Bon Jovi's bassist

[nofi]

i saw edgar winter and wee ronnie open for humble pie. edgar and company were good but humble pie crushed them.

[Highlander]

I never got to see them... 

In '73 a bunch of us kids from school were taken to Wembley to see Slade by a friends dad... support act was Home, featuring Laurie Wisefield and a bass player that made his name with some Australian band or other...  (Damn, had to play my ace...) Slade were pretty good; Dave Hill even had real hair... 

[gearHed289]

Montrose vs Van Halen:

Both a 4 piece named after the guitar player
Both from SoCal
Both with blond haired lead singers
Both produced/engineered by Templeman/Landee
Both on WB Records

Hmmm..... 

Someone just gave me a copy of the first (great) album. Love it, but the drums sound like shit. Oh and Uwe, that production team also did the Doobie Bros before VH.

[Rhythm N. Bliss]

Gettin' back to Bon Jovi, I just got an email from Ticketmaster sellin' best tix to see 'em for $135 here in L.A.
Gotta give 'em the respect they deserve. Dig the bass on Keep The Faith!
Take a hot young chick to see 'em & you're guaranteed a night of lovemaking. heh
I took a hottie to see 'em in '89 (Yikes! 20 years ago??!!??!!) at The ROXY on the Strip & thot it was SO cool that altho they played a big amphitheater show that night in full Glam Metal regalia they played this 400 seater show in black t-shirts & jeans & played whatever they wanted which included some ANIMALS covers -YES!-& some songs they wrote for Cher that she had HUGE hits with (I forget their names at the mo)
I used to flip back an' forth from Letterman to Leno & I was once amazed to see Bon Jovi performing on both shows one night!!
That says a lot about 'em too
They've sold over 100 MILLION units!
Deeeeeeeeeeeep respect from this ol' man.

Alec used to drop in my airbrush shop on Sunset & I'd score him crank & he'd go on & on with cool stories & worried about the band catchin' him cuz they'd kick him out.
Guess they caught him.
Oh well. He had a good RUN!!!!!!!!!

[lowend1]

Montrose vs Van Halen:

Both a 4 piece named after the guitar player
Both from SoCal
Both with blond haired lead singers
Both produced/engineered by Templeman/Landee
Both on WB Records

Hmmm..... 

Someone just gave me a copy of the first (great) album. Love it, but the drums sound like shit. Oh and Uwe, that production team also did the Doobie Bros before VH.

Montrose was more of a SF band, no?
"There's a red bridge that arcs the bay" - Bad Motor Scooter

[Highlander]

Isn't that where it "never rains", or is it just that I "Listen To The Music" too much... 

Loved the Doobies, but "Fault Line" was where the love faded... "I Cheat The Hangman" (PLAY IT LOUD!) and "Clear As The Driven Snow" always stood out for me as faves, as did Tiran Porter's bass playing... never got to see them live; mostly an EB player...?

[Pekka]

Let's not even talk about John Sloman whose manifold inabilities had Hensley set sail for, eventually, Blackfoot.

Inabilities? The guy is a great musician and a singer, just a wrong singer for Heep as he admitted too. Lone Star's "Firing On All Six" is a much better showcase for his talents, not to mention his 2003 solo album "Dark Matter".
http://www.uberrock.co.uk/interviews/59-august-interviews/1260-john-sloman-interview-exclusive.html

[uwe]

Sloman was horrible with Gary Moore too. He made you wince.





He might be a good musiscian, but he's no lead singer for a band at all, ill at ease and strutting all the time with a voice that transports little emotion. He's not in the league the other Heep singers were, i.e. Byron, Lawton, Goalby and Shaw.

Byron:



Lawton & Shaw:



Goalby:

[Highlander]

Saw him with Moore and with Lone Star - I thought he was quite good then... Lone Star (a 70's Welsh band and predating the country outfit) also featured "Tonka" Chapman...

[uwe]

He's the archtypical hard rock singer for people who don't like hard rock. At best, he sounds like a second rate Glenn Hughes when he hits the high registers. Bit of  a John Sykes deadringer in looks whose stage demeanor I found equally unpleasant.

He was hired both by Heep and Moore because he looked the part, but he had no substance then to back it up. I haven't heard his more recent solo albums, is his singing less affected today than it was?

[Hörnisse]

I guess he had to think about it for over 3 years before he decided to comment. 

[Pekka]

I guess he had to think about it for over 3 years before he decided to comment. 

Good point but I only saw the thread three days ago.

[Pekka]

I haven't heard his more recent solo albums, is his singing less affected today than it was?

Yes it is. Matured. I agree about his of early antics and over the top histrionics but I find it a bit shame that it's all he is always remembered for, like the short stints with Heep were the only things he ever did.




His 2007 released acoustic album "13 Storeys" has sound samples here:
http://johnsloman.net/1-2-3-music-store/process.php?pname=ShowAlbumDetailsProcess-Start&CategoryID=CategoryID&AlbumID=3

[Spiritbass]

How could you have missed that one, Uwe... a rock solid classic... I followed RM from Edgar Winter ("They Only Come Out At Night" - that in itself a stunning debut [many of us know "Frankenstein" but how many knew it was Montrose on the guitar], if you ignore some mandolin on a Van the Man LP) and onwards... I don't have everything he's released, but I have a fair chunk of it...

I remember seeing Gamma at The Hammy O and Mr Montrose played this jazzy stand-alone solo which left many of us just stunned, silent, and he called out, "Well, what do ya think...?" and we all just erupted...

Ronnie and Sammy...? Two (egos) into one don't go... 

Cool, I never knew RM played on that. I always liked "We All Had a Real Good Time". What a hoot!

On the Heep subject, I was lucky enough to see them for free in Central Park in '75. Schaeffer Beer used to sponsor concerts there. You didn't have to buy a ticket to see and hear. All you had to do was park yourself on one of the huge rocks a little uphill outside of the fenced area and dig it. Another good show I saw this way was Poco...

[uwe]

Yes it is. Matured. I agree about his of early antics and over the top histrionics but I find it a bit shame that it's all he is always remembered for, like the short stints with Heep were the only things he ever did.




His 2007 released acoustic album "13 Storeys" has sound samples here:
http://johnsloman.net/1-2-3-music-store/process.php?pname=ShowAlbumDetailsProcess-Start&CategoryID=CategoryID&AlbumID=3

Ah, he's been listening to a bit of David Coverdale! 

But I'll give him probation, especially the acoustric track is the nicest I have heard of him.