AL L NE W

THE MA GAZ
WHE RE ROC
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INE
K LIVE S
DEF LEPPARD
HEARTBREAK AND HYSTERIA!
GUNS NROSES
BEER AND LOATHING IN THE UK
ROGER WATERS
ARE YOU READY FOR PUNK FLOYD?
K COVER FOR MORE
TU R N TO B A C

ISSUE 1
UK5.00 US$10.50 CAN$11.99

The Heroic Rise Of LEMMYS HEROES Their Inside Story

 0RYLQJOLNHD
SDUDOOHORJUDP Contents
Issue 1 May 2017

F E AT U R E S

46
The Magpie Salute
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54
Def Leppard
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64
Guns NRoses
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70
Graham Bonnet
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36
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80
T H E C O V E R S T O RY

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PLANET ROCK 3
 May 2017

U P F R O N T

8 26
AC/ DC
Rock Or Bust?
Is it? Really?
20 Alice Cooper
The shock rock pioneer and
Planet Rock presenter recalls
a night on the tiles with
John Lennon.
10
Pink Floyd
Ten things we've learned from
their V&A exhibition.

28
Joanne Shaw Taylor
Dressed to kill:
Kiss Paul Stanley. The Brit guitar hero's
playlist of six songs to beat the blues,
14 including, naturally, ZZ Top.
Blues Pills 18
The Scandi rockers
on their breakthrough year,
Blackberry Smoke
The Hairy Bikers present
30
learning how to speak RockNRoll Cookery with Van Halen
and why their Smoke frontman Charlie Whos in? Who's out? Whatever
next album will 6WDUUDQGKLVFKRFRODWH happened to that dream reunion
surprise the world. DQGFRHHODFHGFKLOOL and will they ever come to Britain?

16
Queen
English tea, biscuits and silver
service meals: backstage and in
a state of undress with Brian
May and co.
20
Kiss
+RZVH[XDOO\FRQGHQW
women and a bad Gene Simmons
song inspired Paul Stanley
to write Strutter.
22
Spirit Of Radio
Planet Rock radio presenters
tell us whats rocking their
world this month.
32
U FO
Lead singer Phil Mogg shares
lifes lessons learned: on festering
lead guitarists, slipped discs
and old mens trousers.

U P T H E B AC K

98 114 Iggy Pop: 124

25 Albums The Buyers legless again. Showtime
You Must Hear Guide From Whiskey Myers
Right Now! Iggy Pop: how to to ELO, here are ten
Including separate your Metallic gigs to see this month.
Roger Waters, KO from your Kill City.
Inglorious, Royal
113 130
Blood, Hawkwind,
Stone Sour, Object Of 118 Who The Hell
ALAMY, GETTY

The Dead Daisies, Desire Live Wire Are These Guys?

Anathema, Iron &DQ\RXDRUG Joe Bonamassa, Raiding the vaults for
Maiden, Foreigner, Alex Lifesons Gibson The Who, Broken the bands that time
Humble Pie, /HV3DXO(6 Witt Rebels and Bad forgot. Is that you in
Jethro Tull and more. signature axe? Touch in concert. the picture?

4 PLANET ROCK
 WITH SPECIAL GUESTS
PLUS

SOLD OUT

American Express reserved tickets for Cardmembers*

Cardmembers can get access to reserved tickets via ticketmaster.co.uk/amex
*Tickets subject to availability. For full terms visit ticketmaster.co.uk
 Motrhead were more than just a band. They
ZHUHDZD\RIOLIH,QIDFWWKH\VWLOOGHQHWKHZD\ZHIHHODERXW
music, which is why they take pride of place on the cover of the Endeavour House,
189 Shaftesbury Avenue
UVWLVVXHRI3ODQHW5RFNPDJD]LQHLQZKLFKZHFHOHEUDWHWKHWK London WC2H 8JG
Email: mail@planetrock.com

anniversary of Motrheads landmark debut album. That particu M USIC &

CON T E N T DIR EC T OR

ODUVSHHGIXHOOHGWDOHVWDUWVRQSDJH Ric Blaxill

(',7 25, 1 &+,() 
$ 6 62&, $7 (38 %/,6+ (5
,QGHHG WKLV PDJD]LQH LV GHVLJQHG WR EULQJ \RX WKH VWRULHV Phil Alexander
/ $8 1&+(',7 25

behind the music championed on Planet Rock radio, Britains Mark Blake
A RT DIR EC T OR
Russell Moorcroft
JUHDWHVWURFNUDGLRVWDWLRQ)URPJLDQWVVXFKDV$HURVPLWK'HI CON T R IBU T I NG EDIT OR
Pat Gilbert
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Julie Emery
LQFOXGLQJ%OXHV3LOOVDQG7KH0DJSLH6DOXWHZHEULQJ\RXWKHYHU\ DEPU T Y A RT DIR EC T OR
Tan Doan
best of the music you love. This is yourPDJD PIC T U R E EDIT OR
Scarlet Borg

]LQHVRGRXVWHOOZKDW\RXGOLNHWRVHHLQ,VVXH CON T R IBU T OR S

Paul Anthony, Jason Arnopp, Emily Barker, Liz

7ZRE\GURSSLQJXVDOLQHDWPDLO#SODQHWURFN Barnes, Paul Brannigan, Stevie Chick, Sam

Coare, Ian Danter, Tom Doyle, Paul Elliott, Matt
Fiveash, Ross Halfin, Paul Harries, Ian Harrison,
Mark Jeeves, Joe Mackett, Pete Makowski,
FRP:HORRNIRUZDUGWRKHDULQJIURP\RX James McMahon, James McNair, Ben Mitchell,
Kris Needs, Darren Redick, Nick Ruskell, Amit
Sharma, Marco Vittur, Wyatt Wendels

Group Managing Director, Advertising

Abby Carvosso
Head of Music Neil McSteen
Music Director
Joel Stephan
Senior Music Account Executive
Emily Ballinger
PHIL ALEXANDER, EDITORINCHIEF Classified Sales Executive
Philip Nessfield
Production Manager
Carl Lawrence
Ad Production Controller
Helen Mear

Chief Executive

Among this months contributrs... Paul Keenan

Renowned music photographer,
diarist and humanitarian, Ross
Haln has taken pictures of the
worlds biggest rock stars, including
Aerosmith. Youll nd some of
his best and previously unseen
photographs (including a naked
Steven Tyler) inside.
Ex-Kerrang! editor and author of
This Is A Call: The Life And Times
Of Dave Grohl, Paul Brannigan is
meant to be nishing a biography of
Eddie Van Halen. Instead, he talked
to fellow countryman Black Star
Riders Ricky Warwick about the
Group Managing Director
Rob Munro-Hall
Publisher
In1987 Paul Elliott was one of the Patrick Horton
Managing Editor
rst UK journalists to interview Guns Sophie Price
NRoses. Naturally, we asked him Senior Marketing Manager
Fergus Carroll
to write about them again 30 years Marketing Manager
later. Pauls book, Guns NRoses: Natalie Paszkowski
Head Of Marketing (Planet Rock)
The Life & Times Of A RockNRoll Jon Norman
Band, is out in September. Have we Direct Marketing Manager
Julie Spires
mentioned Guns NRoses enough? Direct Marketing Executive
Olivia Caouki
Head of Communications
When hes not playing guitar, Jess Blake
Amit Sharma interviews famous
rock stars for Kerrang! and other
magazines. We decided to combine MOJO (ISSN 25144626) is published by
Bauer Consumer Media Ltd.
his two passions and asked him Bauer Consumer Media Ltd is a company
registered in England and Wales with company
to write about Joe Bonamassa for number 01176085, registered address Media
House, Peterborough Business Park, Lynch
Planet Rock. You can follow Amit at Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA

songs that rock his planet.
In his misspent youth Pete
Makowski wrote for Sounds and
once, famously, had a gun pulled on
him by a member of Lynyrd Skynyrd.
We sent him to interview the new
Black Crowes, aka The Magpie
Salute, who turned out to be
@666amit.
Music legend and Planet Rock
presenter Alice Cooper revisits
70s LA to recall a night on the ale
with John Lennon. Alices next-door
neighbours in 1973 were Frank
Zappa and the drummer from
The Monkees. Just imagine the
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Global on Bauer@subscription.co.uk
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may be reproduced without the prior permission of
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COMPLAINTS: Bauer Consumer Media Limited is a
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unarmed, but dangerous. conversation over the garden fence.

6 PLANET ROCK
 PHOTOGRAPHER CREDIT: BOJAN HOHNJEC

3 JULY 6 JULY 7 JULY

LONDON BIRMINGHAM MANCHESTER
THE O2 BARCLAYCARD ARENA ARENA

LIVENATION.CO.UK TICKETMASTER.CO.UK LINKINPARK.COM

A LIVE NATION PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH X-RAY OUT 19 MAY
Upfront
NEWS, V IEWS AN D RA N D O M THO UGHTS
 Stagestruck: AC/DCs
Angus Young, MetLife
Stadium, New Jersey,
August 26, 2015.

Let There
Be Rock
THE BIG PICTURE
A lavish new book goes
behind the scenes on
AC/DC's Rock Or Bust tour.

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PLANET ROCK 9
Upfront

10 Things IN BRIEF
We Learned
From The
Pink Floyd Queen In 3-D by Brian

Exhibition May, the rst book about

Queen written by a member
of the band, is published on
May 25. It includes more
than 300 photographs, many
Hey teacher! Their Mortal Remains has in 3-D, from the guitarists
personal archive.
just opened at Londons Victoria & Albert
Museum. Planet Rock had a sneak preview

1 6
The Division Bell heads are Johnny Rotten hated Pink
bigger than you think In fact, Floyd and had the T-shirt to
those vast metal sculptures from Floyds prove it The Sex Pistols singer wore a
1994 album cover are the height of a double promotional Floyd garment emblazoned with
GHFNHUEXVDQGVRPH$QGWKHH\HVIROORZ WKHZRUGV,+DWHDVDGHFODUDWLRQRIwar
you around the room. DJDLQVWVURFNVROGJXDUG
Status Quo go back on

2 7
The schoolboy Roger Waters David Gilmour loves a guitar the road with The Aquostic
2017 Winter Tour, playing
was beaten for throwing In fact, there are several of his cherished acoustic shows across Britain
water This and his other instruments on display, including a Fender in November and December
PLVGHPHDQRXUVSOXVKRZPDQ\VWURNHVRI Strat gifted to him by Humble Pies Steve 2017. It will be their rst dates
WKHFDQHKHUHFHLYHGDUHOLVWHGLQDV 0DUULRWWLQ since the death of Rick Partt.
Punishment Book unearthed at his old school

8
in Cambridge. No wonder Theyve got the gong Yes, the
David he got the hump and gong, like the one Roger Waters whacked
Gilmour: composed The Wall. LQWKHPRYLH3LQN)OR\G$W3RPSHLL
careful with

3 9
that axe. Their old synthesizers
They love an
inatable look like something from a
Besides the famous 70s-era Doctor Who 7KH$.6
pig, Pink Floyds 1977 US VCS3 synth used on The Dark Side Of The
tour stage set included an Moon is a beautiful relic that should have Jon Iggy Pop reissues three
LQDWDEOHQXFOHDUIDPLO\ Pertwee [LQJLWZLWKDVRQLFVFUHZGULYHU of his classic albums,
The Idiot, Lust For Life

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IULGJHDQGFRPHVWLEOHV
apparently a satirical
FRPPHQWRQ$PHULFDV
rampant consumerism.
10
The guitar solo on and TV Eye, on limited-edition
coloured vinyl on June 2.
Comfortably Numb
See our Iggy Buyers Guide
never grows old starting on page 114.
$QG\RXFDQH[SHULHnce the
live version from Live 8

4
Roger Waters in even greater
has good thrilling clarity
handwriting courtesy of a
Theres a notebook new remix.
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classic Wish You Were Here.

5
They had their own American power-pop giants
comic The Pink Floyd was a Cheap Tricks new album,
Were All Alright!, is released
VXSHUDOODFWLRQRFLDOPXVLF
ALAMY

on June 16, in advance of

programme for boys and girls on their forthcoming and long-
sale during their 1974 US tour. overdue UK tour.

10 PLANET ROCK
 Ritchie Blackmores
RAINBOW IN ROCK
PLAYING THE CLASSIC ROCK ANTHEMS OF RAINBOW AND DEEP PURPLE

UK TOUR
THU 22 JUNE
SAT 17 JUNE MANCHESTER
LONDON THE O2 ARENA
+
BIG ENTRANCE STAGE
EVIL BLIZZARD BUCK & EVANS MASSIVE
MASSIVE WAGONS DEATH VALLEY KNIGHTS
SUN 25 JUNE
SPEAK EASY LOUNGE
PHIL NICHOL RICH WILSON
GEOFF NORCOTT COMEDIANS COMEDIAN PODCAST
GLASGOW
INDIGO AT THE O2 THE SSE HYDRO
FROM MIDDAY
+

WED 28 JUNE
BIRMINGHAM
GENTING ARENA
THE CRAZY WORLD OF ARTHUR BROWN
AFTERSHOW
+
STEVE N SEAGULLS
TAKING OVER THE O2 ALL DAY WITH VINYL RECORD
FAIR, RARE FILM SCREENING, FRINGE STAGES, BLACKMORESNIGHT.COM
SPOKEN WORD, COMEDY & BEER GARDEN
STONEFREEFESTIVAL.COM FB.COM/RITCHIEBLACKMORE

AXS.COM MYTICKET.CO.UK SEETICKETS.COM TICKETLINE.CO.UK

A KENNEDY STREET ENTERPRISES, KILIMANJARO AND THE O2 PRESENTATION
Upfront Jesus Christ pose:
Ozzy Osbourne.

IN BRIEF

Goodbye... After its run in Manchester,

Jim Steinmans Bat Out Of
Hell The Musical transfers

Hello
to The London Coliseum on
June 5. The show runs for a
limited season in the capital
until July 22.

More Sabbath to come?

And Ozzy gets the blues.

B L AC K S A B B AT H may have
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a possible live release and DVD later
WKLV\HDU,QWKHPHDQWLPHIURQWPDQ
Ozzy Osbournes Ozzy Rocks USA Three more Peter Gabriel
2017 tour begins in Wisconsin on soundtrack albums get the
-XO\ZLWKWKHVLQJHUUHSRUWHGO\ half-speed, re-mastered vinyl
recording tracks for a solo blues treatment. Birdy, Passion
and Long Walk Home are all
DOEXPDQLGHDRULJLQDOO\FRQVLGHUHG
reissued on July 28.
E\6DEEDWKDVDIROORZXSWR13DQG
OPLQJDVHFRQGVHULHVRIKLVWUDYHO
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IRU8679FKDQQHO+LVWRU\

Americas busiest
bluesman Joe Bonamassa
releases Joe Bonamassa:
Live At Carnegie Hall
An Acoustic Evening
on CD, DVD and Blu-Ray
on June 23.

PEARL JAM POLAROIDS A quick rie through PJ guitarist Mike

McCreadys rock-star-friendly scrapbook.
ROSS HALFIN, REX

Californian soul-rockers
O U T N OW in the UK, Of Potato Heads And Polaroids: My Life Inside And Out Of Pearl Jam Vintage Trouble release a
documents Mike McCreadys favourite hobby: taking Polaroid pictures of the band, their fans and rock new single, Knock Me Out,
star pals including Soundgardens Chris Cornell, Gene Simmons, Jimmy Page and Heart; many, like Cornell on June 9, in advance of a
DERYHZHDULQJDEDHGORRNZKHQSKRWRJUDSKHGZLWK0F&UHDG\VVSHFLDOSDO7R\6WRU\V0U3RWDWR+HDG European tour. Expect the
follow-up to 2015s 1 Hopeful
O F P OTATO H E A D S A N D P O L A R O I D S E\0LNH0F&UHDG\SRZHU+RXVH%RRNVLVRQVDOHQRZ Road album, later this year.

12 PLANET ROCK
Medications what
you need: Blues Pills,
with Erin Larsson.
 Upfront

Blues Pills
Swede Smell
Of Success
NEW ROCK
The Scandi soul-rockers cogitate on Nordic social
failings, sharing a bill with ZZ Top and plans for
a quick-re third album W O R D S : A M I T S H A R M A

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PLANET ROCK 15
Upfront
Brian May
Goes Topless
BACKSTAGE
WHO:Queen
WHERE: Montreal Forum, Canada
WHEN: January 26, 1977
Q U E E N G O back on the
road with singer Adam Lambert
in November to celebrate the
40th anniversary of their News
Of The World album.
In the meantime, here are
most of Queen 40 years ago, cele
brating the actual Queens Silver
Jubilee by touring North America
with support act and drinking
partners Thin Lizzy.
2VWDJHHDFKJURXSPHPEHU
dealt with the stresses of touring
LQGLHUHQWZD\V%ULDQ0D\ZHQW
everywhere with his own supply
of English tea and biscuits; singer
)UHGGLH0HUFXU\LQVLVWHGRQD
silver service meal after every
show; drummer Roger Taylor
and Thin Lizzys frontman Phil
GETTY
Lynott got royally wasted
together at New Yorks punk
16 PLANET ROCK
FOXE&%*%VDQGQRERG\NQRZV
what Queens mysterious bass
player John Deacon got up to.
2QVWDJHWKHWZRJURXSV
relished the competition. Lizzy
NHSWXVRQRXUWRHVVD\V0D\
a fact Thin Lizzy guitarist Scott
*RUKDPQRWHG4XHHQQHYHU
dropped a note the whole tour.
(LWKHUZD\WKHGDWHVSDLGR
sending Queens A Day At The
Races LP to Number 5 in the US.
3KRWRJUDSKHU0LFKDHO2FKV
captured three quarters of the
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UREH5RJHULQUHSRVH%ULDQLQ
a state of undress; and Freddies
ZDUGUREHDVVLVWDQWDQGH[ORYHU
Dane Clark in the mirror. John
Deacon, as ever, is nowhere
to be seen.
 Flash! A-ha!:
Queen get partially
naked, 1977.
Upfront
The Hairy Bikers Present...
ROCKNROLL COOKERY
WITH CHARLIE STARR
The Blackberry Smoke frontman
invites us to his remote Georgia
farmhouse for gourmet chilli,
Mexican beer and a chat with
Keith Richards (maybe).
What food would you cook on
a good night in?
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not into the whole macho thing of
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Upfront
HOW
I WROTE...
STRUTTEr
Kisss Paul Stanley on the
ballsy opener of their rst LP,
inspired by women exuding
sex and a discarded song
called Stanley The Parrot.
AT T H E point when
we were writing songs
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20 PLANET ROCK
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WRITERS
Paul Stanley, 7KHFORVHVW,ZDVJHWWLQJWR
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On Kiss, 7KHVRQJQHHGHGDWLWOH
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CHART
US 87
Pout of his class:
Paul Stanley, New
York, 1974.
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KISS tour the UK and Europe in May.
Upfront
MOTRHEAD
AND ME...
SPIRIT OF RADIO
A selection of Planet Rocks
presenters share their latest tips
and Motrhead memories.
PAUL
ANTHONY
The best thing
Ive seen recently
Monster Truck at the Electric
Ballroom, Camden, on their
recent mini UK tour.
The best thing Ive heard
recently Demos for the new
Stone Broken album, due early
7KHQHZVWXLVNLOOHU
My favourite Motrhead
memory Seeing them at the
Heavy Metal Holocaust, Port
Vale FC, August 1981. The gig
nearly didnt go ahead after local
residents objected. But as a
VZHHWHQHUWKHSURPRWHURHUHG
to pay for everyone to go on a
bus trip to Blackpool on the day
of the show. Ive been lucky
enough to spend time with
Lemmy and co, both socially and
LQLQWHUYLHZVWKHODVWWLPH
being at the Classic Rock Awards
a short time before he died.
LIZ BARNES
The best thing Ive
seen recently From
Here To InFinite,
the Deep Purple documentary.
The best thing Ive heard
recently Roger Waterss new
22 PLANET ROCK
What a shower!
Motrhead, 1980.
track, Smell The Roses. Its
)OR\G\MXVWWKHZD\,OLNHKLP
My favourite Motrhead
memory 7KHUVWWLPH/HPP\
came to Planet Rock about ten
years ago. He rocked up at two
in the afternoon, 20 Marlboro The best thing Ive heard
reds in one hand, bottle of JD recently Danko Joness My
in the other. We exchanged a Little RnR from his latest
bit of small talk while I miced album, Wild Cat. Its just a great,
him up. Then he casually simple rocknroll song.
whipped out his Zippo and
sparked up a cig. The indoor My favourite Motrhead
smoking ban had just been memory Seeing them play Ace
introduced. Excruciatingly Of Spades on BBC2s The
embarrassed, I stuttered Young Ones in the early 80s.
something along the lines of, Brilliant for an impressionable
Please dont, alarms, etc. young teenager like me.
+H[HGPHZLWKDGHDWK
stare, and then let out a belly
laugh and rolled his eyes. He
MARK
JEEVES
had such presence. There was so
The best thing Ive
much more to him than just the
seen recently The
cartoon Lemmy. He had a
Amorettes at the Iron Road,
look in his eyes that told
DGLHUHQWVWRU\ Evesham, warming up for their
recent support slot with Black
Star Riders.
IAN
The best thing Ive heard
DANTER
recently Deep Purples
The best
InFinite. Its the best Purple
thing Ive
album in years.
seen recently A clip on
ROSS HALFIN
<RX7XEHRI-H%HFN My favourite Motrhead
and David Gilmour memory Getting in a lift
playing Jerusalem at the with Lemmy heading for
Royal Albert Hall in 2009. a radio studio in 2007.
Westworld:
Look! Is that
Soundgarden?

No entourage, no PR people,
just a hat and a full bottle of
Jack. He asked for a paper cup
and after 90 minutes, the bottle
was empty and we had a
fabulous radio show.
DARREN
REDICK
The best thing Ive
seen recently
0HWDOOLFDEDVVLVW5RE7UXMLOORV
\HDUROGVRQ7\HSOD\LQJEDVV
IRU.RUQ0RVWRIRXUDUWLVWVDUH
north of 25, so this was a great
moment for younger people.
The best thing Ive heard
recently I always mention Big
Wreck, but they are the best
band no one has heard of.
My favourite Motrhead
memory At Guilfest in 2000.
,GEHHQJUDQWHGDQLQWHUYLHZ
ZLWK/HPP\RQ0RW|UKHDGV
tour bus, but with two guys from
European music magazines.
It was tight, but we managed to
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IRU/HPP\+HDUULYHGZLWKD
ERWWOHRI%HOOVZKLVN\not-'
and immediately asked, Has
DQ\RQHVHHQP\KDW"0\KHDUW
missed a beat. We all stood up
VRPHZKDWWHQWDWLYHO\DQG
looked behind us. Whew! I was
in the clear! Not so, one of the
other guys. He had sat on
/HPP\V6WHWVRQ/HPP\ZDVD
GHFHQWJX\EXWJDYHZKDWFRXOG
ROOM
666
EHGHVFULEHGDVDIUDQN
LQWHUYLHZZLWKWKHKDWVLWWLQJ 565 times more
MRXUQDOLVWDQGLWZDVRYHULQ evil than Room
DERXWYHPLQXWHV 101! The things
you love to hate
WYAT T
WENDELS All drum solos,
The best thing Ive except Neil Pearts.
seen recently D-List celebrities
7KH:HVWZRUOG79VHULHVZLWK wearing vintage Danny
LWVTXLUN\UHZRUNLQJVRIURFN
FODVVLFVLQFOXGLQJ6RXQGJDUGHQV
metal T-shirts.
Bowes
%ODFN+ROH6XQ
Festivals with too
many bands all Presents
POCKET MONEY PICK
ller no killer.
The best thing Ive heard
Everything about
recently 7KH%URWKHU)LUHWULEH
Ted Nugent, apart
VLQJOH,QGHOLEOH+HURHV7KH from his music.
perfect spring/summer anthem. The rst record you bought
Any AC/DC album
with your own money.
My favourite Motrhead after For Those
About To Rock, but This month: PR listener
memory Lemmy was a family
wed be excited to James Byrne on U2s
IULHQGDQGP\EURWKHUVUVW
hear one with Axl.
HYHUEDVVZDVD5LFNHQEDFNHU The Unforgettable Fire
bought from Lemmy at his West People that throw the
/RQGRQDWLQ.QRZLQJ horns not knowing It was my 11th birthday and
what its all about. I scraped together all the money
LWVVWLOODURXQGWRGD\DQGVHHLQJ Only Dio does
it in pictures is a great personal I had to buy this album. Im not a U2
the horns!
0RW|UKHDGPHPRU\ fan per se and I grew up in a house
People who think where my mum liked Motown and
they impress by soul music, and my dad liked rock.
shouting for obscure
H EAR TH E GANG AN D A My cousin was a skater and got
B-sides and unheard
W H O L E L OT M O R E : me into Suicidal Tendencies, Dead
Tune in to Planet Rock Radio
unreleased material
Kennedys and Stiff Little Fingers, so
at gigs. Knobheads!
$YDLODEOHYLD'$%RQOLQHYLD there was all sorts of stuff going on in
KWWSZZZSODQHWURFNFRPOLYH Vinyl bores in the my head. Then, one day I was in the
RQ79YLD6N\FKDQQHO 21st century. bath, and I heard Pride (In The Name
9LUJLQ0HGLDFKDQQHO The Scissor Sisters Of Love) on what I think was the
)UHHVDWFKDQQHORURQ\RXU cover version of Janice Long show it was the rst
mobile via the Planet Rock app. Comfortably Numb. anthemic rock tune that appealed to
VISIT: me. I went down to Woolworths in
Fake so-called punk
W W W. P L A N E T R O C K . C O M
F O R M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N bands like Blink-182. Kendall which was the place to be
and I bought The Unforgettable Fire
Scandinavian black for something like 3.99. When I got
metal bands with home I played it and was blown away.
band logos that are
I mustve played Pride 350 times
impossible to read.
that day alone, although I didnt know
Bands and promoters it was about Martin Luther King, of
who think its OK to course. After that I went through
do three shows in a a Larry Mullen Jnr phase, with the
tour and charge three
blond spiky hair and all
gures for a ticket.
that, then I really got into
All hair metal as rock. Im not a massive
long as we agree U2 fan these days, but
that Skid Row are when I hear this record it
not hair metal.
evokes those childhood
memories, and it set me
Thanks to PR listeners off buying records.
Dave Nuttyman,
Jonathan Kardasz,
Chris Ball, Andy
Hear T H U N D E R frontman
Little, James Byrne,
DA N N Y B OW E S on P L A N E T
Roonebean, Tom Taylor,
R O C K HYHU\6XQGD\IURPSP
Monster Truck: Andrew S and other
OLNHPLQGHGIRON Or the repeat on Thursday from
barroom boogie. SP(DFKZHHNKHEULQJV\RX
Mail us at M A I L @
PLAN ETROCK.COM a P OCKET M ON EY PICK.
or commune via Twitter
via # R O O M 6 6 6
PLANET ROCK 23
 Upfront
FULL METAL JACKET
Planet Rock listeners show us their colours.
AC / D C DAT E O F B I R T H : 1980 W H E N R E T I R E D : 1985
AC/DC were my favourite W H E R E F O U N D : A loft in Worcestershire
band still are and this
was my rst logo. It took
It was the law in the late 70s to own a denim jacket,
a month as the letters and VD\V\HDUROG-RH0DFNHWWWRGD\7KLVRQHZDV
lightning strike had to be RULJLQDOO\FRYHUHGLQSDWFKHVEXW,VDZHPEURLGHUHG
lled in completely no MDFNHWVDQGZDQWHGWRSHUVRQDOLVHPLQH,YDJXHO\
half measures here. UHFDOODVNLQJP\PXPWRGRLWDQGKHUUHSO\LQJ
,PQRWJRLQJWRUXLQDSHUIHFWO\JRRG
MDFNHW6KHVKRZHGPHWKHEDVLFVDQG
DZD\,ZHQW,WXUQHGLWLQWRDFXW
RZKHQ,ERXJKWDOHDWKHU
MDFNHWMXVWDIWHU
'RQLQJWRQ

WH ITE S NAKE
Before Whitesnake
came on at Donington
81 there was a
bottle ght and
something smacked
me on the side of the
head, knocking me
senseless for a few
seconds. Thirty-six
years later Id like to
thank the young lady
who kept checking
I was OK.

