Great Big Sea And Rant and Roar...Throwback Thursday.

The Great Big Sea album 'Rant and Roar' was released on 2 June, 1998 twenty years ago. The album was a compilation of their previous albums 'Up' and 'Play' and aimed at the United States market.

Rant and Roar contained 14 songs, many that are still being sung today and include 'Ordinary Day', 'When I'm Up', 'Mari-Mac', 'The End of the World', 'Fast As I Can', 'The Night Pat Murphy Died', 'Goin' Up', 'Lukey', 'Old Black Rum', and 'Rant And Roar'. The album also contained a hidden song 'Jolly Beggarman' written by Great Big Sea. The album was recorded at The Battery and The Nickel Sound Works in St. John's, Newfoundland.

I found this really interesting article 'Arts in America; Giving Newfoundland's Celtic Melodies a 90's Sound' published in the New York Times in 1998 before the release of the album. The article is copied below for those fans interested. No copyright infringement intended.

The photograph is from the cover of the album 'Rant and Roar'. No copyright infringement intended.

I have circulated some official videos and recordings from this time and the Great Big Sea vault on my Google + page. I really enjoyed revisiting these. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. The music remains as beautiful, engaging and moving as ever.





'Arts in America; Giving Newfoundland's Celtic Melodies a 90's Sound' by Anthony DePalma published on 21 May, 1998 in the New York Times.

https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/21/arts/arts-in-america-giving-newfoundland-s-celtic-melodies-a-90-s-sound.html

Newfoundland rhymes with understand, and no one does, at least not in the eyes of the people who live in what is surely one of the most isolated and eccentric places in North America.

To other Canadians, Newfoundlanders -- with their penchant for munching cod tongues and living in places like Come by Chance -- are fair game for cheap laughs and petty put-downs, a staple of television comedy. The dim Newfoundlanders, for instance, thick as tar, trying to put together a Newfie jigsaw puzzle -- consisting of just one piece.

Behind the funny facade and the broguish accents there is a quirky, durable island, usually called just the Rock. It's a tough place, especially since the cod disappeared a few years ago. Instead of silvery fish, now it's oil that's pulled from the sea.

But one aspect of Newfoundland life that has remained constant is the music, a traditional blend of folk songs and Celtic melodies. The pubs of St. John's, the capital, continue to produce fine groups, and none have had more success recently than Great Big Sea, a band that combines the traditional music of Newfoundland with a modern pop beat.

The band has had wide appeal. For the last three years it has been named entertainer of the year at the Canada's East Coast Music Awards. Its first two major-label CD's, ''Up'' and ''Play,'' have each sold about 200,000 copies, huge amounts in Canada's comparatively small market. The singles are played on Top 40 radio in Canada, and their music videos get time on Country Music Television.

On June 2, the group will release its first United States recording, ''Rant and Roar,'' on Warner Brothers' Sire label. It will also tour coast to coast in June, opening for Sinead O'Connor and the Irish group, the Chieftains. It will play the Guinness Fleadh, a festival of Gaelic music in New York City, on Randalls Island, on June 13.

The four young men of the band, all from Newfoundland, play acoustical and traditional instruments, including the mandolin, the squeeze box (accordion) and the bodhran (a goat-skin drum).

Alan Doyle, 28, the group's husky-voiced lead vocalist, described Great Big Sea as a 1990's contemporary band that plays traditional Newfoundland-based music. The sound is an offbeat mix of folk and pop music played in a broad-shouldered and rigorous style. Some of the recordings are new compositions that echo melodies of the old sea chanteys; about half are traditional tunes juiced with pop.

''The music has a contemporary sound,'' said another band member, Darrell Power, 28, in an interview before a performance in Vancouver, ''It just so happens that some of the songs are 200 years old.''

These are songs that celebrate life on the sea, but there is often hardship and heartbreak in the lines. The songs on Great Big Sea's recordings are as evocative of Newfoundland as were the Beach Boys of California.

And that, the lads agree, is their biggest challenge as they gear up for their United States tour.

''Some of the things that made us unique and interesting in Canada are going to work against us in America,'' said Bob Hallett, 29, who plays the squeeze box. ''In our experience and in a lot of other Canadian artists' experience, Americans don't think of Canada as the place where really cutting-edge and exciting music happens.''

Speaking of the French-Canadian singer Celine Dion, he added, ''This is the land of Celine.'' Ms. Dion and other popular Canadian artists, like Alanis Morisette and Sarah McLachlan, have left their Canadianness behind. The problem for the Great Big Sea is that their connection to Newfoundland is the heart of their act.

Steven Savoca, who handles Great Big Sea for Sire Records in New York, said he expected it to be more difficult for the band to cross over into mainstream music in the United States than it was in Canada. ''I'm not sure that potential is there,'' he said. But he finds the recent popularity of the ''Titanic'' soundtrack, with its emphasis on Celtic sound, encouraging.

''One thing about the band is that they sing timeless melodies,'' Mr. Savoca said. ''You need only hear them once, and they stick in your head.''

After graduation from college, the four members of Great Big Sea took more or less regular jobs: Mr. Hallett as a magazine editor, Mr. Power as a teacher, Mr. Doyle as a tour guide and Sean McCann, 29, as a bouncer.

''We grew up wanting to be rock stars, too,'' Mr. Power said. ''But traditional music was right under your nose all the time.''

They took their name from one of those traditional songs, a tune about a tidal wave, the great big sea, that devastated the northern shore of Newfoundland.

''What we liked about it as a song and why we ended up with it as a name is that while the song itself is about a disaster, the sound is very sprightly and upbeat in tone,'' Mr. Hallett said. ''There's no sense of despair about it at all. It's characteristic of a lot of Newfoundland tunes.''

About half the songs they band members record are traditional and half contemporary, often written by band members. ''Rant and Roar,'' the title of the American release, comes from a timeless chantey celebrating the Rock.

We'll rant and we'll roar like true Newfoundlanders,

We'll rant and we'll roar, on deck and below,

Until we strikes bottom inside the two sunkers,

When straight through the channel to Toslow we'll go.

They collect such songs from their families and friends on Newfoundland, like Fergus O'Byrne, the Irish singer. ''They are like hymns in the kind of collective power they have,'' Mr. Hallett said. ''It's like a really good hymn or Christmas carol. You want to sing along even if you can't sing.''

The contemporary songs try to capture the same power but don't always succeed. A phrase like ''When I'm Up I Can't Get Down,'' one of their recordings, can't compare to enduring lines like ''There's no other life for a sailor like me/ Than to sail the salt seas boys/ Sail the seas.''

Still, their pride in Newfoundland means that the Great Big Sea refuses to wear so'westers or pose with fishing boats or lobster pots the way some people expect.

''We are the next generation of Newfoundlander,'' Mr. McCann said. ''There aren't many guys out there with lobster pots anymore.''

And they are sensitive enough about their image to write restrictions into every contract. If the term Newfie is used in any promotion, the band will not play. If there are sou'westers, fishing nets or lobster pots anywhere near the stage, the contract calls for them to be removed.

''We can make an audience understand where we come from,'' Mr. Doyle said, ''without having to stand there with a lobster pot.''

Bootlegging Music At Concerts...An excellent article.

After my last post about a bootlegged concert I went in search of new articles recently published on the subject. I found this really interesting article by two entertainment lawyers in America, published in the respected and reliable online music journal Billboard.

The article provides a brief history of the US Federal laws that apply to bootlegging, some examples of different perspectives of bootlegging from the artists and musicians, and the concert goer. The article also provides an interesting overview of how these laws apply to the concert goer and the artist and musician on YouTube, distinguishing between copyright and bootlegging infringements.

The entertainment lawyers state that bootlegging in America is against the law... "Federal law, namely 17 U.S.C. § 1101 imposes civil penalties for the unauthorized recording of live performances or the transmission or distribution of such. This is true even if the bootlegging is not done for commercial gain. The statute provides that anyone who engages in these prohibited acts is potentially liable for money damages. A court may also impound applicable recordings.

Similarly, 18 U.S.C. Section 2319(a), which makes bootlegging a criminal offense if the perpetrator -- without the consent of the applicable artist -- knowingly records a live musical performance or distributes such a recording, and does so for commercial gain..."

The article makes an interesting interpretation about YouTube's policy towards live recorded concert videos loaded up, for artists and musicians who have copyright to their music and those that don't and want the them taken down. YouTube has two different procedures for copyright and bootlegging infringements.

"...If live performers happen to own the copyright in the musical composition recorded in a video, then such performer(s), as owner of the musical composition, could say that the video is disallowed because the person using their phone failed to get a license to use their song. But if a performer is playing a cover tune, then that musician can’t claim copyright infringement. (Musicians who are recorded without their permission can always rely on the anti-bootlegging statute as a legal basis upon which to forbid recording.)

This distinction may sound trivial until musicians try to get unauthorized videos taken down from YouTube. YouTube has mechanisms -- namely, its ContentID system -- for copyright owners to demand that their work be removed from the site. But if a musician objects to YouTube’s distribution of a video on the basis that the concert footage was taken without his or her permission, that’s not a copyright claim. It’s a “bootlegging” claim. The procedure for getting the materials removed is entirely different than a copyright infringement claim. (At YouTube, a musician who wants to remove unauthorized concert footage of himself/herself can do so at this link.)..."

It is clearly against the US Federal laws to record live concerts without the permission of the artists and musicians involved. As I have written before on my blog I believe because an artist and musician doesn't get live concert recordings removed from YouTube doesn't mean the bootlegger has approval. 

The article "Phone Recordings of Concerts Are More Than Just Annoying, They're Potentially Illegal: Guest Post" by Rachel Stilwell , Makenna Cox on the 17 March, 2017 on Billboard.com has been edited for copyright reasons. I have provided a link below. No copyright infringement intended.

https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/7724330/phone-recordings-concerts-illegal-federal-bootlegging-laws

In the year preceding his untimely death, Prince forbade audience members from videotaping his live performances. Since then, artists such as Childish Gambino, Guns 'N Roses, Alicia Keys and The Lumineers each have required audience members to temporarily forfeit use of their mobile devices by placing them in locked pouches during their concerts.

Fans may have mixed reactions to an artist banning video camera use during concerts, but most concert goers don’t realize that recording a live musical performance without the consent of the artist is illegal. Although artists usually have no interest in suing their fans, musicians actually have a legal right to expressly forbid audiences from recording their live performances. Musicians and fans have generally been unaware of such laws because they are rarely enforced. The unlawful activity that concert goers engage in when recording footage is called "bootlegging."

Artists increasingly want to encourage camera-free concert experiences, encouraging audience members to experience concert performances live rather than viewing shows through cell phone screens. Many artists prefer to control which of their performances are distributed to the public. Live recordings uploaded by audience members may compete with musicians’ own commercially available offerings.

In the case of The Lumineers, one of their tours was booked specifically to afford the band the opportunity to publicly woodshed new material that had not yet been recorded. That tour’s cell phone ban was born out of the band’s concern that audience members might leak videos of their performances of new material before the band could itself release studio versions of those songs.

