What Else? Led Zeppelin, Santana, ReverbNation, Muse, Duckworth, Album Sales, Aspen Songwriters Festival, Insomniac, More Virgin...

Thursday, September 13, 2012
by  niko

Led Zeppelin has now revealed the reason behind their mysterious countdown on their Facebook page that had millions of fans guessing.  The band will be releasing a documentary on their 2007 reunion concert, Celebration Day, which marked the band's first show together in 27 years.  This will be the first footage released of the concert, and the film will be in theatres worldwide on October 17th.     

In other artist/documentary related news, Carlos Santana is working on his memoir, as yet untitled, which will be published in English and Spanish in 2014, reports Rolling Stone.  The memoir will detail stories about Santana's own career, as well as his work with artists such as Miles Davis, B.B. King, Herbie Hancock, and many others.

ReverbNation has just released a major, potentially game-changing update to its Promote It platform.  The promotional tool has now broadened beyond Facebook into a raft of music-related sites, with slots for any artist that wants to participate.  Target sites includes MTV, Pitchfork, YouTube, Pandora, and Spinner, along with a collection of genre-targeted channels.  More details here.

Also, English rock band Muse has rejected claims of plagiarism for the song, 'Exogenesis: Symphony Part 1,' from their 2009 album The Resistance.  Charles Bolfrass alleged that he approached Muse seven years ago with the idea to write an opera, but that the band rejected the offer, reports Metro.  He is suing for $3.5 million.  "The claim is complete nonsense and is categorically denied," a Muse spokesperson relayed.  "It appears to be based on a screenplay the band never received or saw."

Separately, Muse is set to release a new album, titled The 2nd Law, on October 1st in the UK and a day later in the US.

Composer, author, and professor William Duckworth has passed away at age 69, according to his friend Kyle Gann, NPR reports.  Duckworth composed over 200 pieces, his best known being the Time Curve Preludes for piano.  Duckworth had also taught at Bucknell University since 1973. 

And here are the latest chart toppers according to Nielsen Soundscan.  This week's best selling album was Matchbox Twenty's North, which sold 95,002 units.  Second was Imagine Dragons' Night Visions (83,213), followed by Lecrae's Gravity (72,473) and finally, Now 43 – yes, 43 – with 35,189 units sold.

John Oates will be leading a celebrity panel of judges for the upcoming Aspen Songwriters Festival 2013 Songwriting Competition, which involves songwriters from all genres.  The action happens March 20-24th, and the top winner will perform a VIP festival experience with all-access backstage passes and afterparties.  The winner will also get a mentoring session with Songwriters Hall of Fame member Oates, a Martin Guitar, and a Fishman Loudbox Artist Amplifier.  Applications are being accepted through Sonicbids, with an early bird deadline of September 20th.  More details at AspenSongwritersFestival.com.

In other news, John Boyle has been named the Chief Growth Officer & Interim Chief Financial Officer of Insomniac, a production company which focuses on electronic music events.  That includes Electric Daisy Carnival, arguably the hottest EDM party.  Boyle's resume includes managing artists such as Alien Ant Farm and Xzibit and cofounding the Berkeley-Stanford Cleantech Conference.  He had been working with Insomniac for a number of years.

There's more on the just-inked deal between VEVO and Virgin America.  The plug-in for the deal is Virgin Produced, which handles onboard content for Virgin America flights.  The deal will feature 30-minute blocks of VEVO videos and related content on Red, Virgin's in-flight entertainment system.  The two companies will also collaborate to produce "Vevo Sound + City," which will take viewers on a musical tour of various Virgin America destinations.  Virgin's home base of San Francisco is the first city to be featured.

View the original article here

Santana, McLaughlin open Montreux jazz on high note (Reuters)

MONTREUX, Switzerland (Reuters) – Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin performed tunes by John Coltrane, Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin, ushering in the 45th edition of the Montreux jazz festival with a spiritual note from the 1960s and 70s.

The two legendary guitarists kicked off Friday night's concert with "The Life Divine" and closed with "A Love Supreme," both tracks from their 1973 gold album "Love, Devotion and Surrender."

Their acoustic version of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" was a highlight of a nostalgic concert at Montreux, one of Europe's most prestigious summer jazz festivals, which runs until July 16.

"Coltrane, Dylan, Zeppelin -- we grew up with all of them. The next one is a real favorite of mine from the Mahavishnu Orchestra," said McLaughlin, introducing "The Creator has a Master Plan" from his pioneering fusion band.

