New album announcements come in may forms and sizes. The Rolling Stones almost always went big - playing live on a flatbed truck rolling through Manhattan, buying giant billboard displays. Bruce Springsteen opts for a much more subtle approach. A couple of weeks ago, Rolling Stone Magazine's Jann Wenner let slip in an interview that he got a copy of a new Springsteen album with the E Street Band that would be out this fall. Whether or not Bruce approved him revealing that isn't clear, but it's the kind of thing he might have okayed. No announcement has followed from Springsteen or his label, but yesterday, this uncaptioned photo of a mid-to late 1960's steering wheel popped up in a tweet on his Twitter account. Looks like a release date is just around the corner.

MORE BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN INSIGHTS

More than 4 hours of highlights from Tom Petty's 20 night stand at the Fillmore in San Francisco with the Heartbreakers in 1997 are included in a box set due out on November 25. The 58 song collection includes 35 cover songs on a 4 CD set and a 32 page booklet of photos, an "All Access" tour laminated pass and a three pack of guitar picks.

Steve Perry is taking legal action against Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain in a trademark challenge over twenty Journey songs. The band's former lead singer contends that Schon and Cain sought to register the songs for commercial use without his agreeing to it. The filing has renewed bickering between the former band mates, with guitarist Schon attributing Perry's move to jealousy in a tweet on his Twitter account, and also describing it as "...a real sickness".

Before the Arizona Cardinals and The Raiders take the field at Allegiant Stadium Sunday  afternoon (9/18), longtime Raiders fan Carlos Santana will take it to play the National Anthem. We hope the network carrying this game won't repeat the blown coverage that occurred during Ozzy Osbourne's half time performance during an NFL game last week.  The performance will be one of the first the guitarist does after being sidelined by a health scare after collapsing on stage during a concert several weeks ago.

Marcus King's second solo album gets it's title from the fitting nickname Jaimoe from the Allman Brothers gave him when the now 26 year old rocker was hanging around absorbing everything a youngster could from southern rock bands. The name stuck, and the music sparked the passion and ambition in King to pursue a career in music. After an excellent but comparatively subdued last album, King is rocking again on Young Blood, an album with blistering, grinding, soulfully great guitar work. Recognizable influences include the Allman Brothers, of course, but also ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and others, but King's own style comes through and makes this impressive new album well worth checking out.

Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road farewell tour has filled stadiums, large arenas and earned rave reviews. Elton will do what he has maintained will be his last US concerts with three nights in Dodger Stadium in November. Concerts on the 17th and 19th will be filmed for a documentary about his final tour. The final one on November 20 will be streamed live by Disney+, which will also carry the documentary once production of it wraps-up.

John Lennon's killer will remain behind bars until at least 2024. Mark David Chapman was denied parole for the twelfth time, New York State corrections officials announced Monday (9/12). Chapman, now 67, will continue serving his 20 years-life sentence at the Green Haven Correctional Facility in Stormville, New York, about 70 miles north of New York City.

AC/DC front man Brian Johnson's autobiography hits bookstores and online sellers on October 13 in the UK and October 25 in the US. The Penguin publication titled The Lives of Brian will chronicle Johnson's childhood, his musically formative years in a series of bands and the skyrocketing career opportunity auditioning and being anointed by AC/DC to be the successor to the late, great Bon Scott turned out to be for him.

Photo: Isle of Man Post Office

A run of commemorative stamps celebrating David Bowie's acting career can be ordered from the Ilse of Man Post Office starting on Monday, September 12th. The set of stamps covers his stage and screen roles in The Elephant Man, Everybody Loves Sunshine, Labyrinth, Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, Just a Gigolo, The Man Who Fell to Earth and the BBC's televised adaptation of Bertolt Brecht's Baal. Design of the series was entrusted to Jonathan Barnbrook, who Bowie relied on to create all of the album covers from 2002 - 2016 Blackstar, the lp released within days of Bowie's passing.



 

A Jimi Hendrix Experience concert set recorded at the Los Angeles Forum in Inglewood, California in the spring of 1969 is set for a November 18th release. Los Angeles Forum: April 26, 1969 features a medley of VooDoo Child and the Cream classic Sunshine Of Your Love and will be available in a double disc vinyl version, a CD release and on several digital streaming platforms.

