Legendary Island Records group Bon Jovi caps the celebration of their 25th year on record with a second consecutive #1 Soundscan debut – as their 11th studio album THE CIRCLE (released November 10th) sails into the top spot on first week sales of 163,000 copies.

“Coming after their #1-selling tour of last year, this #1 chart debut for Bon Jovi once again proves they have a loyal fan base that transcends every change in popular music,” said Antonio ‘L.A.’ Reid, Chairman, Island Def Jam Music Group. “After two and a half decades of uninterrupted success, Bon Jovi continues to stay at the top of their game, with no signs of slowing down.”

The new album’s success – which include #1 chart debuts in Japan and Germany, and a #2 debut in the UK – is fueled by the band’s current worldwide single, “We Weren’t Born To Follow.” Bon Jovi performed the song live at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate on November 9th, at the gala 20th anniversary commemoration of the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. The performance was underscored by their appearance on the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. “We Weren’t Born To Follow” stays inside the Top 10 at Hot AC radio formats, and the video is in its 4th week on the VH1 Top 20 Countdown.

Bon Jovi’s appearance in Berlin capped two weeks of international promotion in advance of THE CIRCLE’s arrival. On Veterans Day, Wednesday, November 11th, the day after the album’s U.S. release, NBC Television “Artists-In-Residence” Bon Jovi performed live at the Today Show’s Rockefeller Plaza. Two days later on Friday the 13th, Bon Jovi launched the opening of the new Best Buy store on Union Square in Manhattan.

Upcoming live TV performances include: Bravo’s Inside The Actors Studio with James Lipton (Nov. 16); Ellen DeGeneres (Nov. 23); NBC’s The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien (Nov. 20); a return to the Today Show (Nov. 25); Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (Dec. 9); and Saturday Night Live (Dec. 12).

“We Weren’t Born To Follow” was written (and co-produced) by Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora, and was produced by John Shanks, who worked with Bon Jovi on their last two albums: Have A Nice Day (2005), which featured the Grammy winning single, “Who Says You Can’t Go Home”; and Lost Highway (2007), which debuted at #1 on the Soundscan charts in the U.S. and around the world.

Bon Jovi’s 25 years on record is chronicled this year in filmmaker and photographer Phil Griffin’s documentary film Bon Jovi: When We Were Beautiful (produced by Radical Media); and the publication of its companion book, Bon Jovi: When We Were Beautiful, the first ever officially authorized Bon Jovi book (HarperCollins, October 2009).

Bon Jovi’s “The Circle World Tour,” promoted by AEG Live, will kick off in Seattle on February 19, 2010. Over the next two years, the band will visit 30 countries for 135 shows. Bon Jovi’s last outing, the “Lost Highway World Tour,” was 2008′s top-grossing tour. Tickets for “The Circle World Tour” are on sale now for all North American concerts – information can be found at http://www.bonjovi.com/tour.

Bon Jovi has set the standard for more than two decades as one of the most successful rock bands in the world. Globally, the Grammy Award-winning band has sold more than 120 million albums and performed more than 2,600 concerts in over 50 countries for more than 34 million fans.

Source: Island Records

Who do you think rocks the hardest? What’s your can’t-miss concert? How much money do you want to save? Hard rock legends AC/DC, Metallica, and KISS face off in latest TicketsNow FansChoice poll, and if your band captures the most votes, you’ll have the opportunity to purchase concert tickets for half off the listed price!

FansChoice is a fun, new offering from TicketsNow that lets the fans determine fantastic deals by voting on their favorite events. Simply go to TicketsNow.com and vote for your favorite hard rock band from the spotlighted events featured in the FansChoice poll on our home page. If your rockers get the most votes, you’ll have the opportunity to purchase tickets at a 50% discount!* Even if your band doesn’t receive the most votes, you’ll still receive a great offer.

Voting is going on now. But hurry–this red-hot FansChoice poll closes Sept. 27, 2009.

Here’s how it works:
– Visit TicketsNow.com, enter your email address, first name, and zip code, and vote for the band you’d most like to see in concert – AC/DC, Metallica, or KISS.
– Everyone who voted for the winning band will receive an email providing the date and time that the 50% discount offer begins. If the band you voted for wins, be sure to get to the FansChoice “On Sale” early, because voters eligible to receive the discount will exceed the number of discounts available. Only the first 5 eligible voters who purchase tickets to see the winning band in concert will receive a 50% discount. If you’re not among the first 5 purchasers, but your band wins, you’ll still receive an email for 5% off any order of event tickets from TicketsNow.

