Classic Hits

A new class of musicians were welcomed into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Saturday night in Cleveland.

Foreigner was inducted by former Valen Halen vocalist Sammy Hagar. Guns N’ Roses shredder Slash and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith joined members of the current touring incarnation of Foreigner, while Demi Lovato, Hagar and Kelly Clarkson sang “Feels Like the First Time,” “Hot Blooded” and “I Want to Know What Love Is,” respectively, the last of which also featured original vocalist Lou Gramm.

As previously reported, guitarist Mick Jones, who has Parkinson’s disease, did not attend the ceremony, and neither did drummer Dennis Elliott. Jones’ daughter gave a speech on his behalf, followed by remarks by Gramm, Al Greenwood and Rick Wills.

The Who‘s Roger Daltrey inducted Peter Frampton, and Bryan Adams also called in from a concert to congratulate him.

Frampton, who has the degenerative muscle disease inclusion body myositis, performed while seated, delivering renditions of “Something’s Happening” and a particularly shred-heavy version of “Do You Feel Like We Do” alongside Keith Urban.

Cher was inducted into the Rock Hall by Zendaya, who paid tribute to Cher’s legendary fashion style with a Bob Mackie-style sheer dress. Cher teamed with Dua Lipa for a performance of “Believe” and also performed “If I Could Turn Back Time.” 

Cher even got in a joke about how long it took her to get into the HOF, noting, “It was easier getting divorced from two men than it was to get into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.”

The late Jimmy Buffett and Dionne Warwick were both inducted into the Musical Excellence category,  with James Taylor and Teyana Taylor handling the induction speeches, respectively. James also performed Buffett’s classic “Come Monday” with Kenny Chesney and Mac McAnally. Meanwhile, inductees Kool and the Gang got the audience dancing to a medley of their hits, including “Celebrate.”

The other inductees included Dave Matthews Band, Ozzy Osbourne, A Tribe Called Quest, Mary J. Blige, Norman Whitfield, Big Mama Thornton, John Mayall and Alexis Korner.

On Jan. 1, ABC will air the special 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, featuring performance highlights.

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Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

U2 has shared a short documentary about the making of the video for their 2004 hit “Vertigo,” which was the lead single off their 11th studio album, How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb.

Based on guitarist The Edge‘s comments, it would seem the video wasn’t exactly pleasant to make. 

“We finally managed to persuade somebody to shoot a video of us somewhere warm,” he says of their location in a Spanish desert, “and what happens? We get rained on. We get hurricane strength winds. Sand blasted.”

The video then shoots to Bono, who shares he “love[s] the smell of sand up my nose in the morning.”

Edge later jokes, “It’s not easy being a rock star these days.” 

The video for “Vertigo,” directed by the team of Alex & Martin, won a Grammy for Best Short Form Music Video in 2005. 

The making of the video’s release is part of the band’s celebration of the 20th anniversary of How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. In honor of the occasion, the band is also releasing what they’re calling a “shadow album,” How To Re-Assemble An Atomic Bomb, featuring 10 previously unreleased tracks from the album’s recording sessions. It will be released Nov. 29 as an exclusive for Record Store Day Black Friday, along with a digital release.

In addition, on Nov. 22 U2 will release a special 20th anniversary remastered edition of How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, featuring the bonus track “Fast Car,” as well as a package with the remaster and the shadow album together, dubbed How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb (Re-Assemble Edition).

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When Foreigner gets inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Saturday, only three members of the band — singer Lou Gramm, keyboardist Al Greenwood and bassist Rick Wills — will be on hand to accept the honor. 

Dennis Elliott and Mick Jones won’t be in attendance, and the trio tells ABC Audio their bandmates not being there is a bit of a letdown.

“I mean, we knew Mick was very doubtful for being here because of his illness,” Wills says. Jones revealed he had Parkinson’s disease back in February. 

And while Greenwood said Elliott not coming is “pretty much of a disappointment,” Wills adds, “But Dennis is Dennis. I have to say sometimes that he makes his own decisions that we don’t always agree with,” with Gramm chiming in “or understand.”

Dennis revealed on Facebook he decided not to go because he was unhappy with the schedule, with Billboard suggesting one issue was that spouses were not allowed to walk the red carpet.

“It was very disappointing cause he said he was going to be here,” Wills says. “He should be here.” 

