The Closing Bell

Top 5 Of The Day

Tour announcements, festival news and the proposed merger between Ticketmaster and Live Nation were the topics of choice today. Here are the most popular news items of the day based on Pollstar.com readership.

5. Believe In Cherryholmes – Yes, the story of the bluegrass family and their tour must have hit home with more than a few readers. Or maybe it was all those pictures of banjos. After all, banjo pics always attract readers.

4. Get Ready For blink-182 – Just a short statement from the band saying they’re getting it together and going on the road this summer results in music for fans’ ears. Of course, last night’s Grammy appearance may have helped a little.

3. Live Nation / Ticketmaster Merger Announcement Nears – Everybody’s got an opinion on this one. It’s the merger that, if approved, will change the concert landscape. Or so they say.

2. Oklahoma Signs Truth In Music – Evidently a lot of readers are worried about bands that have the name, but not much else. Sha Na Na’s Jon “Bowzer” Bauman has been taking the battle to one state legislature after another. Oklahoma is Bowzer’s latest victory. The new law in that state says a band must have one original member if they want to use the original name.

1. Escape With Urban – A new Keith Urban tour is always an attention grabber. What’s more, Mr. Urban is promising to keep tickets at $20 per. That’ reason enough to be our #1 story for the day!

Dates, Dates & More Dates …

Mr. Big is going to Japan! New dates for the boys include June 5 in Sapporo at Hokkaidoritsu Sogo Taiikukan; June 7 in Sendai at Zepp Sendai; June 8 in Kanazawa (venue TBA); June 10 in Nagoya at Zepp Nagoya; June 12 in Fukuoka at Zepp Fukuoka and June 20 in Tokyo at Budokan Hall.

Jason Mraz lands in South Bank, Australia, on April 14 for a gig at Brisbane Conv. & Exhibition Centre. Other new Australian listings for Mr. Mraz include April 15 in Moore Park at Hordern Pavilion; April 17 in Adelaide at Bonython Park and April 20 in Melbourne at Palais Theatre.

Michael Schenker Group updates with new April dates. Look for the band in New York City at the Blender Theatre At Gramercy on the 4th. The 11th brings them to Agoura Hills, California, for a night at the Canyon Club. April 13 is Portland, Oregon, and the venue is Roseland Theater, and April 14 puts them in Victoria, British Columbia, at Element Nightclub.

A serious update from Los Campesinos completes the day, showing the band filling up its April avails with dates in places like Toronto on the 1st at Opera House Concert Venue; Detroit on the 2nd at Magic Stick;. Milwaukee on the 3rd at Turner Hall and Minneapolis on the 4th at Fine Line Music Café. Other new stops include Omaha (April 5), Denver (April 7) and Seattle (April 10).

During the day we also updated the schedules for Barry Manilow, Mae, Madonna, Liza Minnelli, Jack’s Mannequin, Iris DeMent, GZA/Genius, Edgar Winter Band, Danielle French, Celtic Thunder, Cannibal Corpse, Bryan Bowers, Bart Crow Band, No Use For A Name, STS9 (Sound Tribe Sector 9), plus all the bands and artists that should have won Grammys last night.

That concludes another thrill-packed day in the land of concert data. Thank you for visiting us and we hope you can return tomorrow for more fresh concert information. G’night!