Blur's triumphant summer gigs could be the end of the band. Alex James says there are no plans for the quartet to get back into the studio.
Despite encouraging comments recently made by guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist James said they have not talked about "doing anything else whatsoever".
Over recent weeks, Blur played a series of concerts including ones at London's Hyde Park and Glastonbury Festival.
"That was what we said we'd do and we did it and it was great," said James. "It hasn't been mentioned the idea of doing anything else but hey, it was great."
"Best gig we've ever done. Amazing" Alex James on Glastonbury 2009
"I've spent the last week staring at a bonfire muttering to myself. I haven't been able to contain the joy that it brought to all of us. [Glastonbury] was very, very emotional. Everything we hoped it would be and more.
"What was amazing was the band's and the audiences' connection. Best gig we've ever done. Amazing."
Graham Coxon is currently touring his solo album The Spinning Top. Damon Albarn is playing with Africa Express in Paris in August, while James - now a farmer - has recently signed a deal to produce cheese for the Prince Of Wales' estate.
"It will be the poshest cheese in the world," claims James.
Blur have no plans to record again
Metallica announce O2 shows
Metallica announce O2 shows, announce single and play us a Little Taste of Death...
Metallica have officially announced that they will be playing the 02 World in Berlin and 02 Arena in London on September 12th and 15th 2008 respectively. The shows are only available to the band’s fan club members, and those people who subscribe to www.missionmetallica.com. Tickets are £5 and all ticket proceeds will be donated to various charities, which the band will be revealing over the next two week.
And, for those of you that simply can’t wait Metallica have put a couple of small excerpts from their forthcoming album, Death Magnetic, on their sites http://www.metallica.com, http://www.missionmetallica.com and http://www.metclub.com
There will be more excerpts coming soon so please keep your eyes peeled in the meantime..
The band will be making the first single 'The Day That Never Comes' available on iTunes from August 22nd, and as a physical release sometime in September. The video for the track was filmed in the desert outside L.A with director Thomas Vinterberg. UK fans will be able to hear the track exclusively on Zane Lowe’s Hottest track on Radio 1 tonight - 21st August, between 7 – 8 p.m. BBC2’s The Culture Show will be airing a 30 minute Metallica special on 31st August at 11.20 pm.
Metallica headline Reading and Leeds festivals this coming weekend (Leeds on Friday 22nd Aug and Reading on Sunday 24th Aug) in addition to the O2 shows in Berlin and London.
The album 'Death Magnetic’ is released worldwide on Friday September 12th 2008.
Mellencamp calls himself an ‘ex-rock star’
‘I am trying to make the transition from rock star to songwriter,’ he says
NEW YORK - Although John Mellencamp was recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the veteran doesn’t consider himself a rocker — at least not anymore.
These days, Mellencamp uses the phrase “ex-rock star” to describe his place: “I am trying to make the transition from rock star to songwriter in public,” he said.
An odd statement, perhaps, since Mellencamp pens most of his music, including some of his biggest hits, from “Jack & Diane” to “Our Country.” But while those songs had Top 40 appeal, he readily admits that the songs off his new album, “Life Death Love and Freedom,” produced by Grammy-winning producer T Bone Burnett, are designed more for personal introspection than heavy radio spins.
He’ll still trot out classics like “Jack & Diane” on tour, but you won’t hear all of the old favorites (Mellencamp admits to recently disappointing one of his wife’s friends by telling her “Cherry Bomb” won’t be on his set list this time around). Mellencamp says he’s more interested in being an artist, not a jukebox.
The veteran talked with The Associated Press via phone from his tour about his new music, America’s woes and navigating today’s tricky musical landscape.
AP: What made you go to T Bone?
Mellencamp: Well, this is the first time that I’ve really had a musical outside producer in my career. Most producers that I worked with were from the technical point of view, but I had been knowing T Bone for about ten years, socially. ... So when I saw the nature of these songs, it just made perfect sense that he was the correct guy to work with these songs.
AP: It’s being described as a dark album.
Mellencamp: It reflects perfectly the mood of this country, economically, socially, racially, in every aspect. There are enough songs on this record that reflect each one of those topics that I spoke about.
AP: Are you hopeful things can turn around?
Mellencamp: I don’t believe they’ll ever go back to the way they were. I think we’re too far past that. I think that (Barack) Obama is definitely a hopeful light on the horizon, but will we ever enjoy the place that we once enjoyed? I don’t think it’s going to happen, simply because everything is changing so rapidly: Technologically it’s changing, the way that we do our stock market is crumbling, the two-party system doesn’t really work anymore ... But you know what (chuckles)? I’m just a (expletive) guy in a rock band.
AP: One of the songs “Jena,” is inspired by the Jena Six case. Can you explain it?
