Arroe Collins Cassette Deck Radio Air Checks: Recent Episodes
Arroe Collins
I air checked nearly every show. From my bedroom in 1976 forward. Forty One years and counting. I still hear my program directors, "Grab an air check. Lets talk." That was never a good sign. Every chance you were taking now rested in their next decision.
Billy Joel must be good. A section of Route 107 in Oyster Bay, New York is about to be named after the Classic Rocker. Oyster Bay is home to Joel's motorcycle shop, 20th Century Cycles. If the bill is approved, Billy will be the second artist in the state with a road dedicated in his honor. In 2013, Route 375 in Ulster County was renamed Levon Helm Memorial Boulevard. Helm, who died in April 2012 from cancer, lived in nearby Woodstock, New York.
Brian May of Queen, Elton John, Dave Grohl, Chrissie Hynde.
They've all gathered to record.
(song)
The BBC is raising funds for Children in Need. And just like We Are the World and Do They Know Its Christmas. The video is brimming with the world's best musicians. Including the man that penned out the Beach Boys classic Mr. Brian Wilson.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqLTe8h0-jo
Billy Idol is the latest Classic Rocker to sign up for a Vegas residency.
The "White Wedding" and "Dancing With Myself" icon has announced a deal with the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay for Billy Idol: Forever with shows on March 16th, 18th, 19th, 23rd, 25th and 26th -- and six more dates during May.
The British-born Idol, who has sold more than 40-million records, says, "Watch out Vegas! We are planning a beast of a show that will rock and surprise my fans. Particularly those who adhere to the 'what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas' mantra!"
Music Critics have always loved Bruce Springsteen. How will Hollywood take the master of classic rock?
His songwriting has amazed four decades of fans. But what happens when the King of Jersey steps into filmmaking? It's a short film. Based on the lyrics of the song featured on his latest cd.
A tune he says came to him as a title first. It sat there for years. Then the visual appeared. That of a post apocalyptic idea
Bruce isn't keeping it from those who've been with him the entire way. He's posted the entire 10 minute flick.
http://brucespringsteen.net/
Hunter of Invisible Game. The new short film from Bruce Springsteen
Ann Wilson of Heart. On the road now with her sister. But later this year. She's headed out on her first-ever solo tour. She calls the seven-concert run The Ann Wilson Thing. She says it's a "passion project" that will give her the opportunity to sing songs different from how she would in Heart, in intimate venues where she can be "up close and personal" with the audience.
The only announced dates so far are at the Rams Head on Stage in Annapolis, Maryland on October 9th and 10th.
ZZ Top has been tapped to step off the tour bus. The Texas Rocker's won't be hitting Asheville next Wednesday night.
Knowing all things medical should be taken seriously. But do you remember the day when the thunder makers of arenas were forced into timeout because of addiction, love lost and behind the scenes fighting? It shaped the giants of show business. Turning them into comic book super heroes. Well...the times. They are a changin. Ticket Taker's demanding to see their favorite bands live on stage have to put up with the process of age. Bassist Dusty Hill has kidney stones.
Which...rumor has it can easily be cured by hops and barley processed into liquid perfection.
2015... The year The Who made it to 50. And from the ashes of challenge and change. Roger Daltry and Pete Townsend have decided to tour. Directors, Producers and historians are playing a different game. They're making movies. Pete Townshend's iconic guitar-smashing routine may have only been limited to small London clubs if it hadn't been for two men who stumbled upon him and his band mates in the early '60s.
In Lambert & Stamp, two aspiring filmmakers helped transform that unknown rock outfit into the sonic powerhouse The Who. Chris Stamp and Kit Lambert simply wanted to make an underground movie about musicians when they found original members Roger Daltrey, Townsend, and John Entwistle. The two eventually scrapped everything to manage the group of peculiar musicians to superstardom.
Be it great business or just old chums wanting to jam. Lou Gramm has confirmed that he and Mick Jones have reunited.
The original seeds. The brain children of Foreigner. Won't be penning out tunes for the band though. Choosing instead to work together on each other's solo projects. Basically a swapping out of creative ideas. Both collections due for release early next year. The songwriting team of Gramm and Jones back together look great on web pages connected to concert ticket sales. But! Critics of Classic Rock are still left with a burning question. The material from 2003 that remains unfinished. Will it ever find its place inside the door of Music History. You know me. The moment I hear. You'll be the first to know...
Nikki Sixx is more than just a member of Motley Crue. The radio disc jockey is a main feature Saturday night on VH1 Classic. Nikki admits to being a very shy person. But where did he once go to hide? The episode debuts Saturday on VH1 Classic at 10:00 p.m ET.
Since the birth of music. The questions been: How far will it go before going silent? Classic Rocker Neil Young's got a vision. He's signed a deal with the Beatles to sell their catalog. The very Neil Young that inducted Paul McCartney into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame has vowed to create a community of musicians geared toward putting focus on the future. Preserving the music. Not generating a landslide of mp3's 4's and wavs for museum display. Neil Young believes it's time to represent what music really is before its lost in a digital age of easy to replace.
Ron Campbell. Even hardcore Beatles fans may not know the name. But you know of the game he played. He was the animator that brought the Beatles to life on Saturday mornings and in the film Yellow Submarine.
Paul McCartney's bucket list. Creating music with Bob Dylan. Dylan recorded a version of The Beatles' "Things We Said Today," written by Paul, for last year's The Art of McCartney tribute album. Paul tells us that was the one track on the album that really jumped out at him. "I think he did a really stunning version of it. Certainly out of left field. It's not a normal version of it, but it's great. I thought it was lovely."
The greatest trip on the planet. Will always be the vinyl album. Always moving forward. And no matter how fast it spun. The end result was unforgettable Classic Rock. MTV founding DJ Mark Goodman knows the way of the album spin. He's pushed hard to re-release The Midnight Special
Steven Tyler's new release has dropped into a fresh field of country livin. His new song is titled "Love Is Your Name." According to the Aerosmith front man he's always written in the style of Country. It later grew into the edge that first made him famous.
Phil Rudd is a name you don't hear much about. Not unless AC/DC is cruising back to town. Just because the tour bus is parked doesn't mean it's time to blow torch it then sell the metal. AC/DC's drummer says Malcolm Young's current health issues won't unplug Australia's most famous band of brothers.
Although there's no direct plans for AC/DC's new album to be released. He recently vowed to fans of Classic Rock that only death can stop the band. Until then they can take in his first ever solo effort. Head Job hits I Heart Radio on Friday. The first cut is Repo Man
It's been seven years since Def Leppard's released new material. That's about to end. Their name titled new collection of organically created songs will arrive on October 30th. Fourteen days before the release comes the first song Lets Go.
James Taylor's on iHeart Radio tonight. The Icon series puts focus on his new album Before This World. The first artist to be signed to the Beatles Apple label wasn't John or Ringo. But James. His creative mind is still pushing lyrics and acoustic guitar riffs in worldly direction.
Is it a new trend? Or is Classic Rock pushing itself into the present? Half way through 2015 and the biggest selling cd's MP3's and limited vinyl on the market is coming from Bob Dylan, Randy Bachman, ToTo, Ringo Starr and Pink Floyd.
Grace Slick is a fan of Fleetwood Mac, but she thinks it's time for them to walk away. The former Jefferson Airplane frontwoman says, "I saw on television a filming of Fleetwood Mac doing something and I was OK as long as I didn't look at 'em. I couldn't look at 'em. They sounded great...and if I looked away and imagined young people singing I was OK with it. There's something about old people singing rock 'n' roll lyrics that bothers me. It just doesn't match."
Fleetwood Mac is on tour in New Zealand and unavailable for comment.
Grace has been saying this since the late '90s, and back in 1999, she told us that Mick Jagger should have hung it up. But she's changed her tune on that, saying, "The only so-called old people I've seen that I really liked and thought, 'That still works,' is The Rolling Stones. They did a thing that was filmed in a park in Great Britain and the way they acted, the way they sang, the musicianship...just worked really well. It was good rock 'n' roll." She is most likely referring to their 2013 show in London's Hyde Park.
Def Leppard's Vivian Campbell. Although reports from the frontline have labeled him cancer stricken again. He's relentless on giving to the fans. Vivian has posted on Facebook that he's very happy to say he won't be missing any more shows.
Steven Tyler's been hanging out in Nashville. He's working on his first solo album. Not too many are surprised about him taking on a country feel. He is expected to sign a deal soon with the Big Machine Label Group, home to Tim McGraw, Reba McEntire, The Band Perry and Taylor Swift. The album will either be out late this year or early 2016.
You know his voice. You know his face. His band has been part of this nations culture for five decades. Now.... Justin Hayward has released his first ever solo effort.
http://www.justinhayward.com/
Most know of the place. The very radio station they were listening to. When first introduced to Def Leppard. Fronted by one of music's most present lead vocalists. Joe Elliott isn't quitting the band. But moving outward.
Classic Rock has always had its moments. And this might be one of them. Randy Bachman and Peter Frampton teaming up.
The front man of BTO and Guess Who has just released the first track to his new collection of songs called Heavy Blues. It was Neil Young that influenced Bachman to dig a little deeper. Do something fearless. Also appearing on Bachman's new cd? Joe Bonamassa and Robert Randolph. Look for it April 15. Or pre-order now.
A New York-area specialty bakery has come up with a sweet way to celebrate John Lennon's birthday. Baked by Melissa, noted for their creatively decorated and flavored cupcakes, will try to break a Guiness World Record next Tuesday.
Melissa's is creating a giant peace sign in Central Park consisting of 40,000 bite-sized cupcakes -- which would qualify as the world’s largest cupcake art mosaic. That sweet treats will then be distributed to those taking part in the Yoko Ono and John Lennon Educational Tour Bus human peace sign. (Time Out New York)
Classic Rocker Rick Seratte. Best known for his keyboards and vocals in Foreigner, Whitesnake and Poco. He's been around the world with even bigger names. The men and women of our U.S. Forces.
Boston is in the final stage of rehearsals for a tour which gets underway on April 30th in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Boston rarely tours two years in a row, but a post on the band's website says the enthusiasm of fans on last year's tour encouraged them to hit the road again this year. As a result, they have some "exciting new additions to the set list," which is based on the input of some of those fans. The tour runs through August 30th in Kansas City, Missouri.
Over the weekend Don Henley and Billy Joel did something unusual. To help promote Don's new album Cass County they conducted an interview in front of a paying audience. Which ended up being a new chapter in the history of Classic Rock
It's official. British born Singer/Songwriter Phil Collins is a Texan. That's because the drummer owns one of the world's largest collections of artifacts from the Alamo. To which he just donated to the Big Star State.
Joe Perry of Aerosmith talks about a crazy encounter. Here's how it went down. They heard noises in a nearby forest. Grabbed the video camera. Once inside the leaves and trees. A huge black hairy creature dominated their fear. Did Joe Perry see Big Foot?
Jimmy Page is on tour. Pressing the flesh to sell books. Pages filled with Page. Not words. But wall to wall photographs of Classic Rock's most famous guitarist. -sound bite-
If you collect autographs. Do your homework. Jimmy's not signing these books. He's got a specially designed rubber stamp.
South Carolina. Isn't the only state reshuffling its image. The people of Ohio. Want to take down their state song. Hang On Sloopy from The McCoys should be in a museum. And guess which Classic Rocker's have been suggested to replace it. The James Gang's Funk Number 49. And The Pretenders My City Was Gone. Online voting is currently underway.
Joey Kramer. You know him. Big chance you've been Rockin with him the entire distance. Without his skins and heart pounding kick pedals. How much of Aerosmith would you truly be addicted to? During this long hard drive to reconnect. Then stay in tune to music like a classic Mustang and Corvette. The makers of our harmonious addictions are breaking down.
Aerosmith was forced off the tour bus last night. There's talk that Drummer Joey Kramer needs the timing belt changed in his ticker. No word yet on whether it's going to affect their August 28th show in Atlanta. The good news is... Joey Kramer's hard hitting drum smacking rhythm carrying arms feet and invisible beat are in the shop. And if this was Reality TV... fans would probably hire Danny from Counting Cars to refurbish this classic.
A bit of confusion has always played a role within the ranks of Classic Rock. Who and what is? Hard guitar Jeff Labar and his Cinderella walk a fine line of description. Until you hear him bare his rooted soul.
Getting the chance to see Paul McCartney in concert isn't always a once in a lifetime moment. Outside of James Brown... The former Beatle is the hardest working man in show business.
He's never been known for canceling a show. Until this past weekend. The curse of Japan has struck him again. In 66 the Beatles were loudly protested in Budokan. In 1980 McCartney was arrested for carrying pot. Then denied access back in the country. His return over the weekend was to be... that moment. A lifetime of challenges finally coming to a peaceful end.
Only to be sidelined by medical officials claiming Paul is too sick to play live. For nearly 50 years... there's never been a live performance. The curse continues...
Several times over the past years Don Henley has openly talked about putting together another solo project. But something different. A lot more about who he is and where he's from. Cass Country will be out September 25th, and Henley fans can pre-order the album now through iTunes. There will be a standard 12-song edition on CD, vinyl and digital, as well as a 16-track deluxe CD and digital version. Henley's website is selling a super-deluxe edition of Cass Country including a 50-page booklet with exclusive photos, collector postcards, a deluxe CD and a deluxe vinyl package.
Check out a trailer for the album on YouTube.
Henley will hit the road in October with Shawn Colvin as his opening act. Dates and venues will be announced soon.
Hey remember Jackson Browne? Critics of Classic Rock have always said he's one of few that mastered the art of cutting right to the emotional core — taking listeners deep inside very personal situations. Then the man and poetic expressions dropped off the page. Until now. Don Henley, Bruce Springsteen, Bonnie Raitt, Lyle Lovett and long list of others are paying tribute to Mr. Browne with an album called Looking Into You.
Just in case you missed it. Charlotte's Tommy DeCarlo finally got to play in his hometown as the front man of Classic Rock's biggest acts Boston. Tommy did more than recreate the high pitch vocal changes that Brad Delp once made famous. Several times. The bands creator Tom Sholz moved from behind the keys to play lead. That gave DeCarlo the opportunity to become part of the other side of Boston's fame. Not synthesizers but the sound of those infamous organs.
David Coverdale. The former front man of Deep Purple. MTV's Rock God from White Snake. The Purple Album from Whitesnake is out May 19th. David calls it a labor of love. For the band it was an incredible opportunity to take from the past and give to the present.
Just cuz the kids are cruisin back to class. Doesn't keep "the class" out of newly released Classic Rock. Grab your pad and paper. Mellencamp, Seger and Randy Bachman are back. First: After a four year hiatus. Mellencamp returns with Troubled Man. Bob Seger hasn't cracked the new music code for eight years. His new release: All the Roads And Randy Bachman from the Guess Who and Bachman Turner Overdrive rips the knob off your Ipod with Every song tells a story.
On Saturday in Cleveland, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will induct a group of artists that includes the late Lou Reed, the late Stevie Ray Vaughan, the late Paul Butterfield and his Butterfield Blues Band, Ringo Starr, Bill Withers, The "5" Royales, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts and Green Day. Each day this week we'll profile one or two of the inductees, starting with Stevie Ray Vaughan and the Butterfield Blues Band.
It seems strange to talk about blues great Stevie Ray Vaughan and David Bowie in the same sentence, but it was Bowie who gave Stevie Ray his big break after seeing him perform in Montreux, Switzerland in 1982. Bowie said, “Stevie completely floored me. I probably hadn’t been so gung-ho about a guitar player since seeing Jeff Beck in the early '60s.” Stevie played on Bowie's 1983 Let's Dance album and was signed to Epic Records by the legendary John Hammond. Stevie's star rose quickly with five studio albums in seven years before he lost his life in a 1990 helicopter accident. John Mayer will induct Stevie; his brother Jimmie Vaughan will accept and perform in his honor.
It's not just a page from Rock's past history. The movement is moving forward. The Hollywood Vampires are set to play a couple of shows in September with GnR's Matt Sorum and Duff McKagan plus Johnny Depp and Joe Perry. The Roxy on the Sunset Strip on Sept. 16 and 17, The band will also play for Rock in Rio on Sept. 24.
