Innehållsförteckning för January 2021 från Classic Rock

WELCOME Welcome to the final issue of 2020. What a year it’s been, eh? When I was writing a similar editorial this time 12 months ago there was no way I (or anyone else for that matter!) could have predicted how 2020 would pan out. It’s the understatement of the century to say that it’s thrown everyone for a loop. Over the page we turn the spotlight on that in relation to the world of rock. But the more things change, the more things stay the same (thankfully). So it’s time for our annual look at what went down in rock over the past 12 months – the new albums and songs that got us excited, the reissues that put the spotlight on old favourites, and much more. We caught…

Wolfie Slams Van Halen Rumour “This is a shitty lie,” Eddie's son says about taking dad's place. WOLFGANG VAN HALEN has shot down rumours that he plans be the lead guitarist in a rebooted Van Halen, dismissing such speculation as “a shitty lie attempting to capitalise on these awful times”. It has been suggested that the 29-year-old, who from 2006 played bass with the band in place of Michael Anthony, would step up and be their guitarist, alongside a returning Anthony, Sammy Hagar and Alex Van Halen. It has even been claimed that Eddie Van Halen had given his blessing to the new line-up prior to his death. Wolfgang’s response “please stop with this” was followed by: “Anyone peddling this shit is not only hurting the fans, but hurting me…

2020 THE YEAR IN ROCK STONE TEMPLE PILOTS With the electric guitars spending most of the recording sessions in their cases, the band crafted a mostly light-touch acoustic album that could well come to be seen as being among their best. Words: Grant Moon “Perdida is the kind of record I’ve always wanted to make,” says Jeff Gutt, who’s now three years and two albums into his tenure as Stone Temple Pilots’s lead vocalist. “You’re on the road for so long and you’ve got all these loud amplifiers and drums… then you kinda want to just sit back and write a song by the fire. It’s good to take a deep breath and put out something beautiful.” Perhaps unfairly, ‘beautiful’ isn’t the first word that comes to mind when picturing…

2020 THE YEAR IN ROCK METALLICA Drummer Lars Ulrich on lockdown, missing live music, and what the future holds for his band. Words: Paul Elliott Photo: Ross Halfin This year, like every other band Metallica have been off the road. Lars Ulrich tells Classic Rock that in all that downtime he’s kept up his chops by playing along to their last record, Hardwired… To Self Destruct. “Another record I’ve played along to is Rage Against The Machine, that first album [’92],” he says.“That has been the soundtrack to this pandemic for me. I’m just blasting those songs, and they sound more relevant and more contemporary than they ever have.” At least you have an outlet for all that frustration. Ha ha. That’s right. And I guess Rage Against The Machine…

2020 THE YEAR IN ROCK STRANGER DAYS Clouds and silver linings… No one wanted a pandemic to come along and tip 2020 on its head. But without the lockdown we were forced into as a result, The Struts’ new album would not exist. Words: Polly Glass BETH SARAVO/PRESS The sun is setting in Los Angeles one evening in early May. The Struts have just finished making their new album – effectively from scratch, in just 10 days – and Luke Spiller is motorbiking out to Joshua Tree National Park. “I remember riding and thinking: ‘Oh my god’,” the singer says. “I literally couldn’t fathom the amount of work and material that had been accumulated and recorded to such a high standard. It was kind of mind-blowing. But it all sunk…

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2020 THE YEAR IN ROCK SALE OF THE YEAR While Chrissie Hynde has been involved in other projects, she’s always had The Pretenders. And with 2020’s Hate For Sale they returned to guitar-based rock’n’roll and came back with a bang. Words: Dave Steinfeld There’s never been anyone in rock’n’roll quite like Chrissie Hynde. Of course, there were women who rocked before she arrived on the scene 40-odd years ago, such as Wanda Jackson, Heart’s Wilson sisters and Patti Smith. But Hynde sort of synthesised the influences of all those women into something new, and topped it off with great songwriting chops and her distinct vocals. Still, Hynde might baulk at the gender reference. “My role models were musicians,” she tells me. “You know, my role model might have been Jeff…

