Classic Rock News

Dave Mason, best known for his work with Traffic, has announced his retirement from touring after 60 years in the business.

The 79-year-old artist says “ongoing health challenges” are the reason behind his “difficult decision” to give up the road.

In September 2024, Mason canceled his Traffic Jam tour due to an urgent heart condition. He was supposed to launch a new tour in July, but canceled that as well because he needed time to recover from an infection he developed in March.

“He retires from touring a happy man with a heart full of gratitude to his band members, business colleagues, and especially his legions of fans who made his life one of deep satisfaction and fulfillment,” reads the press release announcing his retirement. “The immensity of his joy remains solid as he steps back from the stage.”

Mason is one of the founding members of Traffic, which he formed in April 1967 with Jim Capaldi, Steve Winwood and Chris Wood. He wrote their hit “Feelin’ Alright?,” which has been covered by a variety of artists, most notably Joe Cocker. He also had a solo hit with 1977’s “We Just Disagree,” which peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Mason has also had a successful career as a session musician and appeared on well-known albums by artists like Jimi Hendrix, George Harrison, Paul McCartney and Wings, The Rolling Stones and more.

He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2004 as a member of Traffic.

But just because Mason’s retiring doesn’t mean this is the last we’ll hear from him. He’s got an upcoming children’s book and is also “culling over unreleased tracks from his 60-year career of live performances.”

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On This Day, Sept. 16, 1977 …

Talking Heads released their debut album, Talking Heads: 77, featuring the now-classic “Psycho Killer,” as well as “Uh-Oh,” “Love Comes to Town” and “Don’t Worry About the Government.”

Jon Bon Jovi’s cousin Tony Bongiovi was credited as one of the album’s producers, though the band disliked him and later claimed the engineer, Ed Stasium, did most of the work.

While the album never got higher than #97 on the Billboard 200 chart, Rolling Stone included it on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003.

Talking Heads went on to release seven more studio albums, their last being 1988’s Naked. They also released the soundtrack to their critically acclaimed documentary Stop Making Sense, which spent 119 weeks on the Billboard 200.

In November 2024, Talking Heads celebrated their debut album with the release of a new box set, Talking Heads: 77 (Super Deluxe Edition), featuring a remaster of the original release, bonus material and live recordings.

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David Byrne and Devo are among the artists booked to play the 2026 edition of Coachella, happening April 10-12 and April 17-19 in Indio, California.

Byrne is scheduled to play both Saturday nights, while Devo is booked for the Fridays.

This year’s Coachella headliners include Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Karol G. Other artists on the bill include Iggy Pop, Nine Inch Noize — an apparent collaboration between Nine Inch Nails and their Peel It Back world tour opener, Boys Noize — The xx, The Strokes, Foster the People, Interpol, Black Flag, Lykke Li, Suicidal Tendencies and more.

Tickets go on sale Friday at 11 a.m. PT, and 2024/2025 attendees can access a presale beginning Thursday at 11 a.m. PT. Registration for a chance at tickets is open now. A press release suggests, “For your best chance at passes, look to Weekend 2.”

For the full lineup and all ticket info, visit Coachella.com. As with previous years, both weekends will stream live on YouTube.

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Gold records, gold Grammys, gold lamé outfits, gold jewelry — Elton John‘s life has been full of gold. That’s why he’s starring in a new documentary called Touched by Gold, produced by the World Gold Council — who knew that was a thing?

In the doc, Elton shows off his first-ever Gold record, which he says made him feel like he’d “made it”; his gold stage outfits, including his gold platform boots; and his trophies, including a custom EGOT statue he commissioned to mark the fact that he’s won at least one Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. “An award doesn’t really look right unless it’s in gold,” he points out.

Elton also reminisces about his and husband David Furnish‘s wedding day, which took place when gay marriage became legal in the U.K. They already had their sons, Zachary Furnish-John and Elijah Furnish-John, who were 3 and 1 at the time, so they tied their gold wedding rings to stuffed rabbits and had the boys present them to their dads at the ceremony.

Gold also follows Elton into the studio: He explains that the best microphones have a gold-coated diaphragm inside them. “So obviously, I’ve gotten through a lot of gold, as I’ve been in the studio many times,” he notes. Gold is even found inside the pacemaker Elton had to get in 1999.

The weirdest gold thing Elton owns, though, would have to be the gold pendant and brooch he had made out of his left and right kneecaps after he had them removed and replaced with artificial knees. “I will no longer bow to any man” is written in Latin on the back of the pendant, because you can’t without kneecaps.

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Actor Paul Mescal will play Paul McCartney in director Sam Mendes’ upcoming Beatles biopics, and he talks to Rolling Stone about the work he’s putting in to get it right.

He and his castmates will be performing live for the film, and Mescal tells the mag he’s been learning to play guitar left-handed for the role.

“It would just be crazy to not play it left-handed, you know?” he says. “You’re like, ‘Nah. I like [McCartney] a lot but I don’t love him.’ That would be the messaging if I didn’t play left-handed. And he’s the f***** coolest man on planet earth, I think.”

Mescal was able to meet with McCartney and even got to play a classic Beatles tune with him.

