2004

Prior to a yet announced large- scale summer tour with The Dead, Bob Weir will be performing throughout the month of March with Ratdog. A large number of east coast medium size market dates have been announced. The first date out east begins on March 19th in Rochester, NY and runs through April 3rd at Waterville Valley, NH. Ratdog also consists of keyboardist Jeff Chimenti of the Dead, guitarist Mark Karan, drummer Jay Lane, bassist Robin Sylvester, and Kenny Brooks on saxophone.

In other Weir news, a two disc retrospective

The nation’s largest radio chain has taken shock jock Howard Stern off its stations indefinitely for running afoul of new decency standards.

“We will not air Howard Stern on Clear Channel stations until we are assured that his show will conform to acceptable standards of responsible broadcasting,” said a statement from John Hogan, president and CEO of Clear Channel Radio.

Clear Channel operates 1,200 stations nationwide. It was unclear how many of its stations currently run Stern, who is syndicated across the country by another company, Infinity Broadcasting. The suspension applies only to Clear Channel stations.

Earlier in the day, Clear Channel, which has been under fire from the Federal Communications Commission over allegedly indecent content aired on its stations, announced a zero-tolerance policy that called for immediate suspension of its on-air personalities who cross the line.

Hogan said there would be “no appeals and no immediate steps” for DJs found in violation, and that on-air personalities employed by Clear Channel who were found to have violated FCC indecency rules would be fired.

The company said Stern’s suspension from its stations came after a review of his Tuesday broadcast.

“Clear Channel drew a line in the sand today with regard to protecting our listeners from indecent content, and Howard Stern’s show blew right through it,” Hogan said.

“It was vulgar, offensive and insulting, not just to women and African-Americans but to anyone with a sense of common decency.”

The statement did not outline what parts of Stern’s show ran afoul of the policy or how long the suspension might last.

In January, the FCC announced it would fine Clear Channel $750,000 for allegedly indecent content aired by one of its DJs, Todd Clem, known as Bubba the Love Sponge. The company fired Clem on Tuesday.

Source CNN.Com.

Lo-fi indie rock pioneers Sebadoh are ready to tour their home continent for the first time since 1999. Main Sebadites Lou Barlow and Jason Loewenstein will take to stages across North America this spring with pre-recorded percussion on a cassette four-track machine.

The tour kicks off April 19 in St. Louis, Mo., at the Duck Room, and will run for about two and a half weeks, winding up in Nashville May 8.
Sebadoh was formed in 1988 by Barlow with Eric Gaffney while the former was still playing bass for Dinosaur Jr. Loewenstein joined shortly thereafter, quickly becoming Barlow’s main co-contributor as Gaffney faded from the picture.

After eight albums, the last being 1999’s The Sebadoh, Barlow and Loewenstein let the project rest, preferring to concentrate separately on solo ventures and assorted projects. They regrouped last fall for a performance at Domino Records’ 10th anniversary party, and followed up with some shows in Europe.

Although no new album is in the works for Sebadoh, the two are not discounting the possibility. For now, Barlow is halfway through his first “hi-fi solo record,” according to a February 21 post on his Web site. Loewenstein has been lending his drum talents to the recording, as well as working on his own follow-up to 2002’s solo debut, At Sixes And Sevens.

Source pollstar.com.

The Who’s first new songs since the 1982 album “It’s Hard” will be included on an upcoming best-of collection, Billboard.com has learned. Due March 30 via Geffen, “Then and Now! 1964-2004” will feature the new tracks “Real Good Looking Boy” and “Old Red Wine,” alongside 18 of the legendary British rock act’s familiar hits.

In November, guitarist Pete Townshend wrote on his official Web site that he and vocalist Roger Daltrey recorded “Real Good Looking Boy” with assistance from drummer Zak Starkey, keyboardist John “Rabbit” Bundrick, bassist Greg Lake and Townshend’s brother Simon. No details are known about “Old Red Wine.”

Now the group’s lone surviving original members, Townshend and Daltrey have been working in earnest on new material since the summer 2002 death of bassist John Entwistle.

