Kurt Cobain & Eddie Vedder: The Grunge Battle

Kurt Cobain did not hate Eddie Vedder neither did Eddie hated Cobain. Hate is such a strong word to describe what seemed to be a temporary brawl or dispute of interest that happens awfully a lot in the industry. Thus, our cyber Einstein’s had made it their mission to further pursue the subject into the modern century as they drool over the issue for years if not decades. While that is extremely admirable if the intentions are purely focused on keeping the memories alive, but most often than not, the information supplied to the thesis are usually untrue and in some cases are exaggerated beyond the whole biblical truth.

Remember that we have all gone through a phase of ‘devil-may-care’ attitude and some of us has even been beaten for the fortitude. Just like that 23 years ago our dear grunge prince Kurt Cobain and our favourite grunge ambassador Eddie Vedder were kids and that will further testify to the whole ‘life begins at 40s’ ideology. Even if we believe that Vedder grew up way ahead of his years for amassing such a graceful and professional attitude over the whole dispute that was truly nothing to begin with, sometimes some childish behaviour are totally unavoidable.

1991 was the year where Nirvana drove punk in simultaneously pushing the claustrophobic envelope further into the pop shiny spectrum by breaking the barriers of Seattle’s inner layers of subversive music and the lateral universe of rock stardom. The achievement was reached in such biblical ways that it broke out as a pandemonium that was beyond words. But to say that the late frontman of Nirvana, Kurt Cobain was the forefather of Grunge or Punk would truly be an overstatement to the actual thesis for neither, he nor Eddie was the forefather of Grunge. Punk was already there, its seed was already planted, and the ones who planted this would stretch way back in history so for now let’s just stick to the subterranean facts of Seattle underground culture and its propellers who were none other than Andy Wood (January 8, 1966 – March 19, 1990)  Mother Love Bone, Chris Cornell of Soundgarden and Mudhoney among others.

This was evident through their earliest work such as Apple, which was released 3 months (July 1990) after Mother Love Bone’s frontman decease. Mother Love Bone in its inception was predicted to become one of the greatest bands in due time and Andy Wood as the first of the big-league Seattle rock star.

The truth could be that Pearl Jam were one of the first representative of punk rock in its purest form but that does not cut of Nirvana from the scheme as Bleach was the proof to Nirvana’s notability as a very functional band that will lead the whole underground pandemonium to such exceptional heights. While ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ earned its keep in the Nirvana’s vault, Ten did it for Pearl Jam as they continued to uplift the culture forward. However, to the British media’s dismay, NME published an article stating that Pearl Jam was just trying to steal money from young alternative kid’s pockets and  Cobain further instigated the statement with his own version of: Pearl Jam being commercial sellouts and argued that Ten was not a true alternative album because it had to many prominent guitar lead.

Oh well, the so called commercial sell out who were trying to steal money from the young alternative kids pockets actually retreated from limelight and would rather not earn a single keep as long as their fans were being cheated by Ticketmaster who subjected fans to an extra fee for service charges. So yeah, so much for being the commercial sell-out they weren’t.

The publicity shy Eddie Vedder who almost quit music in 1993 due to the intense pressure the band had to face at their prime stated that none of them would be here if it wasn’t for Nirvana. It was to Vedder’s mastery that he took the negative and converted it into such positive vibes that the two finally came into an agreement and the dispute was forever lost.

In a 1992 Interview Kurt Cobain finally stated:

I’m bowing down gracefully and taking off my crown and I’m giving it over to Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. He’s now the representative of the youth of America – October 30, 1992

When asked if he was doing so in favour of his newfound role as a father and husband, he replied:

‘Because Eddie Vedder stole my looks, and wears it better than I’

Oh well, we were all jealous of Eddie Vedder at one point that we could and would all die for his ‘Greek-God’ looks and Golden Baritones as much as his overall charismatic and humble poise. So we can relate to Cobain and his tiny little pang of jealousy towards Vedder when they were both still too young to notice anything below the music they were so engulfed with.

Kurt Cobain on the other hand was just living up to his own words of:

I’d rather be hated for who I am than loved for who I am not.

That seems admirable but he would later come out and say that Eddie was the nicest person in the industry. Thanks Cobain for making us confuse just like you. But as we all know, there was no love lost between the two. It was the kindred spirits kind of dispute that even passes through the relationships of blood brothers. And the story ended well for the two with a solid slow dance and watching the beautiful moment the two shared backstage, we were almost flinching on our seats thinking that even Cobain would end up smooching Eddie that day the was Kiedis did. Poor Eddie got ‘French-ed’ earlier in the day when Anthony Kiedis grabbed him for a lovey-dovey Frenchy’

Eddie Vedder further quotes to the moments below:

You see Kurt looking over and go like this (puts finger to lips) and it’s not saying, ‘Don’t tell anybody’ or ‘Keep the lid on this little private moment.’ It was actually because on the stage above us, Eric Clapton was playing ‘Tears In Heaven’.

Remember Our Band? We So Wanted To Be Nirvana

* You will find this post utterly irrelevant with the title. If you are looking to read about Nirvana, there’s nothing much about the post punk-rock group, this is more than just Nirvana*

Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam) & Chris Cornnel (Soundgarden/Audioslave)

This is a crime towards humanity! Somebody should have told them that it was a sin to look this good and sing the way they did or still do – oh my apocalyptic desires. But brace yourselves coz I’m not here to drool over the beauty’s of these Greek-God lookalikes (not that I know how Greek-God looks like – it’s just an appropriate term to be used) coz I’m here to tell you why music is not lost. (Coming from a misanthrope who once hated rock for a very good reason – you might wanna stay and see what this idiot -me has to say)

Musically I am more inclined to the electronic dance music pandemonium, which is like the new wave for the generation Z and mainly because it leaves behind a good trip. I have come to love music without lyrics because it seems to be like an unbolted boulevard; you can easily stop anywhere you like and make an unexpected turn anytime you want without having rules to tie you down. It’s just the plain flow of  thubp-thubp-thubp-  (tectonically) and that’s it. No hangovers over how sad the lyrics were or how dark it was because it’s simple and there’s no need to freight over the unparalleled promises of trying to break the whole ‘Da Vinci’s’ code in the lyrics.

Once in awhile, should the need arise, then Korn, Slipknot, Avenged Sevenfold, Deftones, Disturbed, Jim Gordon, David Draimen and stuff like that does it for me. The dark undertone of the musical base is far easier to comprehend and the amount of screaming blurbs out the whole lyrical density. It’s plain and straight to the point, they tell you ‘Dead Bodies Lying Everywhere’, and you get dead bodies everywhere and take that straight up your mind and don’t expect prince charming coming to dig their graves because he has such a good heart. No, it does not happen here because it’s outwardly rebellious type of music and I like it.  And yes I dig Manson as well due the sheer power of his vocal tones and not the overall package. Even darkness needs effort and can’t be forced on an individual if they don’t want to. Giving where credit is due, I don’t care if he wants to be the angel or demon of this inferior world. In a democratic sense of thoughts, it’s his wish and I don’t give a flying pink pig about that. Man is grown up he knows what is right and what is wrong and I’m not gonna face God on behalf of him. What I know is that there’s a certain power in his voice and an intense gravity that would even chase the wolves back into the woods. So there is that much-deserved praises for the vocal ability he possess.

My deteriorating interest in rock music was due to the fact that it kept a touchstone of poignant melancholy and the tragic tales of a superior past that sometimes tend to break your heart all over again and this is why it’s just so hard to go back and listen to certain notable groups such as Nirvana. Here I am, someone who was all alone growing up, constantly described as a dark child with dark mind and a package that would not live pass 25. I was rotting in the solid chambers of my own peculiar dreams for having such a distorted providence, no friends, just the whole fucking imaginary existence where the devil drops by to have a cup of evening tea. As the story goes, when that happens, you tend to always resort to drugs to find that momentary peace but I found Nirvana.

Remember Our Band, We So Wanted To Be Nirvana But We Had To Many Rhythm Guitars – Andy Esoteric (*sad face*) 

This is what my dead vocalist said before we found him lifeless in the bath tub of some opulent mansion we rented for the week for surfing purposes and if we could find some inspiration while watching the sun set and enjoying the zephyr of the late evening.

Cold in the final phase of his withering propensity of a life, which by the way was brutally ended by heroin addiction; took away my childhood friend who once understood the whole life in the dark enigma of my existence; so much bullshit for quitting, such a beautiful love story in the making. We were a bunch of outcast, sad delinquents who supposedly found some kind of hope and life in music. Dear dead vocalist uncle was our prime time hero since he was from the dungeons of Seattle, growing up in that scene; he knew everything, even all the dealers in Aurora. That was the lifestyle. Dude’s uncle introduced us to Nirvana and Bleach was the very first record I had the pleasure of owning. I never knew how Kurt Cobain looked like, how Krist and Dave looked like, hell I didn’t even know how Vedder and Cornnel looked like or else I would have died a very long time ago and went to heaven. Such innocent and beautiful faces but then I am glad coz I’m not someone who listened to their craft because I admired their faces. Na-ah, that’s not how you appreciate music.

