LEGEND Your Song of the Day

[Memento]

In response to the events in Orlando.

 

[Alan]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adV8-_hgL4g

 

[Prime Time]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5JGnU7NRIk

 

[IowaRam]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5JGnU7NRIk

That could very well be the very first AC/DC video I had ever seen

I still remember stumbling across that video one night on TV ( or at least I think it was that video one night by accident )

I was like 13 when that album came out , and like that same weekend after I saw that video , , our local county fair was going on and they had this tent that sold albums and cassettes , and well , other stuff ,

So I bought the cassette

I should mention , I already knew who AC/DC was at that time because I already owned TNT and Highway To Hell

But that was the first time I ever saw any video of them

 

[Prime Time]

That could very well be the very first AC/DC video I had ever seen

I still remember stumbling across that video one night on TV ( or at least I think it was that video one night by accident )

I was like 13 when that album came out , and like that same weekend after I saw that video , , our local county fair was going on and they had this tent that sold albums and cassettes , and well , other stuff ,

So I bought the cassette

I should mention , I already knew who AC/DC was at that time because I already owned TNT and Highway To Hell

But that was the first time I ever saw any video of them

Saw them during the mid-70's when Bon Scott was singing for them. They were fabulous live. What I didn't expect is how short they were. Angus and Malcolm Young are both 5' 2" to 5' 3." Their current singer Brian Johnson is 5' 5." Not that it matters, it just took me by surprise. They're giants onstage.

Here's the very first known interview with Eddie Van Halen...

https://www.guitar.com/articles/legend-born-eddie-van-halens-first-interview

A Legend is Born: Eddie Van Halen's First Interview
Interviews • Guitar.com

Over the years, Eddie Van Halen has called this conversation "my first major interview." It took place backstage at a Day on the Green concert at the Oakland Coliseum on July 23, 1978. Although AC/DC and Van Halen were opening for Pat Travers and Aerosmith, the Van Halen album was storming up the charts, and Eddie Van Halen was on the verge of becoming the most influential American guitarist since Jimi Hendrix. After finishing his set ? the band's first major appearance in Northern California. Eddie and I shot a few hoops backstage and then sat down for this impromptu interview.

What was your first professional gig?

Eddie Van Halen: Well, what do you consider professional? Just making money or the first backyard parties? (Laughs). We played some outrageous parties. It used to just be me and [my brother] Alex [Van Halen] on drums and a different bass player. We used to be called Mammoth. I got tired of singing. I used to lead sing, you know, and I couldn't stand that crap! I'd rather just play.

So [David Lee Roth] was in another local band, and we used to rent his P.A. We said, "F***! It's much cheaper if we just get him in the band!" So we got Dave in the band, and then we were playing this gig with [bassist] Michael Anthony's band a group called Snake. They opened for us. We were all tripped out, because he was lead singing for his band and fronting his own band. Dave was fronting his own band. Then we all just kind of hooked together.

How did you get from there to playing coliseums in just four years?

Van Halen: Oh, playing everywhere and anywhere, from backyard parties to places the size of your bathrooms to you name it. And we did it all without a manager, without an agent, without a record company. I guess the main thing that really got us going was the Pasadena Civic. We used to print up flyers, with some local people helping us. But it was basically our own thing. We'd print up flyers and stuff, like thousands of 'em in high school lockers.

And the first time we played, I guess we drew maybe 900 people. The last time we did, which was almost a year ago, we drew 3,300 people at four or five bucks a head. And that was still without a record out or management or anything. It was about the only place where we could play our own music. We used to play Gazzari's and everywhere else, where you got to do the Top-40 [cover song] grind, you know.

How did you get a record deal?

