Bon Jovi – What about Now

The forthcoming twelfth album by rock band Bon Jovi is entitled “What About Now” and is produced by John Shanks. Bon Jovi are Originally from Sayreville, New Jersey and Formed in 1983 Band members include Jon Bon Jovi – lead vocals, guitar, Richie Sambora – guitar, backing vocals, Hugh McDonald – bass, backing vocals, Tico Torres – drums and David Bryan – keyboards, backing vocals.The band achieved widespread recognition with their third album, Slippery When Wet, released in 1986. Their fourth album New Jersey, which was released in 1988, became just as successful as its predecessor. Bon Jovi went onto achieve thirteen U.S. Top 40 hits between 1986-1995, including four number-ones including  You Give love a Bad Name“”, “Livin on a Prayer“, “Bad Medicine“, and “I’ll Be There for You”. Other hits include Keep the Faith ”Wanted Dead or Alive” ”Bed of Roses” Have a Nice Day and “Always”. Their 2000 single “, It’s My Life“, successfully introduced the band to a younger audience. Bon Jovi has been known to use different styles in their music, which has included country for their 2007 album Lost Highway which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. Their last album, The Circle was released in 2009, and the new album What About Now is being released 8th March 2013.

Tracks on the album include:

1. Because We Can
2. I’m With You
3. What About Now
4. Pictures of You
5. Amen
6. That’s What the Water Made Me
7. What’s Left of Me
8. Army of One
9. Thick as Thieves
10. Beautiful World
11. Room at the End of the World
12. The Fighter
13. These Two Hands
14. Not Running Anymore
15. Old Habits Die Hard
16. Every Road Leads Home to You

Primal Scream – More light

Five years since Primal Scream released their last album, 2008’s Beautiful Future. which Featured Lovefoxxx, Josh Homme and Linda Thompson, they are about to release their forthcoming 10th album, More Light via their own independent label First International on 6th May 2013. The new album features Kevin Shields (My Bloody Valentine) and has been co-produced by Dave Holmes, who also produced 2000’s sonic blitzkrieg XTRMNTR. The title of the first single is 2013, which deals with problems in our culture which features the jangle of acoustic guitars, interspersed by some skyscraping guitar work from Kevin Shields together with sudden bursts of Brass.
More Light – is released on 6th May 2013 via their own label, First International

Alan Clark (Dire Straits)

Alan Clark the keyboard player with Dire Straits was born 5th March 1952. Formed in 1977 by Brothers Mark (lead vocals and lead guitar)and David Knopfler (rhythm guitar and backing vocals), and friends John Illsley (bass guitar and backing vocals, and Pick Withers (drums and percussion), they recorded a five-song demo tape which included their future hit single, “Sultans of Swing”, as well as “Water of Love”, “Down to the Waterline”, “Wild West End” and David Knopfler’s “Sacred Loving”.

DIRE STRAITS DISCOGRAPHY HERE  

The group’s first album, was intitled Dire Straits the album had little promotion when initially released in the United Kingdom However, the album came to the attention of A&R representative Karin Berg, working at Warner Bros. Records in New York City. She felt that it was the kind of music audiences were hungry for, That same year, Dire Straits began a tour as opening band for the Talking Heads after the re-released “Sultans of Swing” which scaled the charts to number four in the United States and number eight in the United Kingdom. The song was one of Dire Straits’ biggest hits and became a fixture in the band’s live performances. “ Recording sessions for the group’s second album, Communiqué, took place in December 1978, Released in June 1979 Communiqué Featured the single “Lady Writer”, the second album continued in a similar vein as the first and displayed the expanding scope of Knopfler’s lyricism on the opening track, “Once Upon a Time in the West”. In 1980, Dire Straits were nominated for two Grammy Awards for Best New Artist and Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for “Sultans Of Swing.

