Classic Rock 93.9

On This Day, Aug. 5, 1984 …

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band played the first of 10 nights at the Brendan Byrne Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Several performances from that 10-night stand were included in the rocker’s 1986 box set Live/1975-85.

The shows were part of Bruce’s Born in the U.S.A. tour, in support of his #1 album of the same name, which produced seven top-10 singles: the title track, “Dancing in the Dark,” “Cover Me,” “Glory Days,” “I’m On Fire,” “I’m Goin’ Down” and “My Hometown.” 

The tour ran from June 29, 1984, to Oct. 2, 1985, and included summer stadium dates in North America in 1985, marking The Boss’ first stadium tour.

The trek was a hugely successful tour for Springsteen, grossing between $80 million and $90 million.

Springsteen played Brendan Byrne Arena, later renamed Continental Airlines Arena, several times throughout his career. In fact, in 1999 he played 15 shows at the venue.

Springsteen recently wrapped a European tour with the E Street Band and will kick off a U.S. leg of the tour Aug. 15 in Pittsburgh. A complete list of dates can be found at brucespringsteen.net.

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Journey’s Jonathan Cain is explaining the reason he filed a lawsuit in Delaware against his bandmate Neal Schon over Schon’s allegedly excessive spending.

A statement from Cain’s Delaware attorney, Sid Liebesman, says the suit was filed to request the court “appoint a third, independent director to serve on the board of Freedom 2020, Inc., the corporate entity through which Journey primarily conducts the band’s business.”

The statement adds that there have been “growing issues” between Neal and Jon due to them being the sole directors of the company.

“No claims against Neal were asserted in the petition and the only form of relief sought is the appointment of a third director,” the statement adds. 

Cain’s suit, which was filed July 24, claims Schon has made several financial decisions costing the band money, including maxing out a $1 million limit on the company’s American Express credit card, going over the band’s $1,500-a-night max hotel fee, charting private jets and more. It also claims Schon has stopped attempts to pay off the band’s debts. 

The court docs describe the issues as “very much [a] public battle between petitioner and respondent and is impacting the band’s reputation throughout the music industry. The band’s actual onstage performance is, at the moment, one of the only aspects of the business that has not suffered.”

Liebesman’s statement notes the hope is that a third party “will provide resolution to the issues between Jon and Neal.” It adds, “None of the parties are seeking any form of damages. It is Jon’s intent for Journey to continue providing great live music throughout the current tour.” 

This isn’t the first time Cain has sued Schon over money. Back in 2022 he filed a lawsuit over a credit card Cain said Schon opened through their company.

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David Byrne is set to host a live variety show in New York this fall to help celebrate the fifth anniversary of his solutions-based nonprofit magazine Reasons to be Cheerful, a project of the Talking Heads frontman’s nonprofit, Arbutus.

The one-night-only event, dubbed Amazing Humans Doing Amazing Things, will take place Oct. 8 at Town Hall in New York, with Byrne handling the emcee duties.

“Variety shows were a big deal when I was young. It’s a format you don’t see as much of these days. So we thought, why not bring it back?” Byrne shares. “We looked for acts that could capture that sense of zany, anything-could-happen artistry. Reasons to be Cheerful inspires people by unearthing unexpected gems, and this show will embody that same spirit of gleeful surprise.”

Artists confirmed for Amazing Humans Doing Amazing Things include comedian Fred Armisen, the band Brass Queens, comedian and ventriloquist Nina Conti, raunchy puppetry group Epidermis Circus and singer-songwriter Thao, with additional acts to be added in the coming weeks.

Tickets are on sale now. Proceeds from the show will benefit Reasons to be Cheerful.

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Looks like Aerosmith is saying peace out earlier than planned.

The band just announced they’ve canceled their Peace Out tour, and they’ll be retiring from touring. It seems Steven Tyler’s vocal issues, which forced the postponement of the tour last year, have not gotten any better.

“It has been the honor of our lives to have our music become part of yours,” they write on Instagram. “In every club, on every massive tour and at moments grand and private you have given us a place in the soundtrack of your lives.” 

“We’ve always wanted to blow your mind when performing. As you know, Steven’s voice is an instrument like no other,” they continue. “He has spent months tirelessly working on getting his voice to where it was before his injury. We’ve seen him struggling despite having the best medical team by his side.”

They note, “Sadly, it is clear, that a full recovery from his vocal injury is not possible. We have made a heartbreaking and difficult, but necessary, decision – as a band of brothers – to retire from the touring stage.”

Refunds will be automatically processed for ticket purchases made through Ticketmaster.

“We are grateful beyond words for everyone who was pumped to get on the road with us one last time,” they write. “A final thank you to you – the best fans on planet Earth. Play our music loud, now and always. Dream On. You’ve made our dreams come true.”

Aerosmith’s Peace Out tour, which they said would be their last, originally launched in September 2023 but was postponed after a handful of shows when Tyler fractured his larynx. It was scheduled to relaunch Sept. 20 in Pittsburgh.

