Articles by Dave Ling, News/Lives Editor, Classic Rock

Dave Ling was a co-founder of Classic Rock magazine. His words have appeared in a variety of music publications, including RAW, Kerrang!, Metal Hammer, Prog, Rock Candy, Fireworks and Sounds. Dave’s life was shaped in 1974 through the purchase of a copy of Sweet’s album ‘Sweet Fanny Adams’, along with early gig experiences from Status Quo, Rush, Iron Maiden, AC/DC, Yes and Queen. As a lifelong season ticket holder of Crystal Palace FC, he is completely incapable of uttering the word ‘Br***ton’.

Articles by: Dave Ling

"We haven’t adjusted it for the taste of modern kids. This is how it's meant to be heard": An interview with the makers of Becoming Led Zeppelin

By Dave Ling published 7 April 25

As Becoming Led Zeppelin continues to take the world by storm, we talk to the duo who put it all together

Jimmy Bain posing for a photograph in 1975

“If somebody offered me something I’d take it first and ask afterwards what it was. I’d swallow a pill and have to be carried back to my room”: The life and death of Jimmy Bain, the bassist who brought the rock’n’roll to Rainbow and Dio

By Dave Ling published 6 April 25

They don’t make them like the late, great Jimmy Bain any more

"I'm not a dictator. I'm a good king": Tobias Sammet on the democracy of Avantasia, the late Tony Clarkin, and whispering Bruce Dickinson

By Dave Ling published 2 April 25

With some big names in the studio and on the tour bus, Here Be Dragons continues Avantasia's all-star journey

A beginner's guide to Sweet in 10 brilliant songs, from chart hits to deep cuts

By Dave Ling published 1 April 25

The Sweet are best known for their pop hits, but their back catalogue is a varied treasure trove of glam and hard rock. Here are their 10 finest moments

"The thing about rock, if it’s real, is that it will always be relevant": Kula Shaker's Crispian Mills on mass psychosis and the best way to solve writer's block

By Dave Ling published 1 April 25

Kula Shaker's current tour ends in May, and you might hear some brand-new songs from the next album

"There's not a doubt in my mind that when I'm gone that song will live on forever": Dee Snider on the Twisted Sister song that transcended its era

By Dave Ling published 1 April 25

We're Not Gonna Take It had a long and difficult birth, but the song Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider predicted would become a “monster” is reportedly now the most licensed song in heavy metal history

"The haters won’t stop us from doing what we do": Geoff Downes on Asia's new lineup and the band's future plans

By Dave Ling published 28 March 25

The Geoff Downes-led new lineup of Asia play the band’s first three albums, one per night, in April

Steve Hillage posing for a photograph in the 1970s

“The conservatism of what’s called progressive rock these days appals me”: The life and times of Steve Hillage, the maverick guitarist who helped shape the sound of prog

By Dave Ling published 22 March 25

Steve Hillage was one of the architects of 70s prog

"I don't know how we did it. Well, I do actually. We snorted a lot of cocaine": Elkie Brooks looks back on wild times with Vinegar Joe and six decades of rock'n'roll

By Dave Ling published 21 March 25

Catch British singer Elkie Brooks on her farewell tour after more than half a century at the microphone

“I used to go to the Camden Palace and drink with Boy George. I loved Culture Club”: How Ian Gillan put Deep Purple behind him and launched a new chapter of his career with Gillan

By Dave Ling published 10 March 25

Ian Gillan reinvented himself as a NWOBHM-era star with Gillan

The Heavy Metal Kids posing for a photograph in 1974

“John Bonham was at the bar drinking quadruple brandies. He just turned around and whacked Gary in the stomach”: The crazed tale of the Heavy Metal Kids, the cult rock’n’roll hooligans with a tragic TV star singer

By Dave Ling published 9 March 25

The Heavy Metal Kids were the missing link between David Bowie and AC/DC

Ronnie Romero and his band posing for a photograph

“People think of Ritchie as an angry, unfriendly guy, and that’s not him. I knew him when he was in a very good place”: Ronnie Romero has sung for Ritchie Blackmore and Michael Schenker and lived to tell the tale

By Dave Ling published 6 March 25

When rock’s most ‘difficult’ guitarists need a singer, it’s Ronnie Romero they hit up

