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Monday, January 14, 2008

Uncle Earl tours middle America; Plant, Krauss show to air in February

The all-girl string band whose album received the production treatment from John Paul Jones is back on tour in the United States. With a live appearance tomorrow at the World Cafe Live in Philadelphia, Uncle Earl launches a brief tour of the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest in support of the album Waterloo, Tennessee.

Following a slightly more comprehensive U.S. tour that ended last October, the group crossed the Atlantic Ocean in November to play its first-ever concerts in England. The four members -- Abigail Washburn, Kristin Andreassen, KC Groves and Rayna Gellert -- also attended Led Zeppelin's Dec. 10 concert in London as guests of Jones.

Uncle Earl's tour continues this week with Tuesday night in Annapolis, Md.; in Harrisburg, Pa., on Thursday; and in Goshen, Ind., on Saturday. Next week starts off with a three-night concert stand in Green Bay, Wis., on Jan. 20-22, before Uncle Earl heads to Chicago for a Jan. 23 show; Danville, Ind., for a Jan. 24 performance; and finally Hamilton, Ohio, for the closing gig on Jan. 25.

In other Led Zeppelin-related news, last year's only live appearance by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss is now scheduled to be televised on Feb. 11. A press release issued today is the first to identify the premiere broadcast of the singing duo's concert, which took place Oct. 18 in front of a studio audience outside Nashville, Tenn.

Airing on the cable network Country Music Television, episodes of the program "CMT Crossroads" match popular country artists with performers representing another musical genre. Past episodes paired Ray Charles with Travis Tritt, John Fogerty with Keith Urban, Kid Rock with Hank Williams Jr., and Elvis Costello with Lucinda Williams.

It is expected that Plant and Krauss will soon announce the dates of a U.S. tour in support of last October's release, Raising Sand. December saw them announcing an 11-show tour of the United Kingdom and mainland Europe, scheduled to take place over the course of 15 days this May.

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss share the same label, Rounder Records, as Uncle Earl.

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About the author

Steve "The Lemon" Sauer is a writer and musician based in Boca Raton, Fla., who has dedicated a portion of his life researching the history of rock group Led Zeppelin and monitoring the ongoing careers of the band's surviving members. Although he was barely a year old when Led Zeppelin broke up and it took him until his teen years to appreciate the music, it didn't take long to make up for it.

Steve is currently a contributing writer and consultant for Get the Led Out, a weekly syndicated radio program hosted by Carol Miller and syndicated in 100 U.S. markets including New York and Los Angeles. He also provides content for a Web site associated with the radio show, www.LedZepOnline.com.

In 2007, Steve launched Lemon Squeezings: Led Zeppelin News to cover the lead-up to the band's reunion concert at the end of that year. Since then, he has closely examined every rumor of a followup tour since then, often dispelling or clarifying misinformation perpetrated by the mainstream media. Using his journalistic training, Steve has also uncovered some facts and accounts previously unreported elsewhere.

At age 18, he began publishing On This Day In Led Zeppelin History, a daily newsletter detailing the interactions of members Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, John Bonham, John Paul Jones, and their manager, Peter Grant. The newsletter is located at www.OnThisDayInLedZeppelinHistory.com.

He enjoys uncovering stories and has employed various methods to communicate those stories to Led Zeppelin's vast fan base, utilizing terrestrial radio and the many facets of the Internet: from Usenet newsgroups to plain e-mail and now Facebook and Twitter. Steve also connects with live audiences when performing as a backup vocalist and keyboard player with various bands, including past onstage appearances with three cover or tribute acts performing the music of Led Zeppelin.

Do you have a news tip to share with Steve? Do you have something you would like him to write about? Would you like to book him for a speaking engagement? He can be contacted by e-mail at Steve at LedZeppelinNews.com.

Other Led Zeppelin information from Lemon Squeezings

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