Poison MTV Unplugged (1990)

MTV Unplugged:

Your Mama Don't Dance
Good Love
Every Rose Has It's Thorn
Let It Play
Unskinny Bop
Talk Dirty To Me

Read More

Stone Temple Pilots: MTV Unplugged 1993

Stone Temple Pilots, the hard rock sensation based south of Los Angeles, taped a performance for "MTV Unplugged" in New York City in November of 1993. Band members Weiland (vocals), Robert DeLeo (bass), Dean DeLeo (guitars) and Eric Kretz (drums) perform a rockin' acoustic set featuring tracks off their debut album Core. Recorded 17 November 1993 at Sony Music Studios - New York. Set List: 1. Crackerman; 2. Creep; 3. Andy Warhol; 4. Plush; 5. Big Empty; 6. Sin; 7. Wicked Garden; 8. Sex Type Thing.

Read More

Pearl Jam - MTV Completely Unplugged (1992)

One of the hottest new bands to emerge out of music hot bed Seattle at the time of this taping, Pearl Jam was currently riding high on the success of their debut album Ten. Taped at midnight at the Kaufman Astoria Studios in March of 1992, Pearl Jam band members Eddie Vedder (vocals), Mike McCready (guitar), Stone Gossard (guitar), Jeff Ament (bass), and Dave Abbruzzese (drums) gave an unforgettable and captivating performance that unleashed the band's raw, poetic and lyrical genius to the world, also highlighting a point of Eddie's personal and political values that made his music seem more genuine and real. But before we get into the music, lets begin with the heart of this live performance.

One thing to be noted about Pearl Jam during the duration (35 minutes) of this show is their energy and devotion towards the music they play, as well as the pure joy they get out of performing. The camera catches glimpses of Dave smiling and mouthing the words as he rocks out on the drum set throughout the entire show, and you'll notice McCready and Stone start to move their bodies with the rhythm of the music and dedicate their entire mindset and emotion to each song's pivotal guitar solo found within most of Pearl Jam's pieces. However, I find myself completely lost to the world around me when I see Eddie sing. Eddie's voice alone is gripping and intense as he sings the tune is such a way to showcase power, pureness, and patience, but when you put that talent along with his enthralling facial expressions, you get...well...a damn good show. Eddie's face (aside from being absolutely beautiful) leaves you wondering whether or not he's having an epileptic seizure, wanting to kill someone, or just completely lost in the music. His eyes roll in the back of his head, his head jerks around in short, fast movements, and he'll even give you a twisted little smile, raising his cheekbones and pursing his lips, in parts of the song that usually aren't that happy. Passion runs through his blood and it is evident in the way he performs.

Read More

The Alarm

With idealistic spirit, a powerhouse live show, and bigger than big hair, the Alarm were part of an early-'80s wave of bands (the Call, Big Country, and the Waterboys among them) who dealt in soaring anthems inspired by the righteous idealism of punk. Clearly influenced by the impassioned political fervor of the Clash, the Alarm also worked in a mostly acoustic, folk-punk vein that provided a counterpoint to their hard-driving guitar rockers. Their stage look was unquestionably a product of the '80s, with enormous spiked-up hair accompanying a cowboy/old-time cavalry wardrobe. Yet the numerous comparisons to U2 in the press were not unfounded; despite a more conservative sonic palette, the Alarm had much the same earnest intensity, the same messianic ambitions, even the same vague spirituality. Likewise, the Alarm seemed to covet a mainstream breakthrough in the vein of The Joshua Tree's conquest of the pop charts, and polished up their sound accordingly, with mixed creative results. The British music press habitually savaged their records as derivative and pretentious, but this meant little to their zealous following who supported the band to the tune of over 5 million sales worldwide and 16 Top 50 UK singles.

