Search Results for: the wonder years

It’s a long way from playing rock ‘n’ roll shows to hobnobbing in the rarefied world of international art auctions. But Mick Fleetwood, the lanky drummer of veteran rock band Fleetwood Mac, has made the transition in several quick strides, co-founding an auction house that specializes in the lucrative field of music and movie memorabilia. Prestigious sales of Picassos and Warhols now compete for investors’ dollars with rock paraphernalia like a John Lennon piano or a Jimi Hendrix guitar. Fleetwood Owen Ltd., which Fleetwood co-founded with veteran auction broker Ted Owen, aims to compete with giants like Sotheby’s Holdings Inc.… Read more »

“Shhhhh!” is printed across the front of one of the T-shirts Ryan Adams is hawking during his current tour in support of his fabulous second solo disc, “Gold” (Lost Highway). It suggests that fame is the intention of least value for this 27-year-old singer-guitarist, an artist who has managed to fly ever so slightly above the radar as a solo artist and, previously, as leader of Whiskeytown, making one impressive artistic statement after another. On a night when a Mick Jagger performance was the hottest celeb-filled event in town, Adams’ show was the hottest ticket – the House of Blues… Read more »

For his new album, Cocky, Kid Rock collaborated with Sheryl Crow on a tune called “I Put Your Picture Away.” The “devil without a cause” revealed, “That’s just a classic. I like to say it makes ‘Islands In The Stream’ look like ‘Happy Birthday.’ It’s a good ballad, great vocal performances.” “I was even shocked at my vocal performance,” Rock admitted. “How much better of a singer I’ve become throughout the years. The songwriting on that song, if you listen to it, the words, it’s just incredible. It’s a classic tale. It’s a good old-fashioned cheating tale, really told in… 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 »

No Doubt began as a good-time ska-party band, full of California sunshine. But in the last few years, that’s been obscured by smog: bruised egos within the band, gloomy lyrics and weak record sales for last year’s Return of Saturn. The bad times are all gone on their upcoming album, Rock Steady, reports singer Gwen Stefani. “We’re not taking ourselves so seriously,” she says. “It’s like, get over it. We’re a fucking band and we’re really lucky to be doing what we do.” Rock Steady, out December 18th, is a sweet pop confection, made with arrays of keyboards, a dance-floor… Read more »

No Doubt might as well change their name to No Rules for their upcoming album. Rock Steady, due December 18, is a scattered collection of pop, rock, rap and reggae songs produced by everyone from Prince to Dr. Dre. Singer Gwen Stefani, all smiles talking about her band’s fifth album during the video shoot for the all-star “What’s Going On” remake, explained how her band of brothers returned from Saturn with an urge to do something different. “After 14 years of being a band, you build all these rules up,” Stefani said, adjusting her shiny No Doubt belt buckle. “That’s… Read more »

When Chubby Checker was asked recently to guest on “Ally McBeal,” he thought he was being recognized for his contributions to popular music. His elation turned to frustration, however, when a character on the show read the line, “Gee, I thought Chubby Checker was dead.” “That was it for me,” Checker said Tuesday from Boston, where he was performing. “I wanted to make sure everyone knows I’m not dead.” Checker, who turned 60 on Wednesday, may have gone a little overboard. He certainly seems to have some, er, twisted ideas. He bought a full-page ad in Billboard magazine declaring himself… Read more »

Bust-ups, divorce and family feuds have kept British rock band Oasis and the battling Gallagher brothers in the news as much as their music. But as Oasis nears its 10th anniversary, guitarist Noel Gallagher told Thursday’s Evening Standard newspaper that despite their well-publicized rows, his relationship with Liam was one of the few constants in his life. “Slowly but surely, my personal life started falling apart and all I had left was my brother and my band,” Gallagher told the paper. “And I thought, ‘well I’m not giving that up because that’s Our Kid and that’s my band. Why should… Read more »

Columbia Recording artist Maxwell’s eagerly-awaited third full-length album, Now, is debuting at the #1 slot on the Billboard Top 200 Album Sales chart with first week’s sales of more than 296,000 units, according to SoundScan. It’s Maxwell’s first #1 debut (his last full-length studio album, 1998’s Embrya debuted at #3) and best single week’s sales figures to-date. In celebration of the release of Now, Maxwell is following up his recent SRO New York 7 concerts-a precedent-setting series of seven sold-out performances in seven different venues across Manhattan (for a total of 20,000 tickets sold)-with his first major national tour in… Read more »

Punk as an aid for getting in touch with one’s feelings has superseded the other modes evident at this year’s Warped Tour. As in their ordinary lives, these fans had too many options. Thirty bands played on eight stages, and the event also included professional skateboarding and mountain- biking displays, a wrestling ring, a Playstation tent, numerous ways to spend money or learn about political causes and of course the chance to peruse one another’s concertgoing finery. So most fans locked into a perambulatory pattern, meandering around the festival’s circular layout as the fairground grew dusty, then muddy, from the… Read more »