Classic Rock News

Paul McCartney’s photography is the subject of a new exhibit opening later this month at the National Portrait Gallery in London, and to promote its opening he’s set to talk about his photos in a new online discussion with actor Stanley Tucci.

The in-conversation event, taking place June 29, is part of the museum’s First Look Festival, designed to reintroduce the NPG to visitors after being closed for three years to undergo renovations. 

The discussion will have the pair chatting about the exhibition, Paul McCartney Photographs 1963-64: Eyes of the Storm, and McCartney’s book 1964: Eyes of the Storm, both of which give fans insight into McCartney’s point of view as The Beatles were becoming international superstars during the height of Beatlemania. The photos are from McCartney’s own archive, and were taken between December 1963 and February 1964.

The global livestream will kick off at 9 a.m. ET, with tickets on sale now.

Paul McCartney Photographs 1963-64: Eyes of the Storm is set to run from June 28 to October 1. His book, 1964: Eyes of the Storm, will be released June 13 and is available for preorder now.

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Eric Clapton has set his first plans for 2024. The three-time Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has just announced a limited run of dates in the U.K. and Ireland. 

The six-date tour kicks off May 9 in New Castle, England, and wraps with a two-night stand at London’s Royal Albert Hall, May 20 and 21. Clapton played Royal Albert Hall in May, hosting the two-night all-star Jeff Beck tribute concerts.

Tickets for all 2024 shows go on sale Friday, June 9, at 10 a.m.

Clapton is set to kick off a short set of North American shows this year, with the trek launching September 8 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He’ll also headline two Crossroads Guitar Festival dates, September 23 and 24, in Los Angeles. A complete list of shows can be found at ericclapton.com.

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On This Day, June 6, 1993…

The Broadway musical adaption of The Who’s Tommy won five awards at the 47th annual Tony Awards.

Based on the band’s 1969 album and 1975 film of the same name, the musical earned a Best Original Score Tony for The Who’s Pete Townshend, as well as Best Direction of a Musical for Des McAnuff. In total it was nominated for 10 Tonys, including Best Musical, losing out to Kiss of the Spider Woman. 

The Who’s Tommy opened on Broadway on April 22, 1993, and closed on June 17, 1995, after 899 performances. It was also staged in Canada, Germany and the U.K. 

A new reimagining of the musical, featuring a cast of 28, a nine-piece band and brand new staging, is set to open at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre on June 13.

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Michael Cartellone, the current drummer for Lynyrd Skynyrd, is set to show off his latest art collection in July. The rocker’s work will be on display at the Wentworth Gallery at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, on Thursday, July 20. 

The exhibit includes a piece titled “Ringo,” which is a tribute to The Beatles legend Ringo Starr, depicting his point of view during the band’s rooftop concert, featured in the 1970 film Let It Be.

“Being a drummer myself, I am very familiar with this vantage point, which makes this painting about my favorite drummer, of my favorite band, even more special to me,” Cartellone shares. “I wanted everything to be as authentic as possible,” noting he researched exactly what Ringo’s drums looked like, and watched videos from the Get Back and Let It Be documentaries.

The exhibit will also feature a piece titled “Fifty,” which celebrates Lynyrd Skynyrd’s 50-year career and their debut album, (Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd). As part of the celebration, 50 signed and numbered canvas prints of the commemorative piece will be up for sale, as will the original.  

The new exhibit will debut ahead of the kickoff to Lynyrd Skynyrd’s The Sharp Dressed Simple Man Tour, with ZZ Top, which launches July 21 in West Palm Beach, Florida. A complete list of dates can be found a lynyrdskynyrd.com.

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Prepare yourself for new Pearl Jam music.

In an interview with Consequence’s Kyle Meredith with… podcast, guitarist Stone Gossard shares that the grunge outfit’s next album is “getting close to the finish line.”

“We’re getting closer and closer,” Gossard says. “It’s gonna be a good one.”

The upcoming record continues frontman Eddie Vedder‘s collaboration with producer Andrew Watt, with whom he worked on his 2022 solo album, Earthling. Watt also played in Vedder’s solo live band, and has recently produced records for Ozzy Osbourne and Iggy Pop.

Gossard describes Watt as the “most hardcore Pearl Jam fan you’ll ever meet” who can “play all of our songs, and all of Soundgarden‘s songs back at us — better than we can play them.”

“It’s been such a joy to make a record with [Watt],” Gossard says. “He’s energizing us.”

Pearl Jam’s most recent album is 2020’s Gigaton, which includes the singles “Dance of the Clairvoyants” and “Superblood Wolfmoon.”

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Julian Lennon is taking a stab at hosting. Variety reports the musician, son of The Beatles‘ John Lennon, will host a new docuseries, Inspired, that looks at how an artist’s creative process is influenced by their surroundings.

