Seeing Them Live

S02E04 - Rick Almost Meets Bob Dylan

Episode Summary

Charles has an in-depth conversation with Rick Onstop who hosts the Rock Talk Studio podcast. Rick is a seasoned veteran of the music industry with a rich history in music distribution, blogging, and podcasting. Rick shares his journey from working in a record store in Hollywood, experiencing in-store appearances by big names like Bruce Springsteen, Alice Cooper, Patrick Swayze and Itzhak Perlman, to attending iconic concerts, including an unforgettable KISS concert at the young age of 14. Rick’s deep-rooted connections within the music scene unfold as he describes his personal encounters with music legends and one near encounter with Bob Dylan.

Episode Notes

Charles welcomes Rick Onstop who hosts the Rock Talk Studio podcast. Rick is a seasoned veteran of the music industry with a rich history in music distribution, blogging, and podcasting. Rick shares his journey from working in a record store in Hollywood, experiencing in-store appearances by big names like Bruce Springsteen, Alice Cooper, Patrick Swayze and Itzhak Perlman, to attending iconic concerts, including an unforgettable KISS concert at the young age of 14. Rick’s deep-rooted connections within the music scene unfold as he describes his personal encounters with music legends and one near encounter with Bob Dylan.

Among the live music experiences Rick delves into, he recounts the electric atmosphere of U2 concerts that deeply moved him, leaving a lasting impression. Rick's narrative brings to life the profound impact these live performances had on him. Additionally, Rick reflects on his near encounter with Bob Dylan, sharing a candid story that nearly brought him face-to-face with the music legend in an intimate backstage moment, further illustrating the unpredictability and excitement inherent to the music industry.

The conversation shifts to Rick's podcast, "Rock Talk Studio," where he shares his passion for rock music through book and documentary reviews. Rick explains his unique rating system to help listeners gauge the depth of content suitable for casual fans versus enthusiasts, underscoring his commitment to providing insightful and honest reviews. Through discussions on various topics, from music books to documentaries, Rick and Charles illustrate the vast landscapes of rock music culture and its enduring legacy, highlighting the storytelling aspect of Rick's work that captivates and educates his audience.

BANDS:

Alice Cooper, The Band, Billy Idol, Blind Melon, Bruce Springsteen, Dylan, Fleetwood Mac, Geddy Lee, Guns N Roses, Harry Styles, J Giles Band, James Brown, Kiss, Lindsey Buckingham, Little Richard, Prince, Stevie Wonder, Suicidal Tendencies, The Allman Brothers, The Immediate Family, The Violent Femmes, Tina Turner, Tommy Lee, U2, Yes, ZZ Top.

VENUES:

Aragon Ballroom, Athenium Center, Belly Up, Bushnell Theater, Chicago Theater, Greek Theater, LA Sports Arena, Solider Field, Springfield Civic Center, UIC Pavilion.

Episode Transcription

[00:00:00] Charles: Rick started working in the music industry at the age of 18, where he managed a Music Plus record store located on Sunset and Vine in Los Angeles. He's also worked for a few independent record labels and distribution companies. Rick has blogged about the local San Diego music scene for three years, and is the host and creator of the Rock Talk Studio podcast. This is where Rick reviews the latest rock music books, documentaries, and movies. Letting his listeners know if a certain book, movie, or documentary is worth their time.

[00:00:39] Rick has also been to numerous concerts over the years, starting when he was just 14 years old. And he also plays guitar for fun. Rick, welcome to Seeing Them Live.

[00:00:52] Rick: All right. Thanks. Thanks for having me. And I, you know, I've listened to your show for a while and I really enjoy it. So, it's nice to get the invitation and I'm looking forward to talking about concerts.

[00:01:00] Charles: Yeah. Rick, you've been, uh, you've been to a lot of concerts, too many to list on our, our guest form, but we usually like to start out with like, your first concert and we'll, you know, we'll get to your podcast here in a, in a minute, but I thought we'd start with some of your music experiences.

[00:01:18] You'd said you'd seen KISS in 1978 when you were, that's when you were 14. Your dad took you to that show, right?

[00:01:27] Rick: It was my friend's dad. His dad took us to the Kiss show, Springfield Civic Center, Springfield, Massachusetts. You know, what a start for live shows for at that young age. I mean, just I can still remember just the singeing my eyebrows with the explosions of Kiss. I was so into them when I was when I was younger. Yeah. It's like the first band. I really remember being really, really into. But that concert experience just lit the fuse for wanting to see more. That live experience was just so bombastic. It was so intense. It was like, nothing I've ever seen. It was so loud. And I was so young. It just took me away.

[00:02:04] Charles: My younger brother, that was the first concert he had gone to. He saw them with some friends in 1976. I remember him telling me when Gene Simmons would blow fire, fire breathing, whatever you could feel the heat go off the stage, you know, and he's, you know, and he's like eight years old. So totally, of course, blew his mind. Were you guys’ part of the KISS army or anything like that? 

[00:02:32] Rick: You know, no, I never did get into the Kiss Army. That was like kind of a jump off point for me. And then it just really exploded for me as far as live shows. I think the next couple of shows I, I saw was, ah, ZZ Top, Yes, the original band in the round, and then the Allman Brothers, and then the J Giles band. 

[00:02:50] Being from back East, the Jay Giles Band was a thing. That was the next obsession for me live. And then Dylan too. Dylan thing kind of slid in there also. But the J Giles band as a live band, I've seen thousands of shows and, they're still the greatest live band I've ever seen. 

[00:03:08] Charles: I've never actually seen them live, but I heard they, they put on a fantastic show.

[00:03:13] Rick: Absolutely. And it's funny. They got to, you know, they have kind of a weird rap because they hit their commercial peak towards the end of their career and everybody says, oh, that the band that did Centerfold that band. I'm like, yeah, yeah, that was one of their songs, but there's so much, so much came before they finally had that moment there with the Freeze Frame album.

[00:03:31] I mean, in the 1969, I think was our first album. Those guys were, they just got down. I mean, every night, 3, 4 hour shows and Peter Wolf as a, as a front man was... Maybe Mick Jagger could be up there with him, but man, he's, he's towards the top as a front man. 

[00:03:48] Charles: Then when you're 18 years old, is it correct, Rick, you started managing this, record store. Is that, is that in Hollywood? 

[00:03:56] Rick: It was in Hollywood on Sunset and Vine. I lived in Connecticut and I moved to California with a friend. We a, kind of went for it when we were young and we just packed it all up and drove until we saw the Hollywood sign. Yeah, my friend, my friend was in the service and he came out of the service and I was working for my stepfather in a plastic factory, starting to sell plastic. I don't know what I was doing. I was out of high school and, and he called me up on Monday and then he said, “Hey, I'm moving to California on Saturday. Are you with me?” And I was like, man, I haven't seen you in a couple of years. Let's go have a beer and catch up. So, we went had a beer.

[00:04:34] It's Tuesday night and he's like, I'm going to California. Are you coming? Come on. My mom's going to kill me. First of all, you know, I can't just believe in four days to my whole life and then, uh, you know, Wednesday goes by and calls me up. Coming? Come on. Thursday comes up. He calls me. You coming? And he called me right up to that Friday.

[00:04:55] And I don't know. I literally can't tell you why I made that decision. But I did. It was just one of those things. I was from a very, very small town in Connecticut. And that just my whole world opened up, and we travel across the country and ended up in Hollywood and I remember when I left the guys at the place where I was working, said, you're never going to get a job in a record store out there because I was working at a record store kind of at night too. It's like, people, you know, they line up down the street in Hollywood to get a job at a record store, you know, and I was like, oh, no, what am I doing? 

[00:05:29] And I remember I went in and put my application and I got the job. Pretty quickly after that, I was managing the store because I was just so into it. It was just such a... It was my world because it was music, but it was, you know, it was Hollywood and the music scene was just right there. It was great.

[00:05:43] Charles: Yeah. Cause I, I had mentioned to you then, previously, did you see any in store concerts or what do they call them in stores?

[00:05:52] Rick: In store appearances. Yeah. At the time. Yeah, we did a bunch of them at the Hollywood store. The Hollywood store. Obviously, it's very popular store. It was, it was the number one store in a chain of 92. So, we always had stuff. I know, we had in store appearances there. Itzhak Perlman, the violin player did an in-store appearance. That was, that was incredible. What's the guy from dirty dancing? The actor guy?

[00:06:13] Charles: Oh, Patrick Swayze? 

[00:06:14] Rick: Patrick Swayze did it in store right after Dirty Dancing. It was huge and people lined up down the street. And we had a Suicidal Tendencies. The Los Angeles band did it. They drove a flatbed into the back of the parking lot. And, and they were just, they were just ripping in the parking lot and there it's so intense. I mean, the cassettes were literally falling off the wall inside the store. So many people all over the place. That was a really cool in store appearance. And then I think I mentioned one too Blind Melon, the original band with the Shannon did an acoustic in store in my, in the store. And that was really cool. Really, really cool. 

[00:06:53] Charles: The other thing though, about the record store, you, you know, you'd mentioned these visitors that would come like Slash from Guns N Roses, Alice Cooper, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Billy Idol, Tommy Lee. I mean, somebody like a Bruce Springsteen walks in.

[00:07:12] Like, is there, is there like a preparation that goes on? Do they say, Hey Rick, uh, we got, you know, Bruce Springsteen's coming by, you might wanna, uh, close the store, or, or how does that, how does that work?

[00:07:22] Rick: Yeah, the only one, there was a little heads up for him was Billy Idol. That was the only one that we got the call and that was, you know, Billy Idol at his peak and they said, you know, can we come in. What's a good time we kind of had him come in towards the end of the night. So, there wasn't a lot of people in there, but the other guys were just. Oh, the, the phone's blowing off in my office. Uh, I think, I think it's Springsteen's in the store. You know, I'm out the door. I'm out there talking to 'em. So that was really cool. That was just, yeah, they would just come in and, and, you know, you wouldn't know, and everybody would just kind of, the customers didn't freak out too bad until they kind of really understood, uh, we kind of had 'em, we brought 'em into the back of the the store in the, in the, in the office area for a little while for everybody to kind of cool out. 

