Land of Punt should be a record executive. We have an ear for great rock music.

Don’t believe us? Check this out: the first time LOP heard Kings of Leon, Sublime, Oasis, Beck, and Bourgeois Tagg we knew they were going to be big. Call it a Knack… and we knew they were going to be special too.

To continue our long line of ear achievements, LOP is pleased to announce its next find, the Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger.

GOASTT is duo composed of Sean Lennon, 35, and model Charlotte Kemp Muhl, 23. Lennon, who is of course the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, is a bona fide musician while Kemp Muhl barely has her training wheels remove.

Sean Lennon of Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger

“She’s really learned a lot about chords and melodies in the last four years. I’ve never seen somebody figure it out so quickly,” says Lennon about Kemp Muhl’s musical development.

Things are really happening for the couple. They’ve just finished a January-tour of the United States promoting their latest album, Acoustic Sessions (released October of 2010).

And they are fresh off of performances on Jimmy Kimmel Live and Conan. The latter appearance, which was Land of Punt’s introduction to the band, can be viewed below.

So we’re late to the party—big deal! LOP said we had an ear for music, we never said anything about good timing.

Nonetheless, the pair is set to release their second opus, La Carotte Bleue, on Feb. 11. That album should add some dates to their concert schedule; I feel a late spring or summer tour coming on.

Charlotte Kemp Muhl of Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger

According to Charlotte’s Creative Loading, GOASTT puts on a pretty good show. Here’s their final verdict from GOASTT’s Jan. 13 gig at The Evening Muse:

It was a great show with the right amount of humor and none of the flash. I don’t think anyone denies the name recognition that helped to make this a sold out show, but I think the songwriting and talent is solid enough for them to have strong footing in the music landscape. Lennon is a humble, genuine person that has found his muse in Kemp Muhl. There seems to be an overflow of male-female duets these days, but let’s face it, they work.

The twosome is well aware that “who they are” (the progeny of a former-Beatle and a drop-dead gorgeous model) draws more of a crowd than what they sing.

“When people don’t know the music, and you can’t expect them to yet, they’ll go for whatever superficial reason they are going,” says Kemp Muhl. “But eventually when people hear the music, they’ll come for the right reasons.”

Land of Punt agrees.

What do all these links to Justin Bieber articles mean?

Not much.

Land of Punt just thinks they’re funny. That’s the main reason why we decided to list them.

And by the way, our list isn’t even close to being all inclusive. Our list contains just a fraction of the Bieber stories from the previous two weeks, most are from the preceding 24-hours. The links represent only a smidgen of the electronic content dedicated to the world’s hottest pop star.

LOP is amazed at how much Bieber-related content is generated in a day. It’s simply staggering when you consider Beiber is 16-years-old and a singer with just two albums to his name.

Even more amazing, he’s from Canada. Who would have ever thought so many people would care so much about one Canuck?

Our lists of links excludes duplicates, blogs, and satirical sites. Some of the links below lead to legitimate new stories while some lead to sensational yellow journalism. Some links are strictly aimed at Bieber fans while others exploit his name to attract visitors.

Perhaps you can extract some high affluent screed about his contribution to the cultural zeitgeist. Maybe you can reach some conclusion about the effects of pop culture on electronic media.

We suggest you forget about all that stuff and just read the headlines. They will surely make you chortle.

To read more, perform a Google News search using the term “Justin Bieber.” You’re bound to find hundreds of new headlines just waiting to put a smile on your face.

