Classic Hits

The late Robbie Robertson is known for his legendary musical career, but this fall he’ll also be remembered for his whiskey.

One of Robertson’s last projects before his death in August was to team with WhistlePig Whiskey for a new spirit in honor of The Band’s legendary concert film and album The Last Waltz, which is celebrating its 45th anniversary this year. 

WhistlePig 12 Rye Whiskey – Robbie’s Blend, which was crafted with Robertson’s input, features a blend of flavors including ripe citrus, cedar, walnut and crushed white pepper. And as a bonus for Last Waltz fans, each bottle has been dipped in wax made with melted vinyl from The Last Waltz album.

“We’re humbled to give fans another way to celebrate The Last Waltz’s legacy this season with a new whiskey created in collaboration with Robbie himself,” says Mitch Mahar, WhistlePig distiller. “With his personal touches, Robbie’s Blend offers a bespoke whiskey that gives you a symphony of flavor in every sip.”

WhistlePig 12 Rye Whiskey – Robbie’s Blend is available to order online starting Friday, October 6, and will also be available this fall in select stores in Tennessee.

The release coincides with several planned celebrations of The Last Waltz’s 45th anniversary, including the October 6 release of a three-LP audiophile pressing of the soundtrack and a record release party taking place the same night at Analog inside the Hutton Hotel in Nashville. The film is also set to return to theaters nationwide for one night only on November 5.

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The Zombies are headed to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for a very special screening of their recent documentary, Hung Up On a Dream.

Original band members Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone, who were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019, will take part in a Hall of Fame series interview and Q&A following the screening on October 21 at 2 p.m. 

Tickets for the screening and interview are on sale now. 

The event is happening the day after The Zombies’ October 20 show at Ludlow Garage in Cincinnati, Ohio. Their next concert is happening Thursday, October 5, in San Francisco. A complete list of tour dates can be found at thezombiesmusic.com.

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A rare collaboration between Bob Dylan and Jack White will be released as part of the latest installment of White’s Third Man Records Vault subscription service.

The main part of the release will be Live in Las Vegas, a three vinyl LP set of The White Stripes’ 2003 concert in Sin City. But it will come with the added bonus of a 7-inch vinyl single featuring Dylan and White teaming up for a live performance of The White Stripes track “Ball and Biscuit.”

The collaboration happened on March 17, 2004, at the State Theatre in Detroit, Michigan. Up until now, the recording has only been available as a bootleg from audience recordings.

To get your copy of Live in Las Vegas, you’ll need to sign up for the Third Man Records Vault before midnight CT on October 31. For more info, visit ThirdManRecords.com.

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Paul McCartney is ready to kick off a new leg of his Got Back tour later this month, and he’s giving fans a chance to win a VIP experience at his final show of the year. 

The two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer just launched a new sweepstakes where a lucky winner and their guest will win VIP tickets to his December 16 show in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, along with soundcheck access and a meet and greet with McCartney. The package comes with roundtrip airfare, three-night hotel accommodations and a merchandise package.

Fans can enter by making a donation of $10 or more on prizeo.com, with proceeds benefiting Meet Free Monday, a nonprofit Paul launched with daughters Mary and Stella McCartney in 2009 “to create a simple and accessible way for everyone beginning the journey to greener and healthier eating.”

Paul McCartney’s Got Back tour kicks off October 18 in Adelaide, Australia. A complete list of dates can be found at paulmccartney.com.

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KISS will kick off the final leg of their End of the Road tour later this month. While they’ve always been known for their big theatrical shows, singer Paul Stanley believes they’re loved for much more than just the spectacle.

“I always say this: ‘a crappy band with a big show is a crappy band,’” he tells Gulf News. “We didn’t start as a band with everything. We started as a band making music we listened to.” He adds, “And it was never about being a part of a band with make-up and [fireworks] … Our music doesn’t need intellectualizing or philosophizing.” 

While Stanley says there are bands that can play to bigger audiences than they do right now, he doesn’t think those artists will still be bringing it 50 years down the line like they do.

“Our devoted fan base is almost like a tribe. We don’t make art that is intellectual, we make art that’s emotional,” he says, noting, “That’s why people remember their first KISS concert, their first KISS song, and they remember when KISS first came on the radio. It’s a powerful connection.”

The final leg of KISS’ End of the Road tour launches October 19 in Cleveland, Ohio. A complete list of dates can be found at kissonline.com.

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INXS is releasing remixes of some of their biggest hits on colored vinyl.

The new collection, All Juiced Up Part 2, will feature nine limited edition colored 12-inch vinyl releases, featuring remixes of INXS classics like “Need You Tonight,” “What You Need” and more.

The collection kicks off October 20 with volumes one to three; all songs were remixed at Abbey Road Studios. A blue, pink and red vinyl will be available, with each volume containing four different songs. Remixes on the first three volumes include such songs as “Listen Like Thieves,” “Bitter Tears,” “New Sensation,” “Original Sin” and more.

