BraveWords’ Top 66 Stories Of 2022 - #36-27
January 4, 2023, a year ago
Another year of headbanging is in the books and while some artists let the music do the talking, others have a lot to say with their mouth too. Much caught the eyes of our readers in 2022 from exciting album announcements, single releases, and tours to quotes of entertainment and the unfortunate spotlighting petty squabbles between bands/members that we all love.
Here are the top viewed stories of 2022 - #36-27 featuring Mötley Crüe, KISS, and Van Halen.
36) STEVE MORSE Announces Departure From DEEP PURPLE – “I’ll Miss Everybody In The Band”
It was sad and unfortunate news in July when guitarist Steve Morse announced he was stepping down from Deep Purple to care for his wife, who is battling stage 4 cancer.
Morse said, “I suggested lining up a substitute guitarist last autumn, hoping we could see the miraculous cancer cure all of us have heard about. As time went by, I could see the way things were heading though, after 28 years of being in the band.
“I've already played my last show with Purple back in Florida on the Rock Legends Cruise. I wish to thank the listeners who so strongly supported live music and turned every show from a dress rehearsal to a thundering, exciting experience. I'll miss everybody in the band and crew but being Janine's helper and advocate has made a real difference at many key points.”
More here.
35) THE WHO Announce Special Guests For The Who Hits Back! 2022 North American Tour
Big news was dropped in April when The Who announced a bevy of special guest artists to join them on their 2022 The Who Hits Back! North American Tour.
A wide range of guest artists joined including: Texas rockers Los Lonely Boys, the hard rocking band fronted by the lead guitarist/songwriter from Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Mike Campbell and The Dirty Knobs, singer/songwriter Leslie Mendelson, British (female-led) rock band The Wild Things, Americana soul singer Amythyst Kiah, singer/songwriter (founder of Barenaked Ladies) Steven Page, and opening for one night at the Bethel Woods show Willie Nile.
See more here.
34) VAN HALEN's Manager Approached SAMMY HAGAR To Front Las Vegas Residency With MICHAEL ANTHONY, ALEX VAN HALEN, And JOE SATRIANI - "I’m Not In Love With The Idea Of Being Van Halen Without Eddie Van Halen... Matter Of Fact, I’m Dead Against It"
2022 was filled with some wild ideas, but the wildest was the suggesting of Van Halen getting back together with Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Alex Van Halen, and Joe Satriani on guitar.
The idea never materialized as Rolling Stone’s Andy Green shared, We wound up talking about Van Halen for more than an hour. The conversation touched on everything from his initial departure from the band in 1996 to his emotional reunion with Eddie Van Halen a few months before his death in 2020. Along the way, he revealed that Irving Azoff, Van Halen’s manager since the early 2000s, reached out last year to gauge his interest in a possible Las Vegas residency with drummer Alex Van Halen, bassist Michael Anthony, and a superstar guitar player. There are no concrete plans at the moment to make that a reality, but he does hope to finally make peace with Alex Van Halen in the near future and reestablish a friendship that has suffered from years of estrangement."
Read the rest here.
33) Playboy Model / Actress KYMBERLY HERRIN Dead At 65; Appeared In ZZ TOP, DAVID LEE ROTH, KISS Videos
More sad news struck in November when popular Playboy model and actress, Kymberly Herrin, who played the “Dream Ghost” in Ghostbusters and appeared in a ZZ Top video that cemented the band as MTV stars, died at the age of 65.
She also appeared in ZZ Top’s 1985 video for “Sleeping Bag” - another Top 10 single - 1987 longform KISS video Exposed and a David Lee Roth video in the mid-’80s.
Read more here.
32) Former MÖTLEY CRÜE Vocalist JOHN CORABI Says PAM & TOMMY Miniseries "Is So Full Of Bullsh*t, It’s Ridiculous!"
John Corabi was not a fan of the Hulu limited series Pam & Tommy. The former Mötley Crüe signer made it known that the series was full of inaccuracies and that 98% of the show was “fictional.”
Corabi said, “I shared 5 years of my life with Tommy and although it was at times INSANITY it’s sooooo overblown in this SHIT they call TV entertainment! Tommy never walked around in a Speedo, didn’t act at all they way they portray him, and now I see that Third Eye Blind ‘bumps’ us from a studio, because they’re more relevant???? DID NOT HAPPEN…!!!”
Find more here.
31) ACE FREHLEY Did KISS "A Favour" By Appearing In "I Love It Loud" Video - "That Was A Mistake... He Didn't Know The Song And Had To Fake His Way Through The Entire Thing," Says GENE SIMMONS
Promoting the 40th anniversary box set of Creatures Of The Night, KISS legend Gene Simmons told Guitar World that the original Spaceman Ace Frehley did the band “a favour” by appearing in the music video for “I Love It Loud”.
"By the time Creatures happened, Ace was already gone," recalls Simmons. "Ace doesn't appear on a single song on Creatures Of The Night. His only appearance was in the promotional shots, and he did us a favour by appearing in the 'I Love It Loud' music video. But even that was a mistake because he clearly didn't know the song and had to fake his way through the entire thing.”
More available here.
30) MÖTLEY CRÜE Bassist NIKKI SIXX Drops $6.9 Million On New California Estate; Photos
Nikki Sixx certainly isn’t hurting for money as he dropped nearly $7 million on an estate in California.
Says Dirt: "Hoping to kickstart your heart with the keys to this fancy European-style manse? Don’t go away mad, because Nikki Sixx is already calling the place home sweet home! Records reveal the veteran Mötley Crüe performer, 63, and longtime wife Courtney have forked over $6.9 million for a stunning spread tucked away on almost an acre in the picturesque hills between Westlake Village and Thousand Oaks, in an unincorporated area known as Lake Sherwood.”
Check out more here.
29) MICHAEL ANTHONY Sings VAN HALEN's "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" In New Jersey; Video
Some valuable live video as Sammy Hagar brought his “Crazy Times” North American Summer Tour to PNC Bank Center in Holmdel, NJ on Saturday, June 11. Hagar was joined by his best-selling rock supergroup The Circle, featuring fellow Van Halen alumni and Rock Hall Of Fame inductee, Michael Anthony; Grammy-award winning drummer, Jason Bonham; and Vic Johnson, Hagar’s longtime guitar virtuoso.
A video of Anthony singing the Van Halen classic “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love” was uploaded and caught a lot of eyes.
See more here.
28) NEAL SCHON Suing JOURNEY Bandmate JONATHAN CAIN Over AmEx Card
Late November brought bizarre news with Journey’s Neal Schon suing his bandmate Jonathan Cain over the use of an American Express card.
Court papers say that Cain set up the AmEx card without telling Schon and that “millions of Journey funds have flowed through it.”
Schon’s attorneys also claim in the suit, which was filed in Contra Costa in the Bay Area of California, that Cain hasn’t turned over financial records that allow Schon to know how much the band owes him.
Read the whole story here.
27) GENE SIMMONS On Bands Going Ahead With Shows In Russia - "They're Going To Get A Lot Of Pushback From Their Own Fans"
TMZ always gets the quotes and it was no different when they approached The Demon to get his opinion of bands performing in Russia despite their war and invasion of Ukraine.
Read more here.
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