Anybody waiting breathlessly for this?

I mean doesn’t it seem like a rerun?  Or worse, a chance for acts to get
exposure?

Music made it based on being different.  On not repeating itself.  "Sgt.
Pepper" was a quantum leap forward from "Revolver", and the White Album could not have been predicted from listening to "Pepper".  But, as soon as one heard of
the New Orleans disaster, one KNEW there was going to be a TV special
featuring musical acts asking for donations.

Maybe that’s what made Live 8 so fascinating.  The fact that they WEREN’T
asking for money.  And that it was worldwide.

The 9/11 concert was definitive.  Hell, the VH1 show at Madison Square Garden
a month and a half later didn’t hold a candle to it.  The 9/11 show was
unexpected.  It had a solemnity and power that reached even those who were not fans of these acts, since, glued to their TV sets for the week, it was the only
network alternative.

I doubt there will be any special moments in Saturday’s show.

Or maybe it’s that I won’t be watching every minute in order to capture those
moments.  Because I just don’t care.

And isn’t it ironic that the concerts are on the Viacom channels.  The same
operation that fucked up the television broadcast of the Live 8 shows.  The
same operation that told us it was a hip-hop nation and featured Diddy and a host
of BET acts at its VMAs and saw ratings sink by 22%.

Oh, don’t give me shit that I can’t criticize people doing good.

I’m not against good.  Just couldn’t they do it in a different way?  Couldn’t
there be a week of shows where EVERY DOLLAR went to hurricane relief?  Yup,
Clear Channel, AEG, Jam, MSG…every show for the next ten days all the
proceeds go to help those affected by the tragedy.  It would get people out of their
houses, away from their TV sets, to revel in the healing joy of live music. 
Hell, to turn them on, to reintroduce them to going out.

God, maybe even make it one night.  With scaled houses.  Every act in the
business doing a show.  From clubs to stadiums.  Create excitement!

But instead we’re going to get people showing up for a photo op, for the jolt
to their careers.  There will be the obligatory shitty selling CD.  With an
advance track on iTunes.

Hell, how about the industry donating a day’s worth of iTunes revenue to
hurricane relief?  Yup!  Not only raise money, but get people into the habit of
buying online music!  That’s just what the industry likes, charity that pays!

And how about these so-called generous acts matching every sale of their
music at the iTunes Music Store dollar for dollar?

Or, how about a charity CD in stores FRIDAY???  Elvis had his ’68 live show
in stores within a week, you’re telling me we can’t do that today?  No, of
course not.  Everybody’s worried about his rights, lawyers gum up the works, stars
pull hissy-fits.  Yup, it’s THESE people who are so selflessly donating their
time to play on this MTV/VH1/CMT train-wreck.

Make me puke.