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2/8/2010
Joe Perry has sounded a more conciliatory note about Aerosmith and its future with frontman Steven Tyler. In a newly published interview with Britain's Classic Rock magazine, Perry says that, "Steven hasn't quit the band, nor have we sacked him. We're taking the attitude that he's going on a vacation from Aerosmith. While he's away working on other projects, the rest of us want to carry on playing live. So we will be bring another singer to make this happen." Perry added that he and bandmates Brad Whitford, Tom Hamilton and Joey Kramer are "not daft enough to think we can replace Steven, and that's not our plan. But after 40 years of working together we just don't wanna stop. How long with Steven be away? He says it'll be two years, but I believe he'll be back a lot sooner. It may end up that we only do 10 shows with the new person!" The curious thing about this particular interview is it was conducted before or about the same time as interviews Perry did in Canada insisting that Aerosmith was moving forward with finding another lead singer and sounded far less certain about Tyler's return. Tyler's attorney recently ...
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2/8/2010
Rush is moving forward with its next album, according to drummer Neil Peart. Peart tells Canada's QMI Agency that he, Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson met in November and that the trio has "just started working on new material...We just literally started. There's nothing to tell, really, except that we're doing it." Peart added that the group is "considering doing everything this year -- maybe even a bit of touring. We are in action." He also indicated that the new material may not take the form of a tradition album, either: "We feel a bit liberated by the state of the music business. Even since 2006, when we started 'Snakes and Arrows,' the album has become less significant in these times of iTunes and shuffle settings and whatnot. But perhaps we can take advantage of that and work in a whole different way. So we decided, when we did meet, that we're not constrained by the patterns of the past, where you spend a year writing and recording, and the next year touring. Anything's possible now; we can record a couple of songs and put them out and then go on tour if we want. So at this point, we're ...
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2/5/2010
The Who's Pete Townshend says he's "really saddened...and concerned" by protests against the group's Super Bowl XLIV halftime performance on Sunday (February 7th) in Miami stemming from his child pornography arrest in Britain in 2003. During a press conference Thursday (February 4th), Townshend told reporters that the protests by family groups -- notably Protect Our Children, which has been distributing leaflets around the Miami and Fort Lauderdale metro areas -- and child pornography in general is "an issue that's very difficult to deal with in 'sound bytes.' It's a big thing. It's sad. I kind of feel like we're on the same side. That's kind of really what I can really say. I think, y'know, for a family that has suffered the issue of childhood abuse or anything of that sort, vigilance, common sense, vigilance is the most important thing -- not vigilantism. And I'm not trying to make a free-ranging statement here, but y'know, I've been working as an advocate and an agent in this kind of area of research and fund-raising for over 40 years. It's something that I have my own story (of being abused) that some of you know, and I would say to anybody that ...
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2/5/2010
Rumors that Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler auditioned to possibly front Led Zeppelin in place of Robert Plant in 2008 were true, according to guitarist Joe Perry. Talking to a Kansas radio station, Perry said that, "Steven disappeared and I called around. Somebody said he was in London trying out for Led Zeppelin. It's something I've never talked about before. It's a kind of window into how hard it's been to keep the partnership together. It's not the first time things like this have happened -- that's the downside of our relationship." Perry said Zep's Jimmy Page told him the audition was "shambolic" and that Tyler, who thought the group was going to be working on new material, was not prepared to sing Zep songs. "Page felt really awkward about the audition, but ultimately it was a group decision (to pass on Tyler)," Perry said. As for Aerosmith's future, Perry confirmed that Paul Rodgers was a consideration to front the band and that he and Rodgers were planning to record some tracks together in the near future. The Joe Perry Project will be opening for Bad Company during April in the U.K.
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2/5/2010
Ozzy Osbourne has decided to let his fans choose the name of his upcoming studio album. The set, which is due out in July, was originally titled "Soul Sucka," but Osbourne pulled it due to negative reaction from fans. Now, he says, "I'm going to get a list of names and post it on my web site and find out which people like the best." The album is due out in July, and Osbourne will be promoting it with a resumption if his OZZFest summer package tour. He's currently out promoting his just-published autobiography, "I Am Ozzy.
