Classic Rock News

Jimmy Buffett will no longer be playing Charleston, South Carolina, this weekend. Buffet and his Coral Reefer Band were supposed to play Credit One Stadium on Saturday, May 20, but the show has been postponed after Buffett was admitted to the hospital. 

“Two days ago, I was just back from a trip to the Bahamas, thawing out from the California ‘winter tour’ and chomping at the bit to get to Charleston,” Buffett shares on Facebook. “I had to stop in Boston for a check-up but wound up back in the hospital to address some issues that needed immediate attention.” 

Buffett jokes, “Growing old is not for sissies, I promise you.”

Buffett promises fans he will perform again once he is well enough, and the show will be rescheduled.

“You all make my life more meaningful and fulfilled than I would have ever imagined as a toe headed [sic] little boy sitting on the edge of the Gulf of Mexico,” Buffett writes. “Thank you for your prayers and thoughts, your amazing years of loyalty and just remember NOT YET!”

So far there is no date for the rescheduled show. Buffett doesn’t have any other concert dates listed on his website.

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Sting is very proud of his songwriting, and he worries that one day artificial intelligence will try to replace songwriters like him.

“The building blocks of music belong to us, to human beings,” he tells BBC News. “That’s going to be a battle we all have to fight in the next couple of years: Defending our human capital against AI.”

While songs using AI to mimic famous voices have been turning up on the internet lately, Sting doesn’t think much of it.

“It’s similar to the way I watch a movie with CGI. It doesn’t impress me at all,” he says. “I get immediately bored when I see a computer-generated image. I imagine I will feel the same way about AI making music.” 

He adds, “Maybe for electronic dance music, it works. But for songs, you know, expressing emotions, I don’t think I will be moved by it.”

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Def Leppard is playing a very special hometown show Friday, May 19, and now fans who couldn’t snag tickets will be able to experience the event.

The band is playing an intimate club show at The Leadmill in Sheffield, England, to celebrate the release of their new album, Drastic Symphonies, which drops Friday. They just announced they are making the performance available to livestream on Veeps.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers promise the concert will feature “a unique set list,” with portions of the proceeds going to Music Venue Trust, a charity that aids grassroots music venues. 

Tickets to the livestream are available now. 

And Def Leppard will be sticking around their hometown after the gig. The European leg of their Stadium tour with Mötley Crüe kicks off May 22 at Sheffield’s Bramall Lane. A complete list of dates can be found at defleppard.com.

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Dee Snider is about to officially add novelist to his resume. The Twisted Sister frontman just announced that his first novel, Frats, will be released June 2.

In a post on social media, Snider called the book “’The Outsiders’ meets ‘The Wanderers,’” adding, “If you are looking for a daring, disturbingly honest coming of age story look no further.”

The book is “based on true events” and is described as “an honest, daring story that examines the pressures of toxic masculinity in high school hallways.” It follows a young boy named Bobby Kovax, whose parents move him to Baldwin, Long Island, in 1972.

Frats is available for preorder now.

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Soundgarden has shared a statement paying tribute to late frontman Chris Cornell on the anniversary of his death.

In a Facebook post authored by drummer Matt Cameron, the grunge rockers declare they’re “Honoring Chris today and everyday.”

“I’m forever grateful to have played a small part in his artistic development,” Cameron writes. “Chris led by example, lived life passionately, never compromised, and put a small dent in the universe with his otherworldly musical talents.”

Cameron adds, “Do yourself a favor on this day, crank Badmotorfinger to 11 and don’t be late for the BIRTH RITUUUUUAAAALLLL!!”

Cornell died the early morning of May 18, 2017, after playing a Soundgarden show in Detroit the night before. His death was ruled a suicide.

A posthumous Cornell solo covers album, No One Sings Like You Anymore, Vol. 1, was released in 2020. Soundgarden had also been working on new material prior to Cornell’s death, the recordings of which were the subject of a long-running legal battle between the band and Chris’ widow, Vicky Cornell. Just last month, Soundgarden and Vicky announced that they’d reconciled their legal issues, paving the way for those final recordings to be released.

If you are in crisis or know someone in crisis, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or by visiting 988lifeline.org. You can also contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741.

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Getting tickets to U2’s upcoming residency in Las Vegas hasn’t been easy, and now some folks who were lucky enough to snag tickets are dealing with a bit of disappointment.

