The Ugly American Werewolf in London Rock Podcast

By 1969 Eric Clapton had finally gotten what he wanted - out of Cream. He felt the band (and the machine around it) was too big and couldn't deal with Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker constantly at each other's throats. And so he began to hang out and jam with his friend Steve Winwood who felt like he wanted a change from Traffic. As these two titans began to formulate some new material, the bosses at the record companies smelled money and quickly got them a record deal and a tour booked. Having already brought on Ginger Baker from Cream, they added bass player Ric Grech from Family and they made a late 60s psychelic/blues/jam album with a little something for everyone.

Can't Find My Way Home and Presence Of The Lord showed the band's lighter acoustic side while Had To Cry Today and Do What You Like gave the band license to do the pyschedelic freak-out jams that allowed these great musicians to showcase their talents in the style of the day. The cover sparked some controversy which led to using a flyer on the US version and their first show was in front of more than half a million people in Hyde Park. But once again, Eric Clapton quickly moved away from the big machine so this is the only album Blind Faith ever offered up. Though Clapton and Winwood would go onto reunite in 2009 to give folks a glimpse of what they were, The Wolf & Action Jackson contemplate what they might have been had they stayed together as they take you track by track.

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In the summer of 1984, Metallica were not yet the Metal Gods and household names they are now. They were a band with one record under their belt (Kill Em All, hear UAWIL #138 for our review with The Hook Rocks Jay Scott), some experience playing bigger stages as an opening act and a small but loyal following. However, their US record company didn't have the money to pay for a new album so James, Kirk, Cliff and Lars traveled to Copenhagen and crashed in the studio as producer Fleming Rasmussen helped them pull together what would become their 2nd album, Ride The Lightning. As the album turns 40, we reminisce about how we came to know this metal classic, relive hearing them play (most) of the album live and debate if this is indeed ther best ever (Master Of Puppets is neck and neck according to us).

We can really hear the progress on Ride The Lightning vs. the 1st album as the songs are tight with more complexity yet more melodic. And while the lyrics are very intelligent and clear, they deal with very heavy topics like nuclear war (Fight Fire With Fire), suicide (Fade To Black), ancient plagues (Creeping Death) and the horrors of war (For Whom The Bell Tolls). Cliff Burton's psychedelic wah-wah bass is not only unique but a driver of the melody that is inherent in these thrash classics. James Hetfield's powerful riffs are among the best he's ever recorded and provides that steady crunch against which Kirk Hammett can lay everything from frantic solos to trippy fills. This album remains #1 in the heart one of your hosts from the Metallica catalog - the other is on the fence. It's hard to believe Ride The Lightning turns 40 on July 27, 2024 but we love this one and had fun going track by track.

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Bruce Springsteen is one of the all time great rock n rollers. From humble beginnings in New Jersey to selling out stadiums around the world for decades, The Boss is still out there delivering an amazing performance every night. On First Concert Memories 12, the monthly sidecast from your friends at The Ugly American Werewolf in London Rock Podcast, we bring in our Pantheon Podcasts brother Jesse Jackson (not that Jesse Jackson) to talk about the first time he saw Springsteen live after 9/11.

While the setlist was heavy on material from The Rising, Jesse was enthralled by Bruce's powerful live show and his ability to command the audience. While the rest of the folks in his party were confused and annoyed by all the new songs/deep cuts, Jesse loved it so much that he's seen Bruce 20 times and created the Setlusting Bruce Podcast which now boasts over 1,000 episodes!! He's an authority on the greatness of Bruce Springsteen and here we review the first time he saw The Boss live and how it changed his life (for the better).

