Van Halen, R.E.M. Patti Smith, Oh My....

Rock N Roll Hall of Fame inductions held

This week started off with induction ceremonies for the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame. New members Van Halen, R.E.M., Patti Smith, The Ronnettes and rap's first artist Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.
Van Halen were the first to be inducted although, no current members of the band were on hand for the ceremony. Former members Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony accepted the invitation. Van Halen had planned to use the ceremony to kick of their reunion tour. However, lead guitarist Eddie Van Halen entered rehab last week and the tour has been put on hiatus. The band Velvet Revolver were the "house band" for the ceremony and had planned to perform the hit "Jump" and "Panama" with Van Halen's former lead singer David Lee Roth. Roth didn't appear because he objected to using Velvet Revolver to perform Van Halen''s songs. The disparity between Van Halen and Roth doesn't promise a happy reunion tour if a tour at all this summer.

R.E.M. were the second group to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, and Bill Berry the bands former drummer joined them for the induction. Berry suffered an an aneurysm on stage in 1995 and nearly died. After nearly 17 years in the band he left in 1997 to take it easy and become a farmer. R.E.M. formed in Athens, Ga in the early 80's and are the innovators of the indie rock scene and had a hit in 1985 with "Radio Free Europe" they hit the mainstream later with "Losing my Religion" on the album' Out of Time ' in 1991 and continued to have hits throughout the 90's and into the 2000's.

Patti Smith a solo artist was inducted into the Hall of Fame. She is famous for her 1978 album "Horses" which linked the hippie and the punk rock sound of the day. Her album was an influence sighted by Michael Stipe as the reason why he wanted to become a singer and rock star. Smith didn't attend the ceremony instead she publicly panned it in a New York Times article saying that after having talked to the regular people around her Greenwich neighborhood it made the induction less important too her.

The Ronnettes were also inducted into the hall. They are famous for the song 'Be my Baby" which showcased the "wall of sound" pioneered by Phil Spector who was married to the lead singer Ronnie Spector. Keith Richards hosted the induction and Ronnie was there to accept the invitation

Hip hop and rap's first group was inducted into the Hall of Fame Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. Their hit in the early 80's "The Message" was a chronicle of the urban life during the Reagan era. The induction ceremony was lead by rapper/ producer Jay-Z and leader Mellie Mel was on hand to accept the invitation. The rappers of today Jay-Z, Eminem,and Tupac will be eligible for the Hall of Fame in 25 years.



Music Notes

Nine Inch Nails will release a new c.d. titled Year Zero on April 17 their first since 2005's With Teeth. Trent Reznor the bands lead singer and songwriter said that it was written while they were on tour for With Teeth . " I sometimes have trouble writing new material, while on tour but this was written in tour buses, backstage, and during breaks in the tour," said Reznor. The new material tells the story of an Orwellian picture of the USA in the year 2022 . A trailer for the album and the first single is called Survivalism are currently available on the NIN website.


The Flaming Lips are working on a Broadway version of their 2002 c.d. Yoshimi battles the Pink Robots. They are hoping to work with Des McAnuff who brought The Who's Tommy to the Broadway Stage. Wayne Coyne said "As much as I love the intense experience of being at a rock show, this could be great!"

A Guns N Roses fan site was shut down not by the band but by the fan who runs it. The GNRonline web-master is unhappy about the continued delay of the current lineups c.d. 'Chinese Democracy 'which is close to ten years in the making. The most recent release of the c.d. was to be March 6 when that didn't happen the web master stated

"The never-ending saga of 'Chinese Democracy', the lack of respect, clearness and mutual loyalty are just some of the reasons that has brought us down to this painful conclusion. Until now our detractors have always accused us of being 'Axl fanatics' (and to a certain degree, it is probably true) but today we aren't able to sustain Axl's project anymore, neither financially nor economically. We just can't afford to waste our heads on a project that has never even taken us into consideration. We still want to believe in Axl Rose and his record and we greatly wish that 'Chinese Democracy' would see the light of day before February 2008. If that will be the case we will make our best effort to re-open the site otherwise our domains will be lost and that will be the end of it."

A member of Coldplay is going to be a guest star on the new Swizz Beatz album titled 'One Man Band'. The album is written and produced by the rapper and it isn't known which member appears on the appear on a track titled "Part of the Plan." Chris Martin the lead singer of Coldplay appeared on "Beach Chair" from Jay-Z's 2006 comeback album 'Kingdom Come'. Martin has also recorded a song entitled 'Homecoming' which will be the first single from a new Kanye West album.

Debbie Harry has picked Kirsten Dunst to play her in an upcoming movie about her and the band Blondie. Alot of people aren't too happy about Harry picking Dunst for the role. Some feel that Dunst won't portray Harry acurately. Some of the other names tossed around were Scarlett Johannson or Gina Gershon.

Brittney Spears has fallen for a rock musician who she is in rehab with. She has started dating Jason Filyaw who is a 33 yr. old musician and is the lead singer for the band RIva. The couple met while attending an AA meeting and plan to move in together once they finish rehab.

