Table of contents for January 2020 in Classic Rock

WELCOME End of the year. End of the second decade of the latest millennium. How on earth did that happen? It seems like only yesterday that I was writing my editorial for last year’s End Of The Year issue (and, if I remember correctly, I was moaning about the incredible speed of the passing of time then too). Ah well… So, as you might have gathered, 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 shed new light on old favourites, and much more besides. We caught up with some of rock’s movers and shakers – Ronnie Wood, Jeff Lynne, Joe Elliott, Duff McKagan, Glenn Hughes, to name but…

the Dirt RIP Thank you and good night. Timi Hansen October 28, 1958 – November 4, 2019 Former Mercyful Fate and King Diamond bassist Timi Hansen lost a long battle with cancer at the age of 61. “Timi was not just my roommate on the early Mercyful Fate tours, he was also my favourite bass player of all time,” stated Danish singer King Diamond. Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich also paid tribute to Hansen on social media, saying he was “incredibly saddened” at the news. Conrad Isidore July 18, 1943 – October 20, 2019 Osibisa member Gregg Kofu Brown has led the tributes to the elder brother of the Isidore dynasty, referring to the drummer and songwriter as his “mentor”. Besides playing in the British rock band Hummingbird, the Dominican-born 76-year-old…

Paul Barrere July 3, 1948 – October 26, 2019 THE MEMBERS OF Little Feat are mourning the loss of their long-serving guitar player, vocalist and songwriter, who joined the Californian group back in 1972. Barrere had previously announced a fight with liver cancer. He was 71. A statement read: “Paul auditioned for Little Feat as a bassist when [the band] was first being put together – in his words, “as a bassist I make an excellent guitarist” – and three years later joined us in his proper role on guitar.” After sitting out their latest tour due to the side effects brought on by the treatment, Barrere had, according to his bandmates, “promised to follow his doctor’s orders, get back in shape and rock on the beach at the band’s…

TOP 5 COUNTRY ALBUMS Words: Rob Hughes 1 HOUSE AND LAND Across The Field THRILL JOCKEY North Carolina duo Sarah Louise Henson and Sally Anne Morgan perfected a balance of the traditional and experimental on this wondrous second album together. Rooted in the drones and textures of Appalachian folk and country, a combination of spidery guitars, fiddle, killer harmonies and strange loops made for a thrilling experience. Killer track: Precious Jewels 2 NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS Up And Rolling NEW WEST 3 KAIA KATER Grenades SMITHSONIAN FOLKWAYS 4 TYLER CHILDERS Country Squire HICKMAN HOLLER/RCA 5 KELSEY WALDON White Noise / White Lines OH BOY/THIRTY TIGERS…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEW “THE BAND IS ON FIRE. THERE’S NO STOPPING US” He turned 60 this year, but Def Leppard singer Joe Elliott is showing no signs of slowing down – certainly not when he’s talking. And with the year he’s had there’s plenty to talk about. Interview: Paul Elliott Photos: Kevin Nixon In 2019, Def Leppard were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, headlined the Download festival, played a residency in Las Vegas and enjoyed the company of Brian May and Miley Cyrus. And to finish what frontman Joe Elliott describes as “a very good year”, there was the release of a new album from his other band, Down ‘N’ Outz, featuring three members of The Quireboys – guitarists Paul Guerin and Guy Griffin and…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEW CANNIBALISM, DEATH, RUBBER FETISHES… These are just some of the topics covered on Lindemann’s compelling new record. But from the men who are the main brains behind Rammstein and Hypocrisy, you shouldn't be surprised. Words: Dannii Leivers On December 4, 2018, Rammstein’s Till Lindemann strode into a Moscow book signing accompanied by a gimp on a leash. As he sat down to sign copies of his poetry collection, Messer, his companion knelt dutifully on the floor beside him. It takes him a little while to recall the incident when we bring it up. “Ah, the bondage woman!” he finally remembers. “Book signings are so boring. It takes forever, standing in the cold and rain… so we brought something to entertain the people.” Bringing a gimp to…

