Weezer Name New Bassist

Weezer has named Scott Shriner their bass player for their upcoming tour. The news follows the announcement that regular bassist Mikey Welsh had checked into a psychiatric hospital in Boston for undisclosed reasons.

Welsh had previously stated that he would be taking a leave of absence for a "private medical condition" but was expected to rejoin band mates -- vocalist/guitarist Rivers Cuomo, guitarist Brian Bell and drummer Patrick Wilson -- in Los Angeles for their most recent video shoot of "Island in the Sun." Welsh did not make trip back to California and the video shoot went on without him.

Weezer's tour with openers Cold kicks off on September 11th in San Jose, California. The band is also planning a European tour for October.

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Song Stories

“All Along the Watchtower”

The Jimi Hendrix Experience | 1968

Jimi Hendrix got hold of Bob Dylan's early John Wesley Harding tapes and in late 1967 recorded a version of "All Along the Watchtower" with the Experience in London. Dissatisfied with that first development, Hendrix brought those tapes with him to New York in early 1968 when he began work on Electric Ladyland. Eddie Kramer, Hendrix's engineer at the time, told Rolling Stone that Hendrix "was still looked upon by his basically white audience as the mammoth black guitar hero. There was a constant fight within him to expand himself." Hendrix's successful take on Dylan's work has long been recognized by the songwriter. "I liked Jimi Hendrix's record of this and ever since he died I've been doing it that way," Dylan wrote in the liner notes to his Biograph box set. "Strange how when I sing it, I always feel it's a tribute to him in some kind of way."

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