Justin Bieber, the Movie Star‎
Justin Bieber to Star in a Will Smith Film!‎
Justin Bieber has learned to be a ladies man from Usher
‎Usher Teaching Justin Bieber to be a Ladies’ Man‎
Justin Bieber Silly Bandz at Toys R Us in Chicago
‎Justin Bieber Accidentally Hits Cops With Water Balloons
Justin Bieber and Twitter: America’s New Hot-Button Political Issues
Biebs Wants Lil Wayne!
Justin Bieber ready for rappers
‎Justin Bieber Looks Up To First Lady Michelle Obama
From Justin Bieber to Van Jones‎
Justin Bieber concert the fist paperless event in Regina‎‎
Justin Bieber’s ‘Paperless Ticket Concert’ Riles Toronto Mom
Jasmine V Joins Justin Bieber’s Tour; Scores Custom Skittles Machine‎
Hot Tours: André Rieu, Heart, Justin Bieber‎
‎Akon: Justin Bieber Is My Son
‎Could Lady Gaga follow Justin Bieber with part in ‘CSI’ franchise?‎
Justin Bieber’s hair tops with Edmonton teens
‎Justin Bieber used to slum it in a `small, shabby apartment`
‎Justin Bieber throws water balloons at cops, keeps bangs intact‎
Justin Bieber mentioned 60 times a second on Twitter‎
Justin Bieber Throws Water Balloons At Police, Walks Away A Free Man
‎Chelsea Handler tempts fanatic fans with Bieber Claim!
‎Justin Bieber caught in the act of styling his hair, find out his …
‎Photo of Nick Cannon Imitating Justin Bieber!
‎Delisle girl Jaidyn Solanik to meet Justin Bieber in Saskatoon
‎Bieber-mania reaches a fever pitch at the State Fair
‎Justin Bieber ‘Deserves’ A VMA, Selena Gomez Says
‎Justin Bieber Fans Call MSG Concert ‘Best Show Ever’
Lady Gaga joins Justin Bieber in comic strip legal action
Justin Bieber vs. Jaden Smith: The Dance-Off‎
Justin Bieber Is ‘A Two Face,’ Says Chelsea Handler
‎Kim Kardashian on dating Justin Bieber: ‘It’s disgusting’‎
Justin Bieber: He wants to “stay pure and honour women”
‎Justin Bieber beats Shaquille O’Neal on the basketball court‎
The Bieber is Sick, Postpones NY Concert
‎Kim Kardashian: I ‘Would Date’ Justin Bieber‎
Kim Kardashian: I’m like Bieber’s big sister
‎Justin Bieber and Birth Control, or Why Young Women Prefer Girly …
‎Justin Bieber Vs. Jonas Brothers Hair-Off: ‘Camp Rock 2′ Stars Vote
Snoop Dogg ‘Likes Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber Wears Band-Aids on His Fingers ‘Because Michael …
‎Justin Bieber In CSI Lip Sync Scandal!‎
Justin Bieber Guzzles Milk
Teen Gets Cyber-Bullied After Declaring She’s ‘Over’ Justin Bieber
‎‎Justin Bieber Responds to YouTube Haters
‎Justin Bieber tweets about superstardom
‎Usher: I was destined to manage Bieber

Green Day performed with the cast of American Idiot during halftime of the NFL’s first Monday Night Football broadcast of season. The contest featured the New York Jets hosting the Baltimore Ravens.

It was the first nationally televised game at the Jets new home, Meadowsland Stadium.

ESPN host Chris Berman only introduced Green Day but the production was obviously a joint venture between the band and the Broadway cast.

Only 90 seconds of the performance, featuring the song “Last of the American Girls,” made it onto the broadcast. Apparently, ESPN needed all the time they could get to dissect the awful Jets offense.

Berman teased that the entire performance could be seen later that night on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Besides Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, and Tré Cool, the performance also featured close-ups of Rebecca Naomi Jones (Whatsername), Aspen Vincent (Swing), Christina Sajous (The Extraordinary Girl), and Mary Faber (Heather).

Sajous and Faber are featured in the images posted below.

Of the four actresses previously named, Jones is the only one actually involved in the “Last of the American Girls” number.

Land of Punt thought it was humorous that Berman introduced the band with a reference to their song “When I Come Around,” even though the song wasn’t performed.

The Grammy award-winning American Idiot is currently running at the St. James Theater.

The Ravens won the rain-delayed game, 10-9.

Recently, R&B superstar Mary J. Blige made an appearance on BET’s 106 & Park.

While on the show, Blige revealed plans for a fall tour with Jazmine Sullivan, Miguel (both were in tow) and one other superstar that we’ll get to later.

In making her announcement, Blige could only gush about Sullivan.

“[She is] one of the most amazing female singers out right now in this generation, and of course, she’s got to be a part of my generation,” exalted Blige. “She’s my sister. I love this girl’s voice and spirit. Jazmine Sullivan is for real, and she’s going on the road with me.”

