Classic Rock News

Paulina Porizkova is sharing fond memories of her very first date with her late husband, The Cars’ Ric Ocasek. 

“I’m sitting at a table at the Odeon restaurant, the very same table where, 39 years ago, I had my first dinner with the man who would become my husband,” she shares in an Instragram post. “We were having dinner with the whole band, their manager, and actor Timothy Hutton, but I hardly noticed anyone else but the tall, lanky and akwardly (sic) elegant man with turquoise eyes next to me.” 

Paulina then writes about how the rocker accepted a dare during the meal to sit on top of a table where another couple was dining. 

“Without a word, he pushed condiments and food aside and then got up on the table, folding his body so the entirety of him fit right on the table top, along with the plates and food,” she explains. “He sat there, mutely, for a minute, looking back and forth between the man and the woman, who gaped back at him. Then he got off, and slinked back next to me as if nothing happened.”

Paulina adds that while his band didn’t even notice what he was doing, “I thought he was the most compelling man I had ever met. Confident and funny in a absurdist Monty Python-esque way.”

The couple married in 1989 and had two sons together before announcing their separation in 2018. The Cars frontman passed away in 2019.

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U2 frontman Bono is set to appear on the next episode of Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett’s Smartless podcast, debuting January 23.

“We needed a lead vocalist, so we got Bono,” they share in announcing the news. “Come join us for breaking-news, the similarities between Ireland and Jamaica, the difference between EQ and IQ, and, um… World of Warcraft.”

The news comes barely a week after U2 announced their new album, Songs of Surrender, will drop March 17. It will feature 40 rerecorded and reimagined U2 classics.

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The Rolling Stones have given fans another taste of their upcoming live album, GRRR Live! The Rock & Roll Hall of Famers just shared a video of their live performance of “Wild Horses,” which originally appeared on their 1971 album, Sticky Fingers.

The video is taken from the Stones’ December 15, 2012, concert at Newark’s Prudential Center, which was part of their 50 & Counting tour, celebrating their 50th anniversary as a band. The original show aired as a pay-per-view event.

GRRR Live!, which is a full recording of the concert, is set to drop February 10. It features special guest appearances by Bruce Springsteen, Lady Gaga, John Mayer, Gary Clark Jr., Mick Taylor and The Black Keys.

To celebrate the release, the band is holding a special online interactive screening of the concert February 2 at 8 p.m., where viewers from across the globe will be able to share short video selfies, and see themselves and be seen by others on screen as the performance airs. Fans can find out more info here.

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NOTE LANGUAGE) Living Colour’s Vernon Reid was understandably shocked when he learned of Jeff Beck’s passing last week, sharing a series of profanity-laced tweets about the news. Now he’s opening up a bit more about what Beck meant to him and the legacy he left.

In a conversation with Variety, Reid noted that Beck’s death from bacterial meningitis “blindsided” the guitar community. He mentioned other shocking rock deaths, like Chris Cornell and Stevie Ray Vaughan, but noted, “This is undoubtedly one of the worst.” 

Reid calls Beck a “fearless guy,” explaining, “He was one of those rare prodigy people that actually kept developing. He was in the top (rock) ranks like a Jimi Hendrix or Van Halen or Jimmy Page, but he was also uniquely himself like a Robert Fripp — he could be both those things. He went forward in a way that would frighten normal people.”

Reid discussed how he was first introduced to Beck, and shared that some of his favorite songs were Beck’s version of “Somewhere over the Rainbow” and the instrumental ballad “Where Were You.” As for their relationship, Reid explains, “I didn’t spend as much time as I would’ve liked to with him, but he was always incredibly gracious and, and he was a really friendly dude.”

“Now, it’s like the idea that Prince is a character of the past — it’s crazy,” Reid concludes. “He was a living person doing his thing in real time. And it always comes down to: We were fortunate to even have them with us. At some point you go, ‘Sh**, I was on earth with this person when they were doing their thing.’”

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Billy Joel was back at New York’s Madison Square Garden Friday night and Rolling Stone reports he took some time out of his residency to pay tribute to the late Jeff Beck, who died Tuesday at the age of 78.

“He was a musician that I always loved. He was the best. Jeff Beck just passed away…,” Joel told the audience at his 86th MSG show. “I couldn’t let the night go by without doing something by Jeff.”

Billy then performed the track “People Get Ready,” which Beck recorded with Rod Stewart for for Beck’s 1985 album, Flash.

He paid tribute to Beck again later in the evening after the night’s last song, “You May Be Right,” with the band playing a jam session that morphed into “Going Down,” a track that appeared on the Jeff Beck Group’s 1972 self-titled third album. Noted Billy, “we should have rehearsed this today.”

Following the news of Beck’s death, Billy posted a tribute to him on social media, calling him “one of my heroes,” and noting, “I was fortunate to meet him recently and I’m very grateful now that I was able to tell him how much I admired his musical skill. This is the end of an era.”