Learn more about Jesse and his podcast:

https://www.patreon.com/setlustingbruce

https://www.facebook.com/SetLustingBruce/

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Though AC/DC are one of the most revered and successful bands in the history of rock n roll, in 1979 they hadn't cracked the Top 100 in the US. The killer riffs laid down by Malcolm Young had gained them a strong following in Europe and their native Australia but they had yet to breach the great big U-S-of-A. So in 1979 they brought in a new producer, Robert John "Mutt" Lange to give them an edge. And though they were all skeptical after giving Eddie Kramer a shot, once Mutt showed them he knew how to sing, how to get the most out of Angus's guitar and how to put together songs, they were all on board.

However, though this would be their big breakthrough in America with Highway To Hell reaching the Top 20, the celebration wouldn't last as lead singer and primary antagonist Bon Scott would soon die while living that rock n roll life. But before he left he gave us some of his patented sexual innuendo (Walk All Over You, Love Hungry Man, Touch Too Much) and his description of his lifestyle in the title track. Cliff Williams had settled in on the bass after Powerage and the live album If You Want Blood You Got It and Angus Young came of age with the help of Mutt Lange in the studio. The result is some of their greatest riffs (Highway To Hell, If You Want Blood (You've Got It), fan favorites (Girls Got Rhythm, Shot Down In Flames) and controversy (Nightprowler).

It marked the end of an era with Bon Scott but the start of working with Mutt Lange who would help their next album become the 2nd biggest selling album of all time. This is a fun one that all hard rock and heavy metal fans love!!!

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The Wolf & Action Jackson are HUGE Rolling Stones fans and count seeing the Steel Wheels Tour live in their respective cities as an important moment in their lives. Though the Stones never said it, many figured the Steel Wheels Tour would be the last chance for many people to ever see the Stones play. And because Bill Wyman retired after that tour, one could argue that definitely signaled the end of an era.

Fast forward 5 years later and our hosts are in college, had been roommates, and went crazy for Keith Richards 1992 solo effort Main Offender. When the Stone s announced they'd signed a new $44 million deal with Virgin and would be putting out a new album with Darryl Jones on the bass, the boys were psyched. Not only would that mean some new Keith songs to hear on the album but that there would be a new tour - another chance to see the Stones live! This made for a special time in the boys lives and we've chosen to review this album to remember those heady days.

However, even at the time the boys didn't love Voodoo Lounge. Producer Don Was tried to play up some funky grooves and call backs to their heyday but the end result was long (over an hour) and a disappointment outside of the songs Keith Richards sang. Still, our heroes go track x track here to unveil what was happening in Stones World at the time, which songs are worth keeping, which songs would have made better b-sides and what they loved about the tour.

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Keyboard virtuoso Oliver Wakeman visited us on UAWIL #156 to talk about the John Wetton (Asia, King Crimson, UK) box set as it was being released. We had a wonderful time chatting with Oliver as we are big fans of John Wetton and John had been a mentor and friend to Oliver as they toured together in the early 2000s. We had so much fun that we asked him to come back to promote one of his own projects once he was ready. As Oliver has just released Anam Cara, a solo album 20 years in the making, he was gracious enough to join us again to discuss this beautiful new album.

But before you dismiss this as an over the top keyboard showcase, understand that's not this album at all. Oliver talks about how he writes songs in different styles or buckets - Celtic songs, acoustic songs, keyboard prog songs, love songs - and comes up with a theme for each of his solo albums. This album is a Celtic album and though you'll hear some amazing work on the keys from Oliver, you'll also hear a great deal of acoustic melody from guitarist Oliver Day (Fragile). Singer Hayley Griffiths (Riverdance) lends her lovely and powerful voice to give these songs the heart and soul they deserve. With Tory Donockley (Nightwish) and Scott Higham (Pendragon) rounding out the talent that helped bring Oliver's music to light, you have an album rich in texture of which you will discover many layers upon repeated listens. We talk about what Oliver loves about music, how songs can change peoples lives in unexpected ways and when you might be able to see him play live in the future.

