| CMU Daily - on the inside 1 Oct 2003 |
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In today's CMU Daily:
• What now for Foxy after Vaughan appointment?
• Matthew Jay dies after fall
• P Diddy to run NYC marathon
• Weiland launches label
• RIAA reach settlements with 64 downloaders
• Live Review: Jazzinho Live at Kemia Bar, Momo's Restaurant, Haddon Street
• Times may go tabloid route
• Air album out in new year
• Single Review: Elbow - Fugitve Motel (V2)
• Destiny's Child management firm acquired by Sanctuary
• Warner's publishing group being prepared for sale
• Suede on the new video and songs
• Dido happy in new relationship
• New Jacko track probably penned by R Kelly
• C-Murder found guilty of, erm, murder
• Album Review: My Space Holiday - The Young Machines (Wichita)
• Broadcasters criticised in latest BSC report
• Madonna sued by fashion photographer's estate
• Sky hit 7 million target ahead of schedule
• Britney - "I slept with Justin because I thought he was the one"
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WHAT NOW FOR FOXY AFTER VAUGHAN APPOINTMENT?
Well what's the bigger story? The fact that Chris Tarrant has finally confirmed he will retire from the Capital Radio breakfast show. The fact Johnny Vaughan has been hired to take over the show. Or the fact Neil Fox, long promised an internal transfer to breakfast, has not.
Capital confirmed yesterday what had long been assumed - that Tarrant will leave the breakfast show at the beginning of next year. Former Big Breakfast host Johnny Vaughan will take over in deal worth an estimated £1.5 million. He will host the Capital show alongside a new sports phone in he has been hired to present for BBC Radio 5 and a new series of his chat show for BBC3.
Commenting on his appointment Vaughan told reporters: "To be asked to fill CT's big headphones is an honour. To me London is the greatest city in the world and Capital the only radio station. I'm used to early mornings so getting up won't be a problem. My only hope is that I look as good as Chris does in 15 years time!"
Tarrant added: "I love Capital and Johnny is a great choice as my successor. I'm going to enjoy life without the early starts and I won't miss the alarm going off."
But away from the official announcements about the future of the breakfast show, Capital insiders are more interested in what this means for Neil Fox. The station's drive time presenter has long been the fill in presenter on the Breakfast Show - something which became an increasingly big job as Tarrant's holiday allowance increased. After much speculation last year as to who might take over from Tarrant when it looked like CT would be leaving sooner (Davina McCall, Ant & Dec and Xfm's Christian O'Connell were among those rumoured to be up for consideration) the station eventually said it was revamping its breakfast slot so that the format was more important than any one presenter's personality. This led to something of an assumption that Neil Fox, already running that format during Tarrant's absences, would take over full time once CT retired. The decision to go for Vaughan - a strong personality presenter - goes back on that original plan.
Fox was clearly disappointed at Vaughan's appointment, telling reporters that Capital has been managed "appallingly" over the past couple of years and that "dreadful management decisions" had been taken over music policy.
While indicating recent management changes at the station had fixed some of the problems, he went on: "I think I was probably led to believe it may be my job. I do have a window of opportunity now if I want to leave Capital. I don't think they want me to leave, the share price might fall even further if I did. But Pop Idol has opened up an amazing shop window for me to go on and do more TV shows." The window of opportunity probably refers to a clause believed to be in Fox's contract that allows him to leave the station quickly and hassle free if he isn't given the breakfast show.
However Fox wouldn't be drawn on his immediate plans: "I've said I'm not going to give them an instant decision, because I don't know yet... For the next month or so I will see where it takes me. I'm in no rush to make a decision and won't be rushed in to one."
Fox's lukewarm reception to Vaughan's appointment differed from comments made by Capital boss Keith Pringle who earlier in the day had said Fox was "really excited about Johnny coming to Capital"
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MATTHEW JAY DIES AFTER FALL
The family of Matthew Jay have confirmed the Parlophone signed singer-songwriter has died after falling from a seventh-floor window.