In July 1980 the band started recording tracks for their third album. Making Movies which featured longer songs with more complex arrangements, a style which would continue for the rest of the band’s career. The album featured many of Mark Knopfler’s most personal compositions. The most successful chart single was “Romeo and Juliet” and was released in October 1980. Dire Straits’ fourth studio album Love Over Gold, an album of songs filled with lengthy, experimental passages, was well received when it was released in September 1982, going gold in America and spending four weeks at number one in the United Kingdom, its main chart hit, “Private Investigations”, gave Dire Straits their first top 5 hit single in the United Kingdom, where it reached the number 2 position despite its almost seven-minute length, and became another of the band’s most popular live songs. along with “Industrial Disease”, a song that looks at the decline of the British manufacturing industry in the early 1980s. In 1983, a four-song EP titled ExtendedancEPlay was released while Love Over Gold was still in the album charts. It featured the hit single “Twisting By the Pool”. Dire Straits also embarked on a world tour. wgich resulted in The double album Alchemy Live, a recording of two live concerts of the group at London’s Hammersmith Odeon in July 1983, was released in March 1984.

Dire Straits returned to the recording studios at the end of 1984 to record their biggest selling album to date, Brothers in Arms, which has so far sold over 30 million copies and contains the songs “Money for Nothing”, “Walk of Life”, “So Far Away”, “Your Latest Trick” and “Brothers in Arms”. Released in May 1985, Brothers In Arms entered the UK Albums Chart at number 1 and spent a total of 228 weeks in the charts, It went on to become the best-selling album of 1985 in the UK, “Money for Nothing” was also the first video ever to be played on MTV in Britain and featured guest vocals by Sting, who is credited with co-writing the song with Mark Knopfler, although in fact, it was just the inclusion of the melody line from “Don’t Stand So Close To Me”.Brothers in Arms was among the first albums recorded on digital equipment due to Knopfler pushing for improved sound quality The album’s title track is reported to be the world’s first CD single. The album is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the first compact disc to sell a million copies, and has been credited with helping to popularise the CD forma

Their sound drew from a variety of musical influences, including jazz, folk, blues, and came closest to beat music within the context of rock and roll. Despite the prominence of punk rock during the band’s early years, the band’s stripped-down sound contrasted with punk, demonstrating a more “rootsy” influence that emerged out of pub rock. Many of Dire Straits’ compositions were melancholic and they have gone on to became one of the world’s most commercially successful bands, with worldwide album sales of over 120 million. making them One of the world’s best selling music artists, and their fifth album, Brothers in Arms, has won many accolades. In November 2009, Dire Straits were honoured by the new PRS for Music Heritage Award. A special blue plaque was erected at Farrer House, Church Street, Deptford in south London, where the original group, Mark Knopfler, David Knopfler, John Illsley and Pick Withers once shared a council flat and performed their first ever gig in 1977. PRS for Music has set up the Heritage Award to recognise the unusual “performance birthplaces” of famous bands and artists. Dire Straits have also won numerous music awards during their career, including four Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards—winning Best British Group twice, and two MTV Video Music Awards. The band’ most popular songs include “Sultans of Swing”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “Tunnel of Love”, “Private Investigations” .Dire Straits’ career spanned 18 years. There were several changes in personnel over that period, leaving Mark Knopfler and John Illsley as the only two original bandmates who had remained throughout the band’s career. Dire Straits disbanded in 1995 when Mark Knopfler launched his career full time as a solo artist.

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Other musicians celebrating birthdays on the 5th March include Mark.E.Smith lead singer with The Fall, who was born 5th March 1957 and Twins Charlie & Craig Reid from The Proclaimers who were both born 5th March 1962

John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers)