[00:08:07] Alice Cooper would come in a lot. We used to rent videos, but he would come in with a baseball cap on and no one would know who it was. And he would just rent videos. He would call me up and say, hey, Rick, do you have this that, you know, video? Can you put it aside for me? Or he'd call my assistants? Everybody knew who he was. He was, he was probably the one who came in the most him and Dwight Yoakum, the famous country guy. And he was really cool too.

[00:08:31] He was from Ohio and we used to talk baseball all the time. Because he would come up with this little Cincinnati Reds hat on, and I was a big Dodger fan and he was really, he would always come back into the back room and talk with everybody and just kind of sit down and we're doing the shipment back there. And there's Dwight Yoakum just sitting back there, uh, just being a really great guy. He was, he was probably my favorite.

[00:08:51] Charles: Yeah, I saw him, uh, 1985. He warmed up, opened up for, The Violent Femmes at the Aragon ballroom in Chicago.

[00:08:59] Rick: That's an interesting bill.

[00:09:00] Charles: Yeah, it was very interesting. But yeah, yeah, kind of, kind of unusual. The other thing I wanted to talk about, you know, listening to your podcast, you had reviewed Bono's book, Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story. And so you were talking about U2 and such, and you'd seen him, uh, I When you're 19 on the Unforgettable Fire tour.

[00:09:24] I had seen them on that tour but then when you see them again, on the Joshua Tree tour, this was when you'd mentioned that Bob Dylan comes out towards the end of the show, and I thought, or I asked, was this the first time you'd seen Dylan? And you said, well, no, I, saw him back in 1980. So, you wanna talk about like your whole, you seem like a huge Dylan fan. So that whole experience. 

[00:09:49] Rick: Yeah, well, I definitely want to touch on that U2 stuff too, because that's good stuff. Yeah, the Dylan one... Yeah, okay, 1980 was the first time I saw, I saw Bob and it was, that was really interesting because that was the born-again time for Dylan.

[00:10:04] So that was his religious time. And, you know, being that young, I think I was 16 or 15 or 16. I didn't really catch on it. I had the album. I think I would have known a little bit better. The album's pretty, I mean Slow Train Coming, the album's not his super heavy religious, but it was his first one. So, I go to the show. I beg one of my friends to go to the show because none of my friends in high school, like Bob, it was just this thing that my stepfather turned me on to. And I just really, something just kind of came over me with Dylan and his lyrics. It just grabbed me and I just had to see him. He's coming to town. He's playing this small theater, this Bushnell theater in Hartford, Connecticut. And we go into the show. And he comes out and he's, he's almost like preaching right before the show starts and then goes into the first song and it's from the new album.

[00:10:56] And he plays the whole show with absolutely no old songs. And my friend was just. Not happy. He just kept hitting my arm going. Come on, man. Come on. They're like, I don't know. I mean, I'm kind of digging it because it's, it's Dylan. I mean, that's was the first time I was in the same room with him and as I go through the years that experience alone to me, sometimes it's worth the price of the ticket.

[00:11:20] There's something about, you know, we're all this where Bob travels all over the world, but this one time, this one night, there he is right there. I'm in the same room with him. It's a, it's a powerful thing for me. And it happened when I was 16, that first time, even though he was playing religious stuff, even though he was preaching, even though he played not one old song. I still loved it. And that lit the Dylan fuse right there. Yeah.

[00:11:47] Charles: Then, uh, he unexpectedly, like you mentioned at that U2 concert, plays a couple songs towards the end of, uh, in 1987. 

[00:11:57] Rick: Right. L. A. Sports arena. I'm pretty sure it was. I was, like in the 5th row and I'll always remember because I saw him before he came out. And I just, I lost it. I was just, I could see him. I'm like, there he is. I'm like, Dylan's here tonight. You know, I'm like, going crazy and everybody's like, what's the matter?

[00:12:16] Like, it's Bob. It's Bob. I got really excited. I knew he was coming out and then, uh. I think Knocking on Heaven's Door was one song I kind of remember them playing. I think they played a couple. But it was great because Bono was so excited to be with Bob. You just, you could just tell they were, the band just went to a whole other level and the place just exploded. And then, of course, you know, it was just so great to see him unexpectedly pop out at a U2 show.

[00:12:45] Charles: That had to be incredible.

[00:12:48] Rick: It was, I mean, you know, you'd seen U2. To me, U2 was a band that reached a place emotionally that very few bands can touch something about what they do live. Every time I've seen them is an ability to take themselves and the audience to this other place. When I saw them on that Unforgettable Fire tour, I'll never forget me and my brother went, and I literally had tears in my eyes towards the end of that concert. It was that powerful. I've never seen that. And I didn't expect, I mean, I didn't know what to expect. It was so, so powerful. And me and my brother just looked at each other and we just said, we got to come back tomorrow night.

[00:13:26] They did two nights and we bought tickets. We came back again. Cause I've never seen a concert like that. All those concerts we saw up to that time were just more rock and roll and party and good time. And, but U2 just did this thing. And they always did that thing. Every time I saw them.

