Classic Hits

Josh Groban has recorded at least one of Billy Joel‘s songs, but now, he’ll actually be playing the part of The Piano Man himself in a new original scripted series from Audible.

The series is called The Miranda Obsession, and it’s based on a true story that was documented in a 1999 Vanity Fair article of the same name. The audio-only series stars The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s Rachel Brosnahan as Miranda Grosvenor, the alias of a real-life Louisiana woman who charmed many famous men in the ’70s and ’80s, simply by talking to them on the telephone.

Born Whitney Walton, “Miranda” would call stars late at night, and was reportedly so alluring that the men she called would fall in love with her, just by hearing her voice. Among the people with whom Walton had phone relationships were Billy, Eric Clapton, Warren Beatty, Bob Dylan, Richard Gere, Peter Gabriel, Robert De Niro, Ted Kennedy, Johnny Carson and many more. 

Billy was reportedly so entranced by Miranda that he considered writing a musical about her.  Others bought her expensive gifts, and, according to Vanity Fair, two of her telephone pals — music producers Quincy Jones and Richard Perry — proposed to her.  Walton died in 2016 at age 74.

In a statement, Brosnahan says, “I was completely captivated by the story of Miranda and her intimate relationships with some of Hollywood’s most powerful male players. Not only did she hold her own, but she curated a fantasy on the other end of the telephone and drew men into her design with words alone.”

In addition to Brosnahan and Josh, The Miranda Obsession series will feature Milo Ventimiglia as Richard Perry, and will premiere on Audible April 28, 2022.

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A Whitney Houston NFT was auctioned this week for $999,999, setting a record for the highest-selling NFT on the Tezos blockchain.

From The Whitney Houston Collection, the NFT is an early, never-before heard, full length song demo that the six-time Grammy winner recorded at just 17 years old, along with a digital video created by 17-year-old artist Diana Sinclair.

“This initial NFT drop is one of many Whitney Houston collections as we continue to tell her story, going behind the scenes and using never-before-seen content from the estate’s archives to celebrate her career, music, and talent in new and creative ways,” Rob Dippold, partner & president of Digital Strategy for Primary Wave Music, said in a statement.

Whitney E. Houston Estate President and CEO Pat Houston loved having Sinclair involved in the project.

“Being able to work with someone as young as Diana, she’s 17 years old. Whitney was 17 years old when she recorded the song. Both come from Newark, both have the same middle name. Whitney had the desire to always help others help themselves, especially young people,” Pat Houston said

“She established the Whitney E. Houston Foundation in 1989 and she had events each year centered around young people, so it was a no brainer when we were introduced to Diana,” Pat continued. “We want to continue Whitney’s legacy, and this is a new art form for her music to be displayed. What better way than to do it with Diana and through the NFT.”

A portion of the proceeds of the auction will go directly to the Whitney E. Houston Foundation, a non-profit that continues the work of the late star of The Bodyguard to empower, support, and inspire young people.

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It can be a fan’s worst nightmare to come across their idol in public and fail to recognize him or her — but in the COVID-19 era where people are masking up, it is a likely reality.  Case in point, one couple didn’t recognize the one and only Cher when she offered to take their photo.

The “Believe” singer posted the photo she took of them on Twitter on Tuesday and joked about the situation. Cher explained that she was “coming out of [a] movie” when she saw a “beautiful couple” posing for photos with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers.

“I said…can I take your Pic…Had my mask on so they didn’t Know Who I was,” the legend noted, and laughed about coming across as “just a crazy woman.”

Of course, it turns out the couple realized their mistake after the tweet went viral and reached out to Cher.

The woman, identified as Syndie, tweeted back, “Omg! That’s me, and it was my birthday! Wow! I can’t believe it!”  She also responded to some incredulous fans who had a hard time believing Cher was that unrecognizable.

When asked why she was unable to recognize Cher’s voice, Syndie explained, “She had a mask on, and when she asked to take our photo, she was far away from us.”  The birthday girl also said the room was dark, but admitted that the way Cher carried herself clued her and her boyfriend in that they weren’t interacting with “an average person.”

Either way, the lovebirds are thrilled that they were able to share a special moment with Cher.  The boyfriend, who goes by the name Tehran Stokes on Twitter, marveled, “This night will certainly be remembered forever.”

Syndie joked back, “If only we could ‘turn back time.'”

When we were coming out of movie I saw beautiful
Couple.He Was taking
Her pic….She had flowers
I said … can I take your
Pic….Had my mask on so they didn’t Know Who I was. MAYBE Just a crazy woman..
THAT ME pic.twitter.com/M02p8I3tCk

— Cher (@cher) December 14, 2021

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Ringo Starr, Joe Walsh and Jeff Lynne are among the more than 40 celebrities featured in the first-ever official video for the late George Harrison‘s chart-topping 1970 hit “My Sweet Lord,” which premiered Wednesday on Harrison’s YouTube channel.

