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Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Interview with Scott Gorham March 13th, 2011

Interview with Scott Gorham March 13th, 2011

(Scott Gorham photo courtesy of  http://thinlizzyband.com)

Scott Gorham of Thin Lizzy fame and possibly some fortune, has also dabbled with another project called 21 Guns, who released two official albums and there has been a third in the pipeline for the longest time …

I previously interviewed Scott almost three years ago, when ‘Still Dangerous,’ the younger, yet tough brother of Lizzy’s ‘Live and Dangerous’ was released and since then, Scott and I have touched base here and there and talked about setting up another interview and now that Thin Lizzy is ‘out there’ again, here we are!

Our conversation took place the day after we had Daylight Savings time kicking in here in the U.S. and when you’re doing an international phone interview with different time zones, it just adds to the …, confusion? Nah, let’s call it fun!
So after my interview slot got mixed up with someone else’s, when I first called Scott, we agreed to try again, so here we go, picking things up, thirty minutes later!

Scott: Hello?

AW: Scott, its Alun!

Scott: Hey man, thanks! (Both laughing)

AW: Are we good …? (Still both laughing)

Scott: You know, I’ve got you on the line, the cell-phone was going, holy s**t man! Our guys on our side f**ked up, they got the timing wrong and that so I hope you don’t mind Alun?

AW: No, no, no! It’s cool with me, we’re struggling this morning with the old Daylight Savings thing kicking in, the wife and I both woke up this morning feeling knackered, so … (Both laughing)

Scott: Well, I got a text today from Ace (Lizzy UK Agent), saying that he f**ked up, that it was Daylight Savings time and everything was going to go back an hour and the first call was going to come in at 2pm, so when the phones started ringing at 1pm … I’m thinking, he’s even got that f**ked up! (More laughter) But it’s all good man!

AW: Cool!

Scott: So where are you calling from again?

AW: It’s Sterling Heights, Michigan.

Scott: OK!

AW: Yeah, I just wanted to say, I appreciate your comments about the site, when we spoke briefly the other day, that you liked the blog and everything … So that’s cool.

Scott: Yeah, it looks great man! You know it reads real good, it’s a very cool looking site.

AW: Excellent! I like that man, but yeah I saw the RTE show that was broadcast and thought it’s great to see Phyllis loving the band there. That was good man!

Scott: Oh thanks! Oh you watched that on your laptop or something?

AW: On my home PC, because a friend of mine sent me a link and it’s like, cool, good to see you guys going through the two tunes and …

Scott: Yeah? How did it look?

AW: It did! It looked good and my wife …

Scott: It did … And how did it sound?

AW: (Laughing, then Scott joins in) Well, I’m listening to it through PC speakers so … (More laughter) It ain’t gonna be the same as being there!

Scott: You’ll have to … You know that’s the problem with doing live TV you know? You never know how that puppy’s gonna sound coming out of these dinky assed little speakers! Ah well, there you go! It was fun to do.

AW: I’m sure, I’m sure and the guy spoke to you afterwards, so that was good with you and Brian so it’s cool.
So the European tour and UK tour, all went well right?

Scott: Yeah you know it was absolutely sold out, except for one place and that’s a place called … And you’re going to have to look up the spelling for this, it’s called Llandudno and it’s in North Wales and you wanna know something? Nobody sells that one out! (Both laughing) So I didn’t feel too bad about that you know.

AW: So they’re funny buggers there then?  (Editor's note: I need to watch what I say, as I've Welsh in me! ;-)

Scott: Well you what it is, its caravan country there.

AW: OK

Scott: It’s more of a summertime … People go up there and have their vacations and all that up there and you know, there we are in f**king January you know, c’mon?! (More laughter)

AW: You’re asking for a lot right?

Scott: Yeah! No kidding, we’re pushing the boundaries on that one …!

AW: Ah yeah and I hear you had to cancel the Ipswich show and that’s been rescheduled right?

Scott: Yeah you know because the snow came down, caved in the …. I guess there’s a glass roof there and it snowed so much that the weight actually caved in the roof so we just couldn’t do it.

AW: Wow!

Scott: So yeah, we’re just going to have to go back and jeez Alun, I forgot all about that! (Both laughing) We’re going to have to go back to Ipswich! (Laughs more)

AW: (Laughing) OK, I won’t go there anymore Scott! No it’s good though, I’m pleased for you Scott that so far it’s gone so well for you everywhere and …

Scott: Well you know I think what happened is that the people that are in the band now, it’s really struck the right chord with everybody, ‘cos they realize that everybody in the band is riding the same train. We’ve all got the same attitude towards this and we’re all striving for the same goal. So I think that’s really translated over to the audience, the people buying the tickets, you know? They really wanted to come out and see this thing and it was great! Everybody went absolutely ape-shit crazy every night, so it was a happy event. Hell of a lot of fun doing this tour.

AW: Yeah, I bet and I was thinking back to … You and I spoke, we did an interview about two years ago or so, that was the last time we spoke properly and I can remember you saying about going out and playing and sometime looking over and saying, ‘Hey, where’s Phil?!’ I mean so how was it this time? I guess you’re kind of over that now, right?

Scott: Yeah, you know after twenty five years, you tend to lose the emotional side of it, you get a little used to somebody not being there, you know, but that’s not to say that I still don’t wish he was here, because you know more than anything he was a really, really good friend of mine and nobody wants to lose a friend like that, when you’re that close. As far as the playing side, all you can do is remember how cool the guy was, what he did for you and what a great time you had together. You just have to lose the emotional side and forge forward and do it you know?

AW: Right. I’ve got to admit it choked me up a bit when they showed the clip of ’Still in Love with You’ and Phil dedicated it to Phyllis, you know?

Scott: Mmm hmm, yeah.

