Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on August 15th, 2023

Billboard.com has just compiled a ranking of the "100 Best Album Covers of All Time", and '70s artists making the Top 10 include The Beatles (No. 2, Abbey Road), Patti Smith (No. 3, Horses), Led Zeppelin (No. 5, Led Zeppelin), Pink Floyd (No. 6, The Dark Side of the Moon) and Elvis Presley (No. 9, Elvis Presley). Billboard's ranking begins as far back as the 1930s, and runs through the birth of rock n' roll, the start of hip-hop and beyond, right up to present day. Billboard has also started a poll for fans to choose their own all-time favorite album cover. - Billboard, 8/7/23...... Statues of Mick Jagger and Keith Richards have been unveiled in the Rolling Stones legends' hometown in the London borough of Dartford. Designed and made by Stones fan Amy Goodman, the statues aim to capture the same energy and intensity that they bring to each of their performances, with Jagger shown mid-way through one of his trademark struts up and down the stage, while Richards is leaning back as he plays his "Micawber" Fender Telecaster -- which was gifted to him from another rock veteran, Eric Clapton. Unveiled at the town's One Bell Corner on Aug. 8, Dartford council official Jeremy Kite said: "In terms of culture and music, you do not get much more influential than the Rolling Stones. Their music has changed the face of popular music and these lads from Dartford are now two of the most recognisable and loved people in the world," and added that the local community have had "a long-held desire" to acknowledge the band's roots to the small town. The rock stars' ties to the area stem back to the early '60s, when Jagger and Richards (then known as Keith Richard) met as teenagers on the platform of Dartford's train station, and went on to form the iconic rock group the following year (1962). The statues can be viewed on TheGuardian.com. Meanwhile, Richards took to Instagram to share a video of himself playing the piano and wishing the frontman Jagger a happy 80th birthday on July 26, while bandmate Ronnie Wood took to Twitter to share a compilation of photos of him and Jagger throughout the years. - New Musical Express, 8/9/23...... Paul McCartney, who composed his 1991 "Liverpool Oratorio" work with composer Carl Davis, has paid tribute to the composer after Mr. Davis' family announced on Aug. 3 that he had died following a brain haemorrhage. "I was very sad to hear that my friend Carl Davis had passed away. Carl and I wrote the 'Liverpool Oratorio' together. It was my first full-length classical venture and I really enjoyed working with him to make it happen. I would show up at his house and we would start writing," McCartney posted on Twitter on Aug. 7. He added: "I would suggest an idea and he would write it down on the manuscript paper which made it easy for him to play the idea back to me and we progressed like that. He was a very skilful and fun man to be with." McCartney also shared a photo of the two sitting together at the piano, and closed his message with: "When we came to perform the piece at Liverpool Cathedral it was very exciting for me who had once failed an audition for the choir at the cathedral to be back there with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. I enjoyed my time with Carl very much and send my love and sympathies." Mr. Davis won a BAFTA and Ivor Novello award for his work on 1981's The French Lieutenant's Woman, and also worked on the BBC's 1995 adaptation of Pride And Prejudice. In other McCartney news, the Beatles legend has just added a second Sydney show to his forthcoming Australia tour, slated for this October and November. "Sydney, we've got great news!," reads an Aug. 6 message on McCartney's Twitter account. "Paul has added a second and final show at Allianz Stadium on October 28th, to his #PaulMcCartneyGotBack tour! More Information at https://t.co/KhK4WK9uaZ." McCartney announced on Aug. 1 that he'll launch a 6-city, 7-date tour down under on Oct. 18 in Adelaide, wrapping on Nov. 4 in Gold Coast. The announcement came just a day after he teased an international tour, and it is currently unclear if the musician will announce more global tour dates for the "Got Back" tour. - NME,. 