Classic Rock News

Mick Jagger has dabbled in acting over the years, and apparently, he had his sights set on a pretty iconic role. At the Torino Film Festival, actor Malcolm McDowell was the guest of honor at an evening about music, where he revealed that the Rolling Stones frontman really wanted to play his role in A Clockwork Orange.

“We used to be friends. We were hanging around in New York. At the time, we were the ‘In Crowd’ with Andy Warhol and all,” Malcolm shared, according to Variety. “One evening, we were hanging out at somebody’s apartment on the east side of Central Park. We were sitting in a window seat and talking because Jagger wanted to play Alex in ‘A Clockwork Orange.’” He added, “Before (director Stanley) Kubrick got hold of the property, Mick Jagger and the Stones wanted to do it! Well, I’d like to see that!”

Malcolm added that the same evening, Mick told him he didn’t see himself performing all that long. “Mick Jagger said to me, you know Malcolm, I can’t see myself doing this at 50!” he said. “50? And so what are they now? 80? Fantastic!”

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Tony Iommi is mourning the death of his longtime guitar tech Mike Clement.

“It’s a very sad day for me today,” the Black Sabbath guitarist tweeted Monday. “Mike Clement my dear old friend and my guitar tech for the last 33 [years] passed away this morning.”

Iommi added that Clement was “a really lovely man” and “very loyal.”

“I could depend on him 100%,” Iommi wrote. “My deepest condolences go out to his family and his many friends. RIP.”

Iommi had previously shared in April that Clement had been in an induced coma after suffering a fall.

Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler also offered his condolences, writing, “Very sad news today about the passing of Mike Clement, Tony’s long time guitar tech and one of the greatest people to ever grace this Earth.”

“We shared many a fun time together, on and off the road,” Butler continued. “A true wonderful gentleman and scholar. RIP Mike.”

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Amid Journey’s Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain‘s public battle over a company credit card, Schon seems to be hinting that a change of lineup may be needed, and he’s already got someone in mind. 

In a post on Twitter, Neal shared a photo with co-founding Journey keyboardist Gregg Rolie, suggesting that maybe he should go on tour with them next year. 

“2 original founding members. I think my brother Gregg Rolie should join us for 2023 tour. What do you think friends?” he tweeted next to a photo of the band’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2017. “He will spice it up and we will have a great variety of songs to choose from. What would you like to hear for the 50th anniversary tour?”

Schon didn’t add anything else about Rolie possibly joining the upcoming 50th anniversary Freedom tour, which kicks off February 4 in Allentown, Pennsylvania. He did, however, post a cryptic meme, possibly about Cain, that read, “some people are holding grudges against you for things they did to you.” He tagged it as “psychology 101.”

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The late Jimi Hendrix would have turned 80 this past Sunday, and the milestone was just celebrated by an unlikely pop star.

One Direction’s Zayn Malik shared a cover of the guitar great’s track “Angel,” from his posthumous 1971 album, The Cry of Love. “Being asked to collaborate to celebrate @jimihendrix 80th birthday was such an unexpected and huge honor,” Zayn shared on Twitter. “I have so much respect and admiration for Jimi, his music and fans. ‘Angel’ is out now – hope you love the track as much as I do. Happy 80th Jimi.”

According to Billboard, Experience Hendrix L.L.C., which runs Hendrix’s estate, invited Zayn to create a new version of “Angel” using the music from the original track. 

In a statement, Experience Hendrix told Billboard,“We are pleased that Zayn has been inspired to use original music from Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Angel’ in his recording of the song,” adding, “We’re hopeful that this version of a Hendrix classic will enlighten a new generation of listeners about Jimi’s genius and further propel his continuing legacy.”

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Annie Lennox is set to perform at the second annual awards ceremony for The Earthshot Prize, the global environmental prize founded by Prince William. The event, which Prince William and wife Kate Middleton will attend, is happening Friday at the MGM Music Hall at Fenway in Boston. 

“The urgent need to protect and restore our Earth’s damaged environmental systems is essential for future survival,” Lennox shares. “The objective of The Earthshot Prize is powerful in terms of building a ‘Waste-Free World’ and ‘Reviving Our Oceans.’ I’m therefore honured to lend my voice in support of this ambitious mission.”

In addition to Lennox, Billie Eilish and brother Finneas are also set to perform, along with Chloe x Halle and Ellie Goulding. Actor Daniel Dae Kim and presenter Clara Amfo will co-host the ceremony, which will feature appearances by Rami Malek, Catherine O’Hara, and Shailene Woodley, along with Sir Richard Attenborough. Prince William is also expected to speak at the end of the ceremony.

Winners will be announced at the ceremony, with Earthshot honoring those who find solutions to help reach the organization’s five goals: protect and restore nature; clean our air; revive our oceans; build a waste-free world and fix our climate.

The public will get a chance to see the event when it streams December 5 on PBS.org at 2 p.m. ET, and on the PBS app at 8 p.m ET. It will also air on PBS December 14 at 8 p.m. ET.

