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2011:
[OCT 30] Happy Halloween! I thought about trying to scare you all for the occasion by saying something freaky like Donna was going to retire from recording - but then I realized that many of you know where to find me and they you would hunt me down and force me to listen to the Shout It Out collection over and over again. LOL
[OCT 30] Before we get to Donna - Brooklyn Sudano fans will want to look at the Family Matters section below.
[OCT 30] Let's start with eBay. We have another script from the 1980 TV Special up for auction. This one is a little damaged, but it is autographed. It's also a little pricey, but hey - sometimes to get unusual things you have to be willing to pay. :-) And the seller is tossing in a DVD copy of the special made from the edited master tape of the show.
[OCT 30] In the Donna is everywhere category, she got mentioned in the TV show Supernatural. The episode titled Slash Fiction (which aired Friday) had the line, "The quickest climb up the chart since Donna Summer." :-) Also in the Donna is everywhere category, look for one of her songs in the video game Dance Central 2 (for Xbox 360 and Kinect).
[OCT 30] That brings us to the web news for the week. In the world of blogs, look for the return of TheBestSingerDonnaSummer.blogspot.com with photos from the David Foster concert. The blog is written in Portuguese, so if that's not your best language you might need to use a translator. (ON a side note, how can you not love anything called "The Best Singer Donna Summer"? ;-) ) Over on YouTube, look for stampyurfeet's Halloween video for Cats Without Claws (it's pretty cool but I think most of those cats do have claws! LOL) , the Hot Summer Night hit medley, the Marc Andrews Chops And Mash mix of I Feel Love, the Disco Purrfection edit of Need A Man Blues, and the Steve Lischinsky mix of Our Love.
[OCT 30] I will be back in a day or 2 with the Summer Fever pick after the invasion of little goblins tomorrow. :-)
[OCT 23] There's not much of anything happening this week, so lets look at the recent past for a minute. There was an auction on ebay recently for the original script from Donna's 1980 TV special. The auction was pulled by the seller before anyone could bid on it, but the listing is still viewable. There are photos of several of the pages, and if you look closely you can see mentions of things that had been tentatively planned but that never made it to the screen.
[OCT 23] Studio Brussel polled its listeners and came up with the top 100 dance tracks. I Feel Love is at #99
[OCT 23] In the land of Facebook, Donna's page has surpassed 100,000 likes. Let's see how long it takes to double that. ;-)
[OCT 23] In the Donna is everywhere category - there is a a Tribute to Giorgio Moroder posted on Studio Brussel. It's a nice long medley of Giorgio's music and I think you can guess which singer is pretty well represented in that medley. ;-)
[OCT 23] That brings us to the web. On YouTube look for clips from the 1980 TV special, an I Feel Love Megamix by Patrick Cowley, Hot Stuff live on the Dinah Shore Show, Hot Stuff live again from a TV show that was filmed about 2 decades later, and finally, Stor Dubine's very entertaining video for Does He Love You.
[OCT 16] Let's start off with something a little silly. The Icon CD that has been postponed indefinitely had made an appearance (of sorts) at my local Target store. My Facebook friends probably saw this already, but here is the picture I took while shopping. It's amazing how much Donna looks like the Temptations in that cover photo.... LOL On a more serious note, there is still no release date and with a price that low you know it's going to be just the basic hits.
[OCT 16] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a brief mention in a profile of artist Loring Cornish. He's one of us. ;-) She also gets mentioned in an article about the best dance movies of all time. #20 is The Full Monty and mentioned in particular is the scene where the guys start dancing to Hot Stuff while on the dole line. (On a side note, #19 is Flashdance which also contains a Donna song.... but the article didn't mention that. It was more interested in the dance under the showerhead.)
[OCT 16] That brings us to YouTube. Look for Nights In White Satin, Andy's Dancing All Night Mix of It's Only Love, The EuroNixMix French Kiss Remix of I Feel Love/Love To Love You Baby, and Sunset People and Bad Girls from the 1980 TV Special. And finally for those of you who just don't have time to listen to a whole long version of I Feel Love, here is a speeded up version - all it needs is a couple of cartoon chipmunks on backup. ;-) (And no, I couldn't get through the whole thing - sped up vocals drive me nuts and not in a good way! LOL)
[OCT 9] Let's start with the Rock Hall Of Fame again. We have a nice article posted on TriValleyCentral.com. One word of advice though - there is a little slideshow on the right side of that page. Put it on pause before you start reading. One of the photos is significantly taller than the others and it makes the text jump every time the slideshow cycles from small to big (or big to small.) Also, don't forget the Hall Of Fame website is polling visitors on their choices for induction. Looking at the list it got me to thinking - wouldn't it be cool for Donna to be inducted the same year as the Red Hot Chili Peppers? They could jam on I Feel Love together.
[OCT 9] HamptonRoads.com has an excellent article about Once Upon A Time.
[OCT 9] Boston.com is posting a series of articles on the "Boston 100" - the greatest songs from Boston. (That would be Boston the city not Boston the band. ;-) ) Coming in at #37 is Bad Girls. They've been posting the songs in random order, so you can check out the selections posted so far here.
[OCT 9] Moving on to release news - as many of you know, Donna put down some vocals for an Omega Red track called Angel. Look for that to come out sometime next year as a single.
[OCT 9] Some of you remember that we were expecting a compilation out called Icon. Well, there is currently no release date, but people have found empty slots for the CD in Target stores here and there across the country. (or maybe they are not empty and the CD is actually invisible? ;-) )
[OCT 9] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube look for Hot Stuff from the David Foster concert and a white label mix of MacArthur Park. Also for you ladies out there (and some of you men too... or maybe I have that backwards? ;-) ) somebody paired To Paris With Love with a slideshow of male models. (I must be getting old - some of those models look like babies to me. LOL)
[OCT 2] First things first, the new Summer Fever Pick is up. This month we celebrate the Donna Summer album.
[OCT 2] So there is no news this week, none at all.... well, except for this one tiny little thing. ;-) Donna's been nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame again this year. It's only been reported in one or two (billion) articles this week. (There is nothing like opening up my Google news alerts folder and finding tons of articles turning up each day with Donna's name!) The complete list of nominees is as follows: The Cure, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Heart, Freddie King, The Small Faces, The Spinners, The Beastie Boys, Donovan, Laura Nyro, Red Hot Chili Peppers, War, Erik B & Rakim, Guns N Roses, Rufus & Chaka Khan, and of course Donna. This is the fourth time Donna has been nominated and hopefully this will be the year. (After all these nominationa, I'm getting really good at typing with all my fingers crossed. LOL)
As I said before, there have been about a billion articles announcing the nominees. Here are a few of the ones that have something more to say than just a mere list of names:
Charlotte Observer
The Sun News
UCSD Guardian
Cleveland.com (there is also a poll where fans can vote for their favorites)
FutureRockLegends.com
Fox News (that just has a poll)
VH1 (also just a poll)
Look for plenty more articles to show up in the weeks to come. :-)
[OCT 2] In other news, Donna just performed at David Foster's show in Vegas. Photos are up at Getty Images (with larger versions at Zimbio.com). There is an article on LasVegasWeekly.com (where they say Donna stole the show) with a few more pictures.
[OCT 2] I have one more thing that's not strictly Donna-related. The Boardwalk Entertainment Group is making a biopic about Neil Bogart (who I'm sure you all remember was the head honcho at Casablanca Records.) Justin Timberlake has been tapped to play Neil and the movie will be called Spinning Gold. You can read about it here. There is no word yet on who else will be in it, or when they hope to start production.
[OCT 2] That brings us to the web news. On YouTube look for clips of On The Radio and Last Dance from the David Foster concert last night. (They are shot from pretty far away so they are really only good for the audio.) Also look for Fernando's video for Autumn Changes, EuroNixMix Donna Summer Mix 1 and Mix 2.
[SEP 25] So tonight's top news is David Foster & Friends. There will be more concerts at Mandalay Bay this autumn - one on October 1 and one on November 25. Now David Foster's website doesn't list performers yet, but his Facebook page mentions Donna as being part of the October 1 show. Tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster.
[SEP 25] In classic news um news (now that sounds like an oxymoron LOL) - Google lets you search out news archives and if you search for Donna, you can find articles from as far back as 1978. (Warning - some of them are presented as scans of the original newspaper pages, and some are pay-per-view only.) I've been nosing through some of them and I found this one about There Goes My Baby that I thought you might enjoy. (This one is free to view and it's presented as a normal web page so it should be accessible to my visually impaired readers with whatever technology you usually use.)
[SEP 25] That brings us to the web. On YouTube, look for a clip of Donna presenting an award at the 1976 AMAs, the interview clip from her appearance as host of American Bandstand, Donna's interview with the Brooklyn Dreams from the same show, Donna picking up the 1979 Disco Female AMA award, the Disco Album award, and the Disco Single AMA award (she brings Paul Jabara up to accept with her), and finally the most frightening thing I can imagine... someone who has mistaken Donna's song, I Love You, with the theme song from the kids' show Barney. (I should explain that I have never recovered from being tortured at my job with Barney videos one Christmas when he was the hottest thing ever for kids.) Moving back to something way more fun, but not Donna related at all, there is a cool clip of Paul Jabara from American Bandstand on YouTube.
[SEP 19] So, uh, this week... really nothing happening. LOL Let's go right to YouTube. Look for a rare clip of Could It Be Magic, audio for all the Lady Of The Night tracks courtesy of athp123, an extended version of Love's Unkind, and a strange but clever mashup of Mc Hammer, Eurythmics, New Order,Talking Heads and Donna. (They mixed not only the music, but the actual visuals from the videos too and came up with something pleasantly demented.)
[SEP 19] In classic dance news, Gold Legion has Grace Jones' Fame slated for October 28 and Muse for November 30. And on October 17 Gold Legion plans to issue their first compilation Disco Discography 1. It will include tracks by Cheryl Lynn, Bonnie Pointer, Norma Jean Wright, Goody Goody, Two Tons Of Fun, Ren Woods, Jackie Moore, Stargard, Sylvester, Gonzalez, and Donna with a 7 and a half minute version of With Your Love. There will be a 16 page booklet with notes by Christian John Wikane.
[SEP 11] Happy Sunday everyone. As you can see it is September 11, but I'm not going to say anything about the anniversary because of something important I learned after the attacks 10 years ago. And that is, it's not healthy to allow yourself to immerse yourself too much in tragedy. At some point you need to take a break from all the coverage and focus on something else - even if it's only for a short time. The break makes it easier to cope and to think rationally about things. So to all my friends who have been glued to the memorial services all day - consider this your break. :-)
[SEP 11] On to Donna. :-) She got a mention on the Regis & Kelly show this week as Regis talked about David Foster's dinner party. You can see what Regis had to say here. (Just select Tuesday September 6 and skip ahead to about 6:15)
[SEP 11] In the Donna is everywhere category, her music gets mentioned several times in a satirical report about the recent Republican debate.
[SEP 11] It's getting to be Rock Hall Of Fame season, and Goldmine has an article on the people they feel should be inducted. Read the paragraph right before the one on the East Street Band. :-)
[SEP 11] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube look for Take Heart - a song that was originally recorded to raise money for a girls charity, but that got adopted shortly after 9/11 by people looking for comfort. Also look for a mix of Now I Need You, a mix of I Feel Love, and a slideshow set to Last Dance. (That last one is nothing new and different with the music, but it uses a lot of very pretty nature shots.)
[SEP 4] So if you followed me on Twitter or Facebook this week, you know I survived Hurricane Irene. (Actually it was more like a tropical storm by the time it hit me.) There was no damage to my property and I didn't even lose power! YAY! But my friend who lives about 3 miles away was not quite so lucky. Her property was under 2 feet of water for awhile, but fortunately the house itself stayed dry. (Her husband is a fisherman - he probably liked the chance to fish from comfort of his living room.... ;-) )
[SEP 4] So moving on to news. Johnnyswim fans will want to check the Family Matters section below. So will Brooklyn Sudano fans. And - a few days late - I have updated the Summer Fever page. This month we look at All Systems Go - finally updated to streaming MP3 format.
[SEP 4] And moving on to the diva herself.... let's start with release news. (Or lack there of....) The Icon CD compilation has a new release date according to Amazon.com. This should make you laugh... they say December 31, 2020. Yes, I said 2020. LOL It's still listed for October 25 according to CD Universe, but I'd say it's probably been postponed indefinitely. Of course if you are willing to wait for 2020, Amazon will email you when/if they get it in if you ask them to.
[SEP 4] There is a Dan Fogelberg tribute CD in the works being produced by Norbert Putnam. In a recent interview, it is stated that Donna will be one of the contributing artists on the disk. (You will want to go to page 4 to see that.) I've seen lots of mentions online of the tribute CD, but no one has a track list or a full list of contributing artists yet. So stay tuned.
[SEP 4] In the Donna's music is everywhere category... and in the remix category, Diesel's Loverdose fragrance is using a mix of Love To Love You in its ad campaign. Supposedly the remix will be made available some time in the future. But I know you guys are too impatient and want to hear at least a bit of it now. So check out the ad here. :-)
[SEP 4] In the Donna is everywhere category, she recently attended a dinner given by David Foster. Also in attendance were Barbra Streisand, Dr. Phil and a number of other people. No Donna and Barbra didn't suddenly burst out into Enough Is Enough. (Although think of the possibilities... David Foster asks is anyone would like more coffee, Donna and Barbra both say no and suddenly launch into a chorus of Enough Is Enough while Dr. Phil sits there and tells them how messed up that is. LOL Yes I have a twisted imagination.) You can read a non-imaginary account of the dinner here.
[SEP 4] I think that brings us to the web news. Check out TheDJDiscoCat for a few remixes of classic tracks and a TV performance of She Works Hard For The Money.
[AUG 26] Well, this update is a bit early because my area is currently under a hurricane warning. So I expect that I will probably have no electricity Sunday night. And no electricity means no internet, which means I'll be curled up in some corner shaking from withdrawal! LOL I will try to keep in touch via Twitter and/or Facebook.
[AUG 26] Ken fans (or enemies LOL) - he's sent me a new Ken's Korner that talks about the recent passing of Nick Ashford, among other things.
[AUG 26] If you are in New York today, don't forget to check out Taihisha at Feinstein's At The Lowes Regency at 8:30 tonight. And if you are going, applaud for me because I'm stuck here. :-(
[AUG 26] Sadly, that brings us to the web news. (I blame the hurricane - it blew the Donna news off the web. LOL) On You Tube, check out this television show clip. At about the 11 minute mark, you can see a classic poster on the wall. You can find several new mixes by HarryPopper. And this one's not new, but it's nice to watch again: Donna's live cover of Don't Rain On My Parade. (A perfectly fitting song for the forecast! LOL)
[AUG 26] In classic dance news, Gold Legion had Paul Jabara's Keeping Time in stock. I have mine in my hot little hands right now and it was worth the wait. :-)
[AUG 26] Finally - for those of you in the path of the storm: take care of yourselves. Don't do anything stupid like surfing in the storm, stock up on all the needed essentials (soda, chips, chocolate.... oh yeah and don't forget the less essential items like water, batteries and medications.) Keep an eye on the news to track the progress of the storm and to see how many weathermen are tied to trees so they can report live on the weather conditions. (And I thought my job sucked! LOL) And most importantly of all, while you have power get that ipod charged up so you can crank some Donna tunes! See you on the other side! :-)
[AUG 21] Let's start with radio news. For those of you still mourning the almost total demise of Sirius XM's The Strobe (it's still there but only accessible on the web with the right subscription package), you can now check out Studio 54 in channel 15. It is what the name implies - Studio 54 translated to radio. (Which means all the great music without the velvet ropes! LOL) You will hear a fair amount of Donna playing on it - usually long versions of the songs. The first time I tuned in I heard some Giorgio Moroder right off the bat, so I was happy. :-)
[AUG 21] In copyright news, it looks like artists from the late 70s will soon have their chance to reclaim their song rights from the record companies. A revision in the law made in the mid-70s allows for what they call "termination of rights" 35 years after a work was recorded. Music from 1978 will be the first affected by this change. What this means to the artists is that they can in effect tell the labels to suck it unless they want to negotiate a licensing arrangement. At least that's how it will work in THEORY. In practice, I suspect there will plenty of lawyers getting rich off the copyright battles. (I'm telling you - if you are a lawyer in the US, start thinking about making your specialty copyright law. You might end up set for life! LOL) The NY Times has an interesting article about the whole "termination of rights" thing.
[AUG 21] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, I Feel Love will be featured in the Ubisoft game Just Dance 3 available for the Wii and XBox. Look for that October 11.
[AUG 21] That brings us to the web news. On YouTube look for Fernando's Once Upon A Time megamix part II, Heaven's Just A Whisper Away from the UK, Patrice's I Feel Love vocal extended mix, and a 1977 performance of I Feel Love from Venezuela.
[AUG 21] Classic dance fans, Gold Legion now has Paul Jabara's Keeping Time in stock. That's the one with his versions of Last Dance and Something's Missing.
[AUG 14] Let's start with... umm.. politics. I hate politics so it's best to get that over with. ;-) Herman Cain, one of the 4 million Republican Presidential hopefuls, said this in his closing remarks: "A poet once said, 'life can be a challenge, life can seem impossible, but it's never easy when there's so much on the line.'" I'm sure many of you recognize those words as being lyrics from The Power Of One which was the closing theme to one of the Pokémon movies. (It was sung by Donna but written by other people.) I guess he's aiming for the really young voters? ;-) (Actually, this isn't the first time he's quoted the lyrics - check out the video clips posted here.)
[AUG 14] On to fun things - remixes! As many of you know, PerfectBeat came out with a couple of compilations that include the To Paris With Love mixes. There is one small problem though - I'm told most of the mixes are mislabeled. The CDs in question are the DMC Dance Mixes Extra Vol. 6 and Vol. 7. Let's go down the list:
Volume 6: The one labeled WaWa Extended is really DJ DLG Lazor Disco Mix, the one labeled Craig C Master Blaster is really the WaWa Extended, the one labeled Automatic Panic Remix is really the Mendy Club mix and the David Herrero Vocal Mix is really just exactly that. :-)
Volume 7: The Eddie Amador Break It Down Remix is really Craig C's Master Blaster, The DJ DLG Lazor Disco Mix is really the Eddie Amador Remix, the Mendy Club Mix is the Automatic Panic Remix, and the Uner Remix is correct.
So the bottom line, is if you are looking for one particular mix on the compilations be very careful about which one you buy. Or if you are buying both compilations anyway because you are a collector, you might want to put a little note with your CD so you remember which mix is really which. Thanks to John for taking the time to sort all that out for me.
[AUG 14] In release news, look for the new song, Angel, by Omega Red in October. It features a certain diva we all know and love.
[AUG 14] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an interview with Linda Clifford. You can read (or even listen to it) on SoulMusic.com.
[AUG 14] And that brings us to the web news. On YouTube look for Donna's performance 2008 performance on American Idol, a TV performance of I Will Go With You, and The Wanderer from Tomorrow Coast To Coast.
[AUG 7] In release news the Icon compilation [Amazon, Amazon UK] has been pushed back to October 25. Amazon STILL has no track list which is not the least bit surprising. My guess is that perhaps the label is planning to do something with the whole line of Icon CDs for the Christmas shopping season so it makes sense to have something "new" come out then. Of course, I reserve the right to be COMPLETELY wrong. LOL
[AUG 7] The Advocate came up with its list of favorite disco tracks. Donna made the list twice with Last Dance and Enough Is Enough. (I haven't heard some of those other tracks listed in a long, long time - it might be time to dust off some old vinyl! :-) )
[AUG 7] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, Bad Girls gets quoted briefly in the NY Times' Social Q column.
[AUG 7] And believe it or not that brings us to the web news. (Just in time too - thunderstorms almost knocked my power out just now!) On YouTube look for a new classic clip of Could It Be Magic, a mix of If It Hurts Just A Little, Shut Out/Heaven Is A Disco (read the uploader's comments too) and Andy's Hot Summer Video edit. Also check out Sebastiano's Donna Summertime site. He's updated the People Talk page a little and thrown in some cool photos.
[AUG 1] Time for a new Summer Fever pick. This month we go back to Cats Without Claws.
[JUL 31] Let's start in the land of flash mobs - because everybody like a good flash mob, right? ;-) This one was for a cause (instead of just for entertainment) and it was comprised of about 20 union workers in Australia singing She Works Hard For The Money outside an electorate office. The performance was part of a push for equal pay, so I'd say they picked the right song. However maybe next time they could throw in some choreography too. They could just copy the choreography from the video if they can't come up with something of their own. :-)
[JUL 31] Moving on to dance music. A survey conducted by the electronic music festival Global Gathering, came up with the 10 top dancefloor filling songs. I Feel Love came in at #5.
[JUL 31] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets name-checked in a Lady Gaga review where the writer mentioned that Lady GaGa has discovered her inner Donna Summer.
[JUL 31] That brings us to the web news for the week. I'm sure most of you will want to check out the new Last Dance, Smile, Enough Is Enough, Dim All The Lights, La Vie En Rose, On The Radio, and She Works Hard For The Money videos from Art On Ice on YouTube. They were all posted by the Art On Ice organization so they are good quality with a nice mix of shots of the skaters and shots of Donna.
[JUL 31] Finally, Gold Legion customers - they have Vicki Sue Robinson's Half & Half, Linda Clifford's I'll Keep On Loving You and Jellybean's Wotupski in stock now. Paul Jabara's Keeping Time is expected August 4. I'll be back tomorrow night with a new Summer Fever pick.
[JUL 24] Taihisha fans should jump down to the Family Matters section below. :-)
[JUL 24] Let's start with a Donna sighting in San Francisco. (Maybe I need to rephrase that - it make Donna sound like the Loch Ness monster or a UFO or something. LOL) Anyway, she was a guest at the Festival del Sole Gala. You can read about it here, or check out a photo of Donna and David Foster here. Subscribers to the San Francisco Chronicle got to see that photo in the newspaper today. (It's in the Style section.)
[JUL 24] Moving overseas, there is a German documentary series called Queens Of Pop running on the Arte TV channel. They had an episode about Donna (of course!) which I will talk a little more about in a minute. She was also quoted in the Diana Ross and Madonna episodes where she had nice things to say about both Divas. (Sorry Ken! ;-) ) Now getting back to Donna's episode, I'm told it was very positive on the whole. They apparently messed up a couple of details here and there, and they sometimes focused more her social impact than her music, but they wrapped it up nicely at the end with this quote from Nile Rodgers: "Donna Summer is magic. And history didn’t treat her all the time kindly. Many people don’t see her as what she is, a genius, genius artist. She is beyond just a pop, R&B, soul, disco diva. She is an avantgarde, revolutionary artist." You can read about the show and watch a clip here. That link is all German, but if French is better for you, use this link instead. (Yes the video clip changes language too.)
[JUL 24] In the land of remixes, the Patrick Cowley mix of I Feel Love came in at #7 on NME.com's list of the Top 50 mixes.
[JUL 24] That brings us to the web news. On YouTube look for the King & Little Steven Gypsy Classic Remix of Someday, and a Hot Stuff vs. Bad Girls mix,
[JUL 24] Gold Legion customers - they now have the Linda Clifford CD in stock.
[JUL 20] And now for the secret link to the pics of Donna and Omega Red. (The link only appears after someone says the magic words: "Dummy, you forgot the link!" LOL)
[JUL 17] Let's start off with new music. Donna has teamed up with her nephew Omega Red for a track called Angel for his forthcoming album. You can check out pictures of them in the studio . (It looks like they were having an awful lot of fun!)
[JUL 17] In the not so new music category, Perfect Beat is selling a compilation called DMC Dance Mixes Extra Vol. 6 that includes 4 of the To Paris With Love mixes.
[JUL 17] JamaicaObserver.com has a feature on icons with strong fashion identities. Their most recent article in the series focuses on Donna around 1976. In it they explain how they replicated Donna's style on their model.
[JUL 17] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in Billboard's Chartbeat in a column about songs written by big name artists that were made hits by someone else. She gets another mention in an interview with Kristine W where she recalls watching Donna sing Last Dance in Thank God It's Friday.
[JUL 17] In the Donna can't be everywhere category, AtlanticCityWeekly.com has a photo of the current Legends In Concert cast - including their "Donna Summer."
[JUL 17] And that brings us to the web news. On YouTube check out the Gladys Knight vs. Aretha vs. Donna clip of The Way We Were. The guy who uploaded it asked viewers to comment on who had the best version (of those 3) and Donna seemed to be getting the most votes. The same poster also presented Donna vs. Aretha on MacArthur Park. There the voting seemed more split which may be due to the vastly different styles they used and the fact that they didn't use Donna's studio version. Also look for the EuroNixMix Moroder Years Mega Mix, and a clip from a UK Disco Top Ten show.
[JUL 10] Let's start off with BWCityPaper.com's This Week In Music feature. In it, they mention that I Feel Love held the top spot on the UK charts for a month. The article is accompanied by a vintage picture of Donna with Giorgio Moroder.
[JUL 10] There is a new article about the David Foster CD posted by Inquirer.net.
[JUL 10] In The Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in the new memoir Transparent [Amazon, Amazon UK] by CNN correspondent Don Lemon. In it, he remembers dancing to the disco music of the 70s and mentions that he is still a fan of Donna.
[JUL 10] In a more unusual news item, apparently there was a plan back in the day to make a movie starting a comic book character called Dazzler who was a roller-skating mutant disco diva. Part of the movie pitch involved getting various guest stars to play roles in the film. It was suggested that Donna would play the Queen of Fire. You can read more about it here. (Sounds like one freaky movie to me! LOL)
[JUL 10] That brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube look for the Royalty Mix tribute to Donna, a Donna megamix, a 1987 interview, and of course the ever popular clip of I Will Survive where Donna manages to sound EXACTLY like Gloria Gaynor. ;-)
[JUL 2] Happy Canada Day to my Canadian friends and Happy Fourth to my American friends! Happy weekend to everyone else. :-)
[JUL 2] This week is pretty much dead as far as news goes. I blame the holidays. The really big news for the week was that Johnnyswim was playing in my area and I had to work! Ugh! (Somebody get me the winning lottery numbers - I gotta give up this working for a living stuff! LOL) There is an interesting interview from last summer posted here.
[JUL 2] For those who are interested in site archives, the Internet Wayback machine can show you what a given site looked like at some point in the past. For instance, this is what Donna's old site looked like in 1999. And to my horror.. I have even found a VERY early archive of my site. LOL
[JUL 2] Moving on to YouTube, we have a mix of No More Tears, a mix of State Of Independence, and a really cool Donna vs. Sting mashup of Someone To Watch Over Me.
[JUL 2] Gold Legion customers - this is what the latest release schedule looks like (in case you didn't get their email): Vicki Sue Robinson's Half And Half is expected July 8, Linda Clifford's I'll Keep On Loving You follows on July 15 and Paul Jabara's Keeping Time is expected July 29.
[JUN 26] Congrats (and it's about freaking time!) to all my gay friends in NY - I think the wedding planners are going to be VERY busy for awhile! ;-)
[JUN 26] Johnnyswim fans will want to check the Family Matters section below.
[JUN 26] Calling USA Comcast-Xfinity subscribers - you can catch Donna in Platinum Hit on demand for free. So if you missed the broadcast, you can catch it again at your leisure.
[JUN 26] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets mentioned in the new Blondie Panic Of Girls fan pack. Debbie Harry mentions being a fan of Donna and Giorgio and particularly of I Feel Love.
[JUN 26] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, America's Got Talent recently featured a drag queen named Hershae Chocolatae who danced to Last Dance. (Yes, it's on YouTube.) And she gets a mention in the Orlando Sentinel in an article about famous entertainers who got their start in Hair.
[JUN 26] In the Donna can't be everywhere category, we have Legends In Concert at Foxwoods featuring tributes to Carrie Underwood, Frank Sinatra, The Beatles, Celine Dion and of course Donna. (Do I need to mention that Legends features impersonators? It's probably pretty obvious since Frank Sinatra has been dead for some time which makes him REALLY hard to book. ;-) ) I should point out that there are 2 Legends lineups this summer - the one with the tribute to Donna starts August 2.
[JUN 26] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for a remix of Could It Be Magic, Glen Rivera's I Feel Love Restructure mix, Parede fo Kings feat. Donna Summer Feel My Pulse, and the Fire Island Remix of Who Do You Think You're Fooling.
[JUN 19] Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. :-) Unfortunately it's a pretty slow week this time.
[JUN 19] I Feel Love gets a mention in The Guardian as one of the 50 key event sin the history of dance music. Check out the whole timeline here.
[JUN 19] We have a couple of new books out there about dance music. The first is Disco: The Music, The Times, The Era [Amazon, Amazon UK] about, well.... the disco era obviously. ;-) The other is The Record Players: DJ Revolutionaries [Amazon, Amazon UK], and that is of course, about the guys who spin the disks.
[JUN 19] And that brings us to the web news. On YouTube, look for Glen Rivera's Restructured mix of Autumn Changes, fan-made videos for The Wanderer tracks by orpheus4u, and a Patrice video for Are You Brave.
[JUN 12] Let's start off with a tiny omission from last week. I mentioned a new Donna Summer Persona for Firefox and forgot to give you a working link to check it out. Well here is the link. While I was grabbing that link, I discovered a Bad Girls Persona I had never found before. That one is here.
[JUN 12] On to the news. As many of you know, Donna was on Platinum Hit last week. The episode is now available for sale on iTunes for 1.99. (You want the episode called Dance Floor Royalty.) There is also a short interview with Donna on the Bravo site - and I should tell you now that it was filmed last year. (That's when the show was in production.) Now I know international fans are having trouble seeing the Bravo videos. (I totally understand the frustration - been there done that myself.) So you guys might want to take to YouTube. I can't guarantee how long any of the clips will last there, but a basic search will give you the current crop of available clips. :-)
[JUN 12] In release news, the Icon compilation will be out August 23 in the US and July 19 in the UK. [Amazon, Amazon UK] There is still no track list, but it will be just a basic Greatest Hits package. And judging by the low price, I'd say it's probably only about 10 tracks.
[JUN 12] There is a new book out there by Craig Halstead called Donna Summer: For The Record. It is a comprehensive overview of Donna's recording career - something that I think just might interest one or two of you. (Or maybe 1 or 2 hundred of you.) ;-) Check it out at Author's Online where you can even look at a sample from the book. You can buy a copy there if you want or just head over to Amazon or Amazon UK. Be patient if you are buying the actual paper book (as opposed to the ebook) as it can take 2 weeks to ship. (That happens with new releases sometimes.)
[JUN 12] German fans, ARTE TV will be running Portraits: Queens Of Pop over 10 days in July. Donna's portrait airs on July 20.
[JUN 12] That brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube, look for The Loverboy 2011 mix of This Time I Know It's For Real, Jandry's Good Time remix of Breakaway, and AJ's 2011 Electro Dub of This Time I Know It's For Real.
[JUN 5] Before we get to the Donna news, Johnnyswim fans should look for their new CD on June 21. :-)
[JUN 5] And better late than never, the new Summer Fever pick is up. This month we celebrate Once Upon A Time - mainly because I was in the mood for a fairy tale. :-)
[JUN 5] On to the main event! Tomorrow is the debut for Donna's episode of Platinum Hit. It repeats multiple times over the course of the week and I have the list below. (All times listed are Eastern.) If you want a sneak peek, check out the clip on the show's website. I believe the videos over there are region restricted though. :-( (I hate when that happens!) It looks like US fans will be able to get episodes of the show on iTunes as well. I'm not sure about other countries, but I'm sure creative Googlers will find a work around. There is a photo from the episode posted here.
[JUN 5] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a name check in an interview with Alana DaCosta, and again in an interview with her former manager, Jeff Wald. (Don't get excited - the article is about his former drug use - Donna is only mentioned as a former client. There are no juicy details of things locked in the vault or anything like that. LOL)
[JUN 5] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, the Broadway play, The Normal Heart, opens with a montage of pre-AIDS life in New York. The montage is accompanied by Bad Girls and Le Freak back to back. :-)
[JUN 5] I think I forgot to mention this when it came out, but thanks to Sebastiano over at Donna Summertime, there is now a Donna Summer Persona for the Firefox web browser. You can check it out here. (My browser is wearing it right now and seems quite happy with the fashion statement. ;-) )
[JUN 5] That brings us to YouTube. Look for Jandry's Neon Sign mix of Sunset People, a classic live clip of I Remember Yesterday, and a whole bunch of animated videos courtesy of orpheus4u.
[MAY 29] Happy Memorial Day! It's officially summertime now. :-)
[MAY 29] Let's start off with the new TV series Platinum Hit. As many of you know, Donna is slated to be one of the guest judges this year. The show debuts tomorrow on Bravo at 10 PM. According to TV Guide, Donna will be on the episode that debuts on June 7 at 10 PM. The show is repeated multiple times throughout the week and it looks like it may be possible to view episodes online after they have aired on TV. One of the guys behind the show is none other than Evan Bogart and you can read an interview with him on Boston.com.
[MAY 29] In the Donna is everywhere category, Love To Love You made a list of the worst album covers believe it or not.
[MAY 29] She also got a mention in a short article about a private bash for Haim Saban. Apparently Seal performed On The Radio and got Donna to join in.
[MAY 29] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, I think I may have mentioned previously that a couple of Donna's songs appear in the stage musical Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert. The booklet for the London production also includes this anecdote: In an attempt to secure further international investment, trainee producer Grant Lee makes an impromptu appearance in a pink afro and sequinned green swimsuit miming to Donna Summer at a distributors' lunch at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. And speaking of anecdotes, supermodel Sophie Dahl shares this memory in her cookbook: I celebrated my twenty-second birthday on a rooftop in the Lower West Side, dancing to Donna Summer in a black lace ball gown that I borrowed that day from a fashion shoot.
[MAY 29] And in a little more unusual version of the Donna is everywhere category, there is a show horse in the UK known as "Donna Summer". Strangely enough, the horse seems to be male. I guess if those Donna is a man rumors ever start again, we'll know why. ;-)
[MAY 29] On YouTube, look for Love To Love You from The Midnight Special, a remix of Dance Into My Life with images that you men will like ( and maybe some of us ladies too) ;-) ,and an I Feel Love video,
[MAY 22] Happy Apocalypse everybody! ;-) (Boy I bet that guy who predicted it feels pretty silly about now!)
[MAY 22] Calling all you mad voters out there (you know who you are! LOL) Studio Brussel is doing a poll to select the top 100 albums. You can vote here, but keep in mind that the site is in Dutch so you might need the help of Google or a Dutch buddy if that's not your best language. :-)
[MAY 22] In the land of covers, the band Lady Of The Canyon will be doing a tribute to Donna in Fitzgerald's in Chicago on Wednesday. You can read a bit about the show here.
[MAY 22] In the Donna is everywhere (sort of) category, she gets a mention in an article about the song MacArthur Park.I should warn you now that the author pegged the song as his/her least favorite song of all time. But the article mainly talks about the original Richard Harris version of the song.
[MAY 22] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in the Mixt Cosmetics blog as one of their style icons.
[MAY 22] On YouTube look for a 1976 clip of Could It Be Magic, MacArthur Park live from Chile, and El Verdadero Amor (Whenever There Is Love, the Spanish version).
[MAY 15] Happy Sunday. It's been a slow week and I'm a little bit bitter that Donna got no mention at all on Celebrity Apprentice tonight. ;-) (They have to create a 70's themed ad campaign and the team is trying to be a bit disco with some of it.)
[MAY 15] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a brief mention in a trivia quiz about songs about weather. She also got a mention on the TV show, The Talk. Dionne Warwick was interviewed on the show and when asked about the longevity of her career she said (and this is paraphrased a bit): "I have remained true to myself for fifty years. I did my thing and the brilliant Donna Summer did her thing. I never stepped into her pool, and she never stepped into mine." You can watch it on YouTube right here. And, she gets another mention in an interview with Moby. (Scroll down to the question about the "thingness of things." That phrase will make sense when you get to the question.)
[MAY 15] That brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, look for I Remember Yesterday from Japan, Nightline's Playlist from 2008, an excellent quality clip of Heaven Knows from The Midnight Special, an Donna vs Usher mashup called DJ's Got Us Falling In Hot Stuff.
[MAY 8] Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there. :-)
[MAY 8] In book news, And Party Every Day: The Story Of Casablanca Records is officially out now as an audiobook now for those of you who like to listen instead of read. You can grab a copy through Audible (via Amazon or Amazon UK) and if you sign up for an Audible membership you can usually snag a really good deal. And on a side note, I see it's available in a Kindle edition for those who prefer ebooks.
[MAY 8] Remix fans, check out the new unofficial mix of Heaven Knows by DJ Valvanis.
[MAY 8] Photo hounds, I was messing around Getty Images and discovered that if you search for Donna (and spell her name wrong) you can find some extra photos from the 2008 People Magazine article.
[MAY 8] In classic news (is there such a thing? LOL) I found a 1981 article talking about Donna's return after taking a year off to have Brooklyn. The article is presented as an image file so people depending upon screen readers will need to find a person to help them out.
[MAY 8] That brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube look for a new clip of Dim All The Lights from Art On Ice earlier this year, a Glenn Rivera mix of I Feel Love, and a Patrice slideshow set to To Paris With Love.
[MAY 1] Well, it's a new month so you all know what that means - it's time for a new Summer Fever Pick. This month we're going back to Love To Love You.
[MAY 1] It's a slow week this week, so the big news is the blu-ray release of the movie Daylight. As many of you know, Donna and Bruce Roberts recorded Whenever There Is Love for the movie, and this release does include the video for the song. There is a review of the DVD at blu-ray.com, but don't expect it to be overly flattering. You can pick up a copy at Amazon or Amazon UK.
[MAY 1] On Youtube (I told you it's a slow week! LOL) look for the medley with Seal from the David Foster DVD, a mix of Whenever There Is Love (audio only), Supernatural Love from Soul Train, and the rare track, The Planet Is Alive.
[MAY 1] In classic dance news, I just received 2 Vicki Sue Robinson CDs and 1 France Joli CD from Gold Legion. So if you have an order outstanding for those, expect to have them soon (if you didn't get them already.) Over at Big Break Records, they have released two more Casablanca classics, both produced by the one and only Tom Moulton. They are T.J.M. and Loose Change. So check those out if you have a chance.
[MAY 1] And finally on a personal note, I did my MS Walk today - and it was such a gorgeous day for a walk! I just want to thank all of you who contributed, and all of you who wanted to but couldn't. Together we raised over $400 from my site visitors alone, while my team raised about $4000 from various offline activities. Not bad. :-) I had a blast and hopefully we helped someone in the process. :-) Thanks for helping and thanks for putting up with me. :-)
[APR 24] Happy Easter, Passover and National Pickle Week..... oh wait, that's not this week. ;-)
[APR 24] Trivia junkies, check out WhoSampled.com. They have a list of songs that sampled Donna's music, a list of songs that Donna covered and a list of her songs that other people covered. The lists are by no means fully comprehensive (Particularly the one covering covers of Donna's music) but they are still interesting to look at.
[APR 24] In classic news, there is an article on the web from 1989 talking a little about Donna's switch from Geffen to Atlantic for the release of Another Place And Time.
[APR 24] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a number of mentions in a new interview with France Joli in Daeida Magazine. (Just click the cover to get access to an online copy of the entire issue.)
[APR 24] In the Mistaken Identity category - you might run into articles about The Glade Festival in England this June. The "Donna Summer" listed on that roster is DJ Donna Summer aka Jason Forrest. So if you catch a glimpse of the name "Donna Summer" in an advertisement in the general vicinity of London, it's not OUR Donna.
[APR 24] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at YouTube, look for Stampyourfeet's mashup for The Queen Is Back, and a live clip of the Star Spangled Banner. Also uploaded this week, a live clip of Love To Love You from the Midnight Special and This Time I Know It's For Real from Arsenio.
[APR 24] Finally in classic dance news, Gold Legion has finally mailed out one France Joli album and one Vicki Sue Robinson CD. They say to look for more from those two artists in early May, and then in late May look for other releases later in May. There is other stuff still in the works too, but the guys at Gold Legion are learning not to say too much until they can be more certain of release dates. :-)
[APR 17] Let's start with the big news of the week. The cable channel Bravo is coming out with a new show called Platinum Hit. Think of it as a Project Runway or America's Top Model for singer/songwriters. In addition to a regular panel of judges, a few celebrity guest judges will be brought in for an episode or two. Donna is slated to be one of the guest judges. The television show debuts on May 30, but there is no word yet as to when Donna will appear. You can find out more a bout the show on the Bravo website. There were about nine billion articles this week about the show, but they were all pretty much just the press release. This one included a picture of Donna from last year.
[APR 17] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an article marking 30 years of Billboard's Chartbeat column. Also the Word Thoughts blog used Spring Affair in a post about the arrival of spring.
[APR 17] In web news, look for Fernando's video remix for Once Upon A Time on YouTube, along with Glen Rivera's Restructured mix of the Once Upon A Time. Also look for Glen Rivera's mix of Queen For A Day, Work That Magic from UK television, and an acoustic (audio only) clip of acoustic versions of On The Radio and Bad Girls.
[APR 10] Let's start off with some release news. First up is a new compilation called Icon due May 24. [Amazon, Amazon UK] There is no track list yet, but I can tell you that it is one of a series of compilation albums. To give you an idea, here is an article about other albums in the series.
[APR 10] In other release news, PerfectBeat is putting out a compilation of mixes called DMC Dance Extra Mixes that will include several mixes of To Paris With Love on volumes 6 and 7. There is nothing that hasn't already been released as a download, but for those of you looking for an actual CD, this is your chance. (Plus each disk includes mixes by other artists as well.)
[APR 10] In the Donna is everywhere category, she (and I Feel Love) gets a mention in an interview with Moby.
[APR 10] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, look for Fernando's video remix for Once Upon A Time, the MAW mix of I Feel Love, and Jimmie's Jam Of The Day: Eyes.
[APR 3] First things first - I replaced the April Fool's page with the real Summer Fever pick which is Bad Girls. (Something some of you were calling me I think when you saw the trick page. ;-) ) If you missed the joke, it's still here for you to see. By the way, that page marks a first for this site - it was the first time I ever posted only full length tracks for an album. (Of course my usual clips are way longer than those "full length tracks." LOL)
[APR 3] This week I also have a new Ken's Korner for you. He's being nice so obviously the aliens have gotten to him or something. ;-) And Wolfgang has updated the first page (the biography) to his German discography. You will find that here.
[APR 3] Moving on to the diva, classic photo hounds will love these pics from 1976. The resolution on those is huge which makes them just right for making wallpapers for your computer or whatever.
[APR 3] In the Donna is everywhere category, there is an off-Broadway play called My Big Gay Italian Wedding. In it, there is a scene where the two main characters are leaving a gay karaoke bar. One asks the other, "Why did you run out in the middle of our duet? I can handle the Barbra part, but there is no way I can sing both Barbra and Donna." The line got a big laugh, but I can't help but wonder what song they were referring to? ;-)
[APR 3] That brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube look for Fernando's videos for a remix of Eyes, and a Toni Braxton/Donna Summer/Seal mashup of Unbreak My Heart. Then there is the MadMixMustang mashup of Donna vs. Jimi Hendrix Foxy Stuff, and the Peter Zohdy & Michael JT's Chicago Rework of Our Love.
[APR 1] The new Summer Fever pick is posted and this time instead of looking to the past, I'm looking to the future. I got the scoop on a compilation of new single edits of the hits.
[MAR 27] Let's start off with some chart news. The David Foster album debuted on the Billboard 200 Album chart March 19 at #197. From there is climbed to #108 (where it was tagged as the pacesetter) on March 26, but then it dropped back to #160 for the week of April 2. I don't know if the copied PBS gave away to donors counts towards the chart position. My guess is that it doesn't. (Although the repeated airings on PBS no doubt increased sales.)
[MAR 27] As you all know, Donna performed last weekend at the Israeli Leaders Council Gala. There is a write up about the event here, but be warned that Donna is mentioned only briefly.
[MAR 27] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, the New York Gay Men's Chorus is doing a show called The Big Gay Sing 3D. In it they cover songs by a number of artists. One particular medley of note is made up of I Feel Love, Bad Girls, Hot Stuff and Last Dance.
[MAR 27] Also in the Donna's music is everywhere category, listen for versions of Hot Stuff and MacArthur Park in the musical Priscilla Queen Of The Desert.
[MAR 27] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for a remix of State Of Independence, Fernando's latest video simply called Love Song, a classic clip of Once Upon A Time (from the Midnight Special if I recall), and a mix of La Vie En Rose.
[MAR 27] I will be back later this week with an update to Wolfgang's German discography and the new Summer Fever pick. Hmmm... April is around the corner. Who knows what I might find to post on Friday? ;-)
[MAR 20] For those of you who ever wondered just what Donna is doing while I update the site (c'mon, there must be one person, right? LOL) tonight I actually have an answer. Right about now she's performing in Beverly Hills at the Israeli Leadership Council Gala. It would not surprise me in the least if we got a few photos out of it later this week from the usual sites (Wireimage, etc).
[MAR 20] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, the Scottish Sun voted the scene in The Full Monty with the guys dancing to Hot Stuff as the funniest ever movie moment. Also, look for the song in the wedding scene in the movie Burlesque.
[MAR 20] In the ancient history category... ok, well maybe not quite so ancient ;-) I have a French promo clip promoting The Journey, and another French clip promoting her 1993 comeback.
[MAR 20] Trivia fans, FunTrivia.com has a collection of facts about Donna. It's probably nothing the diehards don't know already but you can probably freak out casual fans by saying, "who doesn't know that?" ;-)
[MAR 20] In the land of covers, Andrea Corr is releasing a covers album called Lifelines. In it she covers State Of Independence. Also Cece Penniston has been covering Last Dance in her recent shows.
[MAR 20] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at YouTube look for Jandry's Easy With Me 2010 remix of The Woman In Me, Donna winning the Grammy for Last Dance, and Spring Affair from Soul Train.
[MAR 20] And finally - my thanks to those of you who have sponsored my walk for MS. I know that money is tight and there are a ton of very worthy charities all competing for every dime, and it means a lot that you have sent your cash my way. I will be emailing all my contributors about the time of the walk (May 1) but I wanted to just say something here so you don't think I'm entirely ungrateful. ;-)
[MAR 13] Let me start off by saying hello to all the friends unknown in Japan. I've been watching the news and the images I've been seeing of the destruction is just... overwhelming. When Mother Nature is in a bad mood, boy does she show it! I hope all of you and your families are safe and sound and remain that way as events unfold. For those people worldwide who are looking for information or for ways to help the people of Japan, Google has (as usual - go Google!) compiled a list of resources including a person finder. (Now THAT is a great tool!)
[MAR 13] On to lighter and infinitely more fun things... Let's start with David Foster again. (At this rate I may have to change the name of the site! LOL) The March 7 issue of USA Today called the David Foster special "must watch TV" and in the March TV calendar they mention that Donna is in great voice these days and the show is worth it just to hear her "rip into" Last Dance. I also have a PDF of the PBS press release for Channel 13 in NY.
[MAR 13] Out.com has compiled a list of the 100 Gayest albums of all time. Donna comes in at #72 with Once Upon A Time and #34 with Bad Girls. I think we can give an honorable mention to Hair at #68. Ok, so Donna wasn't on the particular recording Out selected, but she did appear on the German soundtrack. ;-)
[MAR 13] Omega Red has tweeted that he was in the studio with Donna the other day. He posted a picture to go with it.
[MAR 13] In the Donna is everywhere category, look for a mention of Last Dance on AVClub.com's list of first favorite songs. Also a recent episode of RuPaul's Drag Race had 2 contestants "Lip-Syncing For Their Life" to MacArthur Park.
[MAR 13] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for more Art On Ice clips courtesy of lelo546, a re-scored clip from Three Days Of The Condor using Come With Me, and a whole bunch of karaoke clips courtesy of TheSoloKaraoke.
[MAR 13] And finally on a personal note, thanks to those of you who have already contributed to my walk for MS. There is still plenty of time if anyone else would like to contribute - although I realize that especially now after the disaster in Japan, there are other causes vying for your money as well. Every penny is appreciated and I will be emailing all m y donors closer to the time of the walk. (And don't forget I have those Brooklyn Dreams cds for my 2 top contributors! :-) )
[MAR 8] I have been given the complete list of PBS airdates for the David Foster concert. It's too big to post on this page, so check out this PDF file. Please keep in mind that this show is part of most (if not all) of the stations pledge drive, so if you are so inclined to donate to PBS, a good time would be during the breaks in the concert. ;-)
[MAR 8] On a personal note, I will be walking for MS on May 1. (Make that walking for a cure to MS - it would be pretty mean to walk to support making people ill! LOL) If any of you would like to support me, you can donate at my (really boring hardly customized) page on the National MS Society website. I mentioned previously that I have 2 extra copies of the Brooklyn Dreams Sleepless Nights CD that I was trying to decide what to do with. I propose to give them to the 2 people who donate the most to my MS walk. (Or in the event of many people sending the same amount, I'll pick 2 people at random from the highest donors.) Now for those of you asking why I'm walking - well there is a really boring, and standard paragraph on my MS page that the MS Society wrote. The real reason is that my boss, who happens to be a really cool person (end blatant sucking up here), has the disease. She has to give herself an injection every day and the thing that really strikes me about that is that she has 2 young children. Her 7 year old has learned how to give her the shot. What 7 year old should have to know about that? When I was 7, I was still running away from needles screaming..... (The same was true when I was 37, but I digress. ;-) )
[MAR 6] I have another airdate for the David Foster concert: WHYY in Pittsburgh is running it various times this week.
[MAR 6] Pretty much all the news this week is about the David Foster concert. Because it is airing all over the country over the next couple of weeks, there are articles all over the web promoting it. (And with very good reason - aside from being a good show, PBS is in the midst of fundraising so they want all the publicity they can get.) Here are a couple of the recent articles:
BroadwayWorld.com
Philly.com
SiouxCityJournal.com
LasVegasWeekly.com
KansasCity.com
(On a non-Donna related PBS side note, they are running the 25th anniversary concert version of Les Miserables this month - I just caught the second half of it and it's AMAZING. You have to catch the guy playing Jean Valjean. :-) )
[MAR 6] That brings us to the web news. On YouTube look for an extended version of Melody Of Love with some rather random images, the Jonathan Peters mix of Love Is The Healer (also with pretty random images), Try Me from American Bandstand, the Unconditional Love video, and of course, another PBS promo for the David Foster concert. :-)
[MAR 1] The new Summer Fever pick is up. This month I'm bringing back Live & More Encore.
[FEB 27] Happy Oscar Night everyone. And the winner for Best Performer in a movie in my mind is..... well, you know. ;-)
[FEB 27] Let's start with David Foster. If you pre-ordered the CD/DVD through his site, then it might already be in your hands. (And if it's not, it will be soon. :-) ) If you are waiting to catch the show on PBS here in the US, well March 9-ish seems to be the timeframe we're looking at. The dates I have so far are KQED (Northern California) : March 7, KLRU (Austin, TX): March 9, KTEH (San Francisco Bay Area): March 9, Thirteen (New York City): March 9, WGBY (Boston): March 7, CPTV (Connecticut): March 10. Those are of course the premiere airdates - most (if not all) of those stations will repeat the broadcast several times over the course of the week. Everyone else, just keep checking your local listings. (PBS.org is a great resource for that).
[FEB 27] Photo hounds, there are 3 images from 1977 posted on Picasaweb. 2 are backstage photos from a Puerto Rico concert and one looks like a Summer Nights business card or something.
[FEB 27] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, check out Fernando's video combining the footage from Work That Magic and the music from Mr. Music, Glenn Rivera's Restructure mix of Rumor Has It, MacArthur Park from Art On Ice (shot by a Donna fan instead of a skating fan this time :-) ), and the DJs from Mars Bootleg mix of Donna vs. Usher DJ got us Falling In Hot Stuff.
[FEB 20] It's a new week and there is absolutely nothing going on at all. Nope, not a thing. Well, except for this rather interesting link. ;-) It's David Foster's website and if you happen to go there, you will find that The Hit Man Returns: Foster & Friends is available for pre-order. (It's also available at Amazon and Amazon UK for pre-order now too.) But for just a moment, try to ignore the pre-order popup and continue to the main site and notice the audio player. You WILL want to click on the track called Unbreak My Heart. And after you play that a few hundred times, check out the video trailer. :-)
[FEB 20] Arte.tv's favorite diva poll has ended and the top vote getter for the 1970s is none other than Donna. :-) I know a lot of you voted - good job!
[FEB 20] In the Donna is everywhere category, fashion designer Michael Kors used I Feel Love in a recent runway show.
[FEB 20] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, check out Billboard.com's 1000 #1s (you will want to click pages 441 and 461, and the Top 40 duets (#33).
[FEB 20] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for a remix of Cold Love, one for I'm Free, Fernando's combination of Stamp with the video for Work That Magic, a 77 clip of Love's Unkind, a short interview clip coupled with the video for I Don't Want To Get Hurt, and for you bass guitar fans, a clip of a guy playing bass along with the Love To Love You record.
[FEB 13] Happy Valentine's Day everyone! (And happy Grammy night too!) I guess the best place to start is with the MusiCares concert. As Donna announced on her site this week, she was unable to do the concert because of scheduling conflicts. :-( I know we have a few Barbra fans lurking here, so for you guys here is a link to see photos from the event.
[FEB 13] In release news - here is one I never expected. There is a compilation called Funky Frauleins Volume 2 that is a collection of tracks from female artists in Germany from 1968-1981. The final track on the set is Can't Understand by one Donna Gaines. (I think most of you know her by a different name now. ;-) ) I never expected to find that on a compilation anywhere. You can read the album review here, or check it out on Amazon or Amazon UK. (The US version of Amazon actually has sound clips posted.)
[FEB 13] Overseas, Art On Ice continues. Catch videos of Enough Is Enough, La Vie En Rose, and Smile. I also have a fan report from Zurich for your reading pleasure.
[FEB 13] Chart fans, there is a site out there called Chart Stats that has a comprehensive archive of UK chart info. If you click the link, it will bring you right to Donna's stats.
[FEB 13] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, (in addition to the Art On Ice links above) look for the live version of Romeo from the 83 HBO special, the Love Is In Control video, and a karaoke version of I Will Survive. LOL (I couldn't resist the last version - it really is posted under Donna's name on YouTube.)
[FEB 13] And finally - Gold Legion sent out an email with the dates the France Joli and Vicki Sue Robinson will be shipped to Gold Legion. They are February 15 for France Joli, and February 17 and 25 for the two Vicki Sue CDs. Shipping to buyers should follow shortly thereafter, and Gold Legion has promised another email soon with more dates for the pre-ordered stuff. Now, Big Break Records customers, check out the Brooklyn Dreams CD Sleepless Nights. (It's the one with the alternate version of Heaven Knows - among other things. :-) ) I got a copy this week and they did a great job. They also sent me a couple of extras that I need to find worthy homes for. I'm thinking a contest of some sort is on order, but I haven't decided what exactly I want to do yet.
[FEB 6] My apologies if any of you had trouble accessing the site over the weekend. I had some technical difficulties involving a Canadian webhost, a hosting bill and a credit card company that apparently hates Canada and even more apparently did not take my previous complaints seriously. I believe the situation has been resolved permanently thanks to another credit card, a sharp pair of scissors, and just a little bit of profanity. ;-)
[FEB 6] The big news this week is Switzerland. As you all know, Donna is performing at the Art On Ice shows over there and the photos and videos are starting to surface. Let me explain Art On Ice for those of you who don't know what it is. Basically it's a figure skating showcase featuring world class skaters and live music. So while Donna is on stage singing, there is somebody on the ice skating to her song. I've seen it with other musical artists and it's usually a lot of fun. Now with that in mind, understand that in a lot of the videos you will see, the camera will be mostly focused on the skaters. For photos check out the collection at Getty Images, or WireImage.com. (They are the same photos at both sites.) There is also a slideshow here (check #3) and a few photos on the Art on Ice Facebook page. For video, YouTube is your best friend. Look for videos posted by MyBrige, MichieStanley, skating4us, froschkoenig8152, and M0vieZ0ne. There is also some rehearsal footage/interviews here, a news report
here. And finally, don't miss the interview clip here, and another one here.
[FEB 6] The appearances in Switzerland are having an effect on music sales. Endless Summer is #7 (as of this writing) in iTunes Soul store for Switzerland. :-)
[FEB 6] Life Magazine's website has a number of of photos from the David Foster concert and from the subsequent promotional event. (Those are just the most recent photos, there are others from other events too.)
[FEB 6] In the Mistaken Identity category, I got a Google alert for a dressage competition. When I investigated, I found out that the horse is named Donna Summer. That's not so strange (people do name animals after people they admire)... until you read the whole article and learn that the horse is a gelding. I feel the rumor about Donna being a man may return.... LOL (Or maybe since we're talking geldings, I mean a former man? ;-) )
[FEB 6] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. After you check out the Art On Ice clips, look for a couple of Glen Rivera mixes and a clip of Last Dance from the David Foster concert. Also, Fernando has posted the 1979 tour book accompanied by music from Live & More.
[JAN 30] February 1 is right around the corner, so I've updated the Summer Fever pick already. I thought A Love Trilogy was appropriate for Valentine's Day. :-)
[JAN 30] Just a reminder for the fans in (or near) Switzerland - Donna will be appearing with Art On Ice in Zurich on February 3 to 6 and in Lausanne on February 8 and 9. Get details from the Art On Ice website. (My link will go to the English version of the site, but are links on the bottom of the Art On Ice site to switch to French or German for those of you who are more comfortable with one of those languages.)
[JAN 30] I know I mentioned this before, but Arte.tv has a poll to pick their visitors' favorite diva. The poll ends very soon, so if you haven't voted - do it now. Donna's doing pretty well, but a few more votes certainly wouldn't hurt. ;-)
[JAN 30] People Magazine had an advertisement for the MusicCares tribute to Barbra Streisand. A kind soul sent me a scan of the page, so it's here for anyone who wants to see it.
[JAN 30] Johnnyswim fans - I have a fan report from Eli from one of the recent shows in California.
[JAN 30] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Last week I posted a link to a Work That Magic clip. I found out it's from a UK show called Wogan. This week there is a Russian TV report about Donna. The Russian translation plays over Donna's interview but if you listen closely you can hear her English.
[JAN 25] Well, now that I feel human again, we can get down to business. :-) I hope you all enjoyed the Johnnyswim interview while you were waiting. (You probably also enjoyed playing "count the typos" too. LOL) Before I get to Donna, let me tell you that Johnnyswim has a new video out for Bon Soir, and you can vote for them in the Russell Simmons Hijack Hip-Hop challenge. I know some of you have seen both links already judging by my Facebook feed. :-) And on another side note, Amanda's dfad has a new single posted on SmoothJazz.com. It's called Love Is Sacrifice.
[JAN 25] On to the main event. ;-) Let's start off with a new release - namely the David Foster & Friends DVD and CD. That will be out on March 1. You can read the press release here, or Amazon has the listing the the pre-order for the blu-ray version up already. (No details posted with the listing yet though.)
[JAN 25] Photo fans - there is a collection of photos from the Boston concert last year posted on TheyWillRockYou.com.
[JAN 25] In the Donna is not quite everywhere category, catch a cover of MacArthur Park in the Dutch program Het Spaanse Schaap. (There is a clip on YouTube.) And you can find covers of Hot Stuff and I Feel Love in a Canadian film called Funkytown, opening very soon in Montreal.
[JAN 25] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Look for the official music video for Romeo (which is really more of a clipfest from the Flashdance movie than an actual video. You won't see Donna in it.) Then there is the television performance of Work That Magic. (The clip isn't identified, but I'd say European television?) And finally there is what I am told is a Flamenco version of She Works Hard For The Money that does not play in the United States. And more unfortunately the block prevents me from even seeing the description of the video so I can't tell you who recorded it. It was sent to me by a fan in Spain so I believe that probably all (or most) of Western Europe should be able to see it. Everybody else will just have to try their luck and hope for the best.
[JAN 23] The regular update will have to wait a little while because I'm fighting off some nasty bug, but I did want to take a few minutes to bring you an exclusive interview with Johnnyswim courtesy of Eduardo in San Francisco. If you are in the Los Angeles area make sure you catch the pair at Hotel Cafe at 8 PM on Wednesday January 26, or if you are in San Francisco catch them at Hotel Utah on January 25 at 8 PM or at 9 PM on Thursday January 27 at Lestat's.
[JAN 16] This week let's start off with David Foster. The David Foster and Friends concert that was taped last year (with Donna of course!) will start airing on PBS stations in March for the Spring pledge drive. Check your local listings for the time and station in your specific area. And while we're on the topic of David Foster... you just might want to read this little article on Boston.com. There is a little mention that Donna and David will be teaming up for a future album. :-) And I have just one more little article for you courtesy of the Sioux City Journal Blog and a few photos promoting the PBS broadcast can be found on PBS' Facebook page.
[JAN 16] Masterbeat.com has posted its year end charts for 2010. To Paris With Love comes in at #9 on the top 100 releases and at #33 on the top 100 remixes.
[JAN 16] Poll fans - you can vote for your favorite pop diva at Queens Of Pop on arte.tv. You have a choice of voting in French or Dutch so if those aren't your best languages, find somebody cute to translate for you. ;-)
[JAN 16] As you know Donna will be performing next month at the MusiCares concert honoring Barbra Streisand. You can win tickets to the show by joining Barbra's fundraising team to raise money for the Cedar-Sinai Women's Heart Center. The team member who raised the most cash gets a pair of tickets.
[JAN 16] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for a couple of clips from Rio de Janeiro courtesy of niteroi1966, an AMA acceptance speech, Peperamico's video for Breath Of Heaven, and Bad Girls from Divas 2000.
[JAN 9] Let's start off with the MusiCares concert honoring Barbra Streisand next month. Two new articles have popped up about that show this week. Neither is long, but I suspect we will hear more as we get closer to Grammy week. The first one is on the Soul Culture blog, and the other is on CMT.com.
[JAN 9] The BBC compiled a list of the 50 top selling duets in the UK. Enough Is Enough is right there on the list (along with some other great songs I had half forgotten about.)
[JAN 9] That brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube look for Fernando's upload of Hot Stuff from the 1980 TV special, Stampyurfeet's video for the DJ Strobe Ulti-Mix 2011 of To Paris With Love, a mashup of the B-52s' Love Shack and I Feel Love, and an Another Place And Time megamix.
[JAN 2] Happy New Year everyone! It's a New Year and a new month which means it's time for the new Summer Fever pick. This month I'm bringing back The Wanderer.
[JAN 2] It's another slow week (barring the dozen or so mentions of celebrity birthdays) thanks to the holidays. But I did run into an interesting poll about the rumor. (Also of interest on that page to many of you will be the totally unrelated photo above the poll. I believe a number of you are fond of scantily clad men? ;-) )
[JAN 2] And yes, that brings us to the web news already. Over on YouTube check out Fernando's video for Pandora's Box and his birthday video for Donna. Stampyurfeet also did a birthday video for Donna. For something that's more than a little strange, check out the Donna vs. Guns 'N' Mix of Sweet Hot Stuff O' Mine. (Donna and Guns N Roses are not a combination I thought anyone would ever try. LOL I don't really think of them as sharing a common fan base.)
2010:
[DEC 26] There's nothing much going on this week with the holidays and the snowstorms and everything. So we'll just go right to the web news. Over at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has posted a new Question Time with Bob Esty. CHeck it out to see what Bob has to say about Last Dance and the Once Upon A Time album (among other things). On YouTube look for Fernando's remix video for Last Dance, and DMJ Litemakr's cool video for To Paris With Love (combining live footage with footage of Paris).
[DEC 23 again] Um yeah - I guess a link to the E-Greetings would have been nice. (This is why I try not to update in the morning! LOL)
[DEC 23] The E-Greetings page is finally complete. Thanks to all who contributed! And to all of you reading this - have a very Merry Christmas. (Or a really happy Saturday is Christmas isn't your thing. ;-) )
[DEC 19] Today is the deadline for the eGreetings for Donna. Thanks to all who contributed! I still have a few to post. so look for the page to be completed in a day or two so I can send the link to the powers that be. I'll do a mid-week update to let you know when that happens.
[DEC 19] I guess the big news is still the Rock Hall Of Fame. I got four billion Google alerts about that. (No, really.... I counted them. LOL) Here are a sample of the articles out there:
GoErie.com
Philly.com
WTSP.com
IrishTimes.com
BBC News
Billboard
Obviously there is very little Donna in the articles as they all focus on the inductees. On a side note - I really hope they get Neil Diamond and Alice Cooper to perform together at the ceremony. I can't think of a stranger pair! (Just try to picture Alice Cooper's dark theatrics with something like Sweet Caroline. LOL) Expect to see a bunch more articles in the coming weeks as music fans debate the merits of the inductees, complain about the nominees who were left out, discuss the acts that haven't even been nominated yet, and whine about the "unworthy" acts already in the Hall Of Fame. (Exactly who the unworthy acts are depends on who is whining. LOL)
[DEC 19] In The Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an article about Peter Stengaard and his choice of recording equipment.
[DEC 19] For those of you who still have Donna's 1977 calendar - guess what? You can use it in 2011 if you want. The dates on the two calendars are exactly the same.
[DEC 19] In web news this week, check out Donna Summertime. Sebastiano has added a video for Andrew Johnson's song, (I'm In Love With) Donna Summer. Over at SuperBulletNumberOnes, Shawn has added sheet music and promo pictures to 1976, 1977, 1978, 1983 and 1999. Moving on to YouTube, CharlieLighting has 3 new clips from a private show in Thailand,
[DEC 15] The Rock Hall Of Fame list for 2011 was announced this morning. They are: the Alice Cooper Band (performer), Neil Diamond (performer), Jac Holzman (non-performer), Dr. John (performer), Art Rupe (non-performer), Leon Russell (sideman), Tom Waits (performer) - and the only woman in the group - Darlene Love (performer). Congrats to all the inductees and here's looking at 2012! (Fingers crossed.)
[DEC 15] There are still 4 days to get in your eGreetings - get writing! :-)
[DEC 10] The update is early this week because I will be at a wake Sunday night, and it would probably not be appropriate to bring the laptop and work on the site. ;-) While I'm here, I just want to remind everyone that there are 9 days left to get in your eGreetings for Donna. Get writing!
[DEC 10] Let's start with the Rock Hall Of Fame. The votes are in and being counted up as we speak. Look for the official announcement for 2011 inductees on Wednesday. (Yes I will come back early to either celebrate with you, or to plot our revenge. ;-) )
[DEC 10] DigitalDreamDoor has posted a really nice overview of Donna's career. (I hope the Rock Hall people saw it before they voted! Otherwise they may just be seeing it every day for the next year! ;-) )
[DEC 10] The Top 50 Billboard Hot Dance Tracks Club Play chart for 2010 has been compiled. To Paris With Love comes in at #31.
[DEC 10] As part of the Grammy week festivities, MusiCares will be holding a concert in Los Angeles to salute Barbra Streisand. Donna is on the list of performers scheduled to be there. The concert will be held February 11 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Anyone interested in attending should check out this info (in PDF format). I'll tell you now that the cheapest ticket price I saw on that list was $1250.
[DEC 10] The website, Glanzundgloria.sf.tv has a short article and interview clip where Donna says she would like to have a home in Switzerland. (Anything to hide that vault from me! LOL) The text is in German, and the interview is overdubbed in German - but if you listen carefully you can hear Donna's English underneath the translation.
[DEC 10] In the Donna is everywhere category, she pops up briefly in a clip from Solid Gold embedded in an article on Christmas variety shows.
[DEC 10] In web news, BringOnTheRipple has posted some more classic clips on YouTube - including one that shows a little of the Divas 2000 rehearsal. There is a very interesting difference between the rehearsed version of the Supremes medley and the Mariah/Diana version that was filmed for the broadcast. (But you will need to pal close attention to spot it as that part of the clip is very short.)
[DEC 5] Better late than never - the new Summer Fever pick is posted. I bet you can't guess what it is..... LOL
[DEC 5] In release news, Germany's RTL has put out a holiday CD sampler called RTL Christmas 2010. It's a 3 disk set that includes Donna's Winter Melody.
[DEC 5] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in a poll for the best version of Don't Cry For Me Argentina. She also gets a mention in an article about Seal's favorite artists.
[DEC 5] The blog Music Is My LIfe: Divas & Other Beings has posted it's top 25 songs list. To Paris With Love currently sits on the top of that list.
[DEC 5] Over on YouTube, look for Fernando's video for I Will Go With You and catch several new classic clips courtesy of BringOnTheRipple. And over on Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has updated his top 40. To Paris With Love has finally debuted at the chart - I think it's his highest debut ever. :-)
[NOV 28] Before we get to the news, I've added 3 new photos to the Remember The White Party page, and I'm starting the E-Greetings page. It's in the usual place (and I will post the link when the page is complete) but if you feel like snooping around, the page id definitely incomplete. I've got somewhere around 25 greetings so far, and there is always room for more. :-)
[NOV 28] Let's start with the charts. This week the news isn't good. To Paris With Love falls to #40 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for December 4. In Brazil, it is #6 on the Top Dance Club Play Chart.
[NOV 28] As many of you remember, Donna did the recent David Foster and Friends concert in Las Vegas. The show was taped to air on PBS and will air starting next spring. (Everybody is going to have to watch their local TV listings for this - every PBS station has its own schedule.) I will lay odds that they will save the show for one of the spring pledge drives. (Anyone interested in getting an idea of what the show will be like can catch last year's concert on PBS in December.) Entertainment Tonight had a short segment on the show on Thanksgiving - I only caught the end of the piece when my well-trained mother suddenly asked, "Why is Donna on ET?" LOL
[NOV 28] That brings us to the web news (yes already! LOL) Over on YouTube look for Fernando's Love To Love You video, several classic clips from BringOnTheRipple (including some Christmas ones), and check out the bizarre backwards video for I Feel Love (or do I mean evoL leeF I?), in case you thought you just might have seen everything. LOL
[NOV 21] Happy Thanksgiving week everyone! (I include my international friends too - go ahead and claim the holiday too, Everybody deserves a day off from work. ;-) ) I am very annoyed to report that they started playing holiday music in my store today (ALREADY!) and of course there is no Donna. (My company had a hard and fast rule about holiday music in the store - if it's something good, they won't play it. LOL)
[NOV 21] So far I have about a dozen or so E-Greetings and I will start building that page soon. There is still plenty of time to get yours in though, and there is always plenty of room on the page. :-)
[NOV 21] In chart news, To Paris With Love drops to #16 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play charts for November 27. And it slips to #5 on the Brazilian Dance Club Play chart.
[NOV 21] The QHBlend blog has an article in honor of the 30th Anniversary of The Wanderer. (Yes it really has been 30 years and yes that makes most of us older than we care to admit. ;-)
[NOV 21] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a name-check in a book excerpt posted on CNN. It was written by Larry King's producer and section that was used was about the day Michael Jackson died.
[NOV 21] On YouTube, look for Fernando's video for Take Me, Glen Rivera's Restructured mix of With Your Love, and a number of classic clips from BringOnTheRipple. Also check out a really cool Paul Jabara video retrospective, and Johnnyswim's New Music Monday.
[NOV 21] Classic dance fans - Big Break Records got in their copies of the Brooklyn Dreams' Sleepless Nights a little bit later than expected, so expect those to ship out at the end of the week (for those that ordered from the Big Break website.) And just a reminder - they are based in the UK so those of us on this side of the Atlantic will have to be the patient ones about shipping. (It's only fair - the Europeans have to be patient with the Gold Legion stuff. :-) ) I've also been asked to remind you guys that if you are looking for holiday gift ideas for the music fan on your list, Big Break has a whole bunch of cool stuff from the Pointer Sisters, Three Degrees, Deniece Williams, and many more.)
[NOV 14] Announcing E-Greetings For Donna 2010. Believe it or not, it's that time of year again. :-) You long time readers know the drill already, but for the rest of you, here's the deal: You send me your message for Donna, and in December, I'll post them all on one big page and email the link to the powers that be so that Donna and her family can enjoy them. If you want to include a photo, that's cool but I reserve the right to resize it for aesthetic purposes. If you want to make a video - post it to YouTube and I'll embed it in the page. If you have your own website and want to post something special there, send me a link and I'll include that. Let's make the deadline December 19, that will give me a couple of days to finish the page before Santa brings Donna the link. (I bet you didn't know Santa was a fan too, did you? LOL) I will accept greetings in any language that Google can translate and will post an English translation along with the original message. (Well, except for German - since Donna can understand the language she can probably translate way better than Google can. LOL) I have no problem fixing spelling and punctuation for English, but if you send a greeting in any other language, you will have to do your own proofreading. You have about a month, so get writing! :-) You can use any of my email addresses - but please put "E-Greetings" in the subject line to make the mail easier to sort. :-)
[NOV 14] Okay - on to the news. I wanted to start with the Billboard charts, but I didn't get a sneak peek at next week's chart yet. :-( This week To Paris With Love is #15 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. Over in Brazil, it climbs to #3 on the Top 30 Dance Club Play chart. (Maybe we are looking at a Brazilian #1 soon? I hope! :-) )
[NOV 14] Over in Belgium, the results of the Top 100 Gay Party Songs poll is in. I Feel Love comes in at #81.
[NOV 14] SoulTracks.com has posted its list of recommended holiday CDs. You might see a familiar face in the "Soul Women" category. ;-)
[NOV 14] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention on the Fast Film Blog.
[NOV 14] And here's a strange link I was sent. It's for a book called Walk Away (Donna Summer Song). I did a little research and as it turns out that particular publisher is known for creating print on demand books based on articles you can read on Wikipedia. The book in question is 18 pages long - which is more than I thought they could pull from Wikipedia on that song, and as you can see it is rather expensive. (I wonder what else they have out there?)
[NOV 14] That brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, look for Fernando's Grand Illusion video, a new mix of To Paris With Love, a number of classic clips from BringOnTheRipple, and an accapella live version of O Holy Night that I was originally going to save for Christmas.
[NOV 14] Classic dance fans - Gold Legion is now shipping the Cory Daye CD and the new booklet for the Munich Machine CD. (The liner notes are a vast improvement over the original. :-) ) So if you ordered either of those items, it's time to start stalking your mailman. LOL
[NOV 7] Let's jump right in with the charts. In Brazil the news is good - To Paris With Love climbs to #8 on the Top 30 Dance Club Play songs. Over here, it's not so good. My last report was for the November 6 chart where To Paris With Love was #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. On the November 13 chart it slipped to #7 and for November 20 it is #15.
[NOV 7] In Belgium, it is time for the annual Top 100 Gay Party Songs. :-) I Feel Love usually does pretty well on that poll, and it is one of the choices again this year. Of course you can also write in another choice if your favorite dance track isn't listed.
[NOV 7] In the Netherlands, the readers at SaveOurSoul.nl have voted for Bad Girls as the Classic Soul album for November. (They have good taste! :-) )
[NOV 7] In the UK, they have proven that my town doesn't have a monopoly on weirdness (who'd have thought? LOL). A police officer over there has been accused of slipping random song titles into his official statement for an inquest. The Donna song he used was Enough Is Enough. (You know, he probably could have gotten away with it if he had just omitted the Membranes' title F--k My Old Boots. That's a pretty hard phrase to work naturally into an official document. LOL)
[NOV 7] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. Over at SuperBulletNumberOnes, Shawn has posted a bunch of new items including a couple of the tour books. On YouTube check out Fernando's video for I'm A Rainbow, a couple of classic clips courtesy of BringOnTheRipple, an interesting clip of 2ManyDJs (you will want to skip ahead to about 3:40 to see the Donna part of the clip), and a cool cover of On The Radio.
[NOV 7] In classic dance news, Gold Legion has the Cory Daye CDs in stock finally. The Vicki Sue. Robinson CDs arrive November 12, 19, 23 and December 3, and the France Joli CDs arrive November 16 and 23. The revised booklet for Roberta Kelly's Zodiac Lady arrives November 12 and will ship with the Vicki Sue Robinson CD - for those who have ordered both. :-) I will be back during the week with updates to the German discography.
[OCT 31] BOO! Did I scare you? Happy Halloween everybody! :-) Since the new month starts tomorrow, I am posting the new Summer Fever pick tonight. This time it is I Remember Yesterday.
[OCT 31] So as you know, To Paris With Love hit #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart this week. I was hoping to get a sneak peek at next week's chart, but that hasn't worked out so far. But, Billboard is talking about the latest number 1 - her 14th (on the dance chart) by their count.
[OCT 31] Billboard isn't the only one keeping score. Vintage Vinyl News has an article on the new #1 (her 23rd if you could all the charts), and so does SoulTracks.com.
[OCT 31] Believe it or not, that brings us to the web news for the week. Over at SuperBulletNumberOnes, Shawn has started adding other print memorabilia to toe picture sleeve gallery. He's got things like sheet music and promo pictures, and he's adding more things as he gets them. On YouTube look for Sebastiano's video for Nature Boy (done like a drive-in movie) and a clip of Bad Girls from Beijing. For those of you who like unusual covers, check out this accapella version of Love Is In Control by An OCtave Above.
[OCT 25] I've added another fan report and a number of photos to the Phoenix page. (Thanks to the Phoenix Symphony for sharing official pictures.) And I've added another fan report and photos from Wolf trap to the August page.
[OCT 24] So I guess most of you have seen Donna's site? ;-) Well, if not then you might wan to go take a look at her news section. It seems To Paris With Love is #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for the week of November 6. That means Donna has had a #1 single on one chart or another in every decade for the last 5. (70s, 80s, 90s, 00s, and now 10s. Yes we are all now officially old! LOL) Now I'm not sure how many other artists have accomplished this feat, but I know at least one person has already emailed Billboard with that question. :-) For those of you who want to see the actual chart as part of your celebrations - you will have to wait until Thursday. Right now Billboard.com has the October 30 chart up.
[OCT 24] In other news, Donna played at a gala for Tiffany's in Beijing recently. A few photos have turned up, one here on Twitpic and a few at Getty Images showing off the bling. :-)
[OCT 24] MySpace users, check out the page for the People's Choice Awards. It gives you a chance to vote for your favorites in many different categories. (And there is space to write in your favorite if she isn't already on the nomination list. ;-) )
[OCT 24] Donna was shown briefly on Entertainment Tonight's Star GPS segment. They had a clip of her singing with Seal and then a short (it's ET so make that VERY short! LOL) interview about the David Foster concert.
[OCT 24] The Rock Hall Of Fame is still making news. Mostly I'm seeing articles complaining about the nominees and about the artists that have been overlooked so far. (Seriously - you could rerun the same exact articles every year and just change the names of the nominees! LOL) The Depaulia chimes in with its list of overlooked artists, and the Aquarian posted reader comments about the nominees and past inductees. Donna gets little more than a name check in both articles.
[OCT 24] That brings us to the land of YouTube. SteveScissors has posted a number of classic clips, including a performance of Wasted. There is also a German interview from about 1982 that includes some studio footage of Donna and Bruce, and some clips from the filming of the State Of Independence video. (And when I say "German", I mean that Donna is speaking German too. :-) )
[OCT 24] I will be back either tomorrow or Tuesday with more from Phoenix and Morristown.
[OCT 18] 98.7 The Peak in Phoenix gave away some tickets to the show the other night. One of the winners called in with this review. :-)
[OCT 18] I've added photos from the Boston show last August, a page for the Phoenix show, and a page for Remember The White Party in San Francisco.
[OCT 17] Let's start with Switzerland. It looks like Donna will be part of the Art On Ice show for 2011. :-) You can read about the event here, or get ticket info here. (I linked to the English pages, but there are links on the bottom to switch to German or French for those of you more comfortable with those languages.) The shows take place in 3 cities during the month of February, so there should be plenty of opportunities to catch it. (I checked out the skaters list too- they have some really good ones booked. The show is worth is just for Shen & Zhao. :-) )
[OCT 17] Moving on to the charts, for the week of October 30, To Paris With Love sneaks up a notch to #3 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play charts. It's still got a bullet, but it's got some stiff competition too. We'll have to see what happens next week. In Brazil, it sneaks up to #20 on the Top 30 Dance Club Play chart.
[OCT 17] Since I last updated, we've had a couple of events take place. :-) So let's start running those down. Last night, we had to concert with the Phoenix Symphony. That was of course generating a bit of publicity. ;-) Before the event we had an interview with Michael Christie of the Phoenix Symphony to promote the show, and then after the show we got this little clip and interview.
[OCT 17] The other night we had the David Foster and Friends show in Las Vegas. As you probably remember, that show was taped for PBS and a DVD release, so we will all get to see it eventually. I understand that the taping went on for several hours so hopefully they won't have to cut out too much for release. (Fingers crossed!) Donna came out near the end of the show and sand a duet of Unbreak My Heart and On The Radio with Seal. And of course they closed the show with Last Dance. (How could they not? LOL) You can check out some pictures of the event here (and I'll give a cane and dog to anybody who doesn't say she looks gorgeous in them LOL) and there are a couple of fan-filmed videos on YouTube also. There is a really good one of Unbreak My Heart, a decent one of Last Dance (the sound is a little fuzzy) and one for On The Radio that was shot from the roof. LOL But the sound on that is mostly good - it just fuzzes out in the chorus. Also check out the article at Las Vegas Weekly. It includes a slideshow with rehearsal photos. Also check out this interview with David Foster.
[OCT 17] Also this week we had the Remember The White Party in San Francisco. I'm happy to report that they had a whole table of Donna stuff set up for auction and it was very popular. The Donna tunes on the dance floor were pretty popular too. ;-) They raised over $900 for the charity Under One Roof - not bad at all! And I'm pretty sure I could hear them partying from all the way over here. ;-) Now I will have the official report and photos from that, and from the recent concerts soon - actually probably some time tomorrow. (I have some stuff from the summer to post too - I think that will be my project for tomorrow morning. :-) )
[OCT 17] That brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube, Fernando has posted a live audio clip of Breakaway accompanied by artwork by Emerson.
[OCT 10] Happy 10/10/10 everybody. :-) (I hope you guys in San Francisco are partying hard at the Trocadero!) Let's start off with the charts. For the week of October 23, To Paris With Love stays at #4 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. It still has a bullet - as do most of the tracks in the top 5. It looks like it's going to be a tough battle for the top. Looking at the Brazilian Top 30 Dance Club Play chart, Donna climbs from #28 to #22 for the week ending October 16.
[OCT 10] We have a new interview out of Phoenix to promote the upcoming show with the symphony. You can check it out on AZCentral.com.
[OCT 10] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets mentioned in an article about the upcoming David Foster & Friends show in Vegas. (I guess I'll be staring at TV Guide every day until we have an air date! LOL) Also, catch a photo of her with Perez Hilton on his site - but be careful of of the comments. It can get a little ugly on that site.
[OCT 10] The Rock Hall Of Fame is still making news. (Hey, there is still plenty of debate time before the actual inductees are announced in December! LOL) PerpetualPost.com has a thoughtful article discussing the criteria for induction.
[OCT 10] That brings us to the web news for the week, over on YouTube Fernando has posted a mix of Enough Is Enough. and Iamscoot has posted the promo video for Remember The Party in San Francisco (going on right now as I type this. :-) )
[OCT 10] In classic dance news, look for the Vicki Sue Robinson CDs from Gold Legion to start shipping October 18.
[OCT 8] Donna was on KEZ radio in Phoenix this morning (via telephone) to promote the upcoming show with the Symphony. Now for those of you who missed it, you can hear it right now, right here. :-) (Thanks for sharing the file KEZ!)
[OCT 3] Let's start with the charts. For the week of October 16, To Paris With Love creeps up to #4 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. It's still got its bullet - unfortunately so do the other top 5 songs. I think we're looking at a battle for the top. Over in Brazil, To Paris With Love debuts on the Top 30 Dance Club Play chart at #28.
[OCT 3] In radio news, To Paris With Love is getting some airplay on KFRH in Las Vegas and KRCK in Palm Springs.
[OCT 3] In release news, the second set of mixes of To Paris With Love has finally hit iTunes.
