Classic Hits

REO Speedwagon’s Kevin Cronin is one of the rockers set to appear on Dolly Parton’s upcoming rock album, Rock Star, and he’s spilled the tea on the track they’ve recorded together.  

While chatting with the Totally 80s podcast, Cronin revealed he and Dolly recorded a cover of the band’s classic “Keep On Loving You,” although he notes their version is a “dark duet.”

In the song Cronin sings about his woman’s infidelity and his decision to stay with her, but says he realized,  “I kind of portrayed myself as more of the good guy than perhaps I was.”

“Perhaps it takes more than one snake in the grass, ‘all coiled up and hissing,’ to tango — if you catch my drift. That’s the reality of the song, you know?” he explains. “So, it gave me the idea that Dolly could sing the first verse, and in the first verse, I’m cheating on her. But then I take the second verse, and in the second verse, I go, ‘Oh yeah? Well, I know all about those men!’”

The two then come together and sing the chorus in harmony, but he notes, “It just slays me, because that’s how the song was meant to be performed; I just didn’t realize it until Dolly called me the other day. So that’s how we’re doing it, and I’m just so stoked.”

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The Rolling Stones are the subject of a new Vevo-hosted YouTube series that launched on Thursday. The Rolling Stones Chronicles, co-produced by BBC Motion Gallery and ABKCO, is comprised of six documentary shorts, with each focused on a different Stones hit from the ’60s.

Each clip features interviews with the band, along with historical documentary footage of world events that were taking place at the time.

The weekly series kicks off with The Last Time (EP1), soundtracked by the top five single of the same name, which reveals how early rock ‘n’ roll and Chicago blues influenced the band. In addition to archival interviews with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it features footage of B.B. King, Little Richard and others.

“The Rolling Stones Chronicles puts the band’s music in context with history,” says Robin Klein, executive producer of the series. “While they were very much of that time, The Rolling Stones themselves served as a vehicle for, and reflected and inspired change.” 

Future episodes will be set against such Rolling Stones classics as “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” “She’s A Rainbow,” “Street Fighting Man” and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” wrapping March 16 with an episode featuring “Gimme Shelter.” 

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Linda Ronstadt is the latest artist to see a chart resurgence thanks to one of her songs being featured in a popular series. In Ronstadt’s case, it’s the tune “Long Long Time,” which has jumped back on the chart thanks to its inclusion in the third episode of the hit HBO series The Last Of Us. 

Billboard reports the song, which originally appeared on the 1970 album Silk Purses, tops the Rock Digital Songs Sales, LyricFind U.S. and LyricFind Global charts, with the latter two ranking the tracks gaining momentum on lyric searches and usages.

From January 27 to February 2, “Long Long Time” went from negligible downloads to 6,000, which was an increase of 11,181% and enough to land it on top of the Rock Digital Song Sales chart. The song also saw a 1,042% increase in official streams during that week, from 79,000 to 903,000. 

“Long Long Time” is just one of several songs that has seen renewed interest thanks to a popular series. Depeche Mode’s “Never Let Me Down Again” returned to the charts thanks to its appearance in The Last Of Us’ premiere episode, and of course, Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill (Deal With God)” landed in the top five on the Billboard Hot 100 after it was featured on Netflix’s Stranger Things last year. 

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A new documentary about Karen Carpenter and her struggle with an eating disorder has just been shared by Variety.

Karen Carpenter: Starving for Perfection will explore Carpenter’s successful music career with brother Richard, which resulted in such hits as “Close to You” and “We’ve Only Just Begun.” It will also address her struggle with anorexia nervosa, a little-known eating disorder at the time, which led to her death on February 4, 1983, at just 32.

The film, directed by Randy Martin and executive produced by Carnie Wilson, will feature never-before-heard recordings from Karen, along with interviews by such stars as Olivia Newton-John, Cynthia Gibb, Suzanne Somers, Kristin Chenoweth, Belinda Carlisle and Carol Burnett.

The film is set to premiere Friday at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, just six days after the 40th anniversary of Karen’s death. So far there’s no word on where or when the film will be released.

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Roger Waters has been in the news a lot lately because of his views on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But in case you missed it, in a recent interview with the German magazine Berliner Zeitung, he dropped some big news about his music.

The article, which has been translated on Waters’ website, reveals that he is rerecording Pink Floyd’s classic album The Dark Side of the Moon, which next month will celebrate its 50th anniversary.

“The new concept is meant to reflect on the meaning of the work, to bring out the heart and soul of the album, musically and spiritually,” he tells the mag. “I’m the only one singing my songs on these new recordings, and there are no rock and roll guitar solos.” 

For those who’d rather just listen to the original, Pink Floyd is set to mark the album’s 50th anniversary with a special The Dark Side of the Moon deluxe box set on March 24.

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Elton John is “overjoyed” to host his Oscars viewing party this year after missing out on last year’s festivities. 

The singer unveiled plans for the 31st annual Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party, announcing he will return as host alongside husband David Furnish.

Actors Eric McCormack and Michaela Jaé Rodriguez will serve as this year’s special guests, while British singer Rina Sawayama has been tapped to perform. Elton and Rina previously teamed up for the song “Chosen Family,” which was featured on his compilation album The Lockdown Sessions.