So, who’s it going to be? Aussie rockers AC/DC, who are back to rock the States on their Black Ice World Tour? Garage metal heroes Metallica on their World Magnetic Tour? Or the “hottest band in the world” KISS, who launch the KISS ALIVE/35 tour in Detroit Rock City on Sept. 25? You have nothing to lose except dollars off your final order price! For complete details, click here.

Vote early, vote often, and good luck!

*Discount does not apply to shipping, taxes, or service fees.

Source: TicketsNow

Daughtry’s second album, LEAVE THIS TOWN (19 Recordings/RCA), debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 269,299 copies sold in its first week of release. The record is also No. 1 on the Digital Albums Chart and the Rock Chart. Daughtry moves Michael Jackson from the top of the sales charts, where the late singer has dominated for the previous three weeks.

LEAVE THIS TOWN is Daughtry’s first album to debut at the top of the Billboard 200 and its second consecutive No. 1 album. The band’s self-titled debut entered the charts at #3, sold more than 4.5 million copies, spent two weeks at No. 1 and is still on the charts more than two years after its release. The first single from LEAVE THIS TOWN “No Surprise” is quickly ascending the pop charts and currently with the no. 1 video at Vh1.

Singer Chris Daughtry, bassist Josh Paul, drummer Joey Barnes, and guitarists Brian Craddock and Josh Steely recorded LEAVE THIS TOWN with producer Howard Benson.

“This album is special because it’s our first together as a band,” Chris Daughtry said. “We poured our hearts into these songs to make the record we’ve always dreamed about. To have people respond the way they have is extremely gratifying, but even more humbling.”

Simon Fuller, CEO of 19 Entertainment, comments: “Daughtry have become a legitimate rock band – passionate, united and dedicated. For their sophomore album to debut at number one is a spectacular achievement. I’m proud to be associated with Chris, Josh, JP, Joey and Brian. Long may their successful journey together continue.”

“Daughtry possesses a rare common touch that allows his band’s music to hit a nerve with the public unlike most artists today. This great result on top of the group’s last album which was the fastest-selling rock debut in history is proof of that. The RCA/Jive Label Group is thrilled to be a part of Daughtry’s continued success,” says Barry Weiss Chairman and CEO, RCA/Jive Label Group.

LEAVE THIS TOWN has received outstanding reviews, earning raves for singer Chris Daughtry’s powerful voice. “… an instrument cleaner and stronger than anybody else singing mainstream rock right now,” said the Los Angeles Times while People gave the album three out of four stars, noting: “His voice has never sounded better.” The Seattle Times called the album “more confident and eclectic” a point confirmed by other publications, including The Detroit News and Free Press, which said: “a powerhouse voice that’s nicely matched with some well-written, diverse material.” In a cover story, Billboard observed, “… it’s another record full of songs that make you want to roll down the car windows and bust a vocal cord or two while trying to match Daughtry’s gravelly wail.”

With LEAVE THIS TOWN, the band is poised to continue the global success it achieved with the group’s debut. The album earned the band Grammy nominations, American Music Award wins and charted three No. 1 hits; a rare feat for any artist.

Source: RCA Music Group

Contemporary Christian Rock Band Sells Out Atlanta-Area 12,000-Seat Verizon Amphitheatre on Current North American Tour

American fans of Hillsong United, the Australian rock band, are building a grassroots bonfire under the group as a_CROSS//the_EARTH: Tear Down The Walls, the band’s newly released live album, rockets its way to the #2 position on the U.S. iTunes Top Albums chart.

A musical dark horse on the iTunes chart, a_CROSS//the_EARTH: Tear Down The Walls catapulted over mainstream competition last week from Adam Lambert, Keith Urban, Green Day and Lady GaGa.

Fans have been generating standing-room-only ticket sales for Hillsong United on the North American leg of the group’s a_CROSS//the_EARTH Spring Tour 2009 (please see itinerary following). On Wednesday night (May 27), Hillsong United sold-out the 12,000 seat Verizon Amphitheatre in Alpharetta, Georgia, just outside Atlanta, delighting their ecstatic fans with an evening’s worth of electrifying spirit-filled rock presented in an astounding concert environment of state-of-the-art light and sound.