Buy Anam Cara & stay on top of Oliver Wakeman's live shows: https://www.oliverwakeman.co.uk/

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Stone Temple Pilots helped define the grunge-ridden days of the 1990s with their big downtuned riffs and lyrics soaked in heroin resin. Riding the wave from Seattle, their debut album Core sold over 8 million copies in the US alone. The record company couldn't wait to get more STP out into the market so in November 1993 they released the live Unplugged album featuring the new song Big Empty. Vocalist/lyricist Scott Weiland was a charismatic and troubled performer, writing lyrics about fear, self-loathing and ruined relationships built on his addiction to heroin.

But STP were more than just a grunge band as Dean and Robert De Leo wrote great songs full of melody and cool changes in tempo and delivery. Purple, their second effort, included songs like Interstate Love Song and Vaseline scored high on the charts and while some of the songs were definitely grungy (Meatplow), they showed they can deliver a straight-ahead rockers (Unglued) and lighter songs with heavy themes. The album went to #1 in the US and would go on to sell over 6 million copies. While the UK were enthralled with the Cool Britannia acts like Oasis, Blur and The Verve, hard rock and grunge bands took over the US and Stone Temple Pilots were among the most successful. But were they really a grunge band? Did Weiland have talent beyond the creativity that flowed from his narcotic visions? Were they a band of the time or of all time? The Wolf and Action Jackson tackle those questions and relive some grungy days in the dorm with Purple as it turns 30.

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Most of us went to our first concerts as teenagers, usually with like-minded friends in search of a good time. Britt Lightning - the lead guitarist in Vixen, the Musical Director of Rock n Roll Fantasy Camp and co-host of the Rock Camp Podcast - wanted just that when she and her high school buddies headed out Foxboro Stadium in Massachusetts to see a full day's slate of bands with Stone Temple Pilots headlining. However, Britt didn't tell her parents she was going so she had to keep everything on the down low and needed to stay out of trouble. But that's not what happened on that fateful day as Britt tells us a crazy story of the first concert she ever attended.

Though it started off great with old tattooed guys buying her beers, once she saw kids jumping the fences to get on the field things took a different turn. Hear about dodging the cops, being maced, crying in the middle of the mosh pit and then crowdsurfing all before the headliners, Stone Temple Pilots, took the stage. It's a story of true rock n roll chaos and debauchery that turned a teenage Britt LIghtning on and sealed her fate as a lifelong rock n roll junkie. Britt's humor and love for rock music really shines through which is why we created this monthly show to go along with our weekly, The Ugly American Werewolf in London Rock Podcast - to hear stories of how going to see a band live changed their lives. This one is too good to miss!

See what Britt and the ladies in Vixen are up to: www.vixenofficial.com

Check out Rock Camp Podcast

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As huge Van Halen fans growing up, The Wolf & Action Jackson always took a keen interest in the career of Wolfgang Van Halen and his band Mammoth. Though The Wolf had seen Wolfgang on tour with Van Halen on bass near the end of their run, he'd missed opportunities to see Mammoth in the past. However, he remedied when they hit Louisville on the last night of their latest tour of the USA and boy was he treated to a killer show.

Wolfgang Van Halen is front and center as the lead singer, lead guitarist and lead storyteller. He delighted in the fact that his band has received so much support for their first two albums (Mammoth WVH & Mammoth II) and entertained the crowd by pronouncing Louisville (Loo-a-vul) correctly, profusely (and profanely) thanking opening act Intervals and threw us a headfake with a few bars of an Oasis classic. The tight band ripped through songs off Mammoth II like Erase Me, Better Than You and Take A Bow while also breaking out the acoustic for Distance and kicking out his Dad Eddie's favorite Think It Over from the first record. He bends bluesy notes in some of his solos while working in some of that tapping that made Eddie a Rock God. It's no surprise they've earned opening gigs with Metallica and Foo Fighters as well as some top notch European festival spots. Seeing them in a club (The Mercury Ballroom) while they're on their way up was a fun night out and we highly recommend catching them if you can!

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