New releases are typically accompanied by an barrage of interviews and appearances by the artist pitching the album. Not David Bowie's.  The Next Day, the album that came out of nowhere after its existance was only revealed a few weeks before its release, has its creater staying as under the radar as he was while making it.  While continuing to resist submitting to interviews or appearing on late night talk shows, Bowie has released a 'work flow diagram' for the album.  Make of it what you can, the 42 word list may be all we'll get from David about the project.

Effigies

Indulgences

Anarchist
Chthonic
Intimidation
Vampyric
Pantheon
Succubus
Hostage
Transference
Identity
Mauer

Interface
Flitting
Isolation
Revenge
Osmosis

Crusade
Tyrant
Dmoniation
Indifference

Miasma

Pressgang

The Rolling Stones extended their tradition of doing a pre-tour club gig with an energetic set at the Echoplex, a venue in the Echo Park section of LA Saturday night (4/27).  A few hundred fans lucky enough to snatch-up $20 tickets to the show the band announced through its Twitter account was treated to a set of high octane Stones classics. A crowd gathered outside of the Sunset Boulevard club was able to hear a muffled version of the set from the sidewalk.  The 50 & Counting tour opens at the Staples Center on Friday.
LATimes.com

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Bob Weir pitched over and was helped from the stage during the Furthur concert Thursday night (4/25) at the Capitol Theater in Portchester, New York.  He was reportedly transported from the scene in an ambulance.  No information about his condition or the cause of the collapse has been released, but Phil Lesh indicated that the guitarist had injured his shoulder earlier in the day during a workout.  Weir, who had already taken a seat instead of standing during the set, was reported by one source to be '...belligerent and incoherent' as he was helped to his feet and off the stage.  After a brief break in the set, the rest of the band picked up where they had left off, completing an encore of Stella Blue, China Cat Sunflower and I Know You Rider.
Zagsblog.com

When Derek Trucks selected which guitars would accompany him to the Crossroads Festival in the Big Apple, he included one extra special one on the list.  Backstage at Madison Square Garden, he put it in the hands of Crossroads host Eric Clapton, who ran his fingers up and down the frets while doing some picking and complimented Trucks on the feel and sound of the Gibson Les Paul.  It was then that Trucks told Eric he was playing the guitar that Duane Allman had used during the session that produced Layla and Assorted Other Love Songs.  On learning he was playing the fabled Gold Top guitar, John Lyndon relates, 'Eric's whole body twitched and he was completely thrown for a loop.'  Trucks also asked Eric whether he wanted to use it on stage but Clapton passed, saying it would just be too intense.

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A Lakers-Spurs NBA Playoff game scheduled on May 2 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles has forced the Rolling Stones to reschedule their 50 & Counting Tour opener to the following night.  Fans attending shows on the tour won't likely be hearing anything new from the Stones.  Jagger recently told USA Today, 'It would e nice to have a new album, but people don't like the new album when you play it on stage. The glumly look at you. ...it's the truth and it has to be said.'
GigWise.com

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Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr hooked up for dinner Wednesday (4/17) at a Hollywood restaurant and the pair was reportedly joined by Joe Walsh and Jeff Lynne Sunday night at Mr. Chows, a dinner spot in Beverly Hills, where plenty of photographers were prepared to pounce when the party left the establishment.
RumorFix.com TMZ.com

The name might not be familiar, but the artwork Storm Thorgerson did is indelibly imprinted on the minds of  millions of Rock fans.  Thorgerson was the creative artist responsible for Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, Animals, Wish You Were Here and Momentary Lapse of Reason, along with the cover art for a number of other artists, including album art for Genesis, Styx and Led Zeppelin (Houses Of The Holy, Presence).  Even though he was a childhood friend of David Gilmour, Roger Waters and Syd Barrett, Thorgerson's first Floyd cover gig came his way because his flat mate, artist Aubrey Powell, turned the job down.  Thorgerson submitted a piece for the band to consider using for A Saucerful of Secrets, the group's second album.  Impressed, they came back to him in 1972 to ask him to come up with something '...graphic, cool and deliberate' for the cover of Dark Side Of The Moon. The stark, simple piece he came up with for the monumentally successful 1973 album became arguably the most recognized album cover in Rock history.  He would go on to create considerably more involved pieces - most notably the giant, inflatable Pig he floated over a UK  power station for the cover to 1977's Animals album and the 700 hospital beds he had deployed on a beach for the cover shoot of the 1987 Floyd release, A Momentary Lapse of Reason.

