Pulse Music

It was 55 years ago Sunday (February 13th, 1967) that the Beatles released their double A-sided single of "Strawberry Fields Forever" and "Penny Lane." The single contained two of the first three songs recorded for the group's upcoming Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album. (The other song, "When I'm 64," was saved for the album.) The songs broke the group's then unprecedented six-month stretch since their last single, "Yellow Submarine" backed by "Eleanor Rigby."

The new songs, which touched upon the group's Liverpool upbringing, were a study in contrasts, with Paul McCartney's more literal "Penny Lane" borrowing heavily from the sound of the Beach Boys' then-recent Pet Sounds album, and John Lennon's introspective "Strawberry Fields Forever" breaking new ground in both record production and song structure.

In a classic example of less being more, late-Beatles producer George Martin told us that the limited technology of the 1960's in no way held back the Beatles from recording timeless classics: "And I think in fact, if I had more than four tracks recording Sgt. Pepper, I don't think it would've been any better than it turned out. The music itself was so good, that no matter what you did with it -- provided you did it reasonably, technically well -- it would've survived."

George Harrison explained that the Beatles' drug use -- mainly pot and LSD -- greatly influenced the music they were making in the mid-'60s: "It mightn't have affected creativity for other people -- I know it did for us, and it did for me. I mean, the first thing for people who smoke marijuana and were into music, is that somehow, it focuses your attention better on the music, and so, you can hear it clearer. You can see things, or y'know, you could see things much different. I mean, LSD was something else, it wasn't just. . . marijuana was just like having a couple of beers, really (compared to acid). But LSD was more like going to the moon."

At a dinner party at manager Brian Epstein's house with the Beatles and their significant others, Pete Townshend and Eric Clapton were the first two outside musicians to be played the new tracks. Upon Townshend's recollection, when asked what they two thought about what they just heard, the Who leader was left speechless -- Clapton, on the other hand responded, "Could we please hear it again?"

Paul McCartney says that above all the other emotions he has regarding having John Lennon as his best friend for a substantial part of his life, he's still in awe of their musical connection: "I've got so many great memories, and I feel very privileged. Y'know, I'm the guy he wrote with -- that's pretty cool. And we wrote some great stuff and enjoyed it -- never really sweated it. We normally finished a song in about three hours, and can't ever remember coming away from a session without having a song."

Author Christopher Sanford, who wrote the biography titled McCartney, says that even during the Beatles days, it was McCartney who was constantly pushing the group to find new sounds in the studio: "Paul was the guy, I think, who was saying, 'Y'know, we can take this to a new direction. We can try these instruments that have never been tried. Let's get George Martin to have an orchestra playing out of tune!' And that was all McCartney."

The single was a global hit, with "Penny Lane" eventually topping the U.S. charts on March 18th, and "Strawberry Fields Forever" going on to peak at Number Eight.

In Britain, the single was kept from the top spot by Engelbert Humperdinck's "Release Me," marking the first time since their 1962 debut single "Love Me Do" that the Beatles failed to top the charts in their homeland.

The single, which was the Beatles' first after retiring from touring, featured the first of many Beatles songs the group never got to perform live.

In 1990, during McCartney's first performance in Liverpool since Lennon's death, he performed "Strawberry Fields Forever" in a medley with the Beatles' "Help!" and the Plastic Ono Band's "Give Peace A Chance" as a moving tribute to his fallen former partner.

Paul McCartney introduced "Penny Lane" into his live shows on his 1993 world tour.

Britney Spears has been working on a new dance video and is promoting the upcoming release online. She posted a snip of her dancing to the song, "Get Naked."

Calling the video a "tease of what's to come," she's seen wearing a red bikini top and a matching high-waisted, strappy thong, with black heels. As the music plays, she gyrates on a barre in an empty dance studio.

She didn't mention a release date, but the new track will be her first new music in 5 years.

TL;DR:

Justin Bieber and Toy Lanez spent some time together in the studio this week and marked the occasion with a photo. Lanez shared the snap of the Canadians hanging out by the audio board. No mention of what they were working on.

Post Malone and The Weeknd's collaboration "One Right Now" has reached #1 on Billboard's Rhythmic Chart. The superstars' collaborative release has also hit the top 10 on the Pop Airplay chart.

Cardi B is getting ready for Valentine's Day next week by showing off some new romantic hairstyles. Posting online, one photo showed her hair twisted into pink hearts and another displayed her bangs in the shape of a heart. The singer is known for her everchanging hair styles.

It was 58 years ago tonight (February 11th, 1964) that the Beatles played their first American concert, in Washington, D.C. at the Washington Coliseum, in front of 8,092 screaming fans. The group performed in the round, and after every three songs the group and their roadies would switch their equipment to face another side of the audience. Portions of the concert are available on the DVD The Beatles' First U.S. Visit.

The group's set list that night was: "Roll Over Beethoven," "From Me To You," "I Saw Her Standing There," "This Boy," "All My Loving," "I Wanna Be Your Man," "Please Please Me," "Till There Was You," "She Loves You," "I Want To Hold Your Hand," "Twist And Shout," and "Long Tall Sally."

The late-filmmaker Albert Maysles, who shot the documentary with his brother David, told us that the DVD really captures what was going on at the time: "The film holds up as being totally truthful and authentic. We didn't slight them in any fashion, nor did we create a puff piece. I'm sure that those who were alive, and those who knew the film and saw it -- I mean, the Beatles, all of them -- felt that, 'Yeah, this is what it was.'"

