Classic Hits

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Earth, Wind & Fire is heading back to Las Vegas. The R&B legends have announced nine new shows at The Venetian Theatre inside The Venetian Resort Las Vegas.

The new dates kick off October 20 and run through November 4.

For those looking to snag tickets, a Citi presale kicks off Tuesday, May 9, at 10 a.m. PT, with a general sale set to begin Friday, May 12, at 10 a.m. PT.

But before Earth, Wind & Fire hits Vegas they’ll be spending August and September on the road with Lionel Richie. The joint Sing A Song All Night Long tour kicks off August 4 in St. Paul, Minnesota. A complete list of dates can be found at earthwindandfire.com.

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Frankie Goes to Hollywood reunited for the first time in 36 years last weekend for a performance at the opening ceremony of the Eurovision Song Contest, which was taking place in the band’s home city of Liverpool, England. 

The classic lineup — Holly Johnson, Brian Nash, Paul Rutherford, Mark O’Toole and Peter Gill — treated the crowd to their number two hit “Welcome to the Pleasuredome.” 

“Bless you,” Johnson told the crowd, according to the BBC. “Lovely to see you all.”

Meanwhile, Johnson has more plans to revisit all the Frankie Goes to Hollywood classics, including “Relax” and “Two Tribes.” He just announced he’ll be playing Liverpool Philharmonic Hall on October 21 and the London Palladium on October 27, celebrating “35 years of Blast and 40 years of Relax.”

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Bailey Cypheridge is sharing fond memories of her biological father, the late Rock & Roll Hall of Famer David Crosby.

Bailey’s moms are Melissa Etheridge and her ex partner Julie Cypher, and they eventually revealed that Crosby was their sperm donor, something Bailey says she always knew. 

“He was always a really cool presence in my life, even if we never meant to have that kind of parent-child relationship,” she tells People. “He was friends with my parents, he was their donor for me. I thought it was cool growing up, knowing who he was.”

Cypheridge is currently featured on the MTV/Paramount+ series Family Legacy, and she says it gave her some more insight into her family history.

“It’s special that I got to see some footage of him and my mom while I was working on this project,” she says. “It was really special for me to be able to see that and revisit those memories, especially because he passed away earlier this year.”

Crosby passed away in January at age 81, and Cypheridge says, “It’s been tough, missing him, but I think that it was really cool that I got the call, that I got to do this project before that happened.” 

She also shares that she has one very special memento of her family that she keeps in her bedroom: the cover of the Rolling Stone where her moms announced Crosby as her bio dad. “I just think it’s really cool thing to have that,” she says, joking, “I mean, I peaked in ’99. Can’t really top that.”

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On This Day, May 8, 1993 …

Aerosmith topped the Billboard 200 Album chart with their 11th studio album, Get A Grip, their first U.S. number one.

The album contained the hit songs “Living On The Edge,” “Crazy,” “Cryin’” and “Amazing,” with the success of the latter three aided by a trio of videos featuring Alicia Silverstone that got regular play on MTV. 

The cover of the album featured a cow with a nipple ring through its udder and the Aerosmith logo branded into it, which was deemed “the worst album cover ever” by one music critic. It also sparked backlash from animal rights groups, although the band insisted the image was produced digitally.

Get A Grip went on to sell over 20 million copies to become the band’s bestselling studio album worldwide.

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Elton John’s songwriting partner Bernie Taupin will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year in the Musical Excellence category, and he’s honored to be chosen.

“I’m just happy that it’s happened, and at my age,” the 73-year-old tells Rolling Stone. “’Excited’ is not a word I tend to use too much, but I’m very appreciative of the whole thing. It’s nice to be in a club with so many legends and so much history.” 

The honor comes almost 30 years after Elton’s induction ceremony, during which he gave Taupin his trophy. Asked whether he would return the favor and give his to Elton, Bernie replied, “I never thought about that! Um … no!”

Next up for Taupin, he’ll release his memoir, Scattershot: Life, Music, Elton & Me, on September 12. Then it’s back to work with Elton. He says they have plans to make another album once Elton’s wrapped his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, although nothing’s solidified yet. He suspects they’ll be in the studio “by the end of the year.”

And while Taupin insists Elton is really saying goodbye to the road to spend more time with his family, he says he’s not done with performing altogether.

“The idea of sitting down and doing a residency, but letting people know you’re not going to hear ‘Crocodile Rock’ or ‘Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting.’ You’re going to hear ‘I Feel Like a Bullet (in the Gun of Robert Ford)’ or ‘Amoreena.’ I think it would be incredibly liberating for him,” Taupin says. “He’s a born showman, but as long as it appeals to his family life, it’s possibly predictable.”

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Gov’t Mule is giving fans another taste of their upcoming record, Peace…Like A River, which drops June 16. The band just shared the new single “Same As It Ever Was,” the opening track of the album.  

“‘Same As It Ever Was’ is such an opus, an expansive piece,” Warren Haynes shares. “Life throws challenges at you when you least expect it. We’ve all dealt with what in some cases seem like insurmountable hardships, but in my lifetime, the pandemic is the first time that the entire planet went through it together.” 

He adds, “The whole message of the tune is we’ve come a long way, but now we’re on the other side and life is normal, life is good. Same as it ever was.”