Santana, dressed head to toe in white, his black curls touching his shoulders, also struck a meditative chord during the gig, which featured mariachis and Latin-influenced percussion.

"John and I have a lot in common, we resonate spiritual feelings and resonate with having fun. It is not just Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu who get to have fun.

"Our highest purpose is to touch your heart. Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, Marvin Gaye, and Dylan, we love all them all and pay tribute and celebrate the supreme spirit of a great drummer, if not the greatest drummer ever, Tony Williams," Santana, 64, told the crowd.

Cindy Blackman, Santana's second wife, joined on drums in a powerful rendition of "Vuelta Abajo," a tribute to the late American jazz drummer Williams who played with Miles Davis and McLaughlin.

"These tunes go back 150 years. Any more old hippies out there?" quipped the silver-haired McLaughlin, now 69. "It was a very special music that we played at that time. Cindy has taken the tradition of Tony Williams and pushed it further."

Santana and McLaughlin sat together front stage without the other nine musicians for two moving duets on acoustic guitars, "Naima," a Coltrane composition also from their "Love, Devotion and Surreder" album, and "Lotus Land."

"At this point in our lives, it is all about perception...So make a conscious choice to make every day the best day of your life," the Mexican-born American Santana said to cheers.

"Downstairs Blues," by Elvin Jones, got the crowd rocking, with Blackman on drums.

For an encore they played "Miles Davis (Black Satin)" and a "Love Supreme," the crowd chanting the lyrics, while Montreux festival founder Claude Nobs jumped in on harmonica.

B.B. King will join the pair on the famed Montreux stage on Sunday night.

"Montreux is known for special meetings of stars," Swiss fan David Pittet said as the lights went on.

(Editing by Michael Roddy)

View the original article here

Santana, McLaughlin open Montreux jazz on high note

Mexican guitarist Carlos Santana performs onstage during the 45th Montreux Jazz Festival in Montreux July 1, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Valentin Flauraud

By Stephanie Nebehay

MONTREUX, Switzerland | Sat Jul 2, 2011 4:26am EDT

MONTREUX, Switzerland (Reuters) - Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin performed tunes by John Coltrane, Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin, ushering in the 45th edition of the Montreux jazz festival with a spiritual note from the 1960s and 70s.

The two legendary guitarists kicked off Friday night's concert with "The Life Divine" and closed with "A Love Supreme," both tracks from their 1973 gold album "Love, Devotion and Surrender."

Their acoustic version of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" was a highlight of a nostalgic concert at Montreux, one of Europe's most prestigious summer jazz festivals, which runs until July 16.

"Coltrane, Dylan, Zeppelin -- we grew up with all of them. The next one is a real favorite of mine from the Mahavishnu Orchestra," said McLaughlin, introducing "The Creator has a Master Plan" from his pioneering fusion band.

Santana, dressed head to toe in white, his black curls touching his shoulders, also struck a meditative chord during the gig, which featured mariachis and Latin-influenced percussion.

"John and I have a lot in common, we resonate spiritual feelings and resonate with having fun. It is not just Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu who get to have fun.

"Our highest purpose is to touch your heart. Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, Marvin Gaye, and Dylan, we love all them all and pay tribute and celebrate the supreme spirit of a great drummer, if not the greatest drummer ever, Tony Williams," Santana, 64, told the crowd.

Cindy Blackman, Santana's second wife, joined on drums in a powerful rendition of "Vuelta Abajo," a tribute to the late American jazz drummer Williams who played with Miles Davis and McLaughlin.

"These tunes go back 150 years. Any more old hippies out there?" quipped the silver-haired McLaughlin, now 69. "It was a very special music that we played at that time. Cindy has taken the tradition of Tony Williams and pushed it further."

Santana and McLaughlin sat together front stage without the other nine musicians for two moving duets on acoustic guitars, "Naima," a Coltrane composition also from their "Love, Devotion and Surreder" album, and "Lotus Land."

"At this point in our lives, it is all about perception...So make a conscious choice to make every day the best day of your life," the Mexican-born American Santana said to cheers.

"Downstairs Blues," by Elvin Jones, got the crowd rocking, with Blackman on drums.

For an encore they played "Miles Davis (Black Satin)" and a "Love Supreme," the crowd chanting the lyrics, while Montreux festival founder Claude Nobs jumped in on harmonica.

B.B. King will join the pair on the famed Montreux stage on Sunday night.

"Montreux is known for special meetings of stars," Swiss fan David Pittet said as the lights went on.

(Editing by Michael Roddy)

View the original article here