[OCT 3] If you missed the mid week update, Donna has been nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame again. So let the avalanche of articles, discussions and outright fights begin! LOL
About.com - article with a link to a forum to discuss the nominees.
Boston Herald - more about J Geils than Donna
Ohio.com - speculation on the final 5
SouthTownStar.com - some very Donna-friendly comments in response to the article
WenatcheeWorld - more speculation
The Informer - a discussion of the relevance of the RHOF
AllAboutJazz.com - an interesting take on the annual complaints about the RHOF nominees. (And it never matters who the nominees are - somebody is always upset. LOL)
[OCT 3] EchoMag.com has a new interview with Donna to promote the Phoenix show.
[OCT 3] Photo hounds, there are some great pictures from a recent charity concert in New York. (Don't freak out if you get a big ad when you load the page - just watch for the "skip this ad" link to pop up on the top.)
[OCT 3] In compilation news, there is a new 3 CD set coming out soon in the UK from Universal Music TV. It's an extensive collection of classic dance tracks and it is called Disco Fever [Amazon, Amazon UK]. The full track list is posted on the Amazon UK site, but I can tell you now that Donna is represented by I Feel Love.
[OCT 3] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at SuperbulletNumberOnes.com, Shawn has finally completed his album sleeve archive from 1969 to 2010. If you have something that he's missing, let him know. On YouTube, Fernando has posted a few new goodies including a recent concert slideshow set to Donna's performance of Don't Rain On My Parade.
[OCT 3] San Francisco - don't forget about the Remember The White Party at the Trocadero on October 10. THey will have tons of great music and some nice Donna-related goodies to auction off for charity. Details are at RememberTheParty.com.
[OCT 1] It's the beginning of a new month and you know what that means. It's time to change the Summer Fever pick. This month I thought I'd spotlight I'm A Rainbow.
[OCT 1] And while I'm here, I was recently given a link to the promo video for the October 16 show in Phoenix. It's here on YouTube if you'd like to see it. :-)
[SEP 29] If you haven't heard yet, Donna has been nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame again. This is her third nomination and hopefully this one is the charm. :-) The rest of the nominees are Bon Jovi, Beastie Boys, Chic, Alice Cooper, Neil Diamond, Dr. John, Donovan, J. Geils Band, LL Cool J, Darlene Love, Laura Nyro, Joe Tex, Tom Waits and Chuck Willis. Expect the annual debates all over the web about who is worthy, who isn't worthy and who has been overlooked. :-)
[SEP 29] Phoenix, some tickets for the gala October 16 have been reduced. They now range from $50 to $499 so there should be something for everybody. Check the Phoenix Symphony website for details.
[SEP 29] Vegas - the David Foster & Friends show on October 15 is shaping up to be very interesting. Robin Leach's twitter feed has suggested that there will be a number of surprises including a suet between Donna and Seal, and a divas trio of Donna, Natalie Cole and Chaka Khan. Obviously NOTHING is etched in stone until show night, but whatever happens it should be quite a night..
[SEP 26] I think we should start off with some chart news. Last week I reported that To Paris With Love was # 12 on the October 2 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart and I predicted that it would be a top 10 hit on the October 9 chart. Well, I was slightly off. It is actually a top 5 hit now. :-) It's number 5 and that bullet is still there. I think we're making a run for the top spot! :-)
[SEP 26] The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame will announce the nominees for 2012 later this week. Prepare for celebrations or condemnations. ;-)
[SEP 26] The soundtrack to The Deep has been released as a very limited edition 2 disk set featuring the original soundtrack plus a disk of the original score. You can grab it here, but be aware there are only a few hundred available still.
[SEP 26] The upcoming video game DJ Hero 2 is slated to have a number of new mixes on it including a mashup of Bad Girls with Jam On It by Newcleus. The game hits stores October 19 and you can catch the list of mixes here.
[SEP 26] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in 5 Questions with Damon from Disco Bloodbath. Apparently I Feel Love is the disk he'd take with him to a deserted island. (Now you'd never catch me taking one disk to a deserted island - I'd smuggle in the whole 80 GB iPod. LOL) Also in the Donna is everywhere category, Last Dance was featured (appropriately enough!) in one of the scenes in the last ever episode of the soap As The World Turns.
[SEP 26] For those of you keeping track of the covers, Kristine W has recorded a version of On The Radio for her new jazz CD Straight Up With A Twist.
[SEP 26] Moving on to web news, over at SuperbulletNumberOnes.com, Shawn has been busily reinstating his collection of record sleeves. I think he's got most things from 2006 and before. On YouTube, Fernando has added a few more mixes to his collection including one for Love To Love You.
[SEP 26] Classic dance fans - if you ordered the Giorgio and Chris CD from Gold Legion, you can expect it in your mailbox any day now (if it's not there already.) I got my copy Friday and as always the liner notes are amazing. (The music isn't too shabby either! LOL) Brooklyn Dreams fans - look for Sleepless Nights coming to CD soon through Big Break Records and through a Japanese company. Just something to keep on mind - the Japanese release may hit first, but it will NOT have the extensive liner notes that Big Break has been providing and it won't have the same bonus tracks that Big Break will have. It will also probably be fairly expensive - Japanese imports tend to run that way (which is fine when they have stuff you can't get elsewhere. ;-) ) Big Break is looking at a late November release date so it will make a nice addition to your Christmas shopping list. And if you are looking for other classic dance stuff, Big Break has stuff from Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes, Deniece Williams, Taste Of Honey, Heatwave, Pointer Sisters and Billy Ocean on the schedule for October and November. (Hmmmm - I think some of us better start saving up our pennies! LOL)
[SEP 19] Let's start off with America's Got Talent. Donna opened the show the other night with the contestant Prince Poppycock and it was a trip! For those of you who missed it, you can catch it on YouTube. For those of you who have never seen the show before - well, you are in for a surprise with Prince Poppycock. He's not like anybody you'd see on a show like American Idol. LOL The show garnered quite a bit of press. Here are just a few of the articles I saw this week:
Baltimore Sun
Only Kent
Passport Magazine (check the comments)
PopWatch
[SEP 19] Moving on to the charts, last week I left you with To Paris With Love at #19 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for September 25. It jumps up a few spaces to # 12 on the October 2 chart - and it's got a bullet. :-) So I'd say we'll have another top 10 hit on the October 9 chart.
[SEP 19] I posted the shorter version of this interview before, but th complete Q&A with Donna from the Binghamton show has been posted on PressConnects.com.
[SEP 19] In the Donna is everywhere category - she's a topic on the Simply Streisand forum. They talk a little about Donna's recent performances of Don't Rain On My Parade.
[SEP 19] San Francisco fans - don't forget the Remember The White Party tribute to Donna at the Trocadero on October 10. Full details are at RememberTheParty.com, but I'll just remind you here that it is THE place to be in San Francisco. There will be tons of great tunes, a few signed goodies to be auctioned off, and a portion of the proceeds will go to Under One Roof - a SF/Bay area AIDS charity. Tickets are only $20 (or $25 if you procrastinate and buy them at the door) so it's a cheap night of fun. :-)
[SEP 19] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, look for The Planet Is Alive, a sample of DJ Hero' 2's Kanye West's Love Lock Down vs. Donna's Bad Girls (Dj Hero 2 is a console game coming next month), and a performance of Living In America.
[SEP 13] Fresh from Donna's Twitter feed - catch her on America's Got Talent this Wednesday September 15 from 8 to 10 PM on NBC. Set those VCRs.... I mean DVRs (I think I'm showing my age! LOL)
[SEP 12] Before I get to the news - you may have noticed a new little button above. It's a "like" button for Facebook. (I wanted a "love to love you" button but they don't offer one. LOL) Anyway someone suggested that I add one, so I figured what the heck? Why not? So we'll see what happens. :-) (And it it looks terrible on the page, don't freak out - I'll do some tweaking after it's live and I can see how it will look.)
[SEP 12] On to the important stuff - Vegas! :-) Donna will be appearing on the David Foster and Friends event in Las Vegas on October 15. Tickets go on sale through Ticketmaster or Mandalay Bay on Wednesday September 15 at noon. Now, for those of us who can't get to the show - the show will be coming to us. :-) Well, sort of anyway. The show is being recorded by WNET (New York's PBS station) to be broadcast as an episode of Great Performances, AND there will be a DVD release. You can read the press release here.
[SEP 12] I'm sure there might a couple of you who are interested in the latest chart positions. ;-) As you know on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for September 11, To Paris With Love was the #1 Breakout hit. For the week of September 18 it was the Hot Shot Debut at #32, and for the week of September 25 it climbed again to #19. :-)
[SEP 12] In classic release news, you can now buy a video of I Feel Love on iTunes. (It's the promo clip that VH1 used to use all the time, with the robot dance.)
[SEP 12] In the Donna is everywhere category - she gets a mention in an interview with Jason Walker.
[SEP 12] I think that brings us to the latest gems from YouTube. SlickRickDog has posted a few classics including a 1979 performance of Once Upon A Time. And Fernando has posted a few new clips including a very recent performance of Love To Love You Baby.
[SEP 12] In classic dance news, Gold Legion has the Giorgio and Chris CD Love's In You, Love's In Me in stock now. So if you have an outstanding order, expect it soon. And look for the following CDs to ship around September 21: Cory Daye's Cory And Me, France Joli's Attitude, and Vicki Sue Robinson's Never Gonna Let You Go.
[SEP 5] Now that the storm is over (and was nowhere near as scary as the media was making it out to be LOL) I took my Twitter feed off the main news section. It's still down with the editorials if you have a burning desire to watch me rant about work. LOL It served its purpose up here while I was at Foxwoods though. :-)
[SEP 5] So for those of you who missed my tweets, the big news this week is 10 more mixes of To Paris With Love. You can get them at Masterbeat.com for 1.99 each or 19.90 for the whole set. Now I know some people on the forum said they has some trouble with Masterbeart's download software - you don't have to download their software to get the mixes. After you make your purchase, the files will be on the downloads section of your account where you can opt to download each track individually. Doing that seemed to solve everyone's problems. :-) Also, Masterbeat is accessible to most (if not all) of you guys who don't have an iTunes store in your country.
[SEP 5] As most of you know, the second leg of the tour (not counting the gala in Phoenix next month) wrapped up this weekend with the shows in Foxwoods and Atlantic City. I was in Foxwoods and I am happy to report that Donna sang both To Paris With Love and Don't Rain On My Parade and I thought they were both great. (I know, I know - I'm biased!) The crowed really seemed to enjoy them too. (It was a nice enthusiastic crowd!) I should also mention that the Foxwoods theater appeared from where I was sitting to be sold out. There were a very few empty seats here and there probably because of the weather, but most people braved the rain to be there. Now, I didn't go to Atlantic City, but a few other fans did and someone was able to provide Fernando with a couple of live clips to post - including To Paris With Love and Don't Rain On My Parade. He was still uploading stuff as I started typing, so there may be more clips later.
| [SEP 5] Okay - so concerts always mean interviews before the show and reviews afterwards. So let's round up all the new stuff:
CaliforniaChronicle.com: A review of the Boston show
Boston.com: Another review of Boston including a photo
RingsideReport.com: A review of Wolftrap
WBGN.com: A TV news interview with fans at the Binghamton show
Atlantic City Weekly: 5 Questions with Donna
Norwich Bulletin: An interview promoting the Foxwoods show
Washington Times: Review of Wolftrap with a couple of photos
Washington Blade: Interview at Wolftrap (If you have trouble with the link, try this copy at YouTube.)
[SEP 5] In compilation news, look for a box set called A Complete Introduction To Disco coming out later this month. It's a 4 disk set with classic disco from just about everybody who was anybody in the disco era. Donna is represented by I Feel Love and Last Dance AND you will find quotes from her, Bruce Sudano and Giorgio Moroder in the 36 page booklet. I'm told that the set looks absolutely gorgeous too. I can see that the outside looks really cool. :-) Head over to Amazon.co.uk if you are interested in getting it.
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[SEP 5] San Francisco area fans - save this date: October 10 from 6 PM to 3 AM. The Trocadero Transfer is holding a White Party tribute to Donna Summer featuring DJ Jerry Bonham and a whole bunch of classic disco. Now this is more than just a really hot party (which should be reason enough to go ;-) ). This is also a chance to help out Under One Roof - a San Francisco/ Bay Area AIDS charity.... AND.... they will be auctioning off a few little goodies including a couple of signed set lists. Tickets for the event are $20 online or $25 at the door and as I sort of mentioned before, a portion of the proceeds will go to Under One Roof. You can order tickets (or just learn more about the party) at RememberTheParty.com. Now I KNOW San Francisco knows how to Party and I know you guys usually have a raging case of Summer Fever, so I expect you to pack the joint and party so loud that I can hear you all the way over here on Long Island. ;-)
[SEP 5] For those of you on the forum who are familiar with Francois' calendar pages and single covers, he has sent me his September page for your downloading pleasure:
[SEP 5] In the Donna is everywhere category, Barbra Streisand has an Ultimate Collection coming out next month and it will include Enough Is Enough. There is a chance (although it's not definite by any means) that Sony will use the version of the song that was originally on Barbra's Wet album which as many of you know is a slightly different version from the one that appeared on Donna's On The Radio album.
[SEP 5] I think that brings us to the web news. First up is something I forgot to mention last week. We have a fan who has started a YouTube channel dedicated to Donna's inspirational music. So far he's just linking to the best of the inspirational stuff that's already on YouTube and he's only got a couple of those at the moment, but I'm quite sure he will add more as he finds them. SlickRickDog has added a few classic clips, and stampyourfeet has made a music video for To Paris With Love. Over on Facebook, Fernando (the same one from YouTube) has started a page called Donna Summer On Broadway. He's using the page to try to gather support for getting Donna on Broadway - sort of like Betty White fans used Facebook to get her on Saturday Night Live. :-)
[SEP 1] We may be expecting a storm here this weekend, so just in case I lose power or DSL, I'm moving my Twitter feed up here for now so I can keep in touch by cellphone if I have to. (Personally - I think the big storm will be a big bust. That's usually what happens when the media makes a fuss. LOL)
[AUG 31] Okay - everybody tell Hurricane Earl to stay the heck away from us! We have concerts this weekend and we don't need any hurricane messing that up! ;-) (And if I have to drive up to Connecticut instead of taking the ferry - I will be writing a strongly worded letter of complaint to Mother Nature.... if I can find her mailing address. ;-) )
[AUG 31] I put together a page of the concert stuff I have so far from this month. It's more photos than text, but I would like to mention that the word from Wolftrap is that Donna sang a killer cover of Don't Rain On My Parade. Apparently she was practicing it for some show or something. I guess we'll hear more about that down the line. :-) She also sang To Paris With Love again. :-)
[AUG 31] And since tomorrow is September 1 (and I don't even want to think about how fast the year has gone!) it's time for the new Summer Fever pick. This month I'm putting Four Seasons Of Love in the spotlight.
[AUG 29] Let's start off with some official web news. First up, Donna's official facebook page has been updated. If you are on facebook, head on over there and add her page to your "like" list. Now for those of you who use Twitter - well, you can follow Donna over there now too. She's listed as TheDonnaSummer.
[AUG 29] In chart news, To Paris With Love is the number 1 breakout for Billboard's September 11 Hot Dance Club Play chart. :-)
[AUG 29] Speaking of To Paris With Love - it was performed live (finally!) in Boston the other night. A clip of it has made it to YouTube but be warned that the sound quality is pretty weak. (That's a flaw in the recording, not in the performance.)
[AUG 29] With the new shows, came some new interviews. (That's part of the fun of a tour! :-) ) First up is a radio interview with WCBS-FM. You can listen to it here. Then there is an interview on Tri-State Defender Online, one on PressConnects.com to promote the Binghamton show, a Metro Weekly interview to promote the Wolftrap show (the first half of that is about the rumor - I thought that should be ancient history by now), a Washington Examiner interview, and finally there is a review of the Florida show on the South Florida Times site. I know for a fact there will be a few more coming up to promote the Foxwoods show so keep your eyes on the News Times, the Sun Times, and the Norwich Bulletin.
[AUG 29] In other tour news, I will have some fan reports and photos coming - I just need a little time to put that all together. In the mean time, there was Disco Diva Photo Contest to promote the Memphis show. The winner was Kirby Dobbs Floyd for this outfit (click it for a larger version):
(Hey, it's not everybody who can pull off that look! :-) )
[AUG 29] In the Donna is everywhere category, check out this blast from the past: photos from Disney's 30th Anniversary special on the DisneyOnParole blog. In something a little less scary LOL, Bruce Roberts has updated his site with a plug for To Paris With Love and his 4 favorite songs. A certain diva appears twice on that list (and I'm not talking either of Cinderella's evil step-sisters! LOL)
[AUG 29] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has posted a slildeshow/video for To Paris With Love. Look for a few clips from Morristown on Qik.com, over on YouTube look for a classic clip of A Man Like You, a couple of live clips from Atlanta from LilJazzy98 and deshining13, and a couple from Memphis from albohsmiley89.
[AUG 24] Greetings Washington DC area fans - as you know Donna will be playing Wolftrap on the 29th. The official Wolftrap fan facebook page is holding a contest where the winner will get 2 tickets, an autographed setlist and passes to the meet and greet before the show. All you have to do is post a picture of yourself in your favorite dance club outfit to their wall by Thursday.
[AUG 22] Hmmm - I don't know where to start this week. Let's go with the single first. As most of you know, To Paris With Love is available on iTunes - where it has been featured on the main music page as a "What's Hot Now" selection. For those of you who didn't buy it yet, the price has been adjusted to $5.99 which is more in keeping with the price of an EP.
[AUG 22] There are some new mixes of To Paris With Love yet to come. You can check out samples on DJ Taj's Sound Off Music Blog. One of the comments in that same blog indicated a release date of September 14 for the new mixes. I guess we'll see if that's accurate. :-)
[AUG 22] Let's move on to the tour. Donna rocked the Hard Rock in Florida the other night, kicking off the second leg of the tour. For those who have been wondering - she did NOT sing To Paris With Love. She kept the show a combination of Crayons tracks and classics. As is usually the case, right after the show some great photos turned up on WireImage.com and at GettyImages.com. A couple of backstage photos even turned up on Emilio Estefan's Facebook site.
[AUG 22] And you know YouTubers got into the act too. :-) Check out Florida clips from mascguy4upsl, and TheGrandevasco. (The latter are excellent quality but almost all are very short clips. I think he has something from just about every song though.) For a few clips from Biloxi, check out maheine16. And don't miss this local news report on the Florida show. (And for kicks, check out this promo piece with the news anchors singing along to YouTube. Click the play media link to get the video rolling.)
[AUG 22] Moving on to the world of print media... PBPulse.com has posted a review of the Hard Rock show, Idolator.com has a very short review accompanied by several photos, AccessAtlanta.com has an interview, and the California Chronicle has a new interview (that is also printed on GoMemphis.com). Look for an interview with the Washington Examiner in the very near future to promote the show at Wolftrap next week.
[AUG 22] In other news, Thierry Mugler Parfums has come out with a fragrance called Womanity. (Some of you already pricked up your ears at the mention of that fragrance name, I know. ;-) ) In an article discussing the fragrance and the brand concept, they mention that Donna will be recording a song called Womanity. Read the article here, check the Womanity website here, and buy the fragrance here.
[AUG 22] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in a Guardian article about songs about euphoria. Love To Love You comes in on their list of 10 euphoria songs.
[AUG 22] Over on YouTube, aside from the clips from the recent shows - you can also see Donna's performance of Living In America from Reagan's inauguration and a couple of new video mixes from Fernando.
[AUG 22] Gold Legion shoppers - if you are looking for some classic dance music, use code DISCO to get 10 % off your order and code DISCO2 to get 20% off orders of $60 or more.
[AUG 15] So the big news this week is To Paris With Love. :-) It was as high as #3 on the US iTunes dance chart the other day. Since then it's been hanging around the top 10 in various positions. A couple of blogs have reviewed the single. Sweet Muzik likes it a lot, as does The Prophet Blog, WeArePopSlags.com and SheenaBeaston.com. (I love some of those blog names! LOL) New York Magazine merely announced the single and has invited readers to comment, and Idolator has a list of some of the remixers working on the song.
[AUG 15] As I mentioned the other day, there are Wawa, Craig C and Mendy mixes of To Paris With Love. Other mixers are also working on their own interpretations of the song and its possible we may see those in the future. We MAY also see more buying options down the road too - I don't foresee the song being an iTunes exclusive forever.
[AUG 15] The other news is that the tour kicks back in this week with a date in Florida. BrowardPalmBeach.com has a short article promoting the show. And News Channel 34 has one promoting the Binghamton show.
[AUG 15] Billboard posted a Chart Beat article this week, mainly about Madonna's new song on the Dance chart (sorry Ken LOL), but it did have another interesting little tidbit. In the article they listed the artists who have appeared the most on the Dance chart since its inception in 1974. Madonna leads with 56 appearances, followed by Janet Jackson (37), Pet Shop Boys (33), Donna Summer (30) and Marian Carey (26).
[AUG 15] In the Donna is everywhere category, there is an article online about Manifest Records and in it they talk a little bit about the 1995 I Feel Love remixes and the 1996 State Of Independence mix.
[AUG 15] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has added a poll to the forum about To Paris With Love. While you are over there, why not vote for it for his Top 40 chart? ;-) On YOuTube, CasablancaBookTV has posted a highlight reel from the Live & More promo reel and a second commercial for I Remember Yesterday.
[AUG 12] To Paris With Love is on iTunes now. (All of them I think - even Canada! Is this the first time iTunes Canada has had anything the same time as the US? LOL) There are 8 versions - the original, the original radio edit, 2 Wawa mixes, 2 Craig C mixes and 2 Mendy mixes. (The digital booklet is cute too. :--) )
[AUG 9] Ok - the new single is called To Paris With Love. (Do I hear a whole bunch of cheering in French? ;-) ) And there will be remixes. (Was there ever any doubt?) Get the full scoop on Donna's official site.
[AUG 8] First up - Phoenix if you missed the mid-week update, you better go look at the tour schedule. :-) And for everybody, there is a short article from the Arizona Republic promoting the show.
[AUG 8] Okay, I mentioned last week that there will be a new club single released in Ibiza some time this month. Well Sebastiano over at Donna Summertime scooped me :-) and found out that it was co-written with Bruce Roberts and will be called Looking For Love. (By the way, if you haven't been over to Donna Summertime in awhile, you should go visit it again - and vote for the top 40. ;-) ) There has been talk on DJ forums that remixes are being commissioned for the single - that is probably not news to anyone though. What club single doesn't get remixed? LOL
[AUG 8] For a blast from the past check out the Setlist wiki. They have 3 of Donna's setlists posted from 2009, 1996 and 1978. It is possible to add setlists for other shows if you want, and of course you have access to info on many other artists you might also like.
[AUG 8] The Boston Globe decided to compile a list of the top 25 music acts from... well, Boston of course! ;-) They put Donna at #4 behind Aerosmith, the Pixies and James Taylor and thankfully well ahead of the New Kids On The Block. (Apologies to the New Kids fans - but I was emotionally scarred for life by an afternoon with one young fan back in their heyday. LOL)
[AUG 8] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for a couple of classic clips from SlickRickDog.
[AUG 5] PHOENIX - catch Donna on October 16 with the Phoenix Symphony for a fundraising gala. Tickets start at $250 and can be purchased now through the Phoenix Symphony website.
[JUL 31] The update is a day early because I have some stuff to do tomorrow night that might keep me off the site. Besides, I have a little news for you and it's time to change the Summer Fever pick. This month we're gonna have a magical mystical month of the original Live & More. (And let me take this opportunity to give a shout out to my kitten, Squeaky, who is happily taking every opportunity to step on the keyboard as I write this update. My spellchecker may explode. LOL)
[JUL 31] Where should I start? Let's start with the recent talk about a duet with Spanish singer, Soraya Arnelas. (If you haven't been on the forums, this is the article that started it all. It's in Spanish, so use your favorite language tool if necessary.) Before you get excited, I got the official word that Donna has not recorded a duet with any Spanish singer. Now THIS is where you can get excited - the same email told me that Donna will have a club single released in Ibiza sometime in August, so all you clubbers and DJs out there - keep your ears open. :-)
[JUL 31] Now if that didn't excite you.... we have a new interview out there promoting the upcoming show in Florida. In the interview Donna talks about the Hollywood Bowl Hall Of Fame, traveling, people she's worked with... and oh yeah, there was a mention 2 new albums in the works. Go read it, I'll wait here for you. :-)
[JUL 31] As some of you know, Donna was in a group called Family Tree back in Germany before she became famous. Well, I heard from the founder of that group this week and he's got digitally remastered tapes of their albums, TV appearances and even some unreleased stuff. Look for at least some of that stuff to turn up for sale next year.
[JUL 31] In the Donna is everywhere category, a 61 year old comedian did a strip tease to Hot Stuff on America's Got Talent. (Think The Full Monty - although since it was broadcast television he obviously didn't do the FULL monty. LOL)
[JUL 31] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an article on celebrity weddings (inspired by Chelsea Clinton's wedding.) The author mentions seeing Donna at Liza Minelli's bridal shower.
[JUL 31] Over on YouTube this week, look for an audio only clip of Nights in White Satin, and several clips from SlickRickDog including the awesome CBS Early Show interview from 2008. (You have to scroll past a bunch of football clips to get to the new Donna stuff.)
[JUL 31] GoldLegion customers - if you are interested in the autographed CDs I mentioned last week, but you already purchased the CD previously (and don't want a duplicate), Gold Legion will let you order just the booklet with the autograph for 9.99. And you can use the code MunichToday to get a 10% discount. See the Gold Legion site for more details.
[JUL 26] Let's start with Oprah fans. (Yes this is still a Donna Summer site. LOL) As most of my US readers know (probably even those of you who don't watch the show), Oprah is going off the air after next season. So her website is asking viewers of the show to suggest guests for the final season. I think you all know where I'm going with this, right? ;-) I can think of at least one guest I'd like to see on the show and I'm sure many of you can too. If you would like to make a suggestion, just head to Oprah's site and use the email form. (The email form lets you write whatever you want so it's probably a good idea to say why you think Donna should be on the show. You can also list several names in case you have a few people you'd like to see on the show.)
[JUL 26] In the Donna is everywhere category, Pat Benetar recounts a Donna story in her new autobiography, Between a Heart and a Rock Place [Amazon, Amazon UK]. Apparently Pat encountered Donna in a ladies' room on Grammy Night 1981. In part, the story goes: "I came out of the stall to find the previous year's female rock winner, Donna Summer, washing her hands. Donna cast a hard look in my direction. 'Ugh! You're just the person I wanted to see!' she said to me in an exasperated tone. Oh crap. I didn't know Donna, had never even met her. What had I done? 'Why?' I asked.
'My kid plays that record of yours every minute of the day! I know every word of it, and to tell you the truth, I'm sick of it!' She said it with a smile."
Why is it that so many Donna stories involve ladies' rooms? LOL
[JUL 26] In web news, Shawn has been busily reconstructing his picture sleeve archive at SuperBulletNumberOnes.com. He's added some of the 70s covers back to the site with plenty more stuff yet to come. On YouTube look for the official State Of Independence video, a mix of Donna vs. the Crusaders Street Life, the pre-release versions of Crayons without Ziggy Marley, and a Cher vs. Donna mix of Bad Love, Bad Girls and Hot Stuff.
[JUL 26] In classic dance news, Gold Legion has received the Munich Machine Whiter Shade Of Pale CDs and is shipping them out now. If you placed an order, start haunting your mailman. ;-) Roberta Kelly's Troublemaker is en route to Gold Legion and should start shipping to buyers on Wednesday. And Giorgio and Chris Bennett's Love's In You, Love's In Me CD is expected the first week of August. All will have amazing liner notes. For those who haven't ordered yet, there is a 10% off promo code you can use until July 31. It is DSTribute. And finally - for a limited time you can get autographed copies of Roberta Kelly's Troublemaker and Zodiac Lady, Munich Machine's Whiter Shade of Pale, and Giorgio & Chris' CD. (The first 2 would be signed by Roberta Kelly obviously and the latter 2 would be signed only by Chris Bennett.) The autographed copies will only be available until August 1 and you can specify in the special instructions on the order page if you want the autograph personalized, if you want it on the front cover, or the back of the booklet, or whatever. This is an excellent opportunity for diehard Roberta Kelly and Chris Bennett fans. :-)
[JUL 18] It's a pretty quiet week this week. I guess we're in the lull before the fun of the second half part of the tour. :-)
[JUL 18] In the Donna is everywhere category - apparently Sheryl Crow is a fan. She mentions a video clip of Love To Love You in a recent Vanity Fair interview to promote her new CD. (She mentions the German clip with the freaky dancers in the white leotards - who else but a fan would know that clip? LOL)
[JUL 18] Speaking of celebrity fans, Taylor Hawkins (no relation LOL) of Foo Fighters mentions in a recent interview that he is a fan of Donna (and ABBA, and the Bee Gees... he's a classic dance fan. :-) )
[JUL 18] That brings us to the web news for the week. Shawn is reconstructing his record sleeve archive at SuperBulletNumberOnes.com. So far he's got some of the 80s stuff reposted, but give him time and he'll add the rest too. :-) On YouTube, look for a video of Nocturne by Epik High that samples part of Once Upon A Time, a TV clip of MacArthur Park and On The Radio (that I don't think I've ever seen before) from one of the Latin American countries, and Jandry's Got A Dime mix of Bad Girls.
[JUL 11] Let's start off with an extra ticket to the Binghamton show August 31. I have a fan out there who has a second row ticket that he can no longer use. He's selling it for the face value (68.50). I would take it myself.... but I have to work. If anyone is interested in the ticket - send me an email and I'll hook you up with the fan. Or if anyone has the winning lottery numbers, email me so I can retire! LOL
[JUL 11] AllVoices.com has a nice article promoting Donna's upcoming show in Hollywood, Fl. It was obviously written by a fan - there are too many obscure details to be written by an outsider. ;-)
[JUL 11] Classic photo hounds will like this link. It has a couple of alternate shots of Donna and Barbra from the Enough Is Enough photo session. (The photos came from an ebay listing so they are marked with the seller's name.)
[JUL 11] In web news, Fernando has uploaded video mixes of I Feel Love and You're So Beautiful to Youtube.
[JUL 7] Attention anyone who was planning to see the show at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City on August 28. The concert date has been changed to September 4. Any tickets already purchased for August 28 will be honored for the September 4 show.
[JUL 4] Happy Independence Day to my American friends, a belated Happy Canada day to my Canadian friends and Happy Sunday to everyone else! :-) Let's start off with the new (if a little late) Summer Fever pick. I thought it was time to bring back Crayons again. :-) (And I mean the album, Crayons and not the wax stick kids color with. LOL)
[JUL 4] Let's start with the ASCAP Rhythm and Soul Awards. Donna picked up an honor for R&B/Hip Hop song for her part in the writing of She's Got Her Own by Ne-Yo. (They sampled part of My Baby Understands so I think that's where Donna's writing credit came from.)
[JUL 4] There is a new article out there on Yahoo by John Myers that is nice retrospective on Donna's career.
[JUL 4] In the Donna is everywhere category - she gets a mention in an article about Bruce Springsteen. They talk about his song Cover Me and how he almost gave it to Donna. (His manager talked him into keeping it for himself and Donna got Protection instead.)
[JUL 4] Over on YouTube, Fernando has posted a few video remixes for I Feel Love, No More Tears and Last Dance.
[JUN 27] Let's start off today with DonnaSummer.com. :-) Donna's site has been updated with news about the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame. It looks like there may some surprises in store for the August shows so if you didn't get a ticket yet - what are you waiting for? ;-)
[JUN 27] Speaking of the Hollywood Bowl - there is a short article in Variety about the show. Also, a video of Nature Boy has turned up on YouTube courtesy of lstdnce..
[JUN 27] And before we leave the west coast, there is a review of the Palm Springs show courtesy of the Desert Sun and I have a few more fan reports from the California shows, along with a couple of photos.
[JUN 27] In the Donna is everywhere category, if you had really sharp eyes you probably spotted an old clip from American Bandstand during tonight's Daytime Emmy tribute to Dick Clark. Or if you have been following all the articles about the one year anniversary of Michael Jackson's death (Has it really been a whole year?) you may have spotted this article that includes a quote about Michael from Donna.
[JUN 27] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for a Love To Love You video medley posted by Fernando, and a couple of Shout It Out tracks courtesy of Jurecad. Sadly those clips don't have any of the freaky covers that some of the Shout It Out releases have had. (Aren't we due for some really horrible remixes of those by now? LOL)
[JUN 27] In classic dance news, Gold Legion will have Munich Machine's Whiter Shade Of Pale on July 2, Roberta Kelly's Troublemaker should be available July 12, and Paul Jabara's Keeping Time album should be out July 30. Those will be followed with several France Joli and Vicki Sue Robinson albums in August. You can pre-order any or all of those from the Gold Legion website now.
[JUN 20] Happy Father's Day!
[JUN 20] One last time for the whole Wendy's CD fiasco..... Donna has posted her official statement on the matter on her website. And thanks to a few busy little beavers, the word is getting out to the news agencies. :-) Long story short - there is only one version of Last Dance and it does NOT include the word horny. (Trust me - if there was a horny version, it would have been put on YouTube AGES ago! LOL) If you want to see a funny take on the controversy, check out this Hate By The Numbers video on YouTube.
[JUN 20] On to something way more fun - CALIFORNIA! :-) I have a couple of fan reports for you here. (I'll post more as I get them.) You can read about the Hollywood Bowl event on Los Angeles Broadway World and on the LA Times site. YouTube also has a few clips already. Check out the fireworks at the end of Last Dance, Donna's performance of Superstar with Richard Carpenter (gorgeous!) and a Superstar clip from Palm Springs. San Diego shouldn't feel left out - a number of clips from that show have turned up as well. :-)
[JUN 20] There is a new interview online to promote the Palm Springs show courtesy of the Desert Sun. Apparently album release schedules are more flaky in Palm Springs then they are on iTunes Canada - the article states that Donna's last album was 2008's Mistaken Identity. (Palm Springs fans may want to shop outside the city for Crayons - unless you want to wait until 2025. ;-) )
[JUN 20] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, in addition to all the cool California concert clips, we have the DJ Tony mix of Black Lady, a Last Dance Medley (not available in Wendy's Kids Meals LOL), New York Minute, and a couple of other mixes courtesy of Fernando.
[JUN 20] Finally in classic dance news, Gold Legion has a bunch of stuff coming up on the horizon. Look for 4 releases by Vicki Sue Robinson, 2 France Joli albums, and 1 by Cory Daye. Paul Jabara's Keeping Time album is available for pre-order so start shopping. :-)
[JUN 13] I guess we should start with something silly. (Well I think the whole thing is silly anyway. LOL) Last week I mentioned that the fast food chain, Wendy's, was giving away a karaoke CD of 70s music with the kids' meals. The CD had Last Dance on it (apparently Donna's version of it too - not a cheesy cover) and some people thought that in it Donna sang "when I'm bad, I'm so horny", which is not the case. Well, apparently Wendy's has decided to pull the CD because of the "racy" lyrics. Better yet, there are news reports claiming that there are 2 versions of Last Dance - one with the word "horny" and one without the word. I'm looking at my iPod right now. Between the single edits, 12' versions, remixes, fan mixes, live versions, oh and Paul Jabara's version - I have about 20 copies of Last Dance. There's not a "horny" in the bunch. But then again, I've only been an avid collector for 30 years so what do I know? LOL
[JUN 13] As many of you know - Donna will be inducted into the Hollywood Bowl Hall Of Fame this coming Friday. Angela Bassett will be doing the honors (she introduced Donna at Divas 2000 too) and it's my understanding that Donna will get to sing 4 or 5 songs. You can read more about the ceremony here, and if you are in the LA area, you can check the Hollywood Bowl website to see if there are any tickets left to the show.
[JUN 13] In the land of covers, 2 interesting ones have turned up this week. The first is an "oriental version" of I Feel Love. You can read the story behind it here, and you can hear it on YouTube. It's really different and I'm not sure how I feel about it. I couldn't even recognize the song until the lyrics started - that's how different it is. Then there is a Rima S cover of Love To Love You that is a lot of fun musically. (And the swimmers in the video aren't hard to look at either! ;-) )
[JUN 13] Over on YouTube look for a couple of remix videos courtesy of Fernando - including his video for the fabulous Klyk mix of Be Myself Again.
[JUN 6] Hello ATLANTA! You will see Donna on August 22 at the Chastain Park Amphitheatre and your tickets go on sale Saturday June 19 at 10 AM through Ticketmaster. Get those credit cards ready! :-)
[JUN 6] Speaking of concerts, fans driving east on 10 Freeway in California just might spot a familiar face on a billboard for the Palm Springs show. ;-) For those of us who can't see it in person, here's a photo courtesy of Jim:
[JUN 6] Apparently Palm Springs advertisements are everywhere - there is an ad in AXN magazine in Sydney Australia from Out Travel that is offering a package deal to go see Donna's show. (You get airfare, 5 nights in an area hotel, a shopping outlet tour and VIP tickets to the concert all for one price.)
[JUN 6] From the world of misunderstood lyrics - here's one that's making the rounds. Apparently the fast food chain, Wendy's, has a karaoke CD that they give out as a prize with some of the kids' meals. One of the songs included on the CD is Last Dance. Now you guys are going to want to either stop and play the song, or just run it through in your head to understand the part I'm talking about. Think about the last chorus where Donna sings "I need you by me, beside me to guide me/ to hold me and to scold me/ Cause when I'm bad I'm so so-oooh bad...." (It's right before the "come on baby dance that dance" lines.) Okay, the lyrics on the karaoke CD say that Donna is singing "Cause when I'm bad I'm so horny." Naturally some parents are up in arms about this. A few have (through the power of suggestion apparently) even heard the word "horny" in the song now - after years of never ever having noticed it before. LOL The words are very definitely "when I'm bad I'm so-oooh bad." It's the way Donna holds the word "so" that's throwing people off. (I should go submit that to the guys at kissthisguy.com - they maintain an archive of misheard lyrics that is sometimes pretty hilarious.) You know, I sort of feel like I want to go to Wendy's and buy a kids' meal now just for the stupid CD. LOL
[JUN 6] In the Donna's songs are everywhere category - check out the slogan in the upper left corner of Slovenia.info.
[JUN 6] Moving on to the web news for the week, over on YouTube, Fernando has been reposting some of his video collection. Look for Sally Go Round The Roses, Smile and a live clip of Hot Stuff. Also look for a good copy of the Work That Magic video.
[JUN 6] Finally in the land of classic dance - the Big Break Records reissue of the Brooklyn Dreams album is finally shipping! If you don't have yours yet, it will be in your hands soon. (And if my mailman is reading this - expect to be mugged every day until you bring me mine!)
[MAY 31] DonnaSummer.com has updated the news section to mention that Donna introduced a new song at the end of her concert for Louis Vuitton. :-)
[MAY 31] It will be June 1 in a few hours so you all know what that means - time for a new Summer Fever Pick. This time I'm putting Another Place And Time in the spotlight.
[MAY 30] Happy Memorial Day everyone!
[MAY 30] The bid news this week is Louis Vuitton. Donna was in the UK for the opening of the Louis Vuitton London store. Vogue has a photo from the event, as does StyleAndFashion.Blogosfere.it and Life, Getty Images has a few more, as does WireImage, while WWD.com has a quote from Donna. If you want to see what the store looks like, check HintMag.com - and check out the last couple of lines in the article.
[MAY 30] If you want to check out video from the event, a Belgian station ran a report that included a little concert footage. (The report itself is in Dutch - Donna's clip appears near the end.) And YouTube has a clip of On The Radio from the show.
[MAY 30] Speaking of YouTube, that brings me to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, Fernando had to start a new account. You can catch some of his videos here (and I have to say that backwards version of I Feel Love is just plain freaky. LOL)
[MAY 30] And in classic dance news, I have in my hands the Gold Legion reissue of Paul Jabara's Third Album. So for those of you who ordered it - it IS coming! :-) It comes with a 12 page booklet with extensive liner notes written by Christian Wikane that includes quotes from a number of people who worked with Paul. (From what I read, it sounds like the album was a lot of fun to work on.) There are about a half a dozen photos I had never seen before - and I have to say Paul looked amazing in a wedding dress. I had to look twice to make sure that really was him under the wig and makeup! LOL And of course the music is all digitally remastered and sounds wonderful. I liked the album when it liked on my iPod as a vinyl rip - but I love it now that the sound has been cleaned up.
[MAY 23] Happy birthday Phil!
[MAY 23] Let's start off with a VH1 interview from 1999. We all saw at least a few clips from this interview when Live & More Encore came out, but this is the whole unedited thing. Catch it on YouTube in two parts: here and here.
[MAY 23] Photo hounds - check out Picapp.com. It has a couple of photos of Donna in NY recently and a ton of photos from the Nobel Peace concert.
[MAY 23] In web news, SlickRickDog has posted a very short clip of On The Radio. (Warning - there are issues with the sound on that one.) There is also a radio edit of When Love Cries and surprisingly, a Paul Jabara clip of Take Good Care Of My Baby.
[MAY 18] Just a quick update to let you guys know that you can catch Johnnyswim on The Flying Perfect Parlor on Radio Free Brooklyn tonight at 8 PM. It streams online here.
[MAY 16] Happy Sunday everybody. Hello to the Johnnyswim fans I saw the other night at their show. For those of you who couldn't make it - you missed a great show! If you get a chance to catch them live somewhere, do it - they are the real deal. And speaking of Friday's show - I ran into Ken Allan there and he has a new column for us this week in which is is surprisingly nice. (I believe he is saving all his usual venom for his coworkers Monday. They were supposed to come to the show the other night and they bailed out - so they deserve whatever Ken throws at them! LOL)
[MAY 16] Here is a time sensitive item for XM radio and Sirius radio listeners. Starting Memorial Day (May 31) at 5 PM to June 2 at 3 AM (Eastern time), 70s on 7 will be doing a Hot Songs and Hot Stuff Memorial Day Weekend event where they will play all things 70s relating to "hot" or "summer" and that includes plenty of Donna Summer tunes.
[MAY 16] A Youtube user managed to track down some rehearsal footage from the Live & More Encore show. He posted 2 clips - one of I Don't Wanna Work That Hard (my personal theme song every day at work LOL) and No More Tears.
[MAY 16] In the Donna is everywhere category, check out the May issue of Daeida Magazine. They have an extensive interview with Chris Bennett and Donna gets mentioned a lot. The full issue is available on the magazine's website - you want to head to page 22 to find Chris.
[MAY 16] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, Darrell Russ gave an interview to Urban Latin Radio recently and in it he mentioned Donna.
[MAY 16] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, Fernando has posted a 35 Years Medley of Donna Songs - part 1. ExcuseMeAgain has posted a couple of classic clips,
[MAY 13] Johnnyswim fans - catch them at the Wolffer Estate Vineyard in Sagaponak, NY tomorrow night from 5 to 8 PM. (If you are wondering where Sagaponak is - just say to yourself, "the Hamptons" LOL) Details at 27East.com.
[MAY 9] Happy Mother's Day! Let me start off by saying that I'm sorry I haven't been online as much as usual lately. I've hired a couple of very young staffers to handle all the typos for the site.... little kittens, and while they are cute as anything, they require a lot of training and supervision. (Particularly since circumstances took them from their mother way earlier than I would have liked. Who knew I'd grow up to be a mama cat?) So I'm trying to sneak in the update while they sleep off dinner. LOL
[MAY 9] In the land of remixes, Apollo 0 has done a mix of U2 vs Donna, She Works Hard On New Year's Day.
[MAY 9] Allheadlinenews.com has a very short article publicizing some of the upcoming tour dates. And the Binghamton University website also has a short article to publicize her upcoming show there.
[MAY 9] Photo lovers - check out Last.fm. They have a couple hundred photos culled from all over the web including some rare shots as well as plenty of old favorites.
[MAY 9] In web news, over on YouTube look for an interview from The Hit List promoting Crayons, a 2010 Mlle Lucy rework mix of Down Deep Inside, and a Black Lady remix video by Fernando. And for those of you who always wondered about the guy who uses the name DJ Donna Summer (aka Jason Forest) you can see a clip of his work here.
[MAY 9] And that brings me to the world of classic dance. Gold Legion customers: just sit tight. Your orders are on the way (or will be soon depending on which items you bought.) They had some unforeseen delays and I hope to have more details tomorrow. On the other side of the world, Big Break Records has announced its next four releases. They will be expanded reissues of Tavares' New Directions, Deniece Williams' Song Bird, Heatwave's Current, and Three Degrees' New Dimensions.
[MAY 5] Happy Cinco de Mayo! If you are buying tickets for Florida tomorrow, the code you will want to know is "DANCE". :-)
[MAY 3] HOLLYWOOD FLORIDA - you will see Donna at the hard Rock on August 18. Tickets go up for presale via Ticketmaster on May 6. (Ticketmaster doesn't say who the presale is for yet, but I suspect it's for the gamblers.)
[MAY 3] I've updated page 1 of Wolfgang's discography. I haven't fully tested it yet, so please excuse any formatting weirdness for the moment. I'll check that out after work.
[MAY 2] Before I get to the Donna news, Bruce fans will want to check out the Family Matters section below. And I want to remind those of you going to the show in Binghamton, those tickets go on sale tomorrow and Atlantic City tickets go on sale May 6.
[MAY 2] Let's start with Giorgio Moroder. He celebrated his 70th birthday last week with a bunch of friends and a few photos have turned up on the WireImage.com. Of particular note - there is a photo there of Giorgio with Donna and Pete Bellotte. It's nice to see the team together again. :-) (Note to Giorgio: Taureans ROCK! ;-) )
[MAY 2] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an article about Giorgio Moroder. The article is in German, but one of my harem of Franks ;-) provided a translation of the relevant part: "In the mid-seventies Giorgio was staff-producer at Phonogram. But they declined the really big one he produced so far. One day I stopped by in his studio and he didn't appear very busy, reading a newspaper. 'Aren't you working on something?", I asked. He answered: "I produced a song, but they turned it down. Now I'll wait a couple of months until my contract expires and after that it will be a hit around the world.' 'Let me listen', I begged. He played Love to Love you Baby by Donna Summer - and my jaw dropped - I had never heard anything like it before. Donna Summer came to Germany with the cast of Hair... "
[MAY 2] Facebook users, check out another Frank's new group dedicated to convincing the producers of Glee to do an episode of Donna Summer music. (I've never watched the show, but I would tune in for that!)
[MAY 2] In cover news, Jennifer Lopez has covered On The Radio. You can read about it (and more importantly hear it) on Idolator.com.
[MAY 2] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, Javibal posted the clip from the recent German TV show Generation Pop. The interview is in German (of course) but it's fun to watch. (They have some weird fashion visuals to go with Bad Girls. LOL) Fernando has posted his videos for a Stamp Your Feet mix and for Driving Down Brazil. (That one features Fred Astaire - who knew Fred Astaire would be starring in music videos now? LOL) Stevescissors has posted some Divas 2000 behind the scenes clips, and someone else has posted a clip from the Dolce & Gabana party from a couple of years ago.
[MAY 2] In classic dance news, look for Paul Jabara's Third Album to start shipping Tuesday from Gold Legion.
[MAY 2] And on a personal note - thanks to those of you who contributed to the MS Walk. My boss was able to collect a bunch of cash for the charity and more importantly she didn't fire me.... Oh wait, that's all wrong. I wanted to be fired. Darn - I could have spent the summer on unemployment! ;-) I'll be back tomorrow with an update to Wolfgang's German discography. (I was going to post it tonight but I ran out of time.)
[MAY 1] It's a new month so that means it's time to change the Summer Fever pick. This month I put She Works Hard For The Money in the spotlight.... hmmmm.... I wonder if I subconsciously picked that because of my work schedule this month? LOL I'll be back tomorrow with the regular update. :-)
[APR 25] Let's start off with CONNECTICUT. You will see Donna at the MGM Grand at Foxwoods on Friday September 3. Tickets go on sale April 30 at 9 AM via Ticketmaster. Anybody who missed the midweek updates should check the tour schedule below. And to all of you who follow me on Facebook - I'm not actually attending all the concerts (don't I wish I could! LOL) but I like setting putting the word out there by setting up events so consider me as attending most of the shows in spirit and just a few in person. ;-)
[APR 25] Last night German TV station WDR ran a documentary called Generation Pop: Disco & Dauerlutscher. Of course they had clips of some of the hits and they even ran clips of an old interview. One of my European spies, Frank, caught it and gave me this recap: The interview was in German (no problem for Donna) and started with Donna laying in a hammock! She told a little story about how the record LTLYB saved the honor of some older men who became interested in their wife again after hearing the song (LOL). She also told how she hated the fact that at one point she had become a product of the industry and that she hated it so much she wished she was dead. She was looking beautiful as ever, let's hope these images will pop up on YouTube one day. There is way to sign up to record the show online, you can check that out here. (And yes, that page is in German so find a cute German to help you out of that's not your language. ;-) )
[APR 25] I guess you could call this one old news. LOL You can read 1978 Village Voice article reviewing Donna's shows at the Felt Forum. You can read it on the Google archives. Note to my visually impaired readers: the article is presented as a scan of the original paper so it probably will not cooperate with a screen reader.
[APR 25] In the Donna will be everywhere category, ummm... you might have seen videos on YouTube of flash mobs. Basically it's just a huge group of people that descend upon a public place do a choreographed dance routine for a few minutes and hopefully get the bystanders involved too. For an example you can check out this T-mobile one. Well, there is a group putting together a flash mob in Lyon that will happen in June. They have the music and choreography posted on the web, and you might notice a familiar remix of La Vie En Rose in the music track. :-) If any of you decide to get involved with that (or if you happen to witness it) let me know how it goes.
[APR 25] I think that brings us to the web news. On Youtube look for Fernando's remix video for Looking Up and the video for State Of Independence.
[APR 23] PALM SPRINGS - Donna is playing the Fantasy Springs Resort on June 19. Tickets are on ale now and they have special deals available if you want to book a room as well.
[APR 23] BILOXI - you will see Donna on August 20 at the Imperial Palace Casino Resort and Spa. Tickets are on sale now through Ticketmaster.
[APR 21] LOS ANGELES - Donna is being inducted to the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame on June 18. She (along with the other inductees) will be performing that night at the Bowl. For details check out this link but I'm guessing that tickets will be scarce and pricey.
[APR 19] Morristown - your tickets are on sale tomorrow at 8:45 at this link: www.mayoarts.org/indiv/indiv_Donna_Summer.html
[APR 18] UPSTATE NEW YORK - this hasn't made the venue website yet, but Donna will be at the Anderson Center in Binghamton on August 31. Look for those tickets on May 3 through the Anderson Center box office.
[APR 18] Boston fans - I have a gentleman named Nick with one extra ticket for the upcoming concert. It's row M seat 18 which is on the right side of the pavilion. It's actually the 11th row because on the side, the rows start with C. If you want it, it's $94. Send me an email and I'll hook you up with Nick. Also, they have been tossing around some interesting promotion ideas for the Boston area, so stay tuned for more details as they are hammered out.
[APR 18] There is a new mix Lovely Reprises mix of La Vie En Rose available on iTunes. (It's track 18 on the album Lovely Reprises by K'lid.) It does NOT feature the sped up vocals that previous La Vie mixes have used.
[APR 18] Some of you may have run into an advertisement for a DVD of the Crayons tour. You were not hallucinating, someone really was trying to sell one earlier this week. The only problem was that it was an illegal bootleg made from a fan shot video. (I can't even imagine the quality being consistently good all the way through on something like that so selling it was doubly ballsy. LOL) The DVD has since been removed from the website in question.
[APR 18] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube check out Knights In White Satin (audio only), stampyourfeet's video for the Lovely Reprises remix of La Vie En Rose, a classic clip of This Time I Know It's For Real from SlickRickDog, and one of Fernando's videos for a white label mix of Sunset People.
[APR 18] Classic dance fans, if you are looking for any of the goodies offered by Big Break Records, they have a deal posted on their website where you can get 3 CDs for £25 or 5 for £35. Currently they have Gloria Gaynor, Odyssey, Three Debrees and Gladys Knight with Evelyn King and Brooklyn Dreams coming soon.)
[APR 12] NEW JERSEY - see Donna on August 25 at the Mayo Center for the Arts in Morristown. Tickets go on sale to subscribers on April 14 and to the rest of us April 20.
[APR 11] If you missed the update the other day, Donna was on NPR radio on a show discussing disco music. (It's part of the promotion for the Alice Echols book Hot Stuff [Amazon US, Amazon UK]) You can catch the whole radio show here, or if you are only interested in Donna's part, it is posted here with an article about the show. I don't know how long they will keep the audio clips up, so check them out soon.
[APR 11] Donna's Facebook page has been updated with the concert schedule so far. After reading some of the comments over there I just wanted to say that the list they gave is direct from Pollstar which is not a complete tour list yet. There are any number of summer venues that have not releases their lineups yet (and probably won't for a few weeks) - and Pollstar is not always quick about finding new dates. They don't even have the Atlantic City date on their list yet. So don't freak out and think the tour is only 4 dates - just be patient a little longer. :-) On a side note, I got a couple of emails about a concert in Venezuela. I haven't heard anything official about that ... or even anything unofficial about that yet... or even anything about DJ Donna Summer (aka Jason Forrest) LOL in Venezuela yet, so we'll just have to wait and see what turns up.
[APR 11] In release news, the Dutch site Bol.com has a 2 CD set for Love To Love You boxed with I Remember Yesterday available for pre-order. They give a release days of May 7 and no other info. It would make sense for the albums to be digitally remastered, but I guess we won't know for sure if they are until May 7. It is also listed for sale on Amazon and Amazon UK with release dates of May 18 and May 10. (The US Amazon lists it as an import so expect longer shipping times and higher prices.)
[APR 11] For those of you who enjoy François' calendar wallpapers, he sent me June, July and August to share with you. Click the thumbnails for a larger version, then right click to save. If you like what you see, head over to the forum and let him know. :-)
[APR 11] In web news Pepperamico has posted his 3 part megamix from Love To Love You to Crayons on YouTube. Also on YouTube, look for SteveScissor's Starting Over Again clip from the Eddie Rabbit special.
[APR 11] Finally in classic dance news, the upcoming Gold Legion releases have been delayed a little bit. But don't be sad about that - they are delayed for a very good reason. The little 2 page CD booklets that each one was going to have have been expanded thanks to the writing of Christian Wikane and the involvement of the various artists being released. So the new release dates ate April 22 for Paul Jabara's Third Album (and that will have a 12 page booklet filled with never seen before photos and interviews with some of Paul's collaborators) and April 29 for Munich Machine, Giorgio & Chris, and Roberta Kelly. (Those will feature interviews with the artists.) If you ordered one of the bundle packages that include the previously released Zodiac Lady and Munich Machine, those 2 albums will be shipped to you this week and then you will get the rest at the end of the month when they come out. And if you haven't ordered any of the albums yet - you better do it now while they still have the bundle deals. :-) There are still plenty more things in the works, so stay tuned.
[APR 9] Donna turned up on NPR radio in Boston this morning as part of a discussion of the disco era. The show is online now at OnPointRadio.org and Donna phones in at about the 22 minute mark.
[APR 4] Happy Easter everyone! For those of you who missed the mid-week updates, you need to check out the tour schedule below. As always, I will add more dates as soon as I get them. Please excuse today's typos - I think this is the earliest in the morning I've ever attempted a site update. LOL
[APR 4] There is a short article on BostonMusicSpotlight.com promoting this summer's concert in Boston. And there is one online announcing the show in Memphis.
[APR 4] For those of you who like the concert photos, there are a bunch from last year's show at Chumash posted on DwightMcCann.com.
[APR 4] Speaking of photos, those of you who visit the forum are undoubtedly acquainted with François' wonderful singles covers and calendars Well, since he can't post files on the forum anymore, he sent me his calendar wallpapers for April and May to share with you all. Clicking either thumbnail will show you the full-sized version and then you can right click that to save it to your computer.
[APR 4] Out in San Francisco, Eli is trying to get together a Donna Summer chat group. This is what he gave me to post: Fans of Donna Summer meet once a month at Church Street Cafe, 262 Church Street, San Francisco, CA to discuss all things DONNA SUMMER!! Meetings are on 2nd Wednesdays of every month, and start between 7:30-8 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. Send an email to Eli for more information to: thewanderer1980 AT rocketmail.com Come join the discussion and meet new friends and fans of DONNA SUMMER!!! So if you are in the area and are interested, just get in touch with Eli. :-)
[APR 4] In the Donna is everywhere category, Kelly Rowland mentioned in a recent article that she is looking to Donna and Diana Ross for inspiration for the look and sound of her upcoming third album.
[APR 4] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube, SlickRickDog has dug up a couple more classic clips and Fernando has posted a couple more of his video creations. I will be back next week (or sooner if anything pops up before then.) Hopefully I will get to see some of you tomorrow night at Taihisha's concert Feinstein's. :-)
[APR 2] Okay, the REAL Summer Fever pick is posted. It's Donna's collaborations with Paul Jabara. (That's in honor of the upcoming re-release of Paul's Third Album.)
[APR 1] Memphis - your on sale date for tickets has changed to April 19.
[MAR 31] MEMPHIS - catch Donna on August 21 Live At The Garden. Tickets go on sale TOMORROW at 10 AM via Ticketmaster.
[MAR 31] SAN DIEGO - catch Donna at the San Diego county Fair on June 17. Tickets go on sale Saturday April 3 via Ticketmaster. As always, as soon as I hear of any more dates I'll let you know.
[MAR 31] And while I'm here, it's time for the new Summer Fever pick. This time we take a little peek into the vault. Shhh.... don't tell Donna. ;-)
[MAR 28] If you missed yesterday's update - the Boston tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster. Fans of Taihisha Grant, Brooklyn Sudano and Johnnyswim will want to head to the Family Matters section below.
[MAR 28] In the Donna is everywhere category, a tiny clip of her performance for the Herbalife convention popped up on YouTube. (It's just the video - they replaced the audio.) It's a pretty long clip of highlights from the whole event and you don't see Donna until about 6:58 or 6:59. There is a more interesting clip of Patti Labelle also on YouTube. In it she was asked to describe various other divas and she had nothing but nice things to say about Donna. The whole interview is interesting, but if you just want to jump to the Donna part that starts at about 3:53 (right after Madonna). I think Patti might be one of us. ;-) (Patti also talks about Aretha, Cher, Diana, Barbra, and others as well and I know we have some fans of all of those women around here.)
[MAR 28] If words are more your thing, Donna gets a mention in another article about the new Alice Echols book, Hot Stuff: Disco And The Remaking Of American Culture. [Amazon US, Amazon UK]
[MAR 28] Just a reminder that Paul Jabara's Third Album is available through Gold Legion on April 6. (Or you can pre-order it now.) That's the one with the full-length duet with Donna of Never Lose Your Sense of Humor. It's got some really good liner notes too with several quotes about Paul from Donna (and others.) If you are interested in the other Gold Legion offerings (Roberta Kelly, Munich Machine, as well as Paul Jabara) you can get a bundle of the first 6 Gold Legion CDs at a discount.
[MAR 28] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, SlickRickDog has dusted off his archives again and posted a number of classic clips - including one of Lady Of The Night. And Fernando has posted his video for What Is It You Want.
[MAR 28] And finally, I have a personal request for you. My boss was just recently diagnosed with MS which came as a shock to everyone at my job. (The rule is bad things never are supposed to happen to people you know! LOL If only, right?) Anyway, she's now involved in fundraising for MS and will be doing our local MS Walk later this spring. (If I get the day off I'll be joining her.) If you would like to donate money to help the cause, just use this link. Or click the link if you just want to help me keep my boss from firing me..... ;-) (I'm just kidding about the firing thing. She would never fire me.... unless it was out of a cannon.)
[MAR 27] The weekly update is coming tomorrow - but I have an important message for Boston. Your tickets sneaked onto Ticketmaster when I wasn't looking and are available for sale NOW.
[MAR 21] Fans of Johnnyswim and Taihisha Grant will want to head down to the Family Matters section below. Donna fans - the summer dates are starting to pop up. :-)
[MAR 21] BOSTON - mark your calendar for Friday August 27. Donna will be at the Bank of America Pavilion. There are expensive broker tickets up for sale now at Vividseats.com but I'm sure you will see regular priced tickets at Ticketmaster in the not too distant future.
[MAR 21] ATLANTIC CITY - you guys get Saturday August 28 at Trump's Taj Mahal. Those tickets will go on sale through Ticketmaster on May 8. Serious Taj gamblers may be able to buy sooner through the box office. Keep an eye on your comp newsletters. Everybody else - I'll post more dates as I get them but I would say that East Coast fans should keep late August, early September free. West Coast fans just sit tight and we'll see what pops up.
[MAR 21] Moving on to release news - as I mentioned last week Gold Legion now has Paul Jabara's Third Album available for pre-order. What I didn't know last week is that Christian John Wikane is involved in the liner notes on that one and he interviewed a couple of people in the process - Greg Mathieson, Jay Asher and someone named Donna Summer. ;-) So now you have another reason to buy it!
[MAR 21] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a very brief mention in an article about Disco music - about why it doesn't get the respect it deserves. Also check out the video for Darrell Russ' Riding Home From Baltimore... there is a very familiar album cover in it.
[MAR 21] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube, Fernando has posted part 2 of the Groovy mix of No More Tears. Over on Multiply. Steve has posted some of the best of YouTube, and Carl has posted a Donna vs Dannii Minogue Power Of Love Perfection re EQ 2010.
[MAR 14] Greetings from windy and rainy Long Island where I'm building an ark and loading it up with my Donna Summer CDs....2 by 2. ;-) Fans of Brooklyn Sudano and Johnnyswim will want to check the Family Matters section below. Brooklyn Dreams fans will want to read the regular Donna news. :-)
[MAR 14] For everyone who has been asking about concerts - I'm starting to hear rumors of things in the works, but I don't expect any official announcements until next month or maybe even early May. That's because many of the summer venues won't release their lineups until close to Memorial Day.
[MAR 14] In release news, Gold Legion now has Paul Jabara's Third Album available for pre-order. (That's the one that includes the full length version of Never Lose Your Sense of Humor with Donna.) The album will be out on April 6, but you can reserve your copy now. They also have Roberta Kelly's Trouble Maker and a couple of Munich Machine albums up for pre-order too. See the Gold Legion site for details. (By the way - Donna did backing vocals on one of the Roberta Kelly tracks. :-) ) Also - watch for Paul's Keeping Time album to come out at the end of May.
[MAR 14] And while you are in a pre-ordering sort of mood - Big Break Records has the Brooklyn Dreams album available for pre-order on Amazon UK. (Donna does backing vocals on one of those tracks too.) You can get it on the US Amazon too, but if you do that you will have to wait until mid-May and the base price will be higher. (Right now £8 converts to about $12 and I don't think the shipping will eat up too much of that discount.)
[MAR 14] In the Donna is everywhere category, YouTube user Chimier came up with the 100 greatest singers who influenced music of the 20th century. He's got Donna in at #51 but I'm not really sure how you can sort the list by number when there is such an eclectic list of artists from all genres and all eras of popular music. I mean how can you compare the influence of Maria Callas to the influence of Mariah Carey? But like all lists it's fun to look at and fun to argue about.
[MAR 14] In other YouTube news, we have several remixes posted by DJDiscoCat, there is a No More Tears mix posted by Fernando, and you guys are gonna love this - there is a live clip from The Midnight Special of Donna and the Brooklyn Dreams doing a medley of Motown songs. You can tell the 4 of them were having fun with it and each one gets a turn at lead.
[MAR 7] Happy Oscar night! Before I get to Donna, Johnnyswim fans (particularly the ones in New York) will want to check the Family Matters section below.
[MAR 7] Since it's Oscar night, the media has been packed with articles about the festivities. One from the Oakland Tribune is a list of the author's favorite Oscar-winning tunes. He's got Last Dance in there and he describes Donna's performance of it as the best reason to watch Thank God It's Friday. :-) (Just ignore his playlist on the side though - it links to a completely different song called Last Dance by the Raveonettes. Oops. )
[MAR 7] In release news, Time Life is putting out a 9 DVD set of The Best Of Soul Train. Donna is represented with her performance of Love To Love You. You can pre-order the set now on the Time-Life website and the disks will ship at the end of the month. The website has a complete list of the performances you will find on the collection.
[MAR 7] The LA Times is looking to expand its biography page on Donna (they have bios for various Walk Of Fame stars) and they are looking for input from readers. If you have any input for them - check the LA Times website.
[MAR 7] Tulsaworld.com has an interview with Curt Gooch about the Casablanca book, And Party Every Day. The article is accompanied by a classic live shot of Donna from back in the day.
[MAR 7] In the Donna is everywhere category, a Toronto wedding DJ lists Last Dance as a good end of the night wedding song. And an article about Tony Blair's new biography (titled The Journey) mentioned that Donna had a greatest hits compilation called The Journey.
[MAR 7] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Youtube, look for Glen Rivera's Restructured mix of Love's Unkind, WEN!NG's Dance Mix of Love To Love You, a live clip of Hot Stuff from Coney Island courtesy of Fernando, and an old interview in German courtesy of SteveScissors.
[MAR 1] The new Summer Fever pick is posted. This month it's the Donna Summer album.
[FEB 28] Greetings to all my friends in Chile - hang in there guys! I hope you are all okay.
[FEB 28] If you missed the Nobel Peace Prize concert yesterday - it was the same edit Canada got. They only showed one song out of Donna's set - She Works Hard For The Money. They could have fit the rest in if they had dropped all the stuff with Barack Obama. It's not like he is important or anything.... ;-) Anyway - it may not have aired nationwide, so if it wasn't on in your area just keep watching your local listings. I also understand that Pay Per View in Spain ran the whole show this weekend - so the rest of you guys in Europe should also keep an eye on your local listings. With any luck you will get it too.
[FEB 28] Last night the Castro Country Club held a fundraiser that they billed as a Donna Summer tribute. In other words - they know how to party right in San Francisco!
[FEB 28] Fans in the Pensacola area have a new Donna-friendly radio station to tune in to. It's 107.3 The Groove. Internet fans can listen in live online as well.
[FEB 28] The Casablanca book, And Party Every Day, was recently reviewed by the Windy City Times. You can read it on their website, and if you haven't checked out the book yet you need to. It's an interesting and fun read.
[FEB 28] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for Fernando's video for There Will Always Be A You. (He used some movie clips that aren't too friendly for work - so beware if you are surfing around behind the boss' back. ;-) ) He's also got one for Why (a song that was done before Donna was famous). And look for the WEN!NG mixes posted by Ruepelsenf.
[FEB 28] I'll be back tomorrow night with the new Summer Fever pick.
[FEB 21] It's a very quiet week this week, but Brooklyn fans will want to jump down to the Family Matters section below.
[FEB 21] Ok USA fans (and maybe some Canadian fans too - - the Nobel Peace Prize concert will air on ABC this coming Saturday (February 27) at 3 PM. This is an edited version running for only an hour so assuming it's the same edit Canada got, we will only have one of Donna's songs. If you didn't catch it online, catch it now. (And then head over to YouTube to catch the songs that are being cut.)
[FEB 21] Yes, this brings us to the web news already. (I told you it was a quiet week. LOL) Over at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has updated the Donna Summer Top 40 and there are a bunch of surprises. (Fascination just popped up at number 3 out of the blue. Someday came out of nowhere too. There are a few other surprises on the list too.) Over on YouTube, look for a VH1 mini-profile courtesy of stevescissors, Fernando has the DJ Plump mix of I Feel Love, the CasablancaBookTV guys have posted a VH1 promo of their book And Party Every Day.
[FEB 14] Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Brooklyn Dreams fans will want to head down to the Family Matters section below. And classic dance fans will want to see the new crop of releases listed right after the web news. In the mean time - Washington DC, if you missed the midweek update, you need to look at the concert schedule below. Everybody else - just sit tight. Most of the summer venues don't announce their schedules quite so early, so we probably won't hear much more until Spring.
[FEB 14] In release news..... Gold Legion has something very interesting coming out April 6. It's Paul Jabara's Third Album which features a duet with a certain diva we all know and love. The song is called Never Lose Your Sense of Humor and this version is longer than the edit that you find on iTunes on Paul's Greatest Hits & Misses. (Over 2 minutes longer!) I will have more Gold Legion info for you below when I cover the classic dance stuff. They have more great stuff coming. :-)
[FEB 14] In the Donna is everywhere category, Billboard posted a list of the 50 sexiest songs (1958 to early January 2010). Donna came in at #43 with Dim All The Lights, 33 with Love To Love You, 13 with Bad Girls and 6 with Hot Stuff. Now you may find the list printed in several places, but if you hit the Billboard site, they actually have videos and the sexiest lyrics from each of the 50 songs. (I think Donna has the most songs on there of any of the artists represented.)
[FEB 14] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, PBS in Connecticut recently aired a special on the Blizzard of 1978. (Gee, I wonder what could have inspired that? LOL) Near the end of the show they played a little music under the speakers and one of the songs was Last Dance. It's a pledge drive show so it will probably air again on various PBS stations so check it out if you can.... unless you are so sick of snow this year that you just can't bear to watch. LOL
[FEB 14] In web news this week, look for a mix of Love Is The Healer posted by LastPhoenix1. The really cool thing about the video is how LastPhoenix photoshopped pictures of Donna into art galleries, street signs, etc like they were actually real billboards that you might encounter somewhere. And Fernando has posted the American Bandstand clip of Last Dance.
[FEB 14] And that brings us to the classic dance news. We'll start with Gold Legion. As I mentioned before, hey have Paul Jabara's Third Album coming out on April 6. In their coming soon list, they also have Paul's Keeping Time album, Roberta Kelly's Troublemaker album, Munich Machine's A Whiter Shade Of Pale, and Chris & Giorgio's Love's In You, Love's In Me. Those probably won't turn up until at least late April so just be patient. :-) Now, for those of you who didn't get the current releases yet (Roberta Kelly's Zodiac Lady and Munich Machine's self-titles album), the great news is that Gold Legion is offering 10% off until February 21. You just have to use the code: GL10. Definitely check out these albums - they are really very well done.
[FEB 14] In even more classic dance news, Big Break Records has a few more upcoming releases that have been announced. First up is the Brooklyn Dreams self-titled album. (I talk more about that in the Family Matters section below.) Then they have Evelyn "Champagne" King's Get Loose - those 2 will be coming at the end of April. I believe I already mentioned that they have Odyessy's self-titled album and Gladys Knight's About Love album coming in March. And of course they already have the Three Degrees debut album, and Gloria Gaynor's Experience and Never Can Say Goodbye albums available for sale. The Big Break Records website is now set up for online purchases but note that the prices shown are British Pounds Sterling. You can also buy from Amazon UK - but I notice that they won't ship until next month. If you become a fan of Big Break Records on Facebook, they will keep you alerted to all the new releases.
[FEB 8] Washington DC - you guys will see Donna at Wolftrap on Sunday August 29. Tickets are on sale now for members. Non-members can get tickets starting on March 13. Let the summer tour begin! :-)
[FEB 7] Fans of both Taihisha, the Brooklyn Dreams, and Brooklyn Sudano will want to see the Family Matters section below. And I have some classic dance news coming up after all the Donna news for the week. :-)
[FEB 7] Okay - let's start with the Nobel Peace Prize concert. It just aired tonight in Toronto (sorry I didn't have advance notice on that for you.) They ran an edited version of the show that was only an hour long. And unfortunately they cut Donna down to just She Works Hard For The Money. (And I would have bet money that they would have left Last Dance.) Now I don't know if the edited version of the show is the same in the US and Canada - most likely it is. And I guess we are all going to have to keep a close eye on our local listings if we want to catch the show on TV. If anybody runs into a TV listing just let me know when and where so I can get it out there for you guys.
[FEB 7] Covers collectors - Hypnogaja has put out an acoustic alt/rock version of On The Radio. It's on their just releases digital 45 called Welcome To The Future and you can grab it on iTunes. It's an interesting take on the song so check it out.
[FEB 7] From the land of the just plain silly.... an article on Pentagon spending inspired a comment from someone saying he was redesigning all the money and replacing the Presidents with dance icons. He's going to put Donna on the $20. LOL That would be way cooler than those celebrity $1 bills that used to be on eBay. (The comment was about half way down the page when I looked just now. Look for February 3 at 10:24 AM if you are having trouble spotting it.)
[FEB 7] In web news, on YouTube Fernando has posted the DJ Meme mix of I Feel Love, and Steve has posted Tearing Down The Walls. Over on Multiply, Jeffrey is the one who has gone completely insane with a bunch of live clips and some remixes too. Also look at Carl's page for some mixes and Steve's page for Tearing Down The Walls and some live clips. Speaking of Steve - he's revised his Collection Corner site, so if you are interested in tons of photos that's a good place to look.
[FEB 7] And that brings us to the classic dance news. (If Gold Legion and Big Break Records are going to keep all this going - I may have to add a separate news section just for classic dance. :-) ) Big Break Records now has a website. It's still a work in progress - but bookmark it for future reference. Now I already told you they have a Three Degrees album and 2 Gloria Gaynor albums coming out next week. (That's in the UK - North America will have to wait a little longer or order from overseas.) Coming up next month they will have Odyssey's self-titles album and Gladys Knight & The Pips About Love album. Now if you happen to go to the website they have 2 more album covers showing with no release date yet (Evelyn Champagne King and Brooklyn Dreams). Now over at Gold Legion, I know they are working on something for either this month or more likely next month that will definitely be of interest to you guys. I don't like to offer titles before there is an official release date, but I'll just say that "heaven is a disco" and let you draw your own conclusions.
[FEB 1] The Summer Fever pick is posted. This month it's Cats Without Claws.
[JAN 31] This will probably be a quick update tonight, and the tentative plan is to get the Summer Fever pick up tomorrow night. But I'm having some issues with my cat, so depending on how that plays out and how I feel - it might get delayed. Ironically - I was updating the Cats Without Claws page when all this started.
[JAN 31] Photo hounds will want to check out the galleries at Zimbio.com. They have a bunch from the Nobel Peace Prize concert and the rehearsals for the show. If you keep going they have a bunch from past events too like the Today Show concert, the Elton John gala, one of the VH1 appearances, etc. When you get to the Zimbio page just keep hitting "next" until your fingers fall off to see everything. ;-)
[JAN 31] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an interview with Gabriela Cilmi. Apparently Four Seasons Of Love expanded her musical horizons. Hot Stuff gets a mention in an interview with KCat. Apparently it's one of the songs she wishes she had written.
[JAN 31] In the world of covers, recording artist Anane has done a cover of Love To Love You. It will be on the forthcoming album Ananesworld due out February 16.
[JAN 31] In some silly news, the guys at the Zap2it blog are throwing a Cake Boss party, and they described the music they would play for such a party. MacArthur Park (by Donna of course) was on the list.
[JAN 31] In web news, check out the 600 Greatest and Most Important Songs Of Rock courtesy of MrMusiclists. (They are listed alphabetically by first name so Donna falls in at # 177 and 178.) My link takes you to the video with Donna, but if you want to see the rest of the list look at the related videos. It takes several parts to cover the whole 600. Other YouTube highlights this week include the extended version of Love Is In Control, WEN!NG's Gramophone edition of I Remember Yesterday, and several video mixes from Fernando.
[JAN 31] I've been telling you about the recent classic dance reissues from Gold Legion here in the US, and now I have a UK company putting out stuff too. Big Break Records is putting out expanded versions of Gloria Gaynor's Never Can Say Goodbye and Experience, and The Three Degrees self-titled album album in just a couple of weeks with more classic stuff coming out in the next few months. You can buy the Big Break Records stuff on Amazon UK starting February 15 - anyone buying from Amazon US will have to wait until March. These new releases will all include bonus tracks - either b-sides or alternate versions or whatever else is available for the particular album. And the first 1000 copies they make will be in a special deluxe jewel box.
Now I have an idea what's coming next for both Gold Legion and Big Break - but I don't like to say anything until II have firm release dates. But I will tell you that both have interesting things on the schedule and that there is no overlap between them. So if you are looking to fill in your classic dance collections - plan on shopping from both labels. :-) (Big Break Records will have their own site up soon - I'll provide that link as soon as it's up and running. In the mean time if you use Facebook you can find them over there. Just do a search for Big Break Records.)
[JAN 24] Bruce Sudano fans will want to jump down to the Family Matters section below. And those of you who are interested in the Gold Legion Casablanca reissues will want to stay tuned for the update (immediately following the web news). :-)
[JAN 24] On to the diva! OK - if you happen to work for Herbalife, you can get to see Donna at their 30th Anniversary Summit. She doing a show for them in March in Florida to close out the festivities. For those of us who don't work for Herbalife - we can look at the flyer for the event while we wait for the public dates to start shaping up. :-)
[JAN 24] Photo hounds, you will want to check out BackstageGallery.com for some mid-70s photos of Donna.
[JAN 24] If anyone is looking for Black Power (a track Donna recorded in Germany about the time she was appearing in Hair), you can find it on iTunes it's just not credited to Donna. The album it's from is called Moonflowers And Mini Skirts and it's credited to Peter Thomas (the composer).
[JAN 24] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an article about celebrity favorite dance songs. Shakira picked Bad Girls. She's also mentioned in a review of Kelly Rowland's new CD - apparently it has a "Donna Summer" sound to it. :-)
[JAN 24] That brings us to the web news. First up is YouTube. You are going to want to see Stampyurfeet's new video. He's taken Donna's version of How I Feel (from the musical The Me Nobody Knows) and matched it with footage from Haiti. (If the video inspires you to make a donation, Google has a list of organizations, or you can head to iTunes and buy songs from the benefit concert from the other night.) Also look for Xavier's mashup of Dirty Diana with I Will Go With You, WEN!NG's Glitter To Gold mix of Fairy Tale High, and a couple of new ones from Fernando.
[JAN 24] And now for some non-Donna news. Last week I told you that Gold Legion teamed up with Universal to release some of the old Casablanca gems starting with albums by Munich Machine and Roberta Kelly. I got my CDs this week and am very happy with them. They look good - the original art is there, along with the original credits, etc and they've added a page to tell you a little about the artist. In Roberta Kelly's case it even has a line or 2 about what she's doing now - including a mention of her appearance on stage at Donna's Berlin concert last year. (Which reminds me guys - Gold Legion is watching the thread on the board. If you have idea, throw them out there. They will be seen. :-) ) Now as far as sound goes - 2 thumbs up. The albums are remastered and they sound great even when I drag out my headphones and play the actual CD itself (as opposed to the rips I made for my iPod. ) I think you guys will be very happy. :-) (Don't be fooled by the clips on the site - those are rips that were only done at 128 kbps and I know a lot of you won't touch anything below 196 in your personal collections.) Now if you missed out on the 10% off promo code I mentioned last week.... you're in luck because that's been extended. GL10 will keep working right up until January 31. And while I'm here I wanted to clarify one thing for the casual fans out there. If you check the Munich Machine track list, you will see a few familiar tracks. They are the same songs Donna recorded (or in one case that Roberta Kelly recorded) but these are not the same versions. These are alternate versions recorded by the Munich Machine team and do not feature any vocals by Donna or Roberta. But it's still pure Giorgio Moroder magic and worth having for that alone. And stay tuned -
more stuff is coming, but I won't be announcing any titles until there are firm release dates.
[JAN 18] Just a quick clarification on the promo code I posted last night for Gold Legion - it's only good until January 24, so if you are planning to make a purchase do it this week to save. :-)
[JAN 17] Let's start with something completely non-Donna but very serious - Haiti. I just can't believe what I'm seeing in the photos coming out of there. It looks like some Hollywood disaster film... only unfortunately it's real. If you want to help the relief effort, Google has complied a list of agencies that are collecting money. They've also got a person finder widget, and a new file you can download for Google Earth that will show you before and after pictures of the region.
[JAN 17] And now back to the escape from the tragedies of real life. :-) Fans of the younger Sudano girls will want to check out the Family Matters section below, and fans of classic disco (Giorgio Moroder anyone? ;-) ) will want to stay tuned - I will post some interesting info after the web news. :-)
[JAN 17] On to Donna. Let me start off with time sensitive item. There is a charity auction on eBay to benefit the UN World Food Programme. (Specifically, the money will help feed hungry kids in Haiti.) The item is a piece of artwork signed by many of the performers that were at the Nobel Peace Prize concert - including Donna. (Although they didn't use her signature in any of the photos - darn it!) The auction runs for a couple more days, but the current bid is $2000 and the reserve hasn't been met yet. So you will need deep pockets to walk away with this item. You can check it out on eBay.
[JAN 17] Ok, there is a ballad collection CD I keep running into (and keep getting asked about). It looks like a compilation out together by a fan. If you want to see what it looks like, It's posted here - but watch out for the big popup window that will greet you. (pop up windows are annoying - huge ones even more so, and ones that escape my popup blocker are infuriating! LOL) If you look at the track list - it's something any one of us could put together ourselves out of the stuff we already bought. And if you are missing anything, the vast majority of the tracks can be purchased individually at iTunes, Amazon or anywhere else you like to buy downloads. :-)
[JAN 17] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in this podcast about Darrell Russ' Riding Home From Baltimore. She also gets a very brief mention in an article about the movie Looking For Mr. Goodbar. They just mention that some of Donna's songs were used in the film. (Warning to those of you reading this at work - if you look at the article, there is a small photo of Richard Gere doing pushups without any pants on. That's probably not so good if your job is strict about what you can look at on the job. ) Oh and I just heard a strange mention now on my TV. I have some ghost show on the Biography channel on and the woman talking just mentioned that they were playing Donna's music at her mother's funeral.
[JAN 17] Moving on to the web news for the week, on Multiply look for a live clip of Work That Magic courtesy of Steve. On Youtube, Fernando has been busy and posted a number of new videos, and DJDiscocat has posted the audio for the long version of Walk Away. Over on Vimeo, you can find the original promo video from the Berlin concert and the Omega Red mix of Crayons.
[JAN 17] And that brings me to my interesting non-Donna news. There is a company out there called Gold Legion and it has teamed up with Universal to release some of the classic Casablanca stuff - all remastered and all with the original artwork, liner notes and logo. (And I know how you guys feel about the Casablanca logo! LOL) So far they only have Roberta Kelly's Zodiac Lady and Munich Machine's self-titled album. (That should appeal to Giorgio Moroder fans!) More things are coming down the road and I will keep you posted as I hear more. If you are interested in buying these CDs (and I know some of you are :-) ) head over to GoldLegion.com where you can find sound clips, and more importantly, where you can grab the albums for 11.99 each. (And yes they ship world wide.) Even better, use this code: GL10 to get 10% off your order. (You can probably find both CDs on Amazon too - but when I checked it was more money and they were not immediately in stock over there - you are better off at Gold Legion's site.) And keep a close eye on that site because there is definitely more coming. :-) I love that the more obscure classics are finally finding their way out of the archives!
[JAN 10] Sorry for all the ranting on my Twitterfeed earlier this week. As you may have gathered, I was just a teeny bit annoyed about having my internet turned off randomly. LOL Before I get to the Donna news, Bruce fans will want to look at the Family Matters section below.
[JAN 10] On to Donna, and have I got a clip for you today! Those little sneaks at CasablancaBookTV have added a few new clips to YouTube. :-) One is a promo for the I Remember Yesterday album. At about the 49 second mark, you will see a little clip from a video for Can't We Just Sit Down (And Talk It Over) - wearing the dress from the album cover. As far as I know this is the ONLY time that clip has been seen. (So if the forum seems a little quiet, it's because everyone over there fainted when they saw it. LOL) Now run out and grab a copy of the book to say "thank you". ;-)
[JAN 10] Speaking of which, Larry Harris was interviewed by LA Weekly - and yes, he does talk about Donna a little. :-)
[JAN 10] And while we are visiting the 70s, you will also want to take a look at the new Vanity Fair - or their website. There is an oral history of disco that features quotes from many of the players from back in the day. They include a few from Donna and some from Giorgio Moroder as well. It's definitely worth a look (and I think you will like one of the photos they used to illustrate the article.)
