Classic Hits

Peter Frampton is clearing the air over comments he made blaming Megadeth for him having to cancel a show in Virginia. 

During his Sept. 19 concert in Philadelphia, Frampton said he canceled his Sept. 17 show at Virginia Credit Union Live in Richmond partially due to weather and partially due structural damage to the stage, which he suggested may have happened during Megadeth’s soundcheck a few days before.

Megadeth responded that Frampton was misinformed, saying they didn’t even soundcheck due to damage to the venue’s grid system. “It’s disappointing when someone you admire talks out their a** about you,” the band’s frontman, Dave Mustaine, said.

Frampton is now setting the record straight, telling ABC Audio his comments were simply a joke and he feels bad about it.

“I sent them an apology. It was just one of those things that people took me serious. … I made it all up just for the comedy,” he says. “I turned into Don Rickles for a minute there.”

And Frampton, who’s set to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Oct. 19, understands why Mustaine was angry.

“If I were Dave Mustaine and the guys in Megadeth, I would be p***** too,” Frampton says. “So, you know, he says I talked out of my a**. Well, yeah, that’s where it came from.”

“I didn’t mean any harm at all, but it was a very, very serious situation and I made light of it not knowing the facts,” Frampton continued. “So that was a huge lesson for me and I apologized to them.”

As for Mustaine saying he admired Frampton, the guitar great notes, “He is a good guy,” adding that after Megadeth finishes touring he needs to “take him out for a meal or something.”

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Queen has released a performance video of the track “Son and Daughter,” recorded live at Hammersmith Odeon on Dec. 24, 1975.

The performance is one of the rare live tracks featured on the upcoming six-CD + one-LP collector’s edition reissue, Queen I, which revisits the band’s 1973 self-titled debut album.

The set, made up of 63 tracks with 43 brand-new mixes, will include the original album with a new track listing, along with its originally intended running order and the addition of “Mad the Swine,” a song that was absent from the 1973 release. There are also alternative takes, demos and rare live tracks, along with “fly-on-the-wall audio” that gives fans a behind-the-scenes look at Queen in the studio.

In addition to the box set, Queen I will be released as a single CD and two-CD deluxe edition, as well as on vinyl, picture disc and cassette. 

Queen I will be released Oct. 25. All formats are available for preorder now.

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Elton John‘s “Tiny Dancer” is about a woman who hangs around with musicians — Bernie Taupin has said it was about his wife at the time. But now the classic tune has been used to soundtrack the trailer for a movie about a woman who hangs around with guns, knives and anything else you can use to kill someone in gnarly fashion.

The movie is From the World of John Wick: Ballerina, a spin-off of the Keanu Reeves action movies. It starts with a young girl listening to a music box, which features a ballerina spinning to an instrumental version of “Tiny Dancer.” We then see that young girl, now bloodied and beaten, led away by John Wick star Ian McShane, who promises to take her to a school where they “teach dancers.”

Except, it’s not exactly a ballet school. It’s a school for assassins. We see the little girl, Eve, played as a grown woman by Ana de Armas, undergoing training in various deadly arts. As we hear Elton’s song — with its line “Ballerina, you must’ve seen her” — she interacts with other fixtures of the John Wick universe, including the Continental Hotel, its concierge, Charon, and McShane’s character, Winston.

Then, there’s a lot of killing, as Eve dispatches various opponents with firearms, a flamethrower, knives and even an ice skate. At the end, she comes face to face with John Wick himself. 

Ballerina comes out in 2025.

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Billy Joel has announced a handful of co-headlining dates for 2025.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer is set to play four shows with Sting: Feb. 8 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, April 11 at JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse, New York, May 10 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, and May 23 at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah. 

But that’s not all. Joel and Stevie Nicks have also booked a co-headlining date, March 29 at Detroit’s Ford Field. 

Citi presales for all shows begin Monday at 10 a.m. ET, with tickets going on sale to the general public starting Oct. 4 at 9 a.m. ET.

In addition to these co-headlining shows, Billy has a few solo gigs on his schedule for 2025, including New Year’s Eve at the UBS Arena in New York for the second year in a row and a Jan. 17 show in Seminole, Florida.

Joel’s next show is a co-headlining date with Sting on Friday in St. Louis. A complete list of dates can be found at billyjoel.com.

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Actress Shailene Woodley recently revealed that she’s been working with songwriter Linda Perry to develop her voice for the upcoming Janis Joplin biopic, and now Perry is sharing some more details on the film.

Perry tells Entertainment Weekly she’s “been waiting decades for this movie to be made” and is honored to be a part of it. She describes the movie as “a raw and honest look into Janis Joplin’s last days.”

”Shailene Woodley’s emotional commitment and dedication to Janis is inspiring,” Perry adds. “I believe her! Shailene lives for the art and I can’t think of a better person to portray such a powerful, emotional, and complex artist.”

Joplin died Oct. 4, 1970, at the age of 27. 

Woodley’s plan to produce and star in a Joplin biopic was revealed in early September. During an interview Wednesday on Live with Kelly and Mark she said she’s been putting the film together for six years.

