Tuesday, March 12, 2024

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on March 17th, 2024

AC/DC's Brian Johnson and Dire Straits' Mark Knopfler are set to star in a new documentary series titled Music Legends that will explore the careers of six other rock legends. Airing in the UK on Sky News from Apr. 25, and available to stream via NOW TV internationally, each episode will see Johnson and Knopfler examine the careers of, respectively, Tom Jones, Sam Fender, Cyndi Lauper, Nile Rodgers, Carlos Santana and Emmylou Harris, with the hosts also playing live with the guests on the episodes. "Join AC/DC singer, Brian Johnson and Dire Straits singer and guitarist, Mark Knopfler as they share their incredible knowledge and experiences with each other -- and a hand-picked selection of music royalty," a press release reads. "Guests including Sir Tom Jones, Nile Rodgers and Cyndi Lauper share stories from their own careers and discuss the tracks that shaped them as musicians and fans. Mark and Brian do the same, painting a fascinating portrait of their shared musical lives," it adds. AC/DC recently announced a huge UK and European stadium tour for 2024, performing 21 dates in 10 countries this summer for their first European tour in eight years. Mark KnopflerKnopfler, meanwhile, recently released a re-recorded version of his song "Going Home" for Teenage Cancer Trust, featuring Brian May, Bruce Springsteen, Tony Iommi, Eric Clapton and Ronnie Wood. After being teased earlier in 2024, the track officially dropped on Mar. 15 on YouTube, and is a new take on Knopfler's solo hit. It also features the last ever recording by guitar virtuoso, Jeff Beck -- which he laid down for the track shortly before his death in Jan. 2023. The charity track was recorded at British Grove Studios in West London, and produced by Knopfler's longtime collaborator Guy Fletcher. As for Beck's contribution, Fletcher described it as "absolutely meant to be. And what he did with it, it just brings you to tears." The release also comes ahead of the 2024 edition of the annual Teenage Cancer Trust gig series, which will take place the last week in March and raise funds for the charity. Noel Gallagher, The Chemical Brothers and Young Fathers lead the line-up for the 2024 edition of the series, and the closing night will feature performances from Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, Robert Plant with Saving Grace, Eddie Vedder and Paul Weller. Originally released by Knopfler in 1983, "Going Home" is also widely recognized from the film Local Hero, as the theme song. - NME, 3/16/24...... Speaking of Roger Daltrey, The Who frontman has opened up about the one time he smashed a guitar and compared it to "killing his wife." Appearing as a guest on Shawn Keaveny's Daily Grind podcast, the 80-year-old musician said: "[Fans] never came to hear the music, they came to see the guitar being broken. The trouble is the guitar was worth 50 gigs. I've only ever smashed one guitar and I'm really sorry I did it. I don't know why, just this thing came over me. I've always regretted it -- I thought 'I shouldn't have done that, that was like killing the wife'." Daltrey's interview can be heard on Spotify.com. - Variety, 3/14/24...... An upcoming BBC documentary series reveals that Paul McCartney was once so moved by the plight of a group of climate activists after they were seized in Russia during a protest and thrown in jail in 2013 that he attempted to convince Russian president Vladimir Putin to release them. As detailed in On Thin Ice: Putin V Greenpeace, the activists were aiming to film an oil rush in Arctic Russian waters, but 28 of them were arrested on their ship the Arctic Sunrise and charged under piracy and hooliganism charges. The arrest prompted McCartney, who famously played in Moscow's Red Square in 2003, to write a personal letter to Putin, imploring him to release the campaigners. "Forty-five years ago I wrote a song about Russia for The White Album ['Back In The U.S.S.R.'], back when it wasn't fashionable for English people to say nice things about your country," he wrote. "That song had one of my favourite Beatles lines in it: 'Been away so long I hardly knew the place, gee it's good to be back home.' Could you make that come true for the Greenpeace prisoners?," he added. The prisoners served a three month sentence before being released. Curve Media's On Thin Ice: Putin V Greenpeace is being positioned as the BBC's latest box-set series for BBC Two and iPlayer and will break with tradition by airing via bitesized half-hour episodes. - NME, 3/16/24...... Chic legend Nile Rodgers has been chosen as one of the recipients of Sweden's 2024 Polar Music Prize. "In Nile Rodgers, we honour a ground-breaking pioneer whose legacy spans his work as co-founder of CHIC and as record producer and creator behind so much of the world's greatest music," says PMP managing director Marie Ledin. "Nile's impact in pop culture is incomparable and his timeless songs will continue to delight, uplift and inspire for many years to come." Rodgers, whose producing and writer credits include hits for David Bowie, Madonna, Sister Sledge, Duran Duran, Lady Gaga, Christina Aguilera and many more, will receive Prize money of one million Swedish Kroner (around £75,000 and $94,000) when he and composer Esa-Pekka Salonen are made laureates at a ceremony on May 21 in Stockholm, Sweden at the Grand Hotel. Previous recipients include Sir Paul McCartney, Bob Dylan, Sting, Joni Mitchell and Iggy Pop. - Music-News.com, 3/12/24...... Willie NelsonDuring his Luck Reunion concert in Spicewood, Tex. on Mar. 14, Willie Nelson and Kermit the Frog delivered a sweet duet of The Muppets' classic "Rainbow Connection." With Kermit on banjo and Nelson on guitar, the pair delivered a tender, heartwarming cover of the classic song, which was originally released in 1979 for The Muppet Movie. Kermit's rendition -- performed by Jim Henson -- reached No. 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart and earned an Academy Award nomination for best original song. In addition to "Rainbow Connection," the two icons also treated the crowd to a rousing gospel medley featuring selections such as "Will the Circle Be Unbroken," "I'll Fly Away" and "Hard to Be Humble." Footage of Willie and Kermit's duet has been shared on YouTube. The 2024 edition of Nelson's annual Luck Reunion, held at Willie's ranch in Spicewood, Tex., featured a star-studded lineup of performers, including Tyler Childers, Red Clay Strays, Durand Jones and Zella Day. On the same day as the concert, Nelson announced on Instagram his forthcoming 75th solo studio album, The Border, will be released on May 31. It will feature 10 newly recorded studio performances, including four new Nelson/Buddy Cannon compositions. - Billboard, 3/15/24...... A new Paul Simon documentary that premiered on the streaming channel MGM+ on Mar. 17 reveals that the veteran singer-songwriter has some hopeful news about his near-total hearing loss in his left ear, which has left him struggling to perform live. The 82-year-old musician says that his hearing has now come back to "enough of a degree that I'm comfortably singing and playing guitar and playing a few other instruments," after previously stating that two previous attempts to rehearse with his touring band didn't go quite to plan. "I haven't figured out how to perform with the hearing loss," he said in July 2023, adding "I've tried to rehearse with the guys in my touring band, to see if I could manage it. I can't so far." But now the "Kodachrome" hitmaker says, "I can hear my voice the way I want it in the context of the music." "If there's a drum or an electric guitar, it's too loud and I can't hear my voice. But when I first lost the hearing, I couldn't get, it threw me off. Everything was coming from this side," he said. Elsewhere in the documentary, Simon recalls the time he once tried to stop Frank Sinatra from covering one of Simon & Garfunkel's most famous songs, "Mrs Robinson." "I met him once. It was very interesting too, because he made a cover record of my song 'Mrs Robinson'. And he changed the lyric[s]," Simon said. "They were fantastic, but when I first heard it, it was like, 'Man, ring a ding, ding you Mrs Robinson, Jesus loves you more,' and this is in the sixties, and I said, 'He can't do that.' And so a guy from Warner Brothers called me up and said, 'Please don't do this. It's my fault I did it. Please don't do this to me.' So I said, 'Okay'." Part two of In Restless Dreams, in which Simon takes viewers behind the scenes during the recording of his 2023 album Seven Psalms, airs on Mar. 24. - New Musical Express, 3/17/24...... Smokey Robinson has confirmed that he is in talks for performing at the 2024 edition of the UK's legendary Glastonbury festival. After being asked when he will next perform in the UK by Bizarre's Howell Davies at Elton John's Oscars party in Los Angeles on Mar. 10, Robinson hinted at a playing there "soon." "We've been talking about that for the past two weeks -- probably soon," Robinson said. Davies also asked the 84-year-old music legend about the potential of playing at Glastonbury. "That's one of the things we've been talking about," Smokey shared, adding that he would "absolutely" love to take the stage at the Worthy Farm festival. "I love the UK, man. We've had some of our greatest times in the UK," he concluded. - NME, 3/13/24...... Neil YoungNeil Young announced on Mar. 12 that he's bringing his music back to Spotify more than two years after requesting its removal from the popular streaming platform. In Jan. 2022, Young published an open letter asking Spotify to pull down his catalog, citing what he called the spread of vaccine misinformation on the wildly popular Joe Rogan Experience podcast, which was then hosted exclusively on the streaming platform. Several other artists, including Joni Mitchell, Indie.Arie and Young's Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young bandmates David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, subsequently followed suit, though CSN/CSN&Y and Aries music have since been restored to the service. Mitchell's catalog remains absent. Now in a new post on his Neil Young Archives website, Young said the end of Spotify's exclusive deal with Rogan led to his decision to restore his music to the service. "My decision comes as music services Apple and Amazon have started serving the same disinformation podcast features I had opposed at Spotify, the post reads -- a clear reference to the Joe Rogan Experience, though Young never mentions it by name. "I cannot just leave Apple and Amazon, like I did Spotify, because my music would have very little streaming outlet to music lovers at all, so I have returned to Spotify, in sincere hopes that Spotify sound quality will improve and people will be able to hear and feel all the music as we made it," Young continued, before giving a shout out Qobuz and Tidal, where his catalog also lives, as "High res streaming options." Young concludes his post by stating his hope that Spotify "will turn to Hi Res as the answer and serve all the music to everyone. Spotify, you can do it! Really be #1 in all ways. You have the music and listeners!!!! Start with a limited Hi res tier and build from there!" A longtime advocate of high-resolution audio, Young once launched his own (now-defunct) high-res audio download platform, Pono, in 2015 before shuttering it two years later. It has been estimated that the absence of Young's catalog on Spotify had cost him roughly $300,000 in lost recorded music and publishing royalties by Sept. 2023. - Billboard, 3/12/24...... Patti Smith will be among the headliners of London's Somerset House Summer Series this summer. The iconic central London venue will host the series again beginning in July, from the 11th to the 21st. Smith will close out the series, which also features the likes of Smino, Hak Baker, The Amazons, Hania Rani and The Big Moon, on July 21. - NME, 3/16/24...... Leaving Neverland director Dan Reed has described the script for the upcoming Michael Jackson biopic Michael as "startlingly disingenuous." Given the project's connection to the Jackson estate, it is unclear whether the film will explore the most controversial aspects of the singer's life, including the allegations of child sexual abuse. However, according to Reed, who has read a draft of the script, the film makes a point to discredit Wade Robson and James Safechuck, the two men who allege that Jackson sexually assaulted them in the 2019 docuseries Leaving Neverland. "Jackson is only ever seen caring for children with childhood cancer, or dancing with a little girl in a wheelchair, or tucking up multiple little boys, mostly his nephews, at sleepovers," Reed said of the script. "It feels like the creators of the movie have been stuck in a room with John Branca and just told what to write." Michael will be directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, The Equalizer, Brooklyn's Finest) and Jackson's own nephew, Jaafar Jackson, will play the King of Pop in the film. The movie has been confirmed to receive a theatrical release in the US on Apr. 18, 2025, per production house Lionsgate. A UK release date is yet to be announced. - NME, 3/14/24...... Jack and Kelly Osbourne have revealed who they think should play their famous parents in a biopic about the couple. Speaking on a recent episode of The Osbournes Podcast, the two siblings spoke about the possible project, which was announced to be in development back in 2020, and officially confirmed in 2021. Bringing up the conversation about their movie, Jack asked the question: "Who do you want to play you guys?," prompting Kelly to say: "I know who I want to play mum -- Florence Pugh. I think Florence Pugh would do a fantastic [job]." Pugh, 28, recently starred in the critically acclaimed Dune: Part Two, as well as Oscar Best Picture winner Oppenheimer. Sharon, who has been a contestant on