Just because your band's been together 30 years doesn't mean you have to act like it.
The best way to celebrate an anniversary is to pull off a Jon Bon Jovi.
Reach your hand into a giant vat of songwriting success and whip out only the best. While stretching the strings of every guitar....to bleed the lyrics and riffs of unheard unreleased new pieces that'll drive fans of classic rock summertime nuts.
Jon Bon Jovi calls the 30th anniversary box set part jukebox-come-to-life, part rock ‘n’ roll tent revival and a Bon Jovi concert marathon.
For more information on Bon Jovi, please visit the official website: www.bonjovi.com
Not days or weeks but years. There's always been this dark side rumor that Metallica almost fired their famous drummer Lars Ulrich. Kirk Hammett has exposed the truth.
Janet Jackson didn't make it in. But Cheap Trick did. I'm more impressed that NWA got the invitation. Ice Cube and company have been an instrumental part of keeping those riffs and hardcore bass beats alive inside a generation passionately in love with loud rhythms and lyrics. Also headed into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame is Steve Miller, Deep Purple and Chicago. The induction is April 8th in New York.
KISS front man Paul Stanley has always been at the forefront of reinvention. Now a book designed to share his tales with his kids. What is it like to have Paul Stanley as your father?
KISS hits AMC tonight. Paul Stanley. Gene Simmons. Bring their Hall of Fame attitude to primetime on 4th and Loud.
Chronicles of the inaugural season of their Arena Football League team, the L.A. Kiss.
Classic Rocker's YES. With songs like Roundabout, I've Seen All Good People and Owner of a Lonely Heart. Fans of the band have never stood back from embracing the art of YES...
Their new album Heaven and Earth is no different. But the lead singer is. It's Jon Davison
Freddie Mercury may be gone... but in Classic Rock that doesn't mean forever. The new release from Queen features not one... But three... Vocal pieces from Mr. Mercury. Queen Forever is available as a 20-track CD and as an extended 36-track two-CD set.
We know the Rock Stars. Rarely. If ever. Does the fan. Get to know who and what made the music. Rumors from Fleetwood Mac. One of the biggest and best ever. Ken Caillat was the man at the board when Mick, Stevie and Lindsey put their thoughts and ideas into music.
Classic Rock's best story isn't always situated in the center of success. There can be no glory unless there's a story. Rollingstone Magazine reporter Robert Greenfield was the only writer allowed to put the experience into print.
Tommy Shaw of Styx he's big enough to be a one man band but its never been part of his plans.
6/23 – Tampa, FL
6/25 – West Palm Beach, FL
6/27 – Birmingham, AL
6/28 – Atlanta, GA
6/30 – Charlotte, NC
7/2 – Bristow, VA
7/3 – Virginia Beach, VA
7/5 – Uncasville, CT
7/7 – Gilford, NH
7/9 – Mansfield, MA
7/11 – Bethel, NY
7/12 – Darien Center, NY
7/14 – Toronto, ON
7/17 – Clarkston, MI
7/23 – Wantagh, NY
7/24 – Saratoga Springs, NY
7/25 – Holmdel, NJ
8/8 – Sioux Falls, SD
8/11 – Kansas City, MO
8/17 – Cincinnati, OH
8/18 – Nashville, TN
8/21 – Dallas, TX
8/22 – Woodlands, TX
8/23 – Austin, TX
8/27 – St. Paul, MN
8/28 – Grand Forks, ND
8/30 – Noblesville, IN
9/1 – Allentown, PA
9/4 – Maryland Heights, MO
9/5 – Tinley Park, IL
9/16 – Auburn, WA
9/17 – Ridgefield, WA
9/19 – Mountain View, CA
9/22 – Chula Vista, CA
9/23 – Phoenix, AZ
9/25 – Albuquerque, NM
9/26 – Denver, CO
9/28 – West Valley City, UT
9/30 – Spokane, WA
10/2 – Bozeman, MT
10/4 – Bismarck, ND
Read More: Def Leppard Announce 2015 North American Tour with Styx | http://ultimateclassicrock.com/def-leppard-styx-tesla-2015-tour/?trackback=tsmclip
LOS ANGELES - Mike + The Mechanics hit the road in 2014 to celebrate the 25th anniversary “The Living Years.” The revelry will spill into 2015—which also happens to be the band’s 30-year anniversary—as the group kicks off a North American tour in Virginia on February 26. This will mark the first North American trek the band has made since their tour supporting the initial release of Living Years in 1989. LIVING YEARS DELUXE EDITION will also make its U.S. debut on February 10 when Rhino releases an expanded version of the group’s biggest album.
Oscar Award Winner Al Pacino is starring in a RnR flick with the God of Thunder Gene Simmons. Al Pacino plays the part of a Rock Star that decides to change his life when he discovers a letter to him by John Lennon. Danny Collins is in select theaters now.
In this age of instant downloads and no album covers. Gone are the modern waves of Classic Rock heroes. Not if drummer Carmine Appice has his way. He that kept Ozzy, Rod Stewart Vanilla Fudge and the new group Rated X on time. Has turned the trap set into an all out drum war.
And this is how fast the world of Classic Rock changes. Just ten days ago on the Classic Rock Report. Blues legend Johnny Winters spoke out in ways of reconnecting his unforgettable methods of guitar riffing with the fans that have never left his side...
Johnny Winters is gone.
http://www.contactmusic.com/story/blues-legend-johnny-winter-dies_4289778
The first single off the new Scorpions album, Return to Forever, is "We Built This House." Guitarist Mathias Jabs tells us it's classic Scorpions. "It has the typical Scorpions ingredients... It fits right in with with songs like 'No One Like You' or even 'Rock You Like a Hurricane.' It is the same DNA so to speak."
Return to Forever will be out on September 11th, the day after the band starts its North American tour in Boston. They're currently doing shows in Europe with a stop in Switzerland on Saturday.
Johnny Van Zandt talking about Peter Frampton. A note slipped under his door stated: If you need a guitarist get Peter. That opportunity played true this past November during all-star tribute concert to Lynyrd Skynyrd. Lynyrd Skynyrd One More for the Fans includes performances by Peter Frampton, Cheap Trick and Gregg Allman, among others. The members of Skynyrd spent much of the show watching the performances from seats in the Fox Theater, and Gary Rossington says the experience gave him a new perspective on songs he's been playing for 40 years. He adds, "I got chills hearing some of them."
Gene Simmons and company are hanging with Scooby and Shaggy. July 10th. The Scooby-Doo! and Kiss: Rock and Roll Mystery takes over the DVD Blue Ray shelf
What can you say about a man that reached beyond what critics have always tried to shape? How tall is the man that took time and stretched it beyond his final day? 24 years ago today. The day music died.
Jackson Browne has always lived life through the windshield of a touring bus. That California guy that seems to always fall into the cracks of silence has announced the fall leg of his North American tour. September 5th in Highland Park, Illinois and wraps up September 27th in Reading, Pennsylvania. Tickets for this leg go on sale on March 20th. The first leg runs from July 30th through August 21st.
Steve Miller talks about the night he had to ignite a Pink Floyd crowd. Asked if he'd perform at the 1975 Knebworth Festival in the next-to-closing slot before Pink Floyd, Steve Miller initially declined. It wasn't because he had anything against the Floyd or was afraid of being blown off by them, but because he had no band together at the time and didn't think he could put one together on short notice. It was only after the promoters offered to double his very lucrative paycheck that he called ex-CCR drummer Doug Clifford, guitarist Les Dudek and bassist Lonnie Turner. He explains how those calls eventually led to the writing of "Rock'n Me."
Steve Miller on how putting a band together on short notice for a one-off gig opening for Pink Floyd at England’s Knebworth Festival led him to write “Rock’n Me.”
“I said, ‘How’d you guys like to have an all-expense paid vacation to London next week?” They said, ‘What is it?’ And I told them and they said, ‘Yeah.’ And they came over and rehearsed in my house – ran through the numbers we were gonna do, a lot of which were Jimmy Reed numbers and knocked everybody out. And I wrote ‘Rock’n Me’ because I was sitting there going, ‘It’s going to be 150,000 people. Pink Floyd will come on when it’s dark and the lights turn on. They’ll put me on while the sun’s going down and everybody’s cold. And the P.A. will be bad, so I’m going to have to rock everybody out. I wrote ‘Rock’n Me’ for that in about 20 minutes.”
With college hoops on hold. The parties at the movie theater. Tonight. Led Zeppelin hits the big screen. It starts with "Communication Breakdown" from London's Royal Albert Hall on January 9th, 1970 and wraps up with "Whole Lotta Love" from their last British concert with John Bonham on August 4th, 1979. In between are 11 songs from shows filmed in 1972, '73 and '75.
Brad Whitford of Aerosmith. Talking about the magic of what it's like when hooking up with musicians creates incredible music. He's jumping onto a solo project. As soon as the band wraps up its tour wraps in early August he'll finish work on his second album with Derek St. Holmes -- the voice of such early Ted Nugent songs as "Stranglehold" and "Dog Eat Dog." The first Whitford-St. Holmes album came out in 1981. They reconnected after Whitford moved to Nashville, where St. Holmes lives.
In a video posted on Aerosmith's website, Whitford says they cut nine tracks in two days with bass player Charlie Anderson and Tesla drummer Troy Luccketta. They plan to play out in November, but the project has a limited time frame -- Whitford says Aerosmith will tour again in 2016.
It was an age of Classic Rock exploration. The reins of music influence had been given back to America. The group Kansas became part of the participation. Kansas has a Rock u Mentary. And according to Rich Williams its one fans will finally connect with. There's so much they don't know about the band. Look for it March 24th. Miracles: Out of Nowhere
Adam Clayton and The Edge... hinting that U2's Innocence and Experience tour could be on its way into 2016. In the meantime, U2 has four shows in Boston starting Friday night at the TD Garden. Bono says Boston was the town that broke U2 in America. "We are made to feel very at home [there]."
Instead of one-night stands in multiple cities, U2 has been playing multiple nights in a select group of major cities. Drummer Larry Mullen says this approach has worked out well. "It pushes the band to be creative. We can't sit back and do the same set... It's had the effect of making the band better." Following the four shows in Boston -- through next Wednesday -- U2 will park themselves at Madison Square Garden in New York for eight nights from July 18th to the 31st. Then it's on to Europe from September 4th through November 15th.
Detroit maybe in financial shambles but Bob Seger isn't dead.
The Metal Cities king of silver bullets invades your I Heart mobile ap October 14th. Ride Out plays like no other Seger release. The Detroit Kid is slipping through the cracks of business three bonus tracks for fans. The boys in the background include Mark Knopler, Neil Young and Joe Walsh
Classic Rock isn't just incredible Jimmy Page guitar riffs, Michael Anthony bass rhythms and heavy thunder via Neil Peart's trap set. Someone has to be there to capture not the pictures but the experience...through words. The first lady of Rock Journalism. Lisa Robinson has stepped onto the stones of Rock for forty years. Her new book There Goes the Gravity. Sends everything you thought you knew... right into the hemisphere.
Sammy Hagar loves reality. He wants to put together a new reality tv show that includes his family. But nobody's biting. He claims he's ready to write a book while still shopping the idea for the tv show. The good news is... Hagar will find himself in front of plenty of cameras with the pending debut of his Sammy Hagar’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Road Trip series, which is tentatively set to premiere on AXS TV this fall.
Jon Bon Jovi's got a new job. He's the executive producer of a TV show called If I Wasn’t a Rock Star. The weekly series will put focus on musicians going home... trying to do an everyday life and styleAs executive producer... Jon will be asking “Who says you can’t go home?” Only this time, he’s brought cameras along.
Rolling Stone magazine has once again compiled a list of the "50 Greatest Live Albums of All Time" and topping it this time out is James Brown's Live at the Apollo from 1963. The rest of the Top 10 is:
•2) At Fillmore East - Allman Brothers (1971)
•3) At Folsom Prison - Johnny Cash (1968)
•4) Live at Leeds - The Who (1970)
•5) Live at the Regal - B.B. King (1965)
•6) Alive - KISS (1975)
•7) Live/Dead - Grateful Dead (1969)
•8) Kick Out the Jams - MC5 (1969)
•9) The Bootleg Series, Vol. 4: Bob Dylan Live 1966: The "Royal Albert Hall Concert" - Bob Dylan (1998)
•10) MTV Unplugged in New York - Nirvana (1994)
Other notable classic rock acts to round out the list include:
•11) Stop Making Sense - Talking Heads (1984)
•13) At Budokan - Cheap Trick (1979)
•17) Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out! - The Rolling Stones (1970)
•18) Jimi Plays Monterey - Jimi Hendrix (1986)
•19) Europe '72 - Grateful Dead (1972)
•20) Live 1975-'85 - Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band (1986)
•22) Rock of Ages - The Band (1972)
•23) How the West Was Won - Led Zeppelin (2003)
•26) Live Bullet - Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band (1976)
•28) It's Alive - Ramones (1979)
•29) Roxy & Elsewhere - Frank Zappa and the Mothers (1974)
•30) Metallic K.O. - Iggy & The Stooges (1976)
•32) Made in Japan - Deep Purple (1972)
•34) Live! - Bob Marley and the Wailers (1975)
•37) Time Fades Away - Neil Young (1973)
•38) 1969: Velvet Underground Live With Lou Reed - Velvet Underground (1974)
•39) Miles of Aisles - Joni Mitchell (1974)
•40) Live in Cook County Jail - B.B. King (1970)
•41) Frampton Comes Alive - Peter Frampton (1976)
•43) Arc-Weld - Neil Young & Crazy Horse (1991)
•44) Under a Blood Red Sky - U2 (1983)
•45) No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith - Motörhead (1981)
•46) Live and Dangerous - Thin Lizzy (1978)
•49) Waiting For Columbus - Little Feat (1978)
Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones recently stumbled across a journal. It featured his handwriting. It was him at 17. It's now a book How Can It Be A Rock n Roll Diary.
Bruce Springsteen went into the Hall of Fame without the E Street Band. Paul Stanley believes every member of KISS should have gotten into the Hall. The drama continues. Steve Miller is going in. But not his band. Miller is calling for an overhaul of the decision makers.
Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. The Rolling Stones are coming to a deeper America
5/24 - San Diego, CA - Petco Park
5/30 - Columbus, OH - Ohio Stadium
6/3 - Minneapolis, MN - TCF Bank Stadium
6/6 - Dallas, TX - AT&T Stadium
6/9 - Atlanta, GA - Bobby Dodd Stadium
6/12 - Orlando, FL - Orlando Citrus Bowl
6/17 - Nashville, TN - LP Field
6/20 - Pittsburgh, PA - Heinz Field
6/23 - Milwaukee, WI - Summerfest / Marcus Amphitheater
6/27 - Kansas City, MO - Arrowhead Stadium
7/1 - Raleigh, NC - Carter-Finley Stadium
7/4 - Indianapolis, IN - Indianapolis Motor Speedway
7/8 - Detroit, MI - Comerica Park
7/11 - Buffalo, NY - Ralph Wilson Stadium
7/15 - Quebec, QC - Le Festival D’Été de Québec
Ripping through ITunes and YouTube. It's kept plenty of Classic Rock maker's pumped up at full volume. Missing isn't the music. But rather the history. Who and what is a John Lennon? When and why did David Bowie decide? Where did it begin for Alice Cooper? Music's roots fill empty space. Which is why Darren Davis has turned his comic book printing presses into a new age maker of preserving Rock n Roll history.
Guitar God Eric Clapton and Princess Di? Is there more to fairytale between a Poet and a would be Queen? Paul Scott writes about what took place in June of 1987 in his new book Motherless Child: The Definitive Biography of Eric Clapton
Bon Scott. Gone but not forgotten. Nor are the unrecorded songs credited to his infamous AC/DC name. Australian singer Craig Csongrady just happened to bump into the opportunity.
Crosby Stills and Nash helped light the national tree last night in Washington DC. David talks about the song he would've loved to have shared. Plus shares his deepest Christmas wish for this nation. If you missed out on the lighting last night. Watch it at thenationaltree.org.
