Classic Rock News

Soundgarden has been working on a new album featuring frontman Chris Cornell‘s final recordings since his death in 2017. Speaking with ABC Audio on the red carpet of the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, guitarist Kim Thayil shared an update on the record’s progress.

“We’re missing a member in making these judgements,” Thayil said, referring to Cornell. “We need to spend time to learn the material, reacquaint with it and think about the direction in which the material can go in order to make it the best that it can possibly be.”

Thayil is making those decisions alongside drummer Matt Cameron and bassist Ben Shepherd, as well as in collaboration with the producers the three are working with.

“We always think, ‘What would Chris like, what would he do, what do we like?'” Thayil said. “The producers’ input on that regard, ’cause they all have worked with Chris before, is very helpful.” (AUDIO IS ABC 1-ON-1) 

Thayil, Cameron and Shepherd performed together at the Rock Hall ceremony in honor of Soundgarden’s induction. They were joined by Pearl Jam‘s Mike McCready, Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains, Taylor Momsen of The Pretty Reckless, Americana artist Brandi Carlile and original Soundgarden bassist Hiro Yamamoto. 

Highlights from the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will air as an ABC primetime special on Jan. 1.

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Robbie Robertson‘s final solo album, 2019’s Sinematic, features “Beautiful Madness,” a song inspired by the two years he and Martin Scorsese lived together after their respective marriages collapsed. That “madness” is now detailed in The Band guitarist’s brutally honest new book Insomnia, the sequel to his memoir, Testimony.

In Insomnia, Robertson and Scorsese are creatively on fire. As The Band dissolves, they work on The Last Waltz and Raging Bull; hang with Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel and Warren Beatty; travel the world; bed beautiful women and do ridiculous amounts of drugs, stopping only after Scorsese nearly dies. Their creative partnership, though, continued for decades.

“I think they both admired each other greatly … Robbie thought Marty was a genius filmmaker, and I think Marty thought Robbie was an amazing writer and an amazing storyteller,” Robertson’s longtime manager, Jared Levine, says of their relationship.

Levine says Robertson had wanted to tell the “origin story” of his friendship with Scorsese for years, but in the form of a movie, which David Fincher planned to direct. Dissatisfied with the screenplay, Levine says, “Robbie was like, ‘You know what? I need to write the story for this to be done properly.'” 

While Robertson completed Insomnia’s first draft prior to his unexpected 2023 death, Levine says, “We didn’t rush to release it” — in part because Robertson’s family was “ambivalent” about it. “They weren’t prepared for what this book was,” Levine notes.

“It’s so irreverent and so much about being a bad boy,” Levine says, noting the guitarist’s descriptions of his affairs with actresses and models “aren’t things that Robbie ever talked to his kids about.” He continues, “To read it after he had passed, it was even more so a difficult thing.”

Consequently, Insomnia includes an afterward by Robertson’s ex-wife and lifelong friend, Dominique Robertson, providing context for that period.

Filmworks: Insomnia, an LP collecting Robertson’s music for The Last Waltz, Raging Bull and his acting debut, Carny, arrives on Record Store Day Black Friday, happening Nov. 28.

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He wasn’t dancing, but Pete Townshend did appear onstage during Friday’s New York City premiere of Quadrophenia: A Rock Ballet, the latest iteration of The Who‘s 1973 concept album. The production, which debuted in London this past summer, is playing at New York’s City Center through Sunday.

Townshend strolled onstage nonchalantly with a guitar during the “I’m One” portion of the ballet to thunderous applause. He then sat down off to the side of the stage and played — or appeared to play — while Paris Fitzpatrick, who plays the central character of Jimmy, danced.

As the cast took their bows during the end of the show, Townshend made another appearance, sharing with the audience that he wanted the show to be a tribute to its choreographer, Paul Roberts, who died of cancer in September, after working on it right up until the end.

