Grateful Dead bassist and founding member Phil Lesh dies at 84

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh passed away Friday at the age of 84. His death was announced in a statement on his official Instagram page.

“Phil Lesh, bassist and founding member of The Grateful Dead, passed peacefully this morning,” read the post. “He was surrounded by his family and full of love.”

“Phil brought immense joy to everyone around him and leaves behind a legacy of music and love,” it continued. “We request that you respect the Lesh family’s privacy at this time.”

Lesh co-founded the iconic jam band with Jerry Garcia, Bobby Weir, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan and Bill Kreutzmann in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1965, with drummer Mickey Hart and lyricist Robert Hunter joining the group in 1967. He co-wrote several of their iconic tunes, including “Truckin'” and “Box of Rain.”

The band, inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, was best known for their live shows, with fans aka “Deadheads” known to follow them around on tour.

Following Garcia’s 1995 death, Grateful Dead disbanded, but Lesh continued to play in offshoots of the group, including The Other Ones with members Weir and Hart; they eventually changed their name to The Dead. He also toured with Weir under the band name Further, which disbanded in 2014.

Lesh also released three albums under the name Phil Lesh and Friends and toured extensively with that band. He celebrated his 84th birthday onstage at the Capitol Theatre in New York in March and played his last live show on July 21 in San Rafael, California.

No cause of death has been released for Lesh, although he has had health issues in the past. In 2006 he announced that he’d been diagnosed with prostate cancer, and in 2015 he revealed he’d been diagnosed with bladder cancer.

New Blondie album coming next year

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

Looks like we’re going to be getting some new music from Blondie in 2025.

Guitarist and co-founder Chris Stein broke the news on Instagram, sharing a black-and-white photo of Blondie frontwoman Debbie Harry in the studio, along with the caption, “New Blondie album next year.”

Stein offered no other information about the Blondie album.

An upcoming album will be the first from Blondie since 2017’s Pollinator, which featured songs written by the members of Blondie and outside collaborators like The Smiths’ Johnny Marr, Sia and Charli XCX.

Elton John wants audiences at his musical Tammy Faye to ‘leave the theater with a smile on their face’

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

Elton John is sharing what inspired him to make a Broadway musical about one of America’s most famous televangelists, Tammy Faye Bakker, who died in 2007.

In an interview with ABC’s Good Morning America, Elton, who composed the music for the new show, said he admired Bakker’s support for the gay community.

“She took a chance,” he said. “It was pretty remarkable for someone in the religious community.”

“No one else in the evangelical community was very gay-friendly at all,” he added. “They, well, totally hated us. She stood out. And I loved her for that.”

Elton specifically remembers the moment that Bakker, who was the co-founder of the televangelist program The PTL Club with her then-husband Jim Bakker, invited Rev. Steve Pieters on the show in 1985. During her groundbreaking interview with Pieters, Faye was moved to tears as Pieters opened up to her about what it was like living with HIV/AIDS.

“She won me over when she did that,” Elton said.

The new musical, which is titled Tammy Faye, will tell the story of Tammy and how she “stole the country’s heart,” according to a synopsis. Set in the ’70s, it follows her and her husband as they build their congregation.

Elton said Tammy’s son watched the show and was “thrilled” about it. “He wants his mother’s legacy to be true,” he said.

“I want people to walk out of the theater thinking, ‘God, she was OK … she was a wonderful woman. We might have misjudged her,'” he added. “I want them to leave the theater with a smile on their face.”

Elton’s other musicals include The Lion King, Billy Elliott, Aida and The Devil Wears Prada, the latter of which just opened in London’s West End.

There’s lots of shirtless Lenny Kravitz in his new video for ‘Honey’

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

Lenny Kravitz has dropped a new video for his latest single, “Honey.”

The clip, shot at a waterfront villa, is one big thirst trap, filled with plenty of images of a shirtless Lenny, singing and just looking sexy. And when he’s not shirtless, he’s almost shirtless, wearing a suit with nothing under his jacket, or wearing a mesh top that he slowly pulls off.

