You can live your life lonely heavy as stone Live your life learning and working alone Say this is all you want but I don't believe that it's true 'cause when you least expect it waiting round the corner for you Love comes quickly whatever you do you can't stop falling Love comes quickly whatever you do you can't stop falling
1986 was the year when The Pet Shop Boys broke through in the states. "West End Girls" shot to the top of the charts and synth music was at the height of its' popularity. The Pet Shop Boys followed up that song with a track called "Love Comes Quickly" that didn't do quite as well on the charts. It still remains one of the band's favorite songs as well as one of mine. "Love Comes Quickly" is about the lack of control you have when falling in love. Suddenly it hits you that the feelings are already there.
Check out this live performance of the song from Wembley in 1989!
The Best of Mojo Rocks with Mojo Moomey playing the best in hard rock & metal airs each Wednesday at 9pm EST on Boom Radio found exclusively at DailyBOOM.net.
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She wasn't looking for a cuddle in the back seat He wasn't looking for a five minute thrill She wasn't thinking of tomorrow or of next week This vacancy he meant to permanently fill I need an everlasting love I need a friend and a lover divine An everlasting precious love Wait for it, wait for it, give it some time.
Howard Jones is an interesting 80's icon. Despite having 15 songs to hit the top 40 from 1983-1992, he was hardly a media darling. Jones is to this day widely considered to be one of the most defining figures from the syth pop era but back then he was a bit of a misfit. There were always guys that looked cooler and acts that were splashier and in the end Jones actually admitted that it was just fine with him. He never necessarily was taking aim at fitting in anyway.
Instead of being known for his look, it's his music that has lasted for decades. Catchy songs like "What Is Love" and "No One Is To Blame" still get plenty of blame. I happen to still love "Everlasting Love"- a nifty little tune about a guy looking for a whole lot more than just a quick fling. Check out the video below!
Oh, the night is my world City light painted girl In the day nothing matters It's the night time that flatters In the night, no control Through the wall something's breaking Wearing white as you're walkin' Down the street of my soul
Laura Branigan's career skyrocketed back in 1984, at the height of the synth era. While songs like "Gloria" and "Solitaire" were pretty straight forward, safe musical selections, Branigan drew gasps with the release of "Self Control". By 1984 artists were beginning to really play with their videos while trying to find ways to push boundaries a bit. "Self Control" was one of the first songs to find MTV unwilling to air its' video.
The clip depicts Branigan venturing out into a seedy underground nightlife and then finding herself in what seems to be an orgy. MTV insisted on edits to the clip before they would air it and eventually she caved in so that it would get the play is deserved. "Self Control" shot to number one in six different countries and it was in heavy rotation on radio stations across the world.
Branigan spent the decade of excess cranking out music and then by the 90's her popularity had waned. She died in 2004 of an aneurism at the age of 47.
Steve & Cate's All Request Sunday Night airs 7-10pm each week on DailyBOOM.net. Old school music from every genre, giveaways & live artist interviews. This episode features Cyanide's Rob Hussey talking about the Motley Crue biopic, The Dirt + upcoming music from his band. Boom Radio is your old school music authority & streams 24/7 with genre-based programs each evening.
One of the very best parts of growing up in the 80's had to be the slew of teen movies that rolled into theaters on a regular basis. Sixteen Candles was one of those. Every girl that I knew, myself included, had to catch this the weekend it was released and it remains a cult classic to this day. The closing scene where Sam finally bags Jake Ryan was and still is, kind of everything.
I was in 7th grade during the summer of Purple Rain and I remember it well. It was that rated R movie that none of us were allowed to see so we absorbed every possible detail from television, MTV and magazine articles. Back in the 80's (you know, when everything wasn't just the click of a mouse away) we cut everything about our favorites out of the newspaper or any magazine that we could find. My friends and I were divided down the middle, either you loved Prince or you loved Michael Jackson- it couldn't be both. I was a Prince girl and built my magazine cut out scrapbook accordingly. And the music truly did directly influence everything back then. If you loved Prince then you represented with your purple on the daily. Most Prince fans loved Madonna equally, especially when they toured together so it was a mix of purple lace hair bows, crosses and purple jelly bracelets all summer long.