[00:13:41] From the Joshua Tree inside, and then I saw, Joshua Tree Tour at the LA Coliseum outside, you know, 80, a 100,000 people lit up the, the torch. And it was just, it's just magnificent. There's just so many, great memories of those shows. And then I saw 'em at Dodger Stadium, the Zooropa tour, and that was just such a spectacle at Dodger Stadium. And again, it's such a huge venue, but they still could touch people even though. They're doing it to 100,000 verse 15,000 or whatever it was inside.

[00:14:11] Charles: That concert, that I saw, Unforgettable Fire at the UIC Pavilion, that's a University of Illinois, Chicago holds like 10,000 people. I think I had third row center cause I was a student there. Man, it was, there, there's a recording of that show on YouTube. And they are on fire. Yeah, it's a great recording. The sound quality is, is fantastic.

[00:14:40] Anybody out there listening, they should definitely check that out. 

[00:14:43] Rick: I'll look for that one. 

[00:14:44] Charles: Like you, were saying, you can still, even though it's a recording, feel the, the emotion and the connection to the audience.

[00:14:51] Rick: Very cool. And that book is really good too. I got to say that Bono book is really good. He writes like, a poetry language in a Bono language. It's different. I like that. When someone will write more to who they really are verse, you can tell some of them has been stepped on. It's been edited a little too heavy. Bono's obviously is there were times you could feel it was edited, but his voice really comes out, the poetic nature of him and how important his philanthropy is.

[00:15:17] That was one of the things that really surprised me about that book was, wow, that guy is dedicated his whole life, early on, to helping other people. He's an amazing guy. It's a really cool book. I highly recommend that one.

[00:15:29] Charles: Yeah, my wife's reading it right now.

[00:15:31] Rick: You're going to like it for sure, if you're a U2 fan.

[00:15:34] Charles: Yeah. Rick, as far as, Bob Dylan goes, so you, you had mentioned that you had, uh, almost met Bob Dylan. 

[00:15:41] Rick: Yeah. 

[00:15:42] Charles: And I thought, I just, that's kind of funny cause you know, people have stories where they actually met the person, but I thought yours was kind of special cause you almost met Bob Dylan.

[00:15:51] Rick: Right.

[00:15:52] Charles: So how did that, how did that work out?

[00:15:54] Rick: Well, Bob's not an easy guy to meet. First of all, I don't know, I've never met anybody who's ever met him, you know, and not even come close. And I never really thought of ever really meeting him. But the story goes, uh, my friend's brother was working security at the Greek theater in Los Angeles, and he got his backstage passes to the Dylan show. So, Dylan's doing three nights out there. And we go back stage to meet his brother, just say hi to him and he's working security. So, he's kind of busy, but he's like, come on, I want to tour you around this other section in the back. Cause I was back there before, but I never saw like this other side. And I was like, what's on the other side.

[00:16:34] So he's like, oh, come on, I'll take you over there. So, he takes us over to this other side, then he gets a call on a walkie talkie. Something's going on. Can't remember. So, he's got to go. And he's like. You know, I'll see you guys later. Okay. So, it's me and my buddy and we just kind of come down this hallway and it's kind of a very narrow hallway. Maybe one, maybe two people the tops could get in and we're just chatting me and my buddy and I turned down and coming out the end of the hallway is Bob. And there he is.

[00:17:03] So I kind of like side glance because again, because my buddy's like here, you know, it's a very small hallway and we're walking towards each other and I'm kind of side glancing at my buddy like, are you seeing where he's coming right out of this? This is the moment and I didn't like have any speech prepared or anything.

[00:17:21] I didn't even know what I was. I think I just wanted to just shake his hand and say, you know, “hi Bob.” So, he's not looking at me. I mean, I've been doing a bunch of Dylan concerts front row and I don't think he's ever looked at me and I've stared at him for hours at a time. Just, just one glance. But no, he's walking down this skinny hallway and we're getting closer, and closer, and closer and his security guys behind him. This big guy. We're getting closer and I'm just kind of like getting my hand up. And then this monster of a man comes out this door like right between us and just, "Everybody back!" He just pushes us back and me and my friend go into this side room. 

[00:18:03] Go into this door and he goes by and it's really quiet in this room and we look over and it's Dave Stewart, Annie Lennox, Bono, and the Edge. and sitting there having this like intense conversation, me and my buddy just come blasting into this room and, and everybody just looks up and we're like, "Oh, hi." 

[00:18:20] Rick: And I turned around. I'm like had like a great buffet, the great plate, and just. We didn't know what to say, or just shell shocked from, like, being two feet away from Bob and then thrown in this, this, like, private room with these, you know, Bono and the Edge and Annie Lennox, and we just like, "see ya,” and we walked out and that was it. That's as close as I've ever come to meeting the one and only Bob Dylan. 

[00:18:42] Charles: That's a crazy story. I mean, yeah, you're gonna meet Bob Dylan and then you get into a room with all these other super famous music... 

[00:18:51] Rick: Yeah, it was, it was so, so shocking that I couldn't even, we couldn't even say anything to them. You're just so nervous and just so thrown off. I couldn't even speak to them. We just took a grape and just got out of there.

[00:19:02] Charles: That's fantastic. Doug, did you, uh, have anything you wanted to chat about with Rick as far as live music? We're going to talk about his podcast here in a minute. 

