We'll be surprised if the top bid for this instrument doesn't blow past the estimated value of $14-$21k when the hammer drops on the Gibson Les Paul Goldtop guitar autographed by a host of heavy weight musicians at Bob Dylan's 30th Anniversary Concert in New York 29 years ago. Bonhams will auction the guitar signed by Dylan, Tom Petty, George Harrison, Neil Young, Ronnie Wood, Stevie Wonder, Johnny Cash Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson on May 5th.

The mahogany body and neck guitar features a maple topped body, a 22 fret rosewood fingerboard and will be delivered in a plush lined hard shell case and wrapped in a silk protector that was also signed by a number of musicians also at the tribute concert that night in Madison Square Garden.

The songwriter largely credited with Meat Loaf's success has died. Jim Steinman was credited as the songwriter that made the 1977 Bat Out Of Hell album a chart topping sensation that sold more than 50 million copies.  Meat Loaf called him the biggest influence on his life when inducting Steinman to the Songwriter's Hall of Fame nine years ago.  Steinman helped a number of other acts benefit from his hook laden songwriting skills, but it was his work with Meat Loaf that earned him the most highly recognized credit.
Steinman passed away due to kidney failure today at his Ridgefield, Connecticut home. He was 73.

AC/DC's dynamic front man Brian Johnson chronicles his life and the enormous challenge of stepping into the shoes of Bon Scott in a new autobiography he's titled The Lives of Brian: AC/DC, Me and the making of Back in Black. Johnson says the book coming out on October 26th covers his career from "choirboy to rock n' roll singer" with both his pre-AC/DC bands an this wild ride to the top with Down Under's bad boys of rock, and also gives readers an inside look at his other passion, exotic, high performance cars.

Johnson's book can be Pre-ordered here.

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Billy Gibbons has partnered with a restaurant outfit known as Delicious Concepts and Tequila company Pura Vida's founder to open a Tex-Mex eatery with a ZZ Top flavor. The Tres Amigo's Cafe and Cantina in Houston opens this Thursday. While enjoying traditional and innovative dishes, patrons can also take-in some ZZ Top memorabilia from Billy's collection. Adding to the meal appeal of Billy's place, a good chunk of the proceeds from the restaurant venture will be donated to the St. Jude's Children's Hospital.

Rock biographer CM Kushins, who published a 2019 bio of Warren Zevon, will be back this fall with one that chronicles the short, tumultuous life and career of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham. Beast: John Bonham and the Rise of Led Zeppelin will surprisingly be the first bio of a drummer many consider to be the greatest ever. The hardbound book due out on September 7th includes a forward by Dave Grohl and can be preordered here.

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Van Morrison's album titled Latest Record Project: Volume One drops on May 7th. Van the Man will follow it up the next day by doing his first live streamed concert set ever. The concert featuring some of the 28 songs on the new album getting released on vinyl and CD and a number of classics from his massive catalog will originate from Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios in Wiltshire, England and can be viewed in HD starting at 3pm (Eastern) through nugs.net for $14.99.

Record Store Day rolls around again with two dates slated for June 12 and July 17.

We've sifted through the heap of releases to pass along some titles we think will be of particular interest to followers of this page.

Available June 12.

Jefferson Airplane - Acid Incense and Balloons. A compilation of well known, obscure and alternate takes from 1966-1971. 3,000 copies June 12.

Janis Joplin - Pearl. Picture disc. 4,250 copies.

Joni Mitchell - Archive Vol 1 (1963-1967). 15,000 copies.

Motorhead - St. Valentine's Day Massacre. 40th Anniversary picture disc. 4,000 copies.

Robert Palmer - Sneakin' Sally Through The Alley. Green vinyl. 2,500 copies.

Pearl Jam - Alive. The 30th anniversary release includes rare B sides and the bands cover of the Beatles I've Got A Feeling. 18,500 lps, 6,300 cassette copies.

Tom Petty - Angel Dream. Songs from the soundtrack to the She's The One film with four previously unreleased songs.

Steely Dan - Two Against Nature. Released for the first time on vinyl. 10,000 copies.

Joe Strummer - Junco Partner. Picture disc. 3,500 copies.

Toots & the Maytals - Funky Kingston. Split color disc release. 2,000 copies.

Ramones - Live at the Wireless Capitol Theatre, Sydney, Australia July 8 1980. 13,000 copies

Warren Zevon - Preludes. A first time on vinyl release culled from 126 unreleased tracks and alternate takes that originally was released on a 2 CD set in 2007. Six of the songs on this have never been previously released. Issued on sky blue vinyl and with a 20 page book. 3,000 copies.

Available July 17.

The Allman Brothers Band - The Last Note. Duale Allman's last concert with the ABB took place in Owings Mills. MD less than two weeks before the tragic motorcycle crash that took his life. 9,000 copies of the 8 song set with a recording of Stormy Monday from an Austin, Texas concert in 1971.

Canned Heat- Living The Blues. A long ago discontinued double album reappears as a French import. 2,500 copies.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Deja vu Alternates. A showcase of alternate versions of song that appeared on the original. 10,000 copies.

Dr. John - The Sun, Moon & Herbs 50th Anniversary. A triple lp expanded edition reissue of his 4th studio album. 3,000 copies.

Rory Gallagher - Cleveland Calling Pt. 2. A 7 song live set recorded at the Agoura in Cleveland for a radio broadcast. 2,500 copies.

The Jerry Garcia Band - Recorded live at the Warfield in San Francisco in 1990. A 5 lp set.

Grateful Dead - Olympia Theatre, Paris 5/3/1972. 6 lp set, 10,000 copies.

Ramones - Live at the Wireless Capitol Theatre, Sydney, Australia July 8 1980. 13,000 copies

Nick Mason used chunk of the money he earned from Dark Side of the Moon to fuel his other passion - exotic cars. The Pink Floyd Drummer bought a Ferrari GTO 250 and later offered the highly prized car as collateral to help his band secure funding to do its 1987 A Momentary Lapse of Reason Tour. The car, now valued at more than $55 million is an understandably special occasion auto. One came up when Mason got together with fellow gearhead Brian Johnson of AC/DC. Although he's an accomplished high horsepower driver himself, not even Brain could talk Nick into giving him a turn at the wheel.

The legal standoff between Neal Schon and Jonathan Caine and two former members of Journey has come to an end. The wrangling began when Schon and Cain ousted Ross Valory and Steve Smith amid allegations that the bassist and drummer were attempting to take over the rights to the band's name. In a February, 2020 board meeting of Nightmare Productions, a corporate entity associated with the group, a vote was taken to grant Valory and Smith the right to replace Schon and Caine as officers. That action prompted the guitarist and Cain to fire them from the band, which led to Valory countersuing Schon and Cain over his dismissal. The apparently amicable settlement has Schon and Cain crediting Valory and Smith for their part in Journey's musical legacy and wishing them musical success in the future.

Journey will go on with former bassist Rand Jackson replacing Valory and Narada Michael Walden taking Smith's place. A great kicker for the story would be Valory and Smith talking Steve Perry into joining them in a new band called Sojourn or something else similar to their now former band's name.

The Eagles are rolling out vinyl editions tomorrow (4/2) of 1980's Eagles Live, 2007's Long Road Out Of Eden, and The Millennium Concert, a 29 song performance recorded at the Staples Center in LA on New Year's Eve in 1999 that was previously packaged in the 2000 box set Selected Works 1972-1999 and 2018's career spanning Legacy box.