RINGO STARR PERFORMS WITH THE BEACH BOYS

Ringo Starr -and his band- and The Beach Boys were booked as headliners for the Ravinia Festival, one of oldest outdoor music festival in the United States.

For his final act though, Ringo had something very special planned to close the show: He invited Mike Love and the band back to the stage for a performance of 1967 Beatles classic ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’.

    

Video.. HERE.

WOODSTOCK 50 MUSIC FESTIVAL WAS OFFICIALLY CANCELED, IT WILL INTEAD HOST SEPARATE SHOWS BY RINGO STARR, SANTANA & THE DOOBIE BROTHERS

The troubled Woodstock 50 anniversary music festival planned for August was officially canceled, with organizers blaming a series of “unforeseen setbacks.”
The three-day festival, meant to mark the 50th anniversary of the famed 1969 celebration of peace and music, was planned for Aug. 16-18.

“Woodstock 50 today announced that the three-day festival to celebrate its 50th anniversary has been canceled,” the organizers said in a statement."We are saddened that a series of unforeseen setbacks has made it impossible to put on the festival we imagined with the great lineup we had booked and the social engagement we were anticipating,” said Michael Lang, one of the original producers of the 1969 event.

The cancellation was widely expected after a troubled five months in which organizers were turned down at two proposed sites in upstate New York, lost funding and headliners including rapper Jay-Z and pop star Miley Cyrus pulled out.Tickets never went on sale for the festival.Organizers last week made a last ditch attempt to put on a free, scaled down event at an amphitheater in Maryland, but several of the 80 or so acts began pulling out despite having already been paid.Lang said in his statement that the smaller event in Maryland would have been aimed at raising funds for non profits fighting climate change and organizations encouraging Americans to vote in the 2020 U.S. general elections. 

Woodstock 50 was first planned for the Watkins Glen motor racing venue in upstate New York, but the site pulled out in June. Organizers then attempted in vain to seek permits in Vernon, New York.The nonprofit Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, the current owner of the field where the 1969 Woodstock festival took place, also scaled back plans earlier this year for a three-day anniversary event. It will instead host separate concerts by Ringo Starr, Santana and the Doobie Brothers.
“My thoughts turn to Bethel and its celebration of our 50th Anniversary to reinforce the values of compassion, human dignity, and the beauty of our differences embraced by Woodstock,” Lang said in his statement.

PAUL MCCARTNEY CONTRIBUTES TO HENRY McCULLOUGH TRIBUTE SINGLE

Paul McCartney has contributed to a new Henry McCullough tribute single (conceived with Don Mescall before Henry's death in 2016.)The highly experienced Irish musician passed away in 2016, following a lengthy career that included a vital contribution to Wings. A tribute single has been arranged to salute his memory, and it features an all-star cast of musicians.

Written by Henry and Don Mescall, 'Live Long Rock 'n' Roll' is a moving tribute to the talents of Henry McCullough, and was recorded by super group "McCullough's Fusiliers", which is made up of: Procul Harum singer Gary Brooker (Vocals), Beatles legend Paul McCartney (Bass), Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason (Drums), legendary English musician Chris Stainton (Keyboards), internationally acclaimed Irish songwriter Don Mescall (Acoustic Guitars), renowned guitarist Albert Lee (Electric Guitars), diverse English musician Paul Carrack & Irish legend Paul Brady (Backing Vocals), and The London Community Gospel Choir (Additional backing vocals).

Henry was the only Irish man to play Woodstock, and I'd just started working with the protest singer Richie Havens - who opened Woodstock. So that opened the door for us becoming friends.

'Live Long Rock 'n' Roll' will be released on 16th August along with the 15 track album of Henry's solo tracks 'Ballywonderland' on the Proper Record Label.