Music Week articles from June 2005

Music Week archives from June 2005

Live 8 gets set for July: Geldof to unveil details on Tuesday.(Live)
June 4, 2005... Bob Geldof is finally set to officially lift the lid tomorrow (Tuesday) on next month's Live 8 concert. The Band Aid co-founder is due to address an afternoon press conference at London's Grosvenor House Hotel, where he is expected to...

Live Aid duo win second Ivor gong.
June 4, 2005... In advance of this week's expected Live 8 announcement, Band Aid composers Bob Geldof and Midge Ure picked up the second Ivor Novello Award for Do They Know Its Christmas? from Sting (right) last Thursday. The award, for the best-selling UK...

Capital DJ to host creative awards.(Exposure)
June 4, 2005... Capital FM's drivetime presenter Richard Bacon has been lined up to host this Wednesday's Cads 05 Music Vision Awards taking place at London's Royal Lancaster Hotel on June 1. Ladytron will DJ at the aftershow party at the event, which is...

Fashion Rocks.(Exposure)
June 4, 2005... Bands and designers are being lined up for the second Fashion Rocks event in Monaco later this year. The October 17 show, in aid of youth charity The Prince's Trust, will bring together a dozen of the world's biggest fashion designers and music...

American Idol.(Exposure)
June 4, 2005... Country singer Carrie Underwood has won the fourth series of American idol after winning the public vote over co-finalist Bo Bice. Some 28.1m viewers tuned in to watch the two-hour final.

Apple Store.(Exposure)
June 4, 2005... Tom Vek is to play a gig at London's Apple Store tomorrow (Tuesday) as part of iTunes' Live From London series. Stereophonics began the series last month.

Midem.(Exposure)
June 4, 2005... Finland is to co-host the opening night party of next year's Midem, providing a showcase for Finnish acts. The night is being jointly organised by newly-created trade association Export Finland, with the backing of the Finnish Ministries Of...

Get Loaded.(Exposure)
June 4, 2005... Get Loaded has announced the full line-up for its Get Loaded In The Park festival. Headliners The Happy Mondays are joined by Stereo MCs, Armand Van Helden and Flowered Up at the August 28 event on Clapham Common.

Major to create indie network.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... Universal is creating a London-based worldwide dance network through which it intends to coordinate the release and promotion of dance music from independent labels. The network will compromise A&R and marketing executives from key territories...

Gorillaz.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... Gorillaz have become the second UK-signed Parlophone act in the past few weeks to make the Top 20 Billboard Hot 100, after Feels Good Inc climbed 57 places to 17. Labelmates Coldplay's Speed Of Sound debuted at eight on the chart at the end of...

Sony BMG.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... Sony BMG chief executive Andy Lack painted an uncertain picture for the future of the music industry at last week's Reuters Telecoms, Media and Technology Summit in Paris. While he acknowledged the importance of downloads, ringtones and dual...

Buena Vista Social Club.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... The High Court dispute over ownership of music popularised by the Buena Vista Social Club phenomenon has been adjourned until October. US company Peer International Corporation, which is the original publishing rights holder, is suing Termidor...

Vodafone.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... Vodafone has signed 2.4m people to its 3G phone services since its launch in November. The news came as the company announced its full-year results, which saw its losses improve to 25bn [pounds sterling] loss for the year.

BBC.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... A 48-hour BBC staff strike due to take place tomorrow (Tuesday) and Wednesday has been called off by unions to consider a new offer.

The Local Radio Company.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... Commercial radio owner The Local Radio Company has posted its first operating profit to date. The company, which operates 27 stations, made an operating profit of 28,000 [pounds sterling] for the six months to March 31 2005.

Ticketmaster.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... Ticketmaster has installed AccessManager, the company's new access control and ticket authentication system, in London's Carling Apollo Hammersmith and will use it for the first time at the Oasis gig on May 28. Meanwhile, Ticketmaster will give...

Stuart Clarke, Adam Webb and Matt Slade have all joined Music Week, to reinforce its editorial and sales operations.(Digest)
June 4, 2005... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Caption: Stuart Clarke, Adam Webb and Matt Slade have all joined Music Week, to reinforce its editorial and sales operations. Clarke, a former editor of the Australian music industry publication The Music Network,...

