Suzi Quatro rock ‘n’ roll heroine in an unzipped exclusive interview

By Ray Shasho

Interview with legendary rocker Suzi Quatro

Suzi Quatro is an internationally renowned renaissance woman. Although most of her extraordinary achievements in the arts were celebrated outside the United States, she has left a momentous impression as the original first lady of rock ‘n’ roll.

The leather clad, bass guitar slingin,’ Motor City- rock ‘n’ roll queen- Quatro, first gained notoriety in the early 60’s playing venues around Detroit in an all-female garage rock band called The Pleasure Seekers. Her sister Arlene became the bands piano player and Suzi’s older sister Patti Quatro their guitarist. Patti would later become epitomized as a member for yet another all-girl rock sensation ‘Fanny’ (“Butter Boy” #29 Hit on Billboard’s Hot 100).
 
The Pleasure Seekers shared the limelight in those early days with future rock legends Bob Seger, Grand Funk Railroad, Ted Nugent, Alice Cooper and many other acts. In 1965, The Pleasure Seekers recorded two singles, “Never Thought You’d Leave Me” and “What a Way to Die.” In 1968, Mercury Record signed The Pleasure Seekers to a recording contract and the band began touring extensively throughout the U.S. and internationally. Also that year, the band toured with Eric Burdon and The Animals.
-Check out the re-released, “What a way to Die” by The Pleasure Seekers available at CD Baby or amazon.com.
With the music scene rapidly changing into heavier album rock format FM radio, the band quickly shifted gears. They formed a new band called ‘Cradle’ which spotlighted the sensational vocalizations of Suzi and Nancy Quatro. Cradle became an incredible psychedelic/hard rock act that toured with groups like The Jefferson Airplane, Jeff Beck, Santana, Ten Years After, Traffic, Mountain, and numerous other bands. The band broke up in 1973.

-Check out the newly released CD by Cradle entitled, “The history” available at CD Baby or amazon.com. (Never released until now) -Notable track, “Ted” is an incredible tune.

Suzi Quatro’s vivacious performances in Cradle caught the attention of legendary British producer Mickie Most (The Animals, Herman’s Hermits, The Jeff Beck Group, Donovan, Hot Chocolate and Lulu). In 1971, Quatro moved to England permanently and signed onto Mosts’ label RAK Records.
Her first single was called, “Rolling Stone” (#1 Hit in Portugal) and featured Peter Frampton (Humble Pie) on guitars, Micky Waller (Jeff Beck Group) on drums and Errol Brown (Hot Chocolate) on back-up vocals. After modest success from her debut single, Most brought in the songwriting and production team of Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman. Quatro immediately hit the road on a UK tour supporting the bands Thin Lizzy and headliners Slade.
Suzi Quatro’s second single; “Can the Can” became a #1 Hit in Europe and Australia in 1973. Quatro followed with a string of hits, “48 Crash,” “Daytona Demon,” and “Devil Gate Drive.” Each sold over a million copies.
Quatro supported Alice Cooper on his ‘Welcome to my Nightmare’ tour in 1975 but couldn’t duplicate the notoriety she earned in the UK and Australia. But in 1979, Suzi scored big in the U.S. with the hit, “Stumblin’ In” (#4 Hit on Billboard’s Hot100) a Chinn/ Chapman penned composition performed as a duet with Chris Norman (Smokie).

Suzi Quatro became a household name in the U.S. as ‘Leather Tuscadero’ on the hit Television sitcom, ‘Happy Days.’ Leather was the leader of an all-girl band called, ‘Leather Tuscadero and the Suedes.’ Her sister in the series was ‘Pinky Tuscadero’ a former girlfriend of ‘The Fonz.’ Garry Marshall offered her an audition after seeing a picture of Suzi on his daughter’s bedroom wall.

Most recently in 2005, Quatro was featured in a documentary film called, ‘Naked Under Leather’ illustrating her life and much-esteemed career. Also that year she recorded a tribute song, “Singing With Angels” dedicated to her lifetime idol Elvis Presley at Emerald Studios in Nashville with Presley’s original backup singers The Jordanaires.

Quatro released her self-written autobiography, ‘Unzipped’ in 2007.

In 2010, Quatro was inducted into the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends online Hall of Fame.

Quatro released her fifteenth studio album, In the Spotlight in 2011.

Today Quatro hosts a classic rock radio show called, ‘Wake Up Little Suzi’ on BBC Radio 2.

Suzi Quatro will be performing the stage production of “Unzipped,” her one woman show, at the London Hippodrome Casino from October 29th thru November 3rd.

She’ll also be touring in Germany and Russia for the remainder of 2012.

Earlier this year, while stepping on a flight of steel stairs at Kiev airport the day after a gig, Suzi fell breaking her knee and wrist. She was scheduled to perform in the U.S. for the Detroit Music Awards but unfortunately had to cancel. It would have been her first performance in the U.S.A. in over 30 years. I had the rare opportunity to chat with Suzi Quatro last week by Skype from her home in England about her role as woman pioneer for rock ‘n’ roll, her illustrious music and acting career, and when she might be touring America again.

Suzi Quatro has sold over 50-million records and helped pave the wave for generations of women rockers. Some of the women inspired by Quatro are Joan Jett, The Runaways, Pat Benatar and Deborah Harry to name just a few.

Let’s hope the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame realizes that too.

And just think … it all began when her father gave her a 1957 Fender Precision, her first bass guitar, which she still plays today.

Here’s my interview with singer, songwriter, musician, actress, author, and rock ‘n’ roll pioneer SUZI QUATRO.
Ray Shasho: Hi Suzi, you look fantastic … how are you feeling?
Suzi Quatro: “I’m feeling much-much better and walking unaided now for about ten days. I’m walking pretty straight but sometimes I dip a little bit when I get tired. I’m driving, swimming, going to the gym, and slowly getting back to normal. I have to build up my stamina a bit, but my bass playing even though I broke my wrist is better than ever, this is coming back three hundred percent.”
Ray Shasho: So how exactly did you injure yourself?
Suzi Quatro: “I was in Kiev doing a show and coming home from the gig. It was the following day; I was going to the airplane and had my rolling bag which is heavy by the way, I had everything with me because I try not to check it. Then they took us down those horrible little steel steps that they seem to do now, so I grabbed the handle, my heel got on the step, down I went with all the weight …my hand and the bag which is heavy, I landed on my knee and broke that, rolled and landed on my wrist and broke that, kept rolling and finally came to rest on my chin. So they sent me home because I didn’t want to be there.”

