Show Business - Recently honoured Status Quo are the hardest-working band in British music, according to a list compiled by the Performing Rights Society (PRS). The band performed to more than 250,000 fans at 27 arenas in 2009 - more than any other band. "Performing in front of thousands of fans is the ultimate experience for any band," said frontman Francis Rossi. Fellow music industry veterans Cliff Richard and the Shadows were in second place, with Take That in third. Coldplay and Kings of Leon made up the rest of the top five. Singer and guitarist Joe Brown was the busiest performer at smaller concert venues in 2009, followed by Manchester band Twisted Wheel and last year's X Factor runners-up, JLS.
Style Notes - Glastonbury Festival founder Michael Eavis has beaten Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro to become the decade's Beard of the Noughties. The 74-year-old dairy farmer was awarded the title by campaign group the Beard Liberation Front (BLF). Recent annual winners include the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams and singer Tom Jones. Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant won the Award in 2007 and England cricketer Monty Panesar won in 2006.
Happy Birthday - Havana's famous Tropicana nightclub has celebrated its 70th birthday. Some 850 guests watched an extravaganza that included a big band and a contortionist as well as showgirls, at the venue in the Cuban capital. The club has drawn film-stars, celebrities and the glitterati almost from when it opened in December 1939. Tourism vice-minister Maria Elena Lopez called the club "one of Cuba's most important tourist destinations". The club "remains an iconic location that is known the world over," she said, adding that it had "no equal". Tropicana's director, David Varela, said it had drawn a record 200,000 visitors in 2008 alone, though the numbers are expected to be lower this year.
Festival Update - Re-formed band Spandau Ballet will play their first ever festival next year in the Isle Of Wight. "We're really looking forward to being part of it, playing outdoors in the summer is another new chapter for Spandau," said band member Gary Kemp. They join Jay-Z, Pink, The Strokes, Vampire Weekend, Calvin Harris and the Friendly Fires at the event in June.
Fifty Years Ago - In January 1960, in Washington DC, the National Association of Broadcasters reacts to the Payola scandal by threatening fines for any disc jockeys who accepted money for playing particular records.
(Jim Evans)
