PowerBlogs: Rumour Mills

YouTube grabbed its largest viewing audience ever, thanks to U-2.

The U-2 concert from Pasadena, California, on Sunday was seen by nearly 10- (m) million people on YouTube.

If you missed it, it’s not too late to catch up.

The full two-and-a-half hour concert is still up on YouTube.

More than 1.1- (m) million people have watched the rebroadcast.

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What does Rob Zombie find scary?

Really fast, random violence.

He says he lived in New York in the 1980’s when it was more violent.

He recalls standing in line on 42nd Street at McDonald’s.

He says all of a sudden, this guy stabs this other guy right in front of him.

He says it was this whole bloody mess and he kept thinking, where did that come from?

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Just a couple of days after saying his label was not prepared to release Hellbilly Deluxe 2, Rob Zombie has abruptly left his longtime home of Geffen and has signed with Roadrunner’s Loud and Proud label. The album, which was set to come out November 17th, will be released early next year. Zombie says, “It certainly wasn’t an easy decision to make after all this time, but it had to be done. I love this new record and wanted to surround myself with an excited new group of people who can re-ignite my enthusiasm for working within a hard rock record label.”

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Saving Abel singer Jared Weeks is all set for Halloween, once he figures out what he wants to do with his wigs.

He says he bought a mullet wig for guitarist Scott Bartlett, who’s bald. He bought an Afro wig for himself.

He says they’re definitely dressing up for their Halloween gig tomorrow in Kearney, Nebraska, but they don’t know what to be.

He’s considering dressing as the Jackson Five.

Saving Abel launched their first headlining tour this week.

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The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame held the first of its two 25th Anniversary Concerts last night (Thursday) at New York’s Madison Square Garden and the six-hour affair featured a who’s who of inductees. While the headliners — Crosby Stills and Nash, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Paul Simon, Simon and Garfunkel, and Stevie Wonder — were enough to guarantee a great show, it was their interaction with their special guests that made for some of the night’s more magical moments. Those moments included Jackson Browne doing “The Pretender” with C-S-N; James Taylor joining C-S-N “Love the One You’re With;” Graham Nash and David Crosby singing harmony on Paul Simon’s version of George Harrison’s “Here Comes the Sun;” Bruce Springsteen trading verses with John Fogerty and Billy Joel; and Stevie Wonder playing with Sting, John Legend, B-B King and Jeff Beck. The entire night got started with Jerry Lee Lewis opening the show with a solo piano version of “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On.”

Breaking down the sets, Crosby Stills and Nash were joined by Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne and James Taylor, and Graham Nash told us backstage it was an unbelievable experience. Additional highlights from their set included a blistering Stephen Stills guitar solo during “Almost Cut My Hair.”

Paul Simon paid tribute to some of the artists who inspired him in his youth by bringing out Dion and Little Anthony and the Imperials. Later, Art Garfunkel joined him for five songs, including “Bridge Over Troubled Waters,” which brought the house down.

Stevie Wonder was joined by five special guests — Smokey Robinson, B-B King, Sting, Jeff Beck and John Legend, who had just come from Yankee Stadium where he sang the national anthem before last night’s World Series game. During “The Way You Make Me Feel” Wonder did shout outs to Michael Jackson, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix and Bob Marley. He also traded verses with Sting on “Roxanne” and B-B King on “The Thrill Is Gone.”

The show, while running a little behind schedule, hit a snag after Wonder’s set as it took a half hour for them to get the stage ready for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. But it was worth the wait as Springsteen welcomed four announced guests and one surprise one at the end. John Fogerty came out for C-C-R’s “Fortunate Son” and “Proud Mary,” before he and Springsteen took a stab at Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Woman.” Other guests included Sam Moore, Darlene Love and Tom Morello, who did an electrifying version of Springsteen’s “The Ghost of Tom Joad.” In between, Springsteen did a few more of his songs — “Tenth Avenue Freeze-out,” “Jungleland” and “Badlands” — as well as a cover of The Clash’s “London Calling.”

Then at 1:00 a-m, Springsteen announced that many centuries ago, New Jersey and Long Island were one, and he asked the Garden crowd if they were ready for “The summit at the Garden… I’d like to invite the king of Long Island to come out and meet the E Street Band.” And with that Billy Joel came out to do three of his own songs, including the fitting “New York State of Mind,” with Springsteen sharing a few verses, and also joining Joel on “Only the Good Die Young.” Joel reciprocated on “Born to Run.” The show finally ended at 1:30, with all of Springsteen’s guests coming out for “Higher and Higher.”

The second of the two shows is tonight (Friday), with a lineup featuring U-2, Aretha Franklin, Metallica, Ozzy Osbourne, Ray Davies and Jeff Beck.

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The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is celebrating its 25th anniversary with the second of two shows tonight (Friday) at Madison Square Garden in New York. Show number-one was last night (Thursday).

Topping the bill tonight is U-2, Jeff Beck, Aretha Franklin and Metallica. In addition to them all doing their own songs, they’ll be backing a number of other artists — including Buddy Guy, Ozzy Osbourne, Ray Davies, Lou Reed, Lenny Kravitz and Annie Lennox. Eric Clapton was scheduled to appear but had to cancel due to gallstone surgery.

Stephen Stills, who played with C-S-N last night (Thursday), is disappointed he won’t be able to attend tonight’s show as he was looking forward to seeing Jeff Beck. He’ll be with C-S-N taking part in a benefit hosted by Bette Midler cross-town at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

Highlights will be shown in a four-hour H-B-O broadcast on November 29th with a D-V-D to follow next year. Net proceeds from the show will benefit the Rock Hall’s endowment fund. The shows cost nine-million dollars to produce and organizers are hoping to raise four-million. –Sal Cirrincione

Friday’s line-up:

Aretha Franklin, who will sing with Annie Lennox and Lenny Kravitz
Metallica, who will back Lou Reed, Ozzy Osbourne and Ray Davies (”You Really Got Me”)
Jeff Beck, who will play with Buddy Guy
U-2, whose special guests are yet to be announced
Jerry Lee Lewis

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Aerosmith will do their last show of the year Sunday at the Formula One Grand Prix race in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Guitarist Joe Perry tells us, “That’s gonna be incredible. Absolutely amazing.” Perry and his wife Billie took the 13-hour flight there yesterday. Perry will start a tour with his Joe Perry Project on November 10th in New York.

This has been a rough year for Aerosmith. They had to abandon the recording of a new album after singer Steven Tyler came down with pneumonia, and after just a few dates they had to cancel their tour with Z-Z Top after Tyler fell off the stage in South Dakota and broke his shoulder.

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Weezer will do a series of in-store appearances in Southern California next week to promote their new disc, Raditude. The band will be signing copies of the disc November 5th at the Hot Topic in Hollywood, November 6th at Tilly’s in Irvine and November 7th at Best Buy in Chino Hills. Raditude is in stores Tuesday.

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Paul Stanley, Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer of KISS took time out from their Alive 35 tour Wednesday to tour and visit with wounded soldiers at the Charlie Norwood V-A Medical Center in August, Georgia. Stanley told the troops, “We’re honored to be here with you people… People talk about the ultimate sacrifice. But isn’t it a sacrifice to come back home and discover you no longer have your life? We want everyone home safely and to urge everyone to give these people the respect they deserve.” On Monday, KISS welcomed members of the Wounded Warrior Projects C-S-R-A program to their show in Atlanta.

KISS is in New Orleans Saturday — Halloween — at the Voodoo Experience festival.

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The Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan sure is acting strangely this month. First he starts a bizarre online video series where he voices various puppets — and now he says that the swine flu is a man-made virus. On his site EverythingFromHeretoThere.com , he writes, “I have read reports from people who say (as doctors) that there is evidence to suggest this virus was created by man; to call it Swine Flu is then a misnomer, as it really is Swine Flu plus some other stuff stitched together. These doctors said such genetic mutation was impossible in nature.” He also says he felt the need to speak because of all the “propaganda” about swine flu. “There is something mighty suspicious about declaring an emergency for something that has yet to show itself to be a grand pandemic. Our American President Obama has declared a national emergency about this virus, which he in his own words said was, at this point, a preventative measure. So, why declare an emergency if there isn’t one?”

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Steve Miller will pay tribute to his late godfather, legendary guitarist and inventor Les Paul, when he performs at a free Paul tribute concert on November 19th at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Joining Miller will be Charlie Daniels, Ace Frehley and Zakk Wylde. Paul died in August at the age of 94.