Mellencamp: The best way I can say it is when I was 14 years old, I was in a band ... and this was 1967 and I was a 14-year-old kid and I was singing dual lead vocals (with) — I don’t mean to identify him like this, but he was a black kid — and he and I would sing songs by James Brown or the Righteous Brothers, and we would harmonize and we would dance together, and people just loved that kid onstage. It’s when we got offstage there was trouble. And that made a big impact on a 14-year-old John Mellencamp, and it has haunted me and perplexed me my entire life — how people cannot show any more understanding, any more unity.
AP: Do you see the racial climate changing, especially with Obama’s success?
Mellencamp: We create the illusion that we are a nation of compassion and understanding and I’m in Philadelphia right now, walking down the street and I don’t see it. I have a house in Savannah, Ga., I don’t see it. We just don’t say the N-word in public anymore. Big deal. And of course you know there’s all that subculture that uses it to make money, so you have all of that. So, it’s not nice, it’s not correct, white or black, red green, we don’t know how to deal with it. We haven’t dealt with it.
AP: You got so much criticism for using “Our Country” in the Chevrolet commercials. Do you regret it?
Mellencamp: The reason why I got so much criticism is because I had been such a large opponent. I had been against it and spoke out against it in the ’80s and ’90s, and then to turn around and do it made me look like a hypocrite. I am a walking hypocrite. I have to roll with the punches. In a perfect world, I don’t think we should have to do that but this isn’t the record business that I once knew. So, I rolled with the punches and I caught criticism, but, at the end of the day, everybody remembered the song.
AP: Is harder now to write a song now?
Mellencamp: It’s never old hat. I just think that there is this illusion that as people get older, that their work isn’t as good. I don’t think you see that in Picasso, I don’t think you saw that in Hemingway, I don’t think that you saw that in Stephen King. It’s just changes, and it changes generally ... away from the general public. It becomes more personal, it becomes more insightful, and therefore not for the general public. I mean, when you write a song called “R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.,” that is for the general public to consume. When you write a song called “Ain’t Gonna Need This Body,” (“Don’t Need This Body”) that is for people who are halfway through their lives.
Sugarland scales down for "raw" sound on third album
NASHVILLE (Billboard) - "Exactly!" Sugarland lead singer Jennifer Nettles exclaims when asked if "Beyonce to Bill Anderson" is a fair assessment of the duo's music.
Not only have she and guitarist Kristian Bush performed Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" in concert (a YouTube favorite), but the pair co-wrote with country legend Anderson for their third Mercury Nashville album, "Love on the Inside," due July 22 (deluxe edition) and July 29 (regular).
The duo has enjoyed as much country success as one can hope for if your name isn't Carrie Underwood. The act's 2005 debut, "Twice the Speed of Life," has tallied sales of 2.5 million copies and spawned three top 10 Hot Country Songs hits. Second album "Enjoy the Ride" has sold 2.3 million copies and produced four top 10s, including the No. 1s "Want To" and "Settlin'."
"Love on the Inside" may be the purest Sugarland album yet, according to Nettles.
"We're getting experience and we are also getting more comfortable in our own skin as writers, so musically on this record we went in and we really wanted to scale down," she says. "We didn't want everything to be super-slick. We wanted it to be raw. We also had the luxury, because I was rested, of tracking everything live."
"They wanted to cut as much of this record as we could with less musicians and try to capture the magic in kind of a one-take performance, and that's pretty much what we did," producer Byron Gallimore says.
Co-writers on the album include Bobby Pinson, who was responsible for "Want To," and Tim Owens, who co-wrote "Settlin'." Kenny Chesney guitarist Clayton Mitchell co-wrote the sultry "What I'd Give," and Anderson collaborated on the teen-angst tune "Joey." There's also a witty ode to oft-married singer-songwriter Steve Earle.
First single "All I Want to Do," which is No. 7 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, is the duo's fastest-climbing single yet.
After opening for the likes of Chesney and headlining the CMT trek last fall, Sugarland will take labelmate Ashton Shepherd and rising star Kellie Pickler out this fall for a 25-city eastern U.S. tour.
Nettles says that her and Bush's prowess as singer-songwriters doesn't preclude them from being entertainers as well.
"We really do try to explore the different elements of entertaining, of how you set a mood and capture an emotion with other elements besides the music, be it the exact lighting element for a song or taking a hard left and doing something ridiculous and crazy, like getting in a ball and crowd surfing," she says. "Why should you not be able to? I like to be able to add theater to the show."
R. Kelly lawyers try to revive tattered defenses
R. Kelly's attorney guided his electric scooter down a hallway outside the courtroom where his client is on trial for child pornography, exclaiming as he sped past several reporters, "In the morning, we attack!"That battle cry last week from Ed Genson, who suffers from a neurological disorder that makes it difficult for him to walk, was apt: After two weeks of prosecution testimony, the R&B star's lawyers have a lot of ground to regain.After launching their defense days ago, Kelly's lawyers are endeavoring to breathe life back into several key claims when the case continues this week, including that a mole on Kelly's back proves his innocence and that a sex tape at the heart of the case could have been doctored, possibly as part of an extortion plot.