The Alarm was formed in Rhyl, Wales in 1981 by vocalist/guitarist Mike Peters, who'd started out in a local punk band called the Toilets along with Alarm drummer Nigel Twist (b. Nigel Buckle). When that band broke up, Peters -- then playing bass -- formed a new outfit called Seventeen (after the Sex Pistols song) with guitarists Eddie MacDonald and Dave Sharp (b. Dave Kitchingman), both local scenesters and longtime friends. Seventeen was initially influenced by the Pistols, the Clash, the mod-revival punk of the Jam, and the punk-pop of ex-Pistol Glen Matlock's Rich Kids. As their songwriting interests grew more socially conscious, and in early 1981, the group reinvented itself as the Alarm, taking the name from a Seventeen song called "Alarm Alarm." Later that year, they moved to London and self-released their debut single, a Peters/MacDonald-penned political rocker called "Unsafe Building," backed with Sharp's folk-punk tune "Up for Murder." By this time, MacDonald and Peters had switched instruments, with Peters taking up rhythm guitar and MacDonald moving to bass.

In 1982, the Alarm signed with IRS and issued another single, "Marching On." On the strength of their live shows, U2 tapped them to open their 1983 supporting tour for War, which helped make the group's next single, the Stephen King retelling "The Stand," into an underground hit. The Alarm's self-titled debut EP appeared later in 1983, compiling previous single releases, and setting the stage for the release of their first proper album, Declaration, in 1984. A Top Ten U.K. hit, Declaration spun off several popular singles, including the Seventeen holdover "Sixty-Eight Guns" (which made the pop Top 20), "Where Were You Hiding When the Storm Broke?" (which just missed), "The Deceiver," and the live staple "Blaze of Glory." Non-LP singles followed in a cover of "The Bells of Rhymney," the new wave dance tune "The Chant (Has Just Begun)," and the British Top 40 hit "Absolute Reality."

The Alarm's sophomore effort, 1985's Strength, was another U.K. success, and brought them into the Top 40 of the U.S. album charts for the first time; additionally, the single "Spirit of '76" was a Top 40 U.K. hit. Strength displayed greater subtlety and maturity in both their songwriting and arrangements, and was often hailed as the group's best overall album. The Alarm took a break after the supporting tour, and returned in 1987 with Eye of the Hurricane, which featured more polished, mainstream production reminiscent of U2. The gambit helped them gain some rock radio play in America with the singles "Presence of Love," "Rescue Me," and especially the more danceable "Rain in the Summertime," and they landed a tour slot supporting Bob Dylan. A concert EP, Electric Folklore: Live, followed in 1988.

1989's Change was an homage to the group's native Wales, and was accompanied by an alternate Welsh-language version, Newid. Produced by Tony Visconti, Change spawned the group's biggest modern rock radio hit in America, the bluesy "Sold Me Down the River," which also put them in the U.S. pop Top 50 for the first and only time. "Devolution Working Man Blues" and "Love Don't Come Easy" also earned radio airplay, and the track "A New South Wales" boasted an appearance by the Welsh Symphony Orchestra. Although it was hugely popular in Wales, it didn't sell as well as the group's earlier works, and internal band dissension -- exacerbated by deaths in both Peters and Twist's families -- made 1991's Raw the original Alarm's final effort. "The Road" was their final radio hit, but with the band's impending breakup, IRS found little reason to promote it.

Mike Peters and Dave Sharp both embarked on solo careers. Sharp issued albums in 1991 and, after relocating to New Orleans, in 1996. Peters, meanwhile, issued his solo debut in 1995 and was subsequently diagnosed with lymphoma; fortunately, the "cancer" turned out to be benign, and Peters completed two more solo records before forming Colorsound with former Cult guitarist Billy Duffy. Peters subsequently reunited the original Alarm lineup for several live appearances, and then formed a new unit consisting of guitarist James Stevenson (Gene Loves Jezebel, Chelsea), bassist Craig Adams (the Cult, the Mission UK, Sisters of Mercy), and drummer Steve Grantley (Stiff Little Fingers).

 In February 2004, this lineup of the Alarm pulled off a masterful hoax on the British music industry by issuing a garagey punk-pop single, "45 RPM," under the fictitious name the Poppy Fields. Peters, having gotten positive feedback on the song, decided to disassociate it from his veteran band to have it judged on its own merits, and recruited a young Welsh group called the Wayriders to lip-sync the song in the video. The so-called Poppy Fields took "45 RPM" into the U.K. Top 30 before the hoax was revealed, setting the stage for the new Alarm's first album together, In the Poppy Fields. Soon after the album's release, production for a film based on Peters' manipulating of the music industry began with Shrek producer John H. Williams backing the project. 

