Search Results for: Tony Iommi

That time Jeff Keith called me up and told me what Tesla had been up to since releasing its debut album

By Steve Newton Back in June of 1988 Tesla frontman Jeff Keith called me up from his home in Sacramento in advance of his band’s Canadian tour with Def Leppard. Early in the interview I asked Keith what the group had been up to since releasing its debut album, Mechanical Resonance, a year and a … Continue reading That time Jeff Keith called me up and told me what Tesla had been up to since releasing its debut album

That time Alex Van Halen told me how ideas for Van Halen songs sprang from Eddie just noodling around

By Steve Newton When I interviewed Alex Van Halen on August 9, 1995, Van Halen was in the midst of a North American tour in support of its tenth album, the Bruce Fairbairn-produced Balance. As on all Van Halen albums, the songwriting credits on Balance were shared between all four members. At one point in … Continue reading That time Alex Van Halen told me how ideas for Van Halen songs sprang from Eddie just noodling around

That time I asked John Fogerty if “Fortunate Son” was a favourite tune of his

By Steve Newton I did my first interview with American rock legend John Fogerty back in August of 1997, when he was touring behind his fifth solo studio album, Blue Moon Swamp. Two nights earlier he’d performed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, so at one point in the conversation I asked him if … Continue reading That time I asked John Fogerty if “Fortunate Son” was a favourite tune of his

Ten years after Van Halen’s 1984, David Lee Roth ponders how condom use changes lyrical content

By Steve Newton Back in 1994 I did my first interview with David Lee Roth while he was promoting his Nile Rodgers-produced Your Filthy Little Mouth album. At one point in the conversation Roth started discussing how the changing times over the past decade–since his last album with Van Halen, 1984–had affected his life and, … Continue reading Ten years after Van Halen’s 1984, David Lee Roth ponders how condom use changes lyrical content

That time I asked Alex Van Halen how much longer he expected Van Halen to keep on rocking

By Steve Newton Back in August of 1995 I interviewed Alex Van Halen, legendary skin-basher for Van Halen, while the band was touring behind its Bruce Fairbairn-produced Balance album. That tour had been dubbed “The Ambulance Tour” by Eddie, due to his hip problems and Alex rupturing three vertebrae in his neck. So as the … Continue reading That time I asked Alex Van Halen how much longer he expected Van Halen to keep on rocking

That time Leslie Knauer of Precious Metal told me how Donald Trump screwed her band over

By Steve Newton I interviewed Precious Metal vocalist Leslie Knauer in March of 1991, when the L.A. based glam-metal band was touring behind its third and final album. That self-titled release featured a remake of Jean Knight’s 1971 hit “Mr. Big Stuff”, and the group had shot a video for it featuring former (and possibly, … Continue reading That time Leslie Knauer of Precious Metal told me how Donald Trump screwed her band over

That time Phil Caivano of Blitzspeer told me that L.A.’s metal scene sucked compared to New York’s

By Steve Newton I interviewed Blitzspeer singer-guitarist Phil Caivano in March of 1991, when the New York City metal band was touring behind its debut album, which was actually a live EP. The quartet would break up two years later after releasing the studio album Saves, and Caivano would go on to join Monster Magnet, … Continue reading That time Phil Caivano of Blitzspeer told me that L.A.’s metal scene sucked compared to New York’s

10 minutes on the phone with Alex Lifeson of Rush in 1992

By Steve Newton Alex Lifeson called me up from a tour stop in Fresno, California, on January 25, 1992, while Rush was on the road with Primus, showcasing tunes from their latest album, Roll the Bones. I asked him about the musical progression Rush had taken over the years, his early influences on guitar, and … Continue reading 10 minutes on the phone with Alex Lifeson of Rush in 1992

That time I suggested to guitar great Steve Stevens that he might want to cover Deep Purple’s “Highway Star”

By Steve Newton Back in September of 1989 I interviewed American guitar great Steve Stevens, who was touring behind his debut solo album, Atomic Playboys. That LP included a cover of the 1975 Sweet song “Action”, which Stevens said he thought was a Queen song at first. At one point in the conversation I asked … Continue reading That time I suggested to guitar great Steve Stevens that he might want to cover Deep Purple’s “Highway Star”

That time Lars Ulrich called me up from Cincinnati and told me that Metallica wasn’t doing bad for a buncha drunks

By Steve Newton I did my third interview with Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich in April of 1997, when the band was touring behind its sixth studio album, the five-times-platinum Load. He called me up from backstage at Cincinnati’s Riverfront Coliseum, where the band was playing the second night of a double-header, with openers Corrosion of … Continue reading That time Lars Ulrich called me up from Cincinnati and told me that Metallica wasn’t doing bad for a buncha drunks

That time I told Tom Cochrane that I didn’t think his new “Life is a Highway” song sounded like him

By Steve Newton Tom Cochrane turned 70 the other day–on May 14, 2023–so to celebrate I digitized my third interview with him, from October 17, 1991. That was less than a month after he released the single “Life Is a Highway”, which became a massive hit. But as I pointed out to Tom about a … Continue reading That time I told Tom Cochrane that I didn’t think his new “Life is a Highway” song sounded like him

That time Geddy Lee called me up and I asked if he had fond recollections of Rush’s early days

By Steve Newton Back in the spring of ’97 I did my first interview with Geddy Lee of Rush. He called me up from the band’s office in Toronto and I congratulated him on the birth of his new daughter. Then I mentioned that the band was re-releasing its seventies catalog, and asked him if … Continue reading That time Geddy Lee called me up and I asked if he had fond recollections of Rush’s early days