Rush released their seventh studio album, Permanent Waves, which peaked at #4 on the Billboard album chart. It was the Canadian band’s first album to land in the top five, making it their most successful album at that time.
The record featured several songs that were considered more radio friendly than previous albums, with tracks like “The Spirit of the Radio” and “Freewill” going on to become Rush classics.
The album closed with a nine-minute track, “Natural Science,” which was composed in three movements.
Permanent Waves went on to be certified Platinum by the RIAA.
Ringo Starr will headline a new CBS special that will help those affected by the California wildfires.
The special, Ringo & Friends at the Ryman, will be a two-hour concert featuring footage recorded Tuesday and Wednesday during the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer’s two shows at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. The concerts are celebrating the recent release of Ringo’s new country album, Look Up, which was produced and co-written by T Bone Burnett.
As for those “Friends,” they include Sheryl Crow, Jack White, Brenda Lee, Rodney Crowell, Mickey Guyton, Emmylou Harris, Sarah Jarosz, The War and Treaty and Jamey Johnson, along with Larkin Poe, Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle, who all appear on Look Up. It also promises additional guests to be announced later.
Ringo is expected to perform songs from Look Up, as well as classics from his solo career and his time with The Beatles, with a press release promising reimagined versions of such songs as “Boys,” “Act Naturally,” “Yellow Submarine,” “Don’t Pass Me By” and “It Don’t Come Easy,” with a country twist.
There will also be a special all-star performance of “With a Little Help from My Friends,” with proceeds from the song benefiting the Red Cross to help the victims of the California wildfires.
“It is always a thrill to play the Ryman and this time we are going country!” said Ringo. “T Bone has put together a great show. I’m excited to hear my songs done in a country vein and to play with this incredible group of musicians. It will be two nights of peace, love and country music.”
Ringo & Friends at the Ryman will debut on CBS this spring.
The classic Yes album Close to the Edge will be reissued this March, with plenty of extra goodies for fans.
Rhino is set to release a “super deluxe edition” of the album as a five-CD, one-LP and Blu-ray set, which comes with a newly remastered version of the album on CD and LP, plus Dolby Atmos and 5.1 Mix DTS-HD MA mixes by producer Steven Wilson on Blu-Ray.
The set also includes a disc made up of previously unreleased recordings, including alternate mixes, alternate versions and edits of Close to the Edge songs. That includes recordings of three Steven Wilson tracks, “Siberian Khatru,” “Cord of Life” and “Total Mass Retain.”
The set also contains a two-CD live album, Live at the Rainbow, London, England, 12/16/72, recorded during the tour supporting the record. As a taste of what to expect, Yes has released a performance from that show, “Siberian Khatru (Live at The Rainbow, London, England, 12/16/72),” to digital services.
Released in September 1972, Close to the Edge was Yes’ fifth studio album and the last to feature original drummer Bill Bruford. It was a huge commercial success for the future Rock & Roll Hall of Famers, peaking at #3 in the U.S. and selling over 1 million copies.
Close to the Edge (Super Deluxe Edition) will be released March 7 and is available for preorder now.
After finding success with Creedence Clearwater Revival, John Fogerty launched a solo career in 1973. But it wasn’t until Jan. 14, 1985, that it really took off with the release of his third solo record, Centerfield.
After releasing his self-titled second album in 1976, Fogerty went into the studio to record the album HooDoo, but never released it. Nine years later he released Centerfield, with Fogerty playing all the instruments on the album himself.
The decision proved to be a good one for Fogerty, as Centerfield became a huge commercial success, earning Fogerty his only solo album #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart. It was also certified double Platinum by the RIAA.
The album featured Fogerty’s only solo Hot 100 top-10 single, “The Old Man Down The Road,” as well as “Rock and Roll Girls,” which was a top-20 hit.The title track peaked at #44 on the Hot 100, but went on to become one of Fogerty’s most iconic tunes. To this day it’s commonly played in baseball parks across the country; the song was even celebrated at the National Baseball Hall of Fame during the 2010 Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
The release of Centerfield did see Fogerty wind up in court over “The Old Man Down The Road.” Saul Zaentz, the owner of Fogerty’s old label, Fantasy Records, who also owned the publishing to the CCR catalog, sued Fogerty, arguing the song shared the same chorus as CCR’s “Run Through The Jungle.” Fogerty eventually won the case. He even fought all the way to the Supreme Court to get Zaentz to pay his legal fees and won.
Fogerty’s battle over his publishing would wind up lasting 50 years, and he didn’t get his rights back until January 2023.
The Moody Blues’ John Lodge has announced a new set of tour dates for the Days of Future Passed tour.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer will return to the road for 12 U.S. shows starting Feb. 19 in Port Chester, New York, and wrapping March 24 in Anna Maria Island, Florida. He’ll also hit the seas for an appearance at the Rock and Romance Cruise, which leaves March 14 out of Ft. Lauderdale.
