Music News

London Grammar, Tom Odell and James Blake were the big winners at this year's Ivor Novello Awards.
The trip-hop trio - made up of Dominic Major, Hannah Reid and Daniel Rothman - won Best Song Musically and Lyrically for their track 'Strong' at the 59th Ivor Novello Awards, which were held today (22.05.14) at London's Grosvenor House.
Talking before the show, Hannah told BANG Showbiz: "It feels really good because it's a songwriter's award and that's why we do what we do, it's a little more chilled than the BRITs as well, it's great."
Tom won Songwriter Of The Year, while James picked up the accolade for Best Contemporary Song for 'Retrograde' but hadn't considered himself to be a songwriter.
He said: "Until my second album [Overgrown] I didn't think I was a songwriter, and now maybe I do."
Mike Rosenberg won the award for PRS for Music Most Performed Work for Passenger's hit song 'Let Her Go', while Arctic Monkeys and Laura Mvula missed out on the Best Album Award, which went to Nick Cave and Warren Ellis for 'Push The Sky Away', performed by Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds.
Chic musician Nile Rodgers picked up the Legend Award from former Smiths man Johnny Marr, after he delivered a moving speech.
Ahead of the ceremony, Nile told BANG Showbiz: "I've just got in from Ibiza at about four in the morning, I haven't slept at all."
Talking about receiving the Legend Award, he said: "I was laughing when they told me, I was like, 'You think I'm a legend? I'll take it.'
"One thing I know as a songwriter and composer [is that] this is what I consider [to be] if not the most prestigious event, it is one of the most prestigious events."
He joked: "When they called me and asked me to come, I was like, 'I'll come, do I get free food?'"
Mumford and Sons won the International Achievement Award and after a video montage was played for the audience, Marcus Mumford joked: "That felt a bit like a f***ing obituary."
Other awards on the night went to Jeff Beck for PRS for Music Outstanding Contribution to British Music, Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons from The Chemical Brothers for Outstanding Song Collection and Christine McVie for Lifetime Achievement.

Ivor Novello Awards 2014 full list of winners:


PRS for Music Most Performed Work:

'Let Her Go' - (written by: Mike Rosenberg, performed by: Passenger)

The Ivors Classical Music Award:

John McCabe

Best Television Soundtrack:

'Ripper Street' - (composed by: Dominik Scherrer)

Best Contemporary Song:

'Retrograde' - (written by: James Blake)

International Achievement

Ed Dwane, Ben Lovett, Winston Marshall and Marcus Mumford (Mumford & Sons)

Best Original Film Score:

'The Epic of Everest' - (composed by: Simon Fisher Turner)

The Ivors Inspiration Award:

Jerry Dammers (The Specials)

Album Award:

'Push the Sky Away' - (written by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis)

PRS for Music Outstanding Contribution to British Music:

Jeff Beck

Best Song Musically and Lyrically:

'Strong' - (written by Dominic Major, Hannah Reid and Daniel Rothman - London Grammar)

Songwriter of the Year

Tom Odell

Outstanding Song Collection

Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons [The Chemical Brothers]

Lifetime Achievement

Christine McVie

PRS for Music Special International Award

Nile Rodgers

Paul Weller thrilled fans with a surprise encore of 'In The City' at his London show on Wednesday night (21.05.14).
The rocker performed at Dingwalls in Camden and after sending fans wild with a rendition of 'The Changingman' he left the stage, but as people started filing out of the intimate venue he rushed back on stage with his band to play the track, which was his former group The Jam's debut single.
Weller has performed three small shows across the UK capital this week to promote his upcoming greatest hits album 'More Modern Classsics', which features the highlights of the last 15 years of his solo career.
The 55-year-old musician's set was heavily comprised of songs from the LP, including 'Come On Let's Go', 'Wake Up The Nation' and 'The Attic' - from his most recent studio release, 2012's 'Sonik Kicks'.
Weller - backed by his usual band, including Ocean Colour Scene guitarist Steve Craddock - didn't speak much to the crowd other thanking them for their applause between songs, preferring to power through his 90-minute show instead.
Weller did also play older solo hits and got a big cheer when he introduced 'Above The Clouds', taken from his self-titled 1992 debut solo album.
Speaking about 'More Modern Classics' - which is released on June 2 - Weller said: "This is just another few chapters of my life's work, a journey which I would hope you would come with me on ... The music on this compilation is over 15 years but for me it feels like it could be five or six years. I'm rushing through, like, I can't slow it down. I'll cling on tight and see where it ends up."