Each episode will have Lennon meeting with artists, helping viewers experience a location from their point of view.

“What’s so special about this series is getting to know an artist and the culture of a place through a specific lens — this unique relationship an artist has with a certain place that gets their creative juices going,” he says. “It’s a new entry point into both artist and place, which is one of the brilliant strokes of this series.”

So far there’s no word on when or where Inspired will air.

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KISS will finally say goodbye to the road this December when they wrap their End of the Road tour in New York City. While some fans may want them to go on forever, Gene Simmons believes it’s important for them to go out while they are still on the top of their game. 

“Well, look, at a certain point Mother Nature takes over no matter what your plans are. And at a certain time, you’ve gotta have the dignity and pride but also the love and admiration of your fans to know when it’s time to call it quits,” Simmons shares in an interview with Australia’s The Sunday Project. “We’ve all seen boxers that stay in the ring too long, and we’ve all seen bands that stay on the stage too long.”

Simmons says that while he’s “still looking pretty damn good,” he realizes “the physical nature of what we do is gonna limit how long we do it, so we’re gonna quit while the quitting’s good, while we’re on top.”

Simmons also expressed how grateful he is to KISS fans, noting that “without them, I’d be asking the next person in line if they’d like some fries with that. Don’t kid yourself.”

KISS kicks off the U.K./European leg of the End of the Road tour on Monday, June 5, in Birmingham, England. They wrap the tour for good December 1 and 2 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. A complete list of dates can be found at kissonline.com.

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There’s no doubt Guns N’ Roses have a lot of great songs, and choosing which one’s the best isn’t an easy task, but Classic Rock magazine has taken a shot at doing so.

For its latest cover, the mag set out to name the band’s 50 Greatest Songs of All Time, with the results based on fan votes and industry polling, along with opinions from the writers and editors of the mag.

So, which song came out on top? Earning the honor is the band’s breakthrough hit, “Welcome to the Jungle,” from their debut album, Appetite for Destruction. 

Coming in just behind “Jungle” is Appetite’s other hit “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” the band’s only number one single, followed by “Estranged” at #3, “November Rain” at #4 and “Rocket Queen” at #5.

Rounding out the top 10 are: “Paradise City” at #6, “Civil War” at #7, “You Could Be Mine” at #8, “Patience” at #9 and “It’s So Easy” at #10.

Luckily for GNR fans, they’ll have plenty of chances to see them perform these songs this year. The band kicks off a European tour on Friday, June 9. It hits North America August 5 in Moncton, Canada, with the first U.S. date happening August 11 in Hershey, Pennsylvania. A complete list of tour dates can be found at gunnroses.com.

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In 2008, E Street Band member Steven Van Zandt launched TeachRock, a free educational initiative for K-12 classrooms, and now he’s recruited some big-name musicians to join his mission.

Billboard reports that TeachRock has a new Artist Council, made up of such stars as Peter Gabriel, Sheryl Crow, The Go-Go’s Gina Schock, Norah Jones and DJ Khaled, along with Erykah Badu, Common, Skip Marley, Run DMC’s Darryl McDaniels, Margo Price and more.

“The Artist Council is an important step toward our long-term goal — keeping the arts a vital part of public education by creating and distributing an innovative, transformative, and effective methodology for new and future generations, ultimately leading to drastically improved high school graduation rates,” Van Zandt shares. “Our dream is that one day every artist will take the opportunity to visit a classroom, whether locally or on tour, anywhere in the world, and participate in a lesson plan using our curriculum.”

As part of the Artist Council, the musicians will work to spread the word of the nonprofit’s mission. They will also take part in lesson plans, and will promote the curriculum directly to teachers and students.

TeachRock already has several famous faces in their corner. Its Founders Board includes Bruce Springsteen, Bono, Jackson Browne and Martin Scorsese.

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The virtual Jerry Garcia Archive Museum, which will provide a digital library of historical information about the late Grateful Dead star, is set to open June 7, and the occasion will be celebrated in the metaverse.

Fans interested in checking out the museum can create their own avatar via Neverworld Metaverse, which will allow them to be able to take a tour of the online museum. There they can check out recorded interviews and rare photos, along with Jerry’s fine art. The opening celebration will also feature a free concert by Rainbow Full of Sound, jazz artist Tony Saunders and sound poet Jair-Rohm Parker Wells.

Guests will also receive unique gifts designed by Jerry’s youngest daughter, Keelin Garcia, his wife, Manasha Garcia, and digital artist Nexus Storm, all via airdrop. There will also be a special live presentation by Jerry Garcia archivist Peter Agelasto.

Access to the museum and the concert is free, but fans will need to create their avatars ahead of the event. More info can be found at neverworldgrid.com.

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