Steel Notes Magazine Fall Issue 2018

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INSIDE FEATURED p4 Cyndi Lauper PPL Center p14 Rod Stewart PPL Center August 3rd 2018 p20 Marlowe B West Takez Manhattan Interview With Mac Gollehon p36 A Requiem InRemembrance Of Haight Ashbury p40 Local Music Spotlight-The Frost p46 Def Leppard-Purdential Center June 15 p92 Lola de Hanna

STEEL NOTES MAGAZINE STAFF LISTING ADMINISTRATIVE

STAFF WRITERS

Alexxis Steele Publisher/EditorIn-Chief Josie Janci VP Of business development Keith Boisvert Graphics/Layout/ Cover

Film and Music Reviews p64 Do we love Mike Love's New Solo Album? p66 Dispatch From Egypt Station: Thoughts on Sir Paul McCartney's New Singles p68 The Grouch Says-Bongo Boy Rock And Roll Television Show Episode 7 Review p71 The Grouch Says-Bongo Boy Records Releases Escape The Mind Volume 2 p78 The Grouch Says-Kathryn Shipley's Give Faith Single Review p79 The Grouch Says-Bongo Boy Records Releases Out Of The Garage Volume 4 p84 Bongo Boy Records Artist Sister Salvation Concert Review p88 Orson Wells The One Man Band p90 Oja Kodar

PHOTOGRAPHERS Bob Klein Sheri Bayne Ron Shirey Jr Muffley Jacqueline McGuire John Millington Gary Preis Mike Dorn Brian Limage Larry Dell Rhonda Jean VanBuskirk Dave Hummell John Warner Nick Christophers

Marlowe B West Jerry Saravia Dana Saravia Scott Saxon Josie Janci Alex Shaffner Luca Cerardi Monique Grimme Stewart Brodian Scott Aber Nikki Palomino Rick Dessi Ines Honig Jennycat Rex Maurice Oppenheimer Todd Sobczak JR Peterson Christopher Annino Domenic Marinelli Dawn Belotti Don Aters

VIDEOGRAPHERS Lisa Koza Larry Dell

Articles p54 Yellowstone National Park Pictorial International Corner p95 Luca Cerardi Interviews Johnny Dee p98 Fall Game Review 2018

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Cyndi Lauper PPL Center

By Alexxis Steele

Photos By John Millington The room is dark.. in the background of the stage you see a purple curtain with just a face, and in the center is a white oval shape with a silloughette in the middle with a figure like a musical conductor.. The curtain drops and behold is an angelic figure dressed in tails, all in white from head to toe, climbing down the steps of a ladder.

With microphone in hand, the booming angelic voice starts singing“I Drove All Night”, and proceeds to get on what looks like an old wooden chest with stickers on it, head upside down, and feet high in the air and continues to sing. “She Seems so unusual”, Who could be it be? Of course it is 80’s pop darling Cyndi Lauper , who still looks and sounds great at age 65!

The next song, is one of my favorite songs- “She Bop”. With flute in hand, Cyndi asks the audience- “Do I look like a doctor? That’s a pretty scary thought ! Cyndi plays the harp solo note for note then dances across the stage.

At the end of the song one of her staff comes over and dons her in a long white cap and hood. She steps on a circular moving platform and starts singing one of her popular hits “All Through The Night”. She seemed to be having problems hearing herself, making a gesture to the soundman by pointing to her ear and was adjusting the power pack for her wireless microphone. You would never know it , because her voice was strong and coming through loud in the PA system, so it must have been a monitor issue.

At the end of the song, Cyndi throws off the white cape and goes into her song “Hope”, and proceeds to walk out into the crowd to the delight of the fans, and gets some assistance from them as she goes by.

She walks back up onto the stage and pays homage to Deceased wrestler Captain Lou Albano, with whom she worked with, and also talked about the late great Rowdy Roddy Piper, who did his bit right here in Allentown, and how this area was always a big mecca for the sport. She also mentioned other great wrestlers who have passed away like Freddie Blassie, Moohlah,& Andre The Giant. I can attest to that fact, because in the late 80’s I worked for Living Well Fitness Center in Allentown, Pa, which was on Airport Rd , and later became nightclubs Mezza Luna, and Now Chicago. On any given night you would See Affa, The Wild Samoans, Rocky Johnson, who is the Rock’s dad, whom myself and another staff member Gary Onufer, did some work for, plus Larry Holmes the boxer, and many other well known wrestlers that frequented our area. For many years there was a wrestling trainer by Jordan Lanes Bowling Alley in Whitehall, Pa. Cyndi talked about her mom being in alot of her videos, and how she liked a particular outfit that was a sea hag costume for the Goonies Movie, which Cyndi wrote a song for. At the end of the song she says, Do you want to rock n roll? C’mon Allentown, Where are your rockers? She was talking about The Robert Hazard cover she did“Money Changes Everything”. Cyndi addressed the crowd about voting, and said she doesn’t are what party you belong to, but you better get out and vote.

Cyndi was very personable and charming, speaking about her mother, sister, and family, saying sisterhood is a powerful thing, which led into every girl’s happy theme sing a long- “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun”. For her last song- True Colors”, she talked about her Broadway show “Kinky Boots” which came out in 2013, and her son who inspired her to write the song. She stopped to say “Power To the People”, before ending the song. Thanks Cyndi for a wonderful performance. I look forward to seeing her perform again!

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Cyndi Lauper PPL Center Setlist

1. I Drove All Night 2. She Bop 3. All Through the Night(Jules Shear cover) 4. Hope 5. The Goonies 'R' Good Enough 6. Money Changes Everything(The Brains cover) 7. Shine 8. Alone in the Harbor(snippet of song from working Girl the musical. ) 9. Time After Time 10. Girls Just Want to Have Fun(Robert Hazard cover) 11. Not My Father's Son 12. True Colors

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PHOTOS BY JOHN MILLINGTON

Rod Stewart PPL Center August 3rd 2018 I guess “Some Guys Have All The Luck”, by what was evident when Rod Stewart took to the stage on August 3rd 2018 at The PPL center in Allentown, Pa. Golden voiced Rod Stewart showed that at age 73 he still has what it takes to wow a near capacity crowd of adoring fans during that hour and forty minute show!

Stewart definitely knows how to put on a great audio and visual show with colorful images on the background projection screen, along with a great sharp dressed backup band, vocalists and dancers with beautiful costumes that included a female harp player.

Rod “The Bod” danced around on a checkered floor wearing his signature Leopard jacket with his smooth moves and microphone prowess he is known for. The evening’s set list included a combination of material with different tempos of his hits ranging from the 70’s to 80’s, including “You Wear It Well”, Tonight’s The Night”, and one of my favorite’s- “Maggie Mae”.

To break up the theme of the show, Stewart decided to do some acoustic stripped down versions of some tunes with his band, complete with the harp player. They formed a straight line in chairs at the front of the stage, performing songs like his 1977’s hit (Another one of my favorites!)

“You’re In My Heart”. The set ended with one of Stewart’s most notable songs, a Van Morrison cover, “Have I Told You Lately that I love you?”.

Some other highlights of the show were during “Forever Young”’ with Irish step-dancing female violinists, and his moving dedication of “Rhythm Of My Heart” to the armed forces, with a video in the background of Rod being knighted by England’s Prince William.

Towards the end of the evening two of my other favorite upbeat 80’s tunes Rod included the crowd in on the fun with soccer balls being thrown into the crowd for “Hot Legs”, and a balloon drop on “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?”.

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Rod Stewart Setlist PPL Center August 3rd 2018

1. Infatuation 2. Some Guys Have All the Luck(The Persuaders cover) 3. You Wear It Well/ Having a Party(Sam Cooke cover) 4. Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright) 5. Young Turks 6. Forever Young 7. Passion 8. Rhythm of My Heart(Marc Jordan cover) 9. Maggie May 10. Downtown Train(Tom Waits cover) 11. The First Cut Is the Deepest(Cat Stevens cover) 12. You're in My Heart (The Final Acclaim) 13. Grace([traditional] cover) 14. Have I Told You Lately(Van Morrison cover) 15. Nutbush City Limits(Ike & Tina Turner cover) 16. Hot Legs 17. Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?

18. Encore: 19. Enjoy Yourself (It's Later Than You Think)(Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians cover)

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Marlowe B West Takez Manhattan Interview With Mac Gollehon Part 1 20

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Ladies and Gentlemen and Children of All Ages ... My name is Marlowe B West and I am your Ring Leader ...

Welcome to Marlowe B West Takez Manhattan ... That is the title of my monthly column, here at Steel Notes Magazine ... it iz also the name of my Rock Band ... I say 'Rock' and I am genuinely a bonafide Rocker ... however ... I am a passionate music devotee and I find the most passionate music to be in the genre of The Blues ... My ultimate favorite being that of Jazzy Blues ... Like Elvis ... I find my best songs seem to be cradled in these roots ... A few years back an amazing gypsy trumpeter stormed the stage of a nightclub I was hanging at ... his name is Indofunk Satish ... The club being Sidewalk NYC ... He struck a nerve reminiscent to a song I'd written with his approach to playing trumpet ... He was extremely busy but I managed to interview him for this magazine ...

We discussed the possibility of recording but it never occurred ... Years passed and suddenly ... Out of the Blue ...

Mac Gollehon appeared in my life striking that same meandering nerve ... and I am so grateful to all the magic circumstances that brought us together ... For Mac is currently playing his trumpet in my band along with Mick Oakleaf on drums, Paul Anthony on guitar and Claude Campbell who makes me feel like I'm in The Doors with his keyboards ... and we are already planning to go into the recording studio ... Right now I have the outstanding opportunity and pleasure of interviewing Mac Gollehon and bring him into the homes and lives all you beautiful people out there in the dark: MBW: So would you be kind enough to tell me, my loyal friends and fans here @ Steel Notes Magazine, how this phenomenon called Mac Gollehon came into being ???

MG: Certainly, Marlowe ... I'd enjoy it immensely ... You see ... A personalized musical style evolved for me by first being immersed in a broad gamut of musical environments at an early age.

MBW: How old were you ???

