Well, I, for one, am happy to see this. Pulse Of Radio reports the charge against AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd of attempting to arrange a murder has been dropped, according toStuff.co.nz. Rudd’s attorney, Paul Mabey, said today (Nov 7th) the Crown Solicitor Greg Hollister-Jones withdrew the murder-plot charge after a meeting with Mabey and police. Mabey said Hollister-Jones reviewed the case and concluded “there was insufficient evidence to justify that charge. He has now withdrawn the charge.” Rudd must return to court on Nov 27th, where he still faces one charge of threatening to kill as well as possession of meth and marijuana, which his lawyer described as “minor.” Mabey added Rudd had “suffered unnecessary and extremely damaging publicity as a result of widespread and sensational reporting of a very serious allegation, which on any basis was never justified.” Meanwhile AC/DC issued a statement earlier in the day on Rudd’s Thursday (Nov 6th) arrest, saying, “We’ve only become aware of Phil’s arrest as the news was breaking. We have no further comment. Phil’s absence will not affect the release of our new album, ‘Rock Or Bust,’ and upcoming tour next year.” The 60-year-old drummer was alleged to have tried to hire a hit-man to kill two men in late September. Rudd was missing from AC/DC’s new publicity photo and was also a no-show at the group’s video shoot on Oct 3 and 4 for its two new singles, “Play Ball” and “Rock Or Bust.” Rudd’s arrest was the second major blow to AC/DC in 2014. Founding guitarist Malcolm Young was forced to leave the band earlier this year because he is afflicted with dementia.SIDE NOTES: The man who Phil Rudd reportedly approached about killing two people told the Bay Of Plenty Times that Rudd was a “good fella” with a “big heart” who often took the man for rides in his cars or helicopter. But the man added Rudd had recently become irritable and was doing harm to his long-term friendships, saying, “He’s burning the ones who care about him. The joys of being a rock star, always in the spotlight. You’ve got to feel sorry for him — just the expectations everyone has of him.” When asked about the murder-plot allegations, the man replied, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” AC/DC’s Angus Young and Brian Johnson did an interview with BBC News. Check it out here. (Thanks Blabbermouth.) Meanwhile, Angus and Cliff Williams will be in the hardDriveRadio studios next week! I can’t WAIT to see them! It’s been too long! I have to try to comb the closets for a picture taken with them way back in the day with Bon Scott (1979.)….Yesterday I mentioned Foo Fighters are throwing a big ole party in DC at RFK Stadium on July 4th. It will not only include a massive concert (Foo Fighters are known to play almost 3 hour shows!), but will also have a motorcycle rally, BBQ and fireworks! The special guests include Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Heart, Buddy Guy, Gary Clark, Jr, LL Cool J, Trouble Funk and Trombone Shorty. What?!!! No Cheap Trick??? Tix on sale Saturday Nov 08 and all seats are general admission. Whoa, that’s nutty. Meanwhile, drummer Taylor Hawkins told me why Joan Jett didn’t make it onto the session they recorded in NYC. “We wanted Joan to sing backgrounds on that song too, but the session just went really, really late, and at some point she was like, ‘I just, I have to go.’ It just — it never got there. We tried to get her in there, you know. Oh well, you know, there’s always another record.”…. According to Pulse Of Radio, Slipknot singer Corey Taylor said in a new interview with Dread Central he recently completed his first screenplay, which he described as a horror film. Taylor explained, “It’s exciting. It doesn’t have a title yet. The script is done . . . we’re gonna try to break ground on it next year. ‘Cause it’s been a long time coming. The thing I learned about the movie industry (is) it takes a long time (for things to happen). Snail pace is actually fast for this industry.” Taylor also said he’s about 80 pages into another script, a “horror-comedy,” which he might try to direct himself. He said, “It’s almost like Halloween meets the movie Clue. So there’s a lot of dialogue . . . But it’s surrounded in this crazy thing that’s going on. And it’s completely out of the realm of reality, but I just love the idea of it. I showed it to my wife, and she just kind of stared at me for a second.” Ya know, this man is a workaholic. I don’t know when he sleeps or eats. Honestly. ….Here’s an update on Sick Puppies, who’ve responded to comments from ex-frontman Shimon Moore, claiming he was fired from the band by bassist Emma Anzai and drummer Mark Goodwin. In a statement given to Loudwire, the pair wrote, “We have always wanted to be professional and respectful to everyone involved, but unfortunately Shim has taken a different approach and has been distorting the facts to make himself out to be the victim of a surprise ‘ousting.‘” The band added, “The truth is Shim engaged a lawyer against US . . . for the second time. He notified us through his lawyer that he wanted to dissolve the band. All our hard work and dedication was now in jeopardy, not to mention all YOUR years of love and support of the band. We couldn’t let that happen so we made the difficult decision to move forward without him.” Anzai and Goodwin said they still wished Moore the best, adding, “If you know us at all then you know that we would not casually throw away 15 years of hard work. We trust you understand and each of you should know that moving forward we only want, and have always wanted — to keep the focus on the music.” In his comments, Moore had said that there was “tension in the band” and that he “had hoped that some time apart would resolve these issues.” Instead, he said his dismissal came as a complete surprise. Meanwhile Emma and Mark are looking for a new guitar/singer….Finally today, Noisey interviewed Ozzy and Jack Osbourne for their series “Back & Forth.” Watch it here. I love Ozzy!….Folks who have birthdays: Today: Greg Tribbett of Mudvayne & ex-Hellyeah is 46. Robin Finck of Guns ‘N Roses and Nine Inch Nails is 43. Saturday, speak of the devil, Jack Osbourne is 29 and the co-founder of MySpace, Tom Anderson is 44. Enjoy your weekend!