 February 1 - 10, 2008These are the scripts Joe Benson used on the air at 95.5 KLOS in Los Angeles. They all received final editing by Jan Benson, without whom the task would have been far too daunting. Remember to give credit where credit is due, and enjoy! February 1, 2008
Guitarist Mike Campbell of Tom Petty's Heartbreakers is 58. 
On this day in 1963, Neil Young, at age 17, performed his first professional date at a country club in Winnipeg, Canada. On this day in 1964, the British Invasion of America officially began as The Beatles' "I Want To Hold Your Hand" hit #1. On this day in 1964, Bob Dylan released his classic "The Times They Are A Changin'" album. On this day in 1965, The Rolling Stones released their legendary "The Rolling Stones Now" album. On this day in 1967, The Beatles began their official sessions for "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," laying down the rhythm tracks for the title cut. On this day in 1969, The Beatles soundtrack album "Yellow Submarine" was released. On this day in 1970, Van Morrison released his "Moondance" album. On this day in 1986, John Mellencamp's "R.O.C.K. In The U.S.A." entered the Top 40. On this day in 1988, The Cars officially broke up.  This Sunday night at 9 on 95.5 KLOS, OFF THE RECORD with Joe Benson will feature the music of Journey as well as Joe's conversations with Neal Schon, Steve Perry, Gregg Rolie and Jonathan Cain. 
On Stage This WeekendStevie Nicks will be playing at the Honda Center in Anaheim as Robin Trower rocks the House Of Blues on Sunset Saturday evening. John's Busy WeekFormer Creedence Clearwater Revival frontman John Fogerty will perform next Wednesday at the 10th annual GRAMMY Foundation Music Preservation Project, dubbed "Sounds Of Change." The event will celebrate 50 years of music's ability to influence social transformations. Four days later, Fogerty will jam with Little Richard, Fats Domino and Jerry Lee Lewis during the GRAMMY Awards telecast from Staples Center. That very same night his latest album, "Revival," may also win the Best Rock Album GRAMMY. Sounds like it's going to be a pretty good week to be John Fogerty! Pete Broke ItFormer Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel has been hobbling around on crutches after breaking his leg during a family ski trip to Verbier, Switzerland over the Christmas holiday. The singer says, "I was with a group of friends who tend to go at some speed... I hit a rock and I could feel a loud snap as I broke my leg, and then I skied down to the piste, which was a bit stupid." The biggest challenge was to get to a doctor. Peter had to travel by blood wagon, snowmobile and then ski lift to get back to civilization. Bum leg and all, Peter attended the Davos world economic forum and the MIDEM music convention, where on Monday he received the Person Of The Year award for his innovations in the music industry and his efforts to promote human rights. Rockin' The SpeedwayZZ Top will play a pre-race gig at the California Speedway February 24th. The Texas trio will perform right before the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Auto Club 500. The Top have one other Spring gig confirmed at this point: Texas A&M University on April 18th as part of the multi-school Gridiron Bash event. Purple, Zombies & RussOn March 13th, The Zombies' Colin Blunstone and Rod Argent along with Deep Purple's Glenn Hughes and Ian Paice and several other artists will perform at the ChildLine Rocks charity event at London's IndigO2. Blunstone and Argent will play with their touring band, which includes former Argent bassist Jim Rodford, as well as former Argent singer/guitarist Russ Ballard — who will be playing his first live gig in the United Kingdom in over than 30 years! 
Thought For The WeekendThere are only two industries in the world that refer to customers as 'users'. One is the IT industry. The other is the illegal drugs industry. Groundhog HeavenSaturday (February 2nd) is Groundhog Day, and over 15,000 spectators are expected to gather at "Gobbler's Knob" tomorrow morning to see the large rodent named Punxsutawney Phil emerge from his/her lair to see its shadow. Legend has it that if P-Phil can see its own shadow on February 2nd, winter will last another six weeks. Expect an early Spring if P-Phil does not see its shadow! Since 1886, P-Phil has seen its shadow 97 times, hasn't seen it 16 times and there are no records for nine years, according to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. The whole event, as well as Punxsutawney (a rural community 90 miles northwest of Pittsburgh), were made even more famous worldwide in the movie "Groundhog Day," which starred Bill Murray. Strangely enough, no one has seen Murray's shadow since 1999... but that's another story for another time. February 2, 2008
Singer extraordinaire Graham Nash is 66.
