Choice Classic Rock

Choice Classic Rock Blog

New Cindy Blackman Santana, Cat Stevens, Nick Mason & More!

• Blues, New Classic Rock Releases • 1 Comment

I have loaded 18 recently released classic rock songs into high rotation on the playlist – featuring songs from Cindy Blackman Santana, Nick Mason (of Pink Floyd), Cat Stevens and more! Eleven of the songs are from the following newly released albums:

Cindy Blackman Santana - Give The Drummer Some
Cindy Blackman Santana – Give The Drummer Some

Cindy Blackman Santana – Give The Drummer Some … Carlos Santana‘s drummer (and wife) took 3 years to make this record, and it is a joy to behold! The songs encompass pop, funk, rock and jazz – and she is more than ably supported by her husband on guitar, as well as Mahavishu Orchestra legend John McLaughlin, Living Colour’s Vernon Reid and Metallica’s Kirk Hammett. Listen for the tracks Black Pearl, She’s Got It Goin’ On and an incredible cover of the John Lennon classic Imagine. Read the review here.

Nick Mason’s Saucerful Of Secrets – Live At the Roundhouse … The Pink Floyd drummer has finally released this live album – which was recorded in 2018 – after a delayed released due to Covid-19. The 22 songs on the project feature covers and reworkings of many early Pink Floyd classics – spanning two CDs. The recording in impeccable and the musicianship is second to none. Listen for the songs Interstellar Overdrive, See Emily Play and Arnold Layne. Read the review here.

Yusef (Cat Stevens) – Tea For the Tillerman 2 … The incredibly talented singer/songwriter who dropped out of the public eye when he embraced Islam, celebrates the 50th anniversary of the breakthrough album that catapulted him to superstardom, by releasing an entirely reimagined version of this 1970 project. Listen for reworked versions of the tracks But I Might Die Tonight and Miles From Nowhere. Read the review here.

Ace Frehley – Origins Vol. 2 … The former Kiss member has released his second album of covers – featuring some of the most well known songs from the annals of classic rock. Listen for a scorching version of The Rolling Stones song Jumpin’ Jack Flash featuring a fantastic performance by Lita Ford on vocals, and a cover of early Beatles classic I’m Down. Read the review here.

Elvin Bishop & Charlie Musselwhite – 100 Years Of Blues … Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame guitarist Elvin Bishop and Grammy-winning harmonica player Charlie Musselwhite drop their first-ever album as a duo, and it is all authentic, raw blues. Listen for the song Help Me. Read the review here.

New Singles

The other 7 songs are all recently released singles:

Bruce Springsteen – Letter To You and Ghosts … these two songs are the first two singles from the upcoming album Letter To You, which will be The Boss‘s first album featuring the E-Street Band since 2014’s High Hopes. The new album is due for release on October 23rd, 2020.

Tom Petty – Confusion Wheel … this previously unreleased song is from the late singer/songwriter’s box set – Wildflowers & All The Rest – which is scheduled for release on October 16th, 2020.

Mick Fleetwood’s Da da ism – These Strange Times … the Fleetwood Mac drummer has released a new version of a song originally released in 1995 on the band’s 16th studio album Time. The song comes with an eight-minute video that traverses the globe, channeling the Earth and human life’s beauties while acknowledging the current struggles (Covid-19, racial injustice, poverty) faced by people around the world. Click here to see this stunning video on YouTube.

Jimi Hendrix Experience – Voodoo Child (Slight Return) … this song is the first single released from the legendary guitarist’s album Live In Maui, which was recorded in the island paradise on July 20, 1970 . The double CD/3 vinyl record album and an accompanying video documentary is scheduled for release on November 20th, 2020.

Timothy B. Schmit – Cross That Line … this single from The Eagles bassist/vocalist is about the MeTo Movement and the current American president.

Todd Rundgren – Espionage … this new song is a collaboration with Iraqi/Canadian hip-hop artist Narcy and is taken from his impending album Space Force, which will be released to digital platforms as individual singles, each with its own unique artwork, every 3 or 4 weeks with the entire album coming in early 2021.