B L AC K F O OT
B LU E
I was hooked
YS T E R
on Blackfoot and
C U LT
bought Marauder
I saw B..C. the day it came
at Donington out in 81. I took
in 81 and they this logo from their
were a huge Highway Songs
disappointment. Live album. Id tried
I couldnt to plan it out, but
understand how three weeks work
they could be heralded a very
on that stage average result. As
and not have you can see the
any energy or letter L is too fat.
enthusiasm. Schoolboy error!
MARCO VIT TUR

RUSH
I originally embroidered Rushs Hemispheres
logo in orange (you can see the thread poking
out here). But then my mate Dave was ditching
Dont be shy. Raid that wardrobe, cellar or
his jacket and let me have his far more
loft and email us a photo of your old colours
accomplished effort in green.
to appear in the next issue of Planet Rock.
Contact: mail@planetrock.com.
24 PLANET ROCK
PAUL R OD G E RS
CELEBRATING THE MUSIC OF FREE
SPIRIT TOUR
FEATURING:
LITTLE BIT OF LOVE RIDE ON A PONY
THE STEALER MR. BIG
MY BROTHER JAKE WISHING WELL
THE HUNTER ALL RIGHT NOW
AND MANY MORE!
MAY 2017
FRI 12 PLYMOUTH PAVILIONS MON 22 SOUTHEND CLIFFS PAVILION
SUN 14 OXFORD NEW THEATRE TUE 23 IPSWICH REGENT
WED 17 LEICESTER DE MONTFORT HALL THU 25 PORTSMOUTH GUILDHALL PAULS SPECIAL GUEST
FRI
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19
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NOTTINGHAM ROYAL CONCERT HALL
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SUN
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DEBORAH
BONHAM
LIVENATION.CO.UK TICKETMASTER.CO.UK AND
VIP PACKAGES INCLUDING MEET & GREET AVAILABLE FROM VIPNATION.EU/PAULRODGERS JASMINE
RODGERS*
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Upfront
JOHN LENNON
WHO John Lennon, Anne Murray,
Harry Nilsson, Alice, Mickey Dolenz
The Troubadour, Los Angeles
WHERE
WHEN November 1973
I N 1 9 7 3 my manager
Shep Gordon began
managing Canadian folk
singer Anne Murray.
Although I dont know why! In a bid to
break her in America he booked a week
of shows at The Troubadour. Anne
didnt know anyone in LA, but Shep
knew I met with my fellow Hollywood
Vampires every night at the Rainbow
%DUDQG*ULOO6RKHVDLG,I\RXJX\V
would just show up for ten minutes and
I N T E RV I E W : PAU L B R A N N I G A N , P H O T O : G E T T Y , I L L U S T R AT I O N S : C W B
take a picture with Anne, it would help
launch her in the media.
The Hollywood Vampires got our
name from the fact that wed only
ever be seen together at night, and
then only to drink, but we were all
JRRGIULHQGV6RQJZULWHU+DUU\
1LOVVRQDQG7KH0RQNHHV0LFNH\
Dolenz would be out most nights, as
would John Lennon, Keith Moon and
Ringo Starr when they were in town.
We bonded over our love of
drinking, and we had our own little
community. We didnt care if someone
was a rock guy or a pop guy, we were
all in showbiz, and The Monkees
could party as hard as anyone.
I was the Dean Martin of the
group: I drank Seagrams VO whisky
ZLWK&RNHIURPPRUQLQJWRQLJKW
EXW,ZDVWKHJX\ZKRFRXOGNHHS
the golden buzz going without
JHWWLQJIDOOLQJGRZQGUXQNXQOLNH
John Lennon and Harry Nilsson.
26 PLANET ROCK
I was the one who pulled the group
together and organised everything.
On this particular night John and
I WAS THE GUY
Harry were arguing as they always did.
If John said black, Harry would say
white, and Id sit in the middle and WHO COULD
KEEP THE BUZZ
UHIHUHH%XWZHZHUHDOOKDYLQJD
JUHDWWLPHDQG,VDLG*X\VGRPH
a huge favour? Ill pick up the tab if
we could just run over to The GOING WITHOUT
Troubadour and take a picture with
Anne Murray. Everyone quit talking,
FALLING DOWN
and then I guess they weighed up the DRUNK. UNLIKE
JOHN LENNON.
prospect of not having to pay the bar
bill, and begrudgingly agreed.
Of course, the boys were drunk, JOH N LE N NON
and I imagine they said some very Ex-Beatle, separated
inappropriate things to Anne, who
from Yoko Ono at the
time and enjoying
didnt really get who these random his infamous lost
JX\VZHUH%XWZHWRRNWKHSKRWR weekend.
and the next day it was everywhere.
And then everyone wanted to
interview her. It was funny, because
Alices fave
WKHUHSRUWHUVZHUHVD\LQJ:RZ
70s tipple.
That was quite a picture and Anne
VKUXJJHGLWR2K\HDK. Anyway,
about my new album
The guys all read this and realised
we had been totally used. I was under
the gun for a while until one of us in
the group did something stupid,
which fortunately never took too
ORQJ7KDWSKRWRZDVDWRWDOVHWXS
but it made it look like
Anne Murray knew all
the cool guys in LA. So
mission accomplished.
Listen to N I G H TS W I T H
ALICE COOPE R every weeknight
on Planet Rock. Monday nights at 7pm
7XHVGD\)ULGD\SP
H A R RY N I L S S O N
Singer-songwriter,
Lennons musical and
drinking sparring partner.

M ICKEY DOLE N Z
Former child star and
Monkees drummer.

A N N E M U R R AY
Squeaky-clean Canadian
folkie. Had a massive hit
with Snowbird.
Upfront
Joanne Shaw Taylor:
keep em peeled.
Six songs to...
BEAT THE BLUES
Joanne Shaw Taylor, Britains
premier Black Country guitar
hero, scrolls through her iPod
to create a bespoke playlist.
1
JOE BONAMASSA
Love Aint A Love Song
(on Different Shades Of Blue, 2014)
I know Joe pretty well, and Im
really digging this song. This one is
funky, and its got a Strat tone
which I havent heard him play in
years. I came slightly late to Joe,
though I knew him without knowing
him. I had a job in a guitar shop in
Birmingham and one of the guys gave
PHWKHDOEXPE\%ORRGOLQH-RHVUVW
band, to get me into blues rock. The
thing about Joe is that hes got a great
voice, great lyrics and hes a great
guitarist. Hes the whole package.
2
GARY CL ARK JR
Bright Lights
(on Blak And Blu, 2012)
I heard about him because Id been
recording in Austin, Texas, and
28 PLANET ROCK
everybody kept talking about this guy
who was going to be the next big
WKLQJ(YHU\WRZQVJRWRQHDORFDO
blues kid thats tipped to do well. So
I checked him out, and this got me
right away. Hes got such a cool,
modern sound. The blues is always
going to be around, but its people
like Gary Clark Jr who are inspiring
more kids to pick up the guitar.
3
ZZ TOP
I Gotsta Get Paid
(on La Futura, 2012)
This was a real return to form. I was
touring Europe a few years ago, and
one of the guys we were with was
singing this song. I said, Thats
cool, what is it? He went, Its from
the new ZZ Top album. Havent you
heard it yet? I was like, Were in the
PLGGOHRI'HQPDUNLQZLQWHURI
course I havent. ZZ Top have
everything you could want in a rock
band. Theyve got the coolest
sound in the world, and will
you get a better frontman
than Billy Gibbons? Hes the get paid.
only reason to watch Nickel
backs Rockstar video.
4
TEDESCHI
TRUCKS BAND
Rollin And Tumblin (Live)
(on Everybodys Talkin, 2012)
Theyre an amazing combina
tion. Derek plays like Duane
Allman and Susan sings like
Paul Rodgers. She could sing
the phone book and make it
sound great, and hes the
guitar players guitarist. This
song sums up the Tedeschi Trucks
%DQG,WVMXVWVRHRUWOHVV
5
NORTH MISSISSIPPI
ALLSTARS
Turn Up Satan
(on World Boogie Is Coming, 2012)
I like music thats rooted in the blues
but also crosses over into the pop
thing. The White Stripes did it, and
North Mississippi Allstars do it. This
is really basic, but its perfect. Theyre
the sons of Jim Dickinson, the
producer. I had a bit of a residency in
Oxford, Mississippi, which was a
dream come true for a girl from
ZZ TOP HAVE England. You can see why people play
WKHPXVLFWKH\SOD\WKHUHVVRPH
EVERYTHING thing in the air down there.
YOU COULD
6
CLUTCH
WANT IN A
Electric Worry
(on From Beale Street To Oblivion, 2007)
ROCK BAND. ,WVDZLOGFDUGDQGD cover of a song
part credited to Mississippi Fred
0F'RZHOO,FDPHDFURVV&OXWFK
when I moved to the States. My bass
player was into them. I didnt dig
them much, but we were out on the
road a year or two ago and he put on
the album From Beale Street To
Oblivion. And this was a good
gateway to them. For me it was
I N T E RV I E W : R I C H A R D E A S T C O T E . P H O T O : A L A M Y
PRUHOLNHD==7RSEOXHVDOEXP
a bit heavier but
the same kind of
vibe. The weird
thing is they attract
a diverse audience.
I love them, and
so does my guitar
tech, who basically
listens to nothing
but Clutch and
Megadeth.
ZZ Tops Billy
Gibbons:
he gotsta J OA N N E S H AW TAY L O R
headlines the Blues Stage at R A M B L I N
M A N FA I R , Sunday July 30.
 3 DAYS
30 BANDS
& YOU
L AST FEW
TICKETS
REMAINING

For further information

planetrock.com/rockstock
Upfront
Things
youve always
wondered
about...
wHATEVEr
HAPPEnED
TO THAT
VAN HaLEN
REUnIOn?
Ten years after Diamond Dave
rejoined the band, Ben Mitchell
asks: where have they gone and
will they ever come to the UK?
E A R L I E R T H I S year Sammy
Hagar said hed tour with Van Halen
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was reinstated. Hagar fell out with the
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forget all that for a reunion.
I would do that for the fans and
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something, he said. Hagar, who turns
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want to be my friend. This refresh
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singers dressing room be as far away
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Were not in our
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love?: Estranged QRQHRIWKHPLQ(XURSH
vocalist Sammy
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Hagar and (right)
the old/new .LQG2I7UXWKOHWVQRWFRXQWTokyo
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A L A M Y . I L L U S T R AT I O N : PA N I K
The latest rumour doing the
rounds is that Van Halen will
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monetise former glories for as long
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a thought for the lead singer.
Upfront
lead guitarist
PHIL MOGG
U F O S C O M M A N D E R- I N - C H I E F O N F E S T E R I N G L E A D G U I TA R I S T S , I N A P P R O P R I AT E L E GW E A R
A N D S I N G I N G D O C T O R D O C T O R E V E R Y N I G H T. H E R E A R E H I S L I F E L E S S O N S
Try to get along with your
What do I look for in a lead guitarist?
One who doesnt talk. No, Im
kidding. Our guitarist Vinnie Moore
has been with us for something
ULGLFXORXVOLNHHLJKW\HDUV(GVQRWH
LWV7KHUHVQRGUDPDZLWK9LQQLH
But hes a festerer. Hell fester for
ages and then have an explosion. Like
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Keep a sense of humour
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always tried to keep one no matter
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$PHULFDQV9LQQLHDQG5RE'H/XFD
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Vinnie the other day, Im sending
you a bill. What for? For teaching
you to have a sense of humour.
Do give up the day job
:KHQ,VWDUWHGVLQJLQJ,VDLG7KLV
is my job, and my old man used to
say, Get a proper job, something
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.HQWLVK7RZQE\WKH)RUXP7KH
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about stair winders and bolsters.
7KHQWDFNOHVVHGJLQJFDPHRXWDQG
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a carpet? Of course. When do you
need it done by?
Try to stay t
I havent been to the gym for a
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RQVWDJHZRXOGPDNHXSIRULW
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the tour bus has changed. In
the old days, it was Whos got
some? and Where is it?. Now
its My backs killing me and my
Hotnready:
Phil Mogg now.
32 PLANET ROCK
MY GUIDE TO LIFE
knee feels funny. I often wake up in
the morning and think, Fuck me,
,IHHOOLNH,ULVKGDQFHU0LFKDHO
COULD Flatley. Cos I read that hes so
knackered after doing Riverdance,
I STILL FIT it takes him half an hour to get out
A CARPET?
of bed.
OF COURSE. You have to play the hits
Choosing a setlist gets harder as
WHEN DO the years go by. But there are certain
VRQJV\RXMXVWKDYHWRSOD\,I8)2
YOU NEED IT GLGQWSOD\'RFWRU'RFWRULWZRXOG
DONE BY?
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7R+HOORU3LQN)OR\GQRWGRLQJ
er, whatever.
Sometimes its hard to stay
mates in a band
,WVWKHVDPHDVDQ\IULHQGVKLSRU
marriage. You have those days when
\RXWKLQN'R,have to listen to this
pile of old shit again? And then its all
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near me in Brighton, but in the posh
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\RQNV7KHODVWWLPH,VDZ3HWHZH
went for a pint and fell right back
into the old routine, like him
saying, Can you buy me another
drink, and Ill pay back that tenner
Ive owed you since 1975.
Be careful what you wish for
:KHQ8)2VWDUWHGLQZH
wanted to be out there playing
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and within two years there were
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PRQWKV7KHVHGD\V,VDy to my wife,
Look, Im only going away for three
weeks, not three months in
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likelihood Ill come back.
Keep making new music
We have talked about touring and just
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OLYHDOEXPStrangers In The NightIRU
the crack. But were still making new
music. Were recording a covers
DOEXPDFWXDOO\:HYHGRQH7KH
'RRUV%UHDN2Q7KURXJK7KH
Yardbirds Heart Full Of Soul.
But we dont know what to call it.
Wear sensible trousers
Ive seen a few elderly men backstage
UHFHQWO\DQGWKHLUORRNZLWKWKHKDLU
DQGWKHWURXVHUVLVPRUHDJHLQJWKDQ
if theyd embraced growing old. Ive
shaved my head now and joined the
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I found some old stage gear the other
week and tried it on. Honestly, no!
I looked at myself with a couple of
bollocks hanging down the left side
RIP\OHJ$QGWKDWVWKHWKLQJGR
I N T E RV I E W : M A R K B L A K E P H O T O : RO S S H A L F I N
you really want to see a man past 50
showing the outline of his knob? Its
a bit disgusting.
Pack wisely for the road
Make sure you have at least 30 pairs
of socks, seriously. One for the day
and one for the gig. But for Gods
VDNHGRQWRYHUSDFN,VOLSSHGWZR
discs in my lower back and I think it
ZDVIURPRYHUSDFNLQJP\VXLWFDVH
7KDWVFUHZHd me right up. I felt like
Michael Flatley.
U FO play R A M B L I N M A N FA I R
on July 30, 2017.
Shoot shoot:
Phil Mogg,
1980.
Upfront

Hats entertainment:
(from left) Slash, Axl
Rose, Lars Ulrich,
backstage, Monsters
Of Rock festival, 1988.
 Kings Of
The Castle
ON PLANET ROCK
Tune into The History Of
Donington. Please note:
No Camping Is Allowed.

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See P L A N E T R O C K . C O M to vote and for more

information and broadcast times.

GEORGE CHIN/ICONIC PIX

PLANET ROCK 35
Dream on: Steven
Tyler ignoring the
pre-ight safety
demonstration,
May 1976.
 THE
PLANET
ROCK
INTERVIEW
HES A MOTOR-MOUTHED WORDSMITH, A HARD
ROCK RAGAMUFFIN AND ONE OF THE WORLDS
MOST CELEBRATED MUSIC STARS. IN A TURBO-
CHARGED INTERVIEW, STEVEN TYLER REVISITS
THE ROOTS OF AEROSMITH AND MUCH MORE
I N T E R V I E W BY PHIL ALEXANDER. P O R T R A I T BY FIN COSTELLO

STEVE N VICTOR
TALLAR ICO
BOR N
March 26, 1948
New York
OCCU PATION
Singer-songwriter,
musician, actor,
TV talent show judge
YEAR S ACTIVE
1964present
ASSOCIATE D ACTS
Aerosmith
GETTY

PLANET ROCK 37
DOES
Tyler through the
ages: including
(clockwise from
top left) his early
groups The Chain
THE NOISE IN MY HEAD BOTHER YOU? Jupiter, Saturn and Reaction and The
is the title of Steven Tylers 2011 autobiography. Spend Uranus too/Mercury, Strangeurs; with
Venus I know them brother Joe Perry;
PRUH WKDQ YH PLQXWHV LQ WKH $HURVPLWK VLQJHUV
too. They have a laugh with daughter
company and you realise how apt that title is. In fact, Liv; father Victor
and they sing. Thats
Tyler is one of the few rock stars who seems to gen how the brain works. Tallarico; the
uinely enjoy the interview sparring process; spinning Thats what music can young offender
war stories aplenty while opening up in a manner in 1966, and giving
do. It can teach you. the nger on-stage
ZKHUHVHOIFHQVRUVKLSRIWHQDSSHDUVHQWLUHO\DEVHQW in Orlando, 1983.
Talking about your
,QSHUVRQKHLVIDEXORXVO\DPER\DQWEXWDPLG
own education, is it
the grand gestures, there are many moments of gen true you were busted
XLQHUHHFWLRQSRVVLEO\DVDUHVXOWRIthat QRLVHRU in High School by an undercover narcotics
LQGHHGYRLFHLQKLVKHDG7\OHUVREYLRXVVHQVLWLYLW\ ofcer and expelled in 1966
LVPDWFKHGE\DJHQXLQHIDQVH\HYLHZRIPXVLF<RX (Laughs) Well, thats just the way it was. When
could argue that in recent times that musicality has I went to school it was 1963, 64, 65 and
been overlooked in favour of his celebrity. Then again, Istarted coming alive at the age of 14, 15, 16. Iwas
7\OHUDOVRORYHVEHLQJDURFNVWDU,WGHQLWHO\KDVLWVSHUNVKHJULQV noticing other people. It was just something that
That said, as a musician, performer and lyricist, few frontmen of his generation have come happened marijuana and the [Vietnam] war. The
close to matching him for consistency and drive. Steven Tyler is one of the greats of American war was terrible, but the peace was put together
PXVLFVDLG3DXO0F&DUWQH\ZKHQDVNHGIRUDTXRWHIRUWKHVLQJHUVPHPRLU with smoking pot (ashes peace sign). Its some-
7\OHUVFKLOGKRRGDQGPXVLFDOHGXFDWLRQH[SODLQKLVVWD\LQJSRZHUDVZHDUHDERXWWRQGRXW thing we dont have today. Its all fucking ecstasy in
clubs and, er, fucking. Back then you were 13, you
during a conversation focusing on the events that helped shape how he thinks and operates. On
passed the joint and it was Make Love, Not War.
WKHHYHRIZKDWPD\WXUQRXWWREHWKHQDO$HURVPLWKWRXU7\OHUKDVDJUHHGWRJREDFNWRWKDW
Everybody was your friend.
time when the young Steven Tallarico, a boy born March 26, 1948, grew up in an apartment down
WKH EORFN IURP +DUOHPV IDPHG$SROOR7KHDWHU DQG VSHQW KLV VXPPHUV JUDIWLQJ DW KLV JUDQG Really?
IDWKHUVVXPPHUFDPSLQ1HZ+DPSVKLUH)URPKHUHWRKLVUVWPXVLFDOVWHSVKLVSDUWQHUVKLS Yes, today you can see people in the street and not
ZLWK-RH3HUU\WKHIRUPDWLRQRI$HURVPLWKDQGWKHGUDPDDQGH[FHVVRIOLIHRQWKHURDG know if theyre going to mug you or not. Back then,
you looked at somebody (makes smoking gesture)
and youd go and smoke a joint with them. You
started talking. It was sweet and beautiful. The narc
Lets go back to the beginning. Your father, would put together little skits in the barn down- in school was just a thing that happened. We were
Victor Tallarico, led a dance band in the stairs where she had a little stage. There was just watching the English Invasion and taking acid and
1950s and taught music. What did you learn a curtain and a few chairs in front of it. So, I started shit. But, yeah, it was a bust, but actually it got me
from him? there. That was the beginning of it. a YO which stands for Youthful Offender. That
kept me out of the war, so I could have
I learned that you could and should practise every Was that your rst taste of show- been dead and I wouldnt have been
day. We lived in a small, sixth-oor apartment at business? sitting here.
5610 Netherland Avenue in the Bronx. Ive been
back there since and it isnt very big but in the cor- Yes, because then came The Beatles, You joined your rst bands in
ner there was a grand piano. A Steinway grand! The Kinks, The Hullabaloos and all 1963 and had your rst glimpse of
My father practised every day Beethoven, Bach, that stuff. Watching them as I grew up, the real world of rocknroll when
Chopin. He went to Juilliard [New Yorks school I realised I could sing. The next thing you opened for The Beach Boys.
of performing arts]. So I listened to him, listened was I wanted to write a song. I could What did it mean to you?
to the classics (he sings a classical air, and then do that too, so it all went from there. THE CHAIN (His eyes well up) It was fucking
scales). That was drummed into my head. What did rocknroll do to you REACTION In the
everything to me. I used to sit at
late 60s Steven Tyler
Did you bring that knowledge to Aerosmith? when you rst heard it? home and listen to those bands
cut two 45s with The
What did it do to me? (Pauses) God! Chain Reaction, the bands like The Beach Boys. I dont
If you watch early lms of Aerosmith from about
71 I was forever tuning Joe [Perry], Tom [Hamilton] Before I had sex, it was sex! When rst of which was the know how to say it any other way and
and Brad [Whitfords] guitars, because they couldnt, I heard The Everly Brothers do (sings, whimsical psych of I dont want to get heavy on you, but
but I had the ear and that was a gift. It came from the 1957 tune) I wonder if I care as The Sun, the B-side of life was explained to me through song
God rst, of course, and then from my father. much and those double harmonies which, When INeeded and music. When I was even younger
Wow! I started off listening to them and You, appears on like six or seven I went to church, we
You started singing aged three and perform- then at nine or ten I got a little AM radio Aerosmiths box set sang hymns and there was a table with
ing at Trow-Rico, a holiday lodge owned by Pandoras Box. candles on it. I thought God lived under
and put a wire up in the apple tree to
your family. get WOWO Fort Wayne Indiana [the that table. I thought that through the
My grandfather came over from Italy, from Calabria, 1950s-era East Coast station]. But listening to music power of song, God was there. So when I listened
and lived in the Bronx. All the brothers got together done like that with that freedom and the harmonies, to those bands and then I got a chance to play with
ALAMY, ROSS HALFIN

it was a family thing and got about ve grand
together, bought a place in Sunapee, New Hamp-
shire, and opened a small camp of housekeeping
cottages. Every summer I lived up there. My Aunt
Phyllis, the wife of my fathers brother Ernie, would
encourage me to perform. All the families that
came up had kids and every Friday night shed get
everyone together and we would sing [childrens
tune] John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt. She
the fths I think that in the year 2100 teaching
children will be like that. Right now its like, One-and-
one-is-two. Thats ridiculous.
So what would you do instead?
Take a classroom of kids 20 kids and teach
them the names of the planets. How? Ill tell you.
(Sings) Mercury, Venus, the Earth and Mars/
These are the planets that dwell in the stars/
them God! The Beach Boys When The Beach
Boys played Iona College [in New York], this was
a college of 6,000 kids that were all singing along
with every word. This was before The Beatles.
I had not seen The Beatles at Shea Stadium by that
point. I had not had a religious experience until that
point. All of us singing together (bursts into song)
I wish they all could be California Girls! Oh my
God! And we opened up for them.