8/7/23...... Olivia Newton-John's daughter Chloe Lattanzi has told People magazine that her late mom visited her two weeks after the iconic Grease co-star died on Aug. 8, 2022 following a long battle with breast cancer. Lattanzi, a 37-year-old singer and actress, told the magazine: "Two weeks after she passed my phone accidentally took a picture of my dog, and there floating by his head was a little blue orb, the same colour as this. Mum and I had talked years back. We'd watch these paranormal shows, and I'd say, 'You gotta show up for me.' And she was like, 'I'll show up as one of those orb things.'" Olivia's widow, John Easterling, who married the Xanadu star in Peru in 2008, has said he also had a similar supernatural encounter with his late wife when he visited Peru in June with her ashes to commemorate what would have been their 15th wedding anniversary. "I took a picture, and this blue orb is right between my eyes," Easterling recalled. "It's been a supernatural year." - Music-News.com, 8/9/23...... Former The Sex Pistols frontman John Lydon (née Johnny Rotten) has told the UK's Uncut magazine that he is being stalked by a woman who claims to be his daughter, saying the woman's behavior has left him distressed to the point where he's filed a police report. The topic came up during the interview where he was asked about the meaning of the song "Walls" on Lydon's later band Public Image Ltd' new album End of the World, which hits stores on Aug. 11. "We all need barriers," he said. "We need some degree of separation from others, if only just for a sense of security," Lydon said. "At the moment I'm struggling with a stalker who is letting herself in my yard at night, running around claiming that she's my daughter. And she's in her 50s. It's the uncaring selfishness of it that is really upsetting. I've had stalkers in the past but this one is becoming just too irrational, and has potential for something much more serious, so I've had to report it. I don't like to get people into trouble but it's causing me stress. It's making me a bag of nerves." Lydon was also asked about his opinion on the debate about whether New York or London can claim to be the birthplace of punk rock. "There's all this nonsense about how punk rock came from New York, it's all f---ing bollocks," Lydon asserted in his typical blunt manner. "I came from a very strong culture, one that didn't need America to teach us how to be punks. The American punk scene was a bunch of twats in tight trousers, reading Rimbaud poetry from the depths of New York. We didn't need America. We had exciting things in our youth that had nothing to do with America. Punk was coming out of glam. Slade, Sweet, T Rex, Bowie, Showaddywaddy, Mud." - NME, 8/6/23...... British keyboardist John Gosling, who played for The Kinks during the 1970s, has died at age 75. Gosling joined the Kinks in 1970 and played on 10 of the rock band's albums, as well as the demo of the group's classic song "Lola." Gosling left the Kinks in 1978 and was briefly replaced by Gordon Edwards upon his departure. A year later, Ian Gibbons took over on keyboards. In 1994, he became a founding member of Kast Off Kinks, which included former Kinks members Mick Avory, Jim Rodford and John Dalton. He performed with the act until retiring in 2008. "Condolences to his wife Theresa and family. Rest in Peace dearest John," Kinks frontman Ray Davies wrote, with his brother and Kinks bandmate Dave Davies adding "He has been a friend and important contributor to the Kinks music during his time with us. Deepest sympathies to his wife and family. I will hold deep affection and love for him in my heart always. Great musician and a great man." The Kinks' announcement of Gosling's passing can be viewed on Twitter. - Billboard, 8/5/23...... Enigmatic singer-songwriter Sixto Diaz Rodriguez -- commonly referred to as just Rodriguez -- died on Aug. 8, according to a statement on his official website. He was 81. Mr. Rodriguez's slow boil rise to international acclaim was chronicled in the Oscar-winning 2012 documentary Searching for Sugar Man. The Dylan-esque folk singer recorded two albums in the early 1970s that were released to little notice, Cold Fact (1970) and Coming From Reality (1971), leading the aspiring troubadour to give up on his musical dream, start a family and pursue a philosophy degree as he unsuccessfully ran for a series of local political offices in his hometown of Detroit. After failed bids at mayor and state senate, Mr. Rodriguez could often be seen walking in Detroit's Cass Corridor neighborhood with a guitar slung over his shoulder, with most onlookers unaware of his former musical aspirations. That changed in 1979 when he was invited to perform in Australia to celebrate the re-release of his albums; he toured there again in 1981. At the time, it was rumored that he had taken his life by shooting himself on stage (another false story claimed he'd died of a drug overdose) after