Classic Rock News

Envy of None, featuring Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson, has dropped another new song.

The band, which also features bassist Andy Curran, guitarist/keyboardist Alfio Annibalini and singer-songwriter Maiah Wynne, just dropped the new tune “Under the Stars,” along with a new animated video.

“Alf & I toiled over this one for months and really felt, even at its rough demo stage that we had something special,” Curran shares. “I’m a romantic at heart and the message here is universal. Soul mates, ‘two against the world!’” 

The song is the second track the band has released this year; they dropped “Not Dead Yet” back in October. Prior to these tunes, Envy of None released the EP That Was Then, This Is Now in 2023 and their self-titled debut album in 2022.

And more music is on the way. The band is currently in the studio working on a new album that’s expected out in spring 2025.

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Elton John is sharing what he hopes his legacy will be — aside from his iconic music career.

“My music speaks for itself,” the “Rocket Man” singer, 77, told Good Morning America co-anchor Robin Roberts in a new interview that aired Dec. 11. “My legacy is that I was a great husband and an even better father.”

“The music, the career is fantastic. It’s been mind-blowing, groundbreaking,” he continued. “But the most important thing to me in my life is making sure my children are happy, they have a wonderful life and that I was good to them. That’s all that counts.”

John shares sons Zachary, 13, and Elijah, 11, with husband David Furnish.

They all joined him onstage at Los Angeles’ Dodger Stadium in November 2022 for the final U.S. stop of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour, and Furnish said a photo from that “beautiful moment” hangs in the family’s kitchen at home.

“Elton wanted the world to really see and feel why he made the decision to stop touring,” Furnish reflected.

As for whether Elton’s kids know just how big of a deal their dad is, Furnish — who co-directed Elton John: Never Too Late, the new documentary on the Grammy-winning singer — said “they do and they don’t.”

“I think one of the things that Elton’s always done, he does a show, comes home, he doesn’t talk a lot about what he does, he doesn’t play his music all the time in the house,” Furnish explained. “He’s daddy.”

Elton John: Never Too Late begins streaming Dec. 13 on Disney+.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News and Good Morning America.

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Metallica has joined the world of Beat Saber.

The VR game tasks players with using virtual blades to slash through blocks to the rhythm of a particular song. With the newly released Metallica pack, you can now do that to tracks including “Enter Sandman,” “Master of Puppets” and “Nothing Else Matters.” 

“Experience Metallica like never before,” the metal icons say. “Step into virtual reality to experience 17 of your favorite songs on a whole new level inside the award-winning game’s Metallica-inspired world.”

For more info, visit BeatSaber.com.

Other artist’s who’ve collaborated with Beat Saber include Linkin Park, Green Day and Imagine Dragons.

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A concert celebrating the 50th anniversary of Bob Dylan’s classic album Blood on the Tracks is being put on by the Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The concert, Shelter From The Storm, is happening Jan. 24 at Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa and will feature performances by Elvis Costello, Diana Krall, Lucinda Williams, Indigo Girls’ Amy Ray, actor Michael Shannon, Jason Narducy, Sharon Van Etten, Robyn Hitchcock and more.

The evening will be hosted by actor Luke Wilson, with the artists performing songs from Blood on the Tracks, as well as other tunes from Dylan’s catalog. 

“Blood on the Tracks is undisputedly one of Dylan’s greatest albums and a landmark in rock and roll history,” says Steven Jenkins, director of the Bob Dylan Center. “We are thrilled to celebrate its enduring influence on generations of musicians, singers and songwriters by gathering together this astonishing group of artists to interpret the album’s ten songs in a fresh context.”

Tickets for the concert go on sale Thursday to Bob Dylan Center members and on Friday at 10 a.m. to the general public. More info can be found at bobdylancenter.com.

Released in January 1975, Blood on the Tracks was a #1 album for Dylan and one of his biggest commercial successes, with the record certified double Platinum by the RIAA. It features such classic Dylan tunes as “Tangled Up In Blue,” which was a top-40 hit, “Simple Twist of Fate” and “Shelter From the Storm.” It is often considered by critics to be one of Dylan’s best albums.

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Def Leppard is set to headline the inaugural Boardwalk Rock festival, taking place May 17-18 in Ocean City, Maryland.

Also headlining the fest are Mötley Crüe, Nickelback and Shinedown.

The festival will feature three stages on the shores of Ocean City’s Inlet Beach at the Ocean City Boardwalk. Other artists on the bill include Alice Cooper, Poison’s Bret Michaels, Night Ranger, Everclear, Three Days Grace and 3 Doors Down. 

Tickets for the festival go on sale Friday, with a presale beginning at 10 a.m., followed by a public sale at 11 a.m. Info on the complete lineup and tickets can be found at boardwalkockfest.com.

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A New Jersey politician has been forced to admit that he fudged his Spotify Wrapped in order to make it appear that his most-played songs were all by New Jersey native Bruce Springsteen.

