LONDON (Reuters) – Guitarist Phil Chevron of the Anglo-Irish folk-punk band the Pogues died on Tuesday at the age of 56 after a long battle with cancer, the band said. Chevron joined the Pogues in 1984 and became a core member as the group made its name internationally in the 1980s and early 1990s with albums including “Rum, Sodomy and The Lash” and “If I Should Fall From Grace With God”. Chevron, whose real name was Philip Ryan, wrote the band’s popular ballad “Thousands Are Sailing”. “He was unique. We’ll miss him terribly. …

By Angus MacSwan LONDON (Reuters) – Decades on from his days as an angry young rocker, a role in a Hollywood movie playing an ageing musician struggling to make a comeback has helped give a new lease of life to Graham Parker. In the movie, Judd Apatow's "This is 40", the bid fails. In the real world, however, things are going pretty well for the 62-year-old London native. He's brought out a well-received album, a documentary and a concert film with his reunited backing band, the Rumour. In late October they play their first British dates in 31 years. The London show sold out straight away. …

LONDON (Reuters) – U.S. rock band OneRepublic snatched the top spot in the British singles chart on Sunday, edging out The Vamps in the closest race for the number one position seen all year, the Official Charts Company said on Sunday. A late surge for OneRepublic's 'Counting Stars' helped them outsell new entry 'Can We Dance' from British band The Vamps by just 1,150 copies to reach the pinnacle of the charts for the first time. Former number one 'Talk Dirty' by Jason Derulo and featuring rapper 2 Chainz fell to number three, while Katy Perry's 'Roar' dropped into fourth place. …

LONDON (Reuters) – American pop star Miley Cyrus has snubbed some prim motherly advice about her new bad girl image from Irish singer and sometime rebel Sinead O'Connor. The "We Can't Stop" singer – who has ditched her squeaky clean Hannah Montana Disney image for a solo singing career as a tattooed sex siren – rebuffed an open letter from O'Connor calling on Cyrus to tone down her sexualized persona. "Sinead. I don't have time to write you an open letter cause I'm hosting & performing on SNL (U.S. comedy show Saturday Night Live) this week," Cyrus tweeted. …

By Luke Swiderski NEW YORK (Reuters) – A performance by the American Symphony Orchestra proceeded as planned at New York’s Carnegie Hall on Thursday, a day after the famed concert hall canceled a separate performance for the first time in its 122-year history because of a labor dispute. A strike by stagehands forced the cancellation, but the union temporarily suspended its strike on Thursday, allowing the concert hall to open its doors for now. A union leader told Reuters he was optimistic the two sides could reach a permanent deal by Friday. …

By Eric Kelsey and Dana Feldman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – A Los Angeles jury cleared concert promoter AEG Live of liability on Wednesday in a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of Michael Jackson, in a trial that offered a glimpse into the private life and final days of the so-called King of Pop. The verdict, which concluded that the doctor the company hired to care for the singer was not unfit for his job, capped a sensational five-month trial that was expected to shake up the way entertainment companies treat their most risky talent. …

By Sue Zeidler LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – When Britney Spears takes the stage this December for the first of a heavily hyped 100-show two-year residency at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, the loudest cheers may come from her insurance underwriters. Along with the sound engineers and roadies who help stage a concert, insurance underwriters play a large role in making sure a star can get onstage and grab the microphone. Insurers are also key during those times when stars do not show and concerts get canceled. …

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – A Los Angeles jury reached a verdict on Wednesday in the wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of pop singer Michael Jackson against concert promoter AEG Live, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Superior Court said. The verdict, which will be read at 3:30 p.m. PT (2230 GMT), caps a five-month trial that opened a window into the singer's private life and final days. Jackson's mother, Katherine, and his three children sued AEG Live over the singer's 2009 death at age 50 in Los Angeles from an overdose of the surgical anesthetic propofol. …

By Piya Sinha-Roy LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Rapper Drake vaulted straight to No. 1 on the weekly Billboard 200 album chart on Wednesday, as his latest album garnered the second-largest sales week of the year so far. "Nothing Was the Same," the third studio album from the Canadian rapper, sold 658,000 copies in its first week, according to figures from Nielsen SoundScan. Only Justin Timberlake's "The 20/20 Experience," which opened with 968,000 copies in March, outsold "Nothing Was the Same" in a one-week period. All three of Drake's studio albums have debuted at No. …

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Pop singer Lady Gaga and rapper Eminem will be headline performers at the first YouTube Music Awards, the Google Inc-owned online video steaming site said on Tuesday. The November 3 award show in New York, which will be live-streamed, honors the top songs and artists that were viewed on the website in the past year. Nominees will be announced later this month and voting by the public will determine winners, YouTube said. Canadian rock band Arcade Fire will also perform at the awards show. …

By Patricia Reaney NEW YORK (Reuters) – Former Disney star Miley Cyrus says she was out to shock and "make history" and is unapologetic for her raunchy performance at this year's MTV Video Music Awards. In a documentary, "Miley: The Movement," airing on MTV on October 2, the 20-year-old singer and actress comes across as a shrewd, ambitious performer determined to see her single, "We Can't Stop," hit No. 1 and put her roots as the wholesome Disney Channel star of "Hannah Montana" far behind her. …

By Eric Kelsey LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – The wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of late pop star Michael Jackson against his concert promoter is now in the hands of a jury, and the verdict could have far-reaching implications for how the entertainment industry does business with its biggest stars. The 21-week trial, which has opened a window into the private life and last days of the King of Pop, has put not only concert promoter AEG Live on trial but also the entertainment industry's live-performance business model, analysts say. …