THE FOURTH of JULY WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with THE BEACH BOYS!  It's Pate Reunion Weekend and time to "Do It Again."  Because folks my age will always remember their mammoth July 4th concerts at the Washington Monument -- as with this 1980 take o­n "Good Vibrations."  Their "Lost Concert" from 1964 includes "Fun, Fun, Fun," "Long, Tall Texan," "Little Deuce Coupe," "Surfer Girl," "Surfin' USA," "Shut Down," "In My Room," "Papa Ooh Mow Mow," and "Hawaii." Their take on "Dance, Dance, Dance" from Shindig! later that year is like a slice of Christmas in July.  There's also a nifty twofer of "I Get Around" and "'When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)" from their first UK TV appearance o­n Ready Steady Go!  The Andy Williams Show serves up "Help Me, Rhonda," while The Jack Benny Hour produced these quick takes o­n "Barbara Ann" and "California Girls."  There's a primitive video for "Wouldn't It Be Nice" that starts with a cameo from Brian Wilson's dogs (Banana and Louie), who appear at the end of the Pet Sounds LP.  And I'll finish with a live version of "God Only Knows" from the 1967 European tour -- one of the last Brian would do for a decade or so.

RAY CHARLES performs "America The Beautiful" like no one else.

INDEPENDENCE DAY: Bruce Springsteen, circa 1978, before it came out on The River.

AMERICAN MUSIC: The Violent Femmes, circa 1992.

DAVE ALVIN: Hey, baby, it's the "4th of July."

JAMES LILEKS: Truth.

THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER: As performed by Jimi Hendrix, Whitney Houston, Smokey Robinson, members of the Grateful Dead, and Umphrey’s McGee.

THE UNITED STATES prepares to celebrate the anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain on July 4, 1776. As the Wikipedia notes, this is a little arbitrary: New Englanders had been fighting Britain since April 1775; the first motion in the Continental Congress for independence was made o­n June 8th; and the Congress voted 12-0 for independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain o­n July 2, 1776. Even so, the publication of the Declaration was momentous .  If you're not in DC, the best way to see and learn about the Declaration may be through the Charters of Freedom website. Or you can watch Mel Gibson, Michael Douglas, Renee Zelleweger, Kevin Spacey, Wynona Ryder and other Hollywood folk read the Declaration.

Of course, the holiday more broadly celebrates the American Revolutionary War, and the Founders' unlikely victory. People with the highest standard of living and the lowest taxes in the Western World fought a sometimes unpopular war for our freedom. Early o­n, the Revolutionaries (also known as "Americans" or "Patriots") had the active support of about 40 to 45 percent of the colonial population. By 1779, there were more Americans fighting with the British than with Washington, which is why Washington needed help from the French, the Spanish and freed Blacks. You can separate fact from fiction regarding the sacrifices and fates of the Founders at Snopes. You can hear two-time Pulitzer Prize winner David McCullough read from the first chapter of his 1776 via NPR. Or watch a nifty clip on the passage and public reading of the Declaration from the John Adams miniseries.

NOW SHOWING: The holiday weekend's wide releases include The First Purge, which was not advance screened for critics; and Ant-Man and The Wasp, which opens Friday scoring 84 percent on the ol' Tomatometer.

RICHARD SWIFT, producer, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter, died Tuesday morning in Tacoma, Washington.  He was 41 years old.

GUY PEARCE shocked an Australian TV audience when he revealed disgraced actor Kevin Spacey was a “handsy guy” on the set of LA Confidential.

JENNIFER ANISTON is dating again, on the qt and very hush-hush.

KATHARINE McPHEE and DAVID FOSTER  are engaged after he popped the question during their European vacation.

TOP GUN 2: Miles Teller has been tapped to play the son of Goose and Maverick's new protege.

AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR may get an extended cut on home video that will include more of Thanos' backstory.

TWIGGY: Another Fourth of July tradition, the water-skiing squirrel. Great story. Compelling and rich. Now on GoPro!

CHICKEN OF THE TREES: Eating Florida's Iguanas.

A MOOSE crashes an Alaskan wedding.

A KANGAROO AND A DOG, hanging out together.

