The Securities and Exchange Commission has asked a federal court to order Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford to answer their questions, according to a Bloomberg news report.  In a federal court filing, the agency claimed that Langford had not cooperated in a Dec. 11 interview in Miami. The mayor had been subpoenaed there to testify, but during the deposition Langford cited an “unspecified” constitutional right not to answer the SEC’s questions.

Langford is one of five members of the last county commission who have been subpoenaed to testify to the SEC about a series of bond deals and interest rate swaps. At the time of the bond swaps, Langford claimed that the deals would save the county untold millions. In fact, the interest rate swaps have cost the county as much as $250 million in higher interest payments and fees to investment banks and consultants.

The SEC also wants the court to compel Montgomery investment banker and long-time Langford ally Bill Blount to answer its questions. Blount had been subpoenaed also by the SEC investigators.

Find the complete Bloomberg story here.

Popularity: 6% [?]

While there have been a number of unhealthy trends in the music business over the past few years, the volume of artists participating in acoustic projects has been a positive trend. Radio programs including Morning Becomes Eclectic and NPR’s Live At The World Cafe have proved popular platforms in this movement. James Taylor’s One Man Band (Hear Music) - a project similar to Jackson Browne’s 2005 release Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1 - finds the legendary singer/songwriter revisiting some well-worn songs in an intimate setting.

Read the full story

Popularity: 6% [?]

Vocalist/guitarist John P. Strohm has managed to do the seemingly impossible in the music business. For the past several years, Strohm has balanced a career in entertainment law while continuing to actively record and perform. An Indiana native, Strohm first made his mark in Boston’s music scene as a member of The Lemonheads and Blake Babies. Eventually relocating to Birmingham, Strohm remained in the city after completing law school. Since then, he has become a fixture in the local music scene.

Read the full story

Popularity: 5% [?]

For nearly 20 years, Michelle Malone has performed a gritty, blues-based style of roots music. Logging more than 200 days on the road per year, the Atlanta-based singer/songwriter has shared the stage with a diverse list of artists including ZZ Top, Joan Jett, The Indigo Girls and Chris Whitley. On Wednesday, December 5, Malone will open for The Wood Brothers at Workplay. Showtime is 8 p.m.

Read the full story

Popularity: 5% [?]

Listen, people. If thousands of you can vote for Ruben and Taylor on American Idol, then you can take four effing minutes to sit through this silly music video about Cooper Green Hospital and cast a vote that means something.

Here’s the deal: Siemens is hosting a contest for one hospital in the United States to win a MAGNETOM Essenza 1.5T. That’s a fancy but affordable MRI scanner, a machine that uses magnetic resonance imaging to look (for lack of a better word) inside the human body and determine if tissue is healthy or pathological. The public hospital doesn’t have one but sure could use one and will get one if you vote here.

If you don’t care for the cause, let your sense of competition guide you: There are 100 hospitals in the running, and at this point, we’re in about 30th place.

You can vote once a day until Dec. 31. Go to www.winanmri.com for complete details.

Popularity: 11% [?]