Read More

Kansas

Fusing the complexity of British prog rock with an American heartland sound representative of their name, Kansas were among the most popular bands of the late '70s; though typically dismissed by critics, many of the group's hits remain staples of AOR radio playlists to this day. Formed in Topeka in 1970, the founding members of the group -- guitarist Kerry Livgren, bassist Dave Hope, and drummer Phil Ehart -- first played together while in high school; with the 1971 addition of classically trained violinist Robbie Steinhardt, they changed their name to White Clover, reverting back to the Kansas moniker for good upon the 1972 arrivals of vocalist/keyboardist Steve Walsh and guitarist Richard Williams.

The group spent the early part of the decade touring relentlessly and struggling for recognition; initially, their mix of boogie and prog rock baffled club patrons, but in due time they established a strong enough following to win a record deal with the Kirshner label. Kansas' self-titled debut LP appeared in 1974; while only mildly successful, the group toured behind it tirelessly, and their fan base grew to the point that their third effort, 1975's Masque, sold a quarter of a million copies. In 1976, Leftoverture truly catapulted Kansas to stardom. On the strength of the smash hit "Carry on Wayward Son," the album reached the Top Five and sold over three million copies. Released in 1977, Point of Know Return was even more successful, spawning the monster hit "Dust in the Wind." While the 1978 live LP Two for the Show struggled to break the Top 40, its studio follow-up, Monolith, the band's first self-produced effort, reached the Top Ten. That same year, Walsh issued a solo record, Schemer-Dreamer.

 In the wake of 1980's Audio-Visions, Kansas began to splinter; both Hope and Livgren became born-again Christians, the latter issuing the solo venture Seeds of Change, and their newfound spirituality caused divisions within the band's ranks. Walsh soon quit to form a new band, Streets; the remaining members forged on without him, tapping vocalist John Elefante as his replacement. The first Kansas LP without Walsh, 1982's Vinyl Confessions, launched the hit "Play the Game Tonight," but after only one more album, 1983's Drastic Measures, they disbanded.

In 1986, however, Kansas re-formed around Ehart, Williams, and Walsh; adding the famed guitarist Steve Morse as well as bassist Billy Greer, the refurbished band debuted with the album Power, scoring a Top 20 hit with "All I Wanted." When the follow-up, 1988's In the Spirit of Things, failed to hit, seven years passed before the release of their next effort, Freaks of Nature. The London Symphony-assisted Always Never the Same followed in 1998, and in 2000 Kansas issued Somewhere to Elsewhere, their 14th studio album (and last to date), which saw the return of founder singer/songwriter Kerry Livgren.

Subsequent years found Kansas continuing to tour and release compilations and live albums, culminating in their 2014 inductions into the Kansas Hall of Fame and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame, which coincided with the group's 40th anniversary. Miracles Out of Nowhere, a DVD/CD career retrospective, followed in early 2015.

 

 

Read More

Christopher Cross

Christopher Cross was far and away the biggest new star of 1980, virtually defining adult contemporary radio with a series of smoothly sophisticated ballads including the chart-topping "Sailing"; seemingly as quickly as he shot to fame, however, his star descended, although he continued recording and touring for years to come. Born Christopher Geppert in San Antonio, TX on May 3, 1951, Cross first surfaced in the Austin-based cover band Flash before signing a solo contract with Warner Bros. in the autumn of 1978.

His self-titled debut LP appeared two years later, with the lead single "Ride Like the Wind" rocketing to the number two spot; the massive success of the second single, "Sailing," made Cross a superstar, and in the wake of two more Top 20 hits, "Never Be the Same" and "Say You'll Be Mine," he walked off with a record-setting five Grammys in 1981, including Best New Artist and Song of the Year for "Sailing." He soon scored a second number one as well as an Academy Award with "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," which he co-wrote with Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, and Peter Allen for the smash Dudley Moore film comedy Arthur.


