Raquel Welch, the almond-eyed sex symbol who turned a doeskin bikini into one of the most iconic cinematic images of the 1960s, died on Feb. 15 at her home in Los Angeles after a brief illness, according to her family. She was 82. Ms. Welch's strikingly photogenic features and voluptuous figure catapulted her to international stardom in her second film after signing with 20th Century Fox in 1965, One Million Years B.C. (1966). Although her biggest line of dialogue in the prehistoric drama was, "Me, Loana... You, Tumak," the film, which was not a hit, made Ms. Welch a star. The advance poster -- with Ms. Welch in the animal-skin two-piece -- became the linchpin of the entire marketing campaign ("Mankind's first bikini," boasted one tagline), and Time magazine once listed her cavewoman costume in its list of "Top Ten Bikinis in Pop Culture." Born Jo Raquel Tejada in Chicago on Sept. 5, 1940, Ms. Welch's dad was a Bolivian aeronautical engineer and her mom a seamstress whose ancestry dated to John Quincy Adams. While in high school, she won first prize in a local beauty contest -- "Miss Photogenic" -- which launched a string of pageant triumphs. She soon was crowned Miss La Jolla, Miss San Diego and finally, Maid of California. She also won a scholarship to San Diego State University, where she studied drama for a time, and against her father's wishes, married her high school sweetheart, James Welch. Soon after, she landed a job as a local TV weather girl, and left the gig soon after giving birth her son, Damon, at age 19. Within a few more years, though, her marriage fell apart, and she took her kids to Los Angeles in 1963 where she arrived in L.A. in 1963 with no car, no connections and $200 in her pocket. Within a year, she was landing roles in Elvis Presley movies (1964's Roustabout) and small parts on TV shows like Bewitched and McHale's Navy. At one point, she nearly was Mary Ann on Gilligan's Island and a "Bond Girl" in Thunderball. Her first film for Fox was Fantastic Voyage, an ensemble sci-fi thriller about a team of doctors shrunken to microscopic size and injected into the body of an ailing scientist. The movie did respectable box office -- and won Oscars for visual effects and art direction -- and Welch's performance was well-received (even if she spent much of the picture paddling through hemoglobin in a tight, white scuba suit). After One Million Years B.C., she starred in a series of international productions and projects for Fox, including Lady In Cement with Frank Sinatra and Bandolero! with James Stewart; in 100 Rifles she and Jim Brown broke taboos with an interracial love scene. 
Myra Breckenridge, a film adaptation of Gore Vidal's scandalous novel about a gay film buff turned acting teacher who fakes his own death, might well have ended her career, but she continued to sharpen her acting chops in the 1970s with such films as Kansas City Bombers, The Three Musketeers, The Last of Sheila, The Wild Party and Mother, Jugs & Speed. She would marry twice more, to French producer Andre Weinfeld (from 1980-90) and to restaurateur Richard Palmer (1999-2003), and perhaps the roughest patch of her career came in 1982 when she was fired from an adaptation of John Steinbeck's Cannery Row when MGM claimed she was showing up late for early morning rehearsals. Ms. Welch ultimately ended up winning about $10 million in damages after she proved the studio was falsely blaming her for cost overruns and delays, but the case soured Hollywood on her, and she found herself blackballed by the film industry. Ms. Welch still found roles in TV movies (Right to Die about a woman with ALS), began a fitness and beauty career (with a video and book in 1984) and flirted with pop music (releasing a 1987 dance single "This Girl's Back in Town"), then returned to the big screen in 1994 in Naked Gun: 33 1/3 in an uncredited role, playing herself. There were a smattering of other appearances -- a don't-blink part in Legally Blonde (2001), a recurring role on PBS' American Family -- and TV guest spots (a 1996 episode of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, a 1997 installment of Seinfeld). In 1997, she also had a stint on Broadway in "Victor/Victoria." Even into her 70s, she continued appearing on talk shows (like Fox's O'Reilly Factor in 2011, when she described herself as "somewhat conservative") and on television (including a 2017 turn on the Canadian sitcom Date My Dad). For the most part, Ms. Welch spent her final years at home in Beverly Hills, living contentedly by herself. "I don't like to have a man," the woman who once described herself as "every male's fantasy" told Piers Morgan in 2015. "Because I'm too set in my ways. I like what I do. I actually enjoy being me, and I make a very good living at it and I'm happy." - The Hollywood Reporter, 2/15/23.
