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On this day in 2003, Billy Joel was airlifted to hospital after his car smashed into a tree. The singer lost control of his Mercedes S500 and skidded for 100 yards before crashing. The accident happened in The Hamptons, New York.
Find out what else happened on this date in music history here

Big Audio Dynamite Reunite

(Gibson) Mick Jones, most famous for his time as guitarist for rock legends The Clash, is reuniting the members of his post-Clash outfit, Big Audio Dynamite.

All members of the band's original lineup are taking part, including Jones, Don Letts, Greg Roberts, Leo "E-Zee-Kill" Williams and Dan Donovan.

The reformed group will perform U.K. dates in March and April, followed by a high-profile appearance at the Coachella Festival in California. Tickets for the U.K. shows go on sale Friday, January 28. more on this story

AC/DC, The Who and Scorpions Members Recording with Michael Schenker

(Gibson) In an interview with Classic Rock Revisited, former Scorpions drummer Herman Rarebell talked about recording with early Scorpions guitar god, Michael Schenker. Schenker is currently recording a solo album with Rarebell and former members of AC/DC, UFO, Vanilla Fudge and The Who.

Rarebell explained, "Michael will soon release a solo album with many, many guests. As far as who the guests are, you should ask Michael. I will be one of the guests and so will Pete (Way, bassist from UFO). I know Carmine (Appice) is playing on a few songs. Simon Phillips (who played with The Who) and Chris Slade (AC/DC) will also play on a song. I will be on seven songs. It is all new material that Michael wrote over the last few months. Whatever comes out of this, the future will have to show."

The combination of Rarebell and Schenker is a tantalizing prospect for Scorpions fans, as it is a reunion of two key components from one of the band's best-loved albums, Lovedrive. Schenker, whose brother Rudolf is a founding member of the German juggernaut, played on three key tracks and then bailed. His absence left an opening for one of metal's most unsung guitar heroes, Matthias Jabs. more on this story

Bret Michaels To Be Released From The Hospital Today

(hennemusic) Bret Michaels will be sidelined for while, but things seem to be according to plan following his heart surgery on Monday.

Radaronline reports Michaels will be released from St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center today.

Doctors have ordered the Poison frontman to 'totally rest' as he starts to recover from his heart surgery. more on this story

Twilight Star For Jeff Buckley Biopic?

(Gibson) Robert Pattinson, best known for playing Edward in the Twilight movies, has reportedly shown interest in playing Jeff Buckley in a forthcoming biopic.

"Rob is obsessed with this project and is doing everything he can to land the part," a source told the Daily Express. "He has already told his business team this is his passion and they agree it could be the film that makes him a legitimate Oscar contender."

The movie's producer, Michelle Sy, confirmed that she had met with Pattinson, and said that the only requirement is that the actor will be able to perform music "or at least make it believable." more on this story

Nine Inch Oscar for Reznor?

(Gibson) He's already won a Golden Globe this year. Now, Trent Reznor has a chance to take home an Oscar.

The Nine Inch Nails frontman is among the nominees for the 83rd Academy Awards, which were announced today (January 25). Reznor and collaborator Atticus Ross were nominated for their score for The Social Network. Also nominated in the Original Score category: A.R. Rahman for 127 Hours, Hans Zimmer for Inception, Alexandre Desplat for The King's Speech and John Powell for How to Train Your Dragon.

Overall, The Social Network was nominated for eight awards, including Director (David Fincher), Adapted Screenplay (Aaron Sorkin), Actor in a Leading Role (Jesse Eisenberg) and Best Picture. The awards will be handed out February 27 on ABC.

Kasabian To Play New Songs on Spring Tour

(hennemusic) Kasabian frontman Tom Meighan has told NME that the band will roadtest new material on an 'intimate' spring UK tour.

Meighan said the band will be playing mid-sized venues - intimate by their stadium standards these days.