More celebrity guests will be announced in the weeks ahead.

“I am overjoyed to be reuniting with old and new friends on one of my favourite nights of the year, especially after missing last year’s viewing party due to an unfortunate clash of schedules with my ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour,” he said in a statement. Last year marked the first time Sir Elton was unable to attend his own viewing part. 

Elton’s statement continued, “As always, I am so appreciative of every attendee, donor and sponsor who continues to support the Foundation’s work across the globe in the fight to end AIDS. With such meaningful generosity, we can make a healthier and more inclusive world.”

Furnish added in his own statement, “With rising new HIV infections and the tragic and needless loss of lives in many parts of the world, the support of our work is more crucial than ever.”

Elton’s viewing parties began in 1992 and so far have raised close to $100 million for his foundation, which aims to destigmatize AIDS, fund treatments and find a cure. 

This year’s celebration will be held Sunday, March 12.

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Depeche Mode has premiered a new song called “Ghosts Again.”

The track, which the “Enjoy the Silence” outfit first teased last week, is the first preview of the upcoming Depeche Mode album Memento Mori, their first following the death of member Andy Fletcher last May.

“To me, ‘Ghosts Again’ just captures this perfect balance of melancholy and joy,” says frontman Dave Gahan.

“Ghosts Again” is available now via digital outlets and is accompanied by a video streaming now on YouTube.

Along with the new tune, Depeche Mode has confirmed the release date for Memento Mori: March 24. They’ll launch their previously announced U.S. tour on March 23 in Sacramento, California.

Here’s the Memento Mori track list:

“My Cosmos Is Mine”
“Wagging Tongue”
“Ghosts Again”
“Don’t Say You Love Me”
“My Favourite Stranger”
“Soul with Me”
“Caroline’s Monkey”
“Before We Drown”
“People Are Good”
“Always You”
“Never Let Me Go”
“Speak to Me”

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Graham Nash reveals in a new interview with AARP that he believes his former bandmate David Crosby was trying to mend fences with him before his death last month.

“The fact is that we were getting a little closer at the end. He had sent me a voicemail saying that he wanted to talk to apologize, and could we set up a time to talk,” Nash tells the mag. “I emailed him back and said, ‘Okay, call me at eleven o’clock tomorrow your time, which is two o’clock on the East Coast.’ He never called, and then he was gone.” 

Nash says Crosby tried to contact him about a week and a half before his death, and he believes his bandmate probably knew he was dying. “I wouldn’t put it past him to know that he was actually at the very end,” he says. “The truth is … we’ve been expecting David to pass for 20 years.” 

While the pair had been on the outs for years, Nash is trying to focus on the “good times” they had together and the “great music that we made.” Nash explains, “I’m only going to be interested in the good times, because if I concentrate on the bad times, it gets too weird for me.” He adds, “But if he was willing to call me and apologize for what he had done and how he had hurt me, it made his death a little easier for me to accept.”

As for Crosby’s legacy, Nash offers, “David’s gift was the unbelievable uniqueness of him as a musician. He really was in many ways the heartbeat of this band. I mean, he was incredibly talented and unique as a musician. That’s what he brought.” 

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Legendary composer Burt Bacharach passed away Wednesday, February 8, at the age of 94. His publicist confirmed the news, sharing that he died of natural causes at his home in Los Angeles.

Bacharach’s more than 50-year career resulted in a slew of chart-topping hits, including 48 Top 100 songs, nine #1 tunes and more than 500 compositions. Many of his hits were written with lyricist Hal David, with some of the most well-known tracks recorded by Dionne Warwick, including “Walk On By,” “Do You Know The Way To San Jose,” “I Know I’ll Never Love This Way Again,” “I Say A Little Prayer For You” and the theme song for the 1968 movie “Alfie.” 

The pair also wrote several smashes for the big screen, including “What’s New Pussycat,” which was recorded by Tom Jones, and “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head” from the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, which earned them the Oscar for Best Original Song. 

He later teamed up with Carole Bayer Sager, whom he was married to from 1981 to 1992. Their partnership produced even more hits, including “Arthur’s Theme (Beset That You Can Do),” which they wrote with Christopher Cross and Peter Allen for the 1981 movie Arthur. The tune topped the chart and also won an Oscar for Best Original Song. They also wrote the #1 song “That’s What Friends Are For,” which reteamed Bacharach with Warwick and featured Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder. The tune went on to win a Grammy for Song of the Year.

In 1998, he collaborated with Elvis Costello on the album Painted from Memory, earning a Grammy for the song “I Still Have That Other Girl.”

Bacharach also made several appearances in front of the camera and had a famous cameo in Mike Myers’ 1997 film, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, and its sequels.

Bacharach is a six-time Grammy winner and three-time Oscar winner. He received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2008, and he and David were awarded the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in 2012.

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On This Day, February 9, 1964

The Beatles made their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, which was their first exposure to an American audience. 

The band performed the songs “All My Loving,” “Till There Was You,” and “She Loves You” and then later returned to perform “I Saw Her Standing There” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” 

The performance was seen by a then-record 73 million viewers, and helped Sullivan top the nightly ratings for the first time in seven years.

The show is considered one of the seminal moments in pop culture and launched Beatlemania in America.

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