Classic Hits

Joni Mitchell thrilled fans at the 2022 Newport Folk Festival in Newport, Rhode Island on Sunday when she made a surprise appearance at the event, marking her first performance at the fest since 1969.

Mitchell, who has rarely performed in public since suffering a brain aneurysm in 2015, was the guest of honor at “Joni Jam” — a Brandi Carlile-led event that featured accompaniment and guest appearances from a variety of musicians and singers, including Wynonna Judd, Marcus Mumford of Mumford and Sons, Dawes‘ Taylor Goldsmith, Lucius, Allison Russell and Shooter Jennings.

Sitting in a plush throne-like chair, Mitchell sang along with Brandi for most of the 13-song set and delivered lead vocals on several songs, including her classics “Both Sides Now” and “The Circle Game.” Joni even played some guitar during a rendition of her 1974 tune “Just Like a Train.”

The last time Mitchell performed a full set of songs was in 2000. Her official website has gathered together links to fan-shot videos of all 13 performances.

In related news, Paul Simon also made a surprise appearance at the Newport Folk Festival over the weekend. On Saturday, July 23, Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats curated a set of Simon’s songs that featured various guest performers, including Paul, who joined in for the last four songs — “Graceland,” “American Tune,” “The Boxer” and “The Sound of Silence.”

“What an absolute pleasure to work with Nathaniel Rateliff and his incredible band,” Simon wrote on his Facebook page Sunday. “[Nathaniel’s] curation of my music and all of the artists he selected to participate was overwhelming.”

Here’s the full set list of Joni’s performance:

“Carey”
“Come In from the Cold”
“Help Me”
“A Case of You”
“Big Yellow Taxi”
“Just Like This Train”
“Why Do Fools Fall In Love”
“Amelia”
“Love Potion #9”
“Shine”
“Summertime”
“Both Sides Now”
“The Circle Game”

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Stevie Nicks has added a dozen headlining dates to her upcoming 2022 U.S. tour, which includes appearances at five festivals.

The newly announced shows run from a September 13 concert in Clarkston, Michigan through an October 28 performance in West Palm Beach, Florida. Nicks’ tour also will visit Los Angeles, Massachusetts, Maine, Arizona, Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina.

Stevie’s pal, singer-songwriter Vanessa Carlton, will open all 12 shows. Tickets go on sale to the general public starting this Friday, July 29 at 10 a.m. local time via LiveNation.com. Pre-sale tickets will be available starting Thursday, July 28 at 10 a.m. local time.

“Here we go!” Stevie says in a statement about the trek. “I’m so excited to be back on the road and can’t wait to see everyone.”

Nicks’ festival performances are scheduled for September 4 at Jazz Aspen Snowmass in Snowmass, Colorado; September 8 and September 10 at Ravinia in Highland Park, Illinois; September 17 at the Sea.Hear.Now festival in Asbury Park, New Jersey; September 24 at Bridgeport, Connecticut’s Sound on Sound Festival; and September 30 at Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder‘s Ohana Fest in Dana Point, California.

For more information about Stevie’s tour schedule, visit StevieNicksOfficial.com.

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Pink Floyd has debuted an official video for the recently reworked version of the band’s 1994 song “A Great Day for Freedom,” which was released recently digitally and as the B-side of the physical version of the group’s new single, “Hey Hey Rise Up.”

The video, which you can watch at Pink Floyd’s official YouTube channel, features newly edited footage of the band performing during rehearsals for its two-week run of shows at Earl’s Court in London in 1994.

The updated recording of “A Great Day for Freedom” features David Gilmour’s original vocal, guitar and bass; Nick Mason‘s original drums; keyboards by Rick Wright and backing vocals by Sam Brown, Claudia Fontaine and Durga McBroom recorded during the ’94 Earl’s Court show rehearsals; and new keyboard tracks by Gilmour.

“A Great Day for Freedom” originally appeared on Pink Floyd’s 1994 album The Division Bell. The song’s music was composed by Gilmour, with lyrics co-written by David and wife Polly Samson.

The tune reflects with uncertainty about the future of Eastern Europe following the Berlin Wall being torn down, and Gilmour felt the song served as a good companion for “Hey Hey Rise Up,” which was inspired by Russia’s current invasion of Ukraine.

As previously reported, the “Hey Hey Rise Up” single featuring the updated “A Great Day for Freedom” is available now in most countries on CD and as a seven-inch vinyl disc, but won’t be released in those formats in North America and Australia until October 21.

In other news, a 2018 remix of Pink Floyd’s “Dogs,” from the upcoming reissue the band’s 1977 album Animals, has been released as an advance track via digital formats and posted at the band’s YouTube channel. The Animals reissue is due out September 16.