"We're going to go back on the road in April or May, and we're going to be doing the small shows again – 1,000, 2,000 people a night," he revealed in the latest issue of NME. more on this story

Underoath Special Releases

Underoath will release two vinyl versions of their new full-length Ø (Disambiguation). The album will be self-released via two special vinyl editions:

Deluxe: Includes a gatefold 12" LP Picture Disc, with full sized eight page 16 panel booklet featuring exclusive artwork and a limited pressing of 1,000.

Standard: Includes a clear 12" LP limited pressing limited to 400. pre-order at www.underoathmerch.com. In addition, Underoath will team with Hot Topic for an exclusive Gold edition vinyl pressing which will hit stores in early March. more on this story

Rock and Metalheads Take On Frank Sinatra

(Gibson) If you ever wondered what "It Was a Very Good Year" would sound like coming out of Dee Snider, here's your chance.

Some of metal and rock's greatest vocalists are trying their hand at being Ol' Blue Eyes on a new album. SIN-atra features members of Anthrax, Twisted Sister and Cheap Trick singing some of Frank Sinatra's most legendary hits.

The album is due out on March 28 and features vocals by Tim "Ripper" Owens (ex-Judas Prist, Yngwie Malmsteen), Geoff Tate (Queensryche) and Glenn Hughes (ex-Deep Purple, Black Country Communion). more on this story

Jack White and Wanda Jackson Do Conan

(hennemusic) In stores now is "The Part Ain't Over," the new album from the Queen Of Rockabilly, Wanda Jackson.

On the day of its release, the Jack White-produced record saw Jackson and White team up for a performance on Conan O'Brien's TBS show.

The two also joined Conan to talk about the album, how they connected, and a little bit of Wanda's history with another star from her early days, Elvis Presley. Check it out

Strokes Talk Heavy New Album

(Gibson) Strokes bassist Nikolai Fraiture says that the title of his band's new album, Angles, is representative of the process that went into making the record. Fraiture told Spin.com that the name "reflects the way the album was made. It's all about the different approach and the different ways these songs came out."

Angles breaks new ground for the band, which had previously relied on frontman Julian Casablancas to generate ideas for tunes. This time, each of the five members (Casablancas, Fraiture, guitarist Albert Hammond Jr., guitarist Nick Valensi and drummer Fabrizio Moretti) brought in ideas, often working without Casablancas until the instrumental track was done.

"We wrote and rehearsed together as the four of us," Fraiture said. "Then we'd send the track over to Julian. There was a lot of back and forth. I don't know if Julian had trouble being with us – I don't know what was going through his mind. There were tensions. But it worked." more including tracklist

Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water: 40th Anniversary Edition

Columbia/Legacy have set a March 8th release for Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water: 40th Anniversary Edition.

This deluxe DVD+CD set includes the original 11-song album plus the duo's never-before-commercially-available "Songs Of America" CBS television special from 1969 on DVD.

The DVD will also include The Harmony Game: The Making of Bridge Over Troubled Water, a newly-created documentary on Bridge Over Troubled Water featuring new interviews with Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel. more on this story

Singled Out: The Get Up Kids Week - Pararelevant

The Get Up Kids released their new album, There Are Rules, yesterday and to celebrate we asked Matthew Pryor to pick some of his favorite tracks from the album and tell us a little bit about each one. Today he tells us about "Pararelevant:"

No spell check will every recognize this word because I made it up. We were looking at some music magazines at the studio and the topic of relevance came up. I made the joke that we weren't relevant but we were on a different road that was parallel to relevance. So, pararelevant was born. The more I think about it though, at least in music circles anyway, relevance is in the eye of the beholder. One man's trash is another man's treasure or so they say. I've been observing that our music represents different things to different people including us. To some, we are the band they used to go see when they were in college and that's our relevance to them. To others, and this would include the five of us, it's a constantly changing and sometimes mutating organism whose relevance is more closely tied to the current moment than the past. I guess, maybe this song is about that balance between those contradicting points of view. I mean, you've got to have both. Your past is certainly a huge part of what you are now but it's certainly not the only thing that defines you. I think that people lose perspective of that sometimes. I think that we have to live in the present while still celebrating the past.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album right here!