MG: At 13 years old I auditioned for and played trumpet in the Ringling Bros circus under the master cornetist Merle Evans.

MBW: Hold it right there ... I'm already on the edge of my seat ... a childhood dream ... to be part of the magic and wonder of the circus ... how long did it last ???

MG: At 14 I began performing with the Roanoke VA Symphony while at the same time working in bar bands on B3 organ and guitar playing blues,rock,R&B and jazz thru my high school years. In that scene I was playing trumpet at a college music workshop where I met Bill Chase the founder of the horn band Chase (Get it On was their hit) and he told me to call him soon as I finished high school but unfortunately he was in a plane crash a few months later. But my interest in pursuing a orchestral direction as playing clubs and bars were more action and fun. Then I attended Berklee in Boston where I planned to focus on jazz. That focus sent me right to the infamous Combat Zone which was about 2 blocks of a dozen burlesque clubs all with live 3 piece bands. I got the gig and these were long tough gigs with an organ trio consisting of organ,horn and drums.

MBW: I'm getting the picture ... a prodigy in the works ... Were you making any money ???

MG: Pay was $40 a night and first 9 drinks for free. After that you pay half price. The hours were 8pm-3am a lot of

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playing. That’s where I learned about 1000 songs and the band at 2 o’clock lounge and Naked Eye were amazing.

Every night sounded like a Jimmy Smith or Mcgriff or Big John Patton or Don Patterson Blue Note recording.

These were older musicians than me and they were self taught street schooled players that for various reasons and obvious problems never became well known or sought after but played at the same level as those well known giants as just mentioned. This is where I developed my physical and technical stamina on the bandstand along with the importance of strong performance.

MBW: It's amazing me how you just fell into place ... What put a kid on the level with these old hardcore players, man ???

MG: At Berklee I learned arranging skills and played with many great players that went on to do big things. Some of them were drummers John Robinson,Vinnie Coliuta, Steve Smith, Kenswood Denard, Tommy Cambell, Cindy Blackman Santana. Guitarists Bill Frisell, Chuck Loeb, Bern Nix and so many others. But I must say the gigs in the Combat Zone burlesque clubs and the pressure keeping up those players sounding like a record every night was very valuable. If you didn’t come up to that level every night you wouldn't be there the next night. Employees were hired on a night to night basis according to your performance and that went on for me for 2 years.

You had to leave your mark on that bandstand nightly.

MBW: Okay ... So Berklee is in Boston ... What brought you to Manhattan ???

MG: I moved to NYC in 1978 with the ambition of being a jazz musician with intent of playing with Mingus but he was in a wheelchair by then. I took a gig on the road with the amazing drummer Buddy Rich who definitely left his mark on the bandstand nightly and insisted everyone did. Then it was back to NYC when I accidentally stumbled into the role of a session player. With no intent of plan it started with a few random record dates rock, R&B, Salsa, funk and even disco. Then some jingles and some punk funk on Roir with Alfonia Timms and James Chance. Soca Sessjons followed. The timing was good.

MBW: Well you must've had some glow ... some magical charisma or something for you to stand out and be welcomed into the higher inner circles of New York City ... What was it about Mac Gollehon that set him apart from all the rest ???

MG: I was new in town and my Sound and phrasing and articulation was very different than the older established studio Brass players before me that had a more generic style and boring phrasing in general. Also my tone blended better with Electric instruments than my predocessers that were mostly from the orchestra and big band era.

Many producers heard this and realized I could be of value to them. Also producers needed players that could do spontaneous arrangements and they were too busy to micro manage and they could trust me too get the job done. Quickly I realized that I was not going to achieve individual fame as I was not the soloist out front of the bandleader but still became well known within the narrow confines of the music industry.The only way to avoid total obscurity would be to have a self contained session group much like what had been done in the past with musicians like The Wrecking Crew (LA) or The Funk Brothers(Motown) or Memphis Boys (Stax & Volt) and you were not really part of the band. It was freelance, last minute calls, arranging, coming up with hooks and I especially enjoyed nailing first takes like a sharpshooter. It meant being very versed to be able to have a variety of styles and deliver in as few takes as possible. Had to be part of a team that could crank it out every time with no fuss. In a very competitive and cutthroat business ,solidarity and trust within a network of players was important

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but didn’t always happen due to inflated egos and individuals only after their own personal gain. On the other hand these talented overachievers were responsible for how great the work turned out. So needless to say longevity in the partenerships were rare. Some session sidemen did move on to capitalize on their instincts and became stars in their own right. Many of these producers really took off and blew up big such as Nile Rodgers, Bernard Edwards, Arif Mardin, Kashiff, Arthur Baker, Mike Chapman, Russ Tittelman, Patrick Adams and many more.

MBW: Tell us about these last minute calls ... What big names magnetized to you for filling in the blanks in their recording sessions ???

MG: I was now doing sessions one after the other ... Chic, Blondie, David Bowie - Let’s Dance, Sister Sledge, Hall and Oates, Chaka Khan, Duran Duran, Thompson Twins, Stevie Winwood, Billy Ocean, Nona Hendrix, Sheena Easton, Grace Jones, Vanity, Mick Jagger, Ric Ocasek, Bruce Springsteen, Rick James, The Blow Monkeys, UB40, Laurie Anderson, Simply Red and many more pop performers.

MBW: Flabbergasting !!! ... This boy was suddenly spinning on his heels ... What was your reaction to how overwhelmingly busy you'd become ???

MG: (laughs) A typical day might consist of ... for example ... 11am go do a jingle or Muzak session or rehearsal ...

Then 2Pm-7pmanother record date ... Then off to perform at a club 9pm-2am ... Then play at an after hours joint from 3am -7am ... Then start up again the next day.

MBW: Man, you were under the fire ... Lucky for you that you migrated to the New York City music beehive ... or vica versa actually ... it seems it might have been a bit difficult to manage such intense demand ... How did you handle all this ???

MG: At this I had opted to avoid extensive tours and limited my out of town gigs to 2 weeks because I didn’t want to miss any important sessions. Then around 1987 I made the decision to tour with Duran Duran for 1 year in support of their release Notorious. I can now look back on that as a tactical error on my part. Although it was a great band. Simon Lebon, John Taylor, Nick Rhoades, Steve Ferrone, Warren Cuccorullo and great venues. But it took me out of NYC for too long a span of time. It took me years to reestablish to everyone that Mac was back in town and to get my identity back that I had consistently and accidentally developed.

MBW: So you're telling us it was kinda like having to pick up the pieces and starting all over after the Duran Duran tour ???

MG: Getting a restart wasn’t made easier after that long out of town period because music was changing fast in 1990.

MBW: How so ???

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MG: The grunge sound had no use for horns although I did record some rap and had some hits on a number of dance and house remixes.

MBW: Undefeatable !!! ... You even moved into rap ???

MG: One rap hit in 1992 with Onyx (Bac da fuc up) and Slam. Some more good ones happened with various artists but it was clear to me that it was now time to go to my original plan. Record jazz under my name.

MBW: ... Divine intervention ...

MG: The first of the series was Mac’s Smokin Section. The first release was mostly blues but I was advised by radio services to make a smooth jazz recording immediately and I did. AirPlay was very good. At the same time I had started working with Lester Bowie and toured Europe often. That’s where I heard remixes of Macs Smokin Section Everywhere we went.

MBW: Your plan was catching on ...

MG: Next recording for me as Leader was Live at The Knitting Factory (Leonard St) which was an eclectic mix of originals and opening with a Brass heavy version Of Jimi Hendrix Manic depression. The live tapes were given to me by several tapers that followed us to gigs as they discovered us and labeled us as a definitive black mud sound. Trumpet, Bass, drums, didgeridoo and Tabla. Some songs had extended horn sections including material

by Lester Bowie who worked for me. On those Knitting Factory gigs we did some interesting double bills with Rebirth Brass from New Orleans. The Blue Note NYC was looking for something new and fresh so I recorded Mac’s Smokin Section Live at The Blue Note. It was an agressive jazz showdown. Critics labeled “not for the tepid” which was fine with me. Why would anyone make a boring lifeless live jazz record. It got great reviews, great airplay and good label support for live gigs. It went over enough that The Blue Note asked me to do a follow up right away. This was at a time when Tower Records had collapsed and once again the record business was changing fast. There was an avalanche of tribute records being made so the label thought to play it safe I should do a tribute record. So they suggested I do a tribute to Trumpet legend Fats Navarro. I accepted it although in the beginning I cringed at the thought of replicating something from the past. Then it dawned on me something that Miles Davis told me in 1978 that was I had a unique sound and “Don’t ever be a grave robber.” “Make your sound project your idea from the first Note to the last.” That made a lot of sense to me as he has held disdain for players that just copped whatever had been done, before having original ideas of their own. Miles knew Fats personally and I went into this project with intent to change the sound so much that no one would realize it was someone’s music recorded 40 years ago. Much less would they think it was influenced at all by anything in the 1950s. To me that’s the best tribute you can pay any great artist, to make your original statement with a nod of respect to them.

Fats Navarros daughter called me to thank me for recording his music. Billboard put it in top 10 Jazz Records that year. By this time recording techniques were changing rapidly again. The days of going into the big studio were few and far between. Most recording was now in someone’s basement or walk-in closet and I most always the only horn tracking on the session. I was playing trumpet, flugelhorn and trombone. Many sessions were in these scaled down spaces. Many artists had started to forgo the band sound and choose the singer songwriter approach. So that didn’t leave room for much in the way of creativity on my part because I knew everything

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would be under the category of a pro tools edit anyway. Never the less my earlier experience with recording came in handy.Then it dawned on me to do a big band recording with myself playing all the horns. So that was the configuration of my next recording “Mac Straight Ahead “ containing many jazz standards but with my arrangements steering them in my own direction.

MBW: Beautiful powerful. x-tremely int'tezting, inspiring & pretty mindblowing Mac ... thiz iz alreddy a knockout interview ... Where do we go from here ???

MG: Thanx. Looking forward to it ... The label for Mac Straight Ahead was American Showplace and the radio AirPlay once again was very good (NPR) and reviews outstanding, as usual, but made very little impact as far as helping book the act. Big bands in NYC are a dime a dozen, and it doesn’t seem to matter if they are good or bad.

