Back in the 60s, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were the leading bands who were admired for their passion for music. Despite their fictionalized rivalry, both bands had respect for the music each of them produced. And, George Harrison and Keith Richards were the guitarists for those big bands and they are the only ones with such a grand experience. The similarities between them are seen in a very clear way, as both of them refrained from saying anything bad about one another in the press and interviews.

Georgie and Keith were both infatuated with each other. Both were vital corks for their bands as, without them, they wouldn’t have existed. It’s no news that they are two of the most influential guitar players of all time. After George passed away in 2001, Keith had a chance to discuss him in a special edition of Rolling Stone titled ‘Remembering George’. He explained that they had a special bond. He said, “George and I kind of formed-without talking too much about it, although we did have a laugh here and there-a bond, in that we felt we were kind of fulfilling the same role within our respective bands,” Richards expressed. “It was a nod and a wink to say, ‘Well, they’d be nowhere without us.’”

The dynamics Beatles have left in this world are immense. Also, the covers of Beatles songs have existed since day one. Over the years, such covers have surfaced due to the wide use of the Internet. Soon after the Fab Four released their songs, the covers have always come up.

With stars like Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, the lyrics they wrote were some of the best songs in the history of music. With The Beatles as the base, British pop was sure to thrive in the coming future.

There are so many covers of The Beatles and it only gets better with age. And one exception among them is Joe Cocker’s 1968 cover of ‘With A Little Help From My Friends‘. It was released just a year after The Beatles themselves had conveyed the song.

Cocker was born and raised in Sheffield. He signed with Decca Records in 1964. And recorded his debut single, which was a version of The Beatles, ‘I’ll Cry Instead’. The song was not massive and after many attempts later his song’Marjorine’ peaked at number 48 on the UK singles chart. It was a big tackle for him.

With pretty much fond success, he then covered Lennon/McCartney’s hit song ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’. Which went on to be his most successful cover. One of his friends hired to help Cocker in his recording session was Jimmy Page, the guitarist of Led Zeppelin.

The song was endorsed by The Beatles themselves. And the song also topped the UK charts. When Joe passed away in 2014, Paul stated when he heard the song for the very first time, “I remember [Cocker] and Denny Cordell coming round to the studio in Saville Row and playing me what they’d recorded. It was just mind-blowing … [he] totally turned the song into a soul anthem, and I was forever grateful for him for doing that.”

‘With a Little Help’ became the signature song of Cocker. He even performed a live version for the fans at the Woodstock festival. In 2002 during the celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s golden jubilee, Paul got to be along with Cocker, Steve Winwood, and Brian. The cover again blew Paul’s mind.

Back in 2014, after the passing of Coker, Paul didn’t only praise his cover. He revealed that he loved him a lot and said, “He was a lovely northern lad who I loved a lot and, like many people, I loved his singing.”

A collection of love letters written by Bob Dylan have revealed lots of potential stage names that he might have chosen. Choosing a stage name is a difficult job. Every artist with a stage name today has suffered from this ailing circumstance.

Before Bob Dylan became Bob Dylan, seems like he had a bunch of names that he wanted to go by. And according to The Boston Globe, an unparalleled amount of love letters written by teenage Dylan have fetched $670000 USD at an auction.

It is revealed that Dylan wrote the letter when he was just 16 years old. And it was for his school sweetheart Barbara Hewitt. Looks like they shared a history class and Dylan told her his dream of being a musician and selling records.

In his love letter, he revealed his potential nicknames like ‘Stumpy Dick’ and ‘Stubby Johnson’. Also, he’s written about him being ‘Little Willie’. It was on a letter that saw Dylan inviting Hewitt to a Buddy Holly concert. He made a fictional band with the text that read, “‘Little’ Willie, lead singer of the Night Gales.”