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30 Seconds to Mars will hit the road right before their new album, This Is War, is released. The brief tour kicks off November 30th in Salt Lake City and wraps up December 19th in Cleveland. This Is War is in stores December 8th.

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The new Black Crowes D-V-D, Cabin Fever, will now be released on November 24th.

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Kid Rock and a lineup of mostly country acts will do a benefit concert at the Fox Theater in Atlanta tonight (Friday). The event will benefit the fire-scarred GeorgiaTheater in Athens, Georgia.

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We Are the Fallen, the band that features original Evanescence members Ben Moody, John LeCompt and Rocky Gray, has signed a deal with Universal Republic Records and will release a debut album next year.

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7 Day Binge, which features 3 Doors Down bassist Todd Harrell, will release their self-titled debut digitally on December 8th and in stores January 26th.

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The Indiana Memorial Union Board will honor Hoosier John Mellencamp during its annual dinner on Saturday.

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Robert Plant performed at a Birmingham, England benefit hosted by E-L-O drummer Bev Bevan Wednesday night. Proceeds go to Birmingham’s Children’s Hospital.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is celebrating its 25th anniversary with the first of two shows tonight at Madison Square Garden in New York. Show number-two is tomorrow night.

Topping the bill tonight is Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Simon and Garfunkel as well as Paul Simon by himself, and Stevie Wonder. In addition to them all doing their own songs, they’ll be backing a number of other artists — including John Fogerty, Jackson Brown, Bonnie Raitt, Sting, James Taylor, Jeff Beck, Dion and Darlene Love. Friday’s headliners include U-2, Metallica, Jeff Beck and Aretha Franklin.

As for why the shows are being held at Madison Square Garden, Jann Wenner, Hall of Fame co-founder and publisher of Rolling Stone, tells us, “What’s the most prominent venue in rock and roll? You know, it’s Madison Square Garden.” Robbie Robertson, the former leader of The Band, is the show’s musical director.

Highlights will be shown in a four-hour H-B-O broadcast on November 29th with a D-V-D to follow next year. Net proceeds from the show will benefit the Rock Hall’s endowment fund. The shows cost nine-million dollars to produce and organizers are hoping to raise four-million. –Sal Cirrincione

Tonight’s line-up:

Crosby, Stills and Nash, who will also play with Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt and James Taylor
Paul Simon
Simon and Garfunkel, who will also play with Dion and Little Anthony and the Imperials
Stevie Wonder, who will play with John Legend, Sting, Smokey Robinson, Jeff Beck (on “Superstition”) and B-B King
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, who will also play with Darlene Love, Sam Moore, Tom Morello and John Fogerty
Jerry Lee Lewis

Friday’s line-up:

Aretha Franklin, who will sing with Annie Lennox and Lenny Kravitz
Metallica, who will back Lou Reed, Ozzy Osbourne and Ray Davies
Jeff Beck, who will play with Buddy Guy
U-2, whose special guests are yet to be announced
Jerry Lee Lewis

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1997 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Crosby Stills and Nash are on the bill tonight for the first of the two Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concerts at Madison Square Garden. They’ll be doing a few of their own songs — “Woodstock,” “Marrakesh Express” and “Rock and Roll Woman” — and then they’ll be backing some of their friends — 2000 inductees Bonnie Raitt and James Taylor, and 2004 inductee Jackson Browne. Bonnie will be singing her own “Love Has No Pride,” and will play along with Stephen Stills on “Midnight Rider.” J-T will do “Mexico” and “Love the One You’re With.” And Jackson will do “The Pretender.” Then they’ll all come out for “Teach Your Children.”

Also on tonight’s bill are Jerry Lee Lewis, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Stevie Wonder, Simon and Garfunkel, Paul Simon, John Fogerty, Jeff Beck and Sting.

Bruce Springsteen inducted Jackson Browne into the Hall in 2004. James Taylor inducted C-S-N in 1997.

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Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are on the bill at Madison Square Garden in New York tonight for the first of two concerts celebrating the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 25th anniversary. Springsteen was inducted into the Hall in 1999 without the E Street Band, which is why saxophone player Clarence “Big Man” Clemons isn’t looking forward to the show. He says, “It’s real strange playing for all these guys that are in the Hall of Fame and we’re not.” The E Streeters didn’t go in with Springsteen because their name doesn’t appear on any of his albums. Show number-two is tomorrow night.

In addition to doing some of his own songs, Springsteen and the E Street Band will also back John Fogerty, Darlene Love, Sam Moore and Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello.

Springsteen inducted Fogerty’s former band, Creedence Clearwater Revival, into the Hall in 1993.

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Rob Zombie says he has a luxury other film directors don’t have — he tours.

Zombie says because he sees fans every day on a concert tour, he gets instant feedback on the movies he makes.

He says most directors or actors don’t have daily interaction with fans the way he does.

The music business also trained him well for the movie business.

He says in both worlds, people are only interested in him as long as he’s making them money.

His current movie is “Halloween 2.”

Zombie’s tour begins tonight in Phoenix.

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Elvis Presley has been knocked out of the top spot of the top-earning dead celebrities.

Forbes magazine reports the new champ is Yves (EEV) Saint Laurent, who pulled in 350- (m) million dollars in the past year.

Most of that was from a record-breaking auction of his art and antiques in February.

The songwriting team of Rodgers and Hammerstein are second, with 235- (m) million dollars.

Michael Jackson is third at 90- (m) million.

Elvis checks in at fourth place with 55- (m) million.

John Lennon is seventh, and Jimi Hendrix is 12th.

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Former Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren is now a visual artist.

He is displaying his work, “Shallow 1-21,” at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia.

It’s a series of 21 videos that combine snippets from obscure 1960’s sex films with music.

Only four segments contain nudity.

McLaren recalls being an art school student and watching sex movies, but he was always more intrigued by the generic mundane preambles than the sex.

The exhibit runs through January 3rd.

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U-2 will play a free concert in Berlin to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

M-T-V says U-2 will perform in front of the Brandenburg Gate next Thursday during the M-T-V Europe Music Awards.

The 10-thousand free tickets were gone in three hours.

The wall fell on November 9th, 1989.

U-2 have said their 1991 album “Achtung Baby” was partly inspired by their stay in Berlin.

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An Arizona concert promoter will go on trial next year for allegedly bouncing a cheque made out to the Steve Miller Band.

The Star-Tribune of Casper, Wyoming, reports Robert Alfred Green has pleaded not guilty to passing a bad cheque to the band after they played Casper last November.

A band representative notified police in May when the cheque was not covered.

The trial begins January 25th.

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Ex-Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones says he has no regrets that his project with Jimmy Page and Jason Bonham never got off the ground last year. He tells the B-B-C, “Jimmy and I rehearsed a bit with Jason and we couldn’t really agree on singers, and that fell by the wayside. Then [Them Crooked Vultures] came along and to be honest, I’m really happy.”

Jones says he was very interested in playing Foo Fighters drummer Dave Grohl in Them Crooked Vultures because “I immediately recognized that this was a drummer that was a) really good, b) groovy, and c) listened, all those nice things that bass players like in drummers.” Them Crooked Vultures’ self-titled debut album is due out November 17th.

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The Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan not only has time to make a 44-song new album — he’s found the time to be a voice for puppets. Corgan does the voice for himself, Cure frontman Robert Smith, ex-Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha and many other characters in the first episode of the online video series Gothageddon. It features puppets of Corgan and Smith in what seems to be a wrestling match. Watch for yourself at Stickam.com/SmashingPumpkins.

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A year after its exclusive Wal-Mart release, A-C/D-C’s Black Ice album has been re-issued and is now available at all retailers. But as with the rest of their catalog, it’s not available digitally. And another Wal-Mart exclusive is about to get a wider release — the No Bull - The Directors Cut D-V-D will be re-issued through all outlets on December 8th.

A-C/D-C’s Black Ice tour is still going, with an appearance in Jacksonville, Florida tomorrow night.

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Stone Temple Pilots plan to put out a new album in 2010. Singer Scott Weiland says they started work on the disc — which would be their first in nine years — before they hit the road earlier this month. He tells Spinner, “When we get back, we’re going to finish the album. And then when we finish the album, there will be a big tour around its release, and that will probably be a long tour.”

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Bob Seger’s management has confirmed that he’s in the studio recording. He has been re-working some of his early material for a collection he’s calling Early Seger, Volume One. There is still no release date, but it will be out before Christmas.

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Chris Daughtry’s “Send Me All Your Angels” will be included as a bonus track on the Wal-Mart exclusive edition of Kris Allen’s self-titled debut album, in stores November 17th.

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The New Moon soundtrack has moved up to number-one on the Billboard album chart.

