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ROCK ON! This Week's Sound Bites...2/19/15

By Danny Coleman

originally published: 02/19/2015 "I was trying for that late 60's British blues sound; a return to the days of trios," says former Guess Who and Bachman Turner Overdrive guitarist Randy Bachman about his new CD "Heavy Blues" due to drop on April 14 2015.

Bachman, who just recently wrapped up his very successful CD/DVD "Vinyl Tap" tour with the assistance of a symphony orchestra; has been working on the concept of "Heavy Blues" for quite some time. "Yes, that tour is wrapped and done," he stated with a sense of accomplishment in his voice. "We finished with a series of several symphony gigs, the ballads sounded great. Hearing "These Eyes" and the other Guess Who tunes with a full orchestra behind me was just incredible. Once I was done with that I was able to concentrate on this new album."

"Concentrate" would lead one to believe that perhaps there was a long recording process or major production to be done and although the CD has been in the concept stage for a while; the basic tracks were cut in only five days. "I was given the chance to do a record. I was offered a deal but was told to do something different. I was talking with Neil Young and he suggested that I do something new. He told me to "Go outside your box" because I was thinking of self producing this album and Neil said, "When you produce yourself, you tend to say I'm great, I'm fabulous now I'm done, I'm going to bed," Hire yourself an outsider who can give you an honest point of view."

 

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Bachman took his long time friend's advice and hired quite a producer; the incomparable Kevin Shirley. Shirley, who has produced or mixed works for Journey, Rush, Led Zeppelin, Dream Theater and Joe Bonamassa to name just a small sampling, became available and Randy jumped at the opportunity to work with him. "When I heard that Kevin was available, I immediately knew that he was the guy I wanted. We had a five day window; he was only available for that short time period. He came in and said, "Do as I say and keep your mouth shut, let's get this done," said Bachman with a laugh. "With Kevin in charge, I was able to do what I needed to do without worrying about that side of things. We did each song in two or three takes and that's how we got it done in five days."

The guest list of players on "Heavy Blues" reads like a music awards show with veteran rockers Neil Young and Peter Frampton, along with Joe Bonamassa leading a cast of "old friends" who lent a hand; including a track from deceased virtuoso Jeff Healey. "I have seven guest players on this album," he said as his voice began to take on an increasingly enthusiastic tone. "I sent each of them tracks and told them I want to hear you; play the parts like you want. I gave them total freedom and the results were great; I am very happy with the way it turned out. Neil Young was just amazing! Joe Bonamassa, his dad brought him to one of my gigs when he was ten or eleven years old; I've known him for years and he fit so well. I even have Jeff Healey on a track. Jeff has been deceased for quite a few years now but he had done some great work and had done a remake of BB King's "Early In The Morning" which was fabulous. I contacted his widow and asked for permission to use his guitar work and i rewrote a tune to fit Jeff's licks; it was a lot of work but well worth it. Frampton was the last to come on board. Due to his touring schedule I'd send him tracks and he'd work on it when he could; so his contribution evolved over time. I've never heard Peter play better, he sounds just as good now as he ever did; if not better."

"And now for something completely different," is more than just a transitional line between comedic skits from Monty Python; in Bachman's case it describes his new band to a tee. Once again, following his prior instructions to perfection, Randy's band has an entirely different look; literally. This new power trio comprised of Bachman himself along with an all female rhythm section consisting of Dale Anne Brendon on drums and Anna Reddick on bass. "I saw Dale at a show that I was attending, she was playing concert drums and prior to the show they sometimes have another group play and I was just impressed by her so much; the way she attacks the drums, like Keith Moon used to is perfect. I thought to myself, I've got to have her on my album so I approached her and she was willing to do it. Anna, I saw her doing a show and I loved the way she played. I asked her who her main influences were and she immediately said, "John Entwistle." I thought, she's the one, between her and Dale both having those influences I knew it would work well. I got them together, we had dinner; they'd never met before but they had that Who connection and we all got along so well; it worked out great."

Bachman has designed "Heavy Blues" with a twist, "Guitar Players are going to love this album," he emphatically declared. "If you buy the album, there's going to be one or two tracks without the guitar solos. I was hesitant about it at first but the idea has turned out way better than expected; it's like "Guitar-a-oke! I've signed up with a few radio stations to hold a contest where guitarists of any age or skill level can fill in the missing solo or solos with their own, make an MP3 and send it in to the radio station. The winner gets a free Les Paul and will get to play the winning song with me on stage from a theater in L.A. and the entire concert will be broadcast over the internet. So the winner will literally be heard around the world as well as get to come back on stage and play "Taking Care of Business" with me at the end of the night; it's like they'll be a real guitar hero." Bachman also has a little something for the first 10,000 people who order his CD; guitar picks and strings will be given out to those who don't "fret" and purchase the disc.