releasing Coming From Reality on Detroit's Sussex record label, a false report his absence only served to feed amid a bubbling popularity Down Under. A decade later, he discovered that his music was even more influential in South Africa, where, unbeknownst to him, his psychedelic-tinged, wistful folk ruminations had become wildly popular among South African youth, who embraced them as anthems against the repressive, racist apartheid government. Though long retired from touring, Mr. Rodriguez booked some arena gigs in the nation in 1998 to rabid response and later saw his music re-discovered by artists such as DJ/producer David Holmes, who used Cold Shot's opening track, "Sugar Man" for his 2002 Come Get It, I Got It compilation alongside songs by Muddy Waters, The Staples Singers, Cyril Neville and Betty Adams. Rapper Nas sampled Mr. Rodriguez singing the chorus from "Sugar Man" on his 2001 song "You're Da Man." The uptick in interest led to the re-issues of the albums and a world tour, a renaissance that was capped by the best documentary feature Oscar-winning 2012 film Searching for Sugar Man, which chronicled the journey of two Cape Town fans -- rock journalist Craig Bartholomew and Stephen "Sugar" Segerman -- to find out what happened to their favorite singer. - Billboard, 8/9/23...... William Friedkin, the Oscar-winning director of such iconic 1970s films as The French Connection and The Exorcist, died on Aug. 7 in Los Angeles. He was 87 and died following a long illness, according to his son Cedric Friedkin. Born in Chicago on Aug. 29, 1939, Mr. Friedkin began working in local TV productions as a teenager and by age 16, he was directing live shows. He moved from live shows to documentaries, making 1962's The People Versus Paul Crump, the story of a prison inmate who rehabilitates himself on Death Row after being sentenced for the murder of a guard during a botched robbery at a Chicago food plant. Producer David Wolper was so impressed with it that he brought Mr. Friedkin to Hollywood to direct network TV shows. After working on such shows as The Bold Ones, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour and the documentary The Thin Blue Line, Mr. Friedkin landed his first film, 1967's Good Times, a lighthearted musical romp headlined by Sonny and Cher in what would be their only movie appearance together. He followed that with The Night They Raided Minsky's, about backstage life at a burlesque theatre, and The Birthday Party, from a Harold Pinter play. He then gained critical attention with 1970's The Boys in the Band, a landmark film about gay men. He then cemented his legend with 1971's The French Connection, based on a true story and deals with the efforts of maverick New York City police Detective James "Popeye" Doyle to track down Frenchman Alain Charnier, mastermind of a large drug pipeline funneling heroin into the United States. The movie, which was made for only $2 million, became a box office hit when it was released in 1971. It contains one of the most thrilling chase scenes ever filmed, and won Academy Awards for best picture, screenplay and film editing. Two years later he directed The Exorcist, based on William Peter Blatty's bestselling novel about a 12-year-old girl possessed by the devil, and it became the biggest movie of 1973. The movie, featuring harrowing scenes of a young girl's demonic possession and featuring a splendid cast, was so scary for its era that many viewers fled the theatre before it was over and some reported being unable to sleep for days afterward. The Exorcist received 10 Oscar nominations, including one for Friedkin as director, and won two, for Blatty's script and for sound. His 1977 film Sorcerer, a gangster thriller starring Roy Scheider, was widely panned at the time and also failed with audiences. It's since been reappraised by critics and has become a cult classic that Mr. Friedkin himself would continue to defend, saying in 2017 that it's the only one of his films he could still watch. In recent years, Mr. Friedkin wrote a candid memoir, The Friedkin Connection, and directed several well-received movies adapted from Tracy Letts plays including Bug and Killer Joe, starring Matthew McConaughey as a hit man. A new film, The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, starring Kiefer Sutherland, is set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September. Mr. Friedkin had three brief marriages in the 1970s and '80s, to French actress Jeanne Moreau; British actress Lesley-Anne Down, with whom he had a son; and longtime Los Angeles TV news anchor Kelly Lange. In 1991, he