Compact Disc: The Zombie Format?

As technology grows, for better and worse, all kinds of items get left behind, like diskettes being replaced by flash drives, et al and magnetic tape formats (8-track, VHS, Beta, audio cassettes) being replaced by optical media. Despite its lower definition by today's standards (16 bits of sound versus the 20 to 24 bits, not to mention kHz that DVD, Blu-ray and some streaming can do), the compact disc has somehow survived and is still being made. Even when chain stores drop them, you can still get them and the music industry (the only supporter as the computer business has moved onto the other formats) is the sole supporter. Why?

Because they are all over the place, convenient, play on almost any 5-inch digital player (this even includes the small tray in the long-dead 12-inch analog LaserDisc format, which eventually break in digital sound for film and video despite not starting out with any digital audio at all) and they sold so well, plenty are still out there in collections, used stores, thrift stores, basements and many are still highly collectible. True, many have gone bad (scratched, left in hot cars, cracked, smashed, dirtied beyond use, oxidation that eats away the information, etc.) and a huge chunk (especially older ones) have dated sonics that make them hard to listen to. But it all goes to show just how successful the original optical disc format was.

It had many variants for video and computers that were of limited use, and a smash second success as CD-ROM. As the vinyl record revival looks like it is here to stay, it shows that people still want physical media despite the many out there who (sometimes for weird, even political reasons) want to kill it. The music business never did sell the idea of an all-audio DVD or Blu-ray, though there were attempts, especially when they had two replacements for the CD (the still-produced, amazing Super Audio CD format and decent, if menu-challenged DVD-Audio (with a capital 'A' formats) that battled it out in vein as Napster came out of nowhere. So the CD is still alive and well, even if some of the ones you've burned over the years are already starting to go.

Does that make it a zombie format, one that is alive when people think it is or should be dead? No yet. People are still buying them and using them, but it is an amusing footnote to all the rush for the next thing that the format that helped bring us all into the current age of tech remains viable long after its technical fidelity peaked. We'll see how much longer it holds out.

4K Ultra HD Blu-rays continue to grow...

In only a matter of months, 2160p Ultra HD 4K Blu-rays have picked up faster than the regular Blu-ray format (and not just because regular Blu-ray had brief competition a decade ago) and faster than DVD (the industry took a while to embrace that format, as few recall these days) now in its second calendar year with second-generation players hitting the market.

The High Dynamic Range/HDR feature that enhances the 2160p image has been joined by 12-color bit Dolby Vision staring with the original Despicable Me in 4K and the HDR group has introduced HDR10+, expanding its 10-color bit capacity. So far, regular Blu-rays have been included with the 4K versions in the following releases so far, which we were listing on this homepage until the list became too long. Now, you can consult the ever-growing listing at this link...

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/essay/14939/4K+Ultra+HD+Blu-ray+Reviews.

There is an illustrated anti-bullying book called DIFFERENT WORLDS, BEST OF FRIENDS that you should know about and we are very proud to bring to our readers, especially in light of recent political and mass killing events, so please check out more at this link....

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/essay/14255/New+Book+Against+Bullying

Thank you for visiting (and in many, many cases, returning) to our ever-expanding independent coverage of film, music & TV on Blu-ray and DVD, plus older formats like CDs, Super Audio CD, Blu-ray 3D and newer ones like 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray; a site that is 15+ years old thanks to all of you. Your input is always appreciated and we thank you for your support. For 3D fans, here is the link to our ever-expanding list of Blu-ray 3D titles in the format (well over 120 now for us & counting) and most of them so far have offered pleasant surprises:

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/11274/Blu-ray+3D+Reviews+List

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Art, Ike C, Charles Constantino on 56th Grammy Entry List

'Around the World' appears on the 56th Grammy Entry List in the categories of Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, and Best Rap Song.

Friday, November 15, 2013 - The Recording Academy has selected the original version of Around the World, the rap/sung collaboration by Art featuring Ike C, for inclusion on the 56th Grammy Entry List in four categories. Around the World appears in the entry categories of Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, and Best Rap Song. Members of the Recording Academy vote from the 56th Grammy Entry List for the nominees for the 2014 Grammy Awards.

Click here to listen to a clip of Around the World.

The Grammy Award for Record of the Year recognizes the artist; the tracking, mix and mastering engineers; and the producer. Chaz Peacock tracked Around the World. Charles Constantino and Chaz Peacock mixed the song. Garrett Haines mastered the Charles Constantino production of Around the World.

The awards for Song of the Year and Best Rap Song recognize the songwriters. Steven "Art" Williams wrote the rap lyrics for Around the World. Isaac "Ike C" Cummings and Charles Constantino wrote the sung lyrics. Charles Constantino wrote the music for the song. The Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration recognizes the artists.

Charles Constantino Publishing--a member of ASCAP, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers--is the exclusive publisher of Around the World. CoreCre8, a division of Core Media House L.L.C., released the song. Core Media House cofounder and chief creative officer Charles Constantino produced and co-wrote the Somerhill recordings of Free Your Mind (Tara Na) and Today or Tomorrow. Both of the Somerhill recordings appeared on the 52nd Grammy Entry List in the categories of Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Best Rock Song.

The original version of Around the World is available at Amazon, Google Play, iTunes, and other Internet retailers. The song is available in FLAC, MP3-320 and MP3 file types at CD Baby. On March 17, 2013, Around the World reached number two on the list of the bestselling MP3 songs in neo soul at Amazon.

Click here to request additional information.

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Click here for a PDF version of the preceding press release,

“Art, Ike C, Charles Constantino on 56th Grammy Entry List.”

