Classic Hits

Almost 50 years after beginning his professional music career, founding Toto keyboardist/singer/songwriter David Paich has released his debut solo EP, Forgotten Toys.

Paich co-produced the seven-track collection with longtime Toto frontman Joseph Williams, who also co-wrote and sang on three tunes, while founding Toto guitarist Steve Lukather contributed to multiple songs as well. David also enlisted a variety of other well-known musicians for the project, including Michael McDonald, ex-Eagles guitarist Don Felder, Brian Eno, Elton John guitarist Davey Johnstone, Ray Parker Jr. and Rolling Stones touring drummer Steve Jordan.

Paich tells ABC Audio that he’s “excited” about releasing Forgotten Toys, which he describes as a “collection of little gems.”

“I’m giddy and have butterflies, like I did…when we released the first Toto album,” David says. “I think it’s fresh. It’s new for me…I have my fingers crossed that people will enjoy it out there as much as I enjoyed making it.”

He adds, “[T]he reward…was the actual making of the record, with the players that I made it with. And it was so much fun and so inspiring.”

Paich notes that doing the EP outside of Toto gave him the chance to collaborate with “other musicians who have been family and friends for such a long time…[but] that I normally wouldn’t work with.”

For example, the track “Queen Charade” features Felder on slide guitar and Jordan on drums, with additional guitar from Lukather.

David says the tune, which he calls “my rock ‘n’ roll song,” was influenced by The Stones, noting, “It’s a little more reckless than Toto gets sometimes.”

Coinciding with the EP’s arrival, Paich is releasing the melodic tune “willibelongtoyou” as a single today, along with a companion video.

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Here’s exciting news for Who fans with some disposable cash available: A 1965 Volkswagen camper van that was customized and restored in 2008 with a design inspired by the band’s 1968 hit “Magic Bus” is going up for bid at U.K.-based Silverstone Auctions on Saturday, August 27.

The vehicle, which was designed by the band’s longtime art director, Richard Evans, was originally raffled off in 2008 to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust, for which Who singer Roger Daltrey has long been a patron. The Magic Bus currently is estimated to fetch between 60,000 and 80,000 pounds, or between about $72,000 and $95,000. A large donation from the money raised by the sale will go toward the Teenage Cancer Trust.

The van’s exterior paint job features The Who’s bull’s-eye logo on both sides, as well as images of the band’s four original members, while a large Union Jack flag appears on the roof. The inside boasts red, white and blue upholstery, with an embroidered Who logo appearing on the backrest of some seats. Daltrey and guitarist Pete Townshend have signed the cab’s two sun visors, while Evans autographed an interior wall of the van.

As an added bonus, the winning bidder will receive a limited-edition model of the Magic Bus, as well as some special merch.

Visit SilverstoneAuctions.com for more details about the sale.

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Founding INXS multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Andrew Farriss has just released a music video for the latest single from his 2021 self-titled debut solo album, the uplifting “You Are My Rock,” which premiered Thursday exclusively on the CMT Music channel and at CMT.com.

The video features Farriss and his backing musicians performing the tune in the outback of his native Australia. The tune combines the country influences showcased throughout most of the album with some rock and gospel flavors.

As Farriss explains in a YouTube video clip, “‘You Are My Rock’ is the last track, and I wanted to deliberately leave it ’til the end because I wanted to, basically, kick a** at the end of the record. The song is about thanking people in your life for opportunities that are given to you, for people that support you.”

He adds, “I’m simply saying thank you to everybody [for] listening to my album to get to the end of the song.”

Farriss has a few upcoming U.S. performances lined up to promote his album, including on August 22 in Lexington, Kentucky, and on September 15 at the AmericanaFest event in Nashville.

Farriss co-wrote most of INXS’ songs with the group’s late original frontman, Michael Hutchence, including such big hits as “What You Need,” “Need You Tonight,” “Devil Inside,” “New Sensation,” “Never Tear Us Apart” and “Suicide Blonde.”

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Elton John‘s been traveling the world on his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, but he’s finally enjoying some much-deserved time off with his family.

As the Daily Mail reports, Elton, dressed in head-to-toe Gucci, was spotted on a yacht in the South of France Wednesday with his husband, David Furnish, and their two sons, Zachary and Elijah. His tour won’t resume until September 7 in Toronto, so he’s got plenty of vacation time left. And he’ll need it: The tour isn’t scheduled to wrap up until the summer of 2023.

