AC/DC: Bon Lost 45 Years Ago
AC/DC singer Bon Scott left us 45 years ago today (Wednesday) February 19th, 1980, when he died in a car in London after choking on his own vomit following a drinking binge. Angus Young recalled finding out. "I got a call from a girlfriend of his. She had heard Bon had died. And then the phone went again and it was another girl that he knew and she had been expecting him. She was worried...she didn't know where he was. And then I got a hold of our manager, and he said, 'Look it might be some crazy rumor, I don't know.' But he tracked down, I think, either the guy who had been with him, and he found out through him. So, he got back and that's when I found out that it was Bon."
Born Ronald Belford Scott in Scotland, he met Angus and Malcolm Young in Adelaide, Australia in August 1974. He was recovering from a motorcycle accident when he was asked to drive the brothers around. Soon after, Bon was given an audition and was asked to join the band. Known for his screeching vocals, he was also the lyricist, who co-wrote many of the band's biggest songs -- including "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," "Highway to Hell" and "Let There Be Rock." But, according to Angus, "If you ever asked Bon what he wrote, he would say 'toilet poetry.' But the reality of it was he really worked on it." Bon Scott was 33.
DON FELDER: Irony in Almost Passing Out
Don Felder says the song he almost passed out during while on stage last Thursday aboard the Rock Legends Cruise wasn't his first choice if it were to be the last song he ever played.
"I have always said I'm gonna rock till I drop. I never knew it would be in the middle of 'Tequila Sunrise' though instead of like '[Life in the] Fast Lane' or 'Hotel [California]' or something really fun." Felder was suffering from dehydration and was able to do two more shows aboard the cruise -- Saturday and Sunday -- as well as taking part in a Q&A session along with Colin Blunstone of The Zombies and Robin Trower. It was during the Q&A that Felder said he will release a new album in May, his fourth, although he couldn't divulge the title. His last one was American Rock 'n' Roll in 2019. Felder will be part of this spring and summer's
Brotherhood of Rock tour with Styx and Kevin Cronin, formerly of REO Speedwagon. It starts on May 28th in Greenville, South Carolina.
HEART: Podcast Annie
Ann Wilson has joined the ranks of podcasting with the launch of After Dinner Thinks With Ann Wilson, which you can find on YouTube and Spotify. In the pilot episode, she talks about the challenges of having a conversation with someone across the political spectrum without it turning into an argument.
She says, "It's just really hard to decide that you're just gonna be quiet, with all the noise and confusion and chaos going on around us, especially surrounding truth and lies. It's so hard to decide to be that person that just goes, 'Okay, there are all these cool people here, but I can't talk to them, because it would just open up this big ugly chasm of derision between us.'
"Coming from Seattle, Washington and moving to the South, as I did 10 years ago, it took me a while to learn that lesson. There can be really great, great people, but you don't wanna talk politics. It's like a minefield. And it makes you think differently about people, makes you think the worst of them, if you disagree that much. And you can't really control those feelings."
And, commenting on the current political climate, she says, "The Department of Education being shut down so that there's time to buy all these new textbooks that don't handle the uglier topics of our history. To teach the newborn little kids, 'Hey, that never happened. What are you talking about?' 'Oh, don't listen to your friends; they just gossip. There was no Holocaust, no slavery.'
"When [Ronald] Reagan was elected [president] — I'm old enough to have been there when he was elected — and I was an adult; I voted. I didn't vote for Reagan, but he won. And at that time, I thought, 'Well, this makes anything possible. You can elect a Hollywood star, who, okay, yeah, he was the governor of California for a while, but you can elect a Hollywood star, an actor, to be president. So that makes anything possible for the future.' And sure enough, we're still on the downward slope."
On the musical side of the spectrum, Ann and Heart begin their Royal Flush Tour on February 28th in Las Vegas.
