Michale Jackson's back catalogue has allegedly been stolen from Sony Music by hackers
More than 50,000 music files, most of which were by the late pop legend, are said to have been illegally downloaded.
Jackson's estate signed the biggest recording deal in history, worth $250m (£164m) with the company in 2010, giving it the rights to sell his whole back catalogue as well as previously unreleased tracks.
On Friday, two men who were arrested last May appeared in court in the UK accused of offences in connection with the alleged security breach.
James Marks, 26, from Daventry in Northamptonshire, and James McCormick, 25, from Blackpool, denied charges under the Computer Misuse Act and the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act at Leicester crown court. They were released on bail, the Serious Organised Crime Agency said. They are due to stand trial next January.
The incident comes less than a year after the names, addresses and other personal data of about 77 million people with accounts on Sony's PlayStation Network (PSN) were stolen.
The company warned it had been hacked last April when an "illegal and unauthorised person" got access to the information, forcing Sony to temporarily shut down the PSN, which allows owners of the consoles to play online games and rent films.
Private investigators were called in and Sony issued an apology for the "frustrating" security breach, promising it was taking steps to make its services "safer and more secure than ever before" in the wake of the attack.
Sony Music is home to a string of major artists, including Leonard Cohen, Paul Simon, Foo Fighters and Avril Lavigne, and also distributes the music of Jimi Hendrix.
Its catalogue features what it calls "some of the most important recordings in history".
The company signed its contract with Jackson's estate nine months after he died from a drug overdose at the age of 50, leaving hundreds of millions of dollars of debt behind him.
The deal also entitled the firm to use his music in computer games, television adverts and elsewhere, with profits from the arrangement to go into a trust shared by the singer's mother and three children.
Sony Music declined to comment on the latest alleged hacking incident.
Soca's involvement in the case comes after it shut down popular music site RnBXclusive last month, warning users that the majority of music files available via the website were stolen from the artists.
News and journalism songs by readers recommend
Last week, the A list underwent a spot of late editing. Something which leads us neatly into this week's theme
An early version of this week's A-list stuck fairly closely to the request for music that communicates the atmosphere of fairgrounds. Listening to it, though, I realised I must have a pretty warped idea of fairgrounds; more than half of the songs were demented, dystopian visions that, en masse, made me feel sicker than the one trip I've taken on a Waltzer back in 1985.
Two of those nightmare tracks - Siouxsie and the Banshees' Carousel and Sandy Dillon's raspy Carnival of Dreams - have since sidled instead to the B-list, where their nauseating effect is magnified by the Beatles' dizzying Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite, but tempered by the Idle Race's daffy The Skeleton and the Roundabout, the Hollies' On a Carousel, Beirut's delicious Carousels, Tom Waits' Table Top Joe, the Smiths' Rusholme Ruffians (is it just me, or is the riff from His Latest Flame fizzing its way through that one?), the pogo frenzy that is Bikini Kill's Carnival and the frankly irresistible dramarama of Cher's Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves. An early version of the B-list featured eight songs by Tom Waits. It took a while to persuade myself that such a list would be silly. All my thoughts were donds this week; thanks to RockingMitch for the introduction to Professor Longhair, and special thanks to Snadfrod for the link to the very silly, very cheering Boosh clip.
From one circus to, ahem, another. This week's theme is journalism and the news. Is it worth saying that, from now, historical-flavoured songs about events that made the news, but that make no mention of the media, should be saved for another theme? This one should deal with the reporting of events, be it in newspapers, on radio or TV, even in medieval chapbooks if such a song exists; and with journalists in general (I'm anticipating a fair few character assassinations here). Deadline as usual is midday Monday; please fact-check any recommendations against the A-Z before you file, and if you want to do a little extra research, the RR archive and Overspill blog are always worth investigating.
Justin Bieber hopers To 'Gain Respect' with trust
With Justin Bieber expected to drop Believe later this year, he's also hoping to expand his fanbase. Of course his first priority is to make his fans happy, but he'd also like to prove to any haters out there that he's more than just a tween dream; he's a certifiable pop star who can make music that appeals to all demographics.
"You can't really expect anything from my album. It's really, really different," he told MTV News. "And it's new; it's not the same thing everyone's used to hearing right now on the radio. It's really exciting for me, 'cause I'm able to break out of my shell and show my fans what I'm all about and show other people who might not like my music that maybe they can like my music.
"I'm not trying to lose any of my young fans," he continued. "I'm not trying to lose any of my fans, I'm just trying to gain fans, and I think that's the best way to do it. Rather than try to grow up and lose your fans, you can get better and evolve and gain respect from more people."
Bieber is slated to drop the album's first single, "Boyfriend," on March 26, and he said it will certainly please his most devoted fans.
