News Topic - Elton John

Former Doobie Brother is still smokin'
KEEPING THE BEAT- Drummer Chet McCracken, formerly of the Doobie Brothers, performs with his group during the Concerts in the Park at Chumash Park in Agoura Hills last Sunday. The final show of 2008 season will be Face to Face: A Tribute to Billy Joel and Elton John at 6 p.m. Sun., Aug. 3 at the same location. Admission is free.
The Acorn  –  22 hours, 40 minutes ago  ¦  comment?
found in Local: California: Los Angeles

Security concerns killed Elton John concert
The Charlottetown Civic Centre tried to convince Elton John to make a P.E.I. stop on his tour through Atlantic Canada, but his management was not happy with the security arrangements.
CBC.ca  –  Jul 23, 2008 10:25 AM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Canada: Prince Edward Island

BSkyB and Universal to launch digital music service
BSkyB is to break into the digital music market with a new business, launched in conjunction with Universal Music, that aims to take on Apple's iTunes in the UK. The new as-yet-unnamed venture, in which BSkyB is the majority shareholder and Universal is an equity partner, aims to launch by the end of the year. The service, which is likely to be Sky branded, will offer a monthly subscription service as a counter to iTunes track-by-track purchasing. The subscription will give users unlimited access to streamed tracks plus a set number of download-to-own songs, initially to Universal Music's catalogue of hundreds of thousands of songs from artists including Amy Winehouse, U2, Kanye West, Duffy, Rihanna, Eminem, Elton John and Abba. Downloaded tracks will work on any device that can play MP3s including iPods and mobile phones. BSkyB, which several years ago registered the brand name Sky Tunes, is in negotiations with other music companies to join the venture and to potentially take equity. Pricing of the subscription packages, and the numbers of tracks that will be made available to download for each tier, will be revealed closer to the time of launch. "We think that there is a considerable un-met and untapped demand in the digital music market," said the BSkyB chief operating officer, Mike Darcey. "There is a desire among consumers to consumer, discover and purchase music online." He added that not all those needs were met by the current legal services and that some offerings were "not well marketed". "We have considerable expertise in customer-focused subscription services, content aggregation, packaging and marketing," he said. "We have strong broadband services and online assets and we have contact with one in three UK households. No one has brought that to bear." The new service will compete against music download stores from companies including 7digital, HMV and, in the near future, Amazon UK. Mark Mulligan, a vice-president at analysts JupiterResearch, said that the service would compete directly against existing subscription offerings from the likes of Napster and eMusic. He added that music companies are keen to see a wider range of distribution services for their music and more competition for iTunes, which accounts for more than 70% of the UK digital music market. "The music industry is still trying to knock Apple down to size," he said. "People are realising that people are not buying digital music in the numbers they should be. The decline in CD buying is greater than the rate people are buying digital music." Mulligan said that BSkyB's announcement was the first of a "second coming" of music subscription services that failed to take off a few years ago. "Sky is trying to be the first music service targeted at families, they have relationships with households, while offerings such as Apple have been more about young, tech-savvy one-to-one relationships." There was a political dimension for Sky, which runs an ISP service, supporting legal music services. "It is very important for the music industry to help find legal solutions," said Darcey. · To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editor@mediaguardian.co.uk or phone 020 7239 9857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 7278 2332. · If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".Related StoriesPaul Lewis on why Bluetooth technology is raising fears about privacyNetbytes: Girl Power blogger takes Singapore by stormAnother view: Roboticist Noel Sharkey on Wall-EDas Wikipedia - online resource goes into printNaomi Alderman: Why Microsoft makes us want to scream 'Exterminate!'
The Guardian  –  Jul 22, 2008 12:57 PM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Technology

Ticket sales up for Fredericton's Harvest Jazz and Blues
While some New Brunswickers were scrambling to grab Elton John tickets over the weekend, others were guaranteeing their entry to Fredericton's Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival in record style.
CBC.ca  –  Jul 21, 2008 6:07 PM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Entertainment

Tickets go fast for Elton John shows
Tickets Elton John's shows Moncton and Saint John sold out quickly on Saturday.
CBC.ca  –  Jul 21, 2008 2:46 PM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Canada: New Brunswick

Elton John Concert Tonight
Music legend Elton John will perform tonight at the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction.
WCAX-TV  –  Jul 21, 2008 10:48 AM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Local: Vermont: Burlington

Is pleasure proper use of taxes?
I was at the Sandy Amphitheater Friday night watching Elton John, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Buddy Holly, Nat King Cole, Willie Nelson, Michael Jackson, Robert Plant, Axl Rose and the BeeGees perform under the stars ...
deseretnews.com  –  Jul 20, 2008 06:56 AM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Local: Utah: Salt Lake City

Piano Provides Sneak Peek at Elton John Show
Sir Elton John may not perform his sold-out Vermont concert until Monday night, but a special piano can give you a free preview.
WCAX-TV  –  Jul 18, 2008 4:36 PM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Local: Vermont: Burlington

Elton John fans snap up tickets for Halifax shows
Tickets for Elton John's first concert in Halifax were sold out about an hour after they went on sale Friday morning.
CBC.ca  –  Jul 18, 2008 1:40 PM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Canada: Nova Scotia

Fans camp out for Elton John tickets
Lineups to snag tickets to Elton John's September concerts in Saint John and Moncton have already started.
CBC.ca  –  Jul 18, 2008 12:39 PM [GMT]  ¦  comment?
found in Canada: New Brunswick