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Tuesday 31st July
Believe me, I'd hoped that Michael Schenker would pull himself
together for last night's gig at the Hammersmith Apollo. Alas,
due to the venue's pre-entry queues his set had begun by the
time I got in to see the show. The first sight that greeted
me was Michael on his knees. "Oh shit", was my first
thought. In fact, he played marginally better than at Pentrich
(see July 29). Dispensing with keyboards, the band tried vainly
to cover the fact that Michael was incapable of the fluid solos
that have become his trademark. The intent was there, and at
the show's end you could sense his frustration, but for the
most part what Schenker regaled us with was open chords and
random noise.
From the ridiculous to the sublime, the Scorpions were utterly
superb, extending the set they played at Pentrich to just under
two and a half hours of near-perfection (can anyone really claim
to have enjoyed those bass and drum solos?) As Metal Hammer
features ed Alex Milas gushed in this morning's email: "I
nearly wept with joy at 'The Zoo' and it just got better from
there." 'Dark Lady' was added to the section featuring
Uli Jon Roth, and although 'Make It Real' got dropped, 'Deep
And Dark', 'Blackout' and 'Wind Of Change' were all added. Then
Uli returned for 'In Trance', hanging around as the show ended
with a seemingly-spontaneous 'When The Smoke Is Coming Down'
- a track from the 'Blackout' album which of course he didn't
even appear on.
Incidentally, some objected to my suggestion that Matthias Jabs
was "relegated to bit-part player" during the Rock
& Blues show. I wasn't intending to denigrate Jabs, who
is a fine musician and in my experience a pleasant and witty
fellow away from the stage (for a German, at least), but to
point out the disparity between the Roth-styled material and
the band's MTV hits. In last month's Classic Rock, Matthias
voiced his doubts regarding the "history lesson" of
playing again with Uli, and even at Hammersmith the likes of
'We'll Burn The Sky' caused people to either punch the air with
delight or scratch their heads and disappear to the bar. Make
no mistake, as someone that wore out a vinyl copy of 'The Tokyo
Tapes' during his teenaged years, I'm in the former category.
To be honest, Jabs' disinterested body language did its own
talking.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Monday
30th July
Hadn't seen Sacred Reich onstage for what seemed like
an enternity, probably because the thrashers from Phoenix, Arizona,
have lain dormant for the past eight years. Band leader and
bassist Phil Rind has grown up - and outwards - since our paths
last crossed, though he remains a thoroughly likable frontman.
"We're all getting older so be careful down there in the
pit," Rind told the cluster of fans at the front of the
Scala's stage. "My wife is a nurse so believe me, when
you fall down at 20 you get up. But fall in the pit at 40 and
you go to the hospital." The venue is far from sold out.
It's a shame, as songs like 'The American Way' haven't dated
musically, and of course are more lyrically telling than ever.
Explaining the fact that they're unlikely to make a new album,
Rind told us: "We're here to make you feel like you did
when you were 17 or 18", and blow me down if they didn't
come close to achieving that goal. Aside from the cream of platters
like 'Ignorance' (1987), 'Surf Nicaragua' (1988) and 'The American
Way' (1990), we got a monstrous rendition of Sabbath's 'War
Pigs'. With tongue in cheek, 'One Nation', a song that SR guitarist
Wiley Arnett and drummer Greg Hall re-recorded with Max Cavalera,
was pithily introduced as "a Soufly cover". Here's
the full set-list: 'The American Way', 'Administrative Decisions',
'Violent Solutions', 'Love... Hate', 'Ignorance', 'Crimes Against
Humanity', 'Who's To Blame', 'State Of Emergency', 'One Nation',
'Independent', 'War Pigs', 'Death Squad' and 'Surf Nicaragua'.
P.S. During Sacred Reich's performance I received several texts
indicating that Michael Schenker had let himself down again,
this time at Manchester Apollo, scene of his now legendary implosion
with UFO in November 2000. Somebody needs to remove Michael
from the Scorpions tour - NOW.
_
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Sunday
29th July
Just
home from the Rock
& Blues Custom Show in Pentrich, where the best and
worst of the Schenker family was displayed. Regardless of the
falling rain, the Scorpions played a blinder as last night's
headliners and I finally got to see Uli Jon Roth onstage with
the band, running through four songs - 'Pictured Life', 'Speedy's
Coming', 'We'll Burn The Sky' and 'Fly To The Rainbow'. What
an awesome experience. To be honest, I felt a little sorry for
Matthias Jabs, who despite doing an excellent job for the Scorps
for so many years suddenly found himself relegated to bit-part
player. But anyway, here's the full set-list: 'Hour 1', 'Bad
Boys Running Wild', 'Love 'Em Or Leave 'Em', 'The Zoo', 'Coast
To Coast', 'Holiday', 'Humanity', 'Leaving You', 'Make It Real',
'Pictured Life', 'Speedy's Coming', 'We'll Burn The Sky', 'Fly
To The Rainbow', 'Tease Me, Please Me', '321', 'Big City Nights',
'Dynamite', 'Still Loving You' and 'Rock You Like A Hurricane'.
Compared to his elder sibling, who threw shapes and played the
rock star to absolute perfection, Michael Schenker was an utter
disgrace. He'd turned up at the site mid-morning with a bottle
of Courvoisier cognac inside him. After an altercation during
the soundcheck, Schenker threw his guitar across the stage,
and tried to hurt the agent who'd booked him for the show, before
threatening not to perform. The rest of the day was spent in
his portacabin, attempting to sleep things off. It didn't work.
Excuse the language, but Schenker played like a complete c**t.
Looking visibly glazed, he could scarely walk let alone play
guitar. After 45 minutes of his alotted 90, having been booed
and jeered throughout, Michael stumbled into the wings to the
strains of the footie chant, "You're shit and you know
you are". Then, incredibly, he returned. There was a momentary
improvement, but any thoughts that Schenker might get out of
jail were rudely shot down during the ensuing half-hour. "Ladies
and gentlemen, this is fucking improvised but we do the best
we can, okay?" slurred Michael before UFO's 'Too Hot To
Handle' - a song he must've played a hundred thousand times
before, the simple riff to which had suddenly become infinitely
beyond his grasp. Believe me, the song 'On And On' had never
felt more appropriate. I'm told that once it was all over, Michael
and his brother Rudolf came to blows and the pair had to be
separated by security. The word 'pathetic' doesn't even begin
to cover it. It'll be interesting to see whether he makes it
to Manchester or Hammersmith.
Earlier in the day UK hard rockers Burn had turned in a very
enjoyable mid-afteroon set. With their new singer Simon Hall,
The Handsome Beasts deliver a roundly enjoyable 45 minutes of
their own and Bernie Tormé and John McCoy's band GMT
lived up to the promise of their splendid debut album, 'Bitter
And Twisted'. Regrettably, though, Michael Schenker's infantile
and irresponsible behaviour cast a very long shadow indeed.
I do hope that he can sort himself out, though it's looking
highly unlikely. How many more chances does the bugger need?
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Thursday
26th July
Preceding
a new Monster Magnet album called '4-Way Diablo', which arrives
through SPV on November 5, this morning was spent transcribing
a great interview with Dave Wyndorf. The guitarist/singer is
well known for his fondless of pharmaceuticals, so it was interesting
that we discussed the occasion on which an overdose on prescription
drugs almost killed him on 27th February, 2006. "It had
been a long time coming," recounts Wyndorf. "Eveything
began when I couldn't sleep on tour, so the doctors gave me
something that would put down a wild animal. This was an anti-anxiety
drug; the stuff that airline pilots and astronauts use. I was
doing a lot of transatlantic flying, and on a plane one day
I just started gobbling them down. All of my paranoias came
at me like a giant, three-headed beast. My biggest mistake was
not asking for help. The things are supposed to clear your mind
before you go to sleep. They wipe out all the worries and concerns
you might have, but what I didn't understand is that it's like
a computer..."
...Everything
just re-boots when you switch on again? "Exactly. The problems
are not deleted, in fact they get magnified by ten. It was fucking
horrible. I was utterly powerless, on a slipperly slope. I don't
recall doing it but on the day concerned I took the whole Goddamn
bottle - a hundred pills, man, just like they were a shot glass
- and the next thing I knew, I woke up in a fucking loony bin."
