Classic Hits

Originally released in September of 1992, The Police compilation Greatest Hits is being reissued on vinyl for its 30th anniversary.

The album had a limited vinyl release because of course back in the day, all anybody wanted was CDs.  As a result, it’s long been out of print, but it’ll be back on April 15.  The two-LP set was remastered at Abbey Road and cut at half speed. It comes as two heavyweight vinyl discs packaged in a gatefold sleeve. You can pre-order it now.

The album includes 16 tracks spanning the band’s five studio albums, from “Roxanne” from Outlandos d’Amour, to “Tea in the Sahara,” from Synchronicity.

Meanwhile, the three members of The Police are keeping busy: Sting resumes his world tour in March and his Las Vegas residency in June, while Andy Summers will tour his latest photo exhibit this July and his one-man multimedia music show in October.  Stewart Copeland will be performing with an orchestra in North America and Europe this year, and premiere his latest opera, The Witches Seed, in Italy in July.

Here’s the Greatest Hits track listing:

Disc One

Side A
“Roxanne”
“Can’t Stand Losing You”
“So Lonely”
“Message in a Bottle”

Side B
“Walking on the Moon”
“The Bed’s Too Big Without You”
“Don’t Stand So Close to Me”
“De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da”

Disc Two

Side A
“Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic”
“Invisible Sun”
“Spirits in the Material World”
“Synchronicity II”

Side B
“Every Breath You Take”
“King of Pain”
“Wrapped Around Your Finger”
“Tea in the Sahara”

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After announcing on his socials earlier this month that he’d be touring North America this summer with Cheap Trick, Rod Stewart has now revealed the full list of dates for the trek, as well as the on-sale dates.  But Rod says when it comes to his set list, it’ll pretty much be the hits and nothing but the hits.

The 38-date tour, which officially kicks off June 10 in Vancouver, Canada, is Rod’s first in four years. And while his new album, The Tears of Hercules, came out last year, he says fans may not hear much more beyond its first single at his shows.

“Yeah, ‘One More Time‘ will be in there,” he says of the song he released last year. “But, you know, I give people what they want: They all want to hear the same songs.”

Rod adds, “As much as I’ll try and say, ‘Look, please let me play a few new songs!’ they want to hear the old ones. As would I!” 

That’s right: Rod knows what it’s like to want to hear your favorite artist play your favorite songs, because that’s what he’d want to hear…if he could.

“If my idols were alive today, I would want to hear Sam Cooke sing ‘Cupid,’ Otis [Redding] sing ‘Dock of the Bay,’ David Ruffin sing ‘My Girl,'” he admits. “I’m a give-[’em]-what-they-wanter type of bloke.”

Right now, Rod’s tour is scheduled to wrap up September 17 in Edmonton, Canada. Tickets for most dates go on sale to the public on February 25 at 10 a.m. local time; Canadian dates go on sale March 4 via LiveNation.com.  Details on pre-sales, which start on Monday, can be found at RodStewart.com.

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Fender has created a limited-edition replica version of George Harrison‘s 1968 rosewood Telecaster, which the late Beatle used during the 1969 sessions for the band’s Let It Be album and played at the group’s historic rooftop concert in London, as seen in the acclaimed Disney+ docuseries The Beatles: Get Back.

The instrument is available for a list price of $2,900, and only 1,000 copies will be produced.

The original 1968 rosewood Telecaster was a prototype model that Fender gave to Harrison in late 1968.

The guitar’s features include a chambered rosewood body, a late-1960s “C”-shaped rosewood neck, a rosewood fretboard, two vintage 1964 Telecaster pickups, “F”-stamped tuners and a neckplate that boasts an engraved George Harrison’s signature and his tradmark Om logo.

In a YouTube video promoting the George Harrison Rosewood Telecaster, Fender product manager notes that the guitar “has a sound all its own, with bell-like highs, smooth mids and punchy lows.”

The guitar comes packaged in a hardshell case.

Visit Fender.com for full details.

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Now we know why Journey‘s upcoming North American trek is called the 2022 Freedom Tour. Guitarist Neal Schon took to his Instagram page today to reveal that the band’s new studio album is titled Freedom.

Schon posted a photo that shows Journey’s logo, the title Freedom and the record’s 15-song track list, along with a message that reads, “Teaser…it’s coming and it’s loaded.”

The album includes lead single “The Way We Used to Be,” which was released back in June of 2021, as well as songs titled “Together We Run,” “Still Believe in Love,” “After Glow,” “Let It Rain,” “All Day All Night” and “United We Stand.”

