The family of late rock icon Prince issued a press release on July 28 announcing an offical Prince tribute concert will take place on Oct. 13 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn. "We are excited for the opportunity to bring everyone together for the official family celebration of Prince's life, music and legacy, and there is no better place to do it than his hometown of Minneapolis," the statement read. "We are honored by the artists who will pay tribute and grateful to those that have worked so hard to make this celebration possible." Prince, who died on Apr. 21 of a drug overdose, has been honored by countless performers during their live shows in the past three months, and in May his songs "Nothing Compares 2 U" and "Purple Rain" were performed by Madonna and Stevie Wonder at the Billboard Music Awards. - AP, 7/29/16...... Carole King entertained delegates on the final day of the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia on July 28 with a performace of her classic "You've Got a Friend." Members of the audience were seen holding hands, smiling, singing and dancing together to King's 1971 hit, which was also popularized by James Taylor. "Hillary [Clinton]'s got so many friends and Bernie [Sanders] too and all of us together!," King said as she finished. - Billboard, 7/28/16...... A Lou Reed tribute concert at New York City's Lincoln Center called "The Bells: A Daylong Celebration of Lou Reed" took place on July 30. The free event took its name from the title track, "The Bells," from Reed's 1979 LP and was selected by Reed's widow, artist Laurie Anderson and his longtime producing partner Hal Wilner. Performers included members of Sonic Youth, fronted by such vocalists as David Hohansen of the New York Dolls, Lenny Kaye and Jon Spencer, among others. Reed died on Oct. 27, 2013 from liver disease at age 71. - New Musical Express, 7/28/16...... 
The Beatles' Apple Corps' Ltd. and Universal Music Group announced on July 20 that the band's 1977 live LP of 1964 Hollywood Bowl performances will be released globally on CD for the first time ever on Sept. 9. Containing material from the legendary quartet's Hollywood Bowl concerts in Aug. 1964 and Aug. 1965, The Beatles Live at the Hollywood Bowl will also be available as a digital download the same day, and a 180-gram vinyl release will follow on Nov. 18. Intended as a companion release to director Ron Howard's new Beatles rockumentary Eight Days a Week: The Touring Years, the package will include all 13 tracks from the original vinyl release, plus four previously unreleased live tracks -- "You Can't Do That" and "I Want to Hold Your Hand" from the Aug. 1964 concert, and "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby" and "Baby's in Black" from the Aug. 1965 show -- along with a 24-page booklet with an essay by Rolling Stone contributor David Fricke. All tracks have been remixed from the original three track tapes by producer Giles Martin, the son of Sir George Martin who produced the original album and wrote in the original liner notes, and engineer Sam Okell at Abbey Road Studios. The original Hollywood Bowl album debuted on the Billboard charts on May 21, 1977, and peaked at No. 2 in the UK and No. 1 in the UK. Although it was never released officially on CD, the album was heavily bootlegged. Ron Howard's new film, which premieres within a week after the album's release, concentrates on the group from the years 1962 to 1966 and will include footage of the "Boys" performance featured on the original Hollywood Bowl album. - Billboard, 7/20/16...... 
