News

Drummer Mike Clark is hitting the road with another stunning group of musicians. While he has toured recently with young lions like Robert Walter, Skerik and Charlie Hunter (he will introduce some relatively unknown musicians to the jazz world later this year), he is kicking off 2006 with a tantalizing and fresh Headhunters lineup. With hundreds of years of combined performing experience, this ensemble fixes to be so funky that you just might be able to smell it.

Bill Summers returns on percussion and vocals, and things should get interesting with first time Headhunters George Porter Jr. (The Meters) on bass, Donald Harrison (Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers) on sax, and Jerry Z (Melvin Sparks) on the organ. These diverse musicians are bonded by a combination of decades of experience playing jazz, yet an ageless zestful approach to performing. They are each very talented at listening and reacting, yet none are shy about “stepping up” when appropriate.

Tour Dates
Thursday, January 19 | Regattabar at the Charles Hotel | Cambridge, MA
Friday, January 20 | Metronome | Burlington, VT
Saturday, January 21 | The Stone Church | Newmarket, NH
Sunday, January 22 | The Hi-Hat | Providence, RI
Tuesday, January 24 | The Knitting Factory | New York, NY
Wednesday, January 25 | Theatre of the Living Arts | Philadelphia, PA
Thursday, January 26 | Mr. Small’s Theatre | Pittsburgh, PA
Friday, January 27 | Eight by Ten Club | Baltimore, MD
Saturday, January 28 | State Theatre | Falls Church, VA

Guided By Voices, one of the most widely admired and influential rock groups of the 90’s and beyond were famous for writing an astounding quantity of really great rock songs, in a dizzying variety of styles and arrangements, and recording them on whatever equipment was at hand, whether boombox or four-track or professional recording studio. They were also famous for the revolving-door line-up whose only constant was singer/songwriter Robert Pollard, whose output moreover overflowed, on a seemingly endless series of side projects, solo records, and bizarre collaborations with ex-members of the band, current members of the band, and random passersby. Pollard, whose first post GBV release, From A Compound Eye, is due out in late January will be touring in support of it. The band will feature Robert Pollard : vocals, Tommy Keene : guitar and keyboard, Dave Phillips : guitar, Jason Narducy : bass, Jon Wurster : drums.

Tour Dates

JANUARY

Thursday January 26
Athens, GA-40 Watt Club

Friday January 27
Carrboro, NC-Cat’s Cradle

Saturday January 28
Washington, DC-930 Club

FEBRUARY

Thursday February 09
Cleveland, OH- Beachland Ballroom

Friday February 10
Columbus, OH – Little Brothers

Saturday February 11
Newport, KY- Southgate House

Friday February 24
Los Angeles, CA- Knitting Factory LA

Saturday February 25
San Francisco, CA – The Independent

Monday February 27
Portland, OR- Doug Fir Lounge

Tuesday February 28
Seattle , WA- Crocodile Cafe

MARCH

Thursday March 30
Minneapolis, MN – First Ave

Friday March 31
Chicago, IL- Metro

Saturday April 01
Detroit, MI- St Andrews

APRIL

Thursday April 20
NYC- Irving Plaza

Friday April 21-
Boston, MA- Paradise

Saturday April 22-
Philadelphia, PA- Theatre of Living Arts

With her long-awaited sophomore album, Speak For Yourself, finally hitting stores, Imogen Heap will cross the pond to pay her American fans a visit.

After a “Late Night With David Letterman” appearance January 10, she’ll play New York City’s Avalon and make her way across the country throughout the month.

Nearly a dozen cities are on the itinerary, with Rasputina cellist Zo

The Who will launch a world tour this summer that will bring the band to North America for its first extended trek in nearly four years. “We plan to visit the USA, Europe, Japan, Australia and also South America,” manager Bill Curbishley says.

The group — which now consists of Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend backed by bassist Pino Palladino, keyboardist John “Rabbit” Bundrick, drummer Zak Starkey and guitarist (and Pete’s brother) Simon Townshend — was forced to take a hiatus in 2005 due to Starkey’s touring commitments with Oasis and Palladino’s stint with the John Mayer Trio.