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The Deftones will do a benefit concert in support of The Chi Cheng Special Needs Trust at Avalon in Los Angeles on November 19th.

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KISS debuted “Say Yeah,” another song from their new album, Sonic Boom, earlier this week in Atlanta. KISS is in Little Rock, Arkansas tonight.

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Roger Waters performed “Wish You Were Here” Tuesday night at a New York benefit for the Alzheimer’s Association.

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Sting will do two concerts in New York in celebration of his new album, On a Winter’s Night, on December 8th and 9th at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. Sting is on The View today.

Eric Clapton won’t be at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame celebration this week because he has gall stones.

Clapton’s website reports he will have a minor medical procedure to correct his condition.

Clapton was to perform Friday at the Rock Hall’s 25th anniversary concerts.

Jeff Beck will replace him on the bill.

Clapton intends to keep his 2010 concert schedule.

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What’s the one song U-2 has played on every tour since its release?

It’s “Where The Streets Have No Name,” according to The Edge.

He says they played “Bullet The Blue Sky” on every tour since it came out as well, but not on their current tour.

Edge says he was amazed that fans were singing along to their new songs in concert just a few weeks after they were released.

U-2 will wrap up the current leg of their North American tour tonight in Vancouver.

The tour will pick up again next June in Anaheim, California.

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Metallica have chipped in 50-thousand dollars to help find a missing fan.

Twenty-year-old Morgan Harrington, a Virginia Tech student from Roanoke, Virginia, was last seen at the Metallica concert in Charlottesville on October 17th.

She left the arena and was not allowed back in.

Her purse and cell phone were found.

With Metallica’s contribution, the reward for her safe return is now 150-thousand dollars.

Her parents tell N-B-C’s “Today” show they think Harrington may have been the victim of foul play.

Her father says he wonders if maybe his daughter accepted a ride from someone.

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Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich says he’ll be “semi-cool” in his kids’ eyes for another six months because of a new i-Phone app.

“Tap Tap Revenge: Metallica” came out yesterday.

Players tap the screen in time to Metallica’s music, similar to “Guitar Hero” or “Rock Band.”

Metallica’s record label expects it to be in the top 10 paid music apps on i-Tunes.

Ulrich says the app is not about making money, because this stuff falls in the fun category.

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The Lilith Fair will return next year.

The festival’s website has announced the first round of cities it will hit, but no specific dates.

The lineup has also not been announced.

Sarah McLachlan founded the festival as a way to highlight female musicians.

The last Lilith Fair was in 1999.

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Rob Zombie has explained the delay of the release of his Hellbilly Deluxe 2 album. In a media teleconference held yesterday, he said that while the music has been done for some time, everything else surrounding the album’s launch was rushed. Specifically citing the record label not being ready to promote the album and not having enough time to shoot a video, Zombie concluded that “it was turning into a chaotic mess.” Despite pushing back the album until next year, Zombie’s Hellbilly Deluxe 2 Tour still kicks off in Phoenix tomorrow night.

Zombie finished editing the Director’s Cut of Halloween 2 on Monday and spent much of yesterday voicing his commentary on the film. He says the Director’s Cut has a “completely different ending” and that its tone is “much darker” than his original movie. He’s not sure exactly whether the D-V-D will hit stores in November or December, but says to definitely expect it before Christmas.

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Despite the sudden death of Bruce Springsteen’s cousin and assistant road manager on Monday in Kansas City, Missouri, which caused the cancelation of their show there that night, Springsteen will lead the E Street Band when they perform at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concert tomorrow night at Madison Square Garden in New York.

In addition to their own set, Springsteen and the E Street Band will also be backing John Fogerty, Darlene Love, Sam Moore and Tom Morello.

E Street band guitarist Nils Lofgren tells us he’s looking forward to the show and he plans to be a spectator at Friday’s show, which will feature U-2, Metallica, Jeff Beck and others.

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Australia’s Airbourne will return on February 23rd with their new album, No Guts, No Glory. The band relocated from their homeland to Chicago to record the album with Disturbed producer Johnny K. Airbourne will start a U-S tour in April.

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Justin Timberlake wasn’t the first victim of alleged stalker Karen Jane McNeil, who has been ordered to steer clear of the singer. Back in March, Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich asked for and received a court order keeping her 150 yards away from him and his bandmates. And way back in the mid-’90s, McNeil was sentenced to a year in prison for violating an injunction keeping her away from Guns ‘N Roses frontman Axl Rose.

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3-11 usually hold their bi-annual “3-11 Day” on March 11th in New Orleans, but next year they’re moving the festivities to Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. They say they’ve shifted the show “due to a massive medical convention overtaking the vast majority of hotel rooms in downtown New Orleans.” Tickets go on sale Saturday.

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Robert Plant says he’s had discussions about headlining next summer’s Glastonbury Festival in England. Speaking to the B-B-C outside the Q Awards Monday in London, he said, “There’s a place for me there, but I have no idea who with.” It could end up being with Alison Krauss, who he’s working on a new album with.

Plant was at the Q Awards to pick up the Outstanding Contribution to Music award.

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Roger Daltrey says The Who will get their own Rock Band videogame next year. In an interview with the Massachusetts newspaper The Republican, Daltrey says, “There is one planned. (The idea) is fabulous. Anything that gets non-musical people interested in music is wonderful. In my opinion, music is our last true great freedom. They can burn our books, they can burn our paintings, but they can’t stop us singing and making music.”

Daltrey is on his Use It or Lose It tour with a show in Durham, North Carolina tonight.

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Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler will do a one-man show on January 23rd at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord, New Hampshire. Dream On - An Intimate Evening With Steven Tyler will feature the singer talking about his career and his struggles with addictions, as well as concert footage and a 30-minute question-and-answer session. He’ll also sing two songs while accompanying himself on the piano. Proceeds will benefit programs for substance-abuse treatment and child-abuse prevention.

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Joe Perry has added more dates to his November tour. He will lead the Joe Perry Project across North America for dates between the 10th in New York and the 27th in Arizona. The tour is support of his fifth album, Have Guitar, Will Travel.

When Perry is not handling lead vocals, that task falls to Hagen, a German singer his wife Billie found on You Tube. Perry tells us that Hagen could sound like Steven Tyler “if he wants. He has a very versatile voice.” He wanted Perry to change the keys of the songs so he could sing in a higher range, but he left them alone so he “could sing where he felt the most natural.”

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Slash fans in Japan will get a taste of his solo album before anyone else. A two-track single will be released there on November 11th. The A-side, called “Sahara,” features singer Koshi Inaba from Japanese hard rock duo B-Z. The B-side is a remake of Guns n’ Roses’ “Paradise City,” with guest appearances by rappers Cypress Hill and Fergie from Black Eyed Peas.

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A-C/D-C singer Brian Johnson was recently in an antique store in Britain’s Lake District. He picked up a copy of Back in Black, brought it to the counter and asked the owner if he wanted him to sign it. A customer saw Johnson sign it and bought it on the spot. It sold for 40-bucks — 27-dollars more than it was going for before it was signed.

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Motley Crue frontman Vince Neil is working on a solo album that he hopes to finish by January.

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Avenged Sevenfold’s Synystyr Gates and his father, comedian-guitarist Brian Haner, have written the theme song for Comedy Central’s The Jeff Dunham Show.

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The Cold War Kids will release a four-song E-P titled Behave Yourself on January 19th.

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Fred Mascherino, who left Taking Back Sunday to concentrate on his side project The Color Fred, has formed another new band called Initials.

Aerosmith isn’t touring so Joe Perry is going without them.

Perry will tour in support of his solo C-D, “Have Guitar, Will Travel.”

The tour begins November 10th in New York.

Aerosmith’s summer tour was cut short after singer Steven Tyler fell off a stage in Sturgis, South Dakota, in August.

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The band 3-1-1 are forced to move their “3/11 Day” celebration because a group of doctors.

The band usually holds a special concert on March 11 — 3/11 Day — and it’s typically in New Orleans.

However, a huge medical convention is scheduled for that day in 2010 and many of the hotel rooms are already booked.

The band is moving 3/11 day to Las Vegas.

Tickets go on sale Saturday.

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Alice In Chains are unveiling their own app for the iPhone.

The Black Gives Way To Blue app features three songs from the album of the same name and two videos.

It also has hidden photos and interactive areas, plus a way to chat with other fans or buy band merchandise.

The app is available today on iTunes.

Alice In Chains will also appear on “The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien” on Friday.

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Bret Michaels and Kevin Federline have cameos in the latest “American Pie” movie that’s going straight to D-V-D.

