May 16th will mark the 8th time I have seen Megadeth live. That is kind of crazy. It is also over a 20+ year span, so it is not like I followed them Grateful Dead style. To tell you the honest to god truth, they really aren't that great live, or maybe it's better to say that they are not very animated, and Dave's voice is pretty much shot at this point. BUT for me, being at a Megadeth concert is more than going to see an amazing live show, it is about celebrating the band that helped mold me and supporting a hero of mine.
I often say that I don't get star struck, and that is mostly true. Once at the Airport, directly behind me on the escalator, was Hines Ward. I was completely tongue tied as I stared directly at him. Angi and I both did not know what to say, and I honestly think that was the only time I can remember being absolutely wordless in someones presence. So maybe I was star struck, but I think maybe I was just shocked to see him that close up. All I kept thinking was "damn, that phucker is small in person" and "wow, that is a big diamond earring".
One of my music heros was eating at the same local bar Angi and I were at before a concert one night, and I just let him eat. I kind of regret that now, because I may not ever get the opportunity to thank him or just let him know how much his music means to me, but at the time I thought it was the right thing to do. Mikael Akerfeldt, if I ever get the opportunity to meet you again, I am going to make you sign my frontal lobe.
My point.... If Dave Mustaine and I ever met, I am sure I would go directly into idiot mode and trip over my tongue. Dave is the exception to my "starstruck" rule. That dude is a demi-god to me. I would feel like a 3rd grade math teacher waxing poetic with T S Eliot.
In searching for tickets
to see Rush recently, I was annoyingly re-directed to a group called Big Time
Rush on more than one ticket search engine. I was shocked to see that this flavor of
the millisecond group existed, but even more shocked to see that they were
selling out arenas. That's right, arenas.
Far be it from me to
deprive teenage girls of their poster fodder, but in the back of my head I am
thinking that for every 12 year old girl screaming bloody hell for some fantasy
figure in her pinkest dream, there is probably some shitty AC/DC fan guy
standing next to her. This dude is ready to deny that he was there with his
crazy daughter, BUT he is a hella "dad of the year" for stomaching a torture
worse than water boarding.
Best part: Floor seats
are $65.00 before service fees. Poor bastard, shelling out at least $150.00 for
that crap. Worse yet, he probably has to buy a t-shirt, a snap bracelet, and a
hoodie on his way out, not to mention ice cream afterward. He might as well take
$250.00 and light it on fire, because his lovely daughter will be into goth next
year.
Big Time Rush.... That is some funny shit. Had I actually kept up
with every "boy band" since NKOTB, I would take the 2 days I would need to list
them all on a 30 page blog. However, I can't even begin to know much about that
trend at all. Sure, there are the survivors: Mark Wahlberg and Justin Timberlake
(no problem finding careers after boy band roots), but the vast majority of
these dudes end up on smack after their short 10 seconds of fame, so why bother
learning their names?
We are all guilty of liking some crap at one time
or another (I had a White Lion T-Shirt when I was 14), but this pre-packaged
Nickelodeon stuff totally escapes me, save Yo Gabba
Gabba ('cause I dig that show).
In case you were wondering, I successfully scored
Rush tickets (Section 101, Row Q, Seats 1 and 2).
So I leave you with some classic Rush:
The
nerd is, the nerd is - Love and life are deep Maybe as his skies are
wide
How the hell is Deep Purple not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?
I'll go one step further: They have never even been nominated. That's right, not even once.
Before I digress into how Rush has also never been nominated, or how Kiss gets shunned every year, I want to focus on Deep Purple.
I'll start by losing focus and listing some of the many artists that ARE in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame:
Beastie Boys - 2012
Red Hot Chili Peppers - 2012
Guns and Roses - 2012
ABBA - 2010
Metallica -2009
Run DMC - 2009
Madonna - 2008
John Melloncamp - 2008
Grand Master Flash -2007
REM - 2007
Patti Smith Group - 2007
Van Halen - 2007
Sex Pistols - 2006
Blondie - 2006
Lynyrd Skynyrd - 2006
Pretenders - 2005
U2 - 2005
Prince - 2004
AC/DC - 2003
The Clash - 2003
Tom Petty - 2002
Talking Heads - 2002
Ramones - 2002
Aerosmith - 2001
Queen - 2001
Michael Jackson - 2001
Earth Wind and Fire - 2000
and so on........
