July 2008 News

SPRINGFIELD - The Illinois State Fair has never lacked for big name, exciting entertainment - and 2008 is no different.

With genres ranging from country to pop, parody to hard edged rock, musical tunes, classical and good old rock 'n' roll, performers will fill the air with music in the capital city on dates from Aug. 8 to Aug. 17, on the Grandstand stage at the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

Fergie, aka. Stacy Ferguson, appears Friday, Aug. 8, with hits from "The Dutchess," her first solo album, like "London Bridge," "Fergalicious" and "Glamorous." "Big Girls Don't Cry," from the same album, was her first worldwide No. 1 single, and is her most successful to date, receiving a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

The New York Times once described JOAN JETT as "the godmother to female musicians with loud guitars and idealistic dreams." Three decades into her career, the ever-youthful Jett remains an inspiration for any girl-or guy-who possesses a passion for no-frills rock and roll. Not surprisingly, Jett's all-time favorite albums combine great songwriting with a sonic wallop.

Rolling Stones: Let It Bleed
"Pure organic sound, and attitude with great hooks."

Sex Pistols: Never Mind The Bollocks
"The greatest punk recording ever."

A true rock 'n' roll original roared and soared over Harris Park last night.

There are plenty of rockers who'll play London this year. There's only one JOAN JETT -- the terrific gender-bending U.S. rock star who can open a set with her own Bad Reputation and find her way into a sing-along version of glam rocker Gary Glitter's Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah) a few songs later.

"We're the BLACKHEARTS from New York City," Jett told the crowd on Day 2 of Rock the Park V in downtown London. "Don't be shy. We love the show-offs."

Jett isn't shy. She followed one of her new songs Naked, a "self-inquiry" anthem, with a blazing cover of Love is All Around, the cheerful theme from the old Mary Tyler Moore show.

You know JOAN JETT loves rock 'n' roll. You know she has a blackheart, or at least a band by that name. And you know she's worked her way into rock legend. But like all great performers, there's much you don't know about her. Lucky for you, Festiva is here to teach you more about one of rock's leading ladies.

JOAN JETT will perform with Def Leppard on July 30 at Dodge Arena. Check out this week's Festiva for more, only in Friday's The Monitor.

5 THINGS YOU DON'T KNOW ABOUT JOAN ...

1. Joan ditched high school in the 11th grade. She traded reading, writing and arithmetic for rocking, rolling and er, rocking and rolling. Joan earned her GED on the road, and she's kept studying ever since, mostly advanced philosophy.

2. Joan has broken major showmanship ground. She ranks as the first artist to perform on stage with S & M garb, you know studs, leather and chains. The look has become standard for rock, punk and metal.

VH1 paid tribute to The Who on the weekend with the taping of an all-star show in Los Angeles.

The show featured appearances from David Duchovny, Sean Penn and Adam Sandler. In fact, Sandler sang `Magic Bus`.

Pearl Jam, Incubus, Flaming Lips and Foo Fighters performed the songs of The Who, then the band a 9-song set including `Won`t Get Fooled Again`, `Who Are You` and `My Generation`.

The special will be aired on VH1 and later released on DVD.

The set-list was:
Video Montage with comments from Cameron Crowe, JOAN JETT, Billy Bob Thornton, Conan O`Brien, Sting, Billy Idol and others

REUNION (#CI7016)
EPISODE PREMIERE: July 13, 2008

When the host of TV's "Rock 'n' Talk" is bludgeoned to death by a champagne bottle, Logan and Wheeler's investigation into the seamy music world involves Jordie Black, Wheeler's favorite rock star from high school, whose secret past pushes Wheeler's admiration to the brink.

EXCLUSIVE BONUS FOOTAGE!

Click here to view

JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS
Rib-Fest, Naperville
Saturday, July 5, 2008

At nearly 50, JOAN JETT can be considered a rock 'n' roll cougar.

Taking the stage at Naperville's Rib-Fest Saturday night, the gum-chewing, leather-clad rocker cranked out a P.G. show that touched on all the old standbys. Slipping in a few new songs and touting a new disc, SINNER, she generally looked like she was having a good time.

Playing before a mostly low-key suburban crowd isn't the rock tours of the '80s, but many there weren't even born when "I Love Rock 'N Roll" topped the charts in 1981. Saturday's crowd had the usual first couple of rows of hardcore fans. And yes, there was the representative group of black-leather bikers in bandannas to complement the BLACKHEARTS' dark garb. But the balance was a mix of blanket-lying, kid-towing, lawn-chair-sitting suburbanites munching on ribs.

For Jett, the bad-girl image of her screaming guitar while strutting on top of a bar is gone. When red Gatorade replaces the adult beverage of choice on stage, well, you know, it just doesn't look the same. Throughout the show, her guitar skills were never in question. The BLACKHEARTS did well to complement her, pounding out a live show that sounded as good as a studio album.

Lean and buffed, she has weathered the many years on the road just fine. In fact, cover up a few of the arm tats, toss on a pair of shorts, and I'd bet she could walk into any Starbucks in Naperville and blend right in.

When the host of TV's "Rock 'n' Talk" is bludgeoned to death by a champagne bottle, Logan and Wheeler's investigation into the seamy music world involves Jordie Black, Wheeler's favorite rock star from high school, whose secret past pushes Wheeler's admiration to the brink. Catch the premiere of "REUNION" this Sunday at 9/8C!

'LAW & Order: Criminal Intent" is taking on the case of Linda Stein, the ex-Ramones manager-turned-realtor-to-the-stars who was murdered last October - complete with some rock star casting.

Here's the first look at rocker JOAN JETT playing (or playing dead) a former music-biz bigwig with Chris Noth - as Det. Mike Logan - at the scene. (Noth, who stars in the box-office smash "Sex & the City" movie, is keeping his day job and was working on the "L&O" series.)

In the show - as in real life - the dead woman's assistant is the leading suspect in the murder.

USA Sun, Jul 13 9:00 PM
USA Mon, Jul 14 12:00 AM

Episode Detail: Reunion - Law & Order: Criminal Intent
A former groupie who has her own television show is murdered, and the suspects include her assistant, her son, and a well-known musician and his wife. JOAN JETT guest stars.

Here is a three-word summary of how intense this documentary is: JOAN JETT cries. We don't exactly see her cry, of course-c'mon, she's JOAN JETT-but during her interview, she gets so choked up she has to stop for a moment, and seeing rock's tough girl overwhelmed by emotion and unable to speak somehow says it all. Mia Zapata was a tough girl, too, at least onstage and in her songs. As the interviews in this labor-of-love doc reveal, offstage the lead singer of the almost-famous punk band the Gits had a big heart and was known to be shy and reserved. The film's name is deceptive-it isn't really about the Gits, as a phenomenon or even as a band-as much as it's about Zapata and the people that she touched while she was alive. Besides being lumped in with the Seattle scene in the '90s, the Gits never got a chance to leave much of a mark. But by the time they were ready to release their second album, they had gotten a lot of attention for the band's fast-and-heavy punk sound and especially for Zapata's powerful voice and dark lyrics. Sadly, that's where Zapata's story becomes a true-crime story-she was raped and murdered in 1993-and director Kerri O'Kane lets the film follow down that path. The Gits becomes a mystery-who did it and why?-on the one hand, and on the other a chronicle of how her death tore the people around her apart. In a larger sense, it also tore apart the Northwest rock scene. O'Kane provides an unflinching look at the damage, as band members talk about hiring a P.I. to investigate their friends, and also explores how her friends and family tried to make something positive out of their anger, grief and fear. Anyone who doesn't know how this story turned out will be shocked and awed by the end, to be sure.