According to the Las Vegas-Review Journal, some fans who recently purchased tickets to U2: UV Achtung Baby at The Sphere have been informed that their seats have an obstructed view of the video screens in the state-of-the-art arena. Tickets affected are mostly in the lower level, 100 section, with the views partially obstructed by the overhang of the higher level seats. It is important to note the seats still have a direct view of the actual band. 

The problem, which was reportedly discovered by venue officials ahead of the sale, affects about 800 seats per show, and fans with those tickets have been given the option of getting a refund or switching to different seats in a new section — but they’ll have to switch to a different date.

U2: UV Achtung Baby Live At Sphere at The Venetian is set to kick off September 29 and will consist of 25 shows wrapping December 16. A complete list of dates can be found at U2.com.

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Anthrax is the latest band to collaborate with Iron Maiden‘s Legacy of the Beast mobile game.

Legacy of the Beast now includes a new level inspired by the “Madhouse” outfit’s music, which allows you to play as their Not Man mascot alongside Maiden’s Eddie character.

“Just the idea that our character is in a game with Eddie, and they get to fight alongside each other, [it’s] kinda mind-blowing for me,” says Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian. “It’s kinda hard for me to put into words.”

To play as Not Man, you’ll need to log in to Legacy of the Beast any seven days between now and June 16.

Legacy of the Beast has previously featured levels inspired by Avenged Sevenfold, Motörhead, Ghost, Five Finger Death Punch and Disturbed.

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

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On This Day, May 18, 1978 … 

The life of future Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Buddy Holly hit the big screen when The Buddy Holly Story opened in theaters in the U.S., including a special premiere in Holly’s hometown of Lubbock, Texas. 

The film starred a 33-year-old Gary Busey as Holly, a role that earned him an Oscar nomination.

The movie followed Holly’s story from age 20 until his death in a plane crash at age 22. Also on the plane were Holly’s tour mates, The Big Bopper and Richie Valens, all of whom also perished.

The film, which had a budget of $1.2 million, opened to mostly good reviews and wound up earning $14.3 million in the box office.

While Busey lost the Oscar for Best Leading Actor, the film took home the Academy Award for Best Adaption Score.

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KISS is celebrating the 30th anniversary of their album Alive III with a new vinyl release set to come out June 2. 

Alive III was the first live album from the band during their non-makeup era. It captures performances from the November 1992 “Revenge” tour shows in Detroit, Cleveland and Indianapolis. It was certified Gold by the RIAA in 1994.

The limited-edition 30th anniversary set is being released in a variety of formats, including an already sold-out deluxe anniversary edition, which was limited to only 500 copies. It included two picture discs with a die-cut cover, along with new picture sleeves featuring unreleased tour photos and a King of Live T-shirt.

There’s also a premium two-LP colored vinyl version pressed on yellow and orange pyro vinyl, which can be purchased with the King of Live T-shirt. Only 2,500 copies of this version are being made available worldwide. It is available for preorder now.

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Sting fans may be disappointed when they see him in concert, because he’s no longer playing one of his classic tunes live.

In an interview with People, Sting looks back at some of his hit songs and discusses the Police tune “Don’t Stand So Close To Me,” which is about the relationship between a male teacher and a female student, and why you won’t hear it in his set list.  

“It’s certainly not biographical, but people having relationships with teachers, it definitely happens,” Sting, who was a teacher before becoming a rock star, says. “And in the song’s defense, nothing happens. It’s just the danger of, something happens and the teacher is aware of it, which is why he’s saying, ‘Don’t stand so close to me.'”

Sting says the song could be interpreted in “many, many different ways,” which can become an issue.

“In the current climate, I don’t sing that live,” he says. “People with a sort of puerile sensibility will say, ‘Oh it’s about you.’ And of course it’s not, but it’s an interesting situation.”

Sting will be honored as a Fellow of the Ivors Academy at the Ivor Awards on May 18 in London, and he’s certainly proud of the honor.

“If you ask me my profession, I would say I’m a songwriter, so to receive this honor is very special,” he shares. “I get people coming up to me saying, ‘Oh, I got married to your song,’ or ‘We buried Uncle Charlie to your song’ or ‘I fell out of love to this’ … People mark their lives with the songs of their era, as do I.”

As for seeing Sting live, his My Songs tour comes to North America starting September 1 and 2 in Vienna, Virginia. A complete list of dates can be found at sting.com.

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