I mention the above artists for various reasons, some because they are technically not Rock and Roll of any kind, some because they were influenced by Deep Purple, some because they have no reason being in before Purple, but all because Deep Purple predates them...
Building a case:
Exhibit A: Smoke on the Water
Deep Purple should be in the hall of fame on the back of Smoke on the Water alone. That song was the first riff ever played by MILLIONS of souls driven to play guitar. It is one of the most recognizable riffs ever created.
Smoke on the water holds a Guinness World Record for the most guitarists playing at one time (or something like that) and has actually broken the record 3 times since setting it in 1994. The most recent was in 2009 in Wroclaw Poland, when 6,346 guitar players gathered to play the song together.
The song itself was a pretty basic 4 note blues riff that Ritchie Blackmore (writer - guitar player) has dissed as "too commercial". I guess the commercial appeal of the song speaks for itself.
Released on the bands LP, Machine Head in 1972, and as a single in 1973, the song reached # 4 in the States, #2 in Canada, #21 in the UK and #20 in Germany.... Not to shabby.
Exhibit B: Machine Head
One of the most beloved early metal/classic rock albums of all time, it reached # 7 in the Billboard LP Charts, and stayed in the top 200 for 118 weeks after it's release in 1972.
This gem features Smoke On the Water, Highway Star and Space Truckin'. 3 Staples of Rock music that define an era.
It is the 3rd album of the MK 2 version of the band, which could arguably be the version that gets into the House that Rock Built with no resistance.
Exhibit C: Eligibility
Deep Purple released it's first LP in July 1968 making them eligible for nomination in 1993 (25 years after the release of their 1st album as according to the Hall of Fame guidelines).
Exhibit D: Ritchie Blackmore
This man invented neo-classical modern rock guitar, period. When Clapton and Page were wanking to Robert Johnson, Blackmore was studying Beethoven. His playing inspired millions. His style was imitated by the likes of everyone from Uli Jon Roth to Malmsteen to basically everyone in Modern Prog music, especially of the Scandinavian variety.
Oh yeah, he wrote the most Iconic rock riff of all time.
Blackmore led Purple to heights most bands never will see, including co-headlining the Cal Jam in 1974 to 400,000 fans.
Acts that performed at the '74 Cal Jam in order of appearance:
Every one of these bands should be in the hall for playing to 400,000 fans at one time in 1974. Call it the "Holy Shit" award or something. To date, only Earth Wind & Fire, Eagles and Black Sabbath are in the Hall of Fame.
Cal Jam may get it's own blog soon. I would love to find footage of Seals & Croft singing "Summer Breeze" to 1/2 million Sabbath fans.
If you find the YouTube bootleg footage of the GnR RnR HoF induction speech, Steven Adler actually calls out the Hall for not inducting Purple. That part of the speech was edited out of the HBO version. The executive producer was JannWenner. No surprise there, you elitist pig.
I would actually make the argument that Ritchie Blackmore could be in the Hall of Fame on his name alone.
The fact that this band has been ignored is stupid. Jann Warner, you are an asshole. Not only does Purple belong, they helped make Rock and Roll a respected art form. They brought classical music to Rock (with all due respect to Beatles producer George Martin's solo in "In My Life").
Just to recap..... Deep Purple is not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. WHAT????
I am thinking about the Beatles this morning. Not sure why...just am.
Thinking about Julian and how he struggled with his fathers dynasty until the day Yoko finally settled and gave him some cash...
Thinking about the Wings song Jet and wondering how it relates to John, because it supposedly is some sort of slam against him.
Thinking about how my Grandpap once told me that everything was fine until those damn Beatles came over.
Thinking about how the Beatles children are rumored to be starting a band, wondering if they will be brilliant, and if they are, will 2012 Mike be able to recognize it?
