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🅻🅸🆅🅴 Sing Me Away: The Night Ranger Album Review with Tim Durling

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

🅻🅸🆅🅴 Episode

Episode 125:  Sing Me Away: The Night Ranger Album Review with Tim Durling
With co-host John Snow (The Collection and 2Loud2OldMusic)

Author and Youtuber Tim Durling has been busy.  Sing Me Away: The Night Ranger Album Review isn’t even his newest book!  More on that later, because tonight we celebrate the California Quintet and Tim’s panel book on them.

Joining us tonight is fellow expert and fan John Snow, who will be prove that you can still rock in America, oh yeah!

Tim is a passionate Night Ranger fan and collector, and we will quiz him tonight on everything that went into this book.  The albums, the lineup changes, the amazing tunes, and Tim’s collection. We’ll also talk about the present and what’s happening right now in the world of Durling the author.  We’ll do an unboxing and talk about a contest where you can win yourself a Durling book!

Don’t miss this one live, as we love to interact in the comments.  We always have fun lined up, and fun will be had!

 

Friday November 14 at 7:00 PM EST, 8:00 PM Atlantic.  Enjoy on YouTube or Facebook.

VIDEO: The Alan Niven Interview: Sound N’ Fury on The Collection

I was absolutely thrilled to be invited by John Snow of 2Loud2Old Music to co-host this incredible interview with former Great White and Guns N’ Roses manager Alan Niven!

Mr. Niven needs no introduction, but it case you do need one, how about this:  Appetite for Destruction!  Once Bitten!  Twice Shy!  This is the guy who made Guns N’ Roses into superstars, and gave Great White their big second chance.  You can read all about it in his forthcoming book Sound N’ Fury, out June 24 wherever fine books are sold.

In this hourlong interview, John and I take Mr. Niven on a trip through his past in America, Sweden, England and more.  He regales us with stories of rock and roll, raw talent, and having Axl Rose thrown in the back of a police cruiser just to ensure he makes it to the gig.  We also discuss writing and storytelling, of which he is the expert.

Do not miss this epic interview with Alan Niven, on The Collection, tonight at 7:00 PM EST!

Show Notes (not all questions were asked):

“Nobody died on my watch” is the most powerful quote.

First of all, you are a great storyteller and writer.  I had to look a few words up to see what they meant!  Why did you choose to open the book with a Shakespeare quote?

I like how you opened the book with a corker of a GNR story, and kind of ended the book with your younger days.  You mentioned this book reads like an album plays, and that is accurate.

I’m currently doing a series on Iron Maiden.  You talk about Rod Smallwood a bit in this book.  He sounds like a great guy.

Brilliant story there about Michael Bay, but what was best about it was the way you told it.  The reveal was great.

The fight to keep Appetite alive… you obviously believed in that record, but did you ever question yourself?

I gather this is a small batch of stories…will there be more books?

One thing that surprised me, in my own naivete, is how physical you have to be to be a manager of a rock band.  You have to be willing to go toe to toe with Slash and tell him to behave.  You had to pull Jack’s pants up more than once.

Who would you want playing you in the movie of your life?

 

#1191: Top Five Cool Things You May Not Know About Alan Niven

RECORD STORE TALES #1191: Top Five Cool Things You May Not Know About Alan Niven

A couple weeks ago, I was asked by John Snow of 2Loud2OldMusic to co-host a big big interview he was offered.

“How would you like to interview Alan Niven with me?” he asked.  John hadn’t done a solo interview before, and wouldn’t have minded a backup.

“Alan Niven?  The Alan Niven?  Yes!”  How could I say no?  The guy who managed Guns N’ Roses during their peak?  The guy who co-wrote some amazing Great White songs, drawing out their best qualities?  The guy who has a new book coming out called Sound N’ Fury?  Of course!

While nervous, reading Alan’s book left us with loads and loads of questions to ask him.  Without spoiling the interview, which will debut next week on The Collection on YouTube, here are the Top Five Cool Things You May Not Know About Alan Niven that I discovered in this interview process.