[JAN 10] Moving back to the present day, Perfectbeat put out its top 100 charts for 2009. You will find Stamp Your Feet at #62 in the top CD singles chart, and Fame The Game at #11 and #6. (That was a 2 disk release , that's how it snagged 2 chart positions.)
[JAN 10] In Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame news, there is talk that the Hall OF Fame will change the eligibility criteria. Currently an artist is eligible 25 years after the release of their first record. This may be changed to 20 years. Personally - I think it's an unnecessary change as there are already many worthy artists who fit the current criteria. (And I' don't just mean Donna - FutureRockLegends.com has a list of all eligible artists, listed by the year they became eligible. There are plenty of people on that list who deserve to be in the Hall Of Fame.
[JAN 10] And that brings us to the web news. On YouTube, Fernando has posted a couple of new video mixes, there is the Bad Girls/Hot Stuff Medley from 2007's Night Of The Proms, and a clip of Last Dance courtesy of CasablancaBookTV. On Multiply, Steve has posted a whole bunch of mixes and videos (a lot of awards show stuff) on his page, Jeff has posted his mix of With Your Love, and Jean Michel has posted mixes of Je T'Aime.
[JAN 3] Okay who is the wise guy who ordered all the snow? We've had more snow here on Long Island in the past couple of weeks than we've had in the last couple years put together. LOL It's pretty for awhile, but as the song says... Enough Is Enough! LOL
[JAN 3] First up - the Nobel Peace Prize concert. The first US listing I've heard for it is KONG TV (cable channel 6, or channel 16 if you get it over the air) in Seattle on January 30 at 7 PM. It looks like they are only running an hour of the show, so expect lots of cuts. Donna was mentioned in the listing so at least one of her songs will make it on the air. (Actually, for US TV I suspect they will boot the artists who aren't well known here - never mind that some of them are worth getting to know.) It looks like it is running as a syndicated program which means we'll all have to keep an eye on our local listings.
[JAN 3] In the Donna is everywhere category - I got 4312 Google alerts this week.... all of them celebrity birthday listings. I have to say that the amusing thing about those lists is who each publication decides to list. The vast majority have the same list of celebrities, but I ran into one that listed Donna, Joey McIntyre and only one other living person - and then a very eclectic list of dead people from Popes to Nazi hunters to gymnasts. It was a rather odd mix. LOL She also got a very brief mention in an Aussie article that took a quick look at the highlights (or in some cases, lowlights) of 1979.
[JAN 3] The Bay Area Reporter has posted its winter reading list. They've included And Party Every Day: The Casablanca Records Story by Larry Harris. (I guess that means that those of us who have read it already should read it again this winter? ;-) )
[JAN 3] That brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, Fernando has gone mix happy this week. He's posted a few Donna mixes and even a couple of Giorgio mixes. Also look for a couple of old clips from Holland from snelleneddy0, and a mainly audio presentation of the Eric Kupper I Feel Healed mix of Love Is The Healer. On Multiply, Patrice has posted more of his art, Andy has posted several Donna- themed 2010 calendars, and Steve has posted Peperamico's 35 Years of Wonderful Music mix. (Love To Love you to Crayons in one big megamix!)
[JAN 1] Happy New Year everyone! :-) I'll have the regular update later this weekend, but for now I'm changing the Summer Fever pick to Once Upon A Time.
2009
[DEC 27] I hope Santa was good to everyone last week. :-) This will be a short update since not much is going on with the holidays. Before I get to the news, some of you pointed out that the link to the forum on the main page is broken. I fixed that tonight so it should be working now. But just in case, the direct link to the forum is: http://forums.delphiforums.com/endless_summer/.
[DEC 27] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a brief mention in an article about designer Nik Ramli. Some of you already know Nik - he runs the Donna fan group on Facebook. She gets another very brief mention in an article about the remixes for Darrell Russ' single, Riding Home From Baltimore. She's also mentioned in an article about Chicago's Star Plaza Theater. Over in the UK, a TV commercial for tomorrow night's ITV airing of An Englishman In New York uses Last Dance as background music. (I'm told the ad runs a lot.)
[DEC 27] In web news, on Multiply Patrice has posted some of his new photo creations, Jean Michel has posted a number of Christmas mixes, and Steve is his usual insane self and has posted a half a dozen or so videos and mixes. :-) On YouTube look for what looks like a news clip of the Cala di Volpe show. (The audio is in Italian.) Virgin Mary (the audio) has also found its way to YouTube, and DonnaSummerVEVO has posted a couple of official videos. The only thing about those is that some of them are restricted by country. It seems sort of random too because some videos play here in the US and some don't. Those of you in other countries will just have to try your luck and see which ones work for you.
[DEC 27] I'll be back next weekend, so let me take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy and healthy New Year filled with lots of Donna tunes. If you are gonna be out drinking for the holiday, make sure you don't drive - I want to see you all back here in one piece! :-) Happy Birthday Donna!
[DEC 23 barely] The eGreetings page is up and running! A little later than I hoped... but it's there. :-) Thanks to all who contributed - without all you guys who come to visit, or who write in the whole thing would be a lot less fun. Merry Christmas everyone!
[DEC 20] Greetings from snowy Long Island. I know many of us like a white Christmas - but 2 feet is overkill. ;-) I might have to go move in with Donna in Florida so I can raid the vault.... I mean escape the snow. Yeah, that's it. LOL The official deadline for egreetings has passed, but lucky for you slackers out there (PHIL! LOL) I am far enough behind in my Christmas preparations that I will be finishing up the page over the next day or 2. So if you get your greeting to me by tomorrow, it will still make the final page. Now if my family is reading this - I expect to have your Christmas gifts wrapped and ready for you no later than January. LOL
[DEC 20] The news for the week is still the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. I know many of you are angry that they didn't induct Donna this time. Personally, I'm more disgusted than angry. It just seems to me that if Donna isn't "rock & roll" enough for the Hall Of Fame, then a number of past inductees need to be explained to me because they seem even less "rock & roll" to me. And other notable omissions need to be explained as well. My editorial comments aside, there are a number of articles out there about the 2010 inductees that might be of interest to you:
Vindy.com (this article has been published in a number of papers)
Boston Herald
Hitfix.com
EW.com
And for an interesting look at a previous voting controversy, take a look at FOX News.
[DEC 20] In better news, USA Today posted a bunch of the Oslo photos in a slideshow on their website. Strangely they list Donna as a British singer in one of the captions. Listen UK - don't think you are gonna steal her from us. Don't make me go over there and play Shout It Out to you over and over again! LOL
[DEC 20] Speaking of Oslo, Endless Summer was number 1 on the Norwegian iTunes soul top 10 last weekend. I suspect the Nobel concert was the reason. ;-) In Sweden, The Journey was #3 on the same chart - probably for the same reason.
[DEC 20] The Brazilian DVD Musas Do Pop is out now and some of the guys have had a chance to see it. Donna is represented by the official music videos for She Works Hard For The Money and Melody Of Love (although the intro is edited out of that one), Nathan's video for Fame, the I Feel Love clip with the robot dance, the Midnight Special version of Love To Love You, the Discomania clip of Hot Stuff/Bad Girls and Last Dance from American Bandstand.
[DEC 20] About.com has posted its list of the top 10 divas in pop music. Donna is on the list along with Mariah Carey, Cher, Celine Dion, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Diana Ross and Barbra Streisand. (Note that they list the 10 divas in alphabetical order, so the fact that Donna is listed last doesn't necessarily mean she's #10 in the eyes of the About.com editors.)
[DEC 20] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, SlickRickDog has posted a few classic clips - including some holiday themed ones, EndlessDonna has made a video for Driving Down Brazil, and stampyurfeet has an excellent video for I'll Be Home For Christmas. On Multiply, Andy has posted clips from the Nobel concert, and his extended alternate version of On The Radio.
[DEC 20] I will be back either tomorrow or Tuesday with the final egreetings page and an update to Wolfgang's discography. :-)
[DEC 15] Well, the official Rock Hall Of Fame list is out. Santa will be bringing those voters a big lump of coal this year. The class of 2010 is ABBA, Genesis, Jimmy Cliff, The Hollies and The Stooges. That list is just astonishing to me. I thought they might overlook Donna because of the whole disco thing - but then they took ABBA? The rock guys are gonna be MAD! LOL And they left out KISS and The Red Hot Chili Peppers? I think there is going to be some screaming on the music blogs. Well, I guess I won't need to take March 15th off now. (Unless I decide to go to Cleveland that day and throw rotten tomatoes at the Hall? LOL)
[DEC 13] Anybody sick of the Nobel concert yet? I didn't think so. ;-) So let's let the party roll on with some HD YouTube clips courtesy of otziben. (Big kisses to you!) He's got all 4 songs posted so be sure to check them out. If anyone is interested in seeing the whole concert.... well, make that all that NRK put in the webcast (it cuts out in the middle of Hot Stuff), head over to the NRK website. That link takes you to the second half of the show, but there is a menu on the left hand side of the page that lets you move to the first half (den 1) or to individual songs. I will warn you now that the playback doesn't always seem to work. I haven't been able to get any of the concert clips to play - and there hasn't been an error message to tell me why. At least one other person found that his internet connection was too slow. So try that at your own risk. I suspect that maybe those clips are being hit too hard by the fans of all the artists involved. If you want to see the actual Peace Prize ceremony, that is still archived on the NRK site (along with the press conference) and you can see it on the Nobel Peace Prize site. (That version is slightly edited, so you don't see as many shots of Donna in the crowd as in the NRK webcast. However all the speeches and musical performances are intact.) The Peace Prize site also has text versions of the presentation speech and Obama's speech for those who are interested. (Rumor has it that a few people actually watched all the Nobel stuff for more
than just Donna. Who'd have thought? ;-) )
[DEC 13] In the land of photos, there are a couple from the press conference the other day posted on the NPR website. WireImage also has photos from the press conference, the concert and rehearsals.
[DEC 13] There have been a ton of articles about all of the Nobel events. So far, most of them haven't said much about Donna other than to list her as one of the performers. But Philstar.com does mention that Donna had the crowd on their feet. (That's sort of like saying the Pyramids are big. It's right, but it doesn't really convey the scale adequately. :-) )
[DEC 13] In chart news, the Nobel committee.... wait ... sorry, I have the Nobel concert on the brain lately. LOL In chart news, Billboard has published its year end charts. Fame came in at #36 on the Dance Club Play chart for 2009. And Donna herself came in at #21 on the Dance Club Play Artists of the Decade chart. So this is definitely Donna's week. :-) (Rock Hall - I HOPE you are paying attention - and I hope you were watching the concert.)
[DEC 13] Donna did a benefit in California recently. The Orange County Register has a brief article about the show.
[DEC 13] I think that brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, the Nobel clips are taking over. Any number of users have posted something from the show. In non-Nobel clips, look for Fernando's videos for Can't We Just Sit Down and Maybe It's Over. Glen Rivera has added his Restructured mix for Down Deep Inside, and who is the wise guy who posted Na Na Hey Hey? LOL On Multiply, Steve has grabbed the best of YouTube, and posted them on his page (along with some cool remixes too.)
[DEC 13] And finally - the deadline for egreetings is Friday. I have a whole bunch more to post but there is always room for more. If you haven't sent in your message for Donna yet, time is ticking away! (Although if someone could find away to add a few extra weeks to get ready for Christmas, that would be really helpful. I still have way more stuff to do to get ready and my boss hates it if I just call out "sick" for days and days in a row. LOL)
[DEC 12] I'm still not up to the weekly update yet, but I have a little more on yesterday's concert for you. First of all, Man In The Mirror (as predicted) has made its way to YouTube. I have to say, 24 hours later and I am still completely psyched about the concert. It has to be one of Donna's best TV appearances ever. :-) I feel like I got my Christmas present early. Santa can skip my house now. LOL Anyway, for those of you who like a little streaming audio, I think that can be arranged. ;-) Obviously I don't own the clips, so I will pull the file at the request of the copyright owners. And in keeping with the spirit of the event and the season, if you like what you hear then think about how much the songs would cost you at iTunes (or wherever) and take that amount of money and give it to an appropriate charity.
[DEC 12] I guess I'll see you guys tomorrow night with the weekly update. And in all the concert excitement, I forgot to say Happy Chanukah to all my Jewish friends out there! Have a safe and joyful celebration. :-)
[DEC 11] This could be an interesting update from a technical standpoint. I'm updating a backup copy of the site on a usb drive. That might do strange things when I publish the update. I have my fingers crossed that it goes well.
[DEC 11] Okay - the reason I'm here is the Nobel Peace Prize. As most of you know, Donna performed at the concert in Norway today. She was also present at the ceremony last night, and she was part of a press conference earlier today. Let's run down things in order. First up is the ceremony. Donna and Bruce were there in the audience and they got a couple of nice close ups here and there. You can watch the ceremony on NRK here. It's the whole thing from beginning to end. You can see Donna and Bruce at about the 5 minute mark as the camera picks up all the performers in the audience. Then you can see Donna (and sometimes Bruce) a couple of times during Obama's speech. Then this morning the concert performers all turned up for a press conference that is also currently available on NRK. Donna is on camera a lot of the time since she was sitting right next to Will Smith (who was cracking a lot of jokes throughout). She gets to answer a question at about the 21 minute mark.
[DEC 11] Moving on to the concert itself. Donna was the closing act and she got to sing She Works Hard For The Money, Bad Girls/Hot Stuff, Last Dance and then she joined the entire cast for Michael Jackson's Man In The Mirror. Donna sounded great, she looked great and it really seemed like she was having fun at the show. Which made it all the more frustrating if you were watching the concert online. Let me explain. If you were watching the CNN feed, things were going great.... until shortly after Amadou & Mariam's set. Right there in the middle of a pre-recorded interview with Obama, CNN lost the feed. UGH! Apparently if you stuck with it or kept retrying it, they got it back many songs later - just in time for the end of Hot Stuff. If you were like me and switched to the NRK feed, it was great.... until it died in the middle of Hot Stuff. (They probably heard me yelling all the way in Oslo. LOL) Now, CNN did repeat the concert a couple of hours later and I guess they lost the footage from where they originally dropped the feed. So the show cut from the pre-recorded interview with Obama to the end of Hot Stuff. So I was able to see the whole thing finally - just in odd pieces. LOL And (fingers crossed) I did grab some audio that I hope to share with you since the concert is no longer available on NRK and I don't think it's fully available on the CNN website. Someone has uploaded Donna's part of the concert on YouTube. It was obviously videotaped off a computer (or TV screen) so the video is a little fuzzy and the audio a little tinny. But it's definitely worth watching. (And I suspect there will be higher quality copies posted over the weekend. I'll let you know on the weekly update.) Donna's part of the show was posted in 3 parts so make sure you watch all 3. (As of this
writing, Man In The Mirror is not posted yet - but that could change at any time.)
[DEC 11] In the land of photos - you have to know that there will be a bunch with an event like the Nobel Peace Prize. :-) Head over to Getty Images for pictures from the concert rehearsal, the press conference, and the actual performance. You can see larger versions of the performance photos at Daylife.com.
[DEC 11] Finally - there is a chance we may get to see the concert on US television next year. If I hear any more on that I'll let you know. If you get the chance to watch the whole show, I recommend it. Before I had to curse the lost feeds LOL, I did discover a few interesting artists that I may explore further. Okay. I'm going to press upload now. Hopefully the whole internet won't explode.
[DEC 6] There is still plenty of time to send in your egreetings. I have a bunch more to add to the page, but there is always room for more. (Actually depending on when you see this update, I either have a bunch to add or I just added a bunch. I plan to work on those after I publish the update.)
[DEC 6] So, I know you are all wondering about the Nobel Peace Prize concert. That happens at 8 PM (local time) in Oslo this Friday. The good news is that Norwegian fans will be able to watch the show live on NRK1 at 7:55 PM. The better news is that the rest of us won't be totally shut out. CNN will be airing it live on the web. (Do I see a big international watching party shaping up?) Now if you need to find out what time 8 PM in Oslo is for you, check out this World Clock. (If you can't find a city in your time zone on that list, then you need to move. LOL) Last I heard, Donna is sharing the bill with Natasha Bedingfield, Wyclef Jean, Toby Keith, Lang Lang, Esperanza Spading, Westlife, Luis Fonsi, Alexander Rybak, and Amadou & Mariam. So it's going to be a big eclectic show, which means there will only be a few Donna songs in there.
[DEC 6] Thank God It's Friday fans, you can catch the movie on Turner Classic Movies (regular and HD) on Saturday December 19 at 3:45 AM. (Personally - I think I'll stick with the DVD. 3:45 is not good if I have to be at work in the morning. LOL)
[DEC 6] In web news, over on YouTube look for Can't We Just Sit Down (And Talk It Over) from Fernando, a couple of Christmas clips from stampyurfeet (including his own take on Christmas Spirit), and Donna's Oscar night performance of Last Dance. Also look for circuitmusicusa's video that combines Klyk's great mix of Be Myself Again with the original.
[DEC 1] It's officially December, so that means that it's time for the new Summer Fever pick. I bet you will never guess what I picked? LOL On a more serious note, today is World AIDS Day. If you are looking for something you can do to raise awareness, or fight the good fight - Google has compiled a list of relevant links.
[NOV 29] Ahhh - the update that almost wasn't..... I had a few computer problems tonight. A flamethrower and a sledgehammer seemed to fix it though. ;-) I'm posting the next batch of egreetings on the not public but not particularly hidden page in progress. There is still plenty of room for those of you who haven't written in yet. :-)
[NOV 29] On to the news. We're going to start in Brazil where a company is putting out a compilation DVD called Musas do Pop that has 7 of Donna's videos followed by 6 Diana Ross videos. I find it amusing that one of the Diana videos is for a song that casual fans often mistake for a Donna song. (I wonder if the DVD will help that situation, or make it worse? LOL ) For the most part, Donna's selection of videos are the hits... with the interesting addition of Fame (The Game). It will be interesting to see what clips are used because regular music videos don't exist for some of Donna's tracks. The DVD comes out December 1 and it looks like there will be no region code on it. It will be in NTSC format though, so those of you with PAL systems may have to stick to playing it on your computer. I'm sure our Brazilian friends will have more info when the DVD comes out, since they will get to watch it first. :-)
[NOV 29] In Rock Hall Of Fame news, DigitalDreamDoor has an article discussing the merits of all of this year's nominees. They consider Donna one of the stronger contenders this year - if the disco label doesn't blow the whole thing. (I say if they don't induct Donna, we drop a giant disco ball on the Hall Of Fame. The hardcore rock fans would have a fit! LOL)
[NOV 29] Casablanca fans (the label that is, not the movie ;-) ) Larry Harris, author of And Party Every Day: The Inside Story Of Casablanca Records [Amazon, Amazon UK], is making the rounds. He was interviewed by the Chicago Tribune recently (and the print article was accompanied by a nice big picture of Donna). If you haven't checked out the book yet, you need to. It's quite an interesting read - just some of the stuff they got away with back then! LOL (I think it would be nearly impossible for a label like Casablanca to survive these days - I think the music industry and radio have become way too corporate to accommodate mavericks and risk-takers.)
[NOV 29] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets quoted in a Pop Matters article about Tina Turner. (The author is none other than our friend Christian Wikane.) You can read Donna's quote on page 5 of the article, or check it out below where I made it the quote of the week. :-) (On a non-Donna note, I dare you to read that whole article and then not immediately pull out Private Dancer to give it another listen.)
[NOV 29] Moving on to the web news for the week - over at YouTube, SlickRickDog has posted a bunch of classic clips including an unplugged version of On The Radio with Bruce on guitar. Fernando has posted a couple of new videos including his take on Fred Astaire - that actually has Fred dancing to Donna. :-) And Glen Rivera has posted 2 new Restructured mixes from the Once Upon A Time album. If you are hanging around Multiply, Steve has grabbed a number of the latest YouTube clips and posted them over there.
[NOV 22] We're up to about 17 egreetings now - including one video greeting. :-) I've started putting them on the site, but the page won't be made public until I'm ready to email the link to the powers that be. Having said that, I know that some of you are nosy and will snoop around the incomplete page. LOL (It's not hard to find if you are so inclined.) Just keep in mind if you are snooping that it is VERY MUCH under construction so there are placeholders everywhere. LOL
[NOV 22] On to the news. Donna is doing a fundraiser in Costa Mesa on December 4 at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. You can read the press release in PDF format here. It gives the number to call to inquire about tickets - but it also says that seating is limited. That probably means "expensive." :-) (Hey, it is a fundraiser after all.)
[NOV 22] Earlier this week we had the Elton John AIDS Foundation benefit. It's been getting a lot of mentions on the web, but unfortunately most of the Donna part of the coverage is just a mention that she performed. ET and Fox both have video coverage of the event - but neither features any footage of Donna. There are photos from Donna's performance posted at WireImage.com. (Looks like she had Smile in the line up.) Some of those migrated to Life's website where you can see them larger. (They also have some Coney Island pictures as well.)
[NOV 22] In other concert news, The Nobel Peace Prize Concert is coming up soon - December 11. It looks like they've added a couple more artists to the lineup - it's shaping up to be quite an eclectic mix of styles. The Nobel site has a video up now with highlights from past concerts, so you can get an idea what the shows are usually like. The concert will air live on NRK1 in Norway, and I'm sure it will be picked up in at least a few other countries as well. I think we'll all have to keep an eye on our local TV listings for awhile. :-)
[NOV 22] In The Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an interview with Jim Kerr of Simple Minds. (Apparently without I Feel Love, Jim Kerr would still be in a punk band. Rock Hall are you paying attention???) Another fan of I Feel Love is Vaugh Harris of Nitzer Ebb. He mentions the song in an recent interview too. If you are looking for something more visual, a recent music auction by the Phillips de Pury auction house included a rhinestone portrait of Donna done by Mickalene Thomas. There is a photo of it on the NY Times The Moment blog. (Thank god they showed that instead of the self-portrait in blood by Pete Doherty that was also up for sale. Creepy!)
[NOV 22] That brings us to the web news. Fans of Klykthemixer will be happy to know that he's posted a number of new things recently, including a dance version of Be Myself Again. To be totally honest, I thought I would hate it. (I'm a ballad freak, remember. LOL And Be Myself Again is amazing just the way it is.) But I played the mix tonight and to my amazement - I liked it. He did a really nice job on it. You can catch it on Multiply too courtesy of Steve, who has also posted about a billion photos from various times in Donna's career (don't miss the Bad Girls billboard!) and a few video clips, including the music clips from Family Matters. On YouTube, look for a clip of If You're Walking Alone by Kraftwerk2012. (It's meant to be just the music, but you get a good look at the single sleeve and I found the comments going across the screen amusing.) Also look for Driving Down Brazil live, and I'm A Fire live. (Hey - I just realized Bruce was back on stage for Brazil.) Slickrickdog has added a number of videos to his collection this week, and Fernando has posted a Last Dance remix.
[NOV 22] I think that's it for the week. Before I go I just want to wish all my American friends a Happy Thanksgiving (and a safe Black Friday if you are crazy enough to go out shopping.) For everybody outside the USA - take Thursday off. You deserve an extra day off from work. ;-)
[NOV 14] I'm updating a day early because I have plans tomorrow night that will keep me off the computer most of the evening. (Alert the media - I have a life! LOL! ) The Egreetings are starting to roll in - I have about 7 or 8 now (and I will email you guys soon to confirm I have them). There is still plenty of time for the rest of you to jump in with your messages. :-) And before I get to the news, I have a new Ken's Korner posted for you this week. I should warn you Madonna and Whitney fans out there, that Ken has started to sharpen his claws again. (Although this one is still pretty tame for him. LOL) He's compiled some nice comments about Donna from YouTube though.
[NOV 14] So the big news this week is Brazil. :-) As most of you know - Donna performed in Rio and São Paulo this week. I have a couple of fan reports and photos on the Brazil page. On the professional side - there is a review on Globo.com (with a slideshow on the bottom of the page.) It's in Portuguese of course so if that's not your language, head over to Google for a translation. (Or find a cute translator to help you out. ;-) )
[NOV 14] The Brazilians weren't shy about sharing a few highlights on YouTube. :-) Dvb1980mlvc1958 has a whole bunch of clips posted. (The one labeled Enough Is Enough is actually Driving Down Brazil.)
[NOV 14] We also have a new interview out of Brazil on Globo.com. That's also in Portuguese so keep your cute translator nearby. ;-) And there is a video interview posted on YouTube. Now that interview was done in English, but then the Portuguese translation was overdubbed on to it. If you speak Portuguese, just listed to the overdub, if you speak English just try to listen to the original audio under the translation (it takes some concentration but it can be done), and if you don't speak either language.... well, then I'm really impressed that you are here trying to make heads or tails out of what I'm typing. :-)
[NOV 14] Moving across the ocean there is an article out there from last year on Abendzeitung.de that features quotes about Donna from Helmuth Sommer. That one is on German, so you'll have to trade in your cute Portuguese translator for a cute German one.
[NOV 14] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention on a blog from Metro News Edmonton in which the author counts down his favorite disco acts. (He also invites people to chime in with their own choices in the comments.) Donna comes in at number 3 on his list.
[NOV 14] Here on Long Island NPR station WLIU (88.3) is in the midst of a much needed fundraising drive. Today they played Donna's version of A Whole New World, and then had this to say: "We are huge supporters of Donna Summer, and what better role model is there to have." If you are in the Eastern Long Island or Southeastern Connecticut area, check them out on the radio - everyone else can catch the stream on the website.
[NOV 14] Casablanca fans, Larry Harris was on ABC TV in Chicago recently plugging And Party Every Day. He talked a little about Donna, among other things. You can catch the video on the ABC website. Larry has been making the rounds, so keep an eye on your local news, etc.
[NOV 14] I think that brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, the guys at CasbahbookTV have updated their classic clip list with Donna's I Feel Love, a Thank God It's Friday promo reel, and a rare Brooklyn Dreams promo. The I Feel Love clip is the same one VH1 uses a lot, but I believe VH1 usually edits it. The one posted by CasbahbookTV is full length. SlickRickDog has posted a ton of classic clips including the video portion of the video for When Love Takes Over You. (He couldn't post it with the original audio for copyright reasons, but if you mute the volume on YouTube and crank up the album track in iTunes or whatever, you'll get a good idea of how the video is supposed to be.) Also look for several new videos from Fernando including one for Let There Be Peace - which he dedicates to everyone who has sacrificed their lives in world or regional conflicts. (Humans have been on this Earth for how many thousand years and we still haven't figured how to get along with each other?) On Multiply, Patrice has posted a few of his photo creations for Once Upon A Time and Crayons, and Jeffrey has posted a video for I Got Your Love.
[NOV 8] Let's start off with the official commencement of EGreetings for Donna 2009. Most of you guys know the drill. Send your holiday/birthday message for Donna and family to me at webmaster@donna-tribute.com (or any other email you happen to have for me) and put "egreetings" or something like that in the subject to make things easier to sort out. If you want to include a picture, that's cool. If you want to make a video - post it on YouTube and I'll embed it on the egreetings page. If you have your own site and want to build a page of your own as a holiday greeting, send me the link and I'll make sure the powers that be get it. I thought it would be fun if this year in addition to whatever message you want to send, you could list your 2 or 3 favorite live tracks from any show you've been to (or seen on video), and 2 or 3 songs you would love to see live. Let's make the deadline December 18 so I have time to get the page up and the links emailed in time for Christmas. Get writing! :-) (By the way - I will take messages in any language Google can translate - but if you are writing in anything other than English you will have to do your own spell checking.)
[NOV 8] I finally got my copy of And Party Every Day: The Inside Story Of Casablanca Records [Amazon, Amazon UK]. I'm nowhere near done reading it yet (I've barely started the Donna part so far! LOL) but I have to say it's an interesting read. So far I've had a nice look at how Casablanca got started, and how Neil Bogart liked to operate. There are excerpts posted online, so check it out if you haven't already.
[NOV 8] Brazil - don't forget (as if you could! LOL) that you will be seeing Donna in concert this week. I hope to hear about the show from some of you later in the week. :-)
[NOV 8] This isn't specifically Donna-related, but if any of you have tried to access the Burgundy website lately then you have noticed that it redirects you to the site for Sony's Legacy imprint. It looks like Burgundy is gone. It was a fun ride while it lasted. Legacy does have a page on its site for Donna that includes info for both Crayons and Live & More Encore.
[NOV 8] There are a couple of new articles out there about the Rock Hall Of Fame nominations:
The LA Times blog (The author isn't too happy about this year's nominees - he's in the "not enough rock" camp")
The Gloucester Times (That's more about Laura Nyro than anything else)
[NOV 8] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a very brief mention in an article about the new Bee Gees compilation.
[NOV 8] Moving on to the web news, if you haven't been over to Donna Summertime lately then it's time to go back. Sebastiano has given the site a facelift with an all new color scheme. (I think he's got his own box of Crayons happening over there - I like it!) On YouTube, Fernando has posted a video for the Gentlemen Thieves Madonna vs Donna I Feel A Beautiful Stranger. (For more Gentlemen Thieves Donna/Madonna mashups, check out this blog.) On Multiply, look for Patrice's No More Tears mix, and a couple of music clips from Steve.
[NOV 1] Ok, for the life of me I don't know how it got to be November already. Did we skip some months somewhere? Before we get to the regular news, Bruce (and Brooklyn Dreams) fans will want to check the Family Matters section below. Also, since it's a new month that means it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. This month we go back to revisit Love To Love You - now updated with streaming MP3 clips.
[NOV 1] Remember that treat I announced yesterday - I guess it was a trick after all. Ahhh... Halloween! LOL Actually I think some wires just got crossed somewhere. Donna didn't actually call in to Dave Marsh this morning, but I understand that he did talk about her Hall Of Fame nomination a little bit. (Thanks to my job I was going to have to wait for the repeat broadcast Wednesday anyway.)
[NOV 1] Donna will be performing in New York at Elton John's annual AIDS Foundation benefit on November 16. It will be at Cipriani's on Wall Street - but before you run off to get your credit cards so you can get tickets, you should know that tickets start at $2500 and go up from there. (I'm gonna have to ask my boss for a BIG raise! LOL) If that fits in your price range, well then adopt me already. LOL No seriously, if that fits in your price range, I have the info for buying tickets here in a PDF file. I also have the announcement in PDF format for those who just want to see it. By the way, Sir Elton had this to say about Donna: "Donna Summer's energy, voice and spirit are going to electrify our guests and I can't wait to share the stage with her. Donna has been a tremendous supporter of the Elton John AIDS Foundation for many years, and I am so excited that she has agreed to perform for our 'An Enduring Vision' event." You can read more about the event at LiveDaily.com.
[NOV 1] Donna is featured in the October 23 Ask Billboard column. Aside from the nice big picture that greets you when you open the page - there is a little info on Live & More a little further down the page.
[NOV 1] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a brief mention in Perez Hilton in a discussion of a possible sequel for Mama Mia. (He proposes possibly using Donna's music in the sequel since ABBA won't let their music be in the sequel.)
[NOV 1] In cover news, Dolly Parton has a box set out called Dolly [Amazon, Amazon UK] that includes the Summer/Sudano composition, Starting Over Again.
[NOV 1] I think that brings us to the web news. On YouTube, the guys at CasablancaBookTV have unearthed a live clip of Heaven Knows and the studio footage of Live & More. (And I know this isn't Donna-related, but I know some of you will be interested in the rare Paul Jabara clip and the Patti Brooks clip that was also posted this week.) Fernando has posted about a half a dozen new clips, including his video for Ordinary Miracle. SlickRickDog has posted a classic interview from the All Systems Go era, and look for a very nice live clip of Heaven's Just A Whisper Away. On Multiply, look for a couple of new mixes from Andy, and a classic photo from Steve. (Steve, were you sick or something this week? My Multiply inbox wasn't packed with your uploads this time. LOL)
[OCT 31] Happy Halloween everyone! No tricks tonight - only a real treat. :-) Tomorrow (November 1) morning Donna will be interviewed on the Sirius/XM channel, The Loft. (Channel 29 on Sirius, channel 50 on XM) The show is called Kick Out The Jams and Donna will be on starting some time between 10:20 and 10:30 AM. The interview runs about 20 minutes and is being done by Dave Marsh - so it should be good. Now if you miss out for any reason, the interview will be repeated Wednesday November 4 at midnight. I'll be back either later tonight or tomorrow with the rest of the update - I just wanted this out there now. :-) By the way, if you don't subscribe to either Sirius or XM, you can get a free 7 day trial online subscription for either at their websites.
[OCT 24] I added one more short report from the LA concert last month. You can find that in the Los Angeles page.
[OCT 24] There is an article at MixBrazil promoting the upcoming concerts down there. The article is in Portuguese, so you'll have to use Google or a bilingual buddy if that's not your language.
[OCT 24] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a very brief mention in a short interview with Pete Waterman on the Guardian's website.
[OCT 24] In web news, of you don't usually hang out at Klyk the mixer's website - you need to go there. He's posted a ton of his mixes - the latest being a mashup of Donna, Lady GaGa and Beyonce. Over on YouTube, CasablancaBookTV has added a 1978 Donna commercial (geared more towards the TGIF release), and an animated version of the Casablanca record logo. They will have more clips later in the week. Stevescissors has posted a clip of Donna and the Brooklyn Dreams covering I Heard It Through The Grapevine, and SlickRickDog has posted a new batch of classics. Look for the ET interview from Nashville that features a little bit of Worth The Wait and So This Is Lonely near the end. Also, hiwayrunner has the whole Hollywood Walk Of Fame ceremony up on his channel (posted in 4 parts), and Fernando has posted one of his video creations for Autumn Changes. Over on Multiply, Steve has posted pretty much anything you may have missed on YouTube, along with a few mixes and live track, and Carl has posted a few of Klyk's mixes.
[OCT 18] Let's start off with some Casablanca news. As most of you know there is a new book out there called And Party Every Day: The Inside Story Of Casablanca Records [Amazon, Amazon UK]. The author, Larry Harris, has joined us on the forum and is happily answering questions from the inmates at the asylum. ;-) You may run into co-author Curt Gooch there too. The post inder the names TalkHarris and Casbahbook respectively. (Just a note about the forum - all are welcome to come and read, but if you want to post you will have to sign up for a free account at Delphi. Also, most of the regulars there are adults who have been known to display an adult sense of humor, so kids should only explore under the supervision of mom or dad.)
[OCT 18] The German magazine, BLU, posted an article about the Berlin concert on their website. The article is in German (which should surprise absolutely no one LOL) so if that's not your language, just remember that Google is your friend. (Or find someone cute who can translate for you. ;-) )
[OCT 18] In the world of auctions, NBC is auctioning a Gibson Flying V guitar that has been autographed by a number of celebrities including Donna. The auction ends on October 23 and all proceeds will go to support the United Way.
[OCT 18] Moving on to the web news, on YouTube look for a behind the scenes clip of Thank God It's Friday (and the TV commercial) courtesy of CasablancaBookTV. (Look for new clips there during the week too - not just Donna but other classic Casablanca artists as well.) Fernando has posted one of his video slideshows for the Gene Simmons song Burning Up With Fever (you might recognize a certain female vocalist who appears on that track ;-) ) , and another video for Andy's Dim All The Lights remix. SlickRickDog has posted a whole bunch of classic clips - including a Tonight Show clip promoting All Systems Go..... or promoting her dress. It's hard to tell from the beginning of the conversation. LOL On Multiply, Steve has gone nuts again and posted 8 or 9 clips. :-) And Patrice has posted a clip of I Will Go With You. I forgot to mention last week that Stampyourfeet has reposted his excellent Obama Power Of One video on Vimeo. Whatever you may think of Obama now (the rule is that once someone becomes President, at least half the people have to hate him regardless of who they voted for LOL), election night was truly an amazing event to watch and Stampyourfeet really captured the moment.
[OCT 13] NPR is putting together a year long celebration of the greatest voices in recorded history. They are asking listeners to submit their nominations - the only catch is that the deadline is October 16. Check the NPR website for more details. (I'm off to YouTube to find a clip to support my nomination - can you guess who that might be? ;-) )
[OCT 11] If you missed my tweet, the meet and greet photos from Windsor, ON are up on Pbase now. Nevada - I know there should be more photos for your show - just hang in there. :-)
[OCT 11] Well, the big news is that now that President Obama is getting a Nobel Peace Prize, the festivities should get more attention here in the US. So hopefully that will translate into more opportunities to see footage and or photos from the concert. (Forget what any of you may think of Obama's win pro or con - anything that means more Donna coverage is a good thing! ;-) )
[OCT 11] Speaking of awards - there is a petition online to encourage the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame voters to pick Donna this year. You can check it out (and sign it) here.
[OCT 11] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in the Jack & Jill politics blog of al places. (Apparently one of the posters ran into her out shopping somewhere.) She also gets a very brief mention in a Guardian article on the Moog machine. She also gets a mention in the new memoir by Robert Hilburn. [Amazon, Amazon UK] He recounts a story about John Lennon's reaction to The Wanderer single.
[OCT 11] A fan by the name of Nik Ramli is working on a book about Donna. You can keep track of his progress at his Donna Summer group on Facebook.
[OCT 11] That brings us to the web news. On YouTube look for a longer mix of Fame posted by xavirocat, probably a dozen more classic clips from Slickrickdog, and a couple of new ones from Fernando including a video of I Feel Love made from clips from several different performances. And keep an eye on CasablancaBookTV's channel - they add stuff every week. On Multiply, check out Steve's profile for I don't even know how many more classic clips. (I tried to count, but I ran out of fingers. LOL) Jeffrey has posted the Showbiz Chicago interview, and Carl has posted the Mlle Lucy 2009 mix of So This Is Lonely.
[OCT 6] How many times can I upload the news before work? LOL The Donna interview I mentioned below is available online at ShowbizChicago.com. (It's their .net domain that died suddenly.) Donna is right there on the main page - just click her picture to play the interview.
[OCT 6] Ok - if any of you were at the meet and greets for the shows in Hammond, or Foxwoods - your photos are up on the Pbase site. Windsor and LA - just be patient. :-) Wait I'm wrong - LA is up too. They sneaked it up as I was updating. :-)
[OCT 6] We had a new interview with Donna out there courtesy of Showbiz Chicago. Apparently the site went down shortly after they posted it. If it doesn't come back up soon, I'll make the interview available.
[OCT 6] I have a fan report and photos from Los Angeles courtesy of Jonathan. You can find that on the LA page.
[OCT 4] Nevada - if you were at a meet and greet, a few of the pictures have made it to Pbase.com. Windsor, Hammond, Foxwoods, LA, and the rest of the Nevada guys .... just be patient. :-)
[OCT 4] The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is still in the news. Here is the latest crop of articles:
PopMatters.com (explains the case for a number of the nominees through words and video)
Cleveland Plain Dealer (tries to predict which nominees will make the final cut)
Brazil Times Blog (mainly a rant about Chicago not being on the list)
[OCT 4] Here's a blast from the past for you, WolfgangsVault.com has a classic interview with Donna from 1982. It was done to promote the Donna Summer album, and it runs almost 40 minutes. You will have to register to listen (it's free) and registration will give you access to plenty of other concerts and interviews by other artists (some of which can be downloaded legally for a small fee.)
[OCT 4] For those of you who like photos - Wireimage.com has posted a whole bunch from Coney Island.
[OCT 4] The DailyBulletin.com site has a quick wrap up of the LA County Fair. Donna gets a brief mention.
[OCT 4] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, the CasablancaBookTV guys have posted some more rare Casablanca clips including MacArthur Park. (That's the same footage VH1 uses sometimes - only this clip is longer.) Fernando has posted a couple of clips including his Hot Stuff video medley (clips of various performances combined into one video), a slideshow video for Science Of Love, and another slideshow for the Donna vs. Freemasons mix With Your Love (On My Mind). On Multiply, Steve has gone insane again and posted probably a dozen clips. :-)
[OCT 4] I'll be officially starting up the E-Greetings for Donna in a couple of weeks. But this year I wanted to give you a heads-up because I'm going make you work just a little bit. (In the words of RuPaul - You better work! ;-) ) I was thinking about this years concerts and how the shows varied a bit from venue to venue, and I thought it might be fun to ask you guys to do 2 things. Along with whatever holiday/birthday message you want to send - I thought it would be fun if you would list 3 (and no more than 3) songs that you would love to see Donna perform in a show someday, and then your 3 favorite songs that you have already seen in a show. (The songs that you want to see performed can be anything at all - back catalog stuff, covers, the phonebook.... anything that you would enjoy. Your favorite songs that have already been performed can be from a show from any point in Donna's career - and they could be songs you saw in person, or on TV or on YouTube, or whenever.) I figured that since I'm limiting you to only 3 songs for each category, you'll want some time to think about it. (I know I do - usually my answer for what I want to see Donna sing is "the entire back catalog". LOL) I haven't decided on a deadline for the E-Greetings yet but it will be in mid-December, so you have about 2 months to think and then write. :-) Oh - one more thing. This year if you want to make a video greeting for Donna, and upload it to YouTube, I'll embed it in the E-Greetings page. (You'll have to upload it to YouTube or one of those services though - I don't host video on my site.) I know we have a few creative people out there who might like that option. :-)
[SEP 30] Well, since it's going to be October 1 in a few minutes here, I might as well post the new Summer Fever pick. This month it's The Wanderer and I've updated the page with streaming MP3 clips.
[SEP 30] While I'm here - some of the performers for the Nobel Peace Prize concert have been announced. Donna is one of them. :-) The concert will be held December 11 in Oslo Norway and usually it gets picked up by television in several countries.
[SEP 27] Ok, Miami - I did a little digging and I found your concert info. It turns out the date is a fundraising gala at Trump's Mar-A-Lago. So I'd say this event will be for those with deep pockets. It's part of the Yacht Rendezvous event and the proceeds will benefit the Boys & Girls Clubs. (That explains a concert in November. Donna usually seems to play Florida in February - like a true snowbird! LOL)
[SEP 27] Speaking of tour stuff... For anyone who was at a meet and greet in either 2008 or 2009, your photos with Donna are posted at pbase.com/donnasummertour. Now, PBase has had some sort of power failure that knocked out the database. So the site has been down for several days now. They are working on the problem over there and hopefully they will have everything up and running in a day or two. (Then allow some time after that for Donna's team to upload photos from the recent shows.)
[SEP 27] The big news for the week is still the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. Articles are popping up all over the place, and I have a few of them here for you:
Ohio.com
iVillage (They invite you to vote for your favorite in the comments section)
Earvolution.com
TampaBay.com (they can't understand why Donna isn't already in the RHOF)
TheCelebrityCafe.com (they peg Donna and the Stooges for the class of 2010)
Playbill.com
PasteMagazine.com
Newsday.com (you can vote for your favorite nominee)
Mog.com (very nice things to say about Donna)
The Tennessean
Rollingstone.com (a photo gallery of the nominees)
There are probably about 40 billion more articles out there that all say the same thing. And many of the websites will let you post comments about your favorite nominee - but if you decide to participate, expect an argument. There has never been a nominee (or inductee for that matter) that hasn't had his or her fair share of "why are THEY on the list instead of.... (insert name of some other artist).
[SEP 27] Moving on to Casablanca Records - there is a book coming out in just a couple of weeks called And Party Every Day: The Inside Story Of Casablanca Records. [Amazon, Amazon UK] You can read excerpts of the book on Casablancabook.com and make sure you check out their YouTube channel. They have a number of rare clips of Casablanca artists - including a TV commercial for Love To Love You that I have never seen before. They plan to keep adding stuff, so check in from time to time to see what's new. If you want a signed copy if the book from the authors, you can buy one from the CasablancaBook site.
[SEP 27] I think that will bring us to the web news. Over on YouTube, ErykKarl has a couple of great clips from the recent concert in Los Angeles. There is also a clip of Last Dance from Nevada, and SlickRickDog has added a ton of classic clips to his channel. On Multiply, look for the extended single mix of Heaven Knows courtesy of Jeffrey and a new photo gallery from Patrice.
[SEP 23] The list of Rock & Roll Fame nominees came out today. There are 12 artists on the list - 5 of whom will actually be inducted next year. The 12 on the ballot are: ABBA, Darlene Love, Genesis, Jimmy Cliff, Kiss, Laura Nyro, LL Cool J (he's been around long enough? Damn, I'm getting old. LOL), Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Chantels, The Hollies, The Stooges, and someone named Donna Summer. :-) Here's hoping the second time is the charm!
[SEP 20] Brazil, did you catch the midweek update? :-) If not, you need to look at the tour schedule below. Florida - I don't have details yet, but Miami fans need to keep November 14 open. I'll get you venue info when I have it.
[SEP 20] Believe it or not, that brings us to the web news already. (Other than the concerts it's been a very slow week.) On Multiply, I think Steve has reposted all of YouTube on his page. ;-) Seriously - he's got a ton of stuff there, you could spend all week there just checking out Donna videos. Over on YouTube itself, look for a bunch of classic interviews posted by SlickRickDog. And even more interesting is the commercial he posted for the original Live & More album from 1978. (It has short clips from the concert. How do we get THAT footage released??) Fernando has posted one of his video mixes for Power Of Love, and finally there is a remixed video cover of I Feel Love posted by ChrLoveFeel that is.... very dark and very disturbing. (Send the kids out of the room before you watch.) Check it out if that's your thing - or save it for Halloween. (The cover itself isn't bad, it's just the video imagery that is ... unusual.)
[SEP 20] That's it for now other than one tiny site announcement. I decided to keep my Twitter Feed on the site even though it's pretty boring usually (and not necessarily Donna-related). It lives with the editorials below. (And as soon as I finish writing it, I'll have my own editorial for a change.) Also, I made a little wallpaper thing for my phone and I thought I'd post here in case anyone else likes it. (Just right click it to save it to your computer - then you are on your own when it comes to getting it to your phone. LOL) The photos were taken by Ruud in Holland and me:
[SEP 17] Hello BRAZIL! I have confirmation that you will be seeing Donna in Rio de Janeiro on November 9, and in São Paulo on November 10 and 12. Tickets will go on sale through Ticketmaster Brazil starting September 19. (Right now only one São Paulo date is listed - the other will turn up eventually. :-) ) The September 19 date looks like a presale date for Citibank customers. If it works like it did in the US last time I ran into a Citibank presale, you didn't actually need to use a Citibank card to buy the tickets. You only needed to provide the first 4 digits of a Citibank card as the password to get into the presale.
[SEP 13] Important stuff first: Rio - I know there has been a report online that Donna will be playing there this fall.... hang in there, I'm waiting for confirmation one way or the other.
[SEP 13] Italy's La Repubblica has posted a blog entry that lists 25 songs about work. She Works Hard For The Money comes in at #16. (And the article is mostly in English, mainly because I think they got it from Yahoo.)
[SEP 13] Moving on to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. No, the nominees haven't been announced just yet, but that should be happening soon. So far I've already run into one article proposing Weird Al Yankovic as a potential inductee. So I figure that means any day now we'll start seeing more articles and blogs debating who should be in the class of 2010. Get ready to start posting your opinions. ;-)
[SEP 13] In cover news, I Feel Love is the hot track lately. X Factor's Niki Evans has her version coming out later this month, and I've been running into last year's R.O.N.Y cover a lot lately.
[SEP 13] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, look for Carlybabes Studio 54 remix of Love On And On. On YouTube, GrabTheCrap (love that screenname LOL) has posted more from Berlin, Fernando has posted a couple more of his video creations including one that combines Who Do You Think You're Fooling with Fame.
[SEP 7] And finally the my Foxwoods report is posted. I also added 2 pictures to the Coney Island page.
[SEP 7] While I'm here, I got an email from a Japanese speaking fan who was able to enlighten me on the mystery titles from the Best Selection compilation. (See below) The mystery tracks were: Narrative Passion, Temptation Of Love, The Wizard Of Love and Ankondishonaru Love. I was right about Ankondishonaru Love being Unconditional Love. Temptation Of Love is Love To Love You, Wizard Of Love is Love Is In Control, and you are gonna love this one. "Narrative Passion" is She Works Hard For The Money. Yes, really. LOL I'll share a bit of the email I got just to explain where that title came from: "In Japan, until 20 years ago or so some English songs which had a bit too long title were normally translated into Japanese and some of them had very different titles, so that you had to think the meaning 'behind'. So let me start off with 'Narrative Passion'. <snip> It's more like 'A Story of Passion' (Jounetsu Monogatari) actually and ...Why? Because this is 'a story' of Onetta who works 'passionately' for her life. (Though she was actually half asleep at the toilet entrance ...Sorry Onetta! LOL)"
He then went on to share some other alternate titles with me just for fun. I think you guys might get a kick out of them too. They are:
"Love is Magic" (Koi ha Majikku) - "Could It Be Magic"
"Flirtation of Love" (Ai no Tawamure) - "Try Me, I Know We Can Make It"
"On Your Laps" (Anata no Hiza de) - "Can't We Just Sit Down (And Talk It Over)"
"A Prayer in Tears" (Namida no Inori) - "Who Do You Think You're Fooling"
"Life in Tokio" - "Tokyo"
Thank you Tomo!
[SEP 6] Before I get to the regular Donna news, I have a new Ken's Korner posted for you (about Coney Island - and strangely he's being nice again LOL) and some Bruce news for you in the Family Matters section below.
[SEP 6] In concert news, I have posted a fan report (with photos) from Atlantic City, and my fan report from Coney Island. Foxwoods is still to some, as is an editorial I've been working on about Crayons. Los Angeles - watch your local papers. I keep getting tons of news alerts about the upcoming show. So far it's nothing more than Donna is playing the county fair, but I suspect there will be phone interviews, etc coming up.
[SEP 6] There is a new greatest hits coming out of Japan later this month. It's called Best Selection and it will be available at Amazon. [US and UK] There will be 19 tracks and obviously it isn't cheap - Japanese imports rarely are. :-) And it's supposed to be pressed on some cool new kind of plastic that is supposed to enhance the sound quality. I have no first hand experience with it, so I'll take their word for it now. I sneaked over to Amazon Japan to check the track list (and found that switching to English over there doesn't translate the track titles), and then I went over to Google and got a really butchered translation. LOL So this is the best I can do for now: Hot Stuff, Bad Girls, No More Tears, Last Dance, On The Radio, MacArthur Park, The Wanderer, I Feel Love, Heaven Knows, Dim All The Lights, Could It Be Magic, There Goes My Baby, State Of Independence, This Time I Know It's For Real, Anyway At All and 4 more titles that Google really made a mess of. LOL What Google gave me was "Narrative Passion, Temptation Of Love, The Wizard Of Love and Ankondishonaru Love." Now your guesses are as good as mine, but I'd say one of those should be Love To Love You, probably another is I Love You, and I'm sure Love Is In Control is probably one of them too. Oh wait - that last one has to be Unconditional Love. If anyone out there reads Japanese, let me know where Google went wrong.
[SEP 6] Moving on to the web, over on YouTube, look for Fernando's new video for the Granite & Sugarman mix of Stamp Your Feet, a Jay Style mix of La Vie En Rose, Smile from Coney Island, and a whole bunch of other clips from Coney Island courtesy of nyrainbow5, more Coney Island from TheRealJustJeff, and a 1981 clip of Hot Stuff from the AMAs. On Multiply, look for Love On And On courtesy of Carl and Steve, and a bunch of the recent concert videos also courtesy of Steve.
[SEP 1 again] And now the Hammond fan report page is up. :-)
[SEP 1] The new Summer Fever Pick is posted. This month, Mistaken Identity takes its place in the spotlight.
[SEP 1] The Windsor fan report page is up now. More venues are coming - slowly but surely!
[AUG 31] I have Berlin photos and a new fan report posted. Other venues are coming soon. :-)
[AUG 30] I still have a bunch of fan reports and photos to post for you (including 2 more of my own), but let me just concentrate on the regular update tonight. (I found out after all this Donna stalking over the last 2 weeks that I'm not 19 anymore. Who knew? LOL) For Sudano fans, I have stuff for you in the Family Matters section below on Bruce, Brooklyn and Amanda. (I think that's the first time I can cover everybody on one update - heck, one of those items will even include a picture of Mimi.)
[AUG 30] Let's start off with some of the recent articles. We have an interview at Projo.com, another in the Hartford Courant, one in the Norwich Bulletin, a tiny one from the Boston Globe, a Coney Island review on the Joe My God blog and a Foxwoods review from Projo.com. Then there are 2 articles about all the politicians who showed up at the Coney Island show from the NY Times and the NY Press. (There was enough hot air before the show to melt the entire polar ice cap! LOL)
[AUG 30] In the Donna is everywhere category, roller coaster fans will hear her on the new Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit coaster at Universal Orlando. You can check out the song list here. (Personally, I think I'll just listen to my Donna tunes on the ground.... roller coasters are not my friends! LOL)
[AUG 30] Let's move on to web news. On YouTube, look for more Berlin clips courtesy of GrabTheCrap, a Niagara Falls clip of Last Dance from stevenvp (who is probably at this very minute being hunted by ushers with little flashlights! LOL), a number of Coney Island clips from djdavis254, and a new 2 part interview from Germany (but in English) posted by TorgenAmMorgen. (Hi Torgen!) O will be back during the week to change the Summer Fever pick and to add the fan reports that are starting to pile up on me. :-)
[AUG 26] For those of you who would like a little warm up for tomorrow's show, check out this clip from Indiana. :-) I might tweet once or twice from the shows tomorrow and Friday, so you can keep track on Twitter, or here (for now). I'll probably take down the Twitter feed after the shows. [Update - I actually moved it instead of deleting it]
[AUG 25] My Niagara Falls report is up. I'll have something from Windsor later on when I have a few moments to post it. And I still have Berlin pictures to post for you too.
[AUG 23] Okay, so let's see how much of the weekly update I can get done tonight. :-) I'm going to pretty much ignore the concerts for the moment so we can get caught up with everything else. (I will have more stuff from Berlin for you soon as well as anything I get out of Canada or Indiana, and of course my own fan report from the road. Don't worry - I won't include my 200 pictures of the falls. LOL) And I should warn you guys - I really didn't get much sleep all week, so beware of typos and possibly other strangeness.
[AUG 23] First up, you really need to read PopMatters' 5 part article on Casablanca if you haven't done so already. I'm still playing catch up with it, but what I've been able to read so far is excellent. All 5 parts are posted now and I know some people have actually printed out all 5 to keep or at least to take with them to read offline. For those of you in need of more reading material, there is a short interview at nwi.com, there is a new interview in the Windsor Star, and another new one in the Chicago Sun Times. If video is more your speed, there is a short interview from the Belgian concert online. The audio is in English, but there are subtitles in what looks like maybe Dutch? The caption beneath the video is German though. And speaking of German, there is a print interview in that language on fr-online.de.
[AUG 23] Did I post this before? I don't think so, so I'm posting it now. There are a number of photos from Berlin on intro.de. And here are a few more on Picasa.
[AUG 23] I think that brings us to the web news. On Multiply look for a BBC Radio2 interview on Andy's page, and Jeff's collection of "Hidden Treasures" - one off tracks and album tracks. And on YouTube look for new mixes courtesy of djrydel and djaykay1.
[AUG 23] Hopefully (barring any disasters at work) I should be able to start posting concert reports tomorrow night. Later this week, I will be at Coney Island and Foxwoods. I'm told Coney Island gets pretty packed for the free concerts, so get there early to stake out a good spot. And be prepared to make some noise! I want them to hear us all the way in Europe. :-)
[AUG 22] I literally just got back from Niagara Falls and I promise to have all the details and the weekly update for you soon. (It might come in pieces though as I sort out everything I missed.) But I did want to specifically mention that my webmaster email is now fixed. If you sent anything there that got bounced back, if you resend it now it should be fine. For similar situations, you can also get me at chawk26519 AT aol.com - but please mention Donna (or something equally interesting) in the subject because I get a lot of spam there.
[AUG 22] To you guys I met up with at Niagara Falls - I know I promised photos to some of you. Give me a day or so to get them out of the camera and I'll start emailing. :-) And speaking of photos - for any of you who were at any meet and greet for any show on this tour (or on last summer's tour), you can find your photos here. Just click on the date and venue for your show.
[AUG 22] And finally (and most importantly), a BIG shout out to Team Summer. You guys really made this vacation extra fun and I can't thank you enough. (And no, I never get tired of the show..... if you had any idea how hard it was for me to cross that bridge back into the US this morning... LOL I think I would have followed you to Windsor if I could have!)
[AUG 22] I'll be back tomorrow night with at least part of the weekly update. :-)
[AUG 17] This is just a quick update before I leave to post the belated Ken's Korner on Michael Jackson. (Cyber gremlins ate it, so I didn't get it until now.) Also PopMatters has posted the first part of Casablanca Records: Play It Again. (Just bookmark that link - each day they will add the link to the next part to that page.) The series goes chronologically, so today's part is about the start of Casablanca and KISS.
[AUG 17] There is also a new interview with Donna that I forgot to post the other night. It's courtesy of the Windy City Times.
[AUG 15] Calling Nevada - this just sneaked in under my radar. You guys will see Donna at the Star Of The Desert Arena in Primm on September 26. Tickets are on sale NOW through Ticketmaster.
[AUG 15] Before I get to the rest of the weekly update, I just want to let you all know that I will be off line from Tuesday until Saturday while I go explore Niagara Falls. I'm not bringing a computer so I will have no internet or email access while I'm away (so of you see me shaking at the concerts it's just withdrawal symptoms. LOL) Barring any cell phone weirdness, I do plan to post the occasional tweet on my Twitter page, so you benevolent stalkers out there can keep track of me that way. :-)
[AUG 15] Casablanca fans, you will want to keep an eye on the Pop Matters site this week. Our friend Christian Wikane has written a 5 part piece called Casablanca: Play It Again that should debut on Monday with a new part posted each day. (And yes they will be accessible on the site for a long time to come for those of us who can't be online every day.) It promises to be a very interesting article because Christian has interviewed the entire universe in preparation. (Or pretty close to the entire universe! LOL)
[AUG 15] Speaking of writing, DJHistory.com has put out a book called The Disco Files 1973-78, which is a comprehensive collection of articles written by Vince Aletti back in the day. It's got record reviews, reports in the club scene, club charts (for all you chart hounds out there), you name it. You can read an interview with Aletti at Time Out New York.
[AUG 15] Moving on to the land of the strange.... a UK woman had her speakers confiscated for playing her Donna tunes a bit too loud. (They say people 4 streets away could hear the music - I don't know how the woman didn't deafen herself! LOL) So from now on when I say "crank up the Donna tunes", what I mean is only to crank them up loud enough to have fun - but no so loud that the police come take your gear away. ;-)
[AUG 15] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, Jeff has posted an "album" of tracks Donna released in the 17 year space between Mistaken Identity and Crayons, and Otto has posted his Donna vs. Klaus Nomi mix of I Feel Love. On YouTube look for the video for I Feel Love (one of the MAW mixes). Donna's not in the video, but there are plenty of half naked men to take her place (if that's your thing.) ;-) And look for Be Myself Again accompanying a slideshow of paintings by Gustav Klimt. I think that's it for this week. I'll see some of you in person in Canada and I'll see the rest of you here next week. :-)
[AUG 9] Well I think I covered a lot with the update the other night. :-) So let's start off with some politics. (And everybody just started looking at the site title to see if they logged into the right place, right? LOL) Apparently back in the late 70s to the early 80s Argentina's military junta attempted to silence "subversive" elements in part by banning songs that they felt would corrupt the population. Donna has the dubious honor of having 3 of her songs blacklisted - Love To Love You, Prelude To Love and Could It Be Magic. On a related side note, someone sent me an Argentinean copy of Bad Girls a number of years ago. They modified the cover art to totally downplay the "bad girls" theme. The lamp post from the front cover is gone, all the inside artwork was removed (and replaced with 2 other portraits), and the back cover was airbrushed to remove the car and the driver holding the $50 bill.
[AUG 9] Moving on to decidedly strange things.... the Gregory Hancock Dance Theater is putting on a production of Romeo and Juliet Go To The Disco with the Capulets on roller skates and the Montagues in platform shoes. Naturally they will be using disco music in the production and Donna's music will be included. (But the article doesn't state which songs they picked.) Sounds like it would be a rather interesting night at the theater.
[AUG 9] In the Donna is everywhere category, she made MSN's "Where Are They Now" photo gallery. (Clicking their link to see what she's been up to brings you to a Bing search page for "Donna Summer Crayons". :-) )
[AUG 9] That brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, look for stampyourfeet's new music video for La Vie En Rose, a German interview from Endless Donna (and yes, Donna does speak German on it), and the Electronic Beats post concert video reposted on YouTube by Steve. Speaking of Steve, if you are on Multiply he's added a bunch of the recent European videos to his page. In Twitter news, I guess now is as good a time as any to mention that I have a Twitter page. It's a personal page that's not specifically devoted to Donna (or any other particular topic). And I have to admit it's pretty boring because I rarely tweet and when I do it's usually a reply to someone else. LOL But I mention it now so that you guys have a chance to find it before I head up to Niagara Falls in a couple weeks. I'm going to try to send a tweet or 2 about the shows if I can.
[AUG 6] I finally got to put together the rest of the European fan contributions. :-) So look for more reports and photos from Paris, Berlin and Belgium. Also, Electronic Beats has posted its review of the Berlin show along with some photos and an interview with Donna. (I think a couple of you guys might even spot yourselves on the page.)
[AUG 2] First things first. It's time for a new Summer Fever pick. And in honor of Donna's recent concert in Germany - the place where she got her start, I thought it was appropriate to go back to the first album, Lady Of The Night.
[AUG 2] So I guess most of you have figured out that the big news this week comes from Berlin and Belgium. (Yes, I think I did hear you guys screaming all the way over here! LOL) Berlin was first so let's start there. Here is the set list: The Queen Is Back, MacArthur Park, Could It Be Magic (sung partly in German), a Once Upon A Time/ I Love You medley, I'm A Fire, Smile, On The Radio, Wasserman (Aquarius) sung in German and English and with the added surprise of several original Haare cast members, Crayons, No More Tears, Be Myself Again, Stamp Your Feet, She Works Hard For The Money, Love To Love You (sung partly in German), I Feel Love, Bad Girls, Hot Stuff, Fame and Last Dance. Some clips have turned up on YouTube, and I'll give you that list a little further down. By the way, if you want to see the video ad for the Berlin show (or hear the special mini-mix ElectronicBeats put together to promote the show, check out this site.)
[AUG 2] With the Berlin concert there was some media coverage. (This will all be in German so if that's not your language, have the Google translator ready.) Here is the list: Blu.fm (an interview), Zeit Online (an article that was reprinted on several sites), De-Bug, bz-berlin.de, and Berliner-Zeitung. If photos are more your speed, Getty Images has a bunch (with some larger versions here), WireImage has some, and Virtual Nights has a bunch.
[AUG 2] Moving on to Belgium.... The set list over there was: The Queen Is Back, MacArthur Park, Could It Be Magic, Once Upon A Time/ I Love You, I'm A Fire, Smile, On The Radio, Mr. Music, Crayons, No More Tears, Be Myself Again, Stamp, I Feel Love, Love To Love You, Hard For The Money, Bad Girls, Hot Stuff, Fame and Last Dance. She even mentioned The Hostage.
[AUG 2] Now is a good time to run down the YouTube list. For Berlin clips check out Gioveolympus for bits of Crayons, Smile, Wasserman, MacArthur Park, Could It Be Magic and The Queen Is Back. Maximus23MS has On The Radio, and Look at TheElectrobear for Last Dance and On The Radio. For clips from Belgium, look at: JoeDanski for Bad Girls/Hot Stuff, I Feel Love, and MacArthur Park, while LUTLAUREYS has Fame, Bad Girls, No More Tears, I Feel Love and Smile, JimFanSite has I Feel Love and Smile, and Original Beast has the beginning of The Queen Is Back..
[AUG 2] Moving on to some non-concert news, Christian Wikane (the guy who writes all that cool stuff for Pop Matters) will be debuting his series on Casablanca very soon. (Soon as in within the next couple of weeks.) To promote the piece, Christian did a little interview that is posted on YouTube. (Yes NY fans, you have probably seen him at the local concerts.)
[AUG 2] For those of you who want a little Donna buddy for your desk top, Stor Dubine has created a little something for you. It's a little Cubee that you print out and put together.
[AUG 2] That brings us to the web news for the week. I think I covered YouTube with the Berlin and Belgium clips above, so let's go right to Multiply. Over there Steve has reposted a bunch of the recent concert clips, Dirk has posted pictures from Belgium, and Ruud has posted larger versions of his Paris pictures.
[AUG 2] I have more stuff to post from all the European shows - but I'm running out of time tonight, so those will have to wait for another day. And I'll be watching YouTube - more things show up there all the time.
[JUL 26] Let's start off with Cala di Volpe in Italy. That was a fairly exclusive (and somewhat expensive) show this week and as it happens one of the UK guys was there. He wrote me a fan report that seems to have been eaten by internet gremlins or something. I'm sure I'll have it soon though. In the mean time, Keith sent photos which you can see here. (That's some venue!) There are also a couple of articles about the show (L'Union Sardia and Ansa.it) - in Italian of course. (So if that's not your language, make use of Google or an Italian buddy to help you out. :-) )
[JUL 26] People Magazine has a special issue out celebrating the 70s. Donna's photo is on the back cover, and of course she's featured in the section about disco. There is nothing new in the magazine - it's just a retrospective on the decade. It's a special edition so it will be on newsstands for quite awhile. (Unless it sells out - both Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett are on the front cover which might make it more appealing to collectors than usual.)
[JUL 26] Over in Germany, they are still plastering advertisements all over Berlin, and now they've added print ads as well. So you guys in Berlin can't possibly escape Donna - not that I think any of you want to. ;-)
[JUL 26] And we're still not done with Paris. :-) I have yet another short (but sweet) fan report on the Paris page for you. (Berlin - Paris is setting the bar pretty high. I can't wait to hear from you guys. And then Belgium - you guys will have A LOT to live up to. ;-) )
[JUL 26] I think that brings us to the web news. On YouTube, Fernando has posted the recent Chicago radio interview as sort of a video slideshow accompanying Donna's words. He's also posted a backwards version of I Feel Love. (I think the boy watched the alien video too many times and it warped him! LOL)
[JUL 19] Let's start with Chicago radio. WLS sneaked in an interview by phone with Donna this week, and the best part about it is that you can download it from the station's website.
[JUL 19] If you think we've heard the last from Paris - you are wrong. :-) I added a new fan report, and we have a page of photos courtesy of Ingresso Libero. (He's also the guy behind that YouTube video of La Vie En Rose that we're all addicted to, not to mention a bunch of other great clips.)
[JUL 19] Examiner.com has posted an article on the top 5 female vocal performances in the last 25 years or so of dance music. Donna is on the list with Bad Girls.
[JUL 19] I think that brings us to the web news. On YouTube, Fernando has posted his video for the MAW 86th Street mix of I Feel Love. Over on Multiply, Steve has posted a few new clips including a Klyk mix of Maybe It's Over and Donna performing Last Dance at the Oscars. And Andy is working on his Tribal Drum Megamix for 2009.
[JUL 16] DonnaSummer.com is updated. There is a message from Donna (read that first), the tour page is updated, and there are new videos. One is La Vie En Rose from Paris, and the other..... well, this is why I said to read Donna's message first. LOL (Paris, is there something strange in your drinking water? LOL) Note to a certain space alien: keep posting - you made me laugh.
[JUL 11] Bon jour Paris. I think tonight's update is pretty much all about you. It took a day or two for the guys to settle down enough to write, but they did write. And they took photos. And they made videos. I think one night in Paris was YouTubed as much as the whole North American tour last year! :-) (You know, I can't be sure, but I think I even heard some sexy male French voices yelling "we love you Donna" from all the way over here last week. ;-) ) Let's start off with the fan reports. I have a few of those (all in English) and they are accompanied by a number of photos - some of them I swear must have been taken from the stage itself. (Or the guys had AMAZING cameras!)
[JUL 11] Before I go any further, I want to give you the Paris set list because I want to say something about a couple of the songs:
The Queen Is Back
I Feel Love
Could It Be Magic
Dim All The Lights
Smile (This was a tribute to Michael Jackson - apparently it was his favorite song and I'd say it was probably a replacement for Sand On My Feet judging by the dress and the position in the show. For those who don't know, Michael's funeral was held the same day as this concert.)
On The Radio
I'm A Fire
Mr. Music
Crayons
Enough Is Enough
MacArthur Park
Stamp Your Feet
She Works Hard For The Money
Bad Girls
Hot Stuff
Love To Love You Baby (Probably the longest version of that song ever sung in recent years. When she's done it here in the US, it's part of a medley of older songs.)
La Vie En Rose (As far as I know this was the first time that the full song has ever been done in concert.)
Be Myself Again
Last Dance
So Paris, you got a few very nice surprises. Rumor has it, she just might be working on a surprise for Berlin too.
[JUL 11] I usually save the web news for last.... but I think Paris needs a whole YouTube section to itself. So here we go. We have 5 videos from Damien that include Love To Love You, La Vie En Rose, Smile, I'm A Fire, and Be Myself Again. There is DiscoMichel who has short clips of I think all the songs. That includes the introductions to both La Vie En Rose and She Works Hard For The Money. (You will read about those in the fan reports when you get there.) Then Ingressolibero has about 10 songs posted from the show: I Feel Love, I'm A Fire, Last Dance, MacArthur Park, No More Tears, Could It Be Magic, Love To Love You, La Vie En Rose, and Smile.
[JUL 11] Italy, I see a report that Donna is playing at the Hotel Cala di Volpe on July 25. Judging by the comments by the Italian fans on the forum and by the fact that the only ad I see says "limited availability" with no ticket prices listed, I'd say this one is a more or less private (and expensive) date. I leave it to those of you with flexible budgets to decide for yourselves.
[JUL 11] And that brings us to the web news... well, the web news that I haven't covered yet. Over on Multiply, Jeffrey has posted the A&E Biography in several parts, Denis has a Stamp remix, and Steve has posted every Paris clip he could his hands on. :-)
[JUL 7] I just thought I'd throw in a quick update from Paris. During the show, Donna to sing Smile as a tribute to Michael Jackson. You can catch it on YouTube.
[JUL 5] Okay, if you missed the excellent BBC Radio 2 profile of Donna, run to the BBC website and check it out now. You will hear new interview clips with the lady herself, plus comments from people like Gloria Gaynor, Barry Manilow, Pete Waterman, Brenda Russell.... and the usually elusive Pete Bellotte. You will hear vintage music clips that nobody else usually plays..... Tune in, you will love it! (Great job Grant!) A word of warning though - the show will only be available online for 6 days, then it's gone forever. (I have this picture in my head now of hundreds of workplaces with employees listening to this radio show instead of working on Monday morning. LOL)
[JUL 5] Speaking of radio - don't forget that Donna is scheduled to be on Radio Nostalgie in France tomorrow (Monday) between 6 and 9 AM. Radio Nostalgie broadcasts online and they do make some of their shows available for on-demand listening.
[JUL 5] On this side of the ocean, the Santa Barbara Independent has published its review of the concert at Chumash.
[JUL 5] New York's WBAI 99.5 FM radio will be playing Does He Love You and Enough Is Enough on its Everything Old Is New Again show on July 12. You'll be able to catch that online either live or archived on the WBAI site.
[JUL 5] I mentioned last week that Donna was on CNN again talking about Michael Jackson. The transcript is on the CNN website. Scroll down about half way to find Donna's remarks.
[JUL 5] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. On YouTube you can check out Donna on CNN's Newsroom (she was there by phone only though) and a clip of Amazing Grace courtesy of Stampyourfeet, a couple of remixes courtesy of DJSheitan, and some live stuff from Frankfire. On Multiply, Andy has posted a couple of mixes and the BBC Radio 2 profile of Donna, while Steve has posted a couple of You're So Beautiful mixes and the CNN Newsroom comments. Hopefully I will be back early with some news from Paris. (Fan reports in French are fine - you will just have to do your own proofreading, because I'll never catch spelling errors! LOL) I want to hear you guys make some noise over there - you should be able to wake me up all the way over here! ;-)
[JUL 3] Paris - Donna will be on Radio Nostalgie's Happy Days show on July 6 between 6 and 9 local time. It looks like they some times post interviews on the web, so hopefully we'll all get to hear it.
[JUL 1 again] I goofed on the BBC radio thing this morning - it's 10 PM local time on Saturday. So don't tune in late! The other reason I'm back is that it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. I'm bringing back Crayons in honor of the upcoming tour dates. I'll be back on the weekend with the regular update.
[JUL 1] I have a radio alert for the UK. BBC 2 will be airing a 60 minute documentary on Donna on July 4 at 10 PM (local time) called Feelin' Love: The Donna Summer Story. International fans can listen in online. I'll be back after work with the Summer Fever pick.
[JUN 28 again] Donna was on CNN again (via phone) again tonight on CNN Newsroom. She got to talk a little more about Michael - it's a totally different interview than what was on Larry King. She was on about 10:30 tonight (Eastern) - the show airs again at 5 AM, but I don't know if it's the same one or a new show for a new day. If my DVR cooperates, I'll know tomorrow.
[JUN 28] Let's start off with a time sensitive item. I have a fan with 2 tickets to the Paris concert and now he finds himself unable to go. So if anyone is still looking to buy a pair of tickets, let me know and I'll hook you up with Gareth.
[JUN 28] For those of you who missed Donna calling in to Larry King the other night, you can catch it on Youtube. Or, thanks to one of the guys out there, I have a transcript for you. (Note, while Donna was on the phone, CNN showed video footage of Michael's body being taken away.)
<< Now joining us on the phone, the disco icon, the one and only Donna Summer.
Donna, you knew Michael, did you not?
DONNA SUMMER, SINGER: Yes, I did, yes.
KING: We're seeing the vehicle transporting the body now over to the coroner, who will, I gather, begin the autopsy I would guess tomorrow, not tonight. What are your thoughts, Donna?
SUMMER: Well, I have just -- I have to go on stage and sing tonight. It is extremely difficult. It is such an incredible shock to me. I -- you know, I've known Michael for many years. We've worked together. We've had -- we've done different things together over the years.
And I know his family. And it's just -- it's a total shock. And I don't even have words to say. I mean, I'll miss Michael. The world will miss Michael. And I'm sure that the world is in a state of grief right now.
KING: Where are you performing tonight?
SUMMER: I'm up north of Los Angeles at a casino, Chumash.
KING: Will you talk about him?
SUMMER: I certainly will. We're going to try to dedicate a song to him tonight.
KING: All right. Donna, what was his greatness?
SUMMER: His greatness was perfection. And when you meet people like that, who are so given to doing things at the utmost and the highest level, then it makes you up your game. And Michael was one of those people who wouldn't stop until he was perfect. And he kept going even after that.
So I will personally miss him. I will miss his light. I will miss his star. I will miss who he has caused other people to become because of his greatness. He upped -- he upped the standard.
KING: Did you let the stories about his personal life affect your feelings about him?
SUMMER: Not at all. Not at all. Because I don't, personally, know that those stories are true. I tend to want to not believe them because I know Michael, and I can't even imagine that he would ever try to hurt a child. I think it -- I felt more like it was exploitation, personally, from other people. I don't know if it's true or not. I just -- you know, I just think he was a sitting duck at times. >>
Pieces of this interview have been quoted in articles all over the web, as journalists recap people's memories of Michael, and CNN repeats it periodically during the weekend broadcasts of Larry King Live.
[JUN 28] Before you guys ask - Donna didn't dedicate a specific song to Michael at the show, but she did talk about him and she asked everyone to say a prayer for him. If you would like to read a little about the show, Jonathan sent me in a fan report and some photos to go with it.
[JUN 28] Berlin - TV commercials promoting the upcoming concert have been spotted on German television. The commercial starts with music from I'm A Fire and then goes into clips from Live & More Encore.
[JUN 28] That brings us to the web news for the week. Let's start off with a brand new forum out there for French speaking fans. It's called Donna Summer, The Diva and if French is one of your languages - go join the party over there. (And if it's not your language, Google can help you with some translations.) Over on Multiply, Steve has gone insane again and posted a bazillion Glen Rivera mixes, and Jeff has posted the promotional Crayons videos, among other things. On YouTube, we have the Larry King clip I mentioned above posted by Stampyourfeet, plus Fernando's tribute to Michael (he used A Whole New World accompanied by a photo of Donna and Michael). For those of you who need a little break from all things Michael, we have Glen Rivera's mix of Wasted, and the rare b-side Something In The Wind. You Rick-Rollers out there will get a laugh out of this clip. Someone has slowed down This Time I Know It's For Real and paired it with the video portion of one of Rick Astley's songs. (Slowed down, Donna sounds amazingly like Rick. LOL)
[JUN 25] What a bad week to be a celebrity icon. First we lost Ed McMahon, then Farrah Fawcett, and now Michael Jackson. I guess you know you're getting older when the big stars of your youth start moving on to the next realm. :-( I would like to take this opportunity to express my deepest condolences to the family, friends and fans of all three of those icons. Today Earth is a sadder place, but in heaven there 3 bright new stars.
Mandatory Donna connection: She called in to Larry King Live tonight to express her grief and admiration. If you missed it, it airs again at midnight here on the East Coast and again at 3 AM on CNN. Other time zones can do the math. CORRECTION: The midnight Larry King may be another new live hour. 3 AM could be a repeat of either. UPDATE: I found this quote online:
-- Disco star Donna Summer, in an interview with CNN, said Jackson's death came as a "total shock."
Of Jackson's talents as a performer, Summer said: "His greatness was perfection. Michael was one of those people who wouldn't stop until he was perfect and he would keep going after that."
Also - forum users, you may find that you have trouble accessing Delphi. I believe that's due to extra web traffic caused by today's news.
[JUN 21] Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there! Let's start off with a really good new interview courtesy of the Santa Barbara News Press. If you are a subscriber to that newspaper. you can read the article online on their website. Everyone else can see it here.
[JUN 21] Photo hounds - there are pictures of Donna at WireImage.com from the concert last month and from an event in Los Angeles. (Bruce and Brooklyn are in the LA photos too.)
[JUN 21] That brings us to the web news. Over on Multiply, look for new mixes posted by Steve and Andy. And on YouTube, look for new videos from Fernando, an excellent quality clip of Lady Of The Night, Hot Stuff from a UK appearance a few years ago, and No More Tears with Westlife.
[JUN 17] BERLIN - there is a slight change to your concert. They can't have it at the Admiralspalast. Apparently they need a bigger venue. :-) So the show is moving to the Tempodrom. Any tickets you already bought are still valid. Also, I believe there are interviews and such planned for Europe while Donna is over there - so keep an eye on your local radio stations, etc.
[JUN 14] Bruce fans - you will want to see the Family Matters section below. (Actually - Johnnyswim fans will like the news too.)
[JUN 14] I guess the best place to start off is with release news. iTunes has finally listed the Stamp Your Feet mixes as of a day or 2 ago. So if you didn't grab them before, grab them now. (And they are still only 99 cents each - a lot of the new iTunes stuff is up to 1.29.)
[JUN 14] In the land of books, we have one coming out this fall about Casablanca Records called And Party Every Day by Larry Harris. I suspect that it might be a little heavier on the KISS side of the label because the author seems to be into KISS, but I think they will have plenty of stuff to interest the rest of us too. :-)
[JUN 14] In cover news, the band Dengue Fever (with guest vocals by Inara George) is putting out a digital only EP that includes a cover of I Feel Love. Look for that next month.
[JUN 14] Of you are looking for videos, the German site Truveo has a bunch of official clips culled from MSN, VH1, etc.
[JUN 14] That brings us to the web news for the week. On Multiply, look for new mixes posted by Jeffrey and Andy. ANd on YouTube, Fernando has posted his Grand Illusion video. (It's amazing how well the Whenever There Is Love video footage works with other songs.)
[JUN 7] Usually I save all the YouTube stuff for the end of the update, but this week a rare gem turned up that I know everyone wants to see. It's a little interview footage combined with some studio footage of Donna (and company) from 1978. I don't know where the FootageWorld.com guys found that clip - but I hope they dig up some more. :-)
[JUN 7] The press release for the Berlin concert has started showing up in various German media outlets. :-) Hopefully there will be as much publicity when Donna arrives there. :-)
[JUN 7] There is a very good quality (I'm told) video of All Systems Go posted on O2 Music Stream. The catch is that it won't play in every country. They also have the Love Is In Control video posted as well.
[JUN 7] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention at the end of a Kristine W article. The article list the artists with the most #1s on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play charts. Donna came in at #3 behind Madonna and Janet Jackson. (Kristine W came in at #5.)
[JUN 7] If you happen to be in India (or are planning to visit India), the Hard Rock Cafe in Delhi has one of Donna's paintings on display.
[JUN 7] That brings us to the web news. Over n Multiply, Steve's been a busy boy posting mixes and video clips. AJ has posted a few mixes as well, and Andy has added his There Goes My Baby mix to the week's offerings. On YouTube, we have that great classic clip I mentioned earlier and not too much else that is new. But beware of a clip called On The Radio: Uncut video footage. It's not Donna. It's not even On The Radio. It's a 3 second plug for some Bible video. Apparently the poster has dozens of copies of that video posted under all sorts of different titles. Everybody start singing the Monty Python Spam song now. LOL
[JUN 3] BERLIN - your tickets will go on sale Friday. They had a slight delay in getting everything set. Prices will be 39 Euros for advanced sales and 45 at the box office. You will be able to grab them on line at eventim.de and getgo.de.
[JUN 2] The Summer Fever pick link is fixed - sorry about that. :-)
[MAY 31] I think I covered the big news in the mid-week updates. :-) But in case you missed them, California, Germany and Belgium need to look at the tour list below. Also, in case you haven't noticed - tomorrow is June 1, so that means it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. This time I'm celebrating 30 years of Bad Girls. :-) (That would be the album and not the ... um... working girls. I'm pretty sure they've been around WAY more than 30 years. LOL)
[MAY 31] Let's start off with something in the Donna is everywhere category. SeeMagazine.com posted some quotes from Yuval Taylor to promote his book, Faking It: The Quest For Authenticity in Popular Music [Amazon, Amazon UK]. The first quote that greets you is "I think Donna Summer ... is one of the great musical innovators and performers... and she is definitely not seen that way." (Hello, Rock Hall Of Fame? Are you listening?)
[MAY 31] Moving on to the land of covers, there is a new cover of On The Radio out in Europe by Rockwell.
[MAY 31] That brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, look for new clips from Fernando including remixes of Love To Love You and On The Radio. Also check out the Donna Summer vs. Klaus Nomi mix of I Feel Love. On Multiply, Patrice has posted his mix of I'm Free, along with some of his photo creations, and ANdy has posted his mix of Carry On.
[MAY 30] BELGIUM - your concert is confirmed! Donna will be playing the Lokerse Feesten on August 1. Tickets are on sale now - see the Festival website for details. (My link will send you to the English version of the website. There are links on top of the Lokerse Feesten page for French and Dutch if one of those languages is easier for you.
[MAY 29] BERLIN! (I mean the city in Germany and not the band. LOL) I have good news for you guys. Donna will be playing at the Admiralspalast on July 30. Tickets will be on sale very soon through eventim.de and getgo.de. I even have a copy of the press release for you to read if you would like. (It's in English.) Please note that the press release is dated June 2, so when it says tickets are on sale "now" that's not the case today.
[MAY 29] While I'm here - I got 3 emails this morning from European fans about a show in Belgium. After the fiasco with the other dates that were announced prematurely, I'm checking that one out with Donna's people before I add it to the list here. So when I hear something definite (either way), I'll post it. :-)
[MAY 28] CALIFORNIA! The Chumash Casino in Santa Barbara is reporting that Donna will be there June 25. Tickets are on sale now through the casino's website.