Bleach

Bleach was on heavy rotation when we were together, high on multiple substance, never once thinking how we are going to die in this place, all alone till our rotting flesh attracts the flies that would call a good Samaritans attention so our dead bodies could be discovered. Dark, isn’t it? Oh please, Macbeth is even darker; don’t hear you complaining about that.

Ten – Pearl Jam

Not long after that, came ‘Nevermind’, ‘Ten’ and so much more and suddenly the loneliness faded, strange it was because I dint understand how songs that was fuelled with sheer poignancy had the ability to strike a chord in our minds until we raised these 90s lords into God’s of the new punk era. There was this connection that was beyond words, it traveled through universal ‘kalams’ and brought back a certain hope that allowed us to continue living, not die in our teens because maybe just maybe, this is not the wasted life, this is not how it’s suppose to be. Well, Kurt Cobain died. So yah, so much for that.

I remember how upset I was when I first heard the news that I OD’d (I survived) because it was wrong for me to build hope on music. No one cared, no one will, not even music. All alone again, in this space where no sound could change the devastation that has made a settlement in the heart, I threw away all of Nirvana’s records even the ones that I bought after going on a hungers strike because I was just a kid still in school and my parents would not allow me to listen to rock music. Everything had to go and everything went down the bin that day. I totally went Jimmy Page, never picked up the guitar again, never played another record and just went into an isolated state of mind. You think friends would be kind, yah.. I thought as well but there they were not feeling an inch of guilt or sadness and made fun of me day in day out for being extremely upset about something that no human could avoid. Ok, i understand that but what i don’t understand is the concept of committing suicide? (which now, i don’t believe he did but I also don’t believe Love killed him, i don’t think she’s capable of all that. She needs to apply her mascara properly first than only we can talk)  Jeez.. Witness the prejudice in me. Truth is we are all suicidal everyday of our lives and truth is stranger than fiction so it’s harder to look at ourselves in that spectrum. The pack with death comes through the usage of illegal substance, speeding on the road, fighting with unknown stranger, alcohol bender, committing felony and endless bla..bla… bla. But it’s ok, we are the clandestine decadents and our lives do not end up on TV, so we can judge.

I came from a household that imposed strict regulations and demanded rigorous adherence so we could render our utmost dedication towards our educations so we could becomes the Prime Ministers of some imaginary country on the outskirts of Africa. So much for that could I ended up eating my homework’s. We only watch TV at certain times, which by the way was cut short to like just an hour a day, strict no music policy in the system plus having to down celery sticks everyday in life as part of a healthy diet. My mind was so full of acid, a thousand celery sticks won’t do it justice.  I believe their intentions were good but they were never around and never had time and so the usual happened. The obsessive rules made me a nihilist and pushed me back to a place where I found souls that were similar to me; the friends who I believe didn’t really care but would accept me nonetheless. At least here i was not alone.

I Found them jamming to Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Mudhoney, Alice In Chains and Temple Of The Dog. It was so funny because it’s quite impossible to sing Jeremy or Alive or Hunger Strike, because the songs took a different tone in one structure. Trying to imitate the singer was like sitting through Macbeth in a totally confused era while desperately hoping that Mickey Mouse or Donald Duck will just appear in time to rescue you before you are eternally consumed by the demons that made the Macbeth’s tragedy.  The songs were made in ways that only the virtuosos could bring these songs to life. But we tried anyway, where hope is lost, we need to find something to hold on to and here we found Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains and Soundgarden. Slowly the devastation took a hiatus as we started rehearsing to these songs as if we had a done-deal record deal happening in 2 days time that would guarantee our own futures as the future rock stars. We were playing tribute to Nirvana since I loved Love Buzz from Bleach. I found Cobain to be at the core of his efforts in Bleach. The voice was there, no doubt, but if you listen carefully you can also hear, that he haven’t yet developed a full grip on his baritone. So the efforts were not forced into him, he had time to established his capabilities in due time. The drums however were extremely annoying but please note it wasn’t Chad Channing‘s on the drums at that specific recording time.