“I don’t want to stop, and I don’t think Pete does,” frontman Roger Daltrey told Rolling Stone in the fall. The Who have been working on a new album, Who2, on and off for the past decade and are scheduled to go back into the studio in February. There’s no word on whether the summer tour will feature new songs, but in March guitarist Pete Townshend posted in his online diary, “I feel I can’t tour any more with the Who without a new record.”

Townshend’s girlfriend, singer-songwriter Rachel Fuller, may open some dates on the tour.

Source rollingstone.com.

Vincent Schiavelli, the droopy-eyed character actor who appeared in scores of movies, including “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and “Ghost,” died Monday at his home in Sicily. He was 57.

He died of lung cancer, said Salvatore Glorioso, mayor of Polizzi Generosa, the Sicilian village where Schiavelli resided.

Schiavelli, whose gloomy look made him perfect to play creepy or eccentric characters, made appearances in some 150 film and television productions, according to the Internet Movie Database.

In “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” he played the science teacher Mr. Vargas, who was married to the character portrayed by Lana Clarkson. (Rock producer Phil Spector is accused of killing Clarkson at his mansion in 2003.)

Schiavelli also appeared as Salieri’s valet in “Amadeus,” as “Cuckoo’s Nest” patient Frederickson, the subway ghost in “Ghost,” the organ grinder in “Batman Returns,” and as Chester in “The People vs. Larry Flynt.” He was selected in 1997 by Vanity Fair as one of America’s best character actors.

Schiavelli, who was born and raised in New York, studied acting at New York University’s School of the Arts.

He also wrote three cookbooks and many food articles for magazines and newspapers, possibly inheriting his love for cooking from his grandfather, who had been a cook for an Italian baron before moving to the United States, according to IMDB.

“He was a great friend, a great chef and a great talker,” Glorioso, who has known Schiavelli for almost four years, said in a telephone interview.

“With a smooth, witty conversation, he would make everything look more colorful. I’ve lost a brother,” he said.

Schiavelli also had worked in Italy, including in 2001 when he directed a theater piece in Sicily based on nine fables.

A funeral service will be held Tuesday in Polizzi Generosa, Glorioso said.

yahoo.com.

Less than two weeks before the planned Jan. 3 release of her sophomore Columbia album, “Pretty Little Head,” singer/songwriter Nellie McKay has voluntarily left the label, sources tell Billboard.com. At deadline, the fate of the album is unknown; a spokesperson for the artist had no comment and McKay could not be reached.

The parties apparently reached an impasse over the length of the project. McKay insisted the label release her 23-song, 65-minute version, while Columbia sent out promotional copies of a 16-song, 48-minute album. Reviews of the set, which features guest appearances from Cyndi Lauper and k.d. lang, have already begun appearing in music magazines.

At recent shows, McKay had given out the personal email address of Columbia chairman Will Botwin from the stage, encouraging fans to press for the release of the longer version of the album. Botwin left the company earlier this month.

Source billboard.com.

Bruce Springsteen’s celebrated 1982 album, “Nebraska,” will be performed in its entirety by a host of notable artists next month as part of the New York Guitar Festival. Dubbed the Nebraska Project, the event will serve as the kick-off for the Guitar Festival, which will open Jan. 14 at the World Financial Center Winter Garden.

A different artist will perform each album track, beginning with Michelle Shocked on the title cut and also including the National (“Manson on the Hill”), Martha Wainwright with Marc Ribot (“Highway Patrolman”), Meshell Ndegeocello (“Up All Night”) and Dan Zanes with Vernon Reid (“State Trooper”).

Other performers set to appear are Jesse Harris (“Atlantic City”), Chocolate Genius (“Johnny 99”), Laura Cantrell (“Used Cars”), Mark Eitzel (“My Father’s House”) and Kevn Kinney with Lenny Kaye (“Reason To Believe”). Additional instrumental interludes will be provided by Ribot, Gary Lucas and Harry Manx.

“Nebraska” was previously the subject of a 2000 Sub Pop tribute album that featured Johnny Cash, Aimee Mann, Ben Harper, Ani DiFranco and Los Lobos, among others.

The New York Guitar Festival, which runs through Feb. 8, will feature 60 artists at seven venues, including Daniel Lanois, Bill Frisell, Jorma Kaukonen and Taj Mahal.

