The unnamed woman who in 2021 accused Bob Dylan of sexually abused her as a child in 1965 permanently dropped her case on July 28, a day after Dylan's attorneys accused her of destroying key evidence and "irretrievably compromising the integrity of the case." The woman had claimed Dylan abused her over a six-week period in 1965, leaving her "emotionally scarred and psychologically damaged. Dylan's lawyers quickly called the case "false, malicious, reckless and defamatory and a "brazen shakedown masquerading as a lawsuit." At the July 28 hearing, the plaintiff -- identified only as J.C. -- suddenly asked the federal judge overseeing the case to dismiss it "with prejudice, meaning it will be permanently closed and cannot be refiled." The move came after "J.C." was accused of deleting key messages and threatened with monetary sanctions. "This case is over. It is outrageous that it was ever brought in the first place," said Dylan's lead attorney Orin Snyder of the law firm Gibson Dunn. "We are pleased that the plaintiff has dropped this lawyer-driven sham and that the case has been dismissed with prejudice," he added. J.C.'s attorneys did not immediately return a request for comment. - Billboard, 7/28/22...... 
"Silver Bird," a solo effort by Paul Revere & The Raiders' frontman Mark Lindsay in 1970, has returned to the Billboard charts after being featured in the new Netflix film The Gray Man. According to LyricFind.com, "Silver Bird" saw lyric usage and search boosts of 16,186% and 16,071% globally and in the U.S., respectively, following the movie's July 22 premiere. The song, which is available for streaming on Spotify.com, is expected to make multiple Billboard charts dated Aug. 6 following sales gains for the song in the July 22-28 tracking period following The Gray Man's premiere. "Silver Bird" was originally released in 1970, peaking at No. 25 in Aug. 1970 and becoming Lindsay's second top 40 hit as a soloist, His best, "Arizona," peaked at No. 10 in Feb. 1970, and he achieved five top 10s and one No. 1 -- "Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian)" -- as part of Paul Revere & the Raiders. - Billboard, 7/28/22...... Former Van Halen vocalist David Lee Roth has shared a new VH tribute song, "Nothing Could Have Stopped Us Back Then Anyway," on YouTube. The track is the latest in a series of songs that Roth recorded with Rob Zombie guitarist John 5 several years back but only began releasing in 2020. "We laughed, we cried, we threw the television off that balcony," Roth sings on the song, seemingly in reference to his band's antics that mirror Led Zeppelin's and the Rolling Stones' infamous rock star stories. Roth had several stints as singer in Van Halen from 1974-2020. Posting on Instagram, John 5 said: "I remember being in the studio with Dave cutting this track -- it was magic, one of my fondest memories. I've loved Van Halen my whole life and that will never change @davidleeroth." "Nothing Could Have Stopped Us Back Then Anyway" follows another track, "Pointing At The Moon," from the same sessions which was released earlier this summer. In 2020, Roth shared "Somewhere Over the Rainbow Bar & Grill" in tribute to Eddie Van Halen after he died. - New Musical Express, 7/28/22...... As the credited featured guitarist on Ozzy Osbourne's new single "Patient Number 9," Jeff Beck has garnered his first ever No. 1 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart. His logged his previous best when "People Get Ready," with Rod Stewart, reached No. 5 in 1985. With 37 years, one month and two weeks between his first week on Mainstream Rock Airplay and his first No. 1, Beck also has the record for the longest wait between a first appearance and first ruler. "Patient Number" is in its fifth week at No. 1 on Mainstream Rock Airplay, which began in 1981. Ozzy's new studio album Patient Number 9 will drop on Sept. 9. In other Ozzy-related news, his son Jack Osbourne and his fiance, Aree Gearhart, announced the birth of their first child on July 27 in an Instagram post. "I'm very happy to announce Maple Artemis Osbourne!," Jack wrote, noting that his daughter was born on July 9 and weighed just over 7 pounds. "Aree and Maple are doing great and are happy and healthy." While it's Gearhart's first child, little Maple is Jack Osbourne's fourth, joining his three daughters -- Pearl, 10, Andy, 6 and Minnie, 4 -- with ex-wife Lisa Stelly. - Billboard, 7/28/22...... The Kinks have announced a 50th anniversary twin deluxe reissue of their 1971 and 1972 LP's, Muswell Hillbillies and Everybody's In Showbiz. Muswell Hillbillies, the band's 10th album, was released in 1971 and marked a new chapter for the English rockers. They signed a new record deal with RCA, looked back on their London upbringing, and began to turn their attention to US audiences. Its 1972 follow-up, Everybody's In Show-Biz, explored band's long months on tour in the U.S. The double album's second half showcased live recordings from a show at the iconic New York venue Carnegie Hall. With Everybody's In Show-Biz approaching its 50th birthday in August, the band have celebrated the occasion with a dual reissue box set, Muswell Hillbillies / Everybody's In Show-Biz - Everybody's A Star, that's set for release on Sept. 9. The announcement comes alongside the release of "Celluloid Heroes (US Single Version 2022 Edit)" on Spotify.com. - New Musical Express, 7/28/22...... 
In other Kinks-related news, guitarist Dave Davies has revealed he is "optimistic" about a Kinks reunion in the near future. Speaking to Britain's The Independent paper, Davies said he is hopeful the band may get back together in time for the 60th anniversary of their breakthrough hit "You Really Got Me" (1964) in two years time. While the group have never formally split, brothers Dave and Ray Davies have had a difficult relationship over the years. When asked about the possibility of a reunion for that with brother Ray, he said: "I hope so! I do. Ray and I have spoken about it - it's possible!" He went on to say that after years of difficult sibling rivalry, their relationship was healing. "We get on okay," he told the publication. "We talk about football! We're born-and-bred Arsenal fans... So, yeah, I'm optimistic about the future." The brothers performed together for the first time in almost 20 years in 2015, when Ray joined Dave on stage in London for a rendition of "You Really Got Me." Dave released his new autobiography, Living on a Thin Line, on July 7. - NME, 7/26/22...... A new Leonard Cohen tribute album, Here It Is, is slated for an Oct. 14 release with contributions from the likes of Iggy Pop, Norah Jones, Peter Gabriel, Mavis Staples, Sarah McLachlan and James Taylor, whose hushed version of Cohen's 1984 track "Coming Back to You" is out now. "When Larry Klein invited me to participate in a Leonard Cohen tribute album, I accepted immediately," said Taylor in a statement in reference to the album's producer. "For the project, I was drawn to a relatively obscure piece that was new to me, 'Coming Back To You'.... Like so much of Leonard Cohen's writing, this lyric resonates deeply with his forlorn and hopeless take on the bleak landscape of love and attachment," he added. The 12 songs on the album cover the contemplative crooner Cohen's romantically fraught tone poems about love, death and everything in between, from his 1967 debut Songs of Leonard Cohen through is final effort, You Want It Darker, released just days before his death in 2016 at age 82. - Billboard, 7/28/22...... Brian Eno previewed his 22nd studio album, FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE, on July 28 by sharing its first single, "There Were Bells," on YouTube. The 10 track record was made at Eno's studio in West London and, according to a press release, he sings vocals on the majority of tracks for the first time on an album since 2005's Another Day On Earth. "There Were Bells" was written by Eno for a performance by him and his brother Roger at a UNESCO World Heritage site, the Acropolis, in Aug. 2021. Eno recalled how it was 45 degrees in Athens on the day of the concert with wildfires raging just outside the city -- something that prompted his introductory comment. "I thought, here we are at the birthplace of Western civilisation, probably witnessing the end of it," he noted. "There Were Bells" is described as proving "a poignant reminder of the current climate emergency, a theme that is explored throughout the album." Earlier in 2022, Eno also released an exclusive collaboration with former R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe on Earth Day to help raise awareness of climate change. - NME, 7/28/22...... 
