DEF LEPPARD: Update on Campbell
When Def Leppard played a private show last Saturday in Mexico without guitarist Vivian Campbell, singer Joe Elliott told the audience he was "recovering from some treatment for his cancer." Campbell has now followed up, releasing a statement saying, "Thank you for all the recent messages and support. As you all may know, I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma several years ago. I recently had a bone marrow transplant as part of my treatment plan, and it's safe to say that thus far it's been a very successful transplant! I just have to keep my head down and my spirits up for the next 100 days of primary recovery." Sitting in for Campbell last Saturday was John Zocco, the tech for their other guitarist, Phil Collen. Campbell, 62, was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2013.
Billy Gibbons Tour Underway
Billy Gibbons' solo tour is off and running. The ZZ Top guitarist and vocalist kicked off his tour last week with shows at the Blue Note Hawaii in Honolulu and at the Blue Note in Napa, California. Gibbons and his band, The BFGs, wrap up their tour in Bristol, Tennessee on February 20th.Gibbons will then put his ZZ Top hat back on for the band's "2025 Elevation Tour," which kicks off on March 5th in Dothan, Alabama.
SAMMY HAGAR: Thunderbird Flys off Auction Block
Sammy Hagar has parted with another car from his collection. This time it's a 1962 Ford Thunderbird that belonged to his former bandleader, the late Ronnie Montrose. Hagar says Ronnie used to drive them to Montrose shows in it. Completely restored by Hagar, it sold at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Arizona on Friday for $63,000. Proceeds will go to suicide prevention in memory of Montrose, who took his life in 2012. He was 64. On January 17th, Hagar drove the car for the last time when, along with his passengers -- Michael Anthony, guitarist Vic Johnson and drummer Kenny Aronoff -- he drove it into the WestWorld of Scottsdale arena for his performance at Barrett-Jackson's Rock the Block concert.
Timothee Chalamet Performs Dylan Songs On SNL
Fresh off his Oscar nomination, Timothee Chalamet is drawing rave reviews following his performance on "Saturday Night Live."Chalamet was the host and musical guest on this past weekend's show, performing three Bob Dylan songs. After being introduced by surprise guest Adam Sandler, Chalamet performed a medley of "Outlaw Blues" and "Three Angels" in his first set. Later, he performed "Tomorrow Is a Long Time." Last Thursday, Chalamet received a Best Actor nomination for his portrayal of Bob Dylan in "A Complete Unknown," which was nominated for Best Picture.
Paul McCartney Comes Out Against Proposed AI Law
Paul McCartney has come out to criticize proposed copyright law changes in the UK that would allow AI developers to mine creators’ content from the internet, warning this could result in a “loss of creativity” and remove artists’ financial incentives. The UK government is apparently considering changing their copyright law to let AI developers use of creators’ content to help develop their AI models…and creators would have to opt out to not have their work scraped. That opting out could take…a lot of work from creative individuals. McCartney expressed concern over the impracticality of opting out, saying, “You get young guys, girls, coming up, and they write a beautiful song, and they don’t own it… anyone… can just rip it off.” McCartney urged the government to protect creators, stating, “We’re the people, you’re the government! You’re supposed to protect us. That’s your job.”
RINGO: Rising Starr
Ringo Starr's decision to record his first album in six years, and a country album at that, was a good one. Look Up is sitting at:
·7 on Billboard's Top Album Sales chart
·1 on Billboard's Current Rock Album, Americana/Folk Album and Current Country Album sales charts
·4 on Billboard's Current Digital Album sales chart
·6 on Billboard's Overall Digital Album sales chart
·23 on Billboard's Rock Albums chart
·30 on Billboard's Rock & Alternative Albums chart
·And 147 on the Billboard 200, his 20th album to crack this chart
Ringo says, “Thanks everyone who supported me with Look Up, produced by T Bone Burnett, who did a great job, and all the musicians on it I want to thank. “It’s just been a great experience for me to make this record and have the experience of it actually doing great, it fills my heart. Peace and love. Thank everybody. Thank you.” Ringo will plug the album tomorrow (Tuesday) night on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Billy Joel Announces September Shows With Sting And Rod Stewart
Billy Joel has announced two more co-headlining concerts for his 2025 tour! The new shows include one with Sting on September 5th at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., and one with Rod Stewart on September 20th at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati. The Washington, D.C. show will actually be Joel's fourth performance at Nationals Park, where he first performed in 2009. The Cincinnati concert will be Joel's debut at Paycor Stadium. Tickets go on sale to the general public this Friday at 10AM Eastern.