[MAY 24] Well, I thought I was going to come back sooner - but real life got in the way. But I do have a couple of fan reports from Florida for you, along with a couple of photos. And in the web news section, I'll have some YouTube links for you too. :-) For those of you who have been wondering - it is the same show as last summer, only in Florida it was a little shorter because a couple of songs were dropped. (That may or may not be due to the venue - some places are very strict about how long a show can last, and they will beat the artist with a big stick if the show runs long. ;-) )
[MAY 24] Okay picture hounds, there are professional pictures from Florida posted here, some 2008 pictures posted here, and plenty of new and old pictures here. We've also got a very positive concert review put there courtesy of the South Florida Times.
[MAY 24] Paris - I'm told your concert is sold out. :-) That means it will be a nice big party over there later this summer!
[MAY 24] That brings us to the web news. First up is a new blog called The Best Singer: Donna Summer. It's written in Portuguese, so if that's not your language, run over to Google to get a translation. :-) Over on Multiply look for new mixes from Patrice, Jeffrey and Andy. On YouTube, look for new videos from Fernando (including a very interesting video he made for Be Myself Again) and a very cool video for The Hostage. There are also new videos from Florida: 2 clips of Hot Stuff from thanynathy and Phil, and 2 versions of Last Dance from Italman and Phil. (Don't be confused - the ordinarydiva account is mine, but I'm hosting Phil's videos for now.)
[MAY 17] As I write this, Florida should be for their diva right now - so we'll just have our own little update party here without them. ;-) News alert from Florida (thank god for text messages LOL) - it's pretty much the same show as last summer with at least one subtle change that I know of so far. (More on that when the Floridians report. :-) ) Okay, before I get to the regular news, I have a couple of new articles linked in the media section below. I also have a brand new Ken's Korner - and I think he must have a high fever or something because he's being (mostly) nice this time.
[MAY 17] Lets start off with more concert updates. The tickets for the LA County Fair show won't go up for sale until sometime in July I'm told now. However, if you go over to LACountyFair.com, there is a link that will allow you to buy a membership to the End Of Summer Concert Series Club. Membership gives you a snazzy (non-Donna) t-shirt AND the chance to snap up your tickets a little earlier than the general public can.
[MAY 17] In the everyone likes to play with Crayons category - one of the couples on Dancing With The Stars last week actually did their routine to Crayons. It wasn't Donna's vocals, since they never use the original recordings on the show - but it was her song. You have to love it when the new stuff gets picked up! :-)
[MAY 17] In the Donna is everywhere category, one of the Eurovision contestants, Jade Ewen, is described as having (among other things) "the eternal cool of Donna Summer." :-) Also the Gucci fragrance commercial has been spotted in Australia.
[MAY 17] In the Mistaken Identity category - DJ Donna Summer, aka Jason Forrest is hanging out in Oslo these days. So if you Norwegians run into any Donna Summer articles over there, look closely to see who they mean. (Lately the press has been pretty careful to specify the DJ part though, so that's good.)
[MAY 17] Someone sent me a cool little link called TagGalaxy. When you go there you type in a tag like say.... "Donna Summer" ... and it will pull up all the Flickr hosted images that have that tag. You can find a bunch of fan concert photos that way. :-)
[MAY 17] I think that brings us to the web news. Over on Multiply look for several new mixes by Andy, and some new audio and video from Patrice. I know there is a bunch of new stuff at YouTube too, but at the moment they are doing maintenance so I can't get to my subscriptions list. So I'll post that stuff when I come back with the Florida reports.
[MAY 13] Chicago - Ticketmaster put your tickets up for sale while I wasn't looking. Run, do not walk, to the Ticketmaster site now to get your tickets.
[MAY 10] Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there! Bruce fans will want to look at the Family Matters section below.
[MAY 10] Okay, let's just jump right into concert info. Canada - the tickets for the show in Windsor will go on sale May 20 via Ticketmaster. (Speaking of Canada - be very afraid guys! I'm crossing the border for the Niagara Falls shows!) Chicago - I thought your tickets for the Horseshoe Casino would be on sale already, but they are coming soon through Ticketmaster. I have seen a preview copy of the print ad for that show and I can tell you that they are still using the Crayons cover, and they are still calling it the Stamp Your Feet Tour. :-) For those of you interested in going to the Horseshoe Casino show, I believe you can sign up for special offers at that venue by texting the word "venue" to 427724. Or you can go to the venue's website and sign up for their email alerts to get $20 off a pair of tickets to a show. And just a note to everyone planning to go to a casino show - don't forget that many of those venues have age restrictions for the shows, so make sure you check that out if you were thinking of bringing your kids.
[MAY 10] In the Donna is everywhere category, the new Gucci fragrance ad with I Feel Love has been spotted on CP24 in Toronto. And in Columbia, LuLuDisco has a fashion show. You can check out the videos on line.... and you might hear a couple of familiar tunes in them. ;-)
[MAY 10] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, look for Patrice's I Remember Yesterday mix and on YouTube, we have The Wanderer video, a classic clip of I Feel Love, and some high school kids stamping their feet to... well, you know. ;-)
[MAY 5] Happy Cinco de Mayo! Calling the great state of New Jersey..... (sorry, I saw Springsteen last night. LOL) You guys will be seeing Donna at the Taj Mahal on August 29. Those tickets go on sale June 6 at noon via Ticketmaster.
[MAY 3] If you missed Thursday's update, the Foxwoods tickets went on sale yesterday through Ticketmaster. It looks like the front section is mostly sold right now, but there are still plenty of seats in the other sections if you are planning to go. And Bruce fans will want to see the Family Matters section below.
[MAY 3] Classic photo hounds - getback.com has a few classic photos of Donna, plus a couple of old videos, including Love Is In Control.
[MAY 3] In release news... almost a year since we got Crayons, we have a brand new Shout It Out coming! (It had to happen, right? LOL) It's the same old track list, but they've come up with new cover art - and this one's not bad. (But nothing will ever be as good as the one with the freaky eyeball cover. LOL) You can check it out at Play.com. This one is due out on May 11 and it is being sold under the title of Fun Street.
[MAY 3] There is a new book coming out this month by Giorgio Moroder and Alessandro Benedetti called Extraordinary Records [Amazon, Amazon UK]. It's a showcase of some 400 unusual vinyl records (shaped, colored, etc). I don't know yet if any of Donna's picture disks will make the book, but I guess we'll see what it hits stores.
[MAY 3] Sandisk has come out with a new MP3 player called slotRadio that requires no computer to use. You just stick a preloaded card in the player, and you have 1000 songs to listen to. They've just announced 4 new cards to go with the player, and they will have some Donna tunes on the oldies card. I just want to know when "oldies" became MY music instead of my mother's music? LOL
[MAY 3] In the Donna is everywhere category, State Of Independence got a mention on E's Chelsea Lately (the one with Tracey Ullman as a guest). Apparently the song is a favorite of Chelsea's boyfriend.
[MAY 3] In remix news, Jay Style has remixed Donna's version of La Vie En Rose. He's got 2 of the mixes posted on his site - just look for the player widget on the left side of the homepage.
[MAY 3] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, check out Fernando's channel for some live footage and for his video for Be Myself Again. Also look for live footage of On The Radio from last year's concert in Chicago, and Patrice's Power Of Love video. On Multiply, check out AJ's mixes of I Don't Want To Get Hurt, Patrice's Maxi Dance mix, and a couple of videos from Steve.
[APR 30] Calling Connecticut - the Foxwoods tickets go on sale this Saturday (May 2) at 9 AM via Ticketmaster. If you are planning to stay over, Foxwoods is offering a special room rate for the night.
[APR 30] While I'm here... it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. This month All Systems Go takes the spotlight. :-)
[APR 24] I thought I'd do the update early since I have I have ticket info for some of the North American shows now, and it's so close to the usual update anyway. Niagara Falls and Horseshoe Casino tickets go on sale May 8, and the L.A. County Fair tickets go on sale May 15. I believe all those venues use Ticketmaster in addition to their usual box office. Coney Island will be free (yes you read that right!) but you can rent seats for $10. (It's a standing room general admission venue.) I'll let you know about the others as soon as I hear.
[APR 24] In the Donna is everywhere category - it was disco week on American Idol. So you know that means they were singing Donna songs. :-) You can hear the contestants' versions of Hot Stuff, Dim All The Lights and She Works Hard For The Money on YouTube. And you can read about them in any of the 8 million news alerts I got this week. LOL As a side bonus, Dim All The Lights is selling like crazy on iTunes thanks to the exposure.
[APR 24] Moving on to VH1, they are FINALLY bringing back their Divas concert series this fall. They are asking visitors to the VH1 site to vote for the divas they would like to see. I can think of plenty of divas who belong on that show - one in particular who stole the show in 2000. ;-) (I just hope they don't make it a tribute to anybody - the show is always more fun when the divas are on equal footing.)
[APR 24] On to European tour dates - or the lack thereof.... I know Donna is still listed on the Montreux Jazz Festival site, but I just want to remind people that particular date is NOT on Donna's official schedule at this time. Someone also sent me a link this week indicating that Donna might play Barcelona. Like Montreux, that is NOT on Donna's official schedule. If that changes, I will be DELIGHTED to tell you - but for now, don't get your hopes up. Sorry guys. :-(
[APR 24] Moving on to the web news.... over on YouTube, look for a classic clip of A Man Like You, several new clips from Fernando, and a Donna vs. Green Velvet I Feel Love In La La Land clip. On Multiply, Steve has posted Klyk's 2009 Speedo mix of Breakaway, and Andy has posted an updated version of his She Works Hard For The Money mix.
[APR 19] So if you missed the mid-week update, Paris and North America will want to look at the tour list below. (Watch out Canada - I think I'll be crossing the border this year!) :-) I've added links to the venues so we can all watch out for the on sale dates. Please note that for casino dates, the "high rollers" will probably get first crack at tickets, so if you have any friends or family who is a regular at one of those casinos, it's time to call in some favors. ;-) Also, Bruce fans will want to see the Family Matters section below.
[APR 19] Gucci has a fragrance out called Flora and of course it has a TV commercial to advertise it. The interesting thing about the ad (well, for us Donna fans) is the music they used in the ad. It's an all new take on I Feel Love and yes, Donna recorded new vocals for it. You can see the commercial on YouTube and you can read about it here.
[APR 19] A writer by the name of Jerry Perry has sent me a screenplay he wrote that was inspired by one of Donna's tracks. He gave it to me to post here on the site for your reading pleasure. It's called State Of Independence, and it's in PDF format so you will need the free Acrobat reader to view it. (I think most people have that on their computer these days anyway.) Just keep in mind that it's a full length screenplay so watch out how much time you spend reading it at work. (I know you guys goof off over here on Mondays when you are supposed to be working. LOL)
[APR 19] That brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, when you are done watching that Susan Boyle clip from the UK (talk about mind blowing!) you can get back into Donna mode with a number of new mixes from Fernando, Glen Rivera's mix of Dance Into My Life, and Donna's Oscar night performance of Papa Can Your Hear Me. On Multiply look for several new mixes from Andy, and a new mix from Patrice. On the Donna Summer group at Bebo, they've gone completely poll happy. :-) So if you are in the mood to rate a few tracks, head over there and make your voice heard.
[APR 16] GREAT news for Paris - I was just told to add that date back to the concert calendar! :-) July 7 is the date - buy your tickets now if you haven't already. Some of you guys I emailed directly - sorry to anyone I missed so far. :-)
[APR 16] I have a few North American dates too. We start off with Canada on August 20 and 21 at the Fallsview Casino in Niagara Falls, ON and then the Coliseum at Caesar's in Windsor, ON on August 22. Then it's back to the US for August 23 at the Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, IN, August 27 at Coney Island in NY (yes, Coney Island - not the usual venues!), August 28 at Foxwoods in CT, and September 25 at the LA County Fair in Pamona. These are hot off the presses so I haven't looked to see if any of these have made the venue websites yet. I'll add links to the venues soon - I just wanted to post this (especially the Paris news) quickly. :-)
[APR 12] I guess I should just get the bad news over with first. I got an email from the company that promotes Donna's tours. The European dates announced so far should not have been announced yet. Apparently the promoter never fully confirmed things with Donna's people, so none of them are on her schedule. I'm sorry - you have no idea how much it pains me to post this. (And yes, I know the tickets are still posted for Paris and Switzerland. I'm not sure how they can do that without confirmation, but apparently they can.)
[APR 12] Now that all of Europe hates me..... there will be some US tour dates this summer. (And now Europe hates me more, I'm sure.) I don't have a list yet, but we will probably be looking for street teams when the dates are announced.
[APR 12] Let's move on to Stamp. Ever since that song came out, there have been devoted groups of fans clamoring for the song to become a sports anthem for football, baseball, basketball, golf, or whatever. (Okay, maybe not golf - those guys don't like making a big sound. LOL) Well, over on YouTube somebody saw a potential that most of us blinded ourselves to. Instead of stamping your feet to win the game, how about stamping your feet for civil rights? All I want to know is why none of us thought of this before?
[APR 12] That brings us to the web news for the week. For those of you who like quizzes, 2 turned up in my email box this week. They are both hosted on Funtrivia.com. One is about song lyrics and one is about Donna's autobiography. If mixes are more your speed, check out Klyk's blog. He's added a number of Donna mixes over the last few weeks (plus lots of other mixes as well.) On Multiply, Andy and Steve have both gone insane with mixes and rare tracks. Not to be outdone, Patrice has cornered the market on 12" singles this week. (All this music is good for dancing off the Easter candy and Passover goodies! LOL) Over on YouTube, look for a nice clip of The Hostage, and a couple of clips from Stampyourfeet including that really nice CBS morning show interview from last summer.
[APR 6] Update on my charity auction - I now have T-Box offering to match the winning bid up to $150 with a donation of his own. So his match plus my match plus the winning bid could be big bucks for CMN. :-)
[APR 5] Switzerland - did you catch the mid week update? If not, head to the concert section below. :-) Okay, before I get to the news... Some of you will remember that a couple of years ago I did a charity auction to benefit Children's Miracle Network as part of the fundraising drive we do at my job each year. I sold what was in effect a blank CD called Pitstops: The Greatest Spaces Of Donna Summerssss. (Surprisingly Universal hasn't stolen that idea yet. LOL) Well, this year I'm doing it again. Only instead of selling a blank CD, I'm selling a perfectly ordinary magazine. It's the March 21 edition of Billboard (the very same one that was mailed to my house) which just so happens to be the week that Crayons returned to the Top 200 album chart. (Thank you Circuit City - at least a tiny ray of sunshine came from your closing.) The auction is live now on ebay (only I can't state there that it's a charity auction because I learned about that the hard way last time.) I will match the winning bid (up to $100) with cash from my own pocket and I might even throw in a copy of Pitstops for the lucky winner. ;-) Whatever I get from the auction will be 100% donated to the fundraiser at my job. I'm paying for (cheap LOL) shipping for the winner - and even though I think my listing says that I will only ship to the US - for you guys, I'll ship internationally too. The auction is here - sorry it's not as funny as the Pitstops one. ;-)
[APR 5] An Italian magazine recently featured a nice article about Donna. (Okay, I'm assuming it's nice since I don't read much Italian and since the person who sent it to me wasn't outraged by it. LOL) I'm actually just going to post the scans I got of the article partly so that my spellchecker doesn't go insane while I try to transcribe anything other than American English, and partly because there are some really cool photos that go with the article. There are 3 pages and each should open in a new window or tab for you. (Or use the right click and save option to just download the scans - which might be easier since they are huge..) Page 1 Page 2 Page 3. [Note to my visually impaired readers - screen reading software will not be able to make heads or tails of the article since it is posted in jpg format. Sorry.]
[APR 5] Believe it or not - that brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, Fernando has posted an I Feel Love mix and a Crayons video that I guess you could say was 30 years in the making. LOL (You will understand when you see the video.) Stampyourfeet (the artist formerly known as limoncello23) has posted his videos for Power Of Love, I'm A Fire and Melody Of Love. Also look out for a UK promo for the Divas 2000 concert with rare rehearsal footage. On Multiply look for Andy's instrumental mix of Love To Love You, Patrice's collection of mixes, and Steve's collection of stuff. (Was there some worldwide uploading event that I missed? Steve and Patrice both went nuts this week. LOL)
[APR 2] So I thought I'd just log in tonight and change the Summer Fever page to the real one. (It's the collaborations of Mr. And Mrs. Sudano if you haven't seen it yet.) And I thought that was all I was going to do tonight. Then I got an interesting email from Pollstar. So I'm happy to announce - SWITZERLAND: you guys will see Donna at the Montreux Jazz Festival on July 18. Tickets are on sale now on the Montreux Jazz website (which is accessible in French, German and English.) Please keep in mind that they do have a disclaimer that the event lineup is subject to change.
[MAR 31] Well, since somewhere in the world it's already April 1, I'm posting the Summer Fever pick for the month.
[MAR 29] Florida and Italy - if you missed my midweek updates, then you need to look at the concert schedule below. :-) Now for everybody else - I don't have any more dates yet. As soon as I hear about any more dates anywhere, I'll post them. But all you guys in Europe should be looking for TV, radio and/or print interviews in July. If Donna is going to be in France early in the month and Italy in the middle of the month, that's the perfect time to sneak in some promo stuff for just about any European country. :-)
[MAR 29] Casablanca fans, Backbeat Books will be putting out a book about the rise and fall of Casablanca Records as told by someone who was on the inside of it all. That is expected out this fall, and I'll give you more details as they become available.
[MAR 29] In the Donna is everywhere category, check out DiscoMusic.com's interview with Patti Brooks. Patti talks several times about working with Donna back in the day.
[MAR 29] Moving to the web news, over at YouTube, check out an interesting combination of Grand Illusion with stills from the movie Metropolis. While you are there, check out the fan made video for Try Me that uses footage from Live & More Encore, Last Dance live in Mexico, behind the scenes at Divas 2000, a nice cover of Our Love, and the entire 70s Celebration TV special posted by FilmsReel in 10 parts. (Last Dance is split over parts 5 and 6, Hot Stuff is in part 2, and sharp eyes will spot her in the ensemble as the credits roll in part 10.) On Multiply, look for Patrice's mix of Dinner With Gershwin, andcheck Steve's profile to watch Thank God It's Friday as a rather short movie that only covers Donna's storyline. (And you can see a few other new additions over there as well.) I'll be back in a couple of days with a new Summer Fever pick. :-)
[MAR 26] Okay FLORIDA! You guys will get to see Donna at the Hard Rock Live in Hollywood on May 17. Tickets go on sale April 3 at noon.
[MAR 25] Calling ITALY! I just got this link from one of the Italian fans and it looks like you guys will see Donna on July 19 as part of the Umbria Jazz festival in Perugia.
[MAR 22] So let's get the bad news out of the way - as expected, this week Crayons falls off both Billboard album charts. (The same thing happened to Janet Jackson, whose album also experienced a return to the charts due to Circuit City's closing.)
[MAR 22] Paris - Nostalgie radio is giving away 2 tickets to Donna's show this summer. To win, you have to send in a photo of yourself in your disco clothes. The photo with the most votes wins the tickets. Details are posted on the Nostalgie website (in French, of course.)
[MAR 22] In the Donna is everywhere category, she played at at private birthday party for a billionaire's wife. (Hey, now I know how to get Donna to play at a party for me - I just have to marry a billionaire! ;-) ) She also gets a mention in an interview with Sparks where the guys talk about I Feel Love.
[MAR 22] Moving on to the web, ob Multiply Steve has been posting interviews and classic clips like a madman :-) and Andy has a new I'm A Fire mix. Over on YouTube, look for Starting Over Again from the 1980 TV special, and a re-edit of the official video of Fame to make it fit with the Dan Chase full vocal mix. (Nice job. :-) ) And for those who like paintings, Herman Van Ankeren has added his First Lady Of Love portrait to his site. (Gee, I wonder who it might be a painting of? LOL)
[MAR 19] This is just a quick update for Uruguay. There have been reports online that Donna will be performing there in April as part of the Concert for Peace and Tolerance event - that is NOT the case. Sorry guys. :-(
[MAR 15] Let's go right to Billboard. :-) The good news is that Crayons has re-entered the Top 200 at #160, and it has climbed up the R&B/Hip Hop Album chart to #18 where it is listed as a pace setter. Now the bad news is that Billboard attributes this (and some other recent chart activity by other artists) to the closing of the Circuit City chain. Those stores had everything at huge discounts, so people were grabbing up the bargains. Now that they have closed their doors - look for Crayons (and other things) to drop again.
[MAR 15] Every so often someone emails me looking for sheet music. Well, I heard from a guy this week who has some sheet music available. I didn't ask for his list yet, but if someone is interested, I'll hook you up with the guy.
[MAR 15] In the world of fashion, Chanel had a show this week for the 2009 Fall line. One of the songs they used in the show was Love To Love You - a long version! :-) (If fashion is your thing, you can catch clips of the show on YouTube.)
[MAR 15] That brings us to the web. Let's start with YouTube. If you are a fan of limoncello23, then you need to know that his channel is gone. But you will find his new channel under the name stampyourfeet, where he's been happily uploading everything that he legally can. On Multiply, look for some classic clips posted by Steve, and Bentboy's remix jukebox.
[MAR 8] Believe it or not - I'm starting with chart news. I missed this last week, but Crayons re-entered the Billboard R&B chart (March 7th edition) at #74 and this week it climbs to #41. :-) Over in Brazil, Fame slips to #18 on the Top 30 Dance chart.
[MAR 8] The February 26 issue of the UK's QX Magazine has a short review of Fame. (The song also debuted at #19 in their club chart that same week.) You can read it on the QX website in PDF format on page 56 of the PDF file. However, those of you reading at work might want to save QX for your home computer. Some of the advertisements might get you into a little trouble with your employer - unless your employer encourages nudity. LOL
[MAR 8] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an Australian crime novel of all places. The book is called Lady Killer and it's about a true case that happened out there. Here is the relevant quote: "Court stenographer Michael Campbell delicately punched the keys of the note-taking machine clasped between his knees as the Crown talked Bray through the tape. By day, Campbell sat silently covering major trials, but in the evening he was known to occasionally swathe himself in sparkling lame, blacken his face and don a wig, dressed as the the American disco singer Donna Summer. Campbell was planning a forthcoming trip to Las Vegas to see the real Ms Summer. He left theatrics in the courtroom to the barristers." By the way, if anyone catches Michael in court dressed up as Donna - send me the pictures and I'll post them. LOL
[MAR 8] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has posted an interview with Andrew Johnson - the guy who sings I'm In Love With Donna Summer. (Look for the original single and remixes at Amazon and Amazon UK. ) Over on YouTube, Fernando has posted another of his remix videos (this time for I Feel Love mixed with Giorgio's Chase), and limoncello23 has added a couple of familiar clips in high quality format. On Multiply look for
Patrice's new mixes of I Will Live For Love.
[MAR 1] It's a brand new month so that means it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. This month A Love Trilogy hits the spotlight - now updated with streaming MP3 clips.
[MAR 1] In the Donna is everywhere category, there is a show on Wednesday called Date or Fake on the German TV channel VIVA. During the intro to the show, they played a little clip of Crayons. (You gotta love it when the new stuff sneaks out there!) On the same day the Phoenix channel ran a show called The Power Of Music which had a segment about disco. They had some vintage interview clips of Donna - speaking in German about her image. I don't know if the show will be repeated or not, but if it is, try to catch it.
[MAR 1] There is a new U2 album coming out on Tuesday called No Line On The Horizon. I mention that because on it is a track called Magnificent in which Bono's vocals (according to one reviewer) sound like Donna. I haven't heard the track yet myself, but I guess I'll be checking out the clips on Tuesday.
[MAR 1] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, Steve is a posting fiend. He's added one mix and I didn't even count how many videos to his page this week. If that doesn't keep you occupied at work, then go check out Andy's page where he has posted a few new mixes. On YouTube, Fernando has also gone insane with 2 new video mixes and a classic live clip for you, and look for a live clip of the Bad Girls/Hot Stuff Medley from Westbury a couple of years ago. (Some of you locals might even spot yourselves in the audience. :-) )
[FEB 22] I guess the place to start is with the charts. Unfortunately as of March 7, Fame has fallen off the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. In Brazil, it slips a couple of notches to # 5 on the Top 30 Dance chart for February 28.
[FEB 22] As most of you probably know, tonight is Oscar night when Hollywood recognizes the best of the past year. Naturally that's pretty much dominated entertainment media. TVGuide has chimed in with an article about Oscar winning songs and in it they list Last Dance as one of the most deserving wins. They even have a link to a classic performance of the song.
[FEB 22] Photo hounds, go check out BackstageGallery.com for some classic concert pictures from 1976. You can even order prints if you want.
[FEB 22] In the land of "these guys have great taste" - a number of new things have cropped up recently that have either been inspired by Donna's music, or that have been compared to Donna's music. There is It's Blitz by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs which was inspired by the Donna/Giorgio Moroder collaborations, there is the new Peaches album coming this spring with a title that may have been inspired by a Donna track (at least that is the speculation of one writer), an upcoming Duke Pandemonium CD that is being hailed as being "as much Donna Summer as it is King Crimson...", and the new Lily Allen CD that has one reviewer saying that it "coalesces the dance floor malaise of Donna Summer and New Order, the whack-pop chirp of early Kate Bush and the grand fromage of ABBA...." I guess these younger artists know where to go for inspiration. :-)
[FEB 22] In the Donna is everywhere - see if you can spot the sample in this Ne Yo video. I'll give you a hint: it's not one of the more commonly sampled tracks - even among Donna fan mixers. Or if you are in a movie frame of mind, go see Frost/Nixon. Believe it or not, they play I Feel Love in the film. (And I have to say it's not a song that I would ever think of in connection with Richard Nixon. LOL)
[FEB 22] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, look for Fame mixes by Andy and Patrice, and an old Dutch interview posted by Steve. Mix fans will want to check out fanmixer, Klyk's new blog. On it you can hear a bunch of his Donna mixes, along with some of his other stuff too.
[FEB 15] Happy day after Valentine's Day! Before I get to Donna, Bruce fans will want to see the Family Matters section below. :-)
[FEB 15] Let's start with the charts. On the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for February 28, Fame drops to #34. I guess that run is over. :-( In much better news, Fame holds at #2 on the Brazilian Top 30 Dance chart.
[FEB 15] In release news, the Rona Barrett DVD is officially out now. I got my copy and here is the scoop. The DVD contains 10 interviews with celebrities that were hot in the late 70s or early 80s. Each interview is accompanied by a brand new commentary before and after the clip - and in Donna's case, it even includes a mention of Crayons. Donna's interview runs for about 8 minutes and she talks about Love To Love You, prejudice, the music industry and her first time singing in church. I'd say it was probably filmed in late 1979 or early 1980 - it's hard to say because the clip doesn't promote any particular album. If you are looking for more reasons than just Donna to pop for the CD, there are also vintage interviews with Cher, Priscilla Presley, Robin Williams, Carol Burnett and John Travolta, among others. And one dollar of each sale goes to the Rona Barrett Foundation for the Elderly Poor.
[FEB 15] In new old releases, the UK has a new Master's collection called Classic. It's 18 tracks of a few hits rounded out by album tracks from the Casablanca/Polygram albums. EIL.com has a photo of the cover (and the track list), and I believe the album is also available at Amazon UK. (The one I linked to has the right track list - but unfortunately there isn't any other info that makes it 100% certain it's the same one.
[FEB 15] In the Donna is everywhere category - well, it was Valentine's Day. So you know her songs were being mentioned in articles all over the place. LOL Obviously, Love To Love You got a mention in one article, but the really cool thing is that Science Of Love got a mention in a widely published AP article about the chemicals that are released in a kiss. It's nice to know the new songs are being listened to by someone besides the regulars here. :-) In another unexpected mention, the group Yeah Yeah Yeahs has a new album called It's Blitz that is at least partly inspired by Giorgio Moroder's work with Donna.
[FEB 15] I think that brings us to the web news for the week and have I got a clip for you. Go over to YouTube where you might remember that bonesraymond posted a fabulous clip of Donna singing Amazing Grace with the Nashville Symphony. Well, he's added a couple of other clips from that show - namely Smile, and a clip of I Will Live For Love that is completely different from any version of that song you've heard before. It's a ballad with full orchestration. :-) The clip is less than 2 minutes long unfortunately, but in my opinion it blows away every other version of the song I've heard. (That's it - next time Donna plays with a symphony, I have to find a way to get there!) While you are snooping around YouTube (and if you are like me - once you play one clip you have to look and see what else is new LOL), check out this clip of Don't Cry For Me Argentina from Spain. Over on Multiply, Steve has posted a video of Donna singing A Man Like You, and a couple of other goodies, while Andy has posted a couple of new mixes, and Denis has posted his slow to fast megamix.
[FEB 8] If you missed Donna on Larry Flick's show the other morning, you missed a lot of fooling around :-) and you missed the announcement that there won't be any tour dates until the summer because right now she's helping Amanda get ready for her wedding. (Congrats to Amanda and Abner!)
[FEB 8] Let's head over to the charts. For the week of February 21, Fame is hanging in on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart at #13. Over in Brazil for the week of February 14, Fame climbs to #2 on the Top 30 Dance chart.
[FEB 8] In remix news, check out the Edson Pride Circuit mix of Fame on Edson Pride's MySpace page.
[FEB 8] Speaking of MySpace.... if you are a member (and have befriended Donna over there, you probably got a bulletin inviting you to Donna's official Facebook page. If you aren't on MySpace (or missed the bulletin, well here is Donna's Facebook page. If Imeem is more your speed, she has a page there too, and just to round out the list - this is her YouTube channel. Maybe with all the official sites and all the fan sites we can finally have Donna take over the WHOLE internet! ;-)
[FEB 8] Let's go to Paris for a minute. As you know, there is a concert coming up in July. When we get a little bit closer to the date, I'll set up a concert connection page for those of you who would like to meet up for the show, share a ride, find a French-speaking buddy to help you get around, or whatever. :-) But right now, one of the guys on the forum has an extra set of tickets that he's looking to sell. The post is here (you don't have to join Delphi to read - if you are a member, you can reply to the post. If you are not, contact me and I'll send your message to Wolfje for you.) Also, I found out that Radio Nostalgie is running a commercial advertising for the show. :-)
[FEB 8] Continuing with Paris, there is an article on Vivolta.com about the show. It ends with this interesting line: "Donna Summer sera en tournée à l'été 2009 dans toute l'Europe et en concert exceptionnel le 7 Juillet au Palais des Congrès de Paris." Now I admit that French is not my strong suit.... but I'd say that we will definitely be hearing more about Europe in the coming months. :-)
[FEB 8] A couple of weeks ago I mentioned a song called I'm In Love With Donna Summer by Andrew Johnson (Amazon, Amazon UK, iTunes). There are going to be remixes available for that song in the not too distant future, and Andy is working on a video. He's looking for a few Donna fans to help him out. The idea is he wants to use footage of fans dancing to the song. You can read about it here on the forum and if you are interested in participating, respond to Andy in the thread.
[FEB 8] In DVD news, Amazon shipped my Rona Barrett DVD so I should be able to tell you about Donna's interview next weekend. :-)
[FEB 8] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, limoncello23 has gone upload crazy with some old clips and his new video for Crayons. Also looks for clips from last year's Ottawa Bluesfest from Backpackdave1.
[FEB 2] I have to radio alerts for you. The first one is very time sensitive. (Sorry for the short notice!) Donna will be on Larry Flick's show on OutQ (Sirius 109, XM 98) TOMORROW February 3. The show runs from 7 AM to 11 AM ET and Donna should be on in the last hour. It was a really fun interview last time she was on, so this time should be good too. :-) Now on Sunday February 8, tune into Melbourne's Joy.org.au for a replay of an interview they did with Donna to promote Crayons. (If you guys remember, Alan at Joy.org.au was the guy who let us preview the Crayons tracks a little early last Spring. :-) ) That runs at 3 PM Melbourne time which converts to 11 PM Saturday here in New York and 4 AM Sunday in London. (Everybody else can probably make their own time conversions from one of those 2 times.)
[FEB 1] It's a new month so you know what that means.... it's time for the new Summer Fever Pick. This month it's the movie Thank God It's Friday.
[FEB 1] Let's start off with the charts. On the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for February 14, Fame slips to #11. But over in Brazil, it climbs to #9 on the Top 30 Dance Chart.
[FEB 1] Germany.... I don't want you to freak out yet, but there is a promoter out there who is looking for venues interested in booking Donna. So something is cooking.... I expect we'll hear more about Europe when we get closer to the summer. :-) (Listen - don't go hounding those guys unless you happen to run a theater that wants to book Donna. Even if they have some stuff lined up already - they usually can't make the information public until a certain time.)
[FEB 1] Speaking of Europe - Paris, I hear that good tickets for the July 7 show have turned up again. If you don't have tickets yet, check out Rodrigue.fr and see what they have.
[FEB 1] BorderlineMusic.com is listing a video compilation for DJs that includes Fame (The Game).
[FEB 1] The Grammy Awards are just a week away, and Entertainment Tonight Online is already in the festive spirit with a photo gallery of past Grammy highlights. Included is a picture of Donna in her waitress costume.
[FEB 1] Valentine's Day is coming up soon, so Adelaide Now has posted their list of the 10 Most Romantic (And Sexiest Songs) Of All Time. Love To Love You makes the list with a YouTube link to a classic performance.
[FEB 1] That brings us to the web news for the week. The first thing you need to do is check out this version of Amazing Donna.... I mean Amazing Grace. (It IS amazing!) Fernando has posted his videos for The Queen Is Back and It's Only Love. Over on Multiply, look for Patrice's mix of Now I Need You in video and audio formats.
[JAN 25] So let's start with the charts again. The bad news is that Fame slips to #10 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for February 7. The good news is that Billboard's website still shows the January 31 chart so you can still stare at Fame in the #1 position for a while longer. And if you read the January 22 Chartbeat column, you will find these paragraphs: "SUMMER'S PLACE: A 3-1 leap on Hot Dance Club Play for "Fame (The Game)" (Burgundy) gives Donna Summer her 13th No. 1 hit on this chart.
"Fame" is the third consecutive chart-topper from Summer's "Crayons" album, following "I'm a Fire" in April 2008 and "Stamp Your Feet" in July 2008.
This hat trick of No. 1 dance hits is Summer's longest streak of chart-topping titles since she had four consecutive No. 1s in 1977-78, ending with the pairing of "Hot Stuff" and "Bad Girls" from May to July 1979."
[JAN 25] Looking at the (much warmer than New York - yes I'm jealous LOL) country of Brazil, Fame is up to #11 on the Top 30 Dance Chart.
[JAN 25] Speaking of Fame, the remixes got a positive review in a recent edition of Echo Magazine. They were especially pleased with the Dan Chase mixes. And the magazine Inside Out just started a blog. The first entry is about Fame hitting number one.
[JAN 25] In the Donna is everywhere category, there is a song out there by Andrew Johnson called I'm In Love With Donna Summer. You can check out clips on Amazon, Amazon UK and of course iTunes.
[JAN 25] If anyone out there is interested in getting the Rona Barrett DVD I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, the release date has been changed to February 10. I have it on order myself, so when it comes I'll let you know how it is.
[JAN 25] Music fans will be interested in a new service called Spotify that allows users in certain European countries to listen to the whole EMI, Universal, Sony, and Warner catalogs for free. Right now it's an invitation-only beta release, but you can sign up to get an email when it opens up to the general public. You can read more about it on Wikipedia.
[JAN 25] Moving on to the web, over on YouTube, check out a very young Donna Summer performing with the Family Tree. You have to wait until you are about halfway through the clip before you see her since she's acting as a backup vocalist. (Some of the Family Tree stuff will eventually come out on DVD - I'll let you know what I hear more.) While you are over on Youtube, check out juliavicentin's channel for several 1990 clips of Donna in Spain. And don't miss the rare Brazilian clip from 1979 of Last Dance. :-)
[JAN 18] As you all know, I'm A Fire was the first club single from Crayons, and it went to #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. When Stamp Your Feet came out, it also went to #1. Well, the only thing better that two #1 dance hits is THREE. :-) For the week of January 31, Fame (The Game) hits the top spot on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. (I think we'll just rename it the Donna Summer Chart, and leave it at that. ;-) ) Now go celebrate by watching the video on Donna's site 100 times in a row! ;-)
[JAN 18] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a brief mention in the UK magazine, Boyz. DJs, The Readers' Wives, have listed her and one of their dream guests - as well they should. ;-) You can see that on page 10 of the January 8 issue - available in PDF format online at the Boyz site. (That's page 10 of the magazine which works out to page 12 of the file.) She also gets a brief mention in an article about this year's Rock Hall Of Fame inductees.
[JAN 18] Believe it or not - that brings us to the web news already. At YouTube, Fernando has been having a few technical difficulties, so he's posted his latest video mixes on MySpace. (You probably have to log in to see them.) Also at YouTube, if you are feeling over-caffeinated, check out the sped up version of She Works Hard For The Money. (I just report them, I don't try to explain them! LOL) And that's actually it for the week....... Talk about your slow weeks! LOL
[JAN 11] Let's head right to the charts this week. It's all good on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. For the week of January 17, Fame rises from #8 to #4 and then for the week of January 24 it rises again to #3 (with a bullet.) :-) On the R&B Album chart, the news isn't so good. After last week's phenomenal jump to #52, this week it drops out of the top 100. What we saw was the impact of the Christmas sales - so apparently quite a few good little boys and girls got Crayons from Santa this year. :-)
[JAN 11] Over at Perfectbeat.com, the guys have compiled their top 100 CD singles for 2008. Guess who owns the top 5 spots? (I really don't need to give you a hint or anything, do I? LOL) And as long as I am talking about charts, Fame just entered the Brazilian Top 30 Dance Chart at #27.
[JAN 11] In DVD news... no, NOT the one you have been asking about! Calm down! In DVD news, former gossip maven Rona Barrett has a disk out called Nothing But The Truth which features some of her interviews with various celebrities including Donna. (These would have been taped in the 70s or 80s, so we're talking vintage stuff.) So far it's available in Region 1 only.
[JAN 11] In the Donna is everywhere... or was everywhere? category, there are reports on the net that she is selling the house in Nashville. Personally, I think she just planted the story to keep me from finding the vault.... ;-)
[JAN 11] I guess that brings us to the web news. Over at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has updated his Top 40 with the latest fan votes. (He's also updated the look of his site. :-) ) Fame is sitting at #1 over there, and I see Power Of One has made a strong debut. I wonder if that was inspired by that awesome limoncello23 video on Youtube? Over at Forever Donna, Sandro has updated with some new audio and video - including his own Forever Donna TV channel. :-) On Multiply, Patrice has posted 2 new megamixes for your listening pleasure. And at YouTube, look for Fernando's latest video creations for On The Radio and The Queen Is Back as well as a classic clip of Lady Of The Night.
[JAN 2] Happy New Year! Did you all survive the festivities (and subsequent hangovers)? ;-) Since it's the beginning of a new month, you know what that means - it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. This month (since all the magazines and newspapers seem to be in retrospective mode) I thought it was time for I Remember Yesterday. And just to give you a taste of what is coming later this year - Bad Girls will be a pick at some point in honor of its 30th Anniversary, and Crayons will be back in time for the show in Paris. (I would never let you guys party without your Crayons! ;-) )
[JAN 2] Let's go right to the charts. On the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for January 10 - Fame stays at #8. (Before you freak out that it didn't move - none of the top 26 on that chart gained or lost any ground. It was a really strange sight to see.) And for more interesting news, you will remember that Crayons re-entered the Billboard R&B Albums chart at #90 last week. Well, this week (January 10) is has JUMPED to #52 and Billboard has labeled it a "pace setter." The party is not over yet guys!!! :-) While you are celebrating that, head over to Masterbeat.com where Fame is #2 on their list of the top releases for 2008. (Stamp Your Feet is #39 on that same list.)
[JAN 2] After #52, everything seems so anti-climatic. LOL But there is more news for you. In upstate New York, the Times Herald Record listed their top 10 area concerts. Donna's show at the Bethel Woods Center came in at #5.
[JAN 2] The celebrity birthday press continues - with Donna's name being mentioned in who knows how many lists of celebrity birthdays. Of special note are D-Listed's "Birthday Sluts" that has a classic photo (and no, "slut" is not meant as an insult - that site calls everyone on the list a "birthday slut"), and an article that you can read in English, Spanish, or German. There is also another German article, and another short one in Spanish. If pictures are more your speed, n-tv.de posted a slideshow of old and new pictures - some that aren't seen very often.
[JAN 2] As many of you may remember, Dutch TV was airing a special on the top 2000 songs of all time. State Of Independence (and some new interview footage) was part of that special. Fortunately for those of us who couldn't see it on TV, there is YouTube. :-) The interview plays in English with Dutch subtitles.
[JAN 2] In the I can't believe it was almost 30 years ago category (yes, I feel old now LOL) People Magazine has posted archives of some of its past issues. Included are the 1980 interview with Donna and a 1980 article about Neil and Joyce Bogart. It gets better than that though. Not only can you read the text of the articles online, but you can download the WHOLE magazine in PDF format if you want to. Now THAT is something I wish all magazines and newspapers would do! (Just click the date on either of the pages I just linked to to bring you to the main page for that issue. There will be links to other articles and a download link to get the whole magazine. If you are interested in other issues - they have stuff going all the way back to 1974.)
[JAN 2] I think that brings us to the web news. Over at DailyMotion.com, they have Donna's performance of This Time I Know It's For Real from Arsenio Hall. (By the way - I don't think I ever thanked Donna for not making the Crayons song titles as long and hard to type as the Another Place And Time titles. LOL) On YouTube, you can't stop limoncello23. Now he's made a video for A Song For You/ How Great Thou Art.
[JAN 2] And one last thing...... this isn't specifically related to Donna, but the New York Times posted an article on the state of the music industry today, and it makes for an interesting read. You will have to register to read the article - but registration is free.
2008:
[DEC 28] Paris - if you didn't get your concert tickets yet, you better act fast. The higher priced ones are selling out quickly! :-) (I expect to hear from you guys after the show with your concert reports - I know it's been a long time for you! :-) )
[DEC 28] Okay - let's move on to the charts. In the first official chart of 2009, Fame climbs to number 8 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for January 3. It's still got that bullet too. :-)
[DEC 28] If anybody is having trouble getting the Live From New York CD (the new issue of Live & More Encore with the DVD songs included), you can contact Get Booked in Las Vegas. They have some copies available for sale and if you call 702-737-7780, Wes will ship one out to you. Or if you are in the Vegas area, just stop in the store. [Note: while Get Booked does carry some good music - that's not ALL it carries. So it's probably not the best site to explore if you are at your job - save it for your home computer. ;-) ]
[DEC 28] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a quick mention in an article about Moby. (He wishes he had written I Feel Love.) And she gets another quick mention in an article about Darrell Russ. Of course that is on top of the 1 million (and still counting LOL) articles listing this week's celebrity birthdays.
[DEC 28] In the world of internet radio, UU-BRU has posted its year end chart and Donna is there at #3 with Stamp Your Feet.
[DEC 28] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Youtube, limoncello23 is at it again with a video for The Queen Is Back. (He's got a nice mix of the official video and other footage going there - Donna-rollers will want to take note.) You can also find classic clips of I Feel Love, Dinner With Gershwin, and MacArthur Park. I probably won't be back again until 2009 - so everybody have a safe and happy New Year's celebration! (And don't forget - if you are drinking, don't drive and if you are driving then don't drink. And watch out for those few who do both!)
[DEC 26] The weekly update is coming later this weekend, but for now I have something for PARIS, France. :-) How does a show on July 7 at La Palais des Congrès de Paris sound? You can buy tickets online at Rodrigue.fr. Hopefully there will be a lot of European press to go with the show. :-)
[DEC 20] Happy Holidays everybody! This is probably the last update before Christmas unless some breaking news happens. Before I move on to the regular news, I want to direct your attention to the TV section below. I have a couple of new listings there - including one for The Netherlands. And Wolfgang has updated his discography and bio just a bit. I also want to say that the E-Greetings For Donna page is officially complete and I will be emailing the link to the powers that be right after I finish this update. :-) You guys can see it here. Thanks to all who contributed - all you regulars who have been writing since we started this, and all you new people who just wrote in this year. :-)
[DEC 20] Let's go to the chart news. On the December 27 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, Fame climbs to #15 - still with that bullet! I suspect that's one that most of us will be dancing to on New Year's Eve.
[DEC 20] As the year is wrapping up, some sites are posting their year end review of the 2008 releases. Jeremy Gloff has posted an excellent review on his blog. Here is a taste: "I never would expect that Donna Summer would eclipse the big three…Janet, Madonna, and Mariah. But quietly she did. CRAYONS is a later-career masterpiece that shows its rewards with repeated listens."
[DEC 20] Photo hounds, you might want to check out this familiar face in Brenda Russell's photo album. (Don't bother with the full screen option - it doesn't make the photo any bigger.)
[DEC 20] In Radio news, Sirius/XM is bringing back The Strobe on January 15. So classic disco/dance is back on satellite radio. I guess the listeners have spoken!
[DEC 20] In the Donna is everywhere category..... I was just watching a show on WE called Hollywood Does Christmas. And they showed some professional shoppers buying gifts for the rich and famous on behalf of the rich and famous. Donna's name was on one of the lists - unfortunately (or maybe fortunately after seeing the show LOL) they never talked about what they got for her. (On a side note, if I am ever rich and famous enough for those shoppers to be picking out stuff for me - all I can say is this: If you see a $1500 pocketbook shaped like a dog that you think would be perfect, STOP taking whatever drugs you are on and take that $1500 and throw it into a soup kitchen, animal rescue place, or other worthy charity. Some of the stuff I saw on that show...... sheesh!)
[DEC 20] Over on GayRomeo, the guys took a vote and came up with a surprising list of their favorite songs. Here's the list: 1. No More Tears, 2. Could It Be Magic, 3. MacArthur Park, 4. I Feel Love, 5. Sand On My Feet, 6. Hot Stuff, 7. I'm A Fire, 8. I LOve You tied with Summer Fever, 10. I Will Go With You, 11. She Works Hard For The Money, 12. Stamp Your Feet, 13. The Queen Is Back, 14. Dinner With Gershwin, 15. Bad Girls tied with If There Is Music There and Whispering Waves, 18. Heaven Knows tied with Melody Of Love and Rumour Has It.
[DEC 20] I think that brings us to the web. Over on Multiply, Jeff has been uploading videos like a mad man. :-) ANd on YouTube, Fernando has uploaded a couple of his video remixes and TBoneTvChannel has posted a couple of classic Donna clips.
[DEC 14] As you can see the Christmas decorations are finally up. :-) Before I get to the news, I just want to remind you all that the deadline for the E-Greetings for Donna is the 19th - Friday. (Don't even ask me where the month went, because I have no clue. LOL) Send your messages for Donna to webmaster@donna-tribute.com or any other email you might have for me. (I check everything!) I would also like to thank all of you who sent in things for Donna's birthday surprise. You guys came up with some really good stuff and it's been all packed up and shipped off to Mary. :-)
[DEC 14] On to the news. Let's go to the charts. I don't have the weekly Dance chart number yet, but the year end Billboard charts for 2008 are out. Donna comes in at #11 on the Hot Dance Club Play Artists list and Stamp Your Feet comes in at #33 on the Hot Dance Club Play Tracks list. If you want to look at the complete year end chart list, head over to the Billboard website.
[DEC 14] The awesome new Fame video has found its way on to YouTube now (not to mention my video gadget on the Crayons page.) So if you have had trouble embedding the Vimeo link from Donna's page on your blogs or whatever - try the YouTube link. :-)
[DEC 14] HardCandyMusic.com has a post up about She Works Hard For The Money that includes video from the Chasen's documentary, Off The Menu, where both Donna and Onetta talk about the song. The video also mixes together concert footage of Hard For The Money and the official video. (And I think most of you long time fans will recognize where the concert footage came from.) and up until today they had a photo up that was taken this summer when a certain Diva performed to a sell out crowd.
[DEC 14] In the Donna is everywhere category, a local news website has an article about restored theaters on Long Island's East End. The Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center is one of them. She also gets a mention in an interview with singer Darrell Russ.
[DEC 14] That brings us to the web news. Over on Multiply there is Fame mania. :-) We have new fan mixes posted by Andy and Patrice. And the video has found its way onto a few profiles. :-) (Is it bad that every time I run into it, I feel compelled to watch? It's a good thing I can't play it at work! LOL) And at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has something to say about the Grammys. Beyond that, it's been pretty quiet on the web. (I think the impending holidays are eating up everyone's time!)
[DEC 8] So I have 2 things for you tonight. First of all, Fame is now the power pick in the December 20 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Chart. It's sitting there at #22 - still with that bullet. Now, if you would like to celebrate that, you can with the other piece of news tonight. Head over to DonnaSummer.com where Nathan Digesare has just uploaded the video he made for Fame. Look for that on the video page. (You probably already figured that part out. LOL) That clip is embeddable (is that even a word?) so you Donna-rollers out there might want to put it to good use. ;-)
[DEC 6] Before I get started with the news, I just want to remind everyone sending in things for the book, I need to have everything in my hands on December 10 so I can get it in the mail to Mary and she can meet her deadline. (Don't forget - submissions will NOT be returned so send only copies or things you can part with!) Also if you are sending in E-Greetings for Donna and the family this year - the deadline is December 19. There is still plenty of room for greetings, so get writing! :-)
[DEC 6] Okay, let's start with the Grammys. The nominations have been announced and you can see the complete list at Grammy.com. I can tell you right now though that you won't find Donna's name on it. :-( The awards will be handed out on "Grammy Sunday" February 8 at 8PM (ET/PT). I plan to spend that evening playing Crayons non-stop. :-)
[DEC 6] Moving on to better things, DonnaSummer.com has been updated with 2 more items in the store. The first is a tank top (which I am tempted to buy now. I figure, since I bought the hoodie when it was too hot out to wear it, it's only right that I get a tank top when it's too cold to wear it. LOL) The other is the yellow shirt with the big I'm A Fire eye on the front.
[DEC 6] In release news, the Fame mixes have turned up on iTunes (at least in the US - I haven't checked the other stores yet) and at Amazon's MP3 store. There is one small catch though - the iTunes listings won' tell you which mix is which. I guess they forgot to include those details when they uploaded the tracks. Oops. LOL So for those of you who are shopping at iTunes, here are the list of mixes available with the running times. You should be able to figure out which is which on iTunes by the track length. Ralph Rosario Club (9:56), Ralph Rosario Dub (9:55), Dave Aude Club (7:34), Dave Aude Dub (7:18), Dave Aude Dub Instrumental (7:17), Dan Chase Full Vocal (6:08), Dan Chase Dub (5:23), Dan Chase Instrumental (5:29), Extended Ultimix (5:10), Ralph Rosario Radio (3:55), Dan Chase Radio (4:00), Dave Aude Radio (3:47), and the original album version (4:03).
[DEC 6] In the Donna is everywhere category - she got a mention in a World AIDS Day post on the Knucklecrack blog. Now I'm going to warn you that the blog post might be a bit explicit for younger readers, but adults out there should check it out. Donna reference aside - it's a very touching post, and very relevant (unfortunately).
[DEC 6] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, she got a quick mention in a Telegraph blog post that took issue with the Rolling Stone list of the 100 Greatest Singers.
[DEC 6] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. At NathanDiGesare.com, Nathan has added a gallery of 2008 tour photos. Over on YouTube, look for a classic clip of Could It Be Magic from back in the day, a Donna vs. David Bowie Fame mix by Fernando, and a retrospective piece on Donna with lots of classic clips and interview footage with Giorgio Moroder (among others). And on Multiply look for Patrice's megamix of Jason Nevins mixes.
[DEC 1 again] I wasn't going to put this on the site because I didn't want to spoil any surprises for a certain Diva, but I got the green light, so I'm posting. The family is putting together a special surprise book in honor of a significant birthday and if there are any fans out there with interesting photos or newspaper clippings or ticket stubs (or whatever else you think might be of interest to Donna), you are invited to send them in to be added to the book. Now here are the rules - whatever you send has to be something that can go into a book. And (this is IMPORTANT) it has to be something that you can give up - that means COPIES of photos or whatever. Don't send your prized originals because you'll never get them back. And I have to have a tight deadline because the family has a tight deadline. I want to have everything ready to mail on December 10 to make sure they get it in time. I will email my mailing address to anybody who wishes to contribute. (Webmaster@donna-tribute.com or any other addy you have for me is fine - I check them all.) And if there are any spies out there (I know who you are! LOL) who decide to spill the beans to Donna - well.... I'll tell Mary on you. So there! ;-p As a side note - this is a whole separate thing from the E-Greetings for Donna which is still going on as scheduled. :-)
[DEC 1] The new Summer Fever pick is posted. To the surprise of absolutely no one, it's Christmas Spirit. :-) For this year, I've added a few extras to the page. Also, if you haven't sent an E-Greeting for Donna yet, there is still plenty of time. The deadline is December 19 and the email address is webmaster@donna-tribute.com. (Just put E-Greeting somewhere in the subject line. :-) ) The E-Greeting page will go live shortly after the 19th and the link will be sent to the powers that be at the same time.
[NOV 29] In anticipation of a killer day at work tomorrow, I'm doing the weekly update tonight. (Plus I was revamping the next Summer Fever page anyway - that will go live on Monday.) Let's start off with some chart news. :-) On the December 13 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, Fame is the Hot Shot Debut at #33. :-) And yes, it has a bullet.
[NOV 29] I Feel Love has gotten a couple of mentions in recent news articles lately. The first was in an article about the top 40 synth sounds of all time. I Feel Love came in at #2. The second article was a Daily Record story called "on My Nano" in which a Scottish actress lists a couple of the songs on her iPod. I Feel Love is the first song she listed.
[NOV 29] Believe it or not - that brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, Fernando is a posting fiend this week. He's put up a number of Fame video mixes to keep us all busy. And on GayRomeo, some of the guys are .... well, I guess I better back up and explain before I say what they are doing. There is a meme on the web called "Rickrolling" where people dupe others into watching the Rick Astley video, Never Gonna Give You Up. So the guys on GayRomeo want to try something similar that they call Donnarolling. Now they are not actually trying to trick anybody into watching Donna videos - they are just sending links to anybody who might be remotely interested. One guy in particular suggests linking people to Stor Dubine's Stamp Your Feet animation, but I can say that I have been Donnarolled a few times and I've been sent different clips each time. :-) I do have one tiny piece of advice to anyone who wants to join the Donnarolling party - if you are linking to a video, make sure the hosting site is one that doesn't restrict viewers to a particular geographic location or whatever. One of the links I got simply doesn't play for anyone outside Germany. If you pick a clip hosted by a site like YouTube, nobody should have any troubles watching the clips. ;-) I'll be back again in a day or 2 with the new Summer Fever Pick. (You all know what it will be - but I've added extra stuff to the page that was never there before.)
[NOV 28] It's been a heck of week with the terrorist attack in India and the psychos trampling people ... I mean holiday shopping here in the US. (So much for peace on Earth and goodwill towards men!) Anyway, this isn't the weekly update yet. I was here working on the E-Greetings page (there is still plenty of time to contribute!) and I decided to add a shopping page for the holidays. It should cover most of the current "must have" items for any Donna Summer fan. :-) I'll be back later this weekend with the weekly update. :-)
[NOV 23] Since there probably won't be another update until next weekend (unless something really cool happens), I'll take this opportunity to wish all my American friends a happy Thanksgiving. :-) As for the rest of you - take Thursday off. You can be honorary Americans for the day. :-) Now before we get to Donna, there is some Sudano family news in the Family Matters section below.
[NOV 23] In Donna news, both her official site and her MySpace have links to buy the Fame remixes at Masterbeat.com. It's come to my attention that international fans have found themselves locked out of those downloads due to licensing issues. (You'd think in this age of instant global communication, the record labels, movie studios, etc would find a way to make things available to everyone at the same time. ) If you are one of those who couldn't use Masterbeat, or if you just prefer to have the mixes on CD, head over to PerfectBeat.com. They will ship to you. :-)
[NOV 23] And speaking of Fame mixes..... on the December 6 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play charts, Fame is the top breakout track. In other words, it will probably chart on the 13th. :-)
[NOV 23] In the Donna is everywhere category, She Works Hard For The Money comes in at #10 in The Frisky.com's Recession Playlist: 15 Songs About Cash. (Hmmm - it's a recession. Maybe she works hard for NO money? ;-) ) Also, there is a book out called Couples Who Pray [Amazon, Amazon UK] that includes a few quotes from Donna and Bruce about their relationship. Amazon (US only) will let you take a peek inside the book to check out the table of contents and a few sample pages. (You can see some Sudano quotes on pages 6 and 7.)
[NOV 23] Here's one that will have most of you scratching your heads. LOL Maureen McCormick (best knows as Marcia Brady from the Brady Bunch TV series) has an autobiography called Here's The Story: Surviving Marcia Brady [Amazon, Amazon UK]. In it she talks about the Brady Bunch's (probably best forgotten) variety show from the mid 70s. Apparently they did a 4 minute intro where the kids sang a rather eclectic medley of songs that included Love To Love You Baby. Now just stop and think about that for a minute. The Brady kids doing Love To Love You Baby...... it boggles the mind. LOL For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Brady Bunch Variety Hour (you lucky devils! LOL) there are some clips on YouTube. I haven't seen the one with Love To Love You, but you can kind of get an idea of what the show was like from the clips that are there.
[NOV 23] I think after the Brady YouTube clip it's time to get that out of all your brains. LOL SO let's look at the Donna stuff on the web this week. First up is the original Love To Love You Baby from The Midnight Special, a SWS remix of The Queen Is Back complete with some rare photos, and a Moby vs. Donna Porcelain (I Love You Remix You Baby) mix. All of those are from YouTube and the first 2 should be watched in high quality (if you are able to.) Over on Multiply, Patrice has made his own edits of a couple of the Fame mixes, and Andy has posted his Christmas Medley Ornamental mix.
[NOV 23] And finally, as many of you know XM Radio and Sirius have merged. That is leading to some new channel lineups and unfortunately a number of dance stations have been axed. Strobe is gone, The Beat is gone, Chrome is gone.... and those were stations that played a lot of Donna. If you are a fan of classic dance, make your voice heard and let Sirius/XM know that you miss these channels. You can even sign the online petition that was started recently. For the last few years I have toyed with the idea of signing up for satellite radio since regular radio is really not fitting the bill for me most of the time. It looks like I'll stick to net radio and my iPod until the dust settles.
[NOV 19] For those of you who can't download at Masterbeat, or who prefer CDs to downloads - head over to Perfectbeat.com now. They have the Fame mixes available on 2 CDs that go for 9.99 each.
[NOV 18] Did you see the new banner above? Then you know the news. :-) The Fame remixes are all available for download now at Masterbeat.com. You can buy individual mixes for 1.99 each, or you can get the whole set for 9.99. :-) (Clicking the banner will take you right to the Fame page.)
[NOV 16] Somebody tell me how it got to be November 16 already! Wasn't it just last week we were eagerly awaiting Crayons? LOL Anyway, now is probably a good time to announce E-Greetings for Donna 2008. If you want to wish Donna and the family a Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, or even just say hi - send an email to me (webmaster@donna-tribute.com) with the words "E-Greetings for Donna" (or something similar) in the subject line and I'll post them here on the site shortly before Christmas, and then I will make sure that the powers that be get the link. If you are a webmaster and you want to build a page of your own, send me that link and I'll make sure they get it. If you want to do a YouTube video - send me that link and I'll make sure they get that too. If you have a photo you want me to post, send it along and if necessary I'll crop it down to a good size for the web. If you want to write in another language, all I ask is that you don't send anything in a language I have to download a font for (Asian languages are tricky like that) and that you do your own spell checking. I'll do my best to post a translation via the translator at Google. Let's make the deadline December 19, so I have the weekend to finish up the page before I send it out. Most of you guys have been around for ages, so you know the drill. :-)
[NOV 16] Moving on to some remix news. Perfectbeat will have a 2 CD set of Fame remixes hopefully this week. The tentative track list is: the album version, Ralph Rosario Radio, Extended Ultimix album version, Ralph Rosario Club, Ralph Rosario Dub, Dave Aude Radio, Dan Chase Radio, Dave Aude Club, Dave Aude Dub, Dave Aude Dub Instrumental, Dan Chase Full Vocal, Dan Chase Dub, and Dan Chase Instrumental. If you really can't wait - there are a couple of 9 track Fame cds on eBay...... but they might get a little pricey.
[NOV 16] In the Donna is everywhere category, Donna got a brief mention recently on the Dutch talk show, De Wereld Draait Door. They were talking about the Sjef Van Oekel DVD release and they showed a clip of Donna doing the Hostage, plus they talked about a time when Donna mentioned that appearing on Sjef Van Oekel gave her career a boost back in the day. :-) If any of you is looking to buy the Van Oekel DVD set, check out VPRO.nl. It's a Dutch site, so if that's not your language you'll need the help of the Google translator, or a cute Dutch boy. ;-)
[NOV 16] There is a book out called The Pitchfork 500: Our Guide To The Greatest Songs From Punk To Present. [Amazon
, Amazon UK
] I Feel Love is right there in chapter 1, and you can read what they had to say on the Pitchfork Media website.
[NOV 16] In re-release news, Christmas Spirit will be back again this year as part of the 20th Century Masters Series - The Christmas Collection line. It's available online at Amazon
, Amazon UK
and a billion other online places all the time, but you should also be able to find it in stores that carry the 20th Century Masters Series now that it's the season. (Darn it - I forgot to see if Target and Walmart had the Christmas music out when I was running errands the other day.)
[NOV 16] Blogcritics has started what they call iBurns - list of songs that should help you get a good work out. The first one up was a disco list and it opens with No More Tears as the warm up track. That is followed by a number of classic disco era tracks including Hot Stuff and Heaven Knows (as an option track for a longer workout.) It's not a bad list of songs, but I can't help thinking that a song that repeats the words "Enough is enough" that often, should be the last song of the workout. I think if it was me exercising (stop laughing, it might happen someday LOL) I'd hear those words and say, "Donna and Barbra are right. Enough is enough. I'm going out for pizza instead." ;-)
[NOV 16] Moving on to rare collectibles.... I have a fan in the UK who needs to sell a couple of rare singles. (You know the economy is bad when fans have to sell their treasures!) He's got the 7" singles for Wasserman on the German Polydor label, and the 7" single of If You're Walking Alone on the Phillips label. He's only willing to sell them as a pair, and he's asking for at least 1000 (UK Pounds). If you are interested, get in touch with Grant at gingerman AT topmail.co.uk. (He can provide scans of the items to interested potential buyers. :-) )
[NOV 16] That brings us to the web news for the week. On Multiply, look for several new mixes from Patrice, and Jeff's extended single mix of Sand On My Feet. On YouTube look for a Donna vs. Rod Stewart mashup, and a high quality version of limoncello23's excellent Power Of One/Barack Obama video.
[NOV 9] Thank god the elections are over! That sound you DON'T hear is the sound of my phone ringing with polls and begging for votes from the local politicians. LOL (Funny how every time they come up with any legislation about telephone soliciting, it always excludes political phone calls. :-p ) And if our new President-elect is reading this (because, he has nothing more important to do right now LOL) - if you are looking for entertainment for your inauguration, I know of a certain singer in Nashville who is pretty good. ;-)
[NOV 9] Let's start with release news from Holland. (And let's watch my spellchecker explode! LOL) The Sjef Van Oekel Discohoek shows are now available on DVD. It's a 3 disk set that is supposed to include Donna's appearances on the show. These are clips from very early in Donna's career where she performs The Hostage, Lady Of The Night and Love To Love You Baby. (They are from at least 2 different episodes - possibly even 3.) Clips from the show were used on VH1's Behind The Music back in 99, so some of you guys outside of Holland may have seen a taste there. Or you can head over to YouTube to see The Hostage and Love To Love You.
[NOV 9] Also in release news, the Jason Nevins mix of Stamp Your Feet can be found on the new Les Mills Bodystep Program. So I guess now we cal all Stamp ourselves into shape.
[NOV 9] I guess I should say something about South America. Pollstar is still showing the dates for Chile and Brazil.... however, none of the venues are showing anything - and let's face it, they would have had tickets up by now. So I think it's pretty safe to say that Pollstar announced the dates before they were set in stone. I think it's a pretty safe bet that they are not happening at this time. So let's hope 2009 is the year for international events.
[NOV 9] Superseventies.com has a short article about MacArthur Park posted. Believe it or not, that record hit number 1 almost exactly 30 years ago. (It was November 11, 1978 for those of you who want specifics.) So who else feels old now? LOL
[NOV 9] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an article about Broadway. In it, the author mentions that Paul Schaeffer (of the David Letterman Show, among other things) co-wrote It's Raining Men with Paul Jabara as a comeback song for Donna. Of course when Donna passed on that one, it became a hit for The Weather Girls.
[NOV 9] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, look for the Behind The Music special (uploaded in parts by Mondo75), and a fan made video for Grand Illusion. There is also a video celebrating Obama's election win that uses a familiar song. (I'd rather see it there than in a Pokemon movie any day. ;-) ) On Multiply, Jeff is in Christmas party mode with some Rosie Christmas mixes, or if you can't deal with holiday stuff yet, then check out his collection of Stamp mixes. And Patrice has posted his edit of Bad Girls.
[NOV 2] Before I get started with the news, I'd just like to remind all my American friends that Tuesday is election day. And you know what that means - starting on Wednesday there will be no more political advertisements for awhile! (Now THAT is a cause for celebration! LOL) So go out there and make your voice heard by voting for the candidates who best represent your ideals. (Or by voting against the ones who seem most likely to mess everything up. ;-) ) And in the excitement of the Presidential election - don't forget about your state and local races as well.
[NOV 2] In remix news, the upcoming Fame mixes have gotten a mention on the Sweet MuZik blog. There isn't any new information, but they give the song an A-. I imagine it won't be much longer before we hear something from PerfectBeat as well.
[NOV 2] In sales news, this week's Ask Billboard column has the current sales figures for Crayons. To date it has sold 69,000 copies.
[NOV 2] Photo hounds - there are some nice pictures from the Crayons tour posted on Flickr.com.
[NOV 2] The W Hotel chain has put out a compilation called The Sound Of Wonderlust that includes I'm A Fire. These CDs are available for sale to the general public on the W Hotel store website, and of course they are available at the hotels themselves.
[NOV 2] Overseas, Donna's music was featured on the UK show X-Factor. Contestants sang On The Radio, No More Tears, and the disco version of Could It Be Magic.
[NOV 2] Also overseas, there is a French magazine called Rock And Folk that gave Crayons a good review recently (which is amazing because they apparently have a history of writing less than favorable reviews of Donna's music. (She was never rock enough for their taste, I'm told.) The review is accompanied by an interview.
[NOV 2] That brings us to the web news. Over on Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has replied to the letter on Donna's site with a letter of his own in the What's New section of his site. On Multiply, look for Andy's Fire Reload mix of I'm A Fire. On YouTube, Fernando has a new video mix with Donna dancing to Bonita e Gostosa by Freneticas.
[NOV 2] In fan news, Darrell Russ' Everybody's Looking For Something has been added to Clearchannel's New - where he has a chance to be picked up by mainstream radio. And on this site - look for an update to the biography section of Wolfagang's German discography.
[NOV 1] The weekly update will be coming tomorrow, but for tonight I have the new Summer Fever pick. In honor of the gorgeous autumn leaves photos I was sent last night, I've decided it is time to put Four Seasons Of Love back in the spotlight. (And like the Crayons page, this one has streaming MP3s instead of Real Audio. :-) )
[OCT 24] The update is a little early because I have some news or you. Let's start off with DonnaSummer.com. If you check out the news page, there is a brand new letter from Donna. :-) And if that's not enough of the Empress for you..... FlairTV has posted a short (and new) interview with Donna on YouTube.
[OCT 24] In Grammy news, the voting process has started. Grammy voters have received the lists of songs, artists, albums, etc that have been submitted by the labels for consideration. As it happens, I was emailed by one of the lucky people who gets to vote and he gave me the list of Donna's pre-nominations. For Record Of The Year: I'm A Fire and Stamp Your Feet; for Song Of The Year: I'm A Fire and Stamp Your Feet; for Album Of The Year: Crayons; for Female Pop Vocal: Stamp Your Feet; for Pop Collaboration with Vocal: Crayons; for Pop Vocal Album, Crayons; For Dance Recording: I'm A Fire and It's Only Love; For Female R&B Vocal: The Queen Is Back; For R&B Song: The Queen Is Back; For Engineer (Non-Classical): all the Crayons engineers. Now keep in mind these are by no means anything close to the final nominations. These are just potential nominees for those categories (and believe me, there are PAGES of potential nominees for each category!) The LA Times has a blog with lists of all the potential nominees in selected categories for those who would like to see the whole field. The final nominees will be announced December 4. Kep your fingers crossed!
[OCT 24] In remix news, look for PerfectBeat to have Fame (The Game) remixes soon. Apparently there are already 3 mixes and they are waiting for one more. There is supposed to be a Ralph Rosario mix, a Dave Aude mix, and we'll just have to wait and see what the others are. :-)
[OCT 24] I mentioned previously that Donna was slated to do the Carousel Of Hope Gale tomorrow night in Beverly Hills. Well, the Gala information has been updated and Donna is no longer on the list. (Whew! I am so glad I didn't buy that $100,000 table now. LOL)
[OCT 24] Collectors will want to check this out. We have a Donna fan out there who is being forced by circumstances to part with one of his treasures. It is an official certificate declaring March 18, 1992 Donna Summer Day in Los Angeles. You can check it out on Craig's List. The seller is Scott in Phoenix, AZ and he would prefer to sell locally - but he might be willing to make an exception for a diehard fan.
[OCT 24] Awhile ago I mentioned that Crayons is available at Target as a MusicPass card. (It's a credit card sized item with the Crayons album art, that when purchased allows you to download the songs and some bonus content like the EPK, and a couple of mixes.) Well, not Sony has teamed up with Winn Dixie, so fans in the Southeastern part of the US will be able to buy the cards there now.
[OCT 24] In the Donna is everywhere category (sort of), there is a short interview with Moby in the Independent. In it, he was asked about what song he would have written if he could have, and he said: "I Feel Love" by Donna Summer. It's so simple and remarkable, somehow managing to be platonic and dirty at the same time.
[OCT 24] That brings us to the web news for the week. On Multiply look for Patrice's Donnaremix. And over at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has posted an interview with Zelma Davis about her version of No More Tears (not to mention other things - some Donna-related and some not.) Look for that in his Question Time section.
[OCT 24] And once again, I'd like to remind my American friends to take some time to educate yourselves on the issues and then go out and vote on November 4. (Or even sooner if you live in a state with early voting.) Personally, I'm very disappointed that neither candidate has proposed a huge Donna concert to celebrate his inauguration..... so now I'm being forced to base my vote on minor issues like foreign policy, the economy, healthcare and human rights. ;-)
[OCT 19] The store at DonnaSummer.com has been updated. In addition to the hoodie, tote and Hard For The Money shirt, there and also men's and women's Crayons shirts, a couple of hats, the Crayons photo and of course the CD itself. If I recall, that accounts for all of the tour merchandise except the I'm A Fire shirt and the tank top.
[OCT 19] Donna will be performing October 27 at a gala at the Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center to celebrate the Pere's Center For Peace's 10th anniversary. Also performing are Slash (from Guns N Roses), Andrea Bocelli and Mercedes Sosa. (Well, you can't accuse the organizers of not going for diversity! LOL) Pssst... Donna..... how about a fan report of Bocelli's performance? We know you will be watching him. ;-)
[OCT 19] In the Donna is everywhere category - look for Hot Stuff in the movie How To Lose Friends And Alienate People. And look for a mention of MacArthur Park in an article about "silly" song lyrics. (Actually, keep reading past MacArthur Park and look at the rest of the lyrics mentioned in the article and the comments - there are some strange songs out there! LOL)
[OCT 19] In the land of covers, there is an Elize cover of Hot Stuff that is currently sitting at #7 on the Dutch Top 40.
[OCT 19] That brings us to the web, on Multiply look for Patrice's Love Songs medleys, Andy's extended Face The Music, and a number of new mixes on Denis' page. On YouTube look for classic clips of Bad Girls, She Works Hard For The Money, I Remember Yesterday, and a duet of Lovin' You from Italian TV.
[OCT 19] In fan news, we have an artist out there called Robert Müller who has asked me to share a couple of his paintings with you. (I think you just might recognize the subject. ;-) ) If you would like to contact him about the paintings, you can get him at r.mueller AT fineartspictures.de.
[OCT 12] Let's start with a little site news. I spent the afternoon doing a little upgrade to the discography section. Now there are Amazon widgets sprinkled throughout the section for albums that are available as MP3 downloads through Amazon. Obviously not all albums are represented (and some of the missing ones surprised me a little), but I did discover that a couple of interesting one-offs are available over there. Sorry the purchase links won't work for international fans, but you should still be able to play the clips and even laugh at the Rosie Christmas widget. (For some reason that thing links to a different non-Donna song every time I look at it. LOL)
[OCT 12] Let's talk about remixes. I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that there was a remix of Fame on Hosh Gureli's MySpace page. Well, that inspired at least one person to email PerfectBeat about upcoming remixes. Apparently they are working with Sony again to get some mixes out there, and as soon as they have enough to put together, they will be releasing a CD. So save up some cash and stay tuned. :-)
[OCT 12] Donna will be one of the performers at the Carousel Of Hope Gala to benefit juvenile diabetes. She'll be joining the Jonas Brothers, Josh Groban, Kenny "Babyface" Evans and others on October 25 at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, CA. If you would like to attend the event.... well, you still have about 2 weeks left to become rich and famous enough. ;-) (Tables start at $10,000 and go UP.)
[OCT 12] For those of you who have been wondering about Sand On My Feet - it's still getting a lot of air play on Sirius radio's Starlight station.
[OCT 12] In a case of Mistaken Identity..... there is an article about a new comedy musical that uses hits from the last 30 years. One song mentioned specifically was "Donna Summer's I'm So Excited." I keep thinking that if Donna collected royalties for all the songs people THINK she did, she'd have enough money to bail out Wall Street all by herself. LOL
[OCT 12] In web news, there are a couple of mixes out there on MySpace. DJ Zebo has posted a mix of Sweet Romance, and Omega Red has posted a mix of Crayons. Over on Multiply, look for 2 new mixes by Evets on Denis' page, amd 3 versions of Bad Girls on Patrice's page. And on YouTube, look for an awesome fan video for Fame by limoncello23 (watch it in high quality - it looks much better that way), an Unconditional Love clip filmed at Disney, a karaoke version of Hot Stuff (for those of you who don't know the words ;-) ), and Donna's performance of No More Tears with Westlife.
[OCT 12] Stor Dubine fans - he's in a competition for Aarting Toys. They are looking for the best designs to use for their toy line, and Stor has 9 designs in the competition. You can vote up until October 24 at aarting.com.
[OCT 12] And finally on a personal note to the spammer that keeps telling me to make money off my friends - my friends aren't for sale! (I don't need to sell them, I have several bank scammers willing to send me millions of dollars to help them smuggle money out of Nigeria or wherever. LOL)
[OCT 3] First things first, I know it's a couple of days late - but the new Summer Fever pick is posted. This month I'm A Rainbow takes the spotlight, but you can still see the Crayons page as well if you want to. :-) Also I have some Brooklyn news below for you and another Crayons review.
[OCT 3] Bad news for Europe, the word out of Italy is that Donna has cancelled some of the promo stuff over there so that she can support Bruce after the loss of his dad.
[OCT 3] Art fans - there is a signed litho of Driven By The Music up on eBay right now. Proceeds from the auction will benefit the Make A Noise Foundation. And speaking of fundraising, Tony Sacca has a syndicated TV series in which he interviews celebrities. He's putting together a PBS special called "The Best Of Entertainment Las Vegas Style" which will air on PBS some time in November. (It it almost certain that it will air during the pledge drives.) It is possible (but not definite by any means) that he might throw in clips of his interview with Donna. The special is being taped Monday and Tuesday so hopefully some time after that we'll know what clips were chosen.
[OCT 3] In release news, last week I mentioned a "new" CD called Live In New York. Amazon Germany has the track list. It is a variation of Live & More Encore. They dropped the 2 studio tracks and added the live tracks that were on the video but not the original CD. Then just for fun I guess, they mixed up the play order. (But they still left Last Dance as the closing track...... if I was going to rearrange things, I'd open with Last Dance just to mess with people's minds. LOL) Amazon UK has a listing for The Very Best Of Donna Summer - a 2 disk edited version of The Ultimate Collection.
[OCT 3] Music video fans, Universal-Music.com has a couple of Donna's classic video clips posted. Of special interest is the Love Is In Control video which is NOT on the Endless Summer video compilation and the Last Dance clip that VH1 used to use from time to time. They are excellent quality. :-)
[OCT 3] In web news, look for an animated Power Of One video on YouTube. And look for Stor Dubine's videos on Animacam.tv. He's got 4 posted there - Stamp Your Feet, I Got Your Love and 2 non- Donna clips. You can see them in high quality and more importantly - you can VOTE for them! :-)
[OCT 3] Finally, on a personal note to my American friends - the Presidential (and other) elections are coming up in about a month. There is a lot of stuff going on right now with the economy, the war, etc. Make sure you educate yourselves on the issues and the candidates and then in November, get your butts out there to the polls and vote for the guy you think can get us out of this mess. (Or at least the guy who won't make it any worse. ;-) ) Seriously - you need to vote, and it needs to be an educated vote.
[SEP 28] Condolences to the Sudano family. Bruce lost his dad earlier this month and he's posted a nice tribute to his dad on the news section of his site. As always, if anyone would like to send messages to the family, I'll be happy to take them and pass them along - or Bruce has an email link on his site.
[SEP 28] The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame has announced the nominees for the class of 2009. They are War, Metallica, Run DMC, Jeff Beck, Little Anthony & The Imperials, Bobby Womack, Chic, Wanda Jackson and the Stooges. Yup.... they forgot somebody. :-( Here's hoping for 2010.....
[SEP 28] Moving on to happier things, the ever popular (and ever sold out LOL) Wii gaming system has a new game coming out in a few days (in the USA) called We Cheer. The game lets you dance and cheer to a number of different songs - including Stamp Your Feet! So if you know any Wii addicts - now you know what to get them for Christmas. ;-) Europe, you will get the game too but not until early 2009.
[SEP 28] In release news, a Dutch retailer (Bol.com) is listing a "new" CD called Live In NY that will be available on October 4. There is no track list posted but I'm 95% sure that it has to be Live & More Encore with different art. (They are using the Bad Girls cover portrait reversed.) I'm only 95% sure because there is a little voice in my head saying, "What if this is a wildly re-titled Shout It Out?" LOL
[SEP 28] And in UN-release news, the lawyers have done their jobs and If I Could Live Our Love Again has been pulled. Now we can go back to pining for the vault to be released legitimately. ;-) (Psssst...... if anybody interested, Barry Manilow has a really neat way of getting his vault out there. Once a week or so he posts an unreleased demo or whatever on his site, )and then tells the story behind it. So not only do you get to hear the song in whatever rough version exists, you also get to find out what project it was for and why it ended up in the vault.)
[SEP 28] In the land of remixes, we have a new one of Fame posted on Hosh Gureli's MySpace page. And while you are nosing around MySpace, check out Donna's page. Since MySpace has gone into the download business, they have a whole bunch of Donna's tracks posted now to keep the Crayons stuff company. :-)
[SEP 28] I guess that brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, look for Patrice's extended There Goes My Baby video, and Andy's White Europe Extended mix of On The Radio. On YouTube, look for some new classics from mascguy4upsl, and DJ Eko's extended version of I Feel Love complete with edited footage of Donna performing the song.
[SEP 28] And one last thing - in the land of Donna Summer fans, we have Darrell Russ who has a song out now called Riding Home From Baltimore that was inspired by Donna. He's asking fans to come over to artistpr.com to check it out and to vote for him. And then Mark Tara (who brought us Sometimes Like Butterflies on CD) has a new CD coming out called Lola. You can check out some of the tracks on his site, but I have to tell you that when it's out you are going to want to get an actual CD and not just a download version of the album. He sent me a copy to check out and it looks cool - like a tiny vinyl album complete with grooves! (Yes I am apparently hopelessly retro. LOL)
[SEP 21] With the tour wrapped up for now and the European promo stuff yet to happen - there's not a whole lot to report this week. But I guess the place to start is with the charts. Last week, Sand On My Feet debuted on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart - but unfortunately this week it fell off. But don't stop requesting it - it can always come back. ;-)
[SEP 21] Speaking of Sand On My Feet, it's getting airplay in Paraguay on Radio Canal 100 FM. :-) (The station also lets you vote for your favorite songs. :-) )
[SEP 21] In the Donna is everywhere category, yesterday WGN ran an episode of the Best Of Soul Train with Donna promoting Cats Without Claws. (I can't believe that album is 24 years old already!)
[SEP 21] Here's one for the unsubstantiated rumor category, recently a friend of a friend was shopping in a Ruehl store and they claimed to have heard a mix of Driving Down Brazil. Here's the thing, the guy isn't a diehard fan so he may have just heard the album version and just assumed it was a mix. But if any of you guys shop or work there, keep your ears open and let me know what you hear.
[SEP 21] That brings us to the web news. Over at SuperBulletNumberOne, Shawn has finally posted EVERYTHING that he has. So if you head over there and you find something missing - send it to him so he can add it. ;-) (Hmmm - we might have to get him to start a Shout It Out gallery now. LOL) Over on Multiply, look for Patrice's video for Science Of Love, and Andy's Robotic Extended Mix of I Feel Love. On YouTube, look for a cartoon video of Romeo posted by Renatapadua5, and annill posted my kid-less version of Take Heart.
[SEP 14] Before I get started, I have more articles for you below (including one really good interview that I know you guys will like. :-) )
[SEP 14] Where should I start? I guess the best place is the charts. I thought we were done with charts for awhile, but I guess not. :-) Sand On My Feet debuts on Billboard's Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks at #30 for the week of September 20. That is the third song from Crayons to chart in Billboard. :-) So you guys know what to do - call your local stations!
[SEP 14] Speaking of charts, in honor of Billboard's 50th anniversary, they have compiled a list of the top 100 artists based on their chart success. Donna comes in at #24, but check out the whole list. I was a little surprised at how some of the rankings worked out.
[SEP 14] Here's one for the "where did that come from?" category. By sheer accident, a friend of mine ran into a new Donna EP on iTunes when he was upgrading to version 8. It's 4 versions of an old demo (2 vocal and 2 basically instrumental). I asked a couple of questions to the right person, and I have found out that this release was NOT authorized by Donna's people. Expect to see it vanish into the mists any time now.
[SEP 14] In the "bigger would be better" category.... (I see some heads nodding in agreement there LOL) Pete Waterman's website has some clips from the vault. One of them is an unreleased 12" version of I Don't Wanna Get Hurt.... but the clip is only about 30 seconds long. (That's why I said bigger would be better. LOL) There are similarly short clips of other artists as well.
[SEP 14] It's getting to be the time of year when the Rock Hall Of Fame picks the nominees for 2009. In anticipation of that, USA Today has a poll to let readers vote for the artists they would like to see inducted. Donna is one of the choices. :-)
[SEP 14] I think that brings us to the web news. On Multiply, look for Patrice's re-edit of I'm A Fire, AJ's mix of Science Of Love, The Pit vs. Donna She Works Hard For The Money 2008 mix on Bricko's site, and Andy's Donna Summer concert series with classic live clips. On You Tube, look for a couple of clips from the Hollywood Bowl from venturehundleys, and a classic clip of Love To Love You.
[SEP 6] I have a radio alert for you for tomorrow night. WBAI will be playing Sand On My Feet sometime during their Everything Old Is New Again show from 7 to 9 PM (NY time.) You can tune in online if you are not in broadcast range. Also, I have a few new articles for you below, some Brooklyn news, and if you were at a meet and greet for any of the following shows, your pictures are here: Jones Beach, PNC Arts, Salamanca, NY (only a couple on that one), Boston, Atlantic City (also just a few), Oakland, Windsor, Alpine, Saratoga, Chicago, Reno and Baltimore. I've also updated the Minnesota page.