Other actors who will appear in “American Pie Presents: The Book of Love” include Rosanna Arquette, Tim Matheson, C. Thomas Howell, Christopher Knight from “The Brady Bunch” and Dustin Diamond from “Saved By The Bell.”

The D-V-D comes out on December 22nd.

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If you don’t want to know what Crosby, Stills and Nash are playing Thursday night at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concert at Madison Square Garden in New York cover your ears. In an interview with Cleveland’s Plain Dealer newspaper, Graham Nash says, “We’ll probably open with ‘Woodstock,’ which we only did once on our last tour. C-S-N will start rocking, then we’ll invite Bonnie Raitt out. We’ll probably do ‘Love Has No Pride’ or ‘Angel From Montgomery.’ We’ll bring Jackson Browne out and do ‘The Pretender.’ We’ll bring James Taylor out and do ‘Mexico.’ Then everybody will do ‘Love the One You’re With.’” But Nash does offer up a disclaimer, saying it’s all subject to change.

Also performing Thursday are Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, John Fogerty, Simon and Garfunkel, Dion, Little Anthony and the Imperials, Jerry Lee Lewis, Darlene Love, Sam Moore, Tom Morello, Stevie Wonder, Jeff Beck, B-B King, John Legend, Smokey Robinson and Sting.

Friday’s show features U-2, Metallica, Jeff Beck, Aretha Franklin, Buddy Guy, Ray Davies, Ozzy Osbourne, Lou Reed, Lenny Kravitz and Annie Lennox.

Highlights will be shown in a four-hour H-B-O broadcast on November 29th with a D-V-D to follow next year. Net proceeds from the show will benefit the Rock Hall’s endowment fund. The shows cost nine-million dollars to produce and organizers are hoping to raise four-million.

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In case you missed it yesterday, U-2 announced a second leg of North American dates for next summer. It starts June 6th in Anaheim, California and ends July 19th at the New Meadowlands Stadium in New Jersey. The band’s tour itinerary then continues in Europe, with shows into October. U-2 wind up their first North American leg tomorrow night in Vancouver.

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Like he did in the The Yardbirds, Jeff Beck is once again replacing Eric Clapton. This time, it’s Friday night at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concerts at Madison Square Garden in New York. Beck was already on the bill, but he will now be joined by his band in order to fill Clapton’s slot, which was canceled because Clapton underwent a medical procedure for gall stones.

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The Faces reunited Sunday night in London for three songs at a charity concert minus their most famous face — Rod Stewart. Taking his place were three of the other singers on the bill — former Squeeze member Paul Carrack (”Cindy Incidentally”), Simply Red’s Mick Hucknall (”Stay With Me”), and Eric Clapton and Roger Waters guitarist Andy Fairweather-Low (”Ooh La La”). Filling in on bass for the late Ronnie Lane was former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman, whose Rhythm Kings were the house band for many of the other acts. As for the Faces, a review on the Classic Rock magazine website says they were “superb, a bit ramshackle, but that was always a large part of their charm… Exquisite agony compounded. Then again, we wouldn’t have missed it for the world.”

Former Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman was also on the bill, turning in a version of The Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby.” In the audience was Randy Bachman, who said Wakeman was the “star of the evening.”

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Bruce Springsteen canceled his show last night in Kansas City, Missouri following the sudden death of his cousin, Lenny Sullivan, who was also the assistant tour manager and who worked for Springsteen for 10 years. No word on whether or not this will affect Springsteen and the E Street Band’s participation in Thursday’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concert in New York.

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Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst says they’re in the home stretch on their new album. He says, “We have recorded what we feel is our most addictive album yet — instrumentally. I am in process of doing vocals now in my home studio. So far, I am four songs deep and moving along with confidence and grace. We haven’t committed to an album title yet, but we know of one we like. Release date will be [announced] as soon as I am finished.”

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Metallica is chipping in 50-thousand dollars to the reward fund to help find a fan missing since their October 17th concert in Charlottesville, Virginia. Morgan Dana Harrington was last seen attending the concert at the John Paul Jones Arena, and the band is asking fans to help out with the search. Metallica.com has info on how to contact the proper authorities.

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In August, Black Sabbath / Heaven and Hell guitarist Tony Iommi revealed that once the Heaven and Hell tour was over he would go under the knife to correct a problem in his right hand where the cartilage in his thumb has worn away. What he has ended up doing is going for stem-cell treatment. He tells the B-B-C, “I have to wear a guard on my hand to prevent me from banging it. But it’s coming along good. The cartilage went out on the joints, so the joints were rubbing on the joints. It was bone on bone and it was getting a bit painful.” His doctors are hopeful that they can regenerate the damaged tissue in the hand.

Blue October’s tour to help young people overcome depression has been called off because of the singer’s own anxiety.

The band has issued a statement saying singer Justin Furstenfeld was hospitalized for an extreme anxiety attack.

Blue October was to headline the Pick Up The Phone Tour, which would have raised money for suicide prevention charities.

Furstenfeld is trying to turn a negative into a positive by saying he sought treatment for his problem and he hopes that will inspire others in trouble to do the same.

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The surviving members of Sublime want to continue as a band, but the family of late singer Brad Nowell wants them to give it a rest.

Bud Gaugh and Eric Wilson performed as Sublime this weekend outside Los Angeles with a new singer named Rome.

It was their first show as Sublime since Nowell died in 1996.

The family says Nowell trademarked the name Sublime and he never wanted anyone to use the name without him.

Gaugh says Wilson, Nowell and he started the band together and they agreed that no one should tell them what to do artistically.

He calls the new version of the band a celebration of Nowell’s life.

The family went to court to stop the use of the name but was unsuccessful.

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Morrissey spent Saturday night in the hospital after collapsing onstage.

Morrissey was performing in Swindon, England, Saturday when he fell ill.

One fan tells the B-B-C Morrissey kept putting his hand to his mouth as if he felt sick or was trying to hide something.

He was taken to a hospital as a precaution.

A hospital spokeswoman says Morrissey is “much improved” and was discharged.

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U-2 announced tour dates for next year via a live appearance on YouTube last night. The leg begins June 6th in Anaheim, California, and ends July 19th at the new Meadowlands Stadium in New Jersey. The band’s tour itinerary then continues in Europe, with shows into October. Click here for a complete list.

Though U-2’s No Line on the Horizon debuted at number-one and has sold more than a million copies, Bono thinks it could have done better with a hit single. He tells the Associated Press, “We weren’t really in that mindset, and we felt that the album was a kind of an almost extinct species and we should approach it in totality and create a mood and a feeling, and a beginning, middle and an end. And I suppose we’ve made a work that is a bit challenging for people who have grown up on a diet of pop stars.”

The first leg of U-2’s North American tour ends Wednesday in Vancouver, followed by a performance at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concert Friday night at New York’s Madison Square Garden

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Bruce Springsteen has a new single available in the I-Tunes Store. “Wrecking Ball,” written specifically for Springsteen and the E Street Band’s doing the final shows at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, comes with a video shot during the five-night stand at the stadium. Springsteen is in Kansas City, Missouri tonight.

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If you’ve been to a Bruce Springsteen concert recently, you may have noticed that when he introduces Clarence “Big Man” Clemons, the saxophone player is holding a book. That book is his just-published autobiography, Big Man — Real Life and Tall Tales, written with television producer Don Reo and featuring a foreword by Springsteen. Clemons tells us he assembled some of the book while he was on tour. And Reo adds, “A lot of it is a result of conversations… He would tell stories and I would write the stories down… It’s a true collaboration.”

Clemons, Springsteen and the rest of the E Street Band are in Kansas City, Missouri tonight.

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The Bon Jovi documentary When We Were Beautiful debuted on Showtime Saturday night. The film, which follows Jon Bon and company on their Lost Highway tour, re-airs tomorrow night at 5:30 p-m and Thursday at 8:00 p-m [PT].

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Blink 1-82 don’t usually tackle political issues, but Mark Hoppus tested the waters last week by writing an op-ed piece on the healthcare crisis for the Huffington Post. Hoppus has an uninsured friend who’s had financial problems in the wake of an emergency appendectomy, and he writes, “Somebody needs to come with a clear head and make some hard decisions and get us to a place where people aren’t working full-time jobs and living in desperate fear of getting sick and losing everything.”

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Original KISS drummer Peter Criss says he has no desire to listen to his former band’s new album, Sonic Boom. But he’s very enthusiastic about the new release by original and former KISS guitarist Ace Frehley, Anomaly, his first in more than 20 years. Criss tells us, “I love it. At times, I’ll admit, it gets redundant because I’m not a big metal guy… I’m told that his album is a lot better than the old boys’ [new album is].”

