Classic Hits

Artwork created by the late King of Pop, Michael Jackson, is set to go up for auction in August. 

Kings Auctions will auction off 76 pieces of Jackson art, some of which are double-sided. The auction includes pieces hand drawn with wax colored pencil and others in watercolors. Some pieces are even drawn on presidential paper obtained by Michael during a White House visit. All are signed by Jackson.

“Get ready to own some of the most coveted pieces of art by one of the biggest music icons in the world,” reads the auction house’s website. “These one of a kind pieces of art aren’t just an investment, they are your chance to own a piece of music history.”

Among the drawings available are a sketch of Martin Luther King, portraits of presidents, Disney characters, pop icons, fine artworks and more.

The auction, taking place Aug. 3, is not affiliated with the Jackson estate. More info can be found at kings-auctions.com.

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Elvis Costello & The Imposters are set to headline a benefit concert for the Ridgefield Playhouse in Ridgefield, Connecticut.

The rocker, with special guest Charlie Sexton, will headline the theater’s Fall Gala, happening Nov. 9.

According to a post on Elvis’ Instagram, “All proceeds will support the Playhouse, ensuring the continued success and growth of theater programs.” The nonprofit performing arts center opened in 2000 and holds more than 200 live shows for more than 100,000 patrons each year.

A Ridgefield Playhouse member presale is happening now, with tickets going on sale to the general public Friday at 10 a.m. More info can be found at ridgefieldplayhouse.org.

Elvis Costello & The Imposters have been touring with Daryl Hall this summer. The tour wraps on Thursday in Vienna, Virginia. Elvis is also scheduled to play the Newport Folk Festival on Aug. 3. A complete list of dates can be found at elviscostello.com.

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Bon Jovi‘s 40th anniversary celebration continues with the first-ever vinyl release of their Greatest Hits album.

The New Jersey rockers, who released their new album, Forever, in June, just announced that their compilation Bon Jovi: Greatest Hits will be released on two-LP black vinyl on Sept. 13. There will also be a limited-edition “smoke”-colored vinyl that comes with one of three unique lithographs. 

Originally released in 2010, Bon Jovi: Greatest Hits features the band’s biggest hits, including “Runaway,” “Living On A Player,” “You Give Love A Bad Name,” “Bad Medicine” and “It’s My Life.” It also features what at the time were two new songs, “What Do You Got?” and “No Apologies.”

Bon Jovi: Greatest Hits is available for preorder now.

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The lineup for the upcoming Venice Film Festival was just announced, and it includes two Beatles-related documentaries.

One to One: John and Yoko, directed by Kevin Macdonald and Sam Rice-Edwards, focuses on the relationship between John Lennon and Yoko Ono.  

A previous announcement about the film describes it as “a moving look at the couple’s life upon their entry into a transformative 1970’s New York, exploring their musical, personal, artistic, social, and political world.” It centers around the pair’s 1972 One to One Concerts, which were Lennon’s only full-length performances after The Beatles’ 1970 breakup. They featured Yoko, The Plastic Ono Band, Elephant’s Memory and special guests.

The other is Things We Said Today, from Andrei Ujica. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film focuses on The Beatles’ first North American tour, which happened in 1964.

The Venice Film Festival will take place Aug. 28 to Sept. 7.

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Tuesday marks the 40th anniversary of the release of “Careless Whisper” by Wham! featuring George Michael — it was released on July 23, 1984. To mark the occasion, a special EP dedicated to the song will be released Oct. 18.

The EP will feature a previously unreleased live recording of the song, captured on July 23, 2008, during a George Michael concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Also included are a newly mastered version of the original sing, the extended mix and an instrumental version. It’ll be available in both digital and physical versions; a ruby marble vinyl is available for preorder now.

“Careless Whisper” has been RIAA-certified seven-times Platinum in the  U.S. alone. Released as a “solo” single because the style was so different from Wham!’s music at the time, it led to George, at age 21, becoming the youngest recipient of the U.K.’s prestigious Ivor Novello Award for songwriting.

The song has gone on to earn more than 1 billion streams on both YouTube and Spotify.

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On This Day, July 23, 1989….

Ringo Starr launched his first tour since his days with The Beatles, backed by an All-Starr Band that included Billy Preston, the Eagles’ Joe Walsh, and E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons.

Starr has continued to tour with a similar setup, with members of the All-Starr Band revolving over the years. Each show features Ringo performing both solo and Beatles songs, along with All-Starr Band members performing selections of their hits.

Over the years, All-Starr Band members included such artists as E Street Band’s Nils Lofgren, Todd Rundgren, Bad Company‘s Simon Kirke, Peter Frampton, Levon Helm and Randy Bachman.

The next leg of Ringo’s tour with his latest All-Starr band kicks off September 7 in San Diego. The current All-Starr Band lineup includes Toto’s Steve Lukather, Edgar Winter, Men At Work’s Colin Hay, Warren Ham, Hamish Stuart and Gregg Bissonette.

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Farm Aid is returning to New York for the first time in 11 years. 

