Joe Lynn Turner has issued an apology to Michael Anthony, saying that talk of a new supergroup featuring the Chickenfoot/Van Halen bassist and drummer Carmine Appice was just that — idle talk among friends.
That follows an unattributed report by Andrew McNeice at MelodicRock.com saying former Rainbow vocalist Turner was creating another all-star band in the vein of Voices of Classic Rock. The focus, according to that report, would be classic rock songs in the same vein of 1970s legends like Deep Purple, Bad Company and Led Zeppelin.
Turner, of course, had a stint as vocalist with Deep Purple, as well, after helping Rainbow to chart success with “Stone Cold” — the Ritchie Blackmore-led band’s first Top 40 hit.
Anthony, meanwhile, was Van Halen’s bassist from its founding through 2006, and has since moved on to work with Chickenfoot alongside Sammy Hagar, another Van Halen alum. Appice has recorded and appeared on stage with Vanilla Fudge, Ozzy Osbourne, Pink Floyd and Rod Stewart.
Both Turner and Appice now acknowledge that they’ve discussed artists they’d like to work with, and that Anthony’s name came up along with figures like Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck. But they have released no official news on forming a new band, and that they have spoken to no one in the media about such a project.
McNeice, meanwhile, counters today at MelodicRock.com that he based his initial item on an interview Turner gave with Norway Rocks Magazine.
“Turner and Appice would like to specifically apologize to Anthony and his fans for any confusion this rumour or any casual conversations might have caused,” according to an official release. Turner is also now telling Classic Rock Magazine: “Carmine and I are long-time friends, and we have talked over the years about working together. These are conversations musicals like us have all the time. These conversations are not official news. It’s just casual talk.”
Turner has been touring more recently with Come Taste the Band, formed in 2011.
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Here’s a look back at our recent thoughts on Van Halen, Deep Purple, Ozzy Osbourne and Chickenfoot. Click through the titles for complete reviews …
SOMETHING ELSE! INTERVIEW: CHICKENFOOT’S KENNY ARONOFF: When superstar drummer Kenny Aronoff — on tour now with Chickenfoot — starts recalling his sideman projects, they spill out with no rhyme or reason. He’s, almost literally, played them all. Of course, today it’s Chickenfoot, an all-star rock group featuring vocalist Sammy Hagar and bassist Michael Anthony, late of Van Halen, and sizzling guitar hero Joe Satriani. Aronoff is filling in for Chad Smith, who did the record but is now on tour with his main band, the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Chickenfoot announced a new U.S. tour this week, after a string of successful European stops in January. Chickenfoot is just the latest stop in a dizzyingly diverse career for one of music’s most in-demand drummers. Aronoff starts listing them off then stops himself, taking it all in: “I mean, are you fucking kidding me?”
DEEP PURPLE – TOTAL ABANDON: AUSTRALIA ’99 (2012): An intriguingly presented retrospective set, as the newly added Steve Morse brilliantly reexamines a group of signature Deep Purple tunes. Before the show is over, Total Abandon recalls not so much the Ritchie Blackmore years as it does the band’s fiery Tommy Bolin period. There’s a similar level of front-line guitar craft, and a similar level of energy. Deep Purple sounded like it was having fun again. And, to my ears, the group never really looked back so intently again. By the time they issued Bananas, some five years later, original keyboardist Jon Lord was gone — and Deep Purple had metamorphosed. The addition of Morse, like an ozone-producing jolt of lightning, had transformed what once seemed like a ghost band trying to reclaim its glory days into a freshly rejuvenated force to be reckoned with.
SOMETHING ELSE! FEATURED ARTIST: VAN HALEN: A long-waited reunion with original lead singer David Lee Roth has Van Halen back in the news … and us digging through some old albums. Here’s a look back at a few favorite moments with Roth — and yes, Sammy, too — along with updated tour date information. Let’s start shredding!
OZZY OSBOURNE – BLIZZARD OF OZZ/ DIARY OF A MADMAN (1980/81): In my opinion, Diary of a Madman is Ozzy’s finest hour outside of Black Sabbath. While his debut had a few duds — “No Bone Movies” comes immediately to mind, and though it may seem like sacrilege to some fans, I’ve never liked “Revelation (Mother Earth),” either — Diary is a far more consistent record from beginning to end, and there’s not a single track that I skip every listen. 1980’s Blizzard of Ozz, of course, features some of Ozzy’s best-known songs, including “I Don’t Know,” “Mr. Crowley” and perhaps his most recognizable solo hit, “Crazy Train.” It also features one of my personal favorite guitar instrumentals, Randy Rhoads’ neo-classical jaunt, “Dee.”
- Angell & Crane, “Himalayan Dial-Up” from ‘Angell & Crane’ (2024): Video Premiere - November 22, 2024
- Michael Attias, “Avrils” from ‘Quartet Music Vol. II- Kardamon Fall’ (2024): Streaming premiere - October 11, 2024
- Bryn Roberts, “Aloft” from ‘Aloft’ (2024): Video Premiere - September 20, 2024
Nobody has ever been interested in this guy after Slaves and Masters (1990) … Blackmore and Malmsteen were the main attractions on those 1980s albums … He should join Blackmore’s Night as a male vocalist and form a duet with Ritchie’s spouse …