Thanks to Old Leadfoot...

FBI agent claims Sonny Bono was murdered

New accusations emerge over Cher's husband's death

A former FBI agent has claimed that 1960s pop star Sonny Bono was
assassinated.

Ted Gunderson said that Cher's former husband was targeted in a
politically-motivated assassination in January 1998.

However, Bono's autopsy concluded that he died of injuries sustained
after crashing into a tree while skiing at the Heavenly Ski Resort in
Nevada............

"It's nonsense for anyone to now try to suggest that Bono died after
crashing into a tree," Gunderson told America's Globe.

"There's zero evidence in this autopsy report to show such an accident
happened.. Instead, there's powerful proof he was assassinated.

"This was an evil plot that was carried out to almost perfection by
ruthless assassins."

Gunderson said hitmen hired by top US officials moved in on him because
Bono - a member of the US House Of Representatives - was believed to be
about to expose an international drug and weapons ring.

His claims are reportedly backed by several top forensic experts.

*****************************************************************

Thanks to Courtney Reimer for these news stories...

BEATLES, JAGGER TOOK INTEREST IN CLOCKWORK ORANGE Many things made A
Clockwork Orange the memorable film that it was.  Stanley Kubrick¹s
direction, Malcolm McDowell¹s portrayal of the psychotic criminal
³Alex²
and the disturbing images in the movie certainly helped, but it turns
out that the flick could have even found a place in rock history.
That¹s because according to a letter from the film¹s executive
producer,
Mick Jagger wanted to star in the film and The Beatles were even
interested in doing the score for the movie.  Gigwise.com reports that
in a note producer Si Litvinoff wrote to potential director John
Schlesinger, Si reveals that the Rolling Stone wanted the lead role and
that ³The Beatles love the project.²  Schlesinger passed on the film
because he wasn¹t sure if it was ³the sort of subject I particularly
want to tackle.²  Things seem to have worked out though - in 1972, A
Clockwork Orange was nominated for the Oscar for Best Picture as well
as
Best Director for Kubrick.

SPRINGSTEEN, SINATRA IN NJ HALL OF FAME It turns out Bruce Springsteen
and Frank Sinatra have something in common with the likes of Thomas
Edison and Albert Einstein....  They all lived in New Jersey.  The figures
are among the first 15 people to be inducted into New Jersey¹s new Hall
of Fame.  According to the Associated Press, for now, the Hall of Fame
only exists as a virtual entity, but officials are raising money for a
permanent museum.  All of those chosen to join the Hall were selected
through an online vote after 25 finalists were announced in 2006.  To
be
eligible, a person must have lived in the state for at least five
years.
Other inductees include Yogi Berra, Meryl Streep, Buzz Aldrin, General
Norman Schwarzkopf, Toni Morrison and Vince Lombardi.  For more
information or to see the Hall of Fame as it now exists, head to
NJHallOfFame.com.

HENDRIX¹ BROTHER SAYS IT¹S NOT JIMI IN SEX TAPE Last week, Vivid
Entertainment released what they claimed was a Jimi Hendrix sex tape.
Experience Hendrix, the company that controls rights to the legendary
guitarist¹s music and likeness, already came out questioning the
authenticity of the nearly 40-year-old film footage and now, Jimi¹s
brother is speaking out against the tape as well.  Leon Hendrix issued
a
statement that reads, ³The person in that film is not Jimi from what I
have heard.  Yes, he had many female fans during that time and some may
have been filmed.  But this one is not Jimi Hendrix.²

TOM WAITS¹ MOCK PRESS CONFERENCE On his official Web site, Tom Waits
posted a video of a press conference in which he answers reporters¹
questions about his upcoming tour.  In the clip, after joking with the
press, the singer explains that he got the inspiration for the tour
from
the sky and the heavens, then pulls down a map to show how the path he
plans to take this summer as he treks from Phoenix to Atlanta, is
nearly
identical to the constellation Hydra.  Waits also goes on to describe
the acronym that is created with the first letter of each city he plans
to stop in.  Sound a little fishy?  Well, it turns out the entire press
conference was a fake.  At the end of the video, Waits takes a needle
off a record player and the murmur of reporters is silenced.  He then
walks off stage as the camera pulls back to reveal an empty auditorium.
See for yourself at TomWaits.com.  Meanwhile, Waits tour kicks off on
June 17th.

LOU REED'S BERLIN When Lou Reed's rock opera, Berlin, was first
released
in 1973, it was called one of the most depressing albums ever made.
Sales were horrible and reviews were mixed, but Julian Schnabel, the
Academy Award nominated director of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,
always loved the album's power and passion.  Thirty-three years after
the album's original release, he and Reed collaborated to stage and
document the first performances of the album in decades.  The resulting
film, which incorporates footage shot by Schnabel, his daughter and his
brother-in-law, is a dreamy and intense collage of images and songs.  A
screening of the flick held at the Tribeca Film Festival on Sunday was
practically a family reunion with many of Schnabel and Reed's friends
and collaborators present.  During a post-show Q & A, Reed and Schnabel
dismissed the idea of the album being depressing.  If anything, Reed
felt uplifted by the joy of working with such close friends.  Reed
added
that all art, just by being made, is inherently optimistic by nature.
This upcoming year, Lou Reed will perform Berlin throughout Europe.  If
you're stuck Stateside, you can check out the movie, which opens in New
York and L-A in July.