The letters were discovered by Hewitt’s daughter. That’s when she decided to put them up for auction at Boston’s RR Auction House and was won by Portuguese bookshop Livraria Lello. The vice president of RR Auction House explained, “Nothing like this exists anywhere.” He also added,

“In several letters, he talks about changing his name. He’s getting rid of Bob Zimmerman. It’s the formative years of Bob Zimmerman transforming into Bob Dylan, the beginning of the Bob Dylan myth. He’s talking about the clothes he’s wearing, making fun of [classmates], talks about doo-wop, about changing his name to ‘Little Willie.’”

The trio Rush has been a part of classic rock contemporaries. Geddy Lee, Neil Peart, and Alex Lifeson have been iconic friends and have always gotten along. Despite many challenges in their career, their career was full of a long-lasting funny sense of humor.

The rise of their career made it look like it was easy to operate as a band. Rush created their own style and made a huge impact all over the world. Back then, there was defying cultural revolution of punk-rock and synth-wave style. The keepers of the progressive-rock genre, Rush has always been a legendary lineup in terms of greatness and humor. While looking back, the band reflects and laughs about when they were young and foolish.

Neil Peart, the drummer in a conversation with CBC revealed his reflections. The time when he picked his ten favorite Rush songs, the drummer made his selections and it was filled with the usual collection and other classics. The list consisted of ‘2112’, ‘Spirit of the Radio’, and also the infamous song ‘Xanadu’.

The song from 1977’s album ‘A Farewell To Kings’ is a song that is bound to bring smiles to every Rush fan. He told to CBC, “Let’s call that our experimental phase.” He also added, “After ‘2112’, we were guitar, bass, and drums and ambitious, so we thought maybe we should add another musician.”

The band kept on refining their work over their career. The trio has always been a trio. Instead of adding more members to the band, they focused on crafting their art. He said, “But then it was, no, let’s expand our own arsenal, so the guys started getting into acoustic guitar, bass pedals were just coming out, and I started expanding my drums, which would give us a great orchestration ability.”

Back then, when the song was released they were focused on experimenting. They kept the band as it is and the primary definition of the band was their artistic evolution. Neil said, “Those subsequent albums are us learning to use all that, having fun, experimenting, as genuine as can be. When I look back on that it’s an indulgent smile. We would later do better but there was nothing wrong with it. I described it once as young, foolish and brave.”

Listen to ‘Xanadu’ down below.

The Beatles and The Rolling Stones are the faces of Rock n’ Roll. With their original rivalry, this 60s pioneer had things of their own. Both are listed as the most influential British Rock band. Often compared with each other, both have had a constant assessment of each other.

There is documentation of so many such moments between the two bands. And a very intriguing one is between Mick Jagger and John Lennon. With larger effects on the charts, both bands were in the prime of their rivalry. While the bands were not really enemies, the heat between Mick and John was real.

While talking about the Rolling Stones, Lennon elaborated his comment on how he thinks Mick is a joke. This was back in 1970 in an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine. He said, “I think it’s a lot of hype. I like ‘Honky Tonk Woman,’ but I think Mick’s a joke, with all that fag dancing. I always did. I enjoy it, I’ll probably go and see his films and all, like everybody else, but really, I think it’s a joke.”

This may have been harsh, but back in the day, Lennon was in a short-lived supergroup. There was also Keith Richards and they were called Dirty Mac. Still then, Lennon was not really good with Jagger. Richards on the other hand speaks admiringly about Lennon. He has agreed with Lennon’s criticism too, about The Stones copying Sgt Pepper’s Satanic Majesties which will come down below.

Back to Lennon’s ‘Joke’ statement. The hostility in that comment was very much seen. It was not really necessary. He even added, “We saw a bit of each other around when Allen was first coming in – I think Mick got jealous, I was always very respectful about Mick and the Stones, but he said a lot of sort of tarty things about The Beatles, which I am hurt by, because you know, I can knock the Beatles, but don’t let Mick Jagger knock them.”

Things went out with it. Mick and Lennon were involved in a war of words. Lennon kept on ranting, “I would like to just list what we did and what the Stones did two months after on every fuckin’ album. Every fuckin’ thing we did, Mick does exactly the same – he imitates us.”

