Classic Hits

Wham! said goodbye to fans with one show, dubbed The Final, at London’s Wembley Stadium 36 years ago on June 28, 1986, but Andrew Ridgeley now says he wishes he and bandmate George Michael had more time to say farewell.  

“I would have liked to tour The Final to be honest,” he tells BBC. “I felt a final tour to say goodbye to our fans around the world would have been a generous gesture. I felt it was a courtesy to them to have done that. The least we could have done, to be honest with you. But I also understood [Michael’s] essential ideology behind having just one show.” 

The new documentary Wham! — about the band’s journey to superstardom — is set to premiere July 5 on Netflix. While the group was still loved when they said goodbye, Ridgeley says he always knew they wouldn’t last forever. 

“It was so much about us as friends and our lives together as youngsters [that] it would have restricted George’s growth as a songwriter to keep writing within the parameters that Wham! set,” he says. “We’d both outgrown Wham!.”

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Brian Setzer is ready to hit the road again. The Stray Cats frontman just announced dates for the Rockabilly Riot tour, marking Setzer’s first live shows in over four years.

“I’ve had a pretty long break, and I needed it,” Setzer shares. “I’m renewed and really want to play live again. I want to just get out on the road with this kick-a** little 3-piece band and start playing.” 

The 12-date tour kicks off September 27 in Red Bank, New Jersey, wrapping October 13 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Tickets go on sale Friday, June 30, at 10 a.m. local time. A complete list of dates can be found at briansetzer.com.

The new tour will coincide with a brand new solo album from Setzer. Details of the album have yet to be announced.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Jimmy Buffett postponed a show in South Carolina back in May after he was admitted to the hospital to “address some issues that needed immediate attention.” Now, he’s missing another show.

Milwaukee Summerfest just announced that Buffett’s July 6 concert with the Coral Reefer Band at the American Family Insurance Amphitheater will not go on as planned. Tickets for the show had never actually gone on sale, but Summerfest had announced he’d be headlining that date.

While Buffett hasn’t commented on the canceled Summerfest show, a post on Facebook blamed the cancellation on “circumstances out of our control.”

The July 6 date will now be headlined by AJR.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Rolling Stones fans will soon have a new way to enjoy their classic hits compilation Forty Licks. The record is set for its first digital release on Wednesday, July 26, and will be released in Dolby Atmos — but that’s not all. Forty Licks will also come out on limited edition four-disc, 180-gram black vinyl on Friday, July 28. 

Released in September 2002 to mark the band’s 40th anniversary, Forty Licks featured three dozen of the Stones’ biggest hits, including “[I Can’t Get No] Satisfaction,” “Brown Sugar,” Paint It, Black,” “Honky Tonk Woman,” “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and more, as well as four then-new tracks. It went on to sell seven million copies worldwide.

After releasing the album, The Stones launched a successful 14-month Licks tour, which at the time became the second most successful tour ever.

The Forty Licks vinyl is now available for preorder.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

On This Day, June 28, 1980… 

Paul McCartney landed a new number one when “Coming Up (Live at Glasgow)” topped the Billboard Hot 100, his first solo track to top the charts since 1971.

The studio version of the song appeared on McCartney’s 1980 solo album McCartney II. It was actually the one released as a single, with the live version as the B-side, but Columbia Records promoted the live version, and radio stations played it, helping it to rise to #1.

“Coming Up (Live at Glasgow)” is one of nine solo number ones for McCartney. That doesn’t include the number ones he had with The Beatles.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Paul McCartney’s new photo exhibit, Paul McCartney Photographs 1963-64: Eyes of the Storm, is set to open at London’s National Portrait Gallery on Wednesday, June 28, and he hosted a special preview Monday that brought out many of his superstar friends.

Photos posted to Instagram show that guests at the celebration included Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, Rolling Stones guitarist Ron Wood, Pretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde, John Lennon’s son Julian Lennon and even former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. 

Photos also show McCartney posing with wife Nancy Shevell, and daughters Stella and Mary McCartney.

Paul McCartney Photographs 1963-64: Eyes of the Storm is set to run until October 1 and feature more than 250 never-before-seen photographs taken by McCartney. The portraits on display are from McCartney’s own archive, and were taken between December 1963 and February 1964, giving fans an insight into his point of view as The Beatles were becoming international superstars.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Neal Schon is paying tribute to legendary guitarist Eddie Van Halen. The Journey guitarist shared a video of him shredding on his EVH Striped Series guitar, which resembles Eddie’s red striped guitar, but in white.