Blige and Sullivan—a Missy Elliott protégé—had teamed earlier in the year at the BET telethon for Haiti.

The tour begins Oct.2 in Atlanta, Georgia and concludes Oct. 23 in Oakland, California. There are 12 dates on the docket including New York, Chicago, and Las Vegas.

Tickets for some Mary J. Blige shows are already on sale to the public.

Blige is between albums. Her Stronger with Each Tear came out in 2009 and her next release, Love Her, is set to drop until 2011.

Sullivan’s sophomore effort, Love Me Back, is due out in October.

Miguel’s debut, All I Want Is You, will be out sometime next year. He’s currently riding the success of his single by the same name.

Just like most of the media coverage concerning Blige’s October outing, Land of Punt has buried the lead. Other outlets did it because they are woefully shortsighted, but LOP did it for dramatic purposes.

Can’t you feel the drama building?

The fourth person touring with Blige this October is none other than… wait for it… wait for it… the great El DeBarge.

El DeBarge was one of the 1980′s greatest singers, if by “greatest” you mean top 100. He fronted the family R&B group DeBarge and then went solo in 1986 with the release of his self-titled debut album.

El DeBarge is a falsetto singer who fit rather nicely into the mold created by Michael Jackson and Prince, just not anywhere near their level of success, talent, or influence.

His comeback album, Second Chance, his first release since 1994, will hit the proverbial store shelves by the end of 2010.

Sadly, in recent years DeBarge has made more headlines for his run-ins with the law then for his pop infused R&B. Conduct a Google image search for “El DeBarge” and you’ll find as many mug shots as snapshots.

One media outlet, Broadwayworld.com, got it right. They ran a story with the headline: “El DeBarge Confirms Tour With Mary J Blige, Kicks Off In Atlanta 10/2.”

That’s the way it should be with DeBarge’s name first. After all, he has guest starred on The Facts of Life. That’s a claim M.J.B. can’t make.

Broadwayworld.com got the headline correct but they bungled DeBarge’s resume.

Here’s an excerpt:

DeBarge will perform a pair of unforgettable smash hits from back in the day—the much-sampled hip-hop favorite “I Like It” and anthemic #1 R&B “All This Love…

They forgot to mention DeBarge’s biggest hit. They left out his most famous song. That is of course “Who’s Johnny” from the movie Short Circuit.

If you recall, Short Circuit is middle movie of the Steve Guttenberg Trilogy. It’s sandwiched between Police Academy and Three Men and Baby.

How could you forget the seminal “Who’s Johnny?” It peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and went to number one on the R&B singles chart. It’s also one of the best songs to come out of the 1980′s.

And since the song is featured in the movie Short Circuit, it puts DeBarge just two degrees away from the great Guttenberg. Again, can M.J.B make that claim? She cannot.

“After so many years away,” explained DeBarge, “I can’t wait to get back onstage, to feel my fans’ love, and give love back to them. It’s been a long time and I wondered if this day would ever come. Now that it’s here, I am overjoyed.”

Just in case you became discombobulated by the news of a DeBarge’s comeback, here’ a recap of the acts joining Blige: soul singer Jazmine Sullivan, R&B singer Miguel, and 80′s legend El Debarge. That’s quite a lineup for a tour that’s just a dozen shows long.

Mary J. Blige and her crew will descend on Atlantic City on Oct. 8 to perform at the Borgata Event Center.

October 1 – Mobile, AL @ BayFest Mobile Music Festival (MJB Appearance Only)
October 2 – Atlanta, GA @ Chastain Park Amphitheatre (Tour Officially Begins)
October 3 – Virginia Beach, VA @ Virginia Beach Amphitheater
October 5 – Raleigh, NC @ TBA
October 7 – Washington, DC @ Jiffy Lube Live
October 8 – Atlantic City, NJ @ Borgata Event Center
October 10 – Mashantucket, CT @ Fox Theatre at Foxwoods
October 11 – 12 – New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall
October 15 – Detroit, MI @ Chicago Theatre
October 16 – Chicago, IL @ Fox Theatre
October 19 – 20 -Los Angeles, CA @ Gibson Amphitheatre
October 22 – Las Vegas, NV @ TBA
October 23 – Oakland, CA @ Sleep Train Pavilion

On August 25, 2010, Bob Dylan held a concert at The Warfield Theatre in San Francisco. For this show tickets were not sold in-advance. To get in you had to wait in-line and pay an admission fee at the door.

