I've always kind of wondered if it was the negativity that did him in or if it was his reaction to it. If it somehow ate away at him and made him a little fearful of creating some new stuff. Either way, it's a shame because this dude is pretty great. Check out "In The Dark" below!
Monday, May 16, 2022
Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Billy Squier - 'In The Dark'
I've always kind of wondered if it was the negativity that did him in or if it was his reaction to it. If it somehow ate away at him and made him a little fearful of creating some new stuff. Either way, it's a shame because this dude is pretty great. Check out "In The Dark" below!
Sunday, May 15, 2022
Daily Boom 90's Nostalgia- Laissez Faire- 'In Paradise'
You are the sun, I am the sky
Together we'll live in paradise
Our hopes and dreams will come alive
In paradise
Do you remember Laissez Faire? Gina, Marlo and Jennifer first got together in 1989 and eventually put out an album under Metropolitan Records. While Hands Off didn't do as well on the charts as they may have wanted, the ladies did develop a strong fan base within the freestyle community. "In Paradise" the groups' first single did do quite well on the dance charts and brought Laissez Faire enough clout to open for the then-huge Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch.
This song is Laissez Faire's signature jam and they are still performing it. The ladies recently reunited for the first time in 15 years and pop up occasionally to perform at live events.
Friday, May 13, 2022
Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Kate Bush - 'Running Up That Hill'
But see how deep the bullet lies.
Unaware I'm tearing you asunder.
Ooh, there is thunder in our hearts.
Is there so much hate for the ones we love?
Tell me, we both matter, don't we?
You, it's you and me.
It's you and me won't be unhappy.
Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Sweet Sensation - 'Sincerely Yours'

Thursday, May 12, 2022
Wednesday, May 11, 2022
Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Firehouse- 'All She Wrote'
Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Skid Row - '18 And Life'

Sebastian Bach. He was a bit of an obsession of mine back in 1989. I remember the very first time that I heard "Youth Gone Wild" by Skid Row was on Headbanger's Ball after work one night. It was a MOMENT. The song just clicked in my brain and Skid Row was instantly placed in my top three fav hairbands (behind Whitesnake & Ratt). I bought the tape and had a bit of a battle over it with my mom. She was super religious and would toss out any music that looked or sounded questionable, so Skid Row was a goner. I probably bought the cassette four times before the band released their second single, "18 And Life".
Tuesday, May 10, 2022
Daily Boom 80's Throwback: Bananarama - 'Do Not Disturb'

