As I type this, it seems that the summer has finally arrived in the UK. The rain has stopped, the sun is shining..
. Well, for a day or two at least. All that being said, the dismal British weather hasn’t dampened the joie de vivre of the festival and summer gig season as our rock heroes roll in and out of town and into Europe and beyond.
And it shows – our live reviews section this month is an absolute monster, proving that high-voltage rock’n’roll is in a hale and hearty state. There was the triumphant return of AC/DC, Stevie Nicks back in Hyde Park, ZZ Top, Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam and more besides..
. We caught Metallica delivering the goods in Norway, Smashing Pumpkins smashing it in Portugal. It’s been quite the month.
This issue we also celebrate some big album anniversaries: 50 years of Aerosmith’s mighty , 25 years of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ monster hit , and more. And we pay tribute to John Mayall, the ‘Godfather Of British Blues’ who sadly passed away in July. Until next month.
.. With their label ready to drop them after a so-so first album, they clung on, dreamed on, dug in and recorded a second, , that gave them lift-off.
We look back at the life and music of the Godfather of British blues, who passed away in July aged 90. The Def Leppard frontman on the upcoming US tour, not selling out, guest appearances, retirement, the next album and more. Twenty-five years ago, with the album they were on top of the world.
But it was the calm before the storm. Having permanently grounded UFO, he looks back at the band he’s led and fronted for more than 50 years, and forward to his new project Moggs Hotel. Their first UK gig was at small pub, now they headline London’s Royal Albert Hall.
It’s been an eventful few years. By the mid-90s there were signs that they were unravelling. Then they recorded their masterpiece album: .
Eight albums in, and with a book and documentary about them in the works, shape-shifting rock’n’roll brothers Redd Kross are gearing up to take the next step up the ladder. Rory Gallagher’s iconic Strat to go on sale; The Record Plant studio to close after 55 years; AC/DC’s album sets new sales record. Welcome back Fastball and X.
Say hello to Bywater Call and Bones Owens. Say goodbye to John Mayall, Peter Collins, Joe Egan, Jerry Miller. Written by Floyd co-founder Syd Barrett, gave the then feet-finding band their first UK Top 10 single.
They’re a family affair, successful entrepreneurs...
Music might be their first love, but it won’t be their last. We look at some of the essential new tracks you need to hear and the artists to have on your radar. This month they include Massive Wagons, Bones UK, Tuk Smith & The Restless Hearts, The Virginmarys, Southern River Band and more.
New albums from David Gilmour, Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds, The Jesus Lizard, The Quireboys, Nick Lowe, The Dead Daisies, Geese, Fastball and more. Reissues from Thunder, Hawkwind, Dio, Creed, Ten Years After, David Bowie, Fish, Ian Anderson, Fanny, Pete Townshend and more. DVDs, films and books on AC/DC, Foo Fighters, ZZ Top, Stevie Nicks, Manic Street Preachers, Judas Priest, Pearl Jam, Metallica and more.
We preview tours by Blackberry Smoke, Armored Saint and Brave Rival. Plus gig listings – who’s playing where and when. British blues-rock guitar-slinger Joanne Shaw Taylor picks her records, artists and gigs of lasting significance.
* Copies of the new issue of can be purchased online * is on sale in the UK in shops . * In North America, is available is branches of Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million, although new issues do not go on sale until a couple of weeks after they're published in The UK. * An easy option is to go digital.
year. Individual issues and subscriptions are also from the , , , and . * Save money by buying a physical subscription.
. Classic Rock editor Siân has worked on the magazine for longer than she cares to discuss, and prior to that was deputy editor of Total Guitar. During that time, she’s had the chance to interview artists such as Brian May, Slash, Jeff Beck, James Hetfield, Sammy Hagar, Alice Cooper, Manic Street Preachers and countless more.
She has hosted The Classic Rock Magazine Show on both TotalRock and TeamRock radio, contributed to CR’s The 20 Million Club podcast and has also had bylines in Metal Hammer, Guitarist, Total Film, Cult TV and more. When not listening to, playing, thinking or writing about music, she can be found getting increasingly more depressed about the state of the Welsh national rugby team and her beloved Pittsburgh Steelers. "It's not hard to see why they struck gold": The riffs still ring as Creed's Human Clay is expanded for its 25th birthday "This sort of seat-of-the-pants indulgence would never fit the corporate cosiness of today’s major festivals": Ten Years After showcase the solos on Woodstock 1969 “If anybody had him pigeonholed as the master of epic melancholy, they’re in for a shock”: Tim Bowness displays a stunning change of pace with Powder Dry.
