Classic Rock News

Patti Smith has joined the lineup of the 2021 Riot Fest event, which is scheduled to take place September 16-19 at Chicago’s Douglass Park.

The godmother of punk and her band will be performing on the festival’s first day, which has been dubbed the “Preview Party.”

Ex-Smiths frontman Morrissey will headline the festival that day, and the “Preview Party” also will feature free carnival rides, sideshow performers, special Thursday-only merchandise, an onstage singing competition and more.

In addition, because of the recent changes to Riot Fest’s lineup on Sunday September 19, with Slipknot and Flaming Lips replacing Nine Inch Nails and The Pixies, fans with tickets to Sunday’s show will be able to attend the Thursday event for free.

Among the many other artists on the 2021 Riot Fest bill are DEVO, The Smashing Pumpkins, Sublime with Rome, Living Colour, Fishbone, Faith No More, Dropkick Murphys, Rancid and The Mighty Mighty Bosstones.

Meanwhile, Smith has a bunch of other U.S. shows on her 2021 schedule, starting with a series of California concerts in the coming week that will feature her performing with accompaniment from her son Jackson Smith on guitar and her longtime bassist Tony Shanahan.

Patti also will playing with her full band on September 18 at the See.Hear.Now Festival in Asbury Park, New Jersey; on September 19 in New York City’s Central Park; on October 21 at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium; and on October 22 at Atlanta’s Roxy Theatre.

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Motörhead will release a new best-of compilation titled Everything Louder Forever on October 29.

The career-spanning set, described as the “definitive collection of [Motörhead’s] loudest ever songs,” boasts a total of 42 tracks spread across a four-LP and two-CD package.

“This collection is the definitive assembly of Motörhead songs which have created this cultural phenomenon, and represents the first time all eras of the band’s recorded history have been represented in one place,” a press release reads.

You can celebrate the Everything Louder Forever announcement by watching a newly released video for the 2000 song “We Are Motörhead,” which is streaming now on YouTube.

Motörhead released 22 studio albums over their 40-year career, which came to an end when frontman Lemmy Kilmister died in December 2015.

Here’s the Everything Louder Forever track list:

“Overkill”
“We Are Motörhead”
“Snaggletooth”
“Rock It”
“Orgasmatron”
“Brotherhood of Man”
“In the Name of Tragedy”
“Bomber”
“Sacrifice”
“The Thousand Names of God”
“Love for Sale”
“Killed by Death”
“I’m So Bad (Baby I Don’t Care)”
“Smiling Like a Killer”
“Sharpshooter”
“Queen of the Damned”
“Keys to the Kingdom”
“Cradle to the Grave”
“Lost Johnny”
“The Game”
“Ace of Spades”
“Burner”
“Stone Dead Forever”
“Bad Woman”
“Just Cos’ You Got the Power”
“Stay Out of Jail”
“No Class”
“I Am the Sword”
“The Chase Is Better than the Catch”
“God Save the Queen”
“R.A.M.O.N.E.S.”
“Iron Fist”
“Rock Out”
“Dirty Love”
“Shine”
“Overnight Sensation”
“On Your Feet or on Your Knees”
“I Ain’t No Nice Guy”
“Sucker”
“1916”
“Choking on Your Screams”
“Motörhead”

(Video contains uncensored profanity.)

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Thanks to his collaboration with U.K. pop star Dua Lipa, “Cold Heart,” any barriers keeping Elton John from returning to the pop charts have melted away.

As Billboard notes, the mash-up of three past Elton songs created by Australian dance duo Pnau has entered Billboard’s Pop Airplay chart at #39. This is the first time Elton’s appeared on that chart since January of 1998, with his song “Something About the Way You Look Tonight.”

In addition, 74-year-old Elton has now set a record for having the longest span of songs on the Pop Airplay chart. He appeared on the very first one, back in October of 1992, so now his span is a month shy of 29 years.

As previously reported, “Cold Heart” will be part of The Lockdown Sessions, an upcoming album by Elton featuring collaborations he recorded during the pandemic. It features him working with everyone from Stevie Nicks and Stevie Wonder to Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder and rapper Nicki Minaj.

