California Breed - The Father, The Son, The Holy Ghost - Rock Ain't Near Dead....

Rock 'N' Roll is alive and well. I went to the mountain, got the sermon, and I am here to spread the gospel. I saw the history of British rock played out with an American twist as Glenn Hughes returned victoriously to the stage of the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood after a 44 year absence, and he brought with him, Jason Bonham, the son of the greatest hard rock drummer in history, who is currently state of the art at his art, and they brought with them the new messiah of rock, 23 year old wunderkind Andrew Watt, who played and looked the part of the second coming of the rock star circa 2014. They tore the joint up, and love was in the air.

The Last Hombres - Odd Fellows Rest - Levon Helm Sure Had Good Taste

The Last Hombres were the only band Levon Helm ever joined as a member after the end of The Band, and that speaks volumes. The band also worked with Rick Danko, but the fact that they were revered by key members of maybe the best roots music ensemble ever is just my way of drawing you in - what's germane is the band's excellent new record, Odd Fellows Rest, which you will thank me for pointing out later.

Rival Sons - Great Western Valkyrie - A Good Band Gets Great

Rival Sons continue to mine gold on Great Western Valkyrie, their fifth long player with producer Dave Cobb, making meaningful rock in the heart of a country music wasteland called Nashville.

To review this record, I attempted to time travel in my mind, back to 1970, where I imagine placing Rival Sons right in the middle of The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Free, to see how they would have fared. These seem to be the points I see struck by most writers, so I figure those are the glasses I'll put on to look into the distant past to see how the present stands up.

PGP 2 - Pinnick Gales Pridgen Do It Again, and Even More Brilliantly

PGP 2 finds Pinnick Gales Pridgen back again, and perhaps they've not only beaten the sophomore jinx, maybe they've beaten even their superb first effort.

In a time in which many are saying that even to consider making an album is a misguided move fraught with danger, dUg Pinnick puts out four records that stand proudly beside anything in his catalogue. People say the guitar is a tired and dying instrument, but somehow Eric Gales makes music sound undiscovered and beautiful every time he picks up his axe. Drums have been a thing of the past ever since rap raised its head, yet Thomas Pridgen remains inventive and vital in a host of various genres and bands. Rock Ain't Near Dead - and it was never proven with more aplomb than on PGP 2, the second effort by Pinnick Gales Pridgen. The Left Hand Gang is back, and they are bad.

Joe Satriani - Strange Beautiful Music, and The Complete Studio Collection

Joe Satriani sails into summer with a great package that should satisfy both the loyal and the neophyte Satch fan. Whether you've been there since the first EP like I have, or you're just getting into the realm of shred's smartest head, this package is all you'll need until Joe returns to the studio. The book is an encyclopedic look at Joe Satriani's catalogue by the master himself, and The Complete Studio Collection, re-mastered in 24-bit/96kHz High Resolution-Audio by longtime Satriani studio partner John Cuniberti and overseen by Joe himself, speaks for itself - even the less than expected mp3 files that Sony sees fit to dump on reviewers they obviously have less than love for sound great (more on that later).

Black Star Riders - Harlow's, Sacramento, California - Scott Gorham Proves His Point

Scott Gorham has a point to prove, and he's proving it. And, he just might be the best rhythm guitar player in the world on any stage, on any given night.

It's a small club, and the stage is smaller yet. The band has half their gear onstage, their soundman is not their own, and it's a Monday night crowd. This could discourage a lesser band, but Black Star Riders performed as if it was the biggest arena in the world and this was the only audience that ever mattered. I've not often seen a band so intent, so committed to their performance - Black Star Riders came and conquered.

California Breed - Zen and the Art of Glenn Hughes

Glenn Hughes is excited about California Breed. Glenn Hughes is very excited about California Breed.

Coming on the heels of the musically successful, but born to lose Black Country Communion, his new band is set to launch their debut album and their inaugural shows, and his excitement is well deserved. In the face of the possibility of restarting the failed supergroup, he looked away from an incredible A-list of world class guitarists offering to be the next in line, and instead took the road less traveled with a virtually unknown kid, the 23 year old Andrew Watt. The results are spectacular - this band sounds dangerous.

Motorhead and Graveyard Rock The Warfield Theater: Lemmy Takes The Day

Lemmy Kilminster led his team to the battlefield once more, and rode away victorious. Long live Lemmy.

The sold-out crowd at San Francisco's Warfield Theater is an experienced, well-dressed rock audience. Everyone here is here for the music, the sights, the sounds, and the lights, and they too walk away victorious. No one knew exactly what to expect from Motorhead, what with their hard living leader reported to be unwell, and having many unfortunate cancellations behind them from the last year. What we got was an amazing performance from start to finish, and a reaffirmation of all that's right with rock.

Dewa Budjana - Surya Namaskar - The Future Of Fusion In 2014

Surya Namaskar is destined to be a fusion classic. Dewa Budjana brings together tremendous guitar playing skills and equally impressive talent as a composer - add two fusion superstars (Vinnie Colaiuta and Jimmy Johnson) to the mix, throw in mix master Robert Feist (he engineered Allan Holdsworth's greatest records), and you have the perfect ingredients for success, and succeed this troop has.

