By Steve Newton I did the second of my three interviews with American blues-rock guitar virtuoso Joe Bonamassa in December of 2011, when he was touring behind his Dust Bowl album. Shortly before our chat Rolling Stone had published its 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time list, so we spent some time ridiculing that, and … Continue reading That time Joe Bonamassa complained to me about Rolling Stone’s ranking of Robert Johnson on its 100 Greatest Guitarists list
That time Tommy Emmanuel told me about first meeting Chet Atkins, and looking after Lenny Breau
By Steve Newton Tommy Emmanuel is a stunning guitarist; maybe the most amazing acoustic player I've ever seen live. I interviewed the Aussie picker back in May of 1994 when he was headed to Vancouver for gigs at the big Music West festival. His latest album at the time was The Journey, which featured a performance … Continue reading That time Tommy Emmanuel told me about first meeting Chet Atkins, and looking after Lenny Breau
That time Rob Baker told me that when Paul Langlois joined the Hip he only knew four or five chords
By Steve Newton I did my last Tragically Hip interview in June of 1997, a month after the band had released its concert album Live Between Us. Lead guitarist Rob Baker (I still called him Bobby back then) rang me up from his home in Kingston, and we talked about the live disc and the … Continue reading That time Rob Baker told me that when Paul Langlois joined the Hip he only knew four or five chords
That time John Petrucci told me that the members of Dream Theater grew up idolizing Iron Maiden
By Steve Newton When I interviewed Dream Theater guitarist John Petrucci back in June of 2010 his group was opening for Iron Maiden on its Final Frontier World Tour. So when I hooked up with Petrucci before a gig near Denver, Colorado I had a lot of questions related to the connections between his band … Continue reading That time John Petrucci told me that the members of Dream Theater grew up idolizing Iron Maiden
That time Steve Vai told me that there never will be another musician like Frank Zappa
By Steve Newton I'm embarrassed to say that I don't know much about Frank Zappa's music. One day I need to sit down and absorb some of that guy's massive body of work, I reckon. What I do know is that many of the finest musicians I've interviewed over the past 40 years or so … Continue reading That time Steve Vai told me that there never will be another musician like Frank Zappa
That time Stevie Ray Vaughan told me what it was like having two guitarists in Double Trouble
By Steve Newton I'm a huge Stevie Ray fan. Got a ton of his albums, seen him in concert a buncha times, interviewed him twice, got his autograph, shook his hand (it was like a vice). I figured I knew quite a lot about him, but maybe not so much. When I was interviewing him … Continue reading That time Stevie Ray Vaughan told me what it was like having two guitarists in Double Trouble
That time I asked Alex Van Halen about his earliest memories of jamming with Eddie
By Steve Newton I haven't interviewed that many drummers over the years--mainly because I like talking to guitarists more--but when Van Hagar was heading to Vancouver for a show in 1995 and the opportunity came to chat with Alex Van Halen I didn't turn it down. And boy was I glad I didn't, because he … Continue reading That time I asked Alex Van Halen about his earliest memories of jamming with Eddie
That time I asked Eric Johnson what he thought it was that made guitar aficionados so crazy about him
By Steve Newton As a hardcore fan of electric guitar music, I've managed to interview some of the top practitioners of the trade, Eric Johnson being one of them. When I chatted with the Texas Strat-master in January of 2001 he'd been chosen Guitar Player magazine's Best Overall Guitarist four years running. So I asked him … Continue reading That time I asked Eric Johnson what he thought it was that made guitar aficionados so crazy about him
That time I asked Allan Holdsworth what he thought of Eddie Van Halen
By Steve Newton If you were reading the top guitar magazines back in the early '80s you may have heard the buzz about this phenomenal British player named Allan Holdsworth. A lot of the buzz was being generated by one Eddie Van Halen, who was touting Holdsworth's abilities whenever he got a chance. Right around … Continue reading That time I asked Allan Holdsworth what he thought of Eddie Van Halen
That time I told Gene Simmons that I saw Kiss in a Vancouver club on the Hotter Than Hell tour
By Steve Newton Some concert experiences are just seared into memory--if you're lucky--and one of the most unforgettable for me was seeing Kiss at Vancouver's Commodore Ballroom in January of 1975. They were on the Hotter than Hell tour, and they were still hungry. They hadn't earned untold riches yet, hadn't become masters of marketing, … Continue reading That time I told Gene Simmons that I saw Kiss in a Vancouver club on the Hotter Than Hell tour
The Platform brings crazy-ass, whacked-out dystopian horror and mucho gore to Netflix
By Steve Newton My teenage son suggested we watch The Platform on Netflix last night, and man is that one crazy-ass, whacked-out dystopian horror flick. Gory as hell too, if you're into that kinda thing. Iván Massagué stars as Goreng, who wakes up in a grubby concrete cell with a copy of Don Quixote and a … Continue reading The Platform brings crazy-ass, whacked-out dystopian horror and mucho gore to Netflix
That time 29-year-old Steve Vai told me that he suffered making “For the Love of God”, but that blowjobs also do the trick
By Steve Newton I did my first interview with Steve Vai when he was touring with Whitesnake in May of 1990, but I was more interested in talking about his brand-new solo album, Passion and Warfare. I was particularly blown away by the track "For the Love of God", which still stands up as one … Continue reading That time 29-year-old Steve Vai told me that he suffered making “For the Love of God”, but that blowjobs also do the trick
That time I told Ace Frehley that I thought the first Kiss album was the best Kiss album
By Steve Newton I was crazy about Kiss when their first album dropped back in the Year of Our Lord, 1974. I was 16 at the time, which is all you need to know. I think it's their best album--love "Strutter", "Deuce", "Black Diamond"--so when the opportunity came to interview Ace Frehley back in 2008 … Continue reading That time I told Ace Frehley that I thought the first Kiss album was the best Kiss album