Kelly, who won a Grammy Award in 1997 for "I Believe I Can Fly," has pleaded not guilty to child pornography for allegedly videotaping himself having sex with a female prosecutors say was at young as 13. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in prison.Defense attorneys say neither Kelly nor the alleged victim are on the videotape, pointing to what they said in opening arguments was the absence of a fingernail-sized mole on the man's back in sex tape. Kelly, they noted, has such a mole.But the mole defense took a hit when a prosecution witness froze frames on the tape that showed a spot on a man's lower back — located in the same place as a mole on Kelly's back as it appears in 2002 police photos.
On Thursday, however, the defense played their own frame-by-frame footage of the man's back for jurors.
"Do you see a mole?" Kelly attorney Marc Martin asked defense witness Charles Palm."I see a black mark but it doesn't appear to be a mole," the video expert replied.Palm also told jurors the spot appeared only intermittently — proof, he said, that it was likely a mere glitch on the tape.
Kelly, who at times appeared dejected as prosecutors presented their case, seemed more at ease as the defense got into the thick of their case, even occasionally nodding his head in agreement as witnesses spoke.He seemed particularly buoyed by three relatives of the alleged victim who took the stand for the defense to say they didn't recognize her as the female on the graphic tape. Four relatives testified earlier for the prosecution to say it was her."It definitely wasn't her," one relative, Shonna Edwards, told jurors emphatically on Wednesday. Edwards said she saw the tape for the first time a few days before, saying the female's body in it was too developed to be her relative at the time.
Among the most surreal testimony of the trail to date came when Palm, the defense video expert, sought to counter testimony that doctoring the nearly half-hour video — 100,000 frames on the entire footage — would be practically impossible.To demonstrate it was doable, he played an excerpt he digitally altered where just the heads of the man and woman disappeared as they had sex. At other points, their bodies fade in and out completely, as if they were ghosts."I created most of that over a couple of spare hours," he said. Asked in cross-examination if anything indicated the tape had actually been fabricated, Palm conceded, "Nothing jumps out at me at being obviously faked."When they continue their case this week, Kelly's lawyers were expected to call a witness who came forward after the trial began to claim he could discredit Lisa Van Allen, the last witness for prosecutors before they rested their case Monday.In her potentially damaging testimony, the 27-year-old told jurors she engaged in three-way sexual encounters with Kelly and the alleged victim on several occasions, including once on a basketball court.
She also described how Kelly allegedly carried a duffel bag stuffed full of homemade sex tapes. "Wherever he was at, the bag would follow him," she said.The defense has already begun trying to impinge her potentially devastating testimony.A law clerk for the defense, Jason Wallace, told jurors Wednesday that Van Allen's fiance sought $300,000 from Kelly in exchange for her silence. Van Allen also has admitted she once stole Kelly's $20,000 diamond-studded watch from a hotel.
Alicia Keys' troubled time leads to big success
R&B singer Alicia Keys is enjoying a successful worldwide tour, a chart-topping album and will act in an upcoming movie, but it might not have happened, she said, were it not for a near breakdown two years ago.Keys, whose current hits include "No One," is in the middle of her "As I Am" tour. The new "As I Am" album debuted on record charts at No. 1 and has sold over 3 million copies.
In October, she makes her film debut in "The Secret Life of Bees," starring Queen Latifah and Jennifer Hudson. Based on the best-selling novel of the same name, the movie is co-produced by Will Smith and backed by indie powerhouse Fox Searchlight.While Keys seems to lead a charmed life and has the sort of career that most other 26-year-olds could barely imagine, it hasn't always been so rosy.Two years ago, the singer went through a troubled period that nearly derailed her life and career. A workaholic lifestyle and the death of a close relative from cancer pushed her "very close" to the breaking point, she admits.Instead of having a public meltdown, Keys faced her demons in private."I knew I needed time away, so I went to Egypt for a month -- on my own, which gave it a whole different perspective," she told Reuters in a recent interview."It allowed me to see things I'd never seen before -- all the temples on the Nile, the Pyramids, the history. It was so rich and beautiful and strong, and it inspired me so much, and renewed me."
TIME TO REFLECT
Keys said she felt like it was important to be alone so she could reflect on her thoughts and examine her life, away from the media spotlight. She also cut back her work schedule."I'm definitely a workaholic in some ways, although less than I was before," she said.
Ultimately, she said, the near-breakdown brought about an artistic breakthrough that helped shape the music on her third album and her edgier stage persona.
Billboard magazine, in its review of "As I Am," said Keys "takes a step closer toward the soul revival popularized by John Legend, with full band arrangements and bright horn hooks, only occasionally falling back into the piano/melisma combination that drove the singles off her first two albums."
Keys has always prided herself on being in control of her career and music, producing her records and writing songs, but ironically, she was able to push herself more on the new album by giving up some of that control, she said."I purposely didn't have such a kind of controlling approach about it and I allowed the music to flow," she said. "I've come more into my own, and really, with experience comes confidence and a little bit more of awareness of how I would like to do it, having learned from the past."
She added that she is anxious to experiment even more and wants to work with rock acts like the White Stripes, Green Day, U2 or Coldplay."Things that are not quite of the same world, or so you think," she said, "but when you put them together it's just really interesting."
Jammys to honor disbanded Phish
Four years after they disbanded, the guys from Phish are getting a lifetime achievement awards from the Jammys — but don't get your hopes up about a reunion.
The annual awards show honors the best in improvisational music. It's not clear whether all the band members — Trey Anastasio, Jon Fishman, Mike Gordon and Page McConnell — will show up to the May 7 event at The Theater at Madison Square Garden. At this time, there are no plans for them to perform, said Peter Shapiro, the show's executive producer and co-founder.
He said "a couple" of the Phish members had expressed interest in being part of the show, but would not elaborate.
Phish received numerous Jammys before parting ways in 2004. The Vermont-based jam band had developed a Grateful Dead-like following during their 21-year run, and was among the nation's top touring acts.
5 Years After Fire, Great White Touring
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Police and firefighters showed up early for a recent Great White concert at a Cincinnati nightclub — just to be sure no pyrotechnics would be used.With a new tour and a new album, Great White has tried pressing forward since its pyrotechnics ignited the Feb. 20, 2003, fire that killed 100 people, including Great White guitarist Ty Longley, and injured 200 others at The Station nightclub in West Warwick.
Five years later, though,the band's connection to the deadly blaze is hard to shake.
Tony Heitz, manager of Annie's, the Cincinnati club where 600 fans enjoyed a show without any problems, noted that "you'd have to be in a cave" not to have heard about the fire.
The band, which enjoyed success in the 1980s with its blend of blues and hard rock, reunited last year with original members to mark their 25th anniversary, issued a new studio album and spent the last two months touring Europe.
They have steered clear of Rhode Island, where many victims' relatives still hold them at least partly responsible for the fire and remain upset that only the club owners, Jeffrey and Michael Derderian, and the band tour manager, Daniel Biechele, were held criminally responsible.
"I don't see why they are out there playing, why anybody would even want to go hear them," said Diane Mattera, whose daughter, Tammy Mattera-Housa, died.
After the fire, Mattera uprooted a memorial cross placed at the fire site for Longley and left a note saying the cross didn't belong there because Longley and the band had killed her daughter.
The band's label, Shrapnel Records, did not return calls for comment. An e-mail attempt to contact the band went unreturned.
Great White guitarist Mark Kendall told The Associated Press in a 2006 interview that The Station nightclub fire was a "full-blown American tragedy."
"I was sad to be a witness to it. It was just a nightmare," he said.
Hundreds of survivors and victims' relatives are suing the people who made up the band at the time of the fire (the band's lineup has changed several times). Their lawyer, Steven Richard, declined to comment because the case is still pending.
But fans, even those injured in the fire, have been more forgiving.
Linda Fisher, who suffered third-degree burns, still performs their signature ballad, "Save Your Love," on karaoke machines. She also sang it onstage with Great White lead singer Jack Russell at a concert in Pennsylvania months after the fire.
"I still think they screwed up, I still think they used poor judgment, but there's been nights where I used poor judgment," she said.
Great White laid low after the fire, then began touring to raise money for The Station Family Fund, which was created to help survivors with medical bills and other expenses.
Todd King, a fire survivor who helped found the fund, said while some victims' relatives were upset with Great White's fundraising role, the band raised about $100,000 for the fund.
"I had to weigh both ends against the middle," he said. "We were in dire need of funds, and they were raising funds."
But fund co-founder Theresa O'Toole said the band was probably helping itself as much as it was helping the survivors.
"They needed to do something to help their situation, and we were it," she said.
Great White emerged in the 1980s as part of the so-called "hair band" genre, where groups found success with a formula of loud guitars, power ballads — and big hair. Their biggest hit was a cover of Ian Hunter's "Once Bitten Twice Shy," and they scored platinum albums and a Grammy nomination.
But by February 2003, their heyday had long passed and they were touring venues like The Station, a roadside nightclub in West Warwick with a capacity of less than 500 that routinely hosted 1980s rock groups and tribute bands to groups like KISS.
Documents: Manager got car to Britney
Manager got car to Britney
Britney Spears' father sought to fire her business manager because he circumvented court orders by providing the pop star with a car after she was released from a psychiatric ward, according to court documents released Monday.Manager Howard Grossman also violated court orders by arranging meetings for her when she was released from the hospital Wednesday against her parents' wishes, said papers filed by attorneys for James Spears, her temporary conservator.
The 26-year-old pop star was seen cruising around Los Angeles later that day in a Mercedes-Benz with a swarm of paparazzi on her tail.
"The temporary co-conservators have lost all confidence in their ability to work with Mr. Grossman," because of his conduct, attorneys for James Spears wrote in papers seeking to fire the manager. The papers were sealed until after Grossman was served.
