Foo Fighters to play concert at Chicago’s Wrigley Field
Foo Fighters have announced the first date of their US summer tour behind Sonic Highways, and it’s a big one. On August 29th, the band will follow in the footsteps of Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen, and Billy Joel by headlining a concert at Chicago’s famed Wrigley Field.
Tickets will go on sale on Monday, October 27th at 10:00am CT.
Foo Fighters’ new album, Sonic Highways, arrives November 10th.
Kanye West under fire for concert wheelchair gaffe
Rights groups in Australia are demanding an apology from Kanye West after the rapper targeted disabled fans for failing to stand up during his shows.
The hip-hop star sparked outrage Down Under by urging a fan in a wheelchair to get to his feet during a misunderstanding at his gig in Sydney on Friday night.
West was caught on camera stopping the show and demanding every single concert-goer get to their feet for his track Good Life, telling the crowd, “I can’t do this show until everybody stand up. Unless you got a handicap pass and you get special parking and s—.”
In the footage, the rapper is seen calling out one particular fan, insisting he would not continue the show until he stood up before realizing the gig-goer was disabled. After realizing the mistake, the rapper added, “Is he in a wheelchair?… Okay, you (are) fine.”
The stunt was similar to one West pulled at a previous concert in Melbourne in which he urged disabled fans to prove they were unable to stand, telling the audience, “I can’t do this song if there’s anybody here sitting down – unless you’re handicapped and you pull out your handicapped parking slip right now.”
West has angered disability rights campaigners who are now demanding an apology from the star.
Craig Wallace, of People With Disability Australia, tells the Sydney Daily Telegraph, “To call out people for not standing up, when they are disabled and cannot stand up, in front of thousands of people, is humiliating. What if it was a young person who’s coming to terms with their disability? It’s arrogant to say every person in the audience needs to stand up just because you tell them to. Kanye West owes a duty of care and respect to his audience… Asking disabled people to show their handicap pass is patronising and inappropriate. He should apologize. Kanye West would also benefit from disability awareness training.”
Kate Bush Asks Fans Not To Take Photos At Her Forthcoming Gigs
With just a week to go until the general public finally get to see Kate Bush play a live concert for the first time in 35 years, the singer and musician has today asked fans not to film, or photograph the experience.
She has left the following message via her website:
” We have purposefully chosen an intimate theatre setting rather than a large venue or stadium. It would mean a great deal to me if you would please refrain from taking photos or filming during the shows. I very much want to have contact with you as an audience, not with iPhones, iPads or cameras. I know it’s a lot to ask but it would allow us to all share in the experience together. Looking forward to seeing you there. Respectfully yours, Kate.”
This creates an interesting dilemma. I’m sure many Kate fans understand her request (and from a punter point of view it is a little irritating having to look around a phone held aloft right in front of you to see what’s going on), but on the other hand everyone will want some way to capture what is quite likely to be a genuine once-in-a-lifetime experience for most people.
Is she expecting a little too much? If you were going, would you respect her wishes?
NFL Asks Musicians for Money to Play Super Bowl
The NFL reportedly asked Katy Perry, Rihanna and Coldplay, their top choices to play the 2015 Super Bowl Halftime Show, if they would be willing to pay the league in order to secure one of the biggest gigs in the world, according to The Wall Street Journal.
When reaching out to artists, league representatives asked some acts if they would exchange a headlining slot for a portion of their post-Super Bowl tour earnings, or make another type of financial contribution to the NFL. Sources told the Journal that the suggestion, perhaps unsurprisingly, “got a chilly reception from the candidates’ representatives.”
While the NFL doesn’t typically pay artists who perform during the Super Bowl Halftime Show, they do tend to cover travel and production expenses, which can be upwards of a million dollars. Considering the Halftime Show has only grown more popular in recent years — this year’s performance with Bruno Mars and the Red Hot Chili Peppers drew 115.3 million viewers, compared to the 112.2 million who watched the game — it makes sense they’d want a piece of the pie.
The artists themselves do tend to capitalize on the exposure of such a performance as well: Beyoncé announced her “Mrs. Carter Show” world tour right after her performance in 2013, while tickets to Mars’ “Moonshine Jungle” tour went on sale the Monday after his Super Bowl set. But quantifying Super Bowl exposure, specifically in the form of ticket sales, is tricky, especially for established artists like Rihanna, Perry and Coldplay who have been grossing millions on the road for years.
No decisions have been made about this year’s Super Bowl Halftime performer, and as NFL spokeswoman Joanna Hunter noted, the league’s contracts with artists are confidential. Super Bowl XLIX will take place outside of Phoenix on February 1st, 2015.
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers Concert Dates
What could be better than Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers rocking across the land? How about a new album plus special guest Steve Winwood on the ticket? The first round of onsales begins at the end of the month.
Hypnotic Eye is the name of the new album for Petty and his Heartbreakers. Scheduled for a July 29 release, their first new album in four years has already received some attention, with Rolling Stone describing the disc as “ a decisive return to the concise Sixties-rock classicism of his first great New Wave era albums.” But if that’s too lofty a synopsis for you, the magazine that Jann Wenner built also said Hypnotic Eye is “maximum rock & roll.”