The concert has Lodge performing two sets, one featuring Moody Blues classics, the other playing the band’s classic album Days of Future Passed in its entirety. Lodge is joined on the tour by his son-in-law, current Yes frontman Jon Davison,for vocals on “Nights in White Satin” and “Tuesday Afternoon.”
Ticket information and a complete list of tour dates can be found at JohnLodge.com.
The new tour dates come as Lodge is getting ready to release the new EP Love Conquers All, which is set to drop Feb. 14. It is available for preorder now.
Metallica has announced a $500,000 donation to Los Angeles fire relief efforts through the band’s All Within My Hands foundation.
The metal legends write in a statement, “The fires raging in the Los Angeles area have relentlessly wreaked havoc and widespread destruction since January 7 and, sadly, do not show signs of slowing down.”
“Despite containment progress over the weekend, officials warn residents to stay vigilant as the Santa Ana winds return and are expected to reach up to 70 MPH over the coming days, creating critical fire conditions,” the band continues. “In the past week, the community has suffered at least 24 lives lost, nearly 100,000 people under evacuation orders, 40,000 acres burned, and more than 12,000 structures—commercial and residential—destroyed.”
They add, “However, numbers cannot articulate the magnitude of anguish as the disaster upends families and dismantles livelihoods.”
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band just announced a set of summer dates that kick off June 13 in Waite Park, Minnesota, with stops in St. Louis, Milwaukee, New York, Boston, Denver and more before wrapping Sept. 10 in San Diego.
Tickets for most newly announced shows go on sale Friday at 10 a.m.
Next up, Chicago is set to stop by The Kelly Clarkson Show on Jan. 24 before heading out on the first leg of their 2025 tour. They kick things off Jan. 16 in Melbourne, Florida, with the first leg running through April 19 in Durham, North Carolina.
Ringo Starr is setting out on another tour with his All-Star Band this summer, and it doesn’t sound like he has plans to stop anytime soon.
“What else am I going to do?” Ringo tells the U.K. paper The Times. “The band sounds great. We have a fun time and we just do it.”
Ringo and his All-Starr Band — Toto’s Steve Lukather, Men at Work‘s Colin Hay, Warren Ham, Hamish Stuart, Gregg Bissonette and Buck Johnson — will hit the road starting June 12 in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
And Ringo has a perfectly good explanation for why he likes to surround himself with such A-list musicians.
“I only want to be in a band. I don’t want to be out on my own, ” he explains. “There’s no way you can go out there and do ‘Yesterday’ just on drums.”
Ringo just released the new country album Look Up, but he wants fans to know he doesn’t plan to fill his set with predominantly new songs.
“In the late ’90s, I would put in, like, two or three from the new album, and you could feel the room empty,” he says. “It happens to everybody.”
He then recalled seeing that happen at Elton John’s 1975 Wembley Stadium show supporting his then-new album Captain Fantastic. “I was with his mother. He came on and said, ‘I’m only going to do the new album,’” Starr shares. “Me and his mother left after three tracks because we didn’t know them.”
A complete list of Ringo dates can be found at RingoStarr.com.
After much speculation, the Grammys, scheduled for Feb. 2, will proceed as scheduled despite the deadly LA wildfires.
In a letter sent out to Recording Academy members on Jan. 13, Academy executives confirmed that the awards show telecast on CBS will “proceed as planned.” However, the letter notes that the telecast will “carry a renewed sense of purpose: raising additional funds to support wildfire relief efforts and honoring the bravery and dedication of first responders who risk their lives to protect ours.”
The Academy has donated $1 million to support music creatives and professionals affected by the fires, and with additional contributions, it has already distributed $2 million in emergency aid.
The 67th annual Grammy Awards will be hosted by Trevor Noah. The leading nominee is Beyoncé, with 11 nods.
Iron Maiden guitarist Adrian Smith is one of the many Los Angeles residents whose home was destroyed in the California wildfires, his wife Nathalie Dufresne-Smith revealed on social media.
In a post featuring pictures of a sunset, she wrote, “We lost our house,” adding in the caption, “We are safe. We have each other. We will start again. #malibustrong.” She added, “Thank you for your support during these trying times.”
Before the announcement, Nathalie had been documenting the fires as they were getting closer to the couple’s home and in one she can be heard saying, “Look, this is definitely coming toward us … now we have to go!”
Smith joined Iron Maiden in 1980, departing in 1989. He rejoined the group in 1999 and has been with them ever since.
Iron Maiden is set to kick off a new European tour on May 27 in Budapest. A complete list of dates can be found at IronMaiden.com.
