That time Joan Jett told me how she was inspired to write “Don’t Surrender” by actress Jill Ireland

By Steve Newton Back in January of 1992 I interviewed Joan Jett while she was promoting her latest album, Notorious. At one point in the conversation we started talking about potential singles on the album, which led to her explaining the inspiration for her latest video/single, “Don’t Surrender”. Turns out it was inspired by British … Continue reading That time Joan Jett told me how she was inspired to write “Don’t Surrender” by actress Jill Ireland

Steven Adler still yearns to be part of a Guns N’ Roses reunion

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 17 2011 By Steve Newton In 1987, when he was 22 years old, Steven Adler had the world by the balls. He was the drummer in Guns N’ Roses, the most popular rock band at the time, whose album of that year, Appetite for Destruction, has sold more than 28 million … Continue reading Steven Adler still yearns to be part of a Guns N’ Roses reunion

Red Rider’s Symphony Sessions let Tom Cochrane retrace Procol Harum’s footsteps

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON DEC. 8, 1989 By Steve Newton “Brand new from K-Tel, it’s the chart-topping, ever popular ****-tones, captured live and in concert with the acclaimed, 65-piece !!!!-orchestra. A once-in-a-lifetime performance! It’s music history in the making!” Whenever a rock band decides to record an album with an orchestra, you can bet that all … Continue reading Red Rider’s Symphony Sessions let Tom Cochrane retrace Procol Harum’s footsteps

Oh man, this video of the Beat Farmers doing Neil Young’s “Powderfinger” is bloody awesome

By Steve Newton I always thought the Beat Farmers were one of the world’s most underrated rock ‘n’ roll bands. Their club gigs were legend. But when I usually think about them I picture the latter-day lineup that included dual guitarists/vocalists Jerry Raney and Joey Harris. Lest we forget how incredible the band was before … Continue reading Oh man, this video of the Beat Farmers doing Neil Young’s “Powderfinger” is bloody awesome

That time Bob Rock told me that Metallica never have and never will sell out

By Steve Newton Bob Rock is the famed producer best known for helming several Metallica albums, including their hugely popular Black Album of 1991. I’ve interviewed Rock a few times, both for his role as a producer and as a rockin’ guitarist in bands like the Payola$, Rock and Hyde, and Rockhead. Back in February of … Continue reading That time Bob Rock told me that Metallica never have and never will sell out

Stevie Ray Vaughan’s 20 best songs, from wicked to freakin’ awesome

By Steve Newton I thank my lucky stars that I got to interview Stevie Ray. Twice! 20. “Wham” (The Sky is Crying, 1991) 19. “Cold Shot” (Couldn’t Stand the Weather, 1984) 18. “Hide Away” (Couldn’t Stand the Weather 1999 reissue bonus track) 17. “Testify” (Texas Flood, 1983) 16. “Come On [Part III] (Soul to Soul, … Continue reading Stevie Ray Vaughan’s 20 best songs, from wicked to freakin’ awesome

That time John Cougar told me that he’d much rather be known as John Mellencamp

By Steve Newton In May of 1983 I did my first interview with John Mellencamp, or at least that’s who he wanted to be. Back then the heartland rocker was still known as John Cougar, and was riding high on the breakthrough success of his latest album, American Fool, which spent nine weeks at the … Continue reading That time John Cougar told me that he’d much rather be known as John Mellencamp

The Beat Farmers’ 20 best songs, from wicked to freakin’ awesome

By Steve Newton One of the most underrated rock bands of all time. 20. “Selfish Heart” (Tales of the New West, 1985) 19. “Lost Weekend” (Tales of the New West, 1985) 18. “Big Ugly Wheels” (Van Go, 1986) 17. “Happy Boy” (Tales of the New West, 1985) 16. “Baby’s Liquored Up” (Viking Lullabys, 1995) 15. … Continue reading The Beat Farmers’ 20 best songs, from wicked to freakin’ awesome

That time John Cougar told me that he was looking forward to the US Festival (but then he didn’t go)

By Steve Newton I interviewed John Mellencamp for the first time when he was still called John Cougar. Back in May of 1983 he was touring behind his latest album, American Fool, but for some reason the Vancouver show got canceled and the interview I did with him never ran. At one point in the … Continue reading That time John Cougar told me that he was looking forward to the US Festival (but then he didn’t go)

Album review: Various Artists, Kiss My Ass (1994)

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JUNE 7, 1994 By Steve Newton The first time I ever laid eyes on Kiss–I think it was on Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert–I thought the band was just a bunch of Alice Cooper copycats. A short time later, though, I heard Kiss’s 1974 debut album and became a huge fan of the … Continue reading Album review: Various Artists, Kiss My Ass (1994)

That time some chick called me “a Skynyrd-loving moron” so I hummed a few bars of “Free Bird”

By Steve Newton Back in June of 2000 the Vancouver newspaper I’m still working at (god willing), the Georgia Straight, introduced a new column called Payback Time, where ticked-off readers could write in and vociferously complain about the music critics’ opinions, before the scribe under attack was allowed to defend himself with a potentially witty … Continue reading That time some chick called me “a Skynyrd-loving moron” so I hummed a few bars of “Free Bird”

Album review: Mick Ronson, Heaven and Hull (1994)

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 27, 1994 By Steve Newton From his early-’70s glory-and-glitter days as the muscular, platinum-haired axeman in David Bowie‘s Spiders from Mars to his workmanlike late-’80s club gigs with Ian Hunter, Mick Ronson always proved himself a rock guitarist of the highest order. When Ronson succumbed to cancer on April 29 of … Continue reading Album review: Mick Ronson, Heaven and Hull (1994)

That time I asked B.B. King what advice he had for young guitar players trying to learn the blues

bev davies photo By Steve Newton Back in January of 1984 I did my first interview with B.B. King. Man, was that a thrill. He was playing a string of shows at the Plazazz Showroom in North Vancouver, and I hung out with him in his hotel room before one of the gigs. As the … Continue reading That time I asked B.B. King what advice he had for young guitar players trying to learn the blues