AW: So anyway, the US dates are coming up and what kind of songs can we expect … Is it going to be the safe ‘Greatest Hit’s’ kind of set or are you going to throw anything different in at all or …?

Scott: Well you know, that’s the kind of different thing about this tour and this line up, you know with both Ricky and Vivian involved with this and them being such huge fans of Thin Lizzy, it enabled us to go a hell of a lot deeper into the catalogue than we’ve ever been able to go before. Before we got these guys in, it was primarily pretty much the ‘Live and Dangerous’ album, which I have to admit, I love that album, I love those songs but it got a bit, a little bit repetitive for me. Doing that same set, night after night, year after year … So now we’re able to put on these songs that either we’ve never, ever played live before or just haven’t seen the light of day in like decades really. So that in just a purely selfish point here, it makes it extremely fun for me, ‘cos now I’m playing a lot of stuff that’s just way different and of the usual suspects that we play … You know I’m listening to Brian Downey and he’s actually playing these songs, the way these songs need to be played and so it’s another kind of cool thing for myself to be able to sit back and listen to all this stuff and all these guys and it just sounds so cool!

AW: Yeah and me being a drummer man, it’s great to see Brian back on board and I can remember seeing him so many times, you know back in the day … Portsmouth Guildhall, that was my stomping ground, so …

Scott: Wow! What year was that?!

AW: I didn’t see you guys back … I saw the ‘Live and Dangerous’ tour, back in …

Scott: Shit, that would’ve been … ’77 or ’78 …

AW: ’78 I believe … And then the ‘Black Rose’ tour …

Scott: Well you know something, Brian hasn’t missed a beat!

AW: No, it’s great he’s back!

Scott: You know I was expecting, yeah OK, Brian’s going come back in and he’s gonna miss a beat here and there, but he hasn’t missed a beat yet! He hasn’t missed a thing so, (Laughing) it’s like watching him back 1978! (Both laughing). You know because I went out … You remember when Cream reformed?

AW: Yeah.

Scott: Well, I’m watching them and it’s at the Albert Hall and I’m looking at Ginger Baker and he’s definitely lost a couple of steps, like going through the motions you know? Brian f**king digs in and plays the shit out of these things you know! I love that!

AW: Yeah, it’s great and you know it’s good to hear him actually say it’s good to be back on the road again with these guys, because I know he got sick of the touring didn’t he?

Scott: Well, you know something? I don’t really blame drummers for getting that way … Shit, as a guitar player you can stand there or if you want to move, you can move, there’s breaks in the songs where if you’re a smoker, you can slide off the side and light up a cigarette or have a drink … Drummer can’t do that! He’s there every single beat of the way, I mean he’s in the aerobics position. So you’ve got to be a pretty f**king tough guy to hammer it out for weeks and months at a time, so hats off to those guys you know?

AW: Yeah, I hear you, but the US dates Scott, are you looking to sort of play the same length sets you’ve been playing over there in Europe, an hour and a half or so?

Scott: Yep, well you know, sometimes and hour and a half, sometime they works out to be an hour and forty five. We actually had to cut the set down, ‘cos we were up to something like two hours and ten minutes, as we had so much material that we had worked up, so we had to kind of get the surgeon’s knife out and calve a few of those babies out of there and get it down at least, to an hour and forty five. Like I say, some nights it’ll be an hour and a half and usually averages out to about an hour, forty or something like that.

AW: That’s good, that’s good. I’m really looking forward to the Detroit date man. I really am.

Scott: Yeah, well we are too! I’m just basically, like the other guys, just chomping at the bit to get on the airplane and get to the US. I think we’re finally going to … (Laughing), get to complete a tour you know?!

AW: Oh yeah, oh man yeah!

Scott: I don’t think they’ll be any cancellations and hopefully people don’t get sick or cut hands or any of that kind of bullshit! We’ll just be able to kind of look over at Brian, have him count us in and be ready to go, you know?!

AW: (Laughing) Yeah, there you go! So then what happens to Lizzy? I mean is this all you’ve got scheduled or …?

Scott: Oh God no! Jeez! We come back …

AW: You’re doing the Ireland shows right … With Def Leppard?

Scott: Sorry?

AW: You’re doing the Ireland shows and then a couple of festivals right?

Scott: Yeah, we’ve got three with Def Leppard and Alice Cooper …

AW: Yep.

Scott: Then we’ve got Download, Sweden Rock, then there’s another big British festival we’re doing, then after that we take off for South America …

AW: Oh OK …

Scott: Yeah, I think we’re doing like two or three weeks down there and we were going to do Japan, but er …

AW: Yeah, I know man I’ve got a friend out there …

Scott: Hey, I kind of feel sorry for Iron Maiden, ‘cos they had gone to Japan, landed in Tokyo then that bugger hit!

AW: Yeah, I heard …

Scott: they had to crawl back on the plane and get the heck out of Dodge you know?!
So no, the US dates are far from being the end, it’s kind of more like the middle, ‘cos hopefully I think what we’re trying to do is we’re just doing the East Coast this time, because of scheduling and going back over to Europe, so hopefully we get back over to America this year and we can finish up with the West Coast.
We’ll have to wait and see how the scheduling works out.

AW: Yeah, ‘cos I was just looking at the website and the live dates and I was thinking, well I know Viv Campbell’ got back with (Def) Leppard and do some stuff, as they’ve got a whole bunch of tour dates they’re doing and I don’t know what Ricky’s situation is?

Scott: No Ricky’s permanent Thin Lizzy now.

AW: Good man, good man!

Scott: Yeah!!!

AW: I know that Marco …

Scott: And you know …? We’ve got another guy that’s coming out on the right, he’s kind of a biggish name and I can’t really say who it is right now … (Laughs), but I just can’t do it you know, but he’s actually all lined up, so we’re not going to miss a heartbeat!

AW: OK, so he’s going to step in then.