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KISS bassist/singer Gene Simmons recently tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, forcing his band to postpone four concerts on its End of the Road farewell tour.

Simmons, who’s currently quarantining because of the illness, has taken to Twitter to share with fans that he’s “really fine,” and he says it’s thanks to being vaccinated.

Meanwhile, former Saturday Night Live star Joe Piscopo retweeted Simmons’ post about how he was feeling, along with a note that reads, “Vaccinated and still caught Covid,” which prompted a rebuke from the 72-year-old Rock & Roll Hall of Famer.

“Joe, vaccine protects you about 95%. However, you can still get Delta Covid variant. I did…But the effects are minimal, if you’ve been vaccinated twice,” Simmons wrote. “Without vaccine = hospital, pain and maybe death. Do your research. You’ll come off much brighter.”

Simmons tested COVID-19 positive several days after his KISS band mate Paul Stanley announced that he had caught the virus, which resulted in the group postponing three earlier shows. The tour currently is scheduled to resume with a September 9 concert in Irvine, California.

Stanley recently tweeted that his COVID symptoms were mild, but that the virus still “kicked my a**.”

Stanley’s latest Twitter update, posted Wednesday, reads, “REST!! Doctor’s orders so we can hit the road running on Sept. 9th. Staying clear of people for a few more days. Do I think my ‘freedom’ ever includes jeopardizing other people’s health?…No, I don’t.”

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David Crosby‘s debut 1971 solo album, If I Could Only Remember My Name, will be reissued in expanded form on October 15 in honor of its 50th anniversary.

The reissue will be available as a two-CD set featuring a newly remastered version of the album, plus a bonus disc offering demos, alternate takes and previously unreleased songs.

Crosby recorded If I Could Only Remember My Name with an impressive list of guest artists, including Graham Nash, Neil Young and Joni Mitchell; Grateful Dead members Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart; Jefferson Airplane‘s Grace Slick, Paul Kantner, Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady and David Freiberg; and Santana‘s Gregg Rolie and Michael Shrieve.

The haunting, atmospheric collection of songs came together as Crosby was grieving the death of his girlfriend, Christine Hinton, who was killed in a 1969 car crash. Crosby recalls that Garcia played an integral role in inspiring him to work on the material.

“There’d be that grin, and then that look in the eyes, and this fascination with the music,” Crosby remembers. “Easy, not forced, graceful, fun, ever-present. It was a kindness, I’m pretty sure. Jerry never said that, never even implied it. Just, ‘Hey, I heard you were doing something. What are you doing? Let’s do something.'”

If I Could Only Remember My Name was released in February 1971 and peaked at #12 on the Billboard 200.

One of the unreleased bonus demos, “Riff 1,” has been made available as an advance digital track.  Another bonus tune is an alternate version of “Cowboy Movie,” featuring a guitar solo by Young rather than by Garcia.

Digital and streaming versions of the deluxe reissue also will be available, as will a 180-gram vinyl LP featuring the remastered original album. You can pre-order the reissue now.

Here’s the If I Could Only Remember My Name deluxe reissue’s track list:

Disc One: Original Album

“Music Is Love”
“Cowboy Movie”
“Tamalpais High (At About 3)”
“Laughing”
“What Are Their Names”
“Traction in the Rain”
“Song with No Words (Tree with No Leaves)”
“Orleans”
“I’d Swear There Was Somebody Here”

Bonus Track
“Kids and Dogs”

Disc Two: Bonus Tracks

Demos
“Riff 1” (Demo)*
“Tamalpais High (At About 3)” (Demo)*
“Kids and Dogs” (Demo)*
“The Wall Song” (Demo)*
“Games” (Demo)*
“Laughing” (Demo)*
“Song with No Words (Tree with No Leaves)” (Demo)
“Where Will I Be” (Demo)*

Sessions
“Cowboy Movie” (Alternate Version)*
“Bach Mode” (Pre-“Critical Mass”)*
“Coast Road”*
“Dancer”*
“Fugue”*

* = previously unreleased.

