October 21 has been set as a release date for the first new album from Billy Idol in more than a decade. With the exception of a couple of tracks, Kings & Queens Of The Underground was produced by Trevor Horn. Idol will also publish a new book October 7 that takes its title from one of his biggest songs, Dancing With Myself. The album and book releases coincide with plans to hit the road. A tour of Europe kicks off in November. AntiMusic.com
A Def Leppard set will be an added attraction for UK NFL fans attending the September 28 game between the Oakland Raiders - Miami Dolphins at Wembley Stadium. Joe Elliot is psyched. The DL front man recently took in a Sheffield United FA Cup semi-final on the Wembley pitch and says, 'I know what the atmosphere in the ground is like for our football, so I'm really looking forward to performing there before the NFL game. of course, soaking up the excitement of the actual match. I can't wait!' CBS will carry the London game at 1pm (Eastern). HenneMusic.com
The traditional corn maze at Lyman Orchards farm in Middlefield, Connecticut takes on a British Invasion theme this season with a labrynth dedicated to the Beatles. The four acre field opened Saturday (8/30) with 2 miles of paths through the stalks and trivia questions to be answered along the way. $1 from each admission ($5 ages 4-12, $10 13 and older) goes to the American Cancer Society. Nearly $450,000 in donations have been generated during the 14 years Lyman Orchards has been doing mazes. LymanOrchards.com
Bruce Springsteen conjures a pint-sized band robber named Outlaw Pete for a new children's book that will be published November 4. Bruce drew on the song of that title on his Working On A Dream album. Illustrations for the book are provided by Frank Caruso who credits Springsteen for writing that, '...cuts deep into the folklore of our country and weaves its way into the fabric of great American literary characters'', and says reading the book brought Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, Dorothy Gale and Popeye to mind for him. Springsteen has said that a 1950 children's book titled Brave Cowboy Bill had a role in inspiring the album with the song his new character sprang from.
Robert Plant says Jimmy Page is a 'superb talent' and adds he wishes his former guitarist would '...get on and do something' with it instead of spending time critcizing him. Plant is 'fed up' with Page badgering him through the media about Zeppelin reunion prospects. Plant prefers to focus on his new group and thinks his former band mate would do well to do the same, challenging Page to '...take off your trappings of 30 years of playing and step into this other world. You f&*k them out of the way and have a good time.'
We think often about Stevie Ray Vaughan in August. It was the month the guitar legend lost his life in the crash of a helicopter following a concert with Eric Clapton at Alpine Valley Amphitheatre in Wisconsin. Epic Records will release a comprehensive set of the studio and live recordings Vaughn recorded during his career spanning stretch with the label on October 28. The 12 disc set will include A Legend In The Making, a Double Trouble performance at the El Macombo Club in Toronto in the summer of 1983 that was only released to radio stations. Several other rare tracks are featured on two of the discs in the collection. HenneMusic.com
Saying he has '...never played better', AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd called the next AC/DC album '...pretty damn good' and says it is better than Black Ice, the group's last studio album. No release date or title has been set for what will the the Thunder From Down Under's first post Malcolm Young album. Rudd will have new work of his own available August 29 with the release of Head Job, an album he describes as 'All Phil, no filler' he recorded with Allan Badger and Geoffrey Martin.
The contentious relationship between Ray and Dave Davies has simmered and flared throughout their lives and even erupted on occasion on stage. It has also thwarted several attempts to reunite. Ray indicated during a recent conversation with Mojo that a Kinks 50th reunion tour will go on even if his brother elects not to participate. The Kinks Facebook page countered quickly with a post claiming, 'MOJO is wrong. There will be NO Kinks reunion tour without BOTH Ray and Dave Davies. Ray Davies claims to have never said this.' ContactMusic.com
Dusty Hill sustained a hip injury in a fall on a ZZ Top tour bus, forcing the Texas trio to drop a series of dates with Jeff Beck. Tour promoter Live Nation announced that the hip the bass player injured Tuesday (8/26) needed '...immediate attention'. Whether the dates getting scrubbed will be rescheduled was not announced. Beck plans on doing some of the 13 remaining ones on the schedule, including Friday (8/29) in Salamanca, NY,8/30 in Atlantic City and 8/31 in Mashantucket, CT.
