Tag: GM Place

Vancouver’s cotton-candy crowd goes gaga for Goo Goo

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JULY 29, 1999 I didn’t realize the vast majority of Goo Goo Dolls fans were teenagers until I got to GM Place last Saturday (July 24) and discovered that the food concessions were pushing candy floss more aggressively than beer. I guess I should have known, considering how the … Continue reading Vancouver’s cotton-candy crowd goes gaga for Goo Goo

Perfecting the lost art of the backstage meet ‘n’ greet at John Mellencamp in Vancouver

That's me on the far left ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 20, 1999 By Steve Newton I like John Mellencamp, but my sister Julie and cousin Cory are crazy about him, so I did some serious scroungin’ and wangled three backstage passes to meet the Indiana rocker before he went on stage at GM Place last … Continue reading Perfecting the lost art of the backstage meet ‘n’ greet at John Mellencamp in Vancouver

Gordon Downie thanks Bruce Allen for making the Tragically Hip famous in Vancouver

mike chernoff photo ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MARCH 18, 1999 By Steve Newton I’ve always been mightily impressed by the Tragically Hip’s live presentation. It didn’t matter which venue I’d see them in—whether it was the wee Railway Club or sprawling T-Bird Stadium, the classic Commodore or scenic Seabird Island—I always went away fully, completely satisfied. … Continue reading Gordon Downie thanks Bruce Allen for making the Tragically Hip famous in Vancouver

Big-hearted blues god B.B. King offers guitar picks and hugs backstage in Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 13, 1998 By Steve Newton “Come on in!” urged B.B. King to the gaggle of well-wishers and autograph hounds gathered outside his dressing room in the bowels of GM Place. It was 12:30 a.m., about 45 minutes after King had finished his set on the first night of the 44-date B.B. … Continue reading Big-hearted blues god B.B. King offers guitar picks and hugs backstage in Vancouver

An inspired Yes makes up for a flaccid Alan Parsons Project in Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 23, 1998 By Steve Newton There are some bands I used to like in the ’70s that make me embarrassed by that fact in the ’90s. Back in high school, I figured Uriah Heep Live was the cat’s ass, but now, it’s like, “What was I thinking!” And I still recall … Continue reading An inspired Yes makes up for a flaccid Alan Parsons Project in Vancouver

Mick Fleetwood recalls the “powerful vibe” of Peter Green-era Fleetwood Mac

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCT. 9, 1997 By Steve Newton Like some 25 million other folks, I own a copy of Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours. I purchased my vinyl version when it was released in 1977, and when I pulled it out the other day to see if I was ready to turn it in for a … Continue reading Mick Fleetwood recalls the “powerful vibe” of Peter Green-era Fleetwood Mac

ZZ Top snoozes through its Rhythmeen tour stop in Vancouver

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JUNE 5, 1997 By Steve Newton Strolling over the Georgia Viaduct en route to GM Place last Sunday (June 1), I gazed down at the arena’s parking lot to see what kind of fancy tour buses ZZ Top is travelling in these days. I expected to see an outline of Texas on … Continue reading ZZ Top snoozes through its Rhythmeen tour stop in Vancouver

That time my buddy Stick of Mad Duck ticked off Metallica’s Lars Ulrich by asking him to jam

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 22, 1997 By Steve Newton Back when the Starfish Room was still a headbanger’s haven known as Club Soda, a rock-crazed pal of mine named Stick bumped into Lars Ulrich there. The Metallica drummer was hangin’ out with his entourage after one of the band’s intense Vancouver gigs when Stick—whose band … Continue reading That time my buddy Stick of Mad Duck ticked off Metallica’s Lars Ulrich by asking him to jam

Geddy Lee on the music of the ’70s, the Order of Canada, and the full-time job of Rush

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MAY 15, 1997 By Steve Newton Although I’m usually too lazy to bother fiddling with LPs these days, those old black beauties sure do come in handy when I’m preparing to interview a band that’s been around as long as Rush. Shuffling through my prized rows of plastic-enclosed 12-inchers, I come across … Continue reading Geddy Lee on the music of the ’70s, the Order of Canada, and the full-time job of Rush

Vancouverites eat up Hootie & the Blowfish’s overbaked passion

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON NOV. 28, 1996 By Steve Newton Hootie & the Blowfish are one of those freaks of nature that show up on the evolutionary ladder of pop music every once in a while, a band that sells huge amounts of its debut recording, yet, by most critical accounts, is totally undeserving of its … Continue reading Vancouverites eat up Hootie & the Blowfish’s overbaked passion

The Who brings Quadrophenia, the world’s greatest rock album, to Vancouver

kevin statham photo ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON OCT. 24, 1996 By Steve Newton If I had to choose one “desert island disc”—the all-time–favourite rock album to live out my days to while munching coconuts on some uncharted tropical atoll—it would have to be The Who’s Quadrophenia. Although its 1971 predecessor, Who’s Next, is generally regarded as … Continue reading The Who brings Quadrophenia, the world’s greatest rock album, to Vancouver