married Paramount studio executive Sherry Lansing. Mr. Friedkin's fellow director legend Francis Ford Coppola praised his longtime friend in a statement, saying his films "are alive with his genius." "Pick any of them out of a hat and you'll be dazzled. His lovable, irascible personality was cover for a beautiful, brilliant, deep-feeling giant of a man. It's very hard to grasp that I will never enjoy his company again, but his work will at least stand in for him." - Associated Press, 8/7/23...... Robbie Robertson, the beloved Canadian guitarist, songwriter and frontman of The Band, died after an as yet undisclosed long illness on Aug. 9. He was 80. The Toronto, Ontario-born Mr. Robertson began playing guitar at age 10, and at just 16 years old he joined drummer Levon Helm in The Hawks, the backing band for Ronnie Hawkins. The Hawks went on to play with Bob Dylan on his legendary Going Electric tours in 1965 and 1966, and recorded the seminal "basement tapes" with the legend before changing their group's name to The Band. They released their debut Music From Big Pink album in 1968, which featured the Robertson-penned classic, "The Weight," and the group performed at the legendary original Woodstock Festival in 1969. Mr. Robertson was the sole writer of The Band's first four hits on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart -- "The Weight" (No. 63), "Up on Cripple Creek" (No. 25), "Rag Mama Rag" (No. 57), and "Time to Kill" (No. 77). He was also the sole writer of the biggest hit Joan Baez ever had, "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," which reached No. 3 in 1971. After eight years as a band, Robertson ended the group in 1976, culminating in The Band's legendary farewell concert, The Last Waltz. Dylan, Eric Clapton, Muddy Waters, Van Morrison, Neil Young, Neil Diamond and Joni Mitchell all joined the group for the performance at San Francisco's Winterland and a corresponding concert film was directed by Martin Scorsese. The Last Waltz soundtrack was released in 1978 and peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 200 albums chart. Mr. Robertson also delved into the film world, co-writing, producing, appearing in and composing the source music for Carny (1979), starring Gary Busey and Jodie Foster. He went on to create and produce music for Scorsese's Raging Bull (1980), King Of Comedy (1983), and The Color Of Money (1986), which included "It's In The Way That You Use It," co-written with Clapton. Mr. Robertson also scored, consulted for, produced or supervised music for numerous iconic films throughout the years, including American Beauty (1999), Any Given Sunday (1999) Gangs Of New York (2002), The Departed (2006), Shutter Island (2009), The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), and Silence (2016). He recently completed his fourteenth film music project with frequent collaborator Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon. In 1987, he made his solo album debut with his Grammy nominated self-titled album, featuring guests Peter Gabriel and U2 and the beloved track "Somewhere Down The Crazy River." His sixth and final solo album, Sinematic, was released in 2019. The Band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1989 and received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2008. Robertson never won a Grammy in competition, despite five nods over the years, but he won five Juno Awards in his native Canada, including three in 1989 -- album of the year (for his eponymous solo debut album), male vocalist of the year and producer of the year (in tandem with Daniel Lanois). Tributes from Mr. Robertson's famous friends and admirers poured in on social media following the news of his death. "The music world lost a great one with the passing of Robbie Robertson," Neil Diamond tweeted. "Keep making that Beautiful Noise in the sky, Robbie. I'll miss you." Stephen Stills tweeted that Mr. Robertson was "always kind and generous...rest in peace" while Stevie Van Zant posted to Twitter about his "good friend and a genius": "The Band's music shocked the excess out of the Renaissance and were an essential part of the final back-to-the-roots trend of '60s. He was an underrated brilliant guitar player adding greatly to Bob Dylan's best tour & best album." The Rolling Stones' Ronnie Wood tweeted the musician "was a lovely man, a great friend and will be dearly missed." - Billboard, 8/9/23.

