John Lennon: He Asked To Give Peace A Chance

Today is a sad day for me, and I am sure for millions of other music lovers as well. We all lost a musical genius 28 years ago and I miss him terribly. Here is an article I wrote several years ago, it's very hard to summarize everything John Lennon was and is, but I think this does it well:

written by Robert Benson

He dreamed of world peace. He was an artist, poet and an outspoken voice of the hippie generation. He was an influential musician, a peace activist, an absent father and a devoted lover and husband. He abused alcohol and drugs, sneered at normality, yet took time off from his rock and roll career to raise his son. But most of all, he was a Beatle. He was and still is, John Winston Lennon.

Born in Liverpool on October 9, 1940, John Lennon was shot to death on December 8, 1980 by a fanatical fan. The world mourned his death as millions grieved for the man who was the heart and soul of the world's best rock and roll band, the Beatles.

He had an unusual childhood, shuttled back and forth between his mother Julia and her sister Mimi. John eventually spent his formative years with his aunt Mimi and Uncle George and as Mimi recalls, “His mind was going the whole time, and it was either drawing, or writing poetry, or reading.”

Yet, he was an unruly, stubborn and a disobedient, troubled youth. He failed at art school, yet swore to his aunt that "one of these days I'm going to be famous and you'll be sorry.”

John had a premonition of things to come, as he knew he was a bit different than most people. As he looked back, he explained: “I always knew I was going to make it, but I wasn’t sure in what manifestation. I knew it was just a matter of time.”

There are many words to describe John Lennon. He called himself a leader, yet did some of his best work alone. He was an alleged wife beater, very outspoken, often putting out controversial quotes to the media; either to make a point or just to be outlandish. But when he spoke, people listened.

He was a partner with his boyhood friend, Paul McCartney and together they left a musical writing partnership and a legacy that are unequaled to this day and may never be. The Beatles, with their producer George Martin, changed music in dramatic fashion, with studio techniques that had never been attempted.

They pioneered the concept album with "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band,” which the editors of Rolling Stone magazine list as the greatest rock album of the rock era.

He had the attention of our government with his antiwar protests and at one point was under FBI investigation. He sang of love and peace and living in harmony, with all people coming together as one. There are some who called him a genius. He could be nasty, resentful and meanspirited. He fought his demons and it seems he was winning, until December 8, 1980.

We can only recall his career, from the beginning, until the end and who doesn't know the story about the four lads from Liverpool. He was part of the group that changed rock and roll music history.

We can only wonder what John Lennon would be doing if he were alive today. How active would he be in promoting world peace? Would he still be creating wonderfully crafted rock and roll songs? All we can do is Imagine, and that is the shame of it all.


Take some time today, celebrate his music and life and remember the greatest musician of our time.

Picture Discs

written by Robert Benson


The vinyl record resurgence is in full swing and going hand-in-hand with this phenomenon is a renewed interest in picture discs. Not only are they graced with fantastic artwork or a photo of the artist or band, these marvels of vinyl are usually made in limited quantities making them highly sought after and collectible.


Picture discs are manufactured to be a collectible and not meant to play as well as a conventional vinyl record. This is due to the manufacturing process as each side is coated with layers of PVC (poly vinyl chloride); sometimes up to five layers. As this process is being done, a continuous groove of music or even a band interview is pressed onto the playing surface.

Picture discs made their debut in the 20’s and 30’s with various methods and materials utilized for their production. Early picture discs were manufactured using a sheet of thin vinyl film which was placed over a thick paper print and then pressed with the grooves with varying degrees of success. Early pioneers of picture discs included RCA Victor, which released some special edition picture discs of their top performers, Musika Postkarte Company of Germany, Trusound of Great Britain and Sav-Way Industries of Detroit, Michigan, who sold their recordings under the Vogue Records moniker.

