Classic Hits

We’re about to learn a whole lot more about The Mamas & the Papas. The legendary ’60s group is the subject of a new biography, All The Leaves Are Brown: How the Mamas & the Papas Came Together and Broke Apart, dropping June 1.

Written by Scott G. Shea, the book delves into how the group — John Phillips, Denny Doherty, Michelle Phillips and Mama Cass Elliot — became “the standard-bearers for California counterculture.”

The book tells the band’s story through new interviews with former bandmates, as well as session musicians, family members and more. That includes an interview with Jill Gibson, who briefly replaced Michelle after she was fired by husband John for having an affair with The Byrds’ Gene Clark.

All The Leaves Are Brown: How the Mamas & the Papas Came Together and Broke Apart is available for preorder now.

This isn’t the first book to tell the story of the group, known for such hits songs as “California Dreaming,” “Monday Monday” and more. Members John and Michelle have both written books about their time in the band.

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Queen is offering fans a chance to get their hands on something pretty unique. The band is selling what they are calling a “Taylored” Spinner Cymbal Ring, made of sterling silver and featuring an outer spinning band constructed from one of drummer Roger Taylor’s personal cymbals.

Each ring is individually numbered and features the “Jolly Roger” logo on the inside. It is also engraved with “hearing secret harmonies” in Taylor’s handwriting, comes with a certificate of authenticity signed by Taylor and a photo of the drummer taken by his daughter.

The ring will be available for preorder starting May 30, with the item shipping by July 28.

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The Pointer Sisters‘ music is the latest to be sold off.  

Billboard reports BMG has made a deal to acquire the rights to the original masters of albums the R&B group made from 1978 to 1988. That’s nine albums in total and includes rights to hits like “I’m So Excited,” “Jump (For My Love),” “Automatic” and more.

William Briggs II, the family’s attorney, released a statement on behalf of Anita Pointer’s estate, noting she “would have been pleased” that the group’s legacy will “live on long past her.” Anita passed away in December and her sister June died in 2006, with Ruth Pointer the last surviving original member of the group.

Thomas Scherer, BMG president of repertoire & marketing New York and Los Angeles, says they are “so excited” to be able to work with the Pointer Sisters’ catalog, noting there are plans to explore things like book deals, possibly a documentary and even an exhibition of the sisters’ performance outfits.

BMG has already acquired the publishing rights of several artists, including Fleetwood Mac’s Mick Fleetwood, Tina Turner and Peter Frampton.

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Stevie Nicks is extending her time on the road. The two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has added a second leg to her solo tour. 

“Thank you to everyone who’s come out to see us so far, I’ve been having such a great time on the road,” Nicks shares on Instagram. “We are so happy to announce that we are adding 13 more shows to my 2023 tour! I hope I see you out there.”

The new dates kick off August 8 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and include shows in Houston, Austin, Pittsburgh, San Diego and Los Angeles. The last new date is set for December 5 in Palm Desert, California, although the tour wraps December 15 in San Francisco, California. 

Tickets for the new shows go on sale Friday, May 19, at 10 a.m. local time.

Nicks’ next concert is happening Tuesday, May 16, in Knoxville, Tennessee. She’s also set to play Nashville with Billy Joel on Friday, May 19. A complete list of dates can be found at stevienicksofficial.com.

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KISS bassist and co-founder Gene Simmons’ prowess with the ladies has been the subject of rumors for years, particularly the claim that he has slept with over 5,000 women. Well, now he’s setting the record straight.

“I’ve heard all about those numbers,” he tells The Sun when asked about the rumors. When pushed about whether they were true, he responded “confirmed.”

“For me, an insane heterosexual male, party means girls. I was like a vulture, waiting on the sidelines until all the guys got drunk,” Simmons, who says he doesn’t drink, shares. “But the prettiest girls didn’t get drunk so I’d walk in and choose whichever — as you Brits say — birds I liked.”

Simmons and his KISS bandmates are getting ready to say goodbye to the road, with the U.K./European leg of their End of the Road tour kicking off June 3 in Birmingham, England. As for why they are finally ready to give it up, Simmons says, “It’s the end of the touring band because we have enough self-respect. We don’t want to be like boxers who stay in the ring too long.”

He notes, “If I was in the Rolling Stones, who are great by the way, I could strum a guitar wearing sneakers and T-shirt and it would be fine. I admire Mick Jagger for pushing the limits but I can’t keep doing it with 40lb of studs and armor and eight-inch heels.”

A complete list of KISS’ End of the Road tour dates can be found at kissonline.com.

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Rod Stewart‘s daughter Ruby has made him a grandfather again.

Ruby, Rod’s daughter with his ex-girlfriend Kelly Emberg, announced on Mother’s Day that she and her fiancé, Jake Kalic, had welcomed a baby boy, Otis Stewart Kalic, on May 9. “I can’t remember what life was like before you….But nothing else matters now that you’re here,” Ruby wrote on Instagram.

