Author: LRussell

Iggy Pop dusted off some Stooges classics during his first performance of 2024.

The gig took place Saturday, June 8 at the No Values festival in Pomona, California.

With a backing band that featured Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Nick Zinner and the Armed’s Uriah Hickney (among others), Pop rocked through material from throughout his legendary career. While the set list included some of Pop’s beloved solo tunes – like “Lust for Life” and “The Passenger” – much of his performance was made up of material from his former group, the Stooges.

“I Wanna Be Your Dog,” “T.V. Eye,” “Death Trip” and “Search and Destroy” were among the tracks, along with a pair of tunes that Pop revisited for the first time in a decade: “I Got a Right” and “1970,” both of which he hadn’t played since the Stooges’ final show in 2013.

READ MORE: Top 10 Iggy Pop Songs

The full set list from Pop’s performance can be found below, along with fan-shot videos from the show.

The headlining gig at No Values was the only performance on Pop’s 2024 calendar. The 77-year-old punk legend previously went out on an extended tour in 2023 in support of his latest album, Every Loser.

Watch Iggy Pop Perform ‘1970’

Watch Iggy Pop Perform ‘Lust for Life’

Watch Iggy Pop Perform ‘I’ve Got a Right’

Watch Iggy Pop’s Full Performance at No Values

Iggy Pop, 6/8/24, No Values Festival, Pomona, California, Set List:

1. “TV Eye”
2. “Raw Power”
3. “I Got a Right”
4. “Gimme Danger”
5. “The Passenger”
6. “Lust for Life”
7. “Death Trip”
8. “Loose”
9. “I Wanna Be Your Dog”
10. “Search and Destroy”
11. “Down on the Street”
12. “1970”

As Styx and Foreigner‘s Renegades & Juke Box Heroes summer tour gets underway on Tuesday, the bands have announced a new tour companion LP of the same name.

The eight-track release contains live versions of some of the groups’ best-known songs. The picture disc and limited-edition individually numbered silver vinyl will be available exclusively at tour stops and select retail starting July 12.

The record includes favorites “Feels Like the First Time” and “I Want to Know What Love Is” (Foreigner) and “Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)” and “Come Sail Away” (Styx), among others.

You can see the full track listing below.

READ MORE: 2024’s Best Albums Reviewed

Only 1,000 copies of the picture disc and 5,000 individually numbered copies of the silver edition are available. An expanded CD edition featuring songs by the tour’s opening act, John Waite, is also available. (The album can also be found on streaming services.)

Where Are Styx and Foreigner Playing This Year?

On Tuesday, Styx and Foreigner’s tour kicks off in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The bands will spend the next three months on the road playing more than three dozen dates across North America, with stops in Toronto, Nashville and Cincinnati before ending on Aug. 28 in Sioux City, North Dakota.

You can see the full list of tour dates below.

Foreigner and Styx, ‘Renegades & Juke Box Heroes’ Track Listing
JUKE BOX HEROES side:
1. Feels Like The First Time
2. Cold As Ice
3. I Want To Know What Love Is
4. Juke Box Hero

RENEGADES side:
1. Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)
2. Come Sail Away
3. Too Much Time On My Hands
4. Renegade

Styx, Foreigner and John Waite, Renegades & Juke Box Heroes Tour 2024
June 11 – Grand Rapids, MI @ Van Andel Arena
June 12 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH @ Blossom Music Center
June 14 – Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage
June 15 – Clarkston, MI @ Pine Knob Music Theatre
June 18 – Maryland Heights, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre – STL
June 19 – Rogers, AR @ Walmart AMP
June 21 – Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion
June 22 – Woodlands, TX @ The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
June 25 – Denver, CO @ Ball Arena
June 26 –  West Valley City, UT @ USANA Amphitheatre
June 28 – Anaheim, CA @ Honda Center
June 29 – Concord, CA @ Toyota Pavilion at Concord
June 30 – Bend, OR @ Hayden Homes Amphitheater
July 12 – Nashville, TN @ Ascend Amphitheater
July 13 – Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
July 15 – Charleston, SC @ Credit One Stadium
July 17 – Alpharetta, GA @ Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
July 19 – West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
July 20 – Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
July 23 – Holmdel, NJ @ PNC Bank Arts Center
July 24 – Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live
July 26 – Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center
July 28 – Camden, NJ @ Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
July 30 – Saratoga Springs, NY @ Broadview Stage at SPAC
July 31 – Burgettstown, PA @ The Pavilion at Star Lake
Aug. 2 – Mansfield, MA @ Xfinity Center
Aug. 3 – Bangor, ME @ Maine Savings Amphitheater
Aug. 4 – Gifford, NH @ BankNH Pavilion
Aug. 16 – Orange Beach, AL @ The Wharf Amphitheater
Aug. 17 – Huntsville, AL @ Orion Amphitheater
Aug. 20 – Virginia Beach, VA  @ Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at VB
Aug. 21 – Raleigh, NC @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
Aug. 23 – Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
Aug. 24 – Tinley Park, IL @ Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
Aug. 26 – Omaha, NE @ CHI Health Center Omaha
Aug. 28 – Sioux Falls, SD @ Denny Sanford PREMIER Center