Nita Strauss - Much More Than A Maiden - The Rock Guitar Daily Interview

Nita Strauss has been a figure on the West Coast guitar scene for years - when not channeling Dave Murray's sound, style, and licks onstage with The Iron Maidens, she might be found recording rocking classical renditions of various video games with Critical Hit, or maybe even on the road playing some hard funk with Jermaine Jackson. She is definitely not one to let grass grow under her feet - she even finds time to work with her co-guitarist and longtime friend/roommate Courtney Cox in not just the Maidens, but also Lorraine Lewis's reformed Femme Fatale who hit the waves between March 29-April 2 for the incredible (and sold out) Monsters of Rock Cruise, in which they'll be showing off both FF, and The Maidens.

California Breed - Well Worth The Wait, This Is A Brand New Breed - Review

Rock Ain't Near Dead - that's been my mantra for a while, and I am now more convinced than ever. California Breed is a fantastic album by a fantastic band. It's new breed, if you will - it doesn't sound like Deep Purple, Black Country Communion, or anything that preceded it. Hughes and Bonham have done some of their best work yet, and the avenue of guitar heroes has a new kid on the block in Andrew Watt.

Buffalo Killers - Heavy Reverie - Radio Ready, Willing, and Able

Buffalo Killers are back with Heavy Reverie, and they're going for the throat with a record that should situate the band for full throttle rock stardom. They've brought along a new label (Sun Pedal Recordings - Warner Music Group), a new producer (the legendary Jim Wirt), and hell, they even mixed it on the Neve console that gave birth to Michael Jackson's Thriller demos.

KXM - Supergroup? Hell Yes.

Korn + King's X + Lynch Mob = KXM = synergy.

syn-er-gy: noun 1. the interaction or cooperation of two or more organizations, substances, or other agents to produce combined effect greater than the sum of their separate parts.

In my old age, I'm learning to not be too quick to judge, to not shoot from the hip without looking closely at what I'm shooting. And in this case, that concept has served me very well.

Nalle Colt - Vintage Trouble - The Rock Guitar Daily Interview

Photo by Neil Kitson

Vintage Trouble is perhaps the world's biggest unsigned act, and that's no mistake. From day one they've done things their own way, and it worked like a charm for the hard working four piece from Los Angeles. Having played for millions of fans over the last few years to taking over the late night airwaves, the band has played their cards to perfection. Now, it's time for all that to change.

Nalle Colt is the band's guitarist, and writer of some of the sharpest dressed rock to find its way into the public consciousness in ages. He explained to me recently how the band's hard work, and the guidance of maybe the best management team on the planet (McGhee Entertainment) has led them to their next chapter and their second album, and perhaps a date with the unlikely, but incredibly impressive pairing of Jack White and Don Was. Nalle also told me how he came to the Les Paul, Revival Amps, and he delivered a great message on the power of hard work and gratitude.

Philip Morgan Lewis - The Whistleblower - A Timely Tale and Video

Philip Morgan Lewis returns with a new single, The Whistleblower, and it is already getting serious airplay here in the States, and in his UK homeland. The message is certainly one that many are thinking these days, in which the good guys have been put on the run by the powers that be.

Lewis is a regular one man band, playing everything here with the exception of Clive "B" Smart's excellent as always slide guitars, and some nice background vocals by Little A and VICK E. Lewis produced the record, played the instruments, and produced and edited the video. And, that's him on the skateboard in the video!

I was big on Morgan Lewis' Karma Comedown EP last year, and it appears there's no slowing down now. Karma Comedown received great press and airplay last year, and it seems that his bold, bluesy style has caught more than a few ears.

Jon Herington - Much More Than Just Steely Dan's 'Go To' Guitarist - The Rock Guitar Daily Interview

"I found out that one of the most amazing opportunities anyone can have in a musical career is this repeat chance, years and years in a row, again and again, to play the same music with a top notch band. Music with room to improvise, and to play it at high stakes, where an audience is expecting a high caliber of musicianship night after night, year after year. It's amazing what you can accumulate over the years if you are working consciously to get better at it." ~ Jon Herington on touring with Steely Dan

Jon Herington is certainly best known for being a guitarist for Steely Dan, and various Dan related solo projects and off-shoot bands for nigh on fifteen years, but he's also led his own band for over twenty years and five albums, including a record (2012's Time On My Hands) that Vintage Guitar Magazine called, 'One of the best albums of the year, but of the past decade,' and rightfully so.

KISS - Opportunity Missed?

I'm jumping on the bandwagon on this one, something I rarely do, but I may as well say my piece. The fact that KISS is not playing their own induction into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame with the original lineup is a crime against their fans, and a great opportunity missed.

George Lynch - A Good Effort But A Too Tame Mob in Sacramento

Keith St. John saved the night. A last minute addition to Lynch's mob, St. John stepped in and did a great job in an otherwise extremely lackluster night at The Boardwalk in Sacramento.

In what seems to have become a recurring theme George Lynch again found himself without a lead singer on the eve of a tour. Whether Tad Gonzales walked, or was shown the door, no one seems to know, but regardless of the details, it certainly doesn't look good, and it doesn't make for great rock and roll. It wasn't that long ago that original Lynch Mob vocalist Oni Logan bailed on the band just hours before a flight, and had to be replaced by LA veteran Chaz West. It begs a few questions, but first, some praise for Keith St. John.

