MediaRacket

11/11/2022

Under The Covers #32 - I Can't Tell You Why - Featuring Katia Floreska

Stepping away from the California/Country Rock style the Eagles were known for, the uncharacteristic I Can’t Tell You Why, written by Timothy Schmidt along with Henley and Frey was recorded in March of 1978, a good year and a half before being included on the final LP of their initial incarnation, The Long Run in late ’79. Don Henley described the song as “straight Al Green” adding that during the production of the track, he suggested that Schmidt look to Smoky Robinson for vocal inspiration. While the R&B style track was an impressive success, reaching # 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, it marked the last time that the Eagles would see a top 10 hit. Originally our idea for this edition was to join the songs I Cant Tell You Why with another evocative 70’s masterpiece, 10cc’s I’m Not In Love, but during the planning and production, ended up leaving the better part of it to the Eagles tune. Though, you can still hear a lot of the 10cc/I’m Not In Love inspiration in our rendition’s second half.

Our return guest vocalist, Katia Floreska, turns in an amazing vocal performance and in the process, truly makes the song her own. Her lead and background vocals are simply spot-on perfect. Katia is a New York based singer, musician, songwriter and voice-over artist who has collaborated with many notable artists through her ever expanding career such as Ronnie Spector, Roberta Flack and Valerie Simpson. You can see Katia performing regularly with NYC’s beloved institution, The Losers Lounge.

Also joining us on this edition, returning on bass guitar with a positively soulful performance, is Jesse Krakow. Jesse has worked with such notables as Bootsy Collins, Jello Biafra, Kate Pierson and Nona Hendrix among many others. Check out Jesse’s marvelous podcast F*** This Gig () on Apple Music, Spotify, Google Podcasts and others.

Under The Covers’ veteran, Pat Wolf, is back and laying down a superb R&B beat for this edition of UTC. Pat is involved in a new project that he’ll announce shortly on his FB page - see link below.



More info on Katia Floreska: http://www.katiafloreska.com
More info on Jesse Krakow: F This Gig https://jessekrakow.bandcamp.com
More info on Pat Wolf: https://www.facebook.com/patrick.wolf.125

Stepping away from the California/Country Rock musical style the Eagles were known for, the uncharacteristic I Can’t Tell You Why, written by Timothy Schmidt...

08/15/2022

Tom Gambale - IMDb

Check out our recently updated IMDB page!!

Tom Gambale, Sound Department: Stop the Pounding Heart. After more than a decade working in Music and Sound Design for the advertising industry, in 2003 Sound Designer Tom Gambale founded MediaRacket, a boutique studio in the center of NYC designed to bring professional grade Sound Design and Audio....

08/03/2022

Under The 'Covers' #31 - One - Featuring Gary Burton

There has been so much said and so much justified rediscovery of Harry Nilsson’s work over the years, all of it pointing to the fact that he was truly one of the most important singer-songwriters of all time. An article I read about him recently contained a great quote: “If you really love music, it’s likely that one of your favorite songs was written by Harry Nilsson”. You will find that the majority of your musical idols put Nilsson on the highest pedestals.

Through the past five or so decades, there have been quite a few covers of the song chosen for today’s edition of Under The Covers, namely Nilsson’s ‘One’. Most notably Three Dog Night had a massive top 5 hit with it in 1969, among others have been Al Kooper, Bobby Vee, The Percy Faith Orchestra, the 70’s Glam Metal band Dokken, the Industrial Post-Grunge band Filter, of course Aimee Mann’s beautiful version for the soundtrack of Paul Thomas Anderson’s ‘Magnolia’… even Nathan Lane covered it. For me personally, none of these could touch Nilsson’s original version from his 1968 LP ‘Aerial Ballet’. The steady, staccato organ, a major feature of his original version, was actually inspired by a telephone busy signal. He wrote the song after calling someone only to find the line engaged (as the Beatles once said…). As he stayed on the line listening to the beeping tone, he literally started writing the song. We had a little fun with this element on our cover.... you'll see (more accurately, you’ll hear.)