Having sampled their upside and downside, even forged a career
spent singing about them, Wyndorf is in a pretty unique position
to talk about drugs. "They're supposedly a gateway into
creativity," he muses. "And you know what? It's all
a myth. They suck, and they'll get you in the end. They certainly
got me."
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Wednesday
25th July
Gene
$immons has shot down those rumours that he will be a contestant
in I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here. Fair enough. So for now,
the venomous huntsman spider's position as king of the creepy-crawlies
remains secure, and kangaroo bollocks will continue to be the
most unpalatable dish out there. But I'm sure that Gene's offer
of a masterclass in sliminess to all of the Australian jungle's
snakes still stands.
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Tuesday 24th July
It's Kelly Johnson's funeral this afternoon. Sat at the
computer from 7am till 9pm last night, also for most of the
past weekend, in an attempt to free up some time, but with both
the mags that employ me (Classic Rock and the Hammer) going
to press simultaneously it's looking impossible. How bloody
annoying. Will probably have to crack open a bottle of something
strong instead. And lookee here, Don Arden, the fearsome former
manager of Black Sabbath, the Small Faces and the Electric Light
Orchestra among others has also passed on last weekend, at the
ripe old age of 81.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Sunday 22nd July
Fascinating gossip over at Billboard's website suggests
that Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck are to join bassist Chris Dreja
and drummer Jim McCarty as The Yardbirds for an Autumn tour
of the US (no sign of Clapton, though). Sounds like Robert Plant
has made his mind up once and for all about the mooted Zeppelin
reunion, and it cannot possibly be good news.
Tigertailz and not Tesla will be play with Y&T on the latter's
eight-date UK tour in October and November. So long as Tesla
do a few shows other than the Hard Rock Hell shebang at Butlins
in Minehead, I can live with that. In fact, I've just been playing
a promo of the 'Tailz's 'Thrill Pistol' (due August 27); not
too shabby at all. Y&T's live DVD/CD package 'One Hot Night'
is here, too, and it looks and sounds great. Shame that the
band had colds on the night concerned, you can hear it a little
in Dave Meniketti's voice.
P.S. The loathsome Gene $immons has apparently signed on for
I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here. Good excuse for the Kiss
bassist to invest in a nice new waterproof wig. I'm looking
forward to the scene in which $immons is locked in a coffin,
and when Ant 'n' Dec open it up the deadly animals that he's
shared it with have all dozed off at his talk of Swiss bank
accounts and how they are lucky to share his oxygen.
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Saturday 21st July
The brevity of Thursday's Gregg Allman gig had one good
consequence, for myself at least. I arrived home in Catford
to take a midnight phone call from Def Leppard's Rick Savage.
Though out on a US arena tour with Styx, the bassist happily
spoke about the band's forthcoming album, tentatively titled
'Sparkle Lounge' after a backstage social room they used each
night on their last tour. The album is an eighty per cent state
of completion, and as has been widely reported they've sent
off some half-finished material to former producer 'Mutt' Lange
to work his magic on. Unfortunately, Savage was uncertain as
to whether or not Lange will be able to complete his side of
the deal in time for their deadline. "Depending on how
fast he gets them back to us, they'll end up being used on this
album, or the next one," explains Rick, who says of the
record's direction: "Sonics-wise, it's like 'High 'N' Dry',
because it has lots of rock energy, though the songs are more
sophisticated; 'Hysteria' would be the closest comparison."
Sounds mouth-watering.
On the flipside, it's gutting to learn
that the upcoming tour from Harem
Scarem is going to be the Canadian group's swansong, though
it seems that one further album will be made. Yet another good
reason, as if one were required, to be at the Firefest
on October 27.
The new issue of Classic Rock just dropped onto the mat. It's
a shame that one of the best quotes from my Towers Of London
interview ended up on the cutting room floor. Rather than waste
it, think I'll just light the blue touch paper and stand well
back. When I reminded lead guitarist The Rev that the Towers
had declined the challenge of a charity boxing match from the
Cockney Rejects, he boasted: "Those guys are old enough
to be my dad. It'd be like getting in the ring with your father.