Graham Gouldman posing for a photograph in 2025

“A 10cc reunion? It’s a hard no to that, I’m afraid”: Why Graham Gouldman is one of Britain’s greatest songwriters – even if people don’t know it

By Dave Ling published 5 March 25

The former 10cc man has written for The Yardbirds, The Hollies and more – and now he’s taking his songs on the road

"If you can live through the dinosaur period, you become a legend": The albums by Nazareth you should listen to... and one to avoid

By Dave Ling published 28 February 25

Although never rock A-listers, enduring Scots Nazareth have a recorded catalogue peppered with timeless bluesy rock gems. These are their best albums

“All anyone wanted to hear was awful new wave garbage like Elvis Costello and The Police. Rock groups like ours were strangled us to death”: The rise and fall of Starz, the 70s rockers who should been the next Kiss

By Dave Ling published 23 February 25

Starz were one of 70s rock’s greatest near misses

“A fan said the teaser was 36 seconds long and already better than The Astonishing… another said they already knew they wouldn’t buy it. You’ve got to love that stuff”: When Dream Theater slimmed down for Distance Over Time

By Dave Ling published 22 February 25

The prog metal giants’ sleek, super-powerful 14th album was a conscious move away from its complex, opinion-splitting predecessor

"The lyrics were hastily written in the pub, hence the fact that it lacked a final verse": Recorded in secret, Sweet's Fox On The Run was given a second life by the Guardians Of The Galaxy

By Dave Ling published 21 February 25

Recorded while their regular songwriters were away, Fox On The Run gave Sweet a huge hit and a song that would never go away

“I don’t believe I have to forgive them. They replaced me when I was sick. They even said I had ruined the band”: Styx fired Dennis DeYoung in 1999, but he still wants a reunion for the fans

By Dave Ling published 18 February 25

Co-founding singer and keyboardist on his prog influences, hiring a shouting woman to conserve his voice, taking a rock-is-dead approach to his final solo albums – and why he doesn’t care if he isn’t remembered

“I’ve always wanted to be in a metal band… Pantera and Dream Theater are great”: Carl Palmer on his desire for a life beyond classic prog, the final ELP show, and why he wishes they’d had a guitarist

By Dave Ling published 13 February 25

After Emerson Lake & Palmer’s High Voltage concert, the drummer shared his thoughts on his former bandmates and pondered an unfulfilled ambition

“For some Journey fans, it’s their first time listening to prog rock. And they like it!” Ross Valory is pleasantly surprised at the success of his debut solo album

By Dave Ling published 10 February 25

Bassist recalls the AOR giants’ progressive early years and explains why he thinks the genre is getting stronger all the time

"The business has changed so much, and not for the better": Uriah Heep's Mick Box on why he's calling time on Uriah Heep as a touring act

By Dave Ling published 5 February 25

Veteran rockers Uriah Heep are saying farewell to the road, but it’s not the end of the band

"There was a rumour that I had a secret underground water park in my backyard": Papa Roach's Jacoby Shaddix on overnight success, the path to sobriety and the nu metal resurgence

By Dave Ling published 4 February 25

Papa Roach are about to bring their biggest-ever show to the UK and Jacoby Shaddix still has something to prove

"We all went to visit him in hospital. And he was still wearing his cowboy hat": The crazed story of The Quireboys, the band who had it all then partied it all away

By Dave Ling published 23 January 25

They've got a ballsy singer and catchy songs. Sharon Osbourne was their manager, Guns N' Roses were their mates. So why aren’t The Quireboys living in mansions?

"It's only afterwards that you realise, 'Hey, Kayak could really have been something'": the story of the Dutch proggers and their 2018 album Seventeen

By Dave Ling published 12 January 25

When Dutch prog rock legends Kayak released album number Seventeen, longstanding keyboard player Ton Scherpenzeel looked back and pondered what might have been

"That song has been my passport, my bank manager and my lover down through the years": Cutting Crew's Nick Van Eede on (I Just) Died In Your Arms, gangster rap and Tanzanian bandits

By Dave Ling published 10 January 25

Not-one-hit-wonders Cutting Crew are about to celebrate their 40th anniversary

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