Classic Rock
Michael McDonald to Miss Reunion Concerts with The Doobie Brothers Due to COVID-19
Fans have waited 25 years for Michael McDonald to reunite with The Doobie Brothers. And while a few lucky concert goers got to see them together in August, the rest of us will have to wait a little longer, because as the band has indicated, he’s come down with COVID-19. McDonald pulled out of the August 31st concert at the Minnesota State Fair, as did the opening act Dirty Dozen Brass Band. The rest of the Doobie Brothers performed as planned, and after the second song, Patrick Simmons provided some insight. “He’s recuperating and isolating,” he said of McDonald (via the Star Tribune). “We hope to have him back in a week or so.” He added that the singer “had his vaccine.” Advertisement Related Video Tom Johnston was quick to point out that the entire band and their touring crew had al...
The Doors’ L.A. Woman Gets 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition, Hear “Riders on the Storm” Demo: Stream
The Doors’ final studio album, L.A. Woman, turned 50 earlier this year, and that golden anniversary is now being celebrated with a new deluxe edition. Arriving December 3rd from Rhino, the L.A. Woman (50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) will include three CDs and one LP. The vinyl will include the original stereo mix remaster of the classic record, while the first CD will include that same mix plus two bonus tracks: a 1969 demo of “Hyacinth House” captured in Robby Krieger’s home studio, and an early demo of “Riders on the Storm” recorded at Sunset Sound studios. That latter track was only recently uncovered, recently found on an unmarked tape reel in The Doors’ vault long after it was considered a lost relic. This version of “Riders on the Storm” was recorded with producer Paul A. Rothc...
Gene Simmons Tests Positive for COVID-19, Forcing KISS to Postpone More Tour Dates
Just days after his KISS bandmate Paul Stanley tested positive for COVID-19, Gene Simmons has contracted the virus, as well. The band announced today (August 31st) that the singer-bassist is experiencing mild symptoms and that at least four additional shows on their current farewell tour will be postponed. Simmons’ positive test comes just as Stanley reported that he was feeling much better, tweeting last night, “My COVID symptoms were MILD compared to many others and let me tell you… It kicked my ass. It’s over now.” When announcing Stanley’s positive test result last week, KISS had revealed that all band members and crew were vaccinated, but now both Stanley and Simmons have experienced breakthrough cases. The new statement reads as follows: “KISS will postpone their next four tour dates...
Nick Cave Recalls Meeting Charlie Watts While Wearing a “Tiny Tracksuit”
For the past few years, Nick Cave has used his website The Red Hand Files to interact with fans on a slightly more personal level by answering questions they submit. Rightfully so, the Bad Seeds singer dedicated his latest update to the late great Charlie Watts, sharing an anecdote about how he awkwardly ran into the Rolling Stones drummer about ten years ago. In a blog post, Cave recalled an incident in which he made a rare excursion to the gym in preparation for tour, then headed to Heathrow airport before he had a chance to clean himself up. “I needed to have a piss so I stopped at the bathrooms and as I walked back out, in my tiny tracksuit, my giant white trainers and my bucket hat, there, walking toward me, was Charlie Watts of The Rolling Stones,” Cave wrote. The musician went on: “...
R.I.P. Ron Bushy, Iron Butterfly (“In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida”) Drummer Dies at 79
Ron Bushy, the longtime drummer for pioneering hard-rock act Iron Butterfly, has died at age 79. According to the band, he passed away early Sunday morning (August 29th) surrounded by family at UCLA Santa Monica Hospital. TMZ reports that he had been battling cancer. Best known for his epic drum solo on the band’s signature song, the 17-minute “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida,” Bushy joined the San Diego band in 1966. He had still been considered a member of the group up until his passing, but he had retired from regular performing in recent years due to his health. However, he did make the occasional guest appearance at select concerts. Bushy was the only member of Iron Butterfly to appear on all six of the band’s studio albums, which were all released between the years of 1968 through 1975. The acid-...
The Rolling Stones Remember Charlie Watts With Career-Spanning Tribute Video: Watch
Following his death earlier this week, The Rolling Stones honored their longtime drummer Charlie Watts on Friday with a video tribute posted to the band’s Twitter. The two-minute clip is composed of archival footage of Watts on stage, in the studio, and behind-the-scenes at video shoots, soundtracked by the Stones’ 1974 hit “If You Can’t Rock Me.” Watts, one of the Stones’ longest-running members, died on August 24th; he was 80 years old. His publicist wrote that he “passed away peacefully in a London hospital earlier today surrounded by his family.” The news arrived just a few weeks after Watts announced he’d be skipping out on the Stones’ upcoming US tour due to an undisclosed medical procedure. Mick Jagger’s Twitter account also shared the tribute clip, which serves as an ode to Watts’ ...
