Tagged: music

1. The group, which was founded in 1984 in Hoboken, New Jersey, takes its name from a sporting anecdote: Legend has it that during the 1962 season two members of the New York Mets––center fielder Richie Ashburn and shortstop Elio Chacon––collided on an all-too-frequent basis. A native of Venezuela, Chacon was confused when Ashburn would yell, “I’ve got it!” as he was going after a ball. A teammate intervened and told Ashburn that he might have more luck yelling "¡Yo la tengo!" (Spanish for “I’ve got it!”) instead. He did––only to be knocked about by left fielder Frank Thomas, who allegedly quipped, “What’s a yellow tango?”

Tom Page has been an integral part of the Wichita and Kansas music scenes for more than 20 years. The guitarist performed with acts such as Sunshine Family, Winking Spaniard, and Grandpa’s .38 throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, earning a reputation not only as a gifted guitarist but a remarkable songwriter as well.

“Happy Birthday to You” is one of the best known songs in the world, but one rarely hears it in a movie or on TV.

There is a monetary reason for this: “Happy Birthday To You” is copyright protected, and to use it can cost a producer as much as $30,000.

It is incredible to me that the song is not in the public domain, but this is one of those strange stories born at the intersection of popular music and copyright law.

The tune was written for a song "Good Morning to All" in 1893 by Louisville kindergarten teachers Patty and Mildred Hill.

Now that CDs aren’t making money, more of a musician's income is from selling "merch" - merchandise: T-shirts, stickers, guitar picks, etc.

Merch might not be the main part of a band’s revenue stream, but I think it has become a bigger part of the musical experience since the beginning of the digital age.

Merch is essential for the true fan. An MP3 is a transitory and abstract thing; a concert T-shirt on the other hand is tangible and enduring.