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Pink Floyd will release a remixed and updated standalone version of their 1987 studio album A Momentary Lapse of Reason in multiple high-res formats in October.

The new mix was created by Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour and studio engineer Andy Jackson in 2019 for the band’s expansive The Later Years box set. The tracks were updated with previously unused keyboard performances by the late Rick Wright and new drum tracks from Nick Mason.

The album, which you can pre-order now, will be released on CD, as a CD/DVD or CD/Blu-ray set, as a two-LP half-speed-mastered package, and via digital formats with stereo and 5.1 mixes. The record also will made available for the first time in the immersive Sony 360 Reality Audio format, as well as in Dolby Audio and UHD.

The physical versions of A Momentary Lapse of Reason will arrive on October 29, while the digital versions are due out October 19.

Discussing the new mix, Gilmour explains, “Some years after we had recorded the album, we came to the conclusion that we should update it to make it more timeless, featuring more of the traditional instruments that we liked and that we were more used to playing…We also looked for and found some previously unused keyboard parts of Rick’s which helped us to come up with a new vibe, a new feeling for the album.”

The DVD and Blu-ray feature such bonus content as music videos, a short making-of documentary, audio of three 1987 live performances and more.

Pink Floyd has released a special version of the “Learning to Fly” video, featuring the 2019 mix of the song. If you watch the clip on YouTube while wearing headphones, it’ll simulate the 360 Reality Audio experience.

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Yes has offered up a second preview track from its forthcoming studio album, The Quest, which is due out on October 1.

The tune, “Dare to Know,” is a multiple-part tune featuring classical and prog-rock elements, and sections showcasing orchestral flourishes.

“‘Dare to Know’ presents a guitar theme played within many different arrangements, with different chord structures and altered textures,” says Yes guitarist Steve Howe. “The ‘idea’ mentioned in the first verse gets described later as an awakening to the subtle goings on within our bodies and mind, all geared to nature’s scheme of things, all fluctuating and rearranging according to the principles of life, as we know it.”

An accompanying mixed-media music video for the song has premiered at Yes’ official YouTube channel. The clip features kaleidoscopic animation segments, scenes that present an eagle’s-eye view of various natural landscapes, photos of all of Yes’ members, song lyrics with lettering apparently created by the band’s longtime cover artist Roger Dean.

“Dare to Know” follows the release of The Quest‘s lead track, “The Ice Bridge,” which also was accompanied by a partially animated music video.

The Quest, which was produced by Howe, can be pre-ordered now. The 11-track collection will be available as a two-CD set featuring eight songs on the main disc and three additional tunes on the second CD.

The album also will be issued in additional formats and configurations, including a limited-edition box set boasting two CDs, two vinyl LPs and a Blu-ray disc.

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Graham Nash has had a passion for photography since he was a child, and now the 79-year-old folk-rock legend has curated a collection of photos he’s taken throughout his long life for a new book that will be released on November 16.

A Life in Focus: The Photography of Graham Nash will include photos of his family, friends and musical associates, self-portraits and images of artwork he’s created, as well as commentary he’s written to accompany the pics.

“I’m four months from being 80 years old,” Nash tells Rolling Stone. “I just wanted a collection of my images that turned me on. I’m basically the same as everybody else — if it turns me on, it will probably turn you on, too.”

A Life in Focus features images spanning from photos he snapped of his mother when he was growing up in the U.K. to pics of himself that he took recently at a doctor’s office. The book also includes pics of such famous friends, collaborators and musical contemporaries as Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Mama Cass Elliot, Leon Russell, Bonnie Raitt, his ex-girlfriend Joni Mitchell and his former band mates David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Neil Young.

Regarding his approach to taking photos, Graham tells Rolling Stone, “I want to be invisible. I don’t want people to know that I’m taking their image. I always want to look like James Dean and Tony Curtis, someone cool…[I]n most of these shots, these people never knew I was there.”

The book features a preface written by famous filmmaker and music journalist Cameron Crowe, and a foreword penned by Nash’s friend, veteran rock photographer Joel Bernstein.

A Life in Focus can be pre-ordered now.

