Chris Rock Isn't Laughing
2008-03-25 06:00:16.37908
Click href="http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/chrisrock/articles/story/19400269/video_gallery_chris_rock" target="blank">here to watch Chris Rock's greatest film and stand-up moments.
Here in the Time of Rock, wherein Christopher Julius Rock III rules again as he has ruled before, but only more so — international sweep! colossal forums! better transportation! — promptness counts for much. "There's no such thing as early," Rock himself will tell you, just as his late heroic father often impressed upon him under threat of belt strap. "There's on time and late. I'm always on time." Unsurprisingly, then, he has made it a point to be on time for his Time, which is a very good thing for a dire populace that suddenly seeks racial clarity with historic fervor (no mortal, of course, sifts matters of class and skin divide with sharper acuity than Rock, who is black but sometimes employs the term "a fine mocha" because he is just that precise.) Moreover, he concedes that seizing this seismic American...
Video Gallery: Chris Rock
2008-03-25 23:00:15.834595
Click href="http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/19551925" target="blank">here for an excerpt of the Chris Rock cover story.
Though Chris Rock had minor success on Saturday Night Live and with the HBO special Big Ass Jokes, his true breakout came in 1996 with the premiere of Bring the Pain. The stand-up special (and subsequent album Roll With the New) introduced the world to a number of instant-classic Rock bits, including "Niggas vs. Black People." The controversial routine is everything that's great about Rock: it's honest, insightful, vulgar and above all hilarious.
value="http://www.youtube.com/v/kpUSElgJcyI&hl=en type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="325" height="275
Why Can't Adam Duritz Get Any Respect?
2008-03-25 10:00:14.67176
For half a second, Adam Duritz is airborne — and then he comes down hard. It's early February, during the second song of a rare Counting Crows small-club show in New York, and a moment ago, Duritz was teetering on a monitor speaker at the edge of the stage. Now, he tumbles backward, dreadlocks flailing, and his head collides with a piano. It looks painful. But Duritz springs back up, not missing a note — though his voice seems to quaver even more than usual as he sings, "Have you seen me lately?"
Then he climbs up onto that same speaker, again and again, like a man who has everything to prove. And maybe he does. Duritz is all too aware that some people hate him. They say his voice is whiny. They say his dreads are fake (which they are). And they don't like his band, either. "For some reason, everyone decided we were a piece of shit," he says a few days after the concert, describing a low point a couple of years back. "So the only thing to do was to go out there and show we weren't."
..."Fifth Beatle" Neil Aspinall dies at 66 in New York
2008-03-25 00:00:15.06392
BEIJING, March 25(Xinhuanet) -- Neil Aspinall, a longtime friend and business associate of the Beatles, died in New York City of lung cancer Sunday night at 66, the surviving band members said Monday. Aspinall became road manager and personal assistant
"The Way I Play (Live in Chicago)" New Trio CD from Guitarist Bobby Broom, Due April 22
2008-03-25 06:00:14.834081
Jazz guitarist Bobby Broom has accrued stellar credentials as a sideman with Sonny Rollins, Kenny Burrell, Dr. John, and Charles Earland. But since the mid-1990s he's been focusing much more on his own music, culminating with the release next month of a
'Fifth Beatle' dead at 66
2008-03-25 07:00:14.693679
NEIL Aspinall, a close friend and former road manager of The Beatles who was sometimes referred to as the fifth member of the band, died in New York of lung cancer, former band members said overnight. He was 66. Aspinall became road manager and personal
BEATLES' FRIEND NEIL ASPINALL HAS DIED
2008-03-25 23:00:15.086843
The Beatles' friend and Apple Corps chief Neil Aspinall has died in New York, aged 66, Apple announced today (March 24). Aspinall was a childhood friend of Beatles' Paul McCartney and John Lennon starting his career as the band's road manager and
Beatles' secrets
2008-03-25 17:00:14.528416
- The Raconteurs are rush releasing their second album tomorrow (25 March). 'Consolers Of The Lonely' was only completed at the beginning of March, but Jack White and co have insisted on getting the LP out as soon as possible. As a result the album will
Beck, Wilco, Panic set for SF music festival (Reuters)
2008-03-25 04:00:23.668161
32 minutes ago
NEW YORK (Billboard) - Beck, Wilco, Widespread Panic and Primus have joined the lineup for the first Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival at San Francisco's Golden Gate Park on August 22-24. Radiohead, Tom Petty and Jack Johnson were previously announced as headliners.Outside Lands will also feature performances from the likes of Manu Chao, Ben Harper, Steve Winwood, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Drive-By Truckers, Cafe Tacuba, Devendra Banhart, Regina Spektor, Cold War Kids, and Nellie McKay.
