Classic Rock 93.9

Longtime Moody Blues singer/guitarist Justin Hayward is ready to launch the latest leg of his Blue World tour, which is a unique concert experience.

In addition to performing, the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer shares some stories about his songs, but he tells ABC Audio the tales don’t distract from what’s really important to him.  

“Really, it’s about the music,” he says. “And then, I often feel that it needs an introduction, sometimes a bit of explanation and context of what was happening. I kind of get sidetracked into talking about things because I’m encouraged to.”

Hayward plans to play new songs, fan favorites and even some deep album cuts during his shows, and he says it’s always a bit of a challenge to come up with the right set list that will please fans.

“You know, I’m sorry to say this because it sounds like showing off, but it’s never what I play, it’s what I leave out,” he says. “But that’s what keeps it all fresh and keeps it going.”

Justin loves that he can connect with fans through music, sharing that when he was growing up he and his brother would “live our lives” through music and their records, which is something fans can relate to.

“You know, I can feel it when you can see people going, ‘Oh, there’s the guy who sang it, that’s him and he’s doing it right now’ kind of thing,” Justin says. “It creates a wonderful kind of magic in a room. It’s brilliant.” 

Justin Hayward’s Blue World tour kicks off June 18 in Sacramento, California. A complete list of dates can be found at justinhayward.com.

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The 77th annual Tony Awards are happening Sunday in New York, with The Who‘s Pete Townshend previously confirmed as a presenter. Well, he may be doing more than that. 

Deadline is now reporting that Townshend is actually going to perform on the show, joining the cast of The Who’s Tommy for “Pinball Wizard.”

The Who’s Tommy is nominated this year for Best Revival of a Musical, where it’s up against Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club, Gutenberg! The Musical! and Merrily We Roll Along.

Townshend previously won the Tony for Best Original Score for Tommy’s original run in 1993. The show won a total of five Tonys that year.

The 77th annual Tony Awards air Sunday at 8 p.m. ET live on CBS from Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater.

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U2 has released the next installment in their digital series, U2 To Love and Only Love – Deep Dives and B-Sides, this time dedicated to the track “Mofo,” from their ninth studio album, Pop.

The series will consist of 12 newly remastered collections, released throughout the year, which are made up of songs that until now were only available on vinyl, CD or cassette.

This sixth collection includes five different remastered “Mofo” remixes: Phunk Phorce Mix, Mother’s Mix, Black Hole Dub, House Flavour and Romin Mix.

And to coincide with the playlist, U2 has released a limited-edition 2024 reissue of a “Mofo” T-shirt that reads “Mother Sucking Rock And Roll.” It is available for preorder now.

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

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Paul McCartney & Wings’ live album One Hand Clapping is finally out, and to celebrate the release, McCartney has shared a fully restored performance video of the track “Soily.” 

The video is taken from footage recorded by director David Litchfield in August 1974, when McCartney and the band hit Abbey Road Studios to film what was to be a video documentary and possible live studio album. That live album was never officially released until now, although portions of it have appeared on bootlegs.

One Hand Clapping includes live recordings of such Wings hits as “Live and Let Die,” “Band on the Run,” “Jet” and “My Love,” as well as Paul’s solo song “Maybe I’m Amazed” and reworked versions of Beatles tracks like “Let It Be,” “Lady Madonna” and “The Long and Winding Road.”

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When The Who‘s Roger Daltrey kicked off his solo tour on June 10 he included a cover John Fogerty’s Creedence Clearwater Revival classic “Have You Ever Seen The Rain” in the set list, and Fogerty took to social media to thank him for the tribute.

Fogerty shared a clip to social media of Daltrey’s introduction of the song, where he talked about Fogerty’s 50-year fight to get his publishing back. Daltrey added that he’s always been a Fogerty fan, calling him a “wonderful guy” and the “real deal.” 

“Thank you to my friend Roger Daltrey for celebrating with me!” Fogerty shared in the caption to his post. “Can’t wait for us to jump on stage together sometime soon.”

Unfortunately, that won’t be happening this weekend, as the two Rock & Roll Hall of Famers’ tours will just miss each other. 

Daltrey brings his solo acoustic tour to Niagara Falls, Canada, on Friday, while Fogerty’s tour hits Bethel, New York, on Friday, playing the same venue Daltrey is booked to play on Sunday.

A complete list of Daltrey’s dates can be found at thewho.com, while information on Fogerty’s shows can be found at johnfogerty.com.

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On their current world tour, Green Day‘s been revisiting their past by performing Dookie and American Idiot in full to celebrate their respective 30th and 20th anniversaries. Along with the throwback set list, the band is bringing back some previous fashion choices.

During a recent show in Berlin, frontman Billie Joe Armstrong sported his red-and-black question mark tie, which he originally wore during Green Day’s infamously muddy performance at Woodstock ’94. The tie was later put on display at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in conjunction with Green Day’s induction in 2015.

“First time wearing this tie in 30 years!” Green Day writes in an Instagram post alongside a photo of Armstrong from the Berlin concert. “Thanks to the @rockhall for letting us steal it back after all these years!”

Green Day’s tour, which also supports their new album, Saviors, comes to the U.S. in July.