“And I would like one of you fuckin’ underground people to point it out, you know Satanic Majesties is Pepper, ‘We Love You’, it’s the most fuckin’ bullshit, that’s ‘All You Need Is Love’. I resent the implication that the Stones are like revolutionaries and that the Beatles weren’t. If the Stones were or are, the Beatles really were too.”

In the end he said, “He’s obviously so upset by how big the Beatles are compared with him; he never got over it. Now he’s in his old age, and he is beginning to knock us, you know, and he keeps knocking. I resent it, because even his second fuckin’ record we wrote it for him. Mick said ‘Peace made money’. We didn’t make any money from Peace. You know.”

The answer to all this was given when The Beatles were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. There the leader of The Stones said, “We had a lot of rivalry in those early years, and a little bit of friction, but we always ended up friends. I like to think we still are, ’cause they were some of the greatest times of our lives, and I’m really proud to be the one that leads them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.”

The lead vocalist of The Amboy Dukes, Ted Nugent is a remarkable musician and activist. With his hands laid on hard rock and psychedelic rock, Ted is known for his bluesy, frenzied guitar along with his energetic live shows. He is also a part of a hunting community.

Ted has pretty much contemplated his hunting lifestyle in his music too. He is an advocate of the right to bear arms. But he does have a conscience and he instructs venues to not allow firearms while performing.

Nugent has spoken on right to bear firearms. Other love which exists in Ted’s life other than musical equipment is his love of firearms and hunting. During a chat with AXS TV, the guitarist shared his mus-have equipment while on tour. It consists of guitars, amps, and other surprising kinds of stuff.

He revealed, “I’m the only guitar player in the world that has guitars and amplifiers, and I also bring my bow and arrow on the road,” told Ted as he disclosed his must-haves while hitting the road. “I always have since, geez, 1964-1965 with the Amboy Dukes, and [at the] backstage, we set up phone books or boxes with newspapers [to shoot].”

Nowadays there is no use for phone books and it’s not easy to get one. When the host pointed it out, he said, “That’s, talking about the old days, a little before your time key but [at the] backstage I play my guitar and I hang out with the guys, but then I get my bow, and I celebrate the ‘Samurai Spirit of the Mystical Flight of the Arrow.’”

Genesis frontman Phil Collins is one of the best singers and songwriters of the 80s and 90s. The former Genesis frontman is known for his musical talents. While his bestowed talent for music is known, looks like he even wrote his daughter Lily Collins a song.

A father-daughter relationship is a very important relationship that is bound to shape her future. And here in the case of Phil Collins, it’s inevitable that he was always away for work. Lily Collins is Phil’s daughter from his second marriage with Jill Tavelman. She didn’t get to spend her time with both of her parents for long. As they divorced when she was five years old. It is revealed in her memoir Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me. “When I was 5, my parents got divorced and my dad moved from our home in England to Switzerland, where he stayed for more than 20 years.”

She also wrote, “He may have still been alive, but most of the time, it felt as if he were completely gone.”

Lily also says that because of his absence she was extra aware of herself and her surroundings. She said, “I became extra careful about what I said and how I said it, afraid he’d think I was angry or didn’t love him.”

Retrospective to her younger time, Phil Collins only focused on his work with Genesis. Instead of supporting Lily, he committed himself to tour and music. She also had no idea that her father was a rockstar. That was the time, Phil was struggling with alcohol addiction. He was working for Disney during that time. Also, Disney hired Collins as a songwriter for the 1999 Tarzan movie.

Phil wrote five songs for Tarzan. And the song most important for him and the movie, ‘You’ll Be In My Heart‘. The song was written for his daughter Lily. When the song won an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2000 he said he, “began life as a melody I imagined singing to a baby Lily”.

Lily also during an interview with EW said, “We grew up watching Disney shows and movies together, so [“You’ll Be in My Heart”] was his way of kind of being able to do it for his kids. It was so special.”

She also had things to say about her father, being a rock star. She said, “It’s a weird thing to have your dad or your parent be on the stage with a million people saying their name and you’re like, ‘No, that’s just dad.” She recalled,

“But I started to get used to, that person was Phil and then when we were home, that was dad.”

