Classic Rock March 2019

WELCOME The lore of rock’n’roll dictates that some (most?) rules are meant to be broken. And this month we’re breaking the law of chronology to present to you the fourth in our series (following the 70s, 80s and 90s) of Real Greatest Albums Of The Decade special issues by going back to the beginning and revisiting the 60s, the decade when rock’n’roll really came into its own. And this is where, as ever, we ran into trouble. Think about it. This was the decade that gave us near as dammit the entire Beatles canon (apart from Let It Be), the Rolling Stones’ Their Satanic Majesties Request, Beggars Banquet and more. The decade in which The Who announced their bombastic arrival, Led Zeppelin managed to unleash their first two albums within…

This month’s contributors JO KENDALL Lover of moustaches, pipes and difficult time signatures, Prog magazine’s albums editor and Classic Rock columnist Jo revisits her time as promoter for fêted 60s-influenced club night Blow Up with some entries in our cover feature, delighting especially in old favourite Book Of Taliesyn by her beloved mod-proggers Deep Purple. HUGH FIELDER Hugh Fielder (seen here in 1967 after failing the audition for Dave Dee Dozy Beaky Mick & Tich) has more than three quarters of our Real Classic Albums Of The 60s list either on CD or the original battered vinyl – some he’s even got on both. He still can’t hear The Kinks on Live At Kelvin Hall on either format. KRIS NEEDS Now facing his seventh year as a Classic Rock contributor,…

INSIDE THE WORLD OF ROCK the DiRT Who’s Next (And Maybe Final) As Townshend and Daltrey break silence on new Who album, we preview 10 more new releases we’re looking forward to this year. THE WHO: GETTY; BLACKSTAR RIDERS/ACDC: FUTURE PUBLISHING FOR MORE NEWS: WWW.CLASSICROCKMAGAZINE.COM THE WHO ARE in the studio working on their twelfth studio album, the follow-up to Endless Wire released in 2006, which included a 10-part mini-opera. Of the new record’s direction, guitarist and writer Pete Townshend says to expect “dark ballads, heavy rock stuff, experimental electronica, sampled stuff and Who-ish tunes that begin with a guitar that goes ‘yanga-dang’”. Townshend also admitted to Rolling Stone that Roger Daltrey took some time to come around to the new material, the frontman having voiced reservations over the guitarist’s…

the DiRT RIP Thank you and good night. Eric Haydock February 3, 1943 – January 5, 2019 Bobby Elliott, drummer of The Hollies, has paid tribute to the Mancunian group’s co-founding bassist, who died peacefully at his home, aged 75. Although Eric Haydock ended a fouryear stay in 1966 following a dispute over management fees, Elliott rated his former rhythm section partner – one of the first Brits to use a six-string instrument – as being “among the finest bass players on the planet”. Dean Ford September 5, 1946 – December 31, 2018 Born Thomas McAleese, Ford was the frontman of the Scottish guitar-pop group Marmalade from 1966 to 1974, co-writing their biggest hit, Reflections Of My Life. Post-Marmalade he issued a self-titled solo album produced by Alan Parsons. A…

NEWS Woodstock festival co-founder Michael Lang says the festival will return in August to mark its 50th anniversary. Forty acts are lined up for the event at the Watkins Glen International Raceway in New York, including some who appeared at the original Woodstock in 1969, which drew more than 400,000 people. Don’t expect The Who to be among them, though. “You can’t redo Woodstock, because the stars of Woodstock were the audience,” says Roger Daltrey. Gig For Gary, a tribute concert in honour of the late Gary Moore, takes place at Belfast’s Empire Music Hall on April 12, with proceeds going towards a memorial statue of the much-loved guitarist/vocalist who passed away in 2011. The bill includes the Eric Bell Trio, Gerry Quigley & The Durty Blues Band, Patricia Moore…

Ray Sawyer February 1, 1937 – December 31, 2018 JAMES HETFIELD: GETTY/RAY SAWYER: GETTY THE CHARISMATIC BACKING vocalist and percussionist with Dr Hook & The Medicine Show died peacefully in his sleep on New Year’s Eve, aged 81. Rarely seen without his trademark cowboy hat, Sawyer also sported a patch after losing an eye in a near-fatal car accident. Though he was not responsible for fronting the countrified soft rockers – a role that fell to band-mate Dennis Locorriere – his strong visual appearance made him a focal point. However, Sawyer was responsible for singing one of the group’s most famous tunes, 1972’s Cover Of The Rolling Stone. Born in Chickasaw, Alabama, Sawyer co-founded Dr Hook & The Medicine Show in 1968, working up a riotous, zany act in the…