Classic Rock News

After a week of teasing, U.K. rocker Yungblud has premiered his new single, “The Funeral,” and a companion music video starring Ozzy Osbourne.

The clip, which streaming now on YouTube, begins with the Prince of Darkness in ghoulish face makeup peering over the “Fleabag” rocker laying in a coffin in an otherwise empty room. “Hang on, is this a f***ing funeral?” Ozzy asks. “Where the f*** is everybody?”

Cut to Yungblud delivering a rocking performance of the Billy Idol-esque tune in front of a moshing audience. Interspersed throughout video are scenes of Ozzy looking menacingly at Yungblud in the coffin and of the young rocker speeding around in vintage sports car.

At the end of the video, Yungblud leaves the club he was performing at and is immediately hit by a car driven by Sharon Osbourne.

“What the f*** was that?” Ozzy asks from the passenger seat, to which Sharon responds, “Just some f***ing poser.”

The metal legend then declares, “Ah, run him over again then.”

“The lyrics are literally me listing off everything I’m insecure about,” Yungblud says of “The Funeral,” which is available now via digital outlets. “If you identify with what you don’t like about yourself and own it, no one can say anything that you haven’t already said to yourself. You become bulletproof.”

He adds that the song is “about ego, death, rebirth and f***ing dancing on your grave.”

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

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Def Leppard recently filmed a scene for an upcoming movie titled Bank of Dave, which is expected to eventually premiere in the U.K. on Netflix, the Lancashire Telegraph reports.

The band recently posted a message on its social media sites that reads, “Fun time this past weekend!” along with three hashtags — “#Tempo_productions #NetflixUK #bankofdavefilm” — and a photo of what looks like a concert stage featuring a large backdrop with the “Def Leppard” logo on it.

According to the Tempo Productions website, Bank of Dave tells the true story of Dave Fishwick, a self-made millionaire from Burnley, U.K., who set up a community bank to aid local businesses in his hometown area, and wound up in a conflict with established banking institutions.

The Lancashire Telegraph reports that Def Leppard were in Burnley to film their scene, although details of their appearance aren’t known. The band hails from Sheffield, U.K., which is not far from Burnley.

Fishwick himself posted a tweet in response to Def Leppard social media post about their participation in the movie, writing, “This was Amazing, Thank-you so much @DefLeppard You were Brilliant!! It was great to meet you all! #BankofDave The Movie!”

Meanwhile, Def Leppard is gearing up for The Stadium Tour, the major U.S. summer trek with Mötley Crüe, Poison and Joan Jett that kicks off June 16 in Atlanta.

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The Batman has a whole lot of people listening to Nirvana‘s “Something in the Way.”

According to Billboard, streams for the Nevermind closer — if you don’t count the hidden track “Endless, Nameless” — have increased about 734% in the first four days since the Robert Pattinson and Zoë Kravitz-starring film premiered last Friday.

“Something in the Way” is used multiple times in The Batman, and was also heard in the movie’s trailer. In fact, the song heavily influenced writer-director Matt Reeves‘ interpretation of the comic book icon.

“Early on, when I was writing, I started listening to Nirvana, and there was something about ‘Something in the Way’…which is part of the voice of that character,” Reeves told Esquire magazine.

“When I considered, ‘How do you do Bruce Wayne in a way that hasn’t been seen before?’ I started thinking, ‘What if some tragedy happened and this guy becomes so reclusive, we don’t know what he’s doing? Is this guy some kind of wayward, reckless, drug addict?'” the filmmaker explained. “And the truth is that he is a kind of drug addict. His drug is his addiction to this drive for revenge. He’s like a Batman Kurt Cobain.”

The Batman is in theaters now.

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Joan Jett and the Blackhearts will release their first-ever acoustic album, Changeup, on March 25.

The album is a 25-track collection featuring new, unplugged versions of songs spanning Joan Jett‘s entire career, from her work with the trailblazing 1970s all-female group The Runaways through to some of her most recent songs with The Blackhearts.

In advance of Changeup, Jett and the Blackhearts have released the lead track, a rendition of “(I’m Gonna) Run Away,” a song from Jett’s third album, 1981’s I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll, the first featuring The Blackhearts.  It’s available now via streaming services, and you also can check out a lyric video on YouTube.

Among the other tracks are acoustic versions of Jett’s early hit “Bad Reputation” and “Androgynous,” her cover of Tommy James and the Shondells‘ “Crimson and Clover,” the Runaways classic “Cherry Bomb,” the Bruce Springsteen-penned “Light of Day,” and a wide variety of deeper cuts.

Fans got their first taste of Changeup last year, when the unplugged rendition of “Bad Reputation” was released via digital outlets.

