Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on July 2nd, 2017

Attorneys representing The Doors have sent a cease-and-desist letter to Kendall and Kylie Jenner over the reality show pair's controversial new line of T-shirts featuring the sisters' faces superimposed over musicians including Ozzy Osbourne, Metallica, Pink Floyd, Kiss, Led Zeppelin, Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. "This is a case of people who fashion themselves as celebrities who are famous for being well-known but don't actually do anything trying to utilize and steal and capitalize on the legacies of those who actually did do something and created amazing art and messages," said Doors and Morrison estate manager Jeff Jampol, who added that the surviving members of the band had "zero contact" with the Jenners. In one of the unauthorized shirts, Kendall Jenner's face can be seen over the Doors' logo. The new line of controversial T-shirts, which come with a $125 price tag, appeared on the sisters' online shop on June 28, but were removed the next day following a swift backlash. The sisters also posted a message on Twitter apologizing for the theft. "These designs were not well thought out and we deeply apologize to anyone that has been upset and/or offended, especially to the families of the artists... We will use this as an opportunity to learn from these mistakes and again, we are very sorry." - RollingStone.com, 6/29/17...... Diana Ross was among the headliners on the first day of the Essence Music Festival at the Superdome in New Orleans on June 30. The Motown legend kicked off her set, appropriately, with "I'm Coming Out," then covered such solo hits as "Touch Me in the Morning" and "Upside Down," as well as such Supremes smashes as "Stop! In the Name of Love" before a crowd of both young and old fans. Other artists performing during the three-day event include Mary J. Blige, Chaka Khan, Chance the Rapper, India.Arie and John Legend. - Billboard, 7/1/17...... In a new interview with London's The Times paper, Mick Jagger said that an editorial in the same publication 40 years earlier was responsible for helping him avoid prison for a minor drug offense in 1967. The editorial stated that Jagger had been sentenced to three months in jail not because of the severity of his crime but because band members were being "scapegoats" by an older generation critical of their lifestyle, and that he should be treated "exactly the same as anyone else." "That editorial got me out jail," the 73-year-old Rolling Stones frontman said. "One day it dropped, and the next thing I was out." He credits the editorial with telling the establishment "come on guys, this is just not English fair play kind of thing." - AP, 7/1/17...... Phil Collins announced a string of new UK concerts for this fall, beginning with a Nov. 22 show at the Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham. After a concert in Sheffield on Nov. 24, the former Genesis member will play two shows at London's Royal Albert Hall on Nov. 26 and 27, which were originally set to take place on June 8 and 9 but were postponed due to the musician suffering an injury. Collins will then play Manchester (11/29), Glasgow (12/1), Newcastle (12/2) and Birmingham (12/3). Collins was also among the headliners at the British Summer Time festival at London's Hyde Park on June 30. Collins had announced he was retiring from music in 2011, and his concerts earlier in 2017 were the first time he had performed live in a decade. "I thought I would retire quietly," he said in a press release. "But thanks to the fans, my family and support from some extraordinary artists I have rediscovered my passion for music and performing. It's time to do it all again and I'm excited. It just feels right." - New Musical Express, 6/30/17...... Neil Young and his recent collaborators Promise of the Real band have dropped a patriotic video for a new song called "Children of Destiny" just in time for the Fourth of July holiday. Featuring plenty of American flags, kids celebrating Independence Day, sweeping landscape shots and recent protest footage, the visual accompanies lyrics like "Stand up for what you believe/ Resist the powers that be/ Preserve the ways of democracy so the children can be free." "Children of Destiny" was recorded with a 56-piece orchestra at Hollywood's Capitol Studios. The track can be streamed and purchased on the Warner Bros. website. - Billboard, 6/30/17...... Joe Jackson, the 88-year-old father of Michael Jackson and his musician brothers, was admitted to a hospital in Las Vegas on June 30 after a car in which he was riding was hit by another vehicle that was attempting to make a left-hand turn near the Las Vegas Strip. Jackson, who has lived in the city for many years, was taken University Medical Center for observation after complaining of injury. The driver of the other vehicle was cited for failing to yield the right of way. - AP, 6/30/17...... In other Jackson-related news, Michael's famous chimp friend Bubbles has taken to painting to pass the time, and now several of his works are being auctioned off at an