Hillsong United is the music-making world-touring youth ministry of the Hillsong Church, a pentecostal congregation located in Sydney, Australia. Featuring Brooke Ligertwood and other charismatic worship leaders and performers, Hillsong United host Encounter, an annual youth conference, in the U.S. each summer, drawing thousands of fans from across the country. This year’s Encounter conferences will take place at the Anaheim Convention Center (August 21-22) and the University of Miami (August 28-29). For more details, please visit www2.hillsong.com/united/#/encounter.

The Hillsong Church produced its first praise and worship CD, The Power of Your Love, in 1992. The first Hillsong United release, the four-song EP One, was released in 1998 and bundled with the annual Hillsong live album. Since those humble beginnings, more than 6 million Hillsong CDs, DVDs and other branded units have sold in the United States, with Hillsong United selling more than 560,000 pieces in the U.S.

a_CROSS//the_EARTH: Tear Down The Walls, the latest in a line of live Hillsong United albums beginning with 1999′s Everyday, has been drawing rave reviews:

Kevin Davis, writing for the Christian Music Review, called the album “…a must have for your praise and worship collection.”

Andree Farias, in Christian Music Today, found “…a combination of stadium-sized praise rockers and ballads…” in the album while noting that “Hillsong United goes back to their old ways with energy and passion….In case you’ve been living under a rock, take heed: Hillsong United is the biggest youth worship band on the planet.”

“Hillsong United return with their first live CD recording since 2006,” wrote Leigh DeVore in Charisma magazine. “a_CROSS//the_EARTH: Tear Down The Walls features 12 songs, including 11 new tracks, in Hillsong United’s signature power, pop-rock worship melodies. The crowd stays involved on this rousing CD, with its good mix of feet-stomping tracks and heart-moving ballads….Hillsong United continue to usher crowds into the presence of God with energetic, faith-building songs. Fans will be so glad to hear them again….”

Hillsong United – U.S. Tour dates
Fri 5/29 Birmingham, AL The Basement at Cathedral of the Cross
Sat 5/30 Nashville, TN Curb Event Center
Mon 6/1 Columbia, MD Merriweather Post Pavillion
Tue 6/2 Ocean Grove, NJ Great Auditorium
Wed 6/3 Virginia Beach, VA Wave Church
Fri 6/5 New York, NY Roseland Ballroom (sold-out)
Sat 6/6 Toronto, Ont. Christian Heritage Day
Tue-Wed 6/9-10 Chicago, IL Willow Creek Conference
Fri-Sat 8/21-22 Los Angeles, CA Hillsong United Encounter – LA
Fri-Sat 8/28-29 Miami, FL Hillsong United Encounter – Miami

www.hillsongunited.com
www.IntegrityLive.com
www.columbiarecords.com

Source: Integrity/Columbia Records

“Beyond Here Lies Nothin’”

First Single & Lead-Off Track From Together Through Life

Featured In HBO True Blood Promotional Campaign

Bob Dylan’s new album, Together Through Life, has entered both the U.S. and UK album charts at #1, marking the artist’s second consecutive U.S. #1 debut and his first chart-topping release in the UK since New Morning in 1970. Together Through Life is a true international hit, as well, achieving #1 debuts in Austria and Denmark, Top 5 entries in Australia, Germany, Ireland, Holland, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden and New Zealand, and Top 10 rankings in Italy, France and Belgium.

“Beyond Here Lies Nothin’,” the first track on Together Through Life, is serving as the soundtrack for a series of on-air and online promotional spots for the highly anticipated second season of True Blood, the smash hit HBO vampire series. The eagerly awaited second season of True Blood launches on HBO on Sunday, June 14.

The True Blood promos debuted on HBO on Saturday, May 2, and are airing in heavy rotation on HBO and HBO’s multiplex channels. The True Blood/”Beyond Here Lies Nothin’” promos premiered online on both HBO.com and BobDylan.com May 4. The promotional spots can be viewed by clicking on the following link: www.hbo.com/trueblood/video.html

“When I heard the song, I knew it would be a perfect fit for our characters and storylines,” said True Blood creator Alan Ball.

