Classic Rock 93.9

Bob Dylan was the surprise guest at Farm Aid 2023, which took place Saturday, September 23, in Noblesville, Indiana. 

The legendary artist wasn’t on the announced lineup but turned up to the Rouff Music Center to treat the crowd to a twenty-minute set. According to setlist.fm, Dylan was backed by The Heartbreakers and performed three tracks: “Maggie’s Farm,” for the first time since 2003, “Positively 4th Street,” for the first time since 2013, and “Ballad of a Thin Man.”

Dylan’s appearance was notable, as it was his comments about the plight of U.S. farmers at Live Aid in 1985 that sparked the idea for Farm Aid.

But Dylan was far from the only big name on the bill. The organization’s board members, Neil Young, John Mellencamp, Willie Nelson, Dave Matthews and Margo Price also performed, along with Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros featuring The Wolfpack and more.

This was Young’s first return to Farm Aid since 2019, and he performed a short set that included “Comes A Time,” “Are There Any More Real Cowboys,” “Love Earth” and “Heart of Gold.” Mellencamp treated the crowd to eight songs, including classics like “Small Town,” “Jack & Diane,” “Rain on the Scarecrow” and more.

Willie closed the show with a full 18-song set that included “On The Road Again,” “Always On My Mind” and others, with many of the artists joining him for his closing numbers, “Will the Circle Be Unbroken”/”I’ll Fly Away” and “It’s Hard to Be Humble.” 

Farm Aid raises funds in support of family farmers, and fans can still help. A Farm Aid 2023 silent auction is running until October 6, offering autographed guitars, posters, books, albums and more from this year’s artists. All proceeds benefit Farm Aid.

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Heart’s Nancy Wilson and onetime AC/DC drummer Chris Slade are set to take part in a very special High Voltage Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp, happening February 15-18 in Los Angeles.

The event, which also features Stone Temple Pilots brothers Robert and Dean DeLeo, will give fans a chance to live like rock stars, experiencing band rehearsals, jam sessions and more, with a focus on the music of Heart, STP and AC/DC. Participants will even get to perform at famous Los Angeles venues, including the Viper Room and the Troubadour, where they’ll wrap the weekend performing onstage with Slade.

Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp is open to vocalists and instrumentalists of all skill levels. Those who sign up will receive a song list ahead of time in order to prepare for their rockin’ weekend.

Information on prices and how to register can be found at rockcamp.com.

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Rush’s Geddy Lee is getting ready to release his new memoir, My Effin’ Life, on November 14, and he’ll be heading to the U.K. to promote it with a new spoken word tour.  

Kicking off December 10 in Wolverhampton, England, the shows will feature Geddy reading key passages from the book. He’ll also be interviewed by a guest and take questions from fans. 

“Writing this book has meant spending so much time living in the past. I’ve never lived my life looking anywhere but forward, which is why I resisted doing this kind of thing for so long,” Geddy shares. “Being in a band all those years was reassuring because it was an ongoing thing. It felt like it was forever.”

He added, “But you need a lot more determination to proceed in the world of music without the comfort of your bandmates, and I can only hope that finishing this book will release me to return to what I do and love best.” 

The spoken word tour consists of five dates, wrapping December 18 in London. Venue presales begin Thursday, September 28, with the general sale happening Friday, September 29. Each ticket purchased will come with a copy of the book. A complete list of dates can be found at rush.com.

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Yes kicked off a new leg of their Classic Tales of Yes tour on Thursday, September 21, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and the band, made up of Steve Howe, Geoff Downes, Jon Davison, Billy Sherwood and Jay Schellen, are certain fans won’t be disappointed.

Howe notes, “We’ve put together a great setlist covering the length and breadth of Yes’ career.”

“Our ‘Classic Tales of Yes’ tour is one of our most diverse and adventurous tours to date,” Downes adds, noting, “Of course, alongside many of the other Yes classics, we are also adding in a few surprises for good measure.”

According to setlist.fm, opening night featured performances of songs from their most recent album, Mirror to the Sky, as well as such Yes classics as “I’ve Seen All Good People,” “Going For The One,” “Roundabout,” “Starship Trooper” and more. 

Next up, Yes brings their tour to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Friday, September 22. The trek wraps November 4 in Riverside, California. A complete list of tour dates can be found at yesworld.com.

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There’s nothing quite like seeing Bruce Springsteen play a show close to his home in New Jersey, and now the rocker is sharing some of his favorite local performances with fans.

The Boss, who turns 74 on Saturday, just shared The Live Series: Songs of New Jersey, a playlist made up of previously unreleased live performances recorded in the New Jersey/New York area, many of which are about the Garden State.

