I admired the Beatles, was positively gaga over them. I had a special relationship with George Harrison, the quiet, brooding one, but I wanted to be Mike Smith. Mike Smith and Dennis Wilson, to be honest with you. Dennis Wilson’s carefree attitude came across in the pictures on the back of the Beach Boys albums. […]

What I find funny is that Universal is left out of the action. Isn’t Jimmy Iovine the most powerful person in the music business? Or is that Clive Davis… They’ve both got scorched earth publicity campaigns. Clive says he’s the godfather, every hit record has to pass through him. Without his imprimatur, you’re irrelevant. Jimmy? […]

Sitting in bumper to bumper traffic on Lincoln Boulevard I heard Elvis Costello’s "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes". I was driving to Loyola to speak to John Hartmann’s music business class. I was in a sour mood. I wanted to tell his students to STAY THE FUCK OUT! Why would you want to […]

I’m a bassist. Funny after all these years to discover your true instrument. Hell, I may not hold the neck vertically like Bill Wyman, but I find myself pulling the strings up with my fingers like so many classic bassists. Then again, they’re not really strings. There are no strings on this axe at all. […]