Classic Hits

Mariah Carey has made history. Her 1994 classic “All I Want for Christmas Is You” is now RIAA-certified Diamond and becomes the first holiday song to sell over 10 million copies in the U.S.

Mariah was almost at a loss for words over the honor. “The continued love for my song never ceases to amaze me and fill my heart with a multitude of emotions,” she says in a statement. “It blows my mind that ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’ has endured different eras of the music industry. The RIAA DIAMOND award?! Wowww! I’m so fortunate to have the greatest fans on Earth, my Lambily, who continue to support my legacy. I love you.”

The timing of the milestone couldn’t be sweeter, because the Grammy winner just released her second holiday special on Apple TV+, Mariah’s Christmas: The Magic Continues. 

In addition, the news comes shortly after Billboard adjusted its holiday rankings and dubbed “All I Want for Christmas Is You” the greatest of all Christmas songs.  It recently re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 and currently sits at number 36.

That said, Mariah is now the first and, to date, only artist to have an RIAA-certified Diamond holiday song — which makes it all the easier for her to claim she’s the true “Queen of Christmas.”

We dare you to disagree with her.

 

 

 

 

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Manticore Records, the record label founded by late Emerson, Lake & Palmer frontman Greg Lake, is being relaunched by his widow, Regina Lake.

“It was always Greg’s wish to reinstate the Manticore Records Label,” Regina reveals in a statement. “Greg’s idea, in his own words, was to give new, talented musicians the chance to be heard, when other doors might have been closed to them for being different. Greg was once one such young Musician.”

She continues, “He had put everything in place for Manticore Records to start up again, but as we know, it wasn’t possible for Greg to be there to realise his vision. Just a few days before Greg died, he asked me if I would like to carry on with Manticore Records, after he had gone.”

Regina points out that Greg had set the label up in her name in case she was interested in keeping it going, while telling her it was entirely her decision.

“I told him, as I am sentimental about Manticore, having been there in the early days, I would give it my best,” she says, “with a lot of help from my friends and advisers.”

Regina adds, “On reflection I would like this label to be devoted to Greg Lake Music and Songs to keep his legacy alive for us all in years to come.”

According to a press release, the first new Manticore project will be “a definitive collection” of Lake’s solo work. To celebrate the label’s relaunch, a rare video of Greg performing his classic holiday song “I Believe in Father Christmas” in 2005 has been posted on YouTube.

Lake died of cancer on December 7, 2016. He was 69.

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Elton John and his pal U.K. pop star Ed Sheeran are making sure fans ring in the holidays with a little extra cheer with their new single, “Merry Christmas.”

The song, which they co-wrote and released on Friday, sees the two powerhouse British singers explaining why it’s important to enjoy the season with those you love.

Sheeran begins the festive song by encouraging listeners to appreciate the season’s wonders by singing, “So kiss me under the mistletoe/ Pour out the wine, let’s toast and pray for December snow/ I know there’s been pain this year, but it’s time to let it go/ Next year, you never know.”

Sir Elton adds, “We’ve both known love, but this love we got is the bеst of all/ I wish you could see it through my eyes, then you would know.”

If that wasn’t enough to help bring some joy back to the holidays after another stressful year, Ed and Elton also released the official and ultra-campy music video for “Merry Christmas.” The two are decked out in several of their best holiday outfits, from sequined tuxedos to very short Santa-like robes, as they rotate through various Christmas-like scenes.

“Merry Christmas” is available to stream and purchase now across all platforms. Proceeds from the single will benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation and the Ed Sheeran Suffolk Music Foundation.

The track also appears on the “Christmas Edition” of Sheeran’s latest studio album, = (Equals).

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Founding Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Gary Rossington, the last surviving original member of the legendary Southern rock band, celebrates his 70th birthday this Saturday, December 4.

The band that became Lynyrd Skynyrd formed in 1964, when Rossington teamed up with singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Allen Collins, drummer Bob Burns and bassist Larry Junstrom.

After undergoing a few name changes, in 1969 the band settled on Lynyrd Skynyrd, partly a mocking tribute to their high school gym teacher Leonard Skinner.

A number of lineup changes and additions followed, and in 1973 Lynyrd Skynyrd released its debut album, (Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd), the first of five successful and memorable albums.

During Lynyrd Skynyrd’s heyday, Rossington co-wrote several of the band’s most popular songs, including “Sweet Home Alabama,” “Simple Man,” “Gimme Back My Bullets” and “What’s Your Name.”