Jonathan Gould, the author of the groundbreaking Can't Buy Me Love: The Beatles, Britain, And America, feels that the Beatles landing in America less than three months after President John F. Kennedy's assassination only helped to endear them more to a mourning nation: "I think there's an extent to which nobody in America understood how affected everybody was by the Kennedy assassination. For many people who lived through that time, they can say, 'Well that's when everything seemed to change,' or 'That's when the '60s as a kind of dynamic force seemed to begin for some people in their lives.' And then a few months later, suddenly this other thing comes along. That sense of revelation that people had when they first saw the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show, which was really the first time they saw the Beatles animated."

ONE YEAR EARLIER -- ON FEBRUARY 11th, 1963. . .

It was 59 years ago today (February 11th, 1963), that the Beatles recorded their first album, Please Please Me, in just under 10 hours. The album also featured both sides of their first two singles -- "Love Me Do"/"P.S. I Love You," and "Please Please Me"/"Ask Me Why," which had been recorded the previous autumn. The session for the album began at 10 a.m. at London's Abbey Road's Studio Two -- the main studio the group would use for the next eight years -- with 10 takes of the John Lennon-Paul McCartney original, "There's A Place."

Over the course of the day the group basically performed their stage show as the tapes rolled, recording future Beatles classics like "I Saw Her Standing There," "Do You Want To Know A Secret," and "Twist And Shout." The group's recording engineer Richard Langham recalled the session in Mark Lewisohn's The Beatles' Recording Sessions book. He remembered that when producer George Martin and the other engineers announced that they were taking a lunch break, the Beatles chose to stay and rehearse, revealing that, "When we came back they'd been playing right through. We couldn't believe it. We had never seen a group work through their lunch break before."

The tracklisting to Please Please Me is: "I Saw Her Standing There," "Misery," "Anna (Go To Him)," "Chains," "Boys," "Ask Me Why," "Please Please Me," "Love Me Do," "P.S. I Love You," "Baby It's You," "Do You Want To Know A Secret," "A Taste Of Honey," "There's A Place," and "Twist and Shout."

The late, great Geoff Emerick, who worked with the Beatles throughout their career and became their primary engineer with 1966's Revolver album first met the "Fab Four" in 1962 during his second day on the job, while the group was recording their debut single, "Love Me Do." He told us that he was immediately struck by how unique their humor and personalities were: "They were down in the studio. 'Cause it was the second day that I had been there. And I just liked the vibe, y'know the happy vibe. It was completely different, because it's like their attitude was against the establishment -- although (producer) George Martin had some decorum within the control room, an air of decorum. And it's like these kids down in the studio clowning around, y'know?"

The sessions only produced one outtake -- 13 takes of an early attempt at Lennon-McCartney's "Hold Me Tight" which was re-recorded later that year for their second album, With The Beatles.

George Martin originally wanted to name the album Off The Beatle Track, but it was decided that it would help sales by naming the album after their current hit single. Martin went on to use the name for his 1964 instrumental album of Beatles hits.

Please Please Me was released on March 22nd, 1963, and entered the British charts at Number Nine. After seven weeks it hit the Number One spot, where it stayed for 29 weeks.

The American version of the album, called Introducing The Beatles, was originally released in the U.S. on July 22nd 1963 -- and went nowhere. It was re-issued on January 27th 1964 and peaked at Number Two for nine weeks behind the group's breakthrough Capitol album Meet The Beatles.

Although original drummer Pete Best was on hand for the Beatles' June 6th, 1962 audition for EMI, he was replaced by Ringo Starr 17 days before their first official session for the label. Best, who says that he has had no substantial contact with any of the Beatles since the night before he was fired, feels that Ringo walked into a much cushier job than he did upon joining the Beatles: "Y'know, when you think about it, the first trip out to Hamburg, (Germany), we were playing six, seven hours a night. And I think actually, when (laughs) Ringo joined they were playing 20 minutes, half-an-hour sessions, or something like that. So, I did a lot of the spade work, put the long hours in and he was the one who picked up the glory."

During his final in-depth TV interview in 1975 on NBC's Tomorrow Show, John Lennon explained that a major part of his and the Beatles' allure was the fact that they were never ashamed of their Liverpool roots: "We were the first working class singers that stayed working class, and pronounced it. 'Didn't try to change our accents, which in England were looked down upon -- probably still are -- like a Bronx accent, it's the equivalent to that."

ON THIS DAY IN 1965:

Peter Gabriel -- Genesis co-founder and solo superstar -- turns 72 on Sunday (February 13th). Gabriel, along with Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford, and Anthony Phillips, formed the band in 1967 when the musicians were still teens and attending the prestigious Charterhouse School, in Godalming, Surrey. Gabriel, who became the leading theatrical early-'70s live performer with his mastery of makeup and wardrobe, quit the band in 1975 following their 1974 double-album set, The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway and its subsequent tour.

Beginning in 1977, Gabriel has received global acclaim as a solo artist, releasing nine studio albums, six live sets, and four soundtracks.

Peter Gabriel will forever be best known for his 1986 So album. So was released on May 19th, 1986 and remains his best-selling album to date. The album topped the British charts and peaked at Number Two, selling over five million units in the U.S. alone.

So spawned three Top 30 hits -- the chart-topping "Sledgehammer" -- which knocked his former Genesis bandmates out of the Number One spot with their "Invisible Touch" -- "In Your Eyes (#26), and "Big Time" (#8). "Sledgehammer" remains the most played video in MTV history.

2019 saw the release of Peter Gabriel's latest compilation, titled Rated PG. The 10-track collection spotlights Gabriel's songs written specifically for and/or featured in various big screen movie projects over the years. In the album's announcement, Gabriel said, "I have always loved film and any chance I have been offered to work with good film projects and good directors I have jumped at. This is a mixture of songs that have been written for specific films, and existing songs that found an appropriate place in a story. Consequently, there is a mix of different styles and moods."

Among the high profile movies to have featured Gabriel's music are Alan Parker's Birdy from 1985, Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation Of Christ from 1988, Philip Noyce's 2002 film Rabbit-Proof Fence, Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers from 1994 -- along with the iconic use of "In Your Eyes" in Cameron Crowe's 1989 comedy Say Anything.

Also out now is Peter Gabriel's latest digital compilation album, titled Flotsam And Jetsam. The collection chronicles Gabriel's solo work broken into three eras -- 1976-1985; 1986-1993; and 1994-2016.

The 62-track digital comp spotlights various extended, single-only, dance, instrumental, remix, and live takes of such Gabriel favorites as "Solsbury Hill," "D.I.Y.," "I Don't Remember," "Shock The Monkey," "I Have The Touch," "Sledgehammer," "In Your Eyes," "Biko," "Digging In The Dirt," among many others. The set opens with Gabriel's 1976 orchestral cover of the Beatles' "Strawberry Fields Forever" as featured in the movie, All This And World War II.

Peter Gabriel's iconic and often chameleon-like appearance was saluted in a 2019 photo book. Peter Gabriel: A Life In Vision features rare and never-before-seen shots of the musician from his early days co-founding and fronting Genesis, up through today.

School friend and Genesis bandmate Tony Banks feels that Peter Gabriel's early over-the-top theatrics played a crucial part in gaining the band the attention they otherwise never would've received: "Well I think the Gabriel thing was very important in the early days, 'cause it gave us an identity and y'know, you kind of stand out from the crowd. There were a lot of other groups who were out there doing the circuit that we were doing. But I think when Peter came on with all his costumes and makeup and everything, it made people remember us, and he was a very important part of our thing. And I think we all enjoyed the sort of, the idea of trying to do more than just play music onstage. We were all conscious of the fact that none of us were what you would call typical rock n' roll performers -- we didn't. . . play with your teeth and everything, so it was a way of kind of getting around it."

We asked Phil Collins why over the years Peter Gabriel always stopping short of committing to a Genesis reunion. Collins said that Gabriel can sometimes take things too seriously: "I think he's very sensitive -- far more sensitive than we are -- about what it means, y'know? This is just music, great fun to do, whereas Peter, since he left really, has been doing his 'thing,' albeit lots of different things under that umbrella, and I think he's just a little over-cautious sometimes about going back to doing something (that) basically, fundamentally, is just fun."

Peter Gabriel was asked when he realized that So was more going to be a bigger commercial success than his past efforts: "I think about halfway through the album I started to realize that some of the songs would get through (to the public). Also I think the 'Sledgehammer,' which is a sort of '60s soul rip-off, is a language in which people speak in this country, so I think it's easier to get to."

Peter Gabriel admitted that he's always been in the right place at the right time to help further his craft: "I just think I'm very fortunate because I've worked with extraordinarily people, great musicians. For me, it's not about rock n' roll or any label. I think it was (Count) Basie who said ‘There's only two kinds of music -- good and bad.' And that's what I subscribe to."

Saturday (February 12th) marks what would have been the 83rd birthday of co-founding Doors' co-founder and keyboardist Ray Manzarek. Manzarek died on May 20th, 2013 at age 74 in Rosenheim, Germany at the RoMed Clinic following a long battle with bile duct cancer. Manzarek was surrounded by his wife Dorothy and his brothers Rick and James Manczarek. Manzarek is survived by Dorothy, their son Pablo, his wife Sharmin, and their three children Noah, Apollo, and Camille.

2020 saw the release of The Doors: Break On Thru - A Celebration Of Ray Manzarek. The feature is an all-star hybrid concert/documentary filmed in 2016 at L.A.'s Fonda Theatre, featuring the surviving members Doors -- guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore -- who performed with each other on stage for the first time in 15 years to celebrate Manzarek's live and work.

Also appearing were Foo Fighters' Taylor Hawkins and Rami Jaffee, Stone Temple Pilots' Robert DeLeo, Paul McCartney's Brian Ray, X's Exene and John Doe, Jane's Addiction's Stephen Perkins, Gov't Mule's Warren Haynes, and more.

Ray Manzarek was born Raymond Daniel Manczarek, Jr. on February 12th, 1939 on the South Side of Chicago and was of Polish decent. In 1962 he moved to Southern California to study at the Department of Cinematography at UCLA, where he first met fellow student and future partner Jim Morrison, along with his wife of 45 years, Dorothy Fujikawa. Together with Morrison, Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore, the quartet formed the Doors in 1965 and between 1967 and 1971 released six studio albums -- The Doors (1967); Strange Days (1967); Waiting For The Sun (1968); The Soft Parade (1969); Morrison Hotel (1970); and L.A. Woman (1971) -- before Jim Morrison's death on July 3rd, 1971 in Paris.

