Merle Haggard's breathing easier now

Back in 1973, the country was in the grip of economic woes. A beleaguered Republican president was overseeing an unpopular war abroad and gradually had lost the support of the American people.

The musical response from Merle Haggard at the time was "If We Make It Through December," a sobering song that spent a month at No. 1 on the country chart and became one of the singer-songwriter's signature compositions for its compassionate look at the plight of working people across the land.

 If we make it through December / Everything's gonna be all right I know / It's the coldest time of winter / And I shiver when I see the fallin' snow

Three and a half decades later, Haggard sits in the living room of his Northern California home on 168 rolling acres, a few bumpy, dusty miles outside of Redding. Along with the rest of the country, he's made it through another difficult December -- his 72nd -- into a new year. 

His cobalt-blue eyes are trained on the widescreen TV monitor mounted on the wall across the cozy room. The Bloomberg News channel is on, and stock prices crawl relentlessly across the bottom of the screen on the day after

Barack Obama's inauguration as the 44th president of the United States.

Most stocks, and Haggard's spirits, are up.

Read the full story here.

-- Randy Lewis reporting from Redding, CA.

(Photo courtesy Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Arthur Russell movie makes it back to L.A.

For those who missed last year's OutFest screening of "Wild Combination," the tender and revelatory documentary on the experimental singer-songwriter Arthur Russell (and one of our favorite pop moments of last year), you'll get another crack at seeing it early next week. Amoeba Records will host a free outdoor screening at Space 15 Twenty (it's just up the block on Cahuenga Boulevard) on Monday at 8 p.m. Director Matt Wolf will be fielding questions; afterward, you should promptly get thee to Amoeba and pick up the recently released DVD of the film or some of Russell's albums. Newcomers should try last year's compilation of his rare acoustic-guitar work, "Love Is Overtaking Me," which reins in Russell's avant-garde disco and ambient impulses to showcase his haunting, uncanny baritone in a new light.   

-- August Brown

Animal Collective's rescheduled shows announced

L.A. tribal heads can breathe easy again: The Animal Collective shows, canceled last weekend due to Avey Tare losing his voice, have been rescheduled, according to the band's representatives. The new dates are Feb 26 at the Music Box @ Fonda and Feb 27 at the Troubadour. Both are still sold out -- Fonda will honor all tickets purchased, and information should be coming Monday regarding the Troubadour's policy. If you can't make it to the Fonda's rescheduled show, contact Ticketmaster. No word yet on the openers.

-- Margaret Wappler

Photo courtesy Takahiro Imamura/Motormouth Media

Five post-show thoughts from LaBelle's Nokia Theatre performance

LaBelle is back, and the fellas who’ve been keeping their glitter shirts and platforms in the closet since 1976 could not be happier. Many strutted out Thursday night to see the proto-everything trio of Patti LaBelle, Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash perform at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live.

They hugged and reminisced in the lobby before the show, circulating among the mom-and-pop couples also in attendance. The rare blend of Saturday night disco queens and Sunday morning gospel lovers typified the boundary-breaking nature of LaBelle, the original superstars of soulful, funky girl-group black rock.

After the jump, five great memories that LaBelle fans will remember from the show.

So long 'Nick & Norah': Time to start getting psyched for 'Scott Pilgrim'

In the post-"Garden State" era, indie rock has lost a bit of its cinematic edge, opting, often, for cutesy ("Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist") over biting ("High Fidelity"). It may still be a ways off yet, but "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" has the potential to provide a much-welcome musical jolt to mainstream cinema.

Starring Michael Cera, who may or may not partake in an "Arrested Development" film, "Scott Pilgrim" follows the exploits of a twentysomething Canadian indie rocker (Cera's Pilgrim) who attacks his life -- and his girlfriend's ex-boyfriends -- as if he's battling through levels in a video game. Today, the Playlist picked up on a piece of news that Pop & Hiss missed, and gives us even more hope for the comic-turned-film, which is being directed by Edgar Wright ("Hot Fuzz").

Taylor Swift gets Staples Center gig

In her first major headlining tour, country upstart Taylor Swift will go straight to one of L.A.'s biggest stages. The teen singer will headline Staples Center on May 22 as part of a 52-date tour.

Tickets go on sale Feb. 6 via Ticketmaster.

While ticket prices have not been announced for the Los Angeles date, a press release promises that tickets in most markets will sell for $20 (not including applicable service fees).

Swift was the top-selling artist of 2008. Combined, her self-titled 2006 debut and her recently released "Fearless" sold more than 4 million copies in 2008, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Former "American Idol" contestant Kellie Pickler will open. 

-- Todd Martens

Photo Ken Hively/Los Angeles Times

Photo Ken Hively/Los Angeles Times

Live review: Wale at the Key Club

A bravura performance heralds a new generation of hip-hop from the nation's capital.

