Quick quips: Barry Manilow, Paul McCartney, Van Halen, Iron Maiden, Vesta Williams, Bono

Barry Manilow wrote to his fans on Facebook about the grueling recovery from his recent surgery for torn abductor muscles on both hips.
I will never, never take being healthy for granted again ... Not being able to do anything without a team of people helping me was an eye opener. And I mean anything ... To say nothing of the constant, incredible pain that this recovery demands. I've never been through anything like it.
But the good news is that after three nightmarish weeks, I'm coming back from the dead. I'm slowly beginning to walk – still with a walker – but I think that will be over soon.
My compassion for people who have to live with this kind of pain and a life like this has exploded. I guess you can talk the talk all you want, but it's walking the walk that makes you realize another person's courage.


Paul McCartney told Britain's Sunday Express that he's not bothered when he or his band make mistakes while playing live. He said "When we make mistakes playing live, we always now turn it and say, 'Tell you what – this proves we are live'."
McCartney also said he didn't think a lot of those that use backing tracks in concert. "We are glad at the end five of us take a bow and there is nobody hidden under the stage either which I hear some naughty people do… sorry, I won't say names."


Revelers in New York's Times Square for New Year's Eve had a chance to see a big version of what is assumed to be the cover of the upcoming Van Halen album. The locomotive graphic, sent to members of the fan list last week with "2.7.12" and the VH logo included, was displayed above McDonalds for a number of hours.


Get ready for a big announcement from Iron Maiden on Monday at 9 PM GMT (4 PM EST). The only clue offered by the group came on Twitter where they said "It's not a tour announcement and it's not a DVD announcement either. It will be something brought to you by the letter H...."


The autopsy of R&B songstress Vesta Williams revealed that she died from an enlarged heart. Rumors had been circulating that she had passed from an overdose of sleep medication, but the autopsy did not show any in her system. Williams was found dead in her hotel room on September 22.


A police officer in Dublin has a major gaffe to live down. On Christmas Eve, Bono took to the cities Grafton Street for his annual fundraising performance, this year with Damien Rice and Glen Hansard. While the trio was performing, an officer came along and tried to get them to move on because they were creating a hazard on the street. The U2 singer worked everything out and was allowed to continue.