John Frusciante, on/off member of the Red Hot Chili Peppers was born March 5th 1970. Formed in Los Angeles in 1983. The Peppers’ musical style is a mix of funk, alternative rock, hard rock and punk rock. The band’s influences include Defunkt, Parliament-Funkadelic, Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, Gang of Four, Bob Marley, Big Boys, Sly and the Family Stone, Ohio Players, Queen, Stevie Wonder, Elvis Presley, The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Black Flag, Ornette Coleman, Led Zeppelin, Bad Brains, Fugazi, Fishbone, Marvin Gaye, Billie Holiday, Santana, Elvis Costello, The Stooges, The Clash, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Devo, and Miles Davis. Live, they incorporate many aspects of jam rock due to the improvised nature of much of their performances. Currently, the band consists of founding members Anthony Kiedis (vocals) and Michael “Flea” Balzary (bass), longtime drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, who joined in late 2009, following the departure of John Frusciante. The Red Hot Chili Peppers have won seven Grammy Awards and sold over 80 million albums worldwide. In 2012 they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The band’s original line-up featured guitarist Hillel Slovak and Jack Irons, alongside Kiedis and Flea. Cliff Martinez was the drummer for the first two records (Irons played on the third), and guitarist Jack Sherman played on the first. Slovak performed on two albums  Freaky Styley (1985) and The Uplift Mofo Party Plan (1987); but died of a heroin overdose in 1988, resulting in drummer Irons’ departure. Parliament-Funkadelic guitarist DeWayne McKnight was brought in but he was replaced by John Frusciante in 1988. Former Dead Kennedys drummer D.H. Peligro was brought in to replace Irons but was soon replaced by Chad Smith that same year. The line-up of Flea, Kiedis, Frusciante and Smith was the longest-lasting, and recorded five studio albums starting with 1989′s Mother’s Milk.

In 1990, the group released the album Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991), which became the band’s first commercial success. Frusciante  left abruptly in 1992, in the middle of the album tour. so they recruited guitarist Arik Marshall to complete the tour, Kiedis, Flea, and Smith employed Jesse Tobias who was replaced by Dave Navarro of Jane’s Addiction for their subsequent album, One Hot Minute (1995). Although commercially successful, the album failed to match the critical or popular acclaim of Blood Sugar Sex Magik. Navarro left the band in 1998 and Frusciante,  rejoined the band that same year at Flea’s request. The reunited quartet returned to the studio to record Californication(1999), which became the band’s biggest commercial success with 15 million copies worldwide. That album was followed three years later by By the Way(2002), and then four years later by the double album Stadium Arcadium (2006), their first number one album in America. After a world tour, the group went on an extended hiatus. Frusciante announced he was amicably leaving the band to focus on his solo career. Josh Klinghoffer, who had worked both as a sideman for the band on their Stadium Arcadium tour and on Frusciante’s solo projects, joined as lead guitarist in 2009 and the band spent the next year and a half recording their tenth studio album, I’m with You, which was released in 2011 and topped the charts in 18 different countries.

Jo Nesbo’s novel The Snowman to be turned into a film

Having read the novels and seen the film versions of Jo Nesbo’s Headhunters and Jackpot and read numerous Harry Hole (Pronounced “Huller”) novels, including Headhunters, Jackpot, The Snowman, Nemesis and Phantom I was interested to learn that film-making legend Martin Scorsese is slated to direct Norwegian crime writer Jo Nesbø’s novel “The Snowman”. which is The seventh book in Nesbø’s Harry Hole series and is set around Oslo, Norway, and depicts the savage work of a serial killer and Harry’s attempts to stop him. it is also thought Scorsese’s involvement may see the film transported to America.”

I would also like to see The Hunters (Jagarna) which is directed by Kjell Sundvall and stars Rolf Lassgard, as a Stockholm Policeman named Eric who After working for the Stockholm police for several years, returns to his home village to live with his younger brother Leif and work in the local police department. At first welcomed home with open arms, Erik soon forges a path of estrangement and destruction when he single-handedly sets about solving an on-going case concerning the slaughter of local reindeer, a problem that the town cops have been plainly ignoring. When Eric learns that his brother is involved events take a further turn for the worse and violence erupts in the village as the closed-community unites against Erik’s quest for truth and, ultimately, justice.

Another gripping and compelling crime thriller I would like to see is False Trail which also stars Rolf Lassgard as Erik, and takes place fifteen years after the events in The Hunters, after which he was forced to leave the Norrland Police Department, and has now become the National Murder Commission’s best interrogator. However he is despatched to his home town by his boss in order to solve a brutal murder, despite the thought of going back stirring up unpleasant memories he hesitantly returns and What at first appears to be a simple murder soon proves to be something much more complicated. This film also stars Peter Stormare (Fargo)