Archive for October, 2007

Bon Jovi Takes on the World

Monday, October 29th, 2007

Bon Jovi embarks on a world tour of more than 10 countries, beginning with the United States and Canada this fall. Following its 10-night stand at the $375 million, 18,000-capacity Prudential Center, which ends Nov. 10, the Bon Jovi Lost Highway World Tour will visit North American arenas through April 8. Tickets for U.S. dates go on sale Nov. 3, with additional markets to follow in the coming weeks.

AEG Live, the live entertainment division of Los Angeles-based AEG, will produce the tour in North America and Europe. The tour is scheduled to make stops in Japan, New Zealand, England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Holland and Austria, among other countries. The trek is in support of Bon Jovi’s latest album, “Lost Highway,” which has sold 862,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Here are Bon Jovi’s North American concert dates: You can bet I will try and see at least two of them.

Oct. 26, 28, 30, Nov. 1, 3-4, 7, 9-10: Newark, N.J. (Prudential Center)
Nov. 14-15: Montreal, Quebec (Bell Centre)
Nov. 17: Ottawa, Ontario (Scotiabank Bank Place)
Nov. 19: London, Ontario (John Labatt Centre)
Dec. 6-7: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Dec. 9: Winnipeg, Manitoba (MTS Centre)
Dec. 10: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Credit Union Centre)
Dec. 12: Edmonton, Alberta (Rexall Place)
Dec. 13: Calgary, Alberta (Pengrowth Saddledome)
Dec. 15-16: Vancouver (GM Place)
Feb. 18: Omaha, Neb. (Qwest Center)
Feb. 20: Detroit (the Palace of Auburn Hills)
Feb. 23-24: Chicago (United Center)
Feb. 28: Washington, D.C. (Verizon Center)
March 2-3: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center)
March 5: Pittsburgh (Mellon Arena)
March 10: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
March 18: St. Paul, Minn. (Xcel Energy Center)
March 31: Denver (Pepsi Center)
April: San Jose, Calif. (HP Pavilion)
April 4-5: Anaheim, Calif. (Honda Center)
April 8: Phoenix (Jobing.com Arena)
April 9: Los Angeles (Staples Center)
April 14: Dallas (American Airlines Center)
April 15: Oklahoma City (Ford Center)
April 20: Kansas City, Mo. (Sprint Center)
April 22: Des Moines, Iowa (Wells Fargo Arena)
April 24: Nashville (Sommet Center)
April 26: Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (BankAtlantic Center)
April 27: Tampa, Fla. (St. Pete Times Forum)
April 30: Atlanta (Philips Arena)

Beatles Film Release

Sunday, October 28th, 2007

Apple Corps Ltd have announced the much anticipated DVD release of The Beatles’ second feature film ‘Help!’ on November 5th, which will be marketed and distributed by EMI Music.  Directed by Richard Lester, who also directed the band’s debut feature film ‘A Hard Days Night’, ‘Help!’ made its theatrical debut in 1965.

The story follows The Beatles as they become passive recipients of an outside plot that revolves around Ringo’s possession of a sacrificial ring, which he cannot remove from his finger. As a result, he and his bandmates John, Paul and George are chased from London to the Austrian Alps and the Bahamas by religious cult members, a mad scientist & the London police.

In addition to starring the Beatles, ‘Help!’ has a witty script, a great cast of British character actors and features 7 classic Beatles tracks, including:

• ‘Help!’
• ‘You’re Going To Lose That Girl’
• ‘You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away’
• ‘Ticket To Ride’
• ‘I Need You’
• ‘The Night Before’
• ‘Another Girl’

The DVD will be a 2-disc set.

There will be 2 editions of the DVD - a standard digipack and a deluxe boxed set that will contain a reproduction of Richard Lester’s original annotated script, 8 lobby cards and a poster, plus a 60-page book with rarely seen photographs and production notes from the movie.

Both the deluxe book and the standard booklet feature an introduction by Richard Lester and an appreciation by Martin Scorsese.  This one is a “must have” for any serious Beatles collector.

Clinton Bash

Monday, October 1st, 2007

After getting hundreds of pledges to tackle the world’s problems at his philanthropic summit, former President Bill Clinton did what any good host would: He threw a huge party.  Music, celebrity and politics mixed Saturday night at Harlem’s Apollo Theatre, where Clinton was joined by Bono, Chris Rock, Shakira and Alicia Keyes for a roundtable discussion on youth activism.

Clinton called on each young member of the audience to “be a citizen servant, a giver, because we have to have a vital society,” before announcing the Clinton Global Initiative’s first youth summit, called CGI U, planned for next year at Tulane University in New Orleans.  Like the three-day Clinton Global Initiative philanthropic summit this week, the college version aims to bring together attendees to tackle global issues like sustainable development and poverty.

The former president and the other superstar panelists took questions from the audience before giving up the stage to performances by hip-hop artist Wyclef Jean and soulful singer Keyes.  Clinton got some laughs from the crowd when he told them he was fulfilling a lifelong ambition.

“You know, I grew up playing music, and all my life I’ve wanted to play the Apollo,” he said.

At this week’s event, participants including heads of state, celebrities and business executives made 245 pledges on efforts such as treating neglected tropical diseases, protecting forests and enabling children to go to school for the first time.  Many of the celebrities on hand Saturday night had already made promises this past week at the summit.

Shakira said she would commit $40 million to help Peru and Nicaragua through ALAS, a coalition of artists and intellectuals committed to social change in Latin America.  MTV, which is partnering with the Clinton initiative on the youth activism summit, was to broadcast Saturday’s event on several of its networks and online at its recently launched Think.MTV.com Web site.