Classic Rock 93.9

ZZ Top‘s Billy Gibbons contributed the lead track to the album May the Circle Remain Unbroken: A Tribute to Roky Erickson, which was released as a limited-edition colored-vinyl LP on July 17th as part of the 2021 Record Store Day event and now also can be purchased on CD.

The album features a variety of mostly contemporary artists saluting late Texas psychedelic rock pioneer Roky Erickson, who died in 2019 at age 71. Gibbons recorded a version of “(I’ve Got) Levitation,” a 1967 single by Erickson’s early band The 13th Floor Elevators, who was a big influence on Billy’s own music.

“[The 13th Floor Elevators] inspired me to start a group following in their footsteps called The Moving Sidewalks,” Gibbons tells ABC Audio, referring to his pre-ZZ Top band. “Elevators go up, sidewalks move forward, so it was a match made in heaven. We had a great admiration for everything that Roky did. And to this day, they remain great inspirations.”

The 13th Floor Elevators were best known for their debut single, “You’re Gonna Miss Me,” a minor 1966 chart hit that has become a garage-rock classic.

Acclaimed alt-country artist Lucinda Williams recorded a version of the song for May the Circle Remain Unbroken. Other artists featured on the tribute include Wilco‘s Jeff Tweedy, ex-Screaming Trees frontman Mark Lanegan, Gary Clark Jr. and the duo of Alison Mosshart of The Kills and longtime Bob Dylan touring guitarist Charlie Sexton.

In addition to 13th Floor Elevators covers, the album features renditions songs from Erickson’s long solo career.

Reflecting on Roky’s passing, Gibbons says, “[H]e’s gone but not forgotten. We’ll have many more days of enjoying Roky Erickson and his great sounds.”

May the Circle Remain Unbroken is available at LightintheAttic.net. Here’s the track list:

“(I’ve Got) Levitation” — Billy Gibbons
“Starry Eyes” — Mosshart Sexton
“For You (I’d Do Anything) ” — Jeff Tweedy
“Clear Night for Love” — Lynn Castle & Mark Lanegan
“Don’t Fall Down” — The Black Angels
“Be and Bring Me Home” — Neko Case
“Red Temple Prayer (Two-Headed Dog)” — Margo Price
“Roller Coaster” — Gary Clark Jr. & Eve Monsees
“Night of the Vampire” — Ty Segall
“You’re Gonna Miss Me” — Lucinda Williams
“If You Have Ghosts” — Chelsea Wolfe
“May the Circle Remain Unbroken” — Brogan Bentley

Copyright © 2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

The Grateful Dead and the Rhino label have partnered with Amazon Prime’s music-themed streaming The Coda Collection to launch a series of archival concert films.

Three professionally filmed Grateful Dead performances from the latter part of the band’s career have been confirmed as part of the series. The first, which is available now, documents a July 2, 1989, stadium show in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

The concert, which is available via streaming for the first time, featured Dead classics like “Playing in the Band,” “Friend of the Devil,” “Truckin'” and “Sugar Magnolia,” a medley combining Traffic‘s “Dear Mr. Fantasy” and The Beatles‘ “Hey Jude,” and covers of Bob Dylan‘s “Queen Jane Approximately” and “Quinn the Eskimo.”

Upcoming Dead concert films will include a Live in Washington, D.C. 7/12/89 and Live at Giants Stadium 6/17/91, which will premiere on September 8 and September 29, respectively.

The latter show, held at the now-demolished East Rutherford, New Jersey, football stadium, saw Bruce Hornsby joining the band as guest keyboardist and included a rare performance of “Dark Star Jam.”

Future installments of the series will feature performances from various other eras of The Grateful Dead. Fans can explore more information about the shows at the free CodaCollection.co website.

The Coda Collection is available to Amazon Prime members for $4.99 a month. A seven-day free trial also is offered.

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Joni Mitchell will be honored as the 2022 MusiCares Person of the Year at the charity’s 31st annual Person of the Year benefit gala, which will take place at the Los Angeles Convention Center on January 29, two nights before the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.

“I’m honored to be chosen as Person of the Year by this great charity,” the 77-year-old Canadian singer/songwriter, an eight-time Grammy winner, says in a statement. “I look forward to being part of this gala that will help MusiCares continue their inspired work in providing a support system for those in need.”

The event traditionally features a tribute concert where many artists from across a various musical genres perform the songs of the honoree. The gala also features a dinner and a silent auction offering VIP experiences, celebrity memorabilia and more.

“We are so excited to bring together an amazing lineup of artists to celebrate the musical legacy of Joni Mitchell,” says MusiCares executive director Laura Segura. “She is being honored not only for her iconic music and lyrics, but for her trailblazing spirit and the inspiration she’s brought to so many artists.”

The Person of the Year gala benefits the MusiCares Foundation, which provides medical, financial and personal assistance to in-need members of the music community.

Last year’s gala was replaced by the virtual Music on a Mission event because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The presentation featured highlights from past Person of the Year galas.

