Classic Rock News

Rush will launch their Fifty Something tour in June, their first since the death of drummer Neil Peart in 2020. In a new interview with The New York Times, frontman Geddy Lee explains why they felt the need to do so.

“In the back of my mind and in the back of my heart, it’s felt like unfinished business, like we owed him a proper thank you and a celebration,” Lee says. “Not a morbid, funereal type of thing. We want to celebrate the wonderful music the three of us spent almost 50 years writing together.”

Sitting behind the drum kit for the tour will be Anika Nilles, who says when she first started working with Lee and guitarist Alex Lifeson they gave her insight into working with Peart.

“I got a really good idea of what Neil was to the guys as a band member, but also as a friend. So you cannot replace that, you know?” she says. “I’m basically here to help them to get their music back onstage and make it feel right for them and make it feel right for the fans.”

Lee and Lifeson have credited their participation in the 2022 Taylor Hawkins tribute shows with planting the idea of them returning to the road without Peart. Lee notes the shows “taught us something really important about music. A band can end, but the music lives on.”

“I think for a while we put Rush in a box and put that box in our closet, and it’s almost like we felt weird to open the closet and open that box,” Lee says, noting after the Hawkins shows, “It’s like we had taken the box out of the cupboard and we had opened it up. And you know what? It was OK.”

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Founding Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock has announced the U.S. release of his documentary, I Was a Teenage Sex Pistol.

The film will be available to rent and buy on digital platforms on May 26, and will be available to preorder May 12.

“It tells the tale of my contribution to the band, which I think without it the group wouldn’t have had the success it had,” Matlock says in a statement. “For anybody interested in the birth of British punk and its effect on the then wider music scene, I’d suggest it’s essential viewing — but then I would say that!”

The doc includes interviews with Matlock, and fellow Pistols Steve Jones and Paul Cook, as well as Debby Harry, Chris Stein and the late Clem Burke of Blondie, Billy Idol and the late MC5 guitarist Wayne Kramer.

Matlock formed Sex Pistols alongside Jones, Cook and vocalist John “Johnny Rotten” Lydon, and co-wrote most of the songs on the band’s one and only album, 1977’s Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols. However, Matlock parted ways with the band during the recording process and was replaced by Sid Vicious, who died in 1979.

After various on-and-off reunions over the years, Sex Pistols got back together in 2024 with Matlock, Jones and Cook alongside vocalist Frank Carter in place of Lydon.

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Alex Ligertwood, best known as one of the vocalists for Santana, has died. He was 79. His wife, Shawn Brogan, announced the news on her Facebook page, noting he “passed away peacefully in his sleep.” 

“It’s with great sadness and heartache to announce the passing of my sweet dear Alex Ligertwood, my husband of 25 years, we knew each other for 36 years,” Brogan wrote. “He touched so many with his extraordinary voice. He was all heart and soul. His favorite thing in life was to make music, sing and to share his gift with us.”

She added, “He performed his last show just two weeks ago. I’m grateful for that. He did it his way, on his terms, till the end. I will always love you, my sweet Alex. Rest in peace. Soar and sing with the angels, my love.”

Ligertwood’s tenure with Carlos Santana’s group started in 1979. He had five different stints with Santana until 1994 and appears on such classic Santana tunes as “Winning,” “Hold On” and “You Know That I Love You.” He performed with the group at such high-profile shows as 1982’s US Festival and 1985’s Live Aid.

In addition to Santana, Ligertwood performed with the Jeff Beck Group, British jazz-fusion ensemble Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express Band and more.

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Eagles are returning to Las Vegas this fall.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band has announced six new shows of their Sphere residency: Sept. 18 and 19, and Nov. 13, 14, 27 and 28.

Registration for a presale that begins Wednesday at 10 a.m. PT is now open. Tickets will go on sale to the general public starting Friday at 10 a.m. PT.

The new dates will extend the Eagles’ record for the longest-running residency at the Sphere with 64 shows. They launched the residency on Sept. 20, 2024.

Meanwhile, Eagles headlined New Orleans Jazz Fest on Saturday but apparently had to cut their set short due to a health issue in the band.

NOLA.com reports that Eagles left the stage with 25 minutes remaining in their set, leaving out their classic ballad “Desperado.” According to the site, they ended their set after “the band’s piano player went limp and was carried offstage.” 

“Without him, they had to skip the piano-heavy ‘Desperado,'” the site explained.

It’s not that the audience hadn’t already been treated to a hit-filled show. According to setlist.fm, the band’s set featured performances of such classics as “Hotel California,” “Heartache Tonight,” “Already Gone,” “Take it to the Limit,” “Life’s Been Good,” “Take It Easy,” “One of These Nights,” “Lyin’ Eyes” and more.

Next up, Eagles will bring their The Long Goodbye Act III tour to Atlanta on Tuesday. A complete list of dates can be found at Eagles.com.

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Former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted says that he was diagnosed with and subsequently beat throat cancer.

Speaking on an episode of the Let There Be Talk podcast published Sunday, Newsted, 63, shares that he underwent a procedure to remove the cancer in May 2025.

“We got it early,” Newsted says. “I got my free and clear about three weeks about.”

“So I beat it,” he continues. “I promised myself I was going to rest, and that was the first time I’ve done that in my life.”

Newsted will get back on the road in July for his first North American headlining tour with his Chophouse Band.

Newsted was a member of Metallica from 1986 to 2001, during which he played on 1988’s …And Justice for All, 1991’s self-titled album aka The Black Album, 1996’s Load and 1997’s Reload. He was replaced by Metallica’s current-day bassist, Robert Trujillo.

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On This Day, May 4, 1982 …

Queen released their 10th studio album, Hot Space, which found them embracing sounds from disco, funk, pop, new wave and more.

The album featured the Queen/David Bowie collaboration, “Under Pressure,” recorded before the band started work on the album and released as a single in 1981.

The second single, “Body Language,” written by frontman Freddie Mercury, wasn’t a hit in the U.K., but it peaked at #11 on the Billboard U.S. Hot 100. The video for the single was one of the first to be banned on MTV due to its erotic undertones and the inclusion of nudity, even though the members of the band remained fully clothed.

Hot Space, which was poorly received by critics, peaked at #22 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart and made it #4 in the U.K.

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Sean Ono Lennon, only son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, has shared his thoughts on Sam Mendes’ upcoming Beatles films, and he sounds pretty happy with the project.

Sean tells NME that he’s “met everyone on the film set” and notes that Harris Dickinson, who plays his dad in the film, “is amazing.”

“I think he’s really smart and I did hear him do my dad’s voice a little bit – and it was so good,” he says. “It was kind of spooky actually. But there’s also something really funny about meeting someone half your age who is supposed to be your dad.”

Shōgun actress Anna Sawai plays Sean’s mom, Yoko Ono, and he says he was already familiar with her.

“Yeah, I know Anna. We kind of hung out a little bit,” he says. “She’s a very studious person. She would ask me questions about my family and she was really serious, you know, taking notes and thinking about it.”

He adds of the two actors, “They both understand the craft. I have a lot of faith in them to play those roles.”

Sean notes that Sawai hasn’t met with his mother about the role.

“She’s retired now. She’s 93,” he says. “She’s not going to micro-manage this project.”

The Beatles — A Four-Film Cinematic Event, opening in April 2028, will consist of four films, each told from the perspective of one of band members. In addition to Dickinson and Sawai, it stars Paul Mescal as Paul McCartney, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr.

The cast also includes Saoirse Ronan as Linda McCartney, Mia McKenna-Bruce as Ringo’s wife Maureen Starkey, and Aimee Lou Wood as Harrison’s wife Pattie Boyd.

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Blondie frontwoman Debbie Harry made a surprise appearance on Saturday Night Live this weekend.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer turned up to introduce host and musical guest Olivia Rodrigo’s first performance of the night: her latest single, “drop dead.” Her second performance, of the unreleased track “begged,” was introduced by Heated Rivalry star Connor Storrie.

Harry also returned at the end of the show for the final good nights, wearing a T-shirt that read “Rodrigo 1”

This isn’t the first time Harry has appeared on SNL. In January of 1987 she was the musical guest as a solo artist. With Blondie, she was the musical guest back in October of 1979.

Blondie is expected to release a new album, High Noon, this year. So far they have not revealed any details of the project.

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After weeks of teases, The Rolling Stones appear ready to let their fans in on the news they have to share.

The band has confirmed on social media that they will be revealing their latest project on Tuesday at 12 p.m. ET: It’s called Foreign Tongues, but whether it’s a song, an album or both remains to be seen.

In addition to announcing the time of the reveal, the band appears to have revealed the Foreign Tongues artwork. They’ve posted a video showing portions of a caricature of the band members – Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood – moving around, before meshing together into one image.

The latest announcement comes after The Stones posted photos of billboards that had been popping up in cities around the world, with the words “Foreign Tongues” written in several languages and the band’s famous lips logo in the corner.

The band’s website also displayed a series of videos that appear to be surveillance clips of them in the studio, and a post on their Instagram page included what sounds like a snippet of a new song, along with a new take on their lips logo.

A new album would be the follow-up to The Stones’ 2023 release, Hackney Diamonds. That project was the band’s first album in 18 years, and their first new music since the 2021 death of drummer Charlie Watts.

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Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band have had to make a scheduling change to their Land of Hope And Dreams American Tour.

With two Philadelphia teams in the playoffs – the Flyers in the NHL playoffs and the 76ers in the NBA playoffs – Springsteen has just announced that his May 8 concert at Xfinity Mobile Arena has been moved to May 30.

The current Philly sports schedule has the Flyers facing off against the Carolina Hurricanes at Xfinity Mobile Arena on May 7 and 9, with the 76ers taking on the New York Knicks May 8 and 10 at the same venue.

All tickets for the May 8 show will be valid for the rescheduled date. The Philadelphia show will now be the final stop on the tour.

Next up, Springsteen and The E Street Band bring the Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour to UBS Arena in Belmont, New York on Tuesday. A complete list of dates can be found at BruceSpringsteen.net.

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