ROCK 'N' ROLL NEWS

ROCK 'N' ROLL NEWS

Good news for all you Mothers Of Invention buffs—Flo & Eddie keyboardist Andy Cahan has produced a new record on Rhino, Grandmothers, which features all the old gang of misfits (sans Zappa): Motorhead Sherwood, Jimmy Carl Black, Elliott Ingber, Don Preston, Bunk Gardner and Buzz Gardner, on a compilation of Mothers tapes spanning a decade. Grandmothers boasts a Cal Schenkel cover, "looks and sounds like a Mothers LP," and has prompted the guys to tour in the near future. Other new Rhino stuff to look for: Welcome Back, Geronimo Black (Cahan and Jimmy Carl Black's early 70's band)...

Valerie Bertinelli's boyfriend Eddie Van Halen copped Guitar Player magazine's Best Rock Guitarist award for the second year running.

Despite rumors that his new bride Jolle Drummond wants him off the road, Stiff Records in England denied that Graham Parker won’t tour... the word is he’s “writing;”

Guitar legend Les Paulunderwent bypass surgery at the Cleveland Clinic in that city recently— reportedly all went well.

Lucky dogs the Stray Cate—the rockabilly trio from NYC—have garnered so much attention in the U.K. that they’ve signed with Arista over there, and have nabbed Dave Edmunds to produce their first LP.

Those wacky budget-conscious hippies m'odernes, the Police, are cutting tour costs by sharing a bus with current American tour-mates XTC, thus bypassing expensive air tickets. But the Police, of course, were in the vanguard of low budget touring back in ’78 when they toured the States in a battered station wagon, so this is luxury for the platinum trio...

Empty Cups To Be As Sweet As The Punch Again: The Association, disbanded since 1972, has reformed with six of the original members, and an Elektra/Asylum record contract. The group had gotten together to do a Home Box Office special, Then And Now, and despite having gone off in different career directions in recent years, the boys felt the old harmonic pull again. Cool guy Terry Kirkman, who wrote unabashedly doper lyrics to “Along Comes Mary,” expressed hope that this would dissuade the bogus “Association” (currently playing across the U.S.) from touring...

Virgin Records has pacted withRSO to distribute its next two releases, albums by Ian Gillaa and XTG, — Viigin’s hoping the pact will work out to be long-term, meanwhile Atlantic continues to flog albums by Captain Beefheart. Marthalt The Muffins, and Fingerprintz.

As Donny Osmond was packin’ ’em in singing “Ronnie B. Goode” for candidate Ronald Reagan, Detroiter Mitch Ryder decided President Carter needed some help. He decided to play a benefit anyway (just kidding, guys). Battling a throat infection and a bad cold, Ryder manfully slogged through the show, which was preceded by a $100-a-ticket reception. “Maybe we’re looking for an animal that doesn’t exist right now,” he commented ruefully. “We’re trying to find rich Democrats.”

Carly Simon, still split from James “No Reviews Please” Taylor, cancelled a NYC Ritz concert date, claiming she was still “mentally and physically exhausted” (after having collapsed onstage October 4th in Pittsburgh) ... yet showed up for pal Jacob Brackman’s Times Square premiere (he wrote, produced & directed),. The movie’s Iggy-xterived (“Damn Dog”) pu nquette, Robin Johnson, now inked to RSO Records (what else?).

In another business marriage bust-up, Peter Frampton and long-time manager Dee Anthony have dissolved their contract...

Sad to say, it appears to be more than a rumor that Bob Marley is suffering from a brain tumor—his recent American tour was cut short when he fell ill.

Tom Snyder’s best friend John Lydon was arrested in Ireland recently for allegedly assaulting two men in a pub. Lydon was sentenced to three months in prison, but is out on bail pending an appeal. No truth to the rumor, however, that Marlon Brando, Jerzy Kosinekiand Marie Osmond will lead a “Free Johnny Rotten” campaign...

Rumors abound that buxom Bebe Bnell may tie the knot with her boyfriend/guitarist Donald Crosby. You sure know how to make grown men cry, darlin’...by the way, where’s your record? Where’s your tour? We’re waiting.

In The Studio

Los Angeles, CA—Record Plant: Jefferson Starship (Ron Nevison producing); Redwing Sound: Pablo Cruise (Bill Schnee producing); Wizard Recording Studio: Devo, Air Supply, the Dickies; Cherokee Sound: Toto; Sausalito; CA— Sausalito Record Plant: New Riders of the Purple Sage (Chuck Mellone producing); New York, NY— Workshoppe Recording Studios: the Units (Kim, Turner producing); Sigma Sound: David Byrne and Brian Eno; Detroit, Ml.—Artie Fields: U.S. A.; Tremor Recording: Cinecyde, the Bondrs, the Ivories, Dogs of War; Sureshot/ Westwind Recording Studio: Motor City Rockers, Walkie Talkies, the Shake, the Roomates, the Excitables, the Cadillac Kidz; Miami, FLA— Criteria Recording Studios: Grace Slick (Ron Frangipane producing), Harry Chapin.

