Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on October 3rd, 2024

Sony Music announced on Oct. 2 that they've bought the recorded music assets, merchandising and name, image and likeness of Pink Floyd for $400 million, however the band's music publishing assets were not a part of the deal. Since the group started shopping its recorded music assets about two years ago, the assets were shopped to all the big players -- BMG, Concord, Primary Wave and other private equity-backed music buyers -- but Sony always had the inside hand on the deal given that it serves as the group's distributor. For a while, the assets were pulled off the block due to some infighting between group members, according to published reports. This deal marks the third big music asset deal Sony has made in the last 12 months, having previously bought 50% of Michael Jackson's music assets in a deal that valued them at $1.205 million; and Queen's music assets for about $1.2 billion. - Billboard, 10/2/24...... To celebrate one of the UK's most innovative and influential bands of the rock and roll era, Britain's Royal Mail revealed on Oct. 3 that a set of 60th anniversary The Who stamps are available for pre-order at www.royalmail.com/thewho and by telephone on 03457-641-641. The eight stamps feature images of some of the band's most popular and iconic album covers: My Generation (1965); Tommy (1969); Who's Next (1971); Quadrophenia (1973); Who Are You (1978); Face Dances (1981); Endless Wire (2006); and WHO (2019). Completing the set is a miniature-sheet featuring two publicity group shots and two images of the band's dynamic live performances at the Marquee Club, London, in 1967 and the Kings Hall, Belle Vue, Manchester, in 1973. Commenting on the honor, frontman Roger Daltrey said: "The artwork on the album sleeves was almost as important to the success of the record as the music. It's great to be reminded of them," while guitarist Pete Townshend said: "Stamp! Stamp! Stamp! It's what I've done on stage all my life, sometimes in the air. At last, my stamping, and that of my buddy Roger, has been honoured properly, and will help letters, parcels and birthday cards travel through time and space, just as we have." The Who become the seventh music group to feature in a dedicated Royal Mail stamp issue -- following on from: The Beatles (2007); Pink Floyd (2016); Queen (2020); The Rolling Stones (2022); Iron Maiden (2023); and The Spice Girls (2024). - Music-News.com, 10/3/24...... A producer who worked on Fleetwood Mac's legendary 1977 album Rumours is suing the creators of the hit Broadway play "Stereophonic," claiming they stole material from his memoir about working on the legendary album. In a lawsuit filed on Oct. 2 in Manhattan federal court, Ken Caillat and co-author Steven Stiefel call the Tony Award-winning show an "unauthorized adaptation" of their 2012 book Making Rumours -- and accuse "Stereophonic" playwright David Adjmi of "flagrant and willful infringement." "'Stereophonic' copies the heart and soul of Making Rumours," attorneys for the two men write in their complaint. "The striking similarity is readily apparent right from the beginning of the show." Featuring the music of Arcade Fire's Will Butler, "Stereophonic" debuted on Broadway last fall, eventually winning five Tony Awards including best play, best direction of a play and best featured actor in a play. Critics quickly noted the similarities to the infamous story of the recording session for Fleetwood Mac's Rumours, which featured high tensions and heavy drug usage. A reviewer for the Wall Street Journal said the play was "fictionalizing Fleetwood Mac"; another critic said the play "isn't literally about Fleetwood Mac, but c'mon." The case presents tricky legal questions. Under U.S. law, historical events cannot be monopolized under copyrights, and nobody can claim exclusive ownership over the real story behind the making of Rumours. But specific creative elements of how such a story is told can be protected by copyrights, and film, TV and stage producers often license non-fiction books as the basis for their works. In their case, Caillat and Stiefel claim that Adjmi copied those exact kinds of creative choices when he created his play: "'Stereophonic''s audience not only sits in the same place that Mr. Caillat sat, but the show also depicts Mr. Caillat's wild ride as it is described in Making Rumours." - Billboard, 10/2/24...... Aerosmith bassist Tom Hamilton has shared details of his first shows with a new band called Close Enemies. News of the new band comes as Aerosmith confirmed that their days of touring had come to an immediate end, following frontman Steven Tyler seriously injuring