A classic Jazz Fest music lineup of Louisiana legends, international stars, and roots-music heroes is set for the landmark 35th New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
The Festival
The original “Star Wars” trilogy, one of the most-requested DVD episodic film franchises, is expected to be released as a four-disc DVD box set September 21.
A global rollout on DVD is expected within days of the domestic release, according to Lucasfilm Ltd. and 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.
The trilogy, featuring the classic franchise films “Star Wars,” “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Return of the Jedi,” will be released on three DVD discs, with a fourth disc likely to hold a newly made documentary about the “Star Wars” franchise and never-before-seen footage, among several other bonus materials, said Jim Ward, Lucasfilm’s VP of marketing and distribution and the DVD trilogy’s executive producer.
“We are currently in the process of restoring and remastering all three titles for the DVD release, so we’re still working on details of the marketing strategy,” Ward said. “But I believe that it is safe to say that it will receive tremendous exposure across all media.”
Source CNN.com.
Mercury U.K. joint managing director Steve Lillywhite has left his role with the label to return to his roots in record production. Lillywhite tells Billboard.biz he will take no time off and will begin producing an album by U2 next week. The as-yet-untitled set is due from Interscope/Island later this year.
“It’s the first time I’ll have gone in to actually start a record with them in 20 years,” says Lillywhite. “I worked on ‘The Joshua Tree,’ ‘Achtung Baby’ and ‘All That You Can’t Leave Behind,’ but this will be the first time I’ve really set up the mikes and done everything for a long time.”
Lillywhite also oversaw the band’s first two albums, 1980’s “Boy” and 1981’s “October.” He adds, “I’ve heard some great songs. The Edge is playing some really great guitar.”
Lillywhite, one of Britain’s top rock producers, has a list of credits that includes the Rolling Stones, Talking Heads, Peter Gabriel, Morrissey and the Dave Matthews Band. In 2002, he was brought to Universal U.K. by chairman/CEO Lucian Grainge.
“I’ve had two great years, and I’ve loved a lot of it,” says Lillywhite, “but really I wasn’t that made out for getting up early in the morning. That’s 25 years of producing records. I got more and more of an urge to be in the studio, so Lucian and I had a chat and decided it was best that I return to that.”
Source billboard.com.
G Love & Special Sauce are cooking up a new batch of dates for the spring. Their latest outing kicks off March 4 in Columbia, S.C. They’ll do shows across the southern and eastern United States before wrapping March 21 in Killington, Vt.
G. Love recently did a song with Jack Johnson for the “Thicker Than Water” soundtrack. They performed the song together in December on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” “Late Show with David Letterman,” and “Last Call with Carson Daly” in December.
Last year, 8,000 lucky fans picked up Kickin’ Back, a four-song EP of previously unreleased tracks which was included with the October issue of Surfer magazine. The band’s last proper release was 2002’s The Best Of G. Love & Special Sauce, which culled hits from their five studio albums.
Source pollstar.com.
The 3rd Annual Bonnaroo Festival will be held on June 11 – 13th, 2004 on the same Manchester, TN farm as in previous years. An intial lineup has been announce with other acts expected to be added in the coming weeks.
Tickets go on sale February 21st at 10am through Bonnaroo.com.
Confirmed acts include:
The Dead, Dave Matthews & Friends, Bob Dylan, Trey Anastasio, Willie Nelson, David Byrne, Primus, Wilco, Burning Spear, String Cheese Incident, Ani DiFranco, Gov’t Mule, Los Lobos, Galactic, Yo La Tengo, Femi Kuti, Medeski Martin & Wood, Gomez, Yonder Mountain String Band, Damien Rice, North Mississippi Allstars Hill Country Review, Beth Orton, My Morning Jacket, Gillian Welch, The Del McCoury Band, Taj Mahal, Sam Bush Band, Vida Blue feat. the Spam Allstars, Los Lonely Boys, Grandaddy, Kings of Leon, Soulive, Neko Case, Calexico, Leftover Salmon, Cut Chemist, Chris Robinson, Umphrey’s McGee, Maroon5, The Black Keys, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, The Bad Plus, Marc Broussard, Donovan Frankenreiter
OutKast’s double CD, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below was the big winner, taking home Album of the Year as well as Best Rap Album honors. Below are additional winning highlights:
Dave Matthews – Best Male Rock Vocal Performance:
The First Family of Indie Rock
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Junior Senior, Cursive, Bright Eyes, Basement Jaxx, Thursday, the Rapture, Paul Van Dyk, Stereolab and the Queens Of The Stone Age-affiliated Desert Sessions have joined the lineup for the fifth Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, to be held May 1-2 at the Empire Polo Fied in Indio, Calif. Tickets go on sale Feb. 14; more acts may be added.
As previously reported, the festival will be headlined by Radiohead and the Cure. Other confirmed acts include the reunited Pixies, Kraftwerk, Air, Wilco, the Flaming Lips, Mogwai, Belle & Sebastian, Dizzee Rascal, the Thrills, LCD Soundsystem, Electric Six, Sahara Hotnights, Death Cab For Cutie; Kinky, the (International) Noise Conspiracy, Prefuse 73, T. Raumschmiere, Sidestepper, …And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, !!! and Atmosphere.
Among the new confirmations are 2manydjs, the Crystal Method, Adam Freeland, Ash, Muse, Antibalas, the Cooper Temple Clause, Stellastar, the Killers, the Stills, the Sleepy Jackson, Broken Social Scene, the Black Keys, Future Sound Of London, Hieroglyphics, Le Tigre, Moving Units, Erase Errata, Seb Fontaine, Laurent Garnier, Living Legends, Sander Kleinenberg, the Sounds, Howie Day, Peretz (aka Perry Farrell), Mark Farina, 22-20’s, Phantom Planet, Dios, Jem, Q & Not U, the Section Quartet and DJ Icon.
Source billboard.com.
Burning Spear and Sean Paul head up a genre-spanning roster for the 23rd annual Bob Marley Day Festival, set for February 14 and 15. The event will take place at the Long Beach Arena in Southern California, and features an international crafts and food fair, along with ten hours of music each day.
In addition to elder statesman Burning Spear, the Saturday lineup includes Beres Hammond, Wayne Wonder, Julian Marley, Hepcat, Arrested Development, T.O.K., Baby Cham, Soul Majestic featuring Rastan, and Mr. Mutton.
On Sunday, hip-hop/dancehall crossover sensation Sean Paul will have help from Elephant Man, Luciano, Sly & Robbie with the Taxi Connection, Big Youth, Edi Fitzroy, Little John, Peter Metro, Carlton Livingston and more. Tickets for the event are on sale now through Ticketmaster and select Southern California record stores and restaurants. See bobmarleydayfesitval.com for more details.
