Last week The Flaming Lips made news when they released the very NSFW video for The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, the band’s collaborative track with Erykah Badu from their Record Store Day exclusive Heady Fwends. The clip, which features a scantily clad Badu and her sister Nayrock, who appears completely naked, didn’t sit too well with the neo-soul singer. Yesterday, Badu posted a rather scathing open letter to Wayne Coyne, who directed the video which has since been taken down. Erkyah’s letter takes shots at the Flaming Lips front man for posting what she deemed an “unedited, unapproved version,” declaring that Coyne, “disrespected me by releasing pics and rough vid on the internet without my approval. (Contract breech ) That is equivalent to putting out a security camera’s images of me changing in the fitting room.”
Badu closed the letter by saying, “These things have been said out of necessity. And if you don’t like it you can KiSS MY Glittery ASS . O and Nayrok told me to tell u to kiss her ass too . Almost forgot. Peace Ms. Badu”. An apologetic Coyne immediately took to his Twitter account last night posting a series of messages directed at Badu and about the video, stating “To all the haters who think Erykah Badu has lost her mind!!! She has NOT!!! The Flaming Lips take full responsibility ..For the making of and the content of the controversial video !!! We are very sorry if it has offended some of Erykah Badu’s more.” Coyne even posted this picture of him puckering up with the message “Hey @fatbellybella I kissed it!!!! Thanks!!!!!!” Coyne, Badu and fans of both acts, continued to have a lengthy conversation about the video, Coyne intentions and more, which is worth checking out.
In other Flaming Lips news, the band has announced their itinerary and supporting acts for an attempt at breaking the Guinness World Records title for Most Live Concerts in 24 Hours (Multiple Cities). The group will play eight concerts in eight cities over the course of 24 hours on June 27 and 28. You can follow the action through O Music Awards. Here’s the full list of cities the Lips will treat to a mini-set a piece as well as the opening act…
June 27 — New Fumes & The Flaming Lips — Memphis, TN @ Handy Park
June 27 — Gary Clark Jr & The Flaming Lips — Clarksdale, MS @ Ground Zero Blues’ Club
June 27 — Grace Potter & The Nocturnals & The Flaming Lips — Oxford, MS @ The Lyric
June 28 — Neon Indian & The Flaming Lips — Jackson, MS @ Duling Hall
June 28 — Hunter Hayes & The Flaming Lips — Hattiesburg, MS @ Benny’s Boom Boom Room
June 28 — TBD & The Flaming Lips — Biloxi, MS @ Hard Rock Casino
June 28 — GIVERS & The Flaming Lips — Baton Rouge, LA @ Varsity
June 28 — Grimes & The Flaming Lips — New Orleans @ TBD
Normally music documentaries focus their attentions on a band, or a event or a genre. With that being said, there is nothing quite normal about Ginger Baker, who is the subject of the new doc Beware Of Mr. Baker. The 92-min doc, which was four years in the making, tells the story of legendary, influential and cantankerous drummer, who is best known for his time as a member of Cream and Blind Faith, but also recorded with everyone from Fela Kuti to Johnny Rotten’s post-Sex Pistols project PiL to space-rock band Hawkwind.
Baker’s influence on rock music can be seen in the reverence paid by the impressive list of drummers who appear in the film, which includes Neil Peart (Rush), Stewart Copeland (The Police), Mickey Hart (Grateful Dead) and Marky Ramone (The Ramones), as well as slew of his former band mates like Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood. The film recently took home the Documentary Grand Jury prize at this month’s SXSW Festival. Let’s take a look at the trailer…
Last week when AC Entertainment and Superfly Presents dropped the initial lineup for the 11th installment of the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, one of the acts that immediately caught our attention was Spectrum Road – an impressive super group consisting of legendary bass player Jack Bruce (Cream), keyboard wiz John Medeski (MMW, The Word), guitar-virtuoso Vernon Reid (Living Colour) and drummer Cindy Blackman Santana (Lenny Kravitz, Santana). Our first thoughts were that the band was potentially a one-off, but today Billboard filled us in a bit more on the details. The quartet, which was formed to pay homage to jazz drummer Tony Williams, and named themselves after his track Spectrum Road, and will release their self-titled debut on June 5 via Palmetto Records, and make their official live debut at the fest on June 9, as the kick off to their U.S. tour.
