Bush Confuses Bono for Bono

George W. Bush is at it again. This time reeking havoc in the music world. In his new autobiography, Decision Points, Bush admits that he mistook U2's Bono for Sonny Bono. According to the book, when his advisers asked if he knew who the legendary rocker was after meeting him, Bush responded saying he thought Bono was the man who "used to be married to Cher."

The guy never ceases to amaze...

Beatles, iTunes...What's the Big Deal?

The Beatles' music is finally available on iTunes...so what? It's not like they are U2, signing on at the cutting edge and using a new single to promote a new technology. And it's not like the Beatles' music has been unavailable, making iTunes a savior for long-lost treasures.

It's just that the Beatles and Apple finally settled their score so the Beatles' music is available for $1.29 per song or $12.99 per entire album (with double albums at $19.99). Again, what's the big deal? For a few bucks more (and keep an eye out for online sales aiming to compete with iTunes) you can own the remastered CD.

And the fact is that most fans, casual or not, already own LPs and/or some generation of CD whether it be original 1987 CD issues, the recent stereo or mono remasters, or even the way cool little green apple with music and videos stored at an ultra-high-performance level USB stick. So why would anyone buy these digital downloads from iTunes? You can copy from CD to computer and iPod and any sound you get that way is going to be no worse (and probably better) than the sound quality of anything you can download from iTunes. Plus, iTunes is focused on downloading single songs where the Beatles, especially from 1965's Rubber Soul on, were all about albums - longer pieces of music made up of single songs that belong together. Sgt. Pepper might be considered the first concept album, and though the concept itself might be elusive the songs do hold together: "A Day in the Life" is a great piece of songwriting that stands on its own, but it's the perfect ending and stands even stronger as the coda to that record.

So if you already own the Beatles' music there's little reason for you to buy from iTunes; if for some reason you don't own it, head to your local music store (do those exist anymore?) or go to Amazon or Music Direct and pay for the CDs. You get the packaging, liner notes, something to hold in your hand, better sound, the individual songs in order -- the complete package as the Beatles intended. Plus, you'll always have them to upload to whatever new piece of technology comes along when the iPod has run its course.

Video of the Week: Darkness on the Edge of Town

In honor of the release this week of Bruce Springsteen's expanded and upgraded Darkness on the Edge of Town, quite possibly the high point of his recording career, Straight Lines Music offers this live bootlegged video circa 1978 of the title cut. His intro is brief, to the point, and a little dark. The E Street Band is tight, Little Steven's harmonies are clear, and Roy Bittan's keyboards provide just enough light. His vocals are rough but the music rings true: He's a young man with dreams that just might be fading. A nice clip from the most undocumented part of Springsteen's career.

Check back for a complete review of the whole box set -- blu-ray discs included.

Neil Young's 65th Birthday Present: Archives Avoid Fire Damage

Looks like Neil Young received his 65th birthday present three days early when almost all of his archival material stored in a San Carlos, CA, warehouse escaped serious damage from a fire that apparently started in Young's transformed Lincvolt electronic car. Young's representatives said the warehouse contained a lot of archival material including film, guitars and recordings -- and his transformed Lincvolt electronic car. Reports are more than 85% of everything housed in the warehouse escaped damage, with most of the damage centered in the car. Here's Young's statement, issued Nov. 10, two days before his 65th birthday:

"My wife Pegi and I would like to thank the Belmont-San Carlos Fire Dept for doing such an exemplary job at our recent warehouse fire. A lot of archival items were threatened and the fire department did a first class job protecting them. We are lucky to have these professionals in our area. We are thankful that no one was hurt in the fire. Rest assured that we have the very best fire rescue and protection in San Carlos and Belmont.Lincvolt was severely damaged in the fire. We are still investigating the exact cause although it appears to be an operator error that occurred in an untested part of the charging system.We do know that the car has been operating perfectly for almost 2 thousand miles and the system in question would not be in use while driving the car. We are investigating the components involved with plug-in charging.It is interesting to note that all of the components except the battery systems in Lincvolt are made in the USA. The only components we could not get domestically were the batteries and battery associated systems. We are still looking for a domestic source.There is a computer in Lincvolt. It may function like a 'black box.' It may be useful for gathering data. We will be removing it today and sending it to Lincvolt team member Perrone Robotics. While this is a setback for us we are planning ways to continue. We will begin cleaning and inspecting Lincvolt today."

In celebration today's entry offers three cuts from Young's groundbreaking Time Fades Away LP -- the first live release to include only new material. The LP has not be released on CD...

And on a related topic, consider this a Markowski for Young in the Straight Lines Music Poll for "greatest guitarist in the history of rock," though Hendrix should be a write-in too...

Standing On Your Doorstep: Bob Dylan & The Witmark Demos

With Volume 9 of The Bootleg Series Bob Dylan keeps us on the edge of our living room couch with the stereo cranked up, waiting to hear what will be revealed -- and what could have been released years ago. It should come as no surprise that someone who has recorded for almost 50 years has material in the vault worth hearing, but Dylan continues to astound with what he's held back.