“I was three and half hours on the plane without any treatment, then two and half hours to the emergency room … then of course you wait for them to treat you. Long story short …they misdiagnosed me, two weeks later they discovered that they got it wrong and I had to have the knee cut, bones re-broken, two screws put in … just wonderful! So now I’m suing the emergency room because I didn’t need all that, they shouldn’t be allowed to get it so wrong. I’ve got a scar on my knee that I didn’t need, I’ve missed three and half months work … maybe should have just missed a month. But I don’t like to dwell on it because it’s all over and I can’t change it, so I’m getting myself back together now.”
Ray Shasho: Well you look marvelous, like back in your ‘Leather Tuscadero’ days on Happy Days. I met Henry Winkler about four years ago in Sarasota at a Boys Club function, he had just written a children’s book.
Suzi Quatro: “He’s a sweetheart and one of my favorite people. He, Ronnie Howard and Garry Marshall gave me such nice quotes for my book cover. Henry and Ronnie Howard actually made the book cover for my autobiography. I called Ronnie Howard up and asked him for a quote and he sent me three pages. Typical director … he said, “Well, I wanted to tell the whole story Suzi” (All laughing).”
Ray Shasho: Talk about performing your one woman show on stage in London.
Suzi Quatro: “It’s at the London Hippodrome Casino October 29th thru November 3rd. It’s called “Unzipped,” a walk through my life; it takes you from my childhood to the present day. I wrote the script while I was housebound. So … I’m getting excited because it’s something that I’ve wanted to do for a very long time.”
Ray Shasho: Any plans on taking the show on the road?
Suzi Quatro: “I would love to … of course this is six nights at a small place which is very classy. We’ll test it out and see if it’s as good as I think it is, see how the audience responds, and if all goes like I think it’s going to go, I can take it anywhere in the world. Because it’s interesting you know … we’re talking about a whole life in show business. In 2014, it will be my fiftieth anniversary as a professional.”
Ray Shasho: I think it’s amazing when rockers make that crossover into stage, screen or television. I interviewed Michael Des Barres recently who is another amazing story. Do you know Michael?
Suzi Quatro: “He sang on “Woman Cry” and “Ego in the Night” from the Rock Hard album. And I sang on one of his albums when he was in Silverhead. Boy that goes back a long way doesn’t it? But I’ve known Michael for a long time.”
Ray Shasho: I remember when you toured with Noddy Holder and Slade back in the early 70s, and wore those shiny body outfits … I thought you were part of the glam rock scene.
Suzi Quatro: “I did one tour with them before I had hits of my own. I did have kind of a sparkly outfit on but that wasn’t me that was just something to wear so I would stand out at the beginning of their show as a guest opener. Then I came into my own with my leather jumpsuit, it was always my dream to wear that. I never ever saw myself as glam because I didn’t wear makeup … my image is a plain leather jumpsuit which is not glam at all. I’ve always seen myself as rock ‘n’ roll and not glam. I think it got confused because I was the only woman around and it was at that time the glam explosion was happening.”
Ray Shasho: You also toured with Alice Cooper.
Suzi Quatro: I did, with Alice in 1975 … I was the special guest on his ‘Welcome to My Nightmare’ tour.”
Ray Shasho: Suzi, what were those days like playing the huge arenas?
Suzi Quatro: “It was not stop work. You’re always on an airplane; you’re always in a dressing room, you’re always trying to get some more sleep if you can. It’s the double-edged sword, a combination of all your dreams because you made it, so hooray all my homework paid off, but then it’s the graft of keeping it there, it’s not making it, it’s keeping successful. Anybody can have a hit … it’s the second one, and the third one, and the fourth one … I’m up to 55 million records now which is pretty damn good and still going strong. I’d love to get back and tour America again, we just stopped and I don’t know why that is but I’ll get back there.”
Ray Shasho: Weren’t you supposed to be performing at the Detroit Music Awards recently?
Suzi Quatro: “Yes, my injury. I was supposed to receive a longtime achievement award and at the end my sisters did a thing with Pleasure Seekers and Cradle. I was supposed to play with them and then join some other musicians and do my stuff. Of course I had to cancel, that was the first thing I did as soon as I got home from the hospital … after they told me I’ve broken everything. The first person that I called were the people from that show and told them that I couldn’t do it and felt horrible. I hate canceling anything, I’m the show must go on mentality. If you can crawl you can take the stage. But at this point, I couldn’t even crawl, couldn’t even get off the couch without help. So that was not something to play with, it was a serious injury.”
Ray Shasho: You’re actually the second musician that I’ve talked with recently who has been sidelined with an injury. Frank Marino of Mahogany Rush developed frozen shoulder from meticulously editing in his studio. Frank’s an interesting guy, he writes theology.
Suzi Quatro: “He can go talk with Gene Simmons, Gene studied that. We had a long, long debate about it one night. Gene’s a smart cookie you know. I love a good debate and always up for the task. I’m one of those rare breed of rock ‘n’ rollers with a brain, probably because the brains still intact. (All laughing)”
Ray Shasho: So many women rockers have been inspired by you. You’re the original queen of rock ‘n’ roll; some even refer to you as a female Elvis, your biggest inspiration. And you wrote a song recently dedicated to the king?
Suzi Quatro: “Elvis is my whole inspiration … and that’s also in the show by the way. My tribute is called, “Singing With Angels” with guitarist James Burton and The Jordanaires …can you believe it! In the show there’s a film clip of making that and it is awesome.”

“I was the first to have success, certainly not the first female musician by a long shot, but the first rocker/musician to actually go out and say hey … we can do this. I became a benchmark for people… if she can do it, I can do it. I didn’t think I was going to change the world for women; I just did what I did. My big thing was that I didn’t change who and what I was to become successful. I will not be told what to do; I’m a real independent girl. I got lucky that the world was ready for this to happen.”
Ray Shasho: I love Joan Jett, but when I watch Joan Jett … I see Suzi Quatro.
Suzi Quatro: “That is a no brainer. She’s not like me now because I’ve moved my way and she’s moved her way. But she took on the original image and made that more punk. When she first came to the UK and had the hit with, “I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll” and it was on TV, people called me and said I saw you on TV you have another hit … great! So that’s a little bit spooky. But saying that, I’m very proud of what Joan has done. She took my inspiration, grabbed it, and ran with it. I give her credit … she’s done very well. One of my favorite songs is “I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll.”
Ray Shasho: Have you and Joan Jett ever played on each other’s albums?
Suzi Quatro: “No I haven’t and neither has she. I would someday love to do a gig together. That would be fantastic! We’d have to do a few songs together … that would be fun, maybe that will happen who knows. Be careful what you wish for.”
Ray Shasho: You had such an incredible relationship playing with your sisters in those early bands The Pleasure Seekers and Cradle. And your sister Patti would later become a member for yet another all-girl rock sensation ‘Fanny.’
Suzi Quatro: “The Pleasure Seekers was from 1964-1969 and for about a year and a half it changed to Cradle. Then I went to England. We worked nonstop because we were girls, so we got more gigs than the guys because it was unusual. We had the novelty factor going for us. Yea, we go back a long way. The Pleasure Seekers was a cover band, but like most bands are before they have their own hits. In Cradle, we decided to up the ante and started to write all of our own stuff so we did a lot of original material.”

“I preferred Pleasure Seekers, my sister and I debate this all of the time, she liked Cradle. I liked Pleasure Seekers because it was a real tight sort of teenage show band which I liked, more of an entertainment band than a serious band. Both bands were instrumental in making me what I am now. In one band I was concentrating on the show and the other concentrating on my bass. So you get the show woman and the bass guitar.”
Ray Shasho: Being from Michigan, you shared the spotlight with some of the greatest rock bands of all-time.
Suzi Quatro: “You name it we played with them, we’re all old friends. Bob Seger, Mitch Ryder, MC5, The Rationals, The Underdogs, Grand Funk Railroad, Brownsville Station. In fact, I’m going to Detroit in August, because this is another thing I had to cancel, I’m doing a big documentary on Detroit for my radio show on BBC Radio 2. I love Detroit and very proud of being from there.”
Ray Shasho: I always believed that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame belonged in Michigan.
Suzi Quatro: “Definitely and when are they going to put me in it. Sometimes they make you wait forever; I don’t want to die for them to put me in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I want to get in before that. (All Laughing)”
Ray Shasho: What was the trigger that had you leave the United States and move to England?
Suzi Quatro: “I was in Cradle and we were looking for a deal, Elektra Records came to see us and Jac Holzman offered me a solo contract. The very same week … Mickie Most came to see us and offered me a solo contract, so it was obvious that it was my time to go, two offers in one week. Jac wanted to take me to New York and make me the next Janis Joplin. Mickie Most wanted to take me to England and record, and turn me into the first Suzi Quatro, so that was a no brainer … I’m no Janis Joplin and never would be, she is who she is.”
Ray Shasho: “Stumblin’ In” brings back wonderful memories for me because I was a rookie on Top 40 Radio when that song was released, and I played the heck out of that song.
Suzi Quatro: “It was a great song! I had people telling me from America that they heard it nonstop on the radio. I think it was one of Chinn and Chapman’s best compositions, that one and “If You Can’t Give Me Love.”
Ray Shasho: Your album, Back to the Drive was produced by legendary guitarist of The Sweet Andy Scott. I’ve been trying to set up an interview recently with Andy but our schedules haven’t been kind. How did you like working with Andy?
Suzi Quatro: “He’s a friend … I love Andy. We made a very-very good album. A lot of fans think it’s my best album ever. It’s autobiographical, takes you through fifteen years of my life without it being planned, just ended up being that way. And it actually led me into writing the book when I noticed the reaction it was having. People loved hearing the stories so I thought; okay, now it’s time to write the book. But Andy also produced, “Singing With Angels” the Elvis tribute. Working with Andy was great we were always on the same page. Andy and I may do something again in the future.”
Ray Shasho: Why did you choose the bass over the guitar?
Suzi Quatro: “I started on bongos when I was seven, then played piano for quite some time, played percussion in school, and when we started the all-girl band nobody took the bass. So I took the bass. My dad gave me a 1957 Fender Precision ... and I still have it. It was like an epiphany, when I put it on it was completely natural.”
Ray Shasho: Who were some of your favorite bassists?
Suzi Quatro: “Probably James Jamerson is number (1) from Motown. Number (2) is probably Larry Taylor, Canned Heat’s bass player, he was really good, and number (3) is ‘Flea’ from The Red Hot Chili Peppers.”
Ray Shasho: Suzi, did you write your autobiography yourself or had a little help?
Suzi Quatro: “Every single phrase and punctuation mark, I wouldn’t let them change a thing. I said its ether my book or it’s not. If you read it, it’s just like you’re talking to me. I sat down and luckily I’m a great typer, and I just let it flow and started to type.”
Ray Shasho: “In the Spotlight is your latest album, talk a little bit about that.
Suzi Quatro: “It’s gotten probably the best reviews that I’ve ever received in my life and I was humbled by them. The reviews young and old are just unbelievable. I’m very proud of that album. Mike Chapman has done a good job,”
Ray Shasho: How about a message for all your fans in America?
Suzi Quatro: “Get me back to America … the campaign is to get me into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and let me do some gigs in America.”
Ray Shasho: You certainly deserve to be in the Hall and we do miss you performing in America. Suzi, thank you so much for being on the Skype call with me today, but more importantly for all the great music that you’ve given to the world throughout years.
Suzi Quatro: “Thank you Ray, maybe we’ll see you soon.”