How lucky can you be? To be the man chosen. To manage. Both the Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Rollingstone Magazine reporter Fred Goodman. He's got a new book about rock star manager Allen Klein.
Don Henley's got a new collection of tunes. A Country album called Crass County. The album from Henley features Dolly Parton, Alison Krauss and Vince Gill, with former Tom Petty
Don Henley plans to release his country album, Cass County, in the late summer or fall.
To this day the guys that make up Judas Priest are extremely connected to the bands sight and sound. Which is about to increase on November 27th. Judas Priest is re-releasing their 10 inch Painkiller EP on vinyl. Black vinyl for Black Friday. They aren't the only act pulling it off. A Legend in the Making is a double-vinyl set of a Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble show from Toronto's El Mocambo Club on July 20th, 1983. It was previously on a bonus CD in The Complete Epic Recordings Collection box set, but hasn't been released elsewhere until now. Jimi Hendrix's Burning Desire is a double-vinyl set of instrumental studio jams and demos recorded in late 1969 through early 1970 that has never before had an official release.
Playfully speaking Gene Simmons shares his inside view of what kind of leader he'd like to be... A Dictator. But the type that history has pasted our pages. He'd keep the job for six months and we'd always have the power to boot his bass playing booty out of office.
October 16th is the day Bryan Adams and Jeff Lynne from The Electric Light Orchestra will release their first ever collaboration. From the very beginning Bryan has called it one of the best collections of songs he's ever written. The first release is You Belong To Me. Now available on iTunes
The guys that make up "Yes" are back on the tour bus. The most recent loss of bassist Chris Squire won't go unnoticed. His Rickenbacker will be bathed under a single spotlight during the entire journey.
Guitarist Steve Howe adds, "It is pretty exceptional that Chris has been at all those Yes shows [over] all those years, so we're gonna have to respect that and pay some tribute to that, which we're very happy to be able to do, And let people kind of find a way, an inner voice to express and get over and hopefully heal some of the sadness that's gone down."
Following the tribute, Yes walked on stage and dug deep with such rarely played songs as "Don't Kill the Whale" and "Tempus Fugit," as well as some of its most well-known songs, including "Owner of a Lonely Heart," its cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "America," "Roundabout," "I've Seen All Good People," "Siberian Khatru" and "Starship Trooper."
Billy Sherwood, who played in Yes from 1997 to 2000, is now on bass at the personal request of Squire. And, despite having such big shoes to fill, he did an admirable job. Drummer Alan White tells us having Sherwood back made it a little easier for the band during tour rehearsals, but goes onto say that "it will never still be the same playing without seeing that big structure of a guy in front of me holding down the bass area. But we've got to make it work."
This past May. Classic Rocker John Fogerty appeared on the season finale of NBC's The Voice, performing a medley of Creedence Clearwater Revival songs with Team Pharrell member Sawyer Fredericks, who won the competition. Apparently it was a good experience for all concerned -- Fogerty has reportedly signed on to be a mentor on Adam Levine's team at the request of Levine, who is a fan.
In an interview last year, Chicago trumpet player Lee Loughnane shares his feelings about their omission thus far from the Rock Hall. “We used to think more about it than we are now, because it’s inexplicable why we wouldn’t be in it. To be able to work at this level this much time later it doesn’t mean anything to be in it or not be in it -- or, if it does, we haven’t been able to experience that yet. If it does happen, that’s something that will happen and then be gone, ‘cause any award or accolade that you are given is fleeting. Then you have the next moment after the ‘Thank you very much.’ What do you do now? Move on.” The fan-voting process for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will be ending on Dec. 9. According to the current standings, Chicago is leading the pack, having picked up more than 37 million votes, or 23.4 percent of the overall tally.
While Chicago has a clear hold on the top spot, a little more than half a million votes separate Yes, the Cars, Deep Purple and the Steve Miller Band for second through fifth places. Cheap Trick, the only other classic rock band among the 15 nominees, are in seventh place. Janet Jackson (fifth place), the Spinners, Chaka Khan, Chic, the J.B.’s, N.W.A., Nine Inch Nails, the Smiths and Los Lobos (eighth through 15th places) are the other nominees. You can cast your vote and then see the latest count at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s website.
However, this doesn’t necessarily suggest that Chicago will automatically be inducted. As the Hall’s website says about the induction process, “The Top Five Nominees as voted by the fans count for one ballot entry, which is weighted the same as individual ballot entries submitted by members of the international voting body.” In other words, with “more than 600 artists, historians and members of the music industry” comprising the voting body, the fan vote counts for less than 0.0017 percent of the overall tally.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame traditionally announces the inductees in mid-December, with the Induction Ceremony taking place in April. An edited version of the ceremony will be televised on HBO in the summer.
Paul McCartney's new song is being released today. But You won't hear it on the radio. That's because "Hope For the Future" was written, produced and designed for the Destiny video game.
Success for a modern Classic Rock band means change. Groups fire and hire members faster Dale Jr and Jimmy Johnson on their best days. Keyboardist Lawrence Gowan has kept the group Styx moving forward and outward.
A valuable piece of George Harrison's legacy is up for auction. The 1962 Rickenbacker 425 he used while playing I Want to Hold Your Hand on the TV show Ready Steady Go.
If this was Pawn Stars and Rick had to call a friend. The video would show music legend Dusty Springfield talking to Harrison about the guitar. George Harrison's Rickenbacker is expected to pull in $400 to $600,000. A little history on the guitar. Harrison gave the guitar to music friend. George Peckham. Under the condition that he never modifies it. The auction will take place Saturday, May 17.
Jerry on Jerry is now available. Jerry Garcia sharing his own story via two different books. Print and audio. Actual conversations of how Jerry lived his life and style. Publicist Dennis McNally talks about the incredible journey of experiencing the conversations personally with Jerry and now making them available for all Grateful Dead fans to hold onto forever.
Consistently strange. This generation. Not an ounce of guilt when stealing music from the web. Yet when Bono and U2 give it away. Free of charge. No strings attached. Fans of Classic Rock feel violated. And that's why Bono has stepped from behind the curtain and apologized to ITunes and Apple people.
The front man of the legendary Destroyers was in town last night. George Thorogood. Blues. Classic Rock. Bourbon Whiskey and Beer. Not bad for guy that dreamed of being... a comedian.
I've hosted countdowns and specialty programs since 1976, Rarely was there ever a show that didn't include Styx and or Dennis DeYoung. For years radio served as the social media between the artist and listener. Today the artists are reconnecting by physically sharing incredible conversation. Dennis isn't in the sticks with his lyrics... He's back on stage making music work. Through radio you think you know. But how much do you realize? The journey isn't complete until the man behind the curtain explains who what where and why.
Tomorrow being May. That means the biggest movies of the year are about to be released. Competing with Spiderman and a cowboy western from Seth McFarland? In honor of the Beatles 50th anniversary. Hollywood's re-releasing A Hard Days Night. The soundtrack to the film has been re-mastered by Giles Martin, the son of the Beatles original producer George Martin. The film opens July 4th
Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood have been summonsed to New York. Such news creates speculation. Are the Rolling Stones preparing to invade the U.S. A spokeswoman for the Rolling Stones wasn't available for comment.
Abbey Road. By far. The most famous crosswalk in history.
The very scene where John Paul Ringo and George shot the picture for the album cover. Has become excessively overcrowded. Pedestrians snapping selfies has brought Westminster city traffic to a halt. Councilman say it's time for a crossing guard...
Rush is out on the road. To keep it fresh and moving forward... what's the truth behind the microphone? And is there ever time for a private life?
Tommy Thayer. Keeping it classy inside a world of mud slingin Classic Rock. Tommy Thayer is perfectly aware of what's been said. But losing his cool has never been part of his plan. He loves talking instead about that Gibson guitar.
45 years ago today the world of music and the generations that followed lost one of the most prolific guitarists in history. Jimi Hendrix. Since then the Classic Rocker's foundation has dedicated their path to helping young adults and creative minds all over the planet locate a place where the music in their soul can grow forward. This weekend at ZMAX the audience is about to grow forward in a large way.
Foreigner is on the list of the Top Ten biggest Classic Rock Bands of all time. To get there required incredible songwriting as well as a long term vision that incorporates the live audience. They're currently on the road with Kid Rock.
Thu 07/02/15Saratoga Springs, NYSaratoga Performing Arts Center
Fri 07/03/15Bethel, NYBethel Woods Center For The Arts
Tue 07/07/15Camden, NJSusquehanna Bank Center
Wed 07/08/15Bristow, VAJiffy Lube Live
Fri 07/10/15Virginia Beach, VAFarm Bureau Live At Virginia Beach
Sat 07/11/15Raleigh, NCWalnut Creek Amphitheatre
Tue 07/14/15Charlotte, NCPNC Music Pavilion
Thu 07/16/15West Palm Beach, FLCoral Sky Amphitheatre
Sat 07/18/15Tampa, FLMidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sun 07/19/15Atlanta, GAAaron's Amphitheatre At Lakewood
Wed 07/22/15The Woodlands, TXThe Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Thu 07/23/15Dallas, TXGexa Energy Pavilion
Sat 07/25/15Maryland Heights, MOHollywood Casino Amphitheatre
Sun 07/26/15Tinley Park, ILFirst Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
Thu 07/30/15Cuyahoga Falls, OHBlossom Music Center
Sat 08/01/15Noblesville, INKlipsch Music Center
Sun 08/02/15Cincinnati, OHRiverbend Music Center
Tue 08/04/15Darien Center, NYDarien Lake Performing Arts Center
Fri 08/07/15Clarkston, MIDTE Energy Music Theatre
Sat 08/08/15Clarkston, MIDTE Energy Music Theatre
Tue 08/11/15Clarkston, MIDTE Energy Music Theatre
Wed 08/12/15Clarkston, MIDTE Energy Music Theatre
Fri 08/14/15Clarkston, MIDTE Energy Music Theatre
Sat 08/15/15Clarkston, MIDTE Energy Music Theatre
Tue 08/18/15Clarkston, MIDTE Energy Music Theatre
Wed 08/19/15Clarkston, MIDTE Energy Music Theatre
Wed 08/26/15Phoenix, AZAk-Chin Pavilion
Thu 08/27/15Irvine, CAIrvine Meadows Amphitheatre
Sat 08/29/15San Bernardino, CASan Manuel Amphitheater
Sun 08/30/15Mountain View, CAShoreline Amphitheatre
Wed 09/02/15Wheatland, CAToyota Amphitheatre
Fri 09/04/15Ridgefield, WAAmphitheater Northwest
Sat 09/05/15Auburn, WAWhite River Amphitheatre
The Marshall Tucker Band has been trucking across the country for 44 years. Their new album is a brilliant display of their live performance. Its a musical photograph of sound snapped while on tour in the UK.
Dennis Dunaway. Bass guitarist for Alice Cooper. On the shape and formation of a brand new style of theatrical Classic Rock. Being on stage with snakes guillotines and electric chairs was an incredible way to get people to talk. But what happened when KISS showed up on the scene?
Robert Cray is celebrating the birth of new music. His new album In My Soul is ready for an ITunes download. Yes... I said album. Inside a generation of music where its too easy to pick favorite mp3's. Robert's latest creative expression encompasses the entire project as being a work of art.
http://www.amazon.com/My-Soul-Limited-Robert-Cray/dp/B00I0TFR9C/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1396358714&sr=1-1&keywords=robert+cray+in+my+soul
http://www.pollstar.com/resultsArtist.aspx?ID=19625&SearchBy=robert
Remember how upset Metallica got when Napster opened the door for you to steal their music? Recording the band live on stage is no different. Except this time... instead Metallica shoving their fists in protest. They kinda wanna participate.
The band wants to turn your art into gallery. Basically meaning its an invitation to send in your old instamatic camera shots and video quick pix. Cassettes, fliers, ticket stubs and more.
It's going into a brand new book and website called Master of Puppets
Who would've thunk? Tom Petty's a huge fan of the NBA. And he's lovin the idea that Lebron is back in a Cleveland jersey..
(sound bite) Petty being a fan of pro basketball isn't new. Who do you think sat in Jack Nicholson's seats when the Lakers were on the floor?
(sound bite)
Today is David Bowie's birthday. To celebrate the occasion, he's released his 26th album, Blackstar.
Blackstar features Bowie and a group of New York jazz musicians doing seven songs. The title track doubles as the theme for a new European crime drama series called The Last Panthers. Another song, "Lazarus," is the title track to Bowie's off-Broadway musical, which runs until January 20th. And two of the songs were previously released, but re-recorded for this album -- "Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)" from his Nothing Has Changed compilation, and "'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore," which he released digitally in 2014.
The rest of the songs on Blackstar are"Girl Loves Me," "Dollar Days" and "I Can't Give Everything Away."
The never ending sport of Classic Rock Artist versus management continues to spin out new shapes of harmony. The group Toto has a new album out this week. Toto 14.
When Lee Greenwood sings, "God Bless The USA." Its more than just lyrics to a song. He lives the life. The song is now a children's book titled, "Proud To Be An American."
Being part of the post Beatles era is anything but invisible.
For decades The Ringo Starr All-Star bands has been a huge ticket seller. Now the drummer is marketing shoes. Ringo's got new music on the way. Postcards From Paradise hits iHeart Radio March 31st.
Rod Stewart talking about his recent reunion with Ronnie Wood and Kenny Jones from Faces. When asked if the band would reunite for a tour, Stewart says, "Faces fans must keep the faith because we will be doing it. We've just got to find a window."
The other two members of the Faces, bassist Ronnie Lane and keyboardist Ian McLagan, are both deceased. Ronnie passed in 1997 and Ian followed last December.
A casual conversation with Yoko Ono about her artwork. Remember that was... what attracted John Lennon.
Have you ever wondered what it was the Beatle saw?
Yoko Ono: One Woman Show, which focuses on her art work between 1960 and 1971, will go on display at the Museum of Modern Art starting on May 17th.
James Hetfield has confirmed that Metallica are indeed in the recording studio. In a mostly product-oriented video posted on YouTube Monday by guitar pickup manufacturer EMG, Hetfield says, "I'll tell you, we're recording right now," although no information is given as to exactly when "right now" actually is."
Music has a way of reaching beyond the moment of creation. Peter Frampton knows each piece has morphed into something new. His latest album is proof of that. Acoustic Classic's takes you on a journey through each riff and lyric in ways that reignite the true spirit of making music. Then connecting it to a passerby's life and style.
While America spent the past couple of days celebrating its independence from the Mother Country. Gibson.com put together a list of the "Ten Greatest British Guitarists of all time:
Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, George Harrison, Pete Townsend, Keith Richards, Steve Howe, Mick Ronson, Richie Blackmore and Tony Iommi.
Carlos Santana introduced a new wave of thinking, "Shift happens." His son Salvador's new collection of songs are out and Carlos has invited him to join the tour. In this life there's always a beginning middle and end. Or as Carlos says, "Shift Happens."
A new version of Stairway to Heaven? There was once an age when being a Classic Rock came with mystery. You didn't need to paint your face. You only need a writing instrument to pen the lyrics from winds of present and past. Led Zeppelin Stairway to Heaven. Easily it seems to be the greatest piece of music written in our time. And with it comes the great mystery.
A new version of the song that hasn't been heard until now.
It plays down the process and energy of John Paul Jones' recorder. Even more shocking is the lack of John Bonham's drums due to Jimmy Pages guitar sounds being the bigger demand. Note: This weekend on multiple I Heart Media radio stations a very special Led Zeppelin special will be aired. Locate it and become part of this historic moment.
Keith Richards. The master behind some of the most iconic riffs and songs is also legendary for his drug habit.
Picking some of his favorite songs on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs, Keith said, “It was something that I had to stop because I realized there are experiments that go on too long. Some people can handle things and other people can’t. If the drugs become more important than the music, then you’ve lost the battle.”
He added that he never sat down to discuss the dangers of drugs with any of his four children. "None of my kids have shown any interest in drugs at all." Asked if they were "watching and learning" from their father, he said, "I think maybe they were."
In 2011, Keith's third child, daughter Theodora, was arrested for vandalism, and police found marijuana and another controlled substance in her possession.
