A 40th anniversary expanded edition of Rush's Moving Pictures album gets released on April 15th. Configurations include a 5 LP vinyl set, a 3CD and digital download option, plus this massive deluxe box set.

A recent interview Nancy Wilson granted radio station WBAB revealed that she and her sister evidently disagree on the lineup of Heart to the degree that Nancy has decided to rebrand her solo band Nancy Wilson's Heart and go on tour without Ann.  A Blabbermouth account of the split attributed it to Ann insisting that Nancy join a new lineup of musicians Ann had put together as a condition of the sisters touring together and accepting what Nancy called "a big offer on the table" for a 2021 Heart tour.  Nancy is opting to stick with her solo band that includes singer Kimberly Nichole and has 2022 dates lined up with Styx.  

Lots of cool offerings in store for the spring 2022 Record Store day on April 23. Here are several...

Allman Brothers Band - Cream of the Crop - 3 LP set

America - Alternates & Rarities - LP

America - History - 180 gram Blue Vinyl LP

Bad Company -1979 Live - 2 LP

Be Bop Deluxe - Live In The Air Age - 3 LP

Black Label Society - Alcohol Fueled Brutality Live - 2 LP

Blondie - Sunday Girl EP - 2 7"Vinyl

David Bowie - Brilliant Adventure - CD EP / Vinyl

David Bowie - Toy - CD EP / Vinyl

Paul Butterfield Blues Band - The Lost Original Elektra Sessions (Expanded) - 3 LP

Chicago -At Carnegie Hall, April 9, 1971 - 3 LP

Alice Cooper - Brutal Planet - 2 LP

Def Leppard - High 'n' Dry - LP

Doors - L.A. Woman - 4 LP

Jerry Garcia - Ragged But Right - 2 LP

Billy F. Gibbons - Hardware (Deluxe Edition) - CD Box Set

Grateful Dead - Wembley Empire Pool, London, England 4/8/1972 - 5 LP

Steve Hackett - The Tokyo Tapes - 3 LP

Kirk Hammett - Portals - LP / CD

Joan Jett And The Backhearts Acoustics - LP

Judas Priest - Hero Hero - 2 LP

Kinks - Waterloo Sunset EP - 12" Vinyl

Knack - Live At The House Of Blues - 2 LP

Nick Lowe - Wireless World - LP

Joni Mitchell - Blue Highlights - LP

Motorhead - Lost Tapes Vol. 2 - 2 LP

Night Ranger - Wasted Time - 7" Vinyl

Pearl Jam - Live On Two Legs - 2 LP

Iggy Pop - Live In Berlin - 2LP

Ramones - The Sire Albums - 7 LP

Keith Richards - Talk Is Cheap / Live At The Hollywood Palladium

Rolling Stones - More Hot Rocks - 2 LP

Santana - Splendiferous - 2 LP

Simple Minds - 5x5 Live - 3 LP

Slash - Live At Studio 60 - 2 LP

Patti Smith - Curated by Record Store Day - 2 LP

Ringo Starr - Ringo the 4th - LP (Blue and Orange options)

Pete Townshend - Face The Face - 2 LP

As always, quantities range from hundreds to several thousands of copies and availability will vary from store to store.

R.I.P. Ian McDonald. A founding member of both King Crimson and Foreigner, McDonald was one of rock's most accomplished multi instrumentalists, playing guitar, saxophone, clarinet, flute and keyboards. His mellotron work was a key component of King Crimson's distinctive sound.

McDonald moved to New York a few years after leaving King Crimson and became a founding member of Foreigner. In addition to playing guitar, keyboards and other instruments, he also had a hand in the arrangements and production of the group's first three albums. McDonald left Foreigner after the release of the group's Head Games album.

He had battled cancer in recent years. McDonald passed away Wednesday at 75.

It's been more than a decade since the NFL staged a Super Bowl halftime show rock fans could get excited about. The Who took the field and stage at the 2011 game. Since then, a few rock acts have had cameo performances with pop artists. Lenny Kravitz shared the spotlight with Katy Perry and Missy Elliott in 2015. The Red Hot Chili Peppers appeared with Bruno Mars in 2014 and Slash shared the stage with The Black Eyed Peas and Usher in 2011. Rock dominated the Big Game mid way concert during a 10 year stretch starting in 2000. Phil Collins (2000), Aerosmith (2001), and Sting (2004) shared the stage with other non-rock acts, and U2 (2002), Paul McCartney (2005) the Rolling Stones (2006), Prince (2007), Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers (2008), Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (2009) and the Who (2010) had the stage to themselves.

This weekend's game extends a nauseatingly long run of pop acts the event has featured since 2011 when Jennifer Lopez and Shakira headline the space.

Photo Carlos Rodrigues Andes CC BY-SA 2.0

Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett will release his first solo recording in 2022. His Portals EP will feature songs he recorded in Los Angeles, Paris and Oahu, Hawaii. The April 23 release will include digital, CD and blue vinyl editions.

Roger Daltrey has indicated that the 2019 album he and Pete Townshend released could well be their final studio collaboration involving new material, but Townshend looks likely to have a new album out soon. The Who guitarist has been recording with bass player Guy Pratt and drummer Ged Lynch. P recent Twitter post by Lynch pictured the three of them with the caption, "To say the last couple of days of recording has been beyond magical would be an understatement." Pratt has recorded with Pink Floyd and on solo projects with David Gilmour and Nick Mason, Roxy Music and Bryan Ferry, Whitesnake, Coverdale-Page and many others, He is also a member of Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets, a band that performs early era Pink Floyd songs. Lynch's track record includes work with Peter Gabriel, Michael Hutchence, Dr. John and Chrissie Hynde.

Another year, another Rock Hall of Fame ballot with a bunch of totally unworthy of consideration nominees. Considering the number of deserving rock bands and artists it has ignored, it's mind boggling that the Hall continues to undermine its credibility with nominees that have little to nothing to do with rock. 2022's list is close to evenly split between legit and ludicrous candidates. Worthy nominees include Pat Benatar, Judas Priest, MC5, New York Dolls and Rage Against the Machine. Passably plausible are Devo, Duran Duran, Erythmics and Carly Simon. This year's crop of preposterous nominees features Dolly Parton, Lionel Richie, Dionne Warwick, Eminem, A Tribe Called Quest and Fela Kuti.