The worry when any beloved artist disappears into obscurity for an extended period of time, is that once returned their careers will forever be overshadowed by former glories. Last night at Paradiso, a suitably old church turned into a concert hall in Amsterdam, D’Angelo put all concerns to rest and performed one of the greatest shows we’ve witnessed live. Returning to the stage after a 12 year absence with an exceptionally tight backing band, last night Michael Archer let us know exactly what he’d been up to all this time – our guy was simply away getting better.

And yes, as impossible as it may sound – D’Angelo has returned better than when he left…

Performing with a noticeable smile stretched across his face – energy, passion and charisma combined the absurdly cool prowess of his ‘peak’ years with the mature dynamism of this current phase he inhabits as a weathered genius. Grooving to rhythms both old and new, he was instantly forgiven for leaving us all for so long. ‘Brown Sugar’, ‘Shit, Damn, Motherfucker’, ‘Chicken Grease’, ‘Devil’s Pie’ – songs that we grew up on by an artist we’ve been starved of was more than my feeble mind could handle. His infamous chords, basslines and swings were played to perfection, only this time with a noticeable Prince and James Brown inspired spirit engraved. I wonder if at any point he’d felt like the fallen hero, come to reclaim his place amongst the greatest – he certainly kicked his heels and screamed like it.

Even more promising though is the multi-instrumentalist’s new material. As if ‘R&B Jesus’ physical presence returning to stage wasn’t enough, we’re now safe in the knowledge that the material forthcoming from him is as good or potentially better than his earlier offerings. A staggering statement and an optimistic presumption, but judged on what we heard – that modern folklore legend that is the James River album has potential to be opus number three.

Why he left for such a long time is yet to properly unravel, but what’s certain is – based on last nights show, he took the time he needed and returned at precisely the time he was supposed to.

The only thing more exciting than the memories made at Paradiso, is that on Friday we get to experience the bravura all over again, only this time it’ll be in our London with a long line of hometown friends and fam. We hope for their sake they’re ready.

This is what comebacks are made of.

M.I.A will debut her new single ‘Bad Girls’ exclusively on Pitchfork this coming Monday (January 30th) at 7:30pm (GMT). The song will also get it’s first spin on radio via Zane Lowe’s Radio 1 show at the same time – she’ll be joining him for a chat also. The video for the song will premier on Vice network’s Noisey YouTube channel on February 3rd.

Recorded in Miami and produced by Danja (Timbaland, Madonna, Nelly Furtado, Pink), the song will precede M.I.A’s much-hyped collaboration with Madonna and Nicki Minaj – which is set to premier during the Super Bowl XLVI halftime show. ‘Bad Girls’ will be taken off M.I.A’s upcoming, yet to be titled, new album which is due out this summer on her new UK label, Mercury Records.

On February 27th, Robert Glasper will release his awe-inspiring new album Black Radio into the world. The 12 track accomplished body of work will feature an array of sensation collaborations from the likes of Erykah Badu, Bilal, Mos Def, Musiq, Lalay Hathaway, Lupe Fiasco, Meshell Ndegeocello and more.

On May 14th, Glasper will being his Experiment to London, specifically to the Barbican, to celebrate his new LP. He will be joined by collaborator Bilal along with a host of other “special guests” – and if my sources hold true (which they will), the artists taking part will drop some jaws (and/or drawers).

Tickets are priced £10-£25 and are on sale now.

Live Nation, the biggest promoter in the world, has revealed it’s plans for three open air festivals in Hyde Park, Victoria Park & Trafalgar Square as part of London’s 2012 Olympic Games celebrations. The events will “allow people to watch outdoor screenings of the Olympic and Paralympic Games at Hyde Park and will provide live music shows including two Celebration Concerts in Hype Park to coincide with the opening and closing of the games” (sou).

Headline acts and ticket information have yet to be unveiled, but reports suggest an annoucement will be made within the next few weeks. With Live Nation attached, expect superstar names to be involved.

Six time Grammy Award winner Etta James has passed away, aged 73. After a long battle with Leukemia, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, passed away in Hospital earlier today.