Oh Oh... There's a lot of social media talk about Dave Grohl. Is he leaving the Foo Fighters?
The band wasted no time to talk about it via their anticipated announcement in the form of a video -- and a very funny one at that.
The clip starts with a montage of headlines about breakup rumors and the possibility of Grohl going solo. Then we see Grohl. He says that "seeing as how that Academy Awards thing went so well" he got to thinking that maybe it's time for him to do his own thing. He's speaking to producer Butch Vig, who eggs him on, telling him how great he was and how he should take the momentum and run with it. "Nothing against those other guys, I love those guys and they love me," says Grohl. "I'm holding them back. I'm setting them free. It's a win-win situation."
After Vig lays out a totally fresh, new style for Grohl, electronica played without instruments, just a touch of a keyboard, Grohl calls the other band members to tell them the news. Chris Shiflett, Nate Mendel, Taylor Hawkins and Pat Smear react with a mixture of anger and disbelief. "He's gone Hollywood," says Smear. And then he adds, "Let's make Foo Fighters great again."
Next, we see scenes of Grohl and Vig working on his new style in the studio interspersed with the other guys kicking around names of possible singers, including Sammy Hagar, Gwen Stefani, Billy Corgan, Chris Cornell, Eddie Vedder, Phil Collins ("the drummer who comes out front -- bigger than ever") Prince, Liam Gallagher and even Justin Bieber and Diplo. Finally, we cut to the band and their new vocalist, Nick Lachey, singing "Everlong."
Then, on a black background come these words, "For the millionth time, we're not breaking up and nobody's going [expletive] solo.," followed by the Foo Fighters logo. The video ends with Grohl at a keyboard singing "I ain't no phony. Phony baloney. Got to give me the baloney..."
Word on the E Street. Bruce Springsteen will be on tonight's final episode of The Daily Show. Perhaps this is why Springsteen has been showing up on stage recently -- at two shows in Asbury Park as well as with U2 last week in New York. The rumor does make sense, as Jon Stewart, the host of the show, is a New Jersey native and a big Springsteen fan, and the two have worked together many times at the Stand Up For Heroes benefit every November in New York. And Stewart hosted the MusiCares tribute to Springsteen in 2013.
Paul Stanley of KISS. On or off stage. He's always dressed to kill. Now he's going to market it. The famous front man is currently creating a new line of men’s fashion apparel and accessories, footwear, food, spirits, home decor, cookware and more. Epic Rights CEO Dell Furano says, “Paul is the definitive rock renaissance man, with a sense of style in arts, fashion, design and food that is unrivaled in the music industry. His creativity, marketing savvy and personal style truly set him apart.” Stanley adds, "I am excited to watch Epic Rights’ branding professionals find opportunities and outlets that will reflect a lifestyle and point of view that I am passionate about and do it imaginatively and creatively in the years to come.”
Look for products to hit stores next year.
Paul McCartney. The name alone says enough. But who are band mates making this Beatle rock? The little blonde guy bouncing around and keeping up with the legend of sound. Every note. Every laugh. Everything that's kept McCartney requires a leader on guitar. His name is Brian Ray.
Classic Rocker's are on the rise. The foreign movement of sound has seen the regrouping of Genesis. A new group Dead Daisies is actually old members from legendary acts. And Mark Knopfler is preparing to release "Tracker." The first release: ‘Beryl,’ His guitar riffs are famous. But it almost didn't happen. Once he became straight with instrument he truly wanted to play. Getting into the game was tougher than first thought.
It almost sounds like I'm setting you up for a joke. Joe Perry and Paul McCartney meet up at a recording studio to drop some tracks with Alice Cooper's Hollywood Vampires. Joe turns to McCartney and says....
Hollywood Vampires new album drops September 11th
Phil Collins talks about removing the label retired from his name. Health and family issues were the reasons Phil Collins gave for retiring a few years ago, but now, after recovering at his Miami home from back surgery earlier this month, he says the retirement is off. Spurred on by the work he did on the upcoming deluxe reissues of Face Value and Both Sides, Collins says it has been "rediscovering for me, as I'm hoping it's gonna be rediscovering from an audience point of view." Plus, he tells Rolling Stone that his two youngest children -- 14-year-old Nicholas 14 and 10-year-old Matthew -- "want to see what their dad does. They were in nappies when I was last on the road. They love my music and I'd like to take them out so they can enjoy it."
He's considering touring next year and starting work shortly on a new album, which would be his first of original material since 2002.
The Face Value and Both Sides reissues will be out on January 29th.
Nikki Sixx announced last night on his nationally syndicated radio show that his band Sixx AM was set to release a double album in 2016. Plus hit the road for two years.
Part of the process of Classic Rock is grasping a cutting edge name for your band. The lower half of the 1970's. In an age when One Toke Over The Line and Rocky Mountain High were being banned from radio. Out walks... The Doobie Brothers
Chuck Berry may not be Classic Rock. But he did influence the riffs and chords that've flooded the stadiums and arenas with the of the world's greatest guitarists. One of them Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones Chuck Berry just picked up the 2014 Polar Music Prize
It's Tuesday. Tuesday's are new music day. Participating this week is Eric Clapton. A new DVD called Planes, Trains and Eric.
The best front row seat on the planet. A full view of the legendary guitarist performing on his most recent tour to the far and middle east. A journey he totally got into: Sound bite
The Pilgrims didn't land on Plymouth Rock. It was Classic Rock.
In celebration. Bruce Springsteen's released The Album Collections vol. 1 1973-84 All the albums have been remastered. Five of which have never been on CD. Audio Engineer Toby Scott talks about it
When you're Robert Plant... and you've done it all. Has he ever asked, "Is that all there is?"
Robert Plant’s new album, lullaby and… The Ceaseless Roar, will be released September 9 on Nonesuch/Warner Bros. Records. Produced by Plant, the album is his label debut and features 11 new recordings, nine of which are original songs written by Plant with his band, The Sensational Space Shifters—Justin Adams: bendirs, djembe, guitars, tehardant, background vocals; John Baggott: keyboards, loops, moog bass, piano, tabal, background vocals; Juldeh Camara: kologo, ritti, Fulani vocals; Billy Fuller: bass, drum programming, omnichord, upright bass; Dave Smith: drum set; and Liam “Skin” Tyson: banjo, guitar, background vocals.
Pre-orders are available at robertplant.com and include a limited-edition print and an instant download of “Rainbow.” Plant and the band will tour the US this fall, including two nights at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, September 27 and 28, as part of Nonesuch Records at BAM: Celebrating 50 Years of the Label without Labels; further dates will be announced soon.
lullaby and… The Ceaseless Roar is Plant’s first record since 2010’s Band of Joy, which followed 2007’s six-time Grammy Award–winning collaboration with Alison Krauss, Raising Sand. Justin Adams and John Baggott of The Sensational Space Shifters appeared on Plant’s 2002 release Dreamland, while all but Camara and Smith appeared on 2005’s Mighty Rearranger. The new-album line-up recently toured the world before recording lullaby and… The Ceaseless Roar at Helium Studios in Wiltshire and Real World Studios in Bath, UK. “Rainbow” was recorded in Contino Rooms in London. Tchad Blake mixed all but three tracks on the album.
“It’s really a celebratory record, powerful, gritty, African, Trance meets Zep,” Plant says.
“The whole impetus of my life as a singer has to be driven by a good brotherhood. I am very lucky to work with The Sensational Space Shifters. They come from exciting areas of contemporary music…I have been around awhile and I ask myself, do I have anything to say? Is there a song still inside me? In my heart? I see life and what’s happening to me. Along the trail there are expectations, disappointments, happiness, questions and strong relationships,” Plant explains. “….and now I’m able to express my feelings through melody, power and trance; together in a kaleidescope of sound, colour, and friendship”
How does Joe Perry spend his 65th birthday? Remembering the classics. The one that still moves him is Train Kept a-Rollin'. It dates back to 1951. But it was the Yardbirds version that captured his Rock n Roll driven imagination. Joe talks about how a single song has stayed with them through the entire journey.
During the 1970's. Fans of Classic Rock were amp blasted by the heavy metal edge of what critics called The Big 4 Of Hard Rock. Zeppelin, Sabbath, Deep Purple and Uriah Heep.
Counting Plant's summer solo effort. All four are still making music. Heep is fresh out of the studio with The Outsider.
Keith Moon, Alex Van Halen, Peter Criss... The kick drum of Classic Rock. Drummer's have always been the next best thing to being backstage. Yet to make the sound of a band generate. The high hats, rolls and solos take fans to an area of life that paints the world's best legal escape.
Brian Johnson of AC/Dc has penned out a book. It's not a typical rocker tell all. But rather a book about cars and racing. A book. An AC/DC tour and a new album. There's a lot going on. But what fuels the engine moving forward? In 2011, AC/DC singer Brian Johnson wrote his first book, Rockers and Rollers: A Full Throttle Memoir. Instead of it being some typical sleazy tell-all, he concentrated on his love of cars and racing, along with other aspects of his life and career. That book led him to hosting a show on British television called Cars That Rock, and that in turn led to his second book, Cars That Rock - The Book, which he says is a "take on the fun we have where we're filming me driving all these fabulous cars and the mishaps that happen behind-the-scenes."
It will be out in the U.S. on August 4th. If you can't wait that long, it's out in the U.K. on June 4th.
Classic Rocker Duff McKagan knows of the marks he's made in music history. Which is why he went back to college to locate a career. He writes columns for the Seattle Weekly. To become that writer means a change in his workout. His new book is called How To Be A Man. Look for the entire interview on iHeart Radio's Unplugged and Totally Uncut.
No matter where you are. In the car. Movie theater. Concert halls or arena. Someone's always on the phone. Brian May of Queen says you're missing the show.
Diamond Dave and the way he likes to play. But can it be displayed in new Van Halen Music? He says the Van Halen's have their traditions. The translation? Expect many years in between albums.
Gene Simmons and company are hanging with Scooby and Shaggy. July 10th. The Scooby-Doo! and Kiss: Rock and Roll Mystery takes over the DVD Blue Ray shelf
I've always been attracted to the story before the story. Making music doesn't just happen. Someone either had to take guitar lessons or discovered new ways to bend chords like no other on the planet. Steve Lukather from TOTO was challenged. And in that process of trying to discover notes he did what most guys attempted... played the tennis racket.
This past May. Classic Rocker John Fogerty appeared on the season finale of NBC's The Voice, performing a medley of Creedence Clearwater Revival songs with Team Pharrell member Sawyer Fredericks, who won the competition. Apparently it was a good experience for all concerned -- Fogerty has reportedly signed on to be a mentor on Adam Levine's team at the request of Levine, who is a fan.
Here comes Van Halen. The biggest news on social media is the return of Diamond Dave and company. The group's North American tour will start July 5th in Auburn, Washington and hit 39 cities before it wraps up October 2nd in Los Angeles. The Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band will open up all the shows, which go on sale April 4th.
Van Halen has also announced that they'll perform a special concert for Jimmy Kimmel Live March 30th on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. Performances from the concert will be shown on Kimmel's show March 30th and March 31st. It will be Van Halen's first U.S. television performance with David Lee Roth. Their second will be on Ellen April 2nd.
All of this activity is to promote the band's new live album Tokyo Dome Live In Concert and the reissues of Van Halen I and 1984 on March 31st. Remastered versions of Diver Down, Women and Children First, Van Halen II and Fair Warning due out later this spring.
Bob Dylan’s got a brand new studio album, Shadows In The Night. What makes this one so different? Dylan performs American classics. Al Schmitt. The most decorated engineer in Grammy Award history was part of the creation available February 3, 2015
The Rolling Stones hit the road this Sunday in San Diego. Keith Richards admits the first couple of days of The Zip Code Tour rehearsals are a little testy but things are going great. Except with this thing called Social Media. One of the members doesn't even have a smart phone.
Classic Rocker David Crosby is on a solo acoustic tour.
He says being up there alone is like sitting in his living room. The very second the songs were given birth.
Appearing at "Kerrville Folk Festival"
Sat 06/06/15 Kerrville, TX
Quiet Valley Ranch
Tue 06/09/15 Miami Beach, FL
Fillmore Miami Beach At Jackie Gleason Theater
Wed 06/10/15 Fort Pierce, FL
Sunrise Theatre
Fri 06/12/15 Clearwater, FL
Capitol Theatre
Sat 06/13/15 Ponte Vedra Beach, FL
Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
Tue 06/16/15 Durham, NC
Carolina Theatre
Wed 06/17/15 Charlottesville, VA
Paramount Theater
Fri 06/19/15 Morristown, NJ
Mayo Performing Arts Center
Appearing at "Clearwater Festival - Great Hudson River Revival"
Sat 06/20/15 Croton on Hudson, NY
Croton Point Park
Mon 06/22/15 Alexandria, VA
The Birchmere
Tue 06/23/15 Harrisburg, PA
Sunoco Performance Theater
Thu 06/25/15 New York, NY
Town Hall
Sun 06/28/15 Munhall, PA
Carnegie Library Music Hall Of Homestead
Tue 06/30/15 Albany, NY
Hart Theatre @ The Egg
Thu 07/02/15 Ridgefield, CT
Ridgefield Playhouse
Fri 07/03/15 Westhampton Beach, NY
Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center
Sun 07/05/15 Bethlehem, PA
Musikfest Cafe At ArtsQuest Center
Mon 07/06/15 New Bedford, MA
Zeiterion Performing Arts Center
Jeff Lynne's ELO returns to the music scene on November 13th. Their first album since 2001. In between projects Jeff's been invited to play live. Which has proved to be a different journey. Especially when you compare how you play in the studio with being in front of people standing up.
Elvis Costello's new book Unfaithful Music and Invisible Ink. Not your typical collection of experiences. But rather an explanation as to what truly took place and why. In the full interview he admits that things were said and done and so he's made a way to reach out and put it in a way that better explains.
Motley Crue's bass guitarist. Has come clean with his weakness...
Nikki Sixx... is a Radio Junkie. Tonight he premieres his new sidekick Jenn Marino.
http://www.sixxsense.com
This Sunday night... the world of music meets in the same house. The 2015 Grammy awards. Like every year... there's always one performance everybody wants to see. This year it involves a Beatle. Paul McCartney with Kanye West and Rihanna. The head master of the Grammy's Neil Portnow says required a lot to book such a performance.
For nearly next to a year. Pink Floyd's been teasing the weaves of everyday life with the idea of tossing out a new collection of musical vibes. The wait is over. Tonight Pink Floyd takes the sheet music off the secret and reveals The Endless River.
Greg Allman nailed it when he said the boys in the band would be busy long after the Allman Brothers Band played their final show. Warren Haynes is playing solo dates as well as shows with his other band, Gov't Mule. But Haynes tells us, "I think I can speak for everyone in saying that we all miss playing that much." Gregg, Jaimoe, Butch Trucks and Warren will all come together when they perform individually at the Allman Brothers-sanctioned Peach Music Festival in Scranton, Pennsylvania in August.
Tonight on iHeart Radio Jimmy Page takes the sheet music off the remastering of Physical Graffiti
Is Guns n Roses officially back together. If you've been checking in with Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue. He says it's a done deal. But fans have to know why such a thing takes so long. There are a lot of chefs in the kitchen.
Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top has gone solo... for the moment. Backed by a group of musicians he calls The BFG’s (Billy Frederick Gibbons), he explores Afro-Cuban music, which he embraced at a young age, having been taught Latin percussion by the late Tito Puente, who was a friend of his father's.
The album got its start in 2014, when Gibbons was invited to perform at the Havana Jazz Festival. He was unable to make it to Cuba, but started to think about recording some Latin-influenced songs. The collection includes originals as well as rearranged versions of such blues classics as Slim Harpo’s "Got Love If You Want It” and Lightnin’ Hopkins' “Baby, Please Don’t Go.”
Gibbons will start a tour in support of the album on November 27th in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Phil Collins is putting together and autobiography. The Genesis frontman and '80s solo star announced today he's cut a deal with Penguin Random House. It's not a new feeling or something that was in the air tonight. Collins says, "Several times over the last few years I have been asked to write a biography but never felt that the time was right -- until now... I am ready to go on record about my life in music with all the highs and all the lows, and to tell the story from my point of view, ¬warts and all!"
