Remembering Brad Delp - 10 Years (aka: the man with the golden voice)

Celebrating iconic vocalist Brad Delp today (Mar 09, 2007). Can't believe he's been gone for ten years. His death came as such a surprise. I saw Boston in concert four times prior to his death. 

And even though he was losing a bit of his range, he still belted out 'More Than A Feeling', 'Don't Look Back', 'Rock And Roll Band', 'Smokin', 'Piece Of Mind'...the list goes on. Loved this guy and he lives on through the music.

Brad Delp - 'More Than A Feeling' [Vocals Only]

Happy 69th Tony Iommi (aka: the father of heavy metal)

Happy 69th birthday to Tony Iommi. The father of all that is heavy and the creator of Heavy Metal guitar. He's given us so many incredible riffs for 47 years (self-titled debut was released Feb 13, 1970). How insane is that? I don't know what "heavy" would even mean if it weren't for this legend right here.

Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath (1970)

Dio Sabbath - Heaven & Hell - Live solo (2009)

Rainbow In The Dark - RIP Jimmy Bain

It's been a few days since the passing of bass great Jimmy Bain (ex-Rainbow/DIO/Wild Horses).

Here's another musician I grew up listening to in the mid-70' when he was in Rainbow (Rising/On Stage) and during his time in DIO.  I was familiar with the band he formed called Wild Horses (which also included ex-Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson and guitarist Neil Carter).  But the connection I have lies more with Rainbow's Rising era and DIO since that's what I was listening to the majority of the time.

Jimmy contributed a lot to DIO's Holy Diver and The Last In Line (more than people even know). The guy was a powerhouse and sorely underrated here in the US.  I've seen DIO in concert more than twelve times (probably more like 20 times if I really think about it and look through my old ticket stubs).  Started with the Holy Diver tour in 1983 and last time I saw him was Killing The Dragon tour in 2002. Jimmy was always goofing and clowning on stage, but he played the hell out of that bass.  Plus, he and Ronnie were in Rainbow together for a bit and you could see the camaraderie they had.  And having a fuckin' blast every night.

His current band Last In Line played a Def Leppard Hysteria on the High Seas pre-cruise show in Miami, FL last week.  Jimmy passed away on-board the ship the next day. Here's footage from Jimmy's last show performing 'We Rock'.

His DIO/Last In Line bandmate (and Def Leppard guitarist) Vivian Campbell posted the following on Facebook:

"It's with the heaviest of hearts that I must confirm the news of the passing of our dear friend and Last In Line band-mate, Jimmy Bain. It was Jimmy who gave me my first big break in the music industry and for that I am forever indebted.
Jimmy's struggles with his demons were well documented through the years, but over the last 18 months he had finally won that battle and he was bright and lucid and motivated throughout the writing and recording of the new record. He leaves behind him a rich legacy of work from Rainbow, through Wild Horses, Dio, and finally, Last In Line. Jimmy was immensely proud of our new album and his input to it was immeasurable.
He was a very kind and gentle and generous soul and our lives were greatly enriched for having known him. We will continue to celebrate his life through his music.
On behalf of Vinny and Andrew, our thoughts and condolences are with his family at this most difficult of times.
Rest in peace, dear friend."

Rest in peace Jimmy. You'll always be a rainbow in the dark.

Hopefully you're living it up with your old pal Ronnie James Dio, Lemmy, Dime and the gang.

Be sure to check out the band Last In Line which features Jimmy (bass) Vivian Campbell (guitar), Vinny Appice (drums) and Andrew Freeman (vocals).  Their debut album Heavy Crown drops on February 19th.

Glenn Frey Was Here OR Death Can Take a Holiday

Grim Reaper -

I realize death doesn't take a holiday, but late last year you took Scott Weiland and Lemmy Kilmister.

We're barely three weeks into the new year and you've taken so many already:

• Nick Caldwell, singer (The Whispers)
• Angus Scrimm, Actor 
• David Bowie
• Alan Rickman
• Dan Haggerty
• Dallas Taylor, Drummer (Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young)
• Mike Sharpe, Pro wrestler
• Dale Griffin, Drummer (Mott the Hoople)
• Mic Gillette, Brass player (Tower of Power)
• Blowfly, American musician and producer

Then today you feel the need to take Glenn Frey. Fuckin' really? Bowie and Rickman weren't enough this year, huh?  Blue Oyster Cult said, "Don't fear the reaper", but I don't fear you.  I just wanna kick YOUR ass...and cancer's too while I'm at it.

Gutted...bugged...pissed...sad....mad & stunned.

Do everyone a favor.  Go away for the rest of the year and take that vacation.  Families, friends, and fans are grieving every day or every other day because of you.

Go now! GO NOW!!

My condolences to Glenn's family and friends.  And too all the fans as well.  He was a class act and no other like him. One less legend among us.

Take it easy one last time standing on that corner in Winslow, Arizona.  Your music lives on forever.

Rest In Peace.

“It’s Your World Now”

Written by Glenn Frey and Jack Tempchin
[From Eagles’ 'Long Road Out of Eden' album]

A perfect day, the sun is sinkin’ low
As evening falls, the gentle breezes blow
The time we shared went by so fast
Just like a dream, we knew it couldn’t last
But I’d do it all again
If I could, somehow
But I must be leavin’ soon
It’s your world now
It’s your world now
My race is run
I’m moving on
Like the setting sun
No sad goodbyes
No tears allowed
You’ll be alright
It’s your world now
Even when we are apart
You’ll always be in my heart
When dark clouds appear in the sky
Remember true love never dies
But first a kiss, one glass of wine
Just one more dance while there’s still time
My one last wish: someday, you’ll see
How hard I tried and how much you meant to me
It’s your world now
Use well your time
Be part of something good
Leave something good behind
The curtain falls
I take my bow
That’s how it’s meant to be
It’s your world now
It’s your world now
It’s your world now

Ground control to Major Tom.......

