Album review : YESTERDAY & TODAY – S/T and Struck Down (Remasters)

Rock Candy Records [Release date 18.07.25]

1972 : In the days before they abbreviated to Y&T, they called themselves Yesterday & Today, after the Beatles’ latest US album release of the time, allegedly.

The band line up got shuffled a few times before settling on Leonard Haze, Dave Meniketti, Phil Kenemore and Joey Alves.

Meantime, across the Atlantic, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep and Judas Priest were creating the genre that came to be known as Classic Rock. Full on, hard boiled, full of chunky rock melodies, with something of an industrial clamour around the edges.

Y&T climbed on board that juggernaut in 1974, brandishing their tough as teak, self titled debut.

In a band of considerable talent, Meniketti stands out. As vocalist and lead axeman he was the band’s creative catalyst. His scorching solos bring out the best in everyone.

And as a unified quartet, they maintained an ever present air of detached cool, while cranking up the guitars and the beats to deliver animated rock songs.

The UFO like ‘Animal Woman’ and ‘25 Hours a Day’, a Cream tribute in disguise, are both swaggeringly tough. Two resounding statements of intent. ****

As if we needed to be reassured, 1978’s follow up album, Struck Down (short at 29 minutes) reinforces the notion that there’s a musical chemistry at work here, igniting the album’s well thought out rock’n’roll material.

You can almost feel the constant seismic rumble of title track opener, ‘Struck Down’, even before the music begins.

The more immediate ‘Pleasure In My Heart’ echoes that pounding rhythmic thump, with Meniketti’s remarkably lean yet eminently anthemic axework soaring above the fray.

In fairness, his axework occasionally backs out of the red zone, leaving space for the rest of the band. Especially noticeable on ‘Stargazer’, which sidesteps into Progressive Rock territory, a cool way to close out the album. ***

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


News: BAD COMPANY, TRIVIUM, DAVID GILMOUR (August 2025)

News - Album News

AFI will release a new album, ‘Silver Bleeds The Black Sun…’, on October 3 via Run For Cover Records.

Alcatrazz release ‘Prior Convictions’, an album of re-recorded songs plus two new songs, in November through BraveWords Records. The band plan to release an album of all new songs in 2026.

Slash, Halestorm, Blackberry Smoke, Black Stone Cherry, The Struts, Dirty Honey and more all appear on an upcoming Bad Company tribute album. ‘Can’t Get Enough: A Tribute to Bad Company’ will be released on October 24.

The Beatles release ’Anthology 4′ as part of an expanded ‘Anthology’ collection. It will be released on November 21 on LP, 8CD and on digital. Both box sets include the original Anthology sleeve notes and new Anthology 4 sleeve notes.

Black Country Communion (pictured) plan to release a live album early next year and also record their sixth studio album.

Black N Blue have recorded two songs with engineer/producer Rob Daiker for release later this year. The songs were written by Jaime St James and Tommy Thayer in 1984 and 1985 but never made it past the demo stages.

Cheap Trick release a new studio album ‘All Washed Up’ on November 14 via BMG with the lead single ‘Twelve Gates’ released on August 22.

Laura Cox will release her fourth studio album ‘Trouble Coming’ via earMUSIC on October 31.

Creeper release their latest album ‘Sanguivore II: Mistress Of Death’ on October 31 through Spinefarm.

Dangerous Toys plan to release two studio albums next year, with the first due in the first quarter of 2026.

Daughtry release a new EP, ’Shock To The System (Part Two)’, on September 12 via Big Machine Rock.

Demon Hunter will release their latest album ‘There Was A Light Here’ on September 12 via their own Weapons MFG label.

The Devil Wears Prada will release their latest album, ‘Flowers’, on November 14 via Solid State Records.

Die Krupps have signed with Dependent Records and release their next album in 2026.

Finger Eleven release their first new studio album in a decade, ‘Last Night On Earth’, on November 7 release via Better Noise Music.

Peter Gabriel releases ‘Live At WOMAD 1982′ digitally on August 8.

David Gilmour will release a new concert film from his shows last year. ‘Live At The Circus Maximus’ is being released via Sony Music Vision and Trafalgar Releasing, and will be shown in cinemas and IMAX worldwide on September 17 for a limited time only. ‘Live At The Circus Maximus’ will also be released on 2 Blu-Ray and 3 DVD sets with bonus unseen footage and the full The Luck And Strange Concerts’ mixed in 5.1 and Atmos (Blu-Ray only) on October 17.

Gojira plan to release their next album in 2026.

Great White plan to release “two or three songs” at a time before releasing another full album.

Sammy Hagar has announced ‘Sammy Hagar & The Best Of All Worlds Band – The Residency’, a live album captured during his a 2025 Las Vegas residency and it is released on October 10, 2025

Bernie Leadon has announced the release of his first album in more than 20 years. Too Late to Be Cool’ will be released on October 10.

John Lennon’s ‘Power To The People (Super Deluxe Edition)’,  is released on October 10 through Capitol/UMe. Produced by Sean Ono Lennon the box set includes 123 tracks, including 90 previously unreleased tracks.

Leveret release their latest album ‘Lost Measures’ on September 26.

The Magpie Arc plan to release their second album in November.

Mayday Parade release the second instalment of their 20th anniversary album trilogy, ‘Sad’, on October 3.

John McLaughlin has released a second single, ‘Here Come the Jiis’, from the upcoming ‘Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2022′ which is released by earMUSIC on August 8.

Megadeth have announced their next studio album – to be released next year – will be their last and they will also embark on a worldwide farewell tour.

Mother Love Bone’s ‘Shine’ EP and debut album ‘Apple’ are reissued by UMe on September 26.

Ninebarrow release their new album ‘The Hour of the Blackbird’ on October 3.

Steve Plunkett of Autograph has re-recorded the band’s 1984 debut album ‘Sign In Please’ and will release it under the title of ‘Turn Up the Radio’ on September 26.

Radiohead release ‘Hail to the Thief Live Recordings 2003-2009′ on CD and vinyl on October 31.

The Replacements will release an expanded, 3CD deluxe edition of their 1984 album, Let It Be’ on October 24.

Ronnie Romero releases his latest solo album ‘Backbone’ on October 24 via Frontiers.

Roxy Music musicians Phil Manzanera, Andy Mackay and Paul Thompson will release a new live album, AM PM Soho Live’, through Expression Records & BFD/The Orchard on September 19.

Shiraz Lane have released a new single ‘Come Alive’ ahead of their new album, ‘In Vertigo’, which is due on October 24 via Frontiers.

Southern River Band release their new album ‘Easier Said Than Done’ on October 17 via Civilians.

The Struts have re-recorded their debut single ‘Could Have Been Me 2025’ and Brian May guests on this new version, which is released on September 3.

Stryper have released ‘Still the Light’, the first single from their upcoming Christmas album.

Testament will release their new album, ‘Para Bellum’, on October 10 via Nuclear Blast.

Trivium release a new EP entitled ‘Struck Dead’ on October 31.

Frank Zappa and The Mothers Of Invention’s 1975 album, ‘One Size Fits All’, will be reissued in various formats through UMe on September 26 to celebrate the album’s 50th anniversary.

In the studio…

Corrosion of Conformity are at the mixing stage with their new album…Crimson Glory have finished recording their new album…Bruce Dickinson plans to enter the studio in January to record his next album with producer Brendan DuffeyDown are halfway through recording their new album…Bob Dylan recently spent a couple of days with his band in a New York studio fuelling rumours he has new music on the way…Firewind are working on a concept album…Kreator are currently mixing their new album…Overkill are writing and demoing songs for their next album…Shadows Fall are currently in the studio working on their new album…Nina Strauss is busy demoing songs for her next album…Ugly Kid Joe are close to finishing their new album…Venom Inc. are working on a new album, with a March release planned and and an EP due out before that…Warning enter the studio later this year to record their next album, with their new label Relapse Records set to re-issue the band’s earlier albums…

News - Tours and Gigs

Newly announced UK tours (2025 unless stated):

Belle and Sebastian (Apr 2026), Samantha Fish (Feb, Mar 2026), Trevor Horn Band (Dec), The Lazys (Aug, Sep), Magpie Arc (Oct, Nov), Maximo Park (Feb 2026), Men Without Hats (Aug), My Chemical Romance (Jul 2026), President (Apr 2026), Pure Reason Revolution (Feb 2026), Suede (Jan, Feb 2026), 10CC (Mar 2026). The Vaccines (Mar 2026),

Upcoming (Gigs – UK)

Newly announced US & European tours (2025 unless stated):

Atomic Rooster (EU), Jimmy Barnes (AU 2025 & 2026), Bullet For My Valentine (AU), Cheap Trick (US), Cradle of Filth (EU), Everclear (AU), Samantha Fish + Robert Jon & The Wreck (US), Foreigner (US 2026), John 5 (US 2026), Linkin Park (AU 2026), The Lumineers (AU, NZ 2026), Memphis May Fire (US), Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds (AU 2026), Onslaught (EU 2026), Pierce the Veil (AU), Saliva (US), Steel Panther (US), Story of the Year + Senses Fail (US), Stray Cats (US),

Upcoming (USA/ROW)

Magenta and Mostly Autumn will headline next year’s Prog for Peart, which takes place on Friday 17 & Saturday 18 July, 2026 in Abingdon, Oxfordshire.

Roger Daltrey has said that The Who’s upcoming US tour will be their last ever tour, although he doesn’t rule out one-off shows in the future.

Tour updates & postponed/cancelled gigs & tours:

Burning Witches have postponed their US tour planned for this month and next, to March/April next year due to delays in visa applications.

The Jesus Lizard have announced the cancellation of their 2025 tour plans, with the group citing a “serious health incident”.

Stevie Nicks has postponed two months of her current US tour due to a shoulder injury.

Raven have postponed their upcoming European and US tour dates as John Gallagher required emergency health treatment.

Saxon have postponed their two festival dates scheduled for this month as Biff Byford recovers from recent surgery and follow-up cancer treatment.

Midge Ure has postponed his autumn UK tour dates after health issues requiring “urgent treatment.

Adrian Vandenburg has cancelled his upcoming UK & Irish dates in October.

Other Stuff

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard are removing their music from Spotify as a protest against its CEO’s involvement in the ‘defence industry’.

Next year could see a John Farnham musical celebrating the 40th anniversary of his seminal album, ‘Whispering Jack’, tour Australia.

The Angels have a new mural and the naming of a road in their honour in the city of Adelaide.

Following Ozzy Osbourne’s death last month, his solo singles ‘Crazy Train’ (46) and ‘Mama I Am Coming Home’ (49), both charted in the US Billboard Hot 100. ‘The Essential Ozzy Osbourne’ re-entered the Billboard albums chart at number 7, with Black Sabbath’s ‘Paranoid’ at number 37. In the UK singles chart ‘Paranoid’ reached number 20, ‘Crazy Train’ (25), ‘Mama I am Coming Home’ (45), ‘No More Tears’ (46), ‘War Pigs’ (47) and ‘Iron Man’ (48), all made the singles chart too. In the UK album charts Black Sabbath’s ‘The Ultimate Collection’ reached number 14, ‘Paranoid’ at number 38 and Ozzy’s ‘Memoirs of a Madman’ at number 32.

The ‘Ozzy Osbourne: Working Class Hero’ exhibition in Birmingham has been extended until 18 January 2026 due to public demand.

Guitarist Jason Richardson has left All That Remains.

Ilan Rubin (ex-Nine Inch Nails) is the new drummer with Foo Fighters.

Francis Dunnery has left John Payne’s Asia after one show, although he will still contribute to the planned new album by the band. Jeff Kollman will play guitar on the current US tour.

Big Big Train have announced that trumpeter, vocalist and percussionist Paul Mitchell has joined the band as a full-time member.

Vocalist Sy Keeler has re-joined Onslaught.

