Tanya Tucker's former fiance Jerry Laseter was arrested along with Chrislynn Jones and released on $3,000 bail
each after taking a U-Haul truck full of $500,000 worth of stage clothes and jewelry. Laseter reportedly sent a
text message to Tucker demanding money for gas or that he would sell the items. Tucker agreed to give him $1,000
and two tickets to Nashville. The truck was empty when it was recovered by Tucker at Las Vegas' Palace Station
casino but all the missing items have since been recovered.
David Cannon, the co-executor of James Brown's will who was accused of misappropriating $350,000, resigned on Friday
during a 4-hour hearing before Circuit Judge Jack Early. According to the Augusta Chronicle, Cannon handed over
a check for that amount during the court hearing. A follow-up hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 24th. According
to Atlanta attorney Louis Levenson, who represents several of the singer's children, it isn't clear how much money
is left in the estate and that his firm is trying to find out where the singer's money went. Meanwhile, Brown's
live DVD and bonus CD release of Double Dynamite heads to stores on Sept. 17th.
According to a post by Michael Schenker Group drummer Bodo Schopf, the band held an intervention for the group's
guitarist and namesake and he is currently in rehab (explaining the cancellation of their recent tour.)
Asia have announced that they will be postponing the second leg of their North American tour due to vocalist John
Wetton's recently discovered heart condition which may require surgery. Wetton is expected to make a full recovery
and return to work with the band.
Vince Gill and Mel Tillis will be among those to be inducted into the Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville in October.
The Hairspray soundtrack (which features songs by Queen Latifah) drops two spots on the Billboard 200 album chart
in its 4th week on sales of 82,000 copies. Prince's Planet Earth dropped 8 spots to #11. Bon Jovi's Lost Highway
fell 3 places to #15.
Prince's Ultimate dropped 3 places to #9 on the U.K. album chart. The Traveling Wilburys' Collection fell 3 spots
to #12. Rod Stewart's The Complete American Songbook 1-4 stayed at #17.
According to Nielsen SoundScan, Erasure's latest single, "Sunday Girl," climbed 4 spots on the Canadian
singles chart to #15 in its 3rd week.
Sisley & The Safety Pin-ups (which features Blondie drummer Clem Burke) have scored a #1 hit on Little Steven's
Underground Garage Garage Rock Chart (Coolest Garage Songs) with their cover of the Saints' 1977 song "Do
The Robot."
Reba McEntire has scored her 55th top 10 country single with "Because Of You," her duet with Kelly Clarkson.
This places her in a tie with Dolly Parton for most top 10 hits by a female country artist. Loretta Lynn is in
3rd place with 51. Meanwhile, Parton has signed a deal with echomusic to launch her first official Web site at
DollyPartonMusic.net on Sept. 25th to coincide with her new album and world tour.
Styx are to be presented with a lifetime achievement award on Oct. 16th in Nashville, Tennessee, by the International
Entertainment Buyers Association.
Baltimore, Maryland, mayor Sheila Dixon proclaimed Aug. 9th as Frank Zappa Day. The late composer, musician, author
and director was born in Baltimore in 1940. Son Dweezil Zappa was scheduled to take his Zappa Plays Zappa tour
there that night.
Asbury Park, New Jersey, goth band Screaming For Emily has released their new EP, The Sea, with the title-track
as their new single. The EP comes from their forthcoming album, An Act Of Providence, to be released on Northend
Records.
Curious about how the new Duran Duran album, Red Carpet Massacre, will sound without Andy Taylor but with Justin
Timberlake and beatboxer Timbaland? Entertainment Weekly has the song "Night Runner": http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20038840_20038841_20047913,00.html#flashybit
Timberlake and Timbaland have also written and produced songs for Madonna's upcoming album.
Garth Brooks is planning to release a new 3-disc boxed set, The Ultimate Garth Brooks, via his Pearl Records imprint
(and self-distributed) on Nov. 6th or 13th. The collection will include a 34-track double-CD hits retrospective
and a DVD featuring videos (some recently filmed) for all the CD tracks. Among the 34 songs on the CD are 4 new
tracks reportedly including a cover of Huey Lewis & The News' 1982 hit "Workin' For A Livin'" which
features Lewis on harmonica. The first single from the set is due out in September.
Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds plans to release his 11th album, Playlist, on Sept. 18th. Of the 10 tracks
on the disc, 8 are covers which includes songs by Eric Clapton, James Taylor, Bob Dylan, Jim Croce, Bread, Dave
Loggins and Dan Fogelberg.
Former Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo will be releasing the third album with his band Down entitled Over The Under
on Sept. 25th.