On this day in 1978, after four years of playing virtually every club and backyard in Southern California, Van Halen signed their first recording contract. It was at that time that publicists subtracted a couple years from each member's age to make them seem even more astounding. On this day in 1979, 21-year-old Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious died in New York of a heroin overdose. He was not a hero. On this day in 1980, the Eagles' song "The Long Run" peaked at #8 on the charts. February 3, 2008
Dave Davies, the fist swinging, guitar playing younger brother in The Kinks, is 61.
On this day in 1959, Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens were killed when their small plane crashed in bad weather shortly after take-off from the Mason City, Iowa airfield. They had decided to pay for plane tickets rather than travel by bus to Fargo, North Dakota. At the last minute, Holly's bass player, Waylon Jennings, gave up his seat so that the Big Bopper could make the flight. On this day in 1968, The Beatles recorded "Lady Madonna" in three takes at Abbey Road Studios in London. On this day in 2004, saxophonist Cornelius Bumpus, who played with the The Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan among many others, died from a heart attack on a commercial flight from New York to California. He was 58. February 4, 2008
Alice Cooper is a shocking 60.
On this day in 1970, John Lennon and Yoko Ono traded a bag of their cut hair in return for a pair of genuine Muhammad Ali boxing shorts. And you thought the Seventies were boring! On this day in 1974, John Lennon and Yoko Ono began an ill-fated trial separation. The two eventually reunited, perhaps because of Muhammad Ali's boxing shorts. Then again, maybe not. On this day in 1978, Queen's "We Are The Champions" peaked at #4, E.L.O.'s "Turn To Stone" hit #13 and Heart's "Crazy On You" topped out at #62. On this day in 2001, Jimmy Buffett was kicked out of his courtside seats at a Miami Heat/New York Knicks game due to his use of profanity. Unfortunately for Jimmy, that burst of rebellious Rock & Roll-ish behavior didn't help his record sales in the least.
Petty Should Be Pretty ProudCouldn't put it any better than Sports Illustrated writer Don Banks who said, "Who would have thought that Tom Petty would be better in the first half than Tom Brady? Nice, tight four-song set by Mr. Petty, although for me, every Super Bowl halftime show after U2's memorable post-9/11 tribute in February 2002 pales by comparison." Absolutely! But Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers' halftime performance last night sure was awesome! T.P. opened with "American Girl" followed by "I Won't Back Down" (which was perhaps the New York Giants theme song). Then Tom and the boys closed with "Free Fallin'" and "Running Down a Dream" — all performed live with the band obviously having fun! And isn't that the way it's supposed to be? Beatles (Really) Spaced OutIt's been 50 years since NASA was formed, 45 years since NASA's Deep Space Network was established and 40 years since The Beatles recorded the Lennon/McCartney song "Across The Universe." The Beatles' songs "Here Comes The Sun," "Ticket To Ride" and "A Hard Day's Night" have been used as wake-up calls to astronauts, and NASA beamed a Paul McCartney live performance to the international space station as few years back, but the space agency has never transmitted music directly to the stars — until this afternoon at 4pm! That's when NASA will shoot the "Across The Universe" into deep space at the speed of light. Granted, it will take 431 years to reach its final destination because Polaris is 2.5 quadrillion miles away. The idea came from famed Beatles historian Martin Lewis, who got permission from McCartney, John Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, and the two companies that own the rights to Beatles' music. Wonder how long all of that paperwork took to clear? Jackson's Slightly DelayedThe release date for Jackson Browne's "Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2" has been pushed back two weeks to March 4th for unspecified reasons. The album will include 12 recent live performances with Browne alternating on guitar and piano, and, like its predecessor, features lively exchanges between Jackson and his audiences. Meanwhile, Browne's upcoming U.S. tour in support of the set has been extended through an April 22nd concert at the Lancaster Performing Arts Center and an April 23 gig at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza. Chrissie Digs HorsesPretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde joined up with the animal rights organization PETA at a demonstration last Thursday in New York City protesting the use of horse-drawn carriages in the city. She spoke out against the animals' alleged cruel working conditions, saying: "I love horses and hate seeing them reduced to beasts of burden." She also is supporting a bill that would ban the rides. Wonder if she's a New York City tax payer? Jon's Warming UpYes singer Jon Anderson has scheduled three performances back East with students from the Paul Green School Of Rock Music in early March. Anderson also has mapped out a late March solo tour of Canada's Quebec province, but as for the 40th anniversary Yes tour — looks like we'll just have to wait until those boys announce the when and where!
