Classic Hits

William Shatner‘s all-star prog rock album Ponder the Mystery is getting reissued for its 10th anniversary, with a new mix by famed producer Jürgen Engler.

Originally released October 8, 2013, the album features guest appearances by rockers like Yes’ Rick Wakemen, guitarist Steve Vai, The Doors’ Robby Krieger, The Clash’s Mick Jones and more. At the time of the release, Shatner called the project “quite possibly the most creative thing I have ever done.”

Shatner has given fans their first taste of the reissue, dropping the new version of the title track, which features Vai on guitar.

The new mix of Ponder the Mystery will be released August 25 on CD, vinyl and digital and is now available for preorder.

Here’s the track list for Ponder the Mystery: 

“Red Shift”
“Where It’s Gone…I Don’t Know” feat. Mick Jones
“Manhunt” feat. Simon House
“Ponder The Mystery” feat. Steve Vai
“So Am I” feat. Al Di Meola
“Change” feat. Rick Wakeman
“Sunset” feat. Joel Vandroogenbroeck
“Twilight” feat. Edgar Winter
“Rhythm Of The Night” feat. Nik Turner
“Imagine Things” feat. Vince Gill
“Do You See?” feat. Edgar Froese
“Deep Down” feat. Robby Krieger
“I’m Alright, I Think” feat. Dave Koz
“Where Does Time Go?” feat. George Duke
“Alive “feat. Zoot Horn Rollo

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Wolfgang Van Halen has released a new song called “Take a Bow” with his Mammoth WVH band.

The track was recorded using the original Frankenstein guitar owned by Wolf’s dad, Eddie Van Halen, as well as an amp belonging to the late Van Halen shredder.

“I played the solo on the original Frankenstein guitar and through dad’s original Marshall head and one of the original cabinets,” Wolf shares. “It’s straight up what he used on the earliest Van Halen records. It makes me happy to capture some of dad’s history on this song forever.”

You can listen to “Take a Bow” now via digital outlets.

“Take a Bow” will appear on the upcoming sophomore Mammoth WVH album, Mammoth II, due out August 4. Mammoth II also includes the previously released songs “Another Celebration at the End of the World” and “Like a Pastime.”

Mammoth WVH will be on tour throughout the summer and fall, playing shows with Metallica, Alter Bridge and Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard.

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Yes fans hoping to see a reunion between bandmates Steve Howe and Jon Anderson probably shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for it to happen.

In a new interview with Classic Rock, Howe explains why a reunion isn’t likely to happen anytime soon. He tells the mag he’s “absolutely hesitant” to do it because of what he calls “the fiasco of the Union tour,” which took place in 1991 and featured eight past and current members of Yes.

“It was very, very difficult and out of control,” Howe says. “Sometimes I might have thought, ‘Well, one day maybe,’ and one never wants to say never, but basically I can’t see it.”

Howe says that while he loves Anderson, “I’m a lot older now, and so is he, and the only terms I work on is that I’m happy working on this. I’m not going to take a sudden load on my back that I either don’t need or want.”

He adds, “My music’s always guided me, and it’s not telling me to do those things. It’s telling me to go forwards. If it keeps steering me where it is now, then it’s great to have this live and vibrant Yes.”

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On This Day, June 27, 1970…

Queen performed their first show under that name in Cornwall, England, after originally being booked under their previous name, Smile.  

The new name was suggested by singer Freddie Mercury; it was his first paid gig with the band, whose lineup included Brian May, Roger Taylor and Mike Grose on bass. John Deacon became the band’s bass player in 1971.

Of course, Queen went on to become superstars, selling between 250 and 300 million records worldwide. They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2003. They also received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.

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Congratulations are in order for Frankie Valli. People reports the 89-year-old singer just got married to 60-year-old Jackie Jacobs, a former CBS marketing executive.

The couple, who met in 2007 and began dating in 2015, tied the knot in a private ceremony at the Westgate Hotel in Las Vegas, with Valli’s classic tune “Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You” playing in the background.

“It’s terrific to have found love once again at this stage of my life,” the singer tells the magazine.

This is Valli’s fourth marriage. He was previously married to Mary Delgado from 1958 to 1971. He wed MaryAnn Hannigan in 1974, and they divorced in 1982. He then wed Randy Clohessy in 1984 and had three children with her before they separated in 2004.

Valli is set to return to the Westgate later this year. He and his band The Four Seasons headline a residency there, with two shows scheduled in October as well as several dates planned for 2024. A complete list of dates can be found at westgateresorts.com.

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We are halfway through 2023 and Pollstar is looking back at the last six months of touring, which have been very good for Bruce Springsteen, Elton John and others. 

According to the trade’s midyear report, Springsteen and The E Street Band’s 2023 tour is the second-highest-grossing tour of the year, behind only Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour. Springsteen lands at two, with a gross of over $142 million, selling a total of 673,277 tickets in the first half of the year for an average gross per show of just under $4 million.  

