Classic Rock 93.9

The highly anticipated Freddie Mercury auction at Sotheby’s is now over, and to say it was a rousing success is an understatement.

In total, Freddie Mercury: A World of his Own brought in $50.4 million, which was a record for such a collection. All 1,406 lots sold, with over 41,800 bids placed during the sale. Each lot had an average of 13 bidders, with bids coming in from 76 different countries and buyers coming from 50.

Bidding was so fierce, almost 99% of the lots that were up for auction exceeded their high estimates, even on the odder offerings. For example, the late Queen frontman’s Tiffany moustache comb had a high estimate of about $500 but sold for a whopping $193,853.  

Other quirky sales included: 29 feline ornaments, which sold for $38,743; a neon telephone, which sold for $50,828; a Puss n Boots cookie jar, which went for $12,107; a Japanese wallet that included Mercury’s membership cards, which sold for $45,232, and a rare school book signed Frederick Bulsara, which sold for $88,786.

The item that brought in the highest bid was Mercury’s Yamaha Grand Piano, at $2.2 million, which was a record. Other big ticket items included handwritten lyrics to “Bohemian Rhapsody,” which revealed an alternate title, selling for $1.7 million and the signature crown and cloak Mercury wore during Queen’s last live show in 1968, which sold for over $800,000, 10 times more than the lowest estimate.

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The Rolling Stones just confirmed Paul McCartney appears on their new album, Hackney Diamonds, and fans may be surprised by what they hear.

In a new interview with Rolling Stone, frontman Mick Jagger says they had a hard time deciding what song to have McCartney play on until the album’s producer, Andrew Watt, suggested the “punk song” “Bite My Head Off.” 

“Paul seemed very happy to play in a band where he didn’t have all the responsibility; he was just the bass player. And he really rocked out,” Jagger says. “He fitted straight in. It was like we’d been playing with him for years. It was a really good feeling.”

And it sounds like McCartney was just as thrilled to record with The Stones.

“Paul said to me, ‘Can you believe, here we are in the studio together?’” Ronnie Wood shares. “He said, ‘I have a dream come true: I’m playing with the Rolling Stones.’ He was loving it, like a kid in a toy shop.”

And fans will hear more from the collaboration. Wood tells the mag McCartney played on a separate track that didn’t make the album, but they will use it for a future release.

Elton John is also a guest on the album, playing piano on “Get Close” and “Live By The Sword,” with Jagger saying he was surprised Elton didn’t want to contribute more.

But Watt notes, “Elton loves to play, and he started as a session musician. … Everyone’s a fan of The Rolling Stones. Just like Paul, Elton was like, ‘I just f****** played with The Rolling Stones.’”

Hackney Diamonds will be released October 20. Other guests on the album include the late Stones drummer Charlie Watts, former Stones bassist Bill Wyman, Lady Gaga and Stevie Wonder.

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 KISS rocker Gene Simmons‘ sexual appetite is legendary: he once boasted he slept with over 4,000 women, and while he could be a source of advice for men, he doesn’t think it would do much good.

“Listen, men are idiots,” he tells The Guardian. “There isn’t enough blood to power two heads at once, so a lot of really stupid decisions can get made when that little head takes over.”

He also has a warning for the ladies: “When you’re a woman and you see a man, and he’s big and he’s got a hairy chest and he’s good-looking, and you see that, what you’re seeing is a mirage. That’s actually a 14-year-old horny kid … We can’t even think straight when we see you.”

He adds, “I don’t say this as a defense, because I stand guilty as charged of everything.”

Simmons has been with Shannon Tweed for 40 years, and married since 2011. He says he would never leave Shannon, even if she “dilly-dallied like I had.”

“This will be the only marriage I ever have because my definition of marriage isn’t based on that stuff, it’s based on somebody who in a real sense will give their life for you,” he says. “At the end of the day my life will be judged by Shannon, and [their children] Nick and Sophie.”

And while the 74-year-old Simmons and his bandmates in KISS are about to retire from the road, the rocker isn’t thinking about slowing down. He notes, “As long as your schmeckle works, you feel immortal.”

KISS wraps their End of the Road tour with two shows in New York December 1 and 2. A complete list of dates can be found at kissonline.com.

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Bonnie Raitt is set to perform at the 22nd annual Americana Honors & Awards, Billboard reports.

Other performers confirmed for the September 20 show at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium include Margo Price, Allison Russell, Brandi Carlile, The War and Treaty, The Avett Brothers and Patty Griffin. 

Raitt is also nominated for an Americana Award this year. Her Grammy Award-winning track “Just Like That” will compete for Song of the Year against Russell’s “You’re Not Alone,” featuring Carlile; Zac Bryan’s “Something in the Orange”; Price’s “Change of Heart”; and Charley Crocket’s “I’m Just A Clown.”

And fans who can’t make it to Nashville can still catch Raitt’s performance. The Americana Honors & Awards will stream live on Circle Network’s YouTube page, then one day later it will air on the Americana Music Association’s Facebook page. It will also air on PBS in November in the Austin City Limits time slot.

The Americana Honors & Awards is part of Nashville’s annual Americanafest, taking place September 19-23. A complete list of nominees can be found at americanamusic.org.

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Chicago is helping fans get into the Christmas spirit.

The band is set to release the compilation Chicago Greatest Christmas Hits featuring songs from the band’s previous three Christmas albums: 1998’s Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album and its 2003 reissue, which was titled What’s It Gonna Be, Santa?; 2011’s Chicago XXXIII: O Christmas Three; and 2019’s Chicago XXXVII: Chicago Christmas.

