Vixen - Rocks in '89

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Vixen in the late 1980's is one of the bands that lit up the stage with other heavy metal and hard rock bands. Sometimes referred to as the female Bon Jovi; Vixen created great music and fun live concerts. This is my first blog entry regarding female rock artists. Below is a brief history of Vixen. I have included 3 rock videos. The first video is on Vixen's big hit "Edge of a Broken Heart". The second video is a live concert in the late 1980's of Vixen performing "I Want You To Rock Me"; then the last video is the rock ballad "Cryin". Kenny Leibow

History

Vixen was formed in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1980 by guitarist Jan Kuehnemund while still at high school. In 1984, an early version of the band with Kuehnemund and singer Janet Gardner appeared in the movie Hardbodies as the on-screen band "Diaper Rash." In 1985 the band moved to Los Angeles to be part of the LA rock scene. Line-up changes happened during the following years until the 'classic' line-up of Jan Kuehnemund (guitar), Janet Gardner (vocals & rhythm guitar), Share Pedersen (bass guitar) and Roxy Petrucci (drums) was formed. This line-up of Vixen was interviewed in 1987 along with many other rock artists of the day by Penelope Spheeris for her film The Decline of Western Civilization II: The Metal Years.

In 1988 the band were signed to EMI and they began recording their debut album Vixen which was released in September 1988. Singer and Songwriter Richard Marx actually wrote and arranged their signature hit, "Edge of a Broken Heart," on the album. He also produced the song. Rumor was he was asked to assist the all-female band by EMI to produce their first major hit to compete with the all-female band The Bangles. Marx had nothing to do with their follow-up CD since he was becoming a more of a mainline singer than songwriter. The next year Vixen spent touring the world supporting acts such as Ozzy Osbourne, Scorpions and Bon Jovi as well as headlining their own shows. The band returned to the studio in late 1989/early 1990 to record their follow up album Rev it Up which was released in July 1990. A year of touring followed including headlining their own shows and supporting acts such as KISS and Deep Purple. In mid 1991 the band split due to musical differences.

Source - http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Vixen_(band)

Band Members (1987–1991)
• Janet Gardner – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
• Jan Kuehnemund – lead guitar
• Share Pedersen – bass
• Roxy Petrucci – drums


Vixen - Edge of a Broken Heart



Vixen - (Live) I Want You To Rock Me


Vixen - Cryin

Bon Jovi - Tokyo Live 1989

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I am finally writing a post about Bon Jovi. I grew up in New Jersey; and was living there when Bon Jovi first hit the national scene. I was a fan of Bon Jovi's music and style regardless how commercial they became. I have seen them a couple of times in concert over the years; and my wife is also a fan of Bon Jovi. I remember listening to the "Slippery When Wet" cassette in the late 1980's with Deniz, my wife and other friends out by the pool in Miami Springs. My first romantic dance with my wife, Deya, was to the song "Never Say Goodbye" by Bon Jovi. As I mentioned in a previous post, and out of pure coincidence, my wife and I were married the exact same day as Jon Bon Jovi and his wife were married back in April 1989.

Now to December 31st, 1988 where Bon Jovi had their Legendary Performance from the New Jersey Tour in Tokyo, Japan on New Years Eve at the Tokyo Dome: My opinion is, that at this time when the Album "New Jersey" was originally released, Bon Jovi was at the peak of their career. I don't mean at the peak of their success because Bon Jovi is still going strong today and continues to sell millions of albums and grow their fan base crossing generations. I am referring to their live performances, which I believe they were at their best in 1989.

There are literally tens of thousands of music videos, concert videos, pics and information floating around the Internet on Bon Jovi. By being consistent with the theme of my other posts, you can see two live music videos of Bon Jovi performing on New Years Eve in 1988 in the Tokyo Dome. Fittingly the first video is "Tokyo Road" from Bon Jovi's 1985 album 7800° Fahrenheit. Richie Sambora does a great guitar solo during this performance. Since this is the "New Jersey" album tour, I choose to slow it down a little by putting the video of Bon Jovi performing "I'll Be There For You" from their new album at the time, which was also a big-hit-single. Later that year Bon Jovi joined other hard rock groups at the 1989 Moscow Peace Music Festival in Russia. You can read about it in the post from last month.

Bon Jovi came over to "Heat Beat Live '89" which was held on 12/31 and 1/1 in the year 1989 at the Tokyo Dome. They also had five more live shows in Japan in January. See the concert dates and venues in Japan listed below. For those of you who are addicted to the signature anthems of Bon Jovi, I didn't want to disappoint you, so I added a third video from the Tokyo concert, "Livin' on a Prayer". Even back then the Japanese fans knew all the words to the song. Kenny Leibow

Tour Japan 1988-1989
12/31 Tokyo (Tokyo Dome)
1/1 Tokyo (Tokyo Dome)

1/5 Osaka (Osaka Castle Hall)
1/6 Osaka (Osaka Castle Hall)
1/9 Osaka (Osaka Castle Hall)
1/10 Nagoya (Rainbow Hall)
1/11 Nagoya (Rainbow Hall)