Raise The Dead - Live From Wacken, a 22 song Alice Cooper concert captured in northern Germany in August of 2013, gets its US release in DVD and CD form on October 21. A foundation named for the city helps foster the development of emerging Hard Rock and Metal artists. A euro from the sale of every copy of the release in either format will be donated to the organization. HenneMusic.com
Rolling Stone has revealed that Neil Young filed for divorce on July 29th in a Marin County court. Married 36 years, Neil and Pegi Young have collaborated musically and together founded the Bridge School to provide improved educational opportunities for special needds children. A mid December hearing has been scheduled in the case that will apparently end one of Rock's longest unions.
R-Kive, a triple disc, 37 song compilation of Genesis material that will also include solo offerings from the group's former members gets released September 22. The chronologically sequenced set draws from all eras of the band's history.
Robert Plant has filmed a sequel to an earlier video about the upcoming album he's releasing with the Sensational Shape Shifters titled Lullaby and the Ceaseless Roar. Get some insights into what to expect form the former Zep front man and the band below. The album drops on September 8 in England and the following day in the States.
Motorcyclists taking on the Cannonball Endurance Run from Daytona, Florida to Tacoma Washington in September will have a Rocker in their ranks. Patrick Simmons of the Doobie Brothers will straddle a 1929 Harley JD for the more than 4,000 mile trek. His wife, Cris, is onboard, too. She'll be only slightly less retro on her 1934 Harley. The couples son, Pat Jr., who finsihed in the top 20 of riders taking the first Cannonball vintage motorcycle challenge four years ago, was diagnosed with testicular cancer last year but has responded well to treatment. The couple is doing the ride to raise money for Stand Up To Cancer.
Alice Cooper's participation in the ALS Bucket Challnge will benefit the organizatioon beyond the Shock Rocker's own donation. The US flag shirt and robe that was used after Cooper met the challenge on stage during a concert in Virginia Beach Wednesday (8/20) are being sold on Ebay to raise more. Bidding on the items closes 8/31.
Mark David Chapman has been denied parole for the 8th time. The now 59 year-old who murdered John Lennon outside the builsing the former Beatle and Yoko Ono lived in will be eligible to reapply in two years. As it has in the past, the board considerg the application concluded Chapman's release would be '...incompatible with the welfare of society and would so deprecate the serious nature of the crime as to undermine respect for the law'.
John Mellencamp's 3 year romance with actress Meg Ryan is apparently over. US Magazine maintains that the Small Town Rocker and big city actress are no longer a couple. Mellencamp and the former wife of Dennis Quaid got together not long after Mellencamp ended an 18 year marriage to Elaine Irwin Mellencamp in 2001.
Drummer Joey Kramer of Aerosmith insists he's '....feeling better than ever and I'll be back sitting in the best seat in the house, hitting harder than ever for our amazing fans' after taking a night off for medical tests apparently related to a heart condition. Kramer's wife, Linda, took to Twitter to acknowledge that a recently cancelled Aerosmith performance was due to a heart complication Joey had but insisted it's minor and got blown, 'out of proportion' by the media. TMZ had posted a story indicating a band insider had informed them that Kramer was facing heart surgery. AntiMusic.com
A truck transporting Motley Crew tour equipment was involved in an accident Friday (8/15) in Alabama that resulted in the death of a 47 year-old man. The driver of the tractor trailer was taken to anarea hospital. The group's performance at the Oak Mountain Amphitheatre in Pelham took place as scheduled that night.
A 2.5 acre space in the neighborhood Jimi Hendix spent his youth in has broken ground after organizers raised more than $1 million towards the project. The late guitar legend's sister, Janie Hendrix, said the park honoring her brother is a tribute the family greatly appreciates. 'Every project endorsed by our family which bears Jimi's name is meaningful to us, but this park holds special significance', said Janie, and added, '...this musical garden is a fitting representation of Jimi's imagination. It's truly inspired.'
