Following the success of her true comeback album, 2012’s Living Like a Runaway, Lita Ford took to the stage at LA’s Canyon Club to record a live performance as a gift to her fans.
The result is The Bitch is Back…Live, the new album from the reigning queen of hard rock and heavy metal.
In addition to live material from her latest studio release, The Bitch is Back also digs deep into Ford’s catalog, showcasing songs from Out for Blood, Dancin’ on the Edge and 1988’s monster album, Lita.
Ford is hard at work on her biography [set for release in 2014] as well as becoming an advocate for Parental Alienation Awareness. I recently spoke with her about the live album, her current setup and an encounter she once had with Led Zeppelin.
GUITAR WORLD: What made you decide to do this live album?
It was kind of spur of the moment. After we did the tour with Def Leppard and Poison [in 2012], I really wanted to give something back. So we jumped into this club in LA, mic’d up the room and recorded it. It’s really a gift to the fans. Everything came together like magic and I’m very happy with it.
Lita Ford(Photo: Kitty Rossander)
Check out the rest of my Guitar World interview with Lita Ford by Clicking Here.
There’s only one way to celebrate 40 years of rock, and that’s with your friends.
Sammy Hagar’s new album, Sammy Hagar & Friends, is a collection of songs that pay tribute to the Red Rocker’s musical success.
With contributions from Joe Satriani, Neal Schon, Nancy Wilson and Michael Anthony (among others), Hagar not only looks back on his solo career, but also his time with Montrose, Van Halen and current bands the Waboritas and Chickenfoot. The new album also gives fans a taste of what the future might hold for Hagar.
I recently spoke with Hagar about the new album and got his thoughts on Van Halen, Chickenfoot and some of his best memories from four decades in rock.
GUITAR WORLD: What sparked this new album project?
John Carter [Hagar’s manager who died in 2011] had a dream of getting me to do a “four decades of rock” record and tour. The idea was to do something from the Montrose, early Sammy, Van Halen and Geffen years and write a new song from each of those eras. Write a Montrose-type song, a “cars” song from the Red Rocker era, a Van Halen/Chickenfoot-esque-type song and a lifestyle song.
Read the rest of my Guitar World Interview with Sammy Hagar by Clicking Here!
Stryper guitarist and vocalist Michael Sweet can hardly contain his enthusiasm when discussing the band’s upcoming album, No More Hell to Pay — and rightly so.
Not only has Sweet’s songwriting and guitar prowess matured over the years, but Stryper has truly never sounded better.
Whether it’s the opening lines of “Revelation,” the tasty guitar work in “Saved By Love” or the apropos cover of Arthur Reid Reynolds’ “Jesus Is Just Alright,” No More Hell to Pay rivals the band’s 1986 monster, To Hell With The Devil, and might actually be the band’s best album to date.
I recently spoke with Sweet about No More Hell To Pay and got updates on T&N, his autobiography and another new project he’s working on. Incidentally, No More Hell To Pay will be released November 5 in North America.
Read my complete Guitar World interview with Michael Sweet by Clicking Here!
I can’t say that I remember it as if it were yesterday. Heck, I was just on the verge of turning four on September 20th, 1973 and about the only thing going through my mind at the time was probably wondering whether or not Sesame Street was coming on anytime soon. Although I have no personal recognition about that day in particular, I still feel as if I were somehow there.
It’s hard to believe that forty years have passed since the lives of Jim Croce, Maury Muehleisen and four others were tragically cut short when the twin-engine plane in which they were traveling crashed shortly after takeoff. Croce and Muehleisen had just finished performing a show in Natchitoches, Louisiana and were en route to another show in Sherman, Texas when the crash occurred.
As I look back now, I wonder if Jim and Maury were aware of the impact they were going to have. Because I can still remember the very first time I ever heard their music.
Maury Muehleisen : January 14, 1949 – September 20, 1973
It was sometime in the mid 1970′s when my father took me and my brother on our first overnight camping trip to a place called Camp Hugh Beaver.
At the time, I recall being extremely excited about going camping; that is until after we had actually arrived at the campsite and the realization of being away from home hit me like a ton of bricks. From that moment on, I immediately wanted to go home and let my father know it every chance I could, through both tantrum and tears.
Dad initially ignored my pleas, but by the next morning just couldn’t take it any longer and finally gave in to my childish demands. Shortly after breakfast, we packed up our things and began making the long drive home.