Expect to see it in stores and online a year from now.
The release of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band’s new project “The Ties That Bind: The River Collection” which came out last Friday and the upcoming nationwide tour which goes on sale today. Bruce recorded an hour long special where he talks about the album and plays tons of tracks from it. We have taken that special and turned into an iHeartRadio Channel for the next few weeks for all Bruce fans to enjoy.
Ron Howard's Beatles Rock-u-mentary is headed to the Cannes Film Festival. The still untitled film is an all-access backstage VIP pass to the groups most famous performances. The Super 8 footage has been digitally repaired. According to Ron Howard, "Viewers are going to feel like they're somewhere in the 1960s. May 13-24.
Remember the songs Isn't It Time and Every Time I Think Of You?
The Baby's have been dubbed one of the great unsung bands of the 1970's, After thirty years of creative silence. The Baby's are back. Without the groups original lead singer John Waite and brilliant keyboardist Jonathan Caine. Without them. Can the band make an impact inside an already noisy music world. Guitarist Wally Stocker says their new collections of tunes on ‘I’ll Have Some of That’ is perfect mix for fans of classic rock and those just discovering it. The Baby's hit I Heart Radio June 24.
Sammy Hagar. You know. I can't drive 55. Turns out the wild man can cook. So he's releasing a book. September 15th. Are We Having Any Fun Yet?: The Cooking and Partying Handbook contains "stories from a lifetime of food, along with signature recipes and drinks." In addition to his own recipes, Hagar will share some from such celebrity chef friends as Emeril, Mario Batali and others.
You've seen those big ole Rock n Roll tour buses parked outside concert halls. Always bright and shiny. The window shades pulled for privacy and protection. 2014 has proved to be the season when those huge wheels of Classic Rock luxury became nightmares. The Styx REO Speedwagon tour bus caught on fire. And what about ZZ Top's Dusty Hill slippin inside and bustin a hip. Not only is he back but creative brother and genius Billy Gibbons is laughing about it.
ZZ will be back on the road in January before hooking up with Beck in May.
If you aren't social networking. You're being left behind. Brian May of Queen. The masterpiece of theaters and arenas worldwide. Has just developed his new stage. An entire YouTube channel dedicated to everything that makes him creative. Featuring all his interests. Including a new 3-D that reaching further than a childhood View Master. Plus The Brian May YouTube channel is the place where he can talk face to face with fans. About subjects like the making of Killer Queen
I've hosted countdowns and specialty programs since 1976, Rarely was there ever a show that didn't include Styx and or Dennis DeYoung. For years radio served as the social media between the artist and listener. Today the artists are reconnecting by physically sharing incredible conversation. Dennis isn't in the sticks with his lyrics... He's back on stage making music work. Through radio you think you know. But how much do you realize? The journey isn't complete until the man behind the curtain explains who what where and why.
Jimmy Page. Classic Rock's guitar God. But barely do any of us know his true story. Although he released a picture book expose of his life and style last year. He's still not hot on the idea of a true autobiography.
The music critic Neil McCormick from the U.K.'s Telegraph newspaper has taken the time to compile a list of the 100 Greatest Songs of All-Time. David Bowie's "Life on Mars" tops the list. McCormick says, "For me, a great song is about melody and lyric dovetailing together to become more than the sum of their parts, evoking ideas and emotions... A truly great song takes on a kind of intrinsic life of its own. Its genius manifests when sung a cappella, by anyone, from a towering vocalist to an amateur alone in the shower." Bowie actually bookends the list -- "Space Oddity" is number-100. "I really do albums for different reasons. I don't have one way of approaching an album. As each year rolls around and the seasons change and one changes and the environment certainly changes, one's reasons for making music change quite drastically. That's always affected me very much."
Putting together an Eric Clapton Rock U Mentary has proved to be a decade long task. The producers have roughly 100 interviews done and "a substantial amount of archival material." But they are still seeking "on and off-stage material from approximately 1963-1979." They suggest fans "check your attics, closets and personal collections for 8mm or 16mm home movies / cine film; videotape; audiotape; photographs; Polaroids; Eric as a group member (including the A.R.M.S. and Roger Waters' Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking tours) as well as a solo artist."
"These could come from having documented something such as a chance encounter at an airport, a boutique or even your first ever concert."
If you happen to come across anything, E-mail ClaptonAnthology@gmail.com and provide as much detail as possible. Material that is used will receive credit and compensation.
We asked Eric about this project in 2006 and apparently what he told us has held true. He called it a "bottomless pit... I've stayed away from it. I couldn't possibly add anything to that."
You'd think after so much fame putting a Rolling Stones live performance together would be a simple sip of tea. Not according to Keith Richards. There has to be several moments of together time for anything to jell. Which includes those unexpected moments when guests appear on stage. Jagger loves that stuff.
Tommy Shaw of Styx. Out on the road this summer with Def Leppard and Tesla. Tommy's got the answer to why this Chicago based band continues to rock the nation. He says its JY Young. But did you know before STYX the man standing next to the bands secret weapon had an unstoppable music journey with a Memphis based band MS Funk? Tommy talks about their days.
Joe Lynn Turner. The pipes of Classic Rock. He's been the front man of vocals for Deep Purple, Rainbow and now a new thunder maker called Rated X
His words helped usher in a new age. While connecting divided highways that now link the entire nation into a solid generation.
Wavy Gravy. The infamous emcee at Woodstock.
Joe Walsh talking about an upcoming documentary he's creating lyrics and riffs for. Joe says, “There’s this documentary, it’s called Citizen Soldier and it’s about a National Guard unit in Oklahoma that out of nowhere got called to Afghanistan.”
Walsh says the unit shot the film themselves using Go Pro cameras and that "they ended up deep in enemy territory and all hell broke loose and not all of them got back."
The last time Ozzy broke free of Black Sabbath he dropped into the danger zone. He openly admits that it was a very depressing time in his life. From the darkness came some of his biggest success stories. Now that Sabbath is on hiatus... Ozzy's got a new collection of solo songs which were premiered this past Saturday night in Los Angeles at Epic-fest.
Elvis Costello's new book Unfaithful Music and Invisible Ink. Not your typical collection of experiences. But rather an explanation as to what truly took place and why. In the full interview he admits that things were said and done and so he's made a way to reach out and put it in a way that better explains.
Classic Rock and it's fans. There's no past more faithful to the present. RollingStone Magazine has never been known to pull back on punching the makers of music. So when the pages of music's soul step up and call Tom Petty's newest collection of tunes the maximum rock n roll and decisive return to the concise sixties rock classicism... you gotta stop the world and listen...
NEW MUSIC from TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS'
NEW ALBUM, HYPNOTIC EYE
In-stores July 29
TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS
2014 NORTH AMERICAN
TOUR DATES
8/3 San Diego, CA - Viejas Arena
8/5 Boise, ID - Taco Bell Arena
8/7 Eugene, OR - Matthew Knight Center
8/9 San Francisco, CA - Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival
8/12 Portland, OR - Moda Center
8/14 Vancouver, BC - Rogers Arena
8/15 George, WA - The Gorge
8/17 Edmonton, AB - Rexall Place
8/19 Calgary, AB - Scotiabank Saddledome
8/21 Winnipeg, MB - MTS Centre
8/23 Chicago, IL - United Center
8/24 Clarkston, MI - DTE Energy Music Theatre
8/26 Toronto, ONT - Air Canada Centre
8/28 Montreal, QC - Bell Centre
8/30 Boston, MA - Fenway Park
9/6 Arrington, VA - Lockn' Festival
9/7 Darien Center, NY - Darien Lake PAC
9/10 New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
9/13 Hartford, CT - XL Center
9/15 Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Arena
9/18 Raleigh, NC - PNC Arena
9/20 West Palm Beach, FL - Cruzan Amphitheater
9/21 Tampa, FL - Tampa Bay Times Forum
9/23 Nashville, TN - Bridgestone Arena
9/25 Houston, TX - Toyota Center
9/26 Dallas, TX - American Airlines Center
9/28 Tulsa, OK - BOK Center
9/30 Morrison, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre
10/01 Morrison, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre
10/07 Anaheim, CA - Honda Center
10/10 Los Angeles, CA - The Forum
Sebastian Bach. Just got bit by Face Book. The former front man of Skid Row split from fantasy and talked reality with 14 year old digital broadcaster Miles Shuman.
Get the entire interview http://www.spreaker.com/user/theshoe/talkin-w-sebastian-bach-robert-sarzo
Hey... remember this band? It's the Rock orchestra that John Lennon called, "SOB's" Sons of Beatles. The groups founding member Jeff Lynne has ended his silence. For the first time in 13 years. He returned to the well orchestrated electric stage. This won't be the last time we'll hear from Jeff Lynne. He's in the studio creatively coming up with new music with Bryan Adams
Metallica continues to give in a really big way. For Christmas. Fans connected to their website received 12 incredibly hot seconds of one of the new songs featured on an album under construction. Just knowing the band returned to the studio in 2015 was big enough. But now that it's taken a little longer than expected... that doesn't mean those that support the groups creative flow have walked away. Little gifts like this for Christmas are huge in the making of all things Metallica.
Not only is Cheap Trick in the running to be inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. But they're set to release their new collection of songs during the opening moments of 2016. Rick Nielsen talks about the early chapters of the band which included a stint with John Lennon's producer.
Jeff Lynne from ELO talking about his new album officially out today. While Alone in the Universe is billed as Jeff Lynne's ELO, it is a complete solo effort with Lynne not only writing all the songs, but also playing every instrument with the exception of the shaker and tambourine, which was handled by his engineer, Steve Jay. Lynne says, "I just wrote 10 [songs] and they're all short... I tried to make it like a unified sound. I wanted it all to sound pretty much the same."
He will celebrate the album's release with shows in New York next Friday, and Los Angeles on November 24th -- and will then hit the road next year with shows in Europe in April and May.
Big night tonight for Roger Waters. His version of The Wall will play in 500 theaters across the country. The two-and-a-half hour film covers the show he staged around the world from 2010 to 2013 and shows Roger reckoning with his father's 1944 death in Italy during World War 2. It also addresses the human cost of armed conflict today.
Waters says, "I hope these worldwide screenings will be a good opportunity to remember, not just our fallen loved ones, but all the other guys' fallen loved ones. Ashes and diamonds, foe and friend, we were all equal in the end."
The screening will be a followed by the video broadcast of question-and-answer session with Roger and his Pink Floyd bandmate Nick Mason.
For tickets and theater locations log onto FathomEvents.com.
No word yet on when the film will be released on DVD.
We are now down to four teams in the NFL, with Championship Sunday set for this weekend, and our football analyst James "JY" Young of Styx is back to make his picks.
The first game Sunday is for the AFC Championship, and it has the defending Super Bowl champion New England in Patriots in Colorado to take on the Denver Broncos. Though it would make for a great movie if Denver quarterback Peyton Manning led the Broncos to the Super Bowl, in what could be his last year in the league, JY thinks the combination of Patriots coach Bill Belichick [pr: BELL-ih-check] and quarterback Tom Brady will prove to be too "clever," and will win by a field goal -- three points.
And in the NFC Championship game Sunday night in Charlotte, North Carolina, it's the 15-and-1 Carolina Panthers hosting the Arizona Cardinals. JY thinks Carolina will be "too much" for Arizona to handle, especially playing at home, so he's going with the Panthers by three.
So, should his predictions be on the mark, we're looking at a Patriots-Panthers match-up in Super Bowl 50 on Sunday, February 7th in Santa Clara, California.
Sting and Peter Gabriel will spend the summer together as the two will hit the road for the Rock Paper Scissors Tour.
The tour will make stops in 19 North American cities beginning June 21st in Columbus, Ohio. Sting says, "I’m very happy that we’re taking the chance to experiment this way. I think people will be intrigued, I certainly am." Gabriel adds, "What intrigues me is that you get a good bunch of musicians together and interesting things will happen."
Sting and Gabriel say they will perform both separately and together. Tickets go on sale to the public on January 25th.
Jesse James Dupree calls his band Jackyl a Country act turned up on 11. The southern sounds of their Georgia Classic Rock are fueled up and ready to rock clubs across America. You'll find no other that puts so much of themselves into the performance. Maybe that's why they currently hold two world records.
Ann Wilson is excited about Heart headlining this summer's Three for All tour, whose tickets go on sale Friday.
Ann Wilson on this summer's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-themed tour "Starting July 14th across Canada and across America. And it's going to feature Cheap Trick, Joan Jett and Heart. Cheap Trick is being inducted this year, Joan Jett last year, and we were inducted two or three years ago. So, it's sort of a Hall of Fame -- that's why it's called Three for All. And it's going to be cool. Lots of rock and roll, you know."
Ann Wilson says Heart is familiar with their tour co-stars."Yeah, we worked with them both before, especially a lot with Cheap Trick. And with Joan, too -- but mostly, most often with Cheap Trick. I love them, they're great."
Ann Wilson says the induction of Heart and Joan Jett makes a strong statement that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is no longer an all-boys club "That's true, and also it's a question of there being women who are rockin' enough. That's a somewhat new thing in itself. 25 years ago, there just weren't that many women doing rock at all, you know. Now there are quite a few and there are some veteran women rockers. So, yeah, they won't be able to call it a boys club much longer."
Ann Wilson on why Heart fans are so loyal "We've kept making records, we've kept playing shows. Sometimes we're up, sometimes we're down, but there we are. We love doing it, I think people can relate to that. We don't try to be something we're not. We'll go to where the people live [chuckle] and they appeciate that."
And if that's not enough, Heart has a new album that's just months away from going on sale.
Ann Wilson discusses Heart's upcoming album "Yes, we are. We are just finishing up a new record here in L.A. And it's being rough-mixed right now. We have one more song -- it'll be out before the tour starts. Right now, the working title is Iconograph. It's some new songs that have never been heard before; some really super old under-the-radar songs that we have reinvented."
The Three for All tour -- with co-stars Joan Jett and Cheap Trick -- begins July 14th at the DTE Music Theater in suburban Detroit.
Loverboy frontman Mike Reno is excited that his band is playing the iHeart '80s Party, set for February 20th at the Forum in L.A. He can't believe how strong the bill is. Mike Reno is really excited about Loverboy being on the bill for the iHeart '80s Party "Are we playing with anybody else? 'Cause some of our friends are asking me about it, right. And I just got the list -- this is gonna be amazing: Culture Club, Missing Persons, Rick Springfield, Billy Idol, Tears for Fears and Loverboy. And that is the '80s wrapped up in a bow, right there, man." The rest of the lineup is a mix of old friends and artists who had hits at the same time his band did, but never crossed paths with.
Mike Reno of Loverboy on the '80s Party co-stars. "I've met the singer for the Culture Club, Boy George, at a couple of events that we kinda chummed around a little bit. He was a pretty cool guy. I met some of the people in Missing Persons, and Rick Springfield is a friend of ours. We did a tour with them last year. So we got to know everybody there including Rick, of course. Billy Idol, I've never met; and Tears for Fears, I've never met. So I'm looking forward... I'm actually looking more forward to doing this show than probably everybody who's going."
The setting is special as well. The Forum has been renovated as is now a top-notch facility. And Mike won't just be performing that night.
Mike Reno says staging the iHeart '80s Party at the Forum in L.A. is very cool "The Forum, for instance, has been changed around. They took the hockey rink out of it and I think they just set it up totally for concerts. Going to be a huge crowd. And it's in L.A. -- it's like one of the top cities in the world to doing a concert. Everybody, you know, looks forward to it. I'm looking forward to seeing all the other bands -- I'll be there all night. I'm going to stay there all night. I'm doing to stay there all night and watch everybody. I'm going to be like a fan."
A big sports fan, Mike got an unexpected surprise while watching last Sunday's NFC Championship game on TV.
Loverboy's Mike Reno on one of his band's songs being played near the end of the Panthers/Cardinals game. "I noticed when I was watching the game in North Carolina, they were kind of stomping on the poor Arizona team, there, and just barreling over the top of them. And right near the end, they played 'Lovin' Every Minute of It,' 'cause they won the right to go play in the Super Bowl. And I was so honored that they played 'Lovin' Every Minute of It' to celebrate. And the crowd was singing, 'Lovin' Every Minute of It,' and I just went 'this is great'!"
