Super Sweet Giveaway

If my expertly written review of AC/DC: Plug Me In (3 disc Limited Edition) made you want a copy of the career spanning retropspective, there is good news. Bring Back Glam! is giving away an exclusive AC/DC prize package including:

Plug Me In DVD set
AC/DC T-shirt
AC/DC belt buckle
AC/DC guitar picks

So how do you win?

Like my other contests, I want to make you work a little. Tell me why AC/DC is important to you. Did you camp out all night in the rain for concert tickets? Did you spend your entire allowance on Back in Black the day it was released? Did you propose to your girlfriend as"Live Wire" played in the background? Whatever the case, I want your story.

Keep entries to 75 words or less. Please enter by Monday, Ocotber 29th at 11:59 p.m. E.S.T.

Send your entries to allyson@bringbackglam.com. Please do not post your entries in the comments section of this post!

You get points for creativity, but I'd appreciate if the story is actually true. Remeber dear readers, we're bringing back glam: that means we've lived this once before.

Here's a clip right from Plug Me In: AC/DC performing "Back in Black" and "Highway to Hell" (Tushino Airfield, Moscow).

DVD Review: AC/DC Plug Me In

Planners: listen up. AC/DC has just released Plug Me In, a dual-disc DVD set. Trust me: the set will make a rocking’ holiday gift for many a music lover on your list. Originally released on October 16, 2007 via Columbia, the set is a live retrospective of the band’s career through 2003. Not surprising, the total runtime of both DVDs is nearly five hours.

Disc one is a retrospective of the Bon Scott era. Not surprising, the DVD set begins with Australian performances, as the band members play to their native land. Included are performances on Bandstand and St. Albans High School. AC/DC performed “It’s A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock n’ Roll)” on the Bandstand program, and it looks very trippy. While Americans were wasting hard earned dollars on disco albums, the Aussies were rocking with would-be icons of Metal. Plus, Bon Scott plays bagpipes during the performance while wearing a Superman shirt. That’s a lot of entertainment for your DVD dollars! I’m pretty jealous of St. Albans High School (Australia) Class of 1976. My high school never invited rock stars to play in the gymnasium. Hell, we didn’t even have a band for prom!

Disc one also includes the band’s first live U.K. television performance. At the beginning of the piece is a T.V. slate, and an actual vintage countdown clock that denotes changing segments. Being a television producer, this little bit of history was interesting to me but probably not thrilling to many other people. Incidentally, AC/DC perform “Live Wire” after the clock hits zero. Moving on through the early AC/DC years, the boys share performances in London, Glasgow, and Arnhem, Holland. The quality of some of the really old clips is amazing. Yes, the camera operators in Holland needed to white balance for the continually changing stage lights, but the integrity of the performance remains more than 25 years after the fact.

After the music, there are several “special features” including many interviews, a bizarre little promotional spot, and performance on Top of the Pops.

Disc two is a retrospective of the Brian Johnson era and features classic performances and rare interviews. Just like disc one, each concert is separated by a title slate for easy viewing and shuffling. The best part of disc two is the concert footage formed at Tushino Airfield in Moscow. AC/DC played the massive show right after the August 1991 coup, and this is referenced by interviews included on the DVD package. Band members note the importance of rock music and the potential to bring a divided nation together. Judging by the size of the crowd, I’d say AC/DC succeeded in their goal (for at least one night).

Moving through the Brian Johnson era, there are performances from Tokyo, Detroit, Sydney, and Paris. The Tokyo footage isn’t the best quality, even with digital restoration, so consider yourself warned.

Watching both DVDs is like watching time pass before my eyes. How is it possible that Brian Johnson doesn’t seem to age? He looks exactly the same in 2003 footage as he does in the 1983 video clips. Perhaps it’s the same hat and black T-shirt?

The final song of the concert portion of disc two is naturally “You Shook Me All Night Long,” recorded in Toronto (2003). The size of the crowd is humbling, and most concert-goers seem to be under the age of 30. I think this probably says something about the quality of modern music versus real classic rock.

There is also bonus material in addition to the hours of live performances on disc two. Some of these “special features” include the Beavis and Butt-Head Ballbreaker tour intro film. As expected, the film is entirely worthless and thankfully short. Much better is an interview segment recorded for The Old Grey Whistle Test. Angus Young talks about performing at Castle Donnington and possible “Metal battle” between AC/DC and Van Halen. Young calls Van Halen and pop band…and BBC producers brilliantly splice a clip of Diamond David Lee Roth into the interview. Classic.

