Classic Hits

More previously unreleased Prince music is on the way.

The legendary singer’s 1991 album, Diamonds and Pearls, will be reissued this fall, complete with 47 previously unreleased tracks. Dropping October 27, the new release, remastered for the very first time, will also include over two hours of video concert performances from Prince’s vault. 

The reissue is being released in a variety of formats, including a two-CD/four-LP deluxe edition and a seven-CD with Blu-ray or 12-LP with Blu-ray super deluxe edition. 

The super deluxe edition will feature 75 tracks, including remixes and B-sides. Other previously unheard tracks — alternate versions of songs, tracks recorded on the road, and even songs Prince gave to other artists — are also included. It also features a live 1992 concert of Prince and his then-new band, The New Power Generation, at Prince’s Minneapolis club, Glam Slam, ahead of the Diamond and Pearls tour. There’s also a 120-page book with unseen photos, essays and more.

And to give fans an idea of what they can expect, the previously unreleased track “Alice Through The Looking Glass” has just been released, along with “Insatiable (Early Mix – Full Version).”

Released October 1, 1991, Diamonds and Pearls was Prince’s 13th studio album and his first with The New Power Generation. It featured such hit singles as “Gett Off,” “Cream” and the title track.

All formats of the Diamonds and Pearls reissue are available for preorder now.

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The Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, has teamed with Universal Music for a new songwriters award named after the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer.  

The Bob Dylan Center Songwriter Fellowship will “mentor and develop aspiring songwriters in association with the tremendous educational resources of the Bob Dylan Center.” 

The fellowship will be handed out to two songwriters annually, and it comes with a $40,000 stipend. The recipients will be flown to Tulsa to spend time at the center where they’ll have access to the Bob Dylan Archive in order “to study Dylan’s creative process.” They’ll also get a chance to record at Leon Russell’s The Church Studio in Tulsa.

Those interested can submit their applications at bobdylancenter.com from now until October 18, with the fellowship running from May 2024 to April 2025.

This year’s winners will be chosen by a panel of international artists that includes John Mellencamp, Patty Griffin, Nas, French singer/songwriter Juliette Armanet and Mexican singer/songwriter Carla Morrison.

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The Rolling Stones have paid tribute to their late drummer Charlie Watts, who passed away two years ago on August 24, 2021.

The band posted some dashing photos of Watts through the years on their official Instagram account, writing, “Today, with much love, we remember our dear Charlie. We miss you everyday.”

Charlie’s bandmates shared their own tributes as well.  

Mick Jagger posted some photos and video of Charlie on his Instagram Story, while Keith Richards shared a black-and-white picture of them together.

“Charlie Watts was my bed,” Keith wrote. “I could lay on there, and I know that not only would I have a good sleep, but I’d wake up and it’d still be rocking,” adding, “Miss you, Charlie.”

Ronnie Wood also posted a photo of him and Charlie along with two

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In 2015, Whitesnake released The Purple Album, which celebrated frontman David Coverdale’s three years in the band Deep Purple. Well, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Coverdale’s Deep Purple debut, Whitesnake is now reissuing the album. 

The Purple Album: Special Gold Edition, a newly remixed and remastered version of the album, will be released October 13. It will contain plenty of extras, including previously unreleased recordings, one of which is the four-song demo that helped Coverdale land the Deep Purple gig.  

Coverdale says he found the original demo amongst his late mother’s belongings. “I had no idea my Mam had the tape,” he says. “For me, to open my Mam’s trunk of personal items, 30 years after her passing, was a gift from Heaven.”

Deep Purple is giving fans the first taste of the reissue with the digital release of a live version of the 1974 track “Burn.”

The Purple Album: Special Gold Edition will be released as a two-CD/Blu-ray set, which includes concert videos from The Purple Tour, official music videos and more, including commentary from Coverdale. It’s also being released on two-LP gold vinyl. Both formats are available for preorder now.

Coverdale joined Deep Purple in 1973 when he was just 21. He recorded three albums with them, 1974’s Burn and Stormbringer and 1975’s Come Taste The Band, and was eventually inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the group. He left the band in 1976, and two years later, formed Whitesnake.

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Eurythmics guitarist Dave Stewart is hitting the road to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the band’s classic album Sweet Dreams, but fans hoping to hear Annie Lennox sing with him are out of luck.

Stewart announced plans for the Eurythmics Songbook Sweet Dreams 40th Anniversary Tour, but Annie won’t be a part of it because she is no longer touring.

