August, 1982: John “J.D.” Roberts on The New Music (pre-MuchMusic) sat down with the Mob Rules lineup of Black Sabbath (Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Vinnie Appice – no Dio this time) to ask about the fuss involving Satanic lyrics. While Geezer admits to using Satan a bit as a lyrical device, he also points out that it’s only one facet of his writing. Stopping wars, he points out, is one of their big topics.
Great little clip that shows the laid back band at their most laid back.
A true throwback to the early days of Grab A Stack of Rock, and a showcase for the Mad Metal Man. That was Friday night on Grab A Stack of Rock.
Harrison showed us several CDs that Mike wants to add to his collection, including a 2 CD edition of Alice Cooper in El Paso 1980, Iron Maiden bootlegs with Paul, Bruce and Blaze, Black Sabbath with Ian Gillan, a Bruce Dickinson single, and many more. Harrison also had a rare Nintendo NES video game soundtrack on 7″ vinyl, and possibly the only Arkells CD in all of Australia. (We just don’t know!)
I miscalculated the length of tonight’s show. I expected it to run an hour. I invited some surprise guests to welcome back Harrison after his long absence, and so we were joined by Peter Kerr, Johnny Clauser, and Jex Russell at the one hour mark. Thank you guys for joining us on this special night.
Mike also had some CDs to show off, such as Prince, Paul Stanley, ELP, King Kobra, and Faster Pussycat. However, storytelling was his main role. The Sultans of Ping FC and the Arkells featured into two stories.
Thank you for watching and see you next week on Grab A Stack of Rock for our Mad Max movie ranking!
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 76: The Mad Metal Man Returns!
Long have we waited!
The Mad Metal Man known as Harrison has been on sabbatical since February of this year. Though he did return last week to pay tribute to Paul Di’Anno (in epic fashion), we had a proper return episode planned for him. And here it is! This is Harrison’s official return to the co-host seat.
Two years ago, in October of 2022, I messaged Harrison out of the blue* and asked him if he wanted to go live that night. Fortunately he said yes, and here we are celebrating his second anniversary on Grab A Stack of Rock! We didn’t have a name or a theme song for that first show, but here we are today still going strong. It started out as an easy, casual show where we just grabbed stacks of music and showed it off for the audience. It’s evolved since then to include lists and deep-dives.
I missed the mighty Mad Metal Man very much during his absence. The show is only better when he is on board: our very own rule-breaker, and historian of live concert setlists. Tonight Harrison will show off some metal that he has acquired over the past few months. We will also have an “Ask Harrison” question for his special return! This will be a classic “random & chaotic”** episode of Grab A Stack of Rock!
Friday November 1 at 8:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 9:00 P.M. Atlantic. Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!
* This is only half the story. There was an ulterior motive.
** A CD collector named Jamie Wolansky claimed our show was too “random and chaotic” for him to watch. Let’s wear that as a badge!
A sequel to last week’s show! Last Wednesday, we covered brown album covers. This week we’re following that up with yellow album covers! I will be joining the Contrarians LIVE tonight at 7:00 PM EST for this excellent topic idea. Each of us has ten picks. The final panel is TBA but I will be with at least the following people:
40 unique picks for yellow cover art. Yes, we will see Stryper.
THE CONTRARIANS – Yellow Album Covers – Wed. October 30 7:00 PM EST
To coincide with his new book RED ON BLACK: The Listener’s Guide to Sammy Hagar, Tim Durling and I took a deep dive on album #3: Musical Chairs.
Here’s what Tim has to say about this episode:
“@GrabAStackofRocK’s Mike Ladano joins me for this look through Sammy’s third album, his second to be released in 1977. For the most part, we agree on this one. Be sure and subscribe to Mike’s channel for great content.“
This is the last show recorded at the cottage in 2024, in front of a nice fireplace. I unboxed my copy of the book on this show. Buy your own by clicking below!
Purchase RED ON BLACK: The Listener’s Guide to Sammy Hagar.
“One of the best shows I have EVER been a part of!” – Mike
“It’s definitely a top shelf RDN show for sure!” – Peter
The pleasure is always mine when I get to be a part of Rock Daydream Nation. I absolutely love Peter’s show; it challenges us and it entertains you. This was a relatively easy show for me. All I had to do was listen to Van Halen all week, and pick my favourite and least favourite songs from the Roth albums. That’s it! Beats workin’!