Manzarek changed the face of rock keyboard playing, with his early signature sound being a combination of a Vox Continental organ -- and later a Gibson G-101 Kalamazoo combo organ -- with his left hand playing the basslines on a Fender Rhodes electric piano "bass unit," which featured only the keyboard's lowest notes. Although the Doors eventually added a studio bassist to their sessions, Manzarek handled the bass duties via his keyboards for the band's live appearances with Morrison.

Following Morrison's death, the Doors soldiered on with Manzarek and Krieger taking over vocal duties on the band's 1971 set, Other Voices, and its follow-up, 1972's Full Circle. Following that, Krieger and Densmore split to form the Butts Band. After a short-lived mid-'70s collaboration with Iggy Pop, Manzarek formed Nite City with future Blondie bassist Nigel Harrison, and produced and collaborated with the likes of Philip Glass, Echo & The Bunnymen, X, and poet Michael McClure, among many others.

In 1978 Manzarek, Krieger, and Densmore reunited to compose and record music to Morrison's poetry for the An American Prayer album. Manzarek collaborated frequently with Robby Krieger. In 2002 the pair began touring as the Doors Of The 21st Century, which went through various name changes -- including Riders On The Storm -- until the pair settled on Manzarek-Krieger or Ray Manzarek & Robby Krieger of The Doors, following a bitter five-year battle against John Densmore and the Morrison estate over the use of the band's name.

In 1998, Manzarek published his memoir, Light My Fire: My Life With The Doors. He followed the autobiography in 2001 with The Poet In Exile, which supposes what would've happened had Jim Morrison faked his death -- as many fans believe. In 2006 he published his second novel, the Civil War-based, Snake Moon.

The Doors' stats remain among the most impressive of the rock era, selling over 100 million albums worldwide, and receiving 19 Gold, 14 Platinum, and five multi-Platinum albums in the U.S. alone.

When discussing the Doors in their prime, Ray Manzarek told us that whether they liked it or not, the Doors ended up being spokesmen for their generation: "There was a war in Vietnam and, y'know, that had to be stopped, and we were gonna try to clean up the environment, and do all those good things that hippies were trying to do. And everyone was angry, man, so, y'know, we tried to make the music as hard and as powerful and as exciting as possible. And when you got Jim Morrison as your lead singer, well, y'know, that's an extra plus. So that's what it was all about."

John Densmore told us that from the beginning to the end of the band, the Doors had a chemistry unparalleled: "Ray and I were completely synchronistic in our musical sensibilities. We just. . . intuitive stuff together and backed up Robby's soaring solos and Jim's vocal and. . . we were blessed. We gotta remember that was the muse coming in. Y'know, she just visits when she wants to. Yeah, even with Jim's self destruction, every time we made an album, when we were behind closed doors, there was a sacredness to the four of us."

Robbie Krieger says that looking back, the Doors' short time together was relatively free of ego problems or star trips: "It was really, like, the perfect group, y'know, as far as working together and stuff. There was no ego problems, y'know, and petty jealousies and stuff like that that a lot of groups go through."

During the height of his and Robby Krieger's recent battles with John Densmore over the use of the Doors' name, Manzarek never wavered from the belief that the pair deserved to be billed as "The Doors": "We are the Doors. You're watching two guys who were in the band. The keyboard player and the guitar player are the original members of the Doors. That's the actual guys, man. There's the sound of the Doors right in front of you. That's the keyboard player who plays 'Light My Fire.' That's the guitar player who wrote 'Light My Fire.' So it's a continuation."

Ultimately, Ray Manzarek told us that as the Doors' music ages, it's probably better understood and more beloved than when it was first recorded: "I think the time has allowed them to digest the Jungian/Freudian aspect of the Doors' songs. I think they've gotten into the depth of the songs a lot more than back in the '60s, and understand it from an intellectual perspective, and are just as wild as the people were in the '60s. I'm surprised at, y'know, how uninhibited and how crazy and Dionysian they can actually be."

Elton John's guitarist for over 50 years maintains the "Rocket Man" is indeed quitting the road -- but remains unsure if he's actually done with performing. Davey Johnstone, joined the original Elton John Band in time for the 1971 Madman Across the Water sessions and currently serves as his longtime musical director.

We caught up with Johnstone, who's just released his second solo set, Deeper Than My Roots, and asked him if he really thinks Elton's farewell trek is really the end of the road: "Oh yeah. Oh yeah -- we're too bloody old! It's not gonna happen anymore. When we finally get finished with this farewell tour, there's no way we're gonna do any more. There's no way. . . it's just that . . . 'Cause, y'know, I just turned 70, Elton's 74. He's ready for a break -- but again, I never say 'never' with him. All I know is this is a farewell to touring. This is what this 'Farewell Yellow Brick Road' thing is. So, who knows what might happen? He might do something else, revue-wise, or maybe a one-man show somewhere. I have no idea."

Elton John's "Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour" resumes on February 22nd at New York's Madison Square Garden.

Mick Jagger's former solo right-hand man, guitarist Jimmy Rip, says that he and Jagger recorded a full solo album with the late-Charlie Watts. Rip revealed that the original version of the Jagger's third album, 1993's Wandering Spirit, was recorded with the Stones' drummer behind the kit.

Jimmy Rip, who in 1988 handled guitar duties on Jagger's one and only solo tour hitting Australia and Japan, recalled working on the material with the Stones frontman, telling Ultimate Classic Rock: ("Mick) and I went to his big chateau in France. We had the Rolling Stones mobile truck come down and park in the parking lot. He and I and Charlie Watts, who lives not far away, the three of us, recorded an entire version of Wandering Spirit. Which for me, is the best version of Wandering Spirit. (Bassist) Doug Wimbish came and played on a few tracks. I played bass on a lot of it and guitar. But that version of the record is blindingly great."