[SEP 6] Let's start off with Chicago - mainly because this makes me laugh. Apparently a couple of people at the recent concert got into a "wine-and-cheese splattering melee" over an apparently prime spot in the lawn. Now I have to explain that it's not the fight itself that makes me laugh - it's the "wine-and-cheese splattering melee" description that does. I just get this image in my head.... "Hey you! You took my spot! Don't make me have the butler throw the Beaujolais at you!" Yes, I'm demented. ;-)
[SEP 6] OUT magazine has posted its list of the 100 Gayest Albums. Donna makes the list with Bad Girls and Once Upon A Time.
[SEP 6] In the land of covers, there is a new one of Hot Stuff by EliZeon the Dutch charts. It's not bad - you can check out the video here.
[SEP 6] For a blast from the past, Billboard.com has a chronological listing of every number 1 song on the Hot 100 from 1958 to 2008. If you check out the page for the 70s there are some VERY familiar songs on it. (Not to mention a few that I hadn't realized were number 1 hits, and a few downright scary songs. LOL)
[SEP 6] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Multiply, Patrice has posted a slideshow from the tour set to There Will Always Be A You. On YouTube, look for a classic clip of Could It Be Magic, and a Summer2K slideshow set to The Queen Is Back.
[SEP 1] I have new pages up for Chicago and Minnesota [link now fixed], and I have more pictures from Oakland. Also, since it's September 1, it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. So to celebrate my 30 years of fandom..... (yes I was a fan way before I was born ;-) ) I'm bringing back the album that got me started - Live & More. (Vinyl only please..... ;-) ) For those of you still looking for the Crayons page, it's still here too. I just thought it was time to let something else take the spotlight again.
[AUG 30 (barely LOL)] Well, I said I would post fan stuff from recent shows "tomorrow" - I just thought I would sleep first. But since I'm still waiting for chkdsk to finish doing its thing on the laptop, I thought I might as well work on the site on the desktop. (Plus it gave me something to do while KFAI was playing "Crap From The Past" - an aptly named show if I ever heard one! LOL) Anyway, I have stuff posted for both Los Angeles and Windsor now. And it looks like RealPlayer will happily record the KFAI stream, so barring disaster, I should have that for you this weekend too.
[AUG 29] RADIO ALERT for tonight. Sorry for the no notice, but I just found out Donna will be on KFAI in Minneapolis tonight at midnight local time. (That works out to 1 AM in New York.) You can tune in online if you want to listen. :-) (I plan to try to record it - but the lap top that I usually use for that stuff seems to have picked tonight to self destruct and it's much more of a pain to do with the desktop. We'll see what happens.)
[AUG 29] Photo hounds, MSNBC has finally posted some of the summer concert photos they received. As of this morning, there are Donna photos on pages 2 and 3 - although the page numbers may change if they add more. (I didn't count the photos, but it looks like there are more Donna photos than there are for any other artist other than American Idol.) Also, I had previously posted a bunch of my concert photos on a public Shutterfly collection. Well, now I've added this year's photos and Shutterfly has upgraded the way they are shared. If you want to download them, that's cool - if you want to order prints, that's cool (I get no money for that by the way), but if you want to post them some place, all I ask is that you credit the site. :-) Oh and I don't remember if I mentioned this before, but 101.9 Lite FM has photos from the Baltimore concert posted.
[AUG 29] In release news, Sony Hong Kong has put out a new compilation to celebrate the Olympics. It's called The Olympics Album: One World One Dream and Donna is represented by Stamp. (This is the first compilation to include any of the Crayons tracks I believe.) If you are ordering the album, be very careful about which version you get. They have several and this is the only one with Stamp.
[AUG 29] Roller coaster fans - Universal Orlando is building a new roller coaster to open next summer and they have an online survey to pick the music that will play on the ride. One of the possible selections is She Works Hard For The Money.
[AUG 29] In web news, look for a 2006 video/interview from Vegas on Google video. On Youtube look for a Los Angeles concert review posted by The Hollywood Report, classic clips posted by limoncello23, Hollywood Bowl clips posted by Bahbahluu, Alex0Cat, covinalover and virg777, and the finished Stars on 45 video mix by Discoimperium. On Multiply, look for Jeff's Driving Down Brazil mix, Carl has a Donna vs. Hard Fi She Works Hard To Beat The Cash Machine, Andy has No More Tears from Oakland, and Sergio has pictures and things from LA.
[AUG 29] I'll be back tomorrow with stuff from LA, Canada and whatever else turns up. I was going to do those tonight... but it looks like I'm in the land of laptop repairs. :-(
[AUG 23] I've updated the Santa Rosa, Saratoga, and Oakland pages with more fan reports for you. :-) And I have a couple more articles below for you. Also, since I had this question in my email box, I might as well post it here too for others who have the same question. It's about the hoodie for sale on Donna's site. The question was, is it a zip up one or a pullover one and the answer is that it is a zip up one. I took a picture of the front for you so you can see what that looks like:
(You can click it for a larger version)
[AUG 23] The French-German TV station, Arte, ran a program recently about the 70s and disco - of course Donna got mentioned. ;-) The second part of the show airs on August 26 so check your local listings. Also - all the European fans should be keeping an eye on their TV and radio listings soon. Last I heard Donna had hoped to do some promo stuff over there this fall and fall is practically here. :-)
[AUG 23] In the Donna is everywhere category, the German soap opera, Alles was zählt, used Stamp as background music for one scene.
[AUG 23] Over on YouTube, Alex0Cat has sneaked in a little taste from the Hollywood Bowl (not for people avoiding tour spoilers), DiscoImperium010 has posted a preview of a video mix he's working on for the Stars On Donna mix. And I ran into this little clip of the next generation of Donna fans. On Multiply, Andy posted photos from the Oakland show, and at DonnaSummerBebo, look for more videos. (Check out the video mix of Sand On My Feet.) I'll probably be back again in a day or so with more fan reports for you.
[AUG 20] I have some professional photos from the Santa Rosa show for you, courtesy of the Wells Fargo Center For The Arts. I'll have fan reports for you soon too. Jerry has posted a couple of pictures online as a slideshow from his Donna trip to California.
[AUG 20] Over at DonnaSummer.com, the online store has added the hoodie. The photo they use only shows the back. The front has Donna's name on the left side (in the same font as they use on the Hard For The Money shirt) And then under that in smaller letters it says "I'm A Fire" and there are the mandatory crayons scribbles in the background. The colors match the colors used on the back of the hoodie. It's gorgeous, it's very soft, and I can't wait for the weather to cool off enough so I can wear mine. :-)
[AUG 20] And one final thing tonight for internet radio fans. BlackpoolGayRadio.com is launching Saturday night (8PM GMT) and they will be playing Crayons tracks all weekend. Check them out if you can. I'll be back in a day or 2 with more updates. :-)
[AUG 18] First of all - I have the photos from the cake party in Oakland. :-) (Thanks Eduardo!) The other thing I have to add tonight is that the Entertainment Tonight clip was an edited version of the original appearance to promote Crayons. It's the kick off to ET's Diva Week. (And just as I knew they would - they went with Donna talking about her suicide attempt back in the 70s. Good old predictable ET. LOL We'll be seeing that clip for years!)
[AUG 18] This is a relatively quick update before work since I have a few minutes. I've just added a little to Oakland, and I've made a Reno page. Also check out Nathan DiGesare's site - he's updated his tour blog to include the last couple of shows. (And I think I may have found my quote for next week too. LOL) And while I'm here, I have a new article for you below - and don't forget about Entertainment Tonight this evening. One more thing - Oakland fans, if you were backstage then your photo with Donna is here.
[AUG 17] I'm back. The plan was to update this afternoon - but then a sick coworker caused me to stay at work much later than I normally would have. :-( Anyway - I don't have all the fan reports yet because some of my Oakland guys are partying in Santa Rosa too. (Monday is going to be really bad for those guys! LOL) But, before your imaginations run any wilder than they have been (I just read the forum even though I didn't respond yet LOL) - the thing I couldn't talk about until today was a surprise that had been cooked up for Donna that was presented to her last night. Obviously if I had said something on the site yesterday, there was a chance (especially with the time difference) that the surprise could have been blown. I'll go into more detail on the page I'm setting up - but what happened last night was that one fan (Eduardo - head of street team SF) presented Donna with a Crayons cake. I'm still waiting for the official cake reports from the guys, but I've started a page with a little background and a photo of the cake. (It's gorgeous!) And of course I will be adding photos and reports from the guys after they've had a chance to come down off their Donna-highs.
[AUG 17] Speaking of pictures - if you were backstage at Jones Beach, PNC Arts, or Boston - your pics with Donna are here. And speaking of Oakland - I have the first fan report from there for you, with a few pictures. I also added a little to the Saratoga page. I'll be back again soon with more fan reports and anything else that turns up. :-)
[AUG 17] I just wanted to post a link that has apparently been mentioned at a couple of the recent concerts. It's SaveDarfur.org. If the situation in Darfur concerns you (or if you just want to learn a little about what's going on over there), check it out.
[AUG 16] I'm doing the weekly update tonight, but I strongly suspect I will be back tomorrow for Oakland. I know there are a bunch of very excited guys heading to the show tonight, and I know that there will be partying afterwards..... and I know something else that I won't talk about until tomorrow. ;-) In the mean time, I have a few new articles listed for you below. They are split up into the safe one and the spoilery ones. (I'll catch up on the other fan report pages then too.) Also, Donna is supposed to be on Entertainment Tonight on Monday according to Rock On TV. I have no idea if they filmed something new (or edited something new from footage they already had) or if this is just a straight repeat of something they already aired. I guess we'll all find out soon enough. Oh and for those of you looking for the concert connection page... well I added a link at the top of this page finally.
[AUG 16] In chart news..... well, nothing is happening on Billboard at the moment. :-( But if you look at AmericasMusic.com, Sand On My Feet is at #39 with 63 plays on the radio.
[AUG 16] In web news for the week, on Multiply Steve has posted a number of classic video clips and the Almighty Mix of That's The Way It Is. On YouTube, imafire has posted a couple of clips from the Vancouver show, Summer4all has several videos combining his manipulated images with classic tracks, and some deranged lunatic ;-) has posted Donna's (very short) interview on News 12 Long Island. (Yeah, the sound and video aren't synced right - that's what happens when you use cheap software I guess. LOL) Please note that News 12 says that Donna's CD is coming out in September. So those of us who think we have it and who think we have played it hundreds of times already, must be dreaming. ;-) (I send them an email about that.)
[AUG 15] I have a quick update on the post-concert party in Oakland at Bench and Bar. They plan to waive the cover charge for anyone who presents their ticket stub. And you will be given access to the VIP bar near the entrance. They've added Donna to their playlist - look for that to start around midnight. If you run into Hector - thank him for getting this all set up. :-)
[AUG 14] Okay - I couldn't resist...... I posted some fan reports from Vancouver and Saratoga. Those who know the show line up will want to see the change made in Saratoga. ;-)
[AUG 14] This is just a quick update tonight. First of all, I have a couple of articles for you below. Secondly - and this is time sensitive for Long Island fans - News 12 has been running a segment with Donna from the Westhampton Beach show. I only just found out about it, but it seems to run at about 10 minutes before the hour. I'm hoping to record it next hour. (That's the only thing that's booted the Olympics off my TV screen lately! LOL)
[AUG 14] This next one is for those of you going to the Oakland show this weekend. As I mentioned in a previous update, Hector is planning pre and post show parties. The plan is to meet at 7 in the Paramount Theater lobby and party there until show time. (They have beer, wine, etc.) And then after the show, everyone can meet at the Bench And Bar (which is practically next door to the theater). Bring your ticket stub because Hector is trying to arrange for a reduced cover charge. They are going to work in as much Donna music as they can - but unfortunately they already had a Latin themed night planned already which means a little less Donna than they had hoped for.
[AUG 14] And now for some non-time sensitive news.... the store at DonnaSummer.com has added a Sand On My Feet tote bag to the inventory. International fans - if you are having trouble setting up an account, shop as a guest. As long as you select your country first, it will stop asking you to fill in a state. I'll be back in a day or two with either the weekly update, or show reviews, or even both. ;-)
[AUG 14] In radio news, the Fab One has posted the latest list of airplay. Stamp Your Feet is getting airplay on KNHC (Seattle), S036 (Sirius), KNRJ (Phoenix), KRCK (Palm Springs), KNGY (San Francisco), X081 (XM Radio), WKTU (New York), WVNS (Nashville), WDRE (Hamptons, Riverhead), and WSPK (Newburgh). Sand On My Feet is getting airplay at WMJX (Boston), WLTJ (Pittsburgh), KISC (Spokane), KUMU (Honolulu), WRSA (Huntsville), KKMY (Beaumont), KKBA (Corpus Christi), WHLG (Ft. Pierce), WJXB (Knoxville), WSRS (Worcester), WJKK (Jackson), KTSM (El Paso), and KWAV (Monterey, Salin). Keep sending in those requests!
[AUG 10] It's weekly update time - which means we all take a break from Olympic coverage for a little while. ;-) By the way, if any of the athletes are reading this - remember the important thing isn't how many medals you win, but how many copies of Crayons you buy. (That IS part of the Olympic oath, right? ;-) ) Before I get started, I have a little Brooklyn news for you below, some articles, and updates to the Ottawa and Mohegan Sun pages.
[AUG 10] Over at DonnaSummer.com, they have finally started working on the web store. So far there is only one t-shirt posted there, but I'm sure the rest of the tour merchandise will follow soon.
[AUG 10] In the land of covers, Amber and Zelma Davis have recorded a cover of Enough Is Enough that you can grab at Perfectbeat. (The CD cover is very familiar too. ;-) ) There is an EPK for the song where the girls talk about both Donna and Barbra. (Those quotes start at about 4:40 into the video.)
[AUG 10] In the Donna is everywhere category, Donna got a brief mention in an episode of Chelsea Lately recently, and on the Lifetime show How To Look Good Naked, a recent episode used Crayons as runway music. :-) You have to love that the new songs are getting out there!
[AUG 10] Moving on to the web, over on Multiply Denis is back and he's a mix of one of the new songs. You will want to stay away from it if you are avoiding tour spoilers though - he uses live clips from the tour. (That's why I didn't give the name of the track. ;-) ) And Andy has posted 4000000 mixes of Heaven Knows..... okay, that's a slight exaggeration. ;-) And on YouTube, Fernando has posted his rather moody Love To Love You remix. :-)
[AUG 7 again] I just got this charity auction listing for you. The prize is 2 tickets to the Chicago show at Ravinia and a meet and greet with Donna. Proceeds will go to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy fund. The auction closes on Sunday so get those bids in soon!
[AUG 7] Let's start off with some concert news. First of all, I have a couple of fans with extra tickets on their hands. Kevin has an extra ticket for Reno (center section in about the 5th row). If you are interested, contact Kevin at shawn_oconnor AT neutronindustries.com. Then Eli has an extra ticket for Oakland in Row O. If you would like to take it off his hands, Eli can be reached at onedivoboy AT aol.com. And finally, if you are heading to the Chicago show at Ravinia, beware of traffic hassles. Apparently there are construction projects on I94 and I294, so allow extra time to get to the venue.
[AUG 7] Looking at the Billboard charts for a minute - Crayons re-enters the R&B Album charts for the week of August 16 at #90. :-)
[AUG 7] In street team news, The San Francisco team had to cancel last weekend's excursion due to illness, so look for them out and about tomorrow night after work. If you see them - say hi.
[AUG 7] In auction news, there is a Driven By The Music litho up on eBay at the moment. I also see that there are quite a few tickets up for sale there - most for the Hollywood Bowl shows (and some VERY expensive.)
[AUG 7] MSNBC.com has invited readers to submit their summer concert photos for possible publication on the site later in the month.
[AUG 7] As usual, I have accumulated a couple of articles for your reading pleasure. They are in the usual place. I expect to see more things turning up as the second half of the tour starts tomorrow. :-) I'll be back again this weekend with the weekly update and whatever else falls into my lap. :-)
[AUG 3] Where is the summer going? Yes it's August and yes, I still haven't changed the Summer Fever pick. I think I'm addicted to Crayons. LOL I did add a couple of things to the page though - like the picture of the promo Sand On My Feet that was on eBay and the cover picture for It's Only Love that Amazon.com is using. The Crayons page now has a few tour spoilers - but those have been hidden so that most people won't see them if they don't want to. (You'll wee what I mean when you look at the page.) I've also updated the Baltimore page with one more fan report, and thrown in an interview from June's Performing Songwriter magazine. Soon I'll have a few more photos from Mohegan Sun as well - but I have to drag out the other computer to scan those. (A perfectly good scanned and HP refuses to put out Vista drivers for it! Grrrrrrrr.......)
[AUG 3] I have more articles (and a pair of slideshows) listed for you below. All but one are spoiler-free. :-)
[AUG 3] On to the charts. On the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for August 16, Stamp Your Feet drops from 29 to 49. :-( But on the international Billboard International Dance chart - it climbs back up to #30 from #40. And over in Poland, Crayons debuts at #74.
[AUG 3] In release news, It's Only Love has been on Amazon.com as part of the Crayons downloadable album for a little while now, but now it has a separate listing of its own - complete with a cover picture. It looks like exactly the same track that's on the album, so I don't know why it warrants another listing. But we may find out Tuesday - the "new" release goes on sale that day. Over in the UK, there is a Wollworth's exclusive collection called The Collection which has 15 of Donna's classic tracks. The thing that makes it more interesting is that it is said to include the longer version of Heaven Knows - one with Donna singing solo on the first verse instead of with the Brooklyn Dreams.
[AUG 3] Speaking of releases... someone just told me about a new (to me anyway) site called Discogs.com. Aside from having huge lists of records that have been released (in many cases with a lot of additional info such as the credits), it also serves as a marketplace for people wanting to buy and sell hard to find stuff. (It looks like they use a rating system with the sellers, so that's a nice plus too. )
[AUG 3] In the Donna is everywhere category, Driving Down Brazil was played at a recent Brazilian fashion show - and it got a nice reception. :-) And at Amsterdam's Pride, one of the floats was playing the Granite & Sugarman Mixshow version of Stamp. And over on RuPaul's blog - look for a classic clip from Donna's 1980 TV special.
[AUG 3] I think that brings us up to the web news for the week. Over at DonnaSummerBebo - look for a number of new classic video clips. On Youtube, look for a few new video mixes from Fernando a manipulated photo slideshow set to Brooklyn, and a very TGIF video for Something's Missing. On Multiply, look for new mixes by Andy.
[JUL 29] I've finally added text to both the Atlantic City and Westhampton pages, and I have another report from Rama.
[JUL 29] While I'm here, let me cover a little news for you. :-) First up, collectors will want to check out Scott's MySpace page. On his pictures page, he has an album called "going going... gone" with photos of 2 items in his collection that will be going up on auction in the near future. They are a gold trophy presented to Donna by NARM in 1978 for having the best selling album by a female artist, and the official certificate declaring March 18, 1992 Donna Summer Day in Los Angeles. They are both gorgeous items and it's a shame he has to sell them, but I'm sure someone out there can give them a good home. When the actual auction starts, I'll post a link for you here.
[JUL 29] I didn't have this the other day, so I'll give it to you now. On the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for August 9, Stamp Your Feet slips to #29.
[JUL 29] WireImage.com has a few photos from Donna's recent Atlantic City shows. (Not for people avoiding spoilers!)
[JUL 29] Los Angeles fans - K-Earth 101 FM is having an on air contest to give away tickets to see Donna at the Hollywood Bowl. So tune in to find out how to win, or sign up for their listeners club. :-)
[JUL 29] And finally (for today anyway LOL), Eduardo's San Francisco Street Team will be out a third and final time in the Castro District next Sunday, August 3rd. They will be out promoting to the general public Donna's Saturday, August 16th Paramount Theater concert in Oakland, CA. Please feel free to stop by and say "Hi".
[JUL 28] An update is coming - but I'm exhausted. So for now I just posted a few pictures from Westhampton Beach. I'll have a report on that for you soon (that was an adventure - you have no idea! ) along with my Atlantic City report and various items of news that have turned up. :-) (If I'm this tired after seeing 5 shows - I can't even imagine how Donna and the crew feel after playing 15. Yikes!)
[JUL 26] Before I crawl off to bed to get some sleep before work tomorrow, I thought I'd throw my photos from last night up. I LOVE being able to bring the camera with the manual settings...... it actually does what I want it to. LOL I'll write a report of the show too - but I need a little more time.
[JUL 24] Since my computer time will be very limited this weekend, I'm going to do a quick weekly update now and then I'll follow up when I can with anything else that turns up. First up - I have started a page for the shows at Casino Rama.
[JUL 24] Moving on to chart news, for the week of August 2, Crayons slips off the Billboard R&B album chart, while Stamp slips to #40 in the International Dance chart. I don't have the August 9 Club Play chart yet, but that will be up by the time I can update again. :-)
[JUL 24] In radio news, I'm A Fire seems to be fading away.... sigh. But we still have these stations playing Stamp: KRCK Palm Springs, KNGY San Francisco, S036 Sirius satellite, X081 XM radio, KNRJ Phoenix, KNHC Seattle, WKTU New York, WVNS Nashville, WKCI New Haven, WKIE Chicago, WDRE Hamptons/Riverhead (Long Island!), WFLY Albany, and KKUU Palm Springs. Then we have these stations playing Sand On My Feet: WLTJ Pittsburgh, WMJX Boston, KUMU Honolulu, WJKK Jackson, KWAV Monteray-Salinas, KTSM El Paso, WJXB Knoxville, WSRS Worcester, and WRSA Huntsville. If any of those are your stations, give them a call or send them an email.
[JUL 24] And now for a quick look at the web news... On Multiply, Patrice has posted his Crayons remix. And on YouTube, Rugged4nownyc has a number of clips from the Jones Beach concert. (Obviously those would NOT be for people avoiding spoilers. ;-) )
[JUL 23] Let's start with 2 extra tickets to the Santa Rosa concert. They are section B row J and if you are interested, contact Eli for the details. (onedivoboy AT aol.com)
[JUL 23] I have a few more articles for you down below. :-)
[JUL 23] I've started a page for the Seneca Casino show in New York, and I expect to hear from some happy Canadians soon. One thing that one of the Canadian fans noticed was that after the show, the merchandise booth SOLD OUT of Crayons. :-) What can I say? When people hear the songs they are hooked! And if you check out my YouTube page, I sneaked in a couple of very short clips from Jones Beach.
[JUL 23] Oakland - one of the guys is planning a pre-concert party at a place yet to be decided and a post- concert party at Bench And Bar at 2111 Franklin St. Hector (the guy behind the parties) knows the bar owner and will be speaking to him about playing LOTS of Donna. :-) So if you are looking for something to do after the show, check it out. (And when they come up with a pre-show location, I'll let you know.)
[JUL 21] I started the Jones Beach page. :-) There will eventually be tiny clips of a couple of songs because I decided to play with the video mode in my camera for the first time. Unfortunately, YouTube won't let me upload anything right now because of system maintenance - but I'll get something up there when I can. :-)
[JUL 20 again] I just added photos to the PNC page. I'll have to work on the Jones Beach page tomorrow. I also have some (terrible) photos of the merchandise booth on that page. For those who want to see the tour merchandise but not tour spoilers, this is a link to the first photo and this is to the second. (Clicking them will open a new window with JUST those photos and nothing else.) By the way - I think PNC has been the most photographed show so far, so I was a little more selective about which ones I used. There are a number that give you a nice overview of the staging in action. And that's all I'll say about that here. LOL
[JUL 20] I'm a little behind this weekend..... can't think why? ;-) I think I'm going to post this update in parts, so let me start with all the normal update stuff and then I'll move on to show stuff later if there is time. One thing I do want to say about the shows now though, is something that seemed to come up a couple of times over the last two days. Just so you know - there is no opening act. If your ticket says the show is at 8 then you need to be in your seat at 8. Some people have shown up later thinking that they were only missing a comedian or something and they ended up missing part of Donna's show. So be there on time! Also, most venues still have a few seats left, so if you haven't bought a ticket yet - what are you waiting for? You will kick yourself forever if you miss this tour. :-) (By the way - I fixed the links in the list above.)
[JUL 20] Let's go right to the charts. Over at Billboard for the week of July 26, Crayons slips 2 spots to #82 on the R&B Album chart while Stamp Your Feet climbs 2 to #28 on the International Dance chart. For the week of August 2, Stamp is at #9 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. In Brazil, Stamp holds the top slot on the Dance chart for the second week in a row. :-)
[JUL 20] I think that brings me to the web news, and this will sort of be a long list. Let me break this up into the spoilery stuff and the safe stuff for you. On the safe list is DonnaSummerBebo. They have new videos, and new polls. They are very into Science Of Love over there so if you have an opinion on that one, head over there and let them know. :-) On Multiply, Jeffrey has posted his extended mix of Fame (The Game), Patrice has posted his 12" 80s remix, and Steve has posted a vintage clip of Love To Love You. (Note that I am linking you directly to that video. That's because Steve has a ton of pics from PNC Arts and if you go into his page through the "front door" you will see them. And that's probably not a great idea for those of you who want to be surprised.)
[JUL 20] And now for the web stuff that has show spoilers. As I said above, Steve has 8 billion photos from PNC (some of which may be stolen for this site LOL) on his multiply page, Andrew has pictures on his MySpace page, and over ion YouTube - it's all about the shows! Check out a couple from luciolefirefly, a couple from LaBelle63 (no, we didn't have an earthquake on Long Island - it was just really windy! LOL), a couple from Zivenki, and one from Phil (who is apparently a big fan of silent movies. LOL) Please note that the vast majority of those are just short clips to give you a taste of the songs, and I happen to know that there is more coming.
[JUL 19] I posted my report for the PNC show. There will be photos eventually - I have a bunch that I just have to edit for size when I get a chance. With out getting too spoilery, there were a couple of significant changes to the concert line up last night. ;-) Also, I took a couple of photos (that did not come out well!) of the merchandise booth and those will get posted somewhere so you can see what's available. (Actually, I may shoot for better photos tonight if I can get the camera past security.)
[JUL 18] I have another list of articles for you below. I will be offline for most of today because I'll be spending the day in NJ..... gee, I wonder why? ;-)
[JUL 18] I have a fan with extra front row tickets to Casino Rama - section F5. If you are interested, contact Marino at marino.scarmozzino AT aig.com
[JUL 17] Let's start with a time sensitive one. I just found out that Donna is supposed to be on the Wendy Williams Show tomorrow (July 18). It airs live in the NY area at 10 AM on FOX. Other places should look at the show's website for the time and channel.
[JUL 17] Moving on - I have a report (and pictures) from Baltimore! For those of you who have been wondering about Bruce - he was seen at the show. (As were the grandkids. :-) )
[JUL 17] San Diego! I have a fan with 2 tickets (3rd row center) who is now unable to go to the show. If you would like to take them off his hands, email Eli at onedivoboy AT aol.com.
[JUL 15] Now I can finish the update I started yesterday. LOL I have more articles posted below for you - and they will be marked so that you can tell which have spoilers. I've also started a page for Ottawa fan reports (including pictures!) I don't know what happened with CBS this morning. They sneaked in a late update to their schedule that left me watching no Donna for 2 hours. LOL (On the other hand it's not all bad - I found out they are doing the mosquito spraying by me tonight so I can make sure my windows are closed. )
[JUL 15] In the Netherlands, SchiffersFm has posted Be Myself Again in their "Tips Van Hans" column.
[JUL 15] Let me give you a little chart info while I'm here. On the July 26 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, Stamp Your Feet slips 3 to number 8. And in Brazil it hits #1 for the week of July 12. (The fans are partying in Brazil now! :-) )
[JUL 15] I have a fan out there named François who made his own custom CD booklet for Crayons with the lyrics from Donna's site combined with the photos from the real CD booklet. He has graciously allowed me to share it with you here. Just right click this link and select "save as". It's a PDF so you will need the Acrobat Reader to view it.
[JUL 14] I don't have time to update as much as I'd like to tonight, but I did add a few more photos from Mohegan Sun for you. Tomorrow night I will have some news from Ottawa. :-) And US fans (and maybe some Canadian fans) don't forget to tune into CBS Early Show tomorrow morning at 7 AM. :-)
[JUL 13] I have more for you from the concerts - all of which will go on pages for the various venues so that nobody has any surprises ruined for them. But I will say this..... I heard that the Boston crowd was very rowdy and enthusiastic. That's cool - but there are a whole bunch of other cities on this tour that I want to address now. Ottawa..... Baltimore... Salamenca.... Rama.... are you going to let BOSTON make more noise than you? Much as I like Boston, I think you can out- scream them. (And you will notice I left NY and NJ out of the list. That's because I will be at those shows with a cattle prod and Ken's middle aged drag queens. There WILL be noise made in NY and NJ or there will be severe consequences! ;-) ) And as for you August tour cities...... you better start practicing now. I expect my house on Long Island to shake when the screaming starts in California!
[JUL 13] So here's the list of updated (or added pages) for today: Boston, Bethel, and the Street Teams in action. Also check out the articles list below, and the Family Matters section for a Johnnyswim update.
[JUL 13] Canada - this one is for you. Your iTunes (yes the Canadian iTunes that all of you love to hate LOL) now has It's Only Love available. The song is not available on US iTunes so US fans will have to go to Amazon.com for that download.
[JUL 13] Target is now selling a Digital Album Card for Crayons. For $12.99, it gives you a code to download the songs and the EPK. They are DRM protected, so once you download them, the track only work on the one computer.
[JUL 13] And some early web news for you - Jeff has posted his review of the Bethel concert on his Multiply page and Andrew has posted his photos from Boston on his MySpace page. (Look for the little link that says "pics" under his "last log in". MySpace will make you log in to see them!) And I have added both the Larry Flick and Richard Simmons interviews to my Multiply page. Over at DonnaSummertime, the new Top 40 is posted and there are a dozen new entries. (Gee, I wonder why? LOL)And of course Nathan DiGesare has added to his tour blog.
[JUL 11 part 2] And now for something completely different.... no wait, that's Monty Python. And now for the main update. Where so I want to start? How about with tour stuff. First of all, I have updated the concert connection page. Also, and this is important) I have a gentleman named Rick with an extra $100 ticket to Jones Beach. He's like it to go to a real fan and not to some bozo who will sit there and pretend not to have a pulse all night, so if you need a ticket - get in touch with richitown AT aol.com. And I also have some Family Matters news for fans of Amanda/Johnnyswim.
[JUL 11 part 2] San Francisco fans - look for the street team to be hard at work again tomorrow at the Castro I believe. If you are nice to them they will probably tell you all about the show Donna is doing in Oakland. (Actually, they might tell you about it if you aren't nice to them. LOL)
[JUL 11 part 2 Let's look at the Billboard charts. For the week of July 19, Crayons is at # 80 on the R&B Album chart and Stamp Your Feet is up 2 to # 28 on the International Dance chart. As I said last week, Stamp is at #5 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart for the week of 7/19 and as soon as I see the 7/26 chart I'll let you know where it is.
[JUL 11 part 2] In radio news, we are now tracking another song. :-) Sand On My Feet has been picked up by a few AC radio stations. They are Magic 106.7 in Boston, KWAV (1520 AM) in Monteray-Salinas, Mix 98.7 in Jackson, MS, B97.5 in Knoxville, and K92.9 in Pittsburgh. Stamp Your Feet is still getting played at these stations: KNGY in San Francisco, XM 081 (satellite radio), KNHC in Seattle, WKTU in New York, Sirius 036 (satellite radio), KNRJ in Phoenix, WNYZ in New York, WKIE in Chicago, WVNS in Nashville, and KKUU in Palm Springs, CA. And I'm A Fire is hanging in there on Sirius 036, KNHC in Seattle and KKUU in Palm Springs. If any of those are your stations, give them a call.
[JUL 11 part 2] Getting back to the tour again - the Meadowbrook US Cellular Pavilion in New Hampshire has posted photos from the concert the other night. Click the link if you are not worried about spoilers. (If you were backstage at that show, your picture is also posted on that page.)
[JUL 11 part 2] And speaking of tours... as you know (or will know if you keep reading down), I was at the Mohegan Sun show the other night. While I was there I had the chance to ask a question. So I asked the number one question from my email - "Donna, are you going to Europe?" She's hoping to get there maybe in September. So you guys have not been forgotten! Before you email me again for 1000 more details LOL - I didn't get any more specifics than that. The entire state of Connecticut was backstage waiting for a picture with Donna, so there wasn't time to chat. But she knows that you guys want her and you haven't been forgotten. :-)
[JUL 11 part 2] If you saw the blog post on Donna's MySpace about winning tickets to Atlantic City, MySpace in their infinite wisdom disabled the link. I suspect that since the site that was linked to was musicslut.blogger.com, the content filter picked up on the word "sluts" and thought it was porn spam. If you would like to enter the contest, you can cut and paste the url off of Donna's blog instead of clicking it, or you can just use this link. (And if my webhost is reading this - that's NOT a porn link. It's a perfectly innocent music blog.)
[JUL 11 part 2] I'm looking at my folder of Google alerts and it looks like I have a bunch for you again. Let me weed out the duplicates and post the list for you below. (Actually, make that 2 lists. I'll separate the ones that have concert spoilers from the others for you.)
[JUL 11 part 2] In the Donna is everywhere category, Stor Dubiné is exploring new aspects to his art. He's done some pictures based on Munny toys and if you look at the ones he's created there is one based on a very familiar diva. ;-)
[JUL 11 part 2] That brings us to the web news. Let's start with Nathan DiGesare. His tour blog continues with entries for the last couple of shows. (He's also updated the look of his site.) On Multiply, look for a whole bunch of classic video from Steve, and tour photos from Andy. (Those will have spoilers - but you probably guessed that.) On Youtube, look for a couple of mixes from Summer4All and a Stamp vs. Disco Lies vs. Let Me Think About It mix from MAndrews Truth.
[JUL 11] I'm back - but I have not come down to planet earth yet! LOL If you haven't made arrangements to see the show yet, you need to do that RIGHT NOW! (And that's as specific as I will get on this page. You will have to click a link to read more. LOL) The show is fabulous and you don't want to miss it! Most of the venues still have tickets left so it's not too late! Now let me upload this and then get to work on the main update. Let's see it's been 2 days so I should have 11 billion more articles by now. LOL
[JUL 9] I'll be officially offline until late tomorrow, but when I come back it will be with my own fan report. :-) In the mean time, I leave you this YouTube link to keep yourselves amused. (Don't click it if you are avoiding spoilers for the show!)
[JUL 7] Hot off the presses - I have photos from Wolftrap! See the Vienna page..... unless you are avoiding spoilers. :-)
[JUL 6] I said I'd be back. ;-) The Street Team page is now updated with a few more photos, the Amazon widgets have been updated to include It's Only Love (that will be the last track on the list if you scroll down on either of them) and here is a new widget on the Vienna fan report page with songs that Donna was doing at the show. (The original album/single versions - not anything actually live from the show.)
[JUL 6] If you missed my holiday announcement - I still have the code to buy 1 ticket and get 1 free at PNC Arts or Jones Beach. If you email me for the code, I will give it to you and enter you for a chance to win one of 2 promo CD singles.) The buy 1 get 1 free offer ends July 7 and my drawing will be July 8.
Also if you are looking for tickets to Gilford, NH, go to the Meadowbrook US Cellular Pavilion's website and use the code 6sweetshows to get $10 off.
[JUL 6] Speaking of concerts, I know many of you have been waiting with bated breath for the reports from opening night in Vienna, VA. (I could tell when I started getting instant messages that said "have you heard anything yet?" instead of "hi". LOL) The reports are starting to come in and I have to say that I was totally surprised that Donna sang all the tracks from the Shout It Out Collection....... ;-) (I'm just teasing - she left out Little Marie. LOL) In keeping with my no spoiler policy on the main news page, if you want to hear about the show just head to the Vienna Fan Report page. What I will say on this page is what was in the press release - the show really is a mixture of old and new stuff. (I won't call it a chocolate chip cookie though because then I'll just get hungry. LOL) You will definitely hear the new songs and you will definitely hear some of the classics - so everybody should be happy. :-) I will also give you the merchandise report. They had the Crayons CD, a couple of t-shirts (including one with the big I'm A Fire eye!), a black hoodie (you will want that at Jones Beach, Boston and Baltimore - it gets cold on the water at night LOL), and an 8x11 postcard. It would not surprise me at all if down the road some of those things became available on Donna's site.
[JUL 6] In release news - American fans can now get It's Only Love at Amazon's MP3 store. So if you didn't get it at Circuit City, now is your chance. :-) I'll be adding that to my Crayons widget on the splash page and above after I get all the main updates done. I'm also going to make a widget for the fan reports page with all the songs from the tour - that's mainly for the new people who might not have everything yet.
[JUL 6] Let's go to the charts. For the week of July 12, Crayons is at #71 on the R&B Album charts. (That's up 2 from last week.) Unfortunately it fell off the Top 200 Albums. And Stamp Your Feet debuts at #30 on the International Dance charts. For the week of July 19, Stamp Your Feet drops to #5 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. Looking at some of the international charts, Stamp Your Feet is #1 on the Brazilian Dance charts and on the Venezuelan KysFM chart. And at BBC Radio1 in the UK, Crayons debuts at #24 on the R&B album charts.
[JUL 6] I have another list of articles for you. (And I suspect that we'll have even more now that the tour has started.) Look below in the print/web section.
[JUL 6] Check out Torgen's blog for a video review of Crayons from June (in German) and then an update from July 4 with interview clips in English.
[JUL 6] If you want to catch some classic Donna videos - check out Lite FM in NY. They were one of several stations celebrating Donna's music this weekend and they posted 5 videos on their website for listeners to stream on demand.
[JUL 6] And I think that brings us to the web news for the week. Nathan DiGesare is back to blogging about the tour. :-) He's posted his entry for last night's show in Vienna, VA - look for more posts as the tour progresses. Over at Super Bullet Number One, Shawn has added a whole bunch more 12" sleeves and other goodies. (If your iPod is missing cover art for some songs - this is the place to look!) At Forever Donna, Sandro has updated with new Crayons animation for the splash page. On Multiply look for new videos from Patrice, new files from Steve, and lots of foot stamping from Jeffrey. Then when you are done there, the YouTubers have added some new things as well. Look for some classic clips from apgrbb, mixes from DJSummer2K, and some new goodies from Fernando - including Donna vs. David Bowie clip that is kind of weird, but in a way that works.
That's it for right now. I'm going to take a break and then be back later with photos from my Fire Island street team excursion and some new Amazon widgets. (And anything else that I may have forgotten.)
[JUL 4] I'm going to work on the main update tomorrow - mainly because I want to spend time watching the illegal fireworks by my house tonight. LOL But I did want to update tonight with a special time sensitive item. As you may know, I was out promoting the local concerts today. I had flyers with a special buy 1 ticket get one free deal for PNC Arts in NJ and Jones Beach in NY. Those offers expire on July 7 (Live Nation's rules - not mine! LOL) I also had a few (VERY few!) CDs to give out to people in Donna drag.... but I didn't see any. :-( So here's what I'm going to do. If you would like to go to either show and you need tickets (and would like to take advantage of the buy 1 get 1 deal), email me before July 7 and ask me for the code. I'll give it to you and then I'll throw your name and email address into a hat and when July 8 rolls around, I'll pick 2 lucky victims... I mean winners ;-) at random to get a Crayons Sampler CD. (They are a 4 track CD with the original album versions of Stamp Your Feet and I'm A Fire, the Jason Nevins mix of Stamp, and the Solitaire Club Mix of I'm A Fire. It comes in a cardboard sleeve with the Crayons cover art. These are promotional CDs only and can't be bought in stores.) When I email you back the code to buy tickets - that's your confirmation that you are entered for the CD Samplers. ] See ya at the shows!
*Mandatory legal mumbo jumbo: Contest not open to my relatives (too bad - you should have sucked up to me when you had the chance. LOL) Void where prohibited by law. No purchase necessary (but, it is strongly recommended ;-) ). Decision of the webmistress is final. Objects in the rearview mirror may be closer than they appear. Do not remove this tag under penalty of law..... am I getting carried away? ;-)
[JUL 3] Happy July 4 everyone! (So what if it's not a holiday in your country - take the day off anyway! ;-) ) I have some time sensitive news for you. Sirius 37 (The Strobe) will be having special guest DJs for the whole Fourth Of July weekend. Donna will be one of them. I suspect that since they have a number of guest DJs, that everyone just recorded stuff that will be played at various times throughout the weekend. Also, NY fans will want to tune into WALK radio and Lite FM. Both have concert tickets to give away this weekend.
[JUL 3] And in concert news, as you all know the tour kicks off this weekend at Wolftrap. Because of that, there is a new press release. If you are trying to avoid spoilers about the show - don't worry, the most detail you get is that we'll be hearing new songs and old songs. (And I think pretty much everyone reading the site had figured that out already. ;-) ) I'll be back this weekend with full update. :-) And don't forget that there is still time to grab tickets for all the shows!
[JUL 2] Okay - my contest has been cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances, but I do have something cool for you guys. If you were thinking about going to the concert in Gilford, NH, but you didn't get your tickets yet - I have a deal for you. Head over the the Meadowbrook US Cellular Pavilion's website and use this code: 6sweetshows to get $10 off the price of your ticket. The show is coming up very soon, so grab your tickets NOW.
[JUL 1] Well, my contest has been postponed a little - I'm just waiting for some links and things. :-) In street team news - I didn't get to Fire Island last weekend thanks to real life, but that means I will be there for the Invasion Of The Pines, peddling great deals to Jones Beach and PNC Arts. (Look for the street team t-shirt and the bright red sunburn at the Pines ferry port.) I have a very limited supply of promo singles to give out, so if you come in Donna-drag and are willing to pose for a picture with me for the site, I'll give you one. (But those supplies are VERY limited so it's first come first serve.) Also, if you happen to be on the NJ Turnpike and you notice a picture of Donna on a certain booth not too far from PNC Arts..... well, just say Donna's name to the toll collector. If he hasn't run out yet - he'll hand you a flyer with the buy 1 get 1 free ticket offer to PNC Arts. In other street team news, we've had parties in Boston and Providence, and the guys were out working Pride in San Francisco. I have photos from all of those events on a new photo gallery page. I also have a bunch of professional photos from 2006 courtesy of the guys at the Wells Fargo Center For The Arts in Santa Rosa posted on what will be the Santa Rosa fan report page. If you are in that area, they still have some great seats left for this year's show so go snap them up! :-)
[JUL 1] I have a fan in the UK who happens to have one extra ticket for the Saturday show at the Hollywood Bowl. If you are interested in talking to him about it - send me an email and I'll forward it on. I also have another gentleman looking for a pair of reasonably priced good tickets to the Hollywood Bowl. (In other words - he doesn't want to pay what the brokers are charging. I can't blame him for that! LOL)
[JUL 1] In other tour news, Nathan DiGesare is still with the tour this year and he's got an interesting mention of it on his news page: The new music, surprise elements that have been added to the show is something you are not going to want to miss. This without a doubt will give the fans everything they have dreamed for in a DS show. Is it July 9 yet? ;-) (That's the first show I'm going to.) While we're talking about the tour - for anyone going to any of the shows - if you want to write a report, send it in and I'll publish it on the site. I'll have a page for each venue as time goes by. Also I'm going to try very hard to keep a "no spoiler" policy on the news page. In other words, I won't tell you much about the shows on the news page itself so that people who want to be surprised won't have their surprises accidentally ruined when they catch up on the news. I'll try to keep song lists, etc confined to the actual show report pages. And on the forums, I'd like to request that you guys keep discussion of the shows confined to specific threads so that people who want to read can, and people who want to be surprised know what threads to avoid. :-)
[JUL 1] In my last update I neglected the international charts. So let me cover a few now. In Venezuela, Stamp Your Feet is number 1 at KysFM, in Greece Crayons debuts at #30 on the sales charts, and in Brazil Stamp Your Feet is #7 on the Top 40 Dance charts. Sadly, Crayons has yet to chart on the UK album chart so go blackmail your neighbors into buying a few copies. ;-)
[JUL 1] UK fans - your iTunes now has the in studio video clips for Stamp, The Queen Is Back and Mr. Music available for sale for 1.89 each.
[JUL 1] Congrats to Michael Campbell, winner of the DonnaSummer.us Crayons review contest. Way to go Michael!
[JUL 1] Okay, that brings us to the list of articles - posted below in the usual place. :-) And in TV news, you can still vote to see Donna's concert repeated on the Today Show Friday.
[JUL 1] And I almost forgot to mention - the new Summer Fever pick for July is..... well, Crayons. I just didn't have the heart to pull it down yet. LOL
[JUN 29] Just a quick update on Donna's appearance on Sirius today. Although Richard Simmon's show runs from 3 to 6, I just got a press release saying that Donna will be on at 5. So plan your recording times accordingly. :-)
[JUN 28] Let's start off with a satellite radio alert. Donna will be on channel 102 at 3 PM tomorrow on Richard Simmons' show. So tune in if you can :-)
[JUN 28] I have a couple of new articles posted below for you. (Is it me, or do new articles come out daily lately? LOL) Also, the June 27-29 Metro NY daily paper had the playlist for DJ J. Gauthreux who is doing the big dance on the Pier party. Stamp Your Feet was his top pick, so if you are partying at the Pier keep your ears open for it. ;-)
[JUN 28] I'm just going to jump into the web news now because I will probably be updating tomorrow, and it not, then Monday night for SURE. So over on YouTube, look for a new mix by DJSummer2K, a bunch of classic stuff from Dutchgigilo, and a couple of new goodies from Fernando (fzkny). On Multiply, look for new stuff from Patrice and Steve. And I don't remember if I mentioned this here or not, but all 4 parts of the free Crayons podcast live on my Multiply page too. So if you can't use iTunes, you can check them out over there.)
[JUN 27] I think this will be another weekly update in parts. LOL Let's start off with the Concert Connection page. I finally started it! Basically, if you are going to a show and you want someone to carpool with, or someone to hang out with - send me an email telling me which show you are going to, what you want (a ride, to meet fans, whatever) and what contact information I can share. Speaking of concerts, I said in one of my recent updates that I planned to be on Fire Island this weekend promoting the NY and NJ shows. Thanks to some car trouble, I might have to push that back to July 4. Now if you want to go to either the PNC Arts or Jones Beach shows and you didn't buy tickets yet - what are you waiting for? ;-) Actually, I know what you are waiting for - you are waiting for the special deal that I have. It's a limited time offer to buy 1 ticket and get 1 free. If that interests you, look for me and my broken car on Long Island, or my other street team members in NY and NJ, or shoot me an email. Also, look for a contest VERY soon to win a pair of tickets to the show in Gilford, NH. I should have those details on Monday night.
[JUN 27] Speaking of contests, the Crayons Review contest at DonnaSummer.us is winding up very soon. Votes will NOT be accepted after June 30, so if you haven't voted yet just remember that the clock is ticking away.
[JUN 27] I think that brings us to the latest list of articles. I have them posted below in the usual spot. (I have a question for those of you who read the site at work - how do you ever get any work done these days? LOL)
[JUN 27] And while I'm here - let's check the Billboard chart action. On the Hot Dance Club Play chart for July 12, Stamp Your Feet sits at number 1 for the second week. :-) On the July 5 charts, Crayons is at #184 on the Top 200 albums and at # 73 on the R&B Albums chart. Now I know some of you are interested in sales numbers. I don't have current numbers for Crayons, but I can give you an idea of the state of the music industry right now. You need to look in 2 places. The first place is HitsDailyDouble.com. On their sales page they try to predict (usually with fairly decent accuracy) where albums will chart on the Billboard Top 200. The "power index" column is the sales. (Depending on when you go there, they might not have final figures posted. There is a notice on the top of the page that says if the chart is finalized or if it's still in progress.) And on the forum, the Fabulous Albert has posted sales figures for Billboard's Top 10 with notes about sales increases ort decreases.)
[JUN 26] Head over to DonnaSummer.com and check out the music section. There is something new there that many of you have been waiting for - LYRICS! Now go study them before the concerts start. ;-)
[JUN 25] This is just a quick update for the San Francisco area. First of all, Energy 92.7 is asking listeners to vote for their favorite song. So far Donna is in second place with 30% of the vote. Second of all, those of you going to San Francisco Pride on June 29 should be on the look out for Eduardo and his crew. They will be out promoting Donna from 2 to 5 with a few little goodies for fans. ;-) If you run into him - tell him hi from me. :-)
[JUN 24] The Today Show is planning to rerun one of the Summer Concert series concerts for the July 4 holiday. And they are letting viewers vote for the one they want to see. (You can vote on the website, or by text message to 46833 - pick 3 for Donna.) All bias aside (yeah right! LOL) I think it's only fair they they repeat Donna's concert since all of New York City missed out because of the crane accident.
[JUN 23] Yes, I have a few MORE articles for you. LOL (I think they are breeding!) Also, while I'm here, UK fans will be happy to know that Crayons is the album of the week at BBC's Radio 2. They will be playing tracks from the album all week long. (And if you live outside the UK, you can stream the station online.)
[JUN 23] Part 4 of the Crayons Podcast is available on iTunes now. And for the iTunes challenged, check out the widget on my Crayons page. Also, on YouTube, Toby Gad has clips of Donna and of JohnnySwim on his video blog.
[JUN 21] Well, I THOUGHT I posted all the articles yesterday, but I have more for you - check the media section below. (How many of you have gone blind from all the reading? And to my blind users - how many of you have gone deaf from all the articles? LOL)
[JUN 21] Let's hit the charts for a minute. The last Billboard chart I was waiting for was the July 5 Hot Dance Club Play chart. :-) Stamp is sitting there at number 1 - still with a bullet! I hope that means it will sit there another week or 2. So for those of you who are tracking the success of Crayons - add in back to back number 1 dance hits. :-) One more thing, it has come to my attention that Crayons' number 17 debut was Donna's highest debut on the Top 200 Album chart ever. And the fact that Crayons is still on the Top 200 chart after 3 weeks means that Donna has already had more chart success than the other Burgundy artists. :-)
[JUN 21] Looking to international charts, Crayons debuts at #85 on the Swiss charts, making it her first appearance on that chart since 1989. In Italy, it debuts at #42, in Germany it's #73 (with a bullet!) on the Top 100 albums, and in Argentina, Crayons debuts at #11. On the Danish Radio Diablo site, Stamp Your Feet is number 8. For all you chart hounds out there, here are a couple of links you need to know about: Billboard.com, Allcharts.org, and iTunes.
[JUN 21] In radio news, here are the current US radio stations playing Stamp Your Feet: KNGY (San Francisco), X081 (XM Radio), WKTU (New York - more on KTU in a second), KNHC (seattle), WKIE (Chicago), WVNS (Nashville), WRKS (New York - new add!), WFMK (Lansing), WKRQ (Cincinnati - new add!), WTFM (Johnson City), KYKY (St. Louis), and KKUU (Palm Springs.) If any of these are the stations you listen to - call in those requests! Now on internet radio, we still have Diverse Universe that will play anything you happen to request. It's back up after some technical issues. And on Live 365, UU-BRU has a nice little write up on Donna on their main page, but more importantly, if you check out the playlist, Stamp is sitting there at #1. They also play a song called Slide Over Backwards credited to someone named Hattie Mae Blanche Dubois. ;-) (That one hasn't made the top 50 yet, but give it time. HEY! It just started playing as I was writing this - and I didn't even request it yet. :-) )
[JUN 21] In concert news, WKTU in New York has tickets to give away for PNC Arts center and Jones Beach on the air and on their website this weekend. And I will be on Fire Island next weekend as part of the street team efforts with special limited-time only deals for those who didn't get their PNC or Jones Beach tickets yet. (Pray to whatever god/spirit/force you believe in for sunshine on Sunday! LOL)
[JUN 21] In release news, I've been told that Sand On My Feet is being shipped to AC radio next week with promotion starting in early July probably. So get ready to start requesting that one. :-)
[JUN 21] In the Donna is everywhere category - Stamp was played during a dance segment of America's Got Talent. :-)
[JUN 21] I went this far, so I might as well make this the official update. LOL So let's get to the web news for the week. First up, Nathan DiGesare has the current tour schedule posted on his site and it looks like he'll be giving readers the behind the scenes scoop again this year. :-) Over on Multiply, Steve has posted a couple of videos (one recent and one older) for your viewing pleasure, and Andy has posted a number of new remixes of new songs. On YouTube, Fernando has posted his video mix of The Queen Is Back, and Stor Dubine's awesome Stamp video has moved, so update your bookmarks. ;-)
[JUN 20] The weekly update is yet to come, but I thought I'd post a few things that have fallen into my lap this week. See the list in the media section. :-) Also, we're still putting together street teams to promote Donna. We especially need some people in Virginia and Santa Rosa - so let me know if you are interested. :-)
[JUN 20] While I'm here I'll give you the latest Billboard news. On the Top 200 chart for the week of June 28, Crayons slips to #158. And on the R&B chart is it #54. Stamp Your Feet falls off the Hot Singles Sales chart, and while I said last week that it is #3 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart for June 28, I haven't seen the next chart to see if it continued its climb. I'll post that when I get it.
[JUN 17] For those who missed it last night, the Nightline segment is now on ABC's website and on YouTube (if ABC doesn't work outside the US.) Wait back that up a little - the clip on the ABC website is longer than what aired.
[JUN 17] Also on YouTube..... most of you regulars know Stor Dubine. He's the guy who did the really cool animated videos for I Got Your Love and Does He Love You. (If you never saw those - find them on YouTube - they really are amazing.) Well, he has put his creative powers into a new video for Stamp Your Feet. Watch it, enjoy it, then go post it everywhere that will allow you to post a video. Let's take over the whole internet! :-)
[JUN 17] In concert news, The Daily News has some tickets available for a whole bunch of Donna's shows. So if you didn't get your concert tickets yet, what are you waiting for?
[JUN 16] I just (very unexpectedly) found out Donna was on ABC's Nightline tonight. Obviously this comes too late for East Coast fans, but if any of you are reading this in other times zones, you should be able to catch it. She was in a piece called "Play list".
[JUN 15] GREETINGS SANTA ROSA! Your tickets are on sale now through the Wells Fargo Center website. (If that link is not working, try this one instead.) Get those credit cards out and snap up your tickets now! Also, we are looking to form a street team for Santa Rosa (not to mention all the other places on the tour list.) If you are interested in being on a street team or even captaining one, let me know. And before you ask what I'm talking about - look at the next entry. That will explain all. Oh by the way - if you 'd like to hear the radio promo for the concert - I have it here. I have a video one that will be on YouTube later tonight too. ;-)
[JUN 15] Okay - as you all know the tour starts July 5 in Wolftrap. (And if you didn't know that, you must be new here - and if you are, you have A LOT to catch up on! Don't worry - it's all good. ;-) ) As I was saying, the tour starts soon and with that in mind, first I'd like to remind you that tickets for the whole North American tour are on sale now, and many venues still have good seats available. (Especially Gilford, NH - I think that one has slipped under the radar of the New England fans. I know my first reaction to that date was, "where?") Anyway what I'm trying to get to is that we will be assembling street teams of locals to go out and plug the shows and the album at clubs or wherever Donna fans hang out in your area. Pretty much, as a street team member, you would have to hand out flyers and CD samplers and just get the word out. And as a street team member you would get the satisfaction of knowing that you helped Donna take over the whole world ;-) and maybe some other cool thank you too. Also, if you have any good promotion ideas that would work in your area, or places and events that we should target - let me know! If you are interested in helping out or if you just want to throw some ideas at me - send me an email (webmaster AT donna-tribute.com or any other email addy you happen to have for me) preferably with "street team" in the subject line and make sure you tell me what area you are in so that I know what show you are promoting. (Because it would be really stupid for me to send you flyers to promote say Gilford if you are working in say Santa Rosa. LOL) And I will have more details on this as things develop. :-)
[JUN 15] Speaking of concerts, this week I will be setting up a concert connection page for people who want to carpool, share extra tickets, party after the show, whatever.)
[JUN 15] Let's move on to the regular update stuff. We'll start with some articles first. I have 2 new ones living in my article archive -the People Magazine one that I've been meaning to type up since it came out, and a Gay Times article from the UK that I typed up from a scan on the forums. Then there are a bunch more that already live on the web somewhere - those are listed below in the media section.
[JUN 15] Calling the UK - you have your own mini-Donna Summer site now to promote the album. The cool thing is - if you join the mailing list over there you have a chance to win 1 of 10 signed CDs. (And I'm 99% sure they mean signed by Donna and not signed by some random person in the street. ;-) )
[JUN 15] In release news, Crayons has hit Australia. That version also includes It's Only Love - but there is one thing that sets the Aussie release apart from all the other ones so far. It comes in a plastic jewel case instead of eco-pak the rest of us got. If anyone is interested in getting that version, one of the local guys recommends jbhifi.com.au. I looked at the site and they do ship worldwide. Crayons has also hit Argentina, and you can get MusiMundo.com. Also in release news, iTunes has FINALLY made an "iTunes Essentials" collection for Donna. They have one or 2 strange choices mixed in there, but if you are new to Donna go check it out. (And if you are a long time fan, you probably already have most of those songs.)
[JUN 15] Let's move on to charts. Over at Billboard, on the June 28 Hot Dance Club Play chart Stamp moves up to number 3 - still with a bullet. The other Billboard chart info I have is for the week of June 21. Stamp debuts on the Hot Singles Sales chart at #38. While over on the album charts, Crayons falls to number 38 on the R&B albums chart and to #103 on the Top 200 albums. Internationally, Stamp moves from #28 to #20 on the Brazilian chart and it debuts at #38 on the Canadian chart. And over on iTunes (Europe) the peak chart positions so far for Crayons are: France #9 (pop chart), Belgium #5 (pop chart), Italy #3 (pop chart) and #6 (overall), Spain #1 (pop chart) and #4 (overall), Sweden #4 (pop chart) and #9 (overall), Finland #7 (pop chart), Ireland #9 (pop chart), and Switzerland #9 (pop chart). On a side note for all the chart watchers out there, there is a site called AllCharts.org that will give you the chart info for quite a few countries.
[JUN 15] In radio news, Q92.5 in Montreal has picked up Stamp and Radio 2 in Belgium is playing it in their show De Dansbar. Here in the US, the following stations are playing Stamp: WKTU (NY), WKIE (Chicago), KNHC (Seattle), X081 (XM), WVNS (Nashville), KKUU (Palm Springs), KYKY (St. Louis), WTFM (Johnson City), WFMK (Lansing), and WSMW (Greensboro). I'm A Fire is getting airplay on S036 (Sirius), KNHC (Seattle) and KKUU (Palm Springs.) And speaking of radio, San Francisco fans shold be happy because the completely awesome Energy 92.7 has made Donna their spotlight artist for the month.
[JUN 15] And that will bring us to the web news (finally! LOL). Damien has updated L'Unives de Donna Summer with his new It's Only Love (IFL mix). On Multiply, Patrice has added a new photo creation. And at YouTube, Fernando has added a couple more videos that combine music from Crayons with classic performance footage and the Star Spangled Banner performance from 1999 has turned up. I will be back - probably soon with anything else that pops up. And since I forgot to say it before - Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. You know who you are..... at least I hope you do. ;-)
[JUN 11] This will be a relatively quick update. First of all, if you have iTunes, then you need to know that part 3 of Donna's podcast is up. And if you don't have iTunes, then head over to my Crayons page where all the podcasts are currently streaming. (It looks like there will be a total of 4 - so only one more left.) Now if you live in the UK and you have iTunes, then you have an even better reason to head over to iTunes. The UK iTunes is selling Crayons already. :-) (So much for waiting until June 23!) And the cool thing about the iTunes version of Crayons is that it comes with a digital booklet with all the liner notes and photos.
[JUN 11] Speaking of iTunes - now that Crayons is over all (or at least most) of Europe, we can get an idea of how it's selling over there. As of this afternoon, on the iTunes pop album chart it was #9 in France, #7 in Belgium, #4 in Sweden, #3 in Italy and #1 in Spain. If you look at the Top 10 album chart over all), Donna comes in at #9 in Sweden, #6 in Italy and #4 in Spain. :-) I'll be back a little later this week with all the press out of Europe.
[JUN 9] RED ALERT for Germany (and internet radio listeners): Donna will be interviewed on WDR2 TOMORROW (Tuesday June 10) between 21:05 and 23:30 local time. (That works out to between 3:05 PM and 5:30 PM New York Time. The rest of you can probably figure out your time based on either German or NY time.) If German isn't your language, the link you are looking for to stream the music is the one that says "WDR 2 hören". And if you are looking for something to do while you are waiting for Donna, scroll down the WDR page a little further and look at the column on the right. Near the bottom of the page is a little Donna quiz you can try.
[JUN 8] See, I said I'd be back again. :-) Today I added more photos to the Chicago Experience page, I added photos to a new page for the recent New York events and I started a page for messages, reviews or anything else you guys want to share. Wolfgang's German discography has also been updated to reflect the Stamp single and the German chart information. And before I get to the news, when I updated yesterday, I messed up a couple of the Canadian radio stations. It should have been EZRock.com and 99.9MixFM. Sorry guys. (I can't even blame those typos on the cat - she is currently snubbing me. LOL)
[JUN 8] Brazil - you finally have a firm release date. It's June 16 and you will be getting the version of Crayons that includes It's Only Love. Check it out at Americanas.com. And speaking of Brazil, Stamp Your Feet hits #28 on the Brazilian Top 30 Dance Chart for June 14. :-)
[JUN 8] We have more photos online from the Chicago Music Experience courtesy of the host himself, Dedry Jones. Catch those on his website, or his MySpace page. As for the video that was films - they are still editing it and hoping to hook up with one of the cable stations so it can be broadcast.
[JUN 8] I was asked yesterday about sales figures for Crayons. Going from the numbers posted on HitsDailyDouble.com, it looks like Donna sold about 22500 the first week Crayons was out and about 11,600 the second week. To put that in perspective with other Burgundy artists, Gloria Estefan's CD sold about 22,700 the first week and it debuted at #25 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums (and then fell out of the top 50 the second week.) Chaka Khan's CD sold about 34,500 the first week and debuted at #15. The second week it sold about 17,800 and dropped to #40 (and then dropped out of the top 50 on the third week). And Aaron Neville sold about 21,000 CDs his first week for a #37 debut (then he fell out of the top 50.)
[JUN 8] Over at DonnaSummer.us, the judges have voted and Doug has the official top 10 fan reviews ready to post some time tomorrow so you guys can pick your favorites. (You guys made it tough to choose! All the reviews were well thought out and well written. :-) ) So check out Doug's site tomorrow to see the top 10 and for other announcements.
[JUN 7] I said I'd be back today. ;-) Let's start with even more articles linked below in the media section. And then let me clear up one little thing that has been turning up in my email. Donna will NOT be on The View on Monday. It dropped off her schedule at some point probably because of scheduling issues (on either side.) I don't know when or if it will be rescheduled because it won't be too long before the show wraps for the summer. (Most of the day time talk shows take a break in the summer time, so for those of you who are hoping Donna will do Oprah or Ellen or any of the other shows, it's probably not even remotely possible until the fall at this point. Could I have made that sentence any longer? LOL)
[JUN 7] In chart news, Stamp Your Feet climbs to #6 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for the week of June 21. On the Top 200 Album chart for June 14, Crayons drops to # 43. (That is COMPLETELY normal these days. New albums chart high the first week and then drop the second week. Some of the guys on the forum were analyzing the sales figures and the week 1 to week 2 drop for Crayons was not nearly as much as the drop for certain other high profile artists, so Donna is doing pretty good. :-) On a side note, I'm trying to figure out when we all decided to become accountants as well as fans. LOL) Over on the R&B/Rap Chart, Crayons drops to #15. In Germany, Stamp debuts on the singles chart at #88. It's her first appearance on that chart since I Don't Wanna Get Hurt charted in 1989. (On a side note, German fans will want to take a look at the Mix1 page for Donna. ) In Canada, Crayons debuted at #89 on the top 100 albums and at #13 on the top R&B albums. And on the World Dance Charts, I'm A Fire is sitting at #6 after peaking at #2 a couple of weeks ago.
[JUN 7] In release news, the US iTunes now has 7 mixes of Stamp Your Feet available for sale. They are the Jason Nevins radio mix, The Escape/Coluccio radio mix, Ranny's radio mix, Jason Nevins extended mix, Escape Coluccio club mix, Ranny's Big Room mix, and the Granite & Sugarman club mix. As always, if you feel so inclined, leave a review on iTunes for the mixes - or if writing isn't your style, just mark the reviews you do like as "helpful".
[JUN 7] In radio news, I'm told that Canadians will want to call in their Stamp requests to chumfm.com, ezrock.com, chfi.com, 99.9mixfm.com and muchmoremusic.com. So if any of those are your preferred station, give them a call or send them an email. :-)
[JUN 7] I think that brings us to the web news. Over at Donna Summetime, Sebastiano is holding a contest for the ITALIAN FANS ONLY. He's giving away 5 copies of Crayons to fans who can answer one simple question on his "ultime notizie" page. (I'll give you a hint - the answer isn't I Will Survive. I tried sending him that answer and he gave me a broken copy of Shout It Out for my efforts. ;-) Over at YouTube, IndyCote has posted his videos from the Chicago Music Experience, Fernando (fzkny) has posted his videos from the Today Show, and DJSummer2K has posted Donna's performance on Letterman. On Multiply, Carl has posted a Donna vs. Celine Dion mashup, and fan mixer BentBoy (aka Cavin) has joined the Multiply family and made a number of his old mixes available. I think that's it for now - but I will be back again tomorrow with a whole bunch of fan stuff from recent events. :-)
[JUN 6] SPOKANE - I just found out that your tickets are on sale now through TicketsWest.com.
[JUN 6] Let's start off with a new slew of articles - thanks to a performance in NYC and the release of Crayons in a number of countries this week. The vast majority of them are linked below, but I also have one from Mexico that has been added to the article archive. (Note the author of that one - he's a regular on the forums. ;-) ) The article is posted in the original Spanish, so if that's not your language you will have to use an online translator or find a Spanish speaking buddy.
[JUN 6] DC area fans will want to check out the latest promotion in that area. Atmos Events is having a giveaway where the grand prize is a pair of tickets to see Donna at Wolftrap.
[JUN 6] If you are entering the review contest at DonnaSummer.us - you have until 8 AM tomorrow morning (US Eastern time!) to get your entry in. Also - make sure you include your city and country so that Doug knows which iTunes he has to use to buy the gift card. (If you already entered and didn't include that info - just send Doug another message. We have about 15 entries now, so there is a little competition now. :-)
[JUN 6] Remember awhile back there was talk of actress Tasha Smith doing a biopic on Donna. Well, I have a little news about that. Clay Cane's blog has a little interview with Donna and a phone call from Tasha Smith. The bottom line is - it's not happening.
[JUN 6] And finally for today - Donna will be on XM Radio's Artist Confidential on June 30. They loop it all day long on XMX and you can listen in online if you are an XM subscriber. (They offer internet only subscriptions and even a free trial.) I was at the taping and you guys will NOT want to miss this. :-) I will be back tomorrow with PLENTY more. :-)
[JUN 3] Before I get to the news, I sneaked in a couple of new photos on the Chicago page last night. Also - don't forget to tune into Sirius' OutQ tomorrow in the 9 AM hour. (That's Eastern time.)
[JUN 3] Italy (and internet radio listeners) will want to tune into RAI Radio 2 on Saturday June 7 at about 3:10 PM (local time). They will be playing a couple of tracks from Crayons with comments. (Very positive ones I'm sure - RAI Radio 2 is a big Donna supporter. ;-) ) If Italian is not your language, the link that says "Ascolta Live" is the one that starts the streaming. :-)
[JUN 3] In Mexico, there is good and bad news. The bad news is that you have to wait a little longer for Crayons - now you get it June 17. The good news is that the June 1 edition of Ovaciones had a nice 2 page spread on Donna. :-)
[JUN 3] Over here, if you missed Donna on David Letterman, well - go to YouTube. :-) (I'm telling you, Stamp gets better every time Donna sings it!) And at WKTU's website - they have posted photos of Donna in the studio with Diane Pryor.
[JUN 3] And finally, over at DonnaSummer.us, we finally have 10 entries in the fan review contest. Of course that still makes in insanely easy for Doug, Brian Edwards, and I to pick the top 10. So if you want to make us work a little (or if you just want a shot at a $300 iTunes gift card) get over there and send Doug your entry.
[JUN 2] Calling all Sirius listeners. Donna will be on Larry Flick's show on Out Q on Wednesday (June 4) in the 9 AM hour. If you don't have Sirius, you can always sign up for a free 3 day trial.
[JUN 2] UK fans - Stamp Your Feet is now on iTunes UK as a 2 track single. It's got the radio edit and the Jason Nevins radio edit.
[JUN 1] At long last, I've posted the fan reports from Chicago for you. I've even got a few pictures to go with it. :-) Sorry it took so long. And as long as we're talking about events, WireImage.com has a ton of pictures from the Today Show.
[JUN 1] In chart news, Stamp jumps to #13 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for June 14 and it's got a bullet. :-)
[JUN 1] The articles keep rolling in. Check the media section below for the newest reviews and articles.
[JUN 1] The Summer Fever page has been updated with a few new things that I have stolen from various people. ;-) (Thank you Sebastiano, HarriSonic and Warner!) It's fast becoming the biggest Summer Fever page ever.
[MAY 31] Hello to everyone I saw at the Today Show - and to those who I know were there but couldn't get to. (They packed us in like sardines, didn't they? LOL) I've got a ton of ground to cover today. First of all the new Summer Fever pick is Crayons. (Please note that the url for that page is a little different than it is for all the other Summer Fever pages - that's because I want to keep that page available for quite awhile.) I've also got a whole bunch of new articles listed for you below, and some news in the Family Matters section. And if you noticed, right below the links to navigate my site (above), I've also thrown in quick links to get to Donna's official sites - just in case I do something stupid like say "go to Donna's MySpace for..." and I forget to hyperlink it. ;-)
[MAY 31] Now the big question? Where should I start? LOL Let's go with Billboard. As I mentioned before, Crayons is #17 on the Billboard Top 200 albums for the week of June 7. What I didn't mention is that it is also #5 on the R&B charts. Let me put this in perspective for you. This makes it Donna's first top 20 on the album charts since 1983 (when She Works Hard For The Money peaked at #9) and it's her highest ever chart position on the R&B albums chart.... well, since 1983 anyway. (That's as far back as the Billboard online archives go reliably. ) Previously, She Works Hard For The Money was the highest charting album on the R&B charts when it peaked at #22. I also believe that this is Donna's highest chart debut since about 1983 as well. Crayons also debuts at #20 on the Billboard Top Digital Albums chart. And as I said last week, Stamp is #25 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. You can read a press release about Crayons' chart success on Donna's MySpace page (in the blog entry that starts off "Thanks to you...")
[MAY 31] Ok, let's move on to concerts. Pollstar has updated the South American tour listings. So Rio - you are getting an extra show on Monday November 17 at Vivo Rio. :-)
[MAY 31] Part 2 of the free Crayons Podcast is now on iTunes. If you are iTunes challenged, HiwayRunner has kindly made a player for them:
[MAY 31] Ourstage.com is holding a contest for cheerleaders, dance troupes or any group of people who think they can put together a routine to Stamp Your Feet. Grand prize is $5000 - just think how many CDs or concert tickets you could buy with that! ;-) Fans get to vote for the top 10 videos and then Donna herself gets to pick the final winner.
[MAY 31] On Thursday night, Donna taped an episode of the XM Radio show, Artist Confidential. The show airs on Mondays on the XMX channel at 8PM. I don't have the date yet for Donna's episode, but I do know that it won't be June 2 or June 9 - other artists are slotted for those dates. I was lucky enough to be at the taping and it is something you won't want to miss. It was part interview and part live performance (with the band and not to a track!). When it airs, you will get to hear Donna sing I'm A Fire (that one is gonna be great on tour!), the Bad Girls/Hot Stuff medley, Science Of Love (did I just hear a few jaws drop out there? ;-) ), Stamp Your Feet and Last Dance. Despite being on the mend from a nasty bout of the flu, Donna sounded really good. (I don't know how she does it - when I get sick, I spend the whole time sounding like a frog. LOL) You guys are going to love the interview too. She talked about a lot of different things and there were quite a few laughs along the way. If you don't have XM radio - don't worry, you can listen online. You will have to get a subscription to do it though. That should be no problem though. An internet only subscription is only 2.99 a month or you can sign up for a free trial. Once I find the date, I'll let you know. :-) [ A BIG THANKS to the person who got me in there!! :-) ]
[MAY 31] Over in Sydney, Australia there is a release party at Slide on Oxford St on Friday June 6 from 10 PM until... well, probably until you all get thrown out! LOL Kate Monroe is the guest DJ and there will be Crayons giveaways. They are expecting a crowd so get there early. :-)
[MAY 31] Yesterday I gave you links to the Today Show performances (for those who missed it), those clips are also available on Donna's official site now and on LOGO's NewNowNext blog. LOGO has an extra clip I didn't notice in the other places yet - the interview inside the studio that aired later. You need to listen to that one because there seems to be a very interesting plan afoot for the tour. ;-)
[MAY 31] Don't forget about the contest over at DonnaSummer.us. Doug is taking fan reviews for Crayons, and so far we only have 6 reviews. Which means it is INSANELY easy to get into the top 10 right now and almost as easy to win that $300 iTunes giftcard. (However, as the designated Paula of the judging team, I reserve the right to talk about reviews that aren't there. LOL ) There are 8 more days until the deadline so if you want to enter, you better get busy!
[MAY 31] In web news, at YouTube, fzkny has sneaked in some of his own footage from the Today Show as has rugged4nownyc. On Multiply, look for new mixes from Patrice and Carl. Over on Bebo, look for the CBS morning interview in addition to the polls and things that are always added. :-) (And if you missed it, you NEED to see the CBS interview.) I think this is it for today..... I was about to say I'll be back tomorrow, but actually after I upload this update I'm going to get started on the fan page from Chicago. So I guess I'm not really leaving? LOL
[MAY 31] The June 9 issue of People Magazine (the one with Shania Twain on the cover) has a 2 page spread on Donna with some new pictures and a new interview. I haven't seen the article online yet (it might be too soon) but if it doesn't turn up soon, I'll put it up here.
[MAY 31] The reviews are still coming in.... Playback, Dallas Morning News, CDUniverse, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Courant.com, Lesbiatopia, Disco Delivery and Kansas City Star. Metacritic.com has assembled a bunch of reviews to give an overall view of the critics. And look for an awesome video review on Amazon.com.
[MAY 31] SIngersroom.com has a short article about Crayons' chart debut. The NewsObserver has an article about Donna's musical styles. (Yes that is "styles" - plural! :-) ) And Ask Billboard has a question about Crayons' sales.
[MAY 31] German fans should look for an interview in the magazine Siegessaeule.
[MAY 30] I just got back from the Today Show, so I have a lot to catch up on before I do a big update, but I wanted to post this one thing now. If you are in New York and tried to watch (or record) Donna on the Today Show - well, all you saw was a bad crane accident. All is NOT lost though. The Today Show website already has Donna's performance posted, so you can catch it there. And can I say that going by what I saw today and last night (more on THAT later) - we are in for one heck of a tour this year! And don't forget to tune into the Today Show tomorrow - they will probably be showing at least some of Donna's performance then..... unless they are still covering that [insert your favorite swear word LOL] crane. I sort of want to be back tonight with lots more updates - but I have a feeling that there won't be enough time to catch up. So tomorrow will be a big update for sure.
[MAY 29] This is yet another quick update - after this I will be offline until ... well at least until after the Today Show and maybe until late Friday. (Stupid job! LOL) Donna was on KTU yesterday, and if you missed it (like I did - let me rant about working for a living again LOL) you are still in luck because they have it on the KTU website. (I hope it works outside the US - if not, I'll see what I can do this weekend.) Also, she was interviewed for CNN. You can see that as either text or video. Enjoy the Today Show - and I'll see you guys after that. (And while I'm offline - keep checking Donna's MySpace for any breaking updates. :-) )
[MAY 28] Here's yet another quick update.... :-) The Billboard album chart is out. Crayons debuts at #17 making it Donna's first top 20 album since She Works Hark For The Money in 1983. (That one peaked at #9) Go Donna!!! And over at WKTU in New York, Stamp is one of the top 5 requests - so keep those calls coming in. And if you aren't a KTU listener - keep calling your local stations. Let's get it top 5 EVERYWHERE! :-)
[MAY 27] This is a very quick update tonight, but a very important (and time sensitive one!) for NY area fans! If you are heading to the Today Show taping Friday - STOP. Before you do anything RUN to your email program and fire off an email to DonnaOnToday@gmail.com with your first and last name. 50 lucky winners (and their guest) will get to watch the show from the VIP section. Don't wait - do it NOW! By the way, I will be at the taping so if you see me, come on over and say hello. (Actually, I will probably be there on VERY little sleep, so if you see me, kick me or something to make sure I wake up in time for the show. ;-) )
[MAY 26] This is just a quick update for those who can't get enough Donna. :-) If you go to iTunes and search for "Donna Summer Crayons" you should turn up a podcast which is Donna talking about the album. The one up there now is listed as part one, so there will be more coming. I know it is on iTunes US and UK so far and probably other places as well. The podcast is 100% free, so for the iTunes challenged, I have posted it on Multiply.
[MAY 25] As most of you know, Donna was interviewed on CBS Sunday Morning today. This one is not to be missed..... so if you happened to oversleep, or if you happen to live outside the US, then you'll just have to sneak over to YouTube. ;-)
[MAY 25] Over in Italy, you guys get Crayons on June 6. The day after that tune into Rai Radio 2's Hit Parade where Crayons will be the album of the week. And look for the magazine Musica & Dischi the first week of June. There will be a review in it - one written by a fan. It should be quite an Italian Crayons party!:-)
[MAY 25] And speaking of Italy, Sebastiano at Donna Summertime has posted an exclusive interview with Toby Gad. You'll get an inside look at the making of some of the tracks from Crayons. I will be back soon with info from the Music Experience in Chicago and whatever articles pop up over the next few days. :-)
[MAY 24] Wow - I took a day off. LOL I'm back to work tomorrow, so that means it's back to late night updates (or early morning emergency updates.) I will be at the Today Show concert next week, so if you can find me in that mob of people come on over and say hi. (And keep all your fingers and toes crossed that it's a nice sunny day!) We've got a few more articles to read this week, including an interview from Oz. All of those are listed below in the media section. I've also got a special report from the Energy 92 E-Room with Donna from last night. And for anyone who is going to the Music Experience in Chicago tonight, send in your report and I'll post it on the site. :-)
[MAY 24] We have another release party that I just found out about. It's tonight in Seattle at Neighbors. Sorry for the short notice.
[MAY 24] In chart news. Stamp Your Feet jumps to #25 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for June 7. I expect to see some album chart action when the charts show up later this week. (I hope it makes a really strong debut despite the fact that my aunt took it out of the library instead of buying a copy. Aunt Rose - I'm talking about YOU! Don't make me send Ken's Drag Queens over there! ;-) )
[MAY 24] In classic release news, DanceRecords.com now has the I Feel Love/ Love To Love You disk back in stock.
[MAY 24] In web news (sort of) Philippe from Mes dessins de Donna Summer is having another exhibit in Guadalajara. This one is at La Mitotera Coffee-Gallery on May 28. If you are in that area, stop in and take a look. :-)
[MAY 24] Also in web news, Damien has brought back L'Univers de Donna Summer. And for those of you looking for lyrics, the posters on the Donna Summer & More forum have put their heads (and ears LOL) together to transcribe the words to the new songs. Sandro has compiled them all and posted them on Forever Donna.
[MAY 24] Moving on to the usual suspects, over on Multiply, Patrice has posted a few goodies including Donna's appearance on American Idol. While Steve has posted Donna's appearance on Entertainment Tonight and her interview on Tavis Smiley. Over on YouTube, you can find Donna on Entertainment Tonight, and minimal amount of searching will probably bring up the entire American Idol finale - in various clips spread out over various accounts. Somebody remind me again how we ever lived without the internet? LOL
[MAY 24] Sydney's Daily Telegraph has published a new interview with Donna.
[MAY 24] More reviews: Seattlepi.com, BlogCritics.org (I love this one!), the Regina Leader Post, TheCelebrityCafe.com (another good one!), and LOGO's NewNowNext.
[MAY 24] Another Idol article with a quote from Donna is in the Ventura County Star. And USA Today reviews the Idol finale and cites Donna's final note in Last Dance as one of the highlights.
[MAY 24] I haven't found this online yet, but Donna is featured in More Magazine - the one with Kim Allen on the cover.
[MAY 22] Some American Idol coverage: CNN.com, CinemaBlend, AP News, Village Voice blog, Newsday's blog (grrrrr - Ken, call the Drag Queens!), USA Today's blog, and Newsok.com.
[MAY 22] Last night's Idol got around 32 million viewers. It also caught the attention of just about every media outlet that ever existed so Donna is getting mentions everywhere. I'll put up a few links in the press section below. If you missed the performance last night, it's already turned up on YouTube and the YouTube video has already found its way to Donna's MySpace blog. Also in the land of video, check out Yahoo's Primetime. They have an Idol recap with a few clips from Donna's performance (mainly because the host likes to make fun of Ryan Seacrest and he was out there dancing for Donna's performance.) If you are happy with photos, check out WireImage, Getty Images and Yahoo. If you are going to watch the broadcast in your country - Donna is on about a half hour into the show, and the finale ran a little long so allow for that if you are taping it and you care about who wins.
[MAY 22] The Fort Lauderdale release party at Georgie's alibi has been postponed until tomorrow, May 23. A neighboring club, Boom, will have their release party on Saturday May 24.
[MAY 22] Let's move on to some release news. Dutch fans, you can expect Crayons in your stores on June 11. And over at Amazon UK, the import version of Crayons (that is the American version) has been delayed to June 24. (So much for cheating by ordering the import to get it sooner! LOL) You will probably have much better luck with Play.com. Also, US fans - if you download the whole Crayons album on iTunes, they will throw in a digital version of the CD booklet in PDF format. Also, if you previously bought Stamp Your Feet, they will give you a discount to "complete the album."
[MAY 22] In chart news, On the May 31 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, Stamp Your Feet debuts at #48. Note - it was not one of the breakout hits last week, so it went straight to the chart. :-) Elsewhere, on the sales charts for Tower, Amazon and iTunes, Crayons is doing VERY well. I hesitate to give actual numbers because they tend to change rapidly. (I think Amazon updates every hour.) And then there is the whole issue of genre - iTunes has it near the top of the pop chart whereas Amazon put it at the top of the R&B chart. iTunes will show you the current chart right on the main store page for music. (The default chart is for overall sales across all genres, and then you can select a different genre.) on Amazon (and I think Tower too) you can see the sales rank right there on the item page.
[MAY 22] There is a "new" DVD coming out next month called Donna Summer - Disco Queen. (Hmmmm - somebody didn't get the memo that it should now be "empress". ;-) ) They use the Once Upon A Time photo for the cover, but when you get to the track list it's just Live & More Encore. (And I'm not sure, but it may be the edited one that ran here on PBS and that has been released in Brazil and probably a few other places under other titles.)
[MAY 22] If anybody missed Donna on Tavis Smiley the other night, the full transcript, audio, and a short video clip are all available on Tavis Smiley's site. You can also download the audio on iTunes for free. (That's US iTUnes - I haven't checked the international ones.)
[MAY 22] Finally - I told you in one of the recent updates that Doug at DonnaSummer.us is running a contest. Well there has been a slight revision to the contest that I think you will all like: First of all, the grand prize is now a $300 iTunes gift certificate. Second of all, there will be 3 judges to pick the 10 finalists that you guys can vote on. They will be Simon, Randy and Paula.... sorry, I watched too much Idol coverage today. LOL The 3 judges will be Doug, me and Brian Edwards. (He worked for Donna for a whole bunch of years until he moved on to other things.) We haven't decided who will be the mean one yet... ;-)
[MAY 21 PM] Welcome American Idol fans! If you are hear because you liked the song she just did, it's called Stamp Your Feet and it's from the new album Crayons. Click either title to get it at iTunes. (She also did Last Dance, which can also be grabbed on iTunes.) And for more about Donna, feel free to explore this site or check out Donna's official sites at DonnaSummer.com and MySpace.com/DonnaSummer.