38 PLANET ROCK
 That would have been in March 66 and they sucked. The lead singer would tape

THERES A SIDE TO THE

when you were in The Strangeurs. You also a copy of Playboy to the stage and look at the
did a TV show with The Shangri-Las a few girls, and he didnt give a shit kind of like that

AEROSMITH STORY THATS

months later. singer in Oasis. Anyway, Joe was playing and there
(Interrupting) Well, The Shangri-Las was the ear- was this one moment where they just nailed it

HALF TIN PAN ALLEY AND

liest that I really recall. That lead singer girl, Mary
Weiss I was in the bathroom before the show.
I thought my drummer was in the stall next to me
but he wasnt. I looked over and that girl was in
there peeing! I tell that story because I dont have
any other story. Its not like Johnny Thunders, who
would hold a needle and squirt it up to the ceiling.
I hear peoples stories today and I think I cant really
throw in like that.
There is the famous Thank you and good-
night story when you supposedly walked
off-stage at an Aerosmith gig because the
setlist was changed around and you played
the song you usually play rst as your
second tune. Did that really happen?
Never! After the second song? Of course not.
We might have played the same song twice, but
thats about it.
HALF WEST SIDE STORY IN
A KNIFE-WIELDING WAY
So the Stones really were your rst heroes?
Everybody used to think Mick was my idol, but
what happened was actually I saw Janis rst, then
I saw Mick. I went and saw Janis Joplin way before
(reciting a line from the 1975 Aerosmith tune,
Adams Apple) Back when Cain was Abel, way
before the stable so to speak. And yes, he
was my fucking hero. There was actually a six- or
seven-year period where I was afraid to tell the
(sings a James Brown-styled rhythm and guitar riff
simultaneously).
So you two decided to start a band together?
We got together and moved to Boston two weeks
later. We used to carry our gear from the apart-
ment down to the truck, drive the truck to West
Campus One, unload the gear and set it up in the
hall underneath the girls dorm in the basement
and rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. Then, I realised
we were waxing the dog. I said to the guys, We
gotta take a lesson from this band. A three-piece
with a singer. The bass player is playing the same
thing as the guitar player, and the drummers foot
is following the bass players. Theyre called L-L-
Led Z-Z-Z-eppelin. We started doing that and
Aerosmith was born.
Two years after Aerosmith formed, you
changed your name from Steven Tallarico

F
press so I was all like, No, he isnt. And then, of to Steven Tyler. Are they two different guys?
course, I came out of the closet and went Fuckin Not really. I got that shit in rehab. I want you to
O R TYLE R, his early misadventures in keep Tyler out of here. Well, Fuck you! I am that
A! He is! To this day, to this minute, to this second,
rocknroll were full of the rough and Mick Jagger is still my hero. I get pissed off at [US guy I am that guy. They love to do that stuff.
tumble experiences associated with the shock jock] Howard Stern because he says, At Steven Tyler and Steven Tallarico are the same guy.
mid 60s. The musical and narcotic least youre still relevant and hes not! Well, fuck The Dream On guy is the same guy who sat there
experimentation of the time fuelled his you! Hes Mick Jagger! Yeah, Im pissed off at him and learned things from my father. I just changed
earliest endeavours. While Aerosmith would cutting his hair and Id tell him that, but thats it. my name, but I am the same person.
become the archetypal 70s hard rock band, After youd been through all these bands, I wasnt just talking about the change
Tylers teenage years saw him soaking up all you nally met Joe Perry of name. I was trying to nd out whether
kinds of music like a sponge. In all those bands from 64 to when I met Joe, we theres a difference between you as a
Establishing himself as a drummer before would play every club in New York. But I wanted person and you as a performer.
VZLWFKLQJWRYRFDOVKLVFRUHLQX that fuckin Dave Davies/Ray Davies, Oh yeah, I can be sweet and look at the sunrise,
ences included The Beatles, the Mick and Keith thing and I never but its like if you play really fast music to a bunch
Dave Clarke Five and, of course, had that. I wanted a brother, someone of ve year olds they dance around like this (makes
who was so special. I never had that. frantic dance moves). If you take two human
7KH6WRQHVWKHEDQG$HURVPLWK
Finally, we wrung out the rag in New beings that are sexually active, a teenage girl and a
would be most likened to during
York until there was nowhere left to teenage boy, and you play sexy music to them then
their rise. Such was the impact theyll fuck. Its the same thing. Music is like a drug.
play. I was in this band called William
of the British Invasion on Tylers Proud and we ended up in a club in I become a certain way with it. I dont think Mick
generation that The Strangeurs MICK JAGGER Long Island. I got into a ght with Jagger when he was doing that (does Jagger's
SULQWHGEXVLQHVVFDUGVWKDWRHUHG Mick is still my the guys, so I left my drums there pouty clap) was pretending, the music just made
English Sounds, American R&B, hero, admits Steven and hitched all the way back to New him feel that way. Anyhow, I just wanted to make
Tyler. The Stones that clear all my life Ive had that. But I am the
with Tyler singing an entire set in a Hampshire with my tail between my
frontman returned same person. I love celebrating, I love getting up
IDX[(QJOLVKDFFHQW legs. Id said, Mom, Im going to make
the compliment and I think theres an old saying that goes, Dance
it so big, fans are going to be all over
What was the music scene like in 2012 when he
the house so were going to have to like you would when no ones looking.
impersonated Tyler on

back then? move. But I went home a beaten child,
American TV show,
Its funny, with all that you hear about Saturday Night Live, and started mowing lawns.
Aerosmith and the drug history, you wearing leopard-print
tend to believe that it was all buzz Tell us about the day you rst
top, scarves an all.
and blur. It really wasnt. That hap- met Joe
pened before that. Between 1964 to 1969 Iwas One day Joe Perry pulled up in his MG. I can
in bands. I played everywhere in New York. Iliter- actually show you the spot where that happened.
ally played them all. I was in The Strangeurs, The He was wearing black horn-rimmed specs and
Chain Reaction and you name any club in Green- he said, Yeah, were in a band and were play-
wich Village that Dylan played, well I hit them all ing The Barn You know Elyssa, right? I said,
too. I remember being at a club in Central Square Oh, yeah. I did because I played with my fathers
in early 66 and turning around and seeing Mick band (sings a jazz-styled tune) and Elyssas father
Jagger and Brian Jones sitting there. I was so Nick Jerrett was in the band. His daughter was a
taken aback, I couldnt talk. These people were skinny little fox and Joe Perrys girlfriend. He told
myfuckingheroes. me she was going and I should go too. So I did,
T
YLE RS PA R T N E R S H I P with Joe Perry
would provide him with the foil hed
been looking for in his previous bands.
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40 PLANET ROCK
LIVIN ON THE EDGE
Eight great and not-so-great Steven Tyler moments.

5
OWNS THE
SUPER BOWL
HALFTIME SHOW
2001
Tyler rules the roost even as a chaotic
performance of Walk This Way with co-
headliners NSYNC is crashed by Britney
Spears, Mary J. Blige and Nelly. It was
great for me, said Tyler. Britney and
I swapped shirts at the end.

6
Party on, dude:
with Aerosmith and
FALLS OFF
Tom Hanks, Waynes STAGE TWICE
World, 1990. (above) IN TWO YEARS
Hit me baby: with 2009 & 2010
Britney Spears, 2001.
A hip bump from Joe Perry sends Tyler
ying at a 2010 Toronto show. Unlike the
previous year, when he took a tumble

1 3
after snorting prescription painkillers
STARS WITH DEMONSTRATES and ended up hospitalised, he
TOM HANKS IN HIS LYRICAL escaped unscathed. Tyler
WAYNES WORLD POWER resumes the set exclaiming,
Saturday Night Live, 1990 IN SWEET It aint gonna happen
Co-host Garths cousin Barry played by EMOTION again, baby!

7
Tom Hanks uses his inuence as an 1975
Aerosmith roadie to get the band on When Tyler wrote that a UNVEILS HIS
Waynes show. A surprisingly well-informed sweet talkin mama with a FORTISSIMO
Tyler responds to a lefteld question about face like a gent informed SHRIEK IN
Eastern Europe: Until you remove the him that his get up and go DREAM ON
Stalinist era apparatchiks, there will be must have got up and went, 1973
noreal change in the Soviet Union. little did he know four decades An early showcase of Tylers vocal

2
later this would remain his greatest power. Towards the end of Dream On,
HIS SUGGESTIVE ever lyric. his delivery of the title refrain lurches
L AUGH AS AN AMUSE-

4
up through the registers to the sort of
BOUCHE TO LOVE IN HIS ATHLETIC precision-controlled screaming that could
AN ELEVATOR HOT-DOGGING liquefy a lifetime supply of Strepsils.
IN THE WALK

1989
The tracks preamble ends with a coquettish
lift attendant exclaiming, Oh! Good
morning Mr Tyler. Going down? The
singers reply? Heh-heh-heh-hurh-hurh-
hooo! Fun fact: Brandi Brandt, the elevator
girl in the video, was married to Mtley
Cres Nikki Sixx and later imprisoned for
drug trafcking.
THIS WAY VIDEO
1986
Tyler impresses Run-DMC at the close of
this promo by executing his go-to stage
move: the handspring. He might lack the
beefy, ladies man appeal of prime David
Lee Roth, but Tyler cant be beaten for
coordination and spider strength.
8
OVERDOSES
ON UV RAYS
1982
Strung out on methadone before
pretending to be a street rufan for the
Lightning Strikes video, Tyler passes out in
the Florida sun for nine hours and gets so
severely burnt clumps of his hair fall out.

With his feet

ying up in the
air: Walk This
Way video, 1986.
PLANET ROCK 41

and The Stones Let It Bleed, Aerosmiths
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Lets move on to Aerosmith's early days.
Its like a lot of bands: live in the same
house, play, drink, steal to eat. Was it
a character-building experience?
Yeah. Back then I stuffed meat down my pants to
survive. Id go to the store and get some ground
beef to throw in with some rice and make that
gravy train shit that I could put on some bread
and then we all ate. What I learned from it was that
I wanted it more than anybody. That the dream, or
whatever it was, that I saw in Brian Jones did he
just die in a pool? (Shaking his head, to suggest
no) Did Mick just let a bunch of butteries go?
(Shaking his head again) Is (sings) Are you going
to Scarborough Fair just a song? Or is more than
that? Is it just a song? Or is it life itself?
Thats the fundamental question about
music and its role in society.
Yeah! When I went to the Woodstock festival, I was
tripping my brains out to the point where I didnt
know where I was. I walked over to the hog farm
42 PLANET ROCK
Bottoms up: Steven
Tyler, as nature
intended, Oman
Desert, Saudi
Arabia, 2007.
and I looked up in the sky and helicopters came
over and they dropped these giant nets Get out
of the way! My brain was on LSD, not just one tab
because Id snorted another. I was in this tent and
the tent was (makes warping noise). What Ididnt
realise was these helicopters were actually coming
to drop 500 pounds of frankfurters on the site
because the place had been declared a disaster
area. Then the helicopters dropped tons of pots
and pans to cook the shit in. So, I went over and
Ipicked up a pot and I went (beats a drum pattern
on the table). Then another guy came over and did
the same. And that went on and on. Even [novelist/
counterculture icon] Ken Kesey was banging on a
pot. This was never gotten on lm but my whole life
has been that
A LOT OF MY LYRICS
ARE TRAIN-OF-THOUGHT
AND MY TRAIN STOPPED
AT EVERY STATION.
What? About banging on pots?
(Laughs) Yeah! Its not just about cutting the
umbilical cord or writing songs like Dream On or
being in Aerosmith, but its all of that. Its so deep
and meaningless! (Laughs) Ive seen the sun go
down and put out by the ocean! Ive seen the end
of the Earth! Ive also seen it be round! Ive seen
babies die and cry and be born and dogs talk! Ive
seen it all! Its funny! Ive had a chance to write
about it! And be in bands. I mean, I may wake
up dead tomorrow A bit of an oxymoron, but
hey! And I still get to be on-stage with Joe Perry.
Whoever the fuck he thinks he is or I think I am,
were in the same band and we still make music.
OK, lets go back to Aerosmith. You were
signed to Columbia in 1972 by Clive Davis
Yes. We played a set for him which we ended
because wed run out of songs with (sings a vaude-
ville-styled piece of instrumentation punctuated by
a nal drum roll on his knees) and we said, Thank
you very much, ladies and gentlemen, were going
to take a short break! We walked off and our man-
ager said, Get back up there! Do another song!
Jam anything! Tell them youre going to do a song
called We Dont Want To Fuck You, Lady, We Just
Wanna Eat Your Sandwiches. So, I did. We played
fuck all and then there was (mimes applause).
When we walked off-stage I walked back to the
back of the club, and this guy comes over. He put
his arm around me and he said, Son, youre go-
ing to be a big, big fuckin star. And that was Clive
Davis. To him it was nothing. He just saw the talent
as you could argue both you or I would, because
the band did have it, how-fucking-ever, we got
signed and went and did our rst record.
After a year didnt he try to drop you?
Not Clive. But that guy who worked with Alice
Cooper Bob Ezrin. He thought we werent
ready yet. But someone else went, Ill take that!
And it was [producer] Jack Douglas. This is all
true and to me it means everything just thinking
about it again Bob Ezrin said we werent good
enough but Jack Douglas saw something in the
future and reacted quickly. And guess what? That
second album was pretty fucking good. And there
was a song on that rst album called Dream
Dream Dream On and it did pretty fucking good.
Your rst album came out in 1973. By 76
and in the space of four albums youd
become a multi-platinum band with addic-
tions to match. What shape were you in?
In the early days Aerosmith were seen as a cash
cow by the record company. We were worked to
death. We did three shows a week and we were
kept on blow [cocaine]. No one ever once said,
You guys had better take a break, and when
Ilooked back at that I would say, in front of Jesus
Christ above at Heavens Gate, Thank you and
fuck you! At any time I could have had a heart
ROSS HALFIN
attack and people would have looked away and
said, Well, we didnt know what they were doing.
Bullshit! Everybody knew what we were doing and
we were a mess. It was tour-album-tour-album-
tour-album. There were no breaks.
 A E R O S M I T H S R I S E was based on relent
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Tell us how you wrote Walk This Way a
song you once described as a fantasy
about older girls getting in your pants.
I suppose a lot of my lyrics are train-of-thought
and, as I used to like to say, my train stopped at
every station. Joe and I wrote it when we were
on tour soundchecking in Hawaii at the HIC
[Honolulu International Center], which I think is still
there. Joe was playing the riff and I came up with
the rhythm. The words came later. Its proved over
the years that you cant keep a good song down.
Sex has always inspired your lyrical
vocabulary. At one point werent you
worried about being a sex addict?
I wasnt worried about it. Look, I had nine years of
sobriety and I was sick and tired of arguing with
the band all the time. How many bands [from our
generation] are still around? Does zero ring a bell?
Do you know why? Because they either say, Fuck
you! or they ght. Its like The Kinks when Dave
punched Ray. Ive given Joe the nger more times
than I can remember. But its about dialogue now.
I went away to this place, and they started asking
me things like, What are you all about? And I said,
What do you mean? And they said, Were you
there when a key member of your family passed
away? And I said, I was on the road when my
grandma passed. And they went, Grief group! So
they said, Have you ever had sex on the road?
But we must have walked away with no more than
three mill each. Its always been that way. Right now,
the guy youre looking at, the only thing Im worth is
a hard ticket. The managers of the past have made
sure theyve got enough. May they roll over in their
graves a billion million years from now. I have no
hard feelings. I look back and I think, God, man, all
I was like, Duh! So they went, Sex addict! Have we were doing was writing some songs.
you ever done drugs on the road? Drug addict!
Cash aside, the myth of Aerosmith was built
By the time I left that room an hour later I had
on the glamour of self-destruction. As the
six new monikers grief addict, sex addict, drug
man who went through that, it
addict and the rest.
cant have been that much fun.
What was your reaction? It was fun. Youve got to understand
I was like, What? I mean what fuck- that. But its like saying you got laid.
ing rock star hasnt had an affair or If somebody knew you well enough
been with three girls? What hetero- and looked at the rst time you got
sexual normal man hasnt dreamed laid, theyd be able to say, Bullshit!
of being with three girls at once? And The rst time you got laid wasnt good,
the one who says he hasnt, well hes RUN-DMC I was there. You were blind fucking
Tyler and Perrys
a lying motherfucker. And you know drunk. And then youd have to admit,
collaboration with
it! I mean, what woman hasnt had a I was, wasnt I? So, everything Ive
Run-DMC on Walk This
fantasy of being with two men? Its said is full of shit, isnt it? Nobody
Way, released in July wants to go there.
just the way life is. Anyhow, I got a lot
1986, hit the US Top
of other things out of that place that Regardless of (bellows a couplet
5. According to Tyler,
were interesting, but those things from Sweet Emotion as if stoned)
the hip-hop trio initially
werent part of that. Standing in front just shaking yo
struggled with his lyrics.
ass!/Take you backstage you can
They couldnt work
You obviously have a spiritual drink from my glass! Regardless
them out, he says.
side. Does it get lost behind the of whether that was a fucking blind
stereotypical sex guy? drunk ramble or whether that was from God in
Well, theres always going to be somebody thats Heaven above, it doesnt matter.
going to think that Steven Tyler is that crazy guy
So you did have a good time?
you see on-stage. But if you listen to a song
Iwrote in 1969, Dream On, you might get a differ- I was having a good time, it was rocknroll, and its
all about that. If you could come back in time for
ent view. I dont even know where I came up with
four hours, you would have had a blast too. But
that shit! (Semi-sings) Every time that I look in the
all in all, you looking back, somebody had a straw
mirror/All these lines on my face getting clearer/
in Joes jugular sucking the blood out the whole
The past is gone/It went by like dusk to dawn
time. There was something premeditated and evil
I was just a teenager when I wrote that, smoking as
about that whole thing. And thats why someone,
much pot as everyone else. I went to church, I had a
like me, who sticks around long enough, at the end
sister, Im Italian and Ive probably seen the sun set
of the day, will go, Wow! Thats fucked up!
and rise as much as you have But let me tell you,

Keep the fucking dialogue open, thats the way it is.
Where does that source of tension come
from within Aerosmith?
The band [and I] were always ghting and I couldnt
nd out why. Turns out, the fuckers are just jealous.
I go out onto the street and everyone comes over
and asks me for my autograph, but they dont go
over to Tom [Hamilton]. Its not my fault. Ive got
Lead Singer Disorder LSD as Jimmy Page
puts it! So I went away. I went to a place
called Sierra Tucson. There was a wonder-
ful guy there who was my mentor and I was
reading a lot of [US poet and civil rights
activist] Maya Angelou and getting back
into the spiritual world because the
reason I got off drugs is because Im a
lyricist and that shit steals from you.
So you just couldnt write
songs anymore?
ROSS HALFIN
I like cutting the umbilical cord at my son Tajs birth.
I like smelling placenta. I like the act of making love
rather than saying, I fucked you! So if anybody
wants to see the spiritual side of Steven Tyler, well,
yes, ithey can just listen to my lyrics.
The new version of Walk This Way saw
Aerosmith reach a new audience, and
renewed success with the albums
Permanent Vacation (1987) and
Pump (1989). But it didnt stop
your self-destructive streak
second time around
The second time we did it, we
got sober and we did it on steam
and strength. It wasnt blow and,
er, blow. Or blow and heroin. We
did it on passion and strength.
We never did three shows in
a row, we did two instead.
T
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It takes away your memory and Its funny. We were given a
you cant remember anything, framed present of all the
rhyme scheme or have fun tickets by our accoun- AE ROSM ITH play the D OW N L OA D F E S T I VA L
any more. You become a And tants. And we must have at Donington Park on June 11.
shell of yourself. So, anyway, another grossed about 140 mill.
thing

PLANET ROCK 45
 ON THE ROAD

BROTHERS
& SISTERS
After The Black Crowes
split for good in 2015,
Rich Robinson reassembled
the group without his brother
and with a new name:
THE MAGPIE SALUTE.
Planet Rock hears the
astonishing inside story of
an irreconcilable sibling
feud and musical rebirth.
WORDS

PETE MAKOWSKI
PHOTOGRAPHY

ROSS HALFIN

46 PLANET ROCK
 Green is the colour: nine out of
10 of The Magpie Salute (from
left) Marc Ford, Nico Bereciartua,
Sven Pipien, Rich Robinson,
Charity White, Adrien Reju, Katrine
Ottosen, John Hogg, Joe Magistro.
 R one half
I C H R O B I N S O N,
of the duelling Robinson
brothers, is sat backstage
at Chelseas Under The
Bridge, arms outstretched, wearing a beaming
smile and radiating the aura of a musical elder
statesman. Suddenly the serene mood in
Emperor Abramovichs stylish nightclub
dressing room is shattered by the booming
opening chords of Led Zeppelins Your Time
Is Gonna Come.
Is that Matt working things out?
Robinson asks a passing roadie, referring to
The Magpie Salutes keyboard player, Matt
Slocum.
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Would it be possible er just for this
interview to
Tell him to shut up? he sighs.
Yeah in a nicer way, of course.
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don whos just ordered a hit. The music ends
abruptly as if a plug has just been pulled from
a socket.
The Magpie Salute, Rich Robinsons new
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intimate venue. Its the latest step in Rich
Robinsons ongoing campaign to celebrate his
old group The Black Crowes musical legacy,
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The Black Crowes swaggering blues
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albums such as The Southern Harmony And
Musical Companion and Amorica, brightened
up the 1990s. The corvine link between the
two band names is reinforced by The Magpie
Salutes setlist enthusiastically mining The
Black Crowes back catalogue. Right now,
theyre as close as youre going to get to the
real thing.
Richs older brother Chris was The Black
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out, badly. It was clear my brother didnt give
a shit about the Crowes any more and it was
only about money, contends Robinson. But
I do care about the Crowes. Thats a huge
body of my work, writing those songs for 25
years. So I thought, Lets do this, but be really
conscious about not falling into the trappings
of ego and negativity. Lets go to the stage
with respect for the music but also for the
people coming to see us.
Robinson delivers this statement in a
relaxed but precise manner, aware no doubt
of the media interest surrounding the broth
ers very public falling out.
The Magpie Salute came together in
October 2016, after the Crowes most recent
split, when Rich Robinson decided hed
rather work with a band then go solo. He
approached his former Black Crowes band
mates: bassist Sven Pipien, guitarist Marc

48 PLANET ROCK

Supermarket sweep: Marc Ford,
Rich Robinson and snacks,
backstage Under The Bridge,
Chelsea, April 2017; those ever-
changing setlists and (below)
with their bandmates and
singer John Hogg.
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Ford and keyboard player Ed Harsch.
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As the crowe ies:
Rich Robinson and
John Hogg, and
(below) Rich with
brother Chris in
happier times, 1992.
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 Follows The Rolling Stones on their 2016
tour through ten Latin America cities
whilst at the same time trying to stage
their rst ever concert in Havana, Cuba.
Includes seven exclusive bonus live
tracks from the tour with a running time
of over 50 minutes.

A TRIP ACROSS Available on DVD & Blu-ray from May 26th.

