Classic Hits – Page 22

Blood, Sweat & Tears singer David Clayton-Thomas dead at 84

June 25, 2026 by WDNY Radio

David Clayton-Thomas, lead singer and songwriter of the jazz rock group Blood, Sweat & Tears, died Wednesday at 84, the singer’s publicist confirms to ABC News.

According to the publicist, Clayton-Thomas “died peacefully” at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto.

Born David Henry Thomsett in Surrey, England, on September 13, 1941, Clayton-Thomas joined Blood, Sweat & Tears in 1968, following the departure of the band’s original frontman Al Kooper. He landed the gig after folk singer Judy Collins heard him performing and told Blood, Sweat & Tears drummer Bobby Colomby about him.

With Clayton-Thomas singing lead, Blood, Sweat & Tears’ 1968 self-titled sophomore album became a huge hit, spending seven weeks on top of the Billboard Albums chart and winning the Grammy for album of the year in 1970, beating The Beatles’ Abbey Road.

The album spawned three hits: “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy,” “Spinning Wheel” and “And When I Die.” All three songs peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 13 weeks in that position.

In 1970, following the album’s success, the band went on the State Department-sponsored Iron Curtain tour visiting countries Yugoslavia, Romania and Poland, which drew criticism from fans. The tour was the subject of a 2023 documentary, What The Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears?

The band continued to release hit albums, including 1970’s Blood, Sweat & Tears 3, which spent two weeks on top of the Billboard 200, and 1971’s Blood, Sweat & Tears 4, which was a top-10 hit.

Clayton-Thomas left the group in 1972 to pursue a solo career, releasing his self-titled solo debut that year. He went on to release nearly a dozen solo albums over the course of his career, his last being 2020’s Say Somethin’.

Clayton-Thomas was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1996, and Blood, Sweat & Tears’ iconic track “Spinning Wheel” was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2007. Clayton-Thomas also received a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2010.

Clayton-Thomas’ life and music will be celebrated with a memorial concert at a later date. Proceeds will benefit Peacebuilders Canada.

Lionel Richie cuts opening night set short after feeling ‘dizzy’ and ‘strange’

June 25, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Lionel Richie was not ‘Dancing on the Ceiling’ during the opening night of his tour in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Wednesday: He was sitting on the stage.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer cut his set short on the Sing a Song All Night Long Tour with Earth, Wind & Fire after telling the audience he was feeling “dizzy” and “strange,” reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune. While he began singing “Dancing on the Ceiling” standing up, he then stopped and perched on a step on the stage to complete the song. He told fans, “When you’re feeling dizzy, sit your a** down.”

But about 55 minutes into his performance, after sitting behind the piano to sing “Three Times a Lady,” he announced an intermission and left the stage. Forty minutes later, one of Lionel’s bandmembers appeared onstage and said, “Unfortunately, Lionel is not feeling well. He won’t be able to continue. Additional information will be available.”

After the announcement, John Paris, drummer for Earth, Wind & Fire, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that Lionel was “a little dehydrated,” but there weren’t any indications prior to the show the he was feeling ill.

ABC News has reached out to Lionel’s rep.

Mick Jagger reveals his thoughts on a Rolling Stones biopic

June 25, 2026 by WDNY Radio

The Beatles are getting not one but four biopics, thanks to Sam Mendes’ project The Beatles – A Four Film Cinematic Event, and it sounds like Mick Jagger is open to having a similar thing happen for The Rolling Stones.

In a new interview with British GQ, Jagger was asked about whether he’d like to see that “kind of treatment” for The Stones, to which he replied, “Yeah, it interests me.”

“I don’t want to impart it to you, but, I know how I see it,” he says of a possible film. “There’s lots of ways of doing biopics.”

Referring to the Bob Dylan film A Complete Unknown, Jagger explains, “So most of the time when you do a biopic, you do one small section of someone’s life bookended by some other stuff. Take the Bob Dylan movie. You do the moment when Bob went electric.”

“You’d have to think, what are you going to zero in on?” he continues. “And where’s your two years of interest? I mean that Bob Dylan one was two years, [the] James Brown one that I produced was slightly more.” The latter is a reference to 2014’s Get On Up, which starred the late Chadwick Boseman.