Tickets, priced at $225.50 (plus fees) for the three days, will go on sale March 30. Organizers said single-day tickets may be sold at a later date depending on availability.
...Country star Sara Evans gets engaged (AP)
2008-03-25 18:00:15.990226
1 hour, 32 minutes ago
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Sara Evans, who finalized a bitter divorce last year, is engaged to former University of Alabama quarterback Jay Barker."The couple are enjoying their engagement and look forward to their upcoming nuptials," Lori Genes, the singer's publicist at Sony BMG Nashville, said Tuesday.
No date has been announced for the wedding.
The 37-year-old country singer filed for divorce from husband Craig Schelske in October 2006 after 13 years of marriage. The divorce was completed last September.
Barker, 35, led Alabama to a national championship in 1992 and hosts a morning radio show in Birmingham.
Barker, who's also divorced, has four children while Evans has three.
Evans made her recording debut in 1997 and her 2000 album "Born to Fly" went double-platinum. Her hits include "Perfect," "Suds in the Bucket" and "Real Fine Place to Start."
She was a contestant on ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" but pulled out when she filed for divorce.
Email Story IM Story Printable View Yahoo! Buzz...Court revives The Doors insurance lawsuit (Reuters)
2008-03-25 15:00:12.198923
20 minutes ago
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Squabbling between surviving members of the 1960s rock band The Doors is serious enough that a lawsuit over an insurance policy covering "advertising injury" should proceed, a federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday.The band tried to carry on after its lead singer, Jim Morrison, died in 1971, but eventually split up. In recent years drummer John Densmore has waged a legal fight against guitarist Robby Krieger and keyboardist Ray Manzarek over their touring as "The Doors of the 21st Century." A judge eventually told them to stop using that name.
According to court papers, the Densmore lawsuit cost...
Earth Day concert? Check local listings (AP)
2008-03-25 20:00:13.634318
By BRETT ZONGKER, Associated Press Writer 50 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Looking for an excuse to avoid celebrating Earth Day? "There's nothing going on nearby" is probably not going to fly.The Roots, Ricky Skaggs, Los Lonely Boys, the Neville Brothers and Mickey Hart from the Grateful Dead are among the headliners for eight simultaneous Earth Day festivals planned at major cities around the U.S. on April 20, organizers said Tuesday.
The free events will be staged at parks in New York, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Miami and San Francisco. The flagship event will be the Earth Day 2008 celebration on the National Mall in Washington.
Organizers hope to get more people talking about global warming.
"I think the issue of the environment hopefully crosses party lines," producer Peter Shapiro said. "Our goal with this event is to make Earth Day more prominent."
The events are being billed as the nation's largest Earth Day celebration. Producers of the Green Apple Festival, which began three years ago in New York, and the Earth Day Network, a nonprofit created by the founders of the original Earth Day in 1970, are putting on the shows.
The Roots will headline the Washington event with the U.S. Capitol as their backdrop, along with political leaders, various speakers and other musical acts. Speakers will range from Richard Cizik, vice president of the National Association of Evangelicals, to the Rev. Jesse Jackson, members of Congress and possibly some presidential candidates, said Kathleen Rogers, president of Earth Day Network. (They're still trying to book Al Gore.)
In New York, country singer Ricky Skaggs will perform in Central Park, and the Latin group Menudo will take the stage in Miami with hip-hop group Arrested Development. Los Lonely Boys will be the headline act in Dallas while the Neville Brothers take their funk and R&B act to Denver. Mickey Hart is expected to perform at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
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On the Net:
Earth Day Network: http://www.earthday.net/
Green Apple Festival: http://www.greenapplemusicfestival.com/
...First 2 couples are done 'Dancing' (AP)
2008-03-25 23:00:14.277527
By SANDY COHEN, AP Entertainment Writer 46 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES - Magician Penn Jillette and tennis champ Monica Seles were the first stars eliminated from the sixth season of ABC's "Dancing With the Stars." Each came into Tuesday's results show in last place.Jillette, 53, added a dash of magic to his quickstep, but his footwork failed to impress the judges. Despite his dismissal, the magician insisted that he and his professional partner would continue to rehearse daily and planned to perform in the parking lot.
"There's no way my dance career ends now," he said.
Before her name was announced, Seles said being the first woman to leave the show "would be really hard."
"I'm not used to losing," said the nine-time Grand Slam champ.
Judge Bruno Tonioli acknowledged that her tennis prowess didn't translate to the dance floor: "You're not a performer, and it's hard for you."
