Classic Rock News

Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson is giving fans a sneak peek at the upcoming box set dedicated to his solo career.

The rocker just shared an unboxing video in which he meticulously goes through Ian Anderson 8314 Boxed, which drops Aug. 23.

The limited-edition 10-LP box set includes the first-time vinyl releases of 1995’s Divinities: Twelve Dances with God, 2000’s The Secret Language of Birds and 2003’s Rupi’s Dance. It will also include half speed masters of 1983’s Walk Into Light and 2014’s Homo Erraticus, with the Divinities: Twelve Dances with God LP also a half speed master.

There’s also 2012’s Thick as a Brick 2, which was a sequel to Jethro Tull’s 1972 album, Thick as a Brick, and Roaming in the Gloaming, an LP of previously unreleased live recordings from 1995 to 2007, plus a 96-page book with a foreword by Anderson.

Anderson says in the clip he’s very proud of the set, noting “it does represent such a labor of love over the years and the opportunity to have all this rereleased in a format, which hopefully you will enjoy.” 

8314 Boxed is available for preorder now.

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Def Leppard is currently on their Summer Stadium tour with Journey, and each night fans are being treated to a set list filled with hits, including several songs from their hit album Pyromania, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary.

Of course there will always be fans who would love to hear a deep cut during a show, and frontman Joe Elliott has some ideas on a rare track he’d be interested in playing.

The revelation came when a fan asked the band on TikTok, “What song would you like to see added to the set list that is rare or never played? It can’t include any song from Pyromania.”

Elliott replied, “I would say one song that might be fun to try one day would be ‘You Got Me Running,’ off High and Dry,” referring to the band’s sophomore album. He notes, “I think we did actually play it in 1981 like two or three times and we abandoned it for whatever reason.”

He adds, “I think it might work, who knows?” 

Def Leppard and Journey’s Summer Stadium tour hits Toronto, Canada, on Sunday. A complete list of dates can be found at defleppard.com. 

Meanwhile, Def Leppard wants to see how their fans interpret their songs.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers have launched a cover contest with instrument retailer Sweetwater, asking fans to share videos of them covering their favorite track off Pyromania. The winner will receive over $13,000 worth of gear inspired by Def Leppard. Participants have until Sept. 13 to enter by uploading their performance to YouTube or Instagram with #PyromaniaCover2024, along with tags for @SweetwaterSound and @defleppard. The winner will be announced Sept. 20.

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REO Speedwagon has announced a new set of tour dates, and they’re bringing Loverboy along with them.

The rockers have announced 11 new shows, kicking off Nov. 6 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and wrapping Nov. 23 in Lexington, Kentucky.

A ticket presale is happening now, with tickets going on sale to the general public starting Friday at 10 a.m.

In the meantime, there are still plenty of chances to see REO Speedwagon this summer. They are currently on the Summer Road Trip 2024 tour with Train and special guests Yacht Rock Revue. The tour hits Syracuse, New York, on Wednesday, with dates confirmed through Sept. 11 in Phoenix.

A complete list of tour dates can be found at reospeedwagon.com.

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Forbes recently reported that Bruce Springsteen is now a billionaire, but his E Street Band guitarist and longtime friend Stevie Van Zandt says the amount of money in The Boss’ bank account doesn’t mean a thing.

“It’s great for me because I’m gonna definitely borrow some money, I tell you that. I’m joking, of course,” Stevie tells The Independent. “My bookie’s gonna love him. I’m joking again!”

On a more serious note, Van Zandt said, “I’m not sure how accurate that is, first of all. But I don’t think it matters, honestly. The fact is: this is what we do. And so the money has absolutely no factor. It hasn’t affected [him] for many, many years. Ever since, really, [1984’s] Born in the U.S.A. What’s that, 40 years?”

Van Zandt notes, “So no matter how many zeros is on the bank account, it doesn’t make any difference!”

Bruce, Stevie and the E Street Band are set to kick off the next U.S. leg of their tour on Aug. 15 in Pittsburgh. A complete list of dates can be found at brucespringsteen.net.

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Chicago is set to release a new live album featuring a classic concert from 1971.

Chicago At The John. F. Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts, Washington D.C. (9/16/1971) features the lineup of Peter Cetera, Robert Lamm, Terry Kath, Danny Seraphine, Lee Loughnane, James Pankow and Walt Parazaider. 

The album treats fans to a previously unreleased concert recorded not long after the opening of the John. F. Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts. It features 26 tracks, with performances of songs from the band’s first three albums, including Chicago classics like “25 Or 6 To 4” and “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?”

Another Chicago classic on the album is “Saturday In The Park,” which is out now.

Chicago At The John. F. Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts, Washington D.C. (9/16/1971) will be released on Sept. 27 as a four-LP and three-CD set. It is available for preorder now.

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Aerosmith is getting ready to restart their Peace Out tour, and while it may be their farewell to the road, it doesn’t mean it will be the last we hear from them.

In a new interview with Rock Candy magazine, guitarist Joe Perry indicates that new music from Aerosmith is not out of the question.

