Classic Rock News

The perfect holiday gift for the Bruce Springsteen fan in your life may end up costing you more than a ticket to see one of his shows in 2024.

Photographer Lynn Goldsmith, who dated Bruce in the ’70s, has documented his Darkness on The Edge of Town era in a new book, which is being published this month. Because Goldsmith had inside access to Bruce and the E Street Band, she was able to capture him and the band in intimate moments, as well as moments when they, as Goldsmith writes, “left everything on the stage to create a musical performance that suggested the failures and glories of being human.” 

Springsteen writes in the book’s foreword,  “These photos remain a record of a time when I truly played for my life, night after night.”

The lavish, 364-page hardcover book is a limited edition of only 1,978 copies, each numbered and signed by Goldsmith. You can order it now, but the bad news is that it costs $750.

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Neither of them are Scottish, but Elton John and The Who were among the winners at the Scottish Music Awards, held November 4 in Glasgow.

Elton received the Global Artist Award, which was accepted by his bandmate, Scot Davey Johnstone. But when Johnstone was given the Outstanding Achievement Award, Elton appeared via video to congratulate him.

According to the Scottish Sun, Elton said to Johnstone, “You’re certainly the best guitarist, I think, to ever come out of Scotland, and that’s saying a lot. I’ve had the best time playing alongside you … you’re an incredible musician and have been with me so long.”

“You’ve always inspired me with your brilliance. I can’t think of anyone who deserves this award more than you and I love you dearly,” he added.

The Who won the Icon Award, and Roger Daltrey accepted remotely. The Scottish Music Awards ceremony raises money for Nordoff & Robbins, the U.K.’s largest music therapy charity, which The Who has supported for decades.

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While “Now and Then” is billed as the last song from The Beatles, director Peter Jackson, who helmed the Get Back documentary and directed the “Now and Then” video, says it might not be quite as final as that.

While speaking to the U.K.’s Sunday Times about “Now and Then,” Jackson was asked if there’s any footage from the Get Back sessions of the band — for example, jamming on a random song or piece of music — that could be turned into another “new” track.

“It did cross my mind!” Jackson tells the Sunday Times. “We can take a performance from Get Back, separate John [Lennon] and George [Harrison], and then have Paul [McCartney] and Ringo [Starr] add a chorus or harmonies.”

“You might end up with a decent song but I haven’t had conversations with Paul about that,” he added. “It’s fanboy stuff, but certainly conceivable.”

Jackson also says he agreed to work on the project — which was created using technology he developed to isolate the audio tracks for Get Back — because of what he believes John Lennon was trying to say when he wrote “Now and Then.”

“It sounds like John is writing a message [to the rest of the Beatles] as an apology for however he may have behaved,” Jackson says. “I found that incredibly moving, that the final Beatles song is the Beatles singing to each other.”

In the same interview, McCartney says he wants to hang on to The Beatles just as much as the fans do.

“I like the idea of not letting go of each other,” he says, noting that when you love someone you don’t want to let go. “They’re in your memory, always in your heart. And, yes, that’s certainly true of me and the boys.”

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Alan Parsons, the recording engineer-turned-Alan Parsons Project leader, will turn 75 on December 20, so some of his famous pals are gathering in Santa Barbara, California, next month to mark the occasion at a charity concert. And you can attend.

Michael McDonald, Al Stewart, Terry Sylvester of The Hollies and David Pack of Ambrosia are among the stars taking part in the Alan Parsons and Friends 75th Birthday Tribute Concert, scheduled for December 20 at the historic Lobero Theater in Santa Barbara. Tickets go on sale November 9 at 10 a.m. PT.

This isn’t just a random collection of artists, though: Parsons has worked with all of them. While he’s famous for engineering albums like Abbey Road, Let It Be and Dark Side of the Moon, Parsons also either mixed or produced the first two albums by Ambrosia, five albums by The Hollies and Al Stewart’s 1976 album, Year of the Cat, including its hit title track. McDonald has also performed with Parson numerous times.

Proceeds from the show will go to the charity One805, which supports the first responders of Santa Barbara County.

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Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson‘s latest solo project will encompass not just an album but a comic book series, as well.

The first single from the album part of The Mandrake Project will be out December 1. It’s called “Afterglow of Ragnarok,” and as fans of Norse mythology — and Marvel movies — know, Ragnarok refers to the so-called Twilight of the Gods, when the world will be destroyed and gods like Loki, Odin and Thor will perish.

In a statement, Dickinson says, “It was important to set the tone of the project with this track. As befitting its title, it’s a heavy song and there’s a great big riff driving it … but there’s also a real melody in the chorus that displays the light and shade that the rest of the album brings … and just wait until you see the video!”

The Mandrake Project is described as a “dark, adult story of power, abuse and a struggle for identity, set against the backdrop of scientific and occult genius.” The album itself is due in 2024, as is the comic book series,  comprised of 12 episodes that will eventually make up three graphic novels.