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2/3/2010
Ringo Starr will become the third Beatle to get a solo plaque on the Hollywood Walk of Fame next week. Starr will be on hand Monday (February 8th) when his becomes the 2,401st plaque on the sidewalk outside the Capitol Records Building. John Lennon and George Harrison, as well as the Beatles, also have plaques; Paul McCartney has also been approved for a plaque but so far has not scheduled a date for its unveiling. Starr, meanwhile, is the only Beatle not inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist.
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2/3/2010
Keith Richards' autobiography is still...coming, but a new film documentary about the Rolling Stones guitarist, directed by Johnny Depp, should be out sooner. Depp told a European interviewer that the Richards doc is his first directing project, reuniting the pair who appeared together in 2006's "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," in which Richards played the father of Depp's character Jack Sparrow. Depp told the interviewer that an editor "is already working on kilometers of archive footage and footage of (Richards') concerts. I'm very touched that Keith agreed to show up in front of my cameras." There's no word yet on when the film will be out...Meanwhile, reports that Richards' bandmate Ron Wood has entered rehab are apparently premature. After a one-hour visit to the London facility The Priory on January 29th, sources tell British newspapers that the guitarist is instead trying to cure his alcoholism "cold turkey," using the drug Campral to help him with the effects of withdrawal.
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2/3/2010
The Who will sit for the traditional Super Bowl halftime act press conference on Thursday, and fans will be able to check it out. Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey will meet the media at 3 p.m. Thursday (February 4th), and the session will be broadcast live on the NFL Network and on NFL.com. The Who is performing at the Super Bowl XLIV halftime show on Sunday (February 7th), and Townshend has revealed the 12-minute medley will include bits of "Baba O'Riley," "Pinball Wizard," the "Tommy"-closing "Listening to You," "Who Are You" and "Won't Get Fooled Again." The group has also collaborated with will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas and Slash on a remix of "My Generation" that will go on sale online after the Super Bowl, with proceeds benefiting Haitian earthquake relief. Meanwhile, the Who has also announced a March 30th performance during the Teenage Cancer Trust benefits at London's Royal Albert Hall, at which it will play "Quadrophenia" in its entirety for the first time since 1997 -- and since the death of bassist John Entwistle.
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2/1/2010
Aerosmith's internal battles flared up again over the weekend. Amidst increasing Internet reports about possible replacements for rehabbing Steven Tyler -- including Paul Rodgers, Billy Idol and former Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell -- the Insider has learned that Tyler has called a meeting of Aerosmith's "shareholders" (i.e., the other band members) for February 9th to discuss the band's future, including recording a new album and touring later this year in Europe and South America. This follows a January 27th letter sent to Aerosmith manager Howard Kaufman by Tyler's attorney, requesting that Kaufman "immediately cease and desist from engaging in acts and conduct to the harm and detriment of your own client, Aerosmith, and our client who is one of its members." Miller says the letter was prompted by a meeting in January between Kaufman and Tyler's representatives, during which he said Kaufman "said point blank he didn't think Steven should be part of Aerosmith, flat-out said the band would be better off without Steven -- which, in my opinion, is a very questionable management decision by a fiduciary...Can you imagine the manager of the Rolling Stones calling for the replacement of Mick Jagger? It's just absurd...I'm blown away that the ...
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2/1/2010
First-ever wins by Neil Young and AC/DC highlighted Classic Rock's night at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards on Sunday (January 31st) in Los Angeles. AC/DC's "War Machine," a track from its latest album, "Black Ice," was named Best Hard Rock Performance, while Young's "Archives, Volume 1 (1963-1972)" took home the Grammy for Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package. Neither act was present for their presentations: AC/DC was touring in New Zealand, while Young -- who was feted as the Grammy's MusiCares Person of the Year on Friday (January 29th) -- sent a video message saying, "Thanks a lot, everybody." Other winners on Sunday included: Bruce Springsteen, Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance for "Working on a Dream;" Judas Priest, Best Metal Performance for "Dissident Aggressor;" Jeff Beck, Best Rock Instrumental Performance for his rendition of the Beatles' "A Day in the Life;" The Band's Levon Helm, Best Americana album for "Electric Dirt;" the Derek Trucks Band, Best Contemporary Blues album for "Already Free;" Booker T. Jones, Best Pop Instrumental Album for "Potato Hole;" and the Beatles, Best Long Form Music Video for "The Beatles LOVE: All Together Now," a documentary of the Cirque du Soleil production in Las Vegas. Producer ...
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