Classic Hits

Sammy Hagar and his band The Circle have unveiled plans to release a new studio album titled Crazy Times this fall and made the title track available as an advance digital single Friday, along with a companion music video for the tune.

The 10-song collection, which can be preordered now, will be released on CD and via digital formats on September 30, while standard black vinyl and limited-edition red vinyl LP versions will follow on October 28.

Hagar & The Circle recorded Crazy Times at Nashville’s famed RCA Studio A with Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb.

Crazy Times, which is a follow-up to the group’s 2019 debut, Space Between, features nine songs either written or co-written by Hagar, as well as a cover of Elvis Costello and the Attraction‘s 1978 classic “Pump It Up.”

The title track was one of three tunes the Red Rocker co-wrote with his Circle bandmates — bassist Michael Anthony, drummer Jason Bonham and guitarist Vic Johnson — and Cobb.

The video for the hard-driving, riff-heavy song features Hagar and the band performing the tune as a montage of explosions and other ominous images appear behind them.

Hagar says that after the long COVID-19 lockdown, he really appreciated getting to work with his bandmates again in person.

“Going back in the studio, creating and being with the music is just what felt natural,” Hagar notes. “There was joy in the hard work, catharsis and the comradery we’d craved. It was like those two years of not being able to do very much fell away and we really all came together and let it out in the music and lyrics.”

The digital version of Crazy Times also features a pair of bonus tracks. Here’s the album’s full track list:

“Intro: The Beginning of the End”
“Slow Drain”
“Feed Your Head”
“Pump It Up”
“Be Still”
“You Get What You Pay For”
“Crazy Times”
“Funky Feng Shui”
“Father Time”
“Childhood’s End”

Digital-only bonus tracks:
“2010”
“Father Time” (acoustic demo)

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After teasing the news in a recent video update, Ringo Starr has now announced full details about his upcoming EP, EP3.

The four-track collection, which can be pre-ordered now, will be released digitally and on CD September 16, while a limited-edition blue cassette and 10-inch vinyl-disc version are due out on November 18.

EP3 is the third EP the former Beatles drummer released after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic — following Zoom In and Change the World, which both arrived in 2021.

Starr recorded all three EPs at his Roccabella West studio.

EP3 begins with the upbeat rock tune “World Go Round,” which is available now as an advance digital single. It was co-written by founding Toto guitarist, longtime All Starr Band member Steve Lukather, and Toto lead singer Joseph Williams, who both co-wrote the Change the World‘s title track.

The second track, “Everyone and Everything,” was written by hit-making producer and songwriter Linda Perry, who also contributes guitar, percussion and backing vocals to the tune.

The third song, “Let’s Be Friends,” is a catchy dance tune co-written by Starr’s longtime studio engineer Bruce Sugar and acclaimed songwriter Sam Hollander.

The EP’s final track, “Free Your Soul,” is a laid-back, reggae-flavored tune that Starr co-wrote with Sugar. The tune includes guest appearances by Dave Koz on tenor sax and José Antonio Rodriguez on nylon guitar.

“I am in my studio writing and recording every chance I get,” Ringo notes. “It’s what I have always done and will continue to do, and releasing EPs more frequently allows me to continue to be creative and give each song a little more love.”

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Just a reminder that Aerosmith launches its new streaming concert series, 50 Years Live!: From the Aerosmith Vaults, today at 3 p.m. ET at the band’s official YouTube channel.

The first installment, is titled Live from The Summit, Houston, TX, 1977, and features footage from a two-night stand that the rock legends played at the Houston venue in June ’77 during their Draw the Line Tour. The film, which has been digitized from the original analog tape and remastered in HD, will be viewable for one week after its premiere.

As previously reported, the five-part series will offer a new archival “official bootleg” concert film featuring never-before-seen footage debut weekly for five weeks. Each flick captures Aerosmith during a different decade and features shows filmed by multiple cameras.

One day after each film premieres, highlight clips from the respective movies also will be added to Aerosmith’s YouTube channel.

