Ed Sheeran sold more concert tickets in 2022 than any other act.
According to Billboard's Boxscore, 3,047,696 fans attended the Mathematics tour in 2022, making him No. 1 on the Top Ticket Sales chart.
However, he is only third on the Top Tours charts, which is ranked by gross revenue. Both Bad Bunny and Elton John took in more cash than the "Bad Habits" singer.
Lizzo has been crowned the Queen of TikTok for 2022.
Variety reports that the singer, who has 26 million followers on the app, was the No. 1 music artist on TikTok this year, based on top of views. Additionally, "About Damn Time" was the app's No. 4 top-trending song.
Additionally, the TikTok video in which Lizzo demonstrates the dance for the hit song came in at seventh place on the trending-videos ranking, according to the company.
Ye has reportedly been hit with a $116k invoice from Milo Yiannopoulos for his work as a part of his presidential campaign team. According to TMZ, sources say that the December 1st invoice led to Milo's firing as there was never a financial agreement made between them and since Ye hadn't officially announced that he was running for president, everyone who's worked with him has done so on a volunteer basis.
Meanwhile, according to NBC News, Yiannopoulos claimed that he arranged the pre-Thanksgiving dinner meeting with former President Donald Trump and Ye and Nick Fuentes at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort complex to "make Trump's life miserable."
In other news, Ye and 24-year-old model Juliana Nalú have split. When a social media follower asked the model how she could associate with someone who is "fond of Nazism," Nalú responded, "I'm single. Thanks for caring." Sources told Page Six that Ye and Nalú started dating to "drown out the headlines about anti-Semitism with other content," adding that "the new girlfriend" was an attempt "to try and make people forget."
Although the Dead & Company might be calling it quits after next summer -- Grateful Dead co-founder Bob Weir shows no signs of slowing down. Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. will launch a 24-date winter tour that kicks off on February 2nd at North Charleston, South Carolina's North Charleston Performing Arts Center and winds down on March 11th and 12th in Nashville, Tennessee at the legendary Ryman Auditorium.
Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. features famed producer Don Was on bass, drummer Jay Lane, and Dead & Company keyboardist Jeff Chimenti.
Out now is Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros.' Live in Colorado: Vol 2. The set follows the band's first volume released last February.
Bob Weir explained to us how the musical shape and form of the Wolf Bros. finally came to him: "It became clear to me what the group could be. We could be a trio -- 'have a lot of room to play guitar -- but we could also add people, we could plug people in. The whole idea is that it should be flexible. We can just kick the whole idea around. The core of the group is the trio and then we have the other two guys for addition. And all these guys, y'know, (laughs) they can solo endlessly. Y'know, we, we can take anything for a little walk in the woods."
JUST ANNOUNCED: Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. tour dates (subject to change):
February 2 - North Charleston, SC - North Charleston Performing Arts Center
February 3 - Jacksonville, FL - Florida Theatre
February 4 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Broward Center
February 7, 9, 10, 11 - Port Chester, NY - The Capitol Theatre
February 17, 18, 19 - Atlanta, GA - Atlanta Symphony Hall
February 21 - Memphis, TN - Orpheum Theatre
February 22 - Asheville, NC - Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
February 24 - Chattanooga, TN - Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Auditorium
February 25 - Louisville, KY - The Louisville Palace
February 26 - Madison, WI - The Sylvee
March 1 - St. Paul, MN - Palace Theatre
March 2 - Ames, IA - Stephens Auditorium
March 4 - Omaha, NE - Orpheum Theater
March 5 - Kansas City, MO - The Midland Theatre
March 7, 8 - Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theater
March 9 - Dallas, TX- Majestic Theatre
March 11, 12 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium
Goo Goo Dolls have just rolled out a 32-date summer tour with O.A.R. serving as their opening act. The band will be on the road in support of its latest album, Chaos In Bloom. The summer run kicks off on June 24th at Tampa, Florida's Coachman Park and eventually winds down on September 7th at Highland, California's Yaamava' Theater.
Frontman John Rzeznik said in a statement, "I'm so proud to finally be able to announce our summer tour with a great band and our friends O.A.R. It's going to be an amazing night of great music for everyone so be there!!!"
Rolling Stone reported, "With the new tour, Goo Goo Dolls will partner with Joe Torre Safe At Home, a nonprofit that provides healing and education services for children who've survived domestic violence and child abuse."
John Rzeznik told us that one of the highlights of any show is the chance to connect with the band's original fans: "Everybody that came up with us came just as slow. So, it was no big shock. The people that were with us in the beginning, a lot of times, if they still show up, I mean we'll still talk to them and that just because they've realized that we haven't changed that much, maybe a little more sober. That's about it."
