Sting‘s partnership with reggae star Shaggy is continuing with a very unexpected project.
The former Police frontman and the chart-topping “It Wasn’t Me” singer won the Best Reggae Album Grammy in 2019 for their joint album, 44/876. Now they’ve teamed up for a new album, due out May 25, called Com Fly Wid Me.
Conceived and produced by Sting, the album features Shaggy singing reggae versions of Frank Sinatra classics like “Fly Me to the Moon,” “Luck Be a Lady,” “Under My Skin” and more. Turns out Sting came up with this unconventional idea three years ago, when he and Shaggy were on a boat in Norway and Sting heard Shaggy singing along with a Sinatra tune that was playing on the boat’s sound system.
In a statement, Sting says, “This idea of getting my friend to sing ten iconic songs from the Frank Sinatra songbook in a reggae style had been brewing for a while…I know, it sounds crazy! But every time the idea crossed my mind, it made me smile. And what does the world need now, more than anything else…something to smile about!”
“He’s not trying to be Frank, he’s Shaggy,” Sting adds. “So, relax and let that smile soothe the cares of the world away,” Sting adds.
A one-night-only performance celebrating the album’s release will take place May 26 at New York City’s Blue Note Jazz Club. Details of the gig will be announced soon.
Friday, April 22 is Earth Day, so here’s a reminder that you can score some unique and rare tracks today — and fight the global climate crisis at the same time.
As previously reported, Michael Stipe has teamed with legendary producer Brian Eno for a new single called “Future if Future,” which is one of about 100 songs that are available today with sales benefiting groups focused on raising awareness and fighting climate change.
In addition to the Stipe track, you’ll also find a never-before-released version of Peter Gabriel‘s classic 1982 track “Shock the Monkey,” as well as a version of Coldplay’s “Humankind” recorded live in Mexico City. There are also songs by ex-Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, Nile Rodgers and Eno himself.
Sales of the tracks benefit an organization that Eno founded, EarthPercent. Proceeds will go to organizations developing promising solutions to the climate crisis. All of the songs are now available for streaming and download at Earthpercent/bandcamp.com.
Part of EarthPercent’s mission is dedicated to addressing the environmental impact of the music industry, such as lowering the carbon footprint of touring artists. EarthPercent is asking the music community and related businesses to pledge a small percentage of what they make to the cause, with a goal of raise about $100 million by 2030.
Cynthia Albritton, who as Cynthia Plaster Caster became famous for immortalizing the genitalia of male musicians in plaster, has died, Variety reports. She was 74.
Albritton started her career in Chicago in 1968, thanks to a plaster casting assignment from her college art teacher. She came up with the idea of casting the male member, and her first celebrity “subject” was Jimi Hendrix. After meeting Frank Zappa, he became her patron and moved her to LA, where she found plenty of other willing subjects.
Among her dozens of subjects: Jimi Hendrix Experience bass player Noel Redding, MC5 guitarist Wayne Kramer, The Rascals’ Eddie Brigati, The Lovin’ Spoonful‘s Zal Yanovsky, Beach Boys drummer and Rutles member Ricky Fataar, Foghat‘s Tony Stevens, Jello Biafra of The Dead Kennedys, Pete Shelley of The Buzzcocks, and Television guitarist Richard Lloyd.
In 2000, Albritton expanded her repertoire by casting the breasts of female musicians, including Suzi Gardner of L7 and Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
As Variety reports, Zappa and Albritton decided in 1971 that the casts should be kept somewhere safe for a future exhibition, and gave them to Zappa’s business partner, Herb Cohen. In 1993, Albritton had to initiate legal proceedings to get back the casts she’d given Cohen for safekeeping. All but three of the 25 were returned.
Albritton has either inspired or been mentioned in several songs, including KISS’ “Plaster Caster” and Jim Croce‘s “Five Short Minutes.” A recording of a telephone conversation between her and famed groupie Pamela Des Barres appears on Permanent Damage, the first and only album by the all-girl group The GTOs, which was produced by Zappa. She was also the subject of the documentary titled Plaster Caster.
The Who launches its The Who Hits Back! tour tonight in Hollywood, Florida, which sees the British rock legends returning to the road for the first time since wrapping up their Moving On! trek in October 2019.