Band Members:

Jon Bon Jovi (Lead Vocals, Guitars)
Richie Sambora (Lead & Rhythm Guitars, Backing Vocals)
David Bryan (Keyboards, Backing Vocals)
Tico Torres (Drums, Percussion)
Alec John Such (Bass, Backing Vocals)
Hugh McDonald (Bass, Backing Vocals)

Bon Jovi - Tokyo Road
(Live in Japan 1985)


Bon Jovi - I''ll Be There For You
(New Years Eve in Tokyo 1988)

Bon Jovi - Livin' On A Prayer
(Live in Tokyo 1988)

Great White - Once Bitten

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Great White, a Bluesy Hard Rock band, was at their peak 20 years ago. Great White's 1989 album …Twice Shy, which featured the Top 5 hit "Once Bitten, Twice Shy", went double platinum. Read below a brief background of the band; followed by the number one music video "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" in the Burger King Top 5 Rock Video count down. Then terribly in 2003, tragedy hit with the horrid fire at a Rhode Island night club. Read the Great White stories below and enjoy the music video. Kenny Leibow

Band Background
Great White came together in 1978 in the Los Angeles area, the brainchild of singer Jack Russell. The group played blues-influenced hard rock in the style of Led Zeppelin, updated for the MTV generation. The band was first known as Dante Fox, and its original lineup consisted of Russell on vocals, Mark Kendall on guitar, Lorne Black on bass, and Gary Holland on drums. Playing first in small local clubs, the band gained a following, moving up to larger venues and changing its name to Great White along the way.

The band's first recording was an EP called Out of the Night, which was produced by Don Dokken, founder of the band Dokken, and financed by the group in 1982. Another record,On Your Knees, quickly followed in the same year. The EMI record label signed the band on the strength of these releases, but dropped it after sales of its first recording with the label, Great White, failed to meet expectations.

After leaving EMI, Great White moved to Capitol Records, and there its fortunes soared, and the group enjoyed widespread popularity throughout the rest of the decade. Great White's fourth album (and first Capitol release) Once Bitten hit the Billboard Top 30 chart in 1987. The band also picked up a Grammy nomination in 1990 for Best Hard Rock Performance for "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" on its followup Twice Shy album, released in 1989. Other songs for which the band became well known included "Face the Day," "Rock Me," and "Save Your Love." The group's last successful Capitol recording was Hooked, which was released in 1991.

At its peak, they were the main event at 20,000- to 60,0000-seat arenas and shared the stage with top bands such as Kiss and Iron Maiden. Great White became popular in an era of "hair metal" bands who filled football stadiums and dominated MTV playing loud music and sporting wild hairdos and heavy makeup. Most of these bands fell out of favor and even stopped playing when this era drew to a close. Great White, however, found a way to keep playing, perhaps because unlike many other popular metal bands of the time, they focused first and foremost on the music they played, instead of merely cultivating a flashy image. The band turned to smaller clubs as their bread and butter, touring in lesser venues and cutting albums on independent record labels after being dropped by Capitol Records in the early 1990s.

…Twice Shy
Released 1989
Capitol Records
Track Listing
1. Move It
(Kendall, Russell, Niven, Lardie)
2. Heart The Hunter
(Kendall, Russell, Niven, Lardie)
3. Hiway Nights
(Kendall, Russell, Niven, Lardie)
4. The Angel Song
(Kendall, Niven)
5. Mista Bone
(Kendall, Niven, Desbrow, Montana)
6. Baby's On Fire
(Kendall, Russell, Niven, Lardie, Montana)
7. House Of Broken Love
(Russell, Niven, Lardie)
8. She Only
(Kendall, Russell, Niven, Lardie)
9. Once Bitten, Twice Shy
(Hunter)

Jack Russell — Vocals
Mark Kendall — Lead guitar
Michael Lardie — Guitar & keyboards
Audie Desbrow — Drums
Tony Montana — Bass

Produced and arranged by Alan Niven and Michael Lardie
Engineered by Michael Lardie


Great White - Once Bitten, Twice Shy


Tragedy 2003
Tragedy struck while the band was on this new tour, which they dubbed "Play On 2003." The Station, a nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island, was packed for the band's performance on February 20, 2003. The show featured pyrotechnics--three spinning wheels of sparks that were harmless if they struck people, but that could ignite flammable materials. At the start of the band's show, the pyrotechnics went off, shooting sparks at the ceiling over the stage. The sound insulation behind the band caught fire, and from there the blaze spread rapidly to the nightclub walls.

Many fans at first thought the flames were part of the show, and panic did not strike until the ceiling caught fire. The wooden nightclub was engulfed in flames almost immediately, trapping the audience, band, and crew inside. Because of a loophole in Rhode Island law, the building was not required to have a sprinkler system, and the blaze swept through the building unchecked. Michael Powell and Christopher Lee of the Washington Post called the fire "one of the worst such tragedies in the nation's history." Among the dead was guitarist Ty Longley, who had joined the band in 2000.

