B.B. King ‘feeling fabulous’ after release from hospital

Houston – B.B. King was discharged from a Galveston hospital Saturday following treatment for a fever and was “back to his old self,” a spokeswoman for his management agency said.

The 81-year-old, Grammy-winning bluesman was “feeling fabulous,” said Tina France, vice president of Lieberman Management of New York.

King had been scheduled to perform Thursday at the Grand Opera House but was admitted to The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, said Paul McCarthy, a hospital administrator.

King still plans to perform Tuesday in Fort Worth, France said. Concerts that had been scheduled before then in Galveston, Orange and Tyler will be rescheduled for June, she said.

King, who has a history of diabetes, had a 100.4-degree fever following a bout with the flu, and monitoring was required because of his age, France said. Doctors treated him with antibiotics, she said.

He was kept in the hospital’s elderly acute care unit as a precaution, said John Koloen, a spokesman for the hospital in Galveston, about 50 miles southeast of Houston.

Composer delays premiere of ‘Doctor Atomic Symphony’

New York – Composer John Adams has delayed the premiere of his “Doctor Atomic Symphony,” which is based on his critically acclaimed opera about the development of the A-bomb.

The symphony, commissioned by the Saint Louis Symphony, Carnegie Hall and the BBC, was to be performed March 31 at Carnegie Hall. It will be replaced by Adams’ “Harmonielehre” at the concert with conductor David Robertson and the Saint Louis Symphony.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning composer said he realized while composing the symphony that it “was creatively a much more time-consuming project than originally anticipated, and it would not be ready for the scheduled premiere,” according to a news release from Carnegie Hall.

In the release, Robertson added: “When we commission, we do so based on a commitment to the composer. Having worked with many composers in my career, I’m most interested in ensuring that they have the time needed to produce work that realizes their creative vision – and a great work from John Adams is certainly worth the wait.”

‘Monster Garage’ host to pay fine for violating air-quality law

Long Beach, Calif. – “Monster Garage” reality show host Jesse James has agreed to pay $271,250 for violating California’s air quality laws by selling motorcycles that did not meet the state’s strict emissions standards, authorities said.

His Long Beach motorcycle building shop, West Coast Choppers, sold more than 50 new or custom-built motorcycles between 1998 and 2005 that were not certified by the Air Resources Board, the agency said in a statement Friday.

As part of a settlement, the shop is building motorcycles that comply with emission standards, the board said.

In a statement released Saturday, James said he had offered to make all of his noncompliant motorcycles meet federal standards, but the state agency only was “interested in the cash settlement.”

“We hope that paying this money will bring to light that California has a flawed system when it comes to its clean air agencies and the policies and practices they use,” James said.

James is married to actress Sandra Bullock. His Discovery Channel series about customized vehicles aired for five seasons.