the latest season of Celebrity Big Brother, added: "I think Florence Pugh or the little girl from Game of Thrones," referring to Maisie Williams. Jack then chimed in with: "You know who I want to play dad? Bill Hader." He continued: "Everyone thinks I'm f---ing crazy until I show a side-by-side picture, and then that guy's ability to morph." Jack then showed his father a photograph of the former Saturday Night Live cast member, to which Ozzy responded: "F--- off!" His wife disagreed, repeatedly agreeing with Jack and saying: "I think he could nail it." No recent updates to the biopic's development have been made, and Ozzy made a witty remark on the podcast about the stagnant project saying: "By the time we finish this film I'll be dead." - NME, 3/12/24...... Steve HarleySteve Harley, the frontman of the '70s band Cockney Rebel, has died at age 73. The news was confirmed by his family in a statement, who said: "We are devastated to announce that our wonderful husband and father has passed away peacefully at home, with his family by his side." Harley, who had been receiving cancer treatment, had cancelled a run of shows in late 2023, writing on his website at the time that it was a "heartbreaking decision, but necessary in order to fight a "nasty cancer." His family continued that they knew Harley would be "desperately missed by people all over the world... Whoever you know him as, his heart exuded only core elements. Passion, kindness, generosity. And much more, in abundance." Born Stephen Nice, the musician grew up in London, and while working as a local journalist in the early 1970s, he started busking and playing in the city's folk scene. He formed the glam rock group Cockney Rebel in 1972 with Jean-Paul Crocker, Stuart Elliott, Paul Jeffreys and Milton Reame-James, and they were quickly signed by EMI Records. The band had early success with singles such as "Judy Teen" and "Mr. Soft," but they began to fall apart due to other members wanting to write more of the group's material. Harley reformed the band with a new line-up, including Elliott, Jim Cregan, Duncan Mackay and George Ford, and renamed them Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel. Their first single together, "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)," was a UK Number One single in 1975 and charted on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart in the US. Harley's most enduring song, it has been named by PRS as one of the most played songs in British broadcasting history. Harley began a solo career in the late 1970s, releasing six albums under his own name, most recently 2020's Uncovered. Cockney Rebel also reformed multiple times, playing together as recently as 2021. Steve Harley is survived by his wife Dorothy, with whom he had two children and four grandchildren. - NME, 3/17/24.

Eric CarmenEric Carmen, the former leader of the '70s power pop band The Raspberries before setting out on an internationally successful solo career, died on Mar. 11. He was 74. "It is with tremendous sadness that we share the heartbreaking news of the passing of Eric Carmen," a message posted by his wife of eight years, Amy, to his website, Facebook and X account reads. "Our sweet, loving and talented Eric passed away in his sleep, over the weekend. It brought him great joy to know, that for decades, his music touched so many and will be his lasting legacy," she added. Over his long career which began in the 1960s, Carmen scored three top five hits on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart: the No. 2-peaking "All By Myself" in 1976, followed by the Dirty Dancing soundtrack standout "Hungry Eyes," which peaked at No. 4 in 1988, and "Make Me Lose Control," a No. 3 hit, also in 1988. His highest-charting album was his self-titled 1975 solo debut, which peaked at No. 21 in 1976. Born on Aug. 11, 1949 in Cleveland, bassist/vocalist Carmen started his music career in earnest during his college years at John Carroll University in his home state of Ohio, when he joined a band called Cyrus Erie. In 1970, he formed The Raspberries with members of several local groups, including drummer Jim Bonfanti who had drummed on The Outsiders' 1966 Beatlesque hit "Time Won't Let Me," guitarist Wally Bryson, and bassist/guitarist Dave Smalley They became the most popular band in Cleveland, and in 1967 scored a minor hit, "It's Cold Outside." In mid-1971, their demos attracted the attention of producer Jimmy Ienner, who secured them a contract with Capitol Records. The eponymous 1972 The Raspberries had a raspberry-scented scratch-and-sniff sticker on the cover, and their second single, "Go All The Way," rose to No. 5 and sold more than 1.3 million copies. Eric CarmenThe second LP, Fresh, included "I Wanna Be With You" (No. 16, 1972), and "Let's Pretend" (No. 35, 1973). Carmen penned most of the hits himself, many of which were paeans to making out. Internal problems developed by the time of 1973's Side 3, with Bonfani and Smalley resisting the group's teenybopper image and leaving. They were replaced by Michael McBride, who had played with Cyrus Erie, and Scott McCarl, who had sent an audition tape to Ienner. The regrouped Raspberries then released its fourth and final LP, the critically acclaimed Starting Over, which many critics called the best LP of 1974. A concept album about stardom, Starting Over was a commercial flop, although the single "Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)" reached No. 18. Carmen then began an intermittently successful solo career as a pop balladeer, hitting the Top 40 with "All By Myself" (No. 2, 1976), "Never Gonna Fall in Love Again" (No. 11, 1976), and "Sunrise" (No. 34, 1976), from his debut LP, and the last of which incorporated a Rachmaninoff melody, as did several other songs from the classically trained pianist/guitarist. In the 1980s, Carmen's Top 40 hits included "I Wanna Hear It From Your Lips" (No. 35, 1985), the No. 4 "Hungry Eyes" (1987) and "Make Me Lose Control" (No. 3, 1988). "'Love Is All That Matters -- Faithful and Forever,'" Amy Carmen concluded her announcement of Eric's death, referring to the lyrics of a song on his 1977 album, Boats Against the Current. A cause of death has yet to be disclosed. - Billboard/The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock, 3/12/24.

Wednesday, March 6, 2024

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on March 12th, 2024

Sting announced on Mar. 11 that he'll return to the stripped down three-man configuration for his "Sting 3.0" tour of 2024, which kicks off Sept. 17 at the Fillmore Detroit. The tour includes multiple theater dates in most cities, including two nights at Toronto's Massey Hall (9/20, 21), and three nights at the Brooklyn Paramount Theater in Brooklyn, NY (10/7, 9, 10). Sting, a 17-time Grammy winner, and his band will perform songs from his solo career, as well as his time as the Police frontman. The tour will wrap in Los Angeles on Nov. 13, after also visiting Philadelphia, Boston, Brooklyn, NY, Port Chester, NY, Miami, Atlanta, Chicago and San Francisco. Sting's busy 2024 schedule also includes an Apr. 13 date in San Diego with Billy Joel, as well as continue on a European arena tour for much of the summer before the kick-off of this fall's theater tour. - Billboard, 3/11/24...... Elton JohnElton John's AIDS Foundation has announced it raised $10.8 million dollars for AIDS research at its 32nd Annual Academy Awards Viewing Party on Mar. 10, 2024 in West Hollywood, Calif. The money from the event will go toward the organization's Rocket Fund, a fundraising initiative meant to "redouble the fight against AIDS everywhere," according to the organization's website. "So far, this has been an extraordinary year beyond my wildest dreams, including the honor of achieving the EGOT, but it's tonight's gathering that is the ultimate highlight," John said in a statement following the event. "I'm so grateful to everyone who comes out each year to have a lot of fun and do a whole lot of good together. We've been loud and proud about showing compassion and ending the dreadful stigma that follows HIV, and we won't stop until we achieve our mission." Hosted by John, his husband David Furnish, Neil Patrick Harris and others, featured a star-studded guest list that included Sharon Stone, Donatella Versace, Danny DeVito, and more. During the evening, a multimillion-dollar live auction saw the organization sell off a number of luxury items, including a bedazzled Yamaha piano signed by Elton, two pinball machines, two pairs of Chopard earrings and a custom-made Rolex for his "Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour." At the night's close, John performed alongside the evening's musical guests, R&B-pop trio Gabriels, to his 1989 hit "Are You Ready for Love," recreating an iconic moment from the UK's Glastonbury 2023 when Gabriels lead singer Jacob Lusk joined John onstage for the track. In still more Elton news, country star Kacey Musgraves has claimed the Rocket Man used to have a cardboard cut-out of his husband and sons in his dressing room. "I'll never forget Elton playing in Nashville and getting to catch up with him in his dressing room after with all the Gucci and sunglasses lying around," Musgraves, 35, told The Times newspaper. "And a big cardboard cut-out of his husband and kids." Insiders in John's camp recently revealed that the "Candle in the Wind" singer has been working on a "top secret" new album that could be released later in 2024. A source told The Sun newspaper's Bizarre column: "It's all been very top secret, but Elton is back in the studio working on a new album. Time frames are always movable, but the fourth quarter has been pencilled in terms of a release date." - Billboard/Music-News.com, 3/11/24...... John Lennon and Yoko Ono's son Sean Lennon wished his mom Yoko a happy Mothers Day during the Mar. 10 Academy Awards show. Mar. 10 was not only the date of the Oscars ceremony, but it's also Mother's Day in the U.K. During filmmakers Dave Mullins and Brad Booker's emotional Best Animated Short win for "WAR IS OVER! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko, Sean Ono Lennon" -- Sean made sure to give his mom an extra special shout-out -- even though the "wrap-it-up" music was already playing. "My mother turned 91 this February," he told the audience. "Can everyone say 'happy Mother's Day to Yoko'?" At his request, the audience in front of him wished Ono a happy holiday in unison. Ono and John collaborated a number of times before Lennon was fatally shot in 1980, notably on "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)." The track has gone down in history as a classic Christmas tune, reaching its latest peak of No. 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2022 -- more than 50 years after it was first released. - Billboard, 3/10/24...... In other Beatles-related news, Paul McCartney will be among the artists paying tribute to the late Jimmy Buffet with a "Keep the Party Going" concert on Apr. 11 during an all-star concert at the Hollywood Bowl. The Live Nation/Hewitt Silva presents show will also feature performances from the Eagles, Jon Bon Jovi, Zac Brown, Jackson Browne, Brandi Carlile, Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Sheryl Crow, Mac McAnally, Pitbull, The Coral Reefer Band and more special guests to be announced later. Tickets for the celebration of life event will go on sale to the general public on Mar. 15. Buffett died at his home in Sag Harbor on Long Island, N.Y., on Sept. 1, 2023 from skin cancer. He was 76 years old. Earlier in Marh, the video for his single "The University of Bourbon Street" -- from his final studio album, November's Equal Strain on All Parts -- was released. On the album Buffett performs a tribute to his favorite city with help from the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. - Billboard, 3/11/24...... The upcoming Michael Jackson biopic Michael will reportedly address the allegations of child sexual abuse against the singer. Given that Michael has the approval of the Jackson estate, it had been unclear whether the film would explore the most controversial aspects of his life, but a new report suggests it will. Puck News' Matthew Belloni has obtained an early draft of the script, and says that the film "wants very much to convince you Michael is innocent," adding that it goes to "great lengths to minimise and downplay the actual claims and eviscerate the Chandlers." In 1993, Evan Chandler, a dentist and screenwriter based in Los Angeles, accused Jackson of sexually abusing his 13-year-old son Jordan Chandler. The case was concluded when the two parties reached a financial settlement in 1994. In 2013, four years after Jackson's death, the choreographer Wade Robson filed a lawsuit against the Jackson estate, saying the King of Pop had sexually abused him between the ages of seven and 14. Another man, the former child actor James Safechuck, also came forward with allegations. The director of the documentary Leaving Neverland, which documented Robson and Safechuck's allegations, recently criticized the making of the new biopic, saying it "will glorify a man who raped children". Robson and Safechuck have requested that their joint trial starts before the release of Michael. The film has been set for an Apr. 18, 2025, per production house Lionsgate. A UK release date is yet to be announced. It was announced in Jan. 2023 that Michael's own nephew, Jaafar Jackson, will play the late pop superstar in the film. Jaafar is the son of Michael's brother Jermaine Jackson. This will be the 27-year-old's film debut, although he has appeared in the Lifetime reality show The Jacksons: Next Generation. - New Musical Express, 3/9/24...... Jim PankowAs Chicago reaches its 57th year of existence in 2024 after being formed by trombonist Jim Pankow, keyboardist/singer Robert Lamm, trumpeter Lee Loughnan and saxophonist Walt Parazaider in 1967, Pankow looks ahead at the band's future, while sharing