The perfect gift, for just £19.99* plus FREE BOOK AND FUNKO POP DISCOVER THE STORIES BEHIND THE BAND AND THE MUSIC WITH QUEEN: THE COMPLETE STORY FREDDIE MERCURY FUNKO-POP DAZZLING IN HIS GOLD JACKET. PERFECT FOR ANY QUEEN FAN Your special Christmas offer Upgrade to include digital for only £2.50 Instant access any time, anywhere Never miss an issue of Available on iOS or Android Order the gift that keeps on delivering www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/crk/xmas192 or call 0344 848 2852…

LIVE! Gun / Dan Reed Network / FM Three bands who each released a classic album 30 years ago head out on the road together, sharing headline status as well as stages. As the bands prepare to celebrate joint 30th anniversaries – of DRN’s Slam, Tough It Out by FM and Gun’s debut Taking On The World – with a bunch of UK dates, we set up a pow wow between the frontmen of each group. Whose idea was this tour? Dante Gizzi (Gun): The proposal was put to us by the agent of all three bands, Martin Jarvis, and everybody considered it a stroke of genius. Dan Reed (Dan Reed Network): For me it feels like being part of a travelling mini-festival. The timing, which allows us to celebrate…

LIVE! Cockney Rejects It’s biggies all night when the band play a special show in London. Guitarist Mick Greggus previews the veteran band’s 40th-anniversary show at which they will play their Greatest Hits 1 and 2 albums in full and in sequence. Did you achieve closure through the writing of the book Life After Lloyd, following the unexpected death of Rejects bassist Tony ‘Lloyd’ Van Frater? Yeah, it was cathartic, as back in 2015 it really felt like end of the band, and that the disaster of Tony’s death was a signal to disappear into the ether. But the vengeful master that is rock’n’roll wasn’t done with us yet, and it still isn’t. Why does the book use the word ‘punk’ so sparingly? I don’t consider us a died-in-the wool…

REVIEWS LIVE! ‘The audience nearly soil themselves with excitement.’ The Damned London Palladium Britain’s first punks pull out all the stops, dive into the dressing-up box, slap on the slap and deliver a truly spectacular show. Oh, and they play some great and classic songs too. There’s a horse-drawn funeral cortege slowly processing along Argyll Street towards the London Palladium. It’s being followed by a veritable horde of vampires. Hundreds of them. There are top hats as far as the eye can see, a significant acreage of capes, phalanxes of fangs and more tourniquet-tight corsetry than even Soho is accustomed to. Baffled tourists gape at the unexpected prevalence of freshly drained Victorian virgins and make-up-caked walking dead. “Is London always like this?” “And who’s in the casket?” There’s a floral…

This month’s contributors HENRY YATES Henry is a busy man who has written for NME, Guitarist, Total Guitar, Metal Hammer, Rhythm, Country Music, Shortlist and the Telegraph, and wrote Walter Trout’s official biography, Rescued From Reality. This month he interviewed Glenn Hughes, Susan Tedeschi and more about their past 12 months. For more visit www.yatescreativecopywriting.com WILL IRELAND This issue we dispatched Will to central London on Halloween to chronicle The Damned’s ambitious Night Of The Vampires extravaganza at the Palladium (p106). We’re of a mind that it’s like nothing he’d ever photographed before – vampires, funeral corteges, the lot. Check out more of Will’s work at willirelandphotography.co.uk SLEAZEGRINDER …is our very own Evel Knievel of sleaze-rock journalism. When he isn’t spelunking through rock’n’roll’s deepest, darkest canyons for Classic Rock, he…