Actor/director/writer/producer Garry Marshall, a beloved figure in show business responsible for such TV hits as 
Queen has issued a statement saying that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's use of their 1977 classic "We Are the Champions" during Day 1 of the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland on July 18 was "unauthorized" and "against our wishes." "An unauthorised use at the Republican Convention against our wishes," the band tweeted on July 19. Also on the same day, Queen's publishing company, Sony/ATV Music Publishing, weighed in: "Sony/ATV Music Publishing has never been asked by Mr. Trump, the Trump campaign or the Trump Organization for permission to use 'We are the Champions' by Queen. On behalf of the band, we are frustrated by the repeated unauthorized use of the song after a previous request to desist, which has obviously been ignored by Mr. Trump and his campaign." Sony/ATV went on to say that the band "does not want its music associated with any mainstream or political debate in any country," and that it does not want "We Are the Champions" "to be used as an endorsement of Mr. Trump and the political views of the Republican Party." "We trust, hope and expect that Mr. Trump and his campaign will respect these wishes moving forward," the statement concluded. In June, Queen guitarist Brian May had cautioned the Trump campaign to refrain from using the rousing ballad, saying "permission to use the track was neither sought nor given... We are taking advice on what steps we can take to ensure this use does not continue." - Billboard, 7/19/16...... In related news, the '60s pop band The Turtles is threatening to sue the Republicans for using its No. 1 1967 smash "Happy Together" as the GOP kicked off its convention earlier in the day. Turtles lead singer Howard Kaylan tweeted on July 18 that "We never approved this use... Now we call the laywers." In addition to Queen and The Turtles, several other musicians -- including Adele, Neil Young, the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith and REM -- have refused to let the controversial politician use their music at his rallies. Meanwhile, cover of David Bowie's "Station to Station" by the house band at the convention, led by GE Smith of Saturday Night Live fame, has also raised eyebrows by some. The traditionally conservative audience was treated to the "Station to Station" lyric "It's not the side-effects of the cocaine / I'm thinking it must be love." - Billboard/New Musical Express, 7/19/16...... Paul McCartney was joined onstage by Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir during Macca's concert at Boston's Fenway Park on July 17 for jams of Wings' "Hi, Hi Hi" and the Beatles' classic "Helter Skelter." Weir's Dead & Company had just completed a two-night stand at the same venue, and Weir stuck around to perform with the Beatles legend for the first time ever. After the Boston gig, McCartney's One on One summer tour continued to Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey, Penn. - Billboard, 7/17/16...... In other McCartney news, a letter from Paul to the late Prince sold at auction for $14,822 on July 17. In the letter, McCartney greeted Prince as "Dear Princely person" and asked his fellow musician to help him set up the Liverpool Institute For Performing Arts. Sir Paul wrote that he was contacting "friends and all good people" asking for donations. He also told Prince: "One of these days you'll have to come and teach a class some moves!!" It is unknown if Prince made good on McCartney's request, as the vast majority of Prince's contributions to charity were made anonymously. Meanwhile, former Police frontman Sting has recorded a tribute to Prince as part of his first straight pop album in 17 years. Sting is putting the finishing touches on 57th & 9th, which will include "50,000," a ballad written the week Prince died in April. The album is named after the intersection in New York where Sting is recording 57th & 9th, which is produced by Sting's new manager, Martin Kierszenbaum. - NME, 7/19/16...... 
Alice Cooper says he's "tired of the rhetoric -- the mudslinging -- the media frenzy" going on in the current political scene in both the US and the UK, and is launching simultaneous campaigns to become both President and Prime Minister, respectively. On his just launched website aliceforprimeminister.com, the '70s shock-rocker outlines his manifesto, which includes "Getting Brian Johnson back in AC/DC, a snake in every pot, no more pencils no more books," and "adding Lemmy [Kilmister] to Mt Rushmore." Other amusing points include "a ban on talking during movies in theatres" and a "ban on taking selfies, except on a designated National Selfie Day." "He is asking his fellow Americans, his British friends and all those around the world who are disillusioned with their leaders, to join The Wild Party," according to a press release. "Alice Cooper is tackling the everyday concerns discussed among his fellow woman and man - the ordinary, decent hard working (and rocking) people he meets and entertains every day while performing nearly 100 concerts a year around the world." To accompany the campaign, the Coop has recorded a new version of his classic track "Elected," which originally came out in 1972. - New Musical Express, 7/15/16...... Diana Ross's summer tour hit the legendary Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on July 15, for her first L.A. performance in nearly three years. Descending from the ceiling of the Bowl stage on a swing while singing her smash single "I'm Coming Out," the Supremes legend then tore through a hits medley of "More Today Than Yesterday," "My World Is Empty Without You," "Baby Love," "Stop! In the Name of Love," "Come See About Me" and "You Can't Hurry Love." Ross also treated the crowd to a salute to the late Billie Holiday and the Holiday biopic Lady Sings the Blues in which she starred, performing "Don't Explain" and "Good Morning Heartache." Ross dedicated the latter tune to her former love and Motown label boss, Berry Gordy. She encored with a cover of Gloria Gaynor' "I Will Survive," "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)," and a reprise of "I Will Survive." Ross played a second show at the venue the following night. - Billboard, 7/16/16...... Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Heart, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts and Cheap Trick kicked off their co-headlinging Rock Hall Three For All Tour at the DTE Energy Music Theatre in suburban Detroit on July 14. All three bands have a touring history together -- tour headliner Heart and Cheap Trick date back to the '70s, and Heart and Jett have hit the road together extensively during the past couple years. "We all know each other and like each other, so it's cool," Heart's Ann Wilson said. Though the three acts did not collaborate at all during their sets, they made a point of paying homage to their own heroes as well as showcasing their respective repertoires. Cheap Trick payed homage to The Move with "California Man," Joan Jett covered Sly & the Family Stone's "Everyday People," and Heart paid tribute to Led Zeppelin with covers of "Immigrant Song" and "Misty Mountain Hop." The tour runs through Sept. 23. - Billboard, 7/15/16...... 