FLICK SHOWS ALLMAN BROTHERS¹ TIME IN THE BIG HOUSE There is an 18-room,
turn of the century Tudor-style mansion in Macon, Georgia that might
just be a big house to some, but it means a lot more to the Allman
Brothers Band.  That¹s because in the early 1970¹s, the structure
served
as a home to members of the group as well as their families, the road
crew, friends and some wayward travelers.  The place is appropriately
called The Big House and inside its walls, some timeless songs were
written and some big parties were thrown.  Soon, fans can see just how
important The Big House was to the Allman Brothers thanks to a new
documentary.  It¹s called Please Call Home: The Big House Years and the
100 minute movie was directed by the band¹s long-time tour manager Kirk
West, who lived in The Big House for 14 years.  West spoke about the
film saying, ³This is not a comprehensive biography of the band per se,
but rather an intimate look at the family that was this band.  What it
really talks about is the life of a family in a particular house for
three years and in the story of this band, that is an amazing three
years.²  The documentary premieres in New York on May 16th.  You can
see
a trailer for the film at PleaseCallHomeTheMovie.com.

ROD STEWART¹S SON¹S LEGAL VICTORIES AND WOES Rod Stewart¹s son, Sean,
had some charges against him dropped last week.  The 27-year-old was
accused of punching and throwing bricks at two people last year after
getting into a dispute on a narrow road.  According to the Associated
Press, the situation arose on a tiny Hollywood street when Stewart
couldn¹t pass a truck.  Bystanders began throwing things at the truck
when Stewart got out of his car.  He was accused of taking part in the
violence and charged with assault with a deadly weapon.  Sean¹s lawyer
said, ³Over the course of time, it became apparent to the district
attorney¹s office that it may have been mistaken identity.  There were
a
lot of people on the street at the time and he was a recognizable
face.²
While a judge threw that case out, Stewart still faces a lawsuit from
the owners of the truck as well as one stemming from a different
incident in which a man claims Sean broke his nose in a Hollywood
nightclub in 2006.

DAVE STEWART TO TAKE PART IN PANGEA DAY On Saturday, the world is set
to
celebrate Pangea Day, a global effort designed to unite the globe
through the power of film.  During the day, four-hour programs of
films,
music and visionary speakers will be held simultaneously in Egypt,
America, England, India, Rwanda and Brazil.  Dave Stewart is scheduled
to perform for the event and is pretty excited about it.  He said in a
statement, ³I think the idea of Pangea Day is quite revolutionary and
is
a sign of bigger things to come.²  You can watch the Pangea Day
festivities starting at 2 PM Eastern on the Current TV Network.  For
more info, head to PangeaDay.org.

LEAD BELLY¹S HARD LIFE Folk and blues musician Lead Belly influenced
the
likes of The Rolling Stones, Van Morrison, the Grateful Dead and many
others.  It turns out though, that he had a pretty hard life.  Recently
unearthed FBI records on display in a new book called Lead Belly: A
Life
in Pictures, reveal that the ³Goodnight Irene² singer was whipped while
doing time in a Louisiana prison, once getting ten lashes for
³laziness.²  In 1934, Lead Belly was pardoned and settled in New York.
His songs have been covered by people from Frank Sinatra to Jimmy
Buffett..  Lead Belly: A Life In Pictures is out now.

STING IS DEDICATED TO HELPING THE RAINFOREST This Thursday, big-name
stars such as Billy Joel, Brian Wilson and James Taylor will be coming
out for a benefit in support of Sting¹s Rainforest Foundation. Unlike
the fleeting do-gooder interests of most celebs, Sting and his wife,
Trudie Styler, devote serious energy to their environmental charity.

(Actuality #1) ³You cannot just say I¹m now going to save the
rainforest, you have to save bits of it and hopefully that idea will
take on. And it kind of has, I mean we¹ve raised 25-million dollars
over
the past 20 years, we¹re now on four continents, we¹re in Asia, Africa
Central and South America and were creating legal infrastructures,
allowing indigenous people to protect themselves.²

By way of thanking Sting for all his hard work towards saving their
precious natural resources, scientists have named a South American tree
frog after him. The dendrosophus stingi can be found in the heavily
degraded forests of Colombia.

JON ANDERSON TALKS ABOUT NEW YES Yes is currently working on new
material, but don¹t expect it to sound like their old stuff.  Singer
Jon
Anderson told Billboard.com that the group is currently working on four
opus-like songs noting, ³They¹re very, very different.  It¹ll be
interesting when we perform them, because we know that we want to try
and perform them in a unique fashion.²  But the upcoming disc won¹t be
all lengthy pieces.  Anderson added, ³Putting together an album really
isn¹t logical anymore.  Putting together a large piece of music or
something that is really a jump in a musical direction takes a lot of
commitment from everybody.²  Anderson even revealed that he¹d be up for
reunited the Yes lineup that created the hugely successful 1983 album
90125 as well as 1987¹s Big Generator and Œ94¹s Talk.  Jon is thinking
about touring some of that Œ80s-period music ³because it was very
special.²   Meanwhile, Yes is gearing up for their 40th anniversary
tour
which kicks off on July 12th in Quebec City, Canada.

ROGER WATERS¹ PIG FOUND Roger Waters can rest easy ­ his pig has been
found.  After the former Pink Floyd bassist¹s giant inflatable pig got
loose and floated away at last weekend¹s Coachella festival, the rocker
issued a reward for the return of the two-story tall balloon.  Now,
Susan Stolz might be the recipient of ten-thousand dollars and four
lifetime passes to Coachella for finding the deflated pig.  According
to
The Desert Sun, Stolz returned to her home in La Quinta, California,
over seven miles from where Coachella was held, and found a glob of
vinyl in her drive way.  She threw it away but later read about the
missing pig and e-mailed the festival organizers.  Stolz wrote, ³It is
entirely possible that I have at least part of your pigŠIt has some
blue, yellow and silver paint.  I must warn you that it is not in good
shape.  Maybe the balloon exploded or something.²  Stolz removed the
pig
from the trash and stashed it in her garage.  No word on if it will
ever
inflate again.

