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Concert Review – Blondie at Peppermill Concert Hall August 29, 2009

Blondie "Call Me Invicible" Tour 2009

I got to see Blondie perform at the Peppermill Concert Hall in Wendover, Nevada on August 29, 2009. It’s the first time I’ve been to a concert at the Peppermill Concert Hall which has been booking major acts for some time now. I had heard a lot of good things about the Peppermill Concert Hall so I was looking forward to checking out the venue.

The Peppermill Concert Hall really did live up to the hype. It is a small theater and every seat in the house has an excellent view of the very large stage. I was really surprised at how well laid out the stage and seating were. Like I said, the stage is very large and Blondie had a lot of extra space on each side of the stage. A performer with a larger stage show could easily set up on that stage. Alice Cooper is coming there in October so I may just pop out there and see him. It would be interesting to see how much of a stage show he sets up in a venue like the Peppermill. He has had some legendary stage shows. (more…)
Sunday Funnies – Michael Jackson – Bad Vs. Weird Al – Fat

I though this was a pretty funny side by side comparison of Michael Jackson’s video for “Bad” and Weird Al Yankovic’s video for “Fat”. The music running simultaneously is kind of irritating but it’s really funny to watch what Wierd Al did with the parody of the original video. (more…)
Def Leppard, Cheap Trick, Poison Concert Review – Salt Lake City, Utah August 25, 2009

Joe Elliot of Def Leppard

I had the opportunity to see the Def Leppard, Cheap Trick, Poison tour when it came through Salt Lake City, Utah on August 24, 2009. Cheap Trick is one of my favorite bands of all time and I’ve never had a chance to see them perform live. So I was extremely excited to see Cheap Trick perform. Def Leppard is also one of my favorite live bands so I was really excited to see them even though I’ve seen them twice before. As for Poison, well, I like C.C. DeVille but I don’t particularly like Bret Michaels singing. (more…)
Get An External Phantom Power Supply For Your Studio Microphone

Audio-Technica CP8506 4ch Phantom Power Supply

If you play in a live band then chances are you most likely have a modest home studio setup as well. Every musician needs a way to capture creative ideas and having a home studio setup is the best way to do that. Most musicians have at least a basic mixing console but a lot of these consoles don’t come equipped with Phantom Power. Why do you need Phantom Power? To power your large diaphragm studio microphone such as the Audio-Technica AT2050 microphone. (more…)
Weekend Gig Report – In Stereo at Canyon Inn August 21-22, 2009

In Stereo – Live At The Canyon Inn

My live band “In Stereo” played at the Canyon Inn in Salt Lake City, Utah this past weekend. The Canyon Inn is becoming our home club since we play there so often. In Stereo seems to have pretty good success every time we play there. The regulars tell us we’re one of the better bands that play there and it’s nice to hear those kind of comments. I personally believe we’re the best band that plays there buy hey, I’m biased.

This gig was sort of a surprise as we didn’t have it down on the band calender. But our agent called us up to “remind” us that we were booked to play at the Canyon Inn. It was news to us that we were booked at all but being the professionals that we are, we honored the commitment our agent made for us. We went into this gig without any practices but we have been playing together for about 14 years so we weren’t too worried. (more…)
Sunday Funnies – The Ultimate Showdown

It’s really interesting what people will spend their time and creative energies creating. Today I’m putting up a funny song with a video titled “The Ultimate Showdown”. It’s fascinating because these guys took the time to write and record the song as well as animate the whole thing.

It’s funny, kind of, but it’s even more funny because it’s just not that great. I got a chuckle or two out of it but it did leave me scratching my head and thinking “why?”. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it! (more…)
Les Paul and Chet Atkins Perform “Caravan”

I wanted to share some Les Paul music with you today to memorialize Les the best way there is, by listening to his music. This song is from the recording Les Paul did with Chet Atkins in 1975 and released in 1976, titled “Chester & Lester”. The song is called “Caravan” and was written by Duke Ellington, Irving Mills and Juan Tizol. The interplay between Chet and Lester is wonderful to listen to. (more…)
Les Paul – In Memoriam June 9, 1915 – August 13, 2009

Les Paul – Young or Old, the man could play!

If you had to pick a guitarist that has had the greatest influence on modern music technology then the top candidate would have to be Les Paul. I don’t think any single guitarist has influenced the way we make and record music more than Les Paul has. His advances in the electric guitar and its amplification alone have completely changed the way guitarists play and perform in their live bands as well as in the studio.

Les Paul was born Lester William Polsfuss in Waukesha, Wisconsin on June 9, 1915. He later adopted the stage name Les Paul which would go on to be one of the most legendary names in all of electric guitar history. Les Paul’s contributions to music have been many and they’ve also been extremely groundbreaking and important. There have been a lot of great guitar players but let’s face it, great guitar players are a dime-a-dozen. Les wasn’t just a guitarist, he was an inventor and an innovator. (more…)
Sunday Funnies – Stupid Alien Let’s Fan Slaughter Iron Man On The Guitar

The Stupid Alien is a New York City street performer who has some serious skills on the electric guitar. In this video clip he let’s a passerby take his guitar to play “Iron Man” by Black Sabbath. The guest guitarist proceeds to suck big time on his rendition of the song.

I think it’s pretty cool of The Stupid Alien to surrender his axe to a wannabe guitarist so kudos to Stupid Alien. As for the guy destroying “Iron Man”, dude, if you suck that badly then don’t borrow a guys guitar to show him how horrible you are! Just say, “Yeah, I play a little!” and just walk away. (more…)
Deals And Promotions From Musician’s Friend – August 2009

Randy Rhoads with Jackson prototype guitar.

  There are a couple of really cool deals for guitarists going on right now at Musician’s Friend. One of the most legendary and influential guitarists of all time was Mr. Randy Rhoads. He rose to fame playing with Ozzy Osbourne as Ozzy launched his stellar solo career. The success of Ozzy’s early solo work can be highly credited to the phenomenal guitar work of Randy Rhoads. If you were lucky enough to see Randy Rhoads onstage in Ozzy’s live band it was an experience you’ll never forget.

   Before Randy’s untimely death, he designed his ultra-famous Randy Rhoads Signature Model guitar with Grover Jackson of Jackson Guitars. This guitar has been highly sought by guitarists that love the Randy Rhoads sound. Right now at Musician’s Friend you can score a deal on a limited run of this amazing guitar that are numbered and signed by luthier Mike Shannon. Just click the banner below to check it out:

Another great special going on right now at Musician’s Friend is the big sale on Line 6 equipment. Line 6 makes an excellent line of modeling amplifiers that can almost rival the sweet sounds of my Fender Cyber-Twin SE. When I was shopping for a new amp I narrowed it down to the Line 6 Vetta or the Fender Cyber-Twin SE. The Fender finally won out but it was a tough choice.

   If you’re in the market for some excellent gear from Line 6, now is the time to buy. The prices have been lowered and the deals have never been better. Just click on the banner below to see these nice discounts: