Classic Hits

On June 25, 1984, Prince released his sixth studio album, Purple Rain, the soundtrack to his hit movie of the same name. 

The film, which grossed $70 million in the U.S., starred Prince as The Kid, a talented but troubled musician in the Minneapolis area who escapes his abusive home life through his music. It also followed his budding romance with an aspiring singer, played by Apollonia.

The Purple Rain soundtrack was Prince’s first #1 and spent 24 weeks on the top of the chart. Singles “When Doves Cry” and “Let’s Go Crazy” both hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, while the title track peaked at #2 and another single, “I Would Die 4 U,” went to #8. 

Prince’s longtime friend and collaborator Sheila E tells ABC Audio “Purple Rain” was an “amazing” song featuring a guitar solo Prince recorded live.

“He was one of my favorite guitar players of all time,” she says, noting that “celebrating who he was and his legacy, which is his music, is very special.”

And for Sheila, there’s one simple reason why Purple Rain is still loved by fans 40 years later.

“It’s his music. I mean, it’s forever music,” she says. “He wrote music that will be here for decades and decades, you know, and that’s good songwriting.” 

Purple Rain has been certified 13-times Platinum and earned Prince and The Revolution two Grammy Awards. Prince also won the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score. 

And Prince’s Purple Rain legacy continues. A new musical based on the movie is in the works, with fans who attended the Prince Celebration at Paisley Park getting the first preview.  

It’s set for a 2025 pre-Broadway engagement at the State Theatre in Minneapolis from April 10 to May 11.

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Gibson is celebrating Jeff Beck on what would have been the two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer’s 80th birthday.

The guitar company just debuted the new Jeff Beck “Yardburst” 1959 Les Paul Standard in a dark cherry red sunburst finish, aged to match the guitar Jeff played during his time with the Yardbirds. Described as a “faithful recreation” of Jeff’s guitar, only 130 are being hand made by the experts at the Gibson Custom Shop in Nashville in honor of Gibson’s 130th anniversary. 

“Jeff was enormously proud to have owned the original of this guitar,” says Beck’s wife, Sandra Beck. “He was aware and fully supportive of the amazing job and love that Gibson Custom provided to create this instrument and would have hoped that this guitar will give hours of pleasure to those who play it.”

“Jeff was a trailblazer, the guitar hero of our guitar heroes and admired by his contemporaries,” Cesar Gueikian, CEO of Gibson, adds. “Jeff played an instrumental role in the cultural significance of the Gibson Les Paul early in his career during the Yardbursts’ era. Just like Jeff was influenced by Les Paul, he influenced many iconic musicians to create their art with a Gibson Les Paul. We are proud to pay tribute to Jeff.”

The Jeff Beck “Yardburst” 1959 Les Paul Standard sells for almost $10,000. More info can be found at gibson.com.

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Paul McCartney is ready to return to Brazil. 

The two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer brought his Got Back tour to Brazil in 2023, and now he’s announced two new shows there this fall.

The two new dates are set for Oct. 15 in São Paulo and Oct. 19 in Florianópolis. Presale tickets go on sale Tuesday, with tickets going on sale to the general public Wednesday. 

“Finishing 2023 in Brazil was an incredible experience. The warmth and love you showed us on our last visit was incredible,” McCartney shares. “We just knew we had to get back and see you again. You guys know how to party and rock out and we are beyond excited to get back this year.”

The Brazil dates are just the latest additions to McCartney’s Got Back tour. He also recently announced shows in South America, Europe and Mexico. A complete list of dates can be found at PaulMcCartney.com.

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Talking Heads frontman David Byrne met with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz on Friday, according to a post on Cruz’s social media accounts.

“Once in a lifetime opportunity meeting David Byrne of the Talking Heads,” Cruz wrote, referencing the band’s classic song. “We had a great conversation about royalties for musicians.” 

In the photo, the pair is posing in front of a mural of former President Ronald Reagan.

Byrne has not commented on the meeting.

The music of Talking Heads was recently celebrated with a tribute album, Everyone’s Getting Involved, featuring artists like Miley Cyrus, Paramore, Lorde and more covering Talking Heads tracks. The album came out in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the band’s classic concert film, Stop Making Sense.

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On This Day, June 24, 1944 …

Geoffrey Arnold Beck, better known as legendary guitarist Jeff Beck, was born in Surrey, England.

Beck came to prominence as a member of the Yardbirds, with future guitar legends Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page. He later went on to have a successful solo career, fronting his own Jeff Beck Group.

Beck was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice: in 1992 as a member of the Yardbirds and again in 2009 for his solo work.

Beck won six Grammys for Best Rock Instrumental Performance, plus additional wins for Best Pop Instrumental Performance and Best Pop Collaboration with vocals. He was honored with the British Academy’s Ivor Novello Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Music in 2014. Rolling Stone ranked him in its top five of the 100 Greatest Guitarists.

