Morrissey will play his only North American date of the year Nov. 21 at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. Tickets go on sale Saturday (Oct. 28). The week prior to the Chicago date, Morrissey will stage three shows in Mexico: Nov. 14 Guadelajara, Nov. 16 in Mexico City and Nov. 18 in Monterrey.
The artist’s touring schedule for the rest of the year includes two late November shows in Greece, five in Germany and seven in his native United Kingdom.
And while Morrissey had previously said he’d be joining compose Ennio Morricone for a show early next year at New York’s Carnegie Hall, Morricone is actually booked to perform Feb. 3 at the city’s Radio City Music Hall. As of yet, there has been no announcement about Morrissey’s potential involvement in that gig.
— Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.
Steve Earle, R.E.M.’s Mike Mills, Allison Moorer, Tom Morello, the Coup’s Boots Riley and Sleater-Kinney’s Corin Tucker will gather for a Nov. 6 benefit concert at New Orleans’ Tipitina’s club. Proceeds will benefit Hurricane Katrina recovery organizations such as Arabi Wrecking Krewe and the New Orleans’ Musicians Clinic.
The concert is part of a Nov. 3-6 symposium in the Crescent City sponsored by the Future of Music Coalition. Several of the artists will also play a private show with local musicians such as Stanton Moore and James Andrews at New Orleans’ Ernie K-Doe Mother-In-Law Lounge.
— Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.
South African singer Lebo Mathosa, who this year earned a MOBO nomination in the United Kingdom for best African act, died in a car accident near Johannesburg in the early hours yesterday (Oct. 23). She was 29.
Mathosa rose to fame as part of Boom Shaka, an award-winning group that is recognized as helping usher in that particular South-African youth-music genre, kwaito. She launched her solo career in 2000 with the hit album “Dream,” which won a trio of South African Music Awards the following year. Subsequent releases “Drama Queen” (2004) and “Lioness” (2005) also enjoyed major success in South Africa.
— Diane Coetzer, Johannesburg