Microphone Check: 1, 2, what is this?

This past week I've been thinking a lot about great rock singers. Who are the best of all time? How do I assess the vocalists to create a "best of" list... subjectively (my favourites) or objectively (general world-wide consensus), or maybe a blend of both? What are the criteria?

To be brutally objective, I'd have to leave off my list singers like Ozzy, Dave Mustaine, and Udo (of Accept), who are good, but may not have tremendous vocal talent. They each have a distinctive sound that fits perfectly within their band and genre, and have marked their places in rock history. Even ol' Lemmy Kilminster of Motorhead and Neil Young, far from great singers, have staked their claims in the pantheon based on their attitude and passion, respectively.

Mr. Gramm of Foreigner gets a serious nod from this music fan

Ozzy, Mustaine, Udo, and many others would also rank as all-around top-notch frontmen (and women), not necessarily the best singers, but they are the total package of showmanship, personality, and charisma, all so vital to the rock'n'roll arena. Think Robert Plant, Mick Jagger, Steven Tyler, Stevie Nicks, Brian Johnson, David Lee Roth, Axl Rose, Bon Scott, Roger Daltry, and Layne Staley. And Chris Cornell and Bruce Dickinson boast some of the most powerful pipes in rock. These vocalists work within their limitations to produce something special. Just my opinion... I'm sure there are those who'd violently oppose that statement. It might seem criminal to leave these names off my list, but since I want to boil this down to my absolute certainties, this is how it goes.

So in compiling my personal list, I'm trying to recognize truly exceptional vocalists, with talent far beyond the norm. As objectively as possible. Somebody might argue my choices, but again, at least some subjectivity creeps into my decision-making process.

Here's my list of top rock singers all time, in no particular order (now that would be really hard):

Robin Zander
Rob Halford
Ronnie James Dio
Burton Cummings
Lou Gramm
Michael Sadler
Freddie Mercury
Elvis Presley
David Bowie

Steve Perry - My personal Number One, an easy decision


Honourable mentions: Geddy Lee, Don Henley, Brian Wilson, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, David Byrne, Elton John, Pat Benatar, Ann Wilson, Paul Rodgers, Bono, Jim Morrison, Dennis DeYoung

Crushing Freddie and Elvis

Rock Stars and Guitar Heroes

In this age of hip-hop and dance-pop ruling the charts, there is a serious lack of rock and roll in the album charts.What's happened?

During my early concert-going years, when I was most in tune with the music scene, there were rock stars and guitar heroes all over the place. I happened to grow up with hard rock and metal music in the 70's and 80's, so my tastes coincided with what was big at the time. Metal was on the charts right alongside new wave and Michael Jackson. 

The guitarists I admired as a teenaged and early 20's headbanger were guys like Matthias Jabs of the Scorpions, Ric Emmett of Triumph, Alex Lifeson of Rush, Eddie Van Halen, the dual guitar line-ups of Priest and Maiden, and Ozzy's all-star guitar-slingers. 

I just finished watching four hours of classic metal on Youtube, a seriously rockin' vintage German performance called Heavy Metal Night in '83. This gig featured a bevy of the best of 80's metal: Maiden, Scorps, Priest, Leppard, Ozzy, Quiet Riot, Krokus and MSG. 

This stuff, or most of it, anyway, reminded me of how good the heavy rock genre was back in the day.The 70's spawned pioneers of metal like Priest, the Scorps and Def Leppard (pioneers of the second wave of metal, AKA the New Wave of British Heavy Metal). Six-string maestro Michael Schenker left the Scorpions to create MSG (Michael Schenker Group), thus gifting the world with his brand of early progressive metal. The Scorps carried on quite well, with Mike's brother Rudy on double axe duty with Matthias Jabs. Jabs was always a favourite guitarist of mine. His searing and melodic solos, and his seamless riffing and rhythm just floor me every time. I felt chills down my spine as I watched and heard his solos in the Night in '83 video. Just masterful. And it reminded me of my evening watching the Scorps in action back in '84. Unforgettable.

I was a huge Triumph fan in the 80's. My first real concert ever was the Triumph "Allied Forces" Tour in '81.Ric Emmett was a blazing guitar hero on that night, and I was a serious fan for many years to come. I saw the band again on their '84 Thunder Seven Tour. Mr. Emmett never disappointed. His extended spotlit guitar solos were stunning. 

It goes without saying that Alex Lifeson of Rush was among my fave guitarists. Being a huge Rush enthusiast for decades, I have always loved his off-the-wall approach to the instrument. Obviously born a talented string-bender, Lifeson brought a less disciplined approach to Rush. Drummer Peart and bassist/vocalist Lee were hyper-diligent with their duties. Lifeson's more intuitive ideas brought a spontaneous feel to songs that were highly structured by his bandmates. This symbiotic relationship worked miracles for Rush.