Quote Of The DayIt was comedian Steven Wright who asked, "If one synchronized swimmer drowns, do the rest drown, too?" February 5, 2008
Legendary session drummer Hal Blaine is 79. As the top Los Angeles studio drummer in the Sixties and early Seventies, he played on more than 8,000 different tracks for hundreds and hundreds of different musicians including the Beach Boys, Byrds and Simon & Garfunkle. It's almost impossible to listen to an oldies radio station for more than 10 minutes without hearing a song with Hal Blaine's drumming.
On this day in 1972, Neil Young's "Heart Of Gold" entered the charts.
Mellencamp Says No To McCainIt seems that some people in John McCain's campaign weren't aware of John Mellencamp's political views. At some recent McCain campaign rallies, Mellencamp's "Our Country" and "Pink Houses" have been booming out over the speakers. Of course, the singer has never shied away from his liberal views, and his wife was even an at large delegate at the 2004 Democratic convention. And, until recently, Mellencamp supported John Edwards, who had been playing "Our Country" and "Small Town" at his rallies. Mellencamp hasn't yet made a public response, but his reps are quietly reaching out to McCain and asking him to stop playing Mellencamp's tunes. Leppard DelayedTo better coordinate their new album's release with their touring, Def Leppard has bumped the release of "Songs From The Sparkle Lounge" from March 18th to May 6th. But don't worry, the first single will still be "Nine Lives," a tune co-written and featuring a guest appearance by country star Tim McGraw. Bowie: ActorWord is that David Bowie may be taking on a role in the movie "Will." The musical dramedy project tells the story of a high school misfit who becomes friends with a girl in the in-crowd after they discover that they have similar tastes in music. They eventually form a group and set out to enter a school Battle of the Bands competition. Liam Aiken, whose credits include the films "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events" and "Road To Perdition" is on board in the title role. The lovely Vanessa Hudgens of "High School Musical" fame, former "Friends" star Lisa Kudrow and "Friday Night Lights" star Scott Porter are also attached to the project. Perhaps Bowie would fit into that cast as the "creepy old guy." Production is scheduled to begin next month.
Quote Of The DayIt was Stephen Covey who said: "If we keep doing what we're doing, we're going to keep getting what we're getting."  NHRA WinternationalsThis Saturday & Sunday: J.B. and the KLOS Cool Patrol will be right back in the middle of the first big drag meet of the year — the NHRA CARQUEST Winternationals Drag Races at the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona! Here are a few photos from last year. February 6, 2008
Reggae god Bob Marley would have been 63.
On this day in 1965, legendary concert promoter Bill Graham presented his first show when he rented out the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco for $60. The show, a benefit concert for the city's mime troupe, featured the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, who were anything but mimes. On this day in 1965, "All Day And All Of The Night" by The Kinks peaked at #7 on the charts. On this day in 1968, The Beatles' "Magical Mystery Tour" album hit number #1. On this day in 1982, Van Halen's cover of Roy Orbison's classic "Pretty Woman" entered the charts as The Rolling Stones' "Waiting on a Friend" peaked at #13 and the J. Geils Band hit #1 with the song "Centerfold." On this day in 1988, Bruce Springsteen's "Tunnel Of Love" peaked at #9 on the singles chart. On this day in 1998, Beach Boy Carl Wilson died of cancer in Los Angeles at the age of 51.
