MUSIC NEWS: THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2015
ALANIS MORISSETTE WRITING MUSICAL, BOOK
Canadian pop-star Alanis Morissette is working
on a musical based on her ``Jagged Little Pill'' album. Morissette
tells Billboard she's in the beginning stages and she's working with
composer Tom Kitt, who worked on the Green Day Broadway show
``American Idiot.'' Morissette says her show will be a fictionalized
story and she's changing the lyrics to some songs. She's also
writing new ones. Morissette is also writing a self-help book
reflecting on her life and the wisdom she's gathered. She plans to
turn it in to her publisher in June, but a release date was not
announced.
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U.D.O.'S UDO DIRKSCHNEIDER EXPLAINS HIS LOOK
The reason former Accept singer Udo Dirkschneider
wears camouflage and has short hair is because no one in metal did
that before him. Dirkschneider says it was unusual for a metal band
to wear camouflage onstage in 1982, so he did it to stand out. His
management thought he should cut his long hair because camouflage
and long hair did not really go together. Initially he fought the
idea, but Dirkschneider says he loves having short hair because it
dries fast. Dirkschneider's new band, U.D.O., recently released a
new album called ``Decadent.''
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R.I.A.A.: STREAMING MUSIC UP, SALES DOWN
Americans are listening to more music than ever.
They're just not buying it. The Recording Industry Association of
America reports the U-S retail music business was essentially flat
last year. Sales based on physical copies of music consisted of 32
percent of all music sales, down from 35 percent in 2013. Permanent
downloads made up 37 percent, down from 40 percent the year before.
Streaming music made up 27 percent, up from 21 percent.
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RHODE ISLAND GOVERNOR DEFENDS ``TAYLOR SWIFT TAX''
Rhode Island's governor is standing by a
proposed luxury tax nicknamed the ``Taylor Swift tax.'' Governor
Gina Raimondo says she wants to raise nearly 12- million dollars
with a state property tax on second homes worth more than
one-million. Swift owns a beachfront mansion in Westerly, Rhode
Island. The Rhode Island Association of Realtors says such a tax
could discourage the purchase of vacation homes in Rhode Island.
Raimondo says Rhode Island is still a bargain compared to
Massachusetts.
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PARAMORE'S HAYLEY WILLIAMS IS STARTING HAIR DYE COMPANY
Paramore singer Hayley Williams will be
advertising her new company every time she turns her head. Williams
writes on the Paramore website she is starting her own hair dye
line. She says she's been working on it for four years but she
underestimated the work load. She will give more details when she's
ready to launch it. Williams is also planning a beauty tips webcast
through the website PopularTV-dot-com. She's doing all this while
planning her wedding to New Found Glory guitarist Chad Gilbert.
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GRATEFUL DEAD MEMORABILIA WILL BE AUCTIONED
The last book Jerry Garcia read is for sale.
Donley Auctions will sell Garcia's copy of ``The Celestine
Prophecy'' by James Redfield, complete with Garcia's handwritten
notes and menu selections from a nearby cafe. Garcia read it while
in rehab the week before he died. The book is expected to sell for
at least 25-thousand dollars. Garcia's Colt .25 automatic pistol is
also for sale, with a pre-auction estimate of 30-thousand. Other
items for sale include the furniture and rug from the Grateful
Dead's office, drummer Mickey Hart's laminate from the Dead's Egypt
concert in 1978 and a Grateful Dead shaving kit presented to Garcia
with the notation, ``unused obviously.'' The auction will be the
weekend of April 11th in Union, Illinois, but conducted online at
GratefulDeadChicago-dot-auction .
ROCK HALL ANNOUNCES PRESENTERS AND PERFORMERS
Paul McCartney will welcome Ringo Starr into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. McCartney will do the induction speech
for Starr at the induction ceremony in Cleveland on April 18th. Joe
Walsh will perform Starr's music. Stevie Wonder will induct Bill
Withers, with John Legend performing in tribute. It's still
uncertain whether Withers himself will perform. Patti Smith will
induct Lou Reed, with Beck performing Reed's music. John Mayer will
induct Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Jimmie Vaughan will perform in
tribute with Double Trouble. Peter Wolf of the J. Geils Band will
induct the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, with Tom Morello performing.
