Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on Aug. 24th, 2015

The latest incarnation of the Grateful Dead, Dead & Company, has just added eight more gigs for their fall tour after previously announcing two Madison Square gigs in New York on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1. Dead & Company, which is comprised of three quarters of the core Grateful Dead plus singer/guitarist John Mayer, will play Albany, N.Y. on Oct. 29, then after the MSG shows will hit Philadelphia (11/5), Washington, D.C. (11/6), Worcester, Mass. (11/10), and two nights in San Francisco and Los Angeles on Dec. 27 and 28 and Dec. 30 and 31, respectively. The Grateful Dead played three "Fare Thee Well" performances in Chicago in early July. - Billboard, 8/24/15...... Posting on Facebook on Aug. 19, Neil Young said his digital music download service Pono is looking for a business leader, and he hopes to expand it as more funds come in. "Pono is a labor of love, not some 21st century fake shallow Xerox facsimile, with all of the essence taken away and replaced by a thin exterior with no passionate core," the iconic singer/songwriter posted. "Music matters and sound matters. Not just any music or any sound. It needs to have all of its resonance, all of its echo, all of its soul and you can't get it from downgraded super compressed files which are so ubiquitous today. It has not been easy but we are doing what we love to do: making music sound GREAT," he added. Pono currently just has one venture capitalist, according to Young, and his company is searching for the right person who will share its vision. Pono's original Kickstarter campaign brought in over $6.2 million in 2014. Young added that Warner Music Group, Sony Music, Universal Music Group and independent record labels are working with Pono, and he listed several of the company's partners, including SalesForce, Ayre Acoustics, PCH and Omniphone, that are "enabling us to deliver hi-res proven provenance Pono music to our customers." - Billboard, 8/23/15...... In an interview with the UK's Uncut magazine, Paul McCartney revealed that he feared for his own life after his former Beatles bandmate John Lennon was assassinated in 1980. Sir Paul said he was on "high alert" after Lennon was killed by deranged gunman Mark Chapman, and that his own home in rural south England was still largely unprotected and in a remote woodland location. McCartney said he was left terrified days after the killing when he spotted several armed men advancing on the property. "It was weird because in the days that followed it, I was sitting in the house. We had a little perimeter fence, mainly to keep foxes out, because we had some chickens. I'm aware of security threats, so I'm on high alert and I look out and I see someone with a f---ing gun, like a machine gun, an assault rifle - 'Wha?!' He's in full military gear, and then I see there's a whole patrol of them. I'm going, 'Holy shit, what's going on?'." Macca added he doesn't recall exactly what he did: "I think I rang the police. It turned out to be army manoeuvres. (They said) 'Oh, sorry. Are these your woods?' I'd put two and two together and made a thousand. God, I don't know how I lived through it. You think you'd just faint dead on the ground. But they were all there, coming through these woods." - New Musical Express, 8/24/15...... The wife of late Jimi Hendrix drummer Mitch Mitchell is warning fans of the guitar legend to beware of fake memorabilia currently flooding online auction sites. Dee Mitchell claims most of the Hendrix items on sale now, including equipment, clothes, books and instruments, have been falsely attributed as having come "From The Estate of Mitch Mitchell" or from herself, and according to her most of them are "tacky, cheap rubbish" and advises collectors to "ask for plenty of authentication, dates, and a full provenance with loads of information" before making a purchase. "Any provenance from me would be detailed and packed with information" she said, and that potential buyers should "take great care not to buy anything which seems a bit dodgy." Mitch Mitchell was the drummer in Hendrix's Jimi Hendrix Experience, playing on the Are You Experienced, Axis: Bold as Love and Electric Ladyland albums. - New Musical Express, 8/23/15...... The home of Kiss bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons was served by a search warrent by Los Angeles police on Aug. 20, however neither Simmons nor anyone in his family is suspected in the case. Lt. John Jenal of the LAPD says the warrant was served at Simmons' Benedict Canyon home near Beverly Hills, and that the 65-year-old Simmons and his family were "extremely cooperative" and none of them are suspected of a crime. Police would give no further comment on the investigation. Simmons and his family were the subject of a reality TV series that aired for several years. - AP, 8/21/15...... An attempt by one of late blues legend B.B. King's daughters to obtain her dad's medical records from an executor who she alleges mishandled her father's finances and health before he died was denied by a probate court commisioner in Las Vegas on Aug. 21. An attorney for King's estate maintained that Patty King was fishing for evidence to support false claims the musician's longtime business manager and power-of-attorney, LaVerne Toney, looted his accounts and hastened his death on May 14 at age 89. Toney is now executor of the estate. An autopsy by the Clark County coroner found no evidence to prove allegations by Patty King and her sister, Karen