Thanks to Ron Marcus...

Mountain Girl's e-mail on the passing of Dr. Hoffman

(copied from the JamBase comments on their article about Dr. Hoffman's
crossing over...)


Dr. Hofmann has done more for mankind than any President!

Mountain Girl summed it up for me:

Dear dear man, a ball of energy, and so useful and kind to spirited
people, and women, and all of us, sadly, he's gone.

I was fortunate that he lived long enough for me to meet him, he kindly
invited me up to his house, just 4 weeks ago. March 24th. Life has some
twists and I caught one. Sad, but good. At 102, yes.

I had given a speech at the World Psychedelic Forum in Basel, home of
historic medieval alchemists, over the weekend, and was honored to be
asked to meet the great wizard himself. It was a lovely ride up into
the
hills, going from Easter flowery spring, to howling winter in a few
klicks. His house perches over a great fall of fields down to France on
one side, and back to solid snowy Switzerland on the other. It's a a
concrete flat-roofed modern home, not large, set with cherry trees and
swaying alpine firs, pasted with ice.

His dear wife had just passed away around Christmas, after a long
illness, and you could see how hard it had been for him, that he'd been
through a terrible ordeal.

He was so sweet to me, chatted and joked about musicians and black
market LSD, chocolate and cherry trees, instructed me very seriously
about the importance of hanging upside down every day, to improve the
blood flow to the brain.. The snow flying outside, I sat on the warm
polished wood bench by the window and he sat in a small ornate chair,
with an ornate brocaded footstool. We compared chocolates. His old
friend Juri Styk brought along some little cakes which we split up but
no one touched, as the German language flew past me for the most part.
Dr, Hoffman kindly translated. They were discussing whether Sandoz
would
allow other chemical companies to make some LSD for the new studies
being conducted in Europe. Important studies, on LSD and dying, cancer
pain relief and spiritual psychological benefits of it's use for
rebalancing people in crisis. Long overdue, they said.

I asked him about purification of LSD, wasn't it a long process? He
denied it vigorously, saying " LSD is very easy to make, you just do
the
recipe and if it crystallizes, that is it, it's done and very pure. No
need to do anything else. " And then launched in to a rapid exchange in
German with his lovely daughter sitting on the couch, a petite elegant
mother of two paying very close attention to her father. ( Juri later
told me it was about Dr. Hofmanns eldest son, who had rejected LSD all
his life till just recently, and then absolutely loved it and wanted
more.

!)

I wish my German had been better, I could have spoken to him more
easily. His English was excellent, anyhow, and I told him a little
about
the Grateful Dead, and he lit up and said he had always been hearing
about them, they played existential music, yes? And from small
beginnings, it got large? With the help of LSD, the energy and
telepathic melting together as they played... he understood that........... He
asked about Jerry. And Juri reminded him about the Acid Tests, and he
lit up again and said "Oh yes, the Acid Tests. and the Grateful Dead
played there long ago?, and you were there? " And I smiled, yes, and
pulled out the Acid Test diploma I had made for him.

I presented it in the usual fashion, saying that he had proven beyond
doubt that he had fulfilled all the requirements and had certainly
passed the Acid Test, and had earned this Acid Test diploma!

He took it and tried to read the PaulFoster decorations, and then had
me
sign it, with both my names, and date it. He said it was no good unless
I signed it. I took a picture of him holding it up. He was really
delighted! Not just being polite, either, but actually giggling.

Dr. H. bragged proudly that he now had three women to look after him.
And he hoped they wouldn't argue about him.

And then it was over, and we stood up, and Dr....... Hofmann staggered ,
almost fell as he got to his feet, and I steadied him up.... He must have
weighed about 85 pounds, so small and light.. And perfectly mannered,
took my arm and walked me to the door. Juri took a final picture of him
with my camera, and the doctor smiled and asked me to come back, and
bring the sun please. The wind whipping the snow out of the trees as
silent puffs of feathers. The walkway to the car was thick with ice. A
few cat tracks showed the way. I didn't get to meet the cat, who sleeps
on the doctor's bed since his wife passed away......

Now wheres the cat sleeping tonight?

I had been thinking hard yesterday and today, about getting this
meeting
all written down, as the conversation ran to many topics in my short
hour or so with him.. I wrote a couple of letters to friends today,
about
my visit with the great man, and didn't realize he was dying today.
Chances sometimes only come once, and I'm so glad I took this one. I'm
really sad, mostly for myself.. Wanting more, not to be.

All my love to my dear, living friends, MG

Paul McCartney To Give Away Album

by Paul Cashmere

Sir Paul McCartney looks like copying Prince's idea of giving away an
album in a Sunday newspaper.

The former Beatle will giveaway a copy of his 'Memory Almost Full;'
album in the Sunday edition of the Daily Mail.

The giveaway will place 2 million copies of the album into UK homes.
The
album sold 100,000 in the UK.

McCartney released 'Memory Almost Full' last year exclusively through
Starbucks in the USA and via Universal Music for the rest of the world.

He is about to announce a world tour and the giveaway is strategically
placed to boost awareness of the news songs.

With radio no longer a viable source of exposure for new music and MTV
now just a reality TV channel, heritage artists like McCartney face an
uphill battle to get their new music heard.

That is compounded further when they want to go out live and perform
it.

McCartney is smart. He knows the buck is in the ticket these days and
the ticket is worth even bigger bucks when the audience knows all the
songs. By giving away the album, McCartney is insuring that he can
still
play his new songs and that the audience will go away happy.

*****************************************************************

Bob Dylan sketches to go on display

An exhibition of art by Bob Dylan is going on display for the first
time
in the UK.

