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EXPLAINED: Classic rock | Vintage Vibes

“There were certain guidelines, and that was to stay away from long hair and guitar solos”: How Led Zeppelin, The Doors and Hendrix inspired a rule-breaking post-punk band to write one of rock’s greatest anthems

The Cult’s She Sells Sanctuary can lay claim to be the first great alternative rock anthem

Louder

Carmine Appice names the forgotten rock drummer who “started everything”: “The playing, the showmanship, the twirling – he was a monster player and never got credit”

The Vanilla Fudge drummer salutes a rock pioneer – and clears up a famous Led Zeppelin rumour

Louder

"It's not made for radio, it's not made for MTV, it's just made for rock and roll." Forget what critics and sales stats might tell you, Flick Of The Switch is the finest AC/DC album since Back In Black

Flick Of The Switch is AC/DC's most under-rated album. The End

Louder

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"He said, You’re gonna be attacked from every side." Motorhead legend Lemmy offered brilliant career advice to one of rock's hottest new bands when they were starting out

"Having Lemmy look at you eyeball-to-eyeball and tell you how it is was a real gift"

Louder

The story of the anthem that broke Free in America - then broke up the band. "I'll never forget Koss's reaction. He slumped like he'd been hit in the stomach"

All Right Now was an instant classic, but it also created instant problems for Free

Louder

Pre-order Classic Rock’s ultimate Europe fan package: magazine with exclusive cover, marble vinyl of new album Come This Madness plus signed lyric sheet

Celebrate the release of the Swedish rockers’ 12th album with this huge collector’s bundle, only available through Louder!

Louder

Glenn Hughes announces retirement from touring due to health issues: “I really have no option”

The former Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Trapeze frontman is set to undergo open heart surgery

Guitar World

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"The stench of success was horrible for a lot of people." How David Bowie, Jane's Addiction, self-loathing, bitterness and jealousy led Gavin Rossdale to write Everything Zen, the song that turned unknown Brits Bush into superstars in America

The story behind Bush's debut single Everything Zen

Louder

"I was writing with all these rock bands because that's who wanted to hire me. I did OK with that." The 10 songs that influenced Desmond Child the most

Desmond Child sold millions with Aerosmith, Kiss, Bon Jovi and more – and his new live album, recorded in an ancient Greek amphitheatre, is a celebration of those songs

Louder

“In the ’80s,MTVbuttered our bread. But after Kurt Cobain wore his grandfather’s sweater in the video forSmells Like Teen Spirit, there was no place on MTV for bands like us and Mötley Crüe”: The life and death of the thinking person’s hair metal band

Two top 10 hits and two million album sales couldn't save them

MusicRadar

“Listening to him had an effect on me similar to what I might feel if I were to meet an alien from outer space”: How Eric Clapton’s mission to spread the blues gospel was the making of the first guitar ‘god’

The discovery of Freddie King was the Eureka! moment in the origin story of Slowhand's ascent as the British blues scene's greatest player

MusicRadar

“Alan told us that he didn’t know how he’d face his family again. If he’d said, ‘I won’t accept my royalties for that,’ I’d have admired the courage of his convictions”: The controversial 1983 hit that split one of Britain‘s most beloved rock bands

Status Quo were one of the most enduring rock bands of the 70s and 80s – until they hit the tequila cocktails

Louder

Iron Maiden fans! You can pre-order the official Eddfest programme and museum guide only through the Metal Hammer and Classic Rock online store

Heading to Eddfest? Or just want to own a piece of Iron Maiden history? You can pre-order the official programme and museum guide right now!

Metal Hammer

"What's Number One at the moment? I couldn't tell you. It's meaningless. All I care about is what Iron Maiden are doing next week." Steve Harris, Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith look back on Iron Maiden's 50-year ride

As Iron Maiden's historic Eddfest show at Knebworth gets ever closer, the band look back over half a century of Monsters and Maiden

Metal Hammer

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MusicRadar

“Artie would be singing it, people would stomp and cheer, and I would think, ‘That’s my song, man. I wrote that’”: How Simon and Garfunkel created their transcendent masterpiece – with tension rising and emotions running high

“That song had two writers – Paul Simon and God”

Louder

"It's a gift that there are so many recordings of him, so his legacy will live on and inspire guitarists for an eternity." Remembering Mott The Hoople and Bad Company guitarist Mick Ralphs

A tribute to Mick Ralphs, who died on June 23, 2025 – includes interviews with Ian Hunter and Paul Rodgers

Metal Hammer

"I was in Ireland in my little house when I got the call saying, ‘This is Lars from Metallica.'" How metal's biggest band and a confused folk singer wrote a controversial hit that has soundtracked everything from WWE to The Sopranos

When Marianne Faithful got a phone call from Lars Ulrich asking her to collaborate with Metallica, she didn't believe it

Louder

“The rock business has become so established, and so much like a society, that I have revolted against it." After killing off Ziggy and breaking up the band, David Bowie recorded a covers album in a French castle. This is the story of Pin Ups’ creation

After Aladdin Sane, Bowie recorded Pin Ups to pacify his label – but the critics weren't impressed

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Louder

"She leaned over and kissed me on me lips. My knees went." The day that black metal legend Cronos from Venom met Kate Bush

"What's not to love about Kate Bush?”

Metal Hammer

"He used to do stupid things that smashed the reputation of the band. That's all over now." The frosty relationship between Saxon's Biff Byford and former guitarist Graham Oliver has thawed after more than 30 years

After all the bad chemistry and court battles, Biff Byford and Graham Oliver are no longer at loggerheads

Louder

“Ozzy asked whether I had night-sight goggles. I didn’t. He told me you could pick up an ex-military pair for $10,000!”: Legendary songwriter Russ Ballard tried to write a song with Ozzy Osbourne – and failed

Ozzy offered Ballard tips on how to get high-grade military hardware - and Ritchie Blackmore just wanted to play “minstrel music”

Louder

“I reckon Ritchie Blackmore might have thought we’d made a mistake having them open for Rainbow, as we just couldn’t match them”: When AC/DC blew Rainbow off stage

Warning: never, ever let AC/DC open for your band

Louder

"It's an exploration of the dark underbelly of the American dream." The story behind the Eagles "spooky" classic Hotel California

How a "Mexican reggae" demo turned into one of classic rock's greatest ever anthems

MusicRadar

“It’s supposed to be ridiculous. It’s a song about ridiculousness. So I called Jim Steinman”: How a goth legend hooked up with Meat Loaf’s songwriter to create an ’80s rock anthem

“I know the song Bat Out Of Hell,” the singer said, “but I’ve never listened to the album”

Louder

"We think we played for eight hours. I can't say for sure, because everyone was tripping." The acid-fried story of Man, the Welsh jam band with its heart in San Francisco

"We're a pretty unmanageable bunch of stoned musos, which might have something to do with our lack of commercial success."

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