Rock
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Rob Reiner is ready to turn it up to 11 again. The writer/director revealed on the RHLSTP with Richard Herring podcast this week that he will revisit one of his most iconic projects when he gets the band back together next year for a sequel to his legendary rock mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap.
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The beloved 1984 film that skewered all things rock is slated to begin filming in February with original stars/writers Christopher Guest (Nigel Tufnel), Michael McKean (David St. Hubbins) and Harry Shearer (Derek Smalls) repriseing their roles as the hapless metal band who once lost a drummer in a “bizarre gardening accident.”
Reiner said he will revisit his role as documentarian Martin “Marty” Di Bergi, telling Herring, “We’re making a sequel… everybody’s back.” Like the original — which featured cameos from Ed Begley Jr., Fran Drescher, Dana Carvey, Billy Crystal, Angelica Huston and Fred Willard — the reboot will feature some even heavier hitters making cameos, including Paul McCartney, Elton John and Garth Brooks, plus a “few other surprises.”
The original found Reiner filming a documentary on one of “England’s loudest bands,” in a film in which most of the dialogue was improvised, with some of the iconic catchphrases — including “turn it up to 11” — becoming part of modern rock parlance; not for nothing, radios in Teslas go to 11.
It follows the self-important rockers on a 1982 U.S. tour to promote their Smell the Glove album, which some retailers refuse to stock because of its sexist cover image. Along the way there is a scheming astrology-obsessed girlfriend, a ill-fated, accidentally, hilariously tiny Stonehenge stage prop and a classic scene where the band loses their way to stage that was inspired by a real-life video of Tom Petty getting mixed up backstage at a show in Germany.
The accompanying soundtrack album featured such ridiculously over-the-top metal anthems as “Hell Hole,” “Tonight I’m Gonna Rock You Tonight,” “Big Bottom” and early hit “Gimme Some Money,” all performed by the movie’s stars.
Though the film did modest box office at the time, it has since blossomed into a midnight movie must-see, even making it onto the Library of Congress’ list of culturally significant artifacts. “No, we never did,” Reiner said of whether he thought the comedy would have such long legs and garner such accolades as the Library honor and making the list of movies worth preserving from the National Film Registry.
In essentially creating the rock mockumentary genre, Reiner recalled screening the film in Dallas and having confused theatergoers coming up to him after and asking, “I don’t understand, why would you make a movie about a band that nobody’s ever heard of? And they’re so bad!”
In an interview with Deadline last year, Reiner hinted at the direction of the sequel. “I can tell you hardly a day goes by without someone saying, ‘why don’t you do another one?,’” Reiner said of the idea to revisit the film for its 40th anniversary. “For so many years, we said, ‘nah.’ It wasn’t until we came up with the right idea how to do this. You don’t want to just do it, to do it. You want to honor the first one and push it a little further with the story.”
At the time, Reiner said the second Tap would follow the band after a long break. “They’ve played Albert Hall, played Wembley Stadium, all over the country and in Europe,” Reiner said. “They haven’t spent any time together recently, and that became the premise. The idea was that Ian Faith, who was their manager, he passed away. In reality, [actor] Tony Hendra passed away. Ian’s widow inherited a contract that said Spinal Tap owed them one more concert. She was basically going to sue them if they didn’t. All these years and a lot of bad blood we’ll get into and they’re thrown back together and forced to deal with each other and play this concert.”
Listen to Reiner talk Spinal Tap sequel here (movie talk begins around 2:00 mark).
Dolly Parton’s 30-song set Rockstar, released Nov. 17, blasts in atop Billboard’s Top Country Albums and Top Rock & Alternative Albums charts (dated Dec. 2). The legend adds her ninth No. 1 on the former and her first on the latter.
The rock-influenced LP earned 128,000 equivalent album units, with 118,000 in album sales, in the week ending Nov. 23, according to Luminate.
The album opens at No. 3 on the all-genre Billboard 200, marking Parton’s third top 10 and highest career rank. She previously visited the tier with Blue Smoke (No. 6 in 2014) and Trio, a collaborative set with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris (No. 16 in 1987).
Rockstar additionally debuts at the summit on the all-genre Top Album Sales chart, becoming Parton’s first No. 1. Its first-week sales were bolstered by its availability at outlets including Barnes & Noble, Cracker Barrel, Dollar General and Target.
