Smashing Pumpkins Arrested- Linkin Park Sidelined By Illness- AFI On Broadway- Architects Lose Member- Nightwish Movie- Danzig Begins Covers CD- more

On this day in 1992, Mötley Crüe fired their singer, Vince Neil, when he turned up for rehearsal, claiming that he had lost his passion for the band and was now more involved with racing cars Find out what else happened on this date in music history here

Guns N' Roses Super Bowl Reunion?

(hennemusic) An Indianapolis sports reporter has posted a rumor that a Guns N' Roses reunion is in talks with the NFL to appear at next year's Super Bowl in – you guessed it – Indianapolis.

KentSterling.com claims he's been told that preliminary talks have already taken place to reconvene the most popular lineup of Guns N' Roses for Super Bowl 46.

Sterling takes shots at many rock performers he feels aren't up to the task, while suggesting that "Gun N' Roses might be the only rock band with its members still living that hasn't played a Super Bowl halftime show that could generate a real sense of excitement for what this year became a devolving mess." more on this story

Another Hint That Slipknot's Corey Taylor Is Joining Velvet Revolver

(hennemusic) Duff McKagan's online chat with ESPN.com readers on Wednesday is fueling more rumors about Corey Taylor's possible involvement with Velvet Revolver.

When asked by a fan what the most important attribute for the lead singer of a rock band to have, besides their singing voice, McKagan responded: "Any good artist has to have had some kind of rub in their life, something real. Something you have to get out lyrically or you are going to kill yourself or somebody else. Those are the lyrics that inspire. The ability to tap the dark stuff and have it be real. Great lead singers have the ability to tap that. No inhibitions helps as well. Axl [Rose] and Scott [Weiland] are two of the best front men ever."

Unprompted, Duff then added: "Corey Taylor is one of those guys as well. He can tap it. He has to get those lyrics on the paper or his world is going to crash down around him." more on this story

New Metallica Album Not 100 Percent Metallica

(Gibson) There's no rest for the weary, and that includes Metallica. After spending two long years touring to promote their 2008 album Death Magnetic, the thrash metal kings are heading back into the studio in May for what guitarist Kirk Hammett describes as a project a bit out of the ordinary.

"We want to record it in two weeks," Hammett told Rolling Stone. We had planned on doing it in March, but we pushed it back to May. I don't want to give too much away, but it's not really 100 percent a Metallica record. It's a recording project, let's put it that way. Without getting too deep into it, it's more a recording project than a bona fide Metallica album. Whether or not we can pull it off in just two weeks remains to be seen."

Hammett went on to discuss his excitement for the upcoming Big 4 Festival, which will take place at the Empire Polo Field in Indio, California on April 23: "It's like a big class reunion," he said. "It's super cool because I'm really tight with the guys in Anthrax, and I love the guys in Slayer, and you know, I'm never really bothered by the Megadeth guys… With all these bands, the opportunity for all of us to just hang out and look at each and grin and say to each other, 'Look, we're still here.' That's just an amazing thing." more on this story

Top 3 Greatest Guitar Riffs of All Time

Today, Gibson concludes their countdown of the Top 50 Greatest Guitar riffs of all time. Here are the three that came out on top:

3. "Whole Lotta Love," Led Zeppelin (1969): Jimmy Page can claim more than a few of the greatest riffs in rock, and Led Zeppelin fans will always debate which one is the best. But none packs more swagger than the riff that drives "Whole Lotta Love." Page played the heavy blues riff on his Sunburst '59 Les Paul Standard, although there's some debate as to where and when the riff originated. Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones said it came out of an in-concert jam for "Dazed and Confused" and other sources attribute it to another concert improvisation, but Page has claimed that it was one of the riffs he wrote during rehearsals for Led Zeppelin II. The song became an instant classic and was performed at every subsequent Zeppelin gig (often as the closer). – Bryan Wawzenek

2. "Smoke on the Water," Deep Purple (1972): They are, quite simply, the holy chords of rock. By guitarist Ritchie Blackmore's standards, "Smoke on the Water" is actually a pretty simplistic riff, considering this is the same mage who summoned "Lazy," "Burn," "Woman from Tokyo," "Man on the Silver Mountain" and a host of other alchemic finger-twisters. But the impact of "Nuh. Nuh. Nuh. Nuh. Nuh. Nuh-uh. (etc., etc.)" is undeniable. Ask any music store clerk, any marching band director or any guitarist worth his salt and they'll all tell you that those driving chords are a core component of the universal language of rock. – Michael Wright

