Many bands begin playing covers before they transition to playing their own songs. Tesla did just that when they began their musical journey over 40 years ago. The band has never been strangers to covering songs. And that is what brings us to their album “Homage” which is now available as of July 17, 2026. I had the chance to catch up with guitarist Frank Hannon to talk about the album.
We discussed the band’s history with covers. Frank also shared “I always advise young musicians to learn cover tunes and what turns you on, learn what turns you on about it, and then learn how to apply that to your own music.” Frank gives the credit for the album to bassist and manager Brian Wheat. “I want to give a lot of all the credit to Brian Wheat, man. This was his baby project that he wanted to produce. ““He had this concept and he wanted to produce this thing to pay homage to singers. Since we have what we feel with Jeff Keith, one of the most dynamic soulful lead singers in rock and roll and his ability at sixty-eight years old to still be able to sing so many different things. So, we wanted to pay homage not only to Jeff Keith, but to Freddie Mercury, Elvis Presley, James Brown, Hank Williams, Bob Seger, Ronnie Van Zant. I mean, the list goes crazy on this album.”
And yes, the band does cover all those artists on “Homage” and more. “And he was really throwing out some odd artists like Etta James is another one that we covered on there. Yeah. And it was his idea to do the Elvis Presley. And so, then I would interject the Bob Seger, the Ronnie Van Zant, or the Hank Williams. And so, we would present these artists to Jeff Keith because ultimately it has to be about Jeff Keith and how he feels about singing it.” I was particularly happy they decided to do The Temptations “I Wish It Would Rain.”
We really dug into what went into the choices and how the lyrics and the music were so important. Part of our conversation revolved around the respect for these songs that the band has. Some that Frank referred to as “Sacred ground” tunes. “We want to keep it true to the original out of honor and respect but then we add our own twist to it by blazing some guitars over it and cranking up some drums and and then when Jeff puts his vocal on it, it’s instantly Tesla-fied.” We got detailed about how the band broke the songs down to get to their essence, before building them into the versions you hear on “Homage.”
The album isn’t all covers though. Tesla gives us a new song of their own on this album, “Never Alone.” The song opens with an acoustic guitar, and Frank explained the connection of that acoustic guitar back to their hit “Love Song.”
Tesla is also out on the road with Motley Crue and Extreme for “The Return Of The Carnival Of Sins” tour. We had a chance to talk about what it’s like hitting the road playing real Rock N’ Roll without tracks and AI. Frank summed it up by saying “it’s edgy sometimes it’s a little rough but we have gotten it down pretty good as a team.”