Tragedy struck Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1977, when a plane crash claimed the lives of Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines — who’d joined Skynyrd in 1976 — and Steve’s sister, backing vocalist Cassie Gaines.

Following the accident, Gary and Allen went on to form the short-lived Rossington Collins Band. The group’s lead singer, Dale Krantz, went on to marry Rossington in 1982, and later became a Skynyrd backing singer.

Gary and Dale also led The Rossington Band during the late 1980s.

In 1987, Lynyrd Sknyrd reunited, with Ronnie’s younger brother Johnny Van Zant taking over as frontman. Since then, the group has undergone many lineup changes, with Rossington and Van Zant remaining the two constants. 2018 saw Skynyrd launch a planned farewell tour that has been extended multiple times, partly because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rossington has experienced serious health issues in recent years, and in July of 2021 he underwent emergency heart surgery that forced him to sit out most of the band’s recent tour dates.

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Fleetwood Mac, The Beatles, Queen and AC/DC are among the top 10 rock artists of 2021, according to Billboard.

The publication has unveiled the 2021 edition of its annual year-end charts, which determine the biggest acts in a variety of different genres using combination of factors including airplay, sales and streaming data for songs and albums, as well as touring revenue and social media activity.

Fleetwood Mac is #4 on Billboard‘s Top Rock Artists chart, followed by the Fab Four at #6, Queen at #7 and AC/DC at #10. Other veteran rock artists ranked high on the tally include Creedence Clearwater Revival at #11, the Eagles at #12, Elton John at #13, Foo Fighters at #15, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at #16, Nirvana at #17, Journey at #18, Guns N’ Roses at #19, and Metallica at #20.

Contemporary rock act Glass Animals is #1 on the chart.

Meanwhile, the Top Rock Albums chart, which is based on sales data, is dominated by best-of compilations and classic studio albums by veteran artists.

The list is topped Queen’s Greatest Hits, and also features Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours at #3, Elton’s Diamonds at #4, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Chronicle at #5, Journey’s Greatest Hits at #6, AC/DC’s Back in Black at #7, Petty and the Heartbreakers’ Greatest Hits at #8, and The Beatles’ 1 at #10.

No album released in 2021 made the chart’s top 10.

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A streaming event focusing on a recent concert by Pretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde showcasing her 2021 Bob Dylan covers album Standing in the Doorway will premiere December 26 on the Veeps.com platform.

The show, Chrissie Hynde & Co. Sing Bob Dylan (and Other Songs), was recorded during a three-night engagement Hynde played this past July at London’s Royal Opera House. The concert featured renditions of all nine Dylan songs Chrissie recorded for Standing in the Doorway, as well as a couple of classic Kinks tunes, selections from The Pretenders’ 2020 album Hate for Sale, and more.

Hynde was accompanied at the shows by Pretenders guitarist James Walbourne — her main Standing in the Doorway collaborator — along with Carwyn Ellis on keyboards and Danny Williams on upright bass.

Tickets are available now at Veeps.com for $22.

The show debuts at 3 p.m. ET on December 26. Anyone purchasing tickets will be able to re-watch the concert until January 3, 2022, at 2:59 a.m. ET.

Standing in the Doorway: Chrissie Hynde Sings Bob Dylan was released in May, coinciding with the folk-rock legend’s 80th birthday. The album came together over the course of 15 weeks in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, and includes renditions of nine Dylan songs that Hynde recorded remotely with Walbourne.

We’re pleased to announce the ‘Chrissie Hynde & Co. Sing Bob Dylan (and Other Songs) Streaming Event’ taking place Dec. 26th

Filmed at Royal Opera House, Chrissie Hynde and Co. perform Bob Dylan covers, classic Kinks, Pretenders & more.

Tickets: https://t.co/Qi1zmDBtIx @Veeps pic.twitter.com/P6cxMW5TeS

— Chrissie Hynde (@ChrissieHynde) December 1, 2021

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Carlos Santana has canceled all the December shows of his Las Vegas show at the House of Blues, because he’s recovering from what’s described as an “unscheduled heart procedure.”

The 74-year-old guitar legend tweeted a video in which he explains that last Saturday, he asked his wife to take him to the hospital because “I had this thing happening in my chest.” 

“We found out that I need to take care of it, so I am,” Carlos goes on. “So I’m gonna be taking time out for a little bit to make sure that I replenish and I rest….so that when I play for you, I will play the way I’m used to and give you 150%. I wouldn’t show up unless I could do that.”