Saying she feels "a passion to extend a hand to those coming after her," Heart co-founder Nancy Wilson has launched a new management company, Roadcase Management. "I believe rock music still has such a meaningful place in the world and I'm ready to go to bat for the new generation of inspired talent," says Wilson, who with her husband, former label exec Geoff Bywater, hold the titles of Roadcase founder/president and CEO. "I want to do this because in today's world new music needs more of a fighting chance to get through to the fans despite the compartmentalized markets," Nancy adds. Roadcase's first client is Portland, Oregon-based female singer/songwriter Madisenxoxo, whose music Wilson says she "fell in love with the first time I heard it." Wilson says she plans to add more acts to Roadcase's roster but is in no rush: "Developing a roster will take time as we intend to stick to quality over quantity and seek only the right artists for the right reasons." - Billboard, 2/14/23...... 
Rod Stewart confirmed on Feb. 13 that he'll play a six-date UK tour at various castles and football stadiums, and is now "impatiently awaiting" the summer to arrive. Sir Rod, 78, says he cannot wait to be "dancing under the stars" in the coming months when he hits the road again to visit the likes of Edinburgh Castle on July 6 and Northampton's Cinch Stadium on June 28. "My favourite memories have been summer nights with a beer or two alongside the best fans in the world," Stewart said in a statement. "I'm impatiently awaiting this summer playing at a variety of special venues -- football, cricket and rugby stadiums, estates and castles! We'll all be dancing under the stars." Kicking off his UK run at Plymouth's Home Park Stadium on June 24, Stewart will also be visiting Durham's Seat Unique Riverside on June 30, Bristol's Badminton Estate, Worcester Park on July 2 and Hull's Sewell Group Craven Park on July 4 in addition to the Northampton and Edinburgh dates. The Edinburgh show will be the first time the rocker has played at the city's historic castle in 13 years (his father was also born in the city). - Music-News.com, 2/13/23...... Almost two weeks after kicking off his first tour with the E Street Band in six years on Feb. 1, Bruce Springsteen was forced to perform without three of his E Street bandmates during his gig in Dallas on Feb. 10 after two of them -- guitarist Steven Van Zandt and violinist/singer Soozie Tyrel -- tested positive for Covid-19, and his wife/singer Patti Scialfa absent from the stage for undisclosed reasons. "We got a few members missing tonight -- Stevie Van Zandt -- COVID, Soozie Tyrell -- COVID, Patti Scialfa... But goddammit, we're gonna give Dallas the best show they've ever seen," the Boss told the crowd at the top of the show before promptly launching into 1980's "Out in the Street" (fan shot footage of the explanation can be viewed on YouTube). For his part, Van Zandt took to Twitter to assure fans he was already on the mend, posting, "Thank you all for your best wishes and positive vibes. I've got a very mild case and hope to be back for Houston or Austin at the latest." Van Zandt soon followed his tweet up with another informing his followers he had received both the Covid-19 vaccine and a booster. "That's why it's a mild case. No real danger or damage," he wrote. Future dates on the tour include Austin, Tex. on Feb. 16, before heading to Kansas City, Tulsa, Portland, Seattle, Denver and more, including an Apr. 14 hometown show in Newark, N.J. before the band jets off to Europe. On Feb. 14, Springsteen added 18 cities to his North American tour in the final four months of the year, including multiple-night stands at Philadelphia's Citizens Bank park, New Jersey's MetLife Stadium, Toronto's Scotiabank Arena and Los Angeles' Kia Forum. Meanwhile, Springsteen and Bryce Dessner of the rising band The National have collaborated on a new song for a new film starring Peter Dinklage, Addicted to Romance. The romantic comedy with Dinklage as a moody classical composer is due to have its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival on Feb. 16. The song, also called "Addicted To Romance," was written and performed by Springsteen and orchestrated by Dessner, who also worked on the film's score. The track was produced by Ron Aniello and Dessner, with backing vocals by Patti Scialfa, Benjamin Lanz on trombone and Kyle Resnick on trumpet. - Billboard/New Musical Express, 2/13/23...... Rolling Stone magazine is reporting that Neil Young will make his long-awaited return to the stage on Apr. 22 when he joins former Crosby, Stills & Nash bandmate Stephen Still at the 2023 Light Up the Blues charity show benefitting Autism Speaks. Set for the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, the show will find Young also sharing the stage with Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real and Still's children, Chris and Oliver Stills. "We'll be there to 'Light up the