Criss is working on a rock album that he hopes to release in the spring. He’s also about to start writing his autobiography.

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The Indiana Memorial Union Board, which runs Indiana University’s landmark Memorial Union building, will honor Indiana native John Mellencamp during the annual Union Board dinner on Saturday. The board sponsored his free 2000 Good Samaritan show as well as his last campus concert in 2002. This is not the first honor the university has bestowed on Mellencamp — in 2000, they presented him with an honorary doctorate.

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Want to sleep in Eric Clapton’s bed? Well if you have 50-thousand dollars, you can. That’s how much he is asking for a week to rent his 45-acre estate on the Caribbean island of Antigua. Built in 2000 for 14-million dollars and named Standfast Point, the 10-thousand-square-foot home, which sleeps 14 people, has covered terraces, outdoor dining areas, two pools, vaulted wood ceilings and decks. It overlooks the islands of Montserrat and Guadeloupe, and rents with a full staff. However, there is one part of the house that is off limits — Clapton’s music room. Many mementos from his travels, as well as his art collection, can be seen throughout the home.

Clapton tells us he chose to build a home on Antigua because “it’s kind of got a lot of all the other islands mixed up in one.” In 1998, he opened his rehab facility, Crossroads Center Antigua, on the island.

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Blink 1-82 will re-issue their debut album, Buddha, on vinyl on December 15th. The set was recorded in 1993, but not originally released until five years later.

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Atreyu have put together a zombie-themed online game as a promotion for their Congregation of the Damned album, which hits stores tomorrow. Fans can play on the band’s website, AtreyuRock.com.

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Maynard James Keenan’s side project Puscifer have posted a new song titled “Polar Bear” on their MySpace page.

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Senses Fail will tape their Halloween night show in Sayreville, New Jersey for a D-V-D.

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Ozzy Osbourne tells Scotland on Sunday he can’t stand the term heavy metal. “If it was heavy rock, it’d be better.”

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Cream bassist Jack Bruce and Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason will take part in the Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp’s Master Campers Program next May at Abbey Road Studios in London.

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Condolences to Roger Waters on the passing of his mother, Mary Duncan Waters. She was 96 when she died on October 14th.

Pearl Jam, R-E-M and Trent Reznor are among the musicians who are giving their support to a campaign to close the U-S military prison at Guantanamo Bay.

They have joined the U-S National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, which launched Tuesday.

Their goal is to get classified records that detail the use of loud music as an interrogation device against terrorist suspects.

According to documents already made public and interviews with former detainees, the playlist featured A-C/D-C, Britney Spears, the Bee Gees, Marilyn Manson and Drowning Pool.

A C-I-A spokesman says music was used not to punish, but to keep detainees from talking to each other.

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Joel Madden wants his son to be tough.

That’s why he named him Sparrow.

Madden tells People magazine the name “Sparrow” reminds him of the Johnny Cash song, “A Boy Named Sue.”

He says he was worried that raising his son in Hollywood would mean he would have nothing to struggle for, so he wanted his son to have a name that he’s going to have to stand up for.

Sparrow’s mother, Nicole Richie, says she liked the way “Sparrow” sounded with “Harlow,” their daughter’s name, and they like Captain Jack Sparrow from “Pirates of the Caribbean.”

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Patrick Stump and Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy are featured in a new indie film called “Moustachette.”

Stump stars at Eugene Arlington, who is searching for truth, integrity and a blueberry milkshake, according to the plot synopsis.

The film debuts this weekend at the Illinois International Film Festival in Chicago and will play at other film festivals.

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Eric Clapton has cancelled his performance at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concert next Friday to undergo a minor medical procedure for gall stones. He will spend time recuperating at home in Britain. The Rock Hall is working on a replacement.

Clapton and his band were scheduled to do their own set, as well as backing Jeff Beck and Buddy Guy, both of whom are still on bill.

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As if the two Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concerts next Thursday and Friday in New York weren’t filled with enough stars, now comes word that a few more have been added. John Fogerty will sit in with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band on Thursday, and Kinks frontman Ray Davies [pr: Davis] will be backed by Metallica on Friday. Also new to Thursday’s bill is Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello, who will play with Springsteen as well. –Sal Cirrincione

Thursday’s line-up:

Crosby, Stills and Nash, who will also play with Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt and James Taylor
Paul Simon
Simon and Garfunkel, who will also play with Dion and Little Anthony and the Imperials
Stevie Wonder, who will play with John Legend, Sting, Smokey Robinson, Jeff Beck (on “Superstition”) and B-B King
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, who will also play with Darlene Love, Sam Moore, Tom Morello and John Fogerty
Jerry Lee Lewis
Friday’s line-up:

Aretha Franklin, who will sing with Annie Lennox and Lenny Kravitz
Metallica, who will back Lou Reed, Ozzy Osbourne and Ray Davies
Jeff Beck
Buddy Guy
U-2, whose special guests are yet to be announced
Jerry Lee Lewis

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The cameras will be rolling on Sunday night when U-2 performs at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, and you can see it live, right on your computer, as it will be streamed on YouTube. U-2’s manager, Paul McGuinness, says, “The band has wanted to do something like this for a long time. As we’re filming the L-A show, it’s the perfect opportunity to extend the party beyond the stadium. Fans often travel long distances to come to see U-2 — this time U-2 can go to them, globally.”

The show will be streamed across five continents and will be available for two full replays on U2.com and YouTube. Look for it at 11:30 p-m [ET].

U-2 are in Las Vegas tonight.

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Papa Roach and Jet kick off their co-headlining tour Sunday night in Amarillo, Texas. The two bands have never played together before, and Jet singer-guitarist Nic Cester [pr: sess-ter] admits it’s a risky pairing, but adds, “We wanted to give it a go because we’ve toured the States so many times and it can be quite soul-destroying, which it had been in the past.” The tour wraps up November 12th in New York.

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Neil Young will be joined by a bunch of newcomers at his annual Bridge School Benefit concerts this weekend in Mountain View, California. The line-up includes first-timers No Doubt, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, Jimmy Buffet (on Saturday), Adam Sandler (on Sunday), Wolfmother, Gavin Rossdale and Fleet Foxes. The only acts who’ve played previous Bridge School Benefits are Sheryl Crow and Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis, who’ll be performing as part of Monsters of Folk.

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Bon Jovi celebrated yesterday’s announcement of their Circle World Tour 2010-2011 with a noon performance in the parking lot of the new Giants-Jets Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. They did a six-song set for five-thousand fan club members, radio contest winners and construction workers working on the stadium, which Bon Jovi will open with performances on May 26th and 27th. As for the tour, it will start on February 19th in Seattle, and will play both arenas and stadiums. It’s in support of their new album, The Circle, in stores November 10th.

Bon Jovi’s six song setlist — “Who Says You Can’t Go Home,” “We Weren’t Born to Follow,” “You Give Love a Bad Name,” “Dead or Alive,” “It’s My Life” and “Living on a Prayer.”

But again…like Guns n Roses…no Vancouver date???

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Trent Reznor’s first project since ending his tour with Nine Inch Nails is a promo for the FOX show Fringe. The minute long ad — which debuted during last night’s Yankees - Angels playoff game — features Reznor re-working the song “Zero-Sum” and reciting dialogue that Fringe character “William Bell” (played by Leonard Nimoy) has uttered during a couple of episodes. Reznor agreed to do the promo after being asked by his friend, Fringe co-creator J-J Abrams.

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John Mellencamp will be in Indianapolis on Wednesday to take part in the memorial for former National Collegiate Athletic Association and IndianaUniversity president Myles Brand, who died from pancreatic cancer on September 16th. Brand was the first university president to lead the N-C-A-A, taking over the post in 2003. As the president of IndianaUniversity, he gave Mellencamp an honorary degree in 2000. Mellencamp will perform “Longest Days” and “Save Some Time to Dream” at the memorial at the Conseco Fieldhouse.

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Roger Daltrey took time off from his Use It or Lose It tour Wednesday to be the guest lecturer at the University of Central Oklahoma’s Academy of Contemporary Music. He took part in a 90-minute question-and-answer session, discussing his career, the history of The Who, the state of the music industry, being a student and how Elvis Presley saved his life. “There was this clip of this guy singing ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ and looking like something from outer space. It was just when my world changed. Something came out of the music, this drive and energy, and I thought, ‘That’s what I’m going to be.’” Daltrey will be back on stage, this time singing, in Biloxi, Mississippi tomorrow (Saturday) and Jacksonville, Florida on Sunday.