Crispin Dye managed AC/DC during most of the 1980's. On a 1993 December night the 41 year-old was brutally beaten on a Sydney, Australia street following a night of revelry celebrating the release of a debut album of his own. Dye passed away in the hospital on Christmas day. Three young men were seen near the body by one witness, but they were never identified and the case has never been solved. Police are opening a new front on the investigation and have offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever beat him that night. DailyTelegraph.com.au
ZZ Top and Jeff Beck make a great double-bill. Fans attending the Woodinville, Washington concert Saturday night (8/9) got a tasty treat when Beck joined Billy Gibbons on a blistering version of La Grange.
Aerosmith cancelled a Wednesday (8/13) concert on short notice due to a health problem for a member of the band. Specifics on who was ailing and what he ailment is were not provided, but a TMZ report indicates it could relate to a Joey Kramer heart condition. The site's post attributes a claim that the 64 year-old drummer will have heart surgery to a band crew member. If that proves true and it needs to be performed soon, the 10 remaining dates on the group's current tour could get scrubbed unless the band recruits a sub.
The stage of Fox Theatre in Atlanta has played host to plenty of great concerts, but few can compare to the lineup of musicians that will appear on it November 12. That's the date that a number of high-profile musicians will gather to salute Lynyrd Skynyrd on the stage the band performed a benefit for its theater on while recording the excellent double live 1976 release One More From The Road. The fall concert is being billed as One More For The Fans! Celebrating the Songs & Music of Lynyrd Skynyrd. The lineup already includes Gregg Allman, Peter Frampton, Cheap Trick, John Hiatt, Charlie Daniels, and Alabama. Producer Don Was has been recruited to put together the backing band that will back-up the special guests. Those not lucky enough to score tickets can look forward to an eventual DVD release of the concert. CTVNews.ca
Mike McCready channeled a bit of fellow Seattle guitar great Jimi Hendrix while doing the Star Spngled Banner before the Mariners home game on Friday (8/8).
The cover art we posted a few days ago is now confirmed as one that will appear on the new Foo Fighters album - but just one of several. Sonic Highways found Dave Grohl's band recording tracks in eight cities. While one cover sports a montage of landmark buildings and sites for each city, covers with artwork depicting scenes from each of the cities - Seattle (of course), Austin, Texas, New Orleans, Washington DC, Chicago, Nashville and New York. FooFighters.com
The Kings Of Leon drummer suffered broken ribs when the group's tour bus broke abruptly to avoid a pedestrian that the group's Facebook page claimed 'jumped' in front of their bus as it was on the way to a hotel following a Boston concert Saturday night (8/9). The sudden stop sent drummer Nathan Followill flying and landed him in an area hospital where he was being trated for broken ribs. The injury forced the band to cancel Sunday's scheduled show in Saratoga, New York and will do the same for other tour dates until further notice. Followill later tweeted, 'Thank you for all the get well soons. I'm a little banged up but will be back better than ever.'
Fans will ultimately decide whether Queensryche is better off without former singer Geoff Tate. But drummer Scott Rockenfield has no doubts that replacing Tate with Todd La Torre was a positive step for the band. Speaking with Pop Break, Rockenfield likened the change in chemistry within the group after Tate left to '...shaking off an illness.' He blamed the former vocalist for keeping the group from playing certain fan favorites during concerts and for a vibe that sent the Seattle group into, '...a dark place for a long time.' With the arrival of La Torre in 2012, Rockenfield says the band was able to '...kind of clean up the sickness that we had', and notes, '...morale just went through the roof' after the switch.