Rolling Stones Gear - Stones Fans and Guitar Lovers Rejoice!

"Keith explained the unconventional origins of "Paint It, Black" and how it came together: "Mick wrote it. I wrote the music, he did the words. Get a single together. What's amazing about that one for me is the sitar. Also, the fact that we cut it as a comedy tack. Bill was playing an organ, doing a takeoff of our first manager (Eric Easton), who started off his career in show business as an organist in a cinema pit. We were doing it with funky rhythms, and it hadn't worked, and he started playing it like this and everybody got behind it. It's a two-beat, very strange. Brian playing the sitar makes it a whole other thing." ~ Chapter 6 - page 221

Of course, then Bill Wyman goes on to tell a quite different story completely concerning the organ part, the story of the sitar use is fleshed out superbly, we read about the acoustic guitars that Brian and Keith used (Gibson Hummingbirds, with Keith using a Guild Freshman M-65 for his lead), we find out who played what rhythm instrument, all adding up to, "a great sound... like a Hungarian polka."

BIGELF - Into The Maelstrom - A Stunning Comeback

Originally printed at www.metaltalk.net!

"Damon Fox is the real thing. How many times do we get to hear that? Rock and roll is fading into memory, lost in a sea of mediocrity and an ocean of banality. Playing live with Damon is like standing on the stage of a dingy bar in London in 1972 with a charismatic figure from a Charles Dickens fantasy with a B-3 organ at his bejeweled fingertips. Keeping the great traditions of true rock music alive, Damon looks plays, and inhabits the rock and roll vibe of all the greats." ~ Michael Des Barres

I hadn't heard from Bigelf in quite a while when I noticed that Fox was playing amazing keyboards in The Michael Des Barres Band for some great shows, and a couple of excellent records. Then I heard that Inside Out Music had signed the band, Mike Portnoy had lent his aid, and things were back on track for the LA based outfit.

Cynic - Kindly Bent To Free Us - First Rate Thinking Man's Metal

It could be said that Cynic has image issues. Google in one direction and they'll be called prog, go in another direction and you can read about their thrash metal origins, Wiki will tell you they're all but a polka band at times. Whatever they've been, and however they've been perceived is for me immaterial - I'm a neophyte, and I find them fabulous.

Jack Bruce - Silver Rails - Top Of The Class In 2014

Who would have thought that Jack Bruce would do his best work at the age of 70? It's a familiar tack with me, but think about what you would have wanted Jack to sound like in 2014 - he's singing better than ever, he's playing great bass and piano, and he's writing brilliantly. Could you have hoped for more than that? Silver Rails may be his best solo record ever, its certainly the best record he's made in a great many years, and it should end up on a lot of lists for the best albums of 2014.

Michael Schenker's Temple Of Rock - The Boardwalk - Sacramento, California 8th February, 2014

It wasn't the best Schenker show I've ever seen, but it was the best Schenker show I've seen in over twenty years....

It was a cold and rainy winter's night in Sacramento, but the loyal came out in droves to celebrate Michael Schenker's Temple Of Rock. On a stage that even threw fear into the heart of as experienced a frontman as Doogie White, the mad axeman and his band of merry men could do no wrong, and the over-capacity crowd sang every word and punched the air with every solo. Schenker is continuing his steady climb that might just have him now at the top of the guitar hero sweepstakes, and he's finally found a dependable frontman with which to share the stage in the seasoned White.

Gary Moore - Rest In Peace (A Re-print from 2011)

It's terribly difficult to put into words what I am feeling on this cold, wintery Sunday afternoon. Just this morning, I wrote a defense of Gary Moore, only to hear hours later of his death. I am, along with a great many others, shocked and saddened.

I have been a huge fan of Gary Moore's since I was about 16. I saw Moore play with Thin Lizzy, and it changed my entire musical worldview. At that age I had never witnessed anyone play with such passion, and enthusiasm. It was as if the music passed through him like electricity, as he jumped, grimaced, and writhed through the show. No mere posturing, the notes revealed a stunning amount of emotion and conviction. He never lasted long in Lizzy, as he was fueled by his desire to sing and write his own material, difficult to do in a band with Phil Lynott, but when they did unite it was always exceptional.

California Breed - Glenn Hughes' New Power Trio with Jason Bonham and Andrew Watt

I first heard the demos some six months ago, but I had been sworn to secrecy by the ex-Purple bass man, Voice of Rock Glenn Hughes.

Hughes, "An announcement will be made soon, about my new band with Jason and Andrew - it's going to be a mind-blower. We're recording in Nashville with Dave Cobb and Vance Powell (Rival Sons, Raconteurs). I am fresh, alive, and with a bag o' tunes to shake up the music industry - and with a record company that will be with me all the way (Frontiers Records)."

Rudolf Schenker - Unplugged But Still Electrifying - The Rock Guitar Daily Interview

Rudolf Schenker is finding out that the world is not quite ready for Scorpions, his long running juggernaught of peace and friendship, to come to a halt. The band has just released their latest opus, MTV Unplugged, a DVD/CD set that takes a long and leisurely look at the German metal frontrunners' history.

