By Steve Newton Back in May of 1984 I did a phone interview with Tony Carey, who at the time was basking in the success of a solo career that had produced such radio-friendly hits as “A Fine, Fine Day” and “The First Day of Summer”. He’d first caught my ear as the keyboardist for … Continue reading Tony Carey found no beauty in Rainbow: “I wouldn’t tell Ritchie Blackmore if his hair was on fire”
By Steve Newton Whoa! I woke up to an angry Facebook message from rocker Tony Carey this morning. Turns out the singer, songwriter, and keyboard great was none too impressed with the blog I posted yesterday, which included audio from 1984 of him denouncing his previous band, Rainbow, and in particular guitarist Ritchie Blackmore. “Why … Continue reading Tony Carey not happy that I blogged about his ancient issues with Rainbow
By Steve Newton Back in 2016 I interviewed Uli Jon Roth for the first time ever, and made sure to ask him one of the more burning questions guitar-freaks might have for the legendary picker. I knew he’d played with some of the world’s greatest guitarists over the years–heck, at the time he was touring … Continue reading That time Uli Jon Roth told me that he’d most like to jam with David Gilmour, Ritchie Blackmore, and Jeff Beck
By Steve Newton On May 20 and 21, 1985, the charity project spearheaded by Ronnie James Dio, Hear ‘n Aid, recorded its video/single “Stars” at A&M Studios in L.A. “Stars” was a one-time collaboration featuring an array of the biggest hard rock/heavy metal artists of the ’80s. Contributing lead vocals on the track were Dio, … Continue reading That time Ronnie James Dio told me a fib about Priest and Maiden contributing songs to Hear ‘n Aid
By Steve Newton By now the rock world is fully abuzz with the official announcement from AC/DC that Axl Rose from Guns N’ Roses will be the new singer for the rest of its Rock or Bust World Tour. They could’ve done better, if you ask me. I don’t think Axl Rose’s voice is close … Continue reading AC/DC f***ed up: they shoulda hired Jimmy Barnes instead of Axl Rose
By Steve Newton There’s no denying that Ronnie James Dio did an incredible job replacing Ozzy Osbourne as the singer in Black Sabbath. The moment I heard “Neon Nights”, the opening track on Dio’s first Sabbath album, Heaven and Hell, I knew the heavy-metal stars had aligned. The music had way more power and feel … Continue reading That time Ronnie James Dio got ticked off when I asked him about stepping into Ozzy Osbourne’s shoes in Black Sabbath
By Steve Newton Ever since the Bottle Rockets came out with The Brooklyn Side back in ’94 I’ve been telling people how great they are–but nobody seemed to pay much attention. And when The Brooklyn Side was reissued by Bloodshot Records last year–along with the band’s self-titled 1993 debut–I started telling people again. And now I’m back on the Bottle … Continue reading The Bottle Rockets are one of the world’s most underrated rock bands
By Steve Newton Back in 2016 I had a nice chat with German guitar maestro Uli Jon Roth. As we were talking about Uli Jon Roth’s Ultimate Guitar Experience–the tour he was on with Jennifer Batten and Andy Timmons–I mentioned a previous guitar tour he was part of, the G3 European Tour of 1998. That … Continue reading Uli Jon Roth recalls the friction between Joe Satriani and Michael Schenker on the 1998 G3 European tour
By Steve Newton Back in June of 1983 I did a phone interview with Bruce Dickinson in advance of Iron Maiden’s show in Vancouver on the Piece of Mind tour. During the course of our conversation Dickinson claimed that it would be “unthinkable” for Iron Maiden to make an album without producer Martin Birch, who … Continue reading Bruce Dickinson in ’83: “It would be unthinkable to make an Iron Maiden album without Martin Birch”
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, DEC. 10, 2008 By Steve Newton I still like the sound of guitars the best. Martone Clean  Local rock-guitar instrumentalist Dave Martone aims for the stratosphere with his self-produced debut on the New York specialty label Magna Carta. His band includes primo bassist David Spidel and drummer Daniel Adair, who no doubt … Continue reading Newt’s Top 10 albums of 2008
rebecca blissett photo By Steve Newton See that wicked concert shot by ace Vancouver photographer Rebecca Blissett of the Darkness guitarist Dan Hawkins standing at the edge of the stage, ripping it up on his cream-coloured Les Paul to the obvious delight of the crowd? See that “Oh my god, this fvckin’ rocks!” look on … Continue reading Dan Hawkins still remembers that time the Darkness lit up the Commodore in Vancouver
By Steve Newton The more I see pictures of headphone-wearing DJs alone on-stage, dickin’ around with laptops and turntables, the more I think: fvck off. Bottle Rockets South Broadway Athletic Club One of the world’s most underrated bands comes up with a killer album of catchy guitar rock that rivals its stellar ’94 release, The Brooklyn … Continue reading Newt’s Top 10 albums of 2015
 me ‘n Roy hangin’ at the Pump ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON FEB. 14, 1986 By Steve Newton There were some people who felt that Roy Buchanan played way too loud and not nearly enough at the Town Pump last Monday (February 10). Then there were others–like myself–who could care less about such things as long as … Continue reading Roy Buchanan lets his soul scream in Vancouver
