Classic Rock News

Sammy Hagar and Bob Weir are once again teaming up for a good cause. The two artists have announced their eighth annual Acoustic-4-A-Cure benefit concert, which raises money for the Pediatric Cancer Program at the University of California San Francisco’s Benioff Children’s Hospital.

The benefit, the first in three years, will take place May 13 at the Fillmore in San Francisco, with a lineup that features former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, Heart‘s Nancy Wilson, Chris Isaak, Don Was and more, plus yet-to-be-announced special guests.

“I’m thrilled that we’re back for an eighth year and back home at the Fillmore in San Francisco where it all began,” Hagar shares. “Most of all I’m so grateful to my friends and partners who lend their unconditional support year after year,” noting the artists “donate their time and deliver unbelievable performances so all of the profits can go directly to an incredible cause.” He adds, “That’s my kind of philanthropy!” 

Tickets for the concert go on sale Friday, April 14, at 10 a.m. PT.

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There’s more drama in the land of Mötley Crüe.

As previously reported, guitarist Mick Mars sued the “Kickstart My Heart” outfit last week, alleging that the band decreased his share of tour profits from 25% to 5% after he announced he was retiring from the road last October. He also claimed that the other three members — Nikki Sixx, Tommy Lee and Vince Neil — played along to prerecorded tracks during last summer’s Stadium Tour and that Sixx in particular “did not play a single note on bass” live.

“I carried these bastards for years,” Mars told Variety in a subsequent interview.

Now, Mötley manager Allen Kovac is firing back, specifically at those representing the 71-year-old Mars, who cited his ongoing battle with the inflammatory disease ankylosing spondylitis in his retirement announcement.

“What’s upsetting to me is not Mick, but his representatives, who have guided Mick to say and do harmful things to the brand he cares about so much,” Kovac tells Variety.

“He has a degenerative disease and people are taking advantage of him,” the manager continues. “It’s called elder abuse.”

Kovac also contends that Sixx “played his bass and always has,” but Mars “would play the wrong songs and the wrong parts” during the tour. Mars has called such criticism of his guitar playing gaslighting.

At the heart of the suit, though, is the financial disagreement. Mars maintains that his retirement from touring does not mean he’s retiring from the band, and thus feels his share should not be affected.

“Resigning from touring — or even from the band entirely — is not resigning from the band’s corporations and LLCs,” says Mars’ lawyer, Edwin F. McPherson. “Corporate law doesn’t work that way.”

However, the Mötley team disagrees.

“[Without touring], there’s nothing left,” Kovac says. “What is left?”

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A new trailer for the upcoming Disney+ original series The Muppets Mayhem has arrived, and carrying on the fine Muppets Show tradition, it doesn’t skimp on celebrity cameos, including Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee.

The new comedy series follows the beloved Muppets band, The Electric Mayhem Band — including its famous members Dr. Teeth, Animal, Sgt. Floyd Pepper, Janice, Zoot and Lips — and their comeback to record their first-ever studio album. 

The official trailer opens with some famous guest stars reflecting on their own experiences growing up with the famous band for The Muppet Show.

“The Mayhem? They taught Mötley Crüe how to shred and party,” Lee jokes. “They tattooed their name on me when I was passed out,” showing off a huge tat of “Mayhem” on his rib cage.

Other artists giving testimonials in the trailer include Chris Stapleton and Lil Nas X, while the upcoming series will feature guest appearances by Billy Corgan, Susanna Hoffs, Paula Abdul, Steve Aoki, Sofia Carson, deadmau5, Kesha, Morgan Freeman, Ben Schwartz, Kevin Smith, Zedd, Danny Trejo, “Weird Al” Yankovic and more.

All episodes of The Muppets Mayhem will be available to stream on Disney+ starting May 10.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News. 

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In 1991, Eric Clapton broke his own record for the longest run of shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall with 24 concerts. That legendary run was commemorated with a double live album and home video, but now fans are getting more. 

The record-setting run will be celebrated with a new limited-edition box set, The Definitive 24 Nights, dropping June 23. It features six hours of live music from those shows, with 35 never-before-released performances, including a previously unreleased orchestral version of “Layla,” which is out now.

The 24-night run featured Clapton performing with one of three lineups — a rock band, a blues band, or an orchestra conducted by Michael Kamen — and the set will feature what amounts to a full concert of each genre.

The Definitive 24 Nights will be released in a six-CD or eight-LP set, with both featuring three Blu-ray discs, a hardcover book and an individually numbered lithograph of a Clapton photo by Carl Studna. There will also be standalone versions of each concert — 24 Nights: Rock, 24 Nights: Blues and 24 Nights: Orchestra. All options are available for preorder now.

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Metallica traveled back to the ’90s during the second night of their residency on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Instead of trotting out “Enter Sandman” or “Nothing Else Matters,” the metal legends decided to dig a little deeper into the Black Album track list and rocked the song “Holier Than Thou.”

