CMU
Daily - on the inside Tuesday
15th March
In
today's CMU Daily:
- More hole picking by Mesereau: Jacko trial update
- Vance funeral today
- Dutch ISPs reach compromise to help labels fight P2P copyright
violation
- Bollywood counterfeits seized in Rotterdam
- Peter Kay video likely to top singles chart
- Eurovision hosts alter lyrics over political concerns
- Prosecution sum up in Lil Kim trial
- More Glasto line up news
- Christian group take legal action over Springer musical
- Kasabian play fans at football
- Bono launches fair trade fashion line
- Mel C reckons Spice Girls should have appeared in Brits celebrations
- Gorillaz album date set
- Queen did contemplate Robbie fronted tour
- Lennon lyrics to be displayed at Luton airport
- More acts added to US Hall Of Fame
- O'Jays not impressed with Hall Of Fame inductor
--------------------------------------------------
CMU
PRESS ROOM>>
KILL
ALL HIPPIES RETURNS
After a short break, legendary rock night Kill All Hippies returns
in 2005 with a special music alliance with TuneTribe.com, fabulous
new artwork and two new rooms!! In 2004 Kill All Hippies introduced
some of the bands of 2005: Kasabian, The Duke Spirit, The Others,
The Rakes, 80's Matchbox B-line Disaster and Little Barrie,
to name a few. Watch out again because this year Kill All Hippies
will be the nurturing ground for another clutch of fabulous
British talent, destined for great things. This month the live
line up includes Planet Of Women, Youth Of Britain, Riff Random
and Elviss, with DJ sets from residents Eddy Temple Morris,
Jeff Automatic and Syrinx, plus the NME DJs. All take place
on Friday March 25th at Canvas, York Way, London, N1; 8.30pm
- late; tickets £5 (£3 in advance). Full press release
at:
http://www.cmumusicnetwork.co.uk/pressroom/killallhippies
Advertise
your releases and events to CMU Daily's 6500+ readership - classified
ad and online press release package just £50 a year. Email
sales@cmumusicnetwork.co.uk for details, or check:
http://www.cmumusicnetwork.co.uk/pressroom/info.pdf
--------------------------------------------------
MORE
HOLE PICKING BY MESEREAU: JACK TRIAL UPDATE
Bit late today because Thomas Mesereau has been picking holes
in everything we say. He's very good at it. Yesterday Mesereau
spent much of his time trying to find inconsistencies in the
testimony of Gavin Arviso, the teenager at the heart of the
latest Michael Jackson child abuse case. It led to a number
of exchanges between the lawyer and witness that the BBC described
as "testy".
First
up Mesereau again honed in on past statements by Arvizo in which
he denied Jackson had behaved inappropriately around him. Of
particular concern was a conversation he had had with one Jeffrey
Alpert, a teacher at his school. Reading from a transcript of
that conversation Mesereau quoted the teacher as saying: "Look
at me, look at me... I can't help you unless you tell me the
truth - did any of this happen?" Gavin admitted: "I
told Mr Alpert he [Jackson] didn't do anything to me".
While
focusing on Gavin's school, Mesereau took time to talk through
the teenager's record there. Under questioning Gavin admitted
he had been disruptive, rarely did homework and regularly argued
with his teachers. Presumably those questions were part of the
defence's ongoing attempt to portray Jacko's accuser and his
family as unreliable witnesses though, it has to be said, statically
speaking not only good children are abused.
The
case continues.
--------------------------------------------------
VANCE
FUNERAL TODAY
The funeral of the late great rock radio DJ Tommy Vance, who
died earlier this month, is taking place at the Golders Green
crematorium today (in fact by the time you read this it will
probably have happened). Friends said they hope the event would
be a "celebration of his life".
--------------------------------------------------
DUTCH
ISPS REACH COMPROMISE TO HELP LABELS FIGHT P2P COPYRIGHT VIOLATION
Now
here's an interesting idea - compromise. Internet service providers
in the Netherlands have reached a compromise with the record
labels there regarding the campaign against the illegal sharing
of copyright music via P2P platforms like Kazaa and Grokster.
As
previously reported, record labels can only trace illegal file
sharing to the IP addresses of the guilty parties - the internet
service providers hold the key to the actual identities of those
individuals. Music industry associations have tried to use copyright
legislation to force ISPs to hand over that contact information
as a matter of course.
However
internet service providers are cautious in making the identities
of their consumers known to third parties, officially because
they don't want to run the risk of falsely accusing their customers
(the way record labels identify copyright violation isn't completely
reliable) and, it might be argued, also because the existence
of P2P networks has been a useful tool for ISPs in driving up
the sales of broadband.
