Metallica has released a trailer for The Black Album in Black & White, the new photo book chronicling the recording of and tour behind the metal band’s classic 1991 self-titled release, aka The Black Album.
The minute-long clip features a selection of the rare and previously unpublished pictures taken by acclaimed rock photographer Ross Halfin during the Black Album era, all set to the heavy riffs of “Sad but True.”
“I’d like people to view this as an art book,” Halfin says. “I’m serious, Metallica are an art.”
The Black Album in Black & White is out today.
The Black Album, of course, celebrated its 30th anniversary earlier this year. To mark the occasion, Metallica released a deluxe reissue, as well as the Metallica Blacklist tribute compilation.
The song features the prolific and eclectic singer/songwriter teaming up with acclaimed hip-hop/soul group — and The Tonight Show‘s house band — The Roots.
“Godiva Girl” features Rundgren blending throaty vocals with some falsetto highlights as he delivers tongue-in-cheek lyrics in which he compares the object of his desire to all kinds of sweet confections.
You can check out a lyric video for the tune at the Cleopatra Records’ official YouTube channel. The clip features the song’s metaphor-heavy lyrics appearing inside a decorative red heart, and includes an interlude where raspberries fall in slow motion into liquid chocolate.
“Godiva Girl” is available now as a digital download and via streaming services, and also will be featured on Todd’s forthcoming studio album, Space Force, which is due out in 2022.
Space Force also will include the three other collaborative singles that Todd has released since September 2020: “Espionage,” with Iraqi-Canadian hip-hop artist Narcy; “Down with the Ship,” with Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo; and “Your Fandango,” with veteran quirky sibling duo Sparks.
As previously, Rundgren is among the artists who will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on October 30 in Cleveland. Todd, who has long expressed disdain for the Rock Hall, won’t be attending the ceremony and, in fact, will be playing a concert in Cincinnati that evening.
In a new interview with Cleveland.com, Todd notes of his induction, “My fans wanted this so badly. I’m just glad they finally got it and I don’t have to hear about it anymore.”
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, which is apparently why Rod Stewart has remained there for 10 years and counting.
The legendary singer has announced that he’ll return to the Colosseum at Caesars Palace in 2022 for ten performances of his Rod Stewart: The Hits residency. This will mark his 11th year performing at the venue.
The new shows will offer fans the opportunity to hear a few new songs from Rod’s upcoming album, The Tears of Hercules, which is coming out November 12.
Rod’s 2022 dates are May 13, 14, 18, 20 and 21, and September 23, 24, 28, and 30 and October 1. Tickets go on sale to the general public on October 23 at 10 a.m. PT via Ticketmaster, but there are several pre-sales going on starting Wednesday via Rod’s fan club and a variety of loyalty programs. Meanwhile, Stewart happens to be winding down a current engagement at the venue with three shows scheduled for this week, on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.
Incidentally, Sting — Rod’s duet partner on the 1993 number-one hit “All for Love” — starts his first Las Vegas residency at the Colosseum, called My Songs, on October 29.
This week is about to get a lot more rocking, courtesy of Slash.
The Guns N’ Roses shredder and his solo band, Myles Kennedy & the Conspirators, are set to drop a new single called “The River Is Rising” this Friday, October 22.
The track is presumably the first preview of the upcoming fourth album from Slash and the Conspirators, the follow-up to 2018’s Living the Dream. Slash previously called the record the “best one that we’ve done so far.”
Meanwhile, you can also hear Slash on a pair of new GN’R tunes — “Absurd” and “Hard Skool” — which were released in the past two months.
Paul McCartney is not shying away from retelling the highs and lows of his career — emphasis on the prior in his upcoming memoir The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, due out November 2.
He shared an excerpt with The Times of London on Sunday, which focused on the time Bob Dylan hooked The Beatles up with some potent marijuana.
“What happened is that we were in a hotel suite, maybe in New York around the summer of 1964, and Bob Dylan turned up with his roadie,” the excerpt begins — adding the event took place right after Dylan released his fourth studio album, Another Side of Bob Dylan.
McCartney continued, “We were just drinking, as usual, having a little party. We’d ordered drinks from room service — scotch and Coke and French wine were our thing back then — and Bob had disappeared into a back room.”
Apparently, band mate Ringo Starr left the room around the same time, only to return a while later “looking a bit strange,” according to Sir Paul. “He said, ‘I’ve just been with Bob, and he’s got some pot,’ or whatever you called it then.”
“And we said, ‘Oh, what’s it like?’ and he said, ‘Well, the ceiling is kind of moving; it’s sort of coming down.’ And that was enough,” McCartney who was in his early 20s at the time, continued. “After Ringo said that, the other three of us all leapt into the back room where Dylan was, and he gave us a puff on the joint.”
McCartney confessed that the band “were giggling, laughing at each other” and described a “hilarious” moment where he ran after George Harrison “like a cartoon chase.”
“We thought, ‘Wow, this is pretty amazing, this stuff,'” Paul reminisced, adding that night went on to become an inside joke with everyone involved.
Matt Sorum played an integral role in the making of ZZ Top frontman and guitarist Billy Gibbons recently released solo album, Hardware, as the ex-Guns N’ Roses member co-wrote, co-produced and played drums on the entire record.
Sorum tells ABC Audio that he’s honored to have had the opportunity to work on the project with Gibbons, and is proud of the album, which they recorded with second guitarist Austin Hanks last year at a studio in California’s High Desert region.
“Billy’s the coolest there is,” Matt declares. “He looks cool, but he is cool.”
Sorum says the project came together after he and Gibbons teamed up early on during the COVID-19 pandemic to work on some new material, and after recording a couple of tracks at Matt’s studio, Billy said suggested they make a full album.
“The pandemic was happening, we were all off the road, so we went up to Pioneertown, California, and we lived at this old ranch, about 140 acres,” Sorum notes. “And it was the coolest thing.”
Matt says the desert setting had a major influence on the songs they wrote and the sound of the album, noting, “I really felt that the record came out great because of that energy around the environment we were in.”
As an example, Sorum shares how one of the tracks, the atmospheric, spoken-word tune “Desert High” came about after he explained to Gibbons that country-rock pioneer Gram Parsons — who was pals with The Rolling Stones‘ Keith Richards — had died at a motel room down the road from the studio.
“So Billy goes, ‘He died in Room 8 and left it all to Keith?'” Sorum recalls. “And I went, ‘That’s the line!’ And we put it in [the song].”
On Friday, Santanareleased their latest studio album, the star-studded Blessings and Miracles, and coinciding with the record’s arrival, a video feature offering a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the album has debuted at the band’s official YouTube channel.
The video features band leader Carlos Santana discussing how some of the project’s various songs came about, footage of him working on some of the tracks, and clips of many of the guest artists talking about the experience of collaborating with the guitar legend.
As previously reported, Blessings and Miracles features Santana teaming up with Steve Winwood, Matchbox Twenty‘s Rob Thomas, Metallica‘s Kirk Hammett, country star Chris Stapleton, late jazz keyboardist Chick Corea and others.
At the beginning of the video, Carlos — in his trademark cosmically spiritual way — reflects on getting the opportunity to work on new songs with his various talented collaborators.
“This divine intelligence is orchestrating, behind the scenes while I’m sleeping or doing whatever, a [variety of collaborations],” he declares. “And they present themselves to me. So all I have to do is say, ‘Yes, thank you for bringing your song to me. I would love to bathe in your song and compliment whatever is in front of me.'”
Among the album’s tracks is a cover of the Procol Harum classic “A Whiter Shade of Pale” featuring Winwood on vocals and Hamond organ.
In the video, Winwood says, “Carlos’ genius comes in a large part from a wonderful combination of rock music with Latin, Cuban rhythms. I’ve played with Carlos on numerous occasions over the past 50 years, and I’m very excited to be working with him again, still.”
The video also features commentary from Thomas, Hammett and Stapleton discussing their respective collaborations with Santana — “Move,” “America for Sale” and “Joy.”
The annual event, which raises money for the MusiCares charity, was previously held in 2018 and 2019, but was put on hold in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It’ll now make its return this year at The Fonda Theatre in Hollywood on December 20.
Along with Navarro and Morrison, the lineup includes Idol and his other guitarist, Steve Stevens; Perry and Etty Lau Farrell; Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins; Slipknot‘s Corey Taylor; and Sugar Ray frontman Mark McGrath.
As with previous years, the Above Ground performers will play songs off two seminal albums. This year’s selections are Lou Reed‘s Transformer and Sex Pistols‘ Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols.
You can check out a video of Navarro and Morrison talking about this year’s show at the Above Ground organization’s YouTube channel.
Tickets go on sale to the general public this Friday, October 22, at AXS.com.
Paul McCartney and Bryan Adams are among the initial list of celebrity presenters and performers announced for the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, taking place October 30 at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland.
The former Beatles legend will welcome Foo Fighters into the Rock Hall. McCartney and The Beatles have been big influences on Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl and his band. Sir Paul is even featured on the Foos’ 2017 album, Concrete and Gold.
Adams is among several stars who will perform in honor of inductee Tina Turner. Turner will be welcomed into the hallowed institution by actress Angela Bassett, who was nominated for an Oscar for her portrayal of Tina in the 1993 biopic What’s Love Got to Do with It. Turner also will be celebrated with performances by Christina Aguilera, Mickey Guyton and H.E.R.
Carole King will be inducted by pop superstar Taylor Swift, who, along with Jennifer Hudson, also will perform in honor of the legendary singer/songwriter.
The Go-Go’s will be welcomed into the Rock Hall by actress and talk-show host Drew Barrymore, while Lionel Richie will honor pioneering record executive Clarence Avant, who will be inducted in conjunction with receiving the Ahmet Ertegun Award.
More presenters and performers will be announced soon. A special focusing on the 36th annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will premiere November 20 on HBO and will stream on HBO Max the same day.
As previously reported, the 2021 inductees in the main Performers category are Foo Fighters, Todd Rundgren, The Go-Go’s, Turner, King and JAY-Z. Other inductees this year include Kraftwerk, Charley Patton and Gil Scott-Heron for Early Influence, and LL Cool J, Billy Preston and Randy Rhoads for Musical Excellence.
Deep Purple recently released a cover of Love‘s classic 1966 garage-rock song “7 and 7 Is” as the first single from their upcoming studio album, Turning to Crime. Now the veteran U.K. hard-rockers have debuted a music video for the tune.
The clip, which you can watch at the earMUSIC label’s YouTube channel, features footage of Deep Purple’s five members — singer Ian Gillan, drummer Ian Paice, bassist Roger Glover, guitarist Steve Morse and keyboardist Don Airey — working on the album in separate locations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Deep Purple’s version of the hard-driving “7 and 7 Is” adds some prog-rock elements to the song’s arrangement and showcases solos by Morse and Airey.
As previously reported, Turning to Crime will be released om November 26, and is the first Deep Purple album made up of songs originally recorded by other artists.
The covers collection, which was produced by the band’s frequent collaborator, Bob Ezrin, features 12 tracks, including versions of Fleetwood Mac‘s “Oh Well,” Bob Dylan‘s “Watching the River Flow,” Little Feat‘s “Dixie Chicken,” The Yardbirds‘ “Shapes of Things,” Cream‘s “White Room” and more.
A 40-minute documentary about the album’s creation, titled Locked Up: The Making of Turning to Crime, will be released as a limited-edition DVD Digipak and a Blu-ray disc. A DVD with the film also will be included in a limited-edition, five-LP vinyl box set that also will features a bonus song, “(I’m a) Roadrunner,” that does not appear on the regular album’s track list.
Deep Purple’s “7 and 7 Is” is available as a digital download and via streaming. You can pre-orderTurning to Crime now.
Here’s Turning to Crime‘s full track list:
“7 and 7 Is”
“Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu”
“Oh Well”
“Jenny Take a Ride!”
“Watching the River Flow”
“Let the Good Times Roll”
“Dixie Chicken”
“Shapes of Things”
“The Battle of New Orleans”
“Lucifer”
“White Room”
“Caught in the Act” (Medley: “Going Down”/”Green Onions”/”Hot ‘Lanta”/”Dazed and Confused”/”Gimme Some Lovin'”)
