Classic Hits

Bryan Adams has dropped the new single “Rock and Roll Hell,” which is actually one of two songs he co-wrote with Jim Vallance and Gene Simmons for KISS. The other is “War Machine,” and Adams is set to release both on 7-inch vinyl on Aug. 30.

Both tracks appeared on KISS’ 1982 album, Creatures of the Night. Adams says at the time he was a “22-year-old struggling songwriter,” noting he was “thrilled” at the opportunity to write for KISS.

“‘Rock and Roll Hell’ was actually Jim’s song that had been released a few years earlier with Bachman Turner Overdrive, and I suggested, that we re-write it for KISS,” he says. “It’s incredible to think these themes are unfortunately still playing out for real in the world today, but I’m very grateful to the KISS guys for giving me the chance back then.” 

To coincide with the release of “Rock and Roll Hell,” Adams has dropped a new video for the tune, which was shot on the roof of London’s famed Royal Albert Hall, where Adams wrapped a three-night residency back in May.

“Rock and Roll Hell” and “War Machine” are being released as a limited-edition double A-side 7-inch single. The single is available for preorder now at bryanadams.com.

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ZZ Top’s first five albums have been compiled into their first-ever high fidelity vinyl box set. 

ZZ Top From The Top: 1971-1976 features high-end vinyl reissues of 1971’s ZZ Top’s First Album, 1972’s Rio Grande Mud, 1973’s Tres Hombres, 1975’s Fandago! and 1976’s Tejas. All copies are cut from the original stereo master tapes and pressed on 180-gram heavyweight vinyl.

The set, which features liner notes by James Austin in conversation with ZZ Top vocalist/guitarist Billy F. Gibbons, is housed in a faux leather hardshell slipcase and includes a ZZ Top slipmat.

The limited-edition ZZ Top From The Top: 1971-1976 is available now exclusively at rhino.com, with only 2,000 copies available.

ZZ Top has a busy touring schedule for the rest of 2024. Their next show is Aug. 9 in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan. A complete list of dates can be found at zztop.com.

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The Alarm is set to release their new album, Music Television, in August.

The record features covers of songs made famous in MTV’s heyday, and was supposed to be available on vinyl and CD during the band’s Live Today Love Tomorrow tour. The tour was supposed to launch in May, but was postponed after Alarm frontman Mike Peters’ cancer returned.  

Now the album will be released digitally on Aug. 23, along with an additional recording of “Transition,” a song that originally appeared on The Alarm’s 2023 album, Forwards.

Peters was initially diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia in 2005 and relapsed in 2022. Right before the tour, his cancer returned and he was diagnosed with a rare condition known as Richter’s syndrome. He’s currently hoping to find a donor for a stem cell transplant. He says he added “Transition” to the album “as a signal of my intent to survive the transplant and get back to real life sometime in 2025.”

“I have optimistic options ahead of me, and, like all the songs on Music Television that have survived the years since they were first written, so will I,” he adds.

In addition to “Transitions,” Music Television features The Alarm’s reinterpretations of such classic MTV staples as The Buggles’ “Video Killed The Radio Star,” which was the first song played on the network; Dire Straits’ “Money For Nothing,” the first song played on MTV Europe; David Bowie’s “The Man Who Sold The World”; Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight”; Modern English’s “I Melt With You”; and Michael Jackson’s “Beat It.”

Here is the track list forMusic Television:

“Money For Nothing” (Dire Straits)
“Video Killed The Radio Star” (The Buggles)
“Live Today Love Tomorrow” (The Blow Monkeys)
“Imagination” (Belouis Some)
“Beat It” (Michael Jackson)
“Don’t Change” (INXS)
“In The Air Tonight” (Phil Collins)
“I Melt With You” (Modern English)
“Screaming For Emmalene” (Gene Loves Jezebel)
“The Man Who Sold The World” (David Bowie)
“MTV Theme”
“Transition” (The Alarm)

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Devo has been added to Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder‘s Ohana Festival, which will take place Sept. 27-29 in Dana Point, California.

The “Whip It” rockers will perform on the festival’s opening night, replacing Garbage, who had to cancel after frontwoman Shirley Manson suffered an injury that requires surgery. 

“When a problem comes along, you must whip it…,” read the social media announcement, which also included a photo of Pearl Jam dressed like Devo. “Excited to welcome @clubdevo to @theohanafes lineup on Friday, 9/27!” 

Pearl Jam is set to headline two nights of Ohana, Sept. 27 and Sept. 29, with Sting headlining Sept. 28. Sting was a replacement for Neil Young and Crazy Horse, who canceled their entire tour due to health issues in the band.

Other artists playing Ohana include Alanis Morissette, Crowded House, The Breeders, Jenny Lewis and Glen Hansard.

More info can be found at ohanafest.com.

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John Mayer isn’t going to let a little thing like a finger injury stop him from taking the stage with Dead & Company at their Dead Forever residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

The guitarist revealed on Instagram that he recently injured his left index finger in a truck door, noting, “[T]he first thing that went through my mind was ‘I really need that finger in a week.’”

“I need all my fingers, but the left index is the team captain of my fretting hand. It will heal just fine, but will be out of commission for a while,” he added, along with a picture of his bandaged digit.

But Mayer wasn’t about to miss a show to recover. 

“In the meantime, I have spent every day practicing guitar using the other three fingers and I think I have it sounding pretty good!” he writes. “I’ve always felt like every part of me belongs to these shows, and it’s my responsibility to return to the stage each night without screwing up the equipment, and I’m sorry for the misadventure here.” 

Finally, he shares, “The power of the music and the love for these shows will prevail! See ya tonight.”