stories of rock and roll excess from the past, in a new interiew with Billboard. "It was eternity, not being able to work for a year and a half," says Pankow. "So here we are. This is our 57th year and, gosh, it just keeps getting better. I have to pinch myself because this phenomenon is never ending. And, man, we're going to do this as long as we can." Earlier in March, the band hit another milestone: on Mar. 6, Chicago played its 50th show at Las Vegas' Venetian Theater, the first act to reach that landmark. The 1,815-seat venue at the Venetian allows fans to see the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band in a much smaller setting than its other 80-to-90 annual shows. Pankow says the current lineup, in his opinion, is the strongest lineup in the history of the band. "The band is firing on all cylinders. There's no weak spots in the personnel. We have trimmed the fat and we are just slamming. Being on stage with my fellow bandmates is a joy every night that I will never tire of. Who would have thought more than a half century later that it's still an amazing experience? More amazing than ever." Pankow said each era of Chicago is "defined in a unique way -- you can't really compare because it's a completely different time." But the recording of the band's first album Chicago Transit Authority will always be the most special to him. "I'll never forget walking into Columbia Recording Studios in New York City, standing in front of a mic and knowing that this is going on tape forever," he says. "We were very frightened young men. And that music was the embodiment of the idea of what this band is all about." Pankow said if asked to choose which Chicago song to put in a time capsule, it would be "Beginnings" from the first album. "It's one of the songs in the repertoire that I get to stretch out on and solo on. So, I always like that." Although Parazaider retired from touring in 1967, Pankow says he, Lamm and Loughnan are "going to do this until we cannot be believable anymore." "As long as we can get up there and we can kill it every night, I pray to God that we can do that. At this point there is no end in sight. We're at the top of our game. I say, 'Retire to what?'." Chicago will head out on a co-headlining tour with Earth Wind & Fire this summer for the sixth time. - Billboard, 3/8/24...... The Stone Pony, the Asbury Park, N.J. club brought to national fame by local superstar Bruce Springsteen, is celebrating its 50th birthday in 2024. In Feb. 1974, New York native Jack Roig opened the Ocean Avenue club, situated across from the Asbury Park boardwalk, and it also became the birthplace of Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes. The Jukes started playing regularly at the Pony in 1974 as one of the venue's first house bands -- and early incarnations included future E Street Band member Little Steven Van Zandt. The Boss began to hang around soon after. The 1976 record release party for the Jukes' debut, I Don't Want To Go Home, helped put the club on the map. Springsteen, members of the E Street Band and legendary singers Ronnie Spector and Lee Dorsey made guest appearances at the concert, which was simulcast across the region including on major Philadelphia rock station WMMR-FM. The sound of Asbury Park -- a merging of rock'n'roll and horn-fueled R&B and soul -- was a hit. The modest-looking venue also helped drive the revitalization of Asbury Park, and its 4,500-capacity outdoor Summer Stage has hosted stars from Elvis Costello to Blondie, Green Day to Demi Lovato, as well as local favorites like Springsteen over its 50-year history. The modest building, painted white stucco on the outside with a simple rectangular floor plan, will continue its storied legacy with anniversary shows throughout the year. The Jukes played there Feb. 16 and Feb. 17 (although Southside Johnny left the second show early and was briefly hospitalized for dehydration, according to a band spokesman). Roig says that "the future of the community has gotten so much brighter with new things coming through." "The Pony is a symbol that we don't have to let go of our past to embrace our future. The Pony is a symbol of both those things." - Billboard, 3/8/24...... The Wolfgang Van Halen/David Lee Roth feud continues as Van Halen has fired back at Roth after the Van Halen frontman blasted him in a viral rant earlier in 2024. "I guess I'm honored (Roth) even thinks about me as much as he seems to," Wolfgang, 32, said during a recent interview with Atlanta radio show The Morning X. "I seem to have been born into this Van Halen drama that has come way before me," he continued. "And now that my dad isn't here to be a target, I guess he went to the next best thing." Roth, one of the founding members and lead singers of VH, went off on the band's bass player and son of the late Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli in a scathing rant posted to his YouTube channel in January. The segment began with Roth doing a spoof interview with "our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" as the fake personality tells listeners he was hired "because of my talent," in what many perceived was a thinly veiled swipe at Wolfgang taking over as the band's bassist in 2006. "I would have this job anyway, even if my dad wasn't God. I know you agree. I'm on every church wall, and I would be on that church wall if my dad wasn't God I just want people to know I got this job because of my talent," the Jesus impersonator continued. Roth then started to rant about Wolfgang -- who replaced original VH bassist Michael Anthony -- claiming that the youngster complained that the singer didn't pay attention to him onstage. "This f---in' kid! He's complaining the entire tour like I'm not paying enough attention to him on stage," Roth says. "Like Santa Claus on Christmas coming down the chimney and popping out on Christmas and saying, 'Nobody is paying attention'. I'm giving him the best, everything I've got, in front of twenty, thirty thousand people at a clip, and he's complaining to everybody around me -- the business manager, the security guy, the clothing lady -- 'Dave's not paying enough attention to me.'" But in his conversation with The Morning X, Wolfgang said, "You have to take what he says with a grain of salt." "He also said that he wrote 'Eruption" and came up with (Eddie's custom guitar) the Frankenstein Strat," Wolfgang added. Wolfgang added that he's not planning on participating in a summer VH tribute tour featuring former VH vocalist Sammy Hagar and Anthony. "No way. I don't want to play that music without my dad," he said. - Canoe.com, 3/8/24...... Bon ScottThe Australian film production company HALO Films announced on Mar. 8 that a "loose biopic" based on the life of late AC/DC frontman Bon Scott is currently in the works. The film -- titled The Kid From Harvest Road -- will not be a faithful retelling of Scott's life, but rather a "fictionalised narrative set in the 1960s," according to HALO. The company explains that by working around a loose retelling, the movie "can offer a more imaginative exploration of Scott's character and experiences". The studio continued: "Focusing on his formative years in Fremantle allows for a deeper dive into the influences and events that shaped him as a person and ultimately as the iconic frontman of AC/DC. It also provides an opportunity to explore the cultural landscape of the time, including the burgeoning music scene and social dynamics of the era." Young Australian actor Lee Tiger Halley, who stars in Netflix's Boy Swallows Universe, will play Scott in the film. A release date for The Kid From Harvest Road has yet to be announced, as the film is expected to begin shooting in earl 2025.Scott fronted AC/DC from 1974 until his death in 1980. He sang on the band's first six albums, spanning from their debut High Voltage, through 1979's Highway To Hell. Brian Johnson was tapped to replace Scott just weeks after the latter's death, and went on to record the smash LP Back in Black and has been with the band ever since. In celebration of their 50th anniversary as a band, AC/DC are set to release limited edition gold vinyl pressings of their entire album catalogue. Each of the limited edition albums come with an album-specific 12"x12" print featuring new AC/DC 50 artwork suitable for framing. All nine albums are available for pre-order now and are set for release on Mar. 15. The band recently announced a huge UK and European stadium tour for 2024 as well as a new drummer and bassist for said shows. The Australian rock legends will perform 21 dates in 10 countries this summer, which will mark their first tour in Europe for eight years. - NME, 3/8/24...... Cher and her son Elijah Blue Allman have been asked to reach an agreement over bid for Allman's conservatorship. Cher's bid for a conservatorship over Allman's finances, which began in Dec. 2023, was rejected in January, but now they've been granted a three-month grace period to try to reach an agreement outside the court. Cher had argued, via her lawyers, that "she feared that her son would not be alive within the year" if he was left in control of his money," due to the 47-year-old Allman's"history of drug use" and a "schizoaffective disorder" diagnosis. However, that bid was denied as Allman returned a clean drug test and appeared to have successfully managed his finances. Allman's lawyers said in early March they believe Cher intends to drag out the process until he can no longer afford to pay for legal representation. "We are concerned that this is an effort to continue this case further and further until Mr. Allman is left dry," Steven Bremer, Allman's attorney said during a hearing. Bremer added he could not see how the two parties could come to an agreement independently. "This is not like a family law matter where several issues need to be resolved," he said. "There is one issue and that is the conservatorship of my client... I'm not certain what middle ground we can find." - Music-News.com, 3/7/24...... Ozzy Osbourne's wife Sharon Osbourne has slammed singer Adele, accusing her of using a "fake" cockney accent. The former X Factor judge took aim at the London-born singer during the Mar. 7 episode of Celebrity Big Brother -- criticizing the "Rolling In The Deep"' singer as exaggerating her accent. I think she plays the whole 'Oh, love, oh I'm Adele... I'm so English,'" she said to her housemates during the UK reality show, putting on a heavy cockney accent. It's like, cut the crap, you don't talk like that anymore, just sing, just be true to who you are," she continued. "But she does all this old English, you know?" Since entering the Big Brother house on Mar. 4, Sharon has also called out fellow housemate James Corden -- namely for his habit of "constantly" name-dropping. Before entering the reality show, Sharon lashed out at rapper Kanye West, saying he "f----ed with the wrong Jew this time ater West was accused of sampling a Black Sabbath song without the band's permission on his new album Vultures. - NME, 3/8/24...... Steve LawrenceSteve Lawrence, the charismatic Grammy- and Emmy-winning crooner who delighted audiences for decades in nightclubs, on concert stages and in film and television appearances, died on Mar. 7 in Los Angeles of complications from Alzheimer's disease. He was 88. Mr. Lawrence partnered with the late Eydie Gormé, his wife of 55 years, in the very popular lounge act Steve & Eydie. Born Sidney Liebowitz in Brooklyn on July 8, 1935, Mr. Lawrence broke into show business with his boyish good looks, silky voice and breezy personality after winning a talent competition on Arthur Godfrey's CBS talent show and signed with King Records as a teenager. The singer chose to stay old school and resist the allure of rock 'n' roll. "It didn't attract me as much," Mr. Lawrence once said. "I grew up in a time period when music was written by Irving Berlin and Cole Porter and George and Ira Gershwin and Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein and Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart and Sammy Cahn and Julie Stein. Those people, I related to -- what they were writing -- because it was much more melodic." Mr. Lawrence's smooth stylings were heard on dozens of solo albums, starting in 1953 with an eponymous LP. In 1963, he topped the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks with the Gerry Goffin-Carole King pop ballad "Go Away Little Girl." The single became the first in history to reach No. 1 by two different artists, after Donny Osmond recorded his chart-topping version in 1971. Lawrence also made the top 10 with 1959's "Pretty Blue Eyes" (No. 9), 1960's "Footsteps" (No. 7) and 1961's "Portrait of My Love" (No. 9). On Broadway, Mr. Lawrence starred as Sammy Glick in the long-running "What Makes Sammy Run?," a musical adaptation of Budd Schulberg's novel, and received a best actor Tony nomination in 1964. A year later, he hosted a short-lived CBS variety program, and in the 1970s, he was a semi-regular on The Carol Burnett Show, appearing on more than two dozen episodes. Mr. Lawrence also portrayed manager Maury Sline in The Blues Brothers in 1980, and reprised the character in the 1998 sequel Blues Brothers 2000. Mr. Lawrence and wife Edie won an Emmy in 1979 for their NBC special Steve & Eydie Celebrate Irving Berlin and had fun on game shows, appearing on What's My Line?, I've Got a Secret and Password All-Stars, to name a few. They were a staple in Las Vegas, headlining Caesars Palace, the Sands, the Sahara and the Desert Inn, and the Las Vegas Entertainment Awards honored them four times as Musical Variety Act of the Year. Survivors include his son, David, a film and television composer whose credits include the High School Musical films; daughter-in-law Faye; granddaughter Mabel; and brother Bernie. Another son, Michael, died of heart failure in 1986 at age 23. Gormé died of an undisclosed illness in Aug. 2013. - The Hollywood Reporter, 3/7/24.