The set more than doubles Parton’s previous biggest sales week for an album, notched when Slow Dancing With the Moon sold 50,500 copies in its second chart week (March 20, 1993).
The star-studded Rockstar is being promoted as Parton’s first rock album, its recording initiated following her induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022. She initially declined the honor but after entering being enshrined went all-in with the release of Rockstar.
The collection mixes original songs and covers and boasts a long list of prominent credited guests, including Pat Benatar, Miley Cyrus, Melissa Etheridge, Mick Fleetwood, Peter Frampton, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts, Elton John, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks, Chris Stapleton, Ringo Starr, Sting and Steven Tyler.
Parton first reached Top Country Albums with the aptly named Hello, I’m Dolly in November 1967. She scored the first of her 49 top 10s with Just Between You and Me, with Porter Wagoner (No. 8, March 1968), and her first No. 1 with her 34th entry, 1977’s New Harvest…First Gathering, which led for a week that May.
Rockstar is Parton’s first Top Country Albums No. 1 since A Holly Dolly Christmas in 2020. “I am so proud and humbled to have my album reach No. 1 on the Billboard country and holiday charts,” she beamed to Billboard that week. “Boy, what a great early Christmas present for me!”
Meanwhile, Parton leads Top Rock & Alternative Albums in her first appearance on the chart. (Rockstar also rules Top Rock Albums, likewise marking her first visit to the survey.)
The new album’s “World On Fire” debuted and peaked at No. 26 on Hot Rock & Alternative Songs in May.
Plus, Parton’s cover of Prince and the Revolution’s “Purple Rain” enters the Rock Digital Song Sales chart at No. 14 (1,000 sold). It’s the sixth song from Rockstar to make the ranking, with three having hit the top 10 prior to the album’s release. “World On Fire” led for a week in May and her versions of The Beatles’ “Let It Be” (featuring McCartney and Starr) and Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball” (featuring Cyrus) hit Nos. 2 and 6 in September and November, respectively.
Kevin “Geordie” Walker, founding guitarist for English industrial rockers Killing Joke died on Sunday (Nov. 26) at age 64. The band confirmed the news on their official Instagram page, writing, “It is with extreme sadness we confirm that at 6:30am on 26th November 2023 in Prague, Killing Joke’s legendary guitarist Kevin ‘Geordie’ Walker passed away after suffering a stroke, he was surrounded by family. We are devastated. Rest In Peace brother.”
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Born in County Durham, UK in 1958, Walker joined Killing Joke in 1979 after responding to an ad in Melody Maker placed by singer Jaz Coleman, with the two men serving as the band’s only consistent members over the next four decades. Known for a distinctive low-end guitar turning that gave the band’s songs a massive sound, Walker’s playing was key to the post-punk group’s success, which folded grinding industrial sounds, dub reggae, new wave melodies and a goth sensibility into a roiling mix.
The band’s self-titled, self-produced debut full-length album was released in October 1980 and featured the singles “Wardance” and “Requiem.” The prolific act released six more albums in the 1980s, followed by three more in the 1990s (Extremities, Dirt and Various Repressed Emotions, Pandemonium, Democracy). The band briefly split in the early 1990s, then reunited and split again in 1996 before reuniting once more in 2002. A reformed version of the band released a self-titled album in 2003 featuring superfan Foo Fighters leader Dave Grohl on drums; since their get-back, KJ have released five more albums, with the most recent, Pylon, dropping in 2015.
According to the Guardian, in 2013 Walker reflected on what made the band such a powerful, unique presence during their long run. “When we started making records, playing gigs wasn’t that much different. You’d rehearse, you wrote the songs, you mic’d it up and you played it! And now if you’re not careful, you might not even see the f–king drummer and the maker of the f–king record. It’s all bits of this, cut-and-paste. It can sound impressive on first listen but after subsequent listens, it’s lacking human imperfection. The imperfection is what makes it magical somehow.”
In addition to his decades of touring and recording with Killing Joke, Walker was also a member of the industrial music supergroups Murder, Inc. and The Damage Manual.
Check out the band’s tribute to Walker and some of Killing Joke’s best-known tracks below.
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Dolly Parton’s Rockstar blasts in at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated Dec. 2), scoring the music legend her first leader on the 32-year-old tally.
Rockstar bows with 118,500 copies sold in the U.S. in the week ending Nov. 23, according to Luminate. That marks biggest sales week for an album in the modern era, since Luminate began electronically tracking sales in 1991. She more than doubles her previous biggest week, notched in 1993 when Slow Dancing With the Moon sold 50,500 copies in its second week on the chart (rising 54-19 on the March 20, 1993-dated list).
