Bono May Not Be Able to Play Guitar Following November Accident

When news broke that Bono has been in a solo bicycle accident back in November, many thought that it was nothing but a scrapped knee that was being made into a bigger deal than it should have.

Turned out, the injury for the U2 frontman was a lot more serious than the run-of-the-mill bike boo-boo which would result in the 54-year-old undergoing surgery.

It’s been a while since the surgery, and now in a retrospection of 2014, Bono has revealed that the injuries he sustained may result in him never being able to play the guitar again.

“Recovery has been more difficult than I thought,” wrote Bono. “As I write this, it is not clear that I will ever play guitar again.”

Though he writes that “it is not clear,” chances that his should injury may not allow a guitar to be strapped to it for long periods of time is looking bleak.

The day of the bicycle accident, the singer had been on a “high power energy” ride in Central Park. He ended up with a fractured left eye socket, a fractures shoulder-blade, a fractured elbow and a fractured hand.

“I blanked out on impact and have no memory of how I ended up in New York Presbyterian with my humerus bone sticking through my leather jacket. Very punk rock as injuries go.”

As the post warns, it’s a long read (and if you make it to the end, you might be on the same medication as Bono), but it does a thorough recap of the year from Bono’s perspective.

In it, he talks about everything from missing out on his week-long residency with U2 on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon to the disaster that was the release of Songs of Innocence to each band and family member and what they mean to him.

One thing that will now be question is how prepared Bono is going to be for U2’s massive “iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE” world tour slated to begin in mid-May. Many of the show have been sold out since tickets were announced which resulted in more dates being added.

Is Bono going to be in good health when May comes around? Will a fifth member be added to the band to play guitar on the songs Bono plays guitar on?

Those are just two of the questions, at present time, that we have.

But, it appear Bono is taking it all with a little bit of humor. In the post, he joked about not being able to play the guitar any longer.”The band have reminded me that neither they nor Western civilization are depending on this.”

Respect for having a sense of humor.

U2 Add More Dates to 2015 Tour

You might be one of many who were anti-U2 after their failed attempt at giving everyone the gift of their new album Songs of Innocence, but it looks like that hasn’t stopped people from wanting to see the Irish rockers in concert.

Today, the band revealed that the have added 16 tour stops for their upcoming “iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour.”

The newly added dates include stops in Montreal, Chicago, Boston, New York, Amsterdam, Stockholm, Berlin, and Paris. Funny enough, most of those stops already had at least three show confirmed.

The North American portion of the world tour will begin on May 14 in Vancouver at the Rogers Arena and wrap up on July 27 at Madison Square Gardens in New York.

The European leg of the tour will pick up on Sept. 4 at Pala Alpitour in Turin, Italy, which is already sold out and end on Nov. 11 at Bercy in Paris.

Tickets for the newly added dates will go on sale next Monday, Dec. 15.

U2’s iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE TOUR DATES:

NORTH AMERICA LEG:

05/14/15 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
05/15/15 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
05/18/15 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center at San Jose
05/19/15 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center at San Jose
05/22/15 – Phoenix, AZ – Talking Stick Resort Arena
05/23/15 – Phoenix, AZ – Talking Stick Resort Arena
05/26/15 – Los Angeles, CA – Forum
05/27/15 – Los Angeles, CA – Forum
05/30/15 – Los Angeles, CA – Forum
05/31/15 – Los Angeles, CA – Forum
06/12/15 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre (SOLD OUT)
06/13/15 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre (SOLD OUT)
06/16/15 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre (on sale Dec. 15)
06/17/15 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre (on sale Dec. 15)
06/24/15 – Chicago, IL – United Center (SOLD OUT)
06/25/15 – Chicago, IL – United Center – (SOLD OUT)
06/28/15 – Chicago, IL United Center (on sale Dec. 15)
06/29/15 – Chicago, IL – United Center (on sale Dec. 15)
07/06/15 – Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre (SOLD OUT)
07/07/15 – Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre (SOLD OUT)
07/10/15 – Boston, MA – TD Garden – (SOLD OUT)
07/11/15 – Boston, MA – TD Garden – (SOLD OUT)
07/14/15 – Boston, MA – TD Garden (on sale Dec. 15)
07/15/15 – Boston, MA – TD Garden (on sale Dec. 15)
07/18/15 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden (SOLD OUT)
07/19/15 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden (SOLD OUT)
07/22/15 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden (SOLD OUT)
07/23/15 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden (SOLD OUT)
07/26/15 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden (on sale Dec. 15)
07/27/15 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden (on sale Dec. 15)