LATIN AMERICA
www.rollingstones.com www.eagle-rock.com

A FILM BY PAUL DUGDALE

 THE LONG GOODBYE TOUR

P L U S S P E C I A L G U E STS

NOVEMBER 2017
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Songs and stories behind the works of Bowling For AXS.COM THEDARKNESSLIVE.COM
Soup, J arets side-projects, his early songwriting NEW ALBUM OUT 2017
triumphs and failures, TV shows, movies and more!!  thedarknessofcial
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T H E M AG P I E SA L U T E s debut album
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PLANET ROCK 53
Royal ush: Def Leppard
(from left) Phil Collen,
Rick Savage, Rick Allen,
Joe Elliott, Steve Clark,
in their pre-Hysteria
pomp, 1983.
In 1984, Def Leppard set out to build
a new kind of rock album, using
monster riffs and cutting-edge tech.
Then came producer Jim Steinmans
gargantuan food bill and a shocking
near-death experience. On the 30th
anniversary of its release, the band
revisit the mighty Hysteria for
an incredible tale of
triumph over adversity.
Paul Elliott asks:
Are you excitable?
Portrait by Ross Halfin
PLANET ROCK 55
 AS I WAS TAKEN TO HOSPITAL, I
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from a medic: Youre still alive.
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bothered about is surviving. Everything else is shut
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and in that place youre able to decide whether youre
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AND OBSERVING THE WHOLE SCENE.
RICK ALLEN
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Hallamshire Hospital where his condition was stabilised and his arm
reattached. His family rushed to see him and called the bands manager
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understand what was going on. My dad put his hands on
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hospital. He remembers Peter Menschs blunt words:
Your drummers just severed an arm in a car crash.
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realising that the physical body and the consciousness
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the left arm as the wound had become infected with gangrene. That
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Rick Allens

THE MAKING OF
fateful
car crash,
Shefeld,
QUEEN
We wanted to
resident Queen fanatic
Rick Savage still cant AC/DC
In 1979 Def
Savage. The logical
next step was to bring
bring himself to speak in AC/DCs producer
New Years

DEF LEPPARD
Eve, 1984.
Five groups that inuenced
Britains biggest hard rock
act since Led Zeppelin.
rock the way todrummer Roger Leppard Mutt Lange for 1981s
Queen Taylor. Ive never had played their HighnDry, the LP
did, says the guts, he admits. rst UK that truly kick-started
Joe Elliott. Key Leppard Track: theatre tour their career.
Like an English Rock Of Ages supporting
gentlemens version of (Pyromania, 1983) their heroes Key Leppard Track:
hard rock, with big vocal A US hit single and a AC/DC, both bands HighnDry (Saturday Night)
harmonies. Oddly, while gonzoid, stadium-rocking being managed by Peter (HighnDry, 1981)
the band now count Brian riposte to Queens We Mensch. AC/DC is part Basically, think AC/DCs
May among their friends, Will Rock You. of our make-up, says Rick Highway To Hell Part II.

56 PLANET ROCK
 Highndry: Joe
Elliott gets
airborne, 1988.

accident, it was feared hed lose both arms, as his right arm had been
broken almost beyond repair. But this arm would heal; Allen was young
and strong. Doctors were sure hed recover and be out of hospital in six
months. But still, the questions turned in Elliotts head: Whats he
gonna do? What are we gonna do?
I could envisage the meeting, recalls Rick Savage. We could call it
quits. Weve had a short career thats ended up being successful. Or
Fuck, do we get another drummer? None of us wanted that.
On January 4, Allen regained full consciousness. He assured Elliott,
,OOEHQHDOWKRXJKLQKLVKHDUWKHGLGQWEHOLHYHLW$VKHDGPLWVQRZ
I didnt think Id be able to do anything again. But he gave the band his
blessing to get back to work without him.
Keen to capitalise on Pyromanias success, Def Leppard had started
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Elliott, Savage, Collen and Clark reconvened at Wisseloord Studios in
Hilversum, Holland, but with one caveat. Elliott: Rick was in the band
until he said he wasnt.
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drummers requesting an audition. Some American guy, Elliott sneers.
Hey man, I hear you need a new drummer Well, I got two words for
\RXSDO)XFNR
In the meantime, Allen had a CD player in his hospital room,
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hard listening to music. It reminded me of what I used to do, he says.
What I wasnt able to do anymore. But soon, intuitively, he started
tapping out rhythms with his feet against the foam block at the foot of
his bed, placed there by a nurse to keep his body from sliding.
Rick had a new visitor in the second week of January. Robert John
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songwriter. Hed worked on Pyromania DQG LWV SUHGHFHVVRU V
HighnDry, and had been scheduled to produce the new album. But after
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succession of hit albums, including AC/DCs Highway To Hell and Back In
Black, Foreigners 4, the two Leppard albums and, most recently, The
Cars Heartbeat City.
But Mutt wasnt just a producer. He was, in essence, Def Leppards
VL[WKPHPEHUDVPXFKWKHDUFKLWHFWRI/HSSDUGVVOLFNSRSPHWDOVRXQG
as the band themselves. And without him, they felt lost. The group

DAVID BOWIE
Ive always wanted
We loved all that
e-bow stuff Adrian MOTT THE HOOPLE that All The Young
Dudes gets played THIN LIZZY He said we were
the reason that
Belew and Robert Joe Elliott at my funeral! Every two-guitar hard Lizzy had split.
to do what Bowie and Fripp did, Collen discovered Mott he boasts. rock band since1976 He sneered and
Bolan did. Classic pop says. And I idolised The Hoople owes a debt to Thin said, You win.
rock, says Joe Elliott, a through their cover Key Leppard Lizzy. Joe Elliott got
Mick Ronson. Iwas gutted.
former teenage glam of Bowies All The Track: backstage at a Lizzy
freak and Ziggy Key Leppard Track: Young Dudes. In Photograph gig in 76 and had Key Leppard
Stardust devotee. Rocket the bands leader, (Pyromania, 1983) his cowboy hat signed by Track:
Bowies guitarists from (Hysteria, 1987) Ian Hunter, he also The woah-ho the band. But when he met Let It Go
all eras also had a huge Elliotts 70s rock homage. found an inspiration and hook is lifted from Motts Phil Lynott seven years later (HighnDry, 1981).
inuence on Leppards Phil Spot the nods to Ziggy, Mott remain his favourite song The Golden Age Of Leppard were riding high Crunching hard rockwith all
Collen and Steve Clark. Major Tom, Elton, et al. band. Its written in my will Rock'N'Roll. and Lynott was less friendly. the swagger of vintage Lizzy.

PLANET ROCK 57
 Back in black: Rick
Allens rst post-
accident photo shoot,

JIM STEINMAN TOLD GREAT

1986; the Donington
+LVQHZNLWKDGEHHQVHWXSLQ6WXGLR
86 comeback gig
(YHU\GD\IRUWKUHHZHHNVKHZRXOGSUDFWLVH poster; and highlights
DORQHZKLOHWKHEDQGZRUNHGZLWK0XWWDQG

STORIES ABOUT MEAT LOAF HAVING

and mementos from
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RWKHUVIRUFRHHEUHDNVEXWDWDOORWKHUWLPHV Hysteria tour.

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58 PLANET ROCK
Am I insane for doing
this?: Rick Allen with Def
Leppard, Castle Donington,
August 1986.
ROSS HALFIN

were shocked to read a comment in the press from Ozzy Osbourne,
the festivals headline act. Ozzy referred to Def Leppard as a freak
show. Allen: That brought me right back down to earth. I thought,
Fucking hell, maybe I am a freak. Am I insane for wanting to do this?
When Leppard arrived on stage at Donington before a crowd of
65,000, the drummer was physically shaking. It had been agreed before
hand that Elliott wouldnt say anything to the audience about him.
I wasnt gonna make a big song and dance about it, he explains. But
after a couple of songs I thought, We gotta do this. So I introduced him.
The applause was so loud, Allen was overwhelmed. I cried so much
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apologised. You fucking did it, he said. I was wrong.
T WAS Rick Allen who gave a name to Def Leppards
fourth album: Hysteria. Recording was completed in
I 1RYHPEHUWZR\HDUVDQGWHQPRQWKVDIWHUWKHUVW
VRQJ ZDV ZULWWHQ 7KH QDO DGGLWLRQ ZDV 3RXU 6RPH
Sugar On Me which was written in a matter of minutes.
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admits Elliott. Nobody wanted to do it except me and Mutt. But I said,
<RXFDQWWXUQWKLVFKRUXVGRZQER\V,PVRUU\,IZHGUHFRUGHGHYHU\
other song at the speed we recorded Sugar, Hysteria would have been
done in three months. And a song conceived in uncharacteristic haste
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Mutt Lange spent four months mixing the album before Hysteria
was released on August 3, 1987. Its 12 songs ran the gamut from the
62 PLANET ROCK
A shy man:
Steve Clark,
Hysteria tour,
1988.
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RO S S H A L F I N , K N I G H T / B I L H A M , I L L U S T R AT I O N S : A L I C E A L C O C K
Armageddon It.
Despite its subsequent success, HysteriaJRWRWRDVORZVWDUW7KH
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Hysterias sales had stalled at three million: a huge amount by any normal
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were haemorrhaging money on tour.
Leppard had chosen to play arena shows in the round, with the
stage set up in the centre of the hall, surrounded by the audience. It was
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Rick Savage: Our managers told us, Look, guys, youre not
making any money here. We suggest you scrap this idea of playing in the
middle, hence halving the production. We said, No, bollocks! Were
making a fucking statement.
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airplay all across America, after strippers started dancing to it in their
act and bombarding radio stations with requests. Released as a single,
it shot to Number 2 on Billboards Hot 100.
When Sugar came out, the album hit Number 1 and went from
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the precedent for other singles: Love Bites was a Number 1 in America.
And then there was no stopping the fucker.
 DID PINK FLOYD EVER BETTER THE DARK
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Cool for cats:
Viva Hysteria!,
Las Vegas, 2012.
PLGVWKH\ZHUHEDFNSOD\LQJVHDWHUVLQWKH86HysteriaLV
WKH UHDVRQ ZK\:LWK LWV EORFNEXVWLQJ VDOHV DQG KLJK VLQJOHV FRXQW LW
EHFDPHDV0XWW/DQJHLQWHQGHGWKHThrillerRIKDUGURFN,Q
/HSSDUG SOD\HG D QLQHQLJKW UHVLGHQF\ 9LYD +\VWHULD LQ /DV 9HJDV
ZKHUHWKH\SOD\HGWKHDOEXPLQIXOOHYHQ'RQW6KRRW6KRWJXQ
7KLV VXPPHU VHHV WKH UHOHDVH RI DQ H[SDQGHG WK DQQLYHUVDU\
HGLWLRQHysteriaLVXQVWRSSDEOHDQG-RH(OOLRWWNQRZVLW,GRQWKDYH
DSUREOHPZLWKVRPHWKLQJZHGLG\HDUVDJREHLQJXQVWRSSDEOH$W
OHDVWZHZRQWKHORWWHU\RQFH'LG3LQN)OR\GHYHUEHWWHUThe Dark Side
Of The Moon"'LG8HYHUEHWWHUThe Joshua Tree"3UREDEO\QRW
%XWWKHUHVRQHSHUVRQIRUZKRPWKLV/3KROGVDXQLTXHVLJQLFDQFH
)RUPHHysteriaUHSUHVHQWVUHELUWKVD\V5LFN$OOHQ(YHU\WKLQJZDV
WDNHQDZD\DQGLWDOOFDPHEDFNDQGLWDOOORRNHGEHWWHU
Universal Music release special Hysteria 30th Anniversary Editions in
August 2017. Hear J O E E L L I OT T s show on P L A N E T R O C K R A D I O
every Saturday at 6pm, repeated on Tuesdays at 8pm.

THE LED
ZEPPELIN
RUN DMC
FEATURING
FRANKIE
GOES TO
THE POLICE
Many 80s
BURUNDI
STEIPHENSON
MAKING OF
acts blurred the
Def Leppards
name was styled AEROSMITH HOLLYWOOD boundaries
between pop and rock, and
BLACK
on Zeppelins, right down A generation of rock fans, Frankie Goes To Holly- Burundi Black was a 1971
a key Hysteria inuence

HYSTERIA
to the poor spelling. And Leppard included, were wood's Welcome To The hit for Burundi Steiphenson
was The Police. We were
guitarist Steve Clark turned on to hip-hop in Pleasure Dome LP had a trying to get that clean Black, a Frenchman who
worshipped Jimmy Page, 1986 when New York rap bombastic sound orches- Andy Summers guitar mixed African drummers
even wearing his guitar duo Run-D.M.C. teamed up trated by producer Trevor sound, says Phil Collen. with rock guitars. It
strap too low to replicate with Aerosmith on a remake Horn, which Leppard tried reminded me of Gary
Five acts Pages on-stage slouch. of the latters classic 1975 to replicate on Hysteria.
Key Hysteria Track:
Glitter and Adam And The
Hysteria
who inuenced Key Hysteria Track:
track Walk This Way. Key Hysteria Track: Def Leppards take on The
Ants," says Joe Elliott.
Def Leppards Gods Of War Key Hysteria Track: Animal Police's Every Breath You Key Hysteria Track:
Steve Clarks riff-heavy Pour Some Sugar On Me Theres a bit in the middle Take. I played the jangle Rocket
biggest album. A big-production built
pacist paean. It was Sugar was inspired by dang, dang, dang! guitar on it, says Rick
Steves baby. We nally got Walk This Way, says Joe where we were trying to Savage, cos I wrote it, around a loop of 40 to 60
him his Kashmir, says Elliott. We did a white-man make it sound like Frankies and nobody else could overdubbed drums!
Joe Elliott. version of rap and rock. Relax, admits Phil Collen. play it right! says Elliott.

PLANET ROCK 63
TONY MOTTRAM

64 PLANET ROCK
 EYEWITNESS

PLANET ROCK
GUNS NROSES
At their rst-ever UK show, Axl Rose braves a hail of phlegm and plastic beer glasses. PAUL ELLIOTT was there
THE MARQUEE, LONDON, JUNE 19, 1987

65
 I
F EVE R a rocknroll band had a
reputation that preceded them, it was
Guns NRoses arriving in London in
-XQHIRUWKHLUUVWVKRZVRXWVLGHRI
1RUWK$PHULFDDWKUHHQLJKWVWDQGDW
Londons Marquee club. In their home
Even nastier than the Beastie
town of Los Angeles, they were known
Boys: (from left) Izzy Stradlin,
DV WKH ZLOGHVW PRVW VFUHZHGXS EDQG Duff McKagan, Slash and
since Mtley Cre. The UKs leading Steven Adler.
rock magazine Kerrang! went further,
proclaiming them The Most Dangerous
Band In The World. And in the Daily Star it
was warned: A rock band even nastier than
the Beastie Boys is heading for Britain.
All of this was true. But the sensationalist
headlines were only a part of this story. What
I knew, as with other music industry insiders,
was that Guns NRoses were the greatest
rocknroll band to come out of America since
Van Halen. They would prove it with those
0DUTXHH GDWHV  EXW RQO\ DIWHU WKH\G ZRQ
over a hostile London audience that pelted
them with plastic beer cups and showered
them in spit, prompting singer Axl Rose to
shout, Fuck you!, and threaten a walkout.
As welcomes go, it was not pretty.
2QWKDWUVWQLJKWDWWKH0DUTXHH-XQH
,ZDVRQHRIWKHIHZSHRSOHSUHVHQWZKR
had seen Guns NRoses play live before. As
a writer for Sounds, I had interviewed the
band in LA, where on March 16, 1987 they
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'RRUVWR9DQ+DOHQKDGPDGHWKHLUQDPH
The show was billed as a launch party for
Guns NRoses debut album, Appetite For
Destruction, which would be released in July
of that year.
I hadnt heard the album then. All I had
KHDUGZDVWKHEDQGVUVW(3/LYH" #/LNH
$6XLFLGHDIDX[OLYHUHFRUGLQJZKLFKIRUDOO
its rowdiness and Axl Roses swearing, did not
RHUDQ\UHDOFOXHDVWRZKDWZDVWRFRPH
And in the interests of full disclosure,
RICHARD BEALIA

I admit I hadnt been blown away by Guns

NRoses at the Whisky. That night they
played every track from Appetite For Destruc
tion  DPRQJ WKHP WKH IXWXUH URFN FODVVLFV
:HOFRPH 7R 7KH -XQJOH 3DUDGLVH &LW\ DQG
Sweet Child O Mine. But, truthfully,

66 PLANET ROCK
PLANET ROCK 67

I didnt walk away from that gig thinking
I had seen the future of rocknroll.
That came to me on the day after the
show, when I heard the rough mixes of
Appetite For Destruction played on bassist
'X 0F.DJDQV JKHWWR EODVWHU DV WKH EDQG
posed for Sounds photographer Greg Free
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DQG OWK\ SODFH LQIDPRXVO\ NQRZQ DV 7KH
Hellhouse. Thats when I believed what Axl
had said to me in the interview that preceded
the photo shoot: This, he said, is the only
real rocknroll band to come out of LA in
the last ten years.
,QWKHZHHNVEHIRUHWKHLU0DUTXHHGHEXW
, KDG D SUHUHOHDVH WDSH RI Appetite For
Destruction and played it over and over.
I thought it was the greatest album since
AC/DCs Back In Black. I also knew how
excited these guys were about playing in
London. This was something they had all
dreamed of since they were kids. What they
JRWRQWKDWUVWQLJKWZDVDUXGHDZDNHQLQJ
Its good to be in fucking England
QDOO\ $[O VDLG EHIRUH WKH EDQG ODXQFKHG
LQWRWKHUVWVRQJ5HFNOHVV/LIHRQHRWKH
68 PLANET ROCK
HEY! AXL SNARLED. IF
YOU WANNA KEEP THROWING
THINGS, WERE GONNA LEAVE.
WHADDAYA THINK?
EP. And then the missiles rained down on the
VWDJHSODVWLFFXSVVRPHVWLOOOOHGZLWKEHHU
 DQG ZRUVH JREELQJ OLNH VRPHWKLQJ RXW RI
a punk gig from ten years earlier, with strands
of spittle soon hanging in Axl and rhythm
guitarist Izzy Stradlins hair. The onslaught
continued through a second song, Out Ta Get
0HEHIRUH$[OGHFLGHGHQRXJKZDVHQRXJK
Hey! he snarled. If you wanna keep
throwing things, were gonna fuckin leave.
Whaddaya think?
It was only a small minority causing
trouble. Even so, in that moment, it could
KDYHWXUQHGXJO\DV$[ODQG'XZHUHUHDG\
Anything goes:
Slash and Axl.
WR GLYH LQWR WKH FURZG DQG JKW LW RXW
Instead, the band blasted out a third song,
Anything Goes, and the mood suddenly
switched. There was nothing more thrown at
WKHVWDJHDQGQRPRUHVSLWWLQJ*XQV15RVHV
had earned the right to play, and did so
brilliantly, later performing their cover of
%RE'\ODQV.QRFNLQ2Q+HDYHQV'RRUIRU
WKHUVWWLPH,WZDVDKDUGZRQYLFWRU\7KH
crowd threw some shit to start with, said
Axl, but they were so fucking into it.
$W WKH RWKHU WZR 0DUTXHH VKRZV RQ
June 22 and 28, there was no trouble. What
.HUUDQJ ZULWHU 0DOFROP 'RPH UHSRUWHG
from the last night was an intense atmo
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rebellious, intoxicating In the heat of those
0DUTXHH VKRZV7KH 0RVW 'DQJHURXV %DQG
In The World proved what they were made of.
After that, there was no stopping them.
TONY MOTTRAM
G U NS NROSES play London Stadium Olympic
Park on June 16 and 17. Paul Elliotts G U N S
N R O S E S : The Life & Times Of A RocknRoll
Band is published by Palazzo in September 2017.
 THE CULT HERO

W H AT E V E R H A P P E N E D T O
G R A H A M B O N N E T, T H E
M I G H T Y- L U N G E D R A I N B O W
AND MSG SINGER AND
R E L U C T A N T H E AV Y R O C K
STAR? WELL, HES BACK

PAU L E L L I O T T H E A R S
AN EXPLOSIVE TALE
O F FA S H I O N WA R S ,
ANGRY GUITARISTS
AND ACCIDENTAL
WILLY FLASHING.

GETTY

70
70 PLANET ROCK
I get the same old
dream, same time
every night:
Graham Bonnet, 1977.
 N A B E AU T I F U L sunny
morning in Los Ange
les, Graham Bonnet is
reminiscing about
1979 and his time as
lead vocalist in the mighty Rainbow when,
suddenly, he bursts into song. As a
British expat resident in California for
the best part of 40 years, Bonnets speak
ing voice has little trace of his Lincoln
shire roots, but he can still do a good
cockney accent, and this is how he deliv
HUV KLV IDYRXULWH OLQH LQ 5DLQERZV QRQ
PC hit All Night Long: Dont know
about your brain but you look all right.
Odd man out?:
Bonnet laughs long and hard at the
Rainbow, 1979
absurdity of this, one of the most sexist rock (from left) Ritchie
songs of its time. And yet, for the man who Blackmore, Roger
sang those lyrics, All Night Long is, in a sense, Glover, Don Airey,
symbolic of his whole career. For as long as Cozy Powell,
Graham Bonnet.
Graham Bonnet has been famous as a hard
rock singer, he has felt misunderstood.
Today, Bonnet is quick to point out that it
was Rainbows then bassist, Roger Glover, who
wrote the lyrics: And it was all meant to be
WRQJXHLQFKHHN $OWKRXJK LW ZDV WKLV
VHULRXVVRXQGLQJKHDY\WXQHLWZDVVXSSRVHG
to be a joke.
As far as Graham Bonnet is concerned, his
career never turned out the way he planned.
Before he joined Rainbow hed had hits in the
60s with songs written by The Bee Gees, and
made it big in Australia in the 70s as an MOR
crooner. Ive been put in this bag as a heavy
metal singer, he says now. But I like to sing all
NLQGVRIVWX
There has also been controversy along the
way. In Rainbow, Bonnets image of short,
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YLHZHG DV KHUHV\ E\ GHQLPDQGOHDWKHUFODG
headbangers. And worst of all was Bonnets
exit in disgrace from the Michael Schenker
Group in 1982, after hed drunkenly exposed
himself to an audience.
Now aged 69, he looks back on it all with
ZU\ KXPRXU DQG XQLQFKLQJ FDQGRXU 7KH
man with the extraordinary voice has an
extraordinary story to tell.
It was in the seaside town of Skegness in
Lincolnshire that Graham Bonnet was born on Hell bent for
'HFHPEHU+LVIRUPDWLYHVLQJLQJLQX leather: Michael
Schenker Group,
HQFHVZHUH/LWWOH5LFKDUGDQG%XGG\+ROO\EXW 1982 (from left)
also girl groups such as The Ronettes and The Chris Glen,
Shirelles. Thats how my voice developed, he Bonnet, Schenker,
says, by singing these girl songs in high keys. Ted McKenna.
In Skeggy, as he calls it, the teenage
Bonnet worked by day as a butcher in
Dewhursts. At night, he fronted a variety of
GETTY

groups, including Graham Bonnets Set,

performing folk, R&B and pop. But it was only

72 PLANET ROCK
 I REALLY DIDN T LIKE
RONNIE DIOS VOICE, AND
A L L T H AT D U N G E O N S A N D
D R A G O N S S T U F F.

after moving to London in 1968 that
Bonnet found fame alongside his cousin
Trevor Gordon in pop duo The Marbles.
Gordon had been raised in Australia, and
had enjoyed some hits working with Barry,
Maurice and Robin Gibb of The Bee Gees. In
London, he and Bonnet hooked up with the
*LEEV ZKRG MXVW VFRUHG WKHLU UVW 8.
Number 1 with Massachusetts. Back then,
Bonnet laughingly recalls, they were known
as Pillhead, Pothead and Pisshead. Thats
why some of those early Bee Gees songs were
a bit trippy.
The Marbles had hits with two Gibb
brothers songs, Only One Woman and
The Walls Fell Down. But it didnt last.
They split in 1970, and in the lean years
that followed Bonnet sang TV ad jin
gles for Ski yoghurt and Ritz crackers.
,WZDVLQWKDWKHQDOO\KDG
success as a solo singer, with two
Number 1 hits in Australia. A year
Youre the guy! The famously volatile Ritchie
Blackmores response was more measured. But
eventually, Blackmore took Bonnet aside and
RHUHGKLPWKHMRE
For a few days, Bonnet remained uncon
vinced. I really didnt like Ronnie Dios voice
or the music, he admits. All that dungeons
DQGGUDJRQVVWXZDVDELWDLU\IDLU\%XWWKH
bands new straightforward hard rock was
more to Bonnets taste. And after some sober
DGYLFHIURPKLVPDQDJHU:HFDQPDNHDORW
RIPRQH\RXWRIWKLV%RQQHWWRRNWKHMRE
The album he made with Rainbow, Down
To Earth, was aptly named. There was an obvi
ous link to the bands past in the epic Eyes Of
The World, but the main focus was on short,
snappy songs such as All Night Long and Since
You Been Gone, the last written by former
Argent guitarist Russ Ballard.
N J U LY 1 9 7 9 , Down To Earth
ZHQW7RS  LQ WKH 8. ZKLOH