I caught up with Rudolf on an early Monday morning, and at 64 he's still running circles around the rest of the planet - we used telephones, but I'm not sure they were necessary. Had Schenker stuck his head out of his German window, I'm thinking I could well have heard him from my California back door. His energy and passion crash down like mighty waves, and you can either join in, or get out of his way. I dove in.

Adrian Belew - On Crimson ProjeKCt, The Crimson Legacy, And Flux - The Rock Guitar Daily Interview

The Crimson ProjeKCt - the Fripp approved roadshow put together by King Crimson veterans Adrian Belew, Tony Levin, and Pat Mostelotto and including Markus Reuter, Julie Slick, and Tobias Ralph are hitting the boards again in 2014, and they'll be bringing their troupe to the 02 Sheperds Bush Empire on March 12th for a special one off in the UK.

I spoke with the always affable and elucidating Adrian Belew at his home near Nashville, Tennessee about the tour and his other plans for 2014 - as always, he's a busy guy, but he also ended out talk with the announcement of something even he has never done, and that is truly saying something.

Lance Lopez Rocks The Baked Potato - Don't Bogart That Bogert, My Friend!

There were moments tonight, when things just took off - now, that was fun." ~ Tim Bogert

"Goodness gracious, 'lil Susie sho likes to roll...."

To say the least there were moments last night at the world famous Baked Potato last night in Los Angeles in which it seemed the small club itself might just take flight as Texas guitar star Lance Lopez raised the roof again and again with incendiary singing and molten lava blues rock.

Jason Bonham Reveals New Band With Glenn Hughes, Andrew Watt

It would appear that the cat is safely out of the bag. After months of steely secrecy, this morning Jason Bonham came out and said it:

Jason Bonham ~ "Good Morning. Grabbing my Starbucks while listening in the car to the mixes for me new band with Glenn Hughes and Andrew Watt . Will tease you with a few bars of it later !!!!!! Sound Bad Ass . Cheers."

I've been sitting on this since I heard the demos back in September - and yes, they sound amazing. There will be few people mourning the death of Black Country Communion when this project is heard, it is simply amazing.

Michael Schenker's Temple Of Rock - Bridging The Gap Live in Corona

Photo by Anthony Crawford

He's calling it Bridge The Gap, but I'm thinking it's just as much phoenix rising these days with our old friend, Michael Schenker. He's had more lives than most cats, and we are currently in the midst of a beautiful resurgence.

Coming fast on the heels of his best album in decades, the German guitar legend is playing with his well known fire and precision, but he's now added fun and enjoyment to his repertoire, along with the best sidekick he's rode with in ages - Doogie White brings a lot to the party, and perennial sergeant-at-arms Wayne Findlay is steadfast in his role. Bolstered by the rock steady Pete Holmes on the drums and the whirlwind that is Rev Jones on a fine collection of Dean basses, the band absolutely thrilled the capacity crowd at the rock 'n' roll oasis that is the M15 club in Corona, California.

Ethan Brosh - Live The Dream - The Rock Guitar Daily Interview

Ethan Brosh is a guitarist known for making things happen. He's gone from an eleven year old guitar student in Israel to opening for Jake E. Lee's triumphant return to his hometown of San Diego, and this Spring he'll be releasing his second full length CD, Live The Dream, on Carmine Appice's new Rocker Records label. You don't pull off things like this without a full tilt effort, and it's a steely determination that seems to keep Brosh in focus and on point.

Coming off an impressive summer tour opening shows for Yngwie J. Malmsteen, Ethan is primed to enter 2014 with a full head of steam, and heading for the next level. He's decreasing the number of acts he's been playing with to focus on his solo career, and from the sound of the new record, that's a great idea. I had a chance to spend some quality time with Brosh in San Diego before the Red Dragon Cartel show, and we had a great talk about how he sees things, and where he'd like to go.

68-75 - Stay On The Ride - Atlanta Vets, Or Rookies Of The Year?

68-75 comes out of the gate with no governor on the engine, and with the pedal fully to the metal. After getting a good round of attention towards the end of 2013 via a highly prized slot on one of Classic Rock Magazine's great compilation discs, and sworn testimonials from some of America's underground experts, the band is set to unleash their first long player, Stay On The Ride, on the masses, and the masses would do well to hold on tight.

Led by longtime Atlanta rockers Suzanne Sledge on vocals, and Andrew Cylar on wicked guitar, 68-75 are braced for well-deserved rock stardom. With a disc this good in your repertoire it's surely time to load up the van and seek a place on stages and headline bills.

What's on tap here is edgy straight ahead rock with little filler - acknowledging their unabashed love of the power rock of the seventies, 68-75 would have fit quite well on the stage at Woodstock, and they'll fit just as well on festival stages in 2014 if they keep playing their cards like they have been. This is a handmade project - the band has done everything on their own, and through shrewd use of social media, they stand very ready to go to the next level - one that will engage labels, publicists, and management. Sledge and Cylar have solid star power, and they are bigger than can be grown in a small pot for long.