Elton John has teamed up with the apparel company Happy Socks for a new collection of limited-edition custom socks. Titled the "Elton John Special Edition Unapologetically Yourself Collection," the line boasts eight different sock styles ranging from a denim patterned "Blue Jean Baby" pair of socks to a cobalt blue "Rocket Man"-themed pair. The entire collection, available for a limited time only, can be viewed at HappySocks.com. - Billboard, 3/5/24...... Cher will be honored with the 2024 iHeartRadio Icon Award at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards on Apr. 1. Cher was not announced as a performer on the show, but will be the subject of a musical tribute. The show will feature performances by Justin Timberlake, Green Day, TLC, Jelly Roll, Lainey Wilson, Tate McRae and more. The inimitable singer is also among this year's nominees for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The 12th annual iHeartRadio Music Awards will celebrate the most-played artists and songs on iHeartRadio stations and the iHeartRadio app throughout 2023. The event will air live from Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Apr. 1 from 8:00-10:00 p.m. ET live (PT tape-delayed) on FOX. The show also will be heard on iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide and on the iHeartRadio app. - Billboard, 3/4/24...... The EaglesThe Eagles/Don Henley "stolen notes" trial came to a stunning end on Mar. 6 after Manhattan prosecutors decided to drop a criminal case against three men accused of trying to sell stolen notes linked to the band's 1976 album Hotel California, with a judge saying Henley had "manipulated" prosecutors. During a hearing in open court, Justice Curtis Farber dismissed the charges against Glenn Horowitz, Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinski after prosecutors alerted him that newly uncovered evidence cast doubt on whether Henley's notes had been stolen in the first place. The sudden reversal was sparked by Henley producing new evidence that had been previously withheld under attorney-client privilege. The new materials touched on whether journalist Ed Sanders, who was hired in the 1970s to write a book about the Eagles, had legitimately come into possession of Henley's notes. Farber sharply criticized the conduct of Henley and his manager, Irving Azoff: "It is now clear that both witnesses and their lawyers used the privilege to obfuscate and hide information that they believed would be damaging to their position that the lyric sheets were stolen." He added he was also troubled that prosecutors had been "manipulated" into bringing the charges, and questioned why they had not more thoroughly vetted the accusations and the evidence -- but praised them for dropping the case once new evidence had come to light. The surprise dismissal of the charges came mid-way through the closely-watched criminal trial, in which Henley and Azoff had already testified. The proceedings had already run more than two weeks and had been expected to keep going until at least next week. - Billboard, 3/6/24...... In other legal news, Earth, Wind & Fire has won its trademark lawsuit against a tribute band that used the group's name without permission. After a year of litigation, EWF prevailed against a tribute act calling itself "Earth, Wind & Fire Legacy Reunion" -- a use of the legendary R&B group's name that a federal judge called "deceptive and misleading." Tribute acts -- groups that exclusively cover the music of a particular band -- are legally allowed to operate, and they often adopt names that allude to the original. However they must make clear that they are only a tribute band, and they can run into legal trouble if they make it appear that they are affiliated with or endorsed by the original. The case against Legacy Reunion took that basic framework and added tricky questions. The tribute band really did feature musicians who had once performed with EWF, and they argued that they were legally allowed to tell that to fans. But EWF's attorneys argued that those performers were just a few "side musicians" who had briefly played with the band, and that they had purposefully aimed to mislead consumers into thinking the primary players were also involved. On Mar. 4, Judge Federico A. Moreno sided decisively with the original band, saying the evidence tipped "overwhelmingly" in its favor. - Billboard, 3/5/24...... '70s musicians and longtime anti-nuclear activists Jackson Browne and Graham Nash are among a coalition of actors, musicians and activists who have signed an open letter to Hollywood on the significance of director Christopher Nolan's film Oppenheimer and the real-life threats of nuclear war. Under the headline "An Open Letter to Hollywood on Oppenheimer and Nuclear War," an ad to be published on Mar. 7 in the Los Angeles Times and also viewable on MakeNukesHistory.org reads, in part: "Oppenheimer depicts the origin story of nuclear weapons, the history of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Oppenheimer's subsequent warnings against an arms race and the development of even more powerful weapons. Oppenheimer was right to warn us. Today, 13,000 nuclear weapons are held by nine countries. Some are 80 times more powerful than the ones that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. As artists and advocates, we want to raise our voices to remind people that while Oppenheimer is history, nuclear weapons are not." The campaign is taking place across Los Angeles and includes, in addition to several billboards, a mural in West Hollywood and more than 1,000 street posters, proclaiming "Oppenheimer Started It, We Can End It" and "13 Oppenheimer Nominations; 13,000 Nuclear Weapons." Also included the coalition are the likes of Annie Lennox, Jane Fonda, Michael Douglas, Julianne Moore, Lily Tomlin, Viggo Mortensen and J. Robert Oppenheimer's grandson, activist Charles Oppenheimer. The film Oppenheimer is expected to pick up several Oscars -- including the major categories of best picture and best director -- during the 2024 Academy Awards ceremony on Mar. 10 in Los Angeles. - Billboard, 3/6/24...... The Doobie BrothersOn Mar. 6 the Doobie Brothers and their former member Michael McDonald announced they are reuniting for their first album in 44 years. The Doobies' 50th anniversary reunion tour is heading into its third year, and co-founders Tom Johnston and Patrick Simmons say they're stoked about the band's next album, which it's finishing work on with McDonald. The singer/keyboardist was with the Doobies from 1975-1982, McDonald has been back in the fold since the band's anniversary tour was first announced in 2019 and then delayed by the pandemic. Produced by John Shanks -- who also produced the band's 2021 effort Liberte -- the new album will be the Doobies' first in 11 years, and the band's first with McDonald since 1980's One Step Closer. It will also be the first Doobies album to include McDonald, Simmons and Johnston since Takin' It to the Streets in 1975. McDonald also sang backing vocals on the Doobies' 2014 album Southbound. McDonald's tenure with the band -- coming after he contributed backing vocals to Steely Dan albums -- was among its most successful. Brought in to help the band while Johnston was suffering burn-out, the St. Louis native contributed hits such as "Takin' It to the Streets," "It Keeps You Runnin'," "You Belong to Me" (co-written with Carly Simon) and "Real Love." The triple-platinum Minute By Minute album in 1978, meanwhile, was the band's sole No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 200 album chart and won three Grammy Awards including Record of the Year for the hit "What a Fool Believes." Simmons says the goal is to finish recording the new album before the band's summer tour begins June 15 in Seattle; meanwhile McDonald is preparing to release an autobiography, What a Fool Believes: A Memoir, on on May 21. - Billboard, 3/6/24......Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band have been booked for a Jersey homecoming spot headlining the second of two nights at the Sea.Hear.Now Festival, set for Sept. 15 at Asbury Park, N.J., according to a post on the festival's Instagram page. The band previously announced it will hit the road for its latest world tour, set to launch Mar. 19 at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, and stretching across 52 dates in 17 countries. Springsteen, 74, is now symptom free from a peptic ulcer disease that plagued him in 2023, and forced the band to postpone a long run of shows into 2024. Those postponed dates are worked into the forthcoming tour, set to wrap up Nov. 22 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, B.C. The Boss warmed up the trek with performances at the 2024 MusiCares "Person Of The Year" gala, the 17th annual "Stand Up For Heroes" benefit, and at the New Jersey Hall of Fame induction honoring his wife and fellow musician Patti Scialfa. To celebrate the trans-Atlantic tour dates, Springsteen's longtime label home Sony Music has announced it will release a career-spanning collection of the Rock And Roll Hall of Famer's original music, on Apr. 19. The Best of Bruce Springsteen will boast 31 songs in digital formats. Sony will also issue an 18-track set across two LPs or one CD, and the vinyl edition will also be available as an Amazon.com exclusive "color variant," reps say. - Billboard, 3/6/24...... Gary Glitter'70s pop star Gary Glitter is being sued in the UK by one of his victims over alleged psychiatric damage caused by his past sexual abuse. The claim against the disgraced Glitter has been brought by one of the victims to which Glitter was convicted in 2015 of abusing, along with two other young victims, with the incidents taking place between 1975 and 1980. In the lawsuit, the victim, who has not been publicly identified, is seeking compensation for the psychiatric damage she suffered at his hands when she was just 12 years old -- with her lawyer describing it as "the worst kind" of abuse. "What we have is severe and profound consequences as a result of abuse that I think is fair to say is of the worst kind," her lawyer, Jonathan Metzer, told the court during a hearing in London on Mar. 5. "In summary, it has had profound and long-lasting consequences for my client's life ever since." Glitter -- whose real name is Paul Gadd -- did not attend the London hearing and was not represented by a lawyer. The court was also told that he had not so far engaged with the civil case. The plaintiff has previously secured a "default judgment" in her claim -- a ruling in her favor over Gadd's liability. Glitter had several chart hits in the '70s but later fell from grace around 20 years later, when he was arrested and imprisoned for possessing thousands of images of child abuse. From there, he was later expelled from Cambodia in 2002 following reports of sex crime allegations, and was convicted of sexually abusing two girls, aged 10 and 11, in Vietnam in 2006. The latter saw him spend two and a half years in jail. Further allegations against him came to light when he was the first person named and arrested under the UK's Operation Yewtree -- an investigation by the Metropolitan Police following the Jimmy Savile scandal. - New Musical Express, 3/6/24...... Sammy Hagar has won a court order barring an allegedly unauthorized Hollywood location of the "Red Rocker"'s Cabo Wabo Cantina from continuing to use the chain's name and branding while their dispute plays out before a judge. In a preliminary injunction issued on Mar. 5, a Los Angeles federal judge sided with Hagar's company, Red Head Inc., and ruled franchisee Robert Azinian was prohibited from using "Cabo Wabo" trademarks for any purpose, including a new location on Hollywood Boulevard that sparked the rocker's lawsuit. Judge George H. Wu's order came amid an escalating legal dispute between Hagar and his former business partner over Cabo Wabo Cantina -- a brand of Mexican-themed eateries started by the Van Halen rocker in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico in 1990 and later franchised into locations in Las Vegas and Hollywood. He said Hagar's company was likely to eventually win the lawsuit, and that it would face so-called "irreparable harm" if Azinian was able to continue using the Cabo Wabo Cantina branding while the case played out. - Billboard, 3/5/24...... After premiering in the US on Valentine's Day, the new Bob Marley biopic One Love has become the seventh all-time highest-grossing music biopic. The