Just the one

ODWHUKHZDVRHUHGDMREZLWKJODP
rock stars Sweet. I couldnt relate
to them at all, he says. So I
Cornetto:
Bonnet with turned them down.
his Blackmore- Sweet was a band in decline
baiting, EXWWKHQH[WRHU%RQQHWUHFHLYHG
ice cream
mans jacket.
was from one of the biggest rock acts in the
world. Rainbow, led by former Deep Purple
guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, had created some
of the most powerful heavy rock of the 70s,
with a grandiose quality courtesy of singer
5RQQLH-DPHV'LRVVZRUGDQGVRUFHU\O\ULFV
%XWZKHQ%ODFNPRUHVRXJKWWRUHLQYHQWWKH
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resigned in late 78.
When Bonnet was invited to audition for
WKH EDQG KH ZDV P\VWLHG , NQHZ ZKDW
Deep Purple was, even though I was never
into that kind of music. But I didnt know who
Rainbow were. When I heard the name
,WKRXJKWLWZDVDKLSS\GLSS\IRONJURXS
Bonnet sang a Purple song, Mistreated, for
his audition at the Chteau Pelly de Cornfeld
in France, where Rainbow were working on a
new LP. Wearing a natty suit, Bonnet belted
out Purples heavy blues number with such
power drummer Cozy Powell exclaimed:
I the singles Since You Been
Gone and All Night Long
reached Number 6 and 12, re
spectively. Its funny, Bonnet says. Some of
the guys never wanted to do Since You Been
*RQH LQ WKH UVW SODFH &R]\ ZDV
going, This is crap! I thought it was great, but
I had no idea it would become one of
Rainbows signature tunes.
On the Down To Earth tour, Blackmore
tried to talk Bonnet into growing his hair long
and wearing regulation rocknroll gear. To
Blackmores frustration, Bonnet was having
none of it. Ritchie was stuck in that image of
the long hair and the leather pants, he says.
+HWKUHZDZD\VRPHRIP\FORWKHVVRPHRI
P\ EHVW MDFNHWV %XW LQ WKH HQG KH UHDOLVHG 
this is how Graham is. Its not how he looks,
its how he sings.
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2Q $XJXVW   WKH UVW 0RQVWHUV 2I
Rock festival was staged at Donington Park
QRZ WKH KRPH RI 'RZQORDG ZLWK 5DLQERZ
topping a bill that also featured Judas Priest,
Scorpions, Saxon and others. It was also
the last show Graham Bonnet and Cozy
Powell performed with Rainbow. At the

PLANET ROCK 73

time, Bonnet had no intention of quitting.
Powell, however, had already decided to leave.
For all his mixed emotions during that
show, Bonnet remembers it as the pinnacle of
his career. Playing to an audience of 60,000,
Rainbow powered through new songs and old.
It was the most incredible night Ive ever
had, Bonnet says. Ill remember it for the
rest of my life.
H AT L E D Graham Bonnet to
leave Rainbow at the height of
W their popularity was his unease
with Blackmores behaviour
following Cozy Powells depar
ture. In late 1980, when work began on the
IROORZXSWRDown To Earth with new drummer
Bobby Rondinelli, Bonnet felt the ground
shifting. We started rehearsing, and some
GD\V5LWFKLHZRXOGQWWXUQXS.H\ERDUGSOD\
HU'RQ$LUH\VDLG,ILWFDUULHVRQOLNHWKLV,P
JRLQJ,VDLGWR'RQ,I\RXOHDYH,ZLOOWRR
I thought the band was coming to an end.
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KRPH LQ /$ WR FRQVLGHU KLV IXWXUH7KLV ZDV
decided after a call from the bands manage
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any tracks that I didnt like. I said, No, I dont
WKLQNWKDWZLOOZRUN$QG,MXVWTXLW,WWXUQHG
RXW'RQVWD\HGZKLFK,VKRXOGKDYHGRQH
5DLQERZ VXEVHTXHQWO\ KLUHG $PHULFDQ
YRFDOLVW -RH /\QQ 7XUQHU WR UHFRUG V
'LFXOW 7R &XUH, and with a new version of
74 PLANET ROCK
Need locking up:
Alcatrazz, with
Yngwie Malmsteen
I Surrender came the bands
biggest hit yet. I was envious,
%RQQHWDGPLWV'DPPLW:K\
didnt I stay?
But it wasnt long before
Bonnet was back. In 1981, he
released a solo album, /LQH8S,
with a supporting cast includ
ing Whitesnake guitarist
Micky Moody, Status Quos
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and his old mate Cozy, whod
UHFHQWO\ MRLQHG WKH 0LFKDHO
Schenker Group.
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10 single with Night Games,
the lyrics of which resonated
with the singer who spent
many a long, drunken night in
Soho: Id seen all of this shit
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With /LQH8S, Graham
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self as a solo artist in his home
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WUDU\IDVKLRQKHMRLQHGDQRWKHU
group. Cozy Powell persuaded
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:KLWHVQDNH&R]\MXVWVDLGKH
KDGDEHWWHURHU
Bonnet knew what he was
getting into with Michael
6FKHQNHU7KH *HUPDQ JXLWDU
(centre). ist, formerly of Scorpions and UFO, was, like
Blackmore, a virtuoso talent with an unpre
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Three Of
album, but before its release
Bonnet was kicked out of the
EDQG  WKH UHVXOW RI ZKDW KH
The Best
Graham Bonnets
now describes, with a heavy
sigh, as a stupid, drunken
night that Ive never forgiven
myself for.
greatest hits. ,WKDSSHQHGRQ$XJXVW
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Rainbow DV06*SOD\HGDZDUPXSJLJ
DOWN TO E ARTH
ahead of a headline appear
Polydor, 1979
ance at the Reading Festival. It
Just as
Rainbows
ZDV %RQQHWV UVW DQG ODVW
style of performance as a member of
medieval WKHJURXS7KHWURXEOHVWDUWHG
rock was hours before the show, when
dened on
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1976s Rising, so their sound
was redened on the album from a dressing room where
they made with Bonnet. Schenker was resting.
Since You Been Gone and Michael wouldnt open
All Night Long were the hits, the door, Bonnet recalls.
though Bonnets favourite is
the gritty R&B ballad Loves
I said, Come on, fucking hell,
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Vertigo, 1981 I went to the pub with
This Micky Moody, he continues,
post-Rain-
bow solo
work saw
Bonnet
whod come to see the show,
and we were in there all after
noon. By the time I went back
backed by WRGRWKHJLJ,ZDVVKLWIDFHG
mates including Cozy $QGDVVRRQDVZHVWDUWHGWKH
Powell and members of
Whitesnake. Fact: the hit
audience pushed forward and
Night Games was recorded messed up the monitors. I had
at Rick Partts house, with sheets of lyrics taped to the
Francis Rossi playing sitar. monitors, as I didnt know
the words to the songs to save
Michael P\OLIH$OOWKHVHVKHHWVRISD
Schenker Group
per got crumpled up, so I was
ASSAULT AT TACK
Chrysalis, 1982
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As it
What happened next
was with clinched Bonnets dismissal.
Rainbow, so $V , VWDUW VLQJLQJ WKH UVW
it was with VRQJ WKH ]LSSHU RQ P\ MHDQV
MSG:
breaks and my penis comes
Bonnet
making one album before out. I dont remember all the
his departure. Assault GHWDLOV,ZDVRQWKHIXFNLQJ
Attack was powerful and moon. But I do know I started
classy, the singers waving my thing around,
chemistry with Schenker
clear on Desert Song and
VD\LQJ7KLVLVZKDW,WKLQNRI
the title track.

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is out now on Cherry Red.
PLANET ROCK 75
 MY PLANET ROCKS

Inspirational
Belfast punks,
manic Detroit
revolutionaries,
testifying 70s
hard rockers...
BLACK STAR RIDERS
AND THIN LIZZY SINGER
RICKY WARWICK
CHOOSES THE SONGS
THAT ROCK HIS WORLD.

I L LU S T R AT I O N BY RICH PELLEGRINO

I C K Y WA R W I C Kis on holiday, soaking up the rays in Ibiza. Never one

to pass up talking about his beloved music, he still takes Planet
I N T E RV I E W : PAU L B R A N N I G A N

R
Rocks call. Black Star Riders, the group formed in 2012 by Warwick
and Thin Lizzy stalwart Scott Gorham, are catching their breath
before touring Europe in May. Their third album, this years UK
Number 6 hit Heavy Fire, FRQUPHG WKDW DQ RXWW VWDUWLQJ OLIH DV
a rebooted version of Thin Lizzy, paying homage to Phil Lynott and
playing the hits, has become a band in its own right, with its own sound and identity.
Nevertheless, Heavy FireV VZLQJLQJ PL[ RI KDUGQRVHG URFN EOXHV DQG UHEHO IRON
didnt just arrive fully formed. And the clues are all here, in eight choice picks from its lead
singers treasured record collection

76 PLANET ROCK
STIFF LITTLE
FINGERS
Suspect Device
(On Inammable Material, 1979)
Stiff Little Fingers are the
whole reason I do what I do.
My big sister bought Inammable
Material for me and it totally
changed my life. As an angry,
confused 13 year old putting it on
the stereo and hearing Suspect
Device for the rst time, with Jake
Burns singing about the place
where I was living, and every word
resonating true to the situation we
were in, was just incredibly empow-
ering. I was like, This is the answer
to my prayers. They were the rst
band I saw live, at the Ulster Hall in
Belfast on the Nobodys Heroes
tour in 1980, and I walked out of
there with a vocation, thinking, This
is what Im going to do, I need to
be on that stage, making as much
noise as that. Jake is a good friend
now, and every time we meet and
have a few drinks I revert to being
13 years old, telling him, You know
youre the reason I play guitar! He
must be sick of it by now. But what
a song. Every single time I hear this
its like hearing it for the very rst
time again.
THE CLASH
Rock The Casbah
(On Combat Rock, 1982)
Id got all The Clash albums
before this, but at 15 this
song had a huge effect on me
because it was so different. The
Clash were spending a lot of time
in New York around the time they
were making Combat Rock, getting
into disco and hip-hop and funk,
and incorporating that into their
sound, and I remember a lot of my
mates being just horried by it,
going, This is punk rock? This is
terrible! But I got it, I just thought,
This is whats so punk rock about
this, theyre pushing the boundar-
ies. Punk had been around for ve,
six years by then, and the formula
was tried and tested, and here was
a band that was actually moving
forward. Its just a brilliant song.
I loved Joe Strummer, his attitude
and energy and everything he stood
for, and part of his genius was that
he could write a political song and
make it sound like a pop disco hit.
I always had a sneaking love for
disco anyway, and when you hear
this it immediately puts a smile
upon your face and makes you
want to dance around the room.
MC5
Kick Out The Jams
(On Kick Out The Jams, 1969)
When I rst got into punk
rock via Stiff Little Fingers,
The Clash and the Pistols,
Istarted to go backwards to
discover the roots of that music,
which obviously led me to The
Stooges and MC5. When I rst
heard this I was like, Oh my God,
this is where it all came from! The
MC5 were so ahead of their time,
turning the guitars up on their
protest songs, and the whole
package was so brilliant. You had
Rob Tyner with that afro and that
voice, and Fred Sonic Smith and
Wayne Kramer with those riffs,
that political idealism and such
incredible songs. I was standing at
the side of the stage at a Cheap
Trick show in Los Angeles a few
years ago and looked to my left
and saw Wayne Kramer and was
like, Shit! I had to say hello,
obviously, and we carried on
talking after the show and he is
such a cool, lovely, righteous guy.
NEW MODEL ARMY
Vengeance
(On Vengeance, 1984)
New Model Army are one of
the most underrated bands
the UK has ever produced. I rst
heard this song in 1983, I think,
when they played in a club in
Wishaw, in Scotland, and the place
just went fucking mental. I believe
in justice, I believe in vengeance,
I believe in getting the bastard
what a lyric, what a message!
When I rst heard this I was just
like, Fuck! They had such a unique
sound Stuart Morrow played
bass almost like a lead guitar on
that rst album and Justin
Sullivan is such a ferocious
frontman. They were just really
inspiring. A few years later my band
Rough Charm, which also featured
Floyd and Stumpy from The
Almighty, opened for New Model
Army, and when Justin told me that
they needed another guitar player
Ijumped at the chance. I was 19,
20 years old, and living the dream,
playing in this incredible band.
Ilearned all about stage craft and
songwriting and work ethics from
Justin, and it was absolutely
brilliant. It denitely set me up for
everything Ive done since.
AL WILSON
The Snake
(On Searching For The Dolphins, 1969)
This is a Northern Soul
classic and it was rst
played to me by Justin from New
Model Army, back in 1987. Justin
is a massive Northern Soul fan,
and he opened up a whole new
world of music to me, with artists
like The Formations, The Tams,
Grover Mitchell, etc, this whole
underground scene that I didnt
know existed. There are so many
hidden gems in that genre, with all
those incredible melodies. Even
now, with a song like Testify Or
Say Goodbye on Black Star
Riders Heavy Fire, the whole feel
and vibe of that song is totally
inspired by Northern Soul, all
weve done is turn up the guitars
and add those Lizzy harmonies.
MOTRHEAD
Ace Of Spades
(On Ace Of Spades, 1980)
Just one of the greatest
rocknroll songs ever written
in my opinion brilliant riff, brilliant
lyrics, brilliant vocals, brilliant
band. Obviously the best way to
hear it is with the guitars turned
up, everything louder than
everything else, but I play this
acoustically on tour sometimes,
and it still stands up. Life has been
good to me, Ive been able to
become friends with many of my
heroes, and The Almighty got to
tour with Motrhead in the early
90s. Lemmy was just a great man
very clever, very articulate and a
true rocknroller. He never, ever let
you down. I honestly cant
remember when I rst heard this,
but, like Lemmy, it seems to have
been around forever, and its power
will never be diminished.
BRUCE
SPRINGSTEEN
Atlantic City
(On Nebraska, 1982)
When Born In The USA
came out Springsteen was
the biggest performer in the world,
but Nebraska was just him and his
guitar and an old Tascam 4-track
and its such a genius, brave album.
This is a simple song, with such a
heartfelt lyric. I was always a
Springsteen fan, I loved The River
and Born To Run, but this one
passed me by at the time of
release, and I only put it under the
microscope when I started playing
solo acoustic shows myself. It really
gave me condence in playing
more stripped-down songs without
distortion and a wall of amps, and
I can always return to this album for
inspiration and ideas.
THIN LIZZY
Do Anything You
Want To
(On Black Rose: A Rock Legend, 1979)
From the moment that
heavy-oor-toms groove
starts, this is just a great song, with
Phil Lynotts vocals and lyrical
phrasing at its very best. I bought
the single when it came out in
1979 and I loved it then, and then
when I actually came to join Thin
Lizzy that lyric meant so much to
me. Id be lying if I said there
werent times initially where
I thought, Should I be doing this?,
having some doubts about taking
on the responsibility of carrying on
the Lizzy torch, but I always came
back to this song and Phils lyric:
You can do anything you want to
do/Its not wrong what I sing its
true. Obviously Phil wasnt singing
to me, but that spirit of Bring it on!
if you believe in what youre doing
was inspiring, so much so that after
joining Lizzy I actually got the rst
verse tattooed on my left leg.
Check out M Y P L A N E T R O C KS ,
where the worlds greatest artists
play the music that inspired them,
every Sunday at 7pm only at
Planet Rock Radio. R I C K Y
WA R W I C K guests on May 14.
PLANET ROCK 79
The wild bunch: that classic
Motrhead line-up (from left)
Phil Philthy Animal Taylor,
Fast Eddie Clarke, Lemmy.
 THE COVER STORY

In a 17-page bumper Motrhead celebration,

Planet Rock rewinds to 1977, as K ri s Need s
witnesses the groups faltering rise to stardom,
GET TY, MARCO VIT TUR

and Phil Alexander hears an astonishing tale

of speed, booze and record-label chicanery from
sole survivor Fast Edd ie Clarke. KEITH MORRIS
Portrait by

PLANET ROCK 81
Live to win (clockwise from top):
a snaggle-toothed Lemmy, 1977;
on parole with original drummer
Lucas Fox 75; Phil Taylor with
writer Kris Needs; bonding
with the Angels; and the three
amigos somewhere
on tour, circa 1980.
 Saturday
6th Augu st L
1977...
A N D M OT R H E A D are making their debut at the renowned
Friars Aylesbury club. This music stronghold in a small
Buckinghamshire market town has hosted pivotal
V7DOERW 5RDG ZDV MXVW
gigs by the likes of David Bowie and Genesis,
WE MADE SO
and tonight its Motrheads turn.
Singing bass player Ian Lemmy Kilmister,
MUCH NOISE WITH THE
guitarist Fast Eddie Clarke and drummer
Philthy Animal Taylor have been together
THREE OF US THERE
just a few months. But theyve already made
their mark on the metal heads, punks and
WAS NO ROOM FOR
+DZNZLQGIDQVKHUHWRQLJKW7KHYHGD\
speed jag immortalised in their recently
ANYBODY ELSE.
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life, and by the time they reach a closing
VWDPSHGH WKURXJK 7UDLQ .HSW $5ROOLQ
Motrhead are basking in the crowds adula
Lemmy
tion, and wearing the look of men whove just
beaten a death sentence.
Its a revelation after 18 months spent watching
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,QVWHDG WKLV PRWOH\ VWULQJ\KDLUHG WULR DUH IDVWHU ORXGHU GLUWLHU DQG fully with your eyes open.
clearly more dangerous than any of them.
In Motrheads dressing room afterwards, the air is thick with
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&RQWUDU\WRWKHXVXDONQDFNHUHGSRVWVKRZRSRXWWKHZLUHGPDQLF
band and crew are shouting and pointing at each other in a manner
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VSLN\WRSLQDURRPIXORIORQJKDLUIURQWPDQ/HPP\VDXQWHUVRYHU
LQWURGXFHVKLPVHOIZLWKDFRQYROXWHGELNHUKDQGVKDNHWKHQKRLVWVDORIW
a plastic bag of amphetamine sulphate.
Do it till it hurts, he growls, plunging a dagger into the pink,
powdered mass and scooping a small mound onto the blade. Giving it
P\EHVWVKRWP\QRVHIHHOVOLNHLWVEHLQJEODVWHGZLWKDDPHWKURZHU
Lemmy gleefully informs me the speed is cut with battery acid. As editor
KRIS NEEDS
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in the eye of Motrheads hurricane.
But that night in Aylesbury, Lemmy, Eddie Clarke and Phil Taylor
would never have dreamed that theyd one day be regarded as the
/
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the prospect of receiving acolytes in his LA dotage like rocknrolls
own Don Corleone, with Motrheads music considered one of the
foundation stones of modern heavy rock.
O O K I N G BAC K to those early years, Motrhead were like a
ragged, raging prototype of the sleeker, later models. The
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Even in summer 1977, Lemmy was a strict loner with a certain
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blunt honesty and an ability to see the ridiculous in every situation.
:KHQKHOLYHGLQ/RQGRQOLIHIRU/HPP\ZDVDQDPSHGXSKRXU
swagger around the citys pubs and clubs, fuelled by vodka and orange,
biker speed, fruit machines and video games. Lemmys raised eyebrow
could say everything, especially when a voice that often suggested a
ravaged Les Dawsons couldnt.
By the following year, I'd discovered that Lemmys
basement lair at the end of a shabby terrace, Colville
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I started visiting him regularly. After being
away on tour, Lemmy loved to return to these
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buckled under stacks of books and records;
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place of a TV and several identical pairs of
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Its weird, he said one afternoon as we
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is like a vocation. Its almost like the priesthood.
You decide youve got to live that life. Its a complete
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One day we decided I was going to write a book about Motrhead
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slowly became one of the biggest in Britain, but it stalled when the
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In conversation, Lemmy shared details of his early life, working as a
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He was selling drugs when he heard Hawkwind were looking for a bass
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speed intake ran up against Hawkwinds mellower ethos and bandleader
Dave Brocks career plan.
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Fairies guitarist Larry Wallis and their mutual friend, drummer Lucas
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Motrhead played shambolic early gigs, including opening for
PLANET ROCK 83
 Blue yster Cult at Hammersmith Odeon in October. Their everyone hated us. If Motrhead was ever mentioned it was because we
performance was plagued by appalling sound problems, and the press ZHUHVRXJO\DQGJUHDV\DQGVQRWW\WKHQDVWLHVWEDQGLQWKHZRUOG
dubbed them the worst band in the world.

S
Under a deal with United Artists, Motrhead started recording an T I F F R E C O R D S  IRXQGHU -DNH 5LYLHUD WKUHZ WKH SRYHUW\
DOEXP DW 0RQPRXWKV 5RFNHOG 6WXGLRV %XW /XFDV )R[V LQWHQVH stricken band a lifeline, and asked Motrhead if theyd release
EHKDYLRXUSURPSWHGFODLPHG/HPP\E\KLVSURGLJLRXVVSHHGLQWDNH a single on his recently launched label. The group paid to
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met drummer Phil Taylor when the pair found themselves painting 0RWRZQVLQJOH/HDYLQJ+HUHDQGWKHLURZQQHZO\ZULWWHQ:KLWH/LQH
a houseboat together in Battersea. Clarke had been playing in a )HYHUEXWWKH\IHOORXWZLWK5LYLHUDRYHUWKHODWWHUVLQFOXVLRQRQWKH
group called Blue Goose; when they imploded, he had gone back to $%XQFK2I6WL5HFRUGV compilation. The single didnt see daylight until
manual labour. 6WLVROGLWWR)UDQFHV6N\GRJ
+DLOLQJIURP/HHGV3KLO7D\ORUZDVDOZD\VLQWURXEOHDVDNLG In those punky times, Motrhead were ostracised for
EXWIRXQGDQRXWOHWIRUKLVOLYHZLUHHQHUJ\ZKHQKLVGDG the length of their hair, despite being faster, harder and
bought him a drum kit. Taylor discovered heavy rock PRUHVWUHHWWKDQPRVWSXQNJURXSV+RZHYHUWKHLU
but honed his chops with a cabaret trio. He moved PXVLFZDVFRQVLGHUHGWRRIDVWWRRSXQNE\PDQ\
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and painting houseboats. YOU COULD HAVE metal fans.
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Clarke. The press was always hammering us.
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talked about music. A musical connection OF BIG, HAIRY TITS UP YOUR 5HFRUGFRPSDQLHVGLGQWZDQQDNQRZ<RX
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couldnt go into pubs without people saying,
some more drugs.
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werent eating. It just got too much.
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on the Hells Angel anthem Iron Horse/Born
PLAY THE MUSIC.
Lemmy
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EHDW/RQGRQV0DUTXHHRQ$SULODQGDW
the Roundhouse supporting The Damned on
7R /RVH ,W ZDV HQRXJK WR VHFXUH KLV SODFH RQ the 24th. Me n Phil were getting to the end of
Motrheads drum stool. RXU WHWKHU FRQWLQXHG &ODUNH :H VDLG WKDW LI
Id been up so many days I was a bit confused, nothing had happened by the Roundhouse wed knock
Taylor told me. Obviously Id heard of Motrhead but it on the head.
Id never heard them. I hated Hawkwind and just knew Then Chiswick Records duo Ted Carroll and Roger Armstrong
/HPP\DVDPDWHVRZKHQKHVDLG<RXYHJRWWKHMRE FDPHWRWKHLUUHVFXH&DUUROODOUHDG\NQHZ/HPP\DVDFXVWRPHU
,WKRXJKW)XFNLQHOO,YHMXVWEHHQDVNHGWREHLQD DW KLV 6RKR PDUNHW UHFRUG VWDOO DQG WKH\ KDG WDONHG DERXW
band that gets in the music papers. UHOHDVLQJDVLQJOH$V&DUUROOWROGPHLQ1H[WWKLQJWKDW
%HLQJFDOOHGDOWK\OLWWOHDQLPDOE\KLVJUDQQ\ KDSSHQHG , JRW D FDOO IURP /HPP\ WR VD\ WKH EDQG ZHUH
chimed with Taylors love of Animal from the playing their last gig and wanted to record it.
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FUHDWHKLVQLFNQDPH(DUO\0RW|UKHDGFKDPSLRQ posterity but, though Carroll couldnt hire a mobile
and friend of the band Motorcycle Irene UHFRUGLQJ VWXGLR LQ WLPH 0RW|UKHDGV ODVWJDVS
VXJJHVWHGKHEHFRPH3KLOWK\$QLPDODVEHW FRQFHUWUHGKLVHQWKXVLDVP7KHJLJZDVUHDOO\
ting his hyperactive persona. The album was RYHUWKHWRSUHFDOOHG&ODUNH:KHQ\RXNQRZ
QLVKHG ZKHQ7D\ORU RYHUGXEEHG )R[V GUXP youre coming to the end of something you go
parts, only for United Artists to shelve the bonkers anyway.
whole project. After the show, Carroll asked Motrhead
/DUU\:DOOLV KDG RYHUGXEEHG VR PDQ\ JXL to record a single. The trio checked into
tars that Motrhead needed a rhythm guitarist to (VFDSH 6WXGLRV LQ (JHUWRQ .HQW ZLWK
UHSOLFDWHLWOLYH7D\ORUUHPHPEHUHG(GGLH&ODUNHV Thunderclap Newmans songwriter John
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(GGLHMDPPHGWRJHWKHUDQGVSDUNVHZ/DUU\JRW 7KH\ OHIW WRZQ DW  RFORFN RQ D
MHDORXVZKHQ(GGLHMRLQHGUHPHPEHUHG/HPP\ Thursday night and started recording imme
He didnt want me to get another guitar player, diately they got to the studio, recalled
then I got one and he got hung up. He was a bit &DUUROO,QKRXUVWKH\GODLGGRZQEDFN
GETTY

freaked out by the heavy outlook of the band. He LQJWUDFNVVR,VDLGZHGGRDZKROH/3,JDYH

FRXOGQWKDQGOHLWDQGZDQWHGRXW:HGHFLGHGWRJLYHLW WKHPDQDGYDQFHRIYHJUDQGLQFOXGLQJUHFRUG
DWU\ZLWKMXVWWKHWKUHHRIXV:HPDGHVRPXFKIXFNLQJ ing costs. They were on the verge of splitting up.
/

noise there was no room for anybody else anyway. Nobody in the business wanted to know about
ROSS HALFIN

United Artists would only release Motrhead from Motrhead but, in my opinion, they were one of
their contract if a new label bought them out, the best rocknroll bands at that time. They were
but we couldnt get record companies to Beer drinker playing for survival before they made it and got
VHH XV H[SODLQHG 7D\ORU )RU VRPH UHDVRQ and hellraiser: FRQGHQW 0RW|UKHDG GHVHUYHG WKHLU VXFFHVV
Lemmy, Londons
WKH\VHHPHGWREHDIUDLGRIXV)RUDORQJWLPH Marquee club, more than any other band I can think of.
1977.
84 PLANET ROCK
 White punks on
dope: Lemmy with
SidnNancy.