Camel's Back starts things off, and it's taut, distorted guitar line will stick to your bones like a mother's meal, and Sledge's well worn shout will put you in mind of such ghosts of rock's past like Marriott, Rodgers, and Reid. The rhythm section is nicely tight, but loose - they've definitely heard a Zeppelin record, or two. The lyrics tell the tale of broken love, and they're appropriately defiant, then along comes Cylar with what I lovingly call a 'Leslie West moment.' A long, bent fill that's just fat, and filled with tone - economy of language is the key, and while he says little, it speaks large. The solo is a joy, filled with sharp shards of solid rock. One of the thrills of a home brewed project is that this sounds real, like a band stood in a room and ripped this one of in one take.

"Made my deal with the devil, nobody rides for free.' So says the first line of Deal With The Devil, and it's now clear that as Sledge sets sail with her 'soul's wide open' prose, Cylar throws out memorable guitar hooks like candy off a float. Again, the guitarist sounds as pissed as the singer when he unfurls his in your face solos. Great rhythm guys are rare as anything, and Andrew Cylar is first rate. Short, sweet, and to the point.

Bleak, dark guitar, and a mournful organ announce Detroit, and again Sledge is on the edge of town with no ticket out. The riff sounds rainy and cold, and the dirge of the bass and drums march on soldierly, as Cylar's wicked vibrato shakes out the notes, leading into an overdubbed twin guitar solo section that suggests interesting possibilities for the future.

Dog Tooth recalls the best moments of seventies swagger, bringing to mind Robin Trower's best, and the whisky soaked soul of Humble Pie. Solid snare work keeps this from being just another rocker, and the riffing has a sultry smack. More great tone and fill from Cylar, who seems to know just how much spice to add toy a recipe.

Things get downright Stonesy on It's Only Tuesday with chord suspensions and a rocking acoustic track laying up next to the electrics, and a more open snare sound that lightens up things nicely. Reminds me of why I loved Mick Taylor in the Stones, as the stinging leads mix with the pumping rhythms. I hear Atlanta all over this one with fond memories of all the great guitar work that came out of Georgia in the nineties. Sledge is one point again, shouting out her melodic take on the blues.

An insistant bass drum jousts nicely with Cylar's riffing on the intro of Kicking Down The Stalls, and Sledge tells it like it is. She may be beat down, but she's never beaten. This is a voice that's lived the lyrics, I don't get any sense of fiction coming from this record. Classic blues rock belting from someone who's felt it, experienced it, and lived to write about it. More great and memorable guttering, and it's over all too soon.

If The Faces were to reunite, I'd hope it would sound half as great as Nowhere. Not that this band doesn't sound great as the classic power trio with a singer lineup, but I have to think a full time Hammondist (that's me making up words again), and another guitar could open this up even more. Cylar's riffs are so compelling and interesting that they suggest further orchestration - again, not any criticism, just me hearing possibilities that he's often laid down upon this disc.

NSC features one of those stately, and gorgeous intros that always sounded so good when they came jumping of the FM airwaves, and then it graduates to more swinging, swaggering rock. Sledge and Cylar sound like they've been doing this for eons, and they have. The pair has been working together for over a decade, and I'm damned glad they never gave up. Rock this vital is necessary to keep the ship afloat in these days of corporate destitution in the mainstream. I hope they keep their act together and see this through - this is one of those combinations I want to hear five albums from now, four world tours later - it can only get better, richer, and more valuable over time.

This is a band I want to play with - strap on an axe and hit the road. You will to when you get trampled underfoot by a riff like Send My Body Home. It takes great guitars to not completely get lost in a voice like Sledge's, and Cylar delivers again, and again - and I know how hard, and rare riff writing like that is to find. He's the best rhythm writer I've heard in a long while, and there's even some howling harp on this one that keeps the gutters fresh. This one swings, swings, and swings.

Stay On The Ride is straight up solid blues rock ripping, complete with muted chuck-a-chuck guitar mashing and psychedelic strangling that gives Sledge yet another color to weave her vocal magic across. She's a lower pitched plant than some of the raging Brits of days past, suggesting more of a Dewars and water kid of tone, and it fits perfectly with Cylar's Les Pauls.

I'm guessing that this one can't miss my top 14 for 2014, even at this early date. Hell, it's a band I want to play in, manage, produce, and take home with me - but great rock 'n' roll is like that, right. You want to own it, make it yours, and make sure it doesn't ever go away. Hell no, Rock Ain't Near Dead....

My special thanks to Suzanne Sledge and Andrew Cylar.

Brian Tichy - This Week On Rock Ain't Near Dead Saturday, January 11th!

Brian Tichy will be joining us on Rock Ain't Near Dead on Saturday evening at 8 p.m. PST on LA Talk Radio (www.latalkradio.com) - January 11, 2014. How he's found the time I have no idea, because he might just be the busiest guy in rock 'n' roll. When he's not busy behind the drum kit with the like of Ozzy Osbourne, Whitesnake, Billy Idol, or Geoff Tate's Queensryche, he might be found playing killer guitar in S.U.N., his incredible new band with supersinger Sass Jordan, but this month he's outdone himself.

Check out this link for details: https://www.facebook.com/notes/bonzo-bash/bonzo-bash-namm-jamm-2014-randy-rhoads-remembered-and-pywhipped-vip-tribute-to-f/487839224687053

On January 2nd, his Led Zeppelin tribute band, The Moby Dicks (Tichy, Stephen LeBlanc, Brent Woods, James Lomenzo, Chas West) recreated Zep's first ever LA show at the Whisky a Go Go, 45 years to the day! Same date, same venue, same setlist!