Scott: But you know? We love Viv, Vivian to death and we’ve all told him that anytime that the Lep’s come off the road and scheduling is all right, we’ll get you back up with Thin Lizzy, ‘cos that’s what he really wants to get back with Thin Lizzy as soon and as much as possible because you know, he gets to play guitar in Thin Lizzy, where he doesn’t get to play so much guitar in Def Leppard.

AW: Yeah, Phil Collen’s pretty much the main guy there isn’t he, right?

Scott: Um.

AW: But Marco of course, he seems to be happy to bounce around everywhere right?! (Laughs)

Scott: Well (Laughing), in the past yeah, but now he’s calmed down, he loves the position he’s in and so what you see up there right now is a permanent situation except for you know … The right hand side and we have extremely good, interchangeable parts on that side now, so it’s enabled us to as I say, not miss a heartbeat.

AW: Right, cool. So … Hey! Changing the subject, the topic a little bit here the re-issues and that, are you pretty pleased with Joe Elliott’s helping hand to you on those?

Scott: I am! You know this … Mainly .. Joe was mainly on the remixing that we did on a few of these tracks ‘cos it was kind of a fantasy on both of our parts to be able to do something like this, ‘cos most bands aren’t … You know, either they can’t afford to do it or the record company won’t let them do it or maybe somebody, one person in the band won’t let this kind of project happen or whatever, but everybody was completely onboard with being able to do this so … And especially Universal when I came up with this idea, you know the second CD that’s in this Deluxe Version, I said, would it be possible to cherry pick two or three songs off each album and just totally remix them?
You know, we were calling them the millennium mix, as if the original band were around today and walked into a studio that had all the digital advantages that everybody has today, what would Thin Lizzy actually sound like now and that was the whole idea to see if in fact it would be better or worse or whatever right and everybody that’s heard these, you know to a person has … You know even the staunchest Thin Lizzy, Phil Lynott fan has come back and said, ‘Wow! This, these are f**king great!’ And a lot of it was, thank God Joe was in the studio because … (Laughs), I wanted to go off in a totally different, another direction! ‘Let’s do this, lets’ do that!’ right?! (Laughing) And he’s going, ‘No, no, no man, can’t do that!’ (Both laughing) I’m glad he did, I’m glad he pulled the reigns back up on me, ‘cos I was ready to get back in there and have a kick ass time! (Both laughing again.)
But I did, I put on some new guitars on a fair few of the tracks, just to beef up sections that I’ve always thought were kind of a little weak, that needed strengthening, that’s why I call them ‘strengthening guitars.’

AW: That’s good.

Scott: We found alternate vocals, which, like on ‘The Boys Are Back In Town,’ Phil had done a completely different vocal …

AW: Yeah.

Scott: Obviously he didn’t like that and went with the one that everybody knows about anyway we went and mixed that vocal in there on ‘a version.’ There’s guitars that never got put up in the mix, so we’ve gone ahead and put those up in the mix and I listen to some of these guitars and I think, ‘Why the f**k weren’t they put up,’ you know?
So it was an interesting process to go through, to see what you were thinking about at the time and how you were thinking about it and then sit back and think, ‘Why was I thinking that in those terms?’ Or all of us really.
But it is an interesting process to go through, it really is.

AW: Yeah, but I guess again, by the same token you’re involved in it more this time around, than perhaps you were last time, you know with producers and stuff like that, a lot of the time it can almost be like a dictatorship at times right? It’s like …

Scott: A little bit, it’s like ‘I know best and so we’re gonna go with my idea’ and it’s like, ‘Oh, OK …’ And you know, when you’re like a young kid and that, it’s like, ‘Oh, he’s obviously right!’
But then years later and a few miles down the road you realize, ‘Nah, he wasn’t f**king right at all!’ (Laughs).

AW: Oh boy! Here’s the other thing though, are there any unreleased tracks, not alternative versions, of Lizzy numbers that we may hear, like ‘Dedication’ was?

Scott: You know, I’m sure there is and you know, I keep talking about this thing called ‘the vault’ that …

AW: Yeah, you said before …! (Laughing).

Scott: (Laughing) … that makes you feel like you’ve got to go in there with a dial and a safe cracker and all that. Really, it’s just a temperature controlled room, that’s all it is … But we’ve got boxes and boxes and boxes of these multi-tracks and a lot of it has like working titles or alternate titles of songs that we did record under the correct name, but on the other hand you know, somehow we’ve got to go in there and go through all of these, just to see like, ‘Well why didn’t we finish that track or that was really a cool kind of thing we were onto, why didn’t we actually finish that off?’ You know, all that kind of thing. So I hoping at some point to get off my lazy ass man and just go through all these reams of tape, just to see what we have got and if we do, by all means, I’m going to get Brian Downey and some of the other guys and try to finish these things off.

AW: Yeah, that’d be great, that really would be great! I mean ‘Dedication,’ I know maybe the vocal wasn’t the greatest, wasn’t 100% but you know otherwise …

Scott: Well you know we didn’t have auto-tune back then when we were doing that (Laughs) and to be quite frank with you, that was a demo …

AW: Right.

Scott: That er … Do you know anything about that?

AW: I know that Gary (Moore) was involved in it really, wasn’t he?

Scott: No he wasn’t!

AW: He wasn’t?

Scott: No, no, no … It was a guy named Lawrence Archer …

AW: Yeah I remember Lawrence Archer, from Grand Slam yeah?

Scott: Yeah, but this was … You know the record company came to me and they were going to put out a ‘Greatest Hits’ album and they said to me, ‘Well we want to include this demo …’ So I said, ‘Oh shit man, well send it over to me and let me listen to it’ and this f**king thing Alun, it went on for like fourteen minutes right …!

