GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Special 🅻🅸🆅🅴 Episode featuring guest Tim Durling & Uncle Meat
And guest list from Jake
Episode 138: Top Ten Songs of Queensrÿche
Raise ’em up! Uncle Meat wanted to count down the Top 10 songs from Queensrÿche, a band we have yet to tackle on Grab A Stack of Rock. So, we looked into the Eyes of a Stranger, placed Hand on Heart, and tried to shed some Nocturnal Light on these songs. But it wasn’t Just Us! Along for the ride is terrestrial DJ Tim Durling, and we will also have a guest list from Jake (Not From State Farm).
Spanning the EP all the way to Digital Noise Alliance, Queensrÿche have a lot of songs to sift through. For this special episode, Mike even went as far as to acquire a copy of Frequency Unknown, the album that Geoff Tate made before he lost the rights to the Queensrÿche name. (For added fun, this copy was gifted by Matthew Phillips, who had three remixed CDs sent to him by Cleopatra records. This is not the retail Billy Sherwood remix, but the rare mail order only version dubbed “we remix, you decide”.)
Even though Queensrÿche arguably had a “dark period” with some albums that didn’t ignite the fire in fans, they also had a strong comeback with Todd LaTorre on lead vocals. Will any Todd songs make the list tonight? We’ll be Breaking the Silence to reveal all!
Friday February 20 at 7:00 PM EST, 8:00 PM Atlantic. Enjoy onYouTube orFacebook.
50 Years of IRON MAIDEN episode 29: A Matter of Life and Death
With special guest Uncle Meat
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK episode 137
“I love work. I can sit and watch it for hours.” – Nicko McBrain
Our longest episode of the entire series, A Matter of Life and Death is a special album in the Maiden arsenal. Bringing back one of Maiden’s most popular lyrical topics, the album largely focused on warfare, with a sideline into religion and social commentary. There might even be an original fictional tale or two here, sprinkled in with the cold historical reality. A Matter of Life and Death is a high water mark, we will argue, and hope you’ll listen to what we have to say.
Original Grab A Stack of Rock alumnus Uncle Meat returns for an album that he picked, because he was fortunate enough to see this tour. That will become important later on. Along with Mike and Harrison, each of the 10 new songs are broken down musicially and lyrically, with historical and personal context added for colour. An album laden with highlights, we take our time to appreciate the minor details.
We’re only just getting started: This album has a whopping 11 assorted bonus tracks and B-sides to discuss, plus a vital bonus DVD. The extra tracks come from many formats: A magazine CD tribute album to Deep Purple’s Machine Head, a DVD single, several CD singles, a 7″ and 10″ vinyl, just to get all the tracks. There is also an additional promo CD single to mention, and an exclusive live track that you can’t get anymore because it was a download-only. Bummer.
When we’re done all that, and have discussed the included documentary DVD in detail, we move on to the tour(s). And oh, what they did nearly tore fandom apart. As illustrated on Mike’s bootleg CD, Revenge Is Living In The Past, Maiden played all 10 album tracks in sequence before getting to a smattering of classic hits (including of course “Fear of the Dark”). Uncle Meat was there when it went down in Toronto, and not knowing what we was in for, he describes his immediate impressions. As a group, we tackle the tour’s historic importance, and the fallout that came next. The next time around, Maiden had cut the 10 songs down to just five, and added more classics back into the set.
This 1 hour 38 minute episode includes the last musical B-sides or bonus tracks we’ll get from Maiden, save one RSD picture disc we’ll discuss later on. The bonus tracks are a wonderful, confounding collection to complete. We hope you enjoy the level of detail we went into for this episode. We felt the album deserved nothing less.
Friday February 13 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T., 8:00 PM Atlantic. Enjoy on YouTube.
RECORD STORE TALES #1233: Mötley Imposter – Inside Scoop!
On December 12, 2025 5:54 pm, I received the email that could shake the very foundations of Motley Crue.
I jest, of course. I debated whether to post this or not, but ultimately decided to release it to the public. I have removed the sender’s name for privacy, but I have not edited their text in any way.