Jackson Browne made a joyous return to New York's Beacon Theatre on July 26 -- the first of a four-night stand at the New York venue. Dressed in black and sporting a gray beard that he has grown in recent years, Browne introduced his environmentally themed song "Downhill From Everywhere" by saying, "So, we've been having some strange weather.... I mean, the entire world is having strange weather." It is the title track of his 2021 album from the beloved singer/songwriter who, among many other things, has been on the front lines of climate activism for decades. Further on in his set, Browne brought forth his 1974 classic "Before the Deluge," singing of dreamers on "the brave and crazy wings of youth" who were "angry at the way the earth was abused" -- who nonetheless responded with the call: "Let the music keep our spirits high." These songs, recorded decades apart, were just two highlights of the California born musician's joyous return to one to one his favorite venues, in a year that marks the 50th anniversary of his debut album. "I love the Beacon," said Browne -- despite contracting COVID-19 previously at the hall, he acknowledged. His affection extended to the city outside. "I just dig how resilient New York is," he added. For the show's penultimate encore, Browne beautifully reclaimed the Eagles hit "Take It Easy," which he co-wrote with late Eagles member Glenn Frey, noting he "didn't sing this song for many years" after his friend Frey's death. Browne and his 8-piece band looked back with reflection and ahead with optimism with the closing encore of "Load Out" and "Stay" (the latter a fitting tribute to the resilience of touring musicians at this stage in the pandemic). - Billboard, 7/27/22...... Bruce Springsteen's manager Jon Landau responded to criticism about high ticket prices for Springsteen's upcoming 2023 world tour in a statement to the New York Times. "In pricing tickets for this tour, we looked carefully at what our peers have been doing. We chose prices that are lower than some and on par with others. Regardless of the commentary about a modest number of tickets costing $1,000 (£828) or more, our true average ticket price has been in the mid-$200 (£165) range. I believe that in today's environment, that is a fair price to see someone universally regarded as among the very greatest artists of his generation," Landau said. Ticketmaster's "dynamic pricing" model responds to demand and so increases or decreases prices in line with what "scalpers" -- a person who re-sells a ticket for profit -- would sell them for, keeping the money in-house for the seller and artist. The system also sees increase with demand for certain "platinum tickets," which are placed throughout each venue. Ticketmaster had previously defended the model saying that only 11.2% of the Springsteen tickets sold were platinum, and only 1.3% were $1000 (£830) or more. They also said the average price for a Springsteen ticket was $262 (£217). - New Musical Express, 7/27/22...... The trailer for director Brett Morgen's upcoming David Bowie biopic, Moonage Daydream, has been shared on YouTube and promises a technicolor, career-spanning look at the life of the late rock and roll innovator. Narrated by Bowie, the 2-minute trailer opens with the singer intoning, "you're aware of a deeper existence, over an image of a far-away galaxy while a ghostly voice asks, "Are you there David? As the acoustic strumming of his iconic 1969 classic "Space Oddity" swells up, Bowie adds, "maybe a temporary reassurance that indeed there is no beginning, no end... and you find yourself struggling to comprehend a deep mystery." Moonage Daydream, debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in May is slated to hit theaters around the world on Sept. 16. In other Bowie-related news, the dates for the second international David Bowie fan convention have been announced. Held in New York City, the event will take place from June 17-June 18, 2023 at the venue Terminal 5, and coincides with both the 40th anniversary of the release of Bowie's album Let's Dance and the 50th anniversary of the release of Aladdin Sane. It follows the inaugural David Bowie fan convention held in Liverpool in June. More than 1,500 fans from across the globe gathered to listen to talks by the late musician's collaborators as well as to watch performances and get dressed up for the "Bowie Ball." - Billboard/NME, 7/27/22...... 
Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks fans can now be the proud owner of a new Stevie Nicks-themed comic book. TidalWave Comics announced on July 26 that it is adding Nicks to its popular "Female Force" series, which focuses on impactful women around the world. Female Force: Stevie Nicks is a 22-page comic book that details the animated life and career of Nicks, as told by author Michael Frizell and artist Ramon Salas. The book is available in print and digital formats. The hardcover design was created by famed comic book artist Yonami and the paperback cover was drawn by Salas. Previous "Female Force" titles have profiled other megastars including Dolly Parton, Donna Summer, Tina Turner, Betty White, Michelle Obama, Barbra Streisand, Cher and Gloria Steinem. - Billboard, 7/26/22...... Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford says he's a "bit pissed" about getting the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's "Musical Excellence Award" as opposed to just going "Welcome. You're in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame' and leave it at that." Judas Priest is the second band to receive the award for musical excellence; the E Street Band was the first. Priest are not among the 2022 class of Hall Of Fame performer inductees, which include Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo, Duran Duran, Eminem, Eurythmics, Dolly Parton, Lionel Richie and Carly Simon. In a recent interview with AZ Central, Halford admitted to his mixed feelings about not getting honored in the performers category. "I was a bit pissed. At the end of the day, does it matter?" he shared. "Some days, I go, 'No, it doesn't matter. We're in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Be grateful. Shut the hell up.'" Halford continued: "It's as though we got this far. We're, like, one step away, you know? I know it's silly, but it's just frustrating. Judas Priest are still the Rodney Dangerfield of heavy metal. They can't get no respect." The 37th annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony takes place on Nov. 5 at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, with a radio simulcast on SiriusXM's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame radio channel. The event will also air a later date on HBO and stream on HBO Max. - Billboard, 7/26/22...... Reprise Records has announced a new Joni Mitchell box set featuring four of her '70s albums recorded for the Asylum Records label will drop on Sept. 23. The Asylum Albums 1972-1975 is the latest installment in Mitchell's archive series and features versions of For The Roses (1972), Court And Spark (1974), as well as the double live album Miles Of Aisles (1974) and The Hissing Of Summer Lawns (1975). It is the third installment of the Mitchell archival series, following Vol. 1: The Early Years (1963-1967) and Vol. 2: The Reprise Years (1968-1971). On July 24, Mitchell surprised the crowd at Newport Folk Festival when she joined Brandi Carlile on stage for two songs. The pair sang Mitchell's classics "Both Sides Now" and "A Case Of You," released in 1966 and 1971, respectively. She also played the guitar solo from her 1974 song "Just Like This Train." - NME, 7/29/22...... 