Guitarist Scott Bernard has joined Kansas and he will fill-in for Rich Williams who is scaling back his live commitments, although still remaining a member of the band.

Willie Dowling will be the bassist for Cats In Space’s UK October dates.

Zoë M. Federoff has announced her exit from Cradle of Filth with Kelsey Peters replacing her.

News - RIP

Original Iron Maiden vocalist Paul Mario Day, also a member of More and the Sweet.

Junkyard vocalist David Roach.

Singer songwriter Terry Reid who turned down offers from both Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple to join them.

Bobby Whitlock, keyboardist with Derek And The Dominos.

Graham Fenton, frontman of rockabilly revivalists The Houseshakers and Matchbox.

Kick Axe guitarist and co-founder Larry Gillstrom.

Former Mastodon guitarist Brett Hinds.


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Gig review: WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25 July 2025

WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25th July 2025

Some bands just seem to get things right from the very start. This may be down to them producing a set worth of songs that they then hone over many years playing pubs and clubs and building up a following before they finally make it into a studio. They then lay down these tracks in what is usually a fairly raw, low budget state, but the songs bristle with energy and ambition that some find hard to replicate, hence the ‘difficult’ second album of legend.

WASP have made many fine albums over the years, but for me their 1984 debut was and still is their best. So, on hearing that they were taking this album on tour and playing it in its entirety this date became a must see show.

WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25th July 2025

On entering the Academy there was a decent crowd gathering, although the balcony section remained firmly closed, and anticipation was high. There was to be no support tonight which was a shame as the excellent Tailgunner had been in tow for the first three shows. As such things kicked off bright and early at just after 8pm. I think this may have taken a few people by surprise as I heard a few conversations later from folks who had missed the first few songs as things were in full flow when they eventually wandered in.

Anyway, back to the matter in hand. As the lights dimmed and the intro tape blasted out snippets of WASP’s greatest hits a huge cheer went up. The band appeared and launched into the intro of ‘I Wanna Be Somebody’ as Blackie took to the stage.

Dresses in a black cat suit he stalked the stage looking like the offspring of Elvis and Elvira, before taking his place behind his trademark skeleton mic stand. Vocally Blackie was spot on, his delivery as strong and clear as ever which was good to hear.

WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25th July 2025

It was strange to hear ‘I Wanna Be Somebody’ so early in the set, but as Blackie explained later he was persuaded to play the album in chronological order by a promoter as that hadn’t been the intention when the tour was being put together. For me I am glad he listened to the advice as hearing the album tracks out of order would have lessened the impact.

Track two on the album has always been one of my favourite WASP tracks and the live treatment of ‘LO.V.E Machine’ was excellent. The crowd screamed along on the chorus as the rhythm section of Mike Duda on bass and Aquiles Priester on drums laid down the punishing bassline. Blackie and Doug Blair then took the lead, cranking out the chunky riff to ‘The Flame’. Doug Blair is a man that clearly enjoy his work, he played up a storm all evening with a big smile on his face as he pulled some text book guitar god poses and moves, very entertaining to watch.

WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25th July 2025

‘B.A.D’ was damn good, we then pledged allegiance at the start of the fantastic ‘School Daze’ which led into a riff to die for. The three video screens onstage were put to good use throughout the set, flashing up scenes of the band back where is all started with Chris Holmes and Randy Piper on guitar duties whilst Blackie played bass, or the ‘instrument of ignorance’ as he once put it in an interview.

Another album highlight was up next. ‘Hellion’ has always been a monster of a track, and the version tonight was a full on heavy metal blast, again with much crowd participation. Things then slowed for ‘Sleeping (In The Fire)’, again Blackie’s vocal on this one was first rate as was Doug’s lead guitar work.

Blackie then said how strange it was not to open the set with the next track as they had done so for  the last forty years. To be fair ‘On Your Knees’ is the perfect set opener, fast, furious and guaranteed to get the crowd going. Next up we had the chugging, grinding riff that is ‘Tormentor’ which then led nicely into ‘The Torture Never Stops’ which galloped it’s way to round off the ‘Album One’ part of the set in fine fashion.

WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25th July 2025

After a quick break, Blackie led the guys back on to circus scenes showing on the video screens and the ‘Big Welcome’ taped entrance piece blasting from the PA. This, of course, then led into ‘The Electric Circus’ which in turn segued into ‘I Don’t Need No Doctor’ and the medley was rounded off with the Gremlin friendly ‘Scream Until You Like It’.

‘The Real Me’ kicked off the next medley. It also contained another set highlight in the shape of the huge ballad ‘Forever Free’, complete with the Glasgow choir on backing vocals. ‘Headless Children’ then rounded out this section in fine style with WW2 scenes flashing up on the screens.

WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25th July 2025

We were on the home straight now with just two more songs, but what songs they were! First up was the classic ‘Wild Child’, complete again with the accompanying 80’s video being shown on the screens, before ‘Blind in Texas’ rounded out the set, complete with much crowd participation.

At one hour and twenty minutes all in you could argue the set was a bit on the short side, however the content and performance couldn’t be faulted. Blackie and the guys put in a great shift and hearing the first album in its entirety was a joy.

WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25th July 2025

I missed the original UK tour in 1984 when this album came out, but had a bootleg tape of one of the club shows from Newcastle which I still have in the loft and was one that was played on repeat back in the day. To finally get a chance to relive that moment captured on tape tonight was a dream come true.

Blackie stated at one point that this is a one off deal and at the end of the tour it will be back to the usual setlist, so if you get a chance get along to one of the shows either now or in September, you won’t be disappointed. Now, wonder if anyone is selling a medieval rack on Marketplace…

Review and photos by Dave Wilson


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review: STAR CIRCUS – From The Wreckage

STAR CIRCUS - From The Wreckage

Renaissance Records [Release date 13.06.25]

There’s a big debate going on about the use of AI and whether it compromises modern music making and musicians. After a lifetime of exposure to classic rock I for one am receptive. Time and time again I hear the same chord structures, the same motifs, the same references to other artists.

We don’t chide countless bands for plagiarising the past so why should it be any different with AI? The technology is getting so refined, incorporating AI fairy dust in future musical works will be as seamless as using ProTools and CGI. And no one ever complained about that. It could be a generational thing?

My guess is that if bands don’t embrace AI they are going to be disadvantaged, even ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus is a convert in terms of an aid to songwriting.

With the market ultimately flooded with AI bands will still need a USP, so an engaging front-person, dexterous instrumentalist or impressive stage show will still be relevant.

Which brings me to Star Circus. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with this album, it’s just that we’ve heard it all before. The band is based around a duo – Dave Winkler and Sophie Aurelia Young – and guitarist Winkler handles the lead vocals. Sophie only sings a lead vocal on ‘Masquerade’; to these ears she’s under-utilised in that department. Perhaps she could have at least provided more of a USP…

Opener ‘Over And Over’ could be Pat Travers in the late-1970s replete with the mandatory frenetic guitar break. ‘Chained To You’ is perfunctory hard rock of the Cheap Trick persuasion and ditto ‘The Wreckage’. Jason Ritchie reviewing the band’s debut in 2022 noted “… classic 70s pop rock sound of Cheap Trick with a dose of power pop…”

‘One Hit Wonder’ is lyrically interesting and reminds me of the sort of thing Cats In Space might do, but of course they unashamedly ape the likes of ELO and 10cc. ‘Turn The Tide’ has a memorable chorus with a middle-eight echo of Coldplay. ‘Destiny’s Door’ is a dead-ringer for Europe via Thin Lizzy with a hint of Toto.  ‘Two Odds Make An Even’ recalls Squeeze.  And so on…

If you like decidedly retro stuff, classic rock almost by numbers, Star Circus will trip your switch and you certainly can’t knock it. Others might clear the decks for AI. ***1/2

Review by David Randall

Album review (Separate Sides, 2022)

UK Dates
03.10.25 – Cornwall Rocks Festival, Tencreek Holiday Park
11.10.25 – GODALMING, Borough Hall (Supporting Brave Rival)
16.10.25 – NORWICH, The Brickmakers (Supporting Brave Rival)
18.10.25 – ALDERSHOT, The West End Centre (Supporting Brave Rival)
06.11.25 – DERBY, The Flowerpot (Supporting Brave Rival)
14.11.25 – Rockmantic Weekender, Yardbirds Grimsby
07.12.25 – STAINES, Thameside Tap House and Brewery (Supporting Brave Rival)
18.12.25 – LEIGHTON BUZZARD, The Library Theatre (Supporting Brave Rival)
21.12.25 – HASTINGS, The Carlisle (Supporting Brave Rival)


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : KIX – Kool Atomic Kix (8 CD Boxset)

Cherry Red [Release date : 25.07.25]

Something of a pop metal institution, KIX, the band, the brand, retired gracefully from the musicbiz in 2023, more than forty long years after the self titled debut album hit the streets.

CD1 : KIX (1981) w/2 bonus tracks
CD2 : Cool Kids (1983)
CD3 : Midnite Dynamite (1985) w/2 bonus tracks
CD4 : Blow My Fuse (1987) w/3 bonus tracks
CD5 : Hot Wire (1991) w/6 bonus tracks
CD6 : Live (1993)
CD7 : Demos
CD8 : Rock Your Face Off (2014)

Avid readers of Kerrang at its heavy metal/ hard rock zenith will know the name Xavier Russell. By way of introduction, he has contributed entertaining liner notes based on band interviews.

This boxset comprises all 7 of the band’s studio albums released over that timespan, plus the inevitable album of demos…in this case the embryo versions of all the tracks appearing on the band’s most popular recording, the amusingly titled Blow My Fuse.

The finished album broke the US billboard Top Fifty, going on to achieve a Platinum disc. Nothing succeeds like success.

In the beginning : The band had settled on the line-up of Steve Whiteman on vocals, Ronnie Younkins and Brian Forsythe on guitar, Donnie Purnell on bass and Jimmy Chalfant on drums.

Produced by Tom Allom (Judas Priest, Black Sabbath), KIX’s debut featured many stage favourites, including the singles ‘The Itch’, ‘Heartache’ and ‘Atomic Bombs’.

The timing coincided with the launch of MTV.

Opportunity knocked and the band steered their sound away from the debut’s heavy rock toward a relatively lightfooted, easily digested pop metal menu. The Cool Kid album hit the charts a glancing blow, mainly due to lead single ‘Body Talk’, written by Nick Gilder.

Proven (and prolific) songwriter, Bob (Kiss, Judas Priest, Blue Oyster Cult) Halligan jnr, wrote most of the follow up, Midnite Dynamite. Reviewed by Music Week : “Eminently listenable hard rock that makes no attempt to break new ground. It’s buoyant and lively and a hard-to resist.”

1991’s Hot Wire again broke the Billboard Top 100 for the band. Taylor Rhodes produced and along with Halligan wrote most of the album’s material.

Despite the label and financial problems going on backstage, the band rode the whirlwind and delivered an absolute peach of a long player.

Problem was, highly visible on the horizon, the Grunge hordes were closing in fast.

“Game Over” was an exaggeration, but a live album in 1993 with all the “hits” was the band’s last farewell, and the boots duly got hung up.

Only to be rescued from the shelf in 2003, dusted down and polished up.

The reunion band wrote and recorded Rock Your Face Off, a Top 50 Billboard hit. A big hit with the music media too. Stereogum.com : “It’s delirious and catchy, and it proudly flaunts its out-of-fashion party-hard spirit. Its mere existence is inspirational … sometimes, songs are the most important thing.”

Say no more. ***1/2

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review: VOODOO RAMBLE – In The Heart Of The City

VOODOO RAMBLE - In The Heart Of The City

www.voodooramble.com [Release date 01.07.25]

Slowly but surely over the past few years our Blues Rock/Features Editor Pete Feenstra has been supplying lyrics and melodic ideas to a number of significant artists in the current blues rock scene. This is Pete’s third album collaboration with Croatian guitarist Boris Zamba and it’s a clever combination for a bandleader whose native tongue is not English. The album also follows a trend for blues rock artists to widen their palette and, frankly, to plug into more radio friendly tunes.