We have some super special guests. Our vocalist is Gary Burton. Gary is a former BBC Radio DJ, who now makes Nilsson's birthplace, Brooklyn, NY his home. As a singer-songwriter, he has released an EP with the band name DOVEDALE (Magic Door Records) and has further eclectic recordings under the name GlasOnGlas. He is a frequent singer with New York institution The Loser’s Lounge and a vocalist in Dave Derby’s GRAMERCY ARMS.

Assisting Gary and I, on cello we have Milena Radovic. Milena is a professional cellist, cello teacher and musical arranger. She holds multiple degrees in music and has played in orchestras and small ensembles with particular experience in chamber music.

On flute we have Hanna Danets. Hanna is a professional flute and piccolo player from Ukraine. She earned a degree in 2020 from the National Music Academy in Kyiv and in that short time has amassed a wide experience in playing in orchestras and various ensembles.

More info and music from Gary Burton here: https://dovedale.bandcamp.com/album/dovedale

Under The 'Covers' #31 - One (By Harry Nilsson) Featuring Gary BurtonThere has been so much said and so much justified rediscovery of Harry Nilsson’s work ov...

07/27/2022

April Maxey's short film “Work” has been awarded the Grand Jury Prize for US Narrative Shorts at this year's L.A. OUTFEST. Congratulations to April and the entire production team - I was proud to again work with April and her team and serve as the film's Sound Designer and Mixer.

05/06/2022

We are happy to announce that ‘War on the Diamond’ has won the Best Documentary Film award at The Boston Film Festival. Directed by two-time Sports Emmy winner and Peabody Award winner Andy Billman, ‘War on the Diamond’ recounts the tragic tale of Indians star shortstop Ray Chapman, who was killed by a pitch thrown by Yankees star pitcher Carl Mays in 1920 and how the incident continues to effect the rivalry between these two teams to this day. I was proud to provide the film’s Sound Design and Mix through the fantastic team at MCM Creative. ⁣⁣⁣⁣

05/06/2022

Gaming Wall Street explains 2021’s GameStop financial frenzy

Gaming Wall Street... An amazing two part documentary directed by Tobias Deml recalling the Game Stop stock saga of last year and what it exposed more widely on Wall Street. We had the honor of mixing this marvelous doc and providing Audio Post Production services, lead by and under the auspices of the fantastic folks at MCM Creative. Stream it NOW!

Gaming Wall Street explains how a group of amateur traders on a Reddit forum banded together to fight the hedge funds short selling the video game retailer’s stock.

04/02/2022

Under The 'Covers' #30 - Up On Cripple Creek - Featuring Joe Cerisano

Our 30th edition of Under The Covers pays tribute to what is widely recognized as the greatest concert film of all time, from 1978, Martin Scorsese’s The Last Waltz. Today we are covering The Band’s Up On Cripple Creek, the song that kicked off the legendary marathon Thanksgiving Day concert. There are so many reasons why this film and concert are so beloved: the fact that so many of the most culturally significant artists of that era performed together, the fact that there were numerous technical problems large and small during the 6 hour show including everything from Eric Clapton’s guitar strap failing during a screeching hot solo on Further on Up the Road, to all but one camera running out of film during the legendary Muddy Water’s performance of Mannish Boy or maybe it was that three of the greatest cinematographers the art of filmmaking had ever known were behind the cameras as Scorsese directed them. It’s hard to put your finger on what makes this film so spectacular other than It was truly a matter of all the stars aligning on November 25th 1976 at San Francisco’s Wintergarden Ballroom.

The great Joe Cerisano steps in for Levon Helm on vocals. Joe is a seasoned performer and session singer who has appeared on numerous recordings over the years and has worked with among others Clarence Clemmons, Gloria Estefan and Blue Oyster Cult. Joe was also well known as a member of The Trans Siberian Orchestra.

