NANCY WILSON Looks Back On HEART’s Emotional ‘Stairway To Heaven’ Performance At KENNEDY CENTER HONORS
Back in December 2012, HEART’s Ann and Nancy Wilson delivered a moving rendition of “Stairway To Heaven”, LED ZEPPELIN’s signature song, at the Kennedy Center Honors. They were joined by Jason Bonham, son of original drummer John and the drummer for LED ZEPPELIN’s 2007 reunion show. Their version of the track gradually grew to include a string section, a horde of backup singers and the Joyce Garrett Youth Choir. Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones sat watching from the balcony and were visibly moved, particularly Plant, who had tears welling up in his eyes.
Nancy reflected on the experience of performing for ZEPPELIN members in a new interview with Guy “Favazz” Favazza and John Ulett of the St. Louis, Missouri radio station KSHE 95.
She said (hear audio below): “That was so interesting to do that. We were honored to do that, to honor them, and it was a surprise to them.
“When you go to do the Kennedy Center Honors show, everybody says, ‘Don’t tell anybody that you’re here. Hide out until the moment that you actually walk onto the stage and do the performance for the person that’s being honored.’ Of course, the night before, we saw John Paul Jones at the restaurant at the hotel. He was just, like, ‘What are you doing here?’ I’m, like, ‘Oh, nothing. I think we’ve got a show or something.’
“Anyway, it was just one of those moments where we had to take a really deep breath before we walked out there,” Nancy continued. “And we didn’t even know what just happened until a couple of weeks later when we actually got to watch the show — the edited broadcast of the show. And we saw what happened then. It was, like, ‘Oh my god!’ That was such a moment. And also the other thing about it was that Jason Bonham, who’s the son of their original drummer, John Bonham, was the drummer. And [Jason] grew up around those guys when they were young LED ZEPPELIN. So I’m sure that was part of their emotional reaction — was to see young Jason Bonham with a bowler hat that John Bonham used to wear all the time; he was notorious with his bowler hat. So all of those things combined, I think, led to them feeling emotional with that performance.
“It was really one of those life moments that you’re never gonna forget,” she added. “Just like, ‘Okay, I was part of that, and that was really cool.’ [Laughs]”
Asked if any of the LED ZEPPELIN members said anything to HEART about their performance after the event, Nancy said: “They did. There was a big sort of a dinner thing afterward, and each one of them came around to our table. And John Paul Jones was just, like, ‘That was awesome.’ And then Robert Plant said, ‘You know what? I’ve come to hate that song so much, ‘Stairway To Heaven’, because everyone just murders it. But you guys did great.’ And then Jimmy Page walks up, and he goes, ‘Okay, you played that really perfect.’ And I said, ‘No, you can’t tell me that.’ ‘Cause he’s Jimmy Page — ’cause he’s one of my best guitar idols of all time. I was, like, ‘Okay, I can die now.’ I’m a superfan.”
Earlier in the month, Nancy released her version of Bruce Springsteen’s “The Rising”.
Nancy’s first solo album, on which she plays guitar and sings on all the songs, will be released through Carry On Music.
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Swans – Children of God
Swans’ 1987 classic Children of God is the latest Decibel Hall of Fame inductee.
The post Swans – Children of God appeared first on Decibel Magazine.
METALLICA’s ‘One’ Reimagined By Orchestra
What would happen if you took “…And Justice For All”, the iconic 1988 album from thrash metal pioneers METALLICA, and reimagined it for a classical orchestra? Add to that four emerging jazz and soul vocalists. You’re left with one of the most intriguing interpretations of rock material ever recorded. Brought to you by LITTLE KRUTA, featuring a band comprised entirely of women, “Justice” will forever change the way you perceive METALLICA, classical music, and what an audiophile recording can be.
On “Justice”, LITTLE KRUTA — consisting of Kristine Kruta (musical director and cello), Maria Im (concert mistress and violin), Katie Jacoby (violin and soloist), Chiara Fasi (violin), Molly Fletcher (violin), Laura Sacks (viola), Tia Allen (viola), Adi Meyerson (upright bass), and Rosie Slater (percussion) — are joined with sensational vocalists Alita Moses, Camille Trust, Lauren Desberg, and Jenn Mundia — each joining for two songs.
Recorded in a single day in a decomissioned Brooklyn church, the Pierre Piscitelli arrangements of the beloved thrash melodies are completely transformed into moving pieces that will speak to fans of all genres. “Justice” features a fascinating blend of musical styles, influences, and personalities.
LITTLE KRUTA’s music video for “One”, featuring Alita Moses on lead vocals, can be seen below.
“Justice” recording credits:
Kristine Kruta (cello)
Maria Im (violin)
Katie Jacoby (violin)
Chiara Fasi (violin)
Molly Fletcher (violin)
Laura Sacks (viola)
Tia Allen (viola)
Adi Meyerson (upright bass)
Rosie Slater (percussion)
Camille Trust (vocals)
Alita Moses (vocals)
Jenn Mundia (vocals)
Lauren Desberg (vocals)
Pierre Piscitelli (arranger)
Produced by: David Chesky
Executive Producer: Norman Chesky
Recorded, edited, and mastered by Nicholas Prout
Second Engineer: Sean Kelly
Assistant Engineer: Ashley Marrero
General Assistant: Danazah Provet, Annie Klein
A&R: Jeff Lanier
Recorded June 19, 2019 at The Hirsch Center, Brooklyn, New York
Photo credit: Radhika Chalasani
Read more » Canadian Artist Paints EDDIE VAN HALEN Memorial Mural
An artist in Canada has paid tribute to legendary VAN HALEN guitarist Eddie Van Halen with a mural.