In honor of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony this weekend, I have decided to spend a little time talking about the craziest weirdo on the plant W. Axl Rose (Bill Bailey).
Axl recently broke his silence to post/send a letter to the LA Times explaining why he will not attend the R&RHoF ceremony where his former band, Guns and Roses will be bestowed with one of Rocks greatest honors.
Now, we all know that Axl owns the name "Guns and Roses" but no matter how hard he tries, he cannot escape the fact that this band was the sum of its parts, and not his solo project with a backing band as it stands today.
I would love to say that Axl is a parody of his former self, but the truth is that he was always an asshole. I would love to say that Axl actually deserves the attention he gets, but he doesn't. He is just another wacked out star. At least he is true to himself in being who he has always been.
I now realize that his voice is the most screechy, nasally, high pitched, odd sounding thing I have ever heard. To me, Axl sounds like a Muppet. It took me years to realize that, as I had my "I grew up with GnR" Axl Rose colored glasses on, but as an adult, I can be more objective.
100 Years from now, people will look back at us and laugh their uranium plated asses off at our weirdness. I honestly think that anyone looking back will hear Screechy Mr. Rose, and wonder what all the fuss was about?
According to celebritynetworth.com, Axl is worth a cool $200 Million. Let's break down the other members:
Slash = $32 Million
Izzy = $28 Million
Duff = $20 Million (I thought it would be more - he was supposed to be a financial guru, an early Starbucks investor, and is a financial columnist)
Adler = $15 Million
Matt = $10 Million (not bad for a hired Gun)
That's right, Axl is worth almost twice as much as the other Guns combined. How the hell did that happen? With a smile and a middle finger, that's how.
On a side note, just in case you were wondering (I was) :
Back to Axl. Dude, you are delusional. Unfortunately so many of your fans buy your bamboozle, although not in terms of record sales, just in concert tickets. I would not walk across the street to see 2012 GnR for free. It is not the band I grew up with. It is DRL band, it is the Vince Neil band, it's the Art Garfunkel band, it's Sublime with Rome, it's like James Gang without Joe Walsh or Paul Bostaph era Slayer (yeah, I said that).
Not cool Axl. Not cool at all.
So now Axl has decided to shun the House that Rock built. Not really a big shock, but the way he worded it kinda sound like he is gearing up for a lawsuit if anyone even mentions the name Guns and Roses.
Quote from Axl's letter to the LA Times: For the record, I would not begrudge anyone from Guns their accomplishments or recognition for such. Neither I or anyone in my camp has made any requests or demands of the Hall Of Fame. It's their show not mine.
That said, I won't be attending The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction 2012 Ceremony and I respectfully decline my induction as a member of Guns N' Roses to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. I strongly request that I not be inducted in absentia and please know that no one is authorized nor may anyone be permitted to accept any induction for me or speak on my behalf. Neither former members, label representatives nor the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame should imply whether directly, indirectly or by omission that I am included in any purported induction of "Guns N' Roses".
Another Quote: There's a seemingly endless amount of revisionism and fantasies out there for the sake of self-promotion and business opportunities masking the actual realities. Until every single one of those generating from or originating with the earlier lineups has been brought out in the light, there isn't room to consider a conversation let alone a reunion.
Maybe if it were you it'd be different. Maybe you'd do it for this reason or that. Peace, whatever. I love our band now. We're there for each other when the going get's rough. We love our fans and work to give them every ounce of energy and heart we can.
Axl, just so we are clear on this, every single Guns fan alive is a fan of the Appetite and Illusion line-ups, not this farce with the guy from the Friends soundtrack, that one dude who kinda wears a hat like Slash and the other guys that no one has heard of. Dizzy Reed doesn't count either (who?).
Guns and Roses was the sum of it's parts. The great songwriting and loose rhythm playing of Izzy, the no frills lead work of Slash, Duff's guitar turned Bass playing, and the caveman drumming of Steven Adler. There was also this weasel guy singing.
