Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Unusual Rock Trivia?
- Thread starter Aberdumbie
- Start date
-
- Tags
- rock
Before becoming a heavy rock singer and heavy metal icon, Ronnie James Dio sang in vocal groups.
Zakk Wylde filled in with the Allman Brothers for one gig in 1993 when Dickey Betts was in jail. No rehearsal, but Wylde had an Allmans tribute band on the side. He has said it was his favorite gig ever, but the band was not happy with his performance and he was not asked back.
Someone mentioned Skunk Baxter's time with the Doobies and Steely Dan - but did you know this stuff about him found on Wikipedia:
Defense consulting career
Baxter fell into his second profession almost by accident. In the mid-1980s, Baxter's interest in music recording technology led him to wonder about hardware and software that was originally developed for military use, specifically data-compression algorithms and large-capacity storage devices. His next-door neighbor was a retired engineer who had worked on the Sidewinder missile program. This neighbor bought Baxter a subscription to Aviation Week magazine, provoking his interest in additional military-oriented publications and missile defense systems in particular. He became self-taught in this area, and at one point he wrote a five-page paper that proposed converting the ship-based anti-aircraft Aegis missile into a rudimentary missile defense system. He gave the paper to California Republican congressman Invalid Link Removed, and his career as a defense consultant began.
Backed by several influential Capitol Hill lawmakers, Baxter received a series of security clearances so he could work with classified information. In 1995, Pennsylvania Republican congressman Invalid Link Removed, then the chairman of the House Military Research and Development Subcommittee, nominated Baxter to chair the Civilian Advisory Board for Ballistic Missile Defense.
Baxter's work with that panel led to consulting contracts with the Pentagon's Invalid Link Removed (MDA) and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. He now consults to the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. intelligence community, as well as for defense-oriented manufacturers including Science Applications International Corporation ("SAIC"), Invalid Link Removed, General Dynamics, and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. He has been quoted as saying his unconventional approach to thinking about terrorism, tied to his interest in technology, is a major reason he became sought after by the government.
"We thought turntables were for playing records until rappers began to use them as instruments, and we thought airplanes were for carrying passengers until terrorists realized they could be used as missiles," Baxter has said. "My big thing is to look at existing technologies and try to see other ways they can be used, which happens in music all the time and happens to be what terrorists are incredibly good at."
Baxter has also appeared in public debates and as a guest on CNN and Fox News Channel advocating missile defense. He served as a national spokesman for Americans for Missile Defense, a coalition of organizations devoted to the issue.
In 2000, Baxter considered challenging Rep. Brad Sherman for the 24th Congressional District seat in California before deciding not to run.
In April 2005, he joined the NASA Exploration Systems Advisory Committee (ESAC).
Baxter was a member of an independent study group that produced the "Civil Applications Committee Blue Ribbon Study" recommending an increased domestic role for U.S. spy satellites in September 2005. This study was first reported by The Wall Street Journal on August 15, 2007.
Baxter is listed as "Senior Thinker and Raconteur" at the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition.
Baxter is a Senior Fellow and Member of the Board of Regents at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies.
Defense consulting career
Baxter fell into his second profession almost by accident. In the mid-1980s, Baxter's interest in music recording technology led him to wonder about hardware and software that was originally developed for military use, specifically data-compression algorithms and large-capacity storage devices. His next-door neighbor was a retired engineer who had worked on the Sidewinder missile program. This neighbor bought Baxter a subscription to Aviation Week magazine, provoking his interest in additional military-oriented publications and missile defense systems in particular. He became self-taught in this area, and at one point he wrote a five-page paper that proposed converting the ship-based anti-aircraft Aegis missile into a rudimentary missile defense system. He gave the paper to California Republican congressman Invalid Link Removed, and his career as a defense consultant began.
