LONDON (AP) — Keith Richards would not have thrown support behind the deluxe re-release of “Sticky Fingers” if the 2010 re-release of “Exile on Main Street” had not done so well. Richards says he’s not crazy about the trend of re-releases, but he forgot that they’ve picked up a lot of new young fans who consider it a new record. The deluxe version of “Sticky Fingers” is out this week and Richards remembers it was easy to record because they did it at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Alabama. He says it’s no wonder so many great records came out of there because all anyone had to do was stick up a microphone in that “magical room.”
Archives for June 2015
Sam Smith Is Allowed To Use His Voice
UNDATED (AP) — Sam Smith can speak again. Smith writes on Instagram his restriction to not use his voice following vocal cord surgery has been lifted. Smith thanks his doctor and says, “You truly truly don’t know what you’ve got until you lose it.” He says he’s fallen in love with music all over again and he feels blessed to be able to sing again.
Sara Bareilles Plans Essay Book
NEW YORK (AP) — Sara Bareilles (bah-REL’-ihs) is putting out a collection of essays this fall. Bareilles will publish “Sounds Like Me: My Life (So Far) In Song,” through Simon and Schuster on October 6. Bareilles covers such topics as performing with Carole King at the Grammys, the first time she heard Joni Mitchell’s “Blue” album, and the stories behind her songs. Ben Folds wrote the introduction for the book.
John Oates Plans TV Show About Roots Music
NASHVILLE (AP) — John Oates of Hall and Oates is driving around the country in search for the best in American roots music. Oates will chronicle his search on a TV show called “Good Road To Follow.” Oates plans to drive on hidden and forgotten roads to uncover roots music and play with its originators. The songs will be available for download at the end of each show. Oates is promising special guests will come along for the ride. No word on when or where the show will air.
“Love and Mercy” Film Explores Brian Wilson’s Life
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — John Cusack and Paul Dano both believe the other one had the hard part in portraying Beach Boy Brian Wilson in the film “Love and Mercy.” Cusack plays Wilson in the 1980s, while Dano plays him in the 1960s. Cusack says so much film footage exists of Wilson from the 1960s, so Dano had to live up to that. Cusack says in the 1980s, Wilson shied away from the spotlight. Dano says he had the better role because he got to portray Wilson during the heyday of the Beach Boys. He says he found a great deal of joy in being in the same studio where Wilson made that music. “Love and Mercy” opens tomorrow in theaters.
Billy Joel May Have Highway Named For Him
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — The New York state Senate has passed a measure to rename a highway after Billy Joel. The bill would rename state route 107 in Oyster Bay, New York, “Billy Joel Boulevard.” Joel grew up in the area, owns a motorcycle shop in Oyster Bay and helps with local causes. The bill is now under consideration by the state Assembly Transportation Committee.
Tom Petty Will Release More “Wildflowers” Songs
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Tom Petty plans to finish what he started with his 1994 “Wildflowers” album. Petty intended to make “Wildflowers” a double album. He will release “Wildflowers — All The Rest” later this year. It is comprised of tracks written and recorded in the early 1990s. The first single, “Somewhere Under Heaven,” can be heard over the end credits of the “Entourage” movie, in theaters today. The song is also available through digital outlets.
Grateful Dead Plan Massive Boxed Set
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Grateful Dead are offering a boxed set for the fan with 73 hours to kill. The set “30 Trips Around The Sun” includes 80 discs containing an unreleased live show for each year of the band’s 30-year run. Don’t want to deal with 80 discs? It also comes on a USB drive. A four-CD sampler will also be available. The boxed set sells for just under $700 and will come out September 18.
Folk Singer Jean Ritchie Dies
NEW YORK (AP) — Folk singer Jean Ritchie never had a hit, but her claim to fame is keeping ballads that had been around for centuries from falling into obscurity. Ritchie sang songs she grew up with in Appalachia, including “Old Virginny,” ”One Morning in May,” ”Barbary Allen” and “Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair.” Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris and Judy Collins cited her as an influence. She worked with a then-unknown singer named Bob Dylan in the early 1960s and said in 2008 she found Dylan to be “friendly” but he had “a weird way of singing.” Ritchie died at her home in Berea, Kentucky, on Monday at the age of 92.
Beatles Costume Designer Dies
LONDON (AP) — Costume designer Julie Harris used to say she was one of the few people who can claim to have seen all four Beatles naked. Harris did the costumes for the films “A Hard Day’s Night” and “Help.” She died Saturday at a London hospital after suffering from a chest infection at the age of 94. Harris also worked on “Live and Let Die,” ”Casino Royale” and “The Great Muppet Caper.”