Classic Rock News

Ringo Starr has released an all-star rendition of The Beatles’ classic “With A Little Help From My Friends,” with proceeds going to help California wildfire relief efforts.

The song was recorded live during Ringo’s January shows at the Ryman Auditorium. It features the superstar guests who joined him for the concerts, including Sheryl Crow, The White Stripes’ Jack White, Mickey Guyton, Emmylou Harris, Brenda Lee and Billy String.

“With A Little Help My Friends” is available now via digital outlets. Starr will donate 100% of the song’s proceeds from now until March 27, 2026, to the American Red Cross and Habitat for Humanity ReBUILD LA.

“I love LA and have lived there for many years, and while we were recording this in Nashville, many of us had family and friends who were dealing with the wildfires in Los Angeles,” said Ringo. “It was so great performing this song with these incredible artists and we all wanted to do something to help. I think the song says it all really, ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’ and we send it to all those affected by the fires with Peace and Love.”

The two-hour special Ringo & Friends at the Ryman, filmed during his two-night stand in Nashville, aired in early March on CBS. It is now streaming on Paramount+.

Next up, Ringo and his All-Starr Band are set to kick off a new tour on June 12 in Bridgeport, Connecticut. They’ll also return to Las Vegas this fall, with dates at the Venetian Theatre inside The Venetian Resort starting Sept. 17 and wrapping Sept. 24.

A complete list of dates can be found at RingoStarr.com.

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The Who returned to the stage Thursday night, performing the first of two concerts at London’s Royal Albert Hall to benefit Teenage Cancer Trust.

According to setlist.fm, the band blew through plenty of Who hits, including “Who Are You,” “Pinball Wizard,” “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” “My Generation” and “Baba O’Riley.” They even surprised the crowd with a performance of the Who’s Next song “Love Ain’t for Keeping,” the first time they’ve performed the song since 2004.

Mojo reports that during the show, Pete Townshend revealed he is recovering from knee replacement surgery.

“I had a complete knee replacement four and a half weeks ago,” the 79-year-old Townshend shared. “But because I’m Superman, I’m here! Maybe I should auction off the old one.” He added, “Elton John had one done, and he wears his as a bracelet. Unfortunately, mine’s in three bits.”

And Pete isn’t the only one dealing with ailments. Roger Daltrey, who has been open about his hearing issues, shared that he’s now having trouble with his eyesight.

“The problem with this job is that you go deaf, and now I’ve been told I am going blind,” the 81-year-old told the audience, according to Planet Rock. “Thank God I’ve still got my voice. If I lose that I’ll go full Tommy,” a reference to the “deaf, dumb and blind” main character in The Who’s rock opera Tommy.

The Who returns to Royal Albert Hall for a second and final Teenage Cancer Trust show on Sunday.

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On This Day, March 28, 1976 … 

Phil Collins made his U.S. live debut as Genesis’ lead singer on the band’s first tour since Peter Gabriel‘s departure.

Gabriel announced his departure from Genesis in August 1975, following the tour in support of their sixth studio album, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. The first tour without him was in support of The Trick of Tail, with Genesis performing across North America and Europe.

Interestingly, on March 28, 1996, exactly 20 years after he made his live debut as frontman, Collins announced he too was leaving Genesis to focus on solo work and movie soundtracks.

That break lasted almost nine years, with Genesis launching a reunion tour in 2007. The band wrapped their final tour, The Last Domino? tour, on March 26, 2022, in London.

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Bachman-Turner Overdrive has dropped their first new single in over 25 years.

The Canadian band, led by Randy Bachman, has released the new track “60 Years Ago,” which features Randy’s sons Tal and Koko Bachman, with BTO’s Fred Turner on vocals, and a guitar solo from Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, and fellow Canadian, Neil Young.

“As a thank-you to Winnipeg, the city that shaped us, I wrote a song called ‘60 Years Ago,’” Bachman shares. “This song is our tribute to Winnipeg, the place where we grew up as teenagers in the ’60s, a time when the city’s music scene was exploding. It was the Liverpool of North America, a melting pot of incredible talents.”

“60 Years Ago” is available now via digital outlets. Proceeds from the song will go to The Bridge to Nowhere charity bike ride, which helps raise money to end chronic homelessness in Winnipeg, Canada.

Bachman-Turner Overdrive is set to kick off a Canadian tour on Tuesday in Victoria, British Columbia. They will hit the States this summer with The Marshall Tucker Band and Jefferson Starship. The tour kicks off July 18 in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

A complete list of dates can be found at btoband.com.

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The reformed Sex Pistols are crossing the pond to cause anarchy in the U.S.

The punk icons have announced their first tour of the States in over 20 years, running from Sept. 16 in Dallas to Oct. 16 in Los Angeles. The run will mark the North American debut of the updated Sex Pistols lineup, which includes original members Steve Jones, Paul Cook and Glen Matlock alongside vocalist Frank Carter in place of frontman John Lydon, aka Johnny Rotten.

Presales begin April 1, and tickets go on sale to the general public starting April 4 at 10 a.m. local time.

For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit SexPistolsFeaturingFrankCarter.com.

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Paul McCartney recently reissued his band Wings’ album Venus and Mars for its 50th anniversary, and he’s giving fans a way to enjoy the music together.

