Classic Hits

The Zombies’ Rod Argent has thanked fans for their support following the band’s decision to cancel the remaining dates of their North American tour. The cancellation came after a member of the group had to be hospitalized. While they didn’t initially reveal who had been sick, Argent’s post on Instagram reveals it was him. 

“I really want to thank everyone, family and friends and fans for the kind words and feelings expressed since I was forced to withdraw from our recent U.S. tour due to ill health,” he writes, noting that medical tests revealed his ailments weren’t anything serious.

“Lack of sleep and a very heavy work schedule, jet lag, etc and I experienced symptoms of a visual migraine which were seriously worrying to all who were witness to the two episodes – followed by debilitating fatigue, exhaustion really,” he explains. “I just have to rest for some time.”

Argent says he’s disappointed to have let everyone down, noting that canceling was “the last thing we wanted to have happened.”   

The Zombies wound up canceling the remaining four dates of the tour, which included stops in Alexandria, Virginia; Beverly, Massachusetts, and New York City.

When they canceled, they let fans know that the tour featured “some of the most enjoyable shows of our career together.” They added, “we’re forever grateful to our fans.”

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Cher and Chicago are on board to help ring in the holiday season with a performance on the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Cher, who recently released her first holiday album, Christmas, will perform a new holiday song during the festivities, while Chicago is confirmed to perform on The Wondership by Wonder holiday float.

Other Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade performers include Bel Biv DeVoe, En Vogue, David Foster and Katharine McPhee, Pentatonix and the casts of the Broadway musicals & Juliet, Back to the Future: The Musical and Shucked.

Of course, there will also be plenty of floats and balloons. Seven new balloons will be making their debut, including Beagle Scout Snoopy, Kung Fu Panda’s Po and the Pillsbury Doughboy.

The parade kicks off Thursday, November 23, at 8:30 a.m. in all time zones, thirty minutes earlier than the usual start time. It’ll air on NBC and be simulcast on Peacock; an encore will telecast at 2 p.m ET/PT.

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On This Day, November 1, 1969…

The Beatles topped the Billboard 200 album chart with Abbey Road. The album spent 11 weeks at #1 and a total of 490 weeks on the chart.

Abbey Road was the last album The Beatles recorded, although Let It Be was the last album they finished and released before their 1970 breakup. It featured the iconic cover of the band walking across the street in single file.

The album featured such classic Beatles tunes as “Here Comes the Sun,” “Come Together,” “Something,” “Octopus’ Garden” and more.

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The Heart of Rock and Roll will be beating on Broadway this spring.

The new musical comedy is named after the Huey Lewis and the News hit and featuring the group’s songs. It will start previews March 29 at New York’s James Earl Jones Theatre, with opening night set for April 22.

According to a press release, the show is about “two 30-somethings who know exactly what they want from life, until they find each other.” Huey Lewis hits like “The Power of Love,” “Workin’ for A Livin’,” “Stuck With You” and “If This Is It” provide the soundtrack for the story.

“Working on our show has been so gratifying,” says Huey in a statement. “I’ve always been a storyteller, and it’s a thrill to see my songs woven together in service of a fantastic, new story. That it will all take place on the world’s most prestigious stage – Broadway – just makes the ride that much sweeter.”

Tickets for the show are now on sale at Telecharge.com or by calling Telecharge at 212-239-6200 or 800-447-7400.

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Anyone who watched the Peter Jackson-directed docuseries The Beatles: Get Back will be familiar with Mal Evans, who was The Beatles’ road manager and personal assistant from the early ’60s to their breakup. Well, fans are about to learn even more about him, thanks to the new book Living the Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans, dropping November 14.

The book was written by Beatles scholar Dr. Kenneth Womack, using the memoir Evans wrote before his tragic death in January 1976. It recalls his days working for The Beatles, along with his take on their split and his life after the band broke up. It also contains letters written by The Beatles giving Evans permission to write his story.  

“Sure, you can do your book,” reads Paul McCartney’s letter, “as long as you tell them how lovely I am.” John Lennon also offers up his approval, noting he’s “been dying to read your diary for the last thousand years.” He adds, “Make a buck, but don’t f*** it up.” 

And there’s even more Evans info to come. Womack is working on a second edition of Evans’ memoir, to be published in 2024, which will contain never-before-seen photos of The Beatles, one of which is believed to the last picture ever taken of McCartney and Lennon together.

People shares the first look at the photo, which Evans took in March 1974 during a recording session for Lennon’s album Rock ‘n’ Roll. People also has an excerpt from the book, recounting Lennon’s time in Los Angeles recording the album, as well as Evans’ decision to finally resign from The Beatles and the band’s reaction.

Living the Beatles Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans is available for preorder now.

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The Grateful Dead is getting into English football aka soccer for us American folks.

