Rock & Roll Music
Flea and John Frusciante to Spin Records on DubLab Radio
Had it not been for a pandemic, Red Hot Chili Peppers would have taken the stage this weekend to headline the 2020 installment of Boston Calling. Instead, the band is stuck at home like the rest of us, looking for ways to stay connected with fans. This afternoon, Flea and John Frusciante will take over Dublab Radio and “spin some jams that got us going and impacted how we play our instruments.” The two-hour session kicks off 5:00 p.m. ET on dublab.com. This year was supposed to be a big one for Chili Peppers with Frusciante’s return to the band after 13 years. In addition to several festival gigs, RHCP was known to be working on a new album. However, with the pandemic effectively shuttering the live music industry for the foreseeable future, it looks like fans will have to w...
Pink Floyd Launch Digital Playlist Featuring Rare or Unreleased Music
During the early part of quarantine, Pink Floyd treated fans to a digital concert series with weekly broadcasts of classic concerts. Now, they’ve launched a “brand new daily evolving playlist” featuring rare or unreleased music previously not available online. The “Syd, Roger, Richard, Nick and David – An Evolving Pink Floyd Playlist” officially launches today with “Us & Them (Live at The Empire Pool, Wembley, London 1974)”, from their 2011 Immersion box set of The Dark Side of The Moon. Each day will bring the addition of one new track to the playlist, ranging from alternate versions of classic songs to deep cuts spanning the entirety of Pink Floyd’s existence. Friday, in particular, will feature material previously made available on Pink Floyd’s Immersion box sets, such as the case w...
Trent Reznor to Focus on New Nine Inch Nails Music During Quarantine
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the cancelation of thousands of tours, including ones that hadn’t even been publicly announced. For example, Nine Inch Nails had planned to return to the road this fall for a series of North American dates alongside Savages’ Jehnny Beth. Now, NIN’s Trent Reznor is selling merchandise for this scrapped outing and donating the proceeds to charity. “I suppose I can let you know we HAD a tour booked this fall that continued and expanded ‘Cold and Black and Infinite’. @jehnnybeth was coming along with us. We were excited. I’m bumming myself out right now… We had some merch for that tour in production that we’re putting in the store with all of NIN’s profits going to local food banks in the cities we were going to play.” All is not lost: Reznor is using his ...
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Uploads Hundreds of Video Clips From Past Induction Ceremonies to YouTube
Over the course of this period of self-isolation, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has opened its vault and uploaded hundreds of video clips from past induction ceremonies to YouTube. The initial batch of uploads consists of video from last year’s ceremony enshrining Radiohead, The Cure, Stevie Nicks, Roxy Music, and others. There’s both performance footage — including Stevie Nicks teaming with Harry Styles for “Stop Draggin’ My Heart” — as well as each act’s respective induction speech. Since then, the Rock Hall has posted video from Neil Young’s 1995 induction, including Eddie Vedder’s introduction and their on-stage collaboration of “Fuckin’ Up”; Talking Heads’ 2002 induction and the band’s subsequent live reunion; and Prince’s 2004 induction, which saw him take the stage and rip ...
Prince and the Revolution Concert Film to Stream on YouTube This Weekend
Your weekend just got a lot more funky: Prince and the Revolution: Live, the famed 1985 concert film capturing Prince’s iconic “Purple Rain Tour”, will stream for free on YouTube this weekend. Recorded on March 30th, 1985 at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York, the concert film features a thrilling 20-song performance by Prince and The Revolution. They played all nine songs from Purple Rain, including a 20-minute version of the title track to close the concert. The setlist also included five songs from 1999, as well as several rarities and B-Sides from both albums. Joining Prince on stage was The Revolution’s Wendy Melvoin (guitar), Lisa Coleman (keyboards), Dr. Fink (keyboards), Mark Brown (bass), Eric Leeds (saxophone), and Bobby Z. (drums)., along with Sheila E. and Mike Weaver. The ...
