US-MUSIC Summary

Reuters – 52 minutes ago

Michael Jackson wrongful death trial set to get underway Monday

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The civil trial over the death of Michael Jackson is set to get formally underway next week after jury selection was completed on Tuesday in the $40 billion case that pits the pop star's mother against concert promoters AEG Live. Six alternate jurors were chosen on Tuesday following the selection a day earlier of a jury of six men and six women for what is expected to be an emotional three-month trial.

Singer Lauryn Hill gets reprieve on tax evasion sentencing

NEWARK (Reuters) - Grammy Award-winning singer Lauryn Hill was given a two-week reprieve on her sentencing for federal tax evasion on Monday as a federal judge admonished her defense counsel for failing to come up with most of the tax money promised prior to her scheduled hearing. Hill, a solo artist and a member of the Fugees rap trio, pleaded guilty in June 2012 to failure to file federal tax returns from 2005-2007, when she earned $1.8 million. She faces up to a year in prison for each charge.

Backstreet Boys get Hollywood star ahead of world tour

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Boy band the Backstreet Boys - now all grown men - on Monday marked their 20th anniversary and their upcoming world tour by getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. "Backstreet is Back ... and we aren't going anywhere," Nick Carter, 33, told fans as all five members of the 1990s band gathered to unveil their star - located right next to another popular boy band, Boyz II Men.

Folk musician Richie Havens dead at 72

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - U.S. folk musician Richie Havens, who opened the historic 1969 Woodstock musical festival and energized the crowd with his version of "Motherless Child/Freedom," died of a heart attack on Monday at the age of 72, his talent agency said. Havens, who emerged from the New York folk scene in the 1960s and went on to sing for the Dalai Lama and President Bill Clinton, died at his home in Jersey City, New Jersey, Roots Agency President Tim Drake told Reuters.

Ailing Glen Campbell done touring but will release new album

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Country singer Glen Campbell is set to release what could be his final album as the "Rhinestone Cowboy" singer's health has deteriorated after being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease two years ago. "See You There," which will be released on July 30, features Campbell singing new versions of old songs, including hits "Galveston, "True Grit" and "Gentle on My Mind," record company Surfdog said on Monday.

Frankfurt, Kaufmann, Stemme top opera honors

LONDON (Reuters) - Frankfurt Opera was crowned the world's best opera company on Monday at the inaugural International Opera Awards which were set up to promote opera to a wider audience as it comes under increasing financial pressure. The award was one of 21 prizes announced at a ceremony in central London to kick off "The Operas", annual awards set up by Opera Magazine and British businessman Harry Hyman.

Gilberto Gil takes roadtrip to find musical origins in "Viramundo"

NYON, Switzerland (Reuters) - Noted Brazilian musician Gilberto Gil, who says that struggle has been a counterpoint to his successful musical life, takes a road trip in the film "Viramundo" to seek out his musical origins in Brazil, Africa and Australia. The documentary by Swiss filmmaker Pierre-Yves Borgeaud, which uses the lens of indigenous communities struggling to preserve their cultural identity after colonial rule, premiered on Saturday night at the "Visions du Reel", an international documentary festival in Nyon, Switzerland.

Australian rock singer Chrissy Amphlett dies at 53

CANBERRA (Reuters) - Rock singer Chrissy Amphlett, who fronted the Australian group the Divinyls best known for the worldwide hit "I Touch Myself", has died in New York at the age of 53 after battling breast cancer and multiple sclerosis. Her husband and former Divinyls drummer Charley Drayton said Amphlett died in her sleep, surrounded by close friends and family.

British band ELO marks 40th anniversary with live album, new songs

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Jeff Lynne and his Electric Light Orchestra, the British rock group that mixed electric guitars with classical cellos, violins and woodwind, are celebrating their 40th anniversary with new material and a slew of album re-issues. The band had a string of hits in the 1970s and 1980s like "Evil Woman," "Strange Magic" and "Mr. Blue Sky." But by the late 1980s it had run its course, and Lynne had teamed up with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty to form another supergroup, The Traveling Wilburys.

Rocker Jack White's Nashville store offer "do-it-yourself" records

NASHVILLE (Reuters) - Rock musician Jack White celebrated Record Store Day on Saturday by giving customers a chance to record their own voices on vinyl on a vintage machine at his record shop near downtown Nashville. White, who has embraced vinyl over digital both as an artist and as the head of Third Man Records in Nashville, treated customers to a Voice-O-Graph, a record booth from 1947.