Category: Oldies News

BMGFresh off issuing a series of controversial singles last year protesting the COVID-19 lockdown in the U.K., Van Morrison has announced plans to release his 42nd studio album, a 28-track collection titled Latest Record Project: Volume 1, on May 7. Described in a press statement as Morrison’s “most dynamic and contemporary album in years,” the record finds Van the man continuing to delve into his love of classic soul, blues, R&B and jazz. “I’m getting away from the perceived same songs, same albums all the time,” explains Morrison. “This guy’s…

Samir Hussein/WireImage In addition to filling stadiums worldwide with Bon Jovi, Jon Bon Jovi has also acted in quite a few movies and TV shows over the years.  But he recently admitted that just because he was on TV doesn’t mean he actually watched it a lot…or at all. In an interview with Bravo’s Andy Cohen, Jon said that when he guest-starred on Sex and the City in 1999, “I didn’t know what [it] was.  That was the beginning of the second season and I was not caught up in…

BMGThe Kinks recently released an expanded 50th anniversary reissue of their 1970 concept album Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One, which found the British rock legends’ taking a satirical look at the music industry at a transitional time in their career. Propelled by the hit single “Lola,” the album helped The Kinks enjoy renewed U.S. chart success shortly after the group began touring the country again after a three-year ban. “I think the Lola album…encapsulates a lot of the environment and feelings that we were going through at…

Visual art: Brittany Duncan & Jon Carrasco/EE1/BMGFormer 5th Dimension members Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. have released a second advance single from their forthcoming studio album, Blackbird: Lennon-McCartney Icons, a dramatic version of The Beatles‘ classic 1968 civil-rights anthem “Blackbird.” The track, which features a passionate vocal performance by McCoo, is available now as a digital download and via streaming services. A companion lyric video also has premiered at McCoo and Davis’ official YouTube channel. The animated clip shows a flock of blackbirds flying across the screen in front…

Credit: Jesse DitmarPatti Smith will give a special performance on May 22 celebrating Bob Dylan‘s upcoming 80th birthday as part of the Kaatsbaan Cultural Park’s Spring Festival in Tivoli, New York. Smith will team up with Tony Shanahan, longtime bassist and keyboardist in her backing band, for the event, which will feature original songs and poetry as well as tunes by Dylan, whose actual 80th birthday is May 24. Oliver Ray, who played guitar in Patti’s band from 1996 to 2005, curated the show. Kaatsbaan Cultural Park’s inaugural Spring Festival…

Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty ImagesDolly Parton has received her first round of the COVID-19 vaccine. On Tuesday, the superstar shared an Instagram video from Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) in Nashville that she was “so excited” to be getting the vaccine. “I’ve been waiting a while. I’m old enough to get it, and I’m smart enough to get it,” she quipped. She even offered an updated version of her hit “Jolene” to encourage others to get vaccinated by singing, “Vaccine/Vaccine/I’m begging of you please don’t hesitate.”  “I just wanted to encourage everybody because…

Mayumi NashidaOriginally scheduled for release in November, Sting‘s upcoming compilation album Duets is now due March 19.  The former Police frontman will promote it with a TV appearance and some single releases. Sting’s duet with jazz legend Herbie Hancock, a version of the standard “My Funny Valentine,” will be released March 11 on all streaming platforms.  The track was originally recorded for the soundtrack of the 2005 Japanese film Ashura. In addition, a brand-new duet Sting recorded with an African artist called Shirazee will be released as a non-album digital-only…

Michael Bunel/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesBunny Wailer, a founding member of The Wailers alongside the late Bob Marley and Peter Tosh, died Tuesday morning at a hospital in Kingston, Jamaica, the Jamaica Observer reports. He was 73. Wailer’s manager Maxine Stowe confirmed the news to the newspaper, saying, “He died about 8:00 this morning.” No cause of death was announced, but Bunny had suffered multiple strokes in recent years. Wailer, whose birth name was Neville Livingston, was raised in the Trench Town neighborhood of Kingston. He co-founded The Wailin’ Wailers with…

Courtesy of Rock & Roll Hall of FameThe Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has announced a date and site for its 2021 Induction Ceremony. In an online press conference this morning, Rock Hall president and CEO Greg Harris, revealed that the event will take place on October 30 at Cleveland’s Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. This will mark the first time that the ceremony will be held at the arena, which is the home of NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Rock Hall has struck a deal with the pro basketball team…

Courtesy of COREThe dates have been revealed for the recently announced Rock ‘n’ Relief livestream benefit concert, which will feature performances by Carly Simon, Sheryl Crow, Sammy Hagar with his current band The Circle, and dozens of other artists. The two-day virtual event will take place this Friday and Saturday, March 5 and 6, and will raise money for the Los Angeles-based organization Community Organized Relief Effort, or CORE. CORE, which was co-founded by actor Sean Penn, is working to “provide equitable access to free testing and vaccines” amid the…