Cross' much-anticipated sophomore effort, Another Page, arrived in 1983, but except for the Top Ten entry "Think of Laura" (popularized through its constant presence on the daytime soap phenomenon General Hospital), the album failed to repeat the success of its predecessor, and somewhat amazingly, he never returned to the Top 40 again. Every Turn of the World appeared to little notice in 1985, and when 1988's Back of My Mind failed to chart altogether, Cross was dropped by Warner. His next album, Rendezvous, did not appear until five years later on BMG. Window followed in 1995, and in 1998 he signed to CMC International for Walking in Avalon, a two-disc effort split between new studio material and live recordings of his past hits.

Cross returned in the spring of 2000 with The Red Room. Two years later, Rhino released the comprehensive hit collection The Very Best of Christopher Cross. Cross closed out the decade with a Christmas album in 2007 and an acoustic album called The Cafe Carlyle Sessions in 2008. Dr. Faith, his first collection of new songs in ten years, appeared in the fall of 2010.

 

Read More

John Denver

Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr.

31 December 1943 in Roswell, NM

One of the most popular recording artists of the 1970s, country-folk singer/songwriter John Denver's gentle, environmentally conscious music established him among the most beloved entertainers of his era; wholesome and clean-cut, his appeal extended to fans of all ages and backgrounds, and led to parallel careers as both an actor and a humanitarian.

Born Henry John Deutschendorf in Roswell, NM, on December 31, 1943, he was raised in an Air Force family, and grew up in various regions of the southwestern U.S. As a teen, his grandmother presented him with a 1910 Gibson acoustic guitar, and while attending Texas Tech University he began performing local clubs. Adopting the stage surname "Denver" in tribute to the Rocky Mountain area he so cherished, he dropped out of college in 1964 to relocate to Los Angeles; there he joined the Chad Mitchell Trio, a major draw on the hootenanny circuit of the early '60s but in the twilight of their career at the time of Denver's arrival.

Over time, however, Denver helped resuscitate the group on the strength of his songwriting skills; signed to Mercury, the Trio recorded a number of tracks, which the label repackaged in 1974 as Beginnings With the Chad Mitchell Trio. Upon the departure of the last remaining founding member, the Chad Mitchell Trio became known as Denver, Boise and Johnson; the new group proved short-lived, however, when Denver exited in 1969 to pursue a solo career.

That same year he recorded his debut LP, Rhymes and Reasons; while not a hit, it contained one of his best-loved compositions, "Leaving on a Jet Plane," an international chart-topper for Peter, Paul & Mary. Still, neither of Denver's follow-up albums, 1970's Whose Garden Was This and Take Me to Tomorrow, launched him as a solo performer; finally, with 1971's Poems, Prayers & Promises, he achieved superstardom, thanks to the million-selling hits "Take Me Home, Country Roads" and "Sunshine on My Shoulders." In the years to follow, Denver also scored with "Annie's Song" (penned for his wife) and "Back Home Again," and by 1974 was firmly established as America's best-selling performer; albums like 1975's An Evening With John Denver and Windsong were phenomenally popular, and he continued to top the singles charts with efforts including "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" and "I'm Sorry." Additionally, his 1974 best-of collection sold over ten million copies worldwide, and remained on the charts for over two years.

At the peak of his success, Denver was everywhere -- the governor of Colorado proclaimed him the state's poet laureate, his label Windsong was responsible for hits like the Starland Vocal Band's mammoth "Afternoon Delight," and he appeared in a number of ratings-grabbing television specials. In 1977, he even moved into film, co-starring with George Burns in the comedy hit Oh, God! During this time, however, he dramatically curtailed his recording output, and after 1977's I Want to Live, issued no new material until 1980's Autograph.

The following year, he performed with opera star Placido Domingo, but as the decade progressed, Denver's popularity waned as he turned his focus more toward humanitarian work, focusing primarily on ecological concerns and space exploration; he also toured Communist-led Russia and China, and in 1987 performed in Chernobyl in the wake of that city's nuclear disaster.

