| CMU Daily - on the inside 6 Nov 2002 |
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In today's CMU Daily:
• More tributes at Jam Master Jay funeral,
• New tracks on posthumous Tupac album,
• Midweek chart update,
• Review: Pat Barry – Do Your Dance,
• Beck’s stage gets blown away,
• CD:UK criticised for Pink t-shirt,
• Lennon recording expected to sell for £60k,
• Tarrant’s six month a year holiday,
• Review: Tranparent Sound - Emotional Amputation,
• Coldplay announce arena dates,
• Work begins on the new media regulator
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What four films has James Brown been in?
Answer tomorrow
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MORE TRIBUTES AT JAM MASTER JAY FUNERAL
According to the New York Times police are hoping to question a man from "the South" who had been feuding with Jam Master Jay in connection with the murder of the Run DMC star. New York attorney Marvyn Kornberg has subsequently told reporters a man who believes he is the person police have referred to has acquired his services. Word is the man will only answer police questions if he is arrested and charged.
Meanwhile friends, family, colleagues and fans of Jay amassed on Queens yesterday for the star’s funeral. A fleet of white stretch limousines was parked outside the Allen A.M.E. Cathedral where the funeral took place. Jay’s band mate Darryl DMC McDaniels paid tribute: "Jam Master Jay was not a thug. Jam Master Jay was not a gangster. Jam Master Jay was a unique individual. He was the embodiment of hip-hop." He then did a rap from the band's song ‘Jam Master Jay’.
Prior to the funeral hip hop mogul Russell Simmons, brother of Run DMC’s Joseph ‘Run’ Simmons, confirmed he had joined forces with Jay’s bandmates, New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, the New York City Police Department, Jay-Z, Aerosmith, Kid Rock, Island / Def Jam Records chairman Lyor Cohen and Def Jam Records president Kevin Liles to help aid the Mizell family.
"This broad-based coalition was formed to provide immediate financial help to Jay's family," Simmons told reporters. "The coalition is seeking to raise the necessary money to pay off the mortgage for the family's home for Jay's wife, Terry Corley-Mizell. Many of us lost a dear friend and an inspiration when Jay was killed. The work of the coalition is to see to it that his family gets the assistance it needs as they try to overcome this tragedy."
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NEW TRACKS ON POSTHUMOUS TUPAC ALBUM
Another posthumous album from Tupac Shakur will be released in the US later this month. ‘Better Dayz’, a double CD, will feature a string of guest rappers who have added lyrics to tracks Tupac was working on just before he was murdered. Nas, Trick Daddy, Mya, Ronald ‘Mr. Biggs’ Isley, Tyrese and the Outlawz all appear; production duties comes from 7 Aurelius (Ja Rule), Jazze Pha (Ludacris) and Frank Nitty (Big Punisher).
Some of the proceeds from the release will go to the Tupac Shakur Foundation, which provides training to aspiring artists and is planning to open the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts (TASCA), which will include a museum of the rapper's work and artifacts, in 2003.
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MIDWEEK CHART UPDATE
Chartswise it’s a battle between the new one from boyband Blue and U2’s greatest hits for the number one spot in the album chart. Midweek figures suggest Blue's 'One Love' is in the lead, though U2 may benefit from weekend sales so it’s too close to call.
David Gray, who went straight in at number one this week, is expected to slip back to three, Gareth Gates to fall from 2 to 4, and Nirvana from 3 to 5.
Singles wise the truly mediocre 'Unbreakable' from Westlife (and that’s mediocre by Westlife’s standards!) is expected to go straight in at number one. DJ Sammy, Nelly and Las Ketchup will fall in place between 2 and 4, with the new one from Shania Twain – 'Gonna Getcha Good' – expected to be a new entry at number five.
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REVIEW: Pat Barry – Do Your Dance (Toko Records)
As Barry’s first artist LP it is a fine example of the UK’s deep house scene. Slow, and heavily influenced by the eighties vibe that seems to be infecting everything made in Britain at the moment, from indie to metal to drum & bass to disgusting soft furnishings. Barry keeps it low key, with a lot of instrumental synthesizer noodlings complemented by a refreshing break from the constant 4/4 of so much house. JG
Release date: 25 Nov
Press contact: Rocket Science [all]
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BECK’S STAGE GETS BLOWN AWAY
If ever there was a good excuse for canceling a gig this is it! Beck, currently on tour with the Flaming Lips as his backing band, had to cancel his Acapulco date – the reason posted on his website: "A tornado blew the stage apart before they were able to play”.
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CD:UK CRITICISED FOR PINK T-SHIRT
TV watchdogs have upheld complaints against ITV’s pop show CD:UK after they screening a performance by Pink where she wore a t-shirt bearing the words ‘you fuckin bitch’. The ITC, the commercial TV regulator, said it was irresponsible for ITV to screen the performance on a show aimed predominantly at children – even if they did so by mistake. The programme's producers say the performance was pre-recorded by the record label and provided ready to air – it seems no one at CD:UK checked it first.
