Arch MUSIC NEWS for 12/17/12

Arch MUSIC NEWS is compiled by Jay Philpott -

The Rolling Stones paused during their 50th anniversary celebration Saturday night to acknowledge the victims of the deadly school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. From the stage, Mick Jagger sent his “love and condolences” on behalf of the band to those who lost their loved ones on Friday, and then dedicated the song “Wild Horses” to all the victims.

Ted Nugent says stricter gun control is not the answer to prevent tragedies like Friday’s elementary school shooting in Connecticut. In an interview with Newsmax.com, the gun-loving rocker said “evil criminal monsters will never be deterred by the insanity of gun free zone laws.” Nugent, who is also a contributor to Newsmax, said such laws only serve to empower potential killers like the gunman who murdered 26 people, including 20 first graders, at Sandy Hook Elementary School. He says extreme gun restrictions will only lead to people being unarmed and helpless. Nugent, a National Rifle Association board member, adds that those entrenched in what he calls an “irresponsible mindset” are inviting such multiple shooting tragedies. He suggests that an armed bystander may have been in a position to “stop the evil doer.”

Stevie Wonder is among the many calling for stricter gun laws in the wake of the tragedy.   The singing legend told “Rolling Stone” magazine America should use the tragedy to confront gun control. He says there has to be “stronger and stricter gun laws” regarding the accessibility of guns. Wonder wants to make it more difficult for people who are not “mentally stable” to be eligible to buy guns. He says “it’s okay to say no” to people with severe mental illness. According to Wonder, Americans “need to think differently” about gun control. He says people who aren’t thinking differently are “not in touch with today” and are “lost in yesterday.”

The new Nirvana-McCartney mash-up continued to make the rounds this weekend. For one of his three performances on Saturday’s episode of “Saturday Night Live,” Paul McCartney invited Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic and Pat Smear onstage to play their new collaboration, “Cut Me Some Slack.” The foursome first debuted the track last Wednesday at the 12.12.12 Hurricane Sandy benefit concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden. The studio version of “Cut Me Some Slack” is now available to download at iTunes and other digital music stores.  The song will be included on the soundtrack to Grohl’s upcoming documentary “Sound City – Real to Reel,” which also features Grohl collaborating with the likes of Stevie Nicks, Rick Springfield and more. The film is set to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival next month, while the soundtrack is due out March 12th, 2013.

Sunday night’s “VH1 Divas” special brought together some of music’s biggest names to pay tribute to women in music. The special aired live from the Shrine Auditorium from Los Angeles and this year, some of the ladies performing chose to go with songs from male artists instead. Ciara performed a mash up of her latest single “Got Me Good” and Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean,” showing off her dance skills inspired by the King of Pop. Miley Cryus sang the 1983 Billy Idol hit “Rebel Yell,” bearing a striking resemblance to the British rock legend with her new haircut. Before her performance, Miley said “This one’s for you, Lila,” referring to her puppy who recently died. The evening’s host Adam Lambert kicked things off with an opening performance of “Let’s Dance.” The newly-engaged Kelly Clarkson also performed her latest single “Catch My Breath.” Clarkson announced her engagement to boyfriend Brandon Blackstock over the weekend. Other performers included Demi Lovato, Jordin Sparks, Kelly Rowland and Natasha Bedingfield. The show also featured two special tributes to late divas Whitney Houston and Donna Summer, who both passed away in 2012.

A sitcom based on the life of pop superstar Justin Bieber is reportedly in development. ABC is behind the project, which, according to TVGuide.com, will be executive produced by Bieber and his manager Scooter Braun. The still-untitled family series is expected to center on Bieber’s teenage years and family life before he became a superstar. No word yet on when the series will launch. Bieber has dabbled in television before, having guest starred on an episode of CBS’ “CSI” and hosted MTV’s “Punk’d.” He also appeared in the TV special “Justin Bieber: All Around the World.”

Michael Buble‘s “Christmas” may have sold upwards of 160 thousand copies last week, and could be back in the familiar spot of number two on the Billboard 200 next week. “Billboard” quotes industry forecasters who say the album is expected to see a spike in sales, thanks in part to his NBC special “Home for the Holidays.” The holiday special premiered on December 10th and did so well it earned a re-airing on December 14th. Last year, Buble’s “Christmas” spent five consecutive weeks at number one on the chart and was the year’s second biggest-selling album after Adele’s “21.” As the holiday grows nearer, “Christmas” has a chance at number one next week, but is expected to be stopped by Taylor Swift‘s “Red,” which would be going on to its fifth non consecutive week on the chart. Bruno Mars‘ “Unorthodox Jukebox” is also expected to debut at number three. Another holiday album expected in the top five next week is Rod Stewart‘s “Merry Christmas, Baby.”

Apparently, making a Golden Globe-nominated song isn’t as time-consuming as it would seem – at least not for Adele. The singer’s producer Paul Epworth tells Hollywood.com that Adele recorded most of the vocals for “Skyfall” “within ten minutes.” Epworth, who is also the man behind her “21″ album says she “had the lyrics in her head” as she drove over to Abbey Road Studios in London to put it down. He says, “It was the most absurd thing. She’s fast, but it was quite phenomenal.” Epworth adds that he continues to become more and more impressed with what Adele can do with her voice. He says she never really mentioned that she could take on the James Bond theme style in the way she did, particularly on the Shirley Bassey-inspired opening parts of the song. “Skyfall” was recently nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Original Song and is one of 75 tracks in the running for a possible Oscar nomination.