Source billboard.com.

Veteran singer/songwriter Van Morrison has aligned with Lost Highway for the release of his next studio album, the country-dominated “Pay the Devil.” Due March 7, the 15-track set features the Morrison originals “This Has Got To Stop,” “Playhouse” and the title cut.

“Pay the Devil” is rounded out by songs popularized by Webb Pierce (“There Stands the Glass”), Hank Williams (“Your Cheatin’ Heart”), Conway Twitty (“What Am I Living For”), Emmylou Harris (“‘Til I Gain Control”), Big Joe Turner (“Don’t You Make Me High”) and George Jones (“Things Have Gone to Pieces”), among others.

Morrison most recently recorded for Geffen, which released his “Magic Time” album in May. The set debuted at No. 25 on The Billboard 200. Prior to that, he was with Blue Note for the 2004 release “What’s Wrong With This Picture?”

The artist has been previewing some of the “Pay the Devil” material at recent live shows. His schedule will resume Jan. 3 on Spain’s Grand Canary Island; it is unknown if North American dates are in the works.

Here is the track list for “Pay the Devil”:

“There Stands the Glass”
“Half As Much”
“Things Have Gone to Pieces”
“Big Blue Diamonds”
“Playhouse”
“Your Cheatin’ Heart”
“Don’t You Make Me High”
“My Bucket’s Got a Hole In It”
“Back Street Affair”
“Pay the Devil”
“What Am I Living For”
“This Has Got To Stop”
“Once a Day”
“More and More”
“‘Til I Gain Control Again”

Source billboard.com.

Nearly four decades after Johnny Cash recorded his groundbreaking live album “Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison,” 20th Century Fox will screen its Cash biopic “Walk the Line” at the California state prison.

Film star Joaquin Phoenix, who received a Golden Globe nomination last week for his portrayal of the late “Man in Black,” will be on hand for the Jan. 3 screening. The film begins and ends with Cash’s electrifying performance at the prison.

“We invited 20th Century Fox to screen ‘Walk the Line’ at Folsom because the lesson of Johnny Cash is that it’s never too late for a man to turn his life around, and that’s a story these men need to hear,” said Joe Avila, California executive director of the nonprofit Prison Fellowship.

Added Phoenix: “[Cash] believed in the power of redemption and offered his unique gift to anyone who needed to find it within them, and in the process, he inspired millions. I can think of no greater way to honor him than to carry on his legacy of using music to connect to all people.”

Founded in 1976 by Chuck Colson, Prison Fellowship partners with local churches nationwide to aid prisoners, ex-prisoners and their families.

Source billboard.com.

The fifth annual Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival is confirmed to take place June 16 – 18, 2005. The three-day camping and music festival will once again be held on the same beautiful, 700-acre farm in Manchester, TN, 60 miles southeast of Nashville.

Festival organizers have also announced that they’ve decided to reduce the total capacity in 2006 by 10,000 people, returning to the same capacity as the 2003 festival. The size will create a more comfortable environment for everyone involved and to create the best festival experience possible.

Stay tuned to the official website for all info including lineup announcements, ticketing info, special activities and more.

Paul Simon and Herbie Hancock will headline the Berklee College of Music’s 60th anniversary concert, to be held Jan. 28 at Boston’s Wang Theatre. The show will be produced by Phil Ramone and hosted by comedian Bill Cosby. Performances will also be featured from vibes player Gary Burton and vocalist Chiara Civello.

Proceeds will benefit the Berklee Presidential Scholarship Fund; Simon, Hancock and Cosby are donating their usual compensation to Berklee scholarships that will be created in their name.

Hancock and Simon teamed up earlier this year for a new version of the latter’s “I Do It for Your Love,” which appeared on Hancock’s album “Possibilities.” Simon is also progressing on his long-in-the-works collaboration with Brian Eno. Billboard.com understands a number of tracks are finished, but no release date has yet been announced.

Source billboard.com.

The New York Guitar Festival 2006 is honoring Bruce Springsteen’s 1982 Nebraska album with a free gala concert under the glass atrium of the World Financial Center Winter Garden, 220 Vesey Street, Saturday, January 14, at 8:00pm.