JUST ANNOUNCED: Goo Goo Dolls tour dates (subject to change):
July 24 - Tampa, FL - Coachman Park
July 26 - Boca Raton, FL - Mizner Park Amphitheater
July 27 - Saint Augustine, FL - The Saint Augustine Amphitheatre
July 29 - Albertville, AL - Sand Mountain Park & Amphitheater
July 30 - Atlanta, GA - Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park
August 1 - Simpsonville, SC - CCNB Amphitheatre at Heritage Park
August 2 - Greensboro, NC - White Oak Amphitheatre
August 4 - Columbia, MD - Merriweather Post Pavilion
August 5 - Wantagh, NY - Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
August 6 - Bethel, NY - Bethel Woods Center for the Arts – The Pavilion
August 8 - Saratoga Springs, NY - SPAC
August 9 - Bethlehem, PA - Musikfest
August 11 - Atlantic City, NJ - The Borgata
August 12 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Center
August 13 - Bridgeport, CT - Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater
August 15 - Boston, MA - Leader Bank Pavilion
August 16 - Syracuse, NY - St. Joseph's Health Amphitheater
August 18 - Cincinnati, OH - PNC Pavilion
August 19 - Sterling Heights, MI - Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill
August 20 - Cleveland, OH - Blossom Music Center
August 22 - Chicago, IL - Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
August 23 - Indianapolis, IN - TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park
August 25 - Franklin, TN - FirstBank Amphitheater
August 26 - Maryland Heights, MO - Saint Louis Music Park
August 27 - Kansas City, MO - Starlight Theatre
August 30 - Denver, CO - Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre
August 31 - Sandy, UT - Sandy Amphitheater
September 2, 3 - Seattle, WA - TBD
September 4 - Bend, OR - Hayden Homes Amphitheater
September 6 - Irvine, CA - FivePoint Amphitheatre
September 7 - Highland, CA - Yaamava' Theater (Goo Goo Dolls only)
It was 51 years ago today (December 7th, 1971) that Paul McCartney released his first album with Wings, titled Wild Life. The album, which was McCartney's third post-Beatles solo set, topped out at Number 10 on the Billboard 200.
At that point, Wings consisted of Paul and wife Linda McCartney -- who also sang and handled keyboard duties, Ram drummer Denny Seiwell, and old friend and Moody Blues-co-founder Denny Laine, who played guitar and occasional bass. The album marked the first solo McCartney set to be recorded at the "Fab Four's" London home base, Abbey Road Studios.
Denny Laine was the sole member of Wings to span the band's decade-long run. He recalled the early-summer 1971 phone call from McCartney asking him to help form the group: "Y'know, he was looking for people he could get on with and people who would go on in the future with new ideas. So he just called up and said, 'Paul here, do you fancy getting a band together?'"
In mid-December 1971, only days after Wild Life was released, Paul McCartney was in Manhattan promoting the disc, when he and Linda popped over to John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Greenwich Village apartment for what has been called over the years a sort of "truce summit" in which the former Beatles tried to discuss their business problems and agree to stop bad-mouthing each other in the press.
McCartney biographer Christopher Sanford told us that Lennon, who at the time was riding high on his critically acclaimed Imagine album, pulled no punches when he told McCartney what he thought of his new work: "John was not a great fan of Wild Life, I think he saw it as another step down that 'easy listening' road that he thought Paul was having veered towards -- and many others agreed with that. Y'know, that's one of the things, he was never shy of an opinion, of course -- that he told Paul at that meeting. But those were tense times, of course, and there's no pretending otherwise. The obvious analogy is a divorce where you're right in the middle of the ugliness, and the lawyers are kind of exacerbating the problem. And things get said and done that maybe years later, you wouldn't have wanted to say or do."
One of the highlights on Wild Life is "Bip Bop" -- a tune that would actually fit in quite nicely with the lo-fi alternative music scene these days. A while back, Paul McCartney admitted that although he signed off on everything he's ever released, there are still a few tracks that never fail to get under his skin: "Yeah, there's one or two tracks I'm not very keen on. I was talking to a producer called Trevor Horn, and I was talking to him, I was saying ‘I hate the track called, ‘Bip Bop'' -- it's on Wild Life. It's like, that's basically the entire lyrics. And he said, ‘Oh, I love it. It's my favorite track.' So, what can you do? I'm not keen on that one."
Not too long ago, Paul McCartney talked to Guitar World magazine, and recalled the recording of Wild Life, remembering, "We'd heard that (Bob) Dylan had done an album in a week, and I think coming off the back of taking a long time over records, it seemed like an interesting idea to do a record quickly. Y'know, I like the record. It wasn't perhaps as good as some of the others. But for me, a record can be associated with a favorite memory, which kind of validates it. And I have this great memory of driving up (L.A.'s) Sunset Strip and (moving up alongside) some real hippie guy -- typical Woodstock type. He pulled (Wild Life) out of his driving cab and held it up and said, 'Hey man, great record.' And to me, that was it."
FAST FORWARD
Last February 4th, in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Wings' debut album, Paul McCartney issued a new half-speed mastering vinyl edition of Wild Life. The new version of the album was cut using a high resolution transfer of the original 1971 master tapes.
That day fans were able to log in to Spotify or Apple Music for McCartney's official Wild Life listening party, where people from around the globe shared memories and their personal stories about the classic album.
The tracklisting to 'Wild Life' is:
Side One: "Mumbo," "Bip Bop," "Love Is Strange," and "Wild Life."
Side Two: "Some People Never Know," "I Am Your Singer," "Bip Bop (Link)," "Tomorrow," "Dear Friend," and "Mumbo (Link)."
