May 2012

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on May 27th, 2012

A spokesperson for Elton John says the iconic pop superstar is "at home and doing well" after being hospitalized on May 23 in Los Angeles for treatment of a respiratory infection..... Gregg Allman tells several interviewers on his current book tour that he's engaged to his 24-year-old girlfriend, Shannon Williams..... Bob Dylan will be among 13 people presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America's highest civilian honor, during a ceremony presided over by Pres. Barack Obama at the White House in Washington on May 29..... "I Feel Love," the second American Top 10 chart hit by recently deceased disco queen Donna Summer, is one of 23 recordings added to the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. on May 23..... Paul and Linda McCartney's 1971 album "Ram" is reissued on May 21 in a variety of forms and formats, from the 12-track standard edition to a $90 deluxe box set that includes four CDs, a DVD of music videos and new documentary entitled "Ramming."..... A rare photograph showing the Fab Four walking "backwards" across Abbey Road sells for 16,000 pounds after a frenzied bidding session conducted by the Bloomsbury auction house in London on May 22..... Shout Factory! reissues Alice Cooper's ghoulish masterwork "The Strange Case of Alice Cooper" on DVD, meanwhile Alice says he "can't wait to kill this audience" when he performs at this year's Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tenn..... Lionel Richie's new country-flavored album "Tuskegee" becomes the second-biggest album of 2012 (behind Adele's "21") after selling 789,000 copies according to Nielsen SoundScan..... Aerosmith sets an Aug. 28 release date for its new studio album, "Music from Another Dimension."..... Barry Gibb responds to the recent death of his younger brother Robin Gibb with a touching video montage to express his grief..... Michael Jackson's chart-topping 1987 album "Bad" will be re-released by Epic-Legacy as part of a deluxe 3-CD box set that will also include two commemorative booklets and the first ever DVD release of a 1988 concert by Jackson at London's Wembley Stadium..... Bobby Womack will release "The Bravest Man in the Universe," the music legend's first album in 12 years, on June 12 on XL Radio..... The John Lydon-fronted band Public Image Ltd. releases "This is PiL," its first album of new material in 20 years, and Lydon says it took so long because "record company and contract obligations kept me in a state of non-recoupment and I had to outwait them."..... Lou Reed is set to play a one-off London concert at the Royal Festival Hall on Aug. 10 as part of this year's Meltdown Festival..... During a recent interview on the BBC Radio 4, Paul Simon dashes hopes that he and one-time partner Art Garfunkel would ever record an album together again..... Gene Simmons of Kiss offers one lucky US war veteran the chance to join the band as a road crew member on their upcoming coheadlining summer tour with Motley Crue, which gets underway in July.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on May 22nd, 2012

Bee Gees member Robin Gibb, one-third of one of the most successful pop music groups of the rock era, passes away at age 62 in a London hospital on May 20 after a long battle with cancer..... Van Halen announces on its official website on May 17 that they're postponing more than 30 concert dates of their US summer tour..... The producers of a new Beach Boys-inspired musical announce on May 16 that "Surf the Musical," a show that revolves around such BB classics as "I Get Around" and "Wouldn't It Be Nice," will open officially at L.A.'s Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino on July 17..... The album sales of recently deceased disco diva Donna Summer surge n the days following her death on May 17 at age 63, despite nearly half of her studio albums being out of print..... Heart will release "Strange Euphoria," a 3-disc best-of collection that spans their entire career, on June 5..... A reunited Black Sabbath make a triumphant return to Birmingham, England on May 19, the heavy metal icons' first hometown gig in 13 years..... Rod Stewart agrees to appear as a stand-in judge on the British talent show "The X Factor" after regular judge Kelly Rowland announced on Apr. 30 she would be leaving the show permanently due to "scheduling issues" and "global commitments."..... Leonard Cohen will play a second UK outdoor show at the "Day At Hop Farm" two-day event this fall..... "Occupy This Album," a four-CD protest-music compilation inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement and featuring such artists as Tom Morello, Yoko Ono, Third Eye Blind and Jackson Brown, hits stores on May 15..... Now available for the first time on DVD, Diana Ross' "Live in Central Park" is a campy, glittering time capsule that captures the diva at the height of her fabulous powers in the early '80s..... Former "Mork and Mindy" star Robin Williams is the latest victim of an Internet death hoax..... Chuck Brown, known as the "Godfather of Go-Go" for the subgenre of funk music he helped create, dies on May 16 at the Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore, Md., at age 75.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on May 17th, 2012