Gov’t Mule launches their spring tour on Friday, May 5, at Jazz Fest in New Orleans, with special guests George Porter Jr. and Runnin’ Pardners. They are also set to play a special show Friday, May 12, at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, which will feature surprise guests. The show will be livestreamed for free to subscribers on nugs.net.

And later this summer they’ll launch their Dark Side of the Mule tour, featuring a tribute to Pink Floyd‘s classic album The Dark Side of the Moon. It kicks off July 29 in Bethel, New York. A complete list of Gov’t Mule tour dates can be found at mule.net.

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Drivers in Minnesota will soon be able to ride down a highway named after the legendary Prince.

According to The Associated Press, Minnesota lawmakers voted Thursday to rename a portion State Highway 5 after the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, who passed away in 2016. The purple-sign-lined Prince Rogers Nelson Memorial Highway, near the late singer’s Paisley Park museum and studios, will run for 7 miles through Chanhassen and Eden Prairie.

Last month the Minnesota House passed the bill unanimously, while the Senate just voted 55-5 in favor of the change. The next step is for Gov. Tim Walz to sign the bill.

“Prince was a true genius, a visionary artist who pushed the boundaries of music and cultures in ways that will never be forgotten,” Republican Sen. Julia Coleman, the lead sponsor of the bill, said. “His influence can be heard in the work of countless musicians who came after him, and his legacy continues to inspire new generations of artists to this day.” 

Prince’s Paisley Park is now open for fans to tour. It recently announced it will hold its four-day Celebration 2023 from June 8-11, during which fans will get to hear new, unreleased recordings by the late music icon. Tickets to the celebration are on sale now.

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A posthumous album compiling the late, legendary Olivia Newton-John‘s all-star duets is out now.

Just the Two of Us — The Duets Collection Volume One, features some new and never-before-released duets, alongside previously released tracks and songs that have been available digitally, but never before on CD or vinyl. Olivia’s duet partners on the collection include Dolly Parton, Mariah Carey, Richard Marx, Michael McDonald, Barry Gibb, John Travolta, Jon Secada and Olivia’s daughter, Chloe Lattanzi.

Of note, Olivia’s duet with Dolly Parton on “Jolene,” from September 2021, was Olivia’s final recording before her death in August 2022. It was released digitally in February, but is now available on CD and vinyl for the first time. 

Olivia’s duet with Mariah Carey on the Grease classic “Hopelessly Devoted to You” was taped at Mariah’s Live in Australia TV special years ago, but it’s never been released before this.

In a statement, Mariah says, “I dressed up as Bad Sandy for Halloween in 5th grade and thought I was everything. Years later, THE Olivia Newton-John walked out onto my stage in Melbourne, Australia and we sang our hearts out together to ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You.’ This is a moment I will never ever forget.”

Here’s the track listing for Just the Two of Us:

“Suddenly” (Featuring Cliff Richard)
“Jolene” (Featuring Dolly Parton) 
“Act Of Faith” (Featuring Michael McDonald)
“Window In The Wall” (Featuring Chloe Lattanzi) 
“Take A Chance” (Featuring John Travolta) 
“Put Your Head On My Shoulder” (Featuring Paul Anka) 
“Face To Face” (Featuring Barry Gibb)
“I Honestly Love You” (Featuring Jim Brickman)
“The Best Of Me” (Featuring David Foster)
“True To Yourself” (Featuring Vanessa Amorosi)
“Lost Inside Your Heart” (Featuring Jon Secada) 
“I’ll Come Runnin’” (Featuring Tina Arena)
“Never Far Away” (Featuring Richard Marx)
“How Can You Mend A Broken Heart” (Featuring Kelly Lang)
“Stone In My Pocket” (Featuring Amy Sky & Nielsen Chapman)
“Love Is A Gift” (Featuring Delta Goodrem)
“Hopelessly Devoted To You (Live)” (Featuring Mariah Carey)

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Paul Stanley and Dee Snider are both responding to the backlash they received over Stanley’s recent tweet about gender confirmation treatment for children, where he suggested it’s been “turned into a sad and dangerous fad.”

In a new post on social media, the KISS guitarist seems to regret his initial statement, saying, “While my thoughts were clear, my words clearly were not.” 

Stanley insists he supports those struggling with their sexual identity, especially considering the “constant hostility” they experience, noting, “It’s hard to fathom the kind of conviction that one must feel to take those steps.”

But Stanley didn’t actually clarify what he meant by his original statement. “A paragraph or two will remain far too short to fully convey my thoughts or point of view,” he explained, “so I will leave that for another time and place.” 

Meanwhile, Snider, who was dropped as a performer from SF Pride because he agreed with Stanley’s initial tweet, just released a statement regarding his position.

“I was not aware the transgender community expects fealty and total agreement with all their beliefs and any variation or derivation is considered transphobic,” he writes, insisting he has spent his lifetime supporting the transgender community’s right to “identify as they want.” 

He does say, however, he does not “believe young children are ready to decide their gender allocation.” While he believes their choices “should be supported and accepted by their parents,” he doesn’t think they’re “mentally developed enough” to make such drastic decisions that could affect the rest of their lives.

He adds that he will continue to support the transgender community no matter how they feel about him, and also shares, “I am open to educating myself so I can be a better ally.”

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