Excuse 17. Sleater-Kinney. Wild Flag. Portlandia. American Express. 

You’ve not heard of Anna Bergendahl because you’re not in Sweden. There she’s as well known as the biggest superstars here, having starred on two “Idol”-type music shows and covering songs by her heroes such as Bonnie Raitt.

With the glut of similar singing shows worldwide Bergendahl could be just another disposable pop star – but she’s more than that and isn’t settling for anything less. With producer Larry Klein and musical gems like Jay Bellerose and Doug Pettibone in her corner, Bergendahl has recorded “Something to Believe In,” an album of mature, sophisticated, self-penned songs that belie her youth (21) and TV-show background.

Here’s a sample in “I Hate New York” (and don’t get in a knot, New Yorkers, it’s not a diss to your city – it’s about feeling generally lost and alone so much that even the things you love don’t appeal to you at the moment).

How did she end up surrounded with such a crack crew? She discovered that the singers that most touched her heart had all worked with producer Klein – and he took an interest.

 

Most fans argue that Jim Morrison was The Doors, but I'd argue that Ray Manzarek was just as much -- if not more so. And he got a lot of grief for what really amounted to simply keeping the music alive and being proud of his legacy in doing so.

Manzarek loved to talk about The Doors -- and why shouldn't he? He co-founded the group with Morrison, his keyboard work is the signature sound of their biggest hits -- "Riders on the Storm," "Break On Through," "Hello, I Love You," "Love Her Madly" and of course "Light My Fire."

But his detractors -- including fellow bandmate John Densmore -- felt he at times crossed the line from proud to exploitative, especially when he went out with Robby Krieger touring as The Doors or The Doors of the 21st Century.

Funny -- no one had a problem when The Doors released two Morrison-less albums after his death or endlessly repackaged the catalog with live albums, remasters, 5.1 mixes, outtakes, alternate mixes, studio dialog etc. But fights ensued when Manzarek was in favor of licensing Doors music for a commercial. Yeah, that was a crime once upon a time. But that was a long, long time ago.

Granted, Densmore has had his say, with a 2002 essay in The Nation where he takes Manzarek to task for greed (apparently a recurring theme in his new book as well).

And no one but the band members and people around them are privy to the details. But back in the '90s I ended up spending an inordinate amount of time talking with Manzarek as some Doors reissues and other projects were on the table. He gave me his home phone number and we chatted a fair amount about his history. Rather than brag about himself, he constantly invoked what a genius he felt Morrison was -- a poet, a performer, and a tragic loss to the world on all levels.

As much as Densmore feels he's protecting Morrison's heritage by turning down commercial offers, Manzarek felt the opposite -- that getting the music to as many ears as possible was the best tribute, especially young ears (it was an Apple computer commercial offer that sparked the 2002 rift between the two).

So Manzarek talked about The Doors. And talked and talked and talked. Anyone who has ever interviewed him or just been in his general vicinity knew that he loved to talk about what The Doors had done and what their music had meant to fans.

Myself, I can see both sides of the argument. That doesn't make Manzarek the evil opportunist fans make him out to be.

During those chats back in the day I knew a middle-school student who was doing an essay on the historical impact of music in the '60s. So I asked Manzarek -- hey, would you do an interview with an 8th-grader for an essay that will be read to her history class? The thought of his words going to 25 teenagers in a classroom somewhere thrilled him. He immediately said yes and had me pass on his phone number.

The essay got an A. Manzarek got to find a new audience to hear his thoughts. And I'll bet more than a couple of kids in that class are Doors fans to this day.

Rest in peace, Ray. You did your best.


 

Sometimes it works. Van Halen got bigger (and lamer) than ever when Sammy Hagar replaced David Lee Roth.

But most of the time trying to replace your lead singer is the kiss of death for a band. Alice in Chains was disbanded for years before finally getting a fill-in for Layne Staley. Sublime and The Doors both famously feuded with the families of the late Brad Nowell and Jim Morrison over the rights to continue using the band names after those singers died.