Accusations flew between the surviving members of Great White and the nightclub's owners. Club owners claimed that the band did not have permission to use pyrotechnics during its show, while the band claimed that the club owners had been duly informed and had presented no objections. Fire department officials said that neither the band nor the nightclub had applied for the required permits before setting off pyrotechnics, and furthermore, that no permits would have been granted because of the size and construction of the nightclub.

I'll Give You All That I Got - Lyrics

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The band was rehearsing in the Warehouse for a few hours. (To learn more about the Warehouse, read the blog entries from July, 2008.) This was the first time we played the song with keyboard accompaniment. I definitely wanted to capture it on tape. Three quarters of the way through the song, someone points out to Deniz that he made a mistake on the last verse he sang. I remember waving everyone on to continue to play the song. Deniz then repeated the verse correctly and the song was played through to the end, which made the song almost seven minutes long. After the song ended, you hear Deniz saying he messed up, in his own humorous way.

The lyrics to the song was written 21 years ago, and has since been lost. Because of the poor quality of the recording, it took me several hours to recreate the lyrics below. The mood created by the guitar made these lyrics fit perfectly to the song. Lawrence's guitar solo in the middle of the song was the Mystix signature. Everyone sang background on the chorus. You can really escape in this song if you just listen to the music and follow with the lyrics.

I'll Give You All That I Got
I woke up from a dream last night
Saw your lonely face
If only you can see my light
I long for your sweet embrace

Day after day I think of you
Standing by my side
I’m on my way what will I do
I remember all that you’ve done

I won’t forget you
Oh but I’ve tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine

I saw the way you started here
With your heart that’s on the rise
Then we sat and made more tears
All I see is your scary eyes

Call you on the telephone
I’ll always feel for you
With all the chances to be my own
And I know all that is true

I won’t forget you
Oh but I’ve tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine
Always be mine
Always be mine

Always be mine

Always

I woke up from a dream last night
And saw your lonely face
If only you can see my light
I long for your sweet embrace

Day after day I feel for you
Standing by my side
I’m on my way what will I do
I remember all that you find

I woke up from a dream last night
And saw your lonely face
If only you can see my light
I long for your sweet embrace

Time after time I think of you
Standing by my side
I’m on my way what will I do
I remember all that you’ve done

I won’t forget you
Oh but I tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine

I won’t forget you
Oh but I’ve tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine

I won’t forget you
Oh but I’ve tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine

I won’t forget you
Oh but I’ve tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine

I won’t forget you
Oh but I’ve tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine

I won’t forget you
Oh but I’ve tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine

I won’t forget you
Oh but I’ve tried
I won’t forget you
You always be mine

Guns N' Roses - Sweet '88

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Back in 1988 I was not a big Guns N’ Roses fan. It was mainly because they were an LA band that was together for a short time, and then hit it big with their debut album "Appetite For Destruction ". Specifically in 1987 Guns N’ Roses started to build a following with their numerous live shows, but the album didn't start selling until almost a year later, when MTV started playing "Sweet Child O' Mine." Soon, both the album and single shot to number one, and Guns N' Roses became one of the biggest bands in the world. My view at the time was that they were a commercial band. This album was Guns N' Roses high point and it was almost certain that they hit their peak as compared to the less successful albums that followed. Because of their impact during this time period, it would be criminal not to give Guns ‘N Roses the proper recognition.

Here is some interesting information about Guns N’ Roses without spewing a whole biography. Their 1987 major label debut, Appetite for Destruction, produced by Mike Clink, went on to sell 25 million copies worldwide and reached number 1 in the USA a year after its release date. The song "Welcome To The Jungle", the second track released from the album (after "It's So Easy"), gained notoriety after it was used on the soundtrack of Clint Eastwood's 1988 film The Dead Pool. The band's musical style, onstage presence, and bad boy rock image helped usher in the new era within the dominant hard rock scene of the late 1980s and early 1990s. While glam metal was the leading genre in record sales, video charts, and radio airplay, Guns N' Roses offered a grittier, more traditionalist take on rock music, which helped to popularize the sub-genre known as sleaze rock and won many fans who admired their apparent authenticity. The band enjoyed worldwide success from 1987 through 1993, but clashing personalities of different band members brought about the end of the original line-up. Today, frontman Axl Rose is the only original member in the band's current line-up; he has now served as lead singer for 22 years.



Appetite For Destruction Track List
1. Welcome to the Jungle
2. It's So Easy
3. Nightrain
4. Out Ta Get Me
5. Mr. Brownstone
6. Paradise City
7. My Michelle
8. Think About You
9. Sweet Child O' Mine
10. You're Crazy
11. Anything Goes
12. Rocket Queen

Guns N' Roses - Sweet Child O' Mine

Rock Concerts - Then and Now

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Through-out the 1980's there were incredible line-ups of Hard Rock and Heavymetal bands playing in medium towns and large cities all over the USA. From sports arenas like Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis, Missouri with a seating capacity of about 9,000 to RFK Stadium in Philadelphia which attracted 100,000 concert fans. Many of the arenas and stadiums from the 1980's don't exist today. I remember seeing the Rolling Stones in 1981 at RFK Stadium. It was more than just a concert, it was a party and an incredible experience that would be difficult to describe in a brief blog entry. Van Halen on tour with Iron Maiden or the Rolling Stones on tour with Journey, Bon Jovi headlining in Europe in 1987 with the Scorpions; this made the concert experience exciting from beginning to end. Concerts were more live with less technology and more imperfection.