First and foremost I want to say one thing - "FUCK YOU CANCER!!"

I'm not even close to getting over the death of Lemmy and now we lose Bowie too?

I spent the entire day listening to the David Bowie albums I love ('Space Oddity', 'Hunky Dory', 'Aladdin Sane', 'Diamond Dogs', 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars', 'Young Americans', and 'Station To Station').  He released over twenty albums in his career and I know I own more than half.

As a kid, everytime I turned on the radio in the 70s I would always hear at least one or two Bowie tunes in a one hour span.  If it wasn't Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, the Stones, the Eagles, Elton John or Paul McCartney jamming the airwaves, it was Bowie - "Space Oddity", "Rebel Rebel", "Suffragette City", "Changes", "Fame" "Golden Years", "Young Americans", and "Heroes".  And those songs stuck in my head forever.

I grew up on Hard Rock (Sabbath, Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Purple), but I also had a huge helping of the Beatles, Elton John, T.Rex, the Sweet, KISS, the Rolling Stones and David Bowie.  I was a kid. There was zero difference to me between rock, hard rock, glam, contemporary rock and all that.  If I liked what I heard, then that was it.  Sold. Done.

There was hardly any part of pop culture that he didn't touch. From music, to fashion, and movies. Bowie transcended a lot of people in many ways.  I'm sure more than anything I've ever experienced. But he's always been a part of this world creating art and never apologizing to anyone.  During a 1997 concert on his 50th birthday in Madison Square Garden he said, "I don't know where I'm going from here, but I promise it won't be boring." That has become a very infamous quote over the years and it has always held true from day one.  It has never been boring....ever.

I read through a number of online articles today and the one that spoke to me the most was from long time friend/producer Tony Visconti.

Tony Visconti via his Facebook page:
"Most of the album's lyrics were confirmed to be foretelling Bowie's eventual death from his secret 18-month long battle with liver cancer, ultimately revealing that Bowie had actually planned for the album to be his swan song or "parting gift" for his fans.  He always did what he wanted to do. And he wanted to do it his way and he wanted to do it the best way. His death was no different from his life - a work of Art. He made Blackstar for us, his parting gift. I knew for a year this was the way it would be. I wasn't, however, prepared for it. He was an extraordinary man, full of love and life. He will always be with us. For now, it is appropriate to cry." 

Now that hit me between the eyes.

I had the opportunity to see David Bowie perform one time in my life on the Glass Spider tour (Aug 12, 1987 @ Mile High Stadium - Denver, CO).  The setlist was not only amazing, but the tour featured guitarists Peter Frampton and Charlie Sexton (alongside Bowie main man Carlos Alomar). Yeah, three goddamn guitar players on that stage (four including Bowie when he strapped one on).  I was in pure fuckin' heaven for three hours.  I never thought I'd ever see Ziggy Stardust perform live in my life. And here I was in my early 20s soaking up so much greatness in one night.

We lost a pioneer and an artist in every sense of the word. It feels like one precise color was removed from the world.

He was an artist, a rebel, Ziggy, Starman and now he's home.

Rest In Peace, David Bowie.

"I'm feeling very still
And I think my spaceship knows which way to go
Tell my wife I love her very much, she knows
Ground Control to Major Tom"

Lemmy Kilmister Laid To Rest Today

Finished watching the memorial service for Lemmy Kilmister about an hour ago (live stream off Motörhead's YouTube page).

First and foremost, it was one of the most amazing tributes I've witnessed.  I didn't know if this was going to be a train wreck or not.  And so very glad it wasn't.

Lots of people in attendance and many had their chance to say a few words or share stories and jokes regarding their time with Lemmy.  Lem's son Paul gave a heartwarming eulogy at the very beginning of the service. Then it was one after another....Motörhead's drummer Mikkey Dee, guitarist Bob Kulick, Slim Jim from The Head Cats, Lemmy's personal assistant Ian, a European publicist, Lemmy's buddy Scotty, girlfriend Cheryl, a German promoter, journalist Steffan Chirazi, drummer Matt Sorum, Slash, Motörhead's stage Manager Roger, Ugly Kid Joe vocalist Whitfield Crane, Alice In Chains bassist Mike Inez, Rob Halford, Scott Ian, wrestler Triple H, Robert Trujillo, Lars Ulrich, and finally Dave Grohl.

All had very touching, warm, endearing, funny stories to tell.  Some short, some very long.  And the video/sound feed cut off during the early part of Dave Grohl's portion when he was talking about the first time he introduced himself to Lemmy outside the Rainbow Bar.  It cut off right as Dave was to tell everyone the first words Lem ever said to him.  Well, I found out later Lemmy said, "Sorry about Kurt". Dave also had an autographed photo of Little Richard he wanted to give Lem for his birthday last month and never had a chance to do so.

If you're not familiar with Motörhead's music, then do yourself a favor and go to YouTube, Spotify, iTunes, Amazon and start now.  It's never too late to get into this band.  And if you've never watched the Lemmy movie '49% Motherfucker. 51% Son Of A Bitch' then check that out as well because you won't be disappointed.  And there are a ton of Motörhead concerts on YouTube and documentaries as well.  All fun to watch.  The movie will prove how intelligent and remarkable Lemmy truly was.

Rock In Peace, Lemmy.

Born To Lose / Live To Win

Motörhead Forever!