The Ugly American Werewolf in London Rock Podcast

We conjured up First Concert Memories, our monthly sidecast to talk about the first time our guests saw a particular band, to share some passion about the rock n roll we all love. And Stephanie Myers is so passionate about Meat Loaf that she wears a necklace made of his guitar string. Host of the Songfacts Podcast and co-host of Stephanie & Stephanie Talk Tunes Podcast, she is a vivid storyteller and a Meat Loaf Superfan who's seen him live 13 times! As The Wolf & Action Jackson are not Meat Loaf know-it-alls, it was so much fun to have a few laughs with Stephanie and learn from her deep well of knowledge on her favorite artist.

Stephanie reveals how she got into Meat Loaf as a 12 year old as Bat Out Of Hell II was all over the radio, MTV, VH1 and radios all over the world. We'll get into the theatrics of the show and the special song he sang that night in Houston on August 3, 1994. But we'll also hear from Stephanie about how she had to cajole and bargain with her parents over many months to make her dream of seeing Meat Loaf live come true. We share some laughs and stories with Stephanie on a fun episode of First Concert Memories!

Visit Stephanie at https://linktr.ee/Stephaniestalktunes

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KISS is one of the most legendary bands in the history of rock n roll. From their iconic makeup to their bombastic stage shows to the marketing and licensing of every product under the sun, KISS has been a part of popular culture for half a century. The self-titled debut album, KISS, didn't grab everyone's attention out of the gate, however. While they had some killer riffs supplied by original guitarist Ace Frehley, some funky bass from Gene Simmons, swinging drumming from Peter Criss and superstar vocals from Paul Stanley, the band were still forming their sound and identity.

In fact, the sales of the album were so slow that Casablanca Records chief Neil Bogart cajoled the band into recording a 50s cover, Kissin Time, which he thought would help boost sales as a single. Even though Kissin Time was added to every copy of KISS after the first 100,000 or so, it didn't help generate more sales. But their reputation as a great live band had KISS winning fans around the nation. And while KISS wouldn't capture that live sound until ALIVE! a couple of years later, this album has some great tracks which are still KISS classics today like Deuce, Strutter, Cold Gin and Black Diamond. We give it our usual track x track evaluation and throw in lots of KISS tidbits.

As a special bonus, we have included a clip from Space Ace himself, Ace Frehley. As Ace recently spoke with Paul Stephenson of VRP Rocks (a good friend of Ugly American Werewolf in London), Paul asked Ace a question from The Wolf about the timing of his new solo release 10,000 Volts and how it's coming out almost 50 years to the day from the release of KISS. Ace may not answer the question we asked but it's amazing that Paul asked if for us and the audio is included somewhere in the episode - you'll have to listen to hear from Ace!!

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On UAWIL, we regularly talk about albums and bands that are big on one side of the Atlantic but for some reason never have great success on the other side of the pond. One glaring example is Simple Minds who have dozens of hits and many gold & platinum albums in the UK, Europe and around the world but never had huge success in the US. Most US fans know Don't You Forget About Me from The Breakfast Club soundtrack as it went to #1 in the US in early 1985. But because that song wasn't on a Simple Minds album until the 90s and because prior to that they received little to no airplay in the US, many fans see them as a one hit wonder and don't realize the extraordinary career Simple Minds have had with over 60 million records sold worldwide.

As it turns 40 on February 6, 1984, Sparkle in the Rain was a bit of a transition from the techno pop band of New Gold Dream 81/82/83/84 to a band that were going places. Simple MInds were playing bigger venues, becoming friendly (and competitive) with U2 and wanted to make a bigger sound. They enlisted Steve Lillywhite (after he produced U2's War) to lead them to more radio-friendly, stadium enhancing tunes. In the end, it's a bit of a mixed bag with takes on fame (Up On The Catwalk), war (East at Easter), rebellion (The Kick Inside of Me) and UK chart climbers like Waterfront and Speed Your Love to Me. Vocalist Jim Kerr delivers an amazing performance but sometimes the lyrics are a bit opaque. Charlie Burchill is a brilliant guitarist but you can't always make out what he's doing as Mick MacNeil's keyboards play a prominent role. The addition of Mel Gaynor from London gave them a big boost and the album hit #1 in New Zealand and the UK where it went platinum. But still, the US had limited knowledge of the band until the Breakfast Club hit a year later. So we go track x track to try to understand why the US didn't pick up on this one and if that had something to do with why they never became huge there like they did in Europe.