Bonnaroo For YouThe line-up has been announced for the 7th annual Bonnaroo Music Festival, held this year from June 12th through the 15th in Manchester, Tennessee. More than 100 bands will be spread across 13 stages, with headliners including Pearl Jam, Metallica, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Phil Lesh & Friends, The Allman Brothers Band and — as close as you'll get to a Led Zeppelin reunion this Summer — the all-girl Zep tribute band, Lez Zeppelin! Now don't forget your sunscreen and bug spray! Ringo & RachaelRemember when Ringo Starr walked off the set of "Live! With Regis & Kelly" a few weeks ago after being asked to cut his song short? Turns out that later that same day he played two songs on "The Rachael Ray Show"! And along with playing songs and chatting with the host, Ringo also did some dishes! Word is that having the former Beatle perform two tracks off his latest album, "Liverpool 8," had nothing to do with what happened at "Live!," and that Starr had been booked to appear on Ray's show for months. The episode airs this Friday, and as our little Rachael is known to say, "It's yum-o!" Jonesy Speaks (Sort Of)Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones was a guest performer at the 2008 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, held Monday in London. Jonesy took the stage to play mandolin alongside the evening's Lifetime Achievement Award winner, renowned guitarist John Martyn. When asked if he had spoken with the other Zep guys about a reunion tour, John said in his understated way, "I am obliged to say we have and we have absolutely no idea of what we are going to be doing." And you can quote him on that! Heather Handles It HerselfSure, Heather Mills owes her former divorce lawyers nearly $4 million in fees, but she says that she is going to sue them for giving her bad advice. Word in the Brit tabloids is that her accusations have temporarily stunned and/or confused lawyers at the highly regarded law firm, Mischon de Reya, but they are expected to eventually react in some vicious manner. In the meantime, Mills says she will represent herself at her upcoming divorce hearings with Sir Paul McCartney. Wonder if she'll sue herself when the whole episode is over? New/Old SkynyrdAn expanded edition of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Street Survivors" album, commemorating the 30th anniversary of its release, is due out on March 4th. The double-CD will feature five live tracks believed to be the final recordings of the group before the plane crash that killed three bandmembers. The package will also include the previously unreleased Tom Dowd-produced version of the album, which Skynyrd forcefully rejected in favor of their self-produced version. Do you suppose that a mix the band didn't like in 1977 has been judged OK to release now because the guys who objected to it then aren't here now?
Quote Of The DayIt was Oscar Wilde who said: "Seriousness is the only refuge of the shallow." February 7, 2008
KISS fan Garth Brooks is 46 and very rich.
On this day in 1894, Antoine Sax, inventor of the saxophone, died in Paris at the age of 79. On this day in 1964, The Beatles landed at New York's Kennedy Airport to make their first appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show." "I Want To Hold Your Hand" was already #1 on the charts, and thousands of screaming fans greeted them at the airport as the first wave of Beatlemania swept across America. Life as we knew it would never be the same. On this day in 1967, Badfinger's song "Come and Get It" entered the U.S. charts. On this day in 1970, Joe Cocker's cover of "She Came In Through The Bathroom Window" peaked at #30. On this day in 1980, Pink Floyd played the first live performance ever of their "Wall" album at the Los Angeles Sport Arena. The extremely ambitious multi-media production actually featured a wall built between the band and audience during the first half. The debut performance was stopped briefly near the halfway point when fireworks set fire to the stage curtains. The entire presentation proved so expensive to stage, it was only performed 29 times in L.A., New York and Europe. On this day in 1981, The Police's "Don't Stand So Close To Me" entered the U.S. Top 40. On this day in 2000, Foghat singer/guitarist "Lonesome" Dave Peverett succumbed to cancer at the age of 57 — far too young. This Sunday night at 9 on 95.5 KLOS, OFF THE RECORD with Joe Benson will feature the music of The Allman Brothers Band as well as more of Joe's conversation with Gregg Allman, drummer Butch Trucks and guitarist Warren Haynes.
