ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 11, 1986 By Steve Newton In the world of music, jolly old England is famous for a number of things. The Beatles for instance. And rock guitar heroes like Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, and Jeff Beck. But country music is not one of Brittania’s specialties, and it never has been. Luckily … Continue reading Albert Lee says that his Everly Brothers gig was a “natural”
By Steve Newton I’ve been on a bit of an Allman Brothers bender of late. It started a while back when Gregg had to cancel some shows due to a “serious illness”. He’s feeling much better now, I’ve heard, but I still wanted to send good thoughts while continuously cranking out the four-CD Dreams box … Continue reading Duane Allman and Berry Oakley’s motorcycle deaths couldn’t keep the Midnight Rider off his bike
By Steve Newton Since time immemorial–or at least since Dio replaced Ozzy in Sabbath back in ’79–armchair rock critics have debated the merits of the two singers. It’s hard to complain about anything Ozzy did with the band up until the awesome Sabbath, Bloody Sabbath album of 1973; then again, after three spotty LPs, Dio … Continue reading That time I asked Tony Iommi how Ronnie James Dio compared to Ozzy Osbourne in Black Sabbath
By Steve Newton German guitar legend Uli Jon Roth plays Vancouver this Saturday (March 19) on a bill with fellow six-string sensations Jennifer Batten and Andy Timmons. The show is part of Uli Jon Roth’s Ultimate Guitar Experience, a tour that promises to be a perfect warmup for the Generation Axe show in April, which … Continue reading Uli Jon Roth invented the Sky guitar because 24 frets weren’t enough
By Steve Newton One thing I figured out about Gord Downie during the five interviews I did with him between 1989 and 1995 was that he really, really likes musicians. Especially musicians who play in bands. He was always quick to rave about the new groups he’d heard lately, or maybe the ones the Tragically … Continue reading That time Gord Downie raved to me about Tragically Hip tourmates Change of Heart and the Odds
By Steve Newton Bass players don’t get much more special than Donald “Duck” Dunn. As a session musician for Stax Records, Dunn brought the bottom end on scores of legendary tracks, including gems like Otis Redding’s “Respect”, Sam & Dave’s “Hold On, I’m Comin’”, and Albert King’s “Born Under a Bad Sign”. He was also the bassist … Continue reading That time Duck Dunn told me that Clapton was the best all-around guitarist he ever worked with
By Steve Newton When I interviewed guitar legend Tony Iommi back in March of 2007 he was bringing his Ronnie James Dio-fronted version of Black Sabbath, Heaven and Hell, to Vancouver for a show at the Pacific Coliseum with Megadeth and Down. At one point I asked Iommi whether he was a fan of Dio’s … Continue reading That time Tony Iommi told me about the early rivalry between Black Sabbath and Deep Purple
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON OCT. 15, 2016 By Steve Newton Tal Wilkenfeld played the Biltmore Cabaret in Vancouver a couple nights ago, and man, did she impress. Aside from the stunning bass playing she’s best known for, the 29-year-old showed great promise as a singer-songwriter as well. My wife kept raving about the poetry in her … Continue reading Bass virtuoso Tal Wilkenfeld raves about her band before they blow Vancouver away
By Steve Newton When I interviewed bass goddess Tal Wilkenfeld back in the fall of 2016, in advance of a show at Vancouver’s Biltmore Cabaret, I asked her what kind of music she was first drawn to in her life. Considering what an amazing musician she’s become, I figured her childhood would have been overflowing … Continue reading Bass superstar Tal Wilkenfeld only had three CDs to her name as a kid, but Hendrix was one of them
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 13, 1985 By Steve Newton Long John Baldry is a giant among British blues-rockers–and that’s not only because he stands 6 feet 7-1/2 inches tall. In his 26-year career the singer has played with stars such as Mick Jagger, Rod Stewart, and Elton John, among many others, and performed on over … Continue reading Long John Baldry on Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, David Bowie, and not wanting to be known as The King of Rock and Roll
By Steve Newton So here’s the last of the audio excerpts from my 1984 interview with Tony Iommi, back when Black Sabbath was touring behind the Born Again album. I called him up at his home in Birmingham–or maybe he called me up, it was a while ago–and we chatted about stuff like the band’s blowing … Continue reading That time Black Sabbath riffmaster Tony Iommi told me that the first guitar he ever wanted was a Fender Strat
By Steve Newton I love listening to these old soundbites of me hangin’ out with AC/DC‘s Malcolm Young and Brian Johnson at a Vancouver hotel room, sippin’ tea and chattin’ it up. The vast majority of interviews I’ve done since getting into the music-writing game back in ’82 with Vancouver’s Georgia Straight newspaper have been done … Continue reading That time AC/DC’s Malcolm Young told me that his biggest influences were “the old rockers” and early Clapton
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCT. 31, 1986 By Steve Newton Just before Lynyrd Skynyrd‘s plane went down on October 20, 1977, the now-legendary southern rock band released an album ironically titled Street Survivors. That crash took the lives of lead singer Ronnie Van Zant and singer/guitarist Steve Gaines, and grounded the band’s career just as it … Continue reading Gary Rossington and Dale Krantz-Rossington on leaving Rossington Collins, having kids, and “Workin’ for Atlantic” in ’86
