December 12th, 2012 | 12:36 pm by Zara Golden (@zaragolden)

Reunited Nirvana And Paul McCartney Are Performing Together At Tonight’s 12-12-12 Benefit

According to the Telegraph, previously announced performers Paul McCartney and Dave Grohl will be joined at tonight’s star-studded 12-12-12 Sandy benefit concert at Madison Square Garden by Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic and touring guitarist Pat Smear. Or in other words, Nirvana are back! But with McCartney taking over for the late Kurt Cobain, and they will probably only play non-Nirvana songs or maybe a new track that they’ve been secretly working on ever since Paul asked his “mate” Dave to “jam.” (Seriously, McCartney insists he didn’t mean to getting Nirvana back together: “I didn’t really know who they were … And somebody whispered to me: ‘That’s Nirvana. You’re Kurt.’ I couldn’t believe it.”)

Which is mostly all to say that we may not get to hear Paul McCartney really loose himself to “Heart Shaped Box,” but whatever they do end up doing will almost certainly be awesome. And with Kanye West, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Bon Jovi, Eddie Vedder and more already on-board and now this, tonight’s show is shaping up to be an impressive one. That’s why we here at @VH1 will be airing it live on VH1 Classic or Palladia, as well as live-streaming the 5-hour long concert at 121212concert.vh1.com.

Sir Paul McCartney to replace Kurt Cobain in Nirvana reunion [Telegraph]

December 10th, 2012 | 11:55 am by Lacey Seidman (@Lacezilla)

VH1, VH1 Classic & Palladia Present ‘The Concert For Sandy Relief,’ Live From MSG

It’s not every day that you get the opportunity to see Bon Jovi, Eric Clapton, Dave Grohl, Billy Joel, Alicia Keys, Chris Martin, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Eddie Vedder, Roger Waters, Kanye West, The Who, Paul McCartney and – just added! – The Rolling Stones perform in one night. But next Wednesday December 12th at 7:30pm EST, 121212 – The Concert For Sandy Relief will be broadcast from New York City’s Madison Square Garden to over one billion people in North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia, and you shouldn’t miss it!

Performing together on 12.12.12 to raise awareness for the victims of Hurricane Sandy, these world-renowned, A-list artists will all help The Robin Hood Foundtation raise funds to rebuild communities and lives of those affected by the disastrous storm. Here at @VH1, we’ll be live-streaming the 5-hour long concert at 121212concert.vh1.com, so bookmark the page and feel free to donate what you can as you catch the historical night right here alongside us. If you can’t find an internet connection, tune-in to VH1 Classic or Palladia to watch the show over good old-fashion television airwaves!

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August 23rd, 2012 | 2:02 pm by Jordan Runtagh

Iggy Pop, Tom Morello, John Fogerty: These 2012 Hard Rock Calling Sneaks Will Rock Your World

It’s T-minus two days until the U.S. premiere of Hard Rock Calling 2012 blasts off on Palladia and VH1! Sure that’s pretty soon, but we can’t wait to share the a few of the highlights from the multi-day music festival that rocked so hard that the cops showed up! So direct from us to you, here are some performance sneak peeks to show you what all the fuss is about, and get you even more pumped to see the full two hour feature this Saturday at 9 PM.

First off, we’ve got Iggy Pop, making you forget his age (and that insurance commercial) by tearing into his iconic track, “I Want To Be Your Dog.” The performance was so good, fellow rock legends Jimmy Page and Robert Plant came out to watch! If it’s good enough for those guys, it’s good enough for us. Backed by his old band the Stooges, the inventor of the stage dive does not disappoint.

Rage Against The Machine and Audioslave veteran Tom Morello took to the stage as his alter-ego the Nightwatchman, serving up some searing protest music that touched on everything from the financial crisis to striking firemen. This guy has a lot to say. His set at HRC happened to coincide with what would have been Woody Guthrie’s 100th birthday, so Tom payed his respects by doing a spine-tingling cover of the late singer’s “Ease My Revolutionary Mind.” With his shout outs to the Occupy movement and other current events, Tom made the song more relevant than ever.

