Classic Rock News

Guitar legend Duane Eddy passed away Tuesday in Franklin, Tennessee, at the age of 86, his manager confirmed to ABC Audio.

“Duane inspired a generation of guitarists the world over with his unmistakable signature ‘Twang’ sound,” read the statement from his rep. “He was the first rock and roll guitar god, a truly humble and incredible human being. He will be sorely missed.”

Eddy had 15 top-40 singles throughout the late ’50s and early ’60s, with his breakthrough being the 1958 instrumental track “Revel Rouser,” which peaked at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became his first Gold record.

Eddy had another hit with “Peter Gunn,” the Henry Mancini-composed instrumental for the TV series of the same name. It gained renewed popularity in the ‘80s when Eddy rerecorded it with Art of Noise, resulting in a top-10 hit for the guitarist.

Other hits include “Cannonball,” “Movin ‘n Groovin” and “Because They’re Young,” with Eddy selling more than 100 million records worldwide. 

Eddy, whose music influenced artists like George Harrison and Bruce Springsteen, was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Musicians Hall of Fame in 2008.

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Mark Knopfler reveals in a new interview that he and the late guitarist Jeff Beck almost made an album together. 

He shared the news while talking to Guitar Player magazine about his recent charity single Going Home (Theme From Local Hero), which features a contribution from Beck.

Knopfler calls Jeff’s playing on the track “beautiful,” noting, “Jeff was just something other, y’know?”

“In fact, we’d just begun some talks, through management, about doing an album together,” he added. “I’m really sorry we didn’t get to work together.”

Beck’s contribution to Going Home (Theme From Local Hero) was said to be his final recording before his death in January 2023.

Going Home (Theme From Local Hero) was released in March and raised money for the U.K.’s Teenage Cancer Trust and Teen Cancer America. In addition to Beck, it featured contributions from more than 60 artists, including The Who’s Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, Peter Frampton, Queen’s Brian May, Rush’s Alex Lifeson and Ringo Starr.

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Duff McKagan has released a cover of the grunge supergroup Mad Season‘s song “River of Deceit,” recorded for an upcoming live album, Tenderness Live from Los Angeles.

The set captures a performance at LA’s El Rey Theatre in 2019 in support of the Guns N’ Roses bassist’s then-new solo record, Tenderness.

“Such a beautiful song written by guys from back home that I know now, and a couple who are no longer with us,” McKagan says of “River of Deceit.” “It feels like a celebration to me.”

Mad Season featured Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready, Screaming Trees drummer Barrett Martin, bassist John Baker Saunders and late Alice in Chains frontman Layne Staley. Late Screaming Trees vocalist Mark Lanegan also contributed to the lone Mad Season album, 1995’s Above.

You can listen to McKagan’s “River of Deceit” cover now via digital outlets. Tenderness Live from Los Angeles will be released on May 31.

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Foo Fighters have released new merch items benefiting two New Orleans charities.

The collection includes two T-shirts and two posters. Proceeds will support No Kid Hungry and Grace at the Green Light.

“NOLA WE LOVE YOU,” the Foos say.

For more info, visit Shop.FooFighters.com.

Foo Fighters will be playing the Big Easy when they headline the New Orleans Jazz Fest on May 3.

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Folks who use the Lumenate app to relax and meditate can now let John Lennon‘s music help them.

Starting May 1, as part of Mental Health Awareness Month, nine reimagined Meditation Mixes of the late Beatles‘ classic track “Mind Games” will be featured on the app, the result of a partnership between Lumenate, Lennon’s son Sean Ono Lennon and the John Lennon Estate. 

The nine mixes, which range from five to 33 minutes, will be matched with an immersive light sequence that will “elevate the musical journey, deepen the sense of relaxation, and allow users to see, hear and feel the music like never before.” 

“I’m very happy to be working with Lumenate on this release for Mental Health Awareness Month,” said Sean. “I think our Mind Games project is fun, meaningful, and potentially mind-expanding.” 

“My father was famously into meditation. I remember trying the ‘flicker machine’ he kept in the bedroom, which is what first introduced me to the idea of stroboscopic brain wave induction,” he added, noting, “I thought it made sense to combine the music of ‘Mind Games’ with the science of Lumenate. I really hope people enjoy the results as much as I have.”

“Mind Games” was the title track and lead single off Lennon’s fourth solo studio album, released in 1973. It peaked at #18 on the Billboard Hot 100.

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While the price of concert tickets seems to be constantly going up these days, Live Nation is giving fans a way to enjoy live music this summer at a bargain price.

The concert promoter is set to launch its annual Concert Week, offering $25 all-in tickets to over 5.000 shows from 900 artists.

Music fans will have a whole host of concerts to choose from, featuring shows from artists like The Doobie Brothers, Sammy Hagar, John Fogerty, Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire, Bret Michaels, Deep Purple, Lynyrd Skynyrd and ZZ Top, Santana and Counting Crows, Styx and Foreigner, and REO Speedwagon and Train, and more.

