Old School Jame of the Day

It's been a while since we've done an old school jam of the day, and we're bringing it back!!

What better way to start off again a woman who has continued to make an impact on the charts today.

Monica!

The singer had a stellar year in 2010, scoring a #1 R&B single "Everything to Me", as well as an album that hit #2 on the charts, was certified gold by the RIAA, and earned her 2 Grammy nominations.

Not too shabby, considering she's been in the biz since the early/mid 90's.

Sit back and reminisce about 1998 with this former chart topper.

Enjoy!!

Old School Jam of the Day

On this dreary Saturday morning in NYC I happened to be shuffling my iPod and stumbled upon this CLASSIC adult contemporary pop gem!

"I Love You Always Forever" was Donna Lewis' one hit, and boy was it a big one. The song spent 9 weeks at #2 on the Hot 100 back in 1996 (behind none other than "The Macarena") and still continues to be a standard on the AC charts.

She faded into obscurity shortly after she hit it big, but we will always remember this little pop ditty that was inescapable back in the day.

So sit back, relax, and enjoy the wonderful pop-tastic sounds of "I Love You Always Forever".

(Image courtesy http://www.bbc.co.uk/)

90's Throwback

They are the kings of pop in the UK, with 11 #1 singles, but have to settle for one-hit-wonder status in the U.S.

Take That, Britain's biggest boy band EVER hit the U.S. top 10 in 1995 with "Back for Good", a midtempo ballad along the lines of BSB's "I Want it That Way", but vanished after the song dropped off the charts.

Well, they continued to rack up hit after hit in Europe, until band member Robbie Williams (the best decision of his life) left and the group eventually disbanded.

Until 2005, when they reunited and came back in a BIG way. 2006's Beautiful World became one of the biggest albums of the year. And now in 2010, with Robbie Williams back in the mix, their latest album Progress has sold 900,000 copies in the UK in just 3 weeks, cementing the band's status as European icons.

So here's to you, Take That. May you have one more hit in the U.S. before you're gone for good!

(Image courtesy of http://www.livingtv.co.uk/)

Mad About Belinda!

More Than Musiq has not done a birthday shout out in quite some time, but today's birthday girl has a special place in my heart.

It's Belinda Carlisle's birthday! The former lead singer of the Go-Go's who then embarked on a super successful solo career turns 52 today!

As the lead singer of the Go-Go's Carlisle became one of the most popular leading ladies in music in the 80's. Once the band broke up due to internal conflicts, drug addiction, and excessive partying, she became an ever bigger star as a solo artist.

Her first single "Mad About You" hit #3 on the charts, but her biggest single was yet to come. "Heaven is a place on Earth" became a massive #1 hit, earned Carlisle a Grammy nomination, and cemented her status as a leading pop hit-maker.

She collected 6 top 40 hits as a solo artist, and in the 90's and 2000's the Go-Go's reunited and have toured the world.

So Happy Birthday!!!

(Image courtesy of ayushveda.com)

Sade Sells 500,000 in First Week

It's like they don't even have to try.

veteran R&B group Sade debut HUGE on the Billboard 200 album chart this week, with their album Soldier of Love selling 502,000 in its first week, earning the group their second #1 album.

This is a crazy number for a group that has not released a new album since 2000, and barely promotes their music!

But Sade is definitely much more of a "album" band than a "single" band; meaning that they don't really rely on hit songs to sell albums. Sade has a huge following and have been one of the most consistent sellers over the last 25 years.

Lady Antebellum, last week's #1 selling artist, fall to #2 this week with only a 1% decline in sales.

here's a rundown of the top 10 album this week!

1. Sade Soldier of Love (502,000)

2. Lady Antebellum Need You Now (208,000)

3. Jaheim Another Round (112,000)

4. Lil Wayne Rebirth (89,000)

5. Josh Turner Haywire (85,000)

6. tobyMac Tonight (79,000)

7. Lady Gaga The Fame (76,000)

8. The Black Eyed Peas The E.N.D. (67,000)

9. Susan Boyle I Dreamed a Dream (51,000)

10. Taylor Swift Fearless (50,000)

(Image courtesy of jamati.com)

Sade's Big Return

They've been around for 25 years, but have somehow managed to keep a low-key profile while still selling millions of albums.

Sade (people think it's just one person but it's actually a band, kind of like the Dave Matthews Band) have released their latest album Soldier of Love, and it's expected to debut BIG on next week's Billboard 200 albums chart.

According to Billboard experts are saying the set could sell up to 400,000 copies in its debut week, a big sum for any artist, but especially for a group that rarely does much promotion or spend time in the spotlight.

