Classic Rock 93.9

Bon Jovi‘s been around for 40 years and frontman Jon Bon Jovi is still amazed at how successful some of their songs have become.

One of those tunes, the band’s #1 hit “Livin’ On A Prayer,” has over a 1.5 billion streams on Spotify. In a new interview with Music Week, Jon lets fans know he has “love, nothing but love” for the track.

“It evolves. But ‘Livin’ On a Prayer,’ ‘It’s My Life’ and ‘Always’ have more than a billion YouTube [views]. It’s crazy what the catalog has done to touch people,” he shares.

Jon calls “Livin’ On A Prayer” “an anomaly beyond young, old, left, right, Republican, Democrat, black, white … It’s bigger than all of us could have ever imagined in our wildest dreams.”

He also believes “Legendary,” the first single off their new album, FOREVER, could be just as big.

“It’s just something about those big ballads that are fascinating, so there’s nothing but love for all of them,” he says.

FOREVER drops on June 7, and Jon is offering some insight into how he wrote one of the tracks, the ballad “I Wrote You A Song.”

“If you ever wonder where the inspiration comes from, let me ruin it for you,” Jon jokes in a new video. “I rolled out of bed, in the middle of the night, a notebook by the side of the bed, I’m laying on the floor with a pen, piece of paper and I write verbatim the entire first verse.” 

He relayed what he wrote to his wife and his friend Billy Falconer, and Falconer immediately suggested the title “I Wrote You A Song.”

He noted, “So, a man in his underwear can write a great verse in the middle of the night.”

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Bruce Springsteen’s iconic album Born in the U.S.A. was released 40 years ago June 4, and a new live playlist has just been released to mark the milestone anniversary.

The official Born in the U.S.A. Tour ’84 – ’85 compilation is now live on nugs.net, featuring live performances of 15 tracks, taken from shows in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and Los Angeles.

In addition to performances of the album’s songs like “Dancing in the Dark,” “Glory Days,” “Cover Me,” “My Hometown,” the title track and more, it also includes live performances of “Seeds,” which was recorded during the sessions for Born in the U.S.A., as well as “Stand on It” and “Pink Cadillac,” which were B-sides for Born in the U.S.A. singles.

Released June 4, 1984, Born in the U.S.A. was one of Springsteen’s most successful albums, selling over 30 million copies worldwide. It spent seven weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 Album chart and 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.”  

And speaking of Springsteen, if fans want to read about his old stomping grounds, a new book about the legendary club The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey, has just been released. I Don’t Want to Go Home: The Oral History of the Stone Pony, from New York Times journalist Nick Corasaniti, features a foreword by The Boss, along with interviews from Springsteen, Steven Van Zandt and more, with never-before-seen photos from Danny Clinch.

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Not long ago, Rod Stewart launched his own brand of whisky, Wolfie’s, and he’s enlisted one of his sons to help him show you why it’d make a great Father’s Day gift.

In an Instagram video, Rod and his son Liam, who recently got married in Croatia, are standing in a bar in front of a bottle of Wolfie’s, two martini glasses and a cocktail shaker. 

“Welcome, everybody, to our Father’s Day celebrations,” says Rod. “My son Liam here is going to teach you how to make a rockstar martini. And I’m the rock star.”

Liam proceeds to mix 2 ounces of Wolfie’s whisky with 1 ounce of vanilla syrup, 1 ounce of passionfruit liqueur and lime juice. He shakes it up, pours it into the glasses and then Rod tops it off with some champagne. “Have a lovely Father’s Day,” says Rod.

The two drink their concoction, which seems like it’d be very sweet — but then again, Rod’s previously owned up to preferring sweet drinks. “Mmm,” says Rod. “Mother’s milk.”

Rod, of course, knows a thing or two about Father’s Day: He has eight children, ranging in age from 59 to 13, and all of them managed to get together in Croatia to celebrate Liam’s wedding.

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Yusuf/Cat Stevens is set to release a remastered edition of his 1973 album, Foreigner.  

The album will be released July 26 to streaming services in both standard and high resolution audio. It will also be released on vinyl for the first time since its original release, with two options: standard 180-gram black and limited-edition 180-gram blue, which comes with a 12-inch lyric card insert. It will also be released on CD for the first time since 2000 and will include a 16-page booklet.

“We’re all foreigners. Say to an American or a European, that he’s a foreigner and he’ll say, ‘No, you’re the foreigner!’” Stevens shares. “But we’re all foreigners here, in a wider sense. We’re all looking for freedom and accommodation within humanity.”

Foreigner, Stevens’ seventh studio album, was the first album he wrote and produced himself. It peaked at #3 on the U.S. chart.  

The reissue of Foreigner is available for preorder now.

Foreigner is just the latest in a series of reissues from Yusuf/Cat Stevens that began in 2020. He previously reissued 1970’s Mona Bone Jakon and Tea for the Tillerman and 1971’s Teaser and the Firecat. All three of those albums will now be released on limited-edition colored vinyl on July 5 — Mona Bone Jakon in sky blue, Tea for the Tillerman in mint green and Teaser and the Firecat in neon orange.

They are available for preorder now.

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Blondie’s Debbie Harry and Chris Stein are set to executive produce a new documentary about producer/songwriter Mike Chapman, Deadline reports.

Simply The Best: The Mike Chapman Story will feature previously unseen photos and video footage from Chapman’s career, with Harry and Stein also set to appear in the picture. 

Chapman co-wrote the Tina Turner classic “The Best” and produced several Blondie albums, including Parallel Lines, Eat to the Beat, Autoamerican and The Hunter. He also worked with such artist as The Knack and Suzi Quatro, and co-wrote such hits as Toni Basil’s “Mickey,” Huey Lewis and the News‘ “Heart and Soul” and Pat Benatar‘s “Love is a Battlefield.”

