Quadrophenia, the world’s greatest rock album, released as box set today

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, NOV. 15, 2011 By Steve Newton I recently learned that a good way to get peeps' attention is to call someone or something "the world's greatest". Like, when I reviewed Jeff Beck's Vancouver concert last month and proclaimed him "the world's greatest rock guitarist", it caused quite a commotion in the comments section. … Continue reading Quadrophenia, the world’s greatest rock album, released as box set today

UFO box set celebrates the hard-rock guitar genius of Michael Schenker

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, SEPT. 6, 2011 By Steve Newton When I wrote the first Ear of Newt blog I mentioned that one of my goals was to shine a light on the more underrated rock acts of the '70s, and UFO was one that I pointed to. It always bugs me that I never get … Continue reading UFO box set celebrates the hard-rock guitar genius of Michael Schenker

Pink Floyd ‘The Wall’ boxed set is a dream come true for Floyd freaks

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, FEB. 27, 2012 By Steve Newton Last November I wrote an ethusiastic blog about the release of the Quadrophenia boxed set, even going to far as to declare that the Who's double disc of 1973 was the world's greatest rock album. A lot of readers disagreed. Some of them would probably contend that Pink Floyd's … Continue reading Pink Floyd ‘The Wall’ boxed set is a dream come true for Floyd freaks

Woodstock 40-year anniversary box set goes overboard with six discs

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, DEC. 2, 2009 By Steve Newton Music historians often make Woodstock out to be the greatest concert happening of all time, but after slogging through this six-disc set I’m not so sure. The sociopolitical ramifications of the three-day event were immense, no doubt, but there sure were some questionable performances at … Continue reading Woodstock 40-year anniversary box set goes overboard with six discs

Gary Moore’s Essential Montreux is a five-disc feast of fret-burning action

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, DEC. 2, 2009 By Steve Newton Got someone on your Christmas list who’s a huge fan of wailing rock guitar? Then look no further than Eagle Rock's five-disc feast of fret-burning action by Irish guitar hero Gary Moore. So what if it contains no less than four live versions of Otis Rush’s … Continue reading Gary Moore’s Essential Montreux is a five-disc feast of fret-burning action

Festival Express takes a crazy train to ’70s rock history

By Steve Newton There's been some pretty sweet concert Blu-rays released in the last little while. Hugely impressive was last week's Bob Dylan: The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration--Deluxe Edition, from Legacy Recordings, the same folks who gave us recent killer box sets by Johnny Winter and Mike Bloomfield. Yesterday I finally got around to watching another … Continue reading Festival Express takes a crazy train to ’70s rock history

Studio star Mike Fraser helps Bruce Fairbairn and Bob Rock put Vancouver on the musical map

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 28, 1998 By Steve Newton If you’ve listened to rock radio at all in the past decade, you’ve heard Mike Fraser’s work. His mixing and engineering talents have graced such hugely popular recordings as Aerosmith’s Pump, Metallica’s Load, and Van Halen’s Balance. In the past few years, he’s branched out into … Continue reading Studio star Mike Fraser helps Bruce Fairbairn and Bob Rock put Vancouver on the musical map

Bruce Fairbairn: legendary Vancouver rock producer tells all in 1998

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON NOV. 12, 1998 By Steve Newton It’s been a very long time since Kiss performed at a nightclub in Vancouver. Twenty-four years, actually, since Gene Simmons nearly set the Commodore Ballroom’s red velvet curtains ablaze with his fire-breathing antics. But there they were again two months back, the four original members, gyrating … Continue reading Bruce Fairbairn: legendary Vancouver rock producer tells all in 1998

Horror review: FX 2–The Deadly Art of Illusion

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MAY 19, 1991 On paper, everything looked good for the sequel to F/X, director Robert Mandel’s 1986 hit thriller. Bryan Brown and Brian Dennehy, so fine as the special effects ace and workaholic cop in the original, were back. Aussie native Richard Franklin—a former student of Alfred Hitchcock who … Continue reading Horror review: FX 2–The Deadly Art of Illusion

The Drive-By Truckers prove that “Shit Shots Count” on Conan

photo by the Newt Just saw one of my fave bands, the Drive-By Truckers, tearing it up on the Conan O'Brien Show. They went to town on a song called "Shit Shots Count", the opening track from their brand new album English Oceans. The tune is written and sung by Mike Cooley, who I like to … Continue reading The Drive-By Truckers prove that “Shit Shots Count” on Conan

Black Sabbath’s new box set isn’t quite as wicked as its Black Box

By Steve Newton The hard-rock/metal world is all a-buzz with today's news that the mighty Black Sabbath will release a CD boxed set containing the band's first eight albums—the ones it recorded before Ozzy Osbourne got the boot and was replaced by Ronnie James Dio in 1979. That's all well and good. The more masterful Tony Iommi riffs … Continue reading Black Sabbath’s new box set isn’t quite as wicked as its Black Box

Anybody got a question for ZZ Top guitarist Billy Gibbons?

One of my all-time fave bands from the '70s, ZZ Top, is playing Vancouver on March 22. Their albums made my personal Top 30 charts in 1971, '72, '73, '75, '76, and '79. Sadly, they didn't release any LPs in '70, '74, '77, and '78, not that the seventies had room for even one more shitkicker … Continue reading Anybody got a question for ZZ Top guitarist Billy Gibbons?