Just four days ahead of its first date, Bob Weir and Ratdog have announced the cancelation of the entire summer and fall tour. The abrupt announcement through the furthur Facebook page offered no explanation for the plug getting pulled other than to say 'Circumstances have necessitated', and 'We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience.' The wave of canceled concerts includes a scheduled appearance at the Peach Music Festival and, apparently, the group's visit to Jamaica, scheduled for January of next year. Health issues have dogged Weir in recent months. He disappeared from public view for several weeks in the spring of 2013 after collapsing on stage during a Furthur concert at the Capitol Theater in Portchester, NY (story) and just last month was a no-show for a Ratdog concert in Las Vegas that went on without him after refunds were offered for those wanting them. JamBase.com
Planes, Trains and Eric, a film documenting the 2014 tour of legendary guitarist Eric Clapton, will be released November 4 by Eagle Rock Entertainment. The behind the scenes look at what it's like to on the road with a major tour alternates between full length performances of a number tracks from EC's remarkable career and scenes shot during soundchecks rehearsals and travel. The fly-on-the-wall approach to shooting the off-stage footage captures the experience of taking part in a major tour in a way few documentaries have. The film also includes casual interview segments with Clapton and members of his exceptional band.
Possible cover art for the forthcoming 8th album by the Foo Fighters apparently showed-up on Reddit. The band has posted GPS coordinates through social media accounts evidently indicating the locations of recording sessions in the 8 cities the album's tracks were recorded at. The art work that could be the cover is a mash-up that includes landmark buildings or sites from each city. HenneMusic.com
It looks like Stevie Young, the nephew of ailing AC/DC rhythm guitarist Malcom Young, is a full fledged member of the hard Rockin' Down Under band. Jim Fink, author of The Youngs: The Brothers Who Built AC/DC, told Boston's WZLX that there appears to be no realistic reason to think that Malcolm will recover enough from the undisclosed illness he is suffering from to take his place beside Angus in the group, saying, 'We should all expect that Stevie is in the band now.' The group recently wrapped up recording sessions for it's first post-Malcolm era album and is expected to announce a world tour soon.
Singer Marianne Faithfull maintains that her drug dealing boyfriend was responsible for killing Doors front man Jim Morrison. Faithfull, who also had a relationship with Mick Jagger, says she almost went to Jim's Paris apartment with Jean de Breiteuil the night Morrison died but decided against going because she could '...intuitively feel trouble'. Speaking with Mojo, Faithfull said she doesn't believe he intended for Morrison to die. 'The smack was too strong', according to the singer. No autopsy was conducted after Morrison's body was found because a self-induced overdose was the conclusion of the investigators.
Jon Bon Jovi got Bufflao Bills fans riled-up when he aligned himself with a group of potential buyers of the NFL franchise that included partners assumed to have interest inmoving the team to Toronto. The backlash gained enough momentum that at least one Upstate radio station suggested that any move to relocate the team that involved Bon Jovi could result in his music being dropped by the station. 92.7FM TheDRIVE in Utica noted in a Facebook post that Jersey Jon would probably be on the front lines against any attempt to move the Giants or the Jets - teams that play their home games at the Meadowlands in NJ, so he should understand why fans of the only real New York team would object to his involvement in any attempt to move their team to Canada.
The prospect of a groundswell of protests over the issue prompted Jon to to take out a out a full page newspaper ad claiming that he wants the Bills to remain in Buffalo.
Drummer Jason Bonham's brief stint as a memeber of the band California Breed, the band fronted by Deep Purple veteran Glenn Hughes, is over. Bonham elected to join Sammy Hagar on tour and reportedly is planning to lay down the beat for Phil Collins as the former Genesis member prepares to emerge from retirement. Bonham wished his latest former band well, saying, 'I love those guys - but it wasn't going to work out for me.'
Geoff Tate's acrimonious departure from Queensryche triggered a series of allegations and a lawsuit between the band and its lead singer that got resolved in an out-of-court settlement that cleared the way for him to continue using the name of the band himself while the rest of the group did the same. Tate's Queensryche tour is winding down. His new band takes its name from a 1988 Queensryche album. Operation Mindcrime will enter the studio in the coming weeks to start work on a debut concept album. ClassicRockMagazine.com
Robert Plant suggested that the pressure to measure up to member and fan expectations is a factor making prospects for a Led Zeppelin reunion unlikely. Jimmy Page has laid the failure of the group to reunite on Plant's doorstep. Comments the lead singer made during an interview in Australia (below) made it sound as though a 2014 reunion was a realistic possibility. Page told the New York Times in May that Plant was '...just playing games, and I'm fed up with it, to be honest with you. I don't sing, so I can't do much about it.' HenneMusic.com
Johnny Depp is as at home on a concert stage as he is on a movie set. The frequent guest guitarist has made a number of appearances with Aerosmith. His most recent stint on stage with the Boston Rockers came this week when Depp jumped in on Big Ten Inch during Aerosmith's Wednesday (7/30) set at the Forum in LA. Depp also jammed with the boys on Train Kept 'A Rollin' in their home town during a July 16th concert.