REMEMBERING PETE The late UFO bass player is celebrated in a brand new photo book. Strangers In The Night is proof that UFO were, and are, one of rock’s ultimate live bands. And Pete Way was their maverick heartbeat. Now, in a new book by music photographer Ross Halfin, Way has been captured in vivid, evocative definition. Across 240 pages, Pete Way by Ross Halfin charts the life and legacy of the UFO bassist, with classic and previously unseen photos taken by Halfin, complemented by exclusive new insights and memories (compiled by journalist/author Mark Blake) from Way’s old bandmates, as well as Ozzy Osbourne, Geddy Lee, Joe Elliott, Slash and Steve Harris to name a few. From iconic live shots to backstage snaps, it’s an energetic, commanding portrait. “Of all…

THE YEAR IN ROCK THE ULTIMATE PLAYLIST OF 2020 Looking for the perfect soundtrack to accompany your Christmas and New Year festivities? Then start with Classic Rock’s selection. Words: Henry Yates, Polly Glass, Siân Llewellyn ICONS & A-LISTERS Big hitters from rock’s big cheeses. AC/DC In an unsettling world, the return of AC/DC felt like an arm around the shoulder. Nobody wanted curve balls, and Realize broke negligible new ground, sticking with the stomp-’n’-chant template and a vintage shriek from Brian Johnson. DEEP PURPLE No Need To Shout Ian Gillan has never sounded snarkier than on this “broad pop at politicians”, and the music seethed too, with Steve Morse driving a snakey riff that you couldn’t believe Jimmy Page hadn’t already written. PEARL JAM Dance Of The Clairvoyants ‘Save your…

THE HARD STUFF ALBUMS Neil Young & Crazy Horse Return To Greendale WARNERS Fan-polarising album recorded live in 2003, also as deluxe box set with documentary. This considerably weighty set has attained near-mythical status among Neil Young fans. Some love it, some hate it. Not sure why anyone would want to do the latter; the subject matter may deviate a little from the usual Young template, but the songs all carry the same clout and passion you’d expect. Greendale was a highly ambitious project: originally a studio album recorded with Crazy Horse, a tour, a film, a book and a graphic novel from DC Comics imprint Vertigo, conceptualised to recount the story of the Green family, who for generations have lived in the fictional California seaside town of Greendale. In…

BEST OF THE REST Other new releases out this month. Ruff Majik The Devil’s Cattle MONGREL Immense sleaze-groove grinds predominate on this compelling debut from South African mondo bizarro desert rockniks Ruff Majik. Grimy, gritty, relentless, yet morbidly, darkly attractive. 8/10 Nick Faber The Lost Highway Tapes FABYL An intoxicating melange of blues, funk, soul, breakbeats and dusty roadside busker chic. Soundscapes rich in humanity and hard-won experience. Americana with a progressive contemporary edge. 7/10 Robin Trower, Maxi Priest, Livingstone Brown United State Of Mind MANHATON The common ground found by soulful reggae vocalist Priest and rock journeyman Trower (Brown produces) proves richly fertile. USM combines Marvin R&B, Jimi tones and subtley funky blues to excellent effect. 7/10 White Hills Splintered Metal Skies GODUNKNOWN Dystopian NYC refracted through an electro-fuzz…

BEST OF THE REST Other reissues out this month. Pylon Pylon Box NEW WEST Dealing in stripped, dissonant mutant dance music, Pylon recall early Joy Division, PiL and an edgier B-52’s. These four coloured vinyls boast 18 unreleased gems and come boxed with a handsome hardback. 7/10 Various Southend Punk Rock History 1976-1986 ANGELS IN EXILE With echoes of Canvey R&B in their bones, Sarfend stalwart Steve Hooker and Alison Moyet (Sioux-ing it up with The Vicars) shine brightest here, before successive Punk ‘n’ Disorderly also-rans offer diminishing returns. 6/10 Iggy And The Stooges You Think You’re Bad, Man? The Road Tapes ’73-’74 CHERRY RED Five feral, bootleg-quality live shows from the post-Raw Power Stooges’ final touring throes boxed for hard-core fans. That said, rock scholars need to hear disc…

