Beatles Downloads Offered on New Site Zaptunes

A San Francisco-based music web site has launched offering unlimited DRM-free MP3 downloads for $25 (£16) a month -- amongst them the Beatles back catalogue.

Since the Fab Four's remaining members and other Apple Corps shareholders have yet to reach deals with more established online distributors, say iTunes and Amazon, this throws the legitimacy of Zaptunes into question.

While a spokesman for the firm states it has negotiated with the "top label companies," Digital Music News reports that the site may be hearing from record company lawyers soon. "EMI Group is already drafting the legal paperwork against this shenanigan," a source told the site.

Meanwhile, Zaptunes claims to have reached a deal with a different multinational. On Hypebot, a spokesman said, "We have a contract with Sony Music, who hold the rights to most of the Beatles music. I am sorry, but right now I can not give you more details about this contract."

Yet earlier this month, Yoko Ono warned that a Beatles download deal was a long way off, as reported by Spinner -- and as John Lennon's widow she has a strong say in developments. Certainly no one then had heard of Zaptunes. Currently, the Web site offers free downloads for 30 days in return for your credit cards. Buyer beware, we say.

McCartney Preparing for Marriage?

Is Paul McCartney headed down the isle for a third time??? McCartney was spotted over the weekend in the Hamptons hitting both Tiffany's and a lingerie shop presumably for longtime squeeze, 50-year-old Nancy Shevell. According to "sources," the couple is planning to marry sometime before year's end.

A McCartney insider said: "Paul is deliriously happy with Nancy and decided she was the woman he wanted to make his third wife. They clicked from the moment they first met eyes. She is the complete opposite to Heather Mills and is only interested in Paul the person, not Paul the Beatle." (The Daily Mail)

Rolling Stones Monopoly Game Coming In Time for Christmas

The Beatles did it a couple years ago and now following historical precedent, The Rolling Stones are next to release a branded version of Monopoly that is set to hit stores in time for Christmas.

Gibson reports: In Rolling Stones Monopoly, the famous streets and avenues of the original edition are replaced with Stones releases. Baltic Avenue becomes Sticky Fingers and Park Place turns into A Bigger Bang.

But it's not just the street spaces – the entire game has been given a Stones makeover. Chance and Community Chest cards have become Lyrics and Licks, the four railroads are now different Stones tours and instead of paying a Luxury Tax, players will now have to purchase concert tickets. There are no houses or hotels, but gold and platinum records to add to your properties. Plus, while you play the game, you won't be guiding a racecar or a thimble around the board, but a tour bus, a drum set or a bunch of wild horses.

Robert Plant Turning His Back on Rock?

Robert Plant has revealed that he is no longer a fan of heavy rock music, and that he hopes to continue with the world music, country and blues direction that has characterised his solo career thus far.

Speaking to the Independent, the former Led Zeppelin singer described going to a concert by Them Crooked Vultures, who of course feature his former bandmate, John Paul Jones. Plant admitted that his ears "bled for two days" due to the volume and added, "I feel so far away from heavy rock now. It's quite odd, how mine and John's paths seem to have crossed over -- we've sort of gone into each others' worlds a bit," referring to how in the 70s Zeppelin heyday, it was Jones who held the stronger interest in alternative musical styles.

Plant's new album 'Band of Joy' is released on Sept. 13, his first solo record since 2005's 'Mighty Rearranger,' though in 2007 he released 'Raising Sand' with bluegrass queen Alison Krauss. He added that he will continue to pursue his own interests, rather than revisit his rock heritage.

"For me, it's no longer to do with vanity, ego and visible success," he said. "It's just about getting down into the earth of music. I spent three or four years never playing a Zeppelin song from 1981 onwards, because I didn't want to lean on Zeppelin. I've gone from being in that huge band to picking up the pieces of my own gift."

ROGER DALTREY URGES FANS TO SUPPORT WOUNDED UK TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN

Roger Daltrey is urging fans to put politics aside and throw their support behind British forces fighting in Afghanistan. Daltrey will be among the headliners on September 12th at London's Twickenham Stadium for the Heroes Concert -- A Tribute To British Armed Forces In Aid Of Our Wounded Heroes.

