Love in 1967: Lee is Second from the Right (Photo By Gail)
Yesterday (August 3rd, 2006) I heard of the sad passing of Love front man Arthur Lee, one of the greatest rock visionaries of the ’60s or any other time. In college, I was greatly blessed to discover Love’s third release, Forever Changes, and I can honestly say the music on this phenomenal album brought about a monumental shift in perception for me. I’m listening to the CD right now as a matter of fact, and the timelessness of songs like “The Red Telephone” and “Alone Again Or” (covered by everyone from UFO to The Damned) still blows my mind.
A Must Own Album
Thanks for the music Arthur. Say Hi to Syd for me.
“Every five years or so, Joe [Elliott] would say, ‘We need to do a covers album!’” explains Def Leppard drummer, Rick Allen. “Finally we just recorded it and told everybody after the fact. We made this album to really give people an idea of where we came from musically and what inspired us growing up.” The album in question is Yeah, Def Leppard’s brilliant collection of ‘70s rock classics that includes such hidden gems as David Bowie’s “Drive in Saturday,” Badfinger’s “No Matter What” and “Street Life” by Roxy Music. “The idea was to choose songs that inspired us prior to being signed to a record deal,” Rick continues, “but we didn’t want to pick anything that was too obvious, such as Stones or Beatles songs. Interestingly enough, we all came up with similar song lists!” Continue reading An Interview with Rick Allen of Def Leppard→
Despite a very happening website, Rock Star SuperNova is easily the worst show on TV. I’m serious; there is nothing worse on television that you could possibly find to watch. It makes American Idol look like The Sopranos by comparison. Suck City.
Today is the birthday of my only sister, whose name happens to be Keven. Normally I would post a photo of the birthday girl, but for some odd reason I have no scanned photos of Keven. Instead I have posted this picture of Felix The Cat, to remind her of how, when I was three or four and too young to read, she would tell my brother and I that it said right there in the pages of the TV Guide that “Felix the Cat is not on today,” so she could watch her soap operas. Keven also turned me on to The Beatles, which makes her the greatest sister ever. I love you, Sis!
Dave Lombardo of Slayer is looking very much like comedian Bobcat Goldthwaite on the cover of the September 2006 issue of Modern Drummer Magazine. Inside, on page 150 and continuing for seven glorious, glossy pages you will find my current masterpiece: an in-depth interview with the extraordinary Ray Luzier. Continue reading Gail In Print: Modern Drummer, September 2006→