In a statement the singer's parents told reporters yesterday: "Matthew Jay died late evening on Wednesday, 24th September 2003, killed in a fall from a seventh-storey window. It is understood that there was nobody with him in the room at the time and no note was left. His family loved him dearly, admired him greatly and wish Matthew and all who loved him peace and tranquillity. Matthew lived and died for his music. We hope that his music will live on and help fill the terrible void left in all those who loved him."
A spokesman for EMI label Parlophone told reporters: "Everyone here who knew Matthew will remember him as such a lovely guy, and a very talented artist. We are deeply shocked and send our sympathy to his family and friends."
Jay's manager Martyn Watson added: "Matthew's genius was an inspiration. He brought light to all our lives and his songs will live on forever. All his friends will miss him so much."
Although in the early stages of his career, Jay enjoyed much critical acclaim for debut album 'Draw' - being compared to other singer/songwriters like Badly Drawn Boy and Nick Drake. He toured extensively supporting, among others, Stereophonics, Dido, Doves and Starsailor.
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P DIDDY TO RUN NYC MARATHON
P Diddy told reporters yesterday he plans to run the New York City Marathon on 2 Nov in aid of three of the city's children's charities.
Diddy told reporters: "This is something that's a personal goal for myself. Aside from the personal goal of competing, I've set aside this event as a backdrop to use to raise money and awareness for three charities dedicated to improving the lives of New York City children. We have the goal of raising $1 million to be divided between the Children's Hope Foundation, Daddy's House social programs and the public schools of New York City."
Among those already making generous pledges to sponsor Diddy are corporate sponsors Nike, McDonald's, Sean John, Foot Locker, NYC radio station Hot 97 and MTV - plus the producer's friends Sarah Jessica Parker, New York Yankee Derek Jeter, Calvin Klein, Jay-Z, Magic Johnson and Russell Simmons are all reported to be making generous donations.
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WEILAND LAUNCHES LABEL
Former Stone Temple Pilots' frontman Scott Weiland is a busy man. In between fronting Velvet Revolver, the band that brings together much of the original Guns 'n' Roses lineup, working on a second solo album and compiling a greatest hits album for the Pilots, Weiland has found time to launch a new record label.
A joint venture with Interscope the new label, Softdrive Records, will officially arrive on 14 Oct with the release of a new album from the reunited LA rock act Campfire Girls. Weiland encouraged the Campfire Girls to reunite in late 2000 and produced their new recordings at Burbank, the recording facility Weiland shares with collaborator Douglas Grean.
Talking about Weiland's record label venture Grean says it has been set up "in an effort to find and nurture great new artists."
The Stone Temple Pilots best of will be released in the US on 11 Nov via Warner label Atlantic. The debut release from Velvet Revolver is due in the New Year via BMG label RCA.
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RIAA REACH SETTLEMENTS WITH 64 DOWNLOADERS
Just as the US Senate opened those investigations into the continuing download challenge for the entertainments industry, the RIAA yesterday announced it has reached out of court settlements with 64 of the people it is suing for peer-to-peer file share copyright violation. Of that 64, 52 are from the 261 downloaders the Association actually instigated lawsuits against three weeks ago. The other 12 are individuals whose identity the RIAA had subpoenaed from their internet service providers, but with whom actual legal action was yet to begin. The trade organisation also announced that 838 file sharers have requested to participate in their 'Clean Slate' programme, where music downloaders can avoid future RIAA litigation if they delete their illegal MP3 collections and pledge to stop using file sharing networks. RIAA president Cary Sherman told reporters: "We are heartened by the response we have seen so far."
Meanwhile the American Civil Liberties Union has filed a lawsuit against the RIAA accusing it of illegally using subpoenas to out alleged copyright infringers. The group argues - as ISP Verizon did in its unsuccessful bid to fight the subpoenas - that using the US's Digital Millennium Copyright Act in this way violates American citizens' constitutional rights.