Jason Isbell Covers The Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter” as Tribute to Charlie Watts: Watch
Charlie Watts may have passed away but legends never die. On August 26th in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Jason Isbell, his band The 400 Unit, and his tour mate Brittney Spencer all joined forces to pay tribute to one of rock’s greatest drummers with a cover of The Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter.” Isbell took lead, singing and laying down a couple of muscular guitar solos. Spencer sang backup vocals — no small feat, considering she has the kind of gale-force instrument that could shake the leaves off a green tree — and provided soaring accents between verses. Check out the cover of “Gimme Shelter” below. Others who have paid tribute to Watts since his death include Elton John, Paul McCartney, and Brian Wilson, as well as The Rolling Stones themselves. The band has announced plans to continue the...
Neil Young on COVID-Era Concerts: “These Are Super-Spreader Events”
Neil Young has taken a strong stance against concerts being held during the COVID-19 era. In a blog post on the Neil Young Archives, he called upon big concert promoters to stop putting on shows, calling them “super-spreader events.” “The big promoters, if they had the awareness, could stop these shows,” Young wrote, after praising Garth Brooks for canceling his 2021 tour dates. “Live Nation, AEG, and the other big promoters could shut this down if they could just forget about making money for a while… They control much of the entertainment business. They hold the power to stop shows where thousands congregate and spread. It’s money that keeps it going. Money that motivates the spreading. The big promoters are responsible for super spreaders.” Whether or not you agree with Young, the veter...
The Rolling Stones’ US Tour Going Ahead Despite Death of Charlie Watts
The Rolling Stones’ upcoming US tour will take place as scheduled starting next month. That’s despite the death of longtime drummer, Charlie Watts, as well as the recent surge of Delta variant cases across the US. “The Rolling Stones’ tour dates are moving ahead as planned,” the tour’s promoter, Concerts West, said in a statement. Prior to his passing earlier this week, Watts announced that he would be sitting out of The Rolling Stones’ upcoming tour after undergoing a medical procedure. Watts had asked longtime Stones associate Steve Jordan to fill in for him on drums. Advertisement Related Video The Rolling Stones’ 12-date “No Filter Tour” includes stadium shows previously postponed due to the pandemic, as well as new dates in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Tickets are available for purchase...
Paul Stanley Tests Positive for COVID-19, At Least One KISS Show Postponed
KISS have announced that singer-guitarist Paul Stanley has tested positive for COVID-19. The band has postponed its concert tonight (August 26th) in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, and it is likely more dates will be affected, as well. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame act revealed the news just moments before the concert at the The Pavilion at Star Lake was set to begin. The statement made it clear that Stanley and his bandmates have been vaccinated: “Tonight’s KISS show at The Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, PA is unfortunately postponed due to Paul Stanley testing positive for COVID. More information about show dates will be made available ASAP. Everyone on the entire tour, both band and crew, are fully vaccinated. The band and their crew have operated in a bubble independently to saf...
Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Doug “Cosmo” Clifford on Vault Albums and Retiring CCR
Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | Pocket Casts | Radio Public | RSS Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Doug “Cosmo” Clifford catches up with Kyle Meredith to discuss For All the Money in the World, a record he wrote and recorded with bassist Steve Wright in the mid-’80s and kept inside his Cosmo’s Vault until now. The drummer/producer talks about why he sat on the LP for so long, tapping Joe Satriani to play guitar, and the other vault records that will be seeing release soon — including collaborations with Bobby Whitlock, Doug Sahm, and a solo album. Clifford also tells us why he and CCR bassist Stu Cook recently brought Creedence Clearwater Revisited to a close. Advertisement Related Video Stream the interview wit...
“Never Call Me Your Drummer Again!” The Time Charlie Watts Punched Mick Jagger
Charlie Watts, the legendary drummer whose jazz-inflected grooves kept The Rolling Stones, rolling along, has died at the age of 80. The tributes have been pouring in, and amidst all of the fond remembrances, one memory sticks out as being more fond than most: the time Watts punched Mick Jagger. The anecdote comes from Stones’ guitarist Keith Richards’ 2010 autobiography Life. During a period when Jagger was one of the most famous people in the entire world — and, as Richards tells it, among the most irritating — Watts was one of the few people willing to put him in his place. “There was a rare moment, in late 1984, of Charlie throwing his drummer’s punch — a punch I’ve seen a couple of times and it’s lethal; it carries a lot of balance and timing,” Richards wrote. “He has t...