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Them Crooked Vultures — the supergroup of Dave Grohl, Josh Homme and John Paul Jones — will release their self-titled debut album on November 17th.

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Original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley has rescheduled his Australian tour — originally set for this month — for February. It’ll run from the 1st in Perth through the 8th in Brisbane.

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Jack’s Mannequin frontman Andrew McMahon, who battled leukemia, will be a Stand Up to Cancer celebrity ambassador in December.

Jet will start a tour with Papa Roach on Sunday and that’s an odd pairing, even from Jet’s perspective.

Singer Nic Cester (SES’-ter) says the band was not sure whether it was a good idea to tour with Papa Roach, since their audiences are not that similar.

He says they decided to do it because Jet has toured the U-S so many times, the band wants a new audience to win over.

Cester says they’ve never even met Papa Roach — but that’s not unusual.

He says most of the bands they tour with they don’t meet until the first day.

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Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead will talk about the sounds of space.

He will appear on “The Universe: Pulsars and Quasars” on the History Channel Tuesday.

Hart has been collaborating with astronomers and astrophysicists for compositions about space.

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Motley Crue are updating their “Greatest Hits” album.

The new version will include Saints of Los Angeles and a remix of The Animal In Me.

The new Greatest Hits comes out November 11th.

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Black Eyed Peas will be the only musical guest on “The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.”

It runs December 1st on C-B-S.

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Bruce Springsteen closed out the old Giants Stadium — and it appears Bon Jovi will open the new one.

An official familiar with the plans for the new stadium tells the Associated Press Bon Jovi will play the first concert there in the spring.

An official announcement is expected today.

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What’s the greatest concert to take place on American soil in the past 50 years?

According to Relix (REL’-iks) magazine, it’s the March on Washington in 1963.

That’s the same event where Martin Luther King Junior gave his “I Have A Dream” speech.

Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Peter, Paul and Mary and opera singer Marian Anderson performed that day.

It beats out The Beatles performing on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and the Newport Folk Festival in 1965, when Dylan first went electric.

Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock is number four, and James Brown performing in New York in 1962 for his “Live at the Apollo” album is fifth.

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Ronnie James Dio will be trying to get his wife out of a cage.

His website reports Dio’s wife, Wendy, will be locked in a cage on November 7th at the Brittany Foundation Animal Sanctuary in Agua Dulce, California.

Dio will raise money by selling handshakes, autographs or photos with him, with the money going to the Brittany Foundation to “free” his wife.

(Details can be found at www.RonnieJamesDio.com.)

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Puddle of Mudd will release their fourth album, Volume Four: Songs in the Key of Love and Hate, on December 8th. The first single, “Spaceship,” goes on sale through digital retailers Tuesday. The band starts a brief tour tonight in San Antonio and is expected to debut a couple of the new songs during the dates.

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Earlier this month former KISS drummer Peter Criss announced on his website that he successfully underwent surgery last year for breast cancer. He tells us he decided to go public during Breast Cancer Awareness Month for a number of reasons — the most important being that if men feel a lump in their breast it “may not be a cyst.” He also felt it was “better I say it than tabloids get it.” Criss says when he discovered the lump he knew something was wrong because he has a habit of checking out his body after playing half naked on stage for so many years.

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Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson, Randy Bachman and Leonard Cohen are among a number of Canadian celebrities who have donated paintings to an auction to help raise money for two-million Canadians who either have kidney disease or are at risk. Lifeson says, “It is through the support by all of us that the Kidney Foundation of Canada can continue to provide hope for those who are not so fortunate and must live with this debilitating condition. I urge you to take the time to help in any way you can, whether by donation or some other method to realize the dream of a cure. Even a little goes a long way.” Lifeson’s painting is of a plate of tomatoes, cucumbers and mozzarella salad. The bidding starts on November 5th. For more information, go to Kidney.ca.

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Joe Perry was psyched about Aerosmith playing Maui Tuesday night, writing on his Twitter page that it was his “lifelong dream” to do so. “Steven [Tyler] and I have always dreamed about playing on Maui and now here I am with my brother. We all are so happy his shoulder is feeling better.” Afterwards, Perry wrote, “[We were] able to give something back tonight. Hope the music Gods were smiling tonight. I know the fans were.” Perry’s wife Billie writes on her Twitter page, “No sling on Steven’s arm. He is singing and swinging the microphone stand like a pro. Nothing seems to stop Steven from doing what he wants.” Next up for Aerosmith is their final show of the year, November 1st in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

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Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band were the last act to play Giants Stadium earlier this month, and today Bon Jovi will be at the new stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey to announce that they’ll be the first act to play there next spring. In addition to the announcement, Bon Jovi will do a short set for five-thousand contest winners, fan club members and construction workers in front of the new stadium.

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Metallica are asking fans to help find a female fan missing since last Saturday. They write on Metallica.com, “We are deeply concerned about the disappearance of 20-year-old Virginia Tech student Morgan Dana Harrington, who was last seen while attending our concert at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville, Virginia on Saturday night… We encourage anyone who has any information regarding Morgan’s disappearance to please come forward.” Metallica.com also has more info on how to contact the proper authorities.

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Police drummer Stewart Copeland recently presented Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder with a middle-Eastern instrument called an oud [pronounce: ood]. Copeland tells us he became familiar with the instrument growing up in Beirut, Lebanon. He bought this one for Vedder when he was in Istanbul, Turkey recording the soundtrack to the theatrical extravaganza Ben-Hur — Copeland did both the music and English narration. He says Vedder had given him an eight-string ukulele from Hawaii and that he hoped to “one up him with this oud.”

Copeland sees a danger to his gift. When Sting’s guitarist Dominic Miller gave Sting a lute a few years back, it resulted in Sting doing an album of lute music. “I might have ruined Pearl Jam here. I hope not.”

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Creed singer Scott Stapp admits that writing again with guitarist Mark Tremonti was a very emotional experience for him. Stapp says that it only took working for a few hours for the pair to recapture their magic. Stapp laughs and says, “I don’t want to get all emotional or anything, but it just kind of brought a tear to my eye.” Full Circle is due out Tuesday.

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It looks like Faith No More fans in the U-S don’t have to worry about missing out on the band’s reunion tour. Bassist Billy Gould writes on his Twitter page, “In response to all of our concerned U-S brethren, yes, we are now actively planning U-S dates.”

Faith No More played Europe this summer, with South America coming up next month and Australia and New Zealand in February.

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A smaller three-disc edition of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Live D-V-D set will be released November 3rd. This lower-priced version will still be packed with classic moments — such as Paul McCartney leading a performance of “Let It Be,” Elton John’s speech inducting The Beach Boys, and Bruce Springsteen joining Mick Jagger onstage for “Satisfaction.”

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Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band did their final two shows at the Spectrum in Philadelphia Monday and Tuesday, and did tour premieres of “The Price You Pay” and “I Wanna Marry You” (both of which hadn’t been done since 1981), Jackie Wilson’s “Higher and Higher,” Jackie DeShannon’s “When You Walk in the Room,” “All Shook Up” and The Drifters’ “Save the Last Dance for Me.” Original E Street Band drummer Vini “Mad Dog” Lopez was behind the kit for “Spirit in the Night” at Tuesday’s show.

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Evanescence are playing a one-off show in New York November 4th to prep for a couple of overseas dates.

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The Allman Brothers Band wrapped up their 40th anniversary tour last night in Clearwater, Florida.

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The release of Rob Zombie’s Hellbilly Deluxe 2 has been pushed back to next year.

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Against Me have titled their new album White Crosses. It’s due out in the spring.

The concert recording that Nirvana fans have wanted to get their hands on for years is finally being released on C-D and D-V-D.

“Nirvana Live at Reading (RED’-ding)” will come out November 3rd.

It was recorded during their 1992 appearance at U-K’s Reading Festival.

It’s considered a pivotal concert for the band because it featured all of the “Nevermind” album and early performances of songs like “All Apologies” that had not yet been recorded.

Only two of the 25 songs on the D-V-D have been released before.

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Smashing Pumpkins are auctioning off some of their early instruments to help one of their early supporters.

Former drummer Jimmy Chamberlin is offering the drum kit he used on the album “Gish.”

He and Billy Corgan have autographed it.

Corgan is offering the bass he played at the first Smashing Pumpkins show, which he also used to record the first demos.

They are on sale now on e-Bay.

Proceeds will benefit Laura Masura, the former head of the Pumpkins fan club who was injured in a motorcycle crash last month.