As previously announced, the band’s 2022 North American tour features two legs, with the first wrapping up May 28 in Bethel, New York, and the second running from an October 2 concert in Toronto through a November 4-5 engagement in Las Vegas.
Notable stops on the outing’s first leg include an April 30 headlining performance at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and a May 15 show at Cincinnati’s TQL Stadium. The latter gig will mark the first time in 43 years that the band will play Cincinnati, the site of the tragic 1979 incident in which 11 people were killed at Riverfront Coliseum when fans rushed the doors of the venue ahead of a Who show there.
Meanwhile, just in time for the start of the tour, The Who have announced the lineup of artists that will be opening for them at most shows. The support acts for the first leg include singer/songwriter Leslie Mendelson, soul singer Amythyst Kiah, Texas roots rockers Los Lonely Boys, veteran singer/songwriter Willie Nile, and contemporary British rock band The Wild Things.
Opening for The Who during the second leg are ex-Barenaked Ladies frontman Steven Page, Tom Petty guitarist Mike Campbell and his current band The Dirty Knobs, and, again, The Wild Things, who will perform at the two-show finale in Las Vegas.
Like the Moving On! tour, the new trek will feature The Who accompanied by an orchestra at all shows.
Visit TheWho.com to check out the band’s full tour schedule and which support act will be performing at each concert.
A collection of rare recordings by 10cc co-founders Kevin Godley and Lol Creme from the late 1960s will be released on June 10.
Frabjous Days — The Secret World of Godley & Creme 1967-1969 includes tracks that the duo made under the name Frabjoy and Runcible Spoon for a planned 1969 album for British music impresario Georgio Gomelsky‘s Marmalade label that was never released.
The compilation also features a 1969 solo track that Godley and Creme’s future 10cc band mate Graham Gouldman recorded for Marmalade called “The Late Mr. Late,” and two unreleased songs written by Gouldman that the duo recorded in 1969 — “Hot Sun” and “Virgin Soldiers.”
Other tracks on the album include two songs from a January 1968 single that Godley and Crème released under the moniker The Yellow Bellow Room Boom, and two unreleased tracks from a June 1968 acetate recording.
Frabjous Days comes packaged with a 28-page booklet featuring a new essay, as well as rare photos and memorabilia.
“These songs sound like they were written and recorded before we were born…and in a sense they were,” Godley says. “It’s the sound of two young art students messing around at weekends, stringing chords and words together for the sheer, explosive buzz of hearing what happens. There’s a thrill in not knowing what you’re doing but aiming high anyway and that, I believe, is exactly what’s going on in these recordings.”
The Marmalade Sessions 1969
1. “I’m Beside Myself” (album version)*
2. “Chaplin House”*
3. “Cowboys and Indians”*
4. “It’s the Best Seaside in the World”*
5. “Fly Away” (Frabjoy and Runcible Spoon LP version)*
6. “Take Me Back”*
7. “Today”*
8. “Hot Sun”*
9. “Virgin Soldiers”*
10. “The Late Mr. Late” — Graham Gouldman
11. “To Fly Away” (Marmalade sampler LP version)
12. “I’m Beside Myself” (single version)
13. “Animal Song”
Bonus tracks (recorded 1967-1969)
14. “Seeing Things Green”
15. “Easy Life”
16. “One and One Make Love”*
17. “Over and Above My Head”*
18. “Hello Blinkers”
19. “Goodnight Blinkers”
1-7: Unreleased Frabjoy and Runcible Spoon album, recorded circa September 1969
8-9: Unreleased acetate of Graham Gouldman songs performed by Godley and Creme, recorded circa July 1969
10-11: From label sampler Marmalade – 100% Proof, released June 1969
12-13: Frabjoy and Runcible Spoon single, released September 1969
14-15: The Yellow Bellow Room Boom single, released January 1968
16-17: Unreleased acetate, recorded circa July 1968
18-19: Promo vinyl pressing for Blinkers nightclub, circa late 1969
The latest trend among country music superstars is opening their own bar, restaurant or music venue in downtown Nashville. Now it seems as though Jon Bon Jovi may want a piece of the action.