So, whilst blues rock driven, ‘In The Heart Of The City’ should appeal to a wider audience. Yes, there’s maybe something familiar about the chord structures and the subject matter but it’s all very well executed. The only thing missing from our copy are Pete’s lyrics!

The upbeat title track sets the scene and has some excellent backing vocals from Ana Cakovic and Ana-Maria Ocvirk. ‘Take You Home’ has an almost ‘Love The One You’re With’ vibe. Another standout ‘Midnight Ride’ features Wishbone Ash alumni Muddy Manninen on lap steel guitar. Neil Young comes to mind here.

Boris reasserts his own credentials on ‘I’m A Bluesman Baby’ (with Mick Pini on guitar) whilst another talented player Marcus Flynn contributes to ’4000 Years Old’.

‘Don’t Leave Me 4 Good’ (with added brass section) turns the clock back to a golden period for blues rock; the early 1990s when the likes of Gary Moore and Jonny Lang captured the genre with a swing and a swagger. The brass also punctuates another upbeat rocker ‘Cold Hearted Woman’.

It might be no coincidence that Pete’s lyrics appear on the more radio friendly songs and ‘In The Heart Of The City’ might push Zamba further to explore this crossover potential.  In the meantime, well done Boris, well done Pete! ****

Review by David Randall

Get Ready to ROCK! - The Best of 2025


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : THE BONESHAKERS – Live To Be This

Pete Feenstra chatted to Randy and Jenny for Get Ready to ROCK! Radio playing tracks from the new album.  First broadcast 10 August 2025.

The Boneshakers - Live To Be This

Gulf Coast Records [Release date 18.07.25]

It’s tempting to interpret The Boneshakers album ‘Live To Be This’ as a conceptual realization of a soulful style that has come back into fashion.

Acclaimed guitarist Randy Jacobs may have penned some hits for other artists and laid down his funky licks with the finest of his generation – even dabbling in jazz tinged instrumental music – but the fact he repeatedly returns to the mothership suggests Funk and Soul music is his calling.

The singers in the band may also have changed over nearly 30 years –Sweetpea Atkinson (RIP), Malford Milligan, Mindi Abair and now the explosive Jenny Langer – but the musical template remains the same, as on this, the band’s 11th release.

A groove-laden mix of funk, blues, r&b, rock and soul gives the band the kind of musical backdrop that finds them handily placed to connect with a new generation of soul fans.

2 things make this album special, firstly the way singer Jenny Langer has grown into her role as a versatile soulful singer, as she tackles a wide array of songs with complete confidence, born of plenty of road work with the band.

The second thing is the choice of songs and guests. Some of the material comes from such unlikely bedfellows as Betty Davis, Eddie Hinton, Iggy Pop, Screaming Jay Hawkins and even Aussie singer-songwriter writer Paul Kelly, with who Randy has worked previously.

Guest wise, Bobby Rush makes the biggest impact on a spirited duet with Langer on ‘Salty’, (originally Eddie Hinton’s ‘Things Got To Get A Little Bit Salty’).

The indefatigable nonagenarian opens the song with a characteristic ad-lib, before becoming her perfect foil on a ballad with a resilient message and a great hook.

Charlie Musselwhite adds expressive harp on self penned shuffle called ‘Evil No More’, while the great Coco Montoya confirms he is a master of touch, stinging tone and timing, alongside Jimmy Carpenter’s slighty mixed back grainy sax, on ’Don’t Deny Me’.

The latter is a Jerry Lynn Williams song, originally given prominence by John Mayall and invested with added impetus here.

‘Live To Be This’ is built round the perfect triumvirate of Randy Jacobs grooves, Langer’s vocal versatility and producer John Wooler’s intuitive knowledge of the material and his editing skills.

Indeed it appears it was Wooler who suggeted the up tempo opener ‘I’ll Kick A Brick (For My Man)’.

Langer provides the vocal edge, while sax player Ron Holloway and guitarist Jacobs trade fiery lines. An all too soon fade robs us of the full force of a spine tingling Holloway solo, but perhaps it was Wooler’s intention to keep us wanting more?

Jacobs is also a model of restraint, always serving the song while fleetingly adding a mix of wah-wah and piercing runs.

This is particularly so on the mid-tempo funk of ‘Aint Got Enough For Me’ on which he subtly solos in the middle of a song and then just as quickly recedes into the background.

Langer finds her own equilibrium via confident phrasing on a variety of material on which she constantly searches for an emotional connection.

She’s at her best as a high register counterpoint on the deep funky groove of Betty Davis’s 1974 ‘They Say I’m Different’, the cover of which evokes early 70’s War.

She also revels in the slant rhyme couplet of ‘Muddy Waters and T- Bone Walker’ and ‘Leadbelly & Sonny Terry’ on a song that references a roll call of blues icons.

The revamped version eschews Chuck Berry and the whole of verse 4 of the original (including Little Richard and Robert Johnson), but adds Dr. John, and a defining wah-wah guitar break from Jacobs over Lenny Castro’s percussion.

Langer is equally good on another chunky Eddie Hinton tune ‘Here I Am’, on which the band intuitively comes together with wah wah guitar and horn stabs into the fade.

You can feel Langer’s frisson on a cover of Ike & Tina Turner’s ‘Took A Trip’, which incorporates a new wah-wah intro, and possibly less horns than original.

Jacobs provides further variety by handling the vocals on the Screaming Jay Hawkins classic ‘I Am The Cool’, helmed by Don Was on bass.

The newer version ditches the original buzz guitar for a cleaner sound. Jacobs enjoys a “I like that” ad-lib moment after a fiery Mark Pender trumpet solo, suggesting he’s very much into the musical moment, while almost parodying the braggadocio lyrics.

The album also benefits from concise sequencing which finds the up tempo ‘I Need Somebody’ lodged between the funky organ-driven cover of Bobby Patterson’s ’How Do You Spell Love’, and the first of two differently mixed Dobro duets called ‘Dobro Jones’.

There’s even room for some Florida soul on ‘Tears Of The World’ built on a punchy horn arrangement and a stinging guitar line.

Ultimately ‘Live To Be This’ might be heavy on covers, but the essential connection between the story telling narratives, king size grooves and the sheer exuberance of playing serves it well.

Paul Kelly’s ‘The Cake & The Candle’, provides the perfect book-end to a retro-tinged album with a wide musical sweep that drips with soul. ****

Review by Pete Feenstra


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : JIMMY WEBB – A Life In Words And Music (7 CD Boxset)

Cherry Red [Release date : 25.07.25]

By the time Jimmy Webb got to Phoenix he had won every conceivable music award, he’d written hit after hit after hit, most notably for The Fifth Dimension, Richard Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Glen Campbell and Carly Simon, and his songs had charted in almost every country in the western world. He is the only artist ever to receive Grammy awards for music, lyrics, and orchestration.

This boxset anthologises the albums he made for Reprise Records in the seventies.

CD 1 : Words And Music (1970)
CD 2 : And So: On (1971)
CD 3 : Letters (1972)
CD 4 : Land’s End (1974)
CD 5 : El Mirage (1977)
CD 6 : Outtakes And Demos
CD 7 : Live At The Albert Hall (1972)

The possibilities in a pop song are infinite. Every successful writer and performer finds them. Jimmy Webb especially.

Yet, despite albums like Words And Music and Mirage, Webb was not to enjoy the recognition as a performer that he so richly deserved.

Linda Ronstadt : “Jimmy Webb is one of few contemporary songwriters who can write songs right into the orchestra, and his songs have 17-layer emotions and sophisticated chord charges that are absolutely dazzling,”

Award winning songwriter Sammy Cahn : “I think one of the real geniuses is Jimmy Webb. His “MacArthur Park” is a major piece of work, major. I’d almost compare it to Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” in size and scope.”

These albums are peppered with the reasons his peer group had such opinions.

Arguably, his talent as a writer burns brightest on Words and Music. And of all the songs here, ‘PF Sloan’ stands out.

Webb had met Sloan (writer of ‘Eve Of Destruction’), when starting out and played him some of the material he had written.

Sloan: “I was aware immediately that I was listening to a songwriter’s voice. It was filled with feeling and emotion. Most songwriters don’t have a voice, but this one was haunting and unusual and raw and wonderful.”

All that said, the album was not a commercial success.

Pushed by Reprise, Webb returned to the studio 6 months later. And So: On sounds a bit rushed but contains two absolute gems, ‘Laspitch’ and ‘Highpockets’, both written for a not to be stage musical, both shouty and tuneful in equal measure.

Third album, Letters, is probably the boxset’s highpoint.

No reviewer ever missed the chance to criticise Webb’s vocal range. But the man turns that on its head with an intimately emotional version of his song, ‘Galveston’ (a hit for Glen Campbell) and a cool country version of Boudleaux Bryant’s ‘Love Hurts’.

What Webb’s voice lacks in commercial appeal, it more than makes for in honesty and sincerity.

Lands End was recorded in the UK, a full bore, go for it, singer songwriter behemoth, using Elton John’s studio band to make the noise.

But Webb’s songs, deeply rooted in romance (the good type and the bad type), seemed to lose their soul in amongst the bombast.

Shame, ‘Ocean In His Eyes’ and the title track both fit Webb’s songwriting philosophy : “I like words. I like the way they clash around together and bang up against each other, especially in songs.”

The fifth CD, El Mirage, is a step up. Backed up by “The Wrecking Crew” and perceptively produced by George Martin, it included ‘The Highwaymen’, a huge hit for Country Music foursome, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson.

Webb’s sympathetic treatment of ‘The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress’, a song he wrote around the title of a Robert Heinlein short story, showed just how far he had travelled as a singer as much as a writer.

CD6 is crammed with Outtakes and Demos. One for completists.

Webb’s Live At The Albert Hall gig (on CD 7) was a sold out gig.

Listening to the artist who wrote ‘McArthur Park’, ‘Wichita Lineman’, ‘Didn’t We’, ‘Galveston’ and others, with a full blown orchestra, a west end music critic said “There is something of a return to 1930′s glamour in Webb’s work, a suggestion of the great era of lush film scoring when velvet-sounding violins appeared seemingly out of nowhere and emotion erupted from the music itself.”

It had the authentic Webb stamp: “I didn’t see why pop shouldn’t have a poetic approach, or why it shouldn’t get as complex as it wants”. ****

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : ENUFF Z’NUFF – Extra Cherries

Cleopatra [Release date : 25.07.25]

Enuff Z’Nuff have released 6 albums in the last ten years. The latest, Extra Cherries is the 20th since the 1989 debut.

The band, plagued by illness, worn down by constant touring, has seen members come and go. Only Chip Z’Nuff survives from the first edition.

But the spark is still alive. He’s added some seriously good musicians in guitarists, Jason Camino and Luis Kalil, plus Daxx (son of Rick) Nielsen on drums.

Enough to fire up some seriously good rock’n’roll.

There’s a thread running through Extra Cherries. EZN is a band that’s had its equilibrium disturbed and is working hard to regain it. Not everything works. ‘Take It Or Leave It’ and ‘You Make Me Wanna Lie’ seem to have lost that spark somewhere along the line, despite guest vocals on the latter from Robin (Cheap Trick) Zander.

But those songs are in the shadows.

Chip’s double tracked vocals give ‘Heavy Metal’ a sinewy strength. It’s very White Album. The song’s shapeshifting sound often seems like something just as interesting, but just out of reach, is going on the background.

The muscular pop metal of ‘Magnificent’ (Steve Stevens guests), underlined by a sawing riff, and some razoring axe soloing, keeps the energy levels high.

It twins up with ‘Star, Star’ (Gunnar Nelson guests), an old fashioned, Mott The Hoople slice of rock’n’roll, given a thumping percussive heartbeat.

Unsurprisingly, the standouts frontload the album.