Judas Priest boasted a twin guitar attack that few bands could match. KK Downing and Glenn Tipton were major forces in establishing the iconic Priest sound. Both formidable soloists, it was Tipton who particularly impressed me. His attention to melodic phrasing while tearing up the fretboard still makes me shake my head in disbelief. Chills. These guys defined metal during its early days, setting even an higher standard in the genre.Guitarists in decades since have looked to pioneers like Priest for inspiration. 

And one can't forget Eddie Van Halen for his contribution to hard rock guitar. Eddie's unschooled approach to the instrument was based on his childhood piano lessons. He applied that keyboard knowledge to the guitar and came up with unique ways of "speaking" on the fretboard. Since he never learned the "rules", he devised brand new ways of expressing himself musically. Eddie's guitar voice became one of the most recognizable in rock. My favourite axe-man of all time. 

Even Jake E. Lee shredded with technical and creative fury... there's no denying his ability. Lee's predecessor with Ozzy, Randy Rhoads, was no slouch either. A bit of a guitar god in some circles.

Kirk Hammett of Metallica forged some pretty massive and influential work, at least on earlier albums. And ex-Metallica guitarist Dave Mustaine brought his fiery style to a new level with Megadeth. Dave's early co-star Marty Friedman was an absolute terror on the six-string. Marty was also a fave player of mine back in the day. 

Now I ask again... are there any musical contributors like this today? If so, they are far from the mainstream. The most popular stuff today is Dr. Dre, Ed Sheeran,Taylor Swift, and Skrillex. Blech. No rock stars or guitar heroes there. 

Ah well, I've got my memories of the 80's and 90's rock and metal shows I've seen, and the albums I played back then. Maybe things will turn around and rock will top the charts once again. Or not. Whatever happens, I'll still revisit my favourite crunching albums of the past. 

Rock til you drop....

Scary Movies of the 70's

I was very young at the start of the 1970's, so there was no way I could see new film releases of that decade. As those years wore on, and I grew up a bit more, I was able to get into theatres to see some of the big shockers of the time. Seeing Jaws in a cinema was a big deal for me at a relatively tender eleven years old. That was the most memorable horrific movie moment for me back then.

Today, looking back on the 70's, it's incredible to see the huge output not just of horror, but of what we now consider classic horror. It took me a little longer to get around to seeing movies like The Exorcist and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I'm glad I was older when I finally viewed those two because they both gave me the willies, and they still make me uneasy.

There's something wrong with that kid....

I'm pretty sure I saw The Omen at the local picture show with a couple of friends. Not as outright scary, this one was at least creepy and shocking in a few spots. Some "creative" murders, as we say in horror fan lingo. The same with Carrie, which was a bit slow getting going, but once the mayhem began, it was gruesome enough.

I remember checking out Dino de Laurentiis' remake of King Kong, too. At the time, I was a huge Kong fan, having watched the 1933 original many times on television. The Kong Vs Godzilla movie out of Japan was fun but laughable. This 1976 version impressed me with its colourful re-imagining of the classic tale. A young Jessica Lange appealed to me, too. 

It goes without saying that the Jaws and Omen sequels were essential viewing. I believe I saw Jaws 2 at the drive-in with a carload of school buddies. Not a bad movie, I guess, though I haven't seen it in ages and don't recall much. The Omen sequels were consistently good, and I caught all of them at the cinemas. Both the Jaws and Omen franchises carried on into the 80's, but let's just say that the earlier films - in the 70's - were the best in both cases. 

The remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers was a creepy experience. I had a bit of a walk home in the dark after seeing that one. Walking quickly, checking the shadows. On the lighter side, there was Young Frankenstein, the Mel Brooks send-up/homage to the horror classics of the 30's and 40's. I still love Young Frank to this day. Another remake that played in my hometown cinema was the '79 version of Dracula,which looked pretty but was rather tepid acting and story-wise. 

Once I was well into my teens, it became easier to get access to movies that might have had more restrictive ratings. When home video came along, my friends and I would all chip in and rent a bunch of the earliest VHS releases, which usually included some fright films. We saw Alien several times, first in the theatre, then at the drive-in, and repeatedly on home video. How could we not? It was, and still is, mind-blowing. And chest-blowing, if you know what I mean.

At the video stores, my crew and I frequently raided the horror section for goodies like Halloween and early David Cronenberg freak-fests (like Shivers, Rabid and The Brood - of course, into the 80's,we checked out the head-busting Scanners and so on), and Phantasm, a very bizarre low-budget cult film.

That doll's dynamite!