The Nashville Business Journalshared reports this week that Jon might be attaching his name to a new venue at the prime downtown location of 405 Broadway. That site is currently a vacant lot situated between a famous honky tonk and an upscale restaurant, on the same block as iconic Nashville locations like Tootsies Orchid Lounge.
The Business Journal cites multiple unnamed reports linking Jon to the new development. Though his involvement hasn’t been confirmed, the Nashville Postreports that work is underway at the site, with a “celebrity partner” in the mix.
Nashville-based investment group Big Plan Holdings owns the property, and founder and CEO Josh Joseph has hinted that he’ll soon reveal the star who’s partnered in the project.
Though Bon Jovi isn’t country, the band has had a country hit: In 2006, they put out a duet version of “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” with country star Jennifer Nettles, which hit number one on the country charts. It won Bon Jovi their only Grammy, for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals. Bon Jovi re-teamed with Jennifer in 2020 for a duet version of “Do What You Can.”
Bon Jovi also recorded songs with country acts Big & Rich and LeAnn Rimes on the band’s 2007 album Lost Highway.
George Harrison‘s widow, Olivia Harrison, will publish an illustrated book of poetry called Came the Lightening on June 21, in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the Beatles guitarist’s death.
The book features 20 poems written by Olivia and dedicated to her late husband. The collection finds Olivia musing on her life with George and the emotional bond they shared, as well as reflecting on the loss of her husband and on the passing years.
Came the Lightening features an introduction by legendary director Martin Scorsese, who describes the book as “a work of poetic autobiography.”
To accompany the poems, Olivia has chosen a selection of photos and mementos, including pics of her with George. Among the images are previously unseen photos taken photographers including Henry Grossman, Sue Flood, Marcus Tomlinson and Paul McCartney‘s daughter, Mary. The book also features a drawing by artist and musician Klaus Voormann, a longtime friend of and collaborator with the members of The Beatles.
“I hope you enjoy these personal stories, recollections and reflections,” Olivia says in a statement. You also can check out a short video trailer for the book on YouTube featuring a voiceover from Olivia, who comments about putting out a collection of 20 poems 20 years after George’s passing, “I didn’t plan it that way, it just sort of happened.”
Eddie Van Halen and Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation’s Felice Mancini in 2012; Frazer Harrison/Getty Imagesin 2015; Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Solters
The late Eddie Van Halen put aside a substantial amount of money that was recently donated to the youth music education organization Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation, the nonprofit has announced.
According to a statement, the rock guitar great, who died of cancer in October 2020 at age 65, left “a meaningful percentage of his estate to the organization in his will.” In the decade before his passing, Van Halen forged a close relationship with Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation and embraced the organization’s mission of helping students who attend at-risk public schools develop a passion for music.
The statement notes that Eddie’s donation will help the foundation to assist more schools, hire more employees, improve its technology and more.
“Eddie’s support and friendship over the years meant the world to us and to his fans. His passion for music and our work created a strong bond, which is evident in his extraordinary bequest,” says the foundation’s president and CEO, Felice Mancini. “To know how much our foundation meant to Eddie is intensely humbling and gratifying to all of us — and we know that Eddie’s family is confident that his powerful legacy and values live on through our efforts.”
Eddie’s son, Wolfgang Van Halen, also has become a major supporter of Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation, and has been carrying on the partnership his dad began with the charity. In tribute to his father, he donated the proceeds from his group Mammoth WVH‘s solo single, “Distance,” to the foundation.
“Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation and the work they do for music education was always something that was important to my father,” says Wolfgang. “I am incredibly proud to help facilitate this donation as he wished.”
Elton John‘s fourth studio album, Madman Across the Water, released in late 1971, is getting the 50th anniversary reissue treatment.
You can choose from a three CD/1 Blue-ray Super Deluxe Box Set, a four-LP, colored vinyl package, or a two-CD package, which are now available for pre-order. The release date is June 10.
Madman Across the Water features the classics “Tiny Dancer” and “Levon,” as well as the fan-favorite title track and “Indian Sunset,” which was later sampled on the Eminem-produced Tupac Shakur track “Ghetto Gospel.” That song topped the British charts for three weeks in 2005.
Madman Across the Water also was Elton’s first album to feature the full lineup of his Elton John Band, and features Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman playing organ on three songs.
The package includes a previously unheard piano demo of “Tiny Dancer,” which will be available to stream later Thursday, though a teaser is out now.