Daltrey, whose political ideology has always leaned towards the liberal, told Britain's The Sun, "It is astonishing to me that people's attitude to our permanently injured troops can be equally divided. 'They know what they're signing up for when they join,' has been a phrase I've heard during the last few months while trying to raise support for the concert."

He went on to de-politicize the charity concert, saying, "While I appreciate that a lot of these people are fiercely opposed to the war, to carry opposition of it into opposition to the support of our injured troops is an anathema to me. . . We as a society have a responsibility to the young men and women who have paid a very high price for the politics of this country. It's far too easy to say the war was not in my name, because we have to accept that rightly or wrongly it was."

Daltrey added: The decisions of the British government are our responsibility. We voted them in. . . I'm sure we can show that we've learned from the mistakes of the past and give our wounded heroes the support they deserve."

Among those also on the bill for next month's Heroes Concert are James Blunt and Robbie Williams.

In addition to raising funds for the soldiers, 150 wounded UK vets will be given free seats to the show.

Eric Clapton Hates his Voice

Eric Clapton a guitar, and old slowhand has no fear. But it’s another thing entirely when the rock legend has to sing.

“I hate my singing. I don't like the way I sing,” Clapton recently told Mojo. “It all sounds like I’m 16 years old from Surbiton. I do my best to try and feel it. You know, when I watch Ray Charles sing, I think, ‘That’s it, that's how it’s done.’ He remembers thousands of songs and he sings them all as if they’re the most important song he knows. He does it from the bottom of his heart, every time, every song. And that’s, that’s the inspiration. That’s my influence. But I’m imbued with so much self-doubt about my singing, that it’s very difficult for me to get to that freedom that those kinds of singers have.”

For his forthcoming album,Clapton, the blues-rocker has teamed up with Allen Toussaint, Sheryl Crow and Wynton Marsalis. For his version of Irving Berlin’s “How Deep is the Ocean” on the studio album (his first in five years), Clapton said he was inspired by frequent collaborator J.J. Cale.

“That’s almost like I’m not having to try to sing. I can sing very quietly and it's going to be O.K.,” he said. “I learned that from J.J. See, you can have Ray Charles at one end of the spectrum, who can do all kinds of things with the voice, and go up and down in octaves and registers. And, you've got J.J. at the other, who creates exactly the same amount of emotional capacity in a very minimal way. And he’s still just as riveting to listen to. So there are different ways to do it.”

Clapton will be released on September 28.

Axl Rose Fires And Rehires Crew

Axl Rose sacked and re-hired his entire stage crew between performances at the Reading and Leeds Festivals this weekend.

The 'Guns 'N' Roses singer was furious when organizers cut the band's sound before they had finished and fined them for taking to the stage late on Friday (27.08.10) at Reading - even though the reason for the delay was because Axl was asleep backstage.

A source told the Daily Star newspaper: "Axl has a very firm rule that he is not to be woken up whenever he is asleep. That proved costly at Reading.

"Axl was furious. He refused to take responsibility and blamed his team, so he sacked them."

However, this move left the band without a crew for their headlining slot at Leeds on Sunday (29.08.10), meaning Axl had no option other than to continue employing them.

The source added: "Then he realised it was too late to fly in anyone else from America so he had to rehire them for Leeds."

Things did not go to plan for the band at Leeds, as the 'Welcome To The Jungle' singer overslept again and started 30 minutes late.

Axl then claimed the band had agreed a deal with organisers to play past their curfew and that no-one in the surrounding area would be upset by the noise the band was making.

He said: "We were guaranteed to play till 11.58 but they are telling us to end our set. The festival promoters just want to f**k you.

"We're 35 miles from Leeds in a field in the middle of nowhere, who cares?"

Writing on his twitter page after the performance he said: "So u know, we allegedly had a deal in place pre show w/the city at least at Leeds to do a bit longer performance that was either miscommunication, someone wasn't informed, changed their mind, didn't care or it was a con (sic)."

Slash Files For Divorce

Guitar legend SLASH has filed for divorce from his wife of almost nine years.

According to Los Angeles County Superior Court documents, obtained by TMZ.com, the rocker, real name Saul Hudson, and wife Perla Ferrar, separated in mid-July (10).

The former Guns N' Roses star cites irreconcilable differences for the split.

