Legendary keyboardsman co-founded equally legenday band.

By Fred Mills

Richard "Rick" Wright, founding member and keyboardist for Pink Floyd, died today at his home in England following a short battle with cancer. According to A.P. reports Wright's family has not released any details about the death and the news was announced by a spokesman for the band. Wright was 65.

Wright founded the band in 1965 along with Roger Waters, Syd Barrett and Nick Mason, and though his relationship later became stormy with Waters - he was forced out of the band during the making of The Wall, only to be "hired" back as a session musician, ultimately leading him to quit in the early ‘80s - he returned to the fold in the post-Waters era when guitarist David Gilmore took the helms of the band. Over the years he continued to work with Gilmore, both in Pink Floyd and on Gilmore's solo projects. In 2005 Wright, Gilmore, Mason and Waters performed a one-off reunion show at the Live 8 festival in London.

Wright also released a couple of modest-selling but well-regarded solo albums, 1978's Wet Dream and 1996's Broken China. Both are well-worth seeking out.

[Photo Credit: Deep Schism/Creative Commons, Wikipedia]

First new album of studio material from the Runt in four years.

By Blurt Staff

Todd Rundgren is hitting the road this fall in support of  his first full-length record of original studio material in 4 years, entitled Arena.  The album is out on September 30^th  via newly launched music venture Hi Fi Recordings. 

Of Arena, recorded in the Runt's current home state of Hawaii, is more guitar-based than fans have come to expect of the auteur, whose studio recordings in recent years have dipped heavily into electronica. Observes Rundgren, "I found myself just going out and doing this sort of guerilla guitar quartet thing around the country and around Canada. So when it came time to make a record, I thought maybe I'll just continue in that vein and write something that is appropriate to the guitar, since the fans seem to be enjoying it so much. So when I decided to write a new album, I knew beforehand it was going to be this kind of old-school guitar-rock record."

Known as a man of musical innovation, Rundgren's latest release draws from his vast career experiences as a performer, songwriter and producer - including notable achievements on the cutting edge of music and technology such as: the first live nationally broadcast stereo radio concert (by microwave), which linked 40 cities around the country in 1978; the very first two commercially released music videos, one of which was nominated for the first-ever Grammy awarded for "Best Short Form Video" in 1983; and the launch of PatroNet, the world's first direct artist subscription service; and of course there are the hit songs, including ‘Couldn't I Just Tell You,' 'Hello It's Me', 'I Saw The Light', 'Can We Still be Friends', and 'Bang The Drum.'

Todd Rundgren Tour Dates:

10/1                                         The Triple Door                                  Seattle, WA

10/4                                        BR Cohn Winery Amphitheatre       Glen Ellen CA

10/6                                        Park West                                           Chicago, IL

10/7                                         Barrymore Theater                            Madison. WI

10/9                                        Mayo Center                                      Morristown, NJ

10/10                                       Rex Theater                                       Pittsburgh, PA

10/11                                        Tarrytown Music Hall                        Tarrytown, NY

10/13                                       Bijou Theater                                     Knoxville, TN

10/15                                       The Orange Peel                                Asheville, NC

Todd & Utopia doing "Couldn't I Just Tell You" revisited...

By Fred Mills

For our latest installment in the BlurtTube Flashback series (translation: we were nosing around on YouTube and found some cool music video clips and we don't have anything better to do at the moment) we bring you a killer klip of Todd Rundgren, fronting his band Utopia, on Germany's Rockpalast in '77 doing the all-time Runt classic "Couldn't I Just Tell You."

Nice - and timely, too, given that Rundgren just announced a national tour in support of his first album of studio material in four years, Arena, due Sept. 30.

One bus, one band and a bunch of girlfriends on the road.