That summer ended up being the very best one of my childhood and the Purple Rain was always part of the soundtrack. My friends and I spent hours at the kitchen table together glued to a boom box waiting for a chance to call in to Q-102 (THE station to listen to) to try and win a copy of the soundtrack. None of us won a Prince album but we did score theBoss, Steve Perry, Chaka Khan and a few others. Music was absolutely everything back then, especially when you were at the mercy of a DJ or MTV to play it for you.
It took me years to really understand that Prince was more than the freaky guy in purple with perfect eyeliner, that he was a musical genius. I had a friend absolutely obsessed with him and he spoon fed me various Prince facts while we worked together. By the time "Batdance" came along I understood what I was really listening to and came to expect nothing short of amazing-ness from him.
In the last 30 years so many other artists have come and gone as my taste has shifted and changed over the years. I can honestly say that I like a little bit of everything (minus country) but so few bring to the table what Prince has. I mean, how many on Billboard's charts can play 27 instruments? Yeah, none. How many currently rocking in the top ten will be relevant in 30 years? Maybe 1 or 2 right, maybe? Or maybe none at all.
Today's artists aren't built for the kind of longevity like Prince, David Bowie or even Glenn Frey. They don't bring all of those elements to the table and that has only made the loss of these icons feel that much heavier on our hearts. Prince himself confirmed years ago that there really is a vault filled with his unreleased music. There are albums from Prince & the Revolution and also a few with The New Power Generation. Perhaps part of what makes him so iconic is the fact that he was thinking beyond his life here. He was not only making sure that he wouldn't be forgotten, but he left new music behind so that his presence would be felt in a new way after the fact.
If you manage to catch any of Prince's live performance videos on YouTube before they are pulled down, pay attention to the details. Every single second is choreographed and means something. Amazing how we notice all of the details after the fact, isn't it? Like the fact that there is a purple heart behind Prince on the cover of the Purple Rain album. I never noticed that before this week.Hard to believe that it was 33 years ago this week that Prince topped the charts for the very first time with "When Doves Cry".
What can I say or do You won't come back, we're through I've realized too late That, baby, your love has turned away In my dreams--it's still the same Your love is strong, it still remains In my dreams--you're still by me Just the way it used to be
I think that one of the most underrated hard rock bands of the 80's is Dokken. While Guns N' Roses, Skid Row and Motley Crue were steamrolling their way to worldwide music domination Dokken was always there too. In their 37 years of performing they have sold over 10 million records and have had several singles chart well, including "In My Dreams".
Foreigner's bass guitarist, Jeff Pilson, is undoubtedly one of the busiest guys in the business. Aside from traveling 200+ days a year with that classic rock powerhouse machine, he also juggles a few side projects at a time. If you think that supergroups were a thing of the past then you need to pay closer attention because Jeff has a knack for not only combining established rockers but also bringing them to a higher musical level. Later this week, on March 22nd, The End Machine, his project with ex-Dokken bandmates George Lynch and Mick Brown, plus Warrant's Robert Mason on vocals, will release their first studio album. Jeff is always bursting with excitement (a little more than usual right now) and I had a chance to steal a few minutes of his time ahead of this momentous week.
Cate Meighan: So, how are you?
Jeff Pilson: I'm good, busy but good. Foreigner's last Canadian date is tomorrow and then we're down in the states for about a week and a half and then I go home and get ready for The End Machine shows. I'm extremely excited about this. There's a lot of prep work going into this because even though it's only three shows, we're starting a band from scratch. There's rehearsals, hotels and just getting everybody on the same page. Putting the VIP's together and the merchandising ya know? We're starting a band (laughing) and it has been a lot of work, but I think it's going to pay off in the shows and I'm really looking forward to playing. We start rehearsal on the 30th and I'm really just so excited about it.