The best gig I got with that was a residence at a club near Penn Station that was a Russian Bikini Bar until one night undercover cops busted in and wisked the owner away in handcuffs. Nobody ever saw him again. Aside from 2 major jazz club gigs, that was as far as Mac Straight Ahead went. I learned a big lesson. Don’t record another Straight Ahead jazz record. So my next recording was a Straight Ahead jazz thing titled ODDESSEY of Nostalgia . This was at the request of a very successful precious metals mine owner who offered to give me a limited budget to record depression era songs made famous in the 1930s. I enjoyed very much the challenge of turning these old gems and relics from the past into Mac Music. Songs like Nightmare, 2 Sleepy People, Just a Gigilo, Brother can you Spare a Dime, Violets for your Furs, Gloomy Sunday - originally titled Hungarian Suicide Song.

The cd had a dark and often sinister jazz vibe that had my stamp on old classics. The recording was used in a play “My Inner Sole” about a family that survives the concentration camps of WW2 was a surreal tableau unraveling inherited experience of loss through prose, music and a cast of 18 skeletons. Reviews and airplay were strong again. The music also got in heavy rotation in restaurants and bars thru syndicated media. I was quite surprised at that, as that was my intent, but I had accidentally evoked soothing sounds for dining pleasure. Felt like I had gone full circle from the early 80s doing those 11am sessions reading thru literally stacks of charts for Muzak.

ODDESSEY of Nostalgia was released on American Showplace label.

MBW: Can we back up just a second here, Mac ... I thought you just said, "I learned a big lesson. Don’t record another Straight Ahead jazz record."

MG: To myself I said I will never record any more solo outings because they are financially unrewarding and too lousey jazz recordings are being made so why get blurred in the clutter. Then as I was going thru old quarter inch reel to reels of my board tapes of live shows in the early 80s I found a lost treasure. It was a compilation of material recorded live at classic venues like Bonds, Casino 14, Palladium, Roseland etc. I was working with Hector Lavoe El Cantante and he suggested I write some original music to showcase my voice as he said I sound like Johnny Cash. I said Hector you’re crazy I can’t sing like Johnny Cash. I had asked Hector Lavoe to sing as special guest and he said yes but didn’t make it there. So I did his songs he was supposed to sing. I did them as an instrumental version with my trumpet and trombone and it worked insanely well. Another great strategy by accident. I had an all star band of great musicians in the Latin NYC scene and a few of my friends from the recording scene.

Many of them are no longer alive but the music lives on. Credits as follow for La Fama released on American Showplace label Mac Gollehon - trumpet and trombone, Charlie Palmieri - organ, Larry Harlow - piano, Hilton Ruiz - piano and organ, Gilberto el Pulpio Colon - piano Carlos Patato Valdez - conga Frankie Malaby, - conga Sa Davis-bata, conga Eddie Montalvo - conga Kako Bastar- timbales, Nicky Marrero - timbales, Pablo Rosario - bongo Poncho Roman -timbale Ray Colon - cowbell Jimmy Delgado, - percussion Tony Thompson, - drums Bernard Edwards, - bass Ray Martinez - bass Victor Venegas - bass Alex Blake - bass trumpets - Ray Maldonado, - Jose Febles-Puchi Boulong - Doc Cheatham - Lester Bowie trombone - Jose Rodriguez - Barry Rogers - Harry

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D Aguiar - Michael Grey Baron Raymonde-alto Sax Mauricio Smith - flute Robert Aaron - flute, AJ Mantas vibes. The cd was nominated for Grammy in best historical recording that year and reviews were very strong.

MBW: What a sensational line-up .

MG: Intentionally from the start of my early years I had always avoided long run gigs and as I mentioned the long run tour in 1987 in retrospect seemed a mistake for me . However around 2010 it seemed like a good idea to become a mainstay in The Cotton Club Allstars after all it was in town and not demanding as far as I could take for other gigs if needed and there was minimal drama to deal with compared to most steady gig venues. Within a short time I was asked to be bandleader to form The Cotton Club Latin Jazz Allstars for a 2 year run. In doing this I met a lot of new players that were active in the Latin community and developed an interest in doing another Latin recording. We were booked as Mac Gollehon & The Carribean Express at Ginny’s Supper Club and the a MC kept asking me 4 times what was name of the band. He just couldn’t get my name at all so the house was totally packed and he asked me again my name in front of everyone and of the top of my head I said Mac Gollehon & The Hispanic Mechanics. The audience cracked up and loved the name so it stuck. Out of necessity to keep gigging and not have to take a band everywhere I started doing some gigs with DJs and percussion much the same way I had done decades earlier at Danceteria and Paradise. By the time I was ready to record this with DJ and band it was apparent that I had started a new category of Latin EDM. One critic called it Chemical Brothers meet Tito Puente. Another critic called it Electro Cubop. Another called it industrial guaguanco. So it felt like I was at the apex getting ready to come out of the backstretch. It is just getting going really. We have done some live gigs at Ottos and in Philly and recently Bowery Electric trying to keep as many live gigs as possible.

The recording Mac Gollehon & The Hispanic Mechanics - No More Drama was released on True Groove. In closing I say don’t be afraid to dive right into the unknown. Learn, forget, repeat, erase and start again. Don’t do what everybody expects you to do just to please them but follow instincts. Some of my best work and some of my constituates best work was the result of being selfish and determined. You may often paint yourself into a corner but it could become a very lovely and exquisite corner.

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Marlowe B West Takez Manhattan Interview With Mac Gollehon Part 2 28

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MBW: So you're telling us it was kinda like having to pick up the pieces and starting all over after the Duran Duran tour ???

MG: Getting a restart wasn’t made easier after that long out of town period because music was changing fast in 1990.

MBW: How so ???

MG: The grunge sound had no use for horns although I did record some rap and had some hits on a number of dance and house remixes.

MBW: Undefeatable !!! ... You even moved into rap ???

MG: One rap hit in 1992 with Onyx (Bac da fuc up) and Slam. Some more good ones happened with various artists but it was clear to me that it was now time to go to my original plan. Record jazz under my name.

MBW: ... Divine intervention ...

MG: The first of the series was Mac’s Smokin Section. The first release was mostly blues but I was advised by radio services to make a smooth jazz recording immediately and I did. AirPlay was very good. At the same time I had started working with Lester Bowie and toured Europe often. That’s where I heard remixes of Macs Smokin Section Everywhere we went.

MBW: Your plan was catching on ...

MG: Next recording for me as Leader was Live at The Knitting Factory (Leonard St) which was an eclectic mix of originals and opening with a Brass heavy version Of Jimi Hendrix Manic depression. The live tapes were given to me by several tapers that followed us to gigs as they discovered us and labeled us as a definitive black mud sound. Trumpet, Bass, drums, didgeridoo and Tabla. Some songs had extended horn sections including material

by Lester Bowie who worked for me. On those Knitting Factory gigs we did some interesting double bills with Rebirth Brass from New Orleans. The Blue Note NYC was looking for something new and fresh so I recorded Mac’s Smokin Section Live at The Blue Note. It was an agressive jazz showdown. Critics labeled “not for the tepid” which was fine with me. Why would anyone make a boring lifeless live jazz record. It got great reviews, great airplay and good label support for live gigs. It went over enough that The Blue Note asked me to do a follow up right away. This was at a time when Tower Records had collapsed and once again the record business was changing fast. There was an avalanche of tribute records being made so the label thought to play it safe I should do a tribute record. So they suggested I do a tribute to Trumpet legend Fats Navarro. I accepted it although in the beginning I cringed at the thought of replicating something from the past. Then it dawned on me something that Miles Davis told me in 1978 that was I had a unique sound and “Don’t ever be a grave robber.” “Make your sound project your idea from the first Note to the last.” That made a lot of sense to me as he has held disdain for players

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that just copped whatever had been done, before having original ideas of their own. Miles knew Fats personally and I went into this project with intent to change the sound so much that no one would realize it was someone’s music recorded 40 years ago. Much less would they think it was influenced at all by anything in the 1950s. To me that’s the best tribute you can pay any great artist, to make your original statement with a nod of respect to them.

Fats Navarros daughter called me to thank me for recording his music. Billboard put it in top 10 Jazz Records that year. By this time recording techniques were changing rapidly again. The days of going into the big studio were few and far between. Most recording was now in someone’s basement or walk-in closet and I most always the only horn tracking on the session. I was playing trumpet, flugelhorn and trombone. Many sessions were in these scaled down spaces. Many artists had started to forgo the band sound and choose the singer songwriter approach. So that didn’t leave room for much in the way of creativity on my part because I knew everything would be under the category of a pro tools edit anyway. Never the less my earlier experience with recording came in handy.Then it dawned on me to do a big band recording with myself playing all the horns. So that was the configuration of my next recording “Mac Straight Ahead “ containing many jazz standards but with my arrangements steering them in my own direction.

MBW: Beautiful powerful. x-tremely int'tezting, inspiring & pretty mindblowing Mac ... thiz iz alreddy a knockout interview ... Where do we go from here ???

MG: Thanx. Looking forward to it ... The label for Mac Straight Ahead was American Showplace and the radio AirPlay once again was very good (NPR) and reviews outstanding, as usual, but made very little impact as far as helping book the act. Big bands in NYC are a dime a dozen, and it doesn’t seem to matter if they are good or bad.

The best gig I got with that was a residence at a club near Penn Station that was a Russian Bikini Bar until one night undercover cops busted in and wisked the owner away in handcuffs. Nobody ever saw him again. Aside from 2 major jazz club gigs, that was as far as Mac Straight Ahead went. I learned a big lesson. Don’t record another Straight Ahead jazz record. So my next recording was a Straight Ahead jazz thing titled ODDESSEY of Nostalgia . This was at the request of a very successful precious metals mine owner who offered to give me a limited budget to record depression era songs made famous in the 1930s. I enjoyed very much the challenge of turning these old gems and relics from the past into Mac Music. Songs like Nightmare, 2 Sleepy People, Just a Gigilo, Brother can you Spare a Dime, Violets for your Furs, Gloomy Sunday - originally titled Hungarian Suicide Song.