Schon also posted a note today on his Twitter feed about the forthcoming album, writing, “I wanted to stick true artistically to the times and values of older albums where every track means something and it’s meant to be played from top to bottom and take you on a ride…no pun intended ‘JOURNEY FREEDOM.'”

No word yet on a release date.

Freedom will be Journey’s first new studio album since 2011’s Eclipse. It’s also the band’s first new album since the 2020 firings of longtime bassist Ross Valory and drummer Steve Smith, who were replaced, respectively, by Randy Jackson and Narada Michael Walden.

Journey’s current lineup features Schon, keyboardist Jonathan Cain, singer Arnel Pineda, keyboardist/backing singer Jason Derlatka, and drummer Deen Castronovo. It’s not clear whether Jackson or Walden will be touring with the band.

Journey’s Freedom Tour 2022, featuring special guest Toto, kicks off February 22 in Pittsburgh.

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Mariah Carey may soon have to take the witness stand and testify against her brother, Morgan Carey, who claims that his famous sister defamed him in her best-selling memoir.  He first filed his case in March 2021, claiming his sister was spreading “malicious falsehoods” that caused “serious damage to his reputation.”

According to court documents obtained by ABC News, Justice Barbara Jaffe of New York ruled that Mariah could be sued for defamation over two passages in The Meaning of Mariah Carey.  The Grammy winner had stated that Morgan, who is 10 years her senior, had a criminal past and sold narcotics.  

“Although Carey maintains that the phrase ‘sometimes drug dealing’ is a ‘rhetorical epithet,’ in light of the earlier statement that plaintiff had supplied clubgoers with ‘powdered party favors,’ the average reader could understand this phrase to mean that plaintiff had committed a serious crime,” Jaffe ruled on Wednesday.

While the judge ruled that Morgan can sue to hold his sister liable, Jaffe rejected his request to also name Macmillan Publishing Group, the book’s publisher, as a defendant.  The judge wrote, “Evidence that Carey was a difficult person does not demonstrate that publisher defendants entertained or should have entertained doubts about the veracity of her statements at the time of publication.”

Morgan will have to refile a new complaint against Mariah, as his original case singled out eight passages.  Jaffe rejected six of those passages, saying they didn’t meet the standards of defamation, but said the sections about Morgan’s alleged drug dealing did satisfy the requirements.

Once Morgan refiles, his case can then proceed to trial. 

That isn’t the only legal battle Mariah is potentially facing over her memoir.  Her sister, Alison, similarly filed suit over certain passages in the book.

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A partial list of artists who will perform at the 2022 Beale Street Music Festival was revealed in December, but now the full lineup has been announced for the event, which takes place April 29 to May 1 in Memphis, Tennessee.

Van Morrison, Counting Crows, Sarah McLachlan and Elvin Bishop are among the artists who have joined the bill. Other notable new additions to the lineup include Weezer, Stone Temple Pilots, Indigo Girls, Grace Potter, Patty Griffin, Chevelle, Spoon, and Death Cab for Cutie.

Previously announced artists set to play the festival include Lindsey Buckingham, Foo Fighters, The Smashing Pumpkins, Toad the Wet Sprocket, rap star Lil Wayne, and blues guitarist Sue Foley.

This year’s event will take place at the Fairgrounds in Liberty Park, since the Memphis festival’s traditional site, Tom Lee Park, is undergoing renovations.

For the full lineup and all ticket info, visit MemphisinMay.org.

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Limited-edition vinyl discs from Elton John, The Rolling Stones, Madonna and The Who are among the exclusive releases that’ll be available at independent record stores for the 2022 installment of Record Store Day.

Elton’s Record Store Day offering is The Complete Thom Bell Sessions, a six-song EP pressed on purple vinyl that’s an expanded version of an EP he released in 1977.

The Rolling Stones’ release is a 50th anniversary reissue of their classic 1972 two-LP compilation More Hot Rocks, pressed on glow-in-the-dark vinyl.

Madonna is issuing a five-track red-vinyl maxi EP celebrating the 35th anniversary of the soundtrack to her 1987 film Who’s That Girl, including a “Super Club Mix” of the title track.

The Who is releasing an expanded 40th anniversary reissue of their 1982 album It’s Hard. The two-LP collection features bonus tracks, and one orange and one yellow disc.

