The David Bowie tributes tonight and tomorrow night in New York just had their performers lists shortened with the exit of the Roots and their associated acts.
It’s not totally clear who offended the normally very giving and friendly group, but it appears to be over the use of equipment, something that needs to be easy to access with little or no set-up time when you are trying to get so many artists on and off stage.
Questlove wrote on Instagram:
Mood. I’ve never been so insecure or petty as to deny a fellow musician use of ANY of my equipment (or my band’s equipment—-or resources or contacts or knowledge or ANYTHING) it angers me when that same courtesy is not reciprocated. (Believe you me I was about to get #TomPetty or #PettyWap or #PetRockAndCLSmooth or #BlackPetty or however you wanna roll wit it)—keeping a level head and not being self destructive is a weak point I’m working on. But I’m also keeping it true: The Roots/Bilal/Kimbra (w/ Wendy Melvoin, DD Jackson & Ray Angry) pulled out of these Bowie gigs. We have patience. But we do NOT have patience for the #Bitchassness. Enjoy your precious equipment.
For those who know Questlove, this had to be a very contentious situation. The man is one of the great representatives of the music community and one of the most knowledgeable people out there.
The current lineups for the two nights:
Thursday Night
Patti Smith
Pixies
Michael Stipe
Debbie Harry & Matt Katz-Bohen
The Flaming Lips
J Mascis (Dinosaur Jr)
The Roots featuring Tariq & Bilal
Perry Farrell
Cyndi Lauper
Cat Power
Laurie Anderson
Robyn Hitchcock
Eugene Hütz of Gogol Bordello
Jakob Dylan
Bettye LaVette
The Mountain Goats
Ann Wilson of Heart
Rickie Lee Jones
Holy Holy
Choir! Choir! Choir! & New York City Youth Chorus
Friday Night
Pixies
Blondie
Michael Stipe
The Flaming Lips
Mumford & Sons
Esperanza Spalding
J Mascis (Dinosaur Jr)
The Roots featuring Tariq & Bilal
Kyp Malone (TV On The Radio)
Perry Farrell
Ron Pope
Cat Power
Jakob Dylan
The Polyphonic Spree
Jherek Bischoff, Amanda Palmer & Anna Calvi w/ Kronos Quartet
Donny McCaslin Group w/ Mark Guiliana, Jason Lindner, and Tony Visconti
Ann Wilson of Heart
Rickie Lee Jones
Holy Holy
Choir! Choir! Choir! & New York City Youth Chorus
The shows can be streamed at musicofdavidbowie.com for $5 with the proceeds going to a list of beneficiaries including the Melodic Caring Project, Grammy in the Schools and The Center for Arts Education.
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