Sammy Hagar and his current group The Circle have unveiled plans for a 14-show U.S. trek dubbed the Crazy Times tour featuring special guests George Thorogood & The Destroyers that will take place on select dates in June, August and September.
The tour gets underway on June 10 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and is plotted out through a September 10 show in Irvine, California.
Tickets for the dates go on sale to the general public on Friday, January 28, at 10 a.m. local time via Live Nation. Members of Hagar’s Redhead Fan Club will be able to purchase pre-sale tickets beginning Tuesday, January 25, at 10 a.m. local time. For more information, visit RedRocker.com.
“A tour this size has been a long time coming and it’s definitely going to be worth the wait,” the Red Rocker says in a statement. “The Circle and I are super excited and ready to throw the party of the year with George Thorogood. We’re going to take the music and party to a whole new level — ‘Crazy Times’ is an understatement.”
The Crazy Times trek will follow Hagar’s recently announced 2022 Las Vegas residency at The STRAT Theater. Those shows, which will feature Sammy performing with The Circle and some surprise guests, are scheduled for February 9, 11 and 12, and March 23, 25 and 26.
The Circle features founding Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, acclaimed rock drummer Jason Bonham and guitarist Vic Johnson of Hagar’s longtime backing group, The Wabos.
Cyndi Lauper‘s smash hit “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” is officially a billionaire — if you count YouTube views, that is. The video for her 1983 debut single officially reached the billion-views mark in less than 13 years.
According to an official press release, the clip was first uploaded to YouTube in October 2009 and, to date, is Cyndi’s only video to amass over a billion views.
In reaction to the honor, the pop singer said in a statementon Monday, “A lot of people don’t realize this but ‘Girls’ is really a political song. When I got my feminist hands on it, I knew I wanted to make it into an anthem for all women. Sonically, I wanted the song to be uplifting and joyful.”
Cyndi added that she made sure the music video highlighted “women from every walk of life” so it would empower women and girls everywhere. “I wanted us to be a community,” she said, noting she saw the impact of her song when attending a women’s march years later.
“I saw all types of women and girls carrying signs saying ‘Girls Just Want to Have Fun-damental Rights,'” Cyndi recalled. “And now here we are at a Billion views.”
She closed by noting, “Back when we made the video there was no YouTube, so when you think about it it’s really extraordinary. The reach that this song has. The longevity. That people still purposely seek this video out and press play. Wow. I’m really grateful.”
“Girls Just Want to Have Fun” was released in September 1983, and was the lead single off her debut album, She’s So Unusual. The song peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified Platinum by the RIAA after selling over a million copies in the U.S.
Donald Kravitz/Getty Images; Gary Miller/Getty Images
Well-known veteran rock acts Foreigner and Grand Funk Railroad, as well as Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening, will be opening for Kid Rock on various dates of his just announced 2022 Bad Reputation Tour of the U.S.
The Michigan rocker’s 25-date trek kicks off April 6 in Evansville, Indiana, and is scheduled to run through a September 16-17 stand in the Detroit suburb of Clarkston, Michigan.
Grand Funk Railroad will be Kid Rock’s special guest at nearly all of the concerts during the first portion of the tour, spanning from April 6 through a June 18 show in Raleigh, North Carolina, with the exception of gigs on May 20 in Louisville, Kentucky, and May 21 in Nashville, which will feature Jason Bonham‘s Led Zeppelin tribute group as the support act.
Starting at a June 24 concert in The Woodlands, Texas, Foreigner will take over as the special guest for the remainder of the tour.
Foreigner guitarist/songwriter Mick Jones, whose band previously hit the road with Kid Rock in 2015, says, “We are so looking forward to touring again with our good friend Kid Rock. Our 2015 tour across the US introduced Foreigner to a whole new audience and I will never forget the wonderful times we had with him on his ten show sold out run in Detroit.”
He adds, “I wrote ‘Dirty White Boy’ as a tribute to Elvis, but it also serves as a tribute to Kid Rock. I look forward to dedicating that song to him every night during the tour.”
The launch of the trek will coincide with the release of a new Kid Rock album called Bad Reputation. Tickets for the shows go on sale to the general public this Friday, January 28, at 10 a.m. ET local time via Ticketmaster.
Sony Music Entertainment announced today that it’s acquired Bob Dylan‘s entire recorded-music catalog, as well as the rights to various future releases.
The 80-year-old folk-rock legend’s longtime label notes that the agreement, which was reached in July 2021, is a major expansion of its 60-year relationship with the influential singer/songwriter.
The deal spans Dylan’s entire career, from his 1962 self-titled debut album through 2020’s Rough and Rowdy Ways.
Via the agreement, Dylan and Sony Music Entertainment, which is Columbia Records’ parent company, will continue to work together on archival releases for Bob’s Bootleg Series, as well as other projects.