Suzi Quatro official website www.suziquatro.com
Order Suzi Quatro’s latest release- In the Spotlight at amazon.com or on her website.
Hippodrome Casino London official website www.hippodromecasino.com
Suzi Quatro’s autobiography "Unzipped" available to purchase on amazon.com

Coming up… recent interviews with Lou Gramm, Steve Hillage, Johnny Winter and Annie Haslam.

Contact classic rock music reporter Ray Shasho at rockraymond.shasho@gmail.com

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The Zombies are coming! U.S. 50th Anniversary Tour launches from Florida

Rod Argent and

Colin Blunstone







By Ray Shasho

An interview with the legendary voice of The Zombies Colin Blunstone:

British rock group The Zombies commemorated a half-century milestone in 2011 and are continuing the celebration with a tour of North America in 2012. The U.S. tour officially launches from the Largo Cultural Center on July 27th and will be The Zombies only Florida appearance on the tour.

On April 27th of 2012, a historical blue plaque was unveiled at The Blacksmith’s Arms Pub in St. Albans to commemorate the initial congregation and foundation of The Zombies in 1961. The plaque symbolizes the significance of the band to rock ‘n’ roll’s past, present and future.
The current lineup of The Zombies features original lead vocalist and songwriter Colin Blunstone (also Alan Parsons Project), original keyboardist, vocalist, songwriter Rod Argent (founder of Argent), bassist and vocalist Jim Rodford(Argent ,The Kinks), drummer Steve Rodford and Tom Toomey on guitars.

As part of the British Invasion wave of the 60s, The Zombies recorded their first big hit, “She’s Not There” on Decca Records and released it in 1964. The song was a #1 Hit on the Cashbox charts and a #2 Hit on Billboard’s Top 100 in the U.S.
In 1965, the band made their first Television appearance in the U.S. on NBC’s Hullabaloo. The Zombies featured their latest single, “Tell Her No” another Rod Argent composition. “Tell Her No” peaked at #6 on Billboard’s Hot 100.
The Zombies, “I Love You” a tune penned by original bassist Chris White became a Top 20 Hit for the California band, People, in 1968.
Also in 1968, the band recorded one of their most significant releases, Odessey and Oracle. Recorded at Abbey Road and Olympic Studios for CBS Records, the album spawned their huge hit, “Time of The Season” in early 1969. The album became critically-acclaimed and one of rock ‘n’ roll’s greatest album’s of all-time. “Time of The Season” became The Zombies biggest hit #3 on Billboard’s Top 100 in 1969 and almost two years after the bands split.

After The Zombies disbanded, Rod Argent formed classic rock’s Argent with Jim Rodford. Zombies’ original bassist Chris White was also instrumental to the band as songwriter. Rod Argent and Chris White collaborated on their biggest hit, “Hold Your Head Up” #5 Hit from the album All Together Now in 1972. Argent split in 1976; meanwhile band members Jim Rodford and Bob Henrit joined The Kinks.
In 2010, the original Argent lineup reunited and played five concert dates around England.

After the break-up of The Zombies, Colin Blunstone established a successful solo career and released his first effort entitled, One Year in 1971. He eventually signed onto Elton John’s Rocket Records and released (3) albums, Planes (1976), Never Even Thought (1978) and Late Nights In Soho (1979).
Blunstone appeared on Dave Stewart’s hit cover tune, “What Become’s of The Brokenhearted” (1980). He also appeared on several Alan Parsons Project albums including, Ammonia Avenue and Eye in the Sky. Colin sang the hit single, “Old and Wise.” Most recent releases by Colin Blunstone include Echo Bridge (1995), Out of the Shadows (2003) with Rod Argent and As Far As I Can See (2004) with Rod Argent.
Since 1991, there have been brief Zombies reunions featuring several different lineups, but longtime mates Colin Blunstone and Rod Argent solidify the working elements of the band.
Original guitarist Paul Atkinson passed away in 2004.
In 2008, to mark the 40th anniversary of Odessey and Oracle all surviving members participated in a series of concerts at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire Theatre.

In 2011, A brand new Zombies album was recorded entitled Breathe Out, Breathe In and received rave reviews. Colin’s vocals are exquisite … these guys sound like they’re still in their 20’s. It’s an incredible album. The title cut has striking similarities to the heyday of Steely Dan.
Colin Blunstone is currently finishing up a solo project called, On The Air Tonight with a possible release date in October of 2012. He’s excited and extremely grateful to be able to continue to do what he loves to do best.
I talked with Colin last week from his home in England about the upcoming U.S. tour, his new solo project, the latest Zombies release, and of course the British Invasion.

Here’s my interview with songwriter, guitarist, and legendary voice of The Zombies … Colin Blunstone.
Ray Shasho: Hello Colin how are you doing, you’re calling from England today?
Colin Blunstone: “I’m doing excellent … yes; I’m calling from just outside London, quite close to Wimbledon actually. It’s been raining off and on this afternoon, I think the games have been literally stop and start except for the center court because it now has a roof on it. But the weather is not very good at the moment.”
Ray Shasho: Colin, I’ve always been fascinated how Americans were captivated by the British Invasion and later British rock and its derivative genres … glam, progressive etc. But it was the Brits who were seduced early on by American 50’s rock ‘n’ roll and the very early blues artists. And in all actuality, it was extremely difficult for Brits to even know what music was coming out of the U.S. …is that right?
Colin Blunstone: “Radio was very different here in the 60s, the BBC was national and there were only two radio stations and very limited on what you could here. One station was very serious and the other played sort of light classical music like 1930s orchestras and things like that. Also there was a limit and they could only play so many records … they were limited, it may have had something to do with the musician’s union or something like that.”

“But they played lots of live music, orchestras, bands, but not rock bands … and this is when I was growing up. Then of course we all had Elvis Presley and all the wonderful artists that followed him. And then I think a bit later on we really began to understand about Little Richard and Chuck Berry … and then later still there was Motown, Smokey Robinson, and all of the other wonderful and talented bands, and we were very-very influenced by American music.”
Ray Shasho: Colin, I would like to wish you congratulations on your Fiftieth Anniversary, can you believe it’s been that long since the inception of The Zombies?
Colin Blunstone: “It kind of crept up on us; it’s really funny no one was counting. Someone remarked about it and we thought you know what they’re right. We’ve been together since 1961, so it’s been fifty years since last year … fifty and half years now. Outside the pub where we met, in St. Albans where we come from, they unveiled a blue plaque on the wall of this pub called The Blacksmith’s Arms and it said, “On this spot the five original members of The Zombies first met in April 1961.” They had a wonderful ceremony and the traffic stopped while they unveiled this blue plaque on the side of the building and it was really exciting for all of us.”
Ray Shasho: So the pub is also still in business after all these years?
Colin Blunstone: “It is …absolutely! When we met outside there in 1961, we were only sixteen years old and weren’t allowed to go inside the pub because we were too young. But yes, it’s a big pub on the main street in St. Albans and you could probably get two or three hundred people in there … it’s a big building.”
Ray Shasho: Did The Zombies perform a Fiftieth Anniversary concert at the pub?
Colin Blunstone: “We never performed there. It was mentioned … would we perhaps perform on this day of the unveiling of the blue plaque but nothing really came of it. We did two or three short speeches and just meeting a lot of friends and drinking a few beers really. But it seemed like a really lovely day.”
Ray Shasho: Colin, talk about the current band lineup for the Fiftieth Anniversary Tour in the U.S.
Colin Blunstone: “Myself and Rod Argent the original keyboard player, and of course Rod wrote all the hits for The Zombies and later had a band called Argent who also had quite a lot of success. On bass there’s Rod’s cousin Jim Rodford, it’s sort of a family band really. Jim was with us on our first rehearsal and helped arrange it. He was in the biggest local band and we borrowed all the amplifiers and drum kits from his band. And that’s how we were able to have our first rehearsal. We asked him to be in the band at that time but he was already committed. So it took us nearly fifty years to get him in the band. (All laughing)”

“Jim’s son Steve Rodford is on drums, so that side of the stage is all related. On the other side is me and our guitarist Tom Toomey, he joined the band a few years ago and has been touring with us ever since. He’s a great acoustic and electric player and one of the really good harmony singer’s in the band so there are very full harmonies when we play.”
Ray Shasho: I was excited when I first learned Jim Rodford was going to be in the band. Jim played with The Kinks for quite awhile.
Colin Blunstone: “Jim was in The Kinks for twenty years and has played on some of their biggest albums as well. He’s also played with just about every artist you could imagine.”
Ray Shasho: It’s a terrific lineup and we’re looking forward to a fantastic show.
Colin Blunstone: “I think people are going to get quite a pleasant shock because they might think they’re going to go and see a 60s band just going through the motions. All of these players are sensational players and we take no prisoners when we go on stage. We give it everything we’ve got.”
Ray Shasho: Of course, The Zombies will be playing all of their biggest hits on the tour but the audience will also be pleasantly surprised by the band’s latest material Breathe Out, Breathe In. The album’s enticing tempo is performed by as you say …“sensational players.” The title cut has a Steely Dan-ish feel to it.
Colin Blunstone: “A lot of people have said that and I take it as a huge complement because I’m a fan. It’s had sensational reviews in Europe and America and being very well received all around the world. We’ve always played from the heart and played the music that appealed to us, and played it to the best of our ability. That’s how the original band recorded in the 60s and that’s how we record now.”