(A previous version of this story published on 1/16/23 misspelled Jeff Beck’s name in the headline. The text above has been updated to correct the error.)

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Blackmore’s Night, the group featuring ex-Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore and his wife, Candice Night, is giving fans another taste of the upcoming 25th anniversary celebration of their debut album, Shadow of the Moon.

The band just released a new anniversary remix of “Greensleeves,” their interpretation of a song that originally comes from the 16th century, to digital services. They also shared a lyric video for the track.

The remixed 25th anniversary edition of Shadow of the Moon, which was converted to HD audio from the original recording, is due out March 10, with the album’s iconic artwork refreshed for the new release. It includes two previously unreleased acoustic versions of “Spirit of the Sea” and “Shadow of the Moon,” recorded by Blackmore and Night in 2022. 

But that’s not all. The limited black vinyl LPs of the anniversary release will include two “golden tickets,” with the fans who find them getting an original and signed Fender Ritchie Blackmore Olympic White Stratocaster guitar.

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The Beach Boys are the latest artists whose career will be celebrated by the Recording Academy.

Billboard reports that A Grammy Salute to The Beach Boys is set to happen February 8 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. The event, which takes place three days after the Grammy Awards, will be recorded and air at a later date on CBS. So far, the lineup of artists paying tribute to The Beach Boys has not been announced.

Last year, Paul Simon was the subject of the annual Grammy Salute, with the special airing this past December. It featured performances by Dave Matthews, Sting, Bonnie Raitt, The Bangles, Garth Brooks and more.

While The Beach Boys have never won a Grammy, in 2001 they were honored with a lifetime achievement award by the Recording Academy, and five Beach Boys recordings have made it into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In addition, Brian Wilson was named MusicCares Person of the Year in 2005.

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Billy Joel was back at New York’s Madison Square Garden Friday night and Rolling Stone reports he took some time out of his residency to pay tribute to the late Jeff Beck, who died Tuesday at the age of 78.

“He was a musician that I always loved. He was the best. Jeff Beck just passed away…,” Joel told the audience at his 86th MSG show. “I couldn’t let the night go by without doing something by Jeff.”

Billy then performed the track “People Get Ready,” which Beck recorded with Rod Stewart for for Beck’s 1985 album, Flash.

He paid tribute to Beck again later in the evening after the night’s last song, “You May Be Right,” with the band playing a jam session that morphed into “Going Down,” a track that appeared on the Jeff Beck Group’s 1972 self-titled third album. Noted Billy, “we should have rehearsed this today.”

Following the news of Beck’s death, Billy posted a tribute to him on social media, calling him “one of my heroes,” and noting, “I was fortunate to meet him recently and I’m very grateful now that I was able to tell him how much I admired his musical skill. This is the end of an era.”

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In an interview with Consequence last year, KISS‘ Paul Stanley shared that he wanted to collaborate with Dave Grohl. Speaking now with ABC Audio, Stanley explains what interests him about working with the Foo Fighters frontman.

“It’s so fascinating to see somebody who his first brush with fame was to be the drummer in a band [Nirvana] that arguably he has eclipsed as the frontman,” Stanley says. “He’s a fascinating and very, very bright guy.”

Beyond being members of gigantic bands, Grohl and Stanley have another connection outside of the rock world.

“Our kids went to the same school,” Stanley says. “So drop-off in the morning meant seeing Dave and few other people.”

As for the status of a potential Stanley/Grohl collab — Stanley’s original comments came before the unexpected death of Foo drummer Taylor Hawkins last March — that’s still up in the air, but the Starchild remains optimistic.

“I would think at some point we’ll do something,” Stanley says. “It’s more, like, ‘Gee, that would be fun.'”

“We’re both busy, and there’s a mutual respect,” he adds. “Whatever happens beyond that is up for grabs.”

Grohl, meanwhile, is preparing to take Foo Fighters out on the road again for the first time since Hawkins’ death. The group is confirmed to headline this year’s Bonnaroo, Boston Calling and Sonic Temple festivals.

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We’re about to learn a lot more about the early days of The Police, thanks to Stewart Copeland. The drummer has announced that diaries he kept in the ’70s are being compiled for a new book, The Police Diaries, 1976-’79, coming later this year from Rocket 88 Books. 

Copeland shares the book will be “the truest account of the Police’s beginning and early days,” explaining, “It’s full of my original diary pages, hand-made poster designs, ragged accounts, callow observations and other scribblings of a proto-rock star, illuminated by hitherto unseen vintage photos from the deepest vaults. It’s a big, noisy book about one heckuva ride.” 

He’s also sharing some never-before-heard demos and recordings from that era of The Police, including the just-released “Clown’s Revenge.”

Fans can sign up now, which will allow them to be among the first to get the book — and also get a discount for it. There will also be an opportunity for fans to get their name in the book.

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