In other words, Bob Dylan turned the experience of seeing a legend perform live in concert to that of going to your local zoo.

The so called “ticketless concert” was an attempt to… wait for it… wait for it… hinder the secondary ticket market.

“Oh. Mr. Robert Zimmerman please save us from the big bad secondary ticket market. I’m a hapless consumer. Wwwaahhh”

The only people who don’t like the secondary ticket market are Ticketmaster and the few fans to naive to realize that the greediest entity in the concert industry is the performer.

“We were happy with the way it turned out overall,” said Joan Rosenberg, director of marketing for The Warfield. “We think it was a worthy endeavor.”

Worthy endeavor? It was a complete waste of time—an absolute failure

The 2,250 theater didn’t sell out. Dylan isn’t the biggest draw in the world, but if you can’t draw 2300 Dylan fans in the hippie haven of San Francisco you shouldn’t be in the concert business.

Attendance figures weren’t released (that’s always a bad sign), but The San Francisco Chronicle said the theater was “visibly undersold.”

The people who did show up had the wonderful pleasure of waiting in line for hours. In fact, the line started forming at 5:30am.

Now, the concert organizers did do some favors for the poor saps in the queue. They hired street performers, sold bottle water, and set-up portable toilets.

All three of those things are the main reasons why Land of Punt buys tickets in advance or through a reputable ticket broker. Street performers, buying bottle water, and using a portable toilet are at the top of LOP’s list of things to avoid!

Tickets were $60. You had to pay cash. And even though you were given a commemorative ticket you couldn’t leave and come back. So all those Dylan fans that had to meet their dealer in the middle of the set they were out of luck.

The local ABC affiliate interviewed David Lefkowitz, vice president of the concert promotions company Goldenvoice. He actually said the following:

“Part of the reasoning behind this is to avoid ticketing fees and the kind of up-charges that consumers have to face. Obviously, you lose the convenience of sitting at home buying on your computer, but at the same time, it’s kind of a first come first serve thing,”

Dude, customers want more convenience not less convenience! That’s why we have computers and credit cards. Besides, LOP doesn’t get three-percent cash back for using cash.

No one that can afford to go to a concert—minus teenagers—has the time or the energy to waste standing in line. We want to buy a ticket whenever we want, walk right in, and sit down.

Much like Bob Dylan’s Christmas album, this was a colossally stupid idea. And the idea was his to begin with.

The Warfield is a Ticketmaster venue.

]]> http://landofpunt.com/index.php/2010/08/26/bob-dylans-ticketless-concert-is-a-disaster/feed/ 3 http://landofpunt.com/index.php/2010/08/20/justin-biebers-upcoming-alphabet-appearances-mtvs-vma-cbs-csi/ http://landofpunt.com/index.php/2010/08/20/justin-biebers-upcoming-alphabet-appearances-mtvs-vma-cbs-csi/#comments Sat, 21 Aug 2010 03:00:35 +0000 Ryan Hogan http://landofpunt.com/?p=4602 Justin Bieber’s Upcoming Alphabet Appearances: MTV’s VMA & CBS’ CSI

Right now mega-superstar Justin Bieber and his hair are in the middle of a 76-date tour of North America.

The road trip, which began in Hartford, Connecticut in late June, is called “My World Tour” even though the 16-year old heartthrob doesn’t play a single venue outside of the United States or Canada.

Originally, the jaunt was supposed to end Sept. 4 at the Great Allentown Fair in Allentown, Pennsylvania. However, the “Bieber People” demanded more. So to appease the multitudes of fanatics, Justin added 33 more shows.

His new batch of dates starts Sept. 5 at the Maryland State Fair in Timonium, Maryland and end Dec. 23 in Atlanta, Georgia at the effervescent Phillips Arena.

You don’t have to be a tween to know that Justin Bieber is “THE” hot ticket of the summer. After all, the youthful crooner is set to play such venerated venues as Staples Center in Los Angeles on Oct. 25; the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas on Nov. 6; and TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts on Nov. 16.

