Tom Cochrane gets his Canuck on at the Commodore in Vancouver on the Ragged Ass Road tour

kevin statham photo ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MARCH 22, 1996 By Steve Newton Last July a band calling itself Red Rider—but without Tom Cochrane in the lineup—played the Commodore. Not surprisingly, the turnout was small, and not surprisingly, I wasn’t there. I’ve been a Red Rider fan since day one, but the notion of seeing the … Continue reading Tom Cochrane gets his Canuck on at the Commodore in Vancouver on the Ragged Ass Road tour

Talking Ry Cooder, Ronnie Montrose, and the Allmans with Gov’t Mule’s Warren Haynes

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON NOV. 12, 1998 By Steve Newton Bluesman Luther Allison, folk-pop troubadour Jeff Buckley, fingerstyle-guitar innovator Michael Hedges, and jazz drummer Tony Williams might seem unlikely heroes for a southern-rock band, but they’re who Gov’t Mule’s new CD, Dose, is dedicated to. Between the time the band started recording Dose and the deadline … Continue reading Talking Ry Cooder, Ronnie Montrose, and the Allmans with Gov’t Mule’s Warren Haynes

Ear of Newt’s Top 30 Rock Albums of 1970

Last year I decided to turn the clock back four decades and put together a list of my 30 fave albums of 1973, because, for one thing, that was the year when the greatest rock album of all time–the Who’s Quadrophenia–was released. Then, a couple of weeks back, I kept up the “40 years ago” … Continue reading Ear of Newt’s Top 30 Rock Albums of 1970

A Solo Todd Kerns Is Open to Beautiful Disasters

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, NOV. 10, 2004 By Steve Newton Strolling into the living room of Todd Kerns’s Burnaby townhouse is a bit like entering a ’70s-rock museum. The first thing you see is an array of fine electric guitars, including an AC/DC–style Gibson SG; the second is a set of Kiss action figures atop … Continue reading A Solo Todd Kerns Is Open to Beautiful Disasters

Ontario’s Buffalo Brothers pay the price for that sweet Hammond B-3 sound

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 16, 1996 By Steve Newton The members of London, Ontario, rock quartet Buffalo Brothers come from all over the largest of the Canuck provinces. Drummer Glen Gamble grew up in Brantford, bassist Jeff Fountain hails from North Bay, keyboardist Michael Bonnell calls Sault Sainte Marie home, and singer-guitarist Shaun Sanders is … Continue reading Ontario’s Buffalo Brothers pay the price for that sweet Hammond B-3 sound

Ronnie Earl makes dedication to Peter Green on new Tom Dowd-helmed CD

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JAN. 22, 1998 By Steve Newton Blues guitarist Ronnie Earl really takes the Beatles’ “All you need is love” credo to heart. On the phone from his Boston home, Earl comes off as an artist driven as much by compassion for others as by a personal joy in making music. That impression … Continue reading Ronnie Earl makes dedication to Peter Green on new Tom Dowd-helmed CD

Rolling Stones Blu-ray sounds killer with Keef’s botched chords fixed up

By Steve Newton Just hours after the Rolling Stones finished the first of two shows at Hyde Park last July YouTube started getting flooded with fan-shot videos that showed Keith Richards seriously fucking up the opening chords to the big show’s first song, “Start Me Up”. It was not a pretty sound. Ironically, in a … Continue reading Rolling Stones Blu-ray sounds killer with Keef’s botched chords fixed up

Ventures guitarist Don Wilson on the origin and influence of “Walk, Don’t Run”

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON NOV. 13, 1997 By Steve Newton When Ventures cofounder Bob Bogle walked onto a Seattle used-car lot one afternoon in 1959, he wasn’t expecting to form the nucleus of what would become the world’s top-selling instrumental-rock band—he was just looking for some new wheels. Fortunately, he ran into aspiring rhythm guitarist Don … Continue reading Ventures guitarist Don Wilson on the origin and influence of “Walk, Don’t Run”

Tom Cochrane dedicates “Big League” to Stan Smyl in Vancouver on the Mad Mad World Tour

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 7, 1991 By Steve Newton Tom Cochrane wasn’t kidding when he told me a couple of weeks back that his new rhythm section worked like a high-performance engine. The former Streetheart team of drummer Matt Frenette and bassist Spider Sinneave was scary last Monday night (November 4), with … Continue reading Tom Cochrane dedicates “Big League” to Stan Smyl in Vancouver on the Mad Mad World Tour

Pearl Jam pulls off a loud one at the Town Pump in Vancouver

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

Jeff Beck, the world’s greatest rock guitarist, knocks the socks off a sold-out crowd in Vancouver

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, OCT. 28, 2011 By Steve Newton British guitar legend Jeff Beck blew away the sold-out crowd at the Centre in Vancouver last night, performing his Stratified renditions of everything from the Beatles’ “A Day in the Life” to The Wizard of Oz‘s “Over the Rainbow”. But his amazing licks wouldn’t have seemed … Continue reading Jeff Beck, the world’s greatest rock guitarist, knocks the socks off a sold-out crowd in Vancouver

Wallflowers guitarist more influenced by Ace Frehley than Jakob Dylan’s dad

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MARCH 20, 1997 By Steve Newton Most guitarists for hire would jump at the opportunity to join a band featuring Bob Dylan’s son as singer-songwriter; name recognition alone would give that group an instant edge in the competitive rock ’n’ roll game. When Jakob Dylan was on the lookout for a new … Continue reading Wallflowers guitarist more influenced by Ace Frehley than Jakob Dylan’s dad

Junkhouse’s Tom Wilson believes there’s a Birthday Boy in all of us

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON NOV. 30, 1995 By Steve Newton If you happened to see the Beatles Anthology series on the tube last week, you’re probably aware that the Fab Four quit touring in 1966 and became just a recording act. That move worked out alright for them—but it probably wouldn’t suit Hamilton, Ontario, rockers Junkhouse. … Continue reading Junkhouse’s Tom Wilson believes there’s a Birthday Boy in all of us