James Gandolfini was in the market for a mysterious new ink job before his death — dropping by an L.A. tattoo parlor earlier this month … and promising to return with a special order.

TMZ has learned Gandolfini visited T-Man Tattoo in Studio City on June 1st — and the owner (pictured above) tells us, the actor was extremely excited about a new tattoo he was planning.

Gandolfini didn’t tell the owner what he wanted to get done — but said he just moved to the neighborhood, and promised to return later this month for a full tat session.

The owner says Gandolfini was in great spirits during the visit.

As we reported, Gandolfini passed away Wednesday in Italy from an apparent heart attack. He was 51.

6:01 PM PT — “Sopranos” creator David Chase tells TMZ … “[James] was a genius.  Anyone who saw him even in the smallest of his performances knows that.”

“He is one of the greatest actors of this or any time.  A great deal of that genius resided in those sad eyes.  I remember telling him many times, ‘You don’t get it.  You’re like Mozart.’ There would be silence at the other end of the phone.”

Chase continues, “For Deborah and Michael and Liliana this is crushing.  And it’s bad for the rest of the world.  He wasn’t easy sometimes.  But he was my partner, he was my brother in ways I can’t explain and never will be able to explain.”

4:48 PM PT — The celebrity tributes have begun … we just spoke with Joseph R. Gannascoli — aka Vito on “The Sopranos” — who tells us. “James is one guy who never turned his back on me. He was the most humble and gifted actor and person I have ever worked with.”

He adds, “He was a great man and I will forever be indebted to him. “

James Gandolfini — who famously played Tony Soprano on “The Sopranos” — died earlier today in Italy … TMZ has learned.

Gandolfini is believed to have suffered a heart attack. He was 51.

Gandolfini was in Italy to attend the 59th Taormina Film Festival in Sicily — and he was scheduled to participate in a festival event this weekend with Italian director Gabriele Muccino.

Gandolfini shot to fame playing a hitman in the 1993 hit “True Romance” … and quickly became a Hollywood legend when he was cast as Tony Soprano in 1999.  He won 3 Emmy awards for the role during the show’s 6 season run.

Gandolfini also appeared in a ton of huge movies including “Get Shorty,” “The Mexican” and “Zero Dark Thirty.”

We last spoke to Gandolfini in May in L.A. — he was in great spirits, making funny faces and joking about a “Sopranos” movie.

Gandolfini is survived by his wife Deborah Lin, who gave birth to the couple’s daughter in October 2012. He also has a teenage son from a previous marriage. R.I.P.

Like a turtle without his shell, rock-n-roll god Slash hit the pool in Ibiza this week … WITHOUT HIS TRADEMARK TOP HAT!!!

The former Guns N’ Roses guitarist is vacationing off in Spain with his family … just like they did back in 2012.  Dude looks good.

Meantime, here’s a photo of Axl Rose at a yard sale in New York this weekend.  He looks … fine?

NFL star Aaron Hernandez has NOT been identified as a suspect in the shooting of Alexander S. Bradley … but that could change … cops tell TMZ.

We broke the story … Hernandez has been sued by Bradley, who claims the New England Patriots tight end shot him in the face and left him to die back in February.

Cops tell TMZ … ever since the incident, Bradley has been extremely uncooperative with investigators — and has refused to identify his assailant … until he pointed the finger at Hernandez in his lawsuit, which he filed last week.

So what does it mean for the investigation? The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Dept. tells us … it doesn’t mean much.

In fact, we’re told cops have no plans to meet with Hernandez … and have neither named him a suspect nor a person of interest in the shooting.

And why not? With an uncooperative witness and no hard evidence … it’s a safe bet investigators don’t feel they have a strong enough case to go after the NFL star.

Of course, plans could change … but for now, it seems unlikely Hernandez will be prosecuted.

The former singer for Save Ferris has gone off the rails … falsely promoting the famous ska band’s “reunion” show this summer — WHEN THERE IS NO SUCH THING — this according to a new lawsuit … and now her ex-bandmates are out for justice.

Singer Monique Powell made the “reunion show” announcement back in April — claiming the band would be reuniting after a 10-year hiatus to perform at the OC Fair on July 27th.

But there was one problem … the other Save Ferris members claim they never approved a reunion show — in fact, they released a statement shortly after Monique’s announcement, saying they’d never even been contacted by Monique about performing in it.

Monique responded with her own statement, “While I had hoped this could be a reunion of sorts with all, or some, of my former SF band members, unfortunately that isn’t the way it looks to be turning out.” But the show is STILL being promoted as a “Save Ferris” performance.

Former SF members Brian Mashburn, Eric Zamora, Bill Uechi, Brian Williams, and Evan Kilbourne have now filed a lawsuit against Powell — insisting she has no right to perform under the Save Ferris name.

The band wants her to pay unspecified damages for falsely promoting a reunion show. They also want a judge to block her from using the Save Ferris name ever again.

Attempts to reach Monique were unsuccessful.