In a statement on their official website the band said: "All items will either be signed by the four of us, or accompanied by a certificate of authenticity, again signed by all of us." A catalogue detailing everything for sale will be published on their website before the sale begins.
Festive Figures - PRS for Music, the organisation that collects royalties on behalf of composers and songwriters reports that over 47 countries worldwide have listened to Slade's Merry Xmas Everybody, this year. The figures show that up to three billion people, forty-two percent of the World's population, could have heard the all time Christmas-classic.
Ellis Rich, chairman of PRS, commented, "Songwriters aiming to produce a top Christmas track need to be able to relate and curb the feeling of the nation at that time. Those songs which have stood the test of time, such as Slade's Merry Xmas Everybody, were built on a foundation to sum up the festive and cheerful season. Whilst the song lives on to tantalise offices, workplaces and playgrounds everywhere, it will go on to live alongside the great effigies of the Christmas spirit."
EU Update - The European Commission is calling for a suggested maximum volume to be set on MP3 players, to protect users' hearing. The commission wants all MP3 players sold in the EU, including iPods, to share the same volume limits. This follows a report last year warning that up to 10m people in the EU face permanent hearing loss from listening to loud music for prolonged periods.
EU experts want the default maximum setting to be 85 decibels, according to BBC One's Politics Show. Users would be able to override this setting to reach a top limit of 100 decibels. In January, a two-month consultation of all EU standardisation bodies will begin on these proposals, with a final agreement expected in the spring.
(Jim Evans)