QUEEN: Muffled No More
Queen have posted the sixth and final episode in their YouTube series The Greatest, this one focusing on the recent reissue of their 1973 self-titled debut album, now called Queen 1.
In this last episode, Roger Taylor talks about how recording the album at London's legendary Trident Studios was detrimental to his drum sound. "They had a drum booth and it was a well-known sound: very dry and dead, which is not what I wanted. I wanted to hear the drums resonate. I didn't want it to go ‘thud, whack.’ But that's what they wanted. There was cloth over everything, and everything was taped down..."I didn't even have my proper kit in there. I had to play this [crappy] little kit. It was just awful. We were told: ‘This is the Trident sound.’ But we didn't want the Trident sound. We wanted our sound. I really had a bad time playing that kit, which is why, actually, if you listen to the demos – which I played on my relatively cheap kit in De Lane Lea Studios – it's a higher standard of drumming. It’s quite busy, but it makes sense. And it's just better to listen to.” To demonstrate what he means, at the end of this final video you can hear the three versions of his drums on the song "Liar" starting with the "sparkier beats" from the demo at De Lane Lea Studios, the "flat" sound at Trident, and finally the remastered version from the re-release.
KISS: They Were Made For ... Number 1?
Gene Simmons has something else to brag about ... KISS has a number one song, 46 years after it was released. “I Was Made For Lovin’ You,” off of their seventh album, 1979's Dynasty, topped Billboard’s Top TV Songs chart for December due to it being used in the third season of the Disney+ series What If…? It was streamed 8.6-million times to go along with a thousand downloads, which earned it the number two slot on Billboard's Rock Digital Songs Sales chart for January 18th. “I Was Made for Lovin’ You” peaked at 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1979
ERIC CLAPTON: Meanwhile Is Now Everywhere
Eric Clapton has released physical copies of his new album, Meanwhile, last Friday - a little over three months since its digital release in October. It's a collection of the songs he's released since the pandemic, including "Heart of a Child" and "Pompous Fool," the three anti-COVID lockdown songs he did with Van Morrison, the cover of Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer's "Moon River" with Jeff Beck, and six new ones. Meanwhile is his first studio album since 2018's Happy Xmas, and before that, 2016's I Still Do.
COBAIN & CORNELL: Dirty Painters
This story is either going to upset the estates of Kurt Cobain and Chris Cornell, or, they're going to shake their heads and laugh. YesColours, an online U.K. paint retailer, will start selling their Dirty Collection on February 1st, saying it's a "rebellious set of earthy paint colors that extend a gentle wink to the mighty color wheel in all its glory... "These hues are our grunge heroes with a sexy AF personality. We firmly believe that if Kurt Cobain and Chris Cornell were to decorate their shared home in heaven, they would use nothing else but our Dirty Collection.
"As we embrace all of the emotions in our homes, these muted paint colors are sure to create a brooding atmosphere, even if it’s a little unconventional." Given that both singers sadly took their own lives, let's hope their "shared home in heaven" is filled with natural bright light.
Marilyn Manson Won't Be Charged For Sexual Assault Allegations
Rock musician Marilyn Manson won't face sexual assault charges in California. Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman made the annoucement Friday after a four-year investigation. The DA said, "We have determined that allegations of domestic violence fall outside of the statute of limitations, and we cannot prove charges of sexual assault beyond a reasonable doubt." Actress and Mason's ex Rachel Wood and four other women came forward with allegations of abuse in 2021. Hochman said they "recognize and applaud the courage and resilience of the women who came forward."
IN OTHER NEWS
Sammy Hagar, Cheap Trick’s Robin Zander, former Deep Purple bassist Glenn Hughes are teaming with the all-star cover band Kings of Chaos for a performance at Rock for Responders on February 27th in front of the Battleship IOWA at the Port of Los Angeles. Proceeds will benefit local first responders, “highlighting their critical roles in ensuring community resilience and recovery.”
Proceeds from Elton John’s Academy Awards Viewing Party in West Hollywood, California on March 2nd will not only benefit his AIDS Foundation, but also to wildfire relief and recovery efforts due to the fires in and around Los Angeles.
The Beatles’ U.K. record for the most number-one albums at 15 has been tied by Robbie Williams with the soundtrack to his movie Better Man. Williams was previously tied with The Rolling Stones at 14.
A re-recording of Blondie’s “One Way or Another” is featured in a new Hyundai commercial.
Slash guests on the new single by the singer Dorothy. Check out “Tombstone Town” on YouTube.