Blues' with Stephen, [his wife] Kristen and the family... doing or first show in four years with old friends for our autistic people around the world," Young told the magazine. Stills also confirmed the news on Instagram, writing, "Save the date: April 22, 2023. Stills and Young ride again." Among the other musicians scheduled to perform is James Raymond, who will be part of a tribute to his late dad, David Crosby, who died in January at age 81. Stills said the show was originally scheduled for Apr. 2020 -- and then called off due to the Covid-19 pandemic -- before organizers considered a virtual event in 2021 before that idea was mothballed. More acts will be added in the upcoming weeks, with event organizer Kristen Stills promising some "fantastic guests" and "surprise additions," as well as some big-name hosts. - Billboard, 2/13/23...... 
In a new interview with Guitar Player magazine, former Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' member Mike Campbell says he's "still processing" and grieving for his late friend and band leader, who died in 2017 aged 66. Asked if it was "bittersweet" for him to hear the songs on the band's Live at the Fillmore 1997 compilation when he was preparing it for release in 2022, the 73-year-old Campbell responded: "Of course it is, 'cause Tom's gone and that's kind of a hard thing for me to deal with, to sit there and listen to stuff and hear his voice. It touches on some grief that I'm still processing. But I'm a big boy." Campbell, who co-wrote some of the Heartbreakers' biggest hits with Petty including "Refugee," "Here Comes My Girl," "You Got Lucky," and "Runnin' Down a Dream," added however that "I can deal with it." "There's a lot of material and it's important, I think, because some of the young people have maybe never heard the old catalogue, so when they're re-issued there's a chance for that stuff to be re-experienced." Campbell also revealed there are a handful of tracks that have never been released in the band's archive -- but not enough for an album. "There's a few extra tracks here and there. A lot of them have already come out. But, no, there's no mystical album that's sitting on the floor. There's the live stuff, like I mentioned before. Those are the main things that have never been heard," he said. Campbell has previously said he's thankful he had the opportunity to really "connect" with Tom on their final tour together. "In the hospital, lying in the bed, I talked to him a little bit. He couldn't communicate, but maybe he heard me, I don't know. It's hard to put into words but I had an opportunity on the plane a couple of times towards the end of the last tour to connect, to say all the things I really wanted to say to him. We were able to touch base, to identify our bond and our friendship in a very powerful way. I feel fortunate to have had those moments with him, not knowing what was going to unfold." - Music-News.com, 2/12/23...... Speaking to the London Sunday Times, former Sex Pistols frontman John Lydon has opened up about caring for Nora, his wife of 44-years since she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease five years ago. In January, the Public Image Ltd singer revealed that he would be vying to represent Ireland with his band at the 2023 Eurovision song contest with new song "Hawaii," which has been shared on YouTube. Previously describing the song as a "love letter" to Nora, the singer, who was born in London to Irish parents, has since lost out on his Eurovision bid to the Dublin four-piece group Wild Youth. In 2020, the 67-year-old rock star said he threw out a planned album with the band in order to care for Nora. Now, he's opened up about the emotional toll of his wife's diagnosis. "All the things I thought were the ultimate agony seem preposterous now," he says. "It's shaped me into what I am. I don't think I'll ever get over it. I don't see how I can live without her. I wouldn't want to. There's no point." He did, however, say that the challenging journey has been "worth every moment," adding "no joy comes without pain and, boy, do I know that now." "You make your commitment to a person and nothing changes. These are the cards life dealt, and my mum and dad were right: never show self-pity. Ever," he said. Lydon added he did not regret entering the competition because it helped raise awareness for Alzheimer's disease. "We had responses from victims who said they were close to suicide but for this song," he said. The singer also expressed that the couple had hoped for "adventurous" later years, but that it was "not going to plan." "I break into tears thinking about it," he added. Ever the iconoclast, Lydon previously said that he finds Eurovision to be "disgusting" and "dreadfully phoney," despite his hopes around that time to represent Ireland. Also in the interview, Lydon insisted that there are "no cultural heroes" in music today. "Just fraudulent political theorists!," he said. - NME, 2/13/23...... 