According to the New York Post's Page Six column, Elton John and Britney Spears have recorded Elton's classic 1972 track "Tiny Dancer" together as a duet, sending a shockwave of excitement through the Britney Army at the prospect of new music from their queen in more than six years. "The way I'm praying to the Gods above that #tinydancer is true, that @eltonofficial and @britneyspears are duetting," one fan tweeted, while another commented, "Tiny Dancer is the perfect song for Britney, cause she's tiny and a dancer." If the report is, in fact, true, the collaboration would be the pop princess' first new music since the release of her 2016 studio album Glory. The duet would also mark Spears' official return to music since the end of the 13-year legal conservatorship that controlled every aspect of her life from 2008 to late 2021. While Spears returned from her honeymoon earlier in July with husband Sam Asghari following their exclusive, star-studded wedding, she also recently treated fans to a grown up, a cappella rendition of "Baby One More Time" on Instagram. Meanwhile, Sir Elton earned his biggest hit in decades in 2021 by teaming up with Dua Lipa for "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix), which ultimately peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 36 weeks atop the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart. "Tiny Dancer, originally included on John's 1971 album Madman Across the Water, was released as a single in 1972 and peaked at No. 41 on the Hot 100. - Billboard, 7/25/22...... Deep Purple guitarist Steve Morse announced on July 23 he has officially quit the band to care for his wife, Janine, who has aggressive cancer. "I wish to thank the listeners who so strongly supported live music and turned every show from a dress rehearsal to a thundering, exciting experience. I'll miss everybody in the band and crew but being Janine's helper and advocate has made a real difference at many key points," Morse posted to Twitter. "As Janine adjusts to her limitations, she is able to do many things on her own, so we will try to play some shorter nearby concert tours with friends to, hopefully, get both of us out of the house!," he added. Morse confirmed in March that he'd be temporarily stepping away from live duties, claiming at the time he was "not leaving the band" and told fans he hoped to "re-join the tour" at some point. Simon McBride replaced Morse in Deep Purple's live line-up. In his tweet, Morse said, "I know Simon has the gig nailed already, but I'm now handing over the keys to the vault which holds the secret of how Ritchie [Blackmore]'s 'Smoke on the Water' intro was recorded. I guess you have to jiggle the key just right because I never got it open." Morse joined Deep Purple back in 1994. He has written and recorded eight studio albums with the band including their latest and 21st full-length effort, 2021's Turning To Crime. - NME, 7/23/22...... In a new interview with Deadline.com, director Peter Jackson revealed that he's working on a "very different" Beatles project with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. Jackson last worked with the pair on the Emmy-nominated documentary series The Beatles: Get Back, which was released in November of 2021. "I'm talking to The Beatles about another project, something very, very different than Get Back," Jackson said. "We're seeing what the possibilities are, but it's another project with them. It's not really a documentary... and that's all I can really say... We are never in a position where we have to do anything, but we've got a few things percolating." While Jackson wasn't able to share too many details, he did suggest that his vision for the project will require technology to improve. "It's so technically complicated I'm trying to work how exactly I'll do it," he said. "It's a live-action movie, but it needs technology that doesn't quite exist at the moment, so we're in the middle of developing the technology to allow it to happen." - NME, 7/22/22...... '70s reggae icon Jimmy Cliff is returning to music with a new single and album. Cliff teamed up with Wyclef Jean for the new track "Refugees", which was released on July 22. It is the title track for Cliff's first album in over a decade, which will be released on Aug. 12. With both a Dance Version and Rap Version, "Refugees" captures the spirit of Jimmy's classic output with a hip-hop twist courtesy of Fugees co-founder Jean. The son continues the creative connection between the pair after Wyclef inducted Jimmy into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. Jimmy, 77, said of the new track: "I'm very proud of this, because it sees Jimmy Cliff in a new musical direction. I'll always go into something new. Even though 'Refugees' is a heavy title, you're going to be moving your feet, because it's on the dancefloor. There we go. I love it." Wyclef commented: "For me, coming to America wasn't easy when I first got here. Having family members who suffered political torment, it wasn't easy for us. When I say 'Fugees', 'Fugees' is short for 'Refugees'." - Music-News.com, 7/29/22...... 
Actor/director Tony Dow, best known for portraying Wally Cleaver on the 1950s and 1960s sitcom Leave It To Beaver died on July 27 of as yet undisclosed causes. He was 77. Dow had been in hospice care and announced in May that he had been diagnosed with prostate and gall bladder cancer, and his death was confirmed by Frank Bilotta, who represented Dow in his work as a sculptor. A post on Dow's Facebook page on July 26 prematurely reported that he had died, but his wife and management team later took down the post and explained that it was announced in error. Dow's Wally was an often annoyed but essentially loving big brother who was constantly bailing out the title character, Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver, played by Jerry Mathers, on the show that was synonymous with the sometimes hokey, wholesome image of the 1950s American family. Dow was born and raised in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles -- his mother was a stuntwoman who acted as a double for silent film star Clara Bow -- but his parents did not push him into show business. He had done just a little stage acting and appeared in a pair of pilots. After attending an open casting call, he landed his career-defining role as Wally. Dow would play the part for six seasons and more than 200 episodes from 1957 to 1963 on primetime on CBS and ABC, then for more than 100 episodes in the 1980s on a syndicated sequel series. "Tony was not only my brother on TV, but in many ways in life as well. He leaves an empty place in my heart that won't be filled," Mathers said in a Facebook post upon learning of Dow's passing. "Tony was always the kindest, most generous, gentle, loving, sincere, and humble man, and it was my honour and privilege to be able to share memories together with him for 65 years," he added. Dow would appear as a guest star on other TV series throughout the 1960s, 70s and 80s, including My Three Sons, Dr. Kildare, Adam-12, Emergency, Square Pegs and Knight Rider. He took a break from acting to serve three years in the U.S. National Guard in the late 1960s. From 1983 to 1989, amid a cultural craze for nostalgia television, Dow reprised the role of Wally in The New Leave it to Beaver. Along with appearances in later years at pop culture conventions, often alongside Mather, Dow worked as an artist, gaining a sterling reputation as a sculptor. He began writing and directing episodes of that series, and would work as a director in television throughout the 1990s on shows including Coach, The New Lassie, Babylon 5, Harry and the Hendersons and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Dow's death leaves Mathers and Rusty Stevens, who played Beaver's friend Larry Mondello, as the only surviving members of the show's core cast. Cleaver patriarch Hugh Beaumont died in 1982, and Barbara Billingsley, who played mother June Cleaver, died in 2010. Ken Osmond, who played Wally's best friend Eddie Haskell, died in 2020. Dow is survived by his wife Lauren and two children. - AP, 7/27/22...... Burt Metcalfe, the onetime actor from Canada who served as a producer, director and writer on all 11 seasons of M*A*S*H, collecting 13 Emmy nominations along the way, died on July 27 in Los Angeles of natural causes. He was 87. Before he gave up full-time acting to work on the other side of the camera, Mr. Metcalfe played the surfer Lord Byron opposite Sandra Dee and James Darren in Gidget (1959), appeared on the first season of The Twilight Zone and starred on the 1961-62 CBS sitcom Father of the Bride. Mr. Metcalfe was a producer on all but five of M*A*S*H's 256 episodes from 1972-83 and its showrunner for its last six seasons. He also directed 31 installments of the acclaimed CBS comedy, wrote three and acted in one. Seven of his Emmy noms came for outstanding comedy series; incredibly, he never won once. M*A*S*H, he once said, "is not your typical military sitcom, and I think there has always been that dedication and that kind of aspiration to doing something above the norm. And fortunately, the chemistry of the people involved, the writers, actors, producers, directors, has been of the caliber that has allowed this to happen, where everybody just had a pride in what they were doing." Mr. Metcalfe also was an executive producer on the 1983-85 follow-up AfterMASH, starring Harry Morgan, Jamie Farr and William Christopher. He segued to Warner Bros. Television in the mid-1980s before joining MTM Enterprises in 1986. - The Hollywood Reporter, Mr. Metcalfe is survived by his wife of 43, actress Jan Jorden, who had a recurring role as Nurse Baker on M*A*S*H. - The Hollywood Reporter, 7/29/22...... 
