Beverly Hills, CA (By Myleik Teele/ www.bwr-la.com) -
Seventeen years after the last tour by The Cars – one of the most successful and influential bands of the late '70s/early '80s 'New Wave' era – two of its seminal members have customized a modern model that's ready to hit the road this spring in the form of The New Cars.
Joining The Cars' original guitarist Elliot Easton and keyboardist Greg Hawkes for Road Rage Tour 2006 Presented by VH1 Classic, will be an all-star group of rockers: vocalist/guitarist Todd Rundgren, fellow Utopia bassist/vocalist Kasim Sulton and former Tubes drummer Prairie Prince.
Newly inducted Rock & Roll Hall of Famers, Blondie will ride shotgun with The New Cars, performing classics from their new Greatest Hits- Sound & Vision album (Capitol/EMI) which includes the new hit 'Rapture Riders,' a mash-up of Blondie's 'Rapture' and The Doors' 'Riders on the Storm.' The Los Angeles Times calls it 'one of the best mash-ups ever produced.' Other classics on the new CD include 'Heart of Glass,' 'Call Me,' 'The Tide is High' and 'Sunday Girl.'
For the first time ever, a full album download will be offered free with online ticket purchases, a promotion made possible by eMusic, the world's largest retailer of independent music. 'Blondie and The Cars broke new ground as they defined the sound of rock 'n roll in the 80s,' said David Pakman, eMusic President and CEO. 'eMusic and its customers share the same pioneering spirit, and as the No 2 digital music service in the world, we're proud to partner with The New Cars and Blondie to be the first to offer fans an exclusive digital album with their concert ticket.'
The tour promises to be one of the biggest musical events of the year. 'It's very rare to have as many hits as these bands have combined in one show,' said Allen Kovac, CEO of 10th Street Entertainment, the management and marketing company for the bands and tour.
'This will prove to be an historic double-bill with Blondie fresh off of their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and The New Cars performing together for the first time,' said Eric Sherman, Senior Vice President, General Manager, VH1 Classic. 'VH1 Classic has kept music fans in tune with their favorite acts by presenting dozens of tours over the last few years. We are proud to support this stellar line-up that will deliver their classic hits as well as anticipated new songs all summer long.'
'Audiences know these songs and want to re-experience them in a live context,' says Todd Rundgren, 'as The New Cars we want to pay homage to The Cars and know that the best-known songs are the essential core, what we're hanging our hats on.' While concertgoers can certainly expect to hear all of The Cars' biggest hits, the band says they can also look forward to Rundgren's own signature tunes along with several new songs the band recently recorded.
With bands like Fountains of Wayne, the Vines, the Killers, Interpol, Franz Ferdinand and others carrying on The Cars sound, Keyboardist Greg Hawkes notes that 'The Cars' music has aged very well, Todd, Kasim and Prairie are very dynamic performers, and we are all very passionate about recreating the songs and sound that people love.'
A greatest hits collection performed by The New Cars, The New Cars: It's Alive, will be released May 9 on Eleven Seven Music in association with ADA, a Warner Music Group Company. The new release will include classic Cars songs recorded live plus never-before-released studio tracks.
With each ticket purchased through VH1classic.com or Ticketmaster.com, concertgoers will receive a confirmation e-mail with a code to redeem a free download of the complete digital event album from eMusic.com: five songs performed by The New Cars (four classic songs of The Cars, recorded live and the newly penned studio track 'Not Tonight') and five songs performed by Blondie (four previously unreleased live tracks and one new studio cover of 'More Than This'). The confirmation email will include a link that takes ticket buyers to https://blondienewcars.emusic.com, where they will enter the code and their email address. After supplying this information, ticket buyers will be prompted to download the album and will also have the opportunity to sign up for a free eMusic trial.
All New Cars ticket purchases through Ticketmaster include a complimentary 1-year Easy Rider membership, the base level of the New Cars' official fan club, which enables them to access The New Cars Web site, email updates and The New Cars Message Board. All New Cars fans have the option of buying special VIP packages during presale and general on-sale periods through Ticketmaster (or via the Web site www.thenewcars.com for non-Ticketmaster venues).
These VIP packages offer a range of benefits including amazing seats, a pre-show party, backstage access, and meet & greets with The NewCars! All VIP packages include a $20 electronic gift card to The New Cars Store, and an exclusive "Express Lane" upgraded fan club membership ($20 value).
Fans can join The New Cars fan clubs without purchasing tickets, by visiting www.thenewcars.com.
Tickets go on sale Saturday, March 18th. Advance tickets are available now at www.vh1classic.com or www.ticketmaster.com.
VH1 Classic Presents: The New Cars and Blondie – Road Rage Tour 2006
Fri-May 12 Robinsonville, MS Grand Casino Tunica Event Center
Sat-May 13 Grand Prairie, TX Nokia Theatre
Thu-May 17 Phoenix, AZ Dodge Theatre
Fri-May 19 Las Vegas, NV Aladdin Theatre for the Performing Arts
Sat-May 20 Universal City, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
Tue-May 23 Alpine, CA Viejas Casino
Thu-May 25 Saratoga, CA The Mountain Winery
Fri-May 26 Reno, NV Reno Events Center Downtown
Sat-May 27 Kelseyville, CA Konocti Field Amphitheater
Tue-May 30 Englewood, CO Coors Amphitheatre
Thu-Jun 1 Hinckley, MN Grand Casino Amphitheatre
Sat-Jun 3 Highland Park, IL Ravinia Pavilion (excluded from digital album promotion)
Sun-Jun 4 Cuyahoga Falls, OH Blossom Music Center
Tue-Jun 6 Vienna, VA Tickets – onsale April 1 (*excluded from digital album promotion)
Wed-Jun 7 Boston, MA Bank of America Pavilion
Fri-Jun 9 Wantagh, NY Jones Beach Music Theater
Sat-Jun 10 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center
Tue-Jun 13 Orlando, FL Hard Rock Live (Universal Studios)
Wed-Jun 14 Clearwater, FL Ruth Eckerd Hall
Thu-Jun 15 Hollywood, FL Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Sat-Jun 17 Atlanta, GA Chastain Park Amphitheater (pre-sale 3/14 / general on sale: 3/25)
Sun-Jun 18 North Charleston, SC Oyster Shell & North Charleston Coliseum
Wed-Jun 21 Toronto, ON Molson Amphitheatre
Fri-Jun 23 Montreal, QC Bell Centre
Sat-Jun 24 Atlantic City, NJ The Borgata Event Center
Sun-Jun 25 Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun Casino & Resort
Fri-Jun 30 Clarkston, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre
Sat Jul 01 Saratoga Springs, NY Saratoga Performing Arts Center
THE NEW CARS
For more information about The New Cars go to www.TheNewCars.com or www.MySpace.com/TheNewCars
BLONDIE
For more information about Blondie go to www.Blondie.net or www.MySpace.com/Blondie.