Among the goodies on the Super Deluxe version are demos, rarities, single edits, a live radio recording, two British TV performances, a 104-page book, photos, artwork, interviews and memorabilia.
Here’s the track listing for the Madman Across the Water Super Deluxe version:
CD 1
“Tiny Dancer” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“Levon” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“Razor Face” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“Madman Across the Water” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“Indian Sunset” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“Holiday Inn” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“Rotten Peaches” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“All the Nasties” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“Goodbye” (2016 Bob Ludwig Remaster)
“Indian Sunset” (Live Radio Broadcast)
“Madman Across the Water” (Original Version, featuring Mick Ronson)
“Rock Me When He’s Gone”
“Levon” (Mono Single Version)
“Razor Face” (Extended Version)
CD 2
“Madman Across the Water” (1970 Piano Demo)
“Tiny Dancer” (Piano Demo)
“Levon” (Piano Demo)
“Razor Face” (Piano Demo)
“Madman Across the Water” (1971 Piano Demo)
“Indian Sunset” (Piano Demo)
“Holiday Inn” (Piano Demo)
“Rotten Peaches” (Piano Demo)
“All the Nasties” (Piano Demo)
“Goodbye” (Piano Demo)
“Rock Me When He’s Gone” (Piano Demo)
“Rock Me When He’s Gone” (Full Version)
CD 3
“Tiny Dancer” (BBC Sounds for Saturday)
“Rotten Peaches” (BBC Sounds for Saturday)
“Razor Face” (BBC Sounds for Saturday)
“Holiday Inn” (BBC Sounds for Saturday)
“Indian Sunset” (BBC Sounds for Saturday)
“Levon” (BBC Sounds for Saturday)
“Madman Across the Water” (BBC Sounds for Saturday)
“Goodbye” (BBC Sounds for Saturday)
Taped November 11, 1971 / transmitted April 29, 1972
Blu-ray Audio
Greg Penny 5.1 mix of Madman Across the Water (Original Version, featuring Mick Ronson)
Greg Penny 5.1 mix of Madman Across the Water
Audio-Visual Sounds for Saturday (Taped November 11, 1971 / transmitted April 29, 1972) Old Grey Whistle Test (Transmitted on December 7, 1971)
Earlier this month, Police drummer Stewart Copeland was honored with a Grammy for Best New Age Album for Divine Tides, a 2021 collaborative project he recorded with Indian-music composer Ricky Kej.
It was Copeland’s sixth career Grammy, but his first for a recording project not involving his famous band.
“I am the boss of New Age!” the 69-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Famer jokingly boasts to ABC Audio.
“I can finally tick that box,” he declares. “I mean, how many rock drummers…in fact, technically, it could be argued that I am a punk rock drummer, since that story started out in ’77…[So,] punk rock drummer wins New Age Grammy…That’s cool.”
Copeland notes that he’d first worked with Kej a few years ago on another project, and Ricky then reached out and asked if he’d like to play percussion on his new album.
“[H]e started sending me these…tracks that he was…assembling,” Stewart recalls. “And I just was immediately inflamed by the beauty of his melodies and the mix that he was creating, so I started miking up all my crotales, timbales, whatchamacallits and thingamajigs, and started aggressing upon inanimate objects here [in my studio]…and kind of created a rhythmic envelope for all of the beautiful melodies that he was assembling.”
Divine Tides is just one of Copeland’s many recent non-rock projects. This Saturday, Satan’s Fall, an oratorio Stewart composed based on John Milton‘s Paradise Lost that first debuted in 2020, will get its West Coast premiere at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California.
A Satan’s Fall also is scheduled for May 8 in Minneapolis with VocalEssence, which, Copeland notes, are “one of the premier choirs in the nation.”
Visit StewartCopeland.net to check out what else is on Copeland’s upcoming schedule.
![The Police’s Stewart Copeland says he thinks it’s cool that a “punk rock drummer [won a] New Age Grammy”](https://s3.amazonaws.com/syndication.abcaudio.com/files/2022-04-20/Getty_StewartCopeland630_atGrammy_042022.jpg "The Police’s Stewart Copeland says he thinks it’s cool that a “punk rock drummer [won a] New Age Grammy”")