[MAY 21 PM] Calling OZ! If you want to see Donna on American Idol it's.... tonight in your time. May 22 at 7:38 Pm on 108FOX8 and 9:38 on 150FOX 8. Donna is on about a half hour into the broadcast so plan accordingly.
[MAY 21 PM] For my regulars, how weird is it that I am now tagging updates as AM and PM? LOL I've updated the discography section with the rest of the Crayons details and with the liner notes. I've also added another review to the media section below. Also, Donna's MySpace is now streaming 5 of the Crayons' tracks.
[MAY 21 PM] In radio news, the following radio stations have either just started playing Stamp Your Feet or are continuing to show it support: WKTU (New York), WKIE (Chicago), KNGY (San Francis0, KNHC (Seattle), WVNS (Nashville), WSMW (Greensboro), KOST (Los Angeles), WHUD (Newburgh, NY), KKUU (Palm Springs) and WNYZ (New York). The stations playing I'm A Fire are: Sirius channel 36, WSPK (Newburgh, NY), KMYI (San Diego), KNHC (Seattle), WFLY (Albany) and WKCI (New Haven). If any of them are in your area - call in those requests!
[MAY 21 AM] I wasn't going to update until later, but this one shouldn't wait. At least 2 Fox affiliated stations have announced what Donna's site and I were trying to hint at yesterday - that Donna will be the surprise guest on tonight's finale. So make sure you tune in! I do have one small request though - when you go on all the various forums to talk about Donna's appearance, PLEASE try not to talk about who the winner is tonight so that you don't spoil it for people who can't watch it right away. ;-) The show airs on FOX at 8 PM here on the East Coast, but since it's live, I don't know if that affects the time elsewhere or if other places just show it on tape later. If you are not sure when it airs in your area, check your local listings!
[MAY 20 still] Okay - I finished (for now) the Summer Fever page for Crayons. It's not the official pick until June, but with all the Crayons-mania going on now, I wanted to bring it out now for all of you. I expect it will get updated or adjusted as the summer goes on. :-) I'll be back sometime tomorrow, probably late because I have stuff to do in the afternoon then I want to catch the American Idol finale to see who wins. (I haven't watched it in..... wow, since Donna was a guest judge a couple years ago LOL, but they finally sucked me in again.)
[MAY 20] Did you guys get your Crayons yet? ;-) First things first - if you are subscribed to Donna's site, you should have gotten an email this morning saying that Crayons is out to day and that we should be looking for Donna on our favorite show tomorrow. (I'm impressed - my favorite show is the old Twilight Zone. It must have been hard to build the time machine so she could be on that.... ;-) ) Before I get to the rest of the news, I have a few more links below for reviews. And I will have the Summer Fever page for Crayons posted a little later tonight. I'll also have the liner notes added to the discography section as soon as I get a chance to type them up.
[MAY 20] In other official update news, PureTone has posted something in honor of the Crayons release today, and Donna's MySpace page has been updated with a couple of new blog entries and a superhug app.
[MAY 20] If you have not been to PopMatters.com today, you need to go there now. They have followed up yesterday's great retrospective on Donna's career with a very nice interview. Your homework is to go read that - there will be a quiz later. LOL Oh - and leave a comment. Let them know that you like reading about Donna. ;-)
[MAY 20] For those who are wondering about the Circuit City edition of Crayons, you CAN get it in the store - you don't have to mail order it. However, you need to know that the 9.99 sale price is only good for 5 days AND a lot of stores only have a limited number of copies in stock. So if you co there and don't see it - ask for it. Get a raincheck if you have to. But don't give up.
[MAY 20] Over on iTunes, Crayons made the what's hot section of the main store page - and they revamped Donna's artist page with Crayons art. :-)
[MAY 20] I have some news for Australia today. I got word that the Sydney Morning Herald will have an interview with Donna soon. (They've already done it - now it has to be typed up and published. :-) ) The Sydney Star Observer also interviewed Donna and that one will be in the paper next week. One thing that was mentioned in one of the interviews is that Donna hopes to go Down Under some time later this year. (Alan, I hope you are reading this!)
[MAY 20] In TV news, I know quite a few of you tunes in to the Tavis Smiley show last night. If you missed out I know a couple of locations air it a day behind, so you may still catch it today. If that doesn't work for you, there is now a video clip, the audio, and a written transcript of the interview posted on Tavis Smiley's site. Also, while I was goofing around with iTunes last night, I discovered that the shows often turn up there for free after a few days. (That's US iTunes - I haven't checked to see if that show is exported to other countries.) And if none of that works for you, I've heard that some careful searching on YouTube just might turn up the clip. ;-)
[MAY 20] In other TV news, a fan in the San Francisco area saw a TV commercial for Target that featured Donna's album. He said they showed clips from the Stamp video along with some graphics and that it was all very nicely edited.
[MAY 20] In the Netherlands, Crayons is talked about on Herman's blog on Hyves.nl.
[MAY 19] One more day! Are you guys ready? :-) Just a reminder for most of you that Tavis Smiley runs on PBS tonight. Check PBS.org for the time and station in your area. (It seems to run mostly between 11 PM and 1 AM depending on the area. Here in NY it is on channel 13 at 12:30 and I just found out it gets repeated at 1 PM tomorrow.) For those who can't watch it, Tavis Smiley's website usually posts video clips and a full transcript at some point after the broadcast. So everybody should be able to check it out in one form or another.
[MAY 19] While we are all anticipating (or even already enjoying) the new stuff, PopMatters.com has taken the opportunity to do a retrospective on Donna's whole career. It's written by Christian John Wikane - the same guy who wrote the excellent SoulTracks.com review of Crayons and it is liberally sprinkled with new quotes about Donna from various people in the music industry. It's a long article, so you might not be able to get away with reading the whole thing at work, but it is definitely worth the time! After you read it, don't forget to leave a comment. It's a nice ego-boost for Christian, but more importantly it tells PopMatters and its advertisers that Donna brings in readers. One more little tiny detail..... ;-) There will be another part to that tribute tomorrow. So you will want to go back to see that too.
[MAY 19] Over in Germany, Torgen from SAT1 Frühstücks Fernsehen did a "Backstage Monday" feature in which he mentioned the US excitement over Crayons. He even showed a clip of Stamp. :-)
[MAY 19] Baltimore! 101.9 is giving away Donna Summer tickets. Tune in or check out their website for details. (Or do both!)
[MAY 19] A few more reviews have turned up for Crayons. I'll link to them below in the media section. As usual, the reviews that have turned up so far have varied from glowing to less than enthusiastic because, of course, reviewers all have different tastes in music. I don't think there is a review out there by anybody about anything that hasn't made some reader stop and say, "Is this guy on crack? Even I could write a better review than that!" Which brings me to Doug at DonnaSummer.us. He's asking fans to try their hands at writing a proper review for Crayons. And he's not just asking - he's making it a contest. The rules are posted on his site, but in a nutshell it works like this. You send him your review. In 17 days he (along with at least one helper - me) will take all the reviews he's gotten and narrow them down to 10. Then those 10 will be posted so the fans can vote for the best one. The winner gets $100 iTunes gift card. (That will buy a whole bunch of Crayons! LOL) Please note - you must send your reviews to DOUG to be entered in the contest.
[MAY 19] What you can send to me, is any messages you might have for Donna or quick comments celebrating the release of Crayons for publication on an e-greetings for Donna page. (Just like the Christmas one - only without Santa Claus. LOL) I'll be taking comments for that all summer long and I will make sure the powers that be get the link and know to check it periodically. :-) I will be back tomorrow - maybe even later today, who knows? LOL
[MAY 17] Let's call this one the official weekly update. ;-) Before I get to the news, I have some more articles posted for you below and a new Ken's Korner. Also, if you are looking for ways to prepare yourselves for Crayons on Tuesday, you need to check out Doug's list of the 10 things you need to do. ;-) If any of you actually do #8, send in your picture either to me, or to Doug at DonnaSummer.us and one of us will post it. :-) Also, over at the official site, they have stopped streaming all the tracks for now. I suspect that site will be continuously tweaked right up to Tuesday. ;-)
[MAY 17] In release news, The I'm A Fire Remix on the Circuit City exclusive is the Baggi Begovic & Soul Conspiracy Mixshow. And the Amazon MP3 version of Crayons includes the Matty's Soulflower Club mix of I'm A Fire. Speaking of bonuses - I'm hearing conflicting things about Circuit City. Some people have been told that you can only get the exclusive version at the online store and that they will be limiting the number that can be purchased. On the other hand, people who have already ordered from the online store have not reported any limits. AND - at least one person was in a store that already had the CDs with bonus tracks out on display already. (But don't try to buy one from them early - he couldn't get it because the cash registers have locked out sales of Crayons until Tuesday.)
[MAY 17] The Georgie's Alibi in St. Petersburg, FL is also having a release party for Crayons. This one is on May 23 - and they have a nice big announcement on their website. :-)
[MAY 17] In Belgium, Crayons is making news on teletext headlines and in newspapers. It sounds like the newspaper articles are pretty much the same ones that have been popping up online - but it's nice when you can hold an article in your hand.
[MAY 17] In the Donna is everywhere category, China Forbes has a song called 78 that mentions Donna. (Maybe if you play it backwards it says "buy Crayons on Tuesday." ;-) Okay, I admit it, I'm obsessed. LOL)
[MAY 17] I know a lot of you are familiar with Google news alerts - I get some really good stuff from those. But I have to tell you that sometimes I get the weirdest things from them. And I thought I'd stare 2 of them that made me laugh. The first one is basically the same article we've been seeing all over the place, but this one particular alert had the headline (in all capital letters no less!) "DONNA SUMMER - SUMMER POKES FUN AT HERSELF". Now why wasn't that splashed all over CNN today? LOL The other one that got me was a summary of a few unrelated articles. But just the way they ran the headlines together cracked me up. It said "Donna Summer is back after 17 years - Escaped killer on the run." You know, thank god Donna came back after 17 years to scare that escaped killer away....... LOL
[MAY 17] Okay - let's do the web news for the week. Over at Glee.com, Wes has started a Donna fan group. So if you hang out there, stop in and check it out. Over on Multiply, Patrice has posted a couple of new goodies to listen to while we wait for Tuesday. He's also started a blog for Donna Summer fans that has a lot of his artwork posted on it. Also, AJ and Jeffrey have posted plenty of tracks to keep you busy, while Steve has posted his review of Crayons. On YouTube, look for a 90s clip of Hot Stuff, some classic clips from fzkny, Brazilian clips from SambaSoul, and a mix from DJSummer2K. On Bebo, the Donna group over there has a whole bunch of new polls - including one where you can vote for your favorite Crayons track.
[MAY 17] I'll be back......tomorrow or maybe the next day. (I don't expect much to happen on a Sunday. LOL) I'm also planning to do something I haven't done before - if all goes well, I will post the Summer Fever pick for June early. So there will be 2 picks up for about 10 days. The new one will be Crayons (of course) and while I do have enough stuff to make the page complete now, I plan to keep updating it as we find out more interesting things - so it will be a page in progress all month long. (And probably beyond - I plan to leave that one accessible all summer long.) I hope to make that page public some time Tuesday after I have my CD in hand and can scan the art for myself. :-)
[MAY 16] I told you I'd be back again. ;-) At this rate I'll have to pick a random update this weekend to be the "official" one. LOL The big news for today is DonnaSummer.com. You need to go there NOW. Well, unless you are one of those people who are trying so hard not to listen to the new songs until they have the CD in their hands. Those people might find too much temptation at Donna's site. ;-)
[MAY 16] For those among you who are weak and can't wait until Tuesday (like me LOL), if you want to see the CD booklet, Marshall has posted photos of it on the Diverse Universe Radio website. While you are there, request some Donna - UNLESS you are in NY and are glued to KTU for Bad Girls weekend. That kicked off at 5 tonight, so there will be lots of Donna over there this weekend, with lots of chances to win concert tickets. Or if you are in the San Francisco area, you should be glued to Energy 92.7 where you can win a chance to be a part of their Donna Summer E-Room. (The E-Room is a small intimate venue where they will have Donna SING for the lucky winners. Did I just hear Energy's server explode as you all logged in right now? LOL)) She was also on the radio over there this morning with Fernando & Greg. (Sorry I didn't know in advance or I would have told you. It's hard to stay on top of the radio stuff so if any of you guys hear about an interview coming up in your area, just let me know and I'll try to get the info out in time.) Over in Belgium, Radio 2 was going to play Stamp between 10 PM and 1 AM. (I might be posting this too late for you to tune in though. :-( )
[MAY 16] The track listing for the Circuit City exclusive edition of Crayons has been confirmed. The 2 bonus tracks will be It's Only Love and a remix of I'm A Fire. (But the site doesn't specify which mix.)
[MAY 16] Over at Clay Kane's blog, he has announced that he will be interviewing Donna at some point. He's asking readers to submit questions that they would like to see answered. And speaking of press..... I have a couple of articles listed in the media section below. You know, for after you have explored Donna's site fully. ;-) I'll be back again tomorrow.
[MAY 15] For those of you eagerly awaiting PerfectBeat's Stamp Your Feet single - part one is in their online store now. Thi sone has the Jason Nevins radio edit, the Escape/Coluccio radio edit, Ranny's radio edit, Jason Nevins extended mix, Escape/Coluccio club mix, Ranny's Big Room mix, Granite & Sugarman club mix, Granits & Sugarman Mixshow, and the Discotech mix. Part 2 will be released in the next couple of weeks.
[MAY 15] In radio news - New York fans better tune into KTU all weekend long. That are having a Bad Girls weekend where you can win concert tickets and passes to the Crayons release party on June 3. I expect to see familiar names on the winners list. ;-) Elsewhere, Energy 92.7 and WSMW 98.7 in Greensboro have added Stamp Your Feet, and it's still doing well in New York and Seattle. Overseas, Ostsee Welle Hit Radio in Germany is playing Stamp also.
[MAY 15] In release party news, Fort Lauderdale, your party will be on May 21 at 11 Pm at Georgie's Alibi. (It was originally supposed to be the 23rd, but it was changed to the 21st.)
[MAY 15] I'll be back again.... tomorrow. LOL But before I go, a couple of people have expressed an interest in sending messages to Donna to celebrate the Crayons release. So I'll start accepting messages for that as of the 20th and I'll just build a page and add to it all summer long. I also plan to add a page for the concert dates for those of you who want to meet up before or after the shows. So if you want to be part of any of that - just send me a message with something in the subject line to make it easy to sort out. :-)
[MAY 14 again] Oops - I have a late addition for you. Energy 92.7's Fernando & Greg are playing the new tracks and giving away some Donna tickets. If you are in the San Francisco area (or if you can listen in online), send them a message. You can listen to them from 6 to 10 AM Pacific Time. If that's too early for you, tune into Ali from 10 to 3 PM. She'll be playing them too. And if that's too early for you - then you keep pretty weird hours. LOL
[MAY 14] I feel like every day it's a weekly update! LOL Let's start off with a time sensitive one. If you are in New York, there will be a release party at Pink (199 Bowery at Spring Street). Doors open at 10 and they will have giveaways courtesy of Sony. Sorry for the short notice, but I just found out tonight.
[MAY 14] In concert news - HELLO BRAZIL and CHILE! Pollstar reports that you guys will see Donna on the following dates: Saturday November 15 in Santiago, Chile at the Arena Santiago, Tuesday November 18 at Vivo Rio in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and then Wednesday November 19, Friday November 21 and Saturday November 22 at HSBC Brasil in São Paulo. I don't know about tickets yet, but I'm sure some of the locals can help me out with that info. ;-)
[MAY 14] In TV news, look for Donna on Entertainment Tonight and ET Insider on May 22. The shows are syndicated, so check your local listings for the time and station in your area. (They usually run back to back because Insider is as much a long commercial for Entertainment Tonight as it is a show in its own right.)
[MAY 14] Chicago - I know the majority of you guys bought your tickets already, but if anyone out there still needs tickets to the Ravinia show, the box opens up for walk up sales this Saturday. This may be your final chance to get seats in the pavilion, so don't miss out!
[MAY 14] People.com has a little article about Crayons and clips from 2 songs.
[MAY 13] Let's start with first things first - if you've been keeping up with Donna's MySpace, then you know about The Leak on VH1. :-) And if you don't know about it, just go Donna's page on VH1 where you can listen to the entire Crayons CD in glorious streaming audio. One little note though - they only have a certain number of listening slots, so if you can't connect just try again later. I'm sure they are getting hammered by a few crazy Donna fans. ;-) Now go open your VH1 player and then come back to read the rest of the update. ;-)
[MAY 13] This one is for Mexico and internet radio fans. :-) Tomorrow night (Wednesday May 14) at 9 PM local time, Señal 90 will run a special on Donna starting with her years in Germany. So catch that if you can. :-) (The time conversion should be less painful than it was for Aussie radio - at least for those of us in the US. LOL) On a related side note, the Crayons release date for Mexico is June 9.
[MAY 13] In other Crayons news, there is an awesome review on SoulTracks.com. It was written by the same guy behind the equally awesome Wanderer article that was posted on PopMatters.com last year.
[MAY 13] On USA Today's Listen Up Blog, Stamp Your Feet is the pick of the week, and LOGO's New Now Next has a very nice little article about Crayons. :-)
[MAY 13] And finally, if you need some visuals to go with the music, MyPlay.com now has the videos for The Queen Is Back and Mr. Music. They are the same videos KTU has on their site, but now the international fans can see them too. I guess I'll be back... tomorrow. LOL
[MAY 12] Now that things are back to normal - let's cover some news. First up - MINNESOTA! Your tickets go on presale on June 6 at 10 AM via Ticketmaster. The sale to the general public starts on June 7 at 10 AM.
[MAY 12] Connecticut fans - there will be a release party at Partners in New Haven on May 17 at 10 PM. It's your chance to celebrate with all the other Connecticut fans. :-)
[MAY 12] In official site news, Donna's MySpace has been updated with the Entertainment Tonight interview (the edit from the ET website and not the one from the broadcast.) They also added some wallpaper for those of you who haven't created something of your own. ;-) And Burgundy finally added Donna's tour dates, the Stamp video and the EPK.
[MAY 12] For those of you who are wondering about Crayons bonus tracks, I've heard a report that the Circuit City bonus will be It's Only Love - the extra track that seems to be on the international releases. They may also sneak in Stamp or I'm A Fire mixes at some retailers as bonus tracks.
[MAY 12] Aussie fans, Hum Records in Darlinghurst MAY have Crayons slightly ahead of the US release. Apparently they try to have things in time to coincide with US releases. Even if they don't have it until May 20, that should still be a bit earlier than I thought you guys were getting it - so if you live in that area, stop in and check them out. :-)
[MAY 12] UGH! Sorry about the disruption to the site, but I upgraded my hosting plan and foolishly believed the customer service rep who told me I would not have to re-upload the whole thing. I also had not anticipated it taking a whole day before I got publishing control back! But at least things are back to normal now. :-)
[MAY 9] Before I get to Donna, I have some Bruce news for you guys in the Family Matters section. And I have a couple of articles posted in the media section below. I also want to remind you guys to tune into Joy 94.9 in Melbourne at 3 PM Melbourne time on Sunday May 11 for Cafe Latte. (That works out to 1 AM in New York and 6 AM in London, and the rest of you can probably calculate your time based on either of those.) Thanks to your support, Alan will be dedicating the second half of the show to Donna again. There will be previews from Crayons sneaked in as well. :-)
[MAY 9] XM Radio listeners, Donna will be interviewed on UPOP channel 29 on May 16 on Ted Kelly's World Party.
[MAY 9] Okay - if you missed Donna on Entertainment Tonight, fear not - there is a sample of the interview on the ET website. And I don't know about other places, but here in NY, ET is repeated at 9:30 the next weekday morning. So you can catch it here on Monday morning. They used to repeat it late at night and that may still be the case in other locations, so check your local listings. I also expect to see at least a couple of clips on ET Weekend because they usually recap the week's events. Look for Donna again on ET on May 20 when she will get to perform live. (Yes you will have to turn your CD off for a little while to watch the TV. LOL) And one other side benefit to the ET interview is that newspapers are picking it up too, so Donna is getting even more exposure. (I just got an Austrian article a few minutes ago that was taken from the ET interview.)
[MAY 9] Moving on to radio news, I don't have hard numbers for you yet, but according to some of the locals, it's doing well on KTU. It played at least 3 times this afternoon..... all at times I had the radio off! Does KTU hate me? LOL Over at Mix FM, Stamp is at #13 on their chart. :-) You guys know what to do - if your station is playing Stamp, keep requesting it and giving the DJs feedback. And if your local station isn't playing it - then you need a better local station. ;-) (By the way, if you are looking for The Queen Is Back and Mr. Music videos on the KTU site - they are gone for now. I strongly suspect that they were posted prematurely.)
[MAY 9] In release news, CDWow is listing Crayons as available for dispatch on May 19 to UK fans (not to mention fans in other parts of the works.) The track list they show is the standard 12 track US release though and I believe all the other European sites (like play.com) so far have listed a 13 track version. So I leave it to you to decide if you want the 12 track release quickly, or if you'd rather wait and get the 13 track release..... or you could be like me and just buy everything as it comes out. LOL Actually, now that I think of it, maybe I should recap the release dates we have around the world so far. (There is so much news lately that I think some things are getting hard to find.)
In date order:
May 20: USA and Canada
May 26: Denmark
June 6: Germany
June 9: France
June 10: Spain
June 23: UK
June 25: Japan
[MAY 9] Now if you would like to try to win a copy of Crayons, check out TheSavvyBoomer.com. All you have to do is leave a comment and the blog owners will pick someone at random to get the CD.
[MAY 9] I guess that brings us to the web news. :-) On YouTube, look for God Bless America, a classic performance of Last Dance, and AJ's latest mix. On Multiply, look for new mixes posted by Carl and AJ, and new photos from Patrice. On Bebo, the Donna group over there has gone poll happy - which is a good way to pass the time while we wait for May 20. ;-) And last but not least, Shawn has updated SuperBulletNumberOne with a ton of album and single covers. If your iPod is missing artwork - this is the place to go! I'll be back again.... tomorrow? The day after? Who can say these days? LOL
[MAY 6 still!] First of all, that shiny new KTU banner above is clickable (not to mention stolen right off their site. LOL). It will bring you to the KTU homepage where you can listen either to the Stamp mix, or the live stream. :-) If you are tuning in, make sure you drop KTU a line and tell them how much you appreciate them making this new mix available. And if you haven't tuned in, what are you waiting for? (On a technical note - I find the stream works a little better on Internet Explorer than Firefox sometimes, so if you have any difficulties, just switch browsers. ) And one other little tiny detail that you might have missed..... KTU has the VIDEOS for Mr. Music and The Queen Is Back. They are just like the Stamp video - but if you missed the Australian preview the other night, this is your chance to finally hear The Queen Is Back and it's the first chance for all of us to hear all of Mr. Music. When KTU comes through - they REALLY come through for us!!!! :-) (To find the videos - click the "on demand" menu then pick "videos on demand" and then you will find Donna under "D". They have a few classic songs up too so you can have a whole Donna party if you want. :-)
[MAY 6] CHICAGO - this part of the update is for you. Donna will be in your area on May 24 to tape Dedry Jones: The Experience With Donna Summer, AND there will be a CD release party (and CD signing) at the Harold Washington Cultural Center. Check out the Music Experience website for details.
[MAY 6] I think my last thing for tonight will be Amazon. It's listing an imported CD single for Stamp Your Feet as being available May 20. Perfectbeat should have the Stamp remix CDs available soon too. (Don't worry - they haven't forgotten about them. LOL) I'll be back.... well at the rate things are going, tomorrow. LOL
[MAY 6] I posted last night that KTU would be playing a new Stamp mix this morning after 10. They are - but they have done something WAY better than that. Go to ktu.com - there is a big Donna banner announcing the Jason Nevins remix and if you click it, it will stream on demand! So run over there and tell KTU that they are awesome!
[MAY 5 again] If you signed up at DonnaSummer.com, then you should have received an email this morning. :-) If you didn't sign up, then what are you waiting for? The email cleared up the Entertainment Tonight thing - she will be on on May 9 (Friday). So check your local listings for the time and channel in your area and then set those recorders!
[MAY 5] If you are in the New York City area (or can listen to internet radio) tune into WKTU tomorrow after 10 AM. They will be playing a new mix of Stamp Your Feet.
[MAY 5] Good morning LOS ANGELES - the Hollywood Bowl tickets go on presale at 10 AM this morning and then to the general public on May 10 at 10 AM via Ticketmaster. Sorry for the short notice. I can't tell who is sponsoring the presale, so I have no idea what the password is. I know Citicards have been doing presales where you use the first 6 digits of a Citibank card. I also know Nokia has been doing them too, as well as Amex.
[MAY 4] I have another TV listing for you. I heard from one fan that Entertainment Tonight was advertising that Donna would be on the weekend edition on May 10. I heard from another fan that she was on tonight. Now in NY, it does air again at something like 2 AM, so I'll tape that one to check out for myself - it may just be that the second fan saw a rather extensive promo for next week. (which is what I think the first fan saw.) Have no fear of missing it though - if the interview is good, ET will drag that footage out for YEARS. LOL
[MAY 4] Last night's Donna night on Cafe Latte on Joy 94.9 was such a hit that Alan is doing it again next week at 3 PM Melbourne time. Once again he will dedicate the second half of his show to Donna's music and he plans to let us hear It's Only Love which is on his copy of the album, but it has not been listed on the American release yet. (That might turn out to be the Circuit City bonus track.)
[MAY 4] Barnes And Noble has sound clips from all the US Crayons tracks posted. They seem to use clips from the beginnings of the songs - which is unfortunate in on e case because the clip ends after Donna sings 4 words! LOL
[MAY 4] I meant to mention this yesterday, but Rupaul has posted Donna's EPK on his blog. (Gotta love Ru!)
[MAY 3] I guess I got a little excited by the EPK on MySpace, because I completely forgot to change the Summer Fever Pick. LOL This month, while we are all looking forward to a new release, I thought it would be a good time to recap the older stuff - so the Greatest Hits take the spotlight. Before I get to the news, check out the TV listings below. I have the list from Donna's MySpace page plus one more new addition. And I've added some stuff to the press section below.
[MAY 3] So I guess I should start with the video. A video for Stamp Your Feet (along with the EPK video) has turned up on MyPlay.com. It's another video that can be embedded in MySpace pages and some blogs. (Apparently both Multiply and Delphi don't play nicely with that video player, but it does work in many other places. So you know what to do. ;-)
[MAY 3] I've got a hot rumor from Toby Gad's website. He says that Donna will be appearing on the American Idol finale. I don't see any mention of that anywhere else yet, so I'm calling it a rumor for now in case the papers aren't signed yet, or in case Paula Abdul misread her notes again or something. ;-) If I hear anything more, I'll let you know.
[MAY 3] In release news, Crayons is right around the corner. :-) I'm hearing that HMV in Canada will have it May 20 (that should be a relief to Canadian fans after the delays with I'm A Fire and Stamp!). It will be out in Japan on June 25, and in Denmark on May 26. Stamp Your Feet is finally out (as a digital single) in Europe on iTunes and Tesco (for the UK fans).
[MAY 3] Moving on to radio... at the moment there isn't too much going on with Stamp Your Feet, but I'm A Fire was picked up by WFLY in Albany, Pulse 87 in NY and KNHC in Seattle. Sirius continues to play it regularly as well. On XM, DJ Mark D on 81 has a weekly radio show and he kicked it off with I'm A Fire. Over on internet radio, we have a couple of stations playing Stamp Your Feet. Check out UU-BRU , World.FM, and of course Diverse Universe Radio.
[MAY 3] With Crayons rapidly approaching, release parties are starting to pop up. If you are in Detroit, check out the party at Diamond Jim's Saloon. They will have CDs, concert tickets, posters - you name it - to give away. And if you go there, say hi to Tom Gilliam. :-) In Boston, the party will be at Club Cafe on May 23. They also have plenty of goodies to give away and you can enter to win online - but you have to be there at the party to claim your prize. I know we have a few club owners and DJs who visit the site - so if you are planning a Crayons party (or even an after concert party) let me know where and when and I'll post it.
[MAY 3] In classic release news, the Thank God It's Friday DVD is out in Spain with a choice of English or Spanish audio. So region 2 fans can now get a copy of their own. :-)
[MAY 3] In the Donna is everywhere category, she is quoted in an article about the Santa Barbara Bowl: Disco diva supreme Donna Summer remembers the first time she saw a show at the Bowl: “It was in the late 1980s, and my husband and I drove up from Los Angeles to see Sting. The music was great, and just when I thought it couldn’t possibly get any better, sitting there listening to this great band and looking at the ocean, out came a beautiful full moon, and I thought, ‘How much extra does that cost?’”
[MAY 3] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Super Bullet Number One, Shawn has added a few things to the 75 and 77 sections. At YouTube, fzkny has added a few new videos to his playlist, USAClassics has added a couple of official classic videos, and Erika7s has found a way to help out those who were having trouble playing the EPK on MySpace. At Multiply, Patrice has posted several new videos and a few people have posted links to the EPK video. (I think they all wanted to embed it in their pages but it didn't work over there.) Finally, at Bebo, look for more new videos to keep you entertained at work. (I know a lot of you are sneaking in your Donna news at work! LOL) I'll be back.... probably very soon. LOL
[MAY 1 still!] I guess I'm not done with the update after all. LOL This one is a bit time sensitive so I want to get it out there. JOY 94.9 in Melbourne, Australia will be playing some tracks from Crayons on a special Donna Summer themes show at 3 PM on Sunday May 4. It streams online, so check it out if you can. (That's 3 PM local time - it works out to 1 AM here in New York and 6 AM in London. Check TimeAndDate.com if you need help converting to other time zones.)
[MAY 1] I'm probably the last person in the universe to see this (damn job! LOL) but if you haven't seen the latest update to Donna's MySpace page, then you need to go there NOW. (I know if you have an older computer, MySpace takes awhile to load, but this is worth it - actually it is MORE than worth it! :-) ) Actually, you know what? I wasn't going to do this because I don't want to rip-off the official sites (too much LOL) but for those of you who do have real trouble with MySpace, the direct link to the video is here. (You can embed it in blogs and things too - there is an option on the player to get the code for that. Just in case some of you have some good places to post it. ;-) )
[MAY 1] In other news, we have another Donna Summer forum out there - Donna The Queen. It is run by Sandro from Forever Donna who apparently understands that we need at least one more place to celebrate! :-)
[APR 30] Donna's MySpace lists a couple of TV appearances to watch out for. These are all taped on the East Coast and I'm sure down the road there will be some West Coast shows as well. OK, first up on May 25 at 9AM is CBS Sunday Morning. I'm not sure if that airs live or if they use taped segments - so I guess I'll have to tune in one day and see. Then on May 30 (as you all know) Donna will be doing the Today Show Summer Concert series. That one is, of course, aired live from New York. On June 2 she will be on Letterman. That airs at 11:30 PM but they usually tape it earlier the same day. You can get tickets for the show - but be advised that Letterman is a popular show, so they may be hard to come by. And finally (for now), Donna will be on The View on June 9 at 11 AM. That also airs live in New York - most of the time anyway. You can get tickets to The View, and in the past they've been pretty fan friendly. Just keep in mind that if you are going, you will probably have to try for standby tickets because the show date is coming up pretty soon and they usually want requests to me made 3 months in advance. It would also not surprise me in the least for a show like ET, or Extra or Insider to grab Donna for a 20 second clip while she's in town. Oh yeah - I almost forgot that VH1 is based in New York too. If they decide to tap her for something, they will probably do it during this block of appearances.
[APR 29] Calling NEW JERSEY and LONG ISLAND - both Jones Beach and PNC Arts tickets go on special presale starting TOMORROW (April 30) at 10 AM. (As of this writing only PNC is showing up on Ticketmaster, but Jones Beach is showing up on Live Nation.) The presale ends on Friday and the regular on sale date will be Saturday May 3 at 9 AM.
[APR 28 again] WESTHAMPTON - your tickets go on sale May 7 through the WHB PAC website. They range from $300 to $500. (That is almost cheaper than a tank of gas these days, right? LOL)
[APR 28] Good morning LOS ANGELES - one of you local boys gave me the heads up that the Hollywood Bowl tickets go on sale Saturday May 10. I think they usually go up through Ticketmaster, or you can check the Hollywood Bowl website. (As I write this, Ticketmaster is not showing the listing yet for Donna, but they do show other events at the Bowl.)
[APR 26 again] Okay - NOW this is the official update! LOL Before I get started - I have some Family Matters stuff below for fans of various Sudanos. :-) If you haven't been here in awhile, there are now more concerts that are either on sale or that have definite on sale dates. I decided to mark all the listings below that are on sale or are going on sale soon just to make it easier for you guys to spot. (And for me when I'm updating. LOL) I've also got a couple of articles listed for you below. In addition - with less than a month to go for the new CD, I suspect that we will be getting a lot more articles, reviews, TV appearances, etc. in the very near future. So brace yourselves! If you thought things were busy around here before - you haven't seen anything yet! :-)
[APR 26] I guess we should start with release news. I heard from one of the UK fans that they are expecting a CD release of I'm A Fire on June 30.
[APR 26] In radio news, the following stations are playing I'm A Fire: WKCI in New Haven, CT, WSPK in Newburk, NY, WBLI on Long Island, KKUU in Palm Springs, channel 36 on Sirius and channel 81 on XM. Stamp Your Feet is playing at these stations: WKIE in Chicago, WVNS in Nashville, WVBW in Norfolk, WFMK in Lansing, and WDVD in Detroit. If any of these are your favorite stations, call them up and make some requests! :-)
[APR 26] That brings us to the web news for the week. And it's a remix party! :-) The famous fanmixer Q is back in business and he's made a really nice downtempo version of I'm A Fire that has everybody raving. You can hear it on his Multiply page. Then at DonnaSummer.us, the infamous Doug has made his own I'm A Fire [CORRECTED LINK]mix from the accapella track. (Except for the drums and the vocals, that's Doug playing all the parts.) Looking at the rest of Multiply, Steve has posted a few classic clips, Denis has posted one of his medleys (and yes there is plenty of Donna in it LOL), and Patrice has posted his version of Maybe It's Over. Over on YouTube, fzkny has gone insane and posted a ton of classic clips, while Summer2k has posted his mix of I Got Your Love. Over on Bebo, look for several new videos and 2 new polls. :-)
[APR 26] This is not the official update yet, I just wanted to put up some time-sensitive stuff now for you. First up - tickets for the SARATOGA, CA concert go on sale TOMORROW via Ticketmaster at 10 AM. (Yes, I said TOMORROW - get those credit cards out!) The tickets for MOHEGAN SUN go on sale on Saturday May 3 at 10 AM - also through Ticketmaster. I believe there is a good chance that Jones Beach, NY and PNC Arts in NJ will go on sale at about the same time, so stay tuned. I'll be back later or tomorrow with the full update. :-)
[APR 25] I thought I'd share a little release news with you. Sony Spain is listing Crayons for June 10. They also have a track list with the running times for the songs. And the list has an extra track that we haven't seen before. :-) So here we go: Stamp Your Feet (3:35), Mr. Music (3:14), Crayons (3:20), The Queen Is Back (3:30), Fame (The Game) (4:03), Sand On My Feet (3:51), Drivin' Down Brazil (4:42), I'm A Fire (7:10), Slide Over Backwards (4:10), Science Of Love (3:48), Be Myself Again (4:19), Bring Down The Reign (4:33), and It's Only Love (6:57).
[APR 25] In Stamp news, the German retailer Musicload says it will have the song available for download on Monday (April 28). Hopefully that date will stand for the rest of Europe - and maybe even other places too. (Canada - I have my fingers crossed for you!) Sony Germany mentions that Stamp will be out as a CD single on May 16 with Crayons following on June 6. For those of you who don't speak German, Wolfgang gave me this translation: "The successful singer DONNA SUMMER is hard on work on her new studio album of all new material - it's the first in 17 years! CRAYONS is set to release on June 6th, 2008. Right on time and suitable to the European [soccer] Championships Donna will rev up with the first single STAMP YOUR FEET: The track, co-written by her with Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen, Kylie Minogue, Pink) and Danielle Brisebois (Natasha Bedingfield, New Radicals, Kelly Clarkson), is rhythmically absolutely infectious and, according to Donna Summer, was originally called “The Player’s Anthem.” “It’s the whole concept of being a player in life, coupled with the idea of being a player on an actual field, the whole thing, dealing with the pain and doing things even though you are afraid. Players get taken off to the sidelines and bandaged and thrown back in the game because it depends on them to win the game. We’re all ’players.’"
[APR 25] In chart news, I'm A Fire drops to #11 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for May 10, and to #40 on the Billboard Global Dance Tracks chart for May 3.
[APR 25] Crayons is reviewed in the current edition of Instinct. It says: "I set out to write a review of Donna Summer’s first album in 17 years without referencing the diva’s disco past, but let’s face it - that broad probably has glitter balls for jugs at this point. Thankfully, the grande dame of the dance floor doesn’t spend too much time dwelling on history, choosing to throw out a few sly reminders in "The Queen Is Back" ("So many years ago, on the radio...") before moving on to fresh, current-sounding numbers like "The Science of Love" and "Stamp Your Feet." And, yeah, the latter has a bit of the Fergie/Stefani schoolyard holla-rin’ going on, but those two skinny bitches can get on their knees and kiss Donna’s platinum ass! Working with Kylie collaborator Greg Kurstin as well as J.R. Roten was a smart move; Crayons is the hottest set of pop jams from Donna since her late ‘80s output with Stock Aiken Waterman."
[APR 25] We have a new Donna Summer website out there called Super Bullet Number One. It's an archive of all the album covers and many of the single covers from over the years. It's all organized by year and by album and the graphics are the perfect size to use in iTunes. I'll be back this weekend with the rest of the web news, some family matters and anything else that turns up in the mean time. :-)
[APR 23] Hello OTTAWA! The Bluesfest tickets go on sale this Saturday (April 26) through the Cisco Ottawa Bluesfest website.
[APR 23] As long as I'm here, I'll throw in a little more news. Let's start with Italian radio. On Saturday April 26 RAI Radio 2 in Italy will be playing Stamp around 3:30 local time. You can tune in online - just go to the website and click "ascolta live." Since the guys at RAI are big Donna fans, I suspect Stamp will get as much airplay as they can get away with. ;-)
[APR 23] On this side of the ocean, a couple of stations have picked up Stamp You Feet. WKIE in Chicago, WVBU in Norfolk and The Beat on Sirius is playing I'm A Fire pretty regularly now. If any of these are the stations you listen to - start calling in those requests! Now, if I say I will be back this weekend, it's almost guaranteed that I will need to update tomorrow. LOL So see you on the weekend. ;-)
[APR 22] This update is for BRITISH COLUMBIA. Your tickets go on sale through Ticketmaster on Thursday April 24 at 10 AM.
[APR 22] As long as I'm here I'll throw in a few more updates. First of all - I have no idea what's up with Stamp on the international scene. The official site still says it is supposed to be available as of April 21 but I have yet to see it on any of the international iTunes yet - and the UK seems to have lost I'm A Fire too. If I hear any updates on that situation, I'll let you know.
[APR 22] In radio news, Stamp has hit the airwaves in Belarus. (It seems that Eastern Europe loves Donna! :-) ) On this side of the pond, I'm A Fire has been added to KKUU in Palm Springs. And on Satellite radio, look for Stamp Your Feet on UPop on XM radio. (Actually if you want to see where Donna is playing on XM, check out XMFan.com. They even have links so you can make requests at your favorite XM station.
[APR 22] And finally in chart news, I'm A Fire is at #6 on the Brazilian Dance Club Play chart. I'll be back this weekend, or sooner if anything cool happens. :-)
[APR 18] I'm actually not sure where to start. LOL Let's go with Stamp Your Feet. Donna's website reports that it will be available to international fans on April 21 (or 22 if you are one of those countries with Tuesday release dates.) Theoretically that should mean Canada too - but we all saw what happened with I'm A Fire. Ugh. If you can't get a legal copy of Stamp Your Feet next week where you are, drop me a line and I'll help you out. UK residents may want to check out Tesco next week. They already have I'm A Fire, so I'm sure they will have Stamp too. The only thing is that their downloads seem to be in Windows Media format - so Mac users should probably stick to iTunes.
[APR 18] Let's jump over to Brazil for a minute. KamyMusic.com.br reports that Donna will be performing in São Paulo in November. I don't have a date yet, but as soon as I have something I'll post it for you. :-)
[APR 18] I don't know what kind of bizarre update this is when updates to Donna's official sites are the third thing down on my list LOL, but yes there are updates to both MySpace and DonnaSummer.com. On MySpace, look for a couple of buddy icons and avatars you can download to use on forums and instant messengers. You'll find those on the bottom of the "About Donna" section. (They actually caused me to change the buddy icon I've been using for the last million years! LOL) Oh, and I don't remember if I mentioned this, but the MySpace page has a clip of Stamp Your Feet now too. Over on DonnaSummer.com, they've switched from I'm A Fire to Stamp for both the sound clip and cover image. It's also got a mention of Donna's upcoming appearance on the Today Show Summer Concert Series.
[APR 18] Okay, let's get back to Stamp Your Feet. A Swedish retailer is listing a 2 track CD single of the songs for May 16. They are also listing Crayons for May 20 in case you are in the mood to do a lot of pre-ordering. ;-)
[APR 18] In radio news, New York has a new rhythmic top 40 station called Pulse 87.7. They are trying to be a little more clubby and contemporary than some of the other local dance stations - but more importantly, they told one listener that they will start playing Stamp Your Feet next week. :-) (I wonder if my car radio can get that one?) And speaking of New York radio - I know some people are getting a little antsy because WKTU hasn't played Stamp yet. (At least they haven't when I've been listening. Maybe they wait for me to turn off the radio? LOL) The Fabulous Albert (radio spy extraordinaire) has this to say about KTU: <<Donna is one of KTU's most played artist; in 2008 (January to Present) Donna ranks # 14 on KTU most played list . The following 5 titles: "On The Radio", "Heaven Knows", "MacArthur Park", "Last Dance" & "Love to Love You Baby" have been played over 425 times since January 2008. KTU has always been very supportive of Donna and has played "Love On and On", "I Will Go With You" and other tracks that other similar stations did not play.>> In other words - be patient and don't give up! It's still early in the game. :-)
[APR 18] Speaking of requesting things... I just found out that the cable TV station LOGO has a video show. (Wow! Somebody still plays videos! Who knew? LOL) Anyway, they had a mention of Donna's new CD on their blog, so some of the guys have been posting comments over there to both celebrate Crayons and to remind the guys at LOGO that Donna is very popular. So maybe this summer we will see a Stamp video on that channel. (I'm glad I had to upgrade my cable package now! LOL)
[APR 18] I guess it's time to talk about I'm A Fire. I have good and bad news about that. The bad news is that for the week of May 3, it slips to #9 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. But the good news is that on the April 29 charts, it debuts at #32 (with a bullet!) in the Billboard International Dance Club Play chart.
[APR 18] Okay - STOP THE PRESSES! There I was innocently wrapping up this week's update and this link popped up on the forums. As you can see - there are no details yet, but if you look closely it says that there will be a Circuit City exclusive version of Crayons with "bonus tracks." So now I have to ask (yet again) - IS IT MAY 20 YET????? ;-)
[APR 18] I think that finally brings us to the web news. Over on YouTube, check out the new DJ Andy demo mix of a certain song you all should know by now. ;-) There is also a DJ Brush mix of I'm A Fire - just in case you are already bored with the 17 official mixes we all bought. LOL And for those of you in a more classic frame of mind - there he a karaoke Hot Stuff video on YouTube tight now. (Yes, Donna is in it.) Over on Multiply, Patrice has posted 3 new tracks for your listening pleasure and a new picture as well. And Jeff has sneaked in his own new extended mix of a certain single. :-) (Why do I think we're all going to have sore feet by the end of the summer? LOL)
[APR 18] And on a side note, you know how Donna's MySpace page says she has 317 trillion friends (or whatever the number is right now)? I figured out how to fix the count like that. (And I did something a little like that on my page.) If you are a MySpacer and want to know to customize your friend count, send me an email and I'll tell you what code to put in.
[APR 17] Calling BETHEL, NY! Your tickets go on sale April 26 (Saturday) at 10 AM through Ticketmaster. And WINDSOR, ON - your ticket's go on sale April 29 through the casino's website.
[APR 17] While I'm here I guess I'll update you one the other news that's been coming in. Let's start with I'm A Fire. The CD singles are the #1 and #2 sellers for the week on PerfectBeat's homepage. They blew out 2 shipments of the CDs already and are expecting only ONE MORE shipment this week. Once those are gone - they will be gone for good. Because I'm A Fire has done so well, PerfectBeat says they will have singles for Stamp Your Feet at some point in the upcoming weeks. As soon as I hear more details, I'll let you know.
[APR 17] In radio news, XM station, UPOP, has played Stamp Your Feet. They also plan to interview Donna in a couple of weeks. Long Island station, WBLI has started playing I'm A Fire and WFMK in Michigan is playing Stamp Your Feet. Radio Diablo in Denmark is also playing Stamp, Sirius' The Beat is playing I'm A Fire, and Eye97.com (internet radio) is playing Stamp Your Feet. So radio is slowly starting to catch on. :-) Let's see if we can speed that along a little with a few requests. Pick your favorite Donna-friendly station (local or satellite) and ask them to play the new songs. :-)
[APR 17] In the world of remixes, DJ Escape has the Escape/Coluccio Mix of Stamp as the number one song on his playlist. I don't know if that will be an official mix or if it's just one he made for his own shows, but I guess we will find out soon enough.
[APR 17] If you signed up for Sony Rewards, this is the week that you can enter to win tickets to the Crayons release party in New York.
[APR 17] For those of you looking for ringtones of the new songs - a couple of US cell providers are offering them on their websites, or you can go to Donna's MySpace page and order them there. (Look at the end of the "About Donna" section.)
[APR 17] I don't usually do web news on a mid-week update, but there is a hot new mix of I'm A Fire by Summer2K out there. You can request it on Diverse Universe Radio, or you can check out the mix on YouTube, or even on MySpace. I'll be back this weekend with the main update. :-)
[APR 15 again] In other news, May 16 is next month and not tomorrow. LOL Yeah, I was a little sleepy this morning when I updated.
[APR 15] Stamp Your Feet is now available at the US iTunes and other download vendors. The German version of Amazon is listing a CD version of Stamp for May 16. (Tomorrow!) I suspect that Europe will have the download version available next week (like they did with I'm A Fire) - and Canada.... well, I hope it's there next week. I'm still scratching my head over your situation.
[APR 14] Attention SARATOGA, CA - your tickets go on sale Sunday April 27 at 10 AM. See LiveNation.com for details.
[APR 14] Donna's MySpace page has been updated. Now it has a list of tour dates, and all the friend requests have been approved. (242 trillion friends - who got to count them all? LOL)
[APR 14] Just a reminder - Amazon.com has Stamp listed as being available tomorrow. (Or April 22 - depending on which date you believe. LOL)
[APR 12] Let me start off with a couple of announcements. First of all, I have a few new article links for you below. I also have some Taihisha news in the Family Matters section. And I'll probably be back tomorrow with some tweaking to the radio page. Oh and before I forget - for those of you who have been listening to Diverse Universe Radio, some of the request restrictions have been lifted. Apparently a grumpy server was at fault and now everything is back to normal. So you can request all the Donna you want - although I will guarantee that 99% of the time you request Stamp, it will already be in the queue to play! LOL
[APR 12] Okay - let's get the bad news out of the way first. Atlanta - Ticketmaster is reporting that the July 1 show is cancelled. I suspect scheduling issues are the reason. Sorry guys. :-(
[APR 12] In chart news, I'm A Fire slips back to #4 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart for the week of April 26. But in Brazil it's up to #11. And over in Russia, it's #15 at Radio Unost.
[APR 12] The guys at Perfectbeat.com have said that they blew through almost all 2000 copies of the limited edition I'm A Fire CDs in just 2 days. I knew they would go fast, but I didn't expect them to go that fast! LOL
[APR 12] On to happier things - Let me remind you that Stamp Your Feet will be available for download starting April 15 (Tuesday). At least, that's true for the USA. Other countries may have to wait a week.
[APR 12] Speaking of releases, as you all know the announced release date for Crayons is May 20. That will unfortunately not be the case for every country. I found out that Mexico was given a release date of June 9. and Germany is showing a release date of June 6. Now if I had to guess, I'd say that all of Europe should get it at about the same time as Germany (allowing, of course, for variations in which day of the week new stuff comes out. ) And I would guess that the rest of South America should get it about the same time as Mexico. But as I said - I'm just guessing at this point. As soon as I hear something concrete for other countries, I'll post it here. (Canada - after I'm A Fire, I don't even know what to guess for you! If you live near the boarder come on over and get a copy on May 20th.)
[APR 12] Here's a late-breaking release item - someone just sent me a link to HotTracks.com. There is a compilation there (Hot Tracks 27-2) with yet another I'm A Fire mix. You can hear a clip on the site.
[APR 12] There is yet another article out there on BandWebBlogs.com. It doesn't really say much that we don't already know, but there is a larger version of the photo from the Burgundy site posted there. Their track list for Crayons also lists Fame (The Game) instead of Run With It, and they have a list of tour dates at the end. Most of that list is exactly what I have listed here on the site with 2 exceptions. They have June dates listed in Nashville, TN and Marksville, LA. Neither venue's website lists Donna as as the other early dates have been cancelled, I suspect that those dates are not actually part of the official schedule.
[APR 12] In Belgium, Radio 1 is doing a poll on the best voices in pop music. To vote, select "FAB 50 De strafste stemmen" and then "naar het stemformulier". There you will find a list of artists - with one notable name missing. Pick 2 that you like and then go down to the bottom of the page and fill in your name (naam), e-mail, phone (telefoon), and at "jouw artist" you can add the name of any artist you like who wasn't on the list.
[APR 12] Let's take a look at a classic release for a second. There is a wonderful article about Once Upon A Time posted on the dance music section of About.com. If you haven't seen it already, you should go take a look at it.
[APR 12] In the Donna is everywhere category, check out this interesting technology article - in particular the last line. ;-) And in a more expected place, the German magazine Stern printed an interview with Kelly Rowland in which she said: "Donna Summer is a fantastic Diva - I also adore Patti Labelle and Barbra Streisand."
[APR 12] I think that finally brings us to the web news. Over on Multiply, Philippe has posted his new animated On The Radio video. And on YouTube, fzkny has posted a couple of new video mixes for your enjoyment. Over at the Donna fan site on Bebo, look for new videos. And on MySpace, look for Nik Ramli. He's got a bunch of concert photos and some other Donna goodies posted there.
[APR 10] So I was playing around with some interior pages and I figured as long as I was here I'd throw in a little news. First up is an article from Washington DC's Metro Weekly. It's a nice article that borrows heavily from Donna's MySpace page, but there is one thing there that I know you will all want to see - yet another new photo. :-) (It might even be the one they took the I'm A Fire cover from.)
[APR 10] In the rumor category, I have a hot one that can't be verified yet. There is a post on the So And Thus blog that says that the Hollywood Bowl concerts will be recorded for a DVD release. I mention it only because I know the post is there and some of you have seen it and have been talking about it, but I want to stress that at this point it is UNCONFIRMED.
[APR 10] And finally I have a word to the wise... as some of you know, there was a fan made video that used Stamp on YouTube. Sony/BMG has had that video pulled for copyright reasons. So if you are into making fan videos that's something you need to keep in mind.
[APR 10] Diverse Universe Radio is still playing Stamp Your Feet in heavy rotation. Thanks to the inundation of Donna fans, I've noticed that they had to make a few changes to the request process. First of all, a request won't be accepted if the song is already in the queue to be played. It also seems to limit the number of songs in a row the station will play by the same artist, or from the same album, and you can only make 5 requests every 90 minutes. Having said that - I know many of you went there to hear Stamp, but there are a ton of other cool songs there too. (I'm really liking the new Cyndi Lauper track they have.) Thanks to Marshall for putting up with us and to those of you who are tuning in, after you request Stamp (and find out that it's in the queue already LOL) definitely look at the other things they have to offer over there. You won't be disappointed.
[APR 9] Hello ONTARIO! The Casino Rama tickets go on sale Tuesday April 15 at noon via Ticketmaster.
[APR 9] Don't forget that PerfectBeat will have I'm A Fire starting tomorrow morning. There are 2 separate disks. CD 1 has Baggi Begovic & Soul Conspiracy Original Mix, Baggi & Begovic & Soul Conspiracy Mixshow, Matty's Soulflower Club mix, Matty's Soulflower Reprise Mix, Matty's Soulflower Beats, Matty's Soulflower Acapella, Craig C Mixshow, and Lost Daze Remix. CD 2 has Solitaire Club Mix, Solitaire Instrumental, Craig C Burning Club mix, Craig C Burnin Vocal Mastermix, Rod Carrillo Leave It On The Floor Mix, Rod Carrillo Grove Dub, Redtop Extended Mix, and Redtop Dub. That should keep you all busy until we get Stamp Your Feet. ;-) I expect that their site will be very busy tomorrow, so be patient if it seems to load slowly or anything. :-)
[APR 9] While I'm here, I may as well share this awesome article with you. I'll give you the link to the article on Yahoo, but it's being reprinted all over the net. It's about I'm A Fire being the number one dance song, and I hadn't really thought about this until it was mentioned in the article, but this number one means that Donna has had a number one dance hit in every decade since the 70s. She is the ONLY artist who has done that! (Take that, everyone else! LOL) One other interesting thing is the track list attached to the article. In the article, the song Run With It has been replaced with Fame (The Game). Time will tell which is the current list. :-)
[APR 8] Calling BOSTON! Your tickets go on pre-sale Thursday April 10 at 10 AM to Friday April 11 at 10 PM via Live Nation or Ticketmaster. The main on sale date is Monday April 14 at 10 AM.
[APR 8] I did a little housekeeping around here yesterday that I didn't publicize yet. The links page has been updated a bit and I've added a list of Donna-friendly US radio stations so you can figure out which ones in your area are worth tuning into. (I don't care how much good info your local all news station has - if they don't play Donna they aren't worth tuning into! LOL)
[APR 7] I was planning to just work on some interior pages today, but I just have to share this because it's cracking me up! There is an online radio station called Diverse Universe Radio. They just got Stamp Your Feet and they seem to be happy to play it as many times as it is requested. I swear to you I've been listening for only about 45 minutes or so and I've heard it at least 4 times already - without requesting it once myself! And when they aren't playing Stamp Your Feet, they are throwing in a bunch of other Donna mixes too. Actually - right now they are playing the Stars On 45 Donna Medley which if I recall is by Summer2k. Tune in and check it out. And if you want to make a request, click on playlist, then use the alphabet links to find artists (they are arranged by FIRST name), click on an album and when you get a list of available tracks with a "request' button. Click the request button of your choice. I'll go back to my hidden updates now. LOL (Sorry o the guys at Diverse Universe for sucking up all your listening slots - we found you while we were in the throws of EXTREME cases of Summer Fever. I hope we didn't burn out your server.)
[APR 6] Wow! I spent all day indulging my inner sci-fi geek, only to come home and find all sorts things happening here. :-) Talk about a great day! LOL [On a non-Donna side note - if you ever get the chance to hear sci-fi author Harlan Ellison speak, jump at it! He's a funny guy with a lot of great stories to tell. I saw him several times this weekend and he had me laughing to the point of tears.]
[APR 6] On to Donna - where do you want me to start? Hmmmm...... let's go with Stamp Your Feet. As I mentioned the other day, it is going to radio next week. And as the first official single - we will be able to buy it VERY soon! :-) Amazon.com has the MP3 version listed.... well, on one part of the page it says April 15 and on the other it says April 22. I expect it to show up at iTunes on whichever of those 2 dates is correct also. I haven't seen any other listing through official channels yet, so I don't know if it is going to be like I'm A Fire where is came out here first and then (almost) everywhere else a week later. Don't worry, if we run into any issues with specific places like we did with I'm A Fire, I'll help you guys out. There is also a nice cover image posted over there - it's a variation of the Crayons album cover photo. Also, while we are talking about Stamp Your Feet, I know some of you are going to want to call your local radio stations to request it. Rocky over on Imeem has a few helpful tips for getting your request taken seriously.
[APR 6] Moving on to MySpace - it looks like we have an official Donna Summer MySpace page now. :-) There is a whole bunch of new info about some of the Crayons tracks - all of which I will be stealing for an upcoming Summer Fever page. (At least I'm upfront about my thievery! LOL) But seriously, go look at the page. There are some really good quotes about some of the songs - and a list of writing credits for those songs. (I'll wait for you - go look now.... ;-) )
[APR 6] Before I move on to more news, I think I should clarify the Billboard chart situation because I'm getting lots of questions in my email about it. Billboard.com will only show you the current chart which right now is the one dated April 12. Subscribers get the chart info a week earlier, so they have the April 19 chart. That's the one where Donna is number 1. I don't want to print the whole chart here, but since some of you have expressed an interest in seeing Donna at number 1, I'll give you the top 5.
This
week |
Last
week |
|
| 1 |
4 |
I'm A Fire - Donna Summer |
| 2 |
2 |
Sensual Seduction - Snoop Dogg
|
| 3 |
6 |
Break You - Ralph Falcone
|
| 4 |
7 |
Run The Show - Kat Delune featuring Busta Rhymes |
| 5 |
9 |
If - Collette |
[APR 6] Moving right along, PerfectBeat is putting out a CD single of I'm A Fire. It's actually going to be a 2 part limited edition CD with all of the mixes on it. As far as I know, Perfectbeat is the ONLY retailer who will have this CD single and they won't have it until Thursday (April 10). So you won't find a listing for it just yet (but don't let that stop you from browsing around the site anyway - they have lots of cool dance music. :-) ) Also, note that they are on California time, so if you are in Europe, or you are in New York and happen to be up early Thursday and you don't see the listing right away - give the guys over there a chance to wake up and get it listed. (I'm not saying they WON'T have it listed early, I'm just saying that IF they don't just allow for the time difference. :-) ) And if you are interested in getting it, expect that it will sell out quickly.
[APR 6] Let's move on to Oprah. She threw a 3 day party in Florida recently at Trump's Mar-A-Lago and a certain diva we all know and love was one of the performers. I hope this means Oprah is enough of a fan to plug the new CD on her show at some point. (Now THAT would be good for sales! :-) )
[APR 6] Let's take a look at some different charts for a minute. Over in Brazil, their top Dance Chart has Donna climbing to #15 this week. That's up from # 21. :-) In Russia, I'm A Fire is number 15 on this chart and in Latvia, Stamp Your Feet is apparently close to charting on the Kurzemesradio site. (I'm having some language issues over there, so I'm not 100% sure what I'm seeing there - well, other that Donna's name. LOL)
[APR 6] In release news, the Endless Summer video has been reissued in Brazil under the title Donna Summer. If you are in Brazil, you can get it here, but if you live somewhere else you might want to try CDPointe instead. Please keep in mind that the last time it came out, it was NOT digitally remastered so even though it was on a DVD, it was still VHS quality. If you need some ordering help and you don't speak Portuguese, Sandro posted a handy step by step guide in this post.
[APR 6] In the Donna is everywhere category, she got a mention in a Moby interview in Los Angeles' IN Magazine. Moby said, "The single best piece of electronic dance music was 'I Feel Love' by Donna Summer. Every couple of years I ask her to do something. But for some reason, I don't think she wants to make disco music anymore. I'm tempted to pull a bait and switch and bring her into the studio and ask her to record a gospel or R&B song and take the vocals and put them on a disco track."
[APR 6] A few updates ago I mentioned a French film called Disco. Well, I found out that Donna is on the soundtrack to that movie - with Last Dance. The soundtrack is on the Columbia label which just happens to be a Sony imprint. :-)
[APR 6] I think that brings us to the web news for the week. :-) Over on Bebo, the Donna fan site there has added new polls, a clip of Stamp Your Feet (done as a video) and of course some news updates. If you are on Bebo, go check it out. Also for you users of GayRomeo.com, there is a Donna group over there too that's worth looking in to. :-) Over on YouTube, check out the hot new video mix of Sunset People by Glenn Rivera. He takes clips from the movie Sunset Boulevard and puts them to Donna's Sunset People to very good effect. :-) (And while you are there, nose around his other videos too. He made plenty of non-Donna videos that are also good. :-) ) Also check out the very cool I'm A Fire video mix by colorsbynumbers that uses the Soulflower mix. Over on Multiply, Carl has posted a couple of mixes of Love's About To Change My Heart and Steve has posted a video of Donna performing Macarthur Park, and the Stamp CD cover. I'll be back.... well, as soon as I need to be. :-)
[APR 4 - still] Well, I couldn't pass this up. Guess which song is #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play charts? Do I even have to tell you the answer? LOL It's I'm A Fire AND PureTone has updated its site to make note of that. :-) Also of note, PureTone has a link to Donna's official tour list. I haven't checked it line by line yet, but at a glance it looked like what I have listed below. And they are promising that we will get lots of Donna on TV and in print. It's gonna be a great summer!
[APR 4] And now for a little Stamp Your Feet news. PureTone has said it ships to radio next week - so start talking to your local Donna friendly stations. Let them know you are listening and that you want to hear it (and any other Donna tune they might have handy too. :-)) I'm spending my weekend exercising my inner geek at a sci-fi convention (no I don't dress up! LOL) so the regular update won't show up until Sunday night.
[APR 4] Sorry Lake Charles - Ticketmaster is listing your June 27-28 shows as being cancelled. I'd say it's got to be a scheduling issue.
[APR 3] NEW HAMPSHIRE! Your tickets go on sale this Saturday April 5 at 11 AM through the Meadowbrook US Cellular Pavilion's website. If you are an Inner Circle member of the pavilion, you can buy your tickets sooner. See the website for details. Oooo - and just as I was typing this, the Today Show played a bit of Spring Affair.
[APR 2] Calling SARATOGA,CA! You will see Donna on Wednesday August 13 at the Mountain Winery. And RENO - your tickets for August 15 are on sale NOW through the Peppermill website.
[APR 2] And now for the reason I originally planned to come back - the Summer Fever pick. I hope you all enjoyed the April Fool's page, but it's time to post the real pick. This time I am picking Live & More Encore. :-)
[APR 2] If you are a member of Sony Rewards, you can enter to win 10 (yes 10) tickets to the Crayons launch party. Along with that the winner gets 10 signed CDs, 10 roundtrip coach airline tickets to New York from anywhere in the continental US, 5 luxury hotel rooms for 2 nights, and $2500 spending money. Oh yeah, and you get a meet and greet with Donna. :-) When the winner is announced, I expect it to be one of you guys! :-)
[MAR 31] I know it's still March 31, but somewhere in the world it is already April 1 - so I'm bringing you the new Summer Fever pick. I thought that you might like to learn a little more about Crayons....... ;-)
[MAR 30] I've been doing a little work on the discography tonight - in particular I added the tracks for Crayons and Wolfgang has sent some updates for his German discography. :-) But while I'm here - the Billboard Dance Hot Club Play chart for April 12 is out. I'm A Fire climbs to #4 and it still has a bullet. (Hey Burgundy - I expect to see an update tomorrow that says I'm A Fire is now a Top 5 song. ;-) )
[MAR 30] BUFFALO! You will see Donna at the Seneca Allegany Casino on Sunday July 20. Tickets will go on sale May 27 through Ticketmaster - or sooner for high rollers I'm sure. ;-) I'll be back late tomorrow or early Tuesday with the Summer Fever pick and whatever other internal updates I have time for.
[MAR 30] Well, I'm back a few hours earlier than I thought - and I haven't even started the main things I was planning to do later. LOL But the Crayons track list is out and I didn't want to wait to post it. (I feel like I'm 15 again! LOL) Here we go, courtesy of Amazon.com:
1. Stamp Your Feet
2. Mr. Music
3. Crayons (featuring Ziggy Marley)
4. The Queen Is Back
5. Run With It
6. Sand On My Feet
7. Drivin' Down Brazil
8. I'm A Fire
9. Slide Over Backwards
10. Science Of Love
11. Be Myself Again
12. Bring Down The Reign
[MAR 29] I'm calling this the official weekly update even though I know I'll be back very soon with some updates to other pages on the site - and of course the new Summer Fever pick in a couple days. :-) Let me start off by saying that I don't have the Billboard chart info for April 12 yet - but I'll throw it up here as soon as I get it.
[MAR 29] Let's start off with concert news. The Seneca Allegany Casino in upstate NY lists Donna as "coming soon" with no specific date listed yet. I'll let you know when I hear more.
[MAR 29] Big news for Canada - you can FINALLY get I'm A Fire on iTunes! Better late than never - but I hope they are a bit more prompt when Crayons comes out.
[MAR 29] I meant to mention on one of the other recent updates that you can now pre-order Crayons at Amazon.de. (That's the German Amazon.com) It was doing really well over there too. :-)
[MAR 29] Over in France, be on the look out for a new film called Disco that opens April 2. Hopefully they will sneak in some Donna tunes somewhere. ;-)
[MAR 29] This isn't specifically Donna related, but I have some news for the Paul Jabara fans out there. There is a press release out there in circulation that mentions Paul's website, the fact that his Greatest Hits & Misses is on iTunes now - and most importantly, it talks about the musical (Last Dance) using his music. Apparently they plan to use a long vaulted song called We're Gonna Win which is an anthem for the fight against AIDS. There is one quote in particular you need to read: "There is a great secret in Paul Jabara's LAST DANCE. He composed an anthem for the fight against AIDS. A little known fact is that Paul founded the red ribbon campaign, setting a precedent now utilized for many causes. The never released song is called 'WE'RE GONNA WIN' and it is absolutely stirring! People will hear this song for the first time in our show.""
[MAR 29] That brings us to the web news. Over on Multiply, Patrice has added to his photo collection, Philippe has added a new video, and Denis has sneaked in a couple of Andy mixes for your listening pleasure. On YouTube, makintoch10 has added a couple of classic Donna clips, venezuelaplc has added a vintage clip of Donna performing Lady Of The Night. It is an EXCELLENT quality clip! And finally, fzkny has added a short video mix of a by now familiar song sample to his offerings. :-) I'll see you guys in a day or 2. ;-)
[MAR 28] Greetings ATLANTIC CITY! Your tickets go on sale on Wednesday April 2 through Ticketmaster.
[MAR 26] This is what I love right now - every day I come home from work and there is something new to be excited about. So let me start with a TV appearance/live event. Donna will be part of the Today Show Summer Concert series on Friday May 30. That show is aired live from I think 7 AM to 10 AM these days and the concerts take place outside at Rockefeller center. Anybody can show up - it's free! But even though Donna wouldn't be on the show until probably 8:30 or so, you will want to be there EARLY to stake out a good location. (You can bring banners and things to wave - it might even get you on TV briefly.)
[MAR 26] In other news, Burgundy has updated their site today. On the news page they mention that I'm A Fire is a top 10 dance song. And if you go to Donna's page there, the press release is posted along with a new picture. One little note though - I use Firefox as my web browser and that made me refresh the page numerous times before the new picture came up. So if you go there and still see the one with the sunglasses, just keep refreshing until it changes. :-) And speaking of pictures, I was sent a larger version of the one from the Hollywood Bowl ad. So I'll just post it here for you to see:
[MAR 25 - again!] I thought I was done for today.... but then I got this very interesting link in my email box. It's to a Russian Top Hits site and they have an entry on their list for Stamp Your Feet. But that's not ALL they have. Look closely and you will see an icon for an available sound clip. :-D It's only about a minute long - but what a minute it is!
[MAR 25] I knew I'd be back early. LOL ATLANTA!! Your tickets just showed up on Ticketmaster as available for presale starting tomorrow at 10 AM. (That looks like some sort of promotion through Citibank or something, so you'd need a code.) The regular on sale date is Saturday March 29 at 10 AM.
[MAR 23] Yes, this is the official weekly update - although it's hard to tell these days with all the extra updates I've been sneaking in. LOL One little thing I did the other day that I haven't mentioned yet, is I added links to all the venues on the concert listings below. I still have no ticket information for most of the dates, but now we all have sites we can stare at daily. ;-)
[MAR 23] Let's start off with something hot out of my email box. :-) Crayons is now starting to show up for pre-order at places like Best Buy, Circuit City, etc. So if Amazon isn't your thing, then you have even more options now. It's doing very well at Amazon at the moment - last time I checked it was ranked #444 in music - not bad for an album that isn't even out yet! (I swear it wasn't me! I only bought one copy - so far! LOL )
[MAR 23] LA Weekly printed an entertainment calendar recently for the Hollywood Bowl concert season. It included a brand new photo of Donna that we haven't seen before. Unfortunately I haven't seen a larger version of this photo yet, but if you have sharp eyes, you can see it here on the LA Weekly website. Just look for August 22-23. But be warned - it is really tiny!
[MAR 23] In chart news - we have a couple of non-Billboard charts to look at tonight. First up is the Toronto Star's Anti-Hit list - a list of tracks that aren't getting much radio support, but that are worth listening to. I'm A Fire comes in at #6 with this commentary: "Hard to believe the first queen of disco is now a grandmother who will celebrate her 60th birthday on the last day of this year. You'd certainly never guess it after listening to all seven glorious minutes of this lead single, which revisits her glory days while making it clear she has no intention of taking up permanent residence there." Then in Brazil, Donna makes the Top 30 Dance Club Play chart as a new entry at #28. :-) And if that's not enough for you, I'm A Fire is #19 on the World Dance charts - with a bullet! :-)
[MAR 23] In the land of blogs, A New Muse has declared Donna a style icon. The Daily Swarm has some excellent comments posted by fans - check out # 10 and #12 in particular. :-) And over on Amazon there is a place for fans to talk about the album - apparently it's a new feature they are trying out. A couple of guys have posted already - so go join them if you are so inclined. :-)
[MAR 23] So that brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, look for a cool new fan video for I Got Your Love posted by colorsbynumbers. You also want to see Toby Gad's video blog for March 18.There is also a clip of She Works Hard For The Money taken from a Grammy telecast, and fzkny has a new video mix of Love to Love You Baby. And on Multiply, Patrice has posted a new gallery of pictures. I was about to say I'd be back next week.... but the way things have been going lately, it will probably be sooner. :-) It's times like this when running the site is even MORE fun!
[MAR 22] I'll be back either late tonight or late tomorrow with the regular update, but for now I have two things I want to share with you guys. The first thing is that Crayons is now available for pre-order at Amazon and Amazon UK. Other vendors shouldn't be too far behind. The other thing I wanted to tell you is that on the April 5 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, I'm A Fire climbs to number 9 with a bullet. :-)
[MAR 20] HOLY COW! I came home from work and found out that Pollstar went nuts. I have MANY new dates to share with you and the easiest way to do it is to go straight down to the list below. I don't have ticket info for most of them yet - but I'll post it as I get it. Canadian fans - don't stop looking at the list when you get to your first date. She's going back there a few times.
[MAR 19] This one is for you Oakland, CA - Donna will be at the Paramount Theater on August 16 (Saturday). Tickets go on sale through Ticketmaster on Monday March 24 at 10 AM. Radio station 92.7 was giving away tickets - I don't know if they have more, so you will have to tune in and see.
[MAR 18] First of all - oops! I accidentally put July 20 instead of August 20 for Alpine in the concert section below. If you show up July 20, you will have a LONG wait for Donna. ;-)
[MAR 18] So now for the real reason I'm here. I just can't torture you any longer..... it's time to unveil the surprise. As you all know, earlier this year Mary Bernard put out her own CD of inspirational music. So I asked her if I could do an interview with her for the site and she graciously consented. So with out any further torture... here is the first interview I've ever done with anyone - creatively titled, "An Interview With Mary Gaines Bernard." (On a side note - the video clip that I added to that page with sound clips was an experiment. I like the way it came out, so I'll do something similar with Crayons and slowly I'll start adding videos like that to the Summer Fever pages I think.)
[MAR 17] Wake up SAN DIEGO, CA - you will see Donna on August 20 at the Viejas Casino in Alpine. :-) Those tickets go on sale this WEDNESDAY (March 19) at 10 AM via Ticketmaster. Sorry for the short notice, but I just found out now. Also, Washington DC fans will be happy to learn that Wolftrap tickets go on sale March 29 at 10 AM. On a side note - watch for my special surprise this weekend. It's all done and ready to go.... I just want to torture you for a little longer. ;-)
[MAR 16] Happy St. Patrick's Day to all my Irish friends (and those who are only Irish for the day. ;-) ) My upcoming surprise is going to be published next weekend. I had hoped to get it done in time for this weekend but things got a little out of hand earlier in the week. It will be worth the wait though. :-) What I do have for you is an update to Ken's Korner (that will undoubtedly not win him any popularity contests in certain corners LOL) and a reminder to those of you who haven't been able to buy I'm A Fire yet - the EP goes on sale through iTunes and other download vendors on Tuesday for those of you outside the USA. And if you are inside the USA - what are you wanting for? iTunes has it NOW. :-) (On a side note, I finally figured out how to link to stuff on the iTunes store. You'd think I'd have noticed that little "copy iTunes url" feature sooner. LOL)
[MAR 16] In I'm A Fire news, it's charting on a few DJs' lists. Check out DJ Wesley and DJ Matty Heilbronn in particular. It's also number one at WDA1 internet radio. And listen for it next Sunday (March 23) in the fourth hour of Larry Flick's radio show on the Sirius station, OutQ (Channel 109).
[MAR 16] In Crayons news, it gets a mention on a French blog. It doesn't look like there is any new info - but there are some photos there you guys will like. :-)
[MAR 16] In the Donna is everywhere category, MacArthur Park was used in a German comedy show called Quatsch Comedy Club. Also check out AlKasha.com and RocaSound.com for some nice Donna mentions.
[MAR 16] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, you need to check out AJ's page. He's got a few mixes up and he's got this really awesome Donna PWL remix video that is well worth a look. Patrice has a new multi-artist mix with 2 Donna songs included, plus he's got a whole gallery of screen captures from Live & More Encore. And Philippe has added a video representation of Donna's discography. Over on Youtube, Yeroi has posted a clip of Donna singing A Song For You from a 1977 Venezuelan show. (If you check his profile, he's got a few other songs from that same show posted too. So does user Venezuelaplc.) There is also a very funny interview Donna did with Greg Kinnear, and for you Giorgio Moroder fans, check out this clip about Love To Love You and I Feel Love. And finally, Donna gets a brief mention in this Kylie interview. (Wait for the part where Kylie talks about the music she used to listen to all the time. )
[MAR 14] Well, I logged in to do a little housekeeping, but while I'm here I might as well mention that I'm A Fire climbs to # 14 on Billboard's Hot Club Play for the week of March 29. :-) And Baltimore - don't forget that your tickets go on sale tomorrow morning!
[MAR 14] Speaking of housekeeping - the People Talk guest book has been cleaned up a bit. The spammers were having a field day over there, so I may actually delete that feature at some point. I haven't decided yet. The classified ads have been deleted however - they were also a spam magnet. Pretty much any thing you wanted do do on the classified ads page can be done better on the forums or through me on the main site itself. I also got rid of a couple of old promo pages for past projects. Finally, on the splash page, the "interact with fans" link has been replaced with a link to the Donna Summer & More (formerly Endless Summer) forum, and clicking the site title will bring you directly to the news page. (Oh yeah - all that is in addition to some behind the scenes stuff I've been doing for my upcoming surprise.)
[MAR 13] Donna's site is updated with a little clip of I'm A Fire and the awesome cover art.
[MAR 12] I came back tonight for Baltimore. :-) You guys will see Donna at the Pier Six Concert Pavilion on Wednesday July 16. Tickets go on sale this Saturday (March 15) at 10 AM through Ticketmaster.
[MAR 11... still] Okay - I got a reply to my email about I'm A Fire. The international release date is March 17 - next Tuesday. So just hang in there a little longer, and then if there are any problems with specific countries we'll deal with it then. :-) On a side note - look for an update to Donna's site soon. (Although now that I think of it - if you guys are like me, you've been obsessively checking it daily anyway. LOL)
[MAR 11] Okay.... I'm A Fire hit US iTunes and Amazon this morning, but so far it hasn't turned up internationally. I have an email out asking about that, so watch this space for further developments. Don't worry - whatever answer I get, we will get you guys legal downloads one way or another. :-)
[MAR 11] As long as I'm here, I have a site announcement. Actually, make that a teaser. ;-) I have a surprise coming up for you very soon - something I've never actually done on the site before, so I'm excited. (And before you let your imaginations go wild, it has nothing to do with Crayons or an advanced copy of the next Shout It Out.) I'm shooting for this weekend for the surprise, but if not this weekend then probably next weekend. It will be worth the wait. ;-)
[MAR 9] Happy Daylight Savings Time! We're that much closer to spring now. :-) Don't forget that on Tuesday, I'm A Fire goes up for sale on Amazon.com (and probably other places too). So if you have a copy by other means, go out and buy a legal copy to show your support (and so Donna can pay the mortgage. ;-) ) And if you don't have a copy yet - well, now is your chance to get one. :-)
[MAR 9] Let's start off with the chart news that I didn't have the other day. For the week of March 22, I'm A Fire climbs to #23 on the Billboard Hot Club Play chart, and it's the power pick of the week. :-)
[MAR 9] In classic release news, CDUniverse has a listing for an import called Oro - Grandes Existos. There is no track list posted, but it seems to be a greatest hits package - a real one instead of a Shout It Out disguised as a greatest hits set. ;-)
[MAR 9] In German news, the site SoulSite.de has a mention of the new album. There is no new information there but I know of at least one fan who was thrilled to finally find something in his native language. :-) And the TV show Backstage Live had a little mention of I'm A Fire. You can watch it on the web - Donna comes in about halfway through the clip. (If I'm not mistaken, I believe they are showing part of fzkny's original I'm A Fire video too.)
[MAR 9] In the Donna is everywhere category, there is a TV commercial for Ruffles potato chips in Mexico that has animated potato chips (crisps if you are in Europe) dancing to Hot Stuff. (And by some strange coincidence - Hot Stuff is the track that iTunes decided to play for me just as I started to type this. :-) )
[MAR 9] That brings us up to the web news for the week. Over on Bebo, the Donna fan site there has had a few new additions. Look for a couple of videos and a brand new poll. (Plus the awesome I'm A Fire cover is on prominent display. :-) ) On Multiply, Denis is having a big I'm A Fire party with all the mixes posted for your listening pleasure. (He's got some other new additions too if you still have time left after I'm A Fire. ;-) ) Patrice also has a mix of I'm A Fire plus a few videos to watch, and Philippe has added his Crayons drawing and some other goodies. Over on YouTube, fzkny has another I'm A Fire video, there is a video for the David Vendetta version of Love To Love You, and I just discovered a 6 part documentary on the making of the Spirit Of The Forest record. (That was one of those all star choir records - but this one was to help protect the rain forest.) They have no interview footage of Donna, but you see her in several clips taken from the recording session. Here are the links: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, and
Part 6.
[MAR 6] Good news! I'm A Fire will be available for legal download starting Tuesday March 11 from Amazon.com (and probably other places as well.) So for everybody who has the mixes by other means, show your support for Donna on Tuesday by purchasing a legal copy. :-) You just HAVE to see the cover art too. (Go ahead and click it - there is a bigger version. :-) )
[MAR 6] Hello MINNESOTA! According to Pollstar, you will get to see Donna in Prior Lake on August 31 at the Mystic Lake Casino. No word on when tickets will be available yet.
[MAR 6] Getting back to I'm A Fire news, the second round of mixes is circulating. They are: Baggi Begovic & Soul Conspiracy Original Mix (9:01), Redtop’s Dub (7:51), Matty’s Soul Flower Club Mix (9:10), Rod Carrillo’s Leave It On The Floor Mix (9:26), Rod Carillo’s Groove Dub (8:30). The mixes are all so different from each other that I'm sure just about everyone will find one to their liking. :-)
[MAR 6] In chart news - I'm still waiting for the next set of chart positions to come out, but there is a nice little blurb about I'm A Fire in the March 6 Chartbeat column on Billboard Online. They say that I'm A Fire is Donna's highest Dance chart debut since This Time I Know It's For Real in 1989. :-)
[FEB 29] Wow - it's actually been a couple of days since my last update. The main reason I'm here tonight is that it's time to change the Summer Fever pick. This month as we start preparing for a brand new album, I decided to go all the way back to the beginning and put the musicals back in the spotlight.
[FEB 29] As long as I'm here, I might as well make this the official update. So, let's start with the charts. On the March 15 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, I'm A Fire is the hot shot debut at #28. :-) And speaking of I'm A Fire, the second wave of mixes are in the works and they will include Rod Carrillo's Leave It On The Dancefloor Mix and his Groove Dub. So if you are out clubbing, keep your ears open for those.
[FEB 29] In the Donna is everywhere category..... holy cow, she really IS everywhere! I have a mailbox FULL of news alerts announcing Donna's first studio album in 17 years. (And I'll try not to get all nitpicky that clearly they are forgetting about Christmas Spirit which was released 14 years ago. ;-) ) Mostly they all just reprint parts of the official press release, but I'll post a small list of articles below. TV is even getting into the act - the CNN news channel even mentioned Crayons on the news ticker that runs beneath the programming. :-) And of course radio stations around the world are mentioning the new CD as well. We've got quite a buzz going! .....Oh, and I think in all the excitement, I may have forgotten to post a link to the Pure Tone website for you. (They are the guys handling the promotion. They also did the promotion for Chaka Khan's recent release on Burgundy.)
[FEB 29] In radio news, San Francisco fans can tune into the morning team at Energy 92.7 for their I'm A Fire fix, and in Portugual, Lisbon's Mix FM has added I'm A Fire to its rotation.
[FEB 29] In case you need something to keep you busy until May, there is a UK 3 disk set called Here Come The Girls that features the work of top female recording artists like Dusty Springfield, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Gladys Knight, and others. Donna is represented by Love To Love You and I Feel Love.
[FEB 29] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at YouTube, fzkny has added another I'm A Fire remix video to his collection. (This one uses video from Melody Of Love.) And also check out the live clip of Celebrate Me Home. The video quality isn't the best, but it's such a beautiful song! Over on Multiply, check out Patrice's I'm A Fire II mix. I'll be back next weekend - or sooner if there is breaking news. :-)
[FEB 26] Donna's new site is up. So far (besides the new look :-) ) all that's up is a chance to register for the site and a countdown to the CD release. But expect lots more stuff to come as we get closer to May 20. :-)
[FEB 26] Elsewhere on the web, you can read the official press release about Crayons. And about 8 billion news sites have picked up the story about the new CD, so Donna is getting mentions EVERYWHERE. :-)
[FEB 26] HELLO ATLANTA! Your concert date is July 1 at the Chastain Park Amphitheater. Tickets go on sale March 2 at 10 AM. As for everyone else - I'll post 'em as I get 'em. :-)
[FEB 25] It's official! According to both Billboard and USA Today, Crayons hits stores on May 20. :-) Let the countdown begin!
[FEB 24] Happy Oscar Night! Believe it or not, this will actually be the official weekly update. (Although whatever happens this week, I may be back a little bit early for the Summer Fever Pick.) Let's start off with a request from the guys at WDA1.com. I mentioned that they were playing I'm A Fire in my last update and I mentioned that they take requests. What I didn't mention is that the best way to get your requests to them is to use the big yellow request button on their homepage. If you do it by email it takes more time for the guys over there to get it, and it makes more work for them. You also need to know a couple of other things. Listeners are restricted to 2 song requests over a 2 and a half hour time period and they must be for 2 different songs. (They track IP numbers, so they can tell.) And if you request the song, you must stay logged into the stream until it plays, or the request will be ignored. I just did it myself, and it's actually easier to use the request page than it is to type an email. And so far they are playing some cool songs. :-)
[FEB 24] Let's move on to some chart news . (Yes, there is some already!) Donna is poised to debut on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart probably for the week of March 15. I'm A Fire is the top breakout track on that chart for the week of March 8. (The breakout tracks are the hot new tracks that are just bubbling under the charts.)