Smoking Popes Announce Concept Album, Tour and TV Special

There are some big happenings in Smoking Popes land. We'll start off with their new album, This is Only a Test, the band's first ever concept album, exploring the life of a fictional high schooler.

The album hits the street on March 15th, sparking a spring tour to celebrate, beginning at SXSW in Austin.

Before they hit the road, the band will launch This is Only a Test by playing live on the national broadcast of WGN TV in their hometown of Chicago. more on this story

Why Bands Are Playing Their Classic Albums Live

(Gibson) Is it a coincidence that as album sales decline, more bands seem to be playing more concerts in more markets than ever before? Musicians are becoming hip to the fact that their new albums aren't exactly burning up the charts like they used to, and that, perhaps, their back catalog is worth re-examining. Often this is in the form of a greatest hits tour, but more and more often, popular acts with a decent history under their belts are choosing to play entire classic albums every night, sometimes to mark an anniversary, and sometimes just for the fun of it.

Recent album-oriented tours include The Cult playing Love, Steely Dan alternating between The Royal Scam, Aja and Gaucho, The Melvins playing Houdini, Testament playing The Legacy, and Judas Priest playing British Steel. Nine Inch Nails played The Downward Spiral at one of their final gigs, and Roger Waters has hit the road to play two Pink Floyd albums in recent years – The Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall – both to great acclaim.

And Queens of the Stone Age are about to play a series of concerts in Australia where they will perform their self-titled debut album of 1998 during sideshows for their appearance on the Soundwave festival. The album itself is being re-released in March 2011 with previously unreleased tracks via founder Josh Homme's own Rekords Rekords label.

....An interesting sideline for the "play your own album in full" concept is the "play someone else's album in full" strategy used by Phish and Dream Theater. A lot more here

Dispatch Add Tour Dates

Dispatch have added seven new dates to their tour after just four days of a fan pre-sale depleted ticket inventory.

Tickets went on sale this past Friday to fans who had signed up on the band's website to receive a special pre-sale password.

Two additional shows have been scheduled in Denver, two in Boston, and one additional show in Chicago and New Jersey/New York. The band also added a previously unscheduled stop in Los Angeles to satisfy fan demand. more on this story

Big 4 Festival: Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax To Play The U.S.

For those that missed this one yesterday: It's not a full blown tour but the Big 4 of Thrash are coming to America this Spring (who knows maybe they'll line up some summer dates??? hope spring eternal.).

Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax announced the Big 4 Festival on Tuesday morning.

If you were underwhelmed with the announced Coachella music festival line-up this year, don't fret, just wait a week and the see the Big 4 Festival at the same location in Indio, California. more on this story

Skybombers Target America

Skybombers are preparing for a return to the U.S. with a new album and national tour.

Black Carousel, the follow up to their debut Take Me To Town (which spawned the alt radio hit "It Goes Off"), was produced and recorded in Los Angeles with Rick Parker (BRMC, Von Bondies).

The first single to radio is "Lies" and will be available as a digital download on March 3rd. Black Carousel will be released on 429 Records March 29th. Nationwide tour begins on April 1st in Los Angeles. more on this story

The Steve Miller Band Headed to Austin City Limits

(Roadrunner) Austin City Limits announces the first taping in its new state-of-the-art home at The Moody Theater with a special performance by Steve Miller Band including material from his soon-to-be-released new Blues Rock album entitled "Let Your Hair Down."

"This is a dream come true for ACL – a new home in downtown Austin that will be an amazing world-class music venue and studio soundstage combined," said AUSTIN CITY LIMITS Executive Producer Terry Lickona. "After 36 years, we have big plans for the future, and that future begins on February 26th. The best is yet to come!"

Lauded rock guitarist Steve Miller and his band (Roadrunner/Loud & Proud) have been inspiring fans for more than four decades with Miller's unique brand of rousing American rock 'n' roll. His catalog includes 17 studio albums and multiple hit singles including "The Joker," "Take The Money and Run," "Jet Airliner," "Abracadabra" and more. more on this story

Lemmy-the-Pooh

(Gibson) In a new interview, Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister discussed a variety of topics from living in L.A. to his current reading fare, which curiously includes a certain willy, nilly, silly old bear.

