Van Halen have rescheduled their performance tonight (Mar. 3rd) in Dallas to Apr. 24th as well as all their
dates until Mar. 11th. According to a statement from the group's management, Eddie Van Halen "is undergoing
a battery of comprehensive medical tests to determine a defined diagnosis and recommended medical procedures."
Speculation arose earlier that the tour would be canceled after TMZ.com reported the 'unbooking' of the group's
hotel arrangements and a representative for their opening act, Ryan Shaw, telling the Star-Ledger that the tour
had been canceled.
Boy George (born George O'Dowd) has pled "not guilty" to charges of false imprisonment of Audun Carlsen
at George's East London home in April last year. Carlsen claimed that he was handcuffed to a wall in the home after
being invited there for a photo shoot. The singer's defense has claimed Calsen was a prostitute. George is out
on police bail, is banned from contacting the plaintiff and expected to stand trial in November.
Recently released public documents show Michael Jackson may be facing renewed financial difficulties as he has
reportedly accumulated over $150,000 in missed mortgage payments on a family-owned property in Encino, California,
since Jan. 17th. The $4 million loan was issued by Indymac Bancorp. It was reported earlier in the week that Jackson
may lose his Neverland ranch property to auction if he fails to pay $25 million worth of outstanding debt on the
estate by Mar. 19th.
Bobby Brown has avoided jail time and will reportedly serve a year of community service after his arrest for cocaine
possession.
Herbie Hancock's River: The Joni Letters dropped 11 places on the Billboard 200 album chart to #16. The various
artist compilation 2008 Grammy Nominees fell 13 spots to #17. Garth Brooks' The Ultimate Hits dropped 3 places
to #22. Lenny Kravitz' It Is Time For A Love Revolution fell 8 spots to #25. Robert Plant & Alison Krauss'
Raising Sand dropped 3 spots to #26. The Eagles' Long Road Out Of Eden fell 11 places to #27. k.d. lang's Watershed
dropped 12 spots to #32. Kenny G's Rhythm & Romance fell 15 places to #34. Celine Dion's Taking Chances was
the sole album by an 80s artist in the top 40 that gained this week leaping 18 spots to #37.
"Into The Night" by Santana featuring Chad Kroeger fell 4 places on the Billboard Hot 100 to #40 after
21 weeks on the chart. Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson's "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" debuted at #80.
Donny Osmond's From Donny...With Love debuted on the U.K. Album chart at # 8. Michael Jackson's Thriller 25 dropped
3 spots to #9. Billy Fury's His Wondrous Story: The Complete Billy Fury fell 5 places to #15. Robert Plant &
Alison Krauss' Raising Sand retained the #18 position.
Billy Joel will be inducting John Mellencamp into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Mar. 10th in New York City.
VH1 Classic plans to air the ceremony live. Lou Reed will induct Leonard Cohen and Justin Timberlake will induct
Madonna.
Alabama's Songs Of Inspiration II is nominated for Country Album of the Year at the 39th annual Dove Awards show
to take place on Apr. 23rd at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville. Ricky Skaggs and the Whites have earned 3
nominations (Bluegrass Album of the Year and two songs from the album for Bluegrass Recorded Song of the Year.)
Officials in North Korea have invited Eric Clapton to perform a concert. This is the first invitation offered to
a Western rock star by the Communist state. According to a report by the Financial Times, Clapton has agreed in
principle and suggested 2009 for the show.
Nick Beggs has confirmed that Kajagoogoo have reunited after 25 years (with Limahl, Jez, Stuart, Steve and Nick)
to perform upcoming European festivals.
Kurk Voss and Andrew R. Powell's documentary, Ghost On The Highway: A Portrait Of Jeffrey Lee Pierce And The Gun
Club, has been released on DVD. The disc has been made available for purchase on www.GhostOnTheHighway.com in limited
quantities.
Taylor Dayne's new dance club hit single "Beautiful" features an exclusive B-side. The song, "Tell
It To My Heart 2008" a re-recording of her 1988 single. The song can be downloaded on iTunes.
XYZ's Terry Ilous is expected to release his new single, "Got To Believe," shortly and has been working
on a Spanish CD, Sigo Aqui.
Willie Nelson has released a video for his new single, "You Don't Think I'm Funny Anymore," from his
new album, Moment Of Forever. Nelson will be 'roasted' by Comedy Central on Apr. 17th with the roast airing on
the network in June.
Dead Can Dance's Brendan Perry has been working on his new studio album and posted a demo, "Utopia,"
on his MySpace page.
Ben & Jerry's has launched a new flavor inspired by John Lennon. "Imagine Whirled Peace is a toffee, cookies
and fudge flavour and has peace signs whirled through it." People with a peanut allergy are urged to skip
the new confection and a warning comes on the package saying "The Fudge Peace Sign Pieces Are Manufactured
On Equipment That Also Processes Peanuts And Other Tree Nuts."