The vinyl 7-inch single version of “Afterglow of Ragnarok” will come with an eight-page comic prequel to The Mandrake Project. The flip side of the single features Dickinson’s solo demo of the 2015 Iron Maiden song “If Eternity Should Fail.”

The Mandrake Project will be Dickinson’s first solo album since 2005’s Tyranny Of Souls.

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Green Day has added two more intimate European shows to their Hella Tiny tour.

The “American Idiot” trio will play club dates in Milan and London on November 7 and November 10, respectively. Both venues hold less than 2,000 people.

For ticket info, visit GreenDay.com.

Green Day recently played similarly sized concerts in Las Vegas and Paris. They’ll headline much bigger venues on their 2024 stadium tour, which launches in the U.S. in July.

The 2024 tour will support Green Day’s upcoming album, Saviors, due out January 19, and celebrate the 20th and 30th anniversaries of their 2004 and 1994 albums, American Idiot and Dookie, respectively.

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Richie Sambora left Bon Jovi in 2013 to spend more time with his family, but it seems like ever since then, he’s been talking about the possibility of getting back together with the band.

Speaking to People on November 4, Sambora said there’s talk about a reunion.

“There’s a documentary that’s being done about the band and stuff that I’ve participated in, and people want to come see us play, and it’s going to make everybody happy,” Sambora added. “I mean, essentially, that’s why you do it at this point.”

“So yeah, it definitely could happen,” he teased. “It’s just a question of when everybody’s ready to go do it. It will be a big, massive kind of undertaking.”

When asked for a timeline of this supposed reunion, Sambora admitted, “I’m not sure. It’s up to peoples [sic], it’s got to be right. That’s all. It’s time to do it, though. This is our 40th anniversary, but I feel younger than ever. I’m having a ball.”

Bon Jovi formed in 1983. Their self-titled debut album was released in 1984, but it was their third album, 1986’s Slippery When Wet, that made them global superstars.

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After 13 years, Rod Stewart is finally saying goodbye to Las Vegas.

Sir Rod has announced that the final shows of Rod Stewart – The Hits at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace will take place in July and August of 2024, with four dates in July and three in August. The final show, August 7, will be the 200th Rod has played at the Colosseum since his residency started in 2011.

In 2022, Rod told ABC Audio why he loves playing in Vegas. “Well, I do get paid rather nicely, to be honest,” he said. “It’s probably the best venue in the world to see your favorite rock star … the seats are gorgeous, [it has] the best sound.”

He added, “It’s just a privilege to play there, and you only have to play for an hour and a half. You play any longer, they grab you by the neck and drag you off.”

A fan club presale starts November 7 at 10 a.m. PT; a Citi cardmember presale begins at that same time via citientertainment.com. Members of Caesars Entertainment’s loyalty program, as well as Live Nation and Ticketmaster customers, can access their own presale on November 8 at 10 a.m. PT.  Tickets go on sale to the general public on November 10 at 10 a.m. PT via ticketmaster.com/rodstewartvegas.

There are also tickets still available for the shows Rod has left this year in November.

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On This Day, November 6, 1993 …

Meat Loaf scored his one and only #1 song with the track “I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That),” from his multi-Platinum album Bat Out of Hell II: Back into Hell, the sequel to his 1977 debut, Bat Out Of Hell.

The track, written by Jim Steinman, who penned Meat Loaf’s other classic tunes “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” and “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” featured singer Lorraine Crosby and had an album run time of over 12 minutes.

The song went to #1 in 28 countries and was certified Platinum in the United States. It also earned Meat Loaf a Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo.

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Billed as The Beatles‘ last song, “Now and Then,” which was released last week, features vocal and instrumental contributions from all four members of the group, including the late John Lennon and George Harrison. Speaking to the BBC, Paul McCartney called the experience of recording the song joyful, lovely and magic.

“Now and Then” was a song Lennon had recorded on cassette prior to his death in 1980. Harrison, McCartney and Ringo Starr tried to record it in the ’90s, but the sound had degraded too much for them to make it work. However, thanks to the new technology that director Peter Jackson developed to make The Beatles: Get Back documentary, Lennon’s vocal and piano parts were able to be repaired enough to be used on the track.

“You could imagine he was just in the next room in a vocal booth or something, and we were just working with him again,” McCartney told the BBC about Lennon’s vocals. “And it was joyful. It was really lovely because we hadn’t experienced that for a long time, obviously. And then suddenly, here we were, working with our Johnny.”

“It’s very special for me to be singing with John again,” McCartney added.

And while Paul noted that he finds some forms of AI — like the ones online where people make his voice sing songs he never recorded — “sort of creepy,” he said, “What we were doing was just cleaning up John’s voice.”

In the U.K., “Now and Then” is on track to top the British charts. If it does, it would be the group’s first #1 in their home country since “The Ballad of John and Yoko” back in 1969.

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