Robin Gibb: Music stars pay tribute to Bee Gees singer - BBC News
Singer Cliff Richard, a friend of Robin Gibb, said it was a sad day
Stars of the music industry have been paying tribute to Bee Gees singer Robin Gibb, who has died at the age of 62.
Sir Cliff Richard said the singer's legacy of songs with the group, including Tragedy and Jive Talkin' was "stunningly good".
Lyricist Sir Tim Rice said Gibb, who had cancer, was "a charming man".
"I saw him only a couple of weeks ago," he said. "He wasn't at all well but was putting up a marvellous fight. It's a terrible loss for the music industry."
Robin Gibb formed the Bee Gees with brothers Barry and Maurice. They were among the most successful pop groups and songwriting teams of all time, with hits spanning five decades.
They scored nine US number one singles and five chart-toppers in the UK.
Sir Cliff said: "We are a fraternity of people who sing pop and rock and Robin is another one of us who's gone too soon, too early.
"So the legacy will be what the Bee Gees did, which was stunning, stunningly good stuff - right on a par with the Beatles."
Former Beatle Ringo Starr told the BBC: "Robin will be remembered as a musician and as a singer and part of The Bee Gees. The legacy they'll leave behind is Stayin' Alive, the harmonies and the songs that they've written."
Singer Dionne Warwick, whose biggest hit Heartbreaker was written by the Gibb brothers, said of Robin: "He was wonderful. He was a jokester.
"He had an incredibly witty sense of humour and was fun to be around. All three of them were sensational gentlemen first, just fun loving guys."
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End Quote Paul Gambaccini BroadcasterThe Bee Gees are second only to Lennon and McCartney as the most successful songwriting unit in British popular music”
She touched upon the family members' close bond, adding: "I think what was most attractive to me was how grounded they were.
"I think a lot of it has to do with their sense of family and being together as a family. That is very important, to be connected. They loved each other very strongly and showed it, and it was a joy."
The trio also penned Islands In The Stream for Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton, a hit which featured on Rogers' 1983 album Eyes That See In The Dark.
"Robin was a part of something unique," said Rogers in a statement. "The sound of the Bee Gees was so specific and dominating, especially in the 70s - unlike anything that had ever happened before or will ever happen again.
"Mostly, Robin was a good guy who didn't deserve to die this young. We will all miss him for what he was as a person and what he brought to music."
John Travolta, who danced to the Bee Gees' distinctive soundtrack in the 1977 film Saturday Night Fever, also paid tribute to Gibb on Monday.
He said: "I thought Robin was one of the most wonderful people - gifted, generous and a real friend to everyone he knew. And we'll miss him."
The announcement of Robin Gibbs' death was made by his family on Sunday with "great sadness".
Broadcaster Paul Gambaccini described the singer as "one of the major figures in the history of British music".
"Everyone should be aware that the Bee Gees are second only to Lennon and McCartney as the most successful songwriting unit in British popular music," he said.
Ringo Starr on 'cool' Robin Gibb
Robin Gibb had "one of the best white soul voices ever", Gambaccini said, adding that the group's accomplishments had been "monumental".
"Not only have they written their own number one hits, but they wrote huge hit records for Barbra Streisand, Diana Ross, Dionne Warwick, Celine Dion, Destiny's Child... the list goes on and on."
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Bryan Adams, Duran Duran and Justin Timberlake are among a host of musicians that took to Twitter to pay their respects.
Gibb had battled ill health for several years.
In 2010, he cancelled a series of shows after suffering severe stomach pains while performing in Belgium. He went on to have emergency surgery for a blocked intestine.
His twin brother and band partner Maurice died in 2003 aged 53 following complications from a twisted intestine.
Robin Gibb cancelled a series of shows in Brazil in April 2011, after again suffering from abdominal pains.
Later that year, he was found to have cancer of the colon after having surgery on his bowel for an unrelated condition.
He was later also diagnosed with cancer of the liver, and underwent chemotherapy and surgery.
Last month the singer fell into a coma after contracting pneumonia.
Four weeks ago, he regained consciousness and was said to have been making a positive recovery. But his death was announced at 23:30 BST (22:30 GMT) on Sunday.
Fans group challenge Liverpool owners - Football
Published: 22 May 2012 - 11:47:04
Liverpool owners have been challenged to publicly explain their strategy for the club by a leading fans' group.
Spirit of Shankly, who led the protests against the despised former regime of Tom Hicks and George Gillett, have written to principal owner John Henry and chairman Tom Werner. The group have asked for some clear direction and communication from Fenway Sports Group to dispel the growing perception among some fans that the club is "in disarray".
