1993: Native Tongue was not doing well on the charts, but MuchMusic dutifully had Bret Michaels and new guitarist Richie Kotzen on hand for an interview with Erica Ehm. It’s a pretty solid 10 minutes, touching on the following topics:
Getting “serious” lyrically
Safe sex
C.C. leaving the band, Bobby breaking his hand
Reasons for being in a band, still
The “Stand” video, and the Bill Clinton inauguration
Critics
Bret writing “country music”?
Toning down the image
Richie Kotzen utters one complete sentence the whole time. This interview is remarkable not because Bret Michaels is always entertaining, but because Richie Kotzen didn’t fit in and it’s painfully obvious.
September, 1989: I raced home from school to watch the Pepsi Power Hour’s big Alice Cooper interview, called the Trash Hour. Alice picked the songs, but they are edited out for YouTube. You can see what he picked for yourself, as Alice literally takes out the trash.
Host Laurie Brown had a great rapport with the Coop. Driving a brand new Trash Truck, Alice is funny and informative on the following subjects:
Trash rock
New album and signing with Epic
Writing 22 songs with Desmond Child
Saving the Hollywood sign
Cameos in Prince of Darkness and Shocker
Horror as comedy, staged violence
Band alumni gone solo
The Trash Hour works out to a tidy 15 minutes without the music and ads. Make sure you catch the ending. Have a good Sunday!
This video is from 30 years ago: in the MuchMusic studios with Eric Martin and Erica Ehm, talking Mr. Big! “Thank God for Pat Torpey!” they say as the praise the (late) great drummer. Lots of ground covered here:
Formation of the band
The blues and their roots
Touring as a “long camping trip”
Singing lessons and demonstrations!
More carrots, celery and radishes
You’re gonna love this. Also note, it’s one of my few non-Power Hour recordings.
BONUS: Today’s appearance on Tim’s Vinyl Confessions’ Mr. Big special
Another short one from the Power 30 with Teresa Roncon. At Phase One studios, a quick visit with Russ Dwarf (Killer Dwarfs), Dee Cernille (Sven Gali) and Gord Prior (Blu Bones). At the time Sven were in the middle of touring with Def Leppard, and the Dwarfs were “takin’ ‘er easy for the summer”, but the new album mentioned by Russ never came to be.
You can see what I have been saying all this time, about the Power 30 having shorter content than the superior Power Hour. Sure, there were technically more minutes of metal per week, but not the kind of extended content that I’ve brought you recently, such as The Axemen Cometh and Waltzing With Helix.
Toronto’s Slash Puppet are back in the speakers, with a new “best of” CD called Studs & Gems, featuring classics and unreleased material! To pre-order your copy, contact MIF Entertainment ASAP, as this is a limited edition. Studs & Gems includes favourites like “When the Whip Comes Down”, “Slow Down” and the amazing ballad “Eyes of a Child”, one of the most intensely emotional ballads you’ll ever hear. Studs & Gems also includes the unreleased “Stranger Danger”, a live track previously unheard elsewhere. Finding original copies of their first two releases can be an expensive prospect, so Studs & Gems makes it easy to get some of these unsung classic songs.
For the occasion I’ve dug up this VHS tape of Teresa Roncon of the Power 30 talking to Mif, Dave and Franklin of Slash Puppet. It was summer of ’93 and the band were going the independent route. Teresa questions them on the pros and cons, and their musical influences. Wisdom is offered and bands are praised. Brief, but terrific interview with the band!
Studs & Gems track listing:
When the Whip Comes Down Rippin’ On a Wishbone Eyes of a Child Evil Woman Hard on Love Stop Tellin’ Me Lies Hitch a Ride (On a Train) Slow Down Squeeze It In Overload Stranger Danger (Live)
Not the only version online, but probably the best version for Helix fans! This is longer with more live footage (“The Storm”) and it also includes the opening MuchMusic “A True Story” sketch, depicting the moment that the Much studios got the invite to join the band in Vienna from Helix “roadlife specilist” Kenny Heague. All this version is missing is some of the interview with Sacred Reich, but for Helix fans, this is the one to watch.
“Waltzing With Helix” aired on the Pepsi Power Hour in early 1991. It depicts five days of life in the road with Helix in Hungary and Austria, opening for Sacred Reich and Ian Gillan. Supporting the excellent Back For Another Taste LP, this special includes loads of great live music, and chats with all the hilarious Helix boys.
New in the lineup was American guitarist Denny Balicki, and “Waltzing With Helix” was his introduction to fans nationwide. Drummer Fritz Hinz, bassist Daryl Gray, and singer Brian Vollmer are entertaining fellows to watch as they tour countryside and cathedrals. Late guitarist Paul Hackman gets the honour of interviewing both Ian Gillan and Sacred Reich.
Yes, this includes an Ian Gillan interview and some live footage of his band (including guitarist Steve Morris) playing “Black Night” and “Demon’s Eye”!
Food, culture, turnips, street music, beer, bus breakdowns, laughs, sandwiches and sweaty rock and roll!
On a personal note it’s really heartwarming to see Brian Knight, a kid from our neighbourhood who I went to highschool with, and later went on to roadie with Helix, standing right next to my hero Ian Gillan. What a cool thing to happen. Brian Knight died earlier this year. I still have his original Kenner Star Wars Slave I toy in perfect condition. I paid him $5 for it.
Another true treasure from the VHS Archives. When the Pepsi Power Hour ran this guitar-centric special in early 1988, my best friend Bob and I watched it religiously. We drank up, though didn’t fully understand, every word from Rik Emmett. The former Triumph guitarist was (and is) one of our favourites. His knowledge is encyclopedic. Laurie quizzes Rik on a number of the top rated electric guitar players of the time.
Rik demonstrates his favourite passages, and discusses with host Laurie Brown the following axemen in order:
Tony Iommi
Jimmy Page
Joe Satriani
Steve Vai
Kirk Hammett
Jimi Hendrix
Angus Young
Eddie Van Halen
Yngwie J. Malmsteen
and, of course, Rik Emmett
Other topics to stay tuned for in this wide-ranging discussion:
Lefties (like Rik)
The 1988 Zeppelin reunion (Atlantic 40th Anniversary)
Gerry McGhee and Stevie Skreebs of Brighton Rock dropped by the Power Hour with Michael Williams in early ’89 to showcase their new music video, “Hangin’ High N’ Dry”. World premiere! The brand new album Take A Deep Breath was in stores and the band were on tour. The affable group were questioned about such topics as:
Playing football with Steve Harris
Recording Take A Deep Breath with Jack Richardson
Lightening up or getting the sound they wanted?
Brighton Rock double live?
Why Stevie scratched the big VH logo on the hood of his first car25
Cool “Outlaw” T-shirt giveaway
The Boston Bruins
“Live” vs “studio” videos
The unreleased X-rated version of “Hangin’ High N’ Dry”
August 1991: MuchMusic’s Angela Dorhmann visited Lee Aaron at Sounds Interchange for the Power Hour, to debut Lee’s new video “Sex With Love”. Much also speaks with director Don Allan about the clip.
Topics discussed with the charismatic Lee Aaron that day:
Varga were on the cutting edge of combining heavy metal music with the burgeoning industrial scene. Teresa Roncon of the Power 30 caught up with the band in Buffalo, on their bus. Looks like there was a bit of a party going on, but in the back of the bus was a makeshift recording studio where the guys were assembling ideas for album #2. “Heavy and exploratory” was the promise!
Meet Varga & Ugly Kid Joe’s manager Dennis, and find out just how to get on a tour bus. A little bit of live footage is within, and the always likeable guys request a few tunes.
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