Def Leppard are giving fans a sneak peek at their upcoming single “Just Like ‘73.”

“Light up the fuel. Just Like 73. Hotline Now Open,” declares a message from the band on social media (Def Leppard, it should be noted, didn’t form until ’76). The post is accompanied by a pair of phone numbers – one for the U.S., another for the U.K. Fans who call the hotline are greeted with a recorded message, followed by a short snippet of “Just Like ‘73.”

The teaser is certainly enough to get Def Leppard fans excited. Backed by a propulsive backbeat, Joe Elliot can be heard singing what appears to be the tune’s pre-chorus: “A stardust religion, It’s the end of days / I ride through the crazy on electric phase / A universal lust, it’s so crazy cool / So turn on to me, it’s time to light up the fuel.”

READ MORE: Def Leppard Albums Ranked Worst to Best

“Just Like ‘73” marks the first new original material from Def Leppard since their 2022 album Diamond Star Halos. More recently, the group released the LP Drastic Symphonies in 2023, a collection of the band’s previous songs re-recorded with London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Is Def Leppard Going on Tour?

Def Leppard will be busy this summer, as the Rock & Roll Hall of Famers are set to hit the road with Journey on a massive co-headlining tour. Steve Miller Band, Heart and Cheap Trick will also perform at various stops on the trek, offering a lineup of classic rock heavy hitters. The tour kicks off July 6 in St. Louis and ends Sept. 10 in West Valley City, Utah.

Def Leppard is also celebrating the 40th anniversary of their landmark album Pyromania. The band released an expansive box set called Pyromania 40 in April, complete with demos, live recordings and outtakes from the LP’s recording sessions.

The Van Halen that Sammy Hagar left in 1996 wasn’t the same as the one he returned to in 2004.

On June 11, 2004 Hagar and his former bandmates reunited onstage for the first time in nearly nine years. Since the singer fired or was quit – depending on who you believe – on Father’s Day 1996, Van Halen had endured some difficult times.

First they attempted a studio reunion with their original frontman David Lee Roth, which flamed out spectacularly and in full view of the public at the MTV Music Awards. Then they recruited Extreme‘s Gary Cherone as their third lead singer, which resulted in 1998’s poorly received studio album III and a tour that failed to light up the box office to their normal high standards. He was dismissed in 1999, and Van Halen all but vanished for the next five years.

Hagar had stayed very busy since the split, releasing four new studio albums between 1997 and 2002 and touring heavily – including a drama-filled co-headlining trek with Roth. His output undermined Alex and Eddie Van Halen’s contention that Hagar’s shoddy work ethic was partly to blame for his departure from the group.

Initially intending only to rekindle their friendship, Hagar reached out to Alex Van Halen in 2003, which soon led to the recording of three new tracks for the band’s career-spanning The Best of Both Worlds compilation album and plans for a summer 2004 tour.

Hagar returned to a group that was more focused on showcasing their entire career. After including only the most undeniable songs from the Roth years (“Jump,” “Panama,” “Ain’t Talkin’ bout Love” and their cover of the Kinks‘ “You Really Got Me”) at live shows during Hagar’s decade in the band, Van Halen brought fan favorites such as “Mean Street” and “Dance the Night Away” back during their 1998 tour with Cherone.

That trend continued on opening night of the 2004 tour, which included six Roth-era songs. In addition to the four songs mentioned above, Hagar handled lead vocals on the Fair Warning gem “Unchained” while bassist Michael Anthony (with eager backing support from Hagar) took on Van Halen II’s “Somebody Get Me a Doctor!”

Read More: Every David Lee Roth-Era Van Halen Song Sammy Hagar Sang

Oddly for a Hagar reunion tour, the show began with the biggest hit of Van Halen’s Roth era, “Jump.” Hagar’s solo songs were also completely removed from the group’s collective performances. On previous tours the band had teamed up to play “I Can’t Drive 55” and “There’s Only One Way to Rock,” with the latter featuring a show-highlighting guitar duel between Hagar and Van Halen. On the 2004 tour, Hagar instead only offered solo acoustic renditions of his songs “Where Eagles Fly” and “Deeper Kinda Love.”