Guns N' Roses are rumoured to be splitting up.
Frontman Axl Rose is said to be planning to call time on the hard rock group after they complete their Las Vegas residency on June 7, almost 30 years he created the band while living in Los Angeles.
A source told RadarOnline.com: "Band members have been told their calendars are free following Vegas.
"Axl is considering retiring and it's done. Band members and support staff were surprised when told the news and are actively looking for work."
The 52-year-old singer is the only remaining founding member of the band with lead guitarist Slash, bassist Duff McKagan, drummer Steven Adler and rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin having all quit over the years.
The current members of Guns N' Roses are Tommy Stinson, Dizzy Read, DJ Ashba, Frank Ferrer, Chris Pitman and Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal.
The 'November Rain' hitmakers, who have sold more than 100 million records worldwide, begin their Las Vegas residency on May 21, playing nine dates at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.
Another source said: "Axl has made enough money and wants to stop touring. He is considering retiring."
However, Loudwire.com is reporting that a source has told the site that the split rumours are "bullsh*t" and the band members are taking a break, giving them chance to focus on other projects.
Bass player Duff - who quit Guns N' Roses in 1997 - briefly rejoined the band in April, standing in for Tommy for five shows across South America.
Axl and Slash have barely spoken since the guitarist quit the band in 1996 due to a breakdown in their songwriting partnership and the collaborative process between the entire group.
Their rift only worsened when Axl refused to join the other original band members at their induction into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in February 2012.

Fatboy Slim still 'loses control' on stage and admits "rave demons" take over.
The 'Eat Sleep Rave Repeat' hitmaker, who has been one of the biggest names in dance music for more than 20 years, has been sober since entering rehab in 2009 for alcohol addiction and insists although he no longer drinks, he enjoys his shows more and still gets lost in the moment.
He told the Daily Star newspaper: "I cherish the shows more now. It's nice, actually being able to remember them afterwards. Before, it was me and the crowds having a big party together.
"It's still a party, but I feel directly involved now, and having been a DJ for so long I know how to press people's buttons to get them dancing.
"But I still lose control on stage, especially in the last half-hour. The rave demons take over, and I find myself doing dance moves I didn't know I had in me."
The 50-year-old star, real name Norman Cook, lives in Brighton with wife Zoe Ball, 43, and children Woody, 13, and Nelly, four, but insists he likes to ditch his dad image during festival season and will be heading to the likes of Creamfields and Glastonbury this year.
He said: "Once I'm on stage, I go from being responsible father-of-two to a giggling 15 year old, hell bent on mischief and hedonism.
"The crowds keep me young for those two hours on stage. But as soon as the show finishes, I'm spent. I'm knackered and go straight to bed."
The star also claims his teenage son Woody has started to realise his dad has the "coolest job in the world" and no longer finds it cringe-worthy.
He said: "He was perpetually embarrassed and would say, 'All you do is play loud music to a load of drunk people who shout at you', I'd go, 'Well, yeah, that is my genre'.
"But he came into the DJ booth at a show in Ibiza last summer and he started to feel the same intoxication I get from music. He told me afterwards, 'Dad, I'm beginning to get what you do now."

The Rolling Stones' former manager Prince Rupert Loewenstein has died.
The music industry veteran, who is credited for turning the fortune of the group from near bankruptcy to billions when he started working for them in the 1960s, passed away on May 20 after suffering a long illness, according to Independent.co.uk.
Prince, dubbed "the human calculator", managed the band - made up of Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood, along with former members Brian Jones, Ian Stewart, Bill Wyman and Mick Taylor - for four decades, before they parted on amicable terms in 2007.
In his memoir, 'A Prince Among Stones', he admitted he wasn't interested in rock and pop music but wanted to help The Stones during financial difficulties.
He wrote: "I certainly felt that Mick was a sensible, honest person. And I was equally certain that I represented a chance for him to find a way out of a difficult situation. I was intrigued.
"So far as the Stones' music was concerned, however, I was not in tune with them, far from it. Rock and pop music was not something in which I was interested. I had heard some of The Beatles' music.
"Their music was sufficiently harmonic to be acceptable to people such as me. I only really took against rock 'n' roll when I heard the Stones.
"But the offer to look at the Stones' financial situation had come at a very good time for me both professionally and psychologically."
His funeral, which is expected to be attended by members of the band, will be held on Friday, May 30.
Prince's passing follows the tragic death of L'Wren Scott, the fashion designer girlfriend of Mick, who committed suicide in March.