In conjunction with the 50 Years Live! series, Aerosmith has launched a contest at Tunespeak.com offering fans who watch the films each week a chance to win two tickets to the band’s 50th anniversary concert at Boston’s Fenway Park on September 8. Those who enter also will have the opportunity to win an Aerosmith t-shirt.

Here’s the complete schedule of the 50 Years Live!: From the Aerosmith Vaults series:

7/29 — Live from the Summit, Houston, TX, 1977 (Draw the Line Tour)
8/5 — Live from the Capital Centre, Landover, MD, 1989 (Pump Tour)
8/12 — Live from the Coca-Cola Star Lake Amphitheatre, Pittsburgh, PA, 1993 (Get a Grip Tour)
8/19 — Live from Comerica Park, Detroit, MI, 2003 (Rocksimus Maximus Tour)
8/26 — Live from Arena Ciudad de Mexico, Mexico City, 2016 (Rock ‘n’ Roll Rumble Tour)

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A woman who accused Bob Dylan of sexually abusing her when she was a minor dropped her lawsuit on Thursday, following accusations that she destroyed key evidence.

The lawsuit alleged that Dylan — born Robert Allen Zimmerman — abused the woman over a six-week period in 1965 when she was 12 years old, saying the legendary singer-songwriter left her “emotionally scarred and psychologically damaged.” Dylan’s lawyers dismissed the accusations as “false, malicious, reckless and defamatory” and a “brazen shakedown masquerading as a lawsuit,” according to Billboard.

At a hearing on Thursday, however, the plaintiff — identified only as J.C. — suddenly asked the federal judge overseeing the case to dismiss it “with prejudice,” meaning the suit cannot cannot be refiled, Billboard reports. The move came after the plaintiff was accused of deleting text messages and emails and was threatened with monetary sanctions.

“This case is over. It is outrageous that it was ever brought in the first place,” Dylan’s lead attorney, Orin Snyder, said in a statement obtained by Billboard. “We are pleased that the plaintiff has dropped this lawyer-driven sham and that the case has been dismissed with prejudice.”

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As he waits to head back out on tour with his All Starr Band in September, Ringo Starr has posted a video update at his YouTube channel in which he shares some news about an upcoming release he has planned.

In the clip, the former Beatles drummer starts by sending out his usual “peace and love” message to fans, explaining that he’s hanging out on a beautiful day.

Then, after noting that the tour will be picking up again in September after a bunch of June dates were postponed, he declares, “I have another EP out in September. It’s called EP 3. And so, September’s gonna be pretty busy, thank you.”

As previously announced, Ringo and the All Starr Band’s postponed shows were rescheduled to run right into their fall North American leg, which is mapped out through an October 19-20 stand in Mexico City.

As its title suggests, Starr’s upcoming EP with be the third EP he’s released in the last couple of years. The first, Zoom In, was issued in March 2021, while the second, Change the World, arrived in September of last year.

Meanwhile, the end of the update video features footage of Ringo having fun while briefly jamming out with Toto and All Starr Band guitarist Steve Lukather on a version of Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water,” with Ringo accompanying Steve on bongos.

After he stops playing, Starr comments, “Let’s do a version of that,” then declares, “Bongo boy!”

You can check out the All Starr Band’s full list of tour dates at RingoStarr.com.

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A new box set featuring remastered versions of former Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler‘s four most recent solo studio albums, plus a disc of bonus songs, will be released on October 7 as a six-CD set, a nine-LP vinyl collection and on digital formats.

Mark Knopfler: The Studio Albums 2009-2018, which can be preordered now, includes 2009’s Get Lucky, 2012’s Privateering, 2015’s Tracker and 2018’s Down the Road Wherever. It also features the companion compilation Back in the Day: The Bonus Tracks 2009-2018, which includes studio B-sides and bonus tracks, as well as two previously unreleased songs from the Down the Road Wherever era — “Back in the Day” and “Precious Voice from Heaven.”

Three tracks from the rarities compilation — “Back in the Day,” “Don’t Suck Me In” and “Sky and Water” — are available now as advance digital tracks.