Send their sons along if they've got any, we'll fight them instead."
Three weeks later, with the story about to be published, The
Rev and drummer Snell both left the band. Sheer coincidence,
or the sound of somebody realising that their BUPA health insurance
contributions aren't up to date?
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Friday
20th July
Well,
it'd been 12 long years since I was fortunate enough to catch
the Allman Brothers at the Greek Theatre during a work trip
to Los Angeles (an interview with Blind Melon's Shannon Hoon,
to be precise). Unless I'm mistaken the Brothers haven't deigned
to set foot on a UK stage since Hammersmith Odeon in June 1991,
so there was no way I'd miss Gregg Allman's stop-off at the
Shepherd's Bush Empire in London. Kicking off with the title
cut of 1987's 'I'm No Angel' was cool, as was following it with
the next album's namesake, 'Just Before The Bullets Fly'. Various
fan forums suggest that Gregg had "throat problems",
which might explain the occasional dip in volume of what he
sang, also his restraint from the high notes in 'Midnight Rider',
but the 59-year-old still has a voice as sweet as molasses,
and a cool ponytail to match. Barely 90 minutes long (boo, hiss!),
the set included some fairly radical re-workings of ABB standards,
including 'Dreams I'll Never See' (once covered by Molly Hatchet,
of course), 'Melissa' and an unusually brief encore of 'Whipping
Post', though to be frank the excitement levels dropped when
percussionist Floyd Miles stepped up to the mic for 'You Must
Be Crazy' and 'Back To Daytona'. Anyway, fingers and toes are
now firmly crossed that the success of last night's show could
bring the Brothers back here next summer. Here's what Gregg
and friends played: 'I'm No Angel', 'Just Before The Bullets
Fly', 'House Of Blues', 'You Must Be Crazy', 'Dreams I'll never
See', 'Key To The Highway', 'Turn On Your Lovelight', 'Multi-Colored
Lady', 'Can't Turn You Loose', 'Melissa', 'Back To Daytona',
'Midnight Rider', 'Statesboro Blues' and 'Whipping Post'.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Tuesday 17th July
Just got off the phone with Mick Box of Uriah Heep, still
displaying a nervous twitch at the mention of Sunday's appearance
at Guilfest. He agrees that the sound didn't project beyond
the first five rows, and because of various equipment problems
and a shortened set, "It was a tough ol' gig to get through".
Having played to 20,000 people in the Czech Republic the night
before it was a rather sobering experience - probably why Mick
admits feeling compelled to "hit the brandy" afterwards.
Equally disappointing, I'm sorry to report that guitarist Simon
Lees has left Budgie on the eve of their first ever Australian
tour, in order to concentrate on teaching guitar and various
solo projects. Lees played manfully during his tenure with the
Welsh rockers, so his flight from the group is a significant
setback. However, bassist/vocalist Burke Shelley and drummer
Steve Williams are sworn to continue and currently seek a replacement.
Drop 'em a line here
if you reckon you've got what it takes. Burke recently told
me that he and former guitarist Tony Bourge are compiling bonus
material for an expanded re-issue of Budgie's 1978 album, 'Impeccable'.
There's lovely.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Monday
16th July
Ever
had 24 hours when you should've just stayed in bed? That's what
happened to me yesterday. I'd been looking forward to seeing
Uriah Heep introduce their new drummer Russell Gilbrook at Guilfest,
an open-air concert right on the boundaries of what can be considered
as London. The morning was warm and sticky, and as I left home
after lunch the missus advised me: "Don't catch too much
sun". Famous last words. The skies darkened and after having
changed trains at Waterloo the heavens opened. Thankfully, although
it remained overcast the weather held out for the rest of the
day. That would be the least of my problems.
Pimms o'clock came and went at tea-time, after which Orange
Goblin put on an above average display in one of the offshoot
tents. Awaiting Heep's arrival I happened to catch the tail-end
of a band called Duke
Special, who I'll definitely make a point of seeing again.