There are the expected Beatles’ references and cues slippin’ and slidin’ through the music, as usual. Chip’s ragged baritone sounds more like Lennon with every album. The dark, moody, operatic rock of ‘No Cold Feeling’ is no exception.

Steve (Danger Danger) Brown plays a classy piano accompaniment to the achingly sentimental ‘Heartbeat’, the album’s lead track. It’s blessed with a tune that shimmers and sparkles in slo-mo.

The Enuff Z’Nuff story continues. ***1/2

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : CATS IN SPACE – Chapter 1 (Remastered 4 CD boxset)

Cherry Red [Release date 25.07.25]

Now out of print, CIS’s first 4 sold out album releases have been dusted down and polished up by Cherry Red Records’ Tech experts.

Chapter 1 is a 4CD clamshell, containing :

CD1 : Too Many Gods (2015)
CD2 : Scarecrow (2017)
CD3 : Cats Alive (2018)
CD4 : Daytrip To Narnia (2019)

Arguably, Day Trip To Narnia carried with it an almost impossible weight of expectation, the kind of which Cats In Space was less burdened with when Too Many Gods premiered in 2015. That debut’s eventual success led to the even better Scarecrow (2017), cementing the band’s place as one of the UK’s newest Great White Hopes. Inevitably, a live album pot boiler, Cats Alive was released, in 2018.

GRTR’s Reviews Editor, Jason Ritchie, reviewed those first three releases.

Too Many Gods: “The music is amazing on here. I doubt you will have this much listening fun this year and if you like 70′s music from ELO, Pilot, City Boy and Supertramp you’ll be in seventh heaven. This is a fantastic album and hugely enjoyable to listen to. The 70′s power pop/rock revival starts here!”

He singled out : “The album’s epic piece ‘The Greatest Story Never Told’ has Mike Moran, famed for his work with Freddie Mercury, arranging the orchestra on this one. Mick Wilson, vocalist from 10cc also guests. It reminds me of those 1970′s epics that John Miles would do, great listening.”

Scarecrow : “Cats In Space’s debut album ‘Too Many Gods’ was released in 2015 and rightly won the band many rave reviews.

They carry on where they left off on their debut with songs bursting full of melodies, harmony vocals, Andy Stewart’s pomp-tastic keys and some seriously groovy guitar solos courtesy of Greg Hart and Dean Howard.”

Jason shines the spotlight on the album’s standout:

“Like the debut there is a seven minute epic, this time it is the title track and the Cats do prog! Cats In Space have succeeded in taking their love of 70′s music and adding a modern shine to it all, purrrfect.”

Cats Alive: “Cats In Space continue on their upward trajectory with this live album, here to keep their fans satisfied until a new album and more live shows (they would be a perfect support for Jeff Lynne’s ELO). The gig clearly shows the bands love of 70’s music be it rock, pop or even a little soul.”

Reviewer Brian McGowan had the good fortune to get the reviewing gig for :

Daytrip To Narnia : “This time, mainman Greg Hart has written a bunch of more polished and expensive sounding songs, again in collaboration with 10cc’s Mick Wilson. His acerbic observations on life are matched to powerful poprock productions, filled to overflowing with memorable hooks and big, shiny arrangements.”

He focuses on : the album’s “27 minute centrepiece, The Story Of Johnny Rocket. In old money, the album’s Side 2.”

Saying : “Fittingly, it closes with ‘Destination Unknown’, a very human and heartfelt outburst of optimism that sweeps away what came before, finding comfort in the thought that, well . . . it’s not over till it’s over.”

The three studio albums each carry two bonus tracks.

Remastering : The label’s remastering job has gifted the music the clarity and punch it deserves, tweaking the dynamics without adjusting the loudness too much. Nice one. ****1/2

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Gig review: STEVIE WONDER – British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

STEVIE WONDER- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

(Photo: Isha Shah)

Legend of soul, songwriter of countless hits, but why you may ask is Stevie Wonder being reviewed in a website dedicated to rock music?  Well, many of the top singers in our world, from Glenn Hughes to Steve Overland, cite him as an inspiration. And, alongside other pioneers like Parliament and Sly and the Family Stone, during that golden sequence of albums in the early to mid seventies he created the whole new genre of funk. Without him, we would never have had the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Faith No More, Dan Reed Network and a host of other favourites.

It was clear we would be in for a long evening when at 7:45, and thankfully with the heat earlier in the day abating, Stevie Wonder came on stage arm in arm with two of his children, dreadlocks held in place by a cap and wearing a white Nehru jacket embroidered with the faces of Marvin Gaye and John Lennon.

STEVIE WONDER- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

(Photo: Bethan Miller)

In a show very different from what I am used to, he opened with a speech of about eight minutes, expounding on his views on life and explaining the theme of the ‘Love Light and Song’ tour. Finally taking to his bank of keyboards, he opened on a similar lyrical theme, not just with his own ‘Love’s In Need of Love Today’ but his interpretation of ‘Imagine’, complete with harmonica solo.

‘As If You Read My Mind’ may have been one of his lesser known songs but showed off that funky sound with a four man horn section prominent, before the first couple of hits in ‘Master Blaster (Jammin)’ with that great dirty bass line, and ‘Higher Ground’ (such an influence on those aforementioned bands). It was already obvious from my station about half way back that the whole of Hyde Park was in the mood for a dance.

STEVIE WONDER- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

(Photo: Bethan Miller)

He also has a very playful sense of humour I didn’t expect, notably often drifting into an impression of a London accent, and getting the crowd to sing the old standard ‘You Are My Sunshine’ before it segued into ‘You Are The Sunshine Of My Life’ (a song I always associate, talking of impersonations, with Mike ‘and this is me’ Yarwood). He paid tribute to Sly Stone and invited on Corinne Bailey Rae (who was the only name I had recognised on an undercard that focused on contemporary artists) to duet on ‘Everybody Is A Star’.

There was a fabulous atmosphere as the stage was lit pink and purple with love hearts during ‘Signed Sealed Delivered I’m Yours’ where he orchestrated a male versus female singing contest and the singalongs continued during  ‘Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing’ and the ‘la-la-la’s of ‘My Cherie Amour’.  The 75 year old’s voice was in stunning shape and ballads such as ‘Lately’ and ‘Overjoyed’ were a perfect showcase. I found myself watching closely on the big screen and admiring his control techniques.

STEVIE WONDER- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

However to give him a rest other band members stepped forward for solo slots, beginning with ‘Stranger On The Shore Of Love’ with KJ McNeill sounding not unlike his band leader, and two of the female backing singers doing a cover each.  After ‘Contusion’, a jazz fusion instrumental and probably in the closest territory to rock all evening, and ‘If You Really Love Me’ where Zuri Harris came to the piano to duet, there were more ballads in ‘You And I’ and daughter Aisha singing ‘Save Your Love For Me’.

Naturally energy levels had sagged in the crowd but fortunately the hits returned just in time.  On ‘I Just Called To Say I Love You’ he rather teased the audience with the words, maybe reflecting the fact that this was his most successful yet critically reviled song (or as we now call it a guilty pleasure). Even better was to follow with a series of glorious, yet very diverse, songs, with the brassy ‘Living For The City’ and ‘Sir Duke’, the crowd almost scat singing along to the latter, the funky ‘I Wish’ and the sentimental ‘Isn’t She Lovely’.

STEVIE WONDER- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

That was of course famously written about Aisha and keeping it in the family, son Mandla came on to sing another ballad ‘I Can Only Be Me’, showing a very accomplished stage presence. By now I was mentally crossing off the few big hits we hadn’t yet heard, and after he brought on his 13 year old daughter (but he cheekily also dedicated the song to anyone who has a birthday in the next 12 months) ‘Happy Birthday’ sparked another mass singalong.

Then with the synthesiser intro that was so groundbreaking at the time, the song that launched that whole funk rock scene in ‘Superstition’ featured some superlative extended musicianship. That would have been a good ending but it segued medley style into ‘As’ and ‘Another Star’ – before he was led off in a love train now numbering several family members.

STEVIE WONDER- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

It completed what was at times a quirky performance, but for over 2 ½ hours this legend had us all dancing to his remarkable catalogue and forgetting our and the world’s cares. The mission of celebrating love light and song had certainly been accomplished.

Review by Andy Nathan
Photos by Bethan Miller and Isha Shah (as credited)
Other Photos by Andy Nathan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Gig review: NEIL YOUNG AND THE CHROME HEARTS – British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

NEIL YOUNG AND THE CHROME HEARTS- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

With the exception of Bob Dylan, there aren’t many rock stars who can divide opinion quite as much as Neil Young. For every person (including some on this website) that cannot abide him, there are others who hang on the mercurial Canadian’s every note and word. He remains a big enough draw to headline Glastonbury, as well as this less controversial and publicised date as part of the British Summer Time festival.

Two of my three previous sightings of him have also been here – combined with the fact that chances to see the 79 year old might be running out, an added attraction was to cross off two other legendary figures that I had never seen perform live in another 79 year old in Van Morrison and Yusuf/Cat Stevens, a mere youngster at 76. Both were given generous hour-long sets.

I joked beforehand to a workmate I was attending the ‘boomer event of the year’ yet not only was Hyde Park pretty full, but with a wide variety of ages, not only those who remember the counterculture these gentlemen emerged from. However, a challenge for all concerned was how to cope with 90 degree plus temperatures in an open area with little shade.

VAN MORRISON - British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

Van Morrison’s answer was a dapper one, sporting a Panama hat with a blue ribbon to match his paisley shirt and cravat. Pity though the poor members of his 12-piece band, also many of an age, sweltering in black outfits, though a gazebo in the centre of the stage provided some protection.

The Northern Irishman opened with one of his best loved songs in ‘Into the Mystic’, then adding some sax to the impressive ‘Cutting Corners’. That distinctive voice sounded surprisingly fresh, though as usual other than the odd instruction to his band there was no communication with the audience.

The set moved into some jazzier numbers in medley format with the horn section, particularly the trumpet player, prominent, while ‘Carrying the Torch’ was one of a couple of duets with one of a pair of female backing vocalists. A couple of blues songs including ‘Ain’t Gonna Moan No More’ featured multiple instrumental slots, with the jazzy feel never far away, not least on the big band swing of ‘The New Symphony Sid’.

VAN MORRISON - British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

However by this stage I was yearning for something more familiar and got it with ‘Whenever God Shines His Light’ (bizarrely his highest charting UK single), including some tidy slide guitar playing and the same backing singer playing the Cliff Richard part, and ‘Wild Night’.

‘Summertime in England’ developed in very entertaining call and response fashion as the sax player echoed his vocals, but at that point the set threatened to end in anticlimax as with his name being called Van walked from the stage as the band played on. Fortunately, he soon returned from the wings, playing harmonica, and a lively ‘Gloria’ was of course made for audience participation- though once again he left the stage before the end and there was a vocal coda from the other backing singer. A singular man to the end, yet I enjoyed his performance much more than expected.

CAT STEVENS - British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

The second legendary figure on was Cat Stevens/Yusuf, surely one of BST’s most local performers ever, having been born in nearby Marylebone. I’m a convert to his beautiful songwriting even if it is far from my usual musical ballpark and it was watching his show stealing legends slot at Glastonbury a couple of years ago on TV that made me think that I ought to see him before it was too late, especially as he does not tour too often.

Slightly bizarrely he came out on stage and immediately retreated while an animated ‘Tea for the Tillerman’ video played, but after that false start opened with a couple of old folk rock favourites in ‘The Wind’ and ‘Sitting’. Unlike the acts either side of him he was a compulsive communicator with the crowd, though there was an irony that his first comment was to say ‘Midday (Avoid City After Dark’) was written in the style of Van Morrison! It also brought back personal memories, as it was that Alan Yentob documentary on the BBC when he was first resuming his musical career with the ‘An Other Cup’ album that first spurred my interest in him.