These Vogue picture discs were invented in the 40’s by Tom Saffady and were sold during the 1946-47 for fifty to seventy-five cents apiece. With seventy-four titles in all, they featured such artists as Lulu Belle, the Charlie Shavers Quartet and Patsy Montana and were ten inches in diameter and were made of an aluminum platter covered with vinyl. However, due to poor sales, the company filed for bankruptcy, leaving a legacy of highly collectible picture discs.

In the 70’s, some record companies pressed picture discs as a novelty and production became more of a promotional tool. Most discs replicated the front of the album cover art but some included rare images of the band or artist or specifically modified artwork. Because of the limited quantities, unique shapes and different pressings, theses picture discs are highly sought after by collectors. They are framed and prominently displayed to show off their full color glory.

In the late 70’s major record companies like Capitol Records, Epic Records and Columbia Records started to manufacture picture discs in large numbers. Hot selling groups like the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Blondie and the Steve Miller Band, among many others, flooded the market and still command top prices in today’s market, forty years after their release.


The 80’s saw the picture disc market booming and it was a very important element to any artists or bands release campaign. With the boon of digital music in the late 80’s and 90’s, and along with the demise and decline of the vinyl record, production dropped and the picture disc was utilized as more of a limited release item or for promotional purposes.

With vinyl now seeing a resurgence, so too has the interest in picture discs. Indie bands as well as top mainstream artists and bands are producing top rate picture discs and the market shows no sign of letting up and these future collectibles are now in collector’s hands and framed for display.


Picture discs are by far my favorite collectible. They 'hold' their value very well, are great to look at and are easy to resell (if you choose to do so). Certainly, a weakness in my collecting genes, I will continue to add to my collection of picture discs for years to come. I have also made an 'a-store' and have selected some of my personal favoites. Check it out here: http://tinyurl.com/5j8myx

Classic Rock Videos

The Doors - The end

Local Music Store News

A local Milwaukee music store is thriving in these tough times:

Lotus Land celebrates 8 years in Riverwest

By Bobby Tanzilo


The music business might be taking a hit from digital music distribution and illegal downloading, but vinyl fiends help keep local music hot spots like Bull's Eye going.

Despite the crunch of the tough economy, Lotus Land, 832 E. Clarke St., celebrates its eighth birthday at The Mad Planet on Saturday, Dec. 20. The free event features music, food and giveaways.

Co-owner John Kuester admits that the tough economic times aren't going easy on the vintage vinyl business, but says Lotus Land has a devoted following.

"In-store business is about a sh*itty as it can get right now but we have always been more of an online business," says Kuester candidly. "Sales online are steady but I'm keeping a close eye on things."


That's a big change from when co-owner Andy Noble -- a local musician who currently plays bass with Kings Go Forth and did DJ gigs with his brother a Super Noble Bros. -- told us in 2002 that the store was doing the bulk of its business through the front door rather than the ether.

"As of now, we are still usually making more in the shop," Noble said. "It's swinging towards the Web site more every day, though. The people who are buying stuff in here are buying really different stuff from the mail order business. Milwaukeans are still really into like, shiny new records and the Europeans are really into rare black music."

The original shop opened on Center Street in Riverwest, across from Fuel Café, in 2000. But after closing for a few months to move earlier this year, Lotus Land reopened in mid-April at its current location near the old shop.

Back in '02 Noble said, "It was a natural extension of what we were doing, acquiring insane amounts of vinyl and meeting more and more collectors and DJs that were looking for rare and exotic music but didn't have the time to go digging for it everyday in its natural element (houses, warehouse storage spaces, etc.). Also, the space kind of magically opened up in front of the apartment we were living in."

After that, Noble, Kuester and Noble's brother Tom -- who was a partner in the store before moving out west -- got into the action of making records, too, reissuing ultra rare funk, soul, jazz and hip-hop. That side of the business is still growing, says Kuester, who performs as a rapper and DJ under the moniker Kid Millions.

"The record label has done six releases so far and we have a few things in the works. We are also about to sell six songs from our label to the new 'Guitar Hero' video game 'DJ Hero'."