Close to heaven in the cold half light
All the pleasures of that very first night
Crystal clear in my mind
No complications
Just another reservation
In a beach hotel
We found a room with a view
Lock the door and change the sign
Do not disturb"
Monday, May 9, 2022
Saturday, May 7, 2022
Exclusive Interview: 'Zebra's' Randy Jackson Talks Touring, Symphonic Shows & The Depth of Those Treasured Lyrics
I was first introduced to Randy Jackson's work when I was still a little kid. In the 1970s my dad was music-obsessed and used his gigs in local radio to justify his growing vinyl collection. Growing just as quickly was his literal wall of stereo equipment. He would make several trips to a store called Stereo House before finally plunking down a wad of cash and walking out with a big box of something that he would spend the next several hours agonizing over. The sound had to be just right and once he nailed it there were a few albums that were spun religiously. Steely Dan, The Moody Blues, Foreigner, and Genesis gave way to a few up-and-coming, semi-local bands. One of those was Zebra, featuring Randy (Jackson) lead vocalist, songwriter, and guitar master. Add in Guy Gelso on drums, percussion, and backing vocals, plus Felix Hanemann on keys, bass, and backing vocals as well, and what you get is a rock trio destined for success.
Randy Jackson on how Zebra prepares for gigs now after 45 years together:
"I think it's different for each of us, but we really don't get together to rehearse as a band. The only time we've really done that in the last 20 years is when we were doing some shows down in Louisiana where we were going to be playing with the symphony. Then we had to change a lot of the ways that we were playing and we actually did songs we don't normally do, so we got together and we rehearsed for about a week back then. The only big difference with that was that there were a lot of guitar changes. I had like nine guitars on stage and usually, I only have one.
We were just trying to do as much as we could to make it work with the symphony, but other than that, everybody just practices on their own. I know Felix practices a lot at home and goes over his parts, the keys, and his voice, and then Guy with his drums. The one thing I wish we did do more of is a vocal rehearsal between the three of us. I think that would help us, but we're always running out of time."
Randy on those powerhouse vocals:
"We haven't had to change keys at all on our songs and I've been very, very fortunate to have kept my range. I can do pretty much anything I did years ago. I think my voice might have been a little stronger when I was younger, but the difference is not too noticeable to me. The range is still there, so we've been lucky as far as that goes, or I've been lucky. I haven't noticed any difference in Guy and Felix’s range either. I went to a vocal coach in the eighties believe it or not after we did the first three Zebra records because I didn't like my pitch in the studio. It wasn't the way I sounded; it wasn't the tonality; it was just the pitch. He had me doing scales and stuff, and he also showed me techniques to keep me from losing my voice, by singing properly."
Randy on those incredible symphony shows:
"Well, it's always just as awesome as you can imagine. It's the real deal, yeah. When we started off with Zebra, you know, we were playing like Moody Blues or Zeppelin and trying to emulate a symphony with the keyboards, but you know, having the real thing there is just like nothing else. I kind of remember the first time I did “Rain Song” with the Atlanta symphony. It was the first time we performed it on stage and when the strings came in, I felt like I was kind of lifting off the ground, you know? It was unbelievable."
Randy on how Covid-19 affected the band:
"Well, when everything got shut down in March of 2020, I was down in New Orleans and we really didn't know how bad it was and how contagious it was going to be. Nobody really knew, right? Like, we knew things were shutting down, and fortunately, I had a place to stay down there. I decided just to stay in New Orleans and didn’t even try to fly back to New York where I live, for about five months. I set up a little live online show that I did every day, usually in the afternoons. I was on Facebook every afternoon performing, but it certainly wasn't the same as having the live crowd in front of you. But at the same time, I was getting feedback in real-time, you know, with the messages people were sending, asking for songs and stuff.
I'm still set up to do them. I keep thinking every week I'm going to do one this week and yet all of a sudden it gets late and I'm tired. I certainly learned a lot because I was using a green screen and stuff like that and I had no experience with that when I first started. I'm always learning anyway. I mean, whether it was Covid-related or whatever, I try to learn as much as I can.
The main thing was that our income was just zero, you know, we weren't making any money. The real source of income for Zebra has been live performances. I mean, we've sold a lot of records, but that income has amounted to not nearly enough to support us, you know? So, everybody adjusted to in a different way. Felix played, he has a Zeppelin tribute band he plays in and they started playing gigs in late 2020, I think. They were kind of out there before other bands were. That was his call. Guy, he has had cancer twice in the past so his immune system isn't the greatest. He chose to just really box himself in and now he's okay. We all got ourselves through it."
"Who's Behind the Door. When I think about where the inspiration came from for that song I think it’s mainly from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. I was a big science fiction reader when I was a teenager and I was into physics actually, physics was my second major in college. 2001, that movie leaves you with more questions, than answers. That's what I was trying to do lyrically with it, you know, it's not necessarily about extraterrestrials. It could be if you read into it that way, or it could be religious, you know?
It could be because there are references to spiritual stuff too. It’s kind of the way I am with everything in my life, I don't like to take the easy way. Yes or no, or black or white doesn't work for me because there is always a gray area to every question or every situation. I usually try to take the time to explore the gray area because it makes things more interesting to me.
When I was first writing the songs I made a lot of lyrics asking a lot of questions about subjects just to get people thinking and wondering. I hope that they've helped encourage people to ask questions of their own. I also think the songs hold up lyrically and that's such a good thing."
Randy on new music coming:
"We're always threatening to do a new record (laughing). I’ve been saying that for so long now it's ridiculous. But, eventually, I'm sure we'll, at least do a couple songs, you know? It used to be all work and as you get older then there are other things, and so now it's grandkids. When the kids are young, you’ll never get that time with them back so you’ve got to make it a priority".
Randy on how the Zebra fanbase has grown and changed:
"Grandkids are now the kids in the audience and a lot of them are even in their twenties now- it's pretty amazing. They come out and are Zebra fans, you know, and they all have the same kind of story, either their dad introduced them to the band or their grandfather was into the band. It's cool, I mean, we're fortunate that people are listening to our music at all, let alone for 40 years. That’s a pretty long time!"
Randy on a few of Zebra's most memorable moments:
"One moment that has always stuck out in my mind was when we were on the road with Sammy Hagar in 1984. as the opening act for his, I Can't Drive 55 tour. We were out on the road and when we started the tour everything ran smooth and we were getting a good soundcheck for the shows. Then as the tour kind of went on his crew was just getting later and later until finally, we were barely getting a line check before we went on. He got wind of it somehow and he showed up unexpectedly when they were starting to load in one night and he chewed the whole crew out right there and said,
‘you know, what do you think these guys are here for? They're supposed to warm up the crowd. If they sound crappy it reflects on all of us.’
After that, we got a soundcheck every night and I was impressed by that.
There have been lots of little moments, along the way. One of the biggest crowds we played in front of when we first started was at a place in New Orleans. I don't remember the name of it, but it was a two-story building and they had a wet t-shirt contest going on (laughing). They had like five bands playing, three of them were inside the building and two of them were outside. We were an outside band. Nobody knew who in the world we were, it was maybe in 1975, I think. It was the first time a lot of people had seen us and it was great for us. You know, we got a lot of good exposure. People liked the band and the owner said he really liked us and invited us to come back the next week on the big stage inside. We were all excited about it and so, we came back the next week kind of expecting the same thing that happened the week before. We moved all the equipment upstairs and it's a gloomy day. It's raining and it's definitely not going to be as nice of a day. Then we found out about halfway through setting up that it's not a wet t-shirt contest with women. It's a men's wet t-shirt contest! (Laughing) Not the most brilliant idea but we still get a good laugh out of it."
Randy on what he wants Zebra fans to know:
"I think we're just so fortunate that the music has held up. I mean, we're not 20 years old anymore and I think when people come to see us now, they're certainly coming to see us more for the music than anything else (laughing). That's a big compliment too. I mean, just the fact that we're still doing this and that people are still coming is wonderful. The band has transcended generations and we are so grateful."
Check out Zebra's official site for upcoming gigs and more right HERE.