Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on April 26th, 2017

Mick Jagger, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood were the surprise guests of honor as they showed up at the U.K.'s 2017 Jazz FM Awards in London on Apr. 25 to collect two awards for the Rolling Stones -- Album of the Year (for Blue & Lonesome) and Blues Artists of the Year. "We started off a very long time ago in London trying to play clubs, and those clubs were jazz clubs," Jagger said. "We used to try and play these jazz clubs and they used to kick us out for playing blues. So this sort of feels full-circle," he added, then thanked the listeners of Jazz FM for voting. Producer Don Was, who also co-produced Blue & Lonesome, delivered a video message in which he called the veteran rock band "the most hard-working and talented musicians to ever step in front of a microphone." Also during the ceremony, American saxophonist Donny McCaslin, who memorably contributed to David Bowie's final studio album Blackstar, was honored the award for International Jazz Artist of the Year and performed at the ceremony. - Billboard, 4/25/17...... Paul McCartney announced on Apr. 25 that he'll be bringing his One on One Tour back to North America this summer with a schedule of 14 concerts set to kick off in Miami's AmericanAirlines Arena on July 5. Other cities on the tour, many of which Sir Paul will be playing in for the first time ever, include Tampa (7/10), Duluth, Minn. (7/13), Bossier City, La. (7/15), Wichita, Kan. (7/19), Des Moines, Ia. (7/21), Omaha, Neb. (7/23), Tinley Park, Ill. (7/25), Newark, N.J. (7/11), New York's Madison Square Garden (7/15), Brooklyn's Barclays Center (7/19), Syracuse, N.Y. (7/23) and Uniondale, N.Y. (7/26) before wrapping on Oct. 1 at Detroit's Little Ceasars Arena. McCartney recently announced that his next studio album, his followup to 2013's New, will be co-produced with Adele producer Greg Kurstin. - Stereogum.com, 4/25/17...... In other Beatles-related news, Ringo Starr is offering two lucky fans the chance to have brunch with him as part of his charity campaign with Omaze, which benefits the David Lynch Foundation, a non-profit organization that reduces trauma and toxic stress among at-risk populations. Starr will play host to one charitable fan (and a friend of their choice) at his 77th birthday brunch on the July 7 in LA. All you have to do is donate a minimum of $10 to Ringo's Omaze campaign. Starr made the announcement in a video, in which he also encouraged everyone to take a little time out on his July 7 birthday to spread a little "peace and love." Winners will be flown to the event, where they'll become part of Starr's inner-circle to dine in style with other VIP guests in front of the world-renowned Capitol Records building. - New Musical Express, 4/25/17...... Iggy Pop has signed a global licensing deal with Sony Music and Artist Legacy Group who will represent the "original punk" artist's "global brand," it was announced on Apr. 25. The deal will "spearhead new license extension opportunities for Iggy Pop's name and likeness across multiple product categories and media platforms," according to a press release. Over his long career, Pop has gone from a cult figure with a relatively small following to music icon, and his music has also been featured in an array of motion pictures, including Trainspotting, T2: Trainspotting and Gold and Kong: Skull Island, as well as in commercials for Royal Caribbean International, Guinness, Captain Morgan, Toyota, Chrysler, Audi and Volkswagen. He has appeared in various film projects (The Color of Money, Cry-Baby, Tank Girl, Blood Orange and Song to Song) as well as TV projects (The Adventures of Pete & Pete, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, The Venture Bros and Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. Commenting on the deal, Pop simply said, "Sounds like fun!" - Billboard, 4/25/17...... Elton John released a statement on Apr. 24 announcing that he's been forced to cancel all his scheduled Million Dollar Piano shows for April and May at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas after he contracted a "harmful and unusual bacterial infection" following a tour in South America. "During his return flight home from Santiago, Chile (Elton) became violently ill," the statement reads. "Upon returning to the UK, Elton's Doctors admitted him to hospital, where he underwent immediate treatment to remove the infection. After spending two nights in intensive care followed by an extended stay in hospital, Elton was released from hospital on Saturday, April 22 and is now comfortably resting at home per doctor's advice." The statement went on to say that