AW: (Laughing)

Scott: It just went on and on and things were out of time and out of tune and there were like just whole sections that were just being repeated, over and over and over again and I said, ‘You know, there’s no f**king way!’
I said, ‘Why don’t you let me and Brian Downey go into the studio and try to edit this into an actual three and a half minute song and get rid of these out of tune guitars and drums that weren’t in time and all that,’ because Brian didn’t play drums on it at that point and ‘let’s just redo the whole backing thing and just make it into a whole song?’
Thankfully they agreed to it, but unfortunately we only got like two days to do this in, so it was erm … I think what we did in the two days, was pretty miraculous really, if you could’ve heard the actual original.

AW: Well that’s cool. Yeah I did see Lawrence with Phil’s band Grand Slam, actually saw them a couple of times and that was good, but …

Scott: Was it?!

AW: (Laughs) It was … For me …

Scott: (Laughing) You’re the first person I’ve heard that has said that!

AW: Well, the thing was, in honesty, the first time I saw them, they play Portsmouth Polytechnic which was a bit of a dive. It was Student Union run thing and the sound was garbage, from the point of view of … there was a constant buzz from the soundboard just all the way through and I didn’t know that for sure, when I picked up a bootleg of the show and …(Laughs) It was on there!

Scott: There’s the buzz!

AW: And I’m going, ‘Shit!’

Scott: Yeah, can you get a little reverb on that buzz man?! (Laughing)

AW: Yeah man, I’ll tell ya! I saw them play the ‘End of the Road’ tour with Status Quo at Crystal Palace (Football Club) and I’ve gotta tell ya, I enjoyed that show!

Scott: Well good.

AW: Yeah, I did enjoy that show. For me, it was just the fact of seeing Phil out on the road again, you know, but it was sad, it was tragic and all that sort of thing, as you said …

Scott: He was a bit ill at that point.

AW: Yeah … (Sigh)

Scott: What he should’ve done at that point really, was what I did. You just walk away from it for a while and get yourself better. You get yourself back on your feet, you get yourself together. You get back to the point where you can start thinking clearly. You can play again, you know you can start making decisions … I mean Jesus man, Phil, come off the f**king road man …

AW: Yeah.

Scott: You just can’t do that man, you just cannot do that when you’re on the road man, it’s just not going to f**king happen. So I just wish he would’ve gone the way I did when I did. I mean he saw me, well we met up just three weeks before he died and just by looking at his face, the way he was looking at me, he could see … I mean I was like glowing with health at this point and he was looking terrible …

AW: Yeah, yeah.

Scott: I could see from the expression on his face that he was impressed that I’d been able to do this right and he was even making the old noises of, ‘Yeah shit man! I’m gonna …, we need to get back together again and I’m going to write and we’ve got to start writing together again, put the band back together and … I think he saw in my face the look of, ‘C’mon man, look at you.’ And you know he was actually saying, ‘you know I’m going to stop all this shit, I’m going to get my act together and stop taking drugs and get healthy again and you know …

AW: Yeah, right …

Scott: And I thought you know, I’m holding out hope that he’s actually meaning all this that he’s actually meaning all this and he wants to go do this. You know there’s no doubt about it, I wanted to start writing songs with him again! I wanted to get out on the road again with him, but it’s gotta be in a f**king healthy situation or it’s not going to happen …

AW: Yeah, I hear you, I do and seriously it’s like you were saying before that there were so many bad people around him that it was never gonna happen right? Never?!

Scott: No and it didn’t you know and I’ve said this several times before to a lot of different people that even if he’d quit that day, he was still going to die at the appointed time.

AW: Right …

Scott: He’d gone past that certain point! He’d already done way, way too much damage to himself to actually be able to get out of the situation that he was in.

AW: Right and now of course Gary’s gone, Gary Moore …

Scott: That was a shock!

AW: Yeah, no kidding!

Scott: You know Brian came down … We were out on the road at the time and we were checking out, down in reception and Brian Downey came down to all of us and he said, ‘I’ve got some bad news guys.’ I say, ‘Bad news?’ He says, ‘Well Gary Moore just died this morning …’ Now I’m immediately thinking, alright this is some really dark sinister, road humour here and I’m sitting there thinking, well Brian’s got this look on his face and I thought, ‘Holy shit, he means it.’ And it was … You know, it’s kind of hard to describe the reactions and the emotions you go though, there’s this whole real, unbelief kind of thing, that kind of washes over you that, ‘That can’t have happened? There’s just no way!’

AW: Right.

Scott: But there’s a way and he was dead and you know at that point you don’t start thinking about the musician side of things …

AW: No …

Scott: You start thinking, I’m never going to pick up the phone to this guy again, be able to have dinner with him again or whatever you know … Just not going to ever be able to do this …

AW: Yeah, right …

Scott: Then it’s at that point that you start thinking about the musician side and what a fabulous guitar player this guy was …

AW: Yeah, no kidding!

Scott: He was an all-round musician, you know the great things he’s done in the musical arena and so all these things kind of hit you all at once you know …

AW: Yeah, that’s sad, but trying to stay on a … I know we’ve got to wrap this up due to the time limit, you’re on a tight schedule Scott, but that’s a good thing right?

Scott: Now that’s a good thing Alun! That is a good thing! (Both laughing) So listen, you’re gonna come out to the show aren’t you?

AW: Yeah, Detroit, looking forward to that, but one other thing, one last thing ….

Scott: Oh God …

AW: You know it!

Scott: This is the cruncher right?

AW: Laughs

Scott: No I’m not gay! (Both laughing) OK, hit me!

AW: 21 Guns …

Scott: Oh yeah, shit!

AW: Yeah, you and I have gone back and forth on this a couple of times, but I know with the whole Lizzy thing right now, it’s like, how’s it going to happen right?

