Beyonce Mourns Etta James

'She was fearless, and had guts. She will be missed,' Beyonce writes on her blog.
By Jocelyn Vena


Etta James and Beyoncé
Photo: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images

<P>Etta James died on Friday (January 20) at the age of 73 after a lengthy battle with leukemia. The singer is being remembered by Beyoncé, who has quite the history with her. </p><div class="player-placeholder right" id="vid:727109.id:1677649" width="240" height="211"></div><p> "This is a huge loss. Etta James was one of the greatest vocalists of our time. I am so fortunate to have met such a queen," Beyonc&#233; wrote on her blog. "Her musical contributions will last a lifetime. Playing Etta James taught me so much about myself, and singing her music inspired me to be a stronger artist. When she effortlessly opened her mouth, you could hear her pain and triumph. Her deeply emotional way of delivering a song told her story with no filter. She was fearless, and had guts. She will be missed." Photos: The life and career of Etta James.</b> B famously portrayed the blond jazz singer in the 2008 biopic "Cadillac Records." Her version of "At Last" from the film's soundtrack would later win a Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Performance. Beyonc&#233;'s version of James' iconic ballad once-again made headlines when she performed the track at President Obama's inaugural ball in 2009. The performance was initially met with some criticism from the always-outspoken James, but she later came around. Beyonc&#233; is the latest in a long line of celebrities paying tribute to James. "Showing respect, appreciation and love for all the wonderful music and joy #ettajames brought to the world...#ettajamesforever," Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am wrote on Twitter. Paramore frontwoman Hayley Williams recalled how James' music influenced her. "#EttaJames, I will be forever grateful for your voice and your soul. Rest in peace." Rapper Flo Rida &#8212; whose latest hit, "Good Feeling," samples James' "Something's Got a Hold on Me" &#8212; wrote, "I'm deeply saddened by the passing of the Great Etta James and I will be forever grateful for the gift she Blessed me with." <i>Share your condolences with Etta James' friends and family on our Facebook page.</i></p>

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Adam Lambert's 'Whole Lotta Love': The Story Behind The Cover

Glam rocker tackled the legendary 1970 Led Zeppelin song for 'American Idol' rock night.
By Gil Kaufman



Photo: R. Mickshaw/Getty Images/ Fox

<P>Imagine a freight train speeding toward you at midnight. Or a rockslide barreling down a hill as you try to outrace it. That's the feeling of the ominous, chugging Jimmy Page riff that kicks off <MTVNLINK type="url" id="http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/led_zeppelin/artist.jhtml">Led Zeppelin</MTVNLINK>'s 1970 Stonehenge of rock, "Whole Lotta Love." And that's before singer Robert Plant leans into one of the nastiest, ecstatic rock screams this side of the Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again." That's the song Adam Lambert chose to sing on "American Idol" rock night Tuesday (May 5), and, needless to say, it was a challenge that the eyeliner-loving Los Angeles stage veteran was more than up for, hitting a series of high notes and rock screams that would have made Plant proud. It was a risky maneuver that paid off for Lambert, who chose a tune that came in at #75 on <I>Rolling Stone</i> magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004. </p><div style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; float: left;"> </div><p> The legendary British rock act recorded the tribute to Chicago blues icon Willie Dixon during their second U.S. tour after working it out in their live show, including it on their 1969 classic album <I>Led Zeppelin II.</i> Like many of the songs Zeppelin performed early in their career, "Love" was a blues standard turned on its head with a heavy dose of crunching psychedelic guitar and thundering drums, courtesy of late drummer John Bonham. The song was based on a 1962 tune by another blues forefather, Muddy Waters, called "You Need Love," which was penned by Dixon. For Zeppelin's version, Plant customized the lyrics by adding some lyrical quotes from a few other songs Dixon wrote for Howlin' Wolf, "Back Door Man" and "Shake For Me," nailing the tricky vocal in a single take. It was also inspired by 1966's "You Need Loving" from the British rock group the Small Faces, for whom Zeppelin had great affection, but they also did not credit Dixon for his part in writing the original lyrics. The song became Zeppelin's first U.S. single and their only U.S. top 10 hit. Though their manager would not let them release singles in the U.K. because he thought it cannibalized album sales, the song was finally released as the band's only British single in 1997. Dixon sued Zeppelin over the song in 1985, claiming it borrowed too heavily from his "You Need Love," and Zeppelin reached an agreement with him, with Dixon using the money he received to set up a program that provided musical instruments for schools. A cornerstone of heavy rock, the tune -- which was the theme song for the long-running British countdown show "Top of the Pops" in the 1970s and '80s -- has been covered by dozens of artists over the years, from Tina Turner and Ben Harper to Prince, Slash, Leona Lewis, Train's Pat Monahan, the London Symphony Orchestra and Jane's Addiction. <b>Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.</b></p>

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Coldplay, Led Zeppelin Album Covers Featured On New British Stamps

Album art from Pink Floyd, Blur and David Bowie also included.
By James Montgomery



Photo: Royal Mail

<P>On Thursday (January 7), the U.K.'s Royal Mail unveiled a series of 10 new stamps, honoring the most iconic album covers of the past 40 years. The albums featured in the new series are the Rolling Stones' <i>Let It Bleed,</i> Led Zeppelin's <i>IV,</i> David Bowie's <i>The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars,</i> Mike Oldfield's <i>Tubular Bells,</i> The Clash's <i>London Calling,</i> New Order's <i>Power, Corruption and Lies,</i> Primal Scream's <i>Screamadelica,</i> Pink Floyd's <i>The Division Bell,</i> Blur's <i>Parklife</i> and &#8212; the most recent album on to make the cut &#8212; Coldplay's <i>A Rush of Blood to the Head.</i> Meant to honor "the most potent graphic images of modern times, many of which have provided a visual soundtrack to people's lives," the series is the end result of a lengthy research process by the Royal Mail, who looked through thousands of album covers by British artists before deciding on the final list. And, during a Wednesday night BBC Radio broadcast, it was revealed that the queen herself actually approved each design. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page &#8212; who helped design the cover for <i>IV</i> &#8212; was on hand to celebrate the release of the stamps and recalled the mysterious nature of the album's iconic imagery. "Almost 40 years after the album came out, nobody knows the old man who featured on the cover, nor the artist who painted him," he said. "That sort of sums up what we wanted to achieve with the album cover, which has remained both anonymous and enigmatic at the same time." Of course, any great honor is befitting of an equally great contest, so, on the same day the stamps were made available to the general public, Coldplay decided to give one of their <i>Rush of Blood</i> stamps away. In a message on their official site, the band held a contest to send one lucky fan "a letter using a Coldplay stamp, postmarked with today's issue date." "We visited our local post office earlier today and bought some of the Coldplay stamps," the message read. "Very nice they are too."</p>

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Snoop Dogg To Kris Humphries: Don’t Try To Make A Ho A Housewife (VIDEO)