Classic Rock 93.9

Brian Wilson was born 80 years ago today, and in celebration of his milestone birthday, special messages from some of The Beach Boys legend’s famous musical friends, fans and associates have been compiled in a video that’s been posted on Wilson’s official YouTube channel.

Among the stars featured in the video are Bob Dylan, Elton John, John Fogerty, Joe Walsh, Graham Nash, David Crosby and Wilson’s fellow Beach Boys co-founder Al Jardine.

Elton, who is the first artist featured in the tribute, tells Brian, “Have a wonderful 80th birthday with [your wife] Melinda and your family…You’ve inspired me all my life. To me, you’re the only real pop genius in the world, and I love you very much.”

Fogerty declares, “Happy 80th birthday, and thank you for all the great music!”

Walsh is shown playing the intro to The Beach Boys classic “California Girls” on an electric guitar, and then singing a fun rendition of “Happy Birthday to You.”

Nash says, “I wanted to take a moment and wish you a very, very happy 80th birthday. Do me a favor, please. Keep writing all your wonderful music. I’ll be listening.”

Crosby adds in a separate clip, “Happy Birthday. I love your music. I always have.”

Jardine, who’s been touring with Wilson in recent years as part of his solo band, says, “Hi Brian, I’m the guy who sings on your left…Always remember, we’ll always be younger than your cousin Mike [Love].”

Dylan ends the presentation with an acoustic rendition of “Happy Birthday to You.”

Among the other stars who are featured in the video are Smokey Robinson, the Bee Gees‘ Barry Gibb, Carole King, The Monkees‘ Micky Dolenz, My Morning Jacket‘s Jim James, producer Don Was, actors Jeff Bridges and John Cusack, and filmmaker Cameron Crowe.

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Elton John is the latest legend to get in on the NFT craze for charity.

NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are unique pieces of digital artwork that many artists have been either creating themselves, or commissioning, and then selling to fans. Elton has teamed with LGBTQ+ artist Voxel Bunny to create an NFT that’s a digital animation.

Set to Elton’s hit “Rocket Man,” it features a robot-like figure sailing through the galaxy on a hoverboard, which is designed to look like the pinball machine Elton played in the “Pinball Wizard” sequence in the 1975 movie Tommy. 

The starting bid on the NFT is $5,000 with all proceeds going to the Elton John AIDS Foundation, and you have until June 22 at 6 p.m. ET to bid.

“Whilst I’m no metaverse expert, I wanted to make sure that my first NFT was something true to me, and collaborating with LGBTQ+ artist Voxel Bunny…on something so unique which benefits the Elton John AIDS Foundation for Pride month, was the perfect opportunity,” Elton said in a statement.

If $5,000 is too steep for you, you can also get a different NFT for just $30, which is available to anyone. It’s a spinning, gold-and-black “Rocket Collectible,” which gets you access to Elton’s new Rocket NFT Club. You can get the latest news, enter special contests, get discounts and have access to ticket pre-sales.

Get all the details at NFT.EltonJohn.com.

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Attendees of France’s Hellfest this past weekend were greeted by a new statue of the late Motörhead frontman, Lemmy Kilmister.

The giant, silver monument, which has a portion of Lemmy’s ashes enshrined in it, will be officially memorialized during a ceremony taking place at Hellfest on June 23.

Following a headlining set by Scorpions, Motörhead members Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee, who also plays drums in Scorpions, will take the stage to deliver a speech and a toast to Lemmy. A video tribute will also be shown.

Lemmy died December 2015 at age 70. He and Motörhead played Hellfest four times throughout his life, including its inaugural edition in 2006.

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The Zombies have revealed that their two main members — co-founding singer Colin Blunstone and keyboardist Rod Argent — both contracted the COVID-19 virus about three weeks ago. The band has since decided to cancel the first two dates of its new North American summer tour.

The shows had been scheduled for June 21 in Belleville, Ontario, Canada, and June 22 in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.

A note posted on The Zombies’ Facebook page explains, “[Blunstone’s and Argent’s] cases were relatively mild, and they were determined to recover in time for the tour. Frustratingly, although both felt well enough to go forward, Rod was still showing a faint positive the day before their flight from London to Toronto. Out of concern for everyone’s health and safety, we decided it was best to give them a few extra days recuperation at home, and delay the start of the tour.”

The new leg of the band’s 2022 Life Is a Merry-Go-Round Tour is now scheduled to begin with their concert this Friday, June 24 in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania.

The message adds, “We are making every effort to reschedule the Ontario shows, and will announce more information soon. Refund requests can also be made at your point of purchase. Our thanks to all the fans in Ontario for your understanding.”