[00:19:11] Douglas: Rick, I, um, recently listened to your review of Jeff Tweedy's book.

[00:19:18] Rick: All right.

[00:19:19] Douglas: The one that just came out. I just recently read it. I really enjoyed it. Also, from the perspective of being a musician, I agree with your, your review. It was, it was a nice review and it's a great book and I highly recommend it to anybody. Also, his previous book, which talked about, I think it was writing one song or write one song.

[00:19:39] I read that one too. Again, that's very inspirational. You don't even have to be a musician to appreciate that book where it encourages you, even if you don't know anything about music, maybe just pick up a recorder and just start recording something. 

[00:19:53] I was struck by a number of the songs in there, are songs that I knew and that I liked, and I have my own, as soon as you read this, you all of a sudden, all of your own memories come back.

[00:20:04] Rick: Yeah. 

[00:20:05] Douglas: He talked about the Weight in there by The Band, because my band does that song Wrought Iron Soul does that song and he mentioned in there and this is something I really connected with he, he mentioned how a lot of musicians like to do that song. And I thought, yeah, he's got that exactly right, because I've been in a couple of bands and they've all wanted to do that song. So, just reinforcement again that, that he was right on with his observations in that book. And it's a great book and I really liked your review of it.

[00:20:36] Rick: Oh, thanks. Thanks. Yeah, it's a, it's a book that I think makes you feel good. I know it made me feel good. And I think you nailed it when it talks about, it reminds you about music and how it plays a part in your life and where it plays a part in your life. I thought that was really cool. There were so many really great personal moments there, but not only personal for him, but personal for me too. It made me think about those songs and my songs that have those, those special places in my life. 

[00:21:06] Yeah, it was really well done. I was, I was surprised by it. You know, at first, you know, 50 songs that he chose that made it, a certain place, a certain marker in his life, but it really, to me, it really wasn't about those songs.

[00:21:18] He really didn't really dive deep into a lot of them. And if you remember, there were a couple of them. He said, you're not even going to be able to find this record. It's so obscure. But it's more about the, the feeling and the vibe and where he was or where it took him or how it affected him. I thought was really cool.

[00:21:33] Charles: Rick, we could start talking about your podcast, now. But I just want to say, in general, first of all, I love your podcast. 

[00:21:44] Rick: Thank you. Thank you so much.

[00:21:45] Charles: It's fantastic. You sound great. The music is cool that you use in it and such. But what, what I find really great about this, especially the books, because like Doug was saying, I'll mention this in a minute about the Jeff Tweedy book, but I'll get a book, a recommendation, usually off of like Sound Opinions, you know, I don't know if you ever listened to Sound Opinions, Greg Kot, Jim DeRogatis, they'll have an author on and they're talking about the book.

[00:22:18] But what I like about how you rate a book, like, is it for the casual fan or is it for someone who's like deep, deep, and so when these guys review on, on their, their show, you know, they're music critics, so there's nothing that's really going to go over their head or get too deep. And I've bought books and I start reading them. Like, I think you'd mentioned in your, your Geddy Lee, episode that it's a great book. It's well written and I mean, but it, it's, it gets deep, you know?

[00:22:50] Rick: Right. Yeah, you got to be a Rush fan to really, I think, really enjoy that book.

[00:22:54] Charles: Yeah. So why don't you talk about your podcast and a little bit like your rating system and... 

[00:22:59] Rick: Okay, the rating system, everyone likes the rating system. The podcast just came out of my passion for music. I think you can pretty much tell. I get very animated and excited when I talk about music and I've always been that way. It's been that way my whole life. So, about a year ago, a little over a year ago, I started because I read so many rock and roll books and watch so many documentaries. To me, I always equate it like rock and roll to me is a big puzzle. And I've got a lot of the pieces already filled in. You know, I know the Hendrix and I know the Dylan stuff and I know Stevie Ray. I've got all these pieces filled in. But when I read a book, there's always a couple little extra pieces that I get to apply to this puzzle.

[00:23:38] I'll never finish the puzzle because it's so vast and so deep, which I think is great. I don't want to finish the puzzle, but it gives me a little extra little piece to that puzzle. And that's what I enjoy so much about the books. And the documentaries that I just want to share that with whoever's going to listen.

[00:23:55] And that's where I thought of. Okay, well, why don't I do a podcast about it? And I want it to be the place where people go for recommendations. You know, the review, I think is important to be honest and tell people what you're going to expect and what I get out of the book. I think. My reviews aren't telling you what it is.

[00:24:14] You know, a lot of reviews just tell you what the book is about. I'm like, well, why do I want to, I don't like, I don't watch a lot of trailers. It doesn't, I don't like spoilers. I want to experience it myself first hand. So, I'm really not diving into too much of like, it goes to this and this and this and this.

[00:24:29] It's just more of kind of an overview of kind of my feelings of what, kind of the flow of the book and the rating system is something I wanted to come up with. That would kind of give people an understanding of what it means to me and how I would rank it. So, I do a one through four and I set it up with one is front row center. And that's like an exception to the rules. That's one of a kind, really, really special book. I think I've given out maybe four or five front row centers over the year. A two is a floor seat. Great book, highly recommended. Still really good. Three is a loge and that's okay. It still could be recommended. And four, you're in the nosebleeds, baby. That one, I'm going to pass on. 

