Burdened/graced with last names like Lennon and Earle (not to mention the middle name of “Townes”), claiming their place in the spotlight is no easy feat, but John Lennon and Steve Earle’s respective sons did just that tonight on late-night TV. While I’d still consider Julian to be a more rightful heir to the Lennon throne, Sean’s latest project alongside girlfriend Charlotte Kemp Muhl, Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger (aka The GOASTT), certainly does no disservice to that legendary pedigree. As for JTE, the dude had a rough fall last year, but — per this stunning performance of “Harlem River Blues” on Letterman — it appears a comeback is in order. Dare I say he’s donning a bit of Johnny Cash swagger these days. Check out both clips (thanks to our good pals at The Audio Perv) below:

The Black Keys’ Patrick Carney, Jesse Malin, Norah Jones, Sean Lennon, the Strokes’ Fab Moretti and Nikolai Fraiture, and many more will descend on NYC’s Bowery Ballroom next month for an epic one-night event dubbed simply, “Dylan Fest 2010: A Night To Get Drunk And Celebrate The songs of Bob Dylan!” Everybody must get stoned wasted.

According to the event description (via CoS and Time Out New York), Malin will lead the so-called Cabin Down Below Band for a celebration of Dylan’s 69th birthday with an evening of… well, I guess that title pretty much says it all.

Ready for more of the to-be-inebriated special guest performers? In addition to the names mentioned above, Little Joy’s Binki Shapiro, Nicole Atkins, Tracy Bonham, Mooney Suzuki’s Sammy James Jr., Jody Porter from Fountains Of Wayne, All American Rejects singer Tyson Ritter, Longwave’s Steve Schiltz and others are also piling on.

What’s more, tickets are only 13 bucks for the May 27 event, so grab a credit card, harmonica, and flask, and click here to join in the festivities.

…with a twist. Sean Lennon and model girlfriend Kemp Muhl have recreated Annie Leibovitz’s iconic 1981 Rolling Stone cover photo of a naked John Lennon, his legs curled around his wife, Yoko Ono (see below). The photograph, taken by Terry Richardson for Purple magazine’s fall issue, has Muhl taking the place of Lennon the Elder, while Ono is played by Lennon the Younger.  Click here for the full pic (mildly NSFW).

On a purely editorial note, I prefer the RS version with John clinging to Ono, seemingly in desperation; the moment seems intimate, almost. The new one lacks that raw visual emotion and errs on the side of caution by using a nude Muhl rather than a nude Lennon. But I digress. Since we’re on the subject, Leibovitz recalls the spontaneous creation of the original cover photo:

What is interesting is she said she’d take her top off and I said, ‘Leave everything on’ — not really preconceiving the picture at all. Then he curled up next to her and it was very, very strong. You couldn’t help but feel that she was cold and he looked like he was clinging on to her. I think it was amazing to look at the first Polaroid and they were both very excited.

Fresh off the heels of his collaboration with Danger Mouse and a dozen other famous artists, David Lynch has joined another all-star lineup for a film project called OneDreamRush. The Playlist reports the film contains “a series of 42 films by 42 different directors, each lasting 42 seconds,” including Lynch, Harmony Korine, Larry Clark, James Franco, Abel Ferrara, Leos Carax, Mike Figgis, Chan Marshall, Sean Lennon, and many more.

What’s up with all the all-star collaborations these days? I suppose the digital music and film revolution has enabled these kinds of pretentious projects, but this one could be pretty cool if it can avoid the legal complications of its predecessors. If not, Chan Marshall did say she wants to be a cast member on Saturday Night Live, so this could work as a demo reel I suppose.

To watch an excerpt from the work in progress, click here.