Music News Net

BILLY JOEL - LIVE at SHEA STADIUM CD/DVD Releasing

MUSIC NEWS -  Billy Joel - Live at Shea Stadium, the full-length music film of Billy Joel's historic shows in July 2008 marking the last-ever concerts at rock's first great arena venue will be released, for the first time, on Tuesday, March 8 via Columbia/Legacy.

Billy Joel - Live At Shea Stadium will be out in a 2 CD/1 DVD set as well as a stand-alone DVD and stand-alone Blu-ray.  The film is the full-concert companion to the acclaimed Lionsgate documentary "The Last Play At Shea," and features more than two hours of Billy and his band offering definitive, and often transcendent versions of hits, rarities, deep catalog, personal favorites and crowd-pleasing surprises including duets with guest artists Paul McCartney ("I Saw Her Standing There," "Let It Be"), Tony Bennett ("New York State of Mind"), Garth Brooks ("Shameless") and John Mayer ("This Is The Time") along with exclusive DVD/Blu-ray bonus performances with Steven Tyler ("Walk This Way"), Roger Daltrey ("My Generation") and John Mellencamp ("Pink Houses").

AC/DC Plan CD/DVD Release in the Spring

MUSIC NEWS - Rockers, AC/DC are ready to release a live CD/DVD package this spring.  The band filmed three shows on their Black Ice Tour at the Buenos Aires' River Plate Stadium back in December of 2009. 

Lead singer, Brian Johnson recently told the motor racing news service OversteerTV about the set.  He said; “We’ve got a new live album which we shot in Argentina at the end of the last tour, which was about September. The live album comes out, with the video of those concerts, in about six weeks or something. So I’m looking forward to that.”

He noted that the the Australian rockers had no definite plans after this project.

LEVON HELM's "Ramble at the Ryman" Releases in May

MUSIC NEWS - On September 17, 2008, the legendary Levon Helm took his beloved Midnight Ramble on the road to one of America’s treasured music venues, Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium.  Accompanied by such stellar players like Buddy Miller, John Hiatt, Sheryl Crow, George Receli, Sam Bush and Billy Bob Thornton, the Levon Helm Band created an unforgettable night of stage magic.

And now word is out that on May 3, Ramble At The Ryman – Live CD & DVD (each sold separately) will be released by Vanguard Records.  The collections features the Levon Helm Band in a musical tour through the American songbook, performing classics from Helm’s time with The Band, as well as song’s from his Grammy winning release Dirt Farmer and tunes from other artists such as Chuck Berry, the Carter Family and more.

JEFF BECK'S Rock 'N Roll Party Honoring Les Paul; On DVD and On Tour !

MUSIC NEWS- Jeff Beck: Rock ‘N’ Roll Party Honoring Les Paul will release on DVD and Blu-ray on February 22, 2011 via Eagle Rock Entertainment.  The concert was filmed in high definition at NYC's Iridium Jazz Club in the spring of 2010 and features music of the great Les Paul and other great rock 'n' roll tracks. And, ATCO will offer a CD of this exclusive show, featuring 20 live tracks from the evening. 

On June 9, 2010, which would have been Les Paul’s 95th birthday, Jeff Beck and a host of special music guests paid homage to the musical icon at the very club where he performed every Monday night. Rockabilly songstress Imelda May and her band, led by Darrel Higham, as well as Gary US Bonds, Brian Setzer and Trombone Shorty, join Beck on many of the tracks.  In attendance that night, at this spectacular event was an amalgam of stars, such as David Bowie, Meat Loaf, Steven Van Zandt, Paul Shaffer, Kirk Hammett, and Nils Lofgren.

DRIVE BY TRUCKERS Add February "GO GO BOOTS" Dates

MUSIC NEWS - We've been waiting for this one; The Drive-By Truckers have announced the first leg of their Go-Go Boots 2011 tour. The band, Patterson Hood, Mike Cooley, Shonna Tucker, Brad Morgan, John Neff and Jay Gonzalez start their 15 date run on February 25, 2011 with a two-night stand in Chicago, IL at the Vic Theater. San Francisco, CA and Denver, CO also get two night stands, and the Heartless Bastards will support through March 18 (full itinerary is below). 

