2003

After performing a surprise set during Thursday’s opening-night concert, Don and Phil Everly, better known as the Everly Brothers have agreed to sing in Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel’s entire Old Friends tour.The Everly Brothers were introduced midway through the show and sang three of their hits – “Wake Up Little Susie,” “Dream” and “Let it Be Me” – before Simon and Garfunkel joined them on “Bye Bye Love.”
The sold-out concert at the Wachovia Arena in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, kicked off Simon and Garfunkel’s first tour in 20 years. The Grammy-winning duo performed hits including “Homeward Bound,” “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “Mrs. Robinson” and “The Boxer.”
The North American tour ends Dec. 21 in Tampa, Florida.
Source Pollstar.com.

The Dave Matthews Band’s recent free concert in Central Park is coming to CD and DVD. “The Central Park Concert” will be released as a triple-disc CD and double-disc DVD Nov. 18 by RCA. Fans who pre-order either item through DMB’s official Web site by Nov. 14 will receive an exclusive seven-track live disc drawn from the group’s summer North American tour.
The 20-song show goes a bit heavier on old favorites than usual, such as “So Much To Say,” “Dancing Nancies,” “Warehouse,” “Ants Marching,” “What Would You Say” and “Jimi Thing.” The latter cut, as well as a cover of Neil Young’s “Cortez the Killer,” feature Gov’t Mule’s Warren Haynes on guitar.
The “Central Park” DVD sports a documentary on the show and a photo gallery. The release is DMB’s fifth live album, and first since last November’s “Live at Folsom Field.” Matthews has also released “Live at Luther College” with frequent sideman Tim Reynolds.
Source Billboard.com.

Primus will make each concert from its upcoming tour available for purchase online. The outing, featuring the band’s original lineup, launched this week in California, and will keep Primus on the road through the end of November. Shows from October will be available for purchase on the newly created Web site PrimusLive.com beginning Nov.7.
Each performance will offered in MP3 and FLAC audio formats. Pricing for the downloads has not yet been set. After Nov. 7, new concerts will be posted online 48 hours after their completion. Fans will also be able to download artwork for use in CD jewel cases.
As previously reported, the trek, dubbed the Tour de Fromage, will feature two sets. Primus will play a different first set each night of tracks from its back catalog, followed by a second set replicating the album “Sailing the Seas of Cheese” in its entirety. It marks the first time leader Les Claypool and guitarist Larry Lalonde are performing with original drummer Tim Alexander since his 1996 departure.
Source Billboard.com.

Virgin Records will this winter reissue a number of David Bowie releases, including “Black Tie White Noise,” the 1989 box set “Sound + Vision” and remastered versions of “Scary Monsters,” “Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars” and “Let’s Dance.” Additionally, the label will re-release last year’s “Best of Bowie” with a bonus DVD. A DVD will also be added to the repackaged “Black Tie White Noise.”
“Black Tie White Noise,” which marked a return to Bowie’s solo career after having a go with ill-fated rock combo Tin Machine, was originally released in 1993. Due Jan. 13, the reissue will come with an added CD and DVD. The 12-track CD will contain remixes by Jack Dangers and Leftfield, as well as B-side “Lucy Can’t Dance” and the previously unreleased “Jump They Say,” among other rarities. The DVD will feature all of the album’s videos and selected live performances.
The DVD packaged with the “Best of Bowie” reissue, due Dec. 2, will contain videos for “Let’s Dance,” “Heroes” and “Black Tie White Noise.” The rest of the DVD will be filled out with six audio tracks, all of them remixes of Bowie hits.
Source Billboard.com.

Guns N’ Roses hasn’t released a new album in a decade, but that isn’t stopping Geffen from delving into the group’s back catalog. On Oct. 28, the label will offer the first DVD editions of the 1998 home video “Welcome to the Videos,” plus the separate 1992 home videos “Use Your Illusion I” and “Use Your Illusion II: World Tour – 1992 in Toyko.”
“Welcome to the Videos” rounds up clips for such favorites as “Welcome to the Jungle,” “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” “Patience,” “Don’t Cry” and GNR’s cover of Wings’ “Live and Let Die.”
Guns N’ Roses has been dormant since its disastrous fall 2002 comeback tour, which was derailed after frontman Axl Rose failed to show up for a concert in Philadelphia. The group’s terminally delayed album “Chinese Democracy” appears no closer to release; a March posting on GNR’s official Web site says, “stay tuned for news and information on ‘Chinese Democracy’ coming soon.'”
Source Billboard.com.

A Broadway musical based on songs by John Lennon, tentatively titled “The Lennon Project,” will musically explore the turbulent times of the 1960s and 1970s with some 30 songs drawn from more than 200 Lennon wrote after the Beatles break-up. The legendary band released their last album, “Let It Be,” in 1970 but had already dissolved as a act.
“Over the past two decades, I have been experiencing the feedback from the world to John’s life, statements and music,” Yoko Ono said in a statement. “I realized what John had meant to the world. He was a catalyst who brought down the hypocrisy and the old world establishments by saying ‘Gimme Some Truth.'”
“What we present on stage should again give people insight, encouragement, inspiration and fun, so they can go on with their lives with some assurance and hope,” she continued.
The show, which is planned for the 2004-2005 season, will be produced by Edgar Lansbury and Don Scardino. Scardino will also direct the show with a script he plans to write with Eric Overmyer.
The Lennon show follows several recent Broadway shows based on preexisting songs by a composer. The long-running “Mamma Mia” is based on music by ABBA; the Tony-winning, rock-ballet “Movin’ Out” is performed to Billy Joel’s music; and this season marks the opening of “The Boy From Oz,” a musical biography of Australian cabaret singer Peter Allen.
As previously reported, Capitol will on Nov. 18 release the “Lennon Legend” DVD, featuring rare newsreel and private footage from the Lennon/Ono archive, 15 new and remastered music video clips, newly created animations of Lennon’s drawings and an extensive photo gallery.
Source Billboard.com.

Roots rockers The Jayhawks will be featured on Austin City Limits January 3, 2004 on PBS. This particular performance will also feature Gillian Welch. Other acts to be featured this year on the series

After Phish wraps up their four-night New Years Eve run in Miami this December, keyboard player Page McConnell will begin a short tour up the East Coast with his side project, Vida Blue. And Phish fans will be pleased to hear that the Jazz Mandolin Project, featuring Jon Fishman on drums, will open all dates except the last date in Vermont.
Sat, Jan 3 / Jackie Gleason Theater of the Performing Arts / Miami Beach, FLSun, Jan 4 / Jannus Landing / St. Petersburg, FLMon, Jan 5 / The Tabernacle / Atlanta, GAWed, Jan 7 / The Orange Peel / Asheville, GAThu, Jan 8 / 9:30 Club / Washington, DCFri, Jan 9 / Electric Factory / Philadelphia, PASat, Jan 10 / Roseland Ballroom / New York, NYMon, Jan 12 / Higher Ground / Winooski, VT
Full ticketing information can be found at phish.com/tourdates

Cash Tribute Lineup Swells John Mellencamp, Dwight Yoakam and George Jones have joined the lineup for the Nov. 10 Johnny Cash Memorial Tribute concert in Nashville. As reported last week, the event at the Ryman Auditorium will also feature Rosanne Cash, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Hank Williams Jr., Sheryl Crow, Jack Clement, Steve Earle and Larry Gatlin.
Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and U2 lead singer Bono have expressed interest in taking part, but have not yet confirmed. According to a spokesperson, the concert will be taped for later broadcast on an outlet yet to be determined.
Source Billboard.com.