Music

Following English tabloid The Sun reporting last week that an unidentified source revealed The Rolling Stones were planning to release a new album next summer, band member Ronnie Wood has confirmed some new details about the project.

In an exclusive chat with The Sun, the 75-year-old guitarist says, “We are recording the new album now and we are going to LA in a few weeks to carry it on and finish it off.”

Wood also reveals that late Stones drummer Charlie Watts, who died last year at age 80, is on “some of the tracks,” while Charlie’s replacement, Steve Jordan, is on others.

In addition, Ronnie says The Rolling Stones will eventually be announcing new U.S. tour dates.

The Sun previously reported that, according to a so-called “insider, Stones members Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Wood, along with Jordan and the group’s longtime touring bassist, Darryl Jones, had recently taken part in recording sessions at New York City’s famed Electric Lady Studios.”

In March, Richards revealed in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning that he, Jagger and Jordan had been writing new songs together for their next album. The Rolling Stones’ last album of original tunes was 2005’s A Bigger Bang.

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Former Journey singer Steve Perry has been teasing plans to release a new original holiday tune called “Maybe This Year,” and now the song has arrived as part of an expanded digital version of his 2021 yuletide album, The Season.

Perry co-wrote the song with keyboardist Dallas Kruse, who played on Steve’s 2018 solo album, Traces.

The Season Deluxe Edition, which is available now, features the album’s original eight songs, plus “Maybe This Year” and a cover of the classic Donny Hathaway holiday song “This Christmas.”

“I wanted to write an original Christmas song of my own, so Dallas Kruse and I began writing what became ‘Maybe This Year,'” Perry explains. “I wrote the lyrical sentiment about how the holidays can bring such joy and sadness and how for me, both these emotions give me connection to feelings of gratitude for so many years gone by, and a desire to hold on to these holiday feelings we share throughout the coming year.”

Steve also notes that “This Christmas” is one of his favorite Hathaway songs, adding, “I dedicate both these tracks to my friend Lamont Dozier.” Legendary Motown songwriter Dozier died in August at the age of 81.

Visualizer videos for “Maybe This Year” and “This Christmas” have been posted on Perry’s official YouTube channel.

The Season features Perry’s understated take on a variety of well-known Christmas tunes.

Here’s the full track list of The Season Deluxe Edition:

“Maybe This Year”*
“This Christmas”*
“The Christmas Song”
“I’ll Be Home for Christmas”
“Auld Lang Syne”
“Winter Wonderland”
“What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve”
“Santa Claus Is Coming to Town”
“Silver Bells”
“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”

* = previously unreleased.

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Dolly Parton may be adding “reunited Robert Plant and Jimmy Page” to her long list of career accomplishments.

Speaking with Pollstar, the country legend — and soon-to-be Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee — shares that she wants the Led Zeppelin duo to contribute to her cover of “Stairway to Heaven,” which she plans to record for her upcoming rock album.

“I’m trying to see if Robert Plant might sing on it,” Parton says. “Maybe Jimmy Page might do the pick-up part on it.”

A collaboration with Parton probably wouldn’t be too much of a stretch for Plant, given his collaborations with country-bluegrass artist Alison Krauss. Getting Page, however, might be trickier, as he’s not released much music in recent years. He apparently even left a call from Ozzy Osbourne unanswered after the Prince of Darkness tried to recruit Page for his new solo album.

Led Zeppelin, of course, has been inactive since their one-off reunion show in 2007.

Parton’s rock album, meanwhile, was inspired by her nomination for induction into the Rock Hall, which she initially declined before ultimately deciding to accept.

“I’m looking forward to dragging in some of the great classic people, girls and boys, to sing on some of the songs,” Parton tells Pollstar. “I’m not far enough along to discuss who and what, but I am going to do an album.”

When it comes time for Parton to pick a producer, Steve Albini is available.

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As Journey prepares to launch its 50th anniversary tour next year, the band has announced plans to release a new concert album and video on December 9 capturing the group’s performance at the 2021 Lollapalooza festival.

Live in Concert at Lollapalooza, which can be preordered now, will be available as a CD/DVD set, on Blu-ray, via digital formats and as a three-LP vinyl package pressed on either black vinyl or limited-edition green vinyl.

Journey’s Lollapalooza performance took place on July 31, 2021, at Chicago’s Grant Park. The band’s lineup for the show featured founding guitarist Neal Schon, longtime keyboardist Jonathan Cain, frontman Arnel Pineda, keyboardist/backing singer Jason Derlatka and fill-in bassist Marco Mendoza. The group also featured two drummers at the show, current member Deen Castronovo and Narada Michael Walden. Walden played drums on, co-produced and co-wrote most of the songs on Journey’s 2022 studio album, Freedom, but he’s no longer part of the group.