“Columbia Records and [Sony Music Group chairman] Rob Stringer have been nothing but good to me for many, many years and a whole lot of records,” says Dylan. “I’m glad that all my recordings can stay where they belong.”
Adds Stringer, “The essential impact [Dylan] and his recordings continue to have on popular culture is second to none and we’re thrilled he will now be a permanent member of the Sony Music family. We are excited to work with Bob and his team to find new ways to make his music available to his many fans today and to future generations.”
Sources tell Variety that the deal is worth between $150 million and $200 million, although that figure is unconfirmed.
In late 2020, Dylan sold the publishing rights to his songs to Universal Music Group for an amount estimated to be nearly $400 million, according to Variety.
In other news, Dylan has scheduled a spring U.S. tour that runs from a March 3 concert in Phoenix through an April 14 show in Oklahoma City. Tickets for most dates go on sale this Friday, January 28. Visit BobDylan.com for more details.
Ringo Starr plays drums on a brand-new song by Men at Work frontman Colin Hay called “Now and the Evermore,” which is the title track of Hay’s forthcoming solo album.
Hay, who happens to be a current member of Ringo’s All Starr Band, will release the new album on March 18, while the song is available now as a digital single.
“‘Now and the Evermore’ is a reminder to myself, to make the most of what time I have left walking around on top of the planet,” Colin says about the tune. “When I listen to it, it transports me back to when I thought I had all the time in the world. It is a song which is unashamedly inspired by the majesty of The Beatles, and the gift they gave us all. Having Ringo Starr play on the track, is more than icing on the cake.”
Hay wrote and recorded the Now and the Evermore album in his adopted hometown of Los Angeles. A press statement describes the 10-track collection as “a defiantly joyful celebration of life and love, one that insists on finding silver linings and reasons to smile.” The record finds the 68-year-old singer-songwriter reflecting on loss and mortality, while exploring such genres as vintage pop, pub rock and folk.
You can pre-orderNow and the Evermore now. Hay will support the album with a solo U.S. tour that’s mapped out from a March 18 concert in Fort Collins, Colorado, through a May 12 show in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Colin also will be hitting the road this year with Ringo’s All Starr Band, which kicks off a U.S. trek on June 2 in Boston.
Here’s the album’s full track list:
“Now and the Evermore”
“Love Is Everywhere”
“Into the Bright Lights”
“The Sea of Always”
“Starfish and Unicorns”
“A Man Without a Name”
“Undertow”
“All I See Is You”
“Agatha Bell”
“When Does the End Begin?”
Hall & Oates singer Daryl Hall will release his first-ever solo best-of compilation, titled BeforeAfter, on April 1, and to promote the album, Daryl will be teaming up with fellow Philadelphia-area native Todd Rundgren for a series of eight joint U.S. concerts that month.
BeforeAfter is a 30-track collection that features selections from all five of Hall’s solo studio albums, as well as eight performances from his acclaimed TV/web series Live from Daryl’s House, six of which are previously unreleased.
Hall’s work outside of Hall & Oates includes his 1980 solo debut, Sacred Songs, produced by King Crimson‘s Robert Fripp, and 1986’s Three Hearts in the Happy Ending Machine, which was co-produced by Eurythmics‘ Dave Stewart and included several tunes co-written by Stewart.
“I picked this collection of songs from my solo albums because I feel they encapsulate certain periods of my career,” says Hall. “It also shows the diversity of working with collaborators like Robert Fripp or Dave Stewart. And, having some tracks from [Live from Daryl’s House] on it…really makes the compilation complete.”
BeforeAfter kicks off with “Dreamtime,” which reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1986. The Live from Daryl’s House performances include a rendition of Eurythmics’ “Here Comes the Rain Again” with Stewart, a version of Rundgren’s “Can We Still Be Friends” with Todd, and covers of hits by Ruby and the Romantics and Gladys Knight and the Pips.
As for Hall’s tour with Rundgren, it runs from an April 1 concert in Chicago through an April 16 show in National Harbor, Maryland, and includes stops at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium and New York City’s Carnegie Hall on April 5 and April 14, respectively.