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The Pretenders broke out of London in 1979 and enjoyed success on both sides of the pond with hits like Brass in Pocket, Talk of the Town and Message of Love. But in 1982 the band were embroiled with problems from guitarist James Honeyman-Scott's deadly overdose to the sacking of bassist Pete Farndon due to drug use to Chrissie's pregnancy with Ray Davies and the dissolution of their relationship. However, Chrissie Hynde (songwriter, lead singer, guitarist) and Martin Chambers (drummer) forged ahead to somehow make what might be their best album in 1984's Learning to Crawl.

In 1982, with the help of some pros, they released the single Back on the Chain Gang, a worldwide hit, backed with My City Was Gone which was a radio favorite in the US. After taking some time off to have daughter Natalie Rae Hynde, Chrissie led Chambers, guitarist Robbie McIntosh and bassist Malcolm Foster into the studio to record an album that would go platinum in the US and gold in the UK. From the heartfelt Show Me, to the soulful The Thin Line Between Love And Hate, to the country Thumbelina and the holiday classic 2000 Miles, this album really showcases how Chrissie's talent allows them to explore many genres. Released January 13, 1984, we celebrate Learning to Crawl by The Pretenders as it turns 40!

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After rushing through their 5th album Diver Down, Van Halen wanted to return with an original album that would establish them as the preeminent hard rock band in the USA. Eddie Van Halen had completed his home 5150 studio which would allow him to develop ideas and work out the synthesizer sounds that he was experimenting with but which had also been shot down by lead singer David Lee Roth and producer Ted Templeman. But Eddie was ready to mix his guitar heroics with the new age sounds that were popular at the time. By mixing Eddie's musicianship with Dave's showmanship and throwing in some MTV, Van Halen became the biggest band in the world!

The videos for Jump, Panama and Hot For Teacher were all over MTV that summer and even won them some video awards. But trouble was brewing in the Van Halen camp as not everyone was on the same page. Despite it reaching the highest chart position ever for the band at that time (#2 US) and eventually going on to be a diamond seller (10 million+), Dave would leave the band at the end of the year. But for two 10 year old boys from the suburbs, the magic of 1984 still lives to this day! We go track by track as we celebrate its 40th anniversary!

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On our 6th edition of our monthly sidecast, First Concert Memories, we welcome our friend Markus "The Darkus" Goldman from 93.3 WMMR in Philadelphia and The Imbalanced History of Rock n Roll Podcast to talk about an epic night in the history of rock music. On June 5, 1983, an up and coming back from Ireland had decided to film their concert at the Red Rock Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado just north of Denver. However, heavy rains and storms were expected and members of the management and crew didn't think it was a good idea for that day. Many ticket holders were convinced to stay home and the band had to go on the radio to implore folks to come to the show. The show was delayed and opening act The Alarm didn't even play due to the weather. But in the end, the show went on, it was filmed and it changed the fortunes of the band for for millions of members of the MTV generation.

Yes, it was U2 that played that night, recording the entire show that would eventually end up on MTV Saturday nights and form part of the live album Under A Blood Red Sky. But the video for Sunday Bloody Sunday would get into heavy rotation on MTV, showing Bono waving a white flag with bonfires atop the natural mountain formation. It made for an otherworldly scene that helped propel U2 to superstar status in the US and set them up to become legends. Hear Markus talk about braving the elements, having security keep him from being crushed against the barrier, his favorite moments and many remarkable memories of a teenager seeing U2 in that incredible setting.

Listen to Markus on https://imbalancedhistory.com/Ugly American Werewolf in London Website

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Following up on last week's 2023 in Review Part 1: Albums, Authors & Podcasters, now we're focused on the concerts that we covered on the show (and the ones we didn't), the artists & legends we interviewed and reveal our Top 10 Ugly American Werewolf in London episodes of 2023.

Thought The Wolf had to leave Amsterdam for his homeland early in 2023, he didn't sell all the concert tickets he bought. He made a trip back in April to see Metallica on the first 2 nights of their No Repeat Weekend Tour. And The Wolf met up in Amsterdam with Action Jackson over the summer to take him to his first ever Iron Maiden concert. It was so great they went to see the boys again in Antwerp and then enjoyed some unexpected encounters at the hotel. Plus our host took The Wolfcub to see KISS one last time.