The clip also features a woman, often seen taking photos of the rocker. At one point she’s seen feeding him, and there’s even a closeup of him licking what appears to be honey off her hands.

“Honey” is the latest track Kravitz has shared from his most recent album, Blue Electric Light. This is the fourth video he’s released form the album, following “TK421,” “Human” and “Paralyzed.”

Kravitz is about to wrap his Las Vegas residency at the Dolby Live. He has two more shows, Friday and Saturday, before he heads to Atlantic City, New Jersey, for shows Nov. 1 and Nov. 2. A complete list of dates can be found at lennykravitz.com.

Sting says his co-headlining dates with Billy Joel are ‘perfect’: ‘The audience really digs the bill’

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

On Friday, longtime pals Sting and Billy Joel will co-headline the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas — the latest in a string of joint stadium concerts they’ve been doing and will continue doing into 2025. Sting opens each show, and while he admits he usually wouldn’t do that, he and Billy worked out an arrangement that worked for them both.

“Billy asked me if I would do it. I said, ‘You know … I’m not normally in a support spot. But if you introduce me and we sing a couple of songs together, I’ll be perfectly happy,'” Sting tells ABC Audio. “So Billy comes out the first thing and he introduces me and we sing a song together. Then I come out and do one of his in his set. So it feels very collegiate, and I think the audience really digs the bill. I think it’s perfect.”

At the start of the show, Billy and Sting team up for The Police hit “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic”; later, Sting joins Billy for the deep cut “Big Man on Mulberry Street,” from Billy’s 1986 album, The Bridge.

“Billy says that he wrote that song for me … or he had me in mind when he wrote it. So it’s come full circle,” Sting says.

Sting and Billy met back in 1980 when, Sting says, Billy dropped by the venue where he and The Police were performing and said he was a fan. Sting says he admires Billy so much because of his deep musical knowledge.

“I remember spending an evening with him around a piano and he played everything from Beethoven to Gilbert and Sullivan, standards, Ray Charles songs. He could play everything,” says Sting. “He’s a real muso. And I like that.”

Billy and Sting have shows booked through May 2025.

U2 gives update on Larry Mullen Jr.’s health, shares what’s next for the band

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

U2 has offered a health update about their drummer Larry Mullen Jr., who was forced to sit out of their Sphere residency after having surgery.

Guitarist The Edge and bassist Adam Clayton chatted with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe on a variety of subjects, with The Edge sharing the latest on Larry.

“So the great news is Larry is getting better every week and we’ll be making a racket with him in no time,” he said. “So we’re very excited about that.”

Meanwhile, the pair revealed what’s next for the band, and it sounds like they may be going back to basics with their next release.

“If all the world is a loop, I think we’ve got to the point where we’ve pushed things as far as we can in terms of adding extra things into the band,” Adam shared. “And now we want to go back and take the layers off and get down to what the band does really well, which is to play live in a room.”

The Edge notes, “I do think that sort of music made in real time has been underserved for the last number of years and it’s started to feel really fresh again. … And I think albums that have that energy and that quality, I think are going to be really interesting for people over the next little while.”

He shares, “I think we’re in a good place to make an album like that because that’s what we started out doing. We, as a band, found our creative chops by playing live in front of an audience and by necessity had to keep things quite simple. And I think that’s hopefully the hallmark of the next collection of songs.”

On This Day, Oct. 25, 1986: Bon Jovi’s ‘Slippery When Wet’ hits #1

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

On This Day, Oct. 25, 1986 …

Bon Jovi landed their first #1 album with their third studio release, Slippery When Wet.

The album spent eight weeks on top of the chart and went on to be certified 12-times Platinum by the RIAA.

The record featured their signature tune, “Livin’ On A Prayer,” as well as “You Give Love A Bad Name” and “Wanted Dead or Alive.” It’s the New Jersey rockers’ bestselling album to date.