Court Commissioner Reva Goetz gave Spears' temporary conservators the right to fire Grossman after a closed-door hearing Thursday in which they aired the allegations in the documents.
Grossman would not immediately comment on the documents when reached by The Associated Press. He has refused to say whether he was fired.
Jeryll Cohen, attorney for James Spears, said Grossman had been told that two of the troubled star's cars were to be delivered from a dealership to the singer's father, who was named temporary conservator of his daughter and her estate after she was deemed unfit to care for herself and manage her finances.
Grossman said he had one of the Mercedeses delivered to the hotel because his client requested it.
"Spears asked him to, and he wanted to comply with her request because he wanted to 'build her confidence in him,'" according to Cohen's declaration.
The delivery of the car violated a court order giving James Spears and attorney Andrew Wallet, the co-conservator of her estate, control of the singer's assets.
Grossman also arranged for Spears to meet with attorney Adam Streisand at the Beverly Hills Hotel in violation of court orders preventing Spears from meeting with any lawyer without her father's permission, according to the documents unsealed Monday.
Streisand unsuccessfully sought to represent Spears in court Feb. 4 when he argued that she told him by phone that she wanted her father removed as conservator. Goetz found that Spears lacked the capacity to hire her own lawyer.
Grossman said in an e-mail contained in the court records that some of the messages from Cohen were received after Britney Spears contacted him.
He said he rejected Spears' request to give her a credit card. Under the terms of the conservatorship, he was not permitted to give Spears any money or credit cards.
The papers also claim Grossman refused to turn over e-mails from Sam Lutfi, Spears' friend and sometime manager. Grossman said Lutfi demanded money in the e-mails.
Cohen said in a written declaration that Grossman did not comply with Lutfi's demands, but that he "has since refused to provide copies of any such e-mails" to James Spears and his attorneys.
A restraining order was issued preventing Lutfi from contacting Spears. Goetz also ordered Spears not to have contact with Lutfi.
A hearing on the temporary conservatorship is scheduled for Thursday — the day it is set to expire.
Plain White T's
Even if you only occasionally listen to radio, you've probably heard Carrie Underwood's revenge anthem "Before He Cheats" ... and heard it, and heard it, and heard it.The tune is on Underwood's 2005 debut album, "Some Hearts," and it first hit the charts back in February 2006. So why now, two years later, is "Before He Cheats" up for song of the year at the Grammy Awards on Sunday?
Because the Grammy rules allow it.
Indeed, Underwood's megahit isn't the only song of the year nominee that could, at least to fans, feel stale. "Hey There Delilah" by the Plain White T's was on the group's 2005 album, "All That We Needed," though it didn't become a hit until two years later. "Like a Star" by Corinne Bailey Rae was released as a single in 2005 then rereleased the following year.
For most nominees, the music must be released in the eligibility year, which in this case is Oct. 1, 2006, through Sept. 30, 2007. But there are exceptions, and two of them are song of the year (awarded to the songwriter) and record of the year (awarded to the performer and production team).
In those categories, a single is still eligible if it was released in the preceding eligibility year but "achieved prominence" in the current one.
"A record is not like a movie," explained Greg Bechtloff, a project manager for the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which presents the awards. "A movie comes out and it's out. It either sinks or swims. But a record can grow."
Even so, the rules have made for some interesting Grammy moments, like in 2006 when Billy Joe Armstrong of Green Day, while accepting record of the year for "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," mused that it had come out "something like two years ago."
The win also seemed a case of deja vu because only the year before Green Day had won best rock album for "American Idiot," which included "Boulevard of Broken Dreams."
"It confused a lot of people and made us look weird," Bechtloff said.
Ditto for U2. The band cleaned up with their album "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb," including best rock song for "City of Blinding Lights" and best rock performance for "Sometimes You Can't Make it on Your Own," in 2006. But they won the same two categories in 2005 for "Vertigo" from the same album.
This year, Beyonce Knowles could have her own Green Day moment. While her album "B'Day" won best contemporary R&B album last year, she's nominated for record of the year for the single "Irreplaceable," which, coincidentally, peaked back in December 2006.
All of this is bound to puzzle some Grammy viewers.
Garth Fundis, a member of the academy's board and a former chairman, said the board has discussed trying to "shorten the window" to freshen things up, perhaps by moving the show closer to the end of the eligibility period, in October instead of February.
"But there's no way to do it. There's always going to be that lag time," Fundis said. "Getting the information out to the members and letting them vote and get the final nominees and then vote again — it takes time to do all of that."
The process also is hindered by the slow movement of singles into radio rotation, particularly on the country side.
"For fans of the artist, it may seem that a song as part of the album has been around forever" even though as a single it meets Grammy eligibility, said Silvio Pietroluongo, director of Billboard magazine's genre-spanning Hot 100.
Underwood's "Before He Cheats" debuted on the country charts in early 2006 before Arista Records even began promoting it. After the label pushed it as a single, it climbed to No. 1 in November of that year and stayed five weeks.