Why do I remember this you ask? No, it’s wasn’t because it was one of the many times I was being a spoiled brat (although I was). Rather, the real reason I remember this so vividly is because on the drive home the song “Bad Bad Leroy Brown” came on the car radio…and I was mesmerized. I distinctly remember asking my father who it was that was singing the greatest song any seven-year old had ever heard in his life and finding out all about Jim Croce.
Dad told me all about Jim and his other great songs like “Time In A Bottle” and “You Don’t Mess Around With Jim”. How Jim had appeared on television shows and how his songs and stories related to the “common man”.
Then he told me about the plane crash and how Jim and his lead guitarist, Maury had both died. In the naivety of youth, I didn’t really understand what he was saying to me at the time. I thought Dad telling me that Jim and Maury “died” just meant that they went away and would eventually be back. Sadly, it wouldn’t be long until I discovered what death really meant and realized that we (the world) had lost two of the greats.
Less than two months after Jim and Maury’s untimely deaths, Croce’s “I Got A Name” album was released. Songs like the title cut (which still gives me chills listening to it to this day), “Workin’ at the Carwash Blues” and “I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song” only remind me of what could have been.
“I Got A Name” is also an apropos title, considering the names Jim Croce & Maury Muehleisen won’t soon be forgotten. Sure, it may have been the last album from two guys whose careers were only beginning to take off, but here I am still thinking about them and their music, forty years later.
It’s hard to believe it’s been 40 years since the lives of Jim Croce, Maury Muehleisen and four others were cut short when the twin-engine plane in which they were traveling crashed shortly after takeoff on September 20, 1973.
In the years since the accident, Muehleisen’s sister Mary has been keeping her brother’s memory alive. In 2006, she re-released Maury’s only album, Gingerbreadd, on CD. She also released early recordings made by her brother, whose guitar arrangements are synonymous with the classic Jim Croce sound.
On September 21, Mary Muehleisen will be in attendance for Time in a Bottle: A Tribute to Jim Croce, an event taking place at the Upper Darby Performing Arts Center in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, to remember the lives and music of Croce and her brother.
Because Croce graduated from Upper Darby, proceeds will go to the Upper Darby Arts and Education Foundation for a scholarship fund in Croce’s name. In addition to Croce song performances, the evening will feature the music of Maury Muehleisen as well as stories from the people who knew them best.
Maury Muehleisen & Jim Croce
I spoke with Mary about the 40th anniversary tribute as well as her brother’s music and his legacy. You can read the rest of my Guitar World Interview with Mary Muehleisen By Clicking Here!
For more information on the Tribute To Jim Croce Click Here!
Jason Becker is not your typical guitar hero. His ability to inspire goes well beyond the fretboard.
From his time spent composing with fellow Shrapnel alum Marty Friedman to his being chosen as Steve Vai’s replacement in David Lee Roth’s band in 1989, Becker was a star on the rise.
Guitar World even chose Becker’s 1988 instrumental masterpiece, “Perpetual Burn,” to kick off its first transcription challenge, where readers submitted videos of themselves performing the challenging song and Becker himself choosing a winner.
Shortly after hooking up with Roth, Becker was given the grim diagnosis of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) and given only three to five years to live. Although the disease would eventually take away his ability to play guitar, walk and even speak, Becker’s spirit and determination has enabled him to continue living and composing amazing music.
The 2012 documentary, Not Dead Yet tells the incredible story of Becker, a guitar legend who refuses to give up on his dream of being a musician, despite the most incredible odds. It’s a story of dreams, love and the strength of the human spirit.
I had the opportunity to interview Jason via email and asked him about the film and his music. In this interview, Becker offers advice on how to play — and how to live.
Please take the time to read the interview by Clicking Here.
Regardless of what you think about his politics, there’s no denying the fact that Ted Nugent has solidified his place in rock history.
In addition to his successful solo career and his stints with the Amboy Dukes and Damn Yankees, the Motor City Madman has performed well more than 6,000 shows and contributed some of the most memorable guitar licks the rock world has ever heard.
Nugent’s new live CD/DVD, Ultralive Ballisticrock (set to be released October 22), isn’t just a souvenir of a kick-ass rock concert. It’s an experience — a spiritual revival, sermon, history class and rally for America rolled into one.
Nugent and his band, including Derek St. Holmes (guitar/vocals), Greg Smith (bass) and Mick Brown (drums), were filmed and recorded by seven cameras in 5.1 audio mix during Nugent’s 2011 I Still Believe Tour.