Speaking of Led Zeppelin, the band has announced it will release 
Jeff Beck is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his solo career in 2016, with a new album called 
Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry was hospitalized on July 10 after having a health scare as he was performing with the superband Hollywood Vampires during their performance at the Coney Island Ampitheater in Brooklyn. Perry, 65, was forced to leave the stage as the band performed a cover of Spirit's "I Got a Line on You." After the incident, fans and fellow artists tweeted their support for Perry, who is said to be in stable condition, including Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler, who on July 13 said he is "really concerned" about his longtime bandmate. "It's starting to scare me a little bit," said Tyler. "I know they're putting out nothing, but he's recovering, he's really good, he fainted, exhaustion. But I know my brother. He's just about the only other guy that's as passionate about his art as I am," added Tyler, who is on the road promoting his new album 
In addition to his groundbreaking musical talent, late rock icon David Bowie also had a keen eye for fine art and modern British classics, and he amassed a collection of more than 400 objects d'art over his lifetime. Now Sotherby's Fine Art Auctions has announced it will publicly display the Bowie-owned paintings by "many of the most important British artists of the 20th Century" in November before putting them under the hammer in a three-part sale. The "Bowie/Collector" collection will be exhibited from Nov. 1-10 at Sotherby's in London, with review exhibitions also to be held in New York, Los Angeles and Hong Kong. "Art was, seriously, the only thing I'd ever wanted to own," Bowie told the New York Times in 1998. "It can change the way that I feel in the mornings." Meanwhile, Bowie's final album Blackstar, which was release on Jan. 8 and only two days before his death, has been named the best selling vinyl LP of 2016 to date. According to the vinyl publication The Vinyl Factory, Blackstar has sold 57,000 copies on vinyl so far this year, ahead of Adele's latest effort 25, which has sold 36,000 vinyl copies. - Billboard/NME, 7/14/16...... Pink Floyd's David Gilmour played his first ever concert at the historic Pompeii Ampitheatre in Italy on July 10. The 2,600 strong crowd was treated to an audio visual spectacle featuring lasers, pyrotechnics and a setlist featuring songs from throughout Gilmour's career, including the Pink Floyd classics "The Great Gig in the Sky" and "One of These Days" as well as selections from his latest solo album, Rattle That Lock. The ancient Roman stone ampitheatre was famously buried in ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, and only uncovered after the Second World War. In 1971, Gilmour and the other members of Pink Floyd played there, with no audience present, for their 1972 concert film Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii. Gilmour's 2016 Rattle That Lock World Tour will continue in Italy, Germany, France and Belgium before wrapping with a five night stand at the Royal Albert Hall in London. - New Musical Express, 7/11/16...... An unexpected power cut during a Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band concert in Paris on July 11 forced the New Jersey rocker to keep the crowd entertained by signing autographs and chatting with fans in close proximity to the stage, even joining his bandmates for an impromptu conga line. Once power was returned to the AccorHotels Arena after 20 minutes, The Boss launched into a rendition of his 1984 hit "Dancing in the Dark." The concert was the first of two gigs at the venue, with the band also performing there on July 13 before heading to Rome on July 16 to continue the European leg of his The River tour. - NME, 7/12/16...... Meat Loaf says he's signed up to a diet and fitness regime after he recently collapsed on stage during a gig in Canada. Meat Loaf, whose real name is Marvin Lee Aday, was playing a concert in Edmonton, Alberta when the incident occurred. He had previously cancelled shows in Moose Jaw and Calgary earlier in the week due to illness. "I'm okay. Weak. I've gotta go to physical therapy," Meat Loaf told Classic Rock magazine. "I had back surgery and knee surgery within the last two years, and the knee surgery failed, so I haven't been able to work out on tour." He added that he is now on a diet and has "lost getting close to 20 pounds now... So we're trying to watch out for my health and make it easier onstage." Meat Loaf says he plans to lose another 15 before he takes his tour to the U.K. behind his forthcoming album, 