5. He had the “stones” to demand $1,000,000 from Mick Jagger, for Guns to open for the Rolling Stones on four dates at the Hollywood Bowl.  Guns were originally offered half that.

4. He had to physically pull up Jack Russell’s pants, more than once, to keep him from being arrested.

3. He is well read and well spoken.  He opens Sound N’ Fury with a quote from Macbeth.

2. There is an absolutely brilliant story about a music video director that later became a mega-smash-hit movie director, and the way Niven unfolded the story and dropped the name was pure epic storytelling.  Read the book to get the name.

1. “Nobody died on my watch.”  Indeed, of all the self-destructive personalities in the bands he managed, nobody died under his guidance.  That is indeed an accomplishment, and to me, the most powerful quote in the book.

Pick up Sound N’ Fury by Alan Niven, wherever fine books are sold.

 

Ooh! Aah! Do you wanna see some Def Leppard CD Rarities with @RockTheseTweets and @2Loud2OldMusic?

It’s always a special night when I see something on the show from a guest’s collection, that I never saw before and want very badly.  That happens periodically…but on this show, it happened on every round!  This was a classic “random and chaotic” Grab A Stack of Rock episode and one of the most exciting to date.

First of all:  thank you to John T. Snow of 2Loud2OldMusic for powering through illness to be here on this night.  “I didn’t want to miss this,” he said, referring to the mighty Def Leppard collection of megafan Chris Preston.

Second:  thank you to Chris from @rockthesetweets for sharing your awesome collection with us!  The “oohs!” and “aahs!” from John and I were audible multiple times in this show.  Chris had CDs of many varieties:  3″, Japanese 3″, promo, French, German, US, video…so many kinds.  Not shockingly, he also had one track that seems to be exclusive to a promo CD for “Action”, that I do not have.  I anticipated that would happen.  Adding it the “wantlist”.

John had some cool bootlegs, singles, European releases, and plenty more stuff that made Chris and I jealous.  There were some live shows he had from the mid and late 1990s that are highly desirable.  He also had recordings from earlier times, such as the Pyromania tour and the Pete Willis/Frank Noon years.

As for me, you know I have Japanese imports, including two that the other guys didn’t have.  I also had some singles from the Hysteria era to show, a 24k gold Mastersound CD in mint condition with original jewel case, and my original CDr that provided the live tracks heard on Def Leppard Rarities Volume Four, with the original cover I made on my parents’ printer back in the day.  This is the original CD that Def Leppard used for music on that collection.

I can’t thank these two diamond gents more for doing this show with me tonight.  Definitely some of the best stacks of rock ever seen on this show!

Next week:  Deep Purple Album Ranking with Ryan Gavalier, Sunday Sept 1 at 8:00 PM EST!

Def Leppard CD Rarities with @RockTheseTweets and @2Loud2OldMusic

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 68: Def Leppard CD Rarities with @RockTheseTweets and @2Loud2OldMusic

This has been a meeting long in the making.  For years, I have admired the music collection of Chris from MyRockAndRollHeaven on Twitter.  In particular, Chris is a Def Leppard collector, and I believe his collection is one of the best in the world.

Finally the stars have aligned, and we have Chris tonight on Grab A Stack of Rock.  Since his collection is so massive, we decided to narrow it down to rare Def Leppard on CD.  Singles, Japanese imports, EPs and more will be shown tonight.  Joining us as co-host will be fellow fan and collector John Snow from 2Loud2OldMusic!  He is currently in the midst of a Def Leppard review series, so this lines up perfect.

What will we see tonight?  The rarest of the rare Leppard on CD.  Don’t miss it.

 

Friday August 23 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube or on Facebook!

The Jex Russell Show on Grab A Stack of Rock! CDs Galore! With John Snow, Aaron KMA, and Metal Roger

Get well soon, Harrison!  The Mad Metal Man was unable to co-host tonight’s show with Jex Russell, so what did Jex do?  He grabbed the bull by the horns, the guitar by the neck, and the stack of rock by the stones!  It was the historic first-ever episode of Grab A Stack of Rock with Mike and the Mad Metal Man…without Mike, or the Mad Metal Man.