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In 1973, Leonard Cohen visited the frontlines of the Yom Kippur war in Israel and performed a series of concerts for soldiers. Now, that trip is being turned into a TV series. Variety reports journalist Matti Friedman’s 2022 book about the trip, Who by Fire: Leonard Cohen in the Sinai, is being made into a limited TV series by Keshet International and Sixty-Six Media, which is set to film in Israel in 2024.

“Moving around the front with a guitar and a pick-up team of local musicians, Cohen dived headlong into a global crisis and met hundreds of fighting men and women at the worst moment of their lives,” reads a description of the series. “Cohen’s audience knew his songs might be the last thing they heard, and those who survived never forgot the experience,” the description continues, adding, “The war tour was an electric cultural moment, one that still echoes today, – but a moment that only few knew about, until now.”

The title of the book and series comes from the track “Who By Fire,” which appeared on Cohen’s fourth studio album, 1974’s New Skin for the Old Ceremony, released after the tour. It is inspired by a Yom Kippur prayer.

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Guns N’ Roses‘ fun and games were interrupted by “drone pirates” during a recent show in Gold Coast, Australia.

In a statement posted to his Twitter, frontman Axl Rose called crowd members’ use of drones at the concert “intrusive” and a “distraction,” adding that “people were pissed” about the situation.

“It’s not something we’re all that used to,” Rose writes. “A lot of impulse reactions went thru everyone’s minds after thinking about it (which when [your] live there’s really no time to really sort things out like that) didn’t make much sense.”

“We get that it can [be] ‘fun’ to get [your] drone bootleg vid,” he continues. “But we’d appreciated it if anyone planning to [be] a drone pirate took the fans [and] the band into consideration [and] played [with your] toys somewhere else.”

Guns N’ Roses’ current tour of Australia and New Zealand will wrap up in December.

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[Note Language] While a lot of artists hope to one day be big enough to be asked to headline the Super Bowl halftime show, John Mellencamp already is, but he isn’t interested. 

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer appeared on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live with his daughter Teddi Mellencamp, and when asked if he’d been offered the prestigious gig, he revealed that he had but said no. “I don’t like being on television,” he shared, adding he was only on WWHL because he loves his daughter.

Apparently, Mellencamp doesn’t only have an aversion to the Super Bowl; he doesn’t really like performing altogether. When asked what his favorite song to perform live was, he noted, “I don’t like really singing any of them.” He continued, “live performance for me is a job ‘cause they pay me for leaving home, not for going on stage,” sharing, “I owe it to the audience because they pull me through those songs.”

Mellencamp also talked about his breakthrough album American Fool. He revealed the “record company hated it” after hearing “Hurts So Good,” “Jack and Diane” and “Hand to Hold on To.” He said they wanted him to be the next Neil Diamond, adding he basically just told them “F*** you.”

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A new video for the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers classic “American Girl” has just been released. The live acoustic version of the song comes from the newly released Live at the Fillmore, (1997) box set.

According to a post on the Petty Instagram account, the black and white clip “realizes Tom’s stated vision of the ‘modern’ American Girl being ‘any kind of woman.’” It also includes a quick cameo from the singer’s granddaughter Everly.

Petty’s daughter Adria Petty directed the video and notes, “In 2017 Tom changed his tour visuals to reflect a wide range of women,” adding, “we are excited to carry on his wishes.” 

Speaking of “American Girl,” Heartbreakers Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench performed a stripped down version of the classic song for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The clip was shot at the band’s recording and rehearsal space, with Tench on piano and singing, backed by Campbell on guitar.

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How’s this for a Metallica Monday?

The metal legends are kicking off the week with two huge announcements. A new album titled 72 Seasons will arrive April 14, 2023, which Metallica will support on the gigantic M72 World Tour, set to run through 2023 and 2024.

72 Seasons is the first Metallica album since 2016’s Hardwired…to Self-Destruct. You can listen to lead single “Lux Æterna” now via digital outlets and watch its accompanying video streaming now on YouTube.

The album’s title refers to the 72 seasons we go through in the first 18 years of our lives, which, as frontman James Hetfield explains, “form our true or false selves.”

The tour, meanwhile, will first launch in Europe next April, followed by a trip to North America beginning August 4 in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and concluding November 12 in Detroit, Michigan. A second European leg will kick off in May 2024 before Metallica returns for another North American run, stretching from August 2 in Foxborough, Massachusetts, through September 29 in Mexico City.

Metallica will play two concerts at each city on the tour, and Mexico City gets a total of four shows. For each performance, the metal legends will play a wholly unique set list with no repeats in any city.

Additionally, the openers will vary for each show. Among those providing support include the reunited Pantera, Mammoth WVH, Greta Van Fleet, Five Finger Death Punch, Ice Nine Kills and Architects.

Tickets will first go on sale as two-show packages this Friday, December 2. Single show tickets will be available beginning January 20.

For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit Metallica.com.

Here’s the 72 Seasons track list:

“72 Seasons”
“Shadows Follow”
“Screaming Suicide”
“Sleepwalk My Life Away”
“You Must Burn!”
“Lux Æterna”
“Crown of Barbed Wire”
“Chasing Light”
“If Darkness Had a Son”
“Too Far Gone?”
“Room of Mirrors”
“Inamorata”

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