But even though they’ll be missing two people, it sounds like fans can expect a great performance. Sammy Hagar is set to induct them and perform “Hot Blooded,” and Gramm is going to perform “I Want To Know What Love Is” with Kelly Clarkson, although if he had the choice he’d be singing a different tune.

“It is the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and I’m disappointed that I’m not singing a rock song,” he said. “But apparently the choice of songs was not up to me.” 

The 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, taking place at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, will stream live on Disney+ at 7 p.m. ET. 

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

It looks like David Lee Roth may be responding to all the Van Halen news that’s been coming out since Alex Van Halen started doing interviews to promote his upcoming memoir, Brothers, which drops Tuesday.

The former Van Halen frontman just reposted a video to Instagram of his song “Nothing Could Have Stopped Us Back Then Anyway,” which was originally released two years ago. The song has him reminiscing about his days in the band, and the video features plenty of archival videos and pictures from that time.

“We laughed, we cried, we threw the television off that balcony,” he sings in the song. “That memory means so much to me … Remember when you safety pinned the tablecloth to my pants/ And I stood up to the sound of dancing and the sound of our romance beginning.”

The post comes just days after Alex told Rolling Stone that Roth was to blame for the collapse of a planned Van Halen tour following Eddie Van Halen’s 2020 death, saying that Roth “popped a fuse” at a suggestion to pay tribute to Eddie during the show.

Regardless, Alex said he’s still in touch with Dave and told Billboard, “I’m not angry at all with Dave.”

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Peter Frampton will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Saturday, and he’ll also be performing on the show. He tells ABC Audio narrowing down what to play took a little bit of work. 

Frampton says he was originally given 7 1/2 minutes to perform and opted to play just one song.

“I’m not a mash-up guy,” he said, “so we’ll do one number that is 7 1/2 minutes long,” although he didn’t name the song. 

The folks at the Rock Hall offered him a chance to play a second song, but only gave him two minutes more. And while producers had requested a specific tune, Frampton instead opted for one he felt more appropriate for the occasion.

“There’s another song that opens the Frampton Comes Alive album on side one,” he said. “The first line is, ‘Who said it’s my year?’ So I said, ‘How about that?’”

That song is “Something’s Happening,” with Frampton noting he cut it down from five minutes: “It seems like a sneeze, but it sounds good.”

Frampton won’t be alone during his performance; he’ll be joined by country star Keith Urban, who he’s known since his early days living in Nashville.

“He’s such a dear, sweet guy and a great performer,” Frampton shares. “Wonderful guitar player, singer and songwriter.”

Frampton is getting into the HOF after being eligible since 1997, but he’s not completely satisfied: His band Humble Pie‘s been eligible since 1994. When asked whether he’d like to see them get in, Frampton said, “Yes, I would. And that’s part of my speech.” 

The 2024 induction ceremony, taking place Saturday at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, will stream live on Disney+ at 7 p.m. ET.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

On Thursday it was revealed that Foreigner’s Dennis Elliott and Mick Jones would not be attending Saturday’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction, and Elliott has explained his reasoning for skipping the event.

“We were finally given the schedule last night, and it is not to our satisfaction. So we are staying home,” he wrote on Facebook. “We have been asking for this for weeks, and they have waited until the very last minute to send it knowing we were all packed and going to bed. Totally unacceptable to us.”

According to Billboard, there was an issue over the fact that spouses were not allowed to walk the red carpet with band members.

The mag also reports that Jones’ absence is being blamed on his health. He disclosed back in February that he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, which was the reason why he hadn’t been performing with the band on their current Farewell tour. 

Foreigner singer Lou Gramm, keyboardist Al Greenwood and bassist Rick Wills will be attending the induction and will also be performing with Demi Lovato, Sammy Hagar, Kelly Clarkson and others. 

The 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, taking place at the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, will stream live on Disney+ at 7 p.m. ET. On Jan. 1, ABC will air the special 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, featuring performance highlights.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Alex Van Halen wants folks to know his memoir, Brothers, out Tuesday, isn’t a tell-all.

“It’s not about the dirt,” Alex tells Billboard. “If I start throwing dirt, it’ll never end … I think it divides the audience, and we’re not here to divide.”

Instead, Alex says he wrote Brothers to get the truth out about his brother and Van Halen bandmate Eddie Van Halen, who died in October 2020.

“I really felt like a lot of the stuff that was out there was incorrect, and it didn’t do justice to the more sensitive side of Ed,” he says. “So before I die I would like to at least partially set the record straight.”