"This new album is crazy. I've spent the most time on it creatively, just writing myself and being involved in the whole process. It's something that comes from my heart," he explained of the 2012 release. "I hope all my fans and all my Beliebers like it. With my new album, Believe, there's so many different songs and so many different styles. It's really versatile and fun. My first single is going to be amazing — everyone's going to love it."
And while it's still a ways off, Bieber confirmed he will take the album on the road. "I don't know if it'll be called the Believe Tour," he said. "I don't know yet, I really have no clue. But there will be a tour for my album, Believe. 100 percent. And I will be on the road, hanging out."
Rock Guitarist Ronnie Montrose Dead
Montrose, 64, played with Sammy Hagar, Van Morrison.
Rock guitarist Ronnie Montrose, who played on recordings from a wide variety of rock artists over a 40-year career, died on Saturday at age 64 after a long battle with prostate cancer.
A tribute posted on his official website read, "A few months ago, we held a surprise party for Ronnie Montrose's 64th birthday. He gave an impromptu speech, and told us that after a long life, filled with joy and hardship, he didn't take any of our love for granted. He passed today. He'd battled cancer, and staved off old age for long enough. And true to form, he chose his own exit the way he chose his own life. We miss him already, but we're glad to have shared with him while we could."
Born in San Francisco on November 29, 1947, Montrose picked up the guitar in his late teens and formed his first band, Sawbuck, in 1969.
He quickly established a reputation as a reliably fiery guitar hero sideman, beginning with his first major gig at age 23 when he was tapped to play on Van Morrison's legendary 1971 album, Tupelo Honey. Montrose went on to play with such rock acts as Boz Scaggs and the Edgar Winter Group, including the latter's stand-out hits, "Frankenstein" and "Free Ride." In addition to appearing on two more albums by Van Morrison, he recorded tracks with Herbie Hancock, Gary Wright, Dan Hartman and the Beau Brummels.
Once he'd established his name, in 1973 Montrose formed a power trio with the then-unknown singer Sammy Hagar, who would go on to his own solo success and worldwide fame as the second lead singer of Van Halen. They recoded two major-label albums before Hagar took off to become a solo act. To this day, Hagar continues to play some of Montrose's most beloved tunes in his live show, including songs such as "Bad Motor Scooter" and "Rock Candy" and "Make it Last."
Montrose was initially diagnosed with cancer in 2007 and took two years off to recover from surgery, but hit the road again with his band after that, playing nearly 50 shows last year and continuing to appear on other artist's recordings throughout his second cancer fight.
More than 50,000 files from Sony Music, most by late pop legend, are said to have been illegally downloaded
Michale Jackson's back catalogue has allegedly been stolen from Sony Music by hackers, it has emerged.More than 50,000 music files, most of which were by the late pop legend, are said to have been illegally downloaded.
Jackson's estate signed the biggest recording deal in history, worth $250m (£164m) with the company in 2010, giving it the rights to sell his whole back catalogue as well as previously unreleased tracks.
On Friday, two men who were arrested last May appeared in court in the UK accused of offences in connection with the alleged security breach.
James Marks, 26, from Daventry in Northamptonshire, and James McCormick, 25, from Blackpool, denied charges under the Computer Misuse Act and the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act at Leicester crown court. They were released on bail, the Serious Organised Crime Agency said. They are due to stand trial next January.
The incident comes less than a year after the names, addresses and other personal data of about 77 million people with accounts on Sony's PlayStation Network (PSN) were stolen.
The company warned it had been hacked last April when an "illegal and unauthorised person" got access to the information, forcing Sony to temporarily shut down the PSN, which allows owners of the consoles to play online games and rent films.
Private investigators were called in and Sony issued an apology for the "frustrating" security breach, promising it was taking steps to make its services "safer and more secure than ever before" in the wake of the attack.
Sony Music is home to a string of major artists, including Leonard Cohen, Paul Simon, Foo Fighters and Avril Lavigne, and also distributes the music of Jimi Hendrix.
Its catalogue features what it calls "some of the most important recordings in history".
The company signed its contract with Jackson's estate nine months after he died from a drug overdose at the age of 50, leaving hundreds of millions of dollars of debt behind him.
The deal also entitled the firm to use his music in computer games, television adverts and elsewhere, with profits from the arrangement to go into a trust shared by the singer's mother and three children.
Sony Music declined to comment on the latest alleged hacking incident.
Soca's involvement in the case comes after it shut down popular music site RnBXclusive last month, warning users that the majority of music files available via the website were stolen from the artists.
News and journalism songs by readers recommend
An early version of this week's A-list stuck fairly closely to the request for music that communicates the atmosphere of fairgrounds. Listening to it, though, I realised I must have a pretty warped idea of fairgrounds; more than half of the songs were demented, dystopian visions that, en masse, made me feel sicker than the one trip I've taken on a Waltzer back in 1985.
