Don McLean is tipping his hat to Taylor Swift after the 31-year-old pop superstar broke the record that the veteran singer-songwriter set on the Billboard Hot 100 almost 50 years ago.
Since 1972, Don’s eight-minute, 34-second classic “American Pie (Parts I & II)” held the title for the lengthiest song to hit number one. Well, that longstanding record was broken this week when Taylor’s 10-minute, 13-second song “All Too Well” bowed atop the Hot 100.
“There is something to be said for a great song that has staying power,” 76-year-old McLean said in a statement to ABC Audio. “‘American Pie’ remained on top for 50 years and now Taylor Swift has unseated such a historic piece of artistry. Let’s face it, nobody ever wants to lose that #1 spot, but if I had to lose it to somebody, I sure am glad it was another great singer/songwriter such as Taylor.”
Taylor’s 10-minute-plus recording of “All Too Well” is featured as a bonus track on Red (Taylor’s Version), which she released on November 12.
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The nominees for the 2022 Grammy Awards were announced today, and among the veteran artists in the running for multiple trophies next year are AC/DC and Paul McCartney.
The Australian hard rockers and the former Beatles legend both will compete for the Best Rock Album prize, for Power Up and McCartney III, respectively.
AC/DC also was nominated for the Best Rock Performance honor for “Shot in the Dark,” while the video for the track scored a nod in the Best Music Video category. McCartney also is in the running for Best Rock Song, for the McCartney III track “Find My Way.”
Other veteran artists receiving Grammy nominations this year include ABBA, Jackson Browne, Los Lobos, Police drummer Stewart Copeland, Carole King, Steve Cropper, ex-Talking Heads frontman David Byrne, the late Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell and the late Prince.
ABBA is up for the Record of the Year for their new song “I Still Have Faith in You.” Browne and Los Lobos will vie for the Best Americana Album trophy for their respective records Downhill from Everywhere and Native Sons.
Copeland’s collaborative album with Ricky Kej, Divine Tides, is nominated for Best New Age Album. King received a Best Song Written for Visual Media nod for “Here I Am (Singing My Way Home),” which she co-wrote with Jennifer Hudson and Jamie Hartman for the Aretha Franklin biopic Respect.
Cropper’s Fire It Up will compete for the Best Contemporary Blues Album honor.
Among the Best Music Film nominees are David Byrne’s American Utopia and Music, Money, Madness…Jimi Hendrix in Maui, while potential honorees for Best Historical Album include the Joni Mitchell Archives, Vol. 1 box set and the deluxe reissue of Prince’s Sign o’ the Times.
Check out the full list of nominees at Grammy.com.
The 2022 Grammys will take place Monday, January 31.
Forty years ago today, AC/DC released its seventh internationally available studio album, For Those About to Rock (We Salute You), a follow-up to the Australian rockers’ massively successful Back in Black.
While its popularity and impact paled in comparison to Back in Black — which, with 25 million copies sold, has become the fourth best-selling album ever in the U.S. — For Those About to Rock was AC/DC’s first album to reach #1 on the Billboard 200.
The album also was AC/DC’s second with singer Brian Johnson, who joined the band before the recording of Back in Black following the death of longtime frontman Bon Scott. Additionally, it was the third of three consecutive AC/DC records produced by Robert John “Mutt” Lange.
For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) spent three weeks at the top of the Billboard 200, spanning the last week of 1981 and the first two weeks of 1982. Two singles were released from the album: the title track and “Let’s Get It Up,” which reached #4 and #9, respectively, on Billboard‘s Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. “Let’s Get It Up” also peaked at #44 on the Billboard Hot 100.
AC/DC toured extensively in 1981 and ’82 in support of the album, which has gone on to sell over four million copies in the U.S.
Here’s the For Those About to Rock (We Salute You) track list:
“For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)”
“I Put the Finger on You”
“Let’s Get It Up”
“Inject the Venom”
“Snowballed”
“Evil Walks”
“C.O.D.”
“Breaking the Rules”
“Night of the Long Knives”
“Spellbound”
The five-date tour kicks off on April 2 in Morristown, New Jersey, and also will visit Washington, D.C., on April 4; New York City on April 5; and Chicago on April 7, before winding down in Los Angles on April 7.
The Hollies have long been led by two members of the band’s classic lineup — lead guitarist Tony Hicks and drummer Bobby Elliott. Rounding out the group’s current incarnation are lead singer Peter Howarth, bassist Ray Stiles, keyboardist Ian Parker and rhythm guitarist Steve Lauri.
“We felt like this is something no other band gets to do, celebrate six decades together,” says Hicks. “Sixty years of this band and these songs means so much to us and so many others.”
Adds Elliott, “We’re incredibly excited performing for everyone on what will be some of the most special shows in the history of The Hollies.”
The group, which was co-founded in 1962 by singers Allan Clarke and Graham Nash, scored a string of hits in the 1960s and early ’70s, including “Bus Stop,” “Stop Stop Stop,” “Carrie-Anne,” “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother,” “The Air That I Breathe” and “Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress).”