The Bronx/Mariachi El Bronx Halloween Dead Stream LA hardcore punks and their Mexican alter egos share a virtual stage for the first time. Trick or treat? We venture into cyberspace on Halloween, keenly anticipating the latter from the livestreamed show by The Bronx and their Mariachi alter egos. But the advertised 1am UK start is wrong – they forgot about our clocks going back, and by the time we tune in the show’s already over! No biggie – it’s immediately ready to view on demand – but it adds to the sense that you have to suspend your disbelief in order to fully buy into this as a ‘live’ show. It’s also pre-recorded, allowing The Bronx to make this a first-ever show alongside their Mexican-styled counterparts Mariachi El Bronx, trading…

REVIEWS Frank Carter And The Rattlesnakes London Brixton Academy Punk rock ramalama meets Tron. “Oh my God! I am so excited!” Not for the first time tonight, Frank Carter can barely contain his elation. And who can blame him? This, after all, is precisely the kind of band for whom live gigs are every bit as essential as breathing and eating. Never ones for staring at their shoes or considering their next poses, The Rattlesnakes detonate their first show in nine months. Not that you’d have guessed they’d been away that long. Such is their firepower that it feels like the ninth date of an extended tour. But while the band are blowing up a storm, the delivery platform isn’t without its hitches. Fans watching via virtual-reality headsets get a…

This month’s contributors MICHAEL HANN Michael has spent most of 2020 interviewing the musicians of the NWOBHM for a forthcoming book. He can now speak at length about homemade pyro disasters, satanic rituals on Stanton Moor, and the time Angel Witch played an East German variety show. This issue he looks back on UFO’s live classic Strangers In The Night (page 64). DAVE STEINFELD Dave has been writing about music for the past 20 years, and has interviewed everyone from Andy Williams to Alice Cooper, from Norah Jones to Ne-Yo, from Patti Smith to Curt Smith. He has written for all the major American radio networks and is on the voting body of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Dave is thrilled to be making his CR debut with…

Ken Hensley August 24, 1945 – November 4, 2020 The original keyboard player and second guitarist with Uriah Heep has died unexpectedly at the age of 75 following a short illness. During a ten-year stay, Ken Hensley wrote many of Heep’s signature songs, including Easy Livin’, Lady In Black, Stealin’, Sunrise and Wise Man. In a career that spanned six decades, he also played with The Gods, Toe Fat, Blackfoot, W.A.S.P. and Cinderella, among others, and also had solo projects and his own band Live Fire. He was born Kenneth William David Hensley in the south-east London suburb of Plumstead, and the family moved to Stevenage in Hertfordshire shortly afterwards. He first picked up a guitar at the age of 12. After spells with several prototype groups, he formed The…

the DIRT HIGH HOPES Ego Kill Talent These Brazilian alt.rockers are defying their nightmare year, with big riffs and much tequila. “In this band it’s really about the live performance. That’s how we deliver the message.” IF YOU THINK the pandemic has scuppered your plans, spare a thought for Ego Kill Talent. “We were supposed to be on a stadium tour of South America with Metallica,” guitarist/bassist Theo Van Der Loo sighs, “then supporting System Of A Down in Europe. We also had dates with the Foo Fighters, and Faith No More in the UK. The album was meant to be out in May, our first international release with a big label behind us. We couldn’t do any of it. It’s so frustrating.” Many a lesser band would have thrown…

TOP 5 PROG ALBUMS Words: Jo Kendall 1 DYBLE LONGDON Between A Breath And A Breath ENGLISH ELECTRIC/PLANE GROOVY This clever, charming, sometimes quirky collection was sadly to be ex-Fairport Convention vocalist Judy Dyble’s last record (paired with Big Big Train’s David Longdon). Gorgeous arrangements and personal stories were set off by the stunning vocal affinity between two friends. 2 MOTORPSYCHO The All Is One STICKMAN/RUNE GRAMMOFON 3 ENSLAVED Utgård NUCLEAR BLAST 4 AMY BIRKS All That I Am And All That I Was MAB 5 KAVUS TORABI Hip To The Jag BELIEVERS ROAST…