In addition to the great, semi-rare footage are two little booklets. One contains song and band information, the other photos and tour logos of years past. The books add a lot making Plug Me In one very desirable collection.

www.acdcrocks.com

TFFL: Advice Needed

Just a couple days ago, I announced my purchase of Motley Crue's Shout at the Devil and Too Fast For Love on vinyl. The records arrived last night, and they are in amazing condition. In fact, I was so impressed with their condition that I was a little nervous to give them a spin.

Naturally, I pushed through the fear and listened to my new treasures. Upon further inspection of the liner notes on Too Fast For Love, I found myself in a conundrum. My record is a 1982 Elektra release. In other words, it was mass produced by the label after the initial Leathur edition. Here's the conundrum: the lyrics sheet for "Too Fast For Love" features the original opening, previously only available on the Leathur release. As I've written in the past, Elektra hacked off the beginning, presumably to make the song more radio-friendly. In the past, I've also noted my love for the true intro to the song. So, I'm listening to "Too Fast for Love," reading the liner notes, and realizing the music and lyrics don't match.

What gives?

Did Elektra make a mistake with the lyrics for their release of Too Fast For Love or do I have a different pressing of Motley Crue's debut? Any advice is appreciated.

Here's Motley Crue performing "Toast of the Town" at one of their first Sunset Strip shows, way back in 1981.

Tour Teaser

My friends the Gypsy Pistoleros have announced some American tour dates.

So far, the band are only confirming November dates in Texas. The flamenco-sleaze band is also promising stops in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Fort Worth, Texas.

I certainly hope the Brits make their way to Ohio during their brief American tour.

The Gypsy Pistoleros are also planning a Japanese tour in the spring before swinging back around to the U.S.

Of course, the Pistoleros have already announced Rocklahoma 2008 as a tour stop. No other bands have been formally announced, although we can expect to start learning confirmed bands by the middle of November. As soon as those announcements are made, I'll post them here first.

Here's the Gypsy Pistoleros at the Patriot Games.

Check out www.myspace.com/gypsypistoleros for more information.

Blind in Texas (and on Tour)

I've had W.A.S.P songs going though my head ever since the weekend. Both Friday and Saturday nights, bands played W.A.S.P. covers. I don't typically reach for W.A.S.P. albums unless I'm really in the mood for Blackie Lawless. Of course, W.A.S.P. were the kings of Sunset Strip shock-rock. These days, Blackie is the only original member of the band, but this isn't stopping W.A.S.P. from touring.

W.A.S.P. is Europe bound and has dates scheduled in the U.K., Norway, Scotland, Sweden, Germany and more.

This morning, W.A.S.P. announced that no cameras or recorders are permitted at any of their shows. That's the band's prerogative and their right to do as they wish. It's probably unrealistic to police cell phones, but I can believe cameras will be confiscated.

I guess this means we won't get to see any of the European tour on YouTube. Let's watch "Blind in Texas" from the album The Last Command instead.

Can you believe that I now have a bizarre W.A.S.P. connection? Guitarist Randy Piper played on The Last Command and the band's self-titled debut. Turns out, Brian Kinkade (the new bassist for Cincinnati-based Drugstore Valentine) was a bass tech for Randy Piper's Animal. Isn't that weird? Six degrees of separation.

A Little Bit More

My search for a gatefold copy of Shout at the Devil has ended. I won an eBay auction for the coveted album this weekend (and it was a steal!). As part of the lot, I also won Too Fast for Love. Of course, the copy of TFFL isn't the Leathur Records release, so the search for that rare record continues. As far as I know, Motley Crue initially pressed just 900 copies of the Leathur release. Of course, there were several cycles of the album released shortly thereafter. I want one of those initial 900, but I know the odds are stacked against me.

Still, I'm happy to have both of these favorite albums on vinyl. I love watching my collection grow.

Have you recently acquired any rare or prized recordings?

Live Review: Britny Fox, Pretty Boy Floyd and More!

It’s Sunday, and the glam mistress is tired. I feel beaten and bruised after two exceptionally long nights of music. I realized just moments ago that I’d been staring blankly at my computer screen for about an hour. I decided at some point, I was just going to have to push through the pain to write a review of last night’s Britny Fox/Pretty Boy Floyd extravaganza.