Referring to the ballet, Townshend said, “I brought it to New York out of my own pocket. You all know how I feel about the U.S. of A, but also this city, and I really wanted to bring it here for him and for his husband Phil, and everybody in the company.”

“Thanks for supporting us here,” he added. 

Directed by Rob Ashford, Quadrophenia: A Rock Ballet debuted in the U.K. in May. It features an orchestral version of the album by Townshend’s wife, Rachel Fuller. Like the album and the 1979 film, it focuses on Jimmy, a working class mod who yearns for a different life than his parents. 

In the ballet, Jimmy and the other characters — his childhood friend, the girl he loves, his parents, head mod Ace Face and rocker The Godfather — tell their story solely through dance, costumes and scenery. There are no lyrics or vocals.

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War has teamed up with Playing For Change, a multimedia project that aims to connect the world through music, to release a new version of their iconic tune “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” to mark the 50th anniversary of the song, and the album of the same name.

The new track features 30 musicians from around the world, including War founding member Lonnie Jordan and former band members Howard Scott, Harold Brown and Lee Oskar.

“Fifty years on, ‘Why Can’t We Be Friends?’ feels more powerful than ever,” says War’s longtime producer Jerry Goldstein. “It’s a beautiful message, and we’re grateful to share it with the world and bring people together through the music.”

Released in April 1975, “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” was a top-10 hit for War, peaking at #6 on the Hot 100 singles chart. The album of the same name, which also featured the iconic tune “Low Rider,” was also a top-10 hit, reaching #8.

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Billy Idol has just dropped the new song “Dying to Live,” featuring composer J. Ralph. The song appears at the end of his documentary, Billy Idol Should Be Dead, which had its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival in June.

The song’s accompanying video features photos and footage from Idol’s life and career, including home movies, performance clips and more, combined with animated segments.

“It’s quite something watching a documentary about your own life,” Idol says. “Seeing the landscape of my story all laid out inspired me to want to write a song for the end of the film that brings together what I saw in the film; all the strands of my life really.”

He adds, “It was thrilling to work together with J. Ralph. Symphonic music has a unique cinematic authenticity, we felt this was essential to capturing the range of emotions the climactic moment of the film called for.”

Billy Idol Should Be Dead, directed by Jonas Åkerlund, is expected to be released in theaters and on streaming services in early 2026.

Idol released the new album Dream Into It in April. It was his first full-length album since 2014’s Kings & Queens of the Underground.

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Queen continues to take a deep dive into their 1975 album, A Night at the Opera, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

In the latest episode of their Queen the Greatest YouTube series, guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor look back at recording the album, which had them rejecting the typical genres, runtime and radio hooks of most rock music at the time.

“We wanted it to be eclectic,” says Taylor. “We wanted different styles. We had things like ‘Seaside Rendezvous.’ Lot of fun. But we also had this monumentally long song, ‘The Prophet’s Song.’ It was kinda fun. Brian had a field day on that one.”

Taylor notes that while the label may have had an issue with some of their longer songs, “We never thought about making singles.”

And the band certainly faced some backlash from their label, with execs rejecting the idea of “Bohemian Rhapsody” as a single. But Taylor says, “It all made sensed to us. … I think we were right.”

May adds that it was quite “brave” of them to put out “Bohemian Rhapsody” as a single “when everyone’s telling you it’s going to fail.”

“The song, without a doubt, continues to resonate,” says May. “We go onstage and play it at the Albert Hall, with a full orchestra and 150-piece choir, and it’s fresh as a daisy. It’s new and exciting, and the reaction you get from people is just amazing. And that’s a classical audience. They just went berserk.”

He adds, “It will always be there, I think, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’ It’s truly immortal and it’s a good feeling.”

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One of David Bowie’s most iconic films is headed back to the big screen in 2026.

Fathom Entertainment has announced that Jim Henson’s 1986 fantasy adventure Labyrinth has been remastered in 4K for its 40th anniversary and will return to theaters Jan. 8-11. The new screenings will include a featurette with footage of the recent U.K. fan celebration Labyrinth Experience & Masked Ball.