Scott: Yeah, that’s kind of a question right now, because it’s all so happening, so heavily on the Lizzy side … To get back to actually finishing the third 21 Guns album, you know both myself and Leif Johanson, I gotta find that window to do it. We’ve got the songs, the songs are written and they’re ready to go. It’s just a case of me getting my ass onto an airplane and finding a glop of time to be able to go there and have a good stretch of time, to get this shit done! I really, really, want to get this third album out there, ‘cos there’s actually some really cool stuff on it!

AW: Now you’d told me that you’d actually recorded some stuff with Pete Shoulder (The Union) right?

Scott: Yeah, yeah, Pete’s on there, he’s on vocals and because this has taken so long, he gone out and started this other band called The Union, right?

AW: Yeah, with Luke Morley (Thunder) right?

Scott: Yeah, but you know I talked to Pete a few times with this and he’s just said, ‘Listen man, whenever you get this thing going, just give me a call and we’ll get this ‘did’, you know!’ So Pete’s still onboard … I love that guys vocals man, I think he’s a really, really great singer and when you think about it, he’s what, 23 years old and his voice sounds as if he’s been doing this for the last twenty years!

AW: Yeah, he sounds good man.

Scott: He adds like a really cool personality to the sound so … I think he’s a really cool guy too so yeah, everything is intact and so it’s in the starting blocks, we’re just waiting for the starter to shoot the gun, so we can get out there and do this thing!

AW: Cool! Sorry, I did have one more for you … Lizzy … New album?!

Scott: Well, it’s the number one question. It seems like, because of all the ….

AW: Legal stuff?

Scott: No, the new guys, the new band and the new feel, because we’ve had so many people come out and see the band on this tour, it seems that everybody at the same time has kind of jumped the emotional hurdle of actually writing and recording a new song. Before with John (Sykes) in the band, people weren’t very amenable to that idea …, but now that we’ve got Ricky involved, Viv to a certain extent … Everybody seems to …, now, want to hear us write and record new material, so knowing that emotional hurdle has now been jumped, it’s much more of a possibility, to actually get out there and do that now.

AW: Great, that’s good stuff! I’m pleased for you Scott and listen, thank you so much for your time!

Scott: Well no, thank you Alun, I mean we’ve been threatening to do this for a while now, haven’t we?

AW: Yeah, we have! (Both laughing)

Scott: Well we did it man! Alright!!!

AW: Yeah we did, cool!

Scott: So listen, I’m gonna see you at the show right?

AW: I’m going to be there man and my wife Rhonda is looking forward to it too!

Scott: Well, let’s do it, at least shake hands and have a beer and all that right?

AW: That would be sweet!

Scott: Cool man, take care, I’ll see you out there!

AW: ‘Are you out there!’

Scott: (Laughing) Alright thanks Alun.

AW: Yep, see you Scott, take care man.

Scott: Yep, see you, bye, bye.


My sincere thanks go out to Scott Gorham, what a guy!
Special thanks to Jen Farhood @ Chipster PR too!
Expect a 'Lizzy live review from Detroit here at 'Chambers of Rock,' very soon!
Thanks!
Al

Official Thin Lizzy website: http://thinlizzyband.com/

Very Slight Update for Wednesday 20th March, 2011

THE FANS DEMANDED IT...WHITESNAKE "LIVE AT
DONINGTON 1990" DVD/DOUBLE LIVE CD SET AVAILABLE
JUNE 7TH ON FRONTIERS RECORDS
NEW WHITESNAKE ALBUM "FOREVERMORE" IN STORES TODAY

(DVD Cover)

(New York, NY) - The fans demanded it...Whitesnake's LIVE AT DONINGTON 1990 DVD/live double CD set will now be available on June 7th via Frontiers Records.
Since the inception of http://www.whitesnake.com/ more than ten years ago, this DVD has been the most requested product from fans of the 'Snake.


On August 18th, 1990, Whitesnake headlined the legendary Monsters Of Rock at Castle Donington festival (now known as Download). Whitesnake's performance at the festival was one of the most memorable events on the "Liquor & Poker World Tour" that saw the band play sold-out shows to over one million people. This incredible, never-before-seen, visual footage captures one of the most musically-intense Whitesnake line-ups performing in front 70,000+ fans. Mixed in glorious 5.1 and living, breathing stereo, it's the next best thing to actually being there! Whitesnake 1990 featured guitar greats Steve Vai and Adrian Vandenberg, bassist Rudy Sarzo, drummer Tommy Aldridge and of course, incomparable frontman David Coverdale.

The LIVE AT DONINGTON 1990 DVD also includes a substantial gallery of never before seen stills of the band on the "Liquor & Poker World Tour 1990", plus an intimate behind-the-scenes documentary of the making-of the SLIP OF THE TONGUE album. LIVE AT DONINGTON 1990 will be available as a 2 CD set, a DVD coverpack, a combo 2 CD and DVD in digipak and digital editions. Please see below for the respective double CD and DVD track listings.

In other news, Whitesnake's brand new album FOREVERMORE is out today via Frontiers Records and is available in multiple configurations. The album is already receiving rave reviews from the press with The Aquarian dubbing it, "excellent...their bluesiest and grittiest release since their 1984 masterpiece SLIDE IT IN...", while Hard Rock Hideout declares, "Make no mistake, FOREVERMORE, is an early front runner for record of the year." FOREVERMORE finds founder/singer/songwriter David Coverdale and company returning to their no-holds-barred, bluesiest, sexiest rock n' roll roots. Whitesnake is David Coverdale (vocals), Doug Aldrich (guitars), Reb Beach (guitars), Michael Devin (bass) and Briian Tichy (drums). The 'Snake will soon hit the road in support of FOREVERMORE... Please see below for tour dates.