[00:25:11] And I hate, oh man, I hate giving out the nosebleed. I'm not that kind of like bashing critic guy. And you know, what's funny, the Stevie Ray Vaughan documentary, Stevie and Jimmy. 

[00:25:24] Charles: I could feel your pain, Rick, when you were giving that review. I was like, oh man, this is killing him to say this. I could, I could, feel it. 

[00:25:31] Rick: Oh, it hurt. It does, you know, and then everybody has their opinions and, and, and, you know, sometimes I talk with authors a little bit, or the directors, you know, and you, you understand they're making their art and they're passionate about it. And I'm not here to bash anything, but that one hurt because it just, it didn't work for me.

[00:25:48] And I had to be honest. I remember talking to my wife about, I'm like, I don't want to do this one, you know, but I was so pumped because I'm a huge TV and I was so excited to see it. And then I saw it and I was just, wow, it just didn't work for me. For me.

[00:26:03] Charles: Yeah, no, that I appreciated the honesty, but again, I could, I could feel your pain.

[00:26:07] Rick: Yeah, I'm sure it came through on that one. That was tough.

[00:26:11] Charles: One thing, Rick, I just want to get your take on this because a previous guest had said, you know, an interesting way to meet a musician is a book signing. I thought, oh yeah, that, he met Greg Allman in fact. 

[00:26:24] Rick: Very cool. 

[00:26:25] Charles: At a book signing. But Doug had mentioned this Jeff Tweedy book and it was kind of a Seeing Them Live, Rock Talk Studio mashup. He was doing this book tour and you buy tickets to see him.

[00:26:41] He was at this little theater called the Athenium Center in Chicago. It holds 863 people. And so you go there, you get a book, it's signed, Uh, you don't get to meet Jeff, but then he was on stage with Peter Sagal, um, from Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me, and he was interviewing him for like 45 minutes, and he played like a handful of songs from these requests they had taken from the audience previously, you know, you could, you could write in a request, but, you ever go to anything like that, Rick? 

[00:27:15] Rick: You know, I would love to, I would love to. And I think it's kind of becoming a thing. Because Bono did it for his book. He did like a little book tour concert. Kind of like Springsteen on Broadway thing. And Geddy Lee just did a tour for his book. Tour where he would come out. Be interviewed, have special guests, play a couple songs. So, it's kind of becoming a cool little thing. Maybe a different way for them to connect with their audience and get out there. I'm like, a little mini book tour. I haven't seen one live, but I'm, I'm up for it. Yeah.

[00:27:47] Charles: Yeah. Bono, when he did, he was at the Chicago theater and I was trying to get tickets. I mean, I was on Ticketmaster's app, you know, like everybody else. Those tickets were going like three, $400 anywhere close was like $1500 bucks. This is the morning and I'm talking about the morning. They're going on sale, not like secondary market.

[00:28:10] I'm like, wait a second. Am I seeing U2? Or is, is Bono talking about a book here? You know, um, it was, uh, it was kind of crazy. And of course it sold out like, you know, a half hour or something. 

[00:28:21] Rick: Yeah. 

[00:28:21] Charles: Yeah, I think you're right. It is kind of. Becoming a thing, you know?

[00:28:26] Rick: I wish they recorded that Bono one. I wish they record all of them. I think that would be really cool. Documentary to put out from that show because that's Springsteen. Um, Broadway one is That thing is so powerful. I cried multiple times during that one and that thing was Intense. Have you seen that the Springsteen Broadway? 

[00:28:43] Charles: No, I have not.

[00:28:45] Rick: Yeah, great, great documentary. I'm sure you probably chase it down somewhere. But, yeah, the Springsteen when he was doing his tour, his Broadway shows where he come out and just tell stories about his life and his songs. And, wow, of course, Bruce always, always brings it. 

[00:29:01] Charles: My wife would love that. That sounds interesting. 

[00:29:03] Rick: Real good.

[00:29:05] Charles: I didn't know what else you wanted to maybe talk about your podcast or maybe what you had coming up.

[00:29:11] Rick: Sure. Or I can give you the best of 2023 if you'd like.

[00:29:16] Charles: Right. Yes. 

[00:29:16] Rick: You mentioned that because I'm always up to talk about that. 

[00:29:20] Charles: Sure. Yeah, we're gonna talk about that. So yeah, go ahead and let it rip. 

[00:29:23] Rick: Okay, so I did a year end show at the end of the year where I did my awards, my Rock Talk Studio awards. And I did a couple of different categories for books. I was, the best book about a band and that went to, um, Brothers and Sisters, the Allman Brothers book, best book about a musician in a band now is another Allman Brothers book, which that was a sneaky little book.

[00:29:43] This, this guy, Bob, he's a great. Historian writer, and you wrote a really cool book about Dwayne Allman and the journey to Fillmore East. So it's just this little snapshot of the band up until Fillmore East, and really, really well done. I really like that a lot. And then there was the book I learned the most from called Secret Stars. 10 underground rock stars. And then the book of the year to me was, uh, the Warren Zanes book that he wrote about Springsteen, Nebraska album called Deliver Me From Nowhere. The making of Springsteen's Nebraska. Fascinating story. I just cannot believe that story has never been told like that. Cause there's so much, drama in that story.