“This is a tremendous loss for the family, her friends and fans around the world”, said her longtime friend & manager Lupe De Leon. “She was a true original who could sing it all – her music defied category. I worked with Etta for over 30 years. She was my friend and I will love her always”.

History will write that Etta James laid the foundation for many female artists who came after her. Unafraid to be her imperfect, unapologetic self during a time where women, especially black women, had very little power is something that the world should never overlook. Not to mention the enormity of her talent – a voice like no other, she commanded every second of every moment while singing in front of an audience. A true legend.

May she Rest in Peace.

Fans of the Big Chill Festival will be bitterly disappointed as Managing Director, Melvin Benn, has officially announced that this years show has been cancelled, saying:

“It is with a considerable amount of regret that I have decided not to go ahead with The Big Chill in 2012.

I looked long and hard late last year at moving the date so it didn’t clash with the Olympics but the mix of the festival fans desire to keep the date and an inability to find an alternative date that works I plumped for maintaining the existing weekend. Sadly, the artist availability and confirmations we were achieving led me to conclude that I couldn’t risk going ahead with the event as an outdoor event this year. Efforts are being made to look to bring a smaller event indoors this year with the anticipation of Big Chill being back outdoors in 2013.”

… An unfortunate state of affairs, not least because for the first time in my life, I was actually contemplating going this year! Higher power inception, maybe? In any case – we look forward to the festival’s return in 2013.

The nominations for this years Brit Awards have been announced and like every other year are sure to divide opinion…

Fantastic to see James Blake & Ed Sheeran nominated in the ‘Best Male’ category alongside James Morrison, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds and Professor Green. While Adele, Jessie J, Florence + the Machine, Kate Bush and Laura Marling complete the nominations for ‘Best Female’.

Emeli Sande, Anna Cali, Ed Sheeran, Jessie J and The Vaccines will all go up for the ‘British Breakthrough Act’ award. Sande has already been announced as the winner of the prestigious ‘Brits Critics’ Choice’ Award, beating off BBC Sound of 2012 winner Michael Kiwanuka and Maverick Sabre.

Adele’s ‘Someone Like You’, Ed Sheeran’s ‘The A-Team’ and Jessie J’s ‘Price Tag’ are among some of the songs in the running for the ‘Best British Single’ award. Interestingly, Jessie’s debut album was left out of the running for ‘Best Album of the Year’, despite having a massively successful year and being nominated for three gongs at this years show. Adele’s 21, Sheeran’s +, Coldplay’s Mylo Xyloto, Florence + the Machine’s Ceremonials and PJ Harvey’s Let England Shake are go up for the nights biggest award.

Internationally, the usual contenders are represented – Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Beyonce, David Guetta, The Throne (Jay-Z & Kanye West), Nicki Minaj, Lana Del Rey and others all make up the nominations for the ‘International Male Solo’, ‘International Female Solo’, ‘International Group’ and ‘International Breakthrough Artist’ categories.

This year’s ‘Outstanding Contribution to Music’ award goes to British band Blur.

Check out the full list of nominees after the jump…

The Brit Awards take place on February 21st. For more info and to vote for your favourite acts – go here.

British Male Solo Artist

• Ed Sheeran
• James Blake
• James Morrison
• Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds
• Professor Green

British Female Solo Artist

• Adele
• Florence & The Machine Island
• Jessie J
• Kate Bush
• Laura Marling

British Breakthrough Act

• Anna Calvi
• Ed Sheeran
• Emeli Sandé
• Jessie J
• The Vaccines

British Group

• Arctic Monkeys
• Chase & Status
• Coldplay
• Elbow
• Kasabian

British Single

• Adele: Someone Like You
• Ed Sheeran: The A Team
• Example: Changed The Way You Kissed Me
• Jessie J Ft B.o.B.: Price Tag
• JLS Ft Dev: She Makes Me Wanna
• Military Wives / Gareth Malone: Wherever You Are
• Olly Murs Ft Rizzle Kicks: Heart Skips A Beat
• One Direction: What Makes You Beautiful
• Pixie Lott: All About Tonight
• The Wanted: Glad You Came

Mastercard British Album Of The Year

• Adele: 21
• Coldplay: Mylo Xyloto
• Ed Sheeran: +
• Florence & The Machine: Ceremonials
• PJ Harvey: Let England Shake

International Male Solo Artist

• Aloe Blacc
• Bon Iver
• Bruno Mars
• David Guetta
• Ryan Adams

International Female Solo Artist

• Beyoncé
• Björk One
• Feist
• Lady Gaga
• Rihanna

International Group

• Fleet Foxes
• Foo Fighters
• Jay-Z / Kanye West
• Lady Antebellum
• Maroon 5

International Breakthrough Act

• Aloe Blacc
• Bon Iver
• Foster The People
• Lana Del Rey
• Nicki Minaj

British Producer

• Paul Epworth
• Flood
• Ethan Johns

Critics Choice

• Emeli Sandé
• Maverick Sabre
• Michael Kiwanuka

Outstanding Contribution To Music

• Blur

Coachella has officially announced it’s festival line-up for 2012 and as ever – it’s very impressive. This years event, held in California, will play host to artists/bands such as Radiohead, Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg, the Black Keys, Miike Snow, Florence and the Machine, La Roux, Azealia Banks, A$AP Rocky, Thundercat, Gary Clark Jr, Arctic Monkey and a whole host of others (including David Guetta, a fact we shall ignore).

And for the first time ever the festival will take place over two weekends – April 13-15 & April 20-22. More details & ticket information to be announced shortly.

Red Bull have just announced that the 2012 Red Bull Music Academy will be held in New York this Autumn. Singers, producers, musicians, instrumentalists and DJ’s can download the application from February 2nd and send it off with a selection of their tracks by April 2nd.

Now in it’s 15th year, previous host cities include Berlin, Toronto, Melbourne, London, Cape Town and last year, Madrid. The academy invites musicians from around the world to apply for a chance to take part in the 5 week course which incorporates “workshops, concerts, club nights and all-round musical extravaganzas held all across the boroughs, exploring [the city's] diverse cultural and musical legacies”.

For all those interested in applying this year, up top is a very helpful video on how best to fill in the 5o+ questions on the application

For more information – go here. Good luck!

“HDB059 Burial – Kindred EP. Join Hyperdub mailing list for news. Vinyl/digital and def less than 25quid” – news straight from Kode9′s twitter.

No word on when this will drop or how many tracks will be included (we’ll keep you updated, of course), but when it comes to William Bevan – the specifics rarely matter.

Bevan was surprisingly quite active this year having released his Street Halo EP in March, a beautiful set of remixes for Massive Attack and a collaborative project with Four Tet & Thom Yorke. With the news of another new EP on the way we can only assume an album is being prepped. Fingers are crossed.

Last year Janelle Monae’s debut surpassed all other albums and pipped the top spot for PinBoard’s Album of the Year. In a stunning display of what true creativity can producer, she accomplished a conceptual and sonic feat by releasing her Grammy nominated LP The Archandroid.

With very little word from the lady herself in a while, curious minds were beginning to wonder what follow up plans were being put in place – in terms of delivery, but also more importantly of direction. With Monae it’s never “how will she follow up”, as it is “what will she follow it up with?” – her debut featured orchestras and musicians from around the world – once you go there, what else is left?

… While the aforementioned musical questions are yet to be answered, new information has emerged about her plans for 2012. In an interview with Back to Rockville, Monae says “I stopped touring so I could finish the album. Actually, I plan on releasing two albums next year. 87.799 percent of the writing is done… I will release them according to my soul clock. But I will try to stick to the scheduled release dates, which I know but can’t say. We already have a tour set but it hasn’t been announced yet. I’ll be with some really big artists. We’ll hit the Staples Centre three nights in a row in L.A. It’s a really big band. I can’t say who it is. I think next week you should probably hear something”. [via]

Promising news, lets see what 2012 brings.