Queen + Adam Lambert announced on Aug. 1 that they'll return to Japan in Feb. 2024 for their first shows there since 2020. Current Queen frontman Lambert, along with founding guitarist Sir Brian May and founding drummer Roger Taylor, will kick off their series of dome concerts on Feb. 4 in Nagoya, before heading to Osaka and Sapporo, and wrapping with two consecutive nights at Tokyo Dome, on Feb. 13-14. In a statement, May, 76, and Taylor, 74, hinted that it "may be the last time" they travel to the Land of the Rising Sun to perform. "We are so excited to be returning to Japan, the country that has always held a special and most honoured place in our hearts. This may be the last time...who knows? We promise to bring a very real spectacular for you to enjoy!" The guitarist almost emphasised that this will be an even more ambitious version of the Rhapsody tour show and among the biggest concerts they've ever played in Japan." Lambert, 41, remarked that the 2020 Japan shows -- when the band played four massive sold-out shows for a combined audience of over 132,000 people across the country -- "were so much fun, the audiences were incredible!" and he "can't wait!" to perform there again. Before the Japan tour, Queen + Adam Lambert will launch a 20-date, 13-city fall U.S. tour this fall on Oct. 5 in Baltimore, wrapping on Nov. 12 in Los Angeles. - Music-News.com, 8/1/23...... The estate of late singer/songwriter Dan Fogelberg has inked a deal with music mogul Irving Azoff's IAG agency, a partnership that draws on one of the deepest professional and personal relationships of Azoff's life. Azoff and Fogelberg dropped out of the University of Illinois together in 1970s to find fame in fortune in L.A., moving into a one-bedroom apartment in West Hollywood from which Azoff oversaw Fogelberg's budding career. Under his guidance, Fogelberg, who died in Dec. 2007 at age 56 from cancer, became one of the leading singer-songwriters of the '70s and '80s. For nearly 20 years, he was a mainstay on adult contemporary radio, scoring such top 10 hits as "Longer," "Heart Hotels," "Same Old Lang Syne," "Leader of the Band" and "Rhythm of the Rain." On Aug. 4, IAG announced it had acquired the controlling interests in a broad range of Fogelberg's rights, including name, image, likeness, sound recordings, audiovisual works and music publishing. The company declined to reveal the purchase price or the exact percentage it owns. His widow, Jean Fogelberg, controls the rest. "We started IAG [because] we wanted to have a place for clients and friends, but none of it goes deeper than Dan," says Azoff, who notes that he's still reeling from Dan's untimely death. "He was my closest friend. He played piano at my wedding when we walked down the aisle. We struggled together; we struck gold together." Nearly 16 years after Fogelberg's death, Azoff says it's time to reintroduce the artist to a new generation. "His catalog and songs stand the test of time," he says. Jean Fogelberg says she hopes to show a more well-rounded portrait of her late husband, including highlighting some of his harder-edged songs along with his progressive bluegrass (or "newgrass") period. "It always 'bothered him' that he wasn't widely known for his musical breadth," Jean says. To remedy that, IAG is already in talks with filmmakers about a documentary that would cover the musician's rich history. She's also writing a biography of Dan, based in part of 22 hours of recordings she made of Dan "talking about his life." And she feels the move has Dan's blessing: "I remember the main thing he told me about Irving was, 'When I'm gone, if you need anything, ask Irving. He'll be there for you.'" - Billboard, 8/4/23...... Speaking of IAG, Cher has also explained why she recently made a deal with the company for her past sound recordings and compositions: "I trust Irving." Cher, an Academy Award, Emmy and Grammy winner, has partnered with Azoff's Iconic Artists Group to expose new generations to her prolific, six-decade-long music career. Like many acts on IAG's growing roster, Cher has a relationship with Azoff that goes back to the '70s, when they were introduced by Cher's sister, Georganne LaPiere, who was a close friend of Azoff's. "I've never worked with her professionally," he says, "but obviously have been a fan." Cher says her decision to make a deal with IAG came down to the respect Azoff shows artists. 