Jex, you dapper handsome movie star.  I admit, I had it coming.  It was not unearned.  But vengeance shall be mine. ;)

On with the show:  Dressed to the nines, Jex pulled out all the stops tonight.  Tonight’s musical physical media included:

Jex with buying tips, some psychedelic rock,  Hard Rock Gold, Over 60 Minutes With…, some Vital Idol, Deep Purple, DEVO, Pat Benatar, Ten Years After, Jimi Hendrix, Billy Squier, and Motley Crue ’94!

Jazz, soul & blues provided by Aaron “Mr. Books” of the KMA with: Tobin Sprout (only 1000 made), GBV, Hilliard Ensemble, John Lee Hooker, Prince, Ry Cooder, Simply Red, Gojira, Matt Costa, Oscar Peterson, Rheostatics, Kurt Vile, Live at Leeds, a live album in Toronto, the sound of Starbucks, Phil Collins, Blues Brothers, Hootie, Debussy, Yo-Yo Ma, Hans Zimmer, and dad memes.  Sadly no opera and “y’all-ternative country” (with apologies).

John T. Snow from The Collection brought on the hard rock side of things.  We had his early thoughts on the new Ace Frehley 10,000 Volts (red transparent vinyl and lentincular cover CD), KISS final show merch and memorabilia, new Collective Soul 8-track (!!), a Canadian gift from Aaron, and new Jeff Scott Soto.

Metal Roger on marital harmony, comedy relief, heavy metal and screamo.  He brought some Metallica, Death Cab, Papa Roach, Queen, Guns N’ Roses, and books!

Thank you guys for doing the show and giving me a night to just watch and enjoy.  I’ll be back Monday with Tim Durling for a special episode on the complete Journey discography!

 

 

A LeBrainless Panel with New Arrivals, Jazz, Hard Rock and Metal on Grab A Stack of Rock

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

Episode 52:  Jex, Aaron, John and Metal Roger!

First order of business:  Get well soon, Harrison!  The Mad Metal Man is unable to co-host tonight’s episode, so filling in for him will be Jex Russell.

I don’t know precisely what the guys will be showing off, but new arrivals are guaranteed!  We will see Kiss, Metallica, Billy Idol, The Who, Chuck Berry and a whole whack of fresh jazz from Mr. Books.

The panel tonight:

  • Hosted by: Jex Russell from Jex’s Vinyl World
  • Jazz provided by Aaron “Mr. Books” of the KMA
  • John T. Snow from The Collection on the hard rock side of things
  • And Metal Roger on comedy relief and heavy metal

Historically speaking, this is the first ever episode of Grab A Stack of Rock with Mike and the Mad Metal Man, without Mike or the Mad Metal Man.  But fear not, Mike will be back on Monday with Tim Durling for a very special Journey episode for Jon Cain’s birthday!

Friday Feb 23 at 8:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 9:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube, or Twitter!!  (Facebook has been problematic of late.)

Retro is the word! 80s and 90s cassettes, cassingles and beyond with Dr. Kathryn, Jex and John!

Happy 50th episode to us!  This was a special episode to me.  Watching it back now, what made last night’s show really special wasn’t so much the cassettes.  Rather, it was the stories!  The memories came flooding back as we looked at piles of cassettes from ages past.  With Dr. Kathryn’s recently exhumed cassingle collection on hand, we were joined by Jex Russell and John T. Snow for a nostalgic evening.

  • Playing “Bad Boys” by Inner Circle at a fancy wedding.
  • Buying cassingles by Van Halen in Frankenmuth, Michigan.
  • The value of Bryan Adams’ live B-sides.
  • Collecting a rare Cult cassette box set with all the extras.
  • Bands that Kathryn has seen live and owns on cassette, such as Roxette and Rod Stewart.
  • A US version of a Def Leppard single vs. the Canadian.
  • Songs/version that are still exclusive to the cassette format.
  • Whitesnake every Christmas.
  • Collecting bonus tracks on cassette and throwing temper tantrums when the CD didn’t have the bonus track.
  • Summery memories of Bon Jovi, ZZ Top, Cheap Trick, Britny Fox and Poison.
  • Ratt, Dangerous Toys, “Digalog”, “Q-Sound” and more.

