HOWARD LEESE - HEART GUITARIST

6/5/09 If Wednesday night at the Pennywise/Pepper show was as loud and aggressive an event as it can be, yesterday was the exact opposite. I had the pleasure of driving up the beautiful Pacific Coast Highway to the equally gorgeous Malibu, CA to spend some time conversing with Howard Leese, longtime Heart guitarist/producer, and most recently, guitarist and musical director for "The Voice," Paul Rodgers' band. Howard was kind enough to invite me to his beautiful home tucked in the Malibu hillside (what an INCREDIBLE view) to talk about his upcoming solo album, Secret Weapon. And I was lucky enough to have my dear, longtime (not OLD, right Cheri? J) friend, Cheri Smith join me to videotape our conversation. Look for it on www.currentclassics.com soon. As I told Cheri on the drive up, I've been blessed enough to have been invited to speak with several rock stars at their homes (Carlos Santana, Alice Cooper, Dave Mason, Carmine Appice, Pat DiNizio of The Smithereens, etc.), and it was wonderful to have our conversation while sitting in Howard's home studio, which was beautifully adorned with scores of gold and platinum albums as well as great photographs of him with Ann and Nancy Wilson, among other fellow musicians. Hopefully, you'll be able to see some of the décor when I get the video of our conversation up on my Current Classics website. My thanks once again to Howard for inviting me up to his home, for the great stories about Heart, Paul Rodgers, and Led Zeppelin, among others. And my very special thanks to Cheri for taking a few hours out of her workday to videotape our chat, and for lunch. Cheri rocks, Cheri rolls, Cheri really knows her way around a camera. Thank you!

PENNYWISE and PEPPER

6/4/09 Last night I was back at the Club Nokia for the Jagermeister Tour starring Pennywise and Pepper. As usual, Pepper was great, putting on a fun and sometimes – OK, often – raunchy show! The music is not exactly my favorite, and the crowd (in general) was far too aggressive (we saw several actual fights amongst the many mosh pits) for my taste. But by far the best parts of last night was running into my nephew, Danny Carlos, being able to hang out with him and talk music, and take in Pepper's entire set together, and, best of all, I was with the TWO coolest girls I know: my daughters Angie and Aly!!! I can't think of a better way to spend an evening than to be with my two girls (a rarity these days) and be listening to live music. Life is good, indeed!!!

COLIN DEVLIN of THE DEVLINS

5/29/09 I saw a very talented and dear friend, Colin Devlin of The Devlins, perform last night at the very intimate Largo, now on La Cienega Blvd. and NOT Fairfax as I discovered when my friend Mark and I walked up to the OLD location. I confess I love The Devlins music: it's equal parts sexy, soothing, and often a sonic lifesaver for what ails you emotionally. Colin debuted a host of songs off his forthcoming solo album, Democracy of One, including "Raise the Dead," "Strategies," "What Good Is Love," "The Heart Won't Be Denied," and "Refuge." The album isn't out in America…yet, but you can buy it at www.colindevlin.com, and I strongly encourage you to do so. Colin remains one of my favorite songwriters, and as I told him after the show when we had a few minutes to chat and get caught up, I've included many of his songs in LOTS and LOTS of mix CDs, and I've turned many people on (a few females, literally! ;-)) to The Devlins. If you're in L.A. on June 18, Colin will be back at Largo…on LA CIENEGA…for another acoustic set. Guys, bring a date and I guarantee you will be well, rewarded later, because as Colin sings, "The heart won't be denied!" Well done, Colin. I'll see you on June 18, my friend!!

201 SELF-PROMOTION TIPS FOR SONGWRITERS, MUSICIANS AND BANDS ON A BUDGET

The indie music marketing classic ...

Guerrilla Music Marketing Handbook

201+ ways to promote your music, now revised and updated!

