Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on Feb. 26th, 2016

Social media site Instagram's new "InstaMiniSeries" channel, which features original episodic programming packaged as Instagram videos, premiered a new series on Feb. 25 at 8:00 p.m. EST devoted entirely to David Bowie's final album Blackstar. Instagram has also announced subsequent episodes of the series, titled Unbound, will follow every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, for a total of 16 episodes. In a press release, the site says that in the fall of 2015 Bowie granted them "unmediated access to the music and images" from what would prove to be his last album before he passed away on Jan. 10. Unbound, according to Instagram, "will take the audience on a journey of evocative images inspired by the moods suggested in the album's music, lyrics and artwork," and also features visual interpretations of Bowie's songs by actors including Tavi Gevinson and Patricia Clarkson. - Billboard, 2/22/16...... In other Bowie news, it has been revealed that the late rock icon turned down the opportunity to have his music included on the soundtrack for the 1996 film Trainspotting, directed by Danny Boyle and starring Ewan McGregor as a heroin addict in Edinburgh, UK. In a new interview, Boyle says he and his team initially wanted to add a Bowie song and only turned to Iggy Pop's Bowie-produced "Lust For Life" when Bowie turned them down. Since his death, it has emerged that Bowie declined a number of other invitations and collaboration offers, including a Boyle-directed Bowie biopic and collaborations with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Coldplay, Dave Grohl, and others. Meanwhile, Iggy Pop paid homage to Bowie during the annual Tibet House charity benefit concert at Carnegie Hall on Feb. 22 in New York City. Backed by the Patti Smith Group, Pop kicked into a one-two punch of Bowie classics with "Jean Genie" and "Tonight," the latter which he co-wrote with Bowie for Pop's Lust for Life album and later covered by Bowie on his Tonight LP as a duet with Tina Turner Meanwhile on Feb. 25, Bowie's son Duncan Jones praised the Bowie tribute during the Brit Awards earlier in the evening, which included impassioned words from Annie Lennox and actor Gary Oldman, a musical medley of Bowie's hits and a cover of "Life on Mars" from 1971's Hunky Dory, performed by the band Lorde. Oldman also accepted a Brit Icon award on behalf of Bowie and his family. "Finally found the links to tonight's Brits. Just... beautiful. Thank you," tweeted Jones, who the previous week had described Lady Gaga's Bowie tribute at the Grammys as "overexcited or irrational." - New Musical Express/Billboard, 2/26/16...... Bruce Springsteen mistakenly gave a shout out to Pittsburgh when he was actually performing in Cleveland, Oh., during a stop on his The River tour at the rock & roll city on Feb. 23. "Party noises Pittsburgh," Springsteen exclaimed during the show at Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena. "And Cleveland, too!," he quickly added. However all was forgiven by the enthusiatic Cleveland crowd, as he and his E Street Band rewarded them with a stellar show, including a blistering version of "Youngstown" that included an intense Nils Lofgren guitar solo. The Boss also treated them to a tour premiere of "Growin' Up." - Billboard, 2/24/16...... In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Elton John turned his war on lyp-synching to Janet Jackson. "You know, f---ing music magazines writing a review of Janet Jackson saying, 'This is the greatest show -- four and a half stars,'" Elton said. "It's f---ing lip-synced! Hello! That's not a show! I'd rather go and see a drag queen. F--- off." John has previously criticized Madonna for lip-synching during her shows, but later said he "probably went too far with Madonna, and I got very personal and I wrote her -- she was very gracious." - Billboard, 2/25/16...... Don McLean announced on Feb. 26 that he is postponing a tour of Australia that was set to begin on Mar. 14 in Hobart following a string of domestic abuse charges leveled at the veteran singer. "Don McLean graciously accepts the willingness of the promoter to postpone the current tour to exactly the same time in 2017 in order to allow Don McLean and his family time to work at reuniting," reads a statement issued on McLean's behalf. "This is an unprecedented moment in the family history. Don McLean thanks all his fans for their patience and love and he looks forward to seeing them next year." A rep for McLean said the artists will make up all the planned Oz shows on the same dates in 2017, as McLean and his family "work at reuniting." On Feb. 22, McLean pleaded not guilty to additional charges stemming from his Jan. 18 arrest in Maine when his wife Patrisha filed a handwritten request for protection. The Knox County district attorney's office had added five charges against McLean earlier in February, bringing the total to six. McLean said in a statement that the new charges do not change his position that he is not guilty. He says the case is "a tragedy for our family and especially my wife." Patrisha McLean posted on Don's website saying that "Don has a big heart. He and I had many happy times in the 30 years of our marriage and what has recently transpired is unfortunate for all of us." - Billboard, 2/26/16...... The Boston Pops have announced their 2016 spring concert schedule will include a tribute to composer John Williams's Star Wars soundtrack, as well as concerts featuring the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson and guitarist Tom Scholz of the band Boston. "We couldn't be happier with the terrific lineup of guest artists joining us for the 2016 Boston Pops season," Pops conductor Keith Lockhart says. "I can't remember a more diverse season with such great potential, both to please our loyal audiences and reach out and entice music lovers of all ages." The Pops also will pay tribute to late rock legends David Bowie and Eagles member Glenn Frey, in "Beatles to Led Zeppelin" concerts on May 10-11 featuring Scholz and devoted to classic rock. - AP, 2/21/16...... Peter Frampton released an album of entirely acoustic music on Feb. 26 with the 11-track Acoustic Classics." I spent a few months going in every day doing different performances of different songs until I found the ones that worked for me and I thought people would like," says Frampton, who recorded the album in his Nashville studio, playing acoustic guitar and bass and a bit of piano on "I'm In You." The LP also includes acoustic takes on such Frampton classics as "Wind of Change," "Show Me the Way," "Lines on My Face," "Baby, I Love Your Way," and even an unlikely selection, "Do You Feel Like I Do." "I thought, 'Look, I've done all the others. Let's give it a go,'" Frampton recalls about the latter song. Frampton, who plans to be on the road with his full band this summer doing dates with Lynyrd Skynyrd and Gregg Allman, added he's already looking forward to beginning work on his next album. "I want to move on to something different and then maybe the album after that might be a live acoustic show," he says. "Even though new music from me isn't going to leap to the Top 40 stations or streams or whatever, it doesn't matter because it's what I do every day. I'm always creating. Whether people want to hear it or not, I'm gonna do it." - Billboard, 2/22/16...... AC/DC has topped the latest round-up of Billboard Hot Tours list for the week ending Feb. 22 with sold-out shows in Fargo, N.D., St. Paul, Minn., and Chicago. The shows generated $5.7 million in revenue from 47,939 sold seats. AC/DC's Rock or Bust tour kicked off in April 2015 with a headlining appearance at the Coachella music festival in Indio, Calif., followed by a three-month stadium run through European markets beginning in May. The band performed in North America in Aug. and Sept., before returning Down Under for shows in Australia and New Zealand. Their 2016 winter trek through U.S. arenas will stretch into early April, and a final stint in Europe is on the books for May and June. - Billboard, 2/23/16...... Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood and his wife Sally, who are expecting twin girls, have announced that Sally won't be accompanying the band on its tour of Latin America due to fears of exposure to the Zika virus. It's "too dangerous" Wood tweeted on Feb. 23, adding that Sally has been "sent home." The Stones played the first Brazilian gig of their Ole Tour at Rio de Janeiro's Maracana stadium on Feb. 20. Next they head to Sao Paulo, then Porto Alegre, before traveling to Peru, Colombia and Mexico. The mosquito-borne Zika virus has been described as being particularly harmful to pregnant women and their babies. - AP/Billboard, 2/23/16...... A rare Beatles recording of "Till There Was You" and "Hello Little Girl" that sat dormant in an attic for 50 years is set to be auctioned in March. The 10-inch vinyl recording, which is dated from 1962, belongs to Les Maguire, former keyboardist for beat group Gerry and the Pacemakers, one of the Fab Four's fellow Liverpudlian bands. The 78 rpm disc, produced at the HMV shop in London's Oxford Street, has been described as a "Holy Grail item" of Beatles memorabilia by rare record price guide editor Ian Shirley. Although a starting bid has yet to be set, it's thought that it could command at least £10,000. In other Beatles-related news, South Korean fans of the band will soon be able to legally stream the group's music after Universal Music Korea announced that a total of 17 of their albums will be available for streaming beginning on Leap Day, Feb. 29. The delay is the result of long-stalled negotiations over licensing fees, according to the Korea Times. Until now, Korean fans had to buy actual albums or songs either physically or digitally via iTunes to get their Beatles fix. In Dec. 2015, Beatles streaming officially arrived to the rest of the world via Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play and Tidal. - New Musical Express/Billboard, 2/26/16...... Electronic pioneer Brian Eno has announced a new album, The Ship, to be released on Apr. 29. Eno says the album was in part inspired by doomed liner The Titanic, with one of the albums two tracks, "Fickle Sun," split into three distinct movements. The first hears a poem narrated by British actor Peter Serafinowicz, while the last movement, "I'm Set Free" is a cover of the Velvet Underground's song of the same name. Eno says he was inspired by the battlefields of WWI and the final resting place of the Titanic, which "persist and we pass in a cloud of chatter." - NME, 2/25/16...... Veteran country music singer Sonny James, best known for the crossover teen anthem "Young Love," died on Feb. 22 in Nashville. He was 87. Mr. James helped personify a lighter musical style of country in the mid 1950s, continuing his career through the early 1980s. Known as "The Southern Gentleman," Mr. James was also one of the first artists in the format to consistently see his records cross over to the pop charts. His streak of 16 consecutive No. 1 hits on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart from 1967 through 1971 established a success level that went unsurpassed for close to two decades, helping him to eventually gain membership into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2006. In Dec. 1956, "Young Love" entered various country charts, and quickly became his first No. 1 country single. It also rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart, and remained on that chart for 17 weeks. Another hit the same year, "First Date, First Kiss, First Love," peaked at No. 25 on the pop chart. Mr. James also served as the host of the first-ever CMA Awards in 1967 and produced Marie Osmond's 1973 song "Paper Roses," which hit No. 1 on Hot Country Songs and reached No. 5 on the Hot 100. - Billboard, 2/22/16...... Elvis Presley's personal physician George C. Nichopoulos, better known as "Dr. Nick," died in Memphis on Feb. 24. He was 88. Mr. Nichopoulos was Presley's doctor for 11 years before the singer's death from heart disease on Aug. 16, 1977. The Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners later suspended and ultimately revoked Mr. Nichopoulos's medical license after it ruled he had over-prescribed potentially addictive drugs to 13 patients, including Presley and fellow singer Jerry Lee Lewis. In 1981, a jury acquitted him of criminal charges of indiscriminately and negligently prescribing drugs to Presley. In a 2009 interview with a Memphis paper, Mr. Nichopoulos said, "I don't regret any of the medications I gave him. They were necessities." - Billboard, 2/26/16...... A judge has ruled that a lawsuit filed by producer Quincy Jones against the estate of Michael Jackson and record label Sony over royalties on some of Jackson's biggest hits can go trial. On Feb. 25, Superior Court Judge Michael Stern said a jury should decide the numerous factual disputes about whether Jones -- who worked with Jackson on three of his most popular solo albums: Off the Wall, Thriller and Bad - is owed any money. Jones sued the estate and Sony Music Entertainment in 2013, seeking at least $10 million. He contends the defendants re-edited songs for the This Is It film and a pair of Cirque du Soleil shows to deprive him of royalties and production fees. Jones is also seeking a credit on the film that was done by using Jackson's final rehearsals for a planned series of comeback concerts in London. Jones's lawsuit states his contracts call for him to have the first opportunity to re-edit or alter the songs, in part to protect his reputation. In other Michael Jackson-related news, a solo piano rendition of Jackson's 1987 hit "Bad" by a 13-year-old Korean boy Yoham Kim has become a viral sensation. The performance has racked up over 64,000 Facebook reactions and over 87,000 views on YouTube. - AP, 2/25/16...... Actor Tony Burton, who played the trainer to both Sylvester Stallone and Carl Weathers in the Rocky films, died on Feb. 26 after frequent illness in the past year. He was 78. Mr. Burton played Tony "Duke" Evers, the trainer to Weathers' Apollo Creed character, in the original 1976 movie and its 1979 sequel. After that character's death in 1985's Rocky IV, his character joined the team behind Stallone's Rocky Balboa, where he remained for four more Rocky movies, concluding with 2006's Rocky Balboa. Mr. Burton, a native of Flint, Mich., began his acting career in 1974, hoping to parlay his two Golden Gloves light-heavyweight titles into a Hollywood career. He was also in 1976's Assault on Precinct 13, 1980's The Shining, and had a steady string of TV guest spots. He retired from acting in 2007, the year after his final Rocky movie. "Sad news. RIP Tony Burton. His intensity and talent helped make the Rocky movies successful," Carl Weathers tweeted on Feb. 26. - USA Today 2/26/16.

