Free Republic

...Obama reported raising $104 million in more than five weeks immediately before and after Election Day. It was his second biggest fundraising period and a fitting coda to a successful presidential bid that shattered fundraising records. ...Obama exceeded the combined finances of the two major parties' nominees four years ago. George W. Bush and John Kerry pulled in a total of $653 million in the 2004 primary and general election campaigns, including federal public financing money. Obama's prowess at attracting money, one of the many characteristics that defined his campaign, could well spell the end of a 30-year experiment in...

CNN: What made you move to Miami? Iggy Pop: I was fed up after 25 years in huge, dark, media-centric cities. I decided to find a house and move here. I was looking for something in a kind of elegant coma with a lot of peace and convenience. ...CNN: How would you describe Miami's personality? IP: Miami's a hell of a good town to eat a banana! ...IP: I love what was here before any of the people - the puffy clouds, the forgiving quality of the light, the breeze that renews life and hints at freedom, and the sea....

...In the suit, filed last year in Surrogate’s Court in Manhattan but amended in a hearing last week, Mr. Kristal’s 83-year-old former wife, Karen, says she is the rightful owner of the business, and that Mr. Kristal and their daughter, Lisa Kristal Burgman, 53 — who inherited the bulk of her father’s estate of more than $3 million — systematically deceived her by hiding money from the sale of merchandise. The elder Ms. Kristal received nothing in the will, and the couple’s son, Dana, 49, who sides with his mother against his sister, will receive a maximum of $100,000, depending...

Ron Wood has confirmed long-standing reports that the Faces are gearing up for a reunion tour next year. “We had a few fantastic rehearsals last week and we’re ready to go,” Wood tells Rolling Stone. “It’s like no time has passed by.” Rod Stewart’s touring bassist Conrad Korsch sat in on bass, replacing original Faces bassist Ronnie Lane who died in 1997. “There’s a lot of guest bass players that want to do it — including Flea,” says Wood. They plan on hitting the road sometime in 2009, though no dates have been set. “We just have to sort out...

A video message on behalf of 38,000 UK musicians has been sent... many of whom have worked with major artists, say they risk losing their income under current laws. Performers' copyright runs out after 50 years but for composers and authors it extends for 70 years after their death. The European Commission is backing an extension to 95 years from release, but the UK government is not supportive. Under current copyright laws, royalties will soon dry up for session musicians who played on classic tracks released in the 1960s, campaigners say... Phil Pickett, a musician who played with '80s band...

"We found this fascinating series of photos from the archives of LIFE magazine, giving readers a peek inside the homes of the parents/grandparents of some of the most influential musical artists from the 1970's, including the likes of Frank Zappa [above], Grace Slick, The Jackson Five, Elton John, Eric Clapton and many more previewed below..."

WASHINGTON — President-elect Barack Obama is weighing prospects for energy secretary... Possible candidates mentioned to head the department range from Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., to Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and Dan Reicher, who directs energy initiatives at a Google foundation. Another candidate that had been mentioned is Houston Mayor Bill White... Reicher, 52, is, perhaps, the most prominent contender for an out-of-the-box choice. The biology major at Dartmouth and a graduate of Stanford law school served in the Clinton administration as an assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy. He now heads climate change and energy initiatives at Google.org,...

A Grammy Award-winning rapper and music producer originally sentenced to 14 years in prison for smuggling cocaine is one of 16 people receiving pardons or reduced sentences from President Bush. John Edward Forte of North Brunswick, N.J., a graduate of the elite Phillips Exeter Academy prep school who later became a producer for the rap group The Fugees and released two albums on his own, was caught in 2000 at Newark International Airport with two briefcases filled with $1.4 million worth of liquid cocaine, according to court documents. Forte, 33, a first-time offender, was convicted of possessing the 31 pounds...

...Elvis Costello asked James Taylor to name his favorite new songwriters. Mr. Taylor seemed momentarily stunned by the question, as if he'd never considered it. Finally, he cited his talented son Ben and conceded he didn't listen to much new music. Which means when Mr. Taylor sets out to record an album of other people's songs, he's off to the familiar recycling bin... written in the '50s, '60s and '70s. As for the past three decades of great songs... ...If talented singers like these don't have to pay attention to new songwriters, what happens to the great American songbook? ...Other...

Irving Gertz, a film and television composer who contributed music to 1950s science-fiction films such as "It Came From Outer Space" and "The Incredible Shrinking Man" and to 1960s TV series such as "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea," has died. He was 93. Gertz died Friday at his home in West Los Angeles, said David Schecter, a record producer and film-music historian who was a close friend. No specific cause of death was given. From the late 1940s to the late '60s, Gertz wrote music for about 200 movies and television episodes. Among his film credits are "Abbott...

