Classic Hits

As we near the date of the upcoming Whitney Houston biopic, a soundtrack for the movie has been released.

RCA Records dropped I Wanna Dance With Somebody (The Movie: Whitney New, Classic and Reimagined) on Friday, featuring 35 songs spanning 20 years of the singer’s career. The nearly two-hour project — a mixture of remixed and original versions of Houston songs — is meant to serve “as a musical memoir of the cinematic voyage,” according to a press release.

“We are thrilled to be releasing the amazing 35-song soundtrack to the Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody film with RCA Records,” Pat Houston, president of Whitney’s estate, said in a statement. “We think the fans will be excited to hear some incredible music they know and love, as well as some new never-before-released tracks, including ‘Far Enough’ and the incredible ‘Don’t Cry For Me,’ which ends the film.”

“This totally unique soundtrack album brings many of Whitney’s classics into 2023 and beyond,” added Houston’s longtime mentor Clive Davis. “Contemporary, current and often scorching, if you love Whitney’s music, you must own this album!”

The I Wanna Dance With Somebody soundtrack includes collaborations with Lucky Daye, BeBe Winans, Clean Bandit, Kygo, SG Lewis, Samaria, Jax Jones, Leikeli47, P2J, Oxlade and Pheelz, with production from Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins and Sam Felt.

The biopic premieres on December 23.

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Dionne Warwick is well aware of comedian Pete Davidson‘s impressive list of girlfriends and wants to know why she hasn’t made the cut.

The legendary singer appeared on The Jennifer Hudson Show, where she called out Davidson for not giving her a passing glance. Warwick, who is 82, predicted in November that she would be dating the Saturday Night Live alum after he parted ways with reality star Kim Kardashian.

When asked if she’s heard from Davidson, the singer lamented, “No, I haven’t.”

“I’m thinking he’s dating everybody else, why not me?” she cracked. 

In addition to Kardashian, Davidson famously dated singer Ariana Grande and is now linked to model Emily Ratajkowski. 

Dionne also expressed interest in cozying up with Leonardo DiCaprio because “he’s a cutie.” 

She also jokingly referenced the rumor claiming DiCaprio only dates women under 25 years of age. She recalled an event where the two crossed paths and noted, “But he didn’t have eyes on me, he had eyes on my granddaughter [26-year-old Cheyenne Elliott].”

Dionne then quipped while wagging a finger, “So I had to get him to understand.” She didn’t say when that run-in took place.

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U2’s Bono and The Edge played an Irish pub this week: Ireland’s Daily World reports they took part in a St. Patrick’s Day special David Letterman was filming in Dublin Thursday.

The rockers were spotted entering the Westbury hotel through the back and were brought to the nearby McDaids pub for a jam session that also included Irish musicians Glen Hansard, Imelda May and Brian Kennedy. Letterman’s crew also reportedly filmed the U2 rockers performing for select guests at the Ambassador Theater Wednesday.

The paper reports the pub was closed down for production and that Letterman had been spotted in Dublin all week filming the Irish-themed show. While the paper didn’t say the filming was for Letterman’s Netflix series, My Next Guest Needs No Introduction, it did say it was expected to run on St. Patrick’s Day on “an American based streaming service.”

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Dino Danelli, drummer for the ’60s group The Rascals, died Thursday at the age of 78. Guitarist Gene Cornish confirmed the news on social media.

“It is with a broken heart that I must tell you of the passing of Dino Danelli,” Cornish shared. “He was my brother and the greatest drummer I’ve ever seen. I am devastated at this moment.”

Cornish said that in recent years Danelli’s health had been failing, and he suffered from coronary artery disease and congestive heart failure. He added Danelli went into a rehab facility this year, where his “condition incrementally grew worse,” noting, “He’d spend every day there until his passing.”

As for his legacy, Cornish write Danelli “has been and continues to be a major influence to generations of drummers who are mesmerized with his original style, impeccable, tasteful playing and heart-stopping showmanship.”

Danelli and Cornish, along with Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati, founded the Young Rascals in 1965. They were known for such hits as “Good Lovin,’” “Groovin’” and “People Got to Be Free.” They changed their name to The Rascals in the late ’60s, with “A Beautiful Morning” their first release under their new name. The tune went to number three on the charts.

Although they broke up in the early ’70s, The Rascals did reunite several times over the years. The last time was in 2012 for a combination concert/theatrical event about the band, The Rascals: Once Upon a Dream, which was produced and directed by E Street band member Steven Van Zandt and his wife, Maureen.

The Rascals were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, with Van Zandt on hand to induct them.

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Tom Petty’s Malibu beach home can be yours, if you have $10 million to spare. The home, which the late rocker owned until his death in 2017, is now on the market.

“When Tom first walked into the home, he just loved the essence and the spirit,” listing agent Chris Cortazzo of Compass tells People. “He loved its originality — it was unpretentious which was very much his spirit. What a luxury for a massive celebrity to walk on the beach and not be bothered.”