Of course those venues pale in comparison to where Bieber will be performing on the final day of August. The “World’s Most Famous Teenager” plays the “World’s Most Famous Arena,” Madison Square Garden in New York City, on Aug 31.

The kid isn’t even old enough to vote and he’s already selling out MSG.

Apart from rocking… or hip-hopping… or popping… or whatever it is Bieber does in concert, the teen sensation has a few other events on the horizon.

Just announced, Bieber will perform at humanity’s most intelligent and sagacious television broadcast, the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. In case you’ve lost count, as most people who watch this award show usually do, this is the 27th edition of MTV’s seminal awards show.

Also set to perform that night are Kanye West, Drake, Florence and the Machine, and B.o.B.

The meeting of the minds is scheduled for Sept. 12 at 6 p.m. PDT. As always, a recording of the VMA will be escorted by armed guards to a vault inside the Smithsonian shortly after conclusion of the telecast.

Bieber’s performance at the VMA won’t be his only television appearance in September.

On Sept. 23, Bieber will star in the season premiere of CBS’ CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

It will be the first time Bieber has ever acted and we’re hoping that after the episode airs we can finally say the same thing about George Eads.

Bieber will play a trouble teen with fabulous hair named Jason McCann.

This is far from the first time CSI has employed a red hot teen singer. If you recall, Taylor Swift was in an episode way back in 2009 (Season 9, episode 16, “Turn Turn Turn”).

Land of Punt predicts Bieber’s VMA performance will be talked about for days; he will make a splash. LOP also predicts he’ll look like a deer in the headlights on CSI—way over his head.

But, if the kid shines on CSI and it’s clear that he can act, watch out. The world is truly Bieber’s and we’re all just living in it.

If Bieber can act he’s likely to become the biggest star the world has ever known.

Billboard Magazine named George Strait their top country artist of the past 25 years (1985-2010).

Strait, who’s sent 44 songs to the top of the Hot Country Songs chart, beat out Garth Brooks, who has sold more than 68 million albums (and another 12 as Chris Gaines).

A Country Music Hall of Famer, Strait owns several Billboard records. He has 82 top 10 singles and is the only artists in the publication’s history to notch a top 10 single in 30 consecutive years (1981-2010).

Using the time frame of Jan. 5 1985 through May 29, 2010, the magazine looked at how well artists performed on two charts: Hot Country Songs and Top Country Albums. Then they used some complicated formula, ironically devised by mathematicians so geeky they don’t even listen to music, to create their list.

Coming in at third is Reba McEntire (who is now just “Reba”). She is responsible for 23 number one’s on the Hot Country Songs chart. The only female country artist with more is Dolly Parton (25).

Traditional country music singer Alan Jackson came in at number four. He’s seen 25 of his singles reach number one on the Hot Country Songs chart.

Rounding out the top five is 23-time Hot Country Songs chart-topper, Tim McGraw.

Apparently Billboard has a chart called Hot Country Songs.

Surprisingly, Ray Stevens did not make the list.

This list, which was quantitatively constructed, has irked some country music fans. Billboard, who is highly regarded as fair and unbiased, basically just counted an artist’s time on the charts to create the list. Still, some are not happy with their tabulation.

Billboard’s Top 25 Country Artists of Past 25 Years (1985-2010)
1. George Strait
2. Garth Brooks
3. Reba McEntire
4. Alan Jackson
5. Tim McGraw
6. Randy Travis
7. Toby Keith
8. Kenny Chesney
9. Alabama
10. Brooks & Dunn
11. Rascal Flatts
12. Clint Black
13. Hank Williams Jr.
14. Shania Twain
15. The Judds
16. Faith Hill
17. Vince Gill
18. Dixie Chicks
19. Keith Urban
20. Brad Paisley
21. Ricky Van Shelton
22. Dwight Yoakam
23. Martina McBride
24. Travis Tritt
25. LeAnn Rimes

One such complaint is with Rascal Flatts coming in at number 11. Some feel that may be a bit too high since they’ve only been around for a decade or so. Still, the “Flatts” have scored 10 number-one hits, sold nearly 20 million albums, and used over 350 cans of mousse during their career.

