Tuesday - 1/31/12 

'Ringo 2012' out today. Michael Anthony won't go after Van Halen for songwriting royalties. Roger McGuinn tell David Crosby it's ok to tour as The Byrds without him. 2/1/12....Rush day. Happiest city to work in. Airline travel is a pain. 4 reasons you drink too much. Guy things that women shouldn't overreact about.

RINGO STARR

Out today is Ringo Starr's 17th solo album -- and his first self-produced collection-- called, Ringo 2012. The new album, which was mainly recorded at Ringo's L.A. estate, features two remakes of classic Ringo tunes -- his 1973 self-written Ringo album standout "Step Lightly" -- and in a nod to hardcore fans, as the lead single, a team-up with brother-in-law Joe Walsh on the 1977 chart bomb, "Wings."

Ringo told USA Today that his signature catch phrase of "peace and love" is far more than just a piece of showbiz shtick, explaining: "It is a commitment. We finish every show with (John Lennon's) 'Give Peace A Chance.' I've been put down so bad for saying 'Peace and love.' This is what I do. I'd love the world to be peace and love. That's my dream. If there's a choice, I choose the positive. Me being negative is not going to make the world better."

Highlights on Ringo 2012 feature the Van Dyke Parks co-write, "Samba," Ringo's covers of the Lonnie Donegan skiffle standard, "Rock Island Line," and Buddy Holly's "Think It Over" -- which was featured on the recent tribute set Buddy Holly: Listen To Me. Also included on the album is "In Liverpool," Ringo's third autobiographical song about his childhood: "So far, since I've had this thought, I've got a Liverpool song on the last three CD's -- and they're just snippets of my life. This one is a bit school days, going to the Iron Door -- which is a club in Liverpool. Me and the boys, me and the girls, me and the band. Y'know, it's bit like growin' up, but you can do it in a coupla lines."

Ringo will tour North America this summer with the latest edition of his All Starr Band. Both the band lineup and tour dates are expected soon.

MICHAEL ANTHONY

Former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony told the U.K.'s Planet Rock that he has no plans to go after the band for songwriting royalties from its upcoming album, A Different Kind Of Truth. With at least seven of the songs on the new disc consisting of reworked material from the Seventies -- when Anthony was in the band and used to receive equal songwriting credits with the other three members -- a case could be made that Van Halen owes him money from the use of this vintage material.

But Anthony said, "I don't want to do anything. I just let it be. And, hey, it'll be nice to hear some of those old songs again that I haven't played in a long time." Anthony added that he's especially looking forward to one track -- "She's The Woman" -- which was written before he joined in 1974. Anthony was replaced in Van Halen by guitarist Eddie Van Halen's son Wolfgang in 2006.

Anthony said not long ago that he's ambivalent about playing Van Halen songs live even though he still feels like he has "ownership" of the old songs: "Part ownership, anyway. I was part of it. You know, that's kind of one of the reasons why I've never wanted to like actually put a (solo) thing together and go out and play like that. I know Roth did it for quite some time. But you know, to me, I mean, that's basically, that's Van Halen's stuff, and it's best left to Van Halen doing it."

While Anthony takes the high road, however, his current Chickenfoot bandmate and ex-Van Halen vocalist Sammy Hagar is out there swinging. Speaking with Radio Metal about the new Van Halen album, Hagar said, "I think they chose to take the easy route and take some of their old stuff and and re-record it instead of writing new songs . . . I think there's zero inspiration and zero creativity. If there was any, they would write new songs."

Hagar would also welcome the opportunity for Chickenfoot to open for Van Halen, saying, "Hell yes! Are you kidding? Right now, for free. They wouldn't even have to pay me . . . Man for man, who can sing the best? Dave or I, today? Who can play the best? Joe (Satriani) or Eddie, today? Who could play or sing the best? Wolfie or Mikey?"

