Classic Rock 93.9

A new Black Sabbath box set has been announced.

The collection, dubbed Hand of Doom, includes each of the metal pioneers’ first eight albums — from 1970’s Black Sabbath to 1978’s Never Say Die! — on vinyl picture discs, capturing the first and most prolific period of the band’s classic lineup: frontman Ozzy Osbourne, guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward.

Hand of Doom will be released August 18 and will be limited to just 4,000 copies.

In other Sabbath related news, Iommi has received a replica of the fossil that was named after him. The 469 million-year-old Drepanoistodus iommii was discovered in 2021.

According to the U.K.’s Westside BID, Iommi was presented with the fossil replica by paleontologist Mats Eriksson and sculptor Esben Horn.

“Great to meet Mats and Esben today and receive an amazing replica of the Iommi fossil!” Iommi says.

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Music and movie fans are getting their first look at the upcoming Bob Marley biopic, Bob Marley: One Love.

Paramount has just released the trailer for the film, which stars British actor Kingsley Ben-Adir, who landed the role as Marley after a global talent search. It also stars Captain Marvel actress Lashana Lynch as Marley’s wife, Rita. 

The trailer features clips of Marley performing and living his life in Jamaica with his family, and even includes footage of the assassination attempt on his life. It also features the Marley quote, “One love, one heart, one destiny.” 

Bob Marley: One Love is set to hit theaters January 12, 2024.

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Nikki Sixx got a personalized letter from Dolly Parton following the release of their collaborative single, “Bygones.”

“Well … I guess you’ve heard, we’ve got us a hit record!” the country icon wrote the Mötley Crüe bassist. “We’re #1 from what I hear on ‘Bygones’!”

“You did a fantastic job on that,” Parton continued. “Thank you for joining us, you made it a lot of what it is. I appreciate you. Rock on!”

Sixx shared a photo of the message in a Facebook post alongside the caption, “Gonna have to frame this one.”

“Bygones,” which also features Judas Priest‘s Rob Halford and new Crüe guitarist John 5, premiered in June. It’ll appear on Parton’s upcoming rock album, Rockstar, due out November 17.

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On This Day, July 6, 1977…

At a Pink Floyd show in Montreal, Roger Waters got so upset at fans who were being noisy and setting off firecrackers, he spit on one of them.

That night, he told producer Bob Ezrin he wished he could build a wall between himself and the audience, which went on to inspire Pink Floyd’s next album, The Wall. 

Released on November 30, 1979, The Wall topped the U.S. charts for 15 weeks, went on to sell over 30 million copies and was certified 23-times Platinum.

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Stevie Nicks fans are getting another taste of her upcoming box set, Complete Studio Albums & Rarities, which is due out July 28.

The singer has just dropped a remastered version of “Thousand Days,” which she wrote for her 1985 album, Rock A Little. It wound up as the B-side of “Blue Denim,” which appeared on Stevie’s 1994 album, Street Angel.  It was also included in the 1998 box set, The Enchanted Works of Stevie Nicks. 

Complete Studio Albums & Rarities will feature all eight of Nicks’ solo records, with many of them remastered from the original analog masters. There will also be a Rarities album with 23 non-album tracks.

The box set is being released in a variety of formats, including a 16-LP limited edition set, which will consist of 3,000 numbered copies, pressed on crystal clear vinyl. Three of the albums — Street Angel, Trouble in Shangri-La and In Your Dreams — are making their vinyl debut.

Complete Studio Albums & Rarities is available for preorder now.

Stevie has several tour dates on the book for the rest of the year. Her next show, a co-headlining date with Billy Joel, is happening August 5 in Columbus, Ohio. A complete list of dates can be found at stevienicksofficial.com.

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The Eagles are saying a Long Goodbye to their fans.

The band’s upcoming Long Goodbye tour will be their final one, they announced July 6. Thirteen initial shows have been announced, kicking off September 7 in New York’s Madison Square Garden. Steely Dan — who namechecked The Eagles in their song “Everything You Did,” as it happens — will open those shows.

“The Eagles have had a miraculous 52-year odyssey, performing for people all over the globe; keeping the music alive in the face of tragic losses, upheavals and setbacks of many kinds,” the band says in a lengthy statement. They add, “We know how fortunate we are, and we are truly grateful. Our long run has lasted far longer than any of us ever dreamed. But, everything has its time, and the time has come for us to close the circle.”

The statement continues, “We want to give all our fans a chance to see us on this final round. So, scheduling information will be released as dates are set. The difficulties of booking venues for multiple nights may require us to return to certain cities, depending on demand. But, we hope to see as many of you as we can, before we finish up.”

