Tag Archives: podcast

Shows

#177 – Ann Wilson of Heart – “Stairway to Heaven”

Icon Fetch talks with Ann Wilson of Heart about the amazing year that saw she and her sister render a stunning performance of “Stairway to Heaven” that brought down the house during the Led Zeppelin tribute at the Kennedy Center Honors.  She tells us how Robert Plant reacted to her rendition, and why she was so excited to do that particular song.  She also touches on how surprised she and Nancy were at being 2013 inductees into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame.  We also run through the flurry of activity from the band that saw them release a career-spanning box set, Strange Euphoria (review); their memoir, Kicking and Dreaming (review); and a blistering new studio album, Fanatic (review). Wilson also reveals plans for 2013, which include a spotlight on their album Dog & Butterfly, celebrating its 35th anniversary. Continue reading #177 – Ann Wilson of Heart – “Stairway to Heaven” →

Shows

#176- Gary US Bonds – Christmas is ON

Gary US Bonds’ hit “Quarter to Three” still stands as one of the greatest party tunes of all time.  That song was one of many smash hits that he had in the early Sixties.  Now, Bonds serves up his first-ever holiday album, “Christmas is ON!,” featuring ten tracks – eight of which were written either by Bonds or members of his band.  We talk with the legendary singer about how he got in the holiday spirit while recording the album in the heat of the summer. We also talk about how the Beatles put American artists like him out of work in 1964, and how a chance meeting with Bruce Springsteen put him back on the charts.

Shows

#175 – Ken Scott – Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust

Ken Scott has worked on some of the most important albums of all time.  He engineered Magical Mystery Tour and the White Album by the Beatles, was the producer & engineer for classic David Bowie albums like Hunky Dory & Ziggy Stardust, and worked on records by Elton John, Jeff Beck, Supertramp, Pink Floyd, the Stones, Devo & Missing Persons, just to same a few.  Ken has just written Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust – Off the Record with the Beatles, Bowie, Elton and So Much More from Alfred Music Publishing.

Although there have been hundreds of books written about the Beatles, Scott takes a different approach, substantiating his claims, wherever possible with additional interviews with others who were around at the time.  The result is a honest account of what it was like to work with the top musicians in rock.  In part one of our conversation, the author debunks several myths concerning the Beatles, including the bad blood surrounding the recording of the White Album (which he says was blown way out of proportion).  We also talk about how these amazing recordings came from such primitive technology.

Shows

#174 – Geoff Tate – Kings & Thieves

He’s been the lead singer of Queensryche for over 25 years – Geoff Tate led the band through such critically-acclaimed albums as their magnum opus Operation: Mindcrime and the multi-platinum Empire (read our review here).  Earlier in the year, news came that the other members of Queensryche were splitting from Tate and forming another band, essentially a Queensryche cover band…an odd career move for sure.  Undaunted, Tate grabbed some of his talented friends for a fresh version of the band, which he hopes to unleash in 2013.  In the meantime, Geoff Tate has a brand new solo album, called Kings & Thieves, full of the crunching power chords and melodic hooks that have become signatures of his music.  We talk with Tate about the split with his former bandmates, and inspiration behind many of the songs on his new CD.

Shows

#173 – David Lanz – Cristofori’s Dream Re-envisioned

David Lanz spent the last few years immersed in the music of the Beatles – first, with 2010’s Liverpool: Re-Imagining the Beatles, and then it’s followup, Here Comes the Sun from earlier this year.  Now, he’s chosen to revisit his most-famous work, 1988’s Cristofori’s Dream.  The original album put Lanz on the map, and helped breathe life into the budding New Age genre.

For this anniversary project, Cristofori’s Dream…Re-envisioned, Lanz chose to re-record the entire album with just him on solo piano.  The sparse arrangements let these timeless melodies really shine.  We talk with him about the circumstances surrounding the surprise success of his breakthrough album, and the difficulties in trying to recreate the songs with no other accompaniment.

Shows

#172 – Annie Haslam of Renaissance – Turn of the Cards

Renaissance formed out of the same Yardbirds’ ashes that sent Jimmy Page to form Led Zeppelin.  After several lineup changes, the band developed a reputation as one of the finest progressive rock bands of the Seventies.  After breaking up in the Eighties, the band reformed back in 2009 with a new lineup – still fronted by vocalist Annie Haslam and guitarist Michael Dunford.  They’ve just released a two CD/1 DVD collection called Renaissance Tour 2011 – Live in Concert, where the band performed two of their classic albums in their entirety – Turn of the Cards, and Scheherazade and Other Stories.

Haslam tells us a great story of how the band got a flat tire in the pouring rain, while driving to where they were filming the DVD.  She also reveals details on a brand-new Renaissance studio album coming in 2013, funded in part by a successful Kickstarter campaign.

 

Shows

#171 – Hayley Reardon – Where the Artists Go

Hayley Reardon has been writing songs since the age of eleven.  She’s already released two EPs of her own music, shared the stage with music legends like Tom Rush, and partnered with anti-bullying organizations like Pacer.org.  Now at 16, she just issued her first full-length album, an entire disc of her own music called Where the Artists Go.

Tony Peters talks with the singer/songwriter about trying to juggle school and a music career, what is was like working with producer Lorne Entress, and how she came up with the clever CD booklet that looks like a journal. Peters’ 12-year old son, Christian, also helps out with the interview, and asks her some questions.

Shows

#170 – Gary Klebe of Shoes – Ignition


Power pop legends Shoes have released their first new album in 18 years called Ignition.  It’s their best album yet, full of melodic hooks that will make you wanna crank your volume knob up to eleven.  In addition, the guys recently helped compile 35 Years – The Definitive Shoes Collection, their first-ever career-spanning best of.

If that weren’t enough, Mary E. Donnelly, a devoted fan of the band, is putting the finishing touches on Boys Don’t Lie: A History of Shoes.  We talk with guitarist Gary Klebe about many of the troubles the band went through that caused the long wait between albums.  He also talks about Shoes getting heavy airplay on early MTV, despite their record label being oblivious to that network’s influence.

Shows

#169 – Barbara Carr – Keep the Fire Burning

Singer Barbara Carr has had a long and interesting career, which began when she signed with the legendary Chess label in 1966, recording singles like “Don’t Knock Love.”  But, when her career didn’t take off right away – she walked away to raise a family.  But, the music called her back.  She and her husband formed their own record label and began releasing albums on her own.  A contract with Echo Records heated things up in the late Nineties, with a string of sexually bold singles like “Footprints on the Ceiling,” and “If You Can’t Cut the Mustard.”

Now Barbara’s back with a brand new disc produced by Johnny Rawls called Keep the Fire Burning.

Shows

#168 – Kevn Kinney of Drivin’ N’ Cryin’ – Songs From the Laundromat

Kevn Kinney.
Photo: Frank Mullen

Kevn Kinney formed Drivin’ N’ Cryin’ in 1985 in Atlanta, scoring several college radio hits including “Honeysuckle Blue,” and “Power House.”  Then came their breakthrough album, Fly Me Courageous in 1991 – the album scored three rock radio hits including the searing title track.  Kinney has also led a solo career, recording the excellent Macdougal Blues in 1990.  Drivin’ N’ Cryin’’s last studio effort was The Great American Bubble Factory.  Now the band is readying a series of EP’s, exploring different aspects of their long career.

The first one, out now, is called Songs From the Laundromat. Kinney tells a funny story of how his wife helped influence his decision to release EP’s instead of full albums, how the laundromat holds a special place in his heart, and how the success of “Fly Me Courageous” negatively affected his life.