EUROPEAN LEG:

09/04/15 – Turin, Italy – Pala Alpitour (SOLD OUT)
09/05/15 – Turin, Italy – Pala Alpitour (SOLD OUT)
09/08/15 – Amsterdam, The Netherlands – Ziggo Dome (SOLD OUT)
09/09/15 – Amsterdam, The Netherlands – Ziggo Dome (SOLD OUT)
09/12/15 – Amsterdam, The Netherlands – Ziggo Dome (on sale Dec. 15)
09/13/15 – Amsterdam, The Netherlands – Ziggo Dome (on sale Dec. 15)
09/16/15 – Stockholm, Sweden – Globe (SOLD OUT)
09/17/15 – Stockholm, Sweden – Globe (SOLD OUT)
09/20/15 – Stockholm, Sweden – Globe (on sale Dec. 15)
09/21/15 – Stockholm, Sweden – Globe (on sale Dec. 15)
09/24/15 – Berlin, Germany – O2 World (SOLD OUT)
09/25/15 – Berlin, Germany – O2 World (SOLD OUT)
09/28/15 – Berlin, Germany – O2 World (on sale Dec. 15)
09/29/15 – Berlin, Germany – O2 World (on sale Dec. 15)
10/05/15 – Barcelona, Spain – Palau Sant Jordi
10/06/15 – Barcelona, Spain – Palau Sant Jordi
10/13/15 – Antwerp, Belgium – Sportpaleis (SOLD OUT)
10/14/15 – Antwerp, Belgium – Sportpaleis (SOLD OUT)
10/17/15 – Koln, Germany – Lanxess Arena (SOLD OUT)
10/18/15 – Koln, Germany – Lanxess Arena (SOLD OUT)
10/25/15 – London, UK – The O2 (SOLD OUT)
10/26/15 – London, UK – The O2 (SOLD OUT)
10/29/15 – London, UK – The O2 (SOLD OUT)
10/20/15 – London, UK – The O2 (SOLD OUT)
11/06/15 – Glasgow, UK – The SSE Hydro (SOLD OUT)
11/07/15 – Glasgow, UK – The SSE Hydro (SOLD OUT)
11/10/15 – Paris, France – Bercy (SOLD OUT)
11/11/15 – Paris, France – Bercy (SOLD OUT)
11/14/15 – Paris, France – Bercy (on sale Dec. 15)
11/15/15 – Paris, France – Bercy (on sale Dec. 15)

Jimmy Fallon Fills in for Bono on “Desire”

Jimmy Fallon is one hell of a good sport and we mean that. This week on his late night show, The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, U2 were supposed to take the stage as the house band for the full week.

Due to an injury that Bono obtained during the weekend in a freak bicycle accident in Central Park which required surgery, the band had to pull out of their duties leaving the late night program performer-less.

Insert Fallon and The Roots.

Instead of just leaving it at that, a week without musical guest, Fallon and The Roots decided to give an unexpected performance of them covering “Desire.”

The best part of the performance? Fallon came out on stage decked out like Bono in both clothing and eyewear.

Check out the video from the show last night below.

As of now, The Tonight Show has not announced what they will do for musical guests this week since U2 were booked until Friday and one can’t exactly go from the operating room to the stage in less than a day.

Considering Fallon started out the week like this, we’re going to assume that he (and everyone who works on the show) might have something up their sleeve.

KROQ Announces Line Up for 2014 Almost Acoustic Christmas

KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas concert is about to celebrate a milestone this year; its 25th anniversary.

So how else would you celebrate an anniversary that big than with a massive line-up of artists to take the stage at the yearly event.

The Los Angeles-based radio station announced earlier in the day their line-up which includes U2, System of a Down, the Smashing Pumpkins, Tears for Fears, Weezer, Modest Mouse, Interpol, Alt-J, and Incubus.

But, that’s not all. Linkin Park, Rise Against, Imagine Dragons, Fall Out Boy, Bush, Royal Blood, Vance Joy, and Walk the Moon will also take the stage during the two-day festival.

KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas will take place December 13-14 at the Forum in Inglewood, CA.

Tickets for the show are set to go on sale this Friday, Nov. 14 at Noon PT on Ticketmaster. Tickets for the show can set you back anywhere from $75-$150, but with all those performances, we’re pretty sure it will be money well spent.
For more information about the show, head on over to KROQ’s website.

