Music News Net

Jonas Brothers Tour Burger King Sponsorship

     Burger King Corp. is extending its association with the music biz by sponsoring the Jonas Brothers’ upcoming “Burning Up Tour.”  As a co-presenter, the deal lets Burger King sample its new Fresh Apple Fries to fans during the NJ group's 38-city tour. Plans also call for giving away tickets and offers for exclusive meet-and-greets with the band.

Starting next month (July 2008), consumers can get information about the tour, including ticket sales and venue locations, behind-the-scenes peeks and ticket giveaway sweepstakes at BK.  Check the site and their locations for more information.  The Jonas Brothers tour, which Live Nation is producing, kicks off July 4 in Toronto and concludes Aug. 31 in Essex Junction, VT.   Check out the boys on TV in Disney's red-hot, Camp Rock movie.

The effort isn’t Burger King’s first association with music. In 2000, the company featured an advanced single of the Backstreet Boys’ (also on a tour this summer) album, “Jive,” as well as five never-released songs. BK also sold a video with backstage footage and personal interviews as part of the deal.

Death Cab, Wyclef Jean Added to Voodoo Experience

     Death Cab for Cutie, Erykah Badu, Wyclef Jean, Panic At the Disco, Joss Stone, Lupe Fiasco and Dashboard Confessional are among the top names joining headliners R.E.M., Nine Inch Nails and Stone Temple Pilots at the 10th Voodoo Experience music festival, on Oct. 24-26 at New Orleans' City Park.

And the news is, the show will also feature performances by DeVotchKa, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Cold War Kids, Ghostland Observatory, Joseph Arthur, Old 97's, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, the reunited Shudder to Think, the Gutter Twins, Thievery Corporation, Tokyo Police Club and Man Man.

George Carlin Dies, No Way!

  George Carlin, died on Sunday from heart failure at 71 in a LA hospital, but his words live on. Especially his big seven from the  monologue "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television" on his classic 1972 album Class Clown. He was a ground breaking, master comedian who wove politics and comedy and who kept track of our "stuff".

Thank you NYC's Village Voice for posting George Carlin's infamous 7 Little Words routine on line for all to read and remember.

Though not a musical act, Mr Carlin performed live in what were some of the best "concerts" ever.  He will be missed.

The WHO, VH1 Rock Honors LA Contest

     VH1 Rock Honors returns for its third annual show; this year honoring rock 'n' roll music legends, The Who. The show premieres on Thursday, July 17 at 9pm/8c. The Who's monumental rock legacy will be celebrated with a 2-hour tribute, featuring performances by Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters, The Flaming Lips, Incubus and of course, The Who themselves. Lucky Los Angeles, CA area residents have a chance to be a part of this amazing night by attending the taping July 12 at Pauley Pavillion.

And to get LA ready for the big event, VH1 and LA Weekly are keeping the LA in nonstop Who party gear with VH1 Rock Honors Weekend, July 10-14, sponsored by Sprint.   Many local business and venues will host exclusive shows and events honoring The Who.

Bill O'Reilly Attacks COLDPLAY

     Despite their #1 hit CD and hit tour, the British popband and multi million cd sellers, Coldplay have another problem to worry about, in addition to the groundless plagiarism insinuation from obscure Brooklyn band, The Creaky Boards and Chris Martin's apparent change into a set of psychedelic color forms (according to the inescapable iTunes commercial).  Now they have fhe infamous right-wing talking head Bill O'Reilly to contend with.  The FoxTV guy called Coldplay out for what he deemed attacks on the Fox network, awarding Martin one of his "pinhead" tags and questioning his maleness, while daring him to appear on O'Reilly's The Factor show.

Move on Bill.....................

Top 10 Live CDs

     Live music cds are often overlooked, except by the true fans, but many cds are an integral part of an artist's career when the cd accurately reflects the performance.  Rolling Stone magazine recently published their Top 25 Live CD list.  Now, we're not suggesting that any of those should be removed from the RS list, we're just surprised the cds listed below couldn't make their way on.  Not all are our favorites, but we acknowledge the importance and the high quality of them. Here's ten of our picks;

LA Hotel Sues Music Legend Phil Spector Over Unpaid Charges

    Music News from LA; a Los Angeles, CA USA hotel has field a lawsuit against music producer, Phil Spector, his wife and his agent for failing to pay more than $100,000 in accommodation charges for Spector's lawyers and expert witnesses during his recent murder trial.  In court papers filed Wednesday, the Westin Bonaventure Hotel and Suites alleges that the defendants agreed in a written contract to hold rooms for the duration of the trial. The lawsuit claims that when Spector's trial ended with a hung jury in September, the defendants owed the hotel more than $104,000.  The lawsuit alleges fraud, breach of written contract and other charges.

Spector faces a second trial in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson at his home in 2003. The producer is known for his "Wall of Sound" recording technique. He was a pioneer of the 1960s'  girl group sound and clocked in over twenty-five Top 40 hits between 1960 and 1965. In later years he worked with such artists as Ike & Tina Turner, John Lennon, and Ramones with similar success

Bruce Springsteen Concert Tour Update

     NJ's Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band have announced additional US concerts to their 2008 summer tour itinerary.  Bruce and band, who are currently touring Europe, have announced gigs at Pennsylvania's Hershey Stadium Aug. 19 and Nashville's Sommet Center Aug. 21. These two dates follow a three-night homecoming gig at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ, and a show at Foxboro, MA's Gillette Stadium. The Boss and company have also been announced to play the Aug. 30 Harley Davidson anniversary party in Milwaukee.

