• Izod Center—Longtime New Jersey Staple of Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi and More—to Close in March

    It's almost a story out of a Bruce Springsteen song: All the jobs are going elsewhere and the town begins to die. The "town" in this case is the Izod Center at the Meadowlands complex in East Rutherford, one of The Boss's favorite concert joints in his home state. A rash of competition in the region, from the Newark Prudential Center to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, have begun swallowing up both music and sports events. Now Governor Chris Christie is pushing a plan to close the arena in March.
  • 10 Artists Who Paid Tribute To Their Parents In Their Music

    Today, indie folk singer Sufjan Stevens announced the release of a new album Carrie & Lowell, which is named after his mother and stepfather and features a photograph of the two on the front cover. After all that rock music has done to encourage people to disobey their parents, it's honestly refreshing to see Stevens pay tribute to his parents this way, but he's far from the only rock artist who has done this. Here are 10 artists who have paid tribute to their parents in their music, either with one song or with entire albums.
  • Syd Barrett's 'The Madcap Laughs': 13 Songs Ranked For Its 45th Anniversary

    Today, Jan. 3, marks the 45th anniversary of The Madcap Laughs, the debut solo album by original Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett. Other than being a remarkable album musically, The Madcap Laughs is also significant for being a surreal document of Barrett's mental health at the time, which had been steadily declining ever since his departure from Pink Floyd in 1968. To celebrate the anniversary of this incredible album, here are its 13 tracks ranked, from weakest to strongest.
  • POP ETC. Shares New Song "Running In Circles," Announces New Album [LISTEN]

    Brooklyn-via-Berkeley indie rock group POP ETC (formerly the Morning Benders) have shared a new track titled "Running in Circles," which you can check out here. According to Stereogum, the track is the first to be shared from POP ETC's upcoming studio album, which is set for release later this year. Keeping up with the recent indie rock trend of paying homage to mainstream '80s rock artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Don Henley, and Tom Petty (see: The War On Drugs, Ryan Adams), "Running In Circles" is a dancey, synth-heavy track that could easily be spun in a club, with a chorus that could legitimately be mistaken for a top 10 hit from 1985.
  • 8 Artists with At Least 8 No. 1 Albums: Ranking The Octopping Albums from Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Jay Z and More

    Fifty years ago on this day Elvis Presley released Roustabout, a soundtrack for the film of the same title, starring the performer. It was his eighth no. 1 album, an extension of his record for most albums atop the Billboard 200 by one artist (which would soon be surpassed for good by The Beatles). Interestingly enough, only eight acts have had at least eight albums top the American charts. We at Music Times decided to find out each of those acts' no. 8 no. 1 and measure them up against each other.
  • 7 Renditions of "The Promise" to Celebrate Your New Year's Resolution: Bruce Springsteen, When In Rome, Tracy Chapman and More

    Ugh, Day one of a new year. By this point we've already broken our new year's resolution, if only to recover from the hangover we're enduring to last year's last minute binge. Congratulations to you if you actually come through and accomplish your goals for 2015. Plenty of bands have made a promise, or "The Promise" to be specific. Here are a few examples, from Bruce Springsteen to When In Rome.
  • 5 Times Square Music Events from 2014 That Weren't 'Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve'; Featuring U2, Kanye West, Michael Jackson and More

    Happy New Year to those who read this article seven hours late, and happy preparation for the new year to those of you reading it today. Right now most of the music world's attention is on Times Square for another night of Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve, featuring performances from Taylor Swift, Florida Georgia Line and Idina Menzel. Midtown's main tourist attraction has long been the headquarters for the American celebration of another year coming to close but this isn't the only time big name musical acts have stopped by. Here are five other musical events you may have missed in the last year as you were clawing your way toward the Bubba Gump's location for lunch.
  • Music Times 25 Best Songs of 2014: Taylor Swift, Kendrick Lamar, Hozier, St. Vincent & More

    2014 was the year of a thousand controversies: Taylor Swift pulled all of her music from Spotify, Sun Kil Moon started a feud with The War On Drugs, Jack White accused The Black Keys of ripping him off (again), and almost nobody went platinum. When you put all of that aside, however, what you're left with is a bunch of incredible songs, which is really what it's all about. Here are the 25 best songs from 2014, as determined by Music Times writers Ryan Book, Caitlin Carter, Joey DeGroot, Kyle Dowling, and Carolyn Menyes.
  • Bruce Springsteen Adds 1978 Cleveland Show to Concert Archives

    Bruce Springsteen fans rejoice. The boss is releasing the high quality version of his legendary concert in Cleveland on Aug. 9, 1978 at the Agora Theatre and Ballroom. Playing alongside his E Street Band, The Boss, delivered one of his most replayed live performances ever that was streamed on the radio, but never recorded and released officially.
  • Eddie Vedder: 7 Best Solo Tracks for the Pearl Jam Frontman's 50th Birthday [LISTEN]