James Hetfield makes no bones about channeling his inner demons for Metallica's new music. Blabbermouth transcribed Hetfield talking in a new promo video about the band's new album, 72 Seasons -- which drops on April 14th -- where he shed light on the album's sometimes extremely dark inspiration.
Hetfield revealed, "There's been a lot of darkness in my life and in our career and things that have happened with us, but always having a sense of hope, always having the light that is in that darkness. . . Without darkness, there is no light, and being able to focus a little more on the light in life instead of how it used to be and how horrible it is."
He went on to say, "There's a lot of good things going on in life -- focusing on that instead, and it helps to balance out my life. And there's no one meaning to it -- everyone has some sense of hope or light in their life, and, obviously, music is mine."
A while back James Hetfield told us that upon entering alcohol rehabilitation, he learned that anger can be a good thing. "You can handle anger and use anger in a positive sense. I felt I can take anger and be assertive with it. It also helps me protect, like, if something's going wrong you can protect your family. I mean there's a lot of good uses for anger that I never saw before. This is all new to me, and if it's completely 101 for most people, that's fine, but for me this is pretty profound."
The man accused of shooting Lady Gaga's dog walker last year was sentenced to 21 years in prison.
According to TMZ, James Howard Jackson was sentenced Monday (December 5th) after accepting a plea deal from the Los Angeles County District attorney's office.
Prosecutors claim he shot Ryan Fisher in an attempt to steal Gaga's two French bulldogs last year.
Red Hot Chili Peppers have rolled out their 2023 global tour dates in support of the two new albums -- Unlimited Love and Return Of The Dream Canteen. The North American run kicks off in Vancouver at BC Place on March 29th with the final date on this side of the Atlantic set for May 25th at Houston's Minute Maid Park. The band will be on the road on Europe throughout June and July.
Supporting the Chili Peppers at assorted gigs will be such heavyweights as Iggy Pop, the Strokes, the Roots, St. Vincent, Thundercat, the Mars Volta, and City and Colour.
No matter how exotic the locale, bassist Flea told us not long ago that the band approaches each show the same way: "Y'know, with gigs, it's always the same for me -- some are fun, some aren't fun, but that doesn't really matter. Actually, serving the mighty tradition of performing for people is just something that I and we as a band care about deeply. So, no matter what the scene is, we're just in to go out there and tap in the source and reach into the most hardcore depths of who we are, to get what we can."
Singer Anthony Kiedis told us not long ago that the Chili Peppers have found a way to avoid burning out when touring for a long time: "We've got it fairly dialed in. You have to hope for the best, but we tour for a couple of weeks, we take a break for 10 days, we tour for a couple of weeks, take a break for eight days. . . I think we're in a better mental state to avoid burning out."
JUST ANNOUNCED: Red Hot Chili Peppers tour dates (subject to change):
March 29 - Vancouver, BC - BC Place *~
April 1 - Las Vegas, NV - Allegiant Stadium #~
April 6 - Fargo, ND - Fargodome ^~
April 8 - Minneapolis, MN US Bank Stadium ^~
April 14 - Syracuse, NY - JMA Wireless Dome ^~
May 12 - San Diego, CA - Snap Dragon Stadium >+
May 14 - Phoenix, AZ - State Farm Stadium ^+
May 17 - San Antonio, TX - Alamodome ^+
May 19 - Gulf Shores, AL - Hangout Music Festival =
May 25 - Houston, TX - Minute Maid Park ^+
June 18 - Landgraaf, The Netherlands - Pinkpop =
June 21 - Warsaw, Poland - PGE Narodowy <
June 24 - Odense, Denmark - Tinderbox =
June 26 - Mannheim, Germany - Maimarktgelände <
June 30 - Leuven, Belgium - Rock Wercther =
July 2 - Milan, Italy - I-Days =
July 6 - Lisbon, Portugal - NOS Live =
July 8 - Madrid, Spain - Mad Cool =
July 11 - Lyon, France - Groupama Stadium <~
July 14 - Vienna, Austria - Ernst-Happel Stadion <~
July 17 - Carhaix, France - Les Vieilles Charrues =
July 21 - London, England - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium %~
July 23 - Glasgow, Scotland - Hampden Park %~
^ The Strokes
< Iggy Pop
% The Roots
# St. Vincent
> The Mars Volta
* City and Colour
+ Thundercat
~ King Princess
= Festival Date
Adele gushed about Lizzo while on stage during one of her Las Vegas residency concerts.
The "Easy on Me" singer told the audience she invited the Yitty founder to a karaoke party the first time they met and added, "She's such an amazing person. She is so thoughtful, she sends flowers to you, she remembers things about you. She's amazing, so I'd like to give her all of my love."
The "About Damn Time" singer retweeted a clip of Adele's speech Sunday (December 4th) and wrote, "ADELE I LOVE UUUUU RIGHT BACK & I WANTED TO GO TO THAT KARAOKE PARTY SO BAD WE GOTTA DO IT BIG IN VEGAS BABY"
Coldplay is in the studio working on new music.
The band Tweeted Monday (December 5th), "Hello Everybody. I hope you're all doing really well. Here are some things I Love at the moment," before announcing, "We are in the studio."
According to the list, the band is currently into music from RM, Erykah Badu, Bakya, The 1975, Inhaler, Kyoka, and Stormyz.
Elton John has revealed his final UK appearance will be at this year's Glastonbury festival. The Guardian reported he'll close out the main stage on June 25th marking his second-only career appearance at a UK festival.
Elton said in a statement, "I couldn't be more excited to be headlining the Pyramid stage. As the end of my 'Farewell Yellow Brick Road' tour comes into view, there is no more fitting way to say goodbye to my British fans. They have been beyond brilliant, and have supported me through all the highs and lows of my career. I can't wait to embrace the spirit of the greatest festival in the world."
Elton explained to us what this final tour symbolizes: "It's the last time that I will be touring and traveling the world, because my priorities have changed in my life. 10 years ago, if you had said I'm going to stop touring, I'd have said, 'No, no -- I'm a working musician I always play' -- but, we had children and it changed our lives. And in 2015, David and I sat down with a school schedule and I said, 'I don't wanna miss too much of this.'"
The ongoing "Farewell Yellow Brick Road" tour, which began in 2018, is set to run through July 2023 with Elton performing his final European dates.
Elton John next performs on January 8th, 2023 in New South Wales, Australia.
Paramore is planning a special album release show in Nashville to celebrate their latest offering, This Is Why. According to the band's Instagram, the trio will perform at the historic Grand Ole Opry on February 6th, 2023 with support from Louis Prince.
Bruce Springsteen has just issued the new official bootleg Nashville: August 21st, 2008 -- the sixth live set from the E Street Band's 2007/2008 tour behind his chart-topping Magic album.
The new concert follows previous releases from Boston, Massachusetts; Tampa, Florida; St. Louis, Missouri; Indianapolis; Indiana; Greensboro, North Carolina and features a 29-song set packed with classics and rarities.
Among the highlights included on Nashville: August 21st, 2008 are covers of Elvis Presley's "Good Rockin' Tonight," Johnny Cash's "I Walk The Line," Bo Diddley's "Mona," the Bobby Fuller Four's "I Fought The Law" -- along with his own deep cuts, "I'm Goin' Down," "Held Up Without A Gun," "Girls In Their Summer Clothes," and "Loose Ends."
The tracklisting to Nashville: August 21st, 2008 is: "Out In The Street," "Radio Nowhere," "No Surrender," "Lonesome Day," "Spirit In The Night," "Good Rockin' Tonight," "Growin' Up," "I'm Goin' Down," "Held Up Without A Gun," "Loose Ends," "Youngstown," "Murder Incorporated," "Mona," "She's The One," The Promised Land," "Mary's Place," "I Walk The Line,' "I'm On Fire," "The Rising," "Last To Die," "Long Walk Home," "Badlands," "Girls In Their Summer Clothes," "Thunder Road," "Born To Run," "I Fought The Law," "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)," "American Land," and "Dancing In The Dark."
During the 2007 tour, Bruce Springsteen's wife, and E Street Band member, Patti Scialfa told us the band was in a very good place on the road: "It feels very joyous. It's just a very joyous tour. Even though the songs are complicated, it's celebratory. Bruce's sets always take you through a lot of different questions. And he's not there to answer them, but it's nice to start that conversation with your audience. And then to have some kind of wrapped up resolution which just leaves you with some belief and a very positive feeling."
TAYLOR SWIFT GUITAR TO BE AUCTIONED FOR CHARITY: Raven's Drum Foundation is auctioning off a Taylor Swift-signed guitar. The group's 12 Drummers Drumming auction runs through December 12th and is raising money for veterans and first responders who are dealing with PTSD, Trauma and suicidal ideation.
BLACKPINK IS TIME'S 'ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR': BLACKPINK has been named Time's "Entertainer of the Year." This year the all-girl K-pop group performed at the VMAs, kicked off a 27-city world tour, and dropped their sophomore album. As for what's next, Jennie told the outlet, "My No. 1 rule is not to look ahead, and enjoy every day, because it gets too overwhelming once we start planning a year ahead, two years ahead,"
It was 57 years ago today (December 6th, 1965) that the Beatles released their groundbreaking sixth album, Rubber Soul in America. Also released in conjunction to the album was the band's first official "double A-sided" single, "We Can Work It Out" backed with "Day Tripper. Rubber Soul featured a staring of instant classics, including "Michelle" -- which scored the band the 1967 Grammy for Song Of The Year despite it never being released by the band as a single -- "In My Life," "Drive My Car," "Nowhere Man," "Girl," "I'm Looking Through You," and "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)"-- for which George Harrison is often credited for introducing world music into rock by contributing the song's signature sitar part.
In the U.S. "Drive My Car," "Nowhere Man," the John Lennon-Paul McCartney-Ringo Starr-written "What Goes On," and "If I Needed Someone" were left off Rubber Soul and replaced with the Help! holdovers "I've Just Seen A Face" and "It's Only Love." Rubber Soul marks the first time an outtake from a prior album was included on a new project, with "Wait" originally recorded during the previous spring's Help! sessions but left unissued.