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New Rolling Stones, Savoy Brown & More!

• Blues, New Classic Rock Releases • No Comments

I have loaded 21 recently released classic rock songs into high rotation on the playlist – featuring songs from The Rolling Stones, Savoy Brown and more! Eighteen of the songs are from the following newly released albums:

Savoy Brown - Ain't Done Yet
Savoy Brown – Ain’t Done Yet

Savoy Brown – Ain’t Done Yet … This British blues band – led by founder/guitar player/vocalist Kim Simmonds – has been around since the mid 1960s – and consistently churn out finely crafted, well-played blues rock. This album is no exception. Listen for the tracks All Gone Wrong, Devil’s Highway and Feel Like A Gypsy. Read the review here.

The Rolling Stones – Goats Head Soup (Deluxe Edition) … Often maligned as one of the band’s lesser works – this album which was originally released in 1973 – has been re-released with an additional disc of outtakes and another disc that features live material from a 1973 concert. The new songs fit in nicely and I believe that they probably would have been included on the original release if the length of the vinyl did not limit the number of songs that would fit on a record in 1973. Listen for the songs All The Rage, Scarlet (The Killers & Jacques Lu Cont Remix) which features Jimmy Page on guitar – and a live version of Brown Sugar – which was recorded in Brussels in 1973. Read the review here.

The Allman Betts Band – Bless Your Heart … This is the second album from Devon Allman and Duane Betts – both sons of the original members of the Allman Brothers Band. If the you like southern rock with a bit of a modern twist – you will like this record. Listen for the tracks Pale Horse Rider, Airboats & Cocaine and a 12 minute jam instrumental Savannah’s Dream. Read the review here.

Walter Trout – Ordinary Madness … The blues/rock guitar shaman, singer-songwriter, and street survivor delivers another batch of his heartfelt six-string excursions on his new record. The album was recorded at a private studio owned by Doors guitarist Robby Krieger and is a well written and impeccably played project. Listen for the songs Ordinary Madness, Heaven In Your Eyes and Make It Right. Read the review here.

The Empty Hearts – The Second Album … This is the second album (go figure!) from a band that consists of Elliot Easton (of The Cars), Clem Burke (of Blondie), Wally Palmar (of The Romantics) and Andy Babiuk (of The Chesterfield Kings) . Listen for the tracks The World’s Gone Insane and Remember Days Like These (which features the one and only Ringo Starr on drums). Read the review here.

Nils Lofgren Band – Weathered … Recorded live while the band was touring to support Lofgren‘s most recent studio record – Blue With Lou – this album features the E-Street guitar player in his element – live. Listen for the song Across The Tracks. Read the review here.

Various Artists – Angelheaded Hipster … This double album’s worth of material is being released to celebrate the U.K.’s legends of glam rock – Marc Bolan and his band, T.Rex. Listen for the track Bang A Gong (Get It On) performed by U2 and Elton John. As my 16 year old daughter would say – It’s a banger! Read the review here.

Tokyo Storm – Optimistic State Of Mind … This UK band came to my attention when they emailed me a link to their debut album. I gave it a listen – and it is well-written, nicely played, melodic AOR with a bit of a bite. Listen for the songs Optimistic State Of Mind and Is This Love. For more information, click here to visit their web site.

New Singles

The other 3 songs are all recently released singles:

Blue Oyster Cult – Box On My Head and That Was Me … these two songs are from the band’s upcoming album The Symbol Remains, which is due to be released on October 9, 2020.

Robert Plant – Too Much Alike … this previously unreleased song – which features a duet with Patty Griffin – is from his upcoming anthology project, Digging Deep: Subterranea – which is scheduled for release on October 2nd, 2020.

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New Jefferson Starship, Waterboys and More!

