Classic Rock 93.9

Tedeschi Trucks Band’s Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi are set to perform the national anthem at Saturday’s 152nd Kentucky Derby.

The pair’s performance will be part of NBC’s coverage of the annual race from Churchill Downs in Louisville, with the performance taking place around 5 p.m. ET.

“Tedeschi Trucks Band’s soulful sound and remarkable vocal presence make them an exciting addition to this year’s Kentucky Derby,” says Mike Anderson, president of Churchill Downs Racetrack. “We’re thrilled to welcome them to Churchill Downs and know their performance will capture the energy, emotion, and spirit that define Derby Day.”

“Performing at the Kentucky Derby is a true honor for us,” adds Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks. “We’re thrilled to be invited and grateful for the opportunity to perform at such an iconic event.”

Tedeschi Trucks Band recently released their sixth studio album, Future Soul. They are currently on tour and scheduled to play Raleigh, North Carolina, on Wednesday, followed by New Orleans Jazz Fest on Sunday.

A complete list of dates can be found at TedeschiTrucksBand.com.

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After making a guest appearance on pop star Charlie Puth’s yacht rock-inspired album Whatever’s Clever!, The Doobie Brothers’ Michael McDonald is now popping up on Keith Urban’s new album, Flow State, which features the country superstar covering, yes, yacht rock tunes.

The album includes Keith’s takes on such yacht rock staples as Players’ “Baby Come Back,” Bill Withers’ “Just the Two of Us,” Robbie Dupree’s “Steal Away,” and Seals and Crofts’ “Summer Breeze,” which is out now.

McDonald appears on the album’s only original song, “We Go Back,” which is available via digital outlets. The album also features guest appearances by John Mayer and country group Little Big Town.

“The origins of this kind of music was, in certain ways, a reaction and an antidote to the stresses of the times,” Keith says. “Its sole mission (and soul mission) is unchanged … to bring us together and remind us that life is happening NOW- the eternal now- and we have far more in common than not.”

“I hope wherever you hear this album you can feel the exhale, comfort and optimism these songs were originally written by and for,” he adds.

Flow State, due out June 12, is available for preorder now. Here is the track list:
“Steal Away”
“Baby Come Back”
“Magnet and Steel” featuring Little Big Town
“Just the Two of Us”
“On and On”
“We Go Back” featuring Michael McDonald
“Help Is On Its Way”
“How Much I Feel”
“Summer Breeze”
“I Just Wanna Stop”
“Guitar Man” featuring John Mayer

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Elton John spent many years doing residencies in Las Vegas, and he’s heading back there in May to play a special show.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that Elton will headline the Las Vegas Raiders’ Silver & Black Gala charity event May 17 at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium. The event will benefit the Raider Foundation, which supports military members and veterans, health and wellness initiatives, and youth development efforts in the Las Vegas community.

Team owner Mark Davis told the paper, “Elton’s resilience and willingness to share his own struggles reinforces the message that mental health matters and that seeking support is a sign of strength.”

Elton, who most recently played Allegiant Stadium in 2022, played over 400 shows between his two Vegas residencies at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace: The Red Piano from 2004 to 2009 and The Million Dollar Piano from 2011 to 2018.

While Elton officially retired from the road in 2023 when his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour ended, he’s continued to perform shows here and there, especially for charitable causes.

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KISS’ Gene Simmons is revealing his regrets regarding his late bandmate Ace Frehley, who passed away in October.

In an interview with the Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum podcast, Simmons opened up about his relationship with Frehley over the past 50 years, describing it as “up and down.”

“If you would’ve met Ace at the beginning — God bless him — you would’ve fallen in love with the idea, you know, who he is and all that,” Simmons said, noting their relationship began to decline when Frehley “turned to beverages and chemicals.”

He went on to discuss what he described as Frehley’s unreliable behavior during his KISS tenure, including Frehley not showing up to recording sessions and events. He revealed that he tried to talk Frehley out of his first KISS departure, noting “he never made smart decisions.”

Simmons said he regretted that he didn’t stage an intervention for Frehley decades ago and “forced him to understand he’s not just hurting himself by his lifestyle choices, but his family, his child and the fans.”

“It was a stupid and shameful decision on all our parts — I know mine too — is, ‘No, you don’t wanna get the fans upset. Let’s make believe he’s in the band and everything’s OK at home,’” he said, getting emotional. “And it, it’s tough. It’s really tough.”

Simmons said he knows fans aren’t going to be happy with his comments.

“But the kids at home don’t understand that. They never met and spent time with Ace,” he said, noting that when Frehley was clean he was “lovable, everything’s great.” However, “when the stuff started to take hold, it was Jekyll and Hyde. You just can’t make smart decisions when you’re drunk or high.”

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On This Day, April 29, 2008 …

Mudcrutch, the band that helped launch Tom Petty’s career, released its self-titled debut album.

Formed in Gainesville, Florida, in 1970, the band included Petty and future Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell, along with Tom Leadon, brother of Eagles guitarist Bernie Leadon; Jim Lenahan; and Randall Marsh. Future Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench joined in 1972.

The band, who went through several lineup changes, eventually broke up in 1975. Petty then formed the Heartbreakers with Campbell, Tench, Stan Lynch and Ron Blair.

In 2007, Petty invited Marsh and Leadon to join him, Campbell and Tench in reforming Mudcrutch, and they recorded their debut album, which consisted of 14 tracks, a mixture of old and new songs. They also toured in support of the record.