Joey McIntyre is thankful to One Direction for making boy bands cool again.
The New Kids On The Block singer has confessed he and his bandmates - Donnie Wahlberg, Danny Wood, Jordan Knight and Jonathan Knight - are so grateful to the 'Midnight Memories' hitmakers that they've even started covering their tracks during their concerts.
Joey told the Daily Star newspaper: "It's fun to see One Direction's success, they have made people much more open to all types of music.
"It means people are more tolerant of our music too. We tip our hats to them in our new show with a cover or two."
The 'Hangin' Tough' hitmaker has also revealed that he's a fan of Miley Cyrus' risqué performances and thinks it's amazing she's still managing to shock people in the same way Madonna did during the height of their fame.
He said: "We did a few pelvic thrusts back then, but nothing like Miley. In this day and age to still be able to go too far is an achievement.
"I don't now what going too far even is any more. So kudos to her that she's pushing an envelope I didn't know was there.
"She gets complaints but it sounds to me like what they used to say about Madonna."

Nicki Minaj's new album was inspired by people who have let her down in her career.
The rapper and singer, who has released her new single 'Pills N Potions' from her third studio album 'The Pink Print', looked back on experiences where people have taken her for granted when writing the album.
She said: "I was just reflecting on people in my life who [have] come and gone, just thinking, what the hell does it all mean?"
"God bless 'em, I'm talking about lots of people, not anybody in particular, but I have come across a lot of people that I've given amazing opportunities to [who have let me down]."
The 31-year-old star, who is reportedly being sued for $30million by her former wig designer Terrence Davidson, who is accusing her of selling wigs based on his designs without permission, insists she's always nice to people and is often shocked when they turn against her.
She said: "I always give people enough rope to hang themselves with. In general, I just live my life and try and be super fair to everyone, so when you cross me, it's like, 'Really? Okay'."
Meanwhile, the brunette beauty has ditched her outrageous outfits and crazy wigs in favour of a more natural look and claims she always planned to go back to her old appearance.
She explained: "The album was more personal, so I think the look being stripped down goes really well with the third album. I always thought in my head, 'For my third album I wanna go back to my real hair'."
Talking to presenters on 'The Breakfast Club' on radio station Power 105, she added: "You can tell on 'Pills N Potions' that I'm just creating moments, it's important to me to keep it truthful and honest.
"Sometimes you're gonna feel like it's hardcore and sometimes it's going to feel like it's not but as long as it's good music, then that's all that matters to me at this point."

Quincy Jones has blasted the new Michael Jackson album 'Xscape'.
The legendary producer - who masterminded some of the late singer's biggest hits - thinks the posthumous recording was only released to "make money".
He said: "It's about money. They're trying to make money. And I understand it. Everybody's after money, the estate, the lawyers. It's about money.
Quincy admitted it "bothers" him to see so much of the 'Thriller' star's previously-unreleased music being made public but has learned to accept it has nothing to do with him.
Asked if he was bothered by the recordings, he told Jian Ghomeshi's 'Q' talk show on CBC Radio: "Yeah, but it's not my business anymore. They're not our business."
Quincy's comments come months after he launched a $10 million breach-of-contract lawsuit in relation to the recordings released after the 'Billie Jean' stars death in June 2009.
He alleged master recordings he had worked on were wrongfully edited and remixed so as to deprive him of back-end profit participation.
He also claimed he had been denied credit for his work and that MJJ Productions and Sony Music have entered into deals taking profits that should have been included in the calculation of royalties.

Alana Haim is "not afraid" to admit she was a huge fan of the Spice Girls.
The 22-year-old musician, who is in girl rock band Haim with sisters Este and Danielle, is known as Baby Haim because she loved Emma Bunton from the 90s pop group and is the youngest in her family.
She said: "The reason why I'm Baby Haim is because I was the biggest Spice Girls fan growing up. I always wanted to be Baby Spice growing up, but I didn't have blonde hair. When I was 16, one of my friends was like, 'You're Baby Haim, you're the baby of the family!' and I was like, 'Oh my God, dream come true, I can be like Baby Spice'. They were the first band I was a fanatic [for].
"It was Spice Girls and Destiny's Child, my two go-to bands. I had all the dolls, all the weird lollipops, all the movies. I was a f***ing huge Spice Girls fan, and I am not afraid to say it."
The Spice Girls - also made up of Mel C, Mel B, Victoria Beckham and Geri Halliwell - were known for their choreographed dance routines, and Haim have decided to show off their moves in the video for their track 'If I Could Change Your Mind'.
Alana added to TIME magazine: "[Veteran choreographer] Fatima [Robinson] definitely f**king whipped our asses into shape for sure. "We only had three days to choreograph it and perform.
"We really wanted to be actual dancers. I mean, we're not actual dancers ... we quickly realised that after day one."