Toby Jepson The Wayward Sons frontman on broken Britain, protest records, Little Angels and not having regrets. Words: Henry Yates Portrait: Paul Harries During a three-decade career, the singer and songwriter’s itchy feet have led him through a number of bands – from 90s contenders Little Angels to Fastway, Gun and more. He also has a slew of production credits, and a sideline as an actor in films including Gladiator. But in 2019 this eternal journeyman says he’s sticking with Wayward Sons, the British rockers whose second album, The Truth Ain’t What It Used To Be, is a warts-and-all snapshot of where we are. Do you think 2019 has been a good year for rock’n’roll? I do, actually. Because the one massively important thing about times of strife and struggle…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEWS GRAND SLAM Thirty-odd years after former Thin Lizzy frontman Phil Lynott’s new band got on to the runway but never really got off the ground, a new line-up returns with a new album, and they’re flying. Words: Ken McIntyre There are many lost futures in the ever-twisting history of rock’n’roll, and Grand Slam is perhaps one of the most tantalizing. After the sudden and shocking dissolution of Thin Lizzy in 1983, Lizzy frontman and hero to us all Phil Lynott rebounded with a new band full of friends old and new, including then-current Lizzy members Brian Downey and John Sykes, and Magnum keyboard player Mark Stanway. Grand Slam was a fresh start after a decidedly rough patch for Lynott, who was deep in a drug haze…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEWS TOP 5 BLUES ALBUMS Words: Henry Yates 1 WALTER TROUT Survivor Blues MASCOT/PROVOGUE Tracked by the reaper-cheating bluesman and his band, Survivor Blues bled with an authenticity that elevated it above a workaday covers album. On revved-up spins through Luther Johnson’s Woman Don’t Lie and Sunnyland Slim’s horribly relevant Be Careful How You Vote, this was the sound of an artist not just surviving, but flourishing. 2 KENNY WAYNE SHEPHERD The Traveler MASCOT/PROVOGUE 3 PP ARNOLD The New Adventures Of… EARMUSIC 4 BIG DADDY WILSON Deep In My Soul RUF 5 HENRY’S FUNERAL SHOE Smart Phone Rabbit Hole SELF-RELEASED…

THE CLASSIC ROCK INTERVIEW JEFFLYNNE He never got a proper job, much to his mum’s chagrin. Instead the songwriter, singer and multi-instrumentalist can look back at a long and hugely successful rock’n’roll career. One that has seen him lead ELO, work with The Beatles, be in a band with Bob Dylan and Tom Petty and so much more. Interview: Rob Hughes “Iwas worried that there weren’t enough people who knew about us,” says Jeff Lynne, explaining his anxiety over reviving ELO to headline at an all-day festival in London’s Hyde Park in September 2014. “We took a big chance. The crowd could’ve gone home any time, they didn’t have to wait around for us at the end. But it was still full. I remember looking through a little gap in…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEW “TO BE A POP STAR YOU HAVE TO BE A NARCISSIST. I’M NOT REALLY” Over the past decade, Steven Wilson has shifted through a range of musical guises. Here he reflects on the genius of Bowie and Zappa, married life, and why it’s good to talk bollocks. Interview: Polly Glass In a large, sun-dappled living room in a leafy outpost of North-West London, Steven Wilson expounds the decade over peppermint tea and muffins. The latter were made by his Israeli wife Rotem, who he married four weeks previously. Two weeks before that they moved here. The decor is minimal and stylish and looks out on to a spacious back garden where they had their wedding reception. Rock’s dark, jazzy enigma; 21st-century prog god; master of melancholia;…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEW THE REISSUES OF THE YEAR In another year packed with anniversaries, we were spoilt for choice when it came to quality reissues. Here are some of our favourites. The reissue market continued its lucrative surge this year. Great for the record companies and bands, not always so great for our wallets! In 2019, with many bands celebrating landmark anniversaries, this trend continued, bringing with it a wave of thoughtful remixes, lost classics, celebrated classics and other goodies from artists across the rock spectrum. JIMI HENDRIX Songs For Groovy Children: The Fillmore East Concerts EXPERIENCE HENDRIX/LEGACY What we said: “This five-CD package gives us everything: one disc for each of the four shows, the fifth containing encores, all newly mixed by Eddie Kramer, who was working with…

ROUND-UP: BLUES By Henry Yates Jack Broadbent Moonshine Blue CROWS FEET Barefoot, shirtless, sprawled on an old sofa, blowing a plume of cigarette smoke – the Jack Broadbent of the Moonshine Blue album sleeve is enough to give any A&R man the horn. Scratch this Lincolnshire singersongwriter’s immaculate surface, though, and there’s a depth that explains why Ronnie Wood pulled him along for recent gigs. Out of the blocks, the glib comparison is Nick Drake, but as a supple slide lick rises from the autumn fingerstyle of the title track, Broadbent announces himself as a bluesier beast with more about him (he cites Joni Mitchell, Radiohead, Robert Johnson and Davey Graham). His slide guitar playing is as phenomenal as they say – “the real thang” according to Bootsy Collins – but…