Into the 80's, television was also a good source for horror fare from the 70's. One station showed the Body Snatchers remake regularly, plus stuff like Friday the 13th (uncut for the late night showings), Willard and Ben (weird rat movies that I liked), The Night Stalker, Magic, Kingdom of Spiders, The Swarm, Horror Express, and Black Christmas. Oh, and the wonderfully creepy omnibus film, Trilogy of Terror, which is among my all-time favourite films... and yet it is just one of the three short stories that really gets to me... "Amelia", about a Zuni fetish doll that comes to life and tries to kill Karen Black.

Then there were the AIP, Amicus, and Hammer flicks on another channel: Blacula, the Chris Lee vampire and Frankenstein movies, the Dr. Phibes films, and Roger Corman productions. Just to name a few. All cool 70's releases that I had to wait a bit to see. Well worth it, for the most part.

Many years later, moved out and living on my own, with my own cable TV and a VCR, I caught up on a lot of 70's stuff I'd heard about but hadn't seen yet: Amityville Horror, Salem's Lot, The Sentinal, Nosferatu the Vampyre, It's Alive, Demon Seed, The Omega Man, Frenzy, The Exorcist, The Tenant, and the list goes on.

In the 90's, when I began building a home video collection, first on VHS, then later on DVD, I discovered even more gems (and stinkers) from the 70's: The Wicker Man, Theatre of Blood, Frogs, Burnt Offerings, The Asphyx, Legend of Hell House, and a lot more Hammer films. 

The 70's was a decade rich in imaginative horror cinema. There were quality works now considered classics of the genre, there were hidden gems that even today are unknown to many, and then there were the truly awful (Trog, anyone?).

Festivus For the Rest Of Us

.... but not for me.

The number of multiple-day music festivals is staggering these days. As far as I ever knew, there were only a handful of rock festivals when I was growing up.  There was Woodstock in '69, which I had no clue about then, since I was barely out of diapers and into kindergarten at the time. There were, in fact, a lot more festivals back then than I knew about.

The Reading and Leeds festivals in the UK were known to me in my teens only because bands like The Who released recordings of their performances there. Same with the Isle of Wight gathering, featuring the likes of Dylan, The Who, The Doors, and so on. 

The Monterey Pop fest was known for bill toppers like Hendrix and The Who demolishing the stage. Newport and California Jam were similarly acclaimed for presenting the biggest acts of the time. Another California festival was Day On The Green, hosted by the famed promoter Bill Graham, with artists as big as Grateful Dead, Beach Boys, Fleetwood Mac, and Led Zeppelin. Pretty epic - but I was just a kid, barely able to navigate my bicycle throughout my little hometown in Canada, let alone trek across the States to massive rock shows. 

These garishly garbed fellows entertained the crowd

at Monterey Pop Festival in the late 1960's

In the 80's, when I was finally of an age where I might consider attending such monster-sized shows, more and more festivals popped up because of emerging musical genres, like punk and new wave. Heatwave was one Canadian fest I remember hearing about back in 1980. It is still famed for bringing in the biggest fresh new artists on the scene, like Talking heads, The B-52's, and The Pretenders. By this time I was heavily into the music of the day, mostly heavy metal but also keeping an ear to the periphery of lighter rock and new wave genres. 

MuchMusic (in Canada) and MTV brought news and coverage of more and more festivals to the public. That was how I learned of the US Festival, Live Aid, and Rock in Rio, all of which got started in the 80's. The following decade saw even more big events grip the world, like Wacken Open Air and Lollapalooza. Wacken focused on metal music while Lolla was more about alt-rock and hip-hop. And I can't forget Ozzfest, which always had the best in metal (like Slayer, Danzig and Sepultura) leading up to... you guessed it, Ozzy, who headlined.

I never attended any of these days-long festivals. That just wasn't my thing. I suppose money was a factor, but if I was serious enough about doing such a trip event, I'd find the cash. In truth, I hated camping out. The great outdoors were not great to me. Bugs, sunburn, rain, dirt, stink, lousy sleeping, even lousier toilets, roughing it, the whole deal. As a kid, trekking across Canada with my family, I never liked the notion of camping. The musty smell of tents and sleeping bags, cooking hotdogs and toast over a fire while getting rained on. Oh, glorious fun.

So there was no appeal for me. I gave those grubby events a pass. I was no Woodstocker, plain and simple. The closest I came to festival shows were the '82 Police Picnic and the Scorpions Rock and Roll Hurricane of '84. Both were several hours long, so including the trip to Toronto plus the concerts, it was pretty much a full day. And each time, a full day was enough for me. My tolerance of crowds and noise and travel had, and still has a limit. The Police gig included warm-up bands Talking Heads, Flock of Seagulls, and English Beat, just to name a few. The Scorps show included Quiet Riot, Helix, and Kickaxe. Both day-festivals were exciting, but had they spanned two or three days, I don't know how I'd have fared. If I had a hotel room to rest up during the nights, it might have been cool. But camping out - forget it.