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Besides our constantly changing sidebar highlighting the best new discs available, we have a master list of key Blu-ray titles we originally updated often, but will now use as a guide to the best early releases so fans and collectors can catch up. Also, the prices are great on many of these titles now. The link to these highlights can be found at this link:

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/4249/Highlights+of+software

You can also put "Blu-ray" in our search engine for the latest coverage of software releases, at well over 4,500+ titles alone (including many single texts with more than one Blu-ray release, the new hit 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray format and the Blu-ray 3D format as noted above) and counting including import titles you will not hear about or read about anywhere else and likely would want to add to your collection. Keep checking in (and on our sidebar) for exclusive analysis of all the latest releases, including many that most other sites and magazines have not covered!

As we always say, we offer a rich, alternative website for Blu-ray, DVD, book and film coverage that extends to music and television; we are in our seventh year and invite you to search for anything you are interested in. Based in the United States, we search for the best material anywhere in the world we can find it, so you can find it. At this point, you are likely to find something on just about anything you can think up.....

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We would like to thank all those who have been ordering products from AMAZON.COM because of the work on this site. We appreciate it, glad we are encouraging you to do it and want you to know it supports the site. All purchases are appreciated.

Thank you!

The Best Film Magazine On The Market!

Though it is hard to argue the importance of film publications like American Cinematographer, Indie Slate, Cineaste or Moviemaker and what they deliver, but so much of film history and production is not being covered properly or of key films that deserve whole new audiences. If you love film, you'll love the new hit magazine Cinema Retro, which is getting bigger and bigger. You may want to see about subscribing now while supplies last on the latest issue. You can visit their site at:

www.CinemaRetro.com

"CINEMA RETRO" IS THE NEW MAGAZINE DEVOTED TO CLASSIC & CULT FILMS OF THE '60S & '70S. WRITTEN ABOUT AND BY THE ACTORS & FILMMAKERS OF THE ERA. EVERY ISSUE A LIMITED EDITION COLLECTOR'S ITEM!

Their site offers film news you cannot even find on IMDb, Variety, Deadline Hollywood, The Wrap or The Hollywood Reporter websites. Then there is their amazing magazine, one of the best of its kind on the entire market and a must for any serious film fan, so good that many issues are selling out. One of the best issues yet, Issue #40 features a tribute to Sir Roger Moore and in-depth coverage of his memorial service at Pinewood Studios and the rarely-seen feature films derived from episodes of his classic TV series "The Saint".

Exclusive! Steve Rubin interviews screen legend Kirk Douglas about the underrated classic Lonely are the Brave.

Tim Greaves examines every Hammer studios Dracula movie starring Sir Christopher Lee.

Cai Ross examines the inside story behind director Robert Altman's bizarre live action version of Popeye starring Robin Williams.

Lee Pfeiffer covers director Sydney Pollack's controversial WWII film Castle Keep starring Burt Lancaster as well as Irwin Allen's disastrous "bee movie", The Swarm.

Jack Hardy rediscovers the largely forgotten French epic Lafayette.

Frank Aston revisits Blake Edwards' western Wild Rovers starring William Holden and Ryan O'Neal.

Raymond Benson looks back on his ten best films of 1959.

Brian Hannan's top box office attractions of 1968

Tribute to Hugh Hefner

Plus DVD and movie book reviews, Gareth Owen's "Pinewood Past" column and Darren Allison's news and reviews of latest soundtrack releases.

Contact the producers of this amazing publication and get any issue (still in print, that is, as they sell out quickly) to see for yourself. By the way, back issues are running out as the magazine expands and does so worldwide.

They also have an amazing one-shot limited edition issue on Dr. No, the underrated thriller Kelly's Heroes is available while supplies last (their amazing issue on Where Eagles Dare already sold out, but a new expanded edition is in the works) and an equally terrific second edition on the Sergio Leone/Clint Eastwood "Man With No Name" Trilogy (A Fistful Of Dollars, For A Few Dollars More, The Good The Bad & The Ugly, being reissued on Blu-ray again with upgrades) with all kinds of rare stills, text and other items that make them serious collector's items, so be sure to check things out over there if you love movies.

In the meantime, FulvueDrive-in.com continues to be about providing the most direct, expert, detailed (without ruining anything for first time viewers and listeners, as we are not into spoilers), informative, fun, bold, vital information we can come up with. That fun, yet College-level and all accessible way in which we cover material here benefit all our readers. Some of them are getting the hang of our technical section, but others are starting to catch on. We are doing our best to stay on top of the latest releases and what is happening or being released that you may not have heard about. If it is something you know about, we will have information and observations you will get nowhere else.

Now for some other sites worth checking out...

Our writer Dante Ciampaglia's Crazy From The Heat blog is always worth checking out for comments on film, media and the world at large. You can read him up at:

http://danteaciampaglia.com

Daniel Johnson also has a solid movie blog. He is a fine writer and implores "For amazing movie articles, crazy cinematic lists, and riveting reviews go to Film Babble Blog!" The link is:

http://filmbabble.blogspot.com/

Continuing their winning ways is DVDBeaver, a site that covers Blu-rays, DVDs and films from all over the world like no other, and is one of the only other sites besides ours to do so. Their link is:

www.DVDBeaver.com

We believe that we are one of the few sites that manage to cover both the technical parts of filmmaking, as well as the content and form of the films themselves more thoroughly than you would usually find on other sites or in print. They have reviews as well, but our favorite section is their ever-growing Blu-ray/DVD Comparisons section, which features very technical details on several versions of a given film. Often, they are even from different DVD Regions and Blu-ray regions, but they are always accompanied by still images from each DVD covered. Gary W. Tooze's site is everything the net is supposed to deliver and we will be adding anything we can to contribute to their efforts as they do ours.

-- The Management