PAUL STANLEY: Misses Getting KISSed
Paul Stanley hasn't toured in a little over a year since KISS brought their End of the Road tour an end in December 2023. Appearing on the debut episode of the Stories To Tell With Richard Marx podcast, he says it's been an adjustment. "There are people who are touring constantly because they're empty and because they need that audience positive response. Years ago for me, probably decades ago, that may have been the case. At this point, it's been incredibly gratifying. The last tour was just a chance to really take in how valuable and how much this meant to me. But I couldn't keep doing it any more than Michael Jordan could. "I've always been more than a musician or performer — I've been an athlete — and you realize that you can only do that so long. I've been blessed to do it into my 70s, which if you told me that 50 years ago, I'd say you're out of your mind. So, yeah, I miss it, but I don't crave it. I think the people who really crave it are the ones who don't find other means for gratification either from other people or self-gratification, whether it's, for me, painting or my family or friends..."
While KISS continue to work on a five-part documentary about the farewell tour, they've just announced, in conjunction with Precious Sounds, two limited-edition 50th anniversary releases of their 1974 song "Strutter" on playable gold records. The first is pressed from eight ounces of pure .999 24-karat gold and is limited to five copies worldwide. The A-side contains playable grooves, a rim engraving with each record’s unique edition number as well as the KISS logo adorned with Swarovski crystals. The B-side celebrates the original Casablanca single label etched into the gold with proof-quality finish. It's packaged in a luxurious coffee table display case bound in sustainable faux leather with gold foil accents and a Swarovski crystals KISS logo. The two-drawer case is hand-crafted to preserve this everlasting record for a lifetime. One drawer houses a protective sapphire crystal glass capsule and the other holds an exclusive book signed by Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley. Other accessories in the set range from the gold-accented pen utilized to sign the respective book, a laser-engraved and numbered metal certificate of authenticity, a custom-made cork record mat for optimal playback, and a microfiber cleaning cloth. Each pressing is made-to-order and will set you back $50,000.
The more affordable option, limited to 500 copies, is the Gold-Plated Edition. It comes in a custom display case with a crystal glass window, a booklet, a silicon record mat, a micro-fiber cleaning cloth, and its own hand-numbered certificate of authenticity. Orders will be limited to two copies per customer at $2,500 each. Complete details at shopKISSOnline.com.
13 Minutes of Unseen Led Zeppelin Footage Has Surfaced After Lying in a Drawer 45 Years
Thirteen minutes of previously unseen footage of Led Zeppelin performing live at the Falkoner Centre in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1979 has surfaced online. The footage, shot by fan Lennart Ström, captures the band's final warm-up show before their iconic Knebworth dates. The film has been color-corrected and synced with audio from the show, showcasing songs like Stairway To Heaven and Whole Lotta Love. This discovery follows the release of the band's biopic, Becoming Led Zeppelin, which also featured rare performance footage.
TALKING HEADS: "Psycho" Demo Found
An early demo of Talking Heads’ "Psycho Killer" is now in the archives of the Rhode Island School of Design, where the band formed. The demo was recorded by The Artistics, the first band of frontman David Byrne and drummer Chris Frantz, in a Providence apartment in 1974. Frantz sent the demo, along with a handwritten letter, to his teacher Alan Sondheim, who had a radio show on WBAI in New York City. Frantz tells the Boston Globe, “I sent it to him, you know, as young artists will do, in the hopes that he would play it. But I don’t think that ever happened.” The RISD Museum purchased it in 2005 as part of a collection of Sondheim’s materials, but it sat in a drawer until the fall of 2023, when Margot Nishimura, RISD’s dean of libraries, found it and sent it to Frantz. Frantz had the tape digitized and mastered, and returned to RISD, along with the letter he sent Sondheim. And now he says the demo will be out, along with a few other few Talking Heads demos, as part of Record Store Day's Black Friday event on November 28th. He adds, “I sent [Byrne] a copy and he said, ‘Wow!’ Both of us, David and I, are very happy that this tape exists and that we were able to find it after all these years.”
