Phoebe Bridgers Says Dave Grohl Slept Through A Recording Session
Phoebe Bridgers says that Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl missed out on an opportunity to record with Boygenius. In a conversation with NME, Bridgers said that she met Grohl at a Billie Eilish concert and he "exceeds every expectation of how a rock star can be in the world." They then planned to collaborate, but instead of showing up to their studio session for their album "The Record," Grohl slept through it and it never happened. However, Grohl did end up joining Boygenius during their show on Halloween at the Hollywood Bowl playing drums on "The Satanist."
Wolfgang Van Halen on Providing Support on Metallica’s ‘M72’ Tour
Wolfgang Van Halen’s band, Mammoth WVH, is one of several bands providing support on Metallica’s “M72” tour. In a new interview with Matt Pinfield, Wolfgang said of the experience, “It's been crazy. We still have two more shows with them this year. And then we have a whole another year next year with them.” He continued, “It's been such a pleasure and honor to be a part of such an insane tour. The crew is so kind so wonderful and the band, especially, they've been so supportive and kind. They come by the dressing room all the time just to kind of see, 'What's up? How is everything going?'” Wolfgang added, “They're very, very wonderful people. And just to be a part of the most insane, extravagant, hilarious stage in the coolest way — it's just very odd to be in the middle of a stadium in the round. It's crazy. But I think after about nine or 10 shows, we're used to it now."
Bad Religion Teams Up With Social Distortion For 2024 Tour
Bad Religion and Social Distortion are teaming up for a co-headlining tour in 2024. The trek kicks off on April 9th in Bakersfield, California and will wrap up on May 9th in Columbus, Ohio. In a statement, Bad Religion guitarist Brian Baker said he loved Social Distortion as a kid and is honored to be sharing the state with them this fall. Social Distortion will perform their full 1983 album, "Mommy's Little Monster, in celebration of its 40th anniversary.
Christmas Music Dominates Charts Again
Christmas music from days gone by is dominating the Billboard charts again this week. Not only is Brenda Lee at number one for the second straight week with "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," but all of the top four and six of the top eight are Christmas songs. The likes of Jose Feliciano, Dean Martin and The Ronettes are all in the top 15. Nat King Cole has two classics in the top 25 with "The Christmas
Song" at number 14 and "Deck the Halls" at 23. Elvis is also in the mix with "Blue Christmas" coming in at number 24.
Don Dokken Says He Wrote Dokken’s Hits, Despite the Whole Band Being Credited
Don Dokken said that despite the whole band being credited, he was the one who wrote all of Dokken’s hits. He said in a new interview about Dokken’s recently released final album, “I was talking to [Dokken guitarist] Jon Levin the other day. I said, 'If this album is successful, you wanna do another one?' And he said, 'I don't know if I have it in me.' I'm the writer, I'm the singer, just like I was in [the classic lineup of] Dokken.” Dokken continued, “I'm not throwing my old guys under the bus, but I was the main writer. I wrote the hits — 'In My Dreams' and 'It's Not Love' and 'Alone Again' and 'The Hunter'. Even though when you look at the record credits and it says 'Don Dokken, George Lynch, Jeff Pilson, Mick Brown,' they didn't write those songs. And everybody knows in my camp that I wrote the songs — the guitar and the lyrics. He concluded, “Those other three guys were in Orange County with an ounce of cocaine trying to come up some good songs. And that's why I couldn't write with them, because I don't do drugs. Never did.”
ERIC CLAPTON: Raises Another Half-Million
Last Friday's auction to benefit Eric Clapton's rehab facility, Crossroads Centre Antigua, raised just over half-a-million dollars. Clapton writes in the auction catalog, “It is now 25 years since the Crossroads Centre in Antigua, the beneficiary of this auction, opened its doors. Since then it has been able to help several thousand men and women needing help with their addictions, including numerous people from the Caribbean where little help was previously available to them. "Crossroads continues to flourish, but it always needs funds to subsidize help for those who could not otherwise afford help, and also to assist through educational programs reaching out to schools, and through social media, to alert the young and old to the dangers of alcohol and drugs.”
