June 11, 2004

Ray Charles Dies At Age 73

Ray Charles died today (June 10) at his Beverly Hills, Calif., home from complications relating to liver disease. He was 73. The R&B legend was surrounded by family and friends at the time of his death, according to a spokesperson for the artist.

Charles, who made his last public appearance April 30, when his recording studio was designated a historic landmark by the city of Los Angeles, had been sidelined from performing by a hip ailment since August 2003.

At the time, Charles canceled all of his scheduled 2003 tour dates to undergo aggressive treatment for acute hip discomfort. It marked the first tour cancellation in the artist’s 53 years of live performance. “It breaks my heart to withdraw from these shows,” Charles said at the time. “All my life, I’ve been touring and performing. It’s what I do.”

Twice it was thought he was on the mend and would return to the road. When shows scheduled in March were canceled in late February, Charles’ representative at the William Morris Agency told Billboard.com he was expected to kick off a big band tour this month.

Source Billboard.com.

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The Source Fined For Publishing Eminem Lyrics

A federal judge found The Source magazine in contempt for violating a court order not to publish alleged “racist lyrics” from a tape made by Eminem in his teen days.

U.S. District Judge Gerard Lynch issued a temporary restraining order in December 2003 barring The Source from publishing any lyrics from the recording. However, in violation of this order, the magazine’s website, thesource.com, published the full lyrics in a flashy homepage presentation.

In a pair of rulings made public Wednesday, Lynch ordered The Source to pay legal fees to Shady Records Inc., Eminem’s label. However, the judge denied Shady Record’s request to fine the magazine thousands of dollars because the magazine responded quickly to a cease and desist order from Em’s lawyers to remove the lyrics in January.

A lawyer for The Source spoke to the New York Times and defended the magazine’s publication of the lyrics saying, “The Source had every right to publish the material it did release to inform the public about who Eminem is.”

Source SOHH.com.

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Austin City Limits Fest Lineup Announced

Organizers have confirmed the initial list of artists who will perform during the 2004 Austin City Limits (ACL) Music Festival. Set for Sept. 17-19 in the Texas capital’s Zilker Park, the event will showcase more than 130 acts representing many genres on eight stages.

The third annual event will feature sets by Sheryl Crow, Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio, Dashboard Confessional, Ben Harper, Jack Johnson, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Modest Mouse, Big Head Todd & the Monsters, Solomon Burke, Franz Ferdinand, the Beta Band and reunited modern rock act the Pixies.

Among the newly announced acts is hip-hop collective the Roots and modern rock acts Wilco, Cake, Gomez, Broken Social Scene, My Morning Jacket, the Soundtrack Of Our Lives, Calexico, the Killers, Cat Power, Sloan and Spoon. Along with scene godfather Anastasio, such artists as Medeski Martin & Wood, the North Mississippi Allstars and Particle will represent the jam band contingent, while reggae acts the Wailers and Toots & the Maytals are also on board.

Singer/songwriters will also have a substantial presence, with the likes of Pat Green, Mindy Smith, Josh Rouse, Patty Griffin, Ben Kweller, Howie Day, Neko Case, Joe Ely, Jack Ingram, Donavon Frankenreiter, Shelby Lynne, Kelly Willis, Bruce Robison and Butch Hancock all due to appear.

Among a host of veteran artists confirmed for this year’s festival are Walter “Wolfman” Washington, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Solomon Burke, the Blind Boys of Alabama, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, the Holmes Brothers and noted blues belter Marcia Ball.

The full list of confirmed acts can be found at the ACL Music Festival Web site.

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