All volumes can be ordered separately or as a three-LP bundle. They are available for preorder now. These will be followed by two more sets of three; the next is expected to drop in February 2024, and the final set is scheduled for May 2024. 

This new collection is a follow-up to the previously released remix CD/cassette collection, All Juiced Up, which was part of the band’s 1994 Greatest Hits album.

The limited edition vinyl is the latest INXS release that’s bound to be a hit with fans. On Tuesday, October 3, they released the book Calling All Nations – A Fan History Of INXS, recounting the history of the Aussie rockers through the stories and memories of their dedicated fanbase.

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Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour seems to have revealed his feelings about allegations his former bandmate Roger Waters is antisemitic.

The rocker shared a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, featuring Campaign Against Antisemitism’s documentary The Dark Side of Roger Waters, which claims to prove Waters is antisemitic.

Waters has already blasted the documentary, calling it “a flimsy, unapologetic piece of propaganda that indiscriminately mixes things I’m alleged to have said or done at different times and in different contexts, in an effort to portray me as an antisemite, without any foundation in fact.” 

This isn’t the first time Gilmour has let his feelings about Waters be known. Back in February, Gilmour’s wife, Polly Samson, called Waters out on social media, writing, “Sadly @rogerwaters you are antisemitic to your rotten core. Also a Putin apologist and a lying, thieving, hypocritical, tax-avoiding, lip-synching, misogynistic, sick-with-envy, megalomaniac.” Gilmour then reshared the post, adding, “Every word demonstrably true.”

The latest Waters controversy comes as he’s getting ready to release The Dark Side of the Moon Redux, his reimagining of Pink Floyd’s classic album. It comes out Friday, October 6.

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On This Day, October 5, 1962…

The Beatles launched their career with the U.K. release of their debut single, “Love Me Do,” which peaked at #17 on the U.K. charts. A 1984 re-release of the track later peaked at #4. 

The song, written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, wasn’t released in the United States until April, 1963, but became an instant hit, landing at #1, the first of The Beatles’ 20 #1 songs. 

The Beatles actually recorded the tune more than once, using different drummers. The U.K. version of the song featured Ringo Starr on drums, while the U.S. single featured Alan White.

A version featuring original Beatles drummer Pete Best was included in the group’s 1995 compilation album Anthology 1.

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Queen + Adam Lambert returned to the stage for the first time in over a year on Wednesday, October 4, launching the North American leg of their Rhapsody Tour at the CFG Bank Arena in Baltimore, Maryland. 

The band treated fans to a 150-minute set full of favorites like “Don’t Stop Me Now,” “Radio Ga Ga,” “Another One Bites the Dust” and “Somebody To Love” as well as tracks like “Stone Cold Crazy,” which according to setlist.fm hasn’t been played since 2018, “I’m In Love With My Car,” “’39” and “Is This The World We Created…?,” marking Lambert’s first time singing the tune.

Other hits performed include “Fat Bottomed Girls,” “Killer Queen,” “Under Pressure,” “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” and “Bohemian Rhapsody,” with the show ending with “We Will Rock You,” a reprise of “Radio Ga Ga” and “We Are The Champions.” 

Queen + Adam Lambert play Baltimore, Maryland, again Thursday, October 5; the tour wraps with a two-night stand at Los Angeles’ BMO Stadium November 11 and 12. A complete list of dates can be found at queenonline.com.

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On October 5, 1973 — 50 years ago — Elton John released Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Featuring future classics “Candle in the Wind,” “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting,” “Bennie and the Jets” and the title track, it would become Elton’s bestselling studio album to date — even though he was a bit baffled by his success.

“It took off in a way that none of us expected,” Elton wrote in his autobiography, Me!. “It’s quite a dark record in a lot of ways. Songs about sadness and disillusion, songs about alcoholics and prostitutes and murderers, a song about a 16-year-old lesbian who ends up dead in a subway. But it just kept selling and selling and selling, until I couldn’t work out who was buying it.”

While several critics have suggested over the years that the 17-track album would’ve worked better as a single LP, Elton’s musical partner Bernie Taupin, who co-wrote all the songs, disagrees.

“I think it’s a terrific record. I mean, I know people revere it,” Taupin tells ABC Audio. “I’m not sure that I think it could be a better single album. I think it’s one of the cases of an album where there’s not really a lot of filler on it.”  

“When you go in to make a record, you don’t go in and say, ‘Well, we’re going to make a double album,'” he says. “The fact was … we just wrote a lot of songs, and they all happened to be really good songs, so it just ended up being a really good double album.” 

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road debuted at #17 on the Billboard chart, but rose to #1 a month later and stayed there for eight weeks. It’s since gone on to sell 20 million copies.

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