Many musicians agree that featured performers at concerts should be able to limit the recording and distribution of their performances. However, among concert goers, reactions to camera restrictions are mixed. On one hand, many concert goers find cell phone users at concerts to be a distracting nuisance. On the other hand, many audience members who oppose camera restrictions believe that recording and distributing concert footage is an appropriate way for them to memorialize and share their positive experiences with others.

However, this issue is not just a matter of opinion, it’s a matter of law.

Federal law, namely 17 U.S.C. § 1101 imposes civil penalties for the unauthorized recording of live performances or the transmission or distribution of such. This is true even if the bootlegging is not done for commercial gain. The statute provides that anyone who engages in these prohibited acts is potentially liable for money damages. A court may also impound applicable recordings.

Similarly, 18 U.S.C. Section 2319(a), which makes bootlegging a criminal offense if the perpetrator -- without the consent of the applicable artist -- knowingly records a live musical performance or distributes such a recording, and does so for commercial gain.

Anti-bootlegging laws have rarely been enforced, but since a federal law specifically prohibits people from recording musical performances without the performer’s consent, musicians performing in the U.S. have a legal right to prohibit them, even if the persons that want to record parts of the concert have no intention of distributing the applicable footage or audio recordings.

One of the most famous court cases invoking the civil anti-bootlegging statute involved Kiss, who sued a concert promoter for commercially distributing a video taken of the band at a stadium concert. The band had consented to be filmed for the purpose of projecting the images at the concert; the promoter later released the video on DVD without Kiss’ consent. Kiss prevailed. While this case involved a commercial bootlegging enterprise, under the civil statute, those who record or distribute concert footage without the consent of the performer are breaking the law, even if the recorded materials are not distributed commercially. In this particular case, since the bootleg videos were distributed commercially, the defendants could potentially also have been held liable under the criminal anti-bootlegging statute.

Most musicians in the U.S. have some notion that their intellectual property may be protected by copyright law. But when it comes to live performances, there are times when copyright law is not applicable at all. For example, if an audience member takes a video of a concert without permission of the performers, the performers don’t own the copyright in the video or audio that has been captured. Rather, the person who records the video owns the copyright in that video. So what is a performer to do? Nobody wants to litigate. But if musicians want to ban cell phone cameras at their concerts, or try to remove bootleg recordings from sites like YouTube, they should be aware of the legal basis for doing so.

If live performers happen to own the copyright in the musical composition recorded in a video, then such performer(s), as owner of the musical composition, could say that the video is disallowed because the person using their phone failed to get a license to use their song. But if a performer is playing a cover tune, then that musician can’t claim copyright infringement. (Musicians who are recorded without their permission can always rely on the anti-bootlegging statute as a legal basis upon which to forbid recording.)

This distinction may sound trivial until musicians try to get unauthorized videos taken down from YouTube. YouTube has mechanisms -- namely, its ContentID system -- for copyright owners to demand that their work be removed from the site. But if a musician objects to YouTube’s distribution of a video on the basis that the concert footage was taken without his or her permission, that’s not a copyright claim. It’s a “bootlegging” claim. The procedure for getting the materials removed is entirely different than a copyright infringement claim. (At YouTube, a musician who wants to remove unauthorized concert footage of himself/herself can do so at this link.)

The fact that there is a federal anti-bootlegging law may come as a surprise to concert goers who have long watched concerts through their cell phone screens. But the law is on the side of the increasing number of musicians who want to limit fans’ ability to record concert footage.

In the last year, several artists have filed takedown requests with YouTube on the basis that, when users put up footage of live performances without the performers’ consent, those recordings are being distributed in violation of the civil anti-bootlegging statute applicable. One of these artists claimed that YouTube ignored multiple requests to take down concert footage that had been recorded without his consent. Other artists reported swift action by YouTube in response to such requests to take down bootleg videos.

Even where YouTube and similar sites do heed takedown requests, when those takedown requests are based on allegations of bootlegging rather than allegations of copyright infringement, then YouTube might be liable for “secondary liability” for such activity; in such cases, the DMCA Safe Harbor provisions don’t apply at all. There is little recent case law discussing the application of federal anti-bootlegging statutes, but it is possible that this may change in the future, given current trends among prominent artists to protect against videotaping live performances at concerts.

Performers may soon be able to utilize higher-tech means of limiting unauthorized videotaping: Apple recently patented a process that would temporarily disable audience members’ iPhone’s cameras, but would allow audience members to bring their mobile devices into a concert venue. Whether via high tech or low tech means, musicians in the U.S. may increasingly enforce their right to make sure audiences don’t videotape their live performances without their permission.

Alan Doyle, 'The Come Out With Me Tour' And A Bootlegged Concert...A fan review.

Alan Doyle and the Beautiful, Beautiful Band (with support band The Fortunate Ones) recently completed the third leg of the 'Come Out With Me' tour. The three week tour began in the eastern United States with sold out concerts in Sellersville PA, Brownfield ME and Boston MA and then back to up to eastern Canada with sold out concerts in Fedriction NB, Saint John, NB ending in Halifax NS.

Regular Great Big Sea and Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful Band fan and concert goer Squinityt4e bootlegged entire concert at Infinity Hall, Norfolk, CT on the 21 April, 2018. These videos were shared via the Online Kitchen Party Great Big Sea Facebook page back in April and on their YouTube site. (A discussion about bootlegging later in this post)

The playlist attached to the recordings states Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful Band opened with the song 'Come Out With Me' from the most recently released solo album 'A Week At The Warehouse'. The setlist included songs from Great Big Sea, and Alan's other solo albums 'Boy On Bridge' and 'So Let's Go'.