A lock of John Lennon's hair that was snipped when he got a haircut for his role in the 1967 film How I Won the War sold for $35,000 at an auction conducted by Dallas-based Heritage Auctions on Feb. 20. UK-based memorabila collector Paul Fraser purchased the 4-inch lock that had been cut and kept all these years by a German hairdresser. Also during the auction, a photo of the Fab Four signed by all four members went for $42,500, and a sealed copy of the band's notorious "butcher" cover for the Yesterday and Today album went for $125,000. Meanwhile, Lennon's widow Yoko Ono was presented with New Musical Express's 2016 Inspiration Award during the NME Awards on Feb. 17 at London's O2 Academy Brixton. The multimedia artist and activist, who turned 83 the following day, said she was "excited to get this award... I didn't expect it at all. It's great to be busy together," before a video of her life was screened for the audience. - AP/NME, 2/10/16................ Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan has responded to a Facebook post by his fellow Deep Purple founding member Ritchie Blackmore saying that he had been banned from participating in the band's upcoming induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Apr. 8 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Blackmore left the band in 1993, and Gillan says since there are no circumstances under which a "reunion" could take place, "DP inductees will accept the awards and then the living breathing Deep Purple will perform." "It should be stressed that there is no slight intended nor any desire to upset anyone regarding this decision; it is purely a mark of respect to [current DP members] Steve Morse and Don Airey... So, let's all get up there, shake hands, smile for the cameras and get it done with dignity and respect for all the existing and past members of a very special family," Gillan wrote. A rep for Blackmore posted a message on his Blackmore's official site on Feb. 18 saying that Blackmore was "honored" by the induction and "was discussing the possibility of attending, until we received correspondence from the President of the Rock Hall of Fame who said that [DP manager] Bruce Payne...had said 'No'.......!!!!! Therefore Ritchie will not be attending the ceremony. He sincerely thanks all the fans that voted for him for their support." As it stands now, the current lineup of DP will be performing at ceremony, and Blackmore will not be attending. - Billboard, 2/19/16...... Late Pink Floyd founding member Syd Barrett will be honored with a memorial and tribute concert in Cambridge, UK on Oct. 27, the same day that he will also be remembered with an unveiling of a statue of him at the city's Corn Exchange venue. The date coincide with the anniversary of the musician playing his final handful of concerts with Floyd at the city's legendary venue. The Swedish group Men On The Border will "reinterpret" the music of Barrett and Pink Floyd, with further backing music supplied by the Swedish Sandviken Symphony Orchestra. "Syd loved Cambridge, it always meant home to him," Barrett's sister Rosemary Breen says. "He would have been very surprised and delighted to be recognised in such a unique way. His family would like to thank everyone involved with this memorial." Barrett died in 2006 of pancreatic cancer. - New Musical Express, 2/17/16...... In an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper on Feb. 18, presidential candidate Donald Trump name-dropped some of his favorite musicians, including Elton John, the Beatles and Michael Jackson. Trump said he became closely acquainted with Jackson when the King of Pop lived at the Trump Tower for several weeks, after getting married to Lisa Marie Presley at one of his VIP clubs. "He was up there for one week with her and he never came down," Trump said. "I don't know what was going on but they got along." Trump went on to say that Jackson was an "unbelievably talented guy" but "lost tremendous confidence" after undergoing plastic surgery on his face. "He had people that did numbers on him that were just unbelievable... Believe it or not, when you lose your confidence in something, you can even lose your talent," Trump added. - Billboard, 2/19/16...... Bruce Springsteen announced on Feb. 19 that he and his E Street Band will play four dates in the UK this summer on their The River world tour. As with his US dates, Springsteen and the band are expected to play the 1980 double-LP in its entirety. The dates include Manchester (5/25), Glasgow (6/1), Coventry (6/3) and London's Wembley Stadium on June 5. - NME, 2/19/16...... Cable TV's HBO channel has renewed the new '70s record industry-based series Vinyl for another season after the premiere episode of the show aired on Feb. 14. Acclaimed director Martin Scorsese directed the two-hour pilot, which stars Bobby Cannavale as a record label president in the 1970s trying to save his company. Vinyl is also exec-produced by Scorsese and Mick Jagger, with Jagger's son James Jagger also appearing in the show. - The Hollywood Reporter, 2/19/16...... Hall & Oates brought their 2016 tour to New York's Madison Square Garden on Feb. 19 with a selection of their '70s and '80s smashes. The duo stoked the adoring crowd's eagerness by playing only singles released between 1973 and 1984, including "Sara Smile," "She's Gone," "Kiss on My List," "One on One" and "I Can't Go for That," with "Las Vegas Turnaround" being the only album cut in the set. The 2014 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees encored with a cover of the Delfonics' hit "Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time," after guitarist John Oates declaring earlier in the show, "It's a love fest here in New York City." - Billboard, 2/20/16...... Additional acts including Blondie's Debby Harry, Bette Midler and Mumford & Sons have been added to already star-studded David Bowie two-night tribute-turned-memorial concerts on March 31 and Apr. 1 in New York City. Harry will perform a solo set at March 31's Carnegie Hall concert, as well as a set with her Blondie bandmates at the Apr. 1 Radio City Music Hall show, while Midler will perform during the March 31 show and Mumford & Sons at the Apr. 1 show. Previously announced acts include the Pixies, Michael Stipe, Cyndi Lauper, Laurie Anderson, Cat Power, the Roots and Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart. - Billboard, 2/17/16...... In other posthumous Bowie-related news, the iconic rocker will be given an official tribute during the UK's 2016 Glastonbury Festival. An entire set of Bowie's Glastonbury set in 2000 will be screened for the crowd at the Worthy Farm event, and fans had already planned a "mass singalong" to pay homage the Ziggy Stardust legend during the festival. Meanwhile, composer Philip Glass is in talks to stage a tribute to Bowie during the 26th Annual Tibet House Benefit Concert in New York on Feb. 22. Glass helped form the Tibet House, which works to preserve and further Tibetan culture and identity, in 1987. Meantime, Chic's Nile Rodgers, who produced some of Bowie's hit albums in the 1980's, is defending the Bowie tribute by Lady Gaga during this year's Grammy awards, which has been disparaged by some, including Bowie's son Duncan Jones. Rodgers fired off a series of Tweets on Feb. 17 saying that "we did what we thought and still think was right in our short time slot" and that he would know what Bowie would or would not have appreciated. Lady Gaga's Bowie tribute was the most-talked-about Grammy moment on Facebook across the country, according to the site. NME/Billboard, 2/19/16...... Speaking of the Grammys, rapper Tyga has said that he wishes he had known that a group that included Paul McCartney, Beck and drummer Taylor Hawkins of Foo Fighters had not been allowed entrance into a post-Grammy party that he headlined at the Hollywood club Argyle on Feb. 15. "I had no knowledge -- I was inside performing," Tyga said on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Feb. 17. "I wish I knew that [Paul] was outside. I would've went out there with the mic, brought him in and perform 'Rack City' with me." Tyga then extended a personal invitation to McCartney on-air for his Feb. 26 show at L.A.'s Club Nokia, even offering, "I'll personally walk you in." - Billboard, 2/17/16...... Def Leppard say they'll be back on the road this spring, despite frontman Joe Elliott's vocal problems that forced the postponement of 10 shows on the group's most recent U.S. tour. The band plans to make up the postponed shows in May and then go on with a planned North American tour in June. Def Leppard's latest album, released in October 2015, debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Rock Albums chart and is still selling well. "I still think it's the strongest record the band's made since I've been in the band," says DL guitarits Vivian Campbell, who joined the group in 1992. - Billboard, 2/17/16...... Eric Clapton has revealed that