Pink Floyd plays Vancouver on the Division Bell tour, David Gilmour’s state-of-the-art guitars shine

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JUNE 30, 1994 By Steve Newton As streams of perked-up Pink Floyd fans strolled north across the Cambie Street bridge en route to the big white marshmallow of B.C. Place last Saturday (June 25), a lot of them were eyeing the sky. It was a fine time to revel in the postcard … Continue reading Pink Floyd plays Vancouver on the Division Bell tour, David Gilmour’s state-of-the-art guitars shine

David Lee Roth says he doesn’t regret leaving Van Halen

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 8, 1994 By Steve Newton With all the frenzied media attention and intense public speculation surrounding the O.J. Simpson case, it’s hard to keep a fair handle on the whole sordid affair. Even such trusted news sources as A Current Affair and the National Enquirer have gotten caught up in the circus. So who do … Continue reading David Lee Roth says he doesn’t regret leaving Van Halen

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

Josh Homme’s grinding overdrive helps Screaming Trees wake up Vancouver on a Sunday night

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MARCH 20, 1997 By Steve Newton Last Sunday night (March 16) I had three pretty good reasons for not wanting to drag my butt off a comfy couch and head downtown in the rain to review a rock show at the Rage. First off, I was tuckered out after the previous night’s … Continue reading Josh Homme’s grinding overdrive helps Screaming Trees wake up Vancouver on a Sunday night

Urge Overkill are nuts about Neil Diamond and All My Children

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 19, 1993 By Steve Newton Urge Overkill and my mom have quite a lot in common. My mom doesn’t travel around the country wearing cool outfits and wigging out to hook-laden rock tunes. But I’ll tell ya one thing—she sure loves watching All My Children on the tube. And when the … Continue reading Urge Overkill are nuts about Neil Diamond and All My Children

Galactic Cowboys create melodic prog-metal with a Beatlesque vibe

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 26, 1993 By Steve Newton I heard someone say once that they do things differently down in Texas, and after chatting with Galactic Cowboys vocalist Ben Huggins, I believe it. Take, for example, the photos that accompany the Houston-based band’s latest release, Space in Your Face. While more hoity-toity (pronounced “L.A.”) … Continue reading Galactic Cowboys create melodic prog-metal with a Beatlesque vibe

Two years after saying goodbye to Crowded House, Neil Finn returns with solo debut

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 9, 1998 By Steve Newton After making the agonizing decision in 1996 to break up his world-famous Kiwi pop combo Crowded House, Neil Finn wasn’t exactly sure what to do next. An Aussie artist-musician friend of his suggested Finn try painting, so he spent two weeks at a beachside location doing … Continue reading Two years after saying goodbye to Crowded House, Neil Finn returns with solo debut

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

Yngwie Malmsteen puts Ritchie Blackmore rumours to rest, praises Nicolo Paganini and Uli Jon Roth

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JUNE 25, 2014 By Steve Newton Yngwie Malmsteen likes to wear all black on-stage and play fast as hell on a Fender Strat through a wall of cranked Marshall amps, so you might think that Ritchie Blackmore is his hero. “Okay, let’s correct that,” says Malmsteen when I mention … Continue reading Yngwie Malmsteen puts Ritchie Blackmore rumours to rest, praises Nicolo Paganini and Uli Jon Roth

ZZ Top snoozes through its Rhythmeen tour stop in Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JUNE 5, 1997 By Steve Newton Strolling over the Georgia Viaduct en route to GM Place last Sunday (June 1), I gazed down at the arena’s parking lot to see what kind of fancy tour buses ZZ Top is travelling in these days. I expected to see an outline … Continue reading ZZ Top snoozes through its Rhythmeen tour stop in Vancouver

Bob Rock plays every lick he knows on Rockhead’s “dumb old hard-rock album”

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 15, 1993 By Steve Newton The first time I interviewed veteran Vancouver musician and producer extraordinaire Bob Rock, he was in the middle of helming Bitter Sweet & Twisted, the new release by British blues-rockers the Quireboys. The last time we chatted, he was heavily involved in the much-anticipated release by … Continue reading Bob Rock plays every lick he knows on Rockhead’s “dumb old hard-rock album”

Muddy Waters didn’t want George Thorogood’s “Bad to the Bone”, but Bo Diddley did

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 30, 2014 By Steve Newton When you interview rockers on the road you always try to find out where they’re located, so you can write “When so-and-so calls from wherever” and establish a setting for the conversation. But when I contact blues-rocker George Thorogood–who plays the Hard Rock Casino Vancouver this … Continue reading Muddy Waters didn’t want George Thorogood’s “Bad to the Bone”, but Bo Diddley did

Chili Peppers bass god Flea won’t answer to Mr. Ugly Stinky

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 11, 1996 By Steve Newton That Flea guy is a real character. For my phone interview with the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ wildman bassist, I was instructed to call and ask for Mr. Ugly Stupid, the moniker Flea goes by when he’s on the road. But I started feeling a tad … Continue reading Chili Peppers bass god Flea won’t answer to Mr. Ugly Stinky