    Eddie Vedder will forever be linked to one of America's greatest bands - Pearl Jam. He's been fronting the Seattle alt-rockers since 1990, when the members - Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready and a slew of drummers (currently Matt Cameron) - were just kids leading the then new movement called grunge. Vedder was angry, confused, conflicted and often poetic in the early days. Today (Dec. 23) marks his 50th birthday, and the singer is still at the top of his game vocally and politically.
  • Springsteen in Netflix's 'Lilyhammer': Steven Van Zandt Talks About Directing 'The Boss'

    Generally, Bruce Springsteen is the one giving orders to guitarist Steven Van Zandt of The E Street Band. He is, after all, The Boss. But when Springsteen decided to join Van Zandt on his Netflix series "Lilyhammer," the tables turned. The show's third season premiered on the streaming service in November, and for those who want to see Springsteen's acting chops, all they have to do is turn on the final episode titled "Loose Ends." "I know we're friends for 50 years, but still it meant a lot to me that he chose me and trusted me enough to direct him when literally everybody on earth's been wanting to do it," Van Zandt told "Billboard." Van Zandt plays an ex-mobster named Frank "The Fixer" Tagliano who is forced into hiding. He chooses Lilehammer in Norway as his place to lay low, but soon enough he is up to his old ways. Fans of "The Sopranos" will notice some similarities between Van Zandt's Frank and Silvio Dante. Springsteen joins the cast in season 3's final episode as Frank's brother.
  • Highest Paid Musicians 2014: Dr. Dre Tops The List (Duh) but Beyoncé, One Direction and Justin Bieber Make Bank as Well

    Hip-hop might be the genre that puts the most emphasis on dollars earned but we'd be kidding ourselves if big acts from every scene had their eyes on their wallets. And so do we as fans...just Google an act and see "net worth" doesn't come up as a popular search term. Forbes released its annual list of the Top 30 highest earning musicians from the previous year and you probably guessed who took the top spot: Dr. Dre.
  • Lady Gaga, "The Boss," Usher Perform for Sting, Al Green at '14's Kennedy Center Honors

    Sting, Al Green and Tom Hanks were among some of the artists who received recognition at last night's Kennedy Center Honors ceremony Dec. 7. The 2014 class also included ballerina Patricia McBride and comedian Lily Tomlin. Earth, Wind & Fire, Jennifer Hudson, Usher and Mavis Staples performed a few of Green's hits, while Lady Gaga and Bruce Springsteen celebrated Sting. According to "USA Today's" coverage, Stephen Colbert opened the show by taking a respectful jab at politics and pop culture, which he is always ready to do. "Tonight, Washington puts the arts above politics, because no matter what party you belong to, everyone wants a selfie with Tom Hanks," he said.
  • Bruce Springsteen, Chris Martin Perform with U2 at World AIDS Day Concert [WATCH]

    It is not an easy task to fill in for an iconic frontman like Bono on epics like "Where the Streets Have No Name" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" from U2's "The Joshua Tree," but leave it to Bruce Springsteen to make it look easy. The Boss joined the band onstage last night, Dec. 1, for the A (RED) Thank You concert. Bono could not make the World AIDS Day performance due to a recent bicycle accident, but Springsteen and Coldplay's Chris Martin were quick to help. Kanye West and Carrie Underwood also performed. Had Springsteen decided to where some shades, he would have looked just like the Irish frontman. The Boss strolled out on stage during The Edge's shimmering guitar intro to "Where the Streets Have No Name" and looked supremely confident. Springsteen brought a little of that hardened, New-Jersey grit to the Joshua Tree hit. The band opted for another classic from the 1987 album with "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," which Springsteen dedicated to Bono. Both performances were superb. Check them out in the video below. Former President Bill Clinton introduced U2 with Martin. They ran through 2000's "Beautiful Day" and 1987's "With or Without You."
  • [LIVE STREAM]: The Boss, U2, Carrie Underwood, Yeezy to Play 'A (RED) Thank You' Concert for World AIDS Day

    Kanye West, Carrie Underwood and a special configuration of U2 will all be playing the A (RED) Thank You concert tonight, Dec. 1, for World AIDS Day. Bono's organization planned the event in Times Square, but because of his recent bike accident, the iconic frontman will have to sit this one out. Bruce Springsteen and Coldplay's Chris Martin will take turns fronting the Irish rock outfit, which will be billed as "U2 Minus 1." The festivities, presented by Bank of America, start at 7:30 p.m. and we have a live stream of the concert below. (RED) was founded in 2006 by Bono and Bobby Shriver. The organization has raised more than $275 million since its inception for the fight against AIDS. According to (RED)'s website, the world is closer to raising its first AIDS-free generation with special treatments that prevent the disease from spreading from a mother to her child. Tonight's concert is to celebrate the work that has been done so far and promote the cause in order to eradicate the disease. "This year is a World AIDS Day like no other," Bono said in a statement. "The world reached a tipping point in the fight against AIDS — more people were newly added to life-saving treatment than were newly infected with the virus." According to U2's website, Springsteen and Martin "graciously donated their time and talents to save the World AIDS Day event from cancellation."
Real Time Analytics