Who's Next

14 Year-Old Plays Eddie Van Halen's "Eruption" Flawlessly!

You have to see this for yourself!

John Fogerty & Foo Fighters

For his upcoming release, "Wrote a Song for Everyone", John Fogerty joined the Foo Fighters in their Los Angeles studio to record Creedence Clearwater Revival's 1969 anti-war anthem "Fortunate Son."

KENNY LOGGINS' 3RD ACT

Kenny Loggins is a veteran of decades in the music business, both as half of Loggins & Messina and as a successful solo artist. Now, at the age of 64, he's decided to start over again and reinvent himself musically with the launch of a new band, Blue Sky Riders.

It actually started several years ago, when Kenny Loggins met with songwriter Gary Burr to write material for Loggins' 2008 "How About Now" release.

“The best part was that when we sang together, we sounded like brothers", Loggins explained. "The last time I experienced that kind of blend was with Jimmy Messina in 1971.”

Gary Burr lives in Nashville, but he's originally from Meriden, Connecticut. Burr joined Pure Prairie League in 1982, replacing Vince Gill who was going solo. Burr moved to Nashville in 1989, became one of its most successful songwriters and was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall Of Fame in 2005.

Loggins worked with a number of writers in Nashville and said he found Gary to be the most fun to work with. "He always made me laugh", said Loggins. "When we did the demos and sang together, I noticed we had a particularly strong vocal blend. It just popped into my head that it might be fun to try a band. We both dismissed it as absurd, but even a few months later, it just wouldn't let me go. I kept thinking it would be fun and interesting. So, I called Gary, and said 'I think we should give it a try, if you're into it. But, let's include a female singer.

“I’ve got the perfect person,” said Burr. “Georgia Middleman. She’s the best I’ve ever worked with.”

Georgia Miiddleman is a Nashville songwriter who has written songs for Keith Urban, Faith Hill and Kenny Chesney, among others.

Burr picks up the story. "Georgia and I had just started dating after knowing each other for seventeen years. I thought about it for awhile, as there is a dynamic between three people in a band, much less two guys and a girl in a band. I wanted to make sure I wasn't closing one door by opening another, but it all turned out great."
Loggins flew to Nashville and the three sat down to write.

“What a meeting!” says Loggins. “We wrote our first song and were singing with a three-part blend that comes once in a lifetime.”

"As we wrote more and more, it became more cohesive with who we are", Loggins explained. "We like to say there was a fourth entity when we were writing, and it was the Blue Sky Riders. You can almost not tell which part is whose. It's like the blending of the three writers creates this fourth sound that none of us could do individually."

"I come from the roots of the Beatles and Crosby, Stills & Nash", adds Burr. "I've had my hands in a lot of music over the years, but there's never been anything I've been prouder of than this. I think it blows everything else out of the water."

THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO
BLUE SKY RIDERS PERFORMING "FEELIN' BRAVE"
Tip: once the video begins, move the slider to the last marker.

BLUE SKY RIDERS - "HELP!
Acoustic backstage live pre-show warm-up

Tom Morello To Join E Street Band's Australian Tour

Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello will fill in for Little Steven Van Zandt on Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band's upcoming tour of Australia. Van Zandt will be unable to participate due to prior commitments with his TV series Lilyhammer. Morello will play nine Australian shows with the Boss in March. Van Zandt will be back with the band on April 29th when Springsteen and company play Oslo, Norway.

Morello is no stranger to playing with Bruce. The former Rage Against the Machine guitarist played on a few Wrecking Ball cuts ("Jack of All Trades," "This Depression"), and has joined Springsteen and the E Street Band on multiple occasions, including Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, last year at SXSW and the 25th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame celebration in 2010.

Abbey Road's U.S. anniversary

Although it was released a few days earlier in Europe, the official release date for the Beatles last studio effort was October 1, 1969. We managed to collect several photo outtakes from the Abbey Road cover shoot.

What ever happened to...Jeff Lynne?

Jeff Lynne, ELO-founder and member of the Traveling Wilburys, has recorded "Long Wave", a project of songs he used to hear on the radio in his formative years.

According to Lynne, "Long Wave attempts to recreate the feeling of an old-fashioned radio, the sound of it – the soft bottom on it and the lack of top – it's just so old fashioned and evocative."

Included are such pre-rock favorites as "Smile" and "Love Is a Many Splendored Thing," as well as the 1964 tune recorded by Don Covay & the Goodtimers, "Mercy, Mercy" – seen here in an innovative video directed by Martyn Atkins.

Springsteen's 1st U.S. Performance Of "Jungleland" Since...

Bruce Springsteen's recent concert at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts featured the first U.S. performance of "Jungleland" without "The Big Man". Jake Clemens absolutely nails the sax solo.