Mick Box and company were due to take the stage at 9pm and play
for an hour, with a strict 10pm curfew. But roadies were still
dashing around and checking the gear at 9.15pm. When Heep did
burst into action with 'So Tired' and 'Cry Freedom', to my utter
dismay Bernie Shaw's voice was almost completely lost in the
mix. I waited for improvement, but it never came. Winding things
up with 'Sunrise', 'Gypsy', 'Look At Yourself', 'July Morning'
and an encore of 'Easy Livin'', the band's nine-song set was
strung out to 50 minutes, but despite an energetic and skilful
display from Gilbrook, it turned out to be the most unsatisfying
display I've seen from the group in 27 years of following their
career.
Worse was to come. I virtually shat myself when, bowling up
to London Road station for a train home, it became evident that
engineering work had closed the line. Then, after a hasty taxi
ride to Guildford's central station, I discovered that my mobile
phone had slipped out of my pocket. And upon switching on the
PC to begin work this morning, the previous afternoon's rain
had seeped in through the office window and f**ked my computer.
No email or web access - aaargh!
Relating my troubles to Metal Hammer's Alex Burrows, he chuckled
and predicted: "These things always come in threes. Prepare
for another disaster." Three hours later, that's exactly
what happened. An upset-sounding Kim McAuliffe from Girlschool
called to inform me that Kelly Johnson, the band's ex-guitarist,
passed away late last night (Sunday). Kelly had been battling
cancer of the spine for more than five years. I didn't know
her anywhere near as well as the other members of Girlschool,
but as a pimply young headbanger her photo consistently adorned
my wall and I saw her perform live with the band many, many
times. I'll be raising a glass in Miss Johnson's honour this
evening.
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Sunday
15th July
With Mrs L and the Linglets away at our caravan by
the seaside, how better to pass a solo-flying Saturday than
a record fair, a pre-season friendly and a show from the mighty
Gov't Mule? Alas, the record fair wasn't as productive as hoped;
the handful of items I picked up including 'We Have Ways To
Make You Rock', a blackmailably cheese-tastic slab of mid-80s
vinyl from Dutch rockers Vengeance, whose ranks included Arjen
Lucassen of Ayreon/Star One/Stream Of Passion fame.
Equally depressing, an almost full-strength Crystal Palace side
were bloody fortunate to scrape a 2-2 draw from the trip to
non-league Bromley, Stuart Green's last-gasp angled drive saving
the visitors' blushes. On this evidence, it'll be another long
and trying ol' season for the Eagles of Selhurst.
And talking of 'long', Allman Brothers guitarist Warren Haynes
and his group Gov't Mule seemed to throw many fans a curveball
with a prompt 7pm start, playing through until just before 10pm
(save for a brief interval). Excitement built as the Mean Fiddler
slowly filled to capacity, and I was ecstatic that they wound
up their first set with my favourite Mule track, 'Thorazine
Shuffle'. Conversely, the liberal doses of reggae and a 10-minute
drum solo from Matt Abts were less easy to stomach. However,
in pure value for money terms alone, this marathon show was
difficult to beat. Wonder how it'll compare to Gregg Allman's
date in Shepherd's Bush on Thursday?
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Wednesday
11th July
For
the past several days I've been getting to grips with an advance
promo of Nightwish's 'Dark Passion Play' album (due via Nuclear
Blast on October 1). Like many, I'd resigned myself to the fact
that they wouldn't be anywhere near as good after the controversial
sacking of operatically trained singer Tarja Turunen. Well,
I needn't have worried. Almost without exception, the songs
are absolutely spellbinding and new addition Anette Olzon delivers
them to wondrous perfection, albeit a little less flamboyantly
than her predecessor.
Still with Nightwish, I reviewed an official book, Once Upon
A Nightwish (written by Finnish journo by Mape Ollila), in the
issue of Classic Rock that's just gone to press. Apart from
making public the open letter that they presented to Turunen
at the conclusion of their last world tour, the group have done
their best to maintain a dignified silence concerning the reasons
for the line-up change. The book lays bare many of the gory
details.