While maintaining a solid cult following, by the 1990s Denver had largely fallen off the radar, and he made more news for a 1993 drunk-driving arrest than he did for records like 1991's Different Directions. In 1994, he published an autobiography, Take Me Home. Tragedy struck on October 12, 1997, when his experimental aircraft suddenly crashed, killing him instantly. Denver was 53.

Read More

Don Mclean

Ronald McLean

October 2, 1945 in New Rochelle, NY

 Famed for -- and ultimately defined by -- his perennial "American Pie," singer/songwriter Don McLean was born October 2, 1945, in New Rochelle, New York. After getting his start in the folk clubs of New York City during the mid-'60s, McLean struggled for a number of years, building a small following through his work with Pete Seeger on the Clearwater, a sloop that sailed up and down the eastern seaboard to promote environmental causes.

Still, McLean was primarily singing in elementary schools and the like when, in 1970, he wrote a musical tribute to painter Vincent Van Gogh; the project was roundly rejected by a number of labels, although MediaArts did offer him a contract to record a number of his other songs under the title Tapestry. The album fared poorly, but Perry Como earned a hit with a cover of the track "And I Love You So," prompting United Artists to pick up McLean's contract. He returned in 1971 with American Pie; the title track, an elegiac eight-and-a-half-minute folk-pop epic inspired by the tragic death of Buddy Holly, became a number one hit, and the LP soon reached the top of the charts as well.

The follow-up, "Vincent," was also a smash, and McLean even became the subject of the Roberta Flack hit "Killing Me Softly with His Song"; however, to his credit -- and to his label's horror -- the singer refused to let the success of "American Pie" straitjacket his career. Subsequent records like 1972's self-titled effort and 1974's Playin' Favorites deliberately avoided any attempts to re-create the "American Pie" flavor; not surprisingly, his sales plummeted, and the latter release even failed to chart.

After 1974's Homeless Brother and 1976's Solo, United Artists dropped McLean from his contract; he resurfaced on Arista the next year with Prime Time, but when it, too, fared poorly, he spent the next several years without a label. McLean enjoyed a renaissance of sorts with 1980's Chain Lightning; his first Top 30 LP in close to a decade, it spawned a Top Ten smash with its cover of Roy Orbison's classic "Crying," and his originals "Castles in the Air" and "Since I Don't Have You" both also reached the Top 40. However, 1981's Believers failed to sustain the comeback, and after 1983's Dominion, he was again left without benefit of label support.

McLean spent the remainder of his career primarily on the road, grudgingly restoring "American Pie" to his set list and drawing inspiration from the country market; in addition to a number of live sets and re-recordings of old favorites, he also returned to the studio for projects like 1990's For the Memories (a collection of classic pop, country, and jazz covers) and 1995's River of Love (an LP of original material).

Read More

Trio Los Panchos

Los Panchos (also known as the Trío Los Panchos) was an internationally famous Latin trío romántico known for its romantic ballads and boleros. History Los Panchos first met in 1944 in New York City.

The three original members were Alfredo Gil and Chucho Navarro, both from Mexico, and Hernando Avilés from Puerto Rico. All three played guitar and contributed vocally.

Los Panchos reached fame with their romantic songs, especially in Latin America where they are still regarded as one of the top trios of all time. They sold millions of records within a few years of being founded.

They also appeared in around fifty movies mostly during the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema.

 Los Panchos began touring internationally in 1946 and would relocate later that same year to Mexico City, considered the world capital of Spanish-language music[citation needed]. They were welcomed with open arms and XEW-AM, the most popular radio station in Mexico City, reserved a time slot for their music. In 1951, Los Panchos launched another international tour across Latin America.

 Julito Rodríguez joined the group in 1952; he was replaced by Johnny Albino in 1958. Johnny Albino & Chucho Navarro, (Miguel Poventud and Yomo Toro were studio musicians for CBS) famously worked with singer Eydie Gorme on a series of bestselling albums in the 1960s. The Albino era was one of the most prosperous ones for Los Panchos whose classic albums are very popular among Los Panchos fans still. His departure in 1968 was a tumultuous one, as he did not leave on good terms with the group's management.