As we previously reported, Go-Go Boots, will be out on February 15, 2011 via ATO Records and marks the eleventh Drive-By Truckers record.  The set was produced by their longtime producer, David Barbe who you hopefully know from his work with Deerhunter, Bettye LaVette and Sugar. In conjunction with Go-Go Boots, the band will also release their documentary The Secret to a Happy Ending, directed by Barr Weissman, on DVD. 

MICHAEL CERA, On Bass With "Mister Heavenly"

MUSIC NEWS- Actor Michael Cera has a new gig, this time playing bass guitar in the band, MISTER HEAVENLY.  Cera, who starred in Juno and more recently, Scott Pilgrim vs the World, played with the band at The Moore theatre in Seattle, WA on Tuesday night (November 30), when they opened for Passion Pit.  A representative from Sub Pop (Mister Heavenly's label) confirmed his role in the band, informing Thestranger.com that; "As of right now he is not an official member, just playing with the guys on this tour."

Mister Heavenly also include members of Modest Mouse, Man Man and Islands (drummer Joe Plummer of Modest Mouse, Honus Honus of Man Man, and Nick Thorburn of Islands and The Unicorns) and will continue their USA tour through December (itinerary below).

New JEFF BECK CD/DVD Release and Tour Plans

MUSIC NEWS - In addtion to his previously announced Spring 2011 tour, Jeff Beck has revealed plans for the February 22, 2011 cd / dvd release of Jeff Beck’s “Rock And Roll Party To Honor Les Paul”.  The set was recorded at New York City’s Iridium Jazz Club where Paul played every Monday night for the last 14 years!

Backing Beck as he performed Les Paul & Mary Ford classics like “How High The Moon” and “Mockin’ Bird Hill” was The Imelda May Band which will also perform with the guitar legend on his upcoming tour (full itinerary below).

REGINA SPEKTOR's New "Live in London" Release

MUSIC NEWS - LIVE IN LONDON, the first live recording and concert film from Regina Spektor, will be releasing next Monday, November 22nd via Sire / Warner Bros Records.  To promote the release, Reginawill perform  "Dance Anthem Of The 80s" from her latest "far" album on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday, November 23rd, accompanied by The Roots.

There will also be a limited number of theatrical screenings of "Live In London", taking place across the USA starting this Friday, November 19th.  In advance of the home entertainment release, you can see Regina up close performing favorites like Us, Fidelity, Samson and Eet, along with backstage footage, inside peaks at sound check and more. LIVE IN LONDON, running 64-minutes was directed by Adria Petty.  Theatre dates are below and you can get tickets via CinemaPurgatoria.com.

THIRTY SECONDS TO MARS Premieres "Hurricane" Short Film Teaser

MUSIC NEWS -THIRTY SECONDS TO MARS, recently named Best Rock Band at this year's MTV EMAs, has just released a video teaser preview for Hurricane, a new short film titled after a tune of the same name off the band's newest album, This Is War. The film, like This Is War and Kings and Queens, was directed by Bartholomew Cubbins (see clip below). 

In addition to being awarded Best Rock Band, Thirty Seconds to Mars, was also nominated in 3 categories at the MTV EMA Awards and performed a show-stopping rendition of their new song Hurricane 2.0 that features Kanye West. The performance was not just the song's television debut, but it also the first time performed with Kanye West himself. 

Drive-By Truckers to Wear "Go-Go Boots" in 2011

MUSIC NEWS- Drive-By Truckers will release Go-Go Boots, their newest album, on February 15, 2011 (via ATO Records).  Go-Go Boots mark their eleventh record and was produced by their longtime producer, David Barbe (Deerhunter, Bettye LaVette, Sugar).  Timed with Go-Go Boots, DBT (Patterson Hood, Mike Cooley, Shonna Tucker, Brad Morgan, John Neff and Jay Gonzalez) are also releasing their documentary The Secret to a Happy Ending on DVD.

With the new work, Go-Go Boots builds on their roots with the old Muscle Shoals country-and-soul sound. We recorded nearly 40 songs last year and into this year and fairly early on divided it into two separate albums explains DBT co-founder Patterson Hood; "The Big To-Do, released first, was the more straight forward "Rock" album. Go-Go Boots is what I sometimes (semi-jokingly) refer to as our country, soul, and murder ballad album. Those elements definitely play into it, but it's a little more open ended than that."

