Classic Rock News

Ringo Starr wants to help folks celebrate their special day. The Beatles legend is on a new song, “Happy Birthday Beautiful,” written by award-winning songwriter Diane Warren and featuring vocals by Pentatonix.

Ringo plays drums on the track, which will be featured on a new American Greetings collection of birthday e-cards. The cards will be available starting Saturday, September 9, and includes options for people turning a year older that day; according to 20 years of real birth data, September 9 is the day more people are born than any other day of the year.

“I wanted to write a song that breathed new life into the classic birthday songs we know and love,” says Warren, who celebrated her 67th birthday on September 7. “Collaborating with such talented artists as Ringo Starr and Pentatonix, as well as the designers at American Greetings, allowed us to blend musical and design elements together to add new excitement to birthday celebrations.”

Ringo adds, “I was happy to play drums on this song when my friend Diane asked, and I think it’s great it is coming out around the time of her birthday – Happy Birthday beautiful! Peace and love, Ringo.”

You can now listen to “Happy Birthday Beautiful” via digital outlets and on YouTube. The e-cards will be available on americangreetings.com and bluemountain.com.

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Jimmy Buffett may be gone, but his music lives on, and he’s helping fans “keep the party going,” which is exactly what he wanted them to do.  Buffett passed away on September 1, but a new album, Equal Strain on All Parts, will be released November 3, and now, fans are getting their first preview of the record. 

Three tracks from the album have just been released: “Like My Dog,” “My Gummie Just Kicked In” and “Bubbles Up,” which already has a fan in Paul McCartney.

In the legendary Beatle‘s tribute to Buffett following his death, McCartney wrote that he “loved” Bubbles Up,” noting, “I told him that not only was the song great but the vocal was probably the best I’ve heard him sing ever.”

McCartney shared in the post that he plays bass on “My Gummie Just Kicked In,” which was inspired by his wife, Nancy Shevell, who was a bit unsteady on her feet when she entered a dinner party, prompting Buffett to ask if she was okay. She responded, “Oh, no — I’m fine. My gummie just kicked in!”

In addition to McCartney, the album features a host of other special guests, including Emmylou Harris, Angélique Kidjo, the Preservation Hall Jazz band and more.

Here is the track list for Equal Strain on All Parts. It is now available for preorder.

“University of Bourbon Street” (feat. Preservation Hall Jazz Band)
“Bubbles Up”
“Audience of One”
“My Gummie Just Kicked In”
“Close Calls”
“Equal Strain On All Parts”
“Like My Dog”
“Ti Punch Café” (feat. Angelique Kidjo)
“Portugul or PEI” (feat. Lennie Gallant, Will Kimbrough)
“Nobody Works On Friday”
“Fish Porn”
“Johnny’s Rhum”
“Columbus”
“Mozambique” (feat. Emmylou Harris)

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Eagles kicked off their The Long Goodbye final tour at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Thursday, September 7, and they took a moment out of their show to pay tribute to the late Jimmy Buffett, who passed away September 1 at the age of 76.

As seen in fan-shot footage posted to YouTube, Don Henley told the crowd, “Last weekend we lost a deer friend and the world lost a musical icon. Our dear friend Jimmy Buffett is now sailing on that cosmic ocean having that cheeseburger with Glenn and Randy,” referring to the late Eagles members Glenn Frey and Randy Meisner.

He added, “We always laughed and said we survived the ’70s together and the ’80s were pretty rough too, come to think of it.” 

Henley called Buffett “one of the hardest working men I ever saw,” but noted, “he made work look like play and he brought joy to everything he did, including the work.”

Finally, he shared, “One of his final wishes was that we keep the party going … responsibly.”

The band then dedicated their next two songs to Buffett. The “Margaritaville” singer’s classic “Come Monday” was sung by Timothy B. Schmit, who was once a member of Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band, while Joe Walsh, who was wearing a parrot hat on his head, sung “Fins” and joked, “Jimmy and I got thrown out of some of the finest hotels in the world.” 

Eagles’ The Long Goodbye tour returns to Madison Square Garden on Friday, September 8. A complete list of dates can be found at eagles.com.

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Queen continues to highlight their connection to their fans in the latest episode of their weekly YouTube series, Queen The Greatest Live, titled “Vocal Games.”

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers are known for having loads of songs their audience can sing along to, and frontman Freddie Mercury was known for his ability to challenge the crowd to match his vocal prowess. Well, in this episode, we get to see a prime example of that.

It features a clip from the band’s 1982 show at the U.K. Milton Keynes Bowl in England, with Freddie getting the audience to join him for some vocal challenges.  

“I’m gonna make you sing like Aretha Franklin!” he tells the crowd as he sits at the end of the stage. They then aptly match him note for note before he finally lets them know, “Alright, you can join the band.”

Next week on Queen The Greatest Live: “Radio Ga Ga.”

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Pearl Jam‘s concert at Chicago’s United Center on Thursday, September 7, turned into a surprise ceremony in honor of hockey star Chris Chelios.

During the show, frontman Eddie Vedder invited Chelios onstage to inform him that the Chicago Blackhawks would be retiring his jersey number. In addition to having played for the Blackhawks for many years during his historic Hall of Fame career, Chelios is also originally from the Windy City.