Still, he called the 34-year-old athlete "a legend."
"Somebody of your stature being here with us really is a privilege, and you threw yourself (in) at the deep end," he said.
The show's first double-elimination round also featured a Cirque du Soleil-style acrobatic dance performance and two live songs by tween fave the Jonas Brothers. The pop-rock group played a cover of a-ha's 1985 hit "Take On Me," which was released before the trio of brothers was born, and the new song "When You Look Me in the Eyes."
The remaining competitors include radio host Adam Carolla, pro football player Jason Taylor, Olympic skater Kristi Yamaguchi, R&B singer Mario, and actors Steve Guttenberg, Shannon Elizabeth, Christian de la Fuente, Marlee Matlin, Priscilla Presley and Marissa Jaret Winokur.
Each will perform the tango or jive on next week's show.
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...Fleetwood Mac surprised by Sheryl Crow claim (Reuters)
2008-03-25 19:00:14.230925
By Gary Graff 56 minutes ago
DETROIT (Billboard) - Sheryl Crow's recent claim that she would be working with Fleetwood Mac surprised a lot of people -- including the members of the classic rock group.Crow, 46, who's friendly with Mac's Stevie Nicks, told the AOL music website Spinner.com earlier this month that she and the band "definitely have plans for collaborating in the future, and we'll see what happens."
"I think we were all a little surprised (Crow) was announcing that to the world with such certainty," Fleetwood Mac principal Lindsey Buckingham, 58, told Billboard.com with a laugh.
...George Michael to tour North America (AP)
2008-03-25 09:00:12.507501
11 minutes ago
NEW YORK - Ladies and gentlemen, George Michael is giving North America one more try.The pop star is gearing up for his first tour of the United States and Canada in 17 years, opening a multi-city "25 Live" tour in San Diego on June 17, Michael announced Monday. The tour is scheduled to wrap in Sunrise, Fla., on Aug. 3,
Other stops include Atlanta, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, New York, Boston, Toronto and Montreal.
Michael, 44, sang in the '80s pop group Wham! before embarking on a successful solo career. His hits include "Faith," "Father Figure" and "One More Try."
He'll release his greatest-hits album "Twenty Five" in the U.S. on April 1.
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On the Net:
George Michael:
http://www.georgemichael.com/
Email Story IM Story Printable View...Heppner back but Voigt sick (AP)
2008-03-25 17:00:14.526557
34 minutes ago
NEW YORK - At this rate, Ben Heppner and Deborah Voigt may never sing "Tristan und Isolde" together.After missing the first four performances of the highly anticipated revival at the Metropolitan Opera, Heppner planned to return Tuesday night.
But Voigt woke up Tuesday with a fever and nausea, spokesman Albert Imperato said. She was to be replaced by understudy Janice Baird.
Heppner and Voigt, two of the world's leading Wagnerian singers, have never sung the opera together and have one more chance: Friday night.
Heppner missed the performances of March 10, 14, 18 and 22 because of a blood-borne infection that abscessed in his pelvic region. In the March 14 performance, Voigt was bothered by a stomach ailment and left in the middle on the second act. After a delay of about 15 minutes, Baird took over in her Met debut.
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On the Net:
http://www.metopera.org
http:deborahvoigt.com
http://www.benheppner.com
Email Story IM Story...Injured singer described as stable (AP)
2008-03-25 15:00:13.037329
By MICHAEL GRACZYK, Associated Press Writer 45 minutes ago
HOUSTON - Even if he survives a horrific head injury suffered in a bus crash, Grammy-winning Tejano singer Emilio Navaira faces a long recovery and an uncertain future, his doctors say.Navaira, 45, known to his fans simply as Emilio, was behind the wheel of his tour bus before dawn Sunday following a weekend show when it slammed into an interchange barrier on a Houston-area freeway, propelling him through the windshield.
Police said while the crash remained under investigation, their preliminary probe showed Navaira was not licensed to drive the 26,000-pound bus. His agent said the singer loved to drive it and normally did.
The neurosurgeon who operated on the San Antonio-born Navaira to remove a blood clot warned that the performer "might not make it." Physicians hoped a research technique using hypothermia to lower his body temperature would keep Navaira's brain from further swelling and help his recovery.
Doctors began raising Navaira's body temperature Tuesday.
Dr. Alex Valadka, director of neurotrauma services at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center and vice chair of neurosciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, described Navaira as stable.
"In his case, that's good," Valadka said. "We're still afraid something adverse could happen. The main thing we're watching continues to be the pressure in his brain."
Valdka said if the pressure increases, doctors would try medication to control it.
