The new album from Swedish rock supergroup, EUROPE is set for UK release on Monday 30th April 2012 and entitled Bag of Bones. The first single, Not Supposed To Sing The Blues, will be released digitally on Friday March 9th.
Bag of Bones is produced by Kevin Shirley. No stranger to the crème de la crème of iconic rock, Shirley has produced albums for the likes of Iron Maiden, Joe Bonamassa, Black Country Communion, Black Stone Cherry and Journey.
Contributing slide guitar to the title track Bag of Bones is blues rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa. "We're honoured that Joe Bonamassa wanted to play some slide guitar on our record. We're all big fans of his music", says Europe front man Joey Tempest. Released on CD and vinyl formats, the album features a more straightforward rock approach.
'Why drive a VW beetle when you can drive a Rolls Royce?' asks Europe's guitarist John Norum. 'Bag of Bones is a classic rock album with lots of class. Even my mom likes it!'
'Bag of Bones' Album Track Listing: 1. Riches To Rags 2. Not Supposed To Sing The Blues 3. Firebox 4. Bag Of Bones 5. Requiem 6. My Woman My Friend 7. Demon Head 8. Drink And A Smile 9. Doghouse 10. Mercy You Mercy Me 11. Bring It All Home
A number of members of the original Blues Brothers Band will be reuniting on Monday night at the Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet, IL. The show will salute the 30th anniversary of John Belushi's death.
Among those participating will be Paul Shaffer, Tom "Bones" Malone, "Blue" Lou Marini and Matt "Guitar" Murphy and, although the theater won't confirm anything, it's a pretty good guess that Elwood Blues (aka Dan Aykroyd) will be in attendance. The show is being produced by Aykroyd and the late-John Belushi's widow, Judith Belushi-Pisano.
Those not in the Chicago area will also be able to participate as the show will be streamed on Facebook.
While the Blues Brothers started on Saturday Night Live and were considered by many as a "comedy act," the fact is that both Aykroyd and Belushi had a deep love for the blues and R&B and showed it in their faithful recreations of numerous classics and the crack band, many of which played on the original recordings.
Lady Gaga has reportedly made a scrapbook for her beau while she's away on the road.
The songstress has been dating her boyfriend The Vampire Diaries actor Taylor Kinney since last summer. Gaga is preparing to embark on her The Born This Way Ball concert tour, and is reportedly not looking forward to hitting the road without him by her side.
'They will be spending a lot of time apart soon ' he's got a couple of acting projects lined up and she's about to embark on a new tour,' a source told British newspaper the Sun. 'She's besotted with him and knows it will be hard.'
To ease the pain of separation, Lady Gaga has allegedly compiled a scrapbook for her beau. The romantic collection of photographs and personal memorabilia includes the room key from their first trip away together, pictures of themselves cooking, cuddling and sleeping and the restaurant menu from their first date.
Gaga and Taylor met on the set of the promo for her track Yoü and I. She also surprised with a special version of the video which included added scenes of them together for the first time.
The couple are thought to be living together, with recent claims that they are looking for two properties to buy ' one in Pennsylvania and one in New York.
It's since been suggested Gaga has already splashed out on a penthouse apartment in London.
Gaga's The Born This Way Ball tour will kick off on April 27 in Seoul, South Korea.
Internet hackers have stolen the entire catalogue of unreleased Michael Jackson songs.
Sony has revealed that the server containing the unreleased music tracks has had a cyber attack and the Jackson goldmine, worth around $250 million, has been grabbed.
Sony paid £250 million for the catalogue featuring about 10 albums worth of unreleased material.
The hack happened almost a year ago after a previous attack on the Sony database where the company was robbed of personal details for 77 million Playstation users.
Two men were arrested in the UK last week over the hacking. They were charged under the computer Misuse Act. They denied all charges.
Justin Timberlake should avoid listening to 'all the BS' surrounding his relationship, says his former bandmate.
Justin and Jessica Biel have been together on-and-off for around five years. The hunk is understood to have popped the question over the Christmas break while the pair were holidaying together.
Justin's former *NSYNC bandmate Joey Fatone says the star should ignore comments surrounding his high-profile relationship.
"Don't listen to all the BS," he advised Justin in an interview with Parade magazine.
"Especially in his situation, he and his fiancée ... they're both in the limelight as well. It's tough for those celebrity couples. It's really hard."
Joey is married to his high school sweetheart Kelly Baldwin Fatone, and the pair have two daughters.