[FEB 24] Speaking of I'm A Fire (and pretty much everyone is these days :-) ) there is supposed to be a second round of mixes in the works by people like Lost Daze, Soulflower and Rod Carrillo. Once Upon A Time (about a day ago - or even less LOL) this site, had a clip of the Soulflower mix. However, I think they blew their bandwidth so some people were not hearing it. (You also need to have the Quicktime plug in to make sound on that site work - something that seemed to confuse my Firefox browser for some reason.)
[FEB 24] Let's move on to Crayons for a second. I heard from another fan who was at the Florida shows and this is his take on what Donna said about the album title: "The way I understood what she said was that, when a child begins to color with crayons he goes out side of the boundaries constantly. She said "out of the box", and for her this album is out of her box, comfort zone etc."
[FEB 24] In the Donna is everywhere category this week, TMZ featured her photo in one of their then and now features.
[FEB 24] That brings us up to the web news for the week. First up, for those of you who use the Bebo website, a fan named Wayne has set up a Donna site over there. So make sure you go check it out. :-) Over at YouTube - well, it's a fire over there. LOL This is the clip most people have been passing around. And that one is good for listening to the song. But if you want something with more visual action, you need to see fzkny's version. There are also a couple of very short clips from the Florida shows posted by koolbeenz, and a clip of Ain't No Mountain High Enough - the finale from Divas 2000. Over on Multiply, Philippe has posted a video of Supernatural Love, Jeffrey has posted his Janiak extended mix of Unconditional Love, and Patrice has posted his mix of... you guessed it, I'm A Fire. And if you come visit us on the Donna Summer & More (formerly Endless Summer) forum, some of the other fan mixers are sharing their efforts as well. (The pros can do round 1 and 2 of the mixes, the fans can provide the rest. ;-) ) I'll be back at the end of the week with the new Summer Fever page - or sooner if there is news. :-)
[FEB 22] I wasn't actually going to update tonight..... but then I thought I might as well go for the hat trick. LOL But seriously, I have a request for you. I know that there are people out there who have copies of Donna's new songs (or think they are getting copies from someone, or have good blackmail on someone who might be getting them, etc ;-) ) If you are in the category and you actually do find yourself with an advance copy of any of the new album tracks, I'm asking you to please NOT share them. (And I will kick myself for saying this, but I mean not even with me. Ouch, that hurt! LOL) The thing is, there is a whole plan to the promotion of the new CD and if we jump the gun we'll end messing it all up for Donna (and by extension, for ourselves.) Also, think about the first time you went out and bought ... let's say Bad Girls. If you were like me and got it when it first came out, then probably the ONLY song you knew when you bought it was Hot Stuff. Wasn't it cool to bring it home that first time and discover that wow! Bad Girls is awesome too! And so is Love Will Always Find You! And Walk Away! And so on until Sunset People. I want Crayons to be like that for all of us - a fun discovery of all the gems it has to offer. :-) (By the way, the above does not apply to anyone who gets an advanced copy of the next Shout It Out. I think those are pretty safe to share because there will be no takers. LOL)
[FEB 22] And here's another reason to not go looking for early copies of the album tracks - we still have I'm A Fire mania going on! LOL We have to let that run its course. If you want to hear it on internet radio, run right over to WDA1.com. They have I'm A Fire in medium rotation and they take requests. (I wonder how many requests it takes to get a song into high rotation? ;-) ) I've also seen the song either played on or at least mentioned by a whole bunch of blogs. (Hey - maybe I can finally realize my dream of having the WHOLE internet dedicated to Donna? Who needs news and stock quotes anyway? LOL) A couple of the recent ones I've seen are Herman's in the Netherlands and DivaDivoDance. But there are a TON more. Go to Google and search for Donna Summer and I'm A Fire and you'll get 10 pages of hits. (Maybe more by the time some of you see this.) And of course the song is playing in clubs - if your favorite club isn't playing it yet, then you need to have a serious talk with the DJ. ;-)
[FEB 22] And I probably should save something for the weekend update, but what the heck, Ill throw this in now too because I enjoyed it so much. There is a really flattering review of the Florida concerts on BrowardTimes.com. Some of the song titles are a bit messed up, but otherwise I'd say the reviewer is one of us. :-)
[FEB 21] I'm back again so it MUST be Summer Fever! LOL I have more from Florida, including a review from a first time concert goer, and photos from Jonathan. I also have a special edition of Ken's Korner in honor of I'm A Fire.
[FEB 21] I also have a quick update on 109 OUT Q on Sirius radio. Larry Flick promoted I'm A Fire through out his show and finally played it at 10:30 this morning. (That's Eastern time - I don't know if it runs live or on tape in other places.) He asked listeners to call in and talk about the song, and every comment he got was very positive. Now here's the best news of all, Larry is going to have Donna on his show sometime soon to talk about the new CD, the tour, and whatever else comes up. As I hear more, I'll let you know. :-) I have more odds and ends for you - but I want to try to save something for the weekend. LOL But who knows? I might end up being back tomorrow too. ;-)
[FEB 20 again] Okay, so after calming down for 8 hours at work, let me start off by saying that the MenArt site I linked to is NOT in Germany - it's in Croatia. I think I was a little too excited to figure out what language I was looking at (and not understanding. LOL) I do want to add that one of the posters got the page translated and it says that they don't have the actual track list yet, but the songs they listed will definitely be on the album. It also lists a June 1 release date. For those who haven't looked at the page yet, MenArt lists: Stamp Your Feet, I'm A Fire, Crayons, Be Myself Again, Brazil, and Mr. Music. I have also seen a forum that adds, Unpredictable, I Will, and Reasons. And that forum lists a May 6 release date. I've also read a review (that I can't find at the moment) that says that I'm A Fire is the weakest of the tracks he's heard. Which means there must be some KILLER tracks on the album! :-)
[FEB 20 again] For those of us grooving to I'm A Fire - I got this club report from Atlanta: Donna's single "IM A FIRE" (Craigs Mix) was released to our DJ and he had to tell me about it. The club was packed- DJ announced here's a new single- If you can guess the "QUEEN' who recorded it-- your drinks are free for the night. Everyone knew the voice and the Name. I gave so many drinks away last night till it wasn't funny. It packed the dance floors and even the second level of the club upstairs was stomping and chanting DONNA! DONNA!- The song is hot- and will definitely be a long request for the DJ to play. I have another fan in Tampa who has been burning the track to CD and handing it to DJs at his favorite clubs. He even got Larry Flick of OUT Q on Sirius radio to post it on his MySpace page. For those of you who don't have the song by other means, check out the Solitaire mix at the Donna Summer Burgundy MySpace page.
[FEB 20 again] For those looking for a little about the official single coming up, Stamp Your Feet, check out the So And Thus blog.
[FEB 20 again] For those of you wondering about the title, Crayons, well.... Donna mentioned it in Florida. She said that it's like when you are a kid and you open a box of crayons with all the various colors and flavors to play with. The CD is like that - it will have lots of different flavors of music. :-) Speaking of Florida.... that's supposed to be the reason I updated again tonight. LOL So let's start you off with a few photos on Getty Images, and then you can read the fan reports I have so far. (Please keep in mind that the Florida shows are actually the last dates of the last tour , so no sneak peeks of the new album yet. The new tour will start later this year and that's when we'll hear the new songs.) I'll be back again, well, whenever I need to be back. :-)
[FEB 20] So, the plan was to update later tonight with what I have so far from Florida. And that's still the plan because I don't have time for a real update right now. But I couldn't let this wait. Fresh from my email box, the cover to the CD:
That is courtesy of Menart Records (not) in Germany which also provides this track list: Stamp Your Feet, I'm A Fire, Crayons, Be Myself Again, Brazil, and Mr. Music. Also the date I keep hearing so far is May 6. I still consider that highly subject to change until I see it somewhere official, but that's the one I see everywhere else. :-) I guess I'll be back after work with Florida and a few other links I wanted to share. (It's days like this I hate my job! LOL)
Just like the sun reveals the sky,
Just like the torch becomes your guide,
I’m a fire, I’m a fire, and I’m burning so bright...
[FEB 16] So, I was going to wait until tomorrow to update so that I would have time to hear from at least some of the Florida fans first. But how can I stay away when everything is happening? :-) So, yesterday's update gave you the names of the mixes for the new club single I'm A Fire. Well, yesterday the DJs received copies and let's just say the song is out there now. And not only is it out there - is it HOT! The Queen is back! (Not that she ever really left. ;-) ) One of the guys on the forum actually got to experience it in a club last night and this is what he had to say: "Went to a club last night. DJ is personal friend. Told me he had this Craig Mix. He put it on a few minutes later. He said here was the new DS single. After about 30 seconds the place went berserk!!!! He ended up playing the entire 11 minute version another 5 times during the night and it packed the floor each time. The Supreme Queen of Dance Royalty is BACK!!!!!!!!!!" And pretty much every reaction I've read had been positive - ranging from "what a cool song" to "my jaw hit the floor and I can't pick it back up." I've been doing this site for almost 11 years and I haven't seen this much excitement in quite awhile! :-)
[FEB 16] Okay, now that I got the big news out of the way, let's move on to the normal stuff for the 1 or 2 of you who aren't jumping around the room for joy. (And those 1 or 2 people really need to see yesterday's update.) ;-) First up, Mary fans will want to look at the Family Matters section below. And everybody will want to see the media section for a new Donna interview.
[FEB 16] Here's one for you guys in Canada. Donna will be performing at the David Foster Foundation's fundraiser, Crescendo, on March 29 at the Halifax Metro Center. She'll be sharing the stage with Natalie Cole and comedian Sinbad, and they will be backed by Symphony Nova Scotia. The event will raise funds to help Canadian families with children who need organ transplants. The bad news is that they don't sell individual tickets to the show. You either have to buy a whole table (and those seem to be sold out) or you need to buy a weekend pass to the whole Crescendo event. More info is available at DavidFosterAtlantic.ca.
[FEB 16] I have an interesting little rumor out of the west coast. Apparently there is a guy looking to put out a compilation of Donna's more spiritual tracks. The tentative title is Unconditional Love and he hopes to have it out next year. I guess we'll see what happens.
[FEB 16] In the Donna is everywhere category, she got a mention on the Grammy Awards this week. Beyonce did a little number paying tribute to many of the great ladies who have graced the Grammy stage. She said, in part, "When I was a little girl I dreamed of being on this stage. But I knew I needed all the right elements. Like the beat of Donna Summer...."
[FEB 16] Donna also got mentioned in a couple of recent interviews. There was a St. Louis Today interview with Gloria Gaynor when she was asked who is the Queen of Disco. Her answer: "Whoever someone is giving it to at any given moment. Those titles are to be given by the fans or the public. I was elected it by the International Association of Disco DJs, who were fully qualified to choose me at that time. After that, other people thought Donna was the queen. I have no problem sharing the crown." And then there was a Hex Hector interview on SX News where he said, "I’ve been blessed with opportunities to work in the studio with some of the most amazing singers and entertainers put on this earth. But I have to say the only time I was ever star-struck was when I worked with Donna Summer on ‘I Will Go With You’. When she walked into the studio I was a mumbling fool!"
[FEB 16] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube look for a Donna and Joss Stone duet taken from VH1, an interview to promote Whenever There Is Love, MacArthur Park from the Hot Summer Night special, and a few new goodies from the vaults of fzkny. And if you do a little searching for Beyonce on the Grammys, you will even find that performance I mentioned in the Donna is everywhere news. On Multiply, check out Philippe's picture disk collection, WEN!NG's Tribute Mix on Denis' page, and Patrice's new mix of I Love You. I'll be back during the week with news from the Florida shows, and anything else that happens to turn up. :-)
[FEB 15] And now for a slightly belated Happy Valentine's Day for everyone. :-) But before I get to the real reason I'm updating let me say this first for the Mary fans out there. (I'd throw this down to Family Matters, but I know after you read tonight's news, you won't read any further down the page. LOL) iTunes (and other places) have FINALLY fixed the problem with Mary's CD, so if you buy it now you will get I'll Go. If you bought the album as a download already and are missing that song, I have a copy now and can send it to you. Just send me an email. Okay....... now fasten your seatbelts and hang on to your hats..... :-)
[FEB 15] In my email today, I got a message from someone with a friend in the music business who saw this interesting little press release: "The Queen is back! Legendary singer songwriter DONNA SUMMER is back with a NEW STUDIO ALBUM – CRAYONS AVAILABLE EVERYWHERE MAY 2008 on BURGUNDY/SONY
Donna shows her love for the club community as she gives an early taste of her new album before the official single “STAMP YOUR FEET” goes to radio next month.
Donna Summer - “I'm A Fire” round one mixes:
1. I'm A Fire (Solitaire Club Mix) 7:12
2. I'm A Fire (Craig C's Burnin' Master Mix) 11:02
3. I'm A Fire (Redtop's Extended Mix) 7:21
4. I'm A Fire (Sebastian Original Album Version) 7:23"
The only thing I'll add is that after I got the email, I did a little snooping on the net and found this little announcement from the company pressing copies of Stamp Your Feet. It's happening guys! :-) I will be back either tomorrow or Sunday with the regular update - which will probably be very boring compared to tonight's micro-update. LOL
[FEB 14] Happy Valentines Day Washington DC. :-) You guys will get to see Donna perform at Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA on Saturday July 5. Members of Wolf Trap have an extra special bonus. Donna's show has been chosen as one of the events for the Associate Theater Parties. So members can buy a special package that includes dinner and the show. Right now tickets for the concert are only available to members, but look for that to change next month. I already have one gentleman who is looking to hook up with other fans for this concert. (His name is Duane and anyone interested can contact him at: summerfan43 AT yahoo.com) I think as more dates are announced, I'll set up a page for fans who want to meet up at the various shows. I did that a couple years ago and some of you seemed to enjoy that. :-)
[FEB 9] Before I get to the Donna news (and yes there is some :-) ) let me start with a couple of announcements. First of all, fans of Bruce Sudano and Mary Bernard will want to see the Family Matters section below. And fans (or enemies LOL) of Ken will want to check out his new Ken's Korner.
[FEB 9] Okay - let me start with this. Somebody has seen the new release sheet from Sony. It lists Crayons by Donna Summer with a May 6 release. But before you freak out (I know, it's too late, you already did! LOL) - please keep in mind that this could be subject to change without notice, AND this date has not been confirmed anywhere else yet. This was too big not to report, but I still think we should call this a rumor and nothing more for the moment. Having said that, I am told that we should be getting some news "soon." (And I put "soon" in quotes because time is relative, and when it comes to new CD info, even 5 minutes can seem like an eternity. LOL)
[FEB 9] Here's a little warning for you guys in Austin, Texas. The South By Southwest music festival has announced its line up. On the list if DJ Donna Summer - which is that other guy. So if you run into publicity for that, it's not our Donna.
[FEB 9] Back to the land of OUR Donna. :-) She was on Majic 102.7 in Fort Lauderdale in a phone interview. The easiest thing to do here is just quote the report I was sent. (Thanks Steve!) "The local 60s/70s oldies station Majic 102.7 has been advertising Donna's concerts here and interviewed her by phone this morning after 9am. They talked to Bruce also. It was about 15 minutes long. By coincidence, the morning DJs names are Bruce and Donna. She laughed about that and sounded great. They asked her about the website, tour, and new CD!!! She said the website should be up in few weeks and they were tired of the old one. This is the tail end of this tour she said, so these concerts won't be much different from the last few. She will change the concert once the CD is released. They asked her about the name of the new CD, she didn't have the name of yet. She talked about Neil Bogart and Casablanca, and how he shot her career into orbit back then, and 3 songs on the new CD are being produced by Neil's son (forgot his name). They talked to Bruce for a few minutes, his new CD will be out in few weeks and a single is being released to AC radio shortly.
They asked what's it's like being married to Donna, he said she's very creative and it's very interesting. The best part of the interview was the end. Bruce (the DJ) told Donna she was robbed by Madonna getting into the Hall of Fame before her, and without her there would be no Madonna. She was very gracious and said she was honored to be nominated and maybe after the new CD she'll have another chance. That's about all I can remember."
[FEB 9] Anyone looking for some Donna tunes on the net, check out this megamix by P.J. Farrauto. You have a choice of the 18 minute version or the 9 minute version. Or check out this blog with the 12" version of With Your Love.
[FEB 9] Here's one for you 12" collectors out there. (I'm talking about MUSIC here guys, this is a more or less family friendly site after all. ;-) ) Universal has been reissuing some of Donna's 12" singles with the original Casablanca sleeves. So far they have issued MacArthur Park Suite/Last Dance, Hot Stuff/Bad Girls, and I Feel Love/Love To Love You.
[FEB 9] In the Donna is everywhere category, once again her music was a category on Don't Forget The Lyrics. This time the contestant picked that category because he said that the crowd was demanding it. :-) The guy won by knowing that the missing lyrics in She Works Hard For The Money were "treat her right."
[FEB 9] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, look for new classic clips from ingressolibero, fzkny, summerholiday44, and Sandro.
[FEB 3] Let me start off with a dedication. Many of you remember Tom Gilliam from the fan club. Well, I got a message from him this week with a special request that I dedicate a certain song to the memory of his mother who passed away last week. So this update is dedicated to Mary Bell Gilliam, may she rest in peace:
|
Any Way At All
(Summer/Sudano/Silver)
We never know/ Where the winds of love will carry/ Our hearts unfold/ Into the hands of time
Nothing will ever change/ This love we share/ No matter what it takes/ I will be there
When the sun don't shine/ You pray for clouds to break/ Reach up to the sky/ And pray for it to rain/ When the times get hard/ You rely on your faith/ We'll be together/ If there's any way at all/ If there's any way at all
Don't be afraid/ 'Cause we're in this love together/ We'll ride the waves/ Till we reach the other side
Your love is life to me/ None can compare/ Long as I live and breathe/ I will be there
When the sun don't shine/ You pray for clouds to break/ Reach up to the sky/ And pray for it to rain/ When the times get hard/ You rely on your faith/ You know that we'll be together/ If there's any way at all/ (If there's any way)/ If there's any way at all
If there's any way at all/ We'll be together, baby/ If there's any way at all/ We'll be together forever and ever, oh
Reach up to the sky/ And pray for it to rain (oh, baby)/ When the times get hard/ You rely on your faith/ We'll be together/ If there's any way at all/ (If there's any way at all)/ If there's any way at all
|
[FEB 3] For those who don't know, yesterday was Groundhog Day and unfortunately Punxsutawney Phil, the official groundhog, saw his shadow so that's supposed to mean that we are in for 6 more weeks of winter. I just want to say that if that causes the new CD to be delayed 6 weeks, then I'm going to go to Punxsutawney and make that groundhog into a coat! LOL But on the bright side, I did want to mention that while there aren't too many concrete facts yet, the album IS coming. :-) And just as importantly - there are a ton more tour dates yet to be announced, so look for this to be a very busy summer. (Not to mention Summer.) ;-)
[FEB 3] Someone sent me a link this week of Donna albums that are currently available for sale in France. I'm not sure if I should be scared or amused that the first one that pops up if a Shout It Out collection. On a side note, I think we're overdue for a new Shout It Out collection. I'm betting we see at least one shortly after the new CD comes out. LOL
[FEB 3] So here's one for the Donna ISN'T everywhere category. LOL CMT's blog has an entry about journalistic accuracy and a story that went astray years ago. It seems that back about the time Amanda was born, some paper printed a report that one of the Oak Ridge Boys had just broken off his engagement to Donna. Well, the story was only partly right. It turns out the guy was engaged to a woman named Donna SummerS. Which just goes to show that my teachers back in school were right - spelling does count. ;-)
[FEB 3] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, check out the DJ Jimmy M and Frank Mendez mix of One Of A Kind, a live clip of Melody Of Love, and a clip of Dinner With Gershwin. On Multiply, Jeffrey has posted a couple of extended mixes, Jorge has posted some of his drawings and photos of Philippe's exhibition in Guadalajara, and Scott has posted a couple of his mixes.
[FEB 1] It's that time again - time for a new Summer Fever page. :-) This month I'm putting She Works Hard For The Money in the spotlight and I'm dedicating it to all my coworkers in the pharmacy because of all the chaos we are dealing with now. (If anyone at your job ever tells you that a systems "upgrade" will go smoothly, you can probably call them either a liar or extremely naive. LOL) While I'm here, I'll throw a couple of news items at you too as a warm up for Sunday. :-) And to start that off, Mary Bernard fans need to hop down to the Family Matters section for details on her new album.
[FEB 1] While I'm here, I thought I'd kick up the Summer Fever around here just a tiny notch. ;-) The Hollywood Bowl website has a little promo for Donna's concerts there. It's just the usual little promo thing, but the important thing is that it mentions that in addition to the hits, Donna will be singing songs from her new CD. :-) So my question is, is it way too soon for me to camp out in front of my local record store? ;-) I will be back Sunday with the official weekly update - working on the site will be a welcome refuge from the football game. LOL (For those outside the US - Sunday is the Super Bowl when even people who rarely watch a game tune in. So far, I have a perfect record for missing every Super Bowl game that has ever been played in my lifetime and I don't plan to change that now. LOL)
[JAN 30] Hello Los Angeles! I just got word from one of the regular local boys that Donna will be at the Hollywood Bowl on August 22 and 23. (That's a Friday and Saturday.) Ticket info is yet to be announced, but he says it should be soon and of course they will be offered to subscribers first. :-) (So if you are not a subscriber - go make friends with one now. ;-) ) I'll be back later this week with the full update - including some big Mary Bernard news. :-)
[JAN 27] I guess the best place to start is with new CD info. :-) No, we don't have a release date, but we have a blog entry that mentions a new song that is "gorgeous." (And that leads me to the obvious question - is it Spring yet?? ;-) )
[JAN 27] Just a note for Ticketmaster users (which I think is most of us in the USA), if you click the iTunes link on their artist page for Donna - the first item up is the album Heaven In My Eyes which they credit as a Donna Summer album. It is, of course, the Twiggy album produced by Donna and Juergen Koppers. But it's nice to see it listed as readily available. :-)
[JAN 27] Speaking of Ticketmaster, someone showed me an article this week listing Donna's Florida concert date as February 19 at the Bank Atlantic Center. That's not correct - the dates are still February 16 and 17. (And it is me, or are an awful lot of venues being sponsored by banks lately?)
[JAN 27] Here's one I mean to mention on the last update - JustCircuit.com has announced the winners of their awards and Hall Of Fame. They voted Donna's performance at the One Mighty Weekend event as the "Performance Of The Year." (I knew those guys had great taste!)
[JAN 27] In the Donna is everywhere category, she got a couple of unusual mentions this week. One was a throwaway line in an article about economics and taxes. The relevant part is: "Ron Paul would also eliminate taxes on capital gains and eliminate taxes on tips. That last one is a big deal to a lot of hard working single mothers, college students, heck, anyone living off of tips works hard for the money. (Ask Donna Summer)." The other was in an article about a list of "ideologically harmful" groups that was compiled back in 1985 by the Communist Party's youth wing in the Ukraine. Donna made the list (along with my #2 diva, Tina Turner) for promoting eroticism and sex. (Hey! I never thought I Believe In Jesus was that sexy...... ;-) )
[JAN 27] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Ning.com, the whole xmultiplied site vanished. I'm not sure what happened, but I'm taking Ning off my Christmas card list. ;-) On Multiply, Jeffrey has posted a few new goodies for your listening pleasure. And on YouTube we have some classic clips posted by fzkny, Antonturboton and aalphan.
[JAN 27] And finally on a personal note, I'd like to wish a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Adrian Parrado who just turned 5 this week. (Or some age that ended in a 5 anyway. ;-) ) I hope you had a big party!!! (Or are you saving that for the concerts next month? ;-) )
[JAN 20] I'm going to start off this week with some annoying news. Some of you remember the artist Jason Forrest who sometimes goes by the name "Donna Summer." He stopped using it for awhile, but now he's coming out with a new album that will be credited to "DJ Donna Summer". He's also going to be performing live at a few places this year. So any reference you run into to an album called Panther Tracks is about him and NOT our Donna. And any concert dates you run into that are for unusual venues should be investigated before you buy your tickets. I'll sort stuff out as I run into it too.
[JAN 20] On to the real diva.... :-) A little bit more has surfaced about the upcoming album. One of the people Donna is working with is "hip-hop violinist" Miri Ben-Ari. There are no details on the songs yet, but in an interview, Miri said "it's going to be amazing." (This is doing absolutely nothing to curb my impatience. Is it spring yet? ..... How about now? LOL)
[JAN 20] In remix news, DanceRecords.com now has Britney Spears vs. Donna: Breathe On Me/I Feel Love and the Castelli & Bravetti mix of I Feel Love.
[JAN 20] In the Donna is everywhere category, a UK show called This Morning had a little quiz the other day, and the question was, "Who sang the original hit song Hot Stuff in 1979?" They gave 3 choices for the answer: "A. Donna Winter, B. Donna Spring, or C. Donna Summer." (Of course the answer Donna Autumn.... hey wait! Why wasn't she a choice? ;-) )
[JAN 20] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, the USA Today Listen Up blog has a little about Donna's record sales.
[JAN 20] In radio news, Orlando radio station Sunny 105.9 has a poll where listeners can pick their favorite artist. Donna is one of the choices.
[JAN 20] That brings us up to the web news for the week. Fancast.com has a section for Donna's TV and DVD appearances. It's a nice list, but be warned that some of the things listed only feature Donna's music. TV.com also has a section on Donna that has several photos where Donna bears an astounding resemblance to Diana Ross. ;-) Over on Multiply, Marcel and Jeffrey have each posted a few goodies, and at YouTube check out Philippe, fzny and venezuelaplc for even more goodies. On Myspace, Christopher has set up a new Donna Summer discussion group for anyone who would like to join. Also in the land of new sites, Jay has gotten fed up with Multiply and started a Donna/Giorgio group on xmultiplied.ning.com and Rocky has a new Donna blog on iMeem.com. At this rate, the whole internet will be taken over by Donna and her fans! [Insert maniacal laughter here.] ;-)
[JAN 13] The 2008 concert dates are already starting to show up. :-) Now we can add Highland Park, IL to the list on August 30 at the Ravinia Festival. Look for those tickets to go on sale this spring.
[JAN 13] Also in concert news, I have a fan named Gareth who was supposed to go to the concert in Florida on February 16. Unfortunately for him, real life has intervened and now he's looking for someone who would like to take the ticket. There is one little hitch - he was supposed to pick up his ticket at "Will Call", so I don't know if that will make it too difficult to transfer ownership of the ticket. But if you want to give it a shot, contact Gareth at garyidavies AT aol DOT com.
[JAN 13] In sad news, Johnny Grant (honorary mayor of Hollywood) passed away this week at the age of 84. Many of you will remember him as the man who presided over the ceremony when Donna got her star on the Walk Of Fame.
[JAN 13] I Feel Love fans - there is a nice article about the song (along with a couple of video clips) posted on the Disco Delivery blog. There are a lot of nice comments to go with the article.
[JAN 13] Moving on to the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in a German bestseller called Ich bin dann mal weg - Meine Reise auf dem Jakobsweg by Hape Kerkeling. In the book he mentions singing All Through The Night during his pilgrimage on the St. Jacob's Trail. If you listen to the audio book, he actually sings at least part of it.
[JAN 13] And in the Donna's music is everywhere category, the new movie Charlie Wilson's War features Bad Girls pretty prominently in a bar scene.
[JAN 13] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply we have a BBC Radio 2 special on I Feel Love posted on the Apollo Zero Jukebox page. (Nose around his page a little and you will see that heexplains how to save the files if you are so inclined. ;-) ) Also check out Hank's page for his paintings of Donna and some mixes, and Patrice's page for his mix of Now I Need You. Over on YouTube, look for videos of Donna at the One Mighty Party concert from last year, a performance of This Time I Know It's For Real from French television, and a cute "cover" of Cold Love by one of Donna's younger fans. ;-)
[JAN 6] I guess the best place to start is with a little release news. (No - not the announcement you are hoping for. LOL) Dave Koz is putting out a DVD version of his At The Movies CD within the next month or so. I don't know if it will include all the music from the CD yet, but I read an interview where Dave mentions recording a show inside Capitol Records with Barry Manilow, Anita Baker, Johnny Mathis and Vanessa Williams. So I guess we'll just have to wait and see what other details turn up. (I believe the show is also supposed to air on PBS later this year - probably during a pledge drive. So watch your local listings for that.)
[JAN 6] In annoying TV news, the Night Of Proms broadcast from December 31 won't be available online for us to watch. Apparently the TV company only bought the rights to play it on the air and not on the internet. Someone who was able to watch said they aired Hot Stuff, Bad Girls and Last Dance. Too bad they left out the rest.
[JAN 6] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in another article about music that was banned (at one time) on BBC radio. She also got a mention in an article in Guideposts about a woman who started a walk aerobics class. She cited Donna's music as good to walk to.
[JAN 6] This is sort of old news in that I linked to the article last week, but the New Pittsburgh Courier article about the Rock Hall Of Fame has a few more comments added - and not all of them are from the usual suspects. I'd say Bob Davis hit a nerve. :-) I got an email from him earlier this week in response to all the comments and apparently there have been a bunch of emails too. ANd Bob sees this as a good thing. He said (in part): "This activity around the injustice done to Donna Summer is a good indicator to me.
If more people care, then the processes that surround the honoring of artists will improve and become more fair.
As long as people don't care, then nothing will change... In other words - if you keep speaking up, maybe somebody will hear. :-)
[JAN 6] For those interested in the Philippine production of The Queen Of Disco: A Musical Tribute To Donna Summer thet I mentioned a couple weeks ago, you can check out the show's website and you can see clips on YouTube.
[JAN 6] I think that brings us up to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, Jay has posted a number of Donna mixes and even some Giorgio stuff for the Moroder fans out there. Jeffrey has posted his first video attempt, and Steve has posted a video clip of Donna singing a cover of Joe Cocker's You Are So Beautiful from Night Of The Proms. Over on YouTube, look for videos of Ain't No Mountain High Enough (the finale from Diva 2000 - a great clip for fans of both Donna and Diana Ross :-) ), and a classic clip of Love To Love You.
[JAN 1] Happy New Year everybody! It's officially 2008, so where is the new CD?!! ;-) (Just teasing - I know we have to wait until spring.) But since it is a new month, it is time to update the Summer Fever page. So this time I decided to put Another Place And Time in the spotlight. In other news, I finally fixed the spellchecker on my web software so maybe there will be a few less stupid typos. LOL
2007:
[DEC 30] Welcome to the last update for 2007. I can't believe the year is over already! Of course that means that we can go full speed ahead into 2008, and as someone told me recently, fasten your seatbelts. :-) Before I get to Donna, I just want to say 2 things. First, I have some news for Mary's fans in the Family Matters section below. And the other thing is that I will be back on some time Tuesday with the Summer Fever pick.
[DEC 30] Moving on to something time sensitive - if you can listen to Italy's RAI Radio2 (either on the radio or on the computer), they will be airing an interview and concert with Gloria Gaynor at 9:30 PM local time. Before you all yell at me and say "WRONG DIVA!" ;-) she does talk about Donna at one point in the show. If you choose to tune in via the internet and Italian isn't your language - the link you are looking for says "Ascolta Live".
[DEC 30] In the Donna is everywhere category, a round up of happenings in Florida mentioned Donna's February show in a very cool quote: "The first gig going on about town that simply must be mentioned first and foremost is the Feb. 17th Donna Summer concert at the Bank Atlantic Centre. Now, this woman is on fire and has been smokin’ hot since the seventies. If she can’t get your mind off your troubles, then I’m afraid you may be hopeless." :-) Also, Donna's gotten a mention in about 8 billion (so far LOL) articles that list the upcoming celebrity birthdays. And if you can stand one more Rock And Roll Hall of Fame article - there is a good one at the New Pittsburgh Courier site.
[DEC 30] Speaking of Donna's birthday, if you are on Facebook, there are 2 Donna Summer groups. One is Donna Summer Rocks and the other is just called Donna Summer. Nik at the "Donna Summer" group has designed and posted a birthday card for Donna, so check that out if you get a chance. (I gave the link for the group, but I don't think it will work unless you are logged in to your Facebook account.
[DEC 30] If you have a little time off for the New Year's holiday and want to spend it surfing the web, check uot the IMDB entry for Donna. They list a whole bunch of TV and soundtrack appearances - AND it looks like they finally ditched that incorrect entry for the movie Coming To America. Also, Rock On The Net has a really detailed timeline of Donna's career that's worth looking at.
[DEC 30] And here's a weird one for you, Donna got a mention on TMZ when they mentioned playing This Time I Know It's For Real on a kazoo. (Hmmmm - maybe a whole album of kazoo covers would make a great Summer Fever pick for April 1? ;-) ) (For those who might not know what a kazoo is - check it out on the Wikipedia.)
[DEC 30] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, look for new videos posted by fzkny and Philippe. And at Multiply, look for new stuff posted by Shawn and Jeffrey. (Note, Jeffrey's url has changed - he had some problems with his old account.)
[DEC 22] Since this will be the last update before Christmas (unless something important comes up) let me tae the opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas! (Or if Christmas isn't your thing - have a very happy Tuesday! :-) ) And please do me one favor - if you are out partying, keep in mind that alcohol and driving don't go well together.
[DEC 22] I'm sure some of you remember that Donna turned up on Toby Gad's video blog a couple of months ago. Well, he's posted his special Christmas edition of the blog (part 1) and he's got Donna on that too. (She's the first celeb up, so you can't miss her. :-) )
[DEC 22] Users of the site Gay Romeo have voted for their Donna Summer top 20 for 2007. (You have to be a member to access it though.)
[DEC 22] In the Donna is everywhere category, she was on ET's Insider the other day. I missed it, but it sounded like they dragged out the footage from 2003 with Donna talking about recording with Barbra, and about depression. Also in the Donna is everywhere category, TheDay.com posted an article about what Santa keeps in his iPod. One of the songs mentioned was She Works Hard For The Money. (Go Santa! ;-) )
[DEC 22] In the world of covers, the movie Priscilla Queen Of The Desert was turned into a stage musical in Melbourne, Australia recently. The soundtrack is now available for sale and it includes covers of Hot Stuff and MacArthur Park. And on an ice skating special that aired today, Brian Boitano and others skated to the music of Barry Manilow. Barry was there performing live for the skaters and for the finale he did Could It Be Magic. The reason I'm calling that a cover is that he did the disco version of the song. So I guess you could say that Barry was doing a cover of Donna's cover of his song. (Did I just make your head explode trying to work that out? LOL)
[DEC 22] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Multiply, there are new things posted by Philippe, Jeffrey, and Patrice. And on YouTube, check out the posting frenzy of DonnaSummerBR. Or if the David Vendetta mix of Love To Love You is more your speed - that is now posted on YouTube as well.
[DEC 19] At long last the E-Greetings page is complete! Thanks to everyone who wrote. This has become a fun tradition here at the site thanks to all your participation. :-)
[DEC 19] As long as I'm here I'm going to do part of the regular update now in case things get a bit crazy this weekend. :-) To start things off, Ken has a new Ken's Korner for you. I also have another Rock Hall Of Fame article added to the list below.
[DEC 19] The 2008 dates are starting to trickle in apparently. :-) Pollstar reports that Donna will be at L'Auberge du Lac Hotel & Casino in Lake Charles, LA on June 27 and 28, 2008. It's not listed on the casino's website yet, but I'll be keeping an eye on that.
[DEC 19] If you are in the Phillipines and are looking for a Donna fix, check out the new stage musical, The Queen Of Disco: A Musical Tribute To Donna Summer. It premiere's December 31 at Onstage Greenbelt 1with Jenine Desiderio playing Donna. Inquirer.net has an interview with Jenine posted on the site.
[DEC 19] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in a Telegraph article about songs and lyrics that were banned by the BBC. (Hmmmm, maybe this actually falls into the category of "Donna isn't everywhere"? LOL)
[DEC 19] I'll be back this weekend with all the web news and whatever else turns up between now and then. :-)
[DEC 15] If you have RealPlayer and want to listen to a little Donna while reading this update, check out Soul Patrol's internet radio show - the Donna edition of course. ;-)
[DEC 15] So, the big news is still the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductions. I know most of us are disappointed that Donna didn't get in this time, but personally I'm finding a little humor in the whole situation. If you were reading the various music blogs when the nominees were announced, there were a bunch of people complaining that Donna (and others) shouldn't have been nominated at all because she's not rock enough, or because [insert name of any rock band] should have been nominated first. And now that the official inductees for 2008 have been announced, the blogs are all saying Donna was robbed and she should be in the Hall Of Fame. Talk about a 180 degree change! LOL (Hmmm - maybe that's the REAL purpose of the induction process - it's to make people argue! LOL) I'll put links to some of the latest Hall Of Fame articles in the media section below, and for those who still would like to see the ceremony - it will air live on VH1 Classic on March 10. (And I REALLY hope Madonna sings her Future Lovers/I Feel Love medley. ;-) )
[DEC 15] You have just a few more days to get your E-Greetings to Donna in to me. Just send your message to webmaster@donna-tribute.com and put something obvious like "e-greeting" in the subject line, and I'll post your message. The deadline is the 19th, so get writing! :-)
[DEC 15] That brings us up to the web news for the week. Over at Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has finally updated his Donna Top 40. A Whole New World makes an amazingly high debut! Over at YouTube, Sandro has posted some new VLADIS Art video mixes. And on Multiply, look for new mixes from Patrice, Jeffrey, and Denis.
[DEC 13] Well I said I'd be back today. Only I was hoping to be back for a celebration. :-( The 2008 inductees for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame are Leonard Cohen, The Dave Clark Five, Madonna, John Mellencamp, and The Ventures. Well, there is always 2009.....
[DEC 8] Let me start off this week by saying that the announcement for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees has been moved up to December 13. So I will definitely be updating that day. :-) In the meantime, keep all your fingers and toes crossed that the Hall Of Fame voters recognize what WE'VE all known for years.
[DEC 8] In release news, Dutch fans should be on the lookout for a Night Of The Proms 2007 CD. It will have tracks by Il Novecento, Kide Creole, Macy Gray, John Miles, and of course Donna. She's got the final 2 tracks : MacArthur Park and State Of Independence.
[DEC 8] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a brief mention in Billboard.com's Chartbeat Chat (November 30) in questions about the Eagles. She also gets a quick mention in a short review of the American Bandstand 50th Anniversary box set.
[DEC 8] And finally, in web news this week - the guys have been a little busy. ;-) On YouTube, Sandro has posted 3 new classic clips, and fzkny has posted his Black Lady mix. On Multiply, Carlybabes has posted his Christmas greeting to everyone, Patrice has posted a few new tracks, Denis has posted a medley of Donna ballads, and Philippe has posted 5 new clips. If that doesn't keep you busy this week, I don't know what will! ;-)
[DEC 8] Don't forget to get your E-Greetings in! The deadline is the 19th. :-)
[DEC 2] Well, this is a special update. Not because of what I have to say this week, but because my new computer arrived the other day and I got it set up (mostly) in time to do the update on it. This might mean a whole new set of typos! LOL
[DEC 2] Let's go back to Holland again. First of all, I've added more fan reports to the Night Of Proms page. I have some good news about the NOTP telecast on New Year's Eve - it will most likely be streamed online after the initial broadcast. I'll get you more details on that as soon as I get them. :-) And if you go to the NOTP website, they have a nice new photo of Donna right there on the main page where you can't possibly miss it. :-)
[DEC 2] In Hall Of Fame news, the voting is over and the inductees will be announced next month. John Mellancamp has announced that he received a call saying he was definitely inducted (not a surprise at all, in my opinion) but my question is, how come he got called early? (And how do we get to find out early if Donna made the cut? ;-) )
[DEC 2] In the Donna is everywhere category, an Inquirer.com article lists a number of artists who have performed corporate gigs and they mentioned Donna performing a killer version of I Feel Love for a mid-90s show for Computer Shopper Magazine.
[DEC 2] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over on Multiply, Patrice is in full Christmas mode with a new mix and a new holiday photo montage. And at YouTube, Philippe has posted a new animation of Sentimental, and fzkny has posted his new video for There Will Always Be A You.
[DEC 2] And on a final note - there is still just over 2 weeks to get your E-Greetings for Donna in. The deadline is the 19th, so get writing! :-)
[DEC 2] Oops - in my excitement to move files and see if Frontpage would play nicely with Windows Vista, I almost forgot that it's time for the new Summer Fever pick. To the surprise of absolutely no one, it's Christmas Spirit. ;-)
[NOV 25] Before I get to the news I have a little site news for you. First of all, I have some Taihisha news in the Family Matters section below. I've also been working on the E-Greetings page (for the 135 snoops who have checked in there so far LOL), and I've added a couple of fan reports and a bunch of photos from Holland. Tonight is Donna's last night performing at the Night Of Proms, so it's a good time to thank all the Dutch fans who have been keeping me in the loop the last couple weeks. You guys rock! (I'm talking to you Frank and Tom - I probably could have made a whole email folder just for you! LOL) By the way - there is still plenty of time to send in your greetings, so get writing!
[NOV 25] So, I guess I should get the bad news out of the way first... the single that was supposed to happen next month is not happening now. They found out just the other day, and honestly I'm not surprised. With the CD coming out in May (2008 for the wise guys out there ;-) ), I think a single now would be a bit premature. It's better to get the buzz going a little closer to the release date. (Disclaimer: that's the opinion of a pharmacy technician and not a music business insider, so what do I know? LOL)
[NOV 25] The other bit of bad news is that according to Donna's camp, the Tasha Smith biopic is not happening. (See Oct. 29 below if you don't know what I'm talking about.) I know the interview indicated that Tasha was going to do the film even without Donna's input - but realistically, if they wanted to use the music then they need permission, and there's no way they would get that without Donna checking out the script.
[NOV 25] Okay, I'm done depressing you. ;-) On to more fun stuff, we have another Dutch interview out there on ad.nl. (If you use Google to translate it for you, I found that it didn't want to just translate the whole page for some reason. It worked much better if I just cut and pasted the text into the Google page.)
[NOV 25] In release news, EMI has put out 2 new compilations in Australia. They are Rocktober and Classic Hits. There is supposed to be a Donna track on the Classic Hits compilation, but I haven't been able to find a track listing for that one yet. In fact, I haven't found that one at all on the online music stores - at least, I couldn't find a Classic Hits compilation that I knew was the right one for sure. Rocktober doesn't have Donna on it, but it was released at the same time as Classic Hits and is much easier to search for. (My theory is that a retailer that has one will also have the other eventually.)
[NOV 25] In more Rock Hall news, the Cleveland Plain Dealer had a poll about this year's nominees, and just recently they published a few of the comments they got. An eighth-grader wrote in to say: <<The Rock Hall should induct Donna Summer, because she's obviously significant in the making of disco. From hits like "Last Dance" to "She Works Hard for the Money," Donna has sung it loud and clear with her powerful voice.>> So I guess there really are some smart kids out there! :-) (For the international readers, an eighth-grader would be about 13 or 14 years old.)
[NOV 25] That brings us up to the web news for the week. Over on YouTube, fznky has posted some new clips, Philippe has posted a Christmas animation, and if you search for "Donna Summer" you will find a couple of clips from various users from Night Of The Proms. On Multiply, Philippe has added some of his photo creations, Patrice has posted a couple of musical goodies for you, and yours truly has posted 2 versions of the Dutch radio interview - a short one from the broadcast and the longer one Frank posted on the forums. You can find those on either my Multiply page or on the Donna Summer Love group page.
[NOV 18] Get your passports - we're going to Holland. ;-) (Well, not literally, but that's where most of the news is coming from this time.) Hmmm - now where to start? Let me start with the most time sensitive item - if you missed the update from the other day, Donna will be on Dutch Radio 2 (Schiffers FM) Monday from 14:00 to 17:00 local time. They broadcast on the net too - and if you miss it live, the show will be archived on the station's site for a week.
[NOV 18] As most of you probably know, Donna is performing in Holland at the Night Of The Proms event. I've heard from a few people who have been to the show and I have started posting fan reports (and photos) here on the site. I'll keep posting more as I get them. :-) If you want to see some professional photos from the show, check out Sentimento.nl. (Donna's photos start on page 5.) And if you want to see a little video clip, check out Dag.nl. There is also an interview with Donna posted on Vrouw.nl. That's one is in Dutch, so if that's not your language, find a Dutch buddy (preferably a cute one ;-) ) Or you can just use Google's translator. That will give you the gist of what's being said, and a few laughs at some of the weird translations. And finally, there was also a small article in the Algemeen Dagblad newspaper. I'll give you the actual quote and then the translation (and then you can start your happy dances. ;-) ) <<In het voorjaar van 2008 zal eindelijk haar nieuwe album verschijnen. "Het zal een echte popplaat worden met ballads en dansnummers. Fergie van de Black Eyed Peas doet mee, maar ook de mensen die songs schreven voor onder meer Lilly Allen en Beyoncé."
Translation: In the spring of 2008 the new album will finally appear. "It will be a real pop album with ballads and dance tunes. Fergie of Black Eyed Peas will participate, but also the people who wrote songs for (among others) Lilly Allen en Beyoncé">>
[NOV 18] Speaking of albums...... how does May sound? ;-) Some of the guys in Holland got backstage and they came back with a little info on the upcoming CD. :-) The first thing is that they are looking at a May release date. We also have another song title - it's Crayons. (That's kind of intriguing actually....) And the final little tidbit - are you ready for it? We are going to have a dance single next month. :-) My guess is that it's either going to be a club thing to warm people up, or an iTunes download mainly because I don't think that many labels really press that many CD singles any more. I'm just going to say now that if it's an iTunes thing that starts off limited to the US only at first, we'll handle it the same way we handled I Got Your Love when that first hit iTunes. So don't worry. :-)
[NOV 18] Back to Night Of Proms news for a second - the November 17 show was taped and it will be aired on Dutch television on December 31. So if you live over there, keep an eye on your local listings for the time and channel.
[NOV 18] Now for the really annoying news. There is a Dutch show called Man bijt hond that runs various comedy skits at the end of each show. On Thursday, they decided to a skit about Donna. Here's the description I was given: <<A man gets into a taxi and the taxi-driver (a woman) asks him where he wants to go to. He says that he wants to go to the Night of the Proms. Her strong reaction was that that's just cheap fun for people who want to sing along and that he shouldn't go. Then she states that she and her girlfriend (making clear that she is a lesbian) also definitely are not willing to go because of the performance of Donna Summer, the biggest hater of gays in the world. She also tells the passenger that Donna Summer is a bimbo with false hair and again that she's the biggest hater of gays in the world. After that the sketch ends.>> Maybe it's me, but I'm missing the part where the humor is supposed to be. (It sort of reminds me of the Don Imus debacle from earlier this year. I understood that he thought that he was trying to be funny, but I could never understand why he thought his comment was funny as opposed to just plain rude.)
[NOV 18] In compilation news, there is a new album out in Japan by Disney called Princess Dance. The first track is Donna's cover of Someday.
[NOV 18] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, in the UK they just had "disco night" on X-Factor. (That's the UK version of American Idol.) One of the contestants sang Hot Stuff - and she must have dome well because she made it into the final 6. ;-) They also played Bad Girls and I Feel Love in the background during a couple of segments.
[NOV 18] And that brings us up to the web news (finally LOL). Over on YouTube, fznky has posted a new remix, and a couple of users have posted clips from the Night Of The Proms shows. The best of the lot so far is Benzw202, but even that is more for listening to than for watching. And on Multiply Patrice, Denis and Sandro have all been busy posting little goodies for everyone.
[NOV 18] I think that's it for this week, but I'll be back early if anything important comes up. :-) (Actually I'll be updating the e-greetings page later tonight for those of you who have been sneaking around to look at the page in progress. LOL) Let me take this opportunity to wish all my American friends a Happy Thanksgiving. And to my non-American friends, Thanksgiving is a holiday that is meant to be shared - so take the day off from work and celebrate with us. (Hmmmm.... I suspect that I have just annoyed a whole bunch of employers out there. LOL)
[NOV 16] I'm back with a time-sensitive item for Holland (and anyone who can listen to net radio.) :-) Donna will be on Schiffers FM radio in Holland on Monday - I'm not sure what time though. Maybe you local boys can sniff that out. ;-) You will be able to listen live on the station's website, and they will archive it for a week so you can catch it at whatever time works best for you. For the language-challenged (like me), to listen live you click "LUISTER LIVE" on the menu on the left. Or to listen to the archive, click "TERUGLUISTEREN." UPDATE: The radio show will run from 14:00 to 17:00 (local time) and I'm told that the archived podcast on the website may be longer than what airs on the radio. So if you are tuning in live, you will want to go back and check the archive too. :-)
[NOV 11] Happy Veteran's Day to all the vets out there! (Now is the perfect time to start telling your war stories.... well, unless you served in peace time. ;-) )
[NOV 11] Just a reminder - E-Greetings for Donna is in full swing. I have about a half a dozen or so messages already and I have started building the new page. But as usual, I won't make the link public until the page is complete. (Sneaky visitors will have no trouble finding the page in progress if they want to though. LOL) You have until December 19 to get your messages to me so I can post them in time - so get writing! :-)
[NOV 11] As many of you know, Donna should be hitting the stage at the Night Of Proms concert in just a few days. Hopefully that will mean some newspaper articles and such to promote the shows. I know some of you are planning to see one or more of the shows - if you go, send in a report. I'll post it here on the site. :-)
[NOV 11] If you are looking for another place to hook up with other Donna fans, check out the Donna club at GayRomeo.com. It's based in Germany, but all are welcome - and the page is in both German and English.
[NOV 11] In the Donna is everywhere category this week, Gay Spy quoted a few lines from Hot Stuff at the beginning of its November 5 guide to the week ahead.
[NOV 11] Believe it or not, that brings us to the web news for the week. Philippe (formerly from Mes Dessins de Donna Summer) has posted a new video clip on his Multiply page. It's a tribute to the webmasters out there. (And I am such a techno-geek that when I saw the part where the animated Donna was standing next to the Brickomania page - my first thought was was , "Wow! I wish I had a monitor that big! LOL) While you are on Multiply, check out Patrice, Denis, Jeff and the Donna Summer group. All have posted some interesting things recently. And at YouTube, fznky has posted his mix of On The Radio.
[NOV 4] Since it's officially November, that means the holidays are speeding towards us at an astounding rate. (And I used to think my grandmother was nuts when she used to say that time goes faster the older you get! LOL) Anyway, I think this is a good time to announce the 2007 E-Greetings for Donna. My usual readers know the drill, but for the rest of you, this is the deal. Send me your holiday messages for Donna and I'll post them on a page here on the site for her and her family to read. If English isn't your thing, you can email me in any language Google can translate (and that doesn't require me to download a new font) and I will post your original message with a translation. (Just please do your own spell checking - computer translations are tricky under the best of circumstances. But then when you throw in a spelling error or 2.... well, the whole internet could explode or something. LOL) You can send me a photo too - but I reserve the right to shrink it down to a reasonable size for the web page. If you run your own website and want to post a greeting page there, send me the link and I'll make sure the powers that be get it. If you play around with YouTube and want to post a video greeting there, send me the url and I'll add that to the greetings page. Usually I set up a special email address for the e-greetings, but the way my web mail operates right now it's probably easier to just to use the usual webmaster@donna-tribute.com. Please put "e-greeting" or "message for donna" in the subject line somewhere to make it easier for me to sort. Let's make the deadline December 19 - that gives you guys plenty of time to write, and me plenty of time to make the page. :-)
[NOV 4] Okay - on to the news. This week's big story is about the Freemasons. Some of you may remember that there was a rumor that they were tapped to work on a track or 2 for Donna. Well, this week we found out that they have put work for Donna (and for Britney Spears) on hold for a little while while they do some work for Beyoncé. The story has been picked up by a number of online news sources, but this is the link I have handy at the moment.
[NOV 4] Speaking of Britney Spears..... no she hasn't shaved her head again (at least I don't think so).... Her new CD, Blackout, has been getting a lot of reviews lately and at least one reviewer has thrown in a comparison between Britney's music to such dance classics as I Feel Love. Unfortunately for Britney, it's not a favorable comparison - but hey, when you are talking about I Feel Love, very few songs can compare. ;-)
[NOV 4] In release news..... well, it's not really news exactly, other than it's news to me. LOL Here's the story, recently someone asked me about the alternate version of Hot Stuff with the extra ad-libbing at the end. It's never been released on any of Donna's compilations, but the person who emailed me found it on a various artist compilation called The Disco Years Vol. 4. [Amazon, Amazon UK] So if you are looking for that particular version of Hot Stuff, now you know where to find it. (Just a note, the 12' version has some of the extra ad-libs, but it fades out sooner than this alternate single version does.)
[NOV 4] And that leave just the web news for the week. It's been a pretty quiet week on the web (because I think everybody is too busy talking about the biopic new from the other day to worry about YouTube. LOL) But for those of you who like (or who just want to hear) the Hot Tracks mix of She Works Hard For The Money, fzkny has posted his slideshow/video for that on YouTube. There is also a very cool mix of Donna vs. Hard Fi, She Works Hard To Beat The Cash Machine.
[NOV 4] And here I thought I was done and I was just about to hit "upload". LOL Hot out of my email box, one of the guys has been doing some snooping around the web to see if he would figure out some of the people Donna has been working with on the new album. I'm going to post his findings in a second, but before I do I just want to make sure that you all understand that this list isn't any sort of official track list for the CD. Any or all of these songs could wind up in the vault if they decide to use other stuff for the actual release. It all depends on what tracks they have and what tracks work well together as a whole album. Okay, so here are the writers (THANK YOU TONY!): Kara Dioguardi & Tony Bruno on a track called Unpredictable, Annie Roboff and Kandi L Burruss on a song called I Will, Lester Mendez and Wayne Hector on a track called Reasons, and Danielle Brisebois on songs called Stamp and Brazil. And of course we know Donna's written at least one song with Toby Gad, she was working with Peter Stengard, and she's supposed to work with the Freemasons.
[NOV 2] Oops - I meant to post this last night. It's time for the new Summer Fever pick and this time it's something completely new. This time it's the fresh from the vault release of Twiggy's Heaven In My Eyes Discotheque as produced by Donna and Juergen Koppers.
[OCT 29] Surprise! I'm back. :-) I got a little email alert in my mailbox this morning that I thought should be shared right away. The Black Voices Blog reports that Tasha Smith is working on a Donna biopic that they hope to have ready within the next 2 years.
[OCT 28] Let me start off with a little site news. My web host is upgrading the email servers on Tuesday October 30 starting at about 9 PM Eastern time to about 3 AM. So it's possible that if you email me during that time, your message might bounce back. If that happens, just try again later. I have all my fingers crossed that the upgrade goes smoothly. :-)
[OCT 28] In Hall Of Fame news, Goldmine (probably THE magazine to have if you are a serious record collector) has a poll on the Hall Of Fame nominees. Donna is in 5th place at the moment, but actually some of the results I'm seeing over there are not quite what I expected.
[OCT 28] In release news, the Donna/Juergen Koppers produced Twiggy album will hit regular retainers on November 12 and 13 - depending on where you live. It's called Heaven In My Eyes and it's been locked in the vault since the late 70s. If you didn't get your copy from TwiggyLawson.com yet, then head over to Amazon UK on November 12 or Amazon US on November 13. (There are sound clips posted on Amazon too, for those who want a little sneak preview before their copy arrives.)
[OCT 28] Also in the land of releases, DanceRecords.com has the 12" of I Feel Love/Love To Love You back in stock.
[OCT 28] For you photo hounds out there, FamousUK.com has a couple of rare photos from the 80s posted. Just put Donna's name in the search box to see them.
[OCT 28] With Night Of The Proms right around the corner, it's time for Europe to start getting excited. ;-) A recent Ahoy newsletter listed all the upcoming events for November and Donna's photo was right there on top. :-) If you are in that area (or will be at any time from the 15th to the 24th) go catch one of the shows.
[OCT 28] If you are a member of Facebook, Nik has started a Donna group over there. Just search for Donna under "groups" and Nik's group is the one that uses the artwork from his site.
[OCT 28] In the Donna is everywhere category, singer (and Donna fan) Darrell Russ talked a little about how Donna inspired his song, Riding Home From Baltimore on a recent radio interview. You can listen to the archived interview online. And Donna gets a rather strange mention in a Dionne Warwick concert review.
[OCT 28] That brings us up to the web news for the week. Most of the happenings are on Multiply this time with both Patrice and Denis posting new mixes. On YouTube, it's been fairly quiet this week, but I have run into the instrumental version of Theme From The Deep. And there are a couple of clips posted from Amanda's band, Johnny Swim. I'll be back later this week with the new Summer Fever pick. :-)
[OCT 21] Let's start off this week with a little chart news out of the UK. On the October 14 BBC Radio 1 Dance album chart, The Journey debuts at number 30. Not bad for an album that's a couple years old. ;-) (I wonder if it has to do with the Hall Of Fame nomination? And yes, I think I'm going to try to mention the Rock Hall Of Fame in every update from now until the inductees are announced. LOL)
[OCT 21] Over in Belgium, Radio Donna is doing it's annual poll to pick their top 2000. For those of you who are as language -challenged as I am, here's the step by step instructions for voting. On that Radio Donna page, click "stem nu". On the next page you will find a list of songs (by decade) arranged alphabetically by the artist's first name. Click your first choice, then the button that says "toevoegen". Do the same for your second and third choices and then pick the "verder" button. On the next page you can rearrange your choices with the arrow buttons if you want and there are 2 more empty boxes if you want to add a couple of other songs. The last question on the page is "welke is je absolute kraakplaat?" which translates to "what is your absolute jam?" Fill in your favorite song and click the "verder" button. On the next page the first 2 boxes are the only mandatory fields to fill out - and they are for your name and email address. Fill those in and click "verder" again. Then on the last page confirm your vote by clicking "verstuur je gegevens". Then you are done. :-) The results will be announced in December.
[OCT 21] In the Donna is everywhere category, once again La Lola in Argentina has used a Donna song in the show. :-) This time it was Bad Girls. If you are down in Argentina, check out the show - at the very least you are guaranteed a great soundtrack. ;-)
[OCT 21] And for those of you watching every minute development in the countdown to the new CD (that's all of us, right? LOL), Pure Tone (the A&R firm who will be promoting the album) has updated the banner to their site to include Donna. They also have her new picture on their A&R Consulting page.
[OCT 21] That brings us to the web news for the week - and there is quite a bit. I'll start with the bad news first. Philippe from Mes dessins de Donna Summer will be closing up shop on his website in the very near future. But it's not all bad news because he's got all his drawings (and videos) posted on his Multiply page. So just update all your bookmarks to point to that page instead. :-) Over at Forever Donna, Sandro has been busy again. He's built a new intro page and he's sneaked some new features into the main page. (I think a few of you might enjoy the rarities jukebox...... ;-) ) Over on YouTube, fzkny has posted his remix of On My Honor. I've also run into a Blondie cover of I Feel Love which I never even knew they did. (And which is especially appropriate after that Debra Harry interview clip I posted last week. ;-) ) On AOL video, there is a clip of Donna on French TV from back in the day. (I'm not sure if I had a bad connection today or if AOL video is just really temperamental, but I found that the playback stuttered a lot on the first run through.) And finally for those who prefer to download their videos, the Just Good Tunes blog has a little something from 1990 that might be of interest to some of you guys. ;-) It's a rather large download and you will need to get a program that extracts .rar files
(if you don't have one already.) But it's worth it.
[OCT 14] Hmmmmm - I think I want to start out with the only rumor for the week. ForeverBeyonce.com reports (and even they call it a rumor so don't get too excited) that Donna and Beyonce will be dueting on a track called Heat produced by the Freemasons. One of the sources they cite is the PopJustice site that reported that Donna (and Beyonce) were working with the Freemasons on their new albums. However the original article doesn't mention any duets. So for now I'd say file this under something fun to talk and think about, but don't get your hopes up too high.
[OCT 14] Speaking of fun things to talk and think about - yup, I've got a little more on the Rock Hall Of Fame. :-) Now that everybody has had a chance to live with the list of nominees for a little while, we at the point where people are debating the merits of the nominees and of the people who were passed over this time. (And when I say "debating" in some cases I mean celebrating or sulking - and that, of course, is half the fun! LOL) Anyway, USAToday has some really nice comments about Donna. (If you recall there was a huge thread over there last year about Donna's worthiness for the Hall Of Fame.) The Boston Herald also has some new comments posted in response to their original article. And then on video, The Sauce asked Debbie Harry about Donna's nomination - and although that part of the conversation got cut short, I think most of you will be pleased with Debbie's reaction. (If that link doesn't work then do a search for videos on the FuseTV page for "Debbie Harry" and then pick the result that says "The Sauce 3" from October 10. There are 3 parts and one is clearly labeled "Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. Of course the Debbie fans out there will want to watch all 3 parts. ;-) )
[OCT 14] In iTunes news, the song Black Power is available for download. (That was one Donna recorded in her early days in Germany for a TV show called 11 Uhr 20.) You won't find it by searching for Donna though. The artist is listed as Peter Thomas because he did all the music for that show.
[OCT 14] In the Donna is everywhere category, a revival of the musical The Ritz has been updated to include both Love To Love You and Last Dance. (But if you want to catch it, get there quickly because the show only runs until December 2 at Studio 54 in New York.)
[OCT 14] And over in Germany, Stage Entertainment is using a cover of Love To Love You in their TV commercials.
[OCT 14] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at YouTube, check out Toby Gad's video blog for October 8. In the very beginning you see Toby in the studio with Donna and he mentions that they are writing a song together. And fzkny is at it again with his video mix of I Feel Love. And right here on the Tribute Site, I sneaked in a 'new" picture on the Cats Without Claws page.
[OCT 8] Yeah, I know I updated last night..... but I got one more article today that I didn't want to hold for a week. The Tennessean has Donna's reaction to her Hall Of Fame nomination. :-) (I can't believe that never came out in a Google alert.)
[OCT 7] I'd like to start off this week with some sad personal news. Ken Allan (author of Ken's Korner) lost his mother earlier this week. So I would like to dedicate this update to the memory of Rose Allan, and by request of the family, I would like to dedicate this song to her as well:
|
Breath Of Heaven
(Grant/Eaton)
And Gabriel appeared to Mary and said:/ "Do not be afraid, Mary/ You have found favor with God/ You will be with child/ And give birth to a son/ And you are to give him the name Jesus
He will be great/ He will be called the son of the Most High/ And the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David/ And he will reign over the house of David forever/ His kingdom will never end"
I have traveled/ Many moonless nights/ Cold and weary/ With a babe inside/ And I wonder what I've done/ Holy Father, You have come/ Chosen me now/ To carry your son
I am waiting/ In a silent prayer/ I am frightened/ By the load I bear/ In a world as cold as stone/ Must I walk this path alone?/ Be with me now/ Be with me now
Breath of heaven/ Hold me together/ Be forever near me/ Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven/ Lighten my darkness/ Pour over me your holiness/ For You are holy/ Breath of heaven
Do you wonder/ As You watch my face/ If a wiser one/ Should have had my place?/ But I offer all I am/ For the mercy of your plan/ Help me be strong/ Help me/ Help me be strong
Breath of heaven/ Hold me together/ Be forever near me/ Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven/ Brighten my darkness/ Pour over me your holiness/ For You are holy
Breath of heaven/ Hold me together/ Be forever near me/ Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven/ Lighten my darkness/ Pour over me your holiness/ For You are holy/ Breath of heaven
Breath of heaven/ Breath of heaven
|
Hang in there Ken!
[OCT 7] On to the news.... and it's still the Rock Hall nomination. Articles are still pouring in - most haven't added too much new information, but now more places are chiming in with their opinions on this year's nominees. I posted a few more articles for you in the media section below, and if you are one of the mad voters out there, MSNBC has a poll where people can vote for their favorite nominees. (They also have photos and audio clips for each artist.) When I checked it just now, Donna was at #4 behind Madonna, John Mellencamp and The Beastie Boys.
[OCT 7] In CD news, the word from PureTone (the promoters) is that we can expect a press release "soon." As soon as one turns up, I'll post it for you.
[OCT 7] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in an article about "Monday" songs. Apparently the song Blue Monday by New Order has a drum beat that was at least partly inspired by one of Donna's b-sides.
[OCT 7] Over in Argentina, I swear there is a diehard fan working on the show La Lola. I feel like every week they use a Donna song! LOL This time is was I Feel Love in a bar scene and Spring Affair in a love scene. :-) The show airs on the América 2 channel if you want to tune in for the next Donna track. ;-)
[OCT 7] Here in the US, Donna was a category on the show Don't Forget The Lyrics. Unfortunately, the contestant chickened out and chose a different category. I guess she's not a regular visitor here? LOL
[OCT 7] I think that brings us up to the web news for the week. Over at YouTube, Sandro (of Forever Donna fame) has posted parts of the 1980 TV special. If you haven't seen it since it aired, this is your chance. :-) Fzkny has also been busy - he posted a few more of his music/photo videos - including Shut Out/Heaven Is a Disco which went up literally as I was typing this update. (And it's a much longer version of the song than what we got on Paul's Greatest Hits & Misses CD.)
[OCT 7] An interesting suggestion came to my email box this week. Someone wrote in saying how cool it would be to get Donna on Saturday Night Live and that maybe we should start a campaign to get them to invite her. Now that's a good idea, but I don't think it goes far enough. Why stop with SNL? There are a whole bunch of other shows out there that would also be great exposure. So what I'm proposing is this - if you are a fan of a show and you think Donna should be on it - SEND THEM AN EMAIL! Just about every show has some sort of web presence and while you probably won't get a personal reply to your message, I guarantee somebody will be reading it. And if they see enough messages saying "please book Donna Summer" somewhere somebody will get dollar signs in their eyes and they will seek her out. Seriously! (And this is the perfect time to start doing that with the Hall of Fame Nomination and the new CD coming..... ;-) )
[OCT 7] And finally for those of you watching Burgundy Records..... Chaka Khan's CD, Funk This, (boy do I have to watch for typos on that one LOL) debuts on the Billboard album chart at #15! That's a very good start. :-)
[SEP 30] Since tomorrow is October 1, I thought I would post the Summer Fever pick tonight. This month I thought it was time to bring back Cats Without Claws in honor of my friend's brand new little kitten. (Although, he does have claws as I found out when he tried to climb my leg the other day. LOL)
[SEP 29] I know it's only Saturday, but I came across something in my email box last night (about 2 million times! But thanks to all who wrote - this is worth celebrating! :-) ) that I thought was worth the early update. It seems that the finalists for the 2008 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony have been announced. There are 9 artists on the list - ONLY FIVE of which will make it into the Hall next year. (I just want to make it clear that not all 9 will be inducted next year because I have seen one news article that seemed to miss that point.) The artists are Madonna (probably guaranteed to be inducted), John Mellencamp (also probably a shoe-in), Chic (I think this is about the 4th time they've been nominated), The Dave Clark Five, The Ventures, Leonard Cohen, Afrika Bambaataa, The Beastie Boys......... and someone named Donna Summer. :-) This is Donna's first official nomination, but she has been considered previously. Even if it goes no further than the nomination, this is really great news....... but I have a REALLY good feeling about this. :-) Next year I celebrate 30 years as a fan - I think it's going to be a BIG celebration! There are news articles about the nominations all over the net and some of the sites will even let you post comments. I'm posting a bunch of links below in the media section so you can check them out at your leisure. And for those who don't
know the induction ceremony takes place in NY on March 10. (That might make a nice lead in for a spring CD....... ;-) ) Please note, while numerous media outlets are asking to vote for your favorites, the actual inductions voted on by professional musicians. The online polls are pretty much just for fun.
[SEP 29] Well...... after the Rock Hall news, the rest of the update seems pretty much underwhelming this week. LOL But seriously, I have some reissue news that I know will make some of you very happy. PerfectBeat.com has reissues of The Dance Collection for sale and I know that one is a favorite with quite a few of you. So if your copy is worn out (or walked away after you played it for someone else LOL) here's your chance to grab a new copy.
[SEP 29] There is a store in England called Trax that sells a remix CD called Fantasy. It's got about 20 tracks on it and they include remixes of Love To Love You, I Remember Yesterday, and a song called Daylight which may possibly be a remix of Whenever There Is Love. (I don't have the CD so I can't tell you for sure - but if someone out there has more details on the remixers, etc let me know and I'll pass that along.)
[SEP 29] In remix news, PopJustice.com reports that The Freemasons have been asked to do some songs for both Donna's album and Beyonce's album.
[SEP 29] I guess that brings us up to the web news for the week. Over at YouTube, Philippe from Mes dessins de Donna Summer has posted his new animated clip for Lady Of The Night. (Or head to Dailymotion.com for a better copy.) Or if you are interested in hard to find official music videos, IndyCote has posted Work That Magic, I Don't Wanna Get Hurt, Love Is In Control, All Systems Go, and a TV appearance with Donna and Giorgio performing Carry On. There is also an accapella version of Donna and Barbra's No More Tears posted - that one is more for listening to than for viewing though.
[SEP 29] And finally for all you Burgundy watchers...... Chaka Khan's new CD is finally out and she's been getting a nice amount of publicity for it - including an interview in Billboard.. I think that bodes very well for Donna when it's her turn. ;-)
[SEP 23] Let me start off by wishing a happy birthday to Bruce Sudano. :-) And let me also send a personal message to Chester: Look! I updated! ;-p (Let's see how long before you find this message. LOL)
[SEP 23] This week, the big news is out of the Netherlands. As most of you know, Donna is playing Night Of The Proms in Rotterdam this year. (See the tour dates below for details.) She's also doing a couple of NOTP dates in Arnhem. The Arnhem venue is a smaller place and there is some sort of deal wither you can collect stamps at certain shops and then turn them in for a voucher to get 2 tickets to Arnhem for only 10 Euros. For details check out this site - it's in Dutch, so if that's not your best language be prepared to use an online translator or a bilingual friend. ;-)
[SEP 23] Speaking of Night Of The Proms, there is a Best Of Night Of Proms 2 DVD available online that includes Donna's performance of MacArthur Park. You can order it here. This site is also in Dutch, so if you need a little help one of the guys posted step by step instructions on the Donna Summer & More (formerly Endless Summer) forum.
[SEP 23] Let's move over to the UK for a minute.... Amazon UK has a new DVD listed called Donna Summer In Concert (2007). Before you all freak out and think it's something new - it's not. It's the edited version of Live & More Encore that aired on TV here and that has popped up on DVD in other countries (- Brazil if I recall, maybe some others too.) It's a budget release if you want it to complete your collection, but there is nothing there that you don't already have on the regular Live & More Encore DVD. If you are interested in buying it and you live outside the UK, keep in mind that this is a region 2 release. So you'll need a multi-region player to view it.
[SEP 23] Closer to home (my home that is - I know you guys are scattered all over the place! ;-) ) Flashdance [Amazon, Amazon UK] was just released in a special edition DVD set. The set includes a 6 track music CD that has Romeo on it, and there are 5 behind the scenes features - some of which include comments from Giorgio Moroder. He does get to talk about the music, but not specifically about Donna. (But with the number of Giorgio fans around here, I'm sure that won't be an issue. ;-) ) Please note, Flashdance also exists as a regular DVD so if you are out shopping, make sure you get the one marked "special edition". Also, I'm not sure if it is available in anything other than Region 1 yet, so if you are ordering from outside North America make sure you have a multi-region player.
[SEP 23] That brings us to the web news for the week. Patrice at DonnaDonna is back and he's got an account at Multiply now too. So you can grab all his latest mixes over there. :-) And over at YouTube, I know I mentioned last week that Cold Love from the old Tom Snyder show had turned up as a high quality clip. Well, now the interview portion of that show is also up in equally high quality. Fzkny has posted his video mix of Rumor Has It for your viewing pleasure this week. And I finally decided to do something slightly useful with YouTube's favorites feature. I've made a Donna playlist with a number of clips that have caught my eye for whatever reason and I've decided to make the list public. It obviously doesn't include all the great gems that can be found on YouTube, but it's got a few of my favorites and whatever else I remembered to favorite along the way. :-) If anyone else has any Donna playlists that they want to make public, just send me your link and I'll add them.
[SEP 23] And finally I have something completely silly for you. I know some of you who have seen the Another Place And Time Summer Fever page when it's been up have noticed that I have a clip of This Time I Know It's For Real slowed down and a clip of Rick Astley (at normal speed) to show how uncannily similar the voices are. Well, apparently you can also make Kylie Minogue sound like Rick Astley too - and someone on YouTube has proven it. It makes me wonder if other Stock Aitken Waterman artists can be turned into Rick Astley too...... LOL
[SEP 16] Let me start off this update in 1979. (And I bet you didn't even know I had a time machine, did you? ;-) ) I know the first thought in all your heads is Bad Girls, but Donna did something else that year that you might now be aware of. She (along with Juergen Koppers) produced an album for Twiggy. But for whatever reasons, the album was never released and was locked in the vault never to be heard ..... until now. :-) It's called Heaven In My Eyes - Discotheque and it will be released November 7 on Sepia Records (UK). Or if you are impatient, TwiggyLawson.com has a few advance copies available for sale. ;-) The tracks are as follows: You've Been Lying, Dorothy, Angels Never Sleep At Night, Sugar Daddy, Lover Boy, Carries On, Heaven In My Eyes, My Baby Don't Call Me Baby, and then 4 2007 remixes: Heaven In My Eyes 2007, Angels Never Sleep At Night 2007, My Baby Don't Call Me Baby 2007, and U Bin Lyin' 2007. I have the cover art below in the "In Stores" section.
[SEP 16] Artwork fans, if you will be in Las Vegas September 28-30, check out the Las Vegas Art Expo at Mandalay Bay. It will be boasting the largest collection of celebrity artwork ever exhibited and of course Donna will be one of the artists on display. :-)
[SEP 16] Jam Showbiz selected their list of 10 Dynamic Divas and Donna came in at #8. She's in excellent company too - I think most of you will spot your other favorites somewhere on the list too. (Well, unless your other favorites are kind of obscure like Charo or Wing. LOL)
[SEP 16] Photo hounds - the One Mighty Weekend site now has some photos up from this year's festivities. There are a couple of Donna posted now. (Be a little patient though - even on DSL the site was a bit slow to load this morning. It was pretty early though, so maybe the internet wasn't awake yet. LOL)
[SEP 16] In the Donna is everywhere category, here's an unusual find. In Argentina there is a comedy/drama show called La Lola (broadcast on América 2) that used a Donna song recently. Here's the unusual part - the song they used was End Of The Week. (Hmmm ..... I wonder if that means there is a fan on staff? ;-) )
[SEP 16] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, Verizon Wireless just added I Feel Love to their list of ringtones. It joins 2 versions of Last Dance, Dim All The Lights, MacArthur Park, and The Woman In Me. (Hmmm, The Woman In Me? It must be the week of unusual song selections?)
[SEP 16] And that brings us to the web. It's another good week at YouTube. Fzkny has posted a few more clips - including one of New York Minute recorded in Atlanta that I've never seen on video before. Another user has posted an EXCELLENT quality clip of Donna performing Cold Love on Tom Snyder's old talk show. (I know Cold Love has been around awhile, but not like this!) And Deej1964 has posted a couple more good quality live clips of I Love You (which also includes Could It Be Magic) and Try Me. Just a reminder for those of you who might be new to YouTube, you can make an account even if you have nothing to upload. The advantage to that is you can subscribe to other users who tend to post things you like and you can save clips to your list of favorites so that they are easy to find time and time again. :-)
[SEP 10] I have a little update for you about Donna's site. It's back online again. And this time it really is being updated. :-) Instead of the boring host's placeholder, there is a shiny new page promising a new website, new recording and new tour in 2008. Let the celebrations BEGIN! :-)
[SEP 9] I guess I should start with the obvious this week. Some of you have noticed that Donna's site is down. I don't have details, but it looks to me like a hosting problem. Either the host pulled the site for some reason (like it exceeded its bandwidth allotment) or they had a glitch and lost the files. (If anybody with any control over the site is reading this - if it was pulled for bandwidth, then there is probably a glitch with the server's count. I've been through that with this site once and it's not fun, but it is easy to fix.)
[SEP 9] Billboard.com had a question last week about Donna's upcoming album. I went there tonight to retrieve the text for you, but they already updated to this week's questions. But that's good because Keith posted a follow up right on the top of his new column. "First, a short follow-up to last week's question about Donna Summer and her upcoming album. Burgundy Records, Summer's new label, got back to me this week and said that the diva's new set is scheduled to come out next spring. Summer fans have been patiently waiting years for a new studio set from her - after all, her last proper studio album came out way back in 1991. While there have been overtures of a new studio album for years with various labels, this Burgundy deal seems like the real thing. Keep your fingers crossed." Now my only problem is figuring out how to type with cvodfhe dnigrtd... I mean crossed fingers. ;-)
[SEP 9] In the Donna is everywhere category - she's gotten a few good mentions in magazines lately. Spain's version of Rolling Stone has an article about disco that talks about Donna's musical relationship with Giorgio Moroder. RollingStone.com has a list of the 25 greatest songs about work and Donna comes in at #10 with She Works Hard For The Money. (Donna and Dolly Parton are the only women to make that list.)
[SEP 9] Speaking of She Works Hard For The Money, it got a rather strange mention in the Chicago Sun Times recently. In a review for Rilo Kiley, one of the tracks was proclaimed to be "the worst song about prostitution since Donna Summer's 'She Works Hard for the Money.'" That made me laugh since She Works Hard For The Money isn't about prostitution.
[SEP 9] Channel 4 has compiled their list of the Greatest Number 1 singles. I Feel Love comes in at #71. (Just a word to the wise - it is a VERY eclectic list of songs, so I imagine there will be a lot of fights around the water cooler about it. LOL)
[SEP 9] That brings us to the web news for the week. Let's start with Multiply.com. Tom Ragu has started a Donna group called Donna Summer Love over there where fans can share photos, artwork, mixes - pretty much anything Donna related. (And while you are snooping around over there, check out Tom's comedy blog if you need a good laugh.) Over on YouTube, fzkny has posted a few more classic songs (proving that there is no cure for Summer Fever LOL) and he pointed me to a new blog that's out there now. Also over there, Xaviro has posted his mix of A Man Like You, and another interesting recent live clip has turned up. It's listed as Dim All The Lights (which it is) but when that song ends the clip continues with Try Me and Love To Love You. :-)
[SEP 9] And finally, this isn't directly Donna related, but I thought I'd mention it anyway. Chaka Khan has a new album coming out in a couple of weeks and the first single, Angel, has already cracked the R&B charts. I think it will be interesting to see how Burgundy handles Chaka's CD so that we can get a rough idea of what we can expect (in terms or promotion and such) when it's Donna's turn. :-)
[SEP 1] Well, September is here, locally all the kids start school again on Tuesday, and a couple of the trees near my home have already started to change color, so I guess summer is officially over. :-( The good news is that means we are that much closer to 2008 and the new CD. ;-) First things first, since it is September 1, it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. This month I've selected Love To Love You.
[SEP 1] So I guess the best place to start is with the Top 5 Genre Defining Musicians as determined by visitors to the MSNBC website. Donna is one of the possibilities listed under the disco category, but currently she's losing to the Bee Gees.
[SEP 1] Here's one I meant to post previously for all you photo hounds. :-) DC LaRue has a website and in his photo gallery, he has a number of pictures with Donna. (Be sure to see both Photo Review pages.)
[SEP 1] In the Donna is everywhere category, the French/German TV channel Arte recently had a disco-themed evening of programming. They ran the 2005 film Disco: The History Of Sound. Donna was represented with Hot Stuff and a few photos.
[SEP 1] If you are in (or will be in) Cali, Columbia, there is a new disco called Lu-Lu and I am told it is very Donna-friendly. (Hmmmm - I wonder if that's because there is at least one fan involved with it? ;-) )
[SEP 1] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Philippe from Mes dessins de Donna Summer has posted a new video clip. This one isn't one of his creations, this is a tribute he recorded that has some interesting photos of Donna, some old interview clips and some Giorgio Moroder clips I've never seen before. Most of the clip is in French, and what isn't has French subtitles. You know, now that I think about it - the clip is tagged with the logo for the Arte channel. It might be that same show that I mentioned in the Donna is everywhere news above. And over at YouTube, user fzkny has gone completely nuts this past week. :-) He's posted a whole bunch of remixes complete with photos to go with them. And he's sneaked in an interview that's done the same way. (It just goes to show what a little Summer Fever can do for a guy. ;-) ) And those of you looking for a strange little YouTube treat..... someone posted a live accapella version of She Works Hard For The Money. It looks like they took the Live & More Encore performance and stripped off everything but Donna's vocals. It still works that way. :-) (And I'll attempt to resist making a comment about how few other artists would sound good accapella. LOL)
[AUG 26] I'm still here - I just love it when server maintenances goes well. :-) Just a little site note - I updated the sales link on the art page for those of you looking to buy some of Donna's lithos.
[AUG 26] Speaking of art... the Chicago Tribune had an article recently about how artwork by musicians is the hot new collectible among music fans. Donna gets a brief mention, and there are a number of quotes by Jack Solomon - the owner of the galleries that handle Donna's stuff.
[AUG 26] SoulTracks.com finally has a Donna bio posted on their site. It's written by Christian Wikane whose name is probably rapidly becoming familiar to some of you. (Especially those of you who enjoyed his Wanderer article on Pop Matters.)
[AUG 26] In the Donna is everywhere category, an Argentinean TV show called Showmatch, featured a segment called "Patinando Por Un Sueño" where a pair of contestants skated to Hot Stuff. (Hmmmm - isn't that sort of risky? What if the ice melts? ;-) )
[AUG 26] And that brings us to the web news for the week...... which isn't really much this time. Patrice at DonnaDonna is still on vacation so that pretty much just leaves us with YouTube this week. (And it's so bad when I go over there looking for new stuff..... I end up never wanting to leave! LOL) There are a couple of videos out there that are interesting because they are basically collages of photos of Donna - some of which I have never seen before. There are 2 of them that turned up this week, one set to the Bad Girls demo and one set to Only One Man. There is also a really cool I Feel Love video that I think came from Night Of The Proms. (What can I say? I'm a sucker for an orchestra. LOL)
[AUG 20] I just got a notice from my web host that they will be doing server maintenance tomorrow night from 8-11 PM Pacific time. They will be reassigning IP addresses so I will almost certainly be down for that time. So hopefully nothing major happens tomorrow night. LOL
[AUG 19] Before I get to the news, Ken sent me a new Ken's Korner about YouTube which inspired me to get up on my own Soapbox. YouTube may crash from all the extra traffic this week. LOL
[AUG 19] In the Donna is everywhere category, Spinner.com interviewed Andy Bell recently. One part that was of interest: "Do you remember your first trip to a gay bar? Oh, yeah. I was living with a woman at the time. I was 19 or 20, and she took me to a club called the Embassy. I remember going in there thinking, "Oh, my god. All these guys and like, so good looking. I can't possibly. I'm never gonna get a boyfriend." And then, I distinctly remember Donna Summer's 'I Feel Love' coming on. I was like, "Wow, this is incredible." I was really in heaven."
[AUG 19] And that brings us to the web news. (Yup, it's been a slow week. LOL) Over at Forever Donna, Sandro has taken to posting weekly video clips on YouTube. This week he's added Starting Over Again from the Eddie Rabbit TV special, Bad Girls from Johnny Carson, Last Dance from Wayne Brady, and You're So Beautiful from Sharon Osbourne. Here's a hint for those of you who haven't done this yet - sign up for a free YouTube account where you can add videos to your list of favorites and where you can subscribe to contributors who post things you like. And if you haven't been over to Multiply.com yet - head there now. New people are signing up every day and sharing mixes and sometimes even videos.