vocals and guitar work by George Harrison will be featured posthumously on Clapton's forthcoming solo album, I Still Do. Harrison's playing and singing will be used on the track "I Will Be There" under the pseudonym "Angelo Mysterioso," which Harrison used when he contributed to Clapton's supergroup Cream's 1969 Goodbye album. Produced by veteran UK boardman Glyn Johns, who also worked on Clapton's 1978 LP Backless, the 12 track I Still Do is due out on May 20 via Clapton's own Bushbranch imprint, in association with Surfdog Records. It will also feature cover artwork by UK graphic designer Sir Peter Blake of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band fame. - New Musical Express, 2/19/16...... A Kickstarter.com campaign has been initiated to fund a movie based on the '70s CBS sitcom Good Times. "In the case of Good Times there is going to be a comparison, but it's not an infringement of copyright," says attorney Shaun Weiss, who represents Bernadette Stanis, who played Thelma in the series, and will be reprising her role in the crowd-funded effort. - Deadline.com, 2/17/16...... Pulitzer Prize-winning author Harper Lee, who wrote the acclaimed 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird, passed away at the age of 89 on Feb. 18 in an assisted living facility in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. The book, a landmark in American literature and required reading in many US high schools, brings to life the 1930s tale of Southern lawyer Atticus Finch, who is tasked with defending an African-American man, Tom Robinson, accused of rape. Gregory Peck portrayed Finch in director Robert Mulligan's equally praised 1962 screen adaptation of the book, which claimed eight nominations at 35th Academy Awards and nabbed three wins. Another novel by Ms. Lee, Go Set a Watchman, was released in 2015. Originally written prior to To Kill a Mockingbird, Go Set a Watchman saw a revision of the Finch character in a storyline set two decades after the events of the first book. Ms. Lee famously avoided giving interviews in recent decades, her last lengthy one being in 1964. - The Hollywood Reporter, 2/19/16.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on Feb. 16th, 2016

Bruce Springsteen has announced he will release his long awaited autobiography this fall. Titled Born to Run, the book will feature the Boss' memories told in "disarming candor," according to a press release. Springsteen said he began the book after watching the 2009 Super Bowl. "Writing about yourself is a funny business," Springsteen was quoted as saying. "But in a project like this, the writer has made one promise, to show the reader his mind. In these pages, I've tried to do this." Springsteen was reportedly paid a $10 million advance for the memoir from publisher Simon & Schuster. The work will be published in hardcover, ebook, and audio editions by Simon & Schuster on Sept. 27 in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and India, and rights have already been sold to publishers in nine countries. - Billboard, 2/11/16...... Sting performed to a sold-out audience at Toronto's Air Canada Center on Feb. 14 during the NBA All-Star Game half-time show. The 64-year-old former Police frontman's 10-minute set included the his 1999 solo hit "Desert Rose," the reggae-rock classic "Message in a Bottle," the hard-rocking "Next to You," and finally the smash hit ballad "Every Breath You Take." Meanwhile, Sting says he's "thrilled and surprised" that "Stolen Car," his duet with French singer Mylene Farmer, has just hit No. 1 on Billboard's Dance Club Songs chart. "I'm absolutely thrilled and surprised," Sting said. "It's so great to be No. 1, especially on the Dance Club Songs chart. Wow!" An earlier version of the song, featuring Twista, topped the Billboard singles chart in 2004. - Billboard, 2/15/16...... Barry Manilow was rushed to a Los Angeles hospital on Feb. 11 due to "complications from emergency oral surgery that Manilow had on Monday (Feb. 8)," according to a statement on his Facebook page on Feb. 11. The crooner, 72, is in the midst of his One Last Time - One Last Tour trek and had completed a sold-out show in Memphis when he was flown back to Los Angeles. Manilow was forced to reschedule shows in Kentucky and Tennessee due to the emergency, however the singer made a surprise return to the stage for Clive Davis' pre-Grammys party in L.A. on Feb. 14, just days after being hospitalized. Manilow reportedly showed no ill effects when he appeared at Davis' glittering annual party, and opened his performance with a rendition of his 1976 hit "Mandy." "I'm really glad to be here. What a week!," Manilow said after the performance. "This is the 40th anniversary of the release of "Mandy" -- and the beginning of this beautiful party." His latest album was nominated at the Grammy Awards for what would have been second Grammy Award. - Billboard, 2/15/16...... In other Grammy news, Lady Gaga performed an extended tribute to David Bowie during the 58th annual show at the Staples Center in L.A. on Feb. 15. Gaga channeled the late rock icon's Ziggy Stardust persona as she ran through several of his hits, including "Space Oddity," ''Let's Dance," ''Changes" and "Heroes." Days before the Grammys, it was reported Gaga got a large tattoo of Bowie's face on the side of her body. "I don't know who I'd be if I didn't have (Bowie as) a figure in my life. I don't know what my identity would be," Gaga said before the show. Also at the ceremony, the legacy of late Earth, Wind & Fire mastermind Maurice White was saluted as the surviving members of the group, which is the recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, presented the Record of the Year statuette at the show. Late Eagles member Glenn Frey was also honored with surviving current and former members Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, Joe Walsh and Timothy Schmit uniting with Jackson Browne to perform the Eagles' 1972 hit "Take It Easy." Two nights earlier, another Frey tribute was held at the Troubadour club in L.A., with Bonnie Raitt, Lee Ann Womack, Jack Ingram and others participating. And a Grammys tribute to former Commodores member and '80s solo star Lionel Richie took place, with Richie, Demi Lovato John Legend performing a medley of some of Richie's biggest hits, including "Easy Like Sunday Morning," "Hello," "Penny Lover," "Brick House" and "All Night Long." - AP/Billboard/New Musical Express, 2/16/16...... The suburban Detroit neighborhood of Royal Oak has approved named a stretch of street after late Eagles star Glenn Frey, who was born in Detroit and grew up in Royal Oak. Glenn Frey Drive will run adjacent to Royal Oak Middle School - the former Dondero High where Frey was a student. On Feb. 11, the Royal Oak School Board voted 12-0 to rename part of Willis Avenue after Frey. New signs are expected to go up by Feb. 18, one month to the date after Frey died of complications from rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis and pneumonia in New York at age 67. - AP, 2/11/16...... Phil Collins released the first two titles in his "Take a Look at Me Now" reissue series, 1981's Face Value and 1993's Both Sides, on Jan. 29. The second batch, 1982's Hello, I Must Be Going! and 1996's Dance Into the Light come out Feb. 26. Fans of the original albums my be surprised by the new album cover photos for the series -- which are nearly identical replicas of the original covers save for Collins' current face in place of the initial images. "I wanted to bring something new to (the packages), so we came up with the idea of the second CD and then I had the idea to re-shoot all the album covers," Collins says. "It kind of brought it into this period now that we're living in, and these songs were personal to me then and they're still personal to me now. I had a great team. I had a great photographer and a great computer guy. We had three people there that were just working on the lighting and the look, and we managed to replicate all the covers beautifully." The former Genesis drummer added that the upcoming reissue of his 2010 album Going Back, which was mostly an album of R&B and Motown covers, will come out with fewer songs and a revised sequence. "I loved the original songs and I loved what we've done with my replicas of those songs," he says of the LP. "So we put everything on, but I think maybe it was too much. I think for a number of reasons that album was missed." - Billboard, 2/14/16...... Surviving Doors members Robby Krieger and John Densmore participated in an all-star charity tribute to late Doors member Ray Manzarek at The Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles on Feb. 12. The two musicians were joined by an eclectic array of guest vocalists filling in for Jim Morrison, including Taylor Hawkins of Foo Fighters and Andrew Wyatt. But the real thrill for the artists and capacity crowd was seeing Krieger and Densmore play together again on the Doors number "When the Music's Over," featuring Gov't Mule's Warren Haynes on vocals and guitar. Before the song, Krieger shared a story about "When the Music's Over" that began with Morrison and his wife Pam calling him at 3 a.m., having taken too much acid. According to Krieger, they summoned him to their home, freaking out, where he suggested they go into nearby L.A.'s Griffith Park to get with nature and come down off their trip. As a result Morrison missed the session for "When the Music's Over," so they recorded the track without him, only to have him show up later and want to add his part. So the singer overdubbed his vocals. "He got it in one take," Krieger said, drawing applause and laughter from the crowd. The concert benefited the Stand Up To Cancer fund, which was founded by Manzarek. - Billboard, 2/13/16...... Bob Dylan is reportedly working on another album of cover standards to follow up his 36th studio album, 2015's Shadows In the Night, at Hollywood's Capitol Studios. "It's going along great," Schmitt said. "[Dylan] sounds great," says engineer Al Schmitt, who also worked on Shadows. "His mood in the studio is fabulous. We're having a good time. We're like two old shoes together now, we're so comfortable with one another now," he added. Schmitt did not confirm whether the songs would be covers of Frank Sinatra songs like Shadows In the Night. That album, recorded live by Dylan and a five-piece band, debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 200 album chart. - Billboard, 2/14/16...... Black Sabbath performed at the Forum in Los Angeles on Feb. 11, one of the heavy metal gods' first North American dates on their "The End" tour. Sabbath opened with the eponymous first song from their also self-titled debut album, with frontman Ozzy Osbourne struggling to find his voice. Sabbath also treated the crowd to such classics as "War Pigs," "Children of the Grave" and "After Forever." - Billboard, 2/13/16...... Elton John will be among the headliners at an upcoming Hillary Clinton fundraiser concert on March 2 at New York's Radio City Music Hall. Clinton, a 2016 presidential hopeful, announced the concert on Twitter, and both former President Bill Clinton and daughter Chelsea Clinton will be present at the event. Tickets (at $125 each) will benefit the Hillary Victory Fund. Also headlining the concert will be Katy Perry and Andra Day. - Billboard, 2/12/16...... In other Elton news, the Rocket Man recently told a U.S. radio station that he feels the Rolling Stones are no longer relevant. "I think Mick [Jagger] wants to still be relevant on the radio -- well they are not," Sir Elton said. "What I think the Rolling Stones should do is a great blues record, and go back to what they used to do -- and do things like 'Come On' - the Chuck Berry song like they did in their early career. That is what they should do," he added. John released his latest studio album, Wonderful Crazy Night, on Feb. 5 via Island Records. - New Musical Express, 2/14/16...... Speaking of the Rolling Stones, the members of the band are under a 24-hour armed guard on their South American tour following the shooting of a worker at one of their gigs. The band have taken extra precautions after a man was shot dead in botched attempt to steal drinks takings from their La Plata stadium show. A 55-year-old contractor was killed when three cars attempted to hijack a van transporting cash from alcohol sales after the concert. In the wake of the incident, the Stones have stepped up their security arrangements and will travel separately, escorted by armed bodyguards. Meanwhile, frontman Mick Jagger has revealed in a new Esquire interview that he originally wanted the new HBO series Vinyl, which he co-produced and stars his son James Jagger, to be a movie. "It was a movie idea. I went to Marty (co-producer Martin Scorsese) and said that I'd like to do something that covers the actual inside of the record business, using (his film) Casino as shorthand." Instead, the end result was instead a 10-part TV series, telling the story of 1970s New York-based music executive Richie Finestra (Bobby Cannavale), with themes of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll featuring heavily. - NME/Esquire, 2/14/16...... Former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne has blasted Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on a new post on his website. "Trump supporters [are] so seemingly unaware of his lies and bullshit," Byrne said in the lengthy essay, which he titled "The Echo Chamber." Byrne added that Trump's rise coincides with a socio-economic shift in American society. "My guess is that the middle class senses the end of the American dream and that white middle class Americans are experiencing a lack of mobility and opportunity in the economic spheres where they were previously the privileged and entitled majority. This probably drives a lot of Sanders supporters, too," he continues, "though my bias leads me to assume that Sanders isn't propagating outright lies and misconceptions -- he's actually addressing issues and not simply massaging his ego and building his brand." - NME, 2/12/16...... Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour has been confirmed to headline the upcoming Teenage Cancer Trust series of gigs, which are being curated by The Who's Roger Daltrey. The gigs will run at the famed 5,000 capacity Royal Albert Hall in London from April 19-24. Gilmour will headline the closing concert on Apr. 24, while other performers include Simply Red (4/21) and New Order (4/23). "I'm very happy to be announcing such a varied line up," Daltrey said in a press release. "The money raised is invaluable to this charity, which receives no government funding in England, to help young people with cancer in the NHS." - NME, 2/15/16...... Carole King gets the American Masters treatment on Feb. 19 when PBS premieres the new documentary Carole King: American Woman. When you see the compelling stories behind her career -- from her years as a behind-the-scenes hit writer for other singers during pop music's Brill Building era to her James Taylor collaborations to Tapestry to winning the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song -- it's clear that King is a natural legend. - Entertainment Weekly, 2/19/16.

What is being touted as the "largest lock of John Lennon's hair" ever sold has been put up for action online by the Dallas-based Heritage Auctions. According to the sales description, the lock of hair was trimmed from the late Beatles legend in Sept. 1966 during the filming of the Richard Lester-directed movie How I Won the War, which featured Lennon. Bidding has reached as high as $12,000 for the lock, and previous locks of Lennon's hair have fetched $48,000 in 2007 and $25,600 in 2015. - Rolling Stone, 2/9/16...... In other Beatles-related news, a new report conducted by the Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Liverpool, and commissioned by Liverpool City Council, has found that the tourist income generated by the Fab Four to their home city adds almost £82 million to the city's economy, and supports as many as 2,335 jobs. The report found that the "Beatles economy" in Liverpool grows 15 per cent each year with "further significant growth potential" in the future. A University of Liverpool professor stressed the importance of "maintaining standards in efforts to promote this legacy," while another prof added that "we need to convey the core point that Liverpool was not just the birthplace of The Beatles, it was their cradle; what they learned as Liverpudlians they took into the world... The self-confidence and openness to cultural influences remains a vibrant and distinctive aspect of the life of the city. The still fresh music of The Beatles reminds us who we are and who we could become." The Beatles formed in Liverpool in 1960 and became instrumental in the local Mersey Beat scene during their early career. In Dec. 2015, the city unveiled a new Beatles statue to mark the band's final performance in the city, on Dec. 5, 1965. - New Musical Express, 2/8/16...... A Grammy tribute to late Eagles co-founder Glenn Frey will feature past and present surviving members of the band -- Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, Joe Walsh and Timothy Schmit as well as "Take It Easy" co-writer Jackson Browne -- during the 2016 Grammys, which is set for Feb. 15 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It seems a sure bet the Eagles and Browne's setlist will include "Take It Easy," which was written primarily by Browne with contributions from Frey. Frey died at age 67 of complications from rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis and pneumonia after several months of illness. His last performance with the Eagles took place in Louisiana on July 29, 2015. The Grammy Awards will be broadcast live on CBS on Feb. 15. - Billboard, 2/10/16...... Elton John has told a British music website that he's planning on collaborating