The CB Music Friday Flash 09/26/08: MySpace Music; McCartney Rocks Israel; Flaming Lips On Mars

Welcome to the CB Friday Flash, where we recap the week in music and bring you some of the weekend’s top concert bets.

The big news this week was the launch of MySpace’s new music portal on Thursday. The social networking giant’s official music venture has thus far met with mixed reviews, but no one can deny this as yet another sign of the apocalypse. Or at the very least further confirmation that music in the digital age is more about the big non-music corporations and entities marketing it, than it is about the bands and artists who actually make it.

Although MySpace Music does offer pretty much unlimited access to streaming music from the catalogs of all of the major music labels, there are big gaps there it comes to the independents – an ironic fact of life given MySpace’s initial reputation as a place where any band could find an instant audience.

Like any other new venture, kinks like these will still need to be worked out, and they will be in due time without a doubt. For now though, it’s as good a place as any to catch up on any gaps in your own musical library, as the site also offers access to music downloads at Amazon.com.

Also on Thursday. Paul McCartney made his triumphant concert debut in the Holy Land, performing before some 50,000 fans in Tel Aviv. The concert came more than 40 years after the Beatles were seen as a bad influence on the morals of youth, and banned from playing Israel as a result (back when the fab four actually still played concerts in the early sixties).

The concert went on under a cloud of protests (and even threats) from some of the more radical factions of the Palestine/Israel conflict. Opening with the Beatles “Hello, Goodbye,” Macca offered two and a half hours of Beatles and Wings hits, including George Harrison’s “Something” and John Lennon’s “Give Peace A Chance.”

Finally, the Flaming Lips have confirmed an October 28 DVD release date for the long talked about film project Christmas On Mars via Warner Bros. The release will also come in a deluxe version which pairs the DVD with the soundtrack music on CD.

Here are some of this weekend’s top concert bets:

Willie Nelson 9/27/2008 Saturday 7:00 PM House of Blues Atlantic City in Atlantic City, NJ

Allman Brothers 9/27/2008 Saturday 7:00 PM Horseshoe Casino in Robinsonville, MS

My Morning Jacket 9/27/2008 Saturday 6:30 PM McMenamins Historic Edgefield Manor in Troutdale, OR

Queensryche 9/27/2008 Saturday 8:00 PM Grand Sierra Theatre in Reno, NV

Elton John 9/27/2008 Saturday 8:00 PM Halifax Metro Centre in Halifax, NS

Brad Paisley 9/27/2008 Saturday 7:30 PM Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, RI

Ryan Adams 9/27/2008 Saturday 8:30 PM Rochester Auditorium Theatre in Rochester, NY

Earth, Wind and Fire featuring Michael McDonald 9/27/2008 Saturday 7:00 PM Pacific Amphitheater - Costa Mesa in Costa Mesa, CA

My Bloody Valentine 9/27/2008 Saturday 7:30 PM Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, IL

Santana 9/27/2008 Saturday 8:00 PM Cricket Pavilion in Phoenix, AZ

Mary J Blige featuring Robin Thicke 9/27/2008 Saturday 7:30 PM Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre (NC) in Charlotte, NC

Celine Dion 9/27/2008 Saturday 8:00 PM Air Canada Centre in Toronto, ON

Cheech and Chong 9/27/2008 Saturday 7:00 PM Fillmore Miami Beach at Jackie Gleason Theater in Miami Beach, FL

Janet Jackson with LL Cool J 9/27/2008 Saturday 8:00 PM Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, MI

Alicia Keys 9/27/2008 Saturday 8:00 PM Dodge Theatre in Phoenix, AZ

Weezer 9/27/2008 Saturday 7:00 PM The Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden, NJ