In the eight months since dropping his critically lauded, "Seinfeld"-themed, "Mixtape About Nothing," Washington, D.C.'s, Wale has emerged as one of the leading lights of hip-hop's rapidly rising Generation Y -- with Jay-Z and Leonardo DiCaprio even taking in last month's show at New York's Highline Ballroom.

Judging from his bravura performance Thursday night at the Key Club, the buzz around the Interscope-signed phenom is absolutely warranted.

If anything, Wale's set veered closer to coronation, with Left Coast legends Warren G and Xzibit, along with label mate and Dr. Dre protégé Bishop Lamont popping up on stage to lend their support to the 24-year-old. Even Sean "Diddy" Combs Twittered a message on Thursday, reminding fellow Tweeters not to skip Wale's show. Not bad for a guy without as much as an officially released album.

Looping and female virtuosity: Theresa Andersson at the Hotel Café

The first time I saw someone use loops and pedals onstage, the trick really seemed like magic. The artist was Joseph Arthur, the wildly prolific singer-songwriter who’s more recently taken to playing his raggedy, romantic music with a rock and roll band, the Lonely Astronauts.

Five or six years ago, he took a different approach. In his solo performances, Arthur stood or kneeled before a row of pedals, turning his voice into a chorus of harmonies, calls and responses, and his guitar into a chamber orchestra.

Back then, Arthur was ahead of the pack, though hardly alone. Friends responded to my cries of “he’s a genius!” with examples of their own -- Andrew Bird, Keller Williams, Largo’s own Jon Brion. Now, it’s common to see artists setting up a whole row of hardware before their sets begin. A recent Boston Globe feature on looping notes the aficionados' site  www.loopers-delight.com/loop.html million hits per month.

Looping transforms the singer-songwriter from a rustic and natural-seeming emoter into a future-thinking techie. For women, this has particular implications, and it's exciting that many leading loopers are women: K.T. Tunstall, Emily Wells, Imogen Heap, Juana Molina, Marnie Stern and Kaki King, among them.

So is Theresa Andersson, who plays multiple instruments, turning herself into that staple of the American street corner -- the “one-man band.” When a woman assumes this role, she flips the script on established notions of artistic power and skill.

Paul McCartney is a major boomer bridge for Coachella

With Sir Paul, the older generation of rock casts a giant shadow over the Gen X version. But we hope the new generation will soon find its place in the desert sun too.

If you need proof that the generational divide that has defined American pop since the rock era is vanishing along with the rock era itself, look no further than the top of the bill for this year's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival: Paul McCartney headlines the main stage Friday. (The other listed name likely to cause maximum excitement belongs to Leonard Cohen, the 74-year-old Zen grandpa of the singer-songwriter clan.)

For most of its first decade, Coachella celebrated the indie-to-alternative sounds and styles that came after punk slapped down classic rock and gave the new kids their chance to lead. Sunday night's headliner, the Cure, is a nostalgia act for the alt-rock generation, while Saturday's mainstage closers, the Killers, is its idea of a classic rock band.

In the past, the top of the bill has been dominated by artists who, while not completely rejecting the influence of their elders, signaled the rise of a new generation, with new social and political concerns and an affinity for hip-hop and electronic music. Last year's appearance by Pink Floyd honcho Roger Waters began to alter that script.

Coachella founder Paul Tollett wanted to open younger ears to the music of an elder he appreciates, but he also must have known that Waters' success would help convince his peers that this was a safe event for them to play. Featuring legacy artists also helps break down the old idea of rock as youth music and makes it an inter-generational affair.

Baby boomer favorites rake in major profits on the touring circuit. That's one reason why Tollett booked the Eagles to co-headline Stagecoach, the "country Coachella," last year. While middle-aged rock fans are suffering the blows of the economic crash along with everyone else, they're more likely than most to save up for a big entertainment splurge featuring an old favorite. And they might be more familiar with layaway plans, like the one the fest just introduced.

Paul McCartney at Coachella: The former Beatle doesn't quite fit the demographic

Click here for the complete lineup.

The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival got famous by presenting the sounds of today and tomorrow. But this year California's most celebrated live-music event is gambling on Paul McCartney and the music of "Yesterday."

Booking the former Beatle, who is listed in the record books as the most successful musician in pop history, would be the safest choice imaginable for most music festivals.

But the internationally respected Coachella festival, which is set for April 17-19, has been pulling in crowds of more than 140,000 fans by taking an edgier path with alt-rock heroes you would hear on a college town's pirate radio station.

Presented with a chance to tap into music history and veteran star power, the promoters have signed the 66-year-old icon, who personifies the mature pop mainstream. The move could help the festival compete amid a grim economy and a host of imitators that have sprung up across the country; the news of McCartney's presence -- for better or worse -- instantly will make Coachella a hot topic with music fans nationwide who have been anxiously awaiting the list of this year's headliners.