A slideshow of historical photos, some very well known, some not so much. Caveat: dating for quite a few of them seems dubious. Best viewed in full screen. Continue Reading »

In other Steve Morse news, he was recently featured in the American Musical Supply series Punch In with the Pros.

Steve Morse, legendary guitar virtuoso, came through our studio and played a little game that we like to call “Punch In with the Pros”! We had Steve listen to the track “Fix You” by Coldplay, without the guitar solo, and had him fill in some of his famous soaring melodies and improvise a brand-new solo of his own. If this doesn’t fix you, then nothing will.

The original, for reference:

Steve Morse Band’s new album Triangulation will be released on November 14, 2025, via Mascot Records. The album will feature Steve’s long time collaborators Dave LaRue on bass and Van Romaine on drums, plus guest musicians. Eric Johnson contributed his guitar to TexUS, and John Petrucci did the honours for the title track. Steve’s son Kevin plays on Taken by an Angel (which is a tribute to the late Janine).

That song is new territory for me. It was put together for my late wife’s memorial service, with my son Kevin playing along. It brought tears to many folks’ eyes because Janine was a huge part of my life and career. People knew her from the Steve Morse Band tours. She was the smiling face opening CDs for me to sign, selling t-shirts, listening to people’s stories in the crowd, and taking photos for VIP visits.

The album title Triangulation is derived from the concept of aviators, navigators, and sailors looking at two points to pinpoint their exact location at a specific moment in time.

Dave and Van have been the bedrock of this trio, and this recording shows why. These guys are unique and incredible musicians on their own, and together, our chemistry is magical. While making the album, we played together, working through parts, riffing off each other, and collaborating on arrangements. I’d bring an idea, and hear it instantly — and then hear it improved. We made this album together, and you can hear it.

Track list:

1. Break Through
2. Off The Cuff
3. TexUS (feat. Eric Johnson)
4. The Unexpected
5. March Of The Nomads (feat. Scott Sim)
6. Ice Breaker
7. Tumeni Partz
8. Triangulation (feat. John Petrucci)
9. Taken By An Angel (feat. Kevin Morse)

A video for the opening track Break Through was posted today to accompany the announcement.

This may start with a guitar riff, but the bass carries the melody. It’s just a great feel to play over, and a positive vibe to start the album.

The video was directed by Angel Vivaldi.
The album was produced by Bill Evans.

Play the single, stream and pre-order the album via this link.

Thanks to Tobias Janaschke for the heads-up, and to BraveWords for additional info and quotes.

Get Ready to Rock‘s review of Rapture of the Deep remix is chock-full of most superlative terms, going as far as calling it “release of the year”.

The opening track ‘Money Talks’ is a great start, the new mix showcasing a hard and crunchy guitar, and Don Airey’s inner Jon Lord shines through on the Hammond organ, and the middle rhythmic break shows some great work from Gillan. The title track has an eastern influence. Then there’s ‘Clearly Quite Absurd’, a well crafted fine pop/rock song of the gentle kind, but each member is still able to show off.

A cracking album now made even better, and a bonus disc with some demo recordings, a must for any fan.

Read more in Get Ready to Rock.

Metal Planet Music reviews in the most glowing terms the freshly released Glenn Hughes’ album Chosen.

The Voice of Rock is back and taking no prisoners. ‘Chosen’ comes nine years after last solo album ‘Resonate’ gained huge critical and public acclaim and shows that there’s still fire in his belly and a larynx that’s the envy of all out there.

Having kept himself busy touring his Deep Purple focused shows and a stint with The Dead Daisies, Hughes hasn’t really stood still but still managed to write and record this ten track opus to herald the return of his own project. With longtime foils, guitarist Soren Anderson, drummer Ash Sheenhan and keys player Bob Fridzema by his side, this is a passion project that builds on the already legendary status the vocalist and bass player has worked hard to earn. With ten, all killer no filler tracks, there’s no sense of growing old gracefully and with the power presented here the outfit stamp their authority on an album that somehow balances modern production with a timeless feel.

