Classic Hits

On This Day, January 11, 1942…

Clarence Clemons, best known Bruce Springsteen’s longtime friend and E Street Band saxophonist, was born in Norfolk County, Virginia.

Clemons first met Springsteen in September 1971 at a bar in Asbury Park, New Jersey, and later appeared on Springsteen’s debut album, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., where he played sax on “Blinded by the Light” and “Spirit in the Night.”

As he was getting ready to promote the album on tour, Springsteen hired Clemons to join what would eventually become known as the E Street Band, the formation of which is recounted in the Born to Run classic “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out.”

Known as The Big Man, Clemons was a fan favorite and staple of E Street Band until his death in June 2011 at the age of 69.

He also released several solo records and had a top 20 hit in 1985 with “You’re a Friend of Mine,” a duet with Jackson Browne.

Clemons was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2014 as a member of the E Street Band.

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Bonnie Raitt is using her fame to bring attention to a documentary short film that has a chance at an Oscar nomination this year. 

The singer’s Instagram page is highlighting the film The Last Repair Shop, which recently made the Oscars’ shortlist in the Documentary Short Subject category.

“With the start of the new year, we want to share this beautiful short film from @latimes called @thelastrepairshop,” Bonnie shares, noting the film tells the story of the craftspeople who work at the Los Angeles Unified School District’s instrument repair shop.

The film also talks to the students at the school, who reveal “the impact that music and learning to play an instrument has had on their young lives.” 

“The film is a testament to the diversity of Los Angeles and the power of music education in the lives of young people who invest themselves in opportunities offered to them, free of charge, and open up a whole new world of music to explore,” the post adds.

The Last Repair Shop has already won the 2023 Critics Choice Documentary Award for Best Short Documentary. It is now available to watch on YouTube. 

As for Bonnie, she’s getting ready to hit the road again this spring. The next leg of her Just Like That tour kicks off April 26 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. A complete list of dates can be found at bonnieraitt.com.

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Selena Gomez announced Tuesday she was taking a break from social media, but before she did, she posted an intriguing photo to her Instagram Story: a copy of Simple Dreams, the memoir by legendary singer Linda Ronstadt. Variety is now reporting that Selena will be playing the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer in an upcoming biopic.

According to Variety, the movie is in preproduction, and producers on the project include Ronstadt’s manager, John Boylan, and James Keach, who produced a 2019 documentary about her called The Sound of My Voice.

Like Selena, Ronstadt is of Mexican descent. Over her career, she’s recorded pop, rock, country and Latin music, as well as standards. Among her many honors, she’s won 11 Grammys, received the National Medal of Arts and Humanities, and has scored 10 top 10 hits.

Ronstadt returned to the conversation last year thanks to the inclusion of her song “Long, Long Time” in the acclaimed third episode of the HBO series The Last of Us.

In an interview from 2015, Selena said that people have always told her she looks like Ronstadt, which is why she started listening to her. She also said Ronstadt inspired the cover art of her album Revival.

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U2 is getting ready to wrap up their Las Vegas residency in March, but before they do they’re giving fans a chance to win a truly unique experience with the band. 

The Irish rockers have just launched a new sweepstakes with Fandiem in which the lucky winner and a guest will receive two VIP tickets to see U2: UV Achtung Baby at Sphere on Saturday, February 24. 

But that’s not all. The prize comes with two guest passes to meet the band before and after the show, plus roundtrip travel and hotel accommodations in Las Vegas, a guided tour of the Zoo Station U2:UV Experience at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas and a merch bundle. 

Fans have until February 14 to enter the sweepstakes. Proceeds will be donated to The Farmlink Project, which helps to fight hunger by making sure food that would be wasted goes to people who need it.

U2 returns to the Sphere on January 26, with the residency set to run until March 2. A complete list of dates can be found at u2.com.

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Kate Bush has paid tribute to her longtime collaborator Del Palmer, who passed away earlier in January at age 71.

Palmer contributed to albums including 1985’s Hounds of Love, 1989’s The Sensual World, 1993’s Red Shoes and 2005’s Aerial, mostly as a bassist and engineer. You can hear his bass on Bush’s hit “Running Up That Hill.”

In a statement posted to her website, Bush, who was also in a relationship with Palmer into the ’90s, writes, “It’s hard to know what to say… He was a big part of my life and my work for many years.”

“It’s going to take a long time to come to terms with him not being here with us,” Bush continues. “He was incredibly creative — talented in lots of different ways. He was a brilliant musician, bass player, a great artist — he was always drawing. Once he covered a whole recording consul in cartoons. It took him days and it looked absolutely stunning. He taught himself to be a recording engineer, engineering several of my albums and later releasing his own.”

