Mr. Big Announce New Music!

Ten by Mr. Big is due in July - pre-order now. Not a lot of other info yet to share. I'm sure we will be getting songs soon.

Brian Wheat, 'Son of a Milkman: My Crazy Life With Tesla' - Book Review

Book Review: Son of a Milkman: My Crazy Life With Tesla by Brian Wheat (Post Hill Press, 2020).

I bought Brian Wheat’s autobiography back when it came out at the end of 2020 and then promptly forgot about it. This review is for the Kindle edition and that also explains why I forgot the book. The file got mixed in with so many other titles I have in waiting – and it just kept getting push back. I rectified this oversight the other day and sat down to read the book. At 224 pages, it isn’t a long read and the content is enjoyable and fast to digest. My biggest complaint with Milkman is that it could use a little more editing. Right up front, Wheat says he writes like he talks and that is in a very free-flowing fashion. This seems true as Wheat repeats himself a few times throughout the book. Tighter editing would have fixed that problem.

The title comes from Wheat’s upbringing – he is the illegitimate son of a milkman. The milkman got Wheat’s mom pregnant then took off. He had a bit of a chaotic childhood and his family was poor – his mom was on assistance a lot trying to raise several kids alone. It seems he’s carried his chiladhood trauma with him his entire life.

Wheat spends a lot of time talking about his obsession for the Beatles, how he eventually became a musician and the formation of Tesla. The opinions in this book are unfiltered: Wheat says what he wants about who he wants and he admits he can be taken as unfriendly or gruff. Some of that personality came from the business side of managing Tesla for so long now and seemingly being the only one to pay attention to the numbers and the money the band was (or wasn’t) making at any given time.

I learned just how close the members of Def Leppard and Tesla are and how much the Leps have helped Tesla along the way. I also learned that singer Jeff Keith was a total meth-head. I knew he was an addict and going off the rails before getting clean but I had no idea his drug of choice was meth. I also learned a lot about Wheat’s anxiety, depression and autoimmune disorders. Actually, Wheat’s health battles are a large theme through the book, starting with his first bout with ulcerative colitis and then eventually an extra diagnosis of Chron’s disease. These days, Wheat knows he has to watch his stress and diet or he will have flareups that will land him in the hospital. This is also woven into his weight battle – how he first gained weight working at McDonald’s – to losing tons of weight every time he has a flareup to gaining weight from steroids to cure the flares. I know that is a very relatable experience for lots of people.

There are not a whole lot of backstage road stories or anything like that – this is truly a tale of Brian’s life and Tesla just happens to be a big part of it. He also talks about his passsion for Victorian homes, his first marriage to singer Sandi Sarya, their divorce and how he met his second wife Monique. Plus there are special stories about his love and friendship with Jimmy Page.

The biggest takeaway from Milkman for me? Just how little money each guy from Tesla was earning at the height of their popularity. The amount is small in comparison to what is pissed away on drugs and women and whatever else. Also the original guys fought nonstop and were just about unworkable in the studio. It's amazing some of their records saw the light of day. 

'(Hold On) To The Dream' -- Official Video

First - It's Cinco de Mayo!

Second - let's talk about the new Sebastian Bach video for "(Hold On) To The Dream." Holy glam I love this song and video! And yes, that is Rob Affuso playing drums in the clip (but not on the actual track). The song is on the album Child Within The Man, due this Friday!

Honestly I am pumped for this album - the songs we have so far are really strong. Gives me a lot of hope for a great release!

Thought Experiment: What If It Was The Blizzard of Ozz, Or The Ozzy Osbourne Band Being Inducted Into The Rock Hall?

Today's post is from our friend HIM. 

Everyone here knows my take on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Old news. And, by now, everyone also knows that Ozzy is being inducted as a solo artist into that same dumpster fire, after having been inducted as part of Black Sabbath. Cool. Great. Moving on.

Well, not moving on really. Because, as is equally known to BBG! Readers, I have sorta’ had a falling-out with my love of Ozzy the more I learned about the inner workings of his, well, brand. He is still the music of my youth. I still consider his solo work up through No More Tears great (some more or less so). But I can’t really support the mythos that has built up around him anymore. To borrow quite easily from literature and film, once the curtain was pulled back, the wizardry of Oz was exposed for what it was: a charismatic frontman with a unique voice who had, by and large, to rely on the talent of those around him (in several cases, never fully giving them their due) to propel him to success without the equally talented mates who were a part of Sabbath.

