Taj Mahal and Robert Cray deliver soulfully smokin’ blues to a sold-out Commodore crowd

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JAN. 27, 1994 By Steve Newton If there’s one thing that’s a sure cure for the sad-eyed, rain-soaked January blahs, it’s a blues show at the Commodore. And when that show’s on a Friday night (January 21), the headliner is Robert Cray, and the opener is Taj Mahal, then cryin’ time is … Continue reading Taj Mahal and Robert Cray deliver soulfully smokin’ blues to a sold-out Commodore crowd

Metallica delivers on Lars Ulrich’s promise to “kick f***in’ ass” while touring behind The Black Album

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 28, 1992 By Steve Newton You don’t have to be a big fan of Metallica’s furiously thrashy—albeit recently refined—sound to give the band credit for blazing a formidable trail since its inception in ’81. The group has always gone against the grain and done things its own way, riding the precarious … Continue reading Metallica delivers on Lars Ulrich’s promise to “kick f***in’ ass” while touring behind The Black Album

The Replacements show Vancouver where the heart of rock ‘n’ roll really beats

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JULY 4, 1991 By Steve Newton I felt a tad nerdish, not having seen the legendary Replacements up until last Friday (June 28). I’d heard that these four guys from Minneapolis were capable of heart-stopping performances, tempering thrashy sonic onslaughts with a Beatlesque pop sensibility that couldn’t lose. So … Continue reading The Replacements show Vancouver where the heart of rock ‘n’ roll really beats

Roger Waters brings the Dark Side to Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JUNE 27, 2007 By Steve Newton British rock had a banner year in 1973. The Who released its Mods-versus-rockers masterwork, Quadrophenia, Elton John’s career peaked with Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, and David Bowie took glam to new heights on Aladdin Sane. But the album many feel ruled in ’73 … Continue reading Roger Waters brings the Dark Side to Vancouver

Marty Friedman says Megadeth is kicking the most butt on the Clash of the Titans tour

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 30, 1991 By Steve Newton Marty Friedman is one happy camper. The Megadeth guitarist is soaking up the sunshine in El Paso, Texas, just hours away from the fifth show in the four-band Clash of the Titans tour of the Lone Star state, and he reports that things have been going … Continue reading Marty Friedman says Megadeth is kicking the most butt on the Clash of the Titans tour

Warren Zevon talks Odds, “Werewolves”, scoring films, and managing to remain poor

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, FEB. 6, 1992 By Steve Newton Once upon a time, there were four young men who played in a band called Dawn Patrol. At a bar called the Roxy, they’d play fired-up versions of classic rock tunes and intersperse them with zany patter and goofy jokes. Then one day … Continue reading Warren Zevon talks Odds, “Werewolves”, scoring films, and managing to remain poor

3-D cover art enhances Voivod’s otherwordly themes on The Outer Limits

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 26, 1993 By Steve Newton I remember, back in the mid-’70s, picking up a secondhand copy of Grand Funk’s Shinin’ On. It wasn’t a very good album—I think it included the band’s hit remake of “Locomotion”, which I still can’t stand—but it had a 3-D cover, and when you viewed it … Continue reading 3-D cover art enhances Voivod’s otherwordly themes on The Outer Limits

Robert Plant gets the Led out and holds his own with the Black Crowes in Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 27, 1990 By Steve Newton Robert Plant threw me for a loop at the Coliseum last Friday (September 21). From the lacklustre sound of his latest album, Manic Nirvana, I had the impression that the 42-year-old rock legend had drifted off into boring-old-fartsville, never to return again. I even expected the … Continue reading Robert Plant gets the Led out and holds his own with the Black Crowes in Vancouver

Jack Semple’s Guitar Warz win delivered confidence and a hook

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 29, 1993 By Steve Newton One day about a year ago, I bumped into a guitar-playing acquaintance who was visiting the office to put a free musician’s ad in the paper. He started raving about this “wicked” guitarist he’d seen the night before at Jake O’Grady’s, a guy from Saskatchewan named Jack … Continue reading Jack Semple’s Guitar Warz win delivered confidence and a hook

Guitar superstar Jeff Healey steals the six-string spotlight from Robert Cray and Colin James in Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 10, 1992 By Steve Newton The PNE isn’t normally the type of place you’d go to save money, but Vancouver blues-rock fans who paid just $7.50 (plus fair admission) to see guitar heroes Robert Cray, Jeff Healey, and Colin James last Thursday (September 3) got themselves a heckuva good deal. They … Continue reading Guitar superstar Jeff Healey steals the six-string spotlight from Robert Cray and Colin James in Vancouver

Scatterbrain helps keep thrash out of the trash

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JULY 12, 1990 By Steve Newton I don’t go to a lot of thrash-metal gigs—the overall effect is just too monotonous and ugly-sounding for these ears weaned on the melodic hard-rock of the ’70s. But once in a while a band with a strong thrash element comes along which … Continue reading Scatterbrain helps keep thrash out of the trash

The Wallflowers’ Jakob Dylan says he’s not here to talk about his dad

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON FEB. 25, 1993 By Steve Newton I’d never heard the Wallflowers until about a week ago, when a fellow Straight contributor suggested I might like their rootsy style—the Black Crowes meet The Band. After rounding up a copy of the group’s self-titled 1992 debut, I fell under the spell of 22-year-old singer/songwriter … Continue reading The Wallflowers’ Jakob Dylan says he’s not here to talk about his dad

Tony Carey rips into Rainbow after “A Fine, Fine Day”, just before “The First Day of Summer”

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JUNE 1, 1984 By Steve Newton The memories of his days in Ritchie Blackmore‘s Rainbow are not joyous ones for Tony Carey. The singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist was a member of the band for three years, and played keyboards on the Rainbow Rising and Live on Stage albums before leaving in disgust … Continue reading Tony Carey rips into Rainbow after “A Fine, Fine Day”, just before “The First Day of Summer”