Original Santana drummer Michael Schrieve is very excited about what the reconstituted early lineup of the band has accomplished on the upcoming Santana 4. The album's April 15th release was announced last Friday. He shares his thoughts on it.
Original Santana drummer Michael Shrieve on the new album by the early Santana lineup “I can’t say enough about it. It really sounds great. I think people who like that band – that’s why it’s being called Santana 4, because it really picks up from where we left. And it doesn’t sound tired, it sound invigorating and fresh. And it’s really exciting.”
Original Santana members Shrieve, Greg Rolie, Michael Carrabello and, of course, Carlos Santana, are on the album, along with early addition Neal Schon and current Santana members Karl Perazzo and Benny Rietveld. Shrieve tells what recording with this group was like.
Michael Shrieve on making Santana 4. “At first it was really like putting on a pair of old jeans. We went through so much music and we got together about three times, but all and all it was pretty quick. And so we did do a whole bunch of music and then we decided what we wanted to make into songs and present. But it sounds real fresh. I keep listening to it and I don’t get tired of it.”
Shrieve says Santana 4 is one of three new albums he'll be playing on this year. His Seattle-based quintet Michael Shrieve's Spellbinder will also release an album, as will Drums of Compassion, a project that features him performing with legendary jazz drummers Jack DeJohnette, Zakir Hussain and Airto Moriera plus keyboardist Jeff Greinke.
Paul Kantner was one of the major figures of the music scene in his native San Francisco for over 50 years. Born March 17th, 1941, he co-founded Jefferson Airplane after being recruited by singer Marty Balin, who tracked him down in a club after learning that he sang and played a 12-string guitar. Kantner suggested guitarist Jorma Kaukonen, and the three started the band in the summer of 1965.
After adding singer Signe Anderson and a rhythm section, they quickly got a record deal with RCA – becoming the first Bay Area band to sign with a major label. After one album, Anderson got pregnant and left.
Her replacement, Grace Slick, brought with her two songs that would put the Airplane on the map during 1967's “Summer of Love." “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit” both went Top 10. Surrealistic Pillow, which included both songs, reached number-three on the Billboard 200.
Kantner, Balin and Slick’s unique three-part vocals became one of the group’s signatures. So did the combination of Kantner’s rhythm guitar alongside Kaukonen’s soaring leads and Jack Casady's distinctive bass work.
The Airplane benefited greatly from the rise of rock festivals. They are the only group to appear in the movies of all three of the most famous festivals of the late ‘60s, Monterey Pop, Woodstock and Altamont (Gimme Shelter).
The group's albums were strong sellers: After Bathing at Baxters, Crown of Creation, Volunteers, Bark and Long John Silver all went Top 20.
The outspoken and often abrasive Kantner became the band’s ad hoc leader, with Balin, who’d started the band, taking a less active role in running things. By 1969, the group had split into factions. In 1970, Kantner released his first solo project, Blows Against the Empire, a concept album that won a Hugo Award for science fiction. In addition to his name on the cover, he called the collective ensemble for that album Jefferson Starship. In 1971, a few months after the album was released, Kantner and Slick has a daughter together, China Kantner (her birthday was this Monday).
The Airplane broke up in 1972. Kantner and Slick, with backing musicians, released Sunfighter, and then Baron von Tollboth and the Chrome Nun. In 1974, Kantner and Slick revived and took the Jefferson Starship name.
They asked Balin to sing on one track of their debut album. That song, “Caroline,” became the album’s big hit and paved the way for Balin to join the Starship. Mickey Thomas replaced him in 1978. Kantner eventually tired of the band's pop direction and left in 1984, taking the word Jefferson with him and leaving the others, including Slick, to carry on as Starship.
In 1986, he, Balin and Casady put out an album as The KBC Band. In ’89, with Slick and Kaukonen back in the fold, they put out a self-titled Jefferson Airplane album and toured, but it didn’t last.
Kantner reformed Jefferson Starship in 1992 with musicians from The KBC Band and Airplane. He led one version or another of the group to this day, with a number of lineups and female vocalists. Slick retired from music. Balin rejoined in 1993 and stayed until 2000.
Kantner was inducted into the Rock and Hall of Fame with Jefferson Airplane in 1996. It was just announced this week that they will receive a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award this spring.
Kantner’s final Jefferson Starship album, Jefferson's Tree of Liberty, came out in 2008. In 2009 they took part in the Heroes of Woodstock tour, celebrating the festival’s 40th anniversary with other acts that had played there. Since 2010, Kantner has released volumes of audio collages he called “sonic art” under the name The Paul Kantner Windowpane Collective.
He suffered a heart attack in March 2015, but was able to return to Jefferson Starship late in the year. During that time he played a show to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the first Jefferson Airplane album. He had a second heart attack this week and died Thursday, January 28th, of multiple organ failure.
The first release from Santana 4 has made its way to iHeart Radio stations across the nation. Carlos Santana has regathered his friends from the past and pieced together an incredible journey of sound. He talks about Neil Schon of Journey.
Elton John has released another song off his new album, Wonderful Crazy Night, ahead of its release on Friday, February 5th.
"In the Name of You" is a soulful track that Elton feels is in the vein of Little Feat.
Elton John on his new song, "I just love the way the song builds. I love the verse, I love the chorus, I love the middle eight and the solo and the chorus to me is so hooky. Every song on this album has two or three hooks in it. It’s full of hooks and ‘In the Name of You’ is one of my favorite tracks. And that was the first real guitar-based track that we recorded. A lot of it is kind of a throwback to the ’70s in a way, but it sounds modern too. That sounds a bit Little Feat-ish that track to me.”
Last week at this time Mike Reno of Loverboy was lovin up on the Carolina Panthers because they played his song Lovin Every Minute of it after defeating the Cardinals to get into the big game. I wanted to know if he's still got that love going on. Mike Reno breaks it down.
The Hollywood Vampires are about to be seen in public. They'll pay tribute to Lemmy from Motorhead at this year’s Grammy Awards. The Alice Cooper-fronted, star-packed band — which also includes actor Johnny Depp, Guns N’ Roses‘ Duff McKagan and Aerosmith’s Joe Perry — will perform at the ceremony on Feb. 15.
Also on stage will be Guns n Roses drummer Matt Sorum, guitarist Tommy Henriksen and Bruce Witkin on piano and guitar.
Cooper told Rolling Stone that he might lean on Lemmy’s signature style “I might do it more ‘Alice Cooper style,’ but it would still have to have that growl, that guttural voice to make it work,” he said. “I can’t picture, like, Creedence Clearwater doing that song.”
Roger Waters hinted at hitting the road again this year, but it's not looking likely, as he tells Democracy Now.
Roger Waters on the possibility of touring this year "It’s very unlikely that I will start touring anywhere this year. These things take a long time. It took me about 10 months to put together The Wall tour. I still have to finish making the record."
And Waters adds that he has yet to come up with a title for his new album, but says it will be about "peace and love."
Roger Waters on the subject matter of the album he is working on. "It will be about peace and love. It will be about my concern for the children of the world and how they’re being slaughtered willy-nilly by whoever it is that runs everything."
Roger Waters's last studio album was the 1992 release Amused to Death.
In 2008, Randy Bachman sold his collection of 385 Gretsch guitars to the Gretsch Foundation, the charitable arm of the Gretsch family and the Gretsch company. Randy Bachman on his passion for collection Gretsch guitars. "I think it’s called the midlife crisis. Everywhere I went I’d seek out Gretsch guitars. And I remember one day I got a call from Duke Kramer who was running Gretsch at the time and Fred Gretsch who got the name Gretsch back, he called me and he said, ‘There’s a Fender museum, there’s a Martin museum and you own my museum. Will you sell it to me?’ So we did a deal and I sold him the 385 Gretschs and I think there’s a 100 now that are on display now in Nashville at the Country Music Hall of Fame. So when I sold it I was able to buy a flat in Covent Garden.” 75 of those guitars are now on display at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville. The exhibit, American Sound and Beauty: Guitars From the Bachman–Gretsch Collection, is the largest collection of stringed instruments ever displayed at the museum. Randy Bachman on his guitar collection on display in Nashville. "What you will see at tyhe There’s some of the coolest Gretschs you’ll ever find ’cause they go from 1928 – the old Robert Johnson-looking arch tops with the big hole in the middle and things like that up to all the prototypes. Because my deal was I’ll let you copy mine, but I want prototype one and prototype two so I can check it and see…and sometimes the switch would be in the wrong place so I tell them to correct it so it looked like the original. So that was a really big deal for me collecting those guitars.”
Paul McCartney talking about his new music. But to some people. This is anything but. Even he said, "Hmm is this for me? But its something fun and something new." So into the studio he went with Skype to compose audio Mojis for Valentines Day. He was originally resistant to the idea, but changed his mind, saying, "It turned out to be a great laugh at the same time as challenging. You’ve got to compress a musical interpretation of an expression into less than five seconds. It was like doing a huge crossword puzzle. It was great practice for me in the studio... I wanted it to sound sort of electronic so I wanted the signature to sound electronic rather than acoustic guitar, for instance. So I got the overall signature on the Moog in order to give it a modern flavor.”
The Moji’s are available on Skype now.
Ace Frehley unmasking his willingness to keep his Classic Rock locked on moving forward. Origins Vol. 1 will be out on April 15th and it features reworkings of Cream's "White Room"; Thin Lizzy's "Emerald" with special guest Slash; The Troggs' "Wild Thing" with Lita Ford; "Cold Gin," which he wrote while in KISS and featuring Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready; and Free's "Fire and Water" with Paul Stanley on vocals. The rest of the album contains: "Street Fighting Man" (Rolling Stones) Spanish Castle Magic," featuring John 5 (Jimi Hendrix) "Bring It on Home" (Led Zeppelin) "Parasite," featuring John 5 (KISS) "Magic Carpet Ride" (Steppenwolf) "Till the End of the Day" (Kinks) "Rock and Roll Hell" (KISS)
Ace told Rolling Stone: "I'm really thrilled with the whole thing. I'm excited about it, and probably somewhere down the road there'll be a second volume."
He will support the disc with a tour that gets underway February 26th in Houston.
Paul Shaffer. David Letterman's former band leader. He's played with the biggest names in Classic Rock. Now he's getting to do it on his own. He's working on album of his own. "I'm working on my own record now for Rhino Records. Richard Gottehrer producing. I'm really excited. Good time music, that's all. Rock and roll music."
Shaffer says he regularly speaks to David Letterman and denies rumors that his ex-boss has become a recluse. He says Dave was on hand to present him with an award last fall from the Little Kids Rock charity. The bandleader adds, "We did a little schtick with me in front the audience. He loved it. He's not going away." Shaffer even joked about that Santa-like beard Dave now sports.
Paul Shaffer on David Letterman's beard and their absense from TV. "I love that beard, yes, well I need that beard on the top of my head, you know how it is. Both of us certainly miss being in front of an audience, I'll tell you that much."
Paul's greatest regret about stepping down along with Letterman is not being able to pay tribute to the rock legends who've died since last summer. On the other hand, he's proud neither he nor Letterman overstayed their welcome.
Paul Shaffer on not being able tribute to the just-deceased rock legends on nightly TV. "It's sad that we're losing so many of the greats. We got to play with them all during this period of time. And I'm just thankful I had that opportunity. We had 33 years, we did it longer than anybody ever did it and you can't be greedy."
In addition to Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmit coming together with Jackson Browne to honor Glenn Frey, they picked up the Grammy they won in 1977.
After they performed "Take it Easy," as the telecast went into a commercial break, producer Ken Ehrlich stopped the band from leaving the stage and announced that he was giving them their 1977 Grammy for Record of the Year for "Hotel California." They didn't attend the ceremony that year because they weren't sure they were going to win.
The actual winners of the award are Glenn Frey, Don Henley and Joe Walsh, along with former members Don Felder and Randy Meisner. Bernie Leadon had already left the band in 1977 and Timothy B. Schmit joined after the Hotel California album was recorded.
Music has a way of reaching beyond the moment of creation. Peter Frampton knows each piece has morphed into something new. His latest album is proof of that. Acoustic Classic's takes you on a journey through each riff and lyric in ways that reignite the true spirit of making music. Then connecting it to a passerby's life and style.
35 years ago today. Tom Sawyer and the album Moving Pictures was released. And for some? It was their first date with the trio from Canada. Geddy Lee talks about how the song came about. There was nothing special about it. Plus he's hooked up with another band in 2016 called Wintersleep. I have their first song.
The Red Rocker Sammy Hagar talking to Dan Rather about taking over where Diamond Dave left off. Tonight (Tuesday) you will see the newsman chat with the Red Rocker on The Big Interview on AXS TV. Hagar takes Rather on a joy ride in his new $1.2-million dollar Ferrari; he plays him a new song that he has yet to record called "Inner Child," based on family therapy sessions he attended with his wife and daughters; and they talk about Van Halen, specifically whether or not Hagar felt pressure when he succeeded David Lee Roth in 1986.
Sammy Hagar on taking over for David Lee Roth in Van Halen in 1986. "I didn't feel pressure. I didn't. At the time, as a solo artist, I was really as big as Van Halen. At that time I was selling out double nights everywhere in the country - they were doing about the same. They had just hit that real big one with the song 'Jump.' [It] really kind of broke them into a different league of record sales. But everything else to us was kind of on the same level for the few years before that. They were more flamboyant going out and, you know, being rock stars, so I felt so comfortable with the music that we were playing. I was fine. Sammy Hagar chats with Dan Rather and performs a new song called Inner Child.
One thing Billy Idol doesn't miss about the 1980s is the paparazzi. He tells us he prefers current social media for getting his story out to his fans over the way it was back in the day. Billy Idol on why he prefers social to traditional media. There was a bit of a wall for years and it’s broken that. And it’s fun, really, because in the old days you really had to rely on newspapers and fair reporting and those two things exactly go together. It’s fun that you can go straight to the people and chat to them and have a way of interacting that still doesn’t infringe on your privacy.” Idol performed at Saturday's iHeart '80s concert in L.A. His social media tells us that he has a pair of six-date residencies at House of Blues in Las Vegas between March 16th and 26th, and between May 4th and 14th.
.@BillyIdol tells us he prefers today's social media to having to 'rely on newspapers and fair reporting.' - Tweet
Two time Rock n Roll Hall of Famer Graham Nash breaking down the journey of his new collection of Classic Rock songs. Writing songs is his way to become involved in a listeners life. To get that song there requires a filtering system that starts with him.
Brian Johnson has just added a sweet ride to his car collection with the purchase of Jaguar F-Type Project 7 — the British company's fastest and most powerful production model to date.
Speaking to the Interactive Jaguar Blog, Johnson, who moonlights as a race driver, says, "I love it. It's a proper supercar, and boy, oh boy, does it have some grunt to it. While it's blisteringly fast, I feel so safe in it. I love the steering, the handling, and those carbon ceramic brakes are amazing. The discs are as big as the wheels on my racing Mini. Just listen to that noise from the exhaust. Who needs a stereo when you have a soundtrack like this?"
Jaguar only made 250 with just over 50 of them coming to the States. Johnson, who lives in Florida, says, "I literally had to beg them to buy one. Of course they asked me what color I wanted. I told them: Is there any other color than British Racing Green?"
Brian Johnson on developing his love for cars. "I was lucky as a kid 'cause me father went to the junkyard and he got an old steering wheel and he put a stick in it and he put it into the bed and put the pillows up [and] he said, 'There you go. Now go on, bugger off.' And I used to drive for hours. I didn't see the wallpaper all I saw was the open road. I'd sit there for hours just pretending I was a bus driver or just driving a car anywhere, you know. It was the strangest thing. Now I'm lucky enough to be in a position where I can race cars and collect them and enjoy them."
Vivian Campbell always dreamed of being a rock guitarist in a band. Today he's in two. Def Leppard and Last In Line. The groups new album Heavy Crowns is out featuring Vinny Appice on drums and Claude Schnell. All three former members of Dio.