CAT STEVENS - British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

However when he modestly introduced an old song it was time to listen intently to ‘First Cut Is the Deepest’ and marvel that we were seeing a song that has been extensively covered and will continue to be played centuries from now, delivered by the actual man who wrote it while still in his teens. There was another crowd singalong to ‘Moonshadow’, yet his able band also shone on some more musically intricate material, notably on ‘On the Road to Find Out’, the ‘Freedom Calling’ part of ‘Foreigner Suite’ and even the blues of  ‘Big Boss Man’.

Child welfare and other humanitarian issues have long been dear to him, so a series of songs including ‘Where Do the Children Play’ and ‘The Little Ones’ were interspersed with references ranging from the Srebrenica massacre in Bosnia 30 years ago to, naturally, the current situation in Gaza. His views were strongly expressed yet in gentle and measured tones.

CAT STEVENS - British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

The last part of the set was the best. The poignant lyrics and melodies of ‘Father and Son’ get me every time (none more so when used in the Ted Lasso finale, but I digress). Then helped by lyrics being flashed on the screen, ‘If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out’ and ‘Wild World’ became big joyous communal singalongs.

He seemed a little breathless in the heat while speaking but used up all the time and more, running over as he finished with ‘Peace Train’. While perhaps not as hit packed a set as that one at Glastonbury, it was the perfect accompaniment to a warm summer’s early evening and at that stage I was putting short odds against him stealing the show.

NEIL YOUNG AND THE CHROME HEARTS- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

The omens indeed were not good when Neil Young and his relatively new Chrome Hearts band came on in low key fashion to a plain backdrop with no stage show. Sporting a baggy t-shirt and grey hair poking out of a railroad engineer’s cap, his face betrayed no hint of a smile, even less so when a sound glitch meant his first couple of lines were inaudible.

The band went straight into a trio of workouts all nine minutes or so in length- starting with a slow burning but splenetic ‘Ambulance Blues’. He said very little during the set and none of it political, but I couldn’t help thinking this half century old song was being dusted off for a purpose when I heard the ‘I never knew a man could tell so many lies, he has a different story for every set of eyes‘ line.

The better known ‘Cowgirl In The Sand’ saw him benefit from good harmony vocal support and was the first demonstration of that unique and thrillingly ragged guitar style that led him to be dubbed the Godfather of Grunge. And while his newest album remained oddly ignored, ‘Be The Rain’ was returned to the set as a timely lyrical reminder of his long-time environmental concerns.

NEIL YOUNG AND THE CHROME HEARTS- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

A couple of more concise numbers in ‘When You Dance I Can Really Love’, and ‘Cinnamon Girl’, which got by far the biggest cheers to date, illustrated quite how well he was working with the Chrome Hearts. Regularly he would swing over to jam in close proximity to the young rhythm trio, the line-up completed by the wizened figure of keyboardist Spooner Oldham, a man who goes back even further than the trio of stars.

‘F***ing Up’ was proof that for this Jekyll and Hyde character the noisier and angrier part of his repertoire was at this stage dominant. Indeed ‘Sun Green’ served its purpose as another political rant, to a Canned Heat-like musical backing (with second guitarist Micah Nelson switching to keys). I also got the impression that, while he may look like the neighbour telling the kids to get off his lawn, he was actually really enjoying himself letting sentiments like ‘hey Mr Clean, you’re dirty now’ go and was sounding in strong voice.

NEIL YOUNG AND THE CHROME HEARTS- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

But after more feedback strewn soloing in ‘Southern Man’, belatedly we got Mr Hyde the acoustic troubadour with touching versions of ‘The Needle And The Damage Done’ and ‘Harvest Moon’, perfectly placed to match the atmosphere as the sun gradually went down, as well as  ‘Looking Forward’, which had me thinking I should dust down the Crosby Stills Nash and Young album of the same name, played once and now on the shelf. He then turned to piano for ‘After The Gold Rush’, another to get a warm reception especially when he updated it to sing ‘mother nature on the run in the 21st Century’.

Back in full on electric mode, ‘Love To Burn’ ended up being a bit repetitive but then, as Micah pointed his guitar skywards and a giant winged wooden idol came down from the stage, ‘Hey Hey My My’ was as thrilling a slab of noise as it has ever been and again the old curmudgeon seemed to be enjoying himself too. In another change of style he took to what looked like a church organ for another CSNY song in ‘Name Of Love’ and ended the main set with a beguiling ‘Old Man’, Micah adding lap steel guitar.

I feared there may only be time for one encore song, and the band got back into that rough and ragged groove for ‘Throw Your Hatred Down’, another dug out of obscurity with a timely message, if again a bit monotonous.

Fortunately, as he struck those unmistakable chords, there was still time for ‘Rockin’ in the Free World’, a song much covered but never bettered. It was the perfect crowd pleasing closer, though he dragged it out with a repeated chant of ‘we need a man of the people to keep hope alive’, at least three false endings, and at 1030 on the dot the plug was unceremoniously pulled as the band were still finishing off.

NEIL YOUNG AND THE CHROME HEARTS- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

Of my four Neil Young shows, this was easily the most satisfying. I never expected him to be so vibrant and even appearing to have fun. Best of all, the often contrary artist picked a perfect setlist that both devotees and casual fans could enjoy. It ended a memorable evening seeing three genuine legends, all of whom have marched to the sound of their own drum and forged a unique style for seven decades. We may not see their like again.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

Get Ready to ROCK! - The Best of 2025


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review: KILL THE ROBOT – S/t

KILL THE ROBOT

Dark Lab Recordings [Release date 18.07.25]

New band Kill the Robot, although main man Stephen Gibb has an impressive band CV including spells in Saigon Kick, Crowbar, Black Label Society and more. Oh, and his dad is Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees (and he guests on the album too on ‘See The World’).

Stephen Gibb (guitars, vocals) is joined by Gil Bitton (vocals), Gordon Myers (live bass) & Kenny Cordova (album bass) and J.P. Espiritusanto (drums). The album is produced by multi-Grammy-award winning Warren Riker (Down, The Fugees, Lauryn Hill, Santana).

‘Western Shores’ was the album’s lead single, a heartfelt tribute to Stephen’s friend Taylor Hawkins. No real surprise that the song is reminiscent of Taylor Hawkins solo work. One of the album’s more instant tunes and indeed one of this year’s better songs. Same applies to ‘See the World’, a wonderfully melodic song reminiscent of Sound of Contact (who featured Simon Collins, son of Phil Collins).

‘No13lse’ is a heavy beast of song, full of dark riffs and vocals, whilst ‘Agave’ has a brilliant Gary Numan electronic vibe coupled with the guitars force of say Foo Fighters. ‘Right Now’ is a brilliant mix of brooding electronica mixed with razor sharp vocals and guitars.

Dreamy pop rock down the Muse boulevard awaits on ‘Drug’, a single in the waiting methinks! The album’s closer ‘Atomic Haze’ sounds like a long lost Pink Floyd tune and ensures the album ends on a high note. Listen to this one on your headphones for the full effect.

Kill the Robot, remember the name as this band have plenty of musical ideas and this album is a strong start on their musical journey. Stick at it as like many good albums it takes a few spins to fully get into but it is well worth the effort. ****

Review by Jason Ritchie


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review: ALICE COOPER – The Revenge Of Alice Cooper

ALICE COOPER – The Revenge Of Alice Cooper

EarMUSIC  [release date 25.07.25]

In much the same vein as Jake and Elwood Blues, Alice has decided to get the band back together, not sure he is on a mission from God though on this occasion!

This album has brought together Alice with his original band consisting of Micheal Bruce, Dennis Dunaway, Neal Smith, it also includes a posthumous appearance from Glen Buxton. Alice has also drafted in producer Bob Ezrin on mixing desk duties just to add to the authentic sound. So, 50 years on, have the band recreated the old magic that brought us the likes of ‘School’s Out’ and ‘Billion Dollar Babies’?

Opener ‘Black Mamba’ starts with a sinister vocal piece from Alice reminiscent of the start of ‘Black Widow’. The melody then kicks in and the track harks back to the early 1970’s and could be a lost track from the ‘School’s Out’ sessions, a good start. The track also contains a guest appearance from former Doors guitarist Robbie Krieger. ‘Wild Ones’ follows and was the other pre-album release track to emerge along with ‘Black Mamba’. This song is more up to date with great chorus and an excellent vocal from Alice.

We then get a chance to rock out on ‘Up All Night’ before we enter the twisted mind of Mr Cooper with ‘Kill The Flies’ complete with an unhinged, menacing vocal. Next up we have a murderous dalliance in ‘One Night Stand’, again with another narrative from the dark recesses of Alice’s mind.

That is followed by an album highlight in ‘Blood On The Sun’. This is an epic track that twists and turns and contains some great guitar work from Michael Bruce along with Gysai Heus and Rick Tedesco who both helped out on the lead guitar front. We have a bit of social observation next with the snappily titled ‘Crap That Gets In The Way Of Your Dreams’, hey that’s life man!

Alice then has a dig at the cult of celebrity with ‘Famous Face’ where everyone will get their allotted 15 minutes of fame before disappearing without a trace. This targets individuals that are all show with zero talent, which in a world of online influencers and reality TV stars has become all too prevalent. A good follow on track is ‘Money Screams’ where the mighty Dollar is king and can dominate your life if you chose to worship at its door.

There is another Blues Brothers-esque moment with the track ‘What A Syd’ which is reminiscent of a Cab Calloway classic especially in the chorus. ‘Inter Galactic Vagabond Blues’ then recounts a tale of alien romance with a six armed, three eyed celestial body complete with some tasty harmonica playing to soundtrack the galactic fun.

The band then lay down some straightforward rocking blues with ‘What Happened To You’ which features some great honky tonk piano playing and more excellent guitar work. Harmonica and slide guitar are the order of the day next on ‘I Ain’t Done Wrong’, again with some excellent twin lead guitar work in the mid-section. The pace then slows for ‘See You On The Other Side’ which is as close as we get to the ballad of the piece and is a nod to fallen comrades.

‘See You On The Other Side’ rounds out the album, however, there are a couple of bonus tracks on the special edition version, namely ‘Return Of The Spiders’ which is a raw, bluesy number with Alice spitting out the vocal with venom and ‘Titanic Overunderture’ which is a strange little soundbite from the perspective of the Titanic, post iceberg strike, holed and slowly sinking beneath the waves in the North Atlantic. I did say it was a strange one…

This album goes to show that age is no barrier to good music and the band have put together a polished set of songs that hark back to the early 70’s, but are still essential listening in the present day. Sounds to me like revenge is sweet!  ****

Review by Dave Wilson


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : HONEYMOON SUITE – Wake Me When The Sun Goes Down

Frontiers Music [Release date : 25.07.25]

Words to live your life by.

As one who frequently mainlines on the band’s uncut 2006 Anthology, Feel It Again, a new Honeymoon Suite album is cause for celebration.

Previous album, Alive was the band’s first since 2008’s Clifton Hill. It was released on this side of the COVID 19 Pandemic, a suffocating force that created a clear dividing line between those who could flourish in restrictive circumstances and those who could not.

Wake Me Up… further emphasises the band’s resilience. Influential producer Mike (Steven Tyler/ Desmond Child/ Mutt Lange) Krompass again brings a more contemporary sound to the band’s music. It’s a bit of creative courage. They’re not selling out, they’re adapting. Otherwise you don’t survive.

The masterful melodic hard rock flex of ‘I Fly’ brings the past and the present together with poise and panache. Johnny Dee’s distinctive voice is unmistakeable, as is Derry Grehan’s guitarwork. It bites and stings, and somehow manages to be eloquent with it.

On ‘Way Of The World’ Dee’s intense, throwaway vocal emotes over an fast moving rhythmic shuffle, as he punches every word home with vigour, backed up by Grehan’s guitar crunch. Like the gritty, grainy ‘Stay This Time’, and the clanging ‘Crazy Life’, melodic rock with a hard kick, there’s an ever present urgency, sparking lightning, the hallmark of all quality melodic rock.