Donna Summer, one of the most successful recording artists of the 1970s and 1980s whose sultry voice on No. 1 hits like "Bad Girls" and "Hot Stuff" defined the disco era, dies of cancer in Naples, Florida on May 17 at age 63..... The Los Angeles District Attorney's office discloses that they arrested the nephew of Motown legend Stevie Wonder on May 2 on charges of extortion..... Bee Gees star Robin Gibb has reportedly been forced to communicate with doctors and his loved ones by blinking his eyes as he continues to battle cancer..... Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward posts on his official website that he won't be participating in this summer's Black Sabbath reunion gigs with bandmates Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler..... An exhibition of costumes worn by Michael Jackson will embark on a global tour beginning on May 18 in Santiago, Chile..... Former Traffic frontman and '80s solo star Steve Winwood kicks off a summer tour of the US on May 11 in Milwaukee, Wisc..... Jackson Browne and young folk singer Sara Watkins will kick off a month-long acoustic tour of the US on July 14 in Charlotte, N.C..... Mick Jagger will perform with the hot contemporary bands Foo Fighters and Arcade Fire when he hosts the season finale of NBC's "Saturday Night Live" on May 19..... "Ya Know," a new posthumous album by late Ramones mastermind Joey Ramone, will drop on May 21..... A spokesman for the Attica Correctional Facility in western New York announces on May 16 that the killer of John Lennon has been transferred to nearby Wende Correctional Facility in Alden, 20 miles east of Buffalo..... A rare photograph showing the Beatles walking in the opposite direction across Abbey Road outside the London studio where they made their 1969 album is expected to fetch as much as $16,000 when it goes under the hammer at Bloomsbury Auctions in London on May 22..... Ringo Starr tells Rolling Stone that he's lost all the photos he took of his bandmates as the group rose to international superstardom in the 1960s..... A 4-disc deluxe edition box set of Paul and Linda McCartney's 1971 "Ram" album is due May 21..... Barry Manilow's new live album "Live in London" debuts on the Billboard Hot 200 album chart at No. 24, his highest-charting live release since 1977..... Disgraced '70s rocker Gary Glitter could potentially earn thousands of pounds in royalties after the BBC airs a repeat of him performing on the legendary UK show "Top Of The Pops" in 1977..... Neil Young and Crazy Horse release "She'll Be Comin' Around the Mountain," another track and video ahead of their next collaboration "Americana," which hits stores on June 5..... Tom Jones will perform a free concert at London's Hyde Park on July 28 in celebration of the British capital's hosting of the 2012 Olympic Games..... Veteran bass player and songwriter Donald "Duck" Dunn, a former member of Booker T. and the MG's, dies at age 70 in Tokyo, Japan on May 13 as he was in the city participating in a Stax Records tribute tour..... Automotive designer and race car driver Carroll Shelby, the father of the Shelby Cobra sports car and several other legendary "muscle cars," dies on May 10 at Baylor Hospital in Dallas, Tex., at age 89.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on May 12th, 2012

Sammy Hagar says he's considering mounting a "Four Decades of Rock" show this September that will feature sets from his current band the Wabos, his side project Chickenfoot, a set from his '70s band Montrose, and a "Van Hagar" set..... A new Jimi Hendrix biopic from director John Ridley will begin production on location in Ireland later in May..... A biography of late punk rock guitarist Johnny Ramone of the Ramones is released nearly eight years after Ramone died of prostate cancer at age 55..... The assets of the legendary New York punk rock venue CBGB have recently been purchased by new owners who say they're planning a massive city-wide music festival this summer and exploring the possibility of reopening the club at a new location down the street..... Stevie Wonder is tapped as the recipient of the 2012 Billboard Icon Award..... Iggy Pop will self-release his new album of French pop classics after his label, Virgin EMI, declined to release it..... Queen guitarist Brian May says late Queen frontman Freddie Mercury will appear as an "optical illusion" in a special 10th anniversary performance of the band's own musical "We Will Rock You," but not as a hologram..... Eagles member Glenn Frey says he and his Eagles bandmates are prepping a "The History of the Eagle" documentary that will be helmed by Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney..... Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry says his band is "really close" to finishing their 15th studio album..... Former Kinks frontman Ray Davies announces an extensive fall tour of the UK beginning in September..... Aretha Franklin will be inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame on Aug. 14 in Hendersonville, Tenn..... Paul Simon will be honored with the prestigious Polar Music Prize during a ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden on Aug. 28..... "Bruce," a new Bruce Springsteen biography by music critic Peter Ames Carlin, will be released in November via Simon and Shuster..... ZZ Top partners up with US distiller Jeremiah Weed to bring fans a peek of their first new single in nine years in a TV commercial..... Cher fires back at her Twitter followers after getting slammed by some of them for posting deragotary comments about Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney..... The executors of Michael Jackson's estate settle a royalty battle with a former Playboy model who starred as the girlfriend in his iconic 1982 "Thriller" video..... Willie Nelson turns down Rosanne Barr's invitation to be her running mate as the "Roseanne" star seeks the Green Party presiditial nomination..... Just days after an unidentified L.A. masseur filed a sexual battery lawsuit against John Travolta, another man lobs allegations that the "Saturday Night Fever" star sexually harassed him during an ocean cruise three years ago..... Original Village People lead singer Victor Willis wins a court battle with two publishing companies in a lawsuit that has been followed closely by the music industry..... TV sitcom and variety show actor George Lindsey, best known for playing the lovable mechanic Goober Pyle on "The Andy Griffith Show" from 1964 to 1968, dies on May 5 in Nashville, Tenn., after a breif illness at age 83.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on May 7th, 2012

