European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 10, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                A proc ent e r to  nov a i. S45 Fate Singer Michael Bolton wants hits on the Halffield As Well As on the music charts. It s not music but it swings for Bolton by Roger cajun the Hartford courant h is latest album the one thing is Michael Bolton s fourth consecutive album in the top 3, including the past two both of which made it to no.1, Selling a combined 18 million worldwide. Yet the new Home video from the two time grammy Winner has nothing to do with music. It s about softball. And alter scheduling scores of Charity softball games in conjunction with past concert Tours Bolton is spending his Winter months dreaming of another summer Campaign a on the Ball Fields. Quot i want to play 100 games Quot Bolton says from London. Of there la be some concerts fit in there too. A but to hear him Tell it it s almost As if the shows Are something he and his band do to occupy their evenings to pay for their trips. 1 Quot i m in deep i admit it Quot says Bolton who at 40, is reliving his youth by playing softball. Quot i played Little league for five years in new Haven Conn when i was growing up. But when things go Well for you in music you Don t have time for that anymore. You pass baseball Fields All throughout Connecticut and you wonder Why those Guys now have time on weekends to play Ball and you Don t  when he found out that half his band and some of his Road Crew also loved softball Quot we put together these challenges and they became very serious softball games against radio stations and league  with proceeds going to charities it was a situation where everyone won a but especially the Bolton bombers for whom the softball equipment on the plane became As important As guitars and microphones. They even enlisted softball legend Dave Carroll As batting coach whose straightforward advice makes up most of the new instructional video Michael Bolton s winning softball hit harder play smarter just released on Sony music video. And no it s not out of the realm of possibility that Bolton s concerts which rank among the top moneymakers annually Are to be scheduled around the games Quot it sounds sick but believe me we be done it Quot says Bolton with a chuckle. Quot there s a Field we found we fell in love with in Indianapolis and we got rained out in the Middle of the game. We wanted to go Back there so badly we booked a show there last year in a very Short tour with just a few dates we threw in a show in Indianapolis so we could Challenge the team again and finish the game. Is that sick that s sick. Quot this year we scheduled a doubleheader a and we did t have a concert scheduled  with an Overall record in three years of 76-5 Bolton is obsessed enough to keep track the Bolton bombers even have their own tour sponsor Louisville slugger the Bat maker. Next summer he Hopes to up the Ante not by meeting up with the usual ragtag disc hockey teams across the nation but by issuing challenges to each state s top slow pitch team Bolton loves to Tell of the game in Chicago s Comiskey Park opposite a team organized by Michael Jordan that had magic Johnson evander Holyfield and All manner of Chicago Beans. Quot he had a Bunch of big jocks in the game and they figured that we were going to be a Bunch of Long haired musicians climbing off the bus Quot Bolton recalls with Pride. Quot and we beat them 7-1, in front of 15,000 people. So now they re taking us much More  Yearwood i a concert listings see pages 22 amp 23 the country Singer with the top 10 album the song remembers when plays Kaiserslautern Germany in february. Short subject sub pop record Label leaves grunge behind by Luis Cabrera the associated press they re still coming. Bright eyed youngsters with freshly ripped denims flannel shirts and dreams of moving Here and being the next big Quot grunge Rock Quot band on Seattle s sub pop Label. Sub pop co founder Bruce Pavitt has news for them. Quot All these people Are convinced they la move to Seattle and get a record contract but we re not interested in that. They should just take Pride in what they be got. People staying in their Hometown following their own vision that�?T9 what we re interested in Quot he says. The 5-year-old Label which gave the world its first Gritty taste of such grunge Gargantuan As nirvana and sound Garden is casting a wider net these Days. Recent sub pop signers include bands from new England Canada Texas England and Japan. The Label recently signed three bands from Portlance ore., which Pavitt said has had a Strong history of supporting local acts and is Quot less tainted with  not that sub pop ducks commercial Success. The Label which Pavitt jokes has flirted with bankruptcy about 50 times vaulted into Prosperity on the strength of nirvana a Multi Platinum release. Never mind. Sub pop retained a portion of that lpns rights when the group signed with the larger David Geffen co. Sub pop always has considered itself Quot a kind of Punk Rock motown where you can take this raw Street music not really water it Down and. Get it to the kids Quot Pavitt said. Raw is the Best Way to describe some of the labels music. But some of it Borders on Brilliant. On one end of the. Accessibility spectrum is the near anti music of Earth a two piece group whose latest release Earth 2, features one 75-minute song that sounds like a single sustained guitar tone. On the other end is the Rev. Horton heat Jim heat who fronts a Dallas based three piece that Cranks out scorching rockabilly. The Rev can play his guitar. Check out the full custom sounds of Rev. Horton heat somewhere in the Middle in terms of accessibility fall groups such As Seba Doh a three piece out of Northampton mass. The Label s not afraid of signing bands with female leads As shown by Strong releases from Punky Seattle veterans the fastbacks velocity Girt and supers azz from Japan. Pavitt says the company is still growing and still is looking for groups following their own vision wherever they May play. Quot the increasing decentralization of tha Industry is really important Quot he said. Quot when. Things become too concentrated they become Boring. Every scene has its heroes and should have the Opportunity to develop  Kim thai of sound Garden Friday december 10,1993 the stars and stripes