This follows up an article I wrote in 2022 called “Mötley Imposter”. It is the story of Matthew Trippe,who claimed to have replaced Nikki Sixx in Motley Crue at one point in the mid-80s. Though it follows that story, the email I received is about four different bass players, not Trippe!
According to Trippe’s tale, he was hired to “be” the new Nikki, but was fired when the “real” Nikki returned to the band. The year was 1988 and Trippe (reported in some articles as Matthew Von Trippe, getting his middle name John wrong) was featured in an issue of Kerrang. Matthew’s claim was that the real Sixx had a dibilitating car accident in 1982, and so a lookalike (Trippe) was hired to play bass and write music with the band, with no one in the audience being any the wiser. Trippe had tattoos similar to Nikki, and dyed his hair black. The real Nikki Sixx was having his own issues, but being replaced in the Crue was not one of them. Kerrang broke the story in March of ’88, with lawsuits a-flyin’. Trippe wanted compensation for what he claimed were two or three years in Motley Crue.
The lawsuits went nowhere because there was only ever one real Nikki Sixx, but the story has gone on to have a life of its own. Trippe did go down in history as the subject of a Motley Crue song called “Say Yeah”, which is better than he probably deserved. We covered the story on YouTube with Canadian author Brent Jensen, but that was not the last I heard about Matthew John Trippe.
The unedited email I received is below. Apparently the real Nikki Sixx died in 1981 and was replaced by four other bassists in succession. The current Nikki started in 1987. Dig in below…and try not to think too hard!
hello Mike, im emailing you in regards about NIKKI SIXX, The Sixx in Motley Crue today since 1987 -present is not the original Nikki Sixx, the original sixx was Killed in a barfight in 1981, in los angeles , He was replaced by a guy named Pat Searle or sears, who isnt a good bass player but a poser. then Pat had a car accident in 1983 after the US Festival , he was replaced by other understudies which was 3 others , the first 2 of them was from Blackie Lawless previous bands SISTER AND CIRCUS CIRCUS, One is a guitar player named Randy Schatz & A bass player named Joey Palermo , they both have been friends with motley crue since the early days and the other guy is from Vince Neils former band rock candy ,he was the bass player whos tall and skinny and looks like a rock star before the 80s glam look..the guy from Rock Candy definitely was in motley crue as nikki sixx i have photos to prove it.. I dont know his name and his name isnt Joe Marks because Joe Marks has been accounted for in recent years.. the others are ghosts.the bass player from vinces former band rock candy is on google images ..he married Brandy Brandt,see his pictures without make up .,hes also in the Don”t go away mad video” hes the Sixx with the pony tail walking with tommy and mick. im not trying to dog nikki sixx or expose there secrets but the truth must come out sometime..matthew trippe was not in motley crue..he was an obsessed fan with mental issues who kind of stalked the band on tour during those days.,he did get some things right about this present nikki sixx has blue eyes not green..ive seen nikki sixx with green eyes and black or brown eyes in color pictures and it was not nikki sixx. i hope this information helps..None really cares about this information anyway..but is just food for thought. i also have pictures of these guys before motley and during motley . They all got let go becuase the Sixx we see today got stated back in the band in the late early or late 90s to play live because he sucked at playing bass and couldnt keep his time. i hope this helps..and the all probably signed NDAs too. im sure they didnt make alot of money playing that role of nikki sixx..
As for Trippe, who died in 2014, he never came clean about his ruse. He did go down in history as the subject of a Motley Crue song called “Say Yeah”, which is better than he probably deserved!
Music & vocals by Tee Bone, remix and guitar solo by Tim Durling. Writting by M Ladano, J Ladano, T Erickson
Not including myself, 53 people have been on Grab A Stack of Rock to date since its debut on October 28 2022.
Cool things still to come. More interviews lined up in 2026, and 50 Years of Iron Maiden rolls on. We have two NEW series that we have started recruiting guests for, and many more surprises lined up. Because the song is now over two minutes long, we are using it as our outro video instead of intro. It will debut on the February 20 episode of Grab A Stack of Rock – Top 20 Queensryche songs!
50 Years of IRON MAIDEN bonus episode: Reissued Singles with New B-Sides 2002-2005
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK bonus episode
This 22 minute bonus episode finally wraps up some of the loose ends that we skipped over in prior instalments. We wanted to group these special singles into one episode.