BPI.(Bottom line)
June 4, 2005... BPI investigators have seized more than 100,000 [pounds sterling] worth of discs in a series of raids on illicit Bollywood music and film retailers in the Greater Manchester area. The investigators, working with local Trading Standards...

Loudeye hooks up with music ISP.(Sigh here)
June 4, 2005... Loudeye has teamed up with Dutch ISP Planet Internet for a new digital music bundle initiative. Through the new service, Planet Internet offers its ADSL Comfort and ADSL Advanced customers free music for a year, in the form of promotional...

Umbrello Entertainment Group.(Sign here)
June 4, 2005... Chris Squire (Yes, The Syn) and Stephen Nardelli (The Syn) have teamed up after four decades apart to launch Umbrello Entertainment Group. The company will be home to label Umbrello Records and satellite TV network That TV.

Mercury Records.(Sign here)
June 4, 2005... Mercury Records has signed a deal with Mike Oldfield that will result in a new studio album in September. In addition, Mercury has secured all of Oldfield's back catalogue, including Tubular Bells, which will transfer to the label in 2008.

Neil Finn.(Sign here)
June 4, 2005... Former Split Enz and Crowded House principal songwriter Neil Finn has signed a long-term publishing deal with Chrysalis Music. The New Zealand artist's agreement covers the world outside Australasia.

Air.(Sign here)
June 4, 2005... Australia's independent trade association Air has struck a deal with Rights Router that will see its members' recordings become available for sale through online and mobile services worldwide.

Nelson Mandela's 46664 concert.(Sign here)
June 4, 2005... Annie Lennox and Peter Gabriel have joined the line-up for Nelson Mandela's 46664 concert in the Arctic Circle. They join Robert Plant, Brian May, Razorlight, Zucchero, Sharon Corr and a number of African and Scandinavian artists at the...

Publishing chief joins MCPS-PRS.(People)
June 4, 2005... Crispin Evans is to join the MCPS-PRS Alliance in August as general counsel after a 25-year career in music publishing. He joins from Universal Music Publishing International, where he was senior VP of international legal and business affairs.

Atlantic Records.(People)
June 4, 2005... Atlantic Records last week confirmed reports that bass guitarist Frankie Poullain and The Darkness had parted ways. The remaining members cited musical differences.

Chrysalis Radio.(People)
June 4, 2005... Chrysalis Radio is upping its commitment to its presently digital-only rock station The Arrow by appointing a programme director. Alan Carruthers, who until now has been splitting the role with his responsibility of being programme director for...

Xfm.(People)
June 4, 2005... Xfm has poached Kerrang! 105.2's Sony Award-winning DJ Lucio to host its weekend breakfast show. Lucio will join the station in July, replacing Sarah Darling who will continue to work on Music: Response with Tan Camfield.

Sanctuary Group.(People)
June 4, 2005... Sanctuary Group has issued a statement to deny reports Mathew Knowles is no longer managing his daughter Beyonce Knowles.

Gilberto Gil.(People)
June 4, 2005... Gilberto Gil was last Monday presented with a Polar Music Prize by the King of Sweden in the 14th year of the awards.

Mariah Carey.(People)
June 4, 2005... Universal's Mariah Carey has tightened her grip on the US's all-time chart-topping list by achieving her 16th Billboard 100 number one with We Belong Together, placing her behind only The Beatles (20 number ones) and Elvis Presley (18).

AEG unveils its plans for 02-backed Dome: US giant to relaunch venue as music-focused complex.(Live)
June 4, 2005... The 2.2bn [pounds sterling] overhaul of London's Millennium Dome will create a musical powerhouse containing the UK'S largest arena, a secondary stage and a permanent home for the UK Music Hall Of Fame. The development plans were announced...

The Music Week playlist.(News)
June 4, 2005... PUSSYCAT DOLLS FEAT. BUSTA RHYMES Don't Cha (A&M) We agree with Kam Kelly (Tipsters, May 28)--this song is a monster. This has "hit" written all over it (single, September tbc) MAXIMO PARK Going Missing (Warp) Maximo Park have a...

