Patsy Cline

WINCHESTER, Va. - Patsy Cline fans curious about the early days of her brief but highly acclaimed country music career will finally be able to do more than just drive by her old house here and snap a picture. The Patsy Cline Historic House will open Aug. 2 as a memorial to the singer who recorded such classics as "Crazy" and "I Fall to Pieces" before dying in a plane crash in 1963. Visitors will be able to step through the door of 608 S. Kent St. and back in time some six decades for a glimpse of how Virginia "Ginny" Patterson Hensley lived from her mid-teens to mid-20s, as...

WINCHESTER, Va. - Patsy Cline fans curious about the early days of her brief but highly acclaimed country music career will finally be able to do more than just drive by her old house here and snap a picture. The Patsy Cline Historic House will open Aug. 2 as a memorial to the singer who recorded such classics as "Crazy" and "I Fall to Pieces" before dying in a plane crash in 1963. Visitors will be able to step through the door of 608 S. Kent St. and back in time some six decades for a glimpse of how Virginia "Ginny" Patterson Hensley lived from her mid-teens to mid-20s, as...

STONEHAM — Early on in “Always . . . Patsy Cline,’’ the narrator mentions that she used to listen to the late country crooner on a radio station similar to the one you find at 102.5 on the FM dial. That would be Boston’s contemporary country music station, WKLB. When that local reference falls flat at Stoneham Theatre, she cocks her hip and curls her lip at the crowd. “Y’all from around here?’’ But that’s the beauty of “Always . . . Patsy Cline.’’ You don’t have to know or even like country music to appreciate this show about the country icon, whose legacy has...

STONEHAM — Early on in “Always . . . Patsy Cline,’’ the narrator mentions that she used to listen to the late country crooner on a radio station similar to the one you find at 102.5 on the FM dial. That would be Boston’s contemporary country music station, WKLB. When that local reference falls flat at Stoneham Theatre, she cocks her hip and curls her lip at the crowd. “Y’all from around here?’’ But that’s the beauty of “Always . . . Patsy Cline.’’ You don’t have to know or even like country music to appreciate this show about the country icon, whose legacy has...

"DONT LOOK BACK: 65 TOUR DELUXE EDITION" (1967) D.A. Pennebaker's ground-breaking cinema-verité documentary observes a very private Bob Dylan (and such friends as Joan Baez, Alan Price, and Donovan ) on his historic 1965 tour of England. For this beautifully remastered box set, Pennebaker has created a new documentary, "65 Revisited," from unused footage, and provides commentary tracks for both films, along with tour road manager Bob Neuwirth . Also included are bonus audio tracks; a flip book of the famous cue-card scene for "Subterranean Homesick Blues" ; and a book of the film's transcript,...

Tribute to MJ MICHAEL JACKSON: THE IMMORTAL WORLD TOUR BY CIRQUE DU SOLEIL While this is a theatrical performance and not a concert, how some of Jackson's collaborators and the creative folks at Cirque have chosen to interpret his music will likely be of interest to his fans. If this show is anything like the whimsical, poignant, and eye-popping Beatles show "LOVE" in Las Vegas, it should be quite the spectacle. May 17, 8 p.m. DCU Center. Tickets: $50-$175. 800-754-3000, www.ticketmaster.com SARAH RODMAN POP & ROCK KISS CONCERT 2012 The annual top 40...

SAN FRANCISCO — Lavay Smith has Ray Charles on her mind. With her playfully lascivious stage persona and blues-inflected vocals, Smith and Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers was one of the best bands to emerge from the swing dance vogue of the mid-1990s. While the vast majority of their swing and jump blues contemporaries faded away, Smith and the Skillet Lickers have evolved into a singular ensemble that puts a soulful stamp on a huge swatch of American music. Whether interpreting songs associated with Bessie Smith, Ivie Anderson, Billie Holiday, or...

FT. DEPOSIT, Ala. -- Billy Walker, the Grand Ole Opry legend whose hits included "Charlie's Shoes" and "Cross the Brazos at Waco," died in a wreck yesterday along interstate in Alabama. He was 77. Mr. Walker was killed along with his wife, Bettie, and two of his band members when their van ran off Interstate 65 south of Montgomery and overturned, state troopers said. The two band members were Charles Lilly Jr., 44, of Hendersonville, Tenn., and Daniel Patton, 40, of Hermitage, Tenn.

NASHVILLE - Don Helms, a renowned steel guitarist who played in Hank Williams's Drifting Cowboys band and on country classics by Patsy Cline and Lefty Frizzell, has died of an apparent heart attack. He was 81. Mr. Helms died Monday in Nashville at Skyline Medical Center, said Michael Thomas, a director at Forest Lawn Funeral Home. Mr. Helms, from New Brockton, Ala., was an original member of Williams's Drifting Cowboys and provided the signature steel guitar parts on tunes like "Cold, Cold Heart" and "Your Cheatin' Heart.

Madeleine Peyroux showcased the supremacy of a powerful song -- and the remarkable instrument the human voice can be -- at the Berklee Performance Center Tuesday night. She may be young, but her smoky vocals bear an uncanny resemblance to the late Billie Holiday's. Her wise, emotionally resonant renditions of blues and country standards manage to evoke the Parisian cafes in which Peyroux came of age as a performer, while showcasing her passion for the improvisational spirit of jazz.

"DONT LOOK BACK: 65 TOUR DELUXE EDITION" (1967) D.A. Pennebaker's ground-breaking cinema-verité documentary observes a very private Bob Dylan (and such friends as Joan Baez, Alan Price, and Donovan ) on his historic 1965 tour of England. For this beautifully remastered box set, Pennebaker has created a new documentary, "65 Revisited," from unused footage, and provides commentary tracks for both films, along with tour road manager Bob Neuwirth . Also included are bonus audio tracks; a flip book of the famous cue-card scene for "Subterranean Homesick Blues" ; and a book of the film's transcript,...

NASHVILLE — Hank Cochran, a consummate songwriter who composed a string of country hits including “Make the World Go Away’’ for Eddy Arnold, died yesterday. He was 74. Martha E. Moore, his publicist, said Mr. Cochran died at his home in Hendersonville north of Nashville. He had been in declining health in recent years and suffered an aortic aneurysm in March. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer two years ago. He co-wrote the following number one hits: Patsy Cline’s “I Fall to Pieces’’; George Strait’s “Ocean Front Property’’; and “Set ‘em Up...

► Monday is March 5, the 65th day of 2012. There are 301 days left in the year. ► Today's birthdays: Actor James Noble is 90. Actor James B. Sikking is 78. Actor Dean Stockwell is 76. Actor Fred Williamson is 74. Actress Samantha Eggar is 73. Actor Michael Warren is 66. Actor Eddie Hodges is 65. Singer Eddy Grant is 64. Rock musician Alan Clark (Dire Straits) is 60. Actress-comedian Marsha Warfield is 58. Magician Penn Jillette is 57. Actress Adriana Barraza is 56. Rock singers Charlie and Craig Reid (the Proclaimers)