This Week’s SHAZAM Winner!!
Congrats to Brian Olson in Apache Junction, AZ who listens to The Wolf – Classic Rock 96.7, and is this week’s Shazam contest winner, scoring a House of Hair t-shirt!
Be sure to Shazam the House of Hair Request of the Week when you hear it each week. Whip out your cell phone and open the Shazam app to get info on the song and register to win an official House of Hair t-shirt, too! One winner will be chosen randomly each week.
METAL NEWS
Aerosmith’s Joe Perry Receives Les Paul Award
The Aerosmith guitarist was recently honored with the Les Paul Award at the 32nd annual NAMM TEC Awards in Anaheim, CA.
Perry, whose rock and roll career spans almost 50 years, joins a list of previous winners that include Slash, Pete Townshend, Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen and many more.
In an interview with The Orange County Register before the awards, Perry talked about the first time he fell in love with the Les Paul guitars. “I had seen pictures of Jimmy Page and Clapton playing them, and then I saw Jeff Beck playing one live, and I sat in front of him in this small place in Boston and watched him play it,” Perry said.
“The next day I was determined to get one, and it wasn’t too much longer after that I actually sat down and I had it in my hands and I thought, ‘This doesn’t sound like Jeff Beck. That was it. I remember picking it up and it felt incredible.”
Perry performed a few songs with the help of his fellow Hollywood Vampires band members Alice Cooper and Johnny Depp, plus fellow Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford and Stone Temple Pilots bassist Robert DeLeo. Their set included Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way,” a cover of Tiny Bradshaw’s “Train Kept A-Rollin’” and the Vampires’ own “As Bad As I Am.”
Vince Neil “Terminated” From Celebrity Apprentice
A week after winning more than $750,000 for charity on The New Celebrity Apprentice, Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neil was “terminated”.
Neil’s team, led by WNBA great Lisa Leslie, was tasked with promoting a health-food brand by setting up a pop-up store on a California beach. Neil suggested to have female fitness models to dance on the roof of their shop. “What’s more eye-catching than good-looking girls dancing to the beat?” he asked.
The judges thought Neil’s “model girls” were more of a distraction than an attraction. Neil tried to defend his actions, saying, “I still feel that it was in the spirit of health and the spirit of fitness. These girls weren’t in bikini tops like they were doing a bikini contest, it was like they were doing aerobics in a gym.”
But then Neil shocked the room when asked who he thought should go home. “Just looking at the task today, and my performance, it would be me,” he said.
That was all host “Governator” Arnold Schwarzenegger needed to hear. “Vince, you just fell on your own sword,” he said. “You just said that you should go. You were weak in this task. You’re terminated.”
On his way to the “choppa” used to transport terminated contestants off set, Neil said, “It’s very strange, but I think it’s been a great experience. I was able to raise a lot of money for the Cleveland Clinic. I think it’s going to be a game-changer for them.”
Mott The Hoople’s Pete Overend Watts Dead At 69
Mott The Hoople bassist and founding member Pete Overend Watts died on Sunday January 22 at the age of 69 after a six-year battle with throat cancer.
“Oh dear,” posted former Mott frontman Ian Hunter with the news. “My extremely eccentric, lovely mate – Peter Overend Watts – has left the building. Devastated.”
Former Mott keyboardist Morgan Fisher also posted online, “My dear, darling, crazy friend Peter Overend Watts passed on today,” Fisher wrote. “I can’t speak, am numb. His bravery, honesty, generosity, open heart and still-devastatingly witty humor during his last days utterly blow me away. He left this world as a total hero, a samurai. Love you, Pete.”
Check out this classic video of a live performance of “All the Young Dudes”.
Glasgow Bar Debuts “OzzBurger” in Honor of Black Sabbath Gig in Scotland
GlasgowLive reports that in honor of rock legends Black Sabbath playing in Glasgow January 24, a City Centre bar called Buck’s Bar has launched the OzzBurger, named after lead singer Ozzy Osbourne.
The buttermilk fried chicken breast with Black ‘Sabbath’ Bean sauce burger also has roasted green peppers, spring onions and Sriracha mayo. And is served with salt and chili fries.
Adds Buck’s Bar: “No bats were harmed in the making of this burger.”
Remaining Black Sabbath tour dates in the UK are:
January
29 – London, UK – The O2
31 – London, UK – The O2
February
2 – Birmingham, UK – Genting Arena
4 – Birmingham, UK – Genting Arena
Alice In Chains Return to Studio For Sixth Album
In a new interview with Framus & Warwick, bassist Mike Inez spoke about Alice In Chains getting together in the studio once again. “Today I’m leaving this studio and I’m going to another studio and I’m going to make a bunch of racket,” Inez said. “We’re hard at work, we’re always doing something, it’s just what we do, we play, usually everything else will come together. We used to worry about a label, management, the band has turned into, it’s a business and there’s a lot going on business [wise]. When we go into these studios, this is kind of like our clubhouse, this is the place that we go. We try not to make this business, this is fun.”
Alice In Chains currently have not announced any 2017 tour dates.
NEW RELEASES
Warrant Reveal New Album Title
On the debut episode of The Rock Brigade Podcast, hosted by Jeb Wright with James Rozell, Warrant vocalist Robert Mason revealed that the follow-up album to 2011’s Rockaholic will be called “Louder, Harder, Faster”. Mason adds, “Unless the record company says ‘F*** you’.”
