Classic Rock News

The Smashing Pumpkins have announced a deluxe reissue of their 1995 album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness in honor of its 30th anniversary.

The expanded set features the original track list accompanied by over 80 minutes of previously unreleased live recordings from the Pumpkins’ 1996 tour. It’s due out Nov. 21 on CD, digital and as a six-LP vinyl box set accompanied by a hardcover book of new liner notes written by frontman Billy Corgan.

You can listen to the included live version of the song “Geek USA” now.

“Unearthing these live recordings from the original lineup’s true, last large-scale tour was a labor of love, and for me certainly a bittersweet as once we blew apart in 1996, we were never quite the same: be it emotionally, or spiritually,” Corgan says. “Thankfully, I can say this as the band is now enjoying our greatest public success since that time, and one can hear in these tapes the raw power that such nascent faith afforded us, then, and the will and wisdom to persevere that followed.”

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness was originally released Oct. 23, 1995. The double, 28-track album spawned a number of the Pumpkins’ biggest hits, including “Bullet with Butterfly Wings,” “1979,” “Tonight, Tonight” and “Zero.”

Corgan is also celebrating the Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness anniversary with a series of performances at the Lyric Opera of Chicago beginning in November, featuring “newly commissioned arrangements and orchestrations” of the album’s songs.

(Video contains uncensored profanity.) 



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After postponing her summer tour dates, Stevie Nicks was back on stage in Portland, Oregon, Thursday night, where she treated the crowd to a song she hasn’t performed in over four decades.

According to setlist.fm, Stevie’s show at the Moda Center included a performance of the track “Angel,” from Fleetwood Mac’s 1979 album Tusk. The site notes that it was Stevie’s first performance of the song since 1983.

As for the rest of the show, Stevie performed a set filled with hits including Fleetwood Mac tracks like “Dreams,” “Gypsy,” “Gold Dust Woman,” “Rhiannon” and “Landslide,” as well as solo tunes “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” “Stand Back” and “Edge of Seventeen.” She also performed her 2024 track “The Lighthouse,” and covered Tom Petty‘s “Free Fallin’.”

Nicks announced in August that she was postponing her August and September tour dates after fracturing her shoulder.

Stevie’s next show is happening Saturday in Sacramento, California, with the tour running through Dec. 10 in Hollywood, Florida. A complete list of dates can be found at StevieNicksofficial.com.

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The Who wrapped their The Song Is Over – The North American Farewell Tour at the Acrisure Arena near Palm Springs, California, Wednesday night, treating the crowd to a set filled with hits.

For their last tour stop ever in the U.S., setlist.fm reports that Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend played songs like “Who Are You,” “The Seeker,” “I Can See for Miles,” “Pinball Wizard,” “My Generation,” “The Real Me,” “Baba O’Riley” and more.

The duo ended the night with just the two of them on stage for an acoustic performance of “Tea and Theatre,” and fan shot footage shared on YouTube shows Roger putting his arm around Pete at the end of the song and pulling him in for a side hug, with Pete grabbing Roger’s hand.

“I suppose, you know, it’s goodbye,” Pete said during their final bows. “That’s what it is. To what we know as the Who, it’s goodbye.”

As for the future, he added, “What Roger and I will get up to next, who knows? If we last any longer, I’m sure we’ll get up to all kinds of mischief. We’ll do stuff together, I’m sure, sharing some stuff, all kinds bits and pieces. But for this kind of thing, it’s goodbye. And you were last!”

Roger went on to thank fans “for all the years showing up for us,” adding “it was every band’s dream in the ’60s to make it in America and thanks to you guys, you made it happen for us.”

So far there’s no word on whether The Who will bring their farewell tour to other parts of the world.

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It’s been 50 years since The Rocky Horror Picture Show hit the big screen, attracting fans across the globe.

The film, starring Barry Bostwick, Susan Sarandon and Tim Curry, gained a cult following thanks to its rock ‘n’ roll soundtrack and midnight screenings, where fans dressed up as characters, acted out the film and talked back to the screen.

Before rock stardom, Meat Loaf appeared in the film as motorcyclist Eddie. His co-star Nell Campbell, who played groupie Columbia in the film, tells ABC Audio that he was an “absolute darling.”

“He was a big Texan baby with a voice of an angel with a jet engine behind it,” Campbell says of the musician, who died in 2022. “We all adored him.”

And one member of the cast got to do more than just act opposite him.

Patricia Quinn, who played Magenta in the film, says she made Meat Loaf prove a boast he made about being the best kisser at his Texas high school.

“I said, ‘Well, one would have to sample that.’ So I proffered my mouth towards him and we began to kiss,” she shares. “And I said, ‘They were right. You are the best kisser — in your high school in Texas.’” 

The 50th anniversary of Rocky Horror is being celebrated with The Rocky Horror Picture Show Spectacular tour, with appearances by Bostwick, Quinn and Campbell. It will hit 55 cities in the U.S. and Canada, including Washington, D.C., on Thursday.

Plus, throughout October fans can catch a newly restored 4K version of the film in theaters; the 4K version will arrive on Blu-ray and on digital platforms on Oct. 7.

The soundtrack is also getting a 50th anniversary deluxe edition on red-in-gold vinyl on Oct. 10.

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Sting and his wife, Trudie Styler, are giving fans a chance to share a special evening with them at their home in England.

The pair just launched a new Charity Buzz sweepstakes, A Good Evening with Trudie and Sting. The winner will get a unique experience with the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer and his wife at their home in Wiltshire, England, on Dec. 11.

