The Best Thing You'll Read This Year: 5 From the Archive

One of the great benefits of TeamRock+ is the ability for us to delve into the archives of the Classic Rock/Metal Hammer/Prog family and re-publish classic stories. Here are five stories from our back pages handpicked by Archive Editor Malcolm Dome.

The night The Who’s Keith Moon drove his car into a swimming pool

Keith Moon Takes A Car For A Swim (from Classic Rock 175)

One of the legendary stories of rock is discussed at length by eyewitnesses. Johnny Black just lets the story tell itself. The beauty is that you get conflicting accounts, which makes the myth even stronger.

Deep Purple - The Last Days Of The Tastemakers

Deep Purple – Last Days Of The Tastemakers (Classic Rock issue 58)

Geoff Barton draws on his first hand experiences with Deep Purple in America and England to give a clear, lucid account not only on how the band were falling apart, but also of his reaction at the time as a youthful writer.

L.A. Woman And The Last Days Of Jim Morrison

The Doors: LA Woman And The Last Days Of Jim Morrison (Classic Rock, issue 148)

Max Bell delves into what happened when Morrison moved to Paris. He does a fine job filtering out the myth, and getting close to the truth. At the end, you do feel like you have a greater knowledge of the period.

Megadeth: Meet The Real Dave Mustaine

Megadave: Meet The Real Me (Metal Hammer, issue 226)

Dom Lawson meets Dave Mustaine and actually does get beneath the skin. The feature heading is the truth. This is Dave Mustaine, not allowed to hide and brush aside awkward subjects. Dom shows how to make an interviewee feel comfortable enough to open up.

ARCHIVE: Rock In Rio, 1985

Rock In Rio, 1985 (Classic Rock, issue 26)

Mick Wall colourfully looks back at the huge festival. It isn’t just an eyewitness account, but he actually recounts being heavily involved in the craziness of the time. Not a misty eyed nostalgia trip, but something a little grittier – and more sybaritic.

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Scott Rowley
Content Director, Music

Scott is the Content Director of Music at Future plc, responsible for the editorial strategy of online and print brands like Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer, Prog, Guitarist, Guitar World, Guitar Player, Total Guitar etc. He was Editor in Chief of Classic Rock magazine for 10 years and Editor of Total Guitar for 4 years and has contributed to The Big Issue, Esquire and more. Scott wrote chapters for two of legendary sleeve designer Storm Thorgerson's books (For The Love Of Vinyl, 2009, and Gathering Storm, 2015). He regularly appears on Classic Rock’s podcast, The 20 Million Club, and was the writer/researcher on 2017’s Mick Ronson documentary Beside Bowie