The concert experience today is like going to a major Broadway show in New York. You save up your money to attend this one big event. It is very organized, choreographed to perfection, incredible stage, sound and light effects with the latest technology. A spectacle and experience of being overwhelmed like being in an IMAX theater. The band line-ups in many cases are sub-par compared to the headliner as you wait with anticipation. The security is tight, you proceed to your assigned seating as the event unfolds. The economics for this multi-million dollar performance costs you an evening of several hundred dollars sometimes just for the tickets alone. This type of event is great in its own right.

For those who really enjoy rock music, having the ability to see several rock concerts during the year; going with your friends and being mesmerized by a Neil Peart drum solo of "WorkingMan" or a Jimmy Page guitar solo; Angus Young of AC/DC playing his guitar artfully non-stop with the legendary losing of 5 pounds of weight for each performance; and the unexpected fan participating by being pulled on stage with complete improvisation - this is the experience you remember forever with the music you wanted to listen to without all the studio and technology mixed in. You see real talent by the band and appreciate the music even more. Today's cookie cutter, boiler plate, blue-printed stage production does not produce the same type of experience as a band getting up there and playing their guts out to the audience.

Disclaimer: I know my description of today's concert is not true of all bands or all concert events however there is certainly a lot more of it today especially for the big name bands and artists.

Below is an example of Iron Maiden Tickets in 1987-1988 for about $15; and the concert for Metallica in 2009 for $200-$800 a ticket. This is not just about economics; it is about the whole experience of attending a Rock Concert back in the 1980's compared to today (then and now). I welcome feedback on your concert experiences.




Metallica w/ The Sword
Sat, Jan 31 - 2009 7:00 PM
Prudential Center - Newark, NJ
Machine Head
Tickets $200 - $800 each

TOP 100 GUITAR PLAYERS OF ALL TIME

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I was a subscriber of RollingStone Magazine back in the 1980's. Back then as well as today RollingStone Magazine had the best articles on bands and artists. There are many other good publications on music; however your music library is not complete without RollingStone Magazine. If you want to read what's new in the music world today, then check out RollingStone by clicking here.

The following is a list of the top 100 greatest guitarists as posted by RollingStone Magazine. Like all lists you may not agree with all the members on the list or the order; however I believe that RollingStone got most of it right.

Click Name to see Bio:

1. Jimi Hendrix
2. Duane Allman of the Allman Brothers Band
3. B.B. King
4 Eric Clapton
5 Robert Johnson
6 Chuck Berry
7 Stevie Ray Vaughan
8 Ry Cooder Click to answer
9 Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin
10 Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones
11 Kirk Hammett of Metallica
12 Kurt Cobain of Nirvana
13 Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead
14 Jeff Beck
15 Carlos Santana
16 Johnny Ramone of the Ramones
17 Jack White of the White Stripes
18 John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers
19 Richard Thompson
20 James Burton
21 George Harrison
22 Mike Bloomfield
23 Warren Haynes
24 The Edge of U2
25 Freddy King
26 Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave
27 Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits
28 Stephen Stills
29 Ron Asheton of the Stooges
30 Buddy Guy
31 Dick Dale
32 John Cipollina of Quicksilver Messenger Service
33 & 34 Lee Ranaldo, Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth
35 John Fahey
36 Steve Cropper of Booker T. and the MG's
37 Bo Diddley
38 Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac
39 Brian May of Queen
40 John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival
41 Clarence White of the Byrds
42 Robert Fripp of King Crimson
43 Eddie Hazel of Funkadelic
44 Scotty Moore
45 Frank Zappa
46 Les Paul
47 T-Bone Walker
48 Joe Perry of Aerosmith
49 John McLaughlin
50 Pete Townsend
51 Paul Kossoff of Free
52 Lou Reed
53 Mickey Baker
54 Jorma Kaukonen of Jefferson Airplane
55 Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple
56 Tom Verlaine of Television
57 Roy Buchanan
58 Dickey Betts
59 & 60 Jonny Greenwood, Ed O'Brien of Radiohead
61 Ike Turner
62 Zoot Horn Rollo of the Magic Band
63 Danny Gatton
64 Mick Ronson
65 Hubert Sumlin
66 Vernon Reid of Living Colour
67 Link Wray
68 Jerry Miller of Moby Grape
69 Steve Howe of Yes
70 Eddie Van Halen
71 Lightnin' Hopkins
72 Joni Mitchell
73 Trey Anastasio of Phish
74 Johnny Winter
75 Adam Jones of Tool
76 Ali Farka Toure
77 Henry Vestine of Canned Heat
78 Robbie Robertson of the Band
79 Cliff Gallup of the Blue Caps (1997)
80 Robert Quine of the Voidoids
81 Derek Trucks
82 David Gilmour of Pink Floyd
83 Neil Young
84 Eddie Cochran
85 Randy Rhoads
86 Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath
87 Joan Jett
88 Dave Davies of the Kinks
89 D. Boon of the Minutemen
90 Glen Buxton of Alice Cooper
91 Robby Krieger of the Doors
92 & 93 Fred "Sonic" Smith, Wayne Kramer of the MC5
94 Bert Jansch
95 Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine
96 Angus Young of AC/DC
97 Robert Randolph
98 Leigh Stephens of Blue Cheer
99 Greg Ginn of Black Flag
100 Kim Thayil of Soundgarden

