Classic Hits

Foreigner has been on their Farewell tour since 2023, and while guitarist Mick Jones is the only original member still associated with the band, he hasn’t been part of the tour. He’s now revealed that Parkinson’s disease is what’s been keeping him from performing.

“Fans will have become very aware that for some time now, I have not been performing onstage with the band,” Jones shared in a statement. “Several years ago, I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. I want everyone to know that I am doing alright. However, I’ve always liked to be at my best when performing onstage, and sadly, at present, I find that a bit difficult.”

Jones notes that while he hasn’t been performing, he’s still very much a part of Foreigner, working behind the scenes with the group.

“Parkinson’s is a daily struggle; several of my friends are also dealing with the disease,” he continues. “The important thing is to persevere with the loving support of my family, and remind myself of the wonderful career I’ve had in music.”

He went on to thank Foreigner fans for their support, noting “it always means so very much to me, especially so at this point in my life.” 

Foreigner released their self-titled debut album in 1977 and went on to sell over 80 million records worldwide. They have nine top 10 hits, one #1 album, 4, and one #1 single, “I Want To Know What Love Is.”

Earlier this month Foreigner was nominated for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Inductees will be announced in late April, with the ceremony set to take place this fall in Cleveland.

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Rod Stewart has hinted that he and his former Faces bandmate, Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood, may be releasing new music at some point.

During an interview with Vulture to promote his new album Swing Fever with Jools Holland, which drops February 23, Stewart talked about songs that he’s written but not released and suggested they may wind up being Faces recordings.

“There are a lot of songs I’ve written that I haven’t put out and nobody knows about them,” he says. “My songs are like my children. I gave birth to them and then I put them out there in the world and see how they do.” 

He then shared that he’s sent some of those songs to Wood, explaining, “I told him, ‘This is stuff we’ve recorded with my band, maybe the Faces would like to do it instead?’” He added, “We’re still struggling to make this album. We’ll see. Some of them might see the light of day.” 

In the meantime, Faces is set to drop a special release for Record Store Day on April 20. The BBC Session Recordings is the second set of highlights from the band’s appearances on the BBC over the years. They previously released Had Me A Real Good Time… With Faces Live In Session At The BBC 1971-1973 for Record Store Day Black Friday in November.

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Opening statements are expected Wednesday in the trial of three men charged in a conspiracy involving nearly 100 pages of Don Henley’s handwritten notes and lyrics for the Eagles album Hotel California.

According to the indictment, Glen Horowitz, Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinki possessed notes that included lyrics to the songs “Hotel California,” “Life in the Fast Lane” and “New Kid In Town.”  

Despite knowing the materials were stolen, they attempted to sell the manuscripts, manufactured false provenance and lied to auction houses, potential buyers and law enforcement about the origin of the material, the Manhattan district attorney’s office said.

The manuscripts were originally stolen in the late 1970s by an author who’d been hired to write an Eagles biography. In 2005 he sold the manuscripts to Horowitz, a rare books dealer, who then sold them to Inciardi and Kosinski. 

When Henley learned of the sale, he filed police reports, told the defendants the materials were stolen and demanded the return of his property. Prosecutors allege that rather than making any effort to ensure they actually had rightful ownership, the defendants responded by engaging in a yearslong campaign to prevent Henley from recovering the manuscripts.

According to the indictment, Horowitz and Inciardi worked to fabricate the manuscripts’ provenance and attempted to use that false statement of provenance to coerce Henley into buying back his stolen property. When trying to sell the manuscripts, Inciardi allegedly lied and withheld information regarding Henley’s claims.

Horowitz also attempted to exploit the death of founding Eagles member Glenn Frey to prevent criminal prosecution: he allegedly produced a new false statement of provenance, this time claiming that the materials originated from Frey.

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We haven’t heard much from Van Halen drummer Alex Van Halen since the death of brother and bandmate Eddie Van Halen, but that’s about to change.

A post on publisher Harper Collins’ website reveals that Alex has written a new book, Brothers, which will be released on October 22.

The announcement doesn’t offer many details about the book, only the release date, that it will be 384 pages and will sell for $32. It also lists an alternative title, The Brothers Van Halen. 

The book is available for preorder now.

Alex has been fairly quiet and hasn’t played music publicly since Eddie’s death in 2020. In January, on what would have been Eddie’s 69th birthday, he shared a picture of them together on Instagram with the caption, “We miss you” and the hashtag #VanHalenForever.

Alex isn’t the first member of Van Halen to write a book. The band’s original frontman David Lee Roth released his autobiography, Crazy from the Heat, in 1997, while Roth’s replacement Sammy Hagar released his, Red: My Uncensored Life in Rock, in 2011.

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After announcing a handful of U.S. shows for 2024, James Taylor has revealed dates for a full summer tour.

The tour kicks off May 29 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles and includes a two-night stand at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado, as well as shows in Nashville, Philadelphia, Boston and Bethel Woods, New York.

The tour wraps with three already announced shows in Vienna, Virginia, on September 12, 14 and 15.

A James Taylor fan club presale kicks off Wednesday, February 21, with the general onsale set for Friday, February 23, at 10 a.m. A complete list of dates can be found at jamestaylor.com.

Before he heads out for his summer trek, Taylor has dates booked in Tokyo, the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand. His next show is happening April 6 at Tokyo’s Garden Theater. 

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The solo career of The Who’s late bassist John Entwistle will be the subject of a new CD box set coming in May. 

The Ox Box Set, dropping May 10, will feature Entwistle’s six solo albums — 1971’s Smash Your Head Against the Wall, 1972’s Whistle Rymes, 1973’s Rigor Mortis Sets In, 1975’s Mad Dog, 1981’s Too Late the Hero and 1996’s The Rock — with each CD containing bonus tracks made up of outtakes, demos and early versions of songs. The set will also include a 28-page booklet. 

Also on May 10, three of Entwistle’s solo albums will be reissued separately on 140g colored vinyl. Smash Your Head Against the Wall will be released on green vinyl, its first vinyl release since 1981. Whistle Rymes will be released on red vinyl, its first time on vinyl since 1973, and Rigor Mortis Sets In will be released on orange vinyl, becoming its first vinyl release since 1974.

Both the box set and the individual colored vinyl releases are available for preorder now.

This isn’t the first time Entwistle’s solo career has been the subject of a new release. Back in November, all six albums, including bonus tracks, debuted on digital services.

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On This Day, February 20, 1974…

Steely Dan released their third studio album, Pretzel Logic, which was the last to feature the full lineup of Donald Fagen, Walter Becker, Denny Dias, Jim Hodder and Jeff “Skunk” Baxter. Future albums would be recorded by Becker, Fagen and hired studio musicians. 

Pretzel Logic was a top 10 hit for Steely Dan, peaking at #8 on the Billboard 200.  It featured the hit single “Ricki Don’t Lose That Number,” which was the highest charting single of the band’s career, hitting #4 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The album went on to be certified Platinum by the RIAA. 

Steely Dan, which these days consists of Fagen and a group of touring musicians, is still out on the road. They are currently opening for the Eagles on their Long Goodbye Tour, which hits Hollywood, Florida, on March 1 and 2.

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The story of The Beatles is about to be told on the big screen in a big way.

Sony Pictures just announced that Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes is on board to direct not one, but four movies about The Beatles, each one told from the point of view of a different band member.

The films mark the first time Apple Corps Ltd. and The Beatles have granted a studio the rights to the life stories of band members Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, John Lennon and George Harrison, and their legendary catalog of music. 

“I’m honored to be telling the story of the greatest rock band of all time, and excited to challenge the notion of what constitutes a trip to the movies,” Mendes, best known for such films as American Beauty and Skyfall, shared in a statement.

So far, there’s no word on when production will begin or who’ll be cast in each role. The studio promises an “innovative and groundbreaking” release for the films, which are due out in 2027.

While this is the first time The Beatles have supported a movie about the band, it isn’t the first time they have been depicted on screen. The 1994 film Backbeat chronicled the early days of The Beatles, and in 2009, Aaron Taylor-Johnson played Lennon in the film Nowhere Boy, which focused on the singer’s teenage years. 

The Beatles were also subject of the 2019 comedy Yesterday, about a struggling musician who wakes up after an accident and discovers he’s the only one in the world who remembers The Beatles.

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Van Halen‘s two frontmen, Sammy Hagar and David Lee Roth, haven’t been holding back in the press about their feelings toward each other. And while they may not be friends, that hasn’t stopped Hagar from appreciating the music Roth made with Van Halen before he took over.

Van Halen’s sixth studio album, 1984, celebrated its 40th anniversary in January and Hagar has nothing but good things to say about it.

“I was a huge fan of that record,” Hagar tells ABC Audio, noting it made him realize Eddie Van Halen was a “genius.”

Sammy was particularly impressed by Eddie’s synthesizer work on “Jump,” Van Halen’s only #1 single, sharing, “You know, Eddie, I just I fell in love with Eddie with that.”

And Hagar says he was even a little jealous after the success of “Jump,” sharing that prior to its release he always felt he was on the same level as Van Halen.

“You know, I felt I was in competition until I heard ‘Jump’ and the song went, you know, it was such a big hit,” he says. “I just went, ‘Wow, they did it.’ I was mad, I was upset.” He does note that he got over it once Van Halen asked him to join the band. 

Roth left Van Halen after 1984 and was replaced by Hagar. They went on to have four #1 albums with him as frontman. 

And Hagar plans to celebrate his time with Van Halen and more during his upcoming The Best of All Worlds Tour, which kicks off July 13 in West Palm Beach, Florida. A complete list of dates can be found at redrocker.com.

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Lenny Kravitz was honored Sunday night with the Music Icon Award at the 2024 People’s Choice Awards.

Kravitz talked about how when he first started out people offered him big deals but only if he changed his music, sharing he turned them down because he couldn’t do something “inauthentic.”  

“An icon, to me, is someone who inspires and teaches others to believe in themselves, and their direction, whatever that direction is,” he said. “It’s never been about how many records I sell, or how many awards I win. It’s not about trying to write hits, or being calculated or formulaic.”

He added, “It’s about enjoying and being grateful for the journey, and using the gifts that God gave you, and that journey goes how it goes. And it will continue, because I’m just doing me.”

After thanking his parents, Roxie Roker and Sy Kravitz, Lenny shared, “Music is about bringing us all together. And the whole reason I create and perform music is to amplify love … Love is the strongest power, and love will win. We are all one — one God, one people, one planet. Let love rule, y’all.”

Kravitz also performed a medley of tunes at the event, including “Fly Away,” “It Ain’t Over Til It’s Over,” “Let Love Rule,” “Are You Gonna Go My Way,” and “TK421” from his upcoming album, Blue Electric Light, dropping May 24.

Kravitz is a newly announced nominee for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame class of 2024. Inductees will be announced in late April, with the induction ceremony set to take place this fall in Cleveland. The ceremony is set to stream live on Disney+, followed by a highlights special airing later on ABC.

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