Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted by Administrator on October 27th, 2025

Black Sabbath guitarist Tommi Iommi gave a surprise performance at the end of the press night for the new Black Sabbath ballet stage production in London on Oct. 22. Iommi made the surprise appearance at the end of the Birmingham Royal Ballet's performance of "Black Sabbath - The Ballet" at Sadler's Wells in London. The ballet, which was first announced in 2023, has seen Iommi take a role in the creation of the ballet, working with Birmingham Royal Ballet director Carlos Acosta. The show includes eight of the band's tracks plus new music inspired by them, all performed live by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia. At the end of the event in London, Iommi played his iconic guitar solo to "Paranoid" as part of the evening's closing number, and the performance has been shared on YouTube. Iommi's Queen friend and fellow guitar legend Brian May was in attendance, and later shared his own video clips on Instagram, writing, "Wow! The true Father of Heavy Metal making that beautiful axe sing like a bird tonight at Sadlers Wells. Tony Iommi plus a 40 piece orchestra and a cast of 50 dancers - putting the icing on the cake of a great production of Black Sabbath the Ballet. Proud to call this infinitely modest and generous genius my friend." "Black Sabbath - The Ballet" is currently playing in London before travelling to the Edinburgh Festival Theatre from Oct. 30. - New Musical Express, 10/24/25...... In a new poem shared with RollingStone.com, Joan Baez suggests that a "little green worm" has eaten the part of Pres. Donald Trump's brain "where empathy originates." In the piece titled "Little Green Worm: A Note to the President," the folk icon and longtime social justice advocate slams the president's lack of "empathy," "impulse control" and "basic intelligence," positing that Trump has none of the above due to a "little green worm" entering his brain and eating it all up. "I've been thinking about a little green worm that has worked its way into your anterior insular cortex, the part of the brain where empathy originates," Baez wrote. "The little green worm quickly devoured yours. He then munched onward until he came to the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in impulse control and regulating social behavior. It's meant to stop us from blurting out vulgarities such as 'Grab her by the p---y' and 'S-thole countries' or accusing all Mexican immigrants of being criminals, rapists and drug dealers," the poem continued. The piece closes with Baez illustrating how the little green worm eventually moves on to the part of Trump's brain that should be "responsible for thought," only to find that he doesn't have one. "Oh s--t: there's nothing there," the musician concludes. Baez explained to Rolling Stone that turning to poetry instead of songwriting has helped her process the overwhelming nature of today's political landscape. "When I'm present and looking out at my own yard and the trees and all of that, it's still as beautiful as it ever was," she told the publication. "And then there are times of great sorrow and times of frustration, like everybody. And I found that the poetry helps -- just doing it and getting it down on paper or on computer to keep my head above water." - Billboard, 10/24/25...... In related news, Bruce Springsteen is continuing to speak out against Pres. Trump, offering up a "prayer" for "no kings" amid the ongoing protests against the politician. At the American Film Institute Opening Night Gala on Oct. 22 -- where Springsteen was in attendance to support new biopic Deliver Me From Nowhere -- The Boss performed his song "Land of Hopes and Dreams." Before diving into the track, however, he called it a "prayer for America, our community and no kings." "Outside, all hell is breaking loose in the United States," Springsteen said. "For 250 years around the world, despite all the faults that we've had, the United States has served as a beacon of democracy and hope and freedom." Despite how "terribly damaged" he thinks the country is, though, the Jersey rocker also noted that the nation's "ideals remain worth fighting for." In September, Springsteen told Time magazine that he intends on continuing to call out the faults he sees in the Trump administration. "I'm going to stay true to who I've tried to be. I can't give these guys a free pass," he said. In a June interview with the New York Times, Springsteen called Trump "a moron" and his rise on the political scene "an American tragedy." "I think