Meanwhile, it hasn’t been confirmed, but Elton’s much-anticipated collaboration with Britney Spears, “Hold Me Closer,” is rumored to be coming out on Friday. Not much is known about it, other than it appears to be an interpolation, reworking or remix of Elton’s classic “Tiny Dancer.”

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Mariah Carey‘s attempt to trademark the phrase “Queen of Christmas” has encountered more pushback from Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Darlene Love, who has been called the “Queen of Christmas” for many years thanks to her classic holiday song “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home).”

After posting a note on Facebook Monday expressing displeasure with Mariah’s attempt to secure the trademark for the phrase to use for everything from clothing to soy milk to dog accessories, Love has now issued a statement to ABC News, in which she says, “I adore Mariah Carey as an artist and songwriter, but to register the term ‘Queen of Christmas’ for her sole usage doesn’t reflect on the holiday spirit of love and gratitude.”

Love’s statement concludes, “‘Queen of Christmas’ should not be exclusive to anyone except for Mary, Mother of Jesus.” Mariah admitted as much herself in an interview last year with BBC Radio, saying, “To me, Mary is the Queen of Christmas.”

Christmas artist Elizabeth Chan, who has also been called “Queen of Christmas” and whose lawyers have asked the U.S. Trademark Office to reject Mariah’s trademark application, told ABC’s Good Morning America Thursday, “Christmas is meant to be shared, and Christmas is for everyone.”

On GMA Thursday, ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams said of Mariah’s filing, “This is a tough argument for her to make: the idea that she should be able to own all ‘Queen of Christmas’ merchandise moving forward … you have these other singers who’ve specifically used that phrase and [have] been called that, so I don’t see how she’s going to be able to win this sort of trademark application.”

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Billy Idol will release a new four-song EP titled The Cage EP on September 23. He’s given fans a taste of the record by making its lead track, the rocking and melodic “Cage,” available as a digital single.

The Cage EP follows another four-track collection from Idol, 2021’s The Roadside EP. Like last year’s EP, Idol’s main collaborator on the new project is his longtime guitarist Steve Stevens.

The veteran pop-punk rocker also debuted a music video for “Cage” on his official YouTube channel. The black-and-white clip features footage of Billy singing while alternately trying to free himself from a straitjacket and trapped in a small cage. Stevens also makes an appearance in the video, rocking out on lead guitar.

The Cage EP can be preordered now and will be available on CD, digitally, and as a standard black-vinyl disc and a limited-edition red-vinyl disc. A limited number signed copies of the EP are available at Idol’s official store.

Meanwhile, Variety reports that a new documentary about Idol is in the works from Grammy-winning filmmaker and videographer Jonas Akerlund, whose many credits include Madonna‘s “Ray of Light” video and Paul McCartney‘s Live Kisses concert film.

According to Variety, Akerlund was inspired to make a film about Idol after listening to Billy’s audiobook for his 2015 memoir Dancing with Myself.

“I told Billy, ‘This is a film … We need to tell this story,'” notes Akerlund. “He was there when punk-rock happened in London, then moved to New York just as MTV was exploding, and now he’s in Los Angeles. I personally love his story, the incredible events in his life. And the music has touched so many people.”

Here The Cage EP‘s full track list:

“Cage”
“Running from the Ghost”
“Rebel Like You”
“Miss Nobody”

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The first of two new compilations featuring rare and unreleased recordings by late Who bassist John Entwistle will be issued soon by the Deko Entertainment label.

Titled Rarities Oxhumed – Volume One, the album will feature previously unheard studio tracks, demos, remastered live performances and other unreleased gems. Among the live recordings is a performance of the 1978 Who tune “Trick of the Light,” penned and sung by Entwistle.

The albums have been put together by the Deko label in collaboration with longtime Entwistle solo band member Steve Lungo and John’s son, Chris Entwistle.

Deko Entertainment has launched a webpage promoting the new project, which features a countdown clock that’s scheduled to hit zero on Friday, September 9, at about 4 p.m. ET. There’s also a link to a YouTube video featuring an archival interview clip with Entwistle, who says, “I guess I’d like to be remembered as someone who helped change the face of bass guitar, and being probably the only bass guitarist that hasn’t been copyable.”

Entwistle died in June 2002 of a heart attack one day before The Who was scheduled to launch a U.S. tour. He was 57.

