Classic Hits

Elton John‘s Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour is set to wrap up this weekend in Sweden, but it’s managed to set one more record.

Already the highest-grossing tour of all time, the trek is now the first ever to earn $900 million or more, reports Billboard. Based on new figures through June 18, Elton’s tour has now grossed $910.4 million. By comparison, the second highest-grossing tour of all time, Ed Sheeran‘s Divide tour, only earned $776.4 million.

There are just eight shows left to gather ticket sales data on, and Billboard Boxscore estimates that when all is said and done, Elton will have added another $15 to $20 million to the total.

The Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour started way back in 2018 but was postponed in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic. It eventually resumed in January 2022.

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U2 has announced a vinyl reissue of the band’s 1993 album, Zooropa, in honor of its 30th anniversary.

The record will be available as a limited edition transparent yellow two-LP set in October. You can preorder your copy now.

Zooropa was first released July 5, 1993, 30 years ago Wednesday. It followed U2’s massive 1991 album, Achtung Baby, and continued to experiment with the dance and electronic elements of its predecessor, which came to a head with 1997’s Pop.

The arrival of the Zoorapa reissue coincides with U2’s upcoming UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere Las Vegas residency, which launches in September.

Meanwhile, U2 will be streaming their ZOO TV: Live from Sydney concert film, which was recorded in 1993, during a free global watch party beginning July 12 at 3 p.m. ET.

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Jimmy Buffett has returned to the stage.

People reports that the 76-year-old was the surprise guest this past weekend at a Rhode Island concert headlined by songwriter and Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band bandmate Mac McAnally.

Fan-shot video posted to Facebook shows McAnally performing the Alan Jackson/Buffett hit “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” changing one of the lyrics to sing, “At a moment like this, I can’t help but wonder what would Jimmy Buffett do?” The crowd immediately went wild at the sight of Buffett, who replied to the question, “I would come play for you.”

The pair then continued the song together, with Buffett later telling the crowd, “Well, it is good to see an audience, let me tell you that.”

Buffett canceled a South Carolina show in May, telling fans on social media he’d been hospitalized to “address some issues that needed immediate attention.” He was supposed to headline Milwaukee Summerfest on July 6, but that performance was also canceled.

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On This Day, July 5, 2015…

The Grateful Dead played the final show of a three-night stand at Chicago’s Soldier Field, featuring special guests Bruce Hornsby and Trey Anastasio.

The show was billed as the final time Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann would perform together, but that fall, Kreutzmann, Hart and Weir formed Dead & Company, with guitarist John Mayer. They initially announced just one show, but went on to tour the country and would subsequently go on to tour each summer. 

Dead & Company, without Kreutzmann, is currently on what they are billing as their Final Tour. The trek wraps with a three-night stand in San Francisco, July 14-16.

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UB40 just kicked off the U.S. leg of their UB45 summer tour, celebrating their 45th anniversary. For drummer and original member Jimmy Brown, there are few things better than getting to play for an American audience.

Jimmy tells ABC Audio he loves that U.S. audiences “make noise,” explaining, “There’s nothing worse than an overly sophisticated audience that sat back and says, ‘Go on, entertain me.’ In America …. they want to roll up their sleeves and they want to get involved, you know, which I think is a really great thing.”

For Jimmy, the goal of every show is to get people up and moving to their songs. “I want everybody to be singing at the top of their [lungs] and dancing,” he says. “We don’t like seats. Even if you’re at the age now where you want to sit down, it’s not going to happen.”

Lead singer Matt Doyle, who has been with the band since 2021, also loves American audiences, calling them the “funniest bunch of people I’ve ever met.” He adds, “It was always been my dream to come to the States so I’m very thankful that it’s happening.”

And after 45 years with the band, Jimmy can’t help but appreciate that he still gets to play to fans of UB40 music.

“Every tour for us is something special because who knows when the next one is going to be,” he says. “So you have to appreciate what you’re doing right now rather than think, ‘Oh next time we’ll do this, next time we’ll do that.’ You put everything into the one you’re doing.”  

The UB45 summer tour hits Westbury, New York, on Thursday, July 6. A complete list of dates can be found at UB40.global.

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Dolly Parton is sharing some more behind-the-scenes tidbits about her upcoming rock album, Rockstar. While it’s filled with all-star guests like Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and Elton John, she tells HitsDailyDouble she had the most fun recording with Stevie Nicks and Debbie Harry.

Dolly and Stevie duet on Nicks’ “What Has Rock ‘n’ Roll Ever Done for You,” which Dolly calls a “performance piece” that Stevie “had never put on a record but had always wanted to.”

