By Steve Newton David Lindley is widely hailed as one of the finest players of stringed instruments in the world. As well as acoustic and electric guitar, he's been known to handle upright and electric bass, banjo, lap steel guitar, mandolin, hardingfele, bouzouki, cittern, bağlama, gumbus, charango, cümbüş, and zither. When I interviewed him back … Continue reading That time I asked veteran studio ace David Lindley what his favourite recording session had been
That time Megadeth’s Marty Friedman told me about the satanic bonfires in Dallas on the Clash of the Titans tour
By Steve Newton Megadeth has featured some wicked guitar players over the years, but arguably non wickeder than Marty Friedman, who did his thing on killer albums like Countdown to Extinction and Youthanasia. When I called Friedman up in May of 1991 he was in El Paso, Texas, where Megadeth was playing as part of … Continue reading That time Megadeth’s Marty Friedman told me about the satanic bonfires in Dallas on the Clash of the Titans tour
The Climax Blues Band had a song about living together and free that Americans should take to heart right now
By Steve Newton It was clean-the-freakin'-basement day today, so I searched around for an album that might put me in the mood for getting some crap moved from one area to another. I settled on the Climax Blues Band's 1976 LP, Gold Plated, and the opening track on SIde One got me thinkin' that, man, … Continue reading The Climax Blues Band had a song about living together and free that Americans should take to heart right now
That time Joe Satriani told me that Jeff Beck’s Blow By Blow was just the kind of music his generation wanted to hear
By Steve Newton Man, was 1975 the best year for guitar-based rock or what? That's the year I graduated high school, and spent countless hours cramming my head with riffs from LPs like Thin Lizzy's Fighting, Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti, Bad Company's Straight Shooter, Heart's Dreamboat Annie, and the self-titled debuts by Ian Hunter, the … Continue reading That time Joe Satriani told me that Jeff Beck’s Blow By Blow was just the kind of music his generation wanted to hear
That time I asked legendary tunesmith John Hiatt if writing songs came easy for him or if it’s always been hard
ron baker photo/wikipedia By Steve Newton John Hiatt has written some of my favourite tunes. Sometimes he records them himself ("Paper Thin", "Tennessee Plates", "Perfectly Good Guitar"), sometimes people like Jeff Healey ("Confidence Man") and Bonnie Raitt ("Thing Called Love") cover them. It was a real honour to chat with a legendary songwriter of John … Continue reading That time I asked legendary tunesmith John Hiatt if writing songs came easy for him or if it’s always been hard
AC/DC’s undying influence on Vancouver rockers, record-store owners, and radio personalities
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 19, 2001 By Steve Newton The members of AC/DC aren’t doing any interviews in advance of their two shows at the Pacific Coliseum on Sunday and Monday (April 22 and 23), but that’s okay, because if they were, they’d probably just want to talk about their latest album, Stiff Upper Lip. And quite frankly, … Continue reading AC/DC’s undying influence on Vancouver rockers, record-store owners, and radio personalities
That time Justin Townes Earle told me that it was Jason Isbell’s songs that made him a big Drive-By Truckers fan
By Steve Newton Very sad to hear the news tonight of the passing of Americana artist Justin Townes Earle. He was a helluva singer-songwriter. I only got to interview him once, back in May of 2009, when he was touring behind his third album, Midnight Movies. Having interviewed his father Steve Earle numerous times, I … Continue reading That time Justin Townes Earle told me that it was Jason Isbell’s songs that made him a big Drive-By Truckers fan
That time Alex Van Halen told me which drummer first blew him away with style and feel
By Steve Newton Everybody has their favourite all-time rock drummer. Mine, for example, was the Who's Keith Moon, who won me over forever with his frenzied work on Quadrophenia. Many others point to the precise timekeeping of Led Zeppelin skinbasher John Bonham. When I interviewed Alex Van Halen back in 1995 he told me that Moon … Continue reading That time Alex Van Halen told me which drummer first blew him away with style and feel
That time I made Gary Moore laugh by asking what drives him
By Steve Newton I've interviewed scads of incredible guitarists over the years, but I can't think of any more amazing than Gary Moore. Everything about his playing just blew me away. So I was mighty psyched when I did my one and only interview with him way back on May 11, 1984. At the time … Continue reading That time I made Gary Moore laugh by asking what drives him
That time I asked Nancy Wilson if Heart were Canadians from Vancouver or Americans from Seattle
By Steve Newton Heart was one of the first great rock bands I saw live. I was still in high school when they came and played the hockey rink in Chilliwack around the time of their debut Dreamboat Annie LP, which--with songs like "Magic Man", "Crazy on You", and "White Lightning & Wine"--is still my … Continue reading That time I asked Nancy Wilson if Heart were Canadians from Vancouver or Americans from Seattle
Thin Lizzy and Rory Gallagher packages bring hope for the future and proof that there is a god (for fans of Irish rock)
colm henry photo By Steve Newton With the COVID-19 epidemic causing death and economic destruction worldwide, there hasn't been a lot to cheer about in the last six months. But that all changed this week when a new double-disc collection by Rory Gallagher and a massive box set from Thin Lizzy were announced. Let's hear … Continue reading Thin Lizzy and Rory Gallagher packages bring hope for the future and proof that there is a god (for fans of Irish rock)
That time Jeff Golub told me that, as a kid in Akron, Ohio, you could either be a juvenile delinquent or a guitarist
Rod Stewart Fan Club photo By Steve Newton One summer day back in July of 1989 Rod Stewart played Vancouver's BC Place Stadium on his Out of Order World tour. It would have been great to meet Rod the Mod down at the pub and do a little interview, but he wasn't available, so I … Continue reading That time Jeff Golub told me that, as a kid in Akron, Ohio, you could either be a juvenile delinquent or a guitarist
That time Edgar Winter told me about playing Carnegie Hall for Les Paul’s 90th birthday celebration
Carl Lender photo By Steve Newton When I interviewed Edgar Winter in July of 2005 it had only been one month since he'd performed at Carnegie Hall as part of Les Paul's 90th birthday celebration. He'd been joined at that event by the likes of Steve Miller, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Steve Lukather, Stanley Jordan, Peter … Continue reading That time Edgar Winter told me about playing Carnegie Hall for Les Paul’s 90th birthday celebration