Classic Rock
Elvis Costello’s Aim Remains Remarkably True on Hey Clockface: Review
The Lowdown: English singer-songwriter Elvis Costello has about three dozen studio LPs under his belt (including collaborations), yet he’s never lost his inimitable knack for crafting scornful witticisms, tender ballads, catchy-as-hell rockers, and everything in-between. Likewise, his skill at working within multiple genres while both modernizing his sound and staying true to his distinguishing DNA is virtually unmatched by his peers or proteges. In other words, he’s always staked out his own path within the realm of popular music, and with Hey Clockface, he continues that legacy. It doesn’t rival his greatest LPs — not that anyone expects it to — but it’s a surprisingly wide-ranging and substantial venture that reveals how much creative spark and ability is still there after all these yea...
Gang of Four’s Jon King: “Hendrix Was a God to Us”
Kyle Meredith With… Gang of Four Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS Gang of Four co-founder Jon King speaks with Kyle Meredith about the band’s new box set, ‘77-’81. The post-punk legend discusses being rejected by numerous record labels, their bleak ’70s British life, dealing with Nazis who attended their shows, and how their songs still speak to all of the same issues today. King also tells us about being influenced by Jimi Hendrix and funk music, touring with Public Enemy, being sampled by Run the Jewels, and having their music used in film and television, namely 13 Reasons Why, The Manchurian Candidate, and Marie Antionette. Kyle Meredith With… is an interview series in whic...
David Lee Roth Dedicates Previously Unreleased Song to Eddie Van Halen: Stream
David Lee Roth has unveiled a previously unreleased song called “Somewhere Over the Rainbow Bar and Grill” in dedication to his late bandmate Eddie Van Halen. The track was recorded several years ago with guitarist John 5 as part of a full album’s worth of material that was shelved. The song features John 5 on acoustic guitar as DLR reflects on his pre-fame days on the Sunset Strip in Hollywood, California. A still graphic accompanying the YouTube clip contains the words “Hey Ed, I’m gonna miss ya … See you on the other side.” Previously, Roth shared a photo of himself with Eddie Van Halen on Twitter, along with the caption, ‘What a long great trip it’s been.” Around six years ago, Roth and John 5 co-wrote and recorded an entire album, but it never saw the light of day. Last year, Roth pro...
The Rolling Stones Share First-Ever Live Performance of “Sympathy for the Devil”: Watch
The Rolling Stones’ legendary 1996 concert film Rock and Roll Circus documents the band’s last performance with their original lineup in 1968. Today, they’re sharing a coveted clip that didn’t make it into the movie: The Rolling Stones’ first-ever public performance of “Sympathy for the Devil”. Watch it below. Filmed during that December 12th, 1968 gig, the previously unreleased clip captures the raw energy of The Rolling Stones in their initial configuration with Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Bill Wyman, Charlie Watts, Ian Stewart, and then bandleader Brian Jones. It’s sourced from a Dolby 4K restoration of the concert film that’s available online for the first time. The band had just dropped Beggars Banquet six days prior to this performance and were clearly riding high on that post-...
Cindy Blackman Santana: “Drums Drive Everything, But They Have to Be Musical”
Kyle Meredith With… Cindy Blackman Santana Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS Legendary drummer Cindy Blackman Santana speaks with Kyle Meredith about Give the Drummer Some, an album that finds her singing lead for the first time. Together, they discuss the ways to make fun music with a message, tapping Metallica’s Kirk Hammet and Living Colour’s Vernon Reid to guest, and working with producer Narada Michael Walden. The former Lenny Kravitz drummer and now Santana member also weighs in on the freedom of making a record with the drums front and center in the mix, paying tribute to Miles Davis, and partnering with Yoko Ono and husband Carlos Santana to start SongAid. Kyle Meredith With...
Maya and Ethan Hawke Starring in New Film About Teen Trying to Lose Her Virginity to George Harrison
Maya and Ethan Hawke are joining the lineage of parent-child acting teams who share the screen. The daughter-father duo will headline the new movie Revolver, which is a fictional story centered around the very real incident of The Beatles making an unplanned stop in Anchorage, Alaska. On June 27th, 1966, The Beatles’ plane indeed landed in Anchorage, though there’s conflicting reports regarding why. Some say their flight got held up by a typhoon named Kit, but others claim it was a refueling stop that was delayed due to mechanical issues. When the Fab Four were forced to charter a bus to the nearby Anchorage Westward Hotel (now a Hilton), some Beatlemanics caught wind. Within hours, there were some 500 fans crowded outside the hotel. The whole ordeal lasted barely 12 hours, with The Beatle...