As seen in the major motion picture The School of Rock ... and in VIBE, Music Connection, Electronic Musician and American Songwriter magazines

There's never been a better time to be an independent artist. The rules have changed, and they keep on changing -- for the better. Artists have more power to control their own careers than at any time in history. But change and empowerment can be confusing (especialy when it comes to marketing and sales).

That's why you need this classic guide to low-cost, do-it-yourself music promotion -- now revised and updated for 2007.

With this manual, you'll discover that music marketing doesn't have to be expensive to be effective. Whether you're promoting a fast-growing indie label or a one-man or one-woman act from your basement, the Guerrilla Music Marketing Handbook gives you the tools you need to get the maximum bang for your buck!

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"The most directly applicable, start-tomorrow, creatively inspiring book I've ever seen on promoting your music!" -Derek Sivers, president of CD Baby

"Bob Baker's advice is practical and concise. There is GREAT material in this book, and it helped me put my Internet and alternative marketing ideas to good use. This is a fantastic book!" -Geoff Byrd, GarageBand.com's best-rated artist of 2004

"Applying many of Bob's ideas, and without any wholesaling or distribution, I sold more than 20,000 CDs and cassettes of my music over the last five years. Using his suggestions, I increased my fan base by 35% in just one year. Pretty good for a non-performing artist who does all studio work. Bob is the master of music marketing!" -Kris Lee-Scott, Hanai Music

"When you're ready for a Master Class on self-promotion, grab Bob Baker's Guerilla Music Marketing Handbook. There's a reason this has gone to multiple editions!" -Joe Taylor Jr., author of "Grow Your Band's Audience"

CROSBY, STILLS & NASH! Oh My!

5/26/09 Some "conversations" are more challenging than others. By that I mean some artists are far less interested in talking about their music than actually making it. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Stephen Stills is firmly in this category. I just got back from speaking with him for about 20 minutes at a rehearsal studio in Burbank where Crosby, Stills & Nash were well, rehearsing for their upcoming tour. First: YES, I was in a rehearsal hall with CROSBY, STILLS & NASH!!! OK, sorry, I'll never be jaded enough to get over how very cool these moments are!!! Anyway, Stephen and I were scheduled to talk about Demos, an amazingly aptly titled new CD featuring 12 raw, early demos of some the band members' (collectively and individually) biggest hits, such as "Marrakesh Express," "Almost Cut My Hair," "Déjà vu," "Long Time Gone," "Chicago" and "Love the One You're With," among others.

From the moment I pressed "record," Stephen made no secret of his preference for making music and not taking about it. But like the professional that I am, I soldiered on, and eventually did get him to open up about songwriting, performing live, the magical musical connection that is CS&N, etc. But what really got him talking was when we got into politics. Man, I couldn't get him to be quiet about the bank bailouts, etc, etc. So, as tough a conversation as it was, I was eventually left to follow Stephen's own advice: "Love the One You're With."

GREEK GODS: ABB FILLS HILLS WITH SOUND OF MUSIC!

5/21/09 I was still coming down from Tuesday night's Chickenfoot show when I had to shift into a higher gear to catch The Allman Brothers Band and The Doobie Brothers at the Greek Theatre. ALL of this great music just in time for the loooooooong Memorial Day weekend, kicked off with a San Francisco road trip with my sister Connie and my daughter, Aly!! Congrats Aly: she just wrapped her first year at San Francisco State!!!

So, last night's ABB set was spectacular as usual, with some very special moments sprinkled in. But perhaps the most special moment for me was seeing my daughter, Angela, on stage rocking out to ABB!! I'm a VERY proud papa, and I have two very beautiful and talented daughters!