The late John Denver's "Rocky Mountain High" has become Colorado's official second state song along with the lesser known state song "Where the Columbines Grow." State senator Bob Hagedom pushed for the adoption of the song and said that it had been the unofficial song for many years. It has also introduced many people around the world to Colorado said Hagedom.
State senator Dave Schultheis said that he doesn't think the state should have two songs. "If the legislature didn't like Where the Columbines Grow, they should remove it and replace it." He admitted that he didn't know the words to the current state song. John Denver's brother Ron Deutschendorf said that John would have been honored to have his song designated as a state song. John Denver died in a plane crash near Monterey Ca, ten years ago.

The Who cancelled a concert in Tampa Fl, moments into the first song. Apparently, lead singer Roger Daltrey was ailing and having vocal problems. The concert started at 8:40 p.m. and they started to play their hit "I Can't Explain" but Daltrey exited without even singing a lyric. Lead guitarist Pete Townsend and the rest of the band left the stage, he returned later to apologize to the 9,000 fans attending the concert.
Telling them that Roger was barely able to speak and he is really sick and unable to go on. A make up date of Mar. 25 has been set and refunds for the tickets can be obtained at the place of purchase. The Who are in the middle of their first reunion tour in 20 years and their first since John Entwhistle the band's bassist died in 2002.

Saturday the 21st annual Soul Train Music Awards were held in the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena Ca. Jamie Foxx, Mary J Blige. Gnarls Barkley and others were presented awards.
Jamie Foxx won best male for his album "Unpredictable" and Blige won for best female album for "The Breakthrough", Gnarls Barkley for best single from a group with "Crazy." John Legend won best male singer for "Save Room" and Beyonce won best female single for her song "Irreplaceable." Jay-Z won the Michael Jackson award for best soul or rap video for "Show me what you got" Jennifer Hudson won the Sammy Davis Jr. award for her performance in the movie "Dreamgirls" and Baby Face was presented the Stevie Wonder award for Outstanding achievement in song writing. The show was hosted by La Toya Jackson and Omarion the awards were voted on by radio station professionals, talent managers, and performers.

It was also learned this week that Brad Delp the lead singer of Boston who was found dead in his home last Friday committed suicide
A note attached to the stairs below the bathroom stated " I take complete and sole responsibility for my present situation. I have lost my desire to live," he wrote. The note also included instructions on how to contact his fiancee: "Unfortunately she is totally unaware of what I have done.". He committed suicide by placing two charcoal grills in the bathroom of his home and sealing off the door. Later police found four sealed letters in his office addressed to his fiance and his children, their mother.
Pamela Sullivan stated that he had been depressed for sometime and feeling bad about himself. Brad Delp and Sullivan were to be married this summer during a break from the bands tour.





Rock N Roll legal briefs


Paul McCartney and Heather Mills have come to an agreement in their bitter divorce battle. The couple were married in 2002 and have a child Beatrice together. It was reported that Mills was seeking $6.6 million a year or $20.000 a day but Mills dropped those demands and will received $48 million in cash and a Georgian Mansion worth $8 million.
No prenuptial agreement was signed before the two married and Mills could have walked away with a quarter of McCartney's $1.6 billion fortune. The British press have labeled Mills as a "gold digger" and to this she has replied " I fell in love unconditionally and if I was a gold digger then I'd have alot of money in my bank account and be worth millions."

An irish judge wants Eminem to appear in court following the cancellation of a 2005 performance at Slane Castle. The rapper is the subject of a $3 million compensation lawsuit filed by promoters MCD and are seeking to recoup funds from three insurance companies .
They claim they haven't been refunded their money after 80,000 tickets were voided by the cancellation of the concert by Eminem who cited "exhaustion" for the cancellation during his Anger Management Tour. Eminem has requested that he present his appeal in private but justice Peter Kelly has refused insisting the rappers contribution to the trial is "possibly crucial."


Levon Helm the former drummer of The Band is suing a Manhattan advertising firm for their use of the song "The Weight" in a television commercial.
The commercial was produced by Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn (BBDO) and featured in a Cingular advertisement. The lawsuit was filed in New York State's supreme court in December and Helm asks for the information on how much the commercial made and for compensation. His attorney states that law prohibits a company from using a celebrity's voice or likeness without written permission.
According to a royalty statement from EMI records who own Capitol records BBDO paid for the rights to use the song and Helm took one-fifth of the licensing fee that was paid BDO had no comment on the suit.
Helm was quoted as saying" It was just a complete sellout of The Band—its reputation, its music, just as much disrespect as you could pour on Richard and Rick's tombstones," said Helms. Richard Manual piano player for The Band died in 1986 and bass player Rick Danko died in 1999. The Band were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