Die Hard - Holiday Action

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It's almost Christmas, and 20 years ago an action movie set at Christmas time was released in the summer 1988. I remember it was a quiet Sunday afternoon at the end of July. I was hanging out with Deniz. I told Deniz that there was a new action movie out starring Bruce Willis, the funny guy from the TV show "Moonlighting". He agreed to see the movie.

We headed to the movie theater at the mall not far from Miami Springs. The movie Die Hard did not get a lot of press when it was first released. We had no high expectations going into the movie. I remember being so encapsulated with all the incredible action as I watched the movie. When we left the theater, we were almost speechless and just said "WOW" that was great!! We were both completely taken off guard.

Die Hard became one of the top grossing films in 1988 and launched Bruce Willis as an action hero on film. The soundtrack for the movie was full of holiday songs such as, "Winter Wonderland", "Jingle Bells", and "Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!". I have attached two videos below. The first one is a new music video by GuysNite - "Die Hard Music Video - New 4th Verse". This is a really cool song set to the first Die Hard movie with references to the other Die Hard movies. Also below is a high quality video of the original Die Hard movie trailer from 1988.


Die Hard - Music Video


Die Hard - Movie Trailer 1988

- A funny movie is a click away

Spooked

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August 1987 - Red Rum had recorded it's first song, "Conquerin Man". In October, I had solicited a coworker, Lynn, to finance our second recording. Mark wrote the music; and we used the lyrics I had written back in 1986. The song was called "Please Wait". I drew up a contract and gave it to Lynn to sign; Lynn in turn gave me a check to pay for the studio time and song recording. Lynn and her husband Brian came to the studio the day we recorded the song. They both seemed to like the song; and we gave them a copy of the recording.

Halloween is now approaching: On a Saturday night the band (Deniz (vocals), Mark (lead guitar), Rich (bass), Kenny (drummer) and me (Kenny Leibow) were going out to a Halloween festival near the University of Miami. Along with other friends, there were about 10 of us. We went in 3 cars. When we arrived, we parked on a big grass field which was full with hundreds of other cars. There were rides, games, haunted house etc; it was a lot of fun. We didn't hang out in one big group the whole time; some of us split up.

Around 11 pm I and a couple of friends headed back to where the cars were parked. About 15 minutes later everyone else arrived except for Kenny (drummer), not to confuse the story with me (Kenny Leibow) same first name. Deniz and I asked what happened to Kenny (drummer)? Someone said that Kenny (drummer) just went on his own and didn't hang out with anyone. Deniz and I suggested let's wait a little bit longer. The festival was closing and there were only a few cars left parked on the grass. I then proceeded to head back to my apartment with some friends; however Deniz and Rich decided to look for Kenny (drummer).

I remember Kenny (drummer) as a young, happy, witty guy who could really play the drums fast. Recently, at the time, he supposedly was in his car waiting in line at a bank drive-thru to make a deposit for work. While waiting in his car, he was held up at knife point and robbed. This experience traumatized him. ***** Back to the story - The next morning Deniz told me he saw Kenny (drummer) walking down the road about 2 miles away; at that point it was close to midnight. When they went to turn back around, they lost him. Deniz and Rich proceeded to Kenny's (drummer) house. He was there, which then turned into an unpleasant confrontation whereby Kenny (drummer) was clearly upset, angry and unstable. Kenny (drummer) exclaimed that we purposely left him at the festival; however this was completely untrue.

Sadly we were never able to reconcile with Kenny (drummer) and the band broke up. Deniz and Rich became part of the new group Mystix with Lawrence and Leo. We never heard from Kenny (drummer) again. Deniz later hated the song "Please Wait"; and became very critical of the recording. A couple weeks passed since the festival; late on a Friday, I had a motor cycle accident which left me seriously injured; and it ended with the death of a close friend as a consequence of the accident. A few years later Lynn's husband, who was at the recording session, died in a plane crash resulting from hitting the side of a mountain.

This blog entry is dedicated to those that had suffered from the tragedies mentioned above. They all had good spirits and will always be loved and missed. You can listen to the recording "Please Wait" on this blog.

