Classic Hits

The Heart of Rock and Roll, a Broadway musical inspired by the music of Huey Lewis and the News, arrives on Broadway in March, and now the cast has been revealed.

“The casting process has so far been the most thrilling part of creating this show. It’s all just words and notes on a page until an actor gives it life,” says Huey in a statement. “I am so grateful that this incredible company, made up of some of the world’s most talented stage performers, will be telling our story and singing our songs.”

Starring in the lead roles of Bobby and Cassandra, who Huey calls “the will-they/won’t-they couple at the center of our story,” are Corey Cott and McKenzie Kurtz. Kurtz is current starring as Glinda in Wicked, and has also appeared in Frozen and in the NBC Live production of Annie. Cott’s credits include Newsies and parts in TV shows like Law & Order: SVU and The Good Fight.

“I know tons of Broadway fans already know just how dynamic and gifted they are, but their chemistry together is nothing short of electric,” Huey says of Cott and Kurtz.

The Heart of Rock and Roll is set in 1987 and features classic Huey hits like “Hip to Be Square” and “If This Is It.” It tells how Bobby, who gave up music to climb the corporate ladder, and his boss Cassandra, who always puts the family business first, react to getting a second shot at making their dreams come true.

Previews of the show begin at the James Earl Jones Theatre on March 29; opening night is set for April 22.

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Melissa Etheridge is hitting the road with both Jewel and Indigo Girls.

Etheridge just announced dates for two different co-headlining tours. The first, with Jewel, kicks off July 11 in Bonner, Montana, hitting San Diego, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and more before wrapping up August 7 in La Vista, Nebraska. The tour picks up again on September 17 in Cary, North Carolina, concluding on October 5 in Rogers, Arkansas. 

In between the two legs with Jewel, Etheridge will team up with Indigo Girls for a nine-city tour that kicks off August 11 in Highland Park, Illinois, and wraps August 25 in Vienna, Virginia.  

Fans can nab tickets through an artist presale that begins Wednesday, January 17, at 10 a.m, with the general onsale happening Friday, January 19, at 10 a.m.  A complete list of dates can be found at melissaetheridge.com.

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James Taylor is spending yet another July 4 holiday in the Berkshire area of Massachusetts.

Taylor and his All-Star Band just announced they’ll play the Koussevitzky Music Shed at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts, on July 3 and 4; the Fourth of July show will end with a fireworks display for the holiday.

This certainly isn’t the first time Taylor has played Tanglewood. He’s taken the stage several times over the years, many during the July 4 holiday, and this will be his 51st performance at the venue. It will also mark 50 years since Taylor’s very first Tanglewood performance on July 30, 1974.

Proceeds from the July 4 show will be donated to support Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1937.

Taylor will be holding an artist presale that kicks off Wednesday, January 17, at 10 a.m. ET, followed by the public onsale on Friday, January 26, at 3 p.m. ET.

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In 2023, Janet Jackson hit the road for her sold-out Together Again Tour.  In 2024, she’s bringing it back, “together” with another artist.

“Hey u guys! By popular demand, we’re bringing the Together Again Tour back to North America this summer with special guest Nelly!” Janet writes on Instagram. “It’ll be so much fun! Tickets go on sale Friday 1/19. We can’t wait to see you.”

The new dates begin June 6 in Palm Desert, CA, and they’re currently set to wrap up July 30 in Phoenix. A presale begins January 17 at 10 a.m. local time, and the general onsale starts January 19 at 10 a.m. local time via LiveNation.com.

The Together Again tour features all of Janet’s hits, from “When I Think of You,” “Control” and “Nasty,” to “That’s the Way Love Goes,” “Together Again” and “All For You,” to “Alright,” “Escapade,” “Again,” “If” and many more.

Before Janet kicks off these new dates, she has three shows planned for March in Honolulu, Hawaii, followed by a series of shows in Asia and an April 27 date in Paradise Island, The Bahamas.

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President Joe Biden is sending along his congratulations to Sir Elton John, who on Monday, January 15, became the 19th entertainer to earn a competitive EGOT, when his Disney+ special, Elton John Live: Farewell From Dodger Stadium, won an Emmy for Outstanding Variety Special (Live). 

“Sir Elton John has been a tidal wave throughout his career to help people rise up and make hope and history rhyme,” Biden shared on social media. “Six Grammy Awards. Two Oscars. One Tony. And now, one Emmy. Congratulations Elton — a singer and songwriter of our time, for all time.”

