Grateful Dead fans are getting a chance to look back at the year that was with the just-released 2023 Grateful Dead Almanac.
Started 31 years ago as a paper mailing to fans, the Almanac is now online, recounting all that went on in the Dead world in 2023, including the final tour of Dead & Company and what band members Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart and Phil Lesh were up to. It also looks back at this year’s Jerry Garcia archival releases, the Here Comes Sunshine and Wake the Flood box sets, and more.
It also gives fans a preview of what is to come, including info on the upcoming Dave’s Picks Volume 49 and a tease about Volume 50. There’s also info on new merch and a whole lot more.
To read all about Grateful Dead’s year, check out the Almanac at dead.net.
Nirvana‘s Krist Novoselic and Metallica‘s Robert Trujillo are featured in an upcoming docuseries called Are Bass Players Human Too?, hosted by Rush‘s Geddy Lee.
The show will find Lee visiting the homes of and jamming with fellow bassists as he “dive[s] deep into their lives and their inspirations.”
Primus‘ Les Claypool and Hole‘s Melissa Auf der Maur are taking part, as well.
Are Bass Players Human Too? premieres December 5 on Paramount+. You can watch its trailer streaming now on YouTube.
KISS is getting closer to saying goodbye to the road, and if you haven’t already snagged tickets to one of their End of the Road tour shows, now’s your chance.
The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers have just launched a new charity sweepstakes in which the winner and a guest will win a VIP experience to KISS’ Indianapolis concert on Saturday, November 25. The prize comes with access to the crew pit, where they’ll watch the show; a preshow soundcheck; and a Q&A. After the show, the winner will get to hang with the band as they fly on their legendary KISS private jet to their next show.
The winner will also be the personal guest of the band’s manager, Doc McGhee, and get a photo with the band before they take the stage. They’ll also be able to take photos with the rockers’ instruments, get a signed KISS 2023 tour poster and have the opportunity to hang at the KISS Army Captain’s Lounge.
To enter the contest, fans need to make a donation at fandiem.com; proceeds from the sweepstakes benefit Children of the Rainforest. More info can be found at fandiem.com.
KISS’ End of the Road tour hits St. Louis, Missouri, on Wednesday, October 25. They say goodbye to the road for good with shows at New York’s Madison Square Garden, December 1 and 2. A complete list of dates can be found at kissonline.com.
Over the weekend, Robert Plant performed the Led Zeppelin classic “Stairway to Heaven” for the first time in 16 years. You may be wondering why he finally decided to resurrect the tune. Well, it turns out that one song raised a lot of money for charity.
Plant performed “Stairway” at a charity concert put on by former Duran Duran guitarist Andy Taylor for The Cancer Awareness Trust, where Taylor is receiving lifesaving targeted treatment for stage 4 prostate cancer. According to Kenwyn House, who played guitar that evening, Plant agreed to perform the song after a request came in from a big donor.
“Someone bid a huge amount of money for him to sing this song,” House told the fan site Led Zeppelin News. “There is a good circle of karma around it. That raised a six-figure sum for the charity, that one song.”
The last time Plant performed “Stairway” was December 10, 2007, at the Ahmet Ertegun tribute concert in London, which was also the last time Zeppelin members Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones performed together. They were backed on drums by Jason Bonham, son of their late drummer John Bonham.
Looks like The Beatles are teasing fans with some news.
The legendary band’s website and social media accounts shared a new post Wednesday, October 25, featuring an orange and white cassette tape that appears to be playing, with “Type I (Normal) Position” written at the bottom and other details blurred out.
Speculation is The Beatles are teasing their long-awaited final song, which Paul McCartney first revealed during an interview back in June.
At the time, he said artificial intelligence was used to “extricate” John Lennon’s voice from an old demo for “the last Beatles record.” He later clarified his comments, insisting, “nothing has been artificially or synthetically created.”
Mick Jagger continued the promotion of The Rolling Stones’ new Hackney Diamonds album with a surprise appearance on the Tuesday, October 24, episode of The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
Jagger popped in during a sketch, “Freezer Secrets,” in which he and Fallon shared some truths while thinking they were locked in a soundproof freezer forever.
Among Jagger’s biggest confessions: Unlike The Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” suggests, he has indeed gotten satisfaction. He said it happened “way back in 1992” from popping bubble wrap.
“It’s just so satisfying,” Mick shared.