CROSSROADS Guitar Festival 2010 on DVD/Blu Ray in November

MUSIC NEWS - CROSSROADS GUITAR FESTIVAL 2010, a 2-DVD set (also available on Blu-ray), will be released on November 9 via Rhino Entertainment.  

The Eric Clapton curated event brought together an amazing line-up for this, the third Crossroads Guitar Festival this past summer at Chicago’s Toyota Park.  The 11- hour celebration drew a crowd of 27,000+ and benefitted The Crossroads Centre in Antigua, a treatment and education facility Clapton founded to help people suffering from chemical dependence.

SPRINGSTEEN's "Darkness on the Edge of Town" Re-Issue Announced

MUSIC NEWS- Columbia Records has announced plans to re-issue Bruce Springsteen’s fourth album with previously-unreleased audio and video footage on November16, 2010.   Called, The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story, the audio portion will include his Darkness On The Edge Of Town remastered for the first time and some 21 previously-unheard tracks from the Darkness... recording sessions.  The video, available on dvd or blu ray, portion will feature a new 90 minute documentary film called,  The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town, with more than four hours of live concert footage from 1976 thru 1978 and a 2009 performance of Darkness… in its entirety.

And, the set will also include an 80-page notebook with of reproductions of The Boss’s original notebooks from the recording sessions, never-before-seen photographs and a new Springsteen-penned essay.

SPRINGSTEEN's "Darkness on the Edge of Town" Re-Issue Announced

MUSIC NEWS- Columbia Records has announced plans to re-issue Bruce Springsteen’s fourth album with previously-unreleased audio and video footage on November16, 2010.   Called, The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story, the audio portion will include his Darkness On The Edge Of Town remastered for the first time and some 21 previously-unheard tracks from the Darkness... recording sessions.  The video, available on dvd or blu ray, portion will feature a new 90 minute documentary film called,  The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town, with more than four hours of live concert footage from 1976 thru 1978 and a 2009 performance of Darkness… in its entirety.

And, the set will also include an 80-page notebook with of reproductions of The Boss’s original notebooks from the recording sessions, never-before-seen photographs and a new Springsteen-penned essay.

ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA To Release "The Early Years" DVD

MUSIC NEWS- Wow! 40 years of ELO, and to commemorate the anniversary,  Electric Light Orchestra has announced the release of Electric Light Orchestra Live: The Early Years DVD on August 24 (via Eagle Rock Entertainment). Their union of orchestral harmonies with rock n' roll's electricity led to global album sales in excess of 50 million, and made ELO into one of the biggest selling bands of the seventies and eighties.

ELO was formed in 1970 by Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood from the ashes of their band The Move. Wood moved on shortly after, and Lynne led the band to international acclaim. A triple concert trip down memory lane, Electric Live Orchestra Live: The Early Years pulls excerpts from three 70s' performances. Filmed in 1973, the first concert is from the UK's Brunel University; the second is a six-track culmination from German TV's Rockpalast in 1974. Finally, ELO rocks through 12 songs at the Fusion concert from the New Victoria Theatre in London, as part of the "Face the Music" tour. As a bonus, fans are treated to a vintage band interview from Rockpalast.

THE AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT to Release Disney Concert Show on DVD

MUSIC NEWS- The Airborne Toxic Event are prepping to release a documentary film about last year's sold-out performance at the world renowned Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles that featured an eclectic mix of musicians and performers-ranging from a children's choir, a world-class string quartet, a high school marching band, horn players, visual artists, and Mexican folkórico dancers. The dvd will be available in the US on September 7th and will be entitled All I Ever Wanted: Live From the Walt Disney Concert Hall and will give us an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at the extensive rehearsals and preparation that went into putting on the show at the Frank Gehry designed venue, home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Watch the trailer for "All I Ever Wanted...", below.

All I Ever Wanted: Live From the Walt Disney Concert Hall will have its Euro premiere at the prestigious Raindance Film Festival in London. Raindance is the largest independent film festival in the UK, and has premiered classics like "Pulp Fiction," "The Blair Witch Project"and "Memento." Previous jury members have included Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Tom Wait, Mick Jones, Dame Judi Dench, photographer/filmmaker Anton Corbijn and filmmakerJonathan Caouette.  Raindance will host the European premiere of the film on September 30th in London (no word on