Beck passed away Jan. 10, 2023, from bacterial meningitis. He was 78.

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Most people know Darius Rucker for his work with Hootie & The Blowfish and his country solo career, but he has lots of interests outside of music — including wine. 

Rucker has partnered with winemaker Chris Radomski to join his As One Cru wine brand and tells ABC Audio there was a simple reason why he wanted to get involved.

“I fell in love with the first glass,” he shares, noting that after being wowed by its cabernet, coming on board was a “no-brainer.”

“There’s been so many things I’ve been asked to do with spirits and everything, but it just never seemed to be, like, real,” he says. “The one thing I really loved about One Crue is it was real.”

As for why Darius was the right person to join their team, Chris notes, “I find that the realms of food, wine, music are all interrelated in art a lot of ways. And when I was introduced to Darius and learned of his great love for wine, I thought it could be an amazing opportunity to get that reach.” 

And while people out there may have different ideas about what makes a great wine, for Darius it’s all about one thing.

“You know, it’s what I like. It’s sitting down and having a glass and wanting to have another glass,” he shares. “When I first started drinking the One Cru … it was just like, I want more of that.”

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The new tribute album to the late Tom Petty, Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty, is out now, and Petty’s Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell is 100 percent behind it.

“I’m so proud of all those artists, and I know that Tom would really be proud and happy that all these artists honored his songs,” Campbell tells ABC Audio. “I just want his memory and the legacy that we built together, I’m very proud of it, and anything that illuminates it is good for me.”

Campbell even appears on the album, joining Margo Price for her cover of “Ways to Be Wicked.” Campbell says it was written for Petty and the Heartbreakers’ second album, 1978’s You’re Gonna Get It!, but “has been collecting dust all these decades.”

“It’s, like, perfect for her, you know, a woman’s point of view and the way she belts it,” Campbell says, “and then she cut it and asked me to join in, and I put some guitar, little harmony on there. I call it a Lazarus song. It came back from the dead.”

Campbell says some of his favorite covers on the album include Dolly Parton’s take on “Southern Accents” and Chris Stapleton’s cover of “I Should Have Known It,” but he notes, “I like them all.”

“I think Tom would have liked it,” he says. “It’s nice to get the songs out there and keep them alive, keep people aware that, you know, Tom was real and he’s still with us with the music.” 

Campbell, who recently released Vagabonds, Virgins & Misfits, a new album with his band The Dirty Knobs, is currently on tour. He and the band play Kansas City, Missouri, on June 24. A complete list of dates can be found at thedirtyknobs.com.

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Paul McCartney’s photo exhibit has found its next location.

The rocker just announced that Paul McCartney Photographs 1963–64: Eyes of the Storm will debut at Knowledge Capitol Event Lab in Osaka, Japan, on Oct. 12 and run through Jan. 5. 

Eyes of the Storm features more than 250 photographs taken by McCartney between November 1963 and February 1964, giving fans insight into his point of view during the height of Beatlemania.

The exhibit first debuted in June 2023 at London’s National Portrait Gallery before moving to Virginia’s Chrysler Museum of Art. It is currently running at New York’s Brooklyn Museum until Aug. 18. It is also set to run at the Portland Art Museum from Sept. 14 to Jan. 19.

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REO Speedwagon is revisiting a classic live performance for a new release.

The band is set to drop Live at Rockpalast 1979 on July 5, a two-CD and DVD set featuring a concert recorded Nov. 10, 1979, at the Markthalle in Hamburg, Germany. 

The concert features the band’s classic lineup – Kevin Cronin, Gary Richrath, Bruce Hall, Neal Doughty and Alan Gratzer – performing classic REO Speedwagon tracks like “Ridin’ the Storm Out” and “Roll With the Changes,” as well as “Say You Love Me Or Say Goodnight,” “Easy Money” and more.

The first single from the record is a live performance of “Only The Strong Survive,” which you can hear now via digital outlets.

Live at Rockpalast 1979 is available for preorder now.

REO Speedwagon is currently on tour with Night Ranger. They play Des Moines, Iowa, on Friday. A complete list of dates can be found at reospeedwagon.com.

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The 25th anniversary of Alanis Morissette’s fourth studio album Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie is being celebrated with a new reissue.

Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie (Thank U Edition) will be released as a two-LP set with reimagined artwork on September 6. There will also be a crystal clear vinyl edition available at select retailers and at Rhino.com. 

In addition, a new digital deluxe edition of the album is out now, with four bonus tracks — two B-sides, an outtake, and a demo — along with an “Uninvited” remix by electronic duo, Freemasons.

The vinyl edition is available for preorder now.

Released November, 1998, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie hit #1 on the Billboard 200 Album chart, topped the chart in several other countries, and went triple platinum in the U.S. It contained the top 20 single “Thank U,” which Alanis wrote with Glen Ballard, who produced her hugely successful debut album Jagged Little Pill. 

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