Joe Lynn Turner Wore A Wig And So What?

     Rainbow being my favorite band at the moment and Joe Lynn Turner being my idol, I Google'd his name the other day only to find the words most associated with his name included "bald," "without wig" and "hairpiece".

     OH COME ON.  Our hangups on Joe Lynn Turner concerning his hair are just plain stupid. Over the Internet people are more concerned with his hairdo then the man or the music. Give the guy a break. Maybe at sixty-one with a head of hair like that it's more then obvious that he wears one, so why even bother pointing it out? Does it matter that much? Joe was a rock god of a musician with one hell of a legacy behind him. If he can make himself look better than he would normally, why shouldn't he? As nice as his hair looked on him back in the day... it just isn't that important.  What's even less important is whether it's his or not. Remember Joe for his personality and for his music, for who and what he was and not what he wears on his head. For the love of Rainbow, leave him alone!

 

Jon Lord: 1941-2012

I spent the last few weeks in vacation in Ibiza, visiting relatives (hence why I didn't post anything for a while) and just got back a few days ago to the terrible news that Jon Lord's life had been claimed by pancreatic cancer on July 16th. For those who don't know, Jon Lord was Deep Purple's legendary keyboardist and the true force behind their ear-shattering sound. His death shouldn't have come as too much of a shock as he'd been battling the disease since 2011, but is no less tragic then it would've been had it been sudden. RIP and God Bless you, Jon, and if there is a heaven you're in it.

Kevin Ayers' Carribean Moon...AKA The Gayest Thing I've Ever Seen.

For all you art-rockers out there, I'm sorry, I love Kevin Ayers, but I just laughed hysterically upon seeing this music video. And I thought Elton John was gay...

July birthdays

1-Debbie Harry of Blondie
3-Brian Jones dies, Jim Morrison dies
5-Robbie Robertson of the Band
9-Mitch Mitchell of Jimi Hendrix, Bon Scott of AC/DC
10-Rik Emmett of Triumph
11-Ritchie Sambora of Bon Jovi
12-Chris Wood of Traffic dies
18-Nico dies
19-Bernie Leadon of the Eagles
22-Don Henley of the Eagles
25-Jim McCarty of the Yardbirds
26-Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones, Karac Plant (Robert's son) dies

Whatever happened to Jefferson Airplane???

The difference in the music caused by the evolutions of Jefferson Airplane and Fleetwood Mac are similar in that there were three main stages in both of their careers. But looking at it all critically, the difference between early and late JA is much greater then early and late FM- mainly for the reason that the Airplane came out earlier and lasted longer, I guess. And one thing I actually find quite cool about JA is that their music really did move with the times. Each album they did represented the current state of popluar music when it was made- without ever sounding jaded or burnt out. That may be attributed to the ever-chaning line-up... Their music never did disapoint though. And although I personally favor the music of the Airplane stage in their career, I'm glad they weren't that married to their psychedelic roots that when the time came to move on, they weren't stuck with what they were known for, they had room to grow, expand and move on.
The first incarnation of the group was formed in San Francisco in 1965, and quickly became known as one of the best bands around in the Summer of Love '67. The very first line-up was Marty Balin, Paul Kantner, Signe Toly Anderson, Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady, and Skip Spence. The following year Anderson left and was replaced with Grace Slick. The band became a nation wide hit when White Rabbit and Somebody To Love began scaling the charts.
In the early 70s, the Jefferson Airplane became the Jefferson Starship as the band's music and style changed to accomodate the new times. In 1975 they found great success with the album Red Octopus and the hit single "Miracles." While this was quite a departure from their heyday, the fans still bought it, and the group kept evolving. By the mid 80s they had dropped the Jefferson from the name, now to be known simply as Starship. They recruited vocalist Mickey Thomas, who brought new life and energy to the band and bring songs like "Jane" and "We Built This City" to life.
So how did the ultimate symbol of the late 60s music become a 70s pop band, and then (gasp) and 80s Pop Band??  Like Fleetwood Mac and like what I said earlier, Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship/Starship represented the times and had no sentimental attatchments to their roots. I'm sure the die hards shudder when they hear what they produced as Starship (and rock fans in general as we watch their videos) but give them a break. A psychedelic band would never have made it outside of the 60s, no matter how good they were. So let's remember them as they were and as what they became- none of it was that bad at all.

Underrated Musicians #3: Bob Welch

Bob Welch's recent passing inspired me to talk about him a little more in depth, and I figured he would be a suitable character for the Underrated Musicians column because, well, he really was underrated. I mean, he had loads of great songs, but how often do you hear them on the radio or anything? (I know I don't hear them.)
Bob was born on July 31st, 1946, in Los Angeles, into a family much involved in show biz. He was taking French at UCLA when he dropped out to join various local bands, singing and playing guitar. He was invited to join Fleetwood Mac in 1971, and helped define their melodic, poppy sound that the band later went multi-platinum with in Rumors.With F, he did five albums- Future Games (1971), Bare Trees (1972), Penguin (1973), Mystery To Me (1973), and Heroes Are Hard To Fine (1974). He left the band in 1974 after many cases of difficulties within the group that made working with them increasinglly difficult. He was replaced by Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckinham.He redefined himself in the late 70s and early 80s with a successful solo career, spawning hits like Ebony Eyes and Sentimental Lady.
Bob Welch sued Mick Fleetwood, and John and Christine McVie for unpaid royalties, and was later excluded from the band's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
You know, that last part especially really wasn't right. That he would even have unpaid royalties issues, and that they would do that to him. He remained friends with FM after he split them- some members at least. In one of my late 70s Circus Magazines, I've got pictures of him jamming on stage with Stevie Nicks and everything...About his death, Stevie Nicks had to say that "He was an amazing guitar player - he was funny, sweet - and he was smart - I'm so very sorry for his family and for the family of Fleetwood Mac - so, so sad."

God Bless you, Bob, and rest in peace.

Bob Welch:1945-2012

I broke down and cried when I heard today on the news that Bob Welch died today. He commited suicide by gunshot around 12:45 today in his home in Nashville, and his wife found his body. He was 66 years old.Oh God, I just can't believe it. We've lost a lot of good people this year-Whitney Houston, Levon Helm, Donna Summer, Adam Yauck, and now Bob Welch.Well, my deepest sympathies go out to Bob and all who knew him.RIP and God Bless you, man.

Bob Welch-Ebony Eyes