Acclaimed thespian Paul Sorvino, the burly character actor who made a career out of playing forceful types, most notably the coldhearted mobster Paulie Cicero in Martin Scorsese's GoodFellas, died at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., on July 25 of natural causes. He was 83. During a solid career that spanned a half-century, Mr. Sorvino portrayed James Caan's bookie in The Gambler (1974), Claire Danes' pushy father in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet (1996), Henry Kissinger in Oliver Stone's Nixon (1995) and a strung-out heroin addict in The Cooler (2003). He played a founder of the American Communist Party in Warren Beatty's Reds (1981) and worked alongside the actor-director again in Dick Tracy (1990), Bulworth (1998) and Rules Don't Apply (2016). A respected tenor who realized a dream when he performed for the New York Opera at Lincoln Center in 2006, the Brooklyn native also starred for a season as Det. Phil Cerretta, the partner of Chris Noth's Det. Mike Logan, on NBC's Law & Order. In 1973, Mr. Sorvino received a Tony nomination and a Drama Desk Award for his performance as the unscrupulous Phil Romano -- one of the four former high school basketball players who reunite to visit their old coach -- in the original Broadway production of "That Championship Season." Still, Mr. Sorvino is probably best known for his turn as Cicero, who loved a good meal and sliced his garlic with a razor blade, in the ultra-violent GoodFellas (1990), which Nicholas Pileggi and Scorsese adapted from Pileggi's 1986 nonfiction book. A commanding 6-foot-3 and 240 pounds in his prime, Mr. Sorvino also played men on the wrong side of the law in The Panic in Needle Park (1971), William Friedkin's The Brink's Job (1978), The Rocketeer (1991) and The Firm (1993). "There are many people who think I'm actually a gangster or a mafioso, largely because of Goodfellas, he once said. "I suppose that's the price you pay for being effective in a role. Sorvino married his third wife, Dee Dee Benkie, a GOP strategist and former aide to Pres. George W. Bush, in 2014. They had met on Fox News Channel's Your World With Neil Cavuto. He had dealt with health issues the past few years, she said, and will be interred at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. "Our hearts are broken, there will never be another Paul Sorvino, he was the love of my life and one of the greatest performers to ever grace the screen and stage," Mr. Sorvino's Oscar-winning actress daughter Mira Sorvino posted on her Twitter account. Survivors include his other children, Amanda and Michael, and five grandchildren. - The Hollywood Reporter, 7/25/22.
Spotted at the famous San Diego Comic-Con event on July 22, Ozzy Osbourne appeared to be in good spirits as he promoted his new Patient Number 9 comic book with comics mogul and filmmaker Todd McFarlane. "It's great. I love to see people, you know," Osbourne told Entertainment Tonight in a short interview which has been shared on YouTube. "I've been trying to recover from my surgery," said the shock rocker, who acknowledged that his recovery has been going well. "I'm getting there. It's a slow climb back," he added. In a statement in June, the former Black Sabbath frontman said he was "now home from the hospital recuperating comfortably... definitely feeling the love and support from all my fans and send everyone a big thank you for their thoughts, prayers and well-wishes during my recovery." Ozzy's upcoming studio album Patient Number 9 will drop on Sept. 9. Its title track recently debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Hard Rock Songs Chart. - Billboard, 7/23/22...... 
Despite being recently announced as one of the headline performers of the annual Farm Aid concert, Neil Young says he's not yet ready to play concerts yet because he doesn't think it's safe in the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Young recently responded to a fan's excitement of the news that he'll be joining Farm Aid co-founders Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews and others for the 2022 edition of Farm Aid on his website. "I will not be at Farmaid this year," Young replied. "I am not ready for that yet. I don't think it is safe in the pandemic. I miss it very much." Young, who has not performed in public since 2019, doubled down on comments he made in Dec. 2021 when he said he wouldn't be returning to touring until Covid-19 was "beat" and the pandemic was over. "I don't care if I'm the only one who doesn't do it," he said during an interview with Howard Stern. In 2021 he also called on promoters to cancel "super-spreader" gigs during the pandemic. "The big promoters, if they had the awareness, could stop these shows," he wrote in a blog post on his site. "Live Nation, AEG, and the other big promoters could shut this down if they could just forget about making money for a while." - New Musical Express, 7/25/22...... Meanwhile, Young's former Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young bandmate David Crosby has been called an "unkind schmuck" for criticizing a fan's artwork depiction of him on Twitter. Crosby tweeted a blunt response to fan DJB Sackett's artwork which depicts a profile of Crosby: "That is the weirdest painting of me I have ever seen. Don't quit your day job," he wrote earlier in July. Crosby has since received backlash from people supporting Sackett and his art, with one Twitter user posting: "This is the weirdest reaction to a fan trying to do something nice I have ever seen. Don't quit your day job, David Crosby but maybe stop being an unkind schmuck on Twitter." Another twitter user wrote: "David Crosby's shitty attitude towards a fan who took time to create a piece of fan art highlights a very real issue, that many people in similar positions as him don't care about hurting others. Don't let a decrepit voice like his stop you from sharing your authentic selves." Sackett then tweeted a thank you to "all the new followers and those who took the time to leave comments" and shared other examples of his artwork. This is not the first time Crosby has been embroiled in online controversy -- in 2021 the musician criticized Phoebe Bridgers' decision to wreck her Danelectro guitar during her debut SNL performance: "Guitars are for playing ..making music," adding that he "really does NOT give a flying F if others have done it before ..It's still STUPID." In response, Bridgers labelled Crosby "a little bitch." - NME, 7/19/22...... 
Joni Mitchell treated fans to a rare live performance during Brandi Carlile's set at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island on July 24. The music legend surprised fans when she joined Carlile for a rendition of Mitchell classics "Both Sides Now," which has been shared on YouTube, as well as "A Case of You," which can also be streamed on YouTube. Mitchell, 78, also played the guitar solo from her 1974 song "Just Like This Train" as a visibly emotional Carlile was seated beside her. It was her second time appearing at the legendary three-day festival since 1968, and marked her second public performance of 2022. In April, she appeared at the MusiCares' 2022 Person of the Year gala to accept the titular honour at the event, and celebrated with renditions of her 1970 classics "Big Yellow Taxi" and "The Circle Game," joined by Carlile, Beck, Cyndi Lauper, Stephen Stills, Jon Batiste and more. That was her first live performance since 2013 when she'd given two impromptu performances at events where she'd been invited to recite poetry. Prior to that, her last live shows were in 2002, two years after she retired from touring. - NME, 7/25/22...... Bruce Springsteen fans had a rough introduction to the world of Ticketmaster's new Verified Fan platform to buy tickets for his upcoming tour with the E Street Band, experiencing sticker shock at the cost of the best seats. Those prices -- which climbed into the thousands of dollars --- represented about 1% of the tickets listed on the Ticketmaster Verified Fan sale, but they became a sore point for fans who felt that they no longer had a shot at great seats after years of loyalty to the Boss. By selling high-priced platinum tickets, Ticketmaster argues, the company can prevent the best seats from being bought and resold by scalpers. That money can instead go to Springsteen. However, this only works when the tickets cost enough to prevent scalpers from making a profit. Early numbers for the ticket sales reportedly show that less than 10% of tickets sold for the five concerts that went on sale that ended up on the secondary market -- lower than average -- and that despite complaints about four-figure prices, only 1% of tickets were above $1,000. For Springsteen's 2023 U.S. tour, the mean average price for most tickets was $213, a 33% increase from Springsteen's 2016 tour, where tickets were an average of $159 a piece when factoring in inflation. Despite some outrage over prices, fans bought up the 75,000 to 80,000 tickets on sale on July 20 for concerts in Florida, Oklahoma and Colorado. Based on the ticket price, Springsteen stands to earn about $4 million per show and as much as $120 million for the U.S. leg of the tour. For years Springsteen fans have said they felt that they always had a shot at buying front-row tickets for less than $200, but over the years it became almost impossible to compete with the increasingly sophisticated operations of scalpers, which deploy bots and code to buy up the best tickets in seconds. As a result, Ticketmaster, which itself operates one of the world's largest resale marketplaces, has advised artists to raise the price of seats that would be most appealing to the secondary market. Springsteen has yet to publicly address the controversy. - Billboard, 7/22/22...... 
