Classic Hits

Documentaries about Devo and Brian Eno are set to premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. 

First announced in March, Devo, directed by Chris Smith, uses archival footage and interviews with the band’s members to delve into their 50-year career, which reached its peak in 1980 thanks to their hit “Whip It.”

Eno, directed by Gary Hustwit, is described as the “first ever career spanning documentary” about the famed producer, who has worked with such artists as David Bowie, U2, Talking Heads and more.

The 2024 Sundance Film Festival, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary, will take place January 18–28 in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah. Passes for the festival are on sale now, with individual ticket sales set to begin January 11. More info can be found at festival.sundance.org.

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It seems as though a lot of music fans really wanted to see Bruce Springsteen and U2 in 2023.

Both artists land in the top 10 on StubHub’s year-end Top In-Demand Global Touring Artists list, which is based on an artist’s global ticket sales on the site, and related partners, for 2023.  

Springsteen, who launched his tour with the E Street Band back in February, lands at #6, while U2 is just behind him at #7, thanks to their Las Vegas residency, U2: UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere. 

Springsteen & the E Street Band also land in the top five for experiences in specific cities, including Chicago (#3) and New York (#5), while U2 is in the top five for Las Vegas (#2). 

Other artists that were big draws in specific cities include: Billy Joel in New York (#2), Joel and Stevie Nicks in Nashville (#5) and Dead & Company in San Francisco (#4).

Things are also looking good for Springsteen next year. After postponing shows in 2023 to deal with peptic ulcer disease, he’s set to relaunch his tour in March. StubHub has him at #5 for the projected top global experiences of 2024, with Billy Joel and Aerosmith also making the list at #9 and #10,

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A new two-part docuseries about Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Paul Simon is set to premiere on MGM+ in March.

In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon, directed by Oscar winner Alex Gibney, follows Simon’s life from growing up in Queens to his partnership with Art Garfunkel and more, using previously unseen archival footage. It also sees Simon in the studio during the Covid-19 pandemic, recording his most recent album, Seven Palms, which was released in May.

“Alex Gibney is one of the most gifted documentary filmmakers of our time, and he has brought his incredible storytelling eye to the fascinating and worthy subject of Paul Simon’s iconic career,” Michael Wright, head of MGM+, shares. “We’re thrilled that this stunning deep dive into Simon’s career and creative process has landed at MGM+.” 

In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon is set to air March 17 and March 24 at 9 p.m. ET.

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Music fans can now listen to the first recording made by Michael Jackson. 

Billboard reports the song, “Big Boy (One-derful Version),” will be available to purchase as part of a limited release by Recordpool, which owns the song, and anotherblock, the blockchain-based music and royalty marketplace.

The song was recorded July 13, 1967, during The Jackson 5’s first recording session, which took place at Chicago’s One-derful studios.

Fans have 48 hours to purchase packages that include the tune. There are two options: a $25 open edition that includes the song and a digital vinyl B-side with “Michael the Lover” and “My Girl”, as well as a $100 limited edition version that has nine additional songs from The Jackson 5’s 1967 Steeltown sessions, including the rerecorded version of “Big Boy,” which became their first single, in January 1968.

Packages are available starting Wednesday, December 6, at 12 p.m. ET. 

Sales of the song will also help a good cause. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Lake County, Indiana, non-profit Legacy Foundation, which, among other areas, serves the Jackson’s hometown of Gary.

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The late Gary Rossington’s Georgia home is on the market.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer’s estate in Milton is currently listed for $12 million through Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty.

The estate sits on 80 acres of land and includes both a main and guest house, two barns, a private lake with two docks, a custom pool and a spa with waterfall.

The main house has five bedrooms and five and a half bathrooms, as well as a two-story entrance, formal dining room, study, an eat-in kitchen with professional-grade appliances, a two car garage, an au pair suite and more.

As for the two-level guest house, it has three bedrooms and two bathrooms on the upper level, and another bedroom and bath on the lower level.

Rossington, the last original member of Skynyrd’s lineup, passed away March 5.

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On This Day, December 6, 1969…

The Altamont Speedway Free Festival kicked off in the Bay Area of California, headlined by The Rolling Stones and featuring a lineup that included Santana, Jefferson Airplane, The Flying Burrito Brothers and Crosby, Stills & Nash.

