Real Rock Today: September 30, 2015
Everyone does their best for a great show, says Bon Jovi drummer Tico Torres
They band is named after the lead singer, but stadium rockers Bon Jovi are no solo act.
Drummer Tico Torres and keyboardist David Bryan have been part of the group since its inception in 1983. They say they never felt overshadowed by their charismatic frontman.
“Bon Jovi has always felt like a band to me,” Torres says. “Jon is the frontman and he is absolutely great at doing that, but that never took away from the fact that it is a band.”
David Lee Roth Sounded Awful at the Van Halen Concert Last Night
There was no amount of banter, bad jokes, costume changes, or iconic rock songs that could save anyone with the last name Van Halen from lead singer David Lee Roth last night at Ak-Chin Pavilion. From the opening notes of “Light Up the Sky” the flamboyant frontman never stood a chance vocally, and it really made you wonder why the Van Halen brothers would tarnish the band’s legacy by allowing Roth to embarrass them night after night. Guitar hero Eddie Van Halen could do nothing more than smile all night. Roth was unable to do his signature screams and squeals or keep rhythm during “Running With The Devil,” and it was only two songs into the show fans knew it was going to be a long night. The lack of production and energy from the band didn’t help either during the 23-song set as the show dragged on. Roth’s attempts at humor in between songs disrupted the tempo of the show on many occasions. At one point he referenced his favorite rock star moves performed by Bon Jovi and Bono from U2 and told the crowd, “I’ve never met a Van Halen crowd that wasn’t three steps ahead of my punch lines.”
Why everybody still wants some Van Halen in 2015
Tell people you’re going to see Van Halen in 2015 and you get a litany of reasons why you are throwing good money away for a bad bill of goods. David Lee Roth can’t sing anymore. No one in the band gets along. The Michael Anthony harmonies are sorely missed. Alex looks like Francis the Talking Mule. You get a ton of reasons why emotionally and mathematically 2015 is no longer 1984.
AC/DC salutes those who came to rock at Dodger Stadium
We begin as any discussion of AC/DC should: with a thought experiment.
Last week, as part of her continuing effort to prove she knows everyone in show business, Taylor Swift invited Mick Jagger to join her for a rendition of the Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” at her concert in Nashville. The result, by all accounts, was a gas-gas-gas, with Swift doing her shock-and-awe thing in the presence of a legend and Jagger clearly relishing the booster shot of pop relevance.
Now imagine that instead of Jagger, Swift brought out the frontman of the world’s other great legacy rock act, Brian Johnson, to do AC/DC’s “Big Balls.”
Take your time – I’ll be here when you’re finished scoffing.
Bon Jovi: The secret to a rock n roll career
You know a band is big when they name a box set 100,000,000 Bon Jovi Fans Can’t Be Wrong — and it’s not them being ironic. The band that began life in New Jersey in 1983 are huge and when I say huge, I mean properly huge. There is not a stadium they couldn’t fill or not a record shop that wouldn’t stock one of their albums.
When I got to speak to Tico Torres and David Bryant of the band, I knew I was talking to two individuals who have been there and done it. I needed a line of questioning that would give me some rock n roll stories.