By Blurt Staff

Over the past four years, The Hotel Café Tour has established itself as the premier tour for both up-and-coming and established singer-songwriters. This fall, the Tour will feature an all female line-up for the first time. Nineteen female songwriters, ranging from established musicians Ingrid Michaelson and Rachael Yamagata [pictured, above - also featured in new digi-mag issue of BLURT] to hot rising stars, Meiko, Thao Nguyen, Priscilla Ahn, Brooke Fraser and many more, will pile into a bus and head out on a 34 city tour. As the tour organizers put it - "One bus, one band, and a bunch of girlfriends on the road."

 
 
Named for the coffee shop-turned-venue in LA, The Hotel Café Tour was created to share the community vibe and the songwriters that grew The Hotel Café scene into "the place that breaks artists". Community and camaraderie are the focus, there are no headliners, the band is shared and spontaneous collaborations between artists are encouraged. According to the organizers, "With a revolving cast of songwriters jumping on and off the bus, each evening is unique, creating a feeling of ‘these people in this place will never happen again.'"

 
Over the past four years, the Tour has hit every major market in the United States and Europe and many of the participating songwriters have grown from emerging artists into household names. The Spring 2008 tour sold out, with Sara Bareilles, Cary Brothers, Ingrid Michaelson and Joshua Radin playing to over 30,000 people. The Fall Tour is set to repeat those stats and will feature: Rachael Yamagata, Ingrid Michaelson, Meiko, Priscilla Ahn, Kate Havnevik, Thao Nguyen, Brooke Fraser, Samantha Crain, Alice Russell, Jaymay, Erin McCarley, Katie Herzig, Jenny Owen Youngs, Lenka, Emily Wells, Anya Marina, Holly Conlan, and Catherine Feeny.

"Diverse in their presentation and point of view, they have their passion for lyrics, vocals and the importance of the communal spirit in common. Many have recently released albums but have taken time out of a more traditional individual tour for the opportunity to be a part of this special collaboration."

 
In line with the Tour's commitment to community, The Hotel Café Tour will be donating money and raising consciousness for UNFPA and Amnesty International's Stop Violence Against Women Campaign. Motorola, Myspace, Starbucks and Taylor Guitars have signed on as partners for the Fall Tour.
 
Pre-sale tickets for The Hotel Café Tour are available starting TOMORROW, Tuesday, August 19 at www.thehotelcafetour.com  with regular ticket sales beginning on August 26.  The dates are as follows - check the website for the line-up of each show.

 
Thursday, October 9 Santa Barbara, CA - SoHo Restaurant
Friday, October 10 LA, CA - Hotel Cafe
Saturday, October 11 Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
Monday, October 13 Solana Beach, CA - Belly Up
Tuesday, October 14 Phoenix, AZ - Martini Ranch
Thursday, October 16 Dallas, TX - House of Blues
Friday, October 17 Austin, TX - Parish
Saturday, October 18 Houston, TX - Meridian Red Room
Monday, October 20 Birmingham, AL - Work Play
Tuesday, October 21 Nashville, TN - Exit/In
Wednesday, October 22 Atlanta, GA - Variety
Thursday, October 23 Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds
Saturday, October 25 Orlando, FL - Social
Monday, October 27 Chapel Hill, NC - Cat's Cradle
Tuesday, October 28 Washington DC - 9:30
Wednesday, October 29 Philadelphia, PA - World Café Live
Thursday, October 30 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
Friday, October 31 Boston, MA - Paradise
Saturday, November 1 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
Monday, November 3 Cincinnati, OH - Bogarts Front Room
Wednesday, November 5 Chicago, IL - Park West
Thursday, November 6 Mpls, MN - Varsity Theater
Friday, November 7 Madison, WI - High Noon
Saturday, November 8 St Louis, MO - Blueberry Hill
Sunday, November 9 Lawrence, KS - Liberty Hall
Tuesday, November 11 Denver, CO - Bluebird
Wednesday, November 12 Salt Lake City, UT - Avalon
Thursday, November 13 Boise, ID - Knitting Factory Concert House
Friday, November 14 Portland, OR - Doug Fir
Saturday, November 15 Seattle, WA - Chop Suey
Monday, November 17 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
Tuesday, November 18 LA, CA - Fonda