Bush concludes, “I’m going to miss him terribly.”

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Rod Stewart, who celebrates his 79th birthday on Wednesday, January 10, is set to take part in BBC Radio 2’s monthlong lineup of Piano Room performances.

The series will feature a lineup of 20 artists backed by the BBC Concert Orchestra, with each musician performing a new song, classic tune and cover.

Stewart will be joined by Jools Holland, Squeeze‘s former keyboard player, for his February 22 performance. On Instagram, he revealed they plan to take on a Billie Holiday cover.

The performance will happen ahead of the release of Rod and Jools’ new album of swing music, Swing Fever, due out February 23. They’ve already released the first single from the record, a cover of “Almost Like Being in Love.”

Other artists taking part in the Piano Room month include Bruce Hornsby, who’ll perform a Don Henley cover; The Smiths‘ Johnny Marr, set for an Iggy Pop cover; Rick Astley, who’ll cover Olivia Rodrigo; and Crowded House, who’ll be performing a Petula Clark cover.

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The 40th anniversary celebration of Talking Heads‘ critically acclaimed concert documentary and live album, Stop Making Sense, will continue this year, with an upcoming tribute album.

A24, the studio that released a newly restored version of the film in 2023, just revealed on social media that a tribute album will be “coming soon,” sharing, “We’ve got a tape we’d like to play you. 16 tracks from 16 artists.”

They also previewed a snippet of the first track from the record, a cover of “Burning Down the House” by Paramore. The video posted shows frontwoman Hayley Williams opening up a box with David Byrne‘s signature big white suit inside and then breaking out a cassette tape of the soundtrack to play for her band.

Considered by many to be the greatest concert film of all time, Stop Making Sense, directed by Jonathan Demme, was recorded over three shows at Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre in December 1983; the documentary came out the following October.

In addition to “Burning Down the House,” the soundtrack, which was released in September 1984, featured live performances of songs like “Psycho Killer,” “Once in a Lifetime,” “Take Me To the River” and more.

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When KISS wrapped their final tour in December, they introduced fans to the next phase of their career, the KISS avatars. Now, the band’s guitarist Tommy Thayer is sharing his thoughts on the project.

“It’s been interesting doing the avatars so far; it’ll take some time to get the imagery where we want it to be,” he says in a new interview with Guitar World. “I haven’t really thought about what it all means in the big picture, but with technology evolving as quickly as it is, there’s no doubt that this is the direction a lot of entertainment is going.” 

KISS recently revealed that the avatar show won’t be debuting until 2027, but Thayer doesn’t plan to sit back and wait for it to happen, although he’s not sure what’s next for him.  

“I’m not completely ready to retire yet; I have ideas and certainly options on the table,” he says. “I’m not thinking of continuing to play in another band or that sort of thing – that doesn’t appeal to me. But I look forward to an exciting future, working hard and being a part of good things going forward.”

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On This Day, January 10, 2023… 

Legendary guitarist Jeff Beck passed away at the age of 78, after contracting bacterial meningitis.

Beck came to prominence as a member of the Yardbirds, but went on to have a successful solo career, fronting his own Jeff Beck Group.

Considered by many to be one of the greatest guitar players of all time, 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 inducted into Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice, in 1992 as a member of the Yardbirds and again in 2009 for his solo work.

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Now that Paul Stanley’s finished touring with KISS, he’s got some free time to promote another one of his artistic endeavors – his art.

The rocker is set to premiere his latest art collection at two Wentworth Gallery locations in Florida. The collections will feature new original paintings, hand painted signature Paul Stanley Ibanez guitars, mixed media originals and more. Included in the collection are some pieces from Stanley’s The Other Side exhibit, which debuted last August at The Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown, Ohio.

“I don’t really have a style other than what connects all of my pieces – which is vibrant color,” Stanley shares. “Because, to me, color is the representation of life. I view my life, on its worst day, as a miracle. I think life is amazing. And I represent it with color.”

To celebrate the new collection, Stanley will make two in-gallery appearances: Friday, February 23, at the Wentworth Gallery at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, followed by an appearance Saturday, February 24, at the Wentworth Gallery in the Town Center Mall in Boca Raton, Florida.

Stanley has been creating art for decades, and actually designed and created the iconic KISS emblem. About 10 years ago he returned to painting, creating portraits and abstract work, earning tens of millions of dollars for his work.

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