You call yourself a music lover, music consumer or better yet, a true aficionado? Are you in London or planning a trip there sometime soon? Jaded Londoners need not continue reading but those who have not been to Abbey Road and the famous "zebra crossing" should add it to their itinerary. You see, the famed Abbey Road studios are reportedly up for sale by it's cash-strapped and over-leveraged owner, EMI records. This old Georgian house in north London ranks up there with Graceland, The Whisky A Go Go, Motown's old HQ and Memphis' Sun Studios as 'hallowed ground'. The Beatles recorded 95% of their recorded output here, including the classic Abbey Road album which features the band casually crossing the road in front of the studio during a mid afternoon tea break. Legend has it that the album was set to be titled Everest but the lads couldn't be bothered to travel to the Himalayas for a photo shoot. The iconic album cover was the first not to feature the name of the album or the name of the band. In hindsight, those 7 or 8 photos taken that day seem quaint given today's PR machine world of choreographed photo opps and behind ...

One of them died before he had a chance to get old.  Another died a decadent prototypical rock and roll death at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas on the eve of their 2002 tour, hot on the heels of their incendiary performance at the Concert for New York. Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey soldier on with help from a brother, the son of a Beatle and others sharing the common cause of continuing to breathe life into a band called The Who.  This  Super Bowl performance proved there is still life and vitality in the now age-less songs that Townshend originally penned decades ago.    Hard to believe it but these guys were also at Woodstock over 40 years ago. Have they aged?  Yes, certainly;  Townshend no longer bounces up and down and smashes his guitar and Daltrey's voice now shows distress on higher registers but these guys can still manage to bring it and deliver a quality performance. Cynics may say this isn't really The Who anymore now that Moon and Entwistle are no longer on the stage and with us.  Others say no, Townshend and Daltrey have every right to  perpetuate the legacy of the band and can still deliver ...

Yes, it's true that Taylor Swift was off key and out of tune during  the Grammys Rhiannon duet with Stevie Nicks.  What's surprising is the  growing backlash against Miss Swift.  Barbs are being thrown in the main stream press citing Swift's weak voice and poor choice of material during last week's performance.  Some are now questioning if  she deserves all of the praise and awards over the past 12 months.  Many are missing the real story behind this flap and fail to recognize a true talent when they see one. Her management have weighed in and are calling Swift the voice of her generation, stressing the unfortunate fact that her live performance at the Grammys was indeed flawed but shouldn't really matter.  Basically, shit happens, especially during live events like the Grammys despite best intentions and many rehearsal hours. The official story from Swift's camp is that the volume levels in her in ear monitors were off which caused her to not hear Nicks and the band,  causing her to harmonize off key and off pitch.  Sounds logical to me.   The funny thing though is that everyone seems to be ignoring other performances from the same night from other artists which ...

Tired of boring, overcooked pork roast and pedestrian pork chops?  I urge you to give this recipe a shot ASAP! After an earlier failed attempt over 1 year ago, I set off again this weekend to tackle this seemingly easy crowd pleaser.  Pernil is very popular in Latin America and is typically the centerpiece of a holiday or celebratory gathering.  The prep is relatively straight forward and easy to follow. The most important ingredient is a nice pork shoulder (Paleta) or if you'd like to downsize the recipe, find a nice half pork shoulder -- a Boston butt or a fresh picnic roast are usually easy to find here in the USA.  My particular cut was approx 4.5 lbs including bone.  Make sure you find a cut with a good amount of fat/skin on one side of the roast. After scanning several recipes and cookbooks I improvised and came up with the following marinate which you need to rub into the roast and then refrigerate over night. Easy Pernil The Marinade -2 Tablespoons peanut oil or other oil -2 Tablespoons sherry or red wine vinegar -2 Tablespoons honey -Juice of half an orange or lemon -Small handful of crushed chili flakes (Chili Quebrado) -Fresh rosemary or flat leaf parsley roughly chopped -4 ...

1. Jimmy Page.  2. David Evans aka The Edge.  3. Jack White. Those are the three primary reasons why you need to rent It Might Get Loud featuring the interwoven stories of all three and how they came to be uniquely linked forever to the electric guitar and rock and roll. And, there are more reasons which I'll outline below. 4. Headley Grange - This is a mythical place in Led Zeppelin lore and history.  It was here that the band recorded much of Led Zeppelin IV and parts of posthumous albums. Set in the East Hampshire countryside, the film features several scenes in which Jimmy Page returns to the stately home and points to the exact location at the bottom of the entrance stairwell where Bonzo's drum kit was set up for maximum sonic effect.   Page, his white hair in a stylish pony tail,  also strolls the gardens of the estate; the very place where Robert Plant famously remarked that he wrote most of the lyrics to Stairway to Heaven there in one afternoon. 5. Mount Temple Comprehensive School - This is the Dublin high school where Larry Mullin Jr. posted an item on the school bulletin board, seeking band mates to start a ...

A warm Subrosacafe.com welcome to our newest contributor, Shaun K. from Marbella by way of London.  We look forward to frequent guest reviews, recipes & random ruminations from one of southern Spain's quintessential gourmands. On the northern outskirts of the City of London lies the historic Smithfield meat market.  Given it’s propensity for supplying everything and anything carnivorous from all over the world, the area is home to a number of notable eateries taking advantage of the proximity of such excellent produce.  One of the most inspiring restaurants has been there for about 15 years now and has become a modern day pilgrimage site for chefs seeking to pay homage at the feet of Fergus Henderson, the undisputed king of offal and a hearty style of long lost traditional British cooking. One of the most notable pilgrims from the US is Anthony Bourdain who says of Fergus’s signature dish of Roast Marrow Bones and Parsley salad "If I was on death row and I had to choose what would be the last thing I put in my mouth, this would be it". I can think of no endorsement that comes better ...