Despite all the vile rumours, I always found ‘In Utero’ as a final effort; like a farewell album. True, the artist always says that the lyrics means nothing and despite his words, there’s always something in between and when the time is right, you would know. You would be able to reach to the principle core of that structure and find that cryptogram in the song. In Utero was a desperate attempt to break the barrier from Nevermind and in just 3 short years, the group has gone through a lot to understand the expectations of the masses. It was to break the tie of teenage angst since all of them were not all that young anymore and that label somehow had to go. He even declared the teenage divorce was such a bore and told his dad that he wasn’t angry with him anymore, so there’s that to comprehend. Let the little cyber Einstein’s break the code, all the best.

Kurt Cobain was the master of his own games, he left a subtle ambience in a theatrical surrounding so he could bait you into digging, deeper than life, deeper than anything else. There was your Hansel in the Gretel story and the hints dropped through music. Regardless,  I chose two songs out of that album and All Apologies became our permanent anthem whenever we were jamming and pretending to play at some imaginary concert or just Lollapalooza.  However it wasn’t ‘All Apologies’ that hit close to home it was Would? from Alice In Chains. This song brought us places and the whole band felt it. There was a strong connection of life and lost that was closer to our own state of dementia, it was a production of an artist at his highest and lowest crux, laced in melancholy and forewarnings, it was the beautiful mystification of Layne Staley. His ability of reaching out and bear his soul to his audience. It vibrated the nerves that feel into submission and this song became a personal favourite for years and years and years and maybe until the day I’m no more. Layne’s passing hit me hard, so hard that I lost hope in music. I never wanted to go back to rock or punk-rock the way our inception had it. Never again would I look back with a simple smile of ecstasy or utmost delirium at the 90s because all of my hopes were broken and sealed with tragedies.

The thoughts of Layne Staley would bring tears to my eyes, and I felt worst because I wasn’t able to curse him and fuck him to the core for leaving us behind. People would kill to have the rare kind of voice he did, hell people have tried to imitate him without success. To me, Layne Staley was the last one standing.

He left with this and even when Cantrell was the one was writing this with Layne, I guess we all knew Layne’s direction back then, we just didn’t expect that the tragedy would have such an impact that it will leave us with emotional desertion. It was exhausting to carry such heavy burden at that time knowing there won’t be anything to look forward to anymore:

Know me, broken by my master
Teach thee, on child of love hereafter
Into the floods again,
same old trip it was back then,
So I made a big mistake,
Try to see it once my way

(oh hold on, I need to grab some tissues!!)

Now, it feels like a different lifetime, as if I have slept throughout centuries just to be awoken from cascading thoughts in a superior dream. I came back to where I belonged, to a place where I first saw the light of life despite the darkness of overwhelming need to end life once and for all. I returned to music, to the golden era where music held no boundaries as I search for the pick of destiny that I have lost in between. (A year before, I met Scorpion at the immigration and the lead singer gave me a guitar pick, which I so admirably lost coz I’m great at loosing things. Perhaps it awoken my senses, I wouldn’t know)

It was in the year 2000 I finally knew how Cobain looked like, and how the rest looked like in their prime. The stupor and the pristine vibes, they all looked like million dollar babies, all too glamorous without anything that extravagant but plain T’s, ripped denims, shorts, shirtless or jackets while trying hard not to be the rock stars they already were. It was that simplicity that made those times all the more exciting. Wealth was in the heart and not from the clothes they had on.

Music was truly beautiful back then, so much energy and so much youth, there it was ready for the taking, a virgin at the edge of her seat, waiting for the love from her exuberant dreams, pure, honest and unprecedented commitment to the one holy thing; MUSIC.

Punk-rock was not freedom. Punk-rock was honest, when rock stars were not trying to be rock stars, when music build a connection; from the artist voice straight into the fans heart. It was the times when we could relate to them without feeling low in our own little existent and that’s what they gave us; the principle core of chords, sounds, deliverance and performance. Music was at its highest zenith in the 90s, not before and not after. You don’t get to see that anymore. (The only person I wouldn’t dare compare music with is Elvis, he would remain as the genuine art of our recent history)

When I first saw this picture shown by an enthusiastic fan, I almost suffered a cardiac arrest and went into an epileptic speech of ‘fuck, no way, you gotta to be kidding me,fuck no way man, na-ah, fuck’ and another 100 fucks before saying, ‘you mean to tell me that this dude sang Jeremy? That voice came from this dude?’

