Classic Rock 93.9

Former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer will be arraigned on Thursday at California’s Alhambra Courthouse over a misdemeanor charge of vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence, according to court documents.

The charge is related to a March accident in which Klinghoffer allegedly hit and killed a 47-year-old pedestrian, Israel Sanchez, with his car. Klinghoffer was issued a letter to appear in court in August and was released on his own recognizance on Sept. 9.

Sanchez’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Klinghoffer in July. A lawyer for the family said in a statement, “Mr. Klinghoffer should be arrested and prosecuted for homicide.”

A lawyer for Klinghoffer, meanwhile, called what happened a “tragic accident.” In a statement to TMZ, Klinghoffer’s lawyer said, “After Josh struck this pedestrian in the intersection, he immediately pulled over, stopped the car, called 911 and waited until police and the ambulance arrived. Obviously, he’s cooperating with the police throughout the traffic investigation.” 

Klinghoffer played with RHCP from 2009 to 2019. He’s since been touring as a live member of Pearl Jam.

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Shailene Woodley is opening up about her plans to play Janis Joplin on the big screen.

The actress’s plans to produce and star in a biopic about Joplin were announced in early September. During an appearance on Live with Kelly and Mark Wednesday, she discussed how important it is to her to get things right. 

“It’s been over six years of putting it together,” she said of the film. “To me, it’s important to do these things with a lot of integrity and a lot of care. Janis is someone I just have always deeply respected and admired, like the spirit in her, and the soul she was on this planet and kind of the light that she was on this planet.”

She added, “It’s been a really fun journey getting to know her better through the process of finding all the creative elements.”

As for whether she can tackle the singing needed for the film, Shailene shared, “I’m not like a trained singer, but … I can sing in my shower. It turns out I can also sing outside of the shower, which I didn’t really know until I started working on the Janis project.”

She says she’s been working with hit songwriter Linda Perry getting ready for the film, noting, “She’s really encouraged me and helped me find my center in my own voice, which is incredible.”

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A Mark Lanegan tribute concert will take place Dec. 5 in London, about a week after what would’ve been the late Screaming Trees frontman’s 60th birthday.

The lineup includes Queens of the Stone Age‘s Josh Homme, Depeche Mode‘s Dave Gahan, Pretenders‘ Chrissie Hynde, The Afghan Whigs‘ Greg Dulli, The Kills‘ Alison Mosshart and Primal Scream‘s Bobby Gillespie.

Lanegan played in QotSA with Homme and in The Gutter Twins with Dulli. For Homme, the concert will mark his first live performance after undergoing surgery over the summer, which caused Queens to cancel or postpone their remaining 2024 tour dates.

Tickets to the tribute go on sale Oct. 1 via MyTicket.co.uk.

Lanegan died in February 2022 at age 57.

Meanwhile, a 20th anniversary reissue of Lanegan’s 2004 solo album, Bubblegum, was released in August.

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Eric Clapton has shared a video for “One Woman,” the first single off his upcoming album, Meanwhile.

The video, directed by Dessie Jackson, features a book filled with drawings brought to life through animation.

Meanwhile, Clapton’s first album with new material since 2016’s I Still Do, is made up of six new songs and eight previously released tunes. It features guest appearances by the late Jeff Beck, Van Morrison, Bradley Walker, Judith Hill, Daniel Santiago and Simon Climie.

It will be released digitally on Oct. 4, and on CD and vinyl Jan. 24. It is available for preorder now.

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On This Day, Sept. 25, 2017 …

Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers headlined The Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles for what would turn out to be their final concert ever, as Petty would die less than two weeks later.

During the show, Petty and the band treated fans to such classic tunes as “I Won’t Back Down,” “Free Fallin’,” “Breakdown” and “Learning to Fly,” wrapping the night with “You Wreck Me” and “American Girl.”

Petty was found unconscious at his home on Oct. 2 and died at UCLA Medical Center, although there were initially premature reports of his passing. The coroner report revealed that drugs played a role in his death.

Petty’s musical legacy still lives on, and it will be remembered with a new deluxe edition of his 1982 album, Long After Dark. It will be released Oct. 18.

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The members of Journey, including guitarist Neal Schon, made a guest appearance on Tuesday’s season finale of NBC’s America’s Got Talent, where they performed their classic tune “Don’t Stop Believin’” with this season’s winner, singing janitor Richard Goodall.

“We’ve been on tour for the last six months but I’ve been watching this phenomenon,” Schon said on the show about Goodall’s run. “He’s an amazing singer, an amazing man, and I’m proud to be here today for him.”

When asked how it felt to be onstage with his heroes, Goodall responded, “Somebody just pinch me.”

