Eleanor Rigby Artifact Sold

The seller, Annie Mawson, had hoped the item would raise up to £500,000. She said McCartney's office sent her the document after she wrote asking for a donation for a music therapy centre. - more on this story

The Material Girl Banks 91 Million For Just 28 Shows

Billboard reports: Madonna wrapped the North American leg of her Sticky & Sweet tour on Wednesday in front of 50,000 people at Dolphin Stadium in Miami.

The 28 dates in North America have grossed about $91.5 million and moved about 550,000 tickets, according to tour producer Arthur Fogel, chairman of global music for Live Nation. - more on this story

Enslaved Cancel Tour

Lambgoat reports: Enslaved has cancelled their previously announced North American tour with Keep Of Kalessin and Swallow The Sun. The following statement has been issued:

"It is with great regret that Enslaved has to announce the cancellation of the North American Vertebrae tour, scheduled for May 2009.

"At the heart of the issue lies a tour that was hard to get together in the first place so we've decided to let the whole tour be cancelled and start working on setting up a new North American tour all the way from scratch again." - more on this story

Thin Lizzy Halt Lynott Biopic Over Drug Use

House of Rock reports: A Hollywood movie based on the life of late Thin Lizzy frontman/bassist Phil Lynott has been shelved, after surviving band members accused filmmakers of sensationalizing the star's drug abuse.

Lynott died of heart failure and pneumonia on January 4, 1986 at the age of 36, after years of alcohol and drug abuse.

A biopic, starring CSI actor Gary Dourdan in the lead role, was set to be shot - but the project has now been halted after Thin Lizzy's remaining members expressed their concerns. - more on this story

Oasis' Ego As Big As The Rolling Stones Now

NME reports: Oasis leader Noel Gallagher has said his band are in the same league as The Rolling Stones now.

The guitarist made the admission during the band's current US tour. "Everybody knows who we are. You have to see us in league with The Rolling Stones now," he declared.

"Everybody's heard of the Stones, everybody knows what they sound like, everybody knows what they do. - more on this story

Ray Charles The Spirit of Christmas And More Albums Being Reissued

conqueroo reports: Concord Music Group today announced that it has entered into an exclusive arrangement with the Ray Charles Foundation to develop the artist's post-1960 catalog, which contains his classic work for the ABC and Tangerine labels. Many of the masters will be made available digitally for the first time ever, including such iconic recordings as "Georgia On My Mind," "Hit the Road Jack" and "Crying Time" among many others.

The reissue program will kick off with the digital-only release of Charles' The Spirit of Christmas and will continue in March 2009 with the release of a yet-untitled definitive hits collection. Throughout the rest of 2009, Concord will reissue six key catalog albums as well as some digital-only exclusives.

The Spirit of Christmas, which was released originally in 1985 on Columbia Records, features such holiday standards as "What Child Is This," "The Little Drummer Boy," and "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town." The reissue includes the bonus track "Baby It's Cold Outside," a duet with Betty Carter, recorded in 1961. The digital-only release will be made available on November 25, 2008 at iTunes and all other digital outlets. The album will come out as a physical product in time for the 2009 Christmas season. - more on this story

Ephel Duath Find A New Voice

PR reports: Ephel Duath have announced a new vocalist for the band, Guillermo Gonzales. Ephel Duath guitarist and founding member Davide Tiso comments:

"Guillermo has been close to Ephel Duath for some time - he almost joined the band before in 2003! He was going to take the place of the clean vocalist Davide Tolomei who left Ephel Duath after The Painters Palette. Then we realized that Guillermo's aggressive vocal approach was going to clash with Lucio and we all agreed to abandon the idea. In any case, from that moment on Guillermo started to be very active with Ephel Duath, helping me with lyrics and the development of the concepts so far. The whole idea behind the songs 'Vector' and 'Vector Third Movement' from Pain Necessary To Know come from a conversation we had together. More recently, he was the person that pushed me to write the short stories I did for Through My Dog's Eyes.

"I always thought that one day I was going to have a band with my friend Guillermo, then when Lucio realized that he was forced to abandon the band, we both agreed that he was the right person to call to properly continue the activity of Ephel Duath. We are already working so hard, that I didn't have the time to realize how excited I am to start this new adventure... What I know is that I'm really, really happy and genuinely trusting for the future of my life, and my band." - more on this story

John Berry Classic Christmas Tour

PR reports: John Berry recently began his holiday ritual of spreading Christmas cheer. Berry hits the road each year for an impressive tour of cities on his annual Christmas tour. This is the 13th consecutive year for Berry's holiday tour, which showcases the reason he's been tagged "Mr. Christmas."

As in the past, the first half of the show is The Hits, and the second half is The Christmas Show. Many fans have said, "It's not Christmas until I've heard John Berry sing 'O Holy Night.'"

The Georgia tenor has been recognized by the Grammys, the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association as a nominee in the Best Male Vocalist category. Berry's first No. 1 was the hit single "Your Love Amazes Me." During this career with Capitol Records, Berry hit the top of the charts and the top ten a number of times with such hits as "She's Taken A Shine," "Standing On The Edge of Goodbye," "I Think About It All The Time" and "Kiss Me In The Car," just to name a few.

For additional information on John Berry and the Classic Christmas Schedule please visit - www.johnberry.com.

. Guns N' Roses - Chinese Democracy

It's not surprising that some critics haven't been too fond of Chinese Democracy: Guns N' Roses's long-awaited comeback is the kind of record you can't appreciate until it's grown on you awhile. It demands listening and re-listening, thinking and re-thinking. (5 stars) - Read the full Guns N' Roses - Chinese Democracy review

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