Navaira was among six people — all but one of them members of his band_ aboard the bus and hurt in the crash on Interstate 610 in Bellaire, an enclave in Houston. They were returning home to San Antonio after playing at a Houston club Saturday night.
Email Story IM Story...Janet Jackson Gets Serious About Book-Writing
2008-03-25 05:00:23.206564
To reach out to her fans more effectively, celebrity sibling Janet Jackson has revealed her plans of writing a book based on her recent weight loss. The announcement came during the Hollywood premiere of Tyler Perry's 'Why Did I Get Married' film, where
Judge denies prejudice against Spector (AP)
2008-03-25 23:00:15.083525
By LINDA DEUTSCH, AP Special Correspondent 1 hour, 39 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES - The judge who presided over Phil Spector's first murder trial has rejected a defense motion to disqualify him from the retrial because of alleged prejudice against the legendary rock music producerSuperior Court Judge Larry Paul Fidler signed a declaration that he was not biased or prejudiced against any party in the case, according to court papers released Tuesday.
Spector's first trial ended in a jury deadlock last September. Spector, famed for his "Wall of Sound" recording technique, is accused of killing actress Lana Clarkson at his Alhambra mansion on Feb. 3, 2003.
In the statement the judge signed March 19, Fidler also said the motion filed by Spector attorney Doron Weinberg was untimely and any protests of the judge's actions should have been filed when they occurred during the trial.
Weinberg said he was preparing to file a writ with the state court of appeals seeking a hearing before a neutral judge.
Weinberg filed a 44-page motion last week listing numerous alleged acts of bias by the judge. They included: the imposition of a gag order limited to Spector's wife and a potential defense witness as well as his decision to withdraw a jury instruction and craft a new one after jurors first announced they were deadlocked.
The defense alleged that Fidler wanted to counter public perceptions that celebrities were given special treatment and could not be convicted in California courts.
Clarkson, 40, was working as a hostess at the House of Blues when she met Spector and went home with him. The actress best known for her role in "Barbarian Queen" died of a gunshot fired inside her mouth while she was seated in a foyer of Spector's mansion.
The prosecution claimed Spector, 68, shot her and that had a history of threatening women with guns; the defense argued Clarkson shot herself, either accidentally or by suicide.
No date has been set for the retrial and a hearing on that issue was scheduled for Friday.
Email Story...Judge upholds Spears conservatorship (AP)
2008-03-25 00:00:14.669513
43 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES - A state appeals court on Monday dismissed an attorney's challenge to the order that gives Britney Spears' father control over much of her life.Attorney Jon Eardley, who claimed to represent the pop star, filed an appeal March 11 challenging a court decision that made James Spears a co-conservator of his daughter's estate.
Justice Roger Boren of the California Court of Appeal wrote in a ruling that the court has no jurisdiction to grant an appeal.
An after-hours call seeking comment from the lawyer was not immediately returned.
Last month, Eardley tried but failed to move the probate case to federal court, claiming that the conservatorship was a violation of Spears' civil rights. A federal judge ruled that Eardley is not Spears' attorney and has no authority to act on her behalf.
James Spears was named co-conservator of his daughter's estate on Feb. 1 after she was twice hospitalized in a psychiatric facility. Conservatorships are granted for people deemed unable to take care of themselves or their affairs.
It lets the father restrict and limit visitors, retain caretakers and security guards, and gives him access to all medical records.
Email Story IM Story Printable View Yahoo! Buzz RECOMMEND THIS STORY...Lawyer's Spears conservatorship appeal rejected
2008-03-25 06:00:15.302827
An attorney claiming to represent Britney Spears has had his appeal challenging a court ruling that gave the singer's father control of her personal and business affairs thrown out. Jamie Spears was appointed conservator of the star's legal and financial
Lil Wayne's 'Carter III' Finally Has Street Date
2008-03-25 15:00:13.041116
Lil Wayne's oft-delayed 'Tha Carter III' album will at last be released on May 13th via Young Money/Cash Money/Universal Motown. The album's first single, 'Lollipop,' produced by Jim Jonsin and featuring Static Major, was the top debut last week at No.