The U.K.'s Sunday Mirror recently reported that Robert Plant has turned down nearly $200 million, to participate
in a full reunion tour with Led Zeppelin, to tour in support of Raising Sand with Alison Krauss.
Shy have completed most of the tracks for their new studio album. They plan to take a break this week before resuming
recording in mid-March.
The soundtrack to Martin Scorsese's upcoming Rolling Stones documentary, Shine A Light, will be released on Apr.
1st via Interscope as a 16-track single-disc, 22-track double-disc and in a USB format. The film opens on Apr.
4th.
Spiritualized will release their first new album in 5 years, Songs In A&E, on June 3rd (May 19th internationally)
via Fontana International/Spaceman Records. The first single from the album will be "Soul On Fire."
The Levellers release their new double A-side single, "A Life Less Ordinary" and "The Cholera Well,"
as a free download today at www.LettersFromTheUnderground.com. Both songs come from their upcoming new studio album,
Letters From The Underground.
Nine Inch Nails has launched their first salvo at the record industry. The group have released their new instrumental
set, Ghosts I-IV, at their NIN.com Web site. Fans can download the first 9 songs from the 36-track project for
free or pay $5 for the entire album. A physical release is expected on Apr. 8th via RED Distribution. Additional
volumes in the future are likely. The set contains collaborations with Adrian Belew and Alan Moulder and is described
by Trent Reznor as "a soundtrack for daydreams." More options are expected for the physical release with
a $10 standard double-CD set, $70 deluxe edition (which includes fabric slipcases, a Blu-Ray disc with high-definition
stereo mixes and a DVD with multi-track files) and a $300 autographed limited-edition (2,500 copies) version.
The Charlatans U.K. release their new studio album, You Cross My Path, as a free download at www.xfm.co.uk today.
Deluxe CD and LP versions have been announced for release on May 19th.
The B-52's have made their song, "Hot Corner," from their upcoming album Funplex available as a free
download at www.rhapsody.com/freeweeklymp3s as of today.
Carly Simon has signed a deal with Starbucks' Hear Music label for the release of her new 13-track new album, This
Kind Of Love, on Apr. 29th. Simon's last album of original material was her 2000 release, The Bedroom Tapes.
Billy Vera has a new box set, Atlantic Vocal Groups: 1951-1963, a celebration of Atlantic Records' 60th anniversary
on the way via RhinoHandmade.com. His other sets, Atlantic Blues: 1949-1970 and Atlantic Soul: 1959-1975, are also
available as limited editions.
Slash will reportedly guest on former Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley's new solo album, Pain In The Neck, due out in
the spring.
Medeski Martin and Wood plan to release 3 albums in 2008 which will be composed of material written and developed
during 3 separate tours. The releases are expected to be handled by their own Indirecto label.
Kiss vocalist Paul Stanley is rumored to be in talks to star in Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular according to
some sources. Stanley has starred twice starred in the 1999 Toronto production of The Phantom Of The Opera.
Wendy & Lisa will have 3 of their songs included on the upcoming Heroes soundtrack. The disc will also include
"All Things Must Pass" the first new studio recording by the Jesus And Mary Chain in a decade. NBC Records
will release the CD at Best Buy stores and it will be released digitally at Zune and other providers on Mar. 18th.
Bret Michaels' new solo album, Rock My World, is expected out in April. Michaels has been busy with his VH1 reality
series Rock Of Love With Bret Michaels 2, an authorized autobiography due out in the fall, a Michaels 'Biography'
premiering on The Biography Channel on Apr. 5th and Michaels appearing on a special celebrity edition of Don't
Forget The Lyrics in May.
Wire are reportedly in the mixing stage of creating their new studio album due out later this year. No title has
been announced but it would be their first full album since 2003.
Former Depeche Mode member and current Recoil mastermind Alan Wilder has written an open letter entitled Music
For The Masses - I Think Not which is published exclusively at www.side-line.com. The content is a personal view
of the music industry and MP3 revolution.
Chris De Burgh will release his new hits compilation, Now And Then, on Apr. 21st in the U.K. featuring his new
duet "Live For The Day" with Tina Lamout.
Cooking Vinyl will release Black Francis' mini-album, Svn Fngrs, on Mar. 4th in the U.S. Some tracks will be made
available for free download via his MySpace page or on his Web site BlackFrancis.net.
Janet Jackson is expected to grace the April cover of Vibe magazine. The issue includes an interview timed appropriately
for her recently released new studio album, Discipline.
Martin Briley has released his new "Salt In My Tears" set at iTunes which includes a new master of the
original track, an acoustic version and two new songs.