'70s R&B legend Gladys Knight and the mega-selling Irish band U2 are among the recipients of the prestigious Kennedy Center Honorees in 2022. Knight is the fifth Motown Records alumnus to receive the honor, following Stevie Wonder (1999), Smokey Robinson (2006), Diana Ross (2007) and Lionel Richie (2017). In 2021, Motown founder Berry Gordy Jr. was saluted. Knight's vocal group Gladys Knight & the Pips had a long string of hits on Motown, including "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)." U2 is the fifth band to receive the honor, following The Who (2008), Led Zeppelin (2012), Eagles (2016) and Earth, Wind & Fire (2019). Before 2008, the Kennedy Center Honors focused entirely on individuals. Brian Wilson was honored rather The Beach Boys, for example. U2 consists of Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. The 45th edition of the prestigious awards, presented for lifetime artistic achievements, will be held on Dec. 4, on the Opera House stage at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. The Honors Gala will be recorded for broadcast on CBS at a later date as a two-hour prime-time special and will be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+. Also being honored that night will be actor-director George Clooney and Cuban-born composer, conductor and educator Tania Len. - Billboard, 7/21/22...... John Lennon's son Julian Lennon has revealed the important reason why he changed -- or at least rearranged -- his legal name from "John Charles Julian Lennon" to "Julian Charles John Lennon." "It was in 2020, just before we all got locked in a cage that I finally actually decided to legally change my name... the crap that I had to deal with when traveling and security companies and this and that and the other," the 59-year-old singer-songwriter explained in an appearance on the Word in Your Ear podcast. "It became really uncomfortable over the years because I've always been known as Julian and so it [being called John] never felt like it was me," he said. Lennon added that the name change has opened up "a whole other world for him." "Not that I'm ashamed or have disrespect. I needed to be me. I needed to finally be heard as Julian. This is what Julian does, not 'John's son', so that has been a part of the path and... it just made sense for me," he mused. In addition to simply rearranging his name to " respect the legacy and the wishes of his parents," Lennon has become a successful singer and songwriter in his own right. Over the course of his career thus far, he has released six studio albums, four of which charted on the Billboard Hot 200 album chart including 1984's Valotte (No. 17). On the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart, he's notched several hits including the top 10 hits "Valotte" (No. 9) and "Too Late for Goodbyes" (No. 5). - Billboard, 7/21/22...... Lennon's fellow '80s hitmaker Pat Benatar says she is still refusing to sing her signature hit "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" amid the endless gun violence in the U.S. despite negative reaction from fans. "We're not doing 'Hit Me With Your Best Shot' and fans are having a heart attack and I'm like, I'm sorry, in deference to the victims of the families of these mass shootings, I'm not singing it," she said in a new interview with USA Today. "I tell them, if you want to hear the song, go home and listen to it. [The title] is tongue in cheek, but you have to draw the line. I can't say those words out loud with a smile on my face, I just can't. I'm not going to go on stage and soap box -- I go to my legislators -- but that's my small contribution to protesting. I'm not going to sing it. Tough," she added. Benatar is, however, performing a cover of the Beatles "Helter Skelter" on the tour. When asked why, she replied, "Because I want to have some fun! We're doing a lot of songs we don't always play like 'In the Heat of the Night' and 'I Need a Lover.'" The Gun Violence Archive has counted at least 356 mass shootings in 2022. 692 mass shootings were recorded in 2021, with 28 involving four or more fatalities. - Billboard, 7/21/22...... The cause of the recent death of actor James Caan on July 6 at age 82 has been revealed. According to documents obtained by TMZ.com on July 23, he suffered a fatal "heart attack" as well as from "coronary artery disease." The site went on to claim that the Hollywood star also suffered from "chronic obstructive pulmonary disease" -- which is also known as COPD -- as well as congestive heart failure. Caan has since been laid to rest at Eden Memorial Park in California and is survived by his five children Tara, 57, Scott, 45, Alexander, 31, James, 26, and Jacob, 23 -- who he has from various relationships -- but his second and last wife Sheila passed away back in 2012 after a battle with cancer at age 59. Caan made his final movie appearance in the upcoming action thriller Fast Charlie alongside former James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan. It is due to be released in March 2023. - Bang Showbiz, 7/23/22...... 
