Classic Rock News

A famous Eddie Van Halen guitar has sold for big bucks at auction. 

The custom-made Kramer electric guitar the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame guitarist played in the video for the band’s hit “Hot For Teacher” went up for auction at Sotheby’s earlier this month, and the winning bidder shelled out almost $4 million for the axe. 

The auction house had initially estimated the guitar to sell for between $2 million and $3 million, but in the end sold for $3,932,000. 

The guitar, designed for Eddie by Paul Unkert of Kramer Guitars, was one of the rocker’s main guitars from 1983 to 1984. In the “Hot for Teacher” video, he memorably shreds his solo while walking across desks in a library.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Pearl Jam has announced a U.S. headlining tour.

The outing begins with a Midwest run including dates in St. Paul, Minnesota, on August 31 and September 2; Chicago on September 5 and 7; and Indianapolis on September 10. Those will be followed by a trip to Texas for shows in Fort Worth September 13 and 15, and Austin September 18 and 19. Inhaler will provide support on select dates.

Tickets will go on sale through Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan program Friday, April 28, at 10 a.m. local time. Registration is open now through Tuesday, April 25, at 5 p.m. PT. Members of Pearl Jam’s Ten fan club also have access to a presale.

The tour announcement notes that to “protect fans’ access to fairly priced tickets, Pearl Jam has decided to make tickets non-transferable where permitted, and by selling approximately 10% of tickets through PJ Premium at the market rate to offset increased costs.”

“Tickets on this tour will continue to be non-transferable in all states except Illinois where it is prohibited by law,” the statement continues. “We apologize in advance to Illinois fans who may be subject to increased ticket prices on the secondary market.”

For all ticket info, visit PearlJam.com.

Pearl Jam will be touring in continued support of their 2020 album, Gigaton.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Leon Russell’s classic tune “A Song For You” has just gotten a new official video. The clip, directed by Spencer Ramsay, features footage from the late singer’s archive, including video of him in the studio and onstage.

“A Song For You” is one of the many tunes featured on the recently reissued Russell compilation Signature Songs. The long-out-of-print collection, which includes solo piano and vocal recordings of some of Russell’s classic tunes, was released digitally and on CD, and on vinyl for the first time. 

“A Song For You” appeared on Russell’s self-titled debut solo album, which was released in May 1970. The tune has been covered by a variety of artists, including Andy Williams, Ray Charles and the Carpenters, and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in January 2018.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe has contributed a track to a new Earth Day compilation, currently available on Bandcamp.

The EarthPercent x Earth Day ’23 Compilation Album features over 60 tunes that are either new, exclusive or previously unreleased. They can be downloaded individually or as a whole album from April 20 to May 6, with Stipe contributing the song “Give Me A Hand,” featuring folk singer Gaeylynn Lee.

Other artists on the compilation include Coldplay and H.E.R., CHVRCHES with The Cure‘s Robert Smith, Brian Eno and more.

A portion of the proceeds from each track sold will go to EarthPercent’s grant making program, which supports organizations working to tackle the climate emergency.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

As previously reported, Mötley Crüe is back in the studio and once again working with Dr. Feelgood producer Bob Rock. Now bassist Nikki Sixx is giving fans an update on how things are going, and he certainly sounds pumped.

“Bob Rock is pushing us hard and bringing out the best in us,” Sixx shared in a post on Facebook. “Tommy (Lee) is playing his a** off. Jesus these drums sound huge.” 

He adds, “Probably lay down my final bass tracks in the next few days. John (5) is so fast I’m sure he will get all the songs done in just a few days. But then again Bob Rock loves those huge walls of guitars so it could take a moment.”

As for songwriting, Sixx offers, “I’m sure you all know how important lyrics are to me,” revealing that he’s already completed writing one tune and hopes to finish another one soon. 

Of course, fans of the Crüe are probably wondering when they’ll finally get to hear all this new stuff. Sixx says they’re “not sure,” explaining, “we haven’t thought that far down the line. Just letting the music guide us.”

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

On This Day, April 20, 1992…

London’s Wembley Stadium hosted The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert for AIDS Awareness in memory of the late Queen frontman, who died in November 1991.  

Performers at the concert included Metallica, Def Leppard, Guns ‘N Roses, David Bowie, Roger Daltrey and Robert Plant.

The three remaining members of Queen, John Deacon, Brian May and Roger Taylor, also performed along with guest singers and guitarists, including Elton John, George Michael, Seal, Annie Lennox, Liza Minnelli and more. U2 also took part via satellite, beaming in a performance of “Until the End of the World,” which they dedicated to Mercury.

Memorable performances included Queen and Michael’s “Somebody to Love,” Queen, Bowie and Lennox on “Under Pressure,” Queen and GNR’s Axl Rose on “We Will Rock You” and Queen and Minnelli’s pairing on “We Are the Champions.”  

Money raised from the concert went to establish the AIDS charity the Mercury Phoenix Trust.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Pink Floyd’s 50th anniversary celebration of The Dark Side of the Moon continues, and Thursday it was marked with a special event that coincided with a rare total solar eclipse.

Eight fans won a trip to a secluded beach at Ningaloo (Nyinggulu) Marine Park in Exmouth, Western Australia, where they listened to the album in full — timed so that the closing line, “but the sun is eclipsed by the moon …,” would play at the exact moment of the eclipse. Not only that, on the beach was constructed a giant black pyramid, similar to the cover of the classic album. 

A clip of the experience can be seen on the band’s Instagram page. It was also livestreamed on the band’s website and was filmed for a short-form documentary on the sweepstakes winners, dubbed the Astronome Domine 8, coming at a later date.

Released on March 1, 1973, The Dark Side of the Moon was Pink Floyd’s eighth studio release and to this day is one of their most commercially successful releases ever.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

The Rolling Stones and the Beach Boys are just a couple of the artists being featured on Project Brazen and PRX’s new podcast Night of Show. 

The podcast features never-before-heard stories about A-list music stars from those in the industry. The show is hosted by New York Times best-selling author Tom Wright, and Adam Wilkes of concert promoter AEG, who along with AEG’s John Meglen and Paul Gongaware share stories from their years working with musicians, giving fans a backstage pass to what goes on show night. 

The Rolling Stones are the subject of the podcast’s second episode, where the group discusses the band’s history-making shows in Cuba, while the Beach Boys are featured in episode five, with a story of how Nancy Reagan helped the band when they got pulled from a July 4 celebration because of a moralizing politician.

The podcast launches Monday, April 24 with an episode about Prince, with future episodes featuring stories of Michael Jackson, Kenny G and more.

The Beach Boys are featured in episode five, with a story of how Nancy Reagan helped when the band was pulled from a July 4 celebration because of a moralizing politician.

Visit NightofShow.com to hear the trailer and find out more details.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Tommy Lee is insisting he is not transphobic. According to Entertainment Weekly, the declaration came after he received backlash for sharing a 2017 OAN clip on social media in which host Liz Wheeler railed against transgender, “transracial” and “transabled” people.

After deleting the original post, the Mötley Crüe drummer took to Instagram to defend himself, writing, “I am in no way transphobic or against the LGBTQIA+ community or any f****** community,” adding, “I’m the gayest motherf***** around!”

But, he argues, “I just don’t agree with how far some things have been taken,” suggesting there are people who blind themselves “because they feel they should’ve been born blind.”

“I get being born female and identifying as male or being born male and identifying as female or whatever,” he continues, “But when [people] start identifying as babies or animals…WTF!”

And if that wasn’t enough, in the caption Lee also ranted about artificial intelligence, noting, “don’t even get me started with the AI s***… before you know it you’ll be wondering if anything in this world is real or what it seems.”

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

John Fogerty was honored earlier this week at the BMI/NAB Dinner in Las Vegas with the BMI Board of Directors Award, which celebrated the impact of his five-decade career.

Mike O’Neill, President & CEO of BMI, shared that Fogerty is “what it means to be a living legend,” calling him a “groundbreaking singer, songwriter and guitarist responsible for some of the best known, most beloved and distinctive rock songs of the 20th century.”

In accepting the award, Fogerty showed off a notebook from 1967, with the first lines written in it being “Proud Mary,” which just eight months later was turned into a song that became a future classic.

The evening also featured a performance by the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, who was joined by sons Tyler and Shane for “Have You Ever Seen the Rain,” “Fortunate Son” and “Proud Mary.”

Next up, Fogerty is set to hit the road on his Celebration Tour, which kicks off April 27 in Uncasville, Connecticut. A complete list of dates can be found at JohnFogerty.com.

Copyright © 2023, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.