Classic Hits

Ocean’s Eleven director Steven Soderbergh will premiere his new John Lennon and Yoko Ono documentary at the Cannes Film Festival, which runs May 12-23.

The film, John Lennon: The Last Interview, centers on Lennon’s final interview, which he and Ono sat for just hours before he was shot and killed on Dec. 8, 1980. The interview took place at the couple’s New York apartment, The Dakota, and was tied to the release of their album Double Fantasy.

Much has been made about Soderbergh’s use of AI in making the film, but in a new interview with Deadline, he insists it wasn’t used “to fool somebody or manipulate them” into thinking something’s real. Instead, he says, it was used like “VFX or CGI or any sort of non-photographic technology.”

“I think people, when they heard about this project and that I was using AI tech, jumped to the absolute worst conclusion, which is, ‘He’s going to try and bring John Lennon back to life,'” he says. “And all I can say is, have we met? Do I look like somebody that would do that?”

Soderbergh says he felt a “moral obligation” to himself, Ono, Lennon’s son Sean Lennon and the audience to make “the best version of this film, period,” noting, “And we were able — luckily, through good timing — to get our hands on some tools that I know resulted in the best version of this film.”

When it comes to the actual Lennon and Ono interview, Soderbergh says he was surprised by “how excited they were to talk about everything and anything.” He notes, “You’d think listening to them that they’d never been interviewed before. They had like no filter at all.”

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Ocean’s Eleven director Steven Soderbergh will premiere his new John Lennon and Yoko Ono documentary at the Cannes Film Festival, which runs May 12-23.

The film, John Lennon: The Last Interview, centers on Lennon’s final interview, which he and Ono sat for just hours before he was shot and killed on Dec. 8, 1980. The interview took place at the couple’s New York apartment, The Dakota, and was tied to the release of their album Double Fantasy.

Much has been made about Soderbergh’s use of AI in making the film, but in a new interview with Deadline, he insists it wasn’t used “to fool somebody or manipulate them” into thinking something’s real. Instead, he says, it was used like “VFX or CGI or any sort of non-photographic technology.”

“I think people, when they heard about this project and that I was using AI tech, jumped to the absolute worst conclusion, which is, ‘He’s going to try and bring John Lennon back to life,'” he says. “And all I can say is, have we met? Do I look like somebody that would do that?”

Soderbergh says he felt a “moral obligation” to himself, Ono, Lennon’s son Sean Lennon and the audience to make “the best version of this film, period,” noting, “And we were able — luckily, through good timing — to get our hands on some tools that I know resulted in the best version of this film.”

When it comes to the actual Lennon and Ono interview, Soderbergh says he was surprised by “how excited they were to talk about everything and anything.” He notes, “You’d think listening to them that they’d never been interviewed before. They had like no filter at all.”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Don McLean has dipped into his archives for a new album of previously unreleased recordings.

Don McLean & The Jordanaires: Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall is out now, featuring 10 previously unheard performances taken from rehearsals for McLean’s 1984 show at Carnegie Hall with the vocal quartet The Jordanaires.

“These recordings take me right back to that moment in time,” McLean says. “There was something very special about hearing my songs come alive in the room with The Jordanaires. They brought such warmth, soul, and history to everything they touched.”

He adds, “What you hear on Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall is real music in its purest form — unguarded, heartfelt, and full of life. I’m thrilled that people finally get to hear and see this chapter of my journey.”

To coincide with the release, McLean has launched a new video series, Rehearsal Series: Carnegie Hall, on his official YouTube page, with the first release a recording of the rehearsal for the iconic tune “Crying.” A new rehearsal clip will premiere every Saturday at 7 a.m. ET through July 11.

Here is the track list for Don McLean & The Jordanaires: Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall:
“Crying (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“Dig A Little Deeper (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“It Doesn’t Matter Anymore (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“It’s Just The Sun (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“Jerusalem (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“Believers (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“Left For Dead on the Road of Love (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“Love Hurts (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“Tulsa Time/Deep In The Heart Of Texas (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”
“Your Cheatin’ Heart (Rehearsals For Carnegie Hall)”

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Rush will launch their Fifty Something tour in June, their first since the death of drummer Neil Peart in 2020. In a new interview with The New York Times, frontman Geddy Lee explains why they felt the need to do so.