Lotus Land is open Tuesday through Saturday from noon until six. The store sells records on the Web at lotusland.gemm.com.

SOURCE: http://onmilwaukee.com

Album Cover Art

Let's continue our look at Gigwise.com's list of the top 50 dirtiest and sexiest album cover art, this time #15 (Gigwise comments in quotes):



15. Red Hot Chili Peppers: 'Abbey Road EP' - "The Californian funk rockers paid dirty homage to the original Beatles image of crossing the West London road at the famous studios with the help of their infamous 'socks on cocks' routine (repeated a number of times by the band). We just wonder what they're hiding?"

I guess if we can have naked women on album covers, we must also include naked men with socks on their wonkers....makes perfect sense to me.

Top 5 Vinyl Record eBay Sales

Week Ending 12/06/2008


1. 45rpm - David Bowie "The Prettiest Star" Japan 45 RPM EP - $5,100.00 Start: $3,899.99 Bids: 6

2. LP - Pink Floyd "Piper At The Gates Of Dawn" Odeon Japan Red Vinyl - $4,828.00 Start: $3,999.00 Bids: 4

3. LP - Walter Strerath "Trio - Quartet - Quntet" Jazz Groove - $3,506.00 Start: $9.00 Bids: 20

4. 45rpm - Tamala Lewis "You Won't Say Nothing" / "If You Can Stand Me" Marton - $3,230.00 Start: $899.99 Bids: 22

5. LP - Elvis Presley "Aloha" Chicken Of The Sea Promo - $2,375.01 Start: $1,500 Bids: 14


Rock gods stomp all over the list this week, with a David Bowie 45 from Japan selling for $5.1k. A first press of the first Pink Floyd LP on red vinyl, also out of Japan, bids up over $4.8k.

In the #3 spot, a rare Jazz LP from Walter Strerath closes a little over $3.5k. A Northern Soul 45 from Tamala Lewis gets more than $3.2k.

And last, the Chicken Of The Sea promo Aloha record given to employees of the company sells for close to $2.4k.

As always, a special thank you to Brian over at http://ccdiscoveries.blogspot.com/ for this great data!

Classic Rock Videos

the doors - riders on the storm

Album Cover Art

Let's continue our look at Gigwise.com's list of the top 50 dirtiest and sexiest album cover art, this time #16 (Gigwise comments in quotes):


16. Roxy Music: 'Country Life' - "Widely regarded as one of their finest works, Roxy Music's 1974 album also featured the most iconic cover - one that has young lads flicking through their Dads' record collection still salivating to this day. Featuring models Constanze Karoli and Eveline Grunwald in their under garments, several countries including the US and (somewhat bizarrely) Holland banned it."

We have seen this album before on the Gigwise list, it also made their controversial list as well.

This Date In Music History-December 7

Birthdays:

Bent Fabric ("Alley Cat") is 84.

Tom Waits (1949)

Psychedelic Furs bassist Tim Butler is born in 1958.

They Are Missed:

The late Harry Chapin was born in 1942.

The late Louis Prima was born in 1911.

Dee Clark ("Raindrops") died of a heart attack in 1990.

Richard Taylor of the R&B vocal group, The Manhattans, died at the age of 47 in 1987.

History:

Eric Burdon disbanded the Animals for good in 1968.

The Rolling Stones auditioned bass players at the World's End pub in Chelsea, London in 1962. One candidate was Bill Wyman. He got the job partly because he had tons of cool equipment the band could use.

The Beatles second album 'With The Beatles' started a 21-week run at #1 on the UK album chart in 1963. Also today, all four Beatles appeared on BBC TV's 'Juke Box Dury'. Some of the songs The Beatles judged were “Kiss Me Quick” by Elvis Presley, “The Hippy Hippy Shake,” by the Swinging Blue Jeans and “Where Have You Been All My Life” by Gene Vincent, among others. The group voted Bobby Vinton's "There! I Said It Again" a miss. Ironically, in two months' time they would knock the record out of the #1 spot in the U.S.