Bono Apologizes for ‘Song of Innocence’ Stunt

While everyone who has iTunes was complaining about the fact that U2’s new album was “forced” onto them, Bono and the rest of the guys from U2 were laughing their way to the bank.

We also can’t forget all the freak outs people were having as they tried to delete the album from their iTunes. Remember Fall Out Boy’s skit on Jimmy Kimmel?

A month or so after the iPhone 6 reveal announcement and the day Songs of Innocence was inserted onto 500 million desktops and iPhones, Bono is kind of apologizing for the stunt that might have just backfired.

In an interview with fans on the Irish band’s Facebook page, the frontman was asked about the album’s release. The person wrote, “Can you please never release an album on iTunes that automatically downloads to people’s playlists ever again? It’s really rude.”

Funny, we were going to say the same about you and your “question.”

Bono seemed a little somber as he responded to Captain Rude Pants’ question.

“Oops…I’m sorry about that. I had this beautiful idea…might have gotten carried away with ourselves. Artists are prone to that thing. A drop of megalomania, a touch of generosity, a dash of self-promotion, and deep fear that these songs that we poured our life into over the last few years might not be heard. there’s a lot of noise out there. I guess, we got a little noisy ourselves to get through it.”

Then again, we’re sure if Beyoncé was to do the same thing, the vast majority of the world would claim that it was “innovative,” “fresh,” and continue to claim that “she’s the queen.” Whatever.

Fall Out Boy Perform Civil “Good Deed” in Jimmy Kimmel Skit

U2’s surprise and free album might have made some of their fans happy since they pretty much confirmed the album would be out by the end of 2014, but the fact that the album was delivered to everyone who has iTunes, made a vast majority of people upset.

Case and point? Just yesterday, the Huffington Post called the legendary Irish band the “new Nickelback.”

Need we say more?

Uproar about being forced the album reached Apple, resulting the company having to create instructions so those who did not want the album, could delete it from their iTunes Library.

During their appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live Tuesday night where they performed their new song “Centuries” for the first time on national television, Fall Out Boy made a joke about it. The band participated in a skit which involved them helping citizens of Los Angeles delete Songs of Innocence from their iTunes Library.

Watch the Save Rock and Roll band do their civil “good deed” below.

We’re going to assume Apple realized that this publicity stunt did have the ending that they hoped for especially because they spent a reported $100 million on the record so that everyone with iTunes could get it.

U2 Release Surprise New Album During iPhone 6 Reveal

How do you release your new album which has been in the works for what feels like forever?

Simple. Use one of the most publicized electronics reveal events to your benefit.

Today, was a big day for fans of Apple with the announcement that the company will be releasing the iPhone 6 (and iPhone 6 Plus), the iWatch and Apple Pay, but what might be cooler than all those electronics is the fact that U2 decided to drop their new album right after the live event.

We should also note that U2 performed the first single off  the new record, “The Miracle (of Joey Ramone)” during the “iPhone 6 Reveal.”

The new album is titled Songs of Innocence and is currently up on iTunes, but the best part of it all is the fact that the band are currently giving the album away for free.

Songs will be available through Apple, and Apple along until Oct. 13. After that, we’re assuming other retailers will be selling the record.

After the announcement was made, Billboard managed to get a few words with frontman Bono about the surprise release.

“We wanted to make a very personal album. Let’s try to figure out why we wanted to be in a band, the relationships around the band, our friendships, our lovers, our family. The whole album is first journeys — first journeys geographically, spiritually, sexually. And that’s hard. But we went there.”

Songs of Innocence is U2’s first new album since 2009’s No Line on the Horizon and was recorded with a slew of people including Danger Mouse and OneRepublic’s head honcho, Ryan Tedder.

Watch the 2014 Oscar Performances

If you were the small percentage that did not tune in to see the Oscars, then don’t worry, it was long and boring except for the parts that host Ellen DeGeneres was on-screen including making fun of people, giving out pizza and crashing Twitter with “The Worlds Most Retweeted” picture.

During the show, several artists took to the stage to perform their Oscar nominated songs. Pharrell with his Smokey the Bear hat took to the stage for the Despicable Me 2 theme and radio hit, “Happy” with a group of dancer. The Yeah Yeah Yeah’s Karen O. and Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig performed “The Moon Song” from Her while U2 paid tribute to Nelson Mandela with “Ordinary Love” from Mandela. Idina Menzel got in touch with Snow Queen, Elsa to perform “Let it Go” from Frozen after John Travolta-gate.