Van Halen: Ah, I was getting to that. We just kept playing, doing our Civic shows and clubs and stuff like that, and then we got into playing the Starwood and the Whiskey because Rodney Bingenheimer, who's a big wheel in the L.A. music scene, saw us. He said, "Sh*t, you guys are all right. Why don't you play at the Starwood?" So we played there for maybe four or five months, and one day Marshall Berle, who's now our manager, saw us. He's Milton Berle's nephew. He didn't tell us who was there. He just said, "Hey, there's some people out here to see you. Play good."

At that time he really had nothing to do with us. He was just working his way into having something to do for us. It ends up that we played a good set in front of no people, an empty house at the Starwood on a rainy Monday night. We got done with the set, and we're all going, "Hey, it was a good set. All right, guys!" All of a sudden Marshall walks in with [producer] Ted Templeman and [Warner Bros. executive] Mo Austin. I mean, it was heavy. Because I remember talking to other bands, and they've always been trying to get Ted to produce their records, but he only works inside of Warner Brothers. He doesn't produce other acts. And there he was.

He said, "Hey, it was great, man." And within a week we were signed. It was right out of the movies, man, because really. Well, we made a tape once with Gene Simmons from Kiss. We flew to New York with them, and nothing really ever came of it, because we didn't know where the hell to take our tape. So we had a bitchin' sounding tape -- the world's most expensive demo tape, which he paid for. We didn't know where to take it. We didn't start walking around knocking on people's doors, pushing ourselves on them, saying, "Hey, sign us, sign us!" We just kept playing everywhere, and eventually they came to us.

Did it take long to cut the album Van Halen?

Van Halen: Three weeks. The album is very live with no overdubs, that's the magic of Ted Templeman. I'd say out of the 10 songs on the record, I overdubbed the solo in two or three songs. One of them's doubled in "Ice Cream Man" and "Jamie's Cryin'." All the rest are live! I used the same equipment I use live, the one guitar, soloed during the rhythm track, and Al just played one set of drums [laughs]. And Mike, you know.

And Dave stood in the booth and sang a lot of lead vocals at the same time. The only thing we did overdub was the backing vocals, because you can't play in the same room and sing with the amps, otherwise it will bleed on the mikes. The music, I'd say, took a week, including "Jamie's Cryin'," which we wrote in the studio. I had the basic riffs to the song. And my guitar solo, "Eruption," wasn't really planned to be on the record. Me and Al were dickin' around rehearsing for a show we had to do at the Whiskey, so I was warming up, you know, practicing my solo, and Ted walks in. He goes, "Hey, what's that?" I go, "That's a little solo thing I do live." He goes, "Hey, it's great. Put it on the record." So the music took a week, the singing took about two.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sI7XiJgt0vY

What's the difference between your studio and live playing?

Van Halen: Well, between that record and the shows we're doing now, I'd say none (Laughs). We were jumping around and drinking a beer and getting crazy in the studio, too. There's a vibe on the record, I think, because a lot of bands, they keep hacking it out and doing so many overdubs and double-tracking and stuff like that, it doesn't sound real.

And then a lot of bands can't pull it off live because they overdubbed so much stuff in the studio that it either doesn't sound the same, or they're standing there pushing buttons to get their tape machines working right or something. So we kept it real live, and the next record will be very much the same.

Have you already got plans for it?

Van Halen: Oh, for the first record we went into the studio one day with Ted, and we all just played live and laid down like 40 songs. And out of those 40 we picked nine and wrote one in the studio for the record. So we got plenty of songs. As a matter of fact, I'm gonna get together with Ted on Wednesday and figure out which songs off that tape that we're gonna do for the next one.

But we've been writing, and we've got so many more songs since that tape, and we've got like 30 songs left just on that tape. I think we're gonna use just that tape for the next album, because Ted seems pretty sure that he's got some hit action or whatever just out of those songs. A little polish here and there, but the basic ideas are there.

What kind of practicing do you do?

Van Halen: I never really sit down and really practice, like set myself in a little room and go, "All right, I'm serious now." (Laughs). You know, I just sit around and whenever I get bored, I play my guitar.