So, which portion of The Stones’ career would he like a movie to focus on?

“I don’t know which section, because it’s a long period,” Jagger says.

As for whether he has an idea for someone who could play him in a film, Jagger says, “No.”

As fans wait for a future Rolling Stones film, they can simply enjoy The Stones’ music. They’ll release the new album Foreign Tongues on July 10.

Billy Idol and Steve Stevens inducted into Guitar Center’s Hollywood Rockwalk

June 24, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Billy Idol and longtime collaborator Steve Stevens have been inducted into Guitar Center’s Hollywood Rockwalk.

The pair took part in a handprint ceremony outside Guitar Center’s flagship location on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood Tuesday night.

“I’ve had a fantastic time with Steve, he’s made a lot of my crazy ideas come true,” Idol said during the ceremony. “You can never really ask for anything more than that. It really is special and incredible, and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. It’s great to be honored together by Guitar Center on the Rockwalk.”

“It’s humbling to now be amongst this incredible group of musicians on Guitar Center’s Rockwalk,” Stevens added. “More than anything, this is a testament to over 45 years of great laughs, great songs that now belong to the world, and a great friendship.”

Idol and Stevens now join the more than 150 artists and innovators represented on the Rockwalk, which began in 1985. Others who’ve been honored on the Rockwalk include Eric Clapton, Aerosmith, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Black Sabbath and The Ramones.

The honor comes ahead of Idol and Stevens’ induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in November.

Next up, Idol will launch the next leg of his It’s A Nice Day To … Tour Again! tour on Aug. 7 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He will also headline the weeklong Hot in the City Las Vegas residency at the Fontainebleau from Aug. 28 to Sept. 5. A complete list of dates can be found at BillyIdol.net.

America’s Gerry Beckley drops new single, ‘Get It Right’

June 24, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Gerry Beckley is out with new music.

The America co-founder has just released the new track “Get It Right,” the first single off his upcoming solo album, Merciful. The album features a combination of previously unfinished material, along with newly written songs.

“‘Get It Right’ was one of those songs from the vaults that still really held up,” says Beckley. “It felt good to revisit it and finally bring it to life.”

“Get It Right” is out now via digital outlets.

Merciful, dropping Aug. 18, also includes a cover of The Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood,” featuring a guest appearance by two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Graham Nash.

The album is the follow-up to Beckley’s 2024 self-titled solo album. That same year he announced his retirement from touring with America.

Rush postpones Fort Worth show due to ‘travel and border-related delays’

June 24, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Rush has run into their first glitch on their Fifty Something tour.

The rockers were supposed to be headlining the Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, on Wednesday. But according to a post on Instagram, the show has now been postponed “(d)ue to unforeseen travel and border-related delays impacting our touring production following our recent Mexico City tour dates.”

The Fort Worth show, the opening night of a four-night stand at the venue, has now been moved to July 2, with tickets for Wednesday’s show valid on the new date. Refunds will be provided to those who can’t make the new date.

The tour will resume on Friday in Fort Worth, with the band also scheduled to play there Sunday and Tuesday.

“We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your understanding,” they wrote. “[W]e look forward to seeing everyone starting this Friday!”

Rush launched their Fifty Something tour on June 7 in Los Angeles. It is the band’s first tour since August 2015, and also Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson’s first time on tour since the 2020 death of Neil Peart.

A complete list of tour dates can be found at Rush.com.

Deep Purple drops new ‘SPLAT!’ single ‘Guilt Trippin’’

June 24, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Deep Purple has shared another preview of their upcoming album, SPLAT!

The band has released the new single “Guilt Trippin’,” which, according to a press release, “imagines God and Charles Darwin sharing a drink in a pub, reflecting on how things on earth have not exactly worked out according to plan.”

“The song starts, and I’m in the studio. I don’t have any words for it yet,” says frontman Ian Gillan of the track. “So I just start screaming. It was the pure joy of yelling it.”

The 80-year-old adds, “I vowed when I was 40 that I’d stop screaming by the time I was 60. Now I’m looking back and thinking, ‘Whatever happened to that?’ So we’ll give it a go.”