[AUG 16] Well I guess you noticed I came back a little early. I had to pull the link to the ProSound article that I posted last weekend because that wasn't actually supposed to be released yet. Oops..... I have been promised a copy of the official press release when that is available though, so it's all good. :-) (And yes, that will warrant a mid-week update when that turns up. I'm already mentally gearing up for a repeat of 1999 when news came in so fast I was updating every other day for awhile. LOL))
[AUG 16] And as long as I'm here, I have some classic release news for you. Paul Jabara's Greatest Hits & Misses is finally available on iTunes. And in addition to having some of Paul's best stuff, it's also got 3 duets with Donna: Shut Out/Heaven Is A Disco, Never Lose Your Sense Of Humor and Something's Missing. If you don't have these songs, then RUN over to iTunes because Something's Missing is probably one of Donna's best vocal performances ever.
[AUG 12] I'm back - a little sunburned and a little tired, but here. :-)
[AUG 12] In the Donna is everywhere category, OldiesMusic.com has a list of the number 1 songs for the week in Chicago for the 50s, 60s and 70s. For the week of August 4, Bad Girls took the spot for 1979.
[AUG 12] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at DonnaSummer.us, Doug has revamped the site with some new features and a new look. So make sure you check that out. And on this site, I sneaked in a picture I was sent of Donna with Ceil Kasha. It's in Photo Gallery 3.
[AUG 3] As promised, I'm back a little early with the update because of my vacation plans. (So nothing big better happen between Sunday and Friday! LOL) I guess the best place to start is with CD news. Donna mentioned at her recent concerts in Atlantic City that she's got a number of songs completely done and some more in the works and that she hopes it will be out in March or early spring. She also mentioned Bruce's upcoming CD and that Mary also has a CD coming out. (Better clear some extra room on your music shelves! :-) )
[AUG 3] In mix news, DanceRecords.com has the white label promo of SBF featuring Donna on Love To Love You.
[AUG 3] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, I know some of you are familiar with the movie Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert. Well, it's now a play too and one fan caught a performance in Sydney, Australia recently. Apparently they had to chance the soundtrack a little bit, so they replaced a couple of songs with Donna songs. I'm told that they use MacArthur Park for the scene where the older drag queen wakes up after sleeping outside with her head in a cake. And they use Hot Stuff for the scene where the character of Felicia gets ready to go out and hit the strip.
[AUG 3] That brings us to the web news for the week. If you are on Multiply.com, check out Tom Ragu's site. He's a DJ turned standup comic and he's got a bunch of his favorite mixes posted, along with some photos from Donna's tour last year. For you video fans, Philippe from Mes dessins de Donna Summer has posted his latest video on YouTube. And finally, Denis at Brickomania has some sad news. He will no longer be updating his site. He will continue to post mixes on his Multiply page, but not at the same pace that we've all become accustomed to. (Denis, you know we'll always welcome you back with open arms if you decide to change your mind one day. :-) )
[AUG 1] I'm back - the car is in the shop for the afternoon so this is a great time to update. (Besides - it gets me out of doing housework for awhile. LOL) First things first - it's August, so I have posted a new Summer Fever pick. This month I'm spotlighting Donna's collaborations with Bruce. I have also posted pages for Niagara Falls and Atlantic City. And as a special bonus for a few of you - if you were one of the people who got backstage at Foxwoods last month, I might have your photo with Donna. See the Foxwoods page for more details. Last but not least, the regular update will be a little early this week - probably late Friday or early Saturday. I'll be traveling with friends starting this weekend so I will be mostly offline from August 5 to August 11.
[JUL 29] Well..... the big news for the week is last night's radio broadcast. :-) If you missed the announcement the other day, Donna was featured in an interview on radio station WIBG...... which if I say it like that, it makes it seem like less than it was. Most radio interviews are a couple of minutes and then on to the next thing. Not last night's! The whole 2 hour WIBBAGE Classic Rock show hosted by Dona Hurley and Al Zentmeyer was dedicated to Donna. They played her music, they chatted with fans and they ran the most extensive interview I have seen in a long time. In addition to the files I have of the whole show (which you can find on the Endless Summer forum or on my page at Multiply), I have made a "lite" version of the show which is mainly just Donna's interview. And that by itself is 43 minutes. In this age of soundbites, that's AMAZING! :-) The "lite" version actually even too big for me to stream from the site, so if you are patient you can grab it at MegaUpload. Donna talks about so much stuff in the interview that you really need to hear it. (For instance, did you know that Once Upon A Time was written and recorded in just 2 days?) :-) And what was just as much fun as listening to the show, was the fact that for 2 hours so many of us were united. How many times can fans from all over the world take part in the same thing at the same time? :-) It was also nice hearing some of the usual suspects calling in - yes, I mean you Jeff, Jonathan, Jimmie, Joe, and Colin. (I think you freaked everybody out by calling in from Scotland. LOL)
And while I'm on about the radio show, I would just like to publicly thank Don Hurley and the crew at WIBG for not only spotlighting Donna, but for also going out of your way to communicate with us so that so many people could have the chance to tune in. :-)
[JUL 29] In other radio news, Radio Kiepenkerl in Germany is running a poll to decide the top 100 Summer songs. Donna's not on the list, but you can write in your own selection. She Works Hard For The Money might be the easiest one to vote for because it gets played fairly regularly over there, but I can think of a bunch of other songs that are just as worthy.
[JUL 29] In the Donna is everywhere category, Time Life Music is putting out a series of CDs called the American Bandstand 50th Anniversary Collection and as usual with Time Life music, there will be an infomercial to promote it. I've been told that Donna will be among the artists interviewed for the ad. :-) Look for that starting at the end of August.
[JUL 29] I think that's going to bring me to the web news for the week. Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted Supernatural Love (WEN!NG's Chromium-Kick), She Works Hard For The Money (Andy's Worked Pit Mix 2007), SFB - Love 2 Love You Baby (Donna's Dirty Electro Edit), and the Amor cover of On The Radio.
[JUL 29] I do have some stuff for you from the recent concerts - but between working on the audio files all day and the nasty cold I managed to catch this weekend, I think I'm going to just call it a night and plan on a mid-week update.
[JUL 26] RED ALERT for.... well, anybody who can tune into net radio. :-) Let me just share the email I got with you because it says it all: "Hi...I wanted to let you know that I will be airing my 2 hour radio special with Donna Summer, this Saturday July 28, 2007 from 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM (EST). You can listen world-wide at www.WIBG.com We will be sharing Donna's comprehensive interview, playing all of her great music and taking telephone calls from her fans all over. Donna talks about her new album and so many other things. You can call (609) 398-1020 if you would like to share a Donna Summer memory or experience and also to request a song. " I know I'll be tuning in - hopefully the rest of you will too. :-) (If you are not sure how EST converts to your local time, check out this World Clock.) Just a note for those of you who are going to the Atlantic City show Saturday, WIBG broadcasts in the South Jersey area on 1020 AM. It might be a little tricky to tune in from inside Caesar's (because of all the electronics) but bring a radio with you while you are waiting online for seats and give it a shot. In any case, Ill have a full report on the Sunday update - barring any unforeseen disasters. :-)
[JUL 22] Another week has come and gone so I guess it's time for an update. Gee what happened this week? Ummm..... nothing, so I guess I'll be back next week. LOL Only kidding! (I should probably warn you now that I'm a little loopy today thanks to a lack of sleep that I haven't made up for yet. Consider yourselves lucky that I didn't update last night when I was even more off the wall. LOL) I actually have a whole bunch of new stuff to share with you this time - and a good portion of that is a few new interviews that have cropped up all over the net to promote the recent and upcoming concerts. So take a second to hop down to the media section for a whole list. You'll want to read them all at some point because Donna does get to talk about the forthcoming album a bit. I also have posted my report on the Foxwoods concert from the other night. (If anyone else would like to send in their reports on that show or any of the upcoming ones, just send them in. I'll publish what I can. :-) )
[JUL 22] So I guess I should start off with the new CD? Judging by my email there are 1 or 2 (zillion LOL) people who have questions about that. So far we are looking at a Spring 2008 release and Donna said at the show the other night that she will tour with the new songs next year. (I wonder if it's too soon to quit my job so that I can have the whole summer off? LOL ) Now, if you stopped to read the interviews I linked to then you can skip this next part but if you haven't and just want a summary of what we know, then read on. This is what we know so far - Donna is working with a bunch of young people. There will be a mixture of styles including some music that is globally influenced. She specifically mentioned Indian sounds in one of the interviews, but she also mentioned listening to a lot of other types of music like Bocelli, Arabic and African musicians, and Israeli violin music - so we might hear influences from just about anything. :-) There will be some dance stuff and there is one song called Stamp that's inspired by the NFL. We don't have an album title yet, but that's not too surprising to me. I don't know how it is with musicians, but speaking as a visual artist (when I'm not too lazy to actually create something LOL) the title is always the hardest thing to come up with. I always want to name my creations something like "Picture I Drew". Hey - that's an idea! Donna can call her album "Stuff I Recorded". ;-)
[JUL 22] Someone unearthed this little YouTube gem this week. Check out the background singers. ;-) (You will need a little patience because they aren't seen until about 3/4 of the video has played.)
[JUL 22] In the Donna is everywhere category, she was spotted hanging out in the Hamptons last week. (And that's probably the only place on Long Island she'd be safe from my stalking! LOL) Her music was spotted in a few other places last week. There was a television show in Argentina called Bailando Por Un Sueño where contestants danced to On The Radio and Last Dance. And Hot Stuff was used in a ummmm..... Rugby video that someone recently found online. I won't link to it directly because it's not exactly safe for work (or kids!) and I'm not sure how my webhost would feel about it. But I'm sure inquiring minds could go to dailymotion.com and find a June 11 blog post with the Rugger video if they really really wanted to. Also in the Donna is everywhere category - check out the website of interior designer Nik Ramli. He's got his whole Donna collection posted there along with a cool collage in his products section. (Before you ask - the collage is not for sale. )
[JUL 22] Internet radio fans might want to check out TalkABoutRadio.net. They broadcast (legally) a couple of Donna friendly stations and they have a messageboard where you can suggest songs for them to add to their playlists. And if you like internet radio, you might want to look into SaveNetRadio.org for ways to keep internet radio alive and well for everyone.
[JUL 22] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Mes dessins de Donna Summer, Philippe has posted his latest video. (It's also on Dailymotion.com if you've been playing over there recently. Or if you are on Multiply, you can download it from his page there.) Over at Brickomania, Denis is back with Fred Astaire (Extended Re-Edit), Bad Girls (Paolo Okkipinti Remix Gennaio 2007), Mystery Of Love (WEN!NG's Wedding Mix), Donna vs. Dolly Parton - Sunset People Two Doors Down (Appolo Zero Reconstruction) and the Melinda Doolittle cover of Heaven Knows.
[JUL 22] And one last thing - there is a fan named Frank who is flying all the way from Chicago to catch the Caesar's Palace show on the 27th. (Some of you guys from the Endless Summer board may already know him. He's going to be all by himself, so he's looking to meet up with any interested fans. If you are interested, email him at queenofdisco AT hotmail.com.
[JUL 15] Let's start with news out of France. If you go to www.ina.fr, and search for Donna, you will find that they have a classic clip available for sale. It's listed as "I Need You So Baby" but I think they mean Could It Be Magic. (I was on the wrong computer for downloading, so I haven't actually grabbed it yet. The clip costs 1.50 in Euros.
[JUL 15] Here's a link for you photo hounds out there. :-) Essential Eye Photographics has a bunch of pictures from Larry King's recent gala. And unlike the ones at Wireimage.com - you can enlarge these for easy viewing. :-)
[JUL 15] For those of you who don't know, this year marks the 30th anniversary of I Feel Love - a song which is still ahead of its time. :-) The July edition of the UK magazine GT (formerly Gay Times) has a small article in their July edition about that. And for you trivia buffs out there, I'm told that I Feel Love is Donna's only UK #1 to date.
[JUL 15] In the Donna is everywhere category, models at Berlin's Fashion Week strutted the catwalk to Spring Affair. The report will be archived on the ZDF heute- journal site tomorrow. (Wait - in Germany it's already tomorrow. Yup - there it is, just click the July 15 link. :-) )
[JUL 15] In Barry Manilow news........ (Did I just hear everybody say "But this is a DONNA site!"? LOL) Barry is recording an album of 70s hits now. (He's had some success with albums of 50s and 60s music recently.) Since Donna covered his song Could It Be Magic, I think it would be kind of cool to see him return the favor. ;-)
[JUL 15] And speaking of Could It Be Magic, is is the subject of an online poll comparing covers to originals. You can post comments as well - and I already see a few familiar names over there.
[JUL 15] And that brings us to the web news...... Patrice over at DonnaDonna is still on vacation. And at Brickomania, Denis is promising to return on July 20. So that leaves YouTube and Multiply for your Donna fixes this week. Or here's an idea that has kept me amused this week - just randomly start watching some of your old Donna videos (or listen to your old albums.) I've been trying to convert all my VHS stuff to DVD so I have been watching stuff pretty much at random and I found it's a great way rediscover stuff I haven't seen in ages.
[JUL 8] It's been a very quiet news week - but that's just the calm before the storm. We have a number of concerts coming up later this month so things should be hopping then. :-) (If you are going - send in your fan reports. I'll post them! And I'll say this again too - if you are going to the Niagara Falls shows you need to go explore the Falls too! Both sides. And if you don't - then I'm coming up there to throw you over in a barrel. ;-) )
[JUL 8] Let's start this week with the link I forgot to post last week. I mentioned that Donna got mentioned in a highly syndicated article about summer music. Well, here is the link I meant to include. LOL But don't worry, it's still newsworthy - I got about another 50 million more news alerts about it this week. (If Donna's next album sells just one copy for each news alert I got about this article, her sales might just blow away Michael Jackson, Madonna, and all the boy bands put together. LOL)
[JUL 8] In other Donna is everywhere news, there is an article on Idolator.com that comments on articles in Spin magazine. One particular article that is discussed is about sex in music and Love To Love You and I Feel Love both get positive mentions as being fun songs.
[JUL 8] In YouTube news, hidden amongst the classic clips, interviews, and concert footage, you'll find some clever fan-created stuff. In particular, this week I was sent a clip of No More Tears that used the music playing over countless dance scenes from tons of different movies. It's like all of Hollywood is dancing to Donna. LOL And while you are nosing around over there - check out the video for the Blue Man Group's version of I Feel Love. It's a trip.
[JUL 8] Speaking of YouTube, Philippe from Mes Dessins des Donna Summer has posted a new video of his own. You can catch it on his video page, or on YouTube itself. And believe it or not, that's it for the web news this week - Denis is still taking care of family matters and Patrice is on holiday. So if you are looking for mixes - head over to Multiply.com, set yourself up an account and start looking for the fanmixers. :-) There are a bunch of them calling Multiply home right now.
[JUL 1] July already? Where is the time going? I guess that means it's time for the new Summer Fever pick. This month, I think I'll go with an album that's celebrating it's 30th anniversary this year...... Once Upon A Time. (Suddenly I feel very old! LOL) Also, before I get to the Donna news, Bruce fans will want to jump down to the Family Matters section. :-)
[JUL 1] I guess the best place to start is with the number one question for the week..... "When is Donna's CD coming out?" Well, there isn't an iron-clad release date yet. (That's why I haven't said anything until now. LOL) But there was a recent Forbes article about Burgundy Records that did indicate an early 2008 release. (You need to click on the "Old stars, new music, new money" picture feature and then click forward in the slide show until you get to Donna.) There is also another article on Idolator.com in response to the Forbes article that will give you a little more insight to the way Burgundy works.
[JUL 1] In the Donna is everywhere category this week, summer is in the air and so are summer songs. In an article that was printed in about 50 billion papers so far (I know because I keep getting the Google news alerts! LOL) about songs that define summer and Bad Girls was the first one mentioned.
[JUL 1] There is a blog called Tuned Into Music that has a nice review of Donna on it. I have to admit the first line made me laugh (and say WTF? LOL) but once you get past the idea of a review starting off line that, then the rest is a very nice read.
[JUL 1] In release news, DiscoMusic.com has a Russian CD called 12" Essentials Vol 2. The site has the complete track list, but it's mostly stuff from the 80s and 90s - a few things from the Another Place And Time album, Carry On, Love Is The Healer, Love On And On, and a few other things.
[JUL 1] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at DonnaDonna, Patrice has posted his extended mix of I Feel Love. And over at Brickomania, Denis will be off for a couple more weeks due to the loss of his father. Hang in there Denis.
[JUL 1] And one last thing - A happy and safe July 4 to everybody (even to those people outside the US. Just pretend it's a holiday for you too and take off from work..... ;-) ) And I feel like I should say something about the recent terrorist attack in the UK..... but what I want to say is directed to the terrorists themselves and the sort of language I want to use really isn't appropriate for the site.
[JUN 26] RED ALERT for Boston radio! I just got a press release that Donna (and other celebs) will be taking part in a radiothon this THURSDAY June 28 from 6AM to 7PM. The radiothon will be aired on WTKK-FM, WKLB-FM, WROR-FM, WMJX-FM and WBOS- FM. You can read the whole press release online. Tune in if you can. :-)
[JUN 24] I guess the best place to start this week is with some photos. Harry Langdon has a bunch of classic shots (and alternates from classic photo sessions) posted on his site. And it gets even better. You can actually purchase prints if you want to.
[JUN 24] Wanderer fans (I'm talking to you Christian LOL) will be interested to see that Echo magazine in Phoenix published a short review of the album in their May 31 issue. You can read the magazine online in PDF format on their website. (You need the free Acrobat Reader to read the files.)
[JUN 24] In the Donna is everywhere category, I Feel Love gets a mention in an article in the Windy City Times. The paragraph at the end notes that the song has been covered or sampled by any number of artists (and I'd say the list they posted barely scratches the surface!) The most recent cover is by Public Domain - and that cover is actually the reason for the mention in the article. And She Works Hard For The Money gets a mention in an article in the Toronto Star in a column called "10 Things We Learned This Week".
[JUN 24] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, TheStranger.com has an article on "Homo History" which is an interesting read in and of itself. But if you are pressed for time, just jump to 1982 (Part 1) for a nice story about the impact of the Donna Summer album on one particular fan.
[JUN 24] Let's move on to the web news for the week. Over at DonnaDonna, Patrice still has his Hot Stuff extended mix. He's also joined the community at Multiply.com so look for him there. Stor Dubiné has his site up and running and you can check out some of the stuff he's been working on. Over at Forever Donna, Sandro has posted a couple videos to YouTube..... but if you happen to be a member of his mailing list, then you have the opportunity to download higher resolution copies of those videos. So if you needed an excuse to join.... now you have it. ;-)
[JUN 24] In fan news, there is a singer named Darrell Russ who has a song out called Riding Home From Baltimore which was inspired by Donna. He was interviewed by the Frederick News Post recently - and Donna gets more than a few mentions in the article. ;-)
[JUN 24] And one last thing that's not Donna related at all...... there are a number of charity websites out there that use your clicks to raise money for their cause. It costs you nothing to contribute other than the time it takes to load a web page. One such site is The Animal Rescue Site, but if helping animals isn't your thing then you can check out some of the other "click to donate" sites at TheNonProfits.com. They have a whole bunch of links to feed the hungry, educate the illiterate, cure the sick and help the environment.
[JUN 17] Happy Father's Day everyone! I have a little more news for Brooklyn fans in the Family Matters section below. And I have a new fan report page with photos ...... only this one got posted just a little late. You see, it's from Donna's concert in Honolulu. In 1979. When we were all so young. LOL I'd have posted it more promptly, but I had to wait for the internet to be invented. ;-) Thanks to Daniel for sending it in.
[JUN 17] Speaking of pages with photos..... WireImage.com has a ton of new pictures of Donna performing for Larry King and Friends.
[JUN 17] In the Donna is everywhere category, a German show called Loveline uses a new accapella version of Love To Love You as its jingle. Also on the American show, So You Think You Can Dance, one couple danced to Enough Is Enough - but not the usual version. They picked the suet with Westlife.
[JUN 17] The Kansas City Royals baseball team are sponsoring a contest to pick which song they should play during the seventh inning stretch. One of the contenders is Last Dance. (Of course, I think that might be a little disheartening for fans to sing if their team happens to be losing at the time. Maybe Hot Stuff would be better?)
[JUN 17] That brings us to the web news for the evening. First of all, YouTube is teeming with new videos - some old classics and some from the concert in Orlando. So when you have some free time, go check out the new goodies. Over at DonnaDonna, Patrice is finally back with his extended mix of Hot Stuff. At Donna Summertime, Sebastiano has changed his forum. He used to have one hosted at Bravenet, but now he found a better host and the forum integrates very nicely with his site. Finally, at Brickomania, Denis is taking a couple weeks off for personal reasons. You can still find him at Multiply.com (along with an ever-expanding list of fan mixers. :-) )
[JUN 10] Before I get to the Donna news, I have another Brooklyn link posted in the Family Matters section below, and I have a couple of photos added to the Gay Days page.
[JUN 10] I guess the best place to start is with YouTube. A couple of clips from the Gay Days concert have turned up there recently. There is also an awesome clip of Donna performing Love To Love You from back in the day.
[JUN 10] Speaking of Love To Love You, the clip I just mentioned came from The Midnight Special which is available now on DVD. Unfortunately the disks are only available as a subscription deal, so you can't just run to the store and grab one or 2. There is a review of the set posted on BloggerNews and if you would like to subscribe to the collection head over to MidnightSpecial.com.
[JUN 10] In the Donna is everywhere category, Entertainment Tonight recently repeated the interview where Donna talks about recording No More Tears with Barbra Streisand. And in one of the more unusual Donna is everywhere moments, an article in the Dayton Daily News about tax revenues quotes lines from a couple of pop songs. One of them was Let's Work Together Now from Lady Of The Night. (Without even looking at the byline I can tell that the article was written by a diehard fan! LOL)
[JUN 10] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted Donna Summer Vs Eurythmics: I Feel Love Is A Stranger (A Copycat Mash) and Brenda Russell's version of Dinner With Gershwin.
[JUN 7] RED ALERT for Florida! Your tickets for the shows in Fort Lauderdale next February are on sale now through Ticketmaster.
[JUN 3] Before I get to the Donna news, let me direct the Brooklyn fans to the Family Matters section below. And for those of you dying to hear about Gay Days in Florida - I have a couple of reports from Donna's show posted on the new Orlando page. (I understand it was a really hot crowd that night - take that any way you want to. ;-) ) Also, I just remembered today that it is June, which means it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. (I'm only 43 and I'm already senile apparently. LOL) This month we go back to the beginning with Lady Of The Night.
[JUN 3] Let's start with an article online about Jeff Greenberg who runs the recording studio known as The Village. There is just one little line in there that might perk up your ears.... ;-) "We're doing film mixes and surround up there, and we're also doing a Donna Summer record there right now." (Emphasis mine.)
[JUN 3] There is another article out there about Al Kasha. In it he mentions working on the Ordinary Girl musical with Donna.
[JUN 3] In radio news, tomorrow in LA Clear Channel will debut Pride Radio on 104.3-HD2. It will feature remixes and original mixes by Donna and all the other usual suspects. (Madonna, Janet, Whitney, etc.) They are specifically targeting the GLBT community (which you probably guessed by the name LOL) and according to the press release I saw, they are the first LA radio station to do that. So hopefully it will be a big success. :-)
[JUN 3] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted Dim All The Lights (WEN!NG's - Andymix Remix 2007), Dim All The Lights (Jandy's Sweet Darlin' Mix 2007), and the Belanova track, What A Shame / I Feel Love (Live). And at Mes Dessins des Donna Summer, Philippe has posted a brand new drawing.
[MAY 27] Happy Memorial Day everyone! While you are celebrating the official start of summer, don't forget to hug your favorite serviceperson. (And take time to remember those who aren't here to hug.)
[MAY 27] For those of you planning to partake of the Gay Days at Disney festivities, the Orlando Sentinel posted their guide to the events. Also Out Las Vegas has a nice sized ad for Donna at the One Mighty Weekend event. If you head to their website, you can download the magazine in PDF format. (If you are like my dad and have no idea what a PDF is - you need the free Acrobat Reader to open it.)
[MAY 27] In release news, UME has put out a series of collections called the Number 1's. Bad Girls can be found on the 70s Pop edition [Amazon, Amazon UK], and Hot Stuff makes the Dance edition [Amazon, Amazon UK]. (Just a note: There are probably close to a dozen albums in the series covering different genres of music and different time periods. Since I know we have at least a few Diana Ross fans visiting here too, I thought I'd mention that I saw her name on quite a few of the collections.)
[MAY 27] If vinyl is more your speed, HardWax.com is selling a reissue of the MacArthur Park Suite/ Last Dance 12". The interesting thing is that the label shown says that the Suite is 17:49 which I think would make that the original (as heard on Live & More) if it's correct. The slightly edited version we usually get is only 17:35 according to the notes on Bad Girls Deluxe. (Note to those who put out records with the Suite - it's only an edit of a couple of seconds, but we DO notice the difference. And some of us get really frustrated! LOL ) In white label news, the Castelli and Bravetti remix of I Feel Love is once again available at DanceRecords.com.
[MAY 27] In the Donna is everywhere category this week, she was spotted in a recent TV biography of Paula Abdul. (Some of you might remember that Paula did a little choreography for Donna back in her pre-American Idol days.) And Philadelphia Weekly posted their list of 50 Killer Summer Songs. They put Donna at #25 with On The Radio. (Personally, that one wouldn't be my first choice - as my neighbors will be happy to tell you, my car is the one blasting the long version of MacArthur Park all summer long. LOL)
[MAY 27] Over at Yahoo Answers they have posed the question "What classic performer has had a lasting influence on popular music today and why?". People can go over there and post their answers to that for the next 20 days. (I think you need to register - but it's free, so what the heck.) They have quite an interesting assortment of answers posted already and I know that a bunch of you are true musicphiles (it's my site so I get to make up words if I want LOL) on top of being die-hard Donna fans, so I'm sure you guys can contribute a lot to the discussion over there. (From what I've seen, you don't even have to limit yourself to just one artist either - but you should explain your choices.) If you have any trouble with the link above, go to http://answers.yahoo.com and just do a search for the question. It should come right up.
[MAY 27] That brings us up to the web news. Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted (oh god this is a long one LOL) Donna Summer Vs The Beatles Feat. John Lee Hooker & Fontanella Bass - Look Right Through The Bad Girl (Dj Earlybird) and the Integrity 2000 cover of Bad Girls. He's also started a blog over at Multiply.com and so have a number of the other fan mixers. Here's the really cool thing, the fan mixers can post their tracks there and if you join, you can download them. So far we have Denis (Bricko) over there, along with Andy (of Andymix fame), Carlybabes, and WEN!NG. I signed up too, but so far all I have is a really exciting blank page. LOL
[MAY 20] I guess the best place to start this week is with some classic photos. These are from Donna's days in The Family Tree back around 1973. Check them out in the LaukeMedia photo albums at Flickr and Fotoalbum.web.de.
[MAY 20] Those of you planning to attend Donna's show at the One Mighty Weekend party in Orlando will want to check out Planet Out. They posted a guide to Gay Days at Disney with their tips on where to stay and what to do. (And if you still haven't seen Kevin's informative posts on the Donna Summer & More about Gay Days, then what are you waiting for?)
[MAY 20] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, one of the contestants sang She Works Hard For The Money last week. (It's too early to say if that will clinch the top prize for her.)
[MAY 20] In cover news, the Dutch Top 40 includes a cover of Heaven Knows by Sharon Kips.
[MAY 20] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted Dinner With Gershwin (Musicat's Unedited Single Mix) and Paul Hardcastle's cover of Love To Love You/I Feel Love.
[MAY 13] Happy Mother's Day everyone! (I hope you were all good to your moms today. :-) ) Let me start off with a little site news. Kevin sent me a couple of pictures of Donna and Brooklyn from the Dance To Erase benefit, so I've posted them on the appropriate page. And Chris sent me pictures from the concert in Orlando earlier this year. So those are now posted too. (If you were a diva in Orlando, then there is a picture of you in there too.) Oh and while I'm here I have a small request for you. Because of changes I had to make to my webmaster email account, if you need to send large files to me, please use my aol email address: chawk25619@aol.com. I've found that sometimes large files that go to the webmaster address get bounced back to the sender. (Now if only the spam would bounce! LOL)
[MAY 13] In chart news, the Forever Disco album I mentioned last week is now #6 (with a bullet) on the Billboard Top Electronic Albums chart.
[MAY 13] In the Donna's music is everywhere category - I ran into an article about weddings and the more elaborate plans some couples have for the first dance. In it they mentioned that one couple wanted to shake things up a little by making Last Dance the first song they danced to. (Now that sounds like the sort of twisted thing I would do! LOL)
[MAY 13] That brings us to the web news for the week. (I know - it was a short update this time! LOL) Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted I Feel Love (4 WEN!NG's Rem!x 4), Donna Vs Stevie Nick - Bad Girls Dream, and Donna Vs Gary Clail/On-U-Sound System - Independent Hooligan. In his covers section he has the Tina Arena & Anggun & Genie Line version of Hot Stuff. At DonnaDonna, Patrice has taken the week off from Donna mixes to pay tribute to a young French singer named Gregory Lemarchal who passed away a couple of weeks ago.
[MAY 6] I guess we'll start off with a little chart info for you. In Belguim, Donna made the Gay Top 100 at #5 with Hot Stuff and #20 with I Feel Love. Unfortunately she didn't make Radio1's Fab 50 - but we'll do better next year. ;-) And at Billboard an album called Forever Disco is #8 on the Top Electronic Albums chart. The disk contains versions of Love To Love You, Hot Stuff and Bad Girls. (Probably covers - if it's the album I think it is.)
[MAY 6] There is a new compilation (well actually 4 new compilations) from Hip-O/UME. It's called Soul #1s and there is one CD for each decade - 60s through 90s. Donna is featured on the 80s disk with She Works Hard For The Money.
[MAY 6] In the Donna is everywhere category this week, Starbulletin.com has an article about actor John Friedrich. In it he briefly recalls a dinner he had with Donna while they where shooting Thank God It's Friday. Back then, he didn't know who she was! LOL In the Donna's music is everywhere, while reporting on the recent mayhem in Los Angeles' MacArthur Park (yes it is a real place if you didn't know that already :-) ) at least one talk show played Donna's MacArthur Park in the background. One of the hosts commented that the cake really was melting in the dark. (Hmmm, under the circumstances, it was probably being stomped on too! )
[MAY 6] Here's some unexpected web news for you. :-) Forever Donna is back (and so is its forum!) Sandro just couldn't stay away forever so he's back with all the usual goodies, a new url and of course his site newsletter. (Make sure you sign up if you aren't on his mailing list - Sandro usually sneaks in a surprise for subscribers.)
[MAY 6] And in other web news this week, over at Mes Dessins de Donna Summer, Philippe has posted photos from his art exhibit in Mexico. At Brickomania, Denis has posted the Ruby Slippers re-edit of With Your Love and the Acidentals accapella cover of Hot Stuff. And if you still need it, Patrice has his Dance Mix II Medley posted on DonnaDonna.
[MAY 1] It's May already. :-) So that means it's time for a new Summer Fever pick. In honor of the recent Pop Matters article, I'm putting The Wanderer in the spotlight.
[MAY 1] While I'm here, I want to take a little time to elaborate on the One Mighty Weekend party in Orlando. It's actually done in conjunction with the Gay Days event at Walt Disney World. This is one (not so) little party that caps off a week of festivities. For those of you who are interested in going, I'm going to point you to a series of posts on the Donna Summer & More (formerly Endless Summer) forum. Kevin is a veteran of Gay Days celebrations, so he has the scoop on what to do, where to go and how to get around. Just a little note about that link, when you click it, most likely it will throw you to an advertisement first. Just look for the little link (usually above the ad) that says "skip this advertisement". That will take you to Kevin's first informative Gay Days post. Just keep following the posts down the thread because he added several more posts with even more information. It looks like a lot of fun, so if you are planning to attend Donna's show - why not make a full vacation out of it? (Just another note about the forum - everyone can read the posts over there, but if you want to post anything of your own then you have to sign up for an account with Delphi. It's free - although they will try to steer you into an upgraded paid account.)
[MAY 1] And on a personal note - Paul from NJ (who reported from Nashville last year), can you send me an email? I lost your address and I have someone who would like to contact you if you are willing. :-)
[APR 30] Well, I'm back at least a few hours before I thought I would be. :-) I got a email from the One Mighty Weekend promoter (and so did a few of you) confirming that Donna is a late addition to the roster. Check the One Mighty Weekend site for event details. (As I write this, Donna's still not on the website, but that should be fixed soon I imagine.)
[APR 29] Let me start off with a couple of announcements before I get rolling with the Donna stuff. First up, if you are a fan of either Brooklyn or Bruce (or both!) then you need to see the Family Matters section below. I have excellent links for you. And in site news, this week I am unveiling a new contribution to the discography section done by Wolfgang. He's made a list of all of Donna's albums (with all the tracks, etc) and singles and put them together with cover pictures and the German chart positions. And for a little icing on the cake, he starts it off with nice overview of Donna's career written in both English and German. It's a 5 page section and I have all the links posted on the main discography page.
[APR 29] Ok, first up this week is a slightly confusing item. There is a press release for One Mighty Weekend in Orlando, FL (June 1-3) that says that Donna will be playing at the event - but the main website shows completely different people. So I have a couple of emails out and hopefully I'll have the full story for you soon. (And that will warrant an early update either way - rest assured!)
[APR 29] In the Donna is everywhere category this week, a few weeks ago there was an article in Noize magazine called We Met On The Dancefloor. It's a touching account of getting older and realizing how many of the old gang just didn't make it through the early days of AIDS. The author, Joe, videotaped himself reading the article and posted it on YouTube (and his blog) where you can all watch it. The Donna connection is the fond memories of dancing to her records. But listen beyond that. I did, and I'm really glad I did.
[APR 29] And I think that brings us to the web news. At Brickomania, Denis has posted the DJ Tony extended mix (2003) of Our Love, and an Unknown cover of Heaven Knows. I'll be back in a couple days with the new Summer Fever pick and any updates I get on the Orlando thing. :-)
[APR 22] So much to talk about this week! Let me start off with some personal business. A BIG THANKS to Robert and David (T-Box) for taking part in my charity auction for CMN. Robert was the big winner of 2 disks of pure silence, but David matched the winning bid with a donation of his own. So all together we raised over $300. (And they thought I was nuts for selling a CD of silence! LOL) I also want to thank all of you who bid (I recognized a few of your names) and all of you who just put up with me while the auction was going on. It was a lot of fun and I'll have to try this again some time. :-)
[APR 22] Okay - on to Donna. This week Kevin O sent me his report from the Dance To Erase MS charity event. He's mailing me some photos too, so as long as the post office is cooperative, I should have those for you soon.
[APR 22] In concert news, Pollstar has finally caught up and listed a few of the dates they were missing. (Foxwoods and Night Of The Proms.) And over in Niagara Falls, the Fallsview Casino already has a nice big billboard up advertising Donna's shows there.
[APR 22] In the latest issue of Rolling Stone, they have a list of "The 40 Greatest Songs That Changed The World." Sitting there at #26 is I Feel Love. The magazine says that any dance song in existence owes something to I Feel Love. :-)
[APR 22] In the Donna is everywhere category, she's turned up in a few interesting places recently. First of all, on Tuesday, iTunes did a showcase on "the world of Madonna" and Donna was there as one of Madonna's influences. (They even posted the Once Upon A Time picture - right next to a picture of Marilyn Monroe.) And the IMDB website has a link to an LA Times article about 70s music stars and who should play them if a bio-pic was ever made. For Donna, they suggest Kerry Washington and said the following: "This fast-rising star from 'Ray' and 'The Last King of Scotland' needs a stylish yet nuanced role to catapult her to the next level. Donna Summer's musical career is rife with the kind of contradictions actors love -- the Queen of Disco had to be talked into all those titillating moans on her break-out song 'Love to Love You Baby,' and then kicked her sex-kitten image to the curb with the working girl's anthem, 'She Works Hard for Her Money'." Also, at CNN, you can find a little Donna mention in a feature about technology. They asked Nse Ette about his favorite gadget and he managed to sneak in a little plug for his favorite Diva. ;-)
[APR 22] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, She Works Hard For The Money was used on the HBO show Entourage recently. And in Phoenix at the Gay Pride festival, En Vogue performed a crowd-pleasing rendition of Bad Girls as a tribute to "the real divas that inspired us." (It's Pride time already? Now I know Spring is here! :-) )
[APR 22] That brings us to the web news. Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted Black Lady (Dj Tony AC 12'' Version 2007) and the Burtons version of MacArthur Park (Ska Mix).
[APR 22] In fan news this week, Stor Dubiné is in yet another contest. His Clarice From Luna video is entered in the Berlin-Wunderbar contest. His video is number 116 and you can vote for it on the contest's website.
[APR 22] And last but not least..... I have a little surprise for you guys coming up soon. A fan from Germany named Wolfgang has written Donna's German discography and he has graciously allowed me to host it here. It's 5 pages of album covers, track lists, and a really nice article to kick things off (written in both German and English). So that's just a little something extra you have to look forward to. I haven't decided exactly when I'll make it public yet. I still need to upload the files and test them out to make sure they load correctly. And then I have to decide how I want to tease you with "coming soon" messages. ;-)
[APR 15] When I updated the link on my auction (below) I forgot to mention that the winning bid (up to $150) will still be matched by T-Box. (You guys should remember him from his articles on the Forever Donna site.) Before I get started with the news for the week, I also want to mention that we have a new Ken's Korner for you this week. This time (in anticipation of Donna's new album) he's got a top 10 list of his favorites. I guarantee that after you read it you will probably either be thinking "Hey Ken, you got that right!' or "Hey Ken, are you on crack?" LOL
[APR 15] Ok Connecticut - your Foxwoods tickets are set to go on sale May 23 for $95 and $125. Start saving up those pennies! :-)
[APR 15] Donna performed the other night at the Race To Erase MS Gala in LA. You can see pictures from the event at wireimage.com. (If the link doesn't work, just go to wireimage.com and do a caption search for "Donna Summer" and then for "Donna Summers" - there are photos listed both ways.)
[APR 15] Going back to favorites, Pop Matters has a very nice article about The Wanderer posted on their website. It's by Christian Wikane and I think I'm going to start calling him the official expert on The Wanderer because he's written about it before and because I saw him flipping out at Jones Beach the year Donna did Cold Love live there. LOL I know a bunch of you have found the article already (I see lots of familiar names on the comments page LOL) but if you haven't seen it yet, go read it now. :-)
[APR 15] In the Donna is everywhere category, a new book called Faking It: The Quest for Authenticity in Popular Music [Amazon, Amazon UK] by Hugh Barker and Yuval Taylor has an essay about Donna's recording of Love To Love You. You can read a review of the book on the Washington Post's website and on the Toronto Star's website.
[APR 15] Also in the Donna is everywhere category, Love Is In Control was played in one of last week's episodes of As The World Turns. Strangely enough - Eldo had nothing to do with that. (Sorry - that's an inside joke for people who know Eldo. The rest of you can roll your eyes and move onto the next thing. LOL)
[APR 15] In online radio news, Radioio70spop.com is a very Donna friendly station that streams 24/7 for free. They even take requests - so next time you are in the mood for some tunes, go check it out.
[APR 15] DanceRecords.com just got in a few copies of the I Feel Love/Love To Love You 12" single. If that's just what your collection needs, then head over there before they sell out. :-)
[APR 15] That brings us to the web news. At Brickomania, Denis has posted the I Feel Love (MBL@Berlin Moroder Revival Mix) and the Kelly Llorenna cover of This Time I Know It's For Real (Riffs & Ray Mix). And at DonnaDonna, Patrice has posted his Patrice Dance Mix II for your listening pleasure. (I don't know who that guy is in the picture he used for the artwork, but I wouldn't mind seeing a little more...... ;-) )
[APR 15] And finally in a personal note, on behalf of everybody at Donna Summer & More (aka the Endless Summer Forum), I'd like to wish a happy birthday to Peter M, a former associate of Donna's from way back in the day. One of the guys from the forum tracked Peter down somehow, and instead of running away in fear of the Donna maniac like most people do (most people = my friends, family and coworkers LOL), Peter very graciously took the guy in and allowed him to share a couple of photos of his paintings of Donna on the forum. So happy birthday Peter and thanks!
[APR 13] On a Donna-related note - the Niagara Falls tickets are going fast so get yours SOON! And I'm going to say this again - if you are going to the show, make sure you explore the Falls too. It's absolutely beautiful up there! (And now that I've said that - on Friday the 13th no less - it will probably rain the whole time Donna is there. LOL) Also, I goofed when I mentioned that it was Foxwoods last year that made one of Donna's shows private. It was Mohegan Sun. I just don't want to get rival casinos mad at me - then I'll never win when I gamble in Connecticut! LOL
[APR 12] Canada - the Niagara Falls tickets are on sale NOW through Ticketmaster. Go get' em! :-) Prices range from $74.20 to $84.80 (Canadian) and you need to be at least 19 to attend. (That's because it's a casino and not because Donna hired any naked dancers or anything. LOL)
[APR 11] RED ALERT for Connecticut! I just got word that Donna will be playing Foxwoods on July 21 and 22. No word on tickets yet, and Foxwoods hasn't updated their entertainment calendar yet - but I'll let you know as soon as I hear more details. I remember last year there were 2 dates and one turned out to be a private show - hopefully that won't be the case this time, but I guess we'll have to wait and see. :-)
[APR 8] I guess the best place to start is with an update on the HOT 500 Hits by Radio Kiepenkerl I mentioned last time. She came in at #345 with She Works Hard For The Money. (She may be in the top 50 too - but that list isn't on the site yet.) Not bad when you consider that she was up against acts from all different genres of pop music from 1950 up to the present. (I can see why they'd need a list of 500 songs - you couldn't just pick 100 from a list that big! LOL)
[APR 8] Over in Belgium, Radio1 is looking for the 50 best ladies worldwide - ummmm.... lady singers that is. ;-) They have a list of women, and you get to vote for your favorite 5. I'll give you specific directions here for those of you who are linguistically challenged (like me. LOL) On the homepage, click “De fab 50 : kies je favorieten". Scroll to the bottom of that page and click on “-> ga naar het stemformulier". On the next page, pick 5 singers (Donna is #199) then fill in your first name, last name, address, postcode (use 1000 if you real one doesn't fit) , your city, phone number and email. The last question is "what’s the Total weight of the ladies of radio1?" Just put in whatever you like and click "verzenden" to send it. The results will be announced May 11.
[APR 8] There is a virtual museum of New England music that may be of interest to some of you. MMONE (Music Museum Of New England) has information on quite a few acts who started out (or ended up) in the New England area. (Who can I think of who was born in Boston? I know there is some artist I follow from there........ ;-) ) The site is sort of a work in progress in that the guys over there hope to eventually become an actual brick and mortar museum as well. (I hope they do it too - I'd go see that. :-) )
[APR 8] And I think that brings us to the web news for the week. At Brickomania, Denis has posted Autumn Changes (WEN!NG's versione di Vivaldi), the Last Dance XMix, the Linda Lewis cover of Can't We Just Sit Down And Talk It Over, and some Donna goodies in his Brickomania Medley 12.
[APR 4] Well, I wasn't expecting to be back this soon but I have a RED ALERT for Atlantic City, NJ. Donna will be at Caesar's on July 27 and 28 (Friday and Saturday). Those tickets go on sale Saturday April 7 at 10 AM through Ticketmaster, so get those credit cards out!
[APR 3] I told you I'd be back early. ;-) I fixed the Summer Fever pick for you so that now the Donna Summer album has taken its rightful place in the spotlight. (But you can still look at the April Fools page if you missed out on this year's joke.)
[APR 3] While I'm here, Radio Kiepenkerl in Germany is letting people vote for their favorite hit song. The top 500 will be played over the Easter holiday. (If German isn't your language, but you want to vote anyway, look for the red link that says: "Die 500
besten Titel aller Zeiten". You can pick a song from their list or write in your own favorite.)
[APR 3] This isn't news yet (exactly) but gotickets.com mentions on its webpage for L.A.'s Gibson (aka Universal) Amphitheater events that upcoming concerts include Donna Summer. Now there is no date yet, but that's not too surprising because most venues haven't announced their full summer schedules yet. That will probably start happening in a few weeks - so hopefully I'll have some dates to announce then.
[APR 3] And finally - the thing I couldn't mention the other night when I updated. Philippe from Mes dessins de Donna Summer is going to have some of his work on display at Meep's in Guadalajara, Mexico starting April 20. If you are in the area check it out, and if you are not - well then just keep checking out Philippe's site. :-)
[APR 1] I guess the best place to start this week is with a little chart news. Once again the Danny Howells mix of I Feel Love is on the UK charts - coming in at #12 on the Radio 1 dance singles chart. (This must be some sort of record or something. I mean, how many other 30 year old songs keep popping up on the charts?)
[APR 1] In remix news this week, PerfectBeat is selling an album called Forever Tel Aviv that features the Offer Nissam mix of Power Of Love. There are only a limited number of copies that were made, so if you want it you need to act fairly quickly. :-)
[APR 1] In the Donna is everywhere category, her music was featured on American Idol this week. Two of Donna's songs (Heaven Knows and Last Dance) were performed by the contestants. The theme for the week was Gwen Stefani - since she was a guest judge, the competitors all has to sings songs by Gwen or by people who inspired her. :-)
[APR 1] And finally, in web news this week, at Brickomania, Denis has posted I Feel Love (DJ Equan mix) and the Take That cover of Could It Be Magic. And at DonnaDonna, Patrice has his Donna Summer Classic Medley and an I Will Go With You clip. I will be back this week to fix the Summer Fever page (maybe not tomorrow though), and to give you some news about Philippe from Mes dessins de Donna Summer. (News that I would have had today if I wasn't stupid. LOL)
[MAR 31] This is just a quick update to change the Summer Fever pick, since tomorrow is April 1. (Gee, I wonder if that might have any special significance..... ;-) ) This time I'm spotlighting an album that hasn't even come out yet - the new one on Burgundy Records. I'll be back some time tomorrow night with the regular weekly update.
[MAR 26] Just a quick update to let you all know that you need to go read Donna's official site if you haven't already. I think you might see something there to make you smile. ;-)
[MAR 25] I'm back! Let me start off with breaking news (that broke while I was away unfortunately - otherwise I would have had a midweek update for you.) If you are in Niagara Falls, ON (or even NY and don't mind crossing the bridge ;-) ) you can see Donna performing at the Fallsview Casino Resort on July 24 and 25. So far only Pollstar is showing the listing, so no ticket info is available yet - but Fallsview sells their tickets through Ticketmaster, so I will be keeping a close eye on that. (On a side note, if you are going to the show definitely take the time to explore the Falls too - on BOTH sides of the border. It's an absolutely beautiful place and one of my very favorite vacation spots. I'm crossing my fingers that I someone else at my job hasn't claimed those vacation days already so that I can grab them! :-) ) Moving on to Florida - Donna is slated to be at the Sinatra Theater in Fort Lauderdale on February 16 and 17, 2008. Those tickets should also go on sale through Ticketmaster but I don't expect to see them available for quite awhile yet. (I was actually stunned to see 2008 dates listed already!)
[MAR 25] I'm told that Virgin Megastore in Chicago has a Donna Greatest Hits volume 1 and volume 2 in stock. I haven't seen it myself, but I believe it is the Universal Masters Series - which means that Volume 2 is FINALLY turning up in stores other than Circuit City. (Not that I have anything against Circuit City - it's just a longer haul for me to get there. LOL)
[MAR 25] In other release news, DanceRecords.com is selling a 12" of Hot Stuff and Bad Girls. No remixer is listed, so I think it's just the regular 12". They also have the Castelli and Bravetti 2006 remix of I Feel Love available.
[MAR 25] I mentioned last time that Stor Dubine has a couple of videos entered in the Filmfest video competition. Well, the results are in and he pulled second place with his Clarice From Luna video. They also showed his videos, The Jones Aesthetic, and everybody's favorite, Does He Love You and both got massive amounts of applause. Congrats Stor!
[MAR 25] That brings us to the web news for the week. At DonnaDonna, Patrice has posted his Donna Classic Medley. And at Brickomania, Denis has posted the Bad Girls DME mix and the Bosson cover of On The Radio. I think that's all the news for now - but if I find something else while I'm catching up then I'll update again. :-)
[MAR 16] Happy St. Patrick's Day! Before I get started, Tom sent in one of his photos from Puerto Rico.
[MAR 16] If you'd like to see a little video footage of Donna, Canada.com has a clip from Destination Fashion. Just be a little patient with it because you will have to see an ad first.
[MAR 16] Okay all you mad voters out there. Once again it's time for Belgium's Gay Top 100. Head over to their website and submit your choices for the best song. :-) And if you visit FutureHall.com , you can vote for the artists you feel deserve an induction to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. (Hmmmm, now who should I vote for? ;-) )
[MAR 16] In the Donna is everywhere category this week, Entertainment Weekly has a short article rating diva duets. One of the best rated pairings on the list was Donna and Barbra. (Ummm - do I even need to say that I mean Barbra STREISAND? )
[MAR 16] And in the Donna's music is everywhere category, Last Dance (as mixes by Peter Rauhofer) was used to close out the Roxy in NY for the last time. (For those who don't know, the Roxy was a landmark gay nightclub in NY that finally closed its doors for good. You can read more about the event online at various news sources.)
[MAR 16] Here's a weird one for you..... the UK Biography Channel runs a celebrity gossip show called Confidential With Neil Sean. A recent edition of the show had news about Beyonce - news that her next film is going to be a remake of Thank God It's Friday with her in the role Donna had in the original. It's listed in Neil's Scoop on Sky Showbiz too (#7 if you get in through the main site) , but I haven't seen it anywhere else yet. (I just can't believe that anyone would think about remaking that one...... I think it would need a lot of updating to do well now. But then, what do I know? LOL)
[MAR 16] Okay, this one isn't really Donna-related, but I know Stor Dubine has a few fans (ever since we all got to see the video he made for Does He Love You), but he's got a couple of his non-Donna videos entered in the Filmfest video competition. Winners are determined by audience votes, so go check it out and show your support. :-)
[MAR 16] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted She Works Hard For The Money 2006 (John Kano Mix), I Feel Love (Owns One!'s 2007 Remix), Down Deep Inside (WEN!NG's Inside Deep Down Mix) and the Lounge-O-Leers cover of Bad Girls. At DonnaDonna, Patrice hasn't updated yet, but he might sneak in something after I leave so check in on him once in awhile. Next week's update might be a little late, it depends on what I come home to. :-)
[MAR 11] Before I get started, I have one report from San Juan for you and a little Brooklyn news as well. (I mean Brooklyn Sudano, not Brooklyn, NY. LOL) I will also mention now that next week's update will be a little early because I'll be off to Florida next weekend for a week of relaxation in the sun.
[MAR 11] VCR ALERT for Germany! Sorry I couldn't give you more warning, but Super RTL will be running a disco hits show tomorrow (March 11) that should include She Works Hard For The Money.
[MAR 11] Those of you looking for recent pictures of Donna, check out Wire Image and Getty Images for photos from the Destination Fashion event in Florida. (The Wire Image link should take you right to Donna, at Getty Images you will have to put her name in the search box.) And if you'd like to see pictures from San Juan, head over the site for the Coliseo de Puerto Rico.
[MAR 11] That brings us to the web news for the week. Over at Brickomania, Denis has posted Love Is In Control (Andymix 2004 #1) and the k.d. lang & Andy Bell cover of No More Tears. And at DonnaDonna, Patrice still has the Donna Summer Remix 4 posted for download.
[MAR 7] I think I have my email issues resolved - but anything sent to me over the last day or 2 was lost. :-( Apparently it was an issue with new anti-spam measures some email providers have just started using and message forwarding. (My webmaster address was an alias that was supposed to forward to my regular email account - I had to change that.) So if anybody out there has an email address set up to forward to another account, be warned that you could run into the same problems and be losing messages too.
[MAR 7] RED ALERT for Europe! Donna will be playing at Night Of The Proms in Rotterdam, The Netherlands on November 15 to 24. Tickets are on sale now.
[MAR 7] I seem to be having trouble with my webmaster email again. I have an email out to my webhost to see how we can resolve the problem, but in the meantime if you need to contact me my chawk25619@aol.com address still works just fine. Sorry for the inconvenience.
[MAR 4] Oops - I guess I should have actually announced that I updated the Summer Fever pick the other day. If you haven't seen it yet, the new pick is All Systems Go. I also want to mention that there is something of interest to Amanda fans in the Family Matters section below.
[MAR 4] last time, I mentioned a German TV show called Generation Of Pop. No word yet on the show being repeated, but there is a webpage for it on the Phoenix website.
[MAR 4] There is a website out there called Lost45.com. Among other things, it sells CDs with interviews of many artists who appeared on the Lost 45 Radio show. CDs are $20 and take 2-4 weeks to ship. (And I didn't investigate, but I assume that is domestic shipping - if you are outside the US you better send them an email to see if there are any restrictions or delays, etc.) They have a cute promo for the show that Donna recorded that streams for free on the website.
[MAR 4] In the Donna is everywhere category, she gets a mention in a Playbill interview with Broadway star Stephen Spinella. Scroll down to his "pop culture guilty pleasure." In the same category - Donna was also a Jeopardy answer this week. The question was, "In 1994 this ex-disco queen sang with the Nashville Symphony at a City Arts Festival" in the category Prima Donna. (It was Double Jeopardy too!) Yikes and here's one I just spotted now when I glanced at the TV. PBS is doing one of their special pledge drive programs and this one features music from the movie (My Music: Movie Songs). The CD set they are giving away as a premium features Donna singing Last Dance. I don't think there are any clips of her in the show though - I haven't spotted her yet and I don't think there is much left to watch. (If they do end up having her on the show - guaranteed it will be the clip from Thank God It's Friday.)
[MAR 4] Donna also gets a mention in a new book called Songs Of Myself by Ben Yagoda. It's about popular music and how artists used their songs to comment on themselves, their contemporaries, their genre of music or even the song itself. The Times posted a review that will probably give you a much better idea than I can. (Especially since I haven't seen the book myself yet! LOL) Look for that to hit bookstores soon.
[MAR 4] In radio news, AOL XM (the dance station) has been playing lots of Donna music lately - and not just hits. Listeners have the opportunity to rate the tracks, so I'd say Donna has been getting some good ratings. :-)
[MAR 4] I guess this would be a good time to give you the tiny update I have about Donna's new album. Sources at PureTone (the promoters) say that Donna is in LA writing songs. No word about styles or anything like that yet - but I have my own personal theories that I plan to explore on the site on April 1. ;-) (The regular visitors are probably getting scared now! LOL )
[MAR 4] And that brings us to the web news for the week. Philippe from Mes Dessins Des Donna Summer has posted a video of his photo creations on YouTube for your viewing pleasure. At Brickomania, Denis has posted Suzanna (Jandy's You Better Watch Your Mix 07) and Brenda Taylor's cover of Love To Love You. (I can't remember the last time anyone mixed Suzanna.) And at DonnaDonna, Patrice has posted Donna Summer Remix 4 which is a combination of Patrice mixes with other fan mixes.
[FEB 25] I guess the best place to start this week is with some remix news. A fan in London spotted an all Donna remix album in a shop called TRAX recently. It's a 2 disk set with the following tracks: I Feel Love (Almighty Anthem Mix), I Will Go With You (Club 69 Future Mix), Love On And On (Hex Hector 12"), I Got Your Love (Ralph Rosario ext vocal), Power Of One (Soundfactory club), Love Is The Healer (Thunderpuss Club mix), Work That Magic (Chris Cox mix), Whenever There Is Love (Junior Vasquez Hard Anthem Mix), Now I Need You (Damien's Mix), Carry On (Almighty Definitive mix), She Works Hard For The Money (Eddie Baez mix), I Will Live For Love (Chris Cox ext), You're So Beautiful (Tony Moran mix), State Of Independence (Murk Club mix), That's The Way It Is (Almighty Edit), Melody Of Love (Junior Vasquez mix), Power Of Love (Offer Nissam mix) and Sunset People (D-Bop mix).
[FEB 25] In the world of international television, Phoenix in Germany recently ran a 3 hour show called Generation Of Pop. It featured lots of music from the 70s and 80s and included acts like Silver Convention, Boney M, and a certain diva we all know and love...... ;-) They played a number of Donna songs and even had some vintage interview clips in German. So if you are in Germany, see if you can beg the station to repeat that for you. :-)
[FEB 25] In the Donna is everywhere (sort of) category, 107.9 in Indianapolis is playing a parody song about menopause. It samples a bit of Hot Stuff, only they changed the words to "hot flash." (Sadly, I'm getting to the age where I can relate..... LOL)
[FEB 18] Welcome to the one Sunday "newspaper" that absolutely promises to have no pictures of a bald Britney Spears. LOL Before I get to the regular news I want to mention that I have something in the Family Matters section for Brooklyn fans and a "new" TV listing for those who get the WGN TV channel. I've also added a little something (different) to the Orlando page. (And I still have more to add.)
[FEB 18] Valentine's Day was this past Wednesday, so naturally love was a big topic in the media. The Daily News posted their top 100 love songs and Donna came in at #85 with Last Dance. AOL did the 69 Sexiest Songs and put Donna at #3 with Love To Love You.
[FEB 18] In the Donna's music is everywhere category - a car commercial in France is using a Love To Love You cover. Also in France, Miss Dominique (winner of the French version of American Idol) has an album out that includes MacArthur Park.
[FEB 11] Happy Valentine's Day everybody! (Or if you are not into the Valentine's spirit, then Happy "Candy Is Half-Price On Thursday" Day! ;-) ) I guess the best place to start is warm, sunny Orlando. As many of you are aware, Donna played there last night and I have heard from a few happy concert goers today. :-) So I have a page set up with reports and photos from the show. [The "divas" for the evening will want to pay special attention to the link I included with Julio's report. :-) ] It sounds like pretty much the show Donna was doing last summer - but with one little unexpected treat. Joe Esposito was there doing backing vocals for the evening, so they did Heaven Knows. :-)
[FEB 11] The Dave Koz album is still getting a ton of publicity - I get something in my email box about it every day. (That's good! :-) ) We're also getting a little chart action now. At The Movies debuts in Billboard's Top Album chart at #86 and at #1 on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz chart. It's also at #8 on the UU Internet Radio charts and the song A Whole New World moves from #49 to #44 on the UU Internet Radio Chart.
[FEB 11] I have a little UK iTunes news for you. If you are looking for Sometimes Like Butterflies, then iTunes is the place. Apparently Mark Tara's Different Love album has made it overseas in digital form - so that's good news for you guys. :-)
[FEB 11] In the Donna's music is everywhere category (sort of) - a European Swatch commercial uses a cover of I Feel Love. The ad has been spotted on MTV Germany and MTV Italy. Now, I'm not sure if it's the same ad in each country but I do know that in Italy it's a funny Valentine's ad that features a voodoo doll. And in Germany, the music is arranged as sort of a disco/rock hybrid with some pretty intense guitars.
[FEB 4] I guess the best place to start is with the Dave Koz At The Movies CD [Amazon, Amazon UK]. It's in stores now (and on iTunes) and as most of you know by now, it features Donna's cover of A Whole New World. I got my copy (FINALLY!) yesterday and I have to say that I really enjoy the whole album. To be honest, I wasn't familiar with Dave Koz before Donna did the album, but I am really happy that I have the album now - and having heard it, I would have it in my collection even if Donna wasn't a part of the project. (And no, no one is paying me to say this...... but if Dave Koz would like to, I accept small unmarked bills and coins preferably in legal US currency..... LOL) I realize that At The Movies won't be everybody's cup of tea (for instance, if you are looking for a killer dance track to play at clubs, you won't find it here!), but if you are in the mood for something relaxing for winding down after work, or for sharing a quiet evening with a special person, then this might just be the album for you. So go check it out. There are plenty of clips posted at Amazon, iTunes, and DaveKoz.com for you to sample. On another note, a bunch of Smooth Jazz stations premiered the album last weekend with Dave Koz playing the whole thing and talking a little about each track. When he played A Whole New World, he said: "Donna, known for her disco days, you can tell when you listen to that song that this is a woman who can truly sing. She did a great job and it was really a great experience to make music with her."
[FEB 4] In other news, AVClub.com posted a list of "16 Genuinely Good Oscar-Winning Songs." Last Dance comes in at #12 on the list with the following comments: "The 'disco musical' Thank God It's Friday is better than people remember—casual observers often confuse it with Can't Stop The Music, which really did suck. And 'Last Dance,' written by Paul Jabara and sung by Donna Summer, is one of the key reasons T.G.I.F. transcends its '70s-typical 'a bunch of people hang out' anti-premise. Late in the film, a mousy Summer steps up to the microphone to belt out 'her song,' and the club goes wild, validating the anyone-can-be-a-star dreams of a million pop fans, and connecting the much-maligned disco movement to a venerable show-business tradition stretching back to, yes, Gold Diggers Of 1935." Just a note - the list is in chronological order and also includes such classics as Over The Rainbow and Moon River.
[FEB 4] The ListenUp section if the USAToday Blog featured Donna once again. (That's the blog that featured all the conversation about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.) This time, Ken takes a look at sales figures and he posts the figures for a number of Donna's albums. Just one thing to keep in mind, the numbers he has are Soundscan figures which don't (for obvious reasons) take into account sales before 1991.
[JAN 28] Let me start with a correction to last week's announcement about Destination:Fashion. It turns out that Donna actually WILL be performing - but that little detail didn't surface until after I updated.
[JAN 28] I just found out that CD101.9 will be running a Dave Koz special to premiere his At The Movies CD. He is supposed to talk about each track, so hopefully he'll have some interesting things to say about working with Donna. It's at 8PM tonight (on most stations anyway) - sorry for the late notice, but I just found out about it 10 minutes ago myself. You can catch the show on various lite jazz stations all across the country - some of which stream on the web. (Here's the list I have: WQCD, New York, KTWV, Los Angeles, WNUA, Chicago, KKSF, San Francisco, WVMV, Detroit, WJJZ, Philadelphia, KHJZ, Houston, WLVE, Miami WSMJ, Baltimore KIFM, San Diego, KWJZ, Seattle, KJCD, Denver, KYOT, Phoenix, KIJZ, Portland, WSJT, Tampa, WNWV, Cleveland, KSSJ, Sacramento, KOAS, Las Vegas WJCD, Norfolk, KJZN, Fresno, KJZS, Reno, WDSJ, Dayton, KABQ, Albuquerque, WSJW, Harrisburg, WZJZ, Ft. Myers, KMYT, Temecula, WMJX, Trinidad) I am going to try to record what I can - but the NY station isn't playing nice with me so I'll see what I can do with one of the other streams. :-) ) Just a note - if you miss out on the East coast stream - try a west coast radio station and take advantage of the 3 hour time difference! (If you are outside the US - any radio station whose call letters begin with K is in the western half of the country.) At The Movies [Amazon, Amazon UK] hits stores on Tuesday.
[JAN 28] In the Donna is everywhere category, she was an answer in the Isaac Asimov Super Quiz the other day. In the same category, she gets a mention in a New Yorker article called "The Birds" by David Sedaris. In the article he talks about the local birds crashing into his window. So in order to scare the birds away, he used album covers with life-sized (lore o less) photos of the artists' faces. (Thanks for the heads up on that Ernie. :-) )
[JAN 28] In remix news, the David Vendetta mix of Love To Love You has re-entered the European charts at # 94.
[JAN 21] I guess the best place to start is with upcoming appearances. If you are in Miami on March 2 and have more than a little pocket change, you can attend Destination:Fashion - a fashion show and silent auction to benefit the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. According to one news report, Donna will be there too - but it doesn't look like a performance thing.... I think she's just there to enjoy the event. Now if it's a performance you want - you need to be in Orlando on February 10 (tickets available through Ticketmaster) or San Juan on March 3 (tickets available through Ticketpop). ;-)
[JAN 21] It's been awhile since I had news about Donna's paintings, but this one fell into my lap this week.... the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art in Arizona is having an exhibition called "Celebrity." It includes 28 pieces by various celebrity artists - including Donna. The exhibit runs until April 29 so check it out if you are in the Scottsdale area.
[JAN 21] Moving on to release news, J Records put out a 5 track maxi-single of Power Of Love that is now available for download at Yahoo Music. On the other hand, if out of print classics are more your speed - go check out The Disc Kiosk out of the UK. They don't have everything, but they do have a few out of print treasures available like The Wanderer, Cats Without Claws, She Works Hard For The Money and The Summer Collection.
[JAN 14] So I guess the best place to start this week is with the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame. As many of you know, there was a big discussion about which artists should be in it over on the USA Today blog not too long ago. Well, the discussion is back in a way. Now the question is not so much "which artists deserve to be in the Hall Of Fame?" (where Donna's name came up quite a bit! LOL) but more "what constitutes greatness in an artist?" So that's shaping up to be another interesting discussion to follow (or participate in, if you are so inclined).
[JAN 14] I haven't been able to track down the specifics on this yet, but a local Fort Lauderdale newspaper reports that the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men's Chorus will be performing with Donna at an event in West Hollywood on March 28. Unfortunately, the paper didn't say what the event was or if it's public or private and so far there are no details on the FLGMC website yet either. As soon as I hear more, I'll let you know.
[JAN 14] In the Donna is everywhere category (sort of), look for animated plush Valentine's Day toys that play Hot Stuff. It's not Donna's voice unfortunately, but the toy I saw in Walmart was cute. That toy (or another one that uses the song) was seen in a CVS as well, so that probably means they will be just about everywhere.
[JAN 7] I guess the best place to start off is with release news. I got an iTunes news alert this week advertising the latest Donna Summer release to hit the service. It is the long awaited........... SHOUT IT OUT! LOL I have to say that I'm actually surprised that we didn't hear about this sooner - we've been long overdue for yet another release of that collection. (For those who are unfamiliar with the Shout It Out Collection - it's a bunch of tracks that Donna recorded with a group before she was a famous Diva. Somebody found them and figured out that they could make money off of them and probably if the songs had been released as they were originally recorded, they would be okay. A bit dated - but still okay. But whoever got the tapes decided to update the arrangements a bit and manipulate the recordings to bring Donna's voice out more....... which doesn't make a whole lot of sense in the tracks where she is singing background. LOL Add to that the fact that it's been releases upwards of 40 times and that many times the Shout It Out releases have the most strange and/or hideous artwork imaginable and you can see why the collection has become sort of a running joke among diehard fans. ) Sadly the art for this one is based on the Once Upon A Time cover picture..... I much prefer the release that had just one big eye on the cover. (Even though it gave me nightmares...... LOL)
[JAN 7] I guess this could be non-release news? Barry Manilow's First & Farewell DVD is out and despite some early reports that it might include his duet with Donna on Could It Be Magic - that is not the case. So it looks like we have another vault to raid...... ;-)
[JAN 7] Getting down to more serious stuff..... Billboard's end of year charts came out and Donna is on the Dance Sales Chart at #17 with I Got Your Love. That feels GOOD! :-)
[JAN 7] Moving overseas, WDR2 radio in Germany mentioned that Donna has a CD coming out this spring. Nice to hear that the new CD is being talked about, but I'm not taking any release date completely seriously until it is accompanied by concrete details about the album like a title or track list (or a map of the vault showing me just where to find the masters so that I can...... oops, I better not give away my raiding plans. ;-) )
[JAN 7] In the Donna is everywhere category, if you watch the TV show Las Vegas the other night and if you have really sharp ears, then you would have heard Hot Stuff playing in the background during a scene about old lady nudists exercising in the park. (And people say that TV has no depth! LOL) Also in Donna is everywhere news, she showed up in a significantly more sane place when she made the Top 50 gay icons list on the UK's Pink News website.
[JAN 7] Going overseas again, in France DJ Dave Vendetta put out a remix of Love To Love You that recently peaked on the French charts at #24. It also cracked the European charts at #122 where it dropped to 186 and then jumped back to 144. I have my fingers crosses that it just keeps climbing. :-)
2006:
[DEC 31] Happy Donna's Birthday everyone! Oh yeah - and Happy New Year too! ;-) Before I get started I just want to mention that the new Summer Fever pick is Mistaken Identity. I also have something special from Stor Dubiné for all of you.
[DEC 31] Let's start off with release news. As many of you know, Donna is singing A Whole New World on the upcoming Dave Koz CD, At The Movies. It is now available for preorder at places like Amazon and Amazon UK. But if you want to hear a sample clip, the place that has it right now is Coconuts. :-)
[DEC 31] In concert news, Donna will be singing at Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's inauguration this week. The event is by invitation only so you have just a couple of days to become the Governor's best friend if you want to attend. ;-)
[DEC 31] In the land of remixes, there is a white label remix of I Feel Love by Plump DJs available on DanceRecords.com. The site has a 2 minute clip if you want to check it out.
[DEC 31] And that brings us to the web news for the week. At Brickomania, Denis has posted the Klyk Smooth remix of Tokyo. (I don't think I've seen that remixed in AGES.) He's also got the Chenoa and Geno cover of Rosie Christmas posted for you.
[DEC 23] I thought I'd do the update a little early so that I could spend the rest of the holiday weekend finding ways to blackmail.... I mean relax with my family and friends. ;-) Just a couple of reminders if you missed the mid week update: I have a new concert listing for Orlando for February, and the 2006 EGreetings for Donna page has been published.
[DEC 23] Let's start with some Donna is everywhere news that made me laugh. In Norway there is a chain of hardware stores called Byggmakker that has been using Love To Love You in their commercials. (Yes you read that right. LOL) Usually the ads feature a guy who spots the power tool of his dreams and while he fantasizes about using it, they play Love To Love You. (I was just about to tell some of you to get your minds out of the gutter.... but then I realized that any time you put "power tools" with a sexy song like Love To Love You, where else is your mind gonna go? LOL)
[DEC 23] On to something a little more serious, every year in The Netherlands they have an all time top 2000 list. This year Donna came in at numbers: 1779 (Last Dance), 1562 (I Feel Love), 1016 (State of Independence) and 849 (MacArthur Park). Speaking of charts, Jason Hare's blog has a flashback to December 1979 when Enough Enough was on the charts. He's got a paragraph about song too.
[DEC 23] In release news, PerfectBeat has a compilation called Grand 12 Inches Volume 2 that features the 8:12 version of Last Dance. While you are there, also check out their Let's Hear It For The 70s Volume 3 which features covers of I Feel Love and Could It Be Magic.
[DEC 23] In cover news, a French soul singer called Miss Dominique has included an R&B version of MacArthur Park on her debut album, Une Femme Battante. And in Scandinavia, artist Monedybrother has included a Swedish version of Working The Midnight Shift on his latest album. In the liner notes, he wrote: "This was the one most fun to do. There was so many directions we could go with this one. Maybe a Wyclef/ Marley ballad. Maybe Mink/ Costello. Or Dire Straits. Yeah, Dire Straits"
[DEC 23] Getting back to the Donna is everywhere category, she's been spotted in a couple of books recently. The first one is a book called Disco Years by Ron Galella where she gets a full page photo. (If you are in NY, you can see the book on exhibit at The Powerhouse Arena, 37 Main Street in Brooklyn.) Her name is also mentioned in a book of jokes by Dr. Angel L. Rivera Hernandez. (You can also see a picture from her concert in Puerto Rico on his site.)
[DEC 23] One more in the Donna is everywhere category..... in an article out of Bombay, India, Christmas Spirit was listed as one of the top Christmas albums and there is even a quote from a shopper citing it as one of the best. :-)
[DEC 21] At long last the EGreetings 2006 page is complete and open for business. :-) This year we have ninety some-odd messages plus a collection of quotes from the USA Today blog. So it might take a little time to read. ;-) I'm emailing the link to the powers that be shortly after I upload this update (and check to see that it all works.) Thanks to all who contributed! :-) Most likely this will be the last update until the weekend, so let me just take this opportunity to say have a safe and fun holiday weekend. If you are out drinking, don't drive and if you are in Denver.... try not to hurt yourselves shoveling all that snow!
[DEC 20] RED ALERT for Orlando, FL. Donna will be playing Universal Studios on February 10 probably as part of their Mardi Gras celebration again. No word yet on when tickets go on sale.
[DEC 16] Before I get to the news I just want to say that I've had a little email problem the last day or 2 (mostly thanks to some evil spammer who's been spoofing my domain). The donna @ donna-tribute.com address was not affected at all, but the webmaster @ donna-tribute.com was down for a little while. That's been fixed, so everything should be back to normal now. Sorry for any mailer daemons you got.
[DEC 16] Now let's get to the news, and the best place to start is with XM Radio. XM recently announced the winners of its second annual XM Nation Awards. In it they gave Donna the award for Disco Diva of All Time. :-)
[DEC 16] In the Donna is everywhere category, she's been spotted in the magazine CBS Soaps In Depth. There is a picture in the "On The Town" section of her with actress Elizabeth Hubbard taken at a benefit honoring Maurice Hinds. The magazine is in stores until December 26.
[DEC 16] I will be back during the week with the final e-greetings page, but I'm not 100% sure when I'll get to to next week's regular update. Because of the way the holiday falls, it might be a little early or it might be a little late. But let me take this opportunity to wish everyone here a Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa, a Joyous Festivus, and a very happy National Pickle Week..... oh wait, that last one isn't this week. Oh well.... ;-)
[DEC 10] Last time I mentioned that there was a spirited discussion over at the USA Today blog about the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. Well, apparently Donna has garnered enough support to make the original author take notice. So now there is a follow up article specifically about Donna and the Hall Of Fame. :-) And I have to say that while there are a number of names that I recognize among the commenters, there are just as many that I don't. It's not just the usual diehards in Donna's corner on this one. :-)
[DEC 10] In remix news, DanceRecords.com has a new white label remix of I Feel Love available. It's the Castelli & Bravetti Bangin' Deep Funky Progressive House mix. The site has a pretty long clip posted if you want to check it out.
[DEC 6] How about one more update to actually give you the link to the Nashville page that I mentioned the other day. (I forgot that links only work if I add them to the page instead of just thinking about adding them....... LOL)
[DEC 6] I'm back early because I have a time sensitive item for Los Angeles (or anyone who can tune into internet radio.) This Sunday (December 10) at 5 PM Pacific KLAS-FM 89.7 will be running an edition of Songs From The Alchemists Playground that will focus on Donna and (highly intelligent ;-) ) artists who have been influenced by her. KLAS streams live from their website, so those of us outside of regular broadcast range will be able to tune in. :-) (How did we ever live without the internet? LOL)
[DEC 3] I guess the best place to start this week is with the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame. No Donna's not in this year's list of inductees (ugh) but USA Today's blog has a discussion going about artists who deserve to be inducted and Donna's been mentioned multiple times. (And I only recognize some of the usual suspects over there. LOL) Personal note to Christian: Your PopMatters article has been quoted over there too. :-)
[DEC 3] As most of you know, Donna performed in Nashville over Thanksgiving weekend. Some of the fans have spoken, and I've put their reports on a Nashville page for you. But the pros have gotten into the act too with an interview published in The Tennessean and photos posted on GospelMusicUpdate.com. And if that's not quite enough for you, there is even a little blurb posted on the blog: JB Thompson's blog. (Just scroll down to November 27.)
[DEC 3] In other concert news, the benefit last month for the Parkview School in NY raised 1 million dollars. That's more than they brought in last year, so maybe that means they'll ask her back for next year too. ;-) (If they do, I HAVE to find a way to get out of work for that one....... my stalking was seriously compromised by real life this year. :-( )
[DEC 3] In the Donna is everywhere category, VH1 has added Love's About To Change My Heart to their list of Donna videos available for viewing on the site. And for you figure-skating fans out there, this year's edition of Ice Wars featured Rory Flack-Burkhart skating to Last Dance.
[NOV 26] E-Greetings for Donna is in full swing. I have the first few messages already and there is plenty of room for everybody who wants to contribute. Just see my announcement from last week for details. In other site news, I hope to update the holiday shopping guide sometime this week.
[NOV 26] It's been a pretty quiet week thanks to the holiday here, but I have a couple of things for you this week. Let's start with one in the category of.... "what are they thinking?" MSNBC recently featured a list of the top 10 songs they would be thankful to never hear again. Looking at the list, I agreed with a couple of the songs, I never heard of 2 of the songs, and took issue with one song in particular..... You guessed it. They started the list with MacArthur Park. Granted, they were mostly complaining about the Richard Harris version of the song (which is one that I would happily include on my personal list of awful songs). But then they had to go and say: "Donna Summer covered it in 1978, but that was disco, and therefore its sheer awfulness was disguised by a pulsating beat." Granted, I'm just a teeny bit biased ;-) but to me, Donna's vocals supported by Giorgio's awesome production on that song make it one of my favorite songs ever. It's not a disguise - in their hands the ugly duckling recorded by Harris became a beautiful swan.
[NOV 26] In the world of record sales, a (probably soon to be deleted) article on the Wikipedia (and reprinted on WikiDumper) list Donna as the 6th best selling female artist of all time - behind people like Madonna and Diana Ross, but ahead of people like Britney Spears and Barbra Streisand. They list sales figures for each of the artists which must be worldwide figures - but there is no indication how they got the numbers. (These days tracking sales is easier because of Soundscan, but that didn't exist before the 90s. And since a number of the record companies that were around before the 90s are no longer here, I just wonder how hard it is to get accurate sales figures.)
[NOV 26] And here's another offbeat Donna is everywhere item for you.... Slovenia has a new tourist slogan. It's I Feel Slovenia and it was inspired by a certain song we all know. (I just hope they don't try to sing it. Slovenia has too many syllables to fit the melody..... LOL)
[NOV 19] Okay, let's start with last week's concert. We have a John Legend fan out there who wrote about the show on her blog. You have to read it for yourself, but let's just say that she really enjoyed Donna's performance. :-)
[NOV 19] There was recently a show on German TV called Halbstark an Rhein und Ruhr which was about youth in the 60s. In part 2 they used a couple of clips of Donna in Hair. So if it repeats, be on the lookout for that.
[NOV 19] Last Dance has turned up at #102 on the official UK download chart. I guess it just goes to show that some songs are as fresh today as they were when they first came out. :-)
[NOV 19] In the Donna is everywhere category this week, Salon.com had a funny little article about changing hairdressers and it mentioned Donna a couple of times. (Note: Salon will make you watch an ad before granting you access to the article. The ad they had tonight did not get along nicely with my poor old Windows 98 desktop, but it was just fine with my XP notebook. If I recall correctly, the ads there change regularly so if you have trouble just try again another day.)
[NOV 19] This last thing is not really Donna-related (yet!) but I just discovered this cool website that streams TV stations from dozens of different countries. For now it's just a fun place to see what the rest of the world is watching - but who knows? Maybe in the future it will be a good way to keep up with our favorite diva? The site is wwiTV.com - check it out when you have a chance.
[NOV 19] Finally - let me take this opportunity to wish all the Americans out there a Happy Thanksgiving! As for the rest of you..... take Thursday off anyway. Pretend to be an American for the day. ;-)
[NOV 12] As most of you know, Donna performed at a benefit in New York last night. I couldn't be there (would now be a good time to rant about having to work for a living? LOL) but a few of you were. And Rich has emailed me his report from the show. You can read what he had to say on the New York page. And if anyone else would like to contribute (words or photos) just send me an email. :-)
[NOV 12] I guess I should start with the big news for the week. :-) Saxophonist Dave Koz is putting out a new album called At The Movies [Amazon, Amazon UK]. He's got a collection of artists guesting on the disk with him and one of those just happens to be a certain diva....... ;-) Donna will be singing A Whole New World (that's the song from Disney's Aladdin) so that should be really cool. Look for that on January 30.
[NOV 12] Speaking of releases..... remember Mark Tara's Different Love album? (That's the one that finally brought us Sometimes Like Butterflies on CD.) You can now get it on iTunes - and the profits still go to CANFAR, so it's all good. :-) (And you might want to check out Mark's news page - he's working on a new album and some of his collaborators will be very familiar to the remix collectors out there. :-) )
[NOV 12] There is a new compilation out in Holland called The Very Best Of Donna Summer. It's 2 disks and all the tracks are digitally remastered. The tracks are as follows: The Hostage, Lady Of The Night, Love To Love You Baby (7'' mix), Full Of Emptiness (album version), Could It Be Magic (ORIGINAL 7'' mix), Try Me I Know We Can Make It (full album mix), Spring Affair (7'' version), Winter Melody (album version), I Feel Love (album version), Theme From The Deep (Down Deep Inside) (7'' version), I Remember Yesterday (album version), Love's Unkind (album version), Back In Love Again (album version), I Love You (album version), Rumour Has It (album version), Last Dance (12'' version), MacArthur Park (7'' version), Hot Stuff (12'' version), Bad Girls (12'' version), Dim All The Lights (album version), Sunset People (album version), On The Radio (7'' version), The Wanderer, State Of Independence (album version), Love Is In Control (Finger On The Trigger), The Woman In Me, She Works Hard For The Money (album version), Dinner With Gershwin, This Time I Know It's For Real, Melody Of Love.
[NOV 12] EBayers might be interested in a set of CDs that has been turning up at auction lately. It's a 6 disk set usually listed as "Studio 54 1978 DJ Tom Savarese set" that includes a ton of classic dance songs done as a live mix. And I am told that there is a really great mix of I Feel Love where the song is mixed with Macho's I'm A Man. I believe the set is only available on eBay and as far as I can tell, the seller has multiple copies that he keeps listing.
[NOV 12] In the Donna's music is everywhere category, there is an unusual clip on YouTube of Dim All The Lights. It's an accapella version of the song sun by Drew University students. The song is not complete, but their interpretation is interesting.
[NOV 12] Speaking of YouTube, some more classic clips have turned up recently. If you haven't already, I recommend getting an account and subscribing to some of the more active Donna posters. It's the best way to keep up with the new clips.
[NOV 5] Before I get started I just want to remind all the Americans out there that Tuesday is Election Day. So make sure you get out there and vote! (If you don't take the time to vote then you don't have the right to complain about who wins - and I guarantee that whoever wins in any of the races will give us something to complain about. LOL)
[NOV 5] Also before I get to Donna, the links page has had a long overdue update. Broken links have been weeded out and newer links have been added.
[NOV 5] If any of you are going to the concert in Nashville Thanksgiving, I came across this little blurb online about it: A Thanksgiving music celebration featuring Wynonna Judd, Donna Summer and local church choirs will take place at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center Nov. 24-25.
The concert will "celebrate community and embrace unity," according to a news release. The concerts will feature the Nashville Chamber Orchestra and Mount Zion Baptist Church's youth choir.
[NOV 5] Speaking of concerts, I almost forgot to mention that Donna's official site has been updated with the press release for the concert this week in New York to benefit the Parkside School.
[NOV 5] In remix news, DJ David Vandetta has remixed Love To Love You as an electronic dance single. It's doing well in France on dance radio and in clubs. Here's hoping that it takes over the rest of Europe too...... Wait, what am I saying? It should take over the whole world! ;-)
[NOV 5] In the Donna is everywhere category - well, we have some weird ones again! LOL Bad Girls has been used in the promo for the season finale of Animal Planet's Meerkat Manor. (Meerkats are members of the mongoose family. The show is a nature show that follow a group of the critters as they go about their day to day routines.) And in Nicaragua, presidential candidate, Eduardo Montealegre, has spiced up his campaign a bit by dancing to Donna's music. (Why can't our candidates do stuff like that? LOL)
[NOV 5] And in a significantly more serious "Donna is everywhere" there is an article on Pop Matters called "Anti-Divas" which is about female black singers in rock music. (I know, I know - according to every VH1 countdown special I've ever seen only white boys sing rock...... ::rolling my eyes:: ) The article is sprinkled with discussion of songs by various women, and also with YouTube clips to further illustrate the point. Donna is represented in text by Running For Cover and in video by Hot Stuff.
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