Warrant Tour dates so far in 2017 are:
February
23 – ShoWare Center – Kent, WA
March
4 – Genesee Theatre – Waukegan, IL
17 – The Arena at Southeastern Kentucky Agricultural Expo Complex – Corbin, KY
April
28 – Merriweather Post Pavilion – Columbia, MD
Unauthorized James Hetfield Biography Due In April
So Let It Be Written, the first and only unauthorized biography of Metallica frontman James Hetfield is due out on April 11.
Authored by Mark Eglinton, who is the co-writer of Official Truth, 101 Proof by Pantera’s Rex Brown and Confessions of a Heretic by Behemoth’s Adam Nergal Darski, this 224-page paperback book features a foreword by Testament vocalist Chuck Billy.
“A huge part of Metallica’s transition from thrash metal pioneers into rock megastars is singer, guitarist, and co-songwriter James Hetfield. He overcame demons—including his parents’ divorce, his mother’s death and alcoholism—to become metal’s biggest star. In the first biography of a living Metallica member, Mark Eglinton uses exclusive, firsthand interviews to construct the definitive account of Hetfield.”
Check out a sample chapter here.
W.A.S.P. To Release a Re-Recorded Version of “The Crimson Idol” Plus Tour Dates
Blackie Lawless and band will release a new re-recorded version marking the 25th anniversary of W.A.S.P.’s The Crimson Idol album alongside a 50-minute DVD film of the entire story. This will be their first release since their new album Golgotha in late 2016.
W.A.S.P. will perform The Crimson Idol in full – accompanied by the film – followed by a second set of hits on their 2017 “Re-Idolized: The 25th Anniversary Of The Crimson Idol” world tour.
Tour dates are on the HOH website.
Megadeth Selling “À Tout le Monde” Beer Glasses
Megadeth are now offering À Tout Le Monde beer glasses via the band’s official store. The 12-oz. footed beer glass featuring the À Tout Le Monde label is available individually, or in a set of four.
ON TOUR
Anthrax Release “For All Kings” Tour Edition Video
The band released a video preview of their upcoming expanded tour edition of their latest album, “For All Kings”, due out February 17.
The reissue will feature the 2016 record alongside the track “Vice Of The People”, previously only available in Japan, as well as a bonus disc of demo versions of several of the album’s songs.
“We’ve included some of the demos from For All Kings in this package,” says drummer Charlie Benante. “We wanted to show the evolution of the songs. The idea of a song can start from a guitar riff or a thought in your head. It then takes shape and goes from my music to Scott’s lyrics to Frank and Joey’s ideas and melodies to Jon’s lead guitar. This is our way of making Anthrax music – enjoy!”
The European tour will see Anthrax perform their 1987 album, “Among The Living”, in its entirety to mark its 30th anniversary.
Tour dates are on the HOH website here.
Foreigner’s Lou Gramm Leads The 80s Cruise Lineup for 2018
The 2017 edition of The 80s Cruise will be taking place in February but organizers have just announced the lineup of artists for next year’s cruise.
The 2018 The 80s Cruise will take place in March and the lineup is led by former Foreigner frontman Lou Gramm, along with Mike + The Mechanics, Loverboy and The Tubes.
They have recruited Rick Springfield as the host and headliner. MTV VJs Mark Goodman, Nina Blackwood and Alan Hunter will be co-hosts. Additional artists include Tommy Tutone, Thomas Dolby and ex-Katrina & the Waves singer Katrina Leskanich.
This year’s 2017 The 80s Cruise will launch on February 18 and includes Cheap Trick, The Romantics, Survivor, Go-Go’s frontwoman Belinda Carlisle, Men at Work singer Colin Hay and more. Visit the official site here.
BLAST FROM THE PAST
Ozzy Osbourne Bites Head Off Bat – January 20, 1982
This month marks the 35th Anniversary of Ozzy’s infamous “Bat” incident.
Performing at Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Des Moines, IA while on tour to support the Diary of a Madman album, his second solo effort since leaving Black Sabbath almost three years earlier, Osbourne picked up what he believed was a toy someone had thrown onstage.
“I thought it was one of those rubber bats,” Osbourne told Night Flight the year of the incident. “I picked it up and it was a real bat, you know?”
The interviewer asked if it was alive, and Ozzy said it was, “’Til I bit the head off it.”
“I had to go straight from the gig to the hospital, and the guy said, we better give you some precautionary rabies shots,” Osbourne noted in the documentary Don’t Blame Me: The Tales of Ozzy Osbourne. “I had one in each rear, one in each arm, and one in the top of my leg — and I had to have that every night. For anyone out there who thinks it’s “cool”… and if you want to be a complete dick, try it.”
And even funnier, watch the November 8, 1982 Night Flight interview with Ozzy…check out that buzz cut!! Does he look like his son Jack in that video or what?
Metalheads Say The Damnedest Things
“I’ve played with the best drummers in rock, ranging from Josh Freese to Brooks Wackerman to even Dave Lombardo. And these guys respect Lars. They know he has a unique style of playing and production. Some drummers who don’t have the kind of success Lars has had are quick to pass judgment. I don’t know if it’s jealousy or whatever. But the really great drummers have mad respect for him.”
“From when I joined the band, Lars has just grown better. The pocket has come a long way. That’s why I feel that his ability to groove has blossomed even more on the new album. We’re growing as a rhythm section. That’s a beautiful thing, because I feel that the whole band, as a unit, is still challenging itself.”
“Lars likes to play. By that I mean that he likes the drums to have a voice,” said Trujillo about Ulrich’s distinctive style. “It reminds me of the way Jaco [Pasotrius] played — they both have a melodic quality that fits in really well with anybody they work with. There’s a lot of personality in Lars’s drumming. That’s what makes it unique.”
~ Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo on his bandmate, drummer Lars Ulrich, in an interview with Drum Magazine