But, reassuringly, echoes of the 80s, highly audible, are still bouncing around these grooves. ‘Keep Our Love Alive’, old fashioned musically and lyrically, pairs nicely with the Beatlish ‘Ever Leave You Lonely’.

And the inevitable ballads evoke familiar sentiments, ‘Live On’ a tale of love lost, and ‘Way Too Fast’ a tale of love unwanted, soften the hard rock and the clamour, coining a great line of lyrics… “ she left without an answer, just like a silent dancer”. ***1/2

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review: FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH – 20 Years Of Five Finger Death Punch – Best Of Volume 1

Better Noise Records [Release date 18.07.25]

Over the past 20 years Five Finger Death Punch have become a band that can headline arenas and festivals worldwide, but world domination hasn’t come without it’s share of trials and tribulations.

No matter what internal and personal issues have dogged the band, the constant has been the quality of the music the guys have produced. This latest retrospective contains 17 of their biggest hitters, including a few live tracks capturing the band at their rocking best.

‘Under And Over It’ kicks things off, literally! This track has always been an absolute monster that grabs the listener by the scruff of the neck and it sets the FFDP stall out nicely. ‘Wash It All Away’ then continues the pace before ‘Battle Born’ slows things down with a heartfelt tribute to American veterans who have always had a strong affinity with the band over the years.

All the tracks on the album have been re-recorded for this release, after the bands previous record company sold off their back catalogue without their consent, and sound all the better for the polish. One song that has taken on a new life is ‘I Refuse’ which has been re-recorded with Maria Binks of In This Moment sharing vocals with Ivan Moody. The result works well and enhances an already great song.

As well as the bands original songs they have also had great success with some choice cover versions and three are featured here. The bands cover of ‘Bad Company’ was a big part of their rise through the rock ranks as it brought a whole new audience who would have otherwise overlooked the band as another noisy metal band.

‘House Of The Rising Sun’ was another inspired song choice for the band with a subtle reworking of the lyrics to include reference to their home town of Las Vegas, or Sin City as it is here. The last cover is The Offspring track ‘Gone Away’ which is again has a gentle reworking with a another great vocal from Ivan.

Other songs of note are ‘Lift Me Up’, which was my introduction to the band, and ‘Remember Everything’ which again has an excellent vocal performance from Mr Moody. The album is rounded out with three live tracks, ‘Trouble’, ‘Welcome To The Circus’ and ‘The Bleeding’, which serve as a great reminder of how good the band are in a live setting .

This is a great package that will appeal to both established fans, especially with the remixed versions, and will serve as an excellent dive into the FFDP back catalogue for new listeners.

This is a celebration of a band who have been through a lot, but have come out stronger and have grown with each challenge. ‘Battle Born’ indeed!  ****

Review by Dave Wilson


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : SEALS & CROFTS – Gold and Rainbows – The Warner Bros Years 1969-78 (5-CD Boxset)

Cherry Red [Release date : 18.07.25]

Harmony rock and pop duo Seals and Croft’s biggest hit single came early on in their career.

1972’s ‘Summer Breeze’ (later covered by the Isley Brothers) was the title track from the duo’s fourth album, reaching no.6 on the Billboard chart.

Their biggest perhaps, but they had many more…

This anthology:

CD1 : Seals & Crofts (1969) : Down Home (1970)
CD2 : Years Of Sunday (1971) : Summer Breeze (1972)
CD3 : Diamond Girl (1973) : Unborn Child (1974)
CD4 : I’ll Play For You (1975) : Get Closer (1976)
CD5 : Take It Easy (1978)

What happened in 1977? Maybe we’ll never know… or maybe the answer is in the title of their 1978 album.

In any event, the duo’s nine albums in ten years release schedule was the definition of prolific.

And, more importantly, the quality of the music was the definition of consistency.

All nine of the albums in this anthology were North American Billboard Chart entries. Some US Charts, others Canadian charts, many of them both.

And if any band’s music reflected the evolution of yacht rock to soft rock in the seventies, it was the mellow, lyrically evocative material being created by Seals and Crofts.

It’s evident on every album. Radio loves Soft Rock, and so the duo scored massive hit singles with ‘Diamond Girl’, ‘Get Closer’, as well as ‘Summer Breeze’, and of course, ‘We May Never Pass This Way Again’, a song with a deeper meaning than most songs that surrounded it in the charts. It resonated strongly with Nat King Cole’s ‘For All We Know’, a hit song more than a decade earlier.

These great songs and others are liberally sprinkled across the nine albums. The sweet and sour ‘Baby Blue’ from Get Closer plays with our emotions, while ‘I Keep Changing Faces’, with similar sentiments, is as Yacht Rock as you can get without looking out the sick bags.

Their 1974 album, Unborn Child, caused considerable controversy. Written from the perspective of an aborted foetus, it reaffirmed their belief in and adherence to the Baha’i faith, something they had been open about, and had often spoken of from the stage.

It hurt sales, temporarily, but they rallied quickly with their I’ll Play For You and Get Closer albums in ‘75 and ‘76 respectively. Both went Gold. Sandwiched between, their Greatest Hits release went double Platinum.

(Established songwriters and performers know how to get the best out of the studio environment. To the extent that David Paich, David Hungate, Jeff Porcaro and Jim Gordon were key members of S&C’s studio band).

Two more albums and the duo signed off.

Croft ultimately relocated to a ranch in the Texas Hill Country. Seals moved to Costa Rica and lived on a coffee farm for a while, eventually settling in Nashville, where he died following a stroke in 2022, aged 79. RIP. *****

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Feature: Albums that time forgot…PIERRE MOERLEN’S GONG – Time Is The Key (1979)

PIERRE MOERLEN'S GONG - Time Is The Key (1979)

Arista SPARTY 1105 (1979)

When most people think of Gong they think of “Flying Teapot”, a quirky, idiosyncratic approach by long-time leader Daevid Allen and maybe Steve Hillage’s passage to wider attention.

What sometimes gets overlooked are the later years and the ascendancy of percussionist and drummer Pierre Moerlen. He lent his name to the band from 1978 onwards, having effectively taken over the reins in 1976 with the album ‘Shamal’, and steered them in a more jazz/funk fusion direction. Many would say it was nothing like the earlier incarnation, but potentially more commercially acceptable.

‘Time Is The Key’ (1979) tapped into the zeitgeist of the mid-late seventies when jazz rock/fusion was espoused by bands like Isotope (Gary Boyle) and even Jeff Beck (‘Blow By Blow’). Moerlen also references crossover bands such as Weather Report and Herbie Hancock whilst Neil Ardley and Brand X (with whom Moerlen later toured) would have also been in the frame.

At various times the album sounds like Mike Oldfield (who recruited Moerlen for his live tours and several albums) and Camel/Peter Bardens solo, so there are still elements of progressive rock.

Moerlen was joined by the Americans Bon Lozaga and bassist Hansford Rowe whilst Allan Holdsworth lends his talents to three tracks.

‘Time Is The Key’ is sandwiched by a sort of before and after. ‘Downwind’ (1979) featured some vocals and co-producer Mike Oldfield on the 12 minute title track with Steve Winwood on keyboards.

Following the release of the next album ‘Leave It Open’ in 1981 the band were dropped by Arista and Moerlen then joined French prog rockers Magma before following a career that included further spells with Oldfield and in a revived Gong. He died unexpectedly in 2005. Rowe and Lozaga went on to form Gongzilla in 1994.

‘Downwind’ and ‘Time Is The Key’ were remastered by Esoteric in 2010, the latter sadly without a liner note, together with ‘Leave It Open’ and the 1980 live album.  There are no bonus tracks.

Feature by David Randall

Album review (Full Circle Live, 1988)


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : V/A – American Power Pop 1980-89 (3-CD Boxset)

Cherry Red [Release date : 18.07.25]

Almost 80 tracks over 3 CDs…the third and final volume of Eighties’ American Power Pop will be released on the Cherry Red label later this month.

Once again it’s a treasure trove of material. Obscure tracks/bands – the kind loved by aficionados – get another moment in the sun, while the Marquee names … Cheap Trick, Utopia, Eric Carmen, Rick Springfield, The Go-Gos, The Rubinoos, Marshall Crenshaw, The Bangles, The Ramones, Katrina and the Waves, The Smithereens and Red Kross all jostle for position.

Written by Todd Rundgren and the equally talented Kasim Sulton, Utopia’s ‘I Just Want To Touch You’, taken from their 1980 album, Deface The Music, was the perfect Beatles’ pastiche. It couldn’t have been further away from the ground breaking Progressive Rock of the the band’s first 3 albums. It was recorded for the soundtrack of the movie “Roadie”, but was rejected for fear of a plagiarism suit from the Fab Four’s legal team.

‘It Hurts Too Much’ was one of the 8 songs written by Eric Carmen for his 1980 album Tonight You’re Mine (his fourth). No surprise that it charted all over the world. Carmen had tuned into his power pop muse, then fortified this further by bringing in skilled musicians like Steve Lukather, Carmen Appice and Paulinho DeCosta.

The seven million selling all girl Go-Gos had started life as a punk band in 1978. When Charlotte Caffey joined a year later, the transition to pop was unstoppable. With Jane Weidlin, she wrote ‘How Much More’ in 1980.  On release, the music literati loved it. Classic Rock History listed it as one of the band’s Top Ten career songs. Liveabout’s Steve Peakes heralded it as “the band’s finest hit single that never was”. Journalist Geoffery Himes regarded the song as a classic comparable to The Ronettes’ ‘Be My Baby’ and The Angels’ ‘My Boyfriend’s Back.’

(Caffey and Wiedlin wrote Keith Urban’s year 2000 no.1 hit, ‘But For The Grace Of God’).

Probably one of the best known songs in this compilation is Rick Springfield’s 1981 worldwide hit, ‘Jessie’s Girl’. He’s on tour in the USA this month, still going strong. Not bad for a septuagenarian.

There are many more worthy of mention of course. Many of whom flew in below the radar of public perception.

But they are all someone’s favourite. Whether you are a fan of The Knack or The Moondogs. The Flaming Groovies or The Wigs, it doesn’t really matter. Yes, there are a lot of near misses chart wise, but there isn’t a dud slice of Power Pop here. Enjoy. ****

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Gig review: BRAVE RIVAL – Dembe Theatre, Tring 4th July 2025

BRAVE RIVAL - Dembe Theatre, Tring 4th July 2025

It often pays to respect and ‘support’ the support band and those that favour the bar tonight miss an excellent opening slot from the Lightning Threads. Formed back in 2019 the Sheffield based trio consist of Tom Jane (Guitar/Vocals) Sam Burgum (Bass/Vocals) and Hugh Butler (Drums/Keys).

Labelling their style as simply ‘Blues Rock’ does them a bit of an injustice as there’s a soulful swagger to their set, songs like ‘Brown Liquor Black Coffee’ have that Cinelli Brothers swing that you just have to move to!

Technical gremlins during the first couple of numbers were brushed aside with a professional ‘let’s get on with it’ attitude and a wry smile and, by the time they reach the climax of their 45 minute slot they are cooking. As they close with their own take on ‘Born Under A Bad Sign’, Lightning Threads left me looking for future tour dates as I will definitely be catching them again.

Lightning Threads - Dembe Theatre, Tring 4th July 2025

Back in February 2025 I witnessed one of the early gigs of the ‘new’, four-piece Brave Rival. That night, if the pre-show nerves felt by some of the faithful in the audience filtered through to the band, it barely showed. Although it was clear that, as a collective, they were still finding their feet, the performance was as tight as it always was and vocalist, Lindsey Bonnick shone. Tonight, some five months down that new road, we have a chance to check on progress.