Much the same way Paul McCartney credits the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds as being the inspiration for Sgt. Pepper, Brian Wilson credits Rubber Soul for inspiring Pet Sounds. Rubber Soul was the final album to feature Norman Smith as the Beatles' engineer. He was promoted at EMI Records to producer status and went on to work with Pink Floyd. Save for a few instances, Geoff Emerick went on to be the group's primary engineer until their split.
The album is unique for several reasons; Paul McCartney played slide guitar on "Drive My Car," Ringo Starr made his keyboard debut playing the organ on "I'm Looking Through You," and the album was the first to feature McCartney playing his solid-bodied Rickenbacker 4001 bass, rather than his signature Hofner "violin" bass.
On January 8th, 1966 Rubber Soul hit Number One on the Billboard 200 albums chart, holding down the top spot for six weeks. That same day, "We Can Work It Out" knocked Simon & Garfunkel's "The Sound Of Silence" out from Number One for the first of three weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. "Day Tripper" peaked at Number Five -- marking the group's 26th Top 40 hit in only two years.
Paul McCartney recalled how the band came to title the album Rubber Soul: "The title Rubber Soul was, kind of 'Hey man, it's got soul -- 'lotta soul, 'lotta soul, that music' -- it was a spoof on that, y'know, seemed nice and amusing, very us -- y'know, very whacky."
Most notably on Rubber Soul was George Harrison's use of the indian stringed instrument, the sitar, on "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)." The use of the instrument, which went on to inspire an Eastern music renaissance in pop, coincided with Harrison's new-found spiritual quest.
Harrison's first wife, Pattie Boyd, told us that his infatuation with Hinduism, spiritual topics, and Indian music was his attempt to seek out the "bigger picture": "He had a bit of difficulty understanding why he -- this little boy from Liverpool -- had been selected to be so famous. And he didn't understand the fame and he thought that maybe Eastern philosophy could give him some sort of idea or clue as to why he had been chosen."
Shortly before his 2016 death, George Martin touched upon how as the Beatles gradually lost interest in live performance, their creative life in the studio grew by leaps and bounds: "Oh yeah, they were becoming quite original. The thing is, though, they were eternally curious. They wanted to find new ways of doing what they were doing -- new harmonies, new endings of songs, and that kind of thing. They would always want to look beyond the horizon."
During the filming of Let It Be on January 14th, 1969, John Lennon spoke about only becoming conscious of what his songs are about after the fact: "The songs, I mean, you're vaguely aware if you sing something it's gonna go 'round all over the world, but you can't get into that while you're writing a song. It's a job writing a song, and you're doing it, and you're involved in it, and then sometimes you don't realize what you've written 'til after you've recorded it, or even a year later, y'know? I hear old records of ours and see things on different levels."
Very early on during the Beatles' touring days, George Harrison was dubbed the "Quiet Beatle." Although Harrison was known to be just as hysterical, raucous, and vocal about issues as the rest of the group, he explained back in 1965, the demeanor took hold when dealing with the often vapid press covering the Beatles: "Well, I think I'm more quiet than the others because I got fed up before the others of all these questions, like, 'What color teeth have you got?' (Laughter) And all, just stupid questions you have no interest in any longer. And I think everybody -- well all fans, I think they all know what color eyes we've got and what we drink for breakfast and all that. And they don't want to know that anymore. So, I just shut up until someone asks me something worth answering."
During the Beatles' final tour in 1966 they only included three Rubber Soul-era songs in their setlist -- "Nowhere Man," "If I Needed Someone," and "Day Tripper."
Over the years, the songs of Rubber Soul have lived on through the solo Beatles concerts, with George Harrison performing "If I Needed Someone" during his 1991 tour of Japan; Ringo Starr frequently includes "What Goes On" in his All Starr Band shows; and Paul McCartney has tackled "Drive My Car," "You Won't See Me," "Michelle," "I've Just Seen A Face," "I'm Looking Through You," "The Word," "We Can Work It Out," and "Day Tripper" in his various world tours.
Sadly, legendary Beatles photographer Robert Freeman died on November 7th, 2019 at age 82. Freeman, who served as the band's unofficial photographer between 1963 and 1966, shot five of the band's album covers -- 1963's With The Beatles -- for which he was paid 75 British pounds, three times the usual fee, 1964's A Hard Day's Night and Beatles For Sale, and 1965's Help! and Rubber Soul.
In 1995's The Beatles Anthology Paul McCartney recalled how Robert Freeman came up with the groundbreaking cover for Rubber Soul: "He had a little carousel of slides and he had a little piece of cardboard stuck up on a little chair that was album cover size, and he was projecting the photographs onto it. 'Cause you could imagine exactly how it'd look then, as an album cover. We'd just chosen the photo, we said, 'That one looks good,' we all liked ourselves in one particular shot. And he was just winding up when the card it was on just fell backwards a little bit, and it elongated the photo and it stretched. And we went, 'Oh! Can we have that?! Can you do it like that?!' He said, 'Well yeah, I can print it like that. . .' We said, 'Yeah, that's it -- Rubber Soul -- heh-hey!"