“In the back of my mind and in the back of my heart, it’s felt like unfinished business, like we owed him a proper thank you and a celebration,” Lee says. “Not a morbid, funereal type of thing. We want to celebrate the wonderful music the three of us spent almost 50 years writing together.”

Sitting behind the drum kit for the tour will be Anika Nilles, who says when she first started working with Lee and guitarist Alex Lifeson they gave her insight into working with Peart.

“I got a really good idea of what Neil was to the guys as a band member, but also as a friend. So you cannot replace that, you know?” she says. “I’m basically here to help them to get their music back onstage and make it feel right for them and make it feel right for the fans.”

Lee and Lifeson have credited their participation in the 2022 Taylor Hawkins tribute shows with planting the idea of them returning to the road without Peart. Lee notes the shows “taught us something really important about music. A band can end, but the music lives on.”

“I think for a while we put Rush in a box and put that box in our closet, and it’s almost like we felt weird to open the closet and open that box,” Lee says, noting after the Hawkins shows, “It’s like we had taken the box out of the cupboard and we had opened it up. And you know what? It was OK.”

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Alex Ligertwood, best known as one of the vocalists for Santana, has died. He was 79. His wife, Shawn Brogan, announced the news on her Facebook page, noting he “passed away peacefully in his sleep.” 

“It’s with great sadness and heartache to announce the passing of my sweet dear Alex Ligertwood, my husband of 25 years, we knew each other for 36 years,” Brogan wrote. “He touched so many with his extraordinary voice. He was all heart and soul. His favorite thing in life was to make music, sing and to share his gift with us.”

She added, “He performed his last show just two weeks ago. I’m grateful for that. He did it his way, on his terms, till the end. I will always love you, my sweet Alex. Rest in peace. Soar and sing with the angels, my love.”

Ligertwood’s tenure with Carlos Santana’s group started in 1979. He had five different stints with Santana until 1994 and appears on such classic Santana tunes as “Winning,” “Hold On” and “You Know That I Love You.” He performed with the group at such high-profile shows as 1982’s US Festival and 1985’s Live Aid.

In addition to Santana, Ligertwood performed with the Jeff Beck Group, British jazz-fusion ensemble Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express Band and more.

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Eagles are returning to Las Vegas this fall.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band has announced six new shows of their Sphere residency: Sept. 18 and 19, and Nov. 13, 14, 27 and 28.

Registration for a presale that begins Wednesday at 10 a.m. PT is now open. Tickets will go on sale to the general public starting Friday at 10 a.m. PT.

The new dates will extend the Eagles’ record for the longest-running residency at the Sphere with 64 shows. They launched the residency on Sept. 20, 2024.

Meanwhile, Eagles headlined New Orleans Jazz Fest on Saturday but apparently had to cut their set short due to a health issue in the band.

NOLA.com reports that Eagles left the stage with 25 minutes remaining in their set, leaving out their classic ballad “Desperado.” According to the site, they ended their set after “the band’s piano player went limp and was carried offstage.” 

“Without him, they had to skip the piano-heavy ‘Desperado,'” the site explained.

It’s not that the audience hadn’t already been treated to a hit-filled show. According to setlist.fm, the band’s set featured performances of such classics as “Hotel California,” “Heartache Tonight,” “Already Gone,” “Take it to the Limit,” “Life’s Been Good,” “Take It Easy,” “One of These Nights,” “Lyin’ Eyes” and more.

Next up, Eagles will bring their The Long Goodbye Act III tour to Atlanta on Tuesday. A complete list of dates can be found at Eagles.com.

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Sean Ono Lennon, only son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, has shared his thoughts on Sam Mendes’ upcoming Beatles films, and he sounds pretty happy with the project.

Sean tells NME that he’s “met everyone on the film set” and notes that Harris Dickinson, who plays his dad in the film, “is amazing.”

“I think he’s really smart and I did hear him do my dad’s voice a little bit – and it was so good,” he says. “It was kind of spooky actually. But there’s also something really funny about meeting someone half your age who is supposed to be your dad.”