The show will feature Dylan's drawings and sketches from periods on the
road between 1989 and 1992.

The musician's fans will also be able to see Dylan's paintings in The
Drawn Blank Series, which opens in June.

The singer's work is said to explore the experience of "dislocation and
the ceaseless confrontation with new faces" and places on tour.

The Halcyon Gallery, which is showing the work, said: "Feelings of
anonymity, transience, rootlessness and sometimes loneliness pervade
these representations of the people, objects and places that Dylan has
seen and drawn."

Gallery president Paul Green said: "This is an incredible opportunity
for viewing this powerful body of work which gives an insight into the
artist's soul and which have already been the subject of widespread
critical acclaim. "Halcyon Gallery is privileged to be hosting this
unique exhibition." The exhibition opens at the London gallery on June
14.

The first exhibition of Dylan's work opened in Germany last year.

http://www.bobdylanart.com/

*****************************************************************

Rod Stewart Plans R&B and Country Albums

by Paul Cashmere

Rod Stewart plans to move on from his Songbooks and go back to
recording
R&B and country.

The move is not at all unusual for the 63-year-old superstar. A lot of
the early Stewart recordings were based on both R&B and Country.

On 1971's 'Every Picture Tells A Story', (to this date still his
greatest album), Stewart covered The Temptations 'I Know I'm Losing
You'
and Tim Hardin's 'Reason To Believe'.

Other country songs covered by Rod include Bob Dylan's 'Girl From The
North Country' and Jerry Lee Lewis' 'What Made Milwaukee Famous'.

R&B songs given the Stewart flavour include 'Standing In The Shadow of
Love' and 'This Old Heart of Mine'.

Stewart's dilemma right now is that his label J Records doesn't want
him
to make a country album. "There's a Country and Western album I'd love
to do, although the record company doesn't want it," he told Reuters.
"We are still in the throes of talking about it. I very much doubt
whether we will get it done this year."

Stewart's last album was 'Still The SameŠ Great Rock Classics Of Our
Time' in 2006.

*****************************************************************

Joe Jackson Plays Abba To Zappa

by Paul Cashmere

When Joe Jackson told Undercover News this week that his fans can
expect
some unusual covers at his show he wasn't kidding. "From Abba to Frank
Zappa" he said, he wasn't kidding..

Jackson is finishing up his American tour before heading to Australia
next week.

On the US tour, he has performed Abba's 'Knowing Me Knowing You' and
Frank Zappa's 'Dirty Love'.

When I spoke with Jackson on the phone from San Francisco this week he
warned that his setlist "will be old stuff, new stuff and some
surprises. You've got to have the surprises or why bother going to the
show. You might as well just stay at home and listen to the album. We
do
some pretty weird covers. Some of them are almost perverse".

He wouldn't say in the interview what the covers were, except to say,
"I
can tell you that we go from A-Z. Abba to Frank Zappa".

The Abba and the Zappa were both performed only last week in Seattle.
He
played David Bowie's 'Scary Monsters' and Duke Ellington's 'Don't Get
Around Much Anymore' in Vancouver, The Beatles' 'Girl' in Dallas', Ian
Dury's 'Inbetweenies' in Atlanta, Steely Dan's 'Reeling In The Years'
in
Milwaukee and Suzanne Vega's 'Frank & Ava' in Kingston.

Jackson fans will get a good dose of the songs they know, as well.
'Steppin' Out', 'It's Different For Girls', 'One More Time' and 'Is She
Really Going Out With Him' makes the setlist each night.

'Real Men', 'Be My Number Two' and 'Breaking Us In Two' pop up at every
other show.

The Joe Jackson Australian tour dates are:

May 19, Tweed Heads, Twin Towers, May 20, Brisbane, Convention Centre,
May 22, Sydney, State Theatre, May 23, Sydney, State Theatre, May 27,
Melbourne, Palais, May 30, Perth, Riverside Theatre.

*****************************************************************

Thanks to Kevin Walsh

Amazing 13th Floor Elevators Prints!
http://www.wmwarner.com/13-el-prints-offer.html

*****************************************************************

Hippiefest Unveils Summer Plans

By Mitchell Peters, L.A.

The third installment of Hippiefest will feature '60s acts Jack Bruce
of
Cream, Eric Burdon and the Animals, and The Turtles featuring Flo &
Eddie leading the lineup. The traveling festival begins July 11 at
Dodge
Theatre in Phoenix, and wraps Aug. 10 at the Pompano Beach Amphitheatre
in Pompano Beach, Fla.

Other acts appearing on various dates are Janis Ian, Bandfinger
featuring Joey Molland, Jonathan Edwards, Melanie, and former Hollies
member Terry Sylvester. Further information about the lineup is
available via hippiefest.net..

The 22-date tour -- produced by Toby Ludwig and Ron Hausfeld of Flower
Power Concerts, Inc. -- primarily visits theaters, amphitheaters and
casinos. Booking responsibilities for Hippiefest are handled by New
York-based talent agency Wenig-LaMonica Associates. Ticket prices range
from $25 to $75.

Now in its third year, the initial concept for Hippifest was to
"re-create the '60s generation," Ludwid tells Billboard.biz. "For years
I've been wanting to put out a socially [conscious] show, because our
times are similar to my childhood, which was in the '60s. There are so
many concerts out there that don't make a social statement."

To help bring social awareness issues to each concert, Ludwig and his
business partner Hausfeld have reached out to organizations like
Greenpeace and Get Out The Vote. The producers are also urging acts on
the bill to speak about parallels between the '60s and today. "It's
important to be aware of who we are and what we're doing as a country,"
Ludwig says. "Sometimes the best way to do it is through a concert
where
you have a lot of people together."

