The Darla Farmer re-mix contest is winding down and you've only got 9 more days to enter the contest, remix the tracks and submit your entries.  The prize is pretty sweet, too...

After the Indaba community nominates the top three finalists for each song, Darla Farmer and the guys from Paper Garden Records will choose two remixes to appear on their upcoming album! The winning artists will receive royalties from all album sales. Additionally, the winner will receive a free copy of the album as well as two tickets to an upcoming Darla Farmer concert.

Royalties, baby!  That's free money forever!  So quit twiddling your thumbs and get remixing.  best of all, you have two tracks to choose from: "History " and "Tommy Bones. "

From Joe S.'s Blog

Morphing: Godley and Creme and Beyond

There were many musical firsts in the 80's that seem to revolve around friends of producer Trevor Horn (who shows on the last "cry" in the video). Whether it is Yes and the Art of Noise with the use of sampling, or being the first video on MTV, Trevor and his friends were innovators. In this post we have his friends Godley and Creme (of 10cc) and their video "Cry". It was the first to explore morphing as a visual effect.

Being talented and successful songwriters Godley and Creme were also responsible for producing some of the 80's best music videos, including The Police's "Every Breath You Take", "Wrapped Around Your Finger", "Synchronicity II", Wang Chung's "Everybody Have Fun Tonight", Duran Duran's "Girls On Film" and "A View to a Kill", and George Harrison's "When We Was Fab".

Their experiment in morphing inspired and culminated in Micheal Jackson's masterful "Black and White" . I'd love to have it in the set but the Jackson Mafia has disallowed embedding on all of the video sites. I think Michael takes morphing waaaay too personally anyway.

Due to some technical issues I couldn't get you guys your daily dose of argument on Monday, but have no fear, I'm bringing it to you now.  Last week we examined two TV show theme songs - Full House and Family matters - in an effort to determine which was better.  This week we're going to try the same thing, only let's make it a little more childish, shall we?  As a kid there were two cartoons that really stuck out as taking the same plot, the same kind of characters and the same sense of humor but situating them in opposite time periods.  I speak of course about The Flintstones and The Jetsons.  Both are iconic, both are widely loved, but one has to have a better theme song.  Watch both and weigh in in the comments. 

I was fooled by this for a second.  Whoever made this fake-cover video did a pretty great job.  Enjoy.

Punk(ish) singer Avril Lavigne is about to get a whole bunch richer.  The Canadian pop-rocker has wracked about $2 million in YouTube revenue from plays on her videos.  Her video for "Girlfriend" currently holds the number 2 spot on YouTube's most viewed list with a staggering 92,585,577 views.  That's almost 1/3 of the US population (although I get a sense that many a 14 year-old boy may have watched more than once).  Either way, according to PaidContent.org , this entitles Lavigne to around $2 million in shared revenue. 

Avril Lavigne is set to score a big pay day thanks to YouTube revenue. Her Nettwerk Management CEO Terry McBride told MusicTank’s Face To Face With The Millennials in London today: ”There’s about a $2 million cheque waiting for her for all her YouTube plays .” The YouTube video for Lavigne’s Girlfriend track is nearing a mammoth million views after a coordinated fan campaign . Next up, Nettwerk is targeting the Far-East: “We will start a Mandarin website (for Lavigne) with Mandarin ads and we will make a ****load of money , because 40 percent of her intellectual property value comes from Asia.”

Course language aside, it sounds like McBride certainly knows the online distribution game.  Or maybe it's just that people enjoy watching music videos.  A quick glimpse at YouTube's most viewed listing shows a majority of the clips on there are music videos .  It's nice to know that YouTube, briefly thought to be a revenue drain for musicians, is now showing itself capable of generating significant cash flow.  When God shuts one window (CDs) He open another (The Internet). 

And now, for old time's sake, here is the video that made a rich girl even richer. 

From Joe S.'s Blog

Singing Stars

You've heard of seeing stars right? Well I was seeing them sing this morning. This video set is about a group of actors who are also known for their ventures into music. Here is Zooey Deschanel (from Elf. The New Guy etc. with She and Him), joining the ranks of Jack Black (with tenatious d), the Hasselhoff, and, of course, Shatner.