Goodall auditioned for the show with his take on “Don’t Stop Believin’” and in subsequent shows performed such tunes as Michael Bolton‘s “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You,” Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger” and Journey’s “Faithfully.”

With his win, Goodall took home a grand prize of $1 million.

“Winning AGT is important and means so much to me,” he said. “Simon (Cowell) said two minutes can change your life. It has transformed mine, and I’d like to help others, one song at a time.”

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The 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony is happening in October, and the Hall just announced the presenters and performers who’ll help celebrate this year’s inductees.

Artists confirmed for the celebration include James Taylor, Roger Daltrey, Sammy Hagar and Slash, along with Busta Rhymes, Chuck D, Dr. Dre, Demi Lovato, Dua Lipa, Ella Mai, Keith Urban, Jelly Roll, Kenny Chesney, Lucky Daye, Mac McAnally, Method Man, Julia Roberts and The Roots.

In addition, several of this year’s inductees will perform at the event, including Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Dave Matthews Band, Kool & The Gang, Dionne Warwick and Mary J. Blige.

This year’s other inductees include Ozzy Osbourne and A Tribe Called Quest, with Alexis Korner, John Mayall and Big Mama Thornton getting inducted in the Musical Influence category and Jimmy Buffett, MC5 and Norman Whitfield being inducted in the Musical Excellence category.

The 2024 induction ceremony, taking place at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, will stream live on Disney+ Oct. 19 at 7 p.m. ET and will be available to rewatch following the ceremony. On Jan. 1, ABC will air the special 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, featuring performance highlights. It’ll be available the next day on Hulu and Disney+.

Disney is the parent company of ABC Audio.

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Fans of The Beatles will soon be able to show off their love of the band with their fashion choices.

On Nov. 14, alice + olivia by Stacey Bendet will launch a new capsule collection with the legendary band, featuring artwork from the band’s career. 

The fashion brand previously teamed with The Beatles in 2018. This new limited-edition collection, alice + olivia x The Beatles, features 17 pieces, including dresses, tops, cardigans, and vegan leather and varsity jackets, ranging in price from $250 to $1,995. Some of the offerings are updates from the 2018 collection. 

Items in the latest collection include a sequin skirt embellished with the lyric “All You Need Is Love,” and a sequin dress with “Come Together” on it. There’s a white and black cardigan dress, also with “All You Need is Love,” and a vegan leather jacket filled with Beatles-related patches.

The collection, created in celebration of the 60th anniversary of The Beatles coming to America, will be available in a variety of stores, including alice + olivia, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s.

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Journey drummer Deen Castronovo is sharing his support for the band’s frontman, Arnel Pineda, after Pineda received online criticism for his performance at the recent Rock in Rio festival.

The backlash prompted Pineda to launch a poll asking fans whether he should leave the band, noting he would if enough people wanted him to.

Castronovo has now come to Pineda’s defense, sharing on Facebook, “Arnel has RISEN to the challenge of Journey’s catalog, NIGHT after NIGHT, YEAR after tiring YEAR! He gives to YOU ALL and Journey, the best that he can give you.”

Noting that “the voice is a BIOLOGICAL INSTRUMENT” that can be affected by a variety of things, Castronovo asks, “what’s the point of hammering a human being over something they have no control over??”

“I know very few who can pull off what Arnel does without ego and with passion and grace,” he adds, warning, “BACK OFF TROLLS! You are MESSING with MY FAMILY NOW and I am A RABID PROTECTOR OF MY OWN!!!”

Castronovo is the second member of Journey to stand up for Pineda. Guitarist and founding member Neal Schon previously called the criticism “absolute garbage fabricated bulls***,” telling Arnel, “You’ve kicked a**!”

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It was a partial Black Sabbath reunion at the inaugural International Day of Birmingham on Tuesday.

The band originated in Birmingham, and Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill Ward both attended the event, with Iommi sharing a picture of them together on social media.

“You just never know who you’ll bump into in Birmingham!” Iommi captioned the shot. “We both attended the Lord Mayor’s reception for International Birmingham Day.”

According to the Birmingham City Council, the event was actually called International Day of Birmingham and is described as “a day when Birminghams worldwide will celebrate their shared Brummie heritage with a collective chant of ‘Alright Bab.’” The reception the two rockers attended took place at Birmingham Council House, hosted by the lord mayor of Birmingham.

A public celebration, which took place at Victoria Square, featured a brass band playing a cover of Sabbath’s “Iron Man.”

Ward split from Black Sabbath shortly after they announced their 2011 reunion. Back in July, he took to social media to share that he’d be up for reuniting with his bandmates for a final show in England. 

“I’m in for playing some of everyone’s old favorites,” Ward wrote on social media. “Loved playing them then, I’d love to play them one last time.”

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