Huey Lewis Once Turned Down a Song Given to Him By Bob Dylan

Author Erica Banas // Rock Music Reporter

February 14th, 2020 10:35 AM

Huey Lewis probably wants to go “back in time” regarding this decision.

Lewis was recently interviewed by Jimmy Kimmel at an event at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, and per a report from Billboard on the event, he recalled a couple of career regrets he had. One of those regrets was turning down a song offered to him by Bob Dylan. Lewis and Dylan met during the recording of “We Are The World.”

“I should have cut it. I don’t know what I was thinking,” said Lewis.

Lewis mentioned another regret that would have netted him big bucks: Licensing “The Heart of Rock & Roll” to Coca-Cola to use in a commercial. The attempted deal went down shortly after Michael Jackson signed a deal with Pepsi in 1987. Looking back on his decision, Lewis said, “Before that deal, no music stars did corporate tie-ins. Coca-Cola asked to have a meeting. We flew to Atlanta. They offered us millions of dollars [to use] ‘The Heart of Rock & Roll’ in a commercial. I said no. Stupid.”

Huey Lewis & The News released their new album, Weather, today (February 14.) The band also released a new music video for their single “Her Love is Killin’ Me” which features a number of musicians, actors and other celebrities lip-syncing the song including Kimmel, Jimmy Buffett, Michael Keaton, Joe Montana and more.

Rockers with Tinnitus

• Huey Lewis

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  Lewis has both Meniere's disease and severe tinnitus, which led to he and The News to cancel all of their 2018 tour dates when he suddenly lost his hearing.

• Brian Johnson

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  The AC/DC singer famously stepped away from the band due to hearing loss issues in 2016. He said in an interview with 'Rolling Stone,' that he forgot to wear earplugs during a race in 2008 which resulted in tinnitus symptoms for about six to seven months.

• Eric Clapton

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  Clapton told BBC Radio 2 in January 2018, "I’m concerned with now is being in my 70s and being able to be proficient. I mean, I’m going deaf, I’ve got tinnitus, my hands just about work. I mean, I am hoping that people will come along and see me for more than that [because] I am a curiosity. I know that is part of it, because it’s amazing to myself that I am still here.”
• Pete Townshend

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  Townshend has dealt with tinnitus and partial deafness for years and uses special in-ear monitors when performing to prevent further hearing damage.

• Jeff Beck

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  In an interview with 'FUZZ' magazine in 2001, Beck said of his tinnitus, "In the last year theres been a major improvement, although it does bug me incredibly from time to time. But for me - this is personally - its definitely in proportion to the quality of sleep. The poorer the quality of sleep, the louder the tinnitus, and the more troublesome."

• Phil Collins

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  Collins is back on stage again, but one of the reasons he stepped away from tour for so many years was due to issues with tinnitus.
• Ozzy Osbourne

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  The Prince of Darkness told 'The Sunday Times,' "I suffer from permanent tinnitus . . . which means I've got this constant ringing in my ears, which has also made me somewhat deaf...It's like this Whee! noise in my head all the time. Should have worn earplugs, I guess."

• Sting

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  Sting said in a 2016 radio interview that he had begun wearing hearing aids because of the hearing loss he had from tinnitus, but there was an unfortunate side effect. "I tried wearing a hearing aid, but I heard more than I wanted to hear," said Sting. "People talk a lot of sh-t! Unfortunately, there isn’t a bullsh-t filter on hearing aids."

• Neil Young

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  Young has been dealing with tinnitus for years and once said in an interview, "“I made 'Harvest Moon' because I didn't want to hear any loud sounds. I still have a little bit of tinnitus but fortunately now I'm not as sensitive to loud sounds as I was for a year after the mixing of [1991's Neil Young & Crazy Horse live album] 'Weld.' My hearing's not perfect but it's OK."

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Author Erica Banas // Rock Music Reporter

Category:

• 95.7 BEN FM
• Music

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Huey Lewis