"I'm reading the report about the Dresden bombing," the bass-playing anti-hero told LA Weekly. "It's a good one, the new one. And uh, what else am I reading? I'm reading Winnie-the-Pooh for the first time. It wasn't written for kids, believe me. I mean the TV show, the Disney show, is (expletive) atrocious. It's an abomination. The book is fantastic, it's so sarcastic."

In addition to maintaining a diverse reading list, Lemmy has also been keeping tabs on the young bands in his adopted hometown of Los Angeles. "There's a lot of good bands around. I don't always remember who they are. There's one called the Sex Slaves from up in North L.A., they're really good. Um, who else? I dunno man, I see a lot of bands. There's a lot of good bands around." more on this story

Band Of Heathens Set New Album Release

Band Of Heathens have set a March 29th release date for their new cd, Top Hat Crown & The Clapmaster's Son.

Produced by George Reiff (Chris Robinson, Courtyard Hounds, Ray Wylie Hubbard), new album comes on heels of Austin City Limits (PBS) appearance, festivals and #1 Americana record

2010 was a year of making noise and news for the Band of Heathens. With 200-plus show dates, a fifth anniversary celebration, appearances at Lollapalooza and other top national festivals and a taping of Austin City Limits with Elvis Costello, it is remarkable that the Heathens even found time to write and record a new studio album, but they did. more on this story

Backstage with Ozzy

(hennemusic) More OzTV stuff from Ozzy Osbourne's current "Scream" tour.

The latest webisode features behind-the-scenes footage of Ozzy's January 20 stop in Dallas.

There's some funny backstage conversations between Ozzy and his band, as they discuss food options for the day, as well as some cool live video. Check it out here

Atheist Announce North American Tour Dates

Atheist have announced their first North American tour in 17 years according to Season of Mist.

Atheist are hitting the road for a short seven city tour in support of their new album "Jupiter".

Main support for these shows will come from A Life Once Lost, Revocation and Last Chance To Reason. more on this story

Fleetwood Mac's Peter Green Controversial Rifle Threat

(Gibson) On this day in 1977, former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Peter Green threatened his accountant Clifford Adams with an air rifle when he was trying to deliver a £30,000 ($51,000) royalty check to him. Gibson takes a look back:

Funny thing is, when given the chance to talk about his version some of the great "Peter Green" stories, Green is remarkably down-to-earth, matter-of-fact and he explains how everything, invariably, gets blown up by the press.

The story goes that on this day in 1977, Green was arrested for possessing a gun without a license and using threatening behavior. He supposedly tried to shoot his ex-manager Clifford Davis when he delivered his royalty check. The police came and arrested Green and he was put in prison. But Green, while not denying the story's basic facts to Q magazine in 1997, does have a somewhat less dramatic memory of events 20 years previous. For one thing, he says, the gun in question was a .22 rifle, the kind you'll find at a fairground, and he didn't even own any bullets. As for actually threatening to shoot his ex-manager, Green explains that while a threat was made, it was made on the phone. But, as he told Q, the media always like a good story. more on this story

Dream Theater Star Headed To MacWorld and Playing Free Concert

Jordan Rudess of Dream Theater is taking his app development company, Wizdom Music to MacWorld.

Rudess will be available for demonstrations and impromptu performances of his award-winning music creation app for iPad and iPhone, Morphwiz, as well as his new photo and video effects app, SketchWiz.

In addition, Rudess will perform a FREE, open-to-the-public concert at the Apple Store on January 28, 2011. more on this story

Pete Yorn and Ben Kweller Tap The Wellspring for Tour

(Press Here) The Wellspring will be joining Pete Yorn and Ben Kweller on a North American Tour this winter and spring.

Kicking off on Valentine's Day in Phoenix, the tour will take the Los Angeles-based duo from coast to coast.

