VAN HALEN: This Was No Joke
Van Halen went through their first major change 40 years ago today (April 1st) in 1985 when it was announced that singer David Lee Roth left the band. Here's what he had to say about a year later in 1986. "What happened is I shook hands with Edward Van Halen well over a year ago. [We] decided that we had reached a difference in career direction. We reached a difference in where we wanted to go with our band. I wanted to tour extensively, and I wanted to hurry into the studio. I wanted to get things done, you know, and go. And at that point and time that wasn't happening with the band. So we shook hands, we hugged each other and walked out the door. Two weeks later I'm reading in Rolling Stone magazine that he spent the last 12 years in misery. Poor little Eddie Van Halen forced to live a lie. Lamborghini after Lamborghini forced into his life. Oh my God!" While Van Halen hired and had success with Sammy Hagar, Roth did well with his first three releases -- the EP Crazy From the Heat, and his first two albums -- Eat 'Em and Smile and Skyscraper.
In 1996, Van Halen parted ways with Hagar and Roth joined his former band to present an award at the MTV Video Music Awards, which led to nothing until 2001 when they got together again with Roth, this time to record a few songs. Despite the differences between Roth and Eddie, Roth told us he was still willing to tour with the band, despite not being on speaking terms. "Oh yeah, I have no problem with that. [laughter] Like I said, it's not a question of 'Gee, how does the song go?' [laughter] Nobody's gonna be interested in hearing us jam. What's next? We gonna bring the wives and kids on stage and have a little recital? Nobody's interested. There are so many hits in our collection. I've got more hits than the Gambino [crime] family." [SFX - laughter]
But nothing came of that and it wasn't until 2007 when Roth joined Eddie, Alex and Wolfgang Van Halen for a tour. Roth stuck around long enough for two more albums in 2012, A Different Kind of Truth, and Tokyo Dome Live in Concert in 2015. Since then, Roth has released numerous singles; hosted podcasts on his website; and performed until March 2020. He announced his retirement in 2021 but was in talks with Alex and Michael Anthony about doing a Van Halen tribute tour following Eddie's death in 2020 that never materialized. Roth will return to the stage this year with two shows -- the M3 Rock Festival in Columbia, Maryland on May 3rd, and the Mountain Winery in Saratoga, California on September 12th.
PINK FLOYD: What's Next?
With Pink Floyd selling their catalog to Sony last year for a reported $400-million, drummer
Nick Mason tells Rolling Stone they made the right decision. "I think Sony will actually look after it better than we would. We’d spend too much time arguing. And I’ve yet to see exactly how it all works, but at the moment I’m thinking this is a good thing." Asked if it was "weird" for him to "put a value on [their] music" when they sold it, he said, "Yes, because it never occurs to you that it has a really enormous value. But I’m anxious that we could see a real decline in music with A.I. (Artificial Intelligence), and with more and more people working out how to avoid having to pay any sort of copyright. I think it’s been a continuing struggle, particularly for young musicians to find any way of making money in this day and age. I’m very conscious that we had the golden years where you sold vinyl and then you sold CDs and 8-Track and whatever."
So, with the catalog sold and this September marking the 50th anniversary of the release of their ninth album, Wish You Were Here, Mason was asked if there will be a 50th anniversary edition. He said, "I can almost guarantee that Sony will find something. We’ve got to the point where every year there’s some album’s birthday somewhere, and we can just keep it going. We’ll do the 75th. I doubt that I’ll make the 100th year of Dark Side, but you never know."
As for what's next for Mason and his band, Saucerful of Secrets, he said, "We actually don’t know what’s next. We probably did a bit too much last year. Everyone was exhausted. We’d certainly like to do some more things; it’s just a matter of finding the right things." Meanwhile, Floyd's singer and guitarist David Gilmour appears to back to work. His wife and lyricist Polly Samson posted two photos of him in the studio, captioning them with, "Toes in the water at Team DG." Gilmour's last album was 2024's Luck and Strange.
