ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, FEB. 5, 1998 I’ve seen my fair share of B.C. Place rock concerts over the years, but none that have left me as perplexed as last Wednesday’s (January 28) Stones show. It started out shockingly lame before transforming into something wild and wonderful, and I would have sworn that … Continue reading The Rolling Stones go from bogus to brilliant in Vancouver
Ronnie Earl makes dedication to Peter Green on new Tom Dowd-helmed CD
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JAN. 22, 1998 By Steve Newton Blues guitarist Ronnie Earl really takes the Beatles’ “All you need is love” credo to heart. On the phone from his Boston home, Earl comes off as an artist driven as much by compassion for others as by a personal joy in making … Continue reading Ronnie Earl makes dedication to Peter Green on new Tom Dowd-helmed CD
Silverchair fanatics will lap up the Aussie grunge-rockers’ Freak Box
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, DEC. 11, 1997 By Steve Newton You’ve gotta think pretty highly of yourself to issue a five-disc box set when you’ve only got two albums to your name, but that’s what teenage Aussie grunge-rockers Silverchair have done with this limited-edition import, The Freak Box. Even more bizarre, though, is … Continue reading Silverchair fanatics will lap up the Aussie grunge-rockers’ Freak Box
The Doors box set documents the band in all its unrefined glory
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, DEC. 11, 1997 By Steve Newton This four-disc package of Doors material, spanning the years 1965 to ’71, favours previously unreleased live tracks and demo recordings over studio-polished hits, and documents the band in all its eccentric, unrefined, and—with tunes that pass the 18-minute mark—excessive glory. Its mix of … Continue reading The Doors box set documents the band in all its unrefined glory
Bonfire box a godsend for fans of AC/DC’s ear-bustin’ boogie blues
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON DEC. 11, 1997 By Steve Newton My reviewer’s copy of the long-overdue AC/DC box set was labelled with a warning that it was not for sale and “must be returned on demand of recording company”. Yeah, right—I’d like to see Warner Brothers just try to get this prized package back. They’d have … Continue reading Bonfire box a godsend for fans of AC/DC’s ear-bustin’ boogie blues
Guitar great Steve Cropper helps helm Joe Louis Walker’s Great Guitars
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 20, 1997 Any bozo can pick up a guitar and trace out a simple pentatonic blues scale. I should know, I’ve been tracing out blues scales like a bozo for years. But while the most basic techniques of blues guitar are accessible to the beginner, it’s not nearly … Continue reading Guitar great Steve Cropper helps helm Joe Louis Walker’s Great Guitars
Carnivals and bar fights inspire Junkhouse’s Fuzz
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 20, 1997 On the Saturday afternoon when Junkhouse leader Tom Wilson calls from his Hamilton home, he’s still buzzing from a wild gig the previous night in Quebec City. It was the band’s first experience with the concert-in-the-round format, and it left the singer-songwriter-guitarist somewhat numbed. “It was … Continue reading Carnivals and bar fights inspire Junkhouse’s Fuzz
Spine-tingling guitar solos light up Lynyrd Skynyrd’s first-ever Vancouver show
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, SEPT. 4, 1997 By Steve Newton Those ’70s-rock fans sure are a devoted bunch. Even if one of their fave old bands hasn’t produced a hit in two decades, they’ll stick with it and flock to its concerts to hold Bic lighters on high and relive the halcyon days … Continue reading Spine-tingling guitar solos light up Lynyrd Skynyrd’s first-ever Vancouver show
For Paul Rodgers, everything stems from playing live
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 28, 1997 By Steve Newton Back in the late ’60s, British blues-rock crooner Paul Rodgers wrapped his gravel ’n’ honey vocals around a simple, bludgeoning Paul Kossoff guitar riff and rock history was made. Twenty-seven years after its release, Free’s “All Right Now” has joined an elite club of records to … Continue reading For Paul Rodgers, everything stems from playing live
David Lee Roth says he doesn’t regret leaving Van Halen
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 8, 1994 By Steve Newton With all the frenzied media attention and intense public speculation surrounding the O.J. Simpson case, it's hard to keep a fair handle on the whole sordid affair. Even such trusted news sources as A Current Affair and the National Enquirer have gotten caught up in the circus. So who do … Continue reading David Lee Roth says he doesn’t regret leaving Van Halen
Judas Priest rips off Iron Maiden on Redeemer of Souls (but just a little)
Judas Priest released its 17th studio album, Redeemer of Souls, today, and I've been giving it a listen. All in all, I've gotta say that the British metal legends deliver the goods on the 13-track CD--which includes an extra five tunes on a bonus disc if you're lucky enough to get Sony Music to send you the … Continue reading Judas Priest rips off Iron Maiden on Redeemer of Souls (but just a little)
Ventures guitarist Don Wilson on the origin and influence of “Walk, Don’t Run”
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 13, 1997 By Steve Newton When Ventures cofounder Bob Bogle walked onto a Seattle used-car lot one afternoon in 1959, he wasn’t expecting to form the nucleus of what would become the world’s top-selling instrumental-rock band—he was just looking for some new wheels. Fortunately, he ran into aspiring … Continue reading Ventures guitarist Don Wilson on the origin and influence of “Walk, Don’t Run”
Robben Ford scoops up Keith Richards’ rhythm section for Tiger Walk
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 13, 1997 By Steve Newton When the time came for California guitar great Robben Ford to record his latest CD, Tiger Walk, he had a pretty good idea which rhythm section he wanted backing him up. He’d heard it on a Keith Richards album. “I’m not really a … Continue reading Robben Ford scoops up Keith Richards’ rhythm section for Tiger Walk