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If 17 new Red Hot Chili Peppers songs weren’t enough for you, then you only have to wait a few months to hear some more.

The “Under the Bridge” outfit has announced another new album to follow April’s Unlimited Love. The upcoming record is titled Return of the Dream Canteen and will arrive October 14.

In a statement, the Peppers describe how the writing and recording process for Unlimited Love, which marked the return of guitarist John Frusciante after he’d left the group in 2009, left them with “more songs than we knew what to do with.”

“Well we figured it out,” the Peps write. “[Two] double albums released back to back. The second of which is easily as meaningful as the first or should that be reversed.”

“Return of the Dream Canteen is everything we are and ever dreamed of being,” they add. “It’s packed.”

You can preorder the album now.

Red Hot Chili Peppers just launched their U.S. tour in support of Unlimited Love over the weekend. The headlining outing, which features artists including HAIM, Beck, Thundercat, The Strokes and King Princess on the bill, stretches into September.

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Longtime Deep Purple guitarist Steve Morse is officially leaving the band after announcing in March that he was taking a temporary hiatus from the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers to be with his wife, Janine, as she battles cancer.

In a new message from Deep Purple, the group explains, “Steve Morse will be stepping back from the band, having been its guitarist for more than a quarter of a century. Steve’s personal circumstances have made it impossible for him to commit to the band’s schedule throughout 2022 and beyond.”

Deep Purple adds, “Steve will be greatly missed by band, crew, management, record label and all those that had the pleasure of working with him over the years.”

Morse joined Deep Purple in 1994, and played on eight studio album by the band, while co-writing nearly every original song that appeared on those records.

In his own statement, Morse explains about his decision to leave the band, “[My wife and I] are learning to accept stage 4 aggressive cancer and chemo treatment for the rest of her life. We both miss being at shows, but I simply couldn’t commit to long, or far away tours, since things can change quickly at home.”

He adds, “I wish to thank the listeners who so strongly supported live music and turned every show from a dress rehearsal to a thundering, exciting experience. I’ll miss everybody in the band and crew but being Janine’s helper and advocate has made a real difference at many key points.”

The band’s statement also includes messages from Morse’s Deep Purple band mates — singer Ian Gillan, drummer Ian Paice, bassist Roger Glover and keyboardist Don Airey — in which they expressed their admiration and affection for Morse.

Deep Purple currently are on tour in Europe with Morse’s replacement, Simon McBride.

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U2 will play the first concerts ever at the MSG Sphere, a high-tech arena that’s being built at the Las Vegas resort The Venetian and that’s scheduled to open next year, Billboard reports, according to multiple sources.

The Irish rockers’ performances at the MSG Sphere reportedly will be part of a residency that will feature a series of shows held on non-consecutive days and will take place over the course of several months.

The MSG Sphere, which is being built by Madison Square Garden Entertainment chairman James Dolan, is being touted as “the largest spherical structure on Earth.” According to press information, the venue has a 20,000 guest capacity, and will offer a multisensory experience that features a 160,000-square-foot immersive video screen with 4D capability, and state-of-the-art spatialized audio.

The structure also will feature an exterior whose look will be changeable thanks to LED technology.

The MSG Square at The Venetian was initially scheduled to open in 2021, but plans were delayed until 2023 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. A second MSG Sphere also is being planned for London.

U2 currently has no confirmed concerts scheduled. The band’s last performance to date took place in December 2019 in Mumbai, India. Meanwhile, as was announced last week, U2 will be among the artists saluted at the 2022 Kennedy Center Honors this December.

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Gilbert O’Sullivan, the Irish-born U.K. pop veteran best known for his 1972 chart-topping ballad “Alone Again (Naturally),” released his 20th studio album, Driven, on Friday.

The 13-track collection includes a pair of duets — “Take Love” with Scottish singer/songwriter KT Tunstall and “Let Bygones Be Bygones” with Simply Red frontman Mick Hucknall — and was produced by Andy Wright, whose previous projects include albums by Simply Red, Simple Minds and Echo and the Bunnymen.

Driven is a follow-up to O’Sullivan’s 2018 self-titled album. It’s available now on CD, on cassette, via digital formats and as an LP pressed on either standard black vinyl or limited-edition clear vinyl.

In advance of Driven‘s release, O’Sullivan debuted music videos for three of the album’s tracks — “Take Love,” “You Can’t Say I Didn’t Try” and “Let Me Know.” You can check out all of the clips on Gilbert’s official YouTube channel.