BRAVE RIVAL - Dembe Theatre, Tring 4th July 2025

From the off it’s abundantly clear that Brave Rival mean business, walking on stage to the strains of AC/DC before launching into the regular opening pair of ‘Heart Attack’ and ‘Bad Choices’. No sound gremlins here, it’s a loud and proud greeting to us all.

Hints of a (slightly) new focus next, with the first of three new tracks, the impressive, ‘Poison’. It’s most definitely more rock than blues, and let’s face it have Brave Rival ever, really, been a Blues band?

As if to emphasise that point one of the standout tracks from last year’s ‘Fight Or Flight’ album, ‘Stars Upon My Scars’ follows, giving the birthday boy, Ed Clarke the opportunity to stretch his fingers across the fretboard for the first time this evening. As a lead/rhythm guitarist, everything is right about Clarke, his tone, his control and, the unerring ability to know when it’s time to let rip!

BRAVE RIVAL - Dembe Theatre, Tring 4th July 2025

Second new track of the night, ‘Wild Child’, is next up, with more of a traditional Brave Rival feel to it and then one of the highlights of the night, a storming cover of the Catfish rocker, ‘Up In Smoke’. Soon to appear on a tribute album to the late, great Matt Long the band and, in particular, Lindsey Bonnick absolutely nail this. Lindsey’s vocals have been sensational all night and there is no doubt she is now utterly at home in the role of sole lead singer, fronting this powerhouse of a band.

It’s back to a couple of familiar tracks now, ‘Stand Up’ and the dynamic ‘Run And Hide’, an opportune time to mention the bedrock engine room of Donna Peters on drums and Billy Dedman on bass.

I was going to say they quietly go about their business but, Donna in particular is far from quiet! One of the best drummers out there, a seemingly permanent smile on her face, she absolutely drives the music on, perfectly in synch with Billy’s low-end punch, that solid foundation that every great band needs.

BRAVE RIVAL - Dembe Theatre, Tring 4th July 2025

Brave Rival love to throw in a curve ball cover and they do it again now with a mesmerising version of ‘Alone’, best known as a hit for Heart in the 80s, with Donna on acoustic guitar and Lindsey wringing every ounce of emotion out of this great song.

We’re on the homeward stretch now, with Clarke’s slide guitar introducing fan favourite, ‘What’s Your Name Again?’ then ‘Seventeen’, another ‘Fight Or Flight’ rocker. ‘Control’ the last new song of the night is next up before Lightning Threads guitarist, Tom Jane joins the band for an extended jam through the Box Tops hit, ‘The Letter’.

The epic ‘Heavy’ closes the main set and, as the last note from Ed Clarke’s guitar fades away the audience demands one more song which, of course, they get in the form of ‘Fairytale’ and, with that, another excellent night of live music draws to a close and Ed can concentrate on his birthday cake!

BRAVE RIVAL - Dembe Theatre, Tring 4th July 2025

It’s impossible to summarise this gig without emphasising the way Lindsey Bonnick has confidently taken on the mantle of leading from the front. There is a steely determination in her eyes as she prowls around the stage, out into the audience and checks up on reviewers note taking!

Chatting to Lindsey after the show, she acknowledges the ‘slightly heavier’ sound the new songs have injected into the set explaining that, as a band they cannot afford to stand still and that they will continue to move forward rather than keep looking over their shoulders at what has gone before. It’s that positive attitude that will ensure that Brave Rival continue to be a force to be reckoned with for the foreseeable future.

Brave Rival are touring nationwide throughout the remainder of the year so, check the dates on their socials and have yourself a great night out.

Review by Neil Pudney
Photos by Louise Pudney

Set List: Heart Attack / Bad Choices / Poison / Stars Upon My Scars / Wild Child / Up In Smoke / Stand Up / Run And Hide / Alone / What’s Your Name Again? / Control / The Letter / Heavy / Fairytale.


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review: STYX- Circling From Above

STYX- Circling From Above

Alpha Dog 2T/UMe (Release Date 18.07.25)

While many ‘heritage’ classic rock acts on both sides of the pond have chosen to give up on writing new material and rely on their legacy catalogue, in recent years Styx have proved a commendable contrast  to contemporaries like REO Speedwagon and Foreigner.  ‘Circling From Above’ represents a third album of all new material in the last eight years, following in the footsteps of ‘The Mission’ and ‘Crash of the Crown’.

The title track is an instrumental soundscape pitched somewhere between Pink Floyd and the Beatles, leading into the excellent  ‘Build and Destroy’. It combines the vintage- very seventies-sounding keyboards from Lawrence Gowan (was that even a mellotron?) and a wah-wah guitar solo- with the contemporary- the lyric ‘lost in the sky, we turn to AI’- as well as trademark vocal harmonies.

Unfortunately what follows does not quite match up- ‘Michigan’ (a random title with no connection to the lyrics) is Tommy Shaw’s first lead vocal and a pleasant enough song with some Beatles-ish harmonies, which takes a few listens to appreciate.

‘King of Love’, which features James ‘JY’ Young’s only vocal contributions, in almost spoken style and shared with Tommy, is an odd one- moving in and out of being another with Beatles and ELO influences, and a rock’n’roll pastiche with added harmonica playing. And ‘Its Clear’ is rather spoiled by  Lawrence’s vocals being swamped in effects, ironically given the title.

The ballad ‘Forgive’ is another where the strings give a strong feel of ELO or late-period Beatles and ‘Everybody Raise a Glass’ where Lawrence channels some of the musical theatre tendencies of his predecessor Dennis De Young also has Beatles influences.

‘Blue Eyed Raven’ is an interesting proposition- a typical Tommy Shaw acoustic ballad which also reminds me of Uriah Heep’s ‘Lady in Black’, it bursts into life midway through with the best outbreak of lively gypsy fiddling since ‘The Devil Went Down to Georgia’, matching the lyrical theme.

Over recent years Will Evankovich has become an important part of the Styx picture- first as producer, more recently as a band member and on this album co-writer of nearly all the songs with Messrs Shaw and Gowan. He even sings lead on a couple, including ‘She Knows’, boasting a mid-song clarinet solo, though his decent voice is hardly distinctive.

A synth solo is the highlight of ‘Things That You Said’ which is another mellow, ELO-ish song and it is disappointing that Tommy Shaw does not sing any rockier songs on the album. Moreover there are virtually no guitar solos and anyone hoping for pomp epics like ‘Suite Madame Blue’ or ‘Castle Walls’ will be disappointed with every song clocking in at well under four minutes.

Several of the lyrics are thoughtful musings on the state of the human condition in these times including the last two songs. ‘We Lost the Wheel Again’ is a much-needed Who-style rocker, livelier, rougher and less polished than the rest of the album and with guitar and synth solos, only for the album to close with another ballad in the rather dull ‘Decide Your Fate’.

The arrangements are slick and once you come to terms with the fact it is not a hard rocking album, the songs really grow on you. Nevertheless I can’t hide the fact I was hoping for a rather less mellow offering.     *** 3/4

Review by Andy Nathan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review : DEGREED – The Leftovers

Frontiers [Release date 18.07.25]

Only a year after their last full length studio album, Public Address, Degreed now release The Leftovers, a 9 track EP.

The title is self explanatory, but there’s a negative connotation there, hinting that these tracks maybe weren’t good enough to make the cut in 2023.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Degreed seem naturally wired to make the right musical decisions. So maybe these songs, singular in their approach to modern melodic rock, just didn’t fit.

Opener, ‘If It Wasn’t For Me’, heavily influenced by American AOR, is a glorious piece of music, magnifying all the standard ingredients, big sound, depth, width, glossy, slick, and best of all, a pulse quickening chorus.

It’s easy to dwell on this track, replaying it a time or two before moving on. There’s a lot of sound for just four guys – Robin Erikkson (b/v); Matt Erikkson, drums; Mikael Blanc, keys, and Daniel Johansson, guitar.

The next two tracks have the same effect. Both slices of exciting urban rock. A driving, relentless energy runs through ‘Good Enough’ and ‘Love Your Enemy’ like an electric current, highly charged, powered up, each reaching the hooky pop heights of hit making boybands.

The poppy undertones persist as we move through the album.

The big ballad, ‘Hard To Be Human’s cultivated production and layered arrangement create the romanticised soundscape intended, neatly teeing up the bonus track, a synthwave version of ‘This Is Love’, an immersive, eighties’ sensory experience. Johnny Hates Jazz eat your heart out.

And let’s not forget ‘Wildchild’ a metallised, shouty, frantic, earthy homage to the respected Children Of Bodom guitarist, Alexi Laiho, who died in 2020, aged 41. RIP. ***1/2

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Single review: DAVID SINCLAIR 4 – (I Got) One Pair Of Hands

DS4 - I Got One Pair Of Hands

Critical Discs Cherry Red [Release date: 26.06.25]

One of the often overlooked benefits of the avalanche in streaming services and the resultant constant release schedule, has been the return to releasing what were once called singles.

And while vinyl has generally made a steady comeback, it’s unlikely that the 45rpm version will return anytime soon, and why should it?

We live in an era of instant gratification, in which concentration levels have dropped alarmingly.

And yet there has been an upsurge in song craft in the standalone track/single market.

The new David Sinclair 4 single ‘(I Got) One Pair of Hands’ is a case in point.

The band puts everything into a richly detailed piece of music,  from the arrangement itself to the lyrics and even their Critical Discs label name.

They also keep it in the family with drummer /producer Jack Sinclair’s inherent feel helping to create the perfect framework for the songs emotional and musical imperative.

‘(I Got) One Pair of Hands’ has a lovely retro feel as befits its subject matter, but delivers a general relatable message.

It’s a slow burner on which the Jack Sinclair/Derek White rhythm section builds a sludgy groove which evokes an early Neil Young feel, and serves to musically underpin the enormity of the task facing the narrator.

The story line is about finding equilibrium in an ever changing world, and perhaps only the defining line: “I Got one pair of hands, I got a “Rock & Roll band”, detracts from the universality of the message.

Then again any song referencing a rock and roll band in is generally regarded as cool.

‘(I Got) One Pair Of Hands’ is built on a hypnotic mix of David Sinclair’s ‘lived in’ vocal, Geoff Peel’s painstaking jangling guitar motifs and some cooing bv’s, as part of a steady build.

The meticulous approach extends to a transatlantic vocal slant on “hands” in the chorus, and gives the song its tension.

The closing ‘call and response’ section helps to amplify the determination at the core the song.

As with a lot of DS4 songs, ‘One Pair Of Hands’ demands several listens before the interwoven elements subliminally lodge themselves in your subconscious be it Geoff Peel’s crystalline into crunchy guitar tone or a lyrical couplet like; “It’s a game of chance and it can turn on a dime, you go digging for gold and you can end up down a mine!”

The single format finds the DS4 expertly crafting their style in the service of a song, which celebrates the joy of being creative in a demanding environment.

It gathers real momentum as DS attacks the final chorus with gusto, before a surprisingly low key outro, much akin to like an old locomotive crawling into the station.

The song works so well because everything has it place. There’s no sense of urgency, but there’s plenty of heft with which to fill out slightly more than 5 minutes.

The mantra seems to be, it takes as long as it takes. After all, nobody told the impressionist school of painters to hurry up and this is much more colourful! 4/5*

Review by Pete Feenstra

 


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review – DOUBLE VISION – S/T

Frontiers Music [Release date : 11.07.25]

For many years, Double Vision were a Foreigner covers band, as the band name might suggest.
They’ve now been given the opportunity by the Frontiers’ label to make their own way.

It’s fronted by gun-for-hire vocalist, Chandler Mogel, who’s provided vocals for a few lesser known rock bands, but earns a living mainly as a session singer.

The album is a long way from Foreigner, and maybe that’s what they wanted. The songs are simple (with titles like ‘Love Could Rule’, ‘I Know the Way’ and ‘Silence Is Louder’, they couldn’t be anything else), maybe simplistic at times, but generally catchy and they don’t outstay their welcome. They could’ve come with a “best before 1985” label.