When putting together talent for the nostalgic traveling festival, "We
try and put the authentic groups out there, as opposed to just the name
of a group," Ludwig explains.. "There are a lot of groups now that you
can buy -- and I don't want to name names, because I don't feel getting
sued -- that don't have original singers or any original members."

Last year's Hippiefest celebrated the 40th anniversary of the 1967
"Summer of Love," and featured the Turtles, Felix Cavaliere's Rascals,
the Zombies, Mountain Mitch Ryder, Badfinger, Country Joe McDonald,
Iron
Butterfly, Denny Laine and Melanie. Some of the acts on the bill
performed at the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival and 1969 Woodstock.

*****************************************************************

Vegoose Producers Pull Plug On This Year's Fest

By Ray Waddell, Nashville

Las Vegas festival Vegoose will not happen in 2008, according to
Jonathan Mayers, president of Superfly Presents, co-producer of Vegoose
with A.C. Productions. "We're not going to do Vegoose this year,"
Mayers
tells Billboard.biz.

Mayers stops short of saying that Vegoose was permanently gone and says
that it may resurface in a different form. "We're not saying it's
killed, it's just not going to happen in 2008," he says. "Over the last
few years we've built some great relationships out there. We're really
studying the model out in Vegas as to what makes sense. I think there
is
a model out there to do other events in Vegas, it's just different."

Vegoose debuted in 2005 as a Halloween season, multi-venue music
festival, with headliners Dave Matthews Band, Jack Johnson, Beck, and
others performing at at Vegas' Sam Boyd Stadium. The first year grossed
$4.6 million with more than 72,000 attendance in 2005, but attendance
and revenues declined to just $2.2 million and 36,781 last year,
according to Billboard Boxscore.

"The first year we were actually really successful, the second and
third
years we weren't as much so," says Mayers. "Any time you do a show it
has its own unique challenges. We're going to continue to be aggressive
and try things, and some will be huge successes and other things may
not
be. We'll look at each one of those as they happen and make smart
decisions."

Superfly and A..C..... Productions also produce Bonnaroo in Manchester,
Tenn., the top-grossing festival in North America, set for June 12-15.
This year, Superfly and Another Planet Entertainment will launch the
Outside Lands festival at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco Aug. 22-24.

*****************************************************************

Steve Miller Band Celebrates 40 Years With 'Live' DVD

Gary Graff, Detroit

As the Steve Miller Band marks the 40th anniversary of the release of
its first two albums, it will release its first-ever DVD, "Live From
Chicago," a three-disc set due May 20.

The first disc contains live footage shot in July 2007 at Chicago's
Ravinia Amphitheater during a two-day stand. Disc two takes viewers on
a
tour of Chicago by way of a first-person documentary that traces Steve
Miller's Chicago blues roots, while the third disc provides bonus
footage from the Ravinia gigs.

Portions of the DVD will be broadcast on PBS as part of its spring and
summer fundraising drive.

Miller says he initially "wasn't very interested" in doing a concert
DVD
but was impressed by the previous work of director/producer Daniel E.
Catullo III and producer Jack Gulick.

"I was really pleasantly surprised by them and how much work they put
into it and what a great job they did," Miller says. "I think they
really captured the kind of joy and fun and happiness we have at our
concerts ... doing what we do without too much rock 'n' roll posing and
that kind of bullsh*t. It's a really good, straightforward
representation of who the Steve Miller Band is and what we do, period."

Miller and his band are also hoping to release new, blues-oriented
recordings shortly. Earlier this year, the group recorded more than
three dozen blues tunes on the soundstage at George Lucas' Skywalker
Ranch in northern California. The troupe was joined by Sonny Charles of
the Checkmates, who's now a full-fledged Steve Miller Band member, and
Miller tells Billboard.com he hopes to make the recordings available
sooner rather than later.

"I think I'm probably just gonna put them on my Web site and sell it
that way," says Miller, who's grouped the songs into three separate
albums. "I haven't figured it out yet, but I'm not too worried about
it.
I'm just gonna make sure everybody that wants to get it can get it."

Miller started the project with about 5,000 songs -- "Every blues
recording ever made," he says -- that he kept on a hard drive and
eventually whittled down to the final grouping, which was co-produced
by
Andy Johns. "It's such an amazing list of great material. It just makes
me laugh every time we put it on," says Miller, adding that the vast
majority are covers.

"There's a lot of Junior Parker tunes, 'Next Time You See Me,' a bunch
of Howlin' Wolf tunes, 'Who's Been Talkin',' some Delta blues stuff,
some John Lee Hooker things, some esoteric stuff, things that you
haven't heard in a long time, some Bo Diddley things like 'You Pretty
Thing'...It's just incredible what we have here."

Miller says he plans to trot many of those songs out in concert when
his
group hits the road for its annual summer tour, which kicks off May 24
in West Palm Beach, Fla., with Joe Cocker opening, and wraps up Aug. 17
in Murphys, Calif.

*****************************************************************

Bruce Springsteen Performs Complete Darkness and Born To Run

by Paul Cashmere

Last Wednesday night, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performed
an historic show in Jersey.

For the first time ever, Springsteen performed both the 'Born To Run'
and 'Darkness On The Edge of Town' albums in there entirety at one gig
at the Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank, New Jersey.

The benefit show was to raise money for the restoration of the
80-year-old theatre.

The show started off with 'Darkness'.. According to backstreets.com,
Bruce had a false start with 'Badlands' and said, "We fucked it up
already. I knew there was a reason we didn't do this".

After a 15-minute intermission, the E Street returned to perform 'Born
To Run' from 'Thunder Road' to 'Jungleland'.