Williams, that their father had been poisoned. King died of Alzheimer's disease, plus physical conditions including coronary disease, heart failure and the effects of Type 2 diabetes, the coroner found. B.B. King was survived by Patty King and 10 other adult children, and family members count 35 grandchildren. Several lent support to a failed court effort to block Toney's appointment June 25 as executor of the estate. Outside court, King's lawyer promised to keep fighting to get the medical records, and characterized the judge's ruling as a setback on a procedural issue. - AP, 8/21/15...... '70s funnyman and Grammy-winning musician Steve Martin, who teamed up with singer Edie Brickell for a studio album in 2013 called Love Has Come For You, has announed he and Brickell will release a second album, So Familiar, on Oct. 30. Love Has Come For You sold over 100,000 copies in the U.S., rose to No. 1 on the Bluegrass albums chart, and its title track won Martin and Brickell a 2013 Grammy Award for best American roots song. Brickell -- who is married to Paul Simon -- is best known for her Top 5 album in 1998, Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars. So Familiar is produced by Peter Asher and will be released via Rounder Records. - Billboard, 8/20/15...... Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler has announed he will be performing with the country band Loving Mary in September at the inaugural Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival in Franklin, Tenn., outside Nashville on Sept. 26 and 27. The two-day fest will be held on a horse farm, with Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow, Wilco, Weezer and the Decemberists also headlining. The festival will likely be the first time Tyler fans can hear selections from his upcoming country-flavored solo record, which could be released as soon as this fall, though more likely in 2016. A single from the new LP, "Love is Your Name," hit No. 19 on Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. - AP, 8/20/15...... The children of late Mork & Mindy star Robin Williams have asked a judge to toss out claims on the comedian/actor's estate by his wife, Susan Williams, charging that Susan is "seeking to increase her share of the trust assets at the expense of the Williams children, despite the trust's clear language....She cannot do so." Susan Williams' Dec. 2014 petition asked the court to exclude the contents of the Tiburon, Calif., home that she shared with Williams from the jewelry, memorabilia and other items Williams said the children should have. In their Aug. 14 filing, Zachary, Zelda and Cody Williams contend the estate's trustees have determined the division of all of Williams' personal property, and those decisions are final. They accuse Susan Williams of holding on to property that is theirs. The two sides are set to appear in court Aug. 28. Williams hanged himself in the Tiboron home he shared with Susan in Aug. 2014. - AP, 8/20/15...... As the iconic 1969 Woodstock festival celebrates its 46th anniversary this August, the couple featured on the cover of the Woodstock soundtrack LP say the event is both "meaningful" and "phenomenal." Bobbi and Nick Ercoline were married two years after the photo was taken, and today they have two grown children. They reflect on the Bethel, N.Y., festival with both nostalgia and awe in their book: "All those people coming together with no violence, just peace, love and sharing." - Billboard, 8/19/15...... British pop singer Cliff Richard paid tribute to late singer and UK TV personality Cilla Black on Aug. 20 by singing at her funeral service in Liverpool at St. Mary's Church. Richard, a longtime friend of Black's, called her "a woman of commitment and dedication," adding: "She had the determination and above all she had the gift -- she was able to do what she set out to do." Richard opened the service by singing "Faithful One" from his 2004 album Something's Goin' On. Other guests included Tom Jones, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Christopher Biggins, Paul O'Grady and Carol Vorderman. Prior to her death, Black was sunbathing on the balcony at her villa in Estepona, Spain on Aug. 1 when she fell and hit her head. She was knocked unconscious by the fall and subsequently died of a stroke. She was 72. - NME, 8/20/15...... Actress Melody Patterson, best known as the character Wrangler Jane in the 1960's series F-Troop, died in a nursing home on Aug. 20 after multiple organ failure. She was 66. Patterson, a child actress, was only 16 when she debuted in F-Troop, and her character was said to be based on the 1953 Doris Day movie Calamity Jane. As Wrangler Jane, Patterson lustily pursued Captain Parmenter, played by Ken Berry. A running gag on the program had Jane kissing Parmenter, who avoided her affection by stating, "Jane, please, not in front of the men!" Patterson got the role by telling producers she would turn18 on her next birthday, but they did not find out her real age until after seven episodes had aired and she had already clicked with viewers .After the cancellation of F-Troop, Patterson appeared on radio, on stage, in films, and on TV, including several episodes of Hawaii Five-O, which featured her then husband James MacArthur. She also enjoyed appearing at F-Troop reunion gatherings, signing autographs for fans. - The Examiner, 8/21/15...... TV producer Bud Yorkin passed away Aug. 18 at age 89 in his L.A. home. Mr. Yorkin worked with Norman Lear on projects including All in the Family and Sanford and Son. - TV Guide, 8/31/15.

