Comic-actor — and musician — Russell Brand, who makes his Atlantic City debut with two shows at Borgata’s Music Box Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 13-14, on his long-time friendship with the late Amy Winehouse.
“I was myself at that time barely out of rehab and was thirstily seeking less complicated women,” he said, “so I barely reflected on the now glaringly obvious fact that Winehouse and I shared an affliction, the disease of addiction.”
Brand, who recently starred in the title role of the remake of the comedy film Arthur, said it wasn’t until Winehouse’s career began to take off several years ago that he realized the depth of her exceptional talent.
“I wasn’t curious enough to do anything so extreme as listen to her music or go to one of her gigs,” wrote Brand, whose wife is another gifted singer, Katy Perry.
“I was becoming famous myself at the time and that was an all-consuming experience.”
By chance, he caught Winehouse performing live and was overcome by what he called “the rolling, wondrous resonance of a female vocal."
“From her oddly dainty presence that voice, a voice that seemed not to come from her but from somewhere beyond even Billie [Holiday] and Ella [Fitzgerald], from the font of all greatness,” he said.
“A voice that was filled with such power and pain that it was at once entirely human yet laced with the divine. My ears, my mouth, my heart and mind all instantly opened. ... She was a fuckiing genius.”
Brand, who makes his Atlantic City debut with two shows at Borgata’s Music Box Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 13-14, forged a friendship with Winehouse and she was a frequent guest on television and radio shows he hosted in England.
"That’s part of what I’ll talk about when I come to town. I’ll talk about my daughter. I’ll talk about getting older. I talk about how kids aren’t kids anymore and I’ll get political and I’ll talk about the dysfunctional. My daughter is 17 and she’s driving and I can’t help but worry. She goes to a private school and what’s bad about that is there a lot of entitlement. It’s hard raising my daughter but it’s good for material."
Life is about experiences, not fun for Adam Carolla. That’s the reason the comic/actor/radio host agreed to perform on Dancing With The Stars in 2008. That’s why he appeared on the last edition of Donald Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice, which aired last winter.
.jpg)
"Sarah asked me to do it and I wanted to do whatever it took to facilitate her vision. Wow — what an actory answer ...What have I become?!"
“We got a bunch of new songs to play and it’ll be interesting to see how people respond to them. I’m looking forward to doing the show in Atlantic City since we’ve never played around the casinos there. We played at Bader Field at the festival Dave Matthews put together last summer [the Dave Matthews Band Caravan]. But this time I’m excited that we’ll be there in the thick of things because I’m looking forward to gambling."
It took a few years, but pop vocalist and songwriter Katy Perry, voted the "next big thing" by Blender mag in 2004, hit the big time last summer with her smash single "I Kissed A Girl" and has been o...
For a while it appeared that Spears was about to tank since she seemed to make one poor choice after another. In 2007 she wrote on her Web site that she hit rock bottom and then she lost custody of her children.
Tracey Miller, who lives and works here in the area, was Amy Winehouse's publicist. She offered this note on Winehouse’s passing. “I am heartbroken and sad. Amy was incredibly sweet, unassuming, funny and caring — a beautiful and amazing artist with exceptional talent, I was privileged to have known her.”
It’s not difficult to see why the pop-music world and beyond is gaga over Lady Gaga. In just over a year the sensual diva has gone from virtual unknown to a superstar, who has sold more than eight million copies of her initial albums, 2008’s 'The Fame' and 2009’s 'The Fame Monster.'
It was, by all accounts, a fairly typical Borgata party: Tony- and Emmy Award-winning actress Mary-Louise Parker, most recently of the Showtime series Weeds, was the host. And the paparazzi was havi...
Sandra Bernhard’s career has had the ups and downs one might expect from her primary profession as a stand-up comic. Her career has also included professional singing (not just in her stand-up but with several albums and a hit dance single) and an acting career in movies that got off to a brilliant beginning in Martin Scorsese’s King of Comedy (1983).
“The thing about Lennon’s version is that he was a great songwriter, and for him to sidestep his life and do that song, and put his own identity on it, it became a total John Lennon song,” King says, unable to conceal the pride in his voice.
Article:
NYE 2013 Shows in Atlantic City
Article:
Hall Passes on Moody Blues Again
Article:
Why the '12-12-12' Sandy Tribute Is in New York, Not New Jersey
Article:
Steve Martin in Atlantic City
Article:
Jerry Springer Hosts 'The Price Is Right'
Article:
Atlantic City Summer Concerts
Article:
Unprecedented Concert Line-up for Atlantic City
Article:
Golden Nugget Starts to Shine
Share this Story: