Tom Petty lightly weighs in on Sam Smith’s ripping off of “Won’t Back Down”

By Steve Newton I normally try to avoid songs like Sam Smith's Grammy-nominated hit, "Stay With Me". It's not that I'm a hard-hearted wretch who can't stand a bit of sappiness, but, really, would it have killed the guy to throw a wailing guitar solo in there somewhere? The song is infectious, I'll admit. I … Continue reading Tom Petty lightly weighs in on Sam Smith’s ripping off of “Won’t Back Down”

New name suits Semisonic’s sad songs on Great Divide debut

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MAY 2, 1996 There are all kinds of stories about bands being threatened by lawsuits over their names, but you can add another one to the list with the case of Minneapolis power-pop trio Semisonic. They were touring Midwest clubs as Pleasure last year when, out of the blue, … Continue reading New name suits Semisonic’s sad songs on Great Divide debut

Rob Halford forced to defend Judas Priest’s name against suicide lawsuit

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, OCT. 25, 1990 By Steve Newton You don’t have to be a riff-hungry young metal-head to know who Judas Priest is these days—all you’ve got to do is read the papers. The British band received world-wide publicity recently during its trial in Reno, Nevada, which questioned whether subliminal messages … Continue reading Rob Halford forced to defend Judas Priest’s name against suicide lawsuit

Rik Emmett embarks on solo career after unhappy breakup of Triumph

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, OCT. 4, 1990 By Steve Newton Following Ted Nugent is not an enviable prospect for anybody, but Terrible Ted opened for yours truly—in the journalistic sense, anyway—just last week. As guest host for Detroit rock station WRIF’s morning show, the Nuge—who had once jammed on a Zeppelin tune with … Continue reading Rik Emmett embarks on solo career after unhappy breakup of Triumph