The star advised Justin and Jessica to keep their union healthy by always communicating their feelings to each other ' especially when children come into the equation.
'The key is to keep it happy, light, and fun. There can be a lot of drama, like when you have kids,' he said. 'And both of them have jobs where they are taken to different places. It's the communication that really needs to drive that relationship.'
It was recently reported that Justin and Jessica will marry on a private estate later this year.
They have so far kept details of their relationship private, with Jessica only showing off her engagement ring for the first time at the end of last month.
Recent reports claim they have actually already started planning the nuptials.
Enrique Iglesias chooses love as a recurring theme to sing about because everyone 'knows those feelings'.
The Spanish singer-songwriter is famed for his romantic ballads and sexy love songs. Enrique chooses to sing about love because it's something everyone can relate to.
'It's the thing we all have in common. Ninety per cent of music tackles that subject because everyone - no matter how old, what religion, or what nationality - knows those feelings,' he told Parade magazine.
Enrique spent much of last year on an international tour. The star has revealed what precious keepsakes he took with him to remind him of home.
'I have a picture of my two dogs, Lucas and Grammy,' he admitted. 'Grammy passed away in 2010. That dog was like a human - he would get sad when I packed my bags. It was like losing one of my best friends.'
Enrique is admired by women across the globe for his brooding good looks and sultry singing voice. The 36-year-old hunk has revealed how fans have tried to get his attention at concerts.
'Sometimes you'll see a shirt fly off. That will get not only my attention, but the whole band's,' he jokingly added.
Despite his flirty on-stage nature, the star is in a relationship with Anna Kournikova. He introduced his long-time love as his wife at a concert in Russia last year.
Enrique has explained his motives behind doing so.
'It was just meant to be sweet in the moment. I honestly didn't mean to confuse people. I thought it'd be easier for the audience to understand than if I said 'my girl,'' he explained.
'I've never really thought marriage would make a difference. Maybe it's because I come from divorced parents, but I don't think you love someone more because of a piece of paper. And nowadays, it's not taboo to have kids and not be married.
'What makes a difference is that you're a good parent, period.'
Justin Bieber hopes to change peoples' negative perceptions of him with his newest musical offering.
The Canadian singer has been working hard on his third studio album titled Believe, after garnering much international success with his debut record My World.
Despite gaining a legion of fans with his previous work, Justin is hoping to change minds about his musical talents with his upcoming record.
"You can't really expect anything from my album. It's really, really different," he explained in an interview with MTV News. "And it's new; it's not the same thing everyone's used to hearing right now on the radio. It's really exciting for me, 'cause I'm able to break out of my shell and show my fans what I'm all about and show other people who might not like my music that maybe they can like my music.
"I'm not trying to lose any of my young fans. I'm not trying to lose any of my fans, I'm just trying to gain fans, and I think that's the best way to do it. Rather than try to grow up and lose your fans, you can get better and evolve and gain respect from more people."
Justin is proud of his upcoming album. The star hopes his fans appreciate the hard work and creativity that has gone into producing it.
'This new album is crazy. I've spent the most time on it creatively, just writing myself and being involved in the whole process. It's something that comes from my heart," he said.
"I hope all my fans and all my Beliebers like it. With my new album, Believe, there's so many different songs and so many different styles. It's really versatile and fun. My first single is going to be amazing - everyone's going to love it."
Saint Etienne, Los Campesinos!, Human Don't Be Angry, Cashier No 9, Janice Graham Band, Club Smith, Moody Gowns, The Staves, Paul Thomas Saunders, Washington Irving, The Glendale Family, Ellen and the Escapades, The Lost Brothers, Rae Morris, Pale Seas and Pip Mountjoy
Join already announced bill of Villagers, Cherry Ghost, Beth Jeans Houghton & The Hooves of Destiny, Dutch Uncles, Treetop Flyers, Tupelo, Rachel Sermanni and We Were Evergreen
You can hear Arcade Fire's new track 'Abraham's Daughter', which is taken from the soundtrack to the new fantasy film The Hunger Games, by scrolling down to the bottom of the page and clicking.
The track will be play over the dystopian thriller's closing credits and was recorded by the Canadian band last month. The film itself will also feature a track titled 'Horn Of Plenty' which has been written and recorded by Arcade Fire's Win Butler and Regine Chassagne.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly about the track, Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler said: "Our whole approach was to get into the world and try to create something that serves the story and the film. There's something in the story of Abraham and Isaac that I think resonates with the themes in the film, like sacrificing children. So we made a weird, alternate-universe version of that."
