Favorite Seventies Artists In The News

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Updated 5/7 @ 9:25 PM EDT

'70s SOUNDBYTES - 5/7: A group of artists in Lithuania is offering to present the US city of Baltimore with a bronze bust of late eccentric rocker Frank Zappa, after already having erected a Zappa bust in the Lithuanian city of Vilnius. Zappa, who was born in Baltimore in 1940, became popular among Lithuania's avant-garde in the aftermath of the country's independence in 1990 from the Soviet Union, and Lithuanian Zappa Fan Club president Saulius Paukstys was in Baltimore on May 7 to pitch the idea to the city's public art commission. A spokesman for Baltimore mayor Sheila Dixon said the mayor had no objection to the bust but would defer to the judgment of the city's public art commission. The bust was created by a respected sculptor named Konstantinas Bogdanas, who cast many portraits of Soviet leaders in the former USSR, and Paukstys says the project has the blessing of Zappa's widow, Gail. Zappa died of prostate cancer in 1993 at age 52. - AP...... Bruce Springsteen was on hand to accept his induction into the inaugural class of the New Jersey Hall of Fame at Newark's Performing Arts Center on May 3. "Rise up, my fellow New Jerseyans. We are all members of a confused but noble race," Springsteen quipped to the audience. Other inductees include Frank Sinatra, baseball great Yogi Berra and novelist Toni Morrison. The NJHOF exists only as a website currently, however funds are being raised to construct an actual museum. - Rolling Stone...... news pic As Rod Stewart prepares to kick off an 18-city North American tour in California in July, the flashy British rocker says his future projects include a movie, an R&B album, and maybe even a set of Country & Western songs. "There is still this R&B album I want to do," says the 63-year-old singer. "There's a Country (and) Western album I'd love to do, although the record company doesn't want it. We are still in the throes of talking about it. I very much doubt whether we will get it done this year." Stewart added he'd like also do a "fifth and final" Great American Songbook album as well as a movie in the vein of the recent well received Martin Scorsese-directed Rolling Stones rock doc Shine a Light, "just for posterity." Stewart also doesn't rule out reuniting his old band the Faces, something Rolling Stones and former Faces guitarist Ron Wood has been keen to do. "I don't think there are enough people out there who love the Faces," said Stewart. "It was a great band, but was not as famous as the Police. But, I'll consider it." In other Stewart-related news, his son Sean Stewart had felony charges of assault against him dropped after a judge threw out the case in court on May 2. Stewart, 27, was accused of punching and throwing bricks at two people in Hollywood last year, after a dispute on a narrow road. The younger Stewart is also facing another lawsuit from a man who says he broke his nose in a Hollywood nightclub in 2006. - Reuters/New Musical Express...... Speaking of the Police, the British New Wave icons say their reunion will come to a conclusion this summer with a final concert in New York, with a date and venue to be announced later. "We kicked off our very first American tour at CBGB's in 1978 and this summer, 30 years later, our journey will come full circle as we play our final show here in New York City," the band said in a statement. The Police have already announced their farewell show in the UK will be in London's Hyde Park on June 29. Since reuniting for a world reunion tour in May 2007, the Police have grossed more than $171 million from 53 shows seen by more than 1.5 million people. Their New York date will be a benefit show for arts programming for the city's public television stations. - Reuters...... Paul McCartney has announced he'll play a free outdoor concert in Kiev, Ukraine on June 14. Sir Paul is expected to draw more than 300,000 people to the city's main Independence Square. Macca will reportedly use the event to officially announce a world tour that is expected to launch later in 2008 and run throughout 2009. Meanwhile, McCartney will give away his current album Memory Almost Full for free in the May 18th edition of the UK's Mail on Sunday newspaper. Released physically last year and sold through the Starbucks-run Hear Music label, Memory Almost Full moved more than 100,000 copies. LiveDaily/AngryApe.com...... Cher opened her 200-show, three-year run at Caesars Palace Colosseum in Las Vegas on May 6 with a rendition of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and in typical gaudy Vegas style: wearing a shimmering silver and gold gown coated by hundreds of feathers that also crowned her head. The 61-year-old diva closed the show with a rousing, 30-chorus rendition of her worldwide smash "Believe" in a white rhinestone-encrusted get-up with a headpiece of strings that fell to the small of her back. Cher's show is already in such high demand that her first four-week run is sold out and additional dates have been added to her next round in August. - USA Today...... Rock troubadour Tom Waits has announced on his official website on May 5 that he'll launch a summer US tour with two nights in Phoenix on June 17 and 18, and also visit El Paso, Tex. (6/20); Houston (6/22); Dallas (6/23); Tulsa, Ok. (6/25); St. Louis (6/26); Columbus, Oh. (6/28); Knoxville, Tenn. (6/29); Jacksonville, Fla. (7/1); Mobile, Ala. (7/2); Birmingham, Ala. (7/3) and Atlanta (7/5). Waits, who last toured in 2006, did not indicate if the tour would be a solo affair or if he would be accompanied by a backing band. Waits also hinted that a European tour could be in the cards. - Billboard...... A third installment of the Hippiefest Tour has been slated to kick off July 11 in Phoenix and wrap Aug. 10 in Pompano Beach, Fla. This year's 22-date Hippiefest will feature such '60 classic rockers as Jack Bruce of Cream, Eric Burdon and the Animals and the Turtles featuring Flo and Eddie. Also appearing on various dates will be Melanie, Janis Ian, Jonathan Edwards, former Hollies member Terry Sylvester and Badfinger featuring Joey Molland. The nostalgic traveling festival was started in 2006 to "re-create the '60s generation," and last year's tour celebrated the 40th anniversary of the 1967 "Summer of Love." - Billboard...... Neil Diamond is on track to score his first ever #1 album with his new CD Home Before Dark, which sold 30,000 during its first week of release. Over the course of his 40+-year career, Diamond has racked up 45 album in the Billboard 200. His last album, 12 Songs, peaked at #4 in late 2005. Meanwhile, Diamond played an intimate free concert on May 7 at The Bitter End in New York's Greenwich Village. Diamond kicks off a 37-city US tour on July 19 in St. Louis and is also set to play this year's Glastonbury Festival in the UK. - Billboard/NME...... Lynyrd Skynyrd is teaming up with Kid Rock for a 9-city North American tour beginning Aug. 8 in Oklahoma City. Billed as the "Rock and Rebels Tour," the pair will also visit Houston (8/9); Cincinatti (8/14); Indianapolis (8/16); Camden, N.J. (8/22); Mansfield, Mass. (8/23); Toronto (8/25); Holmdel, N.J. (8/30) and Hartford, Conn. (8/31). Skynyrd will also play at Kid Rock's Rock and Roll Revival show at Madison Square Garden in New York on May 15, joining Peter Wolf and Rev Run. - Billboard...... Blondie has announced it will mark the 30th anniversary of its classic 1979 set Parallel Lines with a summer tour of the US and Canada, Europe, Russia and Israel. In conjunction with the tour, Capitol/EMI will release an expanded 30th anniversary edition of Parallel Lines on June 24 featuring four bonus tracks and a bonus DVD containing three Blonie music videos and a previously unreleased TV performance from the BBC's Top Of The Pops. Blondie kicks off the 16-city North American leg with a show in Baltimore on June 5, and will also visit such cities as Englewood, N.J. (6/6); Ontario (6/12, 13); Niagara Falls, N.Y. (6/14); Hyannis, Mass. (6/20); New York (6/22), Louisville, Ky. (6/24); Chicago (6/27) and Milwaukee (6/28). - Billboard...... Queen and Paul Rodgers will be among the headliners at the forthcoming charity concert to celebrate the 90th birthday of Nelson Mandela. The show will take place June 27 at London's Hyde Park and also feature Annie Lennox, Simple Minds and Eddy Grant, among others. Proceeds from the three-hour concert will go to the anti-apartheid icon's 46664 initiative to fight HIV/AIDS in Africa. - Billboard...... news pic Neil Young held a press conference on May 6 at the Sun Microsystems headquarters in San Francisco to reiterate his plans to release his entire music archive on the new Blu-ray disc format. Young first revealed his decision to release his music on Blu-ray at this year's Sundance Film Festival in January, when he said, "I know it's in technical production now, but it's only coming out on Blu-ray and DVD. There won't be CDs. Technology has caught up to what the concept was in the first place [and] how we're able to actually present it. But there's no doubt it will come out this year." Blu-ray discs, which hold much more data than DVDs, are