Pete The Chop

Here’s an update to an earlier post about Steve Lillywhite’s pitch to be the next Simon Cowell: He really, really wants the job!

Lillywhite has hired the public relations firm Blake Zidell & Associates to help him with his campaign. Not that he wasn’t doing a good job already, but in response to all the “urging” he is getting from fans, he’s now making this more than a one-man, one-YouTube video effort.

BZA sent out this release, which says there’s another video coming on March 8.

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For Immediate Release
February 26,  2010

AT URGING OF FANS, LEGENDARY RECORD PRODUCER STEVE LILLYWHITE CAMPAIGNS TO REPLACE SIMON COWELL ON AMERICAN IDOL

* Producer of U2, Dave Matthews Band, the Rolling Stones and Many Other Eminent Artists Promises to Bring Credibility and Vision to the Star-Making TV Show *

Steve Lillywhite, perhaps the most accomplished producer of the last three decades, might at first seem an odd candidate to host one of the most popular TV shows in history: While he has been responsible for countless records that are both critically acclaimed and commercially successful — from U2 to Peter Gabriel, the Rolling Stones, the Talking Heads, Dave Matthews Band, Jason Mraz and 30 Seconds to Mars — his reputation is for landmark works and career artists, rather than pop ephemera, and for being behind the scenes, rather than a star himself.

Yet, when a fan made a Facebook page suggesting that Lillywhite should replace Simon Cowell on American Idol, he — along with other fans, industry colleagues, blogs and newspapers — began to contemplate the idea. And he decided that he not only would love the job, but also would be an ideal choice for the position. He has always had the foresight to choose artists who would become superstars, and been sure enough of himself to direct them in the making of their albums, many of which have led to Album of the Year and Producer of the Year GRAMMYs. Furthermore, has an exuberant, funny, over-the-top personality, which can be heard in his popular shows on National Public Radio and East Village Radio, both called The Lillywhite Sessions.

His self-assuredness and sense of humor are on display in the YouTube video he made to stump for the Idol job. Among his many qualifications, he notes, “I have a great accent (listen to me), and I have great credibility among millions of music buyers.” He adds, “I can be firm: I have spent 30 years telling Bono what to do,” referring to his discovery of and longtime collaboration with U2. He also shores up his current relevance by pointing out that he produced the 30 Seconds to Mars single that holds that #1 spot at alternative radio, and that he is beginning work this month with the band Evanescence.

Since Lillywhite posted the YouTube video, there has been a growing groundswell of discourse about the prospect of his replacing Cowell, including preliminary coverage by USA Today, Rolling Stone, Perez Hilton and UK’s The Guardian, among others. Lillywhite plans to post a follow-up video on Monday, March 8.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Lillywhite Cries “Uncle,” Ramps Up Idol Bid

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Pioneers of rock photography talk through their favourite shots

Anton Corbijn: U2, 1986

I’d been working with U2 for four years when we did this picture. The working titles for their new album were “the two Americas” and “desert songs”, so I went looking for deserts in California. The shots which include the actual Joshua Tree were shot in Death Valley, the cover shot was at Zabriskie Point. The tree is named after the biblical Joshua. I suggested it to Bono, and he came back the next morning with a bible in his hand saying we’d go for it.

I came to England from Holland in the late 70s and started working for the NME. The interesting thing is that the two groups I’m most associated with – Depeche Mode and U2 – are both bands I was not a fan of at first. I turned Depeche Mode down for five years because I thought they were too poppy. With U2, they were playing on a boat moored on the Mississippi and I thought, “OK, I’ll listen to a couple of songs just to prove I was there then I’ll leave.” I didn’t realise the boat would set off, so I had to stay for the gig. I liked the guys and ended up travelling with them and did more pictures. It was the beginning of a friendship.

When the Joshua Tree album came out and became so big I felt very removed from it. I looked at the billboards and it didn’t feel like the little picture I printed in my dark room. It became this other thing.

Photographing U2 has become more difficult as they have become more well known. The Joshua Tree was taken over a period of three days travelling through the desert. It’s unthinkable for U2 to do that now. For their last album I had two hours in bad weather.

Even after 28 years I always try to take a different picture of U2. If I’m stuck, I’ll go to Holland, smoke a joint and come back with new ideas.

Read the full article at Guardian News >>

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