CM:How has the fan reaction felt so far? You've got two videos out, obviously, the first two singles have dropped and everything that I've seen has been so positive. You had said that everyone pushed a little bit harder on this project and kind of broke out of who we think they're supposed to be and that's definitely the feeling that I've gotten from what I've heard.
JP: Oh cool! I'm ecstatic at the reaction. I mean, we knew that there would be automatic comparisons to Dokken, of course, that's okay and it's only natural. But what seems to have overwhelmingly been the reaction is that there's Dokken in there and some Lynch Mob in there, but this is its' own thing and that's what excites us the most. The End Machine is recognized as its own being and that is because of the chemistry. Everyone in the band gets to shine, that's our chemistry. No one is like 'stay in your lane because I've gotta shine', it's that everyone gets to do it. How cool is that (laughing)? It's really an exceptional place to be in.
One of my favorite quotes is from Vinny Appice who was playing in Last In Line and (he's) from Dio and everything (laughing). When you're working with him and mixing everything he'll say to you, 'Look, everything has got to be the loudest.' (laughing), and he's right, that's what a great mix is at least for this kind of record. Everything is loud and it just pops out at you. I think that's what we've got here and so I'm really excited for it all to come out.
I'm really looking forward to doing these shows with Robert Mason on vocals and jamming with George is going to be so fun. We've got Will Hunt on drums and he's a really exceptional drummer so we're looking forward to playing live with him. We're going to miss Mick Brown in this, but I'm really looking forward to playing because it's going to be so much fun.
(Photo: Cate Meighan)
CM: Can you guys get together and not play a few Dokken songs? Is it possible to ever leave that behind?
JP: I don't think we should. I suppose we could but we've definitely got some Dokken songs in these shows, either five or six songs are in our set. There's some Dokken, some Lynch Mob and then five songs from the new record so it's really going to be quite a set.
CM: But no east coast dates!
JP: There's a guy that has been working with Foreigner for thirteen years and he goes back with George even longer than that. His name is Ed and he is our secret weapon truly, he's the secret weapon of the band. Without Ed, I don't think that even these few shows would be possible. He's going to be driving the truck and doing all the crew stuff, he's a superman. He really is and even as Superman, I don't think Ed could logistically get us to the east coast this time (laughing) so as much as I love him, I'd never do that to the poor guy. He is an unsung hero.
CM:So what comes next? The album is out on the 22nd, do we get another single too?
JP: There is another video coming for the song "Leap of Faith". I'm not sure when it's coming out, to be honest with you. Since there's a lot of momentum with this band I don't think they're going to push it out too fast, but we've already done the video so it's coming at some point.
CM:The last time we talked you told me about another little side project with Robin McAuley and so you know I had to go and talk to him (laughing). He is so excited about working on this with you, can you divulge any more details on that yet?
JP: Oh good, good and you did tell me that you would (laughing), so I can tell you everything but the name at this point, or the title of the record. I can't tell you those things but I can say that the record is done and musically we're really, really happy. It has to be mixed, but the same guy that mixed The End Machine, his name is Alessandro, is gonna mix it and I have a whole lot of faith in him. It's going to be great and I also know that it's probably going to be early 2020 when it comes out. So we have a ways to go but it's going to be worth the wait because once again, everyone just so delivered. It really feels like a band, even now and I'm so excited. Gotta wait until next year but in the meantime, there's going to be plenty of The End Machine to keep you company.
Every time I think of you I always catch my breath And I'm still standing here And you're miles away And I'm wondering why you left
And there's a storm that's raging Through my frozen heart tonight
I hear your name in certain circles And it always makes me smile I spend my time Thinking about you And it's almost driving me wild
And there's a heart that's breaking Down this long distance line tonight
I ain't missing you at all Since you've been gone away I ain't missing you No matter what I might say
The summer before 8th grade there was one ballad that was constantly on the radio- John Waite's "Missing You". The video stuck in my head too because as a kid I was positive that he was walking down streets in NYC, a place that I was obsessed with. It wasn't until I was much older that I learned that it was actually filmed in LA but on a non-descript street so it could look like any big city at all.
