Classic Rock
Neil Young Returns to His Hometown to Play “Comes a Time” in an Empty Theater: Watch
Coronavirus may be keeping people apart from their relatives this holiday season, but that didn’t stop Neil Young from finding a socially distanced way to tap into his own family nostalgia. Young recently returned to his childhood hometown of Omemee, Ontario to film a special performance of “Come a Time” to an empty Coronation Hall, the venue where he spent numerous evenings with his parents as a boy. The clip, which clocks in just under four minutes, sees Young walking onstage to a completely empty Coronation Hall. The tiny venue looks regal yet worn without people populating the space, especially when Young sits in a chair onstage front and center. With some papers scattered on the floor and a few microphones positioned at his height, Young begins playing his heartfelt 1978 classic with ...
U2’s Bono and The Edge Perform “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” On Irish TV: Watch
During a normal Christmas season, Glen Hansard and a gaggle of other Irish musicians would busk in the street to raise money for Ireland’s homeless population. This year, in order to abide by social distancing guidelines, the fundraiser was turned into an indoor livestream affair, and U2‘s Bono and The Edge showed up to keep the Christmas spirit intact. The duo performed a beautiful acoustic rendition of the Darlene Love staple “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” on Ireland’s Late Late Show. The U2 bandmates were joined on stage by Hansard, Philip Powell, violinist Vivienne Long and the Heyday Choir (via the IIrish Times). U2 released a recorded version of the cover way back in 1987, but seeing it performed in front of shimmering lights and ornate Christmas trees gives it a...
David Bowie Musical Lazarus Starring Michael C. Hall to Stream on Bowie’s Birthday
A filmed recording of the David Bowie musical Lazarus will be streamed next month to coincide with the late musician’s 74th birthday as well as the fifth anniversary of his death. One of the final works created by Bowie prior to his passing, Lazarus premiered off-Broadway in late 2015. It was then staged at London’s King’s Cross Theatre the following year. The story is inspired by the Bowie-starring film The Man Who Fell to Earth, which itself was based on a 1961 novel by Walter Tevis (The Hustler, The Color of Money, The Queen’s Gambit). The musical was directed by Ivo van Hove, and featured Michael C. Hall (Dexter) as alien Thomas Newton and Broadway ingenue Sophia Anne Caruso as his muse. The corresponding soundtracks spans Bowie’s entire discogra...
Eric Clapton and Van Morrison Share Awful Anti-Lockdown Song “Stand and Deliver”: Stream
Van Morrison has officially fallen down the black hole of COVID-19 conspiracy theories, and Eric Clapton is willfully joining him for the ride. This afternoon, the two veteran musicians teamed up to release a new anti-lockdown song called “Stand and Deliver”. Spoiler alert: it’s truly awful. “Stand and Deliver” is an original song written by Morrison and sung by Clapton. The mild blues rock track is all about how the government is preventing people from living their daily lives, and how it’s up to those people to stand up for their rights before they become brainwashed. “I just wanna do my job/ Playing the blues for my friends/ Magna Carta, Bill of Rights/ The Constitution, what’s it worth?” sings Clapton. “Do you wanna be a free man/ Or do you wanna be a slave?” There’s a generic gui...
Man, It’s a Hot One: Carlos Santana Launches His Own Coffee Company
Carlos Santana, ten-time Grammy-winning guitarist, global rock star, and… coffee connoisseur? It’s true: the legendary musician has officially launched his own coffee company, and man, it’s a hot one. Simply named The Carlos Santana Coffee Company, the new venture promises to offer “premium, fresh-roasted coffee produced from the finest quality beans around the world, hand-crafted to awaken both your heart and mind.” The products are made in collaboration with the Icon Global Coffee Company and “their 90-year-old fourth generation importer, roaster and packaging company.” All of the various coffee offerings are said to be inspired by Santana’s extensive discography, and many are even named after his recordings. There’s a dark roast blend called “Oye Como Va”, in honor of the Tito Puente cl...
Kyle Meredith’s Best of 2020 Pt. 2: Evanescence, Avril Lavigne, KISS, LP, and More
Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS For all of December, Kyle Meredith is looking back on his favorite moments in 2020. This week, we revisit talking with Amy Lee of Evanescence as she was deciding the future sound of her band, Jxdn dialing back to his strict Southern upbringing, Avril Lavigne sharing her survivor’s story, Paul Stanley of KISS radiating with positivity, LP discussing her large Russian fanbase, and Johnny 3 Tears from Hollywood Undead weighing in on the art of and current state of metal music. Kyle Meredith With… is an interview series in which WFPK’s Kyle Meredith speaks to a wide breadth of musicians. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, Meredith digs deep into the ar...