Elton’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour also earns a spot on the midyear chart at #4, behind Harry Styles’ Love On Tour. Elton’s tour has grossed over $110 million in the first six months of the year, with an average gross per show of over $3.3 million.  

Elton is set to wrap his tour July 7 and 8 in Stockholm, Sweden, but it has already broken the record for the highest-grossing tour of all time.

Meanwhile, Springsteen still has plenty of shows to go on his tour, which means he’ll be bringing in even more dough. He’ll play the second of two nights in Gothenburg, Sweden, on Wednesday, June 28, with the European leg wrapping July 25 in Monza, Italy. Plus he’ll bring the tour back to the U.S., kicking off with a two-night stand at Chicago’s Wrigley Field August 9 and 11. A complete list of dates can be found at brucespringsteen.net.

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A thought-to-be-lost Steely Dan track from the ’70s has found its way online for the very first time.

According to the Expanding Dan website, the track “The Second Arrangement” was erased by a studio technician in 1979 and thought to be lost forever. But now the family of the band’s late longtime engineer Roger Nichols has uncovered a previously unknown copy.

Nichols’ daughters Cimcie and Ashlee discovered the tape, labeled “Second ARR,” in 2011 while packing up the family home. Not knowing what to do with it, Cimcie simply brought it to her Los Angeles home. In 2020, during the pandemic, she started going through her dad’s things and posting interesting items to Facebook, including a picture of the tape. The photo quickly went viral, with Steely Dan fans wanting to hear it. 

Cimcie then brought it to a studio in Los Angeles, where it was transferred from cassette to a new case. When they played it, they discovered “The Second Arrangement,” as well as an instrumental of the song. “Were You Blind That Day,” which eventually became “Third World Man,” was also on the tape.

Fans can now listen to it on the Expanding Dan site. Cimcie plans to put it up for auction soon in order to earn money that will, in part, go toward a documentary about Nichols.

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Def Leppard and Sammy Hagar are among the artists set to receive stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2024.

Both will receive their stars in the Recording category, along with songwriter Glen Ballard, Gwen Stefani, Toni Braxton, Darius Rucker, Dr. Dre, Brandy Norwood and Charles Fox, with legendary artist Otis Redding earning a posthumous star in the Live Theater/Live Performance category.

Other big names selected this year include the late Chadwick Boseman, Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Eugene Levy and Kerry Washington.

Dates for this year’s star ceremonies have not yet been scheduled. Those selected have two years to choose the date for their ceremony.

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Gov’t Mule has made their fall touring plans. The band just announced dates for their Peace…Like A River tour, in support of their recently released album of the same name.

The trek kicks off September 13, in Toronto, Canada, with dates in Portland, Maine; Charleston, West Virginia; Erie, Pennsylvania; Wilmington, North Carolina; Tampa, Florida and more, before wrapping October 15 in Columbus, Georgia. They’ve also announced a two-week European tour, which kicks off November 6, in London, England, and wraps November 20, in Trieste, Italy.

Tickets for the North American dates go on sale starting June 29, at 10 a.m. local time. European dates go on sale June 30. 

Next up, Gov’t Mule will kick off their Dark Side of the Mule tour, a tribute to Pink Floyd’s classic album Dark Side of the Moon, on July 22, in Atlantic City, New Jersey. A complete list of dates can be found at mule.net.

In other Gov’t Mule news, in early June the band announced bassist Jorgen Carlsson was leaving and would be replaced by bassist Kevin Scott. In a recent interview with Rock & Blues Muse, frontman Warren Haynes shared his first comments on Jorgen’s departure. 

“Jorgen did an amazing job. His role in Gov’t Mule got better and better year after year,” Haynes says of the bassist. “He’s been quiet-quitting the last few years. We all knew it was coming, but it is heartbreaking.”

As for Kevin, he says, “Kevin is fantastic and we’re hoping it will be more than temporary … we’re all hoping that he’s here for a new chapter.”

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The life of Asia co-founder, singer and bassist John Wetton will be celebrated with a new tribute concert in August. John’s wife Lisa, his son Dylan and QEDG Management just announced the lineup for An Extraordinary Life, a memorial concert for Wetton, taking place August 3, at Trading Boundaries in East Sussex, England. 

The concert will be streamed online for fans to enjoy and will feature an audience of friends and family, a whole host of performers and special guests, including Wetton’s Asia bandmate Geoff Downes, Yes’ Rick Wakeman, former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett, Squeeze’s Chris Difford and more. All artists will be backed by musicians from The Paul Green Rock Academy.

“I am delighted and humbled that so many legendary artists who worked with my Dad over the years have agreed to come together both to honor him and raise vital funds for the charity which supported him during his last days,” says John’s son, Dylan.

The memorial will raise money for the charity Macmillan Caring Locally, which cared for Wetton. He passed away January 31, 2017, due to complications from cancer.

Tickets for the live stream are on sale now.

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