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A new bonus track from the recently released John Lennon box set Mind Games – The Ultimate Collection has been released. It gives fans some insight into the tune “I’m The Greatest,” which was recorded in 1973 and was the first reunion of Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison since the breakup of The Beatles. 

“I’m The Greatest (Ultimate Mix)” is now streaming for the very first time and features John’s guide vocals from the original recording session.

The tune, written by Lennon, appeared on Ringo’s self-titled 1973 solo album. It also featured longtime Beatles’ associates Klaus Voorman on bass and Billy Preston on organ.

The song is one of two digital bonus tracks on the digital-only Mind Games (The Ultimate Mixes) release. The other is the tune “Rock ‘N’ Roll People.” Both are also hidden tracks on the Mind Games – The Ultimate Collection box set, with even more to come, as new hidden tracks will be released digitally every two weeks up until Oct. 9, which would have been Lennon’s 84th birthday.

And if that’s not enough, stripped back arrangements of songs will be released digitally as part of Mind Games (The Elemental Mixes). The first of those is the unreleased track “You Are Here (Out-take, Take 4),” which is out now.

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Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi is set to reissue two of his solo albums this fall, both featuring Deep Purple bassist Glenn Hughes.

The albums, The 1996 DEP Sessions and Fused, will be released Oct. 4 on vinyl for the very first time. They will also be released on CD and digitally, with the Fused digital release containing three bonus tracks, “Slip Away,” “Let it Down Easy” and “The Innocence.” 

As part of the announcement, Iommi has shared a new lyric video for “Gone,” which was the opening track on 1996 The DEP Sessions. He’s also released “Savior of the Real,” from Fused, to digital services.

Both albums are available for preorder now.

Released in September 2004, The 1996 DEP Sessions featured songs originally recorded in 1996, which became a fan bootleg recording known as Eighth Star. In 2005 Iommi released Fused, which was his second solo album.

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U2 is back with another installment in their digital series U2 to Love and Only Love – Deep Dives and B-Sides, a series of 12 newly remastered collections, released throughout the year, made up of songs that until now were only available on vinyl, CD or cassette.

The latest playlist, the ninth in the series, is centered around “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of,” from the band’s 2000 album, All That You Can’t Leave Behind. 

The new playlist features two remastered versions of the song, one of which is acoustic, as well as a remastered version of “Big Girls Are Best,” a song from the All You Can’t Leave Behind era. There are also remastered live versions of “Beautiful Day” and “New York” from the TV show Farmclub.com, and live versions of “All I Want is You” and “Even Better Than The Real Thing” from a concert in Paris.

U2 also shared a video of a live performance of “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of” from their U2360 tour stop at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.

The playlist is now streaming on most digital outlets.

U2 launched U2 to Love and Only Love – Deep Dives and B-Sides in April and has so far released collections dedicated to “Discothèque,” “Staring at the Sun,” “Last Night on Earth,” “If God Will Send His Angels,” “Please,” “Mofo,” “Sweetest Thing” and “Beautiful Day.”

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Pete Townshend has dropped a new video of a classic live performance.

The Who rocker has shared a video of his performance of “After the Fire,” which was shot in 1985 at the Brixton Academy in London. The concert highlighted in the video features Pink Floyd’s Dave Gilmour on guitar.

“After the Fire,” which was written by Pete, was actually a hit for Who frontman Roger Daltrey, who recorded it for his solo album Under a Raging Moon.

The video comes just one week after Townshend released Pete Townshend Live > In Concert 1985-2001, a 14-CD box set featuring newly remastered versions of his live solo recordings, seven of which have been long out of print. 

The set includes Deep End Live at Brixton Academy in London, plus shows recorded at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 1993, San Francisco’s The Filmore in 1996, London’s Shepherds Bush Empire in 1998 and the La Jolla Playhouse in La Jolla, California, in 2001. There’s also a recording of two nights at London’s Sadler’s Wells Theatre, the only time Pete ever attempted a full Life House show.

Pete Townshend Live > In Concert 1985-2001 is out now.

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Bryan Adams has dropped the new single “Rock and Roll Hell,” which is actually one of two songs he co-wrote with Jim Vallance and Gene Simmons for KISS. The other is “War Machine,” and Adams is set to release both on 7-inch vinyl on Aug. 30.

Both tracks appeared on KISS’ 1982 album, Creatures of the Night. Adams says at the time he was a “22-year-old struggling songwriter,” noting he was “thrilled” at the opportunity to write for KISS.

“‘Rock and Roll Hell’ was actually Jim’s song that had been released a few years earlier with Bachman Turner Overdrive, and I suggested, that we re-write it for KISS,” he says. “It’s incredible to think these themes are unfortunately still playing out for real in the world today, but I’m very grateful to the KISS guys for giving me the chance back then.” 

To coincide with the release of “Rock and Roll Hell,” Adams has dropped a new video for the tune, which was shot on the roof of London’s famed Royal Albert Hall, where Adams wrapped a three-night residency back in May.

“Rock and Roll Hell” and “War Machine” are being released as a limited-edition double A-side 7-inch single. The single is available for preorder now at bryanadams.com.

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