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Lynyrd Skynyrd has canceled four more shows following the news of Skynyrd frontman Johnny Van Zant’s family emergency.

The band originally canceled their Sept. 24 concert in Anchorage, sharing that Van Zant’s daughter had to “undergo emergency surgery.” Now they’ve canceled their shows Thursday in West Valley, Utah; Friday in Loveland, Colorado; Saturday in Colorado Springs; and Sunday in Albuquerque.

In a post on social media, Skynyrd says Van Zant has left the tour to be with his daughter “while they continue testing, diagnosis and treatment.” Refunds will be given to all ticketholders.

The canceled dates where the last four shows on Skynyrd’s Sharp Dressed Simple Man tour with ZZ Top. Their next scheduled show is at the Field & Stream Festival in Winnsboro Mills, South Carolina, taking place Oct. 4-6.

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The latest music icon to get their own documentary is none other than Barbra Streisand.

A multipart movie about the diva, directed by Frank Marshall, is currently in production. Marshall directed the 2020 documentary The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart and the documentary The Beach Boys, which came out this year.

The film is described as a “definitive” and “comprehensive exploration of every facet of the iconic” star. It’s being created using Barbra’s “personal archives … including hundreds of hours of personal, never-before-seen video, photographs, audio recordings, and personal keepsakes from throughout her acclaimed career.”

Streisand says in a statement, “For years I’ve been thinking about the best way to share the vast amount of content I’ve been safely storing in my vault. These films, photos and music masters — many never seen or heard by the public — hold some of my most cherished memories.”

She thanks those involved in the film for agreeing to “take this journey with me.”

The film’s producer, Alex Gibney, says in a statement, “I am delighted to produce this film on Barbra, a legendary singer, extraordinary actor, director, and political activist who inspires us all. Did I forget to mention that she’s a great storyteller who is funny as hell?”

There’s no word on when the doc will be released. Streisand released her 970-page memoir, My Name Is Barbra, last year. 

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U2 is celebrating the 20th anniversary of their 11th studio album, How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, with what they’re calling a “shadow album,” featuring songs from the original album’s recording sessions. 

Dubbed How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb, the album features 10 previously unreleased tracks from the band’s archive, including two newly released songs, “Country Mile” and “Picture of You (X+Y),” which are available now via digital outlets.

“The sessions for How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb were such a creative period for the band, we were exploring so many song ideas in the studio,” guitarist The Edge shares. “For this anniversary edition I went into my personal archive to see if there were any unreleased gems and I hit the jackpot.” 

He adds, “What you’re getting on this shadow album is that raw energy of discovery, the visceral impact of the music, a sonic narrative, a moment in time, the exploration and interaction of four musicians playing together in a room… this is the pure U2 drop.” 

The standalone How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb will be released Nov. 29 as an exclusive for Record Store Day Black Friday, along with a digital release. 

In addition to the shadow album, U2 will release a special 20th anniversary remastered edition of How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, featuring the bonus track “Fast Car.” They’ll also release a package with the remaster and the shadow album together, dubbed How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb (Re-Assemble Edition). Both will be released Nov. 22. 

The track listing for How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb is:
“Picture Of You (X+W)”
“Evidence Of Life”
“Luckiest Man In The World”
“Treason”
“I Don’t Wanna See You Smile”
“Country Mile”
“Happiness”
“Are We Gonna Wait Forever?”
“Theme From The Batman”
“All Because Of You 2”

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This year marks the 50th anniversary of the American Music Awards, and a special celebrating the milestone on Oct. 6 features plenty of big-name acts. 

Mariah Carey will make an appearance to celebrate the 20th anniversary of her album The Emancipation of Mimi by performing a medley of hits, while Chaka Khan will sing “I’m Every Woman.” Gladys Knight, who performed on the first AMAs in 1974, will sing her classic “Midnight Train to Georgia,” and Jennifer Hudson will perform a tribute to the late Whitney Houston. 

The legendary James Brown will be remembered with a tribute by British singer RAYE, who’ll perform the classic “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World.” The performance will be part of a segment highlighting the American Music Award of Merit, which over the years has been presented to Brown, Prince, Billy Joel, Annie Lennox, Whitney Houston and more.

Other artists announced for the show include Gloria Estefan, Green Day, Jennifer Lopez and country stars Carrie Underwood, Kane Brown and Brad Paisley.

The American Music Awards 50th Anniversary Special will air Oct. 6 on CBS at 8 p.m. ET and will stream on Paramount+.

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On This Day, Sept. 26, 1979 …

U2 made their recording debut with the release of a three-song EP, aptly titled Three.

The release featured the songs “Out of Control” and “Stories for Boys,” which were both later rerecorded for their debut album, Boy. The other song on the release was the B-side “Boy/Girl.” 

U2, of course, went on to huge success, releasing 14 studio albums and selling over 150 million records worldwide. They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2005.

Three was later reissued in November 2019 as part of Record Store Day Black Friday, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of its original release.

U2’s last release was 2023’s Songs of Surrender, which featured reworked versions of previously released songs. They have reportedly been working on a new album, which frontman Bono has described as a “an unreasonable guitar record.”

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