TWOFER TUESDAY:  "The Dawn Of Correction" by The Spokesmen is an "answer song" to Barry McGuire's immortal "Eve Of Destruction."

FATHER JOHN MISTY plays Rock The Garden.

LOW CUT CONNIE plays Rock The Garden, including a cover of Prince's "Controversy."

NIKKI LANE plays Rock The Garden.

STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS play CBS This Morning.

JOE STRUMMER: Hear "London Is Burning," from a new box set of solo material.

CHARLOTTE GAINSBOURG shares a video for "Sylvia Says."

THE BAND: Music From Big Pink Turns 50.

ROLLING STONE will have a larger format and fewer issues, as it looks to cut costs and drum up new sources of revenue.

PETER BUCK is talking about life, and how to live it.

MEAT LOAF will do anything for love – but he won’t sing on his new tour.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at Roy Orbison's sunny riff-monster "Oh, Pretty Woman" and Manfred Mann's horny-nonsense singalong "Do Wah Diddy Diddy."

HARVEY WEINSTEIN was hit with additional counts of sexual assault on Monday — including charges relating to a third, new victim that could cast him in the role of inmate for life.

ANDY DICK is facing charges for allegedly groping a complete stranger on the streets of L.A.

MILA KUNIS discusses the effect of tabloid rumors on her family.

SCARLETT JOHANSSON will star in Rub & Tug, the fact-based story of a woman who flourished in a male-dominated business of massage parlors and prostitution by essentially taking on the physical identity of a man.

THE NEW POPE: John Malkovich is set to star with Jude Law in Paolo Sorrentino's follow-up to critically praised The Young Pope limited series.

A 59-YEAR-OLD CHIMP has the most amazing reaction the minute her oldest friend arrives to say goodbye.

THE PSYCHIC OCTOPUS correctly predicts the outcome of the Japan's World Cup group games but is eaten before it has a chance to predict the knock-out rounds.

A NURSE SHARK bit the finger of a woman that attempted to feed it in Western Australia, dragging her into the water.

MEET THE BACKYARD BAY AREA CHICKENS who ride in infant carriers and get weekly blowouts.

LET'S FACE IT, WITH A MID-WEEK HOLIDAY, "news" is likely to be soft in general, but I have a few Things.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE:  Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom repeats atop the chart with 60MM on a 60 percent drop. That falloff, and a domestic total of 264.8MM to date, are a bit anemic.  OTOH, the 667.6MM in overseas receipts during World Cup season is impressive and means the studio won't be sweating it much.  Incredibles 2 places with 45.5MM on a leggy 43 percent drop; its 439.8MM total makes it the second-biggest domestic gross for Pixar -- and it will likely become thebiggest over the holiday weekend.  Sicario: Day of the Soldado shows 19MM against a 35MM budget, an iffy showing that makes theater profits dependent on how much was spent on advertising.  Uncle Drew took the fourth slot with 15MM against a reported 20MM budget, which looks a little better, even if there's a big drop next weeekend.  Ocean's 8 rounds out the Top Five with another 8MM on a leggy 30 percent drop and will likely warrant another installment of this franchise.

KALEY CUOCO tied the knot with professional equestrian Karl Cook at an intimate weddingon Saturday.

HEATHER LOCKLEAR will soon move from the psychiatric ward at an L.A.-area hospital to a long-term facility.

CHRIS PRATT is reportedly "smitten" by Katherine Schwarzenegger.

OWEN WILSON could be expecting his third child.

LITTLE WOMEN: The latest take on the Louisa may Alcott classic is drawing interest from Greta Gerwig, Meryl Streep, Emma Stone, Saoirse Ronan and Timothee Chalamet.

STAR WARS: The new Rian Johnson-helmed trilogy could begin as soon as 2020.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

... with POWER POP (REDUX)! For whatever reason, I have considered Summer the ideal season for gems like Badfinger's "No Matter What" (which Pate covered on occasion) and "Baby Blue", and even Todd Rundgren's "I Saw the Light" and Cheap Trick's "I Want You to Want Me."  Ditto for more obscure tracks like The Rubinoos "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend" (see also their vintage cover of "Please Please Me"), Off Broadway's "Stay In Time" and "Full Moon Turn My Head Around," and Pezband's "Baby It's Cold Outside" and "Close Your Eyes."