The cd had a dark and often sinister jazz vibe that had my stamp on old classics. The recording was used in a play “My Inner Sole” about a family that survives the concentration camps of WW2 was a surreal tableau unraveling inherited experience of loss through prose, music and a cast of 18 skeletons. Reviews and airplay were strong again. The music also got in heavy rotation in restaurants and bars thru syndicated media. I was quite surprised at that, as that was my intent, but I had accidentally evoked soothing sounds for dining pleasure. Felt like I had gone full circle from the early 80s doing those 11am sessions reading thru literally stacks of charts for Muzak.

ODDESSEY of Nostalgia was released on American Showplace label.

MBW: Can we back up just a second here, Mac ... I thought you just said, "I learned a big lesson. Don’t record another Straight Ahead jazz record."

MG: To myself I said I will never record any more solo outings because they are financially unrewarding and too lousey jazz recordings are being made so why get blurred in the clutter. Then as I was going thru old quarter inch reel to reels of my board tapes of live shows in the early 80s I found a lost treasure. It was a compilation of material recorded live at classic venues like Bonds, Casino 14, Palladium, Roseland etc. I was working with Hector Lavoe El Cantante and he suggested I write some original music to showcase my voice as he said I sound like Johnny Cash. I said Hector you’re crazy I can’t sing like Johnny Cash. I had asked Hector Lavoe to sing as special

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guest and he said yes but didn’t make it there. So I did his songs he was supposed to sing. I did them as an instrumental version with my trumpet and trombone and it worked insanely well. Another great strategy by accident. I had an all star band of great musicians in the Latin NYC scene and a few of my friends from the recording scene.

Many of them are no longer alive but the music lives on. Credits as follow for La Fama released on American Showplace label Mac Gollehon - trumpet and trombone, Charlie Palmieri - organ, Larry Harlow - piano, Hilton Ruiz - piano and organ, Gilberto el Pulpio Colon - piano Carlos Patato Valdez - conga Frankie Malaby, - conga Sa Davis-bata, conga Eddie Montalvo - conga Kako Bastar- timbales, Nicky Marrero - timbales, Pablo Rosario - bongo Poncho Roman -timbale Ray Colon - cowbell Jimmy Delgado, - percussion Tony Thompson, - drums Bernard Edwards, - bass Ray Martinez - bass Victor Venegas - bass Alex Blake - bass trumpets - Ray Maldonado, - Jose Febles-Puchi Boulong - Doc Cheatham - Lester Bowie trombone - Jose Rodriguez - Barry Rogers - Harry D Aguiar - Michael Grey Baron Raymonde-alto Sax Mauricio Smith - flute Robert Aaron - flute, AJ Mantas vibes. The cd was nominated for Grammy in best historical recording that year and reviews were very strong.

MBW: What a sensational line-up .

MG: Intentionally from the start of my early years I had always avoided long run gigs and as I mentioned the long run tour in 1987 in retrospect seemed a mistake for me . However around 2010 it seemed like a good idea to become a mainstay in The Cotton Club Allstars after all it was in town and not demanding as far as I could take for other gigs if needed and there was minimal drama to deal with compared to most steady gig venues. Within a short time I was asked to be bandleader to form The Cotton Club Latin Jazz Allstars for a 2 year run. In doing this I met a lot of new players that were active in the Latin community and developed an interest in doing another Latin recording. We were booked as Mac Gollehon & The Carribean Express at Ginny’s Supper Club and the a MC kept asking me 4 times what was name of the band. He just couldn’t get my name at all so the house was totally packed and he asked me again my name in front of everyone and of the top of my head I said Mac Gollehon & The Hispanic Mechanics. The audience cracked up and loved the name so it stuck. Out of necessity to keep gigging and not have to take a band everywhere I started doing some gigs with DJs and percussion much the same way I had done decades earlier at Danceteria and Paradise. By the time I was ready to record this with DJ and band it was apparent that I had started a new category of Latin EDM. One critic called it Chemical Brothers meet Tito Puente. Another critic called it Electro Cubop. Another called it industrial guaguanco. So it felt like I was at the apex getting ready to come out of the backstretch. It is just getting going really. We have done some live gigs at Ottos and in Philly and recently Bowery Electric trying to keep as many live gigs as possible.

The recording Mac Gollehon & The Hispanic Mechanics - No More Drama was released on True Groove. In closing I say don’t be afraid to dive right into the unknown. Learn, forget, repeat, erase and start again. Don’t do what everybody expects you to do just to please them but follow instincts. Some of my best work and some of my constituates best work was the result of being selfish and determined. You may often paint yourself into a corner but it could become a very lovely and exquisite corner.

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(A REQUIEM IN REMEMBRANCE OF HAIGHT ASHBURY)

By Don Aters

It would evolve into The Dionysian Festival of the sixties, the grand illusion while searching for individual identities. These were the cherubic faces of the counter culture, the vanguard that would inevitably define an entire generation of youthful malcontents. War and political turmoil raged throughout the nation, and causes of the day became as common and ominous as Hoffa was to Teamsters. As the reigning dissidents of the era, we perused our options in an effort to establish a dichotomy and subsequent separation from the shackles of the mainstream and the urban myth from parental guidance. The thought process was for us to avoid the ritual of antiquated guidelines that had been passed on by our predecessors. This would maturate and become the embryonic stages of our introduction to recreational involvement, i.e., sex, drugs, rock n' roll, political and radical organizations and the juxtaposing image of a Bohemian culture that would forever be synonymous with the decade.

The Americana aspect that our parents had embraced would be lost in the proverbial shuffle, a defining moment augmented by mind altering experimentation and a mass migration to the west coast. While in search for our illusive identity, the sensationalism of sex, drugs and rock n' roll was not the addiction so blatantly exploited by the press. If the actual origin had been pursued, some basic knowledge of our commonality and acceptance of cultural diversity and the "hippiedom" lifestyle would have been revealed. It was our chosen path in an effort to defray the astronomical loss of life in a political and pointless war magnified by other sociological debacles that solidified our separation from the accepted norm. The entire generation would be scrutinized by the media and

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prejudged by drug related deaths that were more noted as the trappings of the musical genre and other artistic souls than a mirrored image of the youthful, nomadic hordes that were westward bound.

San Francisco and The Haight Ashbury district, the Valhalla of The Woodstock Generation, would soon become the epicenter. In August, generational pilgrimage would reach epic proportions and the apex of this popularity would culminate during the latter days of the late sixties and signal the demise soon afterward. The influx of dangerous two narcotics, and various laboratory intoxicants would surpass the typical indulgence of marijuana and the glory of this Bohemian neighborhood and the denizens who survived would be replaced with the decadence and perpetual crime factor that had once been relegated to the larger cities of the country. The choices that arose from "flower power" and the pundits of flower children would be arcane to the post WW2 adults but their inability to cope would ďżź not impede the unveiling of The Age Of Aquarius, a culmination of fact augmented by The Peter Pan Syndrome. It was somewhat of a mixed metaphor that would evolve into defiance yet contiguous to prior generations.

The days of being bridled by tradition and the restriction of rough hewn bi- laws of yesteryear would be severed by our affirmation and belief that we could collectively change the aggressive demeanor of international discord with a more demure and ambiguous approach through "peace and love". Our world was envisioned as a more serene existence, a clandestine gathering inclusive of cultural diversity, pattering lives to the musical pearls of selected bands and the human tapestry painted by the icons of the day that we most emulated and admired. These would prove to be provocative thoughts attained from those we most adored and they still occasionally resurface from the recesses of our minds. The quandary is, "Where have all the flowers gone?" The caveat of the Bush administration resonates loudly as we digress to the more surreal yet explosive era in the annals of American history. The nefarious involvement and burgeoning war with Iraq has equated to more casualties after the announced conclusion than while actually involved with internal combat and seems to conjure vivid memories of and the lesson in futility ascertained from the sixteen year dilemma in Vietnam.

San Francisco, the chosen destination for nomadic sojourns during the sixties and Haight Ashbury as the Utopian capitol for the burgeoning throng of free spirits was the intrinsic peacemaker. At times it seems to be nothing more than a distant memory, fodder for music trivia, but the ideology of commonality and peace through music remains a beacon in a mire of political and social banality of 2003-2004. We are now the vanishing tribe, the voices of reason now ensconced in nostalgia and virtual obscurity. The mystical formula, the mantras of harmonious existence are now shards of the aspects that were once so ominous on our horizons. Perhaps the illusion of the flower children was not as daring and inconceivable as once believed by those who frowned on the anarchy of troubled youth. It was to have been the universal bonding solution, a trumpeting plot that seemed more feasible than the senseless killing of our peers and the appalling fabrication from our government as the harbingers of good will and a pillar of unification. The desire for a more laconic method could arise. It becomes a

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thought to ponder over as the idea of rising from the ashes becomes more of a reality. The beat of the counter culture rings loudly in the once deaf ears of the purveyors of doom. We now represent 64% of the population. A need for us to finally be heard ďżź seems to be urgent. The rancor has been rekindled and the desultory attitude and cajoling lexicon of those

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in office is in need of revision. The once regal icons seem to be fading glory but we gather occasionally to celebrate events and performers with a litany of old friends. The power of positive thinking seems to permeate the air and replace the temporal disorientation with communal logic and the antiquated but valued thoughts of long ago.