Metal Temple is more subdued with a 7/10 verdict:

But to me it all lacks that bit of extra that will get me wanting or trying to listen to “Chosen” as often as possible. Like I mentioned, there isn’t a bad song on it, but there isn’t a proper belter on it either, and that is what could have made this GLENN HUGHES stand out from some of the others he has made. Let me phrase it like this: if I come to visit you and you are playing “Chosen” on your stereo, I will and shall enjoy it for the 50:52 minutes it lasts. You won’t hear me complain for a second. But I would never have “Chosen” this album if I wanted you to hear what I most admire in GLENN HUGHES.

Meanwhile, Get Ready to Rock not as much as reviews the new album, but publishes a retrospective of Glenn’s career for the past 20 tears or so.

Like many contemporaries there have been the wilderness years – lost to changing musical tastes or something worse. From the mid to late-1990s (chronicled in the 2020 box set) Glenn had picked himself up, dusted off the bass guitar, and since that time it has been a musical rollercoaster, crowned by solo albums, Black Country Communion and generous contributions to other mere mortals – an aspect David Randall described as “That ubiquitous session whore”.

…wear some garters if you are attending Wolverhampton, Liverpool or London this weekend. It’s the first time since 1976 for the Liverpudlians. By his own admission he ‘should be dead.’ Keith Thompson, May 2008

Classic Rock is more enthusiastic:

What seems most important with this record, though, is the weight of Hughes’s lyrics. Whichever musical hat he wears, its brim casts a darker shadow than before. Physically, he may look a lot better than most of his contemporaries do these days – he turned 74 on August 21 – but he might be feeling it. His subject matter is delivered obliquely, but in the tone of a man looking back on his life and the mistakes he’s made, making peace with himself for correcting them, and looking forward to a more contented afterlife – as he suggests in Chosen.

And yet another track from the new album was posted to commemorate the D-day. Here’s My Alibi:

Zee Germans did it again — the 2025 remix of Rapture of the Deep also entered top albums charts at #9 (interesting to note that the original release in 2005 peaked at #10). Continue Reading »

Blackmore’s Night will play a handful of dates within the driving distance of their Long Island abode in November 2025. Tickets are already on sale, and full details are in our calendar.

Fun fact: a couple of shows are booked into the same venues where Steve Morse will play just a few weeks earlier. It’s a small world, but we wouldn’t want to paint it.

Glenn Hughes was a guest on the Metal Mayhem ROC podcast talking about, for the most part, the usual things he talks about in the interviews these days. One thing that is newish here is the anecdote of him almost joining the nascent Ozzy’s band in 1979. And Glenn’s genuine reaction to learning (while being “on the air”) of Vicky Lord — his one time girlfriend — passing away.

Thanks to BraveWords for the heads-up.

Louder Sound republishes online a Classic Rock feature on Rainbow Rising and subsequent tour. It originally appeared in the Classic Rock magazine issue #158, dated June 2011. The feature was written by Pete Makowski with input from Ritchie Blackmore, Jimmy Bain, Ronnie James Dio, Tony Carey, and Cozy Powell, all collected over the years.

Tokyo, December 16, 1976

In the dark, smoke-filled basement disco of the Tokyo Hilton, the night is in full swing. The music throbs with a mid-tempo pulse, as salary men with open collars, loosened ties and uncomfortable paunches knock back the sake. Refined-looking and impeccably dressed hostesses hover in the background, circling their prey with casual yet purposeful intent.

In one corner of the room, I can just about make out the blurry outline of someone who seems out of place in this den of iniquity. Ritchie Blackmore, guitarist and driving force with Rainbow, sits almost hidden in an anonymous alcove. Dressed in his trademark black, only the whites of his eyes and a half-pint glass of imported German beer are visible.

Continue reading in Louder Sound.

Public service announcement. In case you’re still on the fence about the Rapture of the Deep remix, the whole album is being streamed on YouTube. That is, without the bonus tracks, which are apparently only available on the physical media.