This year’s Record Store Day features over 320 titles in all, including releases from Allman Brothers Band, America, Asia, Rick Astley, Blondie, David Bowie, Mariah Carey, Belinda Carlisle, Ray Charles, Chicago, The Cure, Def Leppard, Devo, Thomas Dolby, The Doors, Sheena Easton, The Everly Brothers, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Peter Gabriel, Billy Gibbons, The Jackson 5, Joan Jett, The Kinks, The Knack, Nick Lowe, Madness, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nicks, Night Ranger, Prince, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Keith Richards, Santana, Simple Minds, Ringo Starr, Donna Summer, The Sweet, Pete Townshend, U2 and Barry White.

Record Store Day 2022 takes place April 23. Additionally, organizers are setting aside June 18 as a “safety net” drop date for planned releases that can’t make it to stores by April 23 due to issues including manufacturing or shipping delays.

For the full list of releases and participating stores, visit RecordStoreDay.com.

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Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards will headline the sixth annual edition of the star-studded Love Rocks NYC! benefit concert, which will take place March 10 at the Beacon Theatre in New York City.

The show will feature Richards reuniting with his solo band The X-Pensive Winos. The lineup also includes Melissa Etheridge, Mavis Staples, ex-Allman Brothers Band singer/guitarist Warren Haynes, Hozier and many more.

The Love Rocks NYC! concert raises money for the God’s Love We Deliver charity, which provides nutritious meals to seriously ill people in the New York City area.

The show will be co-hosted by comedian Mario Cantone and actors Gina Gershon, Kiefer Sutherland, Steve Schirripa and Michelle Buteau.

The event’s house band will be led by longtime CBS Orchestra bassist Will Lee, and will include one-time Bob Dylan and Levon Helm touring guitarist Larry Campbell, Eric Clapton touring drummer Steve Gadd and Fleetwood Mac touring keyboardist Ricky Peterson.

You can sign up for more information about the concert at LoveRocksNYC.com and GLWD.org. The website also is offering a free encore stream of the 2021 Love Rocks NYC! show, which included performances from Jon Bon Jovi, ZZ Top‘s Billy Gibbons, Haynes and many others. Those who watch the event are encouraged to donate money to God’s Love We Deliver.

Richards performance with The X-Pensive Winos at the benefit show takes place just eight days before the release of the 30th anniversary reissue of Keith’s 1992 solo album, Main Offender, which he mainly recorded with the members of the band.

The X-Pensive Winos feature acclaimed drummer/producer Steve Jordan — who became The Rolling Stones’ touring drummer in 2021 — guitarist Waddy Wachtel, bassist/keyboardist Charley Drayton and keyboardist Ivan Neville.

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Veteran Scottish hard-rockers Nazareth will release their 25th album, Surviving the Law, on April 15.

The 14-track collection can be pre-ordered now, and will be available on CD, vinyl, cassette and digital formats.

Nazareth has released the album’s lead track, “Strange Days,” as an advance digital single.  A music video for the tune has premiered at the Frontiers Music label’s official YouTube channel.

The band’s current lineup features original bassist Pete Agnew; guitarist Jimmy Murrison, who joined Nazareth in 1994; drummer Lee Agnew, Pete’s son, whose been a member of the group since 1999; and lead singer Carl Sentence, who replaced founding frontman Dan McCafferty in 2015 after McCafferty was forced to retire for health reasons.

Surviving the Law is the second studio album the current Nazareth lineup has recorded, following 2018’s Tattooed on My Brain. The new project features songwriting contributions from all four band members.

Nazareth is best-known in the U.S. for their top 10 cover of the Everly Brothers hit “Love Hurts,” and the classic rock staple “Hair of the Dog,” which both appeared on the band’s 1975 album, Hair of the Dog.

Here’s the full track list of Surviving the Law:

“Strange Days”
“You Gotta Pass It Around”
“Runaway”
“Better Leave It Out”
“Mind Bomb”
“Sweet Kiss”
“Falling In Love”
“Waiting for the World to End”
“Let the Whisky Flow”
“Sinner”
“Ciggies and Booze”
“Psycho Skies”
“Love Breaks”
“You Made Me”

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It doesn’t make a difference if you make it or not, but Bon Jovi is asking local bands to audition to open for them on their upcoming tour.

Bands who are interested in auditioning should submit a video to BonJovi.com of themselves performing original music.  One band will be chosen for each concert date.

Bon Jovi’s tour kicks off April 1 in Omaha, NE and is currently scheduled to wrap up April 30 in Nashville. Tickets are on sale now.  The trek comes in support of the most recent Bon Jovi album, 2020, which was released in October of 2020 after being delayed due to the pandemic.

For the past two years, the band has been creating online performance content. However, Jon Bon Jovi says in a statement, “We have all missed touring and we know that nothing can replace the energy of a live show for the fans or the band.”

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