Longtime Beatles friend and business associate Neil Aspinall dies in New York
2008-03-25 00:00:15.473668
Nekesa Mumbi Moody, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK - Neil Aspinall, a longtime friend of the Beatles who managed their business enterprises and helped make the group a moneymaking phenomenon decades after they split up, has died. He was 66. Aspinall's
Macca pays tributes to "fifth Beatle"
2008-03-25 01:00:14.137818
Neil Aspinall, a long-time friend of the Beatles who managed their business enterprises and helped make the group a moneymaking phenomenon decades after they split up, has died at the age of 66. Aspinall's death was announced today in a statement from
Maroon 5 and Counting Crows plot summer tour (Reuters)
2008-03-25 05:00:23.204914
1 hour, 30 minutes ago
NEW YORK (Billboard) - Maroon 5 and Counting Crows are teaming for an extensive North American amphitheater tour beginning July 25 in Virginia Beach, Va.Dates are scheduled through October 4 in West Palm Beach, Fla. Tickets go on sale April 4.
Maroon 5 is promoting its 2007 chart-topper "It Won't Be Soon Before Long," while Counting Crows this week released its first studio album in almost six years, "Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings."
Singer/songwriter Sara Bareilles will open their shows through August 26 (Blossom Music Center, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio); rock band Augustana will then take over the support chores.
...Mobius: an appetising birthday buffet
2008-03-25 23:00:15.088434
Geoffrey Norris reviews Mobius at the Wigmore Hall One puzzle was resolved by actually going to this concert rather than merely reading the advance listing. The chamber ensemble Mobius was celebrating its 10th anniversary, and to mark the occasion had
Mostly Mozart Festival includes Mahler (AP)
2008-03-25 20:00:13.255395
33 minutes ago
NEW YORK - At the upcoming Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Mozart will share the spotlight with other old masters and living artists from Finland to the South Pacific.Peter Sellars is to direct Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho's new work, "Passion de Simone." Soprano Dawn Upshaw has the title role as French philosopher Simone Weil, who died of tuberculosis in 1943 as a member of the anti-Nazi resistance.
The festival's 42nd season, running July 29 to Aug. 23, encompasses 60 events, including orchestral and chamber concerts, recitals, dance, film, lectures and video art installations.
The July 29 opening concert is to be conducted by the festival's music director, Louis Langree, featuring Mostly Mozart's first Mahler, "Das Lied von der Erde" ("The Song of the Earth") for two singers and orchestra, and Mozart's Symphony No. 40 in G minor.
Langree also will lead the Aug. 23 performance of Richard Strauss's "Metamorphosen" for 23 solo strings and Mozart's Mass in C minor.
Another Saariaho work, "Terra Memoria," is to be performed by the Grammy-winning Emerson String Quartet as part of the festival's Finnish focus, which also will feature music by Jan Sibelius and Fredrik Lithander played by Finnish musicians.
The South Pacific is represented by choreographer Lemi Ponifasio, a native of the island of Samoa who has reinterpreted Mozart's "Requiem" as a dance incorporating the ancient rituals of a Samoan tribal chief. The work is to receive its U.S. premiere at the festival Aug. 6.
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On the Net:
http://www.lincolncenter.org/
Email Story IM Story...Pamela Anderson's brief marriage ends (AP)
2008-03-25 00:00:15.471523
Mon Mar 24, 9:14 PM ET
LOS ANGELES - Pamela Anderson has ended another brief marriage.The "Baywatch" star's nuptials with Rick Salomon were officially annulled Monday, according to documents filed in Superior Court.
The documents listed fraud as the reason for the annulment but did not include further details.
Salomon and Anderson, 40, were married Oct. 6 in Las Vegas then separated Dec. 13.
Messages left for Anderson's attorney Larry Ginsberg were not immediately returned. The documents did not name a lawyer for Salomon, and he could not be reached.
Court papers entered Friday showed that Salomon agreed to a filing by Anderson in late February requesting that the marriage should be voided. No spousal supported was included.
Anderson was previously married to Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee and rocker Kid Rock. Rock and Anderson each filed for divorce in 2006 after less than four months of marriage.
Salomon, known for making a sex videotape with then-girlfriend Paris Hilton, was previously married to actress Shannen Doherty for nine months.
Email Story IM Story Printable View Yahoo! Buzz...Rocking while they roll in the Black Cab Sessions (Reuters)
2008-03-25 08:00:13.610511
By Peter Graff 4 minutes ago
LONDON (Reuters) - It's a rainy Friday afternoon stuck in traffic with the windshield wipers slapping back and forth, and Barry Hyde, lead singer of the British rock group The Futureheads, grins as he tears through the band's latest hit."Very nice," says the audience of one, our cab driver. "You have a lovely voice, Barry."
Welcome to the Black Cab Sessions, the most intimate concert series ever filmed, bringing some of the biggest bands in Britain to the smallest possible venue.
The idea is as simple as can be: a film crew meets the band on a London street, flags down a black taxi and everyone piles...