“We’ll be playing, “She’s Not There,” “Time Of The Season,” probably be playing four or five tracks from Odessey and Oracle our last album, and then some other more obscure tracks from the original Zombies. We’ll play some Argent tunes and maybe one or two of my solo records which were hits over here but not over there. And probably a little bit from The Alan Parsons Project, I sang a lot with them as well. So there are a lot of great songs for everyone.”
Ray Shasho: What were those British Invasion days like for you Colin?
Colin Blunstone: “Considering that we were all probably eighteen years old, and in the summer we were playing local dates in and around St. Albans and by Christmas we were number one on Cashbox in America, and then playing to huge audiences in New York and doing national TV as well … it was an extraordinary adventure.”

“We’ve often discussed this … when you are young you tend to take things like that in stride and it seems very natural, it’s only when you look back and think my goodness that was a huge change in a very short period of time. But it was extremely exciting, especially going to America because that’s where it all stated. For us to go to America and play for packed houses was just out of this world.”
Ray Shasho: While on tour in America did you meet any of your childhood heroes like perhaps Elvis Presley?
Colin Blunstone: “We went to Elvis’ house and literally there was no security. We went through the gate and knocked on the front door and debated this later whether it was his father or uncle that came to the door. We said … is Elvis in? (all laughing) We told him that we were The Zombies and here from England and would just like to say hello to Elvis.”

“He said, “it’s a real shame Elvis is making a movie in Hawaii at the moment, he would have loved to meet you. I’m so sorry he’s not here but you are very welcome to have a look around.””
“It was such a shame we didn’t meet him but got to stroll around his house, and we found out that he had Zombies records on his jukebox.”

“Some of the groups we played with that I remember are The Beach Boys who are one of my absolute favorites. We also played with Del Shannon, The Shirelles, Patti Labelle and the Bluebelles who were sensational and we had to follow them on stage in New York.”
Ray Shasho: The Zombies recorded at Abbey Road studios?
Colin Blunstone: “We recorded there a lot, and in fact were probably the next band in there after The Beatles finished Sgt. Pepper’s. They finished somewhere in the spring of 1967 and we went in right after them. Geoff Emerick worked on that album, Odessey and Oracle and Peter Vince was another engineer who worked on both albums. It was a wonderful studio and such a great atmosphere and of course very skilled engineers. At the time it was undoubtedly the best studio in the world.”
Ray Shasho: Who produced some of the earlier Zombies albums?
Colin Blunstone: “When we started out we were first introduced to a guy named Ken Jones, he produced “She’s Not There” and “Tell Her No” but the main producers were Rod Argent and Chris White in the band, I think in most countries it was being credited as being produced by The Zombies. But there was no outside producer just the band working within itself.”

“That first session we did, “She’s Not There” this was the first time we went into a commercial studio at Decca Studios in Northwest London in West Hampstead, we went into the studio in the evening and recorded four tracks. While we were in there we realized that the recording engineer had been at a wedding all day and was completely drunk. As the evening went on he got more and more aggressive. Very early on in the session and my first time in a commercial studio, and this guy was just screaming down at us while in the studio. And I thought, maybe this business is not for me. We were really lucky because he finally passed out and then we had to carry him up two flights of stairs, a Zombie on each arm and leg and we just pushed him into a black car and that was the end of him. His assistant was Gus Dudgeon who went on to produce all the early Elton John albums and that was his first session in 1964. It was quite a remarkable day actually. (All laughing)”
Ray Shasho: Colin, I always thought that The Zombies could have had the staying power to last through the album rock era of the late 60s to mid 70s. The band was very different than the 45 singles Hitmakers of Top 40 radio. I actually thought the band may even be classified as progressive rock.
Colin Blunstone: “The other guys in the band felt that we completed our artistic circle. We’d run our race and it was time for us to move on to other projects. Of course we’d just finished Odessey and Oracle but we had split before the album was even released. I’m the only one who would ever say; imagine what we could have done next, especially with Rod Argent and Chris White who were really coming into their own as songwriters. I would have been very interested to see what we would have done next … of course hindsight is a wonderful thing isn’t in, you can always look back but of course it doesn’t make any difference because it’s never going to happen. I’m not saying it was the wrong decision to end the band but it would have been interesting to see what would have happened next. It’s difficult for me to say this because the other guys don’t feel that way at all. They just feel that we’d gone as far as we could, so I’m kind of the odd one out.”

“Sadly, Paul Atkinson our lead guitarist passed away about five years ago, he had been living in America. He established a very successful career as a record executive. Paul signed ABBA to CBS in the UK, and tried to get CBS in America to sign ABBA but they didn’t want anything to do with them. I asked him years ago what he thought it cost CBS for not signing ABBA and he said about Twenty Million dollars … and that was a long time ago.”
Ray Shasho: Were you asked to be a member of the band ARGENT?
Colin Blunstone: “No, I wasn’t. Rod Argent and Chris White produced my first two albums. Chris also produced the third one. On my first album, ARGENT played on all the tracks that were a rock ‘n’ roll band and then some of the later tracks as well. We were always still working together and that’s true for our entire career. Rod has produced four or five of my albums; I regularly do charity gigs with him, and we’ve kept this relationship going all the way through the year 2000. Then we decided to do five or six concerts and that’s how this came about. I started playing as a solo artist and had six dates coming up and I asked him if he wanted to join me on those six dates. We knew immediately that we had something very special, and we hadn’t really played a full concert together since 1967. We decided to hold this band together that we had, but we just called it Colin Blunstone and Rod Argent and didn’t play very many Zombies tunes because we both had successful solo career. We didn’t realize that there was still an interest in The Zombies and it came as a complete surprise to us ... a very pleasant surprise. But everywhere we went everyone wanted Zombies material. On top of that promoters were billing us as The Zombies, so it wasn’t really our idea it was something that sort of evolved naturally.”
Ray Shasho: I heard you’re finishing up your next solo project entitled, On The Air Tonight.
Colin Blunstone: “I’m going into the studio tomorrow and try and get a running order together, it’s very exciting and a little bit scary because it’s a big commitment to make an album. So tomorrow I’ll listen to it and hear what we’ve achieved. I think it will be coming out in October now.”

“I was just at Rod Argent’s house today actually; he lives about 50 miles away from me. He’s written a new song and so I think we’ve started the first day of a new Zombies album. One new song and that’s how it starts really. He had one completed song and an idea for a second song, and we spent an hour or so going through them and hopefully the beginnings of the next Zombies album.”
Ray Shasho: Is there someone out there that you would love to collaborate with if given the opportunity?
Colin Blunstone: “There’s a female English singer called Judy Tzuke and I really like her voice. I thought that we could sing a good duet together.”
“To collaborate with someone as a writer it would probably be Sting, I think he’s one of the most exciting writers. Sting has written songs that are just breathtaking. My favorite song of all-time is called “Fragile.”
Ray Shasho: Colin, you sound like such a positive person and perhaps a bit spiritual … how do you maintain that positive outlook on life?
Colin Blunstone: “I think it’s easy in a way to stay positive because we just think that we’re really-really lucky at this time in our career to be able to go out and play live, all on the road, and playing the music that we love. I just think that we’re incredibly fortunate and we sort of remind one another every now and again that we are very-very lucky. So it’s easy to stay positive because we’re doing what we love to do.”
Ray Shasho: Colin, thank you so much for being on the call with me today but more importantly for all the great music that yourself and The Zombies have given to the world. We’ll see you at the Largo Cultural Center in Florida on July 27th for The Zombies 50th Anniversary tour.
Colin Blunstone: “It’s been my pleasure Ray, tell everyone that we’ll be playing lots of hits and there will be something for everyone. It’s a great band and I just hope everyone will come see us because they’ll have a great time.”

Very special thanks to Melani Rogers of Publicity By Design.
The Zombies official website http://thezombies.net/
Colin Blunstone’s official website http://www.colinblunstone.co.uk/
Rod Argent’s official website http://www.rodargent.com/
Order the latest Zombies album Breathe Out, Breathe In at amazon.com

Contact classic rock music reporter Ray Shasho at rockraymond.shasho@gmail.com

Buy Ray’s very special memoir called ‘Check the Gs’ -The True Story of an Eclectic American Family and Their Wacky Family Business … You’ll LIVE IT! Also available for download on NOOK or KINDLE edition for JUST .99 CENTS at amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com -Please help support Ray so he can continue to bring you quality classic rock music reporting.