Here in Canada alone, we've seen several annual festivals sprout up and blossom in popularity in recent years. Osheaga, Veld, and NXNE are ones I've heard about in my neck of the woods. Probably all fun for fans of those genres, but definitely not for an oldster like me. I'll stick to my reserved seating in an arena, stadium, or concert hall. Where I know I have a spot waiting for me even after I take a walk for a drink and a visit to the men's room. 

Raised on Radio, My Adolescent Journey

My experiences with the band Journey were spotty at best, but I can safely say that I've always had a respect for their musicality. My earliest memory of Journey was when I randomly picked out and bought - a blind purchase, I might add - the 45rpm vinyl single containing the song The Party's Over (Hopelessly In Love) in 1981. I'm still not positive what the B-side was, but a little research on the web leads me to believe it was a live version of Wheel In the Sky. For some reason, though, I keep thinking the flip-side was Any Way You Want It. 

Anyway, I loved that song The Party's Over, playing it endlessly on my hand-me-down stereo turntable in my basement bedroom. I didn't know a thing about the band back then... just that single and maybe the odd song off the radio.

Somewhere around this time, when the animated movie Heavy Metal hit theatres and later home video, my friends and I became aware of Journey again, this time through their monster hit ballad Open Arms, which appeared on the film soundtrack. Back then, we weren't very impressed with that sort of sappy stuff, preferring heavier music like Blue Oyster Cult, Cheap Trick, and Black Sabbath, who were also represented in the animated flick. The soundtrack for that movie was so impressive, other than Open Arms, of course, that I bought the audio tape. That cassette got a heavy workout on a nearly daily basis, but I usually skipped the Journey ballad. Yuck.

For many years, I listened to rock radio that leaned toward the heavier end of the spectrum, more like Iron Maiden, Rush, and Metallica. I don't think I ever heard Journey on my stations of choice. Into the 90's, though, I finally picked up Escape, the band's most successful studio album ever. It hit number one on the U.S. Billboard chart in '81 and spawned four hit singles, including that l'il ol' thing called Don't Stop Believin'... maybe you've heard of it?

Listening to Escape, I began to realize that Journey at its best was pretty amazing. A very high level of musicianship and creativity in songwriting. Their music stood apart from a lot of other hard rock of that era (at their peak, 1978-87), with  a more positive image and uplifting song lyrics. On the other hand, I also discovered that the band's lesser, or "filler", songs were pretty mediocre, often boring me to tears. Very recently, I finally snagged a greatest hits CD, but even as I listened to it, I realized that something was missing. Like that old song I once had on a 45rpm single, The Party's Over. And a few key songs from the Escape disc which had sort of drifted out of my collection at some point. Just a few weeks after that purchase, and a bit more research on the web, I located an even more perfect hits package. This one, Essential Journey, packs thirty-two terrific hits onto two CDs. And it's got The Party's Over, plus the Escape tracks that I sorely missed, most notably Stone In Love and Escape. Now I'm rockin' to a whole wack of great classic rock, much of which I never had much exposure to back in the day.

Journey is still touring and recording, though I have no real interest in their current output. I did watch the 2012 documentary about the band's search for a new vocalist. That was a cool and inspirational story, though it focused too much on the singer Journey finally chose. Even though his voice was about as close to Steve Perry's as could be, I just couldn't accept anyone else as the lead vocalist for such a legendary band. 

Perry was Journey, with his unique and striking vocal style and sound, his songwriting contributions, and his stage manner and presence. I watched a 1981 Journey concert on YouTube not long ago, and it made me wish I'd been in the front row of one of their shows back then. Not all flashy like Rush or Maiden, these guys just went out there and delivered a rocking good time, reproducing their studio tracks flawlessly. 

Also crucial to the Journey sound were, and still are, guitarist Neal Schon and keyboardist Jonathan Cain. Schon wrote incredible music, showcasing his talents on the fretboard, while Cain displayed his dexterity and flash on the keys. Those two, plus the solid rhythm section of an often rotating line-up of musicians, laid down some of the best music of the 70's and 80's. Though Journey was initially a progressive rock band, they redefined their sound as they composed more pop-oriented material on their fourth album, Infinity. They drew both praise and criticism during their heyday, ascending to become one of the most successful acts of the era. And Journey has now sold nearly 90 million records, making them one of the world's best-selling bands of all time. 

Not bad for a bunch of hippies out of San Fran.