Next, on Thursday, January 23rd Tichy is hosting the fourth annual Bonzo Bash NAMM Jamm 2014 - the greatest collection of great rock 'n' roll drummers to ever be assembled in one room. Besides the list of all these great stickmen (see poster below), special guests will include Billy Sheehan, Bernard Fowler, Robert DeLeo, Oni Logan, and many more!

As if this weren't enough, it gets even crazier with the first ever Randy Rhoads Remembered show on Friday, January 24th at The Observatory in Santa Ana. Tichy will be joined by an amazing list of A-list guitarists (Brad Gillis (ex-Ozzy), Nuno Bettencourt, Gus G., Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal, Marty Friedman, and many others, including perhaps even the once reclusive Jake E. Lee!) to celebrate the life and music of one of the most legendary and missed guitarists to ever pick up an axe. This one will be beyond belief.

Indeed, Brian Tichy is one rocker who seems to have the golden touch. How does he do it all? Heaven knows, but we'll be asking him how this Saturday at 8 p.m. PST on Rock Ain't Near Dead on LA Talk Radio (www.latalkradio.com). He may well even play some guitar for us, as well. Another show you won't want to miss!

Jake E. Lee - "It's better than I thought it would be. It's just really, really cool." - The Rock Guitar Daily Interview

"I hadn't felt that alive - and I didn't realize it, for 15 years. Because like I said, I was content, but when I heard the song with Robin Zander, I was just so excited to be alive - it was a pivotal moment in my life, and that's when I knew. 'Count me in - let's do this thing, let's do something - that's when it happened."

Jake E. Lee is kind of like the Garbo of rock 'n' roll. On top of the world one minute, then gone with little more than a trace for the next fifteen years. But, unlike Garbo, Jake came back - how long will he stay? Well, that remains to be seen, but in the meantime it's damned good to have him back treading the boards and playing as well as ever. His new band is Red Dragon Cartel, and after a rough start, they look like they'll be just fine.

I can only imagine what Lee was feeling like after being dragged across the coals of the fiery and impersonal Internet after the band's lead singer, Darren James Smith, got a bad case of the nerves before the band's first show and a few cocktails became something of a drunken brawl. But, hey, it's rock 'n' roll, and Smith showed his mettle by being humble and putting on a helluva show a few nights later in San Diego. One things for sure, it can only get better from here, and I'm of the opinion that this band has a very cool future.

I caught up with Jake two days after the San Diego show, and in spite of being in promo/press tour hell, he was in good spirits and we had a bunch of laughs about it all.

Jake E. Lee: "I'm great - you're my 47th interview, but other than that! It's cool, it's gotta be done, a necessary evil, I suppose."

I asked if he was having as much fun as it looked like on Sunday evening at the Brick By Brick club in San Diego:

Jake E. Lee: "I did have a much better time on that second show, haha! Because now, everybody knows about that first one. Yeah, yeah - the good part is that we'll never be scrutinized and under the magnifying glass as much as at that first show again, and there's no way we'll ever be that bad again. 

"Darren told me later he was really nervous, which I never even considered. I probably should have given him some words of encouragement beforehand, but he's a singer! Singers are usually cocky!"

I offered that most singers aren't following in the footsteps of Ozzy Osbourne and Ray Gillen - even if it was years ago:

Jake E. Lee: "Yeah, that's true." 

But, he fucking blew the first show, that was pretty clear, but he came back and had a great show in San Diego:

Jake E. Lee: "Yeah, he did, and he helped to redeem himself. 

"Because I caught a lot of shit about the first show, too. All those comments, 'What was Jake thinking?'"

I mentioned that the comments were, par for the course of the Internet, very harsh and nasty. I may have used the word vituperative:

Jake E. Lee: "Well, that's because it's not face to face, and they don't have to worry about getting their ass kicked! 

"But yeah, I got a lot of, 'What was Jake thinking' - obviously, I wasn't thinking that! It's not like he showed up to the audition and he was drunk and didn't know the words, and did that. 

"C'mon, I've been around this for a long time, there's a reason I picked him as our lead singer. It may not have shown through on the first gig, but it'll be obvious, and it was obvious at that second show - that's why I picked him."

I guessed that by summer the band will be out kicking ass on the Festival circuit and it will all be forgotten:

Jake E. Lee: "Yeah - I hope so, because it was brutal! Just brutal comments on that first show. 

"We did our worst show ever. Now, we don't have to worry about that! We took care of that right off the bat!"

I have to give Jake great credit for standing by his guy, and facing things head on - he laughed about what could only really be laughed about, and moved on - grace under fire. I moved forward, asking how Ron Mancuso got the ball rolling for Red Dragon Cartel:

Jake E. Lee: "Well, I was in retirement, basically, and maybe not happy, but content. 

"Because I had a great run - I was with Ozzy, I had Badlands, I made music I was proud of, got to play with a lot of great people, and I figured my time was up, so I was cool with doing anything anymore. But when I moved to Vegas, I didn't really have that many friends, or know that many people - I just wanted to get out of LA, and get a change of scenery. 