Tickets for The Hollies’ U.S. tour are on sale now and can be purchased by visiting TheHolliesOfficial.com.
Prior to the trek, the band will be making a special appearance on March 31 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, as part of the 2022 Flower Power Cruise, which sets sail from Miami on March 28.
Dion DiMucci has just released his new studio album, Stomping Ground, the doo-wop and rock ‘n’ roll great’s second star-studded collaborative project in just over a year.
A follow-up to 2020’s Blues with Friends, this record includes contributions from Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen and wife Patti Scialfa, ZZ Top‘s Billy Gibbons, Mark Knopfler, Peter Frampton, Boz Scaggs, Rickie Lee Jones and more.
Dion tells ABC Audio that he had a lot of fun working on Stomping Ground, and he couldn’t be happier with the project.
“I’m writing some of the best songs in my life, singing better than ever, the way I express stuff,” he maintains. “I have more confidence than ever, and I have these great tracks with the greatest guitar players on the planet on them, and making music with great artists and friends, and making friends with this music.”
Clapton lent his guitar talents to a song called “If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll.” Dion says that when it came time for Eric to record his part, “he said…’I’m gonna play this standing up like I’m playing for 20,000 people.’ And he did, man. He walked in the studio and did this thing, and I tell you, it sounded like he was 19 years old.”
Springsteen and Scialfa, who also appeared on Blues with Friends, are featured on the new song titled “Angel in the Alleyways,” with Patti singing and Bruce contributing harmonica and tremolo guitar. Dion says Springsteen told him that Scialfa was responsible for “the whole arrangement” of the tracks they recorded.
Gibbons, another Blues with Friends contributor, plays guitar on the tune tune “My Stomping Ground.”
Dion says of Billy, “His guitar playing is so simple and recognizable…and so potent.”
Here’s the full Stomping Ground track list:
“Take It Back” — with Joe Bonamassa
“Hey Diddle Diddle ” — with G.E. Smith
“Dancing Girl ” — with Mark Knopfler
“If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll” — with Eric Clapton
“There Was a Time ” — with Peter Frampton
“Cryin’ Shame ” — with Sonny Landreth
“The Night Is Young ” — with Joe Menza and Wayne Hood
“That’s What The Doctor Said ” — with Steve Conn
“My Stomping Ground ” — with Billy Gibbons
“Angel in the Alleyways ” — with Patti Scialfa and Bruce Springsteen
“I’ve Got to Get to You ” — with Boz Scaggs, Joe Menza and Mike Menza
“Red House ” — with Keb’ Mo’
“I Got My Eyes on You Baby ” — with Marcia Ball and Jimmy Vivino
“I’ve Been Watching ” — with Rickie Lee Jones and Wayne Hood
Deep Purple has released a cover of Huey “Piano” Smith‘s classic 1957 tune “Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu” as the third single from their upcoming studio album, Turning to Crime, which arrives this Friday, November 26.
The track is available now via digital formats, while an animated music video for the tune has debuted at the earMUSIC label’s official YouTube channel. The clip tells the fantastical story of the rise and fall of a piano that plays music by itself.
As previously reported, Turning to Crime is the first Deep Purple album made up entirely of songs originally recorded by other artists. The band made the album remotely during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Regarding why the band chose to record “Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu,” Deep Purple keyboardist Don Airey explains, “I’m supposed to say it’s a song I always wanted to do since I was a child, but at the same time it was quite new to me. I didn’t know the original very well, but I knew Professor Longhair‘s version, which is the one that inspired my arrangement.”
He adds, “I just love the whole thing, that style of piano playing…Very, very hard to replicate. It was a bit of a challenge. And when it came back from the other members of the band with all this other music on it, I just thought: ‘Wow, that worked out. What an insane arrangement!'”
Probably the best-known version of “Rockin’ Pneumonia” is the one by Johnny Rivers, which hit #6 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1973.
Turning to Crime also includes covers of Fleetwood Mac‘s “Oh Well,” Bob Dylan‘s “Watching the River Flow,” Cream‘s “White Room” and more.
Here’s wishing a very happy 80th birthday to singer/songwriter Jesse Colin Young, who came to fame as the frontman of the popular folk-rock band The Youngbloods.
The Youngbloods are most famous for their 1967 rendition of the oft-covered Chester Powers-penned peace anthem “Get Together.” Upon its initial release, the song only reached #62 on the Billboard Hot 100, but it was re-released in 1969 after it was used in a religion-themed TV and radio campaign and wound up going to #5 on the chart.
Young also wrote many original songs for The Youngbloods, including the popular 1969 tune “Darkness, Darkness,” which was later covered by various artists, among them Mott the Hoople, Eric Burdon, Robert Plant and Ann Wilson.
Jesse had released a couple of solo albums before The Youngbloods were formed, and after the band broke up in 1972 he went back to his solo career.
His most successful solo effort was 1975’s Songbird, which peaked at #26 on the Billboard 200. His most recent collection of new songs is Dreamers, released in 2019.