easily updated over the Internet and offer better picture and sound quality. The first installment of Young's archive will cover the years 1963 to 1972 and will be released as a 10-disc set this fall on Reprise/Warner Bros. Records. - Billboard...... Former Guess Who bandmates Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings say their next album will go in a jazz direction, and the duo plans to begin work on it in February 2009. "[Burton] and I, always when we get together, we also do Chet Baker and Georgie Fame and Mose Allison," Bachman said. "And I said, 'Why don't we just do an album of that?' And he said, 'Oh, I'm in love with Mel Torme, I've been getting all his stuff... Yeah, let's do something. Let's challenge ourselves. Let's do something jazzy.'" Bachman and Cummings also have plans for a few dates in their native Canada this summer, including a June 19 concert at Molson Amphitheatre, a July 25 date at Belleville at Empire Square, and a July 26 date at Harris Park in London, Ont. Their last collaboration was 2007's Jukebox, a collection of pop and rock covers. - Toronto Sun...... Carlos Santana and his namesake band, who have been touring the world all this year, will bring their "Live Your Light" tour to the western US and Canada this summer and fall. After May 20 and 21 shows at The Fillmore in San Francisco and a month-long European run beginning June 20, Santana kicks off another North American leg on Sept. 6 in Auburn, Wash., also hitting such cities as Vancouver, B.C. (9/7); Edmonton, Alberta (9/9); Englewood, Col. (9/13); Oklahoma City (9/16); Dallas (9/17); El Paso, Tex. (9/26) and Phoenix (9/27). In October, they'll play Los Angeles's Nokia Theatre on Oct. 2-3; Las Vegas on Oct. 4; Santa Barbara, Cal. on Oct. 6; Reno, Nev. on Oct 10; and wrap in Mountain View, Cal. on Oct. 11. A 2-CD Santana anthology entitled Multi-Dimensional Warrior is due June 19. - LiveDaily...... John Fogerty continues to tour behind his latest album Revival, playing shows on May 9 in Sparks, Nev. and May 10 in Kelseyville, Cal. August dates include concerts in such cities as Moncton, NB (8/2); Shelburne, Vt. (8/4); Gilford, NH (8/5); Bethlehem, Pa. (8/10) and Aspen, Col. (8/31). Fogerty released Revival, his first set of new material for Fantasy Records in 25 years, last October. - LiveDaily...... Earth, Wind & Fire has announced an ambitious 32-city US tour that's set to begin with two dates in Las Vegas on June 6 and 7. The Grammy-winning troupe will also visit such cities as Reno, Nev. (6/13, 14); San Diego (6/20); Los Angeles (6/22); Milwaukee (7/6); Houston (7/12); Atlanta (7/14); Memphis (7/19); and Chicago (7/29) before wrapping in Huntsville, Ala. on Sept. 28. EWF is touring behind their latest CD, 2005's Illumination. - LiveDaily...... Per court documents recently filed in San Francisco Superior Court, former Mork & Mindy star Robin Williams and his estranged wife Marsha are vowing to remain respectful of each other during their impending divorce for the sake of their two children. "We will strive to be honest, cooperative and respectful as we work in this process to achieve the future well-being of our families," the agreement states. The Williams's announced they were divorcing in March after nearly 19 years of marriage. No word on whether Williams has agreed to forgo the use of funny voices in court. - E! Online

'70s SOUNDBYTES - 5/2: Country musician/comedian Jim Hager, one of the Hager Twins duo who rose to national fame in 1969 with their regular appearances on the hit CBS-TV country-flavored humor series Hee Haw, died in Nashville's Vanderbilt University Medical Center on May 2 after collapsing earlier in a local coffee shop. He was 66. Jim Hager, along with his twin brother Jon Hager, were guitarists and drummers who had worked with country star Buck Owens and used his connection as one of Hee Haw's co-hosts to join the show. The Hagers, who hailed from the Chicago area, left the program in the mid-'80s and continued to perform shows together. No details of Hager's death have yet been released. - AP...... In related news, Emmylou Harris was among the 2008 inductees of the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville on Apr. 27. Kyle Young, CMA Hall of Fame and Museum director, lauded Harris for helping "establish country music's cultural importance" by taking and interpreting it to audiences who might otherwise have never heard it. Young also noted that Harris has also been active in social causes, ranging from land mine removal to the humane treatment of animals. "I don't deserve it, but I'll take it," a humble Harris told the audience. "I feel like that guy in the Verizon commercial with that sea of people behind him." - CMT News...... news pic Experience Hendrix, the company that controls the rights to Jimi Hendrix's music and likeness, is disputing the authenticity of a purported sex tape featuring Hendrix that's being marketed by a Los Angeles-based adult video company. "We view the release as nothing more than a callous attempt to trade on the image and reputation of a deceased artist who is unable to defend himself against such an outrageous and baseless assertion," a spokesperson for Experience Hendrix said in a statement. Vivid Entertainment claims it consulted several experts to authenticate that it was indeed the late guitar god shown cavorting with two unidentified brunettes for 11 minkutes in a dimly lit bedroom, but several of Hendrix's ex-girlfriends have come forward to dispute the tape's authenticity. Vivid said it acquired the roughly 40-year-old tape, in which a bandanna-wearing man's face is barely seen, from an individual who purchased it from a collector who found it. Vivid has already made the sex tape, part of a 45-minute DVD, available for sale online and plans to release it in stores on May 6. Hendrix died in 1970 at age 27 in London. - Reuters/E! Online...... Harps and Angels, Randy Newman's first album of new material in nine years, will be released Aug. 5 via Nonesuch Records. "A Few Words in Defense of My Country," a single that was released exclusively to iTunes in 2007, will be included in the 64-year-old singer-songwriter's new set. Meanwhile, Newman will keep busy this spring and summer with a few concerts planned for the month of May, including an appearance at the New Orleans Jazz Fest (5/1), a solo shows in St. Louis (5/4) and Iowa City, Ia. (5/5/6), and a symphony-backed show in Denver (5/23). He'll also participate in a Fourth of July weekend celebration at L.A.'s Hollywood Bowl. Newman's last album, and his first for Nonesuch, was 2003's The Randy Newman Songbook: Vol. 1. - Billboard...... The tattered remains of a helium-filled inflatable pig balloon scrawled with the words "Don't Be Led To the Slaughter" that was released into the night sky during former Pink Floyd member Roger Waters' headlining show at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on Apr. 27 has been recovered in the desert a few miles from the festival grounds, three days after it had broke free from its tethers and drifted off. Concert organizers had offered a $10,000 reward for the pig's return. The pig was led from lines held on the ground as Waters played a version of Pink Floyd's "Pigs" from their 1977 album Animals. Waters first lost his "flying pig" back in 1977, when it floated away on the second day of a photo shoot at the Battersea Power Station in London and was later recovered and used for an album cover. - Associated Press...... The Christie's auction house in London has announced plans to auction John Lennon's scribbled lyrics to his 1969 song "Give Peace a Chance" in July as the centerpiece in its rock and pop memorabilia sale. Lennon had given the lyrics to Gail Renard, a teenage fan who sneaked past security guards outside suite 1742 at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal during his famous eight-day "bed-in" with his wife Yoko Ono, and told her to hold on to them because "it will be worth something someday." The lyrics, which will go on public view beginning July 5 at Christie's in London and auctioned five days later, are expected to fetch more than $400,000. Although few critics believe the "Give Peace a Chance" lyrics are an example of great songwriting, a spokesperson for Christie's says "the is there because this is certainly one of the most recognizable and influential of Lennon's solo compositions" and "it's also the fact that it was written at such a historical event." Renard developed a lifelong friendship with the famous former Beatle, who helped launch her journalism career by placing an article she wrote about the bed-in in the Beatles Monthly magazine. - AP...... Yes frontman Jon Anderson has revealed the prog-rock icons are working on four new songs that are of the "opus" variety along the lines of their '70s albums Close to the Edge and Tales from Topographic Oceans. "They're very, very different," Anderson says. "It'll be interesting when we perform them, because we know that we want to try and perform them in a unique fashion." Anderson added he's unsure if those songs will wind p on Yes' first album of new material since 2001's Magnification: Putting together a large piece of music or something