Backed by several influential Capitol Hill lawmakers, Baxter received a series of security clearances so he could work with classified information. In 1995, Pennsylvania Republican congressman Invalid Link Removed, then the chairman of the House Military Research and Development Subcommittee, nominated Baxter to chair the Civilian Advisory Board for Ballistic Missile Defense.
Baxter's work with that panel led to consulting contracts with the Pentagon's Invalid Link Removed (MDA) and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. He now consults to the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. intelligence community, as well as for defense-oriented manufacturers including Science Applications International Corporation ("SAIC"), Invalid Link Removed, General Dynamics, and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. He has been quoted as saying his unconventional approach to thinking about terrorism, tied to his interest in technology, is a major reason he became sought after by the government.
"We thought turntables were for playing records until rappers began to use them as instruments, and we thought airplanes were for carrying passengers until terrorists realized they could be used as missiles," Baxter has said. "My big thing is to look at existing technologies and try to see other ways they can be used, which happens in music all the time and happens to be what terrorists are incredibly good at."
Baxter has also appeared in public debates and as a guest on CNN and Fox News Channel advocating missile defense. He served as a national spokesman for Americans for Missile Defense, a coalition of organizations devoted to the issue.
In 2000, Baxter considered challenging Rep. Brad Sherman for the 24th Congressional District seat in California before deciding not to run.
In April 2005, he joined the NASA Exploration Systems Advisory Committee (ESAC).
Baxter was a member of an independent study group that produced the "Civil Applications Committee Blue Ribbon Study" recommending an increased domestic role for U.S. spy satellites in September 2005. This study was first reported by The Wall Street Journal on August 15, 2007.
Baxter is listed as "Senior Thinker and Raconteur" at the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition.
Baxter is a Senior Fellow and Member of the Board of Regents at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies.
Last edited:
Before they formed Night Ranger, Brad Gillis and Jack Blades were in the funk rock band Rubicon with keyboardist Jerry Martini (original member of Sly & The Family Stone, Greg Eckler (vocals, drums), Max Haskett (lead vocals, horns), Dennis Marcellino (sax, vocals formerly of Sly & The Family Stone and The Elvin Bishop Group), and Jim Pugh (keyboards).
They had a Top 40 hit in 1978 with "I'm Gonna Take Care Of Everything". Their other songs were very funky.
Jack Blades does some slapping bass work.
They had a Top 40 hit in 1978 with "I'm Gonna Take Care Of Everything". Their other songs were very funky.
Jack Blades does some slapping bass work.
Regarding the great Al Kooper:
1) Was responsible for organizing Blood Sweat and Tears in 1967 (but left in '68 due to creative differences.)
2) Played the B3 in April of '65 on the 2nd day of recording Like a Rolling Stone.
When the musicians reconvened the following day, June 16, Al Kooper joined the proceedings. Kooper, at that time a 21-year-old session guitarist, was not originally supposed to play but was present in the studio as Wilson's guest. When Wilson stepped out, Kooper sat down with his guitar with the other musicians, hoping to take part in the recording session. By the time Wilson returned, Kooper, who had been intimidated by Bloomfield's guitar playing, was back in the control room. After a couple of rehearsal takes, Wilson moved Griffin from Hammond organ to piano. Kooper then approached Wilson and told him he had a good part for the organ. Wilson belittled Kooper's organ skills but didn't explicitly forbid him to play. As Kooper later put it, "He just sort of scoffed at me ... He didn't say 'no'—so I went out there." Wilson was surprised to see Kooper at the organ but allowed him to play on the track. When Dylan heard a playback of the song, he insisted that the organ be turned up in the mix, despite Wilson's protestations that Kooper was "not an organ player.
3) Played Newport Hammond at Newport behind Dylan when he went Electric
4) Played keys for the Blues Project
5) Played on Super Sessions with Bloomfield and Stills.
6) Produced the debut LP from the Tubes
7) Played on hundreds of records, including ones from:
Rolling Stones, B. B. King, the Who, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Alice Cooper, and Cream.