The setlist from backstreets.com was:

Badlands
Adam Raised a Cain
Something in the Night
Candy's Room
Racing in the Street
The Promised Land
Factory
Streets of Fire
Prove It All Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town

Thunder Road
Tenth Avenue Freeze-out
Night
Backstreets
Born to Run
She's the One
Meeting Across the River
Jungleland

So Young and in Love
Kitty's Back
Rosalita
Raise Your Hand

BALTIMORE GETS ZAPPA BUST In 1995, some Lithuanian artists erected a
bust of Frank Zappa in downtown Vilnius, the capital of the former
Soviet republic.  Now, they¹ve given a replica of the bust to Zappa¹s
hometown, Baltimore, Maryland.  The city accepted the gift but will
figure out later where to put it.  Zappa has no connection to Lithuania
but after the country declared independence from the Soviet Union in
1990, his music became popular there.  The bust, which stands in a
public square outside the Belgian embassy, is the second-most popular
tourist attraction in the city after the Museum of Genocide Victims.
The Associated Press reports the cost of creating and shipping the bust
was about 50-thousand dollars.  The city, which last year proclaimed
August 9th as Frank Zappa Day, will be responsible for the installation
and maintenance of the tribute.

PLANT AND KRAUSS TALK ON NEW VIDEO BBC News has uploaded a five minute
video interview with Robert Plant and bluegrass singer Alison Krauss.
In the clip, Alison speaks about being in Robert¹s homeland of England
while Plant describes getting nervous before shows as well as working
with Alison and her brand of music.  The two collaborated on the
successful Raising Sand album and are currently touring Europe.
However, it was seeing what southern music was like here in the States
that really touched the Led Zeppelin singer.  On the video, he
explains,
³I completely underestimated, absolutely how deep this music is out
there.  The hill music in America is stunning, it¹s as blue as you get.
It makes me feel like I¹ve spent so much of my life missing something
incredibly important.  I don¹t mean the glossy stuff and the pick-up
truck, I mean like American music from the hills, it¹s spectacular.²
Plant goes on to reveal his fears before each show saying, ³I really
want it to be not too much, not too little, just this great place and
if
you overdo it, if you go into parody, if you go into role-playing,
which
our generation was loaded with, you ruin it, you wreck it.²  You can
check it all out at News.BBC.co.uk.  Plant and Krauss play in Germany
tomorrow.

TRAVELING WILBURYS INDIVIDUAL VOLUMES Up until last year, music from
the
Traveling Wilburys, the supergroup created 20 years ago featuring Bob
Dylan, George Harrison, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison, was out
of print.  Then, Rhino Records released a collection of the album.  And
next month, Rhino plans to put it out again as individual volumes.  On
June 3rd, you can get volumes one and three from the set individually
--
there was no volume two.  The separate editions will feature remastered
versions of the band¹s classic tracks as well as bonus material.

NYC HOSTS NIGHT OF A THOUSAND STEVIES Stevie Nicks will take the stage
tonight in New York City, but not the famed Fleetwood Mac singer.
Instead, twenty-six Nicks imitators will perform at the 18th annual
Night of a Thousand Stevies.  The tribute show features all types of
people, men and women, paying homage to Nicks.  The event culminates in
a twirling Battle of the Stevies.  A club promoter started Night of a
Thousand Stevies in 1990 as a place for drag queens to dress like their
rock goddess.  These days, no matter the race, age, orientation or
religion, fans of Nicks don a blonde wig and head to the tribute.  For
more info, head to MotherNYC.com/Stevie.

GET FRANK SINATRA STAMPS Come fly with Frank Sinatra.  The legendary
singer will be placed on some new 42-cent stamps next week, just in
time
for the penny increase in the cost to send a letter first-class.  To
celebrate the stamps, ceremonies will take place on Tuesday at three
locations familiar to Frank.  The first will take place in New York
where the Chairman of the Board will be honored by the Chairman of the
Post Office¹s board.  Sinatra¹s children, Nancy and Frank Jr. will both
be there.  Tina Sinatra, another of Frank¹s kids, will unveil the
stamps
outside the Bellagio fountains in Las Vegas, while Frank Jr. will also
head across the Hudson river and attend a ceremony in Hoboken, New
Jersey, Frank¹s hometown.  For more info, head to USPS.com.

SANTANA¹S WORLD TOUR COMING TO THE STATES Santana has long been touring
the world and now he¹s blessing the United States with his presence.
Carlos Santana and his crew will be spending much of September and
October in the country. According to RollingStone.com, the trek will
kick off September 6th in Auburn, Washington and it¹ll wrap October
11th
in Mountain View, California. For info on presales and more, visit
Santana.com.

NEIL YOUNG TO RELEASE ARCHIVE ON BLU-RAY Neil Young is feeling blu
these
days.  The rocker plans to release his entire music archive on Blu-ray
discs with the first installment, which covers the years 1963 to 1972,
coming out in a ten-disc set this fall.  The archives will be released
chronologically and include previously unreleased songs, videos,
handwritten manuscripts and other memorabilia.  Fans can also download
more content like songs, photos and tour info directly to the Blu-ray
discs.  According to the Associated Press, Young revealed in a
statement
that he loves the quality that comes with Blu-ray, explaining,
³Previous
technology required unacceptable quality compromises.  I am glad we
waited and got it right.²  (SEE TODAYS VIDEO SECTION FOR MORE)

VIVID OFFERS 100-GRAND TO PROVE JIMI ISN¹T IN SEX TAPE Vivid
Entertainment has faced some backlash after they planned to release
40-year-old footage they claimed to be a sex tape with Jimi Hendrix.
Since the video hit shelves, those close to the rocker have asserted it
isn¹t him in the clip.  Now, however, the adult entertainment company
is
so sure of the tape¹s authenticity that they are offering 100-thousand
dollars to Experience Hendrix, the family company of the legendary
guitarist, if it can provide proof that Jimi isn¹t the man recorded on
the video.  Experience Hendrix had previously denied that it was the
rocker on the tape.  Vivid has not only showed the clip to experts but
friends of Jimi¹s as well, all of whom attest it is him.  Neville
Chesters, road manager for Hendrix in the Œ60s confirmed the
authenticity adding, ³We were all jealous of Jimi¹s sex life at the
time
and we were accustomed to seeing him frequently go to his room at night
with an entourage of women we called his ŒBand of Gypsys,¹ the same
name
of his 1969 recording.²  Cynthia Albritton also weighed in on the
matter.  Albritton, who once made a plaster cast of Hendrix¹ penis, is
sure it is the same one she saw in the video.  You can decide for
yourself.  The DVD is on shelves now and the clip can also be
downloaded
at Vivid.com.

DAVID GILMOUR IN GDANSK When David Gilmour toured in the summer of
2006,
he ended the trek with an enormous show in front of 50-thousand people
at the shipyards in Gdansk, Poland.  The concert was the only occasion
on which the Pink Floyd man performed the tour material with an
orchestra, using the 40-strong string section of the Polish Baltic
Philharmonic.  If you weren¹t able to make it to Eastern Europe for the
gig, fret not, in September, it will be released on CD.  The album is
appropriately called Live In Gdansk.

CLAPTON, NELSON APPEAR ON NEW DR. JOHN ALBUM Dr. John¹s upcoming album
features some impressive named.  The blues singer¹s new album, City
That
Care Forget, boasts collaborations with Eric Clapton, Willie Nelson and
Ani DiFranco.  Clapton appears on the first single, ³Time for a Change²
and also lends his guitar-work to the title track.  Meanwhile, Willie
adds some country to the song ³Promises, Promises.²  City That Care
Forgot hits shelves on June 3rd.

POLISH GUITARISTS BREAK RECORD WITH HENDRIX SONG Over 19-hundred Polish
guitarists united last week to honor Jimi Hendrix and to break a world
record.  The musicians performed Hendrix¹ classic ³Hey Joe² together at
the sixth annual Thanks Jimi Festival in southern Poland.  The event
organizer, who is also a music teacher, started the festival ten years
ago when he brought 16 guitarists to play together.  Since then, the
celebration has grown exponentially each year.  The organizer told
PolskieRadio.pl, ³Last year we had in the market square in Wroclaw
1,881
guitar players so we beat our world record.  We had 1,951 guitar
players
and again it¹s the best in the world.²  To break the record, all
musicians must be in one place and play a song that is longer than five
minutes.

Neil Young gets new honor -- his own spider

Iconic singer and songwriter Neil Young has had an honor bestowed upon
him that is not received by many musicians -- his own spider.

An East Carolina University biologist, Jason Bond, discovered a new
species of trapdoor spider and opted to call the arachnid after his
favorite musician, Canadian Neil Young, naming it Myrmekiaphila
neilyoungi.

"There are rather strict rules about how you name new species," Bond
said in a statement.

"As long as these rules are followed you can give a new species just
about any name you please. With regards to Neil Young, I really enjoy
his music and have had a great appreciation of him as an activist for
peace and justice."

Young, 62, is a veteran rock musician who rose to fame in the 1960s
with
the band Buffalo Springfield and later became a member of Crosby,
Stills, Nash & Young, whose 1970 release "Deja Vu" has become a classic
rock album.

The singer/songwriter, whose solo work ranges from older albums such as
"Harvest" to newer CDs like "Living with War," has long been an
activist
for social and anti-war causes.

Bond discovered the new spider species in Jefferson County, Alabama, in
2007. He said spiders in the trapdoor genus, who tend to live in
burrows
and build trap doors to seal off their living quarters, are
distinguished from one species to the next on the basis of differences
in genitalia.

He confirmed through the spider's DNA that the Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi
is an identifiable, separate species of spider within the trapdoor
genus.

Young is not the first musician to have a creature named after him. A
species of beetle that looks as if it is wearing a tuxedo -- the
whirligig beetle, or Orectochilus orbisonorum -- was named earlier this
year after the late rock 'n' roll legend Roy Orbison and his widow
Barbara.

ARTHUR LEE & LOVE HOPE YOU¹LL LIKE THEIR NEW DIRECTION: POST-FOREVER
CHANGES BLUE THUMB ALBUMS TO BE REISSUED ON COLLECTORS¹ CHOICE

Double-album Out Here and False Start, which featured Jimi Hendrix, may
unnerve Love¹s folk-rock legions

LOS ANGELES, Calif. ‹ They recorded one of the most influential albums
of the late Œ60s in the folk-rocking Forever Changes, an album that
took
20 years to be fully appreciated and has been recently reissued in a
deluxe edition. But the band Love, fronted by tortured genius Arthur
Lee, switched musical gears almost immediately after recording its
masterpiece. Lee recruited a whole new Love to record the both band¹s
final Elektra album, Four Sail, and its 1969 Blue Thumb double-album
debut, Out Here. With a change of guitarists and the recruitment of
Jimi
Hendrix on one track, Love followed with False Start in 1970. The two
Blue Thumb albums will be reissued for the first time on CD by
Collectors¹ Choice Music on June 10, 2008.

