Author: mikeladano

Metal, hard rock, rock and roll! Record Store Tales & Reviews! Grab A Stack of Rock and more. Poking the bear since 2010.

REVIEW: Steve Earle – Shut Up and Die Like an Aviator (1991)

STEVE EARLE – Shut Up and Die Like an Aviator (1991 MCA)

Steve Earle was nearing the end of the first chapter of his career, when he rolled into London and Kitchener Ontario, to record his live album Shut Up and Die Like an Aviator, with his band the Dukes.  Amusingly, Kitchener is misspelled “Kitchner” on the inner sleeve, which led to no end of amusement to us who live here.  Steve had a bad spell with drugs and jail before making a triumphant comeback with the albums Train a Comin’ and I Feel Alright.  This is simplifying and shortening the story quite a bit, but the point is that the Steve Earle that was on tour supporting the album The Hard Way was not as strong as past or future Steves.  Yet the album he made, his first live, remains an important part of the discography to own.  He even produced it himself.  The reality was, this was a contractual obligation album with MCA that received mixed reviews.

The brief album intro featuring news clips from the time sure brings you back to the early 1990s.  Canadians will recognize the Oka crisis (which is addressed during the encores), and the Gulf War too is mentioned.  It’s almost like Steve wanted a time stamp for his first live album.

The crowd fades in and we open with Guitar Town classic “Good Ol’ Boy (Gettin’ Tough)”, and indeed the live version is a bit tougher with louder guitars and backing organ.  After a brief intro, a rasp Steve introduces “The Devil’s Right Hand”, and the cracks appear in the armor with a shaky start.  According to the liner notes, all the lead vocals are 100% live (some guitars were overdubbed where there were technical difficulties).  Even when Steve is pushing his voice, the Dukes are solid as rock, with solos and rhythm anchoring the singer.

A personal favourite, “I Ain’t Ever Satisfied”, one of the best songs from Exit 0, is a slightly more delicate song.  Here, you wish the piano hooks and backing vocals were more audible, but it’s a beautiful song even in this rougher guise.  Once again the Dukes save the day when Steve sometimes flounders.  It leads well into the 1986 single “Someday” from Guitar Town, which is performed slower than the album, with crunchier guitars.  Steve delivers a wonderful performance here.

A jamming “West Nashville Boogie” gives you a ZZ Top vibe.  It’s over twice as long as The Hard Way studio version.  It really smokes as an album highlight, and a showcase for the abilities of the Dukes.  Zip Gibson rips on the solos with Bucky Baxter shredding the steel guitar, while bassist Kelly Looney holds down the groove with some flavour.  Then a blazing “Snake Oil” from Copperhead Road keeps the momentum going.  This is all before a big change of pace.

“Blue Yodel #9” is as folksy as it gets, a Jimmy Rodgers cover, which surprisingly leads into the ballad “The Other Kind” from The Hard Way, one of Steve’s best!  Regardless of the state of affairs, it sounds as if Steve is pouring 100% of what he’s got into the song.  The chorus still rings powerful.  “There are those that break and bend, I’m the other kind, I’m the other kind.”  The song seems to be expressing unhappiness in the face of success, but with Steve singing it in full rasp, it sounds like defiance.  Listen to that beautiful mandolin accompaniment.

Sticking with the new album, it’s “Billy Austin”, captured big and bold on stage.  “Doin’ fine,” says Steve to an audience member who asks.  Unaccompanied, Steve and his guitar tell the story of fictional Billy, on death row.  Again, Steve is a little shaky at first but he soon finds the notes.  This long, slow version reveals both the flaws and the passion.  This was Steve’s big statement on capitol punishment, which he is vehemently opposed to.  “I didn’t even make the paper, ’cause I only killed one man.  But my trial was over quickly, then the long hard wait began.”  It really is chill inducing, as keyboards enter the fray to add soft backing texture.  Even at a weaker moment in his career, Steve Earle manages to deliver an awe inspiring performance, and makes us question our hearts.

“Copperhead Road” was the big hit, and it lies somewhere in the the middle of the set.  “My name’s John Lee Pettimore, same as my daddy and his daddy before.”  The ode to moonshine remains a signature song.  This is not a definitive live version (there is a brilliant later version on the bonus disc to Transcendental Blues).  Once again though, the Dukes absolutely smash it.  Even if Steve has trouble delivering, the guitars compensate.