A video of Journey performing its 1986 song “Be Good to Yourself” at the Lollapalooza gig has debuted on YouTube.

The concert also included renditions of such classic tunes as “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart),” “Who’s Crying Now,” “Wheel in the Sky,” “Open Arms,” “Faithfully,” “Any Way You Want It” and, of course, “Don’t Stop Believin’.”

As previously reported, Journey’s 50th Anniversary Freedom Tour 2023, featuring opening act Toto, kicks off February 4 in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and is scheduled to run through an April 25 show in Thousand Palms, California.

Here’s the full track list of Live in Concert at Lollapalooza:

“Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)”
“Only the Young”
Guitar Interlude
“Stone In Love”
“Be Good to Yourself”
“Just the Same Way”
“Lights”
“Still They Ride”
“Escape”
“La Do Da”
Piano Interlude
“Who’s Crying Now”
Guitar Interlude
“Wheel in the Sky”
“Ask the Lonely”
“Open Arms”
“Lovin’ Touchin’ Squeezin'”
“Faithfully”
“Any Way You Want It”
“Don’t Stop Believin'”

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Rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Jerry Lee Lewis, known for his dynamic singing, piano playing and wild performance style, has died at age 87. Lewis’ passing was announced Friday in a lengthy statement posted on his official website.

The Louisiana-born Lewis was part of Memphis, Tennessee label Sun Records’ roster of influential rock ‘n’ roll artists during the late 1950s alongside Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Roy Orbison.

Jerry Lee, who was infamously nicknamed “The Killer,” came to fame thanks to the classic songs “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Going On” and “Great Balls of Fire,” which peaked at #3 and #2, respectively, on the Billboard Hot 100. Both songs also topped the U.S. country charts.

After scoring another top-10 hit in 1958 with “Breathless,” Lewis, who was 22 at the time, was involved in a major controversy that derailed his pop career when it came to light that he had recently married his 13-year-old cousin, Myra Gale Brown. The couple remained married until 1970.

Starting in the late 1960s and into the ’80s, Lewis enjoyed a successful career as a country artist, releasing dozens of charting hits.

Jerry Lee was part of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s first class of inductees in 1986. He also was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame in 2019 and the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2022.

Lewis’ life was chronicled in the 1989 biopic Great Balls of Fire, which starred Dennis Quaid and featured Winona Ryder as Myra.

Jerry Lee’s last solo studio album, Rock and Roll Time, was released in 2014 and featured guest appearances from several well-known musicians, including Keith Richards, The Band‘s Robbie Robertson, Neil Young and Nils Lofgren. Earlier this year, he released a collaborative gospel album with his cousin, televangelist Jimmy Swaggart, called The Boys from Ferriday.

Lewis is survived by his wife, Judith Coghlan Lewis, his four children, many grandchildren and his sister, Linda Gail Lewis.

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Bruce Springsteen has offered up a third advance track from his upcoming album of soul covers, Only the Strong Survive, which is due out November 11.

The Boss has debuted his rendition of “Don’t Play That Song,” which was a hit for Ben E. King in 1962 and Aretha Franklin in 1970. Both Ben E.’s and Aretha’s versions reached #11 on the Billboard Hot 100, while they also landed at #2 and #1, respectively, on the R&B chart.

The tune was co-written by Atlantic Records co-founder Ahmet Ertegun and King’s wife, Betty Nelson.

Springsteen’s version of “Don’t Play That Song” features Bruce accompanied by a string section, backing singers and The E Street Horns. Coinciding with the track’s release, a black-and-white music video featuring The Boss’ live performance of the song has premiered on his YouTube channel.

The clip was directed by frequent Springsteen collaborator Thom Zimny.

“Don’t Play That Song” follows Bruce’s previously released versions of the Commodores‘ 1985 hit “Nightshift” and “Do I Love You (Indeed I Do),” originally recorded by Frank Wilson in 1965.

As previously reported, Only the Strong Survive features Sam Moore of Sam & Dave as a guest vocalist on two songs. Among the covers on the album are tunes by The Temptations, Four Tops, The Walker Brothers, Dobie Gray, Jerry Butler and more.

Only the Strong Survive can be preordered now. Here’s the album’s full track list:

“Only the Strong Survive”
“Soul Days” — featuring Sam Moore
“Nightshift”
“Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)”
“The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore”
“Turn Back the Hands of Time”
“When She Was My Girl”
“Hey, Western Union Man”
“I Wish It Would Rain”
“Don’t Play That Song”
“Any Other Way”
“I Forgot to Be Your Lover” — featuring Sam Moore
“7 Rooms of Gloom”
“What Becomes of the Brokenhearted”
“Someday We’ll Be Together”

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