In 1971, Ovidio Hernández joined the band as lead vocalist, a part he would fulfill until his untimely passing of complications of meningitis in 1976. Following him, Rafael Basurto Lara joined as lead singer.

Alfredo Gil played with Los Panchos until his retirement in 1981 (he died in 1999) and Chucho Navarro played with the group until his death in 1993.

A characteristic instrument of Los Panchos and many more bolero trios after them is the Requinto guitar, which is smaller and tuned higher than a standard guitar, and was invented by Alfredo Gil, founding member of Los Panchos. Requinto solos are typically part of a bolero song.

Today, there are several trios claiming to be the rightful successors to the original trio. Another Trio Los Panchos also known as "Trio Los Panchos con Gabi Vargas" (Trio Los Panchos with Gabi Vargas) is currently under the musical direction of Gabriel Vargas Aguilar. , still continues to perform concerts across Mexico, Latin America, and the United States, with a newer cast of singers.

Another trio using the Los Panchos name is the Trio Los Panchos de Chucho Navarro Fundador (Trio Los Panchos of Founder Chucho Navarro) under the direction of Chucho Navarro Jr. the son of original Los Panchos member Chucho Navarro, makes presentations worldwide .

Eto yun isa sa mga plaka namin nuon na laging pinapa-tugtog ng tatay ko nuong bata ako, kapag may bisita sa bahay at may konting inuman, na kahit hindi mo nga maintindihan, wala kang magagawa kundi pakinggan at halos mamemorya mo na rin yun ibang kanta.. hehehe

Buti nakahanap pa ko ng magandang kopya nito, hindi na ito yun original na plaka namin pero andito yun mga kanta na halos mapakinggan naming mga magkakapatid, ate at mga kuya ko.. marami pa kong ipopost na mga luma, at mga kinagisnan at mga napakinggan tugtugin dahil sa tatay ko na mahilig din sa musika at mga plaka.

Sayang nga lang at hindi ko na narecover ang mga plakang yon, kaya heto kahit sa mga digitally remastered eh mabuo o makuha ko ang mga kopya ng mga plaka namin na lagi namin napapakinggan... abangan nyo na lang yun mga iba pang kasunod.. hehehe

Read More

Bagets Movie Soundtrack

Soundtrack list

•  “Growing Up” (Gary Valenciano) 
•  “So It’s You” (Raymond Lauchengco)
•  “Farewell” (Raymond Lauchengco) 
• “Why Don’t You Care?” (Harner Brothers) 
• “High School High” (Spirit) 
•  “Telephone” (Chona Cruz) 
•  “Why Me?” (Jo Khrishner (Giorgio Moroder))
•  “This Is A House” (Spirit) 
•  “Self-Respect” (ZZYZX Band) 
•  “Baby I Lied” (Debbie Allen) 
• “Jump (For My Love)” (The Pointer Sisters) 
•  “You and I” (Kenny Rogers) 
•  “Just Got Lucky” (Jo Boxer) 
•  “Rock It” (Herbie Hancock) 

 History “Growing Up” was the main theme song of the movie which was heard in its opening and closing credits. This was always a promotional song during the rounds on the programs of the various television stations. “So It’s You” was its main love theme song particularly when the scenes about the celebration of Valentine’s Day was shown.

There was an MTV like scene which featured Raymond Lauchengco serenading Eula Valdez with this song. The two wore formal clothes and the location was the Ugarte Football Field in Makati with matching fireworks. “Baby I Lied” and “You and I” served as other love theme songs to the back stories of the characters played by Aga Muhlach and J.C. Bonnin, respectively. “Farewell” was the background song when the main characters encountered their separate heart aches and sadness because of the death of a lady love, a person he loves left for abroad for marriage and his love prospect can not return his affection because she is already married.

However, in the hearts and in the minds of the high school seniors graduating that year, this song was their graduation song. “Why Don’t You Care” was the musical score in the scene where Herbert Bautista, riding a bicycle, saw his romantic prospect played by Jobelle Salvador who was a passenger of a tricycle. This was a hilarious scene where even if the young lad learned where she lives, he found out that her father is a military man who he saw cleaning the latter’s M-16 rifle which was issued to him for official use.

