ROCK 'N' ROLL NEWS

ROCK 'N' ROLL NEWS

Boston has been plagued with problems from the start while recording the follow-up to their hysterically successful first album. Work began in Tom Scholz's basement studio, like before, but there have been spanners in the works all along. First, enough street noise snuck onto the tape to make Jimmy Page's hair stand on end, then flooding from heavy rains in Boston swept down into Tom's cellar. Their manager has taken the phone off the hook for weeks but optimists at Epic say "late January— maybe" for the album release.

Pete Townshend on the Rough Mix sessions with Ronnie Lane: "Sometimes Ronnie and me would talk about life. That would mean Ronnie insulting me and me hitting him. Sometimes Eric Clapton ~ would come to play. That would mean Ronnie insulting him, Eric hitting him, and then falling over." That Eric's such a funny guy. See, being a Godfather isn't just all of that Rolling Stone Meher Baba hohum...

Blue Oyster Cult's Eric Bloom claims he wrote us a letter: Hey Eric, . maybe you sent it to Hit Parader..„ try again, and see if you can avoid looking directly at laser beams for awhile...

The Sex Pistols' movie, Who Killed Bambi?, was on again at presstime, although director Roe* "Super Vixens" Mayor has been relieved erf his duties, to be replaced by Jonathan Kaplan.

Apparently Princess Grace, one of the boardmembers of 20th Century Fox, took such offense at the thought of Sid Vicious caught .with his mother Marianne Faithfall in flagrant delecti, that her regal disapproval caused Fox to withdraw all $$$ support. Faithful] is still slated to play Sid's mum; in fact she was so excited about re-entering the music world after her unrewarding theater career that she celebrated—before hittihg the stage—on the first night of her European tour. Marianne had to be helped back up on her feet to the microphone by band members several times...

Gimme Back My Codpiece: Ian Anderson had a rude awakening upon returning to his limousine after a recent East Coast gig: his kindly chauffeur had given his flight bag, containing his stage clothes, to a fan who'd requested "a souvenir" of lan. While the chauffeur was banished on a slow boat to Uganda, Ian had to scrape up some new stage apparel, so he went on a shopping spree at the local Sears Roebuck (maybe a polyester codpiece?). MORE IAN QUOTES: After shaking hands backstage with the usual assortment of fun people, Ian turned to a companion in disgust and cracked: "You know, I really don't like shaking hands. Those people could have just come from the toilet..And quelle toilet?

Now that he's really been bounced from the Damned, poet/ philosopher/drummer Rat Scabies is makingends meet by selling skateboards...

Hairdressers in France have introduce d two new hairstyles for elegant Parisiennes: "Le punk" and the"EllaFitzgeral;r. We know what the punk looks Ike, but Ella Fitzgerald? Always in the vanguard, the frogs...

Iggy on the phone fromNashville, on the New Wave: "Oh, some are good and some are pretty bad." His fave: San Francisco's Nani, who, do a cover of "Search and Destroy". Igsez he wants to produce them next.,./

Recent mother Bebe Basil Rundgren not only graced Rod "Footloose and Fancy Free" Stewart's side during his chichi party at NYC's Regine's (while fighting off Stevie Nidie, of course), but she's become a part of Roddy's road crew—she's been a constant presence on the road. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Britt called in for reinforcements; her Swedish mama has joined her in Rod's Holmby Hills manse. Word is Rod stayed there briefly when he had a few days off from the road, then bulleted back to Bebe on the road...

Stop the presses: Now we hear that Bebe enjoyed.cute, blond and single Tom Petty's show at the Bottom Line so much that they hung out together awhile, even.. .uh... though Roddy was waiting for her in Atlanta on Sunday. Still tryin' to take you for that same old cbwn, Rod?

On Tour

Detective; AC/DC; Genesis; Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band;.; Kiss; The Rockets; Blue Oyster Cult; Jethro Tull; Riondie; David Bowie; U.F.O,; Bob Welch; Geils; Elvis Costello; Tom Petty & Heartbreakers; Mink De Ville; Rod Stewart; Bette Midler; The Temptations; TheRamones; Aerosmith; Hall& Oates; Santana; War; Rush; Queen; Kansas; Edgar Winter's White Trash; Robin Trower; Todd Rundgren & Utopia; Earth, Wind & Fire; Blood, Sweat & Tears; Beach Boys.

Now that Jan Hammer has taken his synthesizers and gone off on his pudgy way, Jeff Beck isn't sitting around doing duck imitations. Old Psycho Eyes is busy lying prone beneath his many hotrods. When he isn't playing mechanic, he's checking out new talent in his U.K. neighborhood.. .everything but working on an album, which is driving Epic A & R men to seizures...