World On Fire, the new album from Slash with Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators, drops September 16th. The former Guns N' Roses and Velvet Revolver guitarist will mark the occasion with a string of club concerts in the LA area. The group shake the Troubador (9/23), The Roxy (9/25) and the Whiskey A Go Go (9/26). The Roxy set will be recorded for a DirectTV special on November 9 (8pm Channel 239.
Fans of David Bowie in the US won't have to hop the pond to take in the David Bowie Is exhibit at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. 100 US theaters will screen a virtual visit to the exhibit starting on September 23. Those wanting to get the full experience can catch it when Bowie Is takes up residence at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art for a 3 month run. Radio.com
October 21 has been set as a release date for the first new album from Billy Idol in more than a decade. With the exception of a couple of tracks, Kings & Queens Of The Underground was produced by Trevor Horn. Idol will also publish a new book October 7 that takes its title from one of his biggest songs, Dancing With Myself. The album and book releases coincide with plans to hit the road. A tour of Europe kicks off in November.
A Def Leppard set will be an added attraction for UK NFL fans attending the September 28 game between the Oakland Raiders - Miami Dolphins at Wembley Stadium. Joe Elliot is psyched. The DL front man recently took in a Sheffield United FA Cup semi-final on the Wembley pitch and says, 'I know what the atmosphere in the ground is like for our football, so I'm really looking forward to performing there before the NFL game. of course, soaking up the excitement of the actual match. I can't wait!' CBS will carry the London game at 1pm (Eastern).
Bruce Springsteen conjures a pint-sized band robber named Outlaw Pete for a new children's book that will be published November 4. Bruce drew on the song of that title on his Working On A Dream album. Illustrations for the book are provided by Frank Caruso who credits Springsteen for writing that, '...cuts deep into the folklore of our country and weaves its way into the fabric of great American literary characters'', and says reading the book brought Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, Dorothy Gale and Popeye to mind for him. Springsteen has said that a 1950 children's book titled Brave Cowboy Bill had a role in inspiring the album with the song his new character sprang from.
Robert Plant says Jimmy Page is a 'superb talent' and adds he wishes his former guitarist would '...get on and do something' with it instead of spending time critcizing him. Plant is 'fed up' with Page badgering him through the media about Zeppelin reunion prospects. Plant prefers to focus on his new group and thinks his former band mate would do well to do the same, challenging Page to '...take off your trappings of 30 years of playing and step into this other world. You f&*k them out of the way and have a good time.'
We think often about Stevie Ray Vaughan in August. It was the month the guitar legend lost his life in the crash of a helicopter following a concert with Eric Clapton at Alpine Valley Amphitheatre in Wisconsin. Epic Records will release a comprehensive set of the studio and live recordings Vaughn recorded during his career spanning stretch with the label on October 28. The 12 disc set will include A Legend In The Making, a Double Trouble performance at the El Macombo Club in Toronto in the summer of 1983 that was only released to radio stations. Several other rare tracks are featured on two of the discs in the collection.
Saying he has '...never played better', AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd called the next AC/DC album '...pretty damn good' and says it is better than Black Ice, the group's last studio album. No release date or title has been set for what will the the Thunder From Down Under's first post Malcolm Young album. Rudd will have new work of his own available August 29 with the release of Head Job, an album he describes as 'All Phil, no filler' he recorded with Allan Badger and Geoffrey Martin.
