April 15, 2004

METAL HEALTH WILL DRIVE YOU MAD

kevin.jpg

After meeting Quiet Riot vocalist Kevin DuBrow late last year in Orlando, I started getting e-mails from him announcing his latest musical projects. He was a nice guy, had a sweet girlfriend and seemed to be enjoying life. But I still found it more than a little amusing to be getting missives from the guy who sang "Cum On Feel The Noize" 20 years ago.

I have a weird job.

Anyway, a couple weeks ago, I get an e-mail from Kevin saying he's going out for a tour. He's playing places like The Wet Spot in Caledonia, Ohio, and the Horseshoe Bar in Lake Lillian, Minn., and the Corner Pocket in New Haven, Conn.

Cool, I thought to myself. The guy's going out to keep the pipes tuned up.

Then I get this e-mail yesterday:

For Immediate Release

Humble Pie drummer gives Quiet Riot vocalist "thumbs up!"



Uh oh. This could be a "Spinal Tap" moment if there ever was one.

Original Humble Pie drummer Jerry Shirley has given his stamp of approval to Quiet Riot vocalist Kevin DuBrow’s version of the 1970 Humble Pie song "Red Light Mama Red Hot". It’s featured on DuBrow’s upcoming "In For The Kill" solo album on Shrapnel Records.

Commenting on an advance copy, Shirley had this to say. "It’s really strange to hear someone do a song from this part of Steve Marriott’s career. People usually cover either Small Faces tunes or they do '30 Days In The Hole' from Humble Pie. You’ve been faithful to the original and it really has balls. I give it the thumb’s up!" Shirley told DuBrow.

DuBrow had this to say about Shirley’s endorsement. "Being that ‘Red Light Mama’ is the centerpiece of the album and Humble Pie was always my favorite band, his comments mean the world to me. I’m ecstatic!" The album comes out sometime next month.


Okay, there are several ways to talk about this.

First, if you're going to cover a song from a 40-year-old album in an attempt to make a comeback, cover something that someone has heard, dude.

Second, who even knew that Humble Pie had a drummer, much less one that was still alive?

Third, a man over 40 should never type the words "balls" and "thumbs up" anywhere in the same paragraph. Reeks of prostate exam, dude.

Posted by Jeff at April 15, 2004 08:45 AM | TrackBack
Comments

Dude. A coffee nasal enema is damned painful.

I still say you have the coolest job, ever.

Posted by: Emma at April 15, 2004 01:49 PM

Aw, lay off the guy. Where I come from, covering forgotten 40-year-old tracks that weren't singles is a signifier of indie cred.

Heh.

At least he's still having fun even if he's no longer earning a good living from it. Isn't that what it should be about?

Besides, you yourself remember DuBrow and his crappy band for a Slade cover, not for any of their own songs. So really, cover tunes are as true to his roots as he can get.

Posted by: s.m. koppelman at April 15, 2004 07:00 PM

I met Kevin Dubrow 20 yrs ago in Quiet Riots hey day, I was dating a dj at the time and Dubrow thought that I was so fucking cute he picked me up every opportunity he had that day, which was to say the least disturbing as his leather laced crotch was coming unlaced. Good Times ;) :|

Posted by: Cupie at April 17, 2004 02:54 PM