The label is set to release four new compilations in quadraphonic sound with a high-res stereo transfer. The latest, celebrating Elektra Records’ 75th anniversary, includes Bread’s 1973 album The Very Best of Bread, Carly Simon’s 1975 release The Best of Carly Simon, Judy Collins’ 1972 album Colors of the Day and the New Seekers’ 1973 album The Best of New Seekers.
All four have been transferred from the original analog four-track quad master tapes. They are available now at Rhino.com.
This isn’t the first time Rhino has reissued albums in quadrophonic sound. Previous releases include albums by The Doobie Brothers, Chicago, J. Geils Band and Jefferson Starship.
Back to the Beginning is headed to the big screen.
The epic concert, which was headlined by the final live performances from the original Black Sabbath lineup and Ozzy Osbourne, will screen in theaters in early 2026.
“The film promises a deeply personal and electrifying farewell from the godfather of heavy metal with exclusive behind-the-scenes access and interviews from this iconic live performance,” says production company Mercury Studios.
Back to the Beginning took place July 5 in Sabbath’s hometown of Birmingham, England. The lineup for the sold-out event, which also streamed online, included Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Tool, Slayer, Pantera, Gojira, Halestorm, Alice in Chains, Lamb of God, Anthrax, Mastodon and Rival Sons.
Additionally, the day included a number of onstage collaborations put together by musical director Tom Morello, featuring Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins, Disturbed‘s David Draiman, Halestom’s Lzzy Hale, Aerosmith‘s Steven Tyler, blink-182‘s Travis Barker, Chad Smith of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tool‘s Adam Jones and Danny Carey, Ronnie Wood of The Rolling Stones, Ghost‘s Papa V Perpetua and Yungblud.
The night ended with Ozzy performing five solo tracks — “I Don’t Know,” “Mr. Crowley,” “Suicide Solution,” “Mama, I’m Coming Home” and “Crazy Train” — before being joined by Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward to play the Sabbath songs “War Pigs,” “N.I.B.,” “Iron Man” and “Paranoid.”
Ozzy, who’s battled a number of health issues in recent years, sang while seated on a throne.
In related news, Yungblud has officially released his Back to the Beginning performance of Sabbath’s “Changes” on streaming platforms.
The reaction to Cody Johnson‘s latest hit, “The Fall,” reminds him of something that happened earlier in his career.
“We’re back to ”Til You Can’t’ with this,” he tells ABC Audio. “‘Til You Can’t’ was not really my choice until we saw the reaction [to] it, and it’s now five-times Platinum.”
Thanks to that, it was easier to convince Cody that the follow-up to “I’m Gonna Love You” with Carrie Underwood was obvious.
“‘The Fall’ I love, but I had other things in mind that I really wanted to kinda push,” he reveals. “But when you travel all the way across the world — Scotland, Ireland, England, Australia, New Zealand, all over America — and as soon as I start that song, you see all the cellphones come out. You see people crying, they’re singing every word. It’s like, you can’t ignore that this song needed to be on radio.”
On Friday Cody will perform at Sacramento’s Golden 1 Center for the second night in a row, before playing the California Mid State Fair Saturday in Paso Robles.
Billy Joel’s daughter Alexa Ray Joel is making a case for why fans should check out his new HBO documentary, Billy Joel: And So It Goes.
Alexa said on Instagram that she got to watch the doc ahead of its debut, writing, “Without giving anything away, lemme just tell you… it’s astounding. What an emotional whirlwind to delve into both parts 1 & 2 over the last few nights with My Mother,” referring to Billy’s second wife, model Christie Brinkley.
“This is a fearlessly raw, reeling, and shockingly intimate portrait of My Father,” she adds. “The deeply layered narrative insights into Dad’s richly-textured history left me stunned. (And here I thought I knew everything there was to know about him.) You don’t know ‘til you watch this!”
Giving the doc a five-star “rave review,” Alexa notes, “If you’re interested in the full story behind My Father’s complex background, lineage, and personal life… not to mention, his timeless musical perspective and artistry: this is a must-watch. Don’t miss it.”
Part one of Billy Joel: And So It Goes debuts Friday on HBO, with part two debuting July 25. Both will be available to stream at the same time on HBO Max.
In other Billy Joel news, a new photo booth inspired by the “Piano Man” singer is coming to New York’s Grand Central Terminal. Described as a “one-of-a-kind photo booth experience,” the Billy Joel New York State of Mind photo booth will be available on Friday and Saturday by Grand Central’s Graybar Passage from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET.
Avatar has premiered a new single called “Airwaves.”
“Avatar is defined by the challenges we put in front of ourselves,” the Swedish metallers say. “We always push for more and look for new angles. In this ever-ongoing pursuit for the next great thing, we return to one of the most important aspects of metal: Speed.”
“This is the fastest song we have done in what seems to be an eternity, and it feels good to push the engine to the max again,” the band continues. “In a way, it feels like a return to something. Enjoy our rage.”
The “In the Airwaves” video, which begins with a flashing lights advisory, is out now on YouTube. The song will be available on streaming platforms starting Thursday at midnight ET.
“In the Airwaves” follows the song “Captain Goat,” which dropped in May. The band’s most recent album is 2023’s Dance Devil Dance, which includes the single “The Dirt I’m Buried In.”
