Welcome to the twentieth "unofficial" Cheap Trick newsletter.

The touring schedule picks up during the summer following the band's sojourn in the studio. Current live dates announced are as follows: 29 Apr 2000 - Richardson TX; 30 June - Saratoga CA; 1 July - Hollister CA; 2 - San Diego; 3 - Las Vegas; 6 - Milwaukee; 7 - Dayton OH; 8 - Hagerstown MD; 22 - Hillsboro MO; 26 - Huntingdon WV; 28 - West Bend WI; 29 - Maumee OH; 5 Aug - Sturgis SD; 11 - Santa Fe NM; 15 - San Mateo CA; 18 - Sacramento CA; 26 - N Vancouver Island BC, Canada. As always, these dates are subject to confirmation and change, please check before travelling.

The band have been working on material for their new studio album during the first three months of the new year, amongst other projects. Recording seems set to continue through into June before they hit the road again. At this stage, an autumn release seems most likely, with September rumoured to be the possible target month.

The band recently played a short 7 date tour in the US South, through Mississippi, Alabama, to New Orleans, Georgia then Florida. In line with Bun E's thoughts during my interview with him last December, the band used the dates to include a variety of songs not regularly played live. These songs, some played at different shows, included ELO Kiddies, I'm Losing You, Fan Club, Walk Away, Oh Candy, Just Got Back and Heaven Tonight. The show in New Orleans had Sabre Dance (the bonus track from the Japanese CD of the Woke Up With a Monster album) listed on the setlist which would have been amazing to hear live, but it ended up being replaced by "Never Had a Lot to Lose". Perhaps the band will get the opportunity to practice it more and include it as a bonus during one of the summer shows?

The US DVD/video release of Music for Hangovers continues to be delayed due to a technical problem with the DVD format. Whilst in New Orleans, Bun E told me that the band are actively working on the material from the 25th Anniversary show, hopefully for a video/DVD release at some point in the future. It should be noted that at present I have no information on plans for Europe, either for live dates or for any of the CD or DVD/video releases, though the band make no secret of their fondness for Europe and their fans here. We can only hope that the circumstances of the next studio CD make it possible for both a release of it here (unlike the Music for Hangovers CD) as well as some live dates.

The band continue to use the latest internet technology to make new material available. During March, every track from the Music for Hangovers CD, plus the live recording of "On the Radio" from the April/May 98 Metro shows was made available to purchase for download from the internet, or mix'n'matched onto a custom CD. A further 20 tracks will be available during April, which I understand will be from both the Metro shows and from the 25th Anniversary Show held in Rockford last August. The tracks are exclusively available from http://www.musicmaker.com but can only be downloaded or ordered online. If you don't have internet access, find a friend who has or hunt down your nearest cyber-cafe! A 15 track custom CD ordered by a fan outside the USA/Canada is likely to cost in the region of US$23-25 plus postage of US$6 though tracks for download are considerably cheaper. See the MusicMaker website for all relevant information.

A reminder that the closing date for submissions for the third fan tribute CD is 31 May. Submissions or more details from Mark Brainard, c/o Studio 411, 22647 Ventura Blvd. # 574, Woodland Hills, CA 91364; website http://www.studio411.net

As always, the official fan service, Trick International is at 1957 - 86th Street, PMB #149, Brooklyn, NY 11214 USA. Write to this address for membership details. Additionally TI can be contacted via e-mail at TRICKINTL@aol.com. Merchandise is available from Trickstuff, with orders and enquiries should be sent to Trickstuff, PO Box 1911, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA. The official Cheap Trick web site on the Internet can be found at http://www.cheaptrick.com .

All past issues of this newsletter, interviews, reviews and some of my photo's are archived on the internet at a new location - http://website.lineone.net/~kgisborne5 - the site now includes my informal review (and photo's) of some of the recent shows in The South that I went to. If you'd like a paper copy of the review, please let me know. I decided not to include the review with issue as readers may like a break from my trip/show reviews! If I'm wrong, please tell me! {A.M.CT Review - neworleans.htm}

I hope you've found this issue informative. If you receive this by paper mail, I'd be grateful you could send a sae (or more) or IRC for the next issue. If you (or any other Trick fans you know) would prefer to receive this newsletter by e-mail in future, please write to or e-mail me. Please note that the next issue may be a little more than the usual 2 months away, not because I'm being lazy (!) but with Cheap Trick recording there's little news. I'll produce the next newsletter as soon as I have enough relevant news to share.