Corgan will also play a show in Los Angeles on November 8th for Masura’s benefit.

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Bon Jovi drummer Tico Torres is showing off his art.

The Mac Art Group in Miami will host an exhibit of his paintings, called “Many Faces,” beginning December 5th.

Torres has been painting since he was five and he compares painting to jamming.

His first art show was in 1996, but he hasn’t had a show in 10 years.

Proceeds from the sales of his paintings will benefit his foundation to help children in need.

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The Beatles dominated the video game world last month.

“The Beatles: Rock Band” was the top-selling music video game for September and the second best-selling video game overall, behind “Halo 3: O-D-S-T.”

More than 100-thousand downloads of “All You Need Is Love” were sold in September.

The proceeds from that “Rock Band” download were donated to Doctors Without Borders.

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You generally would not put “Alice In Chains” and “Slipknot” in the same sentence as “Chicken Soup for the Soul,” but that’s how much the book series has changed.

“Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Story Behind the Song” explores songs of all genres and how they came to be.

That includes Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains talking about his father’s tour in Vietnam being the basis for “Rooster.”

Slipknot’s Corey Taylor discusses how “Duality” came to be.

Aaron Lewis of Staind, Joan Jett, Melissa Etheridge, Kanye West, Christina Aguilera, Richie Sambora, John Legend, Chicago’s Robert Lamm and Foreigner’s Mick Jones also tell stories about their songs.

“Chicken Soup For the Soul: The Story Behind the Song” comes out November 10th.

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Weezer have announced a few December shows in support of their new album, Raditude. The band are playing a MySpace Secret Show tonight in San Francisco, followed by a show in Los Angeles Saturday and in New York on Halloween. Before the Halloween gig, Weezer will perform on The Late Show With David Letterman October 29th and 30th. Raditude is due out November 3rd.

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Drowning Pool are working on their new album, but it took them a while to get in the proper frame of mind. Bassist Stevie Benton writes on DrowningPool.com that they had been booked to stay in a lousy hotel, but “we’ve moved out of the hourly crack-house of a hotel and settled into a place a little more quiet. In fact, I believe we may be the only tenants. So, we should be able to have an awesome wrap party!”

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Even though Kings of Leon had their big breakthrough in the U-S this year, the band has been a big deal in the U-K for a while. So it’s not surprising that the band’s first decade will be marked in a new photo exhibit called Kings of Leon: Ten Year Reign that opens at London’s Proud Galleries today. The exhibition was put together by the band’s friend and N-M-E photographer Jo McCaughey.

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The November issue of Relix magazine has compiled its list of the 50 Greatest Concerts. Put together by musicians, publicists, promoters, photographers, authors and radio personalities, the number-one choice was the civil rights gathering on the Washington Mall on August 28th, 1963. Among those performing that day were Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, Odetta and Peter, Paul and Mary. The Beatles were second with their February 9th, 1964 appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, followed by Bob Dylan going electric at the Newport Folk Festival on July 25th, 1965.

Rounding out the Top 10 are Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock; James Brown at New York’s Apollo Theater on October 24th, 1962; The Beatles at Shea Stadium on August 15th, 1965; The Band at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco for their Last Waltz concert on November 25th, 1976; The Sex Pistols at Winterland on January 14th, 1978; Elvis Presley at N-B-C Studios in Burbank, California on December 3rd, 1968; and Phish at the Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation in Florida on December 31st, 1999.

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M-G-M-T have picked Congratulations as the title of their next album. There’s no official release date yet, but it’s expected out next spring. The band is recording the disc in Malibu, California with Pete “Sonic Boom” Kember from Spacemen 3 as producer.

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Pearl Jam have launched an app for Verizon Blackberry Tour users that will allow them to download three live tracks from each of the remaining shows on the band’s current Backspacer tour. The app will also offer up Pearl Jam wallpaper and other tour-related items.

In other Pearl Jam news, the band is putting up a special guitar package for bids on CharityBuzz.com that includes a Gibson Flying V guitar and a guitar autographed by the entire band. Proceeds will go to Pearl Jam’s Wishlist Foundation.

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Keith Richards will be featured on Spike T-V’s Scream Awards Tuesday. He will be presented with the Immortal Rock Award by actor Johnny Depp, whose Pirates of the Caribbean character, “Captain Jack Sparrow,” is based on Richards’ voice and mannerisms. On winning the award, Richards says, “I liked the living legend, that was all right, but immortal is even better.”

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Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer set himself up in a tent next to the box office last night at their show in Maui, and gave the first eight people who showed up with a copy of his autobiography, Hit Hard, a pair of tickets and backstage passes to the show. He also signed the book. Aerosmith is now off until their final show of the year, November 1st in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

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Motley Crue are re-releasing their Greatest Hits album in time for Christmas. The 2009 version of the album — originally released in 1998 — will contain a new remix of “The Animal in Me” and “Saints of Los Angeles” in addition to their stable of hits, including “Dr. Feelgood,” “Smokin’ in the Boys’ Room,” “Home Sweet Home,” “Girls, Girls, Girls” and “Kickstart My Heart.” It will be out November 17th.

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The Scorpions are recording a new album. Guitarist Matthias Jabs says, “We are working on 12 songs at the moment. Great stuff. ‘Scorpionized’ in sound and attitude. More towards the early ’80s.” They plan to release it next March. The Scorpions’ last album was 2007’s Humanity Hour, Volume One.

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The Allman Brothers Band finish their 40th anniversary tour tonight in Clearwater, Florida. Gregg Allman will hit the road in November, December and January.

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On her Twitter page, Joe Perry’s wife Billie writes, “There was a shark attack at 6 a-m off of our beach on Maui. A surfer was attacked. It was a Tiger Shark. The shark bit the surfer twice.”

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Ozzy Osbourne tells Scotland on Sunday he can’t stand the term “heavy metal.” “If it was heavy rock, it’d be better.”

U-2, Elvis Costello, John Mellencamp, Lou Reed and Yusaf Islam (Cat Stevens) are among the 10 nominees in the Performer category for the class of 2010 for the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame. Voting members got the ballot in the mail over the weekend and will now select two nominees from the Performer category and three from the Non-Performer category. Ballots are due back by December 11th, with the new slate of inductees to be announced early next year.

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U-2’s show Sunday at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California will be broadcast live on You Tube. The band’s manager, Paul McGuinness, says, “The band has wanted to do something like this for a long time. As we’re filming the L-A show, it’s the perfect opportunity to extend the party beyond the stadium. Fans often travel long distances to come to see U-2 — this time U-2 can go to them, globally.” The show will be streamed across five continents and will be available for two full replays on U2.com and You Tube. U-2 is in Phoenix tonight.

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White Stripes and Raconteurs frontman Jack White gave a surprise lecture Sunday night at Dublin’s Trinity College. White spoke to the college’s Philosophical Society and told the students that on the concept of authenticity, “I don’t know if Bob Dylan and Tom Waits are as authentic as I think they are. Perhaps they’re not. Sometimes you start thinking that maybe Britney Spears, or someone like that who’s doing exactly what they want to do in the way that they best know how, is more authentic than any of those people you could mention.”

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What appears to be the ghost of Jim Morrison appears in the new book Ghosts Caught on Film Two: Photographs of the Unexplained. In 1997, American rock historian Brett Meisner had a friend take a picture of him in front of Morrison’s grave in Paris. In 2002, he noticed what seemed to be an image of Morrison with his arms outstretched behind him in the photo. According to the book, researchers can’t explain the picture — it’s not a trick of light and is unlikely to have been Photoshopped.

Morrison was found dead in 1971 in his bathtub in his Paris apartment.

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We’ve reported that Bob Seger has been in the studio with hopes of releasing something this year. Now comes word that he is re-recording two of his early albums — 1972’s Smokin’ O-P’s and 1974’s Seven. The news broke on the various social networking sites of Yessian Music, a studio where Seger is reportedly recording in Farmington Hills, Michigan. Seger’s office was unavailable for comment.

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Sammy Hagar and his Waboritas will be on hand for the December 4th grand opening of his newest Cabo Wabo Cantina, this one in Las Vegas. The next night, Hagar will perform with his other band, Chickenfoot, at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Vegas. The other Cabo Wabo Catinas are in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and Lake Tahoe, Nevada.

Hagar held his annual Birthday Bash last week at the Cantina in Cabo San Lucas. It was his 62nd birthday, and he writes on his website, RedRocker.com, “I am sitting on the beach trying to remember how all this happened in one week… Two awesome shows with the Wabos. I feel like we didn’t miss a beat, it was so fun playing with them again! Then Chad, Mike and Joe came in like a storm, or should I say with the storm. Chickenfoot at the Wabo, dream come true is about all I can say.” He also did a set with his former Van Halen bandmate Michael Anthony as The Other Half.

