Classic Rock Names Return With New Music This May

Music icons Paul McCartney and Peter Frampton are set to unveil fresh studio albums in May 2026, while legendary acts The Who and Eagles revisit key moments from their storied pasts.

McCartney’s upcoming 27th studio effort, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, draws inspiration from a winding path near his childhood home that once led him to the banks of the River Mersey. Produced by Andrew Watt, the album marks his first release since the globally successful McCartney III in 2020.

Frampton’s Long-Awaited Return and Other New Rock Releases

Frampton’s Carry the Light marks his first collection of entirely new original material in over 15 years. The project features an array of collaborators, including Graham Nash, Sheryl Crow, Tom Morello, and Benmont Tench.

Elsewhere, The Black Keys return with Peaches!, their first album mixed entirely by the band since 2006’s Magic Potion. Frontman Dan Auerbach described the record as their “most natural” since their 2002 debut, The Big Come Up. Meanwhile, former Queensrÿche vocalist Geoff Tate revisits one of the band’s most iconic narratives with the forthcoming sequel Operation: Mindcrime III, continuing a story first introduced decades ago.

Classic Acts Revisit Landmark Performances

The Who will release Live at Eden Project, capturing a standout modern-era performance featuring Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey alongside the Heart of England Philharmonic Orchestra. The set blends major hits with rarities such as “Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere” and “The Rock” from Quadrophenia.

Meanwhile, Eagles expand the celebration of their landmark album One of These Nights with a 50th-anniversary edition. The release includes newly remixed tracks and a rediscovered 1975 live recording featuring 16 previously unheard performances. Notably, the concert captures Bernie Leadon’s final full show with the band.

Further details on these releases—and other rock albums arriving in May 2026—are expected to be revealed as part of an ongoing, regularly updated list tracking the year’s upcoming records.

May 1
Adrian Belew, The Atlantic Years: 1989-1992 (3CD box)
Bill Withers, Just As I Am (40th anniversary CD reissue)
Black Keys, Peaches!
Bram Tchaikovsky, Strange Men, Changed Men: The Complete Recordings 1978-1981 (3CD box set)
Cutting Crew, All For You: The Virgin Years 1986-1992 (3CD box)
Claypool Lennon Delirium, The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy
Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds, Live Trax Vol. 73: 2/10/1997 Branscomb Memorial Auditorium
Eagles, One of These Nights (expanded anniversary 3CD/1 Blu-ray or 3LP reissues)
Funkadelic, Free Your Mind … and Your Ass Will Follow (remastered 2LP reissue)
Geoff Tate [Queensryche], Operation: Mindcrime III
Haircut 100, Boxing the Compass (vinyl release)
INXS, Kick (high fidelity 180-gram black vinyl reissue)
Jerry Garcia and Merl Saunders, GarciaLive Volume 22: September 25th, 1971 – Lion’s Share, San Anselmo, CA (2CD set)
Martin Barre [Jethro Tull], The Acoustic Trio and the Electric Quartet Live in the USA and Europe (2CD set)
Oteil Burbridge and Lamar Williams Jr. [Allman Brothers Band], The Offering
Paul McCartney, Wild Life; Red Rose Speedway (remastered CD reissues); Flowers in the Dirt; Flaming Pie (remastered CD and LP reissues)
Toadies, The Charmer
UFO, The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent (expanded 2CD deluxe reissue)

May 8
Iain Matthews [Fairport Convention], Rhythm of the West: The Columbia Years 1975-1977 (6CD box set)
Jack Bruce [Cream], Smiles and Grins: Broadcast Sessions 1970-2001 (remastered 4CD/2Blu-ray box)
The Knack, Knackology: The Zen Recordings
Linda Perry [4 Non Blondes], Let It Die Here
Megadeth, Unplugged in Boston (CD digipak, colored vinyl and cassette reissue)
Midge Ure [Ultravox], A Man of Two Worlds
Mr. Big, Hey Man (multi-channel SACD hybrid reissue)
Neil Diamond, Wild at Heart (with Rick Rubin)
Peter Gabriel, Live At WOMAD 1982 (first-ever CD and vinyl releases)
Small Faces, Ogdens’ Nut Gone Flake (expanded 3CD reissue)
Social Distortion, Born to Kill (digital, CD, 2LP black vinyl and pink and yellow double vinyl releases)
Various artists, Soul to Soul: Music From the Original Soundtrack (DVD/Blu-ray releases with Santana, Ike and Tina Turner, the Staple Singers, others)
Ween, Brown Box (10CD set); White Pepper (vinyl reissue); Quebec (red and rink 2LP vinyl reissue)

May 15
Alan Parsons Project, Eye in the Sky (Blu-ray audio reissue with Dolby Atmos and 5.1 mixes by Parsons)
Beach Boys, The Pet Sounds Sessions Highlights (2CD or 2LP sets)
Billy Thorpe, Children of the Sun (expanded and remastered CD and digital release; remastered LP edition)
Emerson Lake and Palmer, Trilogy (remastered 2CD deluxe edition); Love Beach (24-bit/96 kHz remastered reissue); Black Moon (expanded 2CD deluxe edition); In the Hot Seat (expanded 2CD deluxe edition)
Humble Pie, As Safe As Yesterday Is; Town and Country (expanded and remastered CD reissues; black and white vinyl editions)
Jethro Tull, Under Wraps: The Unwrapped Edition (expanded 5CD/Blu-ray reissue)
Peter Frampton, Carry the Light
Kraftwerk, Radio-Activity (50th anniversary Blu-ray audio reissue with new Dolby Atmos mix)
Slayer, Hell Awaits (expanded 40th anniversary 3LP reissue)
Steve Miller Band, Fly Like an Eagle (50th anniversary picture disc reissue)
Style Council, Cafe Bleu (expanded 6CD or 3LP reissues)
Yungblud, Idols: Complete (clear vinyl edition)
Ziggy Marley, Brightside

May 22
Dave Matthews Band, Take Me Back / Live From the Gorge (5LP hardwood vinyl box)
Dead Milkmen, Big Lizard in My Backyard (40th anniversary digital, CD, cassette and vinyl reissues)
Ed O’Brien [Radiohead], Blue Morpho
Erik Gronwall [Skid Row], Bad Bones
Lee “Scratch” Perry, Jungle Lion – The Upsetter Singles 1973: Chapter 1 (2CD set)

May 29
The Alarm, Transformation (CD, LP and digital releases)
Brian Robertson [Thin Lizzy], Diamonds and Dirt (expanded 2CD reissue)
Bruce Springsteen, Live From Asbury Park 2024 (3CD set)
Electric Light Orchestra, Out of the Blue; Discovery (vinyl reissues)
Guided By Voices, Crawlspace of the Pantheon
Paul McCartney, The Boys of Dungeon Lane (CD, digital and black, white, gold and pink vinyl releases)
Quicksilver Messenger Service, Who Do You Love: The Recordings 1967-1972 (7CD box)
Shinedown, EI8HT (digital, CD and evergreen or orange 2LP vinyl releases)
Smashing Pumpkins, Gish (black or gray with pink-and-purple splatter anniversary vinyl reissues)
Various artists, Really Into Somethin’: Brit Girl Sounds and Styles 1962-1970 (3CD box with Dusty Springfield, Lulu, Cilla Black, Petula Clark, others)
Various artists, Where the Willow and the Dogwood Grow (featuring Tom Waits songs by Bruce Springsteen, Robert Plant, Willie Nelson, others)
The Who, Live at Eden Project (2CD and 3LP releases)

June and Beyond
Bernie Marsden [Whitesnake], Look at Me Now (CD reissue with Ian Paice, Neil Murray, Jon Lord, others)
Ian Hunter [Mott the Hoople], The Singles Collection 1975-83 (2CD set)
Pink Floyd, 8-Tracks
George Thorogood and the Destroyers, The Baddest Show on Earth (standard and hi-res digital, CD or LP editions)
Hawkwind, Psychedelic Selection (CD, 2LP and digital releases)
Yes, Aurora
Joe Bonamassa, The Spirit of Rory: Live From Cork (CD/Blu-ray release)
Chris Squire, Fish Out of Water: The 50th Anniversary Remix (2CD and half-speed master vinyl releases)
Emerson Lake and Powell, Emerson, Lake and Powell (limited edition black and colored vinyl reissues)
Doobie Brothers, Takin’ It to the Streets (50th anniversary vinyl reissue)
Foreigner, The Eye of the Storm