Classic Hits

Sunday, January 8, would have been Elvis Presley’s 88th birthday, and it’s being celebrated with special events this week.

The celebration kicks off Thursday at Elvis’ Graceland in Memphis with a movie marathon and Club Elvis Hawaiian-style dinner, plus many more events. There will also be an Elvis Birthday proclamation ceremony on Sunday that fans can watch on Graceland’s livestream page, which will feature Lisa Marie Presley and actor Alton Mason, who played Little Richard in Baz Luhrmann’s film Elvis.

And speaking of the film, on Sunday, Elvis Presley’s Memphis will unveil a new “The Making of Elvis” exhibition, with Graceland also offering the new, limited-time Elvis Movie Ultimate VIP Tour, which includes a special tour of Elvis Presley’s Memphis and Graceland mansion with a private tour guide. The tour runs from Monday, January 9, through the end of February.

In addition, on Sunday select theaters in 10 cities across the U.S. and Canada will be showing Luhrmann’s Elvis for free, including an introduction from the director and star Austin Butler. Fans can pick up their free tickets here. There will also be a special screening at Graceland’s Guest House Theater.

And fans can also join in on the celebration on social media with the #ElvisBirthdayChallenge, which asks fans to recreate some of Elvis’ most iconic dance moves and post them on TikTok and Instagram, with the best entries to be highlighted on Sunday.

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The late Nat King Cole has set a new chart record. The legendary crooner’s classic holiday tune “The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)” lands at nine on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart this week, giving him the record for the longest break between Top 10 hits.

The new Top 10 single comes 59 years, six months and one week after his last Top 10 hit, 1963’s “Those Lazy Days of Summer.” That breaks The Ronettes’ record for the longest time between Top 10 hits, which they set last year with “Sleigh Ride,” which hit the Top 10 after a break of 58 years and two months.

Not only that, “The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You)” first debuted on the Hot 100 on December 12, 1960, making this week’s feat the longest journey to the Top 10, at 62 years and 26 days. Chuck Berry’s “Run Rudolph Run” previously held that record with 62 years and 18 days, having debuted on the chart in 1958 and reaching the Top 10 in 2020.

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Rod Stewart played a key role in his daughter’s gender reveal party by announcing he’ll be welcoming a grandson. 

Ruby Stewart, Rod’s daughter with model Kelly Emberg, took to her Instagram Story to share a video of her family gathering around her father. She cheekily captioned it, “Hire @sirrodstewart for your gender reveal!”

Rod was handed some papers and was tasked with announcing what they said. “It’s a boy,” the hitmaker declared and pumped a fist in the air as Ruby embraced her partner, Jake Kalick.

A second video of the special moment contained the caption, “[Rod] will even write a custom jingle for your unborn child!” During the clip, the singer holds up the paper announcement and begins singing.

Ruby later shared an ultrasound of her soon-to-be child, captioning it, “Out of all of the things that happened in 2022 you were by far the most beautiful…We can’t wait to meet you…Baby boy Kalick coming in April.” She declined to reveal potential names or a due date.

“So happy for the two of you,” the proud granddad wrote in the comments.

Rod isn’t the only one excited to welcome another grandchild — his wife, Penny Lancaster, also took to the comments, writing, “Can’t wait to meet him.”

The little boy will be Rod’s second grandchild. He welcomed his first granddaughter, Delilah, in 2011, who was born to his daughter Kimberly Stewart and Benicio del Toro. Kimberly is from Rod’s marriage to Alana Stewart.

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Rolling Stone magazine is out with their picks for the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time, anointing Aretha Franklin with the top spot. 

The mag calls Aretha, who died in August 2018, “A force of nature. A work of genius. A gift from the heavens,” adding, “Aretha Franklin’s voice is all that and more, which is why she remains the unchallenged Queen, years after her final bow.” 

Coming in just behind Aretha at #2 is Whitney Houston, whom Rolling Stone calls the “standard-bearer for R&B vocals,” followed by Sam Cooke at three, Billie Holiday at four and Mariah Carey at five.

Rounding out the top 10 are Ray Charles at six, Stevie Wonder at seven, Beyoncé at eight, Otis Redding at nine and Al Green at 10.

The list is a combination of classic and contemporary artists, with both John Lennon and Paul McCartney landing on it — Lennon at #12, and McCartney at #26. Other artists placing fairly high include Freddie Mercury at 14, Bob Dylan at 15, Prince at 16, Frank Sinatra at 19 and Marvin Gaye at 20.

The list has caused some controversy, with omissions including Annie Lennox and Celine Dion, forcing some to question how it was actually compiled. The mag says it was based on “originality, influence, the depth of an artist’s catalog, and the breadth of their musical legacy,” adding, “this is the Greatest Singers list, not the Greatest Voices List.”

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After sparking engagement rumors late last year, Cher celebrated New Year’s with her new man, Alexander “AE” Edwards — and made sure to troll the haters who object to her relationship with the 36-year-old music producer.

Cher posted two photos of herself on New Year’s with Alexander: In one, the huge diamond ring he gave her for Christmas was front and center, though not on her engagement finger.  “Happy New Year Daddy,” she captioned the photo of Alexanders smooching her. 

The 76-year-old entertainer captioned a second photo, “This should Send you Haters to The Part in Wizzard [sic] of OZ…WHEN DOROTHY THREW WATER ON THE wicked Witch & Melted her.”