The trek is mapped out through a July 28-30 engagement in Park City, Utah. You can check out the British Invasion band’s full schedule at TheZombiesMusic.com.

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Here’s sending out good vibrations to founding Beach Boys singer and songwriter Brian Wilson, who celebrates his 80th birthday today (June 20).

Wilson wrote the music to nearly all of his famous band’s best-known songs, from the Southern California group’s early surf-rock classics to their complex, multilayered recordings of the mid-1960s and beyond.

Among The Beach Boys’ classic early hits are “Surfin’ U.S.A.,” “Surfer Girl,” “Fun, Fun, Fun,” “I Get Around,” “Help Me, Rhonda” and “California Girls.”

With his impressive gift for vocal harmonies and musical arrangements, Wilson helped craft one of the most celebrated albums of all time, The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds, as well as the equally lauded follow-up single “Good Vibrations,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 in December ’66.

In 1998, Pet Sounds was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, and in 2020, it was ranked at #2 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.”

Brian’s many career achievements include induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with The Beach Boys in 1988, induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2000, being saluted as the MusiCares Person of the Year in 2005, and being recognized at the Kennedy Center Honors in 2007.

Wilson’s most recent album with The Beach Boys, That’s Why God Made the Radio, was released in 2012, coinciding with the band’s 50th anniversary. In recent years, he’s focused on his solo career. His latest studio album, At My Piano, was released in November 2021 and features solo piano versions of many classic Beach Boys songs.

Brian also was the subject of the 2021 documentary Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road, which features new interviews with Wilson as well as with Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, co-founding Beach Boys member Al Jardine, pop star Nick Jonas and more.

Wilson continues to tour with his solo band, which features Jardine and one-time Beach Boys singer/guitarist Blondie Chaplin. They recently launched a co-headlining trek with Chicago.

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A new Def Leppard coffee-table book titled Definitely: The Official Story of Def Leppard is expected to be released in the coming months by Genesis Publications.

According to a synopsis posted at Genesis-Publications.com, the book will offer “the most personal and comprehensive record of Def Leppard’s history to date,” and will feature personal recollections from the band’s members as well as rare photos and memorabilia from Def Leppard’s archives.

Among the interesting ephemera featured in the book will be handwritten letters, rare vinyl discs, tour memorabilia, press clippings, music video storyboards and more.

Definitely will be available as a signed, limited-edition book-and-album set from Genesis Publications. You can register at the publishing company’s website to receive more information.

In other news, Def Leppard has posted a video on its YouTube channel featuring a recap of the band’s first gig on The Stadium Tour with Mötley Crüe, Poison and Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, which took place Thursday, June 16, in Atlanta.

The clip featured footage from the rain-drenched show and post-gig comments from singer Joe Elliott and guitarist Phil Collen.

In the video, Elliot described the concert as “the wettest gig” his band has done since 1986.

“It rained all night long, but the crowd stuck with us,” Joe notes. “Nobody left, nobody moaned.

Collen adds, “Amazing! Everything that could have gone wrong did. We had kind of like a hurricane storm…coming through. It was just drenched. The drums went off at one point, we carried on like nothing had happened.”

The tour has since stopped in the Miami area on Saturday and Orlando, Florida, on Sunday. The next show is scheduled for Wednesday, June 22, in Washington, D.C.

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Former Steely Dan and Doobie Brothers guitarist Jeff “Skunk” Baxter released his first solo album, Speed of Heat, Friday.

The 12-track collection features a mix of original tunes and select covers. Among the latter are versions of the Steely Dan classics “My Old School” and “Do It Again,” and of the 1960 instrumental “Apache” that was popularized by The Shadows.

The album features Baxter singing lead on some tracks, as well as some guest vocalists and musicians, including his one-time Doobie Brothers bandmate Michael McDonald, country star Clint Black and blues rocker Jonny Lang.

Baxter’s main collaborator on Speed of Heat was veteran producer, composer and keyboardist CJ Vanston.

Toto‘s David Paich contributes keyboards to Jeff’s cover of “My Old School.” Speed of Heat also includes a song called “My Place in the Sun” that Baxter co-wrote with Vanston and McDonald, and features Michael on vocals. Lang co-write, sings and plays guitar on a tune titled “I Can Do Without,” while Black sings on and co-wrote the song “Bad Move.”

“This is something very new for me, never having focused time and energy on creating a solo project before,” says Baxter about Speed of Heat. “It was a lot of fun and very satisfying to be doing something for myself, as opposed to being a hired gun, (not that I don’t enjoy studio work, producing and playing live with other folks. That will never change!).”

Meanwhile, Baxter is planning to announce a West Coast tour in support of the album soon.