Bruce Springsteen Yearns for a Return to America’s Glory Days: “We’ve Lost So Much in So Short a Time”
For everyone who loved the chorus of “Born in the USA” and glossed over the verses, it may come as a surprise to learn that Bruce Springsteen is not a fan of Donald Trump. In the most recent episode of his SiriusXM radio show “From My Home to Yours”, The Boss shared a prose poem lamenting that “There’s no art in this White House,” and mourning how “we’ve lost so much in so short a time.” The episode’s full title was “From My Home To Yours, Volume 14: Farewell To The Thief.” Capturing the national psyche, his election episode was also a horror episode. “It is time for an exorcism in our nation’s Capital,” Springsteen said to being the program. “Welcome to our Halloween/election day monster mash.” He added, “In just a few days, we’ll be throwing the bums out. I thought it was a fucking night...
The Cars Founder Elliot Easton: “I Didn’t Really Care About the New Wave Thing”
Kyle Meredith With… Elliot Easton Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS The Cars guitarist Elliot Easton speaks with Kyle Meredith about his new album with The Empty Hearts, the supergroup that also features Blondie’s Clem Burke and The Romantics’ Wally Palmar. Easton discusses the influence of ’60s music, working with Ringo Starr, and how the New Wave generation were naturally nostalgic even as they blazed a futuristic sound. He also celebrates the 40th anniversary of The Cars’ Panorama and shares the band’s plans for another record prior to the death of Ric Ocasek. Kyle Meredith With… is an interview series in which WFPK’s Kyle Meredith speaks to a wide breadth of musicians. Ever...
Stevie Nicks Played With Double Pneumonia at 2019 Rock Hall of Fame Ceremony
We already knew Stevie Nicks was an absolute legend, but here’s yet another reminder. In a new interview with Variety, the 72-year-old icon revealed that she was battling a nasty case of double pneumonia when she performed last year at the 2019 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. “The night of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I knew before I went on stage that something was wrong with me, so I had to really pull it together,” Nicks told Variety. This was no ordinary case of the sniffles, either. The day after she took the stage before a national audience, the Fleetwood Mac member was rushed to a hospital in Philadelphia where she spent a week in the ICU being treated for the aforementioned pneumonia, as well as human metapneumovirus and asthma. “Talk about your oxygen levels...
Eddie Van Halen Saluted with Stylophone Cover of “Eruption”: Watch
The passing of guitar legend Eddie Van Halen earlier this month has sparked countless tributes. One of the most unique is a cover of his instrumental classic “Eruption” on a pair of Stylophones. Before getting into the musical tribute, the first question you may have is, “What’s a Stylophone?” And that would be a very good question. A Stylophone is an analog keyboard operated by a stylus. It was invented in the late ’60s, and mostly sold as a children’s toy. However, it did make its way into some notable recordings, including David Bowie’s iconic song “Space Oddity”. The instrument was revived in 2007 by the original inventor Brian Jarvis’ son Ben, and a handful of models have been released since then. That brings us to YouTuber maromaro1337, who posted the unique “Eruption” cover in tribu...
Bruce Springsteen’s Letter to You Boldly Looks to the Future: Review
The Lowdown: Even bosses get writers’ block sometimes. Such was the case for Bruce Springsteen in early 2019. Facing down 70 and preparing to release Western Stars (his best-reviewed record in nearly a decade and one of our top 50 albums of 2019), Springsteen wasn’t totally sure what might come next. On his 20th studio album, he answers that question on both a micro and a macro level. Much like Western Stars found Springsteen exploring bygone California sounds from Los Angeles to Bakersfield, Letter to You also discovered its inspiration in the not-yet-faded past. In addition to a newly vital set of songs devoted to aging, death, and legacy, Springsteen also resurrected three tracks written before his 1975 debut and reconvened the E Street Band for their first full-length studio collaborat...
Gene Simmons Selling Longtime Mansion to Escape “Unacceptable” California Taxes
Gene Simmons (photo by Kevin RC Wilson), Mansion (Christopher Amitrano for Douglas Elliman) Gene Simmons has put his longtime Beverly Hills mansion on the market for $22 million, citing California’s “unacceptable” tax rates as the reason for his move. After 34 years at the home, the KISS rocker and his wife Shannon are heading to Washington state. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer purchased the Beverly Hills house in 1986 for $1.34 million. While he has since put several million dollars into renovations and upgrades, the $22 million he’s seeking should net him a nice profit. The estate was featured prominently on his family’s A&E reality show, Gene Simmons’ Family Jewels, which aired from 2006 to 2012. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Simmons explained, “California and Bev...