The counterculture concert, attended by nearly 300,000 people, was marred by the presence of the Hell’s Angels motorcycle club, who had been hired as security for the day. The group clashed with concertgoers, which led to the stabbing death of one of the attendees, 18-year-old Meredith Hunter, and three accidental deaths, as well as numerous injuries and property damage.  

Footage from the concert was featured in the 1970 Rolling Stones documentary, Gimme Shelter.

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John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s classic holiday tune, “Happy Christmas (War Is Over),” has inspired a new animated short film, spearheaded by the couple’s son Sean Ono Lennon. 

Sean tells The Hollywood Reporter that his goal with the movie is to remind folks the tune is not only a holiday song, but a song about peace. He says it “just felt like it deserved some kind of piece to help get it out there for another generation,” noting previous video ideas for the song “almost felt goofy.”

After discussing his feelings about the project with Pixar animator Dave Mullins, John and Yoko became inspired by the World War I Christmas truce between British and German soldiers, who wound up playing soccer together. Mullins wrote and directed the film, working with Peter Jackson and his visual effects company, WetaFX, on the animation.

The 11-minute War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko follows a game of chess, with a heroic carrier pigeon helping the game continue across enemy lines. It ends with the classic tune playing over the closing credits.

“For me, it’s very sad that my parents’ message of peace and love is still relevant to this day. It seems like such an old story,” Sean says, adding, “It’s something I was raised to believe and I still believe it.”

War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko had a brief run in theaters in the fall in order to qualify for Oscar contention. As of now, there’s no word on when it will get a wide release, as it’s currently looking for a distributor.

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Bonnie Raitt is set to headline Brandie Carlile‘s second annual Mothership Weekend, happening May 10-12, aka Mother’s Day Weekend, in Miramar Beach, Florida.

Bonnie is set to close the festival on May 12, with a lineup that also includes Brandi and S.G. Goodman. The rest of the weekend includes performances by Brandi, Black Pumas and the Hanseroth twins on May 10, and Sara Bareilles, Nickel Creek and Devon Gilfillian on May 11.

Raitt was actually on the bill for the first festival last May, but was forced to pull out in order to undergo surgery for an undisclosed ailment.

A ticket presale is now happening and runs until Sunday, December 10. More info can be found at topeka.live/mothership24.com.

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Paul McCartney has paid tribute to his former Wings bandmate Denny Laine, who passed away December 5 at the age of 79.

“I am very saddened to hear that my ex-bandmate, Denny Laine, has died,” McCartney writes, recalling his “fond memories” of the days when The Beatles toured with Laine’s band Moody Blues. “Our two bands had a lot of respect for each other and a lot of fun together.”

“Denny joined Wings at the outset. He was an outstanding vocalist and guitar player,” McCartney shares. “We had drifted apart but in recent years managed to reestablish our friendship and share memories of our times together.”

Finally, he notes, “Denny was a great talent with a fine sense of humour and was always ready to help other people. He will be missed by all his fans and remembered with great fondness by his friends.” 

Laine teamed with McCartney and wife Linda to form McCartney’s first post-Beatles band, Wings, in 1971. Over his 10 years with the group, they released seven studio albums, including the bestselling Band on The Run, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

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Bon Jovi continues to spread the holiday cheer. The band just dropped the music video for the recently released holiday tune, “Christmas Isn’t Christmas.”

The clip is set at a bar called Santa’s Pub, where Jon Bon Jovi is singing for the patrons, including his Bon Jovi bandmates. While some of the folks in the bar seem to be having fun and doing karaoke to the tune, there are others who seem to be identifying with the song’s themes, leaving them blue for the holidays.

“’Christmas Isn’t Christmas’ is a song that I wrote about family,” Jon previously shared. “The sentiment that Christmas really isn’t Christmas without YOU which can bring up a lot of memories for people.” He added, “I also liked to turn it around and know that because of you Christmas IS Christmas.”

Bon Jovi has given fans plenty of ways to get into the holiday spirit in the past, releasing the original Christmas track “I Wish Everyday Could Be Like Christmas” as well as covers of “Please Come Home For Christmas” and “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home).”

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