Back on Monday for the great and wonderful holiday known as Tax Day!!!

April 15 2002

Here's hoping that everyone had a great weekend. I sure did. Today is the day that the taxman cometh so I hope that many of you are in good moods despite the day of reconciliation and its normal toll. Did I say that?!

Notables

Rush, thet band that keeps churning them out although, having slowed down somewhat over the last few years, they are up with a new CD and tour. The CD, 'Vapor Trails', their 17th studio release, comes out on May 14th. The tour begins June 28th and runs through August 21 (for now..looks as if dates are still being added). Tix go on sale beginning April 20th thru May.....Here's the GREAT BIG NEWS...The purported Sammy Hagar/David Lee Roth pairing comes to fruition. The tour has scheduled a press conference on Tuesday announcing the formation and plans. The tour is expected to begin May 29th and, demand willing, may extend for a total of 40+ dates. I'm loving the nicknames bantered about, The Sans Halen Tour and, how about this one, The Sam and Dave Show. They will be alternating open and closing duties PLUS doing a shot together at the show's conclusion. Developing.....The new Red Hot Chili Peppers CD, expected in July or August will be titled 'By The Way'. It is said to be a departure from 'Californication', the last studio effort from the band. Watch this site for release date.....Interesting note for TaxDDay. Rick Nielson of Cheap Trick says that, after recording "Taxman, Mr Thief" from the first Cheap Trick album, he has been audited every year without fail. He says that..."....it got somebody mad...."......I'm sure that you have all heard by now that Kid Rock will be marrying Pamela Anderson. I don't know whether he be a lucky guy or what?! Guess time will tell.....RIAA certifications for the month of March brings some cool Gold/Platinum winners. I'm always amazed at how some of these pieces strike gold or platinum status many years after the intial release date. Enjoy these!!.... Charting for Billboard's Top 200 has Ashanti breaking in at number 1. Followed by Celine Deon's 'A New Day Will Come' at 2 and Tweet entering in at 3 with 'Southern Hummingbird' hitting the 4 and 5 spots are, at 4, the NOW9 compilation and, at 5, the undying 'O Brother, Where Art Thou' soundtrack. These positions represent the issue dated April 20th.....The music industry suits meet in London to discuss the joys and woes of the year. This year, they are expected to centre largely upon the woes forced on them by the file sharing services, namely Kazaa and Morpheus.....The street date for Cranberries anticipated box set, "Treasure Box" is May 14th. The set contains the bands first four CDs, all digitally remastered as well as 21 B-Sides. The set also includes bonus remixes new art, etc. Sounds like a great set...... Yoko Ono Lennon is auctioning off one of the six existing photographs of John Lennon's blood splattered glasses. The picture shows Lennon's glasses next to a glass of water and backgrounded by a New York skyline. The photo was used as the cover for Ono's "Season of Glass." The money will be used to benefit artists.

Ramblings

It was a sad thing, to see this photo once again, and be reminded of the crushing death of John Lennon. He will always be remembered. Ok...Hi to Jim and Theresa Ciulla, a couple of my dearest friends. I called Theresa after listening to Yes's "Relayer" and an intense wave of memory washed over me. I had to call Jim but was unable to hook up and reminensce. Ahhhh but those were great days. Til tomorrow......Go Bulls, Sox and Hawks!!!

Remember??

Earlier reported axings of Iggy Pop, Perry Farrell and Ben Harper have not occurred with the label, EMI, recommitting to these artists. This doesn't mean that cuts won't happen, however. I'll keep you posted.... Remember, RadioHead's Phil Selway marathon in which he asked fans to sponsor his run? He raised $26,678 in fan sponsorship. Awesome!!

April 16 2002

Did everyone survive the 15th? I did....barely. Guess that's the way the ball bounces in THIS universe, where taxes are a way of life.

Notables

Hardly a thing for music notes today. Sheryl Crow fans are able to pick up her newest "C'mon, C'mon" today.....The Eagles have officially announced their tour for the summer which encompasses 31 dates with room for more. Yahoo/Launch is having a promo for the band's kickoff date on May 31st. the promo, a pre-ticket sale, commencing April 18th at eagles.yahoo.com. Hop over there to get your shot at tix.....A moment of silence for Robert Urich, who died today at 55. He played the leads in the series Vega$ and Spenser:For Hire......The Osbournes are looking into a second season for MTV of their wildly popular series. Of course, they are wanting the big bux to continue. It seems as if the kids ain't looking forward to it but, hey, Dad still rules the house and if he wants the show, it's gonna happen. Go for it, Ozzy...we love the show......Congrats to Alan Jackson, whose album completed a ten week run in the top ten of the Billboard 200. This feat was last accomplished by Shania Twain in 1999......in the Noooo!!! section of the news, The Smiths was voted the most important band of the last 50 years, beating out such notables as The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Velvet Underground.....yeah right!!! What type of new designer drugs were those people injecting. At least we know that NME is unreliable in their logical department..... Chris Martin of ColdPlay announced that their upcoming new Cd may very well be their last....As stated yesterday, the Roth/Hagar connection got together to discuss the tour. Looks to be quite interesting with Van Halen songs spread out between the both of them but can they survive each other......Nate Dogg was arrested for felony drug possession and stolen firearms.....MCA acquired a 25% interest in Victory Records, a punk label from Chicago. the deal does not reduce the strength of the label's ability to sign and promote artists but, rather, provides extra muscle to build the label even farther.....and I said that there was nothing to talk about.

April 17 2002

Well...NBA Basketball is winding down. But MLB is in full spring so it don't get too sad around here. As I write these words, I'm watching the Bulls finish the last game of the season. Enough about that. Lets see what up for music fans.

Notables

The Lennon photo, discussed in these pages several days ago, was sold today for $17000. Not bad!!.....Johnny Paycheck, one of country's best, releases a 2-CD greatest hits package. Paycheck, suffering from emphysema and asthma at age 63 is proud of his body of work.....Pink has signed a promo/marketing arrangement with Bally, an fitness company. She will create a hip hop aerobics class as part of the deal.....David Lee Roth says that Van Halen is getting nervous about the upcoming tour with Roth and Hagar. When asked what they (Hagar and Roth) thought that the Van Halen brothers might be thinking right now, Roth replied, "I'm not sure what the brothers think, and I'm not sure I even really care. I think that probably the two biggest words up there on Howdy Doody Mountain now are, 'Uh-oh!'". As Hagar said, "you gotta love Dave..." I agree.....Billy Preston, suffering from severe renal failure, is awaiting a kidney to become available for transplant. He apparently was extremely sick while touring with Eric Clapton last year that he may have died. Our hearts are with you Billy.....Eminem's upcoming CD, due June 4th, will feature 70s influenced rock as well as his trademark rap. This one might be interesting and may actually bring in new fans.....Finally, some old and extremely rare tapes, produced by Dylan when he was very very young in his apartment, will be preserved. We may get a chance to hear them soon. Have a good one, folks.

April 18 2002

Not much today. As a matter of fact, what there is can probably be dealt with in several paragraphs. So, here we go.....Tommy Lee is going to go solo without the Crue and without Mayhem. He says he got skills with a guitar and vocals. I want to find out.....To reiterate the Sans Halen tour, I'm excited to hear the following quote from Hagar.. "Them fuckers smoked a carton of cigarettes and drank a case of beer, I guarantee it, before one word was said. They looked at each other and Ed went, 'Fuck, Al, what are we going to do?' And Al went, 'I don't know Ed, lemme think about it.'" You gotta love this. Ed and Al shoulda thought this out. Well...it ain't too late fellas...... Looks as if VH1 is in the doldrums. Christina Norman was assigned the task of turning it around.....A moment of silence for Jimi Hendrix's father who died yesterday at the age of 82.....And finally, a dog belonging to Aimee Osbourne has mysteriously disappeared. Ozzy is offering a 500 dollar reward for information leading to the return of Pipi. Here's a photo. If you seen it or know of it, let Ozzy know. And if you stole it, give it back.

And I promise to get some of those reviews up. Quickly!!

April 19-21 2002 Weekend

UPDATE:

Reported in Friday's post, we mentioned that a body was found in the home of Layne Staley, lead singer of Alice in Chains. The body was decomposing and identification was difficult without tests. It was confirmed today, amid correct assumptions that the body found was actually that of Layne Staley. Tests proved that the body did belong to Staley. A moment of silence.........

Review for Starsailor's "Love Is Here" has been posted.

Notables

A body was found in the house of Layne Staley of Alice in Chains. Although it is not confirmed, there are reports that it is Layne Staley himself. Staley suffered from drug abuse. Cause of death is not determined at this time but an autopsy is scheduled for Saturday.....It ain't no surprise that MTV's 'Osbournes' is as popular as it is. We adore the family and their constant misfits but the show also lets us in on Ozzy and his family's humanity and their obvious love for one another. MTV reports 6 million viewers which makes it the most successful MTV show in their 21 year history.....When Korn hits the road in support of their new CD, Puddle of Mudd and Deadsy will join them for the first part of it. Deadsy is fronted by Exeter Blue, otherwise known as Elijah Blue, offspring of Gregg Allman and Cher.....The sex scandal haunting R Kelly from a few months back when a tape was uncovered showing him having sex with a girl believed to have been no older than 14. The teen is believed to be the niece of singer Sparkle. Yikes!!..... Dave Grohl of Foo Fighter fame and Nirvana is requesting Courtney Love to mentally evaluated and declared unfit to manage the affairs of her late husband, Kurt Cobain.....Neil Young's newest, "Are You Passionate?" debuts on Billboard's chart at position 10.....Watch for Elvis Costello's newest on Tuesday. Called "When I was Cruel" and backed by former members of the Attractions, here is looking to be a great CD......Here's hoping that your weekend will be nothing short of spectacular. Til Monday.

Ramblings

The review for Patti Smith's LAND compilation is up and ready for your approval.