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Paul McCartney will be featured in a new episode of the Cosmic Kids children’s yoga series that premieres on Thursday, August 18, at 9 a.m. ET on YouTube and is inspired by the rock legend’s 2021 children’s book, Grandude’s Green Submarine.

Cosmic Kids is a story-based series that Jaime Amor and her husband, Martin, began in 2012 to teach children yoga and mindfulness. Episodes are available on YouTube and via an app that can be accessed through various streaming devices.

The new episode will offer a kids yoga adventure based on Grandude’s Green Submarine, which tells the story of a grandfather who sets sail with his grandkids, whom he calls his chillers, in his magical submarine on a journey to find his wife, Nandude.

According to a statement promoting the show, the story is a “wonderful celebration of the relationship between kids and their grandparents.”

You can check out a preview of the episode at Macca’s Facebook page.

Grandude’s Green Submarine is a sequel 2019’s Hey Grandude! Both books were written by McCartney and illustrated by Kathryn Durst.

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When it comes to blended families, Rod Stewart‘s an expert: He’s got eight children by five different women, so you can imagine how hard it must be to get them all together for anything, let alone a vacation. But he and his wife, Penny Lancaster, managed to pull it off for the first time in seven years.

The luxurious Italian vacation brought together seven of Sir Rod’s kids: Ruby, Renee, Liam, Kimberly, Sean, Alastair and Aidan. The only one missing was Sarah, who was raised by adoptive parents and didn’t meet Rod, 77, until later in life. They do have a relationship, but it’s not as close as the others.

Rod’s daughter Ruby, whose mother is model Kelly Emberg, has posted numerous photos of herself and her half siblings with Rod and Penny on Instagram. She wrote, “Our last family vacation was in 2015, so this one was well overdue. We all live in different places now and sometimes we miss some pretty important milestones in one another’s life. It can be difficult getting us all together, but the incredible @penny.lancaster managed to do it this time.”

She added, “I am beyond grateful for this mixed batch of personalities that is the Stewart Clan. I don’t know where I’d be with out you lot…Thank you dad for reminding us of the importance of family and Thank you Penny for always bringing us together again.”

Penny and the various siblings also posted their own snaps of the trip to the Amalfi coast, the island of Elba and other locations.

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Todd Rundgren‘s long-delayed studio album Space Force, which features collaborations with an eclectic variety of artists, will finally be released October 14.

Space Force is a 12-track collection that, as previously reported, includes contributions from Cheap Trick‘s Rick Nielsen, Steve Vai, Thomas Dolby, Crowded House frontman Neil Finn, former King Crimson guitarist Adrian Belew, Weezer‘s Rivers Cuomo, Sparks and The Roots.

The lead track, a collaboration with Belew titled “Puzzle,” has just been released as the latest advance single from the album.

Four other Space Force tracks were previously released — “Espionage,” featuring Iraqi-Canadian hip-hop artist Narcy; “Down with the Ship” with Cuomo; “Your Fandango” with Sparks; and “Godiva Girl” with The Roots.

Originally due out in early 2021, Space Force is a follow-up to Rundgren’s 2017 album White Knight, another star-studded collection of collaborations.

In a new Variety interview, Rundgren says Space Force differs from White Knight in that the new album’s tracks featured more input from his collaborators.

“One of the reasons why I did White Knight was to force myself into opening up the process to others, but I had only done it halfway because I was still coming up with almost all of the material,” Todd notes. “So I thought, let’s go the next step. Let’s start using other people’s song ideas as the basis of where the music should go.”

Space Force can be preordered now and will be available on CD, in multiple colored-vinyl options and via digital formats.

Meanwhile, Rundgren has one joint concert with Daryl Hall scheduled for October 1 in Brookville, New York. Then, starting October 6, he’ll head out on the Celebrating David Bowie tribute tour, which also features Belew and other musicians.

Here’s the full Space Force track list:

“Puzzle” — with Adrian Belew
“Down with the Ship” — with Rivers Cuomo
“Artist in Residence” — with Neil Finn
“Godiva Girl” — with The Roots
“Your Fandango” — with Sparks
“Someday” — with Davey Lane
“I’m Not Your Dog” — with Thomas Dolby
“Espionage” — with Narcy
“STFU” — with Rick Nielsen
“Head in the Ocean” — with Alfie
“I’m Leaving” — with The Lemon Twigs
“Eco Warrior Goddess” — with Steve Vai

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