Two of those nightmare tracks - Siouxsie and the Banshees' Carousel and Sandy Dillon's raspy Carnival of Dreams - have since sidled instead to the B-list, where their nauseating effect is magnified by the Beatles' dizzying Being for the Benefit of Mr Kite, but tempered by the Idle Race's daffy The Skeleton and the Roundabout, the Hollies' On a Carousel, Beirut's delicious Carousels, Tom Waits' Table Top Joe, the Smiths' Rusholme Ruffians (is it just me, or is the riff from His Latest Flame fizzing its way through that one?), the pogo frenzy that is Bikini Kill's Carnival and the frankly irresistible dramarama of Cher's Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves. An early version of the B-list featured eight songs by Tom Waits. It took a while to persuade myself that such a list would be silly. All my thoughts were donds this week; thanks to RockingMitch for the introduction to Professor Longhair, and special thanks to Snadfrod for the link to the very silly, very cheering Boosh clip.
From one circus to, ahem, another. This week's theme is journalism and the news. Is it worth saying that, from now, historical-flavoured songs about events that made the news, but that make no mention of the media, should be saved for another theme? This one should deal with the reporting of events, be it in newspapers, on radio or TV, even in medieval chapbooks if such a song exists; and with journalists in general (I'm anticipating a fair few character assassinations here). Deadline as usual is midday Monday; please fact-check any recommendations against the A-Z before you file, and if you want to do a little extra research, the RR archive and Overspill blog are always worth investigating.
Justin Bieber hopers To 'Gain Respect' with trust
'It's really exciting for me, 'cause I'm able to break out of my shell,' Bieber tells MTV News about his next album.
With Justin Bieber expected to drop Believe later this year, he's also hoping to expand his fanbase. Of course his first priority is to make his fans happy, but he'd also like to prove to any haters out there that he's more than just a tween dream; he's a certifiable pop star who can make music that appeals to all demographics. "You can't really expect anything from my album. It's really, really different," he told MTV News. "And it's new; it's not the same thing everyone's used to hearing right now on the radio. It's really exciting for me, 'cause I'm able to break out of my shell and show my fans what I'm all about and show other people who might not like my music that maybe they can like my music.
"I'm not trying to lose any of my young fans," he continued. "I'm not trying to lose any of my fans, I'm just trying to gain fans, and I think that's the best way to do it. Rather than try to grow up and lose your fans, you can get better and evolve and gain respect from more people."
Bieber is slated to drop the album's first single, "Boyfriend," on March 26, and he said it will certainly please his most devoted fans.
"This new album is crazy. I've spent the most time on it creatively, just writing myself and being involved in the whole process. It's something that comes from my heart," he explained of the 2012 release. "I hope all my fans and all my Beliebers like it. With my new album, Believe, there's so many different songs and so many different styles. It's really versatile and fun. My first single is going to be amazing — everyone's going to love it."
And while it's still a ways off, Bieber confirmed he will take the album on the road. "I don't know if it'll be called the Believe Tour," he said. "I don't know yet, I really have no clue. But there will be a tour for my album, Believe. 100 percent. And I will be on the road, hanging out."
Rock Guitarist Ronnie Montrose Dead
Montrose, 64, played with Sammy Hagar, Van Morrison.Rock guitarist Ronnie Montrose, who played on recordings from a wide variety of rock artists over a 40-year career, died on Saturday at age 64 after a long battle with prostate cancer.
A tribute posted on his official website read, "A few months ago, we held a surprise party for Ronnie Montrose's 64th birthday. He gave an impromptu speech, and told us that after a long life, filled with joy and hardship, he didn't take any of our love for granted. He passed today. He'd battled cancer, and staved off old age for long enough. And true to form, he chose his own exit the way he chose his own life. We miss him already, but we're glad to have shared with him while we could."
Born in San Francisco on November 29, 1947, Montrose picked up the guitar in his late teens and formed his first band, Sawbuck, in 1969.
He quickly established a reputation as a reliably fiery guitar hero sideman, beginning with his first major gig at age 23 when he was tapped to play on Van Morrison's legendary 1971 album, Tupelo Honey. Montrose went on to play with such rock acts as Boz Scaggs and the Edgar Winter Group, including the latter's stand-out hits, "Frankenstein" and "Free Ride." In addition to appearing on two more albums by Van Morrison, he recorded tracks with Herbie Hancock, Gary Wright, Dan Hartman and the Beau Brummels.
Once he'd established his name, in 1973 Montrose formed a power trio with the then-unknown singer Sammy Hagar, who would go on to his own solo success and worldwide fame as the second lead singer of Van Halen. They recoded two major-label albums before Hagar took off to become a solo act. To this day, Hagar continues to play some of Montrose's most beloved tunes in his live show, including songs such as "Bad Motor Scooter" and "Rock Candy" and "Make it Last."
Montrose was initially diagnosed with cancer in 2007 and took two years off to recover from surgery, but hit the road again with his band after that, playing nearly 50 shows last year and continuing to appear on other artist's recordings throughout his second cancer fight.
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