Almost five years after hosting the inaugural Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, Superfly Productions and AC Entertainment have purchased a major portion of the Manchester, TN-site where the annual music festival is held each spring. The festival organizers recently purchased 530 acres of the Bonnaroo site, which encompasses the festival’s performance areas, Centeroo, and a large chunk of the area used for camping and parking.  The festival will lease another 250 acres this summer for additional parking and camping.

“We are really excited about making this investment,” Superfly’s Jonathan Mayers said. “It’s an incredible property that can lend itself to many different kinds of events and gatherings. Our hope is that this will become one of the premier event sites in the world. We plan to work closely with all local officials as we determine what types of events will be a good match for this site. We are very open-minded about working with anyone interested in using the property.”

Before Bonnaroo the Manchester, TN-farm, which was owned by Sam McAllister, hosted the 1990s-rock festival Itchycoo Park. Superfly and AC Entertainment are currently working on a master plan for the land that will be phased in over the next several years. After this year’s event Bonnaroo’s creators will implement a number of structural changes to the site and plan to host multiple events each year.vIn addition to annual charitable contributions, the festivals activities provide annual revenue to the county. Measured in a 2005 study, the economic impact of the event on Coffee County was more than $14 million in business revenues and more than $4 million in personal income.  “We are looking forward to identifying long-term programs and projects that could benefit from Bonnaroo support.” Mayers said. The sixth annual festival will take place in Manchester, TN, from June 14-17, 2007. While the gathering’s lineup has not been officially announced, a handful of bands, including Cold War Kids and the John Butler Trio, have confirmed their appearances.

"Sneaky" Pete Kleinow, who rose to fame playing pedal steel in the Flying Burrito Brothers, died January 6 from complications of Alzheimer's disease. Kleinow, whose last public performance took place in 2005, was 72. After parting ways with the Byrds, Gram Parsons and Chris Hillman formed the Flying Burrito Brothers as a loose union of musicians interested in exploring the country-rock sound the Parsons ignited on the Byrds’ 1968 album Sweetheart of the Rodeo. Kleinow, at the time a visual effects artist, and bassist Chris Ethridge joined the ensemble soon after and the group released its first disc, The Gilded Palace of Sin, in early-1969. Along with the Flying Burrito Brothers, Kleinow helped define country-rock, then a fledgling style, and released Burrito Deluxe before Parsons left the group. The Flying Burrito Brothers recorded a self-titled album after adding Rick Roberts to its lineup, though Kleinow left the group shortly after its release. He earned some fast cash as a session musician, appearing on John Lennon’s "Mind Games,”  Fleetwood Mac’s "Heroes are Hard To Find,” and Joni Mitchell’s "Blue.” The Flying Burrito Brothers called it quits in 1973, the year of Parsons’ untimely passing.  

Soon after, Kleinow took part in the first of many Flying Burrito Brothers reunion tours in 1975. As interest in Parsons’ work continued to grow, the group toured and recorded periodically until 2001. In the 1980s the group released several albums on Relix records, including Cabin Fever, Live From Amsterdam, and Live from Europe. Simultaneously, Kleinow forged a career as a visual effects artist, working on such films as Terminator and the mini-series The Winds of War (for which he won an Emmy). Along with Garth Hudson, he also toured as Burrito Deluxe. After performing at a Georgia-based Gram Parsons Festival in 2005, Kleinow retired and spent the last years of is life in a nursing home in Petaluma, CA.

A handful of the 1970s and 1980s most influential performers will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Proto-punk poet Patti Smith, alt-rock heroes R.E.M., hard-rock icons Van Halen, and hip-hop pioneers Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five enter Rock and Roll’s most esteemed club during a ceremony at New York's Waldorf-Astoria Hotel on March 12. After a few years on the ballot, 1950s/60s girl group the Ronettes will also enter the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Best known for their hit  “Be My Baby,” the Ronettes were one of producer Phil Specter’s most popular vocal groups. Brian Wilson actually penned his popular “Don’t Worry Baby” for the group before bringing the number to his own Beach Boys. An artist becomes eligible for entry into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25 years after their first commercial recording.

Although his arraignment was not scheduled until January 10, Anastasio arrived in court unannounced to enter his plea and has been released on his own recognizance until his next scheduled court date on February 14.

The initial charges filed against Anastasio are misdemeanor charges, but according to Washington County District Attorney Kevin Kortright, they may become felony drug possession charges due to the amount Anastasio had in his possession at the time of the arrest. There is also the matter of what the other substance found in the car was, something that police had not determined at the time of Anastasio's arrest. News sources, specifically the local Post-Star newspaper and its partner WNYT-TV NewsChannel 13, have reported that the substance was heroin. Prosecutors are still waiting results from a urine test that will determine what level of intoxication, if any, Anastasio was at.

The Post-Star has also reported that Kortright's "office will likely seek to get Anastasio to take part in a court-approved drug rehabilitation program that would spare him a jail sentence."

Anastasio declined to comment at this time, though following his arrest last month, Anastasio issued a written statement saying he felt “terrible about what happened, and I am deeply sorry for any embarrassment I have caused my friends, family and fans.”