Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry reunite for Janie’s Fund show

May 2, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry were back onstage together Wednesday night for a San Francisco show benefiting Tyler’s organization Janie’s Fund.

Photos from the evening were posted to Aerosmith’s Instagram with the caption, “The #ToxicTwins back in the saddle for a great night benefitting Janie’s Fund in San Francisco!”

The post also thanked the night’s other performers: Cheap Trick’s Robin Zanders, The Black Crowes’ Chris Robinson, drummer Matt Sorum, guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, bassist James Lomenzo, guitarist Phil X, singer Suzie McNeil and keyboardist Buck Johnson.

According to the set list shared on Aerosmith’s Instagram Story, Tyler and Perry teamed up for Aerosmith classics “Toys in the Attic,” “Same Old Song And Dance,” “Sweet Emotion,” “Dream On” and “Walk This Way,” with all of the performers joining for the encores of “Train Kept A Rollin’” and The Beatles classic “Come Together.”

This marks the first time Tyler and Perry have performed together since September 2023, when Tyler fractured his larynx onstage during Aerosmith’s Peace Out tour. After rescheduling the dates, Aerosmith canceled the tour in 2024 and announced their retirement from the road.

Soundgarden members, Steven Tyler added to Black Sabbath reunion/farewell concert

May 2, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

The lineup for the upcoming Black Sabbath reunion/farewell concert keeps getting larger.

In an article about the show that includes interviews with Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne for The Guardian, the writer notes, “[W]hen I speak to Sharon, she informs me that Soundgarden and Aerosmith‘s Steven Tyler are the latest additions.”

Presumably, Sharon is referring to surviving Soundgarden members Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron and Ben Shepherd. The trio has performed together multiple times since the 2017 death of frontman Chris Cornell, including at the 2019 Cornell tribute concert and most recently in December with guest vocalist Shaina Shepherd.

Soundgarden was also just announced as an inductee into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

The Black Sabbath concert, dubbed Back to the Beginning, will take place July 5 in the band’s hometown of Birmingham, England. It will be headlined by original Sabbath members Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward, and will also feature an Ozzy solo set, all of which will mark the Prince of Darkness’ last-ever live performance.

Ozzy, who’s been dealing with various health issues that have kept him from performing a full live show for nearly seven years, tells The Guardian that he and Sabbath will be “only playing a couple of songs each.”

The rest of the lineup includes Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Tool, Slayer, Alice in Chains, Pantera and Halestorm.

Flea’s Silverlake Conservatory of Music releases Pretenders tribute EP

May 2, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

The Silverlake Conservatory of Music, the music education organization co-founded by Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea, has released an EP paying tribute to Pretenders.

The set includes recordings of the Pretenders songs “The Wait,” “Show Me” and “Talk of the Town” performed by the SCM All-Stars, described in a press release as “an ensemble of the Conservatory’s exceptional youth musicians.”

“Music education! From the lesson room, to the practice at home, to the band rehearsal, to letting it all out in the recording studio. And now, to your earholes!” says Flea, who executive produced the EP. “The kids at the Silverlake Conservatory of Music have recorded something incredible, and the first three songs, an homage to The Pretenders, are out today.”

Flea adds, “Please support the kids, support music education, listen to it and cheer them on. Thank youuuuuuuu!”

You can listen to the EP now via digital outlets. All proceeds will benefit the Silverlake Conservatory, as will Pretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde‘s mechanical royalties.

The Silverlake Conservatory also plans to release Neil Young and Red Hot Chili Peppers tribute EPs in July and September, respectively.

R.E.M. releases ‘Radio Free Europe 2025’ EP to coincide with World Press Freedom Day

May 2, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

R.E.M. has released a new EP to help support a free press.

The Athens rockers, who broke up in 2011, just released the five-track benefit EP Radio Free Europe 2025. The release coincides with World Press Freedom Day, which is Saturday.

The EP includes a never-before-released 2025 remix of the title track from the band’s longtime collaborator Jacknife Lee, as well as the original 1981 mix of the song and one other mix by producer Mitch Easter. It also features the never-before-released demo “Wh. Tornado” and the B-side “Sitting Still.”

The release also celebrates the 75th anniversary of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, which currently broadcasts news and information in 27 languages to 23 countries.