Fall Out Boy will induct Green Day. Dave Grohl will perform for Joan
Jett's induction, but the presenter has not yet been announced.
Steve Cropper will induct the ``5'' Royales.
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CHER OFFERS SUPPORT IN ELDERLY ROMANCE
A judge says a 96-year-old black woman who
married a 95-year-old white man should be returned to her home in
Alexandria, Virginia, and Cher gets some of the credit. Cher offered
to pay for the upgrades to Edith Hill's home after seeing a news
story about Hill and her husband, Eddie Harrison. They had been
companions for a decade before marrying last year. Hill suffers from
mild dementia, and she was separated from Harrison in a court battle
within her family over whether she was mentally fit to marry.
Harrison died in December. Cher says once the repairs are complete
and Hill is returned home, it will be bittersweet because she only
wanted to be with Harrison.
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SAM COOKE FILM IN THE WORKS
Sam Cooke's family has agreed to allow a film
about his life to be made. The Hollywood Reporter reports Cooke's
family will give music and film producer Romeo Antonio access to
family documents and to Cooke's assistant, Zelda Samuels, who is now
84. Cooke's nephew, Eugene Jamison, says the family has been
approached about a movie on Cooke before, but Antonio was the first
person who wanted to seek the truth about Cooke's death. Police said
in 1964 Cooke kidnapped a woman and was shot by a motel manager, but
his family says Cooke was fighting for black musicians' rights and
ticked off the wrong people.
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NATE RUESS WINS SONGWRITER AWARD
Nate Ruess of fun. will be given a special
award for young songwriters. Ruess will be presented with the Hal
David Starlight Award at the Songwriters Hall of Fame gala June 18th
in New York. Hall of fame president Linda Moran says Ruess' lyrics
are ``clever, warm and accessible and his music is sophisticated and
memorable.''
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``EMPIRE'' BEATS MADONNA FOR NUMBER ONE ALBUM
Madonna has been crushed by ``Empire.'' The
soundtrack to the T-V show ``Empire'' has entered the Billboard 200
album chart at number one, moving 130-thousand units. Madonna's
``Rebel Heart'' is second with 121-thousand units.
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PAULA PATTON, ROBIN THICKE GRANTED DIVORCE
Paula Patton and Robin Thicke are another step
closer to divorce. Patton was granted a divorce earlier this week,
which will go into effect April 14th. They announced they were
separating last year after nine years of marriage. They have a
4-year-old son.
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MARVIN GAYE'S FAMILY ATTEMPTS TO STOP 'BLURRED LINES'
Marvin Gaye's family wants to put the brakes
on ``Blurred Lines.'' Gaye's children filed a motion in court this
week to prevent distribution and performance of the hit featuring
Pharrell, Robin Thicke and T.I. Last week, a jury determined the
song was copied from Gaye's 1977 hit ``Got to Give It Up.'' Gaye's
adult children were awarded nearly 7.4-million dollars in damages.
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The following is HMV Canada's top 10 CDs based on national sales for the week ending March 21.
CDs
1 To Pimp A Butterfly _ Kendrick Lamar
2 Rebel Heart _ Madonna
3 Hozier _ Hozier
4 Smoke + Mirrors _ Imagine Dragons
5 Strangers to Ourselves _ Modest Mouse
6 X _ Ed Sheeran
7 In the Lonely Hour _ Sam Smith
8 Shania: Still the One_ Live from Vegas _ Shania Twain
9 ``Fifty Shades of Grey'' Soundtrack _ Various Artists
10 Spring Break...Checkin' Out _ Luke Bryan
COUNTRY
1 Shania: Still the One_ Live from Vegas _ Shania Twain
2 Spring Break...Checkin' Out _ Luke Bryan
3 1989 _ Taylor Swift
4 Crash My Party _ Luke Bryan
5 Greatest Hits _ Shania Twain
6 Spring Break... The Setlist _ Luke Bryan
7 Country Hits 2015 _ Various Artists
8 Outsiders _ Eric Church
9 Montevallo _ Sam Hunt
10 Greatest Hits So Far... _ Zac Brown Band