2005

Les Claypool. Vorcza, Z-Trip and Benevento/Russo Duo are some of the acts that have been added to the six week Zooma Tour. The tour will be headlined by Trey Anastastio and Ben Harper and also include the previously announced acts of Medeski, Martin & Wood, Galactic, Brazilllian Girls, G Love & Special Sauce, Toots & The Maytals, Ray Lamontagne, Jurassic 5 and Gomez.

For more information, please visit the festival’s website.

To coincide with the kick-off of his upcoming North American tour, Mark Knopfler is planning to release a new EP. Due June 28 — four days after the tour’s opening in Portsmouth, Va. — “One Take Radio Sessions” finds the former Dire Straits frontman running through seven songs from his latest release, “Shangri-La” (Warner Bros.) and one vintage solo cut.

Recorded at Malibu, Calif.’s Shangri-La Studios, the same recording location for the studio album, the EP features “The Trawlerman’s Song,” “Back to Tupelo,” “Song for Sonny Liston,” “Boom, Like That,” “Everybody Pays,” “Donegan’s Gone,” and “Stand Up Guy,” all from the “Shangri-La.”

The vintage addition to the set is “Rudiger,” which dates to Knopfler’s 1996 solo debut, “Golden Heart.” Accompanying him for the recording were guitarist Richard Bennett, keyboardists Jim Cox and Matt Rollings, bassist Glenn Worf and drummer Chad Cromwell. Additionally, Doug Pettibone plays electric guitar on two tracks and mandolin on another.

Here are Knopfler’s North American tour dates:

June 24: Portsmouth, Va. (NTELOS Pavilion Harbor Center)
June 25: Philadelphia (Mann Center for the Performing Arts)
June 26: Vienna, Va. (Wolf Trap)
June 28: Newark, N.J. (New Jersey Performing Arts Center)
June 29: New York (Radio City Music Hall)
June 30: Florence, Mass. (Pines Theatre)
July 1:: Boston (Fleet Boston Pavilion)
July 2:: Montreal (Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier/Place des Arts)
July 3:: Ottawa, Ontario (National Arts Centre)
July 5:: Toronto (Molson Amphitheatre)
July 7:: London, Ontario (John Labatt Centre)
July 8:: Rochester Hills, Mich. (MeadowBrook Amphitheater)
July 9:: Kettering, Ohio (Fraze Pavilion at Lincoln Park Center)
July 12: Atlanta (Chastain Park Amphitheater)
July 13: Nashville (Ryman Auditorium)
July 14: Indianapolis (Murat Theatre)
July 15: Chicago (Auditorium Theatre)
July 16: Milwaukee (Milwaukee Theater)
July 17: Minneapolis (Orpheum Theatre)
July 19: Morrison, Col. (Red Rocks Amphitheater)
July 20: Salt Lake City (Abravanel Hall)
July 21: Las Vegas (The Joint)
July 22: Los Angeles (Greek Theatre)
July 23: Berkeley, Calif. (Greek Theatre-Berkeley)
July 24: San Diego (Copley Symphony Hall)
July 27: Saratoga, Calif. (The Mountain Winery)
July 28: Jacksonville, Ore. (Britt Pavilion)
July 29: Portland, Ore. (Schnitzer Concert Hall)
July 30: Woodinville, Wash. (Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery)
July 31: Vancouver (Queen Elizabeth Theatre)

Source billboard.com.

M.I.A., the MC5 and Coheed & Cambria are among the acts confirmed to play free shows as part of New York’s Central Park SummerStage. The series will begin June 17 with Living Colour drummer Will Calhoun’s AZA, featuring jazz legend Pharoah Sanders.

Rising hip-hop/dance star M.I.A. will perform Aug. 7 backed by DJ/off-stage companion Diplo and special guests, while MC5 will be joined by the Sun Ra Arkestra and DJ Spooky for a July 30 bill. Coheed & Cambria, Colombian rock act Aterciopelados and singer/songwriter BeBe are set for an Aug. 6 show sponsored by the Latin Alternative Music Conference.