I recently spoke to Nugent about the new CD/DVD. We also talk his most famous guitar licks and more.
Read the rest of my new interview with Ted Nugent by Clicking Here!
Shoving a fist in the face of tradition has been Filter’s method of operation since the release of their debut album, “Short Bus” in 1995. Since then, the band has continued to raise the bar with it’s unique blend of modern industrial rock, including 1999’s “Title of Record” which featured the hit “Welcome To The Fold” along with the crossover smash “Take A Picture,” a song which charted on both the Billboard rock and dance charts.
The new millennium saw the release of three more Filter albums: 2002′s “The Amalgamut,” 2008′s “Anthems For The Damned” and 2010′s “The Trouble with Angels”, all while touring the world and amassing a multimillion member international fan base. Most recently, Filter has contributed songs to film soundtracks, including a cover of The Turtle’s song, “Happy Together” which was featured in the trailer of the film “The Great Gatsby” and has sold more than 85,000 copies.
Continuing it’s brand of fist to face music is the band’s insanely good sixth studio album, “The Sun Comes Out Tonight”. Recorded at Blue Room Studios in Los Angeles with producer Bob Marlette, the album was written and recorded by leader and vocalist Richard Patrick and bolstered by his new writing partner, guitarist Jonathan Radtke.
The album’s title got its inspiration from the band’s song “Drug Boy,” written about a group of outsiders Patrick used to hang with in between Nine Inch Nails tours (Patrick was a touring guitarist for Trent Reznor’s NIN before leaving the group in 1993 to form Filter).
Filter LIVE in Bethlehem, PA (Photo: Lisa Cuvo)
With a new major label behind them in Wind-Up Records, Patrick and Radtke; along with bassist Phil Buckman and drummer Jeff Friedl are ready to return Filter to the spotlight. I caught up with Patrick recently as the band began a tour with Stone Temple Pilots in Bethlehem PA.
What is the meaning behind the album title: The Sun Comes Out Tonight?
Back in Cleveland, I would have to take drugs for the sun to come out at night. I would climb underneath the bridges and ride them as lake liners, or would come underneath them. We would live in the shadows because LSD was too strong for the normality of a club or bar. Inspirations from that period in my life will always be there for me even after the fact that I’ve been sober for more than ten years.
How would you describe the sound of the new album?
Old-school Filter. New school Filter. All Filter.
What was the writing process like for this album?
It was to make sure it blows our own minds. We would never release anything that we didn’t love. Jonny, Bob and I would sit with acoustics and make the chords and melody. Then we would take the computer and finish it.
Let’s discuss a few songs from the new album: “We Hate it When You Get What You Want”.
People f$ck each other over for profit. People have no shame when it comes to money. Capitalism is the law of the jungle and humanity has no place for it. Humanity is about each other.
“What Do you Say”.
Everybody is speaking and no one’s listening. We need to learn to listen as a species.
“It’s My Time”.
No one wants to die alone. It’s for those people on death row that were innocent, and so on.
Filter (Photo: Leann Mueller)
What was the recording process like? Any differences from previous Filter albums?
It was easier! I’m getting better all the time!
What was it like working with producer Bob Marlette?
Bob Marlette is great! Sometimes I think you should get a second end engineer to make things way faster because he’s slow!! [laughs]
This is your first album on Wind-Up records. How has the experience been?
They are absolutely amazing. They have money, they have resources and they have great people and great artists. It’s great to be back on major.
What do you find is the most challenging thing about touring?
The only thing that sucks about touring is not being home with my family. I have two small children and a beautiful wife.
What’s your view of the music industry today?
It really hasn’t changed beyond the fact that you have to make great music and hope it catches on.
Debbie Harry & Tommy Kessler (Photo: Emma Blackband)
Guitarist Tommy Kessler is living proof that hard work pays off.
Not only does his work ethic allow Kessler to travel the world as part of Blondie, but there’s also the matter of his other “day job.” To date, Kessler (along with Night Ranger guitarist Joel Hoekstra) has performed considerably more than 1,000 shows as part of the Broadway musical Rock of Ages.
My recent discussion with Kessler included an update on the next Blondie album and info about his stints with Broadway’s Rock of Ages and Blue Man Group. Kessler also explained why networking is so important for professional guitarists.
GUITAR WORLD: What’s happening with the next Blondie album?
