Mick Wall

Exhausted and near breaking point, Black Sabbath were hardly ready to start a new album. But with Tony Iommi doing the heavy lifting and a mountain of narcotics fuelling the slog, they ended up with the classic Vol 4

Mad time changes, dark imagery and oblique lyrical references – but was it inspired by a bad drug trip?

Thirty years of hard-rocking, blues’n’funk alchemy has earned golden-throated bassist Glenn Hughes a place at the top table of British rock - and these are his best albums

Megadeth's Peace Sells... is a cast-iron classic three decades on. Hammer goes back in time get a startling vision of the man behind the madness and music...

Metallica's One single cemented their status as one of the greatest metal bands in the world – here's the story of how it came to life

Settle in for an epic tale in Rio De Janeiro as Iron Maiden, Ozzy and Queen and more play the first ever Rock In Rio festival - as MIck Wall tries to drink their rider

Just your everyday tale of the first (and probably last) anti-drug festival behind the Iron Curtain, with Bon Jovi, Scorpions, Ozzy Osbourne, Cinderalla and Skid Row

Almost every obituary of Syd Barrett claimed he was a ‘mad genius’. But the truth is far more complex. Classic Rock looks behind the clichés for a glimpse of the real Syd...

At the start of 1987, Metallica were teetering on the edge of a crisis – until they knocked out a cheaply recorded EP of covers

From his stubborn individuality to his taste in music, Metallica’s Cliff Burton was a true one-off

Metallica's 1988 album was their step up to the big leagues. But things would never be the same again

In 1989, the Red Hot Chili Peppers were reeling from the death of their guitarist. But the album they were about to make would change everything

As Earth they were going nowhere. Then they chanced on three notes which in the Middle Ages had been branded ‘the devil’s interval’, changed their name to Black Sabbath and changed everything

With stalling sales and an unsupportive label, there was only one thing left for AC/DC to do: rock. Harder than ever before.

35 years ago this week, The Cult left behind the post-punk scene, and reappeared with straight-out rock album Electric. They helped spark a revolution in the process

Led Zeppelin were ready to begin another huge US tour – then disaster struck. But out of the chaos rose Presence, an album Jimmy Page considers one of their best

Thin Lizzy were on the road to nowhere when they recorded a dusty old folk tune titled Whiskey In The Jar, intended as a B-side. Result: a 70s classic

In 1977, AC/DC were on the rocks. The fans had deserted them, the media was crucifying them and even Bon Scott wasn’t safe from being fired. It was make or break time

In 2021 Francis Rossi continued his marathon spoken-word tour around the UK, and Classic Rock's Mick Wall was alongside him every step of the way

AC/DC were at the top of their game, but their singer was heading down a dangerous path. His last show was on January 27, 1980, and just three weeks later he was dead

An excerpt from Mick Wall's book Two Riders Were Approaching: The Life & Death of Jimi Hendrix

How did AC/DC follow the globe-conquering success of Back In Black? With For Those About To Rock, and great difficulty

Ginger Wildheart's story tells of growing up with violence, escaping into the redemptive arms of rock’n’roll, and going on to become a prolific and acclaimed songwriter

After their multi-million-selling album Permanent Vacation, it was time for Aerosmith to go one bigger. They stepped up to the plate, swung hard and hit a home run with Pump