upcoming charity show in Miami called "Apes That Paint." Bubbles' paintings will be joined by works by over 60 other primates that were raised by the entertainment industry, before being abandoned. Bubbles, now 34, has lived at The Center for Great Apes in Wachula, Fla., since 2005. Around $30 million is reportedly needed to provide the Center's 61 residents with full care until the end of their lives, and Michael Jackson's living relatives have reportedly not contributed to Bubbles' care since the singer's death in 2009. - NME, 6/28/17...... Aretha Franklin announced on June 27 that she was canceling a July 1 concert in Toronto due to health concerns. Franklin, 75, was to have headlined the the Toronto Jazz Festival at the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts, but a statement on the venue's website said that the Queen of Soul was unable to travel to Toronto this week "as per doctor's orders." The statement did not expand on what possible illness postponed her visit, but Franklin is now set to perform at the 2018 Toronto Jazz Festival on June 29, 2018. - The Hollywood Reporter, 6/27/17...... Songwriter Jack Tempchin, who collaborated with the Eagles on several of their hits, has teamed up with Rita Coolidge for a duet of his classic hit "Slow Dancing," which he wrote more than 40 years ago and was previously a hit for Johnny Rivers under the title "Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancin')." The track is taken from Tempchin's new album Peaceful Easy Feeling - The Songs of Jack Tempchin, which is due Aug. 25 and pays tribute to Tempchin's late songwriting partner and friend Glenn Frey, with Tempchin's own versions of a dozen popular tracks. - Billboard, 6/30/17...... Paul McCartney has reached a settlement with Sony/ATV in their duel over song rights for the Beatles, settling a case that had the potential to rock the music industry to its core. Sir Paul sued Sony/ATV in January, asking the court for a declaration that he could soon reclaim his copyright ownership share to the iconic group's catalog of songs. Because the Copyright Act of 1976 lengthened the term of copyright protection by 19 years, it created for owners of works who signed over their rights on or before Jan. 1, 1978 the non-waivable right to reclaim them after a certain period of time. The provision McCartney relied on here states specifically: "Termination of the grant may be effected at any time during a period of five years beginning at the end of fifty-six years from the date copyright was originally secured, or beginning on January 1, 1978, whichever is later." For McCartney, that date was Oct. 5, 2018. Now that he and Sony/ATV have resolved this issue themselves, copyright watchers won't have the satisfaction of knowing how a stateside court would rule in this case. The details of the deal are unclear, but the order specifies that the New York federal court will "enforce the terms of the parties' Settlement Agreement, should a dispute arise." - The Hollywood Reporter, 6/29/17...... Fifty years ago, an 18-year-old Billy Joel was supposed to graduate from Hicksville High School in his Long Island hometown of Hicksville, NY. But after a late-night performance at a piano bar, he overslept and missed a crucial English exam, leaving him one credit short of graduating. Twenty-five years later in 1992, when he had become one of the world's biggest pop stars, he submitted some of his work to the school board to meet the missing academic requirements and was finally awarded his diploma, walking at the commencement ceremony with Hicksville High's graduating class that year. Now, another 25 years later, Joel once again returned to his alma mater to deliver the commencement speech to his alma mater, advising the 400 graduating seniors to hold onto their 18-year-old idealism to guide them later in life. "And pick a job that you like, because if you pick a job that you hate, your life's gonna suck," he joked. - Stereogum.com, 6/28/17...... Cleveland's Rock and Roll Hall of fame opened a new exhibit on the first weekend in July called "Power of Rock," featuring film clips, laser lights, concert smoke, under-seat speakers and recorded stories by Hall of Fame inductees, including former Deep Purple bassist Glenn Hughes. The exhibit is the centerpiece of an overhaul of the Hall of Fame, in which $15 million has been invested so far. Fans will be able to enter an interactive booth and listen to Hughes, visited the Hall on June 29 to record his story of how a Rolling Stones concert he attended as a teenager ignited his passion for rock. The exhibit brings to life more than 30 years of the Hall's legendary induction ceremonies through digital displays, memorabilia exhibits and a 12-minute film of ceremony highlights by Academy Award-winning director Jonathan Demme, played on five moving screens. "The artist is suffering. It's difficult to make a living," Hughes told the AP. "But I see the same endeavor, the same hunger, as when I started out, and that's all that really matters." - AP, 6/29/17...... Actor Ben Hardy, known for his role as Angel in the 2016 action film