out June 4 in several packages as the latest release in Capitol's McCartney remasters campaign. Official details haven't been released, but several sources say the album will be available in these configurations:
  • 2-CD "standard" edition.
  • 3-CD and 1-DVD deluxe edition.
  • 3-LP vinyl edition.
"Rock Show" reportedly won't be bundled in the deluxe edition. Instead, buyers will get the 75-minute documentary "Wings Over the World," along with a book about the tour, a separate photo book with images by Linda McCartney and an 80-page book of paintings of the tour by artist Humphrey Ocean. The third CD is an eight-song selection from a show recorded at San Francisco's Cow Palace.

"Rockshow," meanwhile, is set for release June 10 on DVD and Blu-ray.

Here's the unconfirmed track listing for Wings Over America:

CD1
1. Venus And Mars / Rock Show / Jet
2. Let Me Roll It
3. Spirits Of Ancient Egypt
4. Medicine Jar
5. Maybe I’m Amazed
6. Call Me Back Again
7. Lady Madonna
8. The Long And Winding Road
9. Live And Let Die
10. Picasso’s Last Words
11. Richard Cory
12. Bluebird
13. I’ve Just Seen A Face
14. Blackbird
15. Yesterday

CD2
1. You Gave Me The Answer
2. Magneto And Titanium Man
3. Go Now4. My Love
5. Listen To What The Man Said
6. Let ‘Em In7. Time To Hide
8. Silly Love Songs
9. Beware My Love
10. Letting Go
11. Band on the Run
12. Hi Hi Hi
13. Soily

CD3 (Recorded live at the Cow Palace in San Francisco) [Deluxe only]
1. Let Me Roll It
2. Maybe I’m Amazed
3. Lady Madonna
4. Live And Let Die
5. Picasso’s Last Words
6. Bluebird
7. Blackbird
8. Yesterday

DVD [Deluxe only]
Wings Over The World - 75 minute documentary
Deluxe also includes:
  • 80 pages of drawings by Humphrey Ocean
  • 60 pages of exclusive photos from the diary of the tour by Linda
  • 136 page book telling the story of the tour
And here's the song lineup for "Rockshow":

1. Venus And Mars / Rock Show / Jet
2. Let Me Roll It
3. Spirits Of Ancient Egypt
4. Medicine Jar
5. Maybe I m Amazed
6. Call Me Back Again
7. Lady Madonna
8. The Long And Winding Road
9. Live And Let Die
10. Picasso’s Last Words
11. Richard Cory
12. Bluebird
13. I've Just Seen A Face
14. Blackbird
15. Yesterday
16. You Gave Me The Answer
17. Magneto And Titanium Man
18. Go Now
19. My Love
20. Listen To What The Man Said
21. Let Em In
22. Time To Hide
23. Silly Love Songs
24. Beware My Love
25. Letting Go
26. Band on the Run
27. Hi Hi Hi
28. Soily

 


Official logo and synopsis for Joss Whedon's S.H.I.E.L.D. show

From ABC:
Joss Whedon shows us not all heroes are super with “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”

Fresh from his role in the summer’s box office smash, Marvel’s The Avengers, Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) returns to the worldwide law enforcement organization S.H.I.E.L.D. He puts together a small, highly trained, team of Agents to tackle the cases that haven’t been classified yet, the new, the strange and the unknown.

That team consists of straight arrow Agent Grant Ward (Brett Dalton), an expert in combat and espionage; pilot and martial artist Agent Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen); and brilliant if socially awkward scientists Agent Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker) and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge).

They’ll be joined by civilian new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet).

Prepare for an epic adventure that showcases the hope and wonder of the human spirit. This is a world of Super Heroes, aliens and the unusual – of action, spectacle and world spanning stories.

The show will speak to the human condition through the lens of our very human, non-powered S.H.I.E.L.D agents – that together we are greater than we are apart, and that we can make a difference in the world.

 Executive Produced and co-written by Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”), Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”) and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville,” “Lost,” “Heroes”) comes Marvel’s first live-action TV series, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”

Music new releases April 9, 2013: Todd Rundgren; Jake Bugg; Kurt Vile; Sparks!

Click the links to order discounted CDs, LPs and downloads from Amazon.


State: Deluxe Limited Edition 2 CD Set by Todd Rundgren


 Jake Bugg
 

Wakin On A Pretty Daze by Kurt Vile


 Two Hands One Mouth: Live in Europe by Sparks

DVD and Blu-ray new releases April 9, 2013: Merlin season 5; Howdy Kids Saturday Afternoon Western Roundup; Naked Lunch Criterion Edition Blu-ray

Click the links to order discounted DVDs and Blu-rays from Amazon.


Merlin: The Complete Fifth Season


Howdy Kids! A Saturday Afternoon Western Roundup


Naked Lunch (Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]