Thus, this thought experiment: if inducted as The Blizzard of Ozz (the band as it was originally conceived to be), who gets in? This one is actually pretty easy: Osbourne, Rhoads, Daisley, and Kerslake. A claim could be made for Airey too. But I am not sure. And, once you scratch the surface of Diary of a Madman, the follow-up to the initially-eponymous release (now more clearly stamped as a solo, solo, album) it is really the same group of guys in spite of what lying liner notes might suggest. So, yeah, maybe Airey too. Thing is, no band is getting in on the strength of two albums, no matter how great they are or how well they hold up.

So, we arrive at the next step: if inducted as The Ozzy Osborne Band (meaning: if Ozzy was honest about how the sausage was made), who gets in? I think the initial four most certainly would, with Daisley getting some sort of special star for being a sucker for punishment and a paycheck and not hiring good lawyers. But, who else? I’d add Jake E. Lee (not that Ozzy would bark at that moon, which is perhaps not an ultimate sin on his part, given how many people he has ghosted). I’d also add ‘The Pinch’, Zakk Wylde. If anything, he carried Ozzy far beyond what many thought would be his expiration date. There are others—Gillis, Aldridge, and so on—who made a mark in his band. But they seem to be caught up in the swells of what became, more and more, Ozzy on his own with hired guns.

Which is sorta’ my point. If you judged Ozzy solo, on his truly solo stuff (with band members and writers coming and going), it ain’t the classic stuff that most of us really enjoyed.  Ozzy, pre-Tribute (1987), is what we dug, even if we dug some of that stuff coming out after that. And the quality of those songs up to the mid-80s is predicated on great artists contributing great music that, by and large, Ozzy sung because of them for us. My guess is that the post-1985 stuff wouldn’t even pass muster as deserving induction—from any tainted palace of greed—if it was considered apart from those golden years (and, of course, the halo from the Sabbath days).

So, I kinda’ lied. I still think the RaRHoF is a sham. And not because it selects a diverse group of musicians. No, because it isn’t a real assessment of anything, which diminishes caring about those in and out of it. But we do love some of the bands and artists in and out of it, don’t we?

Basically, let’s be honest about their newest inductee: Ozzy, solo, doesn’t deserve to be in there . . . alone.

Point is, he was never alone and could never have had the success he had without a lot of people that he often disparaged, ignored, erased, or led on. And Sharon? Well, she doesn’t get in regardless of what you think about her. Bill Aucoin never got in either, and certainly has hands that are less dirty than Sharon’s. But I also think (as I mentioned previously) that her being attacked for what Ozzy did is a bit of a trick of light. She surely kept him alive, for which most everyone should be thankful. She is also an apple off the Arden tree, in spite of protestations to the contrary. At the same time, I think she served as a vortex of animus for a lot of things that Ozzy (“oh, poor, clueless, Ozzy!”) did with clear-eyed calculation.

And let me know if you think others deserve to stand next him when he accepts a trinket for his work. At least that is doing the work that this hall could do. Imagine that? Fans doing something that matters more that any trophy could? But also speaking truth? Wow. I guess we don’t need a gala. Neither did Steve Miller or John Lydon.

David Gilmour Has Announced First Tour Dates!

To celebrate the release of Luck and Strange, David Gilmour will be performing his only UK Shows at the Royal Albert Hall, select dates in October 2024. Tickets will go on general sale at 10am on Friday, May 10th at Ticketmaster.

The thing about this is that UK residents get first priority (as they should) so there is probably no chance for Americans to get tickets to these shows. I am hoping that means that Gilmour will travel to America for at least a week of shows in a single place. I will keep crossing my fingers for US dates!

Dio Cancer Fund Concert Is This Month

The Dio Cancer Fund concert is set for May 19 in California. The concert raises money for cancer research. Admission to the show is free and donations accepted. Lita Ford and Quiet Riot are set to perform.

The concert also honors the memory of Ronnie James Dio, forever a metal god. Near California and planning to attend? If so, let me know in the comments!

A limited number of VIP seating tickets just released! The ROCK FOR RONNIE 2024! A concert in the park to raise funds for the @DioCancerFund! General Admission Free. *Donations Appreciated* Tickets here: https://t.co/eWFdz6WJ2c pic.twitter.com/iwTwqVpuvx

— Dio Cancer Fund (@DioCancerFund) April 15, 2024

Surprise Show Announcement - Lynam Edition

Wait – Lynam just announced a live show! My beloved Alabama boys have been on hiatus and I honestly didn’t expect them to announce anything in the near future. Singer Jacob Bunton has been busy with Mick Mars. He recorded lots of vocals for Mick’s solo album and he plays for other bands too. Plus he writes songs for everyone these days. To see Lynam added to a festival gig with bands like Our Lady Peace and Daughtry is super interesting.

The Rock the Lake festival is set for July 12 – 14 in Prospera Place, British Columbia. Would sure be a fun time.