Velvet Revolver Auditioning New Singer

Matt also discussed a possible GNR Roll Hall reunion and his side projects, read about those here.

Etta James Terminally Ill

(Gibson) 73-year-old singer Etta James has a terminal illness. Doctors diagnosed the rock legend with leukemia earlier in the year but have now announced that her illness is incurable, according to the Riverside Press Enterprise.

A court battle is in full swing between her husband Artis Mills and her son Donto James for control of her estate, estimated at over $1 million.

The blues and soul singer, who fought heroin addiction in the '70s, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993 and was played by Beyoncé in the 2008 movie Cadillac Records.

Watch Etta James in action with Keith Richards and Chuck Berry here.

Wild Thing Singer Hospitalized

(Gibson) Reg Presley, singer with '60s British band The Troggs ("Wild Thing," "With a Girl Like You," "Love is All Around"), is in the hospital in England suffering from pneumonia and a possible stroke.

Music-News.com reports that 70-year-old Presley is in poor condition. His wife told the Daily Mirror that it "started that weekend [December 3] but he was contracted to do [a show] so thought he had better go ahead.

"He came back and got steadily worse. In the last couple of weeks he has gradually deteriorated. It is like he has hit a brick wall all of a sudden." more on this story

Beach Boys Reuniting for Album and 50th Anniversary Tour

(Gibson) The Beach Boys have announced plans to reform for their 50th anniversary. Founding members Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, plus David Marks and Bruce Johnston, plan a new studio album and a 50-date international tour beginning in April.

No touring dates have yet been confirmed, but the band will appear as headliners at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (April 27 to May 6, 2012). New commemorative releases are also planned for 2012, including a new Beach Boys hits collection and a career-spanning box set.

Frontman Brian Wilson said of the reunion: "This anniversary is special to me because I miss the boys and it will be a thrill for me to make a new record and be on stage with them again."

Mike Love added: "We got together at Capitol Records and re-recorded 'Do It Again.' Brian and I wrote that song which went to #1 in Great Britain, Australia and elsewhere some 44 years ago. Brian paid me a compliment saying, 'How can a guy sound that great so many years later?' Later on, while working out some harmonies on a new song Brian had written, I got a chance to return the compliment. more on this story

Guns N' Roses and Duff McKagan Reunion Jam

(hennemusic) Guns N' Roses fans had a double-shot of nostalgia over the weekend, as Duff McKagan opened two shows for his former band.

Friday's gig in Seattle was followed by a Saturday concert in Vancouver, and Duff joined GNR on stage both nights.

In Vancouver, McKagan was on board with GNR for "You Could Be Mine" (same as in Seattle) and "Civil War." Check out video here.

Crue, KISS, Dokken, Megadeth Members To Tribute Ozzy

(Gibson) Ozzy Osbourne is set to great the tribute album treatment with a new release due next year. No More Tears: A Tribute to Ozzy Osbourne will be released on May 8 and feature some major artists.

Although the tracklist has yet to be revealed, Versailles Records announced that both Black Sabbath and Ozzy's solo work would be up for grabs.

Among the contributors: Vince Neil (Mötley Crüe), George Lynch (Dokken, Lynch Mob), Eric Singer (KISS), Mark Slaughter (Slaughter), Keri Kelli (Alice Cooper, Ratt), Chris Poland (Megadeth), Stu Hamm (Joe Satriani, Steve Vai) and Derrick LeFevre (Lillian Axe). more on this story

Metallica Offering Up Recording of First 30th Anniversary Gig

(hennemusic) Metallica recently celebrated their 30th Anniversary with a series of fan club shows at the Fillmore in San Francisco.

MetClub members could see individual shows at the legendary venue (capacity 1,200) for $6, or all four for $19.81, in honor of the 30 year mark. Metallica are now making Night 1 of the series available to fans.

The December 5 show kicked off the first of four nights with a bunch of special guests, including former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted, John Marshall (Metal Church), Sean Harris and Brian Tatler (Diamond Head), Biff Byford (Saxon) and Apocalyptica. more on this story

Joe Satriani Becomes A Comic Book Hero

(Gibson) Joe Satriani is going to debut as a comic book hero. He will be part of the second volume of the comic book Eternal Descent, appearing as a "cryptic entity" with supreme powers.

