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Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Tuesday Rock Roundup

Bruce Springsteen, Bono, John Mellencamp, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder and Sheryl Crow are among the musicians who will perform at the inauguration celebration concert for Barack Obama Sunday afternoon at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. The president-elect and his family are expected to attend. HBO will air the show at 7 Eastern Sunday Night and will offer it free to non-subscribers.

Cars keyboardist Greg Hawkes has released an album of Beatles covers performed on ukulele called The Beatles Uke. Hawkes, who saw the Beatles in 1964 in Baltimore, tells the Boston Herald, "The ukulele is often remembered, and still regarded, as a jokey instrument at the top of the list. But I enjoyed Tiny Tim. He was very knowledgeable about the Tin Pan Alley composers and history of the songs."

Former Grand Funk Railroad singer and guitarist Mark Farner says he's now open to reuniting with the original members of the group after years of wanting to go at it as a solo artist. He says he's been trying to get drummer Don Brewer and bassist Mel Schacher to agree, but there has been no interest. Brewer tells us, "You know I would think if there was a huge dollar figure there for somebody by going that way I would think they'd come knocking on the door." Brewer and Schacher have been leading a new Grand Funk line-up since 2000 with former 38 Special singer Max Carl, former KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick and keyboardist Tim Cashion. The original trio last worked together in the mid-'90s before Farner left to pursue his solo career.

Gene Simmons says KISS should have a new album out this summer. Paul Stanley will produce their first studio effort since Psycho Circus in 1998. In an interview with Canada's Sun Media, Simmons says they'll support the album with "a handful of shows just to keep in the game...maybe 10 (dates), some Canadian shows" followed by a full-scale tour that will keep them out for a year-and-a-half.

NEW RELEASES TODAY:

My Best Friend's Girl is new to DVD and Blu-Ray today. Dane Cook stars as a guy who rents himself out as a bad date to drive women back to their ex-boyfriends. Kate Hudson, Alec Baldwin and Jason Biggs co-star.

Mirrors stars Kiefer Sutherland as a security guard who is haunted by unexplained deaths at the hand of a demonic force.

The western Appaloosa stars Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen as gunmen hired to protect a lawless town that's under the control of renegade rancher. Renee Zellweger and Jeremy Irons co-star.

A presidential election hinges on the vote of one apathetic guy in Swing Vote with Kevin Costner.

TV that's gone digital includes the second season of Matlock, the fifth season of Reba and the 10th season of Dallas.