~~Pacific Book Review says Ray Shasho is a product of the second half of the 20th century, made in the USA from parts around the world, and within him is every trend in music, television, politics and culture contributing to his philosophical and comically analytical reflections collected in his fine book of memories. I found Check the Gs to be pure entertainment, fantastic fun and a catalyst to igniting so many memories of my own life, as I too am within a few years of Ray. So to all, I say if you have a bit of grey hair (or no hair), buy this book! It’s a great gift for your “over-the-hill” friends, or for their kids, if they are the history buffs of younger generations trying to figure out why we are the way we are.

© Copyright rayshasho.com. All Rights Reserved
 

  

Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band superlative for sold out Clearwater audience

By Ray Shasho

Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band concert review

Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band performed a magnificent show on Sunday evening at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater, Florida. Every classic tune on the band’s setlist was played to its perfection and accompanied by a rousing standing ovation. The band appeared and sounded like a finely tuned racing machine, with engines revved and in immaculate condition. The 2012 All-Star lineup may be the best group of correlated musicians yet.
A diverse audience packed with both young and old was there to witness a legendary all-star rock band of virtuosos piloted by a member of the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band of all-time. It was an evening brimming with good vibrations, peace and love.
Before the show, everyone loaded up with Ringo Starr T-shirts and programs. The show began promptly at 7:30p.m with various members of the all-stars arriving quietly on stage. Loud and joyous cheers began to encompass the Hall while Santana’s legendary songster and keyboardist Gregg Rolie took his place behind the Hammond organ. Rolie was succeeded by the incredible guitarist and vocalist Steve Lukather of Toto, bassist and vocalist Richard Page of 80s pop sensation Mr. Mister, the melodious ingenuity of Todd Rundgren from Utopia’s progressive rock fame, accomplished drummer Gregg Bissonette, and Mark Rivera, saxophonist, percussionist, and legendary musical director.

The band began to play and the crowd rose to its feet while Ringo Starr glided on stage to take his spot behind the microphone for the opening number, “Matchbox” (#17 Billboard Hit in 1964) a rockabilly Carl Perkins penned tune covered by The Beatles.
Throughout the evening well-wishers acknowledged Ringo’s upcoming birthday on July 7th. Ringo will be turning 72 but looked remarkably fit and ageless on stage. Starr taunted the Ruth Eckerd audience by telling them not to wish him a happy birthday unless they were going to give him a gift. Near the end of the evening someone actually did give him a gift, and he ran backstage with it after the show.

The bands next selection was one of Starr’s biggest solo hits; “It Don’t Come Easy” (#4 Billboard Hit in 1971) followed by “Wings” a re-released tune for the new album Ringo 2012, originally recorded in 1977. Then Ringo sat behind his proverbial drums for the band’s next selections. Todd Rundgren was up next and featured, “I Saw the Light” (#16 Billboard Hit in 1972). Rundgren is a longtime veteran of the All-Star Band and is known for playing in Clearwater frequently. Todd played the Capitol Theatre most recently celebrating the Utopia reunion tour. Todd Rundgren is a living legend in the music world as a producer, guitarist, songwriter and singer. Here’s an interview I did with Todd Rundgren … http://www.examiner.com/article/exclusive-interview-todd-rundgren-talks-utopia-reunion-with-examiner-ray-shasho

For the first time ever on the tour Gregg Rolie was an All-Star, and well-deserved. The first of many thunderous ovations for the evening came after Rolie’s spectacular performance of the Santana classic, “Evil Ways.” (#9 Billboard Hit in 1969) Gregg Rolie has been overshadowed through the years by virtuoso guitarist Carlos Santana, but it was Gregg Rolie’s majestic vocals and magnificent keyboards that solidified the masterpiece of Santana. Rolie was the voice on almost every classic Santana hit. Rolie was also the founder and original vocalist for the band Journey. Read my interview with Gregg Rolie here... http://www.examiner.com/article/santana-and-journey-original-lead-singer-gregg-rolie-speaks-with-ray-shasho

Next, it was Steve Lukather the guitarist and vocalist for classic rock sensation Toto. Lukather is an awe-inspiring guitarist, which was evident after playing the role of Carlos Santana on all of Gregg Rolie’s Santana classics. Wow! Lukather jumped into Toto’s, “Rosanna” (#2 Billboard Hit in 1982, won a Grammy Award for “Record of The Year” in 1983).
Richard Page of Mr. Mister was spotlighted next singing, “Kyrie” (#1 Billboard Hit in 1986). Page is a sensational songwriter and musician. Ringo’s, “Don’t Pass Me By” (From The Beatles White Album in 1968) was next and followed by Rundgren’s signature classic, “Bang The Drum All Day” (1983 recording, all the instruments on the record were played by Todd).

Ringo announced he was going to sing a tune that he had sung for that "other band" and kiddingly remarked … “Rory Storm and the Hurricanes.” Appearing very Beatle-ish, Ringo belted out “Boys” (Originally sang by The Shirelles in 1960) behind his skins followed by another standing ovation. Ringo Starr gave the Clearwater audience back to back Beatles classics with his unmistakable narration of “Yellow Submarine” (#2 Billboard Hit in 1966). The entire Hall stood up, swayed, and sang throughout the song.
Gregg Rolie quietly announced his next selection, “Black Magic Woman” (1970 Hit, the album Abraxas reached #1 on the Billboard charts, written by Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac). The song spotlighted an unbelievable performance by Rolie on vocals and keyboards, Lukather on guitar, Bissonette and Rivera on percussions. Lukather’s role of Carlos Santana was astounding, it was an incredible jam.

Without an intermission, Ringo kicked off the second half of the show with, “Anthem” from his latest release, Ringo 2012 followed by, “I’m The Greatest”(Released in1973) a song written exclusively for Ringo by his former bandmate John Lennon.
Richard Page graciously thanked Ringo on stage for letting him perform a non-classic hit on the tour, “You Are Mine” from his 2010 release Peculiar Life. Then Steve Lukather of Toto led the band into a beautiful rendition of “Africa” (Number #1 Billboard Hit in 1983).
It was Gregg Rolie’s time to rock the house again with a tune that hadn’t been played by Santana in concert for quite awhile, “Everybody’s Everything” (Released in 1971 on Santana III album). Ringo followed with the Lennon-McCartney penned earlier rocker, “I Wanna Be Your Man” (1963 release, recorded by The Rolling Stones and The Beatles).
It was apparent throughout all their performances that the band respected each others virtuosity but genuinely just had a lot of fun.

Todd Rundgren was back in the spotlight again to sing his heartfelt composition written for his progressive rock band Utopia called, “Love Is The Answer” (Utopia released it in1977, it became a huge hit for England Dan & John Ford Coley in 1979). Another heartfelt composition, “Broken Wings” (Number #1 Billboard Hit, released in 1985) by Mr. Mister’s Richard Page followed. Then it was time to raise the roof again, Steve Lukather rocked the house with the Toto hard- rockin’ classic, “Hold The Line” (1978 release #5 Billboard Hit) followed by a roaring standing ovation.

The evening wound down with Ringo Starr’s classic single, “Photograph” (#1 Billboard Hit, released in 1973) followed by The Beatles cover tune, “Act Naturally” (Released in 1965). The show concluded with the band playing The Beatles classic, “With a Little Help From my Friends” (Released in 1967, also performed at Woodstock by Joe Cocker and The Grease Band) and a smooth segue into the John Lennon penned anthem, “Give Peace A Chance.” The Ruth Eckerd audience was on its feet singing and displaying peace signs throughout the entire rendition.
There wasn’t one shining star this evening … just a galaxy filled with all-stars.
The entire band was extraordinary! Nevertheless, here are my picks for the top crowd pleasing songs of the evening and not in any particular order. Gregg Rolie- “Evil Ways,” Steve Lukather- “Hold the Line,” Richard Page- “Broken Wings,” Todd Rundgren- “Love Is The Answer,” Ringo Starr- “With A Little Help From My Friends.”

Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band official website www.ringostarr.com
Very special thanks to Elizabeth Freund of Beautiful Day Media and the entire staff at Ruth Eckerd Hall.

Contact Classic Rock Music Reporter Ray Shasho at rockraymond.shasho@gmail.com

Buy Ray’s very special memoir called ‘CHECK THE Gs’ -The True Story of an Eclectic American Family and Their Wacky Family Business … You’ll LIVE IT! Also available for download on NOOK or KINDLE edition for JUST .99 CENTS at amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com -Please help support Ray so he can continue to bring you quality classic rock music reporting.
~~Pacific Book Review says Ray Shasho is a product of the second half of the 20th century, made in the USA from parts around the world, and within him is every trend in music, television, politics and culture contributing to his philosophical and comically analytical reflections collected in his fine book of memories. I found Check the Gs to be pure entertainment, fantastic fun and a catalyst to igniting so many memories of my own life, as I too am within a few years of Ray. So to all, I say if you have a bit of grey hair (or no hair), buy this book! It’s a great gift for your “over-the-hill” friends, or for their kids, if they are the history buffs of younger generations trying to figure out why we are the way we are.

