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We imagined what it would have been like to have worked back then, like having a gig at Casablanca or Mo & Lenny’s Warner Bros.—such a different time.

WHEELS & DEALS:
GRAMMY RECOVERY

Rodel’s Head Aches. So Does His Broken Leg.
By Rodel Delfin

Is it over? We’re still recovering from all the drinking, smoking, eating and boozy schmoozing from all the meetings and parties last week. So for all the folks who happen to still be in town…go home! We’re still in an alcohol/vicodin haze. Meanwhile, yours truly took a spill on our fancy-shmancy motorcycle on Saturday and busted our leg (oops! I hope my mom doesn’t read this). And we had to hop around Sunday’s festivities on a bum knee, hence the vicodin reference (the only perk of an injury). Well, with the awards done, we’d like to give some special kudos to new acts Wolfmother for winning “Best Hard Rock Performance,” Gnarls Barkley for “Best Alternative Album” and Carrie Underwood for the “Best New Artist” award nod. Additional props to the folks at Advanced Alternative Media for throwing an awesome pre-Grammy party on the old A&M lot. It was great to see the creative community—producers, mixers, engineers, A&R folks, publishers, managers and loser trade-rag schmucks like us, all getting boozed in one place. And extra props to the folks at the William Morris Agency and Brent Bolthouse/SBE for throwing a slammin’ Grammy after-party. The influx of industry folks in town did spur a lot of meetings and get-togethers and it brought back a little of the A&R camaraderie that seems to have disappeared. At one of our outings, we met up with Jive’s Jeff Fenster and Virgin A&R consultant (er, we mean CRG’s) Jeff Blue for some coffee. And we happen to run into Downtown’s Josh Deutsch and Michael Howe, who were meeting with A&R hitter Joel Mark. The group briefly sat down together and talked about signing artists, making records and the good ol’ days of the biz. The collective at the table were not only responsible for selling millions of records, but also for signing a diverse group of acts like Linkin Park, Britney Spears, Macy Gray, Creed, Gnarls and Sigur Ros. They shared some funny stories about working in the biz over the years, but they also acknowledged the fun their predecessors had who worked during the heyday of the ’70s- 90s—you know, the “hookers and blow” era. We imagined what it would have been like to have worked back then, like having a gig at Casablanca or Mo & Lenny’s Warner Bros.—such a different time. And unfortunately, it’s very doubtful if even a glimpse will return… NOW FOR A LITTLE WEASEL ACTION: We hear a platinum-selling rock act on Warner Bros. just got out of their arrangement with the label and are now free agents. The band and their manager reportedly weren’t too happy with the way their last album was worked, so they asked to be off and got off… A couple labels reportedly have deals on the table for singer/songwriter Colbie Caillat. She’s been at the top of the unsigned artist chart on MySpace. Will this one close soon?... A&R staff changes went down at the former Capitol Records (it’s weird saying that) last week, as well as roster trimmings. Word on the street is that about 30 acts have been dropped so far… Urban music exec Brian Postelle is reportedly in meetings after exiting his post at Virgin. Will he hop to Island to rejoin former boss Jermain Dupri or is a publishing play in order in light of all the publishing activity going on of late? Postelle did sign Eminem and Irv Gotti, among others, during his days as a publishing exec. Stay tuned… Finnish exports Disco Ensemble and Lodger will be performing in Austin in March, but you can get a pre-SXSW preview at their upcoming L.A. show. See Buzz/Gigs for details… For those of you chasing A Change of Pace, we just plugged their Vegas show in Buzz/Gigs. There’s your excuse to tell your boss that you have to go to Sin City this weekend on the company dime. You can thank us later… One month away from SXSW ’07, we’re close to finalizing a little HITS partay this year. We haven’t thrown one since our shindig with Vivid Video and the Hard Rock Café a few years ago. We’ll keep you posted on details… FOR ME TO POOP ON: EMI and WMG Hit me up: [email protected]

BUZZ/GIGS:
AMERICAN EYES
Fri., Feb. 16, 10:00 p.m., Key Club, L.A.
A CHANGE OF PACE
Sun., Feb. 18, TBD, University Theatre, Las Vegas
FINNISH MUSIC EXPORT SHOWCASE Wed., March 7, TBD, Knitting Factory, L.A.

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