Red Rum - Conquerin Man - Lyrics

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I lived 6 months in southern California then I moved to Florida. More specifically I lived in the town of Palmdale before it was built up. The year was 1986 and you could see desert all around. There were Joshua trees off to the side in the desert when you drove the lonely road between Palmdale and Lancaster. Joshua trees originally came from Israel. I used to have a big poster of U2's album "The Joshua Treee" hanging on the living room wall in my apartment. This poster was the exact image of this place. During my short time living there; I did quite a bit of writing. I wrote a book on roulette; and I also filled a notebook full of lyrics. I had a small keyboard with me; but I didn't put any original music to the lyrics. I played songs on the keyboard to get me in the frame of mind to write. The songs I wrote were not about real experiences; but an account of my emotional state of being.

It was now 1987 in Miami Springs, Florida where I showed Deniz my notebook of lyrics. Deniz liked one of the songs called "Conquerin Man". Deniz introduced me to his friend Mark (Mark Funk); he was 18 and played guitar. Mark came from an average middle class family. We drove to Mark's home where he lived with his parents. In the garage, Mark took out his guitar; and said, "Kenny I have a perfect riff to your lyrics". Mark played it for us; instantly Deniz and I thought it sounded great.

We now had to put a band together. Mark knew a drummer also named Kenny. He also had a friend Rich who played bass guitar. Kenny kept a steady beat and was fast on the drums. Rich was just a natural bass player; and Deniz was the lead singer. I will expand on each member of the band in a future blog entry. Deniz already had a name picked out for the band long before it ever existed. The band was to be called "Red Rum". For the purpose of staying on point of the story, I won't get into the origins of the band's name for now.

The band rehearsed the song several times and then was ready to go into the studio to record. We all chipped in to pay for the recording. Deniz cut up my lyrics "shortened" to fit the music; see the final lyrics below. The engineer in the studio recommended we do a track where all of us would sing the chorus together. We stood around a big black boon Mike and sang the track. Mark then overlaid a track with a guitar solo. In the last verse, we added a sound effect of "wind blowing" to provide the right impact for the words.

Red Rum would record one more song in the studio before an unusual event ended the group. Please listen to Conquerin Man and type your comments.

Conquerin Man - Lyrics
In a boat on a river
There’s a chill in the air
Surrounded by nature
Alone in despair
Exiled from my family
Abandoned my career
With no place to go
And no one who cared

Yes I’m a drifter
Like a leaf in the wind
If I had my choice
I do it again

So here I am
I’m walking tall
In a world all alone
I’ve got it all

Traveling shore to shore
I’m moving on
Continuing to explore
Not knowing where I’ve gone
I move forward
I never look back
The faster I move
The stronger my attack

Yes I’m a drifter
Like a leaf in the wind
If I had my choice
I do it again

So here I am
I’m walking tall
In a world all alone
I’ve got it all

I just kept traveling
Going place to place
Keeping myself hidden
Alone without a trace
Then one day
My luck ran out
I died a drifter
Without a doubt

But alone and peaceful
I lie in the sand
Knowing that I lived
A Conquerin Man

Yes I’m a drifter
Like a leaf in the wind
If I had my choice
I do it again

So here I am
I’m walking tall
In a world all alone
I’ve got it all

Really, Julio Iglesias and Elton John?

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Each week Mystix tried to scrape up enough money to rehearse in a music recording studio for a couple of hours. We would all chip in money equally. When we could afford it, we would rehearse in the studio sometimes twice a week and/or extended hours. The cost back then was about $60 an hour. There were 5 of us at the time, Deniz, Laurence, Leo, Rich and me. At the end of each rehearsal, I would go up to the office and reserve a room for the next week. The intention, like the previous band "Red Rum", was to create original music and practice enough so that we could start recording professionally in the studio once we found some investors to pay for it.

It was a typical hot day on a Friday in Miami. As I am watching the clock at work, I am thinking about the exciting weekend that is coming; starting with tonight. The plan was to rush home at 5 pm; grab something to eat; shower and change into my Caravicci jeans, Italian shoes, Rock t-shirt, matching jeans jacket and a white hat. This was all very much in style in the 1980's. Everyone in the band would pile into Deniz's van and head to the studio around 6:30 pm. We had a room reserved at 7 pm. After a couple of hours of practice, we were then supposed to go to Hallandale Beach to see a Heavy Metal band play at a rock night club.

When we rehearsed at the studio, we would use some of the studio equipment such as Mikes, Amps etc. The rest of the instruments were in the van. As the guys were unloading the van, I walked up to the office to get us checked into the practice room and to pay the rental fee. Deniz accompanied me to the office. The guy there said, "You can't rehearse here tonight". I quickly responded that we reserved a room last week. He completely ignored the fact I made a reservation and told us that the entire studio is rented out for the evening. He said we can rebook for a different day. To say the least, we were pissed and argued for a short time, but with no success. We asked when did this happen? He said on Wednesday the entire studio was reserved for Friday night. We kept asking, who is reserving the studio tonight, but the guy in the office refused to give us a name.