Biden previously revealed a special connection he and his family have to Elton’s music in his book Promise Me Dad, sharing that as a young, single dad, he and his two sons, Hunter and Beau, would sing “Crocodile Rock” on their way to school each day. In 2015, when Beau was dying of brain cancer, Biden sat at his bedside and sang “Crocodile Rock” to him. 

In 2022, Biden honored Elton with the National Humanities Medal, telling the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, “On behalf of the American people, thank you — and I sincerely mean this — for moving the soul of the nation.”

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On This Day, January 16, 1992…

Eric Clapton recorded an episode of MTV Unplugged in front of a small audience at Bray Film Studios in Windsor England.

The taping featured performances of such songs as “Tears in Heaven,” about the death of his four-year-old son, Conor, and an acoustic version of “Layla.”

Clapton released a live album of the show in August 1992 to critical acclaim. The album went to #1 on the Billboard 200 chart and won three Grammy Awards, including Record and Song of the Year for “Tears In Heaven.”

The album sold 26 million copies worldwide to become the bestselling live album of all time.

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The Doors’ Robby Krieger is still on a search to find one of his Doors-era guitars, which was stolen almost 60 years ago.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer initially put out a plea to find the missing early ’60s red Gibson SG Special back in 2021, revealing that it was the guitar he used to audition for The Doors and the one he wrote their classic tune “Light My Fire” on. It was stolen from the band’s rehearsal space in 1967.

While it’s been awhile since his initial plea, in a new interview with Guitar World Krieger says he’s still searching for it and is asking anyone who owns a 1963/1964 model of the guitar to check and see if the serial number matches the one from his missing axe, 88779, and contact him at FindRobbysGuitar@gmail.com.

Krieger tells the mag he was initially inspired to buy the guitar after catching Chuck Berry play a Gibson at a show in Santa Monica, California.

“He played this beautiful cherry red Gibson ES-335,” he explains. “Next day I decided to trade in one of my flamenco guitars for an ES-335. But as it turned out, the ES-335 was too expensive, and the only guitar I could afford was a Gibson SG.”

As for what he liked about it, Krieger mentions its “smoother sound compared to the Fender guitars of the day.”

“The Fender stuff was twangier, and I never was a fan of that,” he says. “I always have gone for smoother sounds, which I could get with the Gibson.”

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Bruce Springsteen has marked Martin Luther King Jr. Day by sharing an emotional performance on social media.

The rocker posted video of him performing the gospel song “We Shall Overcome,” a tune commonly associated with the Civil Rights Movement. According to the Asbury Park Press, the performance took place at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in 2006. 

“There’s the beautiful quote by Dr. King that says the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice…,” Springsteen wrote next to the video. “I’ve lived long enough to see that in action and to put some faith in it… I’ve also lived long enough to know that arc doesn’t bend on its own. It needs all of us leaning on it, nudging it in the right direction day after day.”

Springsteen and The E Street Band are gearing up to return to the road later this year. They’ll kick off their 2024 tour on March 19 in Phoenix, Arizona. A complete list of dates can be found at brucespringsteen.net.

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Lenny Kravitz recently commented that he feels “blessed” by his daughter Zoë Kravitz’s engagement to actor Channing Tatum. And while there’s no word on when they plan to actually tie the knot, Kravitz says when the day comes, he doesn’t expect he’ll spend much time writing a father of the bride speech.

“It just comes at the moment. I don’t rehearse those things,” he told Entertainment Tonight at the 2024 Critics Choice Awards, adding it will just be a speech “from the heart.”

Zoë, 35, who has starred in such films as The Batman and The Divergent series, is Lenny’s daughter with ex-wife Lisa Bonet. She and Tatum, 43, reportedly got engaged back in October after more than two years of dating. They met on the set of the 2021 film P**** Island.

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Tony Orlando is getting ready to say goodbye to the road. The legendary singer has just announced he’ll play his final concert on March 22 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, which will be his 65th show at the venue. 

Orlando’s farewell to touring kicks off with a three-night stand at the South Point Casino in Las Vegas, marking a wrap to his 51-year career as a Vegas headliner. His final dates also include stops in Niagara Falls, Canada; Des Plaines and St. Charles, Illinois; and Atlantic City, New Jersey.

A complete list of dates can be found at tonyorlando.com.

As for why he’s decided to retire from touring, the 79-year-old Orlando tells Billboard that his age and touring costs factored into the decision.

“I still hit the ball, I just can’t run the bases!!!” he says. “It’s also time for me to satisfy my creative juices with the need in me to produce, create new products from films, to Broadway shows, to streaming new product.”

He adds, “Performing live shows for 63 years has been a glorious dream come true run! … But now it’s time to grow and turn a new page in my life. How exciting!”

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