that it was the combination of the deindustrialization of the country and then the incredible increase in wealth disparity that left so many people behind. It was ripe for a demagogue," he said. Springsteen's American Film Institute performance can be streamed on the AFI Instagram account. Also during the Fest, the musician told Variety that he's already planning a sequel to the Deliver Me From Nowhere film. "I suppose if you can make four Beatles movies, you can make a couple of Bruce Springsteen movies," he said in reference to Sam Mendes' four upcoming biopics of the legendary band members. Deliver Me director Scott Cooper also chimed in: "There's so many chapters in Bruce's life, in all seriousness, that are quite right for cinematic treatment," he noted. "That's something quite honestly that Bruce and I have discussed. I think he really loves this film. He's loved the experience. I think he feels incredibly comfortable with, someone telling a very painful chapter in his life. You'd have to ask him, but I think he's ready for more." - Billboard/NME, 10/23/24...... The Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh will be adding his star power to the "Knockouts" rounds of the NBC amateur talent series The Voice during season 28. Walsh will be a "mega mentor," mentoring contestants on teams for Niall Horan and Reba McEntire, while Zac Brown Band frontman Zac Brown will mentor contestants on teams for Michael Bublé and Snoop Dogg. Brown and Walsh will mentor the remaining contestants as they prepare for the Knockouts round, which begin on Oct. 27. Walsh's five-decade career began with the James Gang in 1969, before he founded the trio Barnstorm and later launched a solo career. In 1975, he joined the Eagles. The Voice airs Mondays at 8:00 p.m. ET on NBC and will stream the following day on Peacock. - Billboard, 10/20/25...... Former KISS guitarist Ace Frehley was laid to rest in an intimate, private ceremony in the Bronx on Oct. 22 attended by family, friends, and his three surviving KISS co-founders: singer/guitarist Paul Stanley, bassist/singer Gene Simmons and original drummer Peter Criss. SiriusXM radio host and Frehley friend Eddie Trunk posted about the event on Instagram, including the program for the memorial service honoring the beloved guitarist who died on Oct. 16 at age 74 featuring a quote from John 14:1-3, 27 which concludes with: "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." In the accompanying note, Trunk wrote, "It has been an emotional couple of days to say the least saying farewell to a rock icon and long time friend. All of the services went as well as they could and were attended by a small group of family and close friends, including the 3 surviving original members of @kissonline." He also noted that there will also be a public event in the future to pay tribute to the musician known as "Spaceman" for his fiery guitar solos and irreverent sense of humor. In another Instagram post, Trunk added that Frehley was buried in a cemetery in the Bronx, where he grew up and close to where his parents are buried, per his request. In addition to the KISS trio, Trunk said some of Frehley's solo bandmates were on hand as well, though no fans attended the "very small, private" memorial or burial. That's why Trunk re-iterated that he's trying to pull together a public fan memorial, something he said Ace would have "loved I think he deserves that." Frehley died on Oct. 16 at his New Jersey home of undisclosed causes, with his spokesperson attributing his passing to a "recent fall at his home." According to TMZ.com, the Morris County, N.J. medical examiner's office is conducting a series of exams to determine the musician's cause of death, including a toxicological screening and external body exam, with results due in several weeks. KISS will be honored at the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors taping on Dec. 7 -- and airing Dec. 23 on CBS -- with Frehley becoming be just the third person to receive the honor posthumously. - Billboard, 10/24/25...... Spinal Tap have announced plans for a "final" concert movie entitled Stone Henge: The Final Finale. The film, which will hit cinemas in 2026, was originally filmed in August this year and sees the definitive rock "mockumentary" boys performing their first and final concert at the historical landmark with the likes of Eric Clapton, Shania Twain and Josh Groban. The famous ancient landmark Stonehenge is an integral part in the original 1984 movie This Is Spinal Tap, where the band perform the song "Stonehenge" around a hilariously