2020 THE YEAR IN ROCK TOP 5 COUNTRY ALBUMS 1 LUCINDA WILLIAMS Good Souls, Better Angels HIGHWAY 20 / THIRTY TIGERS Good Souls, Better Angels HIGHWAY 20 / THIRTY TIGERS Lucinda Williams only seems to improve with age. The 63-year-old’s follow-up proper to 2016’s terrific The Ghosts Of Highway 20 was no less impressive than that album, driven by an intensity that never lets up. The songs veered from withering social and political critique to candid autobiography, set to primal electric blues, country and splenetic rock. 2 ELIZABETH COOK Aftermath AGENT LOVE/THIRTY TIGERS 3 STURGILL SIMPSON Cutting Grass Vol.1 – The Butcher Shoppe Sessions HIGH TOP MOUNTAIN 4 JERRY JOSEPH The Beautiful Madness DÉCOR 5 LILLY HIATT Walking Proof NEW WEST…

THE YEAR IN ROCK "THERE CAN COME A STRANGE BEAUTY OUT OF IT ALL" After spending the last four decades immersed in music, Fish is calling time. But with his farewell album, the prog legend is signing off with the best record of his solo career. Words: Mick Wall Portrait: Stuart Wood Illness, old age, death, war. They don’t sound like the most promising ingredients for making what turned out to be one of the most uplifting albums of the year. But that’s what Fish has done on his new – and, he says, final ever – album, Weltschmerz (literal translation from German: ‘world pain’, generally: world-weary). There’s a lot to unpack here but let’s start with the concept behind Weltschmerz. Ostensibly a double album – two CDs comprising 10…

2020 THE YEAR IN ROCK TOP REISSUES OF 2020 With a stack of major anniversaries and desirable compilations coming out this year we were spoiled for choice. Here are some definitely worth the investment. BLACK SABBATH Paranoid Super Deluxe BMG What we said: “Fiftieth-anniversary five-LP/four-CD edition of a metal landmark, expanded with live recordings. This was never a band relying solely on bludgeoning riffs and Beelzebub. Contrary to stereotype, Sabbath always displayed intriguing prog tendencies and an ear for the atmospheric… The August 1970 Casino De Montreux performance begins with the sound of feedback and of nails being hammered, presumably into the stage. The filthy fuzz of Tony Iommi’s riffs is a visceral joy.” MOTÖRHEAD Ace Of Spades (Deluxe Box) BMG What we said: “This 40th-anniversary reissue of Motörhead’s seminal…

THE YEAR IN ROCK WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES As Diamond Head celebrate the 40th anniversary of their debut album Lightning To The Nations, guitarist Brian Tatler and long-time fan Lars Ulrich catch up over Zoom. Words: Dave Ling It’s July 10, 1981, and Diamond Head are at the Woolwich Odeon in South London, wrapping up a 19-date UK tour promoting the previous year’s debut album Lightning To The Nations. Like their record, the tour was self-financed by the group and their management. Lighting had received ecstatic reviews, but, tellingly, while Iron Maiden, Saxon and Def Leppard had taken vital steps forwards by securing record contracts, the Stourbridge-based four-piece wouldn’t be signed to MCA until the following year. Among the audience in Woolwich was a Danish teenager called Lars Ulrich, who had…

Neil Young Archives Volume II: 1972-1976 REPRISE Ten CDs, 139 songs, one very singular artist. Ask 10 Neil Young mavens to identify the golden years and you’ll get 10 very different answers. However, few would argue that the period encompassing the live Time Fades Away (’73), On The Beach (’74) and the ’75 pair Tonight’s The Night and Zuma is among his finest. The unreleased Homegrown and Young’s work with the Stills/Young Band and Crosby, Stills & Nash enhance the picture further. Eleven years after Volume 1, Archives Volume II is built around the four Young albums, with Homegrown, Roxy: Tonight’s The Night Live and Tuscaloosa here in their entirety. There are 10 previously unheard songs. Of those we already know, there are 19 “unreleased” versions; 13 “unreleased original” versions,…

Wednesday 13’s Halloween Spooktakular Variety Show Los Angeles Whisky A Go Go Wednesday hams it up while he and his band deliver a five-song set with plenty of variety but little finesse. The pandemic has made fools of us all, but what to do when even your spooky schtick is taken away from you? For those not familiar with Wednesday 13’s music, his work with the Murderdolls and as a solo artist are two reflections in what must be a very black mirror indeed. For this livestream, Wednesday and his band perform five songs, including the rather good Screwdriver, which is actually a tune by yet another of Wednesday’s bands, Frankenstein Drag Queens From Planet 13. All of this is played out in the emptiness of legendary Hollywood venue the…