Elvis Costello kicked off his 10-night series at New York's Gramercy Theatre on Feb. 9 by paying tribute to his friend and collaborater Burt Bacharach a day after the beloved pop composer passed away at 94 due to natural causes. "It's been a tough day," Costello told the sold-out crowd about the loss of his musical compatriot before covering three of Bacharach's most beloved hits. "You know, a really great man left us yesterday," Costello said. "And people say, when somebody reaches a great age, they say, 'well, it was a good ending,'... it's never time to say goodbye to somebody if you love 'em. And I'm not ashamed to say I did love this man. And for everything he gave me, Mr. Burt Bacharach." Costello then went on to perform a gentle, acoustic cover "Baby It's You" -- which he said he learned after hearing the Beatles' 1963 cover -- as well as one of Bacharach and lyricist Hal David's indelible collaborations with Dionne Warwick, "Anyone Who Had a Heart" and a tender, solo piano take on the 1961 The Drifters song "Please Stay." Video of the performances has been uploaded to YouTube. A four-CD box set of Costello and Bacharach's recorded works, The Songs of Bacharach and Costello, is due out on March 3. - Billboard, 2/10/23...... In other "Elvis" news, the late King of Rock and Roll Elvis Presley's 1962 Lockheed 1329 Jetstar private jet has sold for a whopping $260,000 after going under the hammer on what would have been Presley's 88th birthday. The jet has been sitting on the tarmac at the Roswell International Air Center in New Mexico for the past four decades, but now it has a new home after being auctioned at the Mecum Kissimmee Collector Car Auction in Florida, with Elvis's late ex-wife Priscilla Presley in attendance. Priscilla said the King -- who died from a heart attack in August 1977 aged 42 -- got a great deal of "joy" from his car and planes collection. Elvis bought the aircraft in 1976 for the mega-sum of $840,000, and it was used to transport his infamous manager Colonel Tom Parker, his band, crew and their gear to his gigs. While the outside is in desperate need of repairs, the inside has the original 1960s red velvet seats, wood panels, gold finishing, plus a retro entertainment system. The cooking area also includes a Kenmore microwave. A businessman called Jim Gagliardi was the last known owner of the jet after he bought it for $430,000 in 2017. - Bang Showbiz, 2/14/23.