Shōgun actress Anna Sawai plays Sean’s mom, Yoko Ono, and he says he was already familiar with her.

“Yeah, I know Anna. We kind of hung out a little bit,” he says. “She’s a very studious person. She would ask me questions about my family and she was really serious, you know, taking notes and thinking about it.”

He adds of the two actors, “They both understand the craft. I have a lot of faith in them to play those roles.”

Sean notes that Sawai hasn’t met with his mother about the role.

“She’s retired now. She’s 93,” he says. “She’s not going to micro-manage this project.”

The Beatles — A Four-Film Cinematic Event, opening in April 2028, will consist of four films, each told from the perspective of one of band members. In addition to Dickinson and Sawai, it stars Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr.

The cast also includes Saoirse Ronan as Linda McCartney, Mia McKenna-Bruce as Ringo’s wife Maureen Starkey, and Aimee Lou Wood as Harrison’s wife Pattie Boyd.

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Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band have had to make a scheduling change to their Land of Hope And Dreams American Tour.

With two Philadelphia teams in the playoffs – the Flyers in the NHL playoffs and the 76ers in the NBA playoffs – Springsteen has just announced that his May 8 concert at Xfinity Mobile Arena has been moved to May 30.

The current Philly sports schedule has the Flyers facing off against the Carolina Hurricanes at Xfinity Mobile Arena on May 7 and 9, with the 76ers taking on the New York Knicks May 8 and 10 at the same venue.

All tickets for the May 8 show will be valid for the rescheduled date. The Philadelphia show will now be the final stop on the tour.

Next up, Springsteen and The E Street Band bring the Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour to UBS Arena in Belmont, New York on Tuesday. A complete list of dates can be found at BruceSpringsteen.net.

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If you weren’t around in the ’90s, you may not be aware that the title track of Lizzo’s new album is based on an iconic song from that decade — a song that was pretty controversial in its day.

The single, “Bitch,” which Lizzo just dropped Friday along with a music video, takes its chorus from the song “Bitch” by Meredith Brooks. Released in 1997, it peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned two Grammy nominations. At the time, it was controversial, not only because of its lyrics, which the record label didn’t censor, but because some felt it was an Alanis Morissette rip-off.

In the song, Meredith sings, “I’m a bitch, I’m a lover, I’m a child, I’m a mother/ I’m a sinner, I’m a saint, I do not feel ashamed/ I’m your Hell, I’m your dream, I’m nothing in between/ You know you wouldn’t want it any other way.”

Lizzo sings the same thing but changes one line: “I’m a mess/ I’m a Queen/ and everything between” for “I’m your Hell, I’m your dream/ I’m nothing in between.”

On Instagram, Lizzo wrote, “This song is dedicated to the women who get called a bitch for having boundaries, for being sexual, for speaking up for themselves, for working hard and owning businesses… If we don’t smile and perform all the time we’re ‘ungrateful.’  If we run a strict program we’re ‘mean.’ If we enjoy sex we’re ‘sluts’ and shamed. This WOMANIFESTO is a declaration of independence from the b*******.”

Meredith replied in the comments, “Yessss!!” with a heart. She also reposted Lizzo’s video on her Instagram Story and captioned it, “Yess!! Queen!”

She then shared an Entertainment Tonight report on the connection between the two songs.

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The Rolling Stones appear to once again be teasing fans.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers posted a 13-second video on Instagram that starts with a crumpled piece of paper that opens up to show their lips logo. The paper then rips through the center, to display a new version of the logo. All of this is happening while a snippet of what could be a new song plays in the background. The caption of the post included a stuck out tongue emoji and a CD emoji.

The post follows several other teases from the band that seem to be hinting that new music is on the way.

The Stones recently posted photos on Instagram of billboards that had been popping up in cities around the world, with the words “Foreign Tongues” written in several languages and the band’s famous lips logo in the corner. This led to speculation that Foreign Tongues could be the name of the band’s rumored new album.

The Stones’ website is also teasing fans with a series of videos that appear to be surveillance clips of them in the studio.

If this is all leading up to a new album announcement, it will be the band’s 25th studio album. It will also be  their first new album since 2023’s Hackney Diamonds.

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