The clip begins with Star Wars great Mark Hamill portraying the head of a clandestine bureau sending one of his agents, played Saturday Night Live alum Fred Armisen, on a quest to find “something out there” that the bureau wants him to see.

Armisen soon teams up with another agent, portrayed ex-SNL cast member Vanessa Bayer, to look for the mysterious “something.”

Along the way, they cross paths or interact with a variety of musicians, actors, comedians and other celebs. In addition to Starr, Walsh and Lynne, the video features appearances by “Weird Al” Yankovic, Jon Hamm, Rosanna Arquette, Patton Oswalt, Reggie Watts, Darren Criss, Taika Waititi, the comedy duos of Tim & Eric and Garfunkel and Oates, and many others. The clip also includes cameos from Harrison’s widow, Olivia, and son, Dhani, who served as an executive producer for the clip.

The “My Sweet Lord” video was written and directed by veteran filmmaker and music video director Lance Bangs, and uses the 2020 mix of the song that’s featured on the deluxe 50th anniversary reissues of George’s classic 1970 solo album All Things Must Pass, which were released this past August.

“Making this was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life,” says Bangs. “The approach was to represent the song visually while these agents and inspectors kept missing the metaphysical wonder around them…George threaded a sense of humor through all of his videos, so we kept that spirit and filled the cast with friends and admirers of his music, many coming from the current comedy landscape.”

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Human remains discovered in 1982 in the Cleveland suburb of Twinsburg, Ohio, have been identified as Frank “Frankie” Little Jr., a one-time guitarist and songwriter for legendary soul/R&B group The O’Jays.

ABC TV affiliate News 5 Cleveland reports that Little was identified thanks to genealogical research conducted by the DNA Doe Project. In 1982, an unidentified skull and, separately, a bag containing additional body parts were discovered behind a closed business in Twinsburg, and the cause of death was determined to be homicide.

Born in Cleveland in 1943 and raised there, Little played guitar and toured with The O’Jays during the mid-1960s, and also co-wrote some of the band’s songs.

O’Jays lead singer Eddie Levert said Little was a sentimental, loving and passionate person. He recalled that Frankie moved with the group to the West Coast, but eventually decided to return to his hometown.

“He could have been a great entity in the music business, but he was in love and love drove him back to Cleveland,” Levert maintained.

While it’s unclear when Little died, detectives believe he was last seen alive around the mid-1970s. DNA from his remains were used to track down potential relatives, and one of those contacted was a cousin named Margaret O’Sullivan, who informed investigators that Frankie had gone missing years ago.

Little’s brother then was contacted, and he supplied a DNA sample that helped confirm the remains’ identity.

Frankie had a daughter who died in 2021, and there’s also a son who hasn’t been located or identified yet, police told News 5.

Twinsburg Detective Eric Hendershott, who has worked on Little’s case, says the next step is to try to figure out details of Little’s murder.

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Here’s wishing a speedy recovery to KISS frontman Paul Stanley, who revealed in a Twitter post that he’s having an operation on his shoulder today.

According to the message, this will be the latest in a series of surgical procedures on his shoulder.

“SHOULDER SURGERY TODAY! How many show related surgeries have I had?? I lost count at EIGHT!!” writes Stanley. “Was it worth it?!? ABSOLUTELY! Judge the value of what of you have by what you sacrificed to achieve that goal. This was a joy-filled BARGAIN.”

Earlier this year, the singer/guitarist weathered a bout with COVID-19 that briefly sidelined KISS’ End of the Road farewell tour. The trek is scheduled to resume next year with an Australian leg that kicks off March 19 in Melbourne.

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Kinks guitarist Dave Davies has written a new autobiography titled Living on a Thin Line that’s scheduled to be released on July 7, 2022, in hardcover and e-book editions.

According to TheBookseller.com, the memoir will feature Dave’s recollections and anecdotes about The Kinks’ heyday, his turbulent relationship with his brother Ray — the band’s lead singer and main songwriter — the group’s legacy and much more.

The book also will include stories about Dave crossing paths with various other music legends, among them John Lennon and Jimi Hendrix.

“I’ve had a laugh, and shed quite a few tears, thinking back over the last six decades since The Kinks had our first hit in 1964 with ‘You Really Got Me,'” says Dave in a statement. “Here are the ups and downs of my life in The Kinks and what happened afterwards. Prepare to be amazed and, I hope, surprised.”

Editor Richard Roper, who acquired the rights to Davies’ book for the Headline Publishing Group, states, “Dave is hands-down one of the greatest musicians to pick up a guitar. His fans will absolutely adore it.”