Elton's infection is "rare and potentially deadly," butf ortunately his doctors were able to treat it successfully. John is expected to make a full recovery, and will make his return to the stage on June 3 in Twickenham, England. "I am so fortunate to have the most incredible and loyal fans and apologise for disappointing them," the 70-year-old singer added to the statement. "I am extremely grateful to the medical team for their excellence in looking after me so well." - Billboard, 4/24/17...... Gregg Allman is denying reports that he's entered hospice care after an unverified news report on Facebook surfaced on Apr. 24 claiming the Southern rock icon was under medical care, which prompted country star Travis Tritt to send prayers to his friend and fellow musician. Instead, Allman posted on Facebook that he's resting at home in Savannah, Ga., on doctor's orders, and that he's "looking forward to seeing everyone again... Keep Rockin." The rumors arose after Allman has battled a number of past health issues. While no specific reason was given, in March he announced he wouldn't be touring in 2017 and canceled some scheduled June concerts. Allman canceled tours in 2016 and 2011 due to various health problems. - Billboard, 4/24/17...... Bruce Springsteen joined his E Street Band bandmate "Little Steven" Van Zandt onstage at the Asbury Music and Film Festival at the Paramount Theater in New Jersey on Apr. 22 for jams of "It's Been a Long Time" from the 1991 Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes album, Better Days, and Chuck Berry's "Bye Bye Johnny." Van Zandt, who introduced Springsteen as his "brother from another mother," also performed songs from his forthcoming album, Soulfire, set for release on May 19. Springsteen also participated in a reunion concert at the Paramount the previous evening featuring Southside Johnny, Vini Lopez, and other local musicians. - Billboard, 4/23/17...... Aretha Franklin has blasted her fellow singing legend Dionne Warwick in a phone interview with the AP, accusing Warwick of making up a story that Franklin was Whitney Houston's godmother, even though the alleged offense happened five years ago at Houston's funeral. Franklin claims Warwick made a "libelous" statement against her at the funeral. At the time, Warwick told funeral-goers that Franklin was there and introduced her, but then realized she wasn't in attendance. "'Ree's not here, but she is here," Warwick said, referring to Franklin by a nickname. "She loves Whitney as if she were born to her. She is her godmother." At the time, Franklin said she was suffering from swollen feet and had to skip the funeral so she could perform later that night at Radio City Music Hall in New York, which she said she was contractually obligated to do. Though Cissy Houston, Whitney Houston's mother, said in the days afterward that Franklin wasn't Houston's godmother (it was Darlene Love), Franklin felt the comment was damaging to her and planned to address it at a later date, and she said she feels now is the time. "We've never been friends and I don't think that Dionne has ever liked me," Franklin says today. "I don't care about her apology, at this point it isn't about an apology, it's about libel," she added. - AP, 4/25/17...... In an interview with The Daily Mirror paper, former Genesis guitarist Mike Rutherford hinted that Genesis could be getting back together in 2017 to celebrate its 50th anniversary. "I do appreciate the fact that we're all very good friends, which is nice, especially the three of us... Who knows?" said Rutherford, referring his two fellow primary band members Phil Collins and Tony Banks. "I did a book about me and my father called The Living Years about four years ago, and Phil did a book last year," Rutherford continued. "I came away, as he did too, with a feeling of what an incredible time we've had. How lucky we've been. And more importantly, what a great friendship we've had." Genesis last played together in 2007 on their 40th anniversary Play It Again Tour. - New Musical Express, 4/24/17...... In other prog rock news, Rush was honored with the Allan Slaight Humanitarian Award at the Canadian Music & Broadcast Industry Awards in Toronto on Apr. 20. Rush members Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson were on hand to collect the award, with Lifeson calling it a "most humbling recognition... Seldom in our times have we felt a greater need for the humanitarian spirit than now, with the rising voices of fear and distrust becoming more commonplace, anger and hatred competing with love and compassion. It is more crucial than ever to champion the basic principles of human welfare." The three-day CMW event was attended