You’ve got your chops down. You’ve got your gear together. You’ve managed to assemble a band, get some songs under your fingers, and talked your way onto a bill with a few other bands. It’s your first gig and you have no idea what’s going to happen. All you know is you’ve been dreaming about this moment for weeks. Months. Years.
It’s been another crazy week in the exciting world of rock and roll. The Beach Boys announced their 50th Anniversary tour while Iron Maiden will tour this year with Alice Cooper and Coheed and Cambria. Ringo said the remastered Beatles albums helped his reputation and Mick Jagger was invited to play at the White House. In not so good news, we sadly lost MC5 bass player Michael Davis this week and the newly reformed Black Sabbath had to cancel their tour due to Tony Iommi’s illness. On a lighter note, one of Elvis’s teeth went up for auction and David Lee Roth finally explained the Van Halen M&M story. Now that’s rock and roll!
By any standards, Peter Frampton had a remarkable 2011. The veteran English guitar star and songwriter played a Frampton Comes Alive! 35 tour to acclaim, revisiting the album that made his name globally for a record that remains one of the best-selling live albums ever. The iconic 3-pickup Gibson Les Paul Custom played on the album became famous in its own right. And, after it was presumed missing for 32 years, Frampton got his Comes Alive! Gibson Les Paul back in late 2011. In a bizarre tale, Peter explains all below.
Beatles fans who favored John Lennon’s most deeply personal songs – “Julia,” “I’m a Loser,” “Help!” – could scarcely have imagined the searing introspection Lennon would unleash with his first post-Beatles solo album. Released in December 1970, Plastic Ono Band gave new meaning to so-called confessional songwriting. Framed by rock’s most basic instrumentation – bass (played by Klaus Voormann), drums (played by Ringo Starr) and guitar and piano (played by Lennon himself), the former Beatle presented himself in all his myriad guises, from angry rebel to devoted soulmate to questing artist striving to free himself from the shackles of Beatledom.
Just because MTV doesn’t play music anymore doesn’t mean there’s not tons of live music on television these days. Consider our weekly feature “Live Wire,” your guide to performances, concerts and rock star appearances on the tube. All times are ET.
The Moderne is the great lost Gibson guitar. Shrouded in mystery and myth, its story has been passed around in dimly lit bars, cluttered music stores and thronging NAMM Show floors for almost six decades now. It’s elusive and desirable, partly due to its unique styling and partly due to its sheer unattainability for so many years. That’s all about to change (the scarcity, anyway: the Moderne will remain as freaky-cool as ever). But more on that in a moment. First, let’s backtrack.
Dogs are man’s best friend. Women’s, too. Archeological evidence proves that humans and canines have been companions for at least 14,000 years. So it’s natural that our four-footed friends would frequently be the subjects of artistic endeavors, from cave paintings to rock songs.
Mötley Crüe were one of the most significant hair metal bands of the ’80s, toting metallic riffs, a mesmerizing visual presentation and a wild-child reputation that earned them legions of adoring fans.
It’s been another fascinating week in the crazy world of rock and roll. We lost two legends, the vocally supreme Whitney Houston and Latin superstar Luis Alberto Spinetta. R.I.P. Ozzy got his own radio show on Sirius XM, Ringo announced his latest tour and Noel Gallagher got dressed up as a boxing referee (for his video!). Plans were announced for a Johnny Cash museum in Nashville and Ronnie Wood revealed that he once declined to join Led Zeppelin. Finally, Jack White recorded with ’60s sex god, Sir Tom Jones. Now that’s rock and roll!
Every field of artistic endeavor has its share of eccentric geniuses – people such as J.D. Salinger in the literary world, Glenn Gould in classical music and Vincent Van Gogh in the art world, each of whom left behind rich legacies despite sometimes bizarre quirks of character. Rock and roll is no exception. In its relatively brief history, rock has produced a clutch of brilliant songwriters and musicians who seem wired differently from the rest of us, sometimes radically so. Below are 10 of the very best.