The big seller was Clapton's 2019 Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster, which he played at the 2019 Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas while collaborating with John Mayer on "Layla,” Peter
Frampton on “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and performing Prince's “Purple Rain” solo. It sold for $112,500.
The second-best seller was the Metallic Blue Fender Stratocaster Clapton played throughout this September's festival in Los Angeles. That went for $90,625.
And the last guitar sold was the “Tribute To Jeff Beck” signed Fender Jeff Beck Signature Model Stratocaster. It was signed by Clapton, Gary Clark Junior, Johnny Depp, Billy Gibbons, Rod Stewart, Derek Trucks and Ronnie Wood during the two London tribute concerts organized for his friend in May. It went for $23,125.
.Ace Frehley Fires Shots At KISS' Avatar Move
KISS wound down their final public performance by revealing the band would continue on as a “virtual band.” But just because the classic rock vets’ days are mostly done doesn’t mean their feuds are. Former guitarist Ace Frehley is still taking his shots at the Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons-led group. “I don’t get this avatar thing that they’re gonna do,” said the strummer. “It kind of looked like it was geared towards children. And it’s not rock and roll. I get up on stage without backing tracks… and go. That’s it. It’s always been that way and always will be.”
ROLLING STONES: Up Next…
The Rolling Stones have released the trailer for the forthcoming video for “Mess it Up” off their new album, Hackney Diamonds. It stars British actor Nicholas Hoult, who will play Lex Luthor in the forthcoming Superman: Legacy movie. The video was shot here in the States and will be released Tuesday. This will be the fourth video for a song on the album following “Angry” with actress Sydney Sweeney; “Sweet Sounds of Heaven” with Lady Gaga, which was filmed at their album release party in New York on October 19th; and “Bite My Head Off” which features footage from the studio with Paul McCartney playing bass.
Mick Jagger recently went on a vacation to India and posted pictures on his socials along with a video of him doing an acoustic version of "Dreamy Skies" off of Hackney Diamonds.
U2: Mix & Match
U2 have released a remix of their new song, “Atomic City.” It was done by producer Mike WiLL Made-It, who has worked with Miley Cyrus, Rihanna and Beyonce. U2 released the original version of the song in September in conjunction with the start of their residency at the Sphere, complete with a video show on Fremont Street in Vegas, which is where they shot the video in 1987 for “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.”
Despite drummer Larry Mullen not being part of their residency because of his recovery from back surgery, he does play on the song and is in the video. And, speaking of the residency, they're releasing a coffee table book, U2: UV Sphere, in January. It's available for pre-order on U2.com.
U2 wrap up this year's run at the Sphere on Friday and Saturday before starting back up there on January 26th.
Dave Grohl Cooks Food For Australia’s Hungry
Looking like anything but a rock star, Dave Grohl took some time off last week to volunteer his culinary skills for Melbourne’s homeless population. The Foo Fighters frontman spent a whopping 18 hours cooking an “American-style barbecue,” which included smoked pork ribs, pork butt, and beef brisket, according to The Big Umbrella Foundation, a local organization that sponsored the event. He then spent another two hours serving the meals, personally dishing up about 430 plates of food, the foundation reports.
As if that wasn’t enough, Grohl then took time out to pose for photographs and to autograph anything fans could find – including paper plates, pieces of cardboard, to the shirts on people’s backs, per the foundation.
BRYAN ADAMS: Tried to Stop What Amy Winehouse Started
Bryan Adams “tried to help” Amy Winehouse before her addictions did her in. Speaking to The Sunday Times, he says he flew her to his villa on the Caribbean island of Mustique to "spend the holidays with my family," but on the flight down she ingested $25-hundred dollars worth of heroin wraps. “I really don’t know what happened with Amy, and it is so sad because she was so, so talented and I so admired her individuality massively. But did I make a difference? I don’t know.” Asked if he thought he could help her, he said he "tried," but added it has to "come from within.”