We have another debut performance on our ongoing project, on fretless bass guitar we have Gordon Skjeie. You can catch Gordon with his band Vintage Property. Check out the Vintage Property FB page!

Andrew Weiss is back with us providing some great lead guitar. Andrew Weiss and Friends have a new double LP coming out on June 24. For more info, go to the Andrew Weiss and Friends FB Page.

Pat Wolf (also stepping in for Levon) is back and bringing us some marvelous drums! You can see Pat with his band Decades: A Musical Journey of Rock and Roll, check out their FB page!

Our 30th edition of Under The Covers pays tribute to what is widely thought of as the greatest concert film of all time, from 1978, Martin Scorsese’s The Las...

03/26/2022

May we have your undivided attention! A brand new edition of Under The Covers will be arriving next week… Wanna know more? Here’s a hint: We will be paying tribute to the greatest concert film of all time. Now go ahead, talk amongst yourselves....

03/04/2022

Gaming Wall Street | Official Trailer | HBO Max

Premiering TODAY on HBO Max, Gaming Wall Street... An amazing two part documentary directed by Tobias Deml recalling the Game Stop stock saga of last year and what it exposed more widely on Wall Street. I had the honor of mixing this marvelous doc and providing Audio Post Production services, lead by and under the auspices of the fantastic folks at MCM Creative. Stream it NOW!

The underdogs had the upper hand, but then what happened? Gaming Wall Street narrated by Kieran Culkin is coming March 3 to HBO Max.About HBO Max:HBO Max is ...

02/18/2022

Under The 'Covers' #29 - Don’t Get Me Wrong - Featuring Julia Joseph

We are back our 29th edition of Under The 'Covers'! From 1986 it's The Pretenders classic, Don't Get Me Wrong. The song was the first single taken from the Get Close LP and became the band's second Top 10 hit but it also marked the last big US success for The Pretenders. The song describes the complexities and turbulence of falling in love using classic references to fireworks, weather and light. Uncharacteristically, Chrissie Hynde put her 'tough girl' persona aside for this song, which she wrote for her good friend and aspiring musician, the explosive and moody tennis star, John McEnroe... and it ultimately rises to unabashed, vulnerable and open-hearted melodic heights. The marvelous Julia Joseph returns to sing with us and turns in an absolutely perfect vocal performance. You can see (and hear) Julia performing with her band, The Loyales, throughout the New York area. We are also featuring performer, producer and composer Jesse Krakow on Bass Guitar. Jesse has worked with such notables as Bootsy Collins, Jello Biafra, Kate Pierson and Nona Hendrix among many, many others. Check him out on Bandcamp, you will be glad ya did! Our very own Pat Wolf's super-sharp and steady Drum work takes this cover all the way home. Catch Pat with his band, Decades for a straight up great time! We would also like to send a special shout out to Paul Heck for his great camera work at our Tompkins Square Park location! There's more info on Julia, Jesse, Pat and Paul at the links below... We hope you enjoy our video love letter to NYC and the Lower East Side

Get info on Julia: https://www.theloyales.com , https://www.youtube.com/c/JuliaJosephMusic

Get info on Jesse Krakow: https://jessekrakow.bandcamp.com

Get info on Pat Wolf: https://decadesdotlive.wordpress.com , https://www.facebook.com/Decades-a-Musical-Journey-of-Rock-Roll-136268080042506

Get More info on Paul Heck: http://www.cobeep.com , https://vimeo.com/cobeep/portfolios

Under The 'Covers' #29 - Don’t Get Me Wrong (House Band Version) Featuring Julia JosephHey friends! We are back our 29th edition of Under The 'Covers'! From ...

02/18/2022

media.giphy.com

The wait is NEARLY over!! A brand new edition of Under The 'Covers' hits the digital airwaves Friday @ 11:30am!! STAY TUNED!!