And now the story with Stone Temple Pilots gets weirder and weirder. They fired lead singer/constant news story Scott Weiland in March without even telling him; he found out through the media, and at first denied the reports until he found out that, yes, he had been sacked.

STP turned up at KROQ's annual Weenie Roast concert this past weekend with a new frontman in tow -- Linkin Park's Chester Bennington. The band has apparently taken a page from David Bowie and Daft Punk, keeping everything a secret until they sprung it on the crowd. They've even recorded a new song, "Out of Time," that they're making available as a free download or you can stream it below.
It looks to be a temporary thing as Linkin Park takes much of the year off; the band has only one show planned for L.A. on Aug. 3, noting that it will be their sole performance of 2013. And Bennington does a pretty fair version of Weiland. Check the performance below before it gets yanked from YouTube again.






 

Some people simply shouldn't travel in cars.  

Though the Obama administration continues to struggle with crisis after crisis, one thing they seem to do pretty well is honoring worthy musicians. Stevie Wonder, Sir Paul McCartney, Burt Bacharach and Hal David have all performed at the White House concert series since the President took office in 2008. And now, according to a stor in today's Hollywood Reporter, Carole King will be honored with the 2013 Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song at a White House concert next Wednesday, May 22. According to the announcement, she will perform in the East Room, alongside James Taylor, Gloria Estefan, Billy Joel, and others, after being praised both for her astonishing accomplishments as a songwriter and recording artist, and for her long-time commitment to Democratic activism by President Obama.The event will be streamed live beginning at 3pm Pacific at www.whitehouse.gov/l​ive. She is the first female artist to be given the Gershwin Prize.

 

The night before, King will be honored at an invitation-only ceremony and concert at the Library of Congress’ Coolidge Auditorium featuring performances by King, her daughter Louise Goffin, Patti Austin, Colbie Caillat, Michael Feinstein, Siedah Garrett, Shelby Lynne, Gian Marco and Arturo Sandoval.

 

Rock anthems? Check. Wistful ballads? Present and accounted for. Must be the new Goo Goo Dolls album.

The Goo Goo Dolls return June 11 with their latest work, "Magnetic." And in this time of trying to figure out how to get heard, they've actually gone and put together nearly four minutes of excerpts from the new songs to give fans a taste without giving the whole store away ala David Bowie or Daft Punk.

Of course, it's not like Johnny Rzeznik and crew have kept everything under wraps. The single "Rebel Beat" is out there since January, with the official video going up last month.
They're doing a few dates but the touring schedule really heats up in late June, when they begin a trek across the country and back with Matchbox Twenty (after Rzeznik takes a bit of time off to get married).



 

Despite a music career that was taking off in the late '90s, California singer/songwriter Susan James decided to put her music on hold to raise her daughter. Little did she know that her hiatus would see the collapse of the music industry, the rise of the Internet and legal/illegal downloading and general panic as the old system totally disintegrated.

So when she returned with "Highway, Ghosts, Hearts and Home" last year and her latest, "Driving Toward the Sun," she knew everything was different. And she was ready for it. For the latest album she teamed up with her neighbor and friend, Ryan Ulyate, a producer/engineer who has Tom Petty, George Harrison, the Traveling Wilburys, Electric Light Orchestra and other credits under his belt. They recorded in his high-tech home studio but the approach was strictly old-school: Eight tight, fully realized songs that told an adult tale of heartache and redemption, from the stirring title cut to sad, resigned songs such as "U-Haul in the Driveway." Critical acclaim quickly followed, with No Depression quickly naming it one of the best albums of the year so far.

"I wanted an album that sounded like me and my sound and my past without sounding dated. It's honest in sound and it could be from any era," James said.

And rather than worry about technology marching on, James embraced it. She did old-school radio promotion with NPR and legendary California station KPIG, as well as Spotify, Emusic, iTunes, Amazon and plain old touring and getting the word out. James and Ulyate took a few minutes to talk about the collaboration and where she goes from here.