A&R veteran takes on key EMI publishing role.(News)
June 4, 2005... EMI Music Publishing continues its reorganisation for the post-Reichardt era this week, with the elevation of Mike Smith to head the company's A&R operations. As the company's head of 16 years Peter Reichardt left the company last week,...

EMI digital sales rise as overall profits dip: chairman highlights major's investment in technology.(Labels)
June 4, 2005... EMI Group chairman Eric Nicoli is predicting that digital business will account for 5% of the major's turnover by the end of this year, after its sales in the sector more than trebled in the past 12 months. Digital sales hit 49.7m [pounds...

Virgin chief in new venture.(News)
June 4, 2005... Philippe Ascoli is returning to his native France to launch his own label with EMI, after exiting his post of Virgin Records UK managing director. The major last Friday confirmed Ascoli's departure from Virgin in a switch which will see...

People in planes.(SNAP SHOT)
June 4, 2005... Welsh outfit People In Planes have signed a deal with US indie Wind-up, home to acts including Evanescence, Creed and Drowning Pool. The long-term, seven-figure tie-up incorporates the finished People In Planes album, recorded with producer Sam...

Eurovision is TV hit despite low UK placing.(News)
June 4, 2005... Britain's Eurovision entry may have struggled once again, but the UK's enduring love affair with the event remains high as it now claims the contest's highest television ratings in Europe. A peak of 9.4m people tuned in to watch this year's...

Eurovision top 10.(News)
June 4, 2005... 1. Greece (230 points) 2. Malta (192) 3. Romania (158) 4. Israel (154) 5. Latvia (153) 6. Moldova (148) 7. Serbia & Montenegro (137) 8. Switzerland (128) 9. Norway (125) 10. Denmark (125)

Emap music titles under fire but radio bucks slow market.(Media)
June 4, 2005... Emap is confident of a revival at its long-established rock magazine Kerrang! after the weekly's poor performance was highlighted in the group's latest financial results. The publication was identified as an area of "notable weakness" by...

Former HMV bosses take top roles at Fopp.(News)
June 4, 2005... Former HMV Europe and retail industry chief David Pryde has re-emerged as the new head of independent chain Fopp. The retailer ended weeks of speculation by confirming the arrival of Pryde, a former Bard deputy chairman, last Wednesday. He...

Writing a place in the history books.(Lyrics)
June 4, 2005... To mark last week's 50th Ivor Novello Awards, Music Week this week examines the skill and crafts of lyric-writing, talking to industry experts as well as some of the finest exponents of the art, from Hal David and Jim Steinman to Ms Dynamite...

Classical Brits hit right notes: awards strike balance between experience and youth.(Classical)
June 4, 2005... Core classical values and no shortage of glamour stood high on the agenda for this year's Classical Brit Awards at London's Royal Albert Hall last Wednesday (May 25). The annual event struck a careful balance between youth and experience,...

J. Strauss II: Waltzes, Polkas, Overtures. Orchestra Anima Aeterna/Immerseel.
June 4, 2005... J. Strauss II Waltzes, Polkas, Overtures. Orchestra Anima Aeterna/Immerseel (Zig-Zag Territories ZZT020601) Conductor and pianist Jos Van Immerseel challenges traditions forged over the past 70 years by Viennese performers of music by the...

Rosza: Three Choral Suites from Ben-Hur, Quo Vadis & King of Kings. Mormon Tabernacle Choir; Cincinnati Pops Orchestra/Kunzel.
June 4, 2005... Rosza Three Choral Suites from Ben-Hur, Quo Vadis & King of Kings. Mormon Tabernacle Choir; Cincinnati Pops Orchestra/Kunzel. (Telarc SACD-60631 (SACD)) Hungarian-born Miklos Rosza became the doyen of Hollywood composers in the late...

Mahler: Symphony No. 9. San Francisco Symphony/Tilson Thomas.
June 4, 2005... Mahler Symphony No. 9. San Francisco Symphony/Tilson Thomas. (San Francisco Media 821936-0007-2 (2SACD) With two Grammy Awards and positive reviews in the bag, Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony reach the midway point in...

