Chicago’s Lois Lane brings original tunes and flaming drumset to Chilliwack but calls small-town booking a mistake

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE CHILLIWACK PROGRESS, MAY 27, 1981 By Steve Newton Casanova’s nightclub was the scene last week of three nightly performances by touring Chicago-based rock band Lois Lane. The group, supposedly the top drawing band in the windy city, is not your average club act band and, in fact, has toured with such … Continue reading Chicago’s Lois Lane brings original tunes and flaming drumset to Chilliwack but calls small-town booking a mistake

Sylvia Tyson and her Great Speckled Bird hit Chilliwack for a three-night stand at Huggy’s Cabaret

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE CHILLIWACK PROGRESS, APRIL 8, 1981 By Steve Newton Famous Canadian singer-songwriter Sylvia Tyson visited Chilliwack last Thursday for the first of three nightly performances at Huggy’s nightclub. Five years ago Tyson stepped out of ex-husband Ian’s considerable shadow, and since then has earned the reputation as a crowd-pleasing performer in her … Continue reading Sylvia Tyson and her Great Speckled Bird hit Chilliwack for a three-night stand at Huggy’s Cabaret

Charlie Daniels brings his redneck fiddle noise to my old hometown for the Chilliwack Country Music Festival

@shotbykevin ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, AUG. 10, 1990 By Steve Newton Whether you’re a big country music fan or just someone who enjoys partying in the sun with several thousand other folks, the Chilliwack Fairgrounds was the place to be over the long weekend. Twenty-four bands performed, much beer was consumed, and it … Continue reading Charlie Daniels brings his redneck fiddle noise to my old hometown for the Chilliwack Country Music Festival

Danny Kirwan’s death revives memories of cruising the Chilliwack strip listening to Fleetwood Mac’s Kiln House

By Steve Newton You may have heard that British musician Danny Kirwan passed away on Friday, at the age of 68. Don’t feel too bad if his name doesn’t sound familiar, but he was a member of Fleetwood Mac between 1968 and 1972. I didn’t know his work all that well myself, even though he … Continue reading Danny Kirwan’s death revives memories of cruising the Chilliwack strip listening to Fleetwood Mac’s Kiln House

Back to the ‘Wack: Newt signs Gord Downie book in Chilliwack

By Steve Newton In case you haven’t heard, my first book came out last month. It’s called Gord Downie, and it’s about a poetic Canadian guy who rocked his ass off for decades and won over his home country before bravely succumbing to brain cancer and winning over his home country even more. When the … Continue reading Back to the ‘Wack: Newt signs Gord Downie book in Chilliwack

Newt rocks out at 60th birthday bash with members of Chilliwack bands Cold Chain, Horsepower, and Concrete Jungle

jet sutherland photo By Steve Newton After 35-plus years of writing about other people rockin’ out on guitar, I finally got off my butt, hopped on stage, and did some half-assed riffing myself. Last night at the Coast Hotel, in the heart of beautiful downtown Chilliwack, B.C., a bunch of old guys who were born … Continue reading Newt rocks out at 60th birthday bash with members of Chilliwack bands Cold Chain, Horsepower, and Concrete Jungle

Back in the ‘Wack Vol. 7: Midnight Smoke says Chilliwack is a “gold mine” for a versatile band

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE CHILLIWACK PROGRESS, MAY 6, 1981 By Steve Newton (In the seventh of a series of stories on local bands, The Progress presents a profile on Midnight Smoke. Next: Homegrown) Midnight Smoke is a longtime Chilliwack band that is currently composed of Peter Priebe on bass and lead vocals, Ed Porter on … Continue reading Back in the ‘Wack Vol. 7: Midnight Smoke says Chilliwack is a “gold mine” for a versatile band

Cold Chain revives the spirit of ’75 at the Chilliwack Senior High 40-year reunion

By Steve Newton Back in January I blogged about the “major concert news” that my old buddy’s cover band, Cold Chain, was gonna play the 40-year reunion for my Chilliwack Senior High School class of 1975. At the time I put a request in for what was probably my fave tune that year, Ian Hunter’s … Continue reading Cold Chain revives the spirit of ’75 at the Chilliwack Senior High 40-year reunion

Major concert news: Newt’s buddy’s band will play the Chilliwack Senior High class of ’75 reunion

By Steve Newton It probably won’t garner as much attention as the announcement of the upcoming AC/DC world tour, but I just found out that my old buddy’s cover band is playing the 40-year reunion for the Chilliwack Senior High School class of 1975. So I guess I’ll go. Here’s the unofficial setlist. The band … Continue reading Major concert news: Newt’s buddy’s band will play the Chilliwack Senior High class of ’75 reunion

