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Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Tuesday Rock Roundup

Happy 47th Birthday today to U2 bassist Adam Clayton.

Van Halen were inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall last night. Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony were the only members on hand -- with Eddie Van Halen in rehab, Alex Van Halen back home supporting his brother, and David Lee Roth boycotting the ceremony. Backstage before the ceremony and during his acceptance speech, Hagar said he really would have liked to have all of the members perform at the ceremony. "[It] would be awesome if we could have all been up there and do that. It breaks my heart that we aren't all up there doing it."

R-E-M were inducted by Eddie Vedder, who in a humorous speech told the crowd that joked that he listened to Murmur 12-hundred-60 times in the summer of 1984; that Peter Buck plays "guitar like a guy who worked in record store, he plays through the holes and invents things;" that Mike Mills was "R-E-M's secret weapon" was "until he started wearing these big suits" on the 1995 Monster tour; and that Bill Berry's aneurysm, that same year, was because of how loud Mills' suits were. Berry, who left the band a decade ago, did not give an acceptance speech and was content to just play with his old bandmates.

Queen and Paul Rodgers have just wrapped up another three-week session for their first studio album together. Writing on his website guitarist, Brian May says, "We have some good music on the boil, about eight songs so far with some great moments. He adds that it sounds different from anything either Rodgers or Queen have done in the past. No word on when they will regroup for more recording or when they plan to release an album.

Rush singer-bassist Geddy Lee is a big baseball fan, so it should be no surprise that he appears in an ad for E-S-P-N's fantasy baseball leagues. Lee sings as part of a fake group called Iron Diamond on a song called "Guide Me Master" that includes vocals by E-S-P-N baseball analyst Peter Gammons and Cincinnati Reds pitcher (and singer-guitarist) Bronson Arroyo. Check out the 90-second song clip and the 30-second ad at Iron Diamond's
MySpace page. Rush, by the way, have redesigned their website [Rush.com].

Proving once again that people will wager on anything, an online gambling site is now taking bets on whether Heather Mills' artificial leg will come off during her stint on A-B-C's Dancing With the Stars. BoDog-dot-com says that the leg of Paul McCartney's estranged wife "must fall off, not be purposely taken off, during a dance routine for all yes wagers to be win." Mills starts her run on Dancing With the Stars next Tuesday.

Former Grateful Dead singer-guitarist Bob Weir and his band, RatDog, were joined by former Dead singer Donna Jean Godchaux Saturday night at the Beacon Theater in New York. RatDog is in Boston tonight.

To go with her Oscar, Golden Globe and all those other prizes, Jennifer Hudson has finally gotten something she can sink her teeth into -- free Burger King for life. It all began when Hudson responded to Simon Cowell's criticism that the Dreamgirls star didn't thank American Idol in her Oscar speech by saying, "If I'd been better at my job when I was at Burger King in my middle teens, I wouldn't be here either, so should I thank them, too." In sending her the never-ending B-K Crown Card, Burger King says, "No thanks are necessary. Burger King Corporation is proud of Jennifer's success, and while we never like to lose employees, in this case, our loss is the entertainment industry's gain."

NEW ON DVD TODAY

Casino Royale DVD
The Holiday DVD
Bosom Buddies - The First Season DVD
The Dukes of Hazzard - The Beginning DVD