As the Reds' search for a manager continues, the SOS said: "Confusion and chaos seems to reign and no one is coming out of this with much credit, particularly the football club's image and brand."
Their letter continued: "We need clear and pro-active communication, a confident message about the club's plans that breeds confidence amongst supporters that we are moving in the right direction.
"Instead, we have silence and a lack of information or understanding on decisions being made."
The letter makes reference to the worst days of Hicks and Gillett's tenure when fans felt they had no voice as decisions were taken by American owners who had no representative based at the club on a local level.
"As supporters we have seen all too clearly what a lack of communication from absentee owners leads to," it added.
"Ultimately supporters remain in the dark once again about the plans for this football club moving forward.
"We find ourselves experiencing deja vu, where boardroom decisions lead to more questions than they answer.
"We ask that you speak with supporters - engage with a true representative cross section of supporters and work with supporters to provide solutions to our current problems."
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Drogba confirms Chelsea departure - Football
Published: 22 May 2012 - 15:46:54
Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba confirmed on Tuesday he will leave newly-crowned European champions Chelsea when his contract expires at the end of June.
Drogba has been at the Premier League club since 2004, joining from French side Marseille, and has scored 157 goals in 341 appearances helping the Blues win ten trophies.
The 34-year-old leaves the London club on a high after scoring a late equaliser against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final on Saturday and then converting the decisive penalty in a dramatic shoot-out after extra-time.
"I wanted to put an end to the speculation and confirm that I am leaving Chelsea," he told Chelsea's website.
"It has been a very difficult decision for me to make and I am very proud of what we have achieved, but the time is right for a new challenge for me."
Drogba is the club's fourth all-time highest scorer and his 34 goals in European competition is a Chelsea record by 10 goals.
During his eight seasons he won three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, two League Cups, and the Champions League title.
"As a team we have accomplished so much and have won every single trophy possible," said Drogba, who won the Premier League Golden Boot twice.
"Saturday was a very special moment for everyone at the club and for all the fans, and I am very proud to have played my part in bringing many trophies to this club, which has been my home for the last eight years.
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at the club especially Roman (Abramovich) and my team-mates, many of whom have become very close friends and will be my friends for life.
"I would also like to say a very special thank you to the Chelsea fans who have shown me so much love and support over the years.
"I wish the club all the best and continued success for the future - you will always be in my heart."
Chelsea Chief Executive Ron Gourlay added: "Didier is undoubtedly a Chelsea legend and will always be part of the Chelsea family. He is certainly leaving on a high after Saturday night but he feels the time is right for a new challenge.
"Of course Didier has contributed so much to all of Chelsea's recent successes. He has been a consummate professional during his entire time here and as one of the natural leaders in our squad he has been an inspiration to a lot of our younger players.
"We have known for some time that this outcome was likely but Didier and the club only made a final decision on that in the last couple of days, because for obvious reasons neither Didier nor the club wanted to distract focus away from the Champions League Final.
"The talks were amicable all the way through and we wish him all the best for the future."
English media have linked the Ivorian target man - scorer of 55 goals in his 84 international appearances - with Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua, where his former Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka is player-coach.
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Jessie J announces UK arena tour for February 2013 - BBC News
Jessie J has announced her first full UK arena tour.
The 24-year-old singer revealed the news on Twitter: "#heartbeats I'm SO EXCITED to announce my 1ST EVER UK&IRELAND;ARENA TOUR next MARCH!!
"Its called 'Nice to meet you tour' and it will be NICE! :) Can't wait to show you this tour I've been working on for months! BOOOOM!"
The tour will see her perform in 14 different cities starting at Nottingham Arena on 26 February.
The series of concerts will finish with gigs in Belfast (17 March) and Dublin (18).
Jessie J told Newsbeat: "It's everything that I've ever wanted, to be on a tour. I can't wait.
"It's called the Nice To Meet You tour because I get to see everyone that I haven't met before.
"I want everyone to get to know me and not just have me sing all the songs and then they leave. I want it to be a little bit more than that.
"To be able to have everywhere across England on my list of places to go. This is why artists make music, to go on tour. It's going to be epic."
There are no support acts confirmed for the tour yet.
The full dates are:Nottingham Capital FM Arena - 26 February
Brighton Centre - 27
Birmingham LG Arena - 1 March
Manchester Arena - 2
Sheffield Motorpoint Arena - 3
Liverpool Echo Arena - 5
Cardiff Motorpoint Arena - 6
Bournemouth International Centre - 7
London O2 Arena - 9
Newcastle Metro Radio Arena - 12
Glasgow SECC - 14
Aberdeen AECC - 15
Belfast Odyssey Arena - 17
Dublin O2 Arena - 18
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