that is really a jump in a musical direction takes a lot of commitment from everybody.... But maybe during the tour we will discuss making some new music." Yes' 40th anniversary tour is set to kick off July 12 at the Festival d'ete de Quebec in Quebec City, Canada. - Billboard...... The Police played the first date of what's being billed as their final North American tour on May 1 in Ottawa, Canada. Opening for the reunited trio was Elvis Costello, who performed a mixture of his classic cuts as well as selections from his new CD Momofuku. - Rolling Stone...... British pop singer Sir Cliff Richard has revealed he secretly recorded an R&B song under the moniker "CR" in 1998 in an attempt to prove the British music industry was deliberately conspiring against his music. Richard says the fact that the BBC's Radio 1 and other high profile added the song to their playlists proved that the station bosses were prejudiced against his music. "If your name doesn't fit the bill, they will never give you a listen," the 67-year-old singer said. Richard's most recent U.K. chart-topper was 1999's "The Millenium Prayer," which climbed to the top of the British hit parade despite being excluded from the playlists of most British radio stations. - Soundgenerator.com...... In a recent interview on the Oprah Winfrey Show, Tina Turner confirmed she will embark on her first tour in eight years later this year, beginning Oct. 1 in Kansas City, Mo. Turner said she will visit almost 40 cities in North America, and her tour will likely be followed by dates in Europe and other international shows. Turner last toured in 2000, a top-grossing $110 million tour of that year that was billed as her last. - Billboard...... Bob Dylan, Iggy & the Stooges and Chuck Berry are among the acts just added to headline the upcoming Virgin Mobile Festival at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore on Aug. 9-10. Berry (backed by the Silver Beats and Iggy & the Stooges will appear on Aug. 9, while Dylan will perform on Aug. 10. Previously announced headliners include Nine Inch Nails, Stone Temple Pilots, Foo Fighters and Kayne West. - Billboard...... A recent claim by English singer Tommy Steele and British theater producer Bill Kenwright that Elvis Presley once secretly visited London for one day in 1958 shortly after arriving in Germany to begin his military hitch there is being disputed by two members of Presley's "Memphis Mafia" -- Lamar Fike and Marty Lacker. Fike, who stationed with Presley in Germany at the time, told BBC News: "My apologies to Tommy, but it did not happen. I was with him the whole time. I got there two days after he got there. He was confined to base." Fike confirmed that the late King of Rock & Roll did visit Paris and Munich during his 18-month tenure in Europe, but that "had he gone to England, I'd have been there." - New Musical Express...... news pic Carly Simon says her new Brazilian-influenced album This Kind of Love was influenced by the many Portuguese people she's met near Martha's Vineyard, the island off Massachusetts where she spends much of her time. "I wanted to get myself more into a samba mode of mind," said the 62-year-old pop legend. "I fell in love with Brazilian music after seeing the movie Black Orpheus." In addition to her new Jimmy Webb-produced CD, Simon has been in the news thanks to the best-selling book Girls Like Us by Sheila Weller, which profiles Simon along with two other of the 70s' most important female singer-songwriters, Joni Mitchell and Carole King. "I did read a little bit about me and some of it made me very sad," she said, explaining that it was painful to read about people who have left her life. "There are quotes about me and it's kind of like hearing what people said about you behind your back. So I shy away from that," she added. - Reuters...... Meat Loaf has just announced he'll kick off a 17-city European tour on June 27 at the Plymouth Home Park Stadium. The portly rocker will also visit such cities as Cork, Ireland (6/29), Liverpool (7/2), York (7/11), Berlin (7/21), Hamburg (7/23), and Helsinki (8/11) before wrapping in Sjaeland on Aug. 16. - NME...... Steely Dan has just added new shows to its forthcoming summer tour of North America, including a pair of extra shows tacked to the band's six-day stand at New York City's Beacon Theatre on June 20 and 21, and a July 23 appearance at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles. The tour, now 27 cities and 34 concerts strong, kicks off June 8 in Hollywood, Fla. - LiveDaily..... Marie Osmond has partnered with sewing machine manufacturer Janome America for an endorsement deal that will have the singer touting the company's Memory Craft 11000 sewing machine. In return, Janome America will push Osmond's new fabric line. "For me, sewing is great therapy," Osmond says. "Creating a quilt is not only fun and relaxing, it's a personal and unique way to connect with others." - E! Online...... Attorneys representing Michael Jackson filed papers in Los Angeles on Apr. 14 dropping a lawsuit against an accounting firm that Jackson had accused of making deals and hiring people without his permission. It is unknown whether Jackson had reached a settlement with the firm, Bernstein, Fox, Whitman, Goldman and Sloan, or dropped the litigation for another reason. The accounting firm had countersued Jackson the day after he filed his court papers alleging negligence and breach of fiduciary duty in Dec. 2006, claiming the singer owed nearly $1 million in unpaid bills. That action was dismissed. - Reuters

'70s SOUNDBYTES - 4/27: Robert Plant and his recent collaborator Alison Krauss helped kick off the first day of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on Apr. 25, playing an hour-long set that included selections from their recent Raising Sand duet album as well as samples from their respective catalogs. Plant turned "Black Dog" into a steamy, haunted ballad, and dubbed his pairing with Krauss "new, fantastic and stimulating." On day two, Billy Joel's closing set was shut down a half hour early due to inclimate weather, just before he encored with "Piano Man" as the crowd sang along. - USA Today...... Keith Richards has aired his dirty underwear, so to speak, in a recent interview with the London Times. The 64-year-old Rolling Stones guitarist told the paper that he never wears underwear, doesn't bother washing his clothes and has little regard for the fashion world -- despite often being hailed as a style innovator. Richards says the Stones threw out their early '60s "uniforms," which were suggested by the Beatles' tailor Andrew Oldham, "within a week" after they got them. He added he wouldn't know whether his current clothes stink because "I throw them away." - Soundgenerator.com...... news pic Phil Collins has told the London Times that he is retiring from music and has no plans to tour again or make another album. Collins, who recently completed a reunion tour with Genesis, says he will however continue to write songs "simply because I do not know how to stop." Collins added that he's now more interested in his collection of memorabilia from the Battle of the Alamo than in pursuing music: "It's not that unusual for a man of my age, who grew up reading Davy Crockett," referring to the famous 19th century American frontiersman. Collins spoke before he was set to appear on the UK Sky Arts TV series Songbook. - NME...... The heirs of John Lennon -- including his widow Yoko Ono and sons Julian and Sean Lennon -- filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Manhattan on Apr. 22 against the producers and distributors of the new documentary Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed for using John's song "Imagine" without permission from the Lennon estate. The plaintiffs, which also include publisher EMI Blackwood Music Inc., are seeking to bar the future use of "Imagine" in the movie, as well as unspecified damages. In the documentary, actor/comedian Ben Stein looks at alleged discrimination against scientists and teachers who support so-called intelligent design as an alternative to Darwin's theory of evolution. The producers cited the fair use doctrine, which allows the use of copyrighted materials for the purposes of commentary and criticism. - Reuters...... In other Beatles-related news, Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr were among the visitors at the opening of the late Linda McCartney's photo exhibition at the James Hyman Gallery in London on Apr. 24. Meanwhile, the Beatles' hometown of Liverpool has announced it will host its first ever "Beatles Day" on July 10, which will be the 4th anniversary of the return of the band to their native city after touring in America. Thousands of "mop-top" Beatles wigs wil be on sale across the city during that time, and businesses in the city will be encouraged to decorate their establishments with Beatles memorabilia. Liverpool radio stations will be playing Beatles music heavily and ask listners to call in with their Beatles-related stories and anecdotes, and there will also be fund-raising events across the city to raise money for charities. - The Liverpool Echo/NME...... Elsewhere on the Fab Four front, Paul McCartney