DAVID CASSIDY: His final recording hits #1
David Cassidy's final recording has given him a posthumous number-one.
As of Tuesday, Songs My Father Taught Me was the top-selling jazz release on Amazon. Recording sessions for the EP were prominently seen in Monday's A&E documentary, The Final Session.
The four-song EP of such standards as "Night and Day" and "Summertime" was recorded last year. His longtime keyboardist, bandleader and collaborator Craig Snider says, "His dad [Jack Cassidy] was a part of it; he spoke about his dad frequently. [David] wanted to express himself in that language."
Craig Snider talked about the success of David Cassidy's Songs My Father Taught Me:
"It's a complete shock to those of us that worked on it. It's a true labor of love, as you can imagine. The fact that it's out at all is a blessing. And the fact that the fans have responded to it the way they have is fantastic. I'm thrilled for everyone who involved, but I'm really thrilled for David and David's legacy, especially."
David began dropping the occasional show tune or standard into his shows when referring to his father, a Broadway and nightclub star of the '50s and '60s.
Craig Snider said, "We integrated 'Night and Day,' which is one of the songs on the EP, into our set the last couple of years. And we would come out of, you know, a Partridge Family song, and he'd stop He'd tell a little story about his dad. And we'd do that song. And it was just incredible -- people really responded so positively to it."
Though Cassidy and Snider -- who works at Chicago's Mix Kitchen studio -- often tossed the idea around, David didn't begin recording until his heath began to fail during 2017. And he didn't live to see the project completed. Craig says, "His spirit lives on in in the music." Of the six songs planned, only four were recorded -- Snider composed the instrumental "Till We Meet Again" as the final track.
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MICHAEL JACKSON: Daughter scrubs vandalized star
Paris Jackson scrubbed clean the vandalized star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame belonging to Michael Jackson. Unfortunately, the star she attended to was not her father's.
The vandals spray-painted the star belonging to a Los Angeles radio host named Michael Jackson. There's a microphone logo to distinguish that star from Michael Jackson the singer, whose star has a phonograph symbol.
She Instagrammed a photo of her sitting on the dirty city sidewalk, bending over the bronze star. In her hands is a rag soaked in rubbing alcohol purchased from the nearby Walgreens drug store. She captioned it (quote) “Some people have no respect.”
Paris tweeted Wednesday night (quote) “I think it was probably just some young kids [messing] around. I couldn’t just hear about it and not go see it for myself.” She immediately got to work on cleaning off the spray paint.
The anniversary of her father’s death is just 10 days away. Paris, who was 11 at the time, has been incredibly protective of Michael Jackson's memory and legacy. (Daily Mail)
NEIL DIAMOND: Still getting used to not touring
Neil Diamond is still "getting used to" the concept of no longer touring.
The legendary singer songwriter, who'll receive the Songwriter's Hall of Fame's Johnny Mercer AwardThursday night, tells Billboard, "It’s going to be different for me. I’ve been doing it for such a long time and it kind of gets into your bones because it’s an exciting place to be. But life goes on, and we want to make the most of what time we have. I still have a lot of music in me and I want to express it."
Diamond is living with Parkinson's -- but clearly isn't retired. "I'm here in Los Angeles, and I’m writing songs. That’s what I do, and that’s what my focus is now."
Neil says he's "a little numb from" the love he got from fans after disclosing his illness. "I’ve never really experienced anything like that. A standing ovation is not in the same category. I love the fact that I can still do it, that I still love doing it, and I want to keep on doing it for as long as I can."
Diamond will be in New York Thursday night to accept the Johnny Mercer Award, the Songwriting Hall's equivalent of a lifetime achievement award.