Do you compose with the guitar?

Van Halen: Sure, sure. Sometimes I don't. Mainly I'm always thinking music. I'm always trying to think of riffs, using my head. Like sometimes people think I'm spacing off, but I'm not really. I'm thinking about music.

Can you remember it later?

Van Halen: Sometimes yeah and sometimes no. Most of the time I'm so high I forget them! (Laughs). By the time I get to a guitar, I forget, you know.

What's your strategy for playing guitar within the band?

Van Halen: I do whatever I want. I don't really think about it too much.

Do you leave yourself room for onstage experimentation?

Van Halen: Oh, yeah, definitely. Half the time I forget the solos I played on the record. Everything is pretty spontaneous, you know. It's not so set. We used to have a keyboard player, and I hated it, because you have to play everything exactly the same all the time with the guy. You couldn't noodle, like in between vocal lines, because he'd be doing something to fill it up. And I didn't dig it, because I played too much. Sometimes I guess too much. But I like to play my guitar. I don't want someone else filling where I want to fill it. I've always liked to play three-piece, because I just play too much, I guess.

What guitar players were you most influenced by?

Van Halen: That's a toughie, really. But I'd say the main one, believe it or not, was Eric Clapton. I mean, I know I don't sound like him?

You're more like Hendrix or Blackmore.

Van Halen: Yeah, I know. I don't know why, because Hendrix I like, but I was never into him like I was Clapton. And Clapton, man, I know every solo he ever played, note-for-note, still to this day.

You memorized them?

Van Halen: Oh, yeah! I used to sit down and learn that stuff note-for-note off the record. The live stuff, like "Spoonful," "I'm So Glad" live ? all that stuff. But Hendrix too. Just like the whole band, none of us really have one main thing that we like. Like Dave our singer doesn't even own a stereo. He listens to the radio, which is a good variety. That's why we do have, like on the record, "Ice Cream Man," which is a change from the slam-bang loud stuff. You know, we're into melodies, melodic stuff. Most of our songs you can sing along with, even though it does have the peculiar guitar and end-of-the-world drums.

What advice would you give a young guitarist who wants to follow the route you've gone?

Van Halen: You just have to enjoy what you're doing. I mean, you can't pick up a guitar and say, "I want to be like him, I wanna be a rock star," just because you wanna be a rock star. You know? You have to enjoy playing guitar. If you don't enjoy playing guitar, then it's useless.

I know a lot of people who really want to be famous or whatever, but they don't really practice guitar. They think all you do is grow your hair long and look freaky and jump around, and they neglect the actual musical end, which is tough. To learn music is like going to school to be a lawyer. But you have to enjoy it. If you don't enjoy it, it's a waste.

 

[PA Ram]

Good God--I was searching "one-hit-wonders" the other day and stumbled across this one. I wasn't going to subject everyone to it but the thing got into my head and now I can't get it out. I'm hoping by posting it here I can send the ear bug to someone else. Listen at your own risk!

 

[Prime Time]

http://www.classicrockrevisited.com/show_interview.php?id=1168

Joe Bonamassa - Prepare to be Amazed
By Jeb Wright

Blues of Desperation is the new album from Joe Bonamassa, released in March of this year. I don’t know if there has been much ‘desperation’ in Joe’s career, but Joe has been hungry, struggled, and has had to personally negotiate a lot of twists and turns in the early years of his solo career. Backed by a great band, manager, producer and his loyal fans, Joe is taking the time to create quality music.

If you haven’t seen Bonamassa ‘live’, just do it. Check the website, and find a show near you. I don’t care if you like Classic Rock or the Bee Gees, you will come away from the nearly 2 hour show wondering what just hit you. One might think they walked in to a Gibson and Fender ‘Guitar Show’ (as his axes are amazing), but in short order you will realize you are witnessing something special… the tunes ooze of authenticity, then pick up speed, then the solo starts to simmer and comes to a boil… a frenzy of melodic notes come back to a point of resolution backed by a stellar core band and horn section.

