Classic Hits

As previously reported, Jonathan Cain recently responded to his Journey bandmate Neal Schon sending him a cease-and-desist letter over Cain’s recent performance of “Don’t Stop Believin’” at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. Well, now Cain has more to say, arguing that Schon is the one “causing harm to the Journey brand.”

”Neal Schon should look in the mirror when he accuses me of causing harm to the Journey brand,” Cain says in a statement. “I have watched him damage our brand for years and am a victim of both his — and his wife’s —bizarre behavior.”

Cain then detailed all the ways he thinks Schon is the problem: “Neal sued Live Nation twice, losing both times, and damaging our ability to ever work with them again; Neal outrageously tried to take away trademarks from Steve Perry. Neal and his wife continually insult the professionalism of numerous accountants, road managers, and management firms with endless legal threats and their bullying, toxic, and incoherent emails.”

He also calls out Schon for arguing with fans who don’t agree with him, and says Schon and his wife “recklessly spend Journey’s money until there is none left for operating costs.” 

Finally Cain insists, “If anyone is destroying the Journey brand, it is Neal—and Neal alone.”

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

There were a lot of great performances at last month’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. In fact, there were so many that some couldn’t fit into HBO’s telecast of the event. Well, some of those cut performances are now seeing the light of day. 

As a holiday gift to music fans, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is sharing three cut-for-time performances from the ceremony, from Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo, Judas Priest and Lionel Richie. Benatar and Giraldo perform her hit “All Fired Up,” while Judas Priest performs “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’” and Lionel treats the crowd to “Hello.” 

In addition to Giraldo, Judas Priest and Lionel, performers in the 2022 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame class included Dolly Parton, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Eminem, Carly Simon, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Harry Belafonte and Sylvia Robinson. 

Check out the cut-for-time performances here.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Brian May is teasing fans with some new music. The Queen guitarist shared a video on social media of him playing the guitar, writing, “This is a tease for something nice which is coming in January.”

In the caption, he notes, “This is what’s known in the trade as a ‘STING’ … and hopefully it will ring a bell with you guys early next year – when all will be revealed. I love going in the studio to make something new – like starting to write words on a crisp new sheet of paper … and in the studio I get lost.” He adds, “For a few moments, I’m immersed in the music we’re fashioning, and that is my entire world.”

Brian then shared a hopeful note about the coming year, writing, “From now on, for those of us in the currently frozen Northern Hemisphere of the Earth, the days get longer, the Sun warms our skin, and Spring is already flexing her wings. Onward!”

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Kim Wilde is back on the market. The ’80s singer, best known for her track “Kids in America,” announced on social media that she and her husband of more than 25 years, Hal Fowler, have divorced.

“Kim Wilde and Hal Fowler wish to announce that they amicably separated by agreement last year and have divorced,” she shared in a joint statement. “No third party is involved. They remain on good terms and wish only the best for each other in the next phases of their lives. No further comment or statements will be made.” 

The couple tied the knot in 1996 and have two children together, 24-year-old Harry and 22-year-old Rose.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Eric Clapton is headed for Japan next year. The three-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer just announced dates for a six-night residency at Tokyo’s Budokan.

The shows, which will be Eric’s only shows in Japan next year, are set for April 15, 18, 19, 21, 22 and 24. Tickets are not yet on sale. 

On the tour, Clapton will be joined by Nathan East on bass, Paul Carrack and Chris Stainton on keyboards, Doyle Bramhall II on guitar and Sonny Emory on drums, with Sharon White and Katie Kissoon on backing vocals. 

Next year marks Eric’s 60th anniversary as a professional musician, having gotten his start with the Yardbirds in 1963.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

For the past few years, Kate Bush has shared a Christmas message on her website reflecting on the past 12 months. In her 2022 post, Bush writes that she’s had a “crazy, roller coaster year” thanks to the renewed popularity of her 1985 single “Running Up That Hill,” which became a resurgent hit after being featured in the latest season of Netflix’s Stranger Things.

“I still reel from the success of RUTH, being the No 1 track of this summer,” Bush writes. “What an honor! It was really exciting to see it doing so well globally, but especially here in the UK and Australia; and also to see it making it all the way to No 3 in the US.”

“It was such a great feeling to see so many of the younger generation enjoying the song,” she continues. “It seems that quite a lot of them thought I was a new artist! I love that! Again, thank you so much to everyone who supported the track and made it a hit.”

Elsewhere in her post, Bush mentions the war in Ukraine, the death of Queen Elizabeth II and the United Kingdom nurse strike.

“I wonder where on earth we’ll all be at the end of next year?” Bush writes. “I hope the war will end. I hope that the nurses will be in a position where they are appreciated — they should be cherished. Let’s all hope that next year will be better than this one.”