8) Inn 1972, he discovered the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and produced and performed on their first three albums, including the single "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird".
9) Wrote the score for the TV series Crime Story and for the film The Landlord and wrote music for several made-for-television movies. He was the musical force behind many of the pop tunes, including "You're the Lovin' End", for The Banana Splits.
10) Played piano, organ and most remarkably: French Horn on the Rolling Stones LP You Can't Always Get What You Want from Let it Bleed.
1) Was responsible for organizing Blood Sweat and Tears in 1967 (but left in '68 due to creative differences.)
2) Played the B3 in April of '65 on the 2nd day of recording Like a Rolling Stone.
When the musicians reconvened the following day, June 16, Al Kooper joined the proceedings. Kooper, at that time a 21-year-old session guitarist, was not originally supposed to play but was present in the studio as Wilson's guest. When Wilson stepped out, Kooper sat down with his guitar with the other musicians, hoping to take part in the recording session. By the time Wilson returned, Kooper, who had been intimidated by Bloomfield's guitar playing, was back in the control room. After a couple of rehearsal takes, Wilson moved Griffin from Hammond organ to piano. Kooper then approached Wilson and told him he had a good part for the organ. Wilson belittled Kooper's organ skills but didn't explicitly forbid him to play. As Kooper later put it, "He just sort of scoffed at me ... He didn't say 'no'—so I went out there." Wilson was surprised to see Kooper at the organ but allowed him to play on the track. When Dylan heard a playback of the song, he insisted that the organ be turned up in the mix, despite Wilson's protestations that Kooper was "not an organ player.
3) Played Newport Hammond at Newport behind Dylan when he went Electric
4) Played keys for the Blues Project
5) Played on Super Sessions with Bloomfield and Stills.
6) Produced the debut LP from the Tubes
7) Played on hundreds of records, including ones from:
Rolling Stones, B. B. King, the Who, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Alice Cooper, and Cream.
8) Inn 1972, he discovered the band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and produced and performed on their first three albums, including the single "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird".
9) Wrote the score for the TV series Crime Story and for the film The Landlord and wrote music for several made-for-television movies. He was the musical force behind many of the pop tunes, including "You're the Lovin' End", for The Banana Splits.
10) Played piano, organ and most remarkably: French Horn on the Rolling Stones LP You Can't Always Get What You Want from Let it Bleed.
Last edited:
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Blades is a good player, but like Michael Anthony and others, he realized there was a steady paycheck in playing roots.
+1
When I made the big switch to bass, it was one of the first songs I had to learn. Made me question my choice of bass playing. And though I don't have it note for note. (Just about) One of my strongest songs now, cause the gauntlet was thrown down.
My friend who was doing amp & guitar work in LA during The Hair Metal Years. Told me Michael Bolton filled in for Rob Halford at some point in time back when.
Michael Bolton (under his real name Michael Bolotin) was in the band Blackjack with Bruce Kulick, Sandy Gennaro, and Jimmy Haslip.
I remember back in the 80's when Michael Bolton was doing the metal thing. Seem to recall some ads in guitar magazines for his various attempts. Gary Moore was trying to get into it too, before his blues thing took off. Disclaimer: I place Gary Moore head and shoulders times 100 above Michael Bolton.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Bolton has a great voice, just not great music, and from what I have heard (he grew up near me) far from a great guy.
Gary Moore was fairly successful with metal and hard rock, too. Played in Thin Lizzy, Colosseum II, wrote songs that were hits for others...had several well-received solo albums. Nothing like "Still Got The Blues" but better than what Bolton did.
Gary Moore is/was spectacular, just didn't have the pretty face needed to take off in the hair metal genre.
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Him and Dio should have got something going
buldog5151bass
Kibble, milkbones, and P Basses. And redheads.
Latest posts
-
-
-
Would you play gigs with a band that doesn't have a great PA?
- Latest: buldog5151bass
-
-