'I trust Irving," she says. "If he has a great idea, I respect him. And if I have a great idea, I know he will listen attentively. My voice will be heard." IAG's first project with Cher will celebrate the 25th anniversary of 'Believe," her electro-pop hit that arrived in Oct. 1998 and was Billboard's No. 1 song of 1999. Cher, who is managed by Roger Davies and Lindsay Scott, concluded her last major tour in 2005 and a Las Vegas residency in 2011. Asked if she plans to tour again, she replies: "I don't know," although she says there will not be live performances tied to the anniversary of"'Believe": "I'm not going to be ready that soon." She would also like to explore releasing a box set of her lesser-known songs, including some of her more recent recordings. "Some of my favorite, favorite songs weren't hits," she says. "I wasn't a very good singer until, oh, my God, I was 40. I met my teacher [Adrienne Angel]. She made me a real singer." - Billboard, 8/2/23...... Peter Gabriel has returned to the Billboard airplay chart for the first time since 2008 -- and as a lead artist since 2002 -- with "Road to Joy," the latest taste from his upcoming and long-awaited album I/O. A specific release date for the former Genesis frontman's LP not been announced, but the artists has released a new song from the album during every full moon each month, with the 12th set for December. It's his first album of original material since Up in 2002. "Road to Joy" marks Gabriel's first entry on an airplay ranking since he was featured on Big Blue Ball's "Burn You Up, Burn You Down," which peaked at No. 18 on Adult Alternative Airplay in 2008. His last time as a lead artist on Adult Alternative Airplay (which began in 1996) prior to "Road to Joy" had been in 2002, when "More Than This" peaked at No. 20. His four No. 1 hits on the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart include "Shock the Monkey," "Sledgehammer," "In Your Eyes" and 'Digging in the Dirt." He has tallied three top 10s on the Billboard Hot 200 albums chart, one each in the '80s (So, No. 2), '90s (Us, No. 2) and '00s (Up, No. 9). - Billboard, 8/3/23...... In an interview with Today show host Hoda Kotb on Aug. 3, Tony Bennett's widow Susan Benedetto revealed the last words Tony said before his passing on July 21 at age 96 following a years-long battle with Alzheimer's disease. "He would tell me that he loved me," said Susan. "He would wake up every day and still say that. He woke up happy every day. Even if he had had a bad day or night, he didn't remember it. That was the only blessing. He woke up happy. And he's just like, 'Susan. You're the best thing that ever happened to me.' And he would say that to me all the time." Benedetto and Bennett tied the knot in 2007, more than 20 years after their first meeting at one of his concerts in 1985. She also revealed that he sang one of his classic tracks before passing away. "He sang 'Because of You.' We were getting him up to exercise, and so it was easy to just latch onto the piano," she said. Her full interview can be viewed on YouTube. Meanwhile, the United States Senate passed a resolution on July 28 declaring Aug. 3 -- which is Bennett's birth date -- as Tony Bennett Day. Senate majority leader cited Bennett's service in World War II and his decision to march with Martin Luther King Jr. during a time when mainstream entertainers like Bennett participating in civil rights demonstrations wasn't popular. The resolution was passed by unanimous consent. Speaker Emerita and San Franciscan Nancy Pelosi, a longtime friend of Bennett's, introduced a similar resolution in the House of Representatives. - Billboard/Music-News.com, 8/3/23...... While The Hollies' 1974 hit "The Air That I Breathe" was modified for its use in the upcoming horror flick Saw X, Hollies guitarist/singer Tony Hicks says the producers have made it worth the band's consent. "They paid a fortune to us to use 'The Air That I Breathe' in the new 'Saw' movie that's coming out," said Hicks, 77. "They played around with the song. It's quite remarkable... we were very surprised." Hicks says the group nearly fell over when they received a rather large undisclosed sum for agreeing to the use of the hit, which is featured in the trailer for the upcoming instalment in the blockbuster horror franchise. The Hollies -- including Hicks's fellow co-founding member Bobby Elliott, 81 -- have announced they'll embark on a UK tour beginning Sept. 16 in Blackburn and wrapping on Nov. 9 at the iconic London Palladium. Tony says his band will never quit touring, and insists that choosing to play squash and go for runs instead of getting drunk with his bandmates after shows is the secret to him still being fit enough to tour in his late 70s. "I used to be a regular squash player and used to go jogging, I mean, I've jogged absolutely everywhere in in the world. That kept me going, you know, when you're on the road with a band, and you've arrived somewhere, I don't know, mid morning, and