Slash and Ferrar wed on 15 October, 2001 and share two sons, aged six and eight.

Court documents indicate the rocker is asking for joint physical and legal custody and is willing to pay spousal support. There is no prenuptial agreement.

Slash was previously married to actress Renee Suran. They ended their five-year union in 1997.

U2: Bono's Charitable Fashions

Bono and his wife, Ali Hewson, are set to appear in an ad campaign for Edun clothing, an "ethical clothing company" they founded in 2005 to encourage trade with developing African nations. The ads will run in major magazines next month, and Bono is expected to attend a launch party for the latest line at Paris's fashion week celebration. The couple donated their appearance fees to TechnoServe, an organization that fosters enterprise in the developing world.

UPCOMING BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN BOX SET FEATURES MODERN DAY 'FINISHING TOUCHES'

The new track being featured as the teaser for Bruce Springsteen's upcoming multimedia Darkness On The Edge Of Town box set seems to be a bit of revisionist history. The previously unknown Darkness-era outtake "Save My Love" features -- to a great many fans' ears -- a definite modern-day vocal from "The Boss." The track, which has eluded bootleggers for the past three decades, also comes with some production techniques more akin to 2009's Working On A Dream than the legendary 1978 follow-up to Born To Run.

Over the summer, Steve Van Zandt spoke about the overdubbing sessions for the box set, telling UK radio: "We put 10 or so outtakes on the Tracks box set and we (have since) found 10 more. I'm not sure how many we'll put on there. We'll go back and he might finish a lyric on one or two, or finish a harmony on one or two, but we'll keep them intact pretty much."

The Promise: The 'Darkness On The Edge Of Town' Story box set will be released on November 16th. The new package features long-awaited studio versions of "Fire" -- given away to the Pointer Sisters; "Rendezvous" -- given to Greg Kihn; and "Because The Night" -- which became Patti Smith's first major hit.

The box set will feature the first remastered version of the Darkness album, along with two CD's of previously unreleased outtakes, an 80-page notebook, three DVD's -- featuring The Promise: The Making of 'Darkness on the Edge Of Town' documentary; a private 2009 E Street Band performance of the Darkness album in it's entirety; various footage of Springsteen in concert and rehearsal with the band from 1976, '77, and '78; and the full in-concert video feed of the December 8th, 1978 concert at Houston's The Summit.

In the online preview of The Promise, Springsteen explained that the songs during the Darkness On The Edge Of Town sessions easily -- and more often than not -- morphed into one another: "There was a lot of multi-versions of all kinds of things. We were always pulling things apart. I had like a big junkyard of stuff as the year went by. If something wasn't complete, I just pulled out the parts I liked, like pulling the parts you need from one car -- put 'em in the other car so that car runs."

The Promise two-disc outtakes collection features 21 unreleased Springsteen studio tracks featuring: a previously-unbooted "rock version" of "Racing In The Street ('78)," "Gotta Get That Feeling," "Outside Looking In," "Someday (We'll Be Together)," "One Way Street," "Because The Night," "Wrong Side Of The Street," "The Brokenhearted," "Rendezvous," "Candy's Boy," "Save My Love," "Ain't Good Enough For You," "Fire," "Spanish Eyes," "It's A Shame," "Come On (Let's Go Tonight)," "Talk To Me," "The Little Things (My Baby Does)," "Breakaway," "The Promise," and "City Of Night."

The Thom Zimny-directed documentary The Promise: The Making Of 'Darkness On The Edge Of Town' premieres on September 14th at the Toronto International Film Festival and debuts on HBO on October 7th.

Ozzy's Diary and Blizzard Reissues Delayed

Fans who were hoping to have the 30th Anniversary reissue editions of Ozzy Osbourne's first two solo albums in hand around Thanksgiving won't be thankful for this news.

The Metal Den reports that the 30th-anniversary editions of Ozzy's first two solo albums, 1980′s "Blizzard Of Ozz" and 1981′s "Diary Of A Madman", have been apparently postponed, this according to CD Japan.

This is important to fans because these editions are said to have the original drum and bass tracks restored (unlike the 2002 reissues of these albums, which saw the replacement of the original bass and drum tracks by Osbourne's then-drummer Mike Bordin and -bassist Robert Trujillo).