Deep Purple: "If Black Sabbath Can Be In The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, Deep Purple Definitely Belongs In The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame," Says Ian Gillan; New Video Interview Posted

On November 7, Jason Saulnier of the MusicLegends.ca web site conducted an interview with Ian Gillan. You can now listen to the 20 minute chat in the YouTube clip below.

Asked if he has heard Metallica's version of the Deep Purple track"When A Blind Man Cries", which appears on the the "Re-Machined - A Tribute To Deep Purple's Machine Head" album and what he thinks of it,Gillan said, "I know the guys in Metallica. I'm very honored that they were influenced by Deep Purple when they started and they've always been very kind to us. So I respect that, and I think it's great."

UFO: "The Story of UFO - Too Hot to Handle (1969-1993)"; Full Film

"There are not many people who would argue with you when you discuss the legendary status of the British band UFO. For many years the group has been cited as being very much the inspiration to the careers of groups like Iron Maiden and Def Leppard and as you look upon their back catalog this reason comes to you very clearly. 

The early lineup of the group that featured Phil Mogg, Pete Way, Andy Parker and Michael Schenker is revered to this very day as being forefathers in Hard Rock music. Songs like "Lights Out", "Too Hot To Handle" and "Rock Bottom" still sound as fresh today as they did when they were first introduced. When you look at how many bands have fallen by the wayside while UFO still carries on you understand better when you listen to the quality of these particular tracks."

Snakecharmer: Debut Album To Be Relased In January 2013; EPK Posted

Frontiers Records announces the release of Snakecharmer’s self-titled debut album, on January 25th in Europe and January 22nd in North America.

Originally founded in 2011 by former Whitesnake members Micky Moody and Neil Murray, the Snakecharmer super-group also includes Chris Ousey (Heartland), Laurie Wisefield (ex-Woshbone Ash), Adam Wakeman (Ozzy Osbourne) and Harry James (Thunder). With members gigging record breaking tours, earning double platinum selling albums and playing to crowds of 100,000. 

“I met up with Neil Murray a couple of years ago and we spoke about playing a few gigs together for fun and old times’ sake”, says Micky Moody. “The obvious choice was early Whitesnake material, so when Neil suggested Laurie Wisefield and Harry James I jumped at it. Chris Ousey was highly recommended and Adam had depped for Company Of Snakes some years back. We went out as Monsters Of British Rock, mostly performing the songs of early Whitesnake, Thunder, Heartlands and a Laurie Wisefield original and we caught the attention of Martin Darvill, head of QEDG Management, who suggested we record an album of original material, which we did.  The result is Snakecharmer on the Frontiers label."
Musically this debut album is everything you would expect from musicians with such a pedigree: a finely crafted hard rock album with blues and melodic overtones, akin to Whitesnake (1979-81 era), Bad Company and with hints of early Foreigner as well.

“The songs on our debut album reflect the kind of music that the members of the band want to play, which is melodic rock with a blues influence”, adds Neil Murray. “Each of us has played many different styles of music, and our influences are varied, but Snakecharmer originally came together to play mainly early Whitesnake songs, so that is our starting point. There wasn't a deliberate plan to write songs in a particular style; each song on the album started as a basic idea by one or two band members, and if the other guys were enthusiastic about the idea, then the song would be worked up into a finished song."
Check out an EPK below: 

Bon Jovi: "Inside Out"; Live Album Out Now

A newly announced Bon Jovi live album "Inside Out" has been released. The songs were recorded during a handful of sold-out shows at colossal venues - Madison Square Garden, London's O2 Arena, and the grand opening of New Jersey's New Meadowlands Stadium - the band tears through a set of handpicked fan favorites. The tunes encompass Bon Jovi's career but offer heavy dose of Slippery When Wet sing-alongs like "Livin' On A Prayer" and "Wanted Dead or Alive".

The track listing is: 

Blood On Blood

Lost Highway

Born to Be My Baby

You Give Love a Bad Name

Whole Lot of Leavin'

Raise Your Hands

We Got It Going On

Have a Nice Day

It's My Life

I'll Be There for You

We Weren't Born to Follow

Wanted Dead or Alive

Livin' On a Prayer

Keep the Faith.

Black Sabbath: New Ozzy Osbourne Interview Posted

Scott Kara of The New Zealand Herald recently conducted an interview with Ozzy Osbourne. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On how  Black Sabbath  came to be such a respected band:

Osbourne: "It's a really weird thing, because what we did, we just did. We didn't go, 'Oh, we're going to write this way, and we're going to record that way, and it's going to come out like this'. And 45 years up the road who would have thought it's still going to be current and people were going to look upon it as the foundations of heavy metal? I mean, you don't realise that sort of thing, you just do it."

On not being completely confortable with  Black Sabbath being considered originators of the "heavy metal" genre:

Osbourne: "Not everything  Black Sabbath  did was about the devil, or about heavy metal because 'Changes' was a beautiful song. But all they ever remember is that I sing about the devil and 'Iron Man', you know."

On how the members of  Black Sabbath  - with the exception of drummerBill Ward, who is sitting out the band's reunion due to a contractual dispute - are getting along nowadays:

Osbourne: "What's different now is that none of us get drunk or stoned or any of that stuff. We're all clean, and all in control of ourselves, we're not intimidated by each other, there are no arguments, and it's the way it should be. But when we were kids we had egos. When you're 21 and you get some success it takes a while to get your head around. You have an ego, you have the spoils of success, the cars, the houses, the money, the alcohol, the drugs, the groupies, and all the rest of it, and if you go through all of that and you are lucky enough to survive you get married, you get divorced, you get married again, and it's a journey. But we've done it all so what it boils down to now is the music - and that's what got us where we are in the first place. We have come through the other side, we're still able to work together, and that's where the enjoyment comes from. It's been a lot of fun making this record."

On the recording sessions for the new Black Sabbath album, which were interrupted by guitarist Tony Iommi's diagnosis with lymphona at the beginning of this year:

Osbourne: "[The treatment] has been a bit rough on him but he still manages to come up with those great riffs. It's been more than 30 years since I really seriously worked with the guys. We had a try a few years back but nothing came of it. But for some reason the timing is right and we've done about 15 songs. Black Sabbath is very unique in the respect that nothing is formulated. It's very unpredictable. I just hope the people who have waited all these years aren't disappointed."