For reasons unexplained, I was on the iTunes Music Store, happened to click the American Idol section and remembered how offended I was at the performance of John Lennon's Imagine.  And I was compelled to write the following review:

He's got a good voice, but I'm sorry... there are songs that should be off limits to the contestants and John Lennon's Imagine is one of them.  I find it highly disrespectful and pretentious of a 16 year-old to try and rewrite one of the most important and cathartic melodies ever penned.  The American Idol producers need to impose a moral authority, as protectors of art, to stop this kind of nonsense.  What worries me is that we'll see a lot of this butchery this season now that the Lennon/McCartney catalog is available to the contestants.

Who's with me?

Today Radiohead announced their new album, In Rainbows, is available for pre-order. It will be released on October 10th without the distribution arm of one of the major record labels. Radiohead is thumbing their collective nose at the record industry's tried and tired business model, putting their ingenuity and faith into the goodness of their fans. How much is the new Radiohead album worth to you? Figure that number then head over to www.inrainbows.com and name your price.

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Over the weekend, while watching Live Earth, on what amounts to a shot in the dark, I was lucky enough to score some tickets to The Police show in Tampa. And last night, at the St. Pete Times Forum, my face was melted by one of the most iconic rock bands of all time.

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Okay, so I'll admit it... I watch American Idol. I still don't know why, but that's neither here or there. I'm a huge Beatles fan and I'm upset. Not that I missed the ending because Fox ran over two minutes and my recorder turned off—which by the way, is Network TV's gameplan against time-shifting. No, I could care less if Blake or Jordin or Bob won. What upset me was the most pathetic tribute to "Sgt. Pepper" I've ever witnessed.

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