According to the description, the winner and a guest will enjoy “a special, intimate night filled with delicious food, a live performance, and meaningful connection.” The package includes round-trip airfare to England and a two-night hotel accommodation.

Those interested can donate $10 or more through Prizeo to be entered into the sweepstakes. Money raised will be donated to Narrative 4, a global nonprofit that “equips young people with the ability to harness the power of storytelling to drive change in their communities.”

Sting is set to kick off a European leg of his Sting 3.0 tour on Oct. 8 in Cologne, Germany. A complete list of dates can be found at Sting.com.

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Judas Priest is not going to Kansas anymore.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers are currently on a co-headlining tour with Alice Cooper, but they just announced that their Oct. 8 show in Wichita, Kansas, won’t go on as planned.

“Due to unforeseen circumstances the October 8th performance is cancelled,” reads a post on Instagram. “All tickets can be returned at point of purchase, all digital tickets will be automatically refunded. We apologize for any inconvenience.”

No other reason for the cancellation was given.

Judas Priest and Alice Cooper kicked off their tour on Sept. 16 in Biloxi, Mississippi. Their next show is Wednesday in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. A complete list of dates can be found at JudasPriest.com.

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The lawsuit filed by Nevermind cover baby Spencer Elden against Nirvana has once again been dismissed.

As previously reported, Elden first sued Nirvana in 2021, alleging that the Nevermind cover artwork constitutes child pornography. The now-iconic cover of the 1991 hit album features a photo of Elden at 4 months old, swimming naked in a pool while reaching for a dollar bill on a fishhook.

The suit has been dismissed multiple times, which Elden has responded to by filing amended complaints and appeals. In ruling on the case once more in a filing Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Fernando M. Olguin maintained that it be dismissed with prejudice.

“Neither the pose, focal point, setting, nor overall context suggest the album cover features sexually explicit conduct,” Olguin writes in the ruling, obtained by ABC Audio.

Olguin also points to Elden having “embraced and financially benefitted from being featured on the album cover” for years before filing the suit, including “being paid to reenact the photo, selling autographed album-related posters and memorabilia, participating in interviews about the album cover, and even referring to himself as the ‘Nirvana baby.'”

“Plaintiff’s actions relating to the album over time are difficult to square with his contentions that the album cover constitutes child pornography and that he sustained serious damages as a result of the album cover,” the ruling reads. “In short, the foregoing factors are relevant considerations in the overall context of the photo’s creation, intended purpose, and subsequent use, and further support the court’s finding that the album cover does not constitute child pornography.”

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The Doobie Brothers’ Michael McDonald and the late Jimmy Buffett are set to appear on the upcoming Christmas album from ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro.

The album, Tis the Season, drops Oct. 17. Buffet’s voice appears on Jake’s version of the classic Hawaiian Christmas song “Mele Kalikimaka.”

“I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for him,” Jake says of Buffett, who passed away in 2023. “He and (songwriter) Mac McAnally were like my big brothers. They took me under their wings and did so much for me.”

McDonald joins Jake on a cover of the holiday classic “Winter Wonderland,” with both McDonald and Jake playing ukulele on the tune.

“Everyone should know what a great ukulele player Michael is,” Jake says. “His chord knowledge and tone is incredible! And, what’s even more unbelievable is, his ukulele playing sounds like Michael McDonald! So epic!!”

The album also features a cover of John Lennon’s “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” featuring cellist Yo-Yo Ma, as well as takes on holiday classics like Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” “This Christmas,” “Jingle Bells,” “O’ Holy Night” and “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer.”

Tis the Season is available for preorder now.

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Aerosmith is back on the charts, thanks to their new collaboration with Yungblud.

According to Billboard, the artists’ track “My Only Angel” tops the Hot Hard Rock Songs Chart this week, Aerosmith’s first-ever appearance on that chart. Yungblud previously topped the Hot Hard Rock Songs chart in 2020 with the Bring Me the Horizon collaboration “Obey.”

The song is also a top-40 hit on the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart, debuting at #37. Since the chart’s launch in 1981, Aerosmith has appeared on the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart 45 times, hitting #1 nine times and landing in the top 10 24 times. This is their first appearance on the chart since 2012’s “Lover Alot,” a track from their last studio album, Music from Another Dimension!

“My Only Angel” is the first track off Aerosmith and Yungblud’s collaborative EP, One More Time, which drops Nov. 21. Along with “My Only Angel,” it includes three new original songs, plus an updated take on the Aerosmith classic “Back in the Saddle.”

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The 50th anniversary of David Bowie’s arrival in Berlin will be celebrated with a new documentary on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer.

Tentatively titled Bowie in Berlin, the film will be directed by Francis Whately, who previously directed three other BBC Two Bowie docs: David Bowie: Finding Fame, David Bowie: The Last Five Years and David Bowie: Five Years.

According to the description, the film will delve into “one of the most important periods” of Bowie’s life, “when he turned his back on fame and success and disappeared from sight into the streets of Cold War Berlin, from 1976-1978.”

The story will be told through Bowie’s own words, along with contributions from Clare Shenstone, Romy Haag, Sarah-Rena Hine and Sydne Rome, the four women who spent time with the rocker during his Berlin years.

“Each of these extraordinary women have their own unique insight into the singer’s life, art and character, providing a secret history of Bowie’s time in the city,” the description reads.

Bowie in Berlin is expected to debut in fall 2026.

Bowie’s Berlin years resulted in three albums — Low, Heroes and Lodger — that he dubbed his Berlin trilogy. Although not well received upon first release, critical and public opinion of the records changed over the years, and they are now considered some of the most innovative and influential works of Bowie’s career.

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