Classic Hits

Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler, AC/DC and Chaka Khan are among the honorees at this year’s Silver Clef Awards, a charity gala scheduled to take place July 5 in London.

The annual ceremony is presented by the charity Nordoff and Robbins, which provides music therapy to those “living with life-limiting illness, disability and isolation.”

Knopfler is being honored with the Icon Award. He says in a statement, “It’s a privilege to support an event that is directly part of such important music therapy work.”

He adds, “Nordoff and Robbins believes in sharing the value of music with everyone who needs it – that’s why I’m a longtime supporter and will continue to help raise funds so Nordoff and Robbins’ music therapists can continue their vital work.”

AC/DC is receiving the Legend Award at the event. Singer Brian Johnson says in a statement, “As a band, we’ve been dishing out our own brand of music therapy for the past five decades, so to hear all about how Nordoff and Robbins helps the young and the old with the power of music is something that we understand and salute.”

Chaka Khan is receiving the Global Impact Award. “I’m grateful for this beautiful honor to be part of the Nordoff and Robbins creative community, where the power of music is used to transform, inspire, and bring love to the world,” Khan says. “Music really does heal.”

The awards, which have been presented since 1976, have raised more than $16.5 million for Nordoff and Robbins’ music therapy services. Past honorees have included Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Roger Waters and David Bowie.

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Lenny Kravitz‘s social media posts are quite the thirst trap: many have admired those shots of him shirtless and/or working out in leather pants. And even though Gayle King recently tried to shoot her shot with him, Kravitz says he unattached — and celibate.

Speaking to The Guardian, Kravitz says he hasn’t been in a serious relationship for nine years. When asked by the paper if he was serious when he said some time ago that he wanted to abstain from sex until he found the right woman, he confirms, “Yes. It’s a spiritual thing.” 

And while Kravitz says he’d love to be in a relationship, he thinks it’d be hard for someone else to deal with his lifestyle, noting, “I have become very set in my ways, in the way I live.”

Of course, being celibate takes discipline, and the “Let Love Rule” rocker says he’s disciplined in other ways, as well: He frequently works out and doesn’t eat junk food. He’s also given up weed for the most part, but he tells The Guardian that when he did smoke it, he did so prodigiously. Not only did he hire a buddy to roll his joints for him, he claims he probably smoked more than 25 of them a day. “I was Bob Marley level,” he claims. 

Lenny will likely need all his discipline when he arrives in Sin City for his upcoming residency. He’ll perform shows at Dolby Live at Park MGM in support of his new album, Blue Electric Light.

“It’s always been a great part of entertainment history, and I thought it’d be a great warm-up, a great place to start and present Blue Electric Light to America,” Kravitz tells People.

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Midas Man, the long-in-the-works biopic about late Beatles manager Brian Epstein, is set to open the 2024 Toronto Jewish Film Festival.

The film will premiere Thursday at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema. For more info, visit TJFF.com.

Midas Man stars The Queen’s Gambit‘s Jacob Fortune-Lloyd as Epstein, who became The Beatles’ manager in 1962 after discovering them in their hometown of Liverpool. He continued to work with the Fab Four until his death in 1967 and is often referred to as the “fifth Beatle.”

An Epstein biopic was first announced way back in 2020 and went through multiple directors before finally landing in the hands of British filmmaker Joe Stephenson.

The cast for Midas Man also includes Emily Watson, Eddie Marsan, Jay Leno and Eddie Izzard.

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On This Day, May 30, 1987 …

Rocker David Bowie kicked off his Glass Spider tour in support of his album Never Let Me Down.

The tour was known for its elaborate set design, which included what looked like a giant spider with light-up legs. It was described at the time as “the largest touring set ever.” It took 43 trucks to move and weighed an estimated 360 tons.

Bowie was joined by his old schoolmate Peter Frampton on guitar, as well as dancers that Bowie co-choreographed with Toni Basil.

In addition to songs from Never Let Me Down, the set list included such Bowie classics as “China Girl,” “Fashion,” “Heroes,” “Let’s Dance,” “Fame” and “Modern Love.”

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She’ll get money, babe.

Cher has emerged victorious in a lawsuit against Mary Bono, the widow of Cher’s late ex-husband, Sonny Bono, who died in 1998. Cher’s complaint was that Mary claimed she no longer had to pay Cher her, well, share of song royalties that she was entitled to in her 1978 divorce settlement with Sonny. 

Mary’s claim was based on something called a “termination right,” which allows songwriters and their heirs to get back control of their work even if they gave them away years ago. In 2021, Mary told Cher that she was going to stop paying her the 50% cut of the publishing royalties that she and Sonny had agreed to — royalties that come from Sonny & Cher hits like “The Beat Goes On” and “I Got You Babe.” That’s when Cher sued.