My Lady Rich: Works by Byrd, Dowland, Holborne, Tessier, etc. Van Evera, etc.
June 4, 2005... My Lady Rich Works by Byrd, Dowland, Holborne, Tessier, etc. Van Evera, etc. (Avie AV 0045) Lady Penelope Rich, sister of the Earl of Essex and an inspirational figure at the court of Elizabeth I, attracted the amorous and platonic...

Wagner: Der Ring des Nibelungen. Soloists; Bayreuth Festival Choir & Orchestra/Barenboim.
June 4, 2005... Wagner Der Ring des Nibelungen. Soloists; Bayreuth Festival Choir & Orchestra/Barenboim. (Warner Classics 2564 62091-2 (14 CD + bonus DVD) When it was released on the Teldec label in the early Nineties, Daniel Barenboim's Ring cycle...

Gluck: Paride ed Elena. Kozena, Gritton, etc; Gabrieli Consort & Player/McCreesh.
June 4, 2005... Gluck Paride ed Elena. Kozena, Gritton, etc; Gabrieli Consort & Player/McCreesh. (Archiv 477 5415 (2CD) With its revamped core classical marketing and press team, Universal Classic and Jazz should have no trouble in pushing the case for an...

Nicola Benedetti: Works by Szymanowski, Chausson, Saint-Saens, etc. Benedetti; LSO/Harding.
June 4, 2005... Nicola Benedetti Works by Szymanowski, Chausson, Saint-Saens, etc. Benedetti; LSO/Harding. (Deutsche Grammophon 987 057-7) For her debut album on the famous yellow label, 17-year-old virtuoso Nicola Benedetti opted to open her discography...

Grieg: Peer Gynt. Soloists; Estonian National SO/R Jarvi.
June 4, 2005... Grieg Peer Gynt. Soloists; Estonian National SO/R Jarvi. (Virgin Classics 5 45722 2) Estonian conductor Paavo Jarvi has made a stack of fine recordings, but his latest account of Grieg's incidental music to Ibsen's picaresque play, Peer...

Stainer: The Crucifixion. Choir of Clare College, Cambridge/Brown.
June 4, 2005... Stainer The Crucifixion. Choir of Clare College, Cambridge/Brown. (Naxos 8.557624 (1 CD+ bonus disc) Naxos marks its 18th birthday by promoting Stainer's Passion Meditation in a performance which blends Victorian sentimentality with a...

Williams: Star Wars--Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. London Voices; LSO/Williams.
June 4, 2005... Williams Star Wars--Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith. London Voices; LSO/Williams. Sony Classical SK 94220 John Williams' latest Star Wars OST is a classic of adventure movie scoring, easily matching the composer's finest Hollywood...

Mahler: Lieder. Fischer-Dieskau, Barenboim.
June 4, 2005... Mahler Lieder. Fischer-Dieskau, Barenboim. One of the greatest baritones ever recorded, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau was still on top form when he set down these Mahler interpretations in partnership with Daniel Barenboim in February 1978. The...

The secrets to writing great lyrics: as the Ivors celebrate our best songwriters, MW endeavours to name the best lyric ever.(EDITORIAL)
June 4, 2005... There is little doubting the Ivor Novello Awards' status as the music industry's favourite awards event. It is something to do with laid-back atmosphere, its status as a hype-free event, without the prying eyes of the television cameras. It...

Positive outcome of Hendrix case will boost performers.(VIEWPOINT)
June 4, 2005... Artists and musicians should take comfort from a recent court decision in which performers' rights were used to halt the sale of an unauthorised CD. Experience Hendrix--the successor to Jimi Hendrix's estate--relied on the guitarist's...

Should we rejoice in the Crazy Frog phenomenon?(The big question)
June 4, 2005... Should we be jumping for joy that the Crazy Frog track is getting people into shops and driving up sales or hopping mad at the music-buying public for this latest lapse in taste? Miles Leonard, Parlophone "Novelty records come along a...

Quickfire: as it ramps up its investment in music content, Channel 4 boss Andy Duncan discusses where the money is going and why music is important.(Forum)(Interview)
June 4, 2005... With an extra eight hours a day of music programming on E4 and a multi-million pound investment in a music website, Channel 4 is clearly not mucking about. What's the general thinking behind the decision to step up the commitment to music? ...