The collection has the band covering such holiday classics as “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,” “Winter Wonderland,” “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” and “Wonderful Christmas Time” with a guest appearance by Dolly Parton.

Chicago Greatest Christmas Hits will be released November 3 digitally, and on CD and red vinyl. It will also be released on green vinyl, but it will be a Barnes & Noble exclusive. The album is available for preorder now.

But that’s not all. Rhino is set to reissue O Christmas Three on CD, plus all of Chicago’s Christmas albums are being bundled together as a three-CD set, Chicago Christmas Complete, that will also be released November 3. There will also be a digital playlist featuring songs from the albums.

All of this is set to come out ahead of Chicago headlining two very special Christmas shows in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Billed as Chicago & Friends, the concerts are happening November 17 and 18 at Ovation Hall at the Ocean Casino Resort, with the band welcoming special guests Chris Daughtry, Robin Thicke, Steve Vai, Robert Randolph and more. The shows will be filmed for the concert TV special Decades Rock Live.

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Metallica has premiered a new video for “Too Far Gone?,” a track off the band’s new album, 72 Seasons.

The clip stars professional skateboarder Felipe Nunes, who lost both of his legs in a childhood accident, and also features footage from Metallica’s live debut of “Too Far Gone?” during their concert at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium in August.

You can watch the “Too Far Gone?” video streaming now on YouTube.

Metallica previously put out videos for every song off of 72 Seasons around its release in April. Each clip was also accompanied by American Sign Language interpretations. 

Metallica has been supporting 72 Seasons on the M72 world tour, which continues with the Power Trip festival, taking place October 6-8. The much-anticipated event, which takes place at the same site of Coachella in Indio, California, also features AC/DC, Guns N’ Roses, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Tool.

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Bob Marley & The Wailers’ classic album Catch A Fire is being reissued in celebration of its 50th anniversary.

Dropping November 3, the reissue will be released as a three-LP set, as well as a three-CD set and digitally. All versions will feature the full studio recording, along with a 10-song live album, Live From The Paris Theatre London, and Sessions, an album of alternative and extended takes, as well as instrumental Jamaican versions of Catch A Fire songs.

In addition, the vinyl will include a 12-inch featuring three live performances recorded at the Sundown Theatre in Edmonton, North London, in May 1973. Those three songs — “Slave Driver,” “Get Up, Stand Up” and “Stop That Train” — will also be included on the CD. You can listen to “Slave Driver” now via digital outlets and on YouTube. 

All formats of Catch A Fire are available for preorder now.

The reissue comes as a new biopic on Marley, Bob Marley: One Love, is scheduled to hit theaters January 12, 2024. It stars British actor Kingsley Ben-Adir as Marley and Captain Marvel actress Lashana Lynch as Marley’s wife, Rita.

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The Who is set to be honored at the Scottish Music Awards later this year.

The London Evening Standard reports that the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers will be honored with the icon award for their achievements and contributions to music. 

The Scottish Music Awards will take place November 4 at Barrowland Ballroom in Glasgow, with the ceremony raising funds for Nordoff and Robbins, a music therapy charity that’s been very important to The Who over the years.

“We’ve been involved with Nordoff and Robbins since the beginning… and it’s good to see it’s still going,” The Who’s Roger Daltrey shares. “I hope people continue to support the charity.”

Meanwhile, fans of The Who have a lot to look forward to this week. On Friday, September 15, they’ll drop Who’s Next/Life House super deluxe edition featuring a whopping 155 tracks, with 89 songs that have never been released and 57 fresh remixes. It is available for preorder now.

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Motörhead‘s 1983 album, Another Perfect Day, is being reissued in honor of its 40th anniversary.

The expanded set will arrive November 3 and includes remastered audio of the original album, various B-sides and demos and a previously unreleased full live recording from a 1983 concert at England’s Hull City Hall.

One of the demos, an early recording of the track “Shine” back when it was called “Climber,” has been released alongside a new video streaming now on YouTube.

Another Perfect Day was Motörhead’s first album following the departure of guitarist “Fast” Eddie Clarke in 1982. Clarke, who was part of Motörhead’s classic lineup alongside frontman Lemmy Kilmister and drummer Phil “Philthy Animal” Taylor, was replaced on Another Perfect Day by Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson.

The Another Perfect Day reissue continues Motörhead’s series of archival releases following the death of Lemmy in 2015.

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Barbie may have been a huge hit this summer, but not everyone is a fan. 

Derek Smalls, former vocalist and bass player of the heavy metal band Spinal Tap, has released his first new song in five years, “Must Crush Barbie,” in which he blasts everyone’s favorite doll.

“Been spending the last year or so as Brand Ambassador for BruegelCoin, the Dutch cryptocurrency,” Smalls shares. “Since it was cratering this past spring, I was following the news more than usual, which is where I got bombarded by all the Barbie BS.”

He adds, “I don’t know which angered me more, but it’s really hard to write a song about crypto. But the overwhelming shroud of pinkness definitely deserved a major pricking. And that’s where I came in.”

You can listen to “Must Crush Barbie” via digital outlets and on YouTube.

Released in 1984, This is Spinal Tap was a mockumentary about the fictional rock group Spinal Tap, made up of Harry Shearer as Smalls, Christopher Guest as guitarist Nigel Tufnel and Michael McKean as guitarist David St. Hubbin. Directed by Rob Reiner, the film poked fun of the ridiculous behavior of pretentious rock stars. In 2002, it was chosen by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry.

It sounds like there is more Spinal Tap on the way. In 2022, Reiner revealed that he was working on a sequel to the film, which will be celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2024.

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