The band is sponsoring the Forest Green Rovers, a little-known club that plays in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, outside of London. The band’s green skull logo now appears on a new merch line of team T-shirts, hoodies, shorts and more, all made by the U.K. sustainable clothing line I Dress Myself.

While it may seem like an unlikely pairing, it seems the band and the team are very like-minded when it comes to saving the environment. The Dead has spent decades promoting environmental causes, and the Green Rovers have similar values. They have adapted several sustainable practices, so much so the United Nations and FIFA named them “the world’s greenest football club.”

“For us, it’s a perfect match,” Dead archivist and legacy manager David Lemieux tells Billboard. “Forest Green Rovers is a team that really follows Grateful Dead values, which is to say that we’re both conscious of the world around us and we want to make sure that we leave it a better place than when we arrived.”

He adds, “We love to partner with cool people, cool companies and cool organizations who are trying to make a positive difference.”

The Grateful Dead/Forest Green Rovers merch is on sale now.

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Foreigner is set to headline Arizona’s first-ever Rock the Block concert, which will open collector car auction house Barrett-Jackson’s 2024 Scottsdale auction.

The concert will take place Friday, January 19, at Auction Arena at WestWorld of Scottsdale, with tickets on sale starting Wednesday, November 1.

“We are thrilled to introduce the inaugural Rock the Block as an exciting way to kick off our world-renowned Scottsdale Auction in January,” said Craig Jackson, chairman and CEO of Barrett-Jackson. “This unique blend of live classic rock and automotive excellence underscores our commitment to providing an unparalleled experience at Barrett-Jackson. We look forward to welcoming fans and enthusiasts for this unforgettable occasion in the auction arena.” 

Barrett-Jackson’s 2024 Scottsdale Auction is happening January 20-28, featuring about 1,900 collectible cars, trucks and SUVs. More info on the auction and concert can be found at barrett-jackson.com.

In the meantime, Foreigner still has a few more dates left on the 2023 leg of their farewell tour. Their next show is happening Wednesday, November 1, in Johnson City, Tennessee. A complete list of dates can be found at foreigneronline.com.

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The Black Crowes are headed to Las Vegas for Super Bowl weekend.

Brothers Chris and Rich Robinson are booked to play two shows at the Pearl Theater at Palms Casino Resort on February 9 and 10, performing their hits and fan favorites.

A Citi ticket presale begins Tuesday, October 31, at 10 a.m. PT, with the general onsale happening Friday, November 3, at 10 a.m. PT. 

The Black Crowes currently don’t have any dates on the books for the remainder of 2023. They were supposed to be opening for Aerosmith on their Peace Out tour, but that tour was halted after frontman Steven Tyler injured his vocal cords. It is expected to be rescheduled for sometime next year.

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“Dreaming,” a new Sting, Pink and Marshmello collaboration that reworks Sting’s 1993 hit “Fields of Gold,” has landed the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer back on the pop and dance charts.

As Billboard notes, the song enters the publication’s Adult Pop Airplay chart at #34, which is the highest Sting has gotten on that ranking since 2006 when he teamed with Sheryl Crow for the #11 single “Always On Your Side.”

The song also enters Billboard‘s Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales chart at #1 and the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart at #12.

Marshmello came up with the idea for “Dreaming.” In an Instagram video documenting the collaboration, Sting says, “I always like it when [a] different mind takes one of my songs and adds something of their own to it. I never feel that possessive. I’m always interested to know where it can go. A song is just a template for something else.”

“Dreaming” is one of the new tracks on the Tour Deluxe Edition of Pink’s album Trustfall, which comes out December 1.

Notably, this isn’t the first time Sting has had a dance hit with a reworking of one of his classic songs. “Redlight,” a new version of his Police song “Roxanne” with Swedish House Mafia, peaked at #20 on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart in March of 2022.

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The Rolling Stones are the latest artists to be honored with a Brit Billion Award by the British Phonographic Industry.

The award is given to artists who achieve one billion career U.K. streams, based on calculations by the Official Charts Company. Some of their most streamed tunes include “Paint It, Black,” “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” and “Start Me Up.”

“Few artists have crossed generational divides in quite the way the Rolling Stones have. Their iconic songs and albums are era-defining, but the band remain as contemporary as ever,” says Dr. Jo Twist OBE, BPI chief executive. “The BPI is thrilled to honor them with a BRIT Billion Award, which underscores both the timeless appeal of their music and the extent to which they are now also connecting with a new wave of fans thanks to streaming.”

The Stones are now the longest active artists to receive a Brit Billion honor. They are one of 25 artists who have earned the award, including ABBA, Queen, Coldplay and Ed Sheeran.

In other Rolling Stones news, the band’s new album, Hackney Diamonds, has now reached #1 in 14 countries, including the U.K., Germany, Australia, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand and more. In the U.S., it debuted at #3.

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