MUSIC NEWS: TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2015
TOM JONES - MEMOIR
At the age of 16, Tommy Woodward was a high school dropout with a wife and child. Eight years later, the world knew him as Tom Jones and the song ``It's Not Unusual'' was climbing the charts. Jones outlines how he got there in his new autobiography, ``Over The Top And Back,'' out next week. The book will outlines Jones' humble beginnings in a coal mining family in Wales, his rise to fame and the bumps along the way.
---
ALLEN TOUSSAINT - MEMORIAL
Allen Toussaint will get a New Orleans send-off this week. Jasminne Navarre of Rhodes Funeral Home says the Orpheum Theatre in New Orleans will host three hours of music in Toussaint's honour on Friday morning after three hours of visitation. The lineup of performers has not yet been announced.
Toussaint's burial will be private. Rather than flowers, his family has requested donations to New Orleans Artists Against Hunger and Homelessness. Toussaint died of a heart attack in Spain last week.
---
SARA BAREILLES - ROOTS
NEW YORK (AP) -- With her fourth album, Sara Bareilles is finally introducing herself. Bareilles says she pulled from the oldest part of herself for the album, ``What's Inside: Songs From Waitress.'' Bareilles calls it ``the part that got suppressed as I was a young singer-songwriter in L-A and just barely getting a foothold.'' The album includes her versions of the songs that will be used in the Broadway production based on the film ``Waitress.'' Bareilles is a big fan of musical theatre and can be a quirky musician, but she suppressed that to make a good first impression in her early days. She says, ``Now, it's like the gloves are off.''
---
CHRIS STAPLETON - CHARTS
Chris Stapleton stays in the number-one spot on the Billboard album chart with his ``Traveller'' album. Stapleton moved another 124-thousand units in the past week. Stapleton hit the top position after his breakout performance with Justin Timberlake at the Country Music Association Awards two weeks ago. Eric Church's ``Mr. Misunderstood'' is second, and Ellie Goulding is third with ``Delirium.''
---
PARIS-ATTACKS-BATACLAN
The owners of the Paris concert hall where Eagles of Death Metal were performing when three attackers opened fire on Friday are asking people to stay away for now. The owners of the Bataclan tweet that no words can express their grief after the tragedy and they're grateful for people sending their support. They say they understand that people will want to gather at the site to pay their respects, but authorities still need to work on site. U-2 were among the people who left flowers on the pavement outside the Bataclan over the weekend. Eighty-nine people were killed in the club.
---
PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL
Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Barbra Streisand and James Taylor are among those who will receive the highest civilian honour in the U-S. The White House says they will be recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Conductor Itzhak Perlman, composer Stephen Sondheim and director Stephen Spielberg will also be given the honour. The ceremony will be November 24th at the White House.
---
DIXIE CHICKS - TOUR
The Dixie Chicks will bring their tour to North America. They will kick off the U-S leg of the tour June 1st in Cincinnati and hit 40 cities including Toronto and Vancouver. They will do a European tour beginning in April.
---
PATTI LABELLE - SWEET POTATO PIE
The hottest item in Walmart is Patti LaBelle's sweet potato pie. On Thursday, a customer named James Wright posted a video on YouTube of himself eating a slice of the pie and doing a dead-on impression of LaBelle singing. His video got a million hits in just a few days, and Walmart sold an average of a pie a second over the weekend. Walmart Vice-President Kerry Robinson says the company has moved even its Christmas supply of the pie into stores, and it will take about two-million pounds of sweet potatoes to keep up with demand. LaBelle called Wright after hearing about Wright and has posted his video on her social media.
---
MARY J. BLIGE - ASKING QUESTIONS
Mary J. Blige wishes Michael Jackson or Janet Jackson had been on the radio when she was growing up to let her know they dealt with the same kind of problems she did. That's why Blige is doing a show for Apple's Beats 1 called ``Real Talk.'' She says it's a show about emotional connections and she will be the ear for those who have no one to talk to. Demi Lovato will be her guest this week, talking about her past struggles and how she's overcome them. Blige is now in an unusual position: she's the interviewer instead of the one answering the questions. Blige says after years of interviewers having no creativity with their questions, she's now trying to come up with the ones that make her guests say, ``Why didn't I think that?'' ''Real Talk`` runs every other Sunday at 2 P-M Eastern on Beats 1.
---
CONCERT - RACE RELATIONS
Pharrell Williams says communities torn apart by race don't need another song -- they need action. Williams is one of the performers for the ``Shining A Light'' concert that will tape tomorrow in Los Angeles and be shown on A-and-E on Friday. Other performers include John Legend, Alicia Keys, Bruce Springsteen, Smokey Robinson, Zac Brown Band, Eric Church, Miguel, Pink, Tom Morello, Aloe Blacc, Big Sean, Nick Jonas, Ed Sheeran and Sting.
Legend says it's not enough for them to come together and play songs, but to have important conversations as a nation about pain and mistrust.
---
ROGER WATERS - ``THE WALL'' - REVISITED
Roger Waters is revisiting ``The Wall'' to make it less about him and more about anyone affected by war. The D-V-D ``Roger Waters The Wall'' is part concert film and part road trip as Waters visits for the first time his grandfather's grave in northern France and a memorial garden marker bearing his father's name in southern Italy. Waters asked fans to send him their stories about loved ones who died in wartime. Waters says he knows there will be people who will want him just to shut up and play the music, but he wants to start a conversation about war and its effects. ``Roger Waters The Wall'' comes out December 1st.
---
``THE VOICE'' - TOP 12 PERFORM
A hymn might seem like an odd song choice for ``The Voice.'' But Blake Shelton says it was just what we needed.
Team Adam's Jordan Smith did ``Great is Thy Faithfulness.'' Shelton says it was a ``beautiful'' performance in light of the Paris terrorist attacks. Jordan had the crowd and all four coaches on their feet. Pharrell Williams' urged those watching at home to buy the song on iTunes. Tonight, R. City performs with Adam Levine before someone is sent home.
---
PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL
What does Barbra Streisand have in common with the late Yogi Berra? Before you come up with some lame joke, we'll tell you. They are both among those who will be honoured with the nation's highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Streisand and Berra _ who died in September _ join Steven Spielberg, Gloria and Emilo Estefan, James Taylor and Willie Mays on the list of this year's honorees. The medal recipients will be recognized by President Barack Obama at a ceremony set for Nov. 24th.
---