his voice at a gig. "Hey, I need to tell you something about a band I'm playing with called Close Enemies. We have a bunch of good songs recorded. We're going to release one soon," Hamilton posted on X/Twitter. "Meanwhile, we're doing a show in Nashville on October 11 in Nashville at a place called Eastside Bowl. Please come!" The rest of the Close Enemies line-up is comprised of drummer Tony Brock (The Babys), singer Chasen Hampton, and guitarists Peter Stroud and Trace Foster. Aerosmith's final ever live show took place at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. in Sept. 2023. It was held as part of their 'Peace Out' tour, which began last year, but only saw the band play three nights, before rescheduling the rest of the dates after Tyler injured his larynx. - NME, 9/30/24...... Frankie Valli has "cleared the air" after viral videos of him at recent shows sparked concern from fans. Footage of the Four Seasons legend, who turned 90 this year, performing during his recent concerts appeared to show him lip-syncing while displaying difficulty keeping up with the music. A series of videos circulated on social media over the weekend, with many expressing concern over his wellbeing. "I love Frankie Valli but this isn't right," one person shared on Twitter, with another calling it "a tough watch." Now the singer has told People magazine that "I get a chuckle from the comments wondering if someone forcing me to go on stage." "I know there has been a lot of stuff on the internet about me lately so I wanted to clear the air," he said. "I am blessed to be 90 years old and still be doing what I love to do and as long as I am able, and audiences want to come see me, I am going to be out there performing as I always. I absolutely love what I do. And I know we put on a great show because our fans are still coming out in force and the show still rocks. How do we do the show?! The Four Seasons sound was always about layering vocals and instruments. We use our 60 years of experience so we sound like the records. I sing, I have singers who sing, great arrangements & everything. I get a chuckle from the comments wondering if someone forcing me to go on stage. Nobody has ever made me do anything I didn't want to do." The "Grease" singer concluded: "I plan to be doing shows as long as I can, delivering that great Four Seasons sound. Like that line in 'Jersey Boys,' I'm like that bunny on TV, that just keeps going and going and going. Chasing the music." In August, a representative for Valli dismissed claims that the singer was having health problems, telling the New York Post: "Frankie is doing just fine and super happy to still be performing. The audiences are filling venues and listening to some great music. Frankie is doing what he loves to do at 90. We should all be so lucky." Valli is still actively touring and has a string of US dates planned throughout the rest of 2024 and into 2025. - NME, 10/1/24...... Speaking at the premiere of his new career-spanning documentary Elton John: Never Too Late on Oct. 1, Elton John joked with the crowd that "To be honest with you, there's not much of me left." "I don't have tonsils, adenoids or an appendix. I don't have a prostate, I don't have a right hip or a left knee or a right knee," the Rocket Man said. "In fact, the only thing left to me is my left hip. But I'm still here." John went on to credit his fans and his family for his ongoing career, calling them "the people that made me". "I want to thank David, Zachary and Elijah for making me the happiest man in the world," he said. "I found complete and utter happiness and bliss when I met David [Furnish], and when I had my children, our children. And it satisfied me so much. I've never felt happiness like I have now." Elton John: Never Too Late follows the musician as he reflects on his life and 50-year career as he prepared for his final North American stadium show at Los Angeles' Dodger Stadium in Nov. 2022, which was also livestreamed on Disney+. The film is due to premiere on Disney+ on Dec. 13 worldwide, and will reportedly "pull back the curtain" on the singer's life, featuring "never-before-seen concert footage of him over the past 50 years, as well as hand-written journals and present-day footage of him and his family." The official trailer for the film can be streamed on YouTube. - New Musical Express, 10/2/24...... Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band announced on Oct. 1 that they've added eight new shows to their previously-rescheduled European jaunt -- including concerts in England, France, Germany and Spain. The newly-confirmed dates kick off May 17 with the first of two nights at Co-op Live in Manchester, England. All told, Springsteen and Co. will play 12 dates on their 2025 run of the U.K. and Europe, including previously-rescheduled shows in Marseille, Prague and Milan, which were initially called off in May on doctor's orders, as the rock legend recovered from "vocal issues." The announcement of new dates follow the world premiere of the Thom Zimny-directed documentary Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, which arrives Oct. 25 on Hulu and Disney+. - Billboard, 10/1/24...... Late soul music legend Otis Redding will be honored posthumously with a star the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Friday, Oct. 4, at 11:30 a.m. PT at 6150 Hollywood Blvd. Redding's star is in the category of live theatre/live performance. Five-time Grammy-winning producer (and previous Walk of Fame honoree) Jimmy Jam will emcee the star ceremony. Accepting the award will be the singer's daughter, Karla Redding-Andrews. "The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce is honored to dedicate a star to the legendary Otis Redding, whose music continues to inspire generations," Ana Martinez, producer of the Walk of Fame ceremonies, said in a statement. Redding has long been regarded as one of the greatest soul singers in popular music history. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1994 and received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1999. After releasing a slew of hits between 1964 and 1967, Redding played at the Monterey International Pop Festival in June 1967. But less than six months later, on Dec. 10, 1967, he died in a plane crash in Madison, Wisc. en route to a concert. He was just 26. His deeply moving posthumous single, "(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay," shot to No. 1 in early 1968 on the pop and R&B charts. - Billboard, 9/27/24...... Emmylou Harris will receive the ASPCA Henry Bergh Award at the 2024 Humane Awards for her passionate commitment to animal welfare. In 2004, Harris established Bonaparte's Retreat with the goal of rescuing shelter dogs. Bonaparte's Retreat continues to save dogs most in need at Metro Nashville Animal Care and Control and at municipal shelters in surrounding counties. She is also a board member of Crossroads Campus, a nonprofit that transforms lives by creating opportunities for individuals facing poverty and homelessness to care for homeless dogs and cats. Harris has recorded 32 studio albums since her debut on tiny Jubilee Records in 1970, received Billboard's Century Award in 1999, was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2008, and received a Lifetime Achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2018. She has aalso massed 13 Grammy Awards, including album of the year for her featured role on the O Brother, Where Art Thou soundtrack, and won three CMA Awards, again including album of the year for that Billboard Hot 200-topping soundtrack.- Billboard, 9/30/24...... Following news the death of Kris Kristofferson at the age of 88 on Sept. 28, tributes have poured in from some of the biggest names in the music industry, honoring the legendary songwriter and actor whose influence spanned decades. Barbra Streisand, who co-starred with Kristofferson in the 1976 version of A Star Is Born, spoke of the qualities that made Kristofferson not just a talented performer, but also a deeply respected figure in both music and film. "The first time I saw Kris performing at the Troubadour club in L.A., I knew he was something special," Streisand wrote on Instagram. "Barefoot and strumming his guitar, he seemed like the perfect choice for a script I was developing, which eventually became A Star Is Born." In the film, the duo performed "Evergreen," the love theme that Streisand herself had composed for the movie. The song (with lyrics by Paul Williams) went on to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song, becoming a hallmark of their collaboration. Streisand fondly recalled the magic of their musical partnership: "In the movie, Kris and I sang the song I'd written for the film's main love theme, 'Evergreen.'" Meanwhile Dolly Parton, who also shared a close friendship with Kristofferson, posted "What a great writer. What a great actor. What a great friend. I will always love you." in an Instagram post. Kristofferson and Parton performed duets such as "From Here to the Moon and Back" and "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" over the years. Other country artists posting tributes to Kristofferson include Reba McEntire, Travis Tritt, Eric Church, Roseanne Cash and rock & roller Sammy Hagar, who shared a photo on Facebook of the two fishing together. "heynow old friend. I hope the fishin's