Classic Hits

Lenny Kravitz is giving fans another preview of his upcoming album, Blue Electric Light, which drops May 24.

The rocker just released the second single from the record, “Human,” and tells ABC Audio the song is about living your truth.

“It’s about celebrating and trusting the process of life and being a human with all of the so-called mistakes and, you know, adventures of life,” he says. “We are here, you know, we’re spiritual beings having a human existence. We are here to learn and to find ourselves.”

In the chorus, Lenny sings, “I’m gonna live my truth in this life, I am not gonna live a lie,” and that’s certainly something he’s lived by throughout his career. He’s often talked about how, when he was starting out in the music business, he stood his ground and refused to sign with record labels that wanted him to change his sound, and even he is amazed he was able to do so at such a young age. 

“I still don’t intellectually understand how as a teenager with no money, you know, living in cars, on people’s floors, on couches and how I did that,” he says. “But it was a gut feeling.”

He adds, “That has taught me so much through my life about trusting that voice inside of you.”

Blue Electric Light, which also includes the previously released single “TK421,” is available for preorder now.

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Def Leppard has confirmed their appearance in the sequel to the 2023 Netflix film Bank of Dave.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers shared a photo on Instagram of them standing around a pool table, captioning the shot, “Having a blast on set for Bank Of Dave 2. Cannot wait for you all to see this one!”

Def Leppard appeared in the first Bank of Dave film, which told the real-life story of a working-class, self-made millionaire named Dave Fishwick, who tried to set up a community bank to help his town’s local businesses survive.  The band members played themselves performing at a charity fundraiser for the bank.

So far there’s no word on when Bank of Dave 2 will premiere.

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Paul Simon opens up about what caused the rift in his relationship with his former friend and musical partner Art Garfunkel in episode one of the two-part docuseries In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon, airing on MGM+. 

“We were really best friends up until Bridge Over Troubled Water,” he shares, according to People. 
“[Afterward], it didn’t have the harmony of the friendship … that was broken.”

Simon contends that Garfunkel accepting a role in the 1970 film Catch-22 played a major role in the divide between them. Garfunkel expected Simon to write all the music for their next album while he was gone. But Simon was not on board with that, making him realize they had an “uneven partnership.”

When the film shoot lasted longer than the original six-month plan, Simon claims Garfunkel expected him to send him what he wrote so he could give his input. But Simon was unhappy with that arrangement, noting, “It was a recipe for the breakup of Simon & Garfunkel.”

And when they would perform “Bridge Over Troubled Water” Garfunkel got all the praise for his voice, and it upset Simon, whose main thought was, “I wrote that song.” 

“This is my oldest friend, and we experienced anonymity, and then great fame and success, and those things have their own pressure,” he said.

He later noted, “That was a good friendship. That was a real first friendship of somebody that got it. For me to turn into a person that I hope I never see again — that’s a long way.”

Episode two of In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon debuts March 24.

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REO Speedwagon and Three Dog Night are among the many acts booked to play this year’s Milwaukee Summerfest, which takes place over three weekends, June 20-22, June 27-29 and July 4-6.

REO Speedwagon will play the festival stage on June 28, while Three Dog Night is booked for June 20. 

Over 140 headliners are booked for the three weekends. The lineup also includes Mötley Crüe, Mike Campbell & the Dirty Knobs, Living Colour, Maroon 5, Goo Goo Dolls, Modern English, The Wallflowers, Extreme and Gin Blossoms. 

Tickets for Summerfest are on sale now. A complete lineup can be found at Summerfest.com.

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Forbes magazine recently reported that Journey’s classic track “Don’t Stop Believin’” was “officially the biggest song of all time,” and it’s gotten the band’s former frontman Steve Perry in a reflective mood.

In a post on Instagram, Perry, who left Journey in 1987, writes that the article left him “emotionally stunned.”  

“To be part of such a moment as this made me reflect on my parents,” he shares. “By that I mean, though I lost them both years ago, I was so happy for them because they are truly the reason this is happening.”

He adds “My dad was a singer and both of them were very musical. So on behalf of my Mom and Dad, I thank every one of you for so many years of support.”

Forbes‘ report claimed that “Don’t Stop Believin’” was the biggest song because it was recently certified 18-times Platinum by the RIAA. It shares the milestone with Post Malone and Swae Lee’s “Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse),” which earned the same certification in May.

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Styx is saying goodbye to their bassist Ricky Phillips, who’s been with them for 20 years.

The rocker announced on Facebook that after 50 years of being in the music business, touring with the likes of The Babys, Bad English, Belinda Carlisle and more, he’s decided to to get off the road for a while.

“l’m taking a breather,” he writes. “My last 20+ years of touring and recording with my friends in Styx has come to an end. I am taking a break from the road.” He adds, “I’m not retiring, just taking a break.” 

“I will truly miss the wonderfully-crazy and faithful Styx fans…whose smiling faces I often saw more than my own family,” Phillips continues. 

And it sounds like Styx will miss him as well. They responded to Ricky’s post, sharing, “It was a joy to spend two decades with Ricky Phillips in Styx and we wish him all the best in his next adventure. He’ll always be a part of the Styx family and we’ll miss his presence on our stage and in our touring lives.”