The lyrics of Stevie Wonder's song "As" were quoted by Dallas Police Chief David Brown during a memorial service for five Dallas police officers who were fatally shot by a deranged gunman on July 7. Chief Brown said, among other lyrics: "Just as hate knows love's the cure, you can rest your mind assure that I'll be loving you always." Brown received a long, loud standing ovation from those in attendance. The five who died were shot during a protest against the police killings of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota. Nine officers and two civilians were injured in the attack. Three days later on July 10 during a concert in the UK in Hyde Park for the British Summertime Festival, Stevie Wonder urged his fans to choose "love over hate" and expressed dismay over the troubles in the world. Wonder played his 1976 Grammy-winning album 
Chaka Khan released a statement on July 10 announcing that she and her sister, Yvonne Stevens, also known as Taka Boom, have both entered a drug rehabilitation program to battle their addictions to prescription drugs. Khan, 63, said the recent death of Prince motivated her to seek treatment and that said she has been battling an addiction to the same medication that led to Prince's untimely death on Apr. 21. "Unfortunately, I will miss concert appearances over the summer," she said. "However, it's vital that I put my health and well-being first. I know that I am disappointing some of my fans, but I also know they would want me to recover and be well and healthy." Khan said that she and her sister "agreed we would take this journey together and support each other through the recovery." The Grammy-winning Khan had one of her biggest hits with the Prince-penned song "I Feel For You," and the two were longtime friends. An autopsy found that Prince died of an overdose of fentanyl, a powerful opioid painkiller. - AP, 7/10/16...... The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced on July 12 that it was closing the books on the unsolved case of the '70s hijacker known as D.B. Cooper, reasoning that its crime-fighting resources would be better used elsewhere. The famous case began on Nov. 24, 1971, when when a dark-haired man who called himself Dan Cooper, dressed in a business suit and tie and believed to be in his mid-40s, boarded a Northwest Orient Airlines flight in Portland, Oregon, bound for Seattle. After take-off, the man handed a flight attendant a note claiming he had a bomb in his briefcase and opened it to show a mass of wires and red sticks, according to the FBI's account of the incident. The aircraft safely landed in Seattle, where the man freed 36 passengers in exchange for $200,000 in cash from the airline and four parachutes, but kept several crew members aboard as the plane took off again, ordered this time to fly to Mexico City. At some point during that flight, at an altitude of about 10,000 feet (1.9 miles), the man executed one of the most flamboyant getaways in criminal history, leaping out of the back of the plane into the night with a parachute and the ransom money. Whether Cooper survived the jump over a rugged, wooded landscape somewhere between Seattle and Reno, Nevada, has never been confirmed, and his true identity has never been established. The FBI said that evidence obtained during the course of the investigation "will now be preserved for historical purposes at FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C." - Yahoo News, 7/12/16...... Oscar-winning director Michael Cimino, best known for the 1978 Vietnam war epic 
In other Beatles-related news, John Lennon's copy of a 1977 document that ended the Beatles' stormy relationship with Allen Klein is being put up for sale through the company Moments In Time, with an asking price of $95,000. When the Beatles, solo artists at the time, decided not to renew Klein's contract with Apple Corps Ltd. in 1973, Klein promptly sued them for $19 million (roughly $75.3 million today). The settlement, dated Jan. 8, 1977, ruled that Apple had to pay Allen Klein and ABKCO just over $5 million (or roughly $19.8 million now) while Klein had to pay out a total of $800,000 (roughly $3.2 million now). The agreement said that it released Apple "from any liabiity whatsoever" related to the relationship of the Beatles and Klein. Paul McCartney, who never allowed himself to be represented by Klein as part of the Beatles, was not involved in the suit or the settlement but, according to his father-in-law Lee Eastman who represented him at the time, "was delighted to see his friends end this problem." The other three Beatles began their relationship with Klein on Jan. 28, 1969, at a meeting with Lennon and Yoko Ono at the Dorchester Hotel. McCartney's refusal to be associated with Klein became a major cause of friction between the Beatles, leading to their split in April 1970. - Billboard, 7/8/16...... Elsewhere on the Fab Four front, the traveling Beatles exhibit Ladies and Gentlemen: The Beatles! has opened at the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live. The exhibit, which colorfully details the Fab Four's game-changing impact on pop culture and features more than 400 items of rare photos, clothing and tour artifacts, will be on display through Sept. 5. The exhibit will then travel to Little Rock, Ark., at the William J. Clinton Presidential Center. It first opened at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts in 2014, also making stops at the Grammy Museum Mississippi, the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, and the Woody Guthrie Center in Tulsa, Okla. - Billboard, 7/7/16...... Movie studio SudioCanal has announced it is nearing completion of the restoration of the sci-fi classic 