The Howling Fiends Chelmsford Hot Box The twang’s the thang. Clearly, recreating the gig experience in these troubled times is no mean feat. Gazing into your phone as microscopic speakers tinnily distort is no substitute for ecstatically sloshing around in the multifarious bodily fluids of your closely-packed peers as an up-close PA cacophonously pulverises your viscera. So venues have had to get inventive to survive. The folks at snug space Hot Box have refused to fold and have instead set up cameras to regularly livestream shows played before a skeleton crew. And it works. Performances enjoy an after-life; low-profile, no-budget bands can spread their word for next to nothing and reach a global audience with a relatively pro-shot show that far exceeds the limitations of fan-shot YouTube clips. More venues…

the DIRT TEARS IN MY EYES THE STARS PAY TRIBUTE “Uriah Heep toured with us in the 1970s. We were thrilled to have them share the stage with us – a classic British powerhouse with a slew of killer songs and soaring harmonies. Ken was a huge part of their success and a true rock star.”Paul Stanley, Kiss “I was very sorry to hear the news about my friend Ken Hensley. He was a prince of a guy, a great musician and his contribution to the early years of Uriah Heep is immeasurable.”Eric Bloom, Blue Öyster Cult “Ken was more than just a great songwriter. He had the meanest Hammond sound ever! He made that instrument roar like a beast! He wrote so many songs that feel like they’ve become…

THE STORIES BEHIND THE SONGS Jimi Hendrix Dolly Dagger How London’s famous clock tower and Jimi’s main groupie inspired his last great song. Words: Bill DeMain Early one morning in August 1969, bassist Billy Cox was sitting on the patio of the house in upstate New York that he was sharing with Jimi Hendrix and drummer Mitch Mitchell. Looking out at the cows grazing in the nearby pasture, Cox thumbed a four-note pattern over and over through his amp. “I’d put some new strings on, and I’m playing ‘doodoo-dum-dum’ – the chime of Big Ben,” Cox tells Classic Rock. “Jimi’s room was right above, and the window flew open. He said: ‘Hold it! Keep playing that, don’t stop!’ He comes down in his undershorts and grabs his guitar, then he…

OUT OF AFRICA Optisme came into 2020 like a clear-eyed breath of fresh air. But who are the Malian rockers behind it? Words: Polly Glass Formed in Bamako, Mali in 2012, in the aftermath of civil conflict, Songhoy Blues know the essential powers of music more deeply than most. Having been exiled from the north of the country by a regime that, among other things, banned music, they started the band with a view to “recreate that lost ambience of the north and make all the refugees relive those northern songs”. “Our audience in the beginning was mainly made up of refugees from the north,” band member Aliou Touré told The Blues magazine in 2015. “All the different ethnic groups were there – Songhoy, Tuareg – and they were all…

2020 THE YEAR IN ROCK TOP 5 BLUES ALBUMS Words: Henry Yates 1 STEPHEN DALE PETIT 2020 Visions 333 Petit has been nudging greatness for years, and 2020 Visions is his masterpiece. The Anglo-American guitarist’s touch made you shiver on more traditional moments like The Ending Of The End, but it’s his explorations that resonate, with The Fall Of America’s throb-and-churn dystopia blues as ambitious as anything you’ll hear this year. 2 WALTER TROUT Ordinary Madness MASCOT/PROVOGUE 3 JAMES HUNTER SIX Nick Of Time DAPTONE 4 WHEN RIVERS MEET We Fly Free ONE ROAD 5 WATERMELON SLIM Traveling Man NORTHERN BLUES…

TOP 5 AOR ALBUMS Words: Dave Ling 1 VEGA Grit Your Teeth FRONTIERS They’re still no closer to their previously stated goal of Classic Rock cover artist status, but British band Vega get better and better. Album number five ramps up the heaviness just a little, although they continue to weld unashamedly poppy nuances to their framework of gargantuan melodic hooks and blistering guitar shredding. 2 LIONHEART The Reality Of Miracles METALVILLE 3 PERFECT PLAN Time For A Miracle FRONTIERS 4 ONE DESIRE Midnight Empire FRONTIERS 5 NEWMAN Ignition AOR HEAVEN…