As for the song itself, it still kinda tugs at my heart strings just a little. It's also timeless and I think it holds up as one of the best ballads to come out f the 80's.
Do you remember Club Nouveau? Sure you do if you were raised in the '80s because back in 1987 their remake of "Lean On Me" shot to number one on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, making it one of those songs that stayed stuck in your head. Club Nouveau followed that hit with a song called "Why You Treat Me So Bad" which did really well on the dance charts. The beat resembles Timex Social Club's "Rumours" and for good reason, Jay King formed Nouveau' after leaving Timex Social Club and fully embracing a new jack swing sound.
Lyrically, this song kind of speaks to all of us. Who hasn't realized that they were dating the worst possible person and probably for way too long? "Why You Treat Me So Bad" is a breakup anthem, 1980's style. Check out the video below, do you remember this one?
Empty spaces, what are we living for Abandoned places, I guess we know the score On and on, does anybody know what we are looking for Another hero, another mindless crime Behind the curtain, in the pantomime Hold the line, does anybody want to take it anymore The show must go on
"The Show Must Go On" is probably one of my most favorite songs by Queen. It was recorded in 1990 at the height of Freddie Mercury's battle with full blown AIDS and there was concern that he wouldn't be able tp actually hit the necessary high notes. While the rest of the band may have thought that he was too weak to actually perform it Mercury knew better and pulled off the tough vocals in spite of his fading health. The song itself is filled with innuendo about Mercury's health and how change was pretty imminent.
The press had speculated that the legendary front man was ill but no confirmation of Mercury's HIV-positive status was ever given until the day before his death in 1991. "The Show Must Go On" was also released in 1991 and the video that accompanies it features the band performing together at various gigs over the years. Check out the late, great Freddie Mercury and the rest of Queen below.
When you say the name Michael Sweet in rock circles it's always met with positivity. Some people may choose to hate on Stryper, the band that he co-founded way back in 1983, but they adore the frontman and with good reason. He's calm, gracious and as connected to himself as he is to those around him. Sweet's fellow musicians gush about his talent while hoping for an opportunity to work with him somewhere along the way, which says a lot about the kind of man that he is.
I was fortunate enough to catch up with Sweet recently and he was excited to spill details on his new solo project, a Stryper documentary, and more!
Cate Meighan: It has been a while since we last spoke. How are you doing?
Michael Sweet: I'm good! I've been busy, traveling a lot so I'm just trying to catch my breath now, but life is good.
CM: I read recently that you're back in the studio working on a new solo album. How's that going?
MS: Well, I went in about a month ago and I was there for about ten days. Then we did three local shows and I left for Japan with Stryper. Then, I went back into the studio for another four days when I returned. I'm a little tired but I prefer to stay busy and to do what I can when I can, because that day may come when I can't do these things. Whether it's voice loss or something physical or whatever. The project that I do next could tank, I mean who knows (laughing). I just don't want to take what I do for granted and so I try to do as much as I can when I can. We don't know what tomorrow will bring so if I have opportunities that I feel good about to go and sing, record, or perform then I'm going to take them.
CM: How's the new album coming along?
MS: It's really great. I always go into a project with expectations and sometimes I meet or surpass them, but sometimes I don't. Sometimes a song might be a little bit of a letdown and not what I had hoped for but with this album so far, everything is as I've expected and then some. Now granted, I don't have the lead vocals done yet so the pressure is on me. (laughing) I hope the lead vocals turn out how I hear them in my head and how I would like them to be, but you never know. You just don't know until you get in there and you start singing and you get it done.
So far though the songs all have incredible energy. I've got Will Hunt playing drums on it and John O'Boyle is playing bass. The rhythm section is phenomenal and the guitar tones are great. I'm going to have a different guest guitar player on every song, with a solo of course. I've got Todd LaTorre of Queensryche joining me on a song and it's just turning out to be a really cool album. I think that it's going to surpass my last solo album and that did really well, but I think this one is going to be even better.