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Note Language) As previously reported, Journey’s Neal Schon hit his bandmate Jonathan Cain with a cease-and-desist letter over Cain’s recent performance of “Don’t Stop Believin’” at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. Well, now Cain has responded.

“Schon is just frustrated that he keeps losing in court and is now falsely claiming the song has been used at political rallies,” reads the statement issued by Cain’s spokesperson.

But Schon has already fought back against that argument. “Now he’s claiming I keep loosing in court ?!? Inf******sane,” he tweeted. “Get off the kool-Aid. Wow lies after lies. I’ve won 1 case in court with Cain and the residing one has not been heard yet.”

Schon also took to social media to defend his actions. First, the guitarist shared a written excerpt from an earlier report showing the band’s former frontman, Steve Perry, who co-wrote “Don’t Stop Believin’” with Schon and Cain, did not want their music used for political purposes. He noted Perry tweeted that he didn’t give permission for the song to be used by any political candidate. Shon commented, “Well Steve and I agree on this.”

He followed that up with an audio clip of an interview with Cain, where he seemed to agree with that idea, noting, “Have a listen right around 9:25mins. Jonathan Cain himself talking about politics and religion not a good idea with our music. One word -hypocrite.” 

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

CBS aired a special Grammy tribute to Paul Simon Wednesday, featuring a host of artists performing some classic Simon tunes.

Homeward Bound: A GRAMMY Salute to the Songs of Paul Simon was filmed back in April at the Hollywood Pantages Theater and had Simon being serenaded by the likes of Dave Matthews, Jonas Brothers, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood.

Among the highlights: Matthews teamed up with Angelique Kidjo for a rousing rendition of “You Can Call Me Al,” along with “Under African Skies,” while Take 6 sang the a cappella tune “Homeless,” which received high praise from Simon himself. Also, Jonas Brothers performed “50 Ways To Leave Your Lover,” Sting performed “America,” Garth and Trisha duetted on “The Boxer,” and Susanna Hoffs was on hand to perform The Bangles’ cover of Simon’s “Hazy Shade of Winter.”

Among the other performances: Stevie Wonder was joined by Sheila E, Jonas Brothers and Ledisi to perform “Mrs. Robinson,” then partnered with Ledisi for “Bridge Over Troubled Waters.” Bonnie Raitt and Brad Paisley performed “Something So Right”; Jimmy Cliff and Shaggy teamed up for “Mother and Child Reunion”; Billy Porter and Take 6 performed “Love Me Like A Rock”; and Eric Church performed “Homeward Bound.”

The night ended with a performance by Simon. He started off with “Graceland,” then brought out Rhiannon Giddens for a powerful performance of “American Tune.” He then ended the night with the classic “The Sound of Silence.”

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences just announced the short lists in several categories for the upcoming 95th Academy Awards and documentaries about two iconic musicians are in the running. 

The David Bowie doc Moonage Daydream, as well as the Leonard Cohen documentary Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song are among the 15 films in the running for a possible nomination in the Documentary Feature Film category.

Moonage Daydream, directed by Brett Morgen, focuses on Bowie’s catalog from 1970 to 1977 and was described as “a sublime kaleidoscopic experiential cinematic odyssey that explores Bowie’s creative, spiritual, and philosophical journey.” Hallelujah, created by Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine, tells the story of Cohen’s life and how his song “Hallelujah” became such an iconic track.

The short list was also announced for the Best Original Song category, with LCD Soundsystem making the cut for their White Noise song “New Body Rhumba.” The David Byrne/Mitski track “This is a Life,” from Everything Everywhere All at Once, is also in the running, as are songs by Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Rihanna, The Weeknd and Lady Gaga.

The 95th Academy Awards, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, are set to air March 12 on ABC. Nominations will be announced January 24.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Dionne Warwick doesn’t have anyone romantic in her life these days, but she hasn’t totally ruled out falling in love again, although she’s not overly concerned about it. 

“Everybody needs companionship, of course,” the 82-year-old tells People. “Let’s not be crazy. However, it is not my priority right now. When I feel the need to have company, I know where to go and who to call. Ain’t Ghostbusters either.”

As for who she may be interested in, Dionne recently called out Pete Davidson for not giving her a shot and also expressed interest in Leonardo DiCaprio.

Meanwhile, as previously reported, Dionne recently told People she wants to meet Twitter owner Elon Musk to find out his true intentions regarding the social media site. Well, folks on Twitter want Dionne to do more than that — they want her to take over.

After Elon held a Twitter poll asking if he should step down as CEO and users voted that he should, Dionne held her own Twitter poll, asking her followers, “Should I take over as Twitter CEO?” As of Wednesday afternoon, 85% voted “Yes.” But to be fair, the only other option was “Yeah,” with 15% choosing that.

And if folks want to learn more about Dionne, they’ll soon have their chance. The new CNN film Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over airs New Year’s Day on CNN at 9 p.m. ET.

Copyright © 2022, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.