Inside track.(Forum)
June 4, 2005... Joanna Stoller produces Richard Bacon's Go Home Show on 95.8 Capital FM. Richard Bacon will be presenting the CADS/Music Vision Awards which take place this Wednesday. Name: Jo Stoller. Born: Canterbury, June 18, 1976. First job...

Coming together at the Ivors.(DOOLEY'S DIARY)
June 4, 2005... Remember where you heard it: For a jazz fan, David Ferguson is clearly more hard bop than cool. Still seething about what has happened to his favourite radio station, the Bacs chairman used the platform of last Thursday's Ivors to take another...

He may be back with a new band and a new image, but former Busted pin-up Charlie Simpson hasn't moved too far when it comes to labels.(Forum)
June 4, 2005... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Caption: He may be back with a new band and a new image, but former Busted pin-up Charlie Simpson hasn't moved too far when it comes to labels. His new band Fightstar has signed on the dotted line with Island, which...

Fast chart.(Datafile: Britain's most comprehensive charts service)
June 4, 2005... SINGLES NUMBER ONE CRAZY FROG AXEL F Gut For the fifth time in 21 chart weeks in 2005, sales of the number one single top 100,000. Axel F sold 149,466 copies last week and helped physical singles sales to reach 586,369. That is more...

The schedule.(Datafile: Britain's most comprehensive charts service)
June 4, 2005... ALBUMS THIS WEEK Oasis Don't Believe The Truth (Big Brother); Turin Brakes Jack In A Box (Source); Black Eyed Peas Monkey Business (A&M) JUNE 6 The Tears Here Come... (Independiente); Coldplay X&Y (Parlophone); Geri Passion...

New addition.(Datafile: Britain's most comprehensive charts service)
June 4, 2005... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Caption: Madness release their first studio album for six years this July and first single, Shame & Scandal will precede its release on July 4. The album, entitled The Dangerman Sessions is a collection of ska covers...

Frog effect sees singles leap ahead.(The Market)
June 4, 2005... With physical singles sales rocketing by 28.9% to 586,369--an eight-week high--and downloads easing by 2.4% to 406,873, combined singles sales last week came close to breaching the million mark. The biggest single contribution to the tally...

Key indicators.(Datafile: Britain's most comprehensive charts service)
June 4, 2005... SINGLES Sales versus last week: +13.8% Year to date versus last year: +6.7% MARKET SHARES Universal 29.1% EMI 17.8% Sony BMG 17.4% Warner 3.4% Others 32.3% ALBUMS Sales versus last week:...

CD/DVD set to score with dads: Sony BMG builds on CD/DVD format for Father's Day, with dad-friendly setlist teamed with sporting clips.(The Plot)
June 4, 2005... VARIOUS WORLD'S BEST DAD (SONY BMG) Sony BMG is aiming to capitalise on Father's Day buying habits with the release of World's Best Dad on June 6, an album/DVD package that combines a selection of classic songs with a DVD celebrating the...

Atlantic sharpens Blunt focus as campaign reaches pivotal point.(Campaign focus)
June 4, 2005... Seven weeks since Back To Bedlam entered the UK albums chart, Atlantic is gearing up to take the James Blunt album campaign to the next level. Blunt has been on a rising tide of awareness since his first UK single, High, hit shelves in...

Tastemakers tips.(Upfront)
June 4, 2005... Ciecmate & Newsense Speaking As One EP (Broken Tooth Entertainment) RACHEL HOLMES, SELECTADISC, NOTTINGHAM "Ciecmate and Newsense, two members of the Melbourne-based Hospice Crew, spit witty lyrics over raw, sinister beats. Containing...

Recordstore.co.uk.(THE INSIDER)
June 4, 2005... From its humble beginnings as an independent label, Recordstore has grown into one of the UK's largest e-commerce and online fulfilment companies. Currently operating more than 150 online stores for clients including Robbie Williams, Van...