CM: Todd really seems to be at the top of his game right now. The new Queensryche music is just fantastic.
MS: Todd is a brilliant singer and he is really finding his place in that group. He stepped into a situation that would be high pressure for anyone and he is coming to the table and then some. I think that he is finding himself and becoming more comfortable in that situation and so he's just killing it, plus he's drumming as well! He's a great guy and such a hard worker that he deserves every bit of the success that he's finding. They don't make em' like that, guys like Todd are few and far between.
CM: The last time we spoke you were working on a project with Joel Hoekstra (Whitesnake). Is that still in the works?
MS: We were originally trying to put together a Michael Sweet/Joel Hoekstra album with a real classic rock kind of vibe to it. We were ready to move forward and had some meetings about it and to be honest we just weren't able to come to terms with a record company to release it. It's tricky when you need a certain amount of money to do what you need to do. There's a fine line because a lot of musicians go into it with the idea of going and making a record to just have fun. Now that I've got kids and grandkids and a mortgage to pay, I have to be a little more cautious with what I take on. This is what I do for a living, I don't work a 9 to 5 job, so it has to make sense financially and for Joel too because he is in a similar situation. So it's hard when the things that you creatively want to do just don't work out from a business standpoint. What I did was have Joel write a couple tracks that I'm writing lyrics for and those co-written songs will be on my new album. He'll be playing the guitar on those and they're basically all done. One is called "When Love is Hated" and the other is called "Never Alone" and they're killer tracks.
CM: Is there a tentative release date yet?
MS: I'm still not sure. It's definitely going to be this year. We're talking about a summer release and I'm turning it all in by the end of April and so we're probably looking at a July or August release. It depends on how much set up we need with licensing deals worldwide and those kinds of things, but I would say hopefully July/August.
CM: The business has changed so much over the years and the way that artists make their money just isn't like it used to be. The money's not in record sales at all so you've got to be smart and strategic in order to keep working.
MS: Absolutely. I mean, there are things that I've done for free and I'll do more of those things when I have the time. There are times when I'm offered money to sing a song and then I'll have my agent calling with potential shows where I'll make double that and I'm looking at my bills and I have to choose wisely. It's really hard because you don't ever want the business to outweigh the love of what you do but at the same time, you have to think about the business as well because you've gotta pay your bills.
CM: It almost feels like you have to be very cut and dry with it.
MS: You do, no question about it. I really try very hard to balance it and not let the money take my love for what I do, because man, I just really love doing it. If I was 18 years old I'd just go and do 100 projects for nothing because I love it so much.
CM: Where does your writing inspiration come from?
MS: I've got something built inside of me that makes me always want to inspire people. Am I a guy that has it all together or that has all the answers (laughing)? Gosh no. I've got my issues and problems. I've got things that I have to work on and overcome, but I still can make someone smile or give them hope and encourage them. That's something that's built within me and I view it as a waste of time and effort for me to release an album that doesn't have that. What's the point? If people are going to be listening to this stuff for years to come then why not inspire them with a song rather than just singing about sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll?
That's just how I feel and so I get inspiration from life, I get it from the bible, my family and friends. There are so many things that inspire me and so with every album, I just want to help and encourage other people too. It's an important thing, it's every bit as important as the music itself and it's always the message behind the music. It's why we've (Stryper) been throwing out bibles forever. We never start preaching to people and telling them what they should or should not do. We just toss them out with the hopes that maybe they'll check it out. We try to steer people in a good direction, that's what it comes down to and at the end of the day, it's all about love. We're trying to give them hope, grace, and love, instead of hate and despair. If we can play a small little part in giving people what the world needs more of- and that's love, then we've done our jobs.
CM: Do those same gifts then flow back to you?