THE BYRDS 

Roger McGuinn says he's given former bandmate David Crosby permission to reunite the Byrds without him. McGuinn, who has not performed with surviving co-founders Crosby and Chris Hillman since 2000, spoke to Examiner.com and was reminded that Crosby had wanted the Byrds to tour with the recently reunited Buffalo Springfield -- but that McGuinn would probably pass on the offer. McGuinn agreed, saying, "That's true; I'm just too busy and happy doing what I'm doing. I'll go back to the 'reheat of the souffle' quote from Paul McCartney; they asked him to get the Beatles back together when John (Lennon) and George (Harrison) were still around and he said it was like trying to reheat a souffle, it wouldn't be the same."

When asked about the status of his relationship with Crosby, McGuinn said, "I wish him happy birthday every August 14th and he thanks me. But he does want to get the Byrds back together and he's even been quoted saying that he's offered me a million dollars to do it and I turned him down."

McGuinn revealed that he had even given his blessing for Crosby to take the Byrds name on the road without him: "I suggested it to him. He wants to do the Byrds. . . I said, 'Okay man, take it out and do it, I don't care.'"

Byrds fans have long been clamoring for a reunion. Despite the fact thatCrosby and Hillman are all for touring and recording with McGuinn as the Byrds, Crosby says that McGuinn is adamant to let the band remain a thing of the past: "On a regular basis I'll email him or call him and say, 'Roger, please. You and I and Christopher are still alive. We could make so many people happy. I'll get you a million bucks, I'll do whatever you want. You don't have to see me, except when we walk on stage. I'm not asking you to be my buddy -- I just want to make that music. It's great music, and it cannot be done without you.' And he says no. He says he doesn't want to do it."

RUSH DAY

February 1st, 2012 -- or 2/1/12 -- has been named "Intergalactic Prog Metal Day" or "Rush Day." A number of radio stations, music stores and websites are planning special events to celebrate the Canadian trio's legendary career as well as their landmark 1976 concept album 2112. Jeff Wagner, author of Mean Deviation: Four Decades of Progressive Heavy Metal, said, "Rush's 2112 is probably the first album that can rightfully be called progressive metal, so it's only appropriate we blast the album from the rooftops, from our cars, from our iPods, from everywhere, to celebrate this landmark album and Rush's incredible longevity and lasting influence." (Gibson)

MIAMI IS THE HAPPIEST CITY TO WORK IN

 Miami is the happiest city in which to work: Employment forum CareerBliss compiles an annual list of the happiest and unhappiest cities for work. Data comes from polling employees about their relationships with their coworkers, opportunities for advancement, compensation, work atmosphere, and other factors that express their general job satisfaction. The 2012 list, based on data from 43,000 respondents, found that the happiest cities were Miami, FL; Worcester, MA; and Oklahoma City, OK. Incidentally, the average salary in Miami was just under $54,000 -- some $8,000 less than the average salary in New Haven, CT, which ranked as the unhappiest city on the list (the second and third unhappiest were Dayton and Milwaukee). (AskMen.com)

BREAKING: AIRLINE TRAVEL IS A PAIN

 A new survey confirms what most travelers already know: modern air travel can be stressful, frustrating and exhausting. Of the survey's 1,000 U.S. respondents, 44 percent called air travel stressful, 41 percent said it was frustrating and 32 percent declared it downright exhausting. Very few people (16 percent) found air travel easy, luxurious (5 percent) or relaxing (7 percent). The reason that the total add up to more than 100 percent is because survey respondents were allowed to choose more than one answer to the question: "Air travel is..." Not surprisingly, the survey found that air travelers are displeased with the modern-day airport security-screening process. Only 22 percent said airport security-screening procedures were effective and only 11 percent said it was efficient. A mere 4 percent found it pleasant while 42 percent found the security checkpoint "a hassle." (MSNBC)

4 REASONS YOU DRINK TOO MUCH (Fox News)

The Media. The more you're exposed to images of alcohol in the media, the more likely you are to drink, reports a study published in the journal Alcohol and Alcoholism. The researchers monitored the alcohol consumption of 80 males (ages 18 to 29) who were exposed to media that either did or did not display images of alcohol with the film (or commercials). The men were broken up into groups and placed in comfortable theatre-like rooms where there were both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages available to them. The results found that those who watched commercials or movies where drinking was highly prevalent drank an average of 1.5 bottles (300 ml) more than those who watched similar media where alcohol played a less-prominent role.