A version of the ballad “Fearless Heart” features prominent drums by Craig Wright, but the song feels off.  It’s the first Steve Earle classic that just doesn’t sound quite right.  He’s very raspy in his A cappella intro to “Guitar Town”, but the song kicks.  A little sloppy but full speed and it holds together, with all the hooks delivered satisfyingly.  “I Love You Too Much” keeps that momentum going, a smashing performance.  From there it’s goodnight and of course the obligatory three song encore:  A punchy “She’s About A Mover” (Sir Douglas Quintet cover), ballad “The Rain Came Down”, and the Stones cover “Dead Flowers”.  These are solid closers, of different styles.  “The Rain Came Down” is raspy glory, while the other two songs just make you want to party.

Though a rough ride to the end, Shut Up and Die Like an Aviator should be applauded for its “all lead vocals are live” approach.  It’s not as bad as some reviews would have you believe.  It is most definitely a snapshot in a time of the life of Steve.

3.25/5 stars

John the MusicNut: The Live Cut: Steve Earle – Shut Up and Die Like an Aviator with Mike Ladano and Robert Lawson

I was thrilled to be asked to join my friend John the Music Nut on his channel for the first time ever!  John has been on Grab A Stack of Rock, and we’ve both been on Tim’s Vinyl Confessions and My Music Corner among other shows, but this was my debut on his channel and it was really, really cool.  John wanted to do Steve Earle’s live album Shut Up and Die Like an Aviator for his series The Live Cut.  Since that album was partly recorded in my home town of Kitchener Ontario, I immediately said yes.  And then, something cool happened.

After posting the album cover on social media, author Robert Lawson mentioned that he was at both shows recorded for the album, and numerous other Steve Earle concerts too.  It was a no-brainer to get him on too, and it’s a good thing because Robert is the star of this episode!  He brought with him tickets stubs and merch that you won’t likely see anywhere else.  He also has so much insight and relevant stories about the album and tour, that some Wikipedia articles might need some additions and corrections now.

Don’t miss this episode which will premiere Saturday, January 24.  This is what John had to say:

On the latest edition of The Live Cut, I am joined by Mike Ladano (Grab a Stack of Rock) and author Robert Lawson as we discuss Steve Earle and the Dukes’ first live album, Shut Up and Die Like an Aviator. Released on September 17, 1991, this album features performances from October 5, 1990 at Centennial Hall in London, Ontario, Canada and the following night at Centre at the Square in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, respectively. Robert attended both of these shows and shares his stories from seeing Steve during this era. What do you think of this album as well as Steve Earle and the Dukes’ music? Please let us know in the comments! 

I will be posting my text review of the album on Sunday the 25th!

 

🅻🅸🆅🅴 50 Years of IRON MAIDEN episode 28: Death on the Road

50 Years of IRON MAIDEN episode 28: Death on the Road

A special 🅻🅸🆅🅴 episode with guest Jex Russell

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK #135

Scream for me, YouTube!  We’re back with our first live Maiden episode of 2026.  We try and do the live albums as live episodes, since we love that live show experience so much.  With us this time is a lucky owner of the Death on the Road DVD, Mr. Jex Russell!  We first saw his copy of the DVD back in June 26 on a special episode on our Maiden collections.  That set being such a rarity, we had to get Jex back on board when it was time to talk about it.

The early 2000s were an incredibly busy time for Iron Maiden, and for the first time ever we had two consecutive live albums after two consecutive studio albums.  This leads to natural comparisons with Rock In Rio, which also received CD and DVD releases.

Tonight we go all-in for the live album, breaking it down track by track.  Harrison and Jex will have their DVD copies on hand to detail us on its contents.  All three of us will be live to answer your questions and comments as we go!  Don’t miss this special live episode!

 

Friday January 23 at  7:00 PM EST, 8:00 PM Atlantic.  Enjoy on YouTube or Facebook.

Past episodes:

Handy YouTube Playlist:

 

 

REVIEW: The Black Crowes – Happiness Bastards – “Wanting Waiting” (2024)

THE BLACK CROWES – Happiness Bastards (2024 Silver Arrow)

One could not help but be struck by a mixture of happiness and healthy skepticism when the Black Crowes announced yet another reunion.  With a mostly new band, Chris and Rich Robinson didn’t ask drummer Steve Gorman back.  Instead they asked bassist Sven Pipien (who they once famously edited out of the photos for the Black Crowes & Jimmy Page album).  On the album are Nico Bereciartúa (guitar), Erik Deutsch (keyboards) Brian Griffin (drums).  It’s not really a “band”, but maybe the Black Crowes always were Chris, Rich and whoever was along for the ride?