Concert Week ticket sales run from May 8 to 14 or while supplies last. There will also be T-Mobile and Rakuten presales beginning May 7 at 10 a.m. To purchase tickets, fans can go to LiveNation.com/ConcertWeek, search for their show and then look for “Concert Week Promotion.”

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On This Day, May 1, 1966…

The Beatles performed a 15-minute set at the New Musical Express Annual Poll-Winners All-Star Concert at the Empire Pool in London.

The performance, which took place in front of about 10,000 people, wound up being the band’s final scheduled live performance in Britain. Their actual final live show was the 1969 concert on the roof of Apple Studios, but that was a surprise.

The Beatles performed a five-song set at the NME show, with performances of “I Feel Fine,” “Nowhere Man,” “Day Tripper,” “If I Needed Someone” and “I’m Down.”

Other artists on the bill that night included The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Yardbirds, The Spencer Davis Group, Herman’s Hermits and Roy Orbison.

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Lenny Kravitz recently went viral with an Instagram post that showed him lifting weights in boots and leather pants. While you may have thought he was doing it just for the social media post, it turns out that’s actually his normal workout attire. 

“I’m always working out in leather pants or jeans and boots and whatever — if I’m not doing cardio,” Kravitz tells Variety. “If I’m doing cardio, obviously I’m going to wear sweats because I’m going to be sweating all over the place. But if I’m lifting weights, I don’t sweat so much.”

As for why he wears leather for his workout, it seems Kravitz doesn’t see the point in wasting time changing.

“I’m coming from somewhere or I’m going somewhere. And I just don’t care. I’m gonna pop in, I’ve got 45 minutes, we’re gonna hit it and I’m gonna go run to where I’m going,” the 59-year-old rocker says. “So I don’t do it for effect. I didn’t do that to be like, ‘Oh, let me be just so different and wear leather pants and glasses.’ No, it’s just me walking in off the street.” 

As for critics who blasted his choice of gym wear, Kravitz doesn’t pay them any attention.

“I know what I’m doing. And my trainer knows what he’s doing. And I know my body and what my body does and what it can do and how it feels and it’s all good,” he says. “I trained with elite athletes, I trained with football players, NFL and NBA stars. I trained with MLB stars, wrestlers, boxers. I’ve played with them all. I won’t mention names, but they’re all people you would know. And they’ll tell you I train very seriously.”

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Dead & Company has announced a new immersive pop-up for fans who are coming to Las Vegas to check out their Dead Forever residency at the Sphere.

The Dead Forever Experience, opening May 15 at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, is described as a centralized hub where fans can “come together and celebrate, shop, view exclusive Dead & Company content and explore the Grateful Dead’s unparalleled legacy.” 

The experience, located by the Palazzo Waterfall Atrium, will cover two floors and feature a one-fourth scale functioning recreation of the Grateful Dead’s iconic sound system, the Wall of Sound; a Participation Row, where fans can take action for causes important to the band, like HeadCount and REVERB; and Art at The Edge of Magic, a new immersive art exhibition from drummer Mickey Hart.

There will also be a photo exhibit, featuring 145 Dead images from 27 photographers, and a cinema experience that will show Dead & Company’s May 8, 2023, concert at Cornell University’s Barton Hall.

The Dead Forever Experience will also have a retail store, where fans can snag exclusive Dead & Company merchandise, including show posters, apparel and accessories, as well as vinyl. There will also be a bar and lounge with specialty cocktails.

The Dead Forever Experience will be open five days a week throughout Dead & Company’s Sphere residency, which kicks off Thursday, May 16, and runs until July 13. A complete list of dates can be found at deadandcompany.com.

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Sammy Hagar was honored with the 2,779th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Tuesday, with friends John Mayer, Guy Fieri and manager Tom Consolo on hand to help celebrate. 

“Sammy is driven by having fun,” Mayer shared in his speech. “Sammy has the kind of fun that we only dream about letting ourselves have if only we could get out of our own way and simply enjoy the fact that we’re alive and on this planet for a relative blink of an eye.” 

He added, “Every time I think of him a thought comes to mind that I’d like to share with you today. Wherever you are, whatever you’re doing, Sammy Hagar is having way more fun than you.” 

Sammy thanked his four kids and his wife during his speech, along with the late Eddie Van Halen and Ronnie Montrose. He also thanked Van Halen‘s Michael Anthony and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, who were both there to lend their support to Sammy.

“The idea of where I came from in life and where my beginnings were and to have this here, the amount of people I’d have to thank, it would be impossible to do in one day,” Hagar shared during his speech. “You can’t do all this, you can’t achieve all this without people’s help. If I stood here and said I did this all myself — I wouldn’t be here … so it’s an honor.”

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