In conjunction with the tour, The Wellspring is rereleasing their self-titled debut EP, which was produced by Bill Lefler (Dashboard Confessional, Ingrid Michaelson). more on this story

Stone Roses Gig Provides Background for New Film

(Gibson) The Legendary Spike Island gig, the high point of Manchester band The Stone Roses' career, is going to provide the backdrop for a new British film.

According to BBC News, the band's momentous 1990 outdoor show will feature prominently in the unnamed movie about a young, unsigned band from the wrong side of the tracks.

"This is a raw and truly authentic rites-of-passage story," director Tom Green said. "It's full of the humor, heartache, dreams and fears of being part of a brotherhood of mates, and set to the greatest record ever written. The Roses died in '95. This is the resurrection." more on this story

Gibson Bringing Back Classic 60s Les Pauls and SGs

This month, Gibson has begun production on both a Les Paul Studio '60s Tribute and an SG Special '60s Tribute.

As with the '50s Tributes, both guitars take their cues from classic historical models, but add a simplicity in design that strips away all pretensions and gives the player a lighter, less-costly, easier-to-play instrument that still retains the elegance of the original designs.

Both guitars also feature classic P-90 pickups – Gibson's first electric pickup, that has withstood every musical trend for the last 60 years and is still a mainstay on stage and in the studio. more on this story

A Life Once Lost To Begin Recording New Album

A Life Once Lost have announced that their new label home is Season Of Mist. A Life Once Lost is also thrilled to announce their upcoming run with technical metal kings Atheist. In addition, Revocation and Last Chance to Reason will appear on the tour.

"After over a year and a half of working on this record and setback after setback we can finally announce that it is coming out on SEASON OF MIST in 2011," affirms guitarist Doug Sabolick. "Taking time away from the road helped us look at the band from an outside perspective, which then helped mold a record that encompasses our collective mood over the past few years in typical ALOL fashion. Musically, the theme of this record is to pummel the listener into submission via ignorant riffs. We are finishing writing and demo-ing as we speak and look forward to working hand in hand with SEASON OF MIST to deliver our vision to the masses."

The band is currently finishing up the writing process, and are about to begin recording in Philadelphia. Paul Romano (Mastodon, Trivium, The Red Chord), designer of the album art for previous A Life Once Lost records Hunter and Iron Gag, is confirmed to illustrate the album art. more on this story

Alesana's Epitaph

Epitaph Records has signed Alesana, who will release their fourth studio album in late 2011. The group is currently on a US tour with band Escape The Fate.

"We are very proud to officially announce that we have signed with Epitaph Records," says guitarist Shawn Milke.

"This is a giant step for our career and we could not be any happier than to land with a powerhouse like Epitaph who, like us, and determined to bring Alesana to the next level. We are currently on the road as direct support to Escape The Fate after which we are headed back into the studio with our friend and producer Kris Crummett to record our fourth full length and first release on Epitaph. We hope you are as excited for 2011 as we are!" more on this story

Run Devil Run Inspire Book Series

(PR) Decadent Publishing announces the release of a paranormal-romance fiction anthology rooted in Rock 'n Roll and ripped straight off the Sunset Strip.

Run Devil Run, an L.A. based Rock band well known locally for their dynamic live performances, diverse musical talent, and humorous video antics has lent their faces, titles and lyrics as inspiration for a five-book series with the publisher.

The stories are penned by popular and award-nominated authors Rachel Carrington, Mari Freeman, Susan DiPlacido, Valerie Mann and Becca Dale, and will be released first in ebook format, then later in print. more on this story

Amos Lee TV

Amos Lee will make a series of upcoming television and radio appearances over the next month to promote his brand-new album Mission Bell, which was release yesterday by Blue Note Records.

Lee will appear on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno on January 26th and The Ellen DeGeneres Show on January 28th. Also on the 28th, Lee will be featured on NPR's "World Café" program, which will broadcast a performance by and interview with Lee that can be heard on more than 200 stations nationwide.

Additionally, Lee will appear on PBS's Tavis Smiley on February 1st, The Late Show With David Letterman on February 16th, and The Early Show on February 18th. more on this story