Sean Combs settles punching lawsuit (AP)
2008-03-25 02:00:13.620695
1 hour, 14 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES - Sean "Diddy" Combs has settled a lawsuit brought by a man who claims the rapper and fashion mogul punched him after a post-Oscar party outside a Hollywood hotel.The terms of the deal were not disclosed in court papers posted Monday on the celebrity Web site TMZ.com.
After-hours calls to attorneys for both sides were not immediately returned.
The lawsuit by Gerard Rechnitzer claimed that Combs punched him, pushed his girlfriend and spat on another woman on Feb. 25, 2007 outside Teddy's Nightclub at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Rechnitzer sought unspecified damages.
In a court declaration, Combs said Rechnitzer lunged toward him and that "any contact ... was caused by his forward motion against my open hand."
Email Story IM Story Printable View Yahoo! Buzz RECOMMEND THIS STORY Recommend It: Not at All...Smashing Pumpkins Sue Virgin Over Promo
2008-03-25 14:00:14.665205
The Smashing Pumpkins are suing Virgin Records, saying the record label has illegally used their name and music in promotional deals that hurt the band's credibility with fans. In a breach-of-contract lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court yesterday
Smashing Pumpkins sue Virgin Records (AP)
2008-03-25 05:00:22.379894
29 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Smashing Pumpkins are suing Virgin Records, saying the record label has illegally used their name and music in promotional deals that hurt the band's credibility with fans.In a breach-of-contract lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court Monday, the rockers said they have "worked hard for over two decades to accumulate a considerable amount of goodwill in the eyes of the public," and that Virgin's use of the band in a "Pepsi Stuff" promotion with Amazon.com and Pepsi Co. threatens their reputation for "artistic integrity."
Virgin put out the Smashing Pumpkins' music for more than 17 years, but the only active agreement between the two parties, the lawsuit claimed, is a deal granting Virgin permission to sell digital downloads of the band's songs. The agreement does not give Virgin the right to use the band in promotional campaigns to sell outside products, the lawsuit said.
The band members said they would "never grant such authority to Virgin, or any other entity."
An after-hours call to Virgin Records was not immediately returned.
The lawsuits demands that Virgin pay with the profits that were earned in the promotion, and asks for an injunction against using the Pumpkins' name or music in the future.
Email Story IM Story Printable View Yahoo! Buzz RECOMMEND THIS STORY Recommend It:...Sorry, Underground Hip Hop Happened Ten Years Ago
2008-03-25 11:00:12.856918
Sorry, Underground Hip Hop Happened Ten Years Ago (for Regan) is put together from the 450 or so samples of rappers saying yo Caural grabbed while revisiting his CD collection.You can hear the collage at , or . Later this year itll be on wax as a part of
Spears goes for laughs on CBS' `Mother' (AP)
2008-03-25 09:00:12.916653
By ERIN CARLSON, Associated Press Writer 17 minutes ago
NEW YORK - Britney the Trainwreck showed how she can still be Britney the Performer.Britney Spears made her much-hyped guest appearance Monday night's "How I Met Your Mother," submersing her tumultuous personal life and portraying a sweet-natured receptionist, Abby, with a crush on unlucky-in-love Ted (Josh Radnor).
Problem is: Ted only has eyes for Abby's boss Stella (Sarah Chalke), a dermatologist. Ted's goal: to win a date by his 10th session with Stella. Nothing's working.
Finally, he figures: "The receptionist — that's my way in."
So he brings Abby coffee in a bid to impress Stella, but it charms Abby even more. During one visit, Abby trails him and Stella into an office to deliver a book — a self-help tome called "The Power of Me" — that he left behind in the waiting room.
The 26-year-old pop star, who previously was on a 2006 episode of "Will and Grace," appeared fresh-faced and relaxed, capably filling the small role. She was also the host and musical guest on "Saturday Night Live" in 2000.
Of course, she's made news in recent months not for being Britney the Performer but for her split with ex-husband Kevin Federline in late 2006, their subseqent custody battle, Spears' bizarre behavior and two hospitalizations.
Spears' cameo on the CBS sitcom may mark the beginnings of a more successful comeback attempt than last September's MTV Video Music Awards.
She remains under the conservatorship of her father, James.
