Classic Rock News

Rock & Roll Hall of Famer neil young and his new band the chrome hearts are hitting the road this summer.

They just announced dates for the love earth world tour, which will hit Europe, the U.K., the U.S. and Canada.

The tour kicks off June 18 in Rättvik, Sweden. It hits the U.S. Aug. 8 in Charlotte, North Carolina, with the tour wrapping with a show at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on Sept. 15.

Neil Young Archives members will get a first crack at tickets starting Tuesday at 10 a.m. for U.S. shows. Tickets go on sale to the general public starting Friday. A complete list of dates can be found at neilyoungarchives.com.

Young and the chrome hearts – made up of Micah Nelson on guitar and vocals, Spooner Oldham on Farfisa organ, Corey McCormick on bass and vocals and Anthony LoGerfo on drums – released their first song together, “big change,” in January. In early February Young announced that their first album is complete, sharing that he hopes to have it out in April.

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R.E.M.’s Peter Buck made a surprise appearance at Friday’s Seattle show of Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy, who are on tour celebrating the 40th anniversary of R.E.M.’s 1985 album, Fables of the Reconstruction.

According to setlist.fm, Buck joined the duo for the second set of the show, once they finished performing Fables of the Reconstruction in its entirety. Buck played on the Reckoning tracks “Time After Time (AnnElise),” “Harborcoat,” “Pretty Persuasion,” “So. Central Rain (I’m Sorry)” and “Second Guessing,” the Life’s Rich Pageant track “Cuyahoga,” and the Murmur song “Sitting Still.”

“It was incredibly moving to sit in on a few songs with the band. And kinda strange too” Peter shared on Instagram. “It’s amazing the power of music to transport you through time.”

This is the second time Buck has joined Shannon and Narducy at an R.E.M.-themed show. He previously took the stage with them in 2024 in R.E.M.’s home city of Athens, Georgia, for the duo’s Murmur tour. At that show, R.E.M.’s Mike Mills, Bill Berry and Michael Stipe also joined the duo on stage, although Stipe did not perform.

Shannon and Narducy’s next show is happening Monday in Indianapolis. The tour runs through March 14 in Chicago.

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Scott Weiland‘s son Noah Weiland sings his late father’s words in a newly released cover of the Stone Temples Pilots song “Sex Type Thing.”

The recording is accompanied by a video that Noah says he “filmed … about a dream I had long ago about seeing my father again.”

“It’s hard for me to stay in the moment sometimes, but I try,” Noah writes in an Instagram post.

You can watch Noah’s “Sex Type Thing” video streaming now on YouTube.

Noah has released a number of solo singles over the years, including a duet with Scott, “Time Will Tell,” which was recorded before the elder Weiland’s death in 2015. He’s been working on an album titled Call Jesus.

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On This Day, Feb. 24, 1982…

John Lennon and Yoko Ono won album of the year at the 24th annual Grammy Awards, held in Los Angeles. The pair won the award for Double Fantasy, the final album Lennon recorded before his death in December 1980.

The Police took home two awards that evening, best rock vocal performance by a duo or group for “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” and best rock instrumental for “Behind the Camera.”

Other winners included Pat Benatar, for best female rock vocal performance for “Fire and Ice,” Rick Springfield, for best male rock vocal performance for “Jesse’s Girl” and the track “Bette Davis Eyes,” by Kim Carnes, which took home both song and record of the year.

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Over the course of their career, Led Zeppelin released six #1 albums — and one of those is turning 50 on Monday.

Physical Graffiti, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band’s fifth studio album, was released on Feb. 24, 1975. It was a double album and the band’s first to be released under their own label, Swan Song Records.

The album, produced by guitarist Jimmy Page, contained eight songs written and recorded specifically for the record, along with unreleased tracks recorded during sessions for 1970’s Led Zeppelin III, 1971’s Led Zeppelin IV and 1973’s Houses of the Holy.

The iconic cover depicted two buildings on St. Marks Street in Manhattan, with cutouts in the windows. The internal sleeves could be seen through the openings, and depending on which side was facing out, it showed either the album’s title or pictures of iconic figures.

Physical Graffiti was a critical and commercial hit for the band. It spent six weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200 chart, and also hit #1 in the U.K. and Canada. It was the first album to go Platinum from preorders alone and has since been certified 16-times Platinum in the U.S.

Notable songs on the record include “Houses of the Holy,” which despite being the title of the previous record was left off because the band felt it didn’t fit with the other songs on that album, and another future Led Zeppelin classic, “Kashmir,” known for its classic opening riff. The tune went on to become a staple at Led Zeppelin live shows.

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Gibson has revealed another custom guitar, this time inspired by one of Eric Clapton‘s legendary guitars.

The Eric Clapton 1958 Les Paul Custom is a tribute to Clapton’s original Cream-era 1958 Les Paul Custom, which he performed on throughout the ’60s and ’70s, and then gifted to legendary guitarist Albert Lee in 1979, who still uses it to this day.

The new guitar features Murphy Lab aging to replicate the exact aging and wear patterns created by Clapton and Lee, and features a one-piece, all-mahogany body, with a mahogany neck with an ebony fretboard. There’s also a second pickguard that’s signed by both Clapton and Lee.

The Eric Clapton 1958 Les Paul Custom is available now at Gibson.com, Guitar Center and the Gibson Garage Nashville and London, and will be available nationwide starting Tuesday.

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Paul McCartney’s photo exhibit is set to hit another city.

Paul McCartney Photographs 1963–64: Eyes of the Storm will debut at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Canada in February 2026.

Eyes of the Storm features more than 250 photographs taken by McCartney between 1963 and 1964, giving fans insight into his point of view during the height of Beatlemania.

The exhibit debuted in June 2023 at London’s National Portrait Gallery and has since been shown at Virginia’s Chrysler Museum, New York’s Brooklyn Museum, the Portland Art Museum and the Knowledge Capitol Event Lab in Osaka, Japan. It is next set to open at The de Young museum, part of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, on March 1.

In addition, select photos will be on display at the Gagosian Beverly Hills art gallery from April 25 to June 21, with McCartney and the gallery offering up small, signed editions of prints for sale. A portion of the proceeds from those sales are being donated to aid recovery and relief efforts in Southern California.

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Traffic’s Dave Mason is set to release his 21st studio album, A Shade of Blues, on March 21, and he’s just shared a new single from the record.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has released “Use It, Or Lose It” featuring Joe Bonamassa on lead guitar, with the two artists sharing vocals on the song.

“I’ve been fortunate to play alongside some of the greatest guitarists—Jimi Hendrix among them,” Mason shares. “To now collaborate with a powerhouse like Joe Bonamassa, a torchbearer for the next generation, is a thrill. You can feel that energy in the music and I think it truly shines.”

“Use It, Or Lose It” is now available.

The 11-track A Shade of Blues, which Mason’s been working on for over a decade, also features guest appearances by The Doobie Brothers’ Michael McDonald, keyboardist Mike Finnigan and more.

A Shade of Blues is available for preorder now.

The album is due out just as Mason will launch the new Let It Flow tour. The trek kicks off March 20 in Augusta, Georgia, and wraps April 5 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. A complete list of dates can be found at davemasonmusic.com.

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Simple Minds are giving fans a taste of their live show with a new live album coming in April.

Live in the City of Diamonds is a recording of the band’s April 6, 2024, sold-out concert at the Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam and is the third in a trio of Live in the City albums, following 1987’s Live in the City of Lights and 2019’s Live in the City of Angels.

As a preview of the album, the band has dropped a live performance of their classic hit “Don’t You (Forget About Me),” which is available now.

“All we wanted was to be in ‘a great live band’ and to spend our lives taking our music with us around the world,” Simple Minds frontman Jim Kerr shares. “Decades later we still relish that challenge every night on tour. Live in The City of Diamonds captures both the spirit and fever of Simple Minds live at this moment in time.”

Live in the City of Diamonds will be released April 25 in a variety of formats, including a two-CD set with 24 tracks and a 24-page book, a two-LP black vinyl set with 18 tracks and a two-LP clear glitter vinyl set, also with 18 tracks. All formats are available for preorder now.

Simple Minds are set to launch their Alive & Kicking tour, featuring special guests Soft Cell and Modern English, on May 16 in Ridgefield, Washington. A complete list of dates can be found at simpleminds.com.

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Genesis is celebrating the 50th anniversary of their sixth studio album, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, with a new box set. Now they’re sharing a taste of what to expect, releasing the remastered version of the album’s opening song and title track, which is now available.

The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition was created with input from the band’s members — Tony Banks, Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, Steve Hackett and Mike Rutherford. The set includes the remastered album, done at Abbey Road Studios; a Blu-ray with Dolby Atmos mixes, done under the supervision of Gabriel and Banks; and never-before-released demos.

There will also be a 60-page coffee table book, featuring unseen photos and interviews with all five band
members, said to be the only time they’ve all been interviewed about the album since its original release. 

It also features the live album The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway Live at the Shrine Auditorium, recorded Jan. 24, 1975. While most of the concert was previously released as part of the Genesis Archive 1967-75 box set, this version includes two additional encore tracks, making it the first time the full concert and complete encore are being released.

The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition will be released on March 28 in a variety of formats. It is available for preorder now.

Released Nov. 22, 1974, The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway was a concept album based on an idea by Gabriel about a Puerto Rican youth named Rael who goes on a journey of self-discovery. During the tour for the album, Gabriel announced to the band he was leaving Genesis once the tour was over.

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