Sade are a very unique group in the music biz; they hate the celebrity life and often go back to leading a private, low-key life after they release an album. They have managed to sell nearly 25 million records JUST in the United States alone, and are continuing to expand their fan base.

Good for them! I think it's great that there is a band that focuses all on the MUSIC and doesn't care about anything else!

(Image courtesy of tmottgogo.com)

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees Announced

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees have been announced, and this year's lucky legends include ABBA, Genesis, and The Stooges.

This will be the 25th anniversary of the awards ceremony, which will be held in March in New York City.

Interesting trio of inductees this year. Of course "Rock and Roll" is all encompassing, but ABBA is stretching it a little bit, don't cha think?

I do love me some "Dancing Queen" but honestly, did they really change the music landscape that significantly?

(Image courtesy of abbamikory.blogs.com/)

Eminem & The Beatles are this Decade's Best Sellers.

Nielsen Soundscan has just released their officials lists of the best-selling artists of the decade, and Eminem takes the top spot with over 32 million albums sold in the last 10 years.

Although Slim Shady's star has faded significantly since his peak popularity during 2000-2004, He was album to move millions with only a handful of releases.

The Beatles come in at the #2 spot, selling 30 million records this decade, thanks largely in part to their mega-selling greatest hits package 1, which was the best-selling album of the 2000's, selling 11.4 million copies.

Britney Spears has one of the 10 best-selling albums of the decade, with her sophomore set "Oops!...I Did it Again" which has sold 9.1 million since its release in 2000, good enough to finish #9 for the 2000's.

Spears is also the best-selling female artist of the decade, with almost 23 million albums sold.

I love the end of the year/decade! There are so many great lists and chart facts!

(Image courtesy of www.yorkblog.com)

Happy Birthday Lizard King

Although he passed away almost 40 years ago, we can still celebrate one of the greatest (and sexiest) front men of all time!

Jim Morrison would be 66 today! The lead singer of the Doors passed away in 1971, but his music and his memory still lives on!!

(Image courtesy of imgsrv.nightswithalicecooper.com)

You Want Your Freaks

The Poll is now closed and you have chosen Freaks and Geeks and the show that you wished was still on the air!

The cult classic was only on for one season, but was a critical darling and featured the young talent of of now superstars James Franco and Seth Rogen. The show ran from 1999-2000, with Entertainment Weekly naming it the 13th best television series of the past 25 years.

Too bad no one watches good TV shows.

Well, here's to hoping that perhaps we'll see the kids of William McKinley High School walking the halls once more!

(Image courtesy of images.fanpop.com)

Bon Jovi Back at #1

Veteran rockers Bon Jovi score the fourth #1 album of their career, with their latest set "The Circle" selling 163,000 last week.

The band has been consistent over the years, selling out stadiums around the world and releasing relatively successful albums, although they've never reached the success of their debut Slippery When Wet, which sold over 10 million records in 1986-87.

As a sign that the holidays are upon us, the #2 album of the week is Andrea Bocelli's "My Christmas", which sold another 136,000 copies.

Last week's #1 album, "Play On" by Carrie Underwood, falls to #3 with 128,000.

The soundtrack to New Moon is sitting at #10, but I expect a huge bump in sales next week as the film is released this Friday.

(Image courtesy of www.disc-connection.com)

Jackson Scores 6th Number One Album

With over 373,000 copies sold this week, Michael Jackson's This is It album easily tops the Billboard 200. This is Jackson's best sales week since 1995 when his hits collection HIStory sold 391,000.

The album is the companion the Jackson's musical Documentary of the same name, which topped last weekend's box office and has $36.9 million in North America alone.

In other big chart news, Creed scores a surprising #2 debut with their comeback album Full Circle. The band's first set of new material since 2001, the disc sold 110,000.

And we can't mention the music charts without Taylor Swift. Last week she re-released the platinum edition of her already 4x platinum album Fearless, which sees a whopping 225% increase in sales to 109,000, good enough to move up to #3.

Here is a rundown of the top 10 albums this week:

1. Michael Jackson "This is It" (373,00)

2. Creed "Full Circle " (110,000)

3. Taylor Swift "Fearless" (109,000)

4. Rod Stewart "Soulbook" (84,000)

5. Trans-Siberian Orchestra "Night Castle" (82,000)

6. Sting "If On a Winters Night" (80,000)

7. Michael Buble "Crazy Love" (71,000)

8. The Twilight Saga: New Moon Soundtrack (69,000)

9. Tim McGraw "Southern Voice" (59,000)

10. Jay-Z "The Blueprint 3" (41,00)

(Image courtesy of Billboard.com)

Happy Birthday 007

It's Roger Moore's birthday today!