So where will "Heavy Blues" take Randy and the ladies? "Canada, the upper U.S., L.A. and we have New York City in the works," he says, "As well as some other things. Live video feeds from shows and blues festivals already booked; everything is coming together."

To discover more about Randy Bachman and his latest effort, "Heavy Blues," please go to www.randybachman.com .

 

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That's it for this week! Please continue to support live and original music and until next week....ROCK ON!

THIS WEEKS CALENDAR LISTINGS

Amalfi's Restaurant

146 Lawrenceville-Pennington Rd. Lawrenceville

(609) 912-1599

Fri. 8:30 p.m. (TBA)

Sat. 8:30 p.m. Hard 2 Explain

Amarones Windsor Inn

29 Church St. Windsor

(609) 448-7144

Thurs. 6:30 p.m. "Country" Ron Crites

Fri. 8 p.m. Ernie White & Tom Reock

Sat. 8 p.m. Tony Malandro

Wed. 7:30 p.m. Robert Bruce

Big Shots Bar and Grill/Hebe Music Lounge

835 E Rte. 130 South, Burlington

(609) 267-1200

Sat. 7 p.m. Road Dogs, Two Tall Guys

Wed. 7 p.m. Open Mic. hosted by Reji B

Blend Bar & Bistro

911 Highway 33, Hamilton

 

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(609) 245-8887

Tues. 8 p.m. Triviajam

The Backstage at Championship Bar
931 Chambers St. Trenton

Thurs. 5 p.m. Brick By Brick, Cognitive, Internal Warfare, Ground, Ire Form. All ages, $10

Fri. 6 p.m. Less Than None, Ashes Of My Regrets, Malphas, Exinfernum, Bottom Of The Lake, Starve As Wolves. All ages, $10

Sat. 4 p.m. Ingdorf, A Breed Of Human, Me Versus I, The Artwork Of, Doing Better, Cellar Door, Clearview, Restless Spirit. All ages, $10

Sun. 4 p.m. 1349, Origin, Abysmal Dawn, Wolvhammer, March To Victory, Immolith, Grim Legion, Beyond Treachery. All ages, $20

Candlelight Lounge
24 Passaic St. Trenton
(609) 695-9612

Sat. 3 p.m. Anthony Ware Quartet. (No cover-$10 minimum)

Chickie's & Pete's

183 US Highway 130 North Bordentown

(609) 298-9182

Tues. 8 p.m. Acoustic Music Night feat. The Dawgs

Dog & Bull Brew House

810 Bristol Pike (Rte. 13) Croydon, PA.

(215) 788-2855

Thurs. 8 p.m. Scott & Dave

Fri. (4 p.m.) Cecil Middleton (9 p.m.) Coco Butter Band

Sat. (11 a.m.) Saturday Brunch feat. Bob Lemmo Jazz Trio (9 p.m.) Soul Custody

Sun. (11 a.m.) Sunday Brunch feat. Keli Vale Jazz Duo (3 p.m.) Visoon

Mon. 8 p.m. Cowband in the Sand

Tues. 8 p.m. Gypsy Mother

Wed. 8 p.m. Shawn Byrne

Fran's Pub

116 S. Main St. New Hope, PA.

(215)862-5539

Sat. 8 p.m. Charles Laurita & The Mischief

Mon. 8 p.m. Open Blues Jam

All shows 21+

Halo Pub

4617 Nottingham Way Hamilton

(609) 586-1811

Sat. 7 p.m. Matt & Rachel

Havana New Hope
105 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-9897

Thurs. 10 p.m. "Beat the Clock" DJ Dance party

Fri. 8 p.m. Sailin' Shoes (Little Feat Tribute). Doors at 6 p.m., $15

Sat. 8:30 p.m. Coast to Coast

Sun. 8 p.m. Tim Reynolds and TR3/Dave Cahill. Doors at 6 p.m., $30

Wed. 8 p.m. Pat Foran and Friends

All shows 21+

Ivy Tavern
3108 S. Broad Street, Hamilton
(609) 888-1435

Fri. 10 p.m. Tangled

Sat. 10 p.m. The Dawgs

All shows 21+

John & Peter's
96 S. Main St. New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-5981

