AEROSMITH: Rumors on the Road
The New York Post reports that the Aerosmith tour is not exactly going as planned. The band members are “barely speaking to each other.” There’s deep disappointment that CD sales have lagged below expectations. Demand for their new music is lackluster. Not one date on their concert tour is sold out. Plus, lead singer Steven Tyler appears to be distracted trying to juggle a tour and a failed engagement.
But a spokesman for the band refutes the whispers: “It’s clear that someone is spreading false and malicious rumors. To give them any credence would only empower them to disseminate more lies.”
PETER FRAMPTON: A Fresh Take on Alive
In 2011 and earlier this year, Peter Frampton toured the world in celebration of the 35th anniversary of his landmark Frampton Comes Alive album. He filmed two shows -- one in Milwaukee and the other in New York -- and the result is a two-DVD set released this week.
He says the reason for it was because there is no film from that original tour."No, it's not the '70s, but it is those numbers and we did create the feel and the audience helped that... I think a lot of people went back to the '70s and never came back."
In addition to the tracks from the classic album, this collection also contains songs from his last two albums -- Thank You Mr. Churchill and the Grammy Award-winning Fingerprints.
ROLLING STONES: Celebrating the Conception
The Rolling Stones first show as The Rollin' Stones took place in July 1962, which makes this year the 50th anniversary of that event. But according to Keith Richards, as well as Mick Jagger, the 50th anniversary is actually next January, because it was that month in 1963 that drummer Charlie Watts joined.
"To us, we're celebrating the conception," says Richards, "which is always fun. The birth is next year." The celebration has been kicking into high gear this week with the release on Tuesday of a new best-of collection called GRRR! and Thursday night's premiere of their new documentary, Crossfire Hurricane, on HBO followed by two shows later this month in London and three in the New York City-area next month.
E STREET BAND: Little Steven Co-Produces Stones-Inspired Film
E Street Band guitarist Little Steven Van Zandt is one of the executive producers of Not Fade Away, an upcoming movie about three friends from the New Jersey suburbs who decide to form a band after seeing The Rolling Stones on TV in 1964. The film is written, produced and directed by David Chase, who created TV's The Sopranos, on which Van Zandt played the character Silvio Dante for the show's entire six season run. James Gandolfini, who starred as Tony Soprano, has a major role in Not Fade Away.
Following three festival showings in October, the picture is due to open for a limited run on December 21st.
DEEP PURPLE: Smokey Jazz on the Water (audio)
Tired of hearing the original recording of Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" over and over and over again? Well, perhaps the members of Purple are too, which could be why they did a jazz version of it on French TV on Wednesday. They were there to plug some dates they have in France next month. For the rest of this month they are on tour in Germany.