Dead & Company kicks off their second-to-last weekend of their Dead Forever residency on Thursday. Their final show is scheduled for Aug. 10. A complete list of dates can be found at deadandcompany.com.

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Grateful Dead founder Jerry Garcia would have turned 82 on Thursday, and to mark the occasion the Sausalito Center for the Arts in California is launching a new exhibit, The Art of Jerry Garcia.

The exhibit, which runs through Sept. 1, features 30 museum quality digital prints donated by The Jerry Garcia Foundation. Fans who can’t make in person will be able to check out the Garcia exhibit virtually via the Neverworld Grid metaverse.

The Art of Jerry Garcia will launch on Thursday with an opening concert by the Keystone Revisited Band, led by bassist Tony Saunders, son of the late keyboardist Merl Saunders, who was a frequent Garcia collaborator. 

In addition to the Garcia artwork, those attending the exhibit will be treated to a private never-before-seen collection of Grateful Dead memorabilia, including autographed album covers and posters. There will also be behind-the-scenes rock ‘n’ roll photos from photographer Carol Scott, featuring photos that have remained unseen for 40 years.

More info can be found at sausalitocenterforthearts.org. 

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A planned auction of what has been described as hand-drawn artwork by the late King of Pop, Michael Jackson, is being called into question.

The auction, featuring 76 pieces of what is reported to be Jackson’s art, including pieces hand-drawn with wax colored pencil, is supposed to take place Saturday through Kings Auctions, but now the Michael Jackson estate is questioning whether the drawings are legit.

“The Estate of Michael Jackson does not accept that this artwork was created by Michael Jackson,” a rep for the estate tells Billboard. “Our representatives examined this artwork several years ago while it was being stored in a hangar at the Santa Monica airport, and the inspection only raised further concerns.”

They add, “We have made this clear to the auction house and others many times since. The Estate asked for evidence that these works were in fact created by Michael, and no sufficient evidence has ever been produced. Caveat emptor (let the buyer beware).”

The auction incudes a sketch of Martin Luther King, portraits of presidents, Disney characters, pop icons, fine artworks and more. They are all said to be signed by Jackson.

More info on the auction can be found at kings-auctions.com.

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Cher’s musical career is being explored in a new compilation album coming this fall.

Cher Forever, dropping Sept. 20, will feature 21 remastered tracks, all chosen by Cher. They include hit songs like “Believe” and “If I Could Turn Back Time,” as well as “Strong Enough,” “The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s In His Kiss)” and “I Found Someone.” There are also classics like “Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves” and “Dark Lady,” along with her 2023 holiday single “DJ Play a Christmas Song.”

Cher Forever will be released as a two-LP set on crystal clear translucent vinyl, as well as on CD. Both are available for preorder now.

But that’s not all. A digital release, Forever Fan Edition, will also be released on Sept. 20 featuring 19 additional tracks. The digital version includes iconic Sonny and Cher tunes “The Beat Goes On” and “I Got You Babe,” plus “Just Like Jesse James,” “Welcome To Burlesque,” “Move Me,” which features her late ex-husband Gregg Allman, and a live cover of U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.”

Also included is the fan-favorite “A Woman’s Story,” previously only available as a 45-inch single, which is out now on digital services.

Cher Forever and Forever Fan Edition are set to drop ahead of some big milestones in Cher’s career. She’s due to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on Oct. 19. She’ll also release the first part of her memoir, Cher: The Memoir, Part One, on Nov. 19, with part two coming in 2025.

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Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Carole King is using her iconic album Tapestry to let folks know who she’s voting for in the upcoming presidential election.

The album’s cover shows her sitting by a window, with a cat in the foreground. She shared it on Instagram with the caption, “Cat ladies for Kamala,” indicating she supports the presumptive Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris.

The cat ladies comment is in reference to Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance‘s controversial remarks in which he said the U.S. was being run by “childless cat ladies” who “force their misery on the rest of the country.”

Released Feb. 10, 1971, Tapestry was King’s sophomore solo album and featured such classic songs as “It’s Too Late,” “I Feel the Earth Move,” “So Far Away,” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” “You’ve Got a Friend” and others.  

It was a huge hit for King, spending 15 straight weeks at number one and winning four Grammy Awards. It holds the record for the most consecutive weeks at #1 by a female artist and until 2017 held the record for the longest-charting album by a female solo artist in the U.S. The record was broken by Adele’s 21.

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Def Leppard is currently on their Summer Stadium tour with Journey, and each night fans are being treated to a set list filled with hits, including several songs from their hit album Pyromania, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary.

Of course there will always be fans who would love to hear a deep cut during a show, and frontman Joe Elliott has some ideas on a rare track he’d be interested in playing.

The revelation came when a fan asked the band on TikTok, “What song would you like to see added to the set list that is rare or never played? It can’t include any song from Pyromania.”

Elliott replied, “I would say one song that might be fun to try one day would be ‘You Got Me Running,’ off High and Dry,” referring to the band’s sophomore album. He notes, “I think we did actually play it in 1981 like two or three times and we abandoned it for whatever reason.”

He adds, “I think it might work, who knows?” 

Def Leppard and Journey’s Summer Stadium tour hits Toronto, Canada, on Sunday. A complete list of dates can be found at defleppard.com. 

Meanwhile, Def Leppard wants to see how their fans interpret their songs.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers have launched a cover contest with instrument retailer Sweetwater, asking fans to share videos of them covering their favorite track off Pyromania. The winner will receive over $13,000 worth of gear inspired by Def Leppard. Participants have until Sept. 13 to enter by uploading their performance to YouTube or Instagram with #PyromaniaCover2024, along with tags for @SweetwaterSound and @defleppard. The winner will be announced Sept. 20.

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