The Infinity Hall venue was small and intimate. From the moment the band walked on stage the crowd treated the band with a regular familiarity and appreciation. From the opening song the band had the crowd in the palm of their hand and up on their feet dancing, cheering and singing along at a kitchen party not in Newfoundland.

Great Big Sea songs that were incorporated into this American leg of the tour were particular crowd favourites. These included 'Captain Kidd', 'When I'm Up', 'Sea Of No Cares', 'Lukey's Boat', 'Old Black Rum', 'Run, RunAway' and 'Ordinary Day'. I enjoyed hearing these songs and how Alan and the individual band members have made them their own, adding their own personal touch.

I really enjoyed the quality of this recording by Squinityt4e. Despite the confinement of the small stage for the band, the bootlegger made the concert interesting by zooming on all the band members during their solo moments. There were lots of close ups not only of Alan Doyle on guitar, Cory Tetford on guitar and Kendel Carson on fiddle, but also Todd Lumley on keyboard and accordion, Kris MacFarlane on drums and Shehab Illyas on based guitar which I loved and appreciated.

Despite the bootlegger sitting close to the front I really enjoyed the quality of the recording and there was no static that can come from when a recording is made close to the front of the stage. I also loved the inclusion of fans in the audience and in particular of a family with their young children dancing and having a time in front of the bootlegger showing music reaching across cultures and generations. I was there dancing and singing along with them.

The night ended as it started with the audience up on their feet singing, clapping and dancing along. The last song of the night was '1, 2, 3, 4' and Alan and the band left the audience wanting for more. They returned for an encore playing the song that made Great Big Sea, 'Ordinary Day'. 

Alan individually thanked all the members of his band leaving no doubt he appreciated their support. The last song of the night was an Alan solo version of 'Where I Belong' about Newfoundland sang passionately from the heart.

This was certainly was an interesting setlist. I personally love 'Paper N Fire' and 'Testify' and the music magic created on stage with these songs from all the individual members of this band. 

But to be honest I enjoy other songs more than many of those selected that were not sung from Alan's previous solo albums so much such as 'Stay', 'Sins of Saturday Night' and 'Shine On' from the 'So Let's Go' album and 'Break It Slow' and 'I've Seen A Little' from the 'Boy on Bridge' album for instance. But I guess what is sung depends on the audience and their history with Great Big Sea and Alan the solo performer.

As I have said many times before on this blog I am not a fan of music fans who bootleg full concerts of any kind. I am also not a fan of bootleggers who follow artists and musicians around recording everything that happens at a concerts for YouTube as this makes it incredibly difficult for the artists and musicians to make each concert unique to the people that pay. 

Some bootleggers in this fandom record for their YouTube sites regardless of what the artist or musician they profess to love is trying to do including making professional live music clips or a live recorded album.

To be honest fans who can't or don't pay or continually choose other things over artists and musician's goods and services are of little benefit to those who create them. If fans like me can't afford to go to concerts for what ever reasons including not living in the country where they tour, then that is our bad luck and we should be happy with legal products such as albums and videos.

With that said the eastern states of America where the band toured there are a couple of other bootleggers (besides the regular fan) who always decide to record entire concerts and share them via social media. 

On the one hand I believe they seriously undermine the artists and musicians they record to make a living, but on the other hand provide fans with an alternative to the usual sometimes poor quality recordings of everything that happens on stage of the tour recordings.

With the many sold out concerts in Canada and the United States and a full summer season of festivals and other concerts I believe Alan Doyle and this band would have done really well financially as far as musicians goes.

As a fan who can't get to concerts very often I very much appreciated this bootlegger's efforts even if it was against my philosophy of bootlegging entire concerts. From the number of views not many fans have seen these. I would recommend these if you are an Alan Doyle and the Beautiful, Beautiful Band fan.

I have circulated a few songs from this concert I really liked and will let you discover them for yourselves. Enjoy !

I included a post from the official Twitter account of Alanthomasdoyle about the concert at Infinity Hall on 21 April, 2018. No copyright infringement intended. 

Alan Doyle And Family, Friends, Community And Work...The year that was on social media (Part 2)

This is part 2 of the year that was on social media for the official Alanthomasdoyle Twitter account. Part 1 for the previous post was for Instagram.  

As many fans of Alan Doyle and the Beautiful, Beautiful Band and Great Big Sea know, 17 May is Alan Doyle's birthday. I hope the future brings Alan lots of love, success and happiness.

For his birthday wish Alan has asked fans who are able to register for his Dollar-A-Day charity to help fight mental health issues throughout Canada. The details of the charity and how to register have been circulated via his official Twitter account of @Alanthomasdoyle and other official social media accounts.

As a blogger I thought it would be fun to go back over the last year on his official Instagram and Twitter accounts and look through posts reflecting on the theme family, friends, community and work from May 2017 to May 2018. I limited the selection to 10 but chose 11 because I couldn't decide between them.

There were so many great photographs and videos from the road and at home in Newfoundland it was difficult to choose but after much consideration I chose these ones copied below. These are the posts I like the most for me as a fan.

All photographs are from the official Twitter account of Alanthomasdoyle. No copyright infringement intended.

Alan Doyle And Family, Friends, Community And Work...The year that was on social media (Part 1)

As many fans of Alan Doyle and the Beautiful, Beautiful Band and Great Big Sea know, 17 May is Alan Doyle's birthday. I hope the future brings Alan lots of love, success and happiness.

For his birthday wish Alan has asked fans who are able to register for his Dollar-A-Day charity to help fight mental health issues throughout Canada. The details of the charity and how to register have been circulated via his official Twitter account of @Alanthomasdoyle and other official social media accounts.

