Classic Rock Briefs For November 11, 2008
Pretenders Planning Tour Next Year
To support their latest album, Break Up The Concrete, The Pretenders are planning to tour during 2009 and according to Chrissie Hynde, they hope to be on the road for most of the year.
Currently, there are no plans for another act to join them on the tour. They did tour with ZZ Top and Stray Cats last year, but Hynde hopes to headline the tour since Hynde is a vegan and would rather avoid dealing with another group that they would have to share catering with, and may want to include meat on the menu.
John Deacon Stays Out of Queen Lineup
According to the current group of fellows that comprise Queen and Paul Rodgers, their former band mate John Deacon has so far declined to take part in any of the group’s recent activities. The former Queen bass player is always welcome to re-join the group if he wishes, but he has refused.
For the group’s latest album, The Cosmos Rocks, bass duties were shared among Rodgers, May and former Blue Oyster Cult bassist Danny Miranda.
There is no mention of Deacon’s reason for refusing to be part of the group. Perhaps he just feels like some fans do that Queen is no longer Queen without frontman Freddie Mercury.
Zeppelin-signed Ron Wood Painting Readied For Auction
A rare painting of late Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun by Ron Wood of the Rolling Stones will be going up for auction by Christie’s in New York City on November 24th.
The portrait has been signed by Wood as well as the three surviving original members of Led Zeppelin. Jason Bonham, son of original drummer John Bonham, also signed the limited edition print. The print was created to commemorate Led Zeppelin’s reunion show at the O2 last winter in tribute to Ertegun.
Although 100 prints were produced for the original issue, and were being sold at the O2 event for $10,000 each, only eight of them include the Led Zeppelin signatures and are only now being made available.