Here’s the full Speed of Heat track list:

“Ladies from Hell”
“My Old School”
“Juliet”
“I Can Do Without”
“Do It Again”
“Apache”
“My Place in the Sun”
“The Rose”
“Bad Move”
“Giselle”
“Insecurity”
“Speed of Heat”

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The recently announced expanded and remastered reissue of The Beach Boys‘ 2003 hits compilation Sounds of Summer: The Very Best of The Beach Boys got its release Friday.

The arrival of the retrospective signals the launch of a planned yearlong worldwide celebration marking The Beach Boys’ 60th anniversary.

The updated collection features 80 tracks, 50 more than the original version, and includes classic hits and deeper cuts spanning from the group’s 1962 debut album, Surfin’ Safari, through 1989’s Still Cruisin’.

The track list boasts nearly every top-40 single that the band released, including “California Girls,” “I Get Around,” “Surfer Girl,” “Surfin’ U.S.A.,” “Fun, Fun, Fun,” “God Only Knows,” “Good Vibrations,” “Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” “Kokomo,” “Barbara Ann” and “Help Me, Rhonda.” Among the newly added songs are such gems as “Disney Girls,” “Feel Flows,” “Sail On Sailor” and “Surf’s Up.”

The Sounds of Summer reissue includes 24 new mixes, with two tracks getting stereo mixes for the first time. The collection is available as a three-CD set, via digital formats and as a six-LP vinyl package. A limited-edition version of the vinyl collection features a rainbow foil slipcase and four lithographs.

All physical versions include a booklet offering updated photos and new liner notes. A remastered version of the original 30-track compilation also has been released on CD and as a two-LP set.

“It’s hard to believe it’s been 60 years since we signed to Capitol Records and released our first album, Surfin’ Safari,” the band says of its milestone anniversary. “We were just kids in 1962 and could have never dreamed about where our music would take us, that it would have such a big impact on the world, still be loved, and continue to be discovered by generation after generation.”

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Limited-edition vinyl discs from Paul McCartney, Pearl Jam, The Who and Creedence Clearwater Revival are among the exclusive releases that’ll be available at independent record stores this Saturday, June 18, for the second of two 2022 installments of Record Store Day.

McCartney’s offering is a 12-inch vinyl single featuring two versions of his recent tune “Women and Wives,” which has been chosen as Record Store Day’s first Song of the Year release. The single features McCartney’s original version — which appeared on 2020’s McCartney III album — and alt-rocker St. Vincent’s 2021 remix of the tune that was included on the McCartney III Imagined record.

Pearl Jam is reissuing their 1998 concert album Live on Two Legs as a two-LP set pressed on crystal clear vinyl.

The Who are issuing an expanded 40th anniversary edition of their 1982 album It’s Hard. The two-LP collection features bonus tracks, and one orange and one yellow disc.

CCR’s offering is a 7-inch vinyl single featuring a previously unreleased performance of “Travelin’ Band” from an April 1970 concert at London’s famed Royal Albert Hall and a January 1970 rendition of “Who’ll Stop the Rain” from a show at California’s Oakland Coliseum.

This Saturday’s Record Store Day drop features over 75 titles in all, including releases from Collective Soul, Dio, Richie Furay, Peter Gabriel, Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band, ZZ Top‘s Billy Gibbons, ex-Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett, Halestorm, The Kinks, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band, The Rolling Stones‘ Keith Richards, Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators, and The Sweet.

For the full list of releases and participating stores, visit RecordStoreDay.com.

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After teasing it online, Rod Stewart has now released the full, emotional video for his song “Touchline.” The song is a tribute to his late father, Robert, and how he passed down his love for soccer — or “football” as the Brits call it — to Rod, and how Rod has now passed it down to his kids.

In the video, we see footage of Rod through the years playing soccer, from when he was a teenager to adulthood. We also see him sitting on the sidelines coaching his two younger sons and posing with them wearing jerseys of their favorite team, Celtic F.C. There’s footage of Rod’s father and mother, and lots of family photos, as well.

“Touchline” is from Rod’s most recent album, The Tears of Hercules. When the album was released, Rod told ABC Audio it was an important song for him.

“It means a lot to me, that song, ’cause I idolized my dad,” Rod said. “He wasn’t a particularly talkative father but he was so encouraging.”

“Y’know when I went into the [music] business, and I’d failed as a footballer, he always encouraged me,” the star added. “Y’know, [he] never said, ‘Go and get a regular job.’ He said, ‘Stick at what you’re doing and I’ll support you.’ And he did!”

Rod will soon announce details of a special show he’s doing in Edinburgh, Scotland — the city his dad was from — in November. The show will also serve as a tribute to his dad.

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