by a who's who of Canadians and visiting international delegates, who participated in industry-focused keynotes and panels and attended six nights of live music all over Toronto. - Billboard, 4/21/17...... A deluxe 3-CD remastered version of Prince's landmark album Purple Rain will be released later in 2017, the Prince fansite Prince.org has revealed. All tracks have been carefully transferred from the stereo masters at Paisley Park, and mastered by Bernie Grundman -- the mastering engineer who worked on the original album. The reissue will also include a concert film recorded in Syracuse on March 30, 1985, with audio remastered by Grundman. Warner Bros. has also announced that they plan to release two new Prince concert films on June 9. - NME, 4/20/17...... Neil Young announced on his Pono community website on Apr. 21 that he'll be starting his own hi-fi streaming service called "Xstream" (which also happens to be the name of a streaming service that's featured in the Fox series Empire). "For more than eight months, I've been working with our small team to look for alternatives," Young wrote. "Finding a way to deliver the quality music without the expense and to bring it to a larger audience has been our goal. Xstream plays at the highest quality your network condition allows at that moment and adapts as the network conditions change. It's a single high-resolution bit-perfect file that essentially compresses as needed to never stop playing." Young added that his entire catalog will be available on Xstream in the near future. Young's Pono store, which used his proprietary audio player and online storefront for high fidelity recordings, has been offline since last July, and a cursory look at the company's Facebook page reveals a lot of disgruntled customers. Young acknowledged Pono's rocky start, and admitted that the exorbitantly high prices for Pono-exclusive files (albums cost anywhere from $20-30; individual tracks were $1.99 to $2.99) were part of the reason it didn't work out as anticipated. "All songs should cost the same, regardless of digital resolution. - Stereogum.com, 4/21/17...... A performance by Carly Simon after the screening of the Clive Davis documentary The Soundtrack of Our Lives on Apr. 19 at Radio City in New York reportedly caused several audience members to wince. Simon performed her hit "Coming Around Again," mixed with "Itsy Bitsy Spider," while flanked by a group of small children doing the nursery rhyme hand gestures. "Why is this happening?" wailed one attendee, while another joked, "This sounded a lot better when we were high in the 70s." Another source said, "It felt weird, people were wincing." Simon has performed the unusual song mix for years, and apparently nobody has told her to stop. - PageSix.com, 4/21/17...... '70s movie icon Burt Reynolds made a rare public appearance on Apr. 22 as he attended the Tribeca Film Festival to promote his new drama Dog Years, alongside co-stars Chevy Chase, Ariel Winter and festival founder Robert De Niro. The 81-year-old Reynolds, wearing a pair of orange-tinted glasses and a blue shirt and black suit, appeared frail and struggled to walk down the red carpet, however he brushed off his frailty and instead gushed about his fellow stars. "Great to see Mr. De Niro, who I love, and... you know, all the people that I know," he told the Associated Press. "It's very sweet." Reynolds, who underwent a heart bypass opration in 2010, last appeared in public in April 2016 to promote his memoir, But Enough About Me. Dog Years is in cinemas now. - WENN.com 4/24/17...... Actress Erin Moran, best known for playing Joanie Cunningham in the iconic '70s series Happy Days, died on Apr. 22 of stage 4 cancer at her home in Indiana. She was 56. The cause of death of Moran, whose body was found unresponsive by authorities, was released on Apr. 24 in a joint statement from the Harrison County Coroner's office and sheriff's department. The department says an autopsy revealed the 56-year-old actress had stage-four cancer, but doesn't specify what type. Moran died in the rural community of New Salisbury, about 20 miles northwest of Louisville, Kentucky. Officials say standard toxicology test results are pending but that no illegal narcotics were found at the home. A native of Burbank, Calif., Moran began acting in TV and movies before she was 10 years old, and shot to fame in 1974 after being cast as Joanie Cunningham, the feisty kid sister to high school student Richie Cunningham, played by Ron Howard, in Happy Days. Moran continued the role in 1982 in the short-lived spinoff Joanie Loves Chachi In 2012, Moran made headlines after she was evicted from a trailer she was sharing with her husband. Moran's