ATHENS, Ga. (AP) -- Vic Chesnutt, the folk-rocker whose sometimes dark reflections on life were influenced in part by a car wreck that left him paralyzed, has died. He was 45.

Family friend Christina Stuckey, who answered the phone at Chesnutt's home, confirmed the death to The Associated Press. Chesnutt's record label, Constellation Records, said in a statement on its Web site that Chesnutt died on Christmas

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OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Garth Brooks has accused an Oklahoma hospital of reneging on a promise to name a building addition after his late mother in exchange for a $500,000 contribution.

According to a lawsuit filed in Rogers County District Court, the singer seeks a return of his December 2005 donation to Integris Canadian Valley Regional Hospital in Yukon after nearly two years of meetings with hospital officials.

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DETROIT (Billboard) – For rock guitarist and singer-songwriter Stephen Stills, this fall's pair of archival releases are part of a master plan that will lead to a full-scale boxed set of potentially mammoth proportions.

"I want to break up the periods of my career and not make one of those big humongous things that nobody can afford," Stills told Billboard.com.

In September he released "Pieces," a collection

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LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Garth Brooks is coming to The Strip.

The country superstar and casino owner Steve Wynn announced Thursday afternoon that Brooks will be taking over the Encore theater at Wynn Las Vegas about 15 weeks a year, perhaps for the next five years.

And it only cost the entrepreneur a jet.

"I told him he couldn't afford me," Brooks said while sitting on stage with Wynn. "I was wrong. Wow."

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Country superstar Garth Brooks announced Thursday that he's coming out of retirement.

Brooks, 47, said at a news conference in Nashville that he will end his retirement. The move has been rumored in the music industry for weeks. "We're going to take the retirement roof off over our head, and I already feel taller," Brooks said Thursday.

Brooks said he has no immediate plans and will see how things go in the coming years. "As for touring, if I more...

The first in a new series compiling and celebrating the work of Bill Frisell is an easy thing to review. Two words will sum up anything the exemplary guitarist has turned his hand to: 'very good'. But when it comes to his explorations in Americana as on this collection, it's very very good. If you don't already own most of these tracks, beware. Because when you do hear them you'll have to go out and buy all the parent albums that they're culled

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As the CD compilation market grows tinier and more fractured, the annual collection that accompanies the annual BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards becomes more indispensable. Like the Rough Trade Counter Culture CD which brings together the best in indie, this 24-track gathering of all the nominees is the one-stop shop for the folk uninitiated and a perfect round-up for the aficionado.

Compiled by the show's Executive Producer, John Leonard,

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