Music Biz Headlines, July 4, 2018

By Kerry Doole

London exhibition explores Michael Jackson as inspiration

 A new art exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery depicts Jackson as a savior, a saint, an entertainer, an icon, a monarch, a mask and a mystery  – Jill Lawless, AP

‘It was electric’ — Musicians share their top Massey Hall memories before it closes

It’s not a farewell, just a happy/sad “see ya soon.” But it’s still going to feel pretty weird when it finally sinks in, after Canada Day, that the beloved Toronto live venue Massey Hall will really, truly not be opening its doors again for at least two years  – Ben Rayner, Toronto Star

Nick Lowe is back, swinging harder than ever

With a new EP, Nick Lowe is swinging hard again, and that’s good news for a couple of generations of fans who value the “roll” in rock ’n’ roll – Greg Kot, Chicago Tribune

Guitar royalty bring their Masters of the Telecaster concert to D.C. at last

The show featured guitar greats  Jim Weider, G.E. Smith and Tom Principato, all playing the famed Telecaster at the City Winery –Geoffrey Himes, Washington Post

Novel is an homage to Canadian jazz legend Oscar Peterson

Montreal writer Mauricio Segura’s magic realist novel Oscar is an intriguing investigation into the life of one of Canada’s most iconic musicians, Oscar Peterson  – Robert Collison, Toronto Star

New Ontario government puts brakes on anti-scalping law

No end in sight for sky-high markups, analysis of summer concerts shows –  CBC

Another side of Amy Winehouse: intimate photographs by her friend Blake Wood

Photographer Blake Wood met the singer in 2008 at the height of her success. They became close friends, and his previously unseen portraits reveal a more carefree side to the troubled star – Tim Lewis, The Observer

Thirty years since the second summer of love

Three decades after acid house exploded on the UK club scene, Sharon Walker and her fellow ravers remember the blissed-out spirit of 1988 and the second summer of love –The Guardian

Wild weather, wicked music

Florida Georgia Line was among the acts who didn't give in to downpour at Dauphin's Countryfest –  Erin Lebar, Winnipeg Free Press

‘Domo arigato’: Mr. Roboto’s redemption is at hand as Styx revives their Eighties hit

Dennis DeYoung describes it as an “experiment” that turned out “more cataclysmic than it needed to be.” Styx hasn’t performed the full song on stage in decades, until now  – Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail

‘Ode to Joy’ has an odious history. Let’s give Beethoven’s most overplayed symphony a rest

One classical work, in particular, has an uncanny, seductive power to become exactly what its fans want it to be – John Terauds, Toronto Star

His new mission is trying to get the Mormon faith to be more inclusive for the LGBTQ community. The focal point of his efforts, the LoveLoud music festival, is the subject of “Believer,” a documentary on HBO – Rick Bentley, Tribune News Service

Jon Hassell at 81: Visionary composer-trumpeter reflects on a half-century of music on his own terms