Jeff Beck freak and knowledge junkie Mark Fitchett leads Cult of the Wrong Note

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MARCH 21, 1996 By Steve Newton Everyone’s heard the stories of starry-eyed youths who journey to Tinseltown with visions of glory and not much else, but they might not have heard about the kid from Richmond who hopped a bus for Hollywood with the dream of becoming a professional guitar player. Mark … Continue reading Jeff Beck freak and knowledge junkie Mark Fitchett leads Cult of the Wrong Note

Guitar legend Buddy Guy strives to keep the blues alive

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 22, 1991 By Steve Newton Blues guitar great Buddy Guy sure has seen some interesting things during his 55 years on this earth. How many players can say that Jimi Hendrix once cancelled a gig to sit at their feet with a tape recorder? “I didn’t know who he was at … Continue reading Guitar legend Buddy Guy strives to keep the blues alive

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

Keith Richards’ other great band kicks out all the jams in Vancouver

kevin statham photo ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JAN. 21, 1993 By Steve Newton The Rolling Stones have owned the Granville Mall of late. A couple of months back Ronnie Wood played the Commodore; now Keith Richards has ripped things up a few doors down at the Orpheum. Maybe Mick Jagger will continue the trend and drop … Continue reading Keith Richards’ other great band kicks out all the jams in Vancouver

Guitar hero Michael Schenker goes acoustic and his fans are fine with it

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MARCH 12, 1992 By Steve Newton When Michael Schenker was only 15, he met up with Scorpions singer Klaus Meine. Just a year later, he was laying down the white-hot guitar licks for the Scorpions’ debut album, Lonesome Crow. But Schenker’s early musical accomplishments were not without their price, … Continue reading Guitar hero Michael Schenker goes acoustic and his fans are fine with it

Dash Rip Rock has gotten into a few scrapes playing “Stairway to Freebird”

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MARCH 12, 1992 By Steve Newton It’s strange how rumours get started, sometimes. Like the one that keeps cropping up in Dash Rip Rock’s press kit, about R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills being a mortal enemy of the Louisiana-based roots-rock band. Supposedly, Mills was spotted at a particularly crazed DRR … Continue reading Dash Rip Rock has gotten into a few scrapes playing “Stairway to Freebird”

Robert Cray gets the thing happening on Some Rainy Morning

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JAN. 18, 1996 By Steve Newton You wouldn’t think bluesman Robert Cray would be musically indebted to the Beatles, but they were the band that drove him to pick up a guitar. By the age of 10 Cray had already been soaking up the gospel, jazz, soul, and blues in his parents’ … Continue reading Robert Cray gets the thing happening on Some Rainy Morning

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

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

Duke Robillard finds a sense of balance with Temptation

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MARCH 2, 1995 By Steve Newton Some music-crazy kids will do anything to get their youthful paws on their first electric guitar. They’ll beg, borrow, or steal. Or, if they’re like Duke Robillard, they’ll pull a fast one. As a 14-year-old in Providence, Rhode Island, he came up with a highly original … Continue reading Duke Robillard finds a sense of balance with Temptation

Geddy Lee on the music of the ’70s, the Order of Canada, and the full-time job of Rush

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 15, 1997 By Steve Newton Although I’m usually too lazy to bother fiddling with LPs these days, those old black beauties sure do come in handy when I’m preparing to interview a band that’s been around as long as Rush. Shuffling through my prized rows of plastic-enclosed 12-inchers, I come across … Continue reading Geddy Lee on the music of the ’70s, the Order of Canada, and the full-time job of Rush

Damn Yankees with the Nuge kicks ass; Bad Company without Paul Rodgers licks it

@shotbykevin ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MARCH 21, 1991 By Steve Newton Oh man—talk about going back in time! There was Ted Nugent riffing out on “Cat Scratch Fever” and screeching like he had a severe case of it. There was former Styx guitarist Tommy Shaw whipping his still-blond locks every which way while … Continue reading Damn Yankees with the Nuge kicks ass; Bad Company without Paul Rodgers licks it