He added that the band wanted to create a song that could be played in the film's fictional fascist state of Capitol and an anthem that could be played at a huge sporting event.
He said of this: "We were interested in making music that would be more integral in the movie, just as a mental exercise. And there's an anthem that runs throughout the books, the national anthem of the fascist Capitol. So as a thought experiment, we tried to write what that might sound like. It's like the Capitol's idea of itself, basically."
Butler continued: "It's not a pop song or anything. More of an anthem that could be playing at a big sporting event like the Games. So we did a structure for that, and then James Newton Howard made a movie-score version of it that happens in several places in the film."
Taylor Swift, The Decemberists, Kid Cudi and The Low Anthem wil also feature on 'The Hunger Games: Songs From District 12 and Beyond'.
The Hunger Games is set to be released on March 23 in the UK and stars Winter's Bone actress Jennifer Lawrence, Woody Harrelson and Elizabeth Banks. You can watch the film's trailer by scrolling down to the bottom of the page and clicking.
Sarah Taylor scored an unbeaten hundred as England beat New Zealand by six wickets to seal a 3-0 series whitewash.
The wicketkeeper struck 109 off 113 balls in a stand of 201 with Lydia Greenway (84) as England passed their target of 221 with 44 balls to spare.
Earlier, Laura Marsh and Danni Wyatt took three wickets apiece as England bowled their hosts out for 220.
Arran Brindle claimed two wickets as the Kiwis collapsed from 202-5, with Amy Satterthwaite top-scoring with 58.
The tourists lost openers Tamsin Beaumont and captain Charlotte Edwards within the first six overs, both adjudged lbw to Rachel Candy But Taylor and Lydia Greenway rebuilt the innings with the fifth-highest stand by an England pair in one-day internationals.
England also won the Twenty20 series 4-0, with the only match they did not win - a T20 in Invercargill - having been called off without a ball being bowled.
"It was a fantastic team performance today," said Taylor. "The bowlers bowled well to restrict New Zealand and I was delighted to contribute and get a big score.
"Lydia batted really well. It was great to share a partnership with her on such a fantastic wicket.
"Once we got in we just looked accumulate and build the runs. We knew that if we just batted the runs would come.
"The whole team have performed throughout the tour and to go unbeaten in both series is a fantastic achievement."
Former West Indies batsman Runako Morton has died in a car accident.
Reports in the Caribbean said the 33-year-old crashed into a utility pole while driving alone in central Trinidad following a club match.
Morton played in 15 Tests and 56 one-day internationals, with his last West Indies appearance coming against Australia in a Twenty20 match in 2010.
Former West Indies captain Chris Gayle tweeted: "We lost a true warrior WI cricketer. May his soul rest in peace!"
The West Indies Cricket Board said: "Our deepest condolences to Runako Morton's family. Such devastating and tragic news."
England batsman Kevin Pietersen also paid tribute on Twitter: "My thoughts go out to Runako Morton's family this morning... Such sad news! What a lovely guy & fierce competitor! RIP bossman!"
Morton averaged 22.03 in Test matches with a top score of 70, but he had more success on the limited overs stage. He averaged 33.75, with the highlight an unbeaten 110 against New Zealand in 2006.
In an international career that lasted eight years, he also endured a chequered disciplinary record with the West Indies.
In 2002, he was banned from playing in any game that came under WICB jurisdiction for 12 months after he was found guilty of misbehaviour during an 'A' team tour to Ireland and lying about the death of a grandmother to gain an early release from the ICC Trophy squad in Sri Lanka.
Morton was one of the few West Indies cricketers to emerge from the small island of Nevis. His first-class career began with the Leeward Islands and he was latterly registered with Trinidad and Tobago.
Roman Abramovich gathered his trusted advisors around him at Chelsea's Cobham training complex on Sunday to put the final touches to another brief managerial reign by sacking Andre Villas-Boas.
Director Eugene Tenenbaum and chief executive Ron Gourlay were in attendance while chairman Bruce Buck will have been kept in the loop as the end came for the 34-year-old Portuguese who has only been at Chelsea for nine months.
Abramovich answers to no-one at Stamford Bridge - certainly not the growing number of managers he has hired and fired during his time as Chelsea owner. If he has been taking advice, however, the growing body of evidence suggests some of it has been bad.
And yet it might be the greatest service the secretive, silent Abramovich's inner circle could do Chelsea if they plucked up the courage to point out the mistakes the Russian has made, the list of errors that mean he is now further away from his dream of winning the Champions League than at any point in his time in the club.