Three stabbed at Music Awards show featuring Leona Lewis One has 'serious' injuries One person arrested over the attack THREE people were injured in ugly scenes at a British music awards ceremony, in London with one person seriously hurt. Metropolitan police said two others sustained minor injuries at the sixth annual Urban Music Awards at the O2 entertainment complex in south east London on Saturday night. One person has been arrested. "We were called at  10:11pm GMT (9:11am AEDT) on the 15th to a disturbance at the O2 Arena site," a spokesman for London's Metropolitan Police said. "We found three...

In today's age of bling, there is still a vein of political hip-hop -- whose tone could now change, said some artists. "The commentary has to be rewired," said Chuck D of Public Enemy, speaking on the phone from Long Island. "It's a big difference between pointing the finger at a government run by George Bush or Ronald Reagan to a situation at hand where you feel you can address President Obama." He said the critique might move from "rant and rage" at the president to community ills, internationalism and the status of women. "We are believing in certain aspects...

Pete Townshend is so impressed with President-elect Barack Obama that he has had to rethink the sentiment of his archly anti-political song “Won’t Get Fooled Again.” Who guitarist performed a solo acoustic version of the 37-year-old anthem in front of a few hundred fans at the Troubadour in West Hollywood on Friday. Before playing it, Townshend said Obama’s decisive election victory on Tuesday was “the most wonderful result,” a comment that earned the loudest cheers of the evening. And afterwards, he mused over the song’s cynical parting shot, “meet the old boss, it’s the same as the old boss,” and...

CLEVELAND – When Les Paul's grandchildren are jamming on the video game "Guitar Hero," it's not lost on him that he made it all possible. Paul, known as the "Father of the Electric Guitar," will be honored at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's annual American Music Masters series, a weeklong event that starts Monday. Paul is a rock 'n' roll da Vinci, part artist, part inventor, and at age 93 still performs weekly at the Iridium Jazz Club in New York City. "It's therapy," Paul said Thursday. ...Paul was inducted into the early influence category of the Rock...

With many major labels posting significant losses every quarter, Warner Music have decided that enough is enough and as such have decided to require all of their artists to sign the new '360 deal' before working with them. Whereas previously, labels only got a cut of album sales and related airplay, under the '360 deal' they will entitle themselves to a slice of the merchandise and touring pie. In effect, the band will become a subsidiary company to the record label and be required to declare its earning in every field which the label will then take a cut of. The...

November 3, 2008 Open letter to Senator Barack Obama Dear Senator Obama: In your nearly two-year presidential campaign, the words "hope and change," "change and hope" have been your trademark declarations. Yet there is an asymmetry between those objectives and your political character that succumbs to contrary centers of power that want not "hope and change" but the continuation of the power-entrenched status quo. Far more than Senator McCain, you have received enormous, unprecedented contributions from corporate interests, Wall Street interests and, most interestingly, big corporate law firm attorneys. Never before has a Democratic nominee for President achieved this supremacy...

Turning back the challenge of 11 new entries in the top 20, AC/DC's "Black Ice" (Columbia) begins a second week at No. 1 on The Billboard 200 after selling 271,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. "Black Ice," which is exclusively available via Wal-Mart, Sam's Club and AC/DC's Web site, was down 65% over its debut total. The album has sold more than 1 million units in two weeks. Pink scores her best chart placement ever and best sales week in seven years as "Funhouse" bows at No. 2 with 180,000. The 2001 album "Missundaztood" rang up...

As the mighty tide swept the land on Tuesday night, I was transfixed. As the pundits pondered red states and blue states, projections and exit polls, I was swept with emotion. Not because America was "electing its first Black president." That comes a little late in the day. It was because America was electing the right President. Our long national nightmare is ending. America will not soon again start a war based on lies and propaganda. We will not torture. We will restore the rights of freedom of speech, freedom of privacy, and habeas corpus. We will enter at last...

QUESTIONABLE ENDORSEMENTSThough it seems like authenticity only matters in music, it's a frequent subject in politics, too. One way of arguing about it involves discussing the importance of "informed voters." One side, stressing the need for citizens to be fully informed about the issues and candidates if they are to truly represent their interests through voting, argues that political preferences based on less rational things like appearance, group affiliation, likability, or character (what fancypants political scientists call affective qualities) are bad for democracy. The other side—which I suspect may be made up of only me—thinks that being fully informed is...

With 40 percent of the votes tallied, it appeared two Houston lawyers - a Republican and a Democrat - will face one another in a runoff to complete an unexpired term in Texas Senate District 17. As of 10:30 p.m., 183,125 ballots were counted. With neither Democrat Chris Bell nor Republican Joan Huffman winning 50 percent plus 1, the candidates will go to a special election in December. Reached at her campaign headquarters, Huffman she was ready to go "head to head" with Bell. She received 26 percent of the votes cast. "We are optimistic," she said. "So far it...