More Musicians To Help Haiti

Coldplay, Arctic Monkeys, Damon Albarn to sell items in auction for Haiti victims

Coldplay, the Arctic Monkeys and Blur’s Damon Albarn are donating items to be sold at a charity auction beginning Friday to raise funds for Haiti earthquake victims, auction organizers said.

The items on sale will include an offer from Albarn to record a specially written piece of music, the white electric guitar Fender Stratocaster played by Arctic Monkeys’ Alex Turner in the band’s first video, and Coldplay singer Chris Martin’s signed Viva La Vida tour jacket.

All proceeds will go to charity Oxfam’s work in Haiti.

The auction will be conducted on the Web site ebay starting Friday morning and run for 10 days, organizer Emily Eavis said.

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

Paper + Plastick, Punknews Auctions Off Rare Vinyl Test Pressings For Haiti Quake Victims

Madonna, Bono, Sting, English Beat and Justin Timberlake are not the only musicians dedicated to helping the people of Haiti during this time of tragedy, where aide is needed more than ever. Drummer of ska/punk staples Less Than Jake and owner of Paper + Plastick Records, Vinnie Fiorello has teamed up with heavyweight punk site Punknews.org to set up an auction of rare vinyl test-pressings and collectors items on http://www.limitedpressing.com,%20of/ of which 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the Doctors Without Borders organization.

"The devastation in Haiti moved me," says the Gainesville, FL based musician and entrepreneur. "I was thinking about what I could do, and then I saw a tweet from Justin [August] of Punknews about wanting to help. The guys who run Punknews' Vinyl Vlog put us in contact with LimitedPressing.com, and here we are."

"When I saw the images trickling in from Haiti, I had the same crippling sadness creeping over me as I had in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans," adds Punknews Social Media Editor Justin August. "What good is a position at a website like Punknews, with its vast reach if you don't use it for some sort of greater good?"

Of the rare items to be auctioned for the Haiti Earthquake Relief Effort will be test pressings from Fall Out Boy, New Found Glory, Gym Class Heroes, Panic! At The Disco, The Gaslight Anthem, Thursday, Phantom Planet, Lifetime, Hot Water Music, Less Than Jake, and more. Additional test pressings and rare collectors items such as a signed cymbal and drumhead by The Gaslight Anthem, a signed Against Me! poster from April 2009, and more will be added as the auction items are confirmed. A full list of auction items will be updated constantly and can be viewed here: http://limitedpressing.com/auctions .

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

Quincy Jones & Lionel Richie Look to Recreate We Are The World for Haiti

Quincy Jones and Lionel Richie, two of the men behind the massive hit and Grammy Record of the Year We Are the World, are set to recreate magic the day after the Grammy awards by rerecording the iconic song in response to the situation in Haiti.

We Are the World was originally recorded on January 28, 1985 after the completion of the American Music Awards. Written by Michael Jackson and Richie and produced by Jones and Michael Omartian, the recording session drew some of the biggest names of the day, including Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon, Kenny Rogers, Billy Joel, Tina Turner, Diana Ross, Dionne Warwick, Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Cyndi Lauper and a host of others.

The record was released on March 7, 1985 under the group name USA for Africa and quickly rose to the top of the charts, staying at number 1 for four weeks.

This time around, Jones and Richie are hoping to make lightning strike twice by setting the recording session for Monday, February 1, the day after the Grammy Awards. They have asked many of the big artists that will be in town for the ceremony to join the session but have not disclosed who has accepted their invitation.