1. "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," The Rolling Stones (1965): No other riff has ever captured the essence of rock and roll as succinctly, elegantly and infectiously as the one for "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction." With just a handful of notes, Keith Richards crafted a guitar-based mantra upon which rock's rebellious spirit could be perfectly hung. The riff came to Richards in his sleep, and he woke up just long enough to record the part on a portable cassette player. The band later recorded an acoustic version at the Chess facility in Chicago, and then did the definitive version – using a Gibson distortion pedal – at RCA Studios in Hollywood. Remarkably, Richards at first envisioned the riff as a horn line. "The fuzz tone came in handy so I could give a shape to what the horns [would later] do," he writes, in his biography. "But the fuzz tone had never been heard before anywhere, and that's the sound that caught everybody's imagination." Nearly a half-century later, it still does. – Russell Hall

Agree? Disagree? One reader gave Gibson and earful here. Check out the full list and the results of the reader poll here

Read the full Top 10 here

Motley Crue and New York Dolls Tour

(Gibson) In an interview with Australian journalist/guitarist Joe Matera, New York Dolls axeman Sylvain Sylvan revealed a couple details about his band's upcoming tour. For instance, the glam legends will be touring with another band that loves to play dress up.

"We're about to go on the road for 40 nights with Mötley Crüe this coming June-July in the States," he said.

But, Sylvain revealed that the touring lineup won't exactly match the one on the band's new record, Dancing Backwards in High Heels. Although former Blondie guitarist Frank Infante appears on the new record, he won't be hitting the road with the Dolls. But David Johansen and friends have a pretty good back-up plan. "We made some calls and now we finally have got Earl Slick playing guitar," Sylvain said. more on this story

Kid Rock Under Fire For Not Canceling Show

(hennemusic) While Little Rock was rocked by a snowstorm, Kid Rock went on with the show. And he's taking some heat for it.

According to the Associated Press, some parts of Arkansas were hit with nearly two feet of snow on Wednesday, causing authorities to recommend people stay at home, if at all possible.

Rock's decision to play the show, despite the weather, caused some fans who were unable to make it, to complain that the Kid was doing it for the money. Rock attempted to straighten things out quickly by posting a refund offer while he was backstage before the show. more on this story

Joe Bonamassa Giving Away New Song

(Gibson) Starting today, Joe Bonamassa fans can get a free download of the Gibson signature artist's new single, "Dust Bowl," at the official Joe Bonamassa website.

Bonamassa recently completed work on his new solo album, also titled Dust Bowl, which will be released on March 22.

Dust Bowl is produced by Kevin Shirley (Iron Maiden, Dream Theater, The Black Crowes) and combines the gritty, blues-based tones of Bonamassa's early albums with the fluid, genre-defying sounds he's mastered in the years since. The album also adds a surprising dash of country, featuring collaborations with Vince Gill and John Hiatt. more on this story

David Crosby and Graham Nash Add Dates

David Crosby and Graham Nash have added new dates to their spring tour of the U.S. that kicks off March 25 with a show in Long Beach, CA.

While Crosby and Nash's legendary vocal harmonies will be the centerpiece of the show, they will be accompanied on the road by an ace-backing band featuring James Raymond (keyboards), Dean Parks (guitar), Kevin McCormick (bass), and Steve DiStanislao (drums).

The tour will mix acoustic and plugged-in performances. "Touring with a full band gives us the opportunity to do selections from our catalogue that Graham and I haven't performed live together before," says Crosby. "We will also be introducing some brand new songs we've written, that have never been heard onstage or on record." more on this story

Weezer Go Manilow

(Gibson) Weezer recently recorded their version of State Farm's famous jingle and posted it on their website. According to Spinner.com, Weezer's website reported that when they were "…setting up The Memories tour, the good people at State Farm asked the band, 'Would you sing our jingle for us?' Weezer then asked if the jingle was from a whole song, and if anyone recorded it lately. So State Farm went back to their headquarters to find out the answers."

When the insurance company found the original sheet music for "Like a Good Neighbor" – a song Barry Manilow had written when he was first starting out – Weezer decided it was a great song and they should cover it.

"Rivers looked over the sheet music and said, 'This is a great song; we should record the whole thing.' So the band went into the studio and had a lot of fun rocking out with Mr. Manilow's tune, hoping he would be proud of the results." more on this story

Sammy Hagar Movie To Screen at Film Festival

(hennemusic) As part of Canadian Music Week, Sammy Hagar will be making the rounds in Toronto next month.