Burt Bacharach, one of the most accomplished pop music composers of the 20th century, died on Feb. 8 at home in Los Angeles of natural causes, his publicist Tina Brausam said the following day. He was 94. The musical maestro behind 52 top 40 hits including 
He collaborated with Elvis Costello on a version of "I'll Never Fall in Love Again" on the soundtrack to the 1999 Powers sequel, The Spy Who Shagged Me (also appearing in the film) and, in 2002, he was featured in the credit roll of the third Powers film, which also had a remake of "Alfie" as "Austin," sung by the Bangles' Susanna Hoffs. Born Burt Freeman Bacharach in Kansas City, Mo. on May 12, 1928, Mr. Bacharach attended Montreal's McGill University, where he earned a B.A. in music in 1948. He was drafted into the Army during the Korean War and was shipped off to Germany, where he met singer Vic Damone and toured the First Army area as a"concert pianist. After the service, he moved to New York and played in clubs. He met Hal David while both were working in the legendary songwriting mecca the Brill Building. He published his autobiography, Anyone Who Had a Heart, in 2013. Far from retiring in his advanced age, the eight-time Grammy winner performed at the 2015 Glastonbury Festival in the UK, played with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra in March 2016 and was slated to perform for an intimate audience at the June 2016 Caudwell Children Butterfly Ball fundraiser in London. His 2016 tour schedule included a variety of other high-profile gigs, including stops at Vienna's Jazz Fest Wien, the Monte Carlo Sporting Summer Festival, Copenhagen Jazz Festival and the Curacao North Sea Jazz Festival in the Dutch Antilles in September. He is survived by his adopted son, Christopher, as well as two children with his fourth wife, Jane Hansen, Oliver and daughter Raleigh. Reacting to his death Dionne Warwick said Mr. Bacharach's passing was like losing family to her: "...we laughed a lot and had our run ins, but always found a way to let each other know our family, like roots, were the most important part of our relationship. My heartfelt condolences go out to his family, letting them know he is now peacefully resting and I too will miss him." Also paying tribute to the musician were Beach Boys co-founder Brian Wilson ("a hero of mine and very influential on my work") and Mr. Bacharach's wife from 1982-91 and fellow songwriter, Carole Bayer Sager ("A great man, a great composer, In the end a loving friend"). - Billboard, 2/9/23.
Bonnie Raitt scored a surprise Song of the Year Grammy win at the 65th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Feb. 5. Few Grammy watchers expected Raitt to take home the award -- perhaps least of all Raitt herself, as judged by her heavily memed surprised reaction to the announcement -- for the devastating, self-penned title track to her 2022 album Just Like That. "Just Like That" was easily the least commercially visible of the 10 tracks nominated, the other nine of which were all top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. (Raitt has not reached the Hot 100 since 1995.) Boosted by curious listeners, the song absolutely blasted off on streaming services following its victory, spiking from just over 10,000 daily official on-demand U.S. streams two days before the Grammys (Feb. 3) to a whopping 697,000 the Monday after (Feb. 6), according to Luminate. And it isn't the first time a big Grammy moment has given Raitt a major sales boost: after her mid-career breakthrough set Nick of Time took home album of the year at the 1990 awards, it took off on the Billboard Hot 200 album chart -- eventually topping the survey for three weeks that Apr. 1990, and starting a commercial renaissance for the veteran blues-rocker that lasted through the first half of the 1990s. Meanwhile, Raitt, Mick Fleetwood and Sheryl Crow paid tribute to late Fleetwood Mac member Christine McVie during the Grammys with a stunning performance of the McVie-penned Fleetwood Mac tune "Songbird." "Songbird" was one of three performances included during the In Memoriam section at the 2023 Grammys. Though never released as a single, "Songbird" is still one of McVie's best-known compositions for its inclusion on the classic Grammy-winning 1977 Rumours album. Mick Fleetwood recently told the Los Angeles Times that he still plans to perform with his band, but "not as Fleetwood Mac" after "the loss of Chris." "I'd say we're done, but then we've all said that before. It's sort of unthinkable right now," he said. - Billboard, 2/8/23...... In other Grammys news, Ozzy Osbourne reacted to winning two 2023 Grammy awards -- for Best Rock Album ("Patient Number 9') and Best Metal Performance ("Degradation Rules" feat. Tony Iommi) -- during the Grammys on Feb. 5 in the exact way you'd expect from heavy metal's legendarily salty king of darkness. "I'm one lucky m-----f-----," Ozzy was quoted on Loudwire's 
Also during the Grammys, Stevie Wonder paid tribute to Motown Records icons Smokey Robinson and Berry Gordy with a rollicking, Motown-inspired medley. Kicking it off with The Temptations' "The Way You Do the Things You Do," Wonder grooved his way through a slick performance of the classic track while backed up by a full four-man ensemble singing backing vocals. The legend then decided that the best way to pay tribute to Robinson was to let him get on stage and sing it himself. Performing his iconic single "Tears of a Clown," Robinson got the crowd to its feet as he duetted alongside Wonder to his soulful hit. To close out his tour of Motown, Wonder invited country superstar Chris Stapleton to the stage for a duet to Wonder's own funk-driven 1972 anthem "Higher Ground." The day before the Grammys, Heart's Ann and Nancy Wilson were honored with the Recording Academy's Special Merit Award at the Wilshire Ebell Theater on Feb. 4. Nancy Wilson, who received a lifetime achievement award along with her absent sister Ann Wilson, recalled that when they formed Heart in 1974, they wanted to be The Beatles. "Not to be married to them, or to be the girlfriend of one of them, but to be The Beatles." - Billboard, 2/5/23...... ABKCO Films launched the new Rolling Stones mini-documentary series The Rolling Stones Chronicles on Feb. 9. Co-produced by BBC Motion Gallery and ABKCO, the series consists of six documentary shorts, each featuring a different '60s-era hit song by the Stones as its soundtrack. The music is combined with thematically relevant interview clips from the band and contemporaneous historical figures, interspersed with historical documentary footage of related world events. Each episode will be released one week apart, every Thursday between Feb. 9 and Mar. 16, starting with Episode 1 - The Last Time. That episode, which explains the influence of early rock and roll and Chicago blues on the band, has been shared on 
The running bitter feud between former Pink Floyd bandmates Roger Waters and David Gilmour has been reignited after Gilmour's wife, songwriter Polly Samson, issued a scathing rebuke of the former Floyd bassist-lyricist-singer in a tweet accusing him of antisemitism and misogyny, among other things. "Sadly @rogerwaters you are antisemitic to your rotten core," Samson 
Peter Gabriel has released new song "The Court (Dark-Side Mix)" to coincide with February 2023's full moon. According to a press release, the track was written and produced by Gabriel, and features contributions from Brian Eno as well as backing vocals from his daughter, Melanie Gabriel. "I had this idea for 'the court will rise' chorus, so it became a free-form, impressionistic lyric that connected to justice, but there's a sense of urgency there," said the former Genesis singer about the track. "The Court (Dark-Side Mix)" is the second single to be taken from Gabriel's upcoming album i/o. "The Court (Dark-Side Mix)" can be heard on 
Seventies glam-rocker Gary Glitter was freed from a UK prison on Feb. 3 after serving half of a 16-year prison sentence for sexually abusing three young girls in the 1970s. Glitter, now 79 and whose real name is Paul Gadd, was freed from a prison in Dorset, in southwest England. It is common for offenders in the U.K. to be freed halfway through their sentences and then be placed on probation. "Sex offenders like Paul Gadd are closely monitored by the police and Probation Service and face some of the strictest license conditions, including being fitted with a GPS tag," the U.K. Ministry of Justice said in a statement. "If the offender breaches these conditions at any point, they can go back behind bars." Glitter was found guilty of one count of attempted rape, four counts of indecent assault and one count of sexual intercourse with a girl under the age of 13, and arrested in Oct. 2012 under Operation Yewtree, the national investigation launched in the wake of the child abuse scandal surrounding the late BBC entertainer Jimmy Savile. At the time of sentencing in 2015, Judge Alistair McCreath said he could find "no real evidence that" Gadd had atoned for his crimes and described Gadd's abuse of a girl under 10 as "appalling." "It is difficult to overstate the depravity of this dreadful behaviour," McCreath said. Glitter is best known for the hit "Rock & Roll (Part 2)," released in 1972, and had three U.K. number ones, including I'm the Leader of the Gang (I Am!)