The lyrics of “High School High” was about the various challenges a high school student experienced: difficult subjects to learn and to study and the several examinations to be taken to pass these subjects. This was the score when the main characters arrived at their new school during the first day of classes as high school seniors and exploring its surroundings and its people. “Telephone”, “Why Me?” and “Jump (For My Love)” were used as the background music in the Junior-Senior Prom scenes. “Just Got Lucky” was used when the main characters had their summer outing and towards the end of the movie when Bautista’s character told his love for Salvador’s character after a few funny distractions.

The young lady accepted his proposal to be his sweetheart which surprised the young man. “Rock It” was for the scene where the character of William Martinez accepted the challenge of a classmate for a drag racing without thinking of the consequence which he regretted later.

His sweetheart played by Yayo Aguila died in the car crash while he survived. “This Is A House” and “Self-Respect” were used in the other scenes where the characters were engaged in the different activities as teenagers. For the graduating high school seniors of the year 1984, the movie and the soundtrack served as souvenirs of their high school lives.

Read More

Queensrÿche

Queensrÿche /ˈkwiːnzraɪk/ is an American heavy metal band formed in 1982 in Bellevue, Washington, out of the local band the Mob. The band has released 14 studio albums, one EP and several DVDs, and continues to tour and record. The original lineup consisted of vocalist Geoff Tate, guitarists Chris DeGarmo and Michael Wilton, bassist Eddie Jackson and drummer Scott Rockenfield. Queensrÿche has sold over 20 million albums worldwide, including over 6 million albums in the United States. 

The band received worldwide acclaim after the release of their 1988 album Operation: Mindcrime, which is often considered one of the greatest concept albums of all time.[citation needed] Their follow-up release, Empire, released in 1990, was also very successful and included the hit single "Silent Lucidity". The band has received three Grammy Award nominations for songs off both albums. In 1998, drummer Rockenfield received an individual Grammy nomination. In 1997, guitarist and primary songwriter DeGarmo left the band for personal reasons. 

Over the years, his replacements have been Kelly Gray, Mike Stone, and Parker Lundgren, respectively. Following a highly publicized backstage altercation before a show in São Paulo, Brazil in April 2012, Tate was fired from the band and replaced with then-Crimson Glory singer Todd La Torre. In response to his dismissal, Tate and his wife Susan (who served as the band's manager from 2005–2012) filed a lawsuit in a Washington court, claiming that he was wrongfully terminated. The ruling in the preliminary injunction was that both parties were allowed to use the name Queensrÿche until a court ruling or a settlement decides who gets to use the name. 

A settlement was reached on April 17, 2014, in which founding members Wilton, Rockenfield and Jackson were awarded the rights to the band trademark, continuing to play with the lineup that additionally includes singer La Torre and guitarist Lundgren. During the time both parties could use the name Queensrÿche, Tate created his own lineup featuring former guitarist Gray and musicians from bands including Blue Öyster Cult, Ozzy Osbourne, Whitesnake, Dio, AC/DC and Quiet Riot.[4][5] This version of Queensrÿche with Geoff Tate released the album Frequency Unknown on 23 April 2013,[6] while Queensrÿche (with La Torre replacing Tate) released their eponymous album on 24 and 25 June 2013 (European and American release date, respectively).[7] Both bands toured in 2013 and 2014. 

Read More

Aerosmith

Aerosmith is a prominent American rock band. Three of its members, Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Tom Hamilton, first met in Sunapee, New Hampshire in the late 60s, but it wasn’t until 1970, in Boston, Massachusetts, that the three decided to form a band together. Later, they met up with Joey Kramer (drums) and Brad Whitford (rhythm guitar). The band enjoyed major popularity throughout the 70s, making rock anthems such as “Dream On” and “Sweet Emotion”, but they split from 1979-84 due to serious in-group arguments and substance abuse problems that contributed to their decline.

Producing a wide variety of tunes influenced both by the 60s hard rock legends as well as the bombastic rhythm and blues artists that the band loved, Joe Perry and Steven Tyler became known as the “toxic twins” due to their rambunctious live performances and nasty lifestyles. The Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia reportedly said Aerosmith featured “the druggiest bunch of guys I’ve ever seen.” Classics from their early area with much airplay also include 1974’s “Same Old Song and Dance” and 1976’s “Back in the Saddle”, with 1973’s “Dream On” being a concert favorite.