List Time: 20 Songs Named After Bands That Played Them
Finally, following in the news that folklorist Alan Lomax’s comprehensive collection of field recordings are now available for online streaming, comes word that John Peel’s extensive music collection will also be heading to the web. The legendary UK DJ and producer, who past away in 2004, amassed a collection of “25,000 LPs, 40,000 singles and many thousands of CDs”, which will become part of The Space, a new experimental digital service being organized and funded by the Arts Council and the BBC. According to NME, The Space will run from May to October across a variety of digital platforms, with the intent to ” digitally recreate John’s home studio and record collection, which users will be able to interact with and contribute to, while viewing Peel’s personal notes, archive performances and new filmed interviews with musicians.”
As we previously reported, the Gorillaz have been celebrating the holidays with an advent calendar on their website, which each day revealing exclusive band-related content. With just ten days to go on the calendar, the fictional cartoon band had revealed the details of what’s in store for Christmas day, as they will release a free downloadable album called The Fall – which Damon Albarn reportedly recorded with the assistance of his iPad.
Finally, back in 1969, John Lennon and Yoko Ono created a poster that read “War Is Over! If You Want It. Happy Christmas From John and Yoko” and placed the message on billboards in 11 cities around the world in an effort to promote world peace. Now, some 40 years later, Ono is urging people to display the message this holiday season, which has been translated into 100 languages and can be downloaded via her website.
With 2010 marking the 40th anniversary of Jimi Hendrix’s death, fans in the UK will be able to get a intimate glimpse of his life in swinging London as part of the Hendrix In Britain exhibit at the Handel House Museum. The exhibit, which opened yesterday and runs through November 7, features a number of rare Hendrix items, including his clothes, hand-written lyrics, posters and one of his ‘Flying V’ guitars. As an added bonus fans will be able to tour the two-floor apartment that Hendrix lived in at 23 Brook Street from September 15-26, which was coincidentally the same house that composer George Frideric Handel lived and worked in for over thirty years.
Finally, in our continuing effort to drool over all the great September releases comes details about Eric Clapton’s latest album which will simply be called – Clapton. For his 19th studio effort, and first in five years, Slowhand has recruited an all-star cast of high profile guests which include jazz man Wynton Marsalis, New Orleans legned Allen Toussaint and songstress Sheryl Crow as well as former band mates Steve Winwood and Derek Trucks. The self-titled album will hit shelves on September 28, and is currently available for pre-order in a limited edition deluxe bundle via the guitar-slinger’s website.
The aughts have been quite the decade for Eric Clapton fans, as Slowhand has been going through a career renaissance having reunited with both Cream and his former Blind Faith band mate Steve Winwood for separate tours. The guitarist has also dug deeper into his back catalog during his solo shows some of which featured Derek Trucks on guitar. EC shows no signs of slowing down as we head into the second decade of the 2000s.
As we previously reported, the 64 year-old will team up with fellow guitar-slinger Jeff Beck for a handful of shows, which he will then follow with a longer US tour where he will be joined by The Who front man Roger Daltrey.
If you’re not into a night with these rock legends, than maybe you’ll want to hit one of these recently announced tours…
Finally, after releasing a string of critically acclaimed albums on New West Recordings, Southern-rock revivalists the Drive-By Truckers will put out their 10th studio album, The Big To-Do, on ATO Records. Prior to the March 16th release, the band will hit the road for a string of dates throughout the South including a three-night stand in their hometown of Athens, GA.
. For his 19th studio effort, and first in five years, 