On Friday, March 11, Sammy's new film, "Go There Once, Be There Twice," will screen in Toronto at The TIFF Bell Lightbox as part of CMWeek's Film Festival.

Tickets are $10 and will be available through the TIFF Bell Lightbox box office as of February 25th. Canadian Music Fest wristband holders gain access to the film for free, subject to capacity. more on this story

Bob Dylan to Perform With Mumford & Sons and Avett Brothers At The Grammys

Bob Dylan will perform with Mumford & Sons and the Avett Brothers in a special salute to acoustic music during this year's Grammy Awards.

The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards will take place live on Sunday, Feb. 13, 2011, at Staples Center in Los Angeles and will be broadcast in high definition and 5.1 surround sound on the CBS Television Network from 8 – 11:30 p.m. (ET/PT).

The show also will be supported on radio worldwide via Westwood One, and covered online at GRAMMY.com and CBS.com, and on YouTube here

Joe Elliot Remembers Gary Moore

(Gibson) Def Leppard frontman Joe Elliott reminisced about the late, great Gary Moore, who passed away at age 58 last weekend. Elliott was asked a few questions about the Thin Lizzy guitarist and solo musician during a recent round of radio interviews, according to a Def Leppard fan site.

"Well he's definitely up at the top isn't he?," Elliott said. "In fairness I think that he was probably wrongly accused of being one of these speed merchant guitarists because he could play fast. But the thing about Gary was that he actually came from the blues. Whereas a lot of the '80s guitarists just ripped Eddie Van Halen off."

The Def Leppard singer also talked about the time Moore opened for his band in the '80s. "Funnily enough, he took over from Jon Butcher Axis on our Pyromania tour about halfway through it and was special guest to ourselves and Krokus," Elliott remembered. "He had Ian Paice from Deep Purple on drums. I remember like [Leppard drummer] Rick Allen was just, couldn't – he was beside himself. He was 16 years old or 17/18 years old and his hero, his drumming hero, was third on the bill to us, you know? We were almost apologizing for it, you know? more on this story

Ozzy U

(hennemusic) Birmingham City University has just presented the first Ozzy Osbourne Development Award to a student who made the most progress on the BA Media and Communications (Music Industries) degree course.

Gina Hubbard, aged 21, received the honor at a graduation ceremony at the city's Symphony Hall.

She was presented with the honor by UB40 founding member Brian Travers, who also has an award at the university named after him. more on this story

Avenged Sevenfold, Godsmack, Three Days Grace, Stone Sour for Carolina Rebellion

Avenged Sevenfold, Godsmack, Three Days Grace and Stone Sour will take part in the first ever Carolina Rebellion.

Carolina Rebellion is set to take place on Saturday, May 7 at Metrolina Expo in Charlotte, NC and will have three stages of bands.

The current lineup for Carolina Rebellion is as follows: Avenged Sevenfold, Godsmack, Three Days Grace, Stone Sour, Seether, Bullet For My Valentine, Theory of a Deadman, Alter Bridge, Hinder, Skillet, Saving Abel, Halestorm, Black Stone Cherry, My Darkest Days, Cavo, Rev Theory, Pop Evil, Art Of Dying and more.
more on this story

Stevie Nicks Releasing First Album In A Decade

(Gibson) Fleetwood Mac's Stevie Nicks will soon release her first solo album in 10 years.

According to Undercover.fm, the new record is called In Your Dreams and was co-produced by Dave Stewart and Glen Ballard.

Nicks has made a single, "Secret Love," available through iTunes. Other songs on the album include "Everybody Loves You,"' "Annabel Lee," and "For What It's Worth." more on this story

Singled Out: The Warriors

Today Marshall from The Warriors tells us about "The Enforcer" from their brand new album "See How You Are," which hits stores next week. Here is the story:

This song is based on the role society plays in the big picture. The lyrics for most of the song are from the point of view of "The Enforcer." The Enforcer is an idea I had that depicts the views we have on certain groups of people, fashion, humanity, acceptance, what is cool and what is not, how skinny or fat your ass needs to be in order to be loved or paid attention to, what foods and supplements need to be taken in order to obtain the body you think everybody wants, wanting what you think everybody needs and needing what everybody thinks they want. All of these things are projected from the media, TV, magazines, billboards, the net, models, actors, and they cast down judgment about things that really should not matter in life. Once you realize this all of these people, ideas, and things will become a collaborated melting pot of s***. You will begin to see things differently in a new light.

