Rufus Publications is taking pre-orders on their new book Celebrating Bernie Marsden.
The promo blurb reads:
With the kind permission of his family we have been working on a new book to celebrate the career of the amazing Bernie Marsden. This new, 300mm square book with over 300 pages includes written contributions from David Coverdale, Doug Aldrich, Ian Paice, Don Airey, Steve Lukather and others plus a wealth of photographs and memorabilia from Bernie’s extensive career including his time with Whitesnake and of course his special relationship with the Steelhouse Festival.
The profits from this publication will be donated to Bernie’s favoured charity; The Trussell Trust and we hope to raise over £10,000.
This unique edition is numbered 1-300 and is estimated to ship by the end of May 2025.
Bob Daisley has appeared on the Talk Louder Podcast, and it was a protracted conversation, so buckle up!
Despite repeated efforts to scrub his name from the history books, bassist, composer and lyricist Bob Daisley is universally celebrated (and rightfully so) as a creative force behind some of heavy metal’s most defining songs and albums (you’ve heard of ‘Crazy Train,’ eh?). He joins us to discuss the writing and recording of Blizzard Of Ozz, Diary Of A Madman, Bark At The Moon and other albums that made Ozzy Osbourne a superstar. We also discuss his theory behind the fatal Randy Rhoads plane crash; the inspiration of Jimi Hendrix; his time in Rainbow and Uriah Heep; his book, For Facts Sake; and that time Bon Scott bummed a beer, but left behind some cash like a gentleman.
Candice Night’s new solo albumSea Glass will be released on April 25, 2025, vie Edel/earMUSIC. It will be a family affair, with her hubby guesting on one track (The Last Goodbye), and their children appearing on another (Promise Me).
Track list:
Sea Glass
Unsung Hero (She’ll Never Tell)
The Line Between
Angel And Jezebel (Rock Version)
Promise Me
Dark Carnival
The Last Goodbye
When I Want To Fly
Another Day
Nature Boy
Angel And Jezebel (Country Version)
All music and words written by Candice, except Nature Boy, described as ‘beloved standard’, so it is presumably the one by eden ahbez and popularized by Nat King Cole.
A digital single for Angel And Jezebel (Rock Version) has been released to accompany the announcement:
Another batch of vintage Deep Purple bootlegs has been released on streaming platforms. These are the Live Archive 1974 Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. The sets include:
The sets are available on Amazon Music, Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. Unfortunately, this release (as well as previousinstalments) appear to no longer be available on YouTube or any other platform where you can listen without registration, albeit Spotify allows for previews.
Jon Lord’s Sarabande will receive a rare live outing in February in Greece. It will be a one off performance by the Camerata Friends of Music Orchestra, conducted by George Petrou, with special guest Gus G on guitar. Other memebers of the band include Giorgos Fakanas on bass, Stefanos Dimitriou on drums, and the conductor doubling down on Hammond organ. The evening will open with the performance of Philip Glass’ Symphony No. 4, Heroes (1996), based on the eponymous album by David Bowie and Brian Eno, with Sarabande as the main course.
Who: Camerata Friends of Music Orchestra, conducted by George Petrou; What: Symphonic Rock Transformations: a performance of Jon Lord’s Sarabande and Philip Glass’ Symphony No. 4, Heroes; When: February 19, 2025, at 20:30; Where:Christos Lambrakis Hall, located inside the Megaron complex in Athens, Greece; Tickets: €10.00 — €55.00, here.
A 1981 vintage Jon Lord interview, where he talks about the bogus Purple, Gillan’s departure from the band, Tommy Bolin, prospects for a reunion, Tony Ashton, an upcoming solo album, and the Frank Sinatra of rock´n´roll. The interview is published with a warning that no part can be quoted without permission, so we can’t offer you a teaser. You can read it here. Continue Reading »
Ian Gillan’s autobiography has been published in Ukraine. It was translated by Gennady Shpak (text) and Julia Vrotna (lyrics), and edited by Volodymyr Drybushchak, who himself is a well published author of quite a few books on Deep Purple and family. With Ian’s blessings, Volodymyr corrected several factual inaccuracies that sneaked into the original. Sounds like the English edition is due for an update too.
John Sykes, guitar player with Tygers of Pan Tang, Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake, and his own band Blue Murder, has died, having lost a protracted battle with cancer. The following message has appeared on his website yesterday, January 20, 2025:
It is with great sorrow we share that John Sykes has passed away after a hard fought battle with cancer. He will be remembered by many as a man with exceptional musical talent but for those who didn’t know him personally, he was a thoughtful, kind, and charismatic man whose presence lit up the room.
He certainly marched to the beat of his own drum and always pulled for the underdog. In his final days, he spoke of his sincere love and gratitude for his fans who stuck by him through all these years.
While the impact of his loss is profound and the mood somber, we hope the light of his memory will extinguish the shadow of his absence.
Sykes was instrumental in transforming Whitesnake from a British blues-rock band into an American hair metal one. He re-recorded guitar parts for the US edition of 1984 Slide It In album, and later co-wrote most of the material and recorded the smash hit 1987 album. Relations with DC soured immediately afterwards, and he was dismissed before any of the MTV videos were made, or the band hit the road.
Albeit they have parted on less than friendly terms, Coverdale pays a tribute to his former bandmate:
Just heard the shocking news of John’s passing…My sincere condolences to his family, friends & fans…🙏✨🙏✨⭐️✨🙏✨🙏
Another connection with the Purple family was made in 2002, when Sykes guested on a track for the Hughes/Turner Project first album HTP. Glenn Hughes has also paid tribute today:
There are no words to describe how I feel about John’s guitar playing. He was absolutely a phenomenon.
Here’s a song that we wrote together called “Heaven’s Missing An Angel”. What an amazing solo on this song & Honored to have John join me on vocals.
RIP Dear one. The angel is now in heaven,
Love you 🙏 🩵
Former Sabaton guitar player and current Majestica frontman Tommy Johansson has posted his cover of Child in Time a-la Power metal style, with plethora of guest appearances. Check it out if you’re a fan of the genre. Continue Reading »