• New Classic Rock Releases • No Comments

I have loaded 15 recently released classic rock songs into high rotation on the playlist – featuring songs from Jefferson Starship, The Waterboys and more! Six of the songs are from the following newly released albums:

Jefferson Starship - Mother Of the Sun
Jefferson Starship – Mother Of the Sun

Jefferson Starship – Mother Of the Sun … This EP (it’s only 7 songs long) is the first new material released by the band in 12 years. There is only one original member of the band still playing (David Freiberg) – but two of the songs on the new album were written by original band members Grace Slick and the late Marty Balin. The album finds the band returning to their roots with songs of protest. Listen for the tracks Run Away Again, and the extended version of the song What Are We Waiting For?. Read the review here.

The Waterboys – Good Luck, Seeker … The Scottish folk rockers return with their 16th studio album, which finds them progressing through a variety of musical genres and styles – all in the patented Waterboy fashion. Listen for the song The Soul Singer. Read the review here.

Bruce Hornsby – Non-Secure Connection … The former sometimes Grateful Dead keyboard player returns with his second album in two years, which is highly unusual. This project is extremely varied and touches on jazz, contemporary classical music, pop and rock. Listen for the track My Resolve, which features a duet with vocalist James Mercer (of The Shins). Read the review here.

Nick Lowe – Lay It On Me … Lowe seems to only be releasing EPs these days. On this 4 track project, he is backed by the wrestling-mask-clad surf rock/rockabilly band Los Straitjackets, and they definitely have a rave getting their “twang” on. Listen for the songs Here Comes That Feeling and the title track Lay It On Me. Read the review here.

New Singles

The other 9 songs are all recently released singles:

Steve Lukather – Run To Me … The Toto guitar player co-wrote this song with Toto bandmates David Paich and Joseph Williams, who also plays keyboards and sings on the bridge. John Pierce (from Huey Lewis & the News) sits in on bass, and no less than Ringo Starr is the drummer on the track. The song will be included on Lukather‘s solo album, which is due for release in 2021.

The Go-Go’s – Club Zero … this is the first new Go-Go’s song in 19 years. The self-produced track was assembled among band members “via email exchanges.” The Go-Go’s documentary, which was recently released and shown on Showtime, contains scenes of the band working on an early version of the song.

Tom Petty – Wildflowers (Home Recording) … this song is a solo demo recording of the title song for the artist’s 1994 recording. It will be found on the Wildflowers & All the Rest box set, which is due for release on October 16th, 2020. The package’s Super Deluxe Edition features 70 tracks across five CDs, including nine previously unreleased cuts and 34 alternate takes.

Robert Plant – Charlie Patton Highway (Turn It Up Part 1) … the song is a more organic and muscular version of the song Turn it Up, which first appeared on the former Led Zeppelin singer’s 2015 album Lullaby and … The Ceaseless Roar. It is the first new song from his upcoming anthology project, Digging Deep: Subterranea – which is due for release on October 2nd, 2020.

Elvis Costello – We Are All Cowards Now … this is the latest single from the singer-songwriters upcoming album Hey Clockface, which is scheduled for release October 30th, 2020.

Ace Frehley – Space Truckin’ … this is the first single from the former Kiss guitar player’s album – Origins, Vol 2., which is scheduled for release September 18th, 2020.

The Empty Hearts – Well, Look At You … this band is a collaboration between Elliot Easton of The Cars and Blondie drummer Clem Burke.
The song is the first single from the band’s project – The Second Album, which is scheduled for release August 28th, 2020.

America – Remembering … this song is taken from the band’s new eight disc box set – Half Century, which is scheduled for release August 28th, 2020.

SIXX:A.M. – Maybe It’s Time … this song will appear in the upcoming movie Sno Babies, which explores the “grim realities of teenage addiction and its effects on a middle-class suburban town.” The song originally appeared in a different version on the 2016 album Prayers for the Blessed, Vol. 2 by Sixx:A.M. This new version features Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx,  Def Leppard singer Joe Elliott and Guns ‘n Roses guitar player Slash. Click here to watch the extremely powerful video that goes along with this song.

Choice Classic Rock – classic rock radio like you’ve never heard it before!

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Alexa, Play Choice Classic Rock

• Radio Streaming Information • 4 Comments

I am happy to announce that users of Amazon Alexa can now play Choice Classic Rock through our own Alexa “skill”.