When I interviewed Turunen for Metal Hammer during the campaign
for the 'Once' album, Tarja made a point of declaring: "I
am not a diva". And yet, that's exactly how Nightwish and
Ollila portray the singer, with considerable help from her Agentinian
husband/manager Marcelo, who stands accused of demanding extra
money from promoters - often resulting in cancelled shows -
and propagating the sinister wall of silence that eventually
tore Nightwish asunder. Besides claiming that a solo deal was
negotiated in secret before she was sacked, it's even alleged
that Turunen's unreasonable demands stretched to being presented
with an expensive bouquet of flowers before a gig in Bucharest
by the city's mayor (who sensibly told her and Marcelo where
to get off). It's clear that blame lies with both sides of the
dispute, though it's hard to feel any real sympathy for the
increasingly corrupted Turunen. If you're a Nightwish fan, the
book's a definite 'must-read'.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Tuesday
10th July
My friend John Dryland has sent a few blackmail piccies
from UFO's festival gig in Chepstow (see July 2 entry). The
first is of myself enjoying
a small post-gig tipple with Monsewer Mogg. Mr
Dryland and myself hadn't been drinking - honest. And here's
eldest son Eddie posing with Mr Parker, and avoiding the teeming
rain in the merch tent with
a couple of fellow redheads. They'd be great memories...
if only I could remember them.
This morning's 'in' box contained an MP3 of 'Rose Today', the
first single from Alter Bridge's new album, 'Blackbird', which
is scheduled for late October. It's darned good stuff. Spoke
to guitarist guitarist Mark Tremonti last week, who says the
new album is heavier and contains more songs than their 2004
debut, 'One Day Remains'. The band might be playing a low-key
club date in London during September, ahead of a full British
tour in early 2008. Alter Bridge are one of my favourite bands,
it's terrific that they'll soon be back in action again.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Monday
9th July
Three
cheers for Lars Ulrich. I was scheduled to do an interview with
the Danish drummer before yesterday's Metallica show at Wembley
Stadium, but for a variety of reasons my allotted time got cut
drastically short. With editorial space put aside and the presses
due to roll this evening, Ulrich took my business card and promised
to ring and complete the conversation this morning. Well, he
was as good as his word, spilling the beans on the band's forthcoming
album ("Kirk Hammett's returned to full-time employment.
There will be plenty of guitar solos"), addressing Kerry
King's accusation that the Some Kind Of Monster movie made the
band look like "fragile old men" and revealing how
their next tour itinerary "won't be quite as nutty as before".
Speaking as something of a lapsed Metallica fan, their Wembley
peformance was a gazillion times better than I'd feared. Watching
from the Stadium's spanking new, state-of-the-art press
box enclosure, the sound was crisp, musical and satisfyingly
loud, and save for the irritating bouts of noodling that separated
the songs it was hard to find any real fault with the group's
two hours and 20-minute performance. With his slicked-back hair
and pointy grey beard, a fired-up James Hetfield looked like
the demented bastard offspring of ZZ Top's Bill Gibbons and
Slim Jim Phantom from the Stray Cats. Watching 60,000-odd fans
completely losing it to opener 'Creeping Death' was an incredible
spectacle, and any band that pulls out a song like 'Disposable
Heroes' (from 'Master Of Puppets') when you least expect it
is onto a winner. Even 'The Memory Remains', from the mediocre
'Re-Load', failed to be a banana skin, the audience continuing
to bellow out the section originally sung by Marianne Faithful
for a full minute after the song had finished. "That, my
friends, is why we do what we do," grinned Hetfield. Check
out the set-list.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Sunday
8th July
Even though I was down to review the show, getting
hold of a ticket for last night's Steely Dan gig presented mighty
problems. Sure enough, the Hammersmith Apollo was rammed to
the rafters. With admission costing a cool fifty quid, the group
could've hung around for a whole lot longer - on this stage
seven years ago their two-set show ran for more than two hours
- though there was little complaint about what they chose to
serve up. Just two tracks from their recent catalogue were aired;
'Godwhacker' from 2003's 'Everything Must Go' and the title
cut of the album before, 'Two Against Nature'. Naturally, the
'Aja' album was heavily featured ('Peg', 'Home At Last', 'Josie'
and 'Aja' itself), as was 'The Royal Scam' ('Hiatian Divorce',
'Green Earrings' and 'Kid Charlemagne'). 'Gaucho' threw forth
opener 'Time Out Of Mind' and 'Hey Ninteen', with 'Katy Lied'
being plundered for 'Bad Sneakers' and 'Chain Lighting'. The
'Can't Buy A Thrill' track 'Dirty Work' was largely sung by
the female backing vocalists, which was disappointing. And talking
of singing, I'm pleased to report that Donald Fagen still has
a voice as lived-in and comfortable as a favourite slipper.
