Classic Rock News

When Elton John decided he wanted to follow up his global hit “Cold Heart,” featuring Dua Lipa, with something similar, he tapped his friend, producer Andrew Watt — who produced Elton’s 2021 album The Lockdown Sessions — to create it. The result, “Hold Me Closer,” is “a celebration,” Watt tells Variety.

Watt says he and Elton decided to do a dance remix of “Tiny Dancer,” so the producer was provided with the original audio material from the 1972 classic. He called in his fellow producer Cirkut to work on the track, which Elton loved. But then, Watt says, Elton came up with the idea to throw another one of his songs in there.

According to Watt, he and Elton were in Toronto when Elton’s husband and manager, David Furnish, started showing Elton some new merchandise based on the imagery of his 1992 album The One. 

Watt says, “We’re staring at this hoodie while sitting on the couch, and it hits Elton: What about ‘The One'” — the album’s top-10 title track — “for the verses? He starts singing it, but he’s singing it a little different…We took the vocal from that and tweaked it. ‘Tiny Dancer’ and ‘The One’ are 20-something years apart, but they worked together unbelievably.”

Then Elton decided that he wanted another artist on the track and thought Britney would be perfect.

“The fact that it came together and she wanted to do it and how she sounded on the record — you couldn’t have made it up,” raves Watt. “It’s amazing. It’s a moment in time.”

Noting that “everyone is on edge these days,” Watt says, “This song is just a celebration. It hopefully keeps the summer going for another couple of months…you can just leave everything off to the side and enjoy.”

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KISS‘ 10th studio album, Creatures of the Night, was released 40 years ago this October. To commemorate the milestone, the rock legends will reissue the record on November 18 in multiple formats and configurations.

Among the available versions of the Creatures of the Night 40 reissue is a Super Deluxe box set featuring five CDs, a Blu-ray audio disc, a bevy of collectible items and an 80-page hardcover book.

The first CD features a remastered version of the original album. Disc two and three boast various demos, outtakes and other rarities, most of which are previously unreleased. The fourth and fifth CDs include previously unreleased live performances recorded in 1982 and ’83, as well as bonus sound effects from the Creatures of the Night tour.

The Blu-ray offers up the first Dolby Atmos and 5.1 surround mixes of Creatures of the Night, as well as the remastered stereo mix.

The box set’s memorabilia include posters, photos, an iron-on, stickers, trading cards, a replica tour program, guitar picks and buttons.

Creatures of the Night peaked at #45 on the Billboard 200, and included one minor chart hit, “I Love It Loud.” It was KISS’ last studio album to feature Ace Frehley as a full credited member of the group, although he didn’t play on the record. His replacement, Vinnie Vincent, played guitar on most tracks, although he wasn’t initially credited. Vincent also co-wrote three songs.

Creatures also features two songs that Gene Simmons co-wrote with Bryan Adams — “Rock and Roll Hell” and “War Machine.”

The Creatures of the Night reissue, which can be preordered now, will be available as a two-CD set, a three-LP colored-vinyl package, a single CD, a black-vinyl LP and digitally.

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Blondie‘s expansive new box set, Blondie: Against the Odds 1974-1982, which focuses on the influential New Wave band’s original heyday, hit stores today.

The retrospective, which is available in multiple formats and configurations, contains remastered versions of Blondie’s first six studio albums, as well as a variety of outtakes, demos, remixes, home recordings and other rarities.

“It’s a great collection,” founding Blondie drummer Clem Burke tells ABC Audio. “The first six albums have been remastered at Abbey Road, which we were happy about, ’cause we weren’t really satisfied with the way they were remastered the first time around…[T]his time we kind of took control of everything and…really kind of made it representative of the history of the band.”

Burke says a cool highlight of Against the Odds is a collection of demos recorded in 1974 and ’75 that includes an early version of Blondie’s chart-topping hit “Heart of Glass” titled “Once I Had a Love.”

Clem points out that besides “Once I Had a Love,” “the rest of the demos…have never really seen the light of day in an official Blondie recording moving forward, so it’s good that they’re on there.”

The box set also comes with a book that includes new interviews with Burke, singer Debbie Harry and guitarist Chris Stein, as well as with the four main former members who played with the band between 1974 and 1982.

“[I]t’s great that everyone, all original seven members of Blondie, as it were, participated in the interviews,” Burke says.

Meanwhile, Burke explains that the box set’s title partly relates to “the fact that it’s kind of unbelievable that we’re still here and doing shows, and the amount of success that we’ve had over the years…with the music being the legacy of the band.”



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Apple Corps and Universal Music have confirmed The Beatles‘ 1966 album Revolver is next in line to to get a remix and bonus-filled box set, according to Variety.