David Gilmour Covers Syd Barrett Songs in Quarantine: Watch
During quarantine, David Gilmour, his wife Polly Samson, and their family have gathered for a weekly “Von Trapped Family” livestream. Originally set up to promote Samson’s new book Theater for Dreamers, the livestreams have evolved to become a sort-of virtual hangout during which the family sings songs, reads poetry, answers fan-submitted questions, and drinks wine. During the latest episode, Gilmour covered two songs composed by former Pink Floyd bandmate Syd Barrett: “Octopus” and “Dominoes”. Gilmour also shared some personal andecdotes about Barrett and their time working together, in addition to revealing that he was asked to proofread a forthcoming book of Barrett’s lyrics. Watch video of the livestream below. Gilmour’s covers of “Octopus” and “Dominoes” can be heard at the times...
Paul McCartney: Little Richard Taught Me Everything I Know
There’s no hyperbole in stating that Little Richard changed rock & roll as we knew it when he broke into the music scene. Look no further than the countless artists who’ve paid tribute to Richard after learning of his passing on Saturday, including Bob Dylan himself. Now, arguably the biggest pioneer of pop-rock music, Paul McCartney, has gone on the record to claim Little Richard taught him “everything he knows” and more. McCartney memorialized Richard with a lengthy tribute on Twitter, essentially crediting Richard for paving the way for The Beatles. When the Fab Four were busy playing residencies at small, McCartney looked to him for inspiration and guidance. “I owe a lot of what I do to Little Richard and his style,” he wrote. “From ‘Tutti Frutti’ to ‘Long Tall Sally’ to ‘Good...
Dave Grohl Says Foo Fighters’ New Album Is Their Version of David Bowie’s Let’s Dance
Whenever this pandemic finally comes to an end, Foo Fighters’ fans have a lot to look forward to. Not only is the band planning to hit the road in celebration of their 25th anniversary, but a new album is in the can and ready to be released. This week, Dave joined his mother, Virgina Grohl, for a Mother’s Day-themed interview with Los Angeles’ ALT 98.7 FM. They primarily spoke about Virginia’s recent book, From Cradle to Stage, in which she interviews fellow mothers of famous rock stars. Virginia also revealed that she and her son are working on a docu-series inspired by the book. Toward the end of the interview, however, mom and son discussed how they were spending their time in quarantine. Dave noted that he was supposed to be out on tour right now, and was bummed to have postponed ...
Bob Dylan Memorializes Little Richard: “I’m So Grieved”
The influence of Little Richard can be felt across the entire spectrum of modern music: just look at the countless number of artists, many of whom are legends in their own right, who took time to memorialize Richard following news of his passing on Saturday. Even the notoriously private Bob Dylan issued a rare statement to honor the rock music pioneer. “I just heard the news about Little Richard and I’m so grieved,” Dylan wrote in a message posted to his social media channels. “He was my shining star and guiding light back when I was only a little boy. His was the original spirit that moved me to do everything I would do.” “I played some shows with him in Europe in the early nineties and got to hang out in his dressing room a lot. He was always generous, kind and humble,” Dylan went on to ...
R.I.P. Little Richard, Rock & Roll Pioneer Dies at 87
Rock and roll pioneer Little Richard has died at the age of 87. Richard passed away Saturday, May 9th, following a battle with cancer, his son Danny Penniman told Rolling Stone. Born in 1932 in Macon, Georgia, Richard Wayne Penniman was the third of 12 children of Charles “Bud” Penniman and Leva Mae. His father was a deacon, and it was at church that Richard first discovered his love for singing. He became particularly enthralled by gospel singers such as Brother Joe May and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, as well as the animated nature of his preacher’s sermons. After overhearing him sing during a concert, Tharpe invited Richard, then age 14, to open one of her concerts, and his professional career was born. In his early teens, Richard began experimenting sexually with boys and...