DAVID BOWIE 1972 Concert to be Released on CD

     One of the most popular and widely circulated David Bowie music bootlegs is finally scheduled to see an authorized release.  After being traded and sold "unofficially" for 36 years, the news is that David Bowie's 1972 concert in Santa Monica, CA USA will be released as a legit live album. The concert, which was from Bowie's first American tour after the release of the now classic,  Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars.  The show was broadcast live on radio and recorded by Bowie fans and audiophiles.  The live music cd will be released through Virgin Records on July 22 in the US.

Live in Santa Monica '72's track listing is:

Introduction
Hang On To Yourself
Ziggy Stardust
Changes
The Supermen
Life on Mars?
Five Years
Space Oddity
Andy Warhol
My Death stolen from Aversion
The Width of a Circle
Queen Bitch
Moonage Daydream
John, I'm Only Dancing
Waiting for the Man
The Jean Genie
Suffragette City
Rock'n'Roll Suicide

the New Pornographers Cancel Tour

     We've heard it before, and we'll hear it again - cancellations due to personal reasons.  This time, chalk it up to the Vancouver indie rock supergroup, The New Pormographers, the losers are their European fans who won't see them this summer. In a brief statement released by the Matador Ole recording artists, they apologized to fans for their "generic, but [...] sincere" excuse-- and also assured us all that everyone is safe in mind and body and, no, drugs are not involved.  That's nice to know, but their European fans would have likely preferred a show. 

We can only guess what the personal reason is, but we won't go on record here. Anyone know the full story?

Michael Jackson to Tour ?

     Nothing official, but folks on and off the net are talking about Michael Jackson again, and it’s not because of a scandal at Neverland Ranch or more children problems, it's music news this time!. The word is that Jackson may be planning a tour, backed by producer/rapper Swizz Beatz.  “I'm working on this new Michael Jackson sh--," Swizz told MTV.com. "I'm probably gonna be producing his tour and everything.”

MJ has not released a statement about the rumored tour, nor have any tour dates been released. Thriller 25th Anniversary, Jackson's last album, was released in February of this year by MJJ productions.

The last time Mr Jackson toured was over 10 years ago during the appropriately named HIStory Tour.  It was divided into two legs running from September 1996 to October 1997. The HIStory Tour was worldwide, and included 82 shows in 58 cities in 35 countries.

Coldplay Score Their First US #1 Single

     The British band Coldplay have scored their first number one single on the Billboard chart. Viva La Vida has become only the second British single to top the Hot 100 this year, following Leona Lewis's success with Bleeding Love. Viva La Vida is the title track from the band's current album, also set to head the  Billboard 200 next week. In the UK, early sales figures also show that Coldplay would top the UK's album chart for a second week in a row. "Not only is Viva La Vida set to become the biggest-selling album release of 2008, but the band are also on course to enjoy their first-ever double number one single and album celebration," said Gennaro Castaldo, a spokesman for British music retailer HMV. The single is not yet physically available, but Mr Castaldo said it remained ahead of the competition on download sales alone.

Coldplay is also on tour to promote the release. Pick up the new Coldplay cd, here.

Oscars Limit Best Original Song Entries

     Oscars organizers will soon limit the number of nominations in the original song category to two per film to make the music category more competitive.

For example, Enchanted took three of the five nominations for this year's award, as did Dreamgirls in 2007. However, neither film actually won the Academy Award prize at Hollywood's biggest awards ceremony of the year. With the new rules, additional films will receive attention.  The changes take effect for 2009's competition, along with alterations to the foreign language film award. 

Three of the nine finalists for the foreign language film nomination will now be chosen by a committee. In the past, all nine films were chosen by a vote of all academy members who had seen a minimum number of eligible films.

Sounds like welcome changes.

Singer Carly Simon is Selling Her NYC Apartment

     Singer Carly Simon is leaving NYC, selling her New York City apartment and moving full-time to Massachusetts.  The  news from the You're So Vain music star is that the singer is listing her co-op in Manhattan's star-studded West Village for $3.8 million.  And the two-bedroom, two-bathroom duplex is being sold by Simon's own sister, Joanna - an opera singer who also holds the job as Vice-President and broker at Fox Residential Group.  Simon purchased the pad after failing to land an apartment in New York's Dakota - the landmark building where former Beatle John Lennon was shot and widow Yoko Ono continues to live.  A source tells the New York Post newspaper of the 1,200-square-foot sale, "Carly has used her unique style and taste to create a romantic and intimate home. She's selling mainly because she lives nearly full-time in Martha's Vineyard these days."

Good bye, Carly !

And check out her new cd, This Kind of Love.  It was inspired by and subtly infused with the rhythms of Brazilian music, and explores a wide swath of emotion-romance, reflection, melancholy, anger and humor. It's at once one of Simon's most personal albums as well as one of her most stylistically diverse outings

SUNDANCE CHANNEL PREMIERES 2nd Season of “LIVE FROM ABBEY ROAD”

    The Sundance Channel premieres the second season of the acclaimed original music series “Live From Abbey Road” on June 19. The 12-part series features performances and interviews with musicians filmed at London’s legendary Abbey Road Studios. Season two of “Live From Abbey Road” airs on Thursdays at 10:00pm et/pt.

“Live from Abbey Road” features performances by new and established top artists, with each one-hour episode offering three acts and a unique insight into the process of making music as they rehearse, discuss their work, and build towards the final exclusive performance.