O’Sullivan is set to launch a new series of tour dates that will see him visit venues in the U.K., Ireland and mainland Europe. The trek kicks off Saturday, July 23 in Chatham, U.K. and is plotted out through a December 12 concert in Birmingham, U.K. Check out all the dates at GilbertOSullivan.co.uk.

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All-star hard-rock band The Dead Daisies will release their sixth studio album, Radiance, on September 30.

The 10-track collection was recorded by the group’s current lineup of former singer/bassist Glenn Hughes, guitarists Doug Aldrich and David Lowy and drummer Brian Tichy. All of the songs were co-written by Hughes, Aldrich and Lowy.

“We had a great time composing and recording the record and I’m very excited for you all to hear what we put together,” says Aldrich, who played with such groups as Whitesnake and Dio prior to joining The Dead Daisies in 2016. “Definitely a heavy album but with some cool twists and turns! Hope you all like it.”

Radiance can be preordered now and will be available as a Digipak CD with a sticker, a vinyl LP in a gatefold sleeve and digitally.

Tichy, who rejoined The Dead Daisies earlier this year after previously playing with the group in 2013 and from 2015 to 2017, describes Radiance as “another slab of butt-kicking rock!”

He adds, “The guys all brought their A-Game and a tight, powerful record was created! I’m looking forward to everyone hearing it and playing more of these songs live in the near future!”

Fans have already been treated to two advance songs from Radiance, the title track and “Shine On,” which were released in June and earlier this month, respectively.

The Dead Daisies are currently on tour in Europe, where they’re opening for Judas Priest on select dates, as well as playing some festivals and headlining shows, through early August. The band also has a brief U.S. trek lined up in September. Check out their full schedule at TheDeadDaisies.com.

Here’s Radiance‘s full track list:

“Face Your Fear”
“Hypnotize Yourself”
“Shine On”
“Radiance”
“Born to Fly”
“Kiss the Sun”
“Courageous”
“Cascade”
“Not Human”
“Roll On”

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The summer is a little less cruel today, as Bananarama has just released its latest studio album, Masquerade.

The 11-track collection arrives as the British dance act celebrates 40 years of making music together. Bananarama, which is made up of two of the group’s three original members, Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward, originally intended Masquerade to be an EP, but the project expanded to a full-length album as the duo continued writing new songs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I love writing songs, it’s probably my favourite part, says Dallin. “Shutting myself away and coming up with ideas and then telling a story in less than 4 minutes, it really is quite an art.”

Adds Woodward, “Arranging the music, vocals and harmonies really is our forte.”

Nine of the album’s 11 tunes were written in collaboration with producer Ian Masterson. Masquerade also includes covers of two songs co-written by Sara’s daughter, Alice Dallin-Walker.

You can check out a music video for the album’s title track on the group’s official YouTube channel.

Bananarama will be performing this Sunday at the star-studded 1980s-themed Rewind Festival in Perth, Scotland. The duo will then celebrate Masquerade‘s release at two special shows in London on August 2 and 3. Visit Bananarama.co.uk for their full concert schedule.

Bananarama enjoyed its biggest success with their chart-topping 1986 cover of Shocking Blue‘s “Venus.” The group also scored top-10 hits in the U.S. in 1983 with “Cruel Summer” and 1987 with “I Heard a Rumour.”

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Jethro Tull has debuted a new music video for “Mine Is the Mountain,” a song from the band’s latest studio album, The Zealot Gene.

In a post on the group’s Facebook page, frontman Ian Anderson explains, “‘Mine Is the Mountain’ is, perhaps, a late-life partner to the Aqualung album song ‘My God.’ I had, as usual, a strong visual reference at the core of the lyrics. A miserable, committed trudge up Mount Sinai by Moses to face an angry maker before he must deliver the goods to his followers below is a powerful image, best imagined unless you are a wilderness trekker and much younger than I.”

The black-and-white clip, which has been posted on Jethro Tull’s official YouTube channel, uses a mix of stop-motion and live footage to depict an enigmatic game between two masked men who roll marbles toward holes on a wooden board and use roughly carved wooden tablets and figurines to build what appears to be a model of Moses ascending Mount Sinai.

The video was created and directed by Thomas Hicks, who previously worked on the clip for another song from The Zealot Gene: “Shoshana Sleeping.” Jethro Tull has also released videos for two other tunes from the album — the title track and “Sad City Sisters.”

Jethro Tull currently is on tour in Europe. Visit JethroTull.com to check out the band’s full itinerary.

Meanwhile, as previously reported, the group will release a 50th-anniversary vinyl reissue of its classic 1972 concept album Thick as a Brick next Friday, July 29. It can be preordered now.

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