Month: December 2010

Blind Pig Records has announced a December 14 release date for <em>The Essential Popa Chubby</em>, a budget-priced CD from the high octane New York guitarist.

For this special collection, Popa Chubby hand-picked sixteen of the hottest fan favorites from his ten Blind Pig releases over the past decade. This electrifying selection showcases not only his hard-charging fire and brimstone, but also Popa’s engaging storytelling, versatility and distinctive fusing of differing genres and styles such as old school R&amp;B, rap, funk, outlaw country, melodic rock, and blues.

Popa Chubby first come to prominence with his breakout early 90’s hit "Sweet Goddess of Love and Beer" from the Tom Dowd produced <em>Booty And The Beast</em> album. Since then the prolific guitarist and songwriter has released ten CDs and a live performance DVD for indie roots label Blind Pig.

Popa’s highly creative fusion of rock ‘n’ roll with traditional blues and R&amp;B styles led <em>Billboard</em> to say, "If Muddy Waters was a modern blues artist, then Popa Chubby is a post-modern bluesman." And the <em>Pittsburgh Post-Gazette</em> summed it up well with the comment, "Popa Chubby is a blues rocker whose take-no-prisoners blues rock screams with the defiance of the best scorched-earth rock ‘n’ roll filtered through his bluesy id."

Bonhams is set to sell more more than 70 guitars and 70 amps from Eric Clapton’s personal collection. The sale will take place in New York, on March 9 and will, as with all of Clapton’s previous sales, benefit The Crossroads Centre, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre the guitarist founded in 1998.

Included in the sale are instruments and amps by Fender, Gibson, Marshall, Martin, Music Man to name but a few. Some of the historic amps are associated with Clapton’s career from the 1970s to the present day. It is the first time that such a large and interesting collection of amps has ever been offered on the auction market. With estimates on amps and guitars spanning from $300-30,000, there’s something for fans and collectors within every budget range.

Guitars donated by other players, including Jeff Beck, J.J. Cale, and Joe Bonamassa will also sell that day.

Highlights include one of Clapton’s main stage guitars from 2005, which formed one of a pair he memorably used during the Cream Reunion Shows in London and New York – a custom built black Fender Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster, estimate $20,000-30,000; and a pair of circa 1970 Marshall vintage basketweave speaker cabinets, used in the ’70s with Derek And The Dominos, estimate $8,000-10,000.

For more, visit bonhams.com/entertainment.

Mr. Big will release a new album, titled <em>What If… </em> on February 8. The band’s first all-original album since the reunion of its four original members – Eric Martin, Paul Gilbert, Billy Sheehan and Pat Torpey – in early 2009.

"This is the first Mr. Big album I have been a part of in 14, years and it was done in a snap," said guitarist Paul Gilbert. "IIt was fun and we had really a good time in making this one". Continues Billy Sheehan "It’s so great to be back with Paul, Eric and Pat too. We wrote this record like we did in the old days for the first 2 records. Jamming together in the same room to write songs". Pat Torpey adds ""Some of the recording process is different now from what we were used to in the old times. But I think this record really managed to capture the performances of the band, not of the individual musicians".

Produced by Kevin Shirley (Aerosmith, Rush, Iron Maiden), the release will be followed by a world tour that will kick off in South America in March and will hit Europe in early summer.

Punk rock pioneers the New York Dolls are set to release their fifth full-length record March 15 on 429 Records. Featuring original members David Johansen and Sylvain Sylvain, the album was recorded in Newcastle, England and produced by Louis XIV’s Jason Hill. Please see below for a track listing. Dancing Backward in High Heels is the follow-up to 2009’s ‘Cause I Sez So, which The New Yorker praises for “[showing] the band at its full power” while Billboard notes that “the unlikely resurrection of the New York Dolls is solidified by ‘Cause I Sez So.”

Originally formed in 1971, the New York Dolls are best known for influencing a generation of artists in New York and London who went on to form the first punk rock and heavy metal bands. Largely influenced themselves by the rock &amp; roll of the Rolling Stones and the Stooges as well as the glam rock made by David Bowie and T. Rex, the legendary original Dolls lineup only recorded two albums, New York Dolls and Too Much Too Soon, before breaking up in 1976. After reuniting in 2004 (at the behest of Morrissey, the head of the band’s U.K. fan club in the `70s), the band went on to record a pair of records-2006’s One Day It Will Please Us to Remember Even This and ‘Cause I Sez So.