We don’t care who you are, for our money they best guitar work of the entire festival was done by former Creedence Clearwater Revival front-man John Fogerty. The gravel-voiced legend shredded better than dudes half his age, and we’re still kind of amazed his strings didn’t melt. This clip of John jamming on “Old Man Down The Road” gives you just a little taste. Tune in on Saturday at 9 PM for more of everybody you’ve just seen and more, including Lady Antebellum, Sound Garden, Paul Simon, Christina Perri and of course Bruce Springsteen’s historic duet with Paul McCartney!

[Photo: Getty Images]

July 31st, 2012 | 9:10 pm by Zara Golden (@zaragolden)

Last Lap: Drake and Run D.M.C. Join Jay-Z’s Made In America Festival

JAY-Z’S MADE IN AMERICA FESTIVAL GETS A FULL BILL
The line-up includes everyone from D’Angelo to Skrillex, Run D.M.C. to Drake, and the Dirty Projectors to Odd Future — not too shabby. But only two of the three so-called three kings? Let’s hope Dre‘s making like Azealia and keeping on lock-down until Detox is done. Bonus: “3 Kings” gets a video! [MadeInAmerica]

PAUL MCCARTNEY, ARCTIC MONKEYS AND DIZZEE RASCAL EACH MADE ONE POUND PERFORMING AT THE OPENING CEREMONY
That’s $1.57 in U.S. dollars. But pocket change! [NME]

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July 24th, 2012 | 4:01 pm by Zara Golden (@zaragolden)

Paul McCartney Poke Fun At Hard Rock Calling Curfew In New Olympic Promo

England may be serious about rules, but not so serious that they can’t laugh at themselves. A new promo for the Olympics — which he is rumored to close with a “Hey Jude” singalong — finds good Sir Paul McCartney mocking the strict curfew keepers who pulled the plug on his headlining set with Bruce Springsteen at Hard Rock Calling in London earlier this month. “We’re all getting excited, we’re ready to rock,” says the former Beatle before diving into a rocking rehearsal. But just halfway through “I Saw Her Standing There,” the sound cuts out and McCartney is left wondering, once again, “Who pulled the plug…?” We like to believe that, if this sort of power-out happens during the real thing, closing ceremonies attendees will be well enough versed in Beatles classics to all together now help take that sad song and make it better. But for the sake of all rock-and-roll moments sacred, let’s hope this is the last time McCartney has to ask that question.

RELATED: Bruce Springsteen And Paul McCartney Get Shut Down By Police For Playing After Curfew At Hard Rock Calling

McCartney Mocks Hard Rock Calling In New Video – Watch [GigWise] Read more…

July 24th, 2012 | 11:22 am by Bené Viera

Bruce Springsteen Wasn’t Just A Partying Rockstar In the 80s, He Battled Depression And Suicidal Thoughts

Bruce Springsteen battled depression & suicidal thoughts

Legendary Bruce Springsteen is still touring and making No. 1 albums at age 62. He’s such a boss that at the Hard Rock Calling concert in England he brought out Sir Paul McCartney, only to have the plug pulled mid set due to a bloody noise curfew rule. Shame on the London police for messing with history! In the new issue of the esteemed New Yorker, Springsteen’s life is chronicled in a 15,000 word profile detailing his childhood in New Jersey to his Wrecking Ball tour. One of the biggest revelations sprawled from the profile was his suicidal thoughts and depression. Springsteen’s longtime friend and biographer, Dave Marsh, said Springsteen has been seeing a therapist since 1982. To which we say, kudos to him! Read more…

July 16th, 2012 | 7:00 am by Jordan Runtagh

Still Crazy: Paul Simon Closes Hard Rock Calling With Epic Graceland Performance

Paul Simon closes Hard Rock Calling festival

The party’s over, the circus has left town, the finale of the 2012 Hard Rock Calling music festival is over and done, and we’re getting so misty-eyed that we can barely see the keyboard. Luckily the powers that be gave us one hell of a parting gift: Paul Simon performing all of Graceland with the original Ladysmith Black Mambazo backing group! It’s hard to feel too bad with music like that swirling in our ears. Rest assured folks, he’s still crazy after all these years.
 