An official announcement is not expected to come until sometime in September, along with details on the deluxe package’s contents and release date. As with previous Beatles box sets, the Revolver collection reportedly will include remixes by George Martin‘s son, Giles Martin.

There was wide speculation that Revolver — considered by many to be the band’s best work — would be the next to get the deluxe treatment, following 1967’s Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and continuing chronologically with 1968’s The Beatles — a.k.a. The White Album — 1969’s Abbey Road and 1970’s Let It Be.

However, producing remixes of the tracks on Revolver could prove to be a tricky task, since The Beatles’ pre-1967 albums were recorded with two-track tape machines that combined multiple instruments or vocals onto a single track, making the separation of those elements technically challenging.

Also, unlike later Fab Four projects, not many outtakes from Revolver have been made available via bootlegs, leaving fans to wonder what bonus tracks might be included.

“You know, we have to look into what technology we can do to make things de-mixed and all this kind of stuff, which I’m looking into. So I’m looking for the technology to do it with,” Giles told Variety in 2021. about how he might approach remixing pre-Sgt. Pepper Beatles material. “I think we’re getting there with technology. I think we are. I’m not doing it at the moment, though, I can tell you that much. But hopefully. So, yeah — watch this space.”

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Elton John and Britney Spears‘ highly anticipated duet, “Hold Me Closer,” arrived at the stroke of midnight on Friday.

Similar to “Cold Heart,” Elton’s 2021 duet with Dua Lipa, “Hold Me Closer” mashes up several past Elton hits: 1992’s “The One” and 1972’s “Tiny Dancer,” with the “woo hoos” from 1976’s “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” — his number-one duet with Kiki Dee — thrown in for good measure.

The two first met in 2014 at Elton John’s annual Oscar viewing party.  In 2015, Britney tweeted about how much she loves “Tiny Dancer,” which sparked the idea of some kind of collaboration. The track finally came together this summer: Elton reached out to Britney directly, she said yes and the rest is pop music history.

“I am absolutely thrilled to have had the chance to work with Britney Spears; She truly is an icon, one of the all-time great pop stars and she sounds amazing on this record,” Elton says in a statement. “I love her dearly and am delighted with what we’ve created together.”

Britney adds, ““I was so honored when the incredible Sir Elton John asked me to join him on one his most iconic songs. We are so excited for the fans to hear it! Thank you, Elton, for having me! I am so grateful that I got the opportunity to work with you and your legendary mind.”

This is the first new music Britney’s released since 2016’s Glory. While she did put out three tracks in 2020, they were all songs that were recorded for the original Glory album but didn’t make the final cut. They were included on the deluxe reissue version.

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Slash has announced a new book diving into the many guitars he’s played over the years.

The 300-page tome, simply titled The Collection: Slash, includes photographs and illustrations of Slash’s personal guitars, accompanied by interviews with the Guns N’ Roses shredder himself.

The Collection: Slash is the debut release from Gibson Publishing, a newly launched division of the Gibson guitar company.

“It’s been a blast working with Gibson to create a platform for me to talk about my favorite thing: guitars,” Slash says. “This book is a great exposé of all the great guitars I’ve collected over many years.”

The Collection: Slash will be released in a variety of formats, including the signed $999 Custom Edition, which includes, among other things, an Axe Heaven Appetite Les Paul miniature guitar and an “exclusive Slash bandana.”

Preorders are open now via Gibson.com.

While you wait for your copy to arrive, you can watch Slash chat guitars in a new episode of Gibson’s The Collection series. The hourlong video is streaming now on YouTube.

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The posthumous Roy Orbison album King of Hearts, which originally was released in 1992, will be reissued on October 14 in honor of its 30th anniversary.

The remastered collection, which can be preordered now, will be available on CD, via digital formats and as a limited-edition red-vinyl LP.

King of Hearts is a 10-track collection put together from finished tracks that hadn’t appeared on any of Orbison’s own albums, plus incomplete demos that featured his vocals.

New backing tracks were then added to some of the tunes where needed to prepare them for the new album. Among the songs on King of Hearts is the original version of “I Drove All Night,” which was written specifically for Orbison by Tom Kelly and Billy Steinberg.

Orbinson recorded his rendition of “I Drove All Night” in 1987, although the track wasn’t released until it appeared on King of Hearts. 

King of Hearts also features Orbison and k.d. lang‘s 1987 duet version of his classic 1961 ballad “Crying,” which was recorded for the soundtrack of the ’87 film Hiding Out.

King of Hearts features production work by a variety of notable artists and producers, including Jeff Lynne, The Band‘s Robbie Robertson, T-Bone Burnett, Don Was, Chips Moman, Diane Warren and Albert Hammond.

Orbison co-wrote eight of the album’s 10 tracks, collaborating on some of the songs with J.D. Souther and Will Jennings.

