September 2012

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on September 29th, 2012

Andy Williams, the golden voiced singer known for his long string of MOR pop hits from 1956-1972 and his popular TV Christmas specials, dies at age 84 at this home in Branson, Mo., after a yearlong battle with bladder cancer..... Apple Corps. and EMI announce on Sept. 27 that the Beatles' original studio album remasters, which were released on CD and iTunes to much fanfare in 2009 and 2010, will make their debut on stereo vinyl LPs on Nov. 13 as part of an elaborate box set..... Sole surviving Bee Gees member Barry Gibb is featured on the latest album by country music star Ricky Scaggs..... A Los Angeles couple charged with trying to extort millions of dollars from Stevie Wonder plead no contest on Sept. 24 and are released after being sentenced to time-served in jail..... In a recent interview with the London Times, the Who's Pete Townshend says his decision to investigate child pornography was a product of the "white knight syndrome, an attempt to be seen to be the one that's helping."..... Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood is angrily denying claims that he has teamed up with his ex-wife to auction off stacks of Rolling Stones memorabilia..... Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band guitarist Steve Van Zandt launches a campaign to reunite the '60s pop-soul group The Rascals..... A deluxe version of late Ramones mastermind Joey Ramone's final album, "Ya Know?," will be released on Nov. 23..... Neil Young announces his new music streaming service Pono will debut in 2013 and has been designed to combat the compressed audio offered by MP3s..... The director of Led Zeppelin's forthcoming concert film "Celebration Day" apparently squashes hopes that the band will reform, saying there haven't been any conversations about any further Led Zep reunion shows..... Al Jardine of the Beach Boys launches a petition drive for fans to demand a full reunited Beach Boys lineup over bandmate Mike Love's version of the group without the other three members..... Former Sex Pistols member John Lydon slams the reissue campaign surrounding the band's seminal 1977 punk rock album "Never Mind The Bollocks - Here's the Sex Pistols."..... Sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart are awarded their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Sept. 25..... A record for the most number of Top 100 hit songs by a solo artist set by Elvis Presley from 1958 and 2003 is broken by rapper Lil Wayne..... Original Kiss drummer Peter Criss will release his autobiography, "Makeup to Breakup," on Oct. 23..... Actress Bonnie Franklin, best known for her starring role in the '70s sitco "One Day At a Time," is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer..... Actor Herbert Lom, the Czech-born actor best known as Inspector Clouseau's long-suffering boss in the "Pink Panther" movies, dies of natural causes on Sept. 27 at age 95..... Motown producer-singer Frank Wilson passes away on Sept. 27 at age 71 following a lengthy battle with prostate cancer.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on September 23rd, 2012

Electric Light Orchestra mastermind Jeff Lynne, who has kept a low profile for most of the past decade, will be treating ELO fans to a pair new releases in October -- "Long Wave," a covers collection, and "Mr. Blue Sky," a set of re-recordings of several ELO classics..... The three surviving members of Led Zeppelin gather for a press conference to launch their new film "Celebration Day" and dodge questions about future LZ reunions..... John Lennon's widow Yoko Ono awards the three imprisoned members of the Russian punk band Pussy Riot a peace grant established in the name of her late husband in New York on Sept. 21..... Universal Music Group wins approval on Sept. 21 from American and European regulators to buy the famed British music company EMI, including the hugely lucrative Beatles catalog..... The Grateful Dead's Mickey Hart leads a drum circle with hundreds of his fellow drummers at the AARP's national convention in New Orleans on Sept. 22..... A settlement deal between soul songstress Patti LaBelle and a New York woman has falls apart after the woman allegedly talks on TV about the incident..... Rising singer Macy Gray's next project will be a reinterpretation of Stevie Wonder's classic 1972 album "Talking Book."..... Aerosmith announces on Sept. 18 that it will mount a second leg of its "Global Warming" tour beginning Nov. 8 in Oklahoma City, Okla..... A new concert release from the Doors, "Live at the Bowl '68," captures the L.A. band's performance at the legendary Hollywood Bowl on July 5, 1968..... Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band kick off a three-night stand in their home territory, New Jersey's MetLife Stadium, on Sept. 19..... In a new profile in The New York Times, Neil Young reveals that he's given up drugs and alcohol for good after smoking pot and drinking booze for years..... ookmakers in Great Britain are giving Bob Dylan a 10-1 chance to win the prestigious Nobel Prize for Literature this autumn after the rock bard received a wave of bets from his fans..... Former Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive member Randy Bachman is inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame for the second time on Sept. 22, earning his own personal star to go with the one the Guess Who received back in 2001..... The UK paper The Daily Mail is reporting recently deceased Bee Gees' singer Robin Gibb was once investigated by America's FBI for claiming to have hired a hitman to kill his ex-wife..... A rare clip of the Sex Pistols from 1977 performing in Penzance, Cornwall surfaces after 35 years..... The Beach Boys gather at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles on Sept. 18 to celebrate their 50th anniversary with a triple-platinum award presentation for their recent hits compilation, "Sounds of Summer."