You have plenty of choices when it comes to purchasing Hypnotic Eye, including vinyl and Blu-ray audio editions as well as on CD. For vinyl lovers the album will be released as a single disc but you can snag it as a double record set that includes an additional track not available in any other format. Preorder Hypnotic Eye on iTunes and Amazon beginning June 3 and you’ll receive an instant download of the first of several tracks from the album.
Yesterday, Petty tweeted a tease about playing Boston’s Fenway Park.
And true to his word, we now have a Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers tour. Here’s the plan:
Aug. 3 – San Diego, Calif., Viejas Arena
Aug. 5 – Boise, Idaho, Taco Bell Arena
Aug. 7 – Eugene, Ore., Matthew Knight Arena
Aug. 9 – San Francisco, Calif., Golden Gate Park (Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival)
Aug. 12 – Portland, Ore., Moda Center
Aug. 14 – Vancouver, British Columbia, Rogers Arena
Aug. 15 – Quincy, Wash., Gorge Amphitheatre
Aug. 17 – Edmonton, Alberta, Rexall Place
Aug. 19 – Calgary, Alberta, Scotiabank Saddledome
Aug. 21 – Winnipeg, Manitoba, MTS Centre
Aug. 23 – Chicago, Ill., United Center
Aug. 26 – Toronto, Ontario, Air Canada Centre
Aug. 28 – Montreal, Quebec, Bell Centre
Aug. 30 – Boston, Mass., Fenway Park
Sept. 6 – Arrington, Va., Oak Ridge Farm (Lockn’ – Interlocking Music Festival)
Sept. 7 – Darien Center, N.Y., Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
Sept. 10 – New York, N.Y., Madison Square Garden Arena
Sept. 13 – Hartford, Conn., XL Center
Sept. 15 – Philadelphia, Pa., Wells Fargo Center
Sept. 18 – Raleigh, N.C., PNC Arena
Sept. 20 – West Palm Beach, Fla., Cruzan Amphitheatre
Sept. 21 – Tampa, Fla., Tampa Bay Times Forum
Sept. 23 – Nashville, Tenn., Bridgestone Arena
Sept. 25 – Houston, Texas, Toyota Center
Sept. 26 – Dallas, Texas, American Airlines Center
Sept. 28 – Tulsa, Okla., BOK Center
Sept. 30 – Kansas City, Mo., Sprint Center
Oct. 1 – Lincoln, Neb., Pinnacle Bank Arena
Oct. 7 – Anaheim, Calif., Honda Center
Oct. 10 – Inglewood, Calif., The Forum
Presales for Petty’s Highway Companions fan club are available. General onsales launch May 31. Visit TomPetty.com for more information.
Paul McCartney to play the final show at The Beatles’ last venue
Paul McCartney has announced two new American tour dates, including the last ever show at Candlestick Park on August 14.
He has also announced he will play Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium a few days earlier on August 10.
Candlestick Park is the former stadium of American football team the San Francisco 49ers. The venue is where the Beatles played their final full concert on August 29, 1966. However, the venue will soon close and McCartney’s show is being billed as ‘Farewell to Candlestick: The Final Concert.’
The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the city’s Mayor Ed Lee said: “Sir Paul McCartney is a class act, and I am very grateful that he’s coming back to Candlestick to help us give this iconic landmark the goodbye it deserves.”
He added: “To add a concert like this, one that’s not only just great on a purely entertainment level, but one that is rooted in the city’s history and musical history, is truly a once-in-a-lifetime event.”
The Beatles had not announced prior to their 1966 show that it would be their final concert date. They played ‘Rock and Roll Music’, ‘She’s a Woman’, ‘If I Needed Someone’, ‘Day Tripper’, ‘Baby’s in Black’, ‘I Feel Fine’, ‘Yesterday’, ‘I Wanna Be Your Man’, ‘Nowhere Man’, ‘Paperback Writer’, and ‘Long Tall Sally’.
Chili Peppers to join Bruno Mars for Super Bowl show
The Red Hot Chili Peppers will perform with Bruno Mars at the Super Bowl XLVIII halftime show on Feb. 2, it was announced Saturday during Fox’s broadcast of the NFC playoff game between the New Orleans Saints and Seattle Seahawks.
Bruno Mars previously had been announced as the halftime headliner.
He follows a starry succession of performers including Beyoncé, Madonna, The Who, Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Prince, the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and U2.
Neil Young tells off audience for clapping at New York gig
Neil Young reportedly told off an audience in New York after they began clapping along during his performance at Carnegie Hall on Monday night (January 6).
The singer-songwriter was performing live in New York as part of four dates he will play at the venue this week. However, the show did not run smoothly with the New York Times reporting that Young chastised his audience on a number of occasions, both for clapping and also talking between songs.
