Rain

Nah - go ahead my friend. After all, you have the King of Rock and Roll on your side.

Oops. I rushed in. For who would not know - YYZ is code for the Toronto Airport.

Toronto - Your Daddy Don't Know

Wumpscut - Rush

Depeche Mode - Rush

Tom Cochrane - Mad Mad World

Wanda Jackson - Hot Dog! That Made Him Mad

PiL - Bags

Goldfrapp - Paper Bag

Stone Temple Pilots - Trippin' on a Hole in Paper Heart

This I cannot and would not argue with. I've been thinking about it for some time while I was trying to figure out what it was with The Who that didn't sit right with me. And one element is that I'm not much of a fan of drums as a lead instrument - that type of hyperactive drumming. Mitch Mitchell did it with Hendrix and I've never been a fan, but Jimi's playing and his music seem to make it easier for me to ignore, something that's not happening with The Who most of the time. But it's what they set out to accomplish and they succeed, so for anyone who can appreciate it, it has to be fantastic.

I guess me neither - but for some reason they seemed to appeal to the same bunch of fellows. As did Kraftwerk.

I remember, that yeah. I say I don't like prog, but there are lots of exceptions - I like some King Crimson, and Harmonium from back home, whom I remember you being familiar with. A few Jethro Tull songs. But it's more of an occasional thing. I remember sometimes playing one or two Gentle Giant numbers that I liked early in the evening when I was DJ'ing (we had a very diverse clientele), but these prog guys would get really excited and start bringing Van der Graaf Generator and Tangerine Dream tapes, asking me to play stuff that would have cleared the place... You had to be careful with them. Same with the Iron Maiden crowd, albeit in a different register. But I guess it's not all black or white. I'm a huge fan of Voivod, Opeth, and Tool, and apparently they're considered prog by some people. For me Tool is Tool, I don't really think in terms of genre.

Jimi Hendrix - Tax Free

Jimi Hendrix Experience - Stone Free

Free - Alright Now

Actually, had this on my mind all day... Cream - I Feel Free

They've all relocated here to Las Vegas. As they say, hair metal didn't die, it moved to Vegas. I swear 1 musician out of 3 around here has played with L.A. Guns, Ratt, or Quiet Riot. L.A.'s just too expensive it seems.

My first taste of Genesis was Mama from the eponymous album, in 6th grade. I used to call the local radio all the time and ask them to play it. I still love that one, but I'd be hard pressed to name you another song on that record, besides That's All. A few years later, my mother bought a bunch of vinyls from a friend who was getting rid of stuff and she got me Duke, Abacab, and the aforementioned Genesis (along with Bach's Brandenburg Concertos and Beethoven's 5th and 8th). I mostly remember the first cut off Duke - the drums I guess... Not sure what it is about Trick - as I said, I'm not usually a big fan of prog rock, with a few exceptions, but this one always got through to me.

60 years down the line it can be difficult to understand the impact they originally had because, after all these years, musically, the difference between British rock bands this side of the Beatles in the mid 60’s is often a matter of a few tiny degrees. I understand the need to put things into perspective - and being a big fan of the genre, I usually do. And I also know that one must take into account the whole rock opera thing. Indeed, there is something in the way Townshend approaches creativity that I sincerely appreciate. Which is why I keep trying. But, to me, in their execution, these albums fail to deliver for the most part. Being innovative doesn’t necessarily mean being good or great. Objectively speaking, and even taking into account the prowesses of Entwistle and Moon, from the later 60’s onwards, the end product doesn’t seem on par with many of their contemporaries, whether it's the album's or the live performances. That’s coming from someone who’s long been addicted to classic rock and learned to not only forgive but appreciate certain, uh, idiosyncrasies of the era. I am sure I can still sing the entire guitar solo/non-sense from Dazed and Confused on The Song Remains the Same note for note decades after I last heard it. Same for Interstellar Overdrive by Pink Floyd. I remember one of the very first CDs I bought was Live at Leeds. I had heard so many fantastic things about it, and it was often cited as the greatest live rock album. It turned out to be one of the biggest letdowns of my music buying career. I’m still trying to dig it, but it just doesn’t work for me. From that same couple of years, I can think of many live records that are, in my opinion, in every way superior to Leeds - Live Cream, Band of Gypsys, The Allman Brothers at the Fillmore East, Humble Pie at the Fillmore, to name but a few, and not to mention all the live footage and countless bootlegs from other contemporary acts. But I am stubborn, so I will keep trying.

Ever since I finally “got” Rush after decades of intense dislike, I’ve been cautious with my musical opinions. One band that I keep trying to figure out is The Who. However, while I could still objectively appreciate Rush and I never thought of them as overrated even if I didn't like them, I find such a thing to be impossible with The Who. Rush I simply didn’t like. I knew they were great. May I live to regret these words, but, in my allegedly humble opinion, as a band, The Who suck. There. I said it. I understand their historical importance to an extent, but, yeah… And yet every couple of years, I give them a try, dig through their discography, find a handful of passable songs that I don’t hate, but the rest just makes me cringe. And this time was no different. Anyway, I am not sure how this happened but this latest attempt resulted in me revisiting early Genesis. What a strange ricochet, right? Since I’m really not a fan a prog rock, it’s always an adventure for me to test those waters. Last fall, I tried a few Yes classic albums and I was soon reminded of why I don’t like the genre. They seem to be one of the finest examples of everything that I dislike about prog rock. But Genesis were always different. Even if I wasn’t a fan, I’ve always had tremendous respect for Peter Gabriel, I’ve always dug Phil Collins’ drumming, and they had at least one album (albeit, from the post-Gabriel era) that I absolutely adored - Trick of the Tail. Maybe they also had an edge because I used to listen to Marillion a lot in the mid-late 80’s, and there are indeed similarities… Anyway, here I am listening to Nursery Cryme over and over and over - and really digging it. And the coolest part about all of this is that, in my world, Foxtrot, Selling England, and The Lamb have yet to be released. And I intend to make the most of this process. Meaning I always have tons of fantastic music to discover, regardless of the current state of the music industry. And who knows, maybe someday I’ll “get” Yes. The Who seems like a lost cause at this point, though. And Wagner I viscerally hate forever.

Mr. Bungle - Pink Cigarette

Hal Willis - My Pink Cadillac

Quiet Riot - Slick Black Cadillac

Randy Rhoads is the reason I started playing electric guitar and went on to study classical music. I was a big fan of EVH too, obviously. And I’ve always felt that George Lynch was the other side of that triangle - he has qualities that remind me of both (and he also happened to teach at Rhoads’ mother music school for a while). No disrespect to Jake E. Lee, whom I very much appreciate, but I think Lynch would have done a terrific job for Ozzy - just too bad they thought he didn’t have the look for the part. I’ve always liked Adrian Smith - nothing flashy about him but I dig his phrasing. I’ve always felt that he provides the emotional anchor to Maiden’s music - when his solo starts, the song just opens up on a whole other level. Vivian Campbell was another one I dug. I must mention James Hetfield - a tremendous influence on me. It’s often more exciting to hear him playing rhythm than it is to listen to someone shredding, to me anyway.