In a new interview with Britain's MOJO magazine, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member Joan Jett said she was "disappointed" that her '70s band The Runaways had so many male fans. Jett, now 63, was joined in the band by Sandy West, Micki Steele, Cherie Currie and Jackie Fox, says she wanted to appeal to women equally but could understand why their female followers would be hesitant to mix with "leering" guys in the crowd. "I was disappointed to a degree that the audience was full of guys leering -- but I also understood why. I guess that had to be kind of scary for girls to go in there and watch to a degree -- I wasn't in the audience but I can only imagine the guys had quite an... energy about them out there," she said. Joan felt it was important for her group to "give a voice" to unrepresented young women and got frustrated by the double standards that she faced. "Teenage girls think about sex, teenage girls talk about sex and just because it makes society uncomfortable doesn't mean they're going to stop. So you need to give voice to that because boys have a voice, being able to sing about their puberty, growing up, all that stuff. Mick Jagger can ride out on an inflatable penis... Not that I need to come out on an inflatable vagina -- but I'm just saying I should be able to do it. As a kid, that's what bugged me the most - the unfairness of it. It's the principle. It's the f------ principle." - Music-News.com, 7/24/22...... Elvis Presley's ex-wife Priscilla Presley has responded to criticism by a number of Black artists in the past that Elvis had racist tendencies. "He was not a racist - he's never been a racist," Priscilla told host Piers Morgan on his TalkTV's Piers Morgan Uncensored show. "Elvis had friends, Black friends, friends from all over. He loved their music. He loved their style. He loved being around, you know, Black musicians." She cited Elvis' friendships with Fats Domino and Sammy Davis Jr, saying that they would "always come into the dressing room" when Elvis was performing in Las Vegas. "He was just not prejudiced in any way, and not racist in any way. So I don't know [how he would fare against 'cancel culture']. This is a very frightening time... it's almost like we're looking for something from everyone." In 2021, Quincy Jones, who has made some controversial statements of his own, said that he wouldn't have worked with Presley, claiming he "was a racist." Priscilla also explained that Elvis "wouldn't believe" what's going on in the US currently: "It's truly baffling. For the first time, I'm worried about my future -- for not only my children, [but for] my grandchildren as well. I don't know what happened to freedom. I don't know if there is freedom here [in the US] anymore. No one says what side they're on, Republican or whatever you want to be... being very careful what you say, how you say it. I think we're in a very dangerous time. He [Elvis] wouldn't believe it. He was a die-hard American; he was America." - NME, 7/21/22...... In other Elvis-related news, actress and performer Shonka Dukureh, who played Big Mama Thornton in the new Presley biopic Elvis, was found dead on July 21 in a bedroom at her home in Nashville, Tenn., police said. She was 44. Dukureh, a Fisk University graduate and Nashville singer, shared the apartment with her two young children, police said. One of the children found her unresponsive and went to the apartment of a neighbor, who called 911 shortly before 9:30 a.m., police said. The actor, who also shared the stage at Coachella this year with Doja Cat, had a theater degree from Fisk and graduated from Trevecca Nazarene with an education degree. In a recent interview, Dukureh said she taught second grade for a while and then worked with inner city youth through after-school and summer programs. She said those students reached out after seeing her in Elvis. - Billboard, 7/21/22...... Michael Henderson, bassist for such music legends as Miles Davis and Stevie Wonder and later as a hit R&B singer/songwriter/producer in his own right, died on July 19 at his his Atlanta home following an undisclosed illness. He was 71. Born on July 7, 1951 in Yazoo City, Miss., Henderson first staked his claim as a teen wunderkind/session musician in Detroit in the '60s. In addition to touring with Wonder, Henderson played for many of the biggest Motown acts in the late '60s, including The Four Tops, Martha Reeves & the Vandellas and Gladys Knight & the Pips -- as well as Aretha Franklin The Dramatics. In 2018's Take Me I'm Yours: Michael Henderson - The Buddah Years Anthology, Henderson noted that he took up the bass guitar because of legendary Motown bassist James Jamerson. He also recalled meeting Miles Davis following a Wonder show at New York City's Copacabana club in 1970. And that's when Davis told Wonder, "I'm taking your f----- bassist." Said Henderson in the liner notes, "I was shocked that he said that to Stevie." In the years since then, Henderson remained a concert draw. Of his storied 50-year career, the bassist noted in his anthology: "This is what I do. I signed up for this some 50 years ago, but I'm a youngster compared to a lot of these guys who are still out there. Basically, we're just big kids. And that thing that was in your eye then -- that spirit -- never leaves you." - Billboard, 7/20/22...... 
Maverick filmmaker Bob Rafelson, who worked with Jack Nicholson on seven feature films, produced the classic movie The Last Picture Show, and was the co-creator of the hugely successful '60s group The Monkees, died on July 23 of natural causes at his home in Aspen, Col. He was 89. Mr. Rafelson directed Nicholson in Five Easy Pieces in 1970, which earned him Oscar nominations for co-writing and producing, and then, for an encore, produced director Peter Bogdonavich's acclaimed breakthrough hit The Last Picture Show in 1971. Along with his late partner Bert Schneider, Rafelson created The Monkees, the touchstone NBC show that debuted in 1966. He conceived the idea of a program that mimicked the exuberance of The Beatles, specifically the freewheeling energy of their 1964 film A Hard Day's Night. Though it lasted only two seasons and 58 episodes, it became a pop-culture phenomenon (and brought Rafelson and Schneider an Emmy in 1967 for Outstanding Comedy Series). In addition to guiding the sitcom as a producer and then executive producer, Mr. Rafelson directed several episodes. He also is credited with writing two of the shows that revolved around the group performing on tour. After Mr. Rafelson and Schneider's production company Raybert Productions produced the disappointing Monkees movie Head, their second film was 1969's Easy Rider, which rocked Hollywood and American pop culture when it hit theaters in summer 1969. Celebrating the free-spirited, drug-loving morés of the '60s generation and also starring Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper as drug-dealing hippies, Easy Rider was embraced by young filmgoers. Produced for less than a half-million dollars, it became the No. 3 grossing film of the year and made a star of Nicholson. Other films directed and/or produced by Mr. Rafelson include the Oscar-winning antiwar documentary Hearts and Minds; Drive, He Said (1971); The King of Marvin Gardens (1972); Stay Hungry (1976) and a remake of the 1942 MGM melodrama The Postman Always Rings Twice (1981), which starred Nicholson and Jessica Lange. Later directing efforts included Black Widow (1987), starring Debra Winger and Theresa Russell; the adventure tale Mountains of the Moon (1990); two more films starring Nicholson, Man Trouble (1992) and Blood and Wine (1997); and No Good Deed (2002). In 1983, he helmed the music video for Lionel Richie's mega-hit "All Night Long (All Night)." He is survived by his son, songwriter Peter Rafelson, who penned the 1986 Madonna hit "Open Your Heart," sons Ethan and Harper, daughter-in-law Karen, and a nephew. - The Hollywood Reporter, 7/24/22.
In related news, John's former touring partner Billy Joel has announced he'll play a one-off show in Australia at the imposing Melbourne Cricket Ground on Dec. 10. Frontier Touring, which also manages the above-mentioned Elton John shows, described the concert as a "history-making performance" on 
Garth Brooks and Brian Wilson are among the musicians who have shared their tributes to Don McLean's iconic 1971 song 
Ozzy Osbourne is reportedly walking with a cane after undergoing "life-altering" surgery in June. Osbourne, 73, was photographed on July 17 using the gold-handled walking stick as he was joined by his wife, Sharon Osbourne, and their children, Kelly and Jack Osbourne, for a family gathering at Jack's Los Angeles home. Ozzy was seen wearing a black T-shirt and matching trousers as he made his way outside to leave the gathering. The former Black Sabbath frontman, diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2019, appeared to rely heavily on the walking stick. It comes after Ozzy was recently discharged from a Los Angeles hospital after undergoing what 69-year-old Sharon called "a major operation" that would "determine the rest of his life." Along with Parkinson's and a bout of Covid, the musician has been dealing with the fallout from a brutal 2003 quad biking accident. He suffered neck injuries, which were later worsened by a 2019 fall that resulted in 15 screws being inserted into his back. Ozzy said after undergoing the operation in June: "I am now home from the hospital recuperating comfortably. I am definitely feeling the love and support from all my fans and send everyone a big thank you for their thoughts, prayers and well wishes during my recovery." Sharon reassured fans that her husband was on the road to recovery, adding: "Our family would like to express so much gratitude for the overwhelming amount of love and support leading up to Ozzy's surgery." She also tweeted he was "doing