Choice Classic Rock Alexa Skill
Choice Classic Rock Alexa Skill

Alexa users can log in to their account and search for “Choice Classic Rock” in the Alexa skills – or click on one of the country links below – and then enable the skill for their Alexa account. Once enabled, they can start the radio station stream just by saying “Alexa, play Choice Classic Rock“.

The skill is currently available only on English language Amazon sites (the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and India) – but we will be looking at expanding it to other languages in the future.

The following links will take you to the Choice Classic Rock Alexa skill for the indicated country’s Amazon site:

The United States
Canada
The United Kingdom
India

If you have an Alexa device, please give the skill a try and let me know your thoughts!

Choice Classic Rock – classic rock radio like you’ve never heard it before!

… 100% Commercial Free – 100% of the Time …

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New Deep Purple, Steve Howe and More!

• New Classic Rock Releases, Radio Streaming Information • No Comments

After much fuss and bother with my previous stream provider, the station is now signed up with a new provider, and streaming not only on the Choice Classic Rock website, but also on various radio station directories throughout the Internet. Thank you for your patience as this situation was straightened out. If you need to input the stream address for a local desktop player – you can use https://streamer.radio.co/s66f2626b4/listen and it will work!

Now the good news! I have loaded 9 newly released classic rock tracks into high rotation on the playlist – featuring songs from Deep Purple, Steve Howe (of Yes) and more! Six of the songs are from the following newly released albums:

Deep Purple - Whoosh!
Deep Purple – Whoosh

Deep Purple – Whoosh! … This is the third album in a row that the band has recorded with producer Bob Ezrin – and is arguably the best of the bunch. It definitely has a Deep Purple sound, but the songs are lithe, full of energy, and the band sounds like they are having a lot of fun. Definitely recommended. Listen for the tracks Step By Step, The Power of the Moon and What For What. Read the review here.

Steve Howe – Love Is … The Yes guitarist’s 12th solo album delivers a very interesting array of alternating instrumentals and sung tracks. Howe is joined by his song Dylan Howe on drums and Jon Davidson who was the Yes vocalist of eight years. Listen for the songs It Ain’t Easy, See Me Through and The Headlands. Read the review here.

New Singles

The other 3 songs are all recently released singles:

The Rolling Stones – Scarlet … this never-before released song is the second single from the deluxe version of the band’s iconic 1973 album Goats Head Soup, which is scheduled for release September 4th, 2020. It features Jimmy Page on guitar. Click here to watch the video.

Bon Jovi – Do What You Can … this song is from the band’s upcoming album 2020, which was supposed to be released earlier in the year but is now scheduled for release on October 2, 2020. The song was written in March during the pandemic, when the singer asked fans to contribute a second verse based on their own experiences during the lockdown.

Tom Petty – There Goes Angela (Dream Away) … the late singer/songwriter recorded this song during the sessions for his Wildflowers album, which was originally envisioned as a double album, but he was forced to cut several songs when it was cut down to a single album. Some of the lost songs appeared on the She’s the One soundtrack in 1996, but others were placed into Petty’s archive and never heard by the public – until now. This song is available for free on his website – but you have to successfully answer a quiz before you can download the song.

Choice Classic Rock – classic rock radio like you’ve never heard it before!

… 100% Commercial Free – 100% of the Time …

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Stream Is Up – But Only On the Website

• Radio Streaming Information • 6 Comments

The stream is back up for now – but only on the www.choiceclassicrock.com web site. My stream provider has still not responded to this issue so I will be moving the stream to a different provider – which means there will be lag of days (or weeks) until the various radio directories on the Internet can be updated with the new stream information. But it will continue to stream from the website!

My sincere apologies for this. It is obviously time to move on to a new stream provider.

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New Pretenders, Stones, Bon Jovi and More!