REVIEWS THE HARD STUFF REISSUE Mick Ronson Only After Dark: The Complete MainMan Recordings CHERRY RED Roger C Reale And Rue Morgue The Collection RAVE ON Bowie’s star man’s 70s solo work collected, and a new wave album that Ronno guested on. It’s hard to believe that Only After Dark (9/10) is the first truly definitive collection of Mick Ronson’s classic 1970s solo work, and it’s to Cherry Red’s credit that this is a comprehensive collection with both MainMan albums, live material, demos and even a flexidisc interview from Teen magazine. And having all this music in one place for the first time enables the listener to discern the thread that links the often overly diverse strands of Ronson’s music. Here are Bowie collaborations (Growing Up And I’m Fine, Hey Ma Get…

REVIEWS LIVE! Marillion With Friends From The Orchestra Birmingham Symphony Hall Proggers pull off the band-with-strings-and-brass trick with aplomb. If success is the best revenge, then Marillion’s enduring high profile as arena-filling Britprog figureheads feels like a bold two-fingered salute to their critics. More than 30 years after their commercial chart peak, the Aylesbury quintet still command an impressively large cult following despite scant support from mainstream media or major labels. Their latest tour features a six-piece chamber orchestra, which adds welcome lightness and texture to otherwise often overwrought baroque’n’roll. Frontman Steve Hogarth cuts an agreeably louche figure, his swashbuckling stage persona falling somewhere between Lord Byron and Lovejoy. Besides lending Marillion a vague whiff of real rock-star charisma, Hogarth has also helped steer them towards more contemporary, melodious, art-rock…

FOR MORE NEWS: WWW.CLASSICROCKMAGAZINE.COM INSIDE THE WORLD OF ROCK THE DIRT That Was 2019 Great music, films, new arrivals, farewells, celebrations… We’ve got all this and more in Classic Rock’s rundown of this year’s key goings-on. The spread of veganism; the messy spiral of Brexit, the even messier state of British politics as a whole; the arrival of the latest royal baby; Greta Thunberg sailing to the USA; the rise of Extinction Rebellion and numerous global protest movements… A lot has happened in 2019. But what are some of the things that went on in the world of rock’n’roll? Mötley Crüe biopic The Dirt finally sees the light of day – and it’s not the only rock’n’roll film to make headlines. The film had been in the making for what seemed…

Terry O’Neill July 30, 1938 – November 16, 2019 © ICONIC IMAGES LIMITED THE PHOTOGRAPHER responsible for iconic images of the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, The Who and Elton John has passed away, quietly at home after a battle with prostate cancer, at the age of 81. The Londoner had intended to become a jazz drummer, but ended up taking a job in the photographic unit of Heathrow Airport. A cheeky snap of then Home Secretary Rab Butler dozing on a bench brought him a payment of £25 and, more importantly, an entry pass to Fleet Street, where he was handed the job of photographing an up-and-coming new act – The Beatles, who were at Abbey Road recording their first big hit, Please Please Me. Over the course…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEWS TOP 5 PROG ALBUMS Words: Jo Kendall 1 MAGMA Zëss SEVENTH A 38-minute, seven-part piece built around a propulsive two-chord swing, featuring Morgan Ågren (Kaipa, Devin Townsend) on drums, and the Prague Philharmonic. Bandleader Christian Vander might only be vocalising here (and in French, not Kobaïan – shock!), but, mon dieu, what an elegant, euphoric piece of art the Parisian stars’ have recorded in their fiftieth year. 2 GONG The Universe Also Collapses KSCOPE 3 CHARLIE CAWOOD Blurring Into Motion BAD ELEPHANT 4 IAMTHEMORNING The Bell KSCOPE 5 THE HARE AND HOOFE The Terror Of Melton SELF-RELEASED…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEW “WE SMELL A LOT BETTER THAN WE DID TEN YEARS AGO” We collar Rival Sons’ sharp-dressed Jay Buchanan and Scott Holiday to talk about the last decade, fashion, latest album Feral Roots and playing ballads at metal festivals. Interview: Polly Glass Rival Sons guitarist Scott Holiday’s handlebar moustache – part Poirot, part Captain Hook – is impressive. It’s fair to say it’s made him one of rock’s more recognisable figures. The Ray Brown suits and striking Gibson Firebird guitars also help. Jay Buchanan joins us looking similarly chic in a long coat and matching boots. The singer delights in customising clothes from high-end designers, although years of dues paying in rock’s underworld mean he’s relaxed in today’s grungier settings while the Record Company (Rival Sons’ support…