Radio playlists.(Upfront)
June 4, 2005... RADIO 1 A LIST Amerie 1 Thing; Black Eyed Peas Don't Phunk With My Heart; Coldplay Speed Of Sound; Destiny's Child Girl; Foo Fighters Best Of You; Gorillaz Feel Good Inc; Green Day Wake Me Up When September Ends; Gwen Stefani...

BPI awards.(Upfront)
June 4, 2005... ALBUMS Amerie--Touch (silver). Steve Brookstein--Heart And Soul (gold). The Libertines--The Libertines (platinum). MUSIC DVDS Oasis--Definitely Maybe (three times platinum)

In-store next week.(Upfront)
June 4, 2005... ASDA Instore--Oasis, Green Day, Black Eyed Peas, Turin Breaks, Motley Crue, Beach Boys; Single of the week--Ben Adams; Artist of the week--Oasis; Compilation of the week--Bonkers 14 BORDERS Windows--Coldplay, Oasis; Instore--White...

Also out this week.
June 4, 2005... SINGLES Cindy Mizelle: Shine On (A&R); The Longcut: A Quiet Life (Deltasonic); Tears For Fears: Everybody Loves A Happy Ending/Call Me Mellow (Gut) ALBUMS Backstreet Boys: Never Gone (Jive): Martin Grech: Unholy (Island): Timo...

Jem: Just a Ride.
June 4, 2005... Jem Just A Ride ATO 82876705852 Jem's gradual ascent will be given a huge shot in the arm by this second single, a ridiculously infectious pop/dance hybrid pristinely produced by Jem herself with Yoad Nero. A-listings at Radios One...

Foo Fighters: In Your Honour.
June 4, 2005... Foo Fighters In Your Honour Sony BMG 82876701952 There is no doubting Dave Grohl's ambition on this latest album. It is a 20-track double CD release featuring one disc of his hardest and most heartfelt work to date and another disc of...

50 Cent: Just a Lil Bit.
June 4, 2005... 50 Cent Just A Lil Bit (Interscope 9882442) Has The Game usurped his former mentor's role as gangsta du jour? This has yet to pick up the levels of airplay support enjoyed by his labelmate, while the song itself sadly lacks much of the...

Basement Jaxx: U Don't Know Me.
June 4, 2005... Basement Jaxx U Don't Know Me (XL XLS215CD1) The revival in Basement Jaxx's fortunes looks set to continue (they recently won a Grammy and hit number one on the UK albums chart) with this dance stomper, which teams Basement beats, fuzzy...

Melanie Brown: Today.
June 4, 2005... Melanie Brown Today (Amber Cafe AMBER002) Former Spice Girl Mel B makes her return to the solo arena with this independently released, upbeat pop song. Produced by Kevin Malpass, the track sees a syncopated string section and simple...

DJ Sammy: Why.
June 4, 2005... DJ Sammy Why (Data DATA89CDS) This cover of Annie Lennox's 1992 Top Five hit does indeed prompt the question--why? It is certainly an unlikely choice of song to be given a clubland makeover, but someone out there likes it--it is C-listed...

The Faders: Jump.
June 4, 2005... The Faders Jump (Polydor FADE1) While the debut single from the girl-guitar trio sounded not unlike Lust For Life, this follow-up bears more than a passing resemblance to Blondie's Maria. It is executed with admirable panache and peppered...

Fightstar: Paint Your Target.
June 4, 2005... Fightstar Paint Your Target (Island CID897) Fightstar dish up their first chart-eligible single, a blistering, distortion-heavy aural assault that promises to provide the emorockers with a strong commercial impact. A melodic guitar arpeggio...

Garbage: Sex Is Not the Enemy.
June 4, 2005... Garbage Sex Is Not The Enemy (A&E WEA391CD1) This second single from the Top Five album Bleed Like Me has failed to ignite the same excitement at radio as its predecessor Why Do You Love Me. However, with a fast-approaching run of live...

Green Day: Wake Me Up When September Ends.
June 4, 2005... Green Day Wake Me Up When September Ends (Reprise W674CD1) This is a sturdy fourth single from the punky renaissance men's triple-platinum album American Idiot, which has now been in the Top 30 for 36 consecutive weeks. Released on the eve...