The vinyl box set will feature two LP versions of Get Lucky, Privateering, Tracker and Down the Road Wherever, plus the single-disc Back in the Day, all pressed on 180-gram vinyl. The collection also will come with five embossed prints of the cover art of each album.

Get Lucky, Privateering, Tracker and Down the Road Wherever peaked at #17, #65, #14 and #15, respectively, on the Billboard 200.

The upcoming box set is the follow-up to the Mark Knopfler: The Studio Albums 1996-2007 collection, which focused on Mark’s first five solo albums and was released in the U.S. in April.

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It’s been less than five months since Bryan Adams released Classic, a digital album stuffed with re-recordings of his greatest hits from the ’80s and ’90s — and part two is already on its way.

“Bryan is happy to announce ‘Classic Pt. II’ featuring 7 newly re-recorded favorites, is out digitally on Friday! Pre-save now!” Adams tweeted out on Thursday, sharing a link so fans can make sure the album arrives in their playlists at midnight.

Why is the “Summer of ’69” singer making these albums? Similar to pop supestar Taylor Swift‘s masters saga with her former label, Bryan is also fighting to reclaim the rights to his music.

In a March 2022 interview, he told Stereogum that Swift inspired him to re-record his old hits. Adams revealed that his former label, Universal Music Group, declined to hand over the rights to his catalog.

“She and I have been in a similar situation lately with our master recordings. My record company wasn’t interested in negotiating the return of my early masters, so I’ve done what she has done to re-record my early songs again,” he explained, adding that his Classic albums are coming out “thanks to Taylor.”

Swift invited Adams to sing with her during her Reputation Tour in 2019, and they performed “Summer of ’69” together. Bryan that hinted she made it even easier for him to think he could re-record his decades-old hits.

“I loved singing with Taylor,” he recalled, “In fact, I believe it’s the best version of the song since the original recording.”

Adams’ latest studio album of original material, So Happy It Hurts, was released this past March, one week after Classic.

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A new archival Joni Mitchell collection called The Asylum Years (1972-1975) that features remastered versions of the iconic singer/songwriter’s first four albums for the Asylum label is due out September 23.

The package, which includes 1972’s For the Roses, 1974’s Court and Spark and the double live album Miles of Aisles, and 1975’s The Hissing of Summer Lawns, will be available as a four-CD set, a five-LP vinyl collection and digitally.

After releasing her first four studio albums on Reprise Records, Joni signed to Asylum and began delving more deeply into jazz influences.

As Mitchell’s friend Neil Young writes in the box set’s liner notes, “She had grown from folk to jazz and in between, creating a unique kind of sound that I loved to listen to over and over.”

This period also saw Joni score her highest-charting albums and singles.

For the Roses peaked at #11 on the Billboard 200 and featured Joni’s first top-40 hit, “You Turn Me On, I’m a Radio,” which reached #25 on the Hot 100.

Court and Spark ascended to #2 on the Billboard 200, powered by the singles “Help” and “Free Man in Paris,” which reached #7 and #22, respectively, on the Hot 100.

Miles of Aisles also peaked at #2 and included a version of her classic “Big Yellow Taxi” that reached #24 on the Hot 100.

The Hissing of Summer Lawns climbed to #4 and featured the minor hit “In France They Kiss on Main Street.”

The cover of The Asylum Years (1972-1975) features an original painting by Mitchell, and fans who preorder the CD or LP version of the set from JoniMitchell.com will receive a limited-edition poster of the artwork.

Check out the box set’s full track list here.

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James Taylor, Peter Gabriel and Mavis Staples are among the artists who have lent their talents to Here It Is: A Tribute to Leonard Cohen, a 12-track album celebrating the late legendary Canadian singer/songwriter.

The album was produced by Larry Klein, Joni Mitchell‘s ex-husband and main producer since the 1980s. Here It Is features versions of a mix of well-known and more obscure songs by Leonard Cohen, spanning from his 1967 debut album through 2016’s You Want It Darker, which was released shortly before his death.