Gene Simmons will be among the mentors of the next Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp in Las Vegas this fall, and the Kiss bassist/singer says he "intends to be a hard taskmaster" and "even insult some people, because in the real world the audience will insult you."..... Soft drink maker Pepsi announces on May 3 that they'll put Michael Jackson's silhouette on one billion of their cola cans as part of a new global pop culture ad campaign..... Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Leonard Cohen announces dates for the North American leg of his world tour behind his latest album, "Old Ideas."..... Lynyrd Skynyrd announces on May 2 that they'll release their next studio album, "Last of a Dying Breed," on Aug. 21..... Gregg Allman will begin a book tour behind his new memoir, "My Cross to Bear," on May 8 in Atlanta after passing heart tests at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla..... Director Martin Scorsese's fascinating George Harrison documentary "Living in the Material World" becomes available on DVD and Blu-ray beginning May 1..... Ringo Starr posts a photo of a rhinocerous on his official website with the simple message, "Save the Rhinos." ..... Bruce Springsteen pays tribute to late the Band member Levon Helm during his May 2 concert in Newark, N.J. with an impromptu cover of the Band's "The Weight."..... Mick Jagger will host the season finale of NBC's "Saturday Night Live" on May 19, marking the Rolling Stones frontman's first time ever hosting the show and his third time as musical guest..... The Who frontman Roger Daltrey confirms rumours that late Who drummer Keith Moon had been mistakenly invited to attend the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics by organizers of the event during a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel's late night ABC talk show..... Former Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plan announces he'll play a one-off gig with his new project, the Sensantional Space Shifters, on July 12 at London's HMV Forum.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on May 2nd, 2012

Elton John's self-titled 1970 album and the Beach Boys' 1970 LP "Sunflower" are among 30 albums booted out of Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" list after the magazine recently overhauled its list, which was first released in 2003..... Bob Dylan is among the 13 recipients who will be honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom award, the highest honor that can bestowed upon a United States civilian..... Beatles legend Ringo Starr and former Eurythmics guitarist Dave Stewart sign on to create a new musical film for Paramount Pictures called "Hole in the Fence."..... New Orleans music icon Dr. John helps close out the first weekend of the New Orleans Jazz Fest on Apr. 29 by jumping on piano during Bruce Springsteen's headlining set for a funky rendition of "Something You Got."..... Neil Young and Crazy Horse debut the video for "Oh Susannah," the first single from their forthcoming album, "Americana."..... Black Sabbath announces an intimate UK show at Birmingham's O2 Academy on May 19 in advance of their headlining gig at the UK's Download Festival the second weekend in June..... The condition of ailing Bee Gees' singer Robin Gibb has reportedly improved considerably and the musician is now sitting up in his bed and talking to his family..... Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band bring their "Wrecking Ball" tour to Los Angeles on Apr. 27, the second night of a two-night stand at the L.A. Sports Arena..... Speaking as part of the Sundance Film Festival in London on Apr. 26, Paul Simon said he has "no regrets" over the controversy he caused by recording his classic 1986 album "Graceland" in South Africa, effectively breaking the cultural boycott of the country due to its racist Apartheid regime..... A South African songwriter named Guys Hobbs is suing Elton John and Bernie Taupin for allegedly stealing his lyrics to a song he wrote in 1982 called "Natasha" and they released as "Nikita" in 1986..... Gene Simmons of Kiss claims during a radio interview that Eddie Van Halen once wanted to join Kiss after the departure of Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley in 1982, but he advised Van Halen against it..... A Los Angeles-based consumer polling firm is commissioned by the Reuters news agency to determine which holograms of dead celebrities fans would most like to see, and R and B great Ray Charles tops the list..... Nancy Wilson of Heart marries music executive Geoff Bywater in California on Apr. 28..... John Fogerty announces a 16-date tour of Canada this fall beginning on Sept. 8 in St. John's..... Veteran Memphis guitarist Charles "Skip" Pitts, a former member of Isaac Hayes' band whose unforgettable wah-wah pedal can be heard on Hayes' 1972 hit "Theme from Shaft," dies on May 1 at age 65 in Memphis after a long struggle with cancer.