Four-song EP recorded on the quick after Leo watches brutality in St. Paul

By Blurt Staff

"Real people were hurt in St. Paul, and real people have bills to pay, and real people need funding to continue their good works. We (the band and I) were all feeling these events as deeply as we could from our 1200 mile remove, and so as not to feel entirely powerless, and in an attempt to contribute SOMETHING to that continuation of those good works, we wrote a song and recorded it. This isn't meant to be some grand sweeping statement on our part - it's just a way for us to contribute SOMETHING real to the lives of real human beings, and show our material support for those whose actions and thoughts we value in this ideological struggle."

That's Ted Leo, speaking today in a statement, about his reaction to the police actions in Minneapolis/St. Paul during the RNC. As a result Leo and the band went into his home studio last week and recorded two new songs, "Paranoia: Never Enough" and "Mourning In America," plus two cover tunes, "I Got Your Number" (originally by Cock Sparrer) and "Nobody's Driving" (Amebix). Together the yield the Rapid Response EP that Leo hopes will "bring awareness and financial aid to the people affected by the police brutality in Minnesota."

Rapid Response is available now for an exclusive two-week window via Touch and Go Records (www.touchandgorecords.com) for $4.00, with other donation options available for those who would like to contribute an additional amount. After the two week period, Rapid Response will be available for single track purchase at online retailers (Itunes, Amazon et al), as well as the Touch and Go Records website. All proceeds from this EP will go directly to Food Not Bombs Minneapolis, Democracy Now and the legal fees for those who have been arrested.

A complete explanation from Ted Leo about this project can be found here.

[Photo Credit: Ryan Russell]

Ted Leo & the Pharmacists Tour Dates:

9-30 Birmingham, AL - WorkPlay *
10-01 Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade *
10-02 Hilton Head, SC - Stages Music and More *
10-03 St. Petersburg, FL - Jannus Landing *
10-04 Lake Buena Vista, FL - House of Blues *
10-05 Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds *
10-07 Greensboro, NC - Greene Street *
10-08 Washington, DC - Black Cat *
10-09 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory *
10-10 Sayreville, NJ - Starland Ballroom *
10-11 New York, NY - Webster Hall *
10-12 Boston, MA - Wilbur Theatre *
10-14 Cincinnati, OH - Bogart's *
10-15 Des Moines, IA - People's Court *
10-16 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue *
10-17 Chicago, IL - Riviera Theater *
10-18 Detroit, MI - Majestic Theatre *
10-20 Omaha, NE - Slowdown *
10-21 Englewood, CO - Gothic Theater *
10-22 Salt Lake City, UT - In the Venue *
10-23 Boise, ID - Knitting Factory *
10-24 Seattle, WA - Showbox *
10-25 Portland, OR - Roseland Theater *
10-27 San Francisco, CA - The Grand Ballroom *
10-28 Los Angeles, CA - The Wiltern *
10-30 San Diego, CA - Casbah #
10-31 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress #
11-02 Norman, OK - The Opolis #
11-03 Columbia, MO - Blue Note #
11-04 Bloomington, IN - Buskirk-Chumley Theatre #
11-05 Pittsburgh, PA - Diesel #

* with Against Me!, Future of the Left
# with Titus Andronicus

Compiled by Blurt Staff

206 digital, satellite and hi-def channels and nothin' on? Not likely. Here are BLURT's top music television picks of the day. The time is followed by the network/cable/satellite channel, then the name of the program and/or featured artist(s). All times are EST. For a comprehensive hour-by-hour listing, go to the VH1 Rock On TV site. Note that for certain channels, shows frequently repeat during the day on or subsequent days.