Last year, Young teamed up with Steve Miller for a new version of “Get Together” that was released as part of the WhyHunger charity’s SongAid campaign. Young also recorded a new rendition of the tune with acclaimed ukulele player Jake Shimabukuro that appears on the latter artist’s new collaborative album Jake & Friends.
Young’s newest single is a cover of the 1971 Cat Stevens tune “Trouble” that Jesse recorded as a duet with his daughter, Jazzie Young.
The track, which is available now via digital formats, celebrates the 50th anniversary of Harold and Maude, the quirky film that featured “Trouble” on its soundtrack.
You can check out a music video for the duet at Young’s official YouTube channel.
Rob Thomasis among the artists who’ll help ring in the holidays this year on NBC’s annual Christmas in Rockefeller Center special.
One of the Matchbox Twenty frontman’s Rockefeller Center performances will be a duet with country star Brad Paisley, singing “Santa Don’t Come Here Anymore,” their duet from Rob’s new holiday album, Something About Christmas Time.
Other artists who’ll be making the show merry and bright include Norah Jones, Harry Connick Jr., Alessia Cara and country stars Carrie Underwood and Mickey Guyton.
Christmas in Rockefeller Center will also include the annual lighting of New York City’s Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, which this year is a 79-foot-tall Norway Spruce from Maryland that weighs about 12 tons. It’ll be decked out with more than 50,000 multi-colored, energy-efficient LED lights and topped with a Swarovski star.
The two-hour special will air on NBC on Wednesday, December 1, at 8 p.m. ET/PT and will stream live on Peacock. During the broadcast, viewers will have the opportunity to donate to Red Nose Day to help with homelessness, food insecurity and learning loss among children and families who have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Just in time for the holidays, Blackmore’s Night, the renaissance folk-rock band led by former Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore and his wife, singer Candice Night, has released an expanded and remastered version of its 2006 Christmas album, Winter Carols.
Available as a two-CD set and digitally, the updated Winter Carols features the original album’s tracks, as well as a brand-new recording, a rendition of the 16th century tune “Coventry Carol”; the four songs from the group’s 2020 holiday EP, Here We Come A-Caroling; five live performances that previously were released as part of a 2013 Winter Carols reissue; and more.
Blackmore’s Night’s version of “Coventry Carol” also features added lyrics by Night and new musical arrangements by Blackmore.
Coinciding with the release of the expanded Winter Carols, an animated music video for the original Blackmore’s Night tune “Christmas Eve” has premiered at the band’s official YouTube channel.
The festive clip features computer-animated images of Santa Claus and his gift-filled, reindeer-drawn sleigh flying over a snow-covered town as children go ice skating and people walk around a brightly lit Christmas tree in the town square.
Here’s the full track list of the expanded Winter Carols album:
CD 1
“Coventry Carol”
“Deck the Halls”
“God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”
“O Christmas Tree”
“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing/O Come All Ye Faithful”
“I Saw Three Ships”
“Winter (Basse Dance)”
“Ding Dong Merrily on High”
“Ma-O-Tzur”
“Good King Wenceslas”
“Simple Gifts (Lord of the Dance)”
“We Three Kings”
“Wish You Were Here” (2021 Version)
“Emmanuel”
“Christmas Eve”
“We Wish You a Merry Christmas”
CD 2
“Crowning of the King”
“Here We Come A-Caroling”
“It Came Upon a Midnight Clear”
“O Little Town of Bethlehem”
“Silent Night”
“Christmas Eve” (2013 Version)
“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing/O Come All Ye Faithful” (Live from Minstrel Hall)
“Emmanuel” (Live from Minstrel Hall)
“We Three Kings” (Live from Minstrel Hall)
“Ma-O-Tzur” (Live from Minstrel Hall)
“Good King Wenceslas” (Live from Minstrel Hall)
Earlier this month, U2 returned with a new tune called “Your Song Saved My Life.” As guitarist The Edge tells Rolling Stone, there’s more where that came from.
“We are firmly locked in the tower of song and working away on a bunch of new things,” The Edge reveals.
“I’m just having so much fun writing and not necessarily having to think about where it’s going to go,” he explains. “It’s more more about enjoying the experience of writing and having no expectations or limitations on the process.”
U2’s November has also included the 30th anniversary of their hit 1991 album, Achtung Baby. Having previously hit the road in support of The Joshua Tree‘s 30th anniversary, The Edge is open to bringing back the Achtung Baby Zoo TV tour three decades later.
“I would love that and I couldn’t rule it out,” The Edge says. “I think [Zoo TV] is such a current thought. Back then we were we’re dealing with the overload and kind of the whiplash of 24/7 news cycles, which hadn’t been known before. It was the overload of cable TV and hundreds and hundreds of channels.”
He adds, “Little did we know that that was just the beginning of this avalanche of channels to kind of draw your attention.”
However, The Edge cautions that nothing yet has been officially planned. “We haven’t actually got to the point of doing anything more than this kind of talk, but I wouldn’t rule it out again,” he says.
In the meantime, you can hear “Your Song Saved My Life” on the soundtrack for the new animated film, Sing 2.
U2’s most recent album is 2017’s Songs of Experience.