There are times – like on the distinctly retro flavoured songs ‘Youphoria’ and ‘A Stranger’s Face’- when the band seem to ignore the genre’s rich and fertile past, and find sanctuary still in the over familiarity of last century lyrics. Mogel’s voice is strong. You can understand why he’s an in demand session singer, it’s just not distinctive enough to carry the weight expected of him.

That said, he does a convincing job on the balladic ‘Look Out For Me’. If they’d added a gospel choir on the second half we would have welcomed it.

Another ballad, ‘The Man You Make Me’ again tries hard to shake off the kind of AOR cliches that had taken root in the eighties, musically and lyrically, and almost succeeds. It has a touch of sophistication in the production and the arrangement, qualities that others tracks lack.

But only ‘Church Of The Open Mind’ comes anywhere near Foreigner greatness. Guitars get cranked up, they add Mick Jones calibre keyboard parts, and Mogel reins it back a little. Sometimes underdone adds more than overdone. ***

Review by Brian McGowan


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Single review: BLACKLIST UNION – Up In Smoke

BLACKLIST UNION - Up In Smoke

BLU Records

“Up In Smoke” is the new single from Blacklist Union, and I like it. A lot.

With a driving rhythm section, great guitar work and some almost hypnotic vocals (and one of the coolest videos you will see this year) the single will appeal to fans of Guns n Roses, Velvet Revolver, Stone Temple Pilots and the like.

I am a big fan of Blacklist Union’s last album “Letters From The Psych Ward” and cannot wait for forthcoming album, which is due for release in September.

Review by Nikk Gunns

Video

Spotify


Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions,

Check out videos here: https://www.facebook.com/getreadytorockradio

Upcoming sessions:

April 12




David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast 8 March 2026.


UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). First broadcast on 10 March 2026

How to Listen Live?

Click the programming image at the top of the page (top right of page if using desktop)

Get Ready to ROCK! Radio is also in iTunes under Internet Radio/Classic Rock
Listen in via the Tunein app and search for “Get Ready to ROCK!” and save as favourite.

More information and links at our radio website where you can listen live or listen again to shows via the presenter pages: getreadytorockradio.com


Power Plays w/c 30 March 2026

EVA UNDER FIRE Villainous (Better Noise Music)
HOKKA Blackbird (Nuclear Blast Records)
CELLDWELLER Elaleth (FiXT)
DAEDRIC Iridescent Wings (FiXT)
ARKADO Phoenix And Stardust (Pride & Joy Music)
THE DAVIDSON TRIO Disillusion (indie)
S8NT ELEKTRIC Catacombs (Long Branch Records)

Featured Albums w/c 16 March 2026

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003 – 2025 (Singer Songwriter)


Our occasional Newsletter signposts latest additions to the website(s). We also include a selection of recent top albums, based on GRTR! reviewer ratings.  The newsletter is sent out a few times a year.

If you’d like to register to receive this occasional mailing please complete the form:

If using a smartphone/tablet please tap here or re-orientate your device

(Note that this registration is separate from site registration which allows you to leave comments and receive daily emails about new content. If you wish to register for this – in addition or separately – please click or tap here – for more information – the form is at the foot of each page. Please read our privacy policy when opting-in to receive emails.


Recent (last 30 days)


Album review: HONEY AND THE BEAR – Wish & A Tide

Yesterday 150 andToday-StruckDown

Website [Release date 23.04.26] Honey and The Bear is a duo consisting of husband and wife Jon and Lucy Hart. Jon plays guitar and electric guitar with Lucy as the main vocalist, and they both play double bass and bouzouki. … Continue reading

Album review : YESTERDAY & TODAY – S/T and Struck Down (Remasters)

Yesterday 150 andToday-StruckDown

Rock Candy Records [Release date 18.07.25] 1972 : In the days before they abbreviated to Y&T, they called themselves Yesterday & Today, after the Beatles’ latest US album release of the time, allegedly. The band line up got shuffled a … Continue reading

News: BAD COMPANY, TRIVIUM, DAVID GILMOUR (August 2025)

AFI will release a new album, ‘Silver Bleeds The Black Sun…’, on October 3 via Run For Cover Records. Alcatrazz release ‘Prior Convictions’, an album of re-recorded songs plus two new songs, in November through BraveWords Records. The band plan to release … Continue reading

Gig review: WASP – 02 Academy, Glasgow, 25 July 2025

WASP 15

Some bands just seem to get things right from the very start. This may be down to them producing a set worth of songs that they then hone over many years playing pubs and clubs and building up a following … Continue reading

Album review: STAR CIRCUS – From The Wreckage

STAR CIRCUS - From The Wreckage

Renaissance Records [Release date 13.06.25] There’s a big debate going on about the use of AI and whether it compromises modern music making and musicians. After a lifetime of exposure to classic rock I for one am receptive. Time and … Continue reading

Album review : KIX – Kool Atomic Kix (8 CD Boxset)

KIX 150 Atomic

Cherry Red [Release date : 25.07.25] Something of a pop metal institution, KIX, the band, the brand, retired gracefully from the musicbiz in 2023, more than forty long years after the self titled debut album hit the streets. CD1 : … Continue reading

Album review: VOODOO RAMBLE – In The Heart Of The City

VOODOO RAMBLE - In The Heart Of The City

www.voodooramble.com [Release date 01.07.25] Slowly but surely over the past few years our Blues Rock/Features Editor Pete Feenstra has been supplying lyrics and melodic ideas to a number of significant artists in the current blues rock scene. This is Pete’s … Continue reading

Album review : THE BONESHAKERS – Live To Be This

The Boneshakers - Live To Be This

Pete Feenstra chatted to Randy and Jenny for Get Ready to ROCK! Radio playing tracks from the new album.  First broadcast 10 August 2025. Gulf Coast Records [Release date 18.07.25] It’s tempting to interpret The Boneshakers album ‘Live To Be … Continue reading

Album review : JIMMY WEBB – A Life In Words And Music (7 CD Boxset)

JIMMY 150 WEBB A Life IMAGE

Cherry Red [Release date : 25.07.25] By the time Jimmy Webb got to Phoenix he had won every conceivable music award, he’d written hit after hit after hit, most notably for The Fifth Dimension, Richard Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Glen Campbell … Continue reading

Album review : ENUFF Z’NUFF – Extra Cherries

ENUFF 150 ZNUFF Cherries

Cleopatra [Release date : 25.07.25] Enuff Z’Nuff have released 6 albums in the last ten years. The latest, Extra Cherries is the 20th since the 1989 debut. The band, plagued by illness, worn down by constant touring, has seen members … Continue reading

Album review : CATS IN SPACE – Chapter 1 (Remastered 4 CD boxset)

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Cherry Red [Release date 25.07.25] Now out of print, CIS’s first 4 sold out album releases have been dusted down and polished up by Cherry Red Records’ Tech experts. Chapter 1 is a 4CD clamshell, containing : CD1 : Too … Continue reading

Gig review: STEVIE WONDER – British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

STEVIE WONDER- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 12 July 2025

(Photo: Isha Shah) Legend of soul, songwriter of countless hits, but why you may ask is Stevie Wonder being reviewed in a website dedicated to rock music?  Well, many of the top singers in our world, from Glenn Hughes to … Continue reading

Gig review: NEIL YOUNG AND THE CHROME HEARTS – British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

NEIL YOUNG AND THE CHROME HEARTS- British Summer Time, Hyde Park, London, 11 July 2025

With the exception of Bob Dylan, there aren’t many rock stars who can divide opinion quite as much as Neil Young. For every person (including some on this website) that cannot abide him, there are others who hang on the … Continue reading

Album review: KILL THE ROBOT – S/t

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Dark Lab Recordings [Release date 18.07.25] New band Kill the Robot, although main man Stephen Gibb has an impressive band CV including spells in Saigon Kick, Crowbar, Black Label Society and more. Oh, and his dad is Barry Gibb of … Continue reading

Album review: ALICE COOPER – The Revenge Of Alice Cooper

ALICE COOPER – The Revenge Of Alice Cooper

EarMUSIC  [release date 25.07.25] In much the same vein as Jake and Elwood Blues, Alice has decided to get the band back together, not sure he is on a mission from God though on this occasion! This album has brought … Continue reading

Album review : HONEYMOON SUITE – Wake Me When The Sun Goes Down

HONEYMOON 150 SUITE Wake me cover

Frontiers Music [Release date : 25.07.25] Words to live your life by. As one who frequently mainlines on the band’s uncut 2006 Anthology, Feel It Again, a new Honeymoon Suite album is cause for celebration. Previous album, Alive was the … Continue reading

Album review: FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH – 20 Years Of Five Finger Death Punch – Best Of Volume 1

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Better Noise Records [Release date 18.07.25] Over the past 20 years Five Finger Death Punch have become a band that can headline arenas and festivals worldwide, but world domination hasn’t come without it’s share of trials and tribulations. No matter … Continue reading

Album review : SEALS & CROFTS – Gold and Rainbows – The Warner Bros Years 1969-78 (5-CD Boxset)

SEALS & CROFTS – Gold and Rainbows – The Warner Bros Years 1969-78

Cherry Red [Release date : 18.07.25] Harmony rock and pop duo Seals and Croft’s biggest hit single came early on in their career. 1972’s ‘Summer Breeze’ (later covered by the Isley Brothers) was the title track from the duo’s fourth … Continue reading

Feature: Albums that time forgot…PIERRE MOERLEN’S GONG – Time Is The Key (1979)

PIERRE MOERLEN'S GONG - Time Is The Key (1979)

Arista SPARTY 1105 (1979) When most people think of Gong they think of “Flying Teapot”, a quirky, idiosyncratic approach by long-time leader Daevid Allen and maybe Steve Hillage’s passage to wider attention. What sometimes gets overlooked are the later years … Continue reading

Album review : V/A – American Power Pop 1980-89 (3-CD Boxset)

American 150 Power Pop Cover

Cherry Red [Release date : 18.07.25] Almost 80 tracks over 3 CDs…the third and final volume of Eighties’ American Power Pop will be released on the Cherry Red label later this month. Once again it’s a treasure trove of material. … Continue reading

Gig review: BRAVE RIVAL – Dembe Theatre, Tring 4th July 2025

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It often pays to respect and ‘support’ the support band and those that favour the bar tonight miss an excellent opening slot from the Lightning Threads. Formed back in 2019 the Sheffield based trio consist of Tom Jane (Guitar/Vocals) Sam … Continue reading

Album review: STYX- Circling From Above

STYX- Circling From Above

Alpha Dog 2T/UMe (Release Date 18.07.25) While many ‘heritage’ classic rock acts on both sides of the pond have chosen to give up on writing new material and rely on their legacy catalogue, in recent years Styx have proved a … Continue reading

Album review : DEGREED – The Leftovers

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Frontiers [Release date 18.07.25] Only a year after their last full length studio album, Public Address, Degreed now release The Leftovers, a 9 track EP. The title is self explanatory, but there’s a negative connotation there, hinting that these tracks … Continue reading

Single review: DAVID SINCLAIR 4 – (I Got) One Pair Of Hands

DS4 - I Got One Pair Of Hands

Critical Discs Cherry Red [Release date: 26.06.25] One of the often overlooked benefits of the avalanche in streaming services and the resultant constant release schedule, has been the return to releasing what were once called singles. And while vinyl has … Continue reading

Album review – DOUBLE VISION – S/T

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Frontiers Music [Release date : 11.07.25] For many years, Double Vision were a Foreigner covers band, as the band name might suggest. They’ve now been given the opportunity by the Frontiers’ label to make their own way. It’s fronted by … Continue reading

Single review: BLACKLIST UNION – Up In Smoke

BLACKLIST UNION - Up In Smoke

BLU Records “Up In Smoke” is the new single from Blacklist Union, and I like it. A lot. With a driving rhythm section, great guitar work and some almost hypnotic vocals (and one of the coolest videos you will see … Continue reading