Classic Rock News

Personal items from the late KISS guitarist Ace Frehley are among the pieces of memorabilia up for sale at Julien’s Auctions upcoming Music Icons auction.

Over 800 items will be part of the auction, including instruments from Metallica’s Kirk Hammett, guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan, Black Sabbath’s Bill Ward and more.

The highlight of this year’s auction is Frehley’s most played 1975 Les Paul guitar, which is expected to sell for between $400,000 and $600,000. According to a press release, the guitar was Frehley’s “constant companion” from the beginning of his career and was used “more than any other guitar in his arsenal.”

Other Frehley memorabilia up for grabs include a 1977 tour jacket, a full-length kimono from the Rock & Roll Over Tour era and a purple velvet stage-worn jumpsuit.

Also part of the Music Icons auction is Hammett’s first Ouija ESP custom guitar, which is signed with an inscription from the rocker; Vaughan’s 1969 Guild F-412 Twelve String guitar, played during his 1990 MTV Unplugged performance; Ward’s used Zildjian Gong and RIAA Platinum records; and former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Izzy Stradlin’s 1987 Gibson HR Fusion 1 guitar, used during the recording of the band’s debut album, Appetite for Destruction.

Bidding for items will open online April 27, with the two-day live auction happening May 29 -30 at the Hard Rock Café Times Square in New York. More info can be found at JuliensAuctions.com.

Highlights from the auction will be on display at the Hard Rock Piccadilly Circus in London through April 13, before moving to Japan’s Hard Rock Café Tokyo for display on April 27. Additional items will go on display at the Hard Rock in New York starting May 13.

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Pearl Jam has uploaded Japanese versions of videos for “Even Flow,” “Jeremy” and “Daughter” in celebration of frontman Eddie Vedder’s first solo tour in Japan.

The updated clips feature subtitles with the lyrics of each song in Japanese.  

Vedder’s Japan tour launches in April and includes shows in Nagoya, Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo.

“The tour will give audiences a unique opportunity to experience Eddie’s solo work and career-spanning material in a theater setting,” Vedder previously said.

(“Jeremy” video contains uncensored profanity.) 



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Graham Nash has extended his 2026 tour through the summer.

The two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has announced a new set of tour dates, which include co-headlining shows with Emmylou Harris.

The new summer shows begin July 7 in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, and run through Aug. 4 in Alexandria, Virginia. Nash is also booked to play the Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival Sept. 19 in Fredricton, New Brunswick, Canada.

Nash and Harris will co-headline three dates of the tour: July 23 in Interlochen, Michigan; July 24 in Rochester Hills, Michigan; and July 26 in Highland Park, Illinois. Nash will also appear as special guest at the Avett Brothers’ July 12 show at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado.

A complete list of dates and ticket information can be found at GrahamNash.com.

Nash will next launch a spring leg of the tour, starting April 4 in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania.

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There was a mini Guns N’ Roses reunion in Los Angeles Monday night.

The band’s current and original members Slash and Duff McKagan reunited with original Guns drummer Steven Adler and former guitarist Gilby Clarke at the Rock For Jennifer Memorial Concert held at The Troubadour in Hollywood.

Fan-shot footage posted to YouTube shows the rockers teaming for a performance of the Guns N’ Roses track “It’s So Easy,” from their debut album, Appetite for Destruction, with Faster Pussycat frontman Taime Downe handling the vocals.

Adler was a member of Guns N’ Roses from their formation in 1985 until his firing in 1990 due to his drug addiction issues. Clarke joined the group in 1991 to replace original guitarist Izzy Stradlin, and performed with them until 1995.

According to Blabbermouth, the concert was in celebration of Jennifer Perry, the former house agent at the Troubadour, who died in February at the age of 67.

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ZZ Top has expanded their 2026 The Big One! tour to include dates in Mexico and South America.

The band will play three shows in Mexico, starting with a Nov. 9 concert in Guadalajara, and followed by shows in Mexico City and Monterrey.

The tour then heads to South America — the band’s first time there in 16 years — starting Nov. 16 in Santiago, Chile. The tour will then hit three cities in Brazil, before wrapping Nov. 24 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

“ZZ Top is looking forward to bringing its rock ‘n’ roll roadshow back to our amigos in Argentina, Brazil and Chile and they know that we’re ready to rock,” says Billy F Gibbons. “We are always excited to be with our longtime friends, fans and followers en Mexico.”

A presale for tickets begins Wednesday at 10 a.m. local time, with tickets for most shows going on sale Friday. Tickets for shows in Santiago and Buenos Aires go on sale to the general public April 17.

ZZ Top’s next concert is Tuesday in Greeley, Colorado. They will also be bringing The Big One! tour to Europe, with a mix of festival appearances and headlining dates. The tour starts June 13 in Estonia.

A complete list of dates can be found at ZZTop.com.

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May will mark the 60th anniversary of The Beach Boys’ iconic album Pet Sounds, and the milestone is being celebrated with a whole host of new releases.

On May 15, fans will get a glimpse of the making of the album with the release of The Pet Sounds Sessions Highlights, featuring material from the 1997 four-CD box set The Pet Sounds Sessions. The new release contains 25 alternate takes, a cappella versions and tracking sessions, all of which are making their vinyl debut.

The Pet Sounds Sessions Highlights will be released as a two-CD set or two-LP set. The LP versions will be released on standard black vinyl and limited-edition splatter/color variants. Also on May 15, the original 90-track The Pet Sounds Sessions will be released to digital services.

As a preview of the new set, a three-track EP featuring different versions of the Pet Sounds song “Sloop John B” is out now.

The Pet Sounds 60th anniversary will also be celebrated with the release of a Vinylphyle Edition of the album on 180-gram black vinyl, and cut from the original mono and stereo analog tapes. Interscope-Capitol’s Definitive Sound Series will also release a limited-edition pressing of 6,000numbered copies of the album in the original mono configuration.

Released May 16, 1966, Pet Sounds is often considered one of the best albums of all time. Recorded a year after Brian Wilson quit touring and suffered a breakdown in 1964, the album featured such classic Beach Boys songs as “Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” “God Only Knows” and “Sloop John B.”

The album peaked at #10 on the Billboard Album chart; in 2004 it was chosen by the Library of Congress for inclusion in the National Recording Registry.

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A previously unreleased live recording of Gregg Allman in concert is set for release in April.

Gregg Allman Band’s Great As Ever: Live In Philadelphia ’86 features a never-before-heard recording from the late rocker’s personal archives. It captures Allman’s Jan. 11, 1986, concert at the intimate Chestnut Cabaret in Philadelphia.

The 13-song set features an early version of what would become Allman’s hit track “I’m No Angel,” as well as the solo track “Queen of Hearts” and performances of Allman Brothers Band classics like “Midnight Rider,” “It’s Not My Cross To Bear” and “Melissa,” the latter of which was dedicated to his ABB bandmate Dickey Betts, despite their then-estrangement.

The album also features a performance of “Don’t Want You No More,” which is now available via digital outlets.

Gregg Allman Band’s Great As Ever: Live In Philadelphia ’86 will be released April 10 and is available for preorder now.

And Gregg Allman fans have more to look forward to in 2026. The documentary Gregg Allman: The Music of My Soul is expected to premiere in theaters this summer. The film, directed by Grammy and Golden Globe award-winning filmmaker James Keach, will feature never-before-seen interviews and rare archival performances.

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Bruce Springsteen, Patti Smith and Michael Stipe were among the performers at Democracy Now!’s 30th anniversary event at Riverside Church in New York City Monday night.

Springsteen was a surprise guest and treated the audience to a performance of his new protest song “Streets of Minneapolis.”

“This past winter when federal troops brought death and terror into the streets of Minneapolis they picked the wrong city,” Springsteen said. “The power and the solidarity of the people of Minneapolis was an inspiration to the entire country. Their strength and their commitment told us that this is still America and the reactionary nightmare and the invasion of an American city will not stand,” he added. “Their strength gave us hope. They gave us courage.”

“And for those who gave their lives,” he continued, mentioning Renée Good and Alex Pretti — two Minneapolis residents who were fatally shot by federal agents — “their bravery their sacrifice and their names will not be forgotten.”

Following the song, Springsteen was asked about his upcoming Land of Hope and Dreams American tour, sharing that he’s going to hit cities that “had to deal with ICE.” With the trek ending in Washington, D.C., he added he has a “few words to say to the f***** White House.”

Elsewhere during the evening, Stipe was joined by The National’s Aaron Dessner to perform the track “No Time For Love Like Now,” originally recorded with Big Red Machine and featuring Justin Vernon. Smith, joined by her daughter, Jesse Smith, and guitarist Tony Shanahan, read a passage from her book Bread of Angels and performed “Peaceable Kingdom,” along with a part of her iconic tune “People Have the Power.”

The night ended with all the musicians coming on stage for an encore of Smith’s “People Have The Power.”

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On This Day, March 24, 1986 …

Forty years ago, Van Halen released their seventh studio album, 5150, which was their first record with new lead singer Sammy Hagar, following the departure of original frontman David Lee Roth.

5150 is named after guitarist Eddie Van Halen’s home studio and is also a reference to the California law that allows a mentally disturbed person to be placed on an involuntary psychiatric hold. It went on to become the band’s first #1 album and contained three pop hits: “Dreams,” “Why Can’t This Be Love” and “Love Walks In.”

5150 went on to be certified six-times Platinum by the RIAA.

On Friday, Van Halen will release a special 40th anniversary expanded edition of 5150, featuring a remastered version of the album as well as bonus 7-inch single edits and extended 12-inch tracks.

There’s also a CD featuring unreleased live recordings from Van Halen’s Aug. 27, 1986, concert at New Haven Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New Haven, Connecticut, and a Blu-ray with the band’s 1986 concert video Live Without a Net, recorded during the same New Haven show, upgraded to HD for the first time.

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Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea was the musical guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Monday and performed his instrumental cover of the Frank Ocean song “Thinkin Bout You.”

As he does on the recorded version, Flea’s Fallon rendition found him switching between playing bass and the trumpet.

In between watching him seamlessly switch between instruments, you might have noticed a bandage on Flea’s head. As he explained in an interview with Fallon, Flea suffered an injury in what he called a “bizarre peeing accident.”

Flea says he was in the middle of hosting a show on Apple Music when he realized he had to relieve himself, so in between songs, he rushed to the bathroom.

“I run down the hallway, I pee, I’m coming back, I’m wearing my reading glasses,” Flea recalled. “I yell something to someone, running full sprint down the hallway, mind you. And bam! Smack into a glass door, flat on my back, blood spurting out of my head.”

We’ll have to add “bizarre peeing accident” to the list of rock star injuries alongside “bizarre gardening accident.” 

Flea’s “Thinkin Bout You” cover appears on his upcoming debut solo album, Honora, due out Friday. He’ll launch a U.S. tour in May. 

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