Tim Buckley’s tenor-soaring yet delicate-was already a force to be reckoned with in 1966 when he recorded his self-titled debut for Elektra Records at the tender age of 19. It was also to be the only constant during the evolution that marked the singer-songwriter’s career before his untimely death nine years later.

Rhino Handmade retraces the first steps of Buckley’s uncompromising musical journey with a two-disc set that includes both the stereo and mono versions of his debut. The second disc contains nearly two dozen unreleased recordings Buckley made in 1965 with The Bohemians and in 1966 with frequent songwriting partner Larry Beckett. <em>Tim Buckley: Deluxe Edition</em> is housed in a weathered cardboard folio with rare photos and is set for release January 11.

Buckley recorded the album’s 12 songs in Los Angeles with the team behind The Doors-producer Paul Rothchild and engineer Bruce Botnick. He was backed in the studio by guitarist and longtime collaborator Lee Underwood, bassist James Fielder, and Mothers Of Invention drummer Billy Mundi. Van Dyke Parks, who had spent much of that summer collaborating with Beach Boy Brian Wilson on the legendary Smile album, was brought in to overdub keyboards, and frequent Phil Spector sidekick Jack Nitzsche contributed string arrangements.

The <em>Deluxe Edition</em> features both the stereo and mono mixes of the album, which contains several of Buckley’s early classics, including the singles "Wings" and "Aren’t You The Girl."

The music on the second disc has remained unreleased until now and provides an unparalleled insight into Buckley’s early development. It opens with 12 songs he recorded in November 1965 with The Bohemians, a group he formed in high school with Fielder, Beckett, and guitarist Brian Hartzler. Recorded live in an Anaheim studio, the originals include early versions of "She Is" and "It Happens Every Time"-two tracks that later appeared on Buckley’s debut. The session also yielded rockers like "Put You Down" and "Come On Over" and the ballads "Call Me If You Do" and "No More."

The nine songs that make up the second half of the disc were recorded shortly before the sessions for Tim Buckley and feature Buckley singing and playing acoustic guitar with Beckett, who recites poetry to Buckley’s guitar on two tracks: "Found At The Scene Of A Rendezvous That Failed" and "Birth Day." The home recording captures versions of the album tracks: "She Is," "Aren’t You The Girl," "Wings," "Song Slowly Song," and "I Can’t See You." The two remaining songs are the Buckley original "My Love Is For You" and the Beckett/Buckley collaboration "Long Tide."

Guitars donated for the fourth and final lot of the NasH2O Auction include some played by Peter Frampton, Brad Paisley, Vince Gill, and more. Every guitar in the lot was played on tour, featured in music videos, accompanied an Opry debut, played on albums or are vintage collectibles owned by musical legends. There’s also the one-off Fender Lucite Esquire built exclusively for the auction and filled with water recovered from the flood, straight from the Cumberland River.

"We build a Lucite guitar every once in a great while, but I don’t recall seeing – or even hearing of – anything filled with water," said Mike Bump of the Fender Custom Shop. "And the fact that it is actual water from the flood… Well, I can say for certain nothing like this has ever come out of Fender."

The auction closes January 8. For more, visit nash20.com.

Seymour Duncan announces the debut of LiberatorTM, the first universal Solderless Pickup Change System for guitar and bass. Liberator is a bare-wire Lockdown system integrated with a high-quality volume pot. With a Liberator-equipped volume pot installed, changing pickups no longer requires heating up a soldering gun-you only need a mini screwdriver. Since Liberator doesn’t require proprietary connectors, it works with nearly any manufacturer’s passive pickups.

Pickups play a key role in defining an instrument’s tone, output, responsiveness, and feel, and different pickups can change the character of an instrument entirely. Vintage-style pickups may convey classic warmth or twang while hot-rodded designs can produce much higher output, greater articulation, or enhanced harmonic response. All of these factors combined affect how an individual interacts with his or her instrument. Soldering pickups is an exacting procedure that can be time-consuming for experienced guitar techs and daunting for players who lack soldering skills. With a Liberator volume pot installed in a guitar or bass, replacing pickups becomes a quick and easy process for players and techs alike. Learn more at seymourduncan.com/liberator.

Judas Priest has announced that its 2011 Epitaph tour will be its last. With plans to hit all the major cities throughout the world, they will play its classic songs. Dates and more information will given on the band’s website, judaspriest.com.