As we were storming out of the office, we walked down the main hall. I looked to the left and saw big black equipment boxes with silver metal trim. On the black boxes there was the name "Iglesias" from a spray painted stencil. Deniz and I proceeded closer to check it out. Some of the other equipment boxes had "Julio Iglesias" painted on them. We walked out the back door of the studio and met the guys in the parking lot. We had to break the bad news to the rest of the band that we can't practice tonight because we got kicked out by Julio Iglesias. There were mixed emotions like anger and disappointment. At the end, we just laughed about the whole thing. In our minds with our Rock'n Roll egos, it was embarrassing at the time to lose our practice studio to Julio Iglesias. If we lost the room to Bon Jovi, Slayer or Van Halen, then it would have been viewed as cool.

We had a couple of hours to kill before we plan to go to the night club in Hallandale Beach. We drove to a Bennigans. Everyone ordered drinks and dinner. Deniz knew a waitress there, so he was chatting with her as we all just hung out for a while. I had already eaten dinner in my small apartment earlier, so I just ordered a Coke and a piece of pie. Then around 8:30 pm we drove to the night club. The guitar player in the band playing that night was Deniz's friend. Last year this guy won the local rock radio station, 97 GTR, guitar contest. I don't remember this guitar player's name; however I do remember he won the guitar contest again in 1988. In 1989, my new bride "Deya", Deniz and I actually went to the bar where 97 GTR hosted the guitar contest; and saw this guy win again for a third year in a row. As you listened to his guitar solos, you are mesmerized by how great he played; it was unbelievable! We left the restaurant and drove to the club. It was about a 20 minute ride. The club was dark, the heavy metal music was loud, and the place was packed with 21-24 year old guys and girls hanging out. When the band had a break, Deniz introduced us. It was a fun evening at the club. After a couple of hours, around 11pm we decided to leave and start driving home.

As we were approaching the highway, we noticed an entourage of limos and other vehicles getting on the highway going north. Leo mentioned that Elton John was performing at Joe Robbie Stadium tonight. This was the new Miami Dolphins football stadium that had a seating capacity of at least 60,000. We were just arriving at the point when the concert was over. The traffic was immense if you could imagine. We all lived south, but someone in the car said let's follow Elton and see where he goes. We agreed, as strange as it was, and entered the highway going north. As we approached Ft. Lauderdale, we could see the limo ahead of us signaling to exit. I was new to Florida and unfamiliar with the area. The guys knew exactly where Elton was going. There was a very upscale gated condo community on the ocean called Turnberry where the rich and famous lived or had vacation homes. Ok we now know where they are going, why are we still following? We were discussing that there could be a great after concert party. We decided to continue to follow Elton. I could see a gate entrance ahead. I asked how we are going to get in. Leo said we will just say we are with the band. We had music equipment and certainly looked the part. I then proceeded to laugh uncontrollably. When we got to the gate, Leo told the guard that we were with the group ahead as part of the band. Deniz's old van was a clear give away. This guy at the gate was intelligent enough to know that we did not fit into the Elton John entourage profile. We were told to enter so that we could turn around to leave right back out. Yes, a split second flashed through my mind about making a run for it on the Turnberry grounds, but we just followed the guard's instructions and turned around and headed home.

In the end, the band didn't rehearse because we were kicked out of the studio by Julio Iglesias. Also, we couldn't attend the Elton John after concert party. But even though we had an unexpected little adventure, we were able to listen to great original heavy metal music at the rock club; and overall it was a fun night. Of course, the events regarding Julio Iglesias and Elton John turned out to be a funny story to tell the next day.

Roads of Destiny - Tall Tales - Lyrics

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One of my favorite short stories is the "Roads of Destiny" by O'Henry.

"I go to seek on many roads
What is to be.
True heart and strong, with love to light--
Will they not bear me in the fight
To order, shun or wield or mould
My Destiny?"

My road of destiny began in the winter of 1987 in Miami Springs, Florida. This is the time and the place that set in motion events that define me today. Here are some key examples: 1. This was the time I started my career. Today almost 22 years later I am now successful still working in the same industry (Not related to music). 2. Miami Springs is where I had a life changing experience that resulted from a serious motorcycle accident in late 1987. Since that time, I see life differently; and try to value and appreciate everyday as if it could be my last. 3. This is also the place that lead me to meet my wife. I have now been married over 19 years with two beautiful children. 4. Finally, this is the origin of the music and the true friendships that followed.

I lived in a studio apartment facing the pool. There was a hotel across the street where future flight attendants stayed while they were training in school to work for Eastern Airlines or Pan Am. (Both airlines are not in business today.) You could say that outside my apartment there was a lot of social activity happening. Out by the pool is where I met Deniz for the first time. Deniz and I coincidentally are both originally from New Jersey; and we were both 22 years old. Deniz was living in an apartment in another building not far from mine. He shared the apartment with a friend and his friend's wife. I can't recall their names. Deniz introduced me to his room mates. From that day forward, Deniz and I became good friends, which continues on today.