The 16,000-square-foot home, which reportedly inspired Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ 2010 song “Something Good Coming,” comes with two bedrooms and a guest house, with direct access to Escondido Beach, 66 feet of beach frontage and views of the Pacific Ocean from the terrace off the living room. 

The whole house has a rustic feel, as does the guest house, which is set up as a music studio.

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The Music Center has rescheduled its tribute to record executive and A&M co-founder Jerry Moss, which was supposed to happen back in February but was postponed, with a new star-studded lineup now confirmed.

Peter Frampton, Amy Grant and Bad Company’s Paul Rodgers are confirmed for Live at The Music Center: Concert Celebrating Jerry Moss, Co-Founder of A&M Records, now happening January 14 at The Music Center’s Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles.

Other artists on the bill include Dionne Warwick and Joe Sumner (Sting‘s son), with special appearances by Herb Alpert, Burt Bacharach and Misty Copeland and prerecorded appearances by Sheryl Crow, Yusuf/Cat Stevens and Sting.

Limited tickets are currently available. They can be purchased here.

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This Saturday, KISS‘ Paul Stanley will be making an appearance at the Wentworth Gallery in Short Hills, New Jersey, to unveil his latest series of paintings and mixed-media works. Stanley, who’s been painting for a decade, wants fans to know that you don’t need a degree to appreciate art.

“I want people to not be intimidated by the arts,” he tells ABC Audio. He notes, “When somebody says, ‘Well, I like that painting, but I don’t know anything about art,’ it’s like, ‘What do you need to know? You like it or you don’t like it.'”

Some of Stanley’s paintings are part of his new “Black Series,” in which he starts out with, not a white canvas, but a black canvas. “[It’s] really interesting because everything comes out from it,” he says. “Whereas most of us are taught to paint on a white canvas, to do it on black means it comes from darkness. And I think that’s great.”

The KISS frontman says his art gives him something that being a rock star doesn’t: less structure.

“A song has to have a key. It has to have lyrics that rhyme,” he explains. “And in terms of art, my sense of color … is based purely upon … aesthetically what pleases me. I like the freedom.”

The day after his appearance, Sunday, is the start of Hanukkah; Stanley, who’s Jewish, says he and his wife, who’s not, celebrate both Hanukkah and Christmas. He considers it very necessary, especially since he “grew up around people with [concentration camp] tattoos on their arms.”

“My duty and obligation as a Jew is the obligation I have to 6 million who were exterminated. So whether my children choose to practice Judaism in their own lives, knowing their heritage and knowing what my background is, is very, very important.” 

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Fans who attended Wednesday night’s concert celebrating the 40th anniversary of R.E.M.’s debut EP, Chronic Town, got quite the surprise. Consequence reports R.E.M.’s Mike Mills and Peter Buck made an appearance at the gig. 

The show took place in R.E.M.’s hometown of Athens, Georgia, and while Mills and Buck were not initially on the bill, they wound up playing with the house band, which featured Black Crowes’ Rich Robinson and Sven Pipien, and Screaming Trees’ Barrett Martin. Songs played include “So. Central Rain” and “Fall on Me.”

The concert was hosted by comedian David Cross and also had several artists, including Darius Rucker, Fred Armisen, Indigo Girls, Patti Smith Group’s Lenny Kaye and Drivin N Cryin’s Kevin Kinney, paying tribute to the band with their own performances of R.E.M. songs.

Another Chronic Town tribute concert happens Thursday in Atlanta. Proceeds from the concerts will be donated to Planned Parenthood.

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Carole King’s life is coming to the big screen. A movie adaptation of Beautiful, the Broadway musical about her life, is in the works, with Normal People’s Daisy Edgar-Jones set to play King and The Kids Are All Right’s Lisa Cholodenko set to direct. 

“Daisy has a spirit and energy that I recognized as myself when I was younger,” King tells Variety. “She’s a tremendous talent and I know she’s going to give a great performance.”

Beautiful opened on Broadway in 2014 and earned actress Jessie Mueller a Tony Award for her portrayal of King. The show, which closed in 2019, tells the story of King’s songwriting career and eventual stardom as a singer, using many of her biggest hits, including “One Fine Day,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “I Feel the Earth Move” and “You’ve Got a Friend,” in the show.

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Duran Duran will be ringing in 2023 in New York’s Times Square. The band is set to perform live on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest 2023.

The new Rock & Roll Hall of Famers have been tapped to play a medley of their classic hits just before midnight, ahead of the ball drop. Other artists performing in Times Square include New Edition, BTS’s J-Hope and Jax.

Other performers helping to celebrate the new year on the show include Fitz & The Tantrums, Maddie & Tae, Shaggy, Ben Platt, Aly & AJ, Halle Bailey, Tomorrow x Together, Bailey Zimmerman, Lauren Spencer Smith, Wiz Khalifa, Finneas, Armani White, Betty Who, Dove Cameron and Nicky Youre.

Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2023 airs live on ABC starting at 8 p.m. December 31.

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