Spinal Tap reunites to save the planet
Legendary fake rockers Spinal Tap will reunite for a performance in London this summer as part of a slate of Live Earth benefit concerts scheduled worldwide for July 7.
All three of the band's original members--actors Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer--will be on hand for the concert, which will also feature the likes of Madonna, The Red Hot Chili Peppers and another reunited blockbuster act, Genesis.
The trio will resurrect the roles they made famous in the 1984 mock-rockumentary, "This is Spinal Tap ," to help the fight against global warming. Rob Reiner, who both directed the original film and portrayed documentary maker Marty DeBergi in the movie, will attend the event, according to press reports.
"They're not that environmentally conscious, but they've heard of global warming," Reiner told the Associated Press. "Nigel thought it was just because he was wearing too much clothing--that if he just took his jacket off it would be cooler."
Reiner told the press agency that the band's performance would be preceded by a short film (directed by Reiner) that explains what the group has been up to in recent years. Nigel (Guest) has been raising miniature horses to race, but can't find jockeys small enough to ride them; David (McKean) is now a hip-hop producer who also runs a colonic clinic; and Derek (Shearer) is in rehab for addiction to the Internet.
The 15-minute film will also be shown at the opening night of the Tribeca Film Festival in New York on Wednesday (4/25). The opening gala will be hosted by Al Gore.
The Live Earth concerts will take place on seven continents on the same day, with profits going to environmental organizations including the Alliance for Climate Protection, the Climate Group and Stop Climate Chaos.
Besides the London show, which will take place in Wembley Stadium, Live Earth concerts are also planned for New Jersey, Sydney, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, Johannesburg and Shanghai. The lineups for each of the locations can be found at the event's website.
- Artist Links:
Live Review: Live Earth in East Rutherford, NJ [July 2007]
Countdown to Live Earth [July 2007]
Briefly: Matchbox Twenty, Rolling Stones, Simon & Garfunkel, Lenny Kravitz [June 2007]
Briefly: KISS, Hinder, Angelique Kidjo, Drowning Pool [June 2007]
Live Earth audience asked to commit [June 2007]
Briefly: Dave Matthews Band, Pink Floyd, Shakira, Enrique Iglesias, Atreyu [June 2007]
Madonna's "Confessions on a Dance Floor" tour
The Duke Spirit on stage and in the studio
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers with Stevie Nicks
Metallica at the KROQ Weenie Roast in Irvine, CA
R.E.M. at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, CA
Herbie Hancock at the Sonoma Jazz Festival
Brad Paisley, Jack Ingram and Kellie Pickler
Dengue Fever at The Independent, San Francisco, CA