The rocker just announced a new global Venus and Mars listening party Friday at 1 p.m. ET. Those taking part are asked to share their favorite Venus and Mars songs, lyrics and memories.

Meanwhile, in a Q&A on his website, McCartney answered some questions about what it was like touring with Wings after the release of Venus and Mars, which saw the band going from clubs to stadiums.

“After The Beatles, we had this tiny little band that didn’t have any hits and didn’t even know each other, except for me and (wife) Linda (McCartney) obviously. And Denny Laine, who I knew a little,” McCartney shares. “We were almost an amateur outfit, but we knew we would work at it and we did. We built it brick-by-brick.”

“In 1976 we did the big American tour and it was like, ‘Wow, this is it!’ That was the payoff, after all that work,” he explains. “This crazy idea of just getting a few friends together and doing little clubs and building it and learning how to be a group – it worked.”

Finally he notes, “It was the justification of the way we’d done it, with the world’s craziest idea – that after you’ve been a Beatle, you go down to little clubs or places you don’t even have bookings, like on the university tour. It was very daring.”

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A documentary about legendary New York concert promoter Ron Delsener is set for a May theatrical release.

Abramorama recently acquired the film, Ron Delsener Presents, directed by Jake Sumner. It has announced it will open with a weeklong engagement at Quad Cinema in New York City starting May 30, with the 86-year-old Delsener and some special guests taking part in Q&As during the run. It will then hit theaters in select cities nationwide.

The film gives music fans a behind-the-scenes look at Delsener’s 60-year career in live music and features interviews with a whole host of A-list musicians: Bruce Springsteen, Steve Van Zandt, Jon Bon Jovi, the late Jimmy Buffett, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Gene Simmons, Patti Smith, Cher and more.

“For generations most of the live music in New York City and most of its iconic venues were presided over by one individual and his small team, and that was Ron Delsener,” Sumner shares. “Ron’s personal story tracks the tale of live music from a cottage industry, to the dominant cultural force and global business it is today.”

He adds, “He is probably one of the only living sources of the live music business’s entirety, or at least a version of it.”

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Back in September, The Guess Who founding singer Burton Cummings and guitarist Randy Bachman reached a settlement with their former bandmates Jim Kale and Garry Peterson over the use of the band’s name, and it appears that may be a catalyst for a reunion tour.

In an interview with American Songwriter, the 81-year-old Bachman reveals that he and Cummings are talking about hitting the road together again.

“[Burton is] finishing up his stuff this year, I’m finishing up my [Bachman-Turner Overdrive] stuff,” Bachman shares. “And we have a plan for 2026 to be The Guess Who, where … we do a set list of about 30 hit songs, and it’s probably gonna be a two- or three-hour Springsteen kind of marathonic show.”

He adds, “And we’re all geared to do that in 2026. It’ll be the unveiling of ‘The Guess Who are back.’”

In the lawsuit, filed in October 2023, Cummings and Bachman accused Kale and Peterson of tricking fans into thinking Cummings and Bachman were still performing with The Guess Who, when they were actually getting a “cover band.” The suit’s settlement resulted in Cummings and Bachman acquiring the trademark for the band’s name.

But until a reunion tour happens, Bachman is keeping busy. He’s launching a Canadian tour with his other band, Bachman-Turner Overdrive, on April 1 in Victoria, British Columbia. He’ll also hit the States this summer with The Marshall Tucker Band and Jefferson Starship, starting July 18 in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

The band is also set to drop the new single “60 Years Ago” on Friday, with proceeds benefiting The Bridge to Nowhere charity bike ride, which helps raise money to end chronic homelessness in Winnipeg, Canada.

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Foreigner’s original frontman, Lou Gramm, is returning to the band for their South American tour.

In a press release announcing that Foreigner’s 2009 three-disc set Can’t Slow had been certified Gold, the band’s current lead singer, Kelly Hansen, revealed that he’s been dealing with “some issues” and that Gramm will be helping out in his place.

Noting that he was “blown away” by the album’s success, Hansen shared, “I am so looking forward to continuing my journey with this incredible band. Some issues have forced me to limit appearances outside of the USA this year and this means unfortunately, I will miss Foreigner’s South American run.”

“However, our incredible bandmate Luis Maldonado has been recording some of our hits in Spanish and he will be handling most of the vocals along with Lou Gramm who will be guesting with Foreigner for those shows,” he explains. “I know they will smash it!”

Foreigner’s South American tour kicks off April 28 in Mexico City and runs through May 10 in São Paulo, Brazil. The band also recently announced a Canadian tour that begins Oct. 21 in St. John’s, Newfoundland, with vocalist Geordie Brown handling the singing duties.

A complete list of Foreigner dates can be found at foreigneronline.com.

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The sequel to This Is Spinal Tap, Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, is hitting theaters in September. But before that fans are being given a chance to catch the original on the big screen.

It was previously revealed that the original film would be rereleased ahead of the sequel’s opening, and now Deadline reports that a remastered, remixed and 4K restoration of the film will hit theaters nationwide July 5-7.  

Originally released in 1984, This is Spinal Tap was directed by Rob Reiner and starred Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer. It followed a fictional heavy metal band being filmed for a documentary.

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues will open in theaters Sept. 12 and follow the band as they reunite after 15 years for a final concert. It will feature cameos from Paul McCartney, Elton John, Garth Books, Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, Metallica‘s Lars Ulrich and more.

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