The contentious relationship between Ray and Dave Davies has simmered and flared throughout their lives and even erupted on occasion on stage. It has also thwarted several attempts to reunite. Ray indicated during a recent conversation with Mojo that a Kinks 50th reunion tour will go on even if his brother elects not to participate. The Kinks Facebook page countered quickly with a post claiming, 'MOJO is wrong. There will be NO Kinks reunion tour without BOTH Ray and Dave Davies. Ray Davies claims to have never said this.'
Dusty Hill sustained a hip injury in a fall on a ZZ Top tour bus, forcing the Texas trio to drop a series of dates with Jeff Beck. Tour promoter Live Nation announced that the hip the bass player injured Tuesday 
Raise The Dead - Live From Wacken, a 22 song Alice Cooper concert captured in northern Germany in August of 2013, gets its US release in DVD and CD form on October 21. A foundation named for the city helps foster the development of emerging Hard Rock and Metal artists. A euro from the sale of every copy of the release in either format will be donated to the organization.
Rolling Stone has revealed that Neil Young filed for divorce on July 29th in a Marin County court. Married 36 years, Neil and Pegi Young have collaborated musically and together founded the Bridge School to provide improved educational opportunities for special needds children. A mid December hearing has been scheduled in the case that will apparently end one of Rock's longest unions.
R-Kive, a triple disc, 37 song compilation of Genesis material that will also include solo offerings from the group's former members gets released September 22. The chronologically sequenced set draws from all eras of the band's history.
Motorcyclists taking on the Cannonball Endurance Run from Daytona, Florida to Tacoma Washington in September will have a Rocker in their ranks. Patrick Simmons of the Doobie Brothers will straddle a 1929 Harley JD for the more than 4,000 mile trek. His wife, Cris, is onboard, too. She'll be only slightly less retro on her 1934 Harley. The couples son, Pat Jr., who finsihed in the top 20 of riders taking the first Cannonball vintage motorcycle challenge four years ago, was diagnosed with testicular cancer last year but has responded well to treatment. The couple is doing the ride to raise money for Stand Up To Cancer.
Mark David Chapman has been denied parole for the 8th time. The now 59 year-old who murdered John Lennon outside the builsing the former Beatle and Yoko Ono lived in will be eligible to reapply in two years. As it has in the past, the board considerg the application concluded Chapman's release would be '...incompatible with the welfare of society and would so deprecate the serious nature of the crime as to undermine respect for the law'.
John Mellencamp's 3 year romance with actress Meg Ryan is apparently over. US Magazine maintains that the Small Town Rocker and big city actress are no longer a couple. Mellencamp and the former wife of Dennis Quaid got together not long after Mellencamp ended an 18 year marriage to Elaine Irwin Mellencamp in 2001.
Drummer Joey Kramer of Aerosmith insists he's '....feeling better than ever and I'll be back sitting in the best seat in the house, hitting harder than ever for our amazing fans' after taking a night off for medical tests apparently related to a heart condition. Kramer's wife, Linda, took to Twitter to acknowledge that a recently cancelled Aerosmith performance was due to a heart complication Joey had but insisted it's minor and got blown, 'out of proportion' by the media. TMZ had posted a story indicating a band insider had informed them that Kramer was facing heart surgery.
Crispin Dye managed AC/DC during most of the 1980's. On a 1993 December night the 41 year-old was brutally beaten on a Sydney, Australia street following a night of revelry celebrating the release of a debut album of his own. Dye passed away in the hospital on Christmas day. Three young men were seen near the body by one witness, but they were never identified and the case has never been solved. Police are opening a new front on the investigation and have offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of whoever beat him that night. 
Aerosmith cancelled a Wednesday 
The stage of Fox Theatre in Atlanta has played host to plenty of great concerts, but few can compare to the lineup of musicians that will appear on it November 12. That's the date that a number of high-profile musicians will gather to salute Lynyrd Skynyrd on the stage the band performed a benefit for its theater on while recording the excellent double live 1976 release One More From The Road. The fall concert is being billed as One More For The Fans! Celebrating the Songs & Music of Lynyrd Skynyrd. The lineup already includes Gregg Allman, Peter Frampton, Cheap Trick, John Hiatt, Charlie Daniels, and Alabama. Producer Don Was has been recruited to put together the backing band that will back-up the special guests. Those not lucky enough to score tickets can look forward to an eventual DVD release of the concert.
The cover art we posted a few days ago is now confirmed as one that will appear on the new Foo Fighters album - but just one of several. Sonic Highways found Dave Grohl's band recording tracks in eight cities. While one cover sports a montage of landmark buildings and sites for each city, covers with artwork depicting scenes from each of the cities - Seattle (of course), Austin, Texas, New Orleans, Washington DC, Chicago, Nashville and New York.
The Kings Of Leon drummer suffered broken ribs when the group's tour bus broke abruptly to avoid a pedestrian that the group's Facebook page claimed 'jumped' in front of their bus as it was on the way to a hotel following a Boston concert Saturday night
Fans will ultimately decide whether Queensryche is better off without former singer Geoff Tate. But drummer Scott Rockenfield has no doubts that replacing Tate with Todd La Torre was a positive step for the band. Speaking with Pop Break, Rockenfield likened the change in chemistry within the group after Tate left to '...shaking off an illness.' He blamed the former vocalist for keeping the group from playing certain fan favorites during concerts and for a vibe that sent the Seattle group into, '...a dark place for a long time.' With the arrival of La Torre in 2012, Rockenfield says the band was able to '...kind of clean up the sickness that we had', and notes, '...morale just went through the roof' after the switch.
Just four days ahead of its first date, Bob Weir and Ratdog have announced the cancelation of the entire summer and fall tour. The abrupt announcement through the furthur Facebook page offered no explanation for the plug getting pulled other than to say 'Circumstances have necessitated', and 'We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience.' The wave of canceled concerts includes a scheduled appearance at the Peach Music Festival and, apparently, the group's visit to Jamaica, scheduled for January of next year. Health issues have dogged Weir in recent months. He disappeared from public view for several weeks in the spring of 2013 after collapsing on stage during a Furthur concert at the Capitol Theater in Portchester, NY 
Planes, Trains and Eric, a film documenting the 2014 tour of legendary guitarist Eric Clapton, will be released November 4 by Eagle Rock Entertainment. The behind the scenes look at what it's like to on the road with a major tour alternates between full length performances of a number tracks from EC's remarkable career and scenes shot during soundchecks rehearsals and travel. The fly-on-the-wall approach to shooting the off-stage footage captures the experience of taking part in a major tour in a way few documentaries have. The film also includes casual interview segments with Clapton and members of his exceptional band.
Singer Marianne Faithfull maintains that her drug dealing boyfriend was responsible for killing Doors front man Jim Morrison. Faithfull, who also had a relationship with Mick Jagger, says she almost went to Jim's Paris apartment with Jean de Breiteuil the night Morrison died but decided against going because she could '...intuitively feel trouble'. Speaking with Mojo, Faithfull said she doesn't believe he intended for Morrison to die. 'The smack was too strong', according to the singer. No autopsy was conducted after Morrison's body was found because a self-induced overdose was the conclusion of the investigators.
Jon Bon Jovi got Bufflao Bills fans riled-up when he aligned himself with a group of potential buyers of the NFL franchise that included partners assumed to have interest inmoving the team to Toronto. The backlash gained enough momentum that at least one Upstate radio station suggested that any move to relocate the team that involved Bon Jovi could result in his music being dropped by the station. 92.7FM TheDRIVE in Utica noted in a Facebook post that Jersey Jon would probably be on the front lines against any attempt to move the Giants or the Jets - teams that play their home games at the Meadowlands in NJ, so he should understand why fans of the only real New York team would object to his involvement in any attempt to move their team to Canada. 
Geoff Tate's acrimonious departure from Queensryche triggered a series of allegations and a lawsuit between the band and its lead singer that got resolved in an out-of-court settlement that cleared the way for him to continue using the name of the band himself while the rest of the group did the same. Tate's Queensryche tour is winding down. His new band takes its name from a 1988 Queensryche album. Operation Mindcrime will enter the studio in the coming weeks to start work on a debut concept album.
