Bryan Adams reveals the truth about his first guitar

Bryan Adams reveals the truth about his first guitar
Satish Bate/Hindustan Times via Getty Images

Turns out the lyrics to Bryan Adams‘ 1985 hit “Summer of ’69” aren’t exactly autobiographical.

In the lyrics he reminisces about his first guitar, singing about getting his “first real six-string” at the “five and dime.” Well, during an appearance on the I Never Thought It Would Happen podcast, hosted by Squeeze’s Chris Difford, Adams reveals his uncle actually got him his first guitar when he was 12. 

“[I] told him that I wanted to buy an electric guitar, and he took me down to the music shop in Reading and I still have that electric guitar,” he said. “It’s an Italian thing. … It’s an imitation Stratocaster.”

And while Adams has that guitar today, that wasn’t always the case. He says he actually gave it to a neighbor when his family moved from Israel, but it eventually made its way back to him.

He explained that sometime in the ’90s he got a “random email” from someone saying they had the guitar, asking if he wanted it back. But after replying he never heard from them again.

Then 10 years later a man came up to him at a club in Berlin claiming to have it. Turns out he was a friend of the original emailer, who had died in a plane crash. That guy left the guitar to his friend, telling him he wanted to get it back to Adams.

“It’s the stupidest story, but I mean, it’s what happened. And so I got it back,” Adams said. “I tried playing it a few times, but I think it’s been modified in the neck. … I haven’t bothered to set it up again, it’s just there. Just a piece of history.”

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ZZ Top expands summer Elevation tour

ZZ Top expands summer Elevation tour
Corine Solberg/Getty Images

ZZ Top has added some new dates to their summer Elevation tour.

The trek is set to kick off in the U.S. on June 10 in Moorhead, Minnesota, and the band has now added 21 additional shows in such cities as Salinas, Kansas; Lincoln, Nebraska; Eugene, Oregon; Costa Mesa, California; Midland, Texas; and New York City. The tour is now set to wrap on Oct. 10 in Terre Haute, Indiana.

Special guests on the tour include Night Ranger, Payton Smith and Black Stone Cherry.

A presale for tickets launches Wednesday, with tickets going on sale to the general pubic on Friday.

Next up, ZZ Top brings their Elevation tour to Australia and New Zealand. The tour Down Under begins April 26 in Bendigo, Australia. A complete list of tour dates can be found at ZZTop.com.

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10CC announces US summer tour dates

10CC announces US summer tour dates
Photo credit: Nick Oliver

Seventies hitmakers 10CC have announced dates for a new summer tour of the U.S.

The band, best known for such hits as “I’m Not in Love” and “The Things We Do For Love,” will launch a new leg of The Ultimate Ultimate Greatest Hits Tour Aug. 27 in Napa, California. The tour will consist of 17 shows, with stops in Las Vegas, Phoenix, Denver, Chicago, Columbus, Cleveland and more. It wraps Sept. 14 in Alexandria, Virginia.

10CC brought The Ultimate Ultimate Greatest Hits Tour to the U.S. last summer. The band currently consists of original member Graham Gouldman with Rick Fenn and Paul Burgess, who joined the group in 1976, plus Keith Hayman and Andy Park.

“After not having toured the US for more than three decades, last year’s tour was a remarkable experience,” says Gouldman. “We’re used to our regular audiences across Europe, Australia and New Zealand, but the reaction of the American audiences took us completely by surprise – it was incredible. We are really looking forward to our return and playing new venues this year.”

A complete list of dates and ticket information can be found at 10cc.world.

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Lenny Kravitz opens the doors of his Paris mansion to ‘Architectural Digest’

Lenny Kravitz opens the doors of his Paris mansion to ‘Architectural Digest’
ABC/Randy Holmes

Lenny Kravitz is giving fans a peak inside his Parisian home.

The rocker gave Architectural Digest a tour of his mansion, named Hotel de Roxie after his mother, Roxie Roker. He shares that he named it after his mom “because it was her dream to come live in Paris.” He notes, “She wanted to retire after doing 11 seasons of The Jeffersons and she never got to do it.”

“So I’m doing it for both of us and this place is a gift,” he shares.

The tour gives the public a look at the home’s grand entrance, complete with a custom-designed Steinway grand piano, the petit salon, named the Roxie Room, also after his mom, as well as the grand salon, bedrooms, library, dining room and more.

There’s also a look at his studio, which features memorabilia pieces from such musicians as Jimi Hendrix, James Brown, Prince, Bob Marley and John Lennon, as well as the boiler room, which Kravitz converted into a speakeasy-style club.

“The superstar musician has loved Paris since he first visited in 1989 but it wasn’t until the early 2000s that he decided it was time to get a place in the city,” reads a post on Instagram. “With a small apartment on the Seine in mind, Kravitz’s vision deviated a little when he ended up viewing the grand mansion of Countess Anne d’Ornano.”

The post notes that with his company, Kravitz Design, the “Let Love Rule” singer “spearheaded the design of his home. Soulful elegance was Kravitz’s design philosophy, filling his home with photographs, artwork, and artifacts connecting him to his ancestors and influential figures from throughout his life.”

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Van Halen’s ‘Jump’ joins Spotify’s Billions Club

Van Halen’s ‘Jump’ joins Spotify’s Billions Club
Warner Records

Van Halen’s hit song “Jump” is the latest track to join Spotify’s Billions Club.