Changeup initially will be avaiable as a digital download, at streaming services and in the immersive audio formats Sony 360 RA and Dolby Atmos. A vinyl version will be released at a later date.

Meanwhile, Jett and the Blackhearts have a series of spring U.S. headlining dates scheduled lading up to the group’s stint on the major summer trek dubbed The Stadium Tour, which also features Def Leppard, Motley Crue and Poison. That outing kicks off June 16 in Atlanta. Visit JoanJett.com for her full itinerary.

Here’s the complete track list of Changeup:

“(I’m Gonna) Run Away”
“You’re Too Possessive”
“Long Time”
“Victim of Circumstance”
“Coney Island Whitefish”
“Love Is Pain”
“Oh Woe Is Me”
“You Drive Me Wild”
“Frustrated “
“Bad Reputation”
“Fake Friends”
“Fresh Start”
“Soulmates to Strangers”
“Make It Back”
“Fragile”
“I Love Playin’ with Fire”
“Cherry Bomb “
“I Want You”
“Crimson and Clover”
“A 100 Feet Away”
“Androgynous”
“You Don’t Know What You’ve Got”
“School Days”
“Good Music”
“Light of Day”

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Bryan Adams‘ new album So Happy It Hurts, released today, was created during the pandemic lockdown of 2020. But unlike some artists who made records during that time because they didn’t have anything else to do, Bryan says this particular album was always on his “to-do” list.

“I was going to make a record, but once the lockdown kicked in, I just completely immersed myself in it,” Bryan tells ABC Audio. “And it didn’t take very long ’cause I had a fair amount of ideas.”

“I finally got to clear all the pieces of paper out of my coat pockets that had all these things written on them, and put them all on a big board in the studio,” he adds. “And just one by one, [I] went through them to see which ones were working.”

But due to the pandemic, Bryan says he had to do all the recording himself.

“I decided to live my lifelong dream of being a drummer,” he explains. “Every day I would go in and mess around with the songs and put down rough drum tracks. And if in the next morning it didn’t sound great, I would just record it again.”

The album’s sole guest is Monty Python legend John Cleese, who delivers a dramatic yet comedic intro to the song “Kick A**.”  Bryan first met Cleese when he photographed him for a charity project, and then unexpectedly ran into him again.

“We were [seated] together at a lunch and I had this song…,” Bryan recalls. “I’d put my voice at the beginning, and I didn’t really like it. So when I was talking to him, I was just noticing how well he spoke. And I said, ‘John, would you be interested in doing the narration for a song?’ And he went, ‘Well, of course!'” 

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Here’s some exciting news for KISS fans: According to the promoter of the Creatures Fest event, taking place May 27-29 in Nashville, founding guitarist Ace Frehley and drummer Peter Criss will reunite to perform a few songs together during the first night of the festival.

Frehley and Criss, as well as two other surviving former KISS members — guitarists Vinnie Vincent and Bruce Kulick — already had been announced as part of the Creatures Fest lineup, but promoter Neil Davis announced in a video message posted on Facebook that Peter had just agreed to join Ace during the latter musician’s previously scheduled May 27 headlining performance.

“They both spoke, said they were excited about being at Creatures Fest, they were excited about seeing you, the fans,” Davis says in the clip. “And they just thought that what would be great for the fans, for all of us, is if they got together and played some songs during Ace’s set.”

Neil continued, “I don’t know about you, but I’m speechless about this…It’s gonna be very, very cool. I know talking to them that they are both really excited about doing this together, about playing some songs.

Davis added, “I don’t know what they’re gonna play. I don’t know if they’re going to let us know. It’ll probably a secret, but whatever it is. How cool!”

Creatures Fest also will feature performances by Vincent and Kulick on May 28 and May 29, respectively. Also performing at the festival will be Quiet Riot, Vixen, Enuff Z’Nuff, ex-Motley Crue singer John Corabi and others.

The event, which will be held at the Sonesta Nashville Airport Hotel, also will feature ticketed meet-and-greets with the various performers, a pool party, expos and more.

Visit CreaturesFest.com for more info.

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Ozzy Osbourne will make a ghoulish guest appearance in the music video for a new song by U.K. rocker Yungblud called “The Funeral,” that will premiere Friday, March 11 at midnight ET.

Earlier this week, Yungblud took to his social media pages to announce that he’d be releasing the new track on March 11, and in the last few days he’s also posted a behind-the-scenes clip and a montage from the video that shows the Prince of Darkness in macabre makeup.

The behind-the-scenes video shows Ozzy and wife Sharon Osbourne with Yungblud on the set of the shoot, accompanied by a note that reads, “bringin some mates to my funeral.” Ozzy, Sharon and their daughter Kelly are tagged in the post.