© Copyright rayshasho.com. All Rights Reserved

 

 

Michael Des Barres: Silverhead rocker & TV villain ‘Murdoc’ chats with Ray Shasho

By Ray Shasho

Interview: Michael Des Barres, CD Review: Carnaby Street

Michael Des Barres is a perfect example of how perseverance, hard work, and a positive outlook, can achieve many of life’s yearnings. Michael is an incredible story; he embraced his passion for the arts and has never looked backed.

Acting lessons at the Corona Stage School led to a supporting cast member role as “Williams,” a London East End pupil on the 1967 British drama, To Sir, with Love starring Sidney Poitier. Besides acting, Michael loved music, especially American blues and rock ‘n’ roll. He formed his first band called the Orange Illusion in his teen years.
In 1972, Michael Des Barres became frontman for British glam rockers and cult icons Silverhead. The band eventually signed with Purple Records (owned by Deep Purple) and released two essential albums, Silverhead (1972) and 16 and Savaged (1973).
Silverhead became a significant role model for future generations of glam rock groups.
 
After the premature disbanding of Silverhead, Michael Des Barres formed Detective. The band was signed to Led Zeppelin’s Swan Song label by legendary guitarist Jimmy Page in 1975. Detective featured guitarist Michael Monarch (Steppenwolf) and Tony Kaye (Yes). The group recorded three studio albums, Detective (1977), It Takes One to Know One (1978), and their third album was recorded on Atlantic Records but never released. (Michael remains friends with Jimmy Page and Robert Plant).
During this time Michael Des Barres appeared on the WKRP in Cincinnati television episode “Hoodlum Rock” as the infamous Sir Charles 'Dog' Weatherbee of the band Scum of the Earth. (Rob Zombie released a song called “Scum of the Earth” in 2000, and a heavy metal band by the name of Scum of the Earth was formed in 2003).

After the break-up of Detective, Michael Des Barres teamed up with Ex-Sex Pistol guitarist Steve Jones to form Chequered Past. The line-up also included bassist Nigel Harrison and drummer Clem Burke from Blondie, and guitarist Tony Sales formerly of Utopia. (The band recorded one album together called Chequered Past). Des Barres also became the lead singer of the touring and Live Aid version of The Power Station, a Duran Duran spin-off band.

Michael Des Barres penned the world-wide hit “Obsession” with Holly Knight, which became a huge hit for the LA new wave group Animation in 1985.

Des Barres states that he loves performing in front of a live audience in a rock ‘n’ roll band, but he’s also in love with all the arts, and in many shapes and forms. He’s also an accomplished actor and probably best known for playing the infamous villain ‘Murdoc’ on the popular TV series MacGyver and ‘Alex’ in the movie Pink Cadillac.
Michael has appeared in countless film, television, voice-over and stage roles and his credits are awe-inspiring. Visit http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0220735/ for a complete listing of his credits.

At 64, Michael Des Barres continues to amaze, mystify and diversify.
In April of 2012, Des Barres reunited with Silverhead and all his old mates for the first time in 38 years. The band performed to standing room only audiences in Japan. He’s also recently appeared on the television series The Finder, Suits, and the motion picture California Solo.

More impressively, Michael Des Barres returns to his mid- 1960’s roots with an incredible hard-driving rock ‘n’ roll band initiated by old school elation. The new CD is entitled Carnaby Street and will be officially released on July 10th. Des Barres indicated, “I feel I’m part of a movement that is slipping away, I have something to bring to the table that is endangered of being swept under the carpet.”

After listening to Carnaby Street, two things became certain …rock ‘n’ roll needs Michael Des Barres and we need more Michael Des Barres. The band is incredibly tight and Des Barres’ vocals are majestic. Des Barres embellishes the essence of a ‘British rocker’ by epitomizing Rod Stewart, Noddy Holder and Steve Marriott all in one voice. It’s an incredible musical journey back to the swinging rock ‘n’ roll days of London. Carnaby Street is a natural flow of raw rock energy reminiscent to the days when rock was king. The Brits are back and ready to rock!
I had a chance to chat with Michael last week about the new CD, his inspiring music and acting career, his rock and roll mates, and creating opportunities in life.
I found Michael to be brilliant, receptive, spiritual, charming, and a bloody rocker to the end!

Here’s my interview with the iconic British glam rocker, singer, songwriter, guitarist, actor… Michael Des Barres, as he takes us back to the “Garden of Eden for rock ‘n’roll.”
Ray Shasho: Hello Michael, how are you?
Michael Des Barres: “I’m good man, how are you?”
Ray Shasho: It’s great to be chatting with the original frontman for Scum of the Earth.
Michael Des Barres: “(All Laughing!) I get stopped for many reasons but that was definitely one of the top five. It seemed to define some sort of a Spinal Tap moment for the punk generation. It had an amazing penetration in the media … and it stayed there. That show was so much fun to do.”
Ray Shasho: Michael, I want to say congrats on such an awesome and inspiring career. I’ve heard you talk about how you’ve obtained one of your first acting roles on “To Sir With Love” but it seems you’ve created so many great opportunities for yourself in the entertainment business, how was that possible for you?
Michael Des Barres: “I think you hit the nail on the head in terms of creating opportunities. I think the way you create opportunity is to believe … it wasn’t a choice to be an artist it was something that I never ever questioned. I really knew deep within that what I wanted to do most was express myself in whatever form. I could have done a sculpture, been a painter, taken photographs or whatever, there was something inside that I wanted to get out and the universe provided these wonderful ways of doing it. I never really gave it that much thought, right now I’m sounding too metaphysical for my own good. But I do believe that if you really have faith, and you trust that you have something to offer the world, you will be given that opportunity.”

“But I did work very hard … I was in boarding school for eight years and spent a lot of time reading, because I didn’t have parents, and I spent a lot of time alone. So I took advantage of my education and read everything that I could get my hands on. By the time I was 15 or 16, I knew kind of where I wanted to go. I loved the blues and I loved Shakespeare. Loved Oscar Wilde and loved Elvis, and there was this strange hybrid of influences. I wanted to act and went to drama school. Within months we were given the opportunity to work on To Sir with Love in 1967, which was a huge international success, and I tasted it, and saw what it was like, and saw how Sidney handled himself. Connery was doing Bond at the same time, so I was exposed to great charismatic actors very early on and knew the parameters of what could happen and how it could be done, so I watched and studied them. After the movie I did a lot of theater which gave me a defining discipline, which when I got addicted to everything you could become addicted to, I still had that skeleton of discipline.”
Ray Shasho: Blues and Shakespeare, Michael you are a genuine renaissance man.
Michael Des Barres: “Yea, you know … Muddy Waters and Hamlet that about sums it up. Art is both inspired and inspiring and that’s all ever wanted to do.”
Ray Shasho: I want to chat about your new CD Carnaby Street. Your voice sounds amazing man; it’s a great album, stick to being a rocker for awhile because today’s music scene really needs you.
Michael Des Barres: “You’re so incredibly kind to say that. You know what I do … I’ve been killing people on TV for years (laughing) and “Murdoc” was very good to me and I love my career as an actor… however… really what I want to do is stand on the stage of a club anywhere and plug my guitar in and sing the f-ing blues. And it’s really all I want to do. The words and feel of Carnaby Street is freedom through music… liberation with three chords. You can liberate yourself in the most simplistic way. My music is no way ironic, sarcastic, aggressive, sentimental or apologetic … it’s below the waist music. Rock ‘n’ roll is a euphemism for f-ing and dancing. And by saying that I don’t mean to be crude, I’m just saying perhaps that has been lost on a generation raised on Wellbutrin and Prozac.”

