Classic Hits

On this day: February 1, 1972

Neil Young released his fourth studio album, Harvest, which went on to be a classic and signature album for him. The record peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart and became the bestselling album of 1972.

Harvest featured two classic Young songs, “Heart of Gold,” which went to number one on the Hot 100, and “Old Man,” which landed in the Top 40. Other songs on the album include “The Needle and the Damage Done” and “A Man Needs a Maid.” 

The album featured special appearances by London Symphony Orchestra, as well as background vocals from guests like David Crosby, Graham Nash, Linda Ronstadt, Stephen Stills and James Taylor.

In December 2022, Young released a 50th anniversary edition of Harvest that included, among other things, a previously unseen two-hour documentary filmed in 1971 that focuses on the making of the album.

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Elton John‘s 1972 album Honky Château celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, but we’re getting the 50th anniversary edition of the album this year.

Due out March 24, the package is available to preorder now as a two-CD or two-LP set. Additionally, the original album pressed on limited edition gold vinyl is available.

The CD version includes the original album, plus outtakes from the original session tapes, and eight live recordings from a show Elton and the band did at London’s Royal Festival Hall. It also comes with a 40-page booklet of photos and interviews with those who were there at the time.

The two-LP set includes the album, outtakes, and an eight-page booklet of photos and interviews.

Honky Château was the first of Elton’s six consecutive Billboard number-one albums. Elton, Bernie Taupin and the band decamped to a residential recording studio in France called Château d’Hérouville to make the album, hence the album’s title.

At night, Taupin wrote lyrics and left them on Elton’s piano for him to work on in the morning. In a statement, Elton recalls, “The first morning we were there, I had three (songs) done by the time the band drifted downstairs looking for something to eat,” including “Rocket Man.”

You can get a preview of the album Wednesday with the release of two of its tracks: a session demo of the fan-favorite deep cut “Mellow” and the Royal Festival Hall live version of “Rocket Man.” Other notable tracks on the album include “Honky Cat” and “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters.” 

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When The Police released their Greatest Hits album in 1992, only a limited run of vinyl copies were made available to fans. Well, now fans and vinyl collectors have a second shot at getting their hands on one.

On March 24, The Police Greatest Hits, described as “a perfect introduction to the Police for new admirers,” will get a special double-LP reissue on 180g heavyweight black vinyl. The new release was remastered at Abbey Road Studios.

The set features 16 classic Police tunes, including their number one single “Every Breath You Take,” along with hits like “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” “Message In a Bottle” and “Don’t Stand So Close To Me.”

The album is available for preorder now.

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Nominees for the 2023 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame have been revealed, with Cyndi Lauper, the late George Michael, Kate Bush, Willie Nelson and the late Warren Zevon in the running this year. 

Other nominees include The Spinners, Sheryl Crow, Joy Division/New Order, Missy Elliott, Rage Against the Machine, Soundgarden, A Tribe Called Quest, The White Stripes and Iron Maiden. 

“This remarkable list of Nominees reflects the diverse artists and music that the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honors and celebrates,” John Sykes, chairman of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, says. “These artists have created their own sounds that have impacted generations and influenced countless others that have followed in their footsteps.” 

Many of this year’s contenders are receiving their first nomination this year, including Lauper, Michael, Nelson, Zevon, Crow and Joy Division/New Order, with The White Stripes and Missy Elliott landing their first nod in their first year of eligibility.

Fan voting is open now through April 28 at rockhall.com, and the top five vote-getters will quality for the “fan’s ballot,” which will help determine this year’s inductees. This year’s Hall of Fame class will be announced in May.

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Jon Bon Jovi is thanking fans for their continued support following the news that Bon Jovi’s video for “Livin’ on a Prayer” has surpassed 1 billion views on YouTube.

“Just callin’ out to say thank you to everybody on YouTube for our 1 billionth view of the ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ video,” he shared in a video message on Instagram. “Guess you liked it. We liked it, too. Thank you everybody for continuing to support Bon Jovi for 40 years.”

He then teased fans with what’s in store for the coming year, saying there are “lots of big things in the works for our 40th anniversary, so get ready for that.”

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AXS TV is bringing back its Sunday Night Rocks lineup starting February 19, which will include the brand new original series Rockstar Shuffle.