At the end of the tune, you are drained as a listener, you lean over to your buddy and you are about to say, “That was insane… UN f$%^ing believable…” and then you realize the next song is about to start and there are 20 more to go…. prepare to be amazed.

The phone rang and Joe picked up the phone. Classic Rock Revisited had a little chat with this young Blues-master… here are the bits we can print.

Jeb: The first interview we did together was when “Miss You Hate You” came out.

Joe: That was fifteen or sixteen years ago.

Jeb: The first time I saw you perform live was in a Wichita, Kansas bar. You had Joe Lynn Turner’s guys as your backing band.

Joe: That’s right.

Jeb: As a fan, I go way back to your earlier days and I admire your talent. In every one of my album reviews that I have written, I have given you this one piece of criticism: You make this look too easy, man.

Joe: [laughter] Trust me, when I’m on stage it is much harder than it looks. Sometimes you’ve got to hang on for dear life.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=veKza8v9zH0

Jeb: With Blues of Desperation you are, once again, a songwriting machine. After all the albums you have created so far, do you ever wonder why the ‘creative well’ has not gone dry?

Joe: The work that I’ve put into it has paid off. When I play the new songs live they are as strong as anything that I’ve ever done. They hold up in the gig and the fans really like them, too. That is always a good sign.

Jeb: You make sure the new stuff does not send the live crowd to the bathroom and the beer line.

Joe: Exactly.

Jeb: You have built a loyal fan base to where you could potentially sing and play the phone book and your fans would love it.

Joe: There has never been a radio hit. My albums come out and they do 200,000 copies in 18 months. It is not a platinum album, but for an independent label to bang out that many albums is great. Worldwide we will do almost a million, but it is a big world.

Jeb: Somehow you have been able to mix the musical / creative world with a strong business sense. Not having a business sense has been the downfall of many an artist.

Joe: Roy Weiss, my manager, and I go back 25 years. His business strategy was to build a high end brand thing. We’ve been very protective of that. We very rarely do festival dates and very rarely do we play outside of our own sandbox. Over the course of ten years I am seeing deals done with major labels and major concert promoters that marginalize someone’s brand. You’re starting to see it now... Next year all Live Nation concerts will be streamed live on YouTube.

On paper it makes Millennials shout from the rooftops about how great they are. Truth be told it is like handing an artist a shovel, a plot of land and a gun. They are not only going to knock you out but they are going to make you dig your own grave first. The article I read showed that the bands are all excited about it. That is some good Kool-Aid.

Jeb: You have a unique background, starting guitar at age 4 and opening for B.B. King at age 12. You were a just a kid and people were very impressed with you.

Joe: A lot of artists… they ask me, “Do you have any advice for me?” I tell them to always bet on yourself. Nobody else is going to bet on you. If you bet on yourself and people see that you’ve bet on yourself then people tend to support you. You’ve got to be able to, musically. All of the business talk is one thing; you have to shut that side of the brain off and become a musician.

Musically, my theory is that you’ve always got to go out there and play with fire. Play like it is your last show and make them notice you. That has not changed in my entire career, twenty-seven years on. I have to go out and make an impression. During those lean years in the early 2000s when you saw me in Wichita, Kansas in that little bar...

I look back at those times and it was a lot of fun. It was a struggle, but we were working towards something. At that time our backs were against the wall on every show of every tour. We didn’t have enough money to get from Point A to Point B. Now, I have four tour busses and two semi-trucks. That is self-made, you know.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPtydgQcrsk

Jeb: Blues of Desperation is another amazing record. When Kevin Shirley and you decide it is time to create a new album, how does the concept move forward?