Democrat Josh Gottheimer, who is running for governor of New Jersey, posted his Spotify Wrapped on social platform X on Friday, with his top five songs being The Boss’ “Thunder Road,” “Because the Night,” “Glory Days,” “Badlands” and “The Rising.”

“No surprises here,” he captioned his post. “Fun fact: My first ever concert was at Meadowlands to see The Boss!”

But the politician was soon called out by NJ.com reporter Matt Arco, who noted how dissimilar Gottheimer’s post was to other Spotify Wrapped posts, particularly the fonts and spacing, suggesting the list was faked. 

After being exposed, Gottheimer owned up to fudging his list, although he insists he’s a huge Springsteen fan.

“This would be my Spotify Wrapped if I didn’t share my account with my 12 and 15-year-old kids,” Gottheimer said in a statement to New Jersey Advanced Media. “While it’s Springsteen all day for me — don’t get me wrong, I still love listening to Taylor Swift!”

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Looks like Paul Mescal is going from playing a gladiator to a Beatle.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, during a conversation between Mescal’s Gladiator II director Ridley Scott and director Christopher Nolan at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles Tuesday, Scott revealed that Mescal has been cast in Sam Mendes’ upcoming films about The Beatles.

When talking about his next project, the movie The Dog Stars, Scott was asked if Mescal was going to be in the film. At first Scott said that he was, before suggesting Mescal’s schedule may be an issue.

“Paul is actually stacked up, doing the Beatles next,” he said. “So I may have to let him go.”

While Ridley didn’t say who Mescal would be playing, The Hollywood Reporter notes that rumors have suggested he was the frontrunner to play Paul McCartney.

Mendes’ Beatles project was announced back in February, with the director revealing he planned to make four separate films, one for each member of the group — McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison.

Sony Pictures is the studio behind the movies, and it marks the first time Apple Corps Ltd. and The Beatles have granted a studio the rights to the life stories of band members and their legendary catalog of music. 

No official casting has been announced for the films, although Ringo recently let it slip in an Entertainment Tonight interview that Barry Keoghan had been cast to play him.

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On This Day, Dec. 11, 1968 …

The Rolling Stones began shooting the concert film Rock and Roll Circus.

The film was shot over two days and featured The Stones, as well as The Who, Jethro Tull, Taj Mahal and Marianne Faithfull, performing on a stage set that looked like a circus.

It also featured a one-time-only performance by The Dirty Mac, a group made up of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Eric Clapton, Keith Richards and more.

The film was originally supposed to air on the BBC, but, unhappy with their performance, The Stones opted to hold back the broadcast. It took 28 years for them to change their mind and release it. It premiered as part of the New York Film Festival in October 1996. A soundtrack followed two days after the premiere.

 A remastered edition of the film in Dolby Atmos received a limited theatrical release in March 2019.

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Elton John‘s just been named Time’s Icon of the Year for 2024.

“TIME Icon of the Year – what an honour!” Elton writes on Instagram. “Reflecting on my journey – from the highs and lows of my early career to the peace and happiness of life now with my husband and two wonderful sons – I’m reminded of the incredible support and love that have shaped my path. This accolade is a personal milestone and a reminder to the world that being yourself is truly iconic.”

In the accompanying article,  Elton’s writing partner, lyricist Bernie Taupin, talks about how in-demand their music still is today.

“Do you know how many requests I get a day for the use of our songs on things like America’s Got Talent, The Voice, or the silly show where they dress up as poodles?” Taupin shares. “I don’t think Bob Dylan gets a lot of requests for The Masked Singer.” 

And Elton reflects on his legacy, saying it would be enough “if people remember that we tried to change the world a little bit, we were kind, we tried to help people. And then, apart from that, there was the music.”

On a totally different subject, in the interview, Elton, who’s battled drug addiction in the past, shares his thoughts on the legalization of marijuana — and he’s not for it.

“I maintain that it’s addictive. It leads to other drugs,” he says. “And when you’re stoned—and I’ve been stoned—you don’t think normally. Legalizing marijuana in America and Canada is one of the greatest mistakes of all time.”

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Online ticket platform StubHub has come out with its look back at the year in live entertainment, with bands like The Rolling Stones, the Eagles and U2 among the most in-demand artists of the year.

While, unsurprisingly, Taylor Swift was the most in-demand global artist of 2024, the Eagles landed in the top 10 at #7, followed by The Stones at #8, Billy Joel at #9 and U2 at #10.

And looking ahead to next year, the Eagles, thanks to their Las Vegas Sphere residency, land at #3 on the in-demand global experiences list, with Metallica at #4 and Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, who’ll tour Europe again next summer, at #10.

In other year-end news, the in-venue interactive music and entertainment platform TouchTunes has released its 2024 year-end charts, with AC/DC nabbing the honor of the most played band of the year.

Other bands making the list include Lynyrd Skynyrd at #2, The Stones at #3, Fleetwood Mac at #5, Queen at #6, Creedence Clearwater Revival at #7, Metallica at #8 and Led Zeppelin at #10.

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