The legacies of the past and the artists now live vicariously through those who know the power of the music, the opulence of the Avalon Ballroom, The Fillmores and other noted venues. The memories of Janis Joplin, Pigpen, Jerry Garcia, John Cippolina, John Kahn, Dave Tolbert, Skip Spence, Mimi farina, Bill Graham and other are The Ghosts of Avalon, the storied entertainers of 35 years ago. The survivors have long since vacated the abodes in the Victorian area

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of the bay around Golden Gate Park for the more lavish confines of Marin County but, their legacies live on. As we ruminate about the days of old, and the ambiance that remains, thanks to survivors like Paul Kantner, Sam Andrew, Peter S. Albin, Barry Melton, Santana, Merl Saunders, David Nelson, Pete Sears, Terry Haggerty, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Chet Helms seems to be in order. The mass migration drifted into folklore many years ago but the aura of this suburban district continues to grow as a cultural phenomenon. The mystique of various raiment trends is another media hyperbole, fondly recollected as the trend setters of the era. The wafts of fragrances that once lingered over this beloved area has been somewhat tainted by the influx of street urchins but some semblance of the embryonic days of the beat poets and artists who once dominated the district is still alive and well. It was the cradle for personal identity, a brief stay where a standard for universal growth and acceptance will never be replicated. It is an epiphany where we subconsciously still see the legends of our youth. As they gradually fade into their next existence, any death or demise is as painful as if it were our own family. We are a universal composite, a family of brothers and sisters from different parents joined together by a unilateral cause with the backdrop that arose from great music. Perhaps a chance to restore credibility to these heralded venues and the canon of the counter culture is now more feasible. Long ago we searched for a better way, an effort that would forever make us the most engaging and mysterious generation known to man. We continue our search as best we can, relegated to diminishing numbers but still admired by those who envied the efforts. We cling closer to the survivors, the living treasures of teenage years, and a reminder of the sacred vestige of Haight Ashbury.

These were the days of our discontent but we also reveled in our participation as we strolled along undaunted in our search. It was magical yet mercurial, the brief life of the flower children. Such a waste, those were the days.. Long live the legacy of The Haight, long live the euphoric memories of The Avalon Ballroom and The Fillmore East & West.

Don Aters - 2018

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LOCAL MUSIC SPOTLIGHT- THE FROST

PHOTOS BY BRIAN LIMAGE

The Frost is a musical duo based out of the Blakely area of Northeast Pennsylvania that is composed of guitarist and pianist, Christian Gratz, and vocalist, LeahBeth Evans. The couple came together in July 2015 as a jazz and soft rock duo. Christian and LeahBeth had worked separately as solo performers and with other bands. However, after having performed informally one evening together, they were approached by a restaurant owner who suggested that they continue performing together weekly for the summer at his establishment. Hence, The Frost was born and has been entertaining ever since. They expanded their musical repertoire to also include rock, country, disco, and r&b, while adding unique acoustic renditions of songs, as well as their own music to their playlist.

LeahBeth continues to write and release singles such as “Be OK” and “Not Your Time” which feature Christian on guitar. Christian has recently released his album “Nitelines”. Both artists’ work has been played on various indie radio stations throughout the country, and can be heard on iTunes, Apple music, Spotify, iHeart Radio, and GoogleMusic. Leah and Christian intend to compose and release more songs in the future, both independently and as The Frost. Some of their greatest musical influences as a duo include Fleetwood Mac, The Rolling Stones, and Steely Dan to name a few.

Today, The Frost performs throughout the tri-state and surrounding area, including multiple venues in New York City and Resorts in Atlantic City. Most recently, they have been nominated for multiple awards for the 2018 Josie Music Awards in Tennessee. The JMA’s are renowned as the largest indie music awards in the world. They have also been nominated for the Steamtown Music Awards and will be performing at the 2018 Electric City Music Conference in PA.

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DEF LEPPARD

PRUDENTIAL CENTER JUNE 15

BY DAWN BELOTTI One of the reasons I choose to write about music is, as a long-time music fan, these bands have woven in and out of my life; changing shape and creating memories. What has influenced and soothed my soul through the years has often had the same profound affect on others. The second reason, which is often more important is to, hopefully, convince others to appreciate the gift of live music.

Def Leppard is one of those bands that I have quite a history with. The first time I witnessed them live was during the Ozzy Osbourne Blizzard of Oz tour. My saint of an Italian father did not want us to get into a car with our newly licensed driver friends. Instead he took me and my friends to this show at the Nassau Coliseum in New York. Even when one of our seat neighbors asked my father if he had weed and sitting through bands loud enough to wake the dead, he still found humor in the evening and to this day imitates Ozzy Osbourne at parties.

As you can guess this article is not about Ozzy but his opening band, Def Leppard, who, at the time, had recently released their album High and Dry and were about to take off like rockets very soon. It wasn’t look before I found myself extremely interested in Def Leppard after hearing “Bringing on The Heartbreak” on my local radio stations. Not long after the mega selling Pyromania was released and band posters graced bedroom walls worldwide.

I ended up working for the record label that housed Def Leppard as well as on a few of their video. I watched them grow. I saw them hit with the loss of a band member and a tragic accident that could have ended another’s career. The fact that they chose to stand by their long timer drummer after the loss of a limb says more about these guys as people than musicians and this only made them more loved in the eyes of their fans.

The Leppard gentlemen have a specific sound yet it is difficult to categorize. There is a lot going on here and the fact that drummer Rick Allen utilizes a partially electronic drum set up does not make him any less a powerhouse. Rick Savage is still a compliment to any rhythm section. Phil Collen has taken to showing off his perfectly toned abs but is still a well seasoned guitar guru. Vivian Campbell, who joined forces as a replacement for the late Steve Clark is equally a solid member of the Def Leppard’s string section. Then there is front man, Joe Elliot who created the band name based on a fantasy band he created as a youth. He has evolved into a rock veteran who seizes the crowd with his unique vocal style.

So here I am once again watching a Def Leppard commandeering performance, at the Prudential Center in

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Newark, New Jersey. The band held the opening slot on a co-headlining tour with Journey, who tends to share their fan base with the Def Leppard crowd. Opening with “Rocket” from their Pyromania follow up album Hysteria. With its pounding drum beat and traditional Leppard style harmonies; this was a worthy opener to get the crowd pumped for a vast assortment of favorites to follow. The band stayed on the Hysteria track trailing with “Rocket” and “Animal” which has always been one of my most desired Leppard live singles.

The evening embarked on a journey through most of the bands famed history. The ensemble’s ballads were well represented. “Foolin’”, “Love Bites” and “Hysteria” all proved that a band who emphasize their larger than life rock oriented compositions; can also portray an ample softer side. While many bands will record the token poetic ballad, some miss the mark when it is apparent that it isn’t heartfelt but more of a necessity. Def Leppard are not one of the offenders. While Elliot explained that his lyrics are rarely personal, his conceived sentiments are one hundred percent relatable.

Where Def Leppard succeeds, most, is the rock anthem style songs that catapulted them to their height of stardom. From their days performing in the round to various international festivals, the crowd comes alive hearing the well know “Pour Some Sugar on Me” “Lets Get Rocked” and “Armageddon It”. These were all capitalized exceedingly on the arena multitude during my Prudential Center evening. The chanting of the crowd mimicking lyrics was nearly as thunderous as the band themselves.

For the anticipated encore, the Def Leppard gentlemen reached back to Pyromania, an album that brought them on to the forefront of the international music scene. They wrapped up their stellar set with “Rock of Ages” and “Photograph” evoking memories of when MTV served as a significant tool for bands as opposed to the disgrace it evolved into. What female Def Leppard aficionada didn’t smile at Joe Elliot roaring “I want to touch you!”

Whether it was a path down music memory lane or a Friday night out at a concert, Def Leppard was and is a perfect choice for both. Their course twisted and turned over the years but they managed to procure their place in the rock music and they have proved they have no intention of changing that.

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Yellowstone National Park pictorial by Gary Preis

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Check out DRAMA on page 72

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Do we love Mike Love's New Solo Album?

Yes. We do. Mostly.

By:Scott Saxon When confronted with the name Mike Love, most people might not recognize it. When you remind them that he is the one and only constant lead singer of The Beach Boys, a legendary band that has been going since 1964 without stop... Then an image begins to form.

Everybody knows Mike from a different era , whether it's his Maharishi era with his beads and bushy red beard or the ever-present Hawaiian shirt and Beach Boys hat he currently lives in like secondary skin ... The man has not stopped working since the age of 19 and here we get to ask what is the oldest beach boy up to with his latest recording?

This time around he comes harder at The Beach Boys audience than he did with his other solo album. Unleash the Unleashed the Love is a two CD set, with one CD filled with new treasures and maybe two clunkers written over a various time.

Mister Love and the other CD (Disc 2)is where the listener might hit a problem.

It Is a CD of reimagined Beach Boys songs. I'm going to give the best review I can of this while being honest and letting people know that I am in a tribute band for the Beach Boys and occupy Mr. Loves part. I am definitely biased toward any Beach Boys project, but I do want people to know that this review is fair.

As with any Beach Boys fan, or fan of any band ...we all have our favorites. We might like the David Lee Roth version of Van Halen better then Sammy Hagar's , while acknowledging both are brilliant each in a respective way. This is not the time or place to have a debate on Brian Wilson over Michael Love. As a matter of fact, the solo album on its own does a very good job of showcasing what exactly Mike Love contributed and still contributes and makes a strong argument indeed with some great songs.

Having said that , when we get around to discussing disc 2, which covers Beach Boys Classics... the results are mixed. Online there is a large amount of fan discontentment over these songs. I will briefly go through what I like and do not like about them. All in all with the exception of one very odd choice I understand the reasoning behind them and I've learned to appreciate them.

Due to a recent court victory Mike Love has now gotten his long due co-writing credits and now these are his babies as well as Brian Wilson's , and he now interprets them his way.For better or worse.

The album is available as a CD and vinyl and there are signed CDs available at various websites. As I've admitted my bias and the reasoning, I will go ahead and tell you that my score for this album is a solid 6 of 10. To be honest the unnecessary second CD of Beach Boys songs brought it down from an eight.

There's been criticism that Mike voice is not what it used to be. That it sounds thin . Well he is in his late 70s. I allow for that and I'm glad to have him still doing what he does. Also any astute fan well fairly a test that without Brian's multiple harmonies and glorious production to back Mike ..his voice has always been somewhat thin . So I will give Mike Love credit and say his voice is actually holding up quite well . The recording itself can be glossy at times.. which is not shocking if one listens to the production of certain classic Beach Boys albums. The highlights of his solo work here are "All the Love in Paris" , " I Don't Want to Know " , "Crescent Moon" "Pisces

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Brothers" , "Unleash the Love " and "Only One Earth" are fun, solid numbers.

"Make Love Not War " is also a very nice song. Basically the songs by themselves are fair to pretty damn good.

The packaging is great, the backing musicians are good and Mike's voice sounds just fine to me.

