JOSH TODD: Why BUCKCHERRY Covered BRYAN ADAMS's 'Summer Of 69'

Californian rockers BUCKCHERRY will release their tenth studio album, "Vol. 10", on June 2. The 11-song LP features 10 new BUCKCHERRY originals and, as a bonus track, a cover of the Bryan Adams classic "Summer Of 69". The album was produced by Marti Frederiksen and recorded at Sienna Studios in Nashville. The album will be released in North America by Round Hill Records, in Japan by Sony Japan, and by Earache Records for the rest of the world.

Asked in a new interview with Robert Cavuoto of Myglobalmind how BUCKCHERRY's cover of "Summer Of 69" came about, singer Josh Todd said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "That's a song we just pull out from time to time live, usually when we're just really tired and we really wanna just throw out a cover song; we don't do a lot of 'em. And our manager caught it one day, and he's, like, 'Wow! You guys do this so good. We've gotta record this song. This is so cool.'

"We're huge fans of Bryan Adams," he continued. "I think every band, when you're in the game of songwriting, you'll have those songs that you just wish you wrote yourself that aren't your songs, and that's one of those songs. I have loved that song since the '80s. It's just one of those songs, I'm, like, 'Fuck!' Every time I hear it, I'm, like, 'I wish I would have written this song. This song is perfect.' So that's why we recorded it. We sped it up a little bit, and you put my voice on it and all of a sudden it sounds like a really good BUCKCHERRY song.

"I think if a song could capture summer from the beginning to the end and everything you feel in summer, that's the song. That is the song that describes summer and youth and love and inspiration and being in a band and all those things. I mean, it's just such a cool song in that regard. And because it's so well written, you can slow it down and it's still great, you can speed it up and it's still great, you can leave it where it's at and it's great. It's just one of those songs."

"So I'm really pleased with it," Todd added. "It just kind of jumped off. And everybody loved it — our label and our team — so we put it on at the end. It was gonna be just a bonus track, but there's no such thing as bonus tracks anymore."

Last August, BUCKCHERRY announced that Todd and guitarist Stevie Dacanay would head to Nashville in late September to finish the writing process for the band's tenth studio album. The band was scheduled to begin recording the effort on November 4, 2022.

Frederiksen previously produced 2021's "Hellbound" as well as BUCKCHERRY's fourth album, "Black Butterfly", and co-wrote "Sorry", among other songs, with the band.

In the summer of 2020, BUCKCHERRY recruited JETBOY's Billy Rowe as its new guitarist. He joined the group as the replacement for Kevin Roentgen, who left BUCKCHERRY in July of that year.

In 2019, BUCKCHERRY enlisted Francis Ruiz as its new drummer. He joined the group as the replacement for Sean Winchester, who exited BUCKCHERRY after laying down the drum tracks on "Warpaint".

After performing 238 shows in support of "Hellbound", the band has hit the road in support of "Vol. 10". Touring kicked off on March 9 in Bowler, Wisconsin, co-headlining with SKID ROW.

BUCKCHERRY burst on to the scene in 1999 with its now-classic self-titled debut album. Hit singles "Lit Up", "For The Movies", "Dead Again" and "Check Your Head" brought the celebration back to the party scene, recalling the gritty glam impact of MÖTLEY CRÜE but with a Gen X-demanded, modern self-awareness. Later albums continued to develop their reputation for volatile, mercurial themes and infectious hooks; such singles as "Crazy Bitch", "Everything", "Too Drunk" and "All Night Long" became screaming choruses for fans across the world. With their irreverent and bawdy lyrics, delivered with Todd's whisky weathered vocals, paired with filthy guitar riffs and high-energy, throbbing bass lines, BUCKCHERRY has sustained a hard-earned reputation as a not-to-be-missed live presence with regular touring schedules alongside such legends as MÖTLEY CRÜE and PAPA ROACH.