Annie’s Entertainment Complex flanks the riverfront in Cincinnati. Last night, Drugstore Valentine, Triad, Z02, A Nervous Wreck, Pretty Boy Floyd and Britny Fox all rocked the house. I was there from before the beginning until after the bitter end. For the most part, the evening was upbeat save for a few bad notes, some feedback, and drunk women flipping their hair in my face.

Ladies: I have long hair too. I don’t get drunk and whip it around, ruining the fun of other concert goers. Have respect: pull that hair back in a ponytail!

Whew. Now that that’s off my chest, on to the music:

The bands performed in the order I listed above. Last night was big for Cincinnati natives Drugstore Valentine. New bassist Brian Kinkade played his first show with the band. All in all, he seemed to fit right in with the island of misfit toys. Of course DSV opened with “Welcome to the Show” but they didn’t get to play much else since their set was exceptionally short. Lead singer Kenny Ozz did sing his signature “Backstage Bombshells” and “Life’s a Bitch,” all while giving his parents – and this intrepid journalist – a shout-out from the stage.

Triad is another Cincinnati band. As many shows as I’ve watched in the Queen City, this was a first for me. The lead singer said “Cincinnati” about 57 times, but I guess that just proves he was working the hometown crowd. Triad played a slew of originals, plus a cover of AC/DCs overplayed “You Shook Me All Night Long” and a classic Guns n’ Roses medley. They’ll be with Pretty Boy Floyd again next Saturday night at McGuffy’s in Dayton.

Brooklyn based Z02 were a late add to the bill. Glam conspirator Heather immediately took a liking to the groove-metal band. I’d say their looks have something to do with the fascination. In addition to being incredibly attractive, Z02 sound damn good. A three piece, they are able to create the sound of five musicians. Both Paulie Z (guitar) and David Z (bass) can sing. Their originals sound good, but a highlight was a cover of “Tom Sawyer,” made legendary by Rush. David has an interestingly high voice and the cover actually sounded believable. Z02 has released two albums, and I’ll be reviewing both of them in the coming days.

A Nervous Wreck played a whole lotta glam covers, including “One More Reason” (L.A. Guns) and “Blind in Texas” (WASP). The Kentuckians were alright, but exhaustion was starting to set in and I was growing impatient for Pretty Boy Floyd and Britny Fox. By this time, Annie’s was filling up nicely – but that would change. More on that later.

Finally, Pretty Boy Floyd emerged from the shadows of some back alley. Earlier in the evening, I visited the merchandise table and purchased a shirt. Some of the PBF members were sitting at the table at the time. When I say “some” I mean everyone but Steve “Sex” Summers – he waited to make his grand entrance. For some unknown reason, the band is passing out old photos which include former guitarist Kristy “Krash” Majors. I shrugged and accepted the photo.

Pretty Boy Floyd performed (incorrect order):

Rock n’ Roll (Is Gonna Set the Night on Fire)
I Wanna Be With You
48 Hours
Rock and Roll Outlaws
Your Momma Won’t Know
Toast of the Town (Motley Crue Cover)
Live Wire (Motley Crue Cover)

Steve Summers (dressed in lycra athletic pants) sounded good and seemed jolly enough and bassist Mikki Twist is awfully cute in person. He seemed into the show, and the crowd appreciated his efforts. The two cover songs baffled me. “Toast of the Town” is included on Leather Boyz with Electric Toyz, but it still took me off guard as the band played such a short set. It seemed like PBF were on and off the stage in under 40 minutes. During those 40 minutes, Scotti D shoved drum sticks up his nose.

Then finally, round about 1:30 in the morning, Britny Fox emerged from their hole. As expected, the set list was pretty similar to Friday night, except the performance was shorter. Britny Fox performed (not in order and not complete):

Six Guns Loaded
So Lonely
Liar
Dream On
Long Way to Love
Drum/Bass/Guitar solos
Hair of the Dog (Nazareth cover)
Girlschool
*no encore

When Pretty Boy Floyd performed, the area in front of the stage was packed but then Annie’s pretty much cleaned out right after their show. Poor Britny Fox played for about 50 people, but this didn’t stop them from putting on a good, high intensity show. Last night marked the final stop of the band’s 2007 tour. They sounded good, but Tommy Paris was stronger in voice Friday night. After the show, bassist Billy Childs was wandering around in the crowd. He said he liked my glasses. All girls should have black hair and glasses.