TIME (EST) / CHANNEL / PROGRAM / ARTIST(S)

SATURDAY, SEPT. 13:

7:00 AM CBS: The Saturday Early Show: David Sanborn

11:00 AM RAVE HD: Soundstage: Steve Winwood

12:30 PM PLD HD: Monterey Pop (1968)

1:00 PM TVONE: James Brown: The Man, The Music & The Message

5:30 PM HBOS: Once (2006)

6:00 PM Sundance: Live from Abbey Road: Mary J. Blige, Dashboard Confessional, James Blunt

8:00 PM PBS: The 60s Live! - My Generation, My Music

9:00 PM PLD HD: Bruce Springsteen - Live in Barcelona

10:00 PM ETV: Saturday Night Live (E!):  Christina Aguilera / Maroon 5

10:00 PM MTV2: Saturday Rock The Deuce:  Alkaline Trio

11:30 PM NBC: Saturday Night Live:  Michael Phelps / Lil Wayne

1:00 AM BBCA: The Graham Norton Show: Alanis Morissette

1:00 AM FUEL: Check 1, 2:  Duane Peters and The Hunns

SUNDAY, SEPT. 14:

6:00 AM Sundance: We Jam Econo: The Story of the Minutemen

10:00 AM RAVE HD: Other Voices: Ray Davies , Candie Payne , Mick Flannery , Glen Hansard , Markéta Irglová

12:00 PM HDNet Concert Series: Mike and the Mechanics and Paul Carrack - Live at Shepherds Bush London

12:30 PM VH1C: Brian Wilson: That Lucky Old Sun

1:30 PM HDNet Concert Series: Eddie Money Live in Detroit

3:00 PM HDNet: LIVE! from Central Park SummerStage: Stellastarr*

4:30 PM HDNet Concert Series: Moe. Live From The Fillmore

5:15 PM Showtime Next: Everyone Stares: The Police Inside Out

9:00 PM Great American Country: Academy of Country Music Awards: The 43rd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards

10:00 PM Comedy Central: Chappelle's Show: Cee-Lo

12:30 AM Comedy Central: Chappelle's Show: DMX

It'll help you keep those lamps trimmed and burning, all you unreconstructed hippies!

By Fred Mills

Fans of vintage West Coast psychedelia and folk-rock with long memories will often tell you, in hushed tones, of the 1972 documentary film FILLMORE: The Last Days, released by 20^th Century Fox, which chronicled the concerts (and events surrounding them) that marked the closing of the legendary Fillmore West in 1971. Groups such as the Jefferson Airplane, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Santana and the Grateful Dead all jammed until the proverbial cows went home.

In '72, also, Fillmore/CBS records also released a lavish boxed set (25 tracks spread across 3 LPs plus a 7" EP, along with a poster, book and backstage pass) from the concerts that eventually became a collector's item. After it went out of print bootleggers took up the cause and it surfaced in various forms over the years until Sony Legacy finally saw fit to put it out as a two-CD; it's still available and boasts very good remastered sound.

As with a lot of rock docs of the era (Woodstock et al), the Fillmore film captured a unique moment in time that, depending on how cynical you are or how rose-tinted your lenses are, was either a socio-cultural wash or a period to be celebrated. At any rate, the documentary has long been a coveted item among VHS and, more recently, DVD-R collectors and traders who've tapped the underground bootleg network to obtain copies of the film - often grainy, 4^th- and 5^th-generation copies (initially taken from original reels but subsequently dubbed and re-dubbed) that'd turn your 20/20 vision into mush.

Now, though, word arrives that on Nov. 11, Rhino will finally reissue the film for the first time on DVD. A full tracklisting of artists and performances can be found below. Meanwhile, here's the scoop from the label:

When the legendary rock impresario Bill Graham closed the Fillmore West in 1971, the San Francisco venue had become an institution, an integral part of the West Coast music scene in the '60s. Always the showman, Graham made sure the Fillmore West was sent off in a blaze of glory, scheduling five nights of concerts featuring bands, like the
Grateful Dead and Santana that got their start at this storied concert hall. Both the madness leading up to the shows and the concerts were filmed for FILLMORE: The Last Days, a documentary originally released in 1972.