"Dominique" by The Singing Nun was the #1 record in North America in 1963, edging out The Kingsmen's "Louie, Louie". The song would eventually sell over 1.5 million copies and win a Grammy Award for the year's best gospel song. Her given name was Jeanine Deckers and she would leave the convent in 1967 before taking her final vows, partly to pursue a recording career, but never repeated her earlier success. In 1985, the center for autistic children in Belgium that she helped to found had closed due to lack of funds. In despair over this failure, the 51 year old Deckers and her friend Annie Pescher committed suicide.

Brian Wilson has a nervous breakdown while on a flight from Los Angeles to Houston in 1964. He decides to stop touring with the Beach Boys.

Linda Ronstadt recorded "You're No Good" in 1974. The song became one of her signature hits, peaking at #1 the following year.

The Eagles held a press conference in 1999 to announce that their first “Greatest Hits” package had become America's best-selling album. Glenn Frey stated, "I hated popularity contests when I was in high school, and I hate them now." No word on if he hated the money he made from being in the band….

In 1967, Otis Redding went into the studio to record “(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay.” The song went on to be his biggest hit. Redding didn't see its release; he was killed three days later in a plane crash.

Carl Douglas started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart in 1974 with “Kung Fu Fighting.” The song was recorded in 10 minutes, started out as a B- side and sold 10 million. His follow-up, "Dance the Kung Fu", would be a total flop. Possibly the worst song in pop music history (or at least a tie with Rick Dees “Disco Duck”). Any more nominations for the worst #1 song in music history?

Inventor Dr Peter Carl Goldmark was killed in a car crash in 1977. Goldmark invented the long-playing microgroove record in 1945 that went on to revolutionize the way people listened to music.

In 1993 - Guns N' Roses announced they would keep the tune written by Charles Manson "Look At Your Game, Girl" on their album, "The Spaghetti Incident?" The decision to keep the song came when the band learned that the royalties would go to the son of one of Manson's victims.

In 2007, Yoko Ono issues a statement encouraging world peace on the eve of the 27th anniversary of husband John Lennon's murder. "Let's not waste the lives of those we have lost," writes Ono. "Let's, together, make the world a place of love and joy."

Cover Art Revealed

JOE BONAMASSA - The Ballad Of John Henry Tracklisting, Cover Art Revealed



Nightwatcher's House Of Rock reports that the tracklisting and cover art for hard rockin' blues guitarist JOE BONAMASSA's upcoming studio album The Ballad Of John Henry has been revealed.

Featuring 12 tracks, the Kevin Shirley produced follow up to 2007's Sloe Gin, the album consists of 6 Bonamassa originals coupled with six cover versions, including Tom Waits' 'Jockey Full Of Bourbon', British soulstress Sam Brown's 'Stop!', the Anthony Newley/Leslie Bricusse penned 'Feelin' Good' (covered throughout the years by artists as diverse as Black Cat Bones, Nina Simone, John Coltrane, Traffic, Muse and George Michael amongst others), Ike And Tina Turner's 'Funkier Than A Mosquito's Tweeter' and Tony Joe White's 'As The Crow Flies' (famously recorded by the late, great Irish blues guitar legend Rory Gallagher).

The Ballad Of John Henry is tentatively scheduled for release in February 2009 via J&R Adventures worldwide. Bonamassa's last studio album Sloe Gin spent over 10 consecutive weeks at # 1 on Billboard's Blues Album Charts.

The complete tracklisting: 'The Ballad Of John Henry', 'Stop!', 'Last Kiss', 'Jockey Full Of Bourbon', 'Story Of A Quarryman', 'Lonesome Road Blues', 'Happier Times', 'Feelin' Good', 'Funkier Than A Mosquito's Tweeter', 'The Great Flood', 'From The Valley', 'As The Crow Flies'.