Heart released its 16th album and first new release in four years, 
Fleetwood Mac has announced it will give its lone 2016 live performance at the Los Angeles Dodgers' second annual Blue Diamond Gala at Dodgers Stadium on July 28. The band will close out the night with a set from centerfield, following a blue carpet entrance (in honor of the Dodger colors) and a ceremony honoring Vin Scully, the iconic Dodgers announcer who plans to retire at season's end. All proceeds from the evening, which will also include Dodgers players and coaches, will go towards the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation, which benefits underprivileged local communities. In 2015, Fleetwood Mac wrapped its lengthy On With the Show Tour, which saw the reunion of its '70s "classic" lineup of Christine McVie, Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie. All five will perform at the Dodger gala. - Billboard, 7/5/16...... Former Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour has been made an honorary citizen of Pompeii, Italy, as his tour hits the city's Amphitheatre Of Pompeii on July 9. The venue is the oldest Roman amphitheatre in the world, and where Pink Floyd played an infamous concert in 1971, later showcased in the 1972 documentary Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii. Pompeii mayor Ferdinando Uliano bestowed the citizenship on Gilmour as he returned to the ancient city. Meanwhile, it has been announced that late founding Pink Floyd member Syd Barrett, whom Gilmour replaced in Pink Floyd, will be the subject of a series of events in his hometown of Cambridge later in 2016. An unreleased film about the musician made by Anthony Stern, a former school friend of Barrett's, titled Get All that Ant?, will be screened for the first time on Oct. 21 during the Cambridge Film Festival, while fans will be able to embark on Barrett-themed walking tours. Get All that Ant? is comprised of film footage, stills and archive footage produced during the '60s in Cambridge, London and San Francisco. Tickets for the fim screenings and the walking tours will be available from the 
Speaking of concert firsts, David Gilmour has performed the 1971 Pink Floyd Meddle cut "One of These Days" for the first time in more than two decades. Playing a steel guitar, Gilmour tackled the space-rock classic, in which drummer Nick Mason says, "One of these days I'm going to cut you into little pieces" at the very end, during his European tour opener at Freedom Square in Wroclaw, Poland. Gilmour, who performed his first stage show of any kind in 10 years at the Hollywood Bowl on Mar. 24 as he opened a US tour, also treated fans to such Floyd standards as "Wish You Were Here", "Run Like Hell", "Time," "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" and "Comfortably Numb," as well as "Dancing Right In Front Of Me" from his latest solo LP Rattle That Lock. When his tour hits Italy, Gilmour will play Pompeii, where he'll do two nights in the city where Pink Floyd taped their 1972 concert documentary, Live at Pompeii. - Billboard, 7/1/16...... In a new interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry denies that Aerosmith is splitting up after their next tour and that he never could imagine doing a "farewell tour." "At this point in our lives and career, maybe it is time to say 'OK, it's the end of this era -- but there's a new era on the horizon.' So I don't know if I'm comfortable saying 'final tour' and making a big deal out of it," Perry said, while noting that "If it was going to happen, we're closer to it than any other time in our insane career." Perry's comments come a week after frontman Steven Tyler told DJ Howard Stern that the next Aerosmith shows will be a farewell tour, commenting that: "We're doing a farewell tour, because it's time. We've never done that." Aerosmith is set to play the Kaaboo Festival in California on Sept. 16, before launching a 10-date tour of South America which wraps in Mexico City on Oct. 27. Tyler's new solo LP, 