THE WHO: The Song Is NOW OFFICIALLY Over
The Who performed 1971’s “The Song Is Over” for the first time ever Sunday at London’s Royal Albert Hall. But, as a lyric in the last verse says, it didn't come "pure and easy." Roger Daltrey
was having problems hearing, joking that he thought he was fronting The Troggs ("Wild Thing") as Pete Townshend played "The Song Is Over." Then, just under two minutes in, Daltrey stopped it, complaining that he couldn't hear what key it was in and that the drums were overpowering. But he agreed to try it again and was able to get through it. It would have been ironic if he couldn't pull it off because he's been pushing Townshend for years to try different songs in concert.
“This is a fact, it has to be said, he just doesn't dedicate as much time to thinking about the shows as I do. And it’s as simple as that. And I like to listen to what the fans say, you know, just get an idea of, ‘Well, we've ever done that one live and let’s give it a try and see how it goes down.’ And it's just a matter of stretching yourself out a bit, even if it's only for two songs a night. It’s that little thing that just keeps it fresh.” At last Thursday's show they did "Love Ain't For Keepin'," also off 1971's Who's Next, for the first time since 2004. Although Sunday was the first time that The Who performed "The Song Is Over," both Daltrey and Townshend have done it in their solo shows -- Daltrey twice in 1994 and Townshend three times in 2000.
PETE TOWNSHEND: Another Solo Box Is Out
Pete Townshend released a new box set on Friday. Pete Townshend - The Studio Albums is an eight-CD set comprised that collects all seven studio albums, all remixed by his former brother-in-law Jon Astley. But Townshend doesn't consider himself a solo artist, telling Rolling Stone
that at the time of his first proper album, 1980's Empty Pages, that "a lot of people close to
The Who, and on the boundaries of The Who, were worried about my mental health. They blamed the lack of emotional, creative support I was getting from not just the members of The Who, but also from Kit Lambert, the manager of The Who, who had been a great ally of mine up until that time. And they figured that it was really important for me to express myself as a solo artist. I don’t know that they were right, to be honest. "I think the reverse happened. By setting me up with a record deal for a set of solo albums over a period of time, at the same time that The Who did a huge record deal, just added to my mental illness issues. It was just overwork, and too much pressure."
In addition to his seven albums, this collection contains new artwork, sleeve notes, rare photos and memorabilia in a 28-page book with a new foreword by Townshend. The seven albums are:
·Who Came First - 1972
·Rough Mix (with Ronnie Lane) -1977
·Empty Glass - 1980
·All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes - 1982
·White City (A Novel) - 1985
·The Iron Man: The Musical by Pete Townshend - 1989
·Psychoderelict - 1993
·And the eighth disc is the music only version of Psychoderelict
Townshend and The Who played their first show of the year last Thursday night as part of the annual Teenage Cancer Trust week-long concert series at London's Royal Albert Hall. They did a 22-song set consisting of mainly their biggest hits, with a few lesser-known selections including 971's "Love Ain't for Keepin'" for the first time since 2004, and they closed out the week of shows Sunday night.
BLACK SABBATH, TOM MORELLO: Surprises Slated for Last Show
Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine said that even with all the stars announced for Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath's Back to the Beginning concert July 5th in Birmingham, England, there's still more to come. Morello told Australian Musician, "First of all, when we first sat down, we have a very, very simple goal, and that's to make this the greatest day in the history of heavy metal...And let me tell you, there's some huge superstars who are gonna be surprises on that day too. So, the idea is to really acknowledge the importance of that band in a way that the whole world will forever know it." Besides the final sets by Black Sabbath and Ozzy, the shows will features performances by Metallica, Guns N' Roses, Tool, Slayer, Pantera, Gojira, Alice in Chains, Halestorm, Lamb of God, Anthrax and Mastodon. Morello will also led an all-star band that will feature Duff McKagan and Slash of GNR, Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins, Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit, Wolfgang Van Halen, Chad Smith of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Vernon Reid of Living Colour, David Draiman of Disturbed, Jonathan Davis of Korn, Lzzy Hale of Halestorm, Sammy Hagar and Tobias Forge of Ghost.
