Alice Cooper – Billion Dollar Babies Here comes the part where the preacher’s son grows up to become a global phenomenon as a shock-rock singer and musician who dearly wants his rockstar character to be elected to public office. He dreams up and produces one of the first story-line promo videos on MTV. The project is deemed a success and the game of music promotion suddenly […]
Backtracks: Deep Purple – Who Do We Think We Are
In 1972 Deep Purple was recognized by The Guinness Book of World Records as being the “globe’s loudest band” when a concert at the London Rainbow Theatre reached a volume of 117 dB. Three audience members were ultimately rendered unconscious. So, in answer to the album title, “The World’s Loudest Band” for starters. And we realize that this release is probably not the first thing […]
Body of Work
It happened to Zappa – twice! In December of ’71, at the Montreux Casino in Switzerland, “some stupid with a flare gun” fired into the ceiling during his gig and the entire building burnt to the ground. And, yep, there was ‘Smoke on the Water’. A week later, an on-stage intruder pushed Zappa into the orchestra pit where he was severely, almost fatally, injured. With a […]
The Classic Rock Achievement Medal
We put some thought into the recent announcement of nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, and we have concluded that the organization has truly lost touch with rock music fans. The nominee list for the current year includes “disco pioneers Chic, which performed this summer at Chula Vista’s Sleep Train Amphitheater. This marks the 11th time Chic have been on the ballot, a […]
Box of Rocks Finest on Television
The Dawn of the Couch Potato In spring of 1974 did you skip school to watch Kiss on The Mike Douglas show? I did, and I know that others around my age did likewise. My mom found out, called me a “truant hippie”, made me do extra chores. It was worth it. American television contributed to the growth of rock and roll in the form […]
Backtracks: Steve Miller Band – Book Of Dreams
In the Steve Miller book of dreams there may be a chapter about his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame being placed at the world-famous intersection of Hollywood and Vine, right in front of the iconic Capitol Records building. As a youngster growing up in Milwaukee, Miller took a liking to music due to his mother, Bertha, a talented, jazz-influenced singer. His father was a physician and […]
Houses of the Holy: Six Famous Rock Music Venues
In the basement of Apple Corps Ltd. headquarters in London, Alan Parsons manned two eight-track recorders. Six floors above him, on the roof, cables and lights and cameras were strung everywhere. When Billy Preston and The Beatles began playing, people on the sidewalks heard the music and a crowd began to assemble. The final Beatles public performance lasted just over 40 minutes and it took place on […]
Backtracks: Robin Trower – Bridge of Sighs
We are not sure how Robin feels about it, but throughout his musical travels he has been tagged as ‘the white Jimi Hendrix’, and most rock followers would agree that his talent and style make him deserving of the comparison. His early years growing up in London uncovered his musical talents, and at age 17 he started playing with a band – The Paramounts. The history of […]
Backtracks: Pat Travers Band – Crash and Burn
Pat Travers first picked up the guitar at age 12 after he attended a local concert that included Jimi Hendrix. Rock guitarist, keyboardist, and singer from Toronto, Travers started playing in bands early in his teens; his first bands were the Music Machine, Red Hot, and Merge, which all spent time in clubs in and around Quebec area. In no time at all, Travers was carefully […]
Backtracks: INXS – Kick
The idea came from Gary Morris, the manager of Midnight Oil. He suggested that the Farris Brothers change the name of their band to INXS, making them somewhat ‘inaccessible’, a mix inspired by the British band XTC and Australian jam makers IXL. The two bands were touring together in 1978, making the rounds on the Oz pub and club circuit. The three Farris brothers, Jon, Tim, […]
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