The second disc is where we hit perhaps a problem. It contains what are essentially covers of "California Girls", "Do It Again", "Help Me Rhonda", " I Get Around ", "Warmth of the Sun", " Kiss Me Baby ", "Darlin'", "Wild Honey ", "Wouldn't it Be Nice", " Good Vibrations", &" Fun Fun Fun." The problems with these are the arrangements and the use of auto-tune microphones and Industrial sounds to somehow modernize songs that need no modernization. Some of them sound fairly good, such as "Do It Again" , but some of them are... Not great. Avoid California Girls.And " I Get Around".

I get around is a fantastic song that features Brian Wilson's soaring falsetto voice in the chorus and his wonders production. The gentleman singing Brian's part here deserves some credit because he is very good. The song however sounds like a tribute band's song. This song and the autotune mic on California Girls are the two tracks that really irked me. If you're looking for a more confident cover of "California Girls", please check under David Lee Roth.

The only song that I have left off that list is the one I can find no reason for:" Brian's Back"...

A catchy song.. but not a Beach Boys classic and I have a problem with the fact that on the Reunion Tour Mike Love fired Brian Wilson via Twitter ...and then chooses to include this song. If anyone can answer the question of why , please do email me. When I ask the man himself all I got was a shrug.

As a fan I hope that this means that it was an olive branch. Because of the deaths of Brothers Carl and Dennis Wilson, it would bring a smile to my face to see Mike Love and Brian Wilson perform together or record together just one more time. In Beach Boys parlance..."Get Together and Do It Again" .

Overall the CD is solid and worth at least a listen to if not a purchase. The sign signed copy can be obtained for about $25 which is very fair for a double album signed by a Legend.

My opinion is just mine when it comes to the Beach Boys songs reimagined on disc 2. Maybe these will appeal to a younger audience who are not as stuck to the older arrangements. Either way I can solidly say that the album was definitely worth releasing and gives me hope for what could be released in the future.

This CD, or at least the first CD in the two cd set...gives me Goid Vibrations.

To be honest , as a fan, the very worst Beach Boys album is still far more listenable than 90% of anything out there.

Verdict: Worth a Shot. A lot of value for the cost. Great production.

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Dispatch From Egypt Station: Thoughts on Sir Paul McCartney's New Singles By: Scott Saxon For a song off an album that has a self-styled 'travelogue' vibe, there is irony in the fact that the main failing of the otherwise perky Come On To Me is that it doesn't go anywhere. Paul seems to have lapsed into laziness and convinced himself that the simplest route will do. In all fairness this serve him well during his time with the Beatles and Wings.

It commits the cardinal sin of the pop song and becomes a bit boring towards the end. The one thing to keep in mind is that this is a preview single and the version on the album will run a little longer so this Beatle fan will have his fingers crossed.

On the positive, Greg Kurstin's production works well. It sounds stripped back, but a close listen reveals layers and atmosphere and it doesn't leave Paul's voice is a little too exposed. We should really mention the v-word. You could argue that McCartney is effectively working with one arm tied behind his back because he no longer has access to his previous range, which must be hard for a man with his melodic gifts. So the vocal melody in Come On To Me is quite simple and almost nursery rhyme like. The days of the ex-Beatle writing a song that others would find a real challenge to sing are not over..but maybe harder to get to. Again, we will know more when the full CD hits the shelves and Digital.

Lyrically Come On To Me is decent enough – it's basically about 'pulling' – and I like the intimacy and wit of the words. Paul's at his best with small stories – and least charming when he's trying to make a big statement (Hope For The Future) or a political point (Freedom, Give Ireland Back To The Irish). Also, much as I love The Beatles, I think I'm done with Paul songs that go on about 'the early days' and I-remember-when-me-and-John-were-onthe-bus-in-1961 references.

We will wait for confirmation, but it sounds to me like Paul is playing the drums and he could very well have given the band the day off and be playing everything on this track.

The second song on this 'double A-side single' (by the way, I am hearing that a seven-inch vinyl will happen at some point), I Don't Know, on the face of it has a more 'classic' McCartney vibe. It's a ballad and has a beautiful intro which leads into Hey Jude/Let It Bestyle piano chords and its all sounding very good, but unlike Come On To Me,all this production and lushness rather highlights how the McCartney voice has changed – for the worse – over the years. The man is 76 so no real shame in that, but let's not pretend it hasn't happened. As far as I can recall, Macca has made no public reference to his deteriorating voice (even in jokey self-deprecating style) and he apparently insists on singing songs live in the original key, which is crazy, really. You wonder if he is more open with producers in the studio?

This limitation doesn't remove some delightful melodic twists and turns, such as the chord change at "...I can't take any more" 55 seconds in. Unlike Come On To Me, I Don't Know does have a quality break section, the gorgeous "But it's all right, sleep tight... I will take the strain" bit, about a minute and a half in. In fact, Paul has clearly worked harder on I Don't Knowbecause there's another section ("What's the matter with me... ") at about 2.10, although it's a little bit more plodding.

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The lyric of self-doubt ("...I don't think I can take anymore / what am I doing wrong, I don't know") reminds me a little of the brilliant Mark Ronson produced Alligator from 2013's New, which featured the refrain "Everybody else is busy doing better than me".

I Don't Know is solid enough, but doesn't really have a proper chorus which is a little disappointing. On the verses, Paul can sometimes sound like he's standing there in the studio reading the lines from a piece of paper, which serves to make things sound a little constricted In some ways, it seems a bit churlish to criticise a man who has given so much and written so many wonderful songs, but it's his choice to keep going, and so we have to process what we think of the new material. I'm not going to write off the new album before it has been released – because I really liked much of New – but neither Come On To Me and I Don't Know are any kind of a thrill to listen to. If I had to pick one, I'd opt for Come On To Me – it plays to Paul's strengths in 2018 and has a slightly more 'fun' lyric.

Neither song is an embarrassment, in a why-don't-you-retire way, but similarly neither are rescued from of a pit of averageness by the rope ladder of melodic harmony.

I would say both of them after many listens rate a solid 8.

The true test will be the full studio album which I am hoping that my ever-busy boss will allow me to review. I have heard Snippets here and there that perhaps people should not have leaked but from those 15 to 20 second samples of about 8 songs I have a feeling we're in for a treat.

Egypt Station is available for pre-order in a variety of wonderful formats at the most surprising of places: Paulmccartney.com Who would have thought?

Verdict: Catchy, classic, overall a great listen which will hopefully someday become a classic. On the basis of these two tracks I would solve the say to pre-order the album.

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Bongo Boy Records Featured Artist Sister Salvation Became My Saving Grace At The Stanhope House A Concert Review By Ariana Archilla

I met Joe Amabile at Artie’s Bar and Grill when he played an acoustic set with Chris Zelenka.

Even during an acoustic set where he was sitting down the entire time, I could tell Joe had a knack for stage presence. Joe and Chris kept pausing in between songs to chat with the audience, tell a few jokes, or even make the songs they played the punchline—it was just a fun set to sit and watch. It was interactive—something I think is very important in the entertainment business.

I mean, what’s the point of entertaining the audience if you can’t even entertain them on all angles? After the acoustic set, Joe told me he was in a hard rock band and I nearly lost my mind.

If he was this fun to watch just sitting down, I could only imagine what he’d be like with a full band with him on stage rocking out. Sister Salvation is a hard rock band consisting of four awesome gentlemen: Joe Amabile (vocals), Joe Amabile JR. (drums), Jeff Lepore (guitar), and Lenny Sours (bass). I finally got to witness Sister Salvation on stage at the Stanhope House in Stanhope, NJ, and boy do I have comments.

The Venue First off, the Stanhope House was a great venue for their sound. It was my first time ever going to the Stanhope House to being with and Sister Salvation made my experience there incredible

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enough to make me want to go again. The venue was just small enough to amplify the acoustics, and then big enough for the headbangers to crowd up front and do there thing. Did I mention the bar with the best view of the stage? Yeah. Perk. I had the pleasure of standing right next to one of the gigantic speakers, so you can’t tell me that I didn’t hear the band correctly. The aesthetics of the Stanhope House in general were on point—the stage had zebra print rug, it had a low decorative ceiling, and the guys all dressed to fit the sound and the venue. If you can’t tailor your style to the venue, then you’re the one that looks out of place. Sister Salvation looked right at home on the stage—they owned it.

The Set The amount of raw energy Sister Salvation put into their set blew me away instantly. It was like they injected adrenaline into my veins via hard rock. Sister Salvation didn’t even try to ease into their set—they just jumped headfirst into it which honestly was the right move. The set flowed flawlessly from one song to the next with a few small breaks in between where the band proved themselves true entertainers as they interacted with the audience. Their sound was so tight that I was completely immersed in the music throughout the whole set—not once did my ADD turn my attention away. Sister Salvation had great stage presence that held the entire audience captive. There was even this adorable little rocker in the front that was headbanging along to their songs! Here are some clips that I took for just a taste of what Sister Salvation can do. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDuR6gnHPMs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWaeBTehheA

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The Details Details to me are super important because while I can scream and rave all about the overall impression, there are always small things that really catch my eye. Here’s a check list that I had made right after their performance.

Vocals—killed me.

I knew Joe could sing, but I wasn’t prepared for how much he could rock. His voice had the raspy-ness that all rockers need to be blessed with. He was even jumping and dancing on the stage which had me laughing.

Guitar Solos—killed me.

I swear I’m not exaggerating when I say that guitar solos are what’s going to play when rockers reach Heaven—I don’t care what your role is in the band. It’s going to be a guitar solo. The guitarist, Jeff Lepore, had a solo in every single song and every single time it blew me away. Tears may have been held back. His guitar was cool too—orange and black checker pattern? Sign me up.

Drums—killed me.

Drums and drummers alike are underrated and it’s a sin. Drums are the backbone of the band—they make the beat and they keep the beat. And man can Joe Jr. play. There was not a faulter in his sticks as they flew across the drumset. He made my heart beat along with him!

The bass player’s arms—killed me.

I don’t think I need to elaborate.

Thank you, Lenny Sours. Thank you.

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The Last Word I certainly can’t wait to see Sister Salvation again. The impression they left on me was so lasting that I’m still going back through my photos and watching the videos I took of their performance.

I suggest checking out their new single REWIND released by Bongo Boy Records featured on Emidio’s Rock Den Vol 1. by Various Artists. If any of you want to see for yourself what I’m raving about (AND YOU REALLY SHOULD), they’re playing with Jackyl at One Center Square in Easton, PA, on Sept. 15th. And if that performance leaves you wanting more—cause I promise you it will—Sister Salvation is playing during the FINAL ROUND of the BATTLE OF THE BANDS at the Raven’s Nest in Quakertown, PA on SEPT. 22nd. They’re playing for a $1000 prize folks, so I suggest you get down there and support these guys. They’re more than worthy of a standing ovation. Rock on guys!

For more information on concert dates, visit the band’s website HERE

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Steel Notes Magazine August 2018 Film Review Orson Welles matters now, more than ever

By Jerry Saravia

There are directors who never get noticed, and there are those who have one major hit only to have a slew of flops follow them. Then there are directors who have one major masterpiece and a host of films that follow, never quite matching the brilliance of their initial masterwork. Orson Welles falls in this category, though I have found that "Touch of Evil," "The Trial" and "F For Fake" are brilliant films that arguably surpass his most famous film, "Citizen Kane." This wonderful documentary, "Orson Welles: The One-Man Band," traces Welles' last twenty years of his life where he desperately tried to procure financing for his uncompleted films, only to be turned down again and again.

Most people think that there was not much to Welles beyond "Citizen Kane" and some other studio efforts, not to mention his slew of acting jobs left and right. After "Chimes at Midnight" and "F For Fake," it is assumed that Welles was a has-been who had acted in any and every film, narrating documentaries, and performing in Paul Masson wine commercials. He was a genius who was no longer the shining star of the past. This is, of course, not true at all. Welles was very busy and never got dismayed from lack of funds. He would finance some of his projects with money he obtained from acting. According to his partner and collaborator, Oja Kodar, Welles would travel everywhere with his 16mm camera and an editing table. He was filled with ideas and wanted to explore them all.

Some of his projects include the unfinished Hollywood satire, "The Other Side of the Wind" (which has now gained completion funds and will be streamed on Netflix on Nov. 2nd), "The Merchant of Venice," "The Deep" and "The Dreamers." In some cases, the incomplete status of

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some of these films was a result of either poor business entanglements or financiers who feared Welles's lack of wanting to finish anything, thus based on his reputation. In the case of "Other Side of the Wind," a relative of the Shah of Iran helped to finance the project and then pulled out holding the footage of Welles's opus hostage. "The Merchant of Venice" was to be made for television and the film was actually completed but the negative was stolen! "The Deep" is based on a novel by Charles Williams III, which later became the basis for "Dead Calm" starring Nicole Kidman. Film was almost completed until the main lead, Laurence Harvey, died. "The Dreamers" was a project that began in the early 1980's and was shot in his own L.A. home, but financing was harder to come by at that point. A "King Lear" project was planned but no one was interested.

Clip from an Orson Welles short, “Tailors�

Some other footage shown is interesting though whether the films themselves were ever completed remains a mystery. A short clip about tailors measuring Welles's girth is good for a few laughs. An even funnier clip is shown of Welles playing a lord of the manor interviewed by a bearded Welles! There is also a seven-minute long trailer for "F For Fake" that makes most trailers today look positively unimaginative by comparison. Powerful film fragments of Welles performing a one-man take of "Moby Dick" sans makeup or costuming show what a grand, majestic actor he was, and what an enthralling voice he had! There is also a clip from "Swinging London" which shows typical Welles impersonations of a Chinese ticket-taker, a housewife, a police inspector and a one-man band player.

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Oja Kodar Oja Kodar held all these fragments and incompleted films in a storage room until one day she decided to release them as part of this documentary. What we witness is a fallen giant who had gone from a Hollywood director to an independent film artist who never got the financing he so desired and deserved (his last Hollywood film as a director was 1958's "Touch of Evil"). Director Vassili Silovic, however, fails to make us understand why Welles had so much trouble. One possible reason is that Welles languished for an eternity making his films. According to author Joseph McBride's book on Welles, "The Other Side of the Wind" was a project that lasted from 1970 to 1976. In this film, there is a scene where Welles is interviewed by a college class. He tells them that his dormant project from the 50's, "Don Quixote," will be finished in his own time, just like an author works on an unfinished novel. But why was the negative of "Merchant of Venice" stolen? Did Welles perhaps forget to pay the lab bill, as did Ed Wood with "Bride of the Monster"? Or was he overextending his finances? And how does one explain "F For Fake" and "Filming Othello," both from the 70's and both of them completed?

The main treat of "Orson Welles: The One-Man Band" is watching what the master was up to in that 20-year stretch. Clips from "Other Side of the Wind" prove to be extraordinary and way ahead of its time. One scene shows John Huston as a film director greeted by the press and there are dozens of fast jump cuts from different angles that anticipate MTV by more than a decade!

Another clip shown from "Wind" is a sex scene in a car with Oja Kodar that is as erotic as anything I've ever seen. Curiously, clips from "The Deep" are shown minus a soundtrack. We only hear Welles's booming voice explaining the action that is occurring on screen. There are also clips of his magic shows with the Muppets, his crowd-pleasing acceptance of his Lifetime Achievement Award from the very industry that shunned him, and so much more.

"One-Man Band" is plain evidence of a man who had unfulfilled his legacy of a legendary film director - for his detractors, this film will prove to be quite illuminating. It is sad and upsetting to watch what might have been. I heartily recommend Frank Brady's book, "Citizen Welles," which covers Welles's whole career, including his last few years where he could not get financial help from Steven Spielberg nor procure a Hollywood star like Jack Nicholson for his completed screenplay, "The Big Brass Ring." There is also a fascinating, detailed book by Josh Karp, entitled “Orson Welles’s Last Movie: The Making of The Other Side of the Wind,” which is frustrating to read in terms of the deeply entangled spider web of financing. Both books and the film will serve to amplify the sadness of a man who remained obsessive and forthright, determined to keep making films at any cost.

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Join The Dynamic Divas, Lexxi & Josie every Thursday night from 8 to 10 pm EST at The Jetport Lounge on Airport Road, Allentown Pa. You will be welcomed by our favorite bartender, Sal who will serve you great food and drinks, while you see and hear some of the greatest talent from the Lehigh Valley and Beyond!

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Lola de Hanna

by Nick Christophers

In recent years many international performers have made it to the American shores to spread their wings in any way possible. This would be the case for Greek native Lola de Hanna who took on the music scene with much fervor. At first she actually came to New York to study psychology but her love for music was clawing at her. She eventually looked into performing and recording her own lyrics.

Lola admits that metal, punk and Goth were ingrained in her growing up. Acts like Iron Maiden, Megadeath, The Gathering, The Clash and the Dead Kennedy’s influenced her most. She learned to appreciate the angst and edginess of their music, which she has incorporated into her own style.

She soon established herself as a pop-rock, alternative, electronic and metal singer/songwriter. On her journey to being an independent artist she first offered her vocals as a session singer for producers Gate 57, YZMusic and Timothy House. Her wings would begin to spread as many took notice of her infectious voice. Lola joined the group Chordslinger n Lola which they managed to lock in the #4 position on the Global Reverbnation Charts. At present the duo is not active but talks of working on new music is possible.

Another accolade for Lola was being included in Deli Magazine’s NYC Top 300 charts in the indie-pop category. As her credits began to grow she would link up with Dembiak Productions and release music for TV & film libraries. It turned out one of the songs was chosen for an ad in Belgium and a children’s show in Australia. The track was entitled “It’s Not Easy”.

She collaborated on the track “Looking for Something” with the group Sugar Puppies. At this point of her career she released her debut EP “The Other Side” in 2015. The EP was a combination of various genres of electronic, indie, pop-rock and middle-eastern sounds. Lola admits that the first EP featured some of her ethnic music infused into the melodies. One specific track that offers that flavor is “Thin Air”.

“On my first EP it had more of an eastern style and heavy piano. The new EP is more of a personal, reflective not as upbeat as “The Other Side”.”

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Besides recording Lola has performed all over New York. Two of her favorite venues are Public Assembly in Brooklyn and Otto’s Tiki Bar on the lower East Side. She has also played the Bitter End but seems to enjoy the more intimate settings.

Lola would then link up with an ongoing project called Void Vessel that is set up for music submitted for TV and videos. The music was compiled at Mercy Sound Studios and mixed by Kanky Lora from Straight Line Stitch and mastered by Studio Pros. They released a track called “Believer”.

Her talent was growing in many ways and her vocals became a part of larger collaboration overseas. The collaboration was for HIMMEL’s release “A Long Cold Winter” the project was spearheaded by Luca Giancotti and other international singers. Since then Lola was busy in the studio working on a new EP which she recently released.

The new EP is titled “Welcome” which she is working hard to promote. Prior to the EP she released the single “A Place of Fire” which made some noise and well received by blogs like Indie for Bunnies and the Revue. Currently, she is looking to set up a series of seven shows starting with the Knitting Factory on October 2nd. Her goal at this point is to perform as much as she can until she feels it appropriate to lash out new lyrics. The new EP “Welcome” can be found on her website and wherever music is sold.

Website – https://www.loladehanna.com/

www.veroconceptsmusic.com

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Luca Cerardi Interviews

Johnny Dee This month I m so happy to release my interview I took with Johnny Dee, Doro’s drummer. To me he rapresent the good guy on the drums and it was a pleasure to tour with him in the past. I learnt a lot from him and I had the pleasure to know him self much more as a man and this interview show again his skill not only behind the kit but also in his life. What you can feel the most is the passion and there is no technique or tab or whatever that can teach you this. Enjoy!

Did you ever play other instruments?

I started singing when I was a child. I was in a Catholic school where each student was told whether they were a soprano or something else. I got a pretty high voice and I got the very high parts. I sang a solo piece during Christmas. That was my early musical moment. Then came the drums.

What does it mean for you to play drums?