Sadly, a croaky attempt at 'Hiatian Divorce' reveals why Walter
Becker sticks mostly to the guitar these days.
Encores of 'FM', from the 1978 movie soundtrack of the same
name, and 'Countdown To Ecstasy's 'My Old School' got the Apollo
on its feet and whooping its approval, though it would've been
nice to have heard 'Black Cow', 'Rikki Don't Lose That Number',
'Babylon Sister', 'Do It Again', 'Bodhisattva' and the rarely
performed 'Reelin' In The Years', which features Jimmy Page's
favourite guitar solo of all time.
_
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Saturday
7th July
Well,
knock me down with a feather. Michael Schenker's remaining US
tour dates appear to have been placed "on hold". A
little birdie tells me that it might not necessarily be Schenker's
fault this time, but due to his so-called support mechanism.
Even so, wonder if it'll affect the upcoming UK shows? Yesterday
I did a great interview with Budgie's Burke Shelley. Burke's
always good value for money, and above all refreshingly honest.
The bassist/vocalist told me how Lars Ulrich from Metallica
used to ring up and ask to produce the band's albums, though
the offers were declined. "Well, he's a drummer, isn't
he?" When I asked why he put the band back together at
the end of the last century, Shelley's reply was instant. "I
was broke". If only everyone was so candid!
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Friday
6th July
My PC virus trauma had generated a terrible thirst, so I headed
off to Camden to see Obituary and Onslaught. What a frigging
great double bill. The Underworld was rammed to capacity, with
100 on the guestlist. But it wasn't the cramped conditions or
excessive heat that wound me up the most. Oh no.
Some people were standing there and smoking, as if they hadn't
heard of the ban that came into force five days ago. Other less
daring punters were more clandestine, sneakily visiting the
toilets and generating puffs of smoke from under the door. For
crying out loud... it's like being back behind the
bikesheds at school again. Grow up!!
Despite a disappointing live sound, Onslaught used their 40
minutes well. The excellent new 'Killing Peace' album was well
represented as usual, and the place went suitably mad. With
ex-Iced Earth/Dearth guitarist Ralph Santolla replacing the
incarcerated Allen West, Floridian death-heads
Obituary previewed several tracks from the forthcoming 'Xecutioner's
Return' album. For one terrible moment I thought they were going
to overlook the title cut of their 1989 debut, 'Slowly We Rot'.
Fortunately it was slotted in as the last track, though the
show's late ending of 11.35pm caused me to
catch the milk train home, surrounded by all the other grinning
drunks. Oh well, at least nobody tried to smoke in my carriage.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Thursday
5th July
Yesterday afternoon saw my second rendez-vous with Roger Hodgson
in 24 hours, this time a grilling for an EPK (electronic press
kit) to promote his latest DVD, 'Take The Long Way Home - Live
In Montreal'. It was another enjoyable interview, even though
I had to repeat many of the same questions from the day before.
Presented Roger with a spare copy of Porcupine Tree's 'Fear
Of A Blank Planet' that I had lying around. If Hodgson appears
on the next PT opus, I'll be claiming a commission. This is
becoming a habit (for anyone who doesn't know, I helped to put
Steven Wilson in contact with Alex Lifeson for his guest spot
on the song 'Anesthetize').