The Suffering Economy. Researchers from the University of Miami found that the worse off the economy is, the worse your drinking habits become. Over a span of 4 years, the study surveyed more than 43,000 people -- monitoring drinking behaviors and the state unemployment rates. And after punching the data, the researchers found that every time the state unemployment rate increased by 1 percent, there was a 17 percent increase in cases alcohol abuse.

Your Brain. Although scientists have assumed this for quite some time, the latest research confirms that drinking releases feel-good chemicals in the "pleasure center" of the brain. Researchers from the University of California used PET imaging (which captures the regions of the brain that "light up" in response to alcohol) to monitor the effects of drinking in the brains of 13 heavy drinkers and compare them against images of 12 infrequent drinkers. Although all of the subjects experienced a release of endorphins from the alcohol, those who were heavier drinkers experienced higher levels of endorphins -- which ultimately leads to more alcohol because they received more pleasure from drinking.

The Loud Music. Cranking up the volume at the bar may actually cause people to drink more, reports a study published in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research. French researchers monitored 40 men over the course of three Saturday evenings, tracking the amount of alcohol they consumed when the music in the bar was played at various volumes. Their results showed that there was a positive correlation between loud music and the amount of time it took for men to empty their glasses. When the music was loud, it took the average guy roughly 12 minutes to finish his drink -- compared to about 15 minutes when the music was being played at a normal level.

GUY THINGS THAT WOMEN SHOULDN'T OVERREACT ABOUT (MadameNoire)

He fails to plan: You've been pestering him to reserve airline tickets, concert tickets or make a doctor's appointment he really needs. And he keeps forgetting. But remember, women are multi-taskers by nature, and that includes our ability to think about multiple things at a time. When a man steps into the work place, for the most part, his brain is on the work track and he barely thinks about another thing until he gets home. And then it's too late: you're already asking him if he made the call and he already forgot. But it's not that he didn't care about what you asked him to do.

He is removed after sex: Keep in mind, that in all likelihood you came before he did, and you've been hanging out for a while since then. So when sex ends, that's because he just came. Think about the few seconds after you just came -- your head is spinning a little bit. You kind of want to bask in the moment and having someone cuddling you or try to move you around in the bed ruins it.

When he doesn't act appreciative: Men don't get as gushy over nice things women do for them. Often, you make a man a meal, he kisses you on the cheek and says "Thanks baby" and sits down to happily eat. And silently. Somehow, men think we know how appreciative they are just by watching them enjoy what we've done for them. Women need more words to feel appreciated, but really should pick up from the smile on his face that he appreciates it.

When he doesn't invite you along: Women are more comfortable talking about most things with their friends or family, when their boyfriend is standing right there. Men, however, compartmentalize who they talk to about what. Sometimes they don't want to bring their girlfriend because they want to get to shoot the sh*t with their friends or family in the way they just don't feel comfortable doing in front of their woman.

When he abandons you at a party: He should definitely check in on you throughout the night and sit next to you if it's a dinner party. But, the two of you have plenty of time together alone. And at a party, you should be socializing with other people. Your boyfriend probably assumes you are able to fend for yourself, and you should be able to. If you are shy, that is not his fault. Let him enjoy himself.

When it seems like his friends don't know about you: You're hanging out with his friends, and when you tell them about a recent promotion at work, or the death of a loved one, they draw blanks. Your man clearly hasn't talked to them much about you. But, in general, women talk to their friends way more about their significant others than men do. It's nothing personal. It's just your man not wanting to annoy his friends by going on and on about his girlfriend.

When he doesn't overreact: You get into a fender bender. You have a cold. Your phone is stolen. And all he wants to know is how and when it can be fixed. But, he doesn't seem to feel for you. Keep in mind that men are fixers. So, they worry more about the solution, than the emotional ramifications of the problem.

Thanks for listening to The Eagle while you work. Keep it fabulous, Houston!

xoxo,

Jennifer Tyler

Fabulous Mid-Day Diva