AFGM: Music Headlines of October 25, 2011

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Music Headlines of October 25, 2011

Aretha Franklin was in New York on Sunday for a special performance for the nuptials of Bill White and Bryan Eure (Bill was formerly the president of New York's Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum). The kicker about the show was that in order for Franklin to deliver 100% performance for the 69 year old voice, she asked that the organizer have the room at a well heated 86 degrees Fahrenheit.

There are also claims that Franklin charged a whopping $250,000 for the 20 minute performance. The organizers of the event have argued this comment, "This was not the fee, which we agreed with Ms. Franklin not to discuss. Whatever her fee was, the Queen of Soul was worth every penny." - Bill White

Aretha was only scheduled to sing for 15-20 minutes, but surprised the crowd with a performance of almost 60 minutes, with all the hits in the set list!

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Two articles have been making headlines today for Poison, one is the kind-hearted move by lead vocalist Brett Michaels. Michaels has announced he will be donating media equipment for a waiting room. St. Joseph's Barrow Neurological Institute, where he was treated in April 2010 for a brain hemorrhage, is the welcome recipient of this gesture.

The other article involves a much different view of Poison. Members of a former Chicago rock group known as Kid Rocker, have filed lawsuits against the members of Poison for apparently stealing four songs from Kid Rocker. Billy McCarthy and James Stonich are the former band members filing the lawsuit against all members of Poison.

According to Kid Rocker members, here is how the controversy began:

"According to the plaintiffs, in 1984, before guitarist C.C. DeVille joined Poison, he auditioned for Kid Rocker. During this time, he allegedly was shown completed and formatted songs and was lent master-recorded studio tapes.

Kid Rocker disbanded that year, but McCarthy purportedly presented songs for DeVille's use as a member of another band, Screamin' Mimis. Then DeVille joined Poison, and the rest is history. Poison became one of the stars of the glam era as their debut album, Look What the Cat Dragged In, sold approximately 4 million copies." -Hollywood Reporter

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Former vocalist of the trio project "Divine Heresy", Tommy Vext, has been making some rumbles in the headlines with his apparent collaboration with members of Mutiny Within.

Jersey based Mutiny Within announced their indefinite hiatus last month, but advised fans that they will continue to keep the Facebook page running for update on the band member's side projects and collaborations.

Not much light has been shed on this project. More details to arrive as they are announced!

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Funeral For A Friend dropped a new music video today for the song "Spinning Over The Island":

The song is taken from the album "Welcome Home Armageddon", which was released on March 15, 2011 via Good Fight Music.

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Guns N Roses decided to stop playing through their opening song "Chinese Democracy" on Sunday night when members of the audience (Arena Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico) started to throw random objects onto the stage:

Axl decides to stop during the song and speak to the crowd:

"Is that what you wanna do? Cause we will go home. Is that what you wanna do — throw shit? We would like to have fun. You wanna have a good time?"

He then told his bandmates, "Alright, let's just skip that song," before launching into "Welcome To The Jungle".

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Fans of the ever famous tenor Andrea Bocelli will once again be able to catch his performance on another DVD series. The CD/DVD combo will feature Bocelli's FREE performance in Central Park, New York. The concert was performed to an audience of 60,000+ and featured all of Bocelli's classic hits: