Zebra Music

I thought it was interesting that Paul McCartney has spoken about his history of pre-gig nerves, saying that he felt like quitting playing live as he was so nervous before The Beatles performed at Wembley Arena. It’s interesting that even someone like him get those feelings before shows.

McCartney is currently in the middle of a European arena tour and also said that he still feels like he has to win some of the crowds over. Speaking about his record of pre-show nerves, he told the Daily Mirror: The first time we ever played – pre-Beatles – I screwed up. So I never played lead guitar again. When the Beatles did Wembley (Arena, then known as the Empire Pool) for the first time (in 1963), I felt sick. I thought, I’ve got to give this up.

McCartney added that even now he encounters crowd members who are “just standing there”, but added: “We always manage to get them back in the end.”
The singer also spoke a recurring nightmare he still has about where he is performing with The Beatles and people start walking out of his gigs. He said of this: “I’m with The Beatles and it’s going great, then people start leaving. I turn to the others and go, ‘Oh God! ‘Long Tall Sally’ – that’ll get them back’”.

Motley Crue is going to have a cool new interactive show in Las Vegas which is set to start in February, 2012.

The dozen shows will happen at The Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino from February 3 – 19 and will see the Crew indulging in over the top craziness.
The Motley Crue in Sin City shows will also be interactive. We all know that Vegas is pretty much based on big, big shows, and Motley Crue is also. They are putting together a show right now that’s something they have never done. It’s a stationary show. It doesn’t have to move around, so they can do all kinds of stuff they only really dreamed about.

Drummer Tommy Lee said this about the show: “I think more and more people are wanting an experience, and we’re trying to bring that into this where people aren’t necessarily at the show, they’re in the show… Why not make it a full-on experience, really? We’re putting together moments of this show where the actual audience participates. They’re in it. They’re around it. It’s going to be really exciting.”

Lee recently announced that he will performing on a ‘drum rollercoaster’ during the band’s UK tour this month. The band will undertake a joint UK arena tour with Def Leppard, which will seem them play six shows, with Steel Panther providing support on all dates.

I can tell you that I saw the Crue on the Girls, Girls, Girls tour in the 80′s. Tommies spinning drum kit solo still is the craziest and best drum solo performance I have ever seen. This Vegas show will be something to see!

Here is a cool video of my friend Mike Bolenbach’s recording studio in Phoenix, AZ (it’s called Full Well Recording Studio). In this session Mike is working with a band called the Earps. Checkout this video and the studio, looks like allot of fun!

The other day I was in a music store and they had a video playing with Pete Townsend. He was talking about his stage presents and was giving some details on how he came up with the windmill guitar strum which he is famous for. Apparently he first seen Keith Richards do this move and he thought he would copy it cause it looked cool. For about a year Pete was thinking he was just imitating one of his idols Keith Richards with this move.

Pete met up with Keith and they were talking and Pete told Keith about the cool windmill guitar strum that he was using and was thanking Keith for it. Pete then said that Keith looked at him “like he was a germ” as Pete put it. Basically Keith did not recall ever doing this cool guitar move! So Pete kept it in his bag of tricks and as you probably well know is one of his signature moves on guitar.

Check out the video below to see this cool guitar move.

If you play live do you have any cool things you do on stage? If not, it’s something to think about. Pete has the windmill the old classic metal band Cinderella had the guitar/bass spin (see the video below toward the end). Hendrix played behind his back! Think about what you can do to entertain your audience when you are on stage. These little things make a huge impact and people love them!

Have you heard about the Rush 2112 Guitar Hero thing? If you are a Rush fan this is pretty exciting. Rush have joined together with Activision Publishing, Inc.’s Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock to bring their seven-part suite from their classic 2112 album.

Within the narrative-driven journey, Rush and Guitar Hero fans alike will experience 2112 in a totally new and authentic way while traversing the exclusive three-part 2112 Rush-inspired venue and playing their way through the 20 minute, seven-part suite. Additionally, each song transition will feature band members narrating liner notes from the 2112 album. Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock will include:

• “2112 Pt. 1 – Overture”
• “2112 Pt. 2 – The Temples Of Syrinx”
• “2112 Pt. 3 – Discovery”
• “2112 Pt. 4 – Presentation”
• “2112 Pt. 5 – Oracle: The Dream”
• “2112 Pt. 6 – Soliloquy”
• “2112 Pt. 7 – Grand Finale”

Checkout the video below to get hear Getty and Alex talking about this video game and see a small glimpse into what this is all about.

Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock Stand-Alone Software

Overall Rating:

Retail Price: $29.99

Amazon Price: $14.95

One of my favorite bands from the 80′s (The Cars) are currently in the studio and recording a new album!

Back in July, the Cars posted a picture of themselves in the studio on their Facebook page and most recently teased a sample of a new song titled Blue Tip, both of which started many rumors the band were getting back together. Now, it official, Ric Ocasek and crew are currently working on their first album in 23 years and are poised to hit the road for a reunion tour.

Paul Orofino, The Cars’ engineer confirmed that the band — Ocasek, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes, and drummer David Robinson — has been recording in a studio in Millbrook, New York.One sad note that I did not realize was the founding bassist Benjamin Orr died of cancer in 2000. Billboard also reports the band is “strongly considering” touring, but they have not yet committed any dates.

I have always loved Elliot Easton melodic lead guitar style and it should be pretty cool to see what he comes up with on this new album.

One of my favorite albums from the Cars is Candy-O. Very cool guitar work!

If you haven’t hear (like if you have been living under a rock or something) the new Keith Richards book called Life has been released. If you love to read about rock n roll (like I do) then this is something that you should pick up. Supposedly Keith holds nothing back, the reviews say it’s funny, gossipy, profane and moving and after you have finished the book you will feel like you’re friends with Keith Richards! Wow thats quite a statement!

Another review states: Life covers all the bases: sex, drugs, guitar riffs…

I know this book is on my to purchase and read list!

Here is what others are saying:
Jesse
Keith serves up the life stories in his book like his guitar riffs — in your face, nasty, confrontational, rich, smart, and, in the end, unforgettable.

Stuart
This memoir, written with the help of writer James Fox, is an intricately detailed account of Keith Richards life, both in and out of music-but mostly in. All the stories are here-the funny, the touching, the horrendous, and the amazing. Some are well known, some weren’t even known to Richards-he only hears later, from others who were with him, what went on. And he’s put it all in this book.

L. S.
Wonderful story — you can’t put the book (or in my case, the Kindle) down.
You have to wonder at the survival and endurance of not just the band, but Keith and Mick. Fabulous.

Really, really cool, one of my favorite bands, Lynyrd Skynyrd was honored by the U.S. Congress by Florida Congressman Connie Mack, and Alabama Congressman Spencer Bachus along with recognizing the achievements of the band during a reception at the U.S. Capitol.

The congressional honor for the group, who performed in Birmingham on 06/18/10, came during a visit to Washington including stops at both the Capitol and the White House.

“The Lynyrd Skynyrd band is a true voice of the South and a legend in the music world. ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ is one of the best advertisements for my state and we now even proudly display the words on our license plates. We deeply appreciate the fact that the band does a lot to entertain our troops and support military families. They bring enjoyment to their many fans and it’s a pleasure to welcome them to our nation’s capital,” said Bachus, who is dean of the Alabama House delegation.

After a hosted tour of the Capitol by Bachus’ staff, Representatives Bachus and Mack presented a Congressional Record tribute to the band members, including Johnny Van Zant, Gary Rossington, and Rickey Medlocke, recognizing the band’s career and successes.