"One of the few friends I did have was Pete Reveen from Salty Dog, and he knew Ron. He said, 'Hey, Ron wants to hook up with you again, because I hadn't seen Ron in twenty years. So, I went down, and me and Ron reconnected - he said, 'By the way, I'm doing a video for Beggars & Thieves in a couple of days and I'm having people do some cameos, would you do one?'" 

"So - I checked the TV schedule to make sure there weren't any important shows on that night! There weren't, so I said, 'Sure, why not? I'll come down and do a cameo,' no big deal. 

"They did the video, and they put it out, and then Ron called, and he said, 'Hey, have you checked out the video?'" 

"I said, 'Uh....no. He said, 'Well, it's on YouTube,' so I said, 'Yeah, maybe I'll check it out. 

"And he said, 'No - check it out. And read the comments.' I was like, 'Huh? Yeah, whatever.' 

"So - I went and I checked out the video, and I started reading the comments, and there were so many about my little appearance in that video. 'Oh my God, he's still alive.' 'Oh, he didn't get fat and bald!' 'Look, he can still stand on two feet and hold a guitar!' 

"There was a lot of people saying, 'Oh, does this mean something?' and it didn't, y'know? 

"It was a casual thing, but there was a lot of people, a lot of support, like, 'Jake's coming back, he's doing something again!' - and that was never the intent, but there were so many comments. So, I read all these heartwarming comments."

I asked what happened next:

Jake E. Lee: "A couple of days later, Ron called, and said, 'Can you come down? Me and Kevin Churko want to talk to you. 

"Ron has a studio, and it's right next to Kevin's and obviously having worked with Ozzy, Kevin knew who I was, so I came down and Kevin and Ron sat down, and said, 'Look - apparently, there's a lot of interest, a lot of love for you out there, do you want to do something?' 

"And I was like, 'Eh....not really. I mean, I'm not really doing anything, but no - I don't have any strong desire to like come back out and do something.' 

"They said, 'Well, let's just take it really easy - why don't you just come down to the studio, bring some ideas with you, and you and Ron....' Because Ron actually helped write Rock 'n' Roll Rebel for Bark At The Moon. So we already had that relationship. 'Why don't you come down, you and Ron write some songs together, and see if you get some chemistry going, and take it from there? No commitment, just see if it feels good to you.' 

"So, that's what I did. I went down to the studio and I'd show him some ideas, because I had been writing music the whole time - the 15 year absence was more of a 'done with the business' thing. You know, I didn't need all that shit - but music is still in me. 

"Especially with computers, and all that - it gave me a fresh approach where you could write it all yourself, which was kind of hard to do before that without a home studio. You could do it with a computer, so I continued to write throughout that 15 year period, and I had a lot of ideas. I had complete songs even. 

"I brought them to Ron, and we started working on them - the first song we finished was Feeder, and still the point was like, 'Are we doing anything?' 'We're writing songs let's see what happens - I'm not making any promises, or anything.' 

"And they were cool about that - we did Feeder, Ron sang the vocal melody on it, and Ron's a horrible singer! So we're listening to it, and I said, 'You know what? Robin Zander would be great on this song, I wonder if there's any way we could get Robin Zander to sing on it?' 

"Ron knows (Cheap Trick bassist) Tom Petersson, so he said, 'I'll call Tom and see if Robin would do anything like that.' And Robin got a copy of the song and he said, 'Oh, I'd love to do that.' He recorded it in Florida, and sent the tracks back to us here in Vegas. Ron put Zander's vocals into the song that we had finished, and he said, 'Hey - why don't you come down and listen to this?' 

"So, I came down, and it was a pivotal moment. 

"I hadn't done anything in a long time, hadn't worked with other musician in a long time. And to hear a song we had written, and hear Robin Zander on vocals, and Jeremy from Five Finger Death Punch on drums, Tom Petersson on bass - listening to the song.... 

"I hadn't felt that alive - and I didn't realize it, for 15 years. Because like I said, I was content, but when I heard the song with Robin Zander, I was just so excited to be alive - it was a pivotal moment in my life, and that's when I knew. 'Count me in - let's do this thing, let's do something - that's when it happened."

Now that there was a project, it was time to find a band - Lee and Mancuso turned to the Internet, asking for applicants, which led to the selection of Darren James Smith on vocals and Jonas Fairley on drums. I asked what it was like to have hundreds of applicants for the role of lead singer:

Jake E. Lee: "Yeah, we had a lot! You know how it is with the Internet, people sending in videos of their dogs singing. 

"Ron went through most of them, because there were so many applicants - that, I was surprised about. So, I had Ron go through them, and he narrowed it down to like 20-25, and one of the first one's he showed me was Darren's. And before that, he had asked me, 'What are we looking for?' I told him that I didn't have any pre-conceived notions of what we're looking for, I'll just know it when I see it. 

"As soon as he played me Darren's, I said, 'That - we're looking for something like that.' Ron said, 'Well, we've still got another 20, or so to go,' and I said, 'Oh, I'll watch them all, but right now that's what we're looking for, and that's what we'll compare everybody else to.' 

"We went through all the other videos, and there were some really, really good singers, definitely, that would have had a shot except they had to go up against Darren. We compared them all, and Darren just always won out. So, in the end, one of the first guys I saw ended up being the singer."