The montage ends with a scene that shows Ozzy standing behind a raised coffin in which Yungblud is lying, and we see the Metal Madman look around and declare, “Hang on, is this a f***ing funeral? Where the f*** is everybody?”

Meanwhile, Ozzy also posted a message about the video on his social media sites that reads, “I just did a guest appearance in @Yungblud’s new music video…F***ing great song!” and is accompanied by a black-and-white photo of him and Yungblud together.

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

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Sure, you can buy a $50 Elton John concert t-shirt if you go see his Farewell Tour, but if you’ve got deeper pockets and more upscale taste, a new collection is launching Friday that features Elton’s mug plastered across some high-end streetwear.

Palace, the London-based skateboard and clothing brand worn by the likes of such contemporary pop stars as Justin Bieber, Rihanna and The Weeknd, is bringing out a capsule Elton John collection called “The Bitch Is Back,” after Elton’s hit of the same name. 

It features short- and long-sleeved tees decorated with iconic photos of Elton at the height of his career in the ’70s, with a focus on images from his legendary show at Dodgers Stadium in 1975.  “An extraordinary time in my career, a very happy time in my life,” Elton says in a video in which he shows off the new merchandise. 

There’s also a sweater, two tracksuits and a rug with one of the Dodgers Stadium images on it.

The pièce de résistance, though, is the custom skateboard deck featuring an image of Elton in his Dodgers Stadium outfit, with the word “Palace” written across his chest, rather than “Dodgers.”

All the items will become available online Friday at 11 a.m. ET, and in the Palace stores in New York and Los Angeles at 11 a.m. local time.

“It’s so cool to have your face on a skateboard; I never thought that would happen,” Elton says in the video. “That’s so cool!”

The website Hypebeast quotes Elton as saying of the collection, “It really captures the essence of youth and freedom from my time on the road in the ’70’s. I’ve never been a skateboarder but that’s not going to stop me wearing the lot!”

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Jackson Browne has joined the star-packed lineup of the 2022 Love Rocks NYC! benefit concert, which takes place tonight at the Beacon Theatre in New York City and also will be livestreamed for free online.

Browne will appear as a special guest during the show, which, as previously reported, is being headlined by Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards and his solo band The X-Pensive Winos.

The Love Rocks NYC! concert raises money for the God’s Love We Deliver charity, which provides nutritious meals to seriously ill people in the New York City area who have difficulty leaving their homes or cooking for themselves.

You can access a link to watch the event for free by signing up at LoveRocksNYC.com, while you’re also encouraged to contribute funds to the charity, which is offering a special “$20 = 2 Meals” donation option. Donations also can be made at Give.GLWD.org.

The show’s lineup also features Melissa Etheridge, Mavis Staples, ex-Allman Brothers Band singer/guitarist Warren Haynes, Hozier, Jimmy Vivino and many more.

The event will be co-hosted by Mario Cantone, Gina Gershon, Kiefer Sutherland, Steve Schirripa and Michelle Buteau.

The concert’s house band will be led by longtime CBS Orchestra bassist Will Lee, and will include former Bob Dylan and Levon Helm touring guitarist Larry Campbell, Eric Clapton touring drummer Steve Gadd and Fleetwood Mac touring keyboardist Ricky Peterson.

More information about the concert is available at LoveRocksNYC.com and GLWD.org.

Meanwhile, Browne, who last year released a new studio album titled Downhill from Everywhere, will kick off a Canadian leg of his joint tour with James Taylor on April 21 in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

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On his recent collaborative album The Lockdown Sessions, Elton John teamed up with a lot of famous artists, perhaps none more legendary than his old friend Stevie Wonder, with whom he recorded the song “Finish Line.” Now, an emotional and heartwarming music video for the tune has premiered on Elton’s official YouTube channel.

The clip, which was directed by Zack Sekuler, features a montage of vintage home movies, other footage and photos depicting or capturing pivotal moments in people’s lives, including couples with their babies, weddings, family gatherings, retirement parties and more.

The video also includes recent footage of scenes from the pandemic, including nurses and other front-line workers, and people going about their everyday lives while wearing masks. In addition, the clip boasts film clips and photos of Elton and Stevie together at various events throughout their lives, including concert performances, as well as in the music video for “That’s What Friends Are For,” their 1985 chart-topping hit that also featured Dionne Warwick and Gladys Knight.

On his official website, Elton explains that after almost 50 years of friendship, “Finish Line” marked his first-ever vocal duet with Stevie, who also played harmonica and acoustic piano on the track.

“It sounds simply incredible. Stevie sounds like he’s 19 again,” Elton says. “It was a special experience making this record with Stevie.”

Released in October 2021, The Lockdown Sessions peaked at #10 on the Billboard 200 and topped the U.K. albums chart.

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