We Are The
sterling, riff-laden Electric
Phase and a title track
where vocalist Phil Moggs
tale of civil disorder
(Wind blows back and

Road Crew
the batons charging)
is kicked skywards by
Michael Schenkers
dizzying guitar solo.

1977 was the year of the rowdy, streetwise rocknroll

album. Here are 12 of the best: from speed-addled
punks, spandex metallers and old rockers who refused
to die. No wizards capes or mini Moogs
The Damned
Damned Damned
Damned
Stiff, February 1977
Punk mentalists The Damned
lost no time in committing to
tape their singular sound: an
unsettling collision of Brian
James MC5-inspired guitar,
maniacal bassndrums from
Cap and Rat, and portentous,
baritone vocals from Dave
Vanian, the singing vampire.
UK punks rst LP was
recorded for the indie Stiff
while The Clash and Pistols
were still standing around
scratching their balls. Its
trashy, frenetic and, with New
Rose and Neat Neat Neat, an
unimpeachable street classic.
AC/DC
Let There Be Rock
Albert, March 1977
At an early London pub
gig AC/DC were billed as
Australian punk sensations.
Let There Be Rocks snotty
aggression suggests the
same. But really this is Chuck
Berry cranked up to nose-
bleed volume: the simplest of
Virgin, October 1977
12-bar blues, either slow and
chugging (Go Down) or fren-
zied and fast (that title track),
sung by a man, Bon Scott,
who sounds like he wants to
ght and/or fuck the world.
Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick
Columbia, February 1977
Midwestern US pop rockers
Cheap Trick were weaned on
The Beatles and The Move.
Their debut album piped
those inuences through the
prism of 70s trash TV and an
arresting glam/nerd image.
Out popped ELO Kiddies, Hot
Love and the creepy sex-pest
anthem Daddy Should Have
Stayed In High School
songs which sound like
Lennon & Macca moonlight-
ing in a garage rock band.
Judas Priest
Sin After Sin
CBS, April 1977
In the late 70s only the
Scorpions could challenge
Judas Priest for sheer heavy
metal-ness. But there could
only be one victor. Even Deep
Purple bassist Roger Glovers
timid production cant dampen
the sabre-rattling power of
Dissident Aggressor and
Sinner. Here, guitarists KK
Downing and Glenn Tipton
showed a young Iron Maiden
how to do it, while session
drummer Simon Phillips
bionic-footed double bass
rhythms invented Metallica.
UFO
Lights Out
Chrysalis, May 1977
By 1977, North London
neer-do-wells UFOs blues
rock had sprouted wings.
Lights Out was their pinnacle.
US producer Ron Nevison
whipped the drunken Brits
into shape. The result: a
Sex Pistols
Never Mind
The Bollocks
A bunch of hooligans who
became mainstream stars
almost by accident, the
Pistols' iconoclastic debut
saw Johnny Rottens lyrics
poking at such explosive
taboos (in rock music,
anyway) as abortion, the
Royal Family, anarchy and,
of course, cheap holidays
in other peoples misery.
Meanwhile, Paul Cooks
powerhouse drumming and
the delinquent simplicity of
Steve Jones guitar playing
as captured by Chris Thomas
and Bill Prices glistening
production completed the
perfect musical boot in the
balls. Heroin-addicted Sid
Vicious no-show on bass
(Jones played it) added to
the allure.
Thin Lizzy
Bad Reputation
Vertigo, September 1977
Having ripped themselves
apart with their egos and drug
habits, Thin Lizzy reunited,
partly, with wayward guitarist
Brian Robertson for their
last truly great studio album.
Bowies man Tony Visconti
produced, nessing Phil
Lynotts swagger on the
nostalgic Dancin In The
Moonlight and cranking up
the power on the brooding
title track and Opium Trail.
Ramones
Rocket To Russia
Sire, November 1977
By their third album, Da
Brudders had honed their
all-American garage punk
into a ne art, but even a
generous recording budget
couldnt erase the beautifully
dark misanthropy of Teenage
Lobotomy, Cretin Hop, et al.
What was clear, though, was
the New Yorkers craved a
US radio hit, which, despite
taking bubblegum punk to
fresh realms of genius with
Sheena Is A Punk Rocker
and Rockaway Beach, cruelly
evaded them.
Status Quo
Live!
Vertigo, March 1977
Recorded at the Glasgow
Apollo, the whole of Live! has
a wonderfully lthy groove.
Status Quo were punk before
punk, something forgotten in
the 1980s, the era of frontman
Francis Rossis ponytail and
daytime TV ubiquity. And if
you need a reminder of what
the late Rick Partt brought
to the mix, then listen to Big
Fat Mama, track two, side
three. Here, Partts metro-
nomic rhythm guitar sounds
positively transcendental.
Scorpions
Taken By Force
RCA, December 1977
Scorpions original banned
cover image for Taken By
Force showed kids playing
with guns in a cemetery. Then
again, the German quintets
shock factor was always high:
their vocals shriller than shrill
and their trousers so tight
groupies probably needed
kitchen scissors to get them
off. Here, Steamrock Fever
and the cross-dressing
anthem Hes A Woman Shes
A Man zoom past in a punk-
like blur of frenzied guitars
and Klaus Meines ear-
splitting scream.
The Pirates
Out Of Their Skulls
Warner Bros, October 1977
When Johnny Kidd died in
a car crash in 1966, many
considered it a tragic full-
stop to early Brit rock. But
when backing group The
Pirates power trio sound was
revived in the mid 70s by
Dr Feelgood, guitarist Mick
Green decided to resurrect
them. This Vic Maile-pro-
duced spanker, with a live
side from the Nashville
Rooms and studio cuts from
Rockeld, is a savage affair,
featuring mainly R&B covers
and cauterising versions of
Pirates oldies Please Dont
Touch and Shakin All Over.
Nazareth
Expect No Mercy
Mountain, November 1977
Dumfermline bruisers
Nazareth mined a rich seam
of stolid blues rock. Usually
stuck around the middle of
a 70s Reading Festival bill,
they never scaled the heights
of fellow middleweights UFO
or Judas Priest. But, as the
double-whammy of Expect
No Mercys title track and
Gone Dead Train prove, they
packed a mighty punch,
singer Dan McCafferty
growling like Axl Roses long-
lost Scottish grandad over a
rhythm section that swung
harder than a dockers st
at closing time.

PLANET ROCK 85
 Tear ya down:
Motrhead
promo pic, 77.

TWENTY-FOUR
HOURS A DAY, IM
LEMMY OF MOTRHEAD. IM
Motrhead stayed together and STUCK WITH IT FOR THE :H ORRN IHDUVRPH EHFDXVH ZHUH DOO KDLU\
went back out on the road, even supporting
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REST OFLemmy
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86 PLANET ROCK
 The clincher for Thompson was a Motrhead show at Londons
Dingwalls in June 1978. It was amazing, he said. Every kid in the
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OT R H E A D R E L E AS E D their raw cover version of The

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-LPP\0LOOHUZKRGSURGXFHG7KH5ROOLQJ6WRQHVSXUSOHSDWFKFODVVLFV
including Exile On Main Street, was in the chair.
Overkill ZDV UHOHDVHG LQ 0DUFK  DQG UHDFKHG 1XPEHU  ,W
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fans. And they would only keep growing.
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Germanic
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This story can only end with another Lemmy anecdote. One wintry
QLJKWLQ'HFHPEHU/HPP\FDPHVWULGLQJLQWR'LQJZDOOVJUDEEHG Motrheads debut LP is one of the most iconic designs in rock.
P\DUPDQGJURZOHG:HUHRYHUDW5RXQGKRXVH6WXGLRVUHFRUGLQJZLWK Its creator, graphic artist Phil Smee, recalls a memorable visit to
Jimmy Miller. Youve got to hear this song.
Lemmys dreadful squat, an old Letraset kit and a 30 fee.
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y job was as a book your design and found one with
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designer, working in
London, and in my lunch
times I would do my rounds of the
a [Gothic] typeface. Id used a lot of
the letters already, so when I got to
the second O it was a special one
6RRQWKHVRQJVGRXEOHNLFNGUXPUXPEOHZDVERRPLQJDURXQGWKH record shops, including Ted with an umlaut over it. I thought,
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market. One day I was looking for Germanic! Then when I got to the
7KH RQO\ ZD\ WR IHHO WKH QRLVH LV ZKHQ LWV JRRG DQG ORXG WHVWLHG The Wanderer by Dion, and Ted H, I didnt have one, so I had to
/HPP\DV2YHUNLOOWKXQGHUHGDORQJIRUDIXUWKHUYHPLQXWHVRIZDLOLQJ asked why. I explained it was for a make one out of an L and a bit of
peaks and false endings. jacket I was designing for Richard an upside-down W, thats why the
Prices The Wanderers. He said, leg comes down too far.
,WZDVDQXQIRUJHWWDEOHPRPHQWWKDWPLJKWKDYHEHHQWKHELUWKRI
Youre a designer? Im starting a My fee was 30 in credit from
PRGHUQPHWDO7KHQDJDLQ/HPP\QHYHUFDUHGIRUODEHOV+HDOZD\VVDZ record company, do you want to Teds shop, so I thought I wont
KLPVHOIDVFDUU\LQJDWRUFKIRUWKHURFNQUROOKHURHVRIKLV\RXWKEHWKH\ design some record sleeves? bother changing it, its far too much
(OYLV /LWWOH 5LFKDUG -HUU\ /HH /HZLV DQG *HQH 9LQFHQW RU ODWHU I went up to see Ted in his trouble. Then I realised the spacing
at above the Rock On shop in was too tight to stretch all the way
7KH%HDWOHV7KH<DUGELUGVDQGWKH0&
Camden. He said, Do you know over the pigs head thats why the
2QH PRUQLQJ DURXQG WKLV WLPH /HPP\ JUDEEHG P\ ZULVW DQG Lemmy out of Hawkwind? Well, E, A and D are stretched out.
VHDUFKHGP\H\HVEHIRUHOD\LQJRXWKLVPDQLIHVWR,ORYHURFNQUROOKH hesstarting a new group. Can When I nished, I thought it
GHFODUHG,WVP\HQWLUHH[LVWHQFH,FDQWLPDJLQHOLIHZLWKRXWLW<RXJHW youput a sleeve together? looked a bit amateurish it was
That weekend we went to see black on white so I had the idea
VXFNHGLQWRWKHEDVWDUGWKLQJ1RZ,PVWXFNZLWKLWIRUWKHUHVWRIP\
Lemmy in his place in Notting Hill, of making a negative image of it.
life. Theres nothing else Im gonna want to do. Its a complete thing, which was an absolutely dreadful Suddenly it looked really good.
KRXUVDGD\,P/HPP\RXWRI0RW|UKHDG7KDWVZKDW,GR7KDWV squat. He already had a photograph As adrawing, [the pig face] was
what I am. of the pigs head drawing his friend OK, but in reverse it looked really
Joe Petagno had done. Lemmy said, interesting and unusual.
Then, suddenly, as if knowing he had to put this moment of serious
Can you do a logo for it, Phil? Try These days, you see the album
UHHFWLRQ LQ LWV SODFH /HPP\ WKUHZ EDFN KLV KHDG DQG OHW RXW DQ and make it look Germanic. design on T-shirts, people have it
uproarious cackle. Then he said, Ive also had this idea for landing I took the photo and the track tattooed on them, its everywhere.
DERPEHURQVWDJH listing scribbled out on a fag All I got for it was my 30 credit at
packet, and that night I got out my the shop, but Im not bitter, it was
Turn over for more Motrhead mayhem and a brand new interview with
collection of Letrasets the letters just great to have designed such
Fast Eddie Clarke. on a sheet that you rub off onto an iconic logo.

PLANET ROCK 87
Up in smoke:
Motrhead,
Overkill tour, 1979
'' W e
w e r e n t
an o r m a l
ba n d . . . ''
Guitarist Fa st Eddie Clarke joined Motrhead
in 1976. Cue: six chaotic, turbulent years that
almost crushed their spirit. Four decades later,
Phil Alexander hears a candid story of high times,
low times, rocknroll and great friendship from the
ICON PIX

classic line-ups sole survivor. GEORGE BODNAR

Portrait by

90 PLANET ROCK
 A conversation with
Fa st Eddie Clarke... Were you already known as Fast Eddie
W I L L C O N TA I N  WKH FUHDWLYH XVH RI H[SOHWLYHV D VHULHV RI URXJKDQGWXPEOH DQHFGRWHV DQG
DODUJHGRVHRIGRZQWRHDUWKKRQHVW\1RZ\HDUVROGWKHJXLWDULVWVWLOOOHDGV)DVWZD\WKH when you joined the band?
EDQGKHIRUPHGLQDIWHUSDUWLQJFRPSDQ\ZLWK/HPP\DQG3KLO7D\ORUZKLOHGLYLGLQJKLV No, and I was absolutely anti the whole thing.
WLPHEHWZHHQKRPHVLQ0DUEHOODDQG/RQGRQ/DVW\HDU)DVWZD\WRXUHGWKH8.ZLWKIRUPHU I said to Lemmy, Whatever you do, dont call
0RW|UKHDGUXQQLQJPDWHV6D[RQDQG*LUOVFKRRO me Fast Eddie. I just didnt fancy it because
7KDWZDVDUHDOO\JRRGWRXUKHODXJKVRQWKHSKRQHIURP6SDLQ,WVHHPVOLNHDZKLOHDJR I thought it was a bit naff. There was Paul
Newman in that lm [The Hustler, in which he
EXW,PVWLOOUHFRYHULQJIURPLW,ZDVWKLQNLQJWKDW,FRXOGPD\EHSXWD)DVW(GGLH&ODUNHEDQG
played Fast Eddie Felson], and at the time
WRJHWKHUDQGGRDELWRIHYHU\WKLQJIURPP\FDUHHU:HOOVHHZKDWKDSSHQV everyone seemed to have a silly name like
3UH0RW|UKHDG&ODUNHVFDUHHUVWUHWFKHVEDFNWRWKHODWHVKLVEUHDNFRPLQJZKHQKH Splodge, Bumshit or fucking Wankbag or
MRLQHG YLVLWLQJ$PHULFDQ VLQJHU &XUWLV .QLJKW LQ =HXV LQ  .QLJKW KDG IDPRXVO\ OHG7KH Philthy Animal, Lemmy and Rat Scabies. We
6TXLUHVWKH5 %RXWWZLWKDSUHIDPH-LPL+HQGUL[7KHEDQGFXW were playing up in Manchester at the
WZRDOEXPVRIQHRSURJUHVVLYHEOXHVURFNThe Second ComingDQGSea Of Electric Circus, which was a fabulous gig,
TimeERWKUHOHDVHGLQDQGQHLWKHUVHOOLQJLQPHDQLQJIXOTXDQWLWLHV and Lemmy introduced Phil as Philthy
'XULQJKLVWLPHZLWK.QLJKW&ODUNHDQGPHPEHUVRI=HXVDVVHP Animal on drums! and the place went wild.
EOHGDQHZEDQGFKULVWHQHG%OXH*RRVHEXW&ODUNHIHOORXWZLWKKLV Then he went, And Fast Eddie on guitar!
EDQGPDWHV DQG PHUHO\ DSSHDUV RQ WKH VRQJZULWLQJ FUHGLWV RI RQH And I just looked daggers at him and said,
WUDFNRQWKHLUORQJORVWVHOIWLWOHGDOEXPUHOHDVHGRQ$QFKRULQ Oh, fuck, Lem! But, of course, once it was
$IWHUDVKRUWOLYHGVWLQWDV&RQWLQXRXV3HUIRUPDQFH&ODUNHKRRNHGXS said, it just stuck. I didnt mind it at all.
ZLWK0RW|UKHDGYLDKLVIULHQGVKLSZLWK3KLO7D\ORUZKLFKHQGXUHG At the time when you joined Motrhead
XQWLOWKHGUXPPHUVGHDWKLQ1RYHPEHU6HYHQZHHNV youd given up playing. Why was that?
DIWHUWKHORVVRI7D\ORU/HPP\WRRZRXOGSDVVDZD\ I hadnt actually given up at all. Id done the
OHDYLQJ &ODUNH DV WKH VROH VXUYLYLQJ PHPEHU RI Curtis Knight thing and then Id done the
WKHFODVVLF0RW|UKHDGOLQHXS Blue Goose thing but gigs werent easy to nd.
7DONLQJ DERXW KLV IRUPHU EDQGPDWHV Iremember sending my tape to Mott The Hoople
&ODUNH LV ERWK QRVWDOJLF DQG YHU\ RSHQ but it was a lean period, 74, 75, 76, when it

LEMMY WAS STANDING

,XVHGWRWDONWR3KLODOOWKHWLPHULJKWXS was all just transitioning, and punk was
starting to happen. Me and my mates had
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THERE WITH A LEATHER JACKET

started a building company the year before
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Blue Goose nished so I went back to
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IN ONE HAND AND A BULLET

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Damage case:
Planet Rocks Phil
Alexander with
Eddie Clarke, 1984.
work for them. I used all that money to do
my solo albun which was [still called]
Continuous Performance. I paid for that
BELT IN THE OTHER AND SAID, myself and I wrote the tunes with Nicky
[Hogarth], the keyboard player from
YOUVE GOT THE JOB.
Fast Eddie
Curtis Knight.
You met Lemmy through Phil. What were
your rst impressions of him?
Well, he was just really Lem. Our paths had
crossed over the years. I went straight into a
salesman trip about being in the band I think
Isaid, Ill get the rehearsal sorted; Ill come and
pick you up in my car I felt as though I knew
him, even though I hadnt spent time with him
and, to be honest, I just wanted a gig. But then,
Lemmys that kind of guy where everyone felt
they knew him. Even back then.
Youd previously played with Curtis Knight
whod had Hendrix in his band. Lemmy, of
2

course, had roadied for Jimi. Did you bond

GETTY X

over Hendrix?
I asked him about Hendrix but he really
downplayed it. Im not sure why. When we came

92
 Golden years: Motrhead,
New York, 1981; (inset)
that infamous Daily
Mirror article, 1975, and
(left) early Head producer
John Speedy Keen.

to do the Motrhead album, I said, Look, we can
do the whole fucking album in a night I know
because I pretty much did that with Curtis
Knight. Motrhead had been playing the songs
for a year, so I knew we could do it. And we did.
Thats why I owed Curtis one because in those
days people used to take weeks and months to
make an album. We didnt.
Before we get into the album, do you
remember the rst song you all played
together at the rst rehearsal?
I think it might have been The Watcher. [Chuck
Berrys] Johnny B. Goode was in there, too.
Ididlearn the songs off the United Artists album
that [the previous line-up of] Motrhead had
recorded, but I didnt learn them that well
because I wasnt too hot at learning other
peoples tunes.
Speedy Keen produced your rst album.
Hed seen Pete Townshend working at close
quarters in the studio after Pete produced
his former band, Thunderclap Newman.
I used to hang out with Speedy Keen before
I joined Motrhead. He was an old friend of mine.
But, yeah, he took me to a place in Wardour
Street which was a studio they had there. I think
it may have been Petes proper studio, because
[Keen] told me that him, Pete and Joe Walsh had
been jamming up there. I was so jealous because
I was really into [Walshs 1974 album] So What.
He also took me to [The Whos]
Ramport Studios while they were
building it. I would later use
Ramport for my demos for
Fastway and for the Tank album
[Algy Wards band which Eddie
produced back in 82]. Its funny how these
threads all tie up.
Lemmy was already known for playing rather
loudly. How did playing with him affect your
overall sound?
Its odd because I have never criticised anyone
Ive played with. I tend to get on with what Im
doing and let everyone do their thing. So I dont
remember thinking much other than that he was
playing like a rhythm guitarist which I suppose
is how he approached it. I remember us making
acassette of an early rehearsal and you can
imagine what that sounded like (makes the
sound of overloaded static). I was a bit confused
back then because it really didnt sound like a
normal band. I think it also bothered Phil. It didnt
bother Lemmy because hed always played like
that. But there was a uniqueness to what we did.
I actually think its why we got somewhere.
By the summer of 76, the press had already
described Motrhead as the worst band in
the world. Didnt that bother you?
I didnt know about that. What Id read was the
little bit in the Daily Mirror where Lemmy had said
that thing about the lawn dying
[If we moved in next door
your lawn would die was
Lemmys fabled comment].
It wasnt that bit that impressed
me, though, it was just the fact
that they were in the Daily fucking Mirror! This
was all before Id talked to Phil about rehearsing
with them. It made it seem like I was joining a
proper band.
You rehearsed at the Furniture Cave in
Chelsea, didnt you? Presumably rehearsals
werent as beserk as we may imagine them
to be
Im not sure about that! It wasnt far off. We were
in a very tiny room. There was this little room with
the carpet on the walls. It cant have been more
than ten foot by ten foot, and it was 1976 that
hot summer. It was fucking brilliant, man! We
were almost playing in our underpants. I went for
the rst rehearsal there and Larry [Wallis]
obviously wasnt very happy at all.
Were you aware of the politics in the band?
Id been to meet Larry with Phil a couple of
months before and it was all ne. I was quite
happy to be second guitarist because I was
grateful for the opportunity. But when Larry
turned up at the rehearsal after wed already
been there for four hours, he didnt seem happy.
Then he started playing Fools off that United