The storyline involves music. Upon making the ultimate sacrifice, the character Sirian finds himself caught lost in time and space as strange beautiful music (Strange Beautiful Music is a Satriani album title) resonates throughout the cosmos, heralding the arrival of Joe Satriani. He saves the day, of course. Eternal Descent is a "virtual band" in the comic book, and Static X and God Forbid have previously appeared.

"I reached out to Joe directly with a taster of previous Eternal Descent collaborations and some ideas for incorporating his musical heritage into the world of comics," says writer Llexi Leon. "I was blown away when he responded a few days later, all the paperwork signed and his own ideas noted down along with the answers to some questions I had raised." more on this story

Two New Scorpions Releases Coming Next Month

Legacy Recordings have set a January 24, 2012 North American release date for two new titles from the Scorpions.

Scorpions: Comeblack: Comeblack, a new album of classic rock covers and fresh performances of signature repertoire recorded earlier this year, and Get Your Sting and Blackout - Live in 3D, available on Blu-ray disc, an 11-camera 3-D concert film recorded in Saarbrucken, Germany on April 15, 2011 during Scorpions current farewell tour.

Launched by guitarist Rudolf Schenker in 1965, Scorpions forged metal, rock and pop into a sound that's come to signify an entire genre through hard rock anthems like "Rock You Like A Hurricane" and hits like "Send Me An Angel," "Wind of Change" and "Still Loving You," selling more than 100 million records in the process. more on this story

Behind The Lost Chickenfoot Record

(hennemusic) When Chickenfoot released their sophomore album, "Chickenfoot III," in September, the title puzzled fans a bit, since it was only their second album.How did they end up with "III", and was there ever a "II"?

In a new video spoofing the situation in a Behind The Music-style presentation, the members of Chickenfoot have some fun explaining the "lost record."

Chickenfoot recently snagged a Grammy nomination for the "Best Recording Package," for the creative 3D design of the new album ("III," that is). Check out the spoof video here.

Journey's Neal Schon Plugs Nude Picture Leak

(TMZ) Journey guitarist Neal Schon went on a legal campaign this week to decontaminate the Internet -- demanding a gossip website remove a XXX picture of his private parts ... or else.

Schon's attorney fired off a blistering letter to TheDirty.com on Thursday -- claiming the site published a self-taken pic of Neal ... flashing his junk in the bathroom.

According to Schon's lawyer, the pic was stolen from an old cell phone -- and publishing it constituted a gross violation of the musician's privacy rights ... that, and it's just plain humiliating.

The site must have bought the argument, too ... because the photo has since been removed. more on this story

Black Stone Cherry Plan North American Tour

Black Stone Cherry will start the New Year by hitting the road for a series of North American headline dates with support from Cavo.

Black Stone Cherry who will be hitting the road in support of their 2011 release, Between the Devil & the Deep Blue Sea.

Produced by Howard Benson (Theory of a Deadman, Daughtry, Three Days Grace), Between the Devil & the Deep Blue Sea has spawned three Rock radio hits to date.
more on this story

Sky Eats Airplane and Of Mice & Men frontman's New Group Lands Deal

Former Sky Eats Airplane and Of Mice & Men frontman Jerry Roush's new group Glass Cloud has inked a deal with Equal Vision Records.

The complete lineup features Roush, 8-string guitarist Joshua Travis [ex-The Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza], bassist Travis Sykes and drummer Chad Hasty.

The group is currently in San Diego, CA recording their debut album at Lambesis Studios, with Joshua Travis producing the record. more on this story

Tank Plan Live DVD

(MMP) Tank will record their show on March, 9th 2012 in Stodola Club in Warsaw (Poland) for their first live DVD release.

Cliff Evans: "We're really looking forward to making our first ever Official Tank Live DVD. It's something we've wanted to do for a long time and gives us the chance to show our fans around the world what a Tank show is all about.