Taylor recorded a new version of the 1984 tune “Coming Back to You” for the tribute album, while Gabriel contributed the title track, “Here It Is,” a rarity that dates back to 2001. Staples delivered a rendition of the 1984 tune “If It Be Your Will.” 

Taylor’s cover of “Coming Back to You” is available now as an advance digital track.

Taylor says of the tune, “Like so much of Leonard Cohen’s writing, this lyric resonates deeply with his forlorn and hopeless take on the bleak landscape of love and attachment. So, breathe a deep sigh and, drink up …”

Norah Jones, Sarah McLachlan, Iggy Pop and David Gray are also featured on the tribute album.

Klein says he decided to organize the album for his close friend Cohen after realizing he’d been covering his songs with other collaborators. He assembled a group of respected jazz musicians and brought in guest singers to create reworked versions of Cohen’s tunes.

“It was an immensely gratifying experience to recontextualize these poems, and shine a different light on them,” Klein notes.

You can preorder Here It Is now. It will be available October 14 on CD, vinyl and digital formats.

Here’s the album’s full track listing:

“Steer Your Way” — Norah Jones
“Here It Is” — Peter Gabriel
“Suzanne” — Gregory Porter
“Hallelujah” — Sarah McLachlan
“Avalanche” — Immanuel Wilkins
“Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye” — Luciana Souza
“Coming Back to You” — James Taylor
“You Want It Darker” — Iggy Pop
“If It Be Your Will” — Mavis Staples
“Seems So Long Ago, Nancy” — David Gray
“Famous Blue Raincoat” — Nathaniel Rateliff
“Bird on the Wire” — Bill Frisell

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Earlier this month, country-rock pioneer Richie Furay, who co-founded Buffalo Springfield and Poco, released his latest solo album, the country covers collection In the Country.

The 12-track album mainly features renditions of major country hits, while also including some noteworthy crossover tunes, like Marc Cohn‘s “Walking in Memphis” and John Denver‘s “Take Me Home, Country Roads.”

Furay tells ABC Audio the album came about after he reconnected with producer Val Garay, who produced his 1979 album, I Still Have Dreams.

Furay says Val suggested they do a country hits project. They both came up with lists of tunes, which they narrowed down to include chart-toppers from Keith Urban, Garth Brooks, Lonestar, Alabama and Lee Ann Womack.

“Most of ’em were big hits … [but] I don’t want people to listen to this record and do comparisons,” Furay insists. “I just want ’em to sit back, ’cause, man, we just need music today … that people can just get lost in, and just say, ‘Wow, that’s just good sounding music.'”

Furay recorded the album in Nashville with talented session musicians. He also brought in some guests to contribute backing vocals, including his former Poco bandmate, longtime Eagles bassist Timothy B. Schmit.

Furay says of Schmit, who appears on multiple tracks, “He’s just a dear friend … whenever I ask Timothy if he wants to come and be a part of a record … if he’s got the time … he’s always there.”

Schmit also connected Furay with current Eagles touring member Vince Gill, who sings on a cover of the 1958 Ricky Nelson hit “Lonesome Town.”

Furay says working with Gill “was really a thrill and a blessing for me … He’s such a great, talented guy.”

Here’s In the Country‘s full track list:

“Somebody Like You” (Keith Urban)
“I Hope You Dance” (Lee Ann Womack)
“Take Me Home, Country Roads” (John Denver)
“She Don’t Know She’s Beautiful” (Sammy Kershw)
“Your Love Amazes Me” (John Berry)
“I’m in a Hurry (And Don’t Know Why)” (Alabama)
“Lonesome Town” (Ricky Nelson)
“Walking in Memphis” (Marc Cohn)
“I’m Already There” (Lonestar)
“The River” (Garth Brooks)
“In This Life” (Collin Raye)
“Chalk” (Buddy & Julie Miller)
 
Digital Bonus Tracks:
“I Cross My Heart” (George Strait)
“Pickin’ Up the Pieces” (Poco)

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