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| Flash77 |
from Def Leppard.com
You'd think that having just landed in LA. after a 12-hour flight, any sane person would want to go to their hotel, freshen up, eat and get some decent sleep. Well, I am obviously not of sound mind as this is exactly what I didn't do when I arrived! Myself and Sav were fresh off the London to LA flight when, having confirmed my place on possibly the most exclusive guest list EVER, I jumped out of our van on Wilshire Blvd. and into the feeding frenzy that is the Rolling Stones playing a theatre! Yes folks, I was one of the lucky 3,000 or so who witnessed the greatest rock 'n' roll band in the world play the Wiltern Theatre on Monday night.
You see, it's true what they say. It's not what you know, but WHO you know! So, having three of our former crew on the Stones' tour sure does help when you want to get in and see them in this kind of enviroment (the fact that I know Ronnie Wood helps a bit too, I admit). Woody Doyle (my "corner man" on the ADRENALIZE tour) and his wife Janine ('Bean' to us, and our former wardrobe lady) are on the Stones' crew, as is Jake Berry, who taught us all we've forgotten way back when we supported AC/DC IN 1979/80!
So that was me in then! Wrong pass and all, but hey, when you know Ronnie, this can be sorted out, right - well, it was. The next thing is I'm in his dressing room yapping with his lovely wife Jo and being introduced to an ever in-streaming of "celebs". Matt Damon (I watched "The Bourne Identity" on the flight over!), Bruce Willis (shorter than I thought), George Clinton (sporting a rather snazzy, if over the top outfit), Tom Waits (couldn't lick his boots fast enough! Just ask Malvin how often we listen to this underrated genius).....
Then Ronnie takes me into the inner sanctum that is Keef's room. As the only Stone I'd never met, I was as excited by this prospect as many of you reading this would be if you were about to taken into Phil or Viv's room. So after 30 years of listening to the "human riff" and wondering what I would actually say to him given the chance, our conversation went the way of headache cure tips! Yes, you read correctly! I use Solpadine when I get one, Keef only ever gets about two a year (they must last 183 days then!). So he's on board now. Hey, at least I turned him on to probably the mildest drug to ever enter his body!
From headache pills to conversations about the weather with Charlie Watts (does it rain more in Dublin than Devon? Not according to Charlie, but the jury's out on that one!), showtime came quick enough so, having arranged my lift back to their hotel afterwards (with Ronnie, who else?), I made my way out to the seats.
UNBELIEVABLE. You've never seen so many celebs in your life. Ray Manzerek (The Doors), Neil Young, Stephen Stills, George Thorogood, Slash, and I forgot more than I remember. Also, I get to sit next to Paul Stanley and his wife. Now to see the Stones in such an enviroment is an event possibly never to be repeated, so if you do get the chance..... GO!!! DO NOT HESITATE! They won't be around forever - even though it seems they have!
It is truly inpiring to see these guys leaping about, having a good time, entertaining the crowd (the way I like it!) and playing as well as I've heard them live. Ronnie (nine months clean, well done!) plays a KILLER solo in "CAN'T YOU HEAR ME KNOCKIN'" and brought a standing ovation out of the house. They play a lot of their more obscure material in the more intimate venues on this tour, which is great for the die hard fans who like to go a bit deeper than "BROWN SUGAR" and say, "SATISFACTION". So we got to hear things like Solomon Burke's "EVERYBODY NEEDS SOMEBODY TO LOVE" (you might know it as a Blues Brother's song), "GOING TO A GO-GO" (which I don't think they've played since '82), "STRAY CAT BLUES" and "THAT'S HOW STRONG MY LOVE IS" which, I believe, is an Otis song. Jagger lost it completely on this one and again got a standing ovation for his efforts! BRILLIANT! They returned to more familiar material towards the end with "HONKY TONK WOMEN", "BROWN SUGAR" and "TUMBLING DICE", but by then I was sat in a van waiting for "Ronnie, man!", resplendant in a sweaty dressing gown, so we could be whisked off sans police escort back to their hotel.
