Tuesday, September 19, 2006
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from melodicrock.com
YES, STILL MORE ROCKSTAR!:
It's official! From Kissonline.com Paul Stanley's backing band for the Live To Win Tour will be the House Band from the CBS TV Show, Rock Star. The band appeared on the first season of the show - Rock Star Inxs, as well as this year's Rock Star Supernova. Comprised of Paul Mirkovich (Keyboards), Jim McGorman (Guitar), Rafael Moreira (Lead Guitar), Nate Morton (Drums) and Sasha Krivstov (Bass), the House Band is an eclectic, skilled group of professionals who know rock and roll.
Earlier today Paul enthusiastically spoke about bringing the House Band on the road with him. "From the first time I saw them perform, I knew they were the band that could help deliver the songs for my solo tour with lethal force. Trust me; this is going to be awesome!" Paul told KOL.
I'm really trying to wrap up this RockStar coverage, but still it continues! Rumored for weeks - it is now confirmed news that Inxs have been dropped by SonyBMG for North America - quite a slap in the face for the band that have been touring successfully and who have also sold more than a reasonable number of records on the back of their 2005 RockStar: Inxs show. The band will still be alligned with Sony/BMG in Australia and I am yet to hear of any news out of Europe.
"The reconstituted Inxs has parted ways with Epic Records in North America, a source confirms to Billboard.com. The group roared back onto the charts last year with the album Switch, which featured new frontman JD Fortune. The artist was selected to replace the late Michael Hutchence on the first season of the CBS reality series "Rock Star."
Switch has sold a respectable 375,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The single Pretty Vegas opened at No. 37 on the Billboard Hot 100, the highest debut of the band's career.
Inxs remains signed to Sony BMG in its home country of Australia, where Switch was a massive hit. The group is presently on tour in Australia and has dates scheduled worldwide through Nov. 21 in Orlando, Fla. A handful of European shows have been postponed to allow guitarist Tim Farriss to undergo surgery for torn knee ligaments."
Why would any label drop a band that just sold 375,000 units for them??? That's insane! I also know for a fact the record sold 150,000 units in Canada. What else is going on?? Something smells folks...
Back to this year's show, the following singers have CDs out or on their way:
Dilana - Wonder Fool - available overseas already, but being issued domestically inside the USA October 17.
Ryan Star - Dark Horse - Featuring songs performed on the TV series, including the cool original Back Of Your Car. Star's all original release Songs From The Eye Of An Elephant can be purchased at: www.cdbaby.com/cd/rstar
Patrice Pike has 3 CDs in release (and a guest spot on Rob Lamothe's current studio release) and will release her new album Unraveling, also on October 17.
TEXAS ROCKERS ZZ TOP SPLIT WITH MANAGER, LABEL:
From the Los Angeles Times / By Dean Goodman
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Texas rock trio ZZ Top has parted ways with the manager who helped form the band in 1969, according to a statement issued on Sunday. In addition to splitting with Bill Ham, the band has also ended its tenure at RCA Records, 14 years after signing a five-album contract reportedly worth $30 million.
ZZ Top's most recent album, Mescalero, spent just three weeks on the Billboard 200 in 2003. Its stint at RCA, beginning with 1994's Antenna, failed to match its run at Warner Bros. Records, where it recorded the biggest hit of its career, 1983's Eliminator.
ZZ Top -- comprised of singer/guitarist Billy Gibbons, singer/bass player Dusty Hill and drummer Frank Beard -- last toured in 2005, ending a trek dominated by casinos and state fairs at New York's Beacon Theater in November.
"Upcoming plans for the band will be announced in the near future," the statement said. The band is due to receive an honor from the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences in November, a spokesman said.
Ham, the president of Austin, Texas-based Lone Wolf Management, first partnered with Gibbons in the late 1960s. The former record promoter helped Gibbons put together ZZ Top, which settled on its current lineup in late 1969.
According to former roadie David Blayney's 1994 memoir "Sharp Dressed Men," Ham "coupled a Col. Tom Parker managerial savvy with a Rambo approach to life and a Marquis de Sade style of doing business, which would soon make him famous in the music industry."
Specializing in Texas blues boogie, the band issued its debut release, "ZZ Top's First Album," in 1970. Amid constant touring, it broke through with 1973's "Tres Hombres," featuring the classic-rock radio staple "La Grange."
Pop success beckoned with Eliminator, which sold millions and propelled the band to stadium status, thanks to slick videos for tunes like Gimme All Your Lovin' and Legs, featuring pretty women and souped-up cars.
"For nearly four decades we have made music history together," Ham said in a statement. "Lone Wolf will always be grateful for the overwhelming loyalty and support from fans around the world, the labels, the promoters, the agencies, the vendors, the media, and so many others who helped make this possible. We wish the band all the best for continued success."
MICHAEL SCHENKER QUITS PLAYING?:
There has been some talk about Michael Schenker in recent weeks. Most of it centering around his 'colourful' website posts and questions about his mental state. That speculation heightened last week when the content of Michael's website was removed, leaving only an upside-down MSG logo on display.
UK journo Dave Ling posted this update to his website diary, which I thought was worth passing on here - www.daveling.co.uk/diary.htm
"The living soap opera that is Michael Schenker once again excels himself. Last week Michael announced that MSG's US tour was cancelled due to (and I'm quoting the statement directly) "serious familiar problems of MSG singer Jari Tiura". Over the past weekend the band's UK booking agent emailed me with the news that the band's British shows were also being pulled. Now via Michael's all-too-intimate website we learn that the fracas with Tiura has become the straw to break the camel's back, apparently forcing Herr Schenker to "quit playing" for good. "I'm tired of changing musicians and singers," writes Michael in a response to an email from his latest ex-employee. "MSG is finished and I am not inspired [to play music] anymore". As we all know, Schenker is a Jedi Master when it comes to crying wolf, and I'm pretty sure that's what he's doing again here. Let's hope so anyway..."
HENRY LEE SUMMER ARRESTED FOR DUI:
Oh Henry! From: Fox 59 News
"Residents of Country Wood Estates Mobile Home Park had quite a bit of excitement when a man driving a silver Ford Explorer drove recklessly through their neighborhood. "As soon as he pulled in he was sideways in here. Then he turned around and took off, hitting all the cars."
Witnesses say the man struck six vehicles. But the excitement didn't end there. The driver ran into this mobile home where neighbors trapped him so he wouldn't leave before sheriff deputies arrived. At that point, Amanda Johnson realized the man standing on her porch was in serious trouble, who also happens to be Henry Lee Summer.
"He's a singer that used to be platinum three years in a row. How do you know him? He's my cousin. That's probably why he was coming here. He was probably coming to lay down or something like that."
Henry Lee Summer of Brazil, Indiana is a rock and roll singer who released most of his albums during the eighties. His first single was Sweet Love. But now you can say he's hit a bad note, facing several charges including DUI, failure to stop at a property damage, and resisting arrest.
Major Larry Jahnke, Marion Co. Sheriff Dept. "He did fight actively with the officer and he was tazed during the incident." Officers are now waiting on blood work to determine Summer's alcohol level. They will also find out if he had been using drugs.
posted by Paul Dickinson at 4:39 PM | Email Us
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