The Witmark Demos: 1962-1964 is a great example (and thanks to CD technology we get to hear them. There is little doubt that these would not be available had we only LPs to listen to). The Witmark recordings are Dylan's (and his publisher's) efforts to make a little money because that's how things were done in the Olden Days. Prior to Dylan (and a few others from the same era) artists did one of two things: they either wrote songs or they sang them. Once a writer wrote a few songs he'd sit down and record them, the publisher would transcribe them, then the sheet music and demo recording were sent to other artists the publisher thought might be a good fit for that song. If the artist recorded the song the publisher and songwriter would make some dough.

That's what's going on in these sparse Dylan-only demo recordings. He's in a small room (you can hear the tight space), he's sitting on chair, and he's playing guitar (mostly) or piano, accompanying himself on 47 songs ranging from straight blues to talking blues to protest music to many of his best-known early masterpieces including "Blowin' in the Wind," "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall," "Masters of War," "Boots of Spanish Leather," "Girl from North Country," "The Times They Are A-Changin'," and "Mr. Tambourine Man." There's obscure music, too, some never released and some heard recorded only by others or on lousy-sounding bootlegs.

So what can you learn from The Witmark Demos? Well, not all that much, really, but that's no reason not to listen. Dylan is prolific, and that comes through. He's developing as a songwriter, and that comes through. He's exploding topically, moving from Woody Guthrie acolyte to protester to introspective chronicler of the soul, to mouthy and ribald frat boy and that comes through. He can (could) really sing, and that comes through loud and clear for tapes as old as these.

But the reason to listen to these demos is this is as close to pure, informal, relaxed Bob Dylan as we're likely to get. It's the heavily bootlegged St. Paul tape from May 1960 or the May 1961 Minneapolis Party Tape with much improved sound -- and with better songs and without the party. It's Dylan in your living room and he's just playing his music. Songs break down once in a while and he tells you why. One goes on for a time and he asks if you're sure you want him to continue "because it's kind of long." He coughs and keeps going. He repeats a verse then tags the correct verse on at the end and tells you what happened. Tempos speed and drag within the same song, and some songs he rushes through. Guitar playing ranges from simple strumming to the complex fingerpicking of "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" (which he fumbles at one point) and you can hear his guitar skills pretty easily. You can tell he likes some songs more than others but on the whole he just likes playing and singing what he's written.

So here's how to listen to this music: Close your eyes and imagine the doorbell rings. You open it to a windy night and find Bob Dylan standing on your doorstep.

"Oh, Hi Bob."

He looks a little uncomfortable, smirks a bit, and doesn't say anything.

"Come on in outta the cold. Wanna beer?"

He nods and steps in, setting down his guitar case and shirking his pea coat from his slight shoulders. You close the door and head to the kitchen to get a couple brews and when you come back there's Dylan sitting on a dining room chair turned toward your couch and he's got his guitar on his lap and he's tuning it. He's turned down the volume on the TV behind him but he left the picture. He takes a swig and sets the bottle on the floor.

"Got some songs I wanna play" and he starts in on "Man on the Street" while you just sit back and listen.

Video Of The Week: 30 Seconds To Mars And Kanye

The Straight Lines Video Of The Week this week is brought to you by 30 Seconds To Mars and rapper Kanye West. The band and the rap artist collectively recorded Hurricane in 2009 and recently performed it together at the 2010 MTV European Music Awards.

30 Seconds gave some extra time for Kanye to do his thing, and overall, the combo put on a very entertaining performance. Let us know what you think. Enjoy!!

Tune In Saturday Online for Patricia Barber

Idiosyncratic jazz singer, pianist, and hometown gal Patricia Barber, a mainstay at the Green Mill jazz club in Uptown, takes advantage of online technology by performing and streaming a show this Saturday night from Northwestern University's Pick-Staiger Concert Hall. Not only is it Barber, whose silky, smokey tone, offbeat phrasing, and heady approach to jazz standards, pop covers, and her own compositions have made her a darling of critics and generated a rabid following, but she's playing at Pick-Staiger, one of the most acoustically sound venues in the Chicago area.

Barber is a patient singer and pianist, telling the story the song tells her. She takes her time and, as the live recording of "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) shows, it's a different tale than Lennon and McCartney had in mind. And check out the great piano playing on "Witchcraft," making it seem like she's happy to be under the spell. Her studio recordings are crisp, moody, sultry, quiet, fun, and energetic yet they hint at a pent-up energy she's trying to contain. It's her live recordings and concerts where she lets loose. And if that's not enough to get you there, consider this: Barber is performing with pianist Kenny Werner, unveiling a new collaboration.

Tickets are still available (and for only $18 from http://www.pick-staiger.org/) so get to Evanston if you can for what could be a once-in-a-lifetime event. And if you can't make it tune in to www.pick-staiger.org/webcasts which will start streaming live at 7:20 p.m.