We Will Rock You

FROM WWW.BILLBOARD.COM:

Police drummer Stewart Copeland doesn’t want to make his new book, “Strange Things Happen: A Life With the Police, Polo, and Pygmies” (HarperStudio) a conventional autobiography. “It really isn’t because of all the stuff I left out, the boring stuff — I was born here, then I moved there, then I went to this school, then that school…Who cares?” Copeland tells Billboard.com. “These are war stories.”

Many of those, not surprisingly, come from his days with the Police, though Copeland acknowledges that “the eight years of Police supremacy back in the day (i.e., the 80s) get a little bit of short shrift.” But that, he adds, was by design. “The first part (of the Police), I told that story with my movie (”Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out”). Sting and Andy (Summers) both wrote books about it and covered it very well, I thought,” he explains. “But the last third of my book is all about the reunion tour, which, unlike the first eight years, is untold.”
 
Copeland adds that he hopes “Strange Things Happen” also portrays what he feels is a more insightful and accurate view of the famous volatility that is part of the Police’s legend.

“I think I did succeed in clarifying the conflict in the band,” he explains. “It has always been too easy to assume it was just a clash of egos, and that was always very frustrating for me because it’s so far from the truth. In fact, we are very selfless in the Police, all three of us; we really leave our egos at the door and go in there and take a pasting from each other — and we take it. That’s what life in the Police was all about. It was always a clash of musical ideals…We were fighting over the right things.”

“Strange Things Happen” isn’t solely about the Police, of course. Copeland writes about his CIA agent father, his youth in the Middle East and England, and his other musical experiences, including the all-star Oysterhead with Primus’ Les Claypool and Phish’s Trey Anastasio, jamming with Rage Against the Machine and Foo Fighters and the time he nearly went on tour conducting an orchestra for the Moody Blues. Copeland also chronicles his transition into film scoring and writing classical and operatic music.

He notes that a large number of his “war stories” didn’t make the cut, but rather than a second book Copeland envisions publishing them episodically in magazines — which, he says, was his original intention for all the tales before he was “persuaded to save them and put them all in a book.”

Copeland, whose score for the theatrical production “Ben Hur Live” that’s now touring Europe, is currently finishing a concerto for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra that will premiere in 2010. He’s also finalizing a commission from a British opera company. As for another Police reunion…
“Who knows,” Copeland says. “I mean, I intend to be on the planet here for another 50 years; who knows what’ll happen. To escape from the Police we had to melt down the cage and…dismantle the huge behemoth that grew up around the band. The three of us had to get away from it. As to whether or not we do it again, who knows.”

FROM WWW.SPINNER.COM:

Greg Ladanyi, a Grammy-winning producer who worked with Jackson Browne, Don Henley, Fleetwood Mac, Warren Zevon and Toto, died Tuesday after sustaining severe head trauma in an onstage accident last week in Cyprus. Ladanyi, 57, was on tour in with Anna Vissi, an artist signed to his label, Maple Jam Music Group.

Officials said Ladanyi fractured his skull after falling 13 feet during Vissi’s performance at Nicosia’s GSP stadium. He also suffered multiple fractures to the ribs and chest when he slipped down a gap between the stands and the ground level at the venue, just before the start of Vissi’s concert.

According to reports, Ladanyi’s family is honoring his wish to donate his organs. “It was Greg’s wish to donate his organs to help other people,” a family representative announced. His lungs and his liver will reportedly go to transplant patients in the UK and Israel.

Friday’s concert went ahead after Vissi visited the producer at Nicosia hospital. Vissi, who was extremely close to Ladanyi and was working with him on her second English-language album, said, “On Friday night, I lived through one of the strangest nights of my life — the worst and most tragic of nights. Within a few seconds, my great joy and excitement at the prospect of performing for the first time in around four years in front of my compatriots was transformed into an unbearable drama.”

Ladanyi worked on six albums with Jackson Browne, including his landmark 1977 disc ‘Running on Empty,’ four albums with Toto, three albums with Don Henley, including his 1984 bestseller ‘Building the Perfect Beast,’ and the Church’s 1988 watermark ‘Starfish’. He also helped produce Fleetwood Mac’s 1990 record ‘Behind The Mask’ and had worked with Jeff Healey (’See the Light’), Jaguares (’Bajo el Azul de Tu Misterio’) and most recently on Vissi’s Greek album ‘Apagorevmeno.’

During his career, Ladanyi earned 16 Grammy nominations, including being nominated for Producer of The Year for Henley smash ‘The Boys of Summer.’ He won the Best Engineered Recording — Non-Classical Grammy in 1982 for Toto’s ‘Toto IV’ album.