FLORENCE + THE MACHINE play unpluggedy on the BBC.

GRETA VAN FLEET brings the 70s to Morning Becomes Eclectic.

ANNA BURCH stops by World Cafe for a chat and mini-set.

GREG NORMAN joined THE POSIES on "Makes No Sense At All" and other Hüsker Dü classics.

GUNS N' ROSES shares an early, piano-only demo of "November Rain."

BEEZEWAX shares "Rainbows."

THE LEMON TWIGS tease a new album and it sounds so mid-period Beach Boys.

THE ISLEY BROTHERS: "Shout." Shindig. Friday. A little bit louder now.

LOCAL NATIVES discuss what they're drinking, the lasting legacy of 'Gorilla Manor', and how their writing process has evolved.

PARAMORE & SOCCER MOMMY: Tourmates Hayley Williams and Sophie Allison talk generational divides, boosting fellow women, and the best Thai food in Nashville.

BRYAN ADAMS addresses longtime rumors of a romantic relationship with Princess Diana.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at the Animals' dark, doomy masterpiece "The House Of The Rising Sun."

NOW SHOWING:  This weekend's wide releases are Sicario: Day of the Soldado, which is currently scoring 72 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; and Uncle Drew, scoring 59 percent.

ME TOO: Twenty women and men speak, in their own words, about what came after they revealed their long-secret stories in The New York Times.

RUSSELL SIMMONS is newly accused of rape -- and MSNBC is accused of spiking the story.

SCARLETT JOHANSSON denies auditioning to be Tom Cruise's boyfriend.

KENDRICK LAMAR is profiled in Vanity Fair.

GAME OF THRONES: Sophie Turner promises the final seasoon will be bloodier, with more death and emotional torture than all prior years.

INDIANA JONES will not be riding back into theaters on July 10, 2020.

HARLAN ELLISON, a brilliant and difficult sci-fi author, who penned short stories, novellas and criticism, contributed to TV series including The Outer Limits, Star Trek and Babylon 5 and won a notable copyright infringement suit against ABC and Paramount and a settlement in a similar suit over The Terminator, has died. He was 84. BTW, that Trek episode was  “City on the Edge of Forever,” arguably the best of the series -- and Ellison hated the way it was rewritten.

A SMALL DOG trapped in a hot truck desperately honks the horn.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: A militant rodent steals a cop's dount.

THE SMELL OF DEAD SHARKS may protect surfers from attacks.

THE PANGOLIN is the most trafficked animal in the world.

FATHER JOHN MISTY plays Morning Becomes Eclectic.

DAVE MATTHEWS plays a Tiny Desk Concert.

LILY KONIGSBERG streams 4 picture tear.

ST PAUL & THE BROKEN BONES shares "Apollo."

VAN DALE shares “Silver Lining.”

VAMPIRE WEEKEND mashes up “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa” with “Here Comes The Sun.”

PRINCE's estate and Sony have signed an exclusive distribution agreement that covers 35 of the iconic musician's previously released albums. 

BEACH HOUSE talks to Kyle Meredith about how Warhol and numerology influenced their new album, 7.

JOE JACKSON, music manager and father to 11 children, including pop superstar Michael and Janet Jackson, has died, aged 89.

THE NUMBER ONES looks at "Where Did Our Love Go," the first of many No. 1 hits for the Supremes.

WONDER WOMAN 2: First look at Kristen Wiig as Cheetah?

CHRIS HARDWICK is defended by a different ex.

JARED LETO has signed on to star as a living vampire in Morbius, Sony’s latest entry into its Marvel-based, Spider-Man-centric universe of characters.

JOHN OLIVER TONIGHT is banned in China.

THE TOP 10 FILMS of 2018 (So Far), according to Consequence of Sound.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD: A first look at Quentin Tarantino's next film.

IGUANAS FIGHT in a Starbuck's parking lot.

A POLICE DOG is trained to provide CPR.

120000 BEES killed for no reason.

THE BIRDS: Residents in a Victorian building in south west London are being ‘cooped' up in the sweltering heat, because pigeons keep invading their homes.