Happy Days co-star Henry Winkler, who played Fonzie on the series, issued a statement saying he hopes Moran would finally find peace. - Variety.com, 4/24/17...... Veteran Hollywood agent and talent manager Sandy Gallin, who guided the careers of such luminaries as Barbra Streisand, Dolly Parton, Cher and Nicole Kidman, as well as being a TV, movie and Broadway producer, died on Apr. 21 after a long battle with multiple myeloma, according to close friend Bruce Bozzi. He was 76. Gallin helped produce such films as 1991's Father of the Bride and 1994's I.Q starring Tim Robbins, as well as the TV shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. He earned a Primetime Emmy Award in 1980 for producing The Miracle Worker, starring Melissa Gilbert. He also managed Michael Jackson after the pop star was accused of molestation and guided Milli Vanilli when the performers were stripped of their Grammy Award after it was discovered they had not sung on their hit album. Raised in New York City, Gallin was a graduate of Boston University who broke into the agency business in the traditional manner, starting in the mail room of the G.A.C. agency. He took typing and shorthand in night school, became a secretary, then an agent. In later life, he sold houses and did luxury renovations. "We lost a shining light this morning," Bruce Bozzi wrote on Instagram in tribute. - AP, 4/22/17.

A MusiCares panel dedicated to treating artists and other music professionals who've become addicted to drugs and alcohol on Apr. 27 in New York City will feature Bad Company drummer Simon Kirke. Kirke, who works closely with Road Recovery, an organization that uses musicians to mentor teens battling addiction, will take part in "Plugged In - Treating The Music Professional and Leading Them Toward a Lifetime of Recovery," along with a panel of intervention and recovery experts. - Billboard, 4/21/17...... Two Classic Rock tracks have entered the Billboard Hot Rock Songs chart for the week dated Apr. 29. Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song," which bowed at No. 16, is fueled by its appearance in the trailer for Thor: Ragnarok. The J. Geils Band (named after its founder and guitarist J. Geils, who passed away on Apr. 11) also makes its first appearance on the same chart as "Centerfold" debuted at No. 21. "Centerfold" was the group's only No. 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs airplay chart, ruling for three weeks in 1982. - Billboard, 4/20/17...... Styx will release The Mission, its first new album in 14 years, on June 16. The Mission was recorded at Blackbird Studios in Nashville with Styx guitarist/vocalist Tommy Shaw's longtime collaborator Will Evankovich. Shaw and bandmate James "J.Y." Young said the inspiration for the album came from the discovery of a fifth moon around Pluto which was named Styx -- not explicitly after the band -- but it did introduce the group to New Horizons, which discovered the moon and befriended Styx and, according to Shaw, "helped us out with the mythology and images and science of it." "It's the 40th anniversary of The Grand Illusion," Shaw says, "so wouldn't it be great if we had a record that had some resonance with our heyday but nonetheless was reflecting our current lineup and their capabilities to perhaps go beyond what we did then, and here we are." Four days before the album's release, Styx will kick off a co-headlining summer tour behind the LP with REO Speedwagon on June 12. Recalling the "prime era" of Styx with The Grand Illusion and Pieces of Eight, Shaw says "we wanted to make sure (the new album) sounds like the Styx everybody grew up with, so that was the margins for it." Styx say they hope to perform the 14-track The Mission in its entirety at some point but will have to wait until the REO tour ends in late August. - Billboard, 4/21/17...... In other prog-rock news, Roger Waters has revealed full details of Is This the Life We Really Want?, his first solo studio album in 25 years. Described as an "unflinching commentary on the modern world and uncertain times," the 12-track LP will hit stores on June 2 and be the followup to Waters' 1992 effort Amused to Death. Is This the Life We Really Want? was produced and mixed with Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich and also be released as a 180-gram vinyl LP, and digitally. - New Musical Express, 4/20/17...... Queen & Adam Lambert announced details of a massive UK and Ireland tour for 2017, followed by several dates in Europe in November. Lambert, who rose to fame on the US talent show American Idol, has been Queen's touring frontman and replacement for Freddie Mercury since 2011. Queen guitarist Brian May says they will "chuck in a few things that people really don't expect" more than usual on this tour. "There are so many dimensions to Adam, which of course fits with our music. He can get down and do the rock stuff really dirty, and you have all those dimensions, and we can explore that even more," May says. Drummer Roger Taylor adds that "we're planning on doing stuff we either haven't done before or haven't done for a long time." - NME, 4/18/17...... Kraftwerk have announced a new live release, 3D - The Catalogue, on May 26 which features audio and visual recordings of the German electronic rock pioneers playing such albums as Autobahn, Tour De France and Techno Pop. 3D - The Catalogue will be released in Blu-ray, CD, DVD and vinyl formats. A shortened version of the album will also be released, containing choice cuts from across the eight performances. Kraftwerk will perform a number of live dates in the UK later in 2017. - NME, 4/21/17...... Prince was remembered thoughout Minneapolis, Minn., on Apr. 21, the one-year anniversary of his untimely death from an accidental drug overdose. At Paisley Park, which has been turned into a museum, a full four days of events have been scheduled, ranging from concert performances by Prince's former bandmates to panel discussions. Also, street parties will be held on Apr. 21 and 22 outside First Avenue, the Minneapolis club he immortalized in Purple Rain. The Minnesota History Center will also be staging a special exhibit of Prince memorabilia, including his iconic "Purple Rain" suit. Meanwhile, Nielsen Music has announced that the Purple One's catalog of albums and songs have sold a combined 7.7 million copies through the week ending Apr. 13 .Incredibly, for the full year of 2016, Prince sold more albums than any other artist -- even Adele -- with 2.23 million copies sold. The bulk of Prince's album and songs sales occurred in the month after his death: 5.65 million were registered between April 21 and May 19, 2016. In more Prince news, members of his 1980s backing band The Revolution have announced they are reuniting and hitting the road for a spring 2017 tour that includes stops in Chicago, Washington, D.C., New York, Cleveland, Detroit, Los Angeles and San Francisco before ending in Seattle on July 15. - AP/Billboard, 4/21/17...... After the conservatively sympathetic trio of Ted Nugent, Kid Rock and Sarah Palin visited Pres. Donald Trump at the White House on Apr. 20, a pic of Nugent and Pres. Trump was posted on Twitter and went midly viral. The pic prompted diehard liberal David Crosby to tweet soon after that "this picture says it all... the two most insincere smiles in history... what a pair of assholes." - Spin.com, 4/20/17...... Speaking of Pres. Trump, Bruce Springsteen and Pittsburgh musician Joe Grushecky are sending a strong message to the newly elected controversial president with a new anthem called "That's What Makes Us Great." "I had this song, and Bruce and I had been talking. I sent it to him and he liked it. I said, 'What do you think about singing on it?,'" Grushecky told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "He gave it the Bruce treatment." Grushecky says he wrote the song, which uses the Trump slogan "Make America Great Again" as an answer to the Trump administration's positions on administration, after the inauguration in January. Grushecky and Springsteen have a long history together, first collaborating on the 1995 album American Babylon and later on the Pittsburgh rocker's 2009 album East Carson Street. The song is now available for download at grushecky.com. - Billboard, 4/19/17...... A new Clive Davis documentary, Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives, premiered on Apr. 19 at the opening of the Tribeca Film Festival at Radio City Music Hall. The screening was followed by a special concert featuring performances by several of the record label mogul's most famous signees, including Aretha Franklin, Jennifer Hudson, Earth, Wind & Fire, Dionne Warwick, Carly Simon and Barry Manilow. The documentary, based on Davis' 2013 bestselling autobiography, will also be coming exclusively to Apple Music for streaming. - Billboard, 4/19/17...... Stevie Wonder was presented with ASCAP's inaugural Key of Life award at the ASCAP I Create Music Expo on Apr. 15 in Los Angeles. Escorted onstage by singer/songwriter/actress Janelle Monae, Wonder said, "I cannot thank any of you enough, so I'll just spend the rest of my life doing that -- whether you like it or not." Then the 25-time Grammy award winner sat down next to his keyboard for a one-on-one conversation with Monae: "So I guess you're going to ask some questions, getting into my business," he said as the audience laughed. For