KISS: Never Say Never
If you thought KISS did their final show on December 2nd, 2023 at New York's Madison Square Garden, you're right. It was the final show on their End of the Road tour, and if you believe
Gene Simmons, their final bombastic stage show. At least that's how he's defending the band performing this November in Las Vegas in celebration of the 50th anniversary of their fan club, the KISS Army. He tells the Las Vegas Review-Journal, “We will not do the makeup. We will hold true to the promise. There’s no stage show. There’s no crew. We won’t have 60 people levitating drum sets and all that stuff...There might be some KISS tribute bands, almost like a convention, if you will. So, it’s much more personal. And of course, we can’t get by without playing, so we’ll get up and do some tunes. What they are, how long, I don’t know.”
As of now only Simmons and Paul Stanley have been announced as taking part with "special guests." No word on if their two hired hands who rounded out the final KISS lineup -- guitarist Tommy Thayer and drummer Eric Singer -- will participate.
When KISS announced the End of the Road tour in 2018, we asked Paul Stanley exactly what "End of the Road" meant. "You know, we're not trying to be coy. We've got Mount Everest in front of us and it's a tall mountain to climb. So, when people say, 'Well, exactly what's gonna happen afterwards?' We have a three-year tour planned and what happens afterwards [is] there will be no more touring. Beyond that, it's really hard to look at anything. We have hundreds of shows to do." It's not hard to be skeptical of what Simmons and Stanley say. After all, in March 2000 they embarked on their Farewell Tour with the original lineup, which ran through April 2001. That lasted until 2003 when they launched their World Domination Tour.
SAMMY HAGAR: Expanding the Empire?
When it comes to adult beverages, Sammy Hagar knows a lot more than just drinking them.
He made a fortune with his line of Cabo Wabo tequila, having sold it for $91-million, and he continues to produce spirits, including Santo tequila and mezquila, and Sammy's Beach Bar Rum. But he's not done. He posted a photo on Instagram of him standing behind two wine barrels, saying, "[I'm] doing some experimental wine making using Tempranillo grapes with world famous James Beard award winning winemaker Bob Cabral Wines. These won't be ready for four to five years or more. We're going for the Bodegas Vega Sicilia-style. It's going to be amazing. When finished, at least one of these barrels will be used to experiment with aging Santo Spirit Tequila. I hope I live that long." If it takes the full five years, Hagar will be 82.
A Triumph Holographic Experience Is In Development
Rik Emmett, lead guitarist for Canadian rockers Triumph, says the band is planning on bringing their music back to the stage via a 3-D "holographic" experience. Emmett says "(Drummer/singer) Gil's [Moore] got a bee in his bonnet about wanting to do this heavy-duty 3D hologram-ish…He wants TRIUMPH to go back and do a tour...not the guys in the band, but screen projection, digital stuff. And he wants to have a band that would have [former Triumph guitarist] Phil X sort of putting the musicians together so that there would be a live band. But then we would be joining them by playing on the screens and just all this incredible stuff. And he's sending me scripts." No word on when we might see the band (in any form) back on stage, but it's in the works.
SMASHING PUMPINS: Corgan Gets Back to Zero
Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins has finally revealed the details of his solo tour with a new backing band called The Machines of God. The A Return to Zero tour starts June 7th in Baltimore and wraps up June 29th in Minneapolis. Tickets go on sale Friday. With The Machines of God, Corgan returns to a four-piece, two-set guitar lineup where he'll be joined by recently recruited Smashing Pumpkins guitarist Kiki Wong, drummer Jake Hayden and bassist Kid Tigrrr (Jenna Fournier). They'll be focusing on four Pumpkins albums for the tour -- 1995's Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, 2000's Machina/The Machines of God and Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music, and 2024's Aghori Mhori Mei. Corgan also announced that his Madame Zuzu’s tea shop in Highland Park, Illinois will be the only retailer to sell an 80-song box set of both Machina albums and an additional 32 bonus tracks of demos, outtakes and live performances. There's also a regular vinyl reissue of Machina/The Machines of God that will be sold through all retailers. Both are due out on August 22nd.
Lynyrd Skynyrd expands summer tour to include Las Vegas & more
Lynyrd Skynyrd has announced three new tour dates for 2025, including shows in Las Vegas, California, and Connecticut. Presales for the concerts begin today (Tuesday), with tickets available to the general public on Friday. The band is also part of the upcoming Rock the Country festival and has additional headlining dates and a Canadian tour planned for the year. More information can be found on lynyrdskynyrd.com.