THE YEAR IN ROCK DANGER: HIGH VOLTAGE It looked like it was all over for AC/DC after their last tour. But the best hard rock’n’roll band in the world don’t quit that easily. And back they’ve come, with the best album of 2020: Power Up. Words: Paul Elliott AC/DC’s new album Power Up is dedicated to the late Malcolm Young, the band’s former guitarist, and comprises 12 tracks that he wrote years ago with his guitarist brother Angus. The album also marks the return to the band of singer Brian Johnson, bassist Cliff Williams and drummer Phil Rudd, while Stevie Young, Angus’s nephew, continues as rhythm guitarist in place of Malcolm. Power Up is the biggest album of 2020, and here Angus and Brian explain how it happened. 2020 has…

My 2020 KEITH RICHARDS Like everyone else, his year has been dictated by you know what. And while he’s behind on his reading, he’s still found time to “sit around writing songs, basically, or parts of songs”. Interview: Ian Fortnam SHUTTERSTOCK It’s doubtful that there’s any single individual in the rock firmament more deserving of the accolade ‘needs no introduction’ than Keith Richards. In living the ‘Human Riff’ legend for almost 60 years, the Rolling Stones guitarist has attained near-mythic status. But coronavirus has no respect for reputation, so Keith’s in lockdown too. Cheerfully resigned to ‘hunkering down’ in his Connecticut bubble for the duration, Keith’s his usual effusive self, whether looking back on ‘solo’ years fronting the X-Pensive Winos or looking forward to a return to so-called ‘normal’. Did…

Manowar Black Wind, Fire & Steel: The Atlantic Albums (1987-1992) CHERRY RED The true metallers’ three albums for Atlantic. This three-album set covers the mid-period of Manowar’s career, between their indielabel beginnings and their later retreat to their own label. A bare-bones reissue, with no extra tracks or sleeve notes, it represents the best of this unique band, even when we take one majorly indulgent misstep into account. Manowar’s fifth album, 1987’s Fighting The World, is a delightfully vulgar display of power. Notably lean and mean, with a turbo-boosted production compared to previous records, it wallops your chops with such OTT highlights as the typically chest-beating Fighting The World and the blistering Black Wind, Fire And Steel. It also features the panoramic Defender, distinguished by narration from Orson Welles. The…

REVIEWS Black Stone Cherry Live From The Sky Even with no audience the Kentucky rockers give it all they’ve got. Black Stone Cherry don’t know how to perform live at anything other than full throttle. And they prove that when they play this livestreamed show from Bowling Green, Kentucky. Despite the inevitable restrictions imposed by the current situation, due to which they’re playing to a virtually empty venue, this band are a joy. Their energy and passion shine through in a set-list aimed at highlighting their new album The Human Condition. In fact they open up with a new song, Again, setting a dynamic pace for the 16-song set, and the momentum barely lets up as they dive into the more familiar strains of Me And Mary Jane and Blind…

These Wicked Rivers Maidenhead Denmark Street Studios Rivers reduced to stream prove they have plenty to offer. With the nationwide venue closures having poleaxed a British tour alongside Ryders Creed back in the spring, These Wicked Rivers use an empty Denmark Street Studios in Maidenhead to belatedly ignite the promotion of their critically acclaimed debut album, Eden. These audience-free performances are often soulless affairs, and while any rare gaps between songs do sound a little awkward, the band have sufficient energy and oomph to fill the void. Combining the emotive grit of southern rock with a sludgy bottom end, openers Shine On and Evergreen quickly set the tone for the night. These two songs and others such as Floyd and Won’t Be Broken are founded on generous hook-lines, while the…

The Soundtrack Of My Life Singer/guitarist George Thorogood on the records, artists and gigs that are of lasting significance to him. Interview: David Sinclair “Brian Jones was the first time I ever heard or saw anybody play slide guitar.” Bad To The Bone rocker George Thorogood has been ripping up stages around the world since the mid-70s with his aptly named band the Destroyers. With more than 8,000 kick-ass gigs and 15 million album sales on the clock since he started the group in Wilmington, Delaware with Jeff Simon (drums) and Billy Blough (bass), Thorogood has played everywhere, from the funkiest roadhouse bars to Live Aid in Philadelphia and stadium shows with the Rolling Stones. He has just released a full-show deluxe version of his classic album Live in Boston,…