Classic Rock 202: On Sale Today

The Beatles: The Hamburg years, Helter Skelter and hard rock – how the Fab Four invented rock’n’roll, according to rock’s A-list. More than just the rock band that started everything. Also in this issue...

**AC/DC: **While the world’s eyes are on his day job, AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd’s just sneaked out a solo album. Now, if only we can get him to say something we can actually understand.

Quireboys: Spike, Ginger and everything in between as we chat to the London survivors.

Gary Moore: “I used to look at myself all dolled up like some guy in Def Leppard and think: ‘You look like a c**t.’” The ex-Thin Lizzy guitarist and electric bluesman remembered.

Anathema: Ex-death metal growlers? The 21st-century Pink Floyd with added sibling tension? Britain’s most under-appreciated band? These cosmic Scousers are all of this and more.

Tom Petty: With Damn The Torpedoes, Petty led his Heartbreakers to global acclaim. But, thanks to his stubborn, ruthless streak, he’d come under fire from his label, lawyers, fans and critics alike, almost being sunk in the defence of his artistic integrity.

Goat: The enigmatic, free-thinking Swedes prove with their new album that they can really stand out from the herd. A bizarre but brilliant bunch.

Lenny Kravitz: Initially turned down because it “either wasn’t black enough or wasn’t white enough”, his funk-infused first two albums saw him recording with Slash and jamming with Jagger. Lenny reflects on those early years.

Joe Bonamassa: How do you make The Hardest Working Man In Showbiz work even harder? With Bonamassa, you frogmarch him to a tiny London club one lunchtime to play a gig in front of just five people. Take it away, blues fella…

WHAT’S ON YOUR FREE CD

Voodoo Lounge: We’ve scoured the great and good of brand new rock’n’roll, from established giants to sizzling young ’uns. You’ll really like this smokin’ selection that includes Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators, Blues Pills, Anathema, Godsmack, tesla, Goat and more…

REGULARS

The Dirt: Parfitt survives new heart scare for Status Quo acoustic album; a recharged Deep Purple announce plans for 20th studio album… say hello to Kongos and Kyng; welcome back Randy Bachman, Counting Crows and Electric Wizard; goodnight Dick Wagner, Billy Rath…

The Stories Behind The Songs: Queen’s Stone Cold Crazy. The song that announced Queen to the world (in a town hall in 1970), distilled everything that made them so great.

**Q&A: **Robert Plant. Led’s lead man on rejecting rock-star luxuries, championing Zep on vinyl, and the song never remaining the same.

Reviews: new albums from Slash, Joe Bonamassa, Status Quo, Nick Oliveri, Amplifier, The Vines, The Pineapple Thief, Joanne Shaw Taylor, Counting Crows… Reissues from Wings, The Beatles, Rush, Man, Wishbone Ash, Grateful Dead, Small Faces… DVDs, films and books on The Who, Krautrock, The Rolling Stones, Randy Bachman… Live reviews of Jane’s Addiction, Blues Pills, Television, Dictators NYC, Steve Earle…

**Buyer’s Guide: **Europe. Your essential guide to the Swedish rockers’ back catalogue – it’s The Final Countdown, and beyond…

Letters: Got something to say? Let us hear it, shout it out loud!

Live previews: Gig previews from Ian Hunter, Roger Chapman and Edguy, plus gig listings – who’s playing where and when.

**Heavy Load: **Myles Kennedy. Slash and Alter Bridge’s workaholic frontman tackles bonkers schedules, pinch yourself moments and why Freddie Mercury is the greatest.

**If your newsagent isn’t selling issue 202 of Classic Rock, you can order it online from MyFavouriteMagazines. **

**Alternatively, you can download the Classic Rock magazine app from iTunes. **

**Also: for this month only, customers buying copies of Classic Rock in branches of Morrisons will save £1 off the normal retail price. **

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 40 years in music industry, online for 27. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.