They killed Hair Metal. They kicked ass. They rocked so hard they got respect from every side of the music biz. They reminded everybody that edgy rock and roll should not be contrived. That rebellion started this coaster, and nothing runs it better than rebellion. They changed the world over the course of 1 Album, 1 EP and 2 follow-up Albums that should have been condensed into one.
They became a monster, and their lead singer willingly bought the hype. He actually believed that he was better than everybody else. His ego became so huge that it systematically eliminated the thing that got him to the top, his band. In doing so he convinced himself that he alone was Guns and Roses.
Anyone care to take a stab at why GnR fell so fast back in the early 90's? Simple: because Izzy quit. Izzy was the heart of that little band, and they sucked without him.
OK, so there was Velvet Revolver. Anyone care to guess why they sucked? I have some good ideas, but the main reason: Izzy was not into it, so Izzy did not do it. If Izzy was into it, VR would have had a better shot of ruling.
Izzy Stradlin is a "do whatever the hell I want" kind of guy these days, and I seriously respect that, but I hate Axl for the same reason. That's my double standard and I am not giving it up! Unfortunately, Izzy's music today is some of the most uninspired crap I have ever heard and it makes Keith Richards solo work seem really good.
It was not always that way though. Remember the JuJu Hounds?
Guns and Roses will never reunite. It is a shame. Whack-a-doodle Sammy Hagar has offered to manage them if they would get back together. That's saying something. There is so much money at stake that they are idiots for not looking into it, and BTW, it is worth every penny to the fans, so Axl could go to bed at night knowing that he is not a sellout.
Hanging on to the Guns and Roses name is a falsehood because Axl outsourced the music to scabs. Lets be honest about this though. As long as people show up to the arenas, Axl will never reunite the old band, and even then there is no guarantee.
Led Zeppelin wouldn't reunite because Bonham is dead, but then they did. Kiss pulled it off (until they didn't). Van Halen is on a successful tour with DRL (minus Michael Anthony). The Sex Pistols did it. Even the Police did a tour recently. Hear that Axl, POLICE REUNITED!!!!
It's a drag when the fans, the real fans, can't get no satisfaction from the artist.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Axl the Artist:
Axl Rose is the kind of guy that you hate to be around.
You know the guy that could run the fryer better than you at McDonalds? Yeah, that was Axl.
You remember the guy from grade school that would make up the rules of kick ball as the game went along because he sucked? Yeah, that was Axl.
You remember the kid that cried when you beat him at Chutes and Ladders? Axl...
The guy that only liked girls you liked? Axl...
Just because you can rhyme words does not make you a poet. Let's examine some of Axl's brilliance:
Example #1: When I look into your eyes I can see a love restrained
But darlin' when I hold you, don't you know I feel the same?
Nothin' lasts forever and we both know hearts can change
And it's hard to hold a candle in the cold November rain
When I look upon his words I can see they sound the same.Maybe I am just wrong, and Axl isn't strange.
Is it possible that he's great, and the rest of us are lame?
He thinks it's rocket science, 'cause he smoked some Mary Jane.
Example #2 You could be mine but you're way out of line with your bitch slap rappin and your cocaine tongue you get nothin' done you could be mine
Wow, that shit is so lame that I don't even care to rip on it. My point is that we take clowns like this too seriously. After all, it is the ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY for Rose's sake.
I'll bet that Axl thinks he can do pottery better than everybody to. That's the guy he is. And boy did he think highly of himself back in the day:
Axl, please stay home and cry about how it's you against he world. If everybody else around you are all assholes, chances are (it's you buddy)..........
Truth:
You are famous because of guys like me that saw some talent in a band, and believed in that.
You are famous because of guys like Izzy, that lent you his music for you to create a signature.
You are famous because of guys like Slash, a throwback to an era when image, talent and originality actually mattered.
You are famous because you had balls, and so did the bros you so easily cast aside.
You are famous because we let you be, and sooner or later the rest of the world will figure out that you are a hack.
I will let James sum it all up (twice):
Nerdin' like a freight train, flyin' like an aeroplane.