Formed in 1977, and steered by the legendary David Coverdale, Whitesnake carry a rightful reputation as one of the world's leading rock n' roll bands. Coverdale's blues roots, combined with a feral sense of rockin' and rollin', have consistently shaped the 'Snake's sound along with Coverdale's love and appreciation of impeccable musicianship. Whitesnake's ascent to the very top of the rock n' roll heap was confirmed with 1987's self-titled mega-platinum album, which saw two massive Top 10 hits, two #1 singles with "Here I Go Again" and "Is This Love" and a virtual 24-hour domination of MTV around the world.


Whitesnake LIVE AT DONINGTON 1990 DVD track listing:

1. Slip Of The Tongue
2. Slide It In
3. Judgement Day
4. Slow An Easy
5. Kitten's Got Claws
6. Adagio For Strato
7. Flying Dutchman Boogie
8. Is This Love
9. Cheap An' Nasty
10. Crying In The Rain (featuring Tommy Aldridge drum solo)
11. Fool For Your Loving
12. For The Love Of God
13. The Audience Is Listening
14. Here I Go Again
15. Bad Boys
16. Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City
17. Still Of The Night
18. BONUS CONTENT: The Making Of SLIP OF THE TONGUE; Slide Show

Whitesnake LIVE AT DONINGTON 1990 CD 1 track listing:
1. Slip Of The Tongue
2. Slide It In
3. Judgement Day
4. Slow An Easy
5. Kitten's Got Claws
6. Adagio For Strato
7. Flying Dutchman Boogie
8. Is This Love
9. Cheap An' Nasty
10. Crying In The Rain (featuring Tommy Aldridge drum solo)

Whitesnake LIVE AT DONINGTON 1990 CD 2 track listing:
1. Fool For Your Loving
2. For The Love Of God
3. The Audience Is Listening
4. Here I Go Again
5. Bad Boys
6. Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City
7. Still Of The Night

Whitesnake on tour - North America 2011:

MAY 2011
11 Westbury, NY Theatre At Westbury
12 Hartford, CT Webster Theatre
14 Columbia, MD Merriweather Post Pavilion (M3 Festival headline)
15 Jim Thorpe, PA Penn's Peak
18 New York, NY Irving Plaza
20 Biloxi, MS Hard Rock Biloxi Hotel & Casino
21 Kinder, LA Grand Casino Coushatta
22 Richardson, TX Wildflower Arts & Music Festival
24 Southaven, MS Snowden Grove
26 Park City, KS Hartman Arena
27 Pryor, OK Pryor Creek Music Festival (Rocklahoma)

For more information on the band, their music and more tour information, please visit:

On the Whitesnake subject, you should also be aware that it's my understanding that the band will return to North America for more dates in late summer, with special guests Tesla!
Keep watching at their site and of course, as always, at 'Chambers of Rock!'


POISON’S 25th ANNIVERSARY ‘DOUBLE DOSE: ULTIMATE HITS,’ NEW CAREER-SPANNING 2CD AND DIGITAL COLLECTION TO BE RELEASED MAY 3
POISON’S TOP HITS GATHERED FOR 25th ANNIVERSARY ‘DOUBLE DOSE: ULTIMATE HITS,’ NEW CAREER-SPANNING 2CD AND DIGITAL COLLECTION TO BE RELEASED MAY 3


Catch Poison’s Extensive North American Tour this Summer with Mötley Crüe and the New York Dolls

Hollywood, California – March, 2011 – To celebrate Poison’s 25th Anniversary, 35 of the multi-platinum band’s top hits and fan favorites have been gathered for 'Double Dose: Ultimate Hits,' a new career-spanning 2CD and digital collection to be released May 3 by Capitol/EMI. This summer, Poison will hit the road with Mötley Crüe and the New York Dolls for an extensive North American tour.
Double Dose: Ultimate Hits features all of the band’s charting singles, including the #1 smash ballad “Every Rose Has It's Thorn,” Top 10 hits “Nothin’ But A Good Time,” “Unskinny Bop,” and “Something To Believe In,” and other big hits and fan favorites, including “Talk Dirty To Me,” “I Want Action,” “Your Mama Don’t Dance,” “Fallen Angel,” “Ride The Wind,” and many more, including standouts from the band’s most recent album, 2007’s Poison’d!.

“Between Double Dose and the 25th Anniversary Tour, I honestly can’t think of a better way to mark this major milestone,” says Poison’s singer Bret Michaels. “I’m so excited to get back out on the road with the band again to celebrate - and ‘Double Dose’ is going to be such a must-have collection: All the hits in one place. This is going to be really special for all of the fans - and especially for all of those who have been with us since Day One.“
Poison’s highly-anticipated tour with Mötley Crüe and the New York Dolls kicks off June 7 at Dallas’ Gexa Energy Pavilion, before continuing on to more than 30 other cities and major venues across North America, including Los Angeles’ Hollywood Bowl on June 14, Toronto’s Molson Amphitheatre on June 28, Detroit’s DTE Energy Music Center on June 29, and Chicago’s FMB Amphitheatre on July 1.

Bret Michaels has partnered with Dean Guitars to represent a line of guitars, and he will soon release a new vocal warm-up CD. This fall, he’ll hit the high seas aboard the Bret Michaels Super Cruise.
Double Dose: Ultimate Hits [2CD, Digital]
Disc 1
1. Talk Dirty To Me
2. I Want Action
3. I Won’t Forget You
4. Cry Tough
5. Look What The Cat Dragged In
6. Nothin’ But A Good Time
7. Fallen Angel
8. Every Rose Has It's Thorn
9. Your Mama Don’t Dance
10. Unskinny Bop
11. Rock And Roll All Nite
12. Ride The Wind
13. Something To Believe In
14. Life Goes On
15. Stand
16. The Last Song
17. Shooting Star