The new lineup Lee recruited after Forever Changes included Jay
Donnellan, guitar; Frank Fayad, bass; and George Suranovich, who
curiously hailed from doo-wop origins, on drums. Donnellan had brought
an acoustic guitar to his audition only to be told that Love no longer
sounded like that. However, fans of Forever Changes and its
predecessors, Love and Da Capo, will discover stray echoes of the
classic Love sound amidst Out Here¹s 17 tracks, namely ³Willow Willow,²
³Listen To My Song² and ³Gather Round.² Additionally, hard blues-based
rock entered the mix on this album, including a heavier version of
³Signed D.C.² from Love¹s debut. Out Here, recorded in a shabby home
studio just beneath Laurel Canyon in Hollywood, included such songs as
³Abalony,² ³I¹ll Pray For You,² ³Instra-Mental² and ³Car Lights On in
the Daytime.² And there¹s some reassurance to be had that Lee still had
a song title in him like ³Love is More Than Words or Better Late Than
Never.²

Following only four months after the band¹s final Elektra album, Four
Sail, was released, Out Here peaked at #176 on Billboard¹s album chart.
Sales might have improved had the band accepted an offer to play a
freestanding show on the East Coast. Lee reportedly told his booking
agent, ³No, I don¹t want to go to New York for one fucking gig!² The
gig
was Woodstock.

On tour in England to promote Out Here, the band recorded two tracks
that would appear on its 1970 follow-up album, False Start. It was in
the U.K...... also that Lee reconnected with Jimi Hendrix, whom he had met
when Hendrix played lead on an obscure single Lee had written (Rosa Lee
Brooks¹ ³My Diary²). Hendrix dropped into the apartment where the band
was staying in London and Lee suggested they jam and see what might
come
of it. The result was ³The Everlasting First,² a tune co-written by Lee
and Hendrix with Hendrix on guitar, which leads off the album. Overall,
False Start is a more cohesive album than Out Here, while still very
much eclectic with country-rock (³Keep On Shining²), Œ70s boogie
(³Flying²), psychedelic soul (³Stand Out,² ³Anytime²) and many points
in
between.

Recorded at Los Angeles¹ Record Plant, False Start featured nearly the
same band as Out Here with the exception of Gary Rowles replacing the
outspoken Jay Donnellan on guitar..... The album received a glowing review
in Rolling Stone by Metal Mike Saunders, who wrote: ³Arthur Lee is now
a
good and unaffected singer, having both a soft and screaming voice . .
.
[his] songs are engaging in their simple structure, this album is
engaging as a whole, and I think I could rave on all day saying
wonderful things about it.² Despite such praise, the long-player
stalled
at #184 on Billboard¹s album chart. Through a combination of further
personnel changes and encroaching substance abuse problems, this was
the
final Love album with this lineup.

Arthur Lee joined with power-pop band Baby Lemonade to perform Forever
Changes in 2003 in a cross-country tour. He died of cancer in 2006.

THIS DAY IN MUSIC HISTORY - MAY 12

In 1963ŠWhen CBS refused to let him play "Talking John Birch Paranoid
Blues," Bob Dylan stormed off The Ed Sullivan Show.

In 1967ŠPink Floyd played London¹s Queen Elizabeth Hall, one of their
first concerts experimenting with quadraphonic sound.

In 1968ŠJimi Hendrix was busted for carrying hashish and heroin at the
Canadian border. He said the drugs were planted and the charges were
later dropped.

In 1968ŠJohn Lennon and Paul McCartney held the first board meeting of
Apple Corps in a Chinese-junk ship which sailed around Manhattan.

In 1968ŠThe Rolling Stones played their first U-K live show in a year
at
the annual New Musical Express Poll Winners¹ Concert in Wembley,
England.

In 1970ŠThe Grateful Dead released Workingman¹s Dead.

In 1971ŠMick Jagger married Bianca Perez Morena de Macia. In attendance
were Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Steven Stills and the
other members of The Rolling Stones.....

In 1975ŠA free concert was held in New York¹s Central Park to celebrate
ten years of Jefferson Airplane.

In 1977ŠLed Zeppelin received an Ivor Novello Award for their
contribution to British music.

In 1978ŠOn The Midnight Special, Dickie Betts played host to the Oak
Ridge Boys, George Benson and Genesis.

In 1979ŠIn San Francisco, 'Jefferson' Starship played a free concert
and
introduced new singer Mickey Thomas.

In 1979ŠKate Bush and Peter Gabriel headlined a benefit at London¹s
Hammersmith Odeon for Bush¹s lighting director, who had died in an
accident during a concert the previous month.

In 1983ŠMeat Loaf filed for bankruptcy.

In 1990ŠFormer Eagles Don Henley, Glenn Frey and Timothy B. Schmit
played together at a Los Angeles convention.

In 1992ŠIn New York, Billy Joel and Paul Simon met with former Soviet
boss Mikhail Gorbachev.

In 2000ŠThieves stole the gates to Liverpool, England¹s Strawberry
Fields. The children¹s home inspired the John Lennon song. The gates
were later turned in to the police by a scrap dealer.

In 2002ŠNirvanaClub...com posted four clips of the unreleased song ³You
Know You¹re Right² online.

In 2003ŠJazz singer Diana Krall confirmed her engagement to Elvis
Costello.

In 2004ŠJohn Whitehead, one half of Phillie soul hitmakers McFadden &
Whitehead, was shot dead by an unknown assailant while fixing his car.
He was 55.

In 2006ŠGuns N' Roses played a gig at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom..
The first of four shows featured six new songs from the long-awaited
Chinese Democracy album.

******************************************************************

VIDEO CLIPS OF THE WEEK
-----------------------------------

Thanks to RB...

Neil's keynote at JavaOne conference

http://www.news.com/8301-13953_3-9937142-80.html?tag=nefd.lede

Scroll down and watch the video.

"Putting on a headphone and listening to MP3 is like hell."
--Neil Young

-----------------------------------

Thanks to EP

Bill Haley's Original Comets - 21st Century EPK

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQkzcsL2YV8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRhIJQRL0Eg&feature=related

Classical that passes the "acid test" of time"

Bach - Air on the G String