Billy Joel hit #1 on the Billboard 200 Album chart with River of Dreams, his final pop/rock record.
The album, with a cover painted by Joel’s then-wife Christie Brinkley, was Billy’s fourth #1 and spent three weeks on top of the chart.
The album’s title track went on to become a top five hit, Joel’s last on the Billboard Hot 100. The record also featured “Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel),” which he wrote as a tribute to his daughter, Alexa Ray.
Sammy Hagar is giving fans a peek into his taste in movies in the latest edition of his Storytime with Sammy video series.
In the clip, Sammy reveals that he’s “not a big movie guy,” but says Pulp Fiction and the first Star Wars are among his favorites. “Movies like that just blew me away,” he says. “I’m not gonna walk out on this movie because I know something’s gonna happen I need to see.”
And that’s particularly true for Pulp Fiction. “That was the craziest movie,” Sammy says, noting he loved Samuel L. Jackson’s big speech in which he quotes from the Bible before blowing someone away. “I know it sounds wicked, I busted out laughing so hard that people started asking me to shut up,” Sammy says. “I could not stop laughing, it blew my mind.”
Hagar praises director Quentin Tarantino for pioneering movies that mess with your head, adding, “It’s got to be one of the greatest movies ever made, probably one of the most influential movies to other filmmakers.”
Released in 1994, Pulp Fiction starred Jackson, John Travolta, Bruce Willis, Uma Thurman and others. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won Tarantino an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
Madonna, Stella and Estere in 2022; Gotham/GC Images
Madonna has posted a sweet birthday tribute to two of her six children: twins Stella and Estere, who turned 11 on August 24.
Madonna adopted the girls from Malawi in 2017, when they were 5. On Instagram, she soundtracked a montage of photos and videos of the twins at different stages in their lives with the song “Mad World” by Gary Jules.
“It is indeed a Mad world that we live in. And where would we be without the innocence and imagination of our children to remind us that Magic is all around us and anything is possible!” Madonna wrote.
She continued, “Happy birthday to Estere and Stella Mwale !! How could you be 11 years old already? Because you are The Most magical Twins in The World!!”
Madonna added, referring to the twins’ native language, “When I look at older videos of you speaking Chichewa and having tea parties or dancing with a trance-like joy, I want to cry!!”
“I will never forget The first time we met you … your eyes held the whole world in them,” Madonna wrote. “The same way we now hold you locked inside of our hearts.“
Madonna’s message concluded, “In a way…. we are all displaced children , looking for connection. looking for love. Looking for a home which is ultimately ourselves!”
She signed off with “Zikomo,” which means “thank you” in Chichewa.
In addition to Stella and Estere, Madonna is mother to Lourdes, Rocco, Mercy and David.
Grateful Dead have shared a new track off the band’s upcoming 50th anniversary deluxe reissue of their album Wake of the Flood.
The band just released a live version of “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo,” recorded November 1, 1973, at Northwestern University’s McGaw Memorial Hall. It’s part of the deluxe edition’s bonus disc, which features the complete Northwestern concert.
Released in 1973, Wake of the Flood was the first album released on the band’s own record label, Grateful Dead Records. Featuring new members Keith and Donna Godchaux, it was also the first album released following the death of founding member Ron “Pigpen” McKernan and the temporary departure of drummer Mickey Hart.
Wake of the Flood (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) is set to drop September 29, digitally and as a two-CD set. It will also be reissued on 180-gram black vinyl, plus there will be a limited-edition “coke bottle clear vinyl” exclusive to Barnes & Noble and a 12-inch limited-edition vinyl picture disc. Additionally, there will be a Dead.net exclusive, limited-edition “Watermark” custom vinyl.
The recent documentary about John Lennon’s relationship with former assistant May Pang is getting a digital release this fall.
Deadline reports that the film, The Lost Weekend: A Love Story, has just been acquired by Briarcliff Entertainment, which plans to release it digitally and on Blu-ray on October 13, just four days after what would have been Lennon’s 80th birthday.
The Lost Weekend: A Love Story originally screened at the Tribeca Festival earlier this year. It is Pang’s account of her 18-month relationship with Lennon during a brief split from Yoko Ono in the early ’70s. The relationship was referred to as Lennon’s “lost weekend” and ended in February 1975, when Ono decided to return to Lennon.