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Former Fleetwood Mac singer-guitarist Lindsey Buckingham has just released a third advance track from his forthcoming self-titled solo album, which is due out on September 17.

“Scream,” which is available now via digital formats, is a stripped-down yet upbeat tune that kicks off the album.

“Many of the songs on this album are about the work and discipline it takes in maintaining a long-term relationship,” Buckingham explains in a press statement. “Some of them are more about the discipline and some of them are more about the perks. ‘Scream’ is about the perks. It felt very celebratory and it was also very, very simple and short. To the point.”

He adds, “It made its case and got the hell out. It just seemed like a good place to start the album, somehow. It’s very upbeat and very optimistic and very positive. It’s a celebration of an aspect of life.”

As previously reported, the upcoming album is Buckingham’s first solo studio effort since 2011’s Seeds We Sow and his seventh overall.

The 10-song collection, which Buckingham wrote, produced and recorded at his home studio in Los Angeles, will be available on CD, as a vinyl LP, and on digital and streaming platforms.

Lindsey previously released songs from the album called “I Don’t Mind” and “On the Wrong Side.”

The release of “Scream” coincides with the launch of Buckingham’s new U.S. tour, kicking off tonight in Milwaukee. This marks the first time that Lindsey will be playing in-person concerts since he underwent emergency heart surgery in February 2019.

Visit LindseyBuckingham.com to check out his full tour schedule.

In other news, Buckingham contributed acoustic guitar to a song called “Darling” from pop star Halsey‘s recently released album, If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power.

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John Lennon‘s widow, Yoko Ono, and their son, Sean, are inviting fans to join them on September 9 for a “Global Party” event celebrating the 50th anniversary of the release of Lennon’s enduring peace anthem “Imagine” and his album of the same name.

As part of the celebration, John and Yoko’s experimental 1971 film Imagine will be screened that day at 2:30 p.m. ET at select theaters or online for free. Fans also will be able to check out the movie, which was restored and re-released in 2018, on Amazon Prime’s music-themed streaming service The Coda Collection. A free seven-day trial is available for non-subscribers.

Also, U.K. radio presenter Tim Burgess will host a special edition of his popular Tim’s Twitter Listening Party at the same time as the Imagine screenings. A variety of notable people associated with Lennon and the album are confirmed to take part in the event, including Yoko, Sean, bassist Klaus Voormann and drummer Alan White.

Subscribers of the AXS TV channel in the U.S. also will be available to watch the movie. The Imagine film can be rented or purchased via Apple TV, iTunes or Amazon Prime, or on Blu-Ray and DVD.

Prior to the September 9 celebrations, AXS TV will be airing an Imagine-related programming block on September 6 starting at 8 p.m. ET. The channel will screen the 1988 documentary Imagine: John Lennon, followed by the Imagine film.

Various well-known musicians also will appear on AXS TV to discuss how John and Yoko have impacted their lives, and the influence the “Imagine” song and album.

Also, a limited-edition, two-LP white-vinyl set featuring the 2018 “Ultimate Mix” of Imagine plus select outtakes will be released on September 10. Here’s the track list:

LP 1: Imagine — Ultimate Mixes

Side A
“Imagine”
“Crippled Inside”
“Jealous Guy”
“It’s So Hard”
“I Don’t Wanna Be a Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die

Side B
“Gimme Some Truth”
“Oh My Love”
“How Do You Sleep?”
“How?”
“Oh Yoko!”

LP 2: Imagine Outtakes

Side C
“Imagine” (Original demo recorded at Ascot Studios)
“Imagine” (Take 1)
“Crippled Inside” (Take 3)
“Crippled Inside” (Take 6 alternate guitar solo)
“Jealous Guy” (Take 9)
“It’s So Hard” (Take 6)

Side D
“I Don’t Wanna Be a Soldier Mama I Don’t Wanna Die” (Take 25)
“Gimme Some Truth” (Take 4)
“Oh My Love” (Take 6)
“How Do You Sleep?” (Takes 1 & 2)
“Oh Yoko!” (From Bed Peace footage – Sheraton Hotel, Bahamas 1969)

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