Rockstar Shuffle, kicking off at 8 p.m. ET, will feature rock icons sharing stories and memories from their careers, and showing off their personal music memorabilia. Twisted Sister‘s Dee Snider and Run DMC’s Darryl McDaniels are featured in the premiere episode, with Heart‘s Ann Wilson, Sammy Hagar, Ted Nugent and more featured in future episodes. 

Season 1 will also include appearances by Judas Priest’s Rob Halford, The Who’s Roger Daltrey, Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott, Rick Springfield, John Oates and others.

Sunday Night Rocks’ February 19 premiere also features the return of Parking Lot Payday, with Mötley Crüe fans being tested to find out how much they know about the rockers, followed by an airing of Mötley Crüe: The End – Live In Los Angeles.

And on February 26, Metallica fans will be the subject of an episode of Parking Lot Payday, follow

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Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are spending more time on the road together. The duo just announced a new set of dates for their Raising the Roof tour, supporting their most recent collaborative album, Raise The Roof.

The tour, featuring special guest JD McPherson, kicks off April 25 in Shreveport, Louisiana, and wraps up July 5 in Toronto. The tour also includes a June 18 appearance at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in Telluride, Colorado.

Presale tickets go on sale Wednesday, February 1, at 10 a.m. local time, with the general sale set for Friday, February 3, at 10 a.m. A complete list of dates and more ticket sale information can be found at plantkrauss.com.

And for fans who can’t get to a show, Plant and Krauss will be streaming last summer’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre show on March 2. Tickets to the livestream are available now.

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The death of David Crosby on January 18 has brought renewed interest in his music, so much so that Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young have landed on Billboard’s Artist 100 chart this week. The Artist 100 measures artist activity across several key Billboard charts.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers land at 20 on this week’s chart, with two albums also returning to the Billboard 200 album chart.

The 1970 album Déjà Vu, which was their second studio album and their first with Neil Young, re-enters the chart at 129, while the band’s 2005 Greatest Hits album is at 156.

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The Moody Blues’ John Lodge has added a special show to his upcoming Days of Future Passed tour, which will have him playing the band’s second album in its entirety.

Lodge is set to play a special symphony show with the Coachella Symphony on March 26 at the Rancho Mirage Amphitheater in Rancho Mirage, California, which will wrap his winter 2023 tour. This will be his only symphony show on the tour. Tickets are on sale now.

“The Coachella Valley Symphony approached me and asked me to perform Days of Future Passed with them at their new home at Rancho Mirage Amphitheater, and it intrigued me,” Lodge shares. “I had been developing a full orchestra concert, but it was something for the future. However, they are a passionate community music organization, and Alan (Hewitt, LODGE’s music director and keyboardist) knew them from when he lived there, and so it seemed like a wonderful way to step my feet into the water, and a fabulous finale to the tour.”

Lodge’s tour is set to kick off February 18 in Lexington, Massachusetts. He’ll be joined by his 10,000 Light Years Band, with a guest appearance by his friend and current Yes frontman Jon Davison. The show will also feature a special recording by the late Moody Blues drummer and co-founder, Graeme Edge.

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Last year, Kate Bush‘s 1985 song “Running Up that Hill (A Deal with God)” topped charts worldwide thanks to its inclusion in the Netflix hit Stranger Things. But it looks like Linda Ronstadt may be the latest artist to have a decades-old hit revived by a TV show.

Linda’s 1970 hit “Long, Long Time” plays a pivotal role in the emotional third episode of the HBO series The Last of Us, which aired on Sunday night. On Monday, Spotify News tweeted, “On Sunday, January 29th, between 11PM and midnight ET, there was more than 4900% increase in U.S. streams of ‘Long Long Time’ by Linda Ronstadt.”

“Oh, so all of our hearts were breaking last night,” read the caption.

“Long, Long Time,” written by Gary White, appeared on Ronstadt’s 1970 album, Silk Purse. It peaked at #25 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Female Vocal Performance. The ballad was Linda’s first Top 40 solo hit; she’d previously reached #13 with “Different Drum,” recorded with her former band Stone Poneys.

It remains to be seen if, like “Running Up that Hill,” the song will eventually make its way back onto the Billboard charts and radio stations.

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