A romantic in a hard body

, the Aussie star leaves women saying “Oh … my … God” He’s a triple threat: a star who can sing, dance and wield a weapon. At 6 ft. 2 in., all scruff and biceps, Hugh Jackman looms large in the epic Australia, which he says kept him “dirty 95 percent of the time” and left people stammering, “Oh … my … God,” according to costar Nicole Kidman, who adds, “Women’s jaws drop when Hugh walks into a room.” Read the full story

Mitch Mitchell, drummer for the

legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience of the 1960s and the group’s last surviving member, was found dead in his hotel room early Wednesday. He was 61. Mitchell was a powerful force on the Hendrix band’s 1967 debut album “Are You Experienced?” as well as the trio’s albums “Electric Ladyland” and “Axis: Bold As Love.” He had an explosive drumming style that can be heard in hard-charging songs Read the full story

Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL), an apex licensing arm of the Indian Music Industry (IMI), and Patna police have initiated a special

drive to book those who evade to pay license fee for playing copyrighted music. Notices has been issued to chronic defaulters in Patna who have been playing such music without paying requisite music license fee. According to a PPL release, the list of defaulters also included few reputed hotels, restaurants and retail stores of the town. Playing commercial music without paying a copyright license fee is punishable under Section 35 of the Copyright Act, said the release. Read the full story

Sandusky Radio’s Marc Kaye says it was the calendar, not any grand strategic plan, that prompted the Nov. 14 switch of soft-hits KRWM-FM/106.9 to all Christmas music.

Thanksgiving is Nov. 27 this year, the latest date it’s possible for the holiday to fall on. KRWM-FM has made its annual switch to Christmas before Thanksgiving in past years. With a short window between the two holidays this year, Kaye said the station switched early to give Christmas music a longer run.

Kaye said that every year there are a few listeners who protest that “before Thanksgiving is a little early for me.” Generally, though, the calls run in favor of the move, even when it’s before Thanksgiving, he added, and a few have said they can use the lift of holiday music given the trend of economic news this year.

For those who prefer their music Christmas-free, KRWM is accommodating them, at least online. From now through Christmas Day, www.warm1069.com is offering two streams — the on-air holiday-music version, and a second featuring KRWM’s regular soft adult-contemporary hits.

While KRWM’s Christmas programming features a lot of familiar classics, it does get updated with new releases. Program director Laura Dane said artists with new Christmas releases this year include Harry Connick Jr., Tony Bennett and Jim Brickman; there’s also a new release in which Elvis Presley holiday songs have been re-engineered to pair him in duets with current artists.

The other Seattle-market station that annually goes to all-Christmas music, contemporary-Christian KCMS-FM/105.3, is holding off until the day after Thanksgiving.

“All of our studies indicate that people want to celebrate Thanksgiving first,” said KCMS program director and morning co-host Scott Valentine. “They don’t like blending it all together. Playing Christmas music too early is over-commercializing Christmas and they don’t like it.”

While KCMS features both secular and contemporary-Christian songs and artists when it plays Christmas music, Valentine said one artist familiar to both audiences has a new holiday release that’s likely to be featured on the station this year — Amy Grant.

KAFE-FM/104.3 in Bellingham will go to all-Christmas music beginning Dec. 15.

A “lost” Beatles track reco

rded in 1967 and performed just once in public could finally be released, according to Paul McCartney. “Carnival of Light” — a 14-minute experimental track recorded at the height of the Beatles’ musical experimentations with psychedelia and inspired by avant-garde composers such as Karlheinz Stockhausen — has long been considered too adventurous for mainstream audiences. Read the full story

The final “ER” season is bringing back some of its original stars for guest shots, but Julianna Margulies won’t be among them. She was invited, she says, but declined.

Catching the wave of a

public fascination with vampires, HBO’s “True Blood” has steadily increased in stature to become the cable network’s most popular series since “The Sopranos” and “Sex and the City.” Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer star in “True Blood,” which has become a hit. Based on the series of Sookie Stackhouse novels written by Charlaine Harris and starring Anna Paquin in the lead character’s role, Read the full story

On last season’s “American Idol,” David Archuleta’s version of “Imagine” earned him the title of “the one to beat” early on. He never once placed in the bottom three. In the end, David ended up losing the crown to another David — David Cook — but he still got a chance to pursue his pop star dreams with a record deal on 19 Recordings/Jive Records.

Now, the 17-year-old runner-up is hoping all those votes on TV’s top-rated show will parlay into album sales. His self-titled debut is in stores now.

So far, the teen’s future looks promising. His first single “Crush” peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and is a top download on iTunes.

David Archuleta talked about going solo and what he thinks Simon Cowell may have to say about his record.

 Ralph Joseph “Jody” Reynolds, the rockabilly singer and songwriter whose lone hit “Endless Sleep” in the 1950s ushered in a wave of tragic teen pop songs, has died. He was 75.

Reynolds, who was inducted into Nashville’s Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 1999, died November 7 in Palm Desert, said his musician friend Alan Clark, who toured with Reynolds in the 1980s.

“Endless Sleep,” which sold more than a million copies in 1958, kicked off the melodramatic teen tragedy genre, including Mark Dinning’s “Teen Angel,” Ray Peterson’s “Tell Laura I Love Her,” Dickey Lee’s “Patches” and the Shangri-Las’ “Leader of the Pack.”

Reynolds continued to write and record his songs while supporting his family by running a Palm Springs music store and eventually selling desert real estate. He also occasionally toured the rock oldies circuit.

 Ralph Joseph “Jody” Reynolds, the rockabilly singer and songwriter whose lone hit “Endless Sleep” in the 1950s ushered in a wave of tragic teen pop songs, has died. He was 75.

Reynolds, who was inducted into Nashville’s Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 1999, died November 7 in Palm Desert, said his musician friend Alan Clark, who toured with Reynolds in the 1980s.

“Endless Sleep,” which sold more than a million copies in 1958, kicked off the melodramatic teen tragedy genre, including Mark Dinning’s “Teen Angel,” Ray Peterson’s “Tell Laura I Love Her,” Dickey Lee’s “Patches” and the Shangri-Las’ “Leader of the Pack.”

Reynolds continued to write and record his songs while supporting his family by running a Palm Springs music store and eventually selling desert real estate. He also occasionally toured the rock oldies circuit.