Classic Rock 93.9

Heart singer Ann Wilson will take part in a special performance at an exhibition of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay‘s extensive collection of rock memorabilia and other historic artifacts, which will be held August 2 in Irsay’s hometown of Chicago.

Wilson will perform at the event with The Jim Irsay Band, which features Irsay backed by founding R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, longtime John Mellencamp guitarist Mike Wanchic, John Fogerty touring drummer Kenny Aronoff and other noteworthy musicians.

The exhibit of the Jim Irsay Collection and the performance will take place at the Aon Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier and will run from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. CT. The event is free, but tickets will be required to attend and can be reserved at Eventbrite.com.

Irsay’s collection includes guitars that were played and/or owned by Bob Dylan, members of The Beatles, Prince, Eric Clapton, The Grateful Dead‘s Jerry Garcia, Pink Floyd‘s David Gilmour and many other famous musicians.

The collection also features other instruments, as well as autographed photos, handwritten lyrics and more. The most recent additions to Irsay’s trove of memorabilia is the guitar that late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain played in his band’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video, and the guitar on which the late Janis Joplin learned to play “Me and Bobby McGee.”

Some non-music-related items also are part of the collection: an original “Wanted” poster for John Wilkes Booth, a baseball bat used by Jackie Robinson and a robe worn by Muhammad Ali.

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Metallica has joined forces with the heaviest guitar player in the Upside Down.

The metal legends “duet” with Stranger Things character Eddie Munson on a rendition of “Master of Puppets” in a new TikTok video.

The clip mashes up a new ‘Tallica performance of “Master of Puppets” from the band’s rehearsal space with the pivotal scene in the season 4 finale of the Netflix sci-fi series, in which Eddie, played by Joseph Quinn, shreds the 1986 thrash classic.

“Eddie, this is for you!” the TikTok’s caption reads.

To make it all the more fitting, the Metallica members are all wearing Hellfire Club shirts, a reference to Eddie’s Dungeons and Dragons group.

Metallica previously issued a statement saying that they were “beyond psyched” and “totally blown away” by the “Master of Puppets” placement in Stranger Things.

Since the episode’s premiere last Friday, streams of “Master of Puppets” have increased by 400%, according to Billboard. Meanwhile, the guitar instruction platform Yousician has seen a 100% uptick in plays of “Master of Puppets.”

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Eric Clapton has quietly debuted a new song called “Pompous Fool” on his official YouTube channel and social media pages.

Clapton has offered no details about the tune, which was posted on July 7, but some fans and media outlets have speculated that it might be a commentary on U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who resigned that same day amid allegations of political corruption.

“Don’t you worry, don’t be blue/ Let your woman, take care of you,” Clapton sings in the first verse of the upbeat pop-blues tune. “Live your life, by the golden rule/ Pay no mind, to the pompous fool.”

Back in July 2021, Clapton posted a message criticizing Johnson after the politician announced that COVID-19 vaccine passes would be required to attend events at nightclubs and other venues in the U.K.

In the message, which appeared on the Telegram page of Clapton’s friend Robin Monotti, who identifies as a pro-vaccine-safety advocate, Clapton declared, “I will not perform on any stage where there is a discriminated audience present. Unless there is provision made for all people to attend, I reserve the right to cancel the show.”

“Pompous Fool” currently doesn’t appear to be available for purchase or via the major streaming platforms.

In May, Clapton postponed several shows on his 2022 European tour leg to October because he had contracted COVID-19. His next scheduled performances are a series of seven U.S. concerts running from a September 8 gig in Columbus, Ohio, to a September 18-19 stand in New York City. Jimmie Vaughan will be joining him at most of the shows.

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Toast, an album that Neil Young recorded with his frequent backing band Crazy Horse in 2001, finally got its release day Friday.

The seven-track collection, which was recorded at Toast Studios in San Francisco, includes three songs that were never released in any form — “Standing in the Light of Love,” “Timberline” and “Gateway of Love.” The album is available now on CD, as a two-LP vinyl set and via digital formats.

Those who purchase Toast on CD and vinyl at Young’s Greedy Hand Store will receive a high-res digital download from the Xstream Store at Neil’s Archives website.

Coinciding with Toast‘s arrival, the 10-minute-long “Gateway of Love” has been issued as a digital single.

In a message first published on NeilYoungArchives.com in 2021, Young writes, “Toast is an album that stands on its own in my collection, unlike any other. The songs of Toast were so sad at the time that I couldn’t put it out. I just skipped it and went on to do another album in its place.”

He continued, “The music of Toast is about a relationship. There is a time in many relationships that go bad, a time long before the breakup, where it dawns on one of the people, maybe both, that it’s over. This was that time.”

Neil also praised Crazy Horse’s performance on the tracks, writing that the band “shows a depth never seen or heard before on any other Horse recording.” He added, “For the greatest group I have ever met — Crazy Horse — this is a pinnacle. Where they let me go, where they took me, was unbelievable. I couldn’t stay.”

Here’s Toast‘s full track list:

“Quit”
“Standing in the Light of Love”
“Goin’ Home”
“Timberline”
“Gateway of Love”
“How Ya Doin’?”
“Boom Boom Boom”

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The Eagles will be flying north of the border with their Hotel California 2022 Tour this September.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers’ ongoing tour, which celebrates their classic 1976 album, has been extended to include six Canadian dates — September 9 in Toronto, September 13 in Ottawa, September 16 in Winnipeg, September 18 in Saskatoon, September 20 in Edmonton and September 22 in Vancouver.

Tickets for the shows go on sale to the general public next Friday, July 15 at 10 a.m. local time; A limited number of VIP packages will also be available that day. Pre-sale tickets are currently on sale. Visit Eagles.com for more information.

As previously reported, the tour features the Eagles performing the Hotel California album in its entirety, as well as other memorable tunes by the group, accompanied by an orchestra and a choir. The band’s current lineup includes founding singer/drummer Don Henley, longtime guitarist Joe Walsh, bassist Timothy B. Schmit and country star Vince Gill on vocals and guitar.

The Eagles wrapped up a European leg of the trek in June and also toured the U.S. earlier this year.

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The late Ronnie James Dio would’ve celebrated his 80th birthday on Sunday.

Dio was born Ronald James Padavona on July 10, 1942, and died of stomach cancer May 16, 2010. His career included fronting Black Sabbath after Ozzy Osbourne was fired in 1979 and forming his own, namesake band, Dio, releasing the classic album Holy Diver in 1983. Along the way, he popularized the iconic “metal horns” gesture.

In honor of the milestone occasion, Holy Diver has been reissued as a deluxe box set, including remastered and remixed audio, live recordings, outtakes and B-sides. For original Dio drummer Vinny Appice, the reissue allows him to reminisce about the “ball” he, Ronnie and the rest of the band had recording the now double-Platinum album.

“It was a fun time in everyone’s life, and that shows in the music,” Appice tells ABC Audio. “The music’s pretty kick-a**.”

For Appice, having fun recording an album was the most he expected out of the Holy Diver experience.

“I remember one of my drum techs saying, ‘It’s gonna go Platinum, man!'” Appice recalls. “I said, ‘Come on, nah’… And then sure enough.”

“Album comes out, we start playing theaters,” he continues. “Then about three months, four months later, we’re playing arenas. It’s the typical rock story.”

The remix for the Holy Diver reissue was done by Joe Barressi, who’s worked with bands including Tool and Slipknot. He worked from the original analog tapes to put a new spin on the audio, such as including an ending on the song “Holy Diver,” which just fades out on the original released recording.

“I don’t know what else [Barressi] might’ve found on those tapes,” Appice laughs. “Probably a lot of cursing and swearing.”

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Journey‘s first new studio album in 11 years, Freedom, was released today.

The 15-track collection, which was recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic, is the first Journey album to feature drummer Narada Michael Walden, who also co-produced Freedom with guitarist Neal Schon and keyboardist Jonathan Cain.

Freedom also marks the return of bassist Randy Jackson, who previously played with Journey from 1985 to 1987. Walden and Jackson joined the band after longtime Journey drummer Steve Smith and bassist Ross Valory were fired in 2020.

“There’s a different strut to this record altogether,” Schon tells ABC Audio. “[M]any people probably can imagine that…replacing a whole rhythm section is gonna change the overall rhythm, feel in the band. And personally, I love it…I think it’s got a new vibe, and even some of the ballads are…coming from a different place than what we’ve done before.”

Freedom includes songs that sound like they could have come from various eras in Journey’s history, and features a mix of power ballads, hard-rocking tunes, sensitive love songs and even a funk-influenced track.

“I just think the album is very musical,” Neal maintains. “I feel like, for me, it goes back to maybe the Infinity era, when I first started writing with Steve Perry, to what we are now…and what we’re becoming.”

Schon says an important factor in the album’s sound was that, while most of the band contributed their parts remotely, he and Walden worked together laying down guitar and drums tracks live in the studio.

“I personally like [cutting] drums and guitar live…even if there’s no other instruments,” Neal says, “because it breathes new life. You know, there’s a lot of life to the music then.”

Here’s Freedom‘s full track list:

“Together We Run”
“Don’t Give Up on Us”
“Still Believe in Love”
“You Got the Best of Me”
“Live to Love Again”
“The Way We Used to Be”
“Come Away with Me”
“After Glow”
“Let It Rain”
“Holdin On”
“All Day and All Night”
“Don’t Go”
“United We Stand”
“Life Rolls On”
“Beautiful as You Are”

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If you ever saw an album cover that you thought would make a great movie, you and Taika Waititi are on the same page.

At a recent press event, the director for the new Thor sequel, Thor: Love and Thunder, shared how the music from bands like Guns N’ Roses and Metallica shaped the aesthetic of the film.

“We wanted it to be this bombastic, loud, colorful palette, which kinda reflected spray-painted panel vans in the ’80s and rock album covers,” Waititi said.

That influence is even found in the Love and Thunder title treatment and logo, which Waititi wanted to look like something he might’ve “drawn on my school book in class when I wasn’t listening.”

“I remember spending months and months perfecting the Metallica logo,” Waititi recalled.

Anyone who’s seen the Love and Thunder trailer shouldn’t be too surprised, as it’s soundtracked by the GN’R classic “Sweet Child o’ Mine.”

“Guns N’ Roses is one of my all-time favorite bands,” Waititi says. “To be able to use that stuff to reflect the crazy adventure that we’re presenting visually was another one of my dreams that came true.”

Thor: Love and Thunder premieres in theaters Friday, July 8. It’s produced by Marvel Studios, which is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC News.

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Three years after they first listed it, Paul Simon and wife Edie Brickell have finally sold their mansion in New Canaan, Connecticut. But the musical couple have taken a big loss on the property.

The real estate website Dirt reports that the 32-acre residence sold for $10.8 million, $5.7 million less than they paid for it about 20 years ago.

According to Dirt, Simon and Brickell initially asked for $13.9 million for the estate when they put it up for sale in 2019, but slashed the price to $11.9 million in 2020.

The 1938 mansion has six bedrooms, eight bathrooms and three powder rooms, a paneled library, a large living room, a tiled sun room and a three-car garage. The three-story home sits on grounds that include “sweeping meadows,” “formal walled gardens,” a swimming pool and a private pond.

There’s also a 2,400-square-foot cottage on the property that Paul and Edie used as a recording studio.

According to Dirt, Simon and his wife still have three at least other residences, among them a duplex in New York City, a 30-acre oceanfront home in New York’s ritzy Hamptons and a 10-acre estate in Allen, Texas, outside of Dallas.

The couple celebrated their 30th anniversary last month.

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A high-def analog audio disc featuring a new version of Bob Dylan‘s classic folk song “Blowin’ in the Wind,” which Dylan recorded last year, sold Thursday at a Christie’s auction in London for about 1.5 million pounds, or almost $1.8 million.

Dylan recorded his new version of the famous tune with acclaimed producer T Bone Burnett using Burnett’s new ultra-high-definition Ionic Original audio format.

The one-of-a-kind acetate disc, which had been estimated to sell for between $752,000 and $1.2 million, was auctioned as part of Christie’s “Exceptional Sale” event. The sale took place two days before the 60th anniversary of the recording of the original “Blowin’ in the Wind.”

The 10-inch aluminum disc, which resembles and can be played like a vinyl LP, comes packaged in a specially created wooden cabinet and boasts the etched signatures of Dylan, Burnett and mastering engineer Jeff Powell.

The new track was recorded in Los Angeles and Nashville, with Dylan accompanied by Burnett on electric guitar, Greg Leisz on mandolin, Stuart Duncan on violin, and both Dennis Crouch and Don Was on bass.

In a statement posted by Variety following the auction, Burnett says, “With Bob Dylan’s new version of ‘Blowin’ in the Wind,’ our first Ionic Original archival analogue disc, we have entered and aim to help develop a music space in the fine arts market. I trust and hope it will mean as much to whomever acquired it today…as it does to all of us who made it, and that they will consider it and care for it as a painting or any other singular work of art.”

The Ionic Original technology was developed by Burnett’s recently launched company NeoFidelity Inc.

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