It’s called Ghosts of Download, and it will be released in November. The album is very electronic. Chris [Stein, guitarist] is influenced a lot by South American music, so a lot of the songs have that theme going on. The first single, “A Rose By Any Name,” has already been released. The artwork for the album is especially cool and there’s also something else on the album that fans will like (especially those who like to read everything and go on the Internet). There’s a little Easter egg on there that they’ll enjoy.
Read the rest of my Guitar World interview with Tommy Kessler by Clicking Here!
Regardless of your own political persuasion, there can be no denying that conservative rocker Ted Nugent has firmly solidified his place in the annals of history.
In addition to a hugely successful music career that’s seen him perform well over 6,000 shows, the Motor City Madman is also a radio personality, an actor/reality star, host of his own outdoor show (Spirit Of The Wild) as well as a Washington Times contributor.
On the musical end of the spectrum, Nugent’s new live CD/DVD “ULTRALIVE BALLISTICROCK” is not just your typical kick ass rock concert. Together with his killer band made up of Derek St. Holmes (guitar/vocals); Greg Smith (bass) and Mick Brown (drums), Nugent’s live show is one part sermon, one part history lesson and one part spiritual revival. It’s a line drawn in the sand where (like most things) Nugent is either admired and solidified for the attitude, or despised for it. But Nugent says let the chips fall where they may. He believes in focusing on quality of life in all of those arenas, because quality of life comes from all of those issues.
Recorded by seven cameras in 5.1 audio mix during Nugent’s 2011 “I Still Believe Tour” at Penn’s Peak in Jim Thorpe, PA; “Ultralive Ballisticrock” captures the raw, primal essence of Ted Nugent at his musical best. DVD/Blu-Ray bonus footage includes “Spirit of the Wild” and The Making of ULTRALIVE BALLISTICROCK.
Personally, I’ve seen dozen’s of shows at Penn’s Peak over the years and thought I knew a thing or two about the venue and the people there. But as you’ll see in this interview, Nugent makes me aware of something I never knew about Penn’s Peak and his audiences.
You can say what you will about his stand on hunting and Second Amendment rights, but when you interview Ted Nugent, you can’t help but come away with the knowledge of having spoken to a man who not only is a musical legend, but one who also truly loves his country.
I spoke with Nugent about the new CD/DVD release and also got his thoughts on some of the most important issues of the day.
What made you decide to do this particular live CD/DVD?
What Greg [Smith], Mick [Brown] and Derek [St. Holmes] bring to every concert is intense. It’s so compelling and satisfying for me. I’m just proud and so moved by what these guys do that if it wasn’t me up on stage, I’d buy a front row ticket just to see them. Every concert is a musical orgy of fun and grind and funk and passion and spirit and attitude. I figured, “My God, we’ve got to capture this, right now!”
Was there a reason why you decided to film the Penn’s Peak performance?
It’s a special place. All of my audiences are the best in the world, and I have well into the 50-60 percentile of deer hunters in attendance. But at Penn’s Peak, it’s 100 PERCENT! You can smell guts in my audience. It brings an ultimate effervescence to the entire procedure! [laughs].
Derek St. Holmes, Ted Nugent, Greg Smith, Mick Brown (photo: James & Marilyn Brown)
How would you describe your live show?
Chuck Berry meets Natty Bumppo in the bend of the Louis and Clark exploratory advance meat man point of view! I don’t think any musical force ever in the history of the world has more fun than my band and audiences. If you’re not having fun with me, you’re weird!
You take a lot of heat for some of your views. What are some of the things you think liberals just don’t understand?
It’s not really a matter of understanding. Liberalism is a cult of denial. One where discomforting information is discarded. It would be similar to having Old Yeller foaming at the mouth, and you keep telling yourself that he doesn’t have rabies; versus someone like me who would just shoot the f$cking dog! [laughs].
Let’s start right at the tip of the culture war spear: gun control. How can you possibly deny, when the irrefutable facts from every major source (United Nations, FBI, Scotland Yard) has concluded that a gun free zone (where liberals have accomplished their dream of banning guns) has become the number one murder zone in the world? Columbine, Virginia Tech, Aurora Theater, Sandy Hook – all of them, gun free zones. So, now that we all know that the most innocent of lives are lost in gun free zones, how can you begin to explain why someone would want more of them? An intelligent, caring soul is aghast at such a mind-set where you’d want to increase injurious conditions.