has signed on to perform before hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians on June 14 at a free "Independence Concert" to be held at the Kiev Independence Square. Sir Paul is appearing at the invitation of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation -- a Ukrainian organization that promotes democracy in soviet countries and is heavily involved in charity work. - NME...... Paul Simon wrapped his month-long concert residency at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on Apr. 27 with his third and last installment, dubbed "American Tunes." Select artists, including the Roches, Grizzly Bear and Josh Roban, and Simon himself, recreated songs that spanned from his early beginnings with Art Garfunkel through his latest album, 2006's Surprise. The first two installments of the series were titled "Under African Skies" and "Songs from The Capeman." - Billboard...... news pic In Steve Winwood's old band Traffic, he wrote the music, he says, "as an excuse for us to jam." Nine Lives, his debut for Columbia Records, was written in the same spirit, with the songs born out of jams with his longtime touring band (as well as a solo by his Blind Faith buddy Eric Clapton) and fleshed out at Winwood's studio in Gloucester, England. "I've tried to combine ingredients of Latin music, gospel, bebop, and add them to the folk-rock-jazz elements I've always tried to have," Winwood says. "It becomes a soup, and hopefully it's a tasty soup." Nine Lives hits stores Apr. 29. - Rolling Stone...... A new Clash DVD titled Live Revolution Rock looks back on the famous UK band's career with features that include the full band's appearance on Tom Synder's late-night talk program Tomorrow in 1981 and a rendition of "Know Your Rights" from the fabled 1983 Us Festival in San Bernardino, Calif., the site of guitarist/vocalist Mick Jones' final performance with the band. The project is directed by Don Letts, who has headed several Clash projects, including the "London Calling" video. In other Clash news, band guitarist Mick Jones was honored with the Inspiration Award at the inaugural New Musical Express Awards USA in Los Angeles on Apr. 23. - Billboard...... German electro pioneers Kraftwerk were among the headliners on the first night of the Coachella Music Festival in California on Apr. 26. Kraftwerk performed several of their classic tracks, including "Autobahn," "Man Machine" and "Trans Europe Express" underneath three massive screens that displayed video sequences tailor-made for each song. As is normal for the quartet, the members stood behind their laptops programming beats without saying a word during their entire set. - NME...... Surviving members of the Grateful Dead have donated a cache of band memorabilia, including a large quantity of band correspondence, to the archives at the University of California at Santa Cruz. Former guitarist Bob Weir and drummer Mickey Hart made the announcement at San Francisco's Fillmore Auditorium, a place where the band played several times. - NME...... Blondie has been confirmed as one of the headliners of the upcoming Latitude Festival at Henham Park in Southwold, Suffolk, England, set for the weekend of July 17-20. The iconic New Wave act's set will include a 30th anniversary tribute to their seminal 1978 album Parallel Lines. - Soundgenerator.com...... It has been revealed that Lou Reed tied the knot with his longtime partner, singer Laurie Anderson, in a private ceremony in Colorado on Apr. 12. Anderson has collaborated with Reed on a number of projects including his 2003 album The Raven. The couple have been together since 1995. - NME...... Top-selling '70s songstress Roberta Flack and popular music legend Tony Bennett were among those celebrating the 75th birthday of legendary music composer/producer Quincy Jones on Apr. 23 at an ASCAP-sponsored party at the Nokia Theatre in New York's Times Square. Jones, who turned 75 in March, was also honored by Leslie Gore, Patti Austin, Gloria Estefan, Tevin Campbell and Al Jarreau, among others. - Associated Press...... Donny and Marie Osmond have signed on for a new variety revue at the Flamingo Hotel-Casino in Las Vegas beginning in September. Donny and Marie will play play 90-minute Tuesday-Saturday shows for 26 weeks spread over eight months at the Flamingo Showroom starting Sept. 9. Donny and Marie previously played Vegas in the '70s as part of their musical family, The Osmonds, sharing the marquee at the old International Hotel with Elvis Presley. - AP...... Stevie Nicks, who kicked off a 2008 spring/summer tour with a show in Reading, Pa., on Apr. 18, has just added dates in Chicago (6/14); Cincinnati (6/26); Wantagh, N.Y. (6/28); and Holmdel, N.J. (6/29) to her 15-city trek. Meanwhile, Nicks recently told Britain's Q Magazine that she is working on a new solo album. - LiveDaily...... Jimmy Buffett has just added shows in Wantagh, N.Y. on Aug. 27 and Las Vegas on Oct. 10 and 18 to his summer tour, which kicked off Apr. 21 in Woodlands, Tex. Buffett will also be a headliner at th Newport Folk Festival in Newport, R.I., on Aug. 3. - LiveDaily...... The tabloid New York Post reported on Apr. 25 that Michael Jackson has hired RedOne and Akon to mastermind his next album, and the trio entered a Las Vegas studio two days earlier. Jackson also reportedly banned his kids from the studio because he "doesn't want any distractions." Meanwhile, the auction of his Neverland ranch in southern California is going forward on May 14 at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse. Among the potential buyers are the original loan holder, Fortress Investments. "I know they want it," one source told Fox News, "and there are three or four others." - New York Post/Fox News...... news pic Boston has announced it will launch a major summer tour of North America beginning June 6 with a headlining performance at the Thunder Bay, Ontario, stop of the Great Race 2008. The platinum-selling classic rockers have regrouped after the 2007 of original vocalist Brad Delp, enlisting both Michael Sweet of Stryper and Tommy DeCarlo, who the band discovered on MySpace.com, to take over vocal duties. Rounding out the band is cofounding guitarist Tom Scholz, Gary Pihl, Jeff Neal and Kimberley Dahme. Boston's 43-city tour also includes June stops in Winnipeg (6/7); Baton Rouge, La. (6/19); Woodlands, Tex. (6/22); Oklahoma City (6/25); Phoenix (6/27); Las Vegas (6/28); and Tuscon (6/29). In July, they'll visit such cities as Universal City, Cal. (7/1); Reno, Nev. (7/4); Redmond, Wash. (7/10); Kansas City, Mo. (7/19); Bloomington, Ill. (7/20); Chicago (7/23); and West Bend, Wisc. (7/26). The tour is set to wrap Aug. 19 in Greenville, S.C. In conjunction with the tour, Boston will release a re-mastered Greatest Hits CD, which will include singles from all five of the band's albums. Tom Scholz says he also hopes to finish recording Boston's next studio album, the followup to 2002's Corporate America, after its summer tour and have it out "just after the first of the year." - LiveDaily...... Two years after Love frontman Arthur Lee passed away, his 1967 psychedelic masterpiece, Forever Changes, has been re-released with a slew of unheard material. A 20-track bonus disc on the Apr. 28-released Forever Changes: Collector's Edition features alternate takes, demos and instrumental versions. Listen for a killer cover of Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs' "Wooly Bully." - Rolling Stone...... In his new nonfiction book Like a Rolling Stone: The Strange Life of a Tribute Band, journalist Steven Kurutz relates a year in the lives of two rival New York-based Rolling Stones tribute bands: Sticky Fingers and the Blushing Brides. Although the subject of copycat acts has been covered in various media almost as extensively as the Jagger/Richards songbook, it's still a funny, poignant look at people who may believe that, to quote the Blushing Brides singer, they "kick the Rolling Stones' asses live" -- though they have to do it at the Elks Lodge. - Entertainment Weekly...... The 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles has upheld a verdict finding former Baretta star Robert Blake liable for his wife's 2001 death, but reduced the $30 million jury award in half. Blake's attorneys had argued juror misconduct ocurred in Nov. 2005 during the wrongful-death lawsuit brought by Blake's late wife, Bonnie Lee Bakely, including complaints that the jury discussed the high-profile cases of O.J. Simpson and Michael Jackson while considering the amount of damages. The court said the argument intruded on the jurors' method of reaching a verdict. An attorney for the Bakley family said he believes the award, with interest, will come to about $24 million and that he'll be able to collect, although Blake has declared bankruptcy. - AP