What a great way to arrive in the States! Less then one hour after I landed, I was shootin' the shit with Ronnie (we both live in Dublin, by the way) so of course we carried on back in his (very nice) suite! With Jo making coffee and Slash making an appearance with his wife (just had a little boy, CONGRATULATIONS!), we talked and talked until it was time to make an appearance in Mr. Jagger's party room! I met Mick for the first time this particular evening, though he did remember me from Wisseloord studios in Holland (he was recording his second solo album while we were recording "HYSTERIA" there) which was nice..... And that's when I hit a brick wall.
It was 1.30 AM (but 9.30 AM according to my body!) and I just couldn't keep my eyes open any longer (well, except for a quick 2 minutes with Sheryl Crow), so I said my goodbyes and stumbled off to find a cab. I finally put head to pillow at about 2.30 AM, too tired to appreciate what I had just experienced, but I sure woke up with a big smile on my face! With perks like this, I have to say..... GOD, I LOVE MY JOB!!!!!
Luv 'n' peace
Joe |
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| Dan |
Good review. Nice to hear that some of the celebrities in the crowd were as excited as we were to be there.
I am also looking forward to my first Def Leppard show next month. I love all the pre-Hysteria stuff. |
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| Sir Stonesalot |
You know, I want to hate this guys guts...but I just can't.
Oh wait....."Pyromania".
OK, yeah, I hate him.
Obviously, just wanted to be seen, like many of the other "celebs". Fuckwad didn't even stay till the end.
It's dickheads like that guy who cost Gazza a shot at a seat. If anyone deserved to see the Stones at a theatre show it was Gazza. |
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| Dan |
Pyromania is one of the first hard rock albums I ever bought. Came out when I was 9 years old. The earlier stuff is even better.
And it was already a given that place was going to be filled with celebrities from the get go.
I had some confidential information from about 3 months ago that there were 1,069 un-assigned seats for the Wiltern but I guess it doesnt hurt to say anything about that now. Knew they would all be reserved for so called VIPs.
Of course Gazza deserved to be there as did a lot of my friends stuck on the other side. Probably the only upside to having the balcony filled with celebs is that unlike the other 2 shows I didnt get stuck next to someone screaming in my ear.
For some reason I dug Joes review almost as much as some of the others. |
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| gypsy |
I love the review! I must get hold of some of this "solpadine?!" |
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| rocker |
not a big defleopard fan but i do respect him and his band and i kind of like elliots voice. i like the tune he collaborated with ronnie "I always wanted more than i can give" something like that, or "get my gun" |
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| gypsy |
It's also very sad how their drummer lost his arm, yet still continued to play. |
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| BILL PERKS |
IT'S FUNNY,CUZ I HATED THEM IN THE 80'S WHEN THEY WERE HUGE,NOW WITH ALL THE BULLSHIT THAT'S POPULAR THESE DAYS THEY ARE OK WITH ME.PHOTOGRAPH WAS A GREAT TRACK.JOE'S VOCALS ON SLIDE ON THIS WERE GOOD TOO! |
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| Maxlugar |
I love it when musicians pay tribute to the Stones.
He seemed like he was a huge fan like us.
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| jb |
Even Mick Fleetwood, who attended Wiltern, is quoted as saying M&K's songwriting skills are underappreciated..he cited Between the Buttons...apparently Macs new album will have M or K as a guest.... |
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| Half Nanker |
What a fun read! Very cool when other celebs are in awe of the band like you & I!
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| Dandelion* |
SS - cut the guy some slack. So easy to hit and run anon on the internet.
I AM trying to wrap my head around the idea of Def Leppard as Tom Waits fans though... |
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| stonedinaustralia |
quote:
Dandelion* wrote:
I AM trying to wrap my head around the idea of Def Leppard as Tom Waits fans though...
yes, it's a tough one isn't it? |
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