The John Mellencamp and Stephen King musical Ghost Brothers of Darkland County will open at Atlanta's Alliance
Theatre in April of 2009. Hopes are to prep the production for a run on Broadway.
Jayhawks frontman Gary Louris has plans to release his debut solo album, Vagabonds, via Rykodisc soon.
Squeeze's Chris Difford will release his new solo album, The Last Temptation Of Chris, on Apr. 7th in the U.K.
Rank And File co-founder Alejandro Escovedo plans to release his 9th solo album, Real Animal, on June 10th.
Drinks Americas Holdings, Ltd. has formed a partnership with Dr. Dre to
identify, develop and market premium non-alcoholic and alcoholic
beverages. The first products expected are a super premium cognac
selection, a sparkling vodka and a premium tequila.
You've probably heard about the YouTube video made by Sarah Silverman which led to a 'well-timed' response video
by boyfriend Jimmy Kimmel entitled "I'm F***ing Ben Affleck" that aired on his show's 5th anniversary.
What you may not know of are the appearances of Huey Lewis, Perry Farrell, Meat Loaf and Joan Jett in the video
which may be released as an official download by ABC.
Madonna and husband Guy Ritchie have reportedly paid nearly $5 million for The Punchbowl. The historic pub in London's
Mayfair originally opened in the 1730s. Meanwhile, the track-listing for her upcoming album, Hard Candy, may have
been leaked. The album is expected to be released on Apr. 29th.
The original line-up of Killing Joke (Jaz Coleman, Geordie Walker, Paul Ferguson and Youth) will reunite for their
first shows in 26 years and a new album due out in the summer.
The Beastie Boys have started work on their new album at their lower Manhattan Oscilloscope Studios.
The Yazoo Reconnected tour has expanded beyond the initial 5 U.K. dates to several more and some U.S. dates planned
for July.
Chante Moore plans to release her new studio album, Love The Woman, in April.
American rock and funk drummer and vocalist Buddy Miles (born George Allen Miles, Jr.) died in his Austin, Texas,
home on Feb. 26th at the age of 60. As of yet, a cause of death had not been announced but he had been suffering
from congestive heart failure. Known early on for his work with Jimi Hendrix and Carlos Santana, Miles was incarcerated
on drug charges during the late 1970s and early 80s. He made his return performing as the voice of the California
Raisins in 1986 on "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" which lead him to record to two California Raisins
albums (featuring R&B covers of the 60s.) He would also re-group with Santana on their Freedom album.
Guitarist Jeff Healey, 41, died on Mar. 2nd at Toronto's St. Joseph's Health Centre from retinoblastoma. The Canadian
had undergone surgery to remove cancerous tissue from both lungs and just previously had two sarcomas removed from
his legs. Healey had been blind since infancy due to a rare form of cancer of the eyes (retinoblastoma) but learned
to play guitar while seated with it laying across his lap. His 1988 debut album, See The Light, was a hit and included
the #5 U.S. single, "Angel Eyes." In 1989, he would appear in the film Road House and contribute 4 songs
to the soundtrack. The Grammy-nominated and Juno Award-winning artist continued releasing albums including last
year's Among Friends while serving as a radio DJ on shows for Toronto's Jazz-FM and CBC Radio. Healey just finished
work on his first new rock effort in 8 years prior to his passing. Mess Of Blues is due out on Apr. 22nd. He is
survived by his wife Cristie, a daughter and son.
Skin Yard vocalist Ben McMillan, 46, died in his Seattle hometown on Jan. 28th from complications from a blood
related clotting disease which was said to have worsened during his 8-year battle with diabetes. Surviving members
of his later band Gruntruck and other Seattle luminaries plan an assortment of tributes and memorial projects in
his name.
M.I.A. vocalist Mike Conley, 48, was found on early Thursday morning unresponsive with serious head injuries in
a Chicago hotel parking lot. He was pronounced dead at Gottlieb Memorial Hospital at 6:25 a.m. It is believed that
he may have slipped and hit his head. A person that had been staying at the hotel was charged on Friday with felony
theft and other charges for stealing Conley's cell phone and credit cards (also using one of them a local store.)
The Mike Conley Family Memorial Fund has been set up for his 3 daughters at the Orange County Teachers Federal
Credit Union in Santa Ana, California.
Former Pere Ubu guitarist Jim Jones, 57, has passed away on Feb. 18th. Jones had been plagued with health problems
which led him to leave the band in 1996. Things got worse the last few years which included back issues and a quadruple
bypass in 2004. Jones had been a staple of the Cleveland music scene since the early 1970s and appeared in many
local acts.
Singer/songwriter Larry Norman, 60, died on Feb. 24th in his Salem, Oregon, home of heart failure. Norman is often
considered the "father of Christian rock music" and had a long recording career beginning in the late
60s. He had been recording and touring less over the last decade due to health issues.