Bruce Springsteen on Jimmy Kimmel Live!/(Disney/Randy Holmes)
A legendary Bruce Springsteen concert has just gotten an audio upgrade.
A newly remixed version of Bruce and The E Street Band’s 1975 New Year’s Eve performance at the Tower Theater near Philadelphia is now available on nugs.net. The recording was taken from the 16-track analog master tapes originally recorded by producer Jimmy Iovine. The show was the final night of a four-night stand at the venue.
The 18-song set features a slowed down version of “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out,” along with performances of songs like “Thunder Road,” “Spirit in the Night,” “She’s the One,” “Backstreets,” “Jungleland,” “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight),” “Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?” and “It’s Hard To Be a Saint in the City.”
It also features several covers, including “It’s My Life,” “Detroit Medley” and the show’s final song, “Twist and Shout.”
The release is part of Springsteen’s Archives Series on nugs.net, which launched in November 2014. Since then, 100 Springsteen concerts have been released on the site.
The Who celebrated their 60th anniversary in 2025, which ended with what will likely be their last North American tour, much to the disappointment of many fans.
-The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers kicked off the year by announcing they were headlining two shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall in March to benefit Teenage Cancer Trust.
-During the shows, Pete Townshend revealed that he had just had hip replacement surgery, while Roger Daltrey, who is known to have hearing issues, also revealed that he was having problems with his eyesight.
-During one of the shows, Daltrey seemed upset with their longtime drummer Zak Starkey, complaining onstage and pausing the show’s final song.
-In April they announced that they were parting ways with Starkey, son of TheBeatles‘ Ringo Starr, who had been playing with them since 1996. But just three days later, The Who reversed course, with Townshend saying Starkey wasn’t being asked to step down.
-Weeks later The Who then changed their mind again and let Starkey go, announcing that Scott Devours would be his replacement.
-During all the back-and-forth with Starkey in May, Townshend and Daltrey announced at a London press conference they were going to tour North America one last time, revealing dates for The Song Is Over North American Farewell Tour.
-The tour kicked off in August in Tampa, Florida, with The Who treating fans to a set filled with hits. They also played “Going Mobile,” a song they had never played live before.
-The Who wrapped the tour on Oct. 1 in Palm Springs, California. “I suppose, you know, it’s goodbye,” Townshend said during their final bows. “That’s what it is. To what we know as The Who, it’s goodbye.” Daltrey went on to thank fans “for all the years showing up for us.” They have not said whether they are bringing the tour to the rest of the world.
Other highlights of The Who’s year include:
-Townshend released Pete Townshend The Studio Albums, a box set featuring newly remastered versions of his seven solo albums.
-Townshend celebrated his 80th birthday in May.
-It was announced in June that Daltrey was selected for knighthood by King Charles for his contributions to music and his charity work, including raising funds for causes like Teenage Cancer Trust. He was officially knighted in December.
-Townshend’s Quadrophenia: A Rock Ballet, featuring an orchestral version of The Who’s 1973 album, Quadrophenia, by Townshend’s wife, Rachel Fuller,debuted in the U.K. in May and then came to New York in November.
Bono and The Edge at the 78th annual Cannes Film Festival at Palais des Festivals on May 16, 2025 in Cannes, France. (Photo by JB Lacroix/FilmMagic)
Back in October, Bono and The Edge were in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to represent U2 as they were honored with the Woody Guthrie Prize, which was given out by the Woody Guthrie Center. Now they are giving fans who weren’t in attendance a chance to hear what went down.
Audio of the conversation Bono and The Edge had with T Bone Burnett about art and activism, as well as the duo’s acoustic performance from the event, is now available on YouTube.
The surprise performance includes such songs as “Running to Stand Still,” which included a bit of Guthrie’s “Bound for Glory”; “Sunday Bloody Sunday”; “One”; “Pride (In The Name of Love),” which also featured a bit of Guthrie’s “Jesus Christ”; and “Yahweh.”
The Woody Guthrie Prize recognizes “a recipient who embodies the spirit of Woody Guthrie’s social consciousness and musical legacy.” The event was held at Cain’s Ballroom, a venue U2 headlined in 1981 on their Boy tour.
Previous Woody Guthrie Prize winners include Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Joan Baez and Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello.
Billy Joel became a father when he and his wife, model Christie Brinkley, welcomed their only child together, daughter Alexa Ray Joel.
Their daughter’s middle name was a tribute to legendary musician Ray Charles, with whom Billy collaborated on the 1987 song “Baby Grand.” Joel later wrote the 1993 song “Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel)” for Alexa.
Alexa followed in her father’s footsteps as a musician and released the EP Sketches in 2006, along with several other singles. She is scheduled to perform at New York City entrepreneur Michael Dorf’s annual Music Of concert celebrating her father, which will take place March 12 at Carnegie Hall in New York.