A short film for “Beyond Here Lies Nothin’” has been lensed by AFI and Sundance Film Festival award winning director Nash Edgerton, and will be seen on the IFC Channel and on IFC.com, beginning Tuesday, May 12.

Released on Tuesday, April 28, Bob Dylan’s Together Through Life is the artist’s first full-length studio album since 2006′s platinum-certified Modern Times, which also debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top 200. Produced by Jack Frost, Together Through Life, was recorded late last year, prompted by the composition of a new song, “Life Is Hard,” which was written for a forthcoming film by French director Oliver Dahan (La Vie En Rose).

Together Through Life is already receiving worldwide raves:

“Critics Choice! A vibrant new album.”
People Magazine

* * * (out of four)”Dylan’s 33rd solo album lives up to the artistic standards established by a trilogy of career-recharging gems that started with 1997′s Time Out Of Mind. But he deviates from their apocalyptic burdens to spin yarns, wry and real of ordinary folks in the grip of lust, longing and heartache,”

Edna Gundersen — USA Today

“Latter period Dylan is turning out to be some of his deepest, richest work. Together Through Life is another brilliant, sure-handed outing by one of the few certified greats still living up to his legend.”

Joel Selvin — San Francisco Chronicle

* * * (out of four)”His greatest achievement on this, his 33rd studio album, is his ability to shut out the expectations of a world that in recent years has sent his stock skyrocketing, and to assemble his warmest, most unforced, set of songs in recent memory.”

Pete Paphides — London Times

“Dylan has found his 21st century feet in musical touchstones almost 100 years old. And yet, through his growling, puckish delivery and crack band, it comes across fresh and vibrant. Here’s to Dylan finding more of his future in the sounds of the past.”

Jed Gottleib — Boston Herald

* * * (out of four)

Together Through Life is an album that gets its hooks in early and refuses to let go. It’s dark yet comforting, with a big tough sound, booming slightly like a band grooving at a soundcheck in an empty theatre. And at its heart there is a haunting refrain. Because above everything this is a record about love, its absence and its remembrance.

Danny Eccleston – Mojo

“Another genius Dylan disc….Together Through Life continues Dylan’s Indian summer string of masterpieces, and it’s a cut above 2006′s Modern Times.”

Brad Bamberger in the Newark Star-Ledger

“As crafty and moving as anything in Dylan’s catalog”
Corey duBrowa — Paste Magazine

“Together Through Life is the perfect soundtrack for down-but-not-out America, a clear-eyed, often elegant-sounding, road map that notes the struggles, but keeps its focus on making it through – with your sense of humor intact, no less.”

Glen Gamboa — Newsday

www.bobdylan.com

Source: Columbia Records

With “Brother,” a previously unreleased track from the album’s recording sessions, reaching #1 on the nation’s Modern Rock radio charts, Legacy Recordings/Epic Records’ avidly-anticipated reissue of “Ten,” Pearl Jam’s 1991 game-changing debut album, has rocketed to #1 on the Billboard Top Pop Catalog albums chart, with first week’s domestic sales topping out at more than 60K pieces. Pearl Jam’s “Ten” has also hit #1 this week on the Top Hard Music Albums chart and the Top Internet Albums chart.

Thanks to first week’s sales on the “Ten” reissue, the album has just been certified 13x platinum (up from 12x) by the RIAA. (The original “Ten” was certified RIAA gold in February 1992 and received its first platinum certification on May 5, 1992). Early international chart figures show the album hitting Top 40 or better in Portugal (#2), Canada, the Netherlands (#9), the UK (#29) and Italy (#29).

In mid-March, Pearl Jam made American radio history when “Brother,” a previously unreleased track recorded more than 18 years ago and now available for the first time as a bonus track on the “Ten” reissue, rocketed into the #1 slot on the BDS/R&R Modern Rock Chart four weeks after entering the chart. With the #1 success of “Brother,” Pearl Jam joined the Beatles (“Free As A Bird”) and Elvis Presley (“A Little Less Conversation”) as one of the rare bands or artists to ever hit #1 with a track recorded decades prior.

One of the year’s most eagerly-awaited catalog releases, the new Legacy/Epic edition of “Ten” arrives in the midst of a groundbreaking multi-tiered campaign celebrating a historic masterpiece of rock.

