That time Sonny Landreth told me about Mark Knopfler and Chet Atkins taking him to breakfast at a Cracker Barrel in Nashville

By Steve Newton I’ve interviewed Louisiana slide-guitar master Sonny Landreth four times, because he’s just awesome. This is the first time, when I called him up in Sacramento, California, where he was touring as the opening act for Chicago blues great Buddy Guy. Landreth was promoting his fourth studio album, South of I-10, which featured … Continue reading That time Sonny Landreth told me about Mark Knopfler and Chet Atkins taking him to breakfast at a Cracker Barrel in Nashville

That time I asked Gary Louris of the Jayhawks how their tour was goin’ opening for Tom Petty

By Steve Newton I interviewed Jayhawks singer-guitarist and co-songwriter Gary Louris back in April of 1995, when his band was promoting its fourth studio album, Tomorrow the Green Grass. At the time the group was opening for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers on the Dogs With Wings Tour, so of course I had to ask … Continue reading That time I asked Gary Louris of the Jayhawks how their tour was goin’ opening for Tom Petty

10 minutes on the phone with Aerosmith’s Joe Perry in 1988

By Steve Newton Aerosmith released their first five albums while I was teenager, so I freakin’ loved Aerosmith. I played a lotta air guitar to Joe Perry‘s licks back in the day, so it was a kick to interview him for the first time in January of 1988, after the Permanent Vacation LP came out. … Continue reading 10 minutes on the phone with Aerosmith’s Joe Perry in 1988

10 minutes in a studio with producer Bob Rock in 1991

By Steve Newton I did my first interview with hugely successful hard-rock producer Bob Rock in December of 1991. I went to meet him at Vancouver Studios, where he was working on albums by the London Choirboys and his own band, Rockhead. Four months earlier the massively popular album Rock made with Metallica, The Black … Continue reading 10 minutes in a studio with producer Bob Rock in 1991

That time I asked Tommy Stinson if there was anything he’d change about his time with the Replacements

By Steve Newton I interviewed Minneapolis rocker Tommy Stinson back in June of 1993, when his band Bash and Pop was heading to Vancouver for a show at the Town Pump. Stinson is best known for his work with his previous group, the Replacements. He was only 14 when the Replacements released their first album … Continue reading That time I asked Tommy Stinson if there was anything he’d change about his time with the Replacements

That time I asked Buck Dharma how he came up with the classic riff for Blue Öyster Cult’s “(Don’t Fear) the Reaper”

By Steve Newton “(Don’t Fear) the Reaper” might be my favourite song of all time. Or maybe it’s tied with John Lennon’s “Imagine”. Either way, I freakin’ love that song. Several times over the years I’ve felt a tweak of pleasure along the top of my skull when I hear that song, coinciding with the … Continue reading That time I asked Buck Dharma how he came up with the classic riff for Blue Öyster Cult’s “(Don’t Fear) the Reaper”

Eddie Van Halen’s favourite AC/DC album was Powerage

By Steve Newton I’ve long held the opinion that AC/DC’s Powerage is their best album. Keith Richards agrees, and he knows a thing or two about rockin’. And more importantly, Malcolm Young himself has named Powerage as Number One. When I met Young backstage after an AC/DC show in Vancouver back in 2001 I mentioned that … Continue reading Eddie Van Halen’s favourite AC/DC album was Powerage

That time AC/DC’s Malcolm Young told me that drummer Phil Rudd had “grown out” of the band

By Steve Newton Back in October of 1983 I had the distinct pleasure of sitting down (on a Vancouver hotel-room floor) with three members of AC/DC. It was the day before the band kicked off its Flick of the Switch Tour, and the local promo rep at the record label (WEA Canada) had set up … Continue reading That time AC/DC’s Malcolm Young told me that drummer Phil Rudd had “grown out” of the band

That time back in ’91 when producer Bob Rock told me that he, Bruce Fairbairn, and Mike Fraser all had different things to offer

By Steve Newton I did my first interview with hugely successful hard-rock producer Bob Rock in December of 1991 at Vancouver Studios, where he was working on albums by the London Choirboys and his own band, Rockhead. Four months earlier the massively popular album Rock made with Metallica, The Black Album, had been released, and … Continue reading That time back in ’91 when producer Bob Rock told me that he, Bruce Fairbairn, and Mike Fraser all had different things to offer

10 minutes on the phone with David Lee Roth in 1994

By Steve Newton I did my first interview with Diamond Dave while he was promoting one of his lesser-appreciated solo albums, the Nile Rodgers-produced Your Filthy Little Mouth. He was in L.A., where 10 days earlier O.J. Simpson had committed double-murder, so we chatted about that whole media circus, among other things. Dave’s an outgoing, … Continue reading 10 minutes on the phone with David Lee Roth in 1994

That time I asked Duke Robillard if there were big shoes to fill replacing Jimmie Vaughan in the Fabulous Thunderbirds

By Steve Newton I interviewed Rhode Island blues guitarist and vocalist Duke Robillard back in February of 1995, when he was touring behind his eighth album, Temptation, and about to play a show at the famed Antone’s in Austin, Texas. A few years earlier he’d been playing with the Fabulous Thunderbirds, having taken over the … Continue reading That time I asked Duke Robillard if there were big shoes to fill replacing Jimmie Vaughan in the Fabulous Thunderbirds

That time 25-year-old Paul Gilbert told me how he wangled a ride from a Mr. Big fan to see Pat Travers near Vancouver

By Steve Newton I interviewed Mr. Big guitarist Paul Gilbert back in March of 1992, when the band was in Detroit, touring behind its second album, Lean Into It. That’s the one that spawned the #1 hit single “To Be With You”, and went platinum in the States. Mr. Big was gonna be playing Vancouver … Continue reading That time 25-year-old Paul Gilbert told me how he wangled a ride from a Mr. Big fan to see Pat Travers near Vancouver

That time the Cult’s Ian Astbury told me that he thought session drummer Mickey Curry was “totally wasted” with Bryan Adams

By Steve Newton Back in January of 1992 I interviewed the Cult vocalist Ian Astbury while his band was touring behind its fifth studio album, Ceremony. That LP–and the one before it, the Bob Rock-produced Sonic Temple–had featured American session drummer Mickey Curry, who is best known for his work recording and touring with Bryan … Continue reading That time the Cult’s Ian Astbury told me that he thought session drummer Mickey Curry was “totally wasted” with Bryan Adams