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Music

Richards' injury forces Stones' tour changes

By TIMES WIRES
Published May 25, 2006

The Rolling Stones have postponed the first 15 dates of their European tour as guitarist Keith Richards recovers from a head injury.

Stones publicist LD Communications said Wednesday the European leg of the band's "A Bigger Bang" tour, which had been due to start Saturday in Barcelona, Spain, would now begin in July at a venue and city to be announced.

The postponed gigs were scheduled for Barcelona and Madrid; Brussels; Paris; Bergen, Norway; Horsens, Denmark; Gothenburg, Sweden; St. Petersburg, Russia; Brno, Czech Republic; Warsaw; Vienna; Milan, Italy; Athens, Greece; and Zagreb, Croatia.

The postponement of the two Paris shows on June 3 and July 2 was announced Tuesday by French organizers.

Richards, 62, was injured April 27 in Fiji. News reports variously claimed that he fell out of a palm tree or from a jet ski. Richards later had surgery in New Zealand to relieve pressure in his head.

The Stones' official fan Web site said in a statement Monday that Richards had returned to the United States - he has a home in Westport, Conn. - and was "feeling great."

Elton John gets British newspaper's payoff

Elton John has accepted $188,000 in libel damages from a British newspaper over allegations that he had asked guests not to approach him at a charity ball.

Associated Newspapers Ltd., which publishes the Daily Mail, paid the damages, according to John's attorney, Hanna Basha. The Sunday Times, which reprinted the Mail article, agreed on a confidential settlement earlier this year, Basha said Wednesday.

The allegations surrounded the 59-year-old pop star's behavior at his annual Tie and Tiara charity ball.

The Mail claimed in its June 24 article that John had issued a "bizarre" edict for guests not to approach him.

Streep provides voice for children's classics

Meryl Streep is narrating a pair of children's classics, The Velveteen Rabbit and The Night Before Christmas, that will be released later this year as audiobooks at Starbucks coffeehouses.

"This is continuing our commitment to providing customers with compelling family entertainment titles," Starbucks Entertainment president Ken Lombard told the Associated Press on Tuesday.

The audiobooks feature musical accompaniment by George Winston, the Edwin Hawkins Singers and others. After an initial four-month run at Starbucks, Random House Inc.'s Listening Library will give the recordings a general release.

Starbucks Corp. has been expanding its entertainment offerings over the past few years, releasing CDs by Ray Charles and the Rolling Stones, among others, and promoting the movie Akeelah and the Bee.

[Last modified May 25, 2006, 06:38:54]