Classic Rock News

As if four upcoming Beatles biopics aren’t enough, the BBC is ready to give fans more.

The network has picked up a new drama series, Hamburg Days, which will focus on The Beatles’ early days as a band. The six-part series, based on the autobiography by German artist and musician Klaus Voormann, is set in the ’60s when Voormann and photographer Astrid Kirchherr meet a young Liverpool rock band, who are playing in the clubs of Hamburg’s St. Pauli’s red-light district.

“Together, they help spark a transformation that turns a scrappy group of teenagers into the greatest music phenomenon the world has ever known: The Beatles,” reads the series description.

“Hamburg Days is the fascinating story of how, in the space of two short years, a raw young band from Liverpool honed their music skills in Hamburg, before returning home to become an overnight worldwide success,” says Sue Deeks, head of scripted pre-buy acquisitions at the BBC. “It is an incredible story, accompanied (of course) by an amazing soundtrack!”

Voormann will serve as a consultant on the series. Casting on the project has not yet been announced.

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Aerosmith is no longer a part of one of Disney World’s popular attractions.

It was announced in November 2024 that Aerosmith was being replaced by The Muppets on the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Disney World in Orlando, and now Entertainment Weekly reports that their classic intro to the ride has been removed.

The intro featured video of Aerosmith band members, including Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, with the clip opening in a recording session before the band takes off to get to a concert, bringing the riders along with them. The outlet notes that the intro has been removed in order for construction to start on The Muppets revamp.

The decision to change the ride came after Disney decided to replace Muppet Vision 3D with Monsters Inc. land. It will mark the first time Jim Henson‘s lovable characters are the focus of a Disney ride.

When The Muppets take over the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, guests will go on a search for the Electric Mayhem crew, who go missing ahead of a gig headlining a big Hollywood concert.

Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith opened at Disney’s Hollywood Studios (then named Disney-MGM Studios) in July 1999. In addition to the Aerosmith intro, it featured music from the band, including songs like “Walk This Way,” “Love in an Elevator” and “Sweet Emotion.”

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The 50th anniversary of Iron Maiden is being celebrated with a new line of guitars from Fender.

The company has unveiled a new guitar collection to honor the heavy metal legends, including a limited-edition Masterbuilt Dave Murray Stratocaster from Fender Custom Shop, which mirrors guitarist Dave Murray’s favorite touring axe.

The line also includes two other limited-edition 50th anniversary Statocasters in honor of Murray and Janick Gers, as well as a bass for Steve Harris and a Jackson SC1 guitar in honor of Adrian Smith.

“Honoring Iron Maiden’s fifty years of pushing heavy metal forward, this collection brings together the signature instruments that helped define their unmistakable sound,” says Max Gutnik, chief product officer for Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. “These anniversary models are more than tributes, they are stage-ready tools built to inspire today’s players and the next generation.”

More info on the guitars can be found at fender.com.

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There are a lot of music fans who love John Lennon’s classic tune “Imagine,” and apparently Lady Gaga is one of them.

The “Bad Romance” singer recently sat down with The Late Show host Stephen Colbert to answer his Colbert Questionnaire. When asked what tune she’d pick if she could only listen to one song for the rest of her life, she chose Lennon’s song.

Gaga, who was raised on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, notes, “I grew up very close to the John Lennon memorial, so that has, like, a significance to me.” She was likely referring to Strawberry Fields in New York’s Central Park, which features a mosaic memorial with the word “Imagine” in the center.

“Imagine” was the title track to Lennon’s 1971 album. It peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became the bestselling solo song of his career. It has been covered by more than 200 artists, including Gaga, David Bowie and Pearl Jam‘s Eddie Vedder. In 2023 “Imagine” was chosen by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry.

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The 2025 edition of Bowl for Ronnie, the annual charity celebrity bowling tournament held in honor of the late rocker Ronnie James Dio, raised over $85,000 for the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund.

The event took place Nov. 13 at PINZ Bowling Center in Studio City, California, and featured bowling teams made up of musicians, including Black Sabbath’s Geezer Butler and Extreme’s Nuno Bettencourt.

Other rockers who attended Bowl for Ronnie include Skid Row’s Sebastian Bach and his bandmate Frederico Delfino, Foreigner’s Jeff Pilson, George Thorogood and former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Gilby Clark.

Dio died of stomach cancer in 2010 at age 67. The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund has since raised over $2 million for cancer research and education.

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Blondie recently paid tribute to their late drummer Clem Burke on what would have been his 71st birthday, and they are continuing their tribute by telling fans about a cause that was important to him.

“In honor of Clem’s birthday this past week, we are highlighting the Clem Burke Drumming Project, which explores how drumming enhances physical, cognitive, emotional, and mental health,” they wrote on Instagram. The post explains that the organization’s goal is “to focus on initiatives that use drumming to support developmental and behavioral therapy, coping skills, and emotional expression for individuals of all ages.”