David Gilmore of Pink Floyd has said that he would have loved to have had the experience of listening to Dark Side of the Moon for the first time. That statement, albeit arrogant, makes sense to me, but I honestly can't remember the first time I was exposed to The Floyd, let alone the first time I actually "heard" their 1973 opus.
Along the same lines, Wesley Snipes told Woody Harrelson in White Men Can't Jump that although Woody had listened to Hendrix, he could never "hear" Hendrix. Cue the argument and the racially charged, Spike Lee penned, overly wordy dialog.
Do you see where I am headed?
I long for the moments when I actually "hear" an artist. When we are young, we are prone to "hear" much more. Its quite possibly due to our frontal lobes not being attached quite right yet, but I believe that when the world is fresh to newly opened eyes, the answers we seek are found in our generations music.
So much of what we listen to is complete crap served on a platter to the sheep of whatever trend is hip at the time. Too often, any true artist is completely overlooked by me, sometimes because they are lost in the shuffle, lost in a style that is uninteresting to me, or lost in the cloudy history of a bygone era.
Otis is the latter....
Long drives are the best times for me to uncover something I have not "heard" yet. Opeth, Shins, Sonata Arctica and Slipknot were all "heard" by me for the first time on the road. A few weeks ago, thanks to SeriousXM and a 4 hour trek up I-75, I "heard" Otis Redding for the first time. I was actually sittin' on that dock when the bridge kicked in with his message self acceptance. It sent chills.
Looks like, nothings gonna change Everything still remains the same I cant do what 10 people tell me to do So I guess I'll remain the same
That powerful message has been lost on me for most of my life, both lyrically (in context of this particular song), and actually (in context of middle child syndrome w/ bouts with depression), and I am surprised that I never caught how dark the lyrical content of his largest hit actually was.
I've got nothing to live for, and looks like nothings gonna come my way... Dark stuff.
Who was Otis Redding?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Otis Redding (Sept 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) Coming straight outta Georgia, Otis left school at age 15 to help support his family. He briefly joined Little Richards backing band, the Upsetters, after being discovered during a talent show appearance. For the next decade, Otis payed his dues by fronting various bands, touring the Chitlin Circuit, becoming a songwriter, getting signed to Stax as a solo artist and rising to become one of the Godfathers of Soul. Not bad for a man who died at the age of 26.
His influence goes way beyond Soul music. He penned, recorded and released a woeful plea to his ole' lady in 1965, unknowing that 2 years later Aretha Franklin would turn into a women's lib anthem and one of the greatest songs of the 20th century. Respect. His version was also the musical inspiration for The Beatles Drive My Car (as stated by George Harrison).
How could Otis have known that he would help launch a Classic Rock revival in the 90's by posthumously lending Hard to Handle to The Black Crows?
Otis gave the Stones vindication by reworking Satisfaction. For me, it's kind of the better version.
One of my favorite Redding AD moments is the Otis inspired Try a Little Tenderness jam in the 1991 movie The Commitments, but I admit, I had no idea of the roots of the song at the time.
While researching this blog, I found out that it was also done by the cast of Glee. I have not heard it, but it shows how far the reach of his signature performance song extends.
I decided to dig deeper, and start this current journey with Otis in the most unlikely of places, the dreaded Greatest Hits LP. Not that Otis's Greatest Hits is a bad LP, it's just water that I usually don't tread (save Bob Marley and Journey).
Like most Greatest Hits albums, it lacks consistency. I enjoyed the album and I am not dissing it at all, but it did not have a cohesiveness to it to really make it a good album... So I decided to jump off another cliff of presumably non-cohesive material, and I purchased Dock of a Bay. Otis Jonny Daye Steve Cropper The Dock of a Bay album was put together by Guitarist and Producer, Steven Cropper after Otis Reddings's untimely death in 1967. Save the title track, it was complied mostly of B-sides and unreleased material dating back as far as 1965. Despite this, it is still highly regarded as one of the best LP's of all time. Rolling Stone (I hate your magazine) has it listed as #161 of all time in their biased list of the top 500 LP's. I question so much of what goes into that rubbish elitist rag, but they sometimes get the legendary stuff right.... sometimes.
