Classic Hits

After earning rave reviews in London, Elton John‘s latest musical, Tammy Faye, will hit Broadway for the 2024-2025 season. 

As the title suggests, the show is inspired by the life of late Tammy Faye Messner, who pioneered televangelism by co-founding the TV show The PTL Club with her then-husband, Jim Bakker. After Bakker was sent to prison for fraud and conspiracy in 1989, Tammy Faye divorced him and married megachurch builder Roe Messner.

Known for her glamorous image and layers of makeup, Tammy Faye, who died in 2007, became a gay icon by preaching compassion for HIV/AIDS patients and support for the LGBTQ community. Jessica Chastain won the Oscar for playing her in the 2021 movie The Eyes of Tammy Faye.

Elton wrote the music for the show, while Jake Shears of the group Scissor Sisters wrote the lyrics. The musical, which premiered last fall in London, was nominated for four Olivier Awards, the U.K. equivalent of the Tony Awards.

Details of the show will be announced later.

Meanwhile, a “substantially reworked” version of Elton’s other musical, The Devil Wears Prada, is opening on London’s West End next year. The original was savaged by critics when it ran last year in Chicago.

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Seems like The Rolling Stones are looking to land a dance hit. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers just released a remix of their Hackney Diamonds single “Mess It Up,” courtesy of Grammy-winning producer Purple Disco Machine.

Purple Disco Machine previously worked with such artists as Elton John, Dua Lipa, Lady Gaga and more, and even earned a 2023 Grammy for Best Remixed Recording for his work on Lizzo’s “It’s About Damn Time.”

You can listen to “Mess It Up (Purple Disco Machine Remix)” now via streaming services or on YouTube.

“Mess It Up,” which features The Stones’ late drummer Charlie Watts, is the current single off Hackney Diamonds, The Rolling Stones’ first album of new material in 18 years. The album has gone to #1 in 19 countries, debuting at #3 in the U.S.

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The Doobie Brothers are using their music to help those affected by the wildfires that hit the Hawaiian island of Maui this summer.

The band just released the new track “Lahaina,” co-written by Doobie Brothers Pat Simmons and Michael McDonald, both of whom have homes in Maui, along with collaborator John Shanks. It also features fellow Maui resident Mick Fleetwood on drums, as well as Hawaii natives Jake Shimabukuro and Henry Kapono.

You can listen to “Lahaina” on streaming services and watch the video on YouTube.

Proceeds from “Lahaina” will go to the People’s Fund of Maui, which was launched by Oprah Winfrey and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to give financial support to those displaced by the fires. The band is also donating $100,000 of their own money to the fund.

The cause is a particularly personal one for Simmons, who has lived in Maui for almost 30 years and raised his family there. 

“I’ve been a resident of Maui for 28 years now and I wanted to make a tribute to the place I’ve called home for so long and help bring awareness and donations for the recovery and relief efforts there,” Simmons says. “This song is a look back at what Lahaina has meant to all of us. So many people have walked the streets of Lahaina and have felt that aloha spirit and we hope that one day we will walk those streets again.”

And Johnson is thankful for the support, sharing, “As our people of Maui piece their lives and homes back together, we’re grateful to have the genuine support and beautiful music of The Doobie Brothers.” He adds, “‘Lahaina’ is a song that both captures our aloha spirit and will help to make a real difference in the recovery.”

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Peter Frampton is one of the many superstar special guests on Dolly Parton’s first rock album, Rockstar. He appears on two tracks, including Dolly’s take on his classic “Baby, I Love Your Way.”

Frampton tells ABC Audio he was actually the one who reached out to Dolly’s producer about the project, asking if there was anything he could play guitar on. Dolly’s producer was surprised that Frampton would want to just play on any old song and offered another suggestion.

“He said, ‘Wait a sec, would you be interested if Dolly wanted to do one of your songs?’ And I said, ‘Let me think for a minute. Yes,’” Frampton explains. “He said, ‘I’ll call you back in five minutes.’ He called me back in three minutes, and he said, ‘Dolly’s jumping up and down. She wants to do “Baby, I Love Your Way.”‘”

But Frampton was still interested in contributing his guitar to a song that wasn’t necessarily his. Dolly’s producer eventually asked him if he’d be interested in playing the solo on Dolly’s cover of The Beatles’ “Let It Be,” which also features Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and Mick Fleetwood. Frampton couldn’t refuse.

“I said, ‘I think I can do that, yes,’” Frampton shares. “So yeah, I’m the only person that played on two tracks.” 

Dolly Parton’s Rockstar, which also features special guests Steven Tyler, Steve Perry, Sting, Stevie Nicks, Richie Sambora, Elton John, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, John Fogerty and more, is out now.

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Sammy Hagar just announced dates for The Best of All Worlds Tour, where he’ll joined by Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, drummer Jason Bonham and guitarist Joe Satriani to perform songs from the Van Halen catalog.

Satriani will be taking over the guitar parts made famous by the late Eddie Van Halen — and he realizes that’s no easy task.  