The band’s original frontman, David Lee Roth, announced the news on social media by sharing a clip of the song’s video and adding his own funny audio commentary. He captioned the post, “Jump! Over 1 Billion Served.”

The official Van Halen Instagram account also marked the milestone, writing, “Van Halen’s ‘Jump’ has officially joined @spotify’s Billions Club for hitting one billion streams. Thanks to all the fans for listening!”

“Jump” is the band’s first song to land in the Billions Club. The track, off Van Halen’s sixth studio album, 1984, was their only #1 single.

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On This Day, April 15, 2001: Ramones frontman Joey Ramone died

On This Day, April 15, 2001: Ramones frontman Joey Ramone died

On This Day, April 15, 2001 …

Ramones frontman Joey Ramone died in New York City just one month before he would have turned 50.

The rocker died following a private battle with lymphoma, which he had been diagnosed with in 1995. His condition was only revealed a month prior to his death.

Born Jeffrey Ross Hyman in Queens, New York, Joey co-founded the Ramones in 1974 with Johnny Ramone, born John William Cummings, and Dee Dee Ramone, born Douglas Glenn Colvin.

The Ramones are considered by many to be one of the most influential punk rock bands of all time and were known for such hits as “I Wanna Be Sedated,” “Rockaway Beach,” “Sheena Is a Punk Rocker” and more.

They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.

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Judas Priest & Alice Cooper announce co-headlining fall tour

Judas Priest & Alice Cooper announce co-headlining fall tour
Courtesy of Live Nation

Judas Priest and Alice Cooper are teaming up for a fall co-headlining tour.

The joint outing launches Sept. 16 in Biloxi, Mississippi, and concludes Oct. 26 in Houston. Metal band Corrosion of Conformity will also be on the bill on most dates.

Presales begin Wednesday at 10 a.m. local time, and tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday at 10 a.m. local time. For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit JudasPriest.com or AliceCooper.com.

The most recent Priest album is 2024’s Invincible Shield. Cooper put out his latest record, Road, in 2023.

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David Bowie’s daughter says she’s not ‘a copy’ of her famous dad

David Bowie’s daughter says she’s not ‘a copy’ of her famous dad
Evan Agostini/Getty Images

David Bowie’s daughter, Lexi Jones, recently launched her own music career, but she wants folks to know she’s not trying to be a copy of her dad.

The singer, who released the new album Xandri in April, shared a poem on Instagram titled “DAVID BOWIE’S DAUGHTER.” She wrote under it, “That gets your attention ay?”

“I’m the daughter of a legend but I’m more than just his name,” she writes. “they see the blood, they hear the sound yet fail to see me, don’t feel the same.”

She adds, “they compare me to his heights like I’m supposed to reach his light but I’m not here to chase what’s already been done by loving what I do, I feel I’ve already won.”

In the poem Lexi insists she’s “not a copy, not a shadow” of her dad: “I’m not trying to fill his shoes I’m just trying to find my own peace.”

The 24-year-old Lexi, born Alexandria Zahra Jones, is Bowie’s only daughter with supermodel Iman. She was 15 when Bowie passed away in 2016 after a private battle with liver cancer.

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Ex-Judas Priest drummer Les Binks dead at 73

Ex-Judas Priest drummer Les Binks dead at 73
Amy Sussman/WireImage

Ex-Judas Priest drummer Les Binks has died. He was 73.

“We are deeply saddened about the passing of Les and send our love to his family, friends and fans,” the metal legends write in a Facebook post.

“The acclaimed drumming he provided was first class – demonstrating his unique techniques, flair, style and precision,” the post continues. “Thank you Les – your acclaim will live on.”

Binks drummed in Priest from 1977 to 1979, and played on the band’s 1978 albums Stained Class and Killing Machine. He was inducted with Priest into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022, and performed with his former bandmates for the first time since 1979 during the induction ceremony.

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Warren Haynes & Derek Trucks are ready to celebrate the Allman Brothers Band in New York

Warren Haynes & Derek Trucks are ready to celebrate the Allman Brothers Band in New York
Courtesy of The Brothers

The music of the Allman Brothers Band will be celebrated at New York’s Madison Square Garden Tuesday and Wednesday by The Brothers. The super group features ABB founding member Jaimoe, along with band members Warren Haynes, Derek Trucks, Oteil Burbridge, Marc Quiñones, Chuck Leavell and others.

Trucks, who officially joined the Allman Brothers in 1999, tells ABC Audio there was no way he wasn’t going to be part of the shows.

“When Jaimoe calls, you say, ‘Yes sir, how high do you want me to jump?’” he jokes. “The further we get away from being a part of this band and playing that music, kinda the more you want to play it.”

And Trucks felt that as soon as everybody got into the room together for rehearsals.

“Within five, 10 minutes, you’re like, oh yeah, I remember this feeling,” he shares. “You look around, there’s a bunch of people grinning and you’re like, this is gonna be fun.”

Allman Brothers were known for their fall residencies at the smaller Beacon Theatre in New York, but Haynes, who joined the group in 1989, believes they can get the same feeling on the bigger stage at MSG.

“For a big room, the Garden’s actually fun to play,” he says, noting the size means they’ll play “to the sound of the room and to the energy of the crowd.”

Haynes says fans coming to the shows, or watching via livestream, can expect them to be “really long,” with each night being “entirely different from each other” apart from some key songs. 

“We’ll go somewhat deep but we’ll also concentrate on playing the stuff that everybody wants to hear,” he says of the set list. “The beauty of playing long shows is you can fit a lot of music in.” 

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