Classic Rock News And Views
July 26, 2010
Aerosmith Tour Continues Despite Another Close Call
The legendary rock and roll band, Aerosmith, seems to have created quite the buzz over the last year or so as rumors spread about upcoming shows and tours, as well as Steven Tyler’s loyalty to the band. The band had a fallout with lead singer Tyler, forcing him to take a short hiatus from the band.
During Tyler’s absence Joe Perry, lead guitarist, knew it wouldn’t be long until the iconic songwriter would return. Despite this knowledge, he was seriously considering a new singer to honor commitments to shows the band had booked for 2010.
When an outcry from the fans occurred, Perry reassured his fan base that if they did recruit a new singer, that it would only be temporary for jamming sessions and the upcoming shows. With some fans in arms about the situation, many claimed it would not be Aerosmith. Perry retaliated with the following statement: “ Well, no s***. You don’t have to tell me that. But who knows what could have come of it?”
Tyler eventually returned after some time spent in rehab for a painkiller addiction. He also made a statement regarding the feud that the band suffered through: “It was a real trying time for me. We (Perry and I) didn’t speak to each other for a while… and Joe just decided to look for another singer. I don’t know what he was thinking, but we’ve since made amends to each other and, more importantly, the band’s playing better.”
Perry recently bragged about the new energy the band has since reconnecting with Tyler, but there have been rumors circulating that he is getting ready to retire, just as they begin their 2010 tour. Perry claims he’s seen everything there is to see in the rock and roll world, and he’s finally growing tired of the life style. This statement reveals his feelings about his rock and roll life: “There are times I just want to get the f*** out of this because I’ve done it all. I’ve been going long enough to prove what I wanted to prove, to get the girl I wanted to get, to make the money I wanted to make, to drink all the beer I wanted to drink.” This statement may suggest that the guitarist is satisfied with his career and has fulfilled all his personal needs and desires, which is more than a lot of us can say.
Aerosmith has been through it all, enduring more than its fair share of trials and tribulations, and perhaps destiny is trying to get them to hang up the towel after Perry’s recent motorcycle mishap.
Perry was riding his new Ducati near his home in Massachusetts when a motorist behind the wheel of a sedan rear-ended the bike at 30-35 MPH and Perry ended up on the pavement with a severely damaged bike. Miraculously, Perry was mostly unharmed but was checked out at a local hospital as a precaution. He considers himself really lucky after not sustaining any serious injuries. The driver was charged with following too close, which may not be surprising to anyone who has spent any time driving in Massachusetts.
Despite their ups and downs, the rockers live on and have brought their “Cocked, Locked, Ready to Rock” tour to North America, starting it off with a show in Oakland, CA Friday night.
See more at Fox 23 News and Canoe.ca.
July 21, 2010
Guitar Hero Brings Rush’s 2112 Onboard
Good news today for Rush fans who enjoy a game of “Guitar Hero” now and then. It was recently announced that Rush’s ever-popular 2112 will be featured in the popular console game.
As if “Guitar Hero” wasn’t popular enough, this new release brings a legendary classic rock band to the table as the 2112 opus is added to the game, something that will surely have Rush fans scrambling to give this one a try.
I have never actually played “Guitar Hero,” but have heard enough about it from diehard fans of the game to assume that any aspiring musician would love to give it a shot, despite its lack of real guitar playing realism.
The game will combine classic and modern rock with an adventure-type game mode, which includes the objective of locating “the lost guitar” in the caves of 2112. “Guitar Hero” brings a unique game play experience by combining these two genres to attract fans of the musical and adventurous gaming audience.
Geddy Lee, lead singer of Rush made this statement: “In our story, the caves of 2112 are where our hero finds the lost guitar and this rediscovery of music is much like the Guitar Hero warriors’ journey to find the Demi-God of Rock’s Legendary guitar, which has been trapped in a cavern.”
The final stage of the game will be narrated by Lee himself along with their guitarist Alex Lifeson, who also made his own statement, “I love the idea of “Guitar Hero;” they have combined two great things – music and fun. I think it’s a great way to introduce people of all ages to music of various styles by all kinds of different bands, while providing a launching pad for kids who want to get into playing music.” The rest of the game will be narrated by Gene Simmons of KISS.
Rush is obviously not the only artist that will be featured in the new “Guitar Hero.” The following bands will also make an appearance: Black Sabbath, Foo Fighters, Queen, KISS, Slipknot, Muse and ZZ Top.