Beach Boys' California Saga Continues

The Beach Boys family legacy is continuing in a new group. The inspiration came from the Beach Boys’ 50th anniversary tour, as the sons and daughters wanted to create a fitting tribute to the band,

playing the band’s back catalog and straying from the material played by the Beach Boys themselves.
California Saga features Brian Wilson's daughters, Carnie and Wendy Wilson (of Wilson Phillips fame); Mike Love's son and daughter, Christian and Ambha Love; Carl Wilson's son, Justyn Wilson; Dennis Wilson's son, Carl B. Wilson; and Al Jardine's sons, Matt and Adam Jardine. The lineup will also include keyboard help from Billy Hinsche, Carl Wilson's brother-in-law, who toured with the Beach Boys for decades.

The group made their live debut with the Beach Boys on June 2nd, performing "Friends" backed by the Beach Boys touring band.

California Saga performed a longer set on July 10th at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles. You can here an audience taping of the show here.

A Brief History of Rock

Chicago guitar salesman Alex Chadwick strums out 100 R&R riffs in twelve minutes. Did he miss anything?  Click here to view.

Where Dreams Began

In Gregg Allman's biography "My Cross to Bear", we came across some things we hadn't heard about before.  One of the stories involved Mike Finnigan (who has played with Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker, Etta James, Crosby Stills & Nash, Dave Mason, Buddy Guy, Manhattan Transfer, Tower of Power, Bonnie Raitt and many more). There's a great story in the book about the career-changing kindness of Mike Finnigan, and here it is:

In 1965, we (Allman Joys) played at Pepe's a Go Go, which was next store to the Whiskey a Go Go, and I was talking to this guy named Mike Finnigan who played in a band called Mike Finnigan and the Serfs.  I asked him what that big piece of wood was on the stage.  He said, "Come on up here and I'll show you."

Now, as a rule, nobody lets you play their Hammond. "Don't ride my Harley, don't mess with my wife, and no, you can't play my Hammond!" That's just it, man.  But Mike Finnigan let me sit behind his, which was very cool of him.  And man, when I heard that B3, it just melted me.  In the next day or two, he turned me on to Jimmy Smith and Groove Holmes.  That Hammond just struck me.  It was nice, round, kind of dull-ended instead of sharp, and I thought it blended with a guitar just perfect. The next time I sat down at a Hammond I would write "Dreams."

Surf's Up!

Here is a video featuring Jeff Beck, recorded at the Musicares tribute to Brian Wilson a few years back.  Jeff is backed up by Brian Wilson’s band (minus Brian), doing a mostly instrumental interpretation of Brian Wilson’s “Surfs Up”.  The video also has a version of  “Surfin' USA.” featuring Jeff Foskett's lead vocal. "Surf's Up" is amazing, and worth watching/listening to.

March 26, 1969

If you're a fan of the original line-up of the Allman Brothers Band, you may have heard the story of how the band started.

After several Sunday jam sessions in a park in Jacksonville, Duane set up a private jam session. As Butch Trucks recalls it, "We set up at Berry Oakley's house. Duane was there, so was Dicky and Jaimo and Berry and myself. We played three or four hours without stopping."

As recounted in Randy Poe's Duane Allman biography "Skydog", Duane kicked off the proceedings with a shuffle - a shuffle that lasted for hours. "We got into this jam and it went here and here and here", said Butch Trucks. "Dicky and Duane were really having a good time with each other."

Duane later recalled it this way: "We set up the equipment and whipped into a little jam. It lasted two-and-a-half hours. When we finally quit, nobody ever said a word, man. Everybody was speechless. Nobody'd ever done anything like that before - it really frightened the shit out of everybody. Right then I knew. I said, 'Man, here it is - here it is!"

Duane Allman then walked to the open doorway, stood in front of it, and said, "Anybody in this room not gonna play in my band, you're gonna have to fight your way outta here!" And then he added, "The only thing is, we need a singer - and my baby brother's the only one who can do it."

Gregg Allman recalls (as do the other surviving members who were there that day) that he arrived in town three days later, on March 26th. According to Gregg, "We all got together in the same room for the first time...and I was the last one to get there. And there were all these guys I didn't know looking at me. It was heavy."

Gregg stood and listened to the musicians tear through Muddy Waters "Trouble No More". According to Dickey Betts, "Gregg put his hands against the wall and said 'I can't play in this fucking band!'"

That set Duane off. Using the same tactics he always used with his brother, he "coerced" Gregg into reluctantly singing the song.

Gregg explained, "I never heard or sung the song before, but by God, I did it. I shut my eyes and sang, and at the end of that there was just a long silence. At that moment, we knew what we had."

