That time I asked famed producer Bruce Fairbairn what he thought of famed producer Bob Rock

By Steve Newton Back in December of 1991 I wrote a lengthy article on Vancouver producer Bob Rock, best known for his work with Metallica, and one of the Big Three of Vancouver hard-rock producers (along with fellow Little Mountain Sound-men Bruce Fairbairn and Mike Fraser). While putting the story together I gave Fairbairn a … Continue reading That time I asked famed producer Bruce Fairbairn what he thought of famed producer Bob Rock

That time I asked Mike Rutherford about the biggest highlights of Genesis’ career

By Steve Newton Way back in December of 1983 I did an interview with Mike Rutherford, who at the time was the guitarist-bassist in Genesis, joined by singer-drummer Phil Collins and keyboardist Tony Banks. Two months earlier the band had released a self-titled album that was a huge success, spawning the hits “Mama”, “That’s All”, … Continue reading That time I asked Mike Rutherford about the biggest highlights of Genesis’ career

That time Dickey Betts asked me to mention all the guys in the Allmans, including the “piece of dynamite”

By Steve Newton Yesterday I went and dug up the old cassette with my first Buddy Guy interview on it, the one from 1991, because I wanted to digitize it for my Patreon page. Cool thing was, I noticed that the interview before it on the tape was the one I did the previous month … Continue reading That time Dickey Betts asked me to mention all the guys in the Allmans, including the “piece of dynamite”

That time I asked Doc Neeson if the Angels/Angel City were inspired by their longtime friends AC/DC

By Steve Newton Way the funk back in 1985 I did my one and only interview with Doc Neeson, frontman for Angel City, who were known as the Angels in their native Australia. I thought Angel City were an awesome band. They put out an album called Face to Face that–with killer tracks like “Take … Continue reading That time I asked Doc Neeson if the Angels/Angel City were inspired by their longtime friends AC/DC

God bless Donald “Buck Dharma” Roeser’s guitar solo on Blue Öyster Cult’s “Burnin’ For You”

  By Steve Newton Back in June of 1981 Blue Öyster Cult released it’s eight studio album, Fire of Unknown Origin, and I immediately snapped it up, just like I’d done with their previous nine discs (including the two live albums). I’d been absolutely crazy about B.O.C. ever since I’d bought Tyranny and Mutation because of … Continue reading God bless Donald “Buck Dharma” Roeser’s guitar solo on Blue Öyster Cult’s “Burnin’ For You”

That time I asked Warren Haynes how long he thought the Allman Brothers might stay together

By Steve Newton I wouldn’t say that the Allman Brothers were as great, back in 1994, as they were when Duane was in the band, but holy crap were they still a smokin’ hot band! A lot of that smoke was conjured up by Warren Haynes, who Dickey Betts brought with him when the band … Continue reading That time I asked Warren Haynes how long he thought the Allman Brothers might stay together

That time I asked Telecaster master Danny Gatton if he liked playing slide with beer bottles

By Steve Newton I did my one and only interview with Danny Gatton, “the world’s greatest unknown guitarist”, back in 1993, just before the release of his Cruisin’ Deuces album. Tragically, he took his own life the following year. A close friend said he thought Gatton had suffered from depression for over two decades. He … Continue reading That time I asked Telecaster master Danny Gatton if he liked playing slide with beer bottles

Iron Maiden was the world’s best metal band in Vancouver last night

all photos by Jeff Sutherland By Steve Newton Your first concert is a big deal–or that’s what my nephew Jeff says, anyway. Thirty-five years ago I took him to his very first rock show, at the Pacific Coliseum. It was Iron Maiden on the Powerslave tour. He was 14. It ruled. Last night (Sept. 3) … Continue reading Iron Maiden was the world’s best metal band in Vancouver last night

That time Warren Haynes told me that Albert King might be the biggest influence on rock guitar ever

By Steve Newton When it comes to blues guitar, everybody’s got their favourite King. Lots love B.B. Some prefer Freddie. And then there’s others who think Albert is tops. Warren Haynes is one of those. When I interviewed Haynes in October of 1994, he was touring with the Allman Brothers, who were out promoting their … Continue reading That time Warren Haynes told me that Albert King might be the biggest influence on rock guitar ever

That time I asked Allman Brothers guitarist Warren Haynes about working with legendary producer Tom Dowd

By Steve Newton that’s Dowd on the far left, hangin’ with Warren and the Brothers By Steve Newton Legendary producer Tom Dowd has worked with some of the biggest names in the music biz, including–as Warren Haynes points out in this audio excerpt from 1994–Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, and John Coltrane. But it was Dowd’s … Continue reading That time I asked Allman Brothers guitarist Warren Haynes about working with legendary producer Tom Dowd

The Drive-By Truckers’ 20 best songs, from wicked to freakin’ awesome

By Steve Newton So far I’ve posted these wacky “20 best songs” lists for some of my fave bands from the ’70s, including Deep Purple, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Black Sabbath, Robin Trower, Van Halen, AC/DC, Blue Oyster Cult, and Thin Lizzy. When I decided to compile one for the Drive-By Truckers, who are … Continue reading The Drive-By Truckers’ 20 best songs, from wicked to freakin’ awesome