It’s becoming unquestionably evident that 2012 will be the year of D’Angelo.

Having recently announced his first European Tour in over 10 years, with dates in Amsterdam, Paris & London confirmed – the latest word from friend and long-time collaborator Questlove is that his new, long-awaited album is “97% done”. Speaking to Pitchfork, The Roots’ drummer says “for all intents and purposes, this album is the black version of [The Beach Boys'] Smile – at best, it will go down in the Smile/There’s a Riot Going On/Miles Davis’ On the Corner category”.

Yep.

He goes on to say: “There’s stuff on there I was amazed at, like new music patches [keyboard sounds] I’ve never heard before. I’d ask him “What kind of keyboard is that?” I thought it was some old vintage thing – but he builds his own patches. One song we worked on called ‘Charade’ has t his trombone patch that he re-EQ’d and then put through an envelope filter and then added a vibraphone noise on top and made a whole new patch out of it. He’s the only person I know that takes a Herbie Hancock approach, or a Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff – the two musicians/engineers who programmed all of Stevie Wonder’s genius-period stuff – approach. That’s the last time I ever heard somebody building patches. We’ll see if history is kind to it”.

Not entirely sure I could be any more excited about this. The return of D’Angelo is something I (along with many of you, I know) have dreamed about since Voodoo, but for the past 10 years, after a series of controversies and worrying reports – that dream seemed distant and unrealistic. But alas – the surprise resurfacing via a string of live dates has reignited all of our hopes and with this news now surfacing – all looks good. It sounds like this is actually happening.

The PB crew will be flying out to A’Dam to see D perform there, then skipping back to the big smoke to catch his Brixton show. We ready.

Tickets are still on sale. Go here.

Also – don’t forget The Roots’ new concept album undun is out December 5th. Pre-order here.

So, according to the dinosaurs on the Grammy panel, Rihanna’s Loud album was a better, more complete body of work than Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and thus hers was nominated for ‘Album of the Year’ and his wasn’t.

I’ll let that one simmer for a second.

I mean, really – what is this? Year after year the Grammy Awards subject us to some type of fuckery (last year Janelle Monae was parr’d, ridiculously) but this is unforgivable and extremely hard to fathom. I can’t work out their process here, I understand it’s an extensive panel made up of experts across the music industry, but how would any Rihanna album beat off any Kanye West album? What universe is this? They best pray the dude decides to skip this years ceremony – you all remember the VMA’s, right?

In any case, let me get back to reporting this news – the 2012 Grammy Nominations were announced last night and as ever the full list is rather lengthy, but peep some of the more PB relevant ones after the jump.

… Adele continues to represent, massive congrats to her and XL.

Album of the Year

21 – Adele
Doo-Wops & Hooligans – Bruno Mars
Born This Way – Lady Gaga
Wasting Light – Foo Fighters
Loud – Rihanna

Record of the Year

‘Rolling in the Deep’ – Adele
‘Grenade’ – Bruno Mars
‘Holocene’ – Bon Iver
‘The Cave’ – Mumford & Sons​
‘Firework’ – Katy Perry

Song of the Year

‘Rolling in the Deep’ – Adele
‘Holocene’ – Bon Iver
‘Grenade’ – Bruno Mars
‘The Cave’ – Mumford & Sons
‘All of the Lights’ – Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi​, & Fergie

Best New Artist

Bon Iver
The Band Perry
Nicki Minaj
J. Cole
Skrillex

Producer of the Year, Non-Classical

Danger Mouse
Paul Epworth
The Smeezingtons
Ryan Tedder
Butch Vig

Best R&B Performance

‘Far Away’ – Marsha Ambrosius
‘Pieces Of Me’ – Ledisi
‘Not My Daddy’ – Kelly Price & Stokley
‘Is This Love’ – Corinne Bailey Rae
‘You Are’ – Charlie Wilson

Best Traditional R&B Performance

‘Sometimes I Cry’ – Eric Benét
‘Fool For You’ – Cee Lo Green & Melanie Fiona
‘Radio Message’ – R. Kelly
‘Good Man’ – Raphael Saadiq
‘Surrender’ – Betty Wright & The Roots