BeforeAfter can be pre-ordered now. Here’s the full track list:
Disc One:
“Dreamtime”
“Babs and Babs”
“Foolish Pride”
“Can’t Stop Dreaming”
“Here Comes the Rain Again” (Live from Daryl’s House) — with Dave Stewart
“Someone Like You”
“Talking to You (Is Like Talking to Myself)”
“Sacred Songs”
“Right as Rain”
“Survive”
“North Star” (Live from Daryl’s House) — with Monte Montgomery
“In My Own Dream” (Live from Daryl’s House)
“NYCNY”
“What’s Gonna Happen to Us”
Disc Two:
“Love Revelation”
“Fools Rush In”
“I’m in a Philly Mood”
“Send Me”
“Justify”
“Borderline”
“Stop Loving Me, Stop Loving You”
“Eyes for You (Ain’t No Doubt About It)”
“The Farther Away I Am”
“Why Was It So Easy”
“Can We Still Be Friends” (Live from Daryl’s House) — with Todd Rundgren
“Cab Driver”
“Our Day Will Come” (Live from Daryl’s House)
“Laughing Down Crying” (Live from Daryl’s House)
“Problem with You” (Live from Daryl’s House)
“Neither One of Us (Wants To Be the First to Say Goodbye)” (Live from Daryl’s House)
And here are Daryl’s tour dates with Todd:
4/1 — Chicago, IL, Auditorium Theatre
4/3 -– Nashville, TN, Ryman Auditorium
4/5 -– Atlanta, GA, Atlanta Symphony Hall
4/7 -– Northfield, OH, MGM Northfield Park
4/9 -– Philadelphia, PA, The Met Philadelphia
4/11 -– Boston, MA, Orpheum Theatre
4/14 -– New York, NY, Carnegie Hall
4/16 -– National Harbor, MD, The Theatre at MGM National Harbor
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for God’s Love we Deliver
Last year, Heart guitarist Nancy Wilson told ABC Audio that both she and her sister and band mate Ann were interested in touring together again, possibly in 2022, but Nancy now says a conflict with her sibling has put those plans on hold.
On Friday, Nancy took part in a livestream chat at the social-networking site TalkShop.Live, during which fans could buy signed copies of her 2021 solo album, You and Me.
During the interview, Nancy revealed that discussions about a new Heart tour between her and Ann’s camp broke down over a disagreement regarding the musicians that would back her and Ann.
“[T]hey were trying to bring their new lineup of players that Ann wanted to put on stage as Heart with me and I wasn’t really willing to do that,” Nancy explained, referring to Ann’s current solo group, which is called The Amazing Dawgs.
“I don’t know those guys, you know, and I didn’t want to feel like a sideman,” Nancy continued. “So, [the tour]…kind of went away. They didn’t really respond to any of our responses in response to…what they [wanted]…They wanted this and I didn’t want that and nobody responded to anything, so…”
She added, “[M]y thing was that everybody that’s played on the last big Heart tour [in 2019] would be back, you know, in the same band,” then noted, “I think Ann might be a little bored with Heart. I don’t know.”
It’s worth pointing out that most of Heart’s backing band for their 2019 tour are part of Nancy’s current solo group.
Also during the interview, Nancy revealed that she also has plans for a solo acoustic album and a Christmas album.
You can buy signed CD and blue-vinyl copies of You and Me at TalkShop.Live.
Coinciding with today’s release of John Mellencamp‘s latest studio album, Strictly a One-Eyed Jack, the famed singer-songwriter has released a new single from the record called “Did You Say Such a Thing.”
The gritty-sounding blues-rock tune, which is available now via digital formats, features backing vocals from Bruce Springsteen, and is one of three collaborations with the Boss featured on the album.
You can check out a visualizer video for “Did You Say Such a Thing” on Mellencamp’s official YouTube channel.
Mellencamp wrote and self-produced Strictly a One-Eyed Jack at his Belmont Mall Studios in Bloomington, Indiana. He’d previously released one of the other Springsteen collaborations, “Wasted Days,” as an advance single back in September of last year.
Strictly a One-Eyed Jack is currently available everywhere.
Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock, a reboot of the original show, premiered today on Apple TV+, and coinciding with its debut, a soundtrack has been released via digital formats.
In addition, Rock & Roll Hall of Famers the Foo Fighters, who also had previously been announced as making a “special appearance” in the series, have recorded a song called “Fraggle Rock Rock” for the soundtrack. Other guest stars appearing on Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock include Saturday Night Live‘s Kenan Thompson and The Office‘s Ed Helms.
All the songs from the soundtrack are featured in the new 13-episode series.
Barry Manilow enjoyed a little surprise when enjoying dinner with songwriting partner Bruce Sussman at a New York City restaurant Thursday night. According to Page Six, once the patrons figured out the legendary singer was in the house, they burst into a performance of his signature song, “Copacabana.”
A witness to the impromptu celebration at Fresco by Scotto told Page Six, “It was insane. Almost everyone dropped their pasta and meatballs to form a conga line that snaked around the restaurant before arriving at the foot of Bruce and Barry’s table.”
Barry was delighted by the sight and, the insider dished, “[He] was giggling and screaming to Bruce, ‘I can’t believe they all know all the lyrics!'”
The 78-year-old hitmaker was so moved by the display that he told the co-owner, “We have to come back.” A spy adds the two tipped 100 percent of their bill, paying the good vibes forward to their server.
As for why Barry is is hanging around NYC, it’s because he and Sussman are working on their new musical, Harmony, which will go into previews in March. The story is about the singing group Comedian Harmonists, a band of six German men of Jewish descent who became musical sensations in the 1920s, before facing danger due to the rise of the Nazi party.