Disc 2
1. We’re An American Band
2. So Tell Me Why
3. No More Lookin’ Back [Live]
4. Can’t You See
5. Little Willy
6. Suffragette City
7. Look But You Can’t Touch
8. Until You Suffer Some (Fire And Ice)
9. Bastard Son Of A Thousand Blues
10. Lay Your Body Down
11. Sexual Thing
12. (Flesh & Blood) Sacrifice
13. What I Like About You
14. Love On The Rocks
15. Face The Hangman
16. Livin’ For The Minute
17. Cover Of The Rolling Stone
18. Poor Boy Blues

Poison: Confirmed North American Tour Dates
[all dates with Mötley Crüe and New York Dolls]

June 2011
June 07 Dallas, TX Gexa Energy Pavilion
June 09 San Antonio, TX AT&T Center
June 10 Houston, TX Toyota Center
June 12 Albuquerque, NM Hard Rock Pavilion
June 14 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Bowl
June 15 San Francisco, CA Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
June 17 Phoenix, AZ Desert Sky Pavilion
June 18 Las Vegas, NV TBD
June 19 Salt Lake City, UT USANA Amphitheatre
June 21 Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
June 22 Maryland Heights, MO Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
June 24 Minneapolis, MN Target Center
June 25 Milwaukee, WI Bradley Center
June 26 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center
June 28 Toronto, ON Molson Amphitheatre
June 29 Clarkston, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre

July 2011
July 01 Tinley Park, IL FMB Amphitheatre
July 02 Noblesville, IN Verizon Wireless Music Center
July 03 Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena
July 05 Hollywood, FL Seminole Hard Rock Live Arena
July 06 Tampa, FL St. Petersburg Times Forum
July 08 Biloxi, MS Mississippi Coast Coliseum
July 10 Atlanta, GA Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood
July 12 Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
July 13 Hershey, PA Star Pavilion at Hershey Park
July 15 Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun Arena
July 16 Camden, NJ Susquehanna Bank Center
July 19 Mansfield, MA Comcast Center
July 20 Uniondale, NY Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
July 22 Darien Center, NY Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
July 23 Saratoga Springs, NY Saratoga Performing Arts Center
July 24 Pittsburgh, PA Stage AE
July 29 Youngstown, OH Covelli Centre
July 30 Frederick, MD Outlaw Jam 2011
July 31 Scranton, PA Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain

August 2011
August 5 Tomah, WI Fort McCoy



BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION

CONFIRM THEIR HIGHLY
ANTICIPATED SECOND ALBUM
"2"



Black Country Communion, the Anglo-American classic rock group featuring the talents of blues rock guitarist/vocalist Joe Bonamassa, bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes (Deep Purple, Trapeze), drummer Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin), and keyboardist Derek Sherinian (Dream Theater), has announced the title of their much-anticipated second album. The album will be called “2” and will be released in the UK on June 13th via Mascot Records, followed by a US release on June 14th on the J&R Adventures label.


Official website: http://www.bccommunion.com/

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Brief Update for Tuesday 29th March, 2011

Queensrÿche - “Dedicated to Chaos” – This Summer!
TO CELEBRATE THEIR 30th ANNIVERSARY IN ROCK BY RELEASING NEW ALBUM "DEDICATED TO CHAOS" THIS SUMMER
BAND TO TOUR THIS SUMMER IN SUPPORT OF NEW ALBUM


New York, NY: Queensrÿche announced today that their new album will be called 'Dedicated to Chaos' and it will be released this summer. It’s the band’s first effort for its new label, Roadrunner Records/Loud & Proud. The band – featuring Geoff Tate, Michael Wilton, Eddie Jackson, Scott Rockenfield and Parker Lundgren — is currently planning a tour in support of the new opus, which was recorded in its native Seattle. Tour dates and information will be released when available.

“Modern life moves fast,” commented frontman Geoff Tate about the album. “Plug into the rhythm of the now with our 12th studio album, 'Dedicated to Chaos.' It’s a clash and slash of musical experimentation anchored by the pulse of digital code.” He did issue one suggestion to listeners as well, saying: “Enjoy – headphones are a must.”

Queensrÿche’s 1988-issued album 'Operation: Mindcrime' is universally respected as a classic concept release about rock, revenge and redemption, which is ultimately regarded as one of the most important and essential hard rock records in the genre’s expansive canon. 1990’s follow-up, 'Empire,' yielded a #1 single, the Grammy-nominated ballad “Silent Lucidity,” which the band performed at the 1992 Grammy Awards accompanied by a supporting orchestra.

In 2006, the band released 'Operation: Mindcrime II,' a scorching sequel to their original. The band then hit the road performing both albums Operation: Mindcrime and Operation: Mindcrime II back-to-back in their entirety in an incredible theatrical presentation throughout the year. The final performance was recorded at The Moore Theatre in Seattle that October and the Mindcrime at the Moore double CD/DVD release debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Top Music DVD Chart and eventually reached Gold status.

The band is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year and 'Dedicated to Chaos' marks a new and riveting chapter in Queensrÿche’s already impressive history that fans will not want to miss.

And the chaos has just begun ...
Official website: http://www.queensryche.com/


Thin Lizzy adds High Voltage Festival to Tour Schedule


UK rockers Thin Lizzy have added the big High Voltage festival event to their current tour schedule.
Currently enjoying playing their first US tour dates since 2004, Thin Lizzy who have recently completed a pretty much, sold out UK tour, will return to the UK to play not one but two big UK rock festivals!

Already confirmed for Donington Park's Download Festival, the band have now been added to the popular new London summer rock festival, High Voltage!
Here's the current flyer for the event that will feature headliners Judas Priest and Dream Theater!


Thin Lizzy's official website can be found here:
http://thinlizzyband.com/

Rush changes two US tour dates

Live Nation announced today that due to unforeseen circumstances the Rush performance previously scheduled for this Friday, April 1st in Greensboro has been postponed one day and will now take place on Saturday, April 2nd at the Greensboro Coliseum. Doors remain 6:30 pm with show time at 7:30 pm.