For
a time in the US the courts forced the ISPs to automatically
hand over the contact information of suspected copyright violators,
however that decision was later overruled. Now the record labels
have to begin legal action against individual lawsuits as 'John
Doe' cases, proving to the courts an IP address is being used
for copyright violation before launching litigation against
the specific individual. This makes the whole process much more
expensive and time consuming.
As
a way of compromise five Dutch ISPs have agreed to send warning
letters to any of its customers the music industry suspects
of violating copyright via P2P networks. This letter will be
drafted by the Brain Institute, with represents various Dutch
labels and entertainment companies. If customers can be shown
to have ignored one of those warning letters the ISP will assist
to an extent in the record label's attempts to proceed with
legal action.
It
remains to be seen if that compromise is adopted elsewhere -
the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry did
recently appeal to ISPs across Europe to work with them in their
fight against online copyright theft.
--------------------------------------------------
BOLLYWOOD
COUNTERFEITS SEIZED IN ROTTERDAM
Also coming from our Dutch Music Piracy desk (they've been very
busy recently), news that over 140,000 counterfeit CDs and DVDs
have been seized in 13 raids by anti-piracy officers in Rotterdam,
The Netherlands. The stash of disks were more or less exclusively
Bollywood films and music, seemingly originating from Pakistan
- one of the major sources of illegal copies of popular Indian
CDs and DVDs.
Commenting
on the raid, Iain Grant of the International Federation of the
Phonographic Industry told the CMU Dutch Music Piracy team:
"This is an important seizure, highlighting the growing
problem of pirate disc exports from Pakistan. That country is
now one of the world's major sources of pirate CDs and DVDs.
Disc production is practically unregulated and this is having
a serious effect on Indian repertoire and rightsholders. Very
little is being done in Pakistan to tackle the problem - urgent
action is needed from the government to regulate disc manufacture
and introduce proper enforcement against this illegal trade."
Speaking
to our Dutch Music Piracy Team's London correspondent, Dave
Martin, of the BPI added: "Our work with UK customs and
other border officials has helped to stem the tide of pirate
Indian titles which traditionally came into the UK and were
then distributed into other European countries. As a result
of sustained action against this trade we believe the pirates
are switching to other entry points in Europe."
--------------------------------------------------
PETER
KAY VIDEO LIKELY TO TOP SINGLES CHART
Chart news, and it looks like Tony Christie will be topping
the charts this weekend, thanks primarily to that genius video
created by comedian Peter Kay for Comic Relief. The video sees
Kay lip-syncing to Christie's 'Is This The Way To Amarillo'
joined by a stack of celebs including Michael Parkinson, Jimmy
Savile and Ronnie Corbett. After the video aired on Friday night's
Comic Relief TV show the CD single was released yesterday in
aid of the fundraiser, and it shifted over 40,000 copies in
one day. That's some way ahead of its nearest rival - McFly's
Comic Relief single - meaning it is quite likely to top the
charts this weekend. The video comes on the CD which is presumably
the reason most people are buying it - possibly launching an
interesting trend where classic tracks might top the singles
chart if they come with a comedy video.
Commenting
on the project Tony Christie told reporters: "When Peter
Kay and Comic Relief approached me about doing this, I was thrilled
and hope that it will help raise lots of money for such a great
cause."
--------------------------------------------------
EUROVISION
HOSTS ALTER LYRICS OVER POLITICAL CONCERNS
The host nation of this year's Eurovision Song Contest have
had to rewrite the lyrics for their entry because organisers
feared it was too political. The Ukraine entry is by Greenjolly
and is called 'Together We Are Many'. Last year it was adopted
by protestors after the country's disputed presidential election,
leading Eurovision organisers to fear it would prove to be too
political if performed as part of the song competition.
To
overcome those issues Greenjolly have now written a new set
of lyrics which Eurovision bosses say are OK, though presumably
those Ukrainians in the audience who helped Viktor Yushchenko
become president of their country through those protests will
sing along with the original politically charged words - which
went something along the lines of: "No to falsifications...
No to lies. Yushchenko - yes! Yushchenko - yes! This is our
president - yes, yes!"
--------------------------------------------------
PROSECUTION
SUM UP IN LIL KIM TRIAL
Back to the pop courts, and prosecutors in the Lil Kim perjury
trial have summed up by saying the rapper "believed she
was above the law" and that she thought "being a star
allowed her to lie to a grand jury". Kim, prosecutors argued,
was guilty of "buying into her own image".