So far it looks as if this “Guitar Hero” will top its previous titles, since it features more songs than any “Guitar Hero” already in circulation. Megadeth will also be recording a new song exclusively for the new title.
The game will also feature eight playable characters that you can control throughout your quest to reach the 2112 caves and retrieve the lost guitar.
The new title, “Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock” is set to hit the shelves on September 28, 2010. Fans should keep an eye out for any new updates until the release in the meanwhile.
Def Leppard Decides It’s Time For A Break
With all that’s been going on with 80’s rock veterans Def Leppard, it’s understandable that they feel the time has come to take a break. The group recently announced that they will be taking a year off to decompress. The group ended up cancelling a number of shows last year due to “unforeseen personal matters,” which sparked rumors that the group may be splitting up.
Frontman Joe Elliott explained their decision to take a break by saying, “After you have a hit like Hysteria and you’re signed to the corporate machine it becomes an albatross around your neck. As much as our music is anthemic rock’n’roll it’s a business at the end of the day. It’s stressful and gets harder each time you make a record. No one’s comparing this to Hysteria, it’s got nothing to do with it. It’s a refreshing change. It’s like being a teenager in a 50-year-old body.”
I won’t say I cannot relate to that last sentence!
Beyond the stress thing, it seems that the boys in the band have plenty of other things on their plate. Elliott is involved in a Mott The Hoople cover band called Down ’n’ Outz, and is also expanding his experience in business by partnering with NeXplore Corporation and signing on to the company’s board of advisors.
The NeXplore Search site (www.NeXplore.com), which will partner with DefLeppard.com, is described as “an interactive and visually engaging Web 2.0 search engine optimized for a superior end-user experience, multi-media display and social sharing integration.”
With the flood of social media sites on the internet these days and the lousy state of the economy, it may seen like a risky proposition to take a shot at producing the next FaceBook, but I suppose anything is possible. The market will usually reward innovation and good ideas that are deserving.
Joe Elliott is not the only band member who has been making news. Guitarist Phil Collen was recently married to 42-year-old Helen Simmons. Collen, 52, met the movie costume maker bride while Def Leppard was on tour last year.
Collen, who has reportedly been sober for some twenty years, arranged a ceremony in Florida that remained true to his goals and passions. Raspberry tea and cucumber lemonade were served up for guests, and since Collen is also known as a pretty serious animal rights advocate, the majority of the food offered was vegan.
Not wanting to ruin the party for those that chose to indulge with adult beverage, they made sure the option was available. “We just wanted to make everyone happy, including ourselves,” Collen was quoted as saying prior to the start of the ceremony. “We went alcohol-free, but we made sure the bar was not too far!”
July 19, 2010
Show Review: Bret Michaels, Lynyrd Skynyrd and .38 Special
To say that this has been an interesting year for Bret Michaels is about the understatement of this new century. The Celebrity Apprentice winning artist, who accomplished this feat while suffering a brain hemorrhage and a minor stroke which very nearly took his life, kept his commitment to the Lynyrd Skynyrd tour.
I was fortunate enough to attend the show at the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA and view his set from back stage followed by a meet and greet on the Poison front man’s tour bus. While inside folks at the concert said they thought Bret was about 80% to 85% at the time, he was animated and energetic as he took the stage and he fed off the crowd’s
enthusiasm for his entire 10 song set.
.38 Special opened up the concert with a medley of hits to get the crowd warmed up including “Teacher, Teacher” and “Hold On Loosely.” The crowd was made up of a good 50/50 split of men and women, with a good many of them wearing Poison shirts to show their support. With drinks in hand and well worn 80’s rock shirts showing all that they could, Michaels took the stage and the appreciation of the crowd was awesome.
He did not disappoint them either, performing “Talk Dirty To Me” to start off the set. His new CD Custom Built was due in stores in about 5 days and performed a song from the upcoming debut “What I Got” a cover of the Sublime hit and did it justice.
As is customary for a Michaels show, he dedicated “Something to Believe In” to the troops, and with it being close to the 4th of July, the song seemed to hit closer to home with the crowd as all were waving American Flags that were passed out as you entered.
He took a little break during the drum solo and came back out strong with “Every Rose Has It’s Thorn”, the rocking hit “Fallen Angel” and nailed the encore with “Nothing But A Good Time”. The cheering of the crowd reached epic levels when afterwards he thanked everyone for the support over the last 23-plus years and especially over the last few months. 
