Search Results for: billy joel

Pop stars including Elton John, Billy Joel, Sheryl Crow and the Eagles will perform a series of concerts the night before the Grammys to raise money for a fledgling group of performers seeking better treatment by major record labels, organizers said Wednesday. At least five shows sponsored by the Recording Artists Coalition, a group spearheaded by Crow and Eagles singer Don Henley, are planned at various Los Angeles-area venues for Feb. 26, the eve of the glittering awards ceremony honoring the industry’s best music and biggest stars, spokesmen said. Among other artists committed to performing at the shows are country… Read more »

Columbia Records will release The Concert For New York City – a 2-CD collection documenting the historic all-star concert event held to benefit those in need affected by the World Trade Center tragedy. The Concert For New York City album will be released on Tuesday, November 27. DVD and VHS versions will be available thereafter. “The Concert For New York City” took place on October 20, 2001 at Madison Square Garden. Produced by VH1, Cablevision, Miramax and AOL, the concert was a celebration of the strength of New York and a thank you to the heroic firefighters, police officers and… Read more »

With a career spanning nearly 35 years, Elton John has a simple explanation for his longevity: “I tend not to look back. I look forward.” That said, John doesn’t disagree with the overwhelmingly favorable reviews that refer to his new album, “Songs From the West Coast,” as a vintage work hearkening back to the early 1970s hits that established him as a leading pop music figure. “I’m fine with that,” says John, 54, of comparisons to such early albums as “Tumbleweed Connection” and “Madman Across the Water.” “It’s the same kind of lineup as I had on the old albums,… Read more »

Less than 24 hours after a marathon gig in New York, music stars including Michael Jackson, the Backstreet Boys, and Mariah Carey kicked off a concert in Washington to help lift the spirits of a nation’s capital rattled by the Sept. 11 attacks and anthrax. The Backstreet Boys, the chart-topping boy band, opened the eight-hour fund-raiser before a 46,000 capacity crowd at RFK stadium with their rendition of the national anthem followed by a string of their hit songs. One of the numbers was dedicated to a member of their tour crew who was aboard one of the hijacked airplanes… Read more »

Paul McCartney, Billy Joel and Elton John led music stars honoring the victims and rescue workers of the World Trade Center attack in a concert that celebrated the energy and pride of New York. Joel tapped into the city’s emotion singing “New York State of Mind,” stirring a crowd at Madison Square Garden that included rows of uniformed police, firefighters and their families dancing, singing and screaming at the more than five-hour gala. Movie stars, including Harrison Ford, Jim Carrey and Meg Ryan, also joined politicians such as former President Clinton and New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani to launch what… Read more »

XM Satellite Radio will broadcast “The Concert for New York City,” featuring dozens of the biggest names in entertainment, live at 7 pm Saturday on both its VH1 and “Special X” channels. “XM is proud to carry VH1 among its 100 channels of amazing radio, and proud to broadcast Saturday’s benefit concert for New York City,” said XM President and CEO Hugh Panero. XM will broadcast the five-hour concert live from 7 pm Eastern to midnight on both its VH1 (# 26) and Special X (# 30) channels. XM’s VH1 channel is dedicated to VH1’s programming while Special X is… Read more »

U2’s Bono, who will perform at the Concert For New York City with U2 guitarist the Edge on Saturday (October 20), says the show comes at a poignant time in the Irish band’s career. The group’s latest album, the year-old All That You Can’t Leave Behind, returned U2 to political and social commentary after nearly a decade of “throwing rocks at our own demons,” according to Bono. The singer tells LAUNCH that a key idea for U2 now is the search for grace in a world that makes it very difficult to achieve. “It’s a powerful idea, grace. It really… Read more »

Out today (October 16) is Cuttin’ Heads, the latest album from John Mellencamp. The album is marked by several songs that deal with race relations, including the title track (which features a rap by Public Enemy’s Chuck D) and the first single, “Beautiful World,” which features newcomer India Arie. Mellencamp tells LAUNCH that he’s no newcomer to the topic. “I’ve always been interested in race: the white and black relationship. ‘Pink Houses’ starts out, ‘There’s a black man and black cat, livin’ in a black neighborhood.’ And in ‘Cherry Bomb,’ I had, you know, a black guy dancing with a… Read more »

A spirited performance and a clear delineation of material Monday helped Ben Folds re-establish himself – and prove the viability of a solo career – without the two musicians who constituted the “Five” in his old band. Songs from the new album “Rockin’ the Suburbs” dominated the first hour of music, save for the tragically comical “Karaoke Superstar,” and after a quick break, Folds took the stage solo for 25 minutes of earlier tunes until joined again by the band for “Song for the Dumped.” Folds, on record and in concert, has proven himself quite proficient with no numbers after… Read more »

Building on the success of last week’s all-star telethon for victims of the Sept. 11 air attacks, musical performances from the show will be packaged as a benefit album to raise additional relief dollars, organizers said Wednesday. Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, is overseeing efforts to obtain rights for the companion CD from the recording artists who appeared on the show, insiders told Reuters. Interscope is a unit of Vivendi Universal. Iovine played a key role in booking musical acts for the telethon, dubbed “America: A Tribute to Heroes,” which featured such stars as Bruce Springsteen, Mariah… Read more »