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Phil Collins says he’s working on an album of Motown covers. He tells a German newspaper, “I want the songs to sound exactly like the originals.” He plans to record 30 songs and release it next year. If it comes to fruition, Collins will follow in the footsteps of Michael McDonald, who has released two Motown albums.

As for playing the drums, Collins says he is still unable to do so following surgery last April to repair a dislocated vertebra in his neck. He tells the same German newspaper that the only way he can play is if you “glue drumsticks” to his hands.

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As expected, Guns n’ Roses announced a Canadian tour on Monday. Axl Rose and company will kick things off in Winnipeg, Manitoba on January 13th and wrap them up in Halifax, Nova Scotia on February 4th. These will be the first North American shows G-n-R have done since late 2006.   Oddly no Vancouver date.

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Eagles bassist Timothy B. Schmit releases his first album in eight years today. Written and produced by Schmit, the songs on Expando were recorded in between dates on the Eagles tour. Schmit says, “I was doing it really just for fun. I was just doing whatever I want… I thought if I continue in that vein that I might have something pretty cool.”

Joining Schmit on the album are Graham Nash, The Band’s Garth Hudson, Keb’ Mo’, Kid Rock, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Van Dyke Parks, Dwight Yoakam, The Heartbreakers’ Benmont Tench, and Schmit’s son Ben. Schmit plays the last of his four intimate dates across the country in support of the album tomorrow night in New York.

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Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor did the first thing on his to-do list after the band stopped touring — get married. Reznor and Mariqueen Maandig got hitched on Saturday and planned to keep it a secret. But Reznor’s bandmate Danny Lohner broke news of the wedding on his Twitter by writing, “Goths the world over will mourn this day — off to a wedding,” and posting a picture of the newlyweds dancing.

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Aerosmith play the second of two make-up dates in Hawaii tonight. Over the weekend, before Sunday’s show in Maui, guitarist Joe Perry took a swim to “listen to whales.” He writes on his Twitter page, “Dive boat happened to be close by with the divers looking at me as to say, ‘Where’s [your oxygen] tank?’” Though Perry says he “felt safe,” he admits that it was “not the safest thing to do, but I got carried away.”

Next up for Aerosmith is what could be their final show for quite some time, November 1st in the United Arab Emirates.

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The Beatles: Rock Band sold nearly 600-thousand copies its first month in stores, scoring the game two spots among the videogame Top 10 — solid but not stellar numbers for the game. The X-Box 360 version of the game was number-five, while the Wii version was number-10. The sales results come on the day when Abbey Road becomes available as a videogame download. At least one analyst expects Beatles: Rock Band sales to perk back up during the Christmas season

The game topped the Rock Band series top rival, Guitar Hero, but substantially trailed the month’s top game, Halo 3: O-D-S-T — which sold more than one-point-five-million copies for X-Box.

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Eric Clapton plays on the new album by comedian and actor Bill Cosby, State of Emergency, in stores November 24th.

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Poison’s Bret Michaels, Sharon Osbourne and Cyndi Lauper will be among the contestants on the upcoming season of Celebrity Apprentice.

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Dave Matthews will perform with Kenny Chesney on the C-M-A Awards November 11th on A-B-C.

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Nickelback put in an appearance on producer Timbaland’s upcoming Shock Value 2 album, in stores November 24th.

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A Los Angeles judge has ordered Courtney Love to pay more than three-thousand dollars to a maid service she stiffed last year. Love didn’t bother to show up for the hearing on Thursday, so the court ruled against her by default.

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Jon Bon Jovi was in Camden, New Jersey yesterday helping volunteers build a new playground at Rafael Cordero Molina Elementary School. The effort was part of his Soul Foundation, whose goal is to combat issues that force families and individuals into economic despair.

Def Leppard still aren’t giving details on what caused them to call off their tour, but it does not appear to involve guitarist Phil Collen.

He was a presenter at the Black Girls Rock! Awards in New York Saturday.

Def Leppard’s North American tour was supposed to begin Thursday in Reno, but they called it off because of — quote — “unforeseen personal matters.”

A statement at DefLeppard.com says, “We know how truly blessed we are to have such committed fans. That’s why we’ve agonized over this decision. Even if just a single concert, we don’t take cancelling shows lightly, but unfortunately life’s commitments need to be the priority.” Refunds are available at the point of purchase. The tour was scheduled to start on Thursday in Reno, Nevada.

This is the third time in the past few years that Cheap Trick has been on a tour where the headliner canceled the dates — it happened twice with Aerosmith. Cheap Trick will try to re-schedule some of the shows.

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The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 25th Anniversary Concerts at New York’s MadisonSquareGarden on October 29th and 30th continue to evolve. B-B King has been added to the bill on the 29th, performing with Stevie Wonder. On the 30th, Van Morrison is off the bill and Buddy Guy, Ozzy Osbourne, Lenny Kravitz and Annie Lennox are on. Guy will perform with Eric Clapton, while Ozzy joins Metallica, and Kravitz and Lennox sing with Aretha Franklin.

Also performing on the 29th are Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Sting, Simon and Garfunkel, Paul Simon, James Taylor, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Little Anthony and Imperials, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, Smokey Robinson and Little Richard.

The 30th features U-2, Eric Clapton, Metallica, Aretha Franklin, Jeff Beck and Jerry Lee Lewis.

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Albums from The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and Coldplay will get the royal treatment in England in January — the Royal Mail treatment, that is. The U-K’s postal service has picked 10 album covers from British acts to appear on stamps. The 10 are culled from a list of greatest album covers chosen by a list of U-K music editors and writers. The stamps depict the covers of the Stones Let It Bleed, Pink Floyd’s The Division Bell, Led Zeppelin Four, Coldplay’s A Rush of Blood to the Head and The Clash’s London Calling.

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The individual members of the Eagles are off on their own projects with bassist Timothy B. Schmit releasing his new album Expando tomorrow. But the band will be back. Schmit tells us, “Nobody said this is over, so I tend to think we’re gonna keep going.” There is talk of the Eagles announcing a West Coast leg of dates for next year.

Schmit plays the last of his four dates Wednesday night in New York. Don Henley has a tour scheduled for next month, and Joe Walsh is working on new material.

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Could Guns n’ Roses actually be playing North America soon? That’s what fans are buzzing about after Canadian concert promoter Gillett Entertainment Group launched a countdown on its website to a “major announcement” to be made today, alongside a close-up of Axl Rose’s mouth.

G-N-R do have some dates booked before the end of the year — they’ll be playing in Taiwan, South Korea and Japan from December 11th through the 19th.

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Bruce Springsteen was back at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey Saturday night for the annual benefit show for the exclusive Rumson Country Day School, which his son attends. Backed by Bobby Bandiera from The Jukes and his band, Springsteen delivered a three-hour, 28-song set that featured a combination of original and cover songs, including “Twist and Shout,” “Seven Nights to Rock” and the “Detroit Medley.” Among the originals were “Darlington County,” “Tenth Avenue Freeze-out,” “Two Hearts,” “Rendezvous” and “From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come).” Springsteen’s wife, Patti Scialfa, was also on the bill along with Southside Johnny, who did “The Fever” and “Talk to Me.”

Springsteen and the E Street Band do their final two shows at the Spectrum in Philadelphia tonight and tomorrow.

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Gregg Allman will follow up the Allman Brothers Band’s 40th anniversary tour with a fall and winter tour of his own. He starts November 11th in New YorkState and has dates scheduled through January, with more to be announced.

Gregg and the Brothers are down to their last two shows — tomorrow in Hollywood, Florida and Wednesday in Clearwater, Florida.

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Arctic Monkeys are coming back to North America for a brief pre-Christmas tour. It kicks off December 6th in Chicago and wraps up December 14th in Montreal. Their new single, “Cornerstone,” will be released digitally on November 17th with three previously unreleased B-sides.

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Limp Bizkit frontman Fred Durst filed for divorce last week from his wife Esther Nazarov. The filing cites those old “irreconcilable differences” and says they were together only from July 13th until August 25th before separating.

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Hawthorne Heights will release their next album, Skeletons, in February, and will give away download cards with the new song “Unforgivable” at shows on their upcoming tour. The trek kicks off November 2nd in Cleveland.

Lynyrd Skynyrd will perform on Fox & Friends this morning. Fox & Friends starts at 3:00 a-m [PT] on the FOX News Channel