Classic Rock News

On This Day, July 29, 2014…

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers released their 13th studio album Hypnotic Eye, which would wind up being their final album.

Although it didn’t contain any hit singles, the album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, making it the only Petty album, either solo or with the Heartbreakers, to hit #1.

Singles released from the record include “American Dream Plan B,” “Red River” and “U Get Me High.”

The album earned a Grammy nod in 2015 for best rock album, but lost to Beck’s Morning Phase.

Although they never made another album, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers remained active and continued to tour together until Petty’s death in 2017.

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Ozzy Osbourne‘s hometown of Birmingham, England, will host a funeral procession in honor of the late metal legend.

The proceedings will begin Wednesday at 1 p.m. local time, as a hearse will travel down Birmingham’s Broad Street leading up to the bridge and bench previously dedicated to Black Sabbath. Those who wish to attend are encouraged to arrive early.

Ozzy passed away July 22 at age 76. He’d just performed at Birmingham’s Villa Park on July 5 as part of the massive Back to the Beginning concert, which was announced ahead of time as both Ozzy and the original Black Sabbath’s lineup’s final live show.

Ozzy and Black Sabbath were also honored with the Birmingham Freedom of the City award in June.

In other Ozzy news, two of his solo songs are currently charting on the Billboard Hot 100.

“Crazy Train” makes its debut appearance on the all-genre chart, landing at #46. “Mama, I’m Coming Home” reenters at #49, 33 years after it peaked at #28 upon its initial release as a single in 1992.

Ozzy performed both “Crazy Train” and “Mama, I’m Coming Home” during his solo performance at the Back to the Beginning concert.

Meanwhile, the best-of compilation The Essential Ozzy Osbourne jumped to a new peak of #7 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart.

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Details of the Bad Company tribute album Can’t Get Enough: The Music of Bad Company were recently released, and the soon-to-be Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band’s Paul Rodgers and Simon Kirke have some pretty positive things to say about the upcoming release. 

“It has been very interesting listening to other musicians interpret our songs,” Rodgers tells Billboard. “I spent time listening and found myself smiling a lot. I am quietly impressed that these artists wanted to pay tribute to Bad Company.”

The album features appearances by Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott and Phil Collen, Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators, The Struts and more. Rodgers notes, “We are thankful that everyone played from every inch of their hearts on this release. You can hear it.”

Drummer Kirke tells the mag that it’s an honor to have all these artists cover their songs: “It means that the music has endured and has transcended multiple generations. It’s a salute to the songwriting.”

In addition to Bad Company songs, the album features a cover of Free’s hit “All Right Now.” Kirke tells the magazine it’s a “relevant and welcome inclusion,” considering he and Rodgers were both in Free before going on to form Bad Company.

“(It) kind of started the whole ball rolling, didn’t it?” Kirke says, with Rodgers adding that the song “marked the beginning of this musical life for Simon and I.”

Plus, Rodgers adds, “That song never disappoints … it still has a way of engaging people and lifting you up.”

Can’t Get Enough: The Music of Bad Company will be released on Oct. 24 and is available for preorder now.

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Billy Joel recently announced that he was planning to release some archival rarities that were discovered during the making of his HBO documentary, Billy Joel: And So It Goes, and now he’s debuted his first clip.

The rocker shared a video of a May 16, 1975, performance of his now signature tune “Piano Man,” from the British television music series The Old Grey Whistle Test.

“This next song is a true story,” a mustachioed Joel says before beginning the performance. “I say that because some of the stuff I write is a pack of lies.”

More videos are expected throughout the year, including the unreleased first-ever performance of the classic hit “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant,” recorded at CW Post University, and his first TV appearance in 1972.

Billy Joel: And So It Goes is now streaming on HBO Max. As a companion to the documentary, Joel released a new digital 100-track album, also called Billy Joel: And So It Goes, on Saturday.

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Ringo Starr is making some more new music.

The two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer just shared a July update with fans, revealing in a video that he’s back in the studio, once again working with T Bone Burnett on a new album.

The pair previously worked together on Ringo’s first country album, Look Up, which was released in January. Ringo jokes in the video, “Get ready for the next album, Look Up 2,” before laughing and clarifying “it won’t be called that, I don’t think.”

Ringo also thanked his fans for participating in his annual Peace and Love birthday tradition on July 7, sharing,  “Just the support we’ve had from all of you has been great.”

He also reminded folks that he and his All-Starr Band are headed out on tour in September.

“Hope to see some of you there,” he said.

The next leg of Ringo’s tour kicks off Sept. 10 in Chicago, with dates confirmed through Sept. 27 in Las Vegas. It includes a headlining spot at the Bourbon & Beyond festival on Sept. 13 in Louisville, Kentucky.