The good news is, no matter the motivations, the Crowes succeeded in putting out another fine studio album.  It’s not a “back to basics” record, like “Here’s Shake Your Moneymaker Part II“.  It’s also not a rootsy, The Band-like record such as Before the Frost… Until the Freeze.  It’s more like the next step beyond those two.  Happiness Bastards is also shorter than either:  10 tracks, with one additional Record Store Day B-side to discuss.

Opening with “Bedside Manners”, it’s the classic Crowes rock and roll sound, but with a slide guitar lick to make it a bit more southern.  It actually sounds a little like Deep Purple Mk IV.  A strong opener, Chris has barely aged and still belts much like Young Chris did 25 years ago.  The lyrics sound cool, but the booklet is printed in such a way that you will never want to read the words.

A smoking riff kicks off a groove unlike any the Crowes have some before.  “Rats and Clowns” clearly recalls Aerosmith, but not “hit” Aerosmith.  No, this recalls “deep cut” Aerosmith, riff-based and snotty.  This will go down as one of the most memorable Crowes tunes in the discography.

A really surprising number is “Cross Your Fingers”, which begins as an acoustic soulful ballad.  It then transforms into a bass-driven groove.  This is a sound that the Crowes do so well, when they choose to do it.  Rich’s abbreviated closing solo is gravy.  Three tracks in, and the Crowes have done three different directions, on three awesome songs.

The single “Wanting Waiting” has an AC/DC (Bon Scott) groove, mixed with Hammond organ and the Crowes’ own swagger.  The drummer even has a Phil Rudd vibe.  It’s clear why a song like this was chosen as single.  Though it sounds like something from another band in another decade, the soulful rock and roll here is timeless.  A “greatest hit” kind of song to be sure.

Side One ends with “Wilted Rose” featuring country singer Lainey Wilson.  Though it’s only the first ballad, the Crowes do have a lot of more memorable songs like this.

The second side opens with another rippin’ riff backed by Hammond organ.  Then Chris struts his way through the verses, sounding as cool as a cat.  It’s a song called “Dirty Cold Sun”, but again the Crowes have captured a really solid groove, before they go off experimenting again.

“Bleed It Dry” is pure blues, acoustics and pedal steels crying away with some honky-tonk piano and a moaning Chris Robinson.  The harmonica blasts, telling the timeless tale of woe.

It’s off on another direction again.  Pop rock inflects the jubilant “Flesh Wound”!  This high speed blast sounds like the Crowes travelled back in time to the new wave era of the 80s, wrote a song, and came back to the present in order to record it.   It’s an absolutely brilliant song.  Wait until you hear the chanted chorus accompaniment at the end!   If it wasn’t so different for this band, it probably would have made a better single.  “Flesh Wound” is the diamond of a deep cut that you will find when you play the album through.

“Follow the Moon” takes us back to a bluesy groove, with a funk Rich riff leading the way.  When Rich plays his lead solo, the rhythm guitar drops out just like a 70s record, allowing the bass to come up.   Great song, slick playing, and very much a traditional Crowes sound.

The sequencing of the album leads us to feel like a ballad would be the way to close.  And so, “Kindred Friend” ends the album with acoustics, slide, and harmonica, done up with sentiment and nostalgia.  It has a similar feel to a previous Crowes closer, “Time Will Tell”.

Happiness Bastards feels like a journey.  Listening to it, you are taken from peak to valley, and a variety of colours and sounds.  It doesn’t feel like a cash-in, a sell-out, or a phone-in.  It legitimately sounds like the Black Crowes moving on to their newest incarnation.

It’s wonderful.

4/5 stars

THE BLACK CROWES – “Wanting Waiting” / “Morsels for Mongrels” (2024 Silver Arrow RSD single)

One bonus B-side to Happiness Bastards can be found in “Morsels for Mongrels”, the B-side to the “Wanting Waiting” single.  The most different of all the songs, it’s still based on bluesy slide guitar, but with a distant distorted lead vocal.  It’s like the Crowes doing their version of garage rock.  You can understand why it wasn’t included on the album, as it’s just a little too far out there for the record.  Yet it’s a valuable add-on; a fun additional direction that the Crowes explored with typical joie-de-vivre.  A blast to slide into your file folder as a bonus track.

3.5/5 stars

And that’s the latest from the Black Crowes.  An unexpectedly excellent comeback.  Keep it going, guys.

EPSON MFP image

 

 

Rock Daydream Nation: Black Sabbath – Born Again: Is this album hot or not?