An upcoming addiction awareness rally and concert in Washington, D.C. will be headlined by Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler and Joe Walsh of the Eagles. Tyler and Walsh, who have both battled addiction issues in the past, will take part in the October free event at the National Mall aimed at raising awareness about people in need of help. The performers, also including Sheryl Crow, Jason Isbell, The Fray and John Rzeznik, will perform in between inspirational speakers who have been affected by addiction. "Unite To Face Addiction will mark the first time our nation will collectively stand up to addiction, a health problem that impacts one in three households," said Facing Addiction co-founder Greg Williams. - WENN.com, 8/19/15...... Smokey Robinson performed at New York's legendary Apollo Theater on Aug. 17 as part of the series Legends: OWN, which will be broadcast in October on the Oprah Winfrey Network. During a medley of love songs, Robinson told that crowd that "Ooh Baby Baby" developed from a mistake during a medley of love songs -- a surprising origin story for one of pop's greatest odes to heartbreak. And he introduced "Tracks Of My Tears" by saying he originally debuted the song live with his old group The Miracles at the Apollo. The four-hour set also included some of his biggest smashes, including "You Really Got A Hold On Me," "Second That Emotion," "Being With You," and "My Girl." - Billboard, 8/18/15...... Meanwhile, Robinson's fellow Motown legend Stevie Wonder performed a surprise pop-up concert also on Aug. 17 at Central Park's SummerStage in New York to promote the extension of his Songs In the Key of Life Performance tour for an additional (and final) 21 U.S. dates. Wonder treated the crowd to a generous eight-song helping from the smash 1976 double-LP (only 2-3 were promised pre-show), including classics "Sir Duke," "I Wish" and "As." Between songs, he made jokes and ad-libs, and even used his stage time to address such timely social issues as gun control, bullet accountability, police brutality and the underprivileged. The 20-date final extension of the Songs in the Key of Life Tour will begin on Sept. 30 in Montreal and hit such cities as Washington (10/3), Philadelphia (10/7), Toronto (10/9), Chicago (10/16), Pittsburgh (10/19), Kansas City (10/23), Indianapolis (11/7), Charlotte (11/14 and Detroit (11/24) before wrapping in New York's Madison Square Garden on Nov. 24. - Billboard, 8/18/15...... In still more Motown-related news, Lionel Richie has been named the 2016 MusiCares Person of the Year. Pharrell Williams, Lady Antebellum and Luke Bryan will be on hand to honor the legendary singer/songwriter and former Commodores member at the benefit MusiCares gala on Feb. 13, 2016 in Los Angeles, just two nights before the Grammy Awards. Richie, a tireless supporter of various causes, from AIDS awareness to human rights and famine, poverty, human trafficking and women's issues, will be bestowed the prestigious award in recognition of his "significant creative accomplishments" and for his career-spanning charitable work. "I'm really very proud of this," said Richie in a statement. "As far as I'm concerned, this is the highest honor in our music business because it means you have a career." MusiCares provides financial and medical help to musicians in need. - Billboard, 8/18/15...... The Beatles' first recording contract for a 1961 session that produced the single "My Bonnie" will be auctioned by Heritage Auctions in New York on Sept. 19, with the bidding expected to go as high as $150,000. The six-page contract is being sold by the estate of Uwe Blaschke, a German graphic designer and noted Beatles historian who died in 2010. The Beatles honed their craft playing in the boisterous nightclub district of Hamburg, and "My Bonnie" was released only in Germany without success. But the tune is still important in Beatles lore in that it led directly to a recording contract with the UK's EMI in 1962 and their first hit, "Love Me Do." "Without this contract all of the pieces wouldn't have fallen into place," said Dean Harmeyer, Heritage's consignment director for music memorabilia. "My Bonnie," which was recorded with Tony Sheridan singing lead, was credited to "Tony Sheridan and the Beat Boys" because German record producer Bert Kaempfert felt the name "Beatles" would not cut it with Germans. The contract is a the centerpiece of a Beatles collection being auctioned by Heritage that spans the band's entire career, including a 1962 autographed copy of "Love Me Do," the band's first single recorded with Ringo Starr, and a Swiss restaurant menu card signed by the Beatles while they were filming Help! in 1965. - AP, 8/19/15...... A GoFundMe.com campaign started by the satiric website Clickhole has raised over $1500 to send Bob Dylan "a nice bed." Clickhole, an offshoot of The Onion, noted that for 50 years Dylan "has given us everything while asking nothing in return" and "we think it's about time that America said 'thank you' for all his contributions to our ears and our hearts." "Hence, we have started this GoFundMe page with the goal of purchasing Bob a brand-new Sleep Number adjustable bed," the messages continues. "This includes a classic c2 Sleep Number mattress, a sturdy modular base, and an intuitive wireless remote for adjusting the bed's firmness." Having raised a total of $1,555, Clickhole claimed that they've shipped the bed to Dylan. "Bob's bed officially shipped over the weekend," a message posted to Facebook read. The campaign predictably attracted some outraged comments, with one user posting: "You idiots do know that Bob Dylan is worth millions, right? He can probably afford his own fricking bed. Donate your money to someone who actually needs it." - New Musical Express, 8/18/15...... Cable TV's CMT channel will premiere a new Johnny Cash documentary entitled Johnny Cash: American Rebel on Sept. 12 at 9:00 p.m. EDT. The release will combine never-before-seen interviews with Cash's friends and family, including Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Kris Kristoffeson, Sheryl Crow and Kid Rock, archival concert footage, and personal mementos from his life. The documentary also marks the first time Cash's children John Carter Cash and Rosanne Cash, as well as June Carter's daughter Carlene Carter, appear together in a film about him. - Billboard, 8/18/15...... Elton John has spoken out against Venice, Italy mayor Luigi Brugnaro for removing books from schools that feature same-sex families. Brugnaro, who was elected in June, made headlines by banning 49 children's books that made reference to gay marriage from schools, claiming that they are "not suitable for pre-school children" and justified his action by saying that his predecessors had imposed their "personal view of society" onto school kids. Posting on Instagram, John described Brugnaro as "the extremely silly looking mayor of Venice." "Instead of encouraging a world based on inclusiveness, tolerance and love, [Brugnaro is] championing a future society that's divisive and fosters ignorance... beautiful Venice is indeed sinking, but not as fast as the boorishly bigoted Brugnaro," Elton said. - New Musical Express, 8/18/15...... Tom Jones blasted BBC execs in recent Facebook and Twitter posts for dropping him from the fifth season of the BBC's The Voice U.K. with no notice. "In good faith, as part of the team, I'd put the time in my schedule to be involved in Series 5, as I've done so for the last 4 years," Jones posted. "I've supported the show and the BBC since the beginning. I was told yesterday, with no consultation or conversation of any kind, that I would not be returning... This sub-standard behavior from the executives is very disappointing," he added. The BBC said Jones was never promised to keep his role as a coach and the decision on next season's lineup of coaches came only on Aug. 13, and Jones' team was informed before a press announcement to avoid a press leak. - The Hollywood Reporter, 8/18/15...... Kiss bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons was joined by the band Extreme and actor Johnny Depp for a fundraising concert on Aug. 16 for MendingKids.org, an organization that provides hundreds of free corrective surgeries each year for children around the world. Simmons, a supporter of MendingKids.org for several years, took the stage last and invited anyone with $1,000 to donate to the organization to come up and sing with the band. About 10 donors took him up on the offer, including his son and daughter, and they shared the stage with him, Depp and the rest of the band during the closing number, the Kiss hit "Rock and Roll All Nite." - AP, 8/17/15...... Brian Eno has been announced as the guest speaker for this year's John Peel Lecture, set for Sept. 27 during the Radio Academy's Radio Festival at the British Library in London. The annual event, named after influential Radio 1 DJ John Peel, sees a keynote speaker sharing their views on issues relating to the music industry and its wider culture. Eno said that Peel had "a profound effect on my musical life and indeed my becoming a musician at all... His career as a non-musician who altered the course of music has been an inspiration to me and forms the basis of this talk." - NME, 8/18/15...... Former Deep Purple frontman Glenn Hughes will kick off a 10-date solo tour of the U.K. on Oct. 17 in Southampton, also visiting cities including Norwich (10/19), Newcastle (10/20), Belfast (10/22), Glasgow (10/23), Holmfirth (10/25), Bilston (10/26), York (10/28) and Manchester (10/29) before wrapping at London's Electric Ballroom on Nov. 1. Hughes will be backed by drummer Pontus Engborg and ex-Whitesnake guitarist Doug Aldrich and showcase highlights from his career including his stints in Deep Purple, Trapeze, Black Country Communion and California Breed, along with his solo material. - Noble PR, 8/19/15...... Former U.S. president Jimmy Carter announced on Aug. 12 that he has cancer, which was discovered during a recent liver surgery. The 90-year-old senior statesman and 39th president underwent surgery Aug. 3 to remove a mass in his liver. "A more complete public statement will be made when facts are known, possibly next week," said Carter, who was president from 1977-1980. He will undergo treatment at Emory Healthcare in Atlanta. The former president, a 2002 Nobel Peace Prize winner, has maintained an active post-presidency through the Carter Center. He travels frequently and has generally maintained good health at his advanced age. - USA Today, 8/13/15...... Prolific music producer Bob Johnston, who helmed such iconic albums as Bob Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde and Johnny Cash's At Folsom Prison, died in Austin, Tex., on Aug. 14. He was 83. Mr. Johnston first got into production work for Kapp and Dot Records before working for Columbia. Mr. Johnston also produced the Dylan albums John Wesley Harding, Nashville Skyline, Self Portrait and New Morning and is the "Bob" that Dylan is talking to when he asks, "Is it rolling, Bob?" at the start of the song "To Be Alone With You," on Nashville Skyline. He also played an integral role in the creation of many of Johnny Cash's albums, and worked on Simon & Garfunkel's Sounds of Silence and Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme, Leonard Cohen's Songs of Love and Hate and more. More recently, as an independent producer, he worked with Willie Nelson on The IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories? in the '90s. - Billboard, 8/15/15...... Longtime civil rights activist and former NAACP chairman Julian Bond died on Aug. 15 in Fort Walton Beach, Fla., after a brief illness. He was 75. Bond, who first came on the national scene in the 1960s as a student activist, brought the NAACP back to credibility during his longtime chairmanship. After serving in the Georgia House, Bond spent six terms in the Georgia Senate, from 1975 to 1986. In 1968, he led a delegation to the Democratic National Convention and became the first black American to be nominated for vice president, but he had to withdraw because he was too young. In 1998, he took over as chairman of the then-troubled NAACP, with 500,000 members, and served until 2010. He was also president of the Southern Poverty Law Center, based in Montgomery, Ala., from its founding in 1971 to 1979 and was later on its board of directors. "(Julian) advocated not just for African Americans, but for every group, indeed every person subject to oppression and discrimination, because he recognized the common humanity in us all," said SPLC co-founder Morris Dees in a statement. - USA Today, 8/16/15...... Actress Yvonne Craig, best known as "Batgirl" in the classic '60s TV series Batman, passed away at her home in Pacific Palisades, Calif., on Aug. 17 of complications brought about from breast cancer that had metastasized to her liver. She was 78. Craig began her theatrical career as the youngest member of The Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and toured for three years when she was accidentally discovered by John Ford's son Patrick and cast for the lead in the movie The Young Land. This led to many roles in film and television, including two Elvis Presley movies, It Happened at the World's Fair and Kissin' Cousins. However, she is probably best known for her role as Batgirl in the 1966 series Batman, or for her character Marta from the third season of Star Trek, in the episode "Whom Gods Destroy" where she played the well remembered insane green Orion Slave Girl who wanted to kill Captain Kirk. Her other TV credits include The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, The Six Million Dollar Man, Land of the Giants, Mod Squad, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Love American Style, Emergency and Courtship of Eddie's Father, among many others. She then embarked on a real estate career and with her sister Meridel went into the prepaid phone card business at its inception producing phone cards for charitable events. In 2000, she wrote a book of anecdotal memoirs, From Ballet to the Batcave and Beyond, which covered some of her years in the ballet and her theatrical career. - YvonneCraig.com, 8/17/15.