Classic Rock Videos

The Doors - People are Strange

Motown Celebrates Its 50th Anniversary

written by Robert Benson


As this historic record label commemorates its 50th year in the
music industry, let's learn more about the history of this iconic
music leader:

"One of the principles we had at Motown was that success will come,
but that is not enough," founder Berry Gordy explained. "You had to
be proud of yourself in order to achieve true happiness. And if you
do it right, not only will you be successful, you'll be happy. And
at Motown, we're the happiest people in the world."

His feelings on the meaning of Motown border on the mystical.

"Motown is a magical something that has never been seen before and
will never be seen again. Because the world has changed for the
worse. And to have a company like that is probably impossible now.
It was too simple to be believed."

Berry Gordy is indeed a happy man. He formed the Motown Record
Corporation in 1960 after a year of being called Tamla Records.
And now, fifty years later, the world will help celebrate the
legendary record label with a series of gala events.

Berry Gordy actually started his career in the music industry as a
songwriter for local Detroit musicians such as Jackie Wilson and The
Matadors. In fact, Wilson's single, "Lonely Teardrops" became a
huge hit, but Gordy did not feel that he made as much money as he
deserved and soon Gordy realized that the more lucrative part of the
music industry was in producing and owning the publishing rights.

So, with an $800 loan from family members, Gordy started Tamla
Records, signing his first act, The Matadors (who changed their
name to The Miracles). In fact, The Miracles lead singer, Smokey
Robinson became vice president of the company and many of Gordy's
family also assumed roles in the company.

In 1959, Gordy purchased property that would eventually become
Tamla's "Hitsville U.S.A."studio. The property was modified into
a small recording studio with Gordy moving into the second floor
living quarters. Over the next few years, Motown would go on to own
several more neighboring houses, with administrative offices, mixing
and mastering studios and rehearsal studios.

Success came quickly for the new record label, the first hit single
was Barretts Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)" in 1959 (#2 on
Billboard R&B charts) and the first #1 R&B hit was "Shop Around," by
The Miracles in 1960 (which also peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot
100 and was Motown's first million-dollar selling record).

From 1961-1971, Motown Records had 100 Top Ten Hits from such music
artists as Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross & The Supremes, Marvin Gaye,
the Four Tops and the Jackson 5, among others. In addition, the
company operated several other record labels (besides releases on
the Tamla and Motwon labels) including "Gordy," which featured such
acts as the Temptations, the Contours and Martha & the Vandellas,
“V.I.P,” which released music by the Velvelettes and the Spinners.
Another label, "Soul" released recordings by Jr. Walker & the All
Stars, Jimmy Ruffin and Gladys Knight & the Pips. Other labels
included "Workshop Jazz" (which released Jazz music), Mel-o-dy
(country music) and "Rare Earth,” which focused on rock recordings.
Gordy utilized the slogan "The Sound Of Young America" and Motown
acts enjoyed widespread popularity with both black and white
audiences.

The "Motown Sound" is what made the music appealing. This was a
unique combination of tambourines to accent the back beat, prominent
and melodic electric bass lines, distinctive chord structures and a
call and response singing style that had its origins in gospel
music. Add to this the use of orchestral string sections, bluesy
horns and carefully arranged background vocals and the recipe was
complete.

Gordy also surrounded himself with some of the best songwriters and
producers in music at the time, including the songwriting trio of
Holland-Dozier-Holland (brothers Brian and Eddie Holland and Lamont
Dozier), Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong, Nickolas Ashford, Valerie
Simpson, Frank Wilson and many others.

The Motown Sound also had a profound influence on other musicians
of the time including Dusty Springfield and the Foundations, among
others. In the UK, the Motown Sound was the basis of the "Northern
Soul" phenomenon.