My mind is open to Otis now. What a gift he possessed. I think it is a shame that the entire album was not written in the same sessions, as I think the world just hit the tip of what Otis could have offered.
Instead of doing a tedious track by track break-down, I am going to geek out to two songs instead. Why? 'Cause they deserve it. Tramp and Dock of a Bay.
Carla Thomas & Otis in the Studio Tramp was originally released in March of '67, featured on the duet album King and Queen with Carla Thomas, but was also included on the Dock of a Bay LP.
To me, this song is a perfect storm of soul, pre-rap rap, pre-funk funk, R&B and fun.
Musically, I love how the guitar lays under the horn section in perfect, slightly off-time, harmony. I also wonder how many times the funky drum pattern has been sampled?
Lyrically, the song is loose and playful. The give and take between the two legends makes me laugh every time I hear it. It also makes me think that Eddie Murphy probably based some of his character voices on Otis. Two examples: the spoken word "That's good" response to Carla's diss of "Otis, you're straight from the Georgia woods", and the surprising "What?" scream after Otis is once again accused of being a Tramp.
What are Continental Clothes?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dock of a Bay
The song "Dock of a Bay", like so much material of that time period, was inspired by the Beatles Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album. To me however, the song is more Abbey Road than Sgt Pepper, so I can only imagine where Otis would have taken us had he lived.
His label hated the song, as did several of his peers and family. It wasn't that the song was bad, in fact Otis himself though it might be the best song he had ever written, it was probably just a scary departure from R&B into something a little too unfamiliar. Otis reportedly wanted to go a different direction musically, and this song proved to be more that just an attempt.
This song is both dark in its meaning and beautiful in its delivery. That's the way I like music most days. When you can spin a negative statement into something that transcends it's meaning, then you have truly created something special (that topic may deserve it's own blog).
We all know this song, but how well do we know it?
I want to start with the acoustic guitar work laying so far in the background that it is almost missed completely. A simple chord structure: G, B7, C, A; that forms a basis for the up/down melody of the vocal.
The bass: Its flawless and unique given the acoustic guitar it accompanies. I wish I could write bass lines like that.
The lead Guitar: It's borderline country (good country - not the white bread, red solo cup shit of the modern generation - That's right haters, I absolutely did make that statement) with a hint if Reggae.
The brass section rises in volume to a nice underlying peak during the verses, bridge and chorus, and then back out just as seamlessly.
The whistle at the end? Years before Axl Rose penned the whistle to end all whistles (Patience - the whistle solo), Otis Redding perfected the craft by whistling a Steve Cropper guitar solo that was meant for the track. The whistle was mixed in posthumously, as were the ocean sounds and the seagull cries.
As far as popular music goes, it really does not get better.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Death, funeral and family:
Three days after recording Dock of a Bay, on December 10th, 1967, Redding was killed when his twin prop Beechcraft H18 crashed on Lake Monoma in Madison Wisconsin. Otis was scheduled to perform at a small club near the University of Wisconsin the following night and was traveling from a three show stint in Cleveland.
The plane was purchased to ease travel for Otis and his band and allow them to move easily from city to city.
Otis was laid to rest on December 18th, 1967, entombed on his property in Round Oak, Georgia 20 miles north of Macon. His service was attended by over 4500 people, including Percy Sledge, James Brown, Wilson Picket, Solomon Burke, Sam and Dave and several other music insiders of the era.
Otis was an artist who actually kept his publishing early on in the music biz. This leads to a fortune for his family, as he was also smart enough to have a will leaving everything to his immediate family.
Taken from July 18th, 1968 issue of Jet Magazine:
One last thing about Otis and I am out. Another blogger pointed out that there is no real controversy surrounding Otis or his legacy. Everybody that knew him or was associated with him says that he was a good person. That is rare and should be celebrated, especially given that our current culture celebrates mediocrity and stupidity. Everyone is not special, so stop telling your kids that they are for no reason. Let them find something to excel at and gain praise for something palatable. Let them flourish and make mistakes. Give them direction, discipline and love. Pray that they don't end up a talentless hack that needs you to call them in sick to work when they are 20. Pray that the path they tread is filled with respect and dignity. Show them how to love themselves so their relationships in life are healthy and fulfilling. Hold them, squeeze them, never leave them, you gotta, chewbacca, ewe gotcha...Try a Little Tenderness!