you've got until the night time before you do a performance. I mean, you either do that what I did, you know, got out and do exercises or you go in the bar and just get p----d. You know, I prefer to do what I did. And that kept me sort of pretty much sane and things." - Bang Showbiz, 8/5/23...... A new two-part docuseries, San Francisco Sounds: A Place in Time, will examine the extremely musically fertile environment of San Francisco from 1965 to 1975 which gave birth to such music acts as the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Sly and the Family Stone, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Janis Joplin, Steve Miller, Santana and many more. Premiering on premium cable channel MGM+ on Aug. 20 and Aug. 27, San Francisco Sounds will also showcase seminal Bay Area festivals such as Monterey Pop, Altamont and Woodstock that brought its musicians into the national forefront during that time. The documentary comes from the same team that produced the three-time Emmy-nominated doc Laurel Canyon: A Place in Time. "Just like with Laurel Canyon, I personally lived through this extraordinary musical period of time and visited the San Francisco scene on a regular basis, so I'm very excited to be working again with the same amazing team we assembled to create the Laurel Canyon doc series," said executive producer Frank Marshall in a previous statement. In a recently released trailer for San Francisco Sounds on YouTube, even a young Minnesotan-turned-New-Yorker Bob Dylan praises the Northern California scene, declaring that "Jefferson Airplane are playing at Fillmore Auditorium, and I would like to go if I could." The Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia chimes in on the scene as well, declaring it a peaceful one, even in the face of the Vietnam War: "We're not thinking about any kind of power, revolution or war." - Billboard, 8/2/23...... On Aug. 1, Paul McCartney announced his first tour of Australia in six years will commence on Oct. 18 in Adelaide. The day before, Sir Paul had teased on his social media outlets that he had "news coming soon" of some type of world tour, and delivered the following day with his announcement of an "intimate" date at Adelaide Entertainment Centre on Oct. 18, the only arena show on the itinerary which also includes stops in Melbourne (10/21), Newcastle (10/24), Sydney (10/27) and Brisbane (11/1) before wrapping at Gold Coast's Heritage Bank Stadium on Nov. 4. When McCartney and the Beatles played Adelaide in 1964, at the very peak of their powers, an estimated 350,000 people lined the streets to catch a glimpse of the Fab Four. That's roughly one-third the city's current population. "I've got so many amazing memories of my time in Australia over the years," McCartney said in a statement. "Our last trip was so much fun. We had such an incredible time. Each show was a party so we know this is going to be incredibly special. Australia we are going to rock! I can't wait to see you." Joining Macca down under will be his longtime band, Paul "Wix" Wickens (keyboards), Brian Ray (bass/guitar), Rusty Anderson (guitar) and Abe Laboriel Jr (drums). - Billboard, 8/1/23...... Motörhead icon Lemmy Kilmister has had more of his ashes scattered the mud at Germany's Wacken Open Air festival. The famed UK heavy metal band played Wacken countless times during their decades-long career, and some of his ashes were spread as part of Wacken's "Lemmy Forever" festivities opening the festival in late July. "Lemmy coming back to Wacken is an enormous honour for us -- words can hardly express how enormous," said festival co-organiser Thomas Jensen. "We will create a place of remembrance for him that does justice to his significance for an entire genre and beyond." Jensen continued: "There has always been a special connection between Motörhead and Wacken Open Air; hardly any band has played here more often The fact that his journey also ends here will forever hold a special meaning." Some of Lemmy's ashes were already used to create tattoos for Motörhead's tour manager and production assistant. Meanwhile, the artist had also requested before his death for his ashes to be placed inside bullets and sent to his loved ones. Earlier in 2023, the band's rare 1998 cover of Metallica's "Enter Sandman" was finally released on all major streaming platforms. - New Musical Express, 8/3/23...... Actor Mark Margolis, who turned in a commanding performance as the vindictive drug runner Hector Salamanca on the hit series Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, died on Aug. 3 