ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 3, 1997 By Steve Newton The last time I tuned in to Bruce Allen’s Soundoff show on CFOX, I caught the loudmouthed rock mogul in one of his favourite on-air acts: slagging the Tragically Hip. The band had just released its live album, Live Between Us, and Allen was reveling in … Continue reading Bruce Allen’s anti-Hip rants can’t tarnish Canada’s best band
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 19, 1993 By Steve Newton When I interviewed Aerosmith’s Joe Perry last week, the former doper explained that music was his drug of choice now, that it was capable of giving him an instant attitude change whenever he needed it. Well, last Saturday (August 14) Perry and his mates showed yours … Continue reading Aerosmith kicks major butt in Vancouver on the Get a Trip Tour
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 21, 1995 By Steve Newton Why would a gifted bluesman from the Windy City ever think to leave his sweet home in Chicago and take up residence in a place like Paris, France? Maybe so he could get some inspiration for a tune called “Nuclear Weapon–Testing Weasel Blues”, but that’s about … Continue reading My first and last interview with underrated blues-guitar great Luther Allison
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 7, 1995 By Steve Newton You might wonder why a band as popular as Collective Soul is playing the Commodore, when it’s obvious the group could pack in at least a few thousand more folks somewhere else. The gig next Thursday (September 14) sold out instantly, and scalped tickets will no … Continue reading Collective Soul’s Ed Roland wants to start over at the Commodore
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, OCT. 8, 1992 By Steve Newton There’s nothing like timing it just right, so that when you walk into a concert venue the band’s just going on stage. But sometimes that I-don’t-feel-like-waitin’ approach backfires, and you end up missing a few tunes by the group you’re all geared up … Continue reading Blue Rodeo doesn’t recommend taking acid at the Commodore in Vancouver
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
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON FEB. 28, 1991 By Steve Newton It’s been a long seven-year wait for Vancouver Scorpions fans, but the dry spell is nearly over. Germany’s veteran hard-rockers—who haven’t performed here since the Love at First Sting tour of 1984—will be in town for a Saturday (March 2) gig at the Pacific Coliseum. And … Continue reading Scorpions pull Vancouver hitmaker Jim Vallance into their Crazy World
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 21, 1991 By Steve Newton “Oh, those fabulous ’70s,” intoned Tom Petty halfway through his Monday-night (November 18) show at the Coliseum. The Florida native was catching his breath between a couple of his early tunes, “Here Comes My Girl” and “Breakdown”, but you couldn’t really tell if … Continue reading Tom Petty blows into the psychedelic harmonica on the Into the Great Wide Open Tour
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
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCT. 3, 1991 By Steve Newton I’d been warned by someone who caught Pearl Jam’s sound check at the Town Pump last Thursday afternoon (September 26) that the Seattle band was extremely loud. My second clue, upon entering the busy club around midnight, was the abundance of black leather and tattoos among … Continue reading Pearl Jam pulls off a loud one at the Town Pump in Vancouver
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCT. 10, 1991 By Steve Newton After producing hit records by the likes of Motley Crue, the Cult, and Metallica, Vancouver’s Bob Rock is tying on the gloves and stepping into the ring with Rockhead, his new hard-rock four-piece. The band’s been playing at various local top-40 bars, and if Saturday’s (October … Continue reading Bob Rock gets his guitar jollies at the Rock Cellar with riff-based Rockhead
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCT. 17, 1991 By Steve Newton “Disco and rap, it’s all crap.” That used to be this scribbler’s motto, until he heard Anthrax’s rapped-up version of “Bring the Noise”, which combines a seriously sonic guitar onslaught with the streetwise poetry of Public Enemy. It’s a great tune and one that led to … Continue reading Anthrax brings the noise with a little help from Public Enemy
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