Good morning!  For your entertainment this fine day, please check out Rock Daydream Nation’s epic analysis of Black Sabbath’s controversial Born Again LP.  Is this album hot or not?  Long time readers know my feeling on this subject.  Ian Gillan of Deep Purple fame joined Black Sabbath’s otherwise-original lineup to record the weirdest sounding albums in Sabbath history.  It could also be their heaviest, most evil sounding album with some of Ian’s most perplexing lyrics ever.

Born Again has been seen in a better light over the decades, but I still receive much mockery when I tell people how high I rank it.  Will our panel today agree with me?

Joining Peter and I are a special Rock Daydream Nation YouTube panel featuring Reed Little, John Gaffney (Alchemist of Rock), and Brandon Battick (Disturbing the Priest).

Saturday 17 January at 8 AM EST!  Join us!

 

🅻🅸🆅🅴: Have You SEEN This Concrete Blonde Collection?!

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man

Special 🅻🅸🆅🅴 Episode

Episode 134: Have You SEEN This Concrete Blonde Collection?!

This week Harrison takes the hot seat as he helms an episode he’s passionate about!  Its Concrete Blonde, featuring the talents of bassist and vocalist Johnette Napolitano!  Harrison is taking tonight to show off his “Complete Albums, Super Rare + More”!  Both Harrison and Mike focus their collecting on an end goal:  getting a physical copy of every officially released version of every track.  Has Harrison achieved this yet?

Concrete Blonde are a little off our usual beaten track.  The alternative rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, broke up in 1994 after scoring some major hits such as “Joey”, and reunited a number of times over the decades.  Harrison will walk us through the discography tonight.

This will be a fun episode for the compact disc and physical media collectors!  Join us live so we can interact in the comments!

 

Friday January 16 at  7:00 PM EST, 8:00 PM Atlantic.  Enjoy on YouTube or Facebook.

50 Years of IRON MAIDEN bonus episode: The Essential Iron Maiden

50 Years of IRON MAIDEN bonus episode: The Essential Iron Maiden

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK bonus episode

This week’s bonus episode of 50 Years of Iron Maiden falls on a Tuesday.  This is a shorter episode, that we wanted to run mid-week.

On 12 July 2005, Sony released The Essential Iron Maiden in North America.  As Maiden’s fourth compilation (and third multi-disc compilation), it was interesting for several reasons.  First and most obviously, there is no Eddie on the cover.  Second, it was released as part of Sony’s Essential series, and we’ll look at another disc from that series for comparison.  Third, it is again mostly reverse-chronological, almost like an updated Best of the Beast without the rarities.

We’re calling it the “weirdest” Iron Maiden best of album for these reasons and more.  Would you buy it?  Have a watch and let us know about this truly un-essential Essential release by Sony!

 

Wednesday January 13 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T., 8:00 PM Atlantic.  Enjoy on YouTube.

 

 

Past episodes:

Handy YouTube Playlist:

 

RE-REVIEW: Poison – Open Up and Say… Ahh! (1988, 2018 180 gram coloured vinyl reissue)

Our review of the deluxe CD edition of this album can be found here.

POISON – Open Up and Say… Ahh! (1988, 2018 Capitol 180 gram coloured vinyl reissue)

There are some bands I find myself constantly having to defend my enjoyment of.  Poison is definitely up there in the top five, if not #1.   They’re not incredible musicians (Richie Kotzen and Blues Saraceno notwithstanding).  They put out some junk.  But they also did at least three legitimately great hard rock albums, and Open Up and Say… Ahh! is one of them.  Poison had good producers behind their best albums.  Bruce Fairbairn, Richie Zito, and in this case, Tom Werman, who had plenty of experience getting great records out of mediocre musicians (and great ones too).

This 180 gram vinyl reissue, on red vinyl and spinning at 45 rpm, still sounds great.  This was a good sounding album 1988 and this record spins well.  The drum sound is a little synthetic sounding, but that was a common issue in the 80s.  Rikki Rocket got a better snare sound later on in the 1990s.  CC’s guitar is like an over-the-top Ace Frehley.  Harsh with more of that 80s transistor amp sound, but actually not that bad on this album.  Frehley was probably the model.  Werman got a solid performance out of Bret Michaels, and layers the choruses with ample backing vocals, but just enough for sweetener.

The album was loaded with mostly good songs.  Opening with the terrific riffing of “Love on the Rocks”, Poison started with a rocker, as if to prove a point.   “She goes down slow, like a shot ‘o gin…” and 14 year old me had no idea what Bret was really signing about, so you have to give the lyricist credit for that.  “You wanna taste my love, why don’t ya swallow this.”  Well, maybe I did get the picture after all.  Swallow This was the original album title, but cooler heads prevailed.  It was later used as the title for Poison’s premature double-live.