X-Men: Apocalypse has reportedly been cast as drummer Roger Taylor in the long-awaited Queen docudrama. "Ben caught the eye of producers and he has worked with director Bryan Singer on X-Men," an unnamed source reportedly told the UK tabloid The Sun. "After a couple of screen tests, bosses decided he was the perfect man for the job and signed him up. He's very excited." Hardy was also a member of the cast of the British TV show EastEnders. Mr. Robot star Rami Malek is attached to play Queen frontman Freddie Mercury in the new film after Sacha Baron Cohen pulled out over creative differences with the band. Queen are currently touring North America with Adam Lambert. - New Musical Express, 6/29/17...... Sony Corp. has announced that one of its factories near Tokyo is restarting production of vinyl records beginning in March 2018, the first time mass production of vinyl has happened in 30 years. Sony says it has already installed record-cutting equipment at a recording studio in Tokyo, which will cut the master copies before they're sent to the factory for mass production. The initial albums will contain mostly older Japanese music, but could expand to include today's hit songs, which Japanese youth are increasingly searching for on vinyl, according to Sony. "A lot of young people buy songs that they hear and love on streaming services," Sony Music CEO Michinori Mizuno said. Japan currently has one active record manufacturer that makes limited qualities of new releases, but it often cannot keep up with demand. Nearly 800,000 vinyl records were sold in Japan last year, an eightfold increase from 2010. Meanwhile in the US, the United Record Pressing plant near Nashville, Tenn., which has manufactured vinyl since 1949, is reportedly planning to expand its operations, doubling its current production capacity. In addition to manufacturing commercial records, United also offers custom record-making services to consumers. - PCMag.com, 6/30/17...... The iconic disco dance floor from 1977's Saturday Night Fever was expected to fetch over $1 million when it is auctioned at the end of June by the California auction house Profiles in History. The 24 x 16 foot floor, with its more than 250 red, white and blue separate light compartments, was built and installed at Brooklyn's 2001 Odyssey nightclub specifically for the film. When the club closed in 2005, former employee Vito Bruno, now the executive of a party-planning company, bought the floor and has had it since. In the same Profiles in History sale are several seemingly more manageable collectibles, including Star Wars actor Mark Hamill's screen-used Luke Skywalker lightsaber from The Empire Strikes Back and A New Hope, and a Golden Ticket from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. An R2-D2 robot that was reconstructed out of parts from the original Star Wars trilogy and the first two prequels was sold at auction to an anonymous buyer in the auction for $2.76 million. The idea of an "original" R2-D2 doesn't really fly, considering that movie studio Lucasfilm always worked with multiple prototypes, and there were four R2-D2 models behind the scenes of the first Star Wars movie. The droid was sold off in the estate sale of its deceased owner. - Marketwatch.com/Gizmodo.com, 7/1/17...... Gary DeCarlo, a singer with the band Steam who co-wrote and sang lead on the band's enduring 1969 hit "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye," died on June 28 at a hospice in his native Connecticut following a battle with lung cancer. He was 75. DeCarlo and his former bandmates Paul Leka and Dale Frashuer, who played in local Connecticut bands, Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye." Leka eventually moved into production and, for Mercury Records, recorded a session with DeCarlo. Needing a B-side for their single "Sweet Laura Lee," the two revived a Glenwoods track titled "Kiss Him Goodbye." At the time of the single's release, Steam didn't actually exist: The band seen on the single's cover as well as promotional performances -- where the singer lip-synched DeCarlo's vocals -- were hired to promote the track, even though none of them actually contributed on "Kiss Him Goodbye." Still, the single rose to Number One on the Billboard Hot 100 in the latter half of 1969, resulting in a self-titled album in 1970 before Steam dissolved due to DeCarlo's dissatisfaction over the false nature of the band. Over the ensuing decades, the song became an anthem at stadiums and arenas, with the home crowd chanting the song's chorus to taunt the away team when a victory is decidedly in hand. The chant has also accompanied pitching changes and ejections at sporting events. The Supremes, Bananarama, the Nylons and Kristinia DeBarge were also among the artists who covered the track, with the latter three acts turning their renditions into charting hits. By DeCarlo's count, the song in all its forms has sold over 6.5 million copies. Most recently, a group of Democrats invoked the chant in May to taunt Republicans after the House of Representatives passed a health care bill opposed by Democrats. - 6/28/17.