“A little tribute to Ed. It was so amazing to be on Van Halen’s 1st tour with him,” Schon writes in the Instagram post, referring to Journey’s 1978 tour, which featured Van Halen as openers. “I watched him annihilate every single night and was grateful I didn’t have to follow him.” 

Journey doesn’t currently have any tours on the books but they do have one show scheduled for July 1 in Provo, Utah. They wrapped their 50th anniversary Freedom tour in April. 

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons is giving fans an update on the band’s next album and says the late Dusty Hill will be represented on the record.

Gibbons tells Classic Rock that the band is “currently reviewing the tracks that deserve completion” for the next record, noting that both Dusty, who passed away in 2021, and his replacement, Elwood Francis, are on it.

“What’s fascinating is that we have three or four tracks with them both, they’re trading off,” he says. “The only tell-tale difference is that Dusty, playing with his fingers, sounds a little warmer.“ 

Gibbons says they “hope” to have the album out sometime this year, but notes, “We’ve got lots of road work ahead,” referring to ZZ Top’s upcoming Sharped Dressed Simple Man Tour with Lynyrd Skynyrd. The trek kicks off July 21 in West Palm Beach, Florida. A complete list of dates can be found at zztop.com.

In the same article, Gibbons also reveals he has an unfinished song with the late Jeff Beck, inspired by Beck’s love of chocolate and the time he mistook a box of chocolate malt balls for chocolate meatballs.  

“We had a big laugh, and I suggested we write a song called ‘Chocolate Meatballs,'” he explains. “We got a half of it done. You’ve reminded me that it needs to be finished.”

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

R.E.M.’s 1995 single “Strange Currencies” is gaining renewed interest thanks to its appearance on season 2 of The Bear, and now, the band has released a new video to capitalize on that.

The video for “Strange Currencies (Remix)” features clips and behind-the-scenes footage from the hit FX series, starring Jeremy Allen White. It also includes footage from Road Movie, a documentary about R.E.M.’s 1995 tour.

Several versions of “Strange Currencies” appear throughout season 2 of The Bear, including the original, the remix — which was part of the 2019 remix of Monster — and a never-before-heard demo, making its debut on the series. The original, the remix and a live version of the track, featured in Road Movie, are part of a new digital EP on streaming services now.

“The Bear is hands down my favorite show of last year – I cannot wait to dive into episodes for season 2. Having incorporated R.E.M. songs into their universe makes it even sweeter,” R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe shares. Bassist Mike Mills adds, “I’m so glad The Bear exists. It has become one of my favorite TV shows, and I can’t wait to watch more of it.”

The Bear’s creator Christopher Storer and Executive Producer Josh Senior are both big R.E.M. fans, and they’ve included the band’s music on the show in the past, with season 1 featuring the Collapse Into Now track “Oh My Heart.” Season 2’s finale also includes the Out of Time tune “Half A World Away.” 

The Bear is currently streaming on Hulu.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Patti LaBelle is speaking out following the lyric debacle during her Tina Turner tribute at the BET Awards 2023.  

LaBelle took the stage to honor the late Turner by singing a rendition of “The Best.” Midway through the performance, the singer stumbled through some of the lyrics — a mishap that occurred as a result of her inability to read the teleprompter, she said. 

“I did my best,” LaBelle told Entertainment Tonight of the mishap. “It meant no matter what voice I’m in — I’m hoarse, I have a cold — but whatever, I had to, I was giving it up for Tina Turner, ’cause she’s simply the best.”

The icon added she also became a bit emotional while thinking about Turner during her performance. “So you heard a little tweak every now and then out there,” she said. “But I love her.”

Despite the setback, LaBelle powered through the performance, belting out the solid vocals she’s known for and receiving a standing ovation from the audience.

“God Bless you, Tina Turner,” she said onstage, wrapping up the tribute.

Some fans on social media grew upset with LaBelle for the mixup, while others respected her determination to finish strong. 

Tina Turner died on Wednesday, May 24, according to a statement on her social media pages. She was 83 years old.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.