So far, there’s no word on who’ll be taking Phillips’ place. Styx is set to play Wallingford, Connecticut, on March 22 and will kick off the Renegades & Juke Box Heroes tour with Foreigner on June 11 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. A complete list of dates can be found at styxworld.com.

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David Bowie’s creation of his famous character Ziggy Stardust is being explored in a new five-CD/Blu-ray audio box set, Rock ‘n’ Roll Star, due out June 14.

The discs will feature 29 unreleased tracks that show Bowie’s journey from February 1971 to the release of 1972’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Those tracks include early songwriting demos, rehearsals from Bowie’s home, BBC sessions, live performances, outtakes and alternative versions. Examples include an alternate take on “Lady Stardust” and an up-tempo cover of The Who’s “I Can’t Explain.”

There’s also a previously unreleased demo of “Ziggy Stardust,” which you can listen to now via digital outlets and on YouTube.

The Blu-ray will include the 2012 remaster of the original Ziggy Stardust album plus additional mixes from 2003. There will also be an alternate version of the album, Waiting in the Sky (Before the Starman Came to Earth), featuring recordings made at Trident Studios in December 1971. It features all the songs from the original album in an alternative running order along with four songs that were left off the record. This special album will also be available on vinyl for Record Store Day, April 20.

In addition to the music, the box set will come with two books: a 112-page book with detailed liner notes, rare photographs, memorabilia and more, as well as a 36-page reproduction of Bowie’s personal notebooks from the Ziggy Stardust era.

Rock ‘n’ Roll Star! is available for preorder now.

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The Who played their second Teenage Cancer Trust show at London’s Royal Albert Hall on Wednesday, March 20, and fans lucky enough to be in the audience were treated to a surprise appearance by Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder.

Fan-shot footage posted to social media shows Vedder, a well known Who fan, joining Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend for a performance of “The Punk and the Godfather,” a track from the band’s rock opera Quadrophenia.

Vedder is in London for another Teenage Cancer Trust show. He’s one of the many guests set to perform with Daltrey at Ovation, a Celebration of 24 Years of Gigs for TCT on March 24.

The show is a celebration of Daltrey’s 24 years as curator of the Teenage Cancer Trust charity concerts; he is stepping down after this year. Other guests booked for the show include Robert Plant with Saving Grace, Stereophonics’ Kelly Jones and Paul Weller.

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The Library of Congress awarded Elton John and Bernie Taupin the prestigious Gershwin Prize for Popular Song at a ceremony held in Washington, D.C., on March 20, where their songs were performed by acts as wide-ranging as Metallica, Garth Brooks, Joni Mitchell, Annie Lennox, Brandi Carlile and Charlie Puth.

The Gershwin prize is presented for influence, impact and achievement in popular music. According to The Washington Post, at the ceremony, Elton talked about how honored he was to be given a distinctly American award. “When I grew up as a little boy in suburban London, the only good music that I heard was American,” he said. “British music sucked.”

“I’m so proud to be British, and to be here in America to receive this award because all my heroes were American,” he continued, adding that America has been “responsible for everything that I love in my musical life.”  For his part, Bernie said, “Everything I’ve written emanates from this country … I have an American heart, an American soul.”

While Elton performed several songs himself — including “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters” and “Your Song” — the night mostly consisted of the night’s guests performing Elton and Bernie’s catalog for an audience that included a number of prominent U.S. representatives and senators.

Metallica started the show with “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding.”  The whole show will air on PBS on April 8 at 8 p.m. Other performances included:

Maren Morris: “I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues”

Joni Mitchell, Annie Lennox and Brandi Carlile: “I’m Still Standing”

Brandi Carlile: “Skyline Pigeon,” “Madman Across the Water”

Annie Lennox: “Border Song”

Garth Brooks: “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word”

Billy Porter: “The B**** Is Back”

Charlie Puth: “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me.”

Jacob Lusk of Gabriels: “Bennie and the Jets”

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The music of Lou Reed will be the subject of a new book coming this spring. 

Sweet, Wild and Vicious: Listening to Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground is author Jim Higgins’ look at the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer’s catalog of music. In it, he shares “descriptions, details, analysis and appraisals” of the music Reed made from the ‘60s until his death in 2013. 

“Jim Higgins takes the reader on a long walk through one of the most complicated, controversial and influential of rock oeuvres in terms that are, in turn, scholarly, hip, informative and personal,” says Trouser Press’ Ira Robbins. “The unstated goal of books like this is to make you go back and listen anew to records you thought you knew front to back; Sweet, Wild and Vicious achieves that and more.”

Sweet, Wild and Vicious: Listening to Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground will be released in paperback and eBook on April 19; it’s available for preorder now. 

Lou Reed’s music is also being celebrated with an upcoming tribute album, The Power of the Heart: A Tribute to Lou Reed, which will be released on vinyl for Record Store Day on April 20, with CD and digital release happening the same day. It features covers of Reed tunes by the likes of Keith Richards, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Rufus Wainwright, Rickie Lee Jones and others.

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