Once in a while, every band goes on opening the act on the stage for another colossal band. While the energy is raw and when they are just a bunch of newcomers that is a way for a bigger achievement in their career. That may surely be the case but the experience Aerosmith had with Guns N’ Roses was a big exception. People getting more excited about Guns N’ Roses than Aerosmith who was the spotlight of the concert.

Guns N’ Roses were not instant megastars. Their debut album ‘Appetite For Destruction’ took more than 1 year to climb to the top of Billboard 200. And it was back in late 1987. Guns N’ Roses were not that well known back then. But their popularity grew during the supporting tour they had with Aerosmith. This tour pushed them from zero to hero.

The tour began in Binghamton in October 1987 and ran for 147 shows in America. With every show, people were attracted to Guns N’ Roses and Aerosmith became a bystander. G N’ R became a headline when the tour came to a close in Costa Mesa in September 1988.

The bassist for the band, Duff McKagan in a YouTube interview had something to say about the song ‘Sweet Child O Mine’ which was the reason they were propelled. He said, “By that point, we were already on tour with Aerosmith. Those seven people who showed up early turned into 30, the next night it was 300, and the next night it was 800, and by the end of a couple weeks, all 17,000 people who were there to see Aerosmith were showing up for us. The album started moving up the charts, the single went to number one, and then, the album went to number one.”

The reason for the popularity of Guns N’ Roses during that tour was the song, ‘Sweet Child O Mine’. Every next show and people cheered for that song more than anything. Each time in the concert, the crowds kept growing for Guns N’ Roses and wanted that song while Aerosmith was pushed to the sidelines.

Later on after the concert, in November of 1988, they claimed their spot on the top. They were also the cover stars of Rolling Stone. The limelight was supposed to be for Aerosmith but it was a bitter end for the band. With the public’s attention and affection toward the newcomer Guns N’ Roses, all that led to their rise.

Aerosmith surely had a bad time at the concert. While it may have been a bad time for them, the fans surely got so much more. With a whole new band performing for them and waiting for their next music. Later on after the concert, the song ‘Sweet Child O Mine’ was chosen by MTC, and then, Guns N’ Roses were unstoppable.

Hendrix’s white Fender Stratocaster, and Kurt Cobain’s Fender Jag-stang, the rock world is filled with iconic star guitars. And among them, David Gilmour is not an exception. As a lead guitarist of one of the most popular bands, Gilmour has a bunch of them.

As a leader in the psychedelic realm, David is the owner of many iconic guitars. Here is the story of Gilmour’s #0001 Stratocaster.

The serial number of his Fender Stratocaster is ‘#0001’. With the widely speculated assumptions that it was the very first Stratocaster that was made, well it isn’t. It was one of the first Stratocasters which was manufactured in the year 1954 but it is not the first one. The first Stratocaster was printed with the serial number 0100. It is currently owned by vintage guitar collector, George Gruhn.

Gilmour’s first bought the #0001 from one of Pink Floyd’s guitar techs, Phil Taylor. And it was back in the 70s. Also, Phil Taylor bought the guitar from Seymour Duncan a famous luthier and guitarist just a few years ago. It is revealed that Phil purchased the guitar for $900 but sold it to David for just $600. Back then, Gilmour lent the money to Phil so that he could buy a house. Gilmour remembered while speaking to Guitar Magazine,

“Eventually, Phil wanted to borrow some money to buy a house, so I blackmailed him! I said the only way I’d lend him the money to buy the house, was if he sold me the white Strat…”

After getting his hands on the guitar he has used the signature guitar on a bunch of different occasions. It is kind of rare for him to use that guitar in live performances. But looks like he has used it for recording sessions.

Gilmour used his signature #0001 on the 1979 album The Wall. He used it to record the guitar on ‘Another Brick In The Wall, Pt. 2’. It was said that it was plugged directly into the mixing console with no need for amps and mics. His guitar was also used on Wing’s album ‘Back to the Egg’ on the song, ‘Glad To See You Here’. The last known use of his signature #0001 was when David performed at Fender’s Strat Pack concert.