We also took a peak at Tri-Con in Kitchener, where Dr. Kathryn met members of the Degrassi cast, Rob Daniels, and some Mandalorians.  She had much praise for the Degrassi folks, and you’ll have to make sure you don’t miss this segment at the end.

Congratulations to Marco D’Auria, last week’s special guest, for the nomination of his film Mystique:  Standing on the Firing Line at the Canadian Independent Film Festival!  The DVD is on sale all February.

Stay tuned for John Snow’s “The Collection” starting February 20.

Bonus:  We unboxed the recent reissue of the rare Starchild album Children of the Stars (featuring Greg “Fritz” Hinz of Helix), and a recent Rock Candy reissue of Europe’s The Final Countdown with more bonus tracks than before.

Apologies to Facebook; the Streamyard streams have not been working on Facebook at all and their team is still looking into it.

See you again next week for Too Much Music Part 2!

Upcoming Schedule:

 

EPISODE 50! The Cassettes of Dr. Kathryn on Grab A Stack of Rock, with Jex Russell and John T. Snow

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and Jex Russell

Episode 50:  The Cassettes of Dr. Kathryn

Welcome to the 50th episode of Grab A Stack of Rock!  Special occasions require special guests.

Dr. Kathryn recently dug up her 80s cassette collection.  Like her brother, she was interested in collecting rarities and B-sides on singles.  We will see a number of cassette singles from the pop rock realm including Bryan Adams, Cheap Trick, Glass Tiger, and more.  John Snow, Jex Russell and I will also be bringing the vintage cassette tapes for this special show & tell.

Additionally we have a slideshow from Tri-Con at the Museum in Kitchener last month, where Dr. K met some celebrities from Degrassi Jr. High, and saw some cool props from Doctor Who and Star Trek.  There may have been some Mandalorian sightings as well!

Tune in tonight and take part in the comments with our special guests and cool collectibles from the 1980s.

 

Friday Feb 9 at 8:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 9:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube, or Facebook!

 

A Boatload of Music DVDs with Harrison Kopp and John T. Snow on Grab A Stack of Rock

What a marathon!  With the help of  John T. Snow (2loud2oldmusic) and the Mad Metal Man, we blasted through three music DVD collections in just under two hours.  The lion’s share was mine – guilty as charged — but John and Harrison also brought it.

This show is especially for fans of:

  • Metallica
  • Alice Cooper
  • KISS
  • Def Leppard
  • Bon Jovi
  • ELO
  • Deep Purple, Rainbow, Dio
  • Black Sabbath
  • Iron Maiden, Bruce Dickinson, Blaze & Paul Di’Anno
  • Judas Priest
  • Guns N’ Roses
  • AC/DC
  • Def Leppard
  • Marillion
  • Bootlegs
  • and rare Australian versions of releases

There were quite a few bargains to be had on the part of the Snowman and Harrison.   Both of them had some pretty cool acquisitions at low, low prices.  I love when price tags are still on DVDs.

We also had a very special announcement from John Snow:  Stay tuned for the debut of his new show, The Collection, starting in February!

Added bonus:  Peter Kerr of Rock Daydream Nation submitted his Top Five Music DVDs, some of which happened to tickle Harrison’s fancy.

On a personal note, I’m saddened that I got rid of so many music DVDs over the years.  I know I had Blue Rodeo, Dream Theater, and Harem Scarem.  It’s unfortunate but the fact is that space is a commodity, and money matters, so sometimes things got sold.   However, they can always be re-aquired.

Thanks for watching and dropping the comments!  See you next week.

Next week:  Feb 2 – an interview with Marco D’Auria! Co-hosted by Jex Russell, we’re talking MYSTIQUE: Standing on the Firing Line!

Feb 9 – our 50th show! – Doctor Kathryn returns with Jex Russell and her cassette collection from the 1980s!