The whole idea of this song is to think better and realize the bulls*** that is being shoved down your throat is not worth your time of day. Thinking and living for yourself in a new light to determine the life you choose is a vital part of what makes us individuals. Hanging onto this idea is valuable. I believe that hanging onto your individualism is essential in order to be happy. Always do what works for you and no one else in order to obtain true happiness. Everything else is just a distraction. Walk like a warrior.

Learn more about the album right here!

A New Grateful Dead Road Trips Release

(PR) Dead.net, the official Grateful Dead web site and online store, continues its exclusive Road Trips series in 2011 with its fourth volume.

Issuing quarterly in February, May, August and November, Road Trips puts a spotlight on different tours and series of shows and includes rarities from the deepest corners of the vault and many rare and never-before-seen photographs. Each three-disc set is showcased in a beautifully designed booklet that contains an essay about how the music on the discs fits into the Dead's long history.

Road Trips Vol.4 No. 2 [$23.98] offers up the entire April 1, 1988 concert from the Brendan Byrne Arena (called "the Meadowlands" at the time) in East Rutherford, NJ, plus the entire second set and a few first set highlights from the previous night's performance (the middle show of a three-night stand). The April Fools' show is a real barn-burner, with a first set that includes a "double-opener" of high-octane versions of "Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo" and "Jack Straw," a rare and nearly perfect take on "To Lay Me Down" (played for just the second time since 1983), followed directly by the second (and final) Grateful Dead-only version of Bob Dylan's "Ballad Of A Thin Man." Disc Three contains Set Two from April 1st. more on this story

An Evening With Amon Amarth

Amon Amarth have announced that their U.S. headlining tour will be An Evening With Amon Amarth.

The means that the band will touring without support and instead performing two separate sets each night. One set will feature upcoming album Surtur Rising in its entirety.

The festivities will commence on April 14 in Chicago, Illinois and pillage its way through 17 cities throughout the country before drawing to a close on May 7 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. more on this story

Carnifex, Within The Ruins, Oceano and The Tony Danza Tapdance Tour

Carnifex, Within The Ruins, Oceano and The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza are hitting the road for the "Names Mean Nothing" Tour.

Carnifex frontman Scott Lewis states, "The Names Mean Nothing Tour is bringing some of the heaviest, technical and modern metal bands together for awesome nights of sick pits and wicked beatdowns; guaranteed to leave you with bangovers the next morning. Don't miss it!"

Joe Cocchi from Within The Ruins adds, "We've been looking forward to this tour for a long time now! It's going to be great for us to finally be out on a legit tour with some awesome bands in support of our newest release Invade!" more on this story

Rigor Mortis Plot Reunion Album

(Freeman) Rigor Mortis are heading into the studio to record their first new tracks in 20 years.

The band will be in the studio from March 6th through the 8th with long time friend and producer Kerry Crafton (Vs. The Earth), recording 2 brand new songs.

Talks with labels will follow and a new full length Rigor Mortis record will be released before the end of the year. more on this story

Markus Dravs Wins Producer of the Year Brit

(Gibson) Producer Markus Dravs was given his Brit Award early by Coldplay singer Chris Martin.

BBC News reports that Dravs was named producer of the year for his work on Mumford and Sons' album Sigh No More and Arcade Fire's The Suburbs. Martin presented him with the award at the Music Producers Guild awards at the Cafe de Paris in London.

Dravs told BBC 6 Music he joined the Mumford and Sons project because he was "moved by the spirituality. You could hear it in the lyrics and in the commitment in the demos. I really wanted to get involved and see if I could help make the record." more on this story

Lost Recordings By Quicksilver Messenger Service's Dino Valenti Released

(Glass Onyon) Who would have thought that Philadelphia record label ItsAboutMusic.com would uncover lost music from legendary Quicksilver Messenger Service lead vocalist Dino Valenti, and the quality would be this good? And when we say "lost" - we really mean it.

The tapes used to form this new CD 'Get Together' were found in a storage unit in northern California by some very nice people who just knew that this music was valuable without even hearing the tapes. They figured out how to reach Dino's son, Joli and the rest is history in the making.