Not that anyone would notice, but I guitarist Ian McDonald and keyboard player Al Greenwood have quit Foreigner. No -replacements have been named yet and nobody cares!

Canadian strange person Nash Die Slash has befen signed to John Foxx’s Metal Beat label, and you can expect a new product from the Slash fairly soon...

Garland Jeffreys is pulling out all the&oj^ for his next album by I recruiting the help of Andrew^ Bodnar and Steve Gonlding of the Rumour, Lou Reed. David Johansen, Nona Hendryx, the, E-Street Band’s Danny Federici and Boy Bittan among others for recording, Jeffreys will hnish the album in England....

Lon Reed will be the executive producer and lyricist for RCA’s newly acquired guitarist Chuck Hammer Hey Lou—do you ever sleep anymore?

Island Records has signed die New York-based rockabilly group the Rockats Rhett Davies will produce their initial release...

If you blinked you missed it dept.:. Mere weeks after joining Atomic Rooster, Ginger Baker quit and joined Hawk wind. You're wekome.

Bob Ezrin or Roy Thomas Baker to produce the next Ramones a lb u m?

St}8 label-less etpresstime, Glann Matlocks new band the Spectres were touring cross-country in mid-autumn; the band also includes former Tom Robinson Bopdsters Danny Knstow and Mark Ambler, and Arthur Collins and Graeme Potter...

Debbie Harry has finally found time to produce Toronto's “B” Girls. At presstime only one cut is finished, titled “Two Hearts Full Of Love" The “B” Girls also did some background vocals on the forthcoming Biondie album as wel...

Those naughty Stranglers have paid a $20,072 bill for damages done by their angry fans in Nice,' France. The band had told the Nice University audience drey had to stop playing, due to a power loss caused by University officials who’d refused to let them hook up their own power supply, which caused the fans to go berserk, trashing the hall, breaking windows, etc.

Joe Jackson released Beat Crazy in October—fair enqugh, but then the Boomtown Rate released Bongo Crazy in November. Is this the most obvious indication of a dearth of imagination in the music biz? It’s onward to album title hell (along with the Police) for you,,. Ratz. (Joe’s on his way with his song "In Every Dream Home [A Nightmare).")

The Bee Gees recently fired manager Robert Btigwood, and are suing him for $75 million, charging “fraud, conflict of interest, and unfair enrichment at their expense.” The Bee Gees are also asking for $50 million in punitive damages: Watch this space for further details as the plot unfolds and the dough rolls...

Lydia Lunch's new group is the Devil Dogs. You can be sure Roky Erickson is smiling...

Spare a tear for the poor Roches (of “We are Maggie and Terre and Snzsy" fame), who were dismissed from the Smothers' Brothers TV special, apparently because they weren’t “good-looking enough for TV.” (We shall have Richard Walls ponder that.) Meanwhile, possibly the grossest

man in the world, Tom Waits (how did his bride survive the wedding night?), was allowed to appear despite his non-resemblance to Christopher Reeve... Not to mention Tommy Smothers’ startling resemblance to Howard Devoto, which many of you astute readers wrote in to comment on.

Will we all be in wheelchairs before John Cale has new product out? He’s on A&M now, as opposed to I.R.S./A&M.

Despite movie commitments, Willie Nelson has still been churnin’ em out; first a gospel album for MCA Lifesong, called Family Bible and featuring Willie on guitar and his sister Bobby on piano; also a “jazz-flavored” LP with songs like “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” “Who’s Sorry Now,” etc. Willie told Country Music: “We wanted to get together and cut a jazz kind of album with that ola Django Reinhardt feet”

David Byrne is collaborating with Busta Jonea on his new LP for Spring records...

On Tour

Grace Jones, Talking Heads, Jethro Tull, the Slits, Steel Pulse, the Buzzcocks, Gang of Four, the Psychedelic Furs, Gary Numan, Bruce Springsteen, George Tborogood and the Destroyers, Joan Jett and the Black Hearts, the Plasmatics, Cheetah Chrome, Ultravox, the Johnny Van Zandt Band, Utopia, Angel City, Max Romeo, Rockpile, Moon Martin, James Brown, Fingerprintz, the Spectres, Nona Hendryx, 999, Athletico Spizz 80, Polyrock, Martha and the Muffins, Phillip Glass Quartet.