There was sincerity in his voice as only a near death experience can bring.
After the show during the meet and greet, I was able to speak with him for a very short time one on one. He said that in spite of everyone, family, doctors, specialists, etc., telling him not to go back out on the road, he wanted to do it and let everyone know he was OK and show how much he appreciated the fans support.
He took time to sign every bit of memorabilia the fans brought and made a special point to have security let in some National Guardsman who were at the concert. After spending the hour on stage and then another 3-plus hours signing and taking pictures, he came back out and made special time to give them a chance for a picture and autograph.
Been a fan of Poison and Bret’s music for many years, and Bret Michaels just helped my validation to others for being a fan of the person too. I also want to give a special shout to Tattoo Tony and Cousin Bob for making the event ROCK!!!
July 15, 2010
Micki Free Keeps The ‘Classic’ In Rock and Roll
If you’re wondering who the heck Micki Free is, don’t feel bad. I was wondering the same thing when a message landed in my in-box a little over a week ago announcing that this guitar wild man was releasing a new album on July 20th. As I usually do, I expected another unoriginal rock act, but I always take some time to give just about everything a listen, so I downloaded the promotional copy of the album a couple of days ago.
I’m happy to report that I was wrong again. I can say without reservation that Free’s new album, American Horse blew me away! Free, a bit of a rarity in the rock world is a Native American guitarist that has been on the scene for a while, but his was not a name I recognized.
Born in West Texas, he spent much of his childhood in Europe where his father was serving in the U.S. Army. It was during those years that he discovered rock music and decided which direction his love of rock would take him in. “I wasn’t a Beatles guy,” Free admits. “I dug the Beatles, but I heard Hendrix and Cream and the Stones and that was it. I’m more of a bad-boy guy, I guess.”
Upon returning to the U.S. during his teen years, Free formed a band called Smokehouse and did pretty well by landing gigs with Ted Nugent, Rush, REO Speedwagon and KISS. Gene Simmons was so impressed with Free that he suggested that he look Simmons up if he ever found himself out in the Los Angeles area.
Free did indeed head west in 1979 and connected with Simmons, which resulted in the opportunity to tour with Diana Ross – then Simmons’ girlfriend – as manager. Upon completion of the tour, Free was offered a spot in Shalamar which he accepted at the urging of Simmons. Shalamar went on to win a Grammy for "Don’t Get Stopped in Beverly Hills" from the Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack in 1986.
Following his time with Shalamar, Free worked with Jean Beauvoir, LA & Babyface, Queen’s Roger Taylor, Tony Thompson of Chic, and former Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin.
Oddly enough, the full extent of Free’s fame was not realized until he was featured on an episode of comedian David Chappelle’s TV show where he was featured in a skit where he was mistaken for a woman due to his long hair and good looks. From the episode a sort of catch phrase was born: “Micki Free is not a girl!”
“I became infamous overnight,” Free says.
As for the album itself, as I eluded to earlier, this one really took me by storm. Free rips on guitar with the best of them and even takes on the Hendrix classic “Voodoo Chile,” which was also covered by the legendary Stevie Ray Vaughan. There’s also some bluesy stuff and a ballad thrown in for good measure, but for the most part, American Horse just rocks.
I sometimes have a difficult time picking out a favorite track from an album but this one jumped right out at me the first time I heard it. Track 3, “Hey Baby (New Rising Sun),” another Hendrix cover, is clean, well-executed and and has a tempo that just resonates with me.
Another cool thing about this is album is that it features drummer Cindy Blackman, and yes, Cindy is indeed a girl! I have not been impressed by many female drummers but Blackman holds her own and then some. I guess the testosterone thing always seemed like an integral part of the drumming experience to me, but if Blackman is packing any extra male hormones, you couldn’t tell by looking at her!
Obviously, Hendrix fans may have good reason to check this out, but even though I’ve never been that into Hendrix (perhaps I should have been!), I think this is one of those rare new albums that is going to wind up in my regular rotation.
I think Free echoes what a lot of us are thinking these days when he says, “To me, rock ‘n’ roll is dead as we know it; there’s some cool music out there, but it’s not rock ‘n’ roll, classic stuff like we used to know–Zep, Hendrix, Cream, all of that. That’s what I do. My heart is in rock ‘n’ roll, and that’s what’s on this album.”
American Horse is available for pre-order on Amazon.com