Bill Henderson says Chilliwack ripped off its name for the First Nations vibe

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JAN. 6, 2000 By Steve Newton It’s a bit weird coming from a small town that has the same name as a popular ’70s rock band. When you admit to having been born and bred in Chilliwack, there’s always some joker who’ll wonder aloud, “Hey, isn’t that where that … Continue reading Bill Henderson says Chilliwack ripped off its name for the First Nations vibe

Call me a hick from Chilliwack, but I ain’t never seen no spiral haircut before

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, FEB. 6, 1992 By Steve Newton What makes a rock writer desperate to score the reviewer’s assignment for a Red Hot Chili Peppers show? Could it be the group’s incendiary brand of primitive thrash-funk, or the fact that their live appearances are known far and wide for their unbridled … Continue reading Call me a hick from Chilliwack, but I ain’t never seen no spiral haircut before

Strange Euphoria sparks memories of a (Chilliwack) Coliseum concert

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, JUNE 25, 2012 By Steve Newton Over the years I’ve heard quite a few folks fondly reminisce about seeing Heart play their high-school gym out in Buttfuck, B.C., back in the year of our lord, 1976. That was the same year that the Ann and Nancy Wilson-led band released its debut … Continue reading Strange Euphoria sparks memories of a (Chilliwack) Coliseum concert

That time Simon Townshend told me what it was like growing up with one of the world’s most famous rock guitarists for a brother

By Steve Newton Back in February of 1984 I interviewed Simon Townshend, the 23-year-old kid brother of Pete Townshend from the Who. The younger Townshend was touring behind his debut album, the Pete-produced Sweet Sound, and trying to distance himself from the shadow of his 16-years-older bro. At one point in the conversation I asked … Continue reading That time Simon Townshend told me what it was like growing up with one of the world’s most famous rock guitarists for a brother

Aldo Nova on touring with Blue Öyster Cult, covering Coney Hatch, and the new Subject…Aldo Nova

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, DECEMBER 23, 1983 By Steve Newton “It was supposed to be a post-nuclear holocaust type thing,” says Aldo Nova, referring to the initial concept idea for his latest album, Subject…Aldo Nova. Over the phone from Shreveport, Louisiana last week, Nova (his real name’s Caporuscio) outlined the proposed plan for … Continue reading Aldo Nova on touring with Blue Öyster Cult, covering Coney Hatch, and the new Subject…Aldo Nova

That time Mark Kelly told me that Marillion were touring with Rush and I questioned the matchup

By Steve Newton Way back in March of 1986 Marillion keyboardist Mark Kelly called me up from a tour stop in Quebec City. As the interview kicked off he told me that his band was opening for Rush there, which caught me off guard. I figured Rush, which was touring behind its Power Windows album, … Continue reading That time Mark Kelly told me that Marillion were touring with Rush and I questioned the matchup

That time new Anthrax vocalist John Bush told me that he thought the band’s weakest link had always been its singer

By Steve Newton When I interviewed metal vocalist John Bush back in August of 1993 he was touring with Anthrax, who had released their first album with him, Sound of White Noise, three months earlier. The 30-year-old Bush, formerly of Armored Saint, had been brought in to replace the fired Joey Belladonna, who had sung … Continue reading That time new Anthrax vocalist John Bush told me that he thought the band’s weakest link had always been its singer

That time Aldo Nova told me that the guys in Blue Öyster Cult were not as wild as you’d think they are

By Steve Newton I interviewed Aldo Nova back in December of 1983, when he was touring with one of my favourite all-time bands, Blue Öyster Cult. This was a month after BOC released the Bruce Fairbairn-produced The Revolution By Night, which isn’t one of my fave Cult albums. But it does include a pretty cool … Continue reading That time Aldo Nova told me that the guys in Blue Öyster Cult were not as wild as you’d think they are

That time Steven Adler told me that he wished he’d checked out Iron Maiden when Guns N’ Roses opened for them in the ’80s

By Steve Newton I interviewed original Guns N’ Roses drummer Steven Adler back in August of 2011, the same year he appeared in Season 5 of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew. At the time he was heading to Vancouver for a club show with his own band, Adler’s Appetite, performing originals and the tunes he … Continue reading That time Steven Adler told me that he wished he’d checked out Iron Maiden when Guns N’ Roses opened for them in the ’80s