“There’s definitely a possibility,” he shares. “I know that Steven (Tyler) has got some stuff in his back pocket, so we’ll see. I’m currently writing stuff for a new Hollywood Vampires album, but after that … .”

And Perry says fans can also expect to hear some previously unreleased material from the band’s archives.  

He notes, “What we are definitely doing is remixing some of the early Aerosmith stuff and finding some interesting outtakes, so it’ll be fun to look at that stuff.” 

Aerosmith’s Peace Out tour launched last September but was postponed not long after it began after Tyler fractured his larynx. Perry reveals the whole thing was “pretty heavy.”  

“Imagine being told that you might not ever do it again,” he says. “It all can be taken away so easily.”

Aerosmith’s Peace Out tour is now scheduled to kick off Sept. 20 in Pittsburgh, with dates confirmed through Feb. 26 in Buffalo. A complete list of dates can be found at aerosmith.com.

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A new box set dedicated to the Grateful Dead‘s 1978 spring tour is coming this fall. The 19-CD Friend of the Devils: April 1978 will be made up of eight previously unreleased complete shows from April 1978.

Those concerts include three Florida shows — April 6 at Curtis Hixon Convention Hall in Tampa, April 7 at Sportatorium in Pembroke Pines and April 8 at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Jacksonville. There are also two shows, April 10 and 11, at Fox Theatre in Atlanta, plus April 12 at Cameron Indoor Stadium at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, April 14 at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Virginia, and April 16 at Huntington Civic Center in Huntington, West Virginia.

The set will be released Sept. 20 exclusively at Dead.net and will be limited to 10,000 individually numbered copies. Plus, the Duke University show will released digitally and as a three-CD or four-LP set.

Fans are getting a preview of that Duke show with a live recording of “U.S. Blues,” which has just been released to digital services.

Both Friend of the Devils: April 1978 and Duke ’78 are available for preorder now.

And folks can learn even more about these shows on the Good Ol’ Grateful Deadcast, which will celebrate its 10th season on Aug. 29. The show will be dedicated to exploring the eight shows featured in the box set, as well as this period of Dead history.

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The Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood is celebrating his late bandmate, drummer Charlie Watts, with a new portrait.

The rocker has just released two new prints of his artwork: “Beat,” a previously unreleased portrait of Watts, and “Miami Beat,” which is a companion set list of Charlie’s final show with the band. 

According to a description, the paintings are being released “in recognition of Charlie’s incredible contribution to The Stones from the very beginning until his tragic passing in 2021.”

Only 295 individually named and numbered sets are available, with both unframed prints signed by Wood. They are currently available to order, at a price of $1,000 each.

Watts’ final show with The Rolling Stones took place Aug. 30, 2019, in Miami. The show was part of The Stones’ No Filter tour and featured performances of songs like “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” “Under My Thumb,” “Sympathy for the Devil,” “Gimme Shelter” and “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.”

When a new leg of the tour was announced for September 2021, Watts had decided to sit out in order to have heart surgery. He passed away Aug. 24, 2021, at the age of 80.

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The Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood is celebrating his late bandmate, drummer Charlie Watts, with a new portrait.

The rocker has just released two new prints of his artwork: “Beat,” a previously unreleased portrait of Watts, and “Miami Beat,” which is a companion set list of Charlie’s final show with the band. 

According to a description, the paintings are being released “in recognition of Charlie’s incredible contribution to The Stones from the very beginning until his tragic passing in 2021.”

Only 295 individually named and numbered sets are available, with both unframed prints signed by Wood. They are currently available to order, at a price of $1,000 each.

Watts’ final show with The Rolling Stones took place Aug. 30, 2019, in Miami. The show was part of The Stones’ No Filter tour and featured performances of songs like “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” “Under My Thumb,” “Sympathy for the Devil,” “Gimme Shelter” and “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.”

When a new leg of the tour was announced for September 2021, Watts had decided to sit out in order to have heart surgery. He passed away Aug. 24, 2021, at the age of 80.

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Pretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde has told fans why she and her band prefer to play smaller venues rather than big arenas.

The band recently played a club show at the Riverside Theater in Milwaukee, and she posted on social media about the “fun audience” they had. She went on to explain why they stick to clubs and theaters, noting it’s a question she often gets asked by fans.

“The simple answer is: Clubs and theatres are better venues for the audience and for the band,” she shared. “Personally, I have never stayed for a three hour show, and I like to see the band on stage rather than on screens if I’m in the audience.”

She adds, “And if I’m on stage, I like to see every audience member right up to the back of the balcony. So yes, we could be playing bigger places, making more money, and in some people’s eyes, garnering more prestige…… but we really don’t give a s*** about that stuff.” 

Pretenders have played bigger venues when opening for artists like Stevie Nicks, Guns N’ Roses and currently Foo Fighters, which Chrissie says she loves, “but for our own shows we like to keep it reined in.”

Pretenders’ next show is Wednesday in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A complete list of dates can be found at thepretenders.com. 

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