Rolling Stone June 2, 2016

RS FILMS THE END OF THE RAMONES Twenty years ago this August, the Ramones played their final concert. In this animated short – the first in our new “Had to Be There” series – Marky Ramone narrates the legendary punk band’s last hours. MUSIC GLASPER TALKS MILES Jazz keyboardist Robert Glasper discusses remixing Miles Davis on the tribute LP Everything’s Beautiful: “People diminish Miles to the trumpet. He’s so much more than that.” Q&A WALKEN REMEMBERS Christopher Walken, one of Hollywood’s great weirdos, looks back on his turning points, from Annie Hall to SNL’s “more cowbell” sketch and the recent film The Family Fang. NEW SEAN LENNON’S NEW SUPERDUO Sean Lennon and Primus frontman-bassist Les Claypool take you inside their new psych-rock group, Claypool Lennon Delirium (whose album is out on June 3rd). SURPRISE ALBUMS Listen to Rolling Stone Music Now to hear…

The Rebel Poet Gilmore’s cover story about Merle Haggard [“The Outlaw,” RS 1260]. I thought I knew a lot about Haggard, but Gil more schooled me. I don’t usually break down and cry after reading an article, but I did this time. Tim Podoll Rapid City, SD teenager, I never thought of listening to country & western until I heard the Rolling Stones’Beggars Banquet. I got curious, and the first country artist I checked out was Merle Haggard. His voice and poetry hooked me. Thank you, Mr. Haggard, for your gifts. Dave Synwolt Kalamazoo, MI for his great Merle Haggard piece [“The Running Kind,” RS 1260]. I followed Merle for 40 years. Great man, great life – ramble on, Merle! Ryan Johnson, Santa Rosa, CA of Merle’s weathered face was stunning. Every line, every gray hair, tells…

1. Radiohead “Desert Island Disk” The five-year wait for Radiohead’s A Moon Shaped Pool was more than worth it, and this somber Nick Drake-style acoustic bliss-out might be its haunting high point: “The wind rushing around my open heart,” Thom Yorke sings, “totally alive!” You said it, man. 2. James Blake “I Need a Forest Fire” A highlight from downtempo soulman Blake’s new album, The Colour in Anything: He teams up with Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon for a slow-burn ballad custom-made to soundtrack depressive booty calls. 3. Joey Purp “Photobooth” Chicago rapper gets unconscionably fired up over a beat that sounds like James Brown and the Famous Flames playing a party barge along the River Styx. 4. Dixie Chicks “Daddy Lessons” Beyoncé’s gun-toting country jam, “Daddy Lessons,” was one of the finest surprises on Lemonade. Just a few days after the…

From the very first time he heard Prince, as a high schooler in 1979, Lenny Kravitz was a huge fan. “Then he became a mentor,” he says. “When he left, a part of me went too.” “Head” Prince was hardly on the radio when this came out, but this song was a big hit on the street and at dance parties. The bass line was just so funky. “Controversy” This took everything to the next level. It sounded so funky and mysterious and scary. It was a monumental track for me. “Lady Cab Driver” I love the minimalist quality of this. There’s a drum machine going with an overdub of live drums, and real simple synths. It’s so funky. “Mountains” It’s a beautiful feeling that this song gives me. Wendy and Lisa on it – it was such…

Beyoncé Through October 2nd TICKETS $45-$355 Beyoncé got a little emotional on the way to Miami’s Marlins Park before the start of her first-ever solo stadium tour on April 27th. “I’ve dreamed of this my whole life,” she said. Her Formation Tour is her most impressive yet: a politically charged spectacle built around her stunning new LP, Lemonade, and featuring darker versions of familiar hits, as well as a 50-foot-tall tower of video screens that shoots flames and projects psychedelic images. The 40-plus-date tour has already grossed more than $200 million. “It’s a home run,” says the tour’s promoter, Arthur Fogel. “It could be the most successful tour of the year.” Brian Wilson June 12th-October 15th TICKETS $14-$250 Not long ago, Wilson, 73, was considering retirement. Not anymore: After the success of his 2015 biopic, Love &…

Toughest Get: Radiohead, Kanye Last year, Radiohead’s people called the promoters of Lollapalooza with good news: They were finally ready. In an extremely competitive environment where many major lineups are virtually identical, the band’s presence turned Lollapalooza 2016 into a must-see. Kanye West worked similar magic with Governors Ball in New York, which scored ’Ye’s only summer show: “He had a great experience when he headlined in 2013, and we had a great relationship,” says organizer Jordan Wolowitz. The Battle for New York City Governors Ball has established itself as New York City’s biggest festival. So organizers weren’t happy when news surfaced that another promoter, Goldenvoice, was planning a festival called Panorama at the same Randall’s Island location. Governors Ball planners petitioned Mayor Bill de Blasio to reject Panorama’s permit, calling the company…