Adding to Motown's worldwide appeal was Gordy's practice of using a
group of select studio musicians, collectively known as the "Funk
Brothers,” who would record the instrumental tracks for the songs.
Included in this ensemble were keyboard players, Earl Van Dyke,
Johnny Griffith and Joe Hunter, guitarists Joe Messina, Robert
White, and Eddie Willis, percussionists Eddie "Bongo" Brown and
Jack Ashford, drummers Benny Benjamin, Uriel Jones and Richard
"Pistol" Allen and the bass playing of James Jamerson and Bob
Babbitt. Much of the Motown Sound was made by the use of over
dubbing instrumentation and the use of two drummers to go along with
three or four guitar lines.

Gordy was also a master marketer, his acts were well-groomed, well-
dressed and their appearances were expertly choreographed. Gordy's
reasoning was that Motown artists were ambassadors for other African-
American artists who sought broad market appeal and thought that
they should act accordingly.

By 1969, Motown began its gradual move from Detroit to Los Angles,
with its main objective to branch out into the television and
motion picture industries. Gordy formed Motown Productions which
provided some very memorable TV specials including TCB with Diana
Ross & the Supremes and the Temptations, Diana! (with Diana Ross) as
well as "Goin' Back to Indiana," with the Jackson 5. Additionally,
after the loss of the songwriting team of Holland-Dozier-Holland
(who left because of royalty payment disputes), the company loosened
its productions rules allowing some of the longtime acts the
opportunity to write and produce their own material. The result
was the release of some classic albums such as Marvin Gaye's "What's
Going On"(1971), and "Let's Get It On"(1973) and three fantastic
LP's from Stevie Wonder, "Music Of My Mind" in 1971, "Talking Book"
in 1972 and "Innervisions" in 1973.

In addition to establishing branch offices in New York City and Los
Angles, Motown also produced several hit films, including "Lady
Sings The Blues" and "Mahogany," both starring Diana Ross. Other
Motown films included "Thank God It's Friday" in 1978, "The Wiz," in
1978 and Berry Gordy's "The Last Dragon" in 1985.

Motown continued with its successful musical acts in the late 70's
and into the 80's with acts such as Lionel Richie, The Commodores,
Rick James and DeBarge, among others. Despite this success, by the
mid-1980's Motown was losing money and consequently Gordy sold his
ownership rights in Motown Records to Music Corporation of America
(MCA) and Boston Ventures in June 1988. In 1989, Gordy sold the
Motown Productions operations to Motown executive Suzanne de Passe,
who renamed the company de Passe Entertainment.

Despite major recording starts such as Boys II Men, among others,
during the 1990's the company remained in a state of turmoil.
Numerous executives were appointed by MCA and a multitude of legal
issues plagued the company. But by 1999, Motown was again a driving
force in the music industry with such acts as 702, Brian McKnight,
and Erykah Badu.

Motown's (which has merged with Universal Records to become
Universal Motown Records Group) current roster includes many R&B
super stars such as India Arie, Mya, Kem, Yummy Bingham, Badu, pop
superstar Lindsay Lohan, reggae stars Damien and Stephen Marley and
many more. Additionally, Universal Motown Records Group has
retained Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder and the
Temptations.

In Motown, Berry Gordy was able to adeptly blend R&B and Soul with
mainstream pop music to create a "super" record label. This
template can never be duplicated, but the world of music is by far
a better place because of Berry Gordy's visions and unique management.

For more information visit: http://www.motown50.com/

50 Years of Motown

This Tuesday, a year-long celebration of the 50th anniversary of Motown records kicks off with the release of Motown: The Complete Number Ones, a 10-disc set with every record that the label and its subsidiaries put at the top of any music chart around the world. What will follow will be a flurry of reissues, salutes, books, documentaries and even a Broadway musical.

The man doing the most celebrating, Barry Gordy, founded the label with an $800 loan from his family on January 12, 1959. Gordy talked to Billboard magazine on what it means to him. "I've been fighting to protect the legacy for 50 years, and now it seems that after 50 years we can go and talk about the real deal, what really happened ... and how it happened, my story and everything that goes with it. And I'm just thrilled that I'm here to enjoy now what I couldn't enjoy while I was doing it."