Responding to a fan, Cher wrote, “Ppl Hide In The Dark,Light,In Basements, Penthouses,DONT LET THESE PPL CHANGE ANYTHING YOU WANT Love Etc.Listen to these idiots & See hostility,& Vitriol in its purist Form.”

Most fans are supportive of the singer, who looks extremely happy in the photos. Cher lost her beloved mother, actress Georgia Holt, on December 10.

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The Moody Blues’ John Lodge will hit the road in February on his Days of Future Passed tour, where he’ll play the band’s 1967 sophomore album in its entirety. 

More and more artists are playing full albums at shows these days, and there are certainly some albums people would like to see played live. So, which album would Lodge love to see played live?

“The one that comes to mind, all the while, is Imagine, John Lennon,” he shares. “Because there’s some beautiful songs on that album. And just to have heard Lennon play those songs would have been great.”

Lodge acknowledges, “That’s not to be,” saying he’ll play the album instead.

Lodge kicks off the tour February 18 in Lexington, Massachusetts, with dates confirmed through March 15 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The tour will feature a special appearance by Jon Davison of Yes and will include a special recording by the late Graeme Edge. 

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Fred White, a drummer for classic ’70s superband Earth, Wind & Fire, has died, according to an Instagram post from his older brother and former bandmate, Verdine White. As of Monday, the cause of Fred’s death was unknown. He was 67.

Verdine wrote on Instagram on Sunday, “Our family is saddened today With the loss of an amazing and talented family member, Our beloved brother Frederick Eugene “Freddie” White.”

“He joins our brothers Maurice, Monte and Ronald in heaven and is now drumming with the angels,” the post continued. Verdine called his brother a “child protégé” and identified him as an “original” member of Earth, Wind & Fire. 

“But more than that at home and beyond he was the wonderful bro that was always entertaining and delightfully mischievous! And we could always count on him to make a seemingly bad situation more light hearted! He will live in our hearts forever, rest in power beloved Freddie,” he added before thanking fans for their “love, blessings and support.”

The EWF band page also shared a heartwarming video in memory of the late drummer, showing off his skills from a performance in Germany during their Tour of the World in 1979. One of the band’s lead singers, Philip Bailey, also posted, sharing a photo of himself, Ralph Johnson, and Fred celebrating their 1980s Grammy wins.

“The best of times,” he wrote. “We will miss you, Freddie.”

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Anita Pointer, founding member of the legendary sister act the Pointer Sisters, passed away Saturday at the age of 74, with her publicist noting she was “surrounded by family at the time of her death.”

“While we are deeply saddened by the loss of Anita, we are comforted in knowing she is now with her daughter, Jada and her sisters June and Bonnie and at peace,” read a statement from the family. “She was the one that kept all of us close and together for so long. Her love of our family will live on in each of us.”

The statement added, “Please respect our privacy during this period of grief and loss. Heaven is a more loving beautiful place with Anita there.”

Anita and her sisters Bonnie, June and Ruth formed the Pointer Sisters in 1969, and they released their self-titled debut album in 1973. In 1974 they won a Grammy for the track “Fairytale.” Between 1973 and 1985 they had 13 U.S. Top 20 hits including “I’m So Excited” and “Neutron Dance,” which both went to number three, as well as “Fire,” “He’s So Shy,” and “Slow Dance.”  Their 1983 triple platinum album Break Out, earned them two more Grammy Awards for the songs “Jump” and “Automatic.”

The sisters also appeared on screen, making their feature film debut in Richard Pryor‘s 1976 film Car Wash, and they also made appearances on such TV shows as The Carol Burnett Show, Love Boat and more.  They received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1994, and have been honored with the Soul of America Music Awards and inducted into the Soul Train Hall of Fame.

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Canadian folk musician Ian Tyson, one half of the duo Ian & Sylvia, passed away Thursday at the age of 89. According to a post on Facebook, he died at his ranch in Alberta, Canada, from “on-going health complications.”

Tyson is best known for his song “Four Strong Winds,” which was covered by such artists as Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan and Judy Collins, as well as Neil Young, whose cover appeared on his 1978 album, Comes a Time. Ian & Sylvia’s other big hit, “Someday Soon,” was covered by Collins, Lynn Anderson, Glen Campbell and more.

Tyson became a member of the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 1989, and the Canadian Music Hall of Fame with partner and wife Sylvia Fricker in 1992. He was also inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2019.

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British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood, who made punk and new wave fashion mainstream, died Thursday at age 81, and her loss is being felt throughout the music community. Several artists took to social media to pay tribute to Westwood, including Paul McCartney and Boy George. 

“Goodbye Vivienne Westwood,” McCartney shared. “A ballsy lady who rocked the fashion world and stood defiantly for what was right.”

“R.I.P to the great and inspiring Vivienne Westwood who lead us through punk and beyond. Laughed at by the fashion industry but without question she is the undisputed Queen of British fashion,” Boy George tweeted. “I love you!” 

John Taylor of Duran Duran shared a touching tribute to the designer, calling her “the most original and influential” of designers and noting, “Without her no Punk, no Pistols and no Future.” He added, “There will not be another like her. There is rarely a day that Vivienne doesn’t influence some clothing choice that I make. Who shall we look to now?”

And Billy Idol added, “difficult 2 process this today… she was such a big part of our lives those who loved her fashion and cultural influences …her fight against climate change …oh god…it’s too much.” 

Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament also marked Westwood’s passing, writing, “RIP @viviennewestwood who with Malcom and Jamie Reid created the best/most shocking/thought provoking pieces from the great art of the punk rock era.”

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