MusicNewsTidBits.com

Last Sunday Paul Wall was rolling along with his show on stage in Texas when a fan decided to give him the finger. Yes THE finger. Well some words were exchanged and Paul decided he needed to give the fan some microphone metal in his mouth. The fan was taken away and nothing more was done. Of course TMZ has the video of this. I couldn’t embed it so you have to go here to check it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBK866GJHu4

Like so many before him, Rod Stewart will be doing a bunch of shows in Las Vegas. All this after his 33 sold out shows he did all over the world. The dates for these shows are all in November beginning on 6th and continuing on the 7th, 10th, 14th, 17th, 18, 20th and 21st. Now here’s the fun part. Tickets are from $69 to $225. And that’s if you can get them. You know the aftermarket for those will be huge. Rod tells us:

“For some years now, AEG Live has been wanting me to do a residency show in Vegas. I decided it was time to give it a try but I thought ‘first, let’s try 2 weeks instead of 2 years though’. Who knows what this could lead to? I know that my band, background singers, and I are going to enjoy performing in such an intimate setting and having the chance for the fans to be in close proximity while hearing all the hits.”

Ke$has debut album has finally been certified platinum by the RIAA in the US. In the last 10 months it’s sold over 2 million units worldwide along with 13 million combined tracks and ringtones in the US alone.

Her single ‘TiK Tok’ has also been certified 5x platinum. Plus she became the 11th solo female artist to have at least 4 Billboard Hot 100 Top 10s from a debut album.

Pretty amazing even if I’m not really into her.

Back in 2003 the New York Department of Transportation changed a street name to ‘Joey Ramone Place’ and it’s been stolen for the fourth time recently. The sign is at the corner of Bowery and East Second street if you want to attempt to get it. But now, they moved it up even higher to about 20 feet above street level.

Last week Robert Plant put out his new solo album called ‘Band of Joy’ which came in at #5 on the US Billboard chart. On October 25th you will be able to get it on double vinyl in the US and Canada.

Ronnie James Dio is getting his own statue in the Bulgarian Black sea town of Kavarna. I found this a bit odd but Dio was one of the first heavy rock band to play in Kavarna and has played there about 5 times. Kavarna’s mayor, Tzonko Tzonev, is the person behind this and has brought some of the best rock musicians to this town over the years. The statue is about 4 feet 11 inches and can be seen here:

Step on over to HipHopDX for a free mixtape by K-os called ‘Anchorman Mixtape’. It’s pretty damn good!

I’ve been waiting for her to come out with a new album for years (it’s been 5 years since her last one). I’m happy to say that sometime in the Spring of 2011, the new album will be out. Drummer Charley Drayton will be the co-producer on the album.

She had a song leak earlier this year called ‘So Sleepy’ which will come out on a benefit album called ‘Chickens in Love’. Here’s that song if you haven’t heard it.

Ain’t this a bunch of shit. A U.S. District Judge in Manhattan said that UMG Recordings is the rightful owner of copyrights to five of Bob Marley’s albums that he put out during 1973 and 1977, which is basically his best stuff. The albums are Catch a Fire, Burnin’, Natty Dread, Rastaman Vibrations and Exodus.

The Marley family accused UMG of intentionally withholding royalties from the Marley company, Fifty-Six Hope Road Music Ltd. They also said that UMG failed to consult them on licensing decisions which included ringtones.

This judge said “Each of the agreements provided that the sound recordings were the ‘absolute property’ of Island. Whether Marley would have recorded his music even if he had not entered the recording agreements with Island is beside the point.”

Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver has his book ‘Not Dead & Not For Sale’ coming out in March 2011. The book will have stories of his crazy rise to being a rock star to drugs and what’s he’s doing now being sober.

Weiland has been busy aside from his book. He’s also putting out a Christmas album. HUH? He also has been working on his clothing line with Christopher Wicks which has your typical t-shirts, vests, hats, pants, ties etc.

“I’d like to tour when I want to tour, but I really prefer making albums. I love performing when I want to, I detest the feeling when it comes down to punching in the clock every night. It’s difficult in the rock business for everyone, so I am trying to branch out into other artistic endeavors like fashion.”

Well not exactly Def Leppard but singer Joe Elliot has launched his own beer in Dublin. His beer is called ‘Down ‘n’ Outz’ that is described as a pilsner style with a deep, rich malt character with generous hop bitterness. Elliot stated: “Over the years I’ve noticed a lot of musicians putting their names to a variety of wines etc which, as nice as a glass of red or white is, well, it’s not very rock and roll is it?!

Ya you knew it was coming. Last week he was sentenced to eight weeks in jail and on top of that, he lost his license for five years. This guy just doesn’t learn. Once again he was driving under the influence of weed and prescription sedatives when he crashed his car into a photo shop over in London. The cops found him spaced out sitting in his car while the engine was still running. The judge said:

“It does not appear that you took proper steps to deal with what is clearly an addiction to cannabis. That’s a mistake which puts you and, on this occasion, the public at risk.”

It’s been 16 years since Gang of Four put out their last album but you won’t have to wait any longer come January 25, 2011. Their new album ‘Content’ has been paid entirely by their fans from internet donations over at PledgeMusic.com.

The bands current members are Jon King, Andy Gill, Thomas McNeice and Mark Heaney.

In November Massive Attack will put out a four-track benefit EP called ‘Atlas Air’ for WarChild.org. WarChild.org is an “international charity that protects children living in the world’s most dangerous war zones.” Along with the track ‘Atlas Air’ (which was on their Heligoland record) there is also a remix of it with a new track called ‘Redlight’ and a remix of that song also. You can get the EP in digital form and on limited edition 12″ vinyl.

I’m a huge Morrissey fan. Well actually more The Smiths but his first couple solo albums were great. Well on September 26 he is re-releasing his 1988 single ‘Everyday Is Like Sunday’ and it’s coming in 3 different versions along with rare photos. Here’s how they are coming and what’s on them.

“Everyday Is Like Sunday” (CD):
01 Everyday Is Like Sunday
02 November the Second
03 Everyday Is Like Sunday (Original Promo Video)
04 Everyday Is Like Sunday (“Top of the Pops”, June 9, 1988) (previously unreleased)

“Everyday Is Like Sunday” 7″ (Version 1):
A1 Everyday Is Like Sunday
B1 Trash (Pacific Amphitheatre, Costa Mesa, CA, 1991) (previously unreleased)

“Everyday Is Like Sunday” 7″ (Version 2):
A1 Everyday Is Like Sunday
B1 Everyday Is Like Sunday (Hollywood Bowl, June 8, 2007) (previously unreleased)