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LIVE REVIEW: Jazzinho Live at Kemia Bar, Momo's Restaurant, Haddon Street, London W1. 29 Sep
Jazzinho looked quite at home in this rather small North African styled basement bar as they performed to promote the up coming released of their new self titled album. Front woman Guida da Palma positively shimmered as she took slightly nervously to the mic. Starting slowly with 'Moody Maria' da Palma burst into life with the power chorus in Portuguese. And while the acoustics of the place let the troupe down in 'Sim Au Nao', much of what followed was spot on. A slower than normal rendition of 'Vertigo' saw the band really pick up. During the true latin jazz of 'Velejou' the baby faced Graeme Flowers really came out of his shell playing the Flugelhorn with much verve, and Nick France's percussion spot on. 'Telefon' had more life freestyle and was better than the recorded version, with Flowers now doing a minute solo, in which the crowd became enveloped. For the finale - the folk 'Camponesa' - Guida working the crowd into a handclapping frenzy leaving everyone in a buoyant mood. The excellent album is out 20 October on the Austrian Ecco Chamber imprint, or catch them live at Smollensky's on the Strand on 12 October, or at the Jazz Café in November supporting legend Marcos Valle. PV
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TIMES MAY GO TABLOID ROUTE TOO
Times editor Robert Thomson has said he would consider following the Independent in launching a tabloid version of his paper if the Indy's experiment proves successful.
He told Media Guardian yesterday: "Probably every broadsheet in Britain has tabloid dummies in the top drawer and that would be true of the Times. The question of commercial convenience, the question of how the market has changed and how best to take advantage of that - these are serious and current issues and it would be foolish to rule out that kind of response."
Commenting on the Independent's tabloid edition he said they had done well in not dumbing down their tabloid edition, but added: "In format terms it's a shame they haven't experimented more. What they've done is to boil down the sheep - it's a tallow tabloid - rather than taking a more ambitious approach and thinking about how you can bring the values of a broadsheet to a completely different format."
The tabloid Indy launched this week. It is initially available only within the M25, but should be extended out to regional cities if successful.
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AIR ALBUM OUT IN NEW YEAR
Air have confirmed they will follow up 2001's '10,000 Hz Legend' with their third album, 'Talkie Walkie', in January. The new album sees the French duo working with Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich and French composer Michel Colombier, among others. Plus, for the first time, the duo will put in some vocals of their own.
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SINGLE REVIEW: Elbow - Fugitve Motel (V2)
Poor old Guy Garvey. Despite critical acclaim and moderate sales, he still sounds like the black dog just won't leave his shoulder. Elbow, of course, like fellow lost souls Doves, perfectly epitomise Mancunian melancholy at its best: they're probably contractually obliged to sound 'mournful', or 'windswept', but it's all to our advantage, so there's no point complaining. 'Fugitive Motel' is an epic ballad that still manages to maintain a touching level of intimacy over its four minutes. Desolate and desperate yet gorgeously maudlin, this beautifully orchestrated waltz evokes sepia-tinged photos of dusty rooms inhabited by literal and metaphorical ghosts. "Curtains stay closed", sings Garvey, as he details with moving eloquence the pain and mixed emotions associated with long-distance relationships. An appropriate soundtrack to increasingly colder and darker Autumnal days. MS
Release date: 27 Oct
Press contact: Renegade [CP, CR] V2 IH [RP, RR, NP, NR]
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DESTINY'S CHILD MANAGEMENT FIRM ACQUIRED BY SANCTUARY
The continuing growth of London's Sanctuary Music Group continues with the news that Destiny's Child will now be managed by the Group's management division after it's purchase of Matthew Knowles' (father of Beyonce) Music World Entertainment. The deal will also see Sanctuary take over the affairs of the solo careers of each of the Destiny Child girls - Beyonce, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams - and of a handful of other artists managed by Knowles senior.