Also stirring debate is the omission or Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood.

Yes, Swift and Underwood are relative newbies, but they’ve dominated the last one-fifth of list’s timeframe and they’re pretty hot. Maybe they should have deserved inclusion in the 20′s.

Some fans are grumbling because they believe several artists on the list don’t even perform country music.

Land of Punt settles that argument in the same way it settles whether or not an activity is a sport. If it’s shown on ESPN then it’s a sport. If it’s played on country music radio stations then its country music.

Oddly enough, country music fans will be able to see two of the top five artists of the past quarter-century out on tour together later this year.

Strait and Reba launch the fall leg of their “Twang Tour” Sept. 9 in Columbus, Ohio. It concludes Oct. 22 in Fargo, North Dakota.

The highlight of their 11-date excursion is a Sept. 11 concert in Nashville, Tennessee. That event, held at the Bridgestone Arena, was originally scheduled for April 28. It was pushed back when the tour was extended into autumn.

If you bought tickets to see George Strait and Reba in Nashville for the original date in April you will be able to use them for the upcoming September concert.

Joining the “King” and “Queen” of country music on their upcoming outing is Lee Ann Womack. She also opened for the legends when they were out on tour earlier this year from late-January through mid-April.

The duo’s first go around was an overwhelming success grossing $28.2 million.

George Strait & Reba Tour Itinerary
>>September 9 – Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena
>>September 10 – Lexington, KY @ Rupp Arena
>>September 11 – Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
>>September 16 – Columbia, SC @ Colonial Life Arena
>>September 17 – Birmingham, AL @ BJCC Arena
>>September 18 – Bossier City, LA @ CenturyTel Center

>>October 14 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Consol Energy Center
>>October 15 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Wachovia Center
>>October 16 – Buffalo, NY @ HSBC Arena
>>October 21 – Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center
>>October 22 – Fargo, ND@ Fargodome

The ad agency responsible for the latest Kia Soul hamster advert is David&Goliath. They also did the other commercials featuring the Kia Soul and hamsters.

The song, “The Choice is Yours,” is provided by Black Sheep, a hip hop duo from Queens, New York.

The clothes, worn by the hamsters, are available at hamstarclothing.com. LOP wants a hat.

This spot makes the next possible progression in the hamster-Kia mythology. It does so in tremendous fine fashion.

In fact, this terrific commercial works on four distinct levels.

Level one: The hamsters are cool and cute at the same time. That’s difficult to do. The little critters simultaneous resemble the mis-en-scene of the inner city while still maintaining a high level of cuddliness.

Level two: The hamsters not only move like humans, but their fingers are highly articulate. That’s quite different from other works featuring anthropomorphism and draws the viewers in.

Level three: The commercial is extremely well layered. There are hamsters walking in the background and appearing on billboards. The detail put into this sixty-second advert is quite impressive.

Level four: The Black Sheep song is a forgotten gem. Land of Punt always wondered why Black Sheep didn’t achieve greater success and notoriety.

:60 Version

:30 Version

A few years ago, Land of Punt was listening to a morning sports talk radio show. At the conclusion of that day’s show, the radio hosts performed a song parody.

Song parodies are a staple on morning radio but this particular one stayed with LOP. Not because it was funny (it wasn’t) but because it revealed the power of great music.

The radio hosts rewrote the lyrics to one of popular music’s most famous songs and then, if memory serves, sang their version a capella.

The song they were parodying was The Beatles’ “Yesterday.”

Now, neither one of these dopes could carry a tune, but it didn’t seem to affect the song. The melody of “Yesterday,” even at the mercy of two discordant throated imbeciles, still retained its emotional veracity, its potency, and its impact.

How great of a song is “Yesterday” that even when it’s being butchered it still has the power to inspire and stir the spirit.

Amazingly, The Beatles have a lot of songs like that.

That’s why after four decades, their music is still being explored and rediscovered through a variety of media. One such entity that’s keeping The Beatles music alive and well is the band RAIN.

Rain is a Beatles tribute band, or should we say THE Beatles tribute band.

They began in the 1970′s performing Beatles songs in various clubs on the West Coast. Then in 1979, they were used by Dick Clark for his film Birth of The Beatles.