Abramovich made a mistake in allowing "The Special One" Jose Mourinho to slip from his and Chelsea's grasp in 2007. The pair's relationship had fractured but common sense decreed that his departure was never going to be good news for anyone at Stamford Bridge.
He made a mistake in sacking the experienced and worldly Carlo Ancelotti for having the audacity to fail to win a trophy in the 12 months following his historic feat of winning the Premier League and FA Cup double.
Andre Villas-Boas signed a three-year deal at Chelsea after leaving Porto on 20 June, 2011. Photo: Getty
And now, having personally overseen the appointment of Villas-Boas, Abramovich has effectively admitted to another error by sacking him in such short order, with Saturday's loss at West Bromwich Albion the final straw in a sequence of only three wins in 12 league games.
Abramovich's wealth and lavish investment in Chelsea's squad has always acted as an effective shield against criticism, but discontent with performances this season suggests a tipping point is being reached.
What Abramovich did get right was, after sacking Villas-Boas, turning his fire on Chelsea's players who have done little to assist their young former manager in his time of struggle - indeed at times seeming almost willing to add to his troubles.
Chelsea has leaked like a sieve with stories designed to paint an unflattering picture of Villas-Boas' man-management and technical skills, undermining his attempts to move an ageing and under-achieving squad on to the next stage of its development.
Time will tell if Abramovich's harsh words have any effect on the powerful characters inside the Chelsea dressing room as the real fear emerges that they may not even qualify for next season's Champions League.
Abramovich came within a John Terry slip of clasping his Holy Grail, the Champions League, against Manchester United in Moscow in 2008. He must know the opportunity may disappear forever if he gets his next big decision wrong, or is allowed to get it wrong by those around him at Stamford Bridge.
No-one other than those chosen few lieutenants can second guess Abramovich with any degree of accuracy, but if he does not make the right choices in the months ahead Manchester City will stretch further away, Manchester United will be the ever-present domestic benchmark and Barcelona and Real Madrid may not even believe Chelsea are worthy of consideration as serious European rivals.
Mourinho and Ancelotti gave Abramovich domestic supremacy while Avram Grant took the former's team and guided them to the Champions League final, although his record since suggests this was one occasion when player power was a force for good.
Abramovich handpicked Villas-Boas from Porto after he won the title and the Europa League, but it was always going to be a tough task for a rookie manager to make long-term plans at a club with such short-term vision.
If Chelsea's squad was to be overhauled and the elder statesmen edged towards the exit, this was surely a task better suited to someone with Ancelotti's background allied to his diplomatic and political know-how rather than a man in his managerial infancy, albeit one who had made impressive beginnings?
He leaves having got virtually nowhere with his task of reducing the average age of Chelsea's squad and providing a more attractive style of play. Abramovich is back to the drawing board and even he must know his next selection must be made with utmost care then left to lay the foundations for Chelsea's future, irrespective of complaints from within the dressing room and without breaking into a cold sweat at the first sign of a bad run.
So where does Abramovich go from here? The usual suspects are being assembled and lined up.
The name of Mourinho will surely be at the forefront of Abramovich's thoughts. The rub here will be that, after their split, the current Real Madrid coach would almost certainly demand total control over all football affairs, something the Russian may be reluctant to accept.
If he can force himself to take such a step, Abramovich will be swamped with goodwill and gratitude from Chelsea's supporters who have not forgotten Mourinho's brilliance and also by many of the players he has left behind.
The dilemma for Mourinho is that time has moved on at Chelsea in his absence and many of those he trusted and who trusted him, such as John Terry, Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole, Petr Cech and Didier Drogba, are closer to the end of their careers than the beginning.
Another name exercising Abramovich's mind will be Barcelona's Pep Guardiola, currently considering whether to agree an extension to his contract at the Nou Camp.
Is it a serious possibility, however, that he would leave the dreamland he has created in Catalonia with players such as Messi, Xavi and Iniesta - and the club that has stamped its philosophy through his veins - for the dysfunctional beast that is Chelsea?
It appears former Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has been cast aside as a short-term option, although a run of poor results for caretaker Roberto Di Matteo may prompt yet further action.
So will Abramovich be tempted to make the 'revolutionary' move of exploring domestic managerial territory?
Former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin made his views clear when he said: "I would grab Everton's David Moyes in two minutes, get him in there and tell him to start the dynasty." Is Moyes really global or glamorous enough for Abramovich, who wants Chelsea to play a part on the world stage?