“Whether it’s music or a free press – censorship anywhere is a threat to the truth everywhere,” frontman Michael Stipe says. “On World Press Freedom Day, I’m sending a shout-out to the brave journalists at Radio Free Europe.”

“Radio Free Europe’s journalists have been pissing off dictators for 75 years. You know you’re doing your job when you make the right enemies,” bassist Mike Mills adds. “Happy World Press Freedom Day to the ‘OG’ Radio Free Europe.”

Radio Free Europe 2025 is available now via digital outlets. It will also be released as a limited-edition orange vinyl on Sept. 12 via the band’s official store and at independent record stores. Proceeds from the vinyl sales will benefit RFE/RL.

Released in July 1981, “Radio Free Europe” was the first single released by R.E.M. It eventually appeared on their 1983 debut album, Murmur.

Ozzy Osbourne promises to ‘do the best I can’ at Black Sabbath reunion concert: ‘All I can do is turn up’

May 2, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

Black Sabbath‘s giant reunion/farewell concert will also mark Ozzy Osbourne‘s last-ever performance. As the big day approaches, the Prince of Darkness remains focused on making sure he’ll be physically ready.

“I’ll be there, and I’ll do the best I can,” Ozzy tells The Guardian. “So all I can do is turn up.”

Since he last performed a full live set on New Year’s Eve 2018, Osbourne has dealt with a myriad of health issues, including suffered a fall in his home in 2019, which required multiple surgeries. In preparing for the concert, Ozzy says he’s been lifting weights and bike riding with help from “a guy living at my house who’s working with me.”

“It’s tough – I’ve been laid up for such a long time,” Ozzy says. “I’ve been lying on my back doing nothing and the first thing to go is your strength. It’s like starting all over again. I’ve got a vocal coach coming round four days a week to keep my voice going.”

“I have problems walking,” he continues. “I also get blood pressure issues, from blood clots on my legs. I’m used to doing two hours on stage, jumping and running around. I don’t think I’ll be doing much jumping or running around this time. I may be sitting down.”

Ozzy adds that both he and Sabbath are “only playing a couple of songs each.”

“I don’t want people thinking ‘we’re getting ripped off,’ because it’s just going to be … what’s the word? … a sample,” he says. “You’re going to get a few songs each by Ozzy and Sabbath.”

The concert takes place July 5 in Sabbath’s hometown of Birmingham, England. The bill also includes Metallica, Slayer, Pantera, Halestorm and Alice in Chains.

Bryan Adams is rolling out tickets for Roll with the Punches tour: ‘We got a great show’

May 2, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

Tickets go on sale to the general public Friday, May 2, at 10 a.m. local time for Bryan Adams‘ Roll with the Punches Tour, named after his upcoming album. It’ll travel across North America starting Sept. 11 in Kamloops, British Columbia, in Bryan’s native Canada. And while Bryan is always playing somewhere in the world, he shares why he’s stoked for this particular tour.

“I’m excited for a bunch of reasons,” he tells ABC Audio. “First of all, it’s my umpteenth tour of America, and I’m always happy to be back there. [And] it’s my 17th album coming out this August. So, you know, the tour is sort of based around that, but it’s also a greatest hits tour.”

And finally, he says, “I’m excited because the band’s better than ever, and we got a great show for everybody.”

Bryan has so far released two songs from the new album: “Make Up Your Mind” and the title track. You’ll likely hear those songs on tour, but not at the expense of hits like “Summer of ’69” and “(Everything I Do) I Do It For You.”

“Yeah, I mean, I don’t put too many in the show,” Bryan says of his new songs. “We put in a couple and see how it goes. And as the album gets more popular and people get to know the songs, we add more. But right now we’re only adding in two.”

The tour officially begins in the U.K. on May 8 and will travel through Europe before it gets to North America in September. Opening acts for the U.S. dates will be Pat Benatar and her husband and musical partner Neil Giraldo. You can get tickets at BryanAdams.com.

Jason Bonham on celebrating Led Zeppelin’s ‘Physical Graffiti’: ‘I do it for passion and the love of the music’

May 2, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening is celebrating the 50th anniversary of Led Zeppelin’s classic album Physical Graffiti with a new tour.

Jason, son of Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, who died in 1980, launched his JBLZE tours in 2010 and tells ABC Audio there’s a good reason why he keeps doing them.

“It would have stopped many years ago if we didn’t feel that people liked it, for one, and if I didn’t enjoy it,” Jason says. “It just says something about the music … that’s the main thing.”