Cold Case

As the newly remastered version of “Ten” hits the stores, the music of Pearl Jam has been slated to be featured exclusively during the two-part sixth season finale of the hit CBS television series “Cold Case,” to be broadcast on Sunday, May 3 and Sunday, May 10 (check your local listings). A total of 16 Pearl Jam tracks will be woven throughout the two consecutive “Cold Case” finale episodes, marking the first time in the show’s history that the music of a single artist/group will be showcased in more than one episode. A number of the songs featured on the “Cold Case” finale episodes are being drawn specifically from “Ten.”

VH1 Classic

On Saturday, March 21, VH1 Classic premiered “Pearl Jam Ten Revisited,” a half-hour look back at the seminal album that brought the sound of the Pacific Northwest underground to the American mainstream. The program showcases videos for “Even Flow,” “Alive,” “Porch” (from the band’s Unplugged performance), and a never-before-seen version of “Jeremy” as well as archival footage and interviews from the band. If you missed the first round of airings, VH1 Classic will re-broadcast “Pearl Jam Ten Revisited” on April 7 (please check your local listings).

In addition, MTV, VH1 and VH1 Classic celebrated Pearl Jam throughout March 2009 airing blocks of Pearl Jam music videos, feature videos and editorial content on MTV.com, MTV2.com and VH1.com, as well as VH1 Classic. VH1.com and VH1Classic.com streamed the full album the week of release.

Rock Band

On December 15, 2008, Harmonix, the world’s premier music video game development company, and MTV Games, a part of Viacom’s MTV Networks, confirmed that “Ten” would be offered for download in the Rock Band Music Store day-and-date with the re-issue of the album in stores on March 24, 2009.

In addition to the track “Alive” which is already available on the Rock Band 2 game disc, the Pearl Jam Ten download pack includes an additional 11 songs from the album: “Once,” “Even Flow,” “Why Go,” “Black,” “Jeremy,” “Oceans,” “Porch,” “Garden,” “Deep,” “Release,” and “Master/Slave.”

Fan response has been fantastic. On the album’s launch date, five of the Top 10 songs on Xbox LIVE were from Pearl Jam’s re-mastered “Ten” album for Rock Band. Moreover, the Pearl Jam album for Rock Band remained in the Top 3 most popular selling offers on Xbox LIVE throughout its launch week.

With Pearl Jam becoming an Xbox Artist of the Month, the group’s drummer Matt Cameron drew more than 18 million online viewers to the Xbox site when he played Rock Band 2 on Game With Fame with Xbox LIVE(R) Gold members on March 27. The Pearl Jam Game With Fame session took place inside the band’s secret Seattle headquarters where Rock Band 2 was set-up on a 50″ LCD TV inside the conference room of the building. The session was attended by gamers from around the world including the United States, Italy and Canada. Matt received hundreds of voice messages, text messages, game invites, and Xbox Live Party invites throughout the session.

The Legacy Editions

On Tuesday, March 24, Legacy released four special edition packages of “Ten,” each of them featuring two versions of the album: the remastered version of the original album PLUS an accompanying remixed version done by the band’s long-time producer, Brendan O’Brien (Bruce Springsteen, AC/DC, Audioslave).

The new editions include:

Legacy Edition (a 2-disc set in a mini-LP style slipcase featuring six bonus tracks: “Brother,” “Just a Girl,” “State of Love and Trust,” “Breath and a Scream,” “2,000 Mile Blues” and “Evil Little Goat”);

Deluxe Edition (a 2-disc set plus the long-awaited first-ever release of Pearl Jam’s mythic 1992 MTV Unplugged concert including never-before-seen bonus performance of “Oceans” with a 5.1 Surround Sound audio remix);

Vinyl Collection (two 12″ LPs of the original Ten tracklisting remastered for vinyl including the new Brendan O’Brien remix);

Super Deluxe Edition (a 2-disc set plus DVD, 4 LPs including 1992′s “Live at Magnuson Park” mixed by Brendan O’Brien, a cassette replica of the legendary “Momma-Son” demos of “Alive,” “Once” and “Footsteps” and an Eddie Vedder-style composition notebook filled with replica personal notes, images and mementos from the collections of Eddie Vedder and Jeff Ament, a vellum envelope with replicated era specific ephemera from Pearl Jam’s early work and a two-sided print commemorating the Drop in the Park concert).