In an admirable but ultimately misguided attempt at showcasing their newest material, Van Halen played all three of the new songs from The Best of Both Worlds compilation – “Up for Breakfast,” “It’s About Time” and “Learning to See” – on opening night. These songs didn’t exactly stand the test of time, and their inclusion meant the exclusion of Van Hagar-era concert favorites such as “Summer Nights,” “Finish What Ya Started” and “Love Walks In.” (“Learning to See’ was dropped after 12 shows, replaced with Balance‘s “The Seventh Seal.”)

Watch the Opening Night of Van Halen’s 2004 Tour

The 2004 Tour Was a Disastrous End to Van Halen’s Sammy Hagar Era

Unfortunately, due to lingering personality conflicts and Eddie Van Halen’s worsening addiction struggles, Van Halen’s Best of Both Worlds tour quickly descended into turmoil and ended just short of disaster. In his 2011 book Red: My Uncensored Life in Rock, Hagar says that a potential $5 million penalty was the only thing keeping him from quitting after four shows.

“I was just hoping it was going to be great and everybody was going to be happy and a big love fest and just go at it again,” Hagar told NBC in 2011, “but it wasn’t that at all. It was the complete opposite.”

Neither Hagar nor Anthony ever performed with Van Halen again after the tour’s final show on Nov. 19 in Tucson. In 2007 Van Halen reunited with David Lee Roth and recruited Eddie’s son Wolfgang to take over on bass for a highly successful tour. This lineup would mount two more such tours and released the 2012 studio album A Different Kind of Truth prior to the guitarist’s 2020 death.

Van Halen June 11, 2004 Greensboro, S.C. Set List
1. “Jump” (From 1984’s 1984)
2. “Runaround” (From 1991’s For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge)
3. “Humans Being” From 1996’s Twister Soundtrack)
4. “Up for Breakfast” (From 2004’s The Best of Both Worlds)
5. Bass Solo
6. “Somebody Get Me a Doctor” (From 1979’s Van Halen II)
7. “Poundcake” (From 1991’s For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge)
8. “It’s About Time” (From 2004’s The Best of Both Worlds)
9. Drum Solo
10. “Top of the World” (From 1991’s For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge)
11. “Unchained” (From 1981’s Fair Warning)
12. “Why Can’t This Be Love” (From 1986’s 5150)
13. “Eagles Fly” (From 1987’s I Never Said Goodbye)
14. “Deeper Kinda Love” (From 2000’s Ten 13)
15. “Learning to See” (From 2004’s The Best of Both Worlds)
16. “Best of Both Worlds” (From 1986’s 5150)
17. Guitar Solo
18. “Dreams” (From 1986’s 5150)
19. “Ain’t Talkin’ ’bout Love’ (From 1978’s Van Halen)
20. “Right Now” (From 1991’s For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge)
21. “You Really Got Me” (Kinks cover from Van Halen)
22. “Panama” (From 1984’s 1984)
23. “When It’s Love” (From 1988’s OU812)

In music, there’s a fine line between paying homage and stealing a sound — and many famous artists have crossed it.

Rock’s history is littered with instances of bands ripping off concepts from fellow musicians. In some cases, it was a riff, a melody or maybe a specific instrumental part. In others, artists have pilfered lyrics or entire tunes from other acts.

As you’d expect, accusations of plagiarism are usually met with denial. Many rockers have gone to court to protect their reputation, insisting that any similarities between their songs and others’ work were completely coincidental.

But what about rock stars who’ve come right out and admitted to borrowing from other artists? Turns out, plenty of hugely successful musicians have done just that.

READ MORE: Classic Rock Artists Who (Allegedly) Ripped Somebody Off

“What do they say? ‘A good artist borrows, a great artist steals’ – or something like that,” Paul McCartney explained to Guitar Player in 1990. “That makes the Beatles great artists because we stole a lot of stuff.”

Indeed, McCartney’s famous former band is just one of the acts featured on our list of 15 Rock Stars Who Admitted to Ripping Off Other Artists. So are many other legendary groups, including Led Zeppelin, Metallica and Nirvana.

In many cases, musicians “borrowed” concepts from their influences, like Brian Wilson who based a Beach Boys‘ hit on a tune previously created by Chuck Berry. Still, other entries on our list are far more unexpected — like the band who ripped off a famous commercial jingle, or the group who pilfered part of a nursery rhyme for their global hit. These stories and more can be found below.