As a blogger I thought it would be fun to go back over the last year on his official Instagram and Twitter accounts and look through posts reflecting on the theme family, friends, community and work from May 2017 to May 2018. I limited the selection to 10 but chose 11 because I could not decide which one to eliminate.

There were so many great photographs and videos from the road and at home in Newfoundland it was difficult to choose but after much consideration I chose these ones copied below.

All photographs are from the official Instagram account of Alanthomasdoyle. No copyright infringement intended.

Alan Doyle, A Medal And A Wink...

Over the past week Alan Doyle received the Order of Canada at a ceremony held in Ottawa, Canada. Congratulations to all the recipients of the award.

I have included three screenshots of Alan receiving his medal copied from a news recording of the presentation and circulated via my Google + page. The video is approximately 2 minutes long. 

On Alan's official Twitter profile biography he describes himself as a nodder and winker both of which he did during the ceremony. See if you can catch Alan give a wink to someone in the audience. 

The article 'Alan Doyle, Joyce Churchill awarded Order of Canada' was published at cbc.ca/news/newfoundland-labrador on 10 May, 2018 and circulated via social media. I have posted an edited copy of the article here. The article was edited for copyright reasons. No copyright infringement intended. 



'Alan Doyle, Joyce Churchill awarded Order of Canada.' published on cbc.ca on 10 May, 2018.

"They are among 7,000 Canadians who have received the honour over the years.

One is a well-known musician with a penchant for supporting multiple charities and the other is a decades-long advocate for the autism community — and both of them, who hail from Newfoundland and Labrador, have been bestowed the Order of Canada at a ceremony in Ottawa.

Alan Doyle and Joyce Churchill are two of the 45 Canadians invested in the order Thursday for their outstanding achievement and dedication to community at an event presided over by Gov. Gen. Julie Payette.

"I'm feeling pretty cool. I got to meet Marc Messier again today and a bunch of other outstanding Canadians ... it's just a real thrill and a very humbling feeling," Doyle told CBC News Network's Suhana Meharchand after the ceremony.

Doyle is one of "Newfoundland's most beloved musical ambassadors," according to Rideau Hall.

Former frontman for Great Big Sea and now a solo artist, Doyle has channeled his star power and helped raise money for charities like the Canadian Cancer Society and Canadian Red Cross, with the latter organization awarding him its Humanitarian Award in 2016.

That same year, he helped organize a multi-venue charity concert that featured 30 acts in downtown St. John's, raising $40,000 that went to a Red Cross effort to help people affected by the Fort McMurray wildfires.

Doyle is one of the founders — along with Dr. Andrew Furey and Brendan Paddick — of A Dollar a Day Foundation, which launched in February. It challenges people to donate "small change to work for big change" when it comes to mental health and addictions programs and support.

Born in Petty Harbour, Doyle has credited his parents for instilling in him the importance of helping others.

"I'm really grateful to be from there and I'm grateful to all my friends and family who still live there," he said, giving a shout-out to his parents, siblings, wife and former Great Big Sea bandmates Bob Hallett, Sean McCann and Darrell Power..."

Alan Doyle And Fire Aid 2016...Throwback Thursday.

I found this awesome photograph of great friend and fellow band member Cory Tetford kissing Alan Doyle affectionately on the cheek during The Fire Aid Concert for Fort McMurray. 





Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful Band were just some of many Canadian musicians and artists who gave their time to raise money to help the victims. The concert was held at the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada on 29 June, 2016 and raised well over 2 million dollars.

The wildfire began on 1 May, 2016 southwest of Fort McMurray and by 3 May over 80 000 people in the region were forced from their homes. The wildfires destroyed thousands of buildings, infrastructure and hectares of land. Today the wildfires remains one of the most expensive disasters in Canadian history costing over 9 billion dollars (Wikipedia, 2018).

Fort McMurray is located approximately 453 kilometers northeast of Edmonton and has a population of approximately 125 000 people. Fort McMurray is best known as a hub for the oil sands industry. It has been over two years since the disaster and people are still working to rebuild their homes and lives.

References

Klaus, S. (2018). Fort McMurray wildfire rebuild making progress, mayor says.' published at globalnews.ca on 31 January, 2018.

Wikipedia, (2018). 2016 Fort McMurray Wildfire published at en.wikipedia.org.

Russell Crowe And '...thank Christ for Australia'... Throwback Thursday.

I was talking to someone who had just heard a quote by Russell Crowe on a quiz show so I thought it would make a good throwback Thursday post.

When Russell Crowe said "God bless America, God save the Queen, may God defend New Zealand and thank Christ for Australia."

The year was 2001 and Russell Crowe won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Gladiator. The quote was made at the end of a press conference while still clutching his academy award.

And being Australian I have to totally agree with Russell on "...thank Christ for Australia."

I have circulated a copy of his Academy Award acceptance speech and the press conference after the award on my Google + page for those fans interested. The quote is at the 3.46 minute on the after the awards press conference video. 

I am unsure of the copyright holder of the poster. No copyright infringement intended.

Aussie TV Trends...A response.

Being a fan of television drama and comedy I found the article 'Ratings illustrate Aussie TV trends' copied below about an analysis of Australian television viewing trends over the last 30 years or so really interesting.

The only traditional television I have watched in the last couple of years is the Australian rugby union team, the Wallabies test matches and most recently the World Series Rugby Competition and the team Western Force. This year I have managed to watch some of my favourite television dramas and comedies via catch up TV.

Australian television programs like sport and reality continue to do well in the ratings. The reason sport continues to do well is because yes, Australians do love their sport and sport is in our DNA but they also televise local teams and competitions. Also these programs are not competing with pirated content that has been previously shown in other countries.