Entitled The Nebraska Project, this 25th anniversary celebration of the classic Bruce Springsteen album features on one stage a distinctive roster of singer-songwriters, bands and instrumentalists. The Nebraska Project opens this year’s New York Guitar Festival.

Performing their own arrangements of one of the ten Nebraska songs are Laura Cantrell, Dan Zanes, Vernon Reid, Mark Eitzel, Michelle Shocked, Meshell Ndegeocello, The National, Chocolate Genius, Marc Ribot, Martha Wainwright, Jesse Harris, Kevn Kinney, Lenny Kaye, Gary Lucas and Harry Manx.

“Sometimes a recording artist’s demo versions of songs are more brilliant than the final studio product. Nebraska is one of those moments in music history,” said David Spelman, Artistic Director of the New York Guitar Festival. In 1982, Springsteen chose to release the demo versions of his newest songs, recorded with only acoustic or electric guitar, harmonica, and vocals, as his sixth album, Nebraska. The rest is history. www.brucespringsteen.net

The song and artist run down for The Nebraska Project:
Nebraska – Michelle Shocked
Atlantic City – Jesse Harris
Mansion on the Hill – The National
Johnny 99 – Chocolate Genius
Highway Patrolman – Martha Wainright w/ Marc Ribot
State Trooper – Dan Zanes w/Vernon Reid
Used Cars – Laura Cantrel
Open All Night – Meshell Ndegeocello
My Father’s House – Mark Eitzel
Reason to Believe – Kevn Kinney w/ Lenny Kaye

Plus instrumental interludes by Gary Lucas, Harry Manx and Marc Ribot

Visit newyorkguitarfestival.org for complete line-up and details.

David Gilmour has confirmed a two-week, five-city tour of North America this spring in support of his upcoming solo album, “On an Island.” Dates will get underway with an April 4-5 stand at New York’s Radio City Music Hall and run through April 19-20 at Los Angeles’ Kodak and Gibson Theatres, respectively.

“On an Island” will arrive March 6 via Columbia in the United Kingdom and a day later in North America. The former Pink Floyd vocalist/guitarist will begin roadwork March 10 in Dortmund, Germany, backed by a band whose members have yet to be announced.

Gilmour promises to blend new songs with Pink Floyd classics on the trek. “I’m rather hoping that with this tour announcement people will believe me when I say, honestly, this is the only band I plan to tour with!,” he says.

The artist will bring along lightning technician Marc Brickman, a longtime part of Pink Floyd’s live production. Pre-sale tickets for the North American shows begin tomorrow (Dec. 19) via Gilmour’s Web site and will go on sale to the general public the second weekend in January.

Here are David Gilmour’s North American tour dates:

April 4-5: New York (Radio City Music Hall)
April 9-10: Toronto (Massey Hall)
April 12-13: Chicago (Paramount Theatre)
April 16-17: Oakland, Calif. (Paramount Theatre)
April 19: Los Angeles (Kodak Theatre)
April 20: Los Angeles (Gibson Theatre)

Source billboard.com.

Legendary avant-garde composer Philip Glass has another busy year ahead, including a number of live performances scheduled in the coming months.

Glass will appear with the Qatsi Project for two three-night residencies – in Paris December 16-18, and in San Francisco in February. The Philip Glass Ensemble will perform Glass’ original scores for Godfrey Reggio’s trilogy of films – “Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance,” “Powaqqatsi: Life in Transformation,” and “Naqoyqatsi: Life as War.” The films will be shown in order, one per night.

Glass also has a number of solo piano performances lined up. February’s schedule includes concerts in Colorado, Oregon, British Columbia and Alberta.

In March, Glass will collaborate with New York-based composer/violinist/bandleader Daniel Bernard Roumain at Newark, N.J.’s Victoria Theatre.

Three full albums of Glass material surfaced in 2005, in addition to a disc featuring remixes of his work by drum and bass, house, techno and ambient producers. He also composed the soundtrack to “NeverWas,” a film by Joshua Michael Stern scheduled for release in 2006.