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. The new Dec. 2, 2023-dated chart will be posted in full on Billboard‘s website on Nov. 28. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram.
As previously reported, Rockstar also debuts at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 – Parton’s highest charting album ever, and her third top 10 on that list.
Of Rockstar’s first-week sales of 118,500, physical sales comprise a little more than 96,000 (78,000 on CD, 18,000 on vinyl and a negligible sum on cassette) and download album sales comprise a little over 22,000.
The star-studded Rockstar was promoted as Parton’s first rock album, and its recording was sparked by Parton’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022. Parton has primarily released country music in her nearly 60-year career, through has taken detours (with albums and/or songs) into such genres as Americana/folk, bluegrass, children’s music, Christian, dance/electronic and pop.
The 30-song Rockstar set has a mix of original songs and covers, and boasts a cavalcade of guest stars – 40 in all. Among them are Pat Benatar, Miley Cyrus, Melissa Etheridge, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts, Elton John, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks, Chris Stapleton, Ringo Starr, Sting and Steven Tyler.
Rockstar’s first-week sales were bolstered by its availability across a variety of editions and formats, in addition to some non-traditional music retailers including Cracker Barrel, Dollar General and HSN. The album’s CD edition was available in four editions – a standard version and three variants, each with alternative cover art: for HSN, with three bonus tracks; a Dallas Cowboys version, and a Tennessee Volunteers edition with a bonus track. The latter two were tied to a pair of high-profile live TV performances from Parton: during the Georgia Bulldogs vs. Tennessee Volunteers football game on Nov. 19, and during halftime of the Washington Commanders vs. Dallas Cowboys football game on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 23).
Rockstar was pressed on more than 10 vinyl variants, including exclusive editions (all in different colors, some with different cover art) for Amazon, Barnes & Noble, independent record stores, Parton’s webstore, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame store, Target and Walmart. Parton’s webstore also carried a deluxe digital download version of the album with three exclusive bonus tracks. Rockstar was also offered in multiple deluxe boxed sets, sold through Parton’s webstore, containing either a vinyl or CD version of the album with a branded T-shirt of various designs.
Ozzy Osbourne is “taking it one day at a time” amid new health struggles, but he still hopes to perform live again one day.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone UK, the 74-year-old metal icon reveals that a tumor was discovered in one of his vertebrae during a fourth spinal surgery. The operation was mean to repair damages from a 2019 fall that dislodged metal rods from a procedure in the early 2000s.
“It’s really knocked me about,” Osbourne said. “The second surgery went drastically wrong and virtually left me crippled. I thought I’d be up and running after the second and third, but with the last one they put a f—ing rod in my spine. They found a tumor in one of the vertebrae, so they had to dig all that out too. It’s pretty rough, man, and my balance is all f—ed up.”
Over the summer, the rocker — who also has Parkinson’s disease — canceled his headlining set at October’s Power Trip festival in Indio, Calif., which would’ve found him performing alongside Guns N’ Roses, Iron Maiden, AC/DC and Metallica, among others. He last took the stage in 2022 for brief performances in Los Angeles and England.
Osbourne announced his retirement from touring earlier this year, but he hopes to take the live stage again someday despite his health struggles.
“I’m taking it one day at a time, and if I can perform again, I will,” he tells Rolling Stone UK. “But it’s been like saying farewell to the best relationship of my life. At the start of my illness, when I stopped touring, I was really pissed off with myself, the doctors, and the world. But as time has gone on, I’ve just gone, ‘Well, maybe I’ve just got to accept that fact.’”
He added, “I’m not going to get up there and do a half-hearted Ozzy looking for sympathy. What’s the f—ing point in that? I’m not going up there in a f—ing wheelchair. I’ve seen Phil Collins perform recently, and he’s got virtually the same problems as me. He gets up there in a wheelchair! But I couldn’t do that.”
Osbourne, who said in September that he’s working on a new album, notes that a final performance would give him a chance to say goodbye and express his gratitude to fans.
“For whatever reason, that’s my goal to work to. To do those shows. If it’s at Ozzfest or somewhere, or even a f—ing gig at the Roundhouse,” he says. ““If I can’t continue doing shows on a regular basis, I just want to be well enough to do one show where I can say, ‘Hi guys, thanks so much for my life.’ That’s what I’m working towards, and if I drop down dead at the end of it, I’ll die a happy man.”