Tame Impala‘s Kevin Parker has shared a statement reflecting on the 10th anniversary of his 2015 album, Currents.
In an Instagram post, Parker writes he “had more than one existential crisis during the making and release of this album.”
“I couldn’t tell if it was great or embarrassingly bad, not to mention the fans I would lose by switching up music styles so heavily,” Parker says.
While the previous Tame Impala album, 2012’s Lonerism, spawned the project’s breakout single in the straight-ahead rocker “Elephant,” Parker took his sound in a more dance-oriented direction with Currents.
Nevertheless, Currents debuted at #4 on the Billboard 200, which was then Tame Impala’s career high, and the single “The Less I Know the Better” earned quadruple-Platinum certification from the RIAA.
“People recently have asked me if I was feeling pretty chuffed with myself after making this album and the answer is always absolutely not!” Parker writes. “There was often so much doubt, but I knew it was an album I had to make.”
“The lows were low but the highs were high,” he continues. “And during the highs, when I had forgotten to care what people were going to think I’d be driving in my car listening to mixes feeling like it was pure magic, and in those moments I remember thinking whatever the outcome I just had to go through with it, and believe in it even if it felt totally blind. Glad I did.”
Parker followed Currents with 2020’s The Slow Rush, which remains the most recent Tame Impala album. However, Parker recently teased he’s been working on a new record.
Def Leppard collaborated with Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello on last year’s single “Just Like 73,” and the two artists just got to perform it live together for the very first time.
The band surprised fans at the Ottawa Bluesfest Wednesday by bringing out Morello for a special performance of the song.
“It was an absolute honor to welcome @tommorello to the stage for Just Like 73,” Def Leppard wrote on Instagram. “Thanks for rockin’ with us!”
Def Leppard is currently on a summer tour, which hits Mount Pleasant, Michigan, on Friday, and wraps Aug. 31 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. A complete list of dates can be found at DefLeppard.com.
SZA and Lizzo came together in Paris Wednesday night for the debut performance of their song “IRL,” off Lizzo’s mixtape My Face Hurts From Smiling. “BAD B****… in REAL LIFE,” Lizzo wrote alongside footage of her twerking onstage. “Thanks for letting me throw it [back] on [your] stage.” The performance was part of SZA’s set at her Grand National Tour with Kendrick Lamar.
Joey Bada$$ was the musical guest at Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Wednesday night. He performed a song called “ABK,” which is likely the lead single to a new album he announced on the show. The name of that project will be Lonely at the Top. No features or release date were disclosed.
Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist team again for Alfredo II, set to arrive on July 25, with only 100 signed vinyl records available. It’s led by a single titled “1995” and will be released alongside Alfredo: The Movie. Freddie and Al will celebrate the release of the movie, album and accompanying merch at a party taking place July 19.
Wu-Tang Clan played its last-ever show at Madison Square Garden as part of their Final Chamber tour Wednesday night, and it was a star-studded event. The LOX, Havoc of Mobb Deep, Redman, Lil Cease, Lil’ Kim, Big Daddy Kane and Slick Rick were among those who joined the group onstage. The last show of the tour will take place Friday in Philadelphia.
Are the members of Fleetwood Mac trying to tell us something? Based on some cryptic posts on social media, they just might have some news to share.
It all started when Mick Fleetwoodshared video of him listening to “Frozen Love,” a track that appeared on Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham’s 1973 album, Buckingham Nicks, which they recorded before joining Fleetwood Mac.
“The marriage of Stevie and Lindsey, the marriage of coming into Fleetwood Mac when they did — it’s all in the song. It’s in the music,” Mick said of the track. “It’s magic then, magic now. What a thrill. Amen.”
While Mick could have just been reflecting on the past, Stevie and Lindsey were soon both sharing the post as an Instagram Story, along with two new posts of their own.
Stevie offered a post with the words “if you go forward,” written in cursive, while Lindsey shared a similarly styled post with the words “I’ll meet you there,” which are lyrics in “Frozen Love.”
The complimentary posts from Stevie and Lindsey are interesting considering the pair’s on-again/off-again relationship.
The two stars dated in the ’70s, but broke up in 1976 while they were in Fleetwood Mac. Their relationship has been tense over the years, and they had a final falling out in 2018, the same year Buckingham was fired from Fleetwood Mac. Nicks toldRolling Stone in October that the last time she spoke to Lindsey was for “about three minutes” at Christine McVie’s celebration of life in January 2023.
Simon Cowell is hoping to recreate the magic of One Direction.
The music mogul has a new show with Netflix, Simon Cowell: The Next Act, where he’ll try to find the next boy band superstars.
Simon helped launch the careers of One Direction and girl groups Little Mix and Fifth Harmony. He’s served as judge on a variety of music competition series, including Pop Idol, American Idol, The X Factor and The X Factor UK, and Britain’s Got Talent and America’s Got Talent.
According to Tudum, the new unscripted series will give viewers “an even more intimate look at Cowell’s process and unparalleled ability to identify and foster talent.” The six-episode series will follow the process “from raw open casting calls to the release of the group’s debut single.”
Simon Cowell: The Next Act will debut on Netflix in December.