Smash hit and first single “Nothin’ But A Good Time” is in the second position, exactly where it belongs, hitting it home immediately.  The riff always struck me as something inspired by Kiss (“Deuce), but later on Kiss ripped off this song for one of their own (“Never Enough”).  Although it’s bubblegum hard rock fun, there’s nothing wimpy about “Nothin’ But A Good Time”.  “Back to the Rocking Horse” is a good track, a sort of Poison deep cut, as is the harmonica-laden “Good Love”.  The first side ends with the darker “Tearin’ Down the Walls”.  Songs like this show that Poison were more than the sum of the public’s perception.  CC’s guitar solos speak.  The lyrics may be shallow (coming home from the road for a good romp in bed), but there’s something about the music that is more than meets the ear.

Opening side two, “Look But You Can’t Touch” has a completely different vibe.  A vicious CC riff kicks it off.  We’ll ignore Bret’s ill-advised lyrics about plying an unwilling young woman with drink.  Not cool, Bret!  (I didn’t think so back in 1988 and I don’t think so now, so don’t come at me.)   Great song otherwise, thanks to CC’s killer riff.  As if to make up for the previous song, Poison got a bit serious on “Fallen Angel”.  In the music video, a predatory manager played by actor Anthony James takes advantage of young girls heading to Hollywood looking for stardom.  It’s a re-enactment of the lyrics:  “She stepped off the bus out into the city streets, just a small town girl with her whole life packed in a suitcase by her feet.”  Things gradually go bad, and Bret’s words serve as a warning.  The song itself remains in the top Poison tracks of all time.  It has it all:  great riff, terrific chorus, strong verses, and another in a series of memorable CC guitar solos.  He didn’t break new ground as a lead soloist, but like many that receive far more praise than he does, CD composes his solos.  The one in “Fallen Angel” is like a mini-song inside a song.

“Every Rose Has Its Thorn” was respected in its time for being a bit further out in the acoustic direction than many bands were comfortable.  “Too country!” said some.  Bret was right on the money with this song, as time has shown.  It didn’t take long (only three years) to become something of a pop culture phenomenon, being quoted in the second Bill & Ted film.  You’ve heard it a million times, but it still stands as a good, well written and well performed ballad, with another great little CC solo.

The cover of “Your Mama Don’t Dance” was cute, and we’ve all heard it a million times now.  It’s fun but at this point we don’t need to discuss it.  We close on “Bad to be Good”, which actually focuses on Bobby Dall’s bass line as the main backbone of the song.  Not to be ignored, listen to CC’s opening guitar licks.  This is a fine song, but not an album cornerstone.  Just a way to take the album out on a dark, sassy note.

One thing we always appreciated about Open Up And Say… Ahh! back in the 80s was that it came with ample photos on the lyric sheet.  Though the cover was always garish and ugly, Poison gave you value when you bought their records.

4/5 stars

 

 

New VIDEO PLAYLIST: Gaming – And we have Atari 2600 fun for you

Hello Grab A Stack of Rock viewers, and gaming fans!  Subscribers and readers know that in the summers, I have done some quick and fun gaming videos at the cottage.   These have been fun and simple Plug & Play arcade and Atari 2600 games, made simply by pointing my camera at a screen.  These were enjoyable to make and watch, so I set about making gaming videos at home on the PC too.

On the PC, I like to play Atari 2600 games emulated on Stella.  Windows 11 enables you to easily screen capture videos, so I made a few just by playing games using the directional keys on the keyboard.  This was effective for most games but annoyingly loud on the resulting audio recording.  I went ahead and bought a $30 Hyperkin Trooper 2 joystick, very similar to the original 2600, which has now brought me to the level that I can make gaming videos of a more satisfying quality.

Subscribe to the channel and check out the playlist below.  My recent Atari 2600 videos are embedded below as well.

Happy gaming!

CLICK HERE FOR THE PLAYLIST

 

 

 

 

 

Satisfying Red Dragon Escape! Atari 2600 “ADVENTURE” on Stella

I was having a REALLY good game of Atari 2600 Missile Command on Stella, until…

Zaxxon: Atari 2600 emulated on Stella

Stop! Hammer Time! Atari 2600 Donkey Kong on Stella – beating level 2 at least!

Stupid Snake! Playing Atari 2600 Q*Bert on Stella with new Hyperkin Trooper 2 Joystick!