80s Rock Icon Don
Johnson Denies Money Laundering Allegations
Comeback album efforts hindered by perpetual rumors
WHIT PISTOL
One of the countless greatest hits collections of the “Miami Sound Machine.”
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The entangled world of celebrity indictments grew thicker this week with questions arising concerning an alleged money-laundering scam involving popular ‘80s contemporary rock star Don Johnson. Johnson, most famous for his 1986 Billboard top 5 hit “Heartbeat,” denied the accusations unequivocally.
According to an unnamed German source we’re calling Sigfried, Johnson was found carrying $8 billion in cash, bonds, and share certificates which sparked an investigation of money laundering by authorities. Evidence verifying or nullifying the claim has been slow to surface.
Johnson, a successful ‘80s pop vocalist/songwriter, called the rumors “ill-founded and farcical,” though outside sources claim the actual quote was “farcical and ill-founded.” According to the stylish, gravel-voiced singer, the unfounded accusations have already caused him embarrassment and irreparable career damage: Two credit card accounts have been closed for investigation and the Epic record label has dropped the artist, approximately 2 weeks to 14 years ago.
The charges seem compounded in the wake of other celebrity criminal news, including the ongoing preliminary trial of actor Robert Blake for the murder of wife Bonnie Lee Bakley, as well as the shoplifting trial of Winona Ryder and implications of extortion and mafia connections to kung fu master Steven Seagal. Statistics invented quite recently suggest the American public has grown weary of celebrity scandal and grows more inclined to believe charges, even when presented without evidence.
Johnson became a dominant force in contemporary rock with his 1986 album Heartbeat and the eponymous single, which rose high on Billboard charts and established a new soundscape for late-‘80s rock. Aided by Johnson’s dry golden hair and rugged, stubble-laden good looks, as well as his penchant for sockless pastel slacks and sport jackets, Johnson’s strong feel for powerful synth music and evocative lyrics established him as a rising star in rock. However, a lag in returning to the studio made Johnson’s work on the similar Let it Roll sound dated and familiar in 1989. The popularity of his music paved the way for Johnson’s work in other projects, such as TV’s detective show Miami Vice and Melanie Griffith. Johnson became reclusive after the disappointment of his follow-up album, rarely appearing movies, refusing to do interviews, and accepting a role in a Friday night CBS television series.
Hopes for a musical comeback diminish in the wake of the money-laundering allegations. Some insiders suggest Johnson, a perfectionist with his music, had been working on his follow-up album since 1992 in a secretive sound studio in Los Angeles, foregoing his well-established “Miami sound.” Others say plans for a project for a Traveling Wilburys-type supergroup with Bruce Willis, David Hasselhoff, Jim McMahon, and Dogstar bassist Keanu Reeves have been indefinitely sidelined.
the commune news has been extremely anxious to record a cover of “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds,” but those are severely big shoes to fill—how do you follow William Shatner’s definitive version? Bludney Pludd cannot and should not be followed, ever, anywhere, under any circumstances.
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