Pagey's Selling A HangingNot that you need anything else to hang in your garage, but Led Zeppelin mastermind Jimmy Page is selling one of the tapestries from his collection. Sotheby's will auction off the guitar god's 24-foot-long Burne-Jones tapestry, "The Quest for the Holy Grail: The Achievement," for an estimated $2 million. Pagey's also selling five stained-glass windows by the famed British Pre-Raphaelite Painter (who has been dead for 108 years!). Those windows are expected to go for between $50,000 and $69,000. Stones Debut In BerlinThe Rolling Stones are in Germany for the world premiere of their new concert film, "Shine A Light," tonight. The band is joining the film's director, Martin Scorsese, for the special showing to open the 58th Berlin International Film Festival. "Shine A Light" will open in theaters across the U.S. on April 4th — with or without the band on hand. Great Cause/Great Line-upBon Jovi, Jerry Seinfeld, Brian Wilson and Andrea Bocelli, among others, will perform in various New York City venues this year as part of the inaugural Stand Up For A Cure concert series, designed to raise funds and awareness for lung cancer research at New York's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Bon Jovi will launch the series with a sold-out concert on February 12th at the 3,500 seat Hammerstein Ballroom. The intimate show — which Richie Sambora will open with a 30-minute solo set — will be dedicated to the Bon Jovi guitarist's father, Adam Sambora, who received care at Memorial Sloan-Kettering before passing from cancer last year. Joel's Last Play (Sort Of)On July 16th, Billy Joel will become the last artist to play at New York's Shea Stadium in the midst of the New York Mets' final season at the old stadium. With "The Last Play At Shea, From The Beatles To Billy" concert, Joel will join a long list of Rock & Roll Hall Of Famers who have played the Bronx baseball stadium, beginning with The Beatles and including Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, The Police, Eric Clapton, Elton John and Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band. "The Last Play at Shea," the day after the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, makes Billy the only artist to ever have played both Yankee Stadium (two nights in 1991) and Shea Stadium. Do you suppose they'll make him pay for parking? All Hail The NugeNo surprise that Ted Nugent was a big winner at the Outdoor Channel's eighth annual Golden Moose Awards on Monday in Las Vegas. His cable program "Ted Nugent Spirit Of The Wild" was honored with the Fan Favorite Hunting Series trophy, while Tedly and his wife Shemane shared the Fan Favorite Host prize for the same show. You may now return to your regularly scheduled life. Eh Canada!Yeah sure, we've got our GRAMMY Awards this weekend, but the Canadian's have got their Juno Awards coming on April 6th in Calgary, yah know? Neil Young, Tom Cochrane and Anne Murray — three people you wouldn't expect to be riding around together — are among the nominees for the 2008 Juno Awards. Young earned his first nomination back in 1975, and eventually won five of the awards. This is Cochrane's 23rd nomination, and he's received six career Junos. But the real heavyweight is Murray, who has scored 50 nominations and 24 wins since 1971! If that weren't enough for one cold Canadian night, the recently reunited Triumph will be inducted into the Canadian Music Hall Of Fame during the very same ceremony!
Quote Of The DayIt was architect Frank Lloyd Wright who said: "Television is chewing gum for the eyes." February 8, 2008
James Dean would have been 77.
On this day in 1958, the Quarrymen, featuring John Lennon and Paul McCartney, performed at Wilson Hall in Garston, England. It was there that Paul introduced John to a young guitarist named George Harrison. On this day in 1975, Queen released the single "Killer Queen." On this day in 1986, Robert Palmer released his song "Addicted To Love." On this day in 2005, drummer Keith Knudsen of the Doobie Brothers died of pneumonia at the age of 56.