PLANET ROCK 93
Attack of the mad
axeman: Eddie
Clarke, 1980.
Artists album and he seemed to do that riff
over and over again. Everyone was getting a bit
edgy. Lemmy seemed embarrassed because
wed just had a wonderful time jamming for four
hours without Larry. It got very awkward so I said,
I think Id better leave. At that point I thought Id
never hear from them again.
So how did you actually end up joining
Motrhead?
About two or three days later Lemmy banged on
me door at eight oclock in the morning. I was
like, Who the fucks that? Because in those days
94 PLANET ROCK
you only got to bed around that time. Lemmy was
standing there with a leather jacket in one hand
and a bullet belt in the other. He handed them to
me and said, Youve got the job, and walked Fever)We did that and built it from there. The riff
off. Im thinking, Fuck! It really was a moment.
Butthere were lots of things we didnt realise. own charm in its simplicity. The other song we
Later on, Im not sure if we even realised wed
become successful.
In the early days and during those early gigs,
it wasnt like you were successful per se
Oh, man! We must have been fucking rubbish
with the nightmares we had with the sound.
I remember supporting AC/DC at
what mustve been our fourth
show or so in Bath and we
sounded fucking awful, you know.
I thought, Im gonna stand and
watch [AC/DC] and see how they
sound and, of course, they
sounded magnicent. It was when
Bon Scott was with them, too.
And they were incredible. But, of course, we had
no bass if the soundmen put too much bass on
Lemmys bass hed get the hump so it was a
constant battle, all the way to the break-up,
really. When I listen back to some of the tunes
now, I think theyre magnicent. But it took a
while to realise that. Looking back, there was
something about the melodies, too. Phil was a
big part of it all because he played fucking weird,
man! I think we all did. I always knew that the
band couldnt work without Phil and Lemmy but
Ithink they started to forget that, to forget what
we had. When they let me go, they forgot that
the only reason it was working was because it
was the three of us.
By the time you were red, in May 1982, you
hadnt actually peaked as such. Iron Fist as
an album stands up.
Theres some great songs on it. I mean,
Speedfreak is one of my favourites. Theres a
couple of dodgy ones, but then theres always
a couple of dodgy ones on every album. It was
more to do with the atmosphere. I just didnt
realise that Lemmy had sort of gone to war with
me. I had no idea. I didnt nd it out until 20 years
later. And Phil was off on some weird thing, too.
He was hanging about with Brian Robertson and
taking the wrong drugs as well. I think he felt that
my playing wasnt as good as Brian Robertsons.
Youre a different kind of guitar player
Thats right, but thats what Phil was missing. He
forgot all that. Like I said before, I never criticised
anyone. I always did my bit and I assumed that
everyone else would do theirs. It was a bit like
being in the army: you do what youve got to do
because you know your job. And in that way, you
should be ne. But we werent.
Coming back to the early days, and the
songwriting, White Line Fever was the rst
song you wrote as a band, wasnt it?
Yeah. I stood in that rehearsal room and told
them that we had to write some material, and
I sort of took hold of the reins. When you look
back, the rst Motrhead album has very little
new material on it because they werent writing.
But I was a writing nut. So I said, How about
this? (Sings the opening riff to White Line
wasnt exactly Whole Lotta Love but did have its
wrote was Keep Us On The Road which Id had
the riff to for a while.
Lemmy wrote the lyrics, though?
GETTY
Yeah. We left the lyrics to Lemmy, though we did
have a little bit of input at times. Not too much
because I was never going to tell Lemmy what to
sing. And it was the same with Phil. Then again,
Lemmy used to say, I wish youd just play a
straight four, Philip you little cunt! They were
always rowing about that because Phil never
played a straight four. He always complicated it.
When you listen to his bass drum moves, theyre
just impossible. Really fantastic, and when
Lemmy went off and did his rhythm guitar bass
Phil was busy lling in the holes. Of course,
I didnt really realise any of this at the time
because I just had me head down and I was
concentrating on what I was doing, and getting
to the end of the day. I think we were all like that.
But Phil really was out of this world, and I think
that thats one of the biggest tragedies: that he
did fuck all after Motrhead on both occasions.
(Sighing) What a waste, man.
As a fan, it was like you were following a
three-man gang.
We kinda were a gang. We had a great balance.
But Lemmy was hard work. We used to have to
drag him along on certain occasions. I found out
since that he was the same in Hawkwind. He
used to not show up at gigs. Hed be in America
and say, Oh, I cant make the gig, and they
were going on in half an hour! Of course, he
never dared do that with me because Id have
gone off at the deep end. And we did have a
few set-tos, certainly Phil and I did. It set the
tone and sort of said: this is a serious outt
and there will not be any fucking about. Phil
and Lemmy were a little bit loose.
Downright chaotic?
Yeah. Id turn up and say, This is what
were doing, and Lemmy would often say,
I cant be bothered,, and Id just say,
Were fucking doing it, Lem! Were going
torehearse until we know everything
backwards. And thats what we did, and it
worked great. Lemmy did like it when he saw
the results.
When it came to making the rst album, you
played the Marquee on April 1, 1977, and
then drove down to Escape Studios in Kent.
You arrived at midnight
It was probably later. One thirty or so, I think.
Wed packed up at the Marquee at 11 or so and
then we jumped in Speedys car
He drove you down there, did he?
Oh, yeah. He had Pete Townshends Mercedes
6.3. It was fucking brilliant. That black leather! The
fastest saloon car ever built at that time. He was
tearing down there. It was lovely, man. Lemmy
was in the front and me and Phil were in the back.
There was walnut and everything, like being in a
Roller. So we got there pretty late and
Johnny [John Burns the engineer]
was there, and the gear was
coming down in the wagon.
What did Speedy bring
to the session?
The session was almost
surreal. Speedy was a
rocknroller anyway but he
helped us in no uncertain terms. Ted Carroll
suggested Speedy should produce the album.
What had happened is that Phil wanted us to
break up. He said, I dont think this is going
anywhere. Lemmy and I looked at each other
and said, Well, what else are you gonna do, you
silly little cunt? Stop doing nothing to do
nothing? Which was pretty much what we were
doing, because we could barely get any shows.
Phil was stamping his feet, which he did
sometimes. So we thought that this may well be
our last show. I was a little distressed because
I thought, Fuck me, we havent really done
anything. Wed clattered round the country
meeting some great people, some great kids.
There were some miners in Doncaster who put
us up for the night before going off to the coal
face in the morning. We met some really
wonderful people. And I wanted to give them
something. Bowing out having not done anything
apart from Leaving Here and White Line Fever
wasnt enough. And that hadnt even come out.
was a kings ransom in those days and Ted didnt
STIFF WANTED
US ON A COMPILATION,
WHERE YOUD HAVE TO BUY ALL
THIS OTHER STUFF LIKE ELVIS
COSTELLO AND IAN DURY. WHO
WANTSFastTHATEddieSHIT?
No, it hadnt come out.
That was because of Jake Riviera at Stiff
Records. They really used us and it did our
heads in. We wanted to get something out but
nobody would touch Motrhead because they
thought we were killers, and we had a bunch of
Hells Angels in tow.
Wasnt the issue with that single, Leaving
Here/White Line Fever, down to the fact that
Lemmy was still signed to United Artists?
No. It was nothing to do with that. United Artists
had binned the album and binned Motrhead,
and they wanted to act as if it had never
happened. At least it was that way until
we got famous (laughs). That
completely blew my mind,
considering how they really didnt
want to know. Stiff had said,
Were going to put the single
out, and it was going to be
BUY9. [Our manager] Doug Smith
helped with paying for some of the recording
which we did down in Brighton. Then Stiff said,
Were not putting the single out were going
to put it on our compilation. They knew that all
our kids would go out and buy it because it was
the only thing wed put on record. What a
fucking cunt-bag thing! It meant youd have to
buy all this other stuff like Elvis Costello and Ian
Dury. Who wants that shit? We were fucking
livid. I remember Lemmy slagging Jake off in the
press and Jake came up to us at the Nashville
and said, Whats Lemmy having a fucking go at
me for? I turned round and said, Because
youre a cunt.
Coming back to the rst album, you were in
the studio for pretty much 24 hours
Originally, we wanted to record the show at the
Marquee but no one wanted to know. I said to
Lemmy, You know Ted at Chiswick Records,
dontyou? Why dont you have a word with him?
So Lemmy had a chat with Ted he loved
Motrhead who said, Let me see what I can
do. He called the Marquee who wanted ve
hundred quid just to record the album. Now, that
have that kind of money. So Ted agreed to pay
for the studio. Speedy knew Johnny Burns, so
we had two days booked the Saturday and
Sunday. One day to record, one day to mix.
Ted would come down on the Sunday to
hear what hes got.
But you drove down on the Friday
night, though?
We got down there on the Friday night to
get ahead of the game. We got set up and
we were most denitely ready to rock. We
had enough speed to get us through to
probably three in the morning on the Sunday.
We had to put a little bit aside for Speedy and
John so that they could mix the album. That was
when I had the conversation with them about
doing the album rather than a single. So we did
it. We recorded all day Saturday, and we did all
the vocals and the overdubs. Then we went to
bed at about four in the morning and left Speedy
and Johnny to it. We wanted to mix the whole
thing and to say to Ted, Here you go, youve got
an album.
Did they mix it through that night?
When I went to sleep they were mixing
Motrhead [the track]; I woke up around midday
and theyre still mixing Motrhead. I thought,
What the fuck is going on? Then I saw that they
had 35 tape boxes or something where theyd
done all these fucking mixes. Some had one star,
some had two, some had a big star. They didnt
have a fucking clue which was the best one so
theyd do another one (laughs)!
So whos got all those mixes because thats
a lot of tapes?
I dont know. Has Ted got them? I really dont
know. Ill have to ask Doug Smith. Anyway,
eventually Ted arrives and, because I was like the
kind of business guy, I took him to one side and
Isaid, We havent recorded a single, weve
PLANET ROCK 95

recorded a whole album. He was really
excited by that and so were we. When we
played it to him, he loved it and he suggested
we remix Motrhead at Olympic Studios. That
remix alone probably cost more than the
whole album. So we went to Olympic the
following weekend and mixed Motrhead
and put City Kids on the B-side. But thats
basically the story of how the album was
made. It was pretty full-on.
What about the artwork. How did that
come about?
Wed had that logo [see panel on p87] so
we thought, Lets put that on the front. But
Ted wanted to do it silver. So the rst 10,000
were silver. Theyre collectors things now.
Once the album came out, you went on
your rst proper major headline tour.
Yeah, but we had a problem with getting a
manager. Doug Smith wouldnt commit to the
band at that point. [Pink Fairies leader/writer]
Micky Farren said to Lemmy, Why dont you go
and see Tony Secunda? So he did and had a
right old carry-on, drinking, smoking and partying
and suddenly we had a serious management
deal on offer. One of the perks I remember was
that Tony said hed buy us a leather jacket worth
50 quid from Lewis Leathers. Suddenly, Tony
had to take over the tour which was pretty much
done. It was us, Girlschool and The Count
Bishops. We did a couple of shows and then
when we got to Plymouth Phil beat up the tour
manager over [his girlfriend] Motorcycle Irene.
They had a set-to. This time he couldnt play on.
Phil had broken his hand when wed toured with
Hawkwind and that time wed soldiered on by
Gaffa-taping the stick to his hand. But this time,
he couldnt play so it was a disaster. I remember
sitting in the bus on the way back from Plymouth
wanting to kill Phil. But that put everything on ice
and that was the end of that album, really. While
Phil was getting better, the album was dying.
96 PLANET ROCK
Shoot to thrill:
Motrhead, 77.
PHIL SAID,
I DONT THINK THIS IS
GOING ANYWHERE. LEMMY
AND I LOOKED AT EACH OTHER
AND SAID, WELL, WHAT ELSE
ARE YOU GONNA DO?
Fast Eddie
On the management front,
Doug Smith eventually
started managing you.
Yes. It was tough on Tony. Tony
could get a deal for anyone
because he was such a big hitter but
he couldnt get a deal for Motrhead. He
was tearing his hair out. Hed invested some
money and hed got the raving hump. We had a
big falling out. He wanted his money back and
we didnt have it, so he got an injunction out
against us and we couldnt work. We were
fucked. This went on for a while. Lemmy was
staying with a friend of his up in Belsize Park. Me
and Phil went round there to see the same friend
and Doug Smith was there. So we had a few
smokes and a few beers, and said to Lem, Why
dont we get Doug to help us out? So we all
agreed that it was our best shot. It was our only
fucking shot, because we were dead in the
water. That was the start of the next phase,
which led to [second album] Overkill.
How did you sign to Bronze?
We got the opportunity with Bronze through
[the labels] Howard Thompson and David
Betteridge. Howard loved the band. He loved
all that anarchy shit, so he loved us. We nally
talked Gerry [Bron, Bronze owner] into doing
one single Louie Louie.
Youve mentioned you were trying to get the
band to write more
Yeah. But it was a godsend because the song
was already a classic. So the guy at Bronze had
worked at the BBC and he had friends there.
Hesaid to us, If you get into the Top 75, I can
get you on Top Of The Pops. We thought, Oh,
yeah. Sure. Motrhead on Top Of The Pops. But
the single went in at 73 or something, so the
next thing we knew we were on fucking Top Of
The Pops! Gerry loved all this so he suddenly
thought that this might be a runner.
It really was a dening moment for the
band, wasnt it?
Oh, yeah. Totally. It was the make-or-break
moment. The truth is without Doug Smith this
would not have happened.
When you look back at the period weve
discussed, how do you feel?
Well, I wouldnt change a thing because if
I could go back and change it, it might not
go the same way. It wasnt fantastic all
the time, but looking back at what was
achieved its pretty incredible. I love it more
now than I did then, I think. I listen to
Overkill and Ace Of Spades and I think,
What a track! Its actually quite complex.
But the thing about that time is that,
musically, it all owed out. It got tougher
towards the end but Bomber [released in
October 1979] was the easiest. Wed only just
nished touring Overkill and the label said,
We need another album, so we just
went, Oh, OK. We knocked it out in the
autumn and we were back on the
road in November with Bomber and
the best fucking light show of the
time. Looking back, that is still
genuinely incredible to me. I realise
that it was all four of us, including
Doug, who did that. Im not entirely
sure how.
Ultimately, what did that whole period
teach you as a person?
I dont know what it taught me, but it showed me
some stuff. We were moving so fast, that we
couldnt take it all in. It took a long time, and
Imean many years, probably not until the 90s,
for me to realise what wed achieved. Through
the 80s I was really ghting for my life because
Iwas drinking and there were drugs. In 89 I had
to stop and dry out because my career was over.
It was nished. It wasnt until then, once Id
sobered up and got it together that I appreciated
it. You kind of look back with clarity and I also
GETTY
suddenly realised, Fuck! We were really quite
famous, werent we? That was also a real
revelation. I wish Id known that then.
 THE BATH AND LINCOLN FESTIVALS
COMMEMORATIVE SET 1969 - 71
SOME OF BANDS FEATURED WERE

FLEETWOOD MAC - BYRDS - TASTE

JEFFERSON AIRPLANE - STEPPENWOLF
TEN YEARS AFTER - CANNED HEAT - NICE
JOHNNY WINTER - SANTANA
JAMES TAYLOR - TIM HARDIN ETC.

NOW WITH 9 CDS AND 2 DVDS, 20 PHOTOS,

2 FESTIVAL T-SHIRTS, PROGRAMMES, TICKETS AND
FLYERS, A 330 PAGE BOOK
PLUS
4 FULL SIZED SIGNED, PERSONALISED AND NUM-
BERED POSTERS, WHICH SELL ON THE SITE FOR A
TOTAL OF 99.80

NEW TOTAL KNEBWORTH

COMMEMORATIVE SET 1974 - 79
SOME OF BANDS FEATURED WERE
LED ZEPPELIN, ROLLING STONES
PINK FLOYD, GENESIS
THE ALLMAN BROS,LYNYRD SKYNYRD
FRANK ZAPPA, ALEX HARVEY,
HOT TUNA, TODD RUNDGREN ETC ET.
FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY WE ARE GIVING WITH THE SET,
AT NO EXTRA CHARGE, THE 6 SIGNED, PERSONALISED
AND NUMBERED POSTERS,WHICH SELL ON OUR SITE FOR
A TOTAL OF 145.

AS WELL AS THE POSTERS, INCLUDED WITH THE SET

ARE 27 CDS, 4 DVDS, 70 PHOTOGRAPHS,
3 EVENT T- SHIRTS, THE PROGRAMMES, TICKETS AND
FLYERS, A 330 PAGE BOOK, THE BACKSTAGE PASSES
AND EVENT BADGES ETC

AND TO SEE OUR OTHER BATH AND KNEBWORTH COMMEMORATIVE SETS

...albums you need to hear
right now! Your hand-picked
selection of essential releases...
Roger Waters, Royal Blood, p100 p102

Stone Sour, Inglorious,

p103 p104

Hawkwind, At The Drive In,

p105 p106

Biters, Danzig, Deep Purple,

p106 p106 p106

Snakecharmer, Anathema, p107 p107

Buckingham McVie, Endless p107

Boogie, Flogging Molly,

p108 p108

Mark Lanegan Band, Seether, p108 p108

The Dead Daisies, Royal p109

Thunder, The Magpie Salute,

p109 p109

Iron Maiden, Chris Farlowe,

p110 p112

Glenn Hughes, Jethro Tull, p112 p112

Humble Pie, Foreigner p112 p112

PLANET ROCK 99

Guantanamo Bay. Russian
brides. Kidneys. No brains.
Wish you were here...
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P L A N E T R O C K 101
 Laughing boys:
Royal Blood.

Hurt, anguish, the best
insight into the people

behind the music...
R OYA L B L O O D S eponymously titled 2014 BY JA M E S M C M A H O N 7KHUHFRUGVWDUWVEULOOLDQWO\ZLWKWKHWLWOHWUDFN$Q

ROYAL BLOOD
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Whiplash Pants

P L A N E T R O C K 103
 Albums
Echoes of vintage Purple
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 Gone with the Wind:
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Sounds of
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P L A N E T R O C K 107
 Albums

ENDLESS BOOGIE else to do. Grab yourself a sandwich, while

Vibe Killer
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cord collector who enjoyed
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guitarist Rob Marshall which, despite the
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looped organs on Blue Blue Sea, and the
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MARK LANEGAN BAND

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their stride with an album which, despite its
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Gargoyle Sea, Emperor
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P L A N E T R O C K 109
 Reissues

They catch their breath,
lose direction, then make

a glorious return...
I N T H E 80s, everything Iron Maiden touched BY N I C K R U S K E LL the best songs the band have ever written.

IRON MAIDEN
turned to gold. At the start of the decade, they were 2Q WKH LSVLGH \RX KDYH VWX OLNH 7KH $QJHO $QG
a tough, young band, hardened in the pubs of 7KH *DPEOHU ZKLFK KDV QRW DJHG ZHOO DW DOO
Londons East End, hungry to take on the world. By The likeable Blaze, meanwhile, has an admirable go at
1988, they were the biggest and most important met OOLQJ WKH XQOODEOH VKRHV RI
Vinyl Reissues his predecessor, but the fact
al band on the planet, thanks to a peerless body of
work, each instalment of which somehow managed EMI that he wasnt him was enough
to match, if not surpass, its predecessor. Maiden to make some simply shrug.
could do no wrong. Even the sacking of original sing ++++ But perhaps, after their
HU 3DXO 'L$QQR LQ IDYRXU RI OHDWKHUOXQJHG SXEOLF extraordinary 80s, everyone
schoolboy and fencing enthusiast Bruce Dickinson needed a bit of time to
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greatness, rather than a stumbling block. PRUH RI D 0DLGHQ YDFDWLRQ DQG ZKHQ  VRPH
It was a perfect decade, and the albums from that time have been VDLGLQHYLWDEO\'LFNRDQG$GULDQ6PLWKFDPH
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WKHVDPHXSDQGXSMR\ULGHZLWK%UXFH'LFNLQVRQDQGJXLWDULVW$GULDQ RQHRIWKHQHVWDOEXPVRIWKHLUFDUHHU1RWRQO\ No Prayer For The Dying
Smith leaving, and new singer Blaze Bayley polarising fan opinion. Its that, the world suddenly felt excited about Iron +++
a confusing second act to Maidens story, before everything is righted in Maiden again. And as they proved across Dance
the triumphant third with the return of Dickinson and Smith in 1999. Fear Of The Dark
Of DeathWKHSURJWDFXODUA Matter Of Life And
:KLFKPD\H[SODLQZK\WKLVVHWLVWKHUVWWLPH,URQ0DLGHQVRXWSXW +++++
Death and expansive The Final Frontier, this era of
from 1990 onward has seen the same treatment as their 80s work. Maiden was not simply rewriting past glories, The X Factor
What we have here is a story of a band catching their breath, losing but forging ahead with the same spirit of old. +++
direction, and then making a glorious return. In that order. 7KDWVFDXJKWRQDOOWKHOLYHVWXKHUH)RXU Virtual XI
Released in October 1990, No Prayer For The Dying gave the OLYHDOEXPVLVDQDEVROXWHELQJHHYHQIRUGLH +++
EDQGWKHLUUVWDQGLQGHHGRQO\1XPEHUVLQJOHZLWKWKHXQ3& hards, but the energy generated in whatever
romp of Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter, but the album as Brave New World
stadium Maiden happen to be in on any given +++++
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night is captured perfectly, and you can never
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have too much of Bruce Dickinsons Alan
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++++
Of The Dark, which was to be Bruce Dickinsons last album with the A Matter Of Life
There are, of course, plenty of
band until the turn of the century. And a hell of a swansong And Death
moments of imperfection over so long and
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eventful a period and with so much rocky + ++++
sound and fury than a whole Premier League season, with
the sprawling Afraid To Shoot Strangers hinting at those future ground. But, as is so often the case with The Final Frontier

QLQHPLQXWHHSLFV 0DLGHQ DJDLQ DQG DJDLQ \RX QG +++++

,WZDVWREHWKHQDO0DLGHQFODVVLFIRUVL[\HDUVWKRXJK yourself only remembering the good Rock In Rio (Live)
Burnt out, Bruce quit the band in 1993, to be bits. And when those hit, ++++
replaced by Wolfsbane singer Blaze Bayley for 1995s regardless of what part of the
Death On The Road
VRVR The X Factor and 98s confused Virtual XI. While story they come from, they (Live)
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also true they sound like a band soldiering on, rather have scaled the heights they
Flight 666 (Live)
than conquering. From the former, Man On The KDYHVRPDJQLFHQWO\
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Blaze Bayley:
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&ODQVPDQIURPVirtual XI is simply one of have the Of The Navigator
X Factor.

110 P L A N E T R O C K
Burning ambition:
Iron Maiden. 111
 Reissues
CHRIS FARLOWE AND
THE THUNDERBIRDS
The Beginning
JIMMY PAGE RECORDS
++++
A FA N of what he once
described as hooligan drums
sounds, Jimmy Page has always
been fascinated by the kinetic
power of primal rocknroll.
These 12 tracks recorded in 1961 underline as
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time at RG Jones Studio in Morden, South
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unsigned North London singer Chris Farlowe
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atmospheric, pushing Bobby Taylors guitar to
the fore while Farlowes soulful performance
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of what Page describes as the musical caul
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scene, 56 years after they were recorded these
tracks have a charm all of their own and con
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ahead of their time. Devotees can order The
Beginning directly from www.jimmypage.
com. PHIL ALEXANDER
B E ST TRACKS: Watch Your Step, Sticks And
Stones, Money
FOREIGNER
40
RHINO
++++
T H E L AT E S T of many
Foreigner anthologies marks
the 40th anniversary of the
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DVHULHVRIPXOWLPLOOLRQVHOOHUV
that made them giants in the genre of Adult
Oriented Rock, rivalled only by Journey,
Boston, Toto and Survivor. No matter that
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WHQ \HDUV )RUHLJQHU GHOLYHUHG HUDGHQLQJ
rock anthems in Feels Like The First Time,
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For A Girl Like You. Also included in 40 are
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sounds uncannily like original singer Lou
112 P L A N E T R O C K
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were. PAUL ELLIOTT
B E ST TRACKS: Cold As Ice, Juke Box Hero,
Waiting For A Girl Like You
GLENN HUGHES
Play Me Out: Expanded Edition
PURPLE
+++
A S G L E N N +XJKHVIUHHO\
confesses in the sleevenotes to
this expanded version of 1977s
Play Me Out, he was out of his
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still singing and playing bass in Deep Purple.
:KHQWKH\VSOLWKHUHWXUQHGWRWKHSURMHFW
fuelled by a colossal volume of narcotics and
encouraged by his new best friend David
Bowie. In fact, Bowie was supposed to pro
duce Play Me Out+HGLGQWEXW\RXFDQKHDU
DVKHVRIVYoung Americans on the likes
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future collaborator, guitarist Pat Thrall, plays
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singers gymnastic voice let loose on a batch
of smouldering soul and funk numbers,
including those recorded for a previously
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:DUQLQJ LWV not Deep Purple. But those
with a soft spot for Purples Come Taste The
Band /3 ZLOO QG SOHQW\ KHUH WR NHHS WKHP
entertained. MARK BLAKE
B E ST TRACKS: I Got It Covered, Space High,
Fools Condition
JETHRO TULL
Songs From The Wood:
40th Anniversary Edition
PARLOPHONE
++++
M U C H L I K E the real
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ing of the bands entire back
catalogue continues apace. This latest edition
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and some forensically detailed sleevenotes.
For those weaned on the early Jethro Tulls
weighty blues rock, 1977s Songs From The
Wood ZDV WRR FORVH WR UHDODOHTXDQJ
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tion, but with the electric guitars drowning
out the mandolins. In fact, Tull bandleader
Ian Anderson found a strange sweet spot
here by meshing prog rock and pop, thereby
FUHDWLQJ RQH RI WKH ZKLVSHU LW FDWFKLHVW
Jethro Tull albums. The title track and Velvet
Greens restless time signatures are matched
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al fresco sex anthem for Countryside
$OOLDQFH W\SHV  FUDFNV DORQJ DW D IXULRXV
gallop, and the wretched seasonal hit Ring
Out, Solstice Bells is nicely eclipsed by
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ZRUNRXW RQ 3LEURFK &DS ,Q +DQG
5HDODOHTXDQJ0RUULVGDQFLQJIRONUDUHO\
sounded so appealing. MARK BLAKE
B E ST TRACKS: Songs From The Wood, Hunting
Girl, Velvet Green
HUMBLE PIE
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UNIVERSAL
++++
P O S T E R I T Y HAS not
been kind to the supergroup
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+HUG IRUPHG LQ  2XW
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Rumba and 1974s ThunderboxLWZDVQDPHG
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seriously, but they were also hamstrung by
record label collapse, personnel changes,
botched albums, and shedloads of good
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bands third LP, 1970s Humble Pie, this
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balance, showcasing the combustible hard
rock, soul and funk that became a touch
stone for the Black Crowes and countless
others. Framptons Shine On, from 1971s
Rock On, still dazzles, but the Pies tastiest
slice was 1972s Smokin, by which time
Colosseums Clem Clempson had replaced
Frampton, and Marriott was utterly irresist
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'D\V ,Q 7KH +ROH 2QO\ V Street Rats,
later disowned by the band, still disappoints,
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covers lend it curio status. JAMES MCNAIR
B E ST TRACKS: Shine On, Hot n Nasty, 30 Days
In The Hole
 Object Of Desire