Thorgerson died Thursday (4/18) of cancer at the age of 69.
NYTimes.com

Elton John hosted a get together for some industry insiders recently to give them a listen to a few of the tracks on the album he plans to release in the fall.  From  what EJ had to play and say, Diving Board will be quite departure from the heavily produced pop slop he's been associated with over the last many years.  Elton credits a contemporary that never strove for the kind of mass commercial success that he sought for inspiring him to get back to basics and make a record that '...befits a person of my age.'  The quest to make the new album began after Elton listened to Modern Times, the album Dylan released in 2006. 'When I heard that record I went, My God, this record could have been made any time in the last 50 years! It's brilliant and I want to try to make records as good as that.'
John's album is being produced by T Bone Burnett and will feature Elton backed by Raphael Saadiq on bass and drummer Jay Bellerose.
ca.Music.Yahoo.com

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Deep Purple releases its first album of new material in too long April 30.  Now What?! finds the veteran Hard Rockers in fine form - fresh but immediately recognizable. Stick these two preview tracks in your ears and see if you don't agree.

 

Ozzy Osbourne issued a statement apologizing to his family, friends and fans for having returned to booze and drug use during the past year and a half, calling the period a return to '...a very dark place', and admitting the substance abuse made him '...an asshole to the people I love most: my family.'  He says he has been back on the wagon for more than a month and added that, contrary to reports, he and his wife, Sharon, are not splitting up as a result of his behavior, which he called 'insane' during the stretch off the wagon.

Black Sabbath puts out its first album since '78 with Ozzy out front on June 10.
ClassicRockMagazine.com

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The lineup for Eric Clapton's Crossroads Festival was already loaded with top notch players. Keith Richards made the already special showcase of guitar greats got even better Friday (4/12) at Madison Square Garden when the Rolling Stones guitarist joined the EC on stage.  The pair traded licks on y Keys To The Highway and Sweet Little Rock 'n Roller. Later in his set, Slowhand was joined by Robbie Robertson on I Shall Be Released.  The nearly 5 hour concert also saw the host perform with Robert Cray, and Los Lobos.  Gregg Allman put in an appearance with Warren Haynes & Derek Trucks and Gary Clark Jr. and Jeff Beck brought the house to its feet with great sets.

Calling a preview a trailer seems bass-ackwards to us, but that's what they call it.  Here's the one for Ain't In It For My Health, the film celebrating the spirit and humanity of Levon Helm.
 

The book My Cross To Bear became one of the better selling musical memoirs ever, so film makers Jody Savin and Randall Miller are looking to bringing the Gregg Allman story to the big screen.  The plan is to concentrate on his early years as the Allman Brothers Band was coming together and then fast forward to recent years when Allman, a guy who at several points along the way would have had few people willing to bet he'd make it to his 60's, has managed to not only persevere, but to achieve a number of milestones.  Miller says, 'We knew it was a great story but didn't know how great it was until we read the book.  That journey and coming out the other side is not the normal falling into hell story that rock and roll often is.'

DigitalSpy.com

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Mick Fleetwood has managed to get his band, with the exception of Christine McVie, back together, but has decided he needs a break from his 18 year marriage.  The drummer has reportedly separated from wife,  Lynn, and, if TMZ got it right, is seeking spousal support from her, while maintaining that everything he collected in royalties and memorabilia prior to their marrige is his alone.  He apparently wants his wife to raise their twin 11 year-old girls.
DailyMail.co.uk

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Jimmy Buffet puts in a guest star appearance on Hawaii Five-O Monday (4/15) in an episode that finds McGarrett and Catherine on a quest to recalim the remains of a fallen commerade across the North Korean border.  The show airs on CBS at 10p (Eastern).
YouTube.com

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The wait for a new Joe Walsh album should be a lot shorter than the two decades it took him to put out Analog Man. The Eagles guitarist has already done some sessions for a blues album that he is recording with Robert Randolph and Keb' Mo'.  Walsh tipped Billboard to the project, which he says will be about 50-50 originals to covers.  He says, 'I told everybody to bring a song in... be it an old blues song or some idea.  We went through some old Stax records from, like, the Otis Redding days, Sam & Dave stuff... and did our version of a whole bunch of stuff.'  Also in on the project is Jeff Beck bass player Tal Wilkenfeld.
ContactMusic.com  Billboard.com

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Two storage shed burglars that made off with a Jeep loaded with stolen electronics failed to take into account that the big Grateful Dead sticker on the vehicle's back window could be a dead give away as to their identities.  Police in Wentzville, MO (sounds like a city the Dead would have done a song about) posted an APB after a Jeep was caught on a surveillance camera leaving a Safe Lock storage facility after a series of break-ins involving nine storage lockers.  The pair may also have been responsible for a similar crime in another town.
FOX2now.com

When it comes to album credits, few families have had as big or lasting impact on Rock than the Johns. Between them, Andy and Glyn Johns crafted the sound of dozens of seminal albums - a tradition being carried on by nephew Ethan Johns.  Andy, the younger of the brothers, has died at just 61.  His album credits include career defining work he did on projects by the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen and many others.  His versatility caused artists as diverse as Joni Mitchell, the Go Go's, Ozzy Osbourne and Jethro Tull to seek him out. He engineered Exile On Main Street, Get Yer Ya Ya's Out,, Goat's Head Soup, Sticky Fingers and It's Only Rock 'n Roll for the Stones, the sole studio album from Derek & The Dominos, Led Zeppelin II, III, IV, Houses Of The Holy and Physical Graffiti, the debut solo album from Stephen Stills, Van Halen's Best Of Both Worlds and For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge.
HollywoodReporter.com  AllMusic.com