Source pollstar.com.

he Times They Are A-Changin’, a new musical based on the songs of Bob Dylan, will premiere at San Diego’s Old Globe Theater on January 25th.
Directed and choreographed by Broadway vet Twyla Tharp, the plot chronicles a low-rent traveling circus run by Captain Arab (Paul Kandel), and his son Coyote’s (Michael Arden) longings for a world outside of the family business. The story also details Coyote’s love for a young animal trainer, Cleo (Jenn Colella), who is exploited by Arab. The musical references such Dylan tunes as “Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream,” in which Arab is a character, and “Ballad of Hollis Brown,” which features the lyrics: “Way out in the wilderness/A cold coyote calls.”

The Times They Are A-Changin’, which plans to move to Broadway, follows a series of musicals built around rock music, including the Elvis Presley-inspired All Shook Up, the John Lennon-inspired Lennon, the Beach Boys’ Good Vibrations and the Billy Joel-inspired Movin’ Out — Tharp’s previous concept musical.

Tickets for the show, which is scheduled to run through March 5th, are on sale at oldglobe.org.

Source rollingstone.com.

When you’re home this holiday season drinking Bailey’s with the family, now there’s one more Christmas disc to add to the seasonal shuffle.

As noted by The Slip’s brother duo of Brad and Andrew Barr, “Our family only really attended church services on christmas eve and as far as we were concerned that was more than enough. The only thing that made that little wool uniform less than unbearable was the sacred music that ensued outside around the manger. Over the years we have both developed a real soft spot for some of these melodies and last December we invited the elves over to help us track some yule tide favorites. These cuts were intended to be for the family only, but The Slip’s friend and co-manager Jon Bahr convinced us that there might be others out there who need some ammo to help pry their families from the illimitable amount of garish tinsel time muzak.

Enjoy with eggnog.
-Andrew and Brad

1.White Christmas
2.Silent Night
3.Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
4.Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
5.Oh Little Town of Bethlehem

all instruments played by The Barr Brothers

Click Here to purchase

Although Rush released a new live DVD, “R30: 30th Anniversary World Tour,” just last month, the veteran Canadian rock trio is planning on reissuing several classic live performances in 2006. To the delight of long time fans, their well-worn VHS copies of “Exit…Stage Left,” “Grace Under Pressure Tour” and “A Show of Hands” will soon be replaced with DVD reissues.

“Everything’s been remixed to 5.1, and that was the intention — to keep it all intact, except for the remix,” guitarist Alex Lifeson tells Billboard.com. “So it’s available in surround.” It remains to be decided if the releases will be made available individually or packaged together. “I’m guessing a box set — that would make more sense,” Lifeson says.

Lifeson says he enjoyed taking a trip down memory lane while refurbishing the material. “It was interesting to see the development in the arrangements, and how our sound changed over the course of a decade,” he says. “I definitely found it fascinating, looking at that. And how the stage show changed over the years — of course, [in] 10 years a lot of stuff changes. But it was a little fascinating to watch that, actually.”

Asked if he was planning to follow-up his lone solo release, 1996’s “Victor,” the artists offers, “‘Victor’ was really, really rewarding for me, and I felt that I really needed to do something like that at the time. I don’t feel like that so much anymore. Not that I would discount it, it’s great to work with other people, it’s great to work on your own music — especially in my case, when I have a studio.”

“But at the same time, we’re thinking about starting a new [Rush] record in the next month,” he continues. “We’ve been celebrating the last 30 years, and it’s time to kind of move forward now. So, I’m really looking forward to a new Rush studio album. And then afterwards, we’ll see.”

Source billboard.com.

The 16th Annual HIGH SIERRA MUSIC FESTIVAL will be held on Thursday, June 29 – Sunday, July 2, 2006 at the Plumas-Sierra County Fairgrounds, Quincy, CA.

Confirmed acts so far are:

Bela Fleck and The Flecktones
Nickel Creek
Umphrey’s McGee
Robert Walter’s Super Heavy Organ
Tea Leaf Green
ALO
Drew Emmitt Band [formerly of Leftover Salmon]
Lotus
New Mastersounds
Apollo Sunshine
Adrienne Young and Little Sadie
Shady Deal
Dubconscious
Chuch
Plus many, many more TBA

The High Sierra Music Festival is a unique four-day music and camping festival that features an eclectic and boldly creative span of music from acoustic singer-songwriters and down-home bluegrass to high-energy funk and skillfully improvised jazz, rock and live electronica.