The UK's Official Charts Company has revealed that Queen's 1981 compilation Greatest Hits is the best-selling album of all time in Britain. The OCC reports the album has sold 6.1 million copies in Britain, and is the only album to sell more than 6 million on the isle. "What a great bit of news to wake up to," Queen's Brian May said of the achievement. "The most popular album? Well, I always thought the band showed promise, but this is beyond our boyhood dreams. Thanks, folks," he added. The album is followed by ABBA's 1992 compilation Gold: Greatest Hits (5.2 million), and the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (the best-selling non-compilation LP with 5.1 million). Other '70s artists making the Top 10 include Michael Jackson's Thriller at No. 6, Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon at No. 7, and Dire Straits's Brothers in Arms at No. 8. Jackson's Bad and Queen's Greatest Hits II were good for the 9th and 10th spots. The 2016 chart is the 60th anniversary of the OCC chart, with the first being published in 1956 with Frank Sinatra's Songs for Swingin' Lovers grabbing the top slot. - NME, 7/5/16...... Attorney Francis Malofiy, who was on the losing side in the recent Led Zeppelin "Stairway to Heaven" copyright trial, has been suspended from practicing law for flouting courtroom protocol during the trial. Malofiy had been subjected to repeated judicial scrutiny during the proceedings, and an appelate panel ruled on June 30 that Molofiy violated "various rules of conduct" in 2015 after he "tricked" unrepresented co-defendant William Guice into signing an affidavit without consulting a lawyer, and he won't be practicing law again until the fall. After the jury ruled in Led Zeppelin's favor in the six-day trial on June 23, Malifoy said he lost on a technicality and hinted at an appeal, however he won't be representing plaintiff Michael Skidmore should he decide to appeal the case soon. - The Hollywood Reporter, 6/30/16...... A Ludwig drum kit used by the Beatles to record "Love Me Do" is being auctioned off, with a starting bid of $150,000. The kit was played by one time Beatles drummer Andy White as he briefly sat in for Ringo Starr during the recording of the track in 1962. White, a top session drummer who passed away on Nov. 11, 2015, at age 85, reflected on the recording session during a 2012 interview with the BBC. "From the drum sound I can tell that I was on (the album) Please Please Me, because it was a vastly different sound to Ringo's drum set at that time." This was before he got the Ludwig kit. "Each drummer gets an individual sound, first of all by the way they tune the drums and then by the way they play the drums," he added. The drum kit comes from the personal collection of Clive Edwards. - NME, 6/30/16...... 
Drummer Ginger Baker of Cream has undergone open heart surgery after being diagnosed with a heart condition in March. Baker, 76, suffered a fall at his home at that time and revealed he was due to face the surgery, adding he hoped to be able to carry on drummer. "There are two options for surgery. Depending on how strong my old lungs are, they may do both. The doctor says he's going to get me playing again," he said. Leda Baker, Ginger's daughter, said her dad is "on the road to recovery" and was able to have a conversation the day after his surgery. Baker founded Cream in 1966 with Eric Clapton and bassist Jack Bruce, and the trio released four albums including the influential Disraeli Gears before splitting in 1968. The power trio reformed for four gigs at London's Royal Albert Hall in 2005, before Jack Bruce's death in 2014. Baker's 18 solo albums include his latest effort, 2014's Why. - NME, 7/5/16...... The National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress has named Motown legend Smokey Robinson as its next recipient of the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, which honors a living musician's lifetime achievement in promoting songs as a means to cultural understanding, inspiring new generations and entertaining audiences. "It gives me such joy and gratitude to be included among the past recipients of this most prestigious songwriting award," Robinson said in a statement. David S. Mao of the Library of Congress described Grammy winner Robinson as the "poet laureate of soul" and noted he was "a master at crafting lyrics that speak to the heart and soul, expressing ordinary themes in an extraordinary way... It is that quality in his music that makes him one of the greatest poetic songwriters of our time." Robinson, whose hits with The Miracles include "The Tracks of My Tears," "I Second That Emotion" and "The Tears of a Clown," will accept the award in Washington, D.C., in November. - Billboard, 7/5/16...... Debbie Rowe, the ex-wife of Michael Jackson and the mother of two of Jackson's oldest children, has reportedly been diagnosed with breast cancer. Rowe, 57, will undergo surgery in the near future to treat the disease, according to multiple reports. Jackson and Rowe were married from 1996 to 1999. Paris Jackson, one of the children, has been estranged from Rowe for over a year. - WENN.com, 7/4/16...... Lisa Marie Presley, who recently filed for a divorce from her fourth husband Michael Lockwood, has amended her filing to reflect a legal separation instead. The court documents have now been changed to legal separation, meaning, unlike divorce, the couple will still be legally married, but living separately. Presley and Lockwood, a music producer, tied the knot in Japan in Jan. 2006. Lisa Marie has requested full custody of the pair's seven-year-old twin daughters, Harper and Finley. - WENN.com, 7/1/16...... 
Bruce Springsteen has written a new forward for the