It had to happen: Hie Dictators i were picked up on their way to a German gig, suspected of being those fun-loving Dutch terrorists, the Baeder-Meinhoff gang. Maybe it was the large amount of Dutch cash stashed in their car... maybe it was Handsome Dick's spit trick, but they were dumped in the clink for seven hours before being sprung by the promoter. That we can understand kind of, but the krauts also hauled in clean-cut Peter Gabriel (and his band), who had merely stopped outside of a German bank to call his publicist like a good boy. The German G-men surrounded Gabriel in the phone booth and demanded that he surrender. Only after Peter performed an a capella concert for the cops were they persuaded to call his record company and confirm his identity.

Unfortunately, nobody was in the kitchen with joey Ranone. While tie was aiming his schnozz in the general direction of a steaming teapot in his before-concert ritual of clearing his sinuses, the kettle exploded, leaving his face rather abused. Joey heroically went onstage the same night, only to be grounded by his doc the next day, cancelling many gigs the Ramones had scheduled with Talking Heads, which would have brought TH into the hinterlands of the U.S. for the first time. Joey was recovering at presstime and has switched to Sine-Aid.

Alice Cooper, who took leave of the N. Y. hospital where he committed himself for alcoholic rehabilitation to fly back to L. A. to play his part in the Sgt. Pepper movie, returned promptly upon its completion. How does he look? Fifteen pounds heavier, sporting Pancho Villa facial hair, and guzzling straight ginger ate. By the time you read this, he'll be released and at work on his new LP.

"Do you have any Irish in you?" Dubliner Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy yelled to a Houston audience recently. "Yeah, over here" some Texas cuties yelled. "Would any of you girls like a bit more?" Ha.

The threedisc recording of Tha Band's farewell Winterland conceit being issued by Warner Brothers , finally... It features guests Bob Dylan, Jonl Mitchell, Van Monrleon, Neil Diamond and Ron Wood. (Zzzzz).

The Stones are in Paris finishing up the studio albu m M. J. refers to in last month's cover story; it did takea while for things to get off the ground, though. The ever-industrious Reef had booked studio time in a Paris studio, only to have it sit empty (jes forgot, he sez) for three days. Then Keith appeared in Paris out of nowhere, and told a cabdriver at the airport to "take me to my flat. " When the cabbie inquired as to where it was (Keith speaks F. y'see) Keith said, "Oh. Idon'tknow." A speedy call to the Stones NYC office cleared up the mystery and Keith was reunited with his Paris flat.,,

Don Henley has hastened to inform us that our irrepressible Ms. Rona in the Hotel California was over-anxious in her efforts to have him married to one Ms. Jolla Yorke, real estate agent. According to a spokesperson: "Last time I saw them, they were too comfortable together to be considering marriage. They're the best of friends." Well excuuuuuuuuse us...

While Dan "Grizzly Adams" Haggerty's beard caught on fire in Hollywood from a passing glass of brandy, Bob Welck can drink flaming drinks in peace now that he is no longer a Grizzly lookalike thanks to the razor wielded by his producer, Mick Fleetwood. Wasn't for safety tho—Bob had vowed that he wouldn't shave until he had a hit albu m, and French Kiss made him put his puss where his, mouth was.

That multi-talented dynamo known as Rlngo is now channeling his creative impulses into the design of chess pieces. How do they differ from the norma) plastic doo-hickeys? Ringo's are formed like hands in various positions of rhythm-making. Sounds cosmic: Bob Olden might be interested. According to his ex-wife Sara, he didn't show up for the emergence of one of his children at the hospital "because he wanted to finish a chess game."

Theco ver of Lynyrd SkynyrcT s album Street Survivors, which depicted the band enveloped by flames, is being changed. MCA and survivingL.S. band members have decided that the cover's in questionable taste—-it will be replaced by a plain white cover.

Sex and drugs and rock 'n' roll: Hilly Kristal, manager of CBGB's, has banned the Miamia from his club after lead singer Tons Wynbrandts Soho News article appeared describing in detail the "kinky drug and sex habits of the ebb's patrons...

In The Stiidio

Walter Egan (L. A. — Producer's Workshop) ; Diana Ross; Leo Say er; Donna Summer; Loggins & Messina (L. A.—Allen Zentz); Romantics (Detroit—Sound Suite); Bruce Springsteen (NY—Record Plant); The Eagles; Television (NY—Sound Mixers) ; The Rolling Stones (Paris); Chick Corea (L.A.— Kendun); Genesis; Valentine (NJ— Venture Sounds); Jefferson Starship (San Francisco—Wally Heider); Kiss (NY—Electric Lady> land); The Who (England); Dickey' Betts (Miami—Criteria).