good where you're going," Hagar wrote. "we're all gonna miss you. RIP" - Billboard, 9/30/24...... On Sept. 30 Neil Young shared details of a limited edition of his classic 1974 album On the Beach to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Set to arrive on Nov. 8 via Reprise, the new version will come exclusively on a limited edition clear vinyl. It'll be available via the Neil Young Archives, as well as standard music retailers. On The Beach came as the follow-up to Young's chart-topping Harvest album, which was shared two years earlier, and it marked the second entry in his "Ditch Trilogy." It featured collaborations from The Band's Rick Danko and Levon Helm, Crazy Horse's Billy Talbot and Ralph Molina and his longtime CSNY collaborators Graham Nash and David Crosby. "This was Young at his most adventurous, and pointed to several new musical directions for him, yet to be defined," reads a press release, recalling how 'On The Beach' saw the singer-songwriter hit a new milestone in his career. - NME, 9/30/24...... On Sept. 30 Billy Joel announced new UK live shows for next year which will mark his only European tour dates for 2025. The first will be take place at Edinburgh's Scottish Gas Murrayfield on June 7, marking his first time playing in the city for 46 years. The second is scheduled for June 21, when Joel will head to Liverpool's Anfield Stadium to perform his first gig in the city for 45 years. The two exclusive UK shows come just days after the Piano Man took to social media to announce a string of new tour dates across America. Kicking off at the start of the New Year, the run of shows begins with an opening gig in Florida on Jan. 17, and is followed by shows in Indiana, Michigan, New York, North Carolina and many more across the first half of 2025. - NME, 9/30/24...... Lynyrd Skynyrd frontman Johnny Van Zant revealed on Sept. 26 that his daughter has been diagnosed with "brain mass" and that four forthcoming Skynyrd shows would not be going ahead as Johnny, 63, would be leaving the tour to be with his daughter following an "emergency illness." Van Zant says his youngest daughter Taylor has been diagnosed with brain mass, an abnormality often associated with a tumour. Johnny said that doctors do not believe the mass is cancerous, but tests are ongoing, he added: "We are not out of the woods yet, but we are in a lot better position than we thought we were in in the beginning." The musician also revealed that his longtime tour bus driver, Brad Gibson, is currently in intensive care following a freak accident on a scooter. Johnny took over frontman and songwriting duties from his late brother, Lynyrd Skynyrd founder, Ronnie Van Zant, when the band was revived in 1987. The elder Van Zant was killed along with two other group members Steve Gaines, and his sister Cassie Gaines, in a plane crash in 1977. - Music-News.com, 9/30/24...... The English post-punk band Gang Of Four have announced their 2025 US farewell tour set to kick off next early next spring. They will be performing their classic 1979 debut album Entertainment! in its entirety as well as a handful of fan favourites and deep cuts from their discography. The tour will commence on Apr. 20 2025 at the Crystal Ballroom in Somerville, Massachusetts. From there, the group will make stops in cities such as Montreal, Toronto, New York, Chicago, Witchita, Seattle, San Francisco and more before wrapping on May 29 2025 at the Music Box in San Diego, Calif. All the farewell tour dates can be viewed in their Instagram post. Elsewhere, Gang Of Four will be releasing a remastered edition of their third album, 1982's Songs of the Free on vinyl. The pressing is set for release on October 25 via Matador Records. - NME, 10/2/24...... Prince's "Purple Rain" house has been listed on the popular rental site Airbnb.com. The singer's former bandmates will allow paying guests to stay at the Minnesota property for the first time, with only 25 one-night stays available. Newly restored, the property features extravagant interiors boasting velvet wallpaper, mirrored ceilings and even a golden toilet, with Prince's former Revolution bandmates Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman explaining they wanted to pay tribute to his 1984 movie, Purple Rain. "Purple Rain is the greatest movie of all time. This is not opinion, this is fact," the women wrote in the property's Airbnb listing. "Now, 40 years after the movie's release, we're bringing it back to life. Not only did we lock down The Kid's unforgettable childhood home, but we also restored the interior to a new level of glory. The whole place is a tribute-nay, a shrine-to both the movie itself and the moment in time that