“I will never forget it as long as I live. I got to play ‘Blackbird’ with him,” he says in a video interview with the mag. “That’s the coolest thing that my job has ever afforded me. I was kind of having an out-of-body experience, being like, I was in drama school nine years ago, and now I’m sat opposite Paul McCartney and we’re playing ‘Blackbird.'”

He adds, “I was like, I love my job.”

Mescal says he’s always been a “massive admirer” of McCartney’s music, calling the rocker’s work ethic “absolutely relentless.”

“I’m biased, but I think it’s kind of just an objective fact that like the work that he made has changed the world, the world of pop culture and culture more broadly,” he tells Rolling Stone. “I think he has fundamentally and forever changed the world.”

Mendes’ Beatles films, The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event, will be released in April 2028.

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After teaming up for their Ozzy Osbourne tribute at the MTV Video Music Awards on Sept. 7, Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry are once again collaborating with Yungblud, this time on a new song.

The artists first teased that something was up with a post on Instagram. It features a video in which Tyler and Yungblud share a big hug, before Tyler sings, “We got a secret and nobody knows it.”

Well, that secret is apparently out now, with Yungblud sharing a video of him, Tyler and Perry in the studio recording a song together, with the post captioned, “My Only Angel.” 

Tyler, Perry and Yungblud teamed up to perform “Mama, I’m Coming Home” on the MTV VMAs, ending their performance by shouting “Ozzy Osbourne forever.”

Tyler and Yungblud also performed at the Back to the Beginning concert on July 5, which was the final live performance by Ozzy and the original Black Sabbath lineup. Ozzy died just over two weeks later on July 22.

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Gov’t Mule has announced details for their annual year-end shows.

The Warren Haynes-led group is set to play three shows in New York at the end of the year, starting Dec. 28 at Proctors Theatre in Schenectady, New York.

Following the upstate show, Gov’t Mule will return to the Beacon Theatre for their annual New Year’s Eve stand, playing on Dec. 30 and 31. The New Year’s Eve concert will be dedicated to the year 1971.

“This New Year’s Eve, we will be honoring the music of 1971,” Haynes says, “arguably the greatest year in rock music history.” A post on Instagram adds that the year “shaped the soundtrack of a generation.”

An artist presale will kick off Wednesday at 10 a.m. ET, followed by local promoter and venue presales on Thursday at 10 a.m. ET. Tickets will then go on sale to the general public Friday at 10 a.m. ET.

Gov’t Mule is currently on a break from their Back in the Saddle tour. Their next show is Oct. 10 in Bowling Green, Kentucky. A complete list of dates can be found at mule.net.

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Count Usher among those who want to see Metallica shred Super Bowl halftime.

The R&B star, who headlined the big game’s halftime show in 2024, named the metal legends as his pick to play Super Bowl 60 in 2026 when asked by TMZ.

Beyond being endorsed by Usher, Metallica has another reason to headline the Super Bowl 60 halftime. The game will be held at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, home of the San Francisco 49ers, and Metallica has long been based in the Bay Area.

Super Bowl 60 takes place Feb. 8, 2026. Before then, Metallica will perform in San Francisco when they take the stage at the Dreamfest benefit concert on Oct. 15.

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Sharon Osbourne has shared an Instagram post thanking fans for their support following the death of her husband, Ozzy Osbourne.

“I’m still having trouble finding the words to express how grateful I am for the overwhelming love and support you’ve shown on social media,” Sharon writes. “Your comments, posts, and tributes have brought me more comfort than you know.”

She adds, “None of it has gone unnoticed, in fact, it’s carried me through many nights.”

Sharon also shares she’s been working with falcons amid her grieving process.

“The connection you make with these powerful birds is built entirely on trust and confidence,” she says. “They’ll choose to perch on you only if they sense you are safe and unafraid of them. It’s a bond I know all too well, and the experience was nothing short of magical.”

The post concludes, “I love you all, and I thank you deeply for the otherworldly amount of love you continue to send my way.”

Ozzy died on July 22, just over two weeks after his final performance at the Back to the Beginning concert on July 5. Sharon was seen attending Ozzy’s public funeral procession, held July 30 in his hometown of Birmingham, England.

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Bruce Dickinson may be from England, but that doesn’t mean he can’t rock “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

The Iron Maiden frontman belted the U.S. national anthem ahead of Sunday’s football game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Seattle Seahawks.

“Thank you to everyone at the @nfl and all of the fans at the @steelers vs @seahawks game today,” Dickinson posted on Instagram. “That was a huge honour!”

While he sang an American anthem, Dickinson is still very English in at least one regard: he spelled “honor” with an “ou.”

In other Maiden-related news, the metal legends have been named an “Album Champion” for the 2025 edition of the U.K.’s National Album Day, taking place Oct. 18.

The annual event, which has been held since 2018, aims to “celebrate and promote the art of the album,” and honors “artists who tell their stories behind these significant and influential bodies of work.”

“Albums matter,” Dickinson says. “They always have not just to Maiden but to all of the band members that have done solo projects – none of them have just toured – they have always recorded and released product too – especially me!!”

“The rush of first seeing the vinyl or the CD or back in the day the cassette for the first time never leaves you,” he continues. “It’s great that fans are coming full circle to enjoy the totemistic experience that was lost for a while in this digital era.”

The other 2025 Album Champions are Architects, Wolf Alice and Nova Twins.

For more info on National Album Day, visit NationalAlbumDay.co.uk.

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