Bob Neuwirth, Folk Figure of 1960s and Beyond, Influence on Bob Dylan and Co-Writer of ‘Mercedes Benz,’ Dies at 82

Randy Lewis Where to begin in assessing the multi-faceted life and career of Bob Neuwirth, the singer, songwriter, visual artist, mentor, creative catalyst, restless collaborator and provocateur who died May 18 in Santa Monica at 82?As good a starting point as any comes from three longtime friends and collaborators who agreed to share their reflections on Neuwirth’s legacy with Variety: multiple Grammy-winning  producer-songwriter-guitarist-singer T Bone Burnett, producer, songwriter, singer and multi-instrumentalist Steven Soles and multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer David Mansfield.Typical of so many artists whose paths intersected with Neuwirth’s, the threesome entered his circle independently, but once there found common ground with one another. With significant credit going to his frequent role as instigator, they came together as the critically acclaimed Alpha Band in the late 1970s, and subsequently moved on to prolific solo careers.

has publicly battled Alzheimer’s disease since 2016, appeared to be relaxed and in good spirits, sporting a blue tracksuit and escorted by an aide near some of the park’s many horses and carriages. No stranger in paradise, the Queens-born entertainer, who has lived in a sun-drenched, penthouse apartment overlooking Central Park for 25 years, was seen walking without a wheelchair in April with Benedetto, 55, on Easter Sunday, taking selfies with fans — who recognized the star even with a face mask on. On Wednesday, the “Stranger in Paradise” singer proudly expressed his support for Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month, smiling in a purple plaid shirt alongside Benedetto and holding up a sign that read #EndAlz in a post shared with his 170,000 fans on Twitter. “Susan and I are going purple with the @alzassociation to raise awareness for a disease that is impacting our family and many of yours. We hope you join us and #GoPurple,” the musician shared. June is Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month.

Eileen Davidson (The Young and the Restless), Loretta Devine (Grey’s Anatomy) and Vince Van Patten (7 Days to Vegas) are among the latest actors to join second chapter of Peacock’s original series Days of Our Lives: Beyond Salem.

The Band, has died aged 87.The news was confirmed by his wife Wanda, revealing that Hawkins died early yesterday morning (May 29). Talking to CBC, Wanda said: “He went peacefully and he looked as handsome as ever.”Born in Arkansas, Hawkins’ music career kicked off when he moved to Ontario, Canada in the early 1960s, forming his group The Hawks, which featured Robbie Robertson, Rick Danko, Garth Hudson and other members who would go on to perform alongside Bob Dylan and then eventually form The Band, of whom Hawkins was an early mentor.Leading the tributes to his former bandmate, Robbie Robertson posted a message on Twitter after the news of Hawkins’ death broke, in which he wrote: “My heart sank when I heard “The Hawk” just flew into the sunset. The story of The Band began with Ronnie Hawkins.

Bo Hopkins, known for his roles in "American Graffiti," "The Wild Bunch," and "Midnight Express" died on Saturday. He was 84. A marquee on the actor’s self-titled website confirmed his death with the announcement: "It is with great sadness that we announce that Bo has passed away.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorAngel Olsen has released a gorgeous cover of Bob Dylan’s “One Too Many Mornings” as part of the soundtrack for the Apple TV+ series “Shining Girls,” with all of Olsen’s proceeds from the streaming royalties of the song going to Everytown for Gun Safety, which is billed as the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country, a nonprofit that advocates for gun control.The song is included on the album’s soundtrack but not on Olsen’s stellar forthcoming album, “Big Time,” which was produced by Jonathan Wilson (Lana Del Rey, Billy Strings, Father John Misty) and arrives next week.The “Shining Girls” score and Olsen’s Dylan cover were produced by Claudia Sarne; the series stars and was executive produced by Elisabeth Moss. According to the announcement, Olsen was handpicked by Elisabeth Moss to record the song, which is featured in the show’s finale episode set to air Friday, June 3.

Angel Olsen has covered Bob Dylan’s 1964 classic ‘One Too Many Mornings’ – listen below.Olsen’s gentle reimagining of the track appears on the soundtrack to the Apple TV+ series Shining Girls (starring Elisabeth Moss).The album features selections of the show’s original music composed by Claudia Sarne, with Olsen’s cover appearing as the third track on the record.Based on the novel by Lauren Beukes, Shining Girls follows Kirby Mazrachi (Moss) as a Chicago newspaper archivist who is the survivor of a traumatic assault. When she learns of a recent murder that’s linked to her case, she teams up with journalist Dan Velazquez (Wagner Moura) to understand her blurred reality and uncover the killer’s identity.In a four star review of the series, NME said: “Its mystery is a huge part of its charm, and you’ll be gripped till the very last minute, anxious to see how all the pieces of the jigsaw come together.”In other news, Angel Olsen shared her new single ‘Through The Fires’ earlier this month. The song is taken from her forthcoming new album ‘Big Time’, which is set for release on June 3 via Jagjaguwar.