On August 25, 1970, Elton John took the stage at LA’s famous Troubadour club to perform his first-ever U.S. concert. It was the first night of a six-date residency. By the time he had finished, word had spread: the 23-year-old singer/songwriter was a star.
In honor of the 53rd anniversary of that first show, now cited as one of the greatest concerts of the rock era, Elton has launched a new merch collection that you can shop now.
The Troubadour collection includes tees, hoodies and tote bags, many of which say “Elton John Has Arrived.” That was what it said on a banner that was hung from the double-decker London bus that Elton’s record company hired to drive him into town when he landed in LA.
Elton’s set list at the Troubadour that night included songs from his debut album, 1970’s Empty Sky, as well as then-unreleased music from his upcoming self-titled album, including his future hit “Your Song.”
Brian Setzer has shared another single off his upcoming album, The Devil Always Collects. The latest is the title track to the record, which was written by Setzer and frequent collaborator Mike Himelstein.
The song is the third track Setzer has dropped from the album, following “Black Leather Jacket” and “Girl on the Billboard.” You can listen to “The Devil Always Collects” now via streaming services and on YouTube.
The Devil Always Collects is set to drop September 15. It is Setzer’s first record since 2021’s Gotta Have The Rumble.
And fans will soon be able to hear Setzer play some of those songs live. He’ll kick off his first tour in four years, the Rockabilly Riot tour, on September 27 in Red Bank, New Jersey. A complete list of dates can be found at briansetzer.com.
Simple Minds have shared the first track off their upcoming live album, New Gold Dream – Live From Paisley Abbey, which captures a special performance celebrating the 40th anniversary of the band’s fifth studio album, New Gold Dream.
The band just released their live performance of “Someone Somewhere in Summertime.” The original tune was one of three singles off New Gold Dream, along with “Promised You A Miracle” and “Glittering Prize.”
You can listen to “Someone Somewhere in Summertime” now via digital outlets and watch its accompanying video streaming now on YouTube.
New Gold Dream – Live From Paisley Abbey was recorded last year for Sky Arts’ Greatest Album Live series. It was filmed at the 12th century Paisley Abbey in the band’s hometown of Glasgow, Scotland, and sees them performing their critically acclaimed 1982 studio release.
New Gold Dream – Live From Paisley Abbey will be released October 27 digitally, on CD and as a limited-edition red transparent marble vinyl. It is available for preorder now.
Whitesnake frontman David Coverdale is paying tribute to the band’s original guitarist, Bernie Marsden, who passed away Thursday, August 24, at the age of 72.
Marsden’s death was confirmed by his family on social media. ”On behalf of his family, it is with deep sadness we announce the death of Bernie Marsden. Bernie died peacefully on Thursday,” they wrote. “Bernie never lost his passion for music, writing and recording new songs until the end.”
Whitesnake was formed in 1978 by Coverdale, Marsden and guitarist Micky Moody. Marsden wrote several of the band’s early songs, including their huge hit “Here I Go Again” as well as “Fool For Your Loving,” “She’s A Woman,” “Rough An’ Ready” and more.
“I’ve just woken up to the awful news that my old friend & former Snake Bernie Marsden has passed,” Coverdale shared on X, formerly known as Twitter. “My sincere thoughts & prayers to his beloved family, friends & fans. A genuinely funny, gifted man, whom I was honored to know & share a stage with RIP, Bernie XXX.”
Foghat just dropped the first single from their upcoming 17th studio album, Sonic Mojo, which is due out November 10.
The band has shared the track “Drivin’ On,” which they co-wrote with drummer Roger Earl’s former Savoy Brown bandmate Kim Simmonds before he passed away in December 2022.
“It really is a Foghat sounding song,” Bryan Bassettshared in a video released by the band. “There’s a lot of diverse, kind of, approaches on this record, but we definitely put the hat on that one.”
Vocalist/guitarist Scott Holt adds, “A song like ‘Drivin’ On’ celebrates the swamp funk blues of Slim Harpo and the cosmic boogie of John Lee Hooker.”
“Drivin’ On” is one of three songs Simmonds co-wrote for the album; another one, “She’s A Little Bit of Everything,” drops September 23, while the third, “I Don’t Appreciate You,” will be released October 20.
Sonic Mojo will be released on CD and 180-gram neon purple vinyl. It is available for preorder now.
