Classic Rock 93.9

Billy Joel and Sting are teaming up for another show this summer.

The rock star friends are set to headline New York’s Citi Field, home of the New York Mets, on Aug. 21. While this is Billy’s first time playing Citi Field, he’s no stranger to a Mets stadium. He shut down the team’s former home, Shea Stadium, with two shows in 2008.

Meanwhile, this will also be Sting’s first show at Citi Field, although he played Shea with The Police in August 1983.

Fans can get tickets via a Citi presale starting Monday at 10 a.m., with tickets going on sale to the general public Feb. 14 at 10 a.m.

This is the third show Billy has announced in the New York metro area. He’s also headlining Yankee Stadium with Rod Stewart on July 19 and MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, with Stevie Nicks.

Billy and Sting are also scheduled to play Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Saturday. A complete list of dates can be found at billyjoel.com.

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R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe had been added to the 38th annual Tibet House US Benefit Concert, taking place March 3 at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

Stipe joins a previously announced lineup that includes Patti Smith, Orville Peck, Allison Russell, The Bear’s Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Gogol Bordello, with Philip Glass and Laurie Anderson serving as the night’s artistic directors.

Proceeds from the show support Tibet House US, a nonprofit educational institution and cultural embassy founded in 1987 by the Dalai Lama to ensure the survival of the Tibetan civilization.

Over the past three decades Tibet House benefit concerts have featured performances by such artists as David Bowie, Carly Simon, Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder, R.E.M., Lou Reed, Joan Baez, Annie Lennox and more.

Tickets for the concert are on sale now.

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Record Store Day has unveiled its list of exclusive releases for its 2025 celebration, taking place in independent record stores on April 12.

Among this year’s releases:

John Lennon’s Power To The People – Live At The One To One Concert, New York City, 1972, a four-song EP of performances by Lennon at his only full-length solo concert after leaving The Beatles.

Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder is contributing a 12-inch single featuring his covers of The English Beat‘s “Save It for Later” and Tom Petty‘s “Room at the Top,” which he originally released in 2024 for the shows The Bear and Bad Monkey, respectively.

A 12-inch single capturing The Killers‘ collaboration with Bruce Springsteen during the encore of their set at New York City’s Madison Square Garden in 2022.

The Rolling Stones are releasing a remaster of the U.S. version of their fourth studio album, Out of Our Heads, on 180g clear vinyl with a lithograph print.

Original Soundtracks 1 (30th Anniversary Edition) by Passengers, a remastered version of the studio album released by Brian Eno and U2 in November 1995, on two-LP recycled black vinyl.

Post Malone‘s Nirvana tribute set, which was recorded in 2020 during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, is being released on vinyl.

RSD 2025 will also feature releases from David Bowie, Black Sabbath, Grateful Dead, Mötley Crüe, Rage Against the Machine, Elvis Costello, A Day to Remember, Fleetwood Mac, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Blur, Chevelle, The Cure, Liam Gallagher, Gorillaz, Brittany Howard, Jet, Judas Priest, Oasis, Papa Roach, Rise Against, Stone Temple Pilots, The Struts, Scott Weiland and Dolores O’Riordan.

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

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Neil Young is giving fans an update on his next album.

In a post on his Archives website, Young shares that he has now completed the album with his new band Chrome Hearts, featuring Micah Nelson on guitar and vocals, Spooner Oldham on Farfisa organ, Corey McCormick on bass and vocals and Anthony LoGerfo on drums.

“It is a happy feeling I have today knowing I have made an album I think people will enjoy,” he shares. “I hope it’s out in April. That would be pretty fast.”

Young describes playing with Chrome Hearts as a joy, adding that the songs they recorded “feel fresh to me and I am very happy to have this all ready for you.”

“It won’t be long now and it will be great to have new songs to play on the road this summer in Europe, the USA and Canada,” he adds. “We are looking forward to that.”

Young released “big change” in January, his first single with Chrome Hearts, described as “a song that looks square in the face of so many of the moving parts of where the world is turning today.”

As for those tour dates, so far Young’s only confirmed to play the U.K.’s Glastonbury Festival in June.

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The Royal Mail is helping AC/DC celebrate their 50th anniversary with a new set of commemorative stamps.

The set of eight stamps features various photos of the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers performing live, with the stamp sheet also featuring labels that track the evolution of their iconic logo.

There are also various stamp packages available for purchase, including a Presentation Pack that features four additional stamps highlighting AC/DC album covers for High Voltage, Highway to Hell, Back in Black and AC/DC.

There’s also a limited-edition Prestige Stamp Book, which includes a 24-page book written by music journalist Jason Draper, with rare photos, 12 stamps and more, all housed in a sleek black case.

All stamp packages are available for preorder now and will ship Feb. 18.

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The Who’s Pete Townshend’s solo career is being celebrated with a new box set.

