“War Machine” and “Rock and Roll Hell” are the two tracks on a special double A-side single that Bryan Adams is releasing on his new independent label, Bad Records. Adams, Jim Vallance, and Gene Simmons wrote the original versions of these songs for KISS’s Creatures of the Night album in 1982.
A limited edition double A-side 7″ single that will only be sold on Bryan’s website is now available for pre-order; it will be released on August 30, 2024.
Another significant announcement has been made by the guy known for his spine-tingling growl, which can be heard on epic rock anthems like “Everything I Do (I Do It For You),” “Run To You,” and “Summer of ’69.”
Bryan, who has spent more than 40 years in the music business, is launching Bad Records, his own record company.
Adams released two songs, “War Machine” and “Rock and Roll Hell,” to commemorate the start of a new chapter in his career.
The music video for “Rock and Roll Hell,” which was shot above London’s Royal Albert Hall, where Bryan wrapped off his residency earlier this year, is available to stream.
Both singles in fact date way back to 1982, before Bryan Adams became the household name we’ve all grown to love.
They were both co-written by Adams, Jim Vallance, and KISS’ bass player Gene Simmons, as the songs were intended to feature on the make-up-laden rocker’s 1982 album, Creatures Of The Night.
The ‘All For Love’ singer shared a statement reflecting on how the songs came into being, long before he became a superstar who topped charts in over 40 countries, won a Grammy Award, and was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
“To commemorate the first single on Bad Records, here are two songs I co-wrote when I was a 22-year-old struggling songwriter,” he revealed.
“I got a call out of the blue from producer Michael James Jackson to see if I would like to write for KISS, which I was thrilled to do, and these are a couple of the songs that were the result, written with both Gene Simmons and Jim Vallance.”
“While sitting with the band,” he continued, “Gene played me this fantastic bass riff, which ended up being the backbone of ‘War Machine’.”
“I was trying to think of a theme that could possibly match the riff and came up with the title. Seeing as the other song we’d written was about hell, War was the obvious theme to coincide with it.”
“I proposed that we rework Jim’s song, ‘Rock and Roll Hell,’ which was actually released with Bachman Turner Overdrive a few years prior, for KISS,” Bryan continued.
“It’s incredible to think these themes are unfortunately still playing out for real in the world today, but I’m very grateful to the KISS guys for giving me the chance back then.”
Following his collaborations with the rock ‘n’ roll icons, Adams’ own career took off, particularly after his 1983 album Cuts Like A Knife made it to the US top ten and his subsequent album Reckless performed even better.
What better moment to reignite his love for after having had some time to reflect and launch his own record label?