“Jack White and the Stripes, The Black Keyes, Alabama Shakes, there are innumerable bands that play authentic and genuine rock ‘n’ roll music. And I don’t mean I’m the head of an army of authenticity because I believe there are many people doing it. But I just want to add my take on it since I was there. I mean there were very few people singing rock ‘n’ roll music in 1967 at many nightclubs, and are still doing that. I am a rare breed by that definition.”
Ray Shasho: 'Carnaby Street' is just a natural flow of raw rock ‘n’ roll energy and reminiscent to the days when rock was king.
Michael Des Barres: “I recorded and mixed it in 10 days. Everything you hear on that record was done in the moment. There were perhaps backup vocals but no overdubs on the album. That album was done because my band is so extraordinary and so in love with that music. You don’t THINK when you’re playing that music. Everything you hear is one take. I wrote all the tunes and collaborated with the very talented country artist Jesse Dayton. I stayed in Austin, Texas for a month writing this album and met Jesse, and he was all about the music and very inspiring. And the rest of the record I wrote with Paul Hill, who is my bass player, and unbelievably talented. He’s Linda Perry’s bass player for all her productions, Tina Turner, James Blunt … the list is endless. And he has the same DNA as I do, as does the rest of the band. I’m very proud of the album and you’re the first person who I’ve spoken to who has heard it. It hasn’t even been sent out particularly yet, so I do appreciate your diligence.”
Ray Shasho: I’ve always been a huge fan of British rock … another reason why I love this CD.
Michael Des Barres: “Well that’s what it is … that’s why it’s got a Union Jack on the cover, and why I called it Carnaby Street. When I was a kid … 15, 16, 17, I would go and see Georgie Fame, Alexis Korner, Long John Baldry … Rod, Terry Reid, Beck, and then Hendrix and so on and so on. So when I was acting my little ass off, I was listening and so taken by the revolution that was happening every minute. Can you imagine what it was like in London in 1967? It was everything you think it was. Every ten feet was a gorgeous girl, with a gorgeous boy, in gorgeous clothes, listening to stunning music. It was the Garden of Eden for rock ‘n’roll.”
Ray Shasho: You’re kind of a cult figure because of the TV character ‘Murdoc’ on MacGyver, but you also have cult status for being the frontman in the bands Silverhead and Detective. Why were those incredible bands short-lived?
Michael Des Barres: “Well one word and you’ve heard it before, it begins with D and ends with S. And that’s the reason. I look back at those days and don’t regret the fact that we didn’t sell 25- million albums, for me they were some of the best rock and roll bands ever. I’m so proud of being a member of those bands and what we were capable of… even in those circumstances.”

“We were 19 in Silverhead and never experienced about going to Japan or the states, and the temptations were so incredible and we succumbed to them. In Detective we were sponsored by Led Zeppelin at the height of their decadence, so the fact that we even put an album out is a miracle. We were very indulgent and addictive and we succumbed to those things. But even given those circumstances, we made some great records and people have enjoyed them. But all I know is that I’m happy. I’m happy it happened because I’ve learned a lot about what life is.”

“The fact that I’m doing this now …money is not the issue, it’s not like I’m hungry to pay my rent, I’m doing this for the fact… I feel I’m part of a movement that is slipping away. I feel I have something to bring to the table that is endangered of being swept under the carpet.”
Ray Shasho: I heard Rod Stewart, Steve Marriott and Noddy Holder on Carnaby Street.
Michael Des Barres: “I think Noddy Holder was the best of them all. Noddy Holder had the greatest, humorous, bluesy voice of any of them. I have the deepest respect for Noddy, we came up at the same time and I adored him. His voice was like Steve’s … so big. Silverhead opened for Humble Pie a couple of times and I would just sit there and be astonished at this little tiny fellow and this incredible voice. Recently, I did a gig with Jerry Shirley and a tribute to Humble Pie. Steve was an actor, he went to drama school and played the Artful Dodger, we’d all go on auditions before the world changed and everyone was in high heels and eye makeup.”
Ray Shasho: I think you’re one of the only singers around that can hit the same notes like they could.
Michael Des Barres: “I find it really easy for some reason. (Laughing) I’m 64, and a few years ago when I decided I was going to make a record, I played every nightclub that would let me play and my voice came back, still stronger than ever.”

“It’s interesting, Robert Plant has remained a really good friend, and I love him and Jimmy you know, and there’s a reason he doesn’t want to sing those songs anymore. He turned to me one day and said, “I just can’t sing about lemon juice down my leg anymore …I just can’t do it, it would be like a 15 year old playing Romeo.” And he’s the one that has been incredibly creative with his career.”
Ray Shasho: I enjoyed the interview you did on You Tube with Pete Townshend and Gene Simmons. Did you have your own radio show too?
Michael Des Barres: “I was asked once but didn’t enjoy it very much. I love Gene, and Pete is a God you know, and love to interview people as you do, it’s a wonderful conversation to have but I don’t want to do it every day. I love to work and I have to work … it’s a compulsion.”
Ray Shasho: The Silverhead reunion this year in Japan had to be a blast.
Michael Des Barres: “Thirty-eight years I haven’t seen these guys… accept for Nigel. We all live in different countries so we had to regroup in Tokyo. Picture this… walking into a room in Tokyo with all the gear there and all these glam kids outside screaming and yelling, and we walk in there and I see these guys that I haven’t seen in 38 years, and the first half an hour is … I’m so sorry that I slept with your girlfriend … and it’s all very intimate, but within a half an hour its turn the f*** down I can’t hear myself! We only rehearsed for three days and to grasp it all in that short time frame was not an easy thing.”

“With Silverhead, we were always the band that was trying to seduce the audience; we were touring with Uriah Heep, Deep Purple etc. Always trying to win the audience over … skinny little bastards with makeup on in Mobile, Alabama in 1972 … we were a target for the boys and a different kind of target for the girls. We had a big bulls-eye on our ass!”

“When we went to Japan a few months ago and we played, everybody new every syllable to every song and for the first time in our lives, they knew who we were. It was a phenomenon and shocking to us. After that first gig, Robbie was in a corner literally with tears flowing down his cheeks. It was a very emotional closure for the band. We would have never experienced the closure if we would have gone on to make multiple albums in that one band …it would have been a different life.”
Ray Shasho: You’re the second rock star that I’ve interviewed who played a part in Seinfeld. Joe Lala of (Blues Image, Stephen Stills and Manassas), was in “The Face Painter” episode. He’s the only rocker who I know that became a veteran actor besides you. I know David Bowie and Mick Jagger played some parts but not to the extent of you and Joe.
Michael Des Barres: “I worked with Mick … I did The Man from Elysian Fields with him and Andy Garcia, James Coburn… and he was fantastic in it … great movie!”
Ray Shasho: I hope Mick and the Stones can do one more tour … maybe a goodbye tour of some sorts.
Michael Des Barres: “I don’t think it will be a tour per se, they’ll probably do 10-12 cities, 2 or 3 nights in those cities and call it a day. Maybe not even a tour, they might do a satellite thing. I can’t imagine Keith, Charlie is 71 now; I just don’t see them doing a year and a half of vigorous touring. I imagine they’ll do selective cities or a satellite show.”
Ray Shasho: You’re still good friends with Jimmy Page, how’s he doing?
Michael Des Barres: “Great… unbelievably well. Joyous, doesn’t live in the past, lives in the moment and does his thing. I would love to make an album with Jimmy. I’ve said many times to him let’s do it. But right now this record Carnaby Street is terribly important to me and I think people are going to be shocked about how I’m singing, what the songs are, and a bit of a revelation for people who didn’t get it the first time.”
Ray Shasho: Did you actually turn down singing the role for Judas on the soundtrack of Jesus Christ Superstar?
Michael Des Barres: “I did yea. The last thing I wanted to do back then was to go into a studio at 3:20 and sing “What’s the buzz tell me what’s a happening.” There was no way that I had the discipline at that time, because I was learning about life, sex, love and how to go f*ing wild. I didn’t want to have to show up at a particular time and do someone else’s work. I wanted to create my own work.”
Ray Shasho: Michael a final question, you are incredibly fit, how do you do it man?
Michael Des Barres: “It’s very simple … I get up very early and drink a gallon of black coffee, then read about myself on the internet(laughing), then go to the gym and do my cardio … don’t have a trainer I know exactly what I’m doing. An hour and fifteen minutes in the gym, come home and shower, sit-down with a guitar around my neck or some lines to learn and get on with the work. In terms of food … I don’t eat sugar, potatoes or bread. I eat lean fish, no red meat, eat a lot of vegetables and fruit, and drink a lot of water. But I strongly suggest that sugar is the worst thing you could do. I just love being able to walk down the street with my head held high, my shoulders back, Buddy Guy in my iPod, and the love of a good woman.”
Ray Shasho: Michael, thank you so much for spending time with me today and more importantly for all the great rock ‘n’ roll music you continue to bring to us all.
Michael Des Barres: “Thank you so much Ray and have a GREAT day!”

The new release from The Michael Des Barres Band Carnaby Street will be officially released on July 10th and is available for pre-order at amazon.com or www.desbarres.com
Michael Des Barres official website www.desbarres.com
Special thanks to the great Billy James at Glass Onyon PR
Official website http://glassonyonpublicity.wordpress.com/

Contact Classic Rock Music Reporter Ray Shasho at rockraymond.shasho@gmail.com

Buy Ray’s very special memoir called ‘CHECK THE Gs’ -The True Story of an Eclectic American Family and Their Wacky Family Business… You’ll LIVE IT!
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~~Pacific Book Review says Ray Shasho is a product of the second half of the 20th century, made in the USA from parts around the world, and within him is every trend in music, television, politics and culture contributing to his philosophical and comically analytical reflections collected in his fine book of memories. I found Check the Gs to be pure entertainment, fantastic fun and a catalyst to igniting so many memories of my own life, as I too am within a few years of Ray. So to all, I say if you have a bit of grey hair (or no hair), buy this book! It’s a great gift for your “over-the-hill” friends, or for their kids, if they are the history buffs of younger generations trying to figure out why we are the way we are.