Included in the new material will be a documentary made by Gordy and Suzanne DePasse, who was responsible for the label's 25th anniversary special. "It's about me and ... not only what I did and how I did it but how I felt doing it and what it was that happened, from my standpoint."

Also look for online podcasts from Universal Music, who is in charge of Motown's older material, special events at the Motown museum in Detroit and that Broadway musical, which should hit the stage in 2010.

Album Cover Art

Let's continue our look at Gigwise.com's list of the top 50 dirtiest and sexiest album cover art, this time #17 (Gigwise comments in quotes):

17. Die Toten Hosen: ‘Reich & Sexy’ - "At first glance the cover art is just yet another photo of a group of naked models, but then you realise that the band have been interspersed between them. The juxtaposition of the beauties and slightly beastly Die Toten Hosen sets the image off perfectly."

Music News & Notes

Wednesday marked the 40th anniversary of Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special. It was December 3, 1968 when the special aired on NBC and started Presley's return the top of the music charts. The program ended up the highest rated entertainment show of the year, pulling in 42% of the viewing audience.

Shortly after the special, If I Can Dream went up to number 12, followed by In the Ghetto and his first number one in over seven years, Suspicious Minds.

===================================================

There are rumors that Faith No More may be readying a reunion tour. U.K. venues have had dates put on hold for the band in the spring, although bassist Bill Gould isn't confirming anything. “If anything like this were to happen, it would have to come from the band, and I haven’t spoken with any of them in over a year. So as far as I know, there isn’t anything to talk about, and I’m pretty sure that if you were to contact Patton, he would tell you the same thing.”

===================================================

The Specials are finally going to go on the reunion tour that they originally discussed earlier this year. It's the first time the ska band has performed together since 1981. The initial set of dates are in the U.K. and run from late-April through mid-May with additional shows expected.

===================================================

George Michael put on what was called his farewell show in Abu Dhabi on Monday night with less than steller ticket sales. Many of the 35,000 seats went unsold and the promoters ended up giving tickets away before the show.

A source told Britain's Sun that “a lot of the youngsters here aren’t interested in his music — they’re into up-to-date stuff. It was embarrassing.”

===================================================

Bryan Adams has had to get the London police involved over fears of being stalked by an obsessed mother and son. They first approached the singer in a restaurant but have now started showing up at his west London home. According to a source, "He doesn't want them to get in any serious trouble, but he really wants to be left alone by them."

===================================================

Eagle Rock Records has announced a February 3 release date for six of Ted Nugent's albums. On the schedule are Full Bluntal Nugity, Nugent, Penetrator, Little Miss Dangerous, If You Can't Lick 'Em...Lick 'Em and Spirit of the Wild.

===================================================

Robyn Hitchcock and the Venus 3 will release their second album, Goodnight Oslo, on February 17. The group is made up of Hitchcock, R.E.M's Peter Buck on guitar, Scott McCaughey (The Minus 5, Young Fresh Fellows, R.E.M.) on bass and drummer Bill Rieflin (Ministry, R.E.M.).

===================================================

Grandmaster Flash has announced that he will release his first album in twenty years on February 23. The Bridge: Concept of a Culture will feature guest appearances from Snoop Dog, Q-Tip, Busta Rhymes, Big Daddy Kane and others.

===================================================

Another rock biopic may be on the way. Eddie Martin is planning a film on the life of AC/DC's Bon Scott. According to Martin, the film is still in the research stage.

===================================================

Queen + Paul Rodger's The Cosmos Rocks did not exactly burn up the charts, but that doesn't mean the collaboration is over. An Austrian website recently claimed that a local concert was to be their last, but Brian May takes issue with the statement. “Well, I don’t know where anyone got that idea. Roger and Paul and myself haven’t made any decisions whatsoever about the future. We just need a rest!”

===================================================

Sonic Youth and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones have collaborated on a dance piece to be performed by the Merce Cunningham Dance Company.