“Then and Now” will originally intended to be issued the same day as a DVD-Audio edition of the group’s 1969 rock opera “Tommy,” but that album has been pushed back to April 27. As previously reported, the Who will play “Tommy” live March 29 at London’s Royal Albert Hall, as part of a benefit concert series for the Teenage Cancer Trust. The group is also confirmed to play March 22 and 24-25 at the London Forum and to co-headline the U.K.’s Isle of Wight Festival in June.

Source billboard.com.

Prince will next month simultaneously release a new album, “Musicology,” and embark on his first major tour in six years. So far, 26 dates are scheduled, starting March 29 at Staples Center in Los Angeles and wrapping June 12 at CenturyTel Center in Bossier, La.

Announcing the tour today (Feb. 24) in Los Angeles, Prince played the jazz-infused title track from the new album. Explaining his fresh material — label distribution is still being negotiated — Prince said, “‘Musicology’ is very important to us. [The word] means that when we create music, we let it dictate our next moves in life.”

Old favorites will also be part of the tour, which will be presented in the round. But Prince warned that these gigs will be the last time fans will be able hear his classics for awhile, since he is “wanting to make room for new music.” Prince also said he was hoping to provide free “Musicology” CDs to those who buy concert tickets. “Usually the people who purchase concert tickets, they’ve been supportive of my music for a long time — for over 20 years now,” he said.

New Power Generation band members joining Prince on the road and on the new album include John Blackwell (drums), Greg Boyer (trombone), Candy Dulfer (saxophone), Chance Howard (trumpet), Renato Neto (piano and synthesizers), Maceo Parker (saxophone), RAD (vocals and keyboards), and Rhonda Smith (bass).

Prince will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame March 16 in New York. Leading up to the event, the artist is confirmed to appear and perform Wednesday (March 3) on the syndicated “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.”

Here are Prince’s tour dates:

March 31: Phoenix (Glendale Arena)
April 2: Dallas (American Airlines Center)
April 6: Oklahoma City (Ford Center)
April 7: Omaha, Neb. (Qwest Center)
April 8: Ames, Iowa (Hilton Coliseum)
April 10: Champaign, Ill. (Assembly Hall)
April 12: Indianapolis (Conseco Fieldhouse)
April 13: Cincinnati (U.S. Bank Arena)
April 14: Pittsburgh (Mellon Arena)
April 16: Columbus, Ohio (Value City Arena / Schottenstein Center)
April 17: Cleveland (Gund Arena)
April 18: State College, Pa. (Bryce Jordan Center)
April 21: Columbia, S.C. (Colonial Center)
April 22: Knoxville, Ky. (Thompson-Boling Arena)
April 23: Raleigh, N.C. (RBC Center)
April 25: Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (Office Depot Center)
April 26: Tampa, Fla. (St. Pete Times Forum)
April 27: Jacksonville, Fla. (Veterans Memorial Arena)
April 29: Birmingham, Ala. (BJCC Coliseum)
April 30: Atlanta (Philips Arena)
May 1: Biloxi, Miss. (Mississippi Coast Coliseum)
May 4: Kansas City, Mo. (Kemper Arena)
May 5: St. Louis, Mo. (Savvis Center)
May 6: Nashville (Gaylord Entertainment Center)
June 12: Bossier City, La. (CenturyTel Center)

Source billboard.com.

Chicago’s revered instrumental post-rock ensemble Tortoise is back with a new album and new tour dates lined up for April.

After curating one day of this year’s All Tomorrow’s Parties U.K. festival March 27, the band will launch their North American tour April 14 in Detroit at the Majestic Theatre. They’ll touch down in Canada, the East Coast and the South by the time the outing wraps at the end of the month.

The fifth Tortoise album, It’s All Around You, comes out April 6, giving fans a good week or two to get familiar with the tunes before seeing them performed. The album is the band’s first since 2001’s Standards.

Experimental Canadian rockers Beans are scheduled to open all dates.

For tour dates visit pollstar.com.