Originally released in 1986, Labyrinth starred Bowie as the Goblin King Jareth. The film follows a 14-year-old Jennifer Connelly tasked with solving Jareth’s elaborate maze in order save her baby brother before Jareth turns him into a goblin forever.

In addition to acting in the film, Bowie wrote and performed several songs that were featured in the movie.

Tickets for the new Labyrinth screenings are on sale now.

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Former Styx fromtman Dennis DeYoung is calling out the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for waiting too long to induct some rock legends.

In a post on Facebook, he cites the recent induction of Bad Company as an example of this. They’d been eligible for over 25 years before finally being inducted on Nov. 8. Two members — Mick Ralphs and Boz Burrell — died before they were inducted, and frontman Paul Rodgers had to pull out of the ceremony out of concerns for his health.

“Speaking of the Rock Hall it’s a shame that Bad Company had to wait so long to get in that it rendered Paul Rodgers unable to perform due to health concerns,” he writes. “Bollocks!! I would have liked to have seen him perform years ago to demonstrate how one of rock’s premiere singers ACTUALLY ROCKS.”

“The induction ceremony clearly pointed out the tragic manner in which this joint operates,” he continues. “Making so many musicians wait until they either incapacitated or dead is shameful. Joe Cocker, Warren Zevon et al are suddenly eligible decades after their success? Explain that, what’s changed except the Hall’s inability to let go of their clear prejudices and induct them?”

DeYoung notes that the Hall’s “mission statement about who qualifies was always a ruse and a joke concocted to protect their own personal choices.”

He adds, “I have said this before — as someone whose band has never been considered, whatever I write ends up sounding like sour grapes. ‘Sour Grapes’ would be a good name for a band.”

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On This Day, Nov. 14, 1975…

Queen launched a new tour in support of their fourth studio album, A Night at the Opera.

The tour kicked off with a two-night stand at the Empire Theatre in Liverpool, England, which, according to setlist.fm, featured the live debut of several songs from the record, including the iconic “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

The tour featured shows throughout the U.K., wrapping Dec. 24 at the Hammersmith Odeon in London.

Queen recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of A Night At The Opera with vinyl reissues. The album was released on crystal-clear vinyl with gold labels in October, and “Bohemian Rhapsody” was released on transparent blue heavyweight 12-inch vinyl, as a 12-inch picture disc and as a blue cassette single.

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Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh is set to host his ninth annual VetsAid concert on Saturday, which raises money for veteran-related causes.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer is a longtime advocate for veterans issues, something that is personal to him, as he’s a Gold Star Family member. His father died in 1949 serving our country when Walsh was just 20 months old.

Walsh tells ABC Audio that he came up with the idea for VetsAid in 2017, after spending years going around the country meeting with veterans and realizing they weren’t getting the help they needed.

“I thought maybe I can make a difference here,” he says. “I always felt guilty not having a benefit. … It was, ‘Duh. You can do something there.'”

This year’s concert is taking place at the INTRUST Bank Arena in Walsh’s hometown of Wichita, Kansas. He says it’s “overwhelming” to be doing the show there.

“I’m just Joe here, you know,” he says. “That’s how Wichita is.”

This year’s lineup includes Vince Gill; Ryan Bingham and The Texas Gentlemen; and a “super-set” from Walsh, joined by Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks of Tedeschi Trucks Band, Nathaniel Rateliff and other special guests. It will be streamed live on Veeps. While fans will be getting a great night of music, Joe hopes they come away with more than just a good time.

Walsh says he wants the concert to bring “more awareness for veterans and their situation,” but that’s not all.

“I want to show that with no politics involved, people can come and hear music,” he says. “People who don’t agree can sit next to each other. Politics doesn’t matter. Everybody has a good time, recharges, and goes home happy. … That’s a good feeling.” 

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