Just as the other members of the band had realized three days earlier, Gregg knew he was now in perilously unexplored musical territory. He also realized that he had to write new songs that would fit within the context of the band. He already had "Dreams" and "It's Just Not My Cross To Bear". Within the next five days Gregg recalls he wrote "Whipping Post", "Black Hearted Woman" and a couple of others. "I got on a real roll there", said Gregg.

Master Class: Music Business 101

This should be mandatory viewing for anyone who ever wants to get into the music business.

Going Mobile

According to new research by NPD Group on automotive connectivity. Devices and ways to connect them have become a serious focus for the auto industry. 79% of car owners are using a digital device in their cars, while almost 40% of people who own smartphones have used them to listen to streaming music in their cars. That’s despite the fact that for most drivers, it’s not very easy yet.

Car makers like Ford (Sync system), Chevy (MyLink) and Toyota (Entune) are working overtime on that. The NPD study finds that 18% of users are plugging into an auxiliary input (not the most elegant solution). 11% are using USB ports (available on only the newest models), and 56% are using Bluetooth technology. The fact that consumers are so interested in developing workaround ways to use their connected devices in their cars, is a huge indicator that as consumers move from CD's toward digital and streamed content, there is a desirability for a more connected dashboard.

“The key is for auto makers and traditional audio manufacturers to facilitate consumer use of connected devices in the vehicle, allowing content from the smartphone, tablet, or digital media player to easily stream or be controlled through the deck mounted in the dashboard,” Arnold said. “We’re only going to see greater consumer attachment to social media, streaming audio and video, and other services as content options grow.”

Allman Brothers Band Receives Lifetime Achievement Grammy

The Allman Brothers Band received the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at Los Angeles’ Staples Center during this year's Grammy ceremonies. All seven members of the current band attended the ceremony, along with former keyboardist Chuck Leavell and the families of late band co-founders Duane Allman and Berry Oakley.

The Allman Brothers Band’s acceptance speech was not part of the broadcast on CBS. The group’s extended, 22-minute acceptance speech included reflections from all of the current band members, as well as Chuck Leavell, Duane Allman’s camera-shy daughter Galadrielle Allman (pictured in the photo at right with her uncle Gregg) and Berry Oakley’s children Brittany and Berry.

Drummers Jaimoe and Butch Trucks both delivered fun, story-filled speeches. “I was on my way to New York to become a starving jazz musician when I met Duane Allman,” Jaimoe joked. “[My friend] told me, you should go make some money by playing with those white boys.” Trucks, whose stories make watching the whole acceptance speech worthwhile, also described his first conversation with Jaimoe and explained Duane Allman's huge influence on his career path.

To watch the entire sequence of acceptance speeches, click here.

Lilly Winwood

Most kids would cringe in horror if their dad offered to back them up playing keyboards at their club gig. But, most kids' dads aren't Steve Winwood!

16 year-old Lilly Winwood, who appears to be following in her famous dad's footsteps, recently performed at "Music City Roots" in Nashville. She's still finding her voice and stage presence, but Lilly's impressive just the same. After two acoustic tunes, with just a fiddle playing along with her guitar, Lilly brought on her drummer and her dad. The fiddler moved over to electric bass and Lilly made the transition from mod folkie to R&B singer.

We were most impressed with "Could've Fooled Me", which appears to be an original song accented by her dad's understated electric piano work. Lilly's final song, "Makes Me Want To Pray" had dad switching over to piano, adding a familiar riff we were "Glad" to hear.

Lilly's performance of "Could've Fooled Me" begins 45 minutes into the video below.

Watch live streaming video from musiccityroots at livestream.com

Booker T & the DBT's

Booker T, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame keyboardist for Booker T & the MGs, recorded his 2009 album "Potato Hole" with the Drive-By Truckers as his band. The DBT's are an alternative country/Southern rock band co-founded by Patterson Hood (son of bassist David Hood of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section).

While the DBT's did a few live shows with Booker T, most of the tour supporting "Potato Hole" went on without them. However, we located an April 23, 2009 performance at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art (New Orleans, LA) captured on the syndicated TV show "Live From The Artists Den".

Live from the Artists Den: Booker T & the DBT's from Artists Den on Vimeo.

Happy Birthday, Al!

It's become traditional for Al Kooper to celebrate his birthday with a live performance at B.B. King's in New York (and before that at The Bottom Line). Here are five original members of Blood, Sweat & Tears (Randy Brecker, Fred Lipsius, Lew Soloff, Steve Katz and Al) captured during a show at The Bottom Line celebrating Al's 50th in 1994.

Special Guest Joins Bob Seger at Madison Square Garden

Bruce Springsteen joined Bob Seger for "Old Time Rock & Roll" at the recent New York show at Madison Square Garden.