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A new compilation of rarities from late The Who bassist John Entwistle is being released later this year.

Rarities Oxhumed – Volume Two is the follow-up to the 2022 release Rarities Oxhumed – Volume One, and features alternative takes, demos, studio tracks and live tracks from the early years of the John Entwistle Band.

Just like the original release, Volume Two has been curated by Entwistle’s good friend and bandmate Steve Luongo.

“When I agreed to do two volumes of John Entwistle rarities, I knew volume two had to be even better than volume one,” Luongo shares. “It is!”

The latest installment includes a remastered version of “Endless Vacation” and an alternative mix of “Sometimes,” as well as live performances of Who songs like “Real Me,” “Long Live Rock” and “Had Enough,” the latter of which is out now on digital services. There’s also what’s described as an “epic version” of The Who’s “Young Man Blues.” 

Rarities Oxhumed – Volume Two will be released in August and is available for preorder now in a variety of CD bundles, including one that packages both volumes together. 

Here is the track list for Rarities Oxhumed – Volume Two:

“Endless Vacation” (Video Mix)
“Sometimes” (Alternate Mix)
“Rebel Without A Car” (Alternate Mix)
“When The Sun Come Up” (Single Remix)
“Horror Rock” (Steve’s Re-Mix)
“Tommy-Eminence” (Live)
“Young Man Blues” (Live)
“Real Me” (Live)
“Long Live Rock” (Live)
“Boris Blues-Extended Version” (Live)
“Whiskey Man” (Live)
“Had Enough” (Live)
“Heaven and Hell” (Live)

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The four members of R.E.M. – Michael Stipe, Mike Mills, Peter Buck and Bill Berry – were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame Thursday night in New York, where they surprised the audience by performing together.

After being inducted by Jason Isbell, who performed the classic “It’s the End of the World as We Know It,” the band took the stage for a stripped back performance of their 1991 hit “Losing My Religion.” 

“Writing songs and having a catalog of work that we’re all proud of — that is out there for the rest of the world for the rest of time —is hands-down the most important aspect of what we did as a band,” Stipe said in his speech on behalf of the band. “Second to that is that we managed to do so all those decades and remain friends, and not just friends, but dear friends, friends for life.”

He continued, “For us to be honored alongside these other unbelievably talented and influential people tonight by the Songwriters Hall of Fame as group … it truly means the world to us that you’ve recognized us tonight.”

The last time all four members of R.E.M. performed together was in 1995. During that tour, Berry suffered a double brain aneurysm and left the group in 1997. The remaining three members continued on, and last performed together 15 years ago. They broke up in 2011.

Other artists inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on Thursday include Steely Dan’s Donald Fagen and the late Walter Becker, Timbaland, Hillary Lindsey and Dean Pitchford, while Diane Warren received the Johnny Mercer Award and SZA was honored with the Hal David Starlight Award.

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Mike Campbell and his band The Dirty Knobs’ third album, Vagabonds, Virgins and Misfits, is out now, and Campbell tells ABC Audio the record shows them coming into their own sound.

He says the first two albums proved they were “a rock ‘n’ roll boogie band mostly,” but they’re evolving.  

“We’re expanding our songwriting as we go along and getting better,” he says, “and I’m finding my voice as a ‘stylist,’ not a singer.”

After so many years in the background as guitarist and songwriter for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Campbell says it hasn’t been hard for him to step into the frontman role, but it was certainly an adjustment.

“It’s mostly coming out of a little insecurity and getting used to the sound of my own voice,” he says, noting he made some adjustments to his voice because it had similar nuances to Petty’s.

“I wanted to filter those out so I didn’t sound like a clone,” he explains. “It was mostly confidence, just building up my confidence that, yeah, you can do this.” 

The album features guest appearances by Graham Nash and Chris Stapleton, with Campbell sharing that songs on the record were influenced by the music he grew up listening to in the ’60s, like The Beatles and The Stones.

“That’s the stuff I emulate,” he says.

As for the album’s title, Campbell says it’s inspired by the songs, which are filled with “desperate people” trying for a better life.  

“And I thought there’s a lot of desperate vagabonds, misfit-type people,” he says. “And I threw virgins just cause it sounded good.”  

Campbell and The Dirty Knobs hit the road starting June 21 in Skokie, Illinois. More info can be found at thedirtyknobs.com.

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The Alan Parsons Project is revisiting their 1978 album, Pyramid. 

The band announced that the record will be reissued in a variety of formats, including a super deluxe edition that comes with four CDs, and a Blu-ray with the first ever Dolby Atmos mix of one of the band’s albums.

The super deluxe edition will also include 67 bonus tracks, 54 of which haven’t been released before, as well as a half-speed remastered double LP, a 60-page hardcover book and a whole lot more. 

There will also be a remastered CD featuring four bonus tracks, as well as a clear vinyl and a limited edition 180-gram gold nugget vinyl.

All formats will be released Aug. 23 and are available for preorder now. The first 500 people to preorder the super deluxe edition through the band’s store will receive a print signed by Parsons.

Released in May 1978, Pyramid was the third studio album from The Alan Parsons Project. It was a concept album set around the Pyramids of Giza.

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