A memorial service in the US is being planned.

FROM WWW.CLASSICROCKMAGAZINE.COM:

AC/DC singer Brian Johnson has issued a statement about his current state of health.

As Classic Rock recently reported, the band have had to postpone the first six shows on the next leg of their North American tour, because Johnson has undergone what has been described as a ‘medical procedure’.  This as led to wild rumours about what might be wrong with him. Now the frontman says:

“It’s an inside job that forced me to reschedule those upcoming six shows! Inside being the operative word here. My insides were giving me lots of trouble, ulcers and such. They were really uncomfortable and painful, which required me to seek immediate medical attention.

“The doctors looked me over, poked, scanned and prodded all possible areas. In the end, they gave me a clean bill of health, but insisted that I take a bit of time to recuperate and rest up.

“We’ve been touring non-stop since this time last year and have a lot more touring to do.

“Thanks for all of the get-well wishes and I hope to see you all again very soon.”

For further info, go to www.acdc.com

FROM WWW.CLASSICROCKREVISITED.COM:

This news is brought to you by VH1 Radio’s Dave Basner

Some of R.E.M.’s original members got back together on Monday night onstage in their hometown of Athens, Georgia. Former drummer Bill Berry was reunited with Peter Buck and Mike Mills and they played a cover of The Beatles’ track “The Ballad of John and Yoko” and The McCoys’ “Hang on Sloopy” at the 40 Watt Club. 

FROM WWW.CLASSICROCKREVISITED.COM:

This news is brought to you by VH1 Radio’s Dave Basner

Journey recently performed for nearly 30-thousand fans in Manila and the concert will soon be coming to DVD.  The show features classics as well as newer material from the group’s 2008 album Revelation.  The gig was a big deal since it marked new singer Arnel Pineda’s return to his home country of the Phililppines.  Pick up the two-disc DVD when Live in Manila hits shelves on tomorrow. 

FROM WWW.CLASSICROCKREVISITED.COM:

This news is brought to you by VH1 Radio’s Dave Basner

Creedence Clearwater Revival are set to release a new album filled with their classic tunes.  The two-disc, one-DVD package is called The Singles Collection and boasts 30 of the band’s hit singles like “Bad Moon Rising” and “Green River” as well as some lesser-known tunes like “Porterville.”  The DVD features four previously unavailable music videos.  The set also includes a poster of artwork from the group’s international single sleeves, plus a 16 page booklet.  Get it all on November 3^rd. 

FROM WWW.CLASSICROCKREVISITED.COM:

This news is brought to you by VH1 Radio’s Dave Basner
 

The next session of Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp was already brimming with famous musicians who’ll be teaching the campers, but it just got bigger.  Doors guitarist Robby Krieger will be joining a line-up of rockers like Meat Loaf, Jon Anderson and Ace Frehley.  The masters will all impart their wisdom on those attending the camp next month.  To sign up or for more info, head to RockCamp.com. 

FROM WWW.CLASSICROCKREVISITED.COM:

This news is brought to you by VH1 Radio’s Dave Basner

Judas Priest singer Rob Halford’s other band, Halford, will be releasing their first CD of holiday tunes later this month.  It’s called Halford III – Winter Songs, but you don’t have to wait until the album comes out on October 26^th to hear what’s on it.  Rob is offering two songs for purchase now.  You can now buy “Get Into the Spirit” and “We Three Kings” for a buck 29 each at HalfordMusic.com. 

FROM WWW.CLASSIROCKREVISITED.COM:

This news is brought to you by VH1 Radio’s Dave Basner

Alice Cooper is promising to make Halloween rock this year with a new single.  It’s called “Keepin’ Halloween Alive” and will be released digitally through Shout! Factory.  Of the tune, Alice said in a statement, “I wanted a theme for people like me, and for us Halloween never ends.  In the chorus I say, ‘I’m keepin’ Halloween alive, baby, 3-6-5,’ and I mean it!” 

FROM WWW.CLASSICROCKREVISITED.COM:

This news is brought to you by VH1 Radio’s Dave Basner

Lita Ford’s latest album, Wicked Wonderland, has some naughty themes to it, so it makes sense that the rocker has teamed up with Stockroom.com, the world’s leading fetish site.  The Web page is now offering Lita’s single, “Bed.”  It marks the first time a high-profile music release has been launched through an alternative fetish lifestyle site.  Wicked Wonderland comes out on Tuesday but if you act quickly, you can get it for free at Stockroom.com by punching in the code “LITA” upon checkout.