During the interview, Osbourne also touched on his relationship with the other members of Black Sabbath, including bassist Geezer Butler.
“It’s sad, man. We all grew up together, and he can’t pick up the f—ing phone like a man and see how I’m doing,” said rocker continued, who has received support from Tony Iommi and former Sabbath drummer Bill Ward.
Butler took to social media to respond to Osbourne’s comments after the interview was published.
“I don’t want to engage in a tit for tat. Having made 2 attempts to wish Ozzy well, without a reply, I figured it best to privately keep him in my thoughts,” Butler wrote on Instagram.
The Beatles’ compilation albums 1962-1966 and 1967-1970 (also known as the Red and Blue Albums, owed to the distinctive cover art), re-enter Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart (dated Nov. 25) at Nos. 6 and 5, respectively, following their expanded reissue on Nov. 10.
The titles sold 22,000 and 24,000 in the week ending Nov. 16 in the U.S., according to Luminate. Each told sold less than 500 copies in the previous week. For both titles, it is their largest sales week since the week ending Dec. 24, 1994, when they sold 37,000 and 40,000, respectively.
Upon their original release in 1973, the 1962-1966 album contained 26 songs, while 1967-1970 held 28 tunes. (On the Billboard 200 chart, 1967-1970 reached No. 1, while 1962-1966 peaked at No. 3.) For the 2023 reissue, 21 songs were added to the two albums — 12 songs on 1962-1966 and nine on 1967-1970. The latter’s additional cuts include the recently released new single “Now and Then,” which debuted in the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 – marking the Fab Four’s 35th top 10-charting hit.
The two albums were available to purchase as a digital download, a double-CD or three-vinyl LP set. They were also combined into a singular boxed set – 1962-1970 – that contained all of the material, and available only as a four-CD or six-vinyl LP box. (The box debuts at No. 24 on Top Album Sales with 7,000 sold.)
The trio of releases dot a number of other Billboard album charts, let’s take a look:
1962-1966:Billboard 200 – No. 20 (Re-entry)Top Rock & Alternative Albums – No. 6 (Debut)Top Rock Albums – No. 4 (Debut)Catalog Albums – No. 3 (Re-entry)Vinyl Albums – No. 17 (Debut)Tastemaker Albums – No. 5 (Debut)
1967-1970:Billboard 200 – No. 15 (Re-entry)Top Rock & Alternative Albums – No. 3 (Debut)Top Rock Albums – No. 3 (Debut)Catalog Albums – No. 2 (Re-entry)Vinyl Albums – No. 11 (Debut)Tastemaker Albums – No. 4 (Debut)
1962-1970:Vinyl Albums – No. 13 (Debut)Tastemaker Albums – No. 15 (Debut)Top Current Album Sales – No. 17 (Debut)
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums and Catalog Albums rank the week’s most popular rock and alternative, rock, and catalog (older) albums across all genres, by equivalent album units. Vinyl Album tallies the week’s top-selling vinyl releases. Tastemaker Albums measures the top-selling titles at independent and small chain record stores. Top Current Album Sales ranks the week’s top-selling new/current albums (non-catalog/older titles).
Elsewhere in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, Stray Kids’ ROCK-STAR debuts at No. 1 with 213,000 copies sold, Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is a non-mover at No. 2 with 69,000 sold (down 43%), while Chris Stapleton’s Higher launches at No. 3 with 57,000.
After debuting at No. 1 a week ago, Jung Kook’s Golden falls to No. 4 with 34,000 sold (down 79%). Aespa’s Drama: The 4th Mini Album starts at No. 7 with 18,000 sold. Lana Del Rey’s Lust for Life re-enters at No. 8 with 14,000 sold (up from less than 500 sold the week previous) following a new color vinyl pressing. Rounding out the top 10 is the debut of AJR’s The Maybe Man at No. 9 with 13,000 and Jimmy Buffett’s Equal Strain On all Parts, falling 3-10 in its second week with nearly 13,000 sold (down 75%).
In the week ending Nov. 16, there were 2.302 million albums sold in the U.S. (up 11% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 1.93 million (up 16.9%) and digital albums comprised 372,000 (down 11.9%).