Tim Durling joined us for this amazing showcase of tunes, with some surprises. What was clear is this: least favourites are all but irrelevant. They’re all favourites to different degrees! I learned that I tend to gravitate to the more melodic side of Van Halen. Meanwhile, Peter was able to glean some meaning behind some of Roth’s lyrics.
Top shelf RDN is right. Top Jimmy would be proud.
This week, we lost the monolith of metal known as Paul Di’Anno. Born as Paul Andrews, he gripped the world in 1980 fronting the almighty Iron Maiden. The spark was brief but bright. His two Iron Maiden albums, plus some EPs and singles, carved an identity. Those who get it loved him. Some of them followed Paul into solo outings and new bands. And this show has a wealth of appreciation for it all.
With Professor Pete Jones on board as surprise guest, we talked about all things Paul. Pete was there from the very beginning, buying the first album in store upon sight. He goes deep into the music and the early Iron Maiden sound, supplanted by the late great Clive Burr on drums. Harrison Kopp, in a mighty return to Grab A Stack of Rock after nearly nine months away, gave us a run through Paul’s career, highlighting live songs and memorable tracks suck as “Marshall Lockjaw”. Johnny Metal and Metal Roger contributed their own personal stories and what Paul’s music meant to them. As John said so well: thank you.
Meanwhile, I let the boys do most of the talking. Instead, I presented an interview I did with Paul’s old guitar player Steph Honde. He tells a tale of picking up Paul at the airport, and playing live without rehearsal. I also played Bruce Dickinson’s tribute to Di’Anno, and friend Brian Richards’ thoughts about the tribute from the perspective of an audience member that night. Finally, I read a loving statement from friend Thor Blackmore, towards the end of the show.
I know we will all miss Paul Di’Anno.
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 75: Paul Di’Anno Tribute
We had a completely different show planned this week. Then, in the early hours of Monday morning, John Snow informed us that former Iron Maiden singer Paul Di’Anno had passed.
It was like that moment the record scratches and the needle comes off. The shock set in, and then I realized, we need to change the show this week. We need to pay tribute to (not the original singer, but) the first recorded Iron Maiden lead singer. Paul filled some shoes: Paul Mario Day and Den Wilcock preceeded him in Iron Maiden, but it was Di’Anno who helped put them on the center stage. Paul’s punk look and snarl differentiated Iron Maiden from the rest of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. They were clearly different from the pack, and their intense and sweaty live shows proved it.
This week on Grab A Stack of Rock, Harrison Kopp will make an early unscheduled return, joining myself, John Clauser, and Metal Roger in tribute. 24 hours after our show, Roger will be seeing Iron Maiden themselves in Toronto. All of us will be talking about the man, the myth, and the albums! As an added bonus we will also be running a clip from my 2021 interview with his former guitar player Steph Honde, on playing live with Paul! We will also be playing Bruce Dickinson’s tribute to Paul from Minnesota.
“I know you’d have gone insane if you saw what I saw,” but tonight, please join us and see our Tribute to Paul Di’Anno. As usual there will be lots of physical products, including two VERY RARE Iron Maiden box sets, some vinyl, and double CD sets.
Friday October 25 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic. Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!
A sequel to last week’s show! Last Wednesday, we saw quite a few brown album covers when we looked at minimalist album art. This week we’re following that up with brown album covers! I will be joining the Contrarians LIVE tonight at 7:00 PM EST for this excellent topic idea. Each of us has ten picks. I will have the honour of sitting on a panel with:
60 unique picks for brown cover art. I’ve given my list a twist: all Canadian artists!
THE CONTRARIANS – Brown Album Covers – Wed. October 23 7:00 PM EST
It’s been a minute since we’ve seen the boys on the screen, but fans know that Bubbles (Mike Smith) has always brought music to the fore. Whether it’s jamming with Alex Lifeson on “Closer to the Heart”, playing with his band the Shitrockers, or crooning solo hits such as “Kitties Are So Nice”, Bubbles is the musical one. And now, the Shitrockers are on the road, opening for Billy Bob Thornton’s band the Boxmasters. And somehow Ronnie Wood figures in it too. I guess we’ll get the whole story on December 6!
From prison riots to being stranded in London, it sure looks like Bubbles and the boys will have their hands (and pipes, and glasses) full this time! This’ll get your lazy arses back in the cinema, stoners!
mikeladano.com 