The film stands as a vivid time capsule that captures an era in rock history when music had become a major industry and‹for some‹a huge headache. It delivers a gritty, behind-the-scenes look at the music business at a time when many artists were growing jaded by their success, demanding more and more. Disillusioned by the change, Graham decided to get out, pulling the curtain down with five days of concerts that ended on July 4, 1971.
 

In the end, the frantic preparations paid off with a host of marvelous performances from a range of artists who made up what was called "The San Francisco Sound." FILLMORE: The Last Days features highlights from all five nights, including songs by the Grateful Dead ("Casey Jones," "Johnny B. Goode"); Santana ("Incident At Neshabur," "In A Silent Way"); Quicksilver Messenger Service ("Mojo," "Fresh Air"); Jefferson Airplane ("Volunteers" / "We Can Be So Good Together"); along with performances by Boz Scaggs, Cold Blood, Hot Tuna, and Lamb.

Meanwhile, prior to its DVD release, FILLMORE: The Last Days will screen in part at the Mill Valley Film Festival on October 3 at 8 p.m. The festival will present specially chosen clips from the 1972 concert film. The clips, introduced by author and original Rolling Stone editor Ben Fong-Torres (who also wrote the liner notes for the DVD, include performances by Boz Skaggs, Grateful Dead, Santana & Quicksilver Messenger Service.

The evening will also include an all-star panel of music professionals who will offer a detailed, backstage point of view on the events at the Fillmore and a live performance in tribute to FILLMORE: The Last Days. It will include a full set of live music with house band Moonalice, featuring G.E. Smith, Jack Casady, Barry Sless, Pete Sears, Ann McNamee, Roger McNamee, Jimmy Sanchez, and invited guests including Ray Manzarek, Elvin Bishop, Dan Hicks, Bob Weir, Rob Wasserman and Jay Lane, Lydia Pense of Cold Blood, Josh Clark and Trevor Garrod of Tea Leaf Green, and Dan Lebowitz of ALO. (For full ticket information, directions and additional screening times, visit www.mvff.com.)
 
 

FILLMORE: The Last Days Track Listing:

 
"Hello Friends" ­ Lamb
"You Got Me Hummin'" ­ Cold Blood
"I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free" ­ Cold Blood
"Hollywood Blues" ­ Boz Scaggs
"I'll Be Long Gone" ­ Boz Scaggs
"Candy Man" ­ Hot Tuna
"Uncle Sam Blues" ­ Hot Tuna
Rehearsal Jam ­ The Rowan Brothers 
"Isn't It Just A Beautiful Day" ­ Lamb
"Fresh Air" ­ Quicksilver Messenger Service
"Mojo" - Quicksilver Messenger Service
"Volunteers"/ "We Can Be So Good Together" ­ Jefferson Airplane
"Noodle" ­ Jerry Garcia           
Rehearsal Jam ­ Jerry Garcia with The New Riders Of The Purple Sage
"Casey Jones" ­ Grateful Dead
"Johnny B. Goode" ­ Grateful Dead
"White Bird" ­ It's A Beautiful Day
"The Sky Is Crying" ­ The Elvin Bishop Group
"Incident At Neshabur" ­ Santana
"In A Silent Way"/ "Jam" ­ Santana
"In A Silent Way" ­ Santana
 

Don't you think calling a soft drink "Coke Zero Zero 7" is a dumb idea in the first place?

By Fred Mills

Friday brought word that Jack White's OO7 theme song "Another Way To Die," which was commissioned for the Bond Flick Quantum of Solace, had been plucked for a new Coke Zero commercial in a co-branding promotion with the film.

Apparently White was not consulted in the matter, however, as this morning his management issued a statement to that effect and that White does not endorse the commercial.