Roy died in December 1988 of a heart attack at age 52.

Here’s the full King of Hearts track list:

“You’re the One”
“Heartbreak Radio”
“We’ll Take the Night”
“Crying” (duet with k.d. lang)
“After the Love Has Gone”
“Love in Time”
“I Drove All Night”
“Wild Hearts Run Out of Time”
“Coming Home”
“Careless Heart” (Original Demo)

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The 2012 compilation Holidays Rule, featuring yuletide-themed tunes from Paul McCartney and a variety of other artists, will be released on vinyl for the first time next month in honor of its 10th anniversary.

The two-LP package, which is pressed on translucent-red vinyl, will be available September 30 and can be preordered now. A limited-edition clear, red and green splatter vinyl variant is available exclusively at CraftRecordings.com.

Holidays Rule is a 17-track collection that includes various musicians putting their spin on seasonal standards. McCartney contributed a rendition of “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire),” while indie rockers The Shins put their spin on McCartney’s own holiday classic, “Wonderful Christmas Time.”

Other artists who are featured on Holidays Rule include New Orleans soul legend Irma Thomas, Rufus Wainwright, fun. and The Head and the Heart.

Here’s the full Holidays Rule track list:

Side A
fun. — “Sleigh Ride”
The Shins — “Wonderful Christmas Time”
Rufus Wainwright featuring Sharon Van Etten — “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”
Paul McCartney — “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)”

Side B
Black Prairie feat. Sallie Ford — “(Everybody’s Waitin’ for) The Man with the Bag”
The Civil Wars — “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”
Calexico — “Green Grows the Holly”
AgesandAges — “We Need a Little Christmas”

Side C
Holly Golightly — “That’s What I Want for Christmas”
Irma Thomas with Preservation Hall Jazz Band — “May Ev’ry Day Be Christmas”
Heartless Bastards — “Blue Christmas”
Eleanor Friedberger — “Santa, Bring My Baby Back (to Me)”
Fruit Bats — “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas”

Side D
Y La Bamba — “Señor Santa (Mister Santa)”
Punch Brothers — “O Come O Come, Emmanuel”
The Head and the Heart — “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?”
Andrew Bird — “Auld Lang Syne”

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Here’s wishing a very happy and very rocking birthday to longtime Def Leppard guitarist and former Dio member Vivian Campbell, who turned 60 Thursday.

In honor of the milestone, Def Leppard is encouraging fans to donate to the Little Kids Rock music-education charity. Those who contribute to the cause will be entered into a sweepstakes to win a signed guitar that Campbell has been playing during the band’s current Stadium Tour with Mötley Crüe, Poison and Joan Jett & the Blackhearts.

The Northern Ireland-born Campbell got his start in a band called Sweet Savage before joining the Ronnie James Dio-fronted Dio in 1983. Campbell appeared on Dio’s first three albums and co-wrote many of the band’s songs, including “Rainbow in the Dark.”

Campbell left Dio in 1986 and briefly joined Whitesnake. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, he worked on a number of projects with Foreigner frontman Lou Gramm.

In 1992, he joined Def Leppard after the 1991 death of that band’s founding guitarist, Steve Clark. Campbell has played on all of Def Leppard’s albums since 1993’s Retro Active and has written or co-written many songs for the group.

Since 2012, Campbell has also been a member of Last in Line, a band featuring several Dio alums.

In 2019, Campbell was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Def Leppard.

The Stadium Tour continues Thursday night with a concert in Phoenix, Arizona.

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Joni Mitchell was presented with an honorary doctorate by the prestigious Boston-based institution the Berklee College of Music during an event held Tuesday at a private residence in Santa Monica, California.

The legendary singer/songwriter was bestowed with the honor by Berklee’s Office of the President and Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice.

“Well, luckily I’m too old to get a swelled head,” the 78-year-old Mitchell said at the gathering after being introduced. “It’s a beautiful event. Words can’t describe it. I’ve got my good friends here with me.”

She added, “I wish my parents were alive. My mother in particular would be really proud of this because she wanted me to go to college. I went to art school and I quit after a year. She thinks of me as a quitter. So to see this achievement would be really impressive to her. I wish I could share it with her.”

Jazz legends Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter were among the guests at the event, which included tribute performances by Grammy-winning artists Dianne Reeves and Esperanza Spalding.

In an introductory speech, Berklee President Erica Muhl commented, “Since her debut in the late 1960s, Joni has been a force for change in the industry, blazing the trail for women in music with an unwavering commitment to achieving the status rightfully due her as one of the world’s great musical artists.”

Terri Lyne Carrington, founder and artistic director of the Berklee’s Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice, added about Mitchell, “Her career and social principles stand for the values our institute pursues — imagination, freedom, equity, and identity. I can think of no one more deserving.”

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