Press Response

The newly remastered edition of “Ten” has been drawing critical raves from all over the world:

“… [Ten] one of the great rock albums, period, of the last 20 years” – People magazine

“…the freshened-up album sounds to us today even more like it did back in 1991: classic.” – LA Times

“The guitars snap and bite, Vedder’s vocals are rawer and more textured, and Krusen’s crisp, syncopated parts stand out” – Rolling Stone (US)

“‘Ten’ is a classic of the grunge era, its super-sized anthems and introspective mood pieces powerfully voiced by Eddie Vedder, a Jim Morrison for the plaid shirt brigade.” – Mojo

“There is no shortage of choice for the avid collector…. It sounds great, actually from the inflammatory guitar intro to the momentous ‘Once’ to the final handsome drift of ‘Release’ it’s a resplendent thing.” – Uncut

“Pearl Jam has solidified its place as an indomitable cultural force.” – Seattle Sound

“It’s a relic and a shrine commemorating a bygone time when music was something you caressed.” – Blender

“It’s the extra features, spread over four different lavish editions, that truly impress…” – Q

“…fans will be particularly impressed with the difference in singer Eddie Vedder’s voice on the ‘new’ version of the album.” – NME

About “Ten”

Pearl Jam first released “Ten” on August 27, 1991. The album reached #2 on the Billboard 200 chart, sold over 12 million copies and became one of the cultural touchstones of the 1990s. Songs such as “Alive,” “Black,” “Even Flow” and “Jeremy” became staples of rock radio, and still make frequent appearances on the band’s ever-changing concert setlists. The album was produced by Rick Parasher. Pearl Jam’s 1991 lineup was Jeff Ament (bass), Stone Gossard (guitar), Dave Krusen (drums), Mike McCready (guitar) and Eddie Vedder (vocals/guitar).

Source: Legacy Recordings

THEIR ALBUM OF THE DECADE CARRIES AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE

“Lifeline” Smash Alternative and Rock Single

Papa Roach’s album of the decade Metamorphosis debuts at number 8 this week on the Billboard Top 200 Album chart with 44,456 units sold. First week sales of Metamorphosis exceed that of their 2006 The Paramour Sessions which sold 36,742 units – that’s an 18% increase despite a tough economic climate and a sign that demand for the band’s signature brand of rock is only increasing. Released on March 24th on DGC/Interscope Records the album marks the band’s 10 years together and showcases their ever-growing talent as musicians and songwriters with a career that includes seven Top Ten multi-format hits including “Last Resort,” “Forever,” “Getting Away With Murder,” “Scars” and “To Be Loved.”

The first official single from Metamorphosis, “Lifeline,” is currently in the top 5 of both the Alternative and Rock charts (no. 4 and no. 1) in the country with digital sales of the single spiking by 139% with 18,878 sold this week. The video for the single is currently the #1 most played on FUSE and the #1 rock video on MTV2. Directed by Chris Sims (Queens of the Stone Age, Jimmy Eat World), the “Lifeline” video underscores the dire state of the global economy: http://www.imeem.com/paparoach/video/bv_KUO4l/papa-roach-lifeline-music-video/ .

Frontman Jacoby Shaddix explains, “While we were writing Metamorphosis in early 2008, the band was very aware of the grave issue of our economy’s downward spiral. It was literally right in front of us in my hometown of Sacramento. Houses left and right were foreclosing with families left on their asses out in the cold, which inspired me to write the lyrics to ‘Lifeline.’” He continues, “Other tracks on the album such as ‘Change or Die,’ ‘Had Enough’ and ‘March Out Of The Darkness’ also tap into the struggles so many people are facing in these difficult economic times.”

Papa Roach is currently on a 47 date tour with Buckcherry and Avenged Sevenfold and will be trekking through Europe in April and back again in June for their first headlining tour in over 2 years before hitting the road with Nickelback this summer starting July 10. For full list of tour dates, visit www.paparoach.com.

www.proachriot.com

www.myspace.com/paparoach

Source: DGC/Interscope Records

The quintessential modern rock band Pearl Jam is making radio history this week as “Brother,” a previously unreleased track recorded more than 18 years ago, rockets into the #1 slot on the BDS/R&R Modern Rock Chart a mere four weeks after entering the chart.

With the #1 success of “Brother,” Pearl Jam joins the Beatles (“Free As A Bird”) and Elvis Presley (“A Little Less Conversation”) as one of the select few bands or artists to ever hit #1 with a track recorded decades prior.