According to court documents obtained by ABC News, in a ruling on Wednesday a judge sided with Cher, saying that her divorce settlement with Sonny overruled the “termination right.” According to the ruling, Cher is owed more than $400,000 in royalties that have accumulated since the 2021 lawsuit began.

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European fans of Heart are out of luck: The band has canceled their European tour, which was set to kick off in June, run through July and include festival appearances, in addition to headlining dates.

The band announced on Instagram that the shows are being scrapped because Ann Wilson has to undergo what’s described as “a time-sensitive but routine medical procedure for which the minimum recovery time is six weeks.” 

Ann added, “I’m okay! Please don’t worry. I do apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. It’s certainly an inconvenience for me. Love & respect always, Ann.”

The band’s upcoming tour of the U.S., which will feature them performing with Cheap Trick, is still on for the time being. Heart is scheduled to perform on a bill with Journey and Def Leppard on July 30, August 2 and August 5.

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We’re less than two weeks away from the release of the new Bon Jovi album, FOREVER, and the first single, “Legendary,” is a hit. Jon Bon Jovi tells ABC Audio why he felt that “Legendary” was the right song to be the album’s first single.

“You know, I think that it just sums up the bumper sticker for where I’m at in my life today,” he says. “‘I’ve got what I want because I got what I need/ A fistful of friends that’ll stand up for me/ And right where I am is where I want to be.’ And I think that pretty much sums it up.”

The song proves that, 40 years later, Bon Jovi can still come up with a hit. But Jon says the music business is quite a different animal than it was when he and the band first started out.

“You know, the rules are changing. And it’s not any better or worse. It’s just different for [a] different generation of people that are coming up now,” notes Jon.

“They have to worry about likes, you know, things like that that are so much different than when I started,” he continues. “It was all really solely about a song. And then, could you perform? That was the criteria.” 

FOREVER is Bon Jovi’s first album since October 2020. Due to Jon’s ongoing vocal issues, the band hasn’t announced any touring plans, but while we’re waiting to see if that happens, you can watch their Hulu documentary, Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story, streaming now.

Disney is the parent company of Hulu and ABC News.

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A run of iconic concert films will screen on AXS TV as part of the cable channel’s summer programming.

Among those being shown are Queen‘s Live at Wembley, Tom Petty‘s Live from Gatorville and Robert Plant‘s Live from the Artists Den, which will air June 29, June 22 and June 1, respectively.

Live at Wembly was recorded during Queen’s record-breaking 1986 performance at the famed London stadium. Live from Gatorville captured Petty’s return to his hometown of Gainesville, Florida, alongside The Heartbreakers in 2006, while Live from the Artists Den was filmed during Plant’s performance alongside his solo Band of Joy group during a 2011 episode of the long-running concert series.

The lineup also includes concert films by Metallica, Aerosmith, Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Fleetwood Mac, ZZ Top, The Doobie Brothers, Elvis Costello, Bon Jovi, Journey, Foreigner and Heart.

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Looks like someone didn’t need any “Help!” spending their money on a unique collectible from The Beatles. 

On the first day of its Music Icons sale at the Hard Rock Cafe New York, Julien’s Auctions sold a 12-string guitar used by John Lennon to record several Beatles classics for a whopping $2.9 million. That makes it the most expensive Beatles guitar ever to sell at auction. The person who bought it purchased it via a telephone bid, the auction house says.

As previously reported, the Framus 12-string Hootenanny acoustic guitar was used by both John and George Harrison to record songs like “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away,” “Girl,” “It’s Only Love,” “I’ve Just Seen a Face,” “Help!” and “Norwegian Wood.” It can also be seen in the movie Help!

Presumed lost for 50 years, the guitar was recently discovered in the attic of a 90-year-old man who once worked as the road manager for the ’60s duo Peter and Gordon. The duo’s Gordon Waller had gotten it from Lennon in 1965 and then passed it along to the road manager.

Other Beatles items sold during the auction’s first day include the band’s RIAA Gold single award for “Hey Jude,” previously owned by Julian Lennon, which went for nearly $32,000, and a copy of the band’s Please Please Me album signed by all four Beatles, which went for $39,000. A guitar played by early Beatles collaborator Tony Sheridan, who worked with them during the very early ’60s, sold for more than $76,200.

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The Police‘s final album, Synchronicity, is being reissued in honor of its 40th anniversary.

The release will be available in a variety of different formats, including six-CD and four-LP sets, on July 26. The most expansive edition boasts 55 previously unreleased tracks, including alternate takes, instrumentals, demos and live recordings.

You’ll also find new liner notes, interviews and previously unseen photographs.

You can preorder your copy now.

Synchronicity was released in 1983 and became The Police’s bestselling album. It’s certified eight-times Platinum by the RIAA and spawned hits including “Every Breath You Take,” “King of Pain” and “Wrapped Around Your Finger.”

The Police went on hiatus in 1984 before breaking up in 1986, making Synchronicity their final album.

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