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More info at www.gibson.com

P L A N E T R O C K 113
 T h e B u y e r s G u i d e
IS THE IDIOT THAT GOOD? AND IS NEW VALUES THAT BAD?
IggY POP
AND WHAT WAS THE STORY BEHIND KILL CITY?
PAUL TRYNK A celebrates the sinewy Stooges sprawling body of work in all its dishevelled glory.
T H E S O U N D of Iggy Pop permeates todays
music, whether you think of him as the godfather of
punk, alternative rock or grunge. Yet few musical
pioneers have been washed up so often, nor made so
many comebacks.
It started, of course, with the three albums he
made with The Stooges: The Stooges, Fun House and
Raw Power. Thereafter, the band crashed and
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on the live Metallic KO and Kill City.
Eventually, Iggy teamed up with David Bowie in
a mutual healing exercise; their friendship and exile
in Berlin over 1976 and 1977 saw three great Bowie
albums and two great Iggy ones, The Idiot and Lust
114 P L A N E T R O C K
For Life, after which Iggy branched out on Arista.
Once more, things fell apart, until 1986s Bowie
collaboration, Blah Blah Blah  QRW D JUHDW ,JJ\
I L L U S T R AT I O N : A N Y O T H E R D AY
album, but perhaps a great 80s album. In 1990 he
QDOO\ DFKLHYHG UHDO FRPPHUFLDO VXFFHVV ZLWK WKH
'RQ:DVSURGXFHGBrick By Brick, a decent, consis
WHQWDOEXPQRWWKDWFRQVLVWHQF\ZRXOGHYHUEHDQ
Iggy strongpoint, other than his live shows.
)RUDOOWKDWZKLOHPRVWRIKLVODWWHUGD\DOEXPV
LQFOXGLQJ WKH ORQJDZDLWHG 6WRRJHV UHXQLRQ The
Weirdness, are splattered with genius, they pale
alongside Post Pop Depression, a collaboration with
Josh Homme, Dean Fertita and Matt Helders that
stands alongside his very best work.
Zombie
I0 9
Birdhouse
Animal, 1982
After a major
career revival in the
late 70s, Iggy once
again snatched
defeat from the
jaws of victory,
delivering succes-
sively more dreary albums
for Arista. Then, booted
off the label, he produced
this zany, fascinating work,
funded by Blondie drummer
Clem Burke. The singing and
dark, post-punk instrumen-
tation are erratic, but there
are several good songs,
including The Horse Song
and The Ballad Of Cookie
McBride, and one truly great
one, the world-weary yet
deant Ordinary Bummer.
New Values
5 3
Arista, 1979
Where Iggys
greatest albums
are timeless, New
Values sported a
trendy New Wave
makeover. The
album was the rst
of Iggys post-Bowie works,
and received wisdom is
that it ushered in an era
of ever-diminishing artistic
returns. But the neatly
choreographed quirkiness
and intelligent songwriting
add to its charm, and today,
rather than sounding dated,
it evokes Franz Ferdinand
or The Strokes. Standout
tracks Five Foot One and
Im Bored crop up regularly
on compilations, but many
more, including the title
track, still sound fresh
nearly four decades later.
American Caesar
Virgin, 1993
The successor to
Brick By Brick, this
album has lasted
much better; its a
well-honed, intelligent
work and his voice is
at a latter-day peak.
Theres a tough concision
to songs like Wild America,
while the inclusion of Louie
Louie is hokey but somehow
works. Fans of Blah Blah
Blah will like Beside You, a
lighters-aloft hangover from
songwriting sessions with
Steve Jones, but the very
best moments the haunt-
ing, malevolent Jealousy,
the scything Hate, the
jugband stomp of Highway
Song make this easily his
best album of the 90s.
Post Pop
Depression
4
Caroline International, 2016
A storming return to
form, this album pro-
duced by Queens
Of The Stone Ages
Josh Homme taps
deep into Iggys
DNA but sounds
deantly fresh and new.
The modal tunes, drone
notes and effervescent
energy evoke both the
Stooges, and the Bowie
albums, without being
obviously in thrall to either.
The songs are taut and
unpredictable, but have a
way of niggling themselves
into your brain, inspiring
but also somehow dis-
turbing and malevolent. A
stunning late-period work,
by a man whose lust for life
is manifestly undiminished.
A Million In
Prizes
8
Virgin, 2005
A two-CD compilation
issued in 2005, A
Million In Prizes: The
Anthology is superior
to the better-known
Nude & Rude, although
its choice of later
material is perfunctory, and
the terric, underrated New
Values is represented by
just one song predictably,
appropriately, Im Bored.
Still, theres a decent
selection of some Stooges
songs that dropped through
the cracks, like the essential
IGot A Right, and its great
tohear his camp, good-
humoured duet with Debbie
Harry, Well Did You Evah,
from Red Hot + Blue.
Kill City
Bomp, 1974/1977
A postcard from a
netherworld, Kill City
was recorded with
James Williamson
when Iggy was on
day release from
NPI, where hed been
hospitalised for hypomania.
The tapes (funded by US
rock journalist Ben
Edmonds) languished in a
corporate netherworld until
released by Bomp in 1978,
and the album never
achieved the recognition it
deserved. Playing and
singing are patchy, with
several overdubs added
later in an audio Photoshop
Disaster; but songs such
as the title track, Johanna
and I Got Nothin are a
masterful depiction of life
on the edge.
Preliminaires
7 6
EMI France, 2009
When Stooges
concerts ground to
a halt not a rare
occurrence singer
Iggy would often
antagonise the crowd
by squirming on the
oor and crooning his dads
favourite tune The Shadow
Of Your Smile. Four decades
on, Iggy returned to the torch
ballads for which his voice
was so obviously suited,
accompanied by string bass
and bossa nova guitars. The
results were intermittently
brilliant; I Want To Go To The
Beach is transcendent, while
How Insensitive showcases
a rich voice with the
resonance of a life lived fully,
if not necessarily wisely.
The Idiot
2 I
RCA, 1977
With Low, Bowie
transformed the
sonic palette of
rocknroll. Yet this
rough and ready
prototype, recorded
two months before, is
every bit as vital, and boasts
a good number of Bowies
greater late-70s melodies,
including the sleazy torch
song Nightclubbing, and
the charmingly guileless,
original version of China
Girl. The album veers from
wilfully challenging, like the
industrial throb of Mass
Production, to clipped and
concise, like Sister Mid-
night, based around Carlos
Alomars spiralling, insistent
guitar riff. Throughout, Iggy
displays a new talent for
crooning and gothic poetry.
Metallic KO
Skydog, 1973/1976
Great live albums
normally commemo-
rate triumphant
moments. This one
depicts the death of
a band. Recorded by
a fan at the end of
a doomed tour guitarist/
bassist Ron Asheton
described as beating a dead
horse until it was dust
Metallic KO shows the
Stooges as battered but still
deant. The songs throb into
life or simply fall apart as
the audience throws coins,
bottles and lit cigarettes,
while Iggy taunts them with
long monologues: We dont
hate you we dont even
care. A rocknroll Charge
Of The Light Brigade.
Lust For Life
RCA ,1977
As the title tracks
clattering intro signals,
this is Iggys most
consistently thrilling
album. Shacked up with
David Bowie in Berlin,
Iggy was happy, secure
and dreaming of
independence. With a stellar
band, powered by the Sales
brothers on bass and drums,
plus Bowie, guitarists Carlos
Alomar and Ricky Gardiner,
Iggy cranks up the energy
over a breathtaking selection
of material. Bowie was a
superlative producer,
managing the energy ow,
and capturing his friend at a
career peak. Everyone
knows Lust For Life and The
Passenger, but every other
song here shines.
P L A N E T R O C K 115
Earl of slick:
a suited-and-
booted Joe
Bonamassa.

Does The Song
Remain The Same?
Twelve albums in and the guitar-slinging New Yorker can still put a new spin on the blues.
JOE BONAMASSA
L O N D O N , R O YA L A L B E R T H A L L
Thursday, April 20, 2017
S U I T E D A N D booted, hair slicked back
and shades wrapped around the eyes, Joe
Bonamassa now stands as the poster boy for
the modern blues. The years have been kind
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appears more youthful than he did a decade
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Born on what would have been Robert
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PAUL HARRIES
arettes; by the time he was 12, support slots
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oned. And the rest, as they say, is history
Fast forward a couple of decades, and
now 39 years old, he returns for his third visit
Unmasked: Joe
Bonamassa and
band, with ex-Kiss
drummer Anton Fig.
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brown leather shoes. I was 32 years old, so
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and concise choice to commence proceed
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heroin recovery album 461 Ocean Boulevard,
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M O R E C U T S from his most recent
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band an opportunity to kick into heavier
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pressive is their ability to dial them down to
the faintest of Floydian whispers.
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Reese Wynans, a veteran of the modern blues
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Live Wire
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RZQPDJLFDOWRXFKHVWRWKHPXVLF
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the wistful ballads Gary Moore was famous
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ZRUWK LW (YHU\ RQH RI %RQDPDVVDV LQVWUX
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pervasive talents.
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him speak. Bonamassa says little to the crowd
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happen but even a broken watch can be
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seasoned/veteran bandmates, demonstrate yet
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been far wiser than his years. AMIT SHARMA
B E ST MOM E NT: 7KHOPVFRUHVW\OH6KLQH2Q
<RX&UD]\'LDPRQGPHHWV0LOHV'DYLVUHZRUN
LQJRIWUDFN'XVW%RZO
P L A N E T R O C K 119
Live Wire
The Final
Countdown
This might be the last time, but The Two have found a new lease of life.
THE WHO
W E D N E S D AY A P R I L 1 2 , 2 0 1 7
Birmingham Barclaycard Arena
C R A M M E D I N T O a small backstage
URRPPDUNHG+RVSLWDOLW\WKHDSWO\SUH[HG
Irish Jack Lyons is deep in conversation with
VHYHUDO SRVWVKRZ UHYHOOHUV DERXW ZHOO 3HWH
Townshends sock. Jack, as Who fans will
know, was one of the earliest adopters of the
band, a fact enshrined by his presence at their
shows at The Railway Hotel in 1964, brief
footage of which forms part of tonights
OPLFVWDJHEDFNGURS7KHVWRU\JRHVWKDWLQ
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FUDVKLQJLQ3HWHVKRWHOURRPZDNLQJWRQG
D GLVFDUGHG EXUJXQG\ VRFN IUDJPHQWV RI
which he has, in recent years, taken to send
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That Jack still travels over from Ireland
WRVHHKLVROGPXFNHUVIURP6KHSKHUGV%XVK
play live is testament to both his loyalty and
the fact that, 53 years after he saw them as
7KH+LJK1XPEHUV7KH:KRKDYHVSHFWDF
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stadia the world over.
:KHQ WKH\ DQQRXQFHG WKHLU :KR +LWV
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Daltrey described it as the start of a
ORQJ JRRGE\H DQG KH ZDVQW NLG
ding. That theyre still at it three
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Part of Pete the singer in
Townshend's  IRUFLQJ WKH
1973-vintage
sock.
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half their age.
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Who opening act in recent Heavy, no-
years. Frontman Mike Wil nonsense vibe:
Roger Daltrey.
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with a persistent heckler.
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Then, at 8.40pm sharp,
said vast army of impatient
Who fans, comprising mainly
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teenage kids, are rewarded by
the sight of Daltrey, Town
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SHOOHGODWHVHDUO\VSULPHVRZK\JHW HYHQ DZDUH WKDW D GRXEOHERRNHG 3DOODGLQR

isnt even present tonight, his role taken by
WKH PRUHWKDQFDSDEOH -RKQ %XWWRQ IURP
Daltreys solo band. Thunderous versions of
The Seeker and Who Are You follow, the sheer
EORRG\PLQGHGPXVFOHRIZKLFKXQGHUVFRUHV
the fact that, though in the outside world its
D UDLQ\ :HGQHVGD\ HYHQLQJ LQ WKH FRQGHV
of this arena The Who control time, space
and fate.
This leg of the tour has been sold on its
inclusion of an edited performance of Tommy,
and its during this segment that the music
enters the dizzying realms of the magical and
TRACEY WELCH
VSLULWXDODVZDVWKHLQWHQWLRQRIWKHRULJLQDO
1969 album, of course. A rare rendition of
Christmas makes way for a blistering The
Acid Queen, though its at the section in
Sparks where Zak lets loose on drums and the
two Townshend brothers double up with tele
SDWKLFV\QFKURQLFLW\RQWKHMDJJHGULQJWKDW
one realises that, even in their sixth decade of
existence, The Who are unlikely ever to be
matched in pure rock voltage.
Tommy RYHU LWV LQWR D WKUHHVRQJ
celebration of Quadrophenia, the instrumental
leitmotifs of The Rock accompanied on the
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the group through evocative news footage,
from the Swinging 60s, through punk, the
80s, and 9/11, the images of Keith Moon a
poignant reminder of loved ones lost, and
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With Pete often lost tonight in a rhapsody
of concentration, and Roger locked into the
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punishing display, with but one moment of
Who are ya?:
Roger Daltrey and
Pete Townshend.
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Reign Oer Me. And with an expected encore
of Relay, and some heartfelt mutual compli
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break before heading once more to the US for
another run of dates.
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ever UK performance? Hopefully not for
those yet to experience The Whos twilight
glory. PAT GILBERT
B E ST MOM E NT: when Pete and Rog emotionally
SD\WULEXWHWRHDFKRWKHU:HUHKHUHEHFDXVHRI
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P L A N E T R O C K 121
 Live Wire
Drama And Swagger
Featuring two new, hungry, young rocknroll bands, The Planet Rock Roadstars tour lays waste to the capital.
BROKEN WITT REBELS /
BAD TOUCH
S AT U R D AY A P R I L 8 , 2 0 1 7
London Borderline
T H I S I S the last show on the tour
barks Bad Touch frontman Stevie Westwood
from the lip of the Borderline stage, announc
ing that the second Planet Rock Roadstars
MDXQW KDV SXOOHG LQWR WRZQ IRU WKH QDO VWRS be. It isnt, but they try their darnedest to
on its itinerary, adding with a grin, so were
going to have a fucking good time! Its
a promise Bad Touch make good on
the only way they know how, dropping
enough GNR drama, Black Crowes
swagger and Leppard harmonies youd
think this Soho cubbyhole was a
stadium or something.
Long of hair and clad in brimmed
KDWV RZHU\ ZHVWHUQ VKLUWV DQG
trousers that tie up at the sides like Jim
0RUULVRQVIRXURIWKHYHSLHFHORRN
like they were dipped in molasses and
sent galloping naked through Chris
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certainly a medallion shop in Norwich
in dire need of a restock right about
QRZ &OHDQFXW VKRUWKDLUHG DQG
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Slater is the odd one out, looking like
hes here on work experience from
high school, but he plays like an
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Because of the garb, you sort of
know what theyre going to sound like
before theyve played a note. But youll still be
taken aback at how deeply they commit to
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grandstanding solos and, in Westwood,
a frontman whose every holler has you imag
ining David Coverdale waking up in his
mansion to discover his leonine snarl stolen
from him while he slept.
Guitars clap like thunder as Westwood
unspools tales of high drama and heartbreak
KHVDFRZER\DQGRQDVWHHOKRUVHKHULGHV
WHOOLQJKLVH[ORYHU,JDYH\RXP\KHDUWDQG
122 P L A N E T R O C K
you gave it away, one moment, and winking,
Im 99 per cent sure I love you, to her
immediate replacement.
H U R L A B O T T L E RI-DFNLQDQ\0LG
Western American bar and youll probably hit
DEDQGWKDWVRXQGOLNHWKLVEXW%DG7RXFKV
hunger and vim suggest theyd hurl that bottle
right back at you. Subtlety isnt on the menu
tonight, and Bad Touchs fanbase arent asking
the chef to rustle some up on the quiet. In
their heads theyre playing Wembley, with
S\URH[SORGLQJLQWRWKHQLJKWVN\DQGLIHRUW
were all it took to get you there, they would
conjure that spectacle here tonight.
Hunger and vim:
Bad Touch's Harry
Slater and Stevie
Westwood.
Stevie Westwood spends much of his
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indeed, the band have been on the receiving
end of a fair amount of praise of late, picking
up the Best Rock Act award at this years
Unsigned Music Awards.
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thats the source of the grievance singer
Danny Core references when introducing
their song Caroline, which he describes as in
spired by a frustrating year. But if theyre
bitter you cant really taste it in their sweet,
soulful rocknroll.
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Tranter and extravagantly moustachioed
bassist Luke Davis, frontman Core rattles
a tambourine and gives the audience a bit of
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in theatre, image or unearned swagger. Core
is dressed down in a blue denim shirt thatll
be thick with sweat before three songs are
out, his cherubic cheeks blistered red from
blues hollering.
Cores timeless vocals, strangled blues
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back when he was still a mod, and even
the sinful bedroom croon of funk god
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demeanour suggests a night out in his
company would end with you both in
a jail cell, piecing together the preceding
events via bruises and a series of unwise
tattoos. The groups songs, meanwhile,
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ing Sound, or Kings Of Leon if theyd
learned their trade in the kind of bars
where every Saturday night ends in a
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Rocknroll belongs to the dreamers,
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their Georgia Pine EP, a slice of mourn
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girl, Youre the one Ive been dreaming
of I believe, I believe in love. Another,
newer song has Core confessing, Im a
mess without you, and its in these
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combining the vulnerability of classic soul
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great rocknroll. If they keep on mining that
seam of true, blue feelings theyll strike gold
soon enough, and they wont be unsigned any
PAUL HARRIES
longer. STEVIE CHICK
B E ST MOM E NT: When Bad Touch's Stevie
Westwood joins Danny Core at the mic for the
Broken Witt Rebels closing number.
Perfect for barn-burning
brawlers: Broken Witt
Rebels Danny Core.
Showtime

TEN GIGS TO SEE

1 THIS MONTH
FOR MORE INFO
AND TICKETS GO TO
PLANETROCK.COM

IRON MAIDEN
The rst leg of The Book Of
Souls tour had Iron Maiden
WHISKEY
MYERS
Texass hottest
red-dirt country
rockers peddle

2
3 4 PAUL RODGERS
The clues in the title. Paul
Rodgers Free Spirit tour is
KISS Jam Master

taking their swashbuckling
heavy metal to San Salvador
and Beijing. The month of
May nds them in less exotic
Cardiff, Birmingham, London,
etc. Support comes from
Floridas Shinedown.
Dont expect to hear: Run
To The Hills (they binned it
for the 2016 shows)
Expect to hear: Lots from
The Book Of Souls
When: Until May 28
their twanging
guitars and
Southern-fried
ballads across Britain. Wear
a truckers cap and bring
chewing tobacco for
guaranteed admission.
Expect to hear: Ballad Of
A Southern Man
The unexpected cover
version: The White Stripes
Seven Nation Army
When: May 17-25
an unapologetic celebration
of the honey-voiced singers
old groups back catalogue.
Its Free songs all the way.
All together now There There isnt a new album, so
she stood, in the street
The best vocal youll hear:
The bit where he goes Love,
Lord above! in All Right Now
Dont shout out for: Any
song off that Queen + Paul
Rodgers album. As if
When: Until May 28
5
The imperishable gods of US Jay: Eddie
glam metal bring the Max Vedder
Factor and cod-pieces to
select arenas across Britain.
you can just relax and enjoy
the hits and reworks. EDDIE
VEDDER
The song they always
play: Detroit Rock City
The song(s) theyll never The
play: Anything off Music messianic
From The Elder. Pearl Jam
When: May 27-31 frontman
ies solo for
two nights
in London.
Expect
new(ish)
stuff,
Pearl Jam
classics,
Beatles/Bob Marley or Neil
Young covers and, quite
probably, a ukulele, as per his
last album, Ukelele Songs.
The song youve a good
chance of hearing: Pearl
Jams Porch
The unexpected cover
version: Crowded Houses
Dont Dream Its Over
ALAMY

When: June 6-7

Soul survivors:
Iron Maiden.

Whoaah, oh, oh,
oh, sweet child
o m-i-i-i-n-e, etc:
Guns NRoses.
6 89
GUNS NROSES
The much anticipated
Not In The Lifetime tour
reaches the UK. Forewarn
the babysitter, but so far
the shows have begun on
time and gone off without a
hitch, suggesting Axl Roses
stint with AC/DC and the
re-formed Guns massive
payday has knocked some
sense into the man.
The most iconic lyric
youllhear: You know
where you are? Youre in
the jungle baybeee
Youre gonna die!
When to use the
facilities: During anything
from Chinese Democracy.
When: June 16-17
7 STONE FREE
FESTIVAL
Who said
festivals had
to be outside? Stone Frees
second outing promises
another mud-and-sunstroke-
free day at Londons 02, in
the company of Sweet, Blue
yster Cult, The Answer and
rebooted headliners Ritchie
Blackmores Rainbow.
The best song youll hear:
Rainbows Stargazer
The second best song
youll hear: Rainbows Since
You Been Gone
When: June 17
Beyond the fringe:
Rainbows Ritchie
Blackmore.
DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL
The 15th anniversary festival
takes place at the spiritual
home of rock Donington
Park, and features main
stage headliners System
Of A Down, Biffy Clyro and
Aerosmith. But dont miss
out on those top-drawer
acts further down the bill
including Scandinavian death
metal-turned-prog rock
standard bearers Opeth.
The song Aerosmith cant
get away without playing:
Love In An Elevator
The song you wish theyd
play: Bolivian Ragamufn
off Rock In A Hard Place
When: June 9-11
10
JEFF LYNNES ELO
The ELO gurus musical
resurrection continues apace
with UK arena and stadium
dates, including Wembley.
We can condently predict
widespread audience
air cello/violin during
Showdown and
CHEAP TRICK
Americas geek-rock
pioneers pay the UK a brief
but overdue visit. Guitarist
Rick Nielsens son Daxx
is still in for estranged
drummer Bun E. Carlos, but
expect the hits and papa
Nielsens usual volley of
plectrums from the stage.
The song they always
play: I Want You To Want Me
The song you wish theyd
play: Hes A Whore
When: June 27-29
Living Thing.
The song they cant get
away without playing:
Mr Blue Sky
The song you secretly
wish theyd play: Xanadu
When: June 21-July 1
Praying for
blue skies:
Jeff ELO
Lynne.
125
 Academy Events present

ACADEMY EVENTS by arrangement with X-RAY and FRESH START AGENCY presents
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BY ARRANGEMENT WITH
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WIN!
THE IRON MAIDEN
VINYL BOX SET
Want to get your grubby paws on 12
classic Maiden albums on 180-gram vinyl?
Its easy: just complete this crossword.
ENTRIES IN BY 25 JULY 2017
How to enter Simply stop fafng around, sit
down for a quiet moment, collect yer thoughts, and
complete our Maiden-licious crossword. Then,
once youve done that, stick it in an old-skool
envelope, bung a stamp on the front and send it to:
Planet Rock Magazine, Crossword Competition,
Endeavour House, 189 Shaftesbury Avenue,
London WC2H 8JG.
Terms and conditions One entry per person. Entries must
be received before 25 July 2017 or will not be valid. One
winner will be selected at random. Competition promoted by
Bauer Consumer Media Limited t/a Planet Rock (Planet
Rock). Planet Rocks choice of winner is nal and no
correspondence will be entered into in this regard. The winner
will be notied by email seven days after the competition ends.
Entrants must be over 18, resident in the UK and not be
employed by Bauer Media. The prize is non-negotiable with no
cash alternative. Entrants agree to the collection of their
personal data in accordance with Planet Rocks privacy policy:
http://www.bauerdatapromise.co.uk/. Bauer reserves the right
to amend or cancel these terms or any aspect of the
competition (including the prize) at any time if required for
reasons beyond its control. Any questions, please email mail@
planetrock.com. Complaints will not be considered if made
more than 30 days after the competition ends. Winners details
available on request (after the competition ends) by emailing
mail@planetrock.com. For full Ts&Cs see bauerlegal.co.uk/
competition-terms
ACROSS
1 Atlanta rockers last seen Waiting For The
Thunder (10,5)
6 First word in title of a Guns NRoses album (8)
9 The title of one Who members 1973 solo
album, named after himself (7)
10 Christian name of former Europe guitarist (3)
11 Classic Nightwish single from 2007 (3)
12 Seattle rock band featuring members of Pearl
Jam and Satchel, expressed Shame (4)
15 Cage The Elephant single, In One --- (3)
16 Deep Purple album, or band fronted by Robb
Flynn? (7,4)
17 Judas Priest tried to --- It Down in 1988 (3)
18 The Clash declared that Rudie Can't ---- (4)
20 Glam band who scored a Christmas Number 1
in 1974 with Lonely This Christmas (3)
21 Mick Jagger and Ray Davies both share this
title (3)
22 Bon Jovi declared that love is a Social
------- (7)
23 Skid Row member, nicknamed Snake (4,4)
24 The rst single Whitesnake released from their
1987 album (5,2,3,5)
Crossword
DOWN
1 All Hell Breaks Loose when these guys are
around (5,4,6)
2 Classic lost grunge album (5)
3 2007 studio album by Marilyn Manson (3,2,5,2)
4 Second word in title of a Megadeth album (5)
5 Track from Dios The Last In Line (3,4,5,3)
7 Spinal Taps 1992 single celebrated --- Majesty
Of ---- (3,4)
8 Track from Hanoi Rocks 1981 album Bangkok
Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks (7)
9 Iron Maidens thirteenth studio album, from
2003 (5,2,5)
13 Slayers song Angel Of Death described Slow
death, ------- decay (7)
14 Surname of Poison member (7)
19 Zakk Wylde founded a Black ----- Society (5)
21 Def Leppard changed musical direction with
this 1996 album (5)
P L A N E T R O C K 129
 WHO THE HELL ARE THESE gUYS?

The blood-
red spandex!
The satanic
horns! The
homemade
wings!
Can you identify this
devilish rock band
from the 80s? Is
that Harry Kanes
R AY P A L M E R

dad on the far left?

Or better still is that
you in the picture?
Please tell us at
mail@planetrock.com

130 P L A N E T R O C K
INSIDE YOUR ALL-NEW MAGAZINE FROM THE MAKERS OF MOJO
A N D P L A N E T R O C K , B R I TA I N S G R E AT E S T R O C K R A D I O S TAT I O N

LIVING ON THE EDGE

I stuffed meat
down my pants
to survive!

TYLER
25 ALBUMS
YOU NEED TO HEAR
RIGHT NOW!
Including

ROGER WATERS
COMES ROYAL BLOOD
INGLORIOUS

CLEAN
IRON MAIDEN

DEF LEPPARD THE MAGPIE SALUTE BLACK STAR RIDERS GUNS N'ROSES
EXCLUSIVE 103$*( (;%/$&.&52:(6 5,&.<6+$5' 7+(,562+2
+<67(5,$63(&,$/ )/<$*$,1 52&.-8.(%2; 6$81$0(/7'2:1

THE WHO To m m y O n T he Road Back stage With QUEEN

UFO s G u ide To Life Ro c k n Roll Cooke r y With BLACKBERRY SMOKE
AC/DC Ro c k O r B u s t? GRAHAM BONNET Ro c k s Lo s t Vo i ce ! Fo u n d !