Slash on Eddie Van Halen: “Any Instrument He Had Chosen to Play Would Have Been Phenomenal”
There have been countless tributes to the great Eddie Van Halen since his passing on October 6th. One of the millions of fans mourning his death is fellow guitar legend Slash. Van Halen released their groundbreaking self-titled debut in 1978, and by the time Guns N’ Roses formed in 1985, one can easily argue that Van Halen were the biggest hard-rock band on the planet — until GN’R took that title with their own masterful debut, Appetite for Destruction. We recently caught up with Slash to discuss the new Guns N’ Roses pinball machines, as well as his new custom collection with Gibson Guitars. While speaking with the GN’R axeman, we asked him for his thoughts on Eddie Van Halen, specifically what it was about the Van Halen legend’s playing that made him such an iconic guitarist. Slash graci...
Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page Urges Streaming Companies to Pay Musicians Fairly
Jimmy Page is using his status as a rock icon and a knighted Order of the British Empire to urge streaming companies to fairly compensate musicians. The legendary Led Zeppelin guitarist penned an open letter on his Instagram account in response to a recent inquiry into streaming services by the UK’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee. Among the items the committee is reviewing is the business model employed by Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Google and other streaming services, especially when it comes to artist royalties. Page shared the following letter on his Instagram page: “Having recently viewed the Select Committee for Music Streaming on 24 November 2020 I feel compelled to write this letter. I fully appreciate the dilemma surrounding streaming royalties that should be ...
Eddie Van Halen Cause of Death Revealed; Ashes Given to Son Wolfgang
More than two months after the tragic passing of guitar legend Eddie Van Halen, his official cause of death has been revealed. While his widely reported battle with cancer was an underlying cause, the immediate cause of death was a stroke. According to his death certificate, as obtained by TMZ, there were a number ailments that led to the Van Halen guitarist’s passing. The immediate cause is listed as cerebrovascular accident, which is the medical term for a stroke. Among the underlying causes were pneumonia, which he had for one month; myelodysplastic syndrome (a bone marrow disorder), which he was afflicted with for five months; and lung cancer, which he battled for three years. Additionally, in a section titled “Other Significant Conditions”, it was also revealed that Eddie had squamous...
Dave Grohl and Greg Kurstin Cover Mountain’s “Mississippi Queen”: Watch
It’s night three of Hanukkah, and Dave Grohl and Greg Kurstin’s covers song series continues with a classic rock staple. The duo have dropped off a cover of Mountain’s “Mississippi Queen”, which you can watch below. “Talk about making a mountain out of a mohel … named Leslie Weinstein at his bris, the singer of our next band built a wailing wall of guitar as Leslie West. Check out our take on a track from Leslie’s monolithic band, MOUNTAIN.” Grohl and Kurstin, who helmed Foo Fighters’ 2017 album Concrete and Gold, are celebrating Hanukkah with covers of songs by eight prominent Jewish artists. The pair kicked things off on Thursday night by taking on Beastie Boys’ epic “Sabotage”, and followed up on Friday by covering Drake’s “Hotline Bling”. [embedded content] Related You D...
Neil Peart’s 2112 Drum Set Sells for $500,000 in Auction
A chrome Slingerland drum set played by RUSH’s Neil Peart throughout the 1970s has sold in auction for over $500,000. Peart originally purchased the Slingerland double bass drum in Toronto in August 1974, mere weeks after joining RUSH. He played the kit on his first three albums with the band — 1975’s Fly by Night and Caress of Steel and 1976’s 2112 — as well as during various live performances. Notably, Peart can be heard pounding the set on RUSHs 1976 live album All the World’s a Stage, recorded during the band’s three-night residency at Massey Hall in Toronto. The drum kit was retired not long after the release of All the World’s a Stage and was eventually included as part of a giveaway prize from Modern Drummer magazine. It switched a few hands before land...
Alice Cooper Shares New Song “Our Love Will Change the World”: Stream
Alice Cooper has shared the new song “Our Love Will Change the World”, the second single from his upcoming album, Detroit Stories. Cooper called the track one of the “oddest songs” of his career for its juxtaposition of “happy” major chords and otherwise cynical lyrics. The shock rock legend explains that the song was written by a fellow Detroiter, thus fitting the Motor City theme of the new album. “I think ‘Our Love Will Change The World’ is one of the oddest songs I’ve ever done and it was one that came to us by somebody else, another Detroit writer,” Cooper explained in the press release. “And it was so strange, because it was happy and what it was saying was anything but happy — it was simply a great juxtaposition. And I got it immediately and said, ‘OK, this is going to be great.’ Th...