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On the Net:
http://www.cbs.com/primetime/how_i_met_your_mother /
...Sunset Records presents Sunset Urban Showcase World Premiere Concert Party
2008-03-25 04:00:23.690543
at legendary spot, The White Gate in Brooklyn on Sunday, April 6, 2008. (Billboard Publicity Wire) March 24, 2008 -- The Sunset Urban Records showcase will feature performances by many of the emerging Sunset Urban acts with a special preview of the new
Tejano singer Navaira clings to life (AP)
2008-03-25 08:00:13.979943
By MICHAEL GRACZYK, Associated Press Writer 44 minutes ago
HOUSTON - Even if he survives a horrific head injury suffered in a bus crash, Grammy-winning Tejano singer Emilio Navaira faces a long recovery and an uncertain future, his doctors say.Navaira, 45, known to his fans simply as Emilio, was behind the wheel of his tour bus before dawn Sunday following a weekend show when it slammed into an interchange barrier on a Houston-area freeway, propelling him through the windshield.
Police said while the crash remained under investigation, their preliminary probe showed Navaira was not licensed to drive the 26,000-pound bus. His agent said the singer loved to drive it and normally did.
The neurosurgeon who operated on the San Antonio-born Navaira to remove a blood clot warned that the performer "might not make it." Physicians hoped a research technique using hypothermia to lower his body temperature would keep Navaira's brain from further swelling and help his recovery.
"It's very difficult to predict any one person, how they're going to do," Dr. Alex Valadka, director of neurotrauma services at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center and vice chair of neurosciences at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, said Monday.
"I think it is a good sign so far the pressures in his brain have not risen and have been controlled. The longer we can keep doing that the better it is for him."
Even if Navaira pulls through, the effects on his health "can be as bad as not surviving," Valadka said. They could include a coma, vegetative state, weakness or paralysis, difficulty speaking, memory loss and inability to concentrate.
He put the survival rate for those suffering similar severe brain injuries at 30 to 35 percent.
The singer was among six people — all but one of them band members — aboard the bus and hurt in the crash on Interstate 610 in Bellaire, an enclave in Houston. They were returning home to San Antonio after playing at a Houston club Saturday night.
The singer's blood will be tested for alcohol but the results likely wouldn't be known for a couple of weeks, he said. Also under consideration was the possibility that Navaira fell asleep.
Of those also hurt on the bus, bass player Rick Vega remained hospitalized Monday with undetermined abdominal injuries, said Joe Casias, Navaira's friend and agent. The others, including Navaira's brother, Raul, who sang in the band, were treated for cuts and bruises and released.
(This version RECASTS lead to correct grammar. )
...The Arts Column: in glorious discord over Stravinsky
2008-03-25 22:00:13.381027
Few things are more fun to savour than a good old artistic feud, says Rupert Christiansen The fallout can take several forms, from the vitriolic spat (Vidal v Capote, Oasis v Blur) to a purely intellectual combat (Wilson v Nabokov), to the serious
The Beatles Sue To Block Release Of 1962 Live Tapes
2008-03-25 04:00:23.683984
The Beatles'company Apple Corps filed a federal lawsuit on Friday (March 21st) against the latest company trying release live recordings of the group from December 1962 in Hamburg, Germany alongside other acts on the same bill as the Beatles. Apple's
The Top 5 lists (AP)
2008-03-25 13:00:13.023922
By The Associated Press 2 hours, 52 minutes ago
TELEVISION1. "American Idol" (Tuesday), Fox.
2. "American Idol" (Wednesday), Fox.
3. "Survivor: Micronesia," CBS.
4. "Lost," ABC.
5. "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," ABC.
(From Nielsen Media Research)
FILM
1. "Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!", Fox.
2. "Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns," Lionsgate.
3. "Shutter," Fox.
4. "Drillbit Taylor," Paramount.
...The tragic story of Corinne Bailey Rae's husband - from award-winning musician to sordid 'drugs death'
2008-03-25 10:00:13.497139
The husband of soul singer Corinne Bailey Rae was a musical award-winner and university high-flier before his death from a suspected drugs overdose. Saxophonist Jason Rae - who graduated from Leeds College of Music with a first class honours degree - is
Timberlake donates $200,000 in Memphis (AP)
2008-03-25 14:00:15.834868
Tue Mar 25, 9:11 AM ET
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Justin Timberlake has made two separate donations of $100,000 each to the Memphis Rock 'n' Soul Museum and the Memphis Music Foundation.The 27-year-old area native, who was in Memphis for filming on the independent movie "The Open Road," presented the checks to the two groups last week at the museum.
Timberlake, who grew up in the Memphis suburb of Millington, became a star as part of the boy band 'N Sync. He has since become a best-selling solo artist. He also has appeared in the films "Alpha Dog" and "Black Snake Moan" and voiced a character in "Shrek the Third."
Timberlake said he donated the money because music education and keeping Memphis' music legacy vibrant are important to him.