The 5th expanded edition reissue of a Beatles album will be 1966's Revolver. Producer Giles Martin and engineer Sam Okell have remixed the album's original tracks and enhanced them by processing them in stereo with Dolby Atmos, a spatial sound technology that creates a more immersive listening experience.
Out on October 28th, the expanded edition will also include nearly 30 alternate takes from the original sessions, a few home demos and a 100 page hard cover book with a forward penned by Paul McCartney.

Photo credit: YouTube

What was already an impressive lineup grew even more so with some late additions and surprise guests during last night's tribute to the late Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters at Wembley Stadium in London. The night's music opened with the Foo Fighters backing Liam Gallagher on the Oasis songs Rock and Roll Star and Live Forever. Other highlights included Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme joined by Nile Rogers, Jane's Addiction's Chris Chaney doing David Bowie' s Let's Dance, Taylor's side bands Chevy Metal and Coattail Riders did versions of the Talking Head's Psycho Killer and T. Rex's Children of the Revolution, with Wolfgang Van Halen later joining the Riders on VH's Hot For Teacher. Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones reconvened Them Crooked Vultures for the first time in 12 years to do Goobye Yellowbrick Road. Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders emerged with Dave Grohl on bass to do Brass In Pocket, Precious and Tattooed Love Boys. Joe Walsh brought former James Gang members out to play Walk Away, The Bomber and Funk #49, with Grohl playing drums on the closing song. AC/DC's Brian Johnson and Metallica's Lars Ulrich teed-up Back In Black and Let There Be Rock. Police drummer Stewart Copeland did Next to You with the Foo Fighters and added Gaz Goombes on Evey Little Thing She Does Is Magic. Rush veterans Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson performed 21121 Overture (Grohl on drums), Working Man and YYZ. Queen's Brian May and Roger Taylor raised the roof with We Will Rock You, I'm In Love With My Car and Under Pressure with Roger Taylor's son Rufus and Luke Spiller of the Struts, followed by May doing a solo acoustic rendition of Love of My Life. The Foo Fighters took the stage with rotating drummers Omar Hakim, John Freese and Travis Baker to do Times Like These, All My Life, The Pretender, Monkey Wrench, Learn to Fly, One of These Days and Best of You. Unannounced guest Paul McCartney then emerged with Hynde to join the Foos on the Beatle songs Oh! Darling and Helter Skelter. The epic evening drew to a close with the Foo Fighters doing Aurora, then bringing out Taylor Hawkin's son Shane to drum on My Hero, after which Dave Grohl did Everlong solo.

The owner of the NFL's Indianapolis Colts also happens to be one of the leading collectors of iconic rock instruments. Ones in his possession when they're not on display include a 1964 Gibson SG guitar owned by both George Harrison and John Lennon, David Gilmour's 1969 black Fender Stratocaster, Jerry Garcia's custom made Tiger guitar , Jimmy Page's 1959/60 Gibson Les Paul, the 1964 Fender Stratocaster Bob Dylan played during his first electric concert set at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965, Kurt Cobain's 1969 Smells Like Teen Spirit Fender Mustang guitar, Ringo Starr's 1963 Ludwig drum set, and numerous other high-ticket collectibles he prizes much as he does his team's 2006 Super Bowl victory.

Many owners of high value instruments owned and played by music legends limit who gets to see them to a very few people, but Irsay has loaned many of the ones in his collection to museums and even financed a tour including a good number of them that went to several cities.

This year, the Colts owner's fan friendly gesture will be to celebrate his team's return to the field with a free concert at Lucas Oil Stadium on September 9th that will include a set of rock classics with Irsay himself on vocals, Mike Mills of R.E.M. on bass, Kenny Aranoff behind the drums and Kenny Wayne Shepherd on guitar.

The drummer will also perform that night with the lead vocalist

he regularly backs on tour and in the studio, John Mellencamp, as well as doing sets with Buddy Guy, John Hiatt, and Heart's Ann Wilson.

Aranoff, who has known Irsay more than 30 years, says his love of rock music is intense and genuine. According to the drummer, the billionaire is "...listening to music 24/7. It's not a hobby, It really touches him, and he relates to the spirit and the lyrics of what these musicians have done."