BEER BATTLE: Veteran L.A. rock figure Stan...

BEER BATTLE: Veteran L.A. rock figure Stan Ridgway was surprised to see his name and picture in an ad in the L.A. Weekly recently. While he was thrilled that his band, Drywall, was selected as a recommended act, he wasn’t so delighted to see who sponsored the ad: Zima, the malt beverage.

“I’m concerned about what I feel damages my goodwill and reputation,” says Ridgway of what he sees as an implied association with the alcoholic drink, which is manufactured by Coors. “No one ever asked my permission.”

So now Ridgway wants a printed retraction and/or other compensation from Coors or the Weekly.

Coors, which places similar ads in metropolitan weeklies around the country, says that the company had nothing to do with the placement of Ridgway in the ad.

“Artists are selected by the local publications,” says Coors spokeswoman Judy Hartley. “The responsibility for the arrangements are between the artists and the publication.”

L.A. Weekly publisher Mike Siegmund was not available for comment.

Still, Ridgway blames Coors, not the Weekly, for the problem.

“I can’t be mad with the local papers,” he says. “Zima has this duplicitous policy to empower some local person to make the selection, which is a way for them to sneak in the back door to get access to the local music scene. They call it ‘advertorial,’ and if that’s not an Orwellian term, I don’t know what is.”