A new book, Born In A Small Town: The John Mellencamp Story, by Heather Johnson is due out on Nov. 1st. Although
not an authorized biography, it follows his career with insight provided by a number of people that worked with
the artist over the course of those years. Meanwhile, Mellencamp will be performing as part of the NFL Opening
Kickoff 2007 to be broadcast on NBC on Sept. 6th leading up to the game between the Indianapolis Colts and New
Orleans Saints at the RCA Dome.
Rush plan to release a special CD/DVD U.K. Tour Edition version of their recently released Snakes & Arrows
album. The set will include a bonus DVD featuring a 45-minute behind-the-scenes documentary when released to coincide
with their October arena tour dates in the U.K.
All of Joy Division's albums (1979's Unknown Pleasures, 1980's Closer and 1981's Still) will be reissued on Sept.
11th to coincide with the release of the biopic, Control. Each will include a bonus live disc. Their hit single,
"Love Will Tear Us Apart," will be re-released as a single on Sept. 17th.
Dee Snider and Jay Jay French of Twisted Sister recently stopped by the VH1 Classic offices to present a check
for $17,000 to Autism Speaks/Cure Autism Now. The check comes from proceeds from the band's A Twisted Christmas
album. A live DVD, A Twisted Christmas Live, will be released by Razor & Tie on Sept. 25th.
When London's Marquee Club celebrated their 25th anniversary in 1983, they recorded performances by Dr. John, Wishbone
Ash, Osibisa, Alexis Korner, Man, Ten Years After and Status Quo. A DVD featuring some of those performances as
well as excerpts from the Climax Blues Band, John Watts & The Cry, Mezzoforte, Cherry Bombz and Ian Matthews
will hit stores on Sept. 18th.
Tiffany's new dance single, "Higher," will be released via Dauman Music and can be ordered online at
perfectbeat.com. The song will also be featured in the independent film Alice.
The renewed interest in MTV's Unplugged series (which relaunched this year with episodes by Bon Jovi, Poison and
upcoming episode by the Police) has caught on at Columbia/Legacy as they will reissue four MTV Unplugged albums
including ones by Tony Bennett and Bob Dylan. Each set will include a DVD with the tracks and extras that didn't
appear on the original home video versions.
Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor has told a U.K. magazine that he has a producer attached to a television series created
around their recent concept album, Year Zero, and has already met with writers.
Howard Jones' hit "No One Is To Blame" has been covered by Katrina Carlson (featuring Jones on piano
and vocals) and returned it to the charts (appearing on the BDS Billboard, Mediabase Charts and ACQB Charts.)
Robyn Hitchcock will release a 5-disc collection, I Wanna Go Backwards, on Oct. 16th via Yep Roc. The set will
include his 1981 debut, Black Snake Diamond Role, 1984's I Often Dream Of Trains, 1990's Eye and a double-disc
compilation of B-sides, demos and alternate takes (many previously unreleased) entitled While Thatcher Mauled Britain
Part 1 & 2. The set will be released as a box of 8 vinyl albums as well. His 1982 album, Groovy Decay, will
be issued as a digital-only release on Dec. 11th. A second album collection (tentatively titled Bad Case Of History)
focusing on his recordings with the Egyptians is expected next year with a rarities collection entitled Dynasty.
On Oct. 8th, "Kingdom" will be the first single released from Depeche Mode frontman Dave Gahan's sophomore
solo effort, Hourglass. The 10-track album is due out Oct. 22nd.
The Police have reportedly grossed $107.6 million during their first 38 regular shows (to nearly 1 million fans)
during their American tour so far.
The Cult's new 11-track studio album, Born Into This, will be released via Roadrunner Records on Oct. 2nd (and
Sept. 28th in Europe.) The first single from the album is "Dirty Little Rock Star" which can be heard
at: http://media.roadrunnerworld.com/TheCult/dirtylittlerockstar.wma
A 50-track song collection, Song Of America, tracing the history of the United States through its folk and popular
musical traditions heads to stores on Sept. 18th featuring songs by The Blind Boys Of Alabama, John Wesley Harding,
Take 6, John Mellencamp and many others.
The Cure have pushed back the release of their new double-disc studio album from this fall to next spring after
frontman Robert Smith got sidetracked with work on the live DVD, Festival 2005.
The first single from Patti Scialfa's new album, Play It As It Lays, which is due out on Sept. 4th will be "Town
Called Heartbreak" which is one of 4 songs her husband Bruce Springsteen plays guitar and organ on. Meanwhile,
Springsteen is expected to release his new album in October.
According to her official Web site, Alison Moyet will release her new studio album, The Turn, in the U.K. on Oct.
15th. She has placed exclusive previews of four album tracks on her MySpace page.