MS: Oh yeah, we see the stories and it's the old thing of you reap what you sow. We've sown a lot and we continue to reap a lot. We've seen how the lives of some people have been affected by what we do. We've met people who were suicidal or addicts and they've turned their lives around in a positive way. It's so awesome to hear that we've played even a small part in helping them and that lives on far beyond the music. The music is fun and amazing but the message is what changes and transforms lives.
CM: You're always so busy. How is the rest of this year shaping up for you?
MS: I'll be splitting my time a lot but this summer I'm mostly on the road with Stryper. I think we start rehearsals May 2nd in Nashville and then we'll be touring into late-June. I'll be home for part of July and prepping for another project that I can't talk about (laughing). But I'll be recording vocals for that (laughing), it's just nuts. There's always something to do and if something falls through then I'll try and get some solo shows booked. I'm in that place, thank god, where I'm able to work and stay busy. So many of my peers are brilliant musicians, so successful and they just can't get anything going. Every project falls through and I've been there. I went through that from 1996-2000 where nothing seemed to work out and all I heard was 'no'. Then finally the doors started opening up again, Stryper started touring again and the last fourteen years have been a blur. I don't know where the years have gone.
CM: Do you have any regrets about that 'blur'?
MS: My biggest regrets would be passing up opportunities with my family and friends. My attitude with the music is that I need to do it while I can, but that does come at a price sometimes. That's the stuff that I may look back on someday and be really brokenhearted about and regret. My son's birthday just passed and I was in Japan at the time. We're going to celebrate and make up for it, but those are the moments that can be a little hard to take. Then at the same time, there were years that I did have at home when I could or should have been out on the road. I left Stryper from 1992-2000 and I did some touring then but I got to spend a lot of time with my kids too. There are always pros and cons and I think it always comes with some built-in regret.
CM: Any other musical tricks up your sleeve right now?
MS: Well (laughing), we're doing a documentary that's not going to be so much about the band, but it's going to be about the people that the band has affected. It's really incredible and I think that it's going to be pretty powerful. We've already started work on that but we've got a long way to go with it. Then we're also going to start work on a new Stryper album at the end of this year into early next year. So there are plenty of things on the horizon and in the near future. It's going to be a great year.
The Best of Mojo Rocks with Mojo Moomey playing the best in hard rock & metal airs each Wednesday at 9pm EST on Boom Radio found exclusively at DailyBOOM.net.
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"I've got a picture of your house And you're standing by the door. It's black and white and faded, And it's looking pretty worn. See the factory that I worked Silhouetted in the back. The memories are gray but man they're really coming back."
If you were a teen girl back in 1989 then there's a pretty good chance that you were at least mildly obsessed with one of the guys from Warrant. Their first single "Down Boys" made us all pay attention and by the time their power ballad, "Heaven" dropped, well we were all smitten. I was a senior and high school and while my friends were ogling Jani Lane I was paying close attention to Warrant's drummer, Steven Sweet. In a sea of hair bands this one seemed to have a lot more talent than the majority of those around them.
"Move over mister - step on back in the crowd 'Cause she's a whole lotta sister 'bout to drive me wild Lotta places I've been, lotta names, lotta words No one compares to my real gone girl Lighten up baby, I'm in love with you."
When Robert Plant left Led Zeppelin it kind of seemed like a no-brainer that he would of course go on to have a fantastic solo career. It was his fourth album, Now and Zen that is probably the best remembered, thanks in great part to the success of "Tall Cool One". Ironically, it wasn't the best charting song, landing in Billboard's top 25, but MTV kept the video in heavy rotation. Coca Cola knew a catchy tune when they heard it and started using "Tall Cool One" as part of a commercial campaign. The fact that it samples a medley of Zeppelin hits at the end doesn't hurt either. Check out the video below, do you remember this one?