It was 53 years ago today (December 6th, 1969) that the Rolling Stones held their ill-fated free concert at the Altamont Speedway in Livermore, California. The bill, which also included Santana, the Jefferson Airplane, the Flying Burrito Brothers, and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, is mainly remembered for the violence instigated by the Hells Angels motorcycle gang, whom the Stones had hired as security -- and the murder of concert-goer Meredith Hunter by Hells Angel Alan Passaro. Passaro was later acquitted of the stabbing after claiming he acted in self-defense.
The Stones' Madison Square Garden shows and the Altamont event were filmed by filmmakers Albert Maysles, David Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin, and assisted by George Lucas, among others. The film was released in 1970 as Gimme Shelter.
At the New York City press conference on November 26th, 1969, Mick Jagger said he thought that the free Northern California concert would follow in the footsteps of the Woodstock festival, in terms of how people would get along: (Mick Jagger): We are doing a free concert in San Francisco. . . (Reporter): When? (Mick Jagger): December 6th -- and the location is not Golden Gate Park, unfortunately, but it someplace adjacent to it which is a bit larger. . . It's creating a sort of a microcosmic society, y'know, which, it sets an example to the rest of America as to how one can behave in large gatherings."
Keith Richards, who had opted to spend the previous night at the raceway concert grounds, hanging out and partying with fans, revealed the moment he knew things were going to go south with the event: "When I got a bad vibe about it was when I saw the condition of the Angels. Now, I can tell these guys are on acid and ripple wine. And they're already (wasted) in the early afternoon. They're startin' to get antsy. These guys were out there just lookin' for trouble."
Jefferson Airplane guitarist Jorma Kaukonen (pronounced: YOR-ma COW-co-nen) said that his only thought was to keep playing after he saw lead singer Marty Balin get punched in the face by one of the Hell's Angels: "I remember thinking that -- of course, if you look at the footage, Jack (Casady) and Spencer (Dryden) and I pretty much keep on playing -- I remember thinking at the time, 'I'm just gonna keep playing and see what happens.'"
Shortly before his death in 2018, Marty Balin looked back at Altamont and described to us the fight scene between him and the Hell's Angles that took place while the band performed "The Other Side Of This Life": "I was singin,' I open my eyes, and they're beating this guy in front of me in (front of) the stage with these pool cues. About 10 of 'em around this guy and the whole crowd, en masse, just kind of stepped back. And that pissed me off and I just leap off the stage and I start pushing these Hell's Angels back: 'You're ruining my set,' y'know, and they. . . (imitates drunken Hell's Angel) 'Hey Marty, whaddaya doing man, you should be up there singing, and y'know. . . ' -- I said, 'Nobody's listening to me, get away from me,' y'know? And so, they quit and I got back onstage and I started to sing again, the same opening, y'know? And behind me, they're fighting this guy again. And so, I said, well, nobody's paying any attention to what I'm doing at all, y'know, so I went back and their leader -- the guy with the wolf's head, y'know, he was there. So, him and I started punchin' it out, y'know. And then bam -- I blacked out. They knocked me out, y'know? And I woke up, I had all these boot tattoos all over my body, y'know? I left, went home. I told everybody, I says, 'Forget it. I'm outta here.'"
The Rolling Stones had dealt with the Hells Angels before, when the London chapter showed up in force the previous July during the Stones' legendary free concert at Hyde Park. The late-Charlie Watts recalled the subtle difference between them and the bikers that turned up at Altamont: "Except that these were actual, proper Hells Angels (laughs). It was a bit like asking the Nazi party to sort out the front of the auditorium."
The show's low standing stage eventually became overcrowded with fans and Angels alike. The Stones' tour manager Sam Cutler pleaded with the people to give the musicians room to play: "There are a number of people on and around this stage who should not be here. Consequently. . . consequently the musicians on this stage are playing with something like 200 people breathing down their necks. Now can I please ask that everyone leaves the stage, and as I say we'll go back to playing music and nothing else."
Both Mick Jagger and Keith Richards sought to get the crowd in line so that the Stones could play their set: "(Mick Jagger): People, who's fighting and what for?! Why are we fighting?! Why are we fighting?! We don't want to fight! Come on! Who wants to fight? (crowd noise) Every other scene has been cool. . . (Keith Richards): Look, cat. . . That guy there, if he doesn't stop it man! Listen man, either those cats cool it, or we don't play! (crowd noise). (Hell's Angel): Hey, if y'don't cool it, y'ain't gonna hear no music! Now y'all wanna go home or what?! (Crowd noise) (Announcer): We need doctors down here now please. Can we have a doctor now to the front? (Crowd noise)
Although the Grateful Dead were scheduled to play, they refused to take the stage in the middle of what was obviously a very ugly situation unfolding. Drummer Bill Kreutzmann says that the scene at Altamont was as tragic in real life as it appears in the Gimme Shelter footage: "Yeah, it was horrible. It was a war. It felt really uncomfortable. It was a dark day. It was so dark that that night, we were playing that weekend for Bill Graham at the Carousel, and I refused to play that night, I was feeling so bad about what had happened that day. I didn't feel like going and celebrating it musically."
