R.I.P. White Stripes

The White Stripes have officially broken up, according to their website.

The White Stripes would like to announce that today, February 2nd, 2011, their band has officially ended and will make no further new recordings or perform live. 

The reason is not due to artistic differences or lack of wanting to continue, nor any health issues as both Meg and Jack are feeling fine and in good health. 

It is for a myriad of reasons, but mostly to preserve What is beautiful and special about the band and have it stay that way. 

Meg and Jack want to thank every one of their fans and admirers for the incredible support they have given throughout the 13 plus years of the White Stripes’ intense and incredible career. 

Third Man Records will continue to put out unreleased live and studio recordings from The White Stripes in their Vault Subscription record club, as well as through regular channels. 

Both Meg and Jack hope this decision isn’t met with sorrow by their fans but that it is seen as a positive move done out of respect for the art and music that the band has created. It is also done with the utmost respect to those fans who’ve shared in those creations,with their feelings considered greatly. 

With that in mind the band have this to say: 

“The White Stripes do not belong to Meg and Jack anymore. The White Stripes belong to you now and you can do with it whatever you want. The beauty of art and music is that it can last forever if people want it to. Thank you for sharing this experience. Your involvement will never be lost on us and we are truly grateful.” 

Sincerely, 
Meg and Jack White 
The White Stripes

R.I.P. the best band of the last decade by far. I really hope this isn't permanent.

The Third Man Band

Last night Jack White was on Conan with rockabilly legend Wanda Jackson and the Third Man Band promoting their new collaborative album, The Party Ain't Over.



The band also appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman last week playing the rock and roll standard "Shakin' All Over."



In addition to his own bands (The White Stripes, The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather), White has played with Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones, appearing in the latter's concert film, Shine a Light.



He also become a renowned producer when he set up Third Man Records in Nashville and worked with legendary artists like Jackson and Loretta Lynn.

I could do an entire post about why I think Jack White is the best musician of the last decade but I'll save that for later. This is just a bit of a news update, as I happened to catch the end of Conan last night and was thrilled to see him on the show again. He was also first musical guest on the show back in November.

Led Zeppelin Song of the Week: In My Time of Dying

This song wasn't actually written by Led Zeppelin, although their version is certainly the most famous. It appears as the third song on Physical Graffiti and is the longest song in the Led Zeppelin studio catalog.


(due to the Youtube restrictions, the video cuts a bit off the end of the song)

The song is a folk/blues standard and the lyrics are based on an old gospel tune called "Jesus Make Up My Dying Bed." The music here, however, is all original, featuring Jimmy Page on slide guitar in Open A tuning, and the writing credits list all four band members.