But we’re getting way too ahead of ourselves. Today was something of a gentler day for the HRC lineup. If yesterday was a competition to see who could rock out the hardest (and loudest), today was more of an exploration of the many different possibilities within music, from country to gospel to african rhythm to reggae and beyond. It was truly a grab-bag in the finest sense: every set was an unexpected winner, full of songs you never knew you loved. There was something of a late sixties NorCal festival vibe in their air when we arrived. The English summer sun was shining, and we saw young women brandishing tambourines wandering the muddy grounds in lacy shirts with daisy chains in their hair (really). Plus we saw some seriously outstanding mustaches, which were definitely worth the price of admission.
 
We got there just in time to hear Robert Randolph ripping it up on a pedal steel guitar with his Family Band. Part blues, part funk and all awesome, their  break-neck jams gave us as badly needed wakeup jolt. “We only got two hours sleep last night!” Robert yelled from the stage in between numbers. So did we Bob, and right now we barely have enough energy to lift a can of Red Bull to our lips! How does he do it?!

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July 15th, 2012 | 8:00 am by Jordan Runtagh

Hard Rock Calling Day Two: Bruce Springsteen Brings Out Paul McCartney, Dreams Come True

Bruce Springsteen performs at Day 2 of Hard Rock Calling

Say it with us now: BRUUUUUUUUUUCEEEEE!! It’s Day Two of the 2012 Hard Rock Calling music festival, and though we had a fantastic roaster of rock ‘n’ rollers on the bill today, there’s one name that shines over the rest. No offense Lady Antebellum, John Fogerty, Tom Morello, Dawes, Gary Clark Jr and the rest of the twenty-three acts who got loud in London – but there was something special in the air tonight. And it smelled like the swamps of Jersey. Bruce Springsteen turned rock performance into an Olympic event, offering up one of his frenzied three hour music marathons. We laughed, we cried, we rocked.

Arriving to Hyde Park in the afternoon, we got the impression that the already-massive festival site had somehow grown even bigger! At first we thought it was just in our heads, but apparently it was true. Organizers have reportedly sold 80 thousands tickets, so many that the gates had to be moved farther back to accommodate the influx of international fans wanting to be honorary Garden State-ers for the night.

We got there just in time to see The Nightwatchman, better known as Tom Morello, take to the stage. Never one to hold back, the former Rage Against The Machine guitarist is still raging, offering a passionately political set in which he touched on everything from the worldwide financial crisis to a British fireman’s strike. In honor of what would have been musical protest pioneer Woody Guthrie’s 100th birthday, Morello did a fiery rendition of the late singer’s “Ease My Revolutionary Mind,” fitting in shoutouts to Springsteen, Fogerty and other acts on the bill. ”If he were alive today, he would be on the front lines of Occupy movement,” Morello said of Guthrie, who passed away in 1967.

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July 14th, 2012 | 7:17 pm by Jordan Runtagh

Bruce Springsteen And Paul McCartney Get Shut Down By Police For Playing After Curfew At Hard Rock Calling

Rules are rules in England, and nobody is above them. Not even Bruce Springsteen and Sir Paul McCartney! The Boss brought out the Beatle to lend at hand at the end of his headlining set for day two of the Hard Rock Calling music festival in Hyde Park. Eighty thousand music fans were treated to two historic duets: “I Saw Her Standing There” and an epic sprawling version of “Twist and Shout” that really let the E-Street band stretch its legs while Bruce and Paul took turns on the call and response vocals. For ten minutes we the crowd was in musical heaven, but then suddenly the tunes started getting quieter and quieter. It was thought (at least by us) that the band was simply playing softer. But soon Bruce went up to speak into the mic and nothing seemed to come out. He spoke for several minutes while Paul and lead guitarist Stevie Van Zandt looked on, but the words were still inaudible to the crowd. Eventually he gave up trying to play another song, shrugged, took a bow with the band and walked off.

Check out video of the incident below (if you want to cut to the chase, fast-forward to about the 10 minute mark):

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