Announcing the deal Knowles told reporters: "Having established four of the most important and successful worldwide brands in the Urban world I believe that this marriage with Sanctuary will not only allow me to make Destiny's Child, Beyonce, Kelly, Michelle and our other clients bigger and better but it also provides me with a worldwide infrastructure and expertise that is truly unique with which to revolutionise the Urban business and for the first time ever ensure that the power is in the hands of the Urban artists. Our goal is to establish the Sanctuary/MWE brand as the market leader in taking Urban artists to new heights of success and earning power."
The deal will not affect Destiny Child's record label relationship with Sony Music.
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WARNER'S PUBLISHING GROUP BEING PREPARED FOR SALE
According to the New York Post the investment bank Morgan Stanley is preparing Warner's publishing division - Warner Chappell - for auction. It is likely Warners would need to sell the publishing concern if it was to merge its music business with EMI (or BMG). However cash strapped parent company Time Warner could do with the estimated $1.2 billion the sale would secure merger or no merger.
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SUEDE ON THE NEW VIDEO AND SONGS
Suede's Brett Anderson has been talking to a Belgian magazine about the appearance of actor John Hurt in the video for upcoming single 'Attitude'. Anderson: "We made him into a vaudevillian tart and made him perform our songs on stage … it's quite funny "
Talking about the new single and the extra tracks featured on the CD single Anderson continued: "All the songs area are about sex - we've run out of other things to talk about. I'm basically trying to just write pornography and set it to music."
Those unfortunates who missed out on those soon to be legendary ICA greatest hits gigs last week should get their tickets booked now for the band's December Academy tour.
7 Dec: Glasgow Carling Academy
8 Dec: Manchester Academy
9 Dec: Bristol Carling Academy
11 Dec: Birmingham Carling Academy
12 Dec: Brixton Carling Academy
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DIDO HAPPY IN NEW RELATIONSHIP
Dido has told reporters she is enjoying her blossoming romance with record boss Ferdie Unger-Hamilton after the stress of splitting up with long term partner and fiancé Bob Page. Word is Dido started seeing Unger-Hamilton, a friend of several years, but they broke up after a few months and their relationship was thought to have been a passing fling. But now the singer has rekindled their relationship and has said: "I'm having a lovely time - an unbelievable time. Things are going well and I'm just having a great time with someone who I really like and who I've known for years."
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NEW JACKO TRACK PROBABLY PENNED BY R KELLY
More on the previously reported Michael Jackson greatest hits album - which will fulfil Jacko's commitment to Sony Music. Word is the album will feature one new song, and that song may well be penned by R Kelly. Sony issued a press release earlier this week confirmed the Kelly / Jacko collaboration 'One More Chance' would be on the greatest hits album - but that release was subsequently withdrawn after those involved in the project said the final track listing was yet to be finalised. That release reckoned the best of would be out in time for the Christmas market, but some Sony insiders say it will be the New Year before the package is ready to go.
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C-MURDER FOUND GUILTY OF, ERM, MURDER
Rapper C-Murder was yesterday convicted of second-degree murder after being found guilty of that previously reported nightclub shooting in which a 16 year old fan was killed. The judge hearing the case told the jury they could find C-Murder, real name Corey Miller, innocent of all charges, or guilty of either second degree murder or manslaughter. They opted for the more serious charge - no doubt influenced by Assistant District Attorney Roger Jordan's remarks that: "Miller's a murderer. He's a killer. He took away something you can't give back -- Steve's life." The charge carries an automatic life sentence.
The family of C Murder continue to claim Miller is innocent of all charges and have promised they will appeal. His father, Percy Miller Sr, confirmed the appeal by saying, simply: "My son didn't do that." There were nine witnesses who claimed Miller was innocent, compared to two that said they saw him shoot the boy. But the reliability of the defence's witnesses was questioned when their descriptions of the events leading to the fatal shooting varied.
16 year old Steve Thomas was shot at the Platinum Club in Harvey in early 2002. The prosecution said Thomas found himself in an unprovoked scuffle with C Murder's entourage, during which the teenager was beaten before Miller finally took out a gun and shot him.