"Jack White was commissioned by Sony Pictures to write a theme song for the James Bond film Quantum Of Solace, not for Coca Cola," said White's handlers. "Any other use of the song is based on decisions made by others, not by Jack White."

"We are disappointed that you first heard the song in a co-promotion for Coke Zero, rather than in its entirety."

White had previously done music for a Coke commercial but has gone on record as saying that he prefers to treat that as a separate project rather than have pre-existing music used in ads.

Compiled by Blurt Staff

206 digital, satellite and hi-def channels and nothin' on? Not likely. Here are BLURT's top music television picks of the day. The time is followed by the network/cable/satellite channel, then the name of the program and/or featured artist(s). All times are EST. For a comprehensive hour-by-hour listing, go to the VH1 Rock On TV site. Note that for certain channels, shows frequently repeat during the day on or subsequent days.

TIME (EST) / CHANNEL / PROGRAM / ARTIST(S)

7:00 AM CBS: The Early Show: LL Cool J

9:00 AM Syndicated: The Ellen DeGeneres Show: LL Cool J

10:30 AM PLD HD: Nine Inch Nails - Beside You in Time

11:30 AM NICK: Yo Gabba Gabba!: Sean Kingston , Mark Mothersbaugh

12:00 PM Biography: Phil Spector

1:00 PM PLD HD: Isle of Wight Festival 2008 w/The Police , The Sex Pistols , Iggy Pop , The Stooges , Kate Nash , N.E.R.D.

2:30 PM FUEL: The Daily Habit: Langhorne Slim

5:00 PM Ovation: Jazz Heroes: Ella Fitzgerald: The Singer Not The Song

6:00 PM RAVE HD: From The Basement: Sonic Youth , Jose Gonzalez , Laura Marling

8:00 PM ABC: The 2008 ALMA Awards w/Will.I.Am , Mariachi Los Camperos De Nati Cano , Linda Ronstadt , Shakira , The Cheetah Girls , Sergio Mendes

9:00 PM Comedy Central: Chappelle's Show: Common , Kanye West

10:00 PM Sundance: Rolling Stones Gimme Shelter

11:00 PM PLD HD: MTV Live: R.E.M.

12:00 AM FUEL: Best of The Daily Habit Music w/Lupe Fiasco , MGMT , The Kooks , Tim Fite

11:30 PM PBS: Tavis Smiley: Harry Belafonte

11:35 PM NBC: The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Raphael Saadiq

11:50 PM Encore Mystery: Videodrome (1983)

12:00 AM Sundance: The Life and Hard Times of Guy Terrifico (2005)

12:05 AM ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Justin Nozuka

1:35 AM NBC: Last Call with Carson Daly: The Game

2:00 AM FUSE: No. 1 Countdown: Duffy

2:00 AM Ovation: Elvis Costello & the Imposters: Club Date

2:30 AM MTV2: Celebrity Deathmatch: Rev Run , Russell Simmons

Stripes/Raconteurs mainman goes 007 with the soft drink giant.

By Fred Mills

Remember that 007 theme song we told you about that Jack White was creating for the upcoming James Bond Flick Quantum of Solace? The one with Alicia Keys guesting? The UK news media is reporting that Coca Cola has licensed portions of the song "Another Way to Die" for use in an international ad campaign - Coke Zero will be temporarily re-named Zero Zero 7 (that would be 007 to all you numerically-challenged readers).

You can view the ad, which is clearly an homage to the whole stylized Bond-babes-noir aesthetic, HERE.

Recall that back in 2005 White also did an ad for Coke (not a shabby payday, to say the least) and he commented at the time to the NME that he was attracted to the idea of creating a new song if it was an "interesting" commercial but that he "certainly wouldn't want a song that I'd already written to be used on a commercial."

You can view that decidedly White Stripes-ian (visually speaking) ad below. Do we detect a strong Small Faces influence in the music?