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on September 19th, 2012

The Beatles, Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra are among the first nominees for induction into the newly established Pop Hall of Fame, which is scheduled to open next July in a temporary home in Canonsburg, Penn..... A new track from Randy Newman, "I'm Dreaming," is reminiscent of the California singer-songwriter's wickedly biting satirical songs such as "Rednecks" and "Political Science."..... The small Southern town of Walnut Ridge, Ark., is hoping that brush with Beatlemania can get its economy rocking again as it hosts "Beatles at the Ridge," a festival dedicated to the moptops' only stop in Arkansas..... John Lennon is named Rock's Ultimate Icon in a new poll conducted by the British music mag New Musical Express..... Paul McCartney's 1973 James Bond theme "Live and Let Die" is named the Best Bond Theme of All Time in a new survey commissioned by the BBC..... A memorial for late award-winning songwriter Marvin Hamlisch on Sept. 18 at New York's Juilliard School featured performances by some of his most famous collaborators, including Barbra Streisand and Aretha Franklin..... A four-day symposium on the life and music of Bruce Springsteen wrapped on Sept. 16 at Monmouth University in West Long Branch, N.J., located just five miles up the road from Asbury Park, the rocker's favorite stomping grounds along the Jersey Shore..... A 1965 Rolling Stones documentary entitled "Charlie Is My Darling" has been restored and will have its world premiere during the New York Film Festival on Sept. 29..... Rod Stewart will return to cable channel Home Shopping Network on Oct. 26 to promote his first holiday album, "Merry Christmas, Baby," which is due four days later..... Motown legend Smokey Robinson tells Billboard that he's been "learning Spanish for about four or five years" and his next album will be a "combination Spanish-English record."..... A new film about the legendary New York club CBGB has finished shooting, and a release is planned for 2013..... The reunnited Beach Boys will wrap their 50th anniversary tour with a two-night stand in London later in September, then "Beach Boys" will once again consist of Mike Love, Bruce Johnston and their longtime backing band..... Peter Gabriel kicks off his Back To Front tour on Sept. 16 in Quebec City, Canada, and the former Genesis frontman says it may be his last for a while..... James Taylor files a $2 million lawsuit against his former record label, Warner Bros. Records, over outdated royalty rates from the pre-digital era..... Thin Lizzy announces they're preparing to record their first album in nearly 30 years, and their first without original frontman Phil Lynott..... Steely Dan frontman Donald Fagen releases "I'm Not the Same Without You," a song from his forthcoming solo album "Sunken Condos."..... Bob Dylan tells Rolling Stone agazine that he's working on a sequel to his acclaimed 2004 book "Chronicles."..... "Kicking and Dreaming," a new memoir from sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart, hit stores on Sept. 18..... Appearing on a BBC program on Sept. 18, Queen guitarist Brian May once again speaks out in defense of badgers, the striped furry creatures who are currently under threat in England..... AC-DC announce they will be releasing "Live At River Plate," their first live album in 20 years, in November..... Anglo-American supergroup Black Country Communion announce their only concert of 2013, at the UK's Wolverhampton Civic Hall on Jan. 5, 2013..... Lillian Lopez, one of the founding members of the '70s dance group Odyssey, passes away on Sept. 4 from cancer at age 76.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on September 14th, 2012

Stevie Wonder brings the UK's Bestival to a spectacular end on Sept. 9 with a two-hour set packed with his biggest hits..... In a Sept. 13 press release, Led Zeppelin announces their legendary Dec. 10, 2007, reunion concert will premiere in 1,500 theaters worldwide on Oct. 17, with various audio and video configurations available on Nov. 19..... Paul McCartney receives France's highest public distinction for his contribution to music on Sept. 8 during a brief private ceremony presided over by French president Francois Hollande at the presidential palace in Paris..... Cinema Libre Studio announces it will help celebrate the upcoming 50th anniversary of the Beatles' first single, "Love Me Do," by releasing "Beatles Stories," a new documentary featuring fans' heartfelt memories of the band..... Carlos Santana inks a book deal with publisher Little, Brown and Co. for his memoirs, which is due sometime in 2014..... The Who's Pete Townshend will release his autobiography, "Who I Am," on Oct. 11 via HarperCollins..... In a new interview wit Rolling Stone magazine, Bob Dylan angrily responds to charges he plagiarized some of his lyrics, calling critics "wussies and pussies" and saying musical appropriation is "part of the folk tradition."..... After Bruce Springsteen's song "We Take Care Of Our Own" from his latest album "Wrecking Ball" was played at the end of the president's nomination acceptance speech at the convention on Sept. 6, the song surges with a 409% sales gain..... Authorities in Kentucky issue a warrent for ex-Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart stemming from an alleged assault after a recent show by Hart's Mickey Hart Band at Terrapin Hill Farm in Harrodsburg, Ky..... Eric Clapton is auctioning off a valuable piece of abstract art by celebrated German artist Gerhard Richter in London in October..... Concert promoter AEG Live says it is withdrawing a $17.5 million insurance claim in the 2009 death of Michael Jackson amid revelations in leaked emails that show some AEG executives were concerned about his stability ahead of his planned London comeback tour..... A New York judge rejects part of a lawsuit brought by the defunct 1960s band the Velvet Underground against the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts over the use of the iconic banana symbol from their 1967 album "The Velvet Underground And Nico."..... Britain's Omega Auctions announces on Sept. 9 that a bible once belonging to Elvis Presley sold for $94,600 at an auction in England over the previous weekend..... Cheap Trick drummer Bun E. Carlos insists he's still a member of the legendary power pop band despite not being invited to play drums on the band's upcoming recording for the "A Very Special Christmas" series..... Neil Young and Crazy Horse announce their second album of 2012, "Psychedelic Pill," will drop on Oct. 30.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on September 8th, 2012