Dave previously published a memoir titled Kink in 1996, but a post on his Instagram page reports that Living on a Thin Line “is ALL NEW WRITING never before seen in his previous autobiography — a completely new book to enjoy.”

You can pre-order the upcoming book now.

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KISS bassist/singer Gene Simmons says a museum celebrating his famous band currently is being built in Las Vegas at the Rio hotel and casino, which already houses the KISS by Monster Mini Golf attraction.

In a recent phone interview, Simmons told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he expects the museum to open by March 2022.

“[It] is really just my collection, because I’ve got a half-century of KISS stuff,” Simmons he revealed to the newspaper. “I want the fans to see it.”

According to the paper, the museum will be connected to a planned 15,000-square-foot KISS-themed space that includes the mini golf course.

“It’s going to be breathtaking,” Simmons declared. “We have three tractor-trailers full of stuff, and it’s going to be spectacular. The fans are going to dig it. You can play golf, you can have your photo taken, you can take videos of yourself onstage with KISS, and then go visit my private collection.”

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer said that “hundreds and hundreds” of items will be on display, including costumes, stage props, gold and platinum albums and much more.

Meanwhile, Simmons also said he’s hoping to reschedule KISS’ recently canceled Las Vegas residency at Zappos Theater, which was to have run from late December of this year through early February 2022.

Gene explained that he wanted to reschedule the shows in six months or a year, when there aren’t as many artists performing in Vegas.

“With all due respect to other all the other artists who are terrific, and who are great and iconic, we’d rather wait for the traffic to die down and bring the best show on Earth, period,” Simmons told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

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The Rolling Stones‘ No Filter Tour of the U.S. was by far the highest-grossing trek in the world this year, according to new data released by Pollstar, which tracks the live entertainment business.

The Stones, who hit the road just a month after the death of their founding drummer, Charlie Watts, brought in a total of $115.5 million in just 12 concerts that were eligible for consideration.

Pop star Harry Styles is second on the list, grossing $86.7 million over 39 events.

Other veteran artists whose tours landed in the top 10 of the list include Green Day, the Eagles, Dead & Company, Guns N’ Roses, Dave Matthews Band and Phish.

The Hella Mega Tour, featuring Green Day, Weezer and Fall Out Boy, is #3 on the tally, grossing $67.3 million in 20 shows.

The Eagles’ Hotel California 2021 Tour is in fourth place, after bringing in $59.2 million over 23 concerts.

Dead & Company are at #5, grossing $50.2 million, GN’R are at #7 after bringing in $47.3 million, Dave Matthews Band are in eighth place after grossing $46 million, and Phish are #9, with $44.4 million in gross earnings.

Impressively, The Rolling Stones had six of the 10 highest-grossing concert engagements of 2021, with their October 14 and October 17 shows at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles, topping the tally with $18.9 million.

Here’s the full list of Pollstar‘s Top 10 2019 North American Tours:

1. The Rolling Stones — $115.5 million, 516,624 tickets sold
2. Harry Styles — $86.7 million, 669,051 tickets sold
3. “The Hella Mega Tour” — $67.3 million, 659,062 tickets sold
4. Eagles — $59.2 million, 257,584 tickets sold
5. Dead & Company — $50.2 million, 588,658 tickets sold
6. Los Bukis — $49.7 million, 357,343 tickets sold
7. Guns N’ Roses — $47.3 million, 351,339 tickets sold
8. Dave Matthews Band — $46.0 million, 583,399 tickets sold
9. Phish — $44.4 million, 572,626 tickets sold
10. Jonas Brothers — $42.5 million, 528,630 tickets sold

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Duran Duran is about to release their first NFTs, a series of 100 unique digital collectibles created by the Artificial Intelligence program Huxley, which also collaborated with the band on the music video for their recent single, “Invisible.”

Duran Duran’s INVISIBLE Collection of NFTs will be available this Thursday, December 16, at 1 pm ET at the OpenSea platform. The NFTs will be released by the CUB3 compnay in conjunction with Los Angeles-based Gabba Gallery, and are priced at .2 of the Ethereum cryptocurrency.

On Wednesday, December 15, Duran Duran keyboardist Nick Rhodes will take to Twitter Spaces at 1 p.m. to discuss the NFTs.

“Invisible” was released in May as the first advanced single from Duran Duran’s latest studio album, Future Past, and the video premiered at the same time. According to a press statement, to create the “Invisible” video, Huxley “took the concepts that are rooted in human language and iconic symbolism and translated them into provocative and daring imagery.” The images created by Huxley were influenced by the song’s lyrics and emotional tone.

The NFT collection has been curated from images that appear in the video. You can watch the clip on Duran Duran’s official YouTube channel.

Future Past, Duran Duran’s first studio album since 2015’s Paper Gods, was released in October and peaked at #28 on the Billboard 200.

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