HAS ROBERT PLANT MARRIED HIS BANDMATE?

There are some rumors going around that Robert Plant (63) has married his Band of Joy band mate Patty Griffin (47).  According to the website Ramble on Radio, folks in Austin have spotted the Led Zeppelin singer with Griffin around town – and both are reportedly wearing wedding rings.  In fact, one person claims Plant even introduced Griffin as his wife.  There has been speculation for months that the two have been dating.  Asked if the pair has gotten married, a publicist for Plant and Griffin said, “Not to my knowledge.” 

BLACK SABBATH ALMOST HAD THEIR OWN MUSICAL

One recent trend in theater is to create musicals using a band’s catalog.  In London, Queen found success in it with We Will Rock You, in NYC, ABBA did as well with Mamma Mia and The Kinks’ Ray Davies is currently writing one with his group’s music.  It turns out though that long before those plays hit the stage, Black Sabbath were approached with the idea.  Guitarist Tony Iommi told us what happened: “I remember years ago when we were approached to do a Black Sabbath, like We Will Rock You, many years ago, the chap who’d done The Who, I forgot his name now, who’d done Tommy, the producer, he wanted to do something with us many years ago.  We never did because we thought, ‘Oh, that’s a weird idea.’  Of course now, he was way ahead of his time.”

So would the guys ever agree to it today?  Here’s what Tony had to say: “Well I don’t know.  Maybe, we might be jumping on the bandwagon then at that point.” 

You can read more about Tony’s past in his new autobiography, Iron Man, which is on shelves now. 

JULIAN LENNON UPSET WITH RECENT SNUBS

Julian Lennon, John Lennon’s son with his first wife, Cynthia, is upset with Paul McCartney because he feels he’s been snubbed when it comes to several recent Beatles events, including Paul’s New York City wedding reception a couple weeks ago.  The 48-year-old Julian went on a rant on his Facebook page, noting that he was snubbed at the wedding and its New York counterpart (Yoko Ono and Sean Lennon were both in attendance at the New York wedding reception), at the anniversary of Vegas’ LOVE production and the premiere of the George Harrison documentary.  He demanded to know the truth to why, writing, “I & my mother will not be eradicated from history… how dare they?”  Sources explain that he wasn’t invited to the New York party because organizers thought he was in Italy.  Read more at Facebook.com/Julian LennonOfficial. 

DALTREY, TYLER FUNDING VOCAL CORD HEALING GEL RESEARCH

Scientists at MIT are developing a gel that mimics the vibration of human vocal cords and they’ve got some famous supporters helping to finance the project.  Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler and The Who’s Roger Daltrey are both funding the research with the hope that the gel can help people with damaged vocal cords sing again. The gel is injected into the vocal cord area where it bonds with existing membranes and responds to breath and muscle tension by vibrating, just like a real vocal cord. Actress Julie Andrews, whose voice was affected by a 1997 surgery, is also funding the project. If successful, the gel can give throat cancer patients their voice back.  It will be tested on a human patient for the first time in 2012 but has proved successful in animal studies.

COUNTRY ARTISTS PAY TRIBUTE TO LINDA MCCARTNEY

Let Us in Nashville – A Tribute to Linda McCartney is set for release on November 21st. The album features new versions of Paul McCartney songs, recorded by country artists. Actor-musician Jeff Daniels will host a concert at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on Monday (11/7) in advance of the tribute album’s release. Country artists Steel Magnolia, Phil Vassar, Chuck Wicks, SHeDAISY and others will perform songs from the album. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Women and Cancer Fund, established in the memory of Linda McCartney and authorized by Paul McCartney. Linda died of breast cancer in 1998 at age 56.