Darren James Smith makes his presence known immediately on Red Dragon Cartel's opening cut, Deceived. It's also the cut on the album that most closely resembles Jake's signature riffing on Bark At The Moon. I asked Jake if this was an old chestnut he had kept around:

Jake E. Lee: "No! Actually, it's the opposite - of course, I know what you're saying, but it was the last track we wrote for the record. 

"I was coming to the studio and listening to the radio, and Bark At The Moon came on - I'm listening to it, and it had been a while since I had heard it. I was like, 'Wow! That was a really significant song, it has a very particular guitar pattern. I'm listening and thinking, I never wrote anything else like that, and that the first song most people heard from me was Bark At The Moon! 

"It's weird that I never wrote another song in that vein with Ozzy. Thirty years on, I'm like, 'Eh, it would be really cool to write another song like that, at least using that particular guitar pattern. 

"We went into the studio, and I said, 'Bark At The Moon. I want to do something along those lines, because it's been thirty years now, and I think it would be really cool.' 

"So, we came up with some new chords and a new way to do it, so yeah, it does reference Bark At The Moon, but it was the newest song we wrote."

I asked if Darren had contributed to the writing, or if it was done before he had landed the gig as lead singer:

Jake E. Lee: "Darren was the last guy in - we got Jonas first and by the time we finally got Darren, most of it was written.  

"In fact, Jonas came down from Canada when we auditioned Darren, and we already had most of the songs written. We were actually still working on Deceived and War Machine. But, Darren could only stay a day, or two because of something to do with visas, or whatever. Jonas has more time with us - he stayed a little longer and he contributed to those songs. 

"So he was the only one except for me and Ron that contributed to the writing, at least tom the band - we also had Kane Churko helping with the writing. 

"So, Darren wasn't able to contribute to this record, but if there is another record - and I'm not saying that ominously, obviously the record company expects there to be another record - but it all depends on how I feel at the end of all of this. Maybe there will be, maybe there won't. 

"Yeah, walking away was a lot easier than you'd think. It just involves sitting in front on the couch and watching TV."

Jake E. Lee is a unique guitarist - his style is idiosyncratic, and not at all static - it's easy to understand how it might be tough for a singer to write alongside. In fact, though not many know it, Lee was briefly the guitarist in the formative version of Dio, and Ronnie found the business not to his liking, preferring bigger block chords to sing over:

Jake E. Lee: "Hmmmm.....well, that might be true - and Vivian is a great player, but he did songs I jammed on with Ronnie and Vinnie, with Ronnie playing bass. One in particular was Holy Diver, and my parts, I remember my parts to this day, were more intricate than what Vivian ended up playing, and I think Ronnie was looking for that, just a simple rhythm and that's kind of hard for me to do."

Looking back at LA in the mid-80s with players like Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads, George Lynch, Warren DiMartini, and Lee, I wondered if there was something in the water - there hasn't been a group of players that great to come from one scene since:

Jake E. Lee: "Yeah, that is funny - I mean it's weird. Because there was Van Halen in '78, then Randy in '79/80. LA, as far as California, LA was the only place to be. Warren and I grew up in San Diego, and I moved to LA first, because you were never going to get anywhere in San Diego. 

"I needed to move up to LA, but first I had the same thought, like, 'Shit, Eddie Van Halen came out, shit, Randy Rhoads came out, are they all fucking great up there? What's the deal? 

"So, I asked a friend who lived up in LA to name me the top 5 guitar players in town. I wanted to check out their bands before I moved up there - I remember George was one, Carlo Cavaso, another guy from a band called Seagull, so anyway, I went and saw all these guitar players, and said, 'Yeah, they're good, but I'm not going to say that they're better than me. I'm moving up! 

"Yeah, I don't know what the deal was, it was like Southern California in a short period of time produced a lot of really great guitar players."

We were running out of time, and Jake had to get on to interview #48, so I wrapped things up by asking if he had heard about the Randy Rhoads Remembered show that Brian Tichy was organizing for January 25th at The Observatory in Santa Ana:

(https://www.facebook.com/RandyRhoadsRemembered?fref=ts)

Jake E. Lee: "Yeah! Actually, I just got an e-mail from Tichy about it! 

"I'm not sure about our touring schedule right now, but I did e-mail him back, and said, 'Hey, don't count me out - let me see what's going on,' so I might get to participate in that! 

"I did one before, way back, probably in '88, or something. I played in that one with Glenn Hughes, Dimebag - that was where I met Dimebag, and it was a fun time! So yeah, there is a possibility that I'll do something in that, as long as our touring schedule permits. Tichy - I've never heard him play drums, and I hear he's an amazing drummer - I've only seen him play guitar in S.U.N. with Sass (Jordan), and he's a really good guitar player! He's just one of those multi-talented motherfuckers, hahaha!"

And, so it was, that Jake is having fun, staying humble, and currently cool with being back in the thick of it:

Jake E. Lee: "Yeah, it's actually very cool doing it - it's better than I thought it would be. It's just really, really cool."

Thanks to Jake E. Lee, Red Dragon Cartel, Kevin Chiaramonte at PFA, Dustin Hardman, and Peter Noble at Noble PR.

Pre-order Red Dragon Cartel Here!