If you can see this, you’ve survived the Mayan apocalypse. 2013 is here! I took a brief survey of some of According2g.com’s All-Stars in the fields of art, music and publishing to find out what their 2013 New Year’s Resolutions are. For those, like me that don’t make resolutions anymore, I asked them to tell us what they are looking forward to in 2013. Click on their name to be directed to their websites to learn more about these great minds. Thanks to everyone that participated and I hope 2013 exceeds your dreams, goals and visions!
Art by Nathan Sawaya
“I resolve to rock the art world by creating art unlike anything the world has ever seen before. Also to eat less trans-fats.” – Nathan Sawaya, Artist.
St. Paul Peterson
“I am looking forward to creating new music for fDeluxe in 2013!” – St. Paul Peterson, Singer/Musician
wall by Skinner
“I’m looking forward to a year of health and new creativity, emotional understanding of myself and others. Doing more murals, ripping super hard and letting the universe be the complete exponential train-wreck that it is without taking on the negativity that comes with it! Also trying to get my cats to not pee on top of each others pee in the house.” – Skinner, Artist
Peter Davis (photo courtesy of Peter Davis)
“My resolution is to drink less coffee and finish a photo project that I am doing for The Coalition for the Homeless, my favorite charity. And also, when not editing my magazine SCENE, finish my book so my agent is happy.” – Peter Davis, Editor-in-Chief of Scene Magazine
Art by Free Humanity
“My New Year’s resolution that I have had for about a zillion years is to treat every day like New Year’s, every day like Christmas and every day and every moment as special as the next. With every breath, I remind myself of the infiniteness and momentariness of this moment that is always with me. Shit if i could only be that poetic all the time (laughs).” – Free Humanity, Artist.
Matt Gross (photo courtesy of Matt Gross)
“I’m looking forward to these albums in 2013:
Autre Ne Veut – “Anxiety”
Ulrich Schnauss – “A Long Way To Fall”
Indians – “Somewhere Else”
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Title TBD (due in spring)
Sky Ferreira – Title TBD (due in spring)” – Matt Gross, Editor-in-Chief, A Heart Is A Spade
Eminem by Borbay
“I always end my year with a recap, and begin with goals… though the latter are usually kept to myself. In 2013, I’ll make an immediate splash with the Kick Ass Actors in Kick Ass Roles exhibition, and while it’s like telling a pitcher he has a no-hitter going in the 4th, I’d like to sell out. Beyond that, I want 2013 to be to 2012, what 2012 was to 2011, a major step in the right direction — new collectors, great press, creative progress… Beyond the easel, I want to be the best husband I can be for my wife Erin, a true friend to the good ones, and continue living an honest life of passion.” - Borbay, Artist.
Rob Shuter (Photo courtesy of Rob Shuter)
“Laugh out loud EVERY SINGLE day” – Rob Shuter, Entertainment Columnist
Isengart
“To continue living a creative life, to concentrate on work and friendships, and to not let the greed, stupidity and vulgarity of our time have too much of an impact on the time I’ve been given.” – Isengart, Singer/Performance Artist
Paul Zepeda (photo courtesy of the artist)
“For 2013, I have resolved to go bigger and bolder in my work, which is my life. That includes exploring more of this beautiful planet we are on for inspiration, as well as creating new worlds on canvas and expanding their international reach. After an amazing year in 2012 of establishing myself in NYC (thanks in large part to a stellar group of friends and colleagues) and achieving dream after dream, I look forward to all that the new one has in store for me. Keep an eye on my progress here: http://www.Zepeda.us” – Paul Zepeda, Artist.
Phillip Lumbang
“I gotta think of a resolution first. Haha” – Phil Lumbang, Artist.
Stay tuned for 10 more resolutions and 2013 goals!
If you missed the fDeluxe/Sheila E. concert at BB King’s in New York on August 29, 2012, you missed out on a great funkin’ night! There are so many highlights, it’s hard to begin, but this ought to sum it up – when’s the last time you heard “Mutiny” and “Koo Koo” performed live on the same night?!