As
previously reported, Kim faces 30 years in jail if she is found
guilty of lying to a grand jury investigation into a 2001 shooting
that took place as the rapper left New York's Hot 97 radio station.
Prosecutors say Kim lied when she told the grand jury that she
didn't know who was involved in the shooting.
--------------------------------------------------
MORE
GLASTO LINE UP NEWS
Glastonbury man Michael Eavis has revealed a little more of
the line up for this year's festival. Again confirming that
Brian Wilson and Kylie will play, he told Radio 2's Johnnie
Walker that Van Morrison, The Undertones and Elvis Costello
are all also on the bill. Tickets for Glasto go on sale on 3
Apr.
--------------------------------------------------
CHRISTIAN
GROUP TAKE LEGAL ACTION OVER SPRINGER MUSICAL
A Christian group has applied for a judicial review of the BBC's
decision to broadcast 'Jerry Springer - The Opera' - if judges
find that the Corporation was at fault by screening the show
they will force BBC bosses to go back in time and not screen
it.
The
legal action is being pursued by the Newcastle based Christian
Institute, which is different than the Christian Voice organisation
that coordinated much of the protests in the run up to the TV
screening - a campaign which succeeded in persuading 47,000
people to air their disapproval of the show (well, their disapproval
of the concept of the show mainly - most complained before they'd
seen it).
Christian
Institute bosses say the BBC broke its own charter in screening
the controversial West End show, as well as violating the European
Convention for Human Rights which forbids religious discrimination.
The organisation's boss, Colin Hart, told reporters that the
musical was "the most offensive and spiteful show ever
broadcast by the BBC" adding: "There may be many shows
running in West End theatres that I find offensive, but I am
not paying for them to be pumped into my living room. I am appalled
that a publicly-funded body should be so contemptuous of the
people who pay for its upkeep. The BBC has a duty to respect
the religious beliefs of its viewers."
The
BBC say the matter is with their legal department. God was unavailable
for comment.
--------------------------------------------------
KASABIAN
PLAY FANS AT FOOTBALL
Kasabian, who re-release 'Club Foot' on Monday, will be playing
their fans at football next Wednesday (23 Mar), though only
in the virtual sense. Fans with networked X-boxes will be able
to go online and take on the band at Pro Evolution Soccer. More
info at http://www.xbox.com/en-GB/live/calendar/default.htm
.
--------------------------------------------------
BONO
LAUNCHES FAIR TRADE FASHION LINE
A music star launching a fashion line isn't unusual. A music
star launching a fashion line that doesn't rely on third world
sweat shops - well, depending on who you believe, that is more
unusual. Anyway, Bono is continuing in his bid to be 'the nicest
person in the world' by launching a clothing company that aims
to provide sustainable employment in third world countries.
The Edun label will make jeans, jackets and dresses and sell
them in the West but, most importantly, will also control where
the clothes are made ensuring the African communities used genuinely
benefit from the enterprise.
--------------------------------------------------
MEL
C RECKONS SPRICE GIRLS SHOULD HAVE APPEARED IN BRITS CELEBRATIONS
Now, we love Mel C here at CMU, but we don't share her viewpoint
that Brit Award organisers were at fault when they chose to
ignore the Spice Girls in their celebration of their 25th anniversary
earlier this year. Mel C is quoted as saying: "I feel there
should have been some recognition of the Spice Girls at this
year's 25th anniversary. We flew the flag for Britain around
the world in the '90s and we achieved a hell of a lot."
She's right of course, but is there anyone who would actually
list a Spice Girls record in their top ten records of the last
25 years? Case closed.
--------------------------------------------------
GORILLAZ
ALBUM DATE SET
So much potential for a Oasis v Blur style release battle this
summer, but alas no one has chosen to go that way. Which means
we've got a Coldplay release coming just after an Oasis release
coming just after a Gorillaz release. Confirmation of the latter
was given yesterday - the new album from Albarn et al will be
'Demon Days' out on 23 May, with a single release, 'Feel Good
Inc', out on 9 May.
--------------------------------------------------
QUEEN
DID CONTEMPLATE ROBBIE FRONTED TOUR
Queen's Roger Taylor and Brian May have told Capital Gold they
did consider working with Robbie Williams on some projects at
one time, but that in the end they decided not to go that route.
There was speculation when Robbie recorded a version of 'We
Are the Champions' for the 2001 movie 'A Knights Tale' that
he might tour with Queen, but that never came off. Then, when
Taylor and May announced last year that they would tour again
but with former Free frontman Paul Rodgers as a frontman, rumour
had it Robbie was annoyed at being 'over looked' as a possible
new vocalist for Queen.
