NEWPORT FOLK FESTIVAL:
50 Years Since Dylan Went Electric...The Newport Folk Festival at Fort Adams State Park in Newport, Rhode Island this weekend will close with a tribute to its most famous performance.
'65 Revisited will feature an all-star lineup of current artists -- who have yet to be revealed -- paying tribute to Bob Dylan's electric set from 1965. The rest of the festival's lineup is packed with big names as well.
Friday's lineup -- which reveals just how far things have come since then -- includes Roger Waters, Iron and Wine, Ben Bridwell of Band of Horses, The Lone Bellow, Calexico, Leon Bridges and Bahamas.
Saturday promises The Decemberists, Brandi Carlile, Courtney Barnett, Jason Isbell, Nikki Lane and Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear.
And Sunday the festival closes with Hozier, First Aid Kit, Lord Huron and Shakey Graves.
MICK JAGGER: A Stone Rolls in Brooklyn
With The Rolling Stones' Zip Code tour now behind him, Mick Jagger is back to working on his HBO series with director Martin Scorsese. On Twitter, Jagger reports that he stopped by the set in Brooklyn, New York this week, adding that "all is going well" and they are "working on episode six."
The still-untitled rock and roll series, which stars Bobby Cannavale, Ray Romano and Olivia Wilde, is about a record executive in the 1970s who is trying to reinvent his label as disco and punk rock take off. The cast also includes Andrew "Dice" Clay, actress Juno Temple and James Jagger -- Mick's son with Jerry Hall, who'll play the leader of a punk rock band. Mick tells us they are shooting nine episodes through October.
Meanwhile,
KEITH RICHARDS: No Rest for the Wicked
Keith Richards didn't need much of a rest after The Rolling Stones' Zip Code tour ended to get into promotional mode for his upcoming solo album, Crosseyed Heart.
The first single, "Trouble," was released just hours after the tour ended; on Tuesday, Richards held court at an intimate listening party at Electric Lady Studios in New York. He briefly addressed the media before the album was played in its entirety. After shout-outs to his manager and to his main collaborator on the album, Steve Jordan, Richards told those in the room, "I hope you like it enough tonight to go out and buy it!" (Rolling Stone)
NEIL YOUNG: Posts Anti-Monsanto Film
Neil Young this morning posted a 10-minute film on his website and Facebook page that attempts to explain some of what inspired his current album, The Monsanto Years.
Seeding Fear, produced by Young's Shakey Pictures, features Alabama farmer Michael White speaking about how his life has been affected by the agri-business giant.
In a written introductory piece, Young contends that:
+an act currently before Congress would take away people's rights to vote on labeling GMO's in their states.
+both party's presidential frontrunners are "in bed with Monsanto."
+Michael White is "one of only four farmers who is still legally allowed to speak about his case, as all the others have been effectively silenced."
The film features instrumental music by Daniel Lanois, although some of Young's song "Monsanto Years" plays over the end credits.
SAM SMITH: Not Under Pressure
Sam Smith's In the Lonely Hour won him multiple Grammy awards and sold millions of copies, making it one of the most memorable debuts in recent years. But he says he's not concerned about being able to repeat that success.
Sam, who recently kicked off his first round of North American dates since undergoing vocal cord surgery earlier this year, tells the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "I really am not [feeling pressure]. After the second album, people will be nervous about the third. It’s an ongoing thing. If you let things eat you up like this, you’ll never enjoy life. I’m happy. My dreams have come true. All I ask is to be able to document my life till I drop down dead."
Looking ahead, he says, "I want this to be the most honest piece of work I’ve ever done. I want to destroy this idea of celebrity and people being untouchable. We are humans; we are all the same when it comes down to it.”
U2: Bono Throws Shades for Charity
Bono is hoping to improve the eyesight of underprivileged people around the world.
The U2 singer, who was diagnosed with glaucoma 20 year ago, has teamed up with eyewear maker Revo for the "Buy Vision, Give Sight" campaign which hopes to raise $10 million for screening, eyeglasses and other assistance. Revo will donate $10 from each pair of eyeglasses it sells. As part of the partnership Bono will unveil his own line of Revo sunglasses in the fall.
Bono said in a statement that "tens of millions of people around the world with sight problems don't have access to glasses, or even a basic eye test." He called vision a "human right.”
Don’t forget to catch Bob Waugh’s exclusive interview with The Edge and Adam Clayton Saturday morning at 9:00am and again Sunday morning at 10:00am and 7:00pm on 103.1 WRNR.
THIS WEEKEND'S NEW RELEASES
The Rolling Stones’ From the Vault: Hyde Park 1969 is a CD and DVD or CD and Blu-ray set that’s a live companion to the recent Sticky Fingers re-issue.
Roger Waters’ 1992 solo album Amused to Death gets re-issued in multiple formats.
Warren Haynes teams up with Railroad Earth for his latest solo effort, Ashes and Dust.
The Watkins Family Hour’s self-titled debut sees Sara and Sean Watkins of Nickel Creek joined by Fiona Apple, Benmont Tench of The Heartbreakers and more on a set of covers.
Also out are Straight in No Kissin’ from Big Talk, which features The Killers’ Ronnie Vannucci and The Doobie Brothers' 10-CD box set, The Warner Bros. Years 1971-1983.
GOOD TO KNOW
The Grateful Dead's two Fare Thee Well concerts in Santa Clara, California and three in Chicago grossed a total of $52.2-million. It was also the biggest musical pay-per-view event of all time with more than 400,000 cable or satellite subscriptions and online streams.