The commentator did not mention that Australian free-to-air television stations have failed to attract viewers for many overseas dramas and comedies because of irregular programming, because they know these programs do not do well in the ratings because most fans have access to pirated content. Having access to regular content is essential for fans participating in television based fandoms.

Australian free-TV-air television stations put money into sporting broadcasting rights rather than other content choosing instead to supplement their programming with cheap overseas re-runs.

Pay television dramas seem to rate well because they are shown almost simultaneously in all countries and have worked to stop Australians having access to piracy and illegal means.

I have copied the article below which has been edited for copyright reasons. No copyright infringement intended. 

'Ratings illustrate Aussie TV trends.' published in The West Australian on 10 May, 2018.

A comparison of the most-watched programs over the past two decades shows how audience appetite have changed - and stayed the same.

Some things never change. While reality has taken hold as its own genre, Australia’s love affair with sport has remained the one constant on our television screens over the past two decades.

To illustrate the point, Today has collated viewing figures for the highest-rating shows of 1997, 2007 and 2017.

“This snapshot catalogues accurately the changing tastes of Aussies over the past 20 years,” Mediaweek editor and commentator James Manning says.

“In 1997, nine movies flooded the top 20 and there was no reality TV big enough to register on the list. There was also home for scripted drama in the top 20 back then.

“Just 10 years later, movies had all but disappeared from the chart and reality was making its mark via Dancing With The Stars, The Biggest Loser and Big Brother.

“Fast forward another decade and drama has disappeared, reality strengthened its grip as a significant draw card.

“The only significant presence across the two decades is sport, which is why we still see networks forking out big cash for broadcast rights.” Manning points towards a broader dilution of the viewing market, with the rise of Foxtel and streaming platforms such as Netflix and Stan delivering quality drama.

“We’ve seen drama take less of a front seat on the free-to-air platforms,” he says. “But then look at Foxtel’s Picnic at Hanging Rock . . . and the huge international success of shows like Wentworth. They show there’s an audience for drama still, people are just more targeted in their viewing.”

Sport too has a bigger profile. A recent example is the Seven network, together with Fox Sports, wrestling the cricket rights from free-to-air broadcasters Nine and Ten. Mario D’Orazio, managing director of Seven Perth, says sport has always been a cornerstone of local programming and the landmark cricket deal is a game-changer for Australian audiences.

“Channel Seven Perth has a long history of sporting excellence,” he says. “We’ve been long-time supporters of the WAFL, we were on the spot when West Coast Eagles played their very first game in the AFL, and on the spot when the Dockers made their debut.

“We know West Australians love their sport, from footy to the Commonwealth Games and the Olympics. We’re particularly proud to be the new home of cricket in WA, and we’re already making big plans to take the game to a new level.”

“Sport is part of Australian’s DNA,” Foxtel chief executive Patrick Delaney adds. “We are a sports-loving nation and there is nothing like watching your team in the heat of the battle. It’s the best unscripted drama of all. So it should come as no surprise that the popularity and demand to watch live sport continues to soar.”

For The Love Of The Television Series...Exploring binge-watching and binge-racing.

One of the reasons I love writing my blog is that I always seem to find new and exciting things to write about involving fans and fandom. Of course I have read and listened to health professionals warn about the health effects of binging on food and alcohol and now more recently watching television series on streaming services for long periods of time.

I have always loved watching television dramas or comedy episodes in their purist form. There is no more pleasurable entertainment for me than buying a whole season of one of my favourite television shows soon after they have been released on DVD and watching a couple of episodes when ever I want without commercials and being at the mercy of the delivery by an Australian television station.

I am not interested in watching television shows I do not own outright on DVD and can not watch without using Internet data, even when streaming services provide content with out commercials. For me personally, I couldn't watch a whole television season in one sitting basically because I don't have the concentration span and I actually remember less than if I slept between watching episodes.

But not all Australians feel this way. Last October research company Roy Morgan released statistics which stated 7.5 million Australians had access to the streaming service Netflix, an increase of 22 per cent from the last period (Donoughue, 2017). Netflix increases in subscribers is changing the way in which many Australians watch television.

Netflix has changed the way consumers watch television by making episodes of certain television series available at once rather than week by week. Netflix has noticed that the more their subscriptions increased, the more consumers were involved in not only watching a number of episodes of their favourite television shows but entire seasons in one sitting.

So as a result Netflix coined the terms binge-watching and binge-racing. Binge-watching is the practice of watching multiple episodes of a television series in rapid succession, whereas binge-racing involves watching an entire season over 24 hours either on streaming or DVD. Binge-racing has attracted a certain social status to it (Hartley, 2017)

"...when the total number of memberships doubled, the number of same-day binge racers went from 200,000 in 2013 to more than 5 million so far this year... Globally, the United States is the binge-racing runner-up to world champ Canada, with Denmark, Finland and Norway rounding out the International Top Five." (Moore, 2017). "Australia comes in eighth place globally for numbers of Netflix binge-racers..." (Donoughue, 2017).

The fact that an increasing number of Australians are spending large amounts of time on the couch binge-racing is cause for concern among health professionals as research shows there are negative effects. These negative effects include the risk of heart disease, short life expectancy, failing to meeting the lowest levels of physical activity recommendations, avoiding social interactions and bad eating habits by snacking on junk food (de Brito, 2018, Hartley, 2017).

There is also evidence the lighting from devices causes sleep disruption which is linked to depression and mental health. Then there is the potential of binge-racing television series to cause negative problems to other aspects of a balanced life such as social interactions and relationships, or by avoiding study or work. Lying on the couch binge-racing can impact on physical health such as spinal issues which can lead to headaches and shoulder and pelvic pain (de Brito, 2018, Hartley, 2017).