'70s SOUNDBYTES - 4/22: Preliminary hearings in a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by World Wide Video, a Massachusetts-based consortium of Beatles collectors, against John Lennon's widow Yoko Ono are set to begin in U.S. District Court in Boston on Apr. 30. At issue is a rare black-and-white, two-hour film titled "3 days in the life" of John Lennon, which reportedly shows the late former Beatle smoking pot, writing songs and discussing putting the hallucinogenic drug LSD in Pres. Richard Nixon's tea. World Wide Video says they paid more than $1 million for the footage, which filmed just weeks before the Beatles broke up in Apr. 1970, and they were set to premiere it in 2007 at Maine's Berwick Academy but abruptly cancelled the screening after the academy received a stop order from Ono's lawyers, who assert copyright ownership of the videotapes. The original videotapes are now held by Ono, whose lawyers claim in a countersuit that she purchased them legally from World Wide through a Florida man, who has been named as a defendant in the Massachusetts company's suit. - Reuters...... In other Beatles-related news, Sir Paul McCartney will be among the contributors to an upcoming album that will pay tribute to the Fab Four's hometown of Liverpool, England. McCartney, who recently announced he will launch a world tour later in 2008, will play mandolin on the album, which will be released before the end of the year. - The Sun/NME...... news pic Columbia/Legacy will release a deluxe 30th anniversary version of Billy Joel's 1977 album The Stranger on July 8. The album will be available both as a two-CD set and two-CD/single-DVD package. Both releases will include a previously unreleased concert disc recorded at New York's Carnegie Hall on June 3, 1977, a month before Joel entered the studio to record The Stranger. The DVD on the three-disc set collects promo videos and a 60-minute 1978 appearance on the BBC's The Old Grey Whistle Test, which Columbia says only aired once. Meanwhile, Joel is preparing to be among the headliners at the New Orleans Jazz Fest on Apr. 26. He also has 10 shows scheduled at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut from May through July, and July 16 and 18 dates at Shea Stadium in Queens, N.Y. - Billboard...... Judas Priest will headline the inaugural "Metal Masters" tour this summer, which is set to kick off Aug. 6 in Camden, N.J. "We insisted on a classic metal package which is what we've got -- I will enjoy seeing all the bands," said Priest frontman Rob Halford of the bill, which also features Heaven & Hell, Motorhead and Testament. Halford added that Priest's "Heaven & Hell" set will feature "a combination of Priest classics -- including songs from our catalog never before played live." - Billboard...... In a recent post on his official website, Elvis Costello confirmed his new album will be named Momofuku after Momofuku Ando, the inventor of the Cup Noodle. Momofuku was released exclusively on vinyl on Apr. 22, and Costello says other formats will follow "but this is how it sounds the best: with a needle in a groove, the way the Supreme Being intended it to be." Momofuku is also set for release on CD on May 6 via Lost Highway. - Billboard...... Jimmy Buffett is among the latest artists signing on to perform at this year's Newport Folk Festival, to be held Aug. 1-3 at Fort Adams State Park in Newport, R.I. Buffett, who kicked off a summer tour on Apr. 21 in Woodlands, Tex., continues to support his latest studio album, 2006's country-leaning Take the Weather With You. Buffett's 24-city tour also includes stops in Frisco, Tex. (4/26), Charlotte, N.C. (4/29), New Orleans (5/3), Atlanta (6/5), Raleigh, N.C. (6/7), Clarkston, Mich. (6/10), New York (6/12) and Philadelphia (6/14). The tour is set to wrap on Oct. 25 in Las Vegas. - Billboard/LiveDaily...... The Allman Brothers Band has announced it will reschedule its annual Beacon Theatre residency in New York City for early 2009. In March, the Southern Rock icons announced that their 15-show run at the Beacon, originally set for May, would have to be postponed while ABB founder and singer/keyboardist Gregg Allman continues to recover from Hepatitis C treatments. The ABB began its Beacon Theatre tradition in 1989 and has since performed at the venue more than 175 times. Meanwhile, Widespread Panic has been named to be the Allmans' replacement as the closing main stage act at this year's Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, set for June 12-15 in Manchester, Tenn. The ABB will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2009. - LiveDaily/Billboard...... In related news, Van Halen is making good on postponed dates that occurred after guitarist Eddie Van Halen announced earlier this year that he needed to undergo "medical tests to define a course of treatment" for an undisclosed ailment. VH returned to the stage on Apr. 17 in Reno, Nev., and followed that up with a headlining performance at the Tiger Jam benefit concert in Las Vegas on Apr. 19, where they helped raise more than $1.5 million for the Tiger Woods Foundation. On Apr. 22, they made up a date in Cincinnati and they play 13 dates in May -- in such cities as Raleigh, N.C. (5/5), Atlantic City, N.J. (5/9), Baltimore (5/15), New York (5/23) and Rosemont, Ill. (5/30) -- before wrapping on June 2 in Grand Rapids, Mich. Their reunion tour with original vocalist David Lee Roth at the mic for the first time in more than 20 years, which began last year, was one of 2007's Top 5 highest-grossing tours. - LiveDaily...... Slide guitarist extraordinaire Ry Cooder will release his new album, I, Flathead, on June 24. The 14-track CD will complete Cooder's "California Trilogy," which he began in 2005. Accompanying the release will be a 95-page novella written by Cooder that expands on the theme. - Rolling Stone...... According to popular belief, Elvis Presley never set foot in England, but now a longtime friend of English singer Tommy Steele is claiming otherwise. Bill Kenwright recently told the BBC Radio 2 that the late King of Rock & Roll toured London with Steele one day in 1958 after Elvis rang him up. "They talked and they got a friendship (going)," Kenwright said. "Elvis flew in for a day and Tommy showed him round London They spent a day together, Tommy took him round and showed him round the Houses of Parliament." - New Musical Express...... In an Apr. 18 posting on their official website, AC/DC announced they have completed recording their new album in Vancouver, Canada, with Brendan O'Brien (Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen) producing. AC/DC singer Brian Johnson says the CD, their first album of new material since 2000's Stiff Upper Lip, will be released later this year. - Rolling Stone/NME...... news pic Keyboardist Danny Federici, who played in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band from late 1969 until last November when he was forced to leave the band for medical treatment, died of melanoma at New York's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center on Apr. 17. He was 58. Federici's organ, accordion and keyboard work was considered an integral part of the E Street Band's rollicking sound on such tracks as "Hungry Heart" and "Glory Days," but he was often overshadowed onstage by the formidable presence of E Street sax player Clarence Clemons. The musician, a New Jersey native who began playing the accordian at an early age at parties and clubs, had battled the disease for three years, and his last performance with the E Street Band was a Mar. 20 concert in Indianapolis. Federici, who was nicknamed "Phantom," also released two solo projects: a jazz-influenced album in the '90s entitled Flemington (after his New Jersey hometown), and Sweet in 2004. Posting on his official website, Springsteen said, "Danny and I worked together for 40 years -- he was the most wonderfully fluid keyboard player and a pure natural musician. I loved him very much... we grew up together." A pair of Springsteen & E Street Band weekend concerts in Florida were cancelled in Federici's memory, and a memorial was held in his honor was held at the Stone Pony nightclub in Asbury Park, N.J., on Apr. 23. A memorial fund in his memory has been established at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. - Reuters...... Country music legend Willie Nelson and jazz icon Wynton Marsalis are teaming up for a new album together, Two Men with the Blues, that's due out in the U.S. on July 8. The album features 10 tracks, including "Bright Lights Big City" and "Basin Street Blues," that were recorded during the pair's first live performance together early last year at New York's Lincoln Center on Jan. 12 and 13. - NME...... Barbra Streisand has announced she won't attend Israel's 60th anniversary celebration in mid-May because of "personal obligations." In an Apr. 22 press release, Streisand's publicist said the entertainer was "a devoted supporter of Israel since her earliest youth" and that she "celebrates as always the nation's courage and purpose and flourishing democracy and is saddened that she cannot be there to do so in person." The convention, hosted by Israeli President Shimon Peres beginning May 13 in Jerusalem, still has a guest list that includes such dignitaries as US Pres. George W. Bush and Google founder Sergey Brin. - AP...... Veteran music executive Clive Davis, 74, has been replaced by Barry Weiss as chairman and CEO of the BMG label group. As president and CEO of the Zomba Label Group, the 49-year-old Weiss oversaw several labels and helped grow Jive Records from a