2019 THE ULTIMATE REVIEW “THERE’S NO WIZARD OF OZ BEHIND THE CURTAIN WITH ME” Glenn Hughes, the Voice Of Rock, on living in the moment, beating his demons, the challenges of a vegan Christmas, and how he’ll be “going global” in 2020. Interview: Henry Yates Portrait: Joby Sessions Ask Glenn Hughes if he’s clinically hyperactive, and the veteran foghorn gives a chuckle of admission. In the past 12 months alone, the 68-year-old has put in another shift that would give lesser road warriors cold sweats, with his Classic Deep Purple Live itinerary taking him deep into Europe and across the States. The tour ties a bow on a triumphant – and occasionally tumultuous – decade in which Hughes has chalked California Breed, Black Country Communion and more on to his…

REVIEWS THE HARD STUFF ALBUMS Leprous Pitfalls SONY/INSIDE OUT Stronger without metal. Eighteen years into their career, although only 10 since they released their first album, for their sixth studio album Norwegian prog-metallers Leprous have loosened the metallic ties that bind, and instead focused on progression. It’s a bold switch of style but one that the band foreshadowed on 2017’s Malina, which was notably less harsh-sounding, particularly when it came to Einar Solberg’s vocals; he certainly sounds more convincing as a fragile human being than as a guttural beast. Like their previous albums, Pitfalls takes a thematic approach, except this time it’s more personal as Solberg confronts his own depression and anxieties. And an angry roar is insufficient when it comes to accepting and then tackling the demons that conspire to…

BEST OF THE REST Other new releases out this month Deux Furieuses My War Is Your War XTRA MILE With a widescreen political vision and vast, spacious sound, vocalist/guitarist Ros Cairney and drummer Vas Antonaidou’s edgier, antsier second album boasts the direct ferocity of Dry-era PJ Harvey. Exceptional. 8/10 Wives So Removed CITY SLANG Like a heavy-lidded Velvet Underground or a heavily sedated Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Wives ooze malignant NYC cool from every pore. Spiky Sonic Youth metallics, grooves that only slouch. Attitude on ice. 8/10 Birdeatsbaby The World Conspires EDEL Produced by John Fryer (NIN, Mode), this fifth from the increasingly metallic, Brighton-based dark proggers comfortably inhabits fresh soundscapes. Expansive ambitions, string-driven psychodramas and (in Painkiller) a stone-cold classic. 8/10 Warmduscher Tainted Lunch LEAF Blood-Sugared pervoid disco-funk-metal, haunted by the spectre of…

THE HARD STUFF STUFF BOOKS & DVDs The Jimi Hendrix Experience The Royal Albert Hall EXPERIENCE HENDRIX Definitive audiovisual gig experience finally surfaces – premiered where it was filmed. Considering it will soon be an incredible half-century since Jimi left the planet, this ‘holy grail’ of Hendrix movies couldn’t be better timed after almost taking that long to come to fruition. Shot around February 1969’s second Royal Albert Hall show, the film (then called Experience) got bogged down for decades in legal tangles, although a shoddy preview appeared on video in the 80s. Vividly restored by original producer Jerry Goldstein, with sound remastered by Eddie Kramer, this is now as close as it can ever get to experiencing Hendrix’s still-unchallenged live impact and extraterrestrial charisma. Unveiling a rough cut in the venerable…

LIVE! Tour Dates…

The Soundtrack Of My Life Marillion frontman Steve Hogarth on the special records, artists and gigs that are of lasting significance to him. Interview: Philip Wilding “Deep Purple opened a door for me. They made noises no one else had made.” It’s been thirty years since Steve ‘H’ Hogarth took over as the singer in Marillion. During this time the band have pioneered new ways of making the music industry work for them, and evolved into one of the most creative and complex (yet listenable) forces in modern prog rock. Here, the former Europeans frontman recalls how The Blue Nile and Bowie made him the musician he is today, and why he’d never have made it as a Beatle. THE FIRST MUSIC I REMEMBER HEARING… What Kind Of Fool Am…