Recorded in 1991 during the sessions that produced Ten, the band’s classic breakout debut album, “Brother” is Pearl Jam’s fourth #1 Modern Rock single, joining the ranks of “Daughter,” “Who You Are,” and “Worldwide Suicide.” A fifth Pearl Jam single, “Last Kiss,” peaked at #2 on the Modern Rock Chart.

In addition to its #1 Modern Rock status, “Brother” is bulleting up the charts on a variety of rock radio formats including BDS Alternative (#1), BDS Active (#7), Mediabase Alternative (#2), Mediabase Active (#8), Mediabase Mainstream (#3) and Mediabase Classic Rock (#20), garnering a total listening audience to-date of some 53.38 million listeners.

Pearl Jam’s “Brother” is available for the first time as a bonus cut on the upcoming reissue of Ten on Epic/Legacy Recordings.

On Tuesday, March 24, Legacy will release four special edition packages of Ten, each of them featuring two versions of the album: the remastered version of the original album PLUS an accompanying remixed version done by the band’s long-time producer, Brendan O’Brien (Bruce Springsteen, AC/DC, Audioslave).

The new editions will include:

Legacy Edition (a 2-disc set in a mini-LP style slipcase featuring six bonus tracks: “Brother,” “Just A Girl,” “State of Love and Trust,” “Breath and a Scream,” “2,000 Mile Blues” and “Evil Little Goat”);

Deluxe Edition (a 2-disc set plus the long-awaited first-ever release of Pearl Jam’s mythic 1992 MTV Unplugged concert including never-before-seen bonus performance of “Oceans” with a 5.1 Surround Sound audio remix);

Vinyl Collection (two 12″ LPs of the original Ten tracklisting remastered for vinyl including the new Brendan O’Brien remix);

Super Deluxe Edition (a 2-disc set plus DVD, 4 LPs including 1992′s “Live at Magnuson Park” mixed by Brendan O’Brien, a cassette replica of the legendary “Momma-Son” demos of “Alive,” “Once” and “Footsteps” and an Eddie Vedder-style composition notebook filled with replica personal notes, images and mementos from the collections of Eddie Vedder and Jeff Ament, a vellum envelope with replicated era specific ephemera from Pearl Jam’s early work and a two-sided print commemorating the Drop in the Park concert).

Rock Band

On December 15, 2008, Harmonix, the world’s premier music video game development company, and MTV Games, a part of Viacom’s MTV Networks, confirmed that Ten, the debut album that sold 12 million copies and introduced the world to Pearl Jam in 1991, would be offered for download in the Rock Band Music Store day-and-date with the re-issue of the album in stores on March 24, 2009.

In addition to the track “Alive” which is already available on the Rock Band 2 game disc, the Pearl Jam Ten download pack will include the additional 10 songs from the album: “Once,” “Even Flow,” “Why Go,” “Black,” “Jeremy,” “Oceans,” “Porch,” “Garden,” “Deep,” and “Release.”

Ten

Pearl Jam first released Ten on August 27, 1991. The album reached #2 on the Billboard 200 chart, sold over 12 million copies and became one of the cultural touchstones of the 1990s. Songs such as “Alive,” “Black,” “Even Flow” and “Jeremy” became staples of rock radio, and still make frequent appearances on the band’s ever-changing concert setlists. The album was produced by Rick Parasher. Pearl Jam’s 1991 lineup was Jeff Ament (bass), Stone Gossard (guitar), Dave Krusen (drums), Mike McCready (guitar) and Eddie Vedder (vocals/guitar).

Source: Legacy Recordings

VisitBritain, the national tourist office for England, Scotland and Wales commissioned a recent survey conducted by Harris Interactive which found one in three U.S. adults listens to British music regularly, over any other non-U.S. musical artists.

When asked which British musical artists they listened to in the past twelve months, nearly half of U.S. adults surveyed said The Beatles (48 percent) and Elton John (49 percent), with The Rolling Stones also ranking high on their playlists (41 percent). Over one-third chose stars of today like Coldplay (36 percent) and one-fifth chose Amy Winehouse (21 percent), both of which have quickly become mainstays in American pop music. When Coldplay’s single “Viva la Vida” debuted last year, it took the top spot on the UK Singles Charts and Billboard’s Hot 100, making it the band’s first number-one single and transatlantic number-one.