film, which stars Kingsley Ben-Adir as reggae legend Marley, has grossed $82.8 million in the U.S. and Canada Mar. 3, according to boxofficemojo.com. The 2018 Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody claims the top spot, with a domestic gross of $216.4 million to date. Rami Malek won an Oscar for best actor for playing the band's charismatic lead singer Freddie Mercury. - Billboard, 3/3/24...... Black SabbathThe Black Sabbath classic "Paranoid" has joined the elite streaming "Billions Club" on Spotify.com. Recognized as a classic of the heavy metal genre, "Paranoid" is the title track from the band's 1970 LP, peaking at No. 61 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart and No. 4 on the Official U.K. Singles Chart. Spotify welcomed "Paranoid" to its Billions Club in a Mar. 4 post on X/Twitter. "Paranoid" has racked up over 75 million records sold, including more than 24 platinum albums in the U.K. alone and over 15 million albums in the U.S., according to BMG, which represents the band's recordings outside North America. The song was written in the studio "in about five minutes," according to an interview with Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler with Guitar World in 2004. The song is the 581st addition to Spotify's Billions Club since the service launched in 2008. Black Sabbath was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 2006, with members of Metallica doing the honors. - Billboard, 3/6/24...... During a show at the Broward Center For The Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. on Mar. 1, Bob Dylan appeared to respond to a heckler who shouted "play something we know!" at one of his recent live shows. Early on in the 16-song set, the rock legend was interrupted by a dissatisfied audience member. In a fan-shot video which can be viewed on YouTube and X/Twitter, a woman can be heard shouting at the musician to "play something we know!" during the introduction to a live rendition of his 1971 song "When I Paint My Masterpiece." Dylan then launched into a new arrangement of the song where he sings the lyrics to the tune of Irving Berlin's "Puttin' On The Ritz" (or possibly, The Four Lads' 1953 song "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)." During the concert, Dylan also covered Jimmy Rogers' "Walking By Myself" live for the first time. Dylan's current "Rough And Rowdy Ways" tour is scheduled to conclude in early April. In February, he and Willie Nelson announced a co-headlining US tour for this summer. - NME, 3/5/24...... Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry has sold half of his sound recording, publishing and name, image and likeness rights to Irving Azoff's Iconic Artists Group. The company, which did not disclose financial details of the deal, said it will "develop and expand the renowned artist's musical legacy to new generations of fans." The deal spans Ferry's work with Roxy Music and his expansive solo career, which combined has yielded 24 albums over 50-plus years. The band's best known songs include "Love Is the Drug," "All I Want Is You," "Virginia Plain," "Dance Away," "Avalon" and radio staple "More Than This." Ferry's solo favorites include "Slave to Love," "Let's Stick Together," "Don't Stop the Dance," "Kiss & Tell" and a memorable cover of fellow sophisticate Robert Palmer's "Johnny & Mary." Ferry was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019 as a member of Roxy Music, and he was awarded a CBE in 2011 for his contribution to British music. - Billboard, 3/5/24...... One of the somewhat underreported facts about the recent lunar lander which became the first US spacecraft to touch down on the moon since 1972 was its payload that included a capsule full of artistic artefacts. Artists whose music appears in the arts-centric collection include recordings by Marvin Gaye, Santana, Chuck Berry, Sly & the Family Stone, Bob Marley, Janis Joplin and The Who and many more. It also has photos of music events like Woodstock and album art, such as Pink Floyd's The Dark Side Of The Moon. The capsule was enclosed in a glass, nickel and NanoFiche structure built to last millions of, if not a billion, years. "In case we blow ourselves up with a nuclear weapon or a meteor hits us or climatic change wipes us out, there's a testament of our history sitting on the moon," says Climate & Refugees documentarian Michael P. Nash. - NME, 2/27/24...... Freddie MercuryLate Queen singer Freddie Mercury's $38 million London home has officially hit the market for the first time since his death. The peaceful home, named Garden Lodge, first caught the eye of the Queen frontman in 1980 after he toured the Kensington property himself. He was so taken by its beauty and charm that he decided to purchase it "on the spot," according to a press release from Knight Frank, which holds the current listing. After Mercury bought the Neo-Georgian style home, he worked alongside interior designer Robin Moore Ede to transform it into a true reflection of himself and his eclectic style. After his death in 1991, the rock legend left his treasured estate to his close friend and former fiance Mary Austin, who has decided to list the property after more than 30 years. Freddie composed the Queen classic on the home's grand piano before his death at age 45 due to complications of AIDS. - People, 2/29/24...... Jim Beard, a solo artist and touring keyboardist for Steely Dan for the past 16 years, died on Mar. 2 at age 63 from complications of a sudden, as yet undisclosed illness, a spokesperson for the group has confirmed. Born in Ridley Park, Penn. on Aug. 26, 1960, Beard took clarinet, saxophone and sting bass lessons as a teenager and studied jazz at Indiana University, where he played in a bar band that featured session drummer Kenny Aronoff (John Mellencamp, John Fogerty) and trumpet player Chris Botti. He joined the live Steely Dan band in 2008 for the Think Fast Tour and in addition to performing with the long-running jazz-influenced rock group -- including at his final show with the band on Jan. 20 in Phoenix, Ariz. He was also a touring member of the Eagles on their Long Goodbye tour. Between tours with such jazz greats as Pat Metheny and John McLaughlin's Mahavishu Orchestra, Beard recorded six solo CDs and taught at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, the Mason Gross School of Arts at Rutgers University, and variouis other universities. - Billboard, 3/6/24.

Monday, February 26, 2024

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on March 2nd, 2024

Organizers of the 2024 BST Hyde Park Show in London announced on Feb. 29 that Stevie Nicks will be joining the already power-packed lineup for the July 12 concert in Hyde Park. "Anything that draws me back to London -- and therefore to England -- fills my heart with joy," Nicks, 75, said in a statement. "And to be able to visit and make music... is always a dream come true." The concert, with support acts to be named later, will be former Fleetwood Mac frontwoman's first show in the U.K. in seven years; she previously performed at BST in 2017 in support of her old friend and duet partner Tom Petty. Nicks will be on the road throughout 2024, including a Mar. 3 headlining show in Omaha, Neb., as well as a run of co-headlining stadium gigs with longtime pal Billy Joel on Mar. 9 show at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Tex. and June 21 at Chicago's Soldier Field. - Billboard, 2/29/24...... Keith RichardsKeith Richards has covered the Lou Reed classic "I'm Waiting For the Man" ahead of the release of a new tribute album in honor of Reed. The track is one of Reed's earliest works which appeared on The Velvet Underground's 1967 debut, The Velvet Underground & Nico. "To me, Lou stood out. The real deal! [He was] important to American music and to ALL MUSIC! I miss him and his dog," Richards said in a statement. The cover is the first song to be released from the forthcoming Reed tribute album The Power of the Heart, which also features contributions from Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Rosanne Cash, The Afghan Whigs, and Lucinda Williams and more. Produced in partnership with Reed's widow, Laurie Anderson, and the Lou Reed Archive, The Power of the Heart is set for release on Apr. 20 via Light in the Attic Records. Richards' cover of "I'm Waiting For the Man" has been shared on YouTube. - NME, 3/1/24...... A new book featuring unreleased interviews with The Beatles, All You Need Is Love: The Beatles in Their Own Words, has already made Amazon.com's bestsellers charts as a No. 1 new release, even though it won't officially be available to buy online until Apr. 9. Written by Peter Brown and Steven Gaines -- who have both worked with, and written about the Fab Four for years -- All You Need Is Love features unreleased interviews with the band members, as well as new interviews with people who were close to the group, including ex-wives Cynthia Lennon, Pattie Harrison Clapton and Maureen Starkey, as well as "the major social and business figures of the Beatles' inner circle" according to a press release, which adds that "Only a small portion of the contents of these transcribed interviews have ever been revealed." Brown and Gaines previously collaborated together back in 1983 when they authored the bestseller The Love You Make: An Insider's Story of the Beatles, which detailed the rise of the band and their oftentimes complicated relationships with one another. - Billboard, 2/26/24...... In other Beatles-related news, music producer Mark Ronson (Amy Winehouse, the Barbie soundtrack) says he "called in some favors" to encourage the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame to induct his stepfather Mick Jones' famous rock band, Foreigner, into the Rock Hall in 2024. Appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Feb. 26, Ronson revealed he put together a compilation of videos from famous friends vocalizing their support for the rock band, including Paul McCartney. "I called in some favors. So there's some people I've met along the way making music myself that I knew were fans of Foreigner, like Jack Black and Dave Grohl and Slash." But when he got the former Beatles' superstar's submission, he said he was shocked to find that it was somewhat off-color. Fallon then rolled the clip, self-filmed by McCartney in his car. "Foreigner not in the Hall of Fame? What the f--k?," Macca succinctly declares in the video before abruptly ending the recording. "I've never heard Paul McCartney curse," said Ronson. "He's a knight! I don't want to be the first person to ever post a video of Paul McCartney dropping the f-bomb." Sir Paul's video can be viewed on X, while Ronson's full interview with Fallon is available on YouTube. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductions are set to be announced in late April. Meanwhile, Foreigner's big moment continues as another late night host, Jimmy Kimmel, has tweaked Foreigner's 1977 breakthrough hit "Feels Like the First Time" in a new ad for Kimmel's upcoming fourth time hosting the Academy Awards, set for Mar. 10. The copy line of the ad, which can be viewed on Instagram, reads "Feels Like the Very Fourth Time," since this is Kimmel's fourth time as host. In other McCartney news, it has been revealed by Japanese composer Koji Kondo that McCartney once brought him backstage to sing the iconic Super Mario Bros. for him. In an interview with the Washington Post, Kondo said he and Super Mario Bros. creator Shigeru Miyamoto went to see Paul in 1986 while he was touring Japan. After learning they were in the audience, Paul and his wife Linda invited them backstage. Upon meeting Kondo and Miyamoto, the first thing the McCartneys did was sing the first six notes of the Super Mario Bros. theme (available on YouTube). It was an "incredible moment," said Kondo. In 2014, McCartney wrote the song "Hope For The Future" for online shooter Destiny, alongside several of game's main themes. There is also speculation more McCartney music may feature in Destiny 2's The Final Shape soundtrack, which is set for release in June. - Billboard/New Musical Express, 2/27/24...... Paul SimonThe trailer for the forthcoming Paul Simon special on the premium streamer MGM+, In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon, has been shared on YouTube. In the two-part series, Simon dives into his songwriting legacy and the high points of his nearly seven-decade career in music. In addition to taking viewers behind the scenes of the making of his 2023 album Seven Psalms, the Alex Gibney-helmed doc promises to include never-before-seen footage from throughout the 82-year-old Simon's storied career, from his days in Simon & Garfunkel to the global success of his landmark 1986 world music album Graceland. "I've never wanted to be anything other than a singer and songwriter," says Simon, author of such indelible hits as "Homeward Bound," "The Sound of Silence" (which includes the line "In restless dreams" which provided the title of this doc), "Mrs. Robinson," "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" and "Loves Me Like a Rock." In Restless Dreams, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2023, will bow as a two-part series on MGM+ on Mar. 17 and 24. - Billboard, 2/29/24...... John Fogerty says that he's "in total shock" over the recent announcement by Australia's Country Fest Queensland festival that mysteriously canceled his scheduled performance. On Feb. 27, the festival announced that his performance was canceled due to "unforeseen circumstances." I'm bewildered," Fogerty told Billboard, sounding jovial but confused. "I still remain able and ready and willing to do this show. I take the commitment of playing for the fans very seriously. Throughout my career, practically my whole life, there's hardly ever been a cancelation." His performance, which had been scheduled for the weekend of Mar. 30, would have marked the Creedence Clearwater Revival founder's first show in Australia in more than a decade. Fogerty and his team maintain that they have not been made aware of any reason for the sudden change. "I really don't know a lot," he says. "I was happy to be coming down to Australia to play. It sounded like a really fun event." Soon after Country Fest announced that Fogerty was no longer part of the billing, Fogerty posted a statement on Instagram. "I was ready to celebrate with you all for my one and only show this year in Australia when the Country Fest Queensland blindsided me yesterday by canceling my appearance," it read. "It was posted that I would not be appearing due to unforeseen circumstances. Well, I can tell you, my friends, I was not the reason for the 'unforeseen circumstances.'" Country Fest has since shared a follow-up statement claiming that negotiations with Fogerty's team "did not reach a final outcome," however Fogerty maintains his contract was signed and fully agreed upon in mid-January. "Everything was normal as far as I knew," he says. - Billboard, 2/28/24...... After first expressing disappointment that rapper Kanye West had allegedly used an unauthorized interpolation of Donna Summer's 1977 hit "I Feel Love" in his new song "Good (Don't Die)" in early February, Summer's estate formally sued West for copyright infringement on Feb. 27 in federal court in Los Angeles. The suit alleges that representatives of West had asked permission to use Summer's song, however West was rejected because the Summer estate "wanted no association with West's controversial history." West and his collaborator Ty Dolla $ign have been accused of "shamelessly" including re-recorded parts of the hit that were "instantly recognizable" on the song from his new Vultures 1 album. The suit, filed by Summer's husband Bruce Sudano in his role as executor of the estate, states: "In the face of this rejection, defendants arrogantly and unilaterally decided they would simply steal 'I Feel Love' and use it without permission." The lawsuit names both West and Ty as defendants, as well as Yeezy Record Label, LLC, the company Yzy Snd, and 10 Does. It seeks an injunction to prevent any further circulation of the song, with damages to be determined at a trial. The defendants are yet to respond to the suit. Meanwhile, Ozzy Osbourne has reflected on standing up to West in a similar situation in a new interview with Rolling Stone magazine. In early February, Ozzy claimed he turned down Kanye's request to use a sample of the 1971 Black Sabbath track "Iron Man." "With the current state of affairs, you don't need anybody starting people on discrimination of any kind," said Osbourne, 75-year-old. "It's wrong. It's just wrong. There's enough f--king aggravation, and he shouldn't say anything (like what he has)," he continued. "It's wrong if you don't say anything about him. I don't want any of my work in any shape or form to be associated with anything like that." In late 2022, West made a series of anti-semitic remarks, including comments praising Adolf Hitler, which led to the termination of numerous commercial partnerships. He later apologized. - NME/Music-News.com, 2/28/24...... Such '70s artists as Melissa Manchester, Barry Manilow, Carlos Santana and Dionne Warwick will be among the lineup paying tribute to music industry icon Clive Davis in late April. "The Soundtrack of Our Lives: A Tribute to the Legendary Clive Davis" will take place on Apr. 29 at Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage in New York. According to a release from The New York Pops on Instagram announcing the special night of music, the lineup (which also includes Babyface, Toni Braxton, Busta Rhymes and Kenny G, among others) will "showcase Mr. Davis' immense impact on the worlds of Pop, Rock and Roll, R&B, Country and Hip-Hop through a wide array of musical selections." It noted that throughout his nearly six-decade career in the music industry, Davis, 91, has won four Grammys, as well as a Trustees Award from the Recording Academy and a 2000 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 2010, the theater at The Grammy Museum at L.A. Live was named in Davis' honor. Davis' storied career as a record producer, record executive and A&R man has included stints at the top of Columbia Records, RCA Music Group and BMG North America and the founding of Arista Records and J Records, as well as the landmark singings of such music legends as Janis Joplin, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Aerosmith, Pink Floyd and Chicago, as well as a key role in boosting Whitney Houston to global prominence. - Billboard, 2/28/24...... Patti_BoydAuction house Christie's announced on Feb. 26 that it will host an online auction of items from the personal collection of British model and photographer Pattie Boyd, who once served as a muse for both George Harrison and Eric Clapton. Hailing Boyd as "one of the greatest muses in rock history" in a press release, Christie's noted that she inspired a plethora of songs between the two musicians, including Harrison's Beatles song "Something" and Clapton's classic "Layla." Boyd was married to Harrison during the peak of Beatlemania, the band's foray into psychedelia and post-breakup (1966-1977). Clapton, a close friend of Harrison's, pursued Boyd for years via a series of love letters, some of which are available at the auction. "I am writing this note to you, with the main purpose of ascertaining your feelings toward a subject well known to both of us," he opens one letter. "What I wish to ask you is if you still love your husband, or if you have another lover? All these questions are very impertinent I know, but if there is still a feeling in your heart for me... you must let me know!" By 1974, upon discovering his multitude of extramarital affairs, Boyd left Harrison. Five years later, she and Clapton married, eventually splitting in 1987 due to substance abuse issues and infidelity. For her part, Boyd believes auctioning off these items (which include photos of herself, Harrison and Clapton, as well as postcards, telegrams and letters) is a part of her healing journey. "I thought, 'Do I need them? Do I need to keep going into Pandora's Box?' I've enjoyed them for many, many years, and now it's time for other people to see and enjoy them. It's only right I should pass them on," she mused to Christie's, where items will be on display at Christie's in London from Mar. 15-22. The online auction occurs between Mar. 8-21. - Billboard, 2/27/24...... As shooting begins on the new Michael Jackson biopic Michael, Lionsgate and Universal Pictures have reported that two sets of four actors have been cast to play the King of Pop's brothers in the Jackson 5 -- Jermaine, Marlon, Tito and Jackie -- to represent the group as they age in the film. "The truly epic nature of this film required a total of 10 actors with the talent to portray the Jackson 5 through the years," says Michael producer Graham King in a press release. "I'm thrilled to bring this extraordinary group of actors and performers to worldwide audiences in this film," he adds. Jaafar Jackson will portray his late uncle Michael in the film alongside Nia Long, set to play Katherine Jackson, and Oscar nominee Colman Domingo, who is set to play the controversial Jackson family patriarch, Joe Jackson. Nine-year-old actor Juliano Krue Valdi will portray Michael during his formative years in the Jackson 5. Michael is currently scheduled for release on Apr. 18, 2025. - Billboard, 2/27/24...... Journey announced on their X page on Feb. 27 that they'll kick off a 50th anniversary tour of the UK and Ireland this autumn in Cardiff's Utilita Arena on Oct. 30, followed by stops in Glasgow (11/2), Belfast (11/4), Dublin (11/5), Manchester (11/8), Leeds (11/9), Liverpool (11/11), Birmingham (11/13) and Newcastle (11/6) before wrapping at London's O2 Arena on Nov. 17. "It's been too long since we've seen you all!" said guitarist Neal Schon in a statement. "We are all very excited to be coming back to the UK and playing with our good friends Cheap Trick, who I've known and played with since the '70s. It's going to be a great party for all!" The run follows a lengthy trek across the US which will include a massive stadium tour with Def Leppard which gets underway in July. Journey's most recent album was 2022's Freedom, their first full-length LP in over a decade. - NME, 2/27/24...... Willie Nelson announced on Feb. 27 his latest Outlaw Music Festival Tour will launch June 21 in Alpharatta, Ga. -- and this one might be the most star-studded one yet. The tour will feature Nelson's band Willie Nelson & Family, Bob Dylan, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss and John Mellencamp, along with Brittney Spencer, Celisse and Southern Avenue on various dates throughout the tour. Country singer Billy Strings, who just headlined three Nashville shows, will join the tour for a special concert outside Seattle, Washington at The Gorge. "This year's Outlaw Music Festival Tour promises to be the biggest and best yet with this lineup of legendary artists. I am thrilled to get back on the road again with my family and friends playing the music we love for the fans we love," Nelson, 90, said in a statement. The Outlaw Music Festival made its debut in 2016 in Scranton, Penn. The sold-out show garnered so much acclaim that organizers Blackbird Presents, Mark Rothbaum and Nelson developed it into a hugely-popular touring franchise that has welcomed artists including Chris Stapleton, Neil Young, Luke Combs, Van Morrison, ZZ Top, Sheryl Crow, Eric Church, Bonnie Raitt and more over the years. - Billboard, 2/27/24...... Don HenleyAppearing in Manhattan Criminal Court on Feb. 26, Don Henley denied that he ever gave away handwritten pages of draft lyrics to "Hotel California" and other Eagles hits, calling them "very personal" in testimony that also delved into an ugly but unrelated episode: his 1980 arrest. Henley, the 76-year-old Grammy-winning co-founder of one of the most successful bands in rock history, is prosecutors' star witness in an unusual criminal trial surrounding the lyrics sheets. Henley says they were stolen decades ago from his barn in Malibu, Calif., and that he was appalled when the material began turning up at auctions in 2012. "It just wasn't something that was for public viewing. It was our process. It was something very personal, very private," he said in a raspy drawl. "I still wouldn't show that to anybody." The defendants are three collectibles experts who bought the pages years later through a writer who had worked with the Eagles on a never-published band biography. The defense maintains that Henley willingly gave them to the scribe. Under cross-examination, Henley acknowledged that he didn't remember "the entirety" of his conversations with the writer, Ed Sanders, who isn't charged in the case. Nor, Henley said, could he recall whether he gave Sanders permission to take the documents off the property. But Henley insisted he gave Sanders only access to the documents, not permanent possession of them, in the hopes that a firsthand view