This is the third single Deep Purple has released from SPLAT!, following “Arrogant Boy” and “Diablo.” It is available now via digital outlets.

SPLAT!, Deep Purple’s first album since to 2024’s =1, will be released July 3. The album explores the idea of the end of humanity as a transformation rather than a destruction, with the album’s description noting it sees the end “not in any crude apocalyptic sense but as a metamorphosis beyond physical existence.”

Deep Purple will launch a North American tour Aug. 4 in Raleigh, North Carolina. A complete list of dates can be found at DeepPurple.com.

Let it Speed: Rolling Stones team with NASCAR for ‘Foreign Tongues’ collaboration

June 24, 2026 by WDNY Radio

The Rolling Stones have announced another collaboration in connection with their upcoming album, Foreign Tongues.

The latest has the band teaming with NASCAR for a line of officially licensed co-branded NASCAR merchandise, including T-shirts, a sweatshirt and a signature racing jacket. There will also be two limited-edition NASCAR-themed Foreign Tongues vinyl variants.

In addition, the campaign will include a fan experience at locations around Chicago leading up to NASCAR’s Chicagoland race weekend, July 4-5. It will feature a Rolling Stones listening lounge, where fans can enjoy Foreign Tongues inside a custom-designed Rolling Stone-inspired NASCAR show car.

The launch of the collaboration also includes a new video featuring NASCAR drivers Jesse Love, Connor Zilisch and Carson Hocevar, as well as YouTube creator and driver Cleetus McFarland, set to The Stones’ latest single “In the Stars.”

The NASCAR collab is one of many The Rolling Stones have announced in connection with Foreign Tongues, which comes out July 10. They previously revealed collabs with FIFA and Marvel.

More info can be found at Store.NASCAR.com and TheRollingStonesShop.com.

Whitney Houston’s estate denies Oprah Winfrey’s claim that singer was high when she fell off stage

June 24, 2026 by WDNY Radio

Oprah Winfrey recently made headlines by telling an unflattering story about Whitney Houston, and now the late singer’s estate is hitting back, saying Oprah’s version of the story is inaccurate.

While speaking at the Cannes Lion festival in France, Variety and other outlets reported that Oprah illustrated the influence she and her talk show had by claiming that Whitney Houston once fell off the stage during a 2009 appearance on the show because “she had gone back on drugs.”

Variety quoted Oprah as saying, “I knew that if that story got out … [Whitney] would be destroyed by that. And so even though the audience was there and the audience had cameras, I begged them not to put those pictures out because it would ruin her life, and they did not. That would not happen today, I can tell you that.”

The official Whitney Houston Instagram account posted a statement from the late singer’s estate on Wednesday, reading, “Whitney absolutely fell off stage, but it was during a sound check and it was due to the darkness of the area and her unfamiliarity with the stage. She was absolutely not high.”

“This story was picked up by several media outlets. Like many people, she faced personal battles, but it is inaccurate and unfair to attach that struggle to every performance or every chapter of her life,” the statement continued.

The statement concluded, “What the studio audience witnessed on stage was the result of discipline, talent, and commitment not the assumptions others project. Whitney’s humanity included triumphs and struggles, but on that day, she showed up as the professional and gifted artist she always worked to be. We owe her the dignity of telling the truth not repeating myths.”

Whitney accidentally drowned in 2012. She was 48.

Watch the first trailer for ‘WHAM! 10 days in China’

June 24, 2026 by WDNY Radio

We are getting our first look at the upcoming Wham! documentary, WHAM! 10 Days In China, which explores the duo’s 1985 concerts in China.

A trailer for the film has just been released, featuring archival photos and footage of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley becoming the first Western pop group to perform in China.

In addition to performance footage, the trailer shows the duo visiting sites, dealing with uncomfortable press conferences and more. It also delves into the impact the concerts had on fans, the political implications of the shows and touches upon the struggles Michael went through during the tour.

The film, which features restored, newly digitized and never-before-seen archival footage, is described in a press release as “the untold story of WHAM! at a singular moment in history, East meets West, pop meets politics, and two young stars coming of age on the world stage.”

WHAM! 10 Days In China will be screened in theaters on July 28. Tickets are on sale now.

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