The current All-Starr Band lineup includes Toto’s Steve Lukather, Men At Work’s Colin Hay, Warren Ham, Hamish Stuart, Gregg Bissonette and Buck Johnson.

A complete list of dates can be found at RingoStarr.com.

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Phil Collins’ reps are shooting down claims that the singer is in hospice care.

The alleged rumors about the 74-year-old Collins’ health recently surfaced on social media. His reps have confirmed to ABC Audio that the rumors are not true and that Collins is in the hospital, but it’s because he recently underwent knee surgery.

TMZ was the first to report the news that Collins wasn’t in hospice.

Collins opened up about his health issues in a February interview with Mojo, where he discussed whether he planned to make more music.

“I keep thinking I should go downstairs to the studio and see what happens,” Collins said. “But I’m not hungry for it anymore.” He added, “The thing is, I’ve been sick, I mean very sick.”

Although he didn’t go into specifics with the magazine regarding his health, Collins has been dealing with health issues since 2007, including neck problems during Genesis’ tour that year, which required surgery. In 2014 he revealed that an undisclosed nerve issue left him unable to play drums again.

Due to his declining mobility, Collins performed seated during Genesis’ 2022 The Last Domino farewell tour, with his son Nic Collins taking over behind the drum kit.

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The Stray Cats are hitting the road again.

The Rockabilly rockers, featuring original band members Brian Setzer, Lee Rocker and Slim Jim Phantom, have just announced dates for a new fall tour. The trek kicks off Oct. 25 in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, and wraps Nov. 23 in Wheatland, California.

“What blows me away every time is how this music still connects — decades later, it’s just as raw, just as real. We see fans from every generation now,” Setzer says. 

“There’s nothing like the sound we make when the three of us hit the stage—it’s high-octane rockabilly, loud and proud. We’re fired up to bring that to fans across the country again!” Rocker adds. Phantom notes, “I’m thrilled and excited to be on the road in 2025 with the best Rockabilly band in the world!”

An artist presale begins Tuesday at 10 a.m. local time, with tickets going on sale to the general public on Friday at 10 a.m. local time.

This is the first Stray Cats tour since summer 2024. In February, frontman Setzer announced he’d been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease and that one of the side effects was that he was no longer able to play guitar.

But in March he announced that he was getting better and making progress. In April, on his 66th birthday, he shared video of him playing guitar again.

A complete list of dates can be found at straycats.com.

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Iggy Pop performed the track “Punkrocker,” a song he released with the Swedish band Teddybears back in 2006, live for the first time Saturday during his set at the Project Pabst festival in Portland, Oregon.

As for why a song nearly 20 years old is getting its live debut now, “Punkrocker” has seen a resurgence thanks to its use in the new Superman movie.

Following the film’s premiere earlier in July, Pop told The Hollywood Reporter, “I always thought [‘Punkrocker’] had soul.”

“Superman is the best friend you could have,” the Godfather of Punk added.

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On This Day, July 28, 2021…

Dusty Hill, longtime bassist for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band ZZ Top, passed away in his sleep at home in Houston, Texas. He was 72.

Born Joe Michael Hill in Dallas, Texas, Dusty and drummer Frank Beard joined guitarist Billy F Gibbons in ZZ Top shortly after they were formed in 1968, with the band releasing their debut album, ZZ Top’s First Album, in 1971.

The band went on to release 15 albums over the course of their career, selling an estimated 50 million records.

ZZ Top’s most commercially successful album is 1984’s Eliminator, which peaked at #9 on the Billboard 200 chart and sold over 11 million copies in the U.S. The album included four hit singles: “Legs,” “Gimme All Your Lovin’,” “Sharped Dressed Man” and “TV Dinners.”

Hill was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with ZZ Top in 2015.

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The Ozzy Osbourne best-of compilation The Essential Ozzy Osbourne has jumped into the top 10 on the Billboard 200 following the metal icon’s death on July 22.

The set, which debuted and peaked at #81 on the Billboard 200 upon its initial release in 2003, launches to #7 on the latest edition of the chart. It moved 44,000 equivalent album units during the tracking week for July 18-24.

The Essential Ozzy Osbourne includes a number of the Prince of Darkness’ biggest solo hits, such as “Crazy Train,” “Mr. Crowley” and “Mama, I’m Coming Home.”

In other Ozzy news, Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler penned a tribute to his late bandmate in an essay for the U.K.’s The Sunday Times.

“To me, Ozzy wasn’t the Prince of Darkness — if anything he was the Prince of Laughter,” Butler writes. “He’d do anything for a laugh, a born entertainer.”

Ozzy had just performed alongside Butler, guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill Ward on July 5 as part of the Back to the Beginning concert, which was previously announced as the final performance by the original Black Sabbath lineup. It was also promoted as Ozzy’s last-ever live show.

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