Sugarland Announces Free Show
Country duo Sugarland will return to Indiana for a free concert to honor those lost in the Aug. 13 Indiana State Fair accident, according to the band’s website. Seven people lost their lives at the fair when a gust of wind blew over the stage rigging just before Sugarland was set to perform.
The free show will be on Oct. 28, at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis and will feature Sugarland’s full band plus special guests (to be announced). The show will be the final stop of their 2011 Incredible Machine Tour, and free tickets will be available to the public starting Oct. 15.
People who purchased tickets to the original August show will have first choice of seating starting Oct. 10, and fans with “Sugarpit” (near the stage) seats will still have that option. Contributions to the Indiana State Fair Remembrance Fund will be accepted throughout the night.
‘Pianist to the Presidents’ Passes
Renowned pianist Roger Williams passed away Saturday, Oct. 8, of complications from pancreatic cancer, according to the Washington Post. He was 87.
For four weeks in 1955, Williams topped the Billboard charts with his rendition of “Autumn Leaves,” the only piano instrumental to ever reach No. 1. He followed up with a string of hits including “Born Free,” “Lara’s Theme,” and “The Impossible Dream,” and went on to earn a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Playing everything from jazz to classical, he became a favorite of the White House, playing for every president from Harry Truman to George H.W. Bush, earning him the nickname ‘Pianist to the Presidents.” His last performance at the People’s House was a luncheon in 2008 for former First Lady Laura Bush.
Williams is survived by his daughters, Laura Fisher and Alice Jung, and five grandchildren.
Yoko Ono Lights Peace Tower
Sunday, Oct. 9, in honor of what would have been John Lennon’s 71st birthday, Yoko Ono turned the Imagine Peace Tower back on, according to a live stream of the events at www.imaginepeacetower.com. The tower, located on Videy Island, Iceland, is a beam of light shooting up approximately 12,000 feet, projected from a base that reads “Imagine Peace.”
Ono lit the tower for the first time in 2007 and it remains lit for certain parts of the year. This year it will stay lit from now until the anniversary of Lennon’s death Dec. 8, again from Dec. 21 to 28, for New Year’s Eve, and again for a week in March.
On the Imagine Peace Tower website, Ono wrote, “I hope the IMAGINE PEACE TOWER will give light to the strong wishes of World Peace from all corners of the planet and give encouragement, inspiration and a sense of solidarity in a world now filled with fear and confusion.”
Joe Bonamassa Tour Returns to the US
American blues-rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa is in the midst of a European tour in support of his 11th full-length release “Dust Bowl” according to his website.
The fourth-generation musician will bring his full band featuring Carmine Rojas (bass), Rick Melick (keys), and Tal “The Animal” Berhman (drums) back to the United States for two months of coast-to-coast touring starting Oct. 25 at the State Theater in Minneapolis, Minn.
Look for Bonamassa to cover his classics as well as new material from his forthcoming album “Don’t Explain,” a collaboration between him and Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Beth Hart.
Bonamassa picked up the guitar at age 4, by 7 he was playing Jimi Hendrix note for note, at 11 he was mentored by guitar great Danny Gatton, and at age 14 opened for blues legend B.B. King.
Compiled by Stacy Fogarty.