Festival pass price includes a $1 donation to the High Sierra Foundation, which has established a special fund for direct aid to New Orleans musicians affected by Hurricane Katrina.

highsierramusic.com

After skipping over NYC on his recent fall tour, as promised, Phil Lesh and Friends will more than make up for lost time in the Big Apple. In addition to expected dates at the Beacon Theatre February 10-12 and 14-15, the band has also announced a run at the Hammerstein Ballroom February 17-19. The tour, entitled

The South by Southwest (SXSW) Music Conference and Festival, scheduled to take place Wednesday, March 15 – 19, 2006 in Austin, Texas is pleased to announce their initial list of showcasing acts. From the 7500 bands that applied, a partial list of acts scheduled to perform at the five night festival will include:

The Adored (Los Angeles CA), Annie (Bergen NORWAY), Arctic Monkeys, Belle and Sebastian (Glasgow UK), The BellRays (Los Angeles CA), Be Your Own PET (Nashville TN), Blockhead (New York NY), The Boy Least Likely To (Wendover UK), The Brokedown (Los Angeles CA), Calexico (Tucson AZ), Neko Case (Tacoma WA), Cat Power (Atlanta GA), clap your hands say yeah (Brooklyn NY), Clor (London UK), Jason Collett (Toronto ON), The Cribs (Wakefield UK), Cuff the Duke (Toronto ON), Jamie Cullum (London UK), Dashboard Confessional (Boca Raton, FL), Death In Vegas (London UK), Death Vessel (Brooklyn NY), Dengue Fever (Los Angeles CA), Destroyer (Vancouver BC), Die! Die! Die! (Auckland NEW ZEALAND), Dirty Pretty Things (London UK), Jorge Drexler (Madrid SPAIN), Dr. Spock (Reykjavik ICELAND), The Duke Spirit (London UK), The Earlies (Manchester UK), Echo & The Bunnymen (Liverpool UK), Editors (Birmingham UK), The Eighteenth Day Of May (London UK), Elbow (Manchester UK), Empire Dogs (Stockholm SWEDEN), Erase Errata (San Francisco CA), Faker (Sydney AUSTRALIA), Flogging Molly (Los Angeles CA), Forward Russia (Leeds UK), Giant Sand (Tucson AZ), Gogol Bordello (New York NY), Jose Gonzalez (Gothenburg SWEDEN), The Go! Team (Brighton UK), Headphones (Seattle WA), The Hellacopters (Stockholm SWEDEN), Clarence Frogman Henry (New Orleans LA), The Juan Maclean (Dover NH), Kaki King (New York NY), Kalas (Oakland CA), k-os (Whitby ON), Sharron Kraus & Christian Kiefer (London UK), Lady Sovereign, The Like (Los Angeles CA), Los De Abajo (Mexico City MEXICO), Luminous Orange (Yokohama JAPAN), Barbara Lynn (Beaumont TX), The Magic Numbers (London UK), Magnolia Electric Company (Chicago IL), Serena Maneesh (Oslo NORWAY), Mates of State (East Haven CT), The Morning After Girls (Sydney AUSTRALIA), The Most Serene Republic (Toronto ON), Mystery Jets (London UK), My Summer as a Salvation Soldier (Reykjavik ICELAND), Neon Blonde (Seattle WA), Nickel Creek (Carlsbad CA), n0 things (Brooklyn NY), Of Montreal (Athens GA), Beth Orton (London UK), Peaches (Berlin GERMANY), The Plimsouls (Los Angeles CA), Robert Pollard (Dayton OH), Ramblin’ Jack Elliot (New York NY), Saves the Day (Princeton NJ), The Secret Machines (New York NY), Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives (Hendersonville TN), Tarantula A D (New York NY), Susan Tedeschi (Jacksonville FL), Towers of London (London UK), KT Tunstall (London UK), Two Gallants (San Francisco CA), Tom Verlaine (New York NY), Vetiver (San Francisco CA), The Whigs (Athens GA), Witch (Brattleboro VT), and Wolfmother (Sydney AUSTRALIA). This list is subject to change. Please keep in mind this is only a portion of the showcasing acts that will be playing at the SXSW Music Festival.