2003

Roxio has acquired online music service Pressplay from Universal Music Group (UMG) and Sony Music Entertainment and plans to revive it under the Napster name before March 2004. As previously reported, Roxio, a maker of CD burning software, acquired Napster’s assets late last year.
Should the new Napster service turn a profit, UMG and Sony are each eligible to receive up to $6.25 million. Additionally, UMG and Sony each will have a representative on Roxio’s board of directors.
The two major label groups have pumped an estimated $60 million into developing Pressplay since its bow in 2001. The venture has content licensing deals with all five major labels and a host of independents, as well as distribution agreements with Roxio, Yahoo!, and Microsoft.
Source Billboard.com.

Pearl Jam has quietly confirmed reports that it’s no longer on Epic Records. In the Q&A section of the latest Pearl Jam Rumour Pit, the band’s official online newsletter, the question “Have Pearl Jam left their record company yet?” is answered by a simple “Yes.” Neither the band’s management nor Epic–Pearl Jam’s home since its debut album in 1991–are making official comments on the matter.
Prior to the start of Pearl Jam’s North American tour, bassist Jeff Ament expressed the band’s dissatisfaction with Epic and its parent company, Sony Music. “Our record company’s in shambles right now, so we’re (chuckles), we’re gonna wait for the label to get their sh-t together before we put anything else out,” Ament said. “It might be the sort of thing where, 10 years or 12 years, it’s kind of run its course a little bit. I mean, the good thing is that we have nothing but time right now, so we can enjoy our free agency.”
Source Yahoo.com.

According to a recent telephone interview, Jimmy Page has confirmed that there will be no Led Zeppelin reunion any time soon.
But he’d be open to the prospect — under certain conditions — and even then, he admits, it would be “a longshot.”
Various newspapers, magazines and Internet sites have reported since last summer that Page, singer Robert Plant and bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones might tour this summer.
Page, 59, told The Toronto Sun there’s no way a Led Zeppelin oldies tour will ever take place. “If there is anything I would really be scathing of, it would be a band — not mentioning any bands here — but a band that goes out promoting product that they did 30 years ago in a live capacity,” he said.
Source jamshowbiz.

Three albums by roots reggae elder Burning Spear have been digitally remastered and are set for reissue June 3 via Island/UME, as part of the label’s Reggae Classic Albums series. “Man in the Hills” and “Dry & Heavy” will be combined onto a single CD, while the artist’s definitive “Social Living” album will get a separate presentation complete with two extended-mix bonus tracks. Each of the discs will feature liner notes by reggae historian David Katz.
One of reggae’s brightest stars, Burning Spear broke through in 1975 with the widely acclaimed “Marcus Garvey” (Mango). It was followed by “Man in the Hills” (1976), “Dry & Heavy” (1977), and “Social Living” (1978).
Source Billboard.com.

The lineup for the Bonnaroo Festival in Manchester, TN during June 16,17,18, continues to expand as a number of new bands have been added to the roster. Ironically last year, Norah Jones was one of the “smaller” acts announced near the date of the festival and has since gone on to a few Grammy Awards. The bands just recently added includes:
Joshua RedmanLiz PhairEkoostik HookahJosh Winkphonosycograph DJ DISKDJ Disk and the Filthy ApeHackensaw BoysMark FarinaBuddahead Josh KellyGavin DegrawIndecisionLouqueRebirth Brass Band
Source Bonnaroo.com.

The MGM urban comedy “Soul Plane” has been cleared for takeoff, with rappers-turned-actors Snoop Dogg and Method Man on board to star for director Jessy Terrero.
Described as an urban version of the classic 1980 comedy “Airplane!,” the film is set to go into production in late June. Snoop Dogg will play a pilot, and Method Man will portray Muggsy, the airline owner’s best friend who is put in charge of the plane’s business class.
“Soul Plane” reunites Snoop Dogg and Terrero, who hails from the music video realm and directed the rapper’s “Tell It Like It Is” video. The two took a recent trip together to Brazil. Terrero also directed the Method Man video “Round and Round,” featured on the soundtrack to the 2001 comedy feature “How High,” starring Method Man and Redman.
Source Billboard.com.

Blur has lined up their first handful of North American tour dates in more than four years. The 11-date outing, in support of the new album Think Tank, will include several radio festivals and the Field Day festival in Long Island, NY. The tour dates are as follows: 5/24, Washington, DC; 5/25, Mansfield, MA; 5/26, Camden, NJ; 6/8, Calverton, NY (Field Day); 6/11, Tempe, AZ; 6/12, Las Vegas; 6/15, San Diego; 6/17, San Francisco; 6/19, Portland, OR; 6/20, Seattle; 6/21, Vancouver.
SourceFMQB.com.

The second leg of the Steely Dan

Rock duo Ween has signed with Sanctuary Records, which will release the group’s new album, “Quebec,” on July 22. Guitarist Dean Ween (real name: Mickey Melchiondo) last month described the 16-track set as “heavy, dark, psychedelic, and musically intricate at times.”
Ween spent the bulk of its career recording for Elektra but parted ways with the label after the 2000 album “White Pepper.” In the interim, the duo has issued two live albums exclusively through its own Chocodog imprint.
Melchiondo says “a full-on world tour” in support of “Quebec” is in the works, including appearances at the Bonnaroo NE festival and the Austin City Limits festival. The group will also play May 24 in Asbury Park, N.J., and May 31 at the Adirondack Mountain Music Festival in Lyonsdale, N.Y. Drummer Claude Coleman is back on board after being sidelined for several months while recovering from a serious automobile accident.
Source Billboard.com.