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ALBUM REVIEW: My Space Holiday - The Young Machines (Wichita)
I had no idea what to expect when I put this disk on but in fact the name of Marc Bianchi's band is a fairly accurate description of their music; whimsical psychedelic/lounge/chill out. The instrumental title track begins the album with the gentle tinkle of xylophones and from then on the vibe is so laidback as to be horizontal. The dreamy nature of the music and Bianchi's deceptively sweet vocals are at odds with the sometimes sexual lyrics. He is an unusually ear-catching lyric writer. On 'Japanese Gum' he sings about a girl he used to know, "She said, 'Its not that I'm a slut, it's not that I like to fuck, its just I want every boy I meet to walk away with a part of me, till there's nothing left of me'." Songs about love nudge up against songs about family, relationships and death in an idiosyncratic style. Lush electronics alternate with sprightly orchestral arrangements. It's the kind of record you have to be in the right mood for but when that mood strikes, its perfect. JW
Release date: 20 Oct
Press contact: Hermana [CP, RP, NP] Wichita IH [CR, RR, NR]
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BROADCASTERS CRITICISED IN LATEST BSC REPORT
More fun reading in the latest report from the Broadcasting Standards Commission with regards complaints made over TV and radio shows.
Firstly BBC Radio 4's News Quiz got into trouble for making fun on the word "pansy" during a question about a National Trust/Royal Horticultural Society report. The BBC claimed the derogatory use of the word "pansy" by the show's panel was a "light reference to effeminacy" - but one listener felt the comments were homophobic, and the BSC agreed.
SM:TV are in trouble again, this time for an innuendo filled sketch based around a comedy marrow. Granada TV argued the show was known for using innuendo in its sketches so that there are two jokes - a straightforward one for younger children and leaving open interpretation for the older ones. The TV company said marrows were "not commonly used in a vulgar sense" and, given the context, "it did not consider the words prick and knobs were used gratuitously or offensively". The BSC upheld the complaint against the show.
Complaints were also upheld against Jonathan Ross for comments he made during one of his Radio 2 shows, though a complaint about an episode of the CBeebies' Basil Brush where a woman put money down her top and a man stripped to his boxer shorts was not upheld because, the BSC argued, neither scene was intended as a sexual gesture.
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MADONNA SUED BY FASHION PHOTOGRAPHER'S ESTATE
The son of a French fashion photographer is suing Madonna over a number of photos used to promote new song 'Hollywood'. The images show Madonna leaning over a table staring into a round mirror and straddling a television set. Samuel Bourdin, son of photographer Guy Bourdin, says the images rip off those taken by his late father Guy for French Vogue from the 1950s to 1980s. The lawsuit, filed in Manhatten, claims the photos enfringe Bourdin's copyright because "composition, background, wardrobe, lighting, narrative, camera angle, decor and objects depicted are strikingly similar." No word on what kind of damages are being claimed.
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SKY HIT SEVEN MILLION TARGET AHEAD OF SCHEDULE
Sky has confirmed it has reached its target of seven million subscribers three months ahead of schedule. BSkyB hoped to reach the landmark by 2004. The news comes quite conveniently on the fifth anniversary of the launch of Sky Digital. Sky's outgoing CEO, Tony Ball, has now set a new target of eight million subscribers to be achieved by the end of 2005.
Ball: "When we set the seven million target over three years ago it was way ahead of market expectations. Reaching the milestone three months early is a fantastic achievement for the company and I congratulate the excellent team that has made it possible. With more than half of UK households yet to make the switch to digital, I am highly confident that Sky will achieve its next target of eight million subscribers by the end of 2005, and generate significant long term growth thereafter."
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BRITNEY - "I SLEPT WITH JUSTIN BECAUSE I THOUGHT HE WAS THE ONE"
Britney has told GQ magazine that she did not have a problem with losing her much hyped virginity to Justin Timberlake because, at the time, she felt she would be with the Nsync star forever.
Spears: "As far as the whole sex thing goes, I really did think that Justin was the one I was going to marry so I did do the thing with him after three years. And I don't think that's a bad thing. Just because I've admitted to having sex doesn't make me a bad person, does it?"