The iconic smashed bass from the cover of The Clash’s 1979 album, London Calling, will be on display at the new London Museum in Smithfield, England.
The Fender Precision Bass guitar will be on loan from The Clash’s Paul Simonon, after having previously been on display at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.
Simonon infamously smashed the bass during a performance at New York’s Palladium on Sept. 20, 1979, with the photo taken by photographer Pennie Smith.
The guitar will be part of the museum’s Past Lives exhibit, which a press release notes will take museumgoers on a “journey through London’s history via chronological and thematic displays.”
The new London Museum will open Nov. 28 in Smithfield’s General Market. More info on the museum can be found at londonmuseum.org.uk.
Bruce Springsteen performs during the dedication ceremony for the opening of the Barack Obama Presidential Center in John Lewis Plaza on June 18, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Bruce Springsteen, and U2’s Bono and The Edge were among the performers at the grand opening of President Barack Obama’s Obama Presidential Center Thursday in Chicago.
Bono and The Edge followed a speech by former first lady Michelle Obama, performing “City of Blinding Lights,” joined by producer Jacknife Lee.
Bono started riffing toward the end of the song, singing about performing in front of “46, 42 and 43,” a reference to Presidents Joe Biden, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, who were all in attendance for the opening. He then added “44 and family” for the Obamas, whose daughters, Malia Obama and Sasha Obama, were also there.
Bono ended the song by singing “Michelle ma belle,” the lyric from The Beatles song “Michelle.”
Springsteen hit the stage following Barack Obama’s speech, treating the crowd to his Wrecking Ball track “Land of Hope and Dreams.”
“Hi, I’m Bruce, and I’m so glad to be here this afternoon for President Obama and Michelle, Malia and Sasha, you know how I love you all,” Bruce said when he first walked out on the stage.
“‘Oh, what a glorious task we are given to continuously strive to improve this great nation of ours.’ That was from President Obama’s speech in Selma,” he continued. “President Obama and Michelle, you have exemplified that ideal with lives that have served us all with heart and commitment, love and compassion.” He then dedicated the song to the couple.
Springsteen later returned to join Stevie Wonder and the day’s other performers to wrap the ceremony with Wonder’s classic “Higher Ground.”
Other performers included Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder, John Legend, Common, Jennifer Hudson, Christina Aguilera, The Roots and Tems.
Ozzy Osbourne performs during half-time of the 2022 NFL season opening game between the Buffalo Bills and the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium on September 08, 2022 in Inglewood, California. (Harry How/Getty Images)
A new statue of the late Ozzy Osbourne has been unveiled at the France’s Hellfest.
Sharon Osbourne has posted an Instagram video of the statue, which shows the Prince of Darkness stretching his arms forward with his palms up.
In the post’s caption, Sharon calls the statue “absolutely stunning.”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be at Hellfest for the unveiling of Ozzy’s statue,” Sharon writes. “Unfortunately I had an unexpected trip to the hospital earlier in the week.”
Hellfest is also home to a statue of Ozzy’s longtime friend and collaborator, late Motörhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister.
Grateful Dead ‘Steal Your Face’ (Rhino Entertainment)
Grateful Dead has released another track off the upcoming 50th anniversary remaster of their Steal Your Face live album.
The latest is a performance of the song “Big River,” a cover of Johnny Cash’s 1958 tune. They previously released a performance of “Black Throated Wind.”
“I’ve never met a ‘Big River’ I didn’t like,” writes Dead archivist David Lemieux in the description of the release. “Widely considered to have hit its peak in 1974, the Grateful Dead picked a perfect version of ‘Big River’ to act as its definitive recorded rendition on Steal Your Face.”
Steal Your Face (50th Anniversary Remaster) is set to drop June 26, 50 years to the day of the album’s original release. It will be released as a two-LP set in The Dead’s official Pantone colors, Grateful Red and Stealie Blue; the vinyl will split the colors half and half, with the addition of some black splatter.
The album will also be available for streaming and digital download.
Originally released June 26, 1976, Steal Your Face captures performances from The Dead’s five-show run at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco in October 1974. The tour was a farewell of sorts, as the band would go on an indefinite hiatus after the shows. The tour hiatus eventually ended in June 1976.
The Pearl Jam frontman recorded the track in collaboration with the organization Guitars Over Guns, which provides musical instruments and instruction to young people from vulnerable communities.
Vedder debuted “Better Believe” alongside Guitars Over Guns students Thursday at the opening ceremony for the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. Following the performance, the studio version officially debuted on digital outlets.
All of Vedder’s royalties will be donated to Guitars Over Guns.
The Rolling Stones pick ‘Jealous Lover’ as next Foreign Tongues single
The Rolling Stones are getting ready to release another track off their upcoming album, Foreign Tongues.
The rockers have announced that the next single from the album will be “Jealous Lover.” A press release notes that the track “combines infectious melodies, rich musicianship and sharp lyrical observations,” with frontman Mick Jagger delivering “a pointed warning to an over-inquisitive lover, bringing humor, attitude and vivid imagery to the song’s narrative.”
“Jealous Lover” will be released June 26; the band offered up a short snippet of the track on Instagram. The song will be available as a vinyl and CD single, with the track “Divine Intervention” on the B-side.
This will be the third song The Rolling Stones have released from Foreign Tongues, following “Rough and Twisted” and “In the Stars.”
Foreign Tongues, produced by Andrew Watt, will be released July 10. It is available for preorder now.
Night Ranger is revisiting one of their classic hits.
The “Sister Christian” rockers have released a remastered version of their 1983 single “(You Can Still) Rock in America,” which originally appeared on their sophomore album, Midnight Madness.
The new remastered version of the song is one of several remixed and remastered hits featured on their upcoming compilation album, Best Of, dropping Aug. 28. Also included on the record are “Sister Christian,” “When You Close Your Eyes” and “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me,” along with bonus tracks, including a live performance of the holiday classic “Feliz Navidad.”
Best Of will be released on CD and vinyl, with a double-LP version available in black, gold and orange splatter. All are available for preorder now.
Night Ranger is currently on a U.S. tour and is set to play Reno, Nevada, on Friday. A complete list of tour dates can be found at NightRanger.com.
E Street Band and Bruce Springsteen saxophonist Clarence Clemons died in a Florida hospital six days after suffering a stroke at his home. He was 69.
Clemons, also known as The Big Man, was a member of the E Street Band from 1974 until his passing. He met Springsteen in 1971 in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Their meeting was immortalized on the track “The E Street Shuffle,” from Springsteen’s sophomore album, 1973’s The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle, and on the 1975 Born To Run classic “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out.”
Clemons was posthumously inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band in 2014.
In addition to his work with Springsteen, Clemons released several solo albums and had a hit with the 1985 track “You’re A Friend of Mine,” a collaboration with Jackson Browne.
Springsteen chose Clarence’s nephew Jake Clemons to be the new E Street Band saxophonist in 2012. He has performed with them ever since.
Bruce Springsteen on Jimmy Kimmel Live!/(Disney/Randy Holmes)
As America approaches its 250th anniversary, Esquireis taking a deep dive into songs that most reflect our nation.
The mag has just come out with a list of the 25 most American songs of all time, with tracks by Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and more making the list.
According to Esquire, the list doesn’t aim to choose the greatest American songs; instead it is “a collection of songs that are distinctly American, addressing protest and leisure, joy and pain, wisdom and silliness, nostalgia and experimentation.”
Despite the title, Springsteen is not on the list for his iconic protest song “Born in the U.S.A.” In fact, songs with America or U.S.A. in the title or chorus were excluded from the list. Instead, The Boss’ 1980 track “The River” is recognized, with the mag calling it his “most perfectly American composition” because it describes the “compromises required of the working class.”
Dylan is represented with 1965’s “Highway 61 Revisited,” although the mag notes his “entire 60-plus-year career has been an exploration of American music.” Petty’s recognized for 1989’s “Free Fallin'” because it “depicts suburban isolation and longing.”
Other songs making the list include: KISS’ “Rock and Roll All Nite,” the Ramones’ “Blitzkrieg Bop,” Jimmy Buffett’s “Margaritaville,” The Beach Boys’ “Surfin’ Safari,” Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” and Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land.”
Neil Young performs during 2017 Farm Aid on September 16, 2017 in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Matt Kincaid/Getty Images)
Neil Young’s tune “Harvest Moon” has been covered by Melvins’ drummer Dale Crover, who has an interesting connection to the track.
Crover, who was also briefly a member of Nirvana, played a role in the original tune’s release over 30 years ago. You see, the rocker played a younger version of Young in the video for the original “Harvest Moon,” which was the title track off Young’s 1992 album.
According to Crover’s label, Joyful Noise Recordings, he also “crashed Neil’s car on set” during the video shoot.
Crover has now put his spin on “Harvest Moon” for an EP titled Get Yer Ba-Ba’s Out, dropping Sept. 4. His version is also a mash-up with the Melvins song “The Bit.”