Layne Staley’s Lost Journals to be Published in Official New Book
This Angry Pen: The Lost Journals of Layne Staley is a forthcoming book that will compile the handwritten lyrics, personal poetry, artwork, and rare photos of the late Alice in Chains frontman. Scheduled for release on November 11, the 176-page volume offers a glimpse into Staley's inner thoughts and emotions, showcasing his creative side. Staley, who battled depression and drug addiction, was a key figure in the grunge rock scene of the '90s before his untimely death in 2002. The book aims to connect fans with Staley's artistry and humanity in a way that was previously unavailable, similar to the impact of Kurt Cobain's Journals on Nirvana fans.
John Lydon "pissed off" about the Sex Pistols replacing him with Frank Carter: "they’re trying to trivialise the whole show to get away with karaoke"
John Lydon is apparently not very happy that the Sex Pistols are touring without him, calling it a betrayal of the band’s original purpose. “They’re absolutely going to kill all that was good with the Pistols,” he said in an interview with “The I Paper,” accusing Steve Jones, Paul Cook,
and Glen Matlock of staging a “cash grab.” Frank Carter is fronting the band for a 2025 tour, including festival dates and opening slots for Guns N’ Roses. Lydon dismissed the tour as “karaoke,” adding, “I wrote the...songs, didn’t I? I gave them the image.”
Brian Setzer: "I Cannot Play Guitar"
Stray Cats frontman Brian Setzer says he's currently unable to play the guitar because of an auto-immune disease. Setzer posted on social media on Thursday that he had first noticed his hands were "cramping up" towards the end of last summer's Stray Cats tour. He said there's no pain, but he feels like he's "wearing a pair of gloves" when he tries to play. Setzer added that he believes he's making progress, noting that he is able to hold a pen and tie his shoes -- two things he was unable to do at one point. He ended his post by saying "I know I will beat this, it will just take some time."
IN OTHER NEWS
The Led Zeppelin documentary, Becoming Led Zeppelin, is headed back to IMAX screens, opening in 200 theaters on February 28th. Earlier this month the film had the biggest debut weekend for any IMAX music film released, taking in over $3 million.
A biography on the late Richard Manuel, the singer and piano player in The Band, will be published on May 28th. Richard Manuel: His Life and Music, from the Hawks and Bob Dylan to The Band by Stephen T. Lewis contains interviews with members of his family, close friends and collaborators, including Eric Clapton and Van Morrison. Manuel was the first member of The Band to die, taking his life on March 4th, 1986. He was 42. Garth Hudson, The Band’s oldest and last surviving member, died this past January 21st at 87.
Jackson Browne has joined the lineup of the Tibet House U.S. Benefit Concert, March 3rd at Carnegie Hall in New York City. Previously announced performers include Michael Stipe of R.E.M. and Patti Smith.
While Keith Richards didn’t perform Sunday on Saturday Night Live’s 50th anniversary special, he was in the audience and took part in a Q&A segment with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. He asked if anyone found a scarf he left in 1988. While Tina and Amy said they didn’t see it, comedian Zach Galifianakis, sitting in the audience and wearing it, shouted, “Look it’s simply not here, OK. Can we all just stop looking?”
Gibson guitars has partnered with Queen’s Brian May on the Brian May SJ-200 12-string acoustic guitar from Gibson Custom. Made with significant design input from May, only 100 of these SJ-200 12-String models will be available worldwide. It will set you back eight-grand. Details at Gibson.com. You can watch an interview with May talking about the guitar on YouTube.
David Johansen has posted a video thanking his fans for their support following the announcement last week that he has stage four cancer and a brain tumor. You can watch it on YouTube. He says, “I never asked for help in my life, and lately [my wife] Mara has been teaching me the beauty of when your chips are down asking for help, and that's what I'm doing and it seems to be working out really marvelously.”