For more information about the 2022 MusiCares Person of the Year gala, visit MusiCares.org or email personoftheyear@musicares.org.

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Gene Simmons has apologized to David Lee Roth after making some insulting comments about founding Van Halen frontman during a recent Rolling Stone interview while discussing why Roth, who was KISS‘ 2020 support act, wasn’t opening for them on the band’s 2021 U.S. tour.

In the Rolling Stone interview, Simmons seemingly negatively compared Roth’s career to the late Elvis Presley‘s.  Iin response, Diamond Dave posted a photo on his social media sites of a boy holding up his middle finger with the caption “Roth to Simmons.”

Now, in a new video interview with US Weekly, Simmons says, “I am so sorry and ashamed…that I hurt David’s feelings,” adding, “I don’t mean to hurt people’s feelings, and every once in a while, diarrhea of the mouth comes out.”

In the Rolling Stone interview, Simmons began by saying that during Roth’s heyday he was “the ultimate frontman,” but then said, “I don’t know what happened to him…I prefer to remember Elvis Presley in his prime. Sneering lips, back in Memphis…I don’t want to think of bloated naked Elvis on the bathroom floor.”

Simmons tells US Weekly, “I read that quote, and somehow the way they put it together…there was a segue to Elvis bloated on the ground and fat and naked and I don’t wanna see that. I wasn’t talking about David, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is I hurt David’s feelings, and that’s more important than the intent. So I sincerely apologize for that.”

Simmons also discussed with US Weekly how he signed Van Halen to his production company early in their career, then “produced their first 24-track 15-song demo and championed the band.”

KISS continues its End of the Road farewell tour tonight with a show in Toledo, Ohio.

(Video contains censored profanity.)

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Apparently, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross aren’t the only rockers contributing to Halsey‘s new album.

The “Without Me” star’s upcoming record, If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, which was produced by the Nine Inch Nails duo, reportedly features the one-and-only Dave Grohl.

According to Stereogum, which obtained the If I Can’t Have Love credits, the Foo Fighters frontman returns to his Nirvana role to play drums on a song called “honey.”

Halsey, it seems, is a fan of Grohl, having tweeted in 2018, “Dave Grohl watched some of my set last night and I almost threw up mid song I was so nervous. I love u!!!!!”

Other If I Can’t Have Love guests, Stereogum reports, include ex-Fleetwood Mac guitarist Lindsey Buckingham on the track “Darling,” and Dave Sitek of TV on the Radio on the cut “You asked for this.”

If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power is due out this Friday, August 27. It’s accompanied by an IMAX film, premiering Wednesday.

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Vanilla Fudge had their biggest hit in 1967 with a psychedelic cover of The Supremes‘ classic “You Keep Me Hangin’ On,” and now the veteran rockers are set to release a rendition of another chart-topping smash by the legendary Motown group — “Stop! In the Name of Love.”

The band’s new version of “Stop! In the Name of Love” will be released on September 6, and will be available as a digital download and for streaming.

The track features the final recording of founding Vanilla Fudge bassist Tim Bogert, who died of cancer in January at age 76. A pre-order/pre-save link for the song includes a 30-second instrumental snippet from the tune, as well as a brief recording of Vanilla Fudge members Vince Martell, Carmine Appice and Mark Stein sharing memories of Bogert.

Meanwhile, according to a post on the band’s Facebook page, Vanilla Fudge has nine U.S. concerts lined up, spanning from a September 30 show in St. Charles, Illinois, through a November 17 date in Ridgefield, Connecticut. Doors guitarist Robby Krieger is on the bill of seven of the gigs, including a November 15-16 stand in New York City.

Here’s the full list of dates:

9/30 — St. Charles, IL, The Arcada Theater*
10/1 — Des Plaines, IL, Des Plaines Theater*
10/26 — Leesburg VA, Tally Ho Theater
10/27 — Warrendale, PA, Jergels
10/29 — Riverhead, NY, Suffolk Theater*
10/30 — Sugar Loaf, NY, Sugar Loaf PAC*
11/15 — New York, NY, Sony Hall*
11/16 — New York, NY, Sony Hall*
11/17 — Ridgefield CT, The Ridgefield Playhouse*

* = with Robby Krieger.

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Spencer Elden, who was photographed as a baby for the cover of Nirvana‘s Nevermind, is suing the band for child pornography.

The suit, which was obtained and posted by Pitchfork, alleges Nirvana committed “commercial child sexual exploitation of [Elden] from while he was a minor to the present day” with the album artwork, which depicts the then-infant Elden swimming underwater naked while reaching for a dollar bill.

“Defendants knowingly produced, possessed, and advertised commercial child pornography depicting Spencer, and they knowingly received value in exchange for doing so,” the suit reads.

Defendants named in the suit include the late Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love, who’s the executor of her husband’s estate, as well as drummer Dave Grohl, bassist Krist Novoselic and former member Chad Channing. Photographer Kirk Weddle, art director Robert Fisher and labels including Universal Music Group, Geffen Records, Warner Records and MCA Music are also named.