Whoops.... I digressed, didn't I?
True talent is something that a past generation held in the palm of their hands with the likes of Otis. RIP Mr. Redding...
It is 2012, and I am pretty sure everyone on the planet has heard Crazy Train. Back in 1987, every teenage wanna be guitar player in my hometown was cramping their fretting hand trying to work out the main riff. Most of them playing on some second hand piece of garbage bought from World of Music.
Randy Rhoads was huge in my click back then. It was due to Ozzy releasing the Tribute LP. We all had it (or a dubbed copy of it). It spent at least a solid 6 months in my tape deck. I was 12 going on 13 that year.
Fast forward 12 or so years to the late 90's. My wife and I were walking through the Millcreek Mall, and we saw a young girl, probably 14, wearing a Randy Rhoads Tribute t-shirt. She was enthusiastically explaining his awesomeness to her friend on a bench outside of The Cookie Factory.
That stuck with me for a few reasons, but I remember thinking that this kid was out of place in 1999. Regardless it was good to see a child from the next generation geeking out to Randy.
After I started researching this blog, I told my wife about that specific memory, and I was accused of being weird..... Ahem........I say nay.........not weird at all. I would make a mental note of a Randy Rhoads shirt today if I saw one, that's what rock nerds do.
By the time I hit high school, Randy's playing was fully integrated into my thought process. I judged guitar players by whether or not they could do the solo to Crazy Train without messing up (I still can't even start the solo - but I was playing drums back then). When it came time for our cover band, INFERNO to play a benefit at the Corry High School, there was no question about Crazy Train being in the set list!
What is my point in all this rambling? I dig Randy Rhoads. I have come to love his rhythm playing and writing as much as his soloing these days. His feel for music riffage and arrangement was outstanding.
So, we are on the cusp of the 30th Anniversary of Randy Rhoads death, and I am wondering, how do I pay tribute? So I started digging.... What I wanted to find was more than just the run of the mill "Sharon approved" statements from the Osbourne handlers. So I looked elsewhere. Old interviews, youtube clips, Books, articles, etc. for information from the people associated with Randy. Finding material for this blog would prove tedious and time consuming.
I decided to start by rooting through old OZZY interviews to get some info straight out of the 80's (before years of spin doctoring changed history).
The opening story is a result of the excavation, and I take full responsibility for it because I wrote it.
The second half contains quotes I wanted to geek out to. I tried to stay away from protected content, and I took the liberty to paraphrase when needed. I cannot verify the accuracy of the written words, but some of the quotes are from video interviews, so the artists did say them. The problem with Ozzy history is that Ozzy himself constantly re-writes his own stories by changing them with each interview, and there are several versions of every story depending on the interviewee. Ozzy tells a lot of white lies, but so does everybody else. I digress.... I hope you enjoy!
I lived through the 90's and I remember it well. My hair was long, like all one length riding below my shoulders long. I rocked some army green cargo shorts. My glasses were uncomfortably big and I probably thought YOU were kinda stupid. Here's why:
Kim Deal screwed your girlfriend?
You thought Mark Pickerel was "deep"?
You had bass tablature for Dishwalla songs?
Reality Bites changed your life?
You wore a sleeveless flannel in the summer?
You understood the lyrics to Jeremy?
You got pregnant at Lilith Fair?
You quit community college to follow Phish?
Yeah, you like to look back with rose colored glasses, but you can't hide from the truth!!!
In Erie PA, being 11 through 15 in the late 80's was an experience I fondly look back on. As a hoodlum, each season brought it's own opportunities for fun. Below are some brief examples:
My wife's favorite band (not)....Kiss... I am talking early though, so put away Destroyer, shelve Love Gun, and stop writing a screen play for Music from the Elder. This is Pete with not quite right yet make-up. This is 1974.