With the 75th anniversary of The Wizard of Oz is upon us and P!nk was asked to honor it by performing “Over the Rainbow.” Bette Midler sang “Wind Beneath My Wings” as part of the ‘In Memorium’ for all the fallen heroes of Hollywood.

All the videos can be seen below.

The 2014 Oscars’ Best Original Song (Not So) Short List

Seventy-five.

Seventy-five is the amount of songs that have been nominated for the 2014 Academy Awards Best Original Song short list.

Songs that made the long list, which ironically is called the short list comes from several different film with, of course, different music styles, but with a killer soundtrack, nonetheless.

One of the songs to make the list is one that could be attributed to some foreshadowing. About a year ago, Paul McCartney said that there might be a Nirvana reunion with him taking the place of the late Kurt Cobain. That is exactly what happened during the 12-12-12: The Concert for Sandy Relief, when the former Beatle was back by Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and honorary Nirvana member Pat Smear.

The song that they performed at the time “Cut Me Some Slack,” was just a treat, but it later turned out to be for Grohl’s Sound City: Real to Reel documentary film soundtrack.

Also making the not-so-short short list are many of the songs that were also nominated for the same award at the Golden globes. Those include Taylor Swift’s One Chance contribution, “Sweeter Than Fiction,” U2’s “Ordinary Love” which was featured on the Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom soundtrack and Coldplay’s “Atlas” from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. 

Instead of going into detail about every song on the list, check them all out below, and believe us, it’s a pretty long list, so get your patience on.

The 86th Annual Academy Awards are scheduled for March 2.

2014 Academy Awards Best Original Song short list:

“Amen” from All Is Lost
 
“Alone Yet Not Alone” from Alone Yet Not Alone 
“Doby” from Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues 
“Last Mile Home” from August: Osage County
 
“Austenland” from Austenland
 
“Comic Books” from Austenland
 
“L.O.V.E.D.A.R.C.Y” from Austenland
“What Up” from Austenland
“He Loves Me Still” from Black Nativity 
“Hush Child (Get You Through This Silent Night)” from Black Nativity 
“Test of Faith” from Black Nativity
“Forgiveness” from Brave Miss World

“Lullaby Song” from Cleaver’s Destiny
 
“Shine Your Way” from The Croods
“Happy” from Despicable Me 2
“Gonna Be Alright” from Epic
 
“Rise Up” from Epic
“What Matters Most” from Escape From Planet Earth

“Bones” from For No Good Reason 
“Going Nowhere” from For No Good Reason
“Gonzo” from For No Good Reason
 
“The Courage to Believe” from Free China: The Courage to Believe
“Let It Go” from Frozen
 
“100$ Bill” from The Great Gatsby
 
“A Little Party Never Killed Nobody (All We Got)” from The Great Gatsby 
“Over the Love” from The Great Gatsby
 
“Together” from The Great Gatsby
 
“Young and Beautiful” from The Great Gatsby 
“The Moon Song” from Her
 
“I See Fire” from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

“Bite of Our Lives” from How Sweet It Is
“Try” from How Sweet It Is
“Atlas” from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

“Better You, Better Me” from The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete
“Bring It On” from Jewtopia 
“Aygiri Nadani” from Kamasutra 3D
 
“Har Har Mahadeva” from Kamasutra 3D
 
“I Felt” from Kamasutra 3D
 
“Of the Soil” from Kamasutra 3D 
“Sawariya” from Kamasutra 3D
 
“In the Middle of the Night” from Lee Daniels’ The Butler

“You And I Ain’t Nothin’ No More” from Lee Daniels’ The Butler
 
“Let’s Take a Trip” from Live at the Foxes Den
“Pour Me Another Dream” from Live at the Foxes Den
“The Time of My Life” from Live at the Foxes Den
“Ordinary Love” from Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
“Monsters University” from Monsters University” 
“When the Darkness Comes” from The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones 
“Sacrifice (I Am Here)” from Murph: The Protector 
“The Muslims Are Coming” from The Muslims Are Coming! 
“Oblivion” from Oblivion 
“Sweeter Than Fiction” from One Chance
 
“Nothing Can Stop Me Now” from Planes
 
“We Both Know” from Safe Haven
 
“Get Used to Me” from The Sapphires
“Stay Alive” from The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

“So You Know What It’s Like” from Short Term 12

“There’s No Black Or White” from Somm
 
“Cut Me Some Slack” from Sound City
“You Can’t Fix This” from Sound City
 
“Let It Go” from Spark: A Burning Man Story
 
“We Ride” from Spark: A Burning Man Story
 
“Becomes the Color” from Stoker
 
“Younger Every Day” from 3 Geezers!
 