Is David Lee Roth leaving Van Halen? Earlier this year he said an acoustic song he recently recorded was just poetry. Yesterday he Tweeted something different.
Today is the day Jon Bon Jovi was invited to walk the planet and share a book full of lyrics and harmonies. After so many ripped and smudged out pages. He's still got the drive to fuel the creative journey. He talks about how to keep the river flowing in forward motion while unveiling the cowboy image in Wanted Dead or Alive.
Oh Oh... There's a lot of social media talk about Dave Grohl. Is he leaving the Foo Fighters?
The band wasted no time to talk about it via their anticipated announcement in the form of a video -- and a very funny one at that.
The clip starts with a montage of headlines about breakup rumors and the possibility of Grohl going solo. Then we see Grohl. He says that "seeing as how that Academy Awards thing went so well" he got to thinking that maybe it's time for him to do his own thing. He's speaking to producer Butch Vig, who eggs him on, telling him how great he was and how he should take the momentum and run with it. "Nothing against those other guys, I love those guys and they love me," says Grohl. "I'm holding them back. I'm setting them free. It's a win-win situation."
After Vig lays out a totally fresh, new style for Grohl, electronica played without instruments, just a touch of a keyboard, Grohl calls the other band members to tell them the news. Chris Shiflett, Nate Mendel, Taylor Hawkins and Pat Smear react with a mixture of anger and disbelief. "He's gone Hollywood," says Smear. And then he adds, "Let's make Foo Fighters great again."
Next, we see scenes of Grohl and Vig working on his new style in the studio interspersed with the other guys kicking around names of possible singers, including Sammy Hagar, Gwen Stefani, Billy Corgan, Chris Cornell, Eddie Vedder, Phil Collins ("the drummer who comes out front -- bigger than ever") Prince, Liam Gallagher and even Justin Bieber and Diplo. Finally, we cut to the band and their new vocalist, Nick Lachey, singing "Everlong."
Then, on a black background come these words, "For the millionth time, we're not breaking up and nobody's going [expletive] solo.," followed by the Foo Fighters logo. The video ends with Grohl at a keyboard singing "I ain't no phony. Phony baloney. Got to give me the baloney..."
Phil Collen and I are sharing this conversation about Def Leppard's new tour and how he's excited about bringing his other band Delta Deep to the east coast. Then from out of nowhere he drops that he's producing the new album from Tesla. I had to take our conversation to the center of that journey.
David Gilmore talking about the way Pink Floyd creatively explored while recording. He recalls the origins of Pink Floyd's epic song inspired by founding member Syd Barrett, "Shine on You Crazy Diamond." The occasion of going into a rehearsal room and just jamming was something we did a lot of in the early years and a lot of our early music came out of that. And a lot of ‘Shine on You Crazy Diamond’ came out of that and a lot of the Wish You Were Here album and the Animals album all came out of those sort of sessions where we would just go and kick ideas around in a rehearsal room till something started making sense.” On Sunday, his birthday, he posted a new video for the song "In Any Tongue" from his solo album Rattle That Lock. It's the fourth clip for the album, following "Today," "The Girl in the Yellow Dress" and "Faces of Stone." Like "The Girl in the Yellow Dress," it's animated, but this one is in black, sepia and white. You can find it on YouTube.
AC/DC has pulled the plug on its next 10 shows as singer Brian Johnson has been advised by doctors to stop touring immediately or risk total hearing loss.
The affected dates are tomorrow (Tuesday) in Atlanta through April 4th at Madison Square Garden in New York. The dates will be made up later in the year, likely with a guest vocalist. Ticket holders can hold on to their tickets for the rescheduled dates or receive a refund at point of purchase.
No doubt Johnson's hearing has also been hurt due to his auto racing.
Dave Evans, the man behind the microphone for AC/DC before Bon Scott and Brian Johnson, says his fans want to see him back in the band now that Johnson has been advised by doctors to stop touring or risk total hearing loss. AC/DC say they will reschedule their 10 postponed tour dates, but with guest vocalists.
Evans tells the Sydney Morning Herald, "When I perform around the world, the fans love my music and my performances, and I hear what they tell me. That's what they all tell me. They're pretty appreciative of my vocals and performances."
Regarding the news about Johnson, Evans says, "I just thought it was sad news. It's your lifeblood as a singer. Live performances are so personal. Without the crowd and the adrenaline, it's going to be hard for him. Performances are the big highs in our lives."
Though he knows his return is a longshot, Evans adds that "it would be nice to do one guest performance. [Former members] were all part of the band no matters what era they were from."
Evans sang on the band's first two singles, "Can I Sit Next to You Girl" and "Baby Please Don't Go" before leaving in 1974 to join the Newcastle glam band Rabbit.
Santana IV... musically, spiritually, it was the act of being in the right place at the right time. Bringing back the original members has opened the door for them to hit the stage together. Their going to Vegas. Tickets on sale now.
We've just learned the world of Classic Rock has lost Keith Emerson from Emerson Lake and Palmer. In this salute to his legacy he talks about how he wanted Steve Howe to join his new band but was turned down because Steve was had just hooked up with the group YES. The event went full circle. Several years down the road Keith was invited to join YES to which he said no. Not because of the earlier events but because he was fresh off a huge tour and he was already very loyal to his band.
I must admit. Seeing Jackson Browne with the Eagles during the Grammy Awards totally sparked a ray of hope in my heart. The band could still go on. Then Don Henley made it official over the weekend. Don Henley on the BBC Radio 2 while promoting his July 3rd show in London's Hyde Park, where he will open for Carole King. Don Henley says the Eagles' tribute to Glenn Frey at the Grammy Awards was most likely their last performance. "It was very difficult and very emotional. We actually almost didn't do it and I thought it went pretty well. I think that was the final farewell. I don't think you'll see us performing again. I think that was probably it." The Eagles were joined for their Grammy Awards performance of "Take It Easy" by Jackson Browne, who co-wrote the song with Frey.
Henley will tour this summer, as will Joe Walsh, on a co-headlining bill with Bad Company.
Peter Frampton and Lynyrd Skynyrd are both managed out of the same Nashville-based agency, so why not put them on the road together? It's something they've done many times in the past.
The two acts will set out together on June 3rd in Albany, New York and make their way west, ending in Murphys, California on August 21st.
Frampton is currently on his Raw acoustic tour with a stop in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California Tuesday night.
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I was there 40 years ago this week when Destroyer hit the record bins at the music stores. Little did I know the impact it would have on the rest of my life. One of the most iconic guitar solos comes straight from the fingers of Ace Frehley. The vinyl truth is... he didn't create it.
You gotta love the way a new tour ignites a fans wish to wanna dig into the rhyme and reason behind the music.
After the first single from Heart's debut album flopped, "Magic Man" became their breakthrough, reaching number-nine on the Billboard Hot 100. Heart guitarist Nancy Wilson tells us that the first thing that comes to mind for her when she hears the song "Magic Man" is one of the band's fans from years ago. As for what she thinks when she hears the song? “‘Magic Man’ always reminds me of the guy who said he was the Magic Man. There was the crazed fan who drove around after the tour in an empty truck and he’d always be backstage and he’d always be going, ‘Hey, Annie, I’m the Magic Man, Annie. Annie! Hey, Annie, I’m the Magic Man. So, y’know, everybody was the Magic Man.”
Iggy Pop is back with a new album. Titled Post Pop Depression, it was produced by Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age. Asked why he chose Josh, Iggy tells us, "I kind of knew about [Queens of the Stone Age] and I would hear stuff and I would go, 'Kind of fresh, kind of quirky.' I needed to come up with the goods and make a really good record and somebody said, 'Josh Homme might do something with you.' So then I really researched him." Iggy will be backed by Homme, Dean Fertita -- who plays with both Queens and The Dead Weather -- and Arctic Monkeys drummer Matt Helders when he kicks off a short run of dates in Seattle on March 28th. They'll wrap up the 13-date North American leg in Los Angeles on April 28th and head to Europe a week later.
This Wednesday night David Gilmore is featured on iHeart Radio's Icon Series. His new music from Rattle That Lock will be featured and the stories of how it came into being.
Ace Frehley's new album features a collaboration with Paul Stanley. It's got a lot of Classic Rock fans wondering if it will serve as an open door for the Spaceman to return to KISS. Ace talks about it. Plus Paul sheds some light on their longtime friendship and family.
Tonight on iHeart Radio. The Icon Series puts focus on David's new album and past adventures. Its an in depth look and listen to one of music's most creative minds. David Crosby says he's shocked that Fender has erected a monument in his honor.
You will soon see Eric Clapton's mug wherever there is a Chase bank and ATM. He has joined forces with one of the country's four largest banks to help promote his new album, I Still Do, which will be out on May 20th.
The Chase partnership will also extend to TV and radio, a huge billboard in New York's Times Square, a direct email campaign to one-in-two American households, and an album special on MTV and VH1 Classic.
Listen to the first cut from the album called CAN'T LET YOU DO IT
U2 will receive the Innovators Award at the iHeartRadio Music Awards on April 3rd in Los Angeles. The award recognizes the band's "impact on popular culture and commitment to social causes." U2 is also up for Best Tour that night.
The show will air live on TBS, TNT and truTV.
Last month, Ohio governor and Republican presidential candidate John Kasich made the pledge that if elected he would reunite Pink Floyd.
Both are highly unlikely, but Kasich has a better chance of being elected, David Gilmour says.
David Gilmour on John Kasich promising to reunite Pink Floyd if elected president. "Well I think there are a lot of things that presidents should attempt, but that ain't one of them. And I wish him good luck in that quest. And I suppose I ought to wish he has a better chance than that other guy with the fair hair."
This Friday in Brooklyn, New York, Cheap Trick, Chicago, Deep Purple, Steve Miller and N.W.A will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Each day this week we are are profiling those inductees. Today, it's Chicago. The band has been eligible for induction since 1994, but -- like Cheap Trick -- was not nominated until this year. They were the top vote-getter in the fan ballot, receiving more than 37-million votes, but there is speculation that some electronic shenanigans may have stuffed the ballot box.
Formed in 1967, the group at first called itself The Big Thing, then the Chicago Transit Authority. When the actual CTA threatened a lawsuit in 1969, they shortened the name to Chicago.
While there were horn-oriented bands before Chicago, most notably Blood, Sweat & Tears and the Electric Flag, none achieved nearly as much success -- 21 Top 10 singles and five number-one albums. The group has sold more than 100-million records - over 40-million in the U.S. alone -- and has 23 gold, 18 platinum and eight multi-platinum albums.
Four of the seven original members are still in the band: Robert Lamm, Walt Parazaider, James Pankow and Lee Loughnane. They will all attend the induction ceremony, as will drummer Danny Serphine, who left in 1990. Original singer and bassist Peter Cetera refuses to attend, and guitarist Terry Kath died of a self-inflicted gunshot in 1978.
Friday's ceremony will be a bit of a homecoming for singer and keyboardist Lamm, who grew up in Brooklyn.
Rob Thomas of Matchbox 20 will induct Chicago.
Ace Frehley's new album gives KISS fans the opportunity to step back into the KISS-tory books and hear a different side of the songs. Three are featured on Frehley's new collection of tunes Origins Vol 1. His goal was to give fans the opportunity to hear what might have happened if he had been part of the original release.
Anytime you get the members of Cheap Trick together in the same room its going to be a laughter party. The new album is out. It features Daxx Nielson on the drums. He talks about the experience. While the rest of the members put focus on the formula of what's made the band the go to source for incredible Classic Rock.
A life changing 4 day experience where people from all walks of life come together to share their love of music and live the rock star experience. Adults from all over the world come to camp and are placed in a band lead by their rock star counselor, i.e. Rudy Sarzo from Quiet Riot, Vinny Appice from Black Sabbath, Phil X from Bon Jovi and many more. They attend rehearsals, master classes, jam rooms and prepare to perform with their musical heroes, as well as two live performances in Hollywood, CA including the legendary Whisky A Go Go on the infamous Sunset Strip.
Bono and The Edge expressed some old school values in accepting the Innovator Award at last night's iHeart Radio Music Awards.
Instead of trumpeting the worthy musical exploration the band has done, the two spoke about some things that really haven't changed during their long career. This is what Bono had to say, “I guess a band using bass, guitar and drums all those years after rock n’ roll was invented doesn’t sound so innovative. But it turns out rock n’ roll has more to do with spirit than flesh. Isn’t that right, The Edge?”
And here's The Edge,“I think the thing that might be the most innovative of all about our band is that we are a real band. We are still in our high school band.”
After pointing out the innovative producers they've worked with, Daniel Lanois, Brian Eno and Brian Burton AKA Danger Mouse, and giving props to last year's Innovator Award winner, Pharrell Williams, who presented them with their trophy, Bono concluded by talking about freedom of expression and including a not-too-subtle dig at one of our presidential candidates,“Strange to say that there are places around the world where making music is a crime, where you can go to jail for expressing an opinion, where you can get a punch in the face for disagreeing with some politician somewhere. That could never happen here, could it?”
The Class of 2016 has been inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. Watch for the replay on HBO April 30th. For now this is a short recap of the moments that became history.
This Friday in Brooklyn, New York, Cheap Trick, Chicago, Deep Purple, Steve Miller and N.W.A will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Each day this week we are are profiling one of those inductees. Today, it's Deep Purple. The band became eligible for election in 1993 and was nominated three times before this year. They came in fourth in the fan voting, amassing 25.5-million votes behind Chicago, Yes and The Cars.
The opening of "Smoke on the Water" is one of the most famous guitar riffs ever created. But the band's classics also include "Hush," "Highway Star," "Burn," "Lazy," "Space Truckin'" and "Perfect Strangers."
Formed in Hertford, England in 1968, Deep Purple has had a tumultuous history with numerous members. They broke up in 1976 and reunited in 1986. Two members -- Jon Lord and Tommy Bolin -- are dead.
Drummer Ian Paice, the only member on board for the entire 48-year run, will be in Brooklyn on Friday, along with Ian Gillan, Roger Glover and former members Glenn Hughes and David Coverdale. Founding guitarist Ritchie Blackmore will not attend because the current line-up refuses to perform with him. Original singer Rod Evans is also included in the band being inducted, but his whereabouts are unknown.
Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich will do the honors at the ceremony.
This Friday in Brooklyn, New York, Cheap Trick, Chicago, Deep Purple, Steve Miller and N.W.A will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We've been profiling the inductees. Today, it's Miller time.
The singer and guitarist became eligible for election in 1993 and, like Chicago and Cheap Trick, was elected the first time he was nominated. He was aided by the fan ballot, where he got 25.5-million votes, placing him fifth behind Chicago, Yes, The Cars and Deep Purple.
Miller was born in Milwaukee where his father was friends with Les Paul. The guitar innovator was very encouraging to Steve and gave him lessons. Miller began his professional career in Chicago, playing blues. He moved out to San Francisco and started to absorb the psychedelia that would lead him in a more pop-rock direction with songs like "Livin' in the U.S.A.," "Fly Like an Eagle," "Rock'n Me," "Take the Money and Run," "Jet Airliner" and "Jungle Love." His Greatest Hits 1974-78 is one of the best-selling albums of all-time. Miller is still writing, recording and touring.
Miller says he hopes the outpouring of support for him and his fellow inductees this year makes the Rock Hall's nominating committee take notice.
Unlike Deep Purple and Chicago, who can't seem to put their differences aside long enough to perform with former bandmates at Friday's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Cheap Trick is doing just that, taking the stage with former drummer Bun E. Carlos for the first time in six years.
Robert Plant and Jimmy Page have an L.A. date set for May 10th, but it's not a Led Zeppelin reunion show. Rather, it's the start date for a jury trial over the claim they ripped off the opening riff from a song by the band Spirit for "Stairway to Heaven."
On Friday, U.S. District Judge Gary Klausner ruled that Led Zep's 1971 classic is similar enough to "Taurus," a 1967 instrumental track by Spirit, to have a jury decide whether Plant and Page committed copyright infringement.
The suit was filed by Michael Skidmore, a trustee for the late Randy California, who wrote "Taurus" and played guitar in Spirit. Skidmore points out that Spirit and Zeppelin toured together in 1968 and '69 and Page may have been motivated to write "Stairway" after hearing "Taurus" performed live by Spirit.