Busta Rhymes wasn't present for the filming of the movie Order of the Redemption a crime thriller starring Tom Berenger and Rhymes . It wasn't his choice not too be present. The New York Police Department barred the rapper from the production citing "safety concerns" there are rumors that Rhymes was barred from the set because of his continued failure to cooperate with the NYPD in a murder probe of his bodyguard Israel Ramirez . He was killed by an unknown assailant in February of 2006 while Rhymes was filming a music video in Brooklyn. This incident along with recent ones involving Rhymes where he allegedly assaulted a fan for spitting on his SUV and a former driver says he was roughed up over money owed to Rhymes. Busta Rhymes has entered a plea of not guilty in both cases and his next court date is March 26. If convicted on the first count he will be charged with a misdemeanor and 30 days in jail, the second count will possibly net a fine.
The movie's producer Rob Capelli in an interview with The New York Daily News said that the decision to bar Rhymes from the set was financial because having the star on the set would require additional police detail. The movie director Jeff Celentano stated that they had permits to shoot the production in Manhattan for 14 days in early April. He also said that barring him from the set was unfair to Rhymes and that he had been nothing but professional during the project.

Courtney Love is being sued by The Beau Monde Center a southern california rehab center that treats drug and alcohol addiction. The center claims she paid $10,000 up front but hasn't paid the remaining $180,000 for the treatment she received in 2005.
The center offers massages, gourmet food and whale watching for its wealthy celebrity clientele. Love spent four months in the center and was ordered too by a Los Angeles judge because she spent months in and out of courts on drug charges and one charge of assaulting a female who is a friend of Love's ex-boyfriend.
Love's lawyer stated that there is a difference between the them over how much money is actually owed and the matter is in the process of being resolved.

That is all of the music news for the week here are the birthdays for the week of March 19-25 2007. Until next week
GET OUT OF MY HEAD !

Mar 19

Ornette Coleman (1930)
American saxophonist and composer.
He was one of the major innovators of the free jazz movement of the 1960s.

Clarence "Frogman" Henry (1937)
Blues artist

Ricky Helton Wilson ( 1953 – 1985)
the original guitarist in the rock band The B-52's,
which he helped to form in 1976. One of the
first musicians to die of HIV.

James "Big Jim" Wright ( 1966)
record producer, musician, and songwriter, producer.
Worked with Mariah Carey on her 2005 album,
The Emancipation of Mimi.

Mar 20
Dame Vera Lynn, DBE ( 1917)
British singer whose career flourished during World War II
nicknamed "The Forces' Sweetheart" and is best known for
the popular songs "We'll Meet Again"

Jerry Reed (1937)
American country music singer, country guitarist, songwriter, and actor.

Marcia Ball (1949)
American blues singer and pianist

Carl Palmer (1950)
English drummer and percussionist.
Palmer is a veteran of a number of British bands, including
The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Atomic Rooster, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, and Asia.

Jimmie Vaughan (1951)
American blues guitarist and singe and
is the older brother of Stevie Ray Vaughan.

Slim Jim Phantom (1960)
rock drummer, best-known for his
work with the band, The Stray Cats

Chester Charles Bennington (1976)
American musician,
front man lead vocalist in the
band Linkin Park.

Nickolas Don Wheeler (1982) i
lead guitarist, sings back-up vocals, keyboardist, programmer
for The All-American Rejects

Mar 21

Eddie James House, Jr. (1902 –1988)
better known as Son House
an influential blues singer and guitarist


Roger Hodgson (1950)
British vocalist and musician
one of the founding members of
the progressive rock group Supertramp.

Jonas Berggren aka Joker (1967)
born Jonas Petter Breggren
one of the members of the
swedish group Ace of Base.

Keith "Keeti" Palmer (1967)
Member of the english band
The Prodigy.

Deryck Jayson Whibley ( 1980)
a.k.a Bizzy D
musician and producer
known for his work as the lead
vocalist and songwriter of Canadian pop
punk band Sum 41

Mar 22
Keith Relf (1943 -1976)
Lead singer and harmonica
player of The Yardbirds.

Mar 23

Ric Ocasek (1949)
former vocalist and frontman for
The Cars and a producer for several other
groups including Weezer, Bad Brains, and Suicide.

Chaka Khan (1953)
R&B singer popular during
the 70's


Damon Albarn, (1968 )
English singer-songwriter and
the lead singer of rock band Blur

Mar 24

Nena (1960)
A German singer who became famous
with the song "99 Luftballons" ("99 Red Balloons")

Dougie Thomson (1951)
Member of the band
Supertramp.


Sharon Helga Corr, MBE ( 1970)
Member of the irish rock band
The Corrs.


Mar 25

Hoyt Axton (1938 –1999)
American country music singer-songwriter,
film and television actor.

Aretha Louise Franklin (1942)
American soul, R&B, and gospel singer, songwriter

Nick Lowe (1949)
singer-songwriter
bass guitarist and producer

Sir Elton John, CBE (1947)
a multiple Grammy- and Academy Award-winning
English pop/rock singer, composer and pianist

Jeff Healey (1966)
Canadian blues-rock guitarist.

Cathy Dennis ( 1969)
dance-oriented pop singer-songwriter,
record producer and actress.