The annual concert benefiting farmers across the country will take place Sept. 21 at Saratoga Performing Arts Center in Saratoga, New York, with a lineup that includes Farm Aid board members Neil Young, John Mellencamp, Willie Nelson and Dave Matthews with Tim Reynolds.

“We’re energized to be back in New York,” Nelson, Farm Aid’s president and founder, shares. “The farmers here have always found ways to innovate and contribute to their communities, even as they deal with uncertainties, extreme weather and policies that favor corporations over people. Farmers need us to stand with them as they work to grow our future.”

Also performing at the annual event will be Mavis Staples, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Lukas Nelson with The Travelin’ McCourys, Charley Crockett, Joy Oladokun, Southern Avenue, Cassandra Lewis and Jesse Welles.

A limited number of presale tickets go on sale starting Wednesday at 10 a.m., with tickets going on sale to the general public Friday at 10 a.m. More information can be found at farmaid.org.

This will be the third time Farm Aid has been held in New York, and the second time in Saratoga. The last time it was in Saratoga was in 2013. The first New York Farm Aid happened in 2007 at Randall’s Island in New York City. Last year’s festival was held in Noblesville, Indiana.

The very first Farm Aid concert was held in September 1985 in Champaign, Illinois, to raise funds to support family farmers. Since its inception, the annual festival has raised more than $80 million to support programs helping the farming community.

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Tuesday marks the 40th anniversary of Sammy Hagar’s eighth studio album, VOA, which helped launch him into mainstream success thanks to what became one of his signature tunes, “I Can’t Drive 55.”

The origin story of the song is somewhat legendary for Hagar fans, with the rocker recalling to ABC Audio how he got the inspiration while driving after traveling for 24 hours on his way back from an African vacation.

Hagar got pulled over by a cop and got a ticket for driving 62 mph. He was shocked, telling the cop, “This is ludicrous. I can’t drive 55.” He says he went right home and, “Boom, wrote the song.”

“I Can’t Drive 55” was a top 40 hit for Hagar, its popularity aided in part by a music video shot at the Saugus Speedway in Santa Clarita, California. The song has been a staple at Hagar’s live shows and is still a fan favorite, which Hagar attributes to it being something folks can relate to. 

“Every person in America over 16 years of age had to deal with that. So that’s when you got something that’s really relative,” he says. “It’s like COVID. It’s like anything you wrote about songwise in COVID, the experiences you had, every person on the damn planet had the same experience.” 

VOA peaked at #32 on the Billboard 200 album chart and was certified Platinum by the RIAA. 

In 1985, following the success of VOA, Sammy was asked to replace David Lee Roth as frontman of Van Halen. With Hagar at the helm, Van Halen landed four #1 albums.

Hagar is currently on his The Best of All Worlds Tour, where he’s playing both solo songs and Van Halen classics. The tour hits Bridgeport, Connecticut, on Wednesday.

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The Four Tops‘ Abdul “Duke” Fakir passed away Monday, July 22, from heart failure at his home in Detroit. Fakir, the last surviving founding member of the legendary Motown group, was 88. 

“Our hearts are heavy as we mourn the loss of a trailblazer, icon and music legend who, through his 70-year music career, touched the lives of so many as he continued to tour until the end of 2023, and officially retired this year,” the Fakir family said in a statement to ABC Audio.

“As the last living founding member of the iconic Four Tops music group, we find solace in Duke’s legacy living on through his music for generations to come.”

The Four Tops was founded in 1953 as the Four Aims by Duke, Levi Stubbs, Renaldo “Obie” Benson and Lawrence Payton. They had a string of now-classic hits with songs written primarily by the iconic songwriting trio of Lamont Dozier and brothers Brian and Eddie Holland. Those included two number ones — “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)” and “Reach Out, I’ll Be There” — as well as “Baby I Need Your Loving,” “Standing in the Shadows of Love” and “It’s the Same Old Song.” 

The Four Tops’ original lineup stayed intact until Payton’s death in 1997. Benson died in 2005 and Stubbs passed away in 2008, but Fakir kept the group going with new singers.

As a member of the Four Tops, Fakir was in inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 and the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. The group also received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.

Fakir is survived by his wife and six children, 13 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Details for a public celebration of his life and legacy will be announced at a later date.  The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Motown Museum.

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A classic Pink Floyd concert experience is set to get a stereo mix treatment from Alan Parsons, the engineer of the band’s classic album The Dark Side of the Moon.

Parsons confirmed on Facebook that he’s worked on 5.1 and Dolby Atmos mixes of Pink Floyd: Live at Earls Court in London 1994, which features the band playing The Dark Side of the Moon in its entirety. According to the post, Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour personally requested Alan handle the mixes, which Gilmour then approved.

“It was a fantastic experience to go back to the songs I knew so well from the original album,” he shares. “Remixing this amazing live performance was a real treat.”

The Pink Floyd Earls Court shows took place during their tour for their 14th studio album, The Division Bell, which was their second album without Roger Waters. The band — Gilmour, Richard Wright and Nick Mason — played 14 shows at the London venue and were joined by Waters for the final show.

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