“When we got in the studio, it was just fun, because we kinda ad-libbed at the front and on the end,” she says. “I like those kinda loose songs, because I’ve always been a performer and entertainer, and there’s a lot to be said when you can hear the fun.” 

Dolly recorded Blondie’s “Heart of Glass” with Harry, with Dolly noting it was “great fun.” “She came down, and we got to know each other quite a bit,” she says. “She is just the sweetest people, so good.”

Rockstar also includes Dolly covering Lynyrd Skynyrd’s classic “Freebird,” which features Skynyrd drummer Artimus Pyle. Dolly also got permission from the late Ronnie Van Zant’s widow to include his vocals on the track, making the song extra special.

“That’s not going to be on the Lynyrd Skynyrd record, only the version we did. She allowed that, and I was so happy we got to use his real voice,” Dolly says. “It made it so special. I get chills every time I hear it.”

Dolly Parton’s Rockstar drops November 17. It is available for preorder now.

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Tuesday, July 4, is Independence Day, and as always, PBS is celebrating with its annual special A Capitol Fourth.

Hosted by Alfonso Ribeiro, this year’s concert features performances by Chicago, Babyface, Boyz II Men and Belinda Carlisle, as well as the cast of the Broadway show A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical. Best of all, the show will give you a front-row seat to Washington, D.C.’s, spectacular fireworks display.

The event is broadcast live from the West Front of the United States Capitol, and is free and open to the public.

Most stations will air the show Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET and will repeat it at 9:30 p.m. ET, but check your local listings.

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Ringo Starr is turning 83 on Friday, July 7, and he celebrating with his annual Peace and Love birthday event. 

“As many of you know, since 2008, every year I use my birthday, July the 7th, to spread peace and love,” he shares in a new video featuring footage from past birthdays. He explains that the first one took place in Chicago with just 80 fans; he says now “it’s grown so much with a celebration in countries all over the world.”

“You have all helped create a wave of peace and love that goes over a whole planet. It’s a simple thing to do,” Ringo says. “So I’m giving you this reminder to join me if you want to at noon your local time on July the 7th to post, say or even just think peace and love.”

He adds, “That would be great. A great birthday gift for me and for the world. It helps the planet…and the new planets we’re going to.”

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Here’s some good news for Mötley Crüe fans. According to frontman Vince Neil, the band isn’t planning to stop touring once their tour with Def Leppard is over.

During an interview with The Music Universe podcast, Neil spilled the beans on the band’s future plans — and that includes more recording and more touring. 

“We have eight shows in the U.S. after (the U.K./European leg). Then we go to Australia and Japan, and then I think we’re gonna go back in the studio for a couple of more songs,” he shared. “And then we will announce a new stadium tour for next summer. We’re not sure who’s gonna be on it, but there’ll be another tour.”

Meanwhile, on June 30 Mötley Crüe took a break from stadiums to play a small club show at the Underworld in London under the name Dogs of War. The performance featured Crüe classics like “Shout at the Devil,” “Girls, Girls, Girls” and more, but the set also featured a surprise cover of the Beastie Boys classic “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!).” According to setlist.fm, it was the first time they’d ever played the Licensed to Ill track.

And finally, Crüe co-founder Nikki Sixx celebrated 22 years of sobriety on July 2, marking the occasion with a special message on social media. “It has been one hell of beautiful and sometimes difficult journey,” Sixx wrote. “For those still suffering there is hope. I am a work in progress. I still have work to do but I try to mitigate my life one day at a time. I love you. Love yourself back too.”

The Mötley Crüe/Def Leppard world tour hits Dublin, Ireland, on July 4. A complete list of dates can be found at motley.com.

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Madonna‘s determination to make sure her upcoming tour is on point may have contributed to her health scare, sources tell People.

As previously reported, last week, Madonna was hospitalized with a “serious bacterial infection,” forcing her to push back the launch date of her Celebration Tour. Now, a music source tells People that the Queen of Pop had “ignored some symptoms of illness for quite a while because she thought they would go away.”

“She didn’t want to take time away from rehearsals,” the source adds. “She was rundown and not feeling 100 percent for a while in anticipation of her tour. She is relentless in her quest to be the best, to wow her fans and to do what others before her have not done.”

A second source tells People, “Madonna has been very busy for a long time and not taking care of herself. She just continues to push herself beyond the limit.”

Page Six reported last week that Madonna had been “putting in 12-hour days” while rehearsing for the tour.

The pop icon is now out of the ICU and recovering. The Celebration Tour, an overview of her 40-year career, was originally set to launch July 15 in Vancouver.

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