For this tour, Jason and the band will play Physical Graffiti in its entirety, along with other classic Zeppelin tracks. Since this is the first time they’ve performed a complete album, Jason says it helps keep things fresh.

He adds that Physical Graffiti is his “favorite album” from Zeppelin, and one of the main reasons is because “it’s got ‘Kashmir’ on it.” He suggests the song is where the band “went to another level.”

“Now no band can put any kind of Eastern promise in any riff or anything without people going, ‘Oh it sounds like Zeppelin,'” he adds.

And although Jason has had plenty of other projects he’s worked on, there’s a simple reason why he keeps coming back to play Led Zeppelin.

“I do it for passion and the love of the music and the people that come to see it,” he says. “You know, once they stop coming, then we’ll stop playing it, I guess.”

Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening Celebrating 50 Years of Physical Graffiti kicks off Saturday in Wallingford, Connecticut, and wraps May 21 in Los Angeles. A complete list of dates can be found at jasonbonham.net.

Ann Wilson & Tripsitter Live In Concert coming to Blu-Ray and digital video

May 1, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

Ann Wilson is spending the summer on tour with Heart, but now fans at home will get to experience a live concert she recorded with the band Tripsitter.

Ann Wilson and Tripsitter Live in Concert will be released June 6 on Blu-Ray and digital video. The release will feature a concert recorded at Nashville’s Brooklyn Bowl in July 2023, during a tour for their album Another Room, which came out in September of that year.

The concert, which previously aired on PBS, features a set list that includes songs from the album, as well as Heart classics like “Crazy on You,” “Barracuda” and “Magic Man,” as well as two Led Zeppelin covers.

Next up for Ann, she’ll join sister Nancy Wilson for a new Heart tour. The trek, An Evening With Heart, kicks off May 31 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. A complete list of dates can be found at heart-music.com.

‘Night Divides The Day’, the first official anthology of The Doors, getting wide release in May

May 1, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

The first official anthology of The Doors is getting a wide release in May.

The book Night Divides The Day: The Doors Anthology originally went on sale as a limited-edition release back in February, but now a hardcover bookstore edition will be available starting May 13.

Described as the “most definitive book yet” on the band, Night Divides The Day features new interviews with surviving members Robby Krieger and John Densmore, and archival contributions from the late Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek.

Hours of archival interviews were used as sources for the book, which also features rare photos, song lyrics, poster artwork and more. It also includes contributions from artists like Nirvana’s Krist Novoselic, Guns N’ Roses’ Slash, Chic’s Nile Rodgers, Nancy Sinatra and Van Morrison.

Night Divides The Day: The Doors Anthology is available for preorder now.

The Doors are currently celebrating their 60th anniversary as a band. They launched the celebration in November with a limited-edition six-LP set, The Doors 1967-1971. Densmore will continue the celebration with a talk at a June 14 Tribeca Festival screening of the 2009 documentary When You’re Strange: A Film About The Doors, which is narrated by Johnny Depp.

40th anniversary of Live Aid to be celebrated with new docuseries

May 1, 2025 by Classic Rock 93.9

The upcoming 40th anniversary of Live Aid will be celebrated with a new docuseries.

Live Aid: When Rock ’n’ Roll Took On the World is a four-part series set to premiere July 13 at 9 p.m. ET. on CNN, 40 years to the day that the all-star charity concerts were held in London and Philadelphia.

The docuseries will feature interviews with Live Aid organizer Bob Geldof, as well as U2’s Bono, Sting, Phil Collins, Patti LaBelle and Lionel Richie, along with what’s being described as “rare archival footage” of Live Aid performances and backstage.

There will also be interviews with President George Bush, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Nigerian President Obasanjo and former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Live Aid, organized by Geldof and Midge Ure, took place at London’s Wembley Stadium and Philly’s John F. Kennedy Stadium. The benefit concerts, which raised more than $150 million for Ethiopian famine relief, were watched by about 2 billion people in more than 100 countries.

U2, Queen, Elvis Costello, David Bowie, The Who, Elton John and Paul McCartney were among the performers at the London show, while Philly’s show included a reunion of Led Zeppelin, Bryan Adams, Madonna, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Neil Young and Mick Jagger and more. Collins played both venues, flying in from London to make it to the Philly show.

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