The song crossed over to pop stations in 2007 and reached No. 9 on Billboard's Top 40 chart in May. It had yet another run on adult contemporary, peaking at No. 6 in September.
In all, the dark tale about a jilted lover vandalizing her boyfriend's truck spent a remarkable 64 straight weeks on the Hot 100.
Court: Spears' dad has temporary control
Spears' dad has temporary control
Throughout the course of Britney Spears' months-long emotional tailspin, one universal question has lingered with each spectacular turn: Why doesn't her family take drastic measures to stop this? On Friday, they did.Spears' father, James Spears, was put in charge of the troubled pop star's welfare during a surprise court appearance by him and mother Lynne Spears, a day after their daughter was whisked to a hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.
Just as Spears' immediate family was taking charge of her life, Sam Lutfi, the man seen escorting her about town and sometimes speaking on her behalf, was removed from the picture with a restraining order. A message left on Lutfi's cell phone seeking comment was not immediately returned.
James Spears' eyes grew teary when he was named conservator of his daughter. He and an attorney, Andrew Wallet, were named conservators of the estate. The parents sat with attorney Blair Berk throughout the hearing, smiling and embracing after the announcement.
The events of the past two days were the first positive signs that Spears may have reached a turning point in a downward spiral of bizarre behavior — all of it captured by paparazzi lenses — that has resulted in her losing custody of and visitation rights with her two young sons.
Spears was taken early Thursday by paramedics with a heavy police escort to UCLA Medical Center's psychiatric hospital. There was no account or description of the young star's actual condition during the hearing.
It was the second hospitalization this year for the 26-year-old singer, who has exhibited odd behavior since November 2006, when she filed for divorce from Kevin Federline, the father of their sons, 1-year-old Jayden James and 2-year-old Sean Preston.
A court creates conservatorships when it determines that a person cannot care for themselves or handle their affairs. Commissioner Reva Goetz said Spears would be under conservatorship until Monday, at which time another hearing would be held.
"It is in the best interests of the conservatee to have conservatorship over her person," Goetz told a packed courtroom.
As conservator, her father will have the power to "restrict visitors," have around-the-clock security for Spears and have access to all medical records, Goetz said. It was unclear whether the court gave her father the power to make medical decisions on Spears' behalf; even if that was granted, the role can be limited.
Conservators can consult with doctors on medication options, but the patient can refuse. Only in emergencies can someone be forcefully treated. Otherwise, a court hearing must be scheduled to hammer out the issue.
"Being a conservator does not give them the power to force medication," said Nancy Kincaid, a spokeswoman with the California Department of Mental Health.
The court also issued a restraining order against Lutfi, Spears' sometime manager and friend, and gave her father permission to change the locks on her estate and remove anyone who is there.
Goetz said conservatorship over the estate was "necessary and appropriate." She gave approval for the conservator to "take all actions to secure all liquid assets including credit cards."
Dr. Mark Goulston, a Los Angeles psychiatrist who is not involved in the case, said he was not surprised by the ruling, given Spears' increasingly erratic behavior and what appear to have been periodic and unsuccessful efforts at rehabilitation.
Although placing people in conservatorships is not unusual, Goulston said, courts usually look long and hard at the evidence before putting a person in one.
"You have to really make a case before someone is allowed to become a conservator, so I would conclude her judgment is fairly impaired," he said.
The court, which rejected a request to hold the hearing without news media present, did not immediately rule on another request to seal all documents. Goetz said she would rule on Monday, and court spokesman Allan Parachini said the papers would remain sealed until then.
The conservatorship was approved by a different court from the one handling a custody dispute over the singer's children with Federline. A hearing on custody issues is set Monday morning in that court.
Heath Ledger's Last Hours: New Details Emerge
More details have emerged regarding the death of Heath Ledger in a New York apartment on Tuesday, providing insight into the 28-year-old Australian actor's final hours.
According to The Associated Press, police estimate Ledger's time of death between 1 p.m. and 2:45 p.m. Ledger's housekeeper, Teresa Solomon, said she arrived at the apartment at around 12:30 p.m., and approximately 30 minutes later entered the actor's bedroom to change a light bulb and found him lying in bed, face down, with a sheet pulled up to his shoulders. Solomon told police she heard Ledger snoring and left the room, thinking nothing was wrong.
A massage therapist, Diana Wolozin, arrived just before 3 p.m. for a scheduled appointment, the AP reports. When Ledger failed to answer his bedroom door, Wolozin said she called his cell phone; there was no answer. The masseuse told police she then entered Ledger's bedroom and began setting up her massage table. Then, according to the wire service, Wolozin attempted to stir the actor from his sleep, but he was unresponsive. She told police that Ledger's body was cold to the touch.The New York Post reported that police who responded to the scene suspected Ledger had been dead for some time, due to the lividity of the body (the manner in which blood settles after a person dies).