small imprint to a major force with blockbuster acts like Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, 'N Sync and the Backstreet Boys. Davis will become chief creative officer of Sony BMG, and the label says he will continue to work with top artists in his new position. - AP...... The children of late R&B great Ray Charles are accusing his longtime manager Joe Adams of mismanaging his estate and trusts and tarnishing their father's legacy by releasing two posthumous CDs that he never would have approved. Several of Charles' 12 children claim Adams holds too much power over Ray Charles Enterprises and the Ray Charles Foundation and has excluded them from business dealings. The children say they have complained to the California attorney general, the Los Angeles County prosecutor's office and the FBI, and eventually hope to win control of the marketing of their father's name and image, and to have a greater voice in foundation affairs. Charles' musical recordings have an estimated value of about $25 million, plus another $50 million he held in securities, real estate and other assets. - The Los Angeles Times/AP...... A theatrical release of Lou Reed's upcoming "Berlin" concerts in the U.K. this June will be screened at the Curzon Soho and Curzon Renoir cinemas in London beginning July 25, and will also open in Edinburgh and Nottingham, and other selected cinemas around the U.K. Reed's U.K. tour includes stops in Belfast (6/24), Edinburgh (6/25, Nottingham (6/26), and London's Royal Albert Hall (6/30). - Noble PR

'70s SOUNDBYTES - 4/17: Neil Diamond has announced he'll kick off a 37-city tour of North America on July 19 in St. Paul, Minn., behind his behind his upcoming studio album, Home Before Dark. Diamond, who will perform several dates in Europe beginning May 24 in Rotterdam before the US trek, has just completed several weeks of rehearsal with his touring band. The 67-year-old singer/songwriter is promising to "include songs I haven't done in the show in awhile" in the tour, which will wrap Oct. 30 in Jacksonville, Fla. Home Before Dark is Diamond's second collaboration with producer Rick Rubin and is the follow-up to 2005's 12 Songs. His 12 Songs Tour from that year grossed nearly $80 million from 86 shows and drew 1.2 million people. - Billboard...... news pic Bruce Springsteen has thrown his support behind Democrat presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, issuing an open letter on his official website on Apr. 16 saying he has "now seen and heard enough to know where I stand" and that "Sen. Obama, in my view, is head and shoulders above the rest... He speaks to the America I've envisioned in my music for the past 35 years." Obama's campaign said the Illinois senator was "honored" to have the New Jersey rocker's support, and that the America in Springsteen's music is one of "big dreams, unyielding hope, and a resilient, hardworking people." The Boss, a longtime critic of Pres. George W. Bush, made his first-ever presidential endorsement in 2004, when he performed at rallys on behalf of Democratic contender Sen. John Kerry. - E! Online...... Ozzy Osbourne announced on Apr. 15 that he'd be headlining a single, all-day gig in Calgary, Canada, on July 26 under the "Monsters of Rock" banner. Meanwhile, there are rumors that the annual Ozzfest tour will scaled back this year to a two-day event in Dallas sometime in July, with Osbourne and his backing band and Metallica headlining. Also appearing at the Calgary gig will be Judas Priest, Voivod, Testament and 3 Inches of Blood, among others. - MTV News...... Speaking of Judas Priest, the British heavy metal outfit will release its 16th studio album, a 2-CD set entitled Nostradamus, on June 16 internationally and a day later in North America. Nostradamus will be the Priest's first-ever concept album and tell the story of the famous 16th century prophet, Michel de Nostredame. "His life is well-documented, so for us it was all about taking the significant episodes he went through, and then with the right emotion, create music and lyrics that would convey them," says Priest frontman Rob Halford. In addition to a regular jewel-cased CD configuration, Nostradamus will also be release in a deluxe hardbound version with a 48-page booklet and a "super deluxe version" with three vinyl records (in addition to the CD deluxe packaging, plus a poster). The band has already announced some European dates behind the new CD -- including a performance as part of this year's Download Festival in England -- and plans for a US tour are expected to be announced soon. - Billboard...... Crosby, Stills & Nash and former Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler will be among the headliners at the 2008 Central Park SummerStage concert series at the Rumsey Playfield in New York's Central Park. Knopfler's July 23 performance and CSN's July 29 concert will be among six benefit concerts to raise money for the 2008 season. Dance troupes and comedy acts will also be featured. - Billboard...... The newly constructed Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach, S.C., was officially opened on Apr. 15, with thousands of visitors marveling at such attractions as "Led Zeppelin - The Ride" roller coaster and "Eagles: Life in the Fast Lane." The $400 million, 55-acre facility also boasts four environs each dedicated to a different rock genre: "British Invasion," "Cool Country," "Rock 'n' Roll Heaven" and "Born in the USA." The park, the first in the world with the Hard Rock brand, expects to have 30,000 guests a day during the summer. - MyrtleBeachOnline...... A DVD documenting the the creation and launch of the Beatles-inspired 2006 stage production and album "LOVE" is due out June 23. Dubbed All Together Now, the feature-length film tells the story behind the partnership between the Beatles and the Las Vegas theater troupe Cirque du Soleil. The 122-minute release also features footage of early meetings about the projects with contributions from Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and Yoko Ono. - NME...... A 16-CD limited edition Beach Boys box set of the band's early singles on Capitol Records will hit stores and online download services on June 10. The Beach Boys: U.S. Singles Collection - The Capitol Years (1962-1965) will feature original and alternate versions of the band's Capitol singles and B-sides. The 66-track collection will also include reviously unreleased mixes. A 48-page hardbound photo book will round out the collection. - LiveDaily...... Former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne says he's finishing up a new album produced in collaboration with Brian Eno, who he previously worked with three decades ago. "We did a record together of songs, and that'll come out," Byrne says, "And I'm also working on a collaboration with Fatboy Slim, also songs, I don't know when that'll be done but sometime." Byrne was interviewed after his appearance with Paul Simon at the Brooklyn Academy of Music as part of Simon's "Under African Skies" event. "Paul and I had met a few times and we have some musical interests in common and he asked if I would do it," said Byrne, who like Simon has also implemented African influences in his music. - NME...... Former Clash guitarist Mick Jones will be honored with the Inspiration Award at the inaugural New Musical Express Awards USA in Los Angeles on Apr. 23. Jones will perform at the event with his band, Carbon/Silicon. Meanwhile, former bassist Paul Simonon will stage his first art exhibition in six years on Apr. 17 at the Thomas Williams Gallery in east London, UK. The exhibition will run through May 9. - NME...... Recent Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Leonard Cohen will launch his first tour in 15 years on May 11 in Fredericton, New Brunswick. Cohen will continue to tour his native Canada -- visiting such cities as Halifax, St. John's, Hamilton, Toronto and Montreal -- in May and June before heading to Europe in July. - LiveDaily...... Bob Dylan's publisher has issued a press release stating the rock bard has just finished work on a children's book called Forever Young and that it should hit shelves on Oct. 6. Forever Young is a 40-page illustrated book that is "a heartwarming and meaningful story about the importance of doing good," according to the release. Although Dylan has written several books, this will be his first-ever publication aimed at children. - Uncut.co.uk...... A one-night only screening of two concerts by rock legends Queen and Deep Purple will take place in select American movie theaters on Apr. 28. The Queen concert is a 1981 gig by the art-rockers in Montreal, the only performance by Queen that was ever shot on film. The Deep Purple concert was filmed in 2006, when the band headlined the 40th Montreux Festival. The concerts have been digitally re-mastered and newly mixed for optimal picture and sound quality. A list of theaters running the film can be found at the Bigger Picture website. - LiveDaily...... Speaking of Queen, guitarist Brian May recently told the BBC that a sequel to the Queen-based musical "We Will Rock You" is currently in the planning stages. May said a sequel to the hit musical, which was written and directed by Ben Elton, is "a real challenge" and that no dates as yet have been scheduled for the sequel's opening. The original "We Will Rock You" has been seen by over two million people since its 2002 debut. Meanwhile, May has just been named the new Chancellor at John Moores University in Liverpool, England, and awarded an honorary fellowship at the institution for his "contribution to astronomy and services to the understanding of science." May's duties as Chancellor include representing the university on special occasions and supervising graduation ceremonies. May will take over the Chancellor's position from Cherie Blair, wife of former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair. - NME...... Steely Dan has added dates in 10 US and Canadian cities in July to their impending summer tour, including stops in Montreal (7/1, 2); Orillia, Ont. (7/4); Cincinnati (7/13); Chicago (7/15); Morrison, Col. (7/17); Phoenix (7/20); Murphys, Cal. (7/25), Berkeley, Cal. (7/26); Saratoga, Cal. (7/28) and Woodinville, Wash. (7/30, 31). An Aug. 2 date in Lake Tahoe, Nev. has also been added. The tour kicks off June 8 in Hollywood, Fla. - LiveDaily...... Bonnie Raitt will launch a summer US tour on May 8 in Choctaw, Miss. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member will tour into early October. She has also signed on to headline one of the nights of the two-day Doheny Blues Festival, set for May 17 and 18 at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point, Cal...... news pic David Bowie will release a live CD from his famed 1972 "Ziggy Stardust Tour" of the US on June 30. David Bowie, Live Santa Monica '72 was recorded at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Los Angeles on Oct. 20 of that year, and Bowie says "it would be around the tenth American show for us and you can hear that we are all pretty high on ourselves." Bowie added that although "we train wreck a couple of things...overall I really treasure this bootleg" and that his guitarist Mick Ronson "is at his blistering best." The release will also be available on double vinyl. In other Bowie-related news, ex-Smiths frontman Morrisey will release a cover of Bowie's "Drive-In Saturday" from his 1973 album Aladdin Sane on May 19. The song is the B-side for Morrisey's single "All You Need Is Me." The musician is currently working on a new studio album, set to be released in late 2008. - NME...... Donna Summer will launch a 27-city US tour on June 24 in Nashville, Tenn., behind her forthcoming CD Crayons, her first album of new material in 17 years. The disco diva will also hit such cities as Vienna, Va. (7/5), Boston (7/12), Baltimore (7/12), Atlantic City, N.J. (7/25, 26), Seattle (8/6), Spokane, Wa. (8/10), Oakland, Cal. (8/16) and Los Angeles (8/22, 23). Due May 20, Crayons will be the followup to Summer's 1991 studio set Mistaken Identity. All of its 12 tracks were co-written by Summer and cover everything from pop to world music to retro-modern dance. - LiveDaily...... The Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles has named a new research and education program on women's heart disease after Barbra Streisand after the singer/actress donated $5 million to the hospital's Heart Institute. The Barbra Streisand Women's Cardiovascular Research Education Program will conduct trials on new drugs for women, try to identify the role of gender in heart disease, and work on other ways of reducing risks. Streisand, 66, said women must get involved in reducing risks for heart disease. - AP...... Elvis Presley's former wife Priscilla Presley was eliminated from the competition in the popular ABC talent series Dancing with the Stars on Apr. 15. Presley, 62, said her participation in the program "has been an incredible experience...I learned so much about myself and all the things I could do." Presley also revealed that her announcement on Apr. 1 that she was launching her own psychic hotline was an April Fools joke. - E! Online...... Gail Zappa, the widow of Frank Zappa, has filed a 200,000-pound lawsuit against a German music festival named after her late husband. Gail Zappa claims the Zappanale Festival did not receive permission from her to use her late husband's name and is also demanding she have a say on which Zappa tribute acts are invited to perform. Festival promoters counter they took out a patent on the Zappanale name 20 years ago and they have the right to use it. Festival organizers say the event is already 120,000 pounds in debt and they don't expect to make a profit. - NME...... Clifford Davies, a former drummer with Ted Nugent's band, was found dead from a gunshot wound to the head in his home in suburban Atlanta, Ga., on Apr. 13. He was 59. Authorities are awaiting the results of an autopsy on Davies, who played on Nugent's signature song "Cat Scratch Fever." Reed Beaver, owner of the Atlanta-area recording studio where Davies was chief engineer, said the musician had phoned him the previous day and was "extremely distraught" over some medical bills. - Associated Press...... Otis Ferry, the son of Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry, has been charged with robbery and common assault over a Nov. 2007 incident in which he allegedly seized camera equipment from two women and attempted to stop them from filming during the Heythrop Hunt in Gloucestershire. He is scheduled to appear in court on May 7 to answer the charges. - NME

'70s SOUNDBYTES - 4/12: Representatives for Paul McCartney are finalizing details of a huge world tour to be launched by Sir Paul in the fall. McCartney's tour director recently met with Canadian promoter Harold MacKay in Nova Scotia, where they discussed a possible date at the 50,000 capacity Halifax Common venue, where the Rolling Stones performed in 2006. Macca will debut tracks from a new album he plans on releasing later in 2007. The world tour dates, which also include shows in the UK, the US and Australia, are set to be finalized in May. - The Daily Mirror/New Musical Express...... Meanwhile, Paul's ex Heather Mills told Britain's GMTV on Apr. 11 that she snapped on the final day of their divorce settlement hearing in March when McCartney's lawyer, Fiona Shackleton, requested that full details of the case, including some related to the couple's 4-year-old daughter, Beatrice, should be disclosed. "Mrs. Shackleton said something under her breath so I cleansed and baptized her," Mills said. "I thought she looked fantastic -- I thought it did her the world of good." When asked about Paul's current girlfriend Nancy Shevell, Mills said, "I think he's got three different girlfriends so I wish all the girls the best of luck." Mills was interviewed in Las Vegas, where she was one of the judges of the Miss USA pageant. - Associated Press...... In other Beatles-related news, a floral tribute of the Beatles in their hometown of Liverpool was attacked by vandals on Apr. 8, with Ringo Starr "beheaded," but the other three members left intact. It was speculated the vandalism could have been prompted by Ringo's recent comments that he "missed nothing about the city" after the opening ceremonies of the European Capital Of Culture events, of which Liverpool was one of the selected cities this year. - New Musical Express...... In still more Fab Four news, Yoko Ono, Beatles producer George Martin, Paul McCartney's daughter Stella McCartney, Ringo Starr's wife Barbara Bach and original Beatles member Pete Best were among those in attendance at the funeral of late Beatles confidante and producer/record executive Neil Aspinall at the Church of St Mary The Virgin in west London on Apr. 8. Also attending was Pete Townshend of the Who, who paid tribute to Aspinall by strumming along to Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" and George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord." - NME...... news pic Alice Cooper will be honored by the MusiCares MAP Fund at benefit dinner and concert in Hollywood on May 9 for his work with fellow substance addicts. Cooper, currently in his 26th year of sobriety, says "I don't think you need to die for your art." The shock-rocker added that he's made himself available to friends who would call him late at night and say, "Between you and me, I've got a problem." Cooper will receive MusiCares' Steve Ray Vaughn Award, and former Guns 'n Roses guitarist Slash will also be honored for his dedication to the organization's mission and goals. - Billboard...... Ticket sales for the upcoming UK Glastonbury Festival on June 27-29 have been lethargic since they were first offered to the public on Apr. 6, and organizers are saying the inclimate weather of the previous two Glasto fests could be "taking its toll." It's also speculated that overcrowding could be adding to the slow sales: this year's capacity has been pushed to 177,500, up from last year's 150,000, and the site has added another 50 acres to combat congestion. Roger Daltrey of the Who, who were one of 2007's headliners, says he blames both the weather and the line-up for the downturn of Glasto ticket sales: "I take my hat off to those people who were there last year," Daltrey said. "I wouldn't have paid money to go and live like that for three days, to suffer