It’s a passion that started very early on. I did not study music in school, I’m self-taught. This came from the early passion of just seeing drums as a visual thing, and I fell in love with the instrument.

It was a physical thing, a rhythm inside. I’m not a super hyper guy. Drumming to me is fun and energy. I also like to be part of a group, I like to be the foundation, part of a unit. That was my point. An equal piece of the pie, but not an outfront thing. The foundation, the basic groove.

Like The Beatles, they were 4 guys and they put their selves into the musical pie. Everybody has their piece.

Photo by Iron Mike

Did singing help you to be a better drummer?

I like to sing and I can do it in key very well but it didn’t help me to be a drummer. The thing is, I have never studied music. It’s more difficult now and in the past I have never been a multi-

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instrumental guy. I was just happy playing the drums and maybe singing back vocals.

First memory as a drummer?

Well I remember when I was a kid asking for drums. I got a couple really cheap at the toy store. They were just impossible to play but enough to start the passion. That time I got the first kit was pretty amazing, and it became an obsession from then. You always want a bigger kit. At the time it was different compared to now, because you didn’t know anything when there was no YouTube. Now any question can be answered, but at the time you couldn’t even see somebody perform. It was a long learning process. I also remember the first time getting together as a musician. When you start playing with other people you gotta be serious. I started with some friends from school in the basement of my parents’ house. That was pretty formative.

do other things. They were very open minded and I was pretty fortunate. Luckily everything worked out. Other parents used to be angry, but not my parents. It was very cool.

Who inspired you at the beginning?

When you start really young, sometimes you can be inspired by a friend or somebody from your area. You are a kid and you go to a party and you don’t know this guy, but somehow you can connect with him and his way to play. There were a few guys in my area that inspired me. So my beginning was connected to some non-famous guys.Then, when you start listening to music, you become attached to certain musicians for whatever reason, and you get into them more.

That’s when you kinda put all the pieces together.

I guess my earliest memory was Buddy Rich playing in the “Tonight show”, a variety show that is still going but is much different now. This guy came out and it was so amazing. I also admired Ringo, Charlie Watts, Keith Moon and John Bonam. As for bands I would say The Beatles, The Stones, The Who, Zeppelin but – personally - Kiss blow the door. The mid-seventies were the most important to me. I thought these guys came from another planet, it was exciting. It changed my world.

If you feel like listening to some music today, what do you choose?

Photo by evansdrumhead Did your family support you in your early days?

My parents were really supportive. They were super. The drums were fucking loud, and then the guys with their amp… ! My parents were just trying to watch tv and often they would not hear much when we were playing. Good parents, Italian roots. Welcoming, feeding all my friends, it was a place where everybody felt well. My father was born in Italy and my mother in America. All my friends used to say that my house was so cool. We could have hours and hours of fun, I was lucky in that sense.They never pressured me to

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I like old stuff. Sometimes I like new music, but usually I listen to the stuff I grew up with: the seventies music like Genesis, Yes or Queen. They remind me of the good old days when the drums sound was very different. The analog sound is very appealing to me. The digital sound is a tough one for an old-style guy like me. It’s not organic, more robotic. It’s just my personal taste.

When did you realize that you were becoming a professional drummer?

It was a gradual process. From the garage to the studio. I got into a few bands locally when I was growing up. I was in WWIII. They got interested in

early metal and managed to get a record deal but it might have been “too early” for that style.Then I played with Waysted. I went to England and got to play with guys like Ufo. I was a big fan, so that was mind-blowing. Also, Steve Harris was behind the band, trying to get them a deal, so that was great. I was starting to get paid and do tours. We started supporting with Iron Maiden, an incredible learning opportunity. Then we toured the USA with them, but the record didn’t sell enough so that was it. I started playing with Britney Fox right after. I had a great time with them.

What do you think about cover bands?

I started playing with original music, I was lucky enough to do it. But currently the venues have changed mentality, everything has to do with money. Fans just want to hear old things and get drunk and cover songs become necessary. It’s the easy way. Luckily some people say no to that and go the other direction, we have to be pretty thankful for these ones.

Do you think it was destiny or your decisionmaking that brought you to this point in life?

Both, a little bit of both. Opportunities come and go. So you have to makechoices. For example, Cinderella was searching for a drummer back in the day, but I was touring with Waysted so I said no. Then the band dismantled meanwhile Cinderella was going high. There are a lot of variables - luck, skill, opportunities, decisions.

Anyway, I think you are the driver of your own situation.

Doro, you’ve been with her and the band for years.What does it represent? One word?

Home. We have been through so much, so we are at a point where everybody knows their position and we go along really well. It’s family. I spent more time with them that with any other people. I’m just happy to play shows and to keep having the opportunity to do it.

Social media? What is your thought about technology in music? Does it help musicians?

I think it’s pretty amazing what can be done nowadays. It can also be an obsession but it depends on the person. Tech can be very useful, there are many tools that can help bands. I post more travel pics than music-related stuff. I don’t wanna talk about politics and religion. I like to promote what I’m doing and get Doro fans to check it out.

Photo by Evansdrumhead What is your suggestion to young people who want to start playing drums and be musicians?

I think they have to focus on music together with getting a job. For me, back in the day, another job was not an option. I felt I had to try with just music and I was lucky to get in. Many friends didn’t make it. At the same time it’s a struggle because I don’t have anything else and I have to try to keep going in this world. You have to be multitasking to be able to play music as a side job, if you are not able to earn from music. I would just say, realize what your goal is. Do you wanna just survive? Teach? Play covers? Have fun? What is your goal? If you understand that, everything is easier. Music is the greatest thing in the world, but it can also be the most frustrating one. You got to try your best.

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Fall Game Review / 2018

By Domenic Marinelli Montréal, Québec, Canada August 30th, 2018 So gone are those lazy, hazy days of summer … gone are the sweet drinks with the little colorful umbrellas you made yourself in the kitchen, and of course, gone are the afternoons spent lounging in the pool, the sun shining brightly upon your face. Soon, the cold will start to seep through the walls and you’ll be looking for that comfortable afghan you nestled away at the back of your closet last spring. From here on out, you’ll probably be rather unwilling to venture outdoors.

But not to worry; especially for you gamers out there, because Fall 2018 brings the release of many great new games for you to purchase, and when we say a lot … we mean a lot. There are so many in fact, we couldn’t keep the list down to 3 choices for our selection of top games as we’ve done thus far here at Steel Notes, but we’ve got 5 new games that are sure to impress even the greatest skeptic. I’ve even thrown in some honorable mentions, just for you dear readers. Don’t say the D-Man doesn’t think of you guys.

So sit back and let’s get a move on. We’ve all got games to play, I’m sure.

1)

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Shadow Of The Tomb Raider

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(Image via YouTube) That’s right folks … Lara Croft just won’t go away, but if you’re a gamer worth his salt, then that’ll be the best news you’ve heard today. The Tomb Raider franchise (I guess by now we can consider it a franchise) has always represented the best in gaming, and it has yet to disappoint. This installment will leave you breathless and frustrated at the same time. It isn’t the easiest for you intermediates out there, but for you experts ….

A definite purchase item for your next trip to the store, trust me.

Platforms - PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox One Dropping – September 14th, 2018

2)

Madden NFL 19

(Image via Android Central) So for you sports fans out there, rest assured that we’ve got yet another Madden on the horizon. (Don’t we always?) Indeed, but this game has been rather consistent, so why break the mold, especially when it works. It’s fantastic, is loads of fun, and it won’t let you down.

If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it!

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Platforms – Xbox One, PC, PlayStation 4 Dropped – August 10th, 2018

3) NBA 2K 19

(Image via Clutch Points) And staying with that sports theme, we’ve got the latest in NBA action, and rest assured dear reader that this too will satisfy all of your basketball needs—just short of an actual game that is. But don’t worry, you can eat as many chips and slam down as many beers as you want as you play this one. Heck, you can even invite the guys and gals over for tournaments. Trust me, you’ll have a blast.

Platforms – Nintendo Switch, PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 Dropping – September 11th, 2018

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4)

Mega Man 11

(Image via Mega Man 11/MMKB/Fandom/Powered by Wikia)

Oh yeah! The little man in blue is back, and still after all these years, the little dude sure packs a punch.

It’s still basically a 2d game, but not to worry, the graphics are excellent, and the gameplay is not just a cheap review of what’s come before, but it has clearly evolved into a great game that older fans and newer fans can enjoy.

A standby, but a golden nugget of a game. Sometimes, the old standbys are the best, as they never let us down.

Platforms – Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PC, PlayStation 4 Dropping – October 2nd, 2018

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5)

Super Mario Party

(Image via Daily Express) Yeah, Mega Man wasn’t the only blast from the past. As it turns out the old plumber in the red overalls is back and ready for action. In fact, Mario remains to be one of the top-selling videogames even after all these years. Millions of fans cannot be wrong, people. These games don’t disappoint, and this one doesn’t either. You’re all in for a treat and a trip down memory lane as you play this, only in a new format and some cool new adventures. But don’t expect the classic game you played back in the day … like the other Mario Party games, this is more like a board game, but it’ll be loads of fun, so again, trust us.

Platform – Nintendo Switch Dropping – October 5th, 2018

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Well, like we said, there are indeed a lot of games coming out this fall, so we’ve got some honorable mentions that are also pretty cool for you to check out as well and I strongly suggest you take a look at, so here they are: Call of Duty Black Ops 4 / Dropping October 12th, 2018 Red Dead Redemption 2 / Dropping October 26th, 2018 Hitman 2 / Dropping November 13th, 2018 Fallout 76 / Dropping November 14th, 2018 Assassin’s Creed Odyssey / Dropping October 5th Super Smash Bros Ultimate / Dropping December 7th

So enjoy, have a blast, and until next time you crazy gamers … I’ll see you in cyberspace. ***

Domenic Marinelli is the author of Weathered Tracks, Save … Act – A Collection of Ten Stories, Miles In The Dark, Beneath The White Darkness, 13 Years of Lamentation, Resonant Words (articles), Strays In The Cold & Kiss of the Calliope..

He is also a freelance writer who has contributed various pieces to many publications including The Sportster, The Gamer, Hot Cars as well as Steel Notes Magazine.

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