Steve Knopper | Rolling Stone

Contributor

239 items by Steve Knopper Steve Knopper’s Profile on

Top Artists Adjust to New World of YouTube Bootlegs | ARTICLE

Plug "Metallica" and "full concert" into YouTube and dozens of incredible clips come up: a full, two-hour concert from earlier this year; a two-and-a-half hour 1989 show from Seattle; the band's complete set from the 1999 Woodstock...
December 17, 2012 10:56 AM ET
Gil Friesen, Influential Music Mogul, Dead at 75 | ARTICLE

Gil Friesen, the record executive who built A&M Records with Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss – helping to introduce the Police, Janet Jackson, Soundgarden and the Carpenters to the world – died Thursday...
December 14, 2012 7:25 PM ET
On the Charts: Bruno Mars Aims for Big Week in Slow Season | ARTICLE

WINNER OF THE WEEK: Bruno Mars. The R&B sleeper made two smart moves this fall. He put out "Locked Out of Heaven," a catchy little thing with excellent beeping noises that has drawn almost 37 million...
December 12, 2012 1:00 PM ET
2013 Grammy Nominations: The 5 Biggest Surprises | ARTICLE

Nothing's ever too shocking about the Grammy nominations – the recording industry honors songs and albums with artistic merit and decent sales as well as performers who might look nice on TV. But still, 55th annual Awards:...
December 6, 2012 9:10 AM ET
On the Charts: Alicia Keys' 'Girl on Fire' Leads Lukewarm Week | ARTICLE

WINNER OF THE WEEK: Alicia Keys. By default. (It was a terrible week for album sales – see below.) Girl on Fire hit Number One, but its sales were a measly 159,000, the lowest of any...
December 5, 2012 12:55 PM ET
Pandora Clashes With Musicians Over Song Payments | ARTICLE

In its long-running battle with Pandora over royalty payments for streaming songs, the record business dispatched its most potent weapon – prominent musicians – to Capitol Hill this week. Before last Wednesday's hearing about the Internet Radio...
December 3, 2012 4:10 PM ET
Grammy Nomination Odds Favor Mumford & Sons, Frank Ocean | ARTICLE

After a year that lacked culture-dominating albums by pop superstars like Adele or Lady Gaga, the 2013 Grammy nominations are likely to be a void through which just about anybody can jump. It won't be Taylor...
December 3, 2012 1:05 PM ET
On the Charts: Rihanna On Top | ARTICLE

WINNER OF THE WEEK: Rihanna. For all the negative press Rihanna received the last two weeks about dragging a bunch of tired, grumpy journalists on her plane throughout Europe, the singer sold a respectable 238,000 copies...
November 28, 2012 12:00 PM ET
On the Charts: One Direction Assume the Boy-Band Throne | ARTICLE

WINNER OF THE WEEK: One Direction. Officially taking the boy-band baton from Jonas Brothers, Backstreet Boys, 'NSYNC, New Kids on the Block and Bay City Rollers, One Direction's Take Me Home sold 540,000 copies, the...
November 21, 2012 12:25 PM ET
On the Charts: Taylor Swift Stays on Top, One Direction Jump the Gun | ARTICLE

WINNER OF THE WEEK: Holiday shoppers. With Black Friday a week and a half away, the fourth quarter's blockbuster albums are clicking into place – Ne-Yo's R.E.D. shows up at Number Four, selling 66,000 copies, and One...
November 14, 2012 1:50 PM ET
Inside the Beatles' Vinyl Album Remasters | ARTICLE

The remastered Beatles catalog arrives on 180-gram vinyl in record stores tomorow (today in the U.K.). While engineers didn't have to spend as much time on them as they did on the remastered CDs, they...
November 12, 2012 2:55 PM ET
Paul McCartney Launches Another 'Magical Mystery Tour' | ARTICLE

A guy who can backload his concert with "Hey Jude," "Yesterday," "Helter Skelter," "Get Back" and "Day Tripper" can pretty much do whatever he wants for the first two hours. For most of his first...
November 12, 2012 11:50 AM ET
Record Stores Reeling After Hurricane Sandy | ARTICLE

Rob Roth's customers in Fords, New Jersey, have trees through their houses, no power, no heat and ridiculous lines for gas. So they're not thinking about Rod Stewart's new Merry Christmas, Baby. "It's very adversely affected business,"...
November 9, 2012 1:15 PM ET
Kid Rock Lifts iTunes Boycott With 'Rebel Soul' Album | ARTICLE

Kid Rock, who has pointedly stonewalled Apple in the past, will release his new LP Rebel Soul through the dominant online retailer. The album, due on November 19th, is available by pre-order on iTunes, and its...
November 8, 2012 12:10 PM ET
On the Charts: Bruno Mars' 'Heaven' Is Hot, Neil Young Debuts Strong | ARTICLE

WINNER OF THE WEEK: Bruno Mars. The obvious choice here is Meek Mill, the Philadelphia rapper whose Dreams & Nightmares sold 165,000 copies and was runner-up on the album chart to Taylor Swift's Red (344,000,...
November 7, 2012 1:30 PM ET
Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, The Who Lead Packed 2013 Tour Season | ARTICLE

If Keith Richards' prediction that the Rolling Stones will hit the road next year holds true, they'll be joining what is already a strong lineup of tours for early 2013. Lady Gaga, the Who, Taylor Swift,...
November 6, 2012 12:35 PM ET
Beleaguered Music Industry Has High Hopes for Fall Season | ARTICLE

After more than a decade of reeling from low CD sales, the record business is finally heading into a holiday shopping season with a little confidence. Taylor Swift's Red sold more than 1.2 million copies in its...
November 6, 2012 9:00 AM ET
Hurricane Sandy Benefit Plans Came Together Overnight, Say Organizers | ARTICLE

NBC's Friday night benefit for victims of Hurricane Sandy – set to feature Bruce Springsteen, Christina Aguilera, Sting, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi and network stars Tina Fey, Jimmy Fallon, Brian Williams and Matt Lauer – came...
November 1, 2012 5:10 PM ET
On the Charts: Taylor Swift Hits a Million Without Sales Tricks | ARTICLE

WINNER OF THE WEEK: Taylor Swift. Duh. Red is not only the best-selling album of this week, it's the best-selling album of any week since 2002, when Eminem's The Eminem Show made its debut with...
October 31, 2012 12:55 PM ET
Concert Business Grinds to a Halt in Hurricane Sandy's Wake | ARTICLE

David Byrne and St. Vincent had to postpone their appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman tonight in New York because one of their backup musicians was stuck in Mexico City, a monitor engineer was stranded...
October 30, 2012 3:45 PM ET