Even his choice of Di Matteo as a temporary solution until the end of the season tilts against logic. The Italian was part of the Villas-Boas regime Abramovich deemed unworthy and yet he has effectively been charged with either moving Chelsea into the latter stages of the Champions League or, at the very least, qualifying for next season's competition.
The only other theory is that Abramovich has a narrow list of targets and wants Di Matteo to simply hold the fort until the summer. If this is the case it almost smacks of Chelsea's owner admitting defeat, with the accompanying danger that the likes of Mourinho or Guardiola are unlikely to be tempted to a club nestling in the Europa League.
So another day brings another change in Chelsea manager - but it may also take a change in Stamford Bridge's enigmatic owner if the next move is to be a success.
Great Britain's rhythmic gymnasts have won an appeal against their governing body and are set to compete at this summer's London Olympics.
An independent arbitrator published the verdict on Monday after a hearing took place in London last Wednesday.
In January, the team missed a target score set by British Gymnastics to prove they could compete at the Games.
But the arbitrator was "not persuaded" British Gymnastics' criteria had been made clear to the team of teenagers.
British Gymnastics said in a statement it "will now nominate a rhythmic group to the British Olympic Association (BOA)". The BOA has in turn confirmed a British rhythmic gymnastics team will go to the Games.
There had always been a place available to Britain in the rhythmic gymnastics team event at London 2012, but British Gymnastics took the decision to impose a second, artificial standard for its team to hit.
Other sports have done the same in the run-up to the Olympics, in common with the BOA's policy of ensuring athletes are only sent to the Games if they prove themselves competitive at an international level.
The gymnasts' fate rested on their performance at January's Olympic test event inside London's O2 Arena.
However, while reporters at the event had been briefed that GB's performance during day two's qualification stage was their do-or-die moment, the team - who proceeded to miss their target of 45.223 by just 0.273 marks - insisted afterwards they could still achieve the standard on day three.
British Gymnastics and the BOA repeatedly confirmed that, contrary to the gymnasts' belief, day three's results would not count towards their 2012 qualification. But the team's confusion had been readily apparent and independent arbitrator Graeme Mews agreed in his verdict.
"I am not persuaded," he wrote, "that [the team knew] selection would be based only on the qualification stage."
British Gymnastics argued that this had been the case as focusing the team on one day would replicate the pressure of competing at the Games, particularly as other teams at the test event were fighting to reach the Olympics based only on their qualification score, not day three's final - which was largely seen as an afterthought.
But Mews added: "The GB group, however, was in a different position. They were not competing with the other teams for a place. Rather, they were competing against the benchmark."
British Gymnastics' chief executive, Jane Allen, has issued a statement in response to Monday's verdict in which she stands by the governing body's initial selection policy
Argentina will be hoping Lionel Messi is finally starting to transform his stunning club form with Barcelona to the international arena following his magnificent hat-trick in the 3-1 win against Switzerland.
The hints were there late last year, in the second half of the World Cup qualifier away to Colombia, and now the Switzerland game has surely consolidated the Messi-Sergio Aguero link-up at the heart of the Argentine attack.
The pair have had a natural rapport for years, built up when they roomed together during the 2005 World Youth Cup, and now that understanding is clearly visible on the pitch through their pacy, dazzling exchanges.
Away to an adventurous Swiss side, there was space for the pair of them to explode on the counter-attack. Against more cautious opponents there could well be the need for the greater penalty area presence of Gonzalo Higuain.
In that case, Messi and Aguero can form an attacking trident with the Real Madrid man. Indeed, that was the way they were set up in the second half against Colombia, when the introduction of Aguero at the break changed the game, giving Messi someone to combine with when he dropped deep in search of possession.
More than any tactical innovations, Argentina will hope the Switzerland match proves important in psychological terms. Messi has enjoyed some excellent games for Argentina in the past, but this was the first time that the headlines in the local press proclaimed that he had produced his Barcelona form for the national team.
Messi has made over 67 appearances for Argentina, scoring 22 goals. Photo: Getty This is significant because almost the only place in the world where the presence of Messi is not guaranteed to fill a stadium is in the land of his birth. He tries hard to identify himself with Argentina, with the city of Rosario and the Newells Old Boys club.
However, when performances are disappointing, he meets with resistance from his own people, who are quick to seize on the fact that he has been based in Barcelona from the age of 13.
"You're not really one of us," they seem to be saying. "You are more Catalan than Argentine. You don't sing the national anthem or feel with passion the colours of the flag."