at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City following a short illness. He was 83. A protegé of Stella Adler who did double duty as the legendary acting teacher's personal assistant, Mr. Margolis also stood out as the Bolivian henchman Alberto the Shadow in Brian De Palma's Scarface (1983); as the gravelly voiced landlord Mr. Shickadance looking for the rent in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994); and, from 1998-2003, as the HIV-infected mob boss Antonio Nappa on HBO's Oz. The Philadelphia native was also featured in several movies from acclaimed director Darren Aronofsky, including Pi, The Wrestler, Black Swan and Noah. After studying for a short time with Alder's rival, Lee Strasberg, Mr. Margolis made his onscreen debut as a surly airplane passenger in the X-rated The Opening of Misty Beethoven (1976), then had small roles in Going in Style (1979), De Palma's Dressed to Kill (1980) and Arthur (1981) before his nasty Alberto was killed by Al Pacino's Tony Montana in Scarface. "I am just a journeyman actor," he once said. "Truth to tell, six months after Scarface, I had to take a job with a real estate development friend for a few months just to get by." Mr. Margolis was praised on Instagram by his fellow Breaking Bad star, Bryan Cranston. "Mark Margolis was a really good actor and a lovely human being. Fun and engaging off the set, and (in the case of Breaking Bad and Your Honor) intimidating and frightening on set. His quiet energy belied his mischievous nature and curious mind & And he loved sharing a good joke. & Rest now, Mark and thank you for your friendship and your exceptional body of work." He is survived by his wife, Jacqueline, whom he married in June 1962, son Morgan Margolis, and three grandsons. - The Hollywood Reporter, 8/4/23...... Paul Reubens, the comic actor behind beloved character Pee-wee Herman, died on July 30 after a what was described as a long and brave battle with cancer. He was 70. Last night we said farewell to Paul Reubens, an iconic American actor, comedian, writer and producer whose beloved character Pee-wee Herman delighted generations of children and adults with his positivity, whimsy and belief in the importance of kindness," read a message on Reubens' Facebook and Instagram pages. "Paul bravely and privately fought cancer for years with his trademark tenacity and wit. A gifted and prolific talent, he will forever live in the comedy pantheon and in our hearts as a treasured friend and man of remarkable character and generosity of spirit." Included with the announcement was a message from Reubens himself. "Please accept my apology for not going public with what I've been facing the last six years," he wrote. "I have always felt a huge amount of love and respect from my friends, fans and supporters. I have love you all so much and enjoyed making art for you." Reubens created the goofy, childlike character Pee-wee Herman in the 1970s while he was in the Los Angeles improv group The Foundlings. Pee-wee was always dressed in a light gray suit and red bowtie, and had a signature laugh. Pee-wee appeared not only on the 1980s Saturday morning children's show Pee-wee's Playhouse, but also in feature films Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985), which was directed by Tim Burton, and Big Top Pee-wee (1988). The character didn't get another feature-length adventure until 2016, when Pee-wee's Big Holiday arrived as a Netflix original. During Pee-wee's Playhouse's run, the show won 18 Daytime Emmys, and earned Reubens four nominations for outstanding performer in a children's series. The actor also received three Primetime Emmy nods during his career: art direction for a variety or music program in 1989 for "Christmas at Pee-wee's Playhouse"; guest actor in a comedy series in 1995 on Murphy Brown; and variety, music or comedy special in 2011 for "The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway." His success was nearly derailed in 1991, when he was arrested for indecent exposure at an adult movie theater in Sarasota, Fla., and paid a $75 fine. He ran afoul of the law again in 2001, when police seized images from his erotica collection. He was ultimately pleaded guilty in 2004 to an obscenity charge, and was fined $100 and placed on probation for three years, during which he agreed to register as a sex offender. Devo frontman Mark Mothersbaugh praised Reubens as a longtime friend and an artist who "changed the trajectory of my career. "He always had a good personality and a good heart," Mothersbaugh told Yahoo Music. "It's just shocking and sad that he's gone." - Billboard, 7/31/23.