In 1972, during a chat with Dick Cavett while back in the States on tour with the Stones, Bill Wyman was asked about Altamont: "I'd sooner forget about it. It was just a very unfortunate thing. It was the last show of a tour. Y'know, we weren't going to do it. It was just a free concert that was set up a few days before and I mean . . . There was 300,000 people there. It was only 30 people fighting. Almost all the audience never even saw it. Didn't even know it was going on, y'know?"
In May 1970, while on tour with the Grateful Dead in Europe, Jerry Garcia took time out to compare and contrast the previous year's era-defining concerts: "With Woodstock and Altamont, the same situations were prevailing. It was free -- essentially -- and it was also completely without control of any sort. Y'know, there were no police. There's no way you can realistically control that size, really. You can't expect to. The way I saw it, both of those situations were being, like, two sides of the same coin. It's like two ways that that kind of expression can go; y'know, a huge number of people and no rules. And one of the ways, obviously it can go is a terrible bummer -- like Altamont, and one of the other ways is into an immensely joyful scene -- like Woodstock."
Although only a handful of songs from the concert were shown in Gimme Shelter -- giving the appearance that the show was cut short due to the unruly crowd and violence -- the band actually performed a full 15-song set -- including the world premiere of "Brown Sugar."
The Stones' full setlist at the Altamont concert was: "Jumpin' Jack Flash," "Carol," "Sympathy For The Devil," "The Sun Is Shining," "Stray Cat Blues," "Love In Vain," "Under My Thumb," "Brown Sugar," "Midnight Rambler," "Live With Me," "Gimme Shelter," "Little Queenie," "Satisfaction," "Honky Tonk Women," and "Street Fighting Man."
Out now is Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out! The Rolling Stones In Concert 40th Anniversary Deluxe Box Set. The set features three CD's and one DVD, with the first disc including the full 1970 Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out album, and the second disc including five additional cuts left off the original set. The third disc features performances from Ike & Tina Turner and B.B. King who served as the Stones' opening acts on November 27th and 28th, 1969 at New York's Madison Square Garden.
In August 2015, Keith Richards recalled the Altamont Speedway concert, during an appearance on Britain's Absolute Radio. Richards remembered the band being extremely on edge as the crowds started to surge, due to the continuous scuffles between the fans and the bikers: "I don't know if it was scary, it was just like, 'Wow you have got to do something about this before it turns into a full scale riot. We handled it the best way we could. Basically I just stopped playing and it happened to work. . . As events turned out security wasn't what it should be."
Although Meredeth Hunter was killed only yards away from the band, the show went on -- mainly, as the Stones have said over the years -- because more violence would've occurred had they quit. Richards explained: "We didn't know the cat was dead or anything, but we saw what was going on. . . It was a matter of 'quick do something, and distract people from the Hells Angels.'"
In 2016, renown rock writer Joel Selvin published the definitive account of the 1969 concert, titled, Altamont: The Rolling Stones, The Hells Angels, And The Inside Story Of Rock's Darkest Day.
2018 saw the publication of author Saul Austerlitz's Just A Shot Away: Peace, Love, And Tragedy With The Rolling Stones At Altamont.
Axl Rose took to social media on Friday (December 2nd) to announced that he's done throwing his mic into the audience after a woman was reportedly seriously injured.
Billboard reported that during Guns N' Roses' November 29th concert in Adelaide, Australia at the Adelaide Oval, a concertgoer named Rebecca Howe suffered two blackened eyes and a "busted nose."
Axl Rose tweeted a message to fans, which reads in full:
It's come to my attention that a fan may have been hurt at our show in Adelaide, Australia, possibly being hit by the microphone at the end of the show when I traditionally toss the mic to the fans. If true, obviously we don't want anyone getting hurt or to somehow in any way hurt anyone at our shows anywhere.
Having tossed the mic at the end of r shows for over 30 years we always felt it was a known part of the very end of r performance that fans wanted and were aware of to have an opportunity to catch the mic.
Regardless in the interest of public safety from now we'll refrain from tossing the mic or anything to the fans during or at r performances.
Unfortunately there are those that for their own reasons chose to frame their reporting regarding this subject in a more negative n' irresponsible out of nowhere light which couldn't be farther from reality. We hope the public and of course fans get that sometimes happens.
A BIG THANKS to everyone for understanding.
IN OTHER GNR NEWS
Guns N' Roses have taken legal action against an online weapon store named Texas Guns and Roses. The band filed suit on December 1st in Los Angeles Federal Court citing the website is attempting to "con" fans into thinking the band is associated with the business and is suing for an undisclosed sum.
CNS reported, "The lawsuit alleges that Texas company Jersey Village Florist operates the online store texasgunsandroses.com -- selling firearms, ammunition, scopes and body armor through the mail -- 'without GNR's approval, license or consent.' The plaintiffs allege that Jersey Village Florist 'selected and adopted defendant's marks for the purpose of confusing consumers into believing that it was connected or associated with, or licensed by, GNR.'"
