Update for Sunday August 21st, 2011

Night Ranger's Joel Hoekstra covers for an 'absent' Mick Jones

Joel Hoekstra (Left), Brad Gillis and Jack Blades - Photo by Alun Williams

I have to say, I'm proud to admit that I've always shouted the praises of Night Ranger's, Joel Hoekstra and now, even more than ever before, does the guy deserve praise!

If it wasn't enough living the dream of being Brad Gillis' guitar partner in Night Ranger and then touring on a killer triple bill with Journey and Foreigner, would be so fantastic, but now things have gone up another level.

Foreigner's sole surving original founding member Mick Jones, it appears is absent from the stage and while the bands website - http://www.foreigneronline.com/ - Facebook and MySpace have made no announcement as to why he is not playing, Joel Hoekstra has now twice been asked to step into the breach, to cover for Mick.

First at Virginia Beach and now for a second time at the Time Warner Cable theatre in North Carolina last night.

I'm really pleased for Joel to be offered this opportunity, as Joel is one of the nice guys in the rock 'n' roll game and lives and breathes the music, day in, day out.

With no announcement from Foreigner, you have to start wondering what is wrong with the man that has always been a constant in the Foreigner line up?

I have to say, my suspicions are certainly raised and I am genuinely a little concerned for the guy and my reasons are possibly backed up from a statement by Foreigner's management to me, when I asked about a possible interview with Mick, that ..,  'Mick is no longer available to do interviews ... Both Kelly (Hansen) and Jeff (Pilson) are ...'
I'm concerned because when I met Mick, he certainly comes across as a nice, good guy too.

I guess we'll keep our eyes on the situation and I hope that I'm proven wrong that it's just some flu or something, but that wouldn't really explain why he won't do interviews?

Maybe it's just me and I'm just considered small fry ...?

Whatever the case Mick, I do wish you well and hope you are playing out again soon.

Uriah Heep wraps up another successful US run of live dates.

As Uriah Heep head back over to Europe, they can be happy that they've played more live dates in the US over the past 2 years, than they have done in years and all the pointers indicate that they'll be back again in the not too distant future!

This message from their newsletter:

Uriah Heep's second USA tour of 2011 finished on a high, in Las Vegas where a sold out show AND day off at the prestigious Green Valley Resort allowed the band to sample the balmy, exciting, sultry, evocative environment that is Vegas, a unique "must-see" city that has played host to so many of the world's great entertainers. And at 55'Centigrade (yes - 55), 131 Fahrenheit, it takes no time to top up that tan.

In Los Angeles the band welcomed old friends from Frontiers, Universal, EMI, many industry colleagues too, and Keith Emerson was seen sharing a few jokes with the band. Bernie cries of "Hello Hollywood" brought raptures to an enthusiastic crowd who proceeded to sing along to old songs AND new.

The US tour has been successful for the band. Several renowned festivals playing to tens of thousands, and a number of new territories too. This is the 4th trip in 15 months, making up for lost time. The hard work has paid off - the band has been invited to play at the agents / promoters conference in Nashville on Oct

That will make 5 visits Stateside in 18 months and the showcase will help the band to return ever stronger in 2012.

The rest of 2011 is somewhat exciting, as the "Into the Wild" tour moves to Belgium, Holland, Switzerland, Austria (headlining for 100,000 Harley Davidson fans), Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, USA, Poland, Slovakia, Italy, Czech Republic, Hungary, 18 shows in Russia, Venezuela (yes - Venezuela), followed by the band's return to UK, the first tour there since 2008, including a return to Shepherds Bush - the EMPIRE is one of the band's favourite venues.

We hope to see you somewhere on the road.

Official band website:

http://www.uriah-heep.com

38 Special releases 'Live from Texas'

Southern rockers 38 Special, will on August 30th, 2011 release a new live album, 'Live from Texas' the bands first release since 2004's studio album 'Drivetrain.'

This from the band's website:

Around the fall of 2009, the notion of releasing a new live album started to take precedent. The band felt that their in-concert offering many years before had lacked in sound quality not yet available in the technologically-advanced decade since. Additionally, a need to showcase a new spirit of 38 Special was growing, a band that had matured into a tighter unit after three decades on the road, with an innate ability to read each other on the stage.

 

 

Don Barnes explains, "Back then, we had been rushed to release something quickly without having the luxury of choosing between different performances. It was a single show in the 90's that had been recorded at a venue where logistics were a real challenge, the weather wasn't cooperating, and we ended up not entirely satisfied with what we got.

For LIVE FROM TEXAS, we were able to carry our digital recording equipment with us to several cities, and now had our own private studio for remixing. So this was going to be a real pleasure to put together. The crowds were massive and all of those classic songs deserved a chance to shine in an enhanced live fashion. We were finally able to deliver what we represent onstage."

 

 

Their initial idea was to make a live recording available exclusively at the band's shows, with an eye toward having fans take home a copy to carry on the party. But what they found as they listened back – after gleaning select tracks from various cities across Texas - was a blistering new set with a distinct difference in performance as well as audio quality than years before. It grew into an excitedly motivated plan to make available to the world 38 SPECIAL - LIVE FROM TEXAS, a collectively proud history of a band that has made the road a part of its heritage.

 

 

“And the magic's still there,” adds Donnie Van Zant. "It's an emotional high for us to keep 'bringing it' after all these years. That's what you hear on the new live stuff, that sense of urgency and power.

When those lights go down and we all walk up those steps to the stage and hear that crowd roar, it’s a real rush to the head. It feels like we're getting ready to strap ourselves in and it just takes off from there."

Tracklisting:

1. Rockin Into the Night

2. 20th Century Fox

3. Back Where You Belong

4. Wild-Eyed Southern Boys

5. The Squeeze

6. If I'd Been the One

7. Help Somebody

8. Fantasy Girl

9. Trooper With an Attitude

10. Medley: Back to Paradise

11. Medley: Somebody Like You

12. Medley: Teacher Teacher

13. Medley: Rough Housin'

14. Medley: Stone Cold Believer

15. Medley: Like No Other Night

16. Medley: Second Chance

17. Caught Up in You

18. Chain Lightnin'

19. Hold On Loosely

20. Back in the U.S.A.

21. Travelin' Band

Official band website:
http://38special.com/