with the contemporary band The Killers and their frontman Brandon Flowers for the next Flowers LP. "I'm hoping to go to Vegas and write with Brandon for the new Killers record| So that'll be interesting," said John, who also expressed his love of working with other artists in the studio. "It's just great to be able to see how other people sing, what they write, how they do it, and it gives you an idea of, 'Oh they do it that way'," Sir Elton remarked. - New Musical Express, 2/9/16...... Late Motörhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister will be honored with a life-size, bronze statue to be erected outside his favorite bar in Los Angeles, the Rainbow Bar & Grill on the Sunset Strip. Fans commissioned the statue, which was made by L.A. artist Travis Moore, through a crowdfunding campaign, with over $15,000 raised for the project so far. Kilmister was a regular at the bar before he passed away on Dec. 28 at age 70, and the bar recently hosted a memorial in his honor. - New Musical Express, 2/8/16...... Iggy Pop, who will be releasing a new studio album, Post Pop Depression, on Mar. 18, has revealed that it could be his last. "I feel like I'm closing up after this. That's what I feel. It's my gut instinct," Pop said in an interview on Feb. 6. Pop added that he still might perform occasionally -- such as "singing 'Happy Birthday' at your mother's (or) something like that" -- but "to really make a real album you really have to put everything into it and the energy's more limited now." Pop, 68, recently announced that he will headline London's Royal Albert Hall with his new band in May, and then play selected dates around the globe. Pop released the first track from Post Pop Depression, "Gardenia," in late January. - NME, 2/6/16...... The Grateful Dead-spawned superground Dead & Company has announced it keep on truckin' with a summer tour of 17 American dates beginning on June 10 in Charlotte, N.C. Other stops on the tour, with original GD members Bob Weir, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzman along with John Mayer, Oteil Burbridge and Jeff Chimenti, include Cincinnati; Noblesville, In.; Camden, N.J.; Saratoga Springs, N.Y.; Bristow, Va.; Flushing, N.Y.; Hartford, Conn.; Boulder, Col.; Detroit; East Troy, Mich.; and Pittsburgh before the tour wraps with a two-night stand in Boston on July 15 and 16. The band is also set to appear on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Feb. 18. - Billboard, 2/8/16...... It appears former Chicago principle Peter Cetera won't be participating in Chicago's upcoming induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in April. Cetera, the group's original singer and bassist who left the group in 1985, posted a copy of a note he sent to Rock Hall Foundation chief Joel Peresman and induction ceremony producer Alex Coletti on his website on Feb. 8 that reverses previous statements that he was willing to play with the band during the April 8 ceremony at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. "Unfortunately this scenario doesn't work for me," Cetera wrote. "I know we all did our best to make it happen, but I guess it's just not meant to be. Personally I'm frustrated and tired of dealing with this and it's time to move on. I have a life with two beautiful daughters and a solo career and its time to get back and give them the full attention they deserve. Thanks for all your help and consideration! Have a great show and please send any individual award I receive to the contact you have for me," he added. In December, Chicago singer/keyboardist Robert Lamm announced that Cetera, along with founding Chicago drummer Danny Seraphine, would be attending and performing at the ceremony, only to be corrected by Cetera. Lamm subsequently apologized for making the announcement without Cetera's confirmation, and in January, Cetera posted a letter on his website saying he was willing to perform "25 or 6 to 4" that night, also suggesting that all of Chicago's living members, past and present, be invited to play the song. Earlier in February, Lamm told Billboard that "I don't even know if our band is going to play... I don't know if it's going be a house band or Paul Shaffer playing. I have no idea. It'll all be worked out, I'm sure, but as to what I know now, it's very little." Lamm said Cetera's refusal to take part in the ceremony could have been due to his "wanting to to play [the song] in a different key if he was going to play with us, which is definitely not going to happen, and then he wanted to play with his band but not with us and sing his songs or sing whatever songs the Hall wants him to sing... It's all very strange." As of now, Lamm and remaining co-founders Lee Loughnane, James Pankow and Walter Parazaider are confirmed to participate in the induction. - Billboard, 2/8/16...... Don McLean has pleaded not guilty to a domestic violence charge after the "American Pie" singer was arrested on Jan. 18 when his wife filed a handwritten request for protection. McLean's attorney announced on Feb. 8 that the singer entered the plea in writing and will not appear in court in Maine when his case is heard on Feb. 22. The attorney says nothing substantial will come of the misdemeanor count on that date because of the handwritten plea. McLean and his wife later announced through the attorney that they had "agreed to move forward," and the protection order was dismissed. McLean and his wife life in Camden, Maine. - AP, 2/8/16...... A home in Mayfair, London where Jimi Hendrix once lived that has been converted to a museum was opened to the public for the first time on Feb. 10. Hendrix lived at the flat at 23 Brook Street, which was owned by Hendrix's then girlfriend Kathy Etchingham, for a year between 1968-69. Among the items on display at the museum are a copy of Bob Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited that is stained with Hendrix's blood. Fans will also be able to view the top floor of the home with organisers having spent two years renovating it to its original form. - New Musical Express, 2/9/16...... Carlos Santana has taken to Facebook to criticize his hometown of San Francisco for not featuring "local" Bay Area bands to be featured in the Super Bowl 50 halftime show on Feb. 7. "I do feel compelled to point out to you that the Halftime Show should have included some of the local iconic bands that the World would have loved to see perform," reads a Feb. 9 post by Santana, who was featured in a Super Bowl highlight reel playing guitar. "Bands like Metallica, Steve Miller, Journey and yours truly. We would have rocked the Half Time Show and done the SF Bay Area proud," he added. After reading Santana's post, Journey updated their own Facebook page with the message, "Thank You Carlos, and yes we would have all Rocked it!" - Billboard, 2/9/16...... David Bowie's widow Inman has broken her silence for the first time since her late husband's passing on Jan. 10 with a simple message on Twitter. "'Love & Gratitude' - Iman," she posted on Feb. 6. Inman had posted a number of Twitter messages in the days leading up to Bowie's death, including: "The struggle is real, but so is god" and "Sometimes you will never know the true value of a moment until it becomes a memory." Meanwhile, Bowie's Duncan Jones has revealed on Twitter that he's going to become a dad. "1 month since dad died today. Made this card for him at Christmas. Due in June. Circle of life. Love you, granddad," Jones posted on Feb. 10, alongside a cartoon drawing of an unborn foetus. Jones then went on to ask for parental advice in a series of tweets, saying: "So how knackering is it having a baby? Moon shoot knackering or morning after a house party knackering?" - NME, 2/10/16...... In related news, Mick Jagger's son James Jagger has told Britain's The Independent paper that he actually prefers The Kinks to his dad's famous rock band. "When people ask me if I prefer the Rolling Stones or the Beatles, then I will always say the Rolling Stones. But if someone asks if I prefer the Rolling Stones or The Kinks, I'd choose The Kinks," said James. The 30-year-old son of Mick and model Jerry Hall, who has begun a career in acting, is due to star in the new HBO drama series Vinyl, which premieres on the channel on Feb. 14. - NME, 2/8/16...... Paris Jackson, the 17-year-old daughter of Michael Jackson, has suggested she has troubles with alcohol and is attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings during a series of furious rants on Instagram. "This is f---ing ridiculous. I am expected to literally sit on my ass all day replying to comments people leave me (positive and negative)?" Paris posted. "I have AA meetings to go to. Family obligations. Personal obligations. Its so f---ing selfish that I am literally attacked on every f---ing thing I post just because people that I don't even know aren't getting what they want," she added. Paris' rant comes more than two years after she was hospitalized