This CD marks the very first time that a Dino Valenti album offers his own recording of his song, "Get Together" (made more than famous by The Youngbloods). It also features covers of "Midnight Rider" (Gregg Allman) and "I'll Try Something New" (Smokey Robinson) which are both stellar performances. But the true gems on this album are the original tunes that were recorded back in the early to late Sixties. How did this music survive all this time and sound so cool? And since the recordings have been literally lost, it's a question as to who's playing on it besides Dino. Some of the tracks sure sound like Quicksilver Messenger Service - you decide. more on this story

Anniversary of Ronettes' Estelle Bennett Death

On this day in 2009, Ronettes singer Estelle Bennett died at her home in Englewood, N.J. She was 67. The '60s girl group, best known for their work with producer Phil Spector, had the 1963 hit, "Be My Baby." Gibson takes a look back:

In the early 1960s, there had never existed a female rock act that exuded the raw underlying sexuality of The Ronettes. With exotic, multi-racial looks, wicked beehives and enticing slits up the sides of their skirts, The Ronettes meant business. When they beckoned listeners to "Be My Baby," men…and some women...stopped in their tracks.

Born in Manhattan's Washington Heights neighborhood, sisters Veronica and Estelle Bennett grew up in a musical household. They and their cousins, Nedra, Diane and Elaine Talley, were always singing around the house, encouraged by their grandmother and instructed by her on the art of harmonizing. In 1959, Grandma Bennett even went so far as to enter them into a talent show at the legendary Apollo Theatre, where the teenage girls won first prize. The group, known then as The Darling Sisters, got themselves a manager and started playing parties and sock hops. more on this story

Tracy Nelson A Victim Of The Blues

Tracy Nelson's new album Victim Of The Blues will be released by Delta Groove Records on April 19 and features Marcia Ball, Angela Strehli, John Cowan and Jimmy Pugh.

She has one of the signature voices of her generation. That natural gift has always guided Tracy Nelson's soul; indeed allowed her to both write and seek out the deeper songs regardless of niche or genre. A fierce singer of truth, a fountain of the deepest heartache, she is an ultimate communicator and has regularly destroyed audiences across decades of performing.

"Several years ago," Nelson reveals now, "I was driving with a friend across Montana, tooling down I-90 hauling a 1962 Bambi II Airstream trailer, the one that looks like a toaster. We were making a trip to Hebron, North Dakota where my grandfather homesteaded and built up a 2000+ acre ranch which he sold in the early '60s." The current owners were about to tear down the old claim shack and she wanted to go back there one last time. The car windows were down and national blues DJ Bill Wax was on XM Satellite Radio — the great Otis Spann's "One More Mile," from his 1964 Prestige album, rolled out of the truck speakers. "It had always been a song I wanted to do" Nelson recalls, "and that started me thinking about all the great Chicago blues songs and artists I had heard in my formative years, especially Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf. This was around the time I made my first record, Deep Are the Roots." She thought too of just a few years ago when she was touring nationally as part of a well-known Chicago blues revue, playing a lot of blues festivals. "The music I heard back in the day in Chicago and what I was hearing from the current crop of blues acts bore little relation to each other." more on this story

The Dears on Letterman Tonight

The Dears are set to perform their new single "Blood" on The Late Show with David Letterman tonight (Feb 11th).

The Dears will embark on a worldwide headlining tour March 4th, which will include a stop at this year's SXSW Music Festival.

The tour is in support of their brand new album, Degeneration Street, which hits stores next Tuesday February 15th. more on this story

The Cuddly Ozzy Osbourne

(Gibson) Ozzy Osbourne may be the wildman of rock and roll, but he's also quite the romantic. Music-news.com reports that Ozzy told TV show The Talk that's he's really a "cuddly guy."

When Ozzy, his wife Sharon and of their daughters were watching the movie The Notebook, he felt the tears welling up. "I'm sitting on the bed and I'm thinking I can't let me daughter see me cry but it gets your heart," he said. "I'm not really the prince of darkness. I'm a loving, cuddly guy."

He also said that his love life was in good shape: "I firmly believe that the only time you'll ever get any peace from down below is when you're in the ground. I'm almost 62 and I still love a good old game of 'Where's the salami?'" more on this story

Parasytic's Poison Minds in March

Relapse Records have set a March 1st CD and Digital release date for Parasytic's album Poison Minds.

Poision Minds was recorded by Garrett Morris at Darkroom Studios and was mastered by Jack Control of Enormous Door Mastering (World Burns To Death, Poison Idea, SSR, Government Warning).

The album was previously available as a vinyl only release through Vex Records.