Tony “Wild T” Springer was hot in 1993! He was sailing high with his second album Givin’ Blood, not to mention a gig playing with David Bowie on Black Tie White Noise. He also scored a gig as the opening act for Bon Jovi on the Keep the Faith tour. MuchMusic’s Erica Ehm asked ‘T’ about the Bon Jovi slot, and the rock scene in Trinidad where Tony was born.
Check out Tony Springer, Danny Bilan, and Nazeem Lakay — Wild ‘T’ and the Spirit.
During his 1989 solo tour, Paul Stanley of KISS talked to MuchMusic’s Steve Anthony about his new company Paul Stanley Entertainment LTD.
Ozzy Osbourne never did live interviews with MuchMusic in my time of recording the show, except for this one telephone interview. Teresa Roncon was helming the Power 30 with Ozzy on the line. Ozzy is as mumbly and entertaining as ever!
Listen as Ozzy announces a Black Sabbath reunion tour that didn’t happen. Date: June 28 1993
Did you check out our Poison album list today, as we counted ’em down from worst to best?
I have a surprising amount of Poison interviews on my VHS tapes. They must have been an extremely media friendly band. From the Native Tongue period alone, I have three separate interviews on my tapes. The first was the best Bret Michaels interview I’ve seen, on Kitchener’s Metal Mike show in 1993. The next will be a sit down with Bret and Richie Kotzen in the MuchMusic studios. This one, however, is a rare live interview with drummer Rikki Rockett.
There are awkward moments, like when he lies about the album selling “really good”. Hear all about the “party cage” and other tour goings-on. He also talks about growing up in a musical family, which is probably the most illuminating part.
Check out Mr. Rockett on live TV!
GETTING MORE TALE #743: A Shout-Out to Sean Kelly
When it’s warranted, I like to use the Getting More Tale banner to include tributes to helpful individuals. This goes as far back as Record Store Tales. These chapters are mini-stories wrapped in a thank-you…or vice-versa.
So let’s go back to the beginning for a moment. Ever since I first launched this site in 2012, I’ve been talking about my insanely cool VHS library and how badly I wanted to show it to you. Now I’m doing that (as you’re all painfully aware by the lack of review content), and it has been enjoyable, rewarding work! Long hours, but well spent. Reliving old memories, hearing forgotten songs, and seeing those MuchMusic VJ faces from ages past…watching these old tapes is something I try to do a little bit every day.
But I’m not doing this just for me. If I was just looking for “hits” or “views” I would just make endless lists of things. That seems to be the kind of content people click these days. I’m doing this for history, both personal and general. I think these old rock star interviews and clips are historically interesting. For you, and for posterity, I think it’s important to get the details as right as possible. I can usually nail down a rough date of recording, and the names of all the people involved.
Usually. This is where Sean Kelly comes in.
Sean Kelly is the Canadian axeman behind Metal On Ice (the book and album). He’s currently playing with Lee Aaron, Trapper, and I can’t keep track of them all! I have his #1 Classical Guitar Album. He has been a regular on Helix CDs over the past decade. He’s played with Nelly Furtado, and of course his own band Crash Kelly! There’s no question: the guy knows his rock! (Sean and I have something in common: the first rock album we bought was Metal Health by Quiet Riot.)
As I’ve been going through my tapes, I’ve been taking screen shots (like these below) to tease social media. Sometimes I’ll post a challenge: “Name all the people in the picture”. Sean Kelly has a 100% score!
Yeah that’s right. Sean Kelly has yet to get any wrong, and I’ve posted some challenging ones. Only Uncle Meat has come close to Mr. Kelly. (Meat is at about a 99% or so.)
But where Mr. Kelly has helped me out was identifying some of the MuchMusic personalities. As I said, I want to get the details of these videos right for historical purposes. Any time I needed help figuring out who the interviewer was, Sean knew it, and usually got it within five minutes! And it’s funny too. The names “Ziggy Lorenc” and “Lance Chilton” were on the tip of my tongue, but he just knew them right away.
I guess that’s why he’s the professional!
The guy is a virtual encyclopedia of rock. He identified some of the artists just by the instruments they were wielding. He’s also a super talented player and writer, and a helpful friendly chap too!
I really appreciate Sean’s assistance getting the details for the VHS Archives right. Check out the track I currently cannot get enough of: Trapper’s cover of “Illégal” by Corbeau. Trapper is a supergroup consisting of Emm Gryner, Frank Gryner and Tim Timleck. This song rocks! Enjoy.
“You read interviews, and Gene’s giving me digs, and I’m giving him digs, and stuff like that…one day it’ll just be Kiss in makeup again.” — Ace Frehley
I don’t know about you, but I remember being disappointed to hear that Ace Frehley was touring, but without any new music behind him. The quote about a Kiss reunion proved to be rather prophetic. No wonder Ace was laughing! Check out this Ace interview with Teresa Roncon on MuchMusic. The news anchor was Lance Chilton.
“You know what time it is? It’s thrash time!” – Nick Walsh
1992 was all about a resurgence of Canadian Rock. Slik Toxik, Sven Gali, and Big House were all making waves. Lee Aaron and Killer Dwarfs had new music. But it was Slik Toxik who won Best Metal Video for “Helluvatime” (directed by Don Allan).
The award was presented by Brian Vollmer (Helix), Phil X (Triumph, now Bon Jovi) and Mike Levine (Triumph). Slik Toxik then performed…but my tape ran out! This is what I captured. Neal Busby is one helluva of a drummer!
I also have this cool CBC recording about Slik Toxik, featuring a fan from Thunder Bay, talking about Slik’s rise to fame. Broadcast March 15 2019.
You wanted the Dirt? We got the Dirt. The real Dirt, right from the horse’s mouth, not some actor who used to play Ramsay Bolton on Game of Thrones.
These clips were recorded from the Motley Crue Spotlight on MuchMusic in late 1990 and has three parts:
1. 1984 interview with Nikki Sixx and Vince Neil
2. 1985 interview with Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee
3. 1990 interview with Vince Neil
Subjects discussed include Motley Crue as the “good guys”, touring and drinking with Y&T, and Vancouver.
Tour bus interview by Denise Donlon, from the Pepsi Power Hour in 1986. Just a clip.
Gene Simmons and Bruce Kulick of 
visited MuchMusic in May of ’92 for an interview, and to host the Power 30. There are some real moments of sincerity, such as when they are asked about Eric Carr. However the clips you are about to watch are also notable for showing how the Power 30 was a drop in quality from the Power Hour.
Unlike previous MuchMusic visits, this one was broadcast in separate segments. First is an interview by Teresa Roncon; the best part. Then there is a Power 30 co-hosting gig, and a smattering of interview outtakes from the Kiss Spotlight. All filmed the same day, but split apart since the Power 30 was too short.
I’ve recently given you two great Power Hour shows with guest hosts. Rik Emmett from Triumph was a fabulous co-host and also played music in addition to a substantial interview. Blackie Lawless of W.A.S.P. picked the tunes for his co-hosting gig, and the candid interview made it one of the best episodes of the entire run of the Power Hour. Now, here is Kiss co-hosting the shorter Power 30, and there is very little substance. A bad joke by Gene that went too far and got censored is the only particularly notable moment. Well, that and Gene’s advice to “fat girls”. Bruce Kulick seems far more engaged, but it’s jokey and short compared to what the Power Hour used to do.
Stuff to look for:
I remember when the Kiss spotlight aired, my mom really liked when Gene compared Kiss to “electric church”. Yeah, my mom loved that….
This one required a bit of editing to make it cohesive; I hope you enjoy.
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