Fans of Rush have successfully lobbied the High Park Zoo in Toronto to name three newly born capybaras -- a South American mammal that resembles a giant guinea pig and is the largest living rodent -- "Geddy," "Alex" and "Neil" after three of the city's most famous sons, Rush members Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart. "We are thrilled to hear that three cute little furry creatures from South America now bear our names. Thanks to all who voted to give us this special honour!," Geddy Lee said in a statement, jokingly adding, "By the way, which one is me? In the picture I saw none of them were wearing glasses." In May 2016, the three capybaras' parents escaped from the same zoo and, after 36 days on the lam and a cost of about $15,000, were eventually recaptured. The pair became affectionately known as "Bonnie and Clyde." The city also honored Rush in Sept. 2016 when a suburban park in Toronto was named the "Lee-Lifeson Art Park" in an area in which the pair grew up and Rush formed in 1971. - Billboard, 6/25/17...... Stevie Nicks has re-recorded "Gypsy," a track from Fleetwood Mac's 1982 album Mirage, for a new Netflix show of the same name and which was inspired by the song. Gypsy show creator Lisa Rubin says she wrote the new show's pilot episode after listening to the Fleetwood Mac track, and Nicks subsequently offered to re-record the song for Gypsy's opening credits. "I'm very excited for the world to hear 'Gypsy' more like I wrote it -- on piano. I am very proud of this version," Nicks told Entertainment Weekly. The 10-episode first season of Gypsy will be available for streaming on Netflix on June 30. - New Musical Express, 6/26/17...... Glen Campbell's final studio album, Adiós has debuted at No. 40 on Billboard's Hot 200 album chart for the week ending July 1. With 14,000 units sold -- nearly all from traditional album sales -- Adiós was recorded in 2012, a year after it was announced the ailing star had Alzheimer's disease. The LP is Campbell's 16th Top 40 album, and did even better on the Billboard Top Country Album chart, where it bowed at No. 7 and becomes his 19th Country Top 10 effort. Meanwhile, Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham's self-titled joint album has debuted at No. 17 on the Hot 200, with 23,000 equivalent album units earned in the week ending June 15 -- 22,000 in traditional album sales. The Buckingham/McVie album surpasses the chart highs of any of the two artists' solo projects. Chuck Berry's posthumous LP CHUCK has also risen to No. 49, after its June 16 release. CHUCK is the late rock legend's first album of mostly new music since 1979's Rock It, and becomes his highest charting album of new music since 1972, when The London Chuck Berry Sessions peaked at No. 8. - Billboard, 6/23/17...... Gene Simmons of Kiss has told Forbes that he's abandoning his attempt to trademark the heavy metal "devil horns" gesture -- a thumb-out variation that looks more like the American Sign Language symbol for "I love you," or the thing Spider-Man does to activate his web shooters. After Simmons filed an application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on June 9 to patent the gesture, he came under criticism by many in the heavy metal community, including the widow of legendary frontman Ronnie James Dio, who passed away and is credited with actually inventing the "horns" signal. "Because I've been lucky enough to have done it so much, it's been more equated with me than anyone else," Ronnie Dio said in a late 1990s interview, adding, "although Gene Simmons will tell you he invented it -- but then again, Gene invented breathing and shoes." - Spin.com, 6/22/17...... A deluxe 3-CD remastered version of Prince's 1984 landmark album Purple Rain has just hit stores, and unlike most "deluxe reissues," it isn't padded with "alternate mixes" or the kind of bonus material that only diehards care about -- it's stuffed with fully finished Prince and the Revolution songs from when the band was at its creative peak. Disc 1 is a 2015 Paisley Park remaster of the album that sounds better than ever; Disc 2 contains songs previously unreleased songs from Prince's vault; and Disc 3 features single edits and B-sides. A bonus DVD showcases Prince and the Revolution live at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, NY, on March 30, 1985. - Billboard, 6/23/17...... Power of Peace, a collaborative LP from Carlos Santana and the Isley Brothers, is due July 28. Santana says Ronald Isley's cover of Burt Bacharach's "The Look of Love" was the first song he and his new bride, Santana band member Cindy Blackman Santana, danced to at their 2010 wedding, and that first gave him the idea to collaborate with the Isleys. Ronald Isley was then featured adding vocals to a pair of songs on Santana's 2016 album Santana IV, and now a 13-song set with Santana on guitar and Isley singing songs made famous by such artists as the Chambers Brothers, Stevie Wonder, The Impressions, Marvin Gaye and Bacharach has been released. "The theme [of the new LP] is spiritual divine medicine to counter the fever pitch fear that's permeating