Classic Rock News

Guns N’ Roses performed the live debut of their cover of The Runaways song “Black Leather” during a show in Brazil over the weekend.

The rendition, which featured bassist Duff McKagan on lead vocals, comes 33 years after GN’R originally released “Black Leather” for their 1993 covers album, “The Spaghetti Incident?” 

“Black Leather” was originally written by Steve Jones and Paul Cook of the Sex Pistols, before The Runaways recorded the song for their 1978 album, And Now… The Runaways.

“The Spaghetti Incident?” marked the final Guns N’ Roses album to feature McKagan and Slash, who left the band in 1997 and 1996, respectively. They later reunited with Axl Rose in 2016, and GN’R has since put out a number of one-off singles, including 2025’s “Nothin'” and “Atlas.”

Guns N’ Roses will play two more shows in Brazil before returning to the U.S. for a show in Hollywood, Florida, on April 30. They’ll launch a full U.S. stadium tour in July.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Newly announced Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Billy Idol made a surprise appearance during weekend two of the Coachella festival in Indio, California.

The rocker and his longtime guitarist and collaborator Steve Stevens were the surprise guests during Sombr’s set Saturday night, joining the alt-pop singer for his Idol’s hit song “Eyes Without A Face.”

“Thanks to the legends @billyidol & @stevestevens for joining me,” Sombr wrote on Instagram. “Thank you for having @stevestevens and I,” Billy wrote in the comments.

Both Idol and Stevens are set to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame during a ceremony happening Nov. 14 in Los Angeles and airing in December on ABC and Disney+.

Idol is heading out on the road this summer for a new leg of his It’s A Nice Day To … Tour Again! tour, which kicks off Aug. 7 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He will also headline the weeklong Hot in the City Las Vegas residency at the Fontainebleau from Aug. 28 to Sept. 5.

A complete list of Billy Idol dates can be found at BillyIdol.net.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

On This Day, April 20, 1992…

Queen hosted the star-studded Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert for AIDS Awareness at Wembley Stadium in London.

Also known as A Concert for Life, the event was a posthumous celebration honoring the band’s frontman Freddie Mercury, who passed away Nov. 24, 1991, from AIDS-related causes.

The lineup featured Def Leppard, Metallica, Bob Geldof, Guns N’ Roses, Extreme and more, as well as a pre-recorded performance by U2.

The surviving members of Queen — Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon — closed the show, joined by a star-studded lineup of guest singers including Elton John, The Who’s Roger Daltrey, David Bowie, Annie Lennox, George Michael, Guns N’ Roses’ Axl Rose, Paul Young, Robert Plant, Metallica’s James Hetfield and Liza Minnelli.

Proceeds from the concert helped launch the band’s charity, the Mercury Phoenix Trust, which helped in the fight against HIV and AIDS.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Original Foreigner frontman Lou Gramm is currently joining the new Foreigner lineup on a series of shows in Florida, and he tells ABC Audio he’s been enjoying getting to play with the new members of the band.

“It’s been great because they’re great guys,” he says. “They accepted me into the band and they’re happy to have me and they all treat me very good.”

Gramm calls the current Foreigner lineup “exceptional musicians,” noting “they follow the arrangements pretty closely to the originals.”

“And the response from the audience is very good,” he adds. “I think the audience has missed Foreigner being in their lives.”

Besides Gramm’s occasional appearances with the band, there are currently no original members in Foreigner. Back in February, Gramm’s bandmate Al Greenwood told New York Magazine he hopes Foreigner “goes on forever,” noting, “I wouldn’t like to not be able to see that music being played.”

Gramm agrees with that sentiment.

“It’s exactly my feeling. I think the music is too good to fade away,” he says, noting that it feels great that fans still want to hear Foreigner tunes. He adds, “it feels timeless.”

Gramm’s next show with Foreigner is happening Tuesday in Orlando, Florida.

In addition to the Foreigner shows, Gramm is set to head out on his own tour in support of his recently released solo album, Released. The tour kicks off May 28 in Stamford, Connecticut. A complete list of dates can be found at LouGrammOfficial.com.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Now that Iron Maiden is finally getting into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, wouldn’t it be a shame if the studio where they recorded one of their best-known albums was demolished?

An online petition has been started by the studio’s owners to stop the destruction of London’s Battery Studios, which is currently facing redevelopment into an apartment building. The studio is where Iron Maiden recorded their 1982 album, The Number of the Beast, their first to feature singer Bruce Dickinson and top the U.K. charts. The album features the classic title track and the hit “Run to the Hills.”

Other albums recorded at the studio in northwest London included Def Leppard’s 1981 album High ‘n’ Dry and the 1983 smash Pyromania, Black Sabbath’s 1975 release Sabotage, and albums by Whitesnake, Krokus, The Cars, The Stone Roses, Paul McCartney and more.

“We are calling on the music industry, artists, and the public to stand together to protect this irreplaceable cultural landmark,” the petition reads, adding, “The music created within its walls has shaped global culture and helped define the UK as a world leader in music.”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

The Zombies have just released the mono remaster of their debut album, 1965’s Begin Here, and to mark the occasion, they’ve announced details of their third annual Begin Here Festival.