small 18-inch model of the historical landmark. The track pops up again in the sequel, this time with the help of Elton John, and a much larger prop. Directed yet again by Rob Reiner, The Final Finale follows the long awaited Spinal Tap 2: The End Continues sequel which was released in September. "I'm told this is it. They're really serious this time," says Kent Sanderson, CEO of the film's distributor, Bleecker Street. "While this is ostensibly the end, how fitting is it that this actual-probable-send-off is shot, historically, at Stonehenge, the mysterious landmark that we now know must have been erected thousands of years ago purely to serve as the setting for the last act of Spinal Tap." A teaser trailer for The Final Finale can be viewed on YouTube. - NME, 10/24/25...... Longtime 10cc drummer Paul Burgess has announced his intention to step down from the band due to the "rigours of touring." Burgess, 75, has sat behind the kit for 10cc for 52 years, and is also known for his tenures with Jethro Tull, Camel, Magna Carta, and The Icicle Works. "Having enjoyed many years with 10cc, I'm sorry to say that for me the rigours of touring have become incommensurate with age, and it's time to put excessive hours spent waiting in airports and sitting on tour buses behind me," Burgess said. "I have no intention of retiring and will continue to play, but at a more agreeable pace, working with past associates and a new band of like-minded musicians, The Guilty Men." 10cc frontman Graham Gouldman admitted it will be "strange" being onstage without his "longest-running musical associate." "When Paul and I started working together in 10cc, we never imagined in our wildest dreams that we would still be doing it even 30 years later, let alone 52," Gouldman said. Burgess' replacement will be Ben Stone, who has drummed for the likes of Mike and the Mechanics and Bonnie Tyler. Burgess, who had various stints with 10cc since he joined in 1973, played his last concert with the "I'm Not In Love" hitmakers in Alexandria, Va. in September. 10cc has announced plans to bring their "And Another Bloody Greatest Hits Tour" to the UK in 2026. - Music-News.com, 10/25/25...... Popular '50s/'60s actress June Lockhart, known for her roles in the TV series Lost In Space and Lassie and the film musical Meet Me in St. Louis, died of natural causes on Oct. 23 in Santa Monica, Calif. She was 100 years old. Ms. Lockhart became known for her performances as young Timmy's foster mother, Ruth Martin, on the CBS series Lassie from 1958 to 1964. She took over from Cloris Leachman as the Martin family moved on to the famous collie's farm and became foster parents to both the orphaned Timmy and Lassie. She then starred as Dr. Maureen Robinson on the CBS series Lost in Space from 1965 to 1968, playing a brilliant biochemist and loving mother of three who is marooned in space along with her family. In a 2024 interview, Ms. Lockhart noted that Lost in Space was the favorite of her many projects. "It was so campy," she said, "And I truly enjoyed my relationship with my space family." Over nearly eight decades on screen, Ms. Lockhart went on to appear in dozens of series and movies well into her 80s, with recurring roles on Petticoat Junction, General Hospital, Beverly Hills 90210, and guest appearances on shows from The Beverly Hillbillies to Happy Days to Full House, Roseanne and Gray's Anatomy. The daughter of actors Gene Lockhart and Kathleen Lockhart, Ms. Lockhart was born in New York City in 1925. She made her feature film debut at 13 years old, starring alongside both of her parents in Edwin L. Marin's 1939 A Christmas Carol, where she played Belinda Cratchit. After her breakout role, she appeared in films such as All This, and Heaven Too, Meet Me in St. Louis, The Yearling, and Sergeant York. In the 1950s, she guest-starred in several Western series such as Wagon Train, Cimarron City, Gunsmoke, Have Gun - Will Travel, and Rawhide. She was nominated for two Emmys, including Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Series for her performance in Lassie. She also received two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for motion pictures and one for television. Lockhart was previously the recipient of a Special Tony Award for Outstanding Performance by a Newcomer for her role on Broadway in "For Love or Money" in 1948. Her last role was the voice of "Alpha Control" in a 2021 episode of the Lost in Space remake series and her last on-screen appearance was in the 2016 movie The Remake. A private service has been planned in her honor. - Variety, 10/24/25.