After much consideration, as the Toledo performance would have been the 4th show in 5 days the decision was made to delay the show rather than move forward as previously scheduled. The added time between shows will ensure that fans in Toledo are treated to the best performance that Rush can deliver.
As a result, the Toledo performance previously scheduled for Wednesday, April 6th will be postponed one week and will now take place on Wednesday, April 13th at Huntington Center.

Tickets for both of the previously scheduled performance will be honored at the rescheduled dates. Fans requiring a refund may do so at point of purchase.

For complete tour and ticket details visit: www.livenation.com and http://www.rush.com/


3 Doors Down to hit the UK!

UK Dates Announced!
3 Doors Down is coming to the UK!
US band 3 Doors Down, are currently enjoying some current popularity with the single, 'When You're Young,' from the forthcoming album, 'Time of my Life.'

'When You're Young' is basically getting airplay everywhere and it's really not surprising after the great successes of previous singles, 'Kryptonite,' 'Here Without You,' 'When I'm Gone,' 'Landing In London' and 'It's Not My Time' from the equally successful albums, 'The Better Life,' 'Away From The Sun,' 'Seventeen Days' and the self titled, '3 Doors Down.' 

The band has gone from strength to strength from breaking big time in the USA, to finally breaking through elsewhere around the globe, including the UK.
Their current planned UK tour will take in the following dates:

June 2011
6/16 - Manchester, Manchester Academy
6/17 - Glasgow, O2 Academy
6/19 - London, Roundhouse
6/20 - Birmingham, O2 Academy

Official band website: http://www.3doorsdown.com/

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Brief update for Sunday 27th March, 2011

Deep Purple, North American tour dates planned for June

Yes, Deep Purple's website is not saying too much on the matter, except giving this warning:

2011 US TOUR UPDATE
Please note that tour dates will only be posted once they have been confirmed by management. Stay tuned to http://www.deeppurple.com/ for official 2011 tour announcements!

That's one thing but already http://www.pollstar.com/ and http://www.ticketmaster.com/ are advertising shows here in North America and when Ticketmaster is sharing onsale tickets dates, what can you say?! 

No more word on new album although a little while back in January, at a Press Conference in Mexico, Ian Gillan spoke to press saying, "I guess it's about time, isn't it?! So we're gonna get together and have a writing session quite soon. And if we get excited, then we'll probably have another [album finished and ready for release] shortly after that. We'll see how it goes. But there's no plans. But I think we're getting poked by various connections who would like to see another DEEP PURPLE record. So I think it's about time."
 
Meantime, those dates so far showing up are as follows:
 
June 2011
Fri. 06/03/11 Orillia, ON (Canada) Casino Rama
Fri. 06/10/11 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center
Sat. 06/11/11 Atlantic City, NJ, Tropicana Showroom
Sun. 06/12/11 Bethel, NY, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
Tue. 06/14/11 New York, NY Beacon Theatre
Wed. 06/15/11 New York, NY Beacon Theatre
Fri. 06/17/11 Detroit, MI Fox Theatre
Sat. 06/18/11 Highland Park, IL Ravinia Festival At Ravinia Park, "Ravinia Festival"
Fri. 06/24/11 Los Angeles, CA Greek Theatre

Go here for more details:

Official band website:


Rush - Moving Pictures, the Deluxe reissue


Rush's 'Moving Pictures' masterwork celebrates its 30th anniversary this year with a spectacular 'Moving Pictures' - Deluxe Edition (Anthem/Mercury/UMe), April 5, 2011. The reissue of this seminal album will be available in two formats: (1) a digitally remastered CD plus DVD and (2) a digitally remastered CD plus Blu-ray. The DVD and Blu-ray discs will feature the album and three bonus music videos, "Tom Sawyer," "Limelight" and the previously unreleased clip "Vital Signs," in both a stunning 5.1 surround sound mix supervised by the band's Alex Lifeson using the original multi-tracks and in newly remastered stereo from the original analog master tapes. Both DVD and Blu-ray formats will boast the 5.1 surround sound and stereo audio in 96kHz/24-bit high-resolution audiophile playback which offers 256 times more resolution than CD audio, providing the listener with the closest experience you can have to what the artists hear in the studio. Also included in the package is an extensive gallery with previously unreleased photos from the original recording sessions and new liner notes by David Fricke.
You can pre-order your copy at Rush Backstage:

Please note: For US fans: The CD+BLURAY edition will be available in the US exclusively at Best Buy for the first 4 weeks and the CD + DVD version will be available to all retailers in the US starting April 5th!

The Junos celebrate their 40th Anniversary back in Toronto


The 2011 JUNO AWARDS, Canada's Music Awards, will air on Sunday, March 27th on CTV in high definition and 5.1 surround sound from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, hosted by Canadian superstar recording artist Drake ... and featuring presenter duties by Rush's Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee! http://www.junoawards.ca/

"Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage" is nominated for a Juno Award in the MUSIC DVD of the Year category.
Official band website: http://www.rush.com/


Alice Cooper 'No More Mr Nice Guy Tour 2011'
The Original Evil Returns


It seems Alice Cooper is pulling out all the stops on a great summer tour, recalling his 'No More Mr Nice Guy' days as the tour is subtitled, 'The Original Evil Returns.'

Now I'm not sure if this will be the case on the rest of the tour dates, but certainly for the Detroit gig, original Kiss guitarist and legend, Ace Frehley will be his special guest.

The tour opens on May 12th in Elizabeth, IN and takes in along the way, Quebec, QC, and these Ontario cities, Ottawa, Hamilton, Sudbury and Rama through the rest of May.
He then heads to Brazil in early June, then Ireland and England for a couple of dates before playing a bunch of shows in the US, starting in Sturgis, SD on August 6th and further dates throughout August. Then he'll head back to Europe in November, so a busy year ahead for the Coop!
For full tour details: