Classic Rock News

Kansas is celebrating their 50th anniversary on the road this year. The band just announced dates for their 50th Anniversary Tour – Another Fork in the Road, which promises to encompass the band’s entire career, giving fans two hours of hits, fan favorites and even some deep cuts. 

“Our entire career has been a winding journey,” Kansas guitarist and original member Richard Williams shares. “… there have been several forks in the road of that journey. This 50th Anniversary Tour and release will represent that journey and the forks along that road.”

Lead vocalist Ronnie Platt adds, “I’m incredibly excited about the 50th Anniversary Tour.” He noted, “I think fans will be excited not only to hear our hits and fan favorites spanning 50 years of Kansas, but also some songs that haven’t been performed live in decades.”

The tour is set to kick off June 2 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, wrapping up January 28, 2024, in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Most tickets go on sale Friday, January 27. A complete list of dates and ticket information can be found at kansasband.com.

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The Cruel World Festival is returning for a second year in May, and it’s secured quite a lineup. The one-day festival, going down May 20 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, will feature Siouxsie, Iggy Pop, Billy Idol, Love and Rockets, Echo and the Bunnyman and more.

The festival mostly focuses on indie and alternative artists from the ’80s, with the lineup also including Adam Ant, The Human League, Gary Numan, Modern English, ABC and The Motels. 

The festival will mark the first U.S. performance of Siouxsie, of Siouxsie and the Banshees, in 15 years. It will also be Love and Rockets’ first show together since 2008.

Tickets for the festival go on sale Friday at 12 p.m. PT. More information can be found at cruelworldfest.com.

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Pink Floyd’s classic album The Dark Side of the Moon has always featured a rainbow on its cover, but the recently announced 50th anniversary box set is causing a stir from folks on social media who evidently weren’t aware of that.

In case you missed it, the new logo for the box set features the number 50 with the rainbow in the zero. After the band unveiled it on social media, some folks started blasting the rainbow inclusion as the band’s show of support for gay rights. 

“Lose the rainbow, you’re making yourself look stupid,” one person commented, while another added, “[A]re you going woke with rainbows? Is there a straight flag? I want equal representation.”

Of course the rainbow has always been there, and many Pink Floyd fans are calling out those complaining.

“Anyone mad at the most iconic album cover in the world was never a Pink Floyd fan to begin with,” one person commented on Facebook. Another noted on Twitter, “Pink Floyd fans complaining the band has gone ‘woke’ for having a rainbow on their merch must have taken the ‘we don’t need no education’ line a bit too literal.”

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Graham Nash and Bruce Hornsby are the latest musicians added to The Music of Paul McCartney, the tribute concert taking place March 15 at New York’s Carnegie Hall.

The show is the latest in the series of annual charity concerts New York City entrepreneur Michael Dorf has been organizing since 2004. Each year focuses on the music of a single well-known artist, with previous tribute concerts focusing on artists like The Who, Van Morrison, David Bowie and The Rolling Stones. 

Other artists on this year’s bill include Peter Asher, a member of the vocal duo Peter & Gordon and brother of McCartney’s former girlfriend Jane Asher, along with Lyle Lovett, Ingrid Michaelson, Glen Hansard, Allison Russell, soul singer Bettye Lavette and Lake Street Drive.

The concert will raise money for organizations that provide music education programs and opportunities for underserved youth. So far the concert series has raised over $1.5 million. Information on tickets can be found at musicof.org.

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The Doors’ Robby Krieger and the late Ray Manzarek‘s estate are the latest artists to sell their music catalog, selling their interest in the legendary band’s catalog to Primary Wave Music. There’s no word on how much the deal was worth, but it includes The Doors’ recordings, trademarks, merchandise rights and income.

“After 58 years, and the most magical of times, I’ve decided to sell my share of The Doors to Primary Wave,” Krieger shares. “This will enable me to help the many charities I’ve been involved with, and some new ones too. I know Primary Wave cares about music, art, and about helping legacies go to even bigger levels.” 

Manzarek’s widow, Dorothy, adds, “Ray and I spent a lot of time discussing the future of The Doors’ legacy, and how to handle things after he departed this plane. Our family has worked patiently to find the right partners to continue Ray’s lifelong efforts in protecting and promoting his art, and now we are happy to have finally come to an agreement with Primary Wave.”

Only the two members of The Doors have sold their interests to Primary Wave, though. The Jim Morrison estate and drummer John Densmore still hold their interests in the band’s music and publishing.

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James Taylor, Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo are among the stars headlining the seventh annual Love Rocks NYC benefit concert, scheduled for March 9 at the Beacon Theatre in New York City.

Other artists on the bill include Sheryl Crow, the John Mayer Trio, R&B legend Mavis Staples, alt-rocker St. Vincent, blues/rock singer/guitarist Gary Clark Jr., singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright, My Morning Jacket’s Jim James and Stephen Marley. 

Stephen Colbert, Bravo’s Andy Cohen, Saturday Night Live legend Chevy Chase and comedian/actress Phoebe Robinson will also appear at the event. 

The show is a benefit for God’s Love We Deliver, which delivers meals to New Yorkers who are unable to shop or cook for themselves. This year, the charity expects to deliver more than 3 million meals, which are provided free of charge.

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Friday marked one year since rocker Meat Loaf passed away at age 74. His daughters, Amanda and Pearl Aday, are remembering their dad with the 35-minute film Meat Loaf: A Celebration of Life, which they made with filmmaker Jack Bennett.

“This is a celebration of Dad’s life and legacy, an acknowledgment of the man he was on and off the stage. Not just the performer but the boss, the mentor, the friend, the husband, the godfather, the grandpa ‘Papa Meat,’ and the father,” they write. “The dad who gave us love and generosity, who taught us and teased us. The dad who laughed and cried with us, who taught us how to catch a ball and ride a bicycle, who celebrated our victories and picked us up when we fell down.”

They added that the rocker “was a big kid himself,” noting he “taught us tenacity and the value of respect,” sharing, “Our Dad. The man we miss every day.” 

“We are so grateful to share this retrospective with career highlights and private moments from our personal archives that haven’t been shared before,” they conclude. “We thank you for celebrating Dad, and we thank you for loving him with us.” 

Fans can check out the video at mlcelebration.com.

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So far, Stevie Nicks has announced nine co-headlining stadium shows with Billy Joel for 2023, but now she’s added a bunch of solo dates to her touring calendar, as well.

The two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer will do an additional 14 solo shows across the U.S., starting March 15 in Seattle. Right now, the dates are set to wrap up June 27 in Louisville, Kentucky.

That solo kickoff date will follow her first show with Billy March 10 in Inglewood, California. After Stevie’s solo dates are done, she has an additional five stadium shows with the Piano Man, scheduled through November. Of course, it’s always possible that she’ll extend the solo tour.

Tickets go on sale Friday, January 27, at 10 a.m. on livenation.com.

This will be Stevie’s first solo tour since her 24 Karat Gold trek, which wrapped up in 2017. From 2018 to 2019, she was touring with Fleetwood Mac. It was the band’s last tour prior to the 2022 death of Mac keyboardist, singer and songwriter Christine McVie.

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David Crosby’s death last week reportedly came after a “long illness,” but it seems whatever illness he was dealing with didn’t stop him from making music. Friends tell Variety that not only was Crosby working on a new album, he was also planning a tour for this summer, and tickets were only days away from going on sale. 

“David didn’t think he was gonna last for years, which he joked about all the time. But there was no sense that we weren’t gonna be able to do this show and these tours,” musician Steve Postell tells the mag. “We were talking tour buses, and what kind of venues, and the whole team was all back together again,” He adds, “There was not even a remote sense that we weren’t about ready to hit the world.”

Postell says he rehearsed with Crosby alone in Santa Barbara the week before he died, and Crosby was “giddy” about plans for the tour. Postell even talked to Crosby the day before his death to discuss a pair of planned shows in February in Santa Barbara. The next day, Postell texted with Crosby’s son, James Raymond, and found out Crosby had died.

As for the new album, singer Sarah Jorosz says she recorded background vocals for it, sharing, “He just wanted to create until the very end, and that was always my impression of him in our conversations.

She says Crosby’s death came as a “shock,” explaining, “I mean, every time we talked, he would call and I’d be like, ‘How are you doing?’ And he’d be like, ‘Well, I’m dying’ — but jokingly, with a laugh.”

Jorosz adds, “I wasn’t aware if there was a long illness. It was more just like the hard years of living, and being 81.”

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A new Rush picture book is ready to hit shelves later this year. Portraits of Rush is being published by Rufus Publications and features photography from legendary music photographer Fin Costello. 

Costello had total access to the band, with photos capturing the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers during the All The World’s A Stage Tour from 1976 to 1977, the Exit Stage Left tour in 1981 and the major tours in between. It features black-and-white photos of them as they traveled, rehearsed, played live and even recorded in the studio.

The 240-page book features an introduction by music journalist John Tucker, along with articles on the band from magazines during that period. 

There are several editions of Portraits of Rush available, but quantities are limited, with only 666 numbered copies of the main edition available worldwide. There are also 50 leather and metal editions available, and 50 bundles featuring both versions.

The books are available for preorders now, and they’ll be shipped out sometime in May.

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