“After several years of putting this together I am looking forward to getting it out there,” Chapman said. “It’s a story of how music changed and shaped me as I fought my way through decades of ups and downs. The directors and producers share that vision, and I am thrilled to be working with them.” 

As for Blondie, they have a handful of dates booked for this summer. They kick things off Friday in England. A complete list of dates can be found at blondie.net.

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’90s rock is entering its Taylor Swift era.

Following Billy Corgan‘s headline-making defense of the pop superstar — “Taylor Swift is one of the most gifted pop artists of all time,” The Smashing Pumpkins frontman told The Irish Times — Green Day‘s Billie Joe Armstrong has shared his thoughts after seeing an Eras Tour stop in France.

Armstrong writes in an Instagram post, “Great production. Great voice. Great entertainer. Great songwriting. Crazy crowd.”

“People even shared with me some friendship bracelets,” he adds. “Thanks a million @taylorswift.”

Exchanging friendship bracelets has become a staple of Eras Tour shows among Swifties. Armstrong received ones reading “sexy baby” and “a****** outlaw,” references to the songs “Anti-Hero” and “Hits Different,” respectively.

The European leg of the Eras Tour, which features support from Paramore, resumes Friday in Scotland. Green Day is currently touring Europe behind their new album, Saviors.

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The Rolling Stones brought their Hackney Diamonds tour to Orlando’s Camping World Stadium on Monday, and fans attending the show were treated to two tour debuts. 

According to setlist.fm, the band performed “She’s a Rainbow” from Their Satanic Majesties Request for the first time on the trek, which was the fan-voted song of the night, beating out “Bite My Head Off,” “Out of Control” and “Rocks Off.” 

The night’s other tour debut was the Sticky Fingers track “Dead Flowers,” which featured special guest Tyler Childers, the night’s show opener.

The rest of the set was filled with usual fan favorites, including “Start Me Up,” “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” “Sympathy for the Devil,” “Honky Tonk Woman,” “Gimme Shelter,” “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.”

“Amazing night in Florida! Thank you Orlando,” The Stones shared on Instagram after the show. “Special thanks to @timmytychilders for joining on Dead Flowers!”

Next up, The Stones bring the tour to Atlanta on Friday. A complete list of dates can be found at rollingstones.com.

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On This Day, June 4, 1986…

The six-show A Conspiracy of Hope tour, benefiting Amnesty International, kicked off at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, California. 

The tour’s lineup included U2, Sting, Bryan Adams, Peter Gabriel, Lou Reed, Joan Baez and the Neville Brothers.

The final three shows, in Atlanta, Chicago and East Rutherford, New Jersey, featured a reunion of The Police, who had been on hiatus since 1984. The final show, on June 15 at Giants Stadium in New Jersey, was their last performance before their breakup. 

Unlike the first five shows, the Giants Stadium concert was an all-day outdoor event, with additional artists including Jackson Browne, Little Steven, the Hooters, Darlene Love, Howard Jones, Bob Geldof and others. The full concert aired on MTV, with the final three hours airing on syndicated television.

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Lzzy Hale is reflecting on her experience singing in Skid Row.

The Halestorm frontwoman provided lead vocals for the “18 and Life” outfit for four shows in May and June. As previously reported, Hale stepped in for vocalist Erik Grönwall, who left the band to focus on his health and recovery after being diagnosed with leukemia in 2021.

In an Instagram post, Hale thanks the Skid Row members and their fans for “putting your trust in me.”

“Thank you for bringing me into your tribe, and allowing me to live inside your legacy for a moment,” Hale writes. “What started out as friends helping out friends, bloomed into something bigger than any of us could’ve imagined.”

“I’m overflowing with gratitude,” she continues. “This experience of getting to deep dive into Skid Row has given me a rare opportunity to deepen my love for these men I get to call friends. And the soul bonding moments we created together musically will live with me forever.”

As for whether Hale will continue on with Skid Row in the future, she shares, “Even though this particular time in my life prevents me from committing to a permanent role in Skid Row…I am sending in my official request to the universe that we will be able to join forces again down the road.”

Said time in Hale’s life includes a Halestorm tour alongside I Prevail, which launches in July.

Skid Row, meanwhile, does not have any more tour dates currently lined up, and has yet to announce a singer going forward. The band was formerly fronted by Sebastian Bach.

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Stone Temple Pilots‘ 1994 album, Purple, turns 30 on June 7.

The follow-up to STP’s 1992 debut, Core, spawned the singles “Big Empty,” “Vasoline” and “Interstate Love Song,” and is certified six-times Platinum by the RIAA.

Frontman Jeff Gutt, who joined STP in 2017 following the deaths of former lead singers Scott Weiland and Chester Bennington, remembers when he first heard Purple amid the shift that was happening in rock music during the early ’90s.

“It kinda went from dressing like a professional wrestler and singing about girls to singing about things that were maybe darker … or painful, or something just more real,” Gutt tells ABC Audio. “I really gravitated towards that.”

“It’s weird, ’cause music’s never changed like that, where it just completely changed overnight almost,” he continues. “It was just a whole new wave of things that were happening. It was such an exciting time to be a part of as a fan.”

Gutt was already a big fan of Core when Purple came out, and felt STP had reached new creative heights with their sophomore effort.

“I definitely remember when Purple came out and how different it was from Core, and I was really impressed by that,” Gutt says. “‘Cause you have success and there’s always a lot of pressures from everywhere to just repeat that success, from outside. So I was really impressed by their ability to have success in a way that wasn’t expected.” 

Stone Temple Pilots will celebrate the 30th anniversary of Purple on a U.S. summer tour, launching in August.

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