of "the time and effort that went into" the lyrics would improve the book. He said he told Sanders he could look at the pages, ideally at a breakfast table in an apartment upstairs from the barn. "I never gave him permission to keep those items," Henley said. At issue are about 100 sheets of legal-pad paper inscribed with lyrics-in-the-making for multiple songs on the Hotel California album, including "Life in the Fast Lane," "New Kid in Town" and the title track that turned into one of the most durable hits in rock. Famed for its lengthy guitar solo and puzzlingly poetic lyrics, the song still gets streamed hundreds of millions of times a year. The defendants -- rare-book dealer Glenn Horowitz and rock memorabilia specialists Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinski -- have pleaded not guilty to charges including criminally possessing stolen property. Their lawyers say there was nothing illegal in what happened to the lyrics sheets. The defense has signaled that it plans to question Henley about how clearly he remembers his conversations with Sanders during an era in which the rocker was living in his own fast lane. In an apparent attempt to defuse some of those questions, a prosecutor brought up Henley's 1980 arrest. Henley pleaded no contest in 1981 to a misdemeanor charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, after authorities found cocaine, quaaludes, marijuana and a naked 16-year-old girl suffering from an overdose at his Los Angeles home the prior November. He was sentenced to probation and a $2,500 fine, and he requested a drug education program to get some possession charges dismissed. Henley testified that he'd been depressed about the Eagles 1980 breakup and had sought "an escape" by calling for a sex worker that night. "I made a poor decision which I regret to this day," he said. As for his memory, he said, "I can't tell you what I had for breakfast last Friday morning, but I can tell you where we stayed when we played Wembley in 1975 and we opened for Elton John and the Beach Boys," referring to London's Wembley Stadium. - AP, 2/26/24...... Rod Stewart and his latest collaborator Jools Holland are on track for a No. 1 UK album with their latest covers collection gathering songs from the big band era, Swing Fever. The LP leads the midweek Official Chart Update, and is set to become Stewart's 11th No. 1 album, and first since You're In My Heart led the tally back in Dec. 2019. Holland has never nabbed top spot on the Official U.K. Chart. Should it top the chart, Swing Fever would see Stewart move up to 10th on the U.K.'s list of artists with the most career No. 1s, and into equal fifth among solo acts with the most leaders. - Billboard, 2/26/24...... Freddie MercuryThe Bizarre column in the UK paper The Sun is reporting that Mercury Songs Limited, which owns late Queen frontman Freddie Mercury's solo works, has filed to trademark his moniker for 3D and virtual reality, giving rise to speculation that a new Freddie Mercury hologram show could be in the works. According to the filing, it covers "immersive 3D virtual, augmented, and mixed reality experiences" for "virtual environments." Queen have already performed with an illusion of Freddie at their concerts. Guitarist Sir Brian May, 76, wept after performing a duet of "Love Of My Life" with an optical illusion of Mercury during Queen + Adam Lambert's "Rhapsody Tour" in 2022, however May has said he would prefer that a Queen hologram show similar to ABBA's successful Voyage show in London happen after he and his bandmates have gone on to join Mercury in the next world. "When we're all gone, yeah sure, make an ABBA thing about us, but while we're here I want to play live," May said during an appearance on The Graham Norton Radio Show podcast in 2023. Mercury died at the age of 45 in 1991 from bronchial pneumonia, a complication of AIDS. - Music-News.com, 2/27/24...... The death of beloved comedian/actor Richard Lewis on Feb. 27 after suffering a heart attack has prompted online messages of condolences from the likes of Ringo Starr, Peter Frampton and Bette Midler. "Comedian/Actor Richard Lewis passed away peacefully at his home in Los Angeles last night after suffering a heart attack," his rep, Jeff Abraham, shared the news via a statement. "His wife, Joyce Lapinsky, thanks everyone for all the love, friendship and support and asks for privacy at this time." Lewis quickly became a fan favorite over 40 episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm, including the 2000 pilot episode. In 2021, he announced that he would not return to the series in order to recover from three surgeries, though he ended up making a one-scene appearance in season 11. He ended up returning for the now-airing final season of the HBO program. "God bless, Richard Lewis peace and love to Joyce peace and love," Ringo Starr posted on X on Feb. 28, while Peter Frampton posted that "I just heard we have lost the great and wonderful Richard Lewis. We've been friends for over 30years. I'll really miss you my friend. I love you @TheRichardLewis rip." Bette Midler posted "On a sad note, the great Richard Lewis has died." - Billboard, 2/28/24.

Billy Joel and Sting wasted no time jamming together when they kicked off their co-headlining show at Tampa, Fla.'s Raymond James Stadium on Feb. 24. Opener Sting immediately brought out Joel for a duet of The Police hit "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic." While the surprise duet to start the night was undoubtedly a big event in itself, the Tampa Bay Times reports that a big chunk of the night's audience were unable to catch it as they were stuck in traffic outside the stadium. Fortunately, these unlucky fans were able to catch the night's second duet when Joel brought Sting out to perform "Big Man on Mulberry Street" late into his set. The pair will next share co-headlining dates together in April (San Diego) and September (St. Louis) as part of Joel's ongoing tour, which also includes stops with Stevie Nicks (Arlington, Tex. and Chicago). Fan shot footage of the Police and "Mulberry" duets can be viewed on YouTube. - New Musical Express, 2/26/24...... Mick JonesForeigner founder and guitarist/keyboardist Mick Jones released a statement on Feb. 21 revealing that he's been battling Parkinson's Disease for several years. Jones' ongoing absence from the band's live concerts since 2022 has been widely noticed and commented on by fans, and Jones, 79, says it's Parkinson's that has sidelined him from being on stage with the group, which is in the midst of a farewell tour. "Fans will have become very aware that for some time now, I have not been performing onstage with the band," Jones said in the statement. "Several years ago, I was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. I want everyone to know that I am doing alright. However, I've always liked to be at my best when performing onstage, and sadly, at present, I find that a bit difficult. I am still very much involved in the background with Foreigner and remain a presence. Parkinson's is a daily struggle; the important thing is to persevere and remind myself of the wonderful career I've had in music. I thank all the fans who have supported Foreigner throughout the years and continue to attend our concerts -- I want you to know I appreciate your support; it always means so very much to me, but especially so at this point in my life." In a previous interview, Jones -- who had heart surgery during 2012 and was playing only a few songs each night with the band during the late 2010s -- was asked about the prospect of the continuing without him on board. "That's a tough one," he said, adding that, "I look at it as a team. If you think about any kind of sports teams, they change players all the time. The thought of my music carrying on in that way has some appeal to me." Foreigner's farewell tour is slated to finish in North America this summer; dates have been announced through Aug. 28, including a summer run with Styx and John Waite. The English-born Jones formed Foreigner during 1976 in New York, shortly after playing in the Leslie West Band. He put together a band of British and American musicians, including Ian McDonald of King Crimson fame and Lou Gramm from the band Black Sheep, and hit it out of the box with a self-titled debut in 1977, which reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 200 album chart, was certified five-times platinum and launched the enduring hits "Feels Like the First Time" and "Cold as Ice." In its wake Foreigner has released eight more studio albums and sold more than 80 million records worldwide, spawning additional hits such as "Hot Blooded," "Urgent," "Juke Box Hero" and the No. 1 "I Want to Know What Love Is." Foreigner recently received its first-ever nomination for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. After the first week of fan voting, Foreigner ranked third, behind Ozzy Osbourne and Peter Frampton, with well over 100,000 votes. - Billboard, 2/21/24...... Barbra Streisand was honored with a Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement award during the 2024 SAG Awards on Feb. 24 at L.A.'s Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall. Introducing Streisand, presenter Jennifer Anniston told the audience that the Grammy-winning singer performed her first major concert at the Shrine Auditorium in 1963. Unmentioned was the fact that the venue was also the same place Streisand won three Grammy Awards in the 1970s and 1980s. Bradley Cooper also helped present the award. Streisand recalled the time in 1955 when she first saw the film musical Guys and Dolls starring Marlon Brando which she said had a powerful effect on her dreams and imagination. There was just one problem, as Streisand explained in her speech. "I wanted to be in the movies even though I knew I didn't look like the other women on screen. My mother said you better learn to type, but I didn't listen, and somehow, some way -- thank God, it all came true." Streisand also spoke about how acting, and researching roles and preparing for films, has been her education. "I never went to college," she said. "I always thought acting was my education. In trying to understand the character, to have to do research, immerse yourself in the period. The whole process was fascinating to me." - Billboard, 2/25/24...... Dolly Parton has congratulated Beyoncé on her latest achievements -- the first Black woman, or female known to be biracial, to have topped Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, and the first woman to have topped both Hot Country Songs and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs since the lists began as all-encompassing genre song charts in Oct. 1958. "I'm a big fan of Beyonce and very excited that she's done a country album," Parton posted on Instagram on Feb. 23. "So congratulations on your Billboard Hot Country number one single. Can't wait to hear the full album!," she added. That album is Renaissance Act II, due out Mar. 29. Beyoncé's country-flavored songs "Texas Hold 'Em" and "16 Carriages" debuted at Nos. 2 and 38, respectively, on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 pop chart. "Texas Hold 'Em," meanwhile, is projected to lead the Official U.K. Singles Chart, having topped the midweek survey, and is in line to be the singer's sixth U.K. solo No. 1 single. Meanwhile, Dolly Parton has been nominated for a 2024 Audie Award, which recognize distinction in audiobooks and spoken-word entertainment. Parton is nominated in the autobiography/memoir category for Behind the Seams, which she wrote and narrated with Holly George-Warren and Rebecca Seaver. Winners across 27 competitive categories will be revealed on Mar. 4 in Los Angeles. - Billboard, 2/23/24...... Ace FrehleyFormer KISS guitarist Ace Frehley says he's added two more KISS songs to his set after the band says it's retired from performing -- but he doesn't truly believe they have. "I'm the only game in town because KISS is supposedly retired -- which I don't believe is gonna happen," Frehley says. "But be that as it may. I actually added two more KISS songs to my set. We added 'Shout It Out Loud' and 'Rock and Roll All Nite' because talking to people, they go 'you gotta do those songs live' -- and I did and it went over fantastic. We ended the night with three KISS songs: 'Shout It Out Loud,' 'Deuce' and 'Rock and Roll All Nite,' and everybody was singing along and it was great. As far as I'm concerned it doesn't even matter who wrote the