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"I want a girl with extensions in her hair Bamboo earrings At least two pair A Fendi bag and a bad attitude That's all I need to get me in a good mood She can walk with a switch and talk with street slang I love it when a woman ain't scared to do her thing Standing at the bus stop sucking on a lollipop Once she gets pumping its hard to make the hottie stop She likes to dance to the rap jam She sweet as brown sugar with the candied yams Honey coated complexion Using Camay Let's hear it for the girl she's from around the way"
There are some songs that are just so catchy that even if they aren't typically your style of music, you can't help but love them. I think LL Cool J's "Around The Way Girl" really falls into that category. I can't remember ever hearing anyone complain when it comes on the radio and even if rap isn't your thing, I'll bet you know at least some of the lyrics. Don't you? Of course you do. This is one of the first songs that featured some heavy duty sampling (Mary Jane Girls, The Honey Drippers) and it's an example of how sampling another song can add to the value of another artist's work. I've always had a soft spot for LL and this remains one of my favorite songs by him. Nothing wrong with looking for a streetwise chick, right?
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"Something is wrong as I hold you near Somebody else holds your heart, yeah You look at me with your eyes in tears And then it's raining, feels like it's raining Oh no, tears are falling Oh no, tears are falling, whoo oh Oh no, tears are falling, whoo oh I saw you cry And now it's raining (yeah) Looks like it's raining (someone stole your heart) And now it's raining, feels like it's raining."
1984 was a monstorous year for KISS. Their album Animalize spawned the hit "Heaven's On Fire" and for the first time the hard rock icons were performing and shooting videos without their infamous makeup. It was almost strange to see them all glammed up. Big hair, lipstick and colored spandex replaced their old painted face look and the MTV crowd kind of ate it up.
By the fall of 1985 the boys were back with their 13th studio album, Asylum, which didn't do as well as its' predecessor. However, it brought with it one of my all-time favorite KISS tracks, "Tears Are Falling". The video was filmed earlier in the year in London and for whatever reason I was kind of obsessed with it. My uber religious mother believed that anything connected to KISS was leading fans down a path of imminent destruction, so I really had to keep my love for the band on the low.
Instead of watching MTV after school and out in the open like my friends I'd get up super early to watch it before mom crawled out of bed. There was a point in time when the "Tears Are Falling" video played at 6:40am for about a week straight and I was up and out of bed to see it.
Thirty-plus years later, I still love it so check out the video below!
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I don't believe that I deserve this ride You took me for my very heart and pride You let me down and now your hand is out Well, here's some spare change you can count
"Find Another Fool" by Quarterflash almost feels like a lost hit to me. When everyone thinks of Quarterflash I think "Harden My Heart" instantly comes to mind, right? I happened to catch the video for "Find Another Fool" the other day and remembered that THIS is the song by them that I loved most.
Rindy Ross' vocals and then sax playing is just everything and this band was pretty rock solid. Quarterflash first formed in Portland back in 1980 and within a year or so they hit it big. This live video performance was filmed in 1981 after they were already playing to huge audiences. Am I the only one that misses the saxophone making a regular appearance in currently trending music?
Las Vegas is a literal playground for rock stars looking to breathe a new kind of life into their decades-long careers. Shows like Raiding The Rock Vault are rated some of the very best in town so it's no wonder the musicians and vocalists' alike still think that performing on the strip is a great career move. The rising local band scene has proven to be just as fruitful, with metal acts like Cyanide (fronted by Rob Hussey) more than holding their own opening up for what could easily be described as their own musical heroes. I caught up with Rob this week and he was more than happy to give me an update on the band.
Cate Meighan: Cyanide is that rare Vegas project that found almost immediate success isn't it?
Rob Hussey: Definitely. We started doing shows in Las Vegas in 2013 and we put our first album, Lethal Dose, out in 2015. Then came a barrage of shows for several years that allowed us to open for some of my personal musical heroes like Ratt, Loudness and Steel Panther, a literal bucket list of bands that I would want to open for. They gave us opportunities that I've always dreamed of having and then life came along, as it always does, and disrupted a little of our momentum. We lost a few band members and then tried out a few other band members that didn't work out. It was never anything personal between any of the guys.