01/09/2022

Under The 'Covers' #9 - To Sir With Love - Featuring Julia Joseph

In remembrance of a great director, activist and one of our favorite actors of all time, Sidney Poitier. It’s a perfect day to stay home and watch a couple of his classic films. Here’s just a few from a much longer list that stand the test of time: In the Heat of the Night, The Defiant Ones, A Raisin in the Sun, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner… but at the top of the list, To Sir With Love. Here we present our version of this film’s enduring theme song sung by the supremely talented singer, songwriter, arranger and performer, Julia Joseph.

"To Sir With Love" (by Lulu) QuaranTUNE #9 - Pat Wolf (Drums & Percussion), Tom Gambale (Guitars, 6 String Bass, Keyboards) with special guest, singer, songw...

01/08/2022

Under The 'Covers' #28 - Two of Us (Redux)

We’d like to kick off 2022 with a return to the very first cover we did back in April of 2020 - and also as The Beatles’ documentary Get Back is still obsessing fans and was certainly one of the big events of late 2021, we’re presenting a newly polished up version of Two Of Us, the opening track of their last released LP, Let It Be. The meaning of the song has been debated through the years. The obvious take on it was that it is about the personal relationship, originating in childhood between John Lennon and Paul McCartney, through adulthood with some even making mention of their business troubles around the time of the song creation (“..you and me chasing paper, getting nowhere..”). But the story is more likely (as the song was primarily a McCartney tune) referencing his and Linda’s penchant for what the couple called “getting lost” - taking spur-of-the-moment road trips with no plans or destination in mind. In Steve Turner’s book ‘A Hard Day’s Write’ Linda is quoted, “Paul wrote ‘Two Of Us’ on one of those days out. It’s about us. We just pulled off in a wood somewhere and parked the car. I went off walking while Paul sat in the car and started writing.” The duo of Pat Wolf and myself are sending this out to you hoping it helps get 2022 off to a nice start!

Get more info on Pat Wolf and his band, Decades: A Musical Journey of Rock & Roll here:
https://www.facebook.com/Decades-a-Musical-Journey-of-Rock-Roll-136268080042506

Under The 'Covers' #28 - Two of Us (by The Beatles) Featuring Pat Wolf: Drums and Percussion, Tom Gambale: Guitars, Bass VI, Mandolin and Vocals. Mix by To...

12/24/2021

Under The 'Covers' #27 - Marshmallow World - Happy Holidays from Under The 'Covers'!

Happy Holidays!! It’s been a while and we have a bunch of great tunes we are working on, all coming your way in 2022 - but as it’s the holidays, Mr. Patrick Wolf and I thought we’d put together a little, old timey, holiday greeting for you all. Although written in 1949, A Marshmallow World has been covered dozens of times by everyone from Johnny Mathis and Darlene Love to Garth Brooks and Seth MacFarlane but most famously by Dino himself, the great Dean Martin. In the spirit of the holidays (and the spirit of ‘spirits’) we had a little extra fun with the tune and the video. Please stay tuned at the end for a very sincere Thank You to all of the amazingly talented singers and musicians who joined us for some tuneful fun in ’21. Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas and best wishes for a happy, healthy and less Covid-y 2022!!

It’s been a while and we have a slew of great tunes we are working on, all coming your way in 2022 - but as it’s the holidays, Mr. Wolf and I thought we’d pu...

