Ann Wilson Week: A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall

We were thinking about that one and it's daunting because it's like six and a half minutes of verse after verse. Ben was like, "Why don't you take a shot at editing the lyrics." Like go ahead, Ann Wilson, you try and edit Bob Dylan. I tried three times but it was ridiculous. So we went back to the drawing board to try another way. Ben did an amazing job on the arrangement, and obviously Rufus Wainwright and Shawn Colvin brought their own hearts and soul to it. 

We had done 'Decades Live' with Rufus and I'm a fan and we hit it off. He's a great talent. And I've known Shawn as a fan for years now and our paths would cross and we got to know each others as mothers really first. I thought how cool it would be to have those three very distinct voices on that brilliant Dylan song. 
- Preview a couple tracks off the CD, grab tour dates and more right here!

Led Zeppelin Reunion Talks

We all know that unnamed sources are probably the last people you should listen to, especially with the recent Rolling Stones are retiring story and the denied Zeppelin reunion rumor from a few weeks back where the source forgot to tell Robert Plant about the supposed reunion. So take this one with a pound of salt. 

Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones are reportedly in talks to play the 02 Arena with Jason Bonham filling in for his late father. Of course, this rumor rings of another recent rumor which may give it more credence or make it smell that much more fishy since it's reportedly being set up to honor the late record mogul that gave them their deal, Ahmet Ertegun. This was a big part of the last rumor that Plant dismissed. "If there was one, then there wouldn't be enough doctors to support it," Plant said back in June when the rumor first surfaced.- more on this story

Rihanna Rips Off New Order?

While this shouldn't be very surprising to anyone given the derivative and unoriginal nature of modern R&B these days, one person going by the name of usernamemyarse on YouTube decided that video proof was needed and put together Rihanna's "Shut up and Dance" with the New Order hit "Blue Monday" to show people how much of rip off it appears to be. 

The main part of the video is the New Order song playing over Rihanna's video with parts of the her song synching perfectly with "Blue Monday". What happened to the R&B tradition in the modern age? It appears to be just as bad as almost every other area of entertainment from movies to TV, with inferior copies of the original being presented as something new.- But judge for yourself. 

Rocker Breaks Back

Mick Quinn was staying in a villa in the south of France and sleepwalked out of a ground floor window. The bass player and vocalist broke two vertebrae and smashed his heel according to the BBC. 

He was taken to spinal unit in Toulouse and a specialist operated to repair the broken vertebrae and heal. While he is expected to make a full recovery from the injuries, the recovery will take several months. Luckily the band only has one gig scheduled in near future.- more on this story

New Bohemian Killed

The neighbor believed a burglar was trying to break in and fired a shot through the door around 4 a.m., Dallas police spokesman Sgt. Gil Cerda said.

"He was at his girlfriend's house last night," said Danny Balis, Albrecht's roommate. "He left the house and went next door and - for whatever reason, which we don't know - he knocked on the neighbor's door. And from what I understand, he was persistent. I don't know if there was a verbal exchange, but the person panicked and fired a shot through the door."- more on this story

Van Halen Date Changes

According to Pollstar the dates which have changed or were updated late last week include Oct 20th in Detroit, Nov 29th in Fresno (not listed on the band's official site) and San Jose on Dec 16th as the final stop on the tour. 

The band's official site is listing some different dates. Most notable is the Calgary, AB show at the Pengrowth Saddledome which the band's site lists as happening on December 7th but Pollstar is listing on December 11th. The Uniondale, NY date at the Nassau Coliseum is listed as November 8th on the band's site and the day before on Pollstar. But the band did send out an alert a couple weeks ago about the move to the 8th so we'll see how that shakes out although Pollstar is usually the most accurate.- more on this story

KT Tunstall Soph

For 'drastic Fantastic' KT again tapped Telescope producer Steve Osbourne (U2, New Order, Happy Mondays). The album was mixed by Michael H. Brauer (Coldplay, The Rolling Stones, My Morning Jacket). Tunstall recently told a British interviewer that her acquisition of two "very sexy" guitars had inspired her to crank them for the new album, providing a clue to the sound of her new work.

The album's September release will follow a busy summer of high-profile live appearances for KT- more on this story

PJ Harvey Sets 2 Date Tour

The dates will be solo PJ and will focus on her upcoming album White Chalk, available September 25th on Island Records. Sadly, there are no plans for a full tour of the US.

The first show will take place on October 10th at the Beacon Theatre in New York. The second show will be at The Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles on October 15th.- 

Rush Plot Spring Tour

This leg will kick off with a two- or three-night stand at the Etess Arena at the Trump Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City sometime in March. 

The band will then move up The East Coast to Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, and Atlantic Canada to wrap up the first set of dates before heading south for a handful of shows in late March through early April which will include New Orleans, New Mexico, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Mississippi.- more on this story

Kittie Eating Disorder

Lander explains, "She is unfortunately sick and can't make the tour... It's at the point now where we don't know when she's gonna be back. 

"Unfortunately, she has a really serious eating disorder and these things take time. it could be two months, six months, two years, or never, and it's all in her hands and it's all up to her.- more on this story

It's Britney, Bitch

Spears announced her comeback via a new single which premiered last week that declared "It's Britney, bitch" according to Gigwise. The song, "Gimme More," officially premiered Thursday night on New York radio station Z-100's website. The single was produced by Timbaland protege Danja.

The album featuring the single will be released by Jive Records on November 13th- more on this story

Smyth Leaves Nevermore

I will continue on with other aspects of my music career, including the upcoming release of The EssenEss Project, an all instrumental album, in the vein of progressive rock, that is now finished and being prepared for release. After a year and 4 months of being out of the touring scene due to ill health and then a kidney transplant, I have finally been given a full health clearance by my doctors to go back on the road, and I am now ready to return to the stage. 

I am now embarking on a 6 week of tour of Europe with my friends from the Danish thrash metal band, SPV Recording Artists, HateSphere- more on this story

Marillion Reunion was a One Off.

As we reported last week, Fish joined some of his former Marillion bandmates, Mark Kelly, Steve Rothery, Ian Mosley and Pete Trewavas for a performance of "Market Square Heroes" last Sunday. He tells fans that this was just a one time reunion on his official website. Here is part of what he had to say: "Just to say I had a fantastic time in Aylesbury this weekend. Any rumours of reunions are completely unfounded and to be honest a wee bit ridiculous. I didn't want to make a big deal out of the affair and to be seen to be exploiting what was purely an opportunity for 5 great friends to get together and perform in a spiritual home. An opportunity that couldn't be missed. If anything it goes to prove that we are actually mates and not in rival opposing camps as some try to make out. I've got nothing but respect for H and the boy does a damn good job with the band, long may they continue."

While this may disappoint some Marillion fans, Fish did deliver some good news for them via his site about a limited edition of his new studio album. Here is what the site had to say: "13th Star" is the new Fish studio album featuring ten original tracks - "Circle Line", "Square Go", "Miles de Besos", "Zöe 25", "Arc of the Curve", "Manchmal", "Openwater", "Dark Star", "Where in the World?" and "13th Star". Produced by Calum Malcolm (Blue Nile/Prefab Sprout/Simple Minds/Nazareth) the album is released as a 10,000 limited edition CD in a 3 panel digipak together with a bonus DVD of "The Making of 13th Star" (64 mins). This limited edition album is only available through our mail order service and at the merchandising stalls on the forthcoming "Clutching at Stars" tour. - Read more of Fish's comments on the reunion and get your order in for 13th Star right here! 

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