A lot of the musicians in Vegas are in several bands and they're trying to earn their entire living by just playing music. In Cyanide, we already have great jobs so we're not delusional in thinking that we're going to be big rock stars and tour the Orient (laughing). The competition here in Vegas is so fierce because a lot of real rock stars have moved here and they are doing very well. They're playing a lot of shows and it's hard to compete with that level because they've already accomplished the things in their careers that earn them the right to command the big shows here in town. We've been lucky enough to open for some of them, but I'd have to say it's definitely the love of music that motivates what we do.
CM: Do you remember particular moments that have helped to shape that love of music?
RH: Oh there are three moments that have kept me on this musical path for sure. When I was very young my dad had a turntable with his collection of vinyl, and I always bugged him about being able to put the records on. I was probably four when he finally relented and that really aggravated my sister because she had to wait until she was ten (laughing). The first record that I put on myself was my dad's Abbey Road album by The Beatles. I played that record pretty much non-stop until we moved to Las Vegas a few years later.
Another time I was hanging out with these older kids on my block and we were at this kid's house and he put on Love Gun by KISS. That was the first moment where the needle dropped, the song started and I was blown away. He had a KISS poster on his wall, the album is on the turntable and when "I Stole Your Love" started my whole world changed. I was looking at the poster wondering if they were girls (laughing), I had no idea what was going on but the sound coming out of the speakers was blowing my mind. From that moment on my whole world revolved around that band. No matter what time of day it was, if you were speaking to me I was talking to you about KISS (laughing).
That continued until about 1983 when I turned on MTV and "Looks That Kill", a Motley Crue video was on. I'm pretty sure we were supposed to be leaving to go shoe shopping or something and I just stood there in a trance. I told my mom she had to give me a minute because I had to keep watching. The hair on the back of my neck stood up and I didn't know what was going on but I knew this song just changed my life. These are moments that made me who I am today, musically. All these years later I still love and listen to those records. They still affect and motivate me.
CM: How is the second Cyanide album going?
RH: Right now what we're doing is regrouping with the lineup that we have now and kind of getting back into that mindset of being a band and picking up the pieces. Marc Andrews (guitarist) and I have been the only constants during the changes of the lineup which is kind of ironic because the two of us actually wrote and arranged the first Cyanide album together before there even was a band. We have all of the songs written for the second album and we've always written together because we work so well together. The melodies are written and all we really need to do now is to go into the studio and finish them up.
CM: You guys have such a loyal following. I know that they'll be excited to hear those good things are in the works.
RH: There is one song in particular that we've played live that the audiences have responded so well to that we're thinking of maybe finishing that up and releasing it ahead of the second album. It's something that we're considering doing because our fans are so loyal and they've already patiently waited a little longer than we would have liked for a full album. I really would like for us to be able to give them something really soon, plus one song would make them really excited about the rest of the album to come.
Even if we're not playing I'm always trying to get the band together just for the sake of keeping us together and on track. I've heard big bands say that getting all of their members together in the same room becomes a monumental task and I feel like we've experienced some of that as well (laughing). We just need to have four or five people in our band doing it because they love doing it and they're having fun. That really is the secret to keeping Cyanide around and thriving, being a band that is in it for the love of music.
Check out Cyanide's next show coming up on March 9, 2019
"You're thinking up your white lies You're putting on your bedroom eyes You say you're coming home but you won't say when But I can feel it coming If you leave tonight keep running And you need never look back again Heard it from a friend who Heard it from a friend who Heard it from another you been messin' around"
I think REO Speedwagon is one of the very first bands that I really remember from childhood. I don't mean just a song here and there either. When Hi Infedelity was released it was always playing somewhere. My dad had it in his nightly rotation. The people that lived across the alley from us would blast it when they were outside and my friend Judy's older brother played it constantly too. They had the big liquor cabinet, side table, turntable thing and if it wasn't REO that was blaring then you can bet it was The Cars instead.
I knew all the words to every single song (whether I wanted to or not) but "Take It on the Run" was probably my favorite. It was a bit heavier and really showcases (still) what a great band REO Speedwagon is. Check out a live performance of it below!
