Iggy Pop and the Stooges - Raw Power

The Stooges/Iggy Pop

David Bowie must be the patron saint of comebacks. When Mott The Hoople was ready to call it quits Bowie, a major fan, gave them “All The Young Dudes” which became their biggest hit. The Stooges, shattered by the Rock n’ Roll lifestyle, were revived with Bowie’s help and he brought them further than they’d…

Green Day Band Shot

Green Day

Guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist Mike Dirnt started their first band when they were fourteen, eventually becoming Green Day. After a couple albums for indie labels and the arrival of drummer Tre Cool (Frank Wright III) Green Day was signed by Reprise. Their first effort for the label was “Dookie.” The album earned heavy…

The Knack

The Knack

The word on The Knack was they recorded their debut album “Get The Knack” in eleven days for eighteen-thousand dollars. It went platinum in ’79. Not a bad return on investment for Capitol Records. Of course, the song that made it all possible was “My Sharona.” Within weeks of its release, the herky-jerky Rocker with…

Kings Of Leon

Kings Of Leon

Like countless musicians, Caleb, Nathan and Jared Followill earned their musical chops playing in church. Only when their father left the ministry did the Followill’s, along with their cousin Matthew, discover Led Zeppelin, Tom Petty and Rolling Stones. Interestingly, those influences did not dominate. Rather, the Followill’s honed a roots/rustic style that was, in part,…

Foo Fighters

Foo Fighters

A Foo Fighter: A World War II term used to refer to mysterious aerial phenomena. When Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain committed suicide, which also ended the band, bassist Krist Novoselic handled the remembrances. That left drummer Dave Grohl with little to do but wander around in shock. Soon though Grohl locked himself away and recorded the…

Greta Van Fleet

Greta Van Fleet

There are a lot of valid reasons for skipping the high school prom but being on tour is usually not one of them.  With Greta Van Fleet band members still in school, the Frankenmuth, MI, based band signed a recording contract with Lava/Republic Records and embarked on a tour to support their EP “Black Smoke Rising.”…

Buckcherry

Buckcherry

Buckcherry formed in 1995. Whether the band’s name was a spoonerism of ‘Chuck Berry’ or the moniker of a drag queen acquaintance ‘Buck Cherry’, remains undetermined. Over the band’s history, over a dozen musicians have been in Buckcherry with lead singer Josh Todd being the only constant. A self-titled debut, released in ’99, was DreamWorks first…

David Bowie

David Bowie

Like so many young musicians, David Jones was in and out of a number of unmemorable bands. But it was while he was a member of the Lower Third that David Jones changed his name to David Bowie to avoid any confusion with a fellow Brit with the same name who was appearing in the…

The Police

The Police

At the beginning of ’77, ex-schoolteacher Gordon Sumner a.k.a. Sting (so named for his fondness for a black and yellow stripped jersey he constantly wore) and Stewart Copeland began The Police with guitarist Henri Padovani. By mid-year The Police were producing demos and playing shows. They also added guitarist Andy Summers. But Padovani left shortly…

Paramore

Paramore

Talent shows are held all over the country. Kids are run through the mill from the time they are able to walk, talk, sing, dance or act. The lucky ones might end up in some facet of the entertainment business. Usually though, the ribbons, trophies and newspaper clippings are packed away in a closet. It’s…