Slippery When Wet was the first of four #1 albums for Bon Jovi. Their others are 1988’s New Jersey, 2007’s Lost Highway and 2009’s The Circle.

Slippery When Wet has since gone on to be certified 15-times Platinum by the RIAA.

Bon Jovi, who is in the midst of celebrating their 40th anniversary, released a new album in 2024, Forever, which peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200 Album chart.

Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor perform at Harris/Walz rallies

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

Bruce Springsteen continues to show his support of Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz, performing at Harris’ “When We Vote We Win” rally in Georgia Thursday night, which also featured President Barack Obama.

The Boss performed three songs at the rally — “The Promised Land,” “Land of Hope and Dreams” and “Dancing in the Dark” — and let those gathered know why the Democratic hopefuls have earned his vote.

“I want a president who reveres the constitution. Who does not threaten but wants to protect and guide our great democracy,” he said. “Who believes in the rule of law and the peaceful transfer of power. Who will fight for a woman’s right to choose and who wants to create a middle class economy that will serve all our citizens.”

“There is only one candidate in this election who holds those principles dear, Kamala Harris,” he added.

Springsteen argued that Harris is “running to be the 47th president of the United States, Donald Trump is running to be an American tyrant,” adding, “He does not understand this country, its history or what it means to be deeply American.”

But Springsteen wasn’t the only Rock & Roll Hall of Famer who came out in support of the Democratic ticket. James Taylor performed at Walz’s rally in Wilmington, North Carolina, performing “You’ve Got A Friend” with his wife, Kim, and his son Henry.

Taylor was supposed to perform the same song at the Democratic National Convention, but his spot was cut for time.

Rick Wills & Al Greenwood on playing with Foreigner again: ‘Suddenly we’ve become legends’

October 25, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

Foreigner opens their Las Vegas residency at The Venetian on Friday — and they just announced the band’s original members, and recent Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees, Rick Wills and Al Greenwood would be joining them for the shows.

And Wills tells ABC Audio that fans could be seeing even more appearances in the future.

“The three of us have committed ourselves to be more involved with the current band for the next couple of years,” Wills shares, referring to himself, Greenwood and Lou Gramm. “If they want to say Foreigner with original and current members, we think this is the time to do it because we all feel alike about what we do.”

He adds, “They feel our involvement will help; because of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, suddenly we’ve become legends.”

Only Wills and Greenwood are committed to the residency, but Gramm is in talks to appear at some shows in 2026, a year that will mark a huge milestone for the band.

“We have a 50th anniversary coming up, so we’re doing some special projects for that,” Greenwood says. “So we’re aligning things to be synchronized when we have our 50th anniversary of the release of the first record.”

Foreigner was formed in New York City in 1976. The original lineup featured Mick Jones, Gramm, Greenwood, Dennis Elliott, Ed Gagliardi and Ian McDonald. They released their self-titled debut in 1977, featuring the hit songs “Feels Like the First Time” and “Cold as Ice.” Wills joined the band in 1978.

Foreigner’s residency at The Venetian runs until Nov. 9. They will then resume their Farewell tour on March 13 in Hollywood, Florida. A complete list of dates can be found at foreigneronline.com.

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announces Green Day Fan Day

October 24, 2024 by Classic Rock 93.9

Fresh off ushering in its 2024 class, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is celebrating a past inductee: Green Day.

The Cleveland museum has announced Green Day Fan Day, taking place Nov. 1. The event, which celebrates the respective 30th and 20th anniversaries of the Dookie and American Idiot albums, will feature band artifacts, photo-op backdrops and exclusive merch giveaways.

Attendees will also get to see the famed 1968 Mercury Monterey convertible featured in Green Day’s “Holiday” and “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” videos. As previously reported, the car is being raffled in support of the Wheels for Wishes program.

“We won’t be able to make it, but don’t let that stop you from showing up and showing out,” Green Day says.

For more info, visit RockHall.com.

Green Day celebrated the Dookie and American Idiot anniversaries by playing both albums in full on a U.S. stadium tour over the summer.

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