Ted Nugent – photo by James and Marilyn Brown
Another example of the anti-gun insanity revolves around my lifestyle of eating venison. Wherever liberals have succeeded in banning a certain type of hunt (California mountain lions for example), they’ve actually increased the killing of them. But, only after the mountain lions have either killed people, maimed people or destroyed millions of dollars worth of livestock and personal property, and then your tax dollars go to help clean up the mess you didn’t allow to be cleaned up before the mess happened. If there had been a hunting season, all of those alpacas wouldn’t have been eaten.
Then we’ll move on to the whole welfare thing. Who can deny that the big lie of entitlement has actually brainwashed people into celebrating dependency? How about not giving a bonus for being non-productive and instead chiding people into getting an alarm clock and being productive? You’d be much happier and more self-sufficient if you were independent. These are good things.
The bottom line though is that liberals are crazy, deranged people and I’m always right! It’s pretty simple, actually. [laughs].
Having now seen the effects of what’s happened in Michigan, do you ever lament not running for governor?
Occasionally. But the suicidal death march of Detroit actually began back in the early 1960’s when the most positive, productive, proud Detroit was strangled by liberal democrats who chastised them for being so positive and productive. They engineered the greatest city in the world to stop caring. But let’s look beyond that. The entire state of Illinois is more bankrupt than Detroit, and the entire state of California is more bankrupt than Detroit. They’re just living on a lie.
What are your thoughts on what’s happening in Syria?
That’s a cluster f$ck if ever there was one. I’ll go with what the military pros that I speak with say and suggest that we should just let them kill each other. Both sides are our enemy. One side is basically the Taliban and the other is basically Al Qaeda. They all want to kill us and anyone who’s not a member of their gang. They both preach that. It pains me to have to say that because there’s untold number of innocents involved in the crossfire, but I don’t believe America can be the world’s cops. But I do believe that any enemy who can metastasize to have the capability of a 9/11 we must obliterate.
Those that hate freedom and America and Christians will do anything they can to destroy us and the sad part of it is our President is basically feeble. He’s not a force to be reckoned with and I thought the President of the United States should be the definitive force to reckon with. How ugly is it that a guy who loves his country so much has to say that about his President? I’m surprised I’m not playing the blues.
Do you think the real plan of the enemy isn’t so much about having us invade countries or fighting skirmishes, but rather the notion of having us spend untold billions of dollars endlessly fighting them until it inevitably bankrupts us from within?
All of the above. I’ve got it from inside authority. Are you aware of the Department of Defense’s recent summit? There was a debriefing recently where they identified that OTM’s (Other Than Mexican) are coming in through our porous borders and are slowly bankrupting us. They’ve identified that 90% of the wild fires in America are purposely set by either Taliban or Al Qaeda operatives. And why? Because it costs us trillions of dollars to fight these fires. There’s a lot of stuff going on that America doesn’t know about.
Have you given thought to running for President yourself?
God, wouldn’t that be awesome? Just the debates alone. Everyone gathering around their televisions to watch me gut my opponents! [laughs]. I doubt it. Although I am in communication with some of the most dedicated, patriotic statesmen in the country. I’m in touch with people who really care. I don’t think I’m going to run, but boy am I going to put pressure on those who do.
Do you have any advice for us as human beings?
God Almighty, take better care of yourself. Think about the precious gift of life and don’t allow poisons into your sacred temple. Look around you and ask honestly if your conduct is beneficial to your quality of life and the quality of life of your family and fellow-man or if it’s detrimental. That’s the mantra of the Nugent family.
There’s always going to be hate, but I’m dedicated to always conducting myself in such a way to benefit others. If more people would be conscientious about the effect of their cause, America would be a much better place.
ULTRALIVE BALLISTICROCK will be released on October 22nd and be available in three formats including a 2CD+DVD deluxe edition, DVD, Blu-Ray as well as digital download!
For more on Ted Nugent check out his official site by Clicking Here
Following the success of her true comeback album, 2012’s Living Like a Runaway, Lita Ford took to the stage at LA’s Canyon Club to record a live performance as a gift to her fans.
Stryper guitarist and vocalist Michael Sweet can hardly contain his enthusiasm when discussing the band’s upcoming album, No More Hell to Pay — and rightly so.
Regardless of your own political persuasion, there can be no denying that conservative rocker Ted Nugent has firmly solidified his place in the annals of history.
go.Jimmy.go 