We love talking with the talented musicians who make the rock music we love and we were honored to host an array of great guests from up and coming artists like Jimmy Maddon to legends like Terry Reid and Jim McCarty of The Yardbirds. Talking to Steve Kilbey of The Church was a treat and getting to know rockers in their prime like Scott Holiday of Rival Sons and Oliver Wakeman who we'll be seeing for years to come

And stay tuned as we unveil our Top 10 episodes (by download) for 2023. It was a great year for The Ugly American Werewolf in London Rock Podcast and we thank everyone for listening. Here's looking forward to a killer 2024!

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2023 was quite a year for The Ugly American Werewolf in London Rock Podcast! We offered 52 episodes of the show, celebrated our 3 year anniversary, launched a new sidecast First Concert Memories, reviewed 32 albums, hosted 15 authors & podcasters, interviewed 8 artists & legends and reviewed 5 epic concerts from Europe and the USA. Plus your host, The Wolf, returned to America after 4 years away and his co-host & partner in crime, Gary "Action" Jackson welcomed him home!

Phew! How can we summarize that all in one show? We can't. So we're breaking it up into two different episodes. This first review will focus on the albums we reviewed and the authors/journalists/podcasters we welcomed to the show. Some epic albums celebrated big milestones like Houses of the Holy by Led Zeppelin, Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd and The Rolling Stone Goats Head Soup turned 50. Iron Maiden's Piece of Mind, Yes' 90125, U2's War and the debut albums of Metallica & Dio hit 40. We'll walk you through them and give shout outs to all our amazing guests like legendary rock writers Mick Wall, Greg Renoff and Martin Popoff, superstar podcast hosts like Renee & Stef from The Metallica Report and Tom & Zeus from Shout It Out Loudcast and we'll introduce you to all the amazing guests who took part in our monthly sidecast First Concert Memories.

Join us for this fun trip down memory lane!

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Every year around the holidays, sometimes even before Thanksgiving these days, you start to hear them. The age old songs to ring in the season at the end of the year. I'm talking about Christmas songs - some of which are hundreds of years old and some have become popular in our lifetimes. In stores, in schools, in offices, in the air you'll be hearing songs in every language to celebrate. And rock n roll has it's own classics in the genre - a great many legends and once hot bands have done their best to come up with an original (or original re-working of) song that will get them on the radio between November and January every year.

Some are true classics, sung by legends. Some are catchy tunes from your favorite acts. Do you prefer John Lennon's Happy Christmas (War is Over) or Paul McCartney's A Wonderful Christmas Time? Do you prefer classics from the early age of rock n roll from Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry or The Beach Boys? The Wolf and Action Jackson are children of the MTV generation and in the 80s artists collaborated for a cause through Band Aid's Do They Know It's Christmas and the A Very Special Christmas albums. Each of the boys will walk through 10 up to their very favorite rockin Christmas classic and might give each other a hard time for some of them. But isn't that what the holidays are all about (It's time, for the airing of the greivances!)

We wish everyone Happy Holidays from The Ugly American Werewolf in London Rock Podcast and thank you for making us part of your lives in 2023.

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King Crimson emerged from the UK in the late 60's with their debut album In The Court of the Crimson King, viewed by many as a prog rock masterpiece. However, right after the album was released, we saw the first of many defections from the band. Over half a century, some of the most proficient musicians on the planet have played with King Crimson, led all the while by the mercurial Robert Fripp. To capture the spirit of the band and to endeavor to find answers as to why there has been so much turnover of band members (19 total members over the years), director Toby Amies (The Man Whose Mind Exploded) took on the task of getting to know the band members during what might just be their final tour.

With stints in radio, record labels and MTV on both sides of the pond, Toby Amies has had a fascinating career. He took on the challenge of learning the ins and outs of the members of the band, why they choose to play in King Crimson and what is Robert Fripp's role in guiding this band for over half a century. While Robert will tell the reason for infighting and defections don't lie with him, Toby gets the stories of all the surviving members of King Crimson, current and former, to investigate what makes this band what it is. Not everyone gets King Crimson and their blend of rock, jazz, classical and experimental muisc but once they do, they are hooked true-believers. Toby endeavors to find out why and delivers a compelling film full of human drama, emotion, heartbreak, humor and music.

Find how to watch In The Court of the Crimson King - King Crimson at 50

Visit www.tobyamies.com

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