Rip went on to explain, "The problem with it was that it sounded so much like a Rolling Stones record! It really sounds just like a Stones record. To the point where sometimes I play it for people and I say, 'Hey, have you ever heard these Stones outtakes?' And they go, 'Wow, how come they never put this out?' It's like, this is not a Stones record! But Mick at the end of it said, 'If I want to make a Rolling Stones record, I'll make it with the Rolling Stones.'"

Rip, who eventually recorded a new version of the album with Jagger remembered, "He and I, there were a bunch of years when we were kind of inseparable, going everywhere and doing a lot of work together."

He shed light on why the album was ultimately put on ice for several years: "He said that his manager had talked to Keith (Richards)' manager and they had set up a meeting for the two of them in Barbados. Mick said, 'Y'know, I'm going to go meet with Keith, and then if we get on alright, I'm going to make a Rolling Stones record. If it all blows up, we'll go do this record.' I was like, 'Man!'"

Following the completion of Wandering Spirit, Jagger started work on the Stones' 1994 Voodoo Lounge album, putting any plans for a solo tour on ice, with Rip and Jagger only making a handful of promotional appearances, including NBC's Saturday Night Live.

While promoting 1993's Wandering Spirit, Mick Jagger said he didn't feel the need to chase trends or focus so intently on the charts: "I don't really take pop music that seriously. Writing's really important to me, 'cause I like writing. It's much more enjoyable to perform your own songs than always performing other people's. But I think enough people know that I write, y'know? I do (laughs)."

Like everything else, the Who's recent orchestral tour dates were put on ice due to the pandemic. While still on the road, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey were only able to dip their feet into the band's most recent album, 2019's WHO.

When we last spoke with Roger Daltrey he seemed excited at seeing where the band could take some of his favorite tracks off the latest album: "I think my favorite song of all is 'Beads On One String,' believe it or not. It's not really a rock song or anything, but there's something about the message that I really, really like. I think it's a masterful piece of songwriting. And we were going to do that on the next leg of the tour -- and we were going to do Simon (Townshend's) song, where I had learned the lyrics (laughs). Am I looking forward to singing any of them? I'm just looking forward to singing anything."

Charlie Puth says that Elton John told him that the music he made in 2019, "sucked." He also says that Elton was right. Saying, "He was brutally honest with me."

Puth went on to explain, that basically he told him that he could make a lot better music and he said that he should just make it himself. Puth appreciated the constructive criticism and said that it was exactly how he felt about it too.

Puth said, "I didn't really like any of the music I put out in 2019, and I didn't want to make an album of that," he said. "I felt like I was kind of pretending to be a cool guy."

He released several singles in 2019 that failed to make a splash, including "I Warned Myself," "Mother" and "Cheating on You."

TL;DR:

• Charlie Puth says that Elton John was brutally honest about his 2019 music.
• Puth appreciated the constructive criticism and said that it was exactly how he felt about it too.
• He released several singles in 2019 that failed to make a splash, including "I Warned Myself," "Mother" and "Cheating on You."

Ed Sheeran has been teasing for a while now about a collaboration with Taylor Swift, but now it's official. He announced on Twitter that he has reunited with his longtime friend on a new version of his song, "The Joker and the Queen."

Sheeran has been dropping hints online and in interviews about the possible match-up. Also in his music video for "Overpass Graffiti," he's seen wearing a leather jacket with a joker and a queen on the back, and in small, subtle letters in the top right corner of the jacket, there's a box that reads, "Taylor Swift."

The original version appears on his new album, =, and the new version, featuring Taylor Swift, will be released on Friday (Feb. 11).

TL;DR:

• He announced on Twitter that he has reunited with his longtime friend, on a new version of his song, "The Joker and the Queen."
• The original version appears on his new album, =.
• The new version, featuring Taylor Swift, will be released on Friday (Feb. 11).

Despite going back and forth on social media, Kanye West still wants his estranged wife Kim Kardashian back. Kanye posted a photo of Kim and their children in her new Vogue spread. He captioned the photo, "GOD PLEASE BRING OUR FAMILY BACK TOGETHER."

Meanwhile, in her Vogue interview, Kim opened up about her mindset in her 40s, saying that she is "Team Me." She explained, "For so long, I did what made other people happy. And I think in the last two years I decided, I'm going to make myself happy. And that feels really good. And even if that created changes and caused my divorce, I think it's important to be honest with yourself about what really makes you happy. I've chosen myself. I think it's okay to choose you."

She added, "I'm going to eat well. I'm going to work out. I'm going to have more fun, spend more time with my kids and the people who make me happy. I'm going to put my phone down. Unfollow if I don't want to see something on Instagram."

She also discussed co-parenting, saying, v"You could be so hurt or angry at your ex, but I think in front of the kids, it always has to be ‘Your dad's the best. Make sure you are your co-parent's biggest cheerleader, no matter what you're personally going through."

Katy Perry says the pandemic is keeping her from marrying her fiancé, Orlando Bloom. When asked by an Australian radio host about her status, she laughed and said they were aiming for a destination wedding, but every couple of months there's a new variant.

They got engaged on Valentines' Day 2019 and had a baby girl a year and a half later.

TL;DR:

• Katy Perry says the pandemic is keeping her from marrying her fiancé, Orlando Bloom.
• Because they want a destination wedding.
• They got engaged on Valentines' Day 2019.

Heart frontwoman Ann Wilson will release her latest solo set, Fierce Bliss, on April 29th. The album's cover is by legendary artist Roger Dean, best known for his string of prog rock album art -- most notably on Yes' legendary collections. Fierce Bliss features Vince Gill guesting on Wilson's cover of Queen's "Love Of My Life." Guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd is alos featured on the album, which includes several co-writes with Gov't Mule's Warren Hayes.

The album's first single, called "Greed" has dropped, with Ann Wilson saying in a statement, "'Greed' is that thing in our animal nature that makes us want MORE. Whether it be money, sex, power or ecstasy, it fires our craving! It happens with all of us. When you turn around and catch yourself making decisions because you want the money, or because you're caught in the headlights of glory, well, those are greedy moments."

Although she and sister Nancy Wilson were never ashamed of being females in a male dominated field, Ann Wilson told us that Heart never wanted to be specifically singled out for being women playing hard rock: "The thing that Nancy and I always fought the hardest against is the, y'know, gender designation of all these lists. Why girls have to be over here and guys have to be over there; why can't we all just do it together on the same footing?"

JUST ANNOUNCED: Ann Wison tour dates (subject to change):

February 19 - Metairie, LA - Family Gras
May 4 - San Francisco, CA - Great American
May 5 - Napa, CA - The Uptown Theatre
May 7 - Pala, CA - Pala Casino
May 9, 10 - Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre
May 13 - Los Cabos, MEX - Hard Rock
June 11 - Peachtree City, GA - Fred Amphitheater
June 13, 14 - Nashville, TN - Basement East
June 16 - Tampa, FL - Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa
June 17 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - The Parker

Lizzo is back in the studio, she verified it herself. She posted a short video that was shot in a recording studio. Although there was no sound, it was obvious what she was hinting at.

The video shows her production team, with Blanco bopping to the sound of whatever they were listening to.

Another clue pointed out by Pop Culture.com…is that it must be an up-tempo song, because of the speed she was tapping her feet.

Lizzo hasn't released music since last year's hit, "Rumors," which featured a Cardi B verse and debuted at #1 on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart.

TL;DR:

• Lizzo is back in the studio
• The video she posted shows Blanco in the studio with her.
• Lizzo hasn't released music since last year's hit, "Rumors."

John Mayer adds to his ever-growing list of #1's on Billboard‘s Adult Alternative Airplay chart, as "Wild Blue" tops the chart. The song becomes his 8^th to do so.

My Policeman, starring Harry Styles and Emma Corrin has received an R rating for sexual content. Set in the 1950s, the film follows the story of a gay policeman who marries a woman despite his love for another man. A release date has not been announced.

Machine Gun Kelly has been announced as one of the stars that will face off on the court, during the 2022 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game.

The charity event pairs retired NBA and WNBA players with celebrities and will take place at Cleveland's Wolstein Center. It raises money for the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, with every shot made from behind the line earning a $4,000 donation from Ruffles and the NBA.

Other notable players include Jack Harlow and Tiffany Haddish. It will air February 18 on ESPN at 7 p.m. EST.

TL;DR:

• Machine Gun Kelly will play in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game.
• Other notable players include Jack Harlow and Tiffany Haddish.
• It will air February 18 on ESPN at 7 p.m. EST.

Slash featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators are back on the road in support of their new album, titled, 4, which drops tommorow (February 11th). Slash spoke about the band's setlist, which unlike the early Conspirators gigs, features no dips into the Guns N' Roses or Velvet Revolver catalogues.

In a new chat with Ultimate Classic Rock, Slash talked about keeping the set focused on Conspirators material: "I have to admit, I really missed playing the Guns material when this thing first started, so it was a great outlet for me. But having gotten back with all my buddies in Guns, after a while I was like, 'I don't really need to do it with Myles and Company,' so we don't have any Guns songs in the set. That said, I sort of miss the occasional Velvet Revolver song. So I haven't put any Velvet songs in the set as of yet, but I might at some point put one, at least, just for the fun of doing it."

Slash went on to talk about the vibe behind his setup with Kennedy and the Conspirators: "We don't have any kind of illusions of grandeur. We're not trying to be the biggest band in the world. We just like to go and play. And so that's how this has been functioning all this time. But we've actually sort of built up a sizable fan base, and we've got our own thing going at this point that's sort of established, but it doesn't really change the way that we do things. So it's a very easy, sort of simple group."

Even when he's supposed to be relaxing, Slash told us not long ago that he prefers to spend his downtime doing something else: "Work (laughs). Really, downtime, y'know -- unfortunately for most people around me, I don't relax well. So I have to be busy and I have to be focused on something. For me, it's fine. It keeps me out of trouble, but for everybody else, it's sort of like, 'Can't you just sort of chill, y'know?' But it doesn't work."

Could Adele and Rich Paul be engaged?

The singer sparked rumors after walking the red carpet at the 2022 Brit Awards wearing a massive diamond ring on her left hand. According to E! News, the pear shape diamond is from Lorraine Schwartz.

Adele also took home awards for Song of the Year ("Easy on Me"), Album of the Year (30), and Artist of the Year

Other winners included Dua Lipa for Best Pop, R&B Artist, Billie Eilish for International Artist, Silk Sonic for International Group, and Olivia Rodrigo for International Song of the Year with "Good 4 U."

TOWNSHEND SAYS THIS ISN'T THE WHO'S FAREWELL

Rock fans are feeling a little bit of normalcy creep back into their lives with the Who going back on the road after being sidlined by the pandemic. Pete Townshend is adamant that the upcoming Who dates are not a "farewell tour," telling Rolling Stone, "Roger (Daltrey) is of the opinion that he wants to sing until he drops. That's not my philosophy of life. There are other things that I want to do, still want to do, and will do, I hope. I hope I'll live long enough to do them."

He went on to say, "But it's not a farewell tour. Apart from anything else, we still have people who have tickets for the U.K. 2019 tour. We're very, very keen to do that tour and we'll be doing that tour in 2023, I think. But I'm talking about stuff I don't really know about. I don't have any guarantees, like everybody else. I don't really know for sure what's going to happen next month."

Pete Townshend says that although the current touring version of the Who pays homage to the band's '60s, '70s, and early '80s lineups -- do not confuse it as a tribute "act": "Y'know, there's a temptation to describe what it is that we're doing with the Who as a nostalgia exercise, but actually what it is a virtual reality exercise, really. It's about trying to re-create what was once there, and inasmuch as we don't particularly need to -- it would be nice to have some new material. But y'know, inasmuch as we don't need new material to do what we used to do, we can pretty much use the same techniques."

DALTREY TALKS CINCINATTI RETURN AND BENEFIT SHOW

One stop will be extremely poignant for the band will be on May 15th when after 42 long years, the Who will return to Cincinnati. The stop will be the band's first in the city since December 3rd, 1979 when 11 fans died in a stampede while entering their concert at Cincinnati's Riverfront Coliseum.

Roger Daltrey appeared on Cincinnati's ABC-TV affiliate WCPO and revealed that the concert will be a benefit show with the proceeds going to The P.E.M. Memorial Scholarship Fund For Finneytown High School Seniors. The fund is named in honor of three Finneytown students who died at the concert -- Steve Preston who had graduated in June 1979 along with Jackie Eckerle and Karen Morrison -- who both would've graduated in 1982: "We're going to do a benefit show for the P.E.M. Memorial, which is the existing foundation today that gives out scholarships for youngsters in the Cincinnati area. And we'll be playing in the new football stadium, the PQL Stadium. It's about time. It's taken a long time, I know, but it's the least we can do in our final years to say thank you to Cincinnati, 'cause it's a great rock town. You've been very, very good to us."

Beyoncé​ and Billie Eilish were among the Academy Award nominees announced on Tuesday (Feb. 8th). Both singers are being recognized in the Best Original Song category.

Beyoncé has earned her first Academy Award nomination, with "Be Alive" from King Richard while Eilish's nod is for "No Time to Die" from the James Bond movie of the same name.

Eilish wrote on Instagram, "thank you SO much to @theacademy for this nomination!! it was an absolute dream to write a song for a @007 film and i'm so honored that it's nominated. peak life experience. THANK YOU!!!"

Other nominees in this category include Diane Warren (Four Good Days), Lin-Manuel Miranda (Encanto), and Van Morrison (Belfast).

Many were expecting Lady Gaga to be recognized for her role as Patrizia Reggiani in House of Gucci. Despite the snub, the gracious star extended her contratulations to the other nominees.

Gaga wrote, "And to all the nominees this year, congratulations on all your hard work, dedication, your nomination and YOUR magic—you all deserve major recognition for what was a truly beautiful landscape of performances and accomplishments this past year. Your dedication during Covid, your huge hearts, and your ability to tell amazing stories is a gift to the whole world during what is for many a very hard time. Congratulations my friends."

Despite writing and recording some of the best loved music in the entire rock era, John Mellencamp admitted he has no interest in listening to his past work. Mellencamp just released his 24th album, Strictly A One-Eyed Jack, which hit Number Five on the Billboard Folk Albums chart.

For Mellencamp music has always been about what's next rather than in the rearview: "I never listen to my old records. Never. The only time I'll ever listen to an old record is when we're ready to go out on tour and I think, 'What can I put in the show that I've never done or ever played live?' 'Cause, there's some songs that I have to play -- and those are easy. But then, there's still another hour of show and I don't wanna play the same songs over and over. And, y'know, guys in the band'll make a suggestion -- 'Y'know, we haven't done 'Jackie Brown' for 10 years, you wanna do 'Jackie Brown' again?'"

Although he's aware of his legacy, Mellencamp told us that he spends virtually no time dwelling on the past: "I never think about that stuff. I'm glad those records were made -- and I was there when they were bein' made and I don't really think about it. Y'know, I'm already writin' songs for a new record, so that's how far ahead I am. I'm talking to you about a record that's been done for a year-and-a-half, so I'm already onto writin' new songs."

Kanye West posted and deleted a message for all of the "women" in the Kardashian family, demanding that they apologize to him. Kanye posted a screenshot of a text conversation between himself and his estranged wife Kim, where he texted her, "Hope you have the best day. Positive vibes your way." Kim responded, "You too! positive vibes all around!" He later texted Kim, "I still need an apology for you not giving me the address to my daughters party."

He captioned the post, "I STILL NEED A PUBLIC APOLOGY FROM THE ENTIRE FAMILY FOR THIS. YOU GIVE EVERYTHING YOU GOT TO SOMEONE THEN THEY TRY TO BULLY YOU AND THEN SAY THEY WON'T APOLOGIZE. IT'S UP TILL THEY ALL TAKE ACCOUNTABILITY EVERY WOMAN THERE INCLUDING CORY."

It was 50 years ago today (February 9th, 1972), that Paul McCartney, along with his new band Wings, performed his first solo show at Britain's Nottingham University. Although McCartney refused to include any Beatles numbers in the band's set, he couldn't resist performing the group's longtime set-closer, a cover of Little Richard's "Long Tall Sally." Incidentally, the gig was eight years to the day of the "Fab Four's" debut in America on The Ed Sullivan Show.

McCartney's idea of reliving the Beatles' early pre-fame days had actually been his idea for the group the day that John Lennon quit the group in 1969. McCartney thought it a good enough idea to revisit as the launch of Wings' live act: "We decided to go back to square one and not form a, sort of, great big 'supergroup' and come out the level the Beatles were at. So, it was kinda funny looking back on it. We just stuck everything in a van -- dogs, children, potty -- and just went up the motorway without any bookings, without any hotels. Anyway, we found Nottingham University and went and did a gig there and (then) did a little, kind of, university tour. So from those small beginnings, we gradually formed Wings."

Wings co-founder and drummer Denny Seiwell says that McCartney formed Wings as a way for him to get back to being a working musician: "Really, I believe that it was his need to just get back and perform live under a controlled situation. Like, he always used to say that the Beatles was a, it was really great to play live with them, but in the, y'know, as soon as they became 'The Beatles,' I mean, they couldn't hear each other, the equipment was so rotten, and it was just such an ordeal to get up on stage and play that there wasn't that much enjoyment from it."

Denny Laine was the sole member of Wings to span the band's decade-long run. He recalled the early summer 1971 phone call from McCartney asking him to help form the group: "Y'know, he was looking for people he could get on with and people who would go on in the future with new ideas. So he just called up and said, 'Paul here, do you fancy getting a band together?"

McCartney told us that he still feels guilt at Linda putting her successful photography career on ice while forming Wings with him -- only to have both fans and critics bash her at every opportunity: "I was very sorry that that happened. It's terrible. Like I say, it's OK for you to go through problems, but if you're a good guy, then it's painful to be part of the reason why these wounds are inflicted on your partner."

Money was always a problem for the early members of Wings, with most of McCartney's assets tied up in legal problems with the Beatles. During the band's initial days, he paid Denny Seiwell, and guitarists Denny Laine and Henry McCullough a meager 70 (British) pounds a week and kept them constantly on call.

Shortly before his 2016 death at age 72, Henry McCullough told us that adding in the fact that he was treated at times as nothing more than a session player for McCartney, the deal was bound to go sour as quickly as it did: "I went into the band not to be a sideman. Once the whole thing. . . We grasped what we were headin' for, it was heads down and everyone worked towards that particular goal -- and it wasn't for very long. But there was sort of revolution in the air. And Denny Seiwell was startin' to feel it a little bit. And all we wanted was to be paid for what we were doin'. I didn't want to be on a weekly wage."

Wings' setlist for its February 1972 "University Tour" was: "Lucille," "Give Ireland Back To The Irish," "Blue Moon Of Kentucky," "Seaside Woman," "Say Darling," "Some People Never Know," "The Mess," "Bip Bop," "Smile Away," "My Love," "Henry's Blues," "Help Me," "Wild Life," and "Long Tall Sally."

The original road lineup of Wings survived three tours; the early 1972 "University Tour," the summer '72 "Wings Over Europe" trek, and the band's only officially booked UK tour in the spring and summer of 1973.

The initial Wings lineup last performed live together on July 10th, 1973 in Newcastle, England. In all, the first touring lineup of Wings performed 58 shows in 11 countries across Europe.

Both Denny Seiwell and Henry McCullough quit the band just prior to Wings leaving for Lagos, Nigeria to record 1973's Band On The Run. Seiwell and McCartney remain close to this day, with McCartney and McCullough finally patching things up -- at Seiwell's urging -- backstage at McCartney's December 20th, 2009 in Dublin, Ireland.

FAST FORWARD

After years of collecting dust in Paul McCartney's archival vaults, the long lost live Wings album Wings Over Europe, is living up to his legend. Released in 2018 as part of the sprawling Paul McCartney And Wings - 1971-73 Limited Edition Box Set, which features both the new Wild Life and Red Rose Speedway "Archival Series" collections combined, Wings Over Europe spotlights the earliest live incarnation of Wings, featuring Paul and Linda McCartney, Denny Laine, Henry McCullough, and Denny Seiwell. All but one of the disc's 20 songs is from the band's summer '72 European trek, with the album's opening number "Big Barn Bed" coming from July 10th, 1973 at the lineup's final gig in Newcastle, England.

Among the highlights on the set is McCartney's first bonafide solo classic, "Maybe I'm Amazed," a pair of Ram favorites, "Eat At Home" and "Smile Away" along with such early Wings staples as "Give Ireland Back To The Irish," "Wild Life," "My Love," "Mary Had A Little Lamb," and "Hi, Hi, Hi" -- along with a pair of 1950's covers including particularly hot versions of Elvis Presley's "Blue Moon Of Kentucky" and a show-closing romp on Little Richard's "Long Tall Sally."

Also included in the recent Red Rose Speedway box set is McCartney's live concert/animation film, The Bruce McMouse Show. The movie, which had long been on die-hard fans wish lists over the years, features classic footage of Wings' first live lineup, performing key tracks during its legendary summer 1972 "Wings Over Europe" tour. Interspersed are comedic clips featuring a family of cartoon-animated mice that live under the concert stage, which were based on McCartney's original drawings.