[00:30:25] There's so much going on around that record. And to think that. Bruce made that record right after he, you know, he's on this huge peak of born the U.S.A. darkness, the river and the record label is like, okay, here comes the moon shot. Right? We know this next one is going to be this monster and he just goes and and. Rents a room in New Jersey by himself, sets up a little recording system in a bedroom, right next to his bed and just starts playing songs and he recorded that on a cassette. It's one of the really cool parts of the book recorded on a cassette and he just had this cassette that he had in his pocket in his shirt and he said he would take this cassette out and there would be lint on that cassette and he gave that to his manager.

[00:31:12] I think it's Landau and and he said, you know, this is what I've been working on and it just. Bloom away and little Steven too. It's a big part of that. He turned, uh, Steven Vanzant on to it. And he just like, whoa, wow, what is this? This is incredible. And I just, I just love the story about him taking it to the record label and saying, you know, this, I want to do this because he had 3 or 4 songs. Into born in the USA. So, they kind of knew what was coming. Like I said, they were ready for what was coming, but he talked him into putting out that Nebraska album. And that book is so well written and there's so many spinning plays, there's so much going on. Like I said, trying to, to get that recording off that cassette to be able to produce a record that could be released. Was a huge story. It's a huge part of that story, trying to find someone to master it and to mix it and to get it into production to even be able to release it. And then Bruce personally during that time was going through, uh, a nervous breakdown. Really, he was really struggling with mental health issues and he talks about, you know, kind of having a breakdown on a road trip that he, that he took during that time and how those songs were wrapped around that.

[00:32:26] It's a great book. Deliver Me From Nowhere by Warren Zanes. He wrote the Tom Petty book to the, the, the book about Tom Petty, which is really well, really well written, very in depth, great book. That was my, that was my favorite book of the year.

[00:32:39] Charles: Yeah. I thought I thought that was neat. How you how you selected them and such. And again, I, I just think it's super helpful and useful. Anybody who likes to read books to, you know, you, you do your preview and are there any books out there like, you know, older books that you might recommend? 

[00:32:59] Rick: I read a ton of books. I mean, older, like not from last year? That's not on the show? Like... 

[00:33:03] Charles: Exactly. Like some classic, like these three books. 

[00:33:07] Rick: So, I got to say the Dylan book Chronicles, is a great, great book. Written in Bob language, you know, it's, it's, it's Bob talking, spinning his yarns. There's he takes liberty in a lot of situations.

[00:33:20] So I, I wouldn't say it's super factual, but it's so well written. It's so cool. I'll always recommend Bob Dylan's Chronicles. Robbie Robertson's memoir to me, Testimony that came out years ago. That is a great, great book. Really, really well written. Again, I think it talked about, you know, artists that get kind of stepped on by editors and really, you don't get that feel of like this, you know, their voice coming through and their, their heart coming through and they're really talking about their life, really giving you the truth, but that book has a lot of truth in it and he's a very interesting story to the Robbie Robertson Testimony book. 

[00:33:59] I love the Patti Smith books. I read a lot of Patty Smith books. Just Kids. Fantastic, fantastic book. She's a beautiful writer. Beautiful soul. I love Patty Smith. That's three just off the top of my head. I have to look at my bookcase. It's around the corner, but I'm always reading like three or four. Now that I'm doing the podcast, I read probably like 2 or 3 at a time. Because I like to stay, you know, to stay ahead and be able to do the shows, but then I'll, I'll watch the documentaries too, which is a little bit easier because it doesn't take as much time, but it's a, it's kind of a quicker, snapshot of something that makes me kind of step my game up like, okay, I've got an hour and 30 minutes and I've gotta absorb it and then review it, which sometimes I get tripped up on. I try to absorb it first and then watch it again and do more of like, pick out, okay, what, what is here for someone who might not know who, uh, let's say the immediate family is that's my next show about the session band, that's in LA that was on so many records throughout the seventies and eighties.

[00:35:03] You know, if you don't know anything about them, how do I. How do I, how do I get my audience to, to understand what it's about and, and, and give them an opportunity to see if it's for them or for not. Because, like I said, that's what my show to me really is, is a show that recommends rock and roll books and documentaries.

[00:35:21] So you just can go to that one place first. You know, trying to Google, you know, top books or whatever. So, it's kind of a one stop shop place where I try to do, what I call a spotlight title. So, one title a month where I give the mass review, but then I do the, the previews and I lately have been. Been doing kind of more of a, like, book buzz and documentary news, because there's so much cool stuff coming out.

[00:35:43] I mean, Alex Van Halen just announced he's, he's written his memoir. It's coming out in October. That's huge. You know, it's huge news for me in the world. And I want to make sure that I pass that along to people. So, and I get, you know, I'm getting stuff sent to me now, so I can kind of get a little ahead. I know what's coming out and I like to share that and I get excited about it as you can probably see.