Joel went on to welcome two more daughters with his fourth wife, Alexis Roderick. Della Rose Joel was born in August 2015 and Remy Anne Joel in October 2017.
Billy Idol and The Warning perform at the CBS and the Recording Academy® present A GRAMMY® CELEBRATION OF LATIN MUSIC, airing Sunday, Dec. 28. (Gustavo Caballero/CBS)
The Warning performed alongside Billy Idol during a special called A Grammy Celebration of Latin Music, which aired Sunday.
The set began with the sister trio rocking out the iconic Mexican folk song “La Bamba” before Idol joined the stage alongside his guitarist Steve Stevens. Together, they transitioned into the song “Twist and Shout,” which has famously been performed by artists including The Beatles and The Isley Brothers.
“La Bamba” and “Twist and Shout” notably have a very similar chord progression, and have been previously mashed-up by Bruce Springsteen.
“The blend of these two songs and how they compliment each other in their history of how they were influenced in incredible,” The Warning said in a preshow interview. “For us, being Mexican, to be able to play ‘La Bamba’ is super, super incredible.”
You can watch footage of the performance via The Warning’s Instagram Story.
John Lydon of Public Image Ltd performs live on stage during their This Is Not The Last Tour at Parr Hall. (Andy Von Pip/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
John “Johnny Rotten” Lydon says his former Sex Pistols bandmates didn’t reach out following the death of his wife, Nora Forster, in 2023.
“I expected some kind of connection when Nora died, but nothing,” Lydon tells the U.K.’s The Times.
Lydon has remained estranged from the rest of the Pistols — guitarist Steve Jones, bassist Glen Matlock and drummer Paul Cook — for some time; the band has since reformed with Frank Carter on vocals.
Lydon’s previously criticized the current iteration of the Pistols as “karaoke” and reiterates to The Times he has no interest in being part of the band.
“I still have a very great fondness for the chaps from that period,” Lydon says. “What they evolved — or devolved — into since is another consequence.”
Lydon is currently playing a run of U.K. dates with Public Image Ltd. The Carter-fronted Sex Pistols will launch a European tour in June.
It’s always sad to say goodbye to our favorite musicians when they pass away, and 2025 was certainly a tough year.
The music world lost a true legend on June 11 when Beach Boys founder Brian Wilson died in his sleep at the age of 82. He had been living with dementia at the time and had been placed under a conservatorship in early 2024 following the death of his wife, Melinda Wilson.
The rock world was in shock when news broke that Prince of Darkness Ozzy Osbourne died on July 22 at the age of 76. His death came barely three weeks after he made his final onstage appearance at the 10-hour all-star Back to the Beginning concert in his hometown of Birmingham, England. He was laid to rest in Birmingham, with fans lining the city’s streets to pay their respects.
Another influential artist we lost in 2025 was Sly Stone, of Sly and the Family Stone, who passed away June 9 at the age of 82. A statement revealed that he died “after a prolonged battle with COPD and other underlying health issues.”
And Ace Frehley, guitarist and founding member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band KISS, died on Oct. 16 at the age of 64. His death came just weeks after he canceled the remainder of his 2025 tour due to health issues.
Here are some of the other music figures who died in 2025, in chronological order:
Jan. 21: Garth Hudson, keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist who was the last surviving member of The Band, 87.
Jan. 30: British singer Marianne Faithfull, best known for her hit “As Time Goes By” and for her association with The Rolling Stones, 78.
Feb. 28: David Johansen, lead singer and last surviving original member of the New York Dolls, who also found fame in the ’80s and ’90s as the throwback crooner Buster Poindexter, 75.
March 15: Les Binks, drummer for Judas Priest from 1977 to 1979, 73.
March 16: Jesse Colin Young, the voice heard on the Youngbloods‘ iconic hit “Get Together,” 83.
April 6: Clem Burke, drummer and founding member of Blondie, 70.
April 29: Mike Peters, frontman of Welsh rock band The Alarm, 66.
June 23: Mick Ralphs, guitarist and founding member of Mott the Hoople and Bad Company, 81.
July 29: Paul Mario Day, original lead singer for Iron Maiden, 69.
Aug. 4: Terry Reid, the British musician who’s most famously known for turning down offers to front Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, 75.
Aug. 10: Bobby Whitlock, pianist, guitarist and songwriter who formed Derek and the Dominoes with Eric Clapton, 77.
Sept. 5: Mark Volman, founding member of the rock band The Turtles, 78.
Sept. 6: Rick Davies, founding member of Supertramp who wrote and sang lead on their top-40 hit, “Goodbye Stranger,” 81.