Deniz's room mate was a guitar player (Willie Vega). They recorded one song together in the studio with other musicians. The song was called "Tall Tales". I listened to the song for the first time; and was very impressed.

Deniz had a serious disagreement with his friend's wife; and eventually had to move out. What happened next was the formation of a new band that Deniz and I put together. Details to follow in a future blog entry. The copy of the original recording of the song, that Deniz gave me, was on a cassette. The reel-to-reel transfer was done at a very low gain, which means you will need to amplify the sound by turning up the volume when you play the song. I have also included the lyrics below so you can follow along while listening. Please send your comments after listening to "Tall Tales".

Tall Tales - Lyrics

You're telling me

You really care

That don't cut it baby

You've got to prove yourself

You're telling me

Things can work out

Give you time to play

while you're away

I'll wait

You're telling tall tales

It's nothing new

You're telling tall tales

I'm doing it to you

You say you want time

It's something true

What you really want

Is to say goodbye

Goodbye

You're telling tall tales

It's nothing new

You're telling tall tales

I'm doing it to you

I can't let go

I can't let go

You're telling tall tales

It's nothing new

You're telling me

You really care

That don't cut it baby

You've got to prove yourself

You're telling me

Things can work out

Give you time to play

while you're away

I'll wait

You're telling tall tales

It's nothing new

You're telling tall tales

I'm doing it to you

You say you want time

It's something true

What you really want

Is to say goodbye

Goodbye

You're telling tall tales

It's nothing new

You're telling tall tales

I'm doing it to you

I can't let go

I can't let go

You're telling tall tales

It's nothing new

You're telling tall tales

I'm doing it to you

You're telling tall tales

It's nothing new

You're telling tall tales

I'm doing it to you

You're telling tall tales

It's nothing new

You're telling tall tales

The Bubble Gum Song - Lyrics

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The music we created with Mystix, Red Rum and other band/musicians where Deniz Kose was the lead singer, always was in the Rock Genre. Some of the songs would be classified as hard rock or 80's Heavy Metal. The musical style specifically of many of the Mystix songs could be compared to a Bon Jovi, Poison etc. As you listen to the songs on this blog, you will find one song that is a little different which crosses over to another genre, "You Keep On Breaking My Heart".

On a Wednesday evening in Miami, I drove to the studio with the original members of Mystix that included Deniz "Lead Singer", Lawrence "Lead Guitar", Rich "Bass" and Leo "Drummer". When we arrived to the studio to practice, Deniz and Laurence said that they wrote a Bubble Gum song. They showed it to Rich who then created a bass line for the song. Everyone in the group got a big laugh out of it. Even though we joked we kept working on the song. Without playing any instruments, everyone would rehearse harmonizing by singing together the two verses. I recorded the A-Cappella like singing of the song, but I did not post this to the blog; however the completed song is on the blog for your enjoyment.

The loose definition of "Bubble Gum Music" is simple lyrics with a sticky melody. Bubble Gum Music are catchy pop songs that were popular between 1967-1970 with groups like the Monkees, and Archies etc.

The song is called "You Keep On Breaking My Heart". The first two verses, the bridge and the chorus repeat through out the song with a couple of word changes in the later repeated verses. The group sing the verses together; Deniz sings the rest including the chorus. When listening to the chorus, you will hear "Heart" sang in the background. That is Leo on drums adding his vocal effect to the chorus. The song was fun to do; and you can even hear towards the end a little laughter from Deniz. ***However in the Mystix tradition you still have a hard rock guitar solo in the middle of the song played at the same time with the catchy bass line. Keep in mind this is a practice session recording of low quality; the song was never professionally recorded. Please listen to the bubble gum song and write your comments. Below are the lyrics to the song so you can sing a-long when you listen.


You Keep On Breaking My Heart - Lyrics
When you're walking down the street
You're the girl I have to meet
Leather and lace doesn't fit your style
Come on baby let's sit for a while

I feel your love when I look in your eyes
Are you ready for paradise
Watch me baby I'll hold you tight
Together loving through the night

Babe I love you so
Babe don't go don't go
Babe I love you so
Please don't go

You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby

When you're walking down the street
You're the girl I have to meet
Leather and lace doesn't fit your style
So come on baby let's sit for a while

I feel your love when I look in your eyes
Are you ready for paradise
So hold me baby and I'll hold you tight
Together loving through the night

Babe I love you so
Babe don't go don't go
Babe I love you so
Please don't go

You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby

When you're walking down the street
You're the girl I have to meet
Leather and lace doesn't fit your style
So come on baby let's sit for a while

I feel your love when I look in your eyes
Are you ready for paradise
So Watch me baby I'll hold you tight
Together loving through the night

Babe I love you so
Babe don't go don't go
Babe I love you so
Please don't go

You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby - heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Oh baby

Heart heart heart heart
Heart heart heart heart
Heart heart heart heart
Heart heart heart heart

You keep on breaking my heart
You keep on breaking my heart
Heart heart heart heart heart heart