And it does not matter what he says. Words do not count - deeds do.
The public want to see the Messi of Barcelona, often forgetting that for the national team he does not have a Daniel Alves to burst outside him, or a Xavi and Iniesta to supply him with the ball. But he does have Aguero.
The resistance towards Messi in an extreme case, but in the proud footballing cultures of Brazil and Argentina it does not take much for the European-based players to be viewed with suspicion.
If the national team are winning in style, little attention is paid to where they play their club football. Anything less, and those who play in Europe are sometimes branded uncaring mercenaries.
In any case, the call will always come for the selection of more home-based players. This is a political reality the coach has to deal with - especially in contemporary Brazil, where with the clubs paying top wages there are more viable candidates for the national team playing their football for domestic clubs.
Last year, for example, Brazil boss Mano Menezes could hardly afford not to recall Ronaldinho to the national team. The former world player of the year had moved back home to join Flamengo, the country's most popular club.
Around the middle of the year he found flickers of form. Brazil, meanwhile, had done badly in the Copa America and were not looking good in friendlies- giving Ronaldinho another chance became a political necessity.
Against Ghana at Craven Cottage last September it was soon apparent that he was off the pace. The rhythm of international football, as Menezes commented after the match, is more intense than that of the domestic Brazilian game.
He gave an interesting performance against Mexico late last year, organising from a deeper position, but his reign as first-choice number 10 may well have come to an end with an unimpressive display in last Tuesday's 2-1 win over Bosnia.
By now Ronaldinho has ceased to be the public's sweetheart, his credibility undermined by a dip in club form and his night time escapades. Mano Menezes gave him enough rope, and can now cut him loose if he chooses because he has Paulo Henrique Ganso of Santos ready to step up.
Brazil's game against Bosnia flowed much better after Ganso replaced Ronaldinho for the last half hour. The elegant left footer is a wonderful prospect - so much so that he too has also been at the centre of the nationalist debate.
When Ganso came through strongly two years ago, the Sao Paulo press were falling over themselves to praise him. He was, they said, already the best in the world in his position, a left-footed reincarnation of Zinedine Zidane.
It was conveniently forgotten that he was only shining in a desperately poor version of the Sao Paulo State Championship, and against poor opponents in the Brazilian Cup. The problem was that the player appeared to believe his own publicity. Then came the reality check.
The subsequent two years have been filled with injuries and excellent learning opportunities - such as a disappointing Copa America and the experience of playing against Barcelona last December.
Working under Roman Abramovich will be "hell" for the next Chelsea manager, according to former Blues boss Luiz Felipe Scolari.
Abramovich is looking for his eighth permanent manager since 2003 after sacking Andre Villas-Boas on Sunday.
"It will be hell for whoever succeeds him," said Scolari, who spent seven months at Chelsea in 2008-09.
"[The sacking] is strange - although it's not so strange to me because of what I went through there."
Scolari, who won the World Cup with Brazil in 2002, arrived at Stamford Bridge in the summer of 2008.
In September of the previous year, Jose Mourinho, winner of successive Premier League titles with the Blues, had left the club to be replaced by Avram Grant, who was sacked despite taking Chelsea to the Champions League final.
Brazilian Scolari was then removed after only 36 games in charge, with Chelsea lying fourth in the Premier League.
At the time of his departure, there were suggestions some players were not happy with his management style - problems Villas-Boas has also reportedly encountered.
"Some things are known, like the relations with the owner, who has the relationship with some players before the coach," added Scolari.
The former Portugal boss also believes one of the reasons why Chelsea have a ratio of nearly one manager a year under Abramovich is down to the club's culture.
"England has clubs like Arsenal, where Arsene Wenger has been for several years, yet has won only two or three championships," he said. "Chelsea's culture is very different."
Villas-Boas arrived in London after winning the quadruple with Porto in his first full season as a club manager.
And Scolari, now in charge of Brazilian club Palmeiras, believes Villas-Boas will recover from his Stamford Bridge experience.
"Villas-Boas was a champion and he will continue to be. He needed to replace at least seven or eight players, even since I was there, but he failed."
Meanwhile, Blues winger Juan Mata says he is determined to rescue Chelsea's season after this latest setback.
"I think we have to start again," he told Chelsea TV. "We are not in a good moment, we are not in a good run of results, but we all want to change it.
"We have a very good squad and we have two months to achieve our objectives in the Premier League, in the FA Cup and Champions League."