Jon Bon Jovi clarified a recent comment about having had many women in his life despite remaining married to Dorothea, his school sweetheart.

In an interview in May, while the singer discussed his career, he said: “I’m not a saint. You know, I’m not saying that there weren’t 100 girls in my life. I’m Jon Bon Jovi. It was pretty good.”

He went on to add that he’d never considered risking his marriage by “believing the narcissist in me was real,” saying it would have been “a stupid thing to do.”

READ MORE: Ranking Every Bon Jovi Song

Asked by the Guardian about that comment, Bon Jovi replied: “That was an interesting moment where the brain and lips don’t connect. What I meant to say was I’ve had 100 women who have thrown themselves at me, but I didn’t finish the sentence so I really came off like an arrogant cliche.”

Ahead of the couple’s 35th wedding anniversary, he said of Dorothea: “I just got it right the first time. I was blessed to have known her since we were kids and I couldn’t have ever imagined life any differently.”

He added that, while he made sure his children were protected and cared for, he didn’t want to make their lives too easy. “My kids observe my work ethic and that’s in their DNA now – they’re not trust-fund babies,” he said.

“You have to go to work. I will give them enough to make sure they have shoes on their feet, but like Dorothea says: ‘Daddy has money, you don’t have anything.’”

Why Jon Bon Jovi Couldn’t Fully Enjoy His Success

Looking back on his career, he recalled the breakthrough experience of 1986 Bon Jovi album Slippery When Wet. “It changed people around us more than it changed us,” he reflected. “Suddenly people who we would usually ask for advice were now asking us for advice.”

And while his bandmates embraced the typical excesses of rock star life, Bon Jovi noted: “When everything relies on me singing, I’m going to have to go to bed earlier than the others.

“I wish I had enjoyed the success more, but somebody has to be the quarterback of the team to keep the band together.”

How a Naughty Moment Inspired Jon Bon Jovi to Learn Guitar

Michael McDonald has looked back on an uncomfortable confrontation with Ray Charles, describing it as “one of the worst moments” in his life.

It was the year 2000 and McDonald was being honored by NAMM with a tribute concert. As the singer recalled during a recent appearance on the Broken Record podcast, the event’s proceeds went to “a program that tries to seek to keep music programs in the public schools alive by donating instruments and texts.”

Many luminaries were booked to perform at the concert, including McDonald’s former band, the Doobie Brothers, Boz Scaggs, Kenny Loggins and Steve Winwood. Also on the bill, one of McDonald’s idols, Ray Charles.

READ MORE: Michael McDonald Reveals Failed Attempt at Drug Dealing

“Nobody got paid,” the singer recalled. “Everybody agreed that as long as the money is all going to charity … we’re all good. And apparently Ray had not gotten that memo.”

Why Did Ray Charles Yell at Michael McDonald?

Hours before the show, McDonald was summoned to Charles’ trailer.

“His road manager came to me,” the rocker noted. “And his road manager was like out of a Lon Chaney movie or something. He had the cane, and he just looked like some kind of a mobster figure. And he says, ‘The boss wants to talk to you.’”

When McDonald first approached Charles, the music legend was friendly, initially making small talk about the song ‘Hey Girl,’ which he was set to perform during the concert. However, the conversation soon took a turn.

READ MORE: Doobie Brothers Albums Ranked Worst to Best

“He goes, ‘Listen, you got to give me something,’” McDonald remembered, adding that he quickly realized Charles was talking about money. “I said, ‘You know, I would pay you out of my own pocket. I’d be happy to. My only problem is that I’ve kind of put it to everyone, gave everyone my word that all the money from this thing [is] going to go to this charity. And if I paid anyone, no matter how willing I am to do that, I would be breaking my word to everybody else.”

‘I Don’t Give a F— About Your Solemn Oath!’

After explaining that the request had put him in a “weird spot,” McDonald was confronted by Charles. “I’m an old man, God damn it,” the singer declared. “I don’t play this shit [for free].”

McDonald further explained that he had given a “solemn oath” that the money would go to charity, only to have Charles firmly respond: “I don’t give a fuck about your solemn oath!”

Eventually, McDonald was able to retreat to the backstage area, where he was finally able to chuckle a little about the ordeal. “Boy, if my friends in Ferguson could see me now. Ray Charles, chewing my ass out,” McDonald said to himself. In the end, Charles played the gig without further incident.

Rock’s Greatest Solo Artists