the next two hours, the audience journeyed with Wonder as he reflected on his beginnings as an 11-year-old music prodigy at Motown, his 50-plus year love affair with music, what inspires his songwriting and the inner workings behind some of his classic songs, several of which he played for the audience. In other Stevie Wonder-related news, the singer's collaborator Sylvia Moy, who contributed to such Wonder smashes as "My Cherie Amour" and "I Was Made to Love Her," died on Apr. 14 in a Dearborn, Mich., hospital following complications from pneumonia. She was 78. As one of Motown's first female songwriter/producers, Moy was instrumental in shaping the label's pioneering legacy. She, Wonder and fellow songwriter Henry Cosby initially teamed up in 1965 to write Wonder's No. 1 R&B and No. 3 pop single "Uptight (Everything's Alright)." The trio went on to pen the Billboard Hot 100 hits "My Cherie Amour" and "I Was Made to Love Her" as well as "I'm Wondering" and "Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day." Moy, a six-time Grammy nominee and member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, additionally broke down barriers as one of Motown's first ever female producers. - Billboard, 4/16/17...... Cuba Gooding, Sr., a former member of the '70s soul group The Main Ingredient and the father of Oscar-winning actor Cuba Gooding, Jr., was found dead in a parked car in the San Fernando Valley in California on Apr. 20. He was 72. LAPD officials have confirmed that there was "no indication of foul play or homicide" with the death in question, and that Gooding's death will now be passed on to the coroner for an inquest. However, sources close to the investigation claim a drug overdose is suspected. In addition to his work with The Main Ingredient, with hits including "Everybody Plays the Fool" and "Just Don't Want to be Lonely," Gooding also enjoyed a solo career with Motown Records. In addition to Cuba Jr., Gooding and his wife Shirley have three other children together -- actor Omar Gooding, musician Tommy Gooding and actress April Gooding. Cuba Gooding, Jr. has yet to speak out on his father's death. - New Musical Express, 4/21/17...... Allan Holdsworth, an innovative rock guitarist who was hailed as one of the most technically gifted guitarists of his time, died on Apr. 15 of as yet undisclosed causes. He was 70. The innovative musician shaped his reputation through the '70s as a master of prog-rock and jazz fusion with such acts as Tempest, Soft Machine, Gong and U.K., but never quite struck the commercial success he richly deserved. His signature two-handed finger tapping style influenced the best in the business, from Carlos Santana, Frank Zappa, Pat Metheny, John McLaughlin, Tom Morello, Peter Frampton to Joe Satriani and Eddie Van Halen, who called him "the best, in my book" and "so damned good that I can't cop anything." After stints in several prog British bands in the 1970s and 1980s, Holdsworth embarked on a solo career in 1982 with his album I.O.U, and the following year earned a Grammy nomination for his EP Road Games (for best rock instrumental performance). Holdsworth's family launched a GoFundMe campaign to help drive donations for funeral expenses, which has raised over $80,000 to date. "He was a brilliant unique guitar master player," Peter Frampton tweeted after learning of Holdsworth's passing. - Billboard, 4/17/17...... Bruce Langhorne, an influential session guitarist who often collaborated with Bob Dylan and inspired his song "Mr. Tambourine Man," died of kidney failure at his home in Venice, Calif., on Apr. 14. He was 78. A mainstay of the Greenwich Village folk rock music scene in the 1950s and 1960s, Langhorne played with the likes of Joan Baez, Gordon Lightfoot and Buffy Sainte-Marie, among others. Langhorne, perhaps best known for his work on Dylan's Bringing It All Back Home, is survived by his wife of 29 years, Janet Bachelor. - AP, 4/16/17...... Former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony has paid tribute to his grandson, who died of a fatal heart problem just two weeks after his birth. Anthony took to Facebook to express his sadness at the loss. He wrote: "We are tremendously proud of Rex. In the short time on Earth, he left a lasting impression that our family will cherish. I am doing the 'Walk L.A.' in June for Children's Hospital L.A. with our families to give back a little to the hospital that did so much for my grandson and other children that come here. Our team is called 'Rex and the Heart Beaters'." Anthony and his family are hoping to raise $5,000 in donations to benefit Children's Hospital L.A.. It has currently reached over $4,000. - New Musical Express, 4/20/17.