Farm Aid comes to the city

John Mellencamp may have been the celeb du jour at a Farm Aid press conference yesterday at the Copley Farmers' Market, but that didn't stop folks from capping on his gravity-defying rock star hair. Margaret Williams, Food Project director, rubbed her tousled locks and quipped, "Little did I know I would have the same hairdresser as John Mellencamp!" To which the singer zinged back, "What's that, your pillow?" Mellencamp, who released a new album yesterday and played Boston this week, visited the market with his wife, former supermodel Elaine Irwin-Mellencamp, to promote the 23d Farm Aid concert, planned for Sept. 20 at the Comcast Center in Mansfield. He joined Mayor Tom Menino, who called him either "Mellencheck" or "Mellenchamp" - it was tough to tell - Farm Aid director Carolyn Mugar, and state energy and environmental secretary Ian Bowles at the mike. Mellencamp said fellow farm champions Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and Dave Matthews will play, and he hopes to rope in Robert Plant, T Bone Burnett, and Alison Krauss, too. "And I'm going to personally call James Taylor and make him come." It will be New England's first Farm Aid, and Comcast Center general manager Robin Anderson is already plotting how to make concession food for 20,000 local and sustainable. "It's not just about beers and hot dogs now," she mused. "I want a big grill with corn on the cob and lots of butter." Tré heartland.

The Rolling Stones recorded "Exile on Main Street" in the south of France. The Dropkick Murphys recorded "The City's Chosen Few" in a bathroom at McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket, R.I. No kidding. The editors at the Improper Bostonian asked the band to write a song celebrating the magazine's "Boston's Best" issue, and the band was happy to oblige. (The Dropkicks are on the cover, after all.) But it took a while to come up with the tune, and the band had been given a deadline to deliver the song. "We were getting down to the wire. Since backstage at our shows is a little bit of a circus, the only place we could find was the bathroom in the PawSox's dressing room," explained Ken Casey (above, with the lyric sheet), whose band played at McCoy Stadium Saturday with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones. (The Bosstone's Dicky Barrett belts out the chorus in the song.) "There's a nice toilet flush right at the end of the song." The tongue-in-cheek tune, which is posted now at DropkickMurphys.com, pokes fun at Boston's boldfaced names, including Ernie Boch Jr., Hazel Mae, Lenny Clarke, and Mike O'Malley. Our favorite line: "I'll tell ya, finding talent in this town sure ain't easy. Even Marty [Scorsese] had to use a lousy local band from Quincy."

Gingerly navigating the Santa Monica Pier in her heels, Eliza Dushku was the belle of the ball Monday promoting Fox's new season at the Television Critics Association press tour. But before the Watertown native began talking about her new show "Dollhouse," she gave a shout-out to the NBA champs. "I'm thrilled about my Celtics!" she said. "It was so fun throwing it all in the faces of the Laker fans." Dushku was likewise delighted to talk up "Dollhouse" creator Joss Whedon, with whom she worked on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." In the new series, Dushku plays Echo, a member of a group of "Dolls" who are programmed with different personalities for different missions and then have their memories wiped clean. It doesn't premiere until January, but buzz is already building. "It's incredible," Dushku said, referring to the response to each new Internet teaser and casting notice. "It's a testament to how unbelievably groundbreaking Joss has been in his career and in television, and the way he gets women and the way he gets people."

Actor James Francis Ginty, currently filming "The Surrogates" here with Bruce Willis, experienced a dream come true Saturday night: his first visit to Fenway. The 27-year-old baseball aficionado (he's from LA, so he votes Angels) said being in the park was like "heaven on earth." "Youk hit a grand slam, Manny hit a home run. To finally make it to the temple that is Fenway . . . it was just pure baseball," he gushed. When he's not covered in old-man makeup (his character, Willis's nemesis Dr. Lionel Canter, ages from 21 to 63 in the movie), Ginty's playing tourist in Boston. He's strolled the Common, walked Harvard Yard, and contemplated the Tea Party at the harbor. Working with Willis has been inspiring, he reported. "He's been a tremendous mentor to me. I could do nothing but call him sir for the first two weeks. Finally, he said, 'That's the last time you call me sir.' Then I knew it was time to get to work." Willis himself was spotted filming on South Street Monday. The actor hung out on a stoop and could be seen through the window of a first-floor office space. The set, by the way, looked like a beauty salon.

Being an All-Star has its perks. Just ask Kevin Youkilis, who took part in yesterday's All-Star Game parade in New York City. He was joined by his fiancee Enza Sambataro and her son, Mikey. We're told two cases of the Sox first baseman's new energy drink, Youk's Signature Slumpbuster, were delivered to Yankee Stadium in time for the game.

Boston Symphony Orchestra music director James Levine underwent successful kidney-removal surgery yesterday at a New York hospital, BSO spokeswoman Bernadette Horgan said. The procedure, necessitated by an uncomfortable cyst, will keep Levine away from Tanglewood for the symphony's summer season. Horgan said Tom Levine, the conductor's brother, reported yesterday afternoon that the surgery went as planned and was described by doctors as a complete success. Levine will recuperate in the hospital for several days, and is then expected to rest at home for up to six weeks.

"When you look at Jack Black...it just always reminds me of that first initial feeling I had when I heard Elvis Presley singing 'Heartbreak Hotel.' " - The Who’s Roger Daltrey, after seeing Black's band, Tenacious D, pay tribute to The Who

Sarah Rodman of the Globe staff contributed. Names can be reached at names@globe.com or at 617-929-8253.