© Copyright rayshasho.com. All Rights Reserved

 

 

 

Eric Johnson: An extraordinary and diverse guitarist with rock fusion mastery

By Ray Shasho

Interview with guitarist Eric Johnson
Texan, singer, songwriter, producer and guitar player extraordinaire Eric Johnson will be launching his worldwide tour from Florida. Johnson will be performing at five different Florida venues before traveling to the Netherlands, UK and Italy. The tour returns back to the U.S. in August. The tour kicks off in Pensacola on June 26th with a stopover in Clearwater at the Capitol Theatre on Saturday June 30th. For tickets visit www.rutheckerdhall.com.

Eric Johnson released his sixth studio album in late 2010 entitled Up Close. The 15-track disc features guest performances by Steve Miller, Jimmie Vaughan, Sonny Landreth, Jonny Lang and Malford Milligan. The recording is also available on 12 inch vinyl at www.ericjohnson.com.
 
Eric Johnson began playing guitar at the age of 11. He played with his first touring band in 1968, a psychedelic group called Mariani. The band shared the bill with ZZ Top and Bloodrock in their home state of Texas. Johnson was trained in classical music but was heavily influence by the guitar styles of Jimi Hendrix and hard rock rhythms of Led Zeppelin. In 1974, he joined a rock/jazz fusion group called The Electromagnets. The Magnets shared the stage with bands like Kiss and Mahogany Rush.

Eric Johnson recorded Seven Worlds his first solo album after the band’s break up.
Johnson later became a highly sought session guitarist working with legendary artists Cat Stevens, Carole King and Christopher Cross to name a few. In 1986, his critically acclaimed album Tones landed him on the front cover of Guitar Player Magazine. The cover story about Johnson heightened his credentials in the music world and brought the virtuoso critical praise. The album’s track “Zap” was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

In 1990, Eric Johnson released his platinum selling third album Ah Via Musicom. His illustrious recording of “Cliffs of Dover” won him a 1991 Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. (“Cliffs of Dover” currently has almost 9-million views on You Tube).

In 2005, Eric Johnson’s fifth studio release Bloom generated a fifth Grammy Award Nomination. Johnson was invited to play on Joe Satriani’s G3 Tour, The Crossroads Guitar Festival and the Experience Hendrix Tour. Johnson can please any audience because he enjoys playing any genre. He’s usually spotlighted for his electric performances, but Johnson is an exceptional acoustic player as well. I had the opportunity to chat with Eric this week about the tour and his intensifying career.

Here’s my interview with the Grammy Award winning guitar virtuoso, singer, songwriter and producer Eric Johnson.
Ray Shasho: Eric, thank you for being on the call today, how’s everything in Texas?
Eric Johnson: “Hey Ray how are you, everything’s good.”
Ray Shasho: So you’re headed over to Florida pretty soon?
Eric Johnson: “Yea, we are… we’re going to come play a few dates there and then go over to Europe and play there for a few weeks.”
Ray Shasho: It’s a rarity that major tours get launched from Florida, was there a specific reason you chose us … just got good vibes maybe?
Eric Johnson: “We were there a few months ago on the Hendrix Tour and talking to some people about bringing our own show there. So we kind of had that in the back of our minds and we had some time before going over to Europe, and I really hadn’t played in Florida for awhile so I thought we’d better go play some.”
“The Hendrix shows was a fun tour. It’s always nice to play Hendrix’s music and especially for some of the kids who aren’t familiar with his music, so it’s really good for them.”
Ray Shasho: I’d hate to imagine younger generations not wanting to learn about previous music eras, artists and cultures. I knew all about my parent’s generation and actually embraced it. I saw Sinatra and his incredible band five times in concert.
Eric Johnson: “Yea, there were some great musicians that they listened to; I really appreciate it even more now. What’s interesting is how music has evolved and so digitally processed, and you go back and listen to that stuff that was our parent’s music and it’s just amazing. If you take that same spirit and same music but put it into more of a modern rock context … it would smoke anything out there. There wouldn’t be anything that could hold a candle to it. Maybe the only thing that keeps it from being competitive and blowing everything away is just the fact it’s a different style of music that maybe a lot of people don’t relate to. But the musicality, the energy level and spontaneity of it is almost incomparable in this century.”
Ray Shasho: I’m guessing you don’t like to commit to playing a certain genre of music… and prefer it that way?
Eric Johnson: “Yea, kind of … because I just love all styles of music and being open and learning from it.”
Ray Shasho: So Eric … how many guitars do you own?
Eric Johnson: “I only own half as many as I use to, guess somewhere around 17 or 18. What’s interesting is that I get more enjoyment having less guitars and stuff because I like having everything adjusted just right so it works well, and so it drives you nutty. If you’ve got tons of stuff and your trying to keep everything working well you don’t get enough time to do anything but being a custodian. So I just got tired of that and decided I was more interested in making music than collecting guitars.”
Ray Shasho: I was always fascinated by musicians who tinkered with their equipment and experimented to create new sounds. How involved do you get personally in reinventing the wheel?
Eric Johnson: “Probably way too involved. (All laughing) You know there are some happy accidents out there or some interesting combinations that can make some real magic and so you keep chasing it …it’s like a gold mine. And you know when you can hear something and its real special … whenever that happens and experience that, it’s like going to the mountaintop, and it’s hard to live in the valley from then on because you’re always trying to stay on the mountaintop. But it’s kind of a double- edged sword; it can be keeping you away from what you need to be really doing.”
Ray Shasho: Do you have a signature guitar or amplifier developed and out there?
Eric Johnson: “I do … I have my own guitar out now and effects peddle and speaker out and I’ve been thinking about doing amplifiers, got a couple of amps that we’re thinking about maybe doing.”
Ray Shasho: I noticed that “Cliffs of Dover” currently has almost 9-million views on You Tube. Would you say that “Cliffs of Dover” was kind of like your “Stairway to Heaven?
Eric Johnson: “I think so yea, and it was just a tune that came to me really fast. I recorded it and played it for a friend and he said that’s kind of nice. And I said I don’t know what to call it. He said it sounds regal, why don’t you call it “Cliffs of Dover.” So I said … okay.”
Ray Shasho: The Alien Love Child was a very successful side project.
Eric Johnson: “Yea, that was a live thing we did, we recorded two or three nights at Antone’s and chose which of the three nights we liked. That was a fun band and a lot of improvisation.”
Ray Shasho: You were invited to play on the G3 Tour a bunch of times and also invited to play at The Crossroads Guitar Festival. Who were some of the artists that you shared the stage with?
Eric Johnson: “I did the first year… John Mayall, Steve Vai, Sonny Landreth, Billy Gibbons, John McLaughlin and of course Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck.”
Ray Shasho: I knew you were playing guitar professionally at an early age, but wasn’t aware that you toured with so many legendary bands.
Eric Johnson: “I started playing professionally when I was 13, joined Mariani at 15, and got into the Electromagnets when I was 19. But we played with bands like Mahogany Rush, Captain Beefheart and Kiss.”
Ray Shasho: If given the opportunity…what artist would you like to collaborate with?
Eric Johnson: “Stevie Wonder, I’ve always been a big fan of his … yea that would be cool.”
Ray Shasho: Eric, I hope to see you in Clearwater on June 30th and I may just write a review of the show.
Eric Johnson: “I’ll make sure that I tune up that night. And make sure you come on back and say hello.”
Ray Shasho: I sure will …thanks’ Eric see you in Florida.

Visit Eric Johnson’s official website at www.ericjohnson.com
Eric Johnson’s Florida concert dates … June 26- Pensacola, June 27 -Ponte Vedre, June 28- Orlando, June 29- Ft Lauderdale, June 30- Clearwater.
Order Eric Johnson’s latest CD Up Close on his website or at amazon.com
Buy tickets for guitar virtuoso Eric Johnson in concert at the Capitol Theatre in Clearwater Fl at www.rutheckerdhall.com
Special thanks to Chipster PR at www.chipsterpr.com

 Contact columnist Ray Shasho at rockraymond.shasho@gmail.com
 Order author/columnist Ray Shasho’s exciting new memoir ‘Check the Gs’ at amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com Available on Kindle or Nook for ONLY .99 Cents!
 ~Pacific Book Review says… I found Check the Gs to be pure entertainment, fantastic fun and a catalyst to igniting so many memories of my own life, as I too am within a few years of Ray. So to all, I say if you have a bit of grey hair (or no hair), buy this book! It’s a great gift for your “over-the-hill” friends, or for their kids, if they are the history buffs of younger generations trying to figure out why we are the way we are.

© Copyright rayshasho.com. All Rights Reserved