well and on the road to recovery," telling fans: "Your love means the world to him." - Bang Showbiz, 7/19/22...... In other Black Sabbath-related news, co-founding Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi will be among the musical guests helping to open the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. Birmingham's Opening and Closing ceremonies will be staged at the newly-redeveloped Alexander Stadium in front of a live audience of over 30,000 people and a television audience of over a billion. Birmingham's own Iommi and acclaimed saxophonist Soweto Kinch will lead a dream sequence, "Hear my Voice," based on the title track from 2020 film Trial of the Chicago Seven. Also among the many acts appearing will be '80s hitmakers Duran Duran, whose frontman Simon Le Bon said: "The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games is a momentous event for the great city of Birmingham. And we in Duran Duran are honoured to be a part of it in our home town." The line up of the Closing Ceremony, which occurs on Aug. 8, will be announced in the coming weeks. - Music-News.com, 7/20/22...... The Rolling Stones invited a Ukrainian choir on stage to perform their classic "You Can't Always Get What You Want" at a gig at Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna, Austria, on July 15. The Stones saved a special surprise for the audience for their encore, telling the crowd, "They came a long way to be here tonight," before introducing the Dzvinochok boys choir and Vognyk girls choir, revealing that they drove 15 hours from Kyiv to Vienna to be at the show. Choirmaster Ruben Tolmachov then told the crowd: "This is a very special night for the two choirs and a chance of a lifetime not to be missed. I'm so glad we made it here to Vienna a night to remember for all of us." Footage of the performance has been shared on 
Sylvester Stallone has slammed Rocky producer Irwin Winkler over film ownership and urged him to hand back the rights to hugely successful the film franchise. Stallone wrote and starred in the hit 
William "Poogie" Hart, lead singer of Philly soul greats The Delfonics who scored hits with "La - La - Means I Love You," "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)" and "Ready or Not Here I Come (Can't Hide From Love)," passed away on July 14 after complications stemming from surgery after he was taken to Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia due to breathing difficulties. He was 77. The Delfonics were one of the leading lights of Philadelphia's surging soul scene of the late '60s and early '70s, scoring classic hits like the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 smashes "La - La - Means I Love You" (No. 5, 1968) and "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)" (No. 10, 1970). Working with legendary local writer-producer Thom Bell, the group's lush, dreamy harmonies matched Bell's symphonic mini-soundscapes to create a smoother, more blissed-out soul sound than usually heard in the poppier, snappier hits from the Motown assembly line in Detroit, or the grittier, funkier singles emerging from Stax/Volt in Memphis. Hart co-founded the Delfonics (then known as the Orphonics) in Philadelphia with his brother Wilbert Hart, eventually fleshing out the group's classic lineup with Randy Cain and Major Harris. They signed with famed local label Cameo-Parkway, where they first linked up with Bell, though they were shuffled over to Philly Groove Records shortly after Cameo-Parkway folded in 1967. Their debut album La La Means I Love You was released in 1968, spawning a trio of hits in the title track, "I'm Sorry" (No. 42) and "Break Your Promise" (No. 35). As the group's lead singer, Hart's falsetto-heavy vocals were an immediate difference maker, both entrancing and powerful -- and the way he leaned into certain words ("Many guys have come to you with a line that wasn't true") with his signature sharpness made them unforgettable on first listen. The Delfonics' popularity continued throughout the early '70s, likely peaking with their self-titled album in 1970, their highest-charting entry on the Billboard 200 albums chart (No. 61), with the album's "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)" even winning a Grammy for best R&B vocal performance by a duo or group in 1971. But with the rise of higher-energy Philly soul in the decade's middle (which paved the way for disco's takeover in the late '70s), the group sputtered commercially and splintered in two in 1975, following Harris' solo breakthrough with the Hot 100 No. 5 hit "Love Won't Let Me Wait" in 1974. Both versions of the group continued to tour in the decades that followed, though original recordings were spare and relatively unsuccessful. The legacy of The Delfonics was secured in the mid-'90s, however, as the group's hits were revived by a generation of rappers, including The Fugees and Missy Elliott. Director Quentin Tarantino featured The Delfonics heavily in the plot to his 1997 crime drama Jackie Brown, with Robert Forster's aging bail bondsman sharing a moment with Pam Grier's flight attendant title character while listening to "Didn't I," then later buying a Delfonics cassette to listen to in his own car. - Billboard, 7/15/22.
Queen guitarist Brian May has teamed up with Graham Gouldman of 10cc on a new space-themed track called "Floating in Heaven" to mark the historic and breathtaking images from the new James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Launched in Dec. 2021 and put into orbit the following month, JWST is the most powerful to be launched into space. May is a long-time astronomer and has a PhD in astrophysics from Imperial College, London. Gouldman is a fellow space enthusiast and the pair decided to work together on a song to mark the historic moment when the first images from the telescope were shared. Shared on 
Decades after Eagles principal Don Henley had his handwritten notes and lyrics for the band's Hotel California album stolen, prosecutors in Manhattan have indicted three men who they say tried to profit from the illicit materials. On July 12, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr. said he had charged Glenn Horowitz, 66, Craig Inciardi, 58, and Edward Kosinski, 59, with conspiracy over their efforts to resell and hide the origin of the stolen notes, which include material from Hotel California and other iconic songs from the band and are worth more than $1 million. DA Bragg said that Horowitz even stooped so low as to exploit the 2016 death of co-founding Eagles member Glenn Frey by claiming that Frey was the source of the artifacts -- a claim he allegedly hoped could not be refuted by the late co-frontman. "These defendants attempted to keep and sell these unique and valuable manuscripts, despite knowing they had no right to do so," Bragg said. "They made up stories about the origin of the documents and their right to possess them so they could turn a profit." In a joint statement, attorneys for the three defendants refuted the charges and vowed to clear their clients' names."The DA's office alleges criminality where none exists and unfairly tarnishes the reputations of well-respected professionals. We will fight these unjustified charges vigorously. These men are innocent," they said. In a statement to Billboard, Henley's manager Irving Azoff praised the filing of the charges, saying the case "exposes the truth" about memorabilia sales of stolen goods. "No one has the right to sell illegally obtained property or profit from the outright theft of irreplaceable pieces of musical history," Azoff said. "These handwritten lyrics are an integral part of the legacy Don Henley has created over the course of his 50-plus-year career. We look forward to the return of Don's property, for him and his family to enjoy and preserve for posterity." According to prosecutors, Henley's notes were originally stolen in the late 1970s by an author who had been hired to write a biography of the Eagles. The thief then sold them to Horowitz, a rare book dealer, who in turn sold them along to Inciardi and Kosinski. Authorities say that Henley filed a police report and demanded the return of his property when he learned that Inciardi and Kosinski were attempting to sell the manuscripts, but that the duo responded with a "years-long campaign" to avoid giving them back. After the pair worked to "fabricate" the origins of Henley's notes, they allegedly tried to both sell them back to Henley and auction them off through Christie's and Sotheby's auction houses, Bragg claims. As part of the auction process, prosecutors say the two lied about the materials and attempted to persuade Sotheby's to do the same when dealing with prospective buyers. The dragnet began to close in 2016, when prosecutors say they executed search warrants and recovered the stolen documents. Around this time, authorities say Horowitz gave false statements to cover the theft, including one that cited the recently-deceased Frey. - Billboard, 7/12/22...... Dionne Warwick and Elvis Presley will be among the honorees at the Fashion Group International's Night of Stars gala and awards ceremony in New York on Oct. 13. Warwick will receive the trailblazer award, while Presley will posthumously receive the fashion oracle award. Warwick received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2019 and this year was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the first time. Presley received a trustees award from the Recording Academy in 1971 and was among the first class of inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. For nearly four decades, Fashion Group International has welcomed celebrities and luminaries of the fashion and entertainment worlds to walk the red carpet for the annual FGI Night of Stars event, complete with cocktail hour, seated dinner, and awards ceremony. - Billboard, 7/13/22...... 