Joe: Kevin and I have tried a lot of different things over the years. We’ve done acoustic stuff and we’ve done heavy rock with Black Country Communion. We are about to do that again. We’ve done country, Americana kind of stuff… what we’re best at is big, sludgy blues rock… songs like “Blues of Desperation.” We are really good at big, sludgy blues rock. Sometimes we are self-loathing blues rock producers. Once we get into it then those songs flow out so easily. It is just in our nature.

Jeb: Off this latest release, the smooth ballad “The Valley Runs Low” is one of my favs.

Joe: That’s a good song. I had that chorus in my head for a while. I’m a sucker for Ry Cooder. I love Ry and I think he’s a national treasure.

Jeb: How did you end up with Kevin Shirley as a producer?

Joe: My manager Roy was talking to somebody about how we needed a new direction. We were flat-lining a little bit back then. I made a decent record called Had to Cry Today but it was not a great record. We needed a new producer. We needed a B12 shot. Someone told him to call Kevin Shirley. He said, “You know, if we are going to do this then you have to trust me as I have your best interests in mind. You should know I am also a control freak.” I said, “Kevin, I trust you and I have no interest in producing a record.” He goes, “Perfect.”

Jeb: If Kevin was not producing you, I would feel weird about it.

Joe: That’s the thing, you don’t know what to expect. It was just a happy accident.

Jeb: Does Kevin ever push you to musically stretch out?

Joe: All of the time. All musicians have a default setting. The default setting is lazy. Kevin’s job is to make sure that I’m not lazy.

Jeb: We have to talk a bit about Black Country Communion. I never thought you guys as a group would make another recording, as the band split rather badly.

Joe: In the beginning I was very upfront with them that I was happy to get the band going, but that it was not going to be my full time job. I had spent a lifetime building up a solo career. Long story short, it kind of frayed about there for a while.

About two months ago I reached out to all of them and I said, ‘It has been five years since our last gig and life is too short to hold a grudge. I love all of you guys.” I didn’t expect responses, I just wanted to get that off of my chest. Within an hour I got responses from them all. I said, “Let’s rock. Let’s make an album.”


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SoNFtca_zmQ

Jeb: During your young career, it seems you’ve played alongside with everyone... Eric Clapton, Stephen Stills, Warren Haynes, Derek Trucks, Buddy Guy, Paul Rodgers… the list goes on and on. Is there anyone that would intimidate you to share a stage with?

Joe: Just about everybody. I was very nervous playing with Eric Clapton. Jeff Beck would be very intimidating. I haven’t been on stage with him yet. I was on stage with Steve Winwood, which was very intimidating. You do find that the better people are, the nicer they are. That’s why BB King was so nice. He knew he was a bad-ass. He has a quiet confidence about him.

The first person in the room that tells you they are the greatest is the weakest one in the room. The one that just sits quietly and just plays is the one you have to worry about. The quiet ones listen to everyone talk and then they say, “Here is what I’ve got.” That is so true.

Jeb: As you know, Rory Gallagher had an incredible musical legacy… and you got to play his ’61 Fender Strat, his main axe of 30 years… I am so jealous that you got to play Rory Gallagher’s guitar. That one makes me envy you so much!

Joe: Oh, I got to play it twice!

http://jbonamassa.com/

 

[Dieter the Brock]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3A6bksj5AGI

 

[ozarkram]

 

[ozarkram]

 

[OldSchool]

 

[OldSchool]

 

[RAMSinLA]

View: https://youtu.be/yVlXQej5ZRc

 

[RAMSinLA]

View: https://youtu.be/gp5JCrSXkJY

 

[RAMSinLA]

View: https://youtu.be/jjKVBj0fmkg

 

[RocknRam29]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hqttcbv26jU

 

[PA Ram]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W02bWSmiXvA

 

[RAMSinLA]

View: https://youtu.be/ALU5g6Qqi08

 

[Tron]

3 different versions of one song.
Original song made years ago

Song made recently with new band with singer from original song

Live version of new version

 

[ozarkram]