." His fall from grace occurred decades later, after he admitted possessing thousands of images that showed child sex abuse and was jailed for four months in 1999. After being freed he went abroad, and in 2002 was expelled from Cambodia amid reports of sex crime allegations. In Mar. 2006 he was convicted of sexually abusing two young girls in neighbouring Vietnam and spent two-and-a-half years in jail. - Billboard, 2/4/23...... Motown Records icons Smokey Robinson and Berry Gordy were honored as MusiCares Persons of the Year during the 32nd annual MusiCares benefit gala at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Feb. 03. Standing ovations for dynamic performances from a lineup of current/past Grammy nominees that included Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, John Legend, Dionne Warwick, Sheryl Crow, Chloe x Halle and Jimmie Allen, among others, were plentiful. Early on The Temptations took over the stage with their signature dance routines and a rousing medley of several classics: "The Way You Do the Things You Do," "Ain't Too Proud to Beg," "I Can't Get Next to You" and "My Girl." Their performance drew the first of the evening's multiple standing ovations from a star-studded audience that included Elton John, Rep. Nancy Pelosi and her husband Paul, Tom Hanks, Gayle King, Nile Rodgers and Richie Sambora, among others. Also lighting up the stage were performances by former Motown acts The Four Tops ("Baby I Need Your Loving," "It's the Same Old Song," "Reach Out [I'll Be There]," "I Can't Help Myself [Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch]"), The Isley Brothers ("This Old Heart of Mine"), Richie and Wonder. Before segueing into fan fave "Easy," Richie noted, "I don't know which means more... To be part of the Motown family or having Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson as my very dear friends." Wonder soloed on an early Miracles song co-produced by Robinson and Gordy, "I'll Try Something New." Then he teamed with the band for a reggae-vibed take on a hit song he co-wrote with Robinson, "The Tears of a Clown." The most emotional moment arrived when Robinson walked onstage to pay tribute to his longtime mentor and best friend Gordy. "He took me under his wing ... I love you man; you are so precious," Robinson ended his speech. The spry, 93-old Gordy -- who could be seen dancing to "Get Ready" as all the performers returned for the finale, said simply, "I'm happy to be here with my best friend." As the charity arm of The Recording Academy, MusiCares' annual benefit gala salutes musicians for their artistic achievements in music and dedication to philanthropy. Proceeds from the gala, which included a silent auction of various music memorabilia and other items, will provide essential support for MusicCares as it provides music professionals with health and human services across a spectrum of needs. In related news, Stevie Wonder is set to perform at the 2023 Grammys on Feb. 5 in a spot that will feature two other famous artists -- Smokey Robinson and in a spot that will feature two other famous artists -- Smokey Robinson and Chris Stapleton. The 65th Annual Grammy Awards will air live from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles and will be hosted for the third year in a row by Emmy-winning comedian Trevor Noah. The show will be broadcast live on Feb. 5, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS, and will be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+. - Billboard, 2/4/23...... 
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band kicked off their first tour in six years with a marathon 28-song set in Tampa, Fla. on Feb. 1. Opening with "No Surrender," The Boss and his band ran through some of their greatest hits alongside newer material from their 2020 album Letter To You over the course of almost three hours. The set included a seven-song encore where they wheeled out tracks including "Born To Run," "Rosalita," "Dancing In The Dark" and "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" before Springsteen gave an acoustic solo performance of "I'll See You In My Dreams." Fan shot footage of the gig has been shared on 
Streams and sales of Linda Ronstadt's "Long, Long Time" have skyrocketed after the heartbreaking 1970 ballad was featured multiple times in the acclaimed third episode of the HBO series Last of Us. "Long, Long Time", which served as the singer's breakout solo hit on the Billboard Hot 100 when it reached No. 25 in Oct. 1970, is showcased multiple times in the episode (also titled "Long, Long Time"). It appears first in renditions by actors Murray Bartlett and Nick Offerman, when they find the sheet music with an old piano owned by Offerman's character, then as Ronstadt's original version at the end of the episode, when the show's main characters (played by Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey) find a cassette with the song in a car formerly belonging to Offerman's character. - Billboard, 2/2/23...... In more chart news, music by late folk-rock legend David Crosby have vaulted to the top of Billboard's Americana/Folk Albums survey (dated Feb. 4) among other moves for his catalog. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's