In 2002, Maiden reissued “Run to the Hills” to support a special fundraising gig for the Clive Burr MS Trust Fund. The first CD single included songs from Beast Over Hammersmith, also released in 2002 on Eddie’s Archive. This single also supported the forthcoming Rock In Rio album. A second CD included two tracks from Reading 1982. Both singles included Camp Chaos videos later released on Visions of the Beast. “Total Eclipse” is a previously unreleased live version.
In 2005, to support The Early Years DVD, Maiden reissued “The Number of the Beast” on CD and vinyl. There were new B-sides here as well, from the Clive Burr support gig at Brixton ’02. The single also included a Camp Chaos video, and a live video from Brixton.
Finally in 2005, supporting Death on the Road, “The Trooper” was reissued on multiple formats. A highly coveted download-only version of “The Trooper” from Iceland in 2005 remains one of Maiden’s most highly sought rarities, simply because it had no physical release and is no longer for sale on their website. The singles on various formats included a slew of early tracks from the Eddie Rips Up The World Tour. Once again the CD version included videos, but no Camp Chaos this time.
Harrison and Mike will go through all the versions of all the singles, in detail tonight. That wraps up all the loose ends before we get into the next studio album, A Matter of Life and Death. Don’t miss this special, crucial part of Maiden history.
Friday February 6 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T., 8:00 PM Atlantic. Enjoy on YouTube.
It was with great sadness last week that we learned of the passing of Canadian icon Catherine O’Hara. From first seeing her on SCTV as Lola Heatherton and many more great characters, through to Home Alone, Beetlejuice, all of the Christopher Guest films, and Schitt’s Creek, Catherine was part of our lives through every stage.
Please join Dan Chartrand and myself, on OfftheCharts, for our musical tribute to this Canadian treasure. She will be terribly missed by fans and friends alike.
Please join Dan fromOfftheChartsand I for this review and unboxing!
RICK HUGHES – Redemption (2025 Deko/Rubicon Japanese import)
Rick Hughes of Sword fame is back with some of his most personal music to date. In short: it rocks!
Highlights:
“Dead End Road”
“The Real Me”
“Will of the Gun”
“Someday”
The Who cover “The Real Me” features Ozzy’s Speak of the Devil band! Rudy Sarzo (Quiet Riot, Whitesnake), Tommy Aldridge (Whitesnake) and Brad Gillis (Night Ranger). This smashing version destroys other cover versions you know. Meanwhile, “Someday” is not really a cover of an Aldo Nova song. It is a Rick song he has reclaimed as his own.
There are more guests such as Lee Aaron and Robby Krieger (the Doors), and not one weak song in the batch of rockers, ballads, and soulful swingers.
Check out the video below, where Rick explains the origins of “Someday” while we take a good look at the Japanese CD and compare to the domestic vinyl.
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Special 🅻🅸🆅🅴 Episode featuring guest Tim Durling
Episode 136: Collecting Quirks of the Music Nerds
On tonight’s special episode of Grab A Stack of Rock, we welcome back special guest Tim Durling, for a controversial topic: collecting! Every collector has different “needs” and goals. For example, Harrison and I seek a physical copy of every officially released song, and versions of songs, by the bands we collect. Tim has different goals in mind. On deck for tonight’s discussion:
Controvery! Tim doesn’t open vinyl!
Tim and Mike have formats they can’t play!
What we buy, what we don’t and why?
CD/DVD/Bluray combo packages – where do we file them?
KISS Solo Albums – What order?
Box Sets – how do we file those?
Filing “Alice” under “A”?
Filing side projects under main bands?
Why Mike didn’t like having two copies of any one thing.
What is “complete” to us?
Do we collect air? And why not?
Why Mike will not share files.
Mad About Purchases.
At what point do I decide I’m “done” collection any band?
This is sure to be a wild discussion. Don’t miss it tonight!
Friday January 30 at 7:00 PM EST, 8:00 PM Atlantic. Enjoy onYouTube,Facebook or Twitter.
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!
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 YouTubeor Facebook.
mikeladano.com 