You can watch the performance streaming now on YouTube.

Metallica launched the Kimmel residency Monday with a rendition of “Lux Æterna,” the lead single off the group’s upcoming album 72 Seasons, due out Friday. They’ll play the show again on Wednesday and Thursday.

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Paul Simon is ready to share new music and there’s a specific way he wants you to listen to it.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer will release the new album Seven Psalms next month, which, as the press release notes, is “intended to be listened to as one continuous piece.” The 33-minute album features seven songs, all recorded on acoustic instruments. It features a guest appearance by his wife Edie Brickell, along with British vocal ensemble VOCES8.

“This whole piece is really an argument I’m having with myself about belief or…not,” Simon explains in a trailer for the album.

Seven Psalms, Simon’s first album since 2018’s In the Blue Light, will be released in entirety on vinyl, CD and digitally on May 19.

Here’s the track list for Seven Psalms:

“The Lord”
“Love Is Like A Braid
“My Professional Opinion”
“Your Forgiveness”
“Trail of Volcanoes”
“The Sacred Harp”
“Wait”

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Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band release the album ‘Live’ Bullet, recorded at Cobo Hall in Detroit, Michigan.

Now considered one of the greatest live albums of all time, it helped Seger break through to a national audience, while the live version of “Turn the Page” became a rock radio staple. 

In addition to “Turn the Page,” several songs from the record actually became hit singles, including “Nutbush City Limits” and “Lookin’ Back.”

The album was certified five-times Platinum by the RIAA, and in 2012 it ranked at 10 on Rolling Stone’s poll of the all-time favorite live albums. 

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The Library of Congress has chosen 25 new recordings to join the National Recording Registry, including classics from John Lennon, Led Zeppelin and more.

Recordings chosen for preservation based on their “cultural, historical or aesthetic importance” include such songs as Lennon’s “Imagine,” Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” and Eurhythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” along with the albums Synchronicity by The Police and Déjà Vu by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.

“The National Recording Registry preserves our history through recorded sound and reflects our nation’s diverse culture,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden shares. “The national library is proud to help ensure these recordings are preserved for generations to come, and we welcome the public’s input on what songs, speeches, podcasts or recorded sounds we should preserve next.” She noted, “We received more than 1,100 public nominations this year for recordings to add to the registry.”

With the new additions, the National Recording Registry titles are now at 625, part of a recorded sound collection of about 4 million items. 

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It appears Foo Fighters may be gearing up to fight foo again.

In a social media post Wednesday, Dave Grohl and company shared a mysterious 13-second video teasing “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” while what certainly sounds like new music plays in the background.

If new Foos material is indeed in the works, it’ll be the follow-up to 2021’s Medicine at Midnight and, more notably, will be the group’s first new music following the death of drummer Taylor Hawkins in March 2022.

An English radio host claimed earlier this year that a new Foo Fighters album was dropping in March, though he soon apologized for the remark, and March came and went without any new Foos tunes.

Following Hawkins’ death, Foo Fighters canceled all of their tour dates before reemerging for two giant tribute concerts to their late bandmate in September. On New Year’s Eve, they announced they intended to continue as a band, and have since scheduled a number of headlining concerts and festival sets for 2023, the first of which takes place May 24 in Gilford, New Hampshire.

A new drummer has yet to be announced.

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April 12 marks the 40th anniversary of the release of R.E.M.’s debut album, Murmur, which helped launch Michael Stipe, Mike Mills, Bill Berry and Peter Buck from indie artists to eventual Rock & Roll Hall of Famers.

Released by I.R.S. Records in 1983, Murmur, produced by Don Dixon and Mitch Easter, featured songs the band had already been performing for fans on tour, including a rerecorded version of their debut single “Radio Free Europe,” which was originally released in 1981 on the independent record label Hib-Tone.

The album debuted at 36 on the Billboard Albums chart, but it was a huge hit with critics. In fact, Rolling Stone named Murmur the Best Album of 1983, beating out such classics as Michael Jackson’s Thriller, The Police’s Synchronicity and U2’s War.

By 1991, the album was certified Gold by the RIAA, and continued to land on “best of” and “must have” lists, including the 2005 book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die; Rolling Stone’s 2013 list of The 100 Best Debut Albums of all Time, where it landed at 18; and Blender’s list of the 500 CDs You Must Own Before You Die.

Of course, following Murmur, R.E.M. went on to have huge success, releasing 15 studio albums. Their two biggest commercial hits were 1991’s Out of Time and 1992’s Automatic for the People. They earned three Grammy Awards and were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007, their first year of eligibility.

Much to many fans’ dismay, R.E.M. officially disbanded in 2011, although there are still plenty of folks holding out hope for a reunion one day.

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