“Wrong!” Young is reported to have shouted at the audience as they began clapping to the beat of ‘Ohio’, but not quite on the beat, of the song. “It’s something that you probably don’t know,” he continued, “but there’s a hell of a distance between you and me.”
Later on in the show, Young turned his ire toward audience members sitting on a balcony who were talking as he tuned a harmonica. “No, you paid real good money to get in here, so you should be able to listen to each other,” he is reported to have said.
Neil Young and Crazy Horse will return to the UK to headline a huge outdoor show at London’s Hyde Park later this year. They will be joined at Barclaycard British Summer Time on July 12 by special guests The National, Tom Odell, Caitlin Rose, Phosphorescent and Flyte.
Neil Young Announces “Honor The Treaties” Dates
Neil Young will play four “Honor The Treaties” shows in Canada to support the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation. With special guest Diana Krall performing on all dates, tickets for January gigs in Toronto, Winnipeg, Regina and Calgary go on sale this week.
Ticket sales will benefit the ACFN’s legal challenges against the government and oil companies. Referring to themselves as “K’ai Taile Dene” which translates as “people of the land of the willow,” the ACFN says its ancestors have been fishing, hunting and trapping in the Athabasca region for thousands of years and that the area is protected by Treaty 8 which was the last and largest of 19th century land agreements between First Nation and the Canadian government.
The run is scheduled to begin two days after Young concludes his four-night stay at New York’s Carnegie Hall. Here’s the plan:
Jan. 12 –Toronto, Ontario, Massey Hall
Jan. 16 – Winnipeg, Manitoba, Centennial Concert Hall
Jan. 17 – Regina, Saskatchewan, Conexus Arts Centre
Jan. 19 – Calgary, Alberta, Jack Singer Concert Hall
Tickets go on sale Dec. 10. Visit ACFN.com and Neil Young.com for more information.
Monty Python reunion show sells out in 43.5 seconds
London (AFP) – Monty Python added another four dates to their “one-off” reunion show on Monday after 14,500 tickets to their first London live performance sold out in just 43.5 seconds.
John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin announced their surprise return to the stage last week, sparking huge excitement among fans of the comedians who have not performed together since 1980.
The cult British troupe said they only planned to do one show at the O2 Arena in London on July 1, and Idle said the intention was “to see if we can fill it”.
But the promoters were clearly prepared for the huge demand and added four additional shows when the tickets went live.
All five dates sold out within an hour — and some £65 tickets for the first night were immediately posted on re-sale sites for a whopping £1,600 ($2,600, 1,900 euros).
“The first show sold out in 43.5 seconds. Four further shows immediately went on sale: 2-5 July. All shows sold out within 55 minutes,” a spokesman for Monty Python told AFP.
Idle said: “It’s totally amazing. I don’t think we realised quite how much Python is loved round the world.
In a reference to the Pythons’ joke last week about why they had reformed, Idle added: “We look forward to paying off Terry Jones’ mortgage soon.”
Despite the extra dates — all at the O2 in London — many fans were left disappointed and blamed touts for bulk-buying tickets.
“Ridiculous… Real Python fans are missing out here,” wrote Helen Stewart on one forum.
The Pythons will perform the most famous sketches from their films and cult television show “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” — although advancing age has imposed some limits on what they will be able to do.
Cleese, 74, admitted that a repeat of his Ministry of Silly Walks sketch will be “impossible” as he now has an artificial hip and artificial knee.
The tickets were priced between £27.50 and £95 — “only £300 cheaper than the Stones”, quipped 70-year-old Idle — and the shows are likely to make the Pythons a lot of money.
Aside from Jones’ mortgage, Cleese had to pay out millions of pounds in his most recent divorce and wrote the 2011 show “The Alimony Tour” to raise money to pay his ex-wife.
‘I think I’ve forgotten that’
The troupe became famous with the irreverent and surreal “Flying Circus” show, which ran from 1969 to 1974 and was sold to almost 100 countries.
They also made several films including 1975’s “Monty Python and the Holy Grail”, a parody of the legend of King Arthur, and “Monty Python’s Life of Brian” in 1979, the tale of a young man mistaken for Jesus which riled religious groups.
The reunion show is called “one down, five to go” — a reference to sixth member Graham Chapman, who died of cancer in 1989 at the age of 48.
Chapman took part in the Pythons’ last live performance in the United States in 1980 and their final film, “The Meaning of Life”, in 1983.
Last week the surviving Pythons would not be drawn on whether they might take their reunion tour outside Britain.
They joked about touring Europe on a camping holiday, but when asked if they would go to Australia, Cleese said: “The only problem with Australia is that there are planets closer than that.”
There will be some new material, but also a lot of the old favourites. “The main danger we have is that the audience know the scripts better than we do,” Cleese said.
One of their hit sketches was Dead Parrot, where Cleese tries to return a Norwegian Blue to a pet shop because it is dead. The owner, Palin, responds: “He’s not dead, he’s resting!”
“I suppose we’ll do some version of the parrot — Mike?” Cleese told the press conference, turning to Palin, who replied: “The parrot? I think I’ve forgotten that.”