There were 956,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Nov. 16 (up 20.2% week-over-week) and 964,000 vinyl albums sold (up 14.1%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 30.998 million (up 2.3% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 40.395 million (up 18.1%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 88.134 million (up 6.3% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 71.877 million (up 10.6%) and digital album sales total 16.257 million (down 9.5%).
Landon Barker kicked off his music career two months ago with the release of “Friends With Your Ex.” In the latest episode of Billboard News, Barker details what the song is about, shares insight into its writing process and reveals the advice he got from from his rock star dad, Travis Barker. The 20-year-old musician […]
Dolly Parton had a sweet technique in getting Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr to collaborate with her on her recently released rock album, Rockstar.
“So I just sent them a love note through their managers, and I just said what I was doing,” the icon told NPR. “And I said, ‘I didn’t want to put you on the spot, but I’d love to have you sing with me on my rock album. And if you’re interested, call me at this number. And all the people I reached out to said, ‘Yes, we’d love to,’ and I was very honored and very proud and very humbled by that.”
Ultimately, the Beatles duo teamed up with Parton for a cover of the rock band’s iconic 1970 hit, “Let It Be,” along with Peter Frampton and Mick Fleetwood. “Well, does it get any better than singing ‘Let It Be’ with Paul McCartney who wrote the song? Not only that, he played piano,” Parton added. “Well, it did get even better when Ringo Starr joined in on drums, Peter Frampton on guitar and Mick Fleetwood playing percussion. I mean, seriously, how much better does it get? Thanks guys!”
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On Rockstar, which arrived on Nov. 17, Parton partnered up on the 21 other songs with a number of their original performers, including Sting (“Every Breath You Take”), Heart’s Ann Wilson (“Magic Man”), John Fogerty (“Long As I Can See the Light”), Peter Frampton (“Baby, I Love Your Way”), Joan Jett & the Blackhearts (“I Hate Myself For Loving You”) and goddaughter Miley Cyrus (“Wrecking Ball”).
Upon the album’s release, Parton wrote a thank you note to her fans for following her down her latest creative path. “I can’t tell you how proud I am of the Rockstar album and I can’t tell you how happy I am that it’s finally here to be released!” she said on Instagram. “I really had a wonderful time working with all these iconic artists on the record and all these iconic musicians. Not to mention all these great iconic songs that I think everybody will love hearing again. I just hope you enjoy my version of them!”
The Beatles had one last hurrah earlier this month with the release of its final single, “Now and Then,” on Nov. 2. As with most releases from the Fab Four, the track proved to be a success for the group, and according to Ringo Starr, serves as a “nice way to finally close that door.” […]
The Rolling Stones announced the dates for their 2024 North American tour in support of their Grammy-nominated new album, Hackney Diamonds. The core trio of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood will hit 16 cities on the AARP-sponsored tour, beginning with an April 28 show at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.
The swing will include a stop at Jazz Fest in New Orleans on May 2, as well as stadium shows in Las Vegas, Seattle, Orlando, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Denver, Chicago, Vancouver, and Los Angeles, wrapping up on July 17 with a gig at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA.
The follow-up to their record-setting 2021 No Filter Tour will celebrate the legendary band’s first studio album of new material since 2005’s A Bigger Bang on the AEG Presents Concerts West-promoted swing, with tickets slated to go on sale on Dec. 1 at 10 a.m. local time.
The Stones recently became the 25th artist to receive the BRIT Billion Award from the BPI commemorating 1 billion career UK streams as calculated by the Official Charts Company.
Check out the dates for the Stones’ 2024 North American tour below.
April 28 — Houston, TX @ NRG Stadium May 2 — New Orleans, LA @ Jazz Fest May 7 — Glendale, AZ @ State Farm StadiumMay 11 — Las Vegas, NV @ Allegiant StadiumMay 15 — Seattle, WA @ Lumen Field May 23 — East Rutherford, NJ @ MetLife StadiumMay 30 — Foxboro, MA @ Gillette StadiumJune 3 — Orlando, FL @ Camping World Stadium June 7 — Atlanta, GA @ Mercedes-Benz Stadium June 11 — Philadelphia, PA @ Lincoln Financial FieldJune 15 — Cleveland, OH @ Cleveland Browns Stadium June 20 — Denver, CO @ Empower Field at Mile High June 27 — Chicago, IL @ Soldier Field July 5 — Vancouver, BC @ BC Place July 10 — Los Angeles, CA @ SoFi Stadium July 17 — Santa Clara, CA @ Levi’s® Stadium