My PC has just frozen up due to one of those detestable viruses
- Grrrrrrr. Just what I need during a Classic Rock news deadline
week. If I could find which ever twisted individial spends their
time inventing these pointless, sadistic programs I'd force-feed
them their own testicles.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Wednesday
4th July
Dear oh dear. I've just sat through Velvet Revolver's long-awaited
second album, 'Libertad'. What a dreary and inconsequential
collection of songs. 2004's 'Contraband' had its moments, but
this is just Yawnsville. Picking myself up off the floor, I
boarded a train to central London for an interview with Roger
Hodgson. I'm at a loss to know why the Californian-based ex-Supertramp
frontman/keyboard player, who appeared at the weekend's Princess
Diana memorial gig, seems to have a rep as a difficult interviewee.
I got on well with him from the off. How nice it is when someone
takes an interest in what you have to say instead of treating
you as just another cog of the fast-mving conveyor belt that
we're both stuck with. Hodgson wanted to know who my favourite
groups were, which young acts were up 'n' coming, and a lot
more besides. I was glad to recommend Porcupine Tree in both
categories. Roger wrote down the name and said he'd definitely
check them out. However, he lost brownie points for claiming
to be support his hometown footie club, Portsmouth, without
knowing that they currently play in the Premier League. Hmmm...
is there any such thing as an inverted gloryhunter?
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Tuesday
3rd July
A
couple of interesting new shows have been announced. Grammy-nominated
John Parr, he of 'St Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)' fame, returns
from the wilderness to play the Shepherds Bush Empire on November
23. His 'John Parr' and 'Running The Endless Mile' albums from
1984 and 1986 are big favourites at Ling Towers, so I won't
be missing that one. British fans will also get to see the new-look
Candlemass in November when the Swedish doom-meisters introduce
new singer Robert Lowe (also a member of Solitude Aeturnus).
"Great", I thought, opening the diary to jot down
the date at London's Dingwalls, then realised that it clashes
with England's vital Euro Championship showdown with Russia.
How friggin' annoying!
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Monday 2nd July
Awoke on my birthday in a strange bed, covered in mud and
impaired by the hangover from hell. What the devil happened
last night? Oh, I know. Along with John Dryland from Cargo Records
and eldest son Eddie, I went to see UFO at Chepstow Castle.
Had a few glasses of lemonade (cough). Sadly, the weather was
determined to screw up an otherwise excellent day. Having flitted
between torrential downpours and overcast murkiness, the heavens
opened just as UFO took to the stage. Serves me right for laughing
at all those trendy wankers at Glastonbury, I suppose. On a
more positive note, Dryland slipped and fell down a muddy bank
of grass as we arrived at the site, causing much hilarity. However,
it was well worth the long haul from London to Wales. We'd filled
the bath in John's hotel room with two cases of cider, bottles
of vodka and wine, and some diet Coke. After being joined by
the ubiquitous Batttttty there was very little of it left by
sun-up.
Two studio albums in, UFO have really found their stride with
guitarist Vinnie
Moore. Phil Mogg's between-song banter was worth the price
of admission on its own, though he forgot some of the lyrics
to 'Lettin' Go', which was newly returned to the show. As stellar
as the 'Strangers In The Night'-based set they've played of
late is, adding more material from the 'Tonka' Chapman era would
perhaps introduce a little extra vitality. How about 'No Place
To Run', 'Long Gone', 'The Wild, The Willing And The Innocent',
'We Belong To The Night', 'Blinded By A Lie' or even the brilliant
'Profession Of Violence', chaps? Hope I didn't bend the guys'
ears too much about this subject after the gig. The clock was
ticking towards midnight and I'm afraid I don't recall a great
deal of the conversation that ensued in the dressing room. Anyway,
it was yet another great night from one of the most entertaining
bands gracing the circuit. Here's the set-list: 'Mother Mary',
'Lettin' Go', 'Daylight Goes To Town', 'Let It Roll', 'This
Kids', 'I'm A Loser', 'Hard Being Me', 'Baby Blue', 'Only You
Can Rock Me', 'Fighting Man', 'Love To Love', ' Too Hot To Handle',
'Lights Out', 'Rock Bottom' and 'Doctor Doctor'.
P.S. Thanks to my sons Eddie and Arnie for my birthday pressie:
a two-disc CD called 'Kiss Gold'. All the best bits of their
career, including solo tracks, right up until 1982, when they
started to go off the boil. Awesome!
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