Enjoy!

Indaban and noted jazz drummer, Adam Nussbaum , scored a nice review in JazzTimes Magazine for Standards by the Nuttree Quartet (Nussbaum's group).  Let's give it a read, shall we?

Standards are the lingua franca of jazz, a shared lexicon that puts musicians—and their audiences—on common ground. But they also present a challenge that, while frequently attempted, is not always met: how to place a unique stamp on a tune everybody knows without sacrificing its beauty or timelessness. Standards thus represent a chance to bring craftsmanship to the foreground or, in the best cases, to break through the rigid boundaries of expectation and display true artistry.

The all-star Nuttree Quartet rises to the occasion admirably, warping Tin Pan Alley and modern jazz classics with casual ease, balancing winking subversion with heartfelt affection for the material. Drummer Adam Nussbaum assembled the group and provides its spark, enthusiastically tossing rhythms about and giving every number a joyous propulsion. Jerry Bergonzi displays introspective tension and bluesy release on tenor sax, while guitarist John Abercrombie adds a laid-back but elusive, free-floating quality that creates a kind of levitation. The wild card here is Gary Versace, who keeps things off balance with Hammond B3 organ lines that are playful, ominous and offbeat.

Taken together, the results surprise and delight. Duke Ellington’s gospel-based “Come Sunday” becomes a gentle road song, Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints” a snazzy romp. “All or Nothing at All” picks up a detached, almost steely mien, while a brilliantly moving “Naima” evokes autumn breezes rustling through fallen leaves. It’s a fine ride that encourages repeated listening.

Read it in context

Congrats, Adam!  It's certainly well-deserved.  And hey, if any of you other Indabans feel like sharing your good reviews (or your bad ones) please send them over to me at Streeter@IndabaMusic.com .

"Ugh, can you believe how dumb the new version of this song is?"

- The World's Stupidest Person

It's a great day to be an Indaban. Why? Because you now have a chance to A) collaborate on a Mariah Carey track, B) win $5,000 if your mix is the best and C) have Mariah Carey know who you are! That's right, guys and gals, Island/Def Jam Records has posted the individual tracks from Mariah's new single, "I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time" and we want you to take a crack at remixing them the best you can. You'll have from today until August 28th to complete your remix, at which point voting will commence and continue until September 12th. After that, the top 10 finalists from the voting period will be judged by an all-star panel consisting of Mark Sudack (co-executive producer of E=MC2), Kerri Mason (Dance Columnist, Billboard), and our very own Mantis Evar (who needs no introduction).

The grand prize package will include $5,000 cash, the winning remix posted on Mariah's official website, www.MariahCarey.com , her record label’s website, www.IslandRecords.com , and MySpace page, www.MySpace.com/MariahCarey , and the winning remixer featured as Mariah's 'Top Friend' on MySpace for one month.  The second prize winner will receive an MBox 2 Protools LE recording system, courtesy of the contest sponsor Sweetwater . All ten finalists will win a signed copy of E=MC².

I don't need to tell you this is a great opportunity to not only get your name out there, but to work with a tune (that is quickly climbing the charts) by the best selling female artist of all-time..  So stop reading and start remixing!  Head on over to IndabaMusic.com/MariahRemix and get to work.  Good luck!  

Oh, and if you want to share any of that 5 grand, I'm totally down...

Welcome back to another week, Indabans.  It was a lovely weekend here in New York and I hope you had a nice one wherever it is that you are.  But enough with the pleasantries, let's get down to business.  Now, last week the topic was boring but precise musicians vs crazy yet inaccurate musicians and you guys didn't seem to like that one.  So this week we're going to change it up and argue about something that has been at the root of so many debates I think I've lost track.  Which theme song was better: Full House or Family Matters.  Yes, they were written by the same guy -  a fella named Jesse Frederick, who also composed the Step By Step and Perfect Strangers theme songs - but one has to be better than the other.  Give them each a listen and let fly in the comments.