Pete Townshend The Studio Albums, dropping March 28, will consist of eight CDs, featuring newly remastered versions of seven Townshend albums — 1972’s Who Came First, 1977’s Rough Mix (with Ronnie Lane), 1980’s Empty Glass, 1982’s All The Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes, 1985’s White City (A Novel), 1989’s The Iron Man: The Musical by Pete Townshend and 1993’s Psychoderelict. It will also feature the music-only version of Psychoderelict.

The set also comes with a new foreword by Townshend, new artwork, sleeve notes by band archivist Matt Kent, and a 28-page book filled with rare photos and memorabilia.

“I have always written first for myself. Not as an artist but for play, for fun, for joy, for self-expression. For therapy? In a way, of course,” Pete shares of his solo work. “These solo songs are therefore not Who exclusions or out-takes, they are part of a story that may well have been very different had I not made some poor decisions in the early ’80s.”

He adds, “I have stories to tell about every song, and one day I may write a book that tells of that journey, but I’m probably happier spending my time today writing new music rather than explaining how the old stuff came about.”

Pete Townshend The Studio Albums is available for preorder now.

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On This Day, Feb. 6, 1984…

Talking Heads performed their last-ever concert at the Sweetwaters South Festival in Christchurch, New Zealand.

The 12-song set featured such classic songs as “Psycho Killer,” “Making Flippy Floppy,” “Swamp,” “Burning Down the House” and more.

The show didn’t go off without a hitch, though: Drummer Chris Frantz revealed that frontman David Byrne walked off the stage midset and had to be dragged back.

Although Talking Heads never toured again, they did go on to record three more albums. And while this was their final concert ever, they briefly reunited to perform for their induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2002, delivering “Psycho Killer,” “Life During Wartime,” Burning Down the House” and an all-star jam of “Take Me to the River.”

While they haven’t performed together since then, all members of Talking Heads got together for several joint interviews in 2023 and 2024 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of their iconic concert film, Stop Making Sense.

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The music of the Allman Brothers Band will once again be celebrated in New York.

The Brothers, a group made up of ABB former members, is set to headline Madison Square Garden on April 15 and 16, five years after they first staged a similar concert.

The Brothers will feature ABB founding member Jaimoe, along with band members Warren Haynes, Derek Trucks, Oteil Burbridge, Marc Quiñones and Chuck Leavell, who is billed as a “special guest.” Joining them will be Joe Russo on drums, Reese Wynans on keyboards and Isaac Eady on drums.

“The chance to play at The Garden with my friends again – FAR OUT man!” shares Jaimoe. “I’ll see you in April!!”

Fans can register in advance for a ticket presale that kicks off Feb. 12 at 10 a.m. ET. Tickets go on sale to the general public starting Feb. 14 at 10 a.m. ET.

More info can be found at TheBrothers.com.

The Brothers’ first show took place March 10, 2020, at Madison Square Garden, and lasted over four hours. The show was one of the last concerts at MSG before the concert industry was temporarily shut down due to the COVID outbreak.

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Howie Mandel has offered an apology after surprising comedian Bill Burr with an appearance by Billy Corgan after the Smashing Pumpkins frontman suggested that the two could be related.

Corgan first brought up the possibility during a November episode of Mandel’s podcast, sharing that his stepmother told him she thought Burr might be one of his father’s illegitimate children. In addition to looking alike, Corgan said that his father did once tell him he had a brother also named Bill that was born around the same time he was.

Then, in January, when Burr was a guest on the podcast, Mandel brought Corgan out without telling Burr ahead of time. Things then turned awkward as Burr expressed how uncomfortable the situation made him, while Corgan reiterated that Mandel told him ahead of time that Burr was excited to meet him.

Burr later appeared on The Rich Eisen Show and said he “did not appreciate what Howie did.”

In his latest podcast episode, Mandel maintains he “legitimately thought I was doing something nice” in setting up the Corgan/Burr meeting, adding that Burr hasn’t responded to his texts since the episode.

“I want to apologize, I feel horrible,” Mandel says. “I’m sorry Bill, I’m sorry Billy. I only tried to do something good.”

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Is new music on the way from Def Leppard?

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers seem to be teasing fans with the possibility, sharing photos on Instagram of guitarist Phil Collen singing into a mic with the caption, “Something’s brewing…,” leading to speculation that they’re recording new tunes.

“New album!? YES PLEASE!” one fan commented on the post, while another added, “Can’t wait to hear what you are working on.”

The tease comes just days after Def Leppard released a cover of the Ben E. King classic “Stand By Me” to benefit FireAid.

If the post is indeed hinting at a new album, it will be Def Leppard’s first album of original material since 2022’s Diamond Star Halos. In 2023 they released Drastic Symphonies, which featured some of their classic tunes reimagined with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Def Leppard has several shows booked for 2025, with their next concert happening May 15 in Puerto Rico. A complete list of dates can be found at defleppard.com.

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