Classic Rock News

Elvis Costello is ready to celebrate his decades long collaboration with the legendary Burt Bacharach.

The Songs of Bacharach & Costello is a new box set Costello has personally compiled of every published song the pair has written together. Dropping March 3, the set features 45 songs, including the pair’s 1998 album Painted From Memory, which has been remastered by Bob Ludwig from the original tapes.

The set also includes the new collection, Taken From Life, which includes mostly unreleased songs from the proposed Painting From Memory musical, with three newly recorded songs. There are also two discs of rare and unreleased live performances, as well as a disc of Bacharach and Hal David songs Costello has performed and recorded over the years, and more. It also includes “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again,” the song the pair performed in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me.

In addition to the music, the box comes with a 20-page booklet of photography, early drafts of lyrics, studio notes and more, including a brand new 10,000-word essay by Costello which delves into his and Bacharach’s three-decade long friendship and musical partnership.

And to give fans a taste of the set, Costello has released three rare and unreleased live performances: “In the Darkest Place,” recorded with Elvis’ The Imposters bandmate Steve Nieve on tour in Australia, “Painted From Memory,” recorded in Stockholm, Sweden with Nieve and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and a version of the 1963 Dionne Warwick track “Anyone Who Had a Heart,” recorded by Costello and Bacharach at London’s Royal Festival Hall.

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As previously reported, Brian May was knighted as part of the 2023 New Year’s Honours List, the first from King Charles. Well, the new honor apparently inspired a lot of fan art, and the Queen guitarist was so flattered by it he couldn’t help but share some of his favorites.

May posted two carousels of knight-inspired artwork from fans, writing, “THANKS to all of you who have so kindly supported me on this new journey. I love ALL ‘my’ artists, and friends, and this is just a selection of your lovely messages which made me smile.” 

He also cautioned some fans whose art may have not made the post. “If you find yourself saying ‘my stuff is more worthy than his, or hers – it should have been ME who got that attention, or success, or glory’ … take a good long look deep inside,” he writes. “A good friend of mine had a favourite phrase … so true … he said simply ‘Talent will Out.’ That friend was Freddie Mercury.”

Finally, May shared, “Don’t let envy, or jealousy, or insecurity drain your power. Just work towards your vision. If you want it enough, you will find it. The more generosity you put out, the more will come back to you.”

Check out the artwork here and here.

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Paul Stanley is bringing his art to more people. The KISS frontman is set to appear at showings of his latest collection at Wentworth Gallery locations in Florida, Maryland and Virginia.

Stanley will kick off his appearances February 3 and 4 in Hollywood and Boca Raton, Florida, respectively. Then on February 24 he’ll be in Bethesda, Maryland, followed by McLean, Virginia, on February 25. 

The latest collection includes artwork from his Black Series, which was originally commissioned for a museum exhibition in 2020 that was canceled due to the pandemic. These works were started on a black canvas, instead of a white one, and feature his trademark bright colors.

Stanley has been creating art for decades, and actually designed and created the iconic KISS emblem. About 10 years ago he took it up again, creating portraits and abstract work. His art has been featured in museums, as well as sold-out art shows and more.

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We are less than a month away from Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band kicking off their North American tour, and the band has taken their first steps toward getting ready. According to posts by E Street Band members Steven Van Zandt and Nils Lofgren, rehearsals for the trek started Monday.

“so it begins,” Nils tweeted along with a photo of his instruments. “Off to play in greatest band in the land. let’s rock.” He tagged The Boss in the post.

Little Steven also confirmed the rehearsal news. A fan asked, “can you give us an update on how rehearsals are going?” He joked, “So far they have been flawless perfection!” He added, “(We begin on Monday).”

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band’s tour, their first since 2016, kicks off February 1 in Tampa, Florida, with U.S. dates running through April 14 in Newark, New Jersey.

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Who can forget the classic cover of The Beatles’ 1969 album, Abbey Road, featuring the infamous photo of the band walking across the street? Well, apparently Sir Paul McCartney recently tried to recreate it — and it almost turned into a disaster.

While talking about her Abbey Road documentary If These Walls Could Sing, director Mary McCartney, Paul’s daughter, shared that her favorite part of shooting the film was when her dad walked across the iconic crosswalk again. But she says he almost got run over doing it.

“The bit where the car nearly ran him over on the zebra crossing, that was so funny,” she tells The Mirror. “As we were leaving [the studio], I said, ‘I’ll film you [on the crossing],’ and he went over and this car totally didn’t stop for him!” 

If These Walls Could Sing is currently streaming on Disney+.

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Bret Michaels is getting ready to share some new music. The Poison frontman is set to drop the new single “Back in the Day,” described as “a feel good, road trip anthem song that will help you beat the winter blues,” on January 18. 

The song will be accompanied by a music video, which is described as “a modern day MTV throwback video to the early days of the music TV network,” featuring never-before-seen images and photos. Bret will also host a Facebook Live event where fans can ask him questions.

The new music comes ahead of Bret’s upcoming Parti-Gras tour, featuring Jefferson Starship and Night Ranger, along with special appearances by ex-Journey singer Steve Augeri and Sugar Ray‘s Mark McGrath. It’s set to kick off July 13 in Clarkston, Michigan.

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Iggy Pop may have “Lust for Life,” but he never had lust for a Grammy.

Speaking with Classic Rock magazine, the Godfather of Punk shares that he initially had no interest in receiving the Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award, with which he was honored in 2020.

“The Grammys kept wanting to talk to me on the phone and I kept telling my manager, ‘I don’t want to talk to them. I hate those people. They want me to be an exhibit in their museum or something,'” Pop explains.

Eventually, however, Iggy softened his stance when he heard more about the meaning of the award.

“When I finally spoke to the lady from the Grammys a couple of months later she said, ‘We’re giving you the lifetime achievement. Without you there’s no Lil Nas X and there’s no Billie Eilish,'” Pop recalls. “According to her, ‘You’re a direct link to the artists that are at the top of our awards list this year.’ So that’s what one person had to say, and I’ll take that for what it’s worth.”

Pop was previously nominated for two Grammys, once in 1989 and again in 2017. He may add to his total next year with his new album, Every Loser, which just dropped last Friday.

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As previously reported, Gov’t Mule was forced to postpone their New Year’s concerts due to a medical emergency in the band. It turns out it was Warren Haynes who suffered that emergency and now he’s giving fans an update on his health. 

In a post on Instagram, Haynes shared that he is “doing OK,” but that he had been hospitalized for the past week “due to some pretty serious complications from COVID and influenza.” He is home now.

“I’m very sorry Gov’t Mule couldn’t do our New Year’s Eve run,” he writes. “Trust me when I say we were actually really excited for these shows and the band was raring to go.” He also assured fans they would be rescheduled. 

But in some more bad news, Haynes let fans know that he will not be able to attend Gov’t Mule’s annual Island Exodus in Jamaica, which kicks off January 15, because doctors say he needs more time to recuperate.

The four-day festival will go on, however, and it’s added Anders Osborne, Jackie Greene, John Scofield, Robert Randolph, Audley Freed, Rob Barraco, Robert Kearns and Jeff Sipe to the lineup, which already includes special guests Jimmy Vivino and Ron Holloway, as well as Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience, Duane Betts, Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country and Little Days.

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Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard will downsize from stadiums for an upcoming one-off show in Hollywood, Florida.

The two bands will co-headline the comparatively intimate Hard Rock Live at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on March 12. Tickets go on sale this Friday, January 13, at 10 a.m. ET.

Last year, Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard joined forces for the U.S. Stadium Tour, which became both groups’ highest-grossing tour. The outing is going international in 2023 with dates in Mexico, South America and Europe, and will return to the U.S. in August.

You can also see Def Crüe playing two arena shows in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in February.

As previously reported, Mötley Crüe will be playing this year without guitarist Mick Mars, who announced at the end of 2022 that he was retiring from touring. Rob Zombie guitarist John 5 will be filling in.

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Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Smashing Pumpkins will headline the 2023 BottleRock Napa Valley festival, taking place May 26-28 in the wine country of Napa, California.

The bill also includes The National, Phantogram, Sheryl Crow, Bastille, Lucius, War, Mike Campbell & the Dirty Knobs, The Airborne Toxic Event, The Struts, KennyHoopla, Beach Weather and The Unlikely Candidates. Post Malone, Lizzo, Duran Duran and Lil Nas X will headline, as well.

Tickets go on sale this Tuesday, January 10, at noon PT.

For the full lineup and all ticket info, visit BottleRockNapaValley.com.

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