Atlantic/Rhino will release The Very Best Of Mick Jagger on Oct. 2nd. The set will include his solo hits as well
as some unreleased tracks including the John Lennon-produced "Too Many Cooks (Spoil The Soup)" as well
as the Rick Rubin-produced "Charmed Life" and Sonny Boy Williamson cover "Checkin' Up On My Baby."
Meanwhile, the theatrical release of the Martin Scorsese-directed concert documentary about the Rolling Stones
has been pushed back to April. Bandmate Keith Richards has also reportedly altered his story about mixing his father's
ashes with cocaine and snorting him to just snorting him. Rather timely after signing that book deal.
Capitol/EMI and Dave Mustaine have collaborated on the ultimate Megadeth box set entitled Warchest due out on Oct.
2nd. The collection includes 4-CDs and a DVD featuring over 6 hours of digitally-remastered content with many previously-unreleased
live and studio performances.
Thomas Dolby plans to his new 5-track EP, Thomas Dolby & The Jazz Mafia Horns: Live @ SXSW via his own Lost
Toy People label at iTunes, CDBaby, ThomasDolby.com and at tour stops across North America.
Sanctuary Records plans to reissue remastered and updated versions all of Voivod's released from the Noise label
during the 80s. Each album will include a DVD of vintage live performances. Meanwhile, drummer Michel "Away"
Langevin will be releasing the self-titled debut of his new band, Kosmos, on Sept. 4th via the End Records.
Mick Jones (of the Clash and Big Audio Dynamite) and Tony James (of Generation X) will see the release of their
new Carbon/Silicon album, The Last Post, on Oct. 8th.
A&E have ordered 24 half-hour episodes for a third season of Gene Simmons: Family Jewels. The series is the
network's second-highest rated series ever in adults 18-49 and 25-54, behind only Dog The Bounty Hunter.
The Neon Judgement's new compilation, Redbox, will be released via Pias, on Sept. 10th. The song collection comes
from the second part of the 1980s with a rew remixes and a new recording of David Bowie's "Heroes" which
will be released as a single this month.
David Bowie's former manager Tony Defries has co-written a book entitled Gods And Gangsters with music historian
Dave Thompson due out in 2008.
Music Works will release a 1,000 copy limited edition run of When In Rome's Burning Mixes. The disc collects 10
remixed versions of tracks ("The Promise," "Heaven Knows," "Sight Of Your Tears"
and "Wide, Wide Sea") from the group's 1988 self-titled debut album. The disc can be purchased online
at thebossbookingagency.com in the merchandise area.
Slayer's Tom Araya alluded to an end to the band may be on the horizon during an interview with Worcester Magazine.
"We have one more record to do, which is our deal with [super producer Rick] Rubin, and we'll have to sit
down and discuss the future. But I can't really see myself doing this at a later age."
The theatrical and television rights to the upcoming documentary Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unknown have been
purchased by IFC Entertainment. The film is expected to head to 'art-house' cinemas on Nov. 2nd.
The Four Tops have released a new single, "East Coast, West Coast." The group plan to release a few singles
prior to a new album next year. After that, the band could release the album they recorded with Norman Whitfield
and wider release of last year's standards collection, Goin' Home 'Round Midnight.
Daniel Lanois is scheduled to debut his documentary, Here Is What Is, at the Toronto International Film Festival
in September. The film is intended to demystify the working process of the producer. Some footage to be included
will be U2 rehearsing songs from their upcoming album and appearances by Sinead O'Connor, Emmylou Harris, Brian
Eno, Willie Nelson and Aaron Neville.
A special DVD and audio CD recorded at Belgium's Lokerse Festival in August 2005 by Iggy Pop's original band, The
Stooges, is on the way under the title Escaped Maniacs: Live At Lokerse.
Shout! Factory release the new live Bangles DVD, Return To Bangleonia, this week. The 18-track set was recorded
in September 2000 at the House Of Blues on Los Angeles' Sunset Strip with their original line-up.
Factory Records co-founder Anthony H. Wilson, 57, died of a heart attack on Friday. According to his doctor Professor
Robert Hawkins, "It's very sad. He died as a result of something unrelated to his cancer. His cancer was responding
well to treatment but obviously did contribute to his poor health." Wilson began his career in Manchester
as a broadcaster for Granada Television's So It Goes and was one of the main anchors on Granada Reports through
the 80's and 90's. But he is best known for the signing of Manchester bands Joy Division, New Order, the Happy
Mondays, A Certain Ratio and The Durutti Column as well as opening the Hacienda nightclub. A semi-fictional account
of his life made the big screen in 2002 titled 24 Hour Party People with starred Steve Coogan as Wilson.