Mudcrutch debuted at #8 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart.

A second album, 2, was released in 2016, featuring the last recorded material from Petty before his 2017 death.

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David Byrne has released a new version of the track “What Is the Reason For It?” from his latest solo album, Who Is the Sky?

The original song featured Paramore’s Hayley Williams, but the new take, retitled “¿Cuál Es La Razón?,” features Grammy Award-winning Mexican singer Natalia Lafourcade in her place.

A press release describes the new version as “a vocal and brass-led remix, drawing inspiration from David’s experiences in Mexico City and the enduring mysteries of love.”

“¿Cuál Es La Razón?,” produced by Mexican Institute Of Sound, is now available via digital outlets.

The release coincides with Byrne announcing that he’ll bring his Who Is The Sky? tour to Mexico for a trio of shows: Sept. 4 in Mexico City, Sept. 8 in Guadalajara and Sept. 10 in Monterrey.

In other Byrne news, the rocker’s new book, Sleeping Beauties: Why Good Ideas Go Dormant and How They Wake Up, will be released Oct. 6. It’s described as “a brilliant and inspiring reckoning with how breakthroughs across the arts and sciences get forgotten, and how they get rediscovered.”

Byrne is currently on the latest North American leg of his Who Is The Sky? tour. He’ll wrap a two-night stand in St. Louis, Missouri, on Wednesday. The tour hits Europe and the U.K. this summer, with additional stops in Thailand, Japan and South Korea before returning to the U.S. The tour is set to wrap Sept. 19 at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, New York.

A complete list of dates can be found at DavidByrne.com.

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The Police drummer Stewart Copeland has added more shows to his Have I Said Too Much – The Police, Hollywood, and Other Adventures spoken word tour.

The trek, Copeland’s first North American spoken word tour, was initially supposed to hit 34 cities this summer, but has been extended into the fall and will now visit 53 cities.

The new dates begin Oct. 28 in Thousand Oaks, California, with stops including Tucson, Arizona; Boulder and Denver, Colorado; Omaha, Nebraska; Detroit; and Homer and Bethel, New York. The tour will wrap Nov. 22 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The show is described as an evening of conversation with Copeland. It will include photos and videos, along with a Q&A.

An artist presale for the new dates begins Thursday at 10 a.m. local time, with tickets going on sale to the general public Friday at 10 a.m. local time.

Have I Said Too Much – The Police, Hollywood, and Other Adventures launches June 3 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. A complete list of dates can be found at StewartCopeland.net.

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Europe is getting ready to release their first new album in nine years.

The Swedish rockers, best known for their 1986 hit “The Final Countdown,” have announced that their 12th studio album, Come This Madness, will be released Sept. 25. They are previewing the record with the new single “One on One.”

“‘One On One’ is definitely one of my favorite tracks from the album,” says Europe’s founding member and frontman Joey Tempest. “The power and feel is fresh, but some of the melodies bring me back to where it all began.”

“Lyrically, it’s perhaps not filled with as much escapism as early Europe. These lyrics automatically ended up being more of a reflection of the times we live in today,” he adds. “Ever since ‘One On One’ was just a demo, we’ve stayed with it … never gave up on it, and elevated it to a place where it belongs: a high-flying, classic hard rock track.”

The “One on One” release is accompanied by a new video, featuring Fargo actor Peter Stormare.

Come This Madness, Europe’s first album since 2017’s Walk the Earth, features guest appearances by Ghost’s Tobias Forge and Opeth’s Michael Åkerfeldt. It will be released digitally, and on CD and vinyl, and is available for preorder now.

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Loverboy’s Mike Reno and Paul Dean are among this year’s inductees into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.

The pair, known for writing such songs as “Working for the Weekend” and “Turn Me Loose,” will be celebrated at a ceremony taking place at Toronto’s Massey Hall on Sept. 26.

“We set out to write songs that made people feel something right away, that energy, that release, that connection,” Reno and Dean said in a statement. “To have that songwriting recognized all these years later, and to know the songs are still out there doing their job, means everything to us.”

This year’s other Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame inductees include Tragically Hip, Feist and Roch Voisine.

“The Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame exists to honour the songwriters whose work has shaped our culture and defined how Canadian music is heard at home and around the world,” said Nick Fedor, executive director of the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. “This year’s inductees represent that standard at the highest level. These are writers whose songs have endured, traveled, and become part of the country’s shared experience. They did not follow a template; they defined one.”

He added, “Their induction recognizes a body of work that continues to resonate across generations and audiences.”

Tickets for the induction ceremony go on sale Wednesday at 10 a.m ET.

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The Recording Academy is honoring Rod Stewart with his very own concert special.

Forever Young: A Grammy Salute to Rod Stewart Live will feature taped performances from Stewart’s One Last Time Tour concerts that took place in Miami, Florida, in February. In addition to the concert performances, the special will feature archival footage of Stewart, along with a behind-the-scenes look at his show.

Forever Young: A Grammy Salute to Rod Stewart Live, named after Rod’s 1988 hit song, will air May 19 on CBS and stream on Paramount+.

Rod Stewart launched his One Last Time Tour in 2024 and still has shows booked through August. Next up, he’ll kick off a new set of Las Vegas residency dates at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on May 27. A complete list of dates can be found at RodStewart.com.

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