Email Story IM Story Printable View Yahoo! Buzz RECOMMEND THIS STORY Recommend It: Not at All Somewhat...Vintage tune may grace new Skynyrd album (Reuters)
2008-03-25 07:00:14.207053
By Gary Graff Tue Mar 25, 4:02 AM ET
DETROIT (Billboard) - A previously unreleased song featuring Lynyrd Skynyrd's original lineup may surface on the Southern rock band's next studio album, which is expected out in early 2009.Guitarist Gary Rossington tells Billboard.com that he recently unearthed the song, "Cottonmouth Country," from the archives. "It has Ronnie Van Zant singing and Leon (Wilkerson) on bass and Bob Burns is on drums," Rossington says.
"It's a cool track, pretty cool lyrics -- it's about the swamps. And we never put it out with (producer) Al Kooper on the first or second album. We just kind of let it sit there and...
WMC remains dance music's biggest party (AP)
2008-03-25 15:00:12.634259
By EVELYN McDONNELL, For the Associated Press 39 minutes ago
MIAMI - When Tom Holkenborg, the artist and producer known as Junkie XL, decided to launch the tour for his new album, he picked the biggest, maddest place he knows for dance music to kick it off: the Winter Music Conference.Beginning Tuesday, Holkenborg will be one of hundreds of DJs and artists — and tens of thousands of enthusiasts — who come to this annual beach bacchanal to get the year of party music started right.
"It's hard to find a lineup that has the same insanity that Miami has," says Holkenborg, a Netherlands native whose latest album, "Booming Back at You," was released this month. "When it comes to gathering so many well-known DJs and live artists, for the music fans it's an absolutely thrilling opportunity."
Over the last 23 years, Miami and Miami Beach have become the gathering places for global clubbers and the industry that caters to them during the week of WMC. For five days, dance fanatics will take over hotels, restaurants, nightspots, and concert venues with a slew of parties, industry mixers, panels, and awards shows — some of them officially part of the festival, some of them not (Ultra, the two-day outdoor festival, began 10 years ago as one of WMC's parasitic, satellite events/competitors and is now the official closing party).
WMC is where DJs, producers, artists, and their hangers-on come to break new records, in preparation for the summer parties in Ibiza, Spain, and elsewhere. Years ago, it was one of the first places where you could catch Fatboy Slim, Roni Size, Basement Jaxx, and the Brazilian Girls. This year's big names include Erykah Badu, Moby, and the Bravery.
WMC has a reputation both cheesy and essential. When Xavier de Rosnay thinks of the WMC, a slick, vintage disco image comes to mind.
"It has a bit of a reputation of being for corporate concerns, with lots of guys with suntans and tanktops and muscles, and the equivalent of this for girls," says half of the hit French duo Justice, as if the fabled electronic dance music gathering were Miami Vice come to life. "And it's kind of true, but it's cool. This is what makes it exotic for us."
Around 50,000 fans from dozens of nations are expected to attend Ultra on March 28 and 29 alone. Many of them are teen- and college-age spring breakers for whom acts from dance music's heyday, like headliner Underworld, are the equivalent of classic rockers, yet who continue to relish electronic beats. For its tenth anniversary, Ultra — which in recent years has incorporated rock acts in its billing — is honing in on its historic strength.
"With this year what we've done, we focused in on what it's been since day one, which is an amazing electronic music festival," says Ultra co-founder Russell Faibish.
In the '90s, when pundits were proclaiming electronic dance music the next big thing, WMC became world renowned as a glittery, subtropical, all-night party — where, sometimes, deals got signed the next day over poolside hangovers. The organizers struggled to keep up with their own success: Many attendees complained that the convention was unfriendly and out of touch, and didn't bother to register for it. Instead of giving registrants free admission, clubs charged exorbitant door fees — up to $100 at peak hours. WMC's organizers in turn intimated they would take their conference elsewhere, like to Las Vegas and Puerto Rico.
With registration costing $440 at the door (cheaper if done in advance), only about 5,000 of the tens of thousands who attend WMC events are expected to register this year. But there are no more rumors of the confab pulling up stakes. Clubs have honored WMC passes with free admissions more in recent years, and WMC has either outlasted or, as with Ultra, included many of its erstwhile competitors.
"We have evolved by incorporating the hundreds of parties and events that take place during the week of WMC into its program," says Bill Kelly, a South Florida DJ who founded the conference with Louis Possenti.
...Who knew hip-hop was so hard?
2008-03-25 20:00:14.095695
PM by Kristen SeymourFiled under: FitnessI grew up dancing -- tap, jazz, gymnastics, ballet -- you name it, I took the class. My schedule has recently become a bit more flexible, so I've been . I came across , which promised 'it's more like a dance party
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