Speaking
to Capital, Rodger Taylor admitted they did consider touring
with Robbie back in 2001: "I think America appealed to
him and he... I think he was sort of quite keen on the idea
at one point, and it did seem like a good idea, and then I think
we all sort of drew back a little - thought about it a little
harder, and then thought 'Maybe not', you know".
Brian
May continued: "We got close with Robbie... yeah. Absolutely.
Yeah, we talked to him, but not in an auditioning kinda way.
We just thought 'Wouldn't it be fun if we did something'. We
kind of talked about it and talked about it and came close but..."
Talking
about the up coming Queen tour, May explained that the third
surviving member of the band - bass player John Deacon - would
not be involved because he "doesn't want the stress of
touring".
--------------------------------------------------
LENNON
LYRICS TO BE DISPLAYED AT LUTON AIRPORT
The words of the Beatles hit 'All You Need Is Love' are to be
written on the walls of Luton airport after they were voted
the greatest words of all time in an internet poll.
The
poll was run by a body charged with the tricky task of promoting
Luton. The Lennon penned lyrics beat Churchill's "Never
in the field of human conflict" and the Bible's "Man
does not live by bread alone" in the public vote. "Unto
Thine Own Self Be True" was the second most popular, with
"All Journeys Begin With A First Step" in third place.
Commenting
on the poll, Paul Kehoe, Managing Director of Luton Airport,
told reporters: "The winning quotation is a great choice
as the words will send out an immediate, positive and life affirming
message to all visitors arriving in the UK at London Luton Airport".
Tony
Edwards, PR for Luton First, the promotional body who organised
the poll, said: "It was interesting to see that the title
of a 1960s' song should be in the forefront of public imagination
more than 40 years on."
Luton
is not the only British airport that will be displaying a Lennon
lyric of course. Liverpool's airport is now named in Lennon's
honour with a strapline taken from his solo hit 'Imagine' -
"above us only sky".
--------------------------------------------------
MORE
ACTS ADDED TO US HALL OF FAME
U2, The Pretenders, Percy Sledge, the O'Jays, blues legend Buddy
Guy and Sire Records co-founder Seymour Stein were all welcomed
into the US Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame at a gala event in New
York last night.
When Bruce Springsteen entered the Hall Of Fame back in 1999,
it was U2's Bono who oversaw the induction, so it was apt that
Springsteen led the tributes as Bono's own band were inducted
last night.
Referencing
to the opening of the band's recent hit single 'Vertigo', Springsteen
joked: "Unos, dos, tres, catorce; that translates as 1,2,3,14.
That is the correct math for a rock'n'roll band". He went
on to recall the time he saw an early U2 gig and how he marvelled
at "the young Bono, single-handedly pioneering the Irish
mullet. U2 hungered for it all and built a sound, and they wrote
the songs that demanded it."
Before
playing his set at the Hall Of Fame show, Bono joked: "This
is a bit of an Irish wedding. Beautiful girls in beautiful frocks,
fights in the bathroom, lawyers with bloody noses."
Accepting
a place in the Hall Of Fame for the Pretenders, Chrissie Hynde
paid tribute to late members Honeyman-Scott and Pete Farndon,
"without whom we wouldn't be here. On the other hand, without
us they might have been here, but that's the way it works in
rock'n'roll."
Both
BB King and Eric Clapton paid tribute to Buddy Guy. Clapton
said: "Buddy personified all that the modern bluesman needed
to be. His technique is and was unique." King, meanwhile,
added: "I never was as handsome as he is. I think [King's
guitar] Lucille liked him better."
Guy
responded: "To be in company like this tonight, I'm just
out of words. I just want to play for you."
Highlights
of the twentieth annual Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame ceremony
will be shown on VH1 in the US this weekend.
--------------------------------------------------
O'JAYS
NOT IMPRESSED WITH HALL OF FAME INDUCTOR
Elsewhere in Hall Of Fame news, the O'Jays have told reporters
they were not impressed with the artist chosen to induct them
- Mr Justin Timberlake. The group's Eddie Levert admitted: "We
protested, kicked and stomped. But it is out of our control."
Bandmate
Walter Williams added: "No offence to Justin, because he
deserves the respect he has earned, but I could think of a few
people who know more about our pain and suffering and history."
Which
hardly seems far. Justin did cry a river over Britney didn't
he? And wasn't he a performer on the Mikey Mouse Club TV show?
Surely that's a kind of suffering.