H! Society Magazine
Backstage Pass
Music notesGIGS, GROUPS, GOSSIP… MICKY REYNOLDS BRINGS US UP TO DATE WITH ROCK SNIPPETS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
The DEEP PURPLE concert which was due to take place on Thursday 11 September at the Plaza de Toros in Estepona has been put back 24 hours to Friday the 12th due to re-scheduling of the band’s tour. The concert in Almería that was supposed to take place on the 12th has now been cancelled. Tickets from the 11th are still valid. You can still buy tickets from El Corte Inglés (www.elcorteingles.net) and www.ticktackticket.com or by calling 902 150 025 and 902 400 222.Málaga’s Teatro de Cervantes opens its 2008/2009 programme with the distinctive sound of RUFUS WAINWRIGHT on 2 October. More info at www.teatrocervantes.com.Last month we told you about MADONNA’s only scheduled Spanish concert in Valencia. Well, a few days after the mag went to press another date was added to the tour which is a lot closer to home for Costa del Sol fans. The queen of pop will play in Sevilla on 16 September.Two legendary concerts from the 1980s will soon be available on DVD and CD respectively. On 29 September, U2 release Live At Red Rocks, a 1983 show that took place at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado as the band were just reaching superstar status. Then, on 6 October, Live at Shea Stadium, a 1982 gig by THE CLASH, “captures the band at the peak of its powers and on devastating form”. This acclaimed performance has been ranked as one of the greatest live recordings of all time, along with JAMES BROWN at the Apollo, THE WHO at Leeds and JOHNNY CASH at Folsom Prison. Over the years bootleg copies of this CLASH concert have not been cheap on the black market; the original master tapes were found by the late lead singer JOE STRUMMER while moving house.This month QUEEN will release their first studio album since 1995’s Made In Heaven, the last release to feature singer FREDDIE MERCURY, who had died four years earlier. The current line-up includes original members BRIAN MAY and ROGER TAYLOR plus PAUL RODGERS on vocals. This man’s impressive CV includes BAD COMPANY and FREE, with whom he sang the classic road anthem All Right Now. The Cosmos Rocks is released on the 15th and has sleeve dedication notes to former bassist JOHN DEACON and the late FREDDIE. On the 25th of next month they will be playing in Madrid – for ticket info go to www.ticktackticket.com.And it’s a sign there’s a new OASIS album on the horizon as the GALLAGHER brothers have engaged their mouths into top gear. Many have been on the receiving end, including AMY WINO who NOEL branded as a “destitute horse”, plus the KAISER CHIEFS, MARK RONSON and SCOUTING FOR GIRLS. The new album, Dig Out Your Own Soul, is out on the 6th of next month and is preceded by a single, The Shock of the Lighting, a week earlier – this will also include the CHEMICAL BROTHERS remix of the much talked about track Falling Down.MARK RONSON answered NOEL’s comment that he should “learn three chords on the guitar and go write a tune” by saying, “I’m actually taking guitar lessons from JAY-Z right now and he’s already taught me both chords to Wonderwall.” He finished his burn with, “I did write a song called Back To Black, which actually has seven chords in it.”FLEETWOOD MAC are reforming (probably a must-play-to-pay-the-taxman-what-we-owe-him tour) with only STEVIE NICKS on main vocals. SHERYL CROW, who backed her up on the 2003 reunion tour, has not been invited back as the two did not really see eye to eye.It seems all is not well in the BLACK EYED PEAS camp as main man WILL.I.AM is not very happy with singer FERGIE; he wants to go on the road to promote their forthcoming album while she is currently in Europe shooting the musical movie Nine and does not have time as the film is her “priority right now”.It was a shame to hear that ISAAC HAYES is no longer with us. The man, who was responsible for the Grammy Award winning song The Theme from Shaft in 1971, died last month from a stroke aged 65. In recent years he gained cult status supplying the voice of the South Park character CHEF and had a UK number one single in 1999 with the character’s song Chocolate Salty Balls. Did you know that he was a direct descendant of Ghana’s royal family?Picked up a UK tabloid to see that KELLY OSBORNE has an agony aunt page…. First of all, why is OZZY’s offspring advising young people about life; and secondly a ghost writer is surely employed. “The Teen Trouble Shooter” tells the youth of today not to worry if they failed their exams – this comes from someone who never even sat hers and only made her name through the family reality show which portrayed what a spoilt little brat she was, and who then tried her luck with a singing career and became a joke within the biz. Yeah, don’t worry kids, if things go wrong with your life daddy and his millions will always be there! Talking of agony aunts… AMY WINEBOTTLE – what’s that all about – can you imagine getting advice from her – what’s she gonna do – sit down and sort things out over a smoke?
So MICHAEL JACKSON has found a new way of reaching his fans – an online game which can be played on the social networking sites Facebook, MySpace and Bebo. Are you thinking what I think you are thinking? He has also just released yet another greatest hits compilation; the tracks on King Of Pop were voted for by his fans. AMY WINEHOUSE is considering releasing her rejected JAMES BOND number on the same day as the film’s official song. The JACK WHITE and ALICIA KEYS tune Another Way To Die was chosen after AMY and producer MARK RONSON failed to record a satisfactory final version of their own theme. VELVET REVOLVER have been looking for a new leading singer since SCOTT WEALAND left (did he walk or was he pushed?) in April. The latest name to be linked is LENNY KRAVITZ… me thinks no; the lifestyles of both parties aren’t exactly compatible – talk about mix n match. So JOHN LENNON’s killer is not happy that his parole has been turned down again. This man whose name is not even worth mentioning gunned down the former BEATLE outside his New York home in December 1980. In reality the authorities only have two choices – lock him up and throw away the key, or release him and see how long he lasts before he gets a taste of his own medicine.