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LENNON RECORDING EXPECTED TO SELL FOR £60K
A tape recording of John Lennon singing to his stepdaughter Kyoko is expected to fetch £60,000 - £80,000 when it goes under the hammer at an auction of Beatles memorabilia later this month. The recording was made on Kyoko and Lennon’s first meeting at the home of Yoko Ono’s ex-husband Tony Cox.
Robert Boella of auctioneers Cooper Owen told NME: "The tapes are really personal, family things. Lennon hadn't met her before and Yoko hadn't seen her for years. It was like they were really trying to make an effort, and Yoko sounds quite strained and upset. Just listening to them gives you shivers down your spine."
Also up for sale is a 17,000-piece 10-foot, two-tonne mosaic depicting an "all seeing eye" which Lennon made for the floor of the swimming pool at his home, Kenwood House. The story goes the people who bought the house after Lennon had the mosaic removed and buried the stones in their back garden! A subsequent owner, having heard this story, spent six years digging up the stones and recreating the mosaic. It is now expected to fetch between £150,000 and £250,000.
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TARRANT’S SIX MONTH A YEAR HOLIDAY
First he was leaving. Then he wasn’t. Now it seems it’s somewhere in between. Capital Radio is reported to have admitted that although Chris Tarrant will front its new look breakfast show, he will have nearly six months holiday per year, meaning for every week he presents the show he’ll take a week off.
A Capital insider told the Media Guardian: "He won't take all the holiday all in one chunk - it will be a week on, week off sort of thing. Neil Fox is going to be the anchor while he's not in the studio. God knows what listeners will think, let alone the City. It's a dog's dinner.”
Capital were desperate to keep Tarrant – his show accounts for 15% of the group's income. Station bosses are frightened of what his depature would do to their ratings and share price, just as new regulation on media-ownership is likely to cause a frenzy of merger and acquisition in the UK radio industry. So desperate were Capital management Tarrant could negotiate this incredibly good contract.
The station will argue that their new look breakfast show will depend less on the presenter’s personality, and that the new system will enable them to ease Neil Fox in as the flagship presenter when Tarrant finally retires at the end of 2003. They will also point out that a new female co-presenter, expected to be announced in the next few weeks, will provide consistency during next year and when Tarrant finally leaves. But some media commentators reckon Tarrant’s frequent breaks will encourage listeners to start sampling other radio stations at breakfast.
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REVIEW: Tranparent Sound - Emotional Amputation (Electrix Records)
Straight out of Bognor Regis comes Orson Bramley and Martin Brown - signed to Billy Nasty's label as Transparent Sound. Pushing the electro vibe - this duo have comprised a rather good 12 tracker. From the brooding stealth of 'Dead Reckoning' to the superb tech affair in 'Strip Lit Sex' this duo show they have been at this game since 1994. 'Simpletons' has a Kraftwerk feel to it, and the coal-faced dynamics of 'Small Indignities' to the minimal swirlings of 'Open Your Box'. 'Memory Baggage' OD's on keys and synths 'Lego Hair' is a bit aimless - but there is no filler. A good display of ware and not too anally retentive. Maybe they are cashing in on the electroclash movement with their rework of classic 'Fade to Grey' but this LP is well worth a check if electro presses your buttons. PV
Released 11 Nov Press: Rocketscience Media
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COLDPLAY ANNOUNCE ARENA DATES
Hot on the heels of their sell out UK tour Coldplay have announced two arena dates for 2003. They will play Manchester MEN Arena on 14 Apr and Earls Court in London on 16 Apr. Tickets go on sale on Saturday.
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WORK BEGINS ON THE NEW MEDIA REGULATOR
Lord Currie has started to organise the government’s new media and communication regulator OfCom, a move which involves merging the five existing regulators: the Independent Television Commission, the Broadcasting Standards Commission, the Radio Authority, the Radiocommunications Agency and telecoms watchdog Oftel. There is no word on senior staff at the new agency, though its board is more or less in place.
Dominic Morris, head of policy at the ITC, has been asked to take up a similar position at Ofcom, while Eve Salomon, currently legal adviser to the Radio Authority, will be secretary to the board.
The board itself will include current Radio Authority chairman Richard Hooper, former New Statesman and Independent editor Ian Hargreaves, former Channel 4 News editor Sara Nathan, former BT director Urmila Banerjee and Oftel director general David Edmonds. The post post of Chief Executive will be advertised next week – favourite for the job is ITC chief executive, Patricia Hodgson.
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Answer to Tuesday's pop quiz:
Who said: “I want to be an artist who is appreciated. Maybe I should do something for cancer research or something”?
Diana Ross