• New Classic Rock Releases • No Comments

I have just added 18 newly released classic rock tracks into high rotation on the playlist – featuring songs from Pretenders, The Rolling Stones, Bon Jovi and more! Twelve of the songs are from the following newly released albums:

Pretenders - Hate For Sale
Pretenders – Hate For Sale

Pretenders – Hate For Sale … Chrissie Hynde reunites with the only other original member of the band – drummer Martin Chambers – on the Pretenders 11th studio album. It features a return to form of sorts, as the lead singer and band snarl through an album that’s a composite of punk, new wave and mainstream Eighties pop. Listen for the tracks Maybe Love Is In NYC and the title track Hate For Sale. Read the review here.

Kansas – The Absence of Presence … America’s most famous prog band returns with their first album since 2016’s The Prelude Implicit. If you love the violin in Kansas – you will love this album – as it features more violin solos than the band is usually known for. Listen for the song Never. Read the review here.

Paul Weller – On Sunset … It has been 43 years since The Jam‘s In The City heralded the beginning of Weller‘s career – that now spans 15 widely diverse solo albums. As usual, Weller bounces a little bit all over the musical spectrum – but the result is always honest, and in this case, definitely worth a listen. Listen for the tracks Village and On Sunset. Read the review here.

Sparks – A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip … Sparks brothers duo, Ron and Russell Mael, return with their 24th album – continuing to push the musical spectrum, even after a 50 year career. Some call it quirky – but I like it! Tune in now to listen to the songs Self-Effacing and Left Out In the Cold. Read the review here.

The Explorers Club – The Explorers Club … Led by Jason Brewer, the band released two albums on July 10th – this self-titled release and an album of covers (see below). This collection of a dozen originals melds together the sounds of bands like The Beach Boys, The Turtles, Three Dog Night, and Sweet and delivers a flawlessly-crafted sound that sounds like early ‘70s AM radio. All of it is impeccably written, performed and produced. Listen for the tracks Somewhere Else and Ruby. Read the review here.

The Explorers Club – To Sing And Be Born Again … For more than a decade now, the band (led by Jason Brewer) have been bringing their brand of ear candy pop to listeners. On this album they pay homage to their sound by delivering an album of cover songs from the classic rock decades. Listen for the song I Wonder What She’s Doing Tonite (originally recorded by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart). Read the review here.

Stewart Lindsey – Amitié … This is the second album from the band, which is comprised of Eurythmics veteran Dave Stewart and Thomas Lindsey. It is definitely not the Eurythmics (there are no synths to be found) – but the album is authentic and honest with great playing and singing. Listen for the track Hold On. Read the review here.

Ray Wylie Hubbard – Co-Starring … One of the first musical “Outlaws” and an icon in the roots world, this album finds the artist joined by an array of guest artists. Listen for the song Bad Trick, which features Ringo Starr, Don Was, Joe Walsh and Chris Robinson. Read the review here.

New Singles

The other 6 songs are all recently released singles:

The Rolling Stones – Criss Cross … this never-before released song is a single from the deluxe version of the band’s iconic 1973 album Goats Head Soup, which is scheduled for release September 4th, 2020.

Bon Jovi – American Reckoning … motivated by the situation in their home country, the band wrote and recorded this protest song – with all proceeds going to Bryan Stevenson‘s Equal Justice Initiative.

David Gilmour – Yes, I Have Ghosts … the Pink Floyd guitar player’s first new music in 5 years was originally recorded for an audiobook edition of Polly Samson’s (Gilmour‘s wife) A Theatre for Dreamers (2020) novel. It also features his daughter, Romany Gilmour, who provides backing vocals and a backing harp arrangement.

Jefferson Starship – It’s About Time … co-written by original member Grace Slick, this song is the first single from the band’s new album Mother Of the Sun, which is scheduled for release August 21st, 2020.

Deep Purple – Nothing At All … this is the third single from the band’s upcoming album Whoosh, which is scheduled for release August 7th, 2020.

Joan Jett – Jeepster … this song is an advance single from the album Angelheaded Hipster, which features various artists paying tribute to the music of Marc Bolan and T-Rex. The album is scheduled for release September 4th, 2020.

Choice Classic Rock – classic rock radio like you’ve never heard it before!

… 100% Commercial Free – 100% of the Time …

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