like that. It's such an expensive festival too -- so expensive." Among the headliners this year will be Neil Diamond, the Verve, Kings of Leon, Hot Chip and Leonard Cohen. - Reuters/NME...... Speaking of Neil Diamond, the pop superstar has confirmed he'll perform at Boston's Fenway Park on Aug. 23 as he tours behind his upcoming studio album, Home Before Dark. Diamond made the announcement during a taped big-screen broadcast at Fenway on Apr. 8 during the traditional eighth-inning sing-along of his "Sweet Caroline," which has become an anthem for Red Sox fans. Diamond's Fenway date will be part of his upcoming world tour. - Associated Press...... Elton John raised over $2.5 million to boost the campaign of Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Clinton at a fundraiser at New York's Radio City Music Hall on Apr. 9. Sir Elton performed for a sold-out audience that also included the senator, her husband and former president Bill Clinton and the couple's daughter, Chelsea Clinton. Never one to mince words, the 61-year-old Rocket Man said he was "amazed by the misogynistic attitudes of the people in this country, and I say to hell with them," in reference to Clinton's struggling campaign. "I love you Hillary, I'll be there for you," he added. - Soundgenerator.com...... In related news, ex-Pink Floyd principal Roger Waters is slamming Hillary Clinton, recently telling Britain's The Independent that he was "so disappointed the other night when the ghastly Hillary got Texas and kept the whole thing going." Waters then predicted that Hillary "will want to make her mark and show that she can be just as good as a male president, and she will f---ing invade Iran." Waters has pledged his support for Clinton's Democratic rival, Barack Obama, saying he's a "huge fan" of the Illinois senator and that he "would buy a whole page in The New York Times and fly Obama's flag." - New Musical Express...... AC/DC is back in the studio working on its first album in eight years, with producer Brendan O'Brien at the controls. No release date has yet been announced for the Aussie headbangers' new disc, which will arrive via Columbia Records. AC/DC is expected to tour in support of the album, with dates to be announced. - Billboard...... Jackson Browne will be among the headliners at the upcoming Claremont Folk Music festival, set for the southern California city's Sycamore Elementary School on May 3. The event, also featuring Ben Harper, will raise money for the advancement, promotion and preservation of folk music in the region. - NME...... Rage Against The Machine member Tom Morello joined Bruce Springsteen onstage at two of the Boss' concerts in Anaheim, Cal. on Apr. 8 and 9. Morello wailed on guitar solos and alternated choruses with Springsteen, to great effect. "We actually have a very small audience, they just come to all the shows!" Springsteen said on Apr. 9, before inviting Morello up for another jam. Meanwhile, former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne joined Paul Simon onstage in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Apr. 9 at a special event titled "Paul Simon: Under African Skies." Simon and several African artists performed at the event, which is part of his month-long residency at Brooklyn Academy Of Music. Simon will return to the venue on Apr. 23 for another set called "American Tunes." He and his band will be on tour in Europe this summer, beginning July 1 in Reykjavik, Iceland. - NME...... Ted Gunderson, a former agent for the FBI, recently told the tabloid The Globe that he believes late pop star and US congressman Sonny Bono's Jan. 1998 death was the result of a politically-motivated assassination and not from injuries he sustained after crashing into a tree at the Heavenly Ski Resort in Nevada. "There's zero evidence in this autopsy report to show such an accident happened," Gunderson said. "Instead, there's powerful proof he was assassinated. This was an evil plot that was carried out to almost perfection by ruthless assassins." Gunderson claims hitmen hired by top US government officials moved against Rep. Bono because they believed he was getting ready to expose an international drug and weapons ring, and says his theory is backed up by several top forensic experts. - NME...... Bob Dylan has announced he'll launch a 28-date European tour in Reykjavik, Iceland, on May 26. Dylan will also visit cities including Helsinki (6/1), Warsaw (6/7), Vienna (6/10), Toulouse (6/20), Valencia (7/1) and Madrid (7/6) before wrapping in Lisbon on July 11. No UK shows have been announced yet, but are expected. - NME...... A British Columbia winery is set to begin production of a limited release Rolling Stones-endorsed icewine dubbed "Sympathy for the Devil." The sweet dessert wine will be released May 1, priced at $125 a bottle. A spokesman for the Ex Nihilo Vineyards in Okanagan Centre, B.C., says the band approved of the concept while they were on tour in Belgium last June. Each bottle will be numbered and the label will feature the classic Rolling Stones red tongue logo and be accompanied by a limited edition collectors' book...... Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson admits he was nervous before he went into the studio to co-produce Al Green's highly anticipated new studio album, Lay It Down. But soon enough, he says, "We found the formula for getting fireworks out of him." Green's new CD, due in stores May 27, reportedly captures a sound more organic and spontaneous than anything he's released in decades. The set also features guest shots from John Legend, Corinne Bailey Rae and Anthony Hamilton, among others. Green will promote the album this spring and summer with a 20-date tour that includes a headlining slot at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on Apr. 27, then hit such cities as Sonoma, Cal. (5/23); Reno, Nev. (5/24); Toronto (6/19); New York (6/27); Montreal (6/28); Chicago (7/12); and Fresno, Cal. (9/17) before wrapping in Los Angeles on Sept. 20. Green will also be among the headliners at this year's Rochester (N.Y.) Jazz Festival, set for June 13-21 in the city's downtown cultural district. - LiveDaily...... Stevie Nicks has confirmed 12 dates for a summer solo tour that will see the sometime Fleetwood Mac member visit cities in the eastern U.S. and Canada. Nicks kicks off the trek with an Apr. 18 show in Reading, Pa., then visit such cities as Uncasville, Conn. (4/20), Biloxi, Miss. (6/5), Hollywood, Fla. (6/7), Tampa, Fla. (6/8), St. Louis (6/13), Rama, Ontario (6/18), Atlantic City, N.J. (6/20-21) and Boston (6/22) before wrapping in Toledo, Oh. on June 25. Nicks' most recent solo album is 2001's Trouble in Shangri-La, and her career-spanning, greatest-hits package, Crystal Visions: The Very Best of Stevie Nicks, was released in early 2007. - LiveDaily...... Eric Burdon and War will reunite for a one-off concert at the London Royal Albert Hall on Apr. 21. It will be the first time the band has performed together since they originally parted 37 years ago. Eric Burdon and War released two seminal funk and R&B albums in 1970: Eric Burdon Declares War and the follow-up Black-Man's Burdon. - Noble PR...... Michael Jackson has been dropped from a lawsuit filed by the family of a 73-year-old woman who died at the Marian Medical Center in California soon after she was moved to make room for the reclusive pop star, who had been admitted to the hospital complaining of flu-like symptoms during his 2005 child-molestation trial. On Apr. 8, Judge Rodney Melville dropped Jackson from the lawsuit against against the hospital in response to a challenge from Jackson's attorney, Timothy Gorry. Melville rejected a similar motion by an attorney for the hospital. The suit, filed by the family of Manuela Gomez Ruiz, complained of an "outrageous, circus-like atmosphere" in the last hours of Ruiz's life. - AP...... Cedella Booker, the 81-year-old mother of reggae legend Bob Marley, passed away in her sleep on Apr. 8 at her home in Miami from what is believed to be natural causes. Ms. Booker's death comes 27 years after Bob Marley died from a brain tumor at age 36. Ms. Booker was also the mother of two sons and three grandchildren, Damien, Stephen and Ziggy Marley, who all have successful music career. - Soundgenerator.com...... Original Harold Melvin & the Bluenotes member Lawrence Lloyd Brown Sr. died in Chester, Pa., on Apr. 6 of a respiratory condition. He was 63. Brown became ill while singing at a show in Chester on Apr. 5, and died the following day. Despite frequent personnel changes, Brown remained the second tenor in the popular '70s R&B group, whose hits include "If You Don't Know Me by Now," "I Miss You," "The Love I Lost," "Bad Luck" and "Wake up Everybody." He is survived by a wife and son.

News items appearing in Super Seventies RockSite!'s "Favorite Seventies Artists In The News" are compiled from numerous printed sources, including Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, TV Guide, Newsweek and USA Today; and numerous online sources, including Associated Press, Billboard, CMT.com, E! Online, LiveDaily.com, MTV News, New Musical Express, Rolling Stone, Reuters, SoundGenerator.com, Undercover, and USA Today.