The legendary James Bond actor, who played the iconic man of mystery in 7 of the franchise's films, turns 72 today!

He appeared in Man with the Golden Gun, The Spy Who Loved Me, and A View to Kill, just to name a few!

(Image courtesy of img.listal.com)

Madge Takes A Look Back

Madonna graces the newest cover of Rolling Stone Magazine, which interviews the music legend about her career, as well as her opinion on some of today's stars, such as Lady Gaga and Justin Timberlake.

Looks like a good read!

Babs Shows the Young Ones How It's Done

Most people thought that Paramore or Mariah Carey would take the #1 spot on the Billboard 200 this week, but in a huge upset Barbra Streisand's new album "Love is the Answer" trumps them both to take the top spot, collecting her 9th #1 album.

The set sold 180,000 copies good enough to push her ahead of Paramore who's sophomore album "Brand New Eyes" comes in at #2 with 175,000. Carey's album "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" BOMBS with only 168,000 copies sold. Her last album "E=MC2" sold a whopping 463,000 copies and although her latest single "Obsessed is a top 10 hit, it looks like fans weren't feeling the entire album.

This week the album chart see a record breaking 8 new entries in the top 10. Besides Streisand, Paramore and Carey, we see top 10 debuts from Breaking Benjamin, Alice in Chains, Madonna, Miranda Lambert and Selena Gomez.

Here's a rundown of the top 10 albums this week:

1. Barbra Streisand "Love is the Answer" (180,000)

2. Paramore "Brand New Eyes" (175,000)

3. Mariah Carey "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" (168,000)

4. Breaking Benjamin "Dear Agony" (134,000)

5. Alice in Chains "Black Gives Way to Blue" (126,000)

6. Jay-Z "The Blueprint 3" (89,000)

7. Madonna "Celebration" (72,000)

8. Miranda Lambert "Revolution" (66,000)

9. Selena Gomez "Kiss and Tell" (66,000)

10. Pearl Jam "Backspacer" (58,000)

(Image courtesy of www.rtvchannel.tv)

Happy Anniversary!

Today marks the 30th anniversary of Gloria Gaynor's mega hit "I Will Survive." The song was an international #1 hit that earned Gaynor the 1980 Grammy Award for Best Disco Song.

The track has since taken on a life of its own and has become a staple in pop culture history.

Keep on survivin' Gloria!

If you want to feel empowered jam out to the song below!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBR2G-iI3-I

(Image courtesy of images.theage.com.au)

Rock N Roll Hall of Fame Nominations Announced!

The nominations for this year's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees have been announced, with veteran rockers KISS and the Queen of Disco Donna Summer both snaring nominations. Along with classic artists such as the Hollies, the Stooges, ABBA, and Genesis, two more recent artists have both been nominated as well. The Red Hot Chili Peppers and LL Cool J are both contenders to be inducted this year!

To be eligible, an artist or band had to have released their first album 25 years ago; this is RHCP and LL Cool J's first year of eligibility and they both were able to get nominated!

Congratulations to them, as well as everyone else who was nominated!

The dozen nominees will be cut down to 5 by January after voting has been complete, so we'll have to wait until then to see who will actually be inducted.

Here are the 12 artists contending:

Red Hot Chili Peppers, LL Cool J, ABBA, Genesis, KISS, Donna Summer, The Stooges, The Hollies, The Chantels, Jimmy Cliff, Darlene Love, and Laura Nyro.

(Image courtesy of www.thesunblog.com)

Madonna = Still Relevant

Madonna's Sticky and Sweet tour finishes its run today in Tel Aviv, becoming the second highest grossing tour in HISTORY.

The outing, which began in August of 2008, grossed a reported $408 million, second only to the $558 million the Rolling Stones took in during their Bigger Bang tour in 2005-2007.

Considering that Madonna's last studio album Hard Candy, only sold a minuscule 714,000 copies in the U.S. she should probably stick to touring to bring in the big bucks.


(Image courtesy of cm1.theinsider.com)

Aerosmith Cancels Tour

Due to the crazy injuries lead singer Steven Tyler suffered last week after falling off a stage in South Dakota, the Aerosmith has made the tough decision to cancel the remaining dates on their summer tour.

That sucks, but we understand. Tyler received a broken shoulder and a bunch of stitches on his head after the fall, and since he's about 113 year-old, that's pretty serious.

Let's hope for a speedy recovery!