Jimmy Crespo replaced Joe Perry for about five years as the band’s fortunes failed. However, in 1984, chiefly due to the tireless efforts of Joe Perry’s then manager, Tim Collins, to reform the band, Aerosmith was born again. Despite his own client Perry’s insistence that it was unthinkable, Collins succeeded in helping the band resolve old differences and ultimately overcome their addictions. 

 

Read More

Slash

Saul Hudson (born 23 July 1965, Stoke, England), better known by his stage name Slash, is a British-American musician. He is the former lead guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N’ Roses, with whom he performed and recorded between 1985 and 1996. He later formed Slash’s Snakepit and co-founded Velvet Revolver with his former bandmates Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum; and his debut solo album, Slash , was released in April 2010. In 2011 he wrote and featured on Kick It Up A Notch, the end credit song for The Disney Channel Original Movie Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2nd Dimension. (Kick It Up a Notch Songfacts). He has written a self titled autobiography which was put to print in 2007.

Slash joined his first band, Tidus Sloan, in 1981. In 1983, he formed the band Road Crew—named for the Motörhead song “(We Are) The Road Crew”—with his childhood friend Steven Adler, who by then had learned to play drums. He placed an advertisement in a newspaper looking for a bassist, and received a response from Duff McKagan. They auditioned a number of singers, including one-time Black Flag vocalist Ron Reyes, and worked on material that included the main riff of what would become the Guns N’ Roses song “Rocket Queen.” Slash disbanded the group the following year due to them not being able to find a singer, as well as Adler’s lack of work ethic compared to himself and McKagan. He, along with Adler, then joined a local band known as Hollywood Rose, which featured singer Axl Rose and guitarist Izzy Stradlin. Following his time with Hollywood Rose, Slash played in a band called Black Sheep and unsuccessfully auditioned for Poison, a glam metal band that he would later openly deride. 

 Legendary guitarist Slash (VELVET REVOLVER, GUNS N' ROSES) played an ultra-rare acoustic show in August in Sydney, Australia that was filmed for Foxtel's "Max Sessions".

According to Australia's long-running rock station Triple M, Slash and singer Myles Kennedy (ALTER BRIDGE) performed a stripped-back seven-song set, featuring a mix of Slash's solo material and GN'R and VELVET REVOLVER favorites.

The intimate gig happened at the Seymour Centre in the inner-city of Sydney and Triple M's Alexis Savaidis was one of the 300 lucky fans to witness the magic.

"It was a flawless performance," stated Alexis. "Myles blew everyone away with an impressive vocal range hitting insanely high notes. And, of course, Slash was unreal! Doing those solos on an acoustic guitar is really only one for the masters and he did it so well."

She also said that Slash answered questions from fans during the set which revealed a lighter side to the guitar legend.

The setlist was as follows:

01. Patience

02. Back From Cali

03. Fall To Pieces

04. Starlight

05. By The Sword

06. Sweet Child O' Mine

07. Civil War

 Slash & Myles Kennedy - Max Sessions Acoustic Gig, Sydney, Australia 08-15-2010

 

 

Read More

White Lion

White Lion is a Danish/American rock band that was formed in New York City in 1983 by Danish vocalist Mike Tramp and American guitarist Vito Bratta. Mainly active in the 1980s and early 1990s, releasing their debut album Fight to Survive in 1985. The band achieved success with their No. 8 hit "Wait" and No. 3 hit "When the Children Cry" from their second album, the double platinum selling Pride. The band continued their success with their third album, Big Game which achieved Gold status and their fourth album Mane Attraction which included a supporting tour. White Lion disbanded in 1992 and not long after their first compilation album, The Best of White Lion was released.

Mike Tramp reformed White Lion with all new musicians in 1999 and again following a failed attempt to reform the original line up and several legal issues in 2004. The new White Lion released a live album in 2005 and a brand new studio album Return of the Pride in 2008. 

Read More