The family of the late sax player for Bruce Springsteen's band contends that poor decisions on the part of doctors caused problems that led to the death of Clarence Clemons.  A Florida court in Palm Beach County has cleard the way for the malpractice suit to advance to a jury trial.  The suit maintains that a decision to suspend his use of a blood thinner in the hours leading up to surgery for carpal tunnel  resulted in the Big Man of the E Street Band suffering a stroke five days following the surgery.  According to the filing, the doctors should be found guilty of negligence for recommending the musician stop taking Coumadin without prescribing a 'short acting anticougulant' to reduce the risk of problems related to being off his regular medication.  The family is seeking to recoup medical costs as well as compensation for pain and suffering.
EINNews.com

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Any question about the sustained interest in seeing the Rolling Stones live was dismissed with news that 60,000 tickets to see the band in its first concert in Hyde park in 44 years sold out in under 5 minutes.  The band has also left open dates on either side of shows booked for its upcoming tour of North America in anticipation that demand for tickets could result in adjacent dates getting booked in some markets - something that has already happened in Toronto.

STV.tv

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Roger Waters has been a vocal opponent of the Israeli government's position on Palestinian issues, so it was a bit of a surprise that a Jewish cultural center in New York City invited the former Pink Floyd member to make a presentation about his career - and more surprising that he accepted. The 92nd Street Y now says that Waters has pulled out of the April 30 event, prompting the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York to applaud the move, saying, 'We are very pleased that a vocal supporter of the BDS movement (which calls for a boycott of Israel) will not be given a platform at a Jewish institution.'  Waters has characterized the Israeli policies toward Palestinians as 'apartheid' and voiced support for BDS. No explanation was offered for the cancelation.
TheJewishWeek.com

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The Crossroads Guitar Fest Eric Clapton is staging at Madison Square Garden April 12 & 13 will have plenty in searing electric solos, but the evenings will open on a quite note as EC will do an acoustic set the first night before joining night one's headliners the Allman Brothers Band to close the show.  Clapton first shared the stage with the ABB during the group's 2009 residency at the Beacon Theatre in New York.
RollingStone.com JamBands.com

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The Rolling Stones issued a video featuring footage from the London and US dates they did in the fall to announce a new round of dates in North America.  The tour, dubbed 50 & Counting, suggests that Mick and the band don't consider this to be a 'farewell' tour.  The trek opens in LA and works its way east.  The band also confirmed plans to headline the Glastonbury Festival at the end of June and stage a July 6 concert in London's Hyde Park, the site of one of their best shows ever.

TBD Los Angeles (Staples Center)
5/5  Oakland (Oracle Arena)
5/8  San Jose (HP Pavilion)
5/11 Las Vegas (MGM Grand)
5/15 Anaheim (Honda Center)
5/25 Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
5/28 Chicago (United Center)
6/12 Boston (TD Garden)
6/18 Philadelphia (Wells Fargo Arena)
6/29 Glasonbury Festival
7/6   Hyde Park

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Geddy Lee was in fine form when he took the mound on opening day to throw the ceremonial first pitch before the Toronto Blue Jays took the field to play the Cleveland Indians. The Rush front man, who attends Jays games whenever he gets the chance, shares the excitement of his home team's fans about the new lineup the organization is putting on the field this season, telling Q104 in New York City he thinks his Jays have a legit shot at the World Series but adding, 'I don't want to jinx them by saying they are going to, but I think it is going to be a fun season.'  His other playoff picks are the Angels, the Dodgers and the Cardinals.  The new Toronto skipper might want Geddy in the bullpen.  He painted the corner with a change-up
HenneMusic.com

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Pink Floyd fans can thank David Gilmour for preventing a foray into rap by the band.  Producer Bob Ezrin, who was at the helm when Momentary Lapse of Reason was being recorded,  suffered one of his own when he tried to sell the band on including rap elements in the album. Ezrin admits it, saying, "I became fascinated with rap - I'm an early adopter. ...I brought some to David Gilmour, going, 'Boy, I think this stuff with a rock beat would be awesome.'"  The guitarist's reaction to hearing it put a swift end to the topic.  The producer says Gilmour replied 'Oh my God, that would be terrible!'
ClassicRockMagazine.com

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Bidders eclipsed the estimated value of $30,000 for a signed copy of the Beatles Sgt. Pepper album within moments of the opening of an auction conducted in Dallas by Heritage Auctions.  When the gavel fell, an unidentified bidder form the MidWest was the new owner of the album with a winning bid of $290,500.  The bid shattered the previous high for an album cover signed by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr - $150k was paid for a copy of Meet The Beatles signed by the four.
HollywoodReporter.com

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