“Looking forward to this, I love performing these songs,” he writes on Instagram. “I spent 1,000’s of hours crafting them in the studio and had the best partner in Annie but she has said she won’t be touring anymore which I totally understand.”

Instead, Stewart says he’ll be accompanied by “brilliant all female musicians and three wonderful female vocalists,” noting, “I promise a stunning show full of memorable songs.” 

Right now, Stewart has only announced one show, taking place November 7, in Basel, Switzerland. He advised fans to “stay tuned for more live show announcements coming soon!”

Tickets for the Basel show go on sale August 30 at 7 a.m. U.K. time.

The Eurythmics have not released any new music since their 1999 album, Peace. The last time Stewart and Lennox took the stage together was at the 2022 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, where they reunited to perform “Would I Lie To You,” “Missionary Man” and “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).”

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On This Day, August 24, 2021…

Charlie Watts, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame drummer for The Rolling Stones, passed away at a hospital in London. He was 80.

Earlier in the month, the band had announced that Watts was going to miss their 2021 No Filter Tour of North America in order to recover from an unspecified medical procedure. He played his last show with the band on August 30, 2019.

Watts appeared on every Rolling Stones album, alongside frontman Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards, and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the band in 1989.

When the Stones resumed touring in September 2021, Steve Jordan filled in behind the drum kit.

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Roger Waters is giving fans another taste of his upcoming reimagining of Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon, which he’s calling The Dark Side of the Moon Redux.

The rocker just released his new take on the album’s fourth track, “Time.” It is the second song he’s released from Redux following his new version of “Money.”

When he initially announced the album, Waters said he wanted to redo Dark Side to help celebrate the album’s 50th anniversary this year, noting it “deserves a reimagining.” He added, “I hope that we can gain more from it than we did back in 1973 when it first came out, ‘cause it’s been part of all of our lives for 50 years, and yet we are still not yet breathing in the air.”

The Dark Side of the Moon Redux, dropping October 6, is available for preorder now. It features reworkings of all the tracks on the original album. A double LP edition of the release will include a 13-minute bonus track, “Original Composition,” which was inspired by the rerecording.

Waters will celebrate the album’s release by performing his new take on Dark Side live at The London Palladium on October 8 and 9.

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Gene Simmons is known for having a huge stash of memorabilia, and now he’s giving fans a chance to own a piece of it. The KISS rocker has just added his personal ’80s Rockman II B belt amp to his personal auction page, GeneSimmonsAuctions.com.

“What you see here is my effects box. It was actually invented by a guy named Tom Scholz who was a guitar player and main songwriter in Boston,” Simmons shares in a video describing the piece. “So as soon as he invented this gizmo, you didn’t need a big amp to get a distorted guitar sound.”

Simmons explains that he used the effects box to record demos at home, which helped him get “good guitar sounds.” He says by using the amp he was able to sound like he was “playing out of a 100 watt Marshall amp.”

Gene says he used the belt amp on about 100 songs, including demos that appeared on his box set The Vault Experience 1966-2016.

Bidding on the autographed item is open now, with the highest bid as of Wednesday, August 23, being $450. The highest bidder will also get a video of Gene describing the item’s background, along with a background that notes it was “GS owned.”

Meanwhile, after a show at Crandon International Speedway on September 1, KISS will launch a fall leg of their End of The Road in North America tour on October 19 in Cincinnati, Ohio. A complete list of dates can be found at Kissonline.com.

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Duran Duran fans are getting new music soon. The band just announced their new single, “Danse Macabre,” is dropping August 30.

The cover art for the song features a black background with a red skeleton holding drum sticks, with what looks like an hourglass at his feet. 

So far there’s no word on whether the track is the first single off a new album, but back in March they did confirm “a special new music project is in the works, set for release later this year.” They also revealed that their former bandmate Andy Taylor, who is currently undergoing cancer treatment, would be playing guitar “on a few tracks.”

Duran Duran is currently on their Future Past tour. The trek hits Sacramento, California, on August 24. A complete list of dates can be found at duranduran.com.

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Paul McCartney is bringing his Got Back tour south of the border.

The two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has just announced a November 14 show at Foro Sol in Mexico City. The concert will be McCartney’s first in Mexico in six years.

A presale on McCartney’s website will begin Tuesday, August 29, with a public on-sale beginning Saturday, September 2.  

McCartney is set to kick off the latest leg of his Got Back tour in Australia in October and will then bring the tour to Brazil in November. A complete list of dates, and information on the Mexico City presale, can be found at paulmccartney.com.

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