In 1982, cast members of the Broadway show Beatlemania began to join the band and soon RAIN became an official offshoot of that production.

The lineup has changed a bit over the years, but the one constant is RAIN co-founder Mark Lewis. As the creative force behind the band, Lewis doesn’t actually portray a Beatle, instead he plays the keyboards off stage.

The members of Rain tour the country performing as The Beatles. They not only look like the Fab Four but they act like them too, copying their mannerisms and their style of performing.

The band goes through every stage of the Beatles’ mythology, from their appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show all the way to their concert on the roof of Abbey Road studios–making the necessary costume and hair changes along the way.

Rain Lineup
Steve Landes as John Lennon
Joey Curatolo as Paul McCartney
Joe Bithorn as George Harrison
Ralph Castelli as Ringo Starr

Other Members
Graham Alexander
Mark Beyer
Joe Bologna
Doug Cox
Jim Irizarry
David Leon
Jimmy Pou
Mac Ruffing
Tom Teeley

The band prides itself on authenticity. They strive for perfect note-for-note duplication of every Beatle song they perform. RAIN is not just a bunch of actors holding instruments and sporting English accents. They are accomplished musicians and performers.

Furthermore, RAIN’s elaborate, multi-media concerts use no pre-recorded tracks.

Needless to say, they are billed as the “next best thing to seeing the Beatles live.” That may seem like a ridiculous statement since The Beatles have been defunct for 40 years, but there is some merit to this endeavor beyond the opportunity for pitiful baby-boomers to relive their youth.

The Beatles stopped touring halfway through their career and even when they were performing concerts, technology was so bad you could barely hear them. RAIN offer fans a chance to imagine what The Beatles might have been like as a touring band had conditions been more favorable.

While currently touring North America and selling tickets to a show called Rain: The Beatles Experience, the most successful tribute band in the world has recently announced plans for an 11-week run on Broadway.

Previews begin Oct. 18 with opening night scheduled for Oct. 26. Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles will run at the Neil Simon Theatre.

There will be no shows on Wednesdays but matinees on both Saturday and Sunday.

Songs Featured in RAIN

There is no way to quantify if a band or artist is overrated. It’s more of a feeling than anything else.

There exists in popular music a hierarchy. It’s been created, and is constantly altered, by both natural and artificial means. At the top sits The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Elvis, Michael Jackson, U2, and Madonna. At the bottom rests the 8th place American Idol contestant. Everyone else fall somewhere in between.

Determining which artists are overrated and which are correctly rated is not a science. It’s not even an art. It’s just an exercise to start a conversation. It’s a lot like asking the question who is the greatest guitarist of all-time or what rocker, if still alive, would be a contestant on Celebrity Apprentice.

For this article, Land of Punt will throw out five artists we think are overrated and why we think that way. Hopefully our choices will elicit a response other than apathy. Maybe you’ll cheer, maybe you’ll purse your lips in anger, or maybe you’ll do a little of both.

LOP’s intention with this list isn’t to denigrate the five artists enumerated below, but to examine the machinations and politics of music and the music industry. The hierarchy of artists we refer to is that of the macrocosm not the pecking order of your own personal microcosm.

Bob Dylan

Before you freak out and delete our bookmark from your favorites, hear LOP out. When we say Bob Dylan is overrated we are not disparaging his contributions to popular music. What we are saying is if Dylan is rated a 9 (for example) Land of Punt believes his rating should actually be an 8.3. He’s just a bit overrated but overrated nonetheless.

First of all, the dude has released over 60 albums in his career but has only sold 70 million units. Almost assuredly if you own one Dylan album you own them all. So if you do the math there are about 1.16 million Dylan fans in the world.

By the way, only five of his albums have reached number one. To put that in perspective, Dylan has the same amount of number one albums as Metallica and less than half the amount of Jay-Z.

Dylan has probably composed a gazillion songs in his life, but not once has he charted a number one single or written a bridge.

The reason why Dylan is so highly rated is Rolling Stone Magazine. They absolutely love the guy. Sure, he’s influenced a bunch of artists but the number of people who actually say “Hey, let’s listen to some Dylan” is rather small. Dylan is not synonymous with fun.