Santana will resume his shows in January of 2022.  A statement from his manager further explains that Santana’s “procedure” “impacted his performance,” but adds that Carlos is “doing fantastic and is anxious to be back on stage soon.”

Santana has canceled all December 2021 at the House of Blues Las Vegas as he recovers from an unscheduled heart procedure. We look forward to returning to perform at the House Of Blues in January 2022. pic.twitter.com/8cHcVDjFhv

— Carlos Santana (@SantanaCarlos) December 2, 2021

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In September, The Scorpions announced that their long-awaited new studio album, Rock Believer, was due out on February 11, 2022, but the release date recently was pushed back to February 25.

This week, Scorpions frontman Klaus Meine and guitarist Rudolf Schenker shared some details about the album during a Zoom interview with Chile’s Radio Futuro.

Asked what fans can expect when they hear the new material, Meine said, “Well, you can expect an album that is dedicated to all the rock believers in the world…The goal was to make a rock album — to make an album with lots of attitude, power and focus on the good old times and really enjoy the music and have some fun with the music.”

Talking about the meaning of the album’s title, Schenker said, “Look, we [have been] around the world since 50 years or more. And [if] somebody can say he’s a rock believer, then this is us. And of course, we meet our rock believers in front of us, our audience.”

The Scorpions gave fans their first taste of Rock Believer last month when they released the lead single, “Peacemaker,” along with a companion music video for the hard-driving tune.

Meine told Radio Futuro that “Peacemaker” exemplified a lot of the tunes on the new record, noting, “It is an uptempo rock song, and this album really rocks…There are many uptempo songs and, believe it or not, there are even faster songs than ‘Peacemaker.'”

In addition, the singer revealed, “There’s also a very beautiful ballad on the album, and I’m sure there are fans out there [who] especially love the Scorpions ballads, and they will enjoy this record as well very much.”

Rock Believer can be pre-ordered now.

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Last month, The Black Crowes played a special two-night Las Vegas engagement at the House of Blues, and now the veteran rockers have announced plans to return to the venue in February 2022 for a pair of new concerts.

The band’s residency, dubbed The Black Crowes: Twice as Hard, will take place on February 11 and February 12, and will feature the group — led by brothers Chris and Rich Robinson — playing their biggest hits, as well favorites from the band’s 1990 debut album, Shake Your Money Maker. The concerts will be held just before Super Bowl LVI, which is scheduled for Sunday, February 13, at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles.

Tickets for the new Vegas shows go on sale to the general public this Friday, December 3, at 10 a.m. PT. Black Crowes band, Live Nation and MGM pre-sale offers are all available now. Visit the group’s official website and social media pages and Ticketmaster.com for more details.

Besides the Las Vegas gigs, Chris and Rich Robinson are scheduled to perform as their Brothers of a Feather duo incarnation on January 15 at the 30A Songwriters Festival in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. The Black Crowes also are part of the 2022 Stagecoach Festival lineup and are slated to play that event on May 1 in Indio, California.

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New details have been announced about the release of the previously reported behind-the-scenes documentary film Barn, capturing the making of Neil Young & Crazy Horse‘s upcoming album of the same name, which is due out Friday, December 10.

In addition to the movie being released as part of the deluxe edition of Barn and as a standalone Blu-ray, as previously announced, the film also will be screened in select U.S. theaters on December 9 and in Toronto on December 11.

The Barn documentary also will premiere exclusively on-demand via the AARP Members Only Access service on December 10 and will be available through January 10. Barn also will be screened on AARP’s Music for Grownups platform on December 17.

The Barn film, which was directed by Young’s wife, actress Daryl Hannah — aka “dhlovelife” — offers an intimate look at Neil and the current Crazy Horse lineup working on the album in 19th-century log barn in Colorado’ Rocky Mountains during the COVID-19 pandemic earlier this year. Most of the album was recorded live.

A video for one of the songs, “Heading West,” premiered on Young’s official YouTube channel this week, and the track will be made available as the third advance digital single from the album this Friday, December 3.

Barn, which you can pre-order now, is a 10-track collection that will be available on CD, vinyl, cassette and digital formats, and as a deluxe box set. The box set includes a CD and a vinyl LP, as well as the aforementioned Blu-ray featuring the Barn film.

Here’s the list of scheduled theatrical screenings:

12/9 — Chicago, IL, Landmark Century Centre Cinema
12/9 — Santa Monica, CA, Laemmle at the Monica Film Center
12/9 — New York, NY, IFC Center
12/11 — Toronto, ON, Canada, Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema

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