“Here It Comes” from Trance
 
“Let the Bass Go” from Turbo
 
“The Snail Is Fast” from Turbo
 
“Speedin'” from Turbo 
“My Lord Sunshine (Sunrise)” from 12 Years a Slave

“Make It Love” from Two: The Story of Roman & Nyro
 
“One Life” from The Ultimate Life
 
“Unfinished Songs” from Unfinished Song
 
“For the Time Being” from The Way, Way Back
 
“Go Where the Love Is” from The Way, Way Back
“Bleed for Love” from Winnie Mandela

Grammy Hall of Fame Reveal Newest Inductees

The Recording Academy has announced that songs by Neil Young, U2, Run-D.M.C., the Sugarhill Gang, Gil Scott-Heron, and the Rolling Stones are just some of the inductees for this year’s Grammy Hall of Fame.

“Memorable and inspiring, these recordings are proudly added to our growing catalog — knowing that they have become a part of our musical, social, and cultural history” said The Recording Academy head Neil Portnow, in a statement.

With these new addition, the Grammy Hall of Fame now houses a total of 960 recordings. All of them had to go through a special committee of industry figures and receive final approval from the Recording Academy’s National Board of Trustees. Last year, Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” Whitney Houston’s self-titled 1985 debut album, and AC/DC’s 1980 full-length Back In Black were all inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside many others.

See the full list of 2014 Grammy Hall of Fame inductees below.

• After the Gold Rush, Neil Young (Reprise, 1970)
• All Things Must Pass, George Harrison (Apple, 1970)
• The Chicago Transit Authority, Chicago (Columbia, 1969)
• Cosmo’s Factory, Creedence Clearwater Revival (Fantasy, 1970)
• Doc Watson, Doc Watson (Vanguard, 1964)
• “Fortunate Son,” Creedence Clearwater Revival (Fantasy, 1969)
• “Georgia (On My Mind),” Hoagy Carmichael and His Orchestra (Victor, 1930)
• “Get Up — I Feel Like Being a Sex Machine,” James Brown (King, 1970)
• “Honky Tonk Women,” The Rolling Stones (London, 1969)
• “Jolene,” Dolly Parton (RCA, 1973)
• The Joshua Tree, U2 (Island, 1987)
• Kristofferson, Kris Kristofferson (Monument, 1970)
• “Low Rider,” War (United Artists, 1975)
• Mary Poppins — Original Cast Sound Track, Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, and Various Artists (Buena Vista, 1964)
• “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen,” Louis Armstrong and the All Stars (Decca, 1938)
• “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head,” B.J. Thomas (Scepter, 1969)
• “Rapper’s Delight,” Sugarhill Gang (Sugar Hill, 1979)
• Relaxin’ With the Miles Davis Quartet, Miles Davis (Prestige, 1958)
• “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised,” Gil Scott-Heron (Flying Dutchman, 1970)
• “Strange Things Happening Every Day,” Sister Rosetta Tharpe (Decca, 1945)
• “Sweet Home Chicago,” Robert Johnson (Vocalion, 1937)
• “3 O’Clock Blues,” B.B. King (RPM, 1952)
• “Under the Boardwalk,” The Drifters (Atlantic, 1964)
• “Walk This Way,” Run-D.M.C. (Profile, 1986)
• “Wonderful World,” Sam Cooke (Keen, 1960)
• Woodstock — Music From the Original Sound Track and More, Various Artists (Cotillion, 1970)
• “Yardbird Suite,” Charlie Parker Septet (Dial, 1946)

But this is just the beginning for the Grammys because the nomination special for the big show which airs in late January is just around the corner. On Dec. 6, CBS will air  The Grammy Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown to Music’s Biggest Night, a live telecast from Los Angeles’ Nokia theater where the nominees for the Grammys will be revealed. LL Cool J will once again take the role of the host of the event while performers such a Robin Thicke and Macklemore have been confirmed.