Thurs. 9 p.m. Fowler, Johnson and Moore

Fri. 9 p.m. Pete Beck and Friends

Sat. (3 p.m.) Sean Faust & Robert Fulton (9 p.m.) Blubalz

Sun. (3 p.m.) Miss Pumpkin Presents: A drag Show Event (9 p.m.) Collin J. Rocker

Mon. 9 p.m. Open Mic. Night w/ Tim

Tues. 9 p.m. DJ Aggreschen

Wed. 9:30 p.m. The Invitational
All shows 21+

JoJo's Tavern

2677 Nottingham Way Hamilton

(609) 586-2678

Wed. 10 p.m. Karaoke

Paint the Roses Tea and Café

37 West Broad Street Hopewell

(609) 466-8200

Sat. 11 a.m. Bryan Hill

Palermo's Of Hamilton
310 Klockner Rd. Hamilton
(609) 838-7979

Thurs. 9 p.m. Karaoke

All shows 21+

Patriot's Crossing

1339 River Rd. Titusville

(609) 737-2780

Fri. 7:30 p.m. TJ Nix

Sat. 7:30 p.m. Blues In Disguise

Pete's Steak House
523 Whitehorse Ave. Hamilton
(609) 585-8008

Fri. 9:30 p.m. Drunk Monkeys

Sat. 9:30 p.m. (TBA)

RHO Waterfront

50 Riverview Plaza Trenton

(609) 393-7300

Thurs. 10 p.m. "College Night" w/ DJ Wessy Wes

Fri. (4 p.m.) Happy Hour Buffet (8 p.m.) DJ Wessy Wes (9 p.m.) The Soul Cruisers

All Shows 21+

Sunsets at Cream Ridge

181 Rte. 539 Cream Ridge

(609) 208-2500

Sat. 9 p.m. (TBA)

Tavern On The Lake

101 Main St. Hightstown
(609) 426-9345

Fri. 9 p.m. El Ka Bong

Sat. 9 p.m. Pretty Baby

Wed. 8 p.m. Karaoke Night

The HOB Tavern

146 Second Street

(609) 291-7020

Sat. 9 p.m. Karaoke

The Ivy Inn

248 Nassau St. Princeton

(609) 921-8555

Thurs. 10 p.m. Karaoke w/ DJ Ron

Sat. 10 p.m. DJ Copacetic

Tues. 8 p.m. Quizzo w/ Bob E Luv

Wed. 10 p.m. "Theme Night" w/ DJ Rockn Ron

The Millhill Basement

300 South Broad St Trenton

(609) 989-1600

Wed. 7 p.m. Carl Kavorkian

The Record Collector

358 Farnsworth Ave. Bordentown

(609) 324-0880

Check web site for upcoming events.

The Sun National Bank Center
81 Hamilton Ave. Trenton
(609) 656-3200

Check web site for upcoming events

Tir Na Nog
1324 Hamilton Ave. Trenton
(609) 392-2554

Fri. 9 p.m. Some Assembly Required

Sat. 9 p.m. Mike Nabinger w/ Joe Chinese

Tues. 9 p.m. Open Mic. Hosted by Jerry Monk

All shows 21+

Trenton Social

449 South Broad Street Trenton

(609) 989-7777

Thurs. 8 p.m. Cinema Thursdays Presents: Iceberg Slim: Portrait of a Pimp

Fri. 7 p.m. First Friday

Mon. 10 p.m. Service Industry Night w/ DJ-Jay Kountree

Triumph Brewing Company (New Hope, Pa. Location)
400 Union Square New Hope, Pa.
(215) 862-8300

Fri. 10 p.m. Beaucoup Blue. ($5 cover charge)

Sat. 10 p.m. Cold Roses. ($5 cover charge)

Sun. 7 p.m. Open Jam Night

Tues. 9 p.m. Acoustic Bengal Gold

All shows 21+

Wildflowers Inn

2572 Pennington Rd. Pennington

Sat. 9 p.m. Live Acoustic Rock
Mon. 9 p.m. Karaoke

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Danny Coleman is a veteran musician and writer from central New Jersey. He hosts a weekly radio program entitled “Rock On Radio” airing Sunday evenings at 7:000pm EST on multiple internet radio outlets where he features indie/original bands and solo artists.

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