song. I played the guitar solos on those records, and that's good enough for me." Frehley also said he "wouldn't be surprised if KISS reformed." "There were times when I had enough and I had to leave and do my own thing," says Frehley, who was part of the band from its formation in 1973 through 1982, then rejoined from 1996 through 2002. Although Frehley maintains he quit the band, leaders Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley have indicated that he was dismissed, and the pair did not include Frehley (or original drummer Peter Criss) on any of the dates of their farewell "End of the Road World Tour." "We're still friends," he says. "I know a lot of people think we hate each other, but that's not true." On Feb. 23, Frehley released his latest solo album, 10,000 Volts, his first album since the covers set Origins Vol. 2 in 2020 and his first of original material since Spaceman in 2018. The album was co-produced by Steve Brown of the '70s band Trixter, who Frehley says he "clicked with immediately" after the two were introduced by Frehley's fiance. Frehley says he'll likely mount a worldwide tour to support 10,000 Volts. "Y'know, here I am at age 72 and I'm putting out one of the best records I've ever recorded," he says. "The playing is great and the singing is some of the best vocals I've ever done. It really doesn't make any sense, but I'm the kind of guy that's always broken rules, y'know?" - Billboard, 2/23/24...... In the latest edition of his podcast A Life in Lyrics, Paul McCartney revealed for the first time the inspiration behind a lyric in one of his most famous songs, The Beatles' "Yesterday." The line in question is "I said something wrong, now I long for yesterday" in the song's bridge, which appears twice in the song. Sir Paul said the line was subconsciously inspired by a conversation he had with his mother several years before writing the song. "We were out in the backyard and she talked posh," he said. "She was of Irish origin and she was a nurse, so she was above street level. So she had something sort of going for her, and she would talk what we thought was a little bit posh. And it was a little bit Welshy as well -- she had connections, her auntie Dilys was Welsh." McCartney continued: "I know that she said something like 'Paul, will you ask him if he's going'. I went 'Arsk! Arsk! It's ask mum.' And she got a little bit embarrassed. I remember later thinking 'God, I wish I'd never said that'. And it stuck with me. After she died I thought 'Oh f---, I really wish'." "Sometimes it's only in retrospect you can appreciate it," he added. "Yesterday," a track on the 1965 Beatles LP Help!, has been covered over 2000 times by other artists, making it one of the most performed pieces of music of all time. - NME, 2/25/24...... In other Beatles-related news, a bullet once fired from the same gun that killed John Lennon is set to go up for auction in Newcastle, UK. The bullet was given to Northumbria Police officer Brian Taylor by the New York Police Department, after they allowed him to shoot the gun on a visit to the department. Taylor recently passed away, and now the bullet will be going under the hammer at Newcastle auctioneers Anderson & Garland on February 29. Taylor had kept the bullet in a frame for the rest of his life, with the auction house's director describing it as "one of those slightly macabre lots you get now and again that draws everyone's attention." "There is a Beatles fanbase that is fanatical and a market for just about anything Beatles," he continued. "But very seldomly do you get something so unusual and unique, it's difficult to know what it's worth and whether there's a market for it or not. It's a really interesting piece of Beatles memorabilia that probably can't be replicated." Mark David Chapman shot and killed Lennon on Dec. 8, 1980 as the musician and wife Yoko Ono were returning to their Dakota Building apartment in New York City's Upper West Side. Chapman then remained at the scene until police arrived, and later pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. He was sentenced to serve a prison term of twenty years to life. In 2022, Chapman said he shot Lennon because he "wanted to be somebody and nothing was going to stop that." He has been denied parole 12 times. - NME, 2/25/24...... Steven TylerOn Feb. 21 a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit accusing Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler of sexually assaulting a teenage girl decades ago, ruling that she had waited too long to bring her case. In Nov. 2023, a former teen model named Jeanne Bellino sued the rocker, claiming he had forcibly kissed, groped and "humped" her twice over a single day in Manhattan in the summer of 1975, when she was 17 and he was 27. The case was filed under a recently-amended New York City law that allows abuse victims to sue over decades-old claims. However U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled that Bellino's case did not qualify under the new statute. He ruled that the special "lookback" window only applies to cases where the abuser's actions presented a "serious risk of physical injury" -- and that Tyler's alleged actions did not do so. "The complaint in this case does not alleged conduct presenting a serious risk of physical injury and therefore fails to state a legally sufficient claim under the [NYC statute]," the judge wrote. But in dismissing the lawsuit, the judge said Bellino could potentially seek to file an updated version of her case, and gave he gave her until the end of March to request the right to do so. Tyler has not publicly commented on the lawsuit, but in court filings, his attorneys have said he "vehemently denies" the allegations. In their motion to dismiss the case, his lawyers argued Bellino could not use the New York City newly-enacted statute to sue over "purported sexual misconduct that occurred nearly half a century ago." In 2022, Tyler was sued by another woman, Julia Holcomb, who claims he repeatedly assaulted her for three years starting in 1973, when she was just 16 years old. Holcomb claims to be the girl Tyler referred to in his memoir, Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?, when he wrote he "almost took a teen bride" and convinced her parents to grant him guardianship over her. Holcomb's case, filed in Los Angeles under a different look-back statute, remains pending. Tyler has denied those allegations, too, and his lawyers are seeking to have the case dismissed. - Billboard, 2/22/24...... Feel the need to "move like Jagger"? Mick Jagger has curated a new playlist featuring the songs he listens to while exercising. Titled "Mick Jagger: Music That Moves Me," the collection was put together for Apple Music's Fitness series and is accessible on music.apple.com. "Sometimes I like to exercise in silence, other times I like to be in the gym with Mozart but most of the time I enjoy exercising to music like this!" he said in a statement. The playlist is made up of 23 songs, opening with The Chemical Brothers' 1997 single "Block Rockin' Beats" before going into Daft Punk's classic track "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger." It also features Fatboy Slim's "Rockafeller Skank," The Human League's "Don't You Want Me" and Prince & The Revolution's "Erotic City." As for more current picks, Jagger included The 1975's "Sex" and Burna Boy's "Common Person." Jagger isn't against working out to his own tunes, either -- selecting the Rolling Stones' Hackney Diamonds single "Mess It Up," the Alok remix of "Living In A Ghost Town" and his 2001 solo song "God Gave Me Everything." Jagger, now 80, is likely getting into shape for the Stones' huge 2024 US stadium tour. The run of concerts is due to launch on Apr. 28 in Houston, Tex. - NME, 2/23/24...... Legendary axmen Jimmy Page, Brian May and Tony Iommi came together in London on Feb. 22 to launch a new guitar shop from Gibson Guitars named the Gibson Garage. The shop is inspired by Gibson's Nashville flagship branch and has over 300 guitars for sale, as well as a live music space downstairs and a made-to-measure counter for ordering bespoke, custom guitars. Page of Led Zeppelin was in attendance to reveal a new collaboration with the brand -- launching a replica of his iconic 1971 Doubleneck guitar. May of Queen and Iommi of Black Sabbath were in also attendance, and joined Page in cutting the opening ribbon, images of which can be viewed on May's Instagram page. Page recalled how he first got his hands on the signature Doubleneck back in 1971 -- despite it being a model which wasn't in circulation at the time. "[Before that], people would have an acoustic guitar on a microphone stand, then they'd start playing the electric guitar I thought 'Well, I'm not going to do that, it looks absolutely ridiculous'," he explained. "I'd seen the concept of the Doubleneck guitars in country music, but those were like a six-string then a mandolin You couldn't just go down to the shops, so I got in touch with Gibson and asked them to make one for me," he added. He also recalled that he used the model live for the first time with Zeppelin in 1971, when the band performed "Stairway To Heaven" during a gig in Belfast: "It was always there, from Belfast onwards I was always playing that." - NME, 2/23/24...... The FacesRod Stewart recently admitted that he and the other two surviving members of his '70s band The Faces -- guitarist Ronnie Wood and drummer Kenney Jones -- are "struggling" with a comeback Faces album that was first announced in summer 2021. Speaking to Vulture.com, Sir Rod revealed he's been writing songs for the project though he is unsure what will happen to the tracks. "I've sent a lot of them to Ronnie Wood. I told him, 'This is stuff we've recorded with my band, maybe the Faces would like to do it instead?' We're still struggling to make this album. We'll see. Some of them might see the light of day." Stewart, 79, added that he has "a lot of songs" that fans have never heard but he enjoys seeing how people react to his tunes when they are released. He said: "There are a lot of songs I've written that I haven't put out and nobody knows about them. My songs are like my children. I gave birth to them and then I put them out there in the world and see how they do." Jones previously explained the band's comeback record would be a "mixture of old and new." He told Uncut magazine: "What we've decided to do is work on some of the original stuff that we didn't use, so the album is going to be a mixture of old and new," he told the UK's Uncut magazine. "It's very difficult to go into specifics because many of them didn't even have titles. I think the fans may have heard certain things before and might recognise them. Ronnie and I, in particular, have been working on lots of the old stuff together and we've re-recorded a couple of those songs with more of a modern feel." - Music-News.com, 2/24/24...... Country music entertainer Roni Stoneman, a talented banjo player and cast member on the long-running TV show Hee Haw, passed away on Feb. 22 at age 85. Ms. Stoneman, known as "The First Lady of Banjo," was born May 5, 1938, to Hattie Stoneman and pioneering bluegrass musician Ernest V. "Pop" Stoneman, known for his 1925 recording of "The Sinking of the Titanic." She was also part of the family band The Stoneman Family, which evolved from the band The Bluegrass Champs, which included family members Scott Stoneman and Donna Stoneman. The group won a competition as part of Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts in 1956. By the 1960s, Roni had joined the group on banjo. She also performed as part of the group on their syndicated 1960s television show Those Stonemans. In 1967, the first year the Country Music Association (CMA) Awards were held, the Stoneman Family was named vocal group of the year. Roni departed the group in 1971, and soon joined the cast of Hee Haw, working on the country variety program for two decades as a comedian and banjo player, and known for portraying Ida-Lee Nagger, the "Ironing Board Lady." There, she worked alongside artists and comedians including Minnie Pearl, Buck Owens and Roy Clark. In 2007, she recounted her life story in the book Pressing On. CMA Hall of Fame and Museum CEO Kyle Young called Ms. Stoneman "a great talent and a strong woman," commending her legacy in the genre. "For 18 years on 'Hee Haw,' she stole scenes as both a skillful banjo player and as a comical, gap-toothed country character," he said. - Billboard, 2/22/24.