GRAMMY GRAMMYJust in case you've been out of town for the last six months and missed the continuous announcements, the 50th Annual GRAMMY Awards will be broadcast live this Sunday night from the Staples Center. The top Classic Rockers up for awards include Paul McCartney, who earned three nominations for his latest album, "Memory Almost Full," and two more noms — as a Beatle — for the soundtrack of the Cirque du Soleil show, "Love." Bruce Springsteen has four nominations: three for his "Magic" album and another for his contribution to the "We All Love Ennio Morricone" compilation. Ozzy Osbourne's "I Don't Want To Stop" is in the running for Best Hard Rock Performance, John Mellencamp's "Our Country" is a contender for Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance, and John Fogerty's "Revival" is up for Best Rock Album. The Eagles' "How Long" album may win a country award, while former Band drummer/singer Levon Helm's "Dirt Farmer" is in the running in folk music. Eric Clapton's collaboration with J.J. Cale, "The Road To Escondido," is a blues nominee. Rush, James Taylor and Robert Plant & Alison Krauss are also among the GRAMMY hopefuls. SXSW '08The massive line-up for the sprawling South By Southwest arts festival has been released. R.E.M. will be headlining the four day event in Austin, Texas. If you desire more info, go to: http://sxsw.com — and good luck! Purple In MoscowSometime Monday in snowy Moscow, Deep Purple will play a special concert organized by Russia's state gas company, Gazprom. The show is a parting gift to Gazprom's soon-to-be-retired chairman, Dmitry Medvedev, who is expected to succeed Russian president Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin. They say that Dmitry owns all of the Purple's albums, which probably means he'll want to get up and sing along with Ian Gillan. Let's just hope they don't get into the vodka before that happens! Who UpdateWho guitarist/songwriter Pete Townshend says he and singer Roger Daltrey are contemplating a list of possible 2008 activities that include a Japanese tour, some festival dates and a Fall reprise of their mid-Nineties "Quadrophenia" tour, as well as two recording projects. One of those album projects would be done with producer T-Bone Burnett, while the other would be "a more conventional Who record." At least that's what Pete says at the moment. Lindsey's DVDLindsey Buckingham will release his first-ever solo DVD on March 25th. "Live at the Bass Performance Hall" documents the Fleetwood Mac singer/guitarist's January 27, 2007 concert in Fort Worth, which previously aired on HDNet. The 16-song DVD will come with an audio CD of the gig and a behind-the-scenes documentary shot by Buckingham. Roger Slides A Couple More InRoger Waters has added three more U.S. concerts to his Spring itinerary. In addition to his April 27th appearance at the Coachella festival in Indio, the former Pink Floyd bassist/singer will perform "Dark Side Of The Moon" on April 30th in Denver, May 2nd in Dallas and May 4th in Houston. Festing Those FestivalsZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynyrd will among the headliners at the inaugural BamaJam Music & Arts Festival running June 5th through the 7th in Enterprise, Alabama. ZZ will hit the stage on June 6th and Skynyrd will turn in a "grand finale" set the following day. A little further down the road, ZZ Top will perform on June 12th at the Riverbend '08 festival in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Thought For The WeekendIt was James Bovard who said: "Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner." Happy New Year!Happy Lunar New Year! Thursday marked the start of year 4706 in the Chinese calendar, the Year Of The Rat. "Gung hay ch'un chieh" or, as momma used to say, "Gung hay fat choy!" February 9, 2008
On this day in 1964, in a defining TV moment, The Beatles appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show." A record audience of 73 million people tuned in to watch the Fab Four's debut American performance. The band performed "All My Loving," "Till There Was You," "She Loves You," "I Saw Her Standing There," and their current #1 single, "I Want to Hold Your Hand." George Harrison played despite suffering from a bad case of the flu. Also on that night's show were singer Georgia Brown and the cast of "Oliver!," which included future-Monkee Davy Jones. On this day in 1974, Paul McCartney's "Jet" broke into the Top 40 singles chart. February 10, 2008
Psychedelic folk singer Donovan is 62.
On this day in 1973, Steely Dan's "Do It Again" peaked at #6 on the pop singles chart. On this day in 1978, Van Halen released their self-titled debut album, which eventually sold over 6 million copies. On this day in 1979, Dire Straits released the single "Sultans of Swing." On this day in 1987, Roger Waters dropped his lawsuit against his former Pink Floyd bandmates over the use of the band's name. In return, they agreed to pay him some heavy royalties. On this day in 1990, Aerosmith's "Janie's Got A Gun" peaked at #4 on the pop singles chart. On this day in 1997, Sweet's singer, Brian Connolly, died in England of kidney failure at the age of 52. |
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