Rudolphs Bar-B-Que, an institution for 43 years at the intersection of Lyndale and Franklin avenues in Minneapolis, has closed. It was known to music fans as a spot where Prince hung out at the very beginning of his solo career, when he lived in the neighborhood. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis spent even more time there; Jimmy Jam says it was "a mandatory stop" for every artist they recorded at their Flyte Tyme studio. (Star Tribune)

Remembering Joseph Maus

Minnesota musician Joseph Maus, the brother and bandmate of John Maus, has died at age 30. The death, of causes not yet revealed, happened during a tour stop in Latvia. His record label, Ribbon Music, confirmed the tragic news. (Pitchfork)

We were lucky to have Joseph Maus join us in The Current studio earlier this year, playing bass in his brother's band. Hear the session.

Newport Folk surprises

Mumford & Sons weren't on the lineup for this past weekend's Newport Folk Festival, but they made a surprise appearance as Saturday night's headliner. Their unusual 15-song setlist included covers of Simon and Garfunkel’s "The Boxer" (with Brandi Carlile) and Radiohead’s "All I Need" (with Phoebe Bridgers). They welcomed several special guests from the festival lineup, including Mavis Staples and Hiss Golden Messenger. (Rolling Stone)

In another Newport surprise, Jason Isbell was joined by David Crosby for the Crosby, Stills & Nash number "Wooden Ships" as well as the Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young song "Ohio." (Rolling Stone)

Purple Rain video is back

A video of a Minneapolis crowd singing "Purple Rain" in mourning on the day of Prince’s death has been reinstated after being temporarily deleted from Twitter at the request of the music publisher, Universal. The takedown last week inspired a wave of discussion regarding what constitutes fair use of copyrighted music. (Star Tribune)

Neil Diamond thanks firefighters

Neil Diamond has retired from touring due to Parkinson's disease, but he picked up his guitar to play "Sweet Caroline" in gratitude to firefighters battling a blaze near his home in Colorado. At the Incident Command post on Saturday, Diamond told hundreds of firefighters, "I want to take you all home, I want to give you a kiss, I want to make dinner for you, and I just want to say thank you from the people of this area." (Rolling Stone)