Other artists set to appear throughout the summer include John Legend (June 17), Cassandra Wilson (June 24), Ron Sexsmith with Tegan & Sara (June 26), a Nick Drake tribute with an orchestra led by the late artist’s collaborator Robert Kirby (July 2), the Blind Boys Of Alabama (July 10), Shelby Lynne (July 15), Femi Kuti with Brazilian Girls (July 17) and revered comedy ensemble the Upright Citizens Brigade (July 21).

As previously reported, SummerStage also boasts an all-star lineup of benefit concerts, for which paid admission is required. They include the Killers (June 4), Modest Mouse (June 20), Broken Social Scene (July 14) and Elvis Costello (July 19).

For the full summer lineup, visit SummerStage’s official Web site.

Source billboard.com.

Jimmy Martin, a ground-breaking bluegrass guitarist and singer, died Saturday at the age of 77 in a Nashville hospice.

The 3rd installment of the Diesel U Music awards has kicked off with the first round of nominations showcasing some of North America

Coldplay has confirmed dates for its summer North American tour. The run in support of the band’s forthcoming album, “X&Y” (Capitol), will open Aug. 2 in Toronto and close Sept. 30 in Bristow, Va. Rilo Kiley will serve as the opening act.

As previously reported, the outing will include a Sept. 25 headlining berth at Texas’ Austin City Limits Music Festival on the event’s opening day.

Tickets for all shows go on sale June 4, with the exception of a Sept. 23 date in Dallas that goes on sale June 11 and a Houston show the next night that is already on sale. A Coldplay.com online presale will begin May 24.

As previously reported the band taped an episode of VH1’s “Storytellers” at Harvey Theatre in downtown Brooklyn, N.Y., last night (May 16) that will premiere June 8 on the music channel. Tonight, Coldplay will perform a show at New York’s Beacon Theatre for an AOL Music cybercast and will be the musical guest on this weekend’s “Saturday Night Live” season finale on NBC.

Here are Coldplay’s North American tour dates:

Aug. 2: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Aug. 3: Montreal (Bell Centre)
Aug. 4: Hartford, Conn. (Meadows Music Theatre)
Aug. 6: Boston (Tweeter Center)
Aug. 7: Camden, N.J. (Tweeter Center @ The Waterfront)
Aug. 9: Cincinnati (Riverbend Music Center)
Aug. 11: Burgettstown, Pa. (Post Gazette Pavilion)
Aug. 12: Noblesville, Ind. (Verizon Wireless Music Center)
Aug. 13: East Troy, Wis. (Alpine Valley Music Theatre)
Aug. 16: Seattle (White River Amphitheatre)
Aug. 17: Portland, Ore. (Amphitheatre at Clark County)
Aug. 19: Mountain View, Calif. (Shoreline Amphitheatre)
Aug. 20: Irvine, Calif. (Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre)
Aug. 24: Albuquerque, N.M. (Journal Pavilion)
Aug. 25: Phoenix (Cricket Pavilion)
Aug. 26: San Diego (Coors Amphitheatre)
Aug. 30: Clarkston, Mich. (DTE Energy Music Theatre)
Aug. 31: Columbus, Ohio (Germain Amphitheater)
Sept. 1: Darien Center, N.Y. (Darien Lake Performing Arts Center)
Sept. 3: Holmdel, N.J. (PNC Bank Arts Center)
Sept. 6: New York (Madison Square Garden)
Sept. 9: Charlotte, N.C. (Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre)
Sept. 10: Raleigh, N.C. (Alltel Pavilion)
Sept. 13: West Palm Beach, Fla. (Sound Advice Amphitheatre)
Sept. 14: Tampa, Fla. (Ford Amphitheatre)
Sept. 16: Birmingham, Ala. (Verizon Wireless Music Center)
Sept. 17: Maryland Heights, Mo. (UMB Bank Pavilion)
Sept. 18: Nashville (Starwood Amphitheatre)
Sept. 20: Minneapolis (Target Center)
Sept. 21: Kansas City, Mo. (Verizon Wireless Amphitheater)
Sept. 23: Dallas (Smirnoff Music Center)
Sept. 24: Houston (Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion)
Sept. 25: Austin, Texas (Austin City Limits Music Festival)
Sept. 28: Atlanta (Philips Arena)
Sept. 29: Virginia Beach, Va. (Verizon Wireless Virginia Beach Amphitheater)
Sept. 30: Bristow, Va. (Nissan Pavilion at Stone Ridge)

Source billboard.com.