Of course, if you’re a songwriter or a poet you’re a big Dylan fan. But to most of us he’s like a Socratic dialogue. You know that it’s brilliant but you don’t want to experience it unless you’re getting college credit.

To prove our points, in 2004 Rolling Stone Magazine named Dylan’s “Like A Rolling Stone” the number one song of all-time. That’s just Rolling Stone being sycophantic about a song that most people only need to listen to once in their life.

Fleetwood Mac

Fleetwood Mac could launch an arena tour of America right now and sell out every show. They are one of the biggest bands from the 1970′s, they’ve sold over 100 million albums throughout their career, and the lineup of Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie, John McVie, and Mick Fleetwood is legendary.

Yet, they are a one album band. Rumors. 1977. That’s it!

Okay, their self-titled 1975 album was pretty good and 1982′s Mirage went number one, but most people drive to a Fleetwood Mac concert with Rumors blaring in the CD player.

The band has been around since 1968, and with the exception of a few years in the 1970′s, Fleetwood Mac has mediocre at best.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young are members of the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame as both a group and as individuals.

How in the heck did they swing that?

For one, they are beloved by Rolling Stone Magazine. Secondly, they epitomize the bleeding heart liberalism of the 1960′s. Ignorant baby boomers, with their free love and ridiculous peacenik attitudes, love them some CSN&Y.

But the main reason CSN&Y are rated so highly is the guys were well-liked. They knew everyone. If rock and roll in the late 1960′s and throughout the 1970′s was a high school, then Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young was the popular kid who always wore the fashionable jacket.

That has to be it because how else would they have joined the immortals of rock and roll?

In more than 40 years as band they’ve released just 16 albums. That includes studio, live and compilations. They’ve only seen one of their studio albums reach number one and most of their stuff is just downright awful.

Their highest charting single is “Just a Song Before I Go” which reached #7 in 1977. Their only other top ten hit was “Wasted on the Way” which peaked at #9 in 1982.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young recorded some good stuff but certainly not enough to warrant a place in the hall of fame.

Tom Petty

This one is easy. Is Tom Petty a big enough star to perform at a Super Bowl halftime show? The answer is no. But he did as much in 2008 at Super Bowl XLII.

Now, Petty has been extremely successful throughout his career. He’s sold more than 50 million albums worldwide and Tom Petty concerts continue to sell out year after year.

But, he’s never had a number one album or a number one single.

One of the reasons why he’s on our list is because ever since his 1981 album, Hard Promises, all his stuff sounds the same.

Another reason why he’s overrated is he doesn’t elicit much enthusiasm. He’s not very exciting. Yes, LOP likes him and you probably do too, but when you hear the name Tom Petty your eyes don’t light up and your heart doesn’t flutter. More than likely you just shrug your shoulders and say “meh.”

Green Day

Green Day is an unmitigated success. They have sold over 22 million albums in their career and won four Grammy Awards. Recently their albums American Idiot and 21st Century Breakdown were used to score a Tony Nominated jukebox musical.

Furthermore, the Bay Area punk trio is often credited with ushering in the 1990′s wave of punk-pop bands. Music critics often cite them as progenitors of a whole new generation of punk.

And that’s why they are on our list–their association with punk music. For as we all know, they’re not punk rockers they’re pop stars. They write catchy tunes that feature whining lyrics about contrived political oppression.

Yet, they have more in common with Burt Bacharach than they do in Johnny Lydon.

If they lost the ridiculous eye makeup, dropped the bogus teenage angst, and shopped at the Banana Republic they’d make one heck of a pop band.

Only two types of people think Green Day is actually punk. The first type is record executives who want a safe, accessible brand of pop/rock music they can label and sell as punk. The second type is kids who want to listen to punk music as they drive around in their parents BMW.

In the shopping mall of popular music, Green Day is the store “Hot Topic.”

After all, what do a bunch of American kids born in 1972 have to rebel against? Not having cable? No Goonies 2? Sega Dreamcast not given enough of a chance to succeed?

Bottom line, the last thing any punk band would ever want is their music used in a Broadway musical. If punks thought mainstream music was commercial and corporate (both anathema to their world view), they should know Broadway is ten-times worse.