Best R&B Song

‘Far Away’ – Marsha Ambrosius
‘Fool For You’– Cee Lo Green & Melanie Fiona
‘Not My Daddy’ – Kelly Price
‘Pieces Of Me’ – Ledisi
‘You Are’ – Charlie Wilson

Best R&B Album

F.A.M.E. – Chris Brown
Second Chance – El DeBarge
Love Letter – R. Kelly
Pieces of Me – Ledisi
Kelly – Kelly Price

Best Rap Performance

‘Look At Me Now’ – Chris Brown, Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes
‘Otis’ – Jay-Z & Kanye West
‘The Show Goes On’ – Lupe Fiasco
‘Moment 4 Life’ – Nicki Minaj & Drake
‘Black And Yellow’ – Wiz Khalifa

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration

‘Party’ – Beyoncé & André 3000
‘I’m On One’ – DJ Khaled, Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne
‘I Need A Doctor’ – Dr. Dre, Eminem & Skylar Grey
‘What’s My Name?’ – Rihanna & Drake
‘Motivation’ – Kelly Rowland & Lil Wayne
‘All of the Lights’ – Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie

Best Rap Song

‘All of the Lights’ – Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie
‘Black And Yellow’ – Wiz Khalifa
‘I Need A Doctor’ – Dr. Dre, Eminem & Skylar Grey
‘Look at Me Now’ – Chris Brown, Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes
‘Otis’ – Jay-Z & Kanye West
‘The Show Goes On’ – Lupe Fiasco

Best Rap Album

Watch the Throne – Jay-Z & Kanye West
Tha Carter IV – Lil Wayne
Lasers – Lupe Fiasco
Pink Friday – Nicki Minaj
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Kanye West

Best Pop Solo Performance

‘Someone Like You’ – Adele
‘Yoü and I’ – Lady Gaga
‘Grenade’ – Bruno Mars
‘Firework’ – Katy Perry
‘F***in’ Perfect’ – Pink

Best Pop Solo Performance

‘Someone Like You’ – Adele
‘Yoü and I’ – Lady Gaga
‘Grenade’ – Bruno Mars
‘Firework’ – Katy Perry
‘F***in’ Perfect’ – Pink

Best Pop Vocal Album

21 – Adele
The Lady Killer – Cee Lo Green
Born This Way – Lady Gaga
Doo-Wops & Hooligans – Bruno Mars
Loud – Rihanna

Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group

‘Body and Soul’ – Tony Bennett & Amy Winehouse
‘Dearest’ – The Black Keys
‘Paradise’ – Coldplay
‘Pumped Up Kicks’ – Foster The People
‘Moves Like Jagger’ – Maroon 5 & Christina Aguilera

Best Short Form Music Video

‘Rolling in the Deep’ – Adele
‘Yes I Know’ – Memory Tapes
‘All Is Not Lost’ – OK Go
‘Lotus Flower’ – Radiohead
‘First Of The Year (Equinox)’ – Skrillex
‘Perform This Way’ – “Weird Al” Yankovic

Best Long Form Music Video

I Am…World Tour – Beyoncé
Foo Fighters: Back and Forth – Foo Fighters
Talihina Sky: The Story of Kings of Leon – Kings Of Leon
Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest – A Tribe Called Quest
Nine Types of Light – TV on the Radio

Yes. Yes. YES.

It was bound to happen, wasn’t it. While most people leaked with excitement on hearing hype machine’s very own golden child, Frank Ocean was performing in London, I held my girlish excitement.

Since the Amsterdam date was announced, I could only hope the Godfather would bless our capital city. Answered prayers and ecstatic screams later, it has been announced that D’Angelo will be at the Brixton Academy come February 3rd.

PSA: Tickets go on sale 9am Friday 25th November here. Until then, I will proceed to listen to his two albums, watch this (Damn, he gets me everytime!)and wait.

We’re off to the Neverlands…!