According to the AP, Wolozin grabbed Ledger's cell phone and called Mary-Kate Olsen, a friend of Ledger's, seeking advice, (the Post reported that the two were an item). Olsen, who was on the West Coast at the time, summoned private security guards to the apartment to assess the situation. After attempting to wake Ledger again, Wolozin called Olsen back and told her she believed he was dead; Wolozin eventually called 911 just before 3:30 p.m. and told them Ledger was not breathing. The AP claims the emergency operator on the other end instructed the masseuse on how to perform CPR. Paramedics arrived at the scene minutes later, as did the security guards.
CNN reported that medical technicians at the scene administered CPR on the body and used a cardiac defibrillator in an unsuccessful attempt to revive him; the actor was pronounced dead at 3:36 p.m.
These new details surfaced as Ledger's former fiancée, actress Michelle Williams, returned to New York with the couple's 2-year-old daughter, Matilda. On Wednesday night, Williams returned to her Brooklyn home (which she'd formerly shared with Ledger), where her mother, Carla, and actress Busy Phillips, Williams' former "Dawson's Creek" co-star and Matilda's godmother, were waiting to console her, according to the Post.
According to the AP, funeral arrangements have been made for the actor. His family, the wire service reports, is expected to arrive in New York on Friday. George Amado, the general manager of the Frank E. Campbell funeral home, where Ledger's body was taken Wednesday, would not provide specific details about the impending funeral.
On Wednesday, the results of a preliminary autopsy on Ledger's body were inconclusive. Ellen Borakove, a spokeswoman for New York's medical examiner's office, told MTV News more tests were needed to determine the official cause of death. An official pronouncement of the cause of Ledger's death could come early next month. Police involved in the investigation have speculated that Ledger's death was the result of an accidental drug overdose.
On Wednesday, police confirmed earlier reports that crime-scene technicians had found in the apartment a $20 bill rolled in a manner common among cocaine users, but New York Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Browne told CNN on Thursday that tests on the bill recovered from the scene came back negative for drug residue.
In addition, police told the AP that no illegal drugs were recovered from the apartment. According to the wire service, two anonymous law enforcement officials claim they had found six different prescription drugs in the apartment — including ones to treat insomnia and anxiety, along with an antihistamine. On Wednesday, New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly declined to provide a list of the medications police had seized as evidence, saying, "Some of them were sleeping pills, in essence, and some other drugs were there as well. ... We are going to wait for the toxicology report," the results from which could take weeks, according to one police source.
Ledger's family has responded to media speculation about Heath's death, asking that the world wait for the medical examiner to make a determination before jumping to conclusions. The family also denied Ledger was using drugs, as has been widely reported.
Haydn Ledger, one of Heath's uncles, told CBS' "The Early Show" that his nephew would not have done anything to risk his life. "It just wouldn't come into the equation at all," he said. Both he and Mike Ledger — another of the actor's uncles — deferred questions about Ledger's mental state, saying they'd be best answered by his parents.
Many of Ledger's colleagues in the movie community, including actors, directors and casting directors, have commented on his passing as well.
A publicist for Ledger told CNN on Thursday that the actor had been battling the flu and was prescribed antibiotics while filming scenes for "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" in London. Production on the film reportedly shut down abruptly after Ledger's death.
Also on Thursday, TMZ.com released a video capturing a distraught Helena Christensen, who, according to some media reports, was romantically involved with Ledger. The model said she was "really, really devastated," and sends "all my love" to Ledger's family.
The West Australian, based in Ledger's hometown of Perth, published an interview with model Sophie Ward, the sister of model Gemma Ward (and who Ledger may have been involved with), in which she claims Ledger did not have a drug problem. She told the paper he'd been back in Australia during the holidays, and she didn't see him take a sip of alcohol over several nights spent out on the town.
"He was clean and wasn't drinking any alcohol or taking drugs," Ward said. "He smoked cigarettes, but that's about it. He was drinking diet Coke when we were together, and he said he was very committed to not drinking alcohol. I don't believe he took his own life deliberately."
Ward did say Ledger seemed upset about his split with Williams, and expressed a desire to spend more time with his daughter.
"He was a bit edgy — he couldn't really relax," she said. "He said he was going to London but was quite upset because he couldn't see his daughter as much as he'd like to. He was traveling so much, and I think he was just frustrated with it all."
'Daydream Believer' songwriter dies
John Stewart, who wrote the Monkees' hit "Daydream Believer" and became a well-known figure in the 1960s folk music revival as a member of The Kingston Trio, has died, according to the band's Web site. He was 68.
Stewart suffered a massive stroke or brain aneurysm and died early Saturday at a San Diego hospital, the band announced on its official Web site.
"The world has lost one of its best men, but a man who lived well and made many people happy with his love, his wit and his music," the announcement said.
Stewart joined The Kingston Trio in 1961, three years after the band released its version of an old folk song, "Tom Dooley," that went on to become a hit. Stewart replaced the band's founder Dave Guard, who had left to pursue a new musical direction.