Taking place over Halloween weekend, Oct. 30-Nov 1, in the band’s hometown of St. Albans, U.K., this year’s festival will include a candlelit acoustic performance from Zombies lead singer Colin Blunstone, taking place within the nearly 1,000-year-old St. Albans Cathedral.

The Begin Here festival, which launched in November 2023, will feature a whole host of other Zombies-related events, including record signings, dance parties, fan meet-ups and appearances by original band members.

A presale for tickets begins Wednesday to fan club members and anyone who purchases Begin Here (Mono Edition) from the band’s website. Tickets go on sale to the general public starting April 24.

More details can be found at TheZombiesMusic.com.

The mono remaster of Begin Here is the second of four planned reissues, following 2025’s reissue of their iconic sophomore album, Odessey and Oracle. It features all 17 tracks from the U.K. and U.S. versions of the album, with new liner notes by rock journalist David Fricke.

To coincide with the release, The Zombies have released “She’s Not There (Mono Edition)” to digital outlets,  accompanied by a new lyric video.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

It seems Paul McCartney got a little help from his friend Ringo Starr for his upcoming solo album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane.

Billboard reports that McCartney had a listening party for a group of about 30 fans at producer Andrew Watt’s Diamond Dust studios in Los Angeles Thursday, and in taking them through the record revealed that his Beatles bandmate appears on one of the tracks.

According to the mag, Starr plays drums and trades vocals with McCartney on the song “Home to Us,” described by Billboard as the “most Beatle-esque” Dungeon Lane track.

The tune, which also features vocals from Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde and Texas’ Sharleen Spiteri, has lyrics about growing up in Liverpool. McCartney explained, “Even though where we lived was a little rough, it was home to us.”

McCartney joked that Starr’s contribution to the track is somewhat of a first for him, noting, “Ringo’s never done a duet with one of the Beatles.”

The Boys of Dungeon Lane will be released May 29. It is McCartney’s first solo album since 2020’s McCartney III.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Foreigner has dropped a new live performance of their classic hit “Feels Like the First Time.”

The song is the first single from their forthcoming album, In the Eye of the Storm, the soundtrack to their 50th anniversary concert film, which was shot in New York on Ellis Island and at Brooklyn’s DUMBO House.

A video for the performance opens with an introduction by current Foreigner frontman Luis Maldonado, which includes a shoutout to Foreigner founding member Mick Jones.

“Fifty years ago, Mick Jones had a song and a vision and, along with original singer and founding member Lou Gramm, Kelly Hansen and I have had the privilege of performing this song many years all over the world,” he says. “And together, we’re very proud to present a live performance of ‘Feels Like The First Time’ from Ellis Island as a celebration of Mick’s dream.”

The video features footage of the Ellis Island performance, as well as archival clips of Foreigner over the years, with Hansen, Maldonado and Gramm all singing the tune.

The In the Eye of the Storm soundtrack will be released July 17, with the concert film expected to hit theaters sometime this summer.

The song’s release coincides with the opening of Feels Like The First Time – The Foreigner Musical at the Little Theater on Long Island University’s Post campus. The show runs April 17-26, and tickets are on sale now.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Iron Maiden was chosen for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year, but it seems they are going to be too busy to attend the Nov. 14 induction ceremony.

The heavy metal icons are already scheduled to be on tour in Australia when the induction is set to take place in Los Angeles, and their manager Rod Smallwood says the tour is going on as planned.

“As the most observant have already noticed, the band will be on tour in Australia around the November date of the Induction ceremony for the R&R HoF in Los Angeles,” Smallwood says in a statement obtained by ABC Audio. “In accepting, Iron Maiden made it very clear to the R&R HoF that the fans always come first and that the shows will of course go on.”

The Australian leg of Iron Maiden’s Run For Your Lives World Tour kicks off Nov. 11 in Adelaide and runs through Nov. 19 in Brisbane. They are also scheduled to play New Zealand and Japan in November.

“We would like to assure all our fans in Australasia that the Australian and New Zealand dates will remain unaffected,” he adds, “and we look forward to bringing the Run For Your Lives Tour to them on the penultimate stop of our 50th anniversary celebrations.”

Iron Maiden’s Run For Your Lives Tour hits North America Sept. 3 in Montreal, Canada, and runs through Sept. 29 in San Antonio, Texas. A complete list of dates can be found at IronMaiden.com.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Johnny Van Zant and Rickey Medlocke appear on a new song that pays tribute to original Skynyrd guitarist Gary Rossington.

The song, “Prince Charming,” is from the Southern rock band Brother Cane, with the description noting it “reflects on legacy, loss, and the enduring impact of those who shape both music and life.”

“Gary Rossington was a hero for me that later became a friend and a mentor,” says Brother Cane’s Damon Johnson. “Something magical happened the day after his funeral in March of 2023 when this song arrived to me fully formed and literally perfect.”

“Prince Charming,” which appears on Brother Cane’s new album, Magnolia Medicine, is available now via digital outlets.

Gary Rossington passed away March 5, 2023, at the age of 71. At the time of his death, he was the last surviving original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the band in 2006.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.