While there is research evidence to support claims that watching television in moderation combined with meeting physical activity requirements and good eating and sleeping habits will have a limited impact on health, there are steps a binge-racer can do to take responsibility for their health. Some of these tips include disabling the auto play so it doesn't automatically go onto the next episode. Get up and move around after each episode, adopt good posture habits, prepare healthy snacks and avoid distraction eating and get involved in some good quality exercise (de Brito, 2018).

Prevention of physical injuries and problems caused by binge-watching and binge-racing is better than trying to find a cure after the fact. Television, like all the good things in life I believe is best enjoyed in moderation and within a balance lifestyle as to not impact negatively on one's health.

References

de Brito, R. (2018). 'The new binge. Too much TV is a hazard' published on 27 March in thewestaustralia.com

Donoughue, P. (2017). 'Netflix says Australians are 'binge-racing' through entire seasons in one day' published on 25 Octoer, 2017 in abc.net.au/news.

Hartley, J. (2017). 'Is Netflix binge watching causing anti-social behaviour?' published on 30 October, 2017 in smh.com.au.

Moore, F. (2017). 'A new spectator sport for the TV superfan: 'binge racing' published on 17 October, 2017 in chicagotribune.com.

Allan Hawco And Home... An interview.

Recently Allan Hawco shared links to his latest interview titled 'Allan Hawco: Inspired by Home' by Pam Pardy-Ghent about his life in Newfoundland, his life heroes, family, work ambitions and current projects.

I really enjoyed this interview, but I especially enjoyed his comments about meeting fans and the possibility of a Republic of Doyle movie so I have only copied those comments here for interested fans.

I have included a screen shot of the Newfoundland Herald cover for the issue Allan Hawco appeared on. The screen shot is from the Newfoundland Herald Facebook page.

I have also included a screen shot of a gorgeous photograph of Allan shared via the Newfoundland Herald official Twitter account and Allan Hawco's official Twitter account advertising the interview. As always no copyright infringement intended.

The full interview 'Allan Hawco: Inspired by home' by Pam Pardy-Ghent published on 1 May, 2018 at nfldherald.com.

"...So, when he does run into fans – not in the mall obviously, but elsewhere –how do they react?

“People are generally fine. When I’m shaved, they don’t recognize me. Whenever my hair is short and I have scruff, people recognize me. But people don’t say anything to me, you just live here. Alan Doyle has a saying; if you don’t want to be famous, go to darts every Tuesday and eventually, if you go to darts every Tuesday, people stop caring that you go to darts every Tuesday and they just leave you alone.”

That’s essentially how he tries to manage his life and his work here in this province.

“I’m not Brad Pitt. People aren’t like going through my garbage. They’re like, oh yeah, that’s that buddy on that show, or they’re like, hey Jake! Mostly it’s always positive; congrats on the new show. I was in Dominion four weeks ago and some guy goes; hey, are you that guy from Caught? And I was like, you are the first guy who said that. That’s the vibe I get.”

Does he ever get star struck when he shows up on movie sets or begins a new series? “That happens almost all the time. Mostly with hockey players,” he says with a laugh..."

On The Republic Of Doyle Movie...

"...When asked what question he’s asked the most, the answer is swift; if there will be a Republic of Doyle movie.

“There was a plan to do that right away, but I don’t think enough time has passed for us to jump into something like that. I feel like it needs to be when it needs to be and now just isn’t the time. Not enough time has passed for enough sentiment to be there from enough people to really feel it...”

Alan Doyle and 'The Come Out With Me' Tour 2018...The third leg from the road.

Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful Band hit the road with 'Come Out With Me Tour' on the 15 January, 2018. Along the way Alan, the band and fans share their words, thoughts, photographs and videos via their social media sites and fan sites. Alan also did some traditional medias interviews and other stuff as the tour progressed.

Over the past Alan Doyle and The Beautiful, Beautiful Band tours I have collected some of those social media and interviews I found interesting and created posts. These posts as a record of tours from the perspectives of Alan and those in the band continue to be some of my most visited posts for anyone wanting some photographs and information about what happened. I have also included some fan photographs.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I have. As always no copyright infringement intended.

Some words from Alan Doyle on his official social media accounts of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram...

Alan Doyle @alanthomasdoyle I remember looking at a mock up of this tour T-shirt late in 2017 very close to Christmas. We had just finished a long run on the spectacular CP holiday train in Western Canada and the amount of dates and shows and cities on the back of this T-shirt was exciting but intimidating.I remember looking at a mock up of this tour T-shirt late in 2017 very close to Christmas. 1 May, 2018

Alan Doyle @alanthomasdoyle Time flies. Here we are in the Home stretch of Leg 3 with the mighty Maritime shows left to go. Summer and Leg 4 will all be announced soon, but for now this feels like the Home stretch.Time flies. Here we are in the Home stretch of Leg 3 with the mighty Maritime shows left to go. Summer and Leg 4 will all be announced soon, but for now this feels like the Home stretch. 1 May, 2018

Alan Doyle @alanthomasdoyle With multiple gigs on The Rock Boat and a private here and there we’ve done over 70 shows this year. I’m grateful to everyone on this bus for working like dogs with smiles and laughs and hugs and love all along the way. 1 May, 2018

Alan Doyle @alanthomasdoyle I am the luckiest person I know. #ComeOutWithMe 1 May, 2018





Official Videos...

Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Beautiful Band made two professional videos of the songs 'Come Out With Me' and 'Row Me Bully Boys Row' at the City Winery in New York on 13 April, 2018. I have included some screen shots from the videos below and circulated a copy on my Google + page for those interested. As always no copyright infringement intended.























A Review...

The Great Dark Wonder an online music site and regular Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Beautiful Band concert goer wrote a really nice review for their online music site called 'Alan Doyle and The Fortunate Ones: Party in PA' published on their website greatdarkwonder.com. 

The review included nice words, photographs and a full set list from the Fortunate Ones and Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Beautiful Band. They provided links to websites for those interested in exploring their music more.

I have included a paragraph about a final surprise encore song...

"....Taking their bows, and exiting the stage; the theatre lights started to flicker back to life and people started heading for the exits. And then came the biggest surprise of all; during the post-show commotion, not many people noticed Alan Doyle and his band sneaking back onto the stage. With the sudden loss of lighting, Alan launched into “I’ve Seen A Little,” and smiled a little after this successful ‘stealth operation’ completely “punk’d” the audience at The Sellersville Theater. Kudos to you, Alan, and the band, for the perfect execution of that manoeuvre. Like Catharine, Doyle was also a little under the weather on this particular night, yet maintained his incredible work ethic and commitment to the performance all evening. What a wonderful evening of live music in Sellersville with some of our favourite Newfoundland friends."





A Fan Photograph...

There were lots of awesome photographs share by fans of Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Beautiful Band, at meet and greets and of the venues on a variety of social media sites from this leg of the tour. I have included this one of the band on stage and shared by Alan Doyle on his official Twitter site.












Social Media From The Road...

Alan Doyle and Chris Trapper





Chris Trapper appeared with Alan Doyle on stage in Boston on the 29 April, 2018. Alan Doyle, Sean McCann and Chris Trapper wrote the song 'Sea of No Cares' for the album of the same name. 

A lovely fan bootleg was shared on The Online Kitchen Party, A Great Big Sea Community Forum Facebook page of Alan and Chris singing together on stage.

A Set List...

I have included a screen shot of a set list shared on social media. It was interesting to read how many Great Big Sea songs were incorporated into this leg of the tour. While I enjoy hearing these songs and how Alan and the band have made them their own, there are other songs from Alan's previous albums l enjoy more such as 'Stay' and 'Sins of Saturday Night' from the 'So Let's Go' album and 'Break It Slow' and 'I've Seen A Little' from the 'Boy on Bridge' album for instance.





Tour poster...

I have included a copy of the 'The Come Out With Me Tour 2018'...The third leg poster.

Respect Twitter Fan Accounts...A response.

Over the past couple of days the hash tag #respectfansaccounts has been trending on Twitter in response to changes made to running fan accounts. What followed was an interesting discussion about the use of fans accounts and Twitter's threat that if they did not comply with the new policy their account would be suspended. 

There have always been opportunistic people on social media who create look alike celebrity accounts to cause celebrities trouble. Many contact fans who believe it is the celebrity and interact with them preaching a philosophy, ask for money or to meet the fan.

Despite the absence of the blue tick official account marker, a slightly different name and millions of other followers, some fans still fall for this scam and are taken advantage of. Fans who are more aware, circulate details and report the accounts to the celebrity and to Twitter. As a consequence most are suspended.

Fan accounts play an important role in any fandom connecting interested fans and distributing information. Many fans who run fan accounts make it very clear their account is not affiliated with the celebrity, having a different profiles photograph, biography and name. Despite this these some accounts still seem to cause some confusion among fans. (I have on occasions become confused about fan accounts and official accounts of music groups so I understand this.)

As a response to this growing phenomena of fake accounts and fan accounts Twitter has introduced a new policy. Under Twitter's new 'Parody, newsfeed, commentary, and fan account policy (the “policy”)' fan accounts ... "Here are the requirements for marking your account. All requirements must be met in order to comply with the Policy.

Bio: The bio should clearly indicate that the user is not affiliated with the subject of the account, including, for example, by incorporating a word such as (but not limited to) "parody," "fake," "fan," or "commentary,” and be done so in a way that would be understood by the intended audience.

Account name: The account name (note: this is separate from the username, or @handle) should not be the exact name as the subject of the account without some other distinguishing word, such as (but not limited to) "not," "fake," or "fan," and be done so in a way that would be understood by the intended audience."

As a consequence of this new Twitter policy there was an interesting and intense discussion about what are fan accounts, how they are being used and the impact of this new policy on Twitter users and fandoms. I have paraphrased some of the comments being circulated that have cause fans confusion and anxiety as fear grows their accounts may be cancelled.

Many Twitter users raised the point that many fans do not impersonate their favourite celebrities but use Twitter to support them. Their accounts are used as a place for people who share similar interests to meet and share information. Some have met in real life and become friends.

Many Twitter users raised the point there are many accounts that are sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, pornography, violent and abusive and send spam that are violating Twitter rules.

Some Twitter users who ran accounts said the policy was easy enough to comply with and wrote 'fan account' in their biography as not to be suspended but others refused to bend into Twitter some even deleting their accounts. Their fate will be known after the 25 May, 2018 where I am sure the topic will trend again.

It is difficult to know what Twitter determines to be a fan account. Lots of Twitter users have been interpreting the rules and sharing via their accounts. However, each account holder should check the information about fan accounts that can be accessed via the help tab in their account and direct all questions to Twitter.

Both Russell Crowe and Alan Doyle have had trouble with look-a-like Twitter accounts. Vigilant fans are always on the lookout for fake accounts and inform them when they come across them. As a result both Russell and Alan issued statements via their official Twitter accounts. I have included a copy of some here. No copyright infringement intended.