Airbrush artist Paul Archer painted the mural on the back wall of Archer Airbrushing shop in Victoria, British Columbia.
Archer, who was a huge fan of VAN HALEN and got to know members of the band on a personal level, completed the piece in two days.
“I was a stagehand at the Memorial Arena, [now known as the Save-on-Foods Memorial Arena], and we actually went to lunch together and had fish and chips,” Archer told CTV News. “We talked and he became kind of like a friend because every time VAN HALEN would play, I would be at the show and I’d be a stagehand and he’d know me by name.”
Archer went on to say that he originally intended to make the mural three times larger but was forced to abandon that plan after failing to find a suitable location.
Paul posted a pictiure of the mural on his shop’s Facebook page, and he included the following message: “RIP Eddie Van Halen. Everyone said it couldn’t happen, so I painted him on my building downtown! Light up the Sky! Vanhalen #archerpaintingoftheday #EddieVanHalenMural #vanhalen #EdwardVanHalen #WolfGangVanHalen”.
Eddie died on October 6 at St. John’s Hospital in Santa Monica, California. His wife, Janie, was by his side, along with his son, Wolfgang, and Alex, Eddie’s brother and VAN HALEN drummer.
The iconic VAN HALEN axeman died from complications due to cancer, his son confirmed.
VAN HALEN was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2007.
Rolling Stone magazine ranked Eddie Van Halen No. 8 in its list of the 100 greatest guitarists.
Chek TV News Victoria: ARCHER Paints Mural of Eddie Van Halen
Archer paints tribute mural of Eddie Van Halen. Featured on Chek TV News Victoria.
Video credit goes to Anna Miller.
Posted by Archer Airbrushing on Tuesday, October 27, 2020
RIP Eddie Van Halen
Everyone said it couldn’t happen, so I painted him on my building downtown!
Light up the…
Posted by Archer Airbrushing on Saturday, October 24, 2020
After your visit to Miniature World in Victoria, be sure to check out this Eddie Van Halen mural painted by Paul Archer. – Jeremy https://t.co/An3BcxxwE9
— CFOX (@CFOXvan) October 28, 2020
TESLA Hasn’t Had Any Drugs Or Alcohol On A Tour Since 2004
In a new interview with Jam Man, TESLA drummer Troy Luccketta was asked how he and his bandmates have managed to stay together for nearly four decades. He responded (see video below): “Well, we broke up in ’96, and then we got back together in October 2000. It was only gonna be [a reunion] for one show. And now it’s 20 years later. And through that process, we learned a lot about how to stay together, how to respect one another.
“Unfortunately, alcohol and drugs play a part in rock and roll sometimes,” he continued. “TESLA doesn’t have any drugs or alcohol on a tour — not even a beer backstage — since ’04. So we’re talking 16 years. We had a conference and decided that we didn’t even want any alcohol or nothing to get in the way. Because sometimes, if someone drinks too much, there could be a problem and they might do something stupid, and it might affect the band. So we got rid of all of those potential problems, and we learned how to be really respectful of another other.
“35 years is a long time for a band to stay together,” Troy added. “We have four out of the five original members in the band, and it’s a tough thing to do. But that’s how we’ve managed to do it. It’s been a lot of respect for one another, and we genuinely [get along with each other]. When we’re sharing one bus, that’s a confined space, and people can get irritable after a while. We don’t do it perfectly, but we do it pretty darn good.”
Asked if it bothers him that former TESLA guitarist Tommy Skeoch has been using the band name to promote his new project RESIST & BITE, Troy said: “No. I’m wishing Tommy well. We were just talking about some of the things that breaks up bands, and that was unfortunate, because that’s really what took Tommy out of the band at the time. It was just problems that he had to figure out. And I think he’s doing really well now. He’s got a new band, and he’s gotta promote his band. He was one fifth of the band at the time, and he wrote great songs in TESLA. He’s a great talent. So he’s always gonna have an association to the name of the band, and that’s fair.”
Skeoch left TESLA in 2006 to receive treatment for substance-abuse issues.
TESLA spent most of last year touring in support of its latest album, “Shock”, which was released in March 2019 via UMe. The follow-up to 2014’s “Simplicity” was produced by DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen.
Jam Man Talks with Tesla
Jam Man Talks with Tesla the Band drummer Troy Luccketta about how the band cooped with lockdown, putting out 5 man London Jam and not being able to tour, how touring has affected his life and things he missed out on for the band, how they avoided being a hair band, staying together for over 30 years and the choices they made to continue like having a completely sober backstage and why they had to get rid of Tommy but wish nothing but the best for him and his new band, and when recording new music do they try and keep their sound or adapt to what music is like now, and the controversy over Shock and the different sound they had on that Album produced by Def Leppard ‘s Phil Collen
Posted by Rocking With Jam Man on Wednesday, October 28, 2020
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