Stewart spent six years leading the group, during which time the band recorded 13 albums, according to its Web site.
After the trio disbanded in 1967, Stewart went on to an acclaimed solo career that included recording more than 40 albums.
Stewart's wife Buffy and children were at his side when he died, the Web site said. Plans had not been announced for memorial services.
Scott Weiland arrested
American rock singer Scott Weiland was arrested for driving under the influence of a drug after he crashed his car, but the singer's publicist said it was a minor accident and has denied the allegations.
The Stone Temple Pilots and Velvet Revolver singer was driving on a California state highway on November 21 when he had the accident.
The singer was arrested after an officer noticed he showed "signs of impairment" and failed field sobriety tests, according to a police report obtained by the celebrity site TMZ.com.
Weiland, 40, was taken to the Van Nuys Jail where he refused to take a blood or urine test, according to the police report.
He was booked and released on 40,000 dollars (£19,387) bail. His next court appearance was set for December 13.
Weiland's publicist said in a statement that the singer was involved in a "minor accident", but denies he was driving under the influence.
"He voluntarily took a breathalyser test which the defence believes registers well within the legal limit," Kristine Ashton-Magnuson said. "He is anxious to get to court ... and clear this matter up."
The statement did not specify whether Weiland denied driving under the influence of drugs or of alcohol.
Led Zeppelin plan a two hour set
Led Zep are planning a two hour music fest at their comeback gig at the O2 Arena on December 10th. Originally they were approached to play for 40 minute, which would have been a rip off for fans. However, as time moved on, they increased the set length to 75 minutes, then to 90 minutes, and now to almost a full two hours. Jimmy Page explained in Q magazine: "If we go out and play 'No Quarter', 'Moby Dick' and 'Dazed And Confused' with all the solos, you're already talking over an hour."
Anything more than two hours would be a bit much for the ageing rock gods, but at least the fans will get something worthwhile for the over inflated ticket prices (which perhaps would’ve been worth it if the late Bonham senior was on the throne).
Williams to make public apology to ex manager
Robbie Williams has agreed to publicly apologise to his ex manager, Nigel Martin-Smith, over accusatory lyrics in one of his songs. The track, The 90s, which features on last years Rudebox, suggested that Martin-Smith, who was his manager during the Take That years, was stealing money from the band.
Martin-Smith took out legal action with Williams now having to fork out up to £500,000 in damages, legal costs on top, and make a public apology. Williams re-recorded the vocals on The 90s after the initial lawsuit.
It’s understood Martin-Smith was prepared to waive the damages if Williams agreed to a face to face meeting. The Staffordshire clown prince of pop refused, preferring, it would seem, to pay in excess of half a million squid not to meet with his ex manager.
Skinny Lily no longer bitchy
Lily Allen has explained her bitchy comments to fellow pop stars, blaming it on her own insecurities. She puts it down to her insecurities over her appearance, manifesting itself in derogatory remarks against, among others, The Kooks and Girls Aloud, and in particular, Cheryl Cole.
Now she’s feeling happy and confident in herself, she doesn’t feel the need to verbally lash out at her peers. Allen has often viewed herself as being short, fat and ugly, and incredibly uncool. It irked her when those she viewed as being superior in the attractive stakes were flaunting their beauty.
The Smile star feels much happier at losing almost a stone and a half in recent weeks, prompted by a heart murmur.
Nonpoint to release new album
Florida rockers Nonpoint have just announced plans to release their newest full-length opus 'Vengeance' here in the UK on February 18 through Bieler Bros.
The album is co-produced by SikTH's Matt LaPlant
Probably best known for their version of Phil Collins' 'In The Air Tonight' prominently featured in the box office hit 'Miami Vice' the band are making tentative plans to head over to the UK to tour in the Spring of next year.
For more info go to:
www.myspace.com/nonpoint
Radiohead tour dates
Oxford rockers Radiohead have announced open air tour dates for next summer. They’ll be playing in the UK and Ireland, and heading off around Europe next year for dates including festivals, as yet to be annuonced. They’ve got a gap in their touring schedule, however, for 28th June, and is being rumoured that they’ll be entertaining the lucky Glastonbury punters, for the first time since an electrifying set in 2003.
UK and Ireland dates are as follows:
June 7 Dublin, Malahide Castle
24, 25 London, Victoria Park
27 Glasgow Green
29 Manchester, Old Trafford Cricket Ground
Green Day new album
Green Day fan will be hitting the studio in January to begin work on their next album: We got an update this week from Green Day's manager about what the band is up to now.
He let us know that Green Day will be going back to the studio in January, and that we should look forward to a new greenday.com and perhaps some new photos around that time.
He mentioned that the band was going to begin stepping away from all American Idiot themes, and that the new site wasn't going to be themed around the new album. I asked about the progress of the new album, and it didn't sound like we should expect anything too soon. Lets hope we'll get a full update about what kind of stuff they're working on early next year.
In related news, the band was recently named as the "Best Grammy Performance." Yo