Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Steven Adler Coming to Turner Hall







My singer plays the role of bass tech for Kliff McBurtney of Beatallica when they open for Adler's Appetite on March 5th at Turner Hall. She's stoked to do Mr. McBurtney the favor of warming up his bass guitar. As she explained to me, she gets to play a couple of sound check songs with Beatllica, one of her favorite local bands, and then watch Mr. Steven Adler rip it up on drums.

Adler was the original drummer for Guns and Roses. He played drums for the first five years of the band's existence. Ultimately, the lifestyle he lived blew up in his face. He was booted from the band. I didn't know who Steven Adler was until last week. Back in the mid 80's, my musical tastes were diametrically opposed to what Guns and Roses produced. You can't blame me for not knowing this man from a hole in the wall. I was busy listening to (and playing) hardcore punk. Any band that wore black spandex and had hair bigger than my sister's didn't deserve my attention.

Adler can be found on the show Sober House. How you can get to the bottom of your addictions while a camera records your every word is beyond me.
My singer was a GNR fan from the start. We opened a Summerfest gig with Welcome To The Jungle. That was the first time I sat down and listened to one of their tunes. Let's just say a three year old child could play the drums to that song.
Slash plays some serious guitar in that band, but that's it. I give the band no more credit on the talent front. I have always felt that Axl Rose sings like Ethel Merman, and my wife says that anybody named "Duff" is fighting an uphill battle for respect. With all that being said, GNR did break the mold when it came to L.A. bands of their ilk. They didn't wear make up, they didn't prance around on stage too much, and they seemed to stay true to their sound. I don't want to offend the Guns and Roses fans, but this is my blog and I get to say what I like.


I hope my singer has fun.

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