The legal brief, which cites the band's partners as Axl Rose, Saul "Slash" Hudson, and Michael "Duff" McKagan, goes on to explain: "This is particularly damaging to GNR given the nature of defendant's business. GNR, quite reasonably, does not want to be associated with defendant, a firearms and weapons retailer. Furthermore, defendant espouses political views related to the regulation and control of firearms and weapons on the website that may be polarizing to many U.S. consumers." (CNS)
Demi Lovato is working on new music.
The singer shared a TikTok Saturday (December 3rd) that showed the text, "When your getting back in the studio" and used the popular, "Here the f**k we go" audio."
Lovato dropped their eighth studio album, Holy Fvck, on August 19th which was hailed as return to their rock-influenced roots.
Taylor Swift fans are suing Ticketmaster over the recent Eras Tour ticketing sale.
According to a complaint viewed by Pitchfork, the Plaintiffs are suing Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation for "fraud, price-fixing, and antitrust violations," alleging that "intentional deception" allowed scalpers to buy the majority of tickets.
The complaint also names L.A. County – where Live Nation is Located – and asks the court to fine the company $2,500 per violation of fraud, price -fixing and antitrust.
A scaled-back and primarily acoustic Who performed on Friday night (December 2nd) as part of 90th birthday salute to legendary artist, Peter Blake. Blake, who is considered the "Godfather" of pop art, is perhaps best known for designing the cover of the Beatles' groundbreaking 1967 Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album, among countless other albums and projects -- including the Who's iconic 1981 cover for Face Dances -- and most recently, 2019's WHO. Proceeds from the performance at London's Royal Festival Hall went to towards the Who's patron charity Teenage Cancer Trust and Graeae Theatre Company.
The Who performed a seven-song set, featuring Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend on acoustic and electric guitars, with the pair accompanied by Townshend's brother and longtime bandmate Simon Townshend on acoustic guitar, touring bassist Jon Button, longtime Who associates Jody Linscott on percussion and Billy Nicholls on backing vocals. Also appearing at the event was the Pretenders' Chrissie Hyde, Noel Gallagher, Paul Weller, and others.
Townshend and Daltrey took part in a brief discussion on stage during the latter part of the concert.
During his and Roger Daltrey's brief chat during Friday night's tribute, Pete Townshend spoke about how Peter Blake revolutionary use of color inspired him in the mid-1960's: "Peter will remember this, I can't remember which magazine it was. But I think it was the Sunday Times cover supplement. It had a piece about pop art, I pulled out all of the sheets and I had it all up in my bedroom. Very, very colorful, wonderful stuff that I still love to this day."
The Who's setlist on Saturday night in London was:
"Substitute"
"The Seeker"
"Tattoo"
"Behind Blue Eyes"
"The Kids Are Alright"
"Pinball Wizard"
"Won't Get Fooled Again" - Daltrey & Townshend only
The Who will again perform acoustically on December 13th at London's St. Luke's Church in London. All proceeds from the show will benefit Nordoff Robbins and the music therapies it supplies to challenged children.
Could it be possible that Britney and Jamie Lynn Spears have made up?
The "Toxic" singer publicly congratulated her sister on her upcoming reality show and referred to her as her "heart" on Friday (December 2nd).
The elder Spears wrote, "Congratulations on being so brave, inspiring, and showing guts and glory in your show!!! You ain't alone… if anybody knows what that feels like… I get it. My baby sister!!! I love you!!!"
Britney previously called Jamie Lynn "scum" and accused her of writing a tell-all book at her expense.
Charlie Puth made his relationship with Brooke Sasone Instagram official on his 31st birthday.
The pop star shared two strips of photo booth snaps featuring himself and the stylish brunette Friday (December 2nd). Although he did not tag her in the post, Billboard reports Internet sleuths were able to identify Sasone after she reposted the image to her Stories.
He captioned the post with the lyrics from his song "Loser," "Ohhhhh I'm NOT a loser…'cause I didn't lose her!!!"
Kanye West has reportedly fired Milo Yiannopoulos from his 2024 presidential campaign team after rumored infighting in the camp. According to The Daily Beast, although reports are circulating that Yiannopoulos was fired, he told journalist Will Sommer that he actually decided to exit Kanye's campaign team. He said, "Ye and I have come to the mutual conclusion that I should step away from his political team. I will continue to pray for Ye and all his endeavors."
An insider in Ye's entourage said that the rapper's team is in chaos. The source said, "It's like Game of Thrones, and every day is the Red Wedding." There are also allegations that Yiannopoulos was fired after attempting to make some power "move against" Nick Fuentes who he has allegedly budded heads with on the campaign trail. Yiannopoulos has denied these reports, saying, "Any suggestion that I tried to get anyone fired is false—especially not people I brought in myself, who owe me their gratitude, loyalty, and respect."
PRESIDENT BIDEN: 'HITLER WAS A DEMONIC FIGURE'
In other news, President Biden has responded to Ye's praise of Adolph Hitler. He tweeted, "I just want to make a few things clear: The Holocaust happened. Hitler was a demonic figure." He added, "And instead of giving it a platform, our political leaders should be calling out and rejecting antisemitism wherever it hides. Silence is complicity."