There is some good news for the Zep camp, though. The judged dropped claims against bassist John Paul Jones and Warner Music, so only Page and Plant remain on the hook.
Most of Santana's original lineup will do the first of a handful of shows Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden in New York. They are performing in support of Friday's reissue of Santana 4. The band that made that album has reconvened for the occasion: Carlos Santana, singer-keyboard player Gregg Rolie, drummer Michael Shrieve and percussionist Michael Carabello, joined by Journey guitarist Neal Schon, who was on hand for the band's third and fourth albums. Carlo Santana on what fans can expect from the Santana 4 lineup. "Chills, a lot of hope, surge. It's like putting your head in Niagara Falls [and the water] hits you in the back of your neck and it feels exhilarating. This is about energy. You know, a lot of bands our age are reduced to embers. We're still a tornado of fire. We show up and there's no embers here man. It's a vortex tornado of fire." Carlos Santana on what it means to perform at Madison Square Garden. "If you're in the times of the Romans, this is the Roman Coliseum. This is where gladiators square off, you know. It's not Los Angeles. Over there is the capital of entertainment. Here is the capital of kick your ass kind of energy. And so this is perfect for us because we're that kind of band. We're the energy band." Neal Schon will do double-duty as Journey is also on the bill at the Garden. The two bands will play in Connecticut Friday and Pennsylvania Saturday.
Cheap Trick singer Robin Zander says he would be willing to stand in with AC/DC on tour if asked, but on one condition -- Brian Johnson, his neighbor in Florida, would have to give his blessing.
Zander tells Rolling Stone: "I wouldn't go there as a slap in the face to him. But if he said, 'Go ahead,' I would do it. And I'd donate the money to somebody. They're AC/DC. People want to hear those songs. Sure, they want to hear them with Brian. But if Brian isn't there, they can get someone else. I don't know what else to say, but I know I'd be heartbroken if something happened to me and I couldn't sing in Cheap Trick."
Axl Rose has been rumored for the slot, an idea that doesn't sit well with Zander or his bandmate Rick Nielsen.
"I don't know about that. That's weird. Malcolm [Young] left, and if he was still there this wouldn't be happening, I don't think. We love Angus [Young] and all that stuff and Brian's my neighbor for god's sake and I'm afraid to walk over and say hello. To see this happen is sort of like a death in the family."
What do rock stars do after they've toured with the bands that brought them to the dance? Gregg Rolie will wrap up his tour with Carlos Santana then jump on board Ringo Starr's tour bus. He talks about his fourth year with the former Beatle and how the drummer allows the music to be played out like a band and not how it was originally presented.
What a weekend for Classic Rockers. Paul Stanley and Ace Frehley were both hospitalized. Carlos Santana wants to serve as the moderator between Steve Perry and Neal Schon. And Axl Rose was chosen to replace Brian Johnson in AC/DC.
After all the rumors, speculation and sightings, it has been confirmed that Axl Rose will be the singer in AC/DC for European dates in May and June.
The band released a statement that says, "AC/DC band members would like to thank Brian Johnson for his contributions and dedication to the band throughout the years. We wish him all the best with his hearing issues and future ventures. As much as we want this tour to end as it started, we understand, respect and support Brian's decision to stop touring and save his hearing. We are dedicated to fulfilling the remainder of our touring commitments to everyone that has supported us over the years, and are fortunate that Axl Rose has kindly offered his support to help us fulfill this commitment."
The tour starts up again on May 7th in Lisbon, Portugal. The 10 postponed U.S. shows will be rescheduled, also with Axl.
Brian Johnson, who left the tour early last month on his doctor's advise that he could permanently damage his hearing, has not commented on these latest developments.
Now that Carlos Santana has reunited the bulk of the original Santana band -- along with Journey guitarist Neal Schon, who was in Santana for their third and fourth albums -- Carlos wants to help Neal and Steve Perry reunite in Journey.
Carlos Santana on wanting to help Neal Schon and Journey reunite with Steve Perry. Courtesy of Jim Kerr Rock n Roll Morning Show on WAXQ - Q104.3 in New York
"I dream of Neal and I talking to Steve Perry and saying, 'Look man, Moses parted the sea, let's part all that stuff aside and write the new songs.' Because if Santana can do Santana 4, you know, Neal and Steve Perry and whoever wants to join in...you know, because it's 2016. Time is short. And there's a chemistry between Neal and Steve Perry and also his new singer [Arnel Pineda]. But I love creating a stage where you can't tell one band from the other."
And Neal Schon says with Journey and Santana teaming up for three shows this week in New York, Connecticut and Pennsylvania -- in which he played in both bands -- he wanted Santana keyboardist and original Journey member Gregg Rolie to sit in with Journey.
Neal Schon on his vision for the Santana-Journey shows this week in the Northeast. Courtesy of the Jim Kerr Rock n Roll Morning Show on WAXQ - Q104.3 in New York
"If everybody opened their mind in Journey right now and looked at it more like one big show, okay, that we could put into from all the time frames - where we came from - that's what it was supposed to be. It was supposed to be an evolution in the concept of my mind. And some people, you know, were a little just, 'I don't know if I want,' you know, in my band. And I'm going, 'I don't really think it's your choice.'"
Schon adds that he decided to be a gentleman about it, "at least for the first gig." We've learned that it's keyboardist Jonathan Cain, who replaced Rolie in Journey, who was against the idea. Ironically, Rolie recommended Cain to replace him.
To honor the 40th anniversary of the Wings Over America tour -- which began in Fort Worth -- the former Wings guitarist is bring his own band into the Dosey Doe Big Barn in The Woodlands on May 7th. That night, they'll perform the Band on the Run album in its entirety. Denny Laine on how Paul McCartney and the rest of Wings began to realize Band on the Run was going to be a very special album "We came back to London and started doing the overdubs. And people would come in and say, 'Oh, I like that.' And George [Martin] would stick some strings on something and, 'Oh yeah! Now that's coming alive.' But, it's really the way it built. It was like building a house and as soon as it got to the top, it was starting to look like a house. That's when we realized, 'Ah, this is going to be something else, you know'." Denny Laine says the crowds at the Wings Over America tour were enthusiastic. "The crowd reaction was always the same. Sighs. Kind of like wherever you were, you felt you was in the same place. I never really got to see the show 'cause I was on the stage. But, you know, when you see some of the footage, you think, 'Oh, that's how they saw it.' But you know, you always miss what the audience is going through when you are the person on the stage." Denny Laine on the benefit of touring for Wings. "It got the band very tight, which is the first thing that I like. 'Cause any band takes a while. That's why Wings took a long time. You can't be great overnight... It takes a lot of live work."
No surprise here as ZZ Top has postponed more shows due to bassist Dusty Hill breaking his shoulder last week following a fall as he climbed the stairs to the stage in Lubbock, Texas. All dates through May 7th have been scrapped.
They will all be rescheduled.
ZZ manager Carl Stubner says, "It was very dark back there, and the step -- really a half-step -- wasn't lit, so there's no way he could've seen it. We found out that others had missed it and stumbled earlier in the day. Maybe some strategic lighting could've prevented this, but that's water under the bridge. What's important now is that Dusty and his medical team to do what's necessary for a complete recovery."
And Dusty adds, "My physicians told me that this type of injury is usually associated with contact sports. I'm not sure bass-playing qualifies as such, but they're doing their best to get me back in the game as soon as possible. Thanks to everyone for all the good wishes we've received. We're determined to enjoy a speedy recovery and to see you soon!"
Roger Glover from Deep Purple. Talking about the journey after being inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. He admits that he can't stop writing music. Even while with family his creative mind is generating lyrics. As for touring? He wonders what will happen when it's time to grow up.
Peter Wolf says the title of his new album A Cure for Loneliness is a personal statement. Peter Wolf discusses his new album A Cure for Loneliness. "Music has been my constant cure... for loneliness. And so, it's a collection of just a lot of new songs I've written and some favorite roots songs that have been with me all my life." One of the standout cuts is a very different version of the J. Geils Band favorite "Love Stinks." At first, that wasn't a song he planned to include on the album. Peter Wolf on his reboot of the J Geils song "Love Stinks." "We were taping live and that was not planned. We were backstage fooling around. I think a little bit of Kentucky's finest -- everyone was having a little sip of this and that. And so on stage, I just called out, started singing 'Love Stinks,' and the band started following me. People enjoyed it so much, we decided to put it on the record. But it wasn't planned that way." Wolf is getting ready to head "north, west, east and south" on a tour that begins next Friday and extends into the summer. Expect his new material to be mixed with songs he made famous with The J. Geils Band. As Peter reminds us, "It's a large part of my life. We were together for 17 years." Peter Wolf previews his spring tour. "There are a lot of hip-shakin', uptempo, slamming things. We just do a lot of different textures. A broader bunch of things, but I still rock it out -- there's still a lot of blues-based things and raunchy things. So, it's different. And I also include some of my favorite Geils songs." That J. Geils history even includes a show where they actually shared a bill with the late, great Prince. Peter Wolf was a fan of Prince, even before he and The J. Geils Band were opening acts for a 1981 Rolling Stones show in L.A.. "I met him several times throughout the years, and he was also a guest on a bill that The J.Geils Band had played with The Rolling Stones out in California. I met him even before his first recordings came out. And so, I did not know him well, but one thing's for sure, I was and still am a very huge fan of his artistry, creativity and his work."
Peter Wolf kicks off his tour April 29th at Infinity Hall in Hartford, Connecticut.
Imagine being in a well known band and your opening act is Led Zeppelin. The drummer walks up to you and says, "I've been inspired by you to play." The fringe benefits of being a success in music. Carmine Appice goes deep into detail in his new book Stick It My Life Of Sex Drums and Rock n Roll.
2016 will be a big year for Kansas as it mixes old and new. The band known for such classic songs as "Carry On, Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind" will join on the bandwagon of performing a landmark album in its entirety. For Kansas, it's Leftoverture, the 1976 LP that broke the band big across the country. Richard Williams of Kansas says touring for the 40th anniversary Leftoverture is something new for them. "It's the 40th anniversary of the album. We've never done an album in its entirety before, just like it was recorded -- from beginning to end in order, and all of that. With the new lineup, we're up to do anything. We're always reinventing ourselves in a way." There's also new to go along with the old. Kansas just finished its first album of new material since 2000. Richard Williams of Kansas says the 40th anniversary Leftoverture tour will coincide with their new album of original material. "We'll going to start doing that as the new album is released, also. So we'll be doing along with the Leftoverture tour, it's going to be a long show. We're going to be doing a lot of other stuff and we're also going to be doing a lot of the new album. So it's a celebration of the old, and a celebration of the new -- and everything in between." The Prelude Implicit, expected in September, will be the first to feature the voice -- and writing -- of current lead singer Ronnie Platt. Richard Williams of Kansas says the band's upcoming album fits in with their multi-generational appeal. "We've picked up a lot of younger fans, that's very exciting. This is Ronnie Platt's first album with us. And it's going to be great for Ronnie to have his own songs to sing -- very exiciting for him. The album came out fantastic. It's been 16 years since we've done a studio album and we have a lot to say. So, it was an amazing process and we're extremely proud of it. I think our Kansas fans are really going to love it." Before the official 40th anniversary celebration gets rolling, Kansas has a trio of New York-area shows this week. The first is Thursday night at Long Island, New York's NYCB Theater, when it shares a bill with Edgar Winter.
Dead & Company is Grateful Dead members Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann and Bob Weir; singer/guitarist John Mayer; Allman Brothers’ bassist Oteil Burbridge; and “Fare Thee Well” and RatDog keyboardist Jeff Chimenti.
In October of 2015 the band took to the stage for their inaugural nationwide tour, kicking off with three sold-out concerts at the legendary Madison Square Garden (including Halloween) and ending the year with two sold-out performances at the “Fabulous” Forum (the final was New Year’s Eve).
Drawing on the tremendous success of the band’s 2015 tour, Dead & Company are launching their highly-anticipated new tour on Friday, June 10, 2016 (a full listing of tour dates can be found below).
2016’s tour finds the celebrated group playing (among many other shows) two nights at Citi Field in New York; a two show independence day weekend celebration at Folsom Field in Boulder, Colorado; two nights at the famous Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, Wisconsin; and two shows at Boston’s iconic Fenway Park on Friday, July 15 and Saturday, July 16.
Dead & Company will play two sets at Bonnaroo on June 12.
At each show, Dead & Company will perform two sets of music drawn largely from the Dead’s historic catalog of songs.
Tickets are on sale now for the 2016 summer tour. Check www.deadandcompany.com for complete ticketing information.
On Wednesday, May 11 at 7:00 p.m. local time, “Grateful Dead Meet-Up at the Movies 2016,” comes back to the big screen for the 6th annual event. This special cinema event features the previously unreleased Grateful Dead Dead (Jerry Garcia, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh, Brent Mydland and Bob Weir) concert from Sullivan Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts on July 2, 1989. This event also features live concert footage of Dead & Co. from their 2015 tour.
The Dead reunited in the summer of 2015 for the Fare Thee Well tour that included five shows in Chicago and Santa Clara, California, celebrating their 50th anniversary.
Dead & Company 2016 Tour Dates:
Fri Jun 10 Charlotte, NC PNC Music Pavilion
Thu Jun 16 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center
Fri Jun 17 Noblesville, IN Klipsch Music Center
Mon Jun 20 Camden, NJ BB&T Pavilion
Tue Jun 21 Saratoga Springs, NY Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Thu Jun 23 Bristow, VA Jiffy Lube Live
Sat Jun 25 Flushing, NY Citi Field
Sun Jun 26 Flushing, NY Citi Field
Tue Jun 28 Hartford, CT Xfinity Theatre
Sat Jul 02 Boulder, CO Folsom Field
Sun Jul 03 Boulder, CO Folsom Field
Thu Jul 07 Detroit, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre
Sat Jul 09 East Troy, WI Alpine Valley Music Theatre
Sun Jul 10 East Troy, WI Alpine Valley Music Theatre
Wed Jul 13 Pittsburgh, PA First Niagara Pavilion
Fri Jul 15 Boston, MA Fenway Park
Sat Jul 16 Boston, MA Fenway Park
Fri Jul 22 Portland, OR Moda Center
Sat Jul 23 George, WA Gorge Amphitheatre
Tue Jul 26 Irvine, CA Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre
Wed Jul 27 Chula Vista, CA Sleep Train Amphitheatre
Fri Jul 29 Wheatland, CA Toyota Amphitheatre
Sat Jul 30 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre
Tickets are available through Ticketmaster, unless otherwise noted.
**Tickets are not available through Ticketmaster for these concerts:
Citi Field concert tickets available HERE.
Folsom Field tickets available HERE.
Fenway Park tickets available HERE.
This weekend The Carolina Rebellion returns. On stage Friday night. The Scorpions...who didn't impress promoters at the birth of Heavy Metal. They brought an acoustic guitar to an electric performance.
A conversation about podcasting becomes a great talk about all things brought up and set free...
A sheet of paper sat in front of me while in the studio at iHeart Media. The words? The saddest song I had to write. I didn't know if I was writing poetry or a brand new book. This time around it would include music.
Wow this one shocked me. I had no clue what was on the cassette. I was 14 years old saying Id like to do this a long time.
Ten at Ten was an hour long syndicated radio show created by my passion to do more than just show up and talk over song intros. Creating this John Lennon special several decades before I wrote a book based on John Lennon shows I've always had a connection with an artist and author that reaches beyond then and now. Enjoy the show. It still touches me today.
My goal was to be as great as those who have the job and had the job before me. That meant recording every radio talent in Charlotte and studying their craft. I didn't want to be just another. I wanted to be a leader like those who brought inspiration to my reasons for being in radio. This is Charlotte 1985.
I didn't have a fancy control board. Just a Mr. Microphone. A plastic little stick that somehow broadcast my bedroom radio shows 100 feet away from the Kmart turntables and eight track tape player. At 16 years old I was passionate about the radio performance like the Rock stars with their guitars. I had to practice everyday and that meant doing radio shows on Thanksgiving 1978.