Rod’s ex-wife Rachel Hunter and her daughter, Ruby’s half-sister Renee, both congratulated Ruby in the comments.

But it turns out that Rod actually became a grandfather for the third time, not thanks to Ruby, but thanks to his and Hunter’s son, Liam. Liam and his partner, Nicole Artukovich, announced that their son, Louie Mark Roderick Stewart, had arrived on May 12. Since Ruby’s baby was born on May 9, Otis is Rod’s second grandchild, while Louie is his third.

As for his first grandchild, that’s Delilah, who’s 11. Her parents are Rod’s daughter Kimberly — from his first marriage, to Alana Hamilton Stewart — and actor Benicio Del Toro.

We hope Rod has a scorecard to keep track of his growing family.

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Sting fans will want to make their way to Philadelphia this September.

The Police frontman and frequent collaborator Shaggy are throwing their very own festival — the One Fine Day festival — taking place September 9 at The Mann Center, Fairmount Park.

Sting and Shaggy will team up for what’s being described as “a joint-set of combined greatest hits.” The festival will feature two stages, with a lineup that also includes Thundercat, G-Love and Special Sauce, Kofee and Tank and the Bangas.

“I love how Shaggy and I effortlessly push each other to the creative edges,” Sting shares. “After having made the 44/876 album together and recording an album of Frank Sinatra covers in a reggae style, a day of hits and musical adventures in one of our favorite cities seemed like the next illogical step!”

A Sting presale kicks off Tuesday, May 16, with the general sale set for Friday, May 19. More info and a complete lineup can be found at sting.com.

This isn’t the only chance Sting fans have to catch him onstage this year. He’ll kick off the North American leg of his My Songs tour on June 1 in Vienna, Virginia. 

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On This Day, May 15, 1975 … 

In El Paso, Texas, Fleetwood Mac launched their first tour with new members Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks.  

The set list included several songs from Buckingham and Nicks’ 1973 album, as well as the future classics they contributed to the band’s 1975 self-titled album, like “Rihannon,” “Landslide” and “Monday Morning.”

Nicks and Buckingham were in a romantic relationship that ended in 1977, although they remained with the band and wrote songs inspired by the breakup, including “Silver Springs,” “Go Your Own Way” and more.

Although they would both leave Fleetwood Mac at various points in their careers, all members who appeared on 1977’s Rumours reunited in March 1997 for a live concert, The Dance, which was released as an album.

Buckingham left the group once again in 2018, although reports claimed he was fired because of a disagreement over touring. He later sued the group, and the suit was settled out of court. Fleetwood Mac went on to tour without him, replacing Buckingham with The Heartbreakers’ Mike Campbell and Crowded House’s Neil Finn.

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It looks like Mick Jagger’s youngest son has inherited some of his dance moves. 

The rock star’s girlfriend, Melanie Hamrick, proved just that by sharing a video on Mother’s Day of their 6-year-old son, Deveraux, dancing. 

“My wonderful, wild, sweet, beautiful Dev!! I am beyond blessed and thankful to be his Mama!” she wrote next to the clip. “Happy Mother’s Day!!!”

In the clip, Deveraux is jumping around, doing splits and more, all to the Imagine Dragons track “Warriors.”

Deveraux is The Rolling Stones frontman’s eighth child. Mick has four children — 25-year-old Gabriel, 31-year-old Georgia May, 37-year-old James and 39-year-old Elizabeth — with Jerry Hall. There’s also 51-year-old Jade with ex-wife Bianca Jagger; 52-year-old Karis with actress Marsha Hunt; and 23-year-old son Lucas with Luciana Gimenez.

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Gov’t Mule is currently back out on the road on their spring tour, and that’s exactly where frontman Warren Haynes loves to be.

Haynes tells ABC Audio being on the road is where he feels most comfortable.

“Having done it for so long, you know, you get better and better at doing it and at kind of navigating the road life,” Haynes says. But he notes life on the road “is always a challenge.”

What was an even bigger challenge for Haynes was being off the road for so long due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making it even harder to get back out there. “Getting back to it is not as easy,” he says. “That was the longest I’ve been off the road probably since I was 15 years old.”

But there were some positives about the downtime, with Haynes saying he “enjoyed the time off” because he got to spend a lot of it with his 11-year-old son.  

“I was also, you know, kind of jonesing to get back on the road at the same time trying to make the best of a bad situation,” he says. “And I spent so much time writing. That was really the saving grace, was being with my son and writing music.” (AUDIO IS ABC 1-ON-1)

Fans have already gotten to enjoy some of the music he wrote with the 2021 release of Heavy Load Blues. They’ll hear even more when Gov’t Mule releases their new album, Peace…Like A River, on June 16.

In the meantime, fans can catch the band out on the road. They play Macon, Georgia, on May 16. A complete list of tour dates can be found at mule.net. 

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