MUSIC ROUNDUP:
THE LITIGIOUS YEARS
Are Tied Up In The Courts
Music publisher Albert E. Brumley Sons this week settled its federal lawsuit against rapper/producer/mogul Sean "Puffy" Combs over the rapper's use of part of the gospel song, "I'll Fly Away." Terms were not disclosed. Under scrutiny was Combs' Grammy-winning hit "I'll Be Missing You," which blends in eight words from "I'll Fly Away," which Albert Brumley composed in 1929 while picking cotton. Combs said he not only doesn't know how to operate handguns but he also has no clue how to sample other people's recordings.
HOUSTON, WE HAVE A DRUG PROBLEM
Hawaiian prosecutors said they've decided to charge Whitney Houston with a misdemeanor drug charge stemming from a January incident at the Keahole-Kona International Airport. Prosecutors, who will charge Houston with third-degree promotion of a detrimental drug, which is punishable with up to 30 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, will give the pop diva until theOct. 26 arraignment date to voluntarily turn herself in before issuing an arrest warrant. Houston was allegedly holding 15.2 grams of marijuana. No word as to whether Houston will turn herself in, and no confirmation that her attorneys will propose a rehab stint at Hawaii's Camp Takeatoke.
IS HE THE GALLAGHER WHO SMASHES WATERMELONS?
Oasis star Liam Gallagher and actress Patsy Kensit have ended their three-year marriage with a "quickie" divorce, newspaper Britain's Mail reported Sunday. Kensit was granted an undefended "decree nisi" on Friday (9/22) after a judge ruled that the rocker's behavior had been so bad that she could not be expected to remain living with him, the paper said. "Maybe I was too young, but I don't think I'll be marrying again," Gallagher was quoted as saying. "I'm just trying to get on with my life and be a good dad." Liam's older brother and erstwhile bandmate Noel announced that he too was splitting from his wife, Meg Matthews, after three years of marriage. British pop stars interested in the newly single Kensit can apply at her new Web site, NextInLine4Patsy.com.
MAD LOVE, PART 3,406
A man enamored with Linda Ronstadt didn't get to meet her in court but he did get a stalking charge against him dropped. The charge against Bernard Ortiz was dismissed in favor of a restraining order barring him from contact with the singer and her family. "He wanted to have this trial because it would finally be his chance to meet Linda," prosecutor Dan Nicolini said. "When will I be loved?" Ortiz asked the judge, before claiming he had been "hurt so bad."
BUT WILL THE BAND TAKE HIM TO COURT?
Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder was a hit at his first appearance at a political rally Saturday (9/23), opening for Green Party presidential nominee Ralph Nader. Thousands turned out for the event. A few months ago, Vedder gave the Nader campaign a few thousand dollars of his band's money—without their permission. "Basically, I told them the next day, ‘Hey, we donated a few grand to Nader.' I just assumed they'd agree with me," Vedder told The Associated Press. Said one band member under condition of anonymity, "This is another one of Eddie's bone-headed ideas, like that 25-bootleg album thing."