Amy died of an alcohol overdose on July 23rd, 2011. She was 27. Back to Black, the Amy Winehouse biopic directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson (Fifty Shades of Grey) and starring Marisa Abela, will open in theaters on May 10th.
PATTI SMITH HOSPITALIZED DURING ITALIAN TOUR
Fans in Bologna, Italy were disappointed Tuesday night when classic rock icon Patti Smith was forced to cancel a show “due to a sudden illness.” But sources say that scrapped show was just the tip of a larger iceberg. “With great regret, we inform the kind audience that Patti Smith’s concert will not be able to go on stage due to a sudden illness that struck the artist,” announced the Duse Theatre in Bologna. Italian news source “TGCom 24” reported that Smith was both hospitalized then released… but the singer also axed appearances in Venice and Milan in the following days. As of this writing, there has been no comment from Smith or her reps about the singer’s condition.
Live Albums Highlight January Releases
If you enjoy live albums, January can't come soon enough. The Rolling Stones are releasing a two-CD set called "Hackney Diamonds: Live Edition" from their current tour. Most of the live albums scheduled for a January release are from decades past, including the eight-CD box set "Dire Straits: Live 1978-to-1992." Other live albums coming out in January are Mitch Ryder's "The Roof is on Fire," "Live at the Bottom Line 1979" by the Babys, and the Allman Brothers Band's April 7th, 1972 show at "Manley Field House, Syracuse University."
Kid Rock Ending Bud Light Boycott
Kid Rock says he gave Bud Light what they "deserved" and he's ready to end his boycott. Kid Rock posted a video on social media firing a rifle at a case of Bud Light to protest an ad campaign that featured transgender entertainer Dylan Mulvaney. The video led to a boycott that resulted in Bud Light dropping from first to second in U.S. beer sales and laying off 350 workers. In an interview with Tucker Carlson, Kid Rock said he doesn't want to "hold their head under water and drown them" and that Bud Light "got the message." During his boycott, Kid Rock continued selling Bud Light at his bar in Nashville and was photographed drinking a Bud Light.
IN OTHER NEWS---------------------
Geddy Lee's My Effin' Life in Conversation tour was in Sheffield, England Wednesday night and the guest interviewer was Melissa Auf der Maur of Smashing Pumpkins and Hole. She is one of the four bass players Geddy profiles in his new Paramount+ series, Geddy Lee Asks: Are Bass Players Human Too? The others are Les Claypool of Primus, Krist Novoselic of Nirvana,
and Robert Trujillo of Metallica. Sheffield was where Rush did their first show in England on June 1st, 1977. Up next is Glasgow, Scotland on Thursday; Portsmouth, England on Sunday; and the finale in London on Monday.
Robbie Robertson and Lenny Kravitz have followed up their Golden Globe nominations with Critics Choice Awards nods. Robertson, who passed away in August, is up for Best Score for Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, and Kravitz has been nominated for Best Song for the title track to Rustin. The Critics Choice Awards will be doled out on January 14th.
ZZ Top will tour Europe next summer for the first time since 2019. It starts June 28th in Rattvik, Sweden and runs through July 16th in Sion, Switzerland. The next leg of their Sharp Dressed Simple Man tour with Lynyrd Skynyrd starts March 8th in Savannah, Georgia. Skynyrd will not be with them in Europe.
Pat Benatar's episode of Austin City Limits will air on PBS on January 27th, followed by Alanis Morissette on February 17th, and Bonnie Raitt on February 24th.
Randy Bachman got into the Christmas spirit last weekend as he helped make wreaths with friends and family. He says there was “good food, wonderful music and plenty of Christmas spirit.” He posted photos of the wreaths on Instagram.
The Cult have released a new single under their original name, Death Cult, to mark their 40th anniversary. Check out “Flesh and Bone” and “C.O.T.A.” on YouTube.