It concludes, “Most importantly, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for embracing this band and its music. At the end of the day, you are the reason we have been able to carry on for over five decades. This is our swan song, but the music goes on and on.”

A presale starts July 12; the general on-sale begins Friday, July 14 at 10 a.m. local time. The tour is expected to continue into 2025, as the band plans to play as many shows in each city as the audience demands.

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Bob Dylan fans have been anxiously awaiting director James Mangold’s upcoming Dylan flick, A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet. But Mangold wants fans to know they won’t be seeing Dylan’s complete life story on the big screen.  

“By the way, it’s not really a Bob Dylan biopic,” Mangold said on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. “The reason Bob has been so supportive of us making it is [that] it’s about — as in all cases, I think, the best true-life movies are never cradle to grave, but they’re about a very specific moment in someone’s life.”

Mangold explained that A Complete Unknown focuses on the early ’60s in New York, when a 17-year-old Dylan comes to the Big Apple and meets artists like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Joan Baez, and “within a year” lands a record deal and becomes a star.

And Dylan has been more than just supportive; he actually gave Mangold notes on the script. 

“I’ve spent several wonderfully charming days in his company, just one-on-one, talking to him,” Mangold says. “I have a script that’s personally annotated by him and treasured by me.”

The film, which so far doesn’t have a release date, also stars Benedict Cumberbatch, Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro and Nick Offerman.

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Ringo Starr turns 83 on July 7, but he certainly isn’t feeling his age.

“Nothing makes me feel old. In my head, I’m 27,” he tells People. “Wisdom’s a heavy word. [Getting older] is what happens, and you try and keep yourself busy.”

As previously reported, Ringo will be celebrating his birthday with his annual “Peace and Love” event, where he asks fans all over the world to celebrate peace and love. He and wife Barbara Bach will be in Los Angeles for it, joined by Joe Walsh, Edgar Winter, Richard Marx, Mike Campbell and more.

One of Ringo’s secrets to feeling so young may be his constant positive attitude through life. “I never felt really down,” he says. “I mean, I have my moments, of course. But my spirits are high. That’s all I can say, really.”

Looking back on his life, Ringo says he still has a hard time believing the success they wound up having with The Beatles.  

“There’s an interview of the four of us — Paul (McCartney) was going to write songs, George (Harrison) was going to have a garage, and I was going to have a hairdresser,” he says. “We thought that’s what we’d be doing, and it would last three or four years, but it lasted eight … and we did a lot of great tracks.”

Ringo notes, “We’re blessed, as the Beatles, because each generation has a listen to us. They see, ‘What does that mean to those guys?’ So we’re still selling records, can you believe it? And we’re still remastering them, and we’re still putting them in different orders and putting out outtakes. Life is good.”

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Journey co-founder and original rhythm guitarist George Tickner has passed away, according to a Facebook post by his former bandmate Neal Schon.

Schon shared a series of posts about Tickner’s death at the age of 76, captioning it, “Dear George ‘Of a Lifetime’ is still one of my favorite songs ever. RIP brother God Speed.” He added in a post on Twitter, “RIP George you now fly with the Angels.”

Tickner appeared on Journey’s 1975 self-titled debut. He wrote three songs on the album, including the one Schon mentioned in his post, “Of a Lifetime.” He also has a writing credit on two songs on the band’s follow-up, 1976’s Look Into The Future, but he had left the group to attend Stanford’s medical school by the time it was released. He was credited with writing one song on the band’s third album, 1977’s Next. 

Journey, of course, went on to superstardom, selling 48 million albums in the U.S. They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017. 

Although Tickner hadn’t been with the band for years, he was on hand in 2005 when Journey received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

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Jethro Tull is celebrating the 40th anniversary of their 14th studio album, Broadsword and The Beast, with a new reissue.

Broadsword and The Beast 40th Anniversary Edition, available September 1, will feature a host of goodies for Jethro Tull fans, including demos, live recordings, sessions from 1981 and more, along with new mixes from Steven Wilson. 

It will be released in a variety of formats, including a five-CD, three-DVD Monster Edition, which features a live concert recorded in Germany in 1982. There will also be a four-LP vinyl edition.

Broadsword and The Beast 40th Anniversary Edition is available for preorder now. 

Jethro Tull is currently on a tour of Europe and will hit the U.S. this summer, starting with a show in Highland Park, Illinois, on August 18. A complete list of dates can be found at jethrotull.com.

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