Sept. 19: Sonny Curtis, a member of Buddy Holly‘s Crickets, who also wrote The Mary Tyler Moore Show theme song, 88.
Sept. 25: Chris Dreja, a co-founder of the Yardbirds, 78.
Oct. 10: John Lodge, bassist and vocalist of the progressive rock band Moody Blues, 82.
Nov. 2: Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, vocalist for the Grateful Dead from 1971 to 1979, 78.
Nov. 5: Gilson Lavis, former drummer for the band Squeeze, 74.
Nov. 24: Jimmy Cliff, Grammy Award-winning reggae singer and actor, 81.
Dec. 3: Steve Cropper, guitarist for Booker T. and the M.G.’s, 84.
The new movie Song Sung Blue has an unexpected connection to Eddie Vedder.
The film is a biopic about Lightning & Thunder, a Neil Diamond tribute duo made up of couple Mike Sardina and Claire Sardina, played by Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson, respectively. In the movie, Lightning & Thunder get their big break when they’re invited to open for Pearl Jam.
“This is true,” Song Sung Blue director Craig Brewer tells Entertainment Weekly. “Eddie Vedder is the MVP of Lightning & Thunder.”
Pearl Jam posted footage from the concert to their Facebook, which was previously used in a 2008 documentary about Lightning & Thunder also called Song Sung Blue.
As Brewer tells it, the doc was almost blocked by Diamond’s publishing company. However, Vedder personally appealed to Diamond, who told his team to stand down upon seeing it.
“Eddie … even to this day, has been such a support in telling the story of Lightning & Thunder, even to the extent of — we wanted to use the song ‘Alive’ off of his first album [Pearl Jam’s Ten],” Brewer says. “They have never licensed that song, ever. It’s always been an automatic no. And he gave it to us.”
Elton John performs at the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, November 8, 2025 (Kevin Kane/Getty Images for RRHOF)
Elton John and Brandi Carlile released their Grammy-nominated joint album, Who Believe In Angels?, in 2025, but 2026 may bring us some Elton John solo music — and maybe even more than expected.
In a holiday video message to members of his Rocket Club fan club, Elton said, “I’ll be going to the studio next April to make a record. But I’ve already made one, which is fantastic. So I’m teasing you with that one.”
It’s not clear which projects Elton is referring to. In November, he told Variety, “I just can’t wait to go into the studio now and write some new songs and go from there.” He also mentioned he had “seven new lyrics” from Bernie Taupin to write music for.
Despite his retirement from touring, Elton revealed in his message that he has continued performing. “I’ve done 11 private shows this year,” he said, adding that he’s in “great voice and I enjoy playing with the band and on my own.” He also made a plug for his headlining appearance at the Rock in Rio festival in September. “Who would’ve thought?” he asked.
Lemmy Kilmister of Motorhead performs live on stage during the third day of the Sonisphere Rock Festival at Knebworth House on July 10, 2011 in Stevenage, England. (Jim Dyson/Getty Images)
Motörhead frontman Ian “Lemmy” Kilmister died on Dec. 28, 2015 — 10 years ago Sunday.
Lemmy formed Motörhead in 1975 alongside guitarist Larry Wallis and drummer Lucas Fox after playing in the band Hawkwind. Wallis and Fox were then replaced by guitarist “Fast” Eddie Clarke and drummer Phil“Philthy Animal” Taylor, who, along with Lemmy, made up the classic “Three Amigos” Motörhead lineup.
Early Motörhead albums including 1979’s Overkill and Bomber and 1980’s Ace of Spades, which spawned the iconic title track, helped pave the way for the new wave of British heavy metal movement alongside bands such as Iron Maiden and Judas Priest.
Lemmy was known for his gravelly voice, muttonchops and prominent moles. His onstage presence contributed to Motörhead’s energetic live shows, which were captured on the celebrated 1981 live album No Sleep ’til Hammersmith.
Following the departures of Clarke and Taylor, Motörhead went through several lineup changes before landing on a trio of Lemmy, guitarist Phil “Wizzö” Campbell and drummer Mikkey Dee, which remained in place from 1995. Motörhead continued to put out new albums on a consistent basis, concluding with their 22nd studio effort, 2015’s Bad Magic.
Outside of Motörhead, Lemmy was a cowriter on Ozzy Osbourne‘s 1991 album, No More Tears, including on the songs “Mama, I’m Coming Home” and “Hellraiser.” Motörhead also recorded their own version of “Hellraiser.”
Lemmy, who was known for his hard-partying ways, developed a number of health issues in his later years. On Dec. 26, 2015, two days after his 70th birthday, he was diagnosed with cancer. He died two days later.
Upon Lemmy’s death, Motörhead officially disbanded, though archival recordings continue to be released. Lemmy’s ashes were sent to a number of his close friends, including Metallica‘s James Hetfield.