"The DVD will include old favourites such as 'This Means War', 'Echoes of a Distant Battle' and 'Power of the Hunter' plus future classics such as 'Judgement Day' and 'Phoenix Rising' plus many more. Get ready for 'War Machine Live!' DVD." more on this story

F*** All Your Friends Tour With Dr. Acula, The Devastated and More

The Devastated will team up with Dr. Acula, Design The Skyline for the "F***! All Your Friends Tour"

In Dying Arms will also appear on select dates for the trek that kicks off on February 1st in Barrington, IL and wrapping up on March 7th in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Century Media says that fans can expect to hear new material taken from the band's upcoming release, Devil's Messenger. more on this story

Guitar Hero Concerto

(Gibson) The Guitar Hero video game may have recently suffered a sales slump, but Freddie Wong and Shiva Feshareki think it still has genuine musical potential.

Wong, a Los Angeles-based filmmaker and musician, whose YouTube channels boast nearly half a billion viewers and more than two million subscribers, has now helped create a Guitar Hero 2 "concerto." Wong is not new to this: he was named the #1 player at the World Series of Video Games in Dallas in 2007.

But it is Shiva Feshareki who has composed this first-ever Guitar Hero Concerto. She says, "I've written it with Freddie's personality in mind, but it's also about showing off the instrument as well. What I love about Guitar Hero is it's so accessible. It doesn't cost very much, and the notation is so easy to follow. There are millions of people out there who practise on their Guitar Heroes for hours." more on this story

Tall Ships EP Preview Now Online

Tall Ships' new EP, There is Nothing But Chemistry Here, will be released on February 21st but you can get a taste today.

The EP will be available in the U.S. digitally and on vinyl for the first time ever.

Tall Ships are expected to return to the States for more shows this spring. and Filter is now premiering "Hit The Floor (Dark Dark Horse Remix)", a track off the EP here.

Lacuna Coil Streaming New Song Online

Lacuna Coil are streaming their new song "Kill The Light" from their forthcoming album Dark Adrenaline, on their Facebook page.

Dark Adrenaline will be released in North America on January 24th, 2012 via Century Media Records.

The album was produced by the acclaimed Don Gilmore (Linkin Park, Bullet For My Valentine) and you can listen to the new track here.

Man That Signed Oasis Predicts Reunion

(Gibson) The record company exec who signed Oasis and helped launch Britpop on the world says he thinks the band will reform in the future.

According to NME.com , Alan McGee, one-time head of Creation Records, told BBC 6 Music: "Even if it's not the Morning Glory tour, I think you will see Oasis play again, not as a band like [Primal] Scream but I can see them doing a huge gig for charity in a few years but they've just got to stop insulting each other."

The colorful music biz impresario is currently working on a stage production with Irvine Welsh, author of Trainspotting, telling NME it has "nothing to do with Creation or Britpop in that respect." more on this story

Anniversary of Elton John's First Hit

(Gibson) On this day 1970, Elton John's first U.S. hit, "Your Song," entered the Billboard Hot 100, where it went on to reach #8. The Hollies had been offered the song and Three Dog Night had already recorded a version which was included on their It Ain't Easy album. Gibson takes a look back:

When Bernie Taupin and Elton John first began working together, the piano man was still going by his birthname – Reginald Dwight. Friends and musicians knew him as Reggie, a pub piano player and a musician with the group Bluesology, who often backed American R&B and soul acts when they played England. Bernie and "Reggie" were first linked up in 1966, through Liberty Records A&R man Ray Williams, when each of them added an ad in the NME.

Williams gave a bunch of Taupin's lyrics to the young singer, who began to set music to them and then mail the finished compositions back to Bernie. By the time the two met in person for the first time, in 1967, Reggie had taken the name Elton John (after Bluesology saxophonist Elton Dean and Long John Baldry). Little did they know, their partnership would continue for decades and decades.

Although John and Taupin struck up a fast friendship and a productive working relationship, the pair's songs didn't achieve instant success. In the late '60s, they mostly wrote easy-listening schmaltz for other pop singers. Elton also did some session work, including playing piano on The Hollies' "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother." more on this story