“The band and I are deeply honored to be the ones who get to tell you in front of all these fine people that before [Blackhawks owner] Mr. [Rocky] Wirtz passed, it was one of his last wishes that you would be honored,” Vedder told Chelios.

The Blackhawks posted footage of the moment on social media. Chelios’ jersey will officially be retired during a pregame ceremony held February 25, 2024.

Chelios, by the way, wasn’t the only athlete to get a shoutout during PJ’s Chicago show. In footage posted by the United Center, Vedder told a story about how Chicago Bulls player Dennis Rodman, who’s a well-known Pearl Jam fan, gave Eddie’s grandmother his jersey after Game 1 against the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1996 NBA Finals.

“[My grandmother] was so inspired, she had this jersey and showed it off to all her friends, and then she ended up getting this massive back tattoo of Dennis,” Vedder joked. Or, at least, we think he was joking.

As for the actual music, the show’s set list included a cover of The Rolling Stones song “Street Fighting Man.”

Pearl Jam’s tour continues Sunday, September 10, in Indianapolis.

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On This Day, September 8, 1990…

Bon Jovi frontman Jon Bon Jovi landed his first and only solo #1 single with “Blaze of Glory” from the soundtrack to the hit movie Young Guns II, starring Emilio Estevez.

Emilio originally wanted to use the Bon Jovi track “Wanted Dead or Alive” for the movie, but the rocker instead opted to write an original tune with lyrics he felt were more appropriate for a Western about famed outlaw Billy the Kid.

The track, which featured Jeff Beck on guitar, went on to win a Golden Globe for Best Original Song and was nominated for an Academy Award; it lost to “Sooner Or Later (I Always Get My Man)” from the movie Dick Tracy.

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Rod Stewart recently launched his own brand of Scotch whisky, Wolfie’s, in the U.K. and Europe, and he’s about to bring it to his American fans, as well. And while it’s not surprising Rod would have his own Scotch — he’s very proud of his Scottish heritage, after all — it is surprising Rod would have a product he doesn’t actually like.

“I was very ill on [whisky] it when I was 15 so I find it hard to drink,” Rod tells Forbes. “Although this one it has a special taste to it. It’s almost like ice cream and custard — it’s just gorgeous. But I still prefer to drink mine as a martini.”

In fact, Rod’s favorite is an appletini, but he’ll only drink after he gets offstage. “I can’t [drink] whisky martinis before [a show],” he says. “Alcohol is not great for the voice … Usually, I’ll drink the whisky on a night off. “

And Rod says that while some women might think they don’t like whisky, Wolfie’s will change their minds.

“Obviously, everything in moderation but this … is made for the gentle sex,” Rod says. “I like it, so they might like it! That ice cream, custard, apple pie [taste] … you don’t screw your face up when you swallow it.”

Asked to share his best drinking memory, Rod mentions his tenure with Faces, a band that was notorious for their drunken antics.

“When I was in the Faces we used to have a bar on stage and a barman and a couple of women dressed up as schoolgirls going around serving,” he recalls. “Wouldn’t get away with that anymore.”

But, “I’d like to have a bar on stage one day again.”

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Bonnie Raitt and Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo are among the artists booked to perform on the upcoming 49th season of Austin City Limits.

Benatar and Giraldo are set to tape their ACL debut on September 24. Raitt is booked for October 15, with Nashville-based singer/songwriter Sunny War joining her as special guest.

This will be Raitt’s first ACL performance in over a decade. She made her ACL debut in 1984 and last appeared on the program in 2012, although she did perform on the 2014 40th anniversary special. She was also inducted into the ACL Hall of Fame in 2016. 

Other artists booked for season 49 include Foo Fighters, Alanis Morissette and Brittney Spencer.

Austin City Limits airs on PBS. Episodes will also be available to stream via PBS.org.

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Billy Idol is headed to the Super Bowl. While the rocker isn’t headlining the halftime show, he will be performing, with his show taking place ahead of the big game. 

Idol announced on social media that he’ll headline a special pregame concert for Club 67 and Touchdown Club guests at Allegiant Stadium.

To get to see Idol, fans will have to purchase special Super Bowl experience packages, which include tickets to the game, the pregame concert and more. They don’t come cheap, though, with packages starting at over $8,500 a person.

Super Bowl LVIII will go down February 11 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

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Lady Gaga is one of the many guest stars on The Rolling Stones‘ new album, Hackney Diamonds, but apparently her participation in the project was pretty much an accident.

Stones frontman Mick Jagger told The Associated Press at the band’s album launch event in London Wednesday that Gaga just happened to be recording in the studio next door to them and popped in to say hello. That led to her contributing to the song “Sweet Sounds of Heaven.”

“She walked in next to me and we started singing together,” Jagger said. “She sang it live and then we went in and tidied it up a bit.”

Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood told Sky News, “She was sitting on the floor in the studio and Mick said, ‘Don’t just sit there and hum! Get up, let’s record this!'” He added, “She’s lovely, very talented and lovely.”

As previously reported, in 2012 Gaga joined the Stones onstage for a performance of their classic “Gimme Shelter,” which is documented on the Stones’ 2023 concert album, Grrr Live!

The first single from Hackney Diamonds, “Angry,” is out now with a video starring Euphoria actress Sydney Sweeney. Hackney Diamonds is out October 20.

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