A new David Bowie exhibit dubbed "David Bowie Is" will open in central London's Victoria and Albert Museum on March 23 of 2013..... The Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp announces on Sept. 6 that it will be setting up a permanent home at the MGM Grand hotel in Las Vegas, Nev..... Bob Dylan's 35th studio LP "Tempest" hits stores in the US on Sept. 11 and a day earlier in the UK..... UK auctioneer Bonhams announces on Sept. 4 that a black leather jacket worn on stage by George Harrison in the early Beatles years will go on sale in London on Dec. 12..... The office of French president Francois Hollande announces on Sept. 3 that Paul McCartney will be decorated with France's Legion of Honour award on Sept. 8..... Early recordings from Ringo Starr's first band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, are rediscovered after more than 50 years..... Tom Petty says he was pleasantly surprised and even "got chills" on Sept. 5 when his song "I Won't Back Down" played as President Barack Obama walked onstage at the Democratic National Convention..... Disgraced '70s pop star Gary Glitter could profit from royalties after his 1972 track "Rock and Roll Part 2" was played on Sept. 5 during the Democratic convention in Charlotte, N.C..... Philomena Lynott, the mother of late Thin Lizzy frontman Philip Lynott, says her son would have objected to the Republican party's use of the band's 1976 hit "The Boys Are Back in Town," which was played as GOP vice presidential candidate Rep. Paul Ryan took the stage during their convention in late August to accept his party's VP nomination..... The unlikely combination of Queen guitarist Brian May, Welsh pop crooner Tom Jones, and British comedian Al Murray take to the stage at London's Savoy hotel on Sept. 3 for a "Freddie For A Day" fundraiser in aid of Mercury Phoenix Trust, an AIDS Charity set up by Queen after the death of frontman Freddie Mercury from the disease in 1991..... The surviving members of Queen are readying a remastered concert film, "Hungarian Rhapsody - Queen Live in Budapest '86," which will be shown in theaters with a new mini-documentary starting Sept. 20..... Mark Abrahamian, a guitarist for the band Starship, dies suddenly of undisclosed causes on Sept. 3 at age 46..... Singer-songwriter-session guitarist Joe South, best known for his late '60s/early '70s hits "Games People Play" and "Walk a Mile in My Shoes," and for penning such hits as "Down in the Boondocks" for other artists, dies of a heart attack on Sept. 5 at age 72 at his home in Buford, Ga.

Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

Posted in Main by Administrator on September 3rd, 2012

On Sept. 2 the Los Angeles Times reveals that executives of concert promoter AEG exchanged emails shortly before Michael Jackson's June 2009 death expressing doubt for the pop superstar's stability, saying he was out of shape and consumed with self-doubt..... Eddie Van Halen undergoes emergency surgery in Los Angeles on Aug. 30 to treat a digestive disorder, forcing Van Halen to postpone its upcoming tour of Japan..... The Rolling Stones announce they will play two 50th anniversary shows this year in Brooklyn, N.Y., in Nov. 2012 at the new Barclay Centre, and two more shows at London's O2 Arena before the end of 2012..... Beatles legend Paul McCartney and Motown founder Berry Gordy, Jr. will be guests of honor at a $10,000-per-person fundraiser on Sept. 18 at Steinway Hall in New York City which will celebrate the restoration of an 1877 Steinway grand piano that once sat in Motown's Studio B..... Stevie Wonder gives a revealing interview to the UK paper The Guardian on Aug. 30 to promote his upcoming headlining slot at the U.K.'s "Bestival."..... David Bowie takes to his Facebook page on Aug. 31 to confirm he is not involved in a retrospective of his costumes at London's Victoria and Albert Museum..... The Anglo-American supergroup Black Country Communion announces it will release its third album, "Afterglow," via Mascot Records on Oct. 29..... Actor Robin Williams of "Mork and Mindy" fame reportedly eyes a return to series TV with a half-hour sitcom from "The Practice" and "Ally McBeal" creator David E. Kelley..... Former "Starsky and Hutch" actor Paul Michael Glaser is fighting a drug charge in Kentucky for what he says is medical marijuana from California..... Legendary lyricist Hal David, the longtime songwriting partner of Burt Bacharach, dies at age 91 on the morning of Sept. 1 at Cedar Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles of complications from a stroke..... Bassist John Stockfish, a longtime member of Gordon Lightfoot's band, passes away of natural causes at age 69.