They include such performances as “Born To Run,” live from the Brendan Byrne Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on July 9, 1981; “Jersey Girl,” performed at Giants Stadium, also in East Rutherford, on August 22, 1985; “My Hometown,” from St. Rose of Lima School in Freehold, New Jersey, on November 8, 1996; “Atlantic City” from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, on January 31, 2016; and “My City of Ruins” at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford on August 25, 2016.

You can listen to The Live Series: Songs of New Jersey now streaming on digital outlets.

Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band are currently on a break from touring, after postponing September shows so The Boss could recover from a peptic ulcer. Their next show is scheduled for November 3 in Vancouver, Canada. A complete list of dates can be found at brucespringsteen.net.

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The Rolling Stones’ latest single, “Angry,” is featured on the official Spotify soundtrack to EA SPORTS FC24, the football (soccer to most folks in the U.S.) entertainment platform with a community of over 150 million users. 

“Angry” is the first single off The Stones’ upcoming album, Hackney Diamonds, dropping October 20. EA Worldwide Executive and President of Music Steve Schnur tells HitsDailyDouble the band approached them about featuring the song on the soundtrack.

“The premiere of EA Sports FC 24 delivers a definitive global soundtrack that builds on innovation and authenticity,” Schnur shares. “We’ve curated a player experience that celebrates diversity and discovery via new music that defies genres, erases borders, creates football culture and powers football life.” 

Other artists featured on the soundtrack include Kendrick Lamar, Jack Harlow, Run the Jewels and more.

EA SPORTS FC24 comes out September 29.

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Foghat has unveiled the latest track from their upcoming album, Sonic Mojo. The new tune, “She’s a Little Bit of Everything,” was co-written by founding drummer Roger Earl’s former Savoy Brown bandmate, the late Kim Simmonds, before he passed away in December 2022. 

“As soon as I heard this song, I knew it was for us,” Earl shares. “I claimed that it was written about Kim’s wife, Debi, but she is far too fine a person to ever admit that that’s where it came from. I really believe that this is where Kim got the inspiration for this song.” He adds, “It’s probably my favorite.”

Guitarist Bryan Bassett adds, “The song is a straight blues rocker that’s quickly becoming a crowd favorite in our live show.”

You can listen to “She’s A Little Bit of Everything” via digital outlets and on YouTube.

“She’s A Little Bit Of Everything” is one of three songs Simmonds co-wrote for the album along with the already released “Drivin’ On” and “I Don’t Appreciate You,” which is coming October 20.

Sonic Mojo, Foghat’s first album in seven years, drops November 10. It is available for preorder now.

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Fleetwood Mac is back on the charts. The band’s recent release, Rumours: Live, lands at #4 on the Billboard Top Album Sales chart this week.

It’s been a pretty long time since Fleetwood Mac has been ranked this high on the chart. The last time was back in 2003 when their album Say You Will debuted at #2. 

Rumours Live is a double album of the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers’ August 29, 1977, concert at the Forum in Los Angeles. It features live versions of most of the songs on 1977’s Rumours, including “Never Going Back Again,” “Songbird” and “The Chain” as well as tracks from 1975’s Fleetwood Mac, including “Landslide” and “Rhiannon.”

Of course, Rumours was a huge hit for Fleetwood Mac. The album spent 31 nonconsecutive weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200, a record for any album by a group.

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We’re about to learn even more about the Sex Pistols.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, a documentary about the British rockers is in the works, and it will be based on bassist and founding member Glen Matlock’s 1990 memoir, I Was A Teenage Sex Pistol.

The film’s producers, VMI Worldwide, say the doc is set to follow the band’s “rise to global infamy with an honest, insightful account of a group of malcontents, determined to change the music business and to attack hypocrisy and stale conventions in society at large.” 

In addition to what Matlock revealed in his book, the doc promises to share previously unknown info about the rockers and will include interviews from the band’s rock star contemporaries.

This won’t be the first time the Sex Pistols’ story has been told. The band was the subject of the FX/Hulu series Pistol from director Danny Boyle, which was based on guitarist Steve Jones’ memoir, Lonely Boy: Tales from a Sex Pistol. Matlock had previously said in an interview he was “very disappointed” by the series.

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On This Day, September 22, 1985…

Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp headlined the first-ever Farm Aid concert in Champaign, Illinois.

The trio organized the all-star event to raise money to help family farmers in the United States. They were inspired by comments Bob Dylan made during the Live Aid concerts, in which he said he hoped some of the money could go to help struggling farmers.

Dylan also performed at the first Farm Aid, as did Billy Joel, Tom Petty, B.B. King, Loretta Lynn and Roy Orbison.

The first concert raised over $9 million.

Since then Farm Aid has held concerts almost every year, with the 2023 edition scheduled for September 23 in Noblesville, Indiana. A full lineup can be found at farmaid.org.

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