launched Prince into the stratosphere." One night at the Purple Rain house will cost guests just $7 (£5.24). Visitors will also have the opportunity to discover a "secret door" to a hidden "room filled with treasures" in the house, as well as see some of Prince's most famous stage costumes. Prince died in 2016 from a self-administered Fentanyl overdose, with his death ruled an accident by the medical examiner. - Music-News.com, 9/27/24...... Baseball great Pete Rose died of natural causes which stemmed from hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease on Sept. 30 at his home in Las Vegas. He was 83. Diabetes also was cited as a contributing factor, according to the findings of the Clark County coroner. Mr. Rose was one of the most controversial figures in baseball for decades. The 17-time all-star holds the major league record for hits with 4,256. He also earned two Gold Gloves and won three World Series championships during his 24-year career, spent mostly with the Cincinnati Reds. However, he was banned from the sport in 1989 for betting on baseball, which made him ineligible for enshrinement in the Baseball Hall of Fame. While he spent years denying the allegations, Rose ultimately owned up to his mistake in 2004, but insisted that he had never bet against his own team. Major League Baseball released a tribute to Rose following his death, but did not mention his ban. "Major League Baseball extends its deepest condolences to Pete Rose's family, his friends across the game, and the fans of his hometown of Cincinnati, Philadelphia and beyond who admired his greatness, grit and determination on the field of play. May he rest in peace," the league said in the statement. Mr. Rose was reportedly in good spirits the day before his death, spending Sunday with fellow members of the Reds' World Series teams from 1975 and 1976. A photo from the Facebook page of the Music City Sports Collectables and Autograph Show showed Rose in a wheelchair along with former teammates Dave Concepcion, George Foster, Tony Perez and Ken Griffey Sr. - Canoe.com, 10/2/24...... It was revealed on Oct. 1 that John Amos, the Emmy-nominated actor who starred as the stoic father on the Norman Lear-developed '70s sitcom Good Times, died Aug. 21 in Los Angeles of natural causes, his son, K.C. Amos, announced. He was 84. "He was a man with the kindest heart and a heart of gold and he was loved the world over. Many fans consider him their TV father," K.C. said in a statement. "He lived a good life. His legacy will live on in his outstanding works in television and film as an actor." Mr. Amos played football at Colorado State University and had training camp tryouts with the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League, before seeing his showbiz career take off after he landed a gig to play WJN-TV weatherman Gordy Howard on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. The New Jersey native received his Emmy nom for portraying Toby, the older version of Kunta Kinte, on the acclaimed 1977 ABC miniseries Roots, and he had a recurring role as Admiral Percy Fitzwallace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, on NBC's The West Wing. After showing up a dozen times as the good-natured Gordy on the first four seasons of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, the barrel-chested Amos was invited to read for the part of James Evans Sr., the husband of Esther Rolle's Florida Evans and father of their three kids, on a new CBS series, Good Times. The 1974-79 show, created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by Norman Lear, was set in an inner-city Chicago apartment located in the projects. It was the first sitcom to center on an African-American family. Amos starred on the show for three seasons, but he soon disapproved of the silly, stereotypical storylines that surrounded their oldest son on the series, J.J. -- played by the comic Jimmie Walker -- and he went public with his criticism, which led to his firing from the landmark sitcom for objecting to stereotypes and admittedly letting his temper get the best of him. "I wasn't the most diplomatic guy in those days, and [the show's producers] got tired of having their lives threatened over jokes," he said in an interview. "So they said, 'Tell you what, why don't we kill him off? We can get on with our lives!' That taught me a lesson -- I wasn't as important as I thought I was to the show or to Norman Lear's plans." Mr. Amos also had a career on the big screen, beginning with Melvin Van Peebles' blaxploitation classic Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (1971), and he played the manager of a McDonald's-like restaurant who hires an African prince (Eddie Murphy) and his right-hand man (Arsenio Hall) in Coming to America (1988). John Alan Amos Jr. was born on Dec. 27, 1939, in Newark, N.J. His father drove a tractor-trailer and worked as a mechanic, and his mother, Annabelle, was a housekeeper who eventually went back to school and became a nutritionist. At East Orange High School, Mr. Amos drew cartoons and wrote columns for the school newspaper, played a convict in a production of "The Man Who Came to Dinner" and was a star running back. - The Hollywood Reporter, 10/1/24.

Singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson, who wrote such country-rock standards as "Me and Bobby McGee," "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down" and "Help Me Make It Through the Night" and later became an A-list Hollywood actor, died at his home in Maui, Hawaii on Sept. 28. He was 88. With his long hair, bell-bottomed slacks and counterculture songs influenced by Bob Dylan, he represented a new breed of country songwriters, along with such peers as Willie Nelson, John Prine and Tom T. Hall. "Kris brought it kind of from the dark ages up to the present-day time, made it acceptable and brought great lyrics -- I mean, the best possible lyrics," Nelson told 60 Minutes in a 1999 segment about Mr. Kristofferson. "Simple but profound." Born in Brownsville, Tex., on June 22, 1936, Mr. Kristofferson received a Ph.D. from Pomona College where he played football and became a Golden Gloves boxer. He received a master's degree in English from Merton College at the University of Oxford in England, and after becoming a U.S. Army pilot, turned down an appointment to teach English at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point to pursue songwriting in Nashville after a meeting with Johnny Cash. Hoping to break into the industry, he moved to Nashville in 1965 worked as a part-time night janitor at Columbia Records' Music Row studio in 1966, at the same time Bob Dylan was recording tracks for his seminal Blonde on Blonde album. His break came in 1969, when Cash gave "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down" to Roger Miller who made it a country hit. Mr. Kristofferson appeared on Cash's TV show, and Cash also had a hit with "Sunday Mornin'." Mr. Kristofferson was a singer himself, releasing his debut album Kristofferson in 1970 on the Columbia-distributed label Monument, but many of his songs were best known as performed by others. In March 1971, Janis Joplin recorded a version of "Bobby McGee," which went to No. 1 on the pop charts. Joplin, who had a close relationship with Mr. Kristofferson, changed the lyrics to make "Bobby McGee" a man and cut her version just days before she died in 1970 from a drug overdose. The recording became a posthumous No. 1 hit for Joplin. Around the same time Sammi Smith took his "Help Me Make It Through the Night" to No. 8 on the pop chart and No. 1 on the country chart. His 1971 album The Silver-Tongued Devil and I was a critical success and went gold, however his recording career declined the next year after 1972's Border Lord was panned. Meanwhile, an acting career took off with 1972's Cisco Pike, and two years later he appeared in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, which also co-starred singer Rita Coolidge whom he married in 1973. His other film credits include Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974), The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea (1976), Semi-Tough (1977), Convoy (1978), and a remake of A Star Is Born in 1976 with Barbra Streisand. Mr. Kristofferson kicked a 20-year drinking problem in the late Seventies, and continued to tour and record, though with much less commercial success. He did some co-headlining shows with Coolidge until their divorce in 1980, and appeared in over a dozen films since then including Heaven's Gate (1980), SongWriter (1984) (in which he co-starred with fellow "outlaw" Willie Nelson), Trouble in Mind (1985) and Sodbusters (1994). He also starred in numerous made-for-TV movies and mini-series. Later in his career all of his major country hits were collaborative efforts with Nelson, Cash, and Waylon Jennings, including 1985's "Highwayman" (No. 1, C&W), "Desperadoes Waiting for a Train" (No. 15, C&W) and 1990's "Silver Stallion" (No. 25, C&W). His other earlier solo hits include "Why Me," "Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I'll Ever Do)," "Watch Closely Now," "A Song I'd Like to Sing" and "Jesus Was a Capricorn." Mr. Kristofferson retired from performing and recording in 2021, making only occasional guest appearances on stage. - The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll/CBS News, 9/30/24.