“Clem’s mission was to bring drums off the stage and into the lives of those who need them most,” the post continued. “If his lifelong work has inspired you, consider donating to fund research, outreach and programs that promote emotional expression, coping skills, and developmental growth.”

Posted on Giving Tuesday, the band also shared a link where fans can donate to the organization.

The Clem Burke Drumming Project was founded in 2008. Burke passed away on April 6 following a private battle with cancer.

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Pearl Jam has announced a new photo book chronicling the band’s Dark Matter tour.

Titled React/Respond, the book includes over 125 images taken by photographer Geoff Whitman, who joined Eddie Vedder and company on the road throughout the international trek.

“Whitman joined the band for this run, starting out by immersing himself in the crowd to capture the shows exactly as fans experienced them—energetic, and in the middle of it all!” Pearl Jam shares. “As the tour moved forward and his relationship with the band developed, he gained further access to backstage and behind-the-scenes moments. Even with that expanded access, Whitman kept the fan perspective at the center of his work, letting it guide how he documented each night.”

The “Even Flow” rockers add, “The photographs in this collection bring those viewpoints together, blending the immediacy of the crowd with a growing look behind the scenes to present a genuine, dynamic record of the Dark Matter tour.”

React/Respond is due out in April and is available to preorder now.

The Dark Matter tour supported Pearl Jam’s 2024 album of the same name. It launched in May 2024 and concluded in May 2025.

Nearly two months after the tour wrapped, longtime drummer Matt Cameron announced that he was leaving Pearl Jam.

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Aerosmith and Yungblud are ready to give fans some more music.

After releasing the collaborative EP One More Time on Nov. 21, Aerosmith has revealed they’re releasing a new take on one of the EP’s tracks, “Wild Woman,” featuring a guest singer.

“A “Wild Woman” feature coming soon,” they wrote on Instagram. “There was a cowgirl who loved this song so much that we had to add her on! Can you guess who?”

The post doesn’t name the cowgirl, but it includes a photo of a Western hat that seems to be hinting that it’s Lainey Wilson. The hat looks like the Charlie 1 Horse hat that’s part of the company behind Lainey Wilson’s collection.

Yungblud commented on Aerosmith’s post, writing, “Let’s ride,” which could also be a Lainey clue: She recorded a song called “Let’s Ride!” with The Wiggles for their March 2025 album, Wiggle Up, Giddy Up – With Friends!

So far, there’s no word on when Aerosmith and Yungblud will be releasing the new take on “Wild Woman.”

One More Time is the first collaboration between Aerosmith and Yungblud. It debuted at #9 on the Billboard 200 Album chart.

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Dave Grohl is celebrating his birthday with a Foo Fighters benefit concert.

The Foos will play the Kia Forum in Los Angeles on Jan. 14, the same day Grohl turns 57. The show will benefit Hope the Mission and Los Angeles Mission.

“What better way to spend my 57th birthday than making a bunch of noise with a bunch of friends for a good cause,” Grohl says in a statement. “This ain’t just a big a** rock show, it’s a big a** party with a heart. Turn up the volume, turn up the hope, but most of all….TURN UP.”

Tickets will only be available in-person at the Kia Forum box office starting Sunday at noon PT; lining up begins at 8 a.m. PT. There is a four-ticket limit per person, and all tickets must be purchased with a physical credit or debit card.

If you plan on lining up for tickets, the Foos ask that you bring a donation item in support of Hope the Mission and Los Angeles Mission, such as socks and underwear and bagged or boxed pasta. A full list of of items can be found on FooFighters.com.

The Foos will launch a full 2026 U.S. tour in August.

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Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea will release a new solo album in 2026.

The currently-untitled record sees Flea, as a press release puts it, “returning to his first instrument and musical love, the trumpet.”

The first preview of the album, a seven-minute track called “A Plea,” is out now. It features Flea on trumpet, electric bass and vocals, alongside an ensemble of jazz instrumentalists and vocalists.

Flea describes “A Plea” as a “yearning for a place beyond, a place of love, for me to speak my mind and be myself.”

“I’m always just trying to be myself,” Flea says. “I don’t care about the act of politics. I think there is a much more transcendent place above it where there’s discourse to be had that can actually help humanity, and actually help us all to live harmoniously and productively in a way that’s healthy for the world. There’s a place where we meet, and it’s love.”

You can watch the video for “A Plea,” which was directed by Flea’s daughter, Clara Balzary, streaming now on YouTube.

The most recent Chili Peppers album is 2022’s Return of the Dream Canteen, which marked their second record of that year, following Unlimited Love.

(Video contains uncensored profanity.) 



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