At this year’s Grammy Awards, British artists like London’s Coldplay and Welsh songstress Duffy went home with some serious hardware — a clear sign that British music has invaded American culture.

Simon Bradley, VisitBritain Executive Vice President, Americas said, “British pop culture is so alive here in the United States and people experience it every day — from music and film to fashion and art. So we are saying, ‘if you like what you have seen in the U.S., why not come and immerse yourself in British culture on your next vacation? — watching an indie rock band in Manchester or attending a world-class music festival like Glastonbury.”

Britain is home to some of the world’s hottest music scenes. Respondents said The Beatles’ hometown of Liverpool came out on top as the UK city they most associate with popular music. Liverpool was selected by one-third of respondents (33 percent), followed by London (20 percent) and Manchester (3 percent). Liverpool’s iconic Cavern Club put the city on the world music map, but has continued to produce emerging indie talent like rock bands The Hot Melts and The Wombats. The ‘King of Pop’ recently chose London as the stage for his final curtain call. The city’s O2 arena will host Michael Jackson in July. The scene in Manchester, one of Britain’s most musical cities, is just as vibrant with venues like the Apollo Theatre and popular rock bands like Oasis and The Courteeners.

Britain throws down the best music festivals all year round. If money were no object, 12 percent of U.S. adults say they would attend the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and 8 percent would attend Glastonbury*. The Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland brings together the most out-of-the box musical performances in August. This year at Glastonbury, Bruce Springsteen will headline the world’s largest greenfield music and performing arts festival.

For all the latest on the music scene in Britain, log on to www.transatlanticism.org. For more on new tourism developments in Britain, go to www.visitbritain.us.

Written and directed by Guy Ritchie, “RocknRolla” is a story of sex, thugs and rock ‘n roll, starring Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Thandie Newton, Mark Strong, Idris Elba, Tom Hardy, and Toby Kebbell.

Josh Berger, President and Managing Director of Warner Bros. UK, commented, “We are delighted that ‘RocknRolla’ has been so well received by British cinema audiences, who love both the film and the great ensemble cast. We think that the great reviews and strong word of mouth will carry the film well into autumn and congratulate Guy Ritchie and his creative team on this success.”

The action comedy takes a dangerous ride into high crime and low life in contemporary London, where real estate has supplanted drugs as the biggest market, and criminals are its most enthusiastic entrepreneurs. With millions up for grabs, all of London’s criminal underworld conspires, colludes and collides with one another in an effort to take their cut. But as high rollers and petty criminals alike jockey for dominance, the true prize of one multi-million-dollar deal will fall into the hands of a junkie rock star – Lenny’s stepson, presumed dead but very much alive.

The film is produced by Joel Silver (“The Matrix,” “Lethal Weapon” and “Die Hard” franchises), Susan Downey (“The Brave One”), Steve Clark-Hall (“Revolver”) and Guy Ritchie. Steve Richards and Navid McIlhargey are the executive producers.

Joel Silver remarked, “We are so proud of ‘RocknRolla’ and knew the UK was the right place to open this film. Critics are already calling ‘RocknRolla’ a return to form for Guy Ritchie, and I couldn’t agree more. Now I can’t wait to share the film with American audiences, who I truly believe will embrace ‘RocknRolla’ just as enthusiastically.”

A Dark Castle Entertainment production, “RocknRolla” is being distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Launched in 1999, Dark Castle Entertainment was founded to create a unique brand of horror movies inspired by the works of legendary filmmaker William Castle. Recently, Dark Castle entered into an arrangement with CIT Group Inc. to broaden the company into a full genre label encompassing feature films, Home Video and comic books. Under the supervision of producer Joel Silver, Dark Castle’s upcoming film roster includes the thriller “Whiteout,” starring Kate Beckinsale under the direction of Dominic Sena; “Ninja Assassin,” directed by James McTeigue and starring Korean music sensation Rain; the horror thriller “The Orphan,” starring Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard; and the psychological thriller “The Factory,” starring John Cusack. The company’s Home Video titles include “The Hills Run Red,” starring Sophie Monk, William Sadler and Tad Hilgenbrink. Upcoming Comic Book projects include “Ferryman,” by Marc Andreyko and Jonathan Wayshak.

Source: Warner Bros Entertainment UK Ltd