PinBoard is delighted to be teaming up with the Buma Rotterdam Beats Festival this year as official media partners. The three day event (November 17th-19th) focuses on the newest and most exciting developments in contemporary music today. Specialising in Hip Hop, R&B, Soul, Reggae, Dubstep and through a series of live showcases/gigs/workshops and industry insider conferences – it looks to explore both the art and business behind music today.

Acts performing include our very own Szjerdene, Stacey Barthe, Charles Bradley, Pete Philly and a whole host of others.

We’ll be representing the LDN at a industry insider conference which aims to explore the progression and dominance of blogs on today’s music industry. We’ll be talking about the impact online music platforms have had, the way in which we curate our content and much more along side an impressive round table consisting of Okayplayer (US), Juice Magazine (DE), Spash Magazine (DE) and Puna (NL).

Go to the Buma Rotterdam Beats Festival website for the full low-down and lineup. It’s pretty dope. And keep it locked here for more updates. Also, follow us @PinBoardBlog / @PinBoardFilm for some real-time action too.

Three years since Lonnie’s last release, it feels well deserved that he is finally back with his latest offering.

Art work up top, tracklist over the jump and catch his new video for ‘Sweet’ here. 20th December is the day.

1. The Dreamer ft Maya Angelou
2. Ghetto Dreams ft Nas
3. Blue Sky
4. So Sweet
5. Gold
6. Lovin’ I Lost
7. Raw (How You Like It)
8. Cloth
9. Celebrate
10. Windows
11. The Believer ft John Legend
12. Pops Belief

YES! After a couple months of tracks, remixes and visuals, the two Odd Future campers, Syd The Kid and Matt Martian are set to release their debut album, Purple Naked Ladies digitally on 20th December.

The whole Odd Future camp have had undoubtable success this past year. Growing out of the blogosphere bubble to mature into a talented bunch of singers, songwriters and producers for themselves and others. Watching Tyler and Frank Ocean leading the way for most of the year with the masses, it’s great to see that there is plenty more freshness in this camp.

The album will include ‘Love Song-1‘, ‘Cocaine’ and ‘They Say’ and colloborations with Left Brain and Mike G. Hit the jump for the rest of the tracklist.

Purple Naked Ladies is released digitally December 20th and physically January 17th.

1 Violet Nude Women
2 They Say/Shangrila [ft. Tay Walker]
3 She Dgaf
4 C*nt
5 Cocaine/Tevie [ft. Left Brain]
6 Ode to a Dream [ft. Kilo Kish and Coco O.]
7 Gurl [ft. Pyramid Vritra]
8 Love Song -1
9 Lincoln [ft. Mike G and Left Brain]
10 Web of Me
11 She Knows
12 Fastlane
13 Visions [ft. Coco O.]
14 The Garden

Whenever an artist passes away prematurely, you can rest assured their music will be repackaged, recycled and reused in the years (decades) following. It’s with very little surprise then that Amy Winehouse’s record label Island Records have just announced the release of a new album comprised of unheard original songs, as well as demo/new versions of previously released material – it will be called Lioness: Hidden Treasures and will hit shelves on December 5th. Got to love that Christmas rush.

In many ways, the project sounds promising – albeit a little premature. It will feature 12 songs including collaborations with Nas, Tony Bennett and productions from long-time collaborators Salaam Remi & Mark Ronson.

Speaking of the album, Amy’s father Mitch Winehouse says: “I spent so much time chasing after Amy, telling her off that I never realized what a true genius she was. It wasn’t until I sat down with the rest of the family and listened to this album that I fully appreciated the breadth of Amy’s talent, from jazz standards to hip hop songs, it really took my breath away. “Halftime”, I’d never heard before, is just incredibly beautiful. If the family had felt that this album wasn’t up to the standard of “Frank” and “Back To Black” we would never have agreed to release it and we believe it will stand as a fitting tribute to Amy ‘s musical legacy”.

… A donation of £1 from the sale of each album in the UK will be donated to the Amy Winehouse Foundation, founded shortly after her death in July.