“You can’t fill them. You can put them on, but you can’t fill them,” he tells Forbes about stepping into Eddie’s shoes. “But you’ve got to enjoy it. You have to respect the genius of the architecture of his guitar parts and how he built the songs and you’ve got to get in there and just enjoy what he was building cause he would weave in and out of his original composition every time he played it live and bring new amazing little nuggets to each little section.”

And while Satriani is certainly an accomplished guitar player in his own right, he notes, “It is really frightening because I don’t play like him and I’ve had to learn to anticipate all his quirky accents where he likes to push things and turn things upside down.”  

“Just when you think they’re going to go left, they go right or up or down. So, it’s exciting,” he adds.

The Best of All Worlds Tour, featuring special guest Loverboy, kicks off July 13 in West Palm Beach, Florida. Tickets go on sale Friday, November 17, at 10 a.m. A complete list of dates can be found at redrocker.com.

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Mickey Thomas, best known for being the singer for Jefferson Starship and its later iteration Starship, is the latest musician getting into the holiday spirit.

The singer is set to release A Classic Christmas on December 1, a digital double-sided single, featuring covers of the holiday classics “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.”

“In general, I prefer Christmas songs that are pensive and reflective. I love the ones that transport me into a warm nostalgia—the ones that express deeply personal feelings as opposed to religious themes,” he says. “‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ is a perfect example. It’s somewhat melancholy yet hopeful at the same time.”

As for “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” Thomas describes it as “truly a celebration of all things Christmas. Parties, singing carols, sledding, roasting marshmallows, social gaiety, reminiscing about past Christmases.”

A Classic Christmas is available for preorder now.

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Bono has previously said that U2’s next album will be a rock record, and now he’s giving fans some insight into what he means by that.  

“I announced it, without discussion, as ‘an unreasonable guitar record,’” he tells Mojo. “And Edge called me up and goes, ‘How unreasonable?’ And I said, ‘As unreasonable as you’re ready to take it.’”

But when fans will actually hear that record is still up in the air. Not only is U2 busy with their Las Vegas residency, U2:UV Achtung Baby Live At Sphere, they are also waiting for drummer Larry Mullen Jr. to recover from surgery. 

“Starting work on new songs is somewhat tied to Larry’s situation,” bassist Adam Clayton says. “Could he commit to an album project? I don’t know.” 

But when they do finally get that album out, Bono wants to make sure it’s something special.

“I don’t think the world is waiting on the next U2 album,” he says. “I think we have to give them a reason to be interested in it.”

Bono adds, “I just want to write great tunes, because that’s where U2 started – with big choruses, clear ideas. And let’s go back there, but do it with some petrol and some matches.”

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The Immediate Family will be releasing a new studio album next year.  The group, made up of renowned session musicians Danny Kortchmar, Waddy Wachtel, Steve Postell, Russ Kunkel and Leland Sklar, will release Skin in the Game on February 16.

The album features 13 original songs and one cover: the album’s first single “The Toughest Girl in Town,” which was originally released in October 2022. The album’s title track is set for release in January.

“This band has such power. It’s almost like an embarrassment of riches,” Wachtel shares, with Sklar adding, “The Immediate Family’s unrivaled musical chemistry comes from years of playing together. We all know each other backward and forward and can play to each other’s strengths in ways that other groups can’t always get to.” 

The new album announcement comes just as a new documentary about the musicians is due for release. Immediate Family, directed by Denny Tedesco, will open in theaters for special one-night screenings on December 12, and will be available everywhere on December 15.

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A new limited edition print autographed by The Who’s Roger Daltrey is being sold to benefit the Teenage Cancer Trust.  

The print, designed by Steve Mitchell at 45 Original, features the phrase “Think Lucky, Be Lucky!” — which seems to be inspired by the band’s song “Be Lucky,” featured on the 2015 compilation The Who Hits 50!

Only 300 copies of the five-color screen print are available, each one individually signed by Daltrey. They are available for preorder now, with the print expected to ship on December 11.

Teenage Cancer Trust, founded in 1990, seeks to improve the cancer experience for young people. Daltrey is a patron of the charity.

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Former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett is giving fans some new music next year. 

On February 16, the rocker will release the new studio album The Circus and the Nightwhale, described as an autobiographical concept album revolving around a character named Travla. 

“I love this album. It says the things I’ve been wanting to say for a very long time,” he shares. “It’s a lovely journey that starts dirty, scratchy and smoky and becomes heavenly and divine. How can you resist it?”

The Circus and the Nightwhale is Hackett’s first album of new material since the instrumental album Under A Mediterranean Sky, released back in 2021. It will be available for preorder starting December 1.

Here is the track list for The Circus and the Nightwhale: 

“People Of The Smoke”
“These Passing Clouds”
“Taking You Down”
“Found And Lost”
“Enter The Ring”
“Get Me Out!”
“Ghost Moon and Living Love”
“Circo Inferno”
“Breakout”
“All At Sea”
“Into The Nightwhale”
“Wherever You Are”
“White Dove”

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