Jagger also revealed his real name is actually Rick, joking, “One time a barista got it wrong and I was too polite to correct her. It just got stuck.”
He also quipped about being the artist Banksy and said he always wanted to be a comedian. When Fallon asked “like me?” Jagger replied, “yes, like you … but funny.”
Hackney Diamonds, The Rolling Stones’ first album in 18 years, is out now.
The Kinks are set to drop the second part of their 60-year celebration, The Journey – Part 2, on November 17, and they’ve just released a new track from it.
The rockers have shared a new Ray Davies mix of their 1974 song “Money Talks,” which Davies says is about “moral decline.” The original version appeared on the band’s 1974 concept album, Preservation Act 2.
“Always amused me when we did it live. An exceptional song I think,” Dave Davies says of the tune. Drummer Mick Avory adds, “I have memories of playing this song on the US tours in the 70s. It’s a good old stomper for the stage.”
You can listen to “Money Talks (2023 Mix)” now via digital outlets and watch the video on YouTube.
The follow up to the March release The Journey – Part 1, Part 2 features songs handpicked by members of the band and includes singles, B-sides and album tracks along with three previously unreleased live performances from a 1975 concert at the New Victoria Theatre in London.
The Journey – Part 2 is being released as a two-CD or two-LP set, which come with a booklet of band photos and track-by-track notes from the Davies brothers and Avory. There will also be digital and HD digital versions of the compilation. All formats are available for preorder now.
Considering he’s a member of one of the biggest hard rock bands in the world, you might find Duff McKagan‘s new solo album, Lighthouse, to be a surprisingly quieter affair.
Lighthouse, which is out now, continues down the acoustic-paved road of the Guns N’ Roses bassist’s last solo effort, 2019’s Tenderness. While it’s a sound he’s not particularly known for, McKagan tells ABC Audio that the acoustic guitar is the root of his whole musical journey.
“I remember a band I was in, all we had was one Spanish guitar, acoustic guitar,” McKagan recalls. “It was somebody’s dad’s, and that was our guitar, and that’s how we wrote all of our songs.”
“When I moved to LA and we formed Guns, we wrote a lot of those songs on acoustic guitar,” he continues. “So the genesis of a lot of the stuff I’ve done throughout all these years is that.”
Even if the music on Lighthouse isn’t as heavy, the emotions sure are. A number of songs, including the title track, were inspired by McKagan’s wife, Susan; the cut “I Just Don’t Know,” which features Alice of Chains‘ Jerry Cantrell, is very personal, as well.
“We’re the same age, we’ve been through a lot of the same stuff,” McKagan says of Cantrell, his longtime friend. “The song is about life. And it’s about what’s next, and who better to do that with than your buddy? We’re both survivors, in our way.”
McKagan also dedicates Lighthouse to a pair of artistic heroes who’ve passed recently: author Cormac McCarthy and Screaming Trees frontman Mark Lanegan.
“[Lanegan’s] got one of the greatest American voices, greatest singing voices ever, if you ask me. Ever,” McKagan says. “I can never be Mark Lanegan, but I can learn from that.”
Courtesy Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame
It’s safe to say that Billy Joel is one of the most famous musicians ever to hail from Long Island, New York, so it’s only right that he be celebrated with a special exhibit dedicated to him at the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame.
Billy Joel — My Life: A Piano Man’s Journey opens November 24 at the museum, located in Stony Brook, New York. It’ll showcase over 50 years of Billy Joel memorabilia, including awards, rare audio and video recordings, instruments, behind-the-scenes footage and photos, many of which were donated by Billy.
Also included in the exhibit are special sections highlighting Billy’s musical influences, such as Paul McCartney, Ray Charles, Otis Redding and Beethoven. The plans and designs for the exhibit have been presented to the Piano Man several times over the past year, and he’s given his input, which has been incorporated into the final product.
Ernie Canadeo, the chairman of the Hall of Fame, says in a statement, “Billy has been very cordial and involved in the planning, and it is appropriate the exhibit is on Long Island, where he has long been identified, written so many songs and lived most of his life. It is a fitting tribute to Long Island’s most successful entertainer and is guaranteed to thrill his legions of fans.”
This is only the second exhibit the museum has mounted since it opened in November 2022. Tickets are available at TheBillyJoelExhibit.com.
In other Billy Joel news, he’s just announced one of the final two shows of his residency at Madison Square Garden. Tickets for the June 8 performance go on sale October 27 at 10 a.m.