12/14/2021

April Maxey's dramatic short, WORK has been selected for the upcoming 2022 Sundance Film Festival (Sound Design by Tom Gambale/MediaRacket). Unable to move on from a breakup, Gabi, a q***r Latina freelance film editor, impulsively drops into an old job, where she unexpectedly runs into a friend from her past. WORK was part of the 2021 AFI Directing Workshop for Women, and is the director's first Sundance acceptance. You can get more info about WORK here: https://festival.sundance.org/program/?fbclid=IwAR0AS7ykfmWI5_-3gJpc0-iZ4lHwWcdyCFdqoTtF1rRTUOy-RsFFJXazGeo#film-info/61ae17cf14aef795951c28b1

***rcinema

11/22/2021

EXCITING NEWS! 'Lee Fields: Faithful Man' has been accepted into IDFA - Docs for Sale Festival! (Friday, November 19 to Thursday, November 28) (https://www.idfa.nl/en/info/docs-for-sale). I am proud to have contributed to this marvelous documentary about this simply amazing performer. Congratulations to the filmmakers and a special shout out to my good friends at MCM Creative for bringing me on board!

11/14/2021

Hot Sales Title: ‘The Business of Birth Control’ Reunites Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein at DOC NYC

A marvelous article in about The Business of Birth Control ... Many thanks to the filmmakers, Abby Epstein and Ricki Lake for including me in this very important project. You can see it at the DOC NYC 2021 Film Festival in person and streaming.

Nearly 15 years after their seminal documentary “The Business of Being Born” examined the birth experience in Western medicine, filmmakers Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein are reuniting to t…

11/12/2021

The Business of Birth Control (Sound Design & Audio Post Production by Tom Gambale/MediaRacket) is making it's World Premiere at the 2021 DOC NYC Film Festival (Nov 10 - 28). Director by Abby Epstein and Producer by Ricki Lake, trace the troubling 60 year history of how hormonal birth control, despite it's prevalence has been linked to innumerable health issues for women. More information on DOC NYC here: https://www.docnyc.net/film/the-business-of-birth-control/
For more information on The Business of Life films here: https://www.thebusinessof.life

11/11/2021

The Business of Birth Control (Sound Design & Audio Post Production by Tom Gambale/MediaRacket) is making it's World Premiere at the 2021 DOC NYC Film Festival (Nov 10 - 28). Directed by Abby Epstein (W**d The People) and Produced by Ricki Lake (The Business of Being Born), the filmmakers trace the shocking 60 year history of how hormonal birth control, despite it's prevalence has been linked to depression, autoimmune disease, cervical cancer, fatal blood clots and other chronic conditions; yet it is still prescribed to healthy women as a panacea for every hormonal and reproductive issue and ultimately weaponized against communities of color. For more information go to the DOC NYC 2021 Film Program page: https://www.docnyc.net/film/the-business-of-birth-control/

11/11/2021

The Business of Birth Control (Sound Design & Audio Post Production by Tom Gambale/MediaRacket) is making it's World Premiere at the 2021 DOC NYC Film Festival (Nov 10 - 28). Director by Abby Epstein and Producer by Ricki Lake, trace the troubling 60 year history of how hormonal birth control, despite it's prevalence has been linked to innumerable health issues for women. More information on DOC NYC here: https://www.docnyc.net/film/the-business-of-birth-control/

For more information on The Business of Life films here: https://www.thebusinessof.life

08/23/2021

Under The 'Covers' #26 - Jet - Featuring Kelly O'Donohue

First released in March of 1974, 'Jet' was actually the first single off the classic Paul McCartney and Wings LP, "Band On The Run". Probably the most famous feature of this big rocker is the mystery behind the true meaning of the lyrics which have over the years defied all attempts description and decryption. Over the decades McCartney was quoted at various times explaining that the song was inspired by a family dog, a pony and even Linda McCartney's father. We will likely never know! What we do know is we have a special guest with us on Jet - on Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Trombone and Sax by way of Berlin, we are happy to have Kelly O'Donohue. Kelly has toured, recorded and performed with numerous artists across Europe. Pat Wolf is killing it on ferocious, powerhouse Drums. You can catch Pat with his band, Decades, A Musical Journey of Rock & Roll, all around the NYC area. Holding down the bottom on Bass Guitar is a favorite return guest, songwriter, producer and performer Andrew Weiss. Check out Andrew Weiss and Friends on Spotify to hear his new EP "Lookout Mountain".

Under The 'Covers' #26 Jet (by Paul McCartney and Wings) Featuring Pat Wolf: Drums and Percussion, Andrew Weiss: Bass Guitar, Tom Gambale: Guitars, Keyboard...

07/31/2021

Under The 'Covers' #25 - Walk On By - Featuring Katia Floreska

We are back from a much needed hiatus to kick off a new series of classic tunes so why not start with a song that is the very definition of ‘A Classic’, Burt Bacharach & Hal David’s legendary Walk On By. First recorded by Dionne Warwick in 1963, it has since gone on to be recorded by innumerable artists from Aretha Franklin and Laura Nyro to Paul Rogers and Sheryl Crow. Giving Ms. Warwick a solid run for her money, our recording features a very special guest vocalist, the marvelous Katia Floreska. Katia is a New York based singer, musician, songwriter and voice-over artist who has collaborated with many notable artists through her ever expanding career such as Johnny Thunders, Ronnie Spector, Roberta Flack and Valerie Simpson. Katia currently performs live with NYC’s beloved institution, The Losers Lounge. She also continues her solo and collaborative music projects including 2F with Roger Fife (formerly of Heavenly Creatures). Her performance on Walk On By is simply outstanding and marks a fantastic kick off to Under the Covers Series 2.

On flugelhorn, we are also happy to feature another special guest, Will Allen Jr. As well as being a multi-brass instrumentalist and top-of-the-line player, Will is a composer and producer (thebrass Productions) with over 20 years of experience and he absolutely crushes this key element of Walk On By.

The stalwart and rock-steady, Pat Wolf, is back to provide a super-smooth and jazzy backbeat on this one. Catch Pat with his band, Decades, A Musical Journey of Rock & Roll, all around the NYC area. PLEASE like and subscribe to our YouTube Channel!
More info on Katia Floreska:
http://www.katiafloreska.com
More Info on Pat Wolf and Decades:
http://Decades.live/

Under The 'Covers' #25 Walk On By (by Dionne Warwick/Burt Bacharach) Featuring Katia Floreska: Lead and Background Vocals, Will Allen Jr.: Fluglehorn, Pat ...

07/26/2021

"Under The Covers" Series 1 Compilation .... our Greatest Hits!!

As we are well into the process of preparing a second series of "Under The Covers", we thought it would be fun to put together a compilation video of some of the more notable musical moments from our first series - kind of a Greatest Hits collection. Between April of 2020 through April of 2021, we produced a whopping 24 songs/videos. This video starts with a couple of quick clips of two of the earliest, nearly solo tunes (just drummer Pat Wolf and myself) and as the compilation progresses, the performances, arrangements and collaborations expand. I would like to again take the opportunity to send out a sincere Thank You to all of the supremely talented singers and musicians that jumped in to help this project grow and hopefully have had some fun in the process too! New "Under The Covers" tunes featuring some marvelous special guests will be coming up soon in Series 2 shortly, but until then settle in and check out our year in review! While you are checking it out, please Like & Subscribe to our Youtube Channel! https://youtu.be/Js9dyFs40g8

As we are well into the process of preparing a second series of "Under The Covers", we thought it would be fun to put together a compilation video of some of...

06/08/2021

College Sports, Inc. (Trailer)

Friends! Please check out College Sports, Inc. on Vice TV - This superb documentary directed by Patrick Dimon and hosted by former Olympian and NCAA athlete Jeremy Bloom and will premiere on Vice TV tomorrow, June 9th at 9pm.

It investigates the exploitative relationship between the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and student athletes from it’s inception in 1906 to today. I'm proud to say that I performed as the film’s sound mixer and provided all audio post production services under the auspices and leadership of MCM Creative and their amazing and talented team.

There are a lot of people getting rich off of college sports—except for the student-athletes.