See the tracklist & a brief description of each track after the jump…

“Our Day Will Come (Reggae Version)” – reggae re-working of classic 60’s Doo-Wop song produced by Salaam Remi. Recorded May 2002.

“Between The Cheats” - new Amy composition recorded in London in May 2008 for potential inclusion on album three produced by Salaam Remi.

“Tears Dry” - originally written by Amy as a ballad, this is the original version she recorded in November 2005 in Miami with Salaam. The later uptempo version  appears on “Back To Black”.

“Wake Up Alone” – the first song recorded for the “Back To Black” sessions. This is the one-take demo recorded in March 2006 by Paul O’Duffy.

“Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” – Amy’s beautiful reading of the Carole King written Shirelles classic. Produced by Mark Ronson and featuring the Dap Kings with string arrangements by Chris Elliott who did all the strings for Mark’s tracks on “Back To Black”. Recorded in September 2004.

“Valerie” - one of Amy’s jukebox favourites. This is the original slower tempo version of the Mark Ronson produced post “Back To Black” single. Recorded in December 2006.

“Like Smoke” - featuring NAS  – Amy and Nas became really good friends after Amy name checked the New York rapper on “Back To Black’s” “Me & Mr Jones”.  “Like Smoke” is finally Amy doing a song with one of her favourite artists. Produced by Salaam Remi. Recorded in May 2008.

“The Girl From Ipanema” – the first song the 18 year old Amy sang when she first went to Miami to record with Salaam. Salaam remarked that “the way she re-interpreted this bossa nova classic made me realise that I was dealing with a very special talent. Her approach to the song was so young and fresh, it really inspired the rest of our sessions.” Recorded in May 2002.
“Halftime” - Amy had talked to Ahmir ‘Questlove’ Thompson of the Roots about working together. “Halftime” is a song that Amy and Salaam had worked on since the Frank sessions.  The result is beautiful. Recorded in August 2002.
“Best Friends” - “Frank” era live set opener produced by Salaam Remi. Probably the first song that early Amy fans would have heard live. Recorded in February 2003.
“Body & Soul” with Tony Bennett – cover of 30’s jazz standard with hero Tony Bennett. Recorded at Abbey Road Studios London in March 2011 and produced by Phil Ramone. Amy’s final studio recording.
“A Song For You” - heartbreaking and emotional version of the Leon Russell classic made famous by Donny Hathaway. Hathaway was Amy’s all-time favourite artist and the song was recorded in one take, just Amy and her guitar, at her home in London during the spring of 2009 as she battled her demons. Produced by Salaam Remi.

We have been debating this in the PinBoard camp for a few months – The future of Beiber. Will he remain as an annoying teen sensation or will he graduate and move into a cooler realm,  like his namesake, a la Justin Timberlake.

I was determined the latter would happen, I mean the kid has talent and it seems to have already begun. It has been reported that the Beib will be working with Drake and the producing perfectionist Mr West. on his new album Believe. Justin Beiber himself, recently spoke out and also said he will be working with “alot of other cool people” on the  new album due for release next year.

For all those Beiber haters, you never know, you might be seeing a few of his tracks posted up on PinBoard in the coming year. Brace yourself people!

We don’t post previews of events outside of LDN – but this, I think we can all agree, is an exception.

The mythological maestro that is D’Angelo has quietly booked himself two shows in January at Paradiso in Amsterdam. So far, the only ‘confirmation’ we have is that the website has listed the dates (see above) – one on January 30th and the other on the 31st.

If this is true (and at this stage, I don’t have any reason not to believe it is) – it will mark the first time in over 10 years that D’Angelo has performed live in concert. As production on his album has reached ‘the final stretch’ (according to ?uestlove) – his return finally feels ‘real’ – we’re getting our guy back yo!

Tickets go on pre-sale on November 5th – and are priced at €60. Go here.

Looks like we’ll be in Amsterdam in January. Ha.

Update: My sources tell me the promoters are currently trying to secure LDN dates. We’ll keep you informed. #andbreathe