The book doesn’t go into Van Halen past the David Lee Roth years, with Alex saying there were “limitations to how big the book could be.”

But talking about their 1985 split with Roth, Alex says, “It was a very sad moment when that whole thing fell apart,” with the mag noting that in the book he calls Roth’s departure “the most disappointing thing I’d experienced in my life, the thing that seemed the most wasteful and unjust. Until I lost my brother.” 

As for their other singer, Sammy Hagar, Alex was asked why he didn’t want to join Sammy and bassist Michael Anthony on their recent The Best of All Worlds Tour, during which they played Van Halen hits.

“I’m not interested. They’re not doing the band justice,” he says. “They can do what they want to do. That’s not my business.”

Alex also set the record straight about selling off his drum equipment in June, sharing he was just getting rid of stuff he wasn’t using.

“I’m not quitting. I don’t know where that came from,” he says. “I’ll die with sticks in my hand.”

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On This Day, Oct. 18, 1974 …

Fifty years ago, The Rolling Stones released their 12th studio album, It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll, which was their last album to feature guitarist Mick Taylor.

The album reached #1 on the Billboard Album charts, one of nine number ones The Stones have had throughout their more than 60-year career.

The album’s lead single, “It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I Like It),” peaked at #16 on the Billboard singles chart. The tune was recorded separately from the rest of the album, with the basic rhythm track recorded by members of the Faces, which included The Stones’ future guitarist Ronnie Wood. David Bowie also appeared on that basic track, adding backing vocals.

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Ringo Starr is finally ready to share his country album with fans.

The Beatles legend just announced he’ll release Look Up, co-written and produced by T Bone Burnett, on Jan. 10.

The album features 11 songs, with special guest appearances by Billy Strings, Molly Tuttle, Lucius, Larkin Poe and Alison Krauss, the latter appearing on the album’s closing song, “Thankful,” which was co-written by Ringo.

“I’ve always loved country music. And when I asked T Bone to write me a song, I didn’t even think at the time that it would be a country song – but of course it was, and it was so beautiful,” Ringo shares. “I had been making EPs at the time and so I thought we would do a country EP – but when he brought me nine songs I knew we had to make an album! And I am so glad we did.”
 

He adds, “I want to thank, and send Peace & Love, to T Bone and all the great musicians who helped make this record. It was a joy making it and I hope it is a joy to listen to.”

Fans are getting their first preview of the record with the just released song “Time on My Hands,” which was co-written by Burnett, Paul Kennerly and Daniel Tashian. It is available now via digital outlets.

And Ringo will celebrate the release of Look Up with two shows at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, billed as Ringo Starr & Friends. The shows are happening Jan. 14 and Jan. 15, with tickets going on sale Oct. 25.

Look Up is available for preorder now. Check out the track list below:
“Breathless” (featuring Billy Strings)
“Look Up” (featuring Molly Tuttle)
“Time On My Hands”
“Never Let Me Go” (featuring Billy Strings)
“I Live For Your Love” (featuring Molly Tuttle)
“Come Back” (featuring Lucius)
“Can You Hear Me Call” (featuring Molly Tuttle)
“Rosetta” (featuring Billy Strings and Larkin Poe)
“You Want Some”
“String Theory” (featuring Molly Tuttle)
“Thankful” (featuring Alison Krauss)

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman doesn’t have any regrets about leaving the band in 1993. In fact, in an interview with Classic Rock magazine, he suggests he stuck around a bit too long. 

“Well, I should’ve done it a lot earlier … in the eighties,” he says. “I hung on for a three-tour ending across ’89 and ’90, after seven years of nothing, and I’d ended up with a bank overdraft of 200,000 pounds because we weren’t earning anything.”

Wyman was referring to the three legs of the Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle tour, which was the longest tour the band had done at that point.

He goes on to say money problems weren’t an issue for everyone in the band, noting Mick Jagger and Keith Richards “were totally wealthy, so they weren’t bothered,” but he, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood “were scraping by.”  

“Anyway, I only started playing with them again in the hope it’d only be a couple of years, because I had all these other things I wanted to do,” he says.

Wyman also brought up money issues when discussing the band’s decision to leave the U.K. in 1971 because of a 93% tax, sharing they owed so much that “we could never make enough to pay it back.”

“We had no f***** money,” he says, although Mick and Keith were better off because of their songwriting and publishing.

“You’re in the red with your bank, so you weren’t partying all the time, you were worrying about how to pay your bills,” he said. “It was a nightmare.”

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.