[00:36:06] Douglas: Speaking of documentaries and, it's technically not a documentary, but, Daisy and the Six. Did you see that? 

[00:36:13] Rick: I haven't seen it. 

[00:36:14] Douglas: It's dramatic. I mean, they have actors in it and everything. It's supposed to be loosely based maybe on like Fleetwood Mac or something like that. Maybe with a little Janice Joplin thrown in. I highly recommend that you watch that. I think it's six episodes, eight episodes, something like that. And it kind of tracks this band and all the, of course, behind the scenes soap opera stuff that goes on. But I thought it was really excellent. It was really well done. I recommend that, I don't know if you, you only do strictly documentaries or if you would do a dramatic, thing like that. 

[00:36:47] Rick: Sure. I think so. 

[00:36:48] Douglas: I think it would be a great one for you to review in, in your podcast. 

[00:36:53] Charles: I thought what was cool with that series is towards the end, you know, they're at the pinnacle of their career; everything's unraveling, you know, typical rock and roll. And they're playing Soldier Field in Chicago. It's their last show. The old Soldier Field from the inside as if you were at a concert.

[00:37:11] And I've been to several concerts at Soldier Field, the old one before they made the spaceship you know, stadium thing. And, I thought that was kind of cool. Like, wow, how did they do that? You know, the crowds there, the, the Coliseum, you know, is there. 

[00:37:28] Rick: Very cool. All right. I'm gonna check it out. I'll, I'll, I'll do it. I'll definitely check out that. 'cause I, I, I, I know it's, I knew of it and I, I just never got around to it. And I love Fleetwood Mac. I'm a big Fleetwood Mac fan. Seen him a bunch of times, actually got a chance to see. Lindsey Buckingham at a 400-seat venue here in San Diego called the Belly Up. And I was, me and my wife were maybe a couple feet away from him. He just, he did a solo show, maybe about six or seven years ago here. And wow, just be that close to him, watching him play that, you know, that little guitar that he has and that finger picking technique he does.

[00:38:04] Douglas: He's a very underrated guitar player. A lot of people don't realize how really good he is.

[00:38:10] Rick: It's so true, so true. So, it's a very unique style and very, very different to be that close to see. It was, was great. Yeah, but that's a good 1. I've got to mention my favorite rock and roll documentary because I don't know if you guys have seen this, but I want to send this one out to you and your listeners to is a great documentary.

[00:38:26] That was just kind of, I didn't see it coming. I didn't think this was going to be. My favorite one of the year, but, the Little Richard documentary. I Am Everything is a tremendous documentary, really, really well done and really kind of shines a light on this guy who I knew who he was and I knew his importance, but this showed me a different side of who he was and, and how torn he was between sex, drugs, and rock and roll.

[00:38:55] I mean, those three things, he. Went back and forth to those three things throughout his whole life. And, but when he hit that rock and roll, man, no one was touching him. He was, he was doing something. I always say if little Richard came on the scene today, he would be huge. He'd be huge. Could you imagine little Richard just came out next week and, you know, put out a record. That guy was some of that footage of what he was just tearing it up. I mean, burning the place down. And I don't know if it was, I think it was set in the documentary, but Everybody who came after him was a piece of him. James Brown, Prince, Jagger, Tina Turner. They were all Little Richard that he was the bedrock and that documentary really kind of said, okay, pay attention. Don't miss who this guy was. And he deserves so much credit to as the founder of rock and roll.

[00:39:47] Charles: Yeah. I did see that, Rick on an airplane actually.

[00:39:51] Rick: Oh, really?

[00:39:52] Charles: Coming back from a Harry Styles concert in Portugal.

[00:39:55] Rick: Wow. Wow. Okay.

[00:39:56] Charles: What you just mentioned, like towards the end, they do this montage of all the people he's influenced, and one of the very last ones was actually Harry Styles. So yeah, it's, it's an incredible, I agree, a documentary, and I had no idea before seeing that, all of the people he influenced, he's like, he's like the original. 

[00:40:19] Rick: The original definitely. And he was such a, such a character. I mean, it's such a personality, such a unique guy and just for who he was at that time to and how he came overcame all that that was going on during that time. It's a, it's a powerful story. Really, really well-done documentary.

[00:40:38] Charles: We're, kind of getting towards the end of our time. Rick. Is there anything you want to talk about further with the podcast or plug your podcast? You're on, are you on most of the platform?

[00:40:53] Rick: Yeah, all the directories I'm on, you can find me wherever you find your podcast and it's really again, just a show that recommends rock and roll books, documentaries and movies where I just kind of one stop place for you to come once a month to learn about what's new what's out there and so you don't have to go searching around.

[00:41:11] I'll give you. Give you the straight truth about the rock and roll books that are out there. It's a, it's a great community. The people that love the rock and roll books and documentaries. I really enjoy. That's why I'm on social so much. I really enjoy talking to people about it because you get recommendations.

[00:41:25] You see different sides of things and you get to talk rock and roll, which that's what I'm all about. So, thank you guys for having me on and asking me to come on and talk about not only my concert experience, but my just enthusiasm for music and the podcast. 

[00:41:40] 

Charles:

 All right. Thanks, Rick.