“Neither Spencer nor his legal guardians ever signed a release authorizing the use of any images of Spencer or of his likeness, and certainly not of commercial child pornography depicting him,” the suit reads. It also accuses Nirvana of specifically choosing to show Elden reaching for a dollar in an effort to depict him “like a sex worker.”

Nirvana nor any of its members have responded publicly to the suit as of Wednesday morning.

Nevermind was released September 24, 1991. It’s considered perhaps the most defining album of the ’90s grunge and alternative scene — if not the entire decade — and has been certified Diamond by the RIAA for over 10 million copies sold.

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Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford, the Metal God himself, celebrates his 70th birthday today.

Halford’s gritty banshee wail is one of the defining voices of heavy metal. He joined Judas Priest in 1973, just in time to record the Birmingham, U.K., band’s debut album — 1974’s Rocka Rolla.

Halford co-wrote most of the band’s songs, helping them become one of the most popular metal acts of the 1970s and ’80s. Among the many classic tunes Halford sang and co-wrote were “Living After Midnight,” “Breaking the Law,” “Hot Rockin'” and “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’.”

The singer left Judas Priest in 1992, and for the next 11 years he focused on solo projects, including the bands Fight and Halford and the industrial-influenced duo 2wo.

During a 1998 MTV interview, Halford revealed that he was gay. While his sexual orientation had long been widely rumored, Rob noted in his 2020 memoir Confess that he decided to keep his homosexuality secret during Priest’s early years because he was worried being openly gay might’ve hurt the group’s career.

Halford rejoined Judas Priest in 2003 and has continued to tour and record with the band ever since. The group’s latest studio album, 2018’s Firepower, peaked at #5 on the Billboard 200, the band’s highest position ever on the chart.

Speaking with ABC Audio last year while promoting Confess, Halford listed some of his favorite Judas Priest albums, singling out Rock Rolla, 1976’s Sad Wings of Destiny, 1980’s British Steel, 1986’s Turbo, 1990’s Painkiller, the 2008 “big metal rock opera” Nostradamus and Firepower.

“What a great metal trail Priest has left,” Rob added, “and I’m thrilled beyond words that have been a part of it all.” 

Judas Priest launches a North American tour on September 8 in Reading, Pennsylvania.

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Following the death of Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts on Tuesday, the group’s three surviving current members — singer Mick Jagger and guitarists Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood — all posted online tributes to their longtime band mate.

Jagger took to his social media pages to post a fairly recent photo of Watts laughing while sitting behind his drums.

Richards posted a heart-wrenching pic on his social media sites of Charlie’s empty drum kit with a sign hanging off a nearby mic stand that reads, “Closed — Please Call Again.”

As for Wood, he posted a black-and-white on his official website of Watts and him smiling while sitting in chairs positioned back to back.

Meanwhile, The Rolling Stones’ official website appears to have taken all of its content offline and simply features a pic of Charlie looking into the camera with a slight smile and folded arms.

According to a statement from his spokesperson, Watts died peacefully Tuesday morning “in a London hospital…surrounded by his family.”

Watts’ passing follows an announcement from The Stones earlier this month that he’d undergone an unspecified medical procedure and likely wouldn’t be able to join the band on their 2021 No Filter Tour of North America.

The announcement also revealed that Watts had asked Steve Jordan to “stand in” for him on the trek. Jordan has played drums on all of Richards’ solo albums.

The Stones’ tour is scheduled to kick off on September 26 in St. Louis.

pic.twitter.com/YUR6lckf8k

— Keith Richards (@officialKeef) August 24, 2021

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R.E.M. has announced a reissue of the band’s 1996 album New Adventures in Hi-Fi in honor of its 25th anniversary.

The expanded collection, which includes the original album remastered, accompanied by 13 B-sides and rarities, is due out October 29. One of the bonus tracks, an alternate version of the song “Leave,” is available now for digital download.

“I actually might prefer this version to the one that’s on the record,” says frontman Michael Stipe. “Well, I wouldn’t say I prefer it, it just tells a different story with the lyric.”

The reissue also includes a never-before-released “outdoor projection film,” which was displayed on city buildings to promote the album’s original 1996 release, as well as a 52-page book that includes contributions from all four R.E.M. members, plus Radiohead‘s Thom Yorke, Patti Smith and producer Scott Litt.

Originally released September 10, 1996, New Adventures in Hi-Fi came towards the end of R.E.M.’s peak run in the ’90s, when they broke through into rock stardom with 1991’s Out of Time and 1992’s Automatic for the People. Though not quite as commercially successful as Out of Time or Automatic — or even 1994’s Monster — it was still certified Platinum by the RIAA, peaking at #2 on the Billboard 200 and and producing the singles in “E-Bow the Letter,” “Bittersweet Me” and “Electrolite.” “E-Bow the Letter” was a duet with Smith.

New Adventures also marked R.E.M.’s final album with founding drummer Bill Berry, who left the band in 1997.

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