Susannah Melvoin and St. Paul of fDeluxe
fDeluxe, formerly known as The Family, have only played New York a few times in their 20+ year career, but they really know how to make up for lost time. Aside from the two instrumental tracks (“Susannah’s Pajamas” and “Yes”), fDeluxe played every track from their debut album, “The Family.” What that means in lay man’s terms is New York got to hear funky live renditions of “High Fashion,” “Mutiny,” “The Screams of Passion,” “River Run Dry,” “Desire” and “Nothing Compares 2 U,” which was sung by The Family 5 years before Sinead O’Connor recorded it.
Susannah Melvoin and Eric Leeds
While the members of fDeluxe - St. Paul Peterson, Susannah Melvoin, Jellybean Johnson and Eric Leeds – might not be household names, to their fans, including myself, these are not mere mortals, but gods whose music has made our lives better and funkier for more than 2 decades! One of the highlights of the evening for me was sax man Eric Leeds walking out on stage for the first time during “High Fashion.” The audience absolutely lost their minds! He’s played sax or flute on so many of Prince’s best loved songs from the 80s, that when he emerged, you would have thought Prince himself was making an appearance (he did not, for those wondering).
St. Paul
fDeluxe didn’t just take us on a trip down memory lane, however. The band, funky as ever, played many songs from their 2011 album “Gaslight,” including the title track, “Drummers and Healers,” “@ 8,” and their new single “You Got What You Wanted,” an Ike and Tina Turner cover. “You Got What You Wanted” has just been released on fDeluxe’s official website and a limited edition CD single is available now.
You Got What You Wanted by fDeluxe. Out Now!
To celebrate the release of the new single, fDeluxe hung around at the merch table after the show and greeted their adoring fans. It was really cute hearing super-fans gush at how their songs have been anthems to us and many people thanked them for the music.
Sheila E.
The show could have ended there and it would have been an amazing night, but fDeluxe were only warming us up for even more funk! If you’ve never seen Sheila E. perform before, you are seriously missing out. In addition to somehow finding the fountain of youth (look at her! She looks even better than she did 20 years ago!), she is one of the best performers and musicians you will EVER see. She plays intricate percussion and drum solos that she makes look effortless and no matter how many times I see her, and it’s been a lot, I have more and more respect for her talent. In addition to her new song “Leader of the Band,” and many Latin Jazz songs, Sheila E. also played many songs from her time in the Prince world.
Sheila E
Of course she played “A Love Bizarre,” and the show closer “the Glamourous Life,” but in addition she also played “Holly Rock,” “The Belle of St. Mark,” “Koo Koo,” and “Erotic City.” She had a tight and funky band, which included Eddie M. on sax. Watching people lose their cool during “Koo Koo,” which I’ve never heard live in all the times I’ve seen Sheila E., was definitely a highlight. Hopefully the love that New York showed Sheila E. and fDeluxe will be contagious and will enable them both to come back more often. Until then, we have memories from BB King’s to last us a lifetime.
Fruit at the Bottom by Wendy and Lisa (Wendy's on the right)
Happy birthday to two of the most talented sisters in music – Wendy and Susannah Melvoin!
Wendy Melvoin got her start as a member of Prince’s band The Revolution and has gone on to work with Lisa Coleman as the duo Wendy and Lisa. In addition to making great pop music, they have scored a number of films and TV shows and have won lots of awards and critical acclaim for their work.
Susannah Melvoin
Susannah has also worked with Prince and was the inspiration for many of his greatest songs. She’s also written songs for Madonna and is a member of The Family which is currently known as fDeluxe.
The music of Susannah and Wendy Melvoin has made my life a much better place and I wish them both the happiest of birthdays today!
Happy birthday to one of the best saxophone players of all time – Eric Leeds. Eric Leeds has played off and on with Prince and Prince’s many protegés since the 1980s and every time he appears on one of the tracks, his solos and accents are often the highlight of the song. He’s also been in Prince’s jazz fusion group Madhouse and if you ever get a chance to track down their albums, your ears will thank you for it. Eric is also a solo artist, having released 3 great records as well and he is currently on tour in fDeluxe (formerly known as The Family) so if you need some funk in our life, check out the music of Eric Leeds. I can’t even count how many hours of my life have been spent listening to Eric’s music both with and without Prince, but I can say – it’s a lot! I thank Eric for always putting my ears in a good mood and I hope you have a very happy birthday!
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