On July 12 Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band announced the dates for a 31-date 2023 U.S. tour set to kick off on Feb. 1 in Tampa, Fla., and run through a gig in Newark, N.J., on Apr. 14. Along the way the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees will hit Atlanta (2/3), Orlando (2/5), Dallas (2/10), Houston (2/14), Portland (2/25), Seattle (2/27), Denver (3/2), Milwaukee (3/7), Philadelphia (3/16), Boston (3/20), Detroit (3/29), New York (4/1), Cleveland (4/5) and Baltimore (4/7). The shows will be The Boss' first North American dates with the E Street Band since Sept. 2016. Springsteen announced the dates for his 2023 European tour in May, explaining on SiriusXM's E Street Radio that after nearly five years off the road it was time for him to get the band back together: " I've got the Jones to play live very badly at this point," Springsteen said of getting back at it with the band for the first time since they recorded 2020's Letter to You album. "So, I'm deeply looking forward to getting out there in front of our fans." The group is gearing up to hit the road for the first time since the conclusion of their 14-month global "River Tour," which kicked off in 2016. After the end of the European run -- scheduled for April-July 2023 -- the band will begin a second as-yet-unannounced string of North American shows in August; tour dates in the UK are also slated for next year, with the details to be announced soon. - Billboard, 7/12/22...... Moonage Daydream, an all-new David Bowie documentary touted as "the definitive David Bowie film" has an official release date -- a global release in cinemas and IMAX on Sept. 16, 2022. "Moonage Daydream film& It's a date," reads a tweet posted by Bowie social accounts, including 
Aerosmith's Joe Perry has weighed in on KISS bassist Gene Simmons' longstanding opinion that "rock is dead." Simmons, 72, first made his opinion that rock is dead public in 2014, when he pronounced the genre deceased, but now Perry, 71, counters there are plenty of new rock 'n' roll bands "carrying the flag" and headlining big stages, despite not having chart success. Speaking with Andrew Daly of VWMusic, Perry said: "No, not at all... There are some great rock 'n' roll bands carrying the flag too, and one example is [Aerosmith guitarist] Brad [Whitford]'s son Graham, who plays with Tyler Bryant and The Shakedown. "I think they're like kicking ass, and the thing is, there's a lot of guys who want to get out there and play rock 'n' roll guitar and play that kind of music. The issue is that there aren't enough fans to hear it, so it's only going to go so far, but there are still people there for them to build a following. These new bands, they still headline places, they open up for other bands, and it's the same thing. It's not like they're at the top of the Billboard charts or like the top of the pop charts, but that's kind of how it was in the late '60s, too. All the rock 'n' roll that I liked, they didn't even have a place at the Grammys for it, and there was nothing overly commercial about it." Perry is set to play two concerts in July -- a July 22 gig at the Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom and a July 23 concert at The Theater at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City. - Music-News.com, 7/6/22...... Monty Norman, the British composer who wrote the propulsive theme for the James Bond films, died on July 11 after a short illness, according to a post on his official website. He was 94. In 1962, producer Cubby Broccoli, who had worked with Norman by backing the stage musical "Belle," hired Mr. Norman to come up with the score for the first Bond film, Dr. No, after he and Harry Saltzman had acquired the rights to author Ian Fleming's spy. The deal was sealed when the producers offered to fly Norman and his then-wife, actress-singer Diana Coupland, to Jamaica, where the movie was being filmed, all expenses paid. "Well, that was the clincher for me!" Mr. Norman said in a story posted on his website. "I thought, even if Dr. No turns out to be a stinker, at least we'd have sun, sea and sand to show for it!" Mr. Norman said he drew on a piece he had written for a proposed musical adaptation of V.S. Naipaul's "A House for Mr. Biswas," shifting the key riff from sitar to electric guitar. The result has been used in all 25 Bond thrillers. Burt Rhodes served as the original orchestrator of the Dr. No score before composer John Barry was hired to rearrange the theme. Years later, Mr. Norman went to court to assert his authorship, suing the Sunday Times newspaper for libel over a 1997 article asserting the theme was composed by Barry. He won in 2001 and was awarded £30,000 in damages. His music for the first film also includes the song "Underneath the Mango Tree," which he taught to Sean Connery and Ursula Andress, and a theme that accompanies the opening scene with the three blind assassins. - The Hollywood Reporter, 7/11/22...... Don Graham, the music promotion pioneer who worked at Warner Bros. Records, A&M Records and Blue Thumb Records with the likes of Edd "Kookie" Byrnes, Connie Stevens, The Everly Brothers and Ike & Tina Turner, died on July 7 in Las Angeles of stomach cancer. He was 87. After high school, Mr. Graham was introduced to Russ Solomon, whose father owned a store in Sacramento called Tower Drugs. Solomon wanted to stop selling drugs and start selling records, so they changed one word on the sign, and Tower Records was formed in 1960. In 1958, Mr. Graham learned that Warner Bros. was about to start a record label and soon became head of its San Francisco operations. In 1962, Mr. Graham moved to Los Angeles and joined Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss' A&M Records as its first national promotion manager. Three years later, he left for Blue Thumb Records, which sported a roster that included Ike & Tina Turner, Dave Mason and Sérgio Mendes. He moved to United Artists in 1968 and enjoyed success with Bobby Goldsboro, Jay & the Americans, War, Johnny Rivers and Don McLean, then worked for Midget Productions under Joe Smith and Cream Records. He started his own company, Don Graham Promotions, in 1980. Mr. Graham's survivors include his wife of 48 years, Robin, and children Mark (and his wife, Sherry, and son, Gavin), Chris (wife Lisa, sons Nicholas and Mark) and Jennifer. In lieu of flowers, his wife said, "Greet each day and person with a positive attitude just like Don." - Billboard, 7/12/22...... 
Colorful character actor L.Q. Jones, a veteran of dozens of Westerns including the Sam Peckinpah classics The Wild Bunch and Ride the High Country, died on July 9 of natural causes at his home in the Hollywood Hills. He was 94. Mr. Jones portrayed ranch hand Andy Belden on 25 episodes of NBC's The Virginian over an eight-year span, was one of the bad guys who slipped a noose over Clint Eastwood's neck in Hang 'Em High (1968) and played a sheriff on the 1983-84 NBC primetime soap The Yellow Rose, starring Sam Elliott, Cybill Shepherd and Chuck Connors. The Texas native also portrayed Clark County Commissioner Pat Webb, Robert De Niro's nemesis, in Martin Scorsese's Casino (1995) and country singer Chuck Akers in Robert Altman's A Prairie Home Companion (2006), his final credit. In a career that spanned more than five decades, Mr. Jones is perhaps best known for his turn as the bounty hunter T.C. in The Wild Bunch (1969). Mr. Jones first worked with Peckinpah in 1960 on the short-lived NBC Western Klondike. He portrayed one of the four ruthless brothers who fight it out with Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott in Ride the High Country (1962) and was a Confederate soldier in Major Dundee (1965). Mr. Jones' TV credits include Cheyenne, Gunsmoke, Laramie, Wagon Train, Lassie, Rawhide, Johnny Ringo, The Big Valley and Perry Mason -- sometimes doing two or three series a week. Other film credits include Elvis Presley's Love Me Tender (1956) and Flaming Star (1960), Don Siegel's Hell Is for Heroes (1962) and The Naked and the Dead (1958). On the other side of the camera, Mr. Jones directed, co-wrote and produced A Boy and His Dog (1975), a cult black comedy set in the post-apocalyptic year of 2024 that starred Don Johnson and Jason Robards and was based on a novella by sci-fi legend Harlan Ellison. Survivors also include his children, Randy, Steve and Mindy. - The Hollywood Reporter, 7/9/22.