Cheap Trick, Night Ranger, Winger Announce 'Farewell Japan' Tours
Cheap Trick, Night Ranger, and Winger are all planning farewell tours in Japan in 2025. Winger is wrapping up their final Japanese dates, focusing on songwriting after years of touring. Night Ranger will perform in Osaka and Tokyo as part of "The Goodbye Tour," while Cheap Trick's farewell tour is set to arrive in Japan this year. Japan played a significant role in the success of these bands, with Cheap Trick's breakthrough coming after Live at Budokan recorded in 1978.
CHEAP TRICK: Sayonara?
Cheap Trick will reportedly say goodbye to Japan with a farewell tour there this year.
Although they haven't actually announced any details or dates, promoter UDO Artists Japan has posted a photo saying it's their "Farewell Tour." We reached out to the band for comment, but their spokesman says he has no information. Cheap Trick are currently on tour with Heart with a show in Montreal on Wednesday, Ottawa on Friday and Quebec City on Saturday.
On April 24th, 1978, Cheap Trick released their third album, Heaven Tonight. Four days later, April 28th, they performed at the Budokan in Tokyo, which would result in their most successful album, At Budokan.
Meant solely for sale in Japan, where it was released in October 1978, it received strong airplay in the U.S. courtesy of the promotional album From Tokyo to You. As a result, an estimated 30,000 import copies were sold here and Epic Records decided to release At Budokan in February 1979, delaying the release of their fourth studio album, Dream Police.
The live version of "I Want You to Want Me" cracked the Billboard Top 10 and a rendition of "Ain't That a Shame" hit number-35. At Budokan remains one of the best-selling and most critically acclaimed live albums of all time. In 2020 it was added to the National Recording Registry in the Library of Congress.
Ted Nugent's "Nuge Vault" Contains 60 Years Of Jams With Eddie Van Halen, Billy Gibbons And More
Ted Nugent's nearly 60-year career has had the Motor City Madman cross paths with anyone who's anyone in rock history...and now you can get a glimpse at some previously unseen high points. His new "Nuge Vault" (for which you will need a paid subscription) has a wealth of audio and video that will have rock aficionados drooling. As Ted says, "Because who doesn't want to hear the recording of Ted Nugent and Eddie Van Halen backstage in California jamming? Or with Billy Gibbons and so many amazing things that have taken place?" He also mentions a "jam session with the Mothers of Invention at the Fifth Dimension in Ann Arbor in 1967" as another lost gem uncovered and made available in "the vault." For access, you'll need that bank card. Learn more at nugevault.com.
Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson And Z2 Announce "The Mandrake Project" Companion Comic Series
Iron Maiden's lead vocalist Bruce Dickinson and Z2 have a companion comic series for "The Mandrake Project" on the way."The Mandrake Project: Part One" , a collection of the first four issues in the series, will be out on August 5th. The 184 page volume Deluxe Editions include a series of interviews and essays that take fans down the road Dickinson and his creative team took to bring the album, tour, and comic series to life. "The Mandrake Project: Part One" can be pre-ordered on Z2Comics.com/BruceDickinson [[ Z-2-Comics-dot-com-slash-Bruce-Dickinson ]].
IN OTHER NEWS
Christine McVie’s estate is selling her three-bedroom London penthouse for $8.9 million. Located in the Belgravia district, it also contains eight fireplaces and a rooftop garden. The Fleetwood Mac singer and keyboardist died from a stroke in 2022. She was 79.
John Fogerty will celebrate his 80th birthday on May 28th with a show at New York’s Beacon Theatre.
In conjunction with Eric Clapton’s 80th birthday this past Sunday, Martin Guitar is releasing two more special Clapton guitars — the 000-42EC 30th Anniversary, which will set you back $11,000, and the 000-EC 30th Anniversary for $5,000. Details at MartinGuitar.com.
An exhibit about Nirvana's MTV Unplugged appearance will run at London's Royal College of Music Museum from June 3rd to November 18th. It will include the rare Martin D-18E guitar Kurt Cobain played during the show, which became the most expensive guitar ever sold at auction when it went for $6 million in 2020. It will be the first time the guitar has been displayed in Europe.
Congratulations to Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro who got married for the fourth time over the weekend to Swedish actress and fashion designer Vanessa DuBasso.