Shirley Halperin Executive Editor, MusicVeteran music promoter, filmmaker and venue owner Peter Shapiro is lifting the curtain on a career that spans 10,000 concerts. “The Music Never Stops: What Putting on 10,000 Shows Has Taught Me About Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Magic,” will be released by Hachette Books on August 2.Described as “perhaps the most notable independent concert promoter since Bill Graham,” a sentiment shared by Steven Van Zandt and others in advanced praise for the book, Shapiro is known for his long-standing relationship with the Grateful Dead and its myriad offshoot projects.His roots in the scene go back to when he acquired and ran jam band destination the Wetlands in downtown Manhattan — while still in his 20s — to opening Brooklyn Bowl and expanding the franchise to Las Vegas, Philadelphia and Nashville, to staging the Grateful Dead’s 50th anniversary “Fare Thee Well” tour, featuring the co-founders Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann with Phish’s Trey Anastasio.

Bob Dylan has re-recorded his 1963 classic ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’ for an upcoming auction facilitated by Christie’s.The re-recording – which will be available on a one-of-one Ionic Original format disc – marks the first time in 60 years that Dylan has re-recorded the song, which was written in 1962 and released as part of the album ‘The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan’. It will be auctioned off in London on July 7.Per a Pitchfork report, the re-recording will go for an estimated bid between £600,000 and £1,000,000.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticA new recording of Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind” produced by T Bone Burnett and manufactured as a one-of-a-kind disc in a unique format will be sold at Christie’s in London on July 7, with an estimated value of 600,000-1 million pounds, the auction house announced Wednesday.It’s being described as Dylan’s first studio recording of what is possibly his most famous song since he originally released the folk anthem in 1962. The singular disc, in the acetate-like Ionic Recording format, appears to be autographed by both Dylan and Burnett on one side, and comes in a wooden case that marks it as a “one-of-one.”In late April, Burnett announced that he had gone into the studio with Dylan cut a full album of the legend re-recording his classic material for his new company, NeoFidelity Inc, and its Ionic Originals format, which he described as a new development in analog technology.

the New York Times obit, he helped put the band together for Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue tour (a tour immortalized in a documentary from Martin Scorsese, where Neuwirth appears).Dylan biographers have pointed to Neuwirth as directly influencing Dylan’s persona and Dylan wrote about him in his book “Chronicles: Volume One” (via the NYT): “Like Kerouac had immortalized Neal Cassady in ‘On the Road,’ somebody should have immortalized Neuwirth. He was that kind of character.

NEW YORK -- Roger Angell, a famed baseball writer and reigning man of letters who during an unfaltering 70-plus years helped define The New Yorker’s urbane wit and style through his essays, humor pieces and editing, has died. He was 101.Angell died Friday of heart failure, according to The New Yorker.Heir to and upholder of The New Yorker’s earliest days, Angell was the son of founding fiction editor Katharine White and stepson of longtime staff writer E.B. White.

BNN Bloomberg reported. The event was held in collaboration with car auction firm RM Sotheby’s.The automobile in question was an ultra-rare 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé, one of only two ever manufactured.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticSinger-songwriter Allison Russell, who is on a streak of awards-show nominations and wins with her “Outside Child” album, won two top awards, artist of the year and song of the year, at Wednesday night’s International Folk Music Awards.The program was held as the kickoff to the Folk Alliance International Conference in Kansas City, MO.Song of the year went to Crys Matthews for “Changemakers.” Matthews performed at the two-hour show, as did the group Isaac Cates & Ordained and nominees Diana Jones and John Smith.Russell has kept up a busy awards calendar. Over the weekend, she had been in her native Canada to pick up a Juno Award for best contemporary roots album. Monday, she was announced as being tied for a leading number of nominations — three — for the Americana Honors, where Russell will be up for artist, album and song of the year at a ceremony to be held in Nashville in September.

Bob Dylan, has died at the age of 82.Neuwirth’s partner Paula Batson confirmed to Rolling Stone that he passed away yesterday (May 18) in Santa Monica, California.“On Wednesday evening in Santa Monica, Bob Neuwirth’s big heart gave out,” Neuwirth’s family said in a statement. “Bob was an artist throughout every cell of his body and he loved to encourage others to make art themselves.

Post Malone is opening up about the legendary musician who slid into his DMs!

Post Malone has claimed in a new interview that he and Bob Dylan have recently struck up a friendship.The rapper/singer disclosed the information during a new interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, which aired in the US yesterday (May 12).After a brief video clip of a teenage Malone covering Dylan was screened to the audience, Fallon asked Malone if he had yet had the chance to meet the legendary singer/songwriter.“I have not met Bob Dylan,” Malone told Fallon. “But we have been – I don’t know how much I’m at liberty to discuss.