It was so great to hang with Davy Knowles again last night. He's going to come over to my place one day and I'm gonna break out a ton of great vinyl albums and take him back to school, musically speaking! What a cool guy. Also beautiful to be with my friend Maria Laing, and to see Laurie Nickoloff after so many years, and to spend more time with my new friend Holly Hall and her man! A fun time was hand by all. Finally, it was wonderful to be able to hang out with my old friend, Warren Haynes, and his wife Stef, after the show. Warren is the most amazingly beautiful human being, and one of the most talented guitar players in the world….a GREAT combination in my book!! Safe travels, my brother! Here then, is my review of last night's gig:

GREEK GODS: ABB FILLS HILLS WITH SOUND OF MUSIC!

The spectacularly beautiful Greek Theatre in the hills overlooking Los Angeles last night shared an abundance of "brotherly" love, presenting a double bill from the Gods: The Allman Brothers Band and The Doobie Brothers. The Doobies warmed up the audience with a long train of historic hits, including "Long Train Runnin,'" "Listen To the Music," "China Grove," ""Black Water," and "Rockin' Down the Highway," before their brothers from other mothers, ABB took the stage. Led by Gregg Allman's always tasty Hammond B-3 and classic gravely voice, ABB kept the party going with a variety of numbers such as "No One To Run With" off 2004's Where It All Begins to a sweet and sensitive delivery of "Melissa." A moving guest appearance by Ziggy Marley saw the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers back Ziggy on his father's "I Shot the Sheriff." The Brothers welcomed blues sister Susan Tedeschi for a tune or two as well, and the Conan O'Brien band's horn section filled out the sound on several songs as well. As always, the duel guitar engine of Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks traded licks and leads throughout the night, much to the delight of the L.A. crowd hungry to hear long jams like "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed." The Brothers Allman and Doobie continue their tour Friday in Valley Center, CA, and Saturday in Indio, CA. Visit www.allmanbrothersband.com for more dates, and be sure to register at www.moogis.com to view shows on the band's 40th anniversary run.

FOOT STOMPIN': CHICKENFOOT FEEDS FUN AT ROXY!

5/20/09 Another week of great music is just getting started. Tuesday morning began with a wonderful conversation with an incredibly gifted young guitar player, 22-year old Davy Knowles, who leads his band Back Door Slam. I GUARANTEE you will be hearing lots more about this kid in the years to come.

I don't want to compare him with the greatest blues-rock guitarists, so I'll simply say this: he WILL be "The next Davy Knowles!"

Later Tuesday it was off to The Roxy to see Chickenfoot, the latest all-star collection of talented vets making amazing music, featuring Sammy Hagar, Michael Anthony, Joe Satriani and Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. WOW!!! What a show! Hot, sweaty, fun, loud: EVERYTHING a rock show should be! Here's my review:

FOOT STOMPIN': CHICKENFOOT FEEDS FUN AT ROXY!



An elbow-to-elbow crowd packed the word famous Roxy on Hollywood's Sunset Strip Tuesday

like sardines to get a taste of Chickenfoot, the latest all-star lineup of top-notch talent to cook up some tasty classic rock, using just a slightly new recipe. Featuring Sammy Hagar on vocals and some occasional guitar (more on that in a minute), former fellow Van Halen bandmate Michael Anthony on bass and wonderful harmony vocals, Joe Satriani on red-hot lead guitar, and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, the band ripped through several songs available on their upcoming self-titled album, due June 9. Stand out tracks included "Oh Yeah," "My Kind of Girl" (on homage to single moms), "Down the Drain," and the set closer, "The Future is the Past." Then, the all-star group ended the evening with two classic cuts: Montrose's "Bad Motor Scooter" (the first song Hagar ever wrote), featuring a wailing guitar intro from Sammy himself, and a pedal to the metal version of Deep Purple's "Highway Star." And speaking of stars, Queen guitarist Brian May was in the audience, and later up in the VIP bar, wearing a grin on his face, smiling with approval after Chickenfoot finally called it a night. The band's brief 9-city tour runs through May 29 in Philadelphia, but it's just the appetizer for a full-blown North American trek that kicks off in August. Get ready for full plate of Chickenfoot, coming to your town soon.