following an apparent suicide attempt in June, 2013. - WENN.com 2/5/16...... San Francisco-based musician Dan Hicks, who began his music career in the 1960s and was the founder of Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks, died on Feb. 6 after a two-year battle with cancer. He was 74. Hicks, a veteran Bay Area singer/songwriter/band leader, formed the Hot Licks after leaving the band The Charlatans, a pioneer of the '60s psychedelic "San Francisco sound" along with the likes of the Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead. The Hot Licks produced several successful albums but broke up in 1973, at the height of its popularity. Perhaps best known for the songs "I Scare Myself" and "Canned Music," Hicks' songs were frequently infused with humor, as evidenced by the title of one of his tunes, "How Can I Miss You When You Won't Go Away?" Hicks' latest album, Live at Davies, was released in 2013. Hicks was diagnosed with throat and liver cancer in 2014, and in March 2015 he announced on his website that he had been stricken with liver cancer and, while "confident" in his recovery, would be postponing all live performances. "My darling darling husband left this earth early this morning. He was true blue, one of a kind, and did it all his own way always," his wife CT Hicks posted on Dan's Facebook page on Feb. 6. - AP/Billboard, 2/6/16...... Singer Joe Dowell, who was briefly popular in the early 1960s with a No. 1 hit titled "Wooden Heart," died on Feb. 4 at a hospital in his longtime hometown of Bloomington, Ill. He was 76. "Wooden Heart" already had been a hit for Elvis Presley in Europe when Dowell's version was released in the US. With its bouncy tempo and echoed vocal track, the song topped the Billboard chart in early Sept. 1961. Dowell's other songs included "The Bridge of Love" and "Little Red Rented Rowboat." In subsequent years he recorded commercial voiceovers and gospel songs.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on Feb. 6th, 2016

Singer/songwriter/producer/musician/arranger Maurice White, the co-creator of the hugely popular '70s and '80s group Earth, Wind & Fire, died of natural causes on the morning of Feb. 4, according to a post on EWF's Twitter feed. He was 74. "Our brother Maurice White passed peacefully in his sleep this morning. The light is he, shining on you and me. pic.twitter.com/ppWTHKUyG6," the band posted. White, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in the early '90s, had stopped touring with the band around 1994. Born in Memphis on Dec. 19, 1941, White moved to Chicago in the early '60s and was hired as a session drummer for Chess Records. Following a post-Chess stint as a member of the Ramsey Lewis Trio, White became a member of the Capitol-signed band Salty Peppers with friends Wade Flemons and Don Whitehead. Relocating to Los Angeles, he established the nine-member first incarnation of Earth, Wind & Fire in 1971 with himself, Flemons, Whitehead and White's bass-playing brother Verdine White, among others. Under contract to Warner Bros., the band released two albums. By 1973, a remodeled Earth, Wind & Fire -- including the White siblings, vocalists Philip Bailey and Jessica Cleaves, drummer Ralph Johnson and keyboardist Larry Dunn -- was signed to Columbia Records. From that period through the early '80s, the band was a permanent fixture on both the R&B and pop charts. Earth, Wind & Fire, whose moniker was chosen from the elements in White's astrological sign, Sagitatarius, became known for its game-changing fusion of R&B/soul, pop, jazz, funk, disco, rock, Latin and African rhythms, and are hailed as one of the most successful bands of the 20th Century. Scoring its first top five R&B single in 1974 with "Mighty Mighty," the band scored its first R&B/pop crossover hit a year later with "Shining Star," No. 1 on both charts. Embracing the themes of empowerment, unity, spirituality and love, White guided the band through a host of R&B and pop hits that have since become classics, among them: "That's the Way of the World," "Sing a Song," "Serpentine Fire," "September" and "After the Love Has Gone." EWF were honored with six Grammy Awards, and became one of music's most influential, iconic and longest-running bands. Beyond the music, their concerts became must-see spectacles during which the brilliantly garbed band members mesmerized audiences with disappearing acts and other magic tricks. In addition to EWF, White collaborated with other artists during his career, including projects by Minnie Riperton, Barbra Streisand, Barry Manilow, James Ingram, Neil Diamond and Brian Culbertson. White even logged his own top 10 R&B single with a cover of "Stand By Me," taken from his 1985 self-titled solo album. Even after being diagnosed with Parkinson's, White stayed busy behind the scenes, and collaborated with Maurice Hines on the 2006 Broadway play "Hot Feet," and in 2007 executive producing an EWF tribute album, Celebrating the Music of Earth, Wind & Fire. Earth, Wind & Fire was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000, and are set to be honored with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award at the Feb. 15 ceremony. Among those paying tribute to the late multi-talented musician on Twitter include Questlove, Nile Rodgers, Bryan Adams, Quincy Jones, Jimmy Jam, Chris Rock, Arsenio Hall, Bootsy Collins, Earvin Magic Johnson and Craig Robinson, who posted "Keep Your Head To The Sky," recalling one of EWF's biggest hits. - Billboard/NME, 2/4/16.

Bruce Springsteen invited an 89-year-old grandmother on stage to dance during a performance of "Dancing in the Dark" during the the Boss's show at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto on Feb. 2. As Springsteen and his E Street Band performed the Born In the USA track during its encore performance, the rocker noticed the woman, named Evelyn, in the crowd enjoying the show, and asked her up to the stage. The show was part of his The River Tour, which will see the musician touring North America until March, finishing up with two shows in Los Angeles between March 15-17. His The River trek leads the Billboard Hot Tour Roundup from Jan. 26-Feb. 1, with $12.2 million in ticket sales. The first five dates of his North American arena trek are included in the roundup, and all five arenas since the Jan. 16 opener in Pittsburgh have logged a combined sold ticket count of 90,579, with Chicago's Jan. 19 show taking in $2.7 million at the box office and selling 19,120 tickets. - New Musical Express/Billboard, 2/3/16...... A line of cannabis products commemorating what would have been the 71st birthday of reggae legend Bob Marley's 71st birthday on Feb. 6 are slated to be launched on that day in conjunction with Marley's estate and New York based Privateer Holdings. "Marley Natural" Product Manager Tahira Rehmatullah says his team has "visited hundreds of farms around the world, learning all about growing processes and different strains, trying to find the best quality cannabis there is," and that "our goal is to work with all local farmers in every jurisdiction where we are offering cannabis." Some states in the US have a decriminalization policy in effect, where marijuana is sold through state controlled "dispensaries," however current regulations require that marijuana can only be distributed in areas where it is grown. Marley's son Stephen Marley, who will be performing at a launch party for Marley Natural, says "if my father was here physically, he would be up front advocating for this plant, so we are very proud to put our Marley Natural brand out there." - NME, 2/5/16...... He was famously known as "The Man in Black," and now country music legend Johnny Cash now has a species of black tarantula spiders named in his honor. After biologists discovered 14 new types of U.S. tarantuals, a black arachnid has been dubbed Aphonopelma johnnycashi because it makes its home near Folsom Prison, California, where Cash staged a famous concert for inmates on Jan. 13, 1968. The breakthrough performance became a popular live album, and it contained one of his signature songs, "Folsom Prison Blues". Cash died in 2003, aged 71. "It's a perfect name," explains Florida Museum of Natural History's Chris Hamilton, who led the team of biologists. "It fits the spider -- it's found around Folsom and the males are predominantly all black, so it fits his image. I have a Johnny Cash tattoo so I was very happy that it worked out that way." - Billboard, 2/5/16...... As the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign moves into high gear, many of the candidates are making some incredible promises, but perhaps none more unbelievable than a pledge to reunite legendary British prog-rockers Pink Floyd. Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who is running for the Republican nomination, appeared on CNN on Feb. 1 to discuss the Iowa caucus and told host Anderson Cooper that he is a huge Pink Floyd fan, and pledged to reunite the squabbling surviving members of the group if he becomes president. "Roger Waters is a remarkable artist," Kasich said. "I saw The Wall in Pittsburgh; it was absolutely incredible." Kasich then make his big statement: "And if I'm president, I am going to once and for all try to reunite Pink Floyd to come together and play a couple of songs." Pink Floyd, which last played together in 2005 at Bob Geldof's Live 8 charity benifit, has stated that its latest album, 2013's The Endless River, was unequivocally its last. - Billboard, 2/2/16...... A new musical based on the songs of Jimmy Buffett will make its world premiere at the La Jolla Playhouse in California on May 16, 2017, producers announced on Feb. 4. The show will combine the singer/songwriters laid-back blend of rock and country tunes with an original story by writers Greg Garcia and Mike O'Malley. It's described as "the story of a part-time singer, part-time bartender, and fulltime good ol' boy named Tully who suddenly finds himself in uncharted territory -- falling in love with a beautiful, career-minded tourist." Buffet and producer Frank Marshall -- the producer of such films as Back to the Future and Raiders of the Lost Ark -- teamed up to create Parrothead Productions, which helped produce such Broadway shows as "Big Fish" and "Doctor Zhivago." - Billboard, 2/4/16...... Elton John surprised train commuters at a London rail station on Feb. 4 with an impromptu performance of his classic 1971 track "Tiny Dancer." The Rocket Man gave the performance at St Pancras station in central London as he promotes his new album Wonderful Crazy Night, which dropped Feb. 5 via Island Records. "A colleague and I were just walking through the station and there was a bit of a crowd, then everyone started clapping and cheering. Elton sat down and started playing 'Tiny Dancer'," said onlooker Ruth Swailes. "He didn't sing, played for about five minutes, then got up and walked away, all very low key," she added. Following his performance, Sir Elton signed the piano with the message: "Enjoy this piano. It's a gift. Love, Elton John." John later confirmed that he donated the piano to the station with a post on Instagram: "Surprise!! I popped into St Pancras International to christen the Yamaha piano which I donated to the station. Now everyone can have a play." A day earlier, John is reported to have told BBC Radio 2 that he's going to start pulling back on his music career over the next several years to focus more on his family. John will also be joining late night TV host James Corden during Corden's special post-Super Bowl broadcast on Feb. 7 on CBS for and installment of Corden's popular "Carpool Karaoke" series. - Billboard, 2/5/16...... In other Super Bowl news, a commercial featuring Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler is set to be aired during the game. Tyler will appear in an ad for Skittles candy, with his face made entirely out of Skittles, singing the Top 10 Aerosmith "Dream On." - Billboard, 2/2/16...... The Rolling Stones performed their 1967 track "She's a Rainbow" live for the first time in 18 years on Feb. 4 as they kicked off South American leg of their 2016 world tour at Chile's Estadio Nacional stadium. The track, which originally appeared on their 1976 album Their Satanic Majesties Request, was played for the first time since 1998 and, reportedly, only the 11th time in their entire history. The tour is set to wrap on Mar. 17 in Mexico City, and the band is reportedly gearing up to work on its first album since 2005's A Bigger Bang. New Musical Express, 2/4/16...... Punk legends the Ramones will mark the 40th anniversary of their 1976 eponymous debut album in 2016 with a marketing blitzkrieg that will include a new documentary, a South by Southwest Music Festival panel, a traveling exhibit of memorabilia, and a collector's reissue. The campaign, which focuses on the four original members -- Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee and Tommy Ramone, all of whom died between 2001 and 2014. On Mar. 17, a South by Southwest panel featuring Sire Records exec Seymour Stein will be held, with several bands performing the group's music. The following month, an exhibit of Ramones memorabilia is set to open at the Queens Museum in New York on Apr. 10 and will include Johnny's recently unearthed leather jacket and guitar. An expanded version of the exhibit moves to Los Angeles' Grammy Museum in October. In addition, a world tour of at least 18 cities is planned for 2017. On the music side, Rhino Records will release a three-CD/one-LP deluxe collector's edition of the band's self-titled first album, and include demos and a live concert. - Billboard, 2/3/16...... Ozzy Osbourne's wife Sharon Osbourne confirmed that her husband is now "ready to rock" on the Feb. 4 edition of the morning gabfest The Talk after Ozzy and Black Sabbath were forced to cancel a series of dates in Canada earlier in February after the singer was diagnosed with bronchitis. "He's doing so much better," Sharon said. "He had sinusitis, which went to bronchitis, and he said that he felt like he had the Pacific Ocean in his ear, and he couldn't hear properly, and it's been a nightmare. He had to cancel four shows. They're all gonna be rescheduled; we're working on it now," she added. Black Sabbath is set to perform in Seattle on Feb. 6 in a show that's part of the band's farewell "The End Tour" that will run until September 2016. - NME,2/5/16...... UK classic rockers Status Quo have announced their 2016 "The Last Night of The Electrics" tour will be their last with a statement on their official website on Feb. 4. "We've talked about it for some time and have decided that it's time for us to hang up the electrics. It's getting harder and harder for us to play those shows" Status Quo singer/guitarist Francis Rossi posted. "It's 30 years since we last said we were stopping but this is a final decision. It doesn't mean we won't do other things, perhaps the odd special, but we're agreed that the moment has come. There's more to come from us in the years ahead, but we won't tour the electric set ever again." Although never huge in the US, Status Quo has charted over 60 songs in the UK, with 22 of those reaching the UK Top 10 Singles Chart. In 1991, Status Quo received a Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. The band also spent a consistent 500 weeks in the albums chart, joining the likes of Queen and the Beatles. Meanwhile, the band is also scheduled to appear at a number of festivals across Europe this summer between May-July including Wirral Rocks on May 21 and Somerset Rocks in Taunton on Aug. 26. - NME, 2/4/16...... The Hollywood Vampires, the new "super group" comprised of Alice Cooper, Joe Perry, Duff Mackagan and Johnny Depp, is set to pay tribute to late rock stars Lemmy Kilmister and David Bowie during the 58th annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 15. Lady Gag a has also been confirmed to sing a medley of David Bowie songs on the night. The 2016 Grammys will take place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. - NME, 2/4/16...... The Jefferson Starship said on Feb. 3 that it intends to continue touring after the death of its co-founder, guitarist/singer Paul Kantner, on Jan. 28 at age 74. According to a report on Jambands.com, the band have decided to carry on with their tour, which started in January and is due to finish Apr. 14 in Stockholm, Sweden. The band's current lineup includes David Freiberg of fellow San Francisco psychedelic rockers Quicksilver Messenger Service, along with Donny Baldwin, Slick Aguilar, Chris Smith, Cathy Richardson and Jude Gold. - Billboard, 2/3/16...... Comedian Bob Elliott, half of the hilarious radio and TV comedy team Bob and Ray, died at his home in Cundy's Harbor, Maine, on Feb. 3 at the age of 92. After a stint on a local Boston radio station and then on NBC radio, the low-key Mr. Elliott and his more-boisterous comedy partner Ray Goulding hosted The Bob and Ray Show on TV from 1951-53. The duo were known for their low-key humor and took turns serving as the straight man while often mocking their medium. Bob and Ray later recorded comedy albums and appeared often on The Tonight Show and The Ed Sullivan Show. On Broadway starting in 1970, they starred in "The Two and Only," where they did comedy sketches, and were seen on the big screen in Cold Turkey (1971), directed by Norman Lear, and, playing brothers, in Arthur Hiller's Author! Author! (1982). After Goulding died in 1990, Mr. Elliott appeared as a castmember on Garrison Keillor's American Radio Company of the Air and showed up in the Bill Murray comedy Quick Change (1990). He also played the father of his real-life son, actor Chris Elliott, on the 1990-92 Fox series Get a Life. Survivors also include his grandchildren (and Chris' daughters) Abby Elliott, also a former Saturday Night Live cast member, and actress Bridey Elliott (Fort Tilden). - Billboard, 2/3/16.