this planet right now," Santana explains. "Every era has its songs, whether it's Pete Seeger or Bob Dylan or Bob Marley or Curtis Mayfield, to help alleviate the condition of brutality and war." The Isleys recencly joined Santana during his most recent residency in Las Vegas and there are hopes of more performances in the future. Meanwhile, Santana will be touring throughout the summer, and he's also hatching plans for the Santana IV band to regroup -- including for a still-being-finalized 50th anniversary Woodstock festival at which the guitarist is planning to play in "three or four bands," including his own and one with surviving members of Sly & the Family Stone. - Billboard, 6/22/17...... Lionel Richie has announced a co-headlining 22-date tour with Mariah Carey that will launch July 21 in Oakland, Calif., and the former Commodores member and '80s solo superstar says he is welcoming Carey's notorious diva behavior when she joins his summer All the Hits Tour. "I wanted her to feel in her element," Richie says. "And a diva has to do what a diva has to do." Richie says he invited Carey on the tour because of her discography of hits and campy vibe. "It's going to be camp city," Richie says. "And I told her, 'Bring all the camp with you'," referring to Carey's massive entourage. Richie, 68, added that he feels fine after undergoing a knee procedure earlier in the year. The father of three, including actress and reality show star Nicole Richie, says he's also working on a book called How to Survive Your Children. - AP, 6/23/17...... Bee Gees surviving brother Barry Gibb played the renowned "legends slot" at the UK's Glastonbury Festival on June 25, drawing heavily from the group's vast back catalogue during his 75-minute set. Early in the set, Gibb dedicated the Bee Gees' hit "Words" to the "people of Manchester and London," who have undergone recent terror attacks. He finished the set with "Tragedy" in a Bee Gees-style gold jacket given to him by a festivalgoer. Also appearing at this year's Glastonbury was Chic mastermind Nile Rodgers, whose set included a rendition of his collaboration with the late David Bowie, "Let's Dance." Referring to his recent battle with an extremely aggressive cancer, Rodgers told the crowd: "I feel like the luckiest man in the world tonight, because six years after that doctor told me to get my affairs in order, today, six years later, I am cancer-free!," to wild cheers from the audience. - New Musical Express, 6/25/17...... Paul McCartney participated in a Facebook Live web chat with comic Tim Minchin on June 21, after previously announcing his first tour of Australia and New Zealand in 24 years. Asked his best memories of Australia, which he last toured in 1993, McCartney said, "I think it's the wildlife because we don't have that here. We don't have kangaroos or koalas. So we went to a zoo and were able, me and the kids, were able to hold a little peaceful koala." A fan asked if he'd consider adding the McCartney solo song "Ode to a Koala Bear" to his set list and he said whimsically, "That's a thought, isn't it?" Presale tickets for the Down Under concerts, which take place from Dec. 2-Dec. 16, are currently available on PaulMcCartney.com, with general sales beginning July 4. - Billboard, 6/22/17...... Queen and Adam Lambert gave their first US live performance since 2014 when they appeared on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live on June 23. The band performed the Queen track "I Want It All," and also a snippet of a new Adam Lambert song, entitled 'TwoFux', during the set. Queen and Lambert recently announced a huge US tour for 2017, with European and Australian runs also following later in the year. 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. - NME, 6/24/17...... Jon Walmsley, who portrayed Jason Walton on the classic 1970s TV series The Waltons, has released a blues-inspired album he says was inspired by a trip to the Mississippi Delta region. The album mixes classic blues standards with a few of Walmsley's original tunes, including the stunning closer, "Katahdin," which is about the beautiful mountains in his home state of Maine. Walmsley recalled the 1976 The Waltons episode when Merle Haggard made a guest appearance in the role of musician Red Turner. "I was thrilled to have him come on the show as a guest star, and even more so that the main plot of the show was the relationship between our two characters," Walmsley recalled. He struck me as being a little bit like Elvis Presley -- where he had his guys who were around him all the time. I think he felt most comfortable at home on the stage. I would have loved to have gotten to know him away from Hollywood, and hung out. Unfortunately, that wasn't to be, but what a great memory." Walmsley is promoting his new release through his website, JonWalmsleyMusic.com. - Billboard, 6/23/17...... The Hollywood Walk of Fame Selection Committee announced on June 23 that Star Wars actor Mark Hamill will be among the celebrities honored in the Walk of Fame Class of 2018. Other actors honored include Nick Nolte, Jeff Goldbum, Gina Lollobrigida and Lynda Carter.