After this we went on a You Tube bender (MTV, your 1 mil view could have come from me alone, so that’s all) Watching Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains at that time, after about 7 years my love for rock died, I couldn’t believe that I left my first love astray. How did I give up on music so easily when I still had the likes of Eddie Vedder and Chris Cornell who kept the spirit going since 1991 or before.

When I saw how Cornell looked like in his youth, I had a series of epileptic seizures. I have been listening to them since I was a child and never once knew how these virtuosos looked like coz I never needed to. Their music alone send me to cathartic fury, let alone knowing they looked like this, I would have died a million times and come back just to die again. (I do mention die a lot don’t I? don’t worry I have no interest in dying so soon, and I hope my feeling are mutual with God. Life aint that straight yet, but since I’ve passed 25, I might just repair some open valves as I pay my dues)

Hmm.. really? hmmm… is there a time machine? I would like to have one please, I wanna go back to the 90s and not in my school uniform but as a grown up teenager who could actually go to rock concerts and __________. (fill in the blanks with anything that comes to you mind and I believe that would start with an S..)

So this article was meant to tell you that: EDDIE VEDDER AND CHRIS CORNELL IS THE ONLY HOPE I HAD LEFT IN MUSIC, AND A VESSEL TO THE PRIMITIVE PAST, THE GLORIOUS ERA OF THE 90S WHERE PUNK FIRST TOOK ITS INCEPTION!!

They are here, they are alive and they’re still rocking it in the true spirits of 1991. It’s been a true honour and such a huge privilege to know and see Eddie Vedder together with Pearl Jam and Chris Cornell together with Soundgarden evolve throughout times. They are the testament of true musical ecstasy that keeps reminding you that there is something good left in music. Of course there’s other bands like ‘Foo Fighters’ but I was angry that Dave would start a band so soon in the wake of Kurt Cobain’s death but dude got eat yo! That’s one reason to why I never truly digested FF and the image of Dave Grohl was forever tarnished in my heart. But I don’t feel like that anymore. I came in terms with that too. I guess when we are young it’s easier to blame everyone and even the universe than to take responsibility for our own actions and misguided attentions.

Out of my acid mind, I am a writer for both EDM and rock music, former editor, freelance photographer, former flight attendant, director of one independent movie, a graphic designer, and on my way in publishing my first book through my own misgivings and dyslexic state of existence. Today I have the music of the past to remind me, not all of us die young from our misadventures because God was kind enough to give us another shot at life so we can live to pay our dues. Today I get excited looking at how Eddie Vedder was rock n’ roll’s very own stuntman, this boy back then had no sense of fear as he confronted danger heads on and hit the bulls eye every single fucking time. Thank God the live shows were recorded so at least memories wont be lost in time. All the stage diving and intensity, the whole climbing was the very edge that made rock so fucking exciting. My nerves have erections when I watch all those videos and I’m not even a dude.

I see Cornell on the stage thumping his way around, stretching to the end of the spectrum to deliver his art and here is the testament to the very core of what would never die. Chris is the lyrical poet to me in the shadows of the The Doors late front man, Jim Morrison minus the hanky-panky stuff. (Oh you know, the constant black outs, the fainting on the stage and etc)  Jim Morrison was a Titanic of emotions and with only one song, he could deliver up to thousands of bottled emotions that come exploding like comets, unicorns, fireworks into the universe and Chris is the next best thing to that ethos.

Chris Cornnel is one of the greatest songwriters in the world and in the recent century. The stage was like a sonic battleground for him where all his gutsy rampage came out in volumes. He made rock so damn cool with his overbearing swagger. (Sorry Jagger!)

I have avoided naming pure mortals God’s for years now just because sometimes the pressure can be intense and we never know that our expectations could kill them instead of building them. Of course they are icons and embellished with extraordinary gifts but as humans, they are also prone to making mistakes like the rest of us. There must be space and we must allow mistakes to be done just so we could learn, not that I’ve seen any mistakes from them because their personal interest me not at all.

So to not dip below the surface, here are the Mozarts and Beethovens of the new generation who kept music pure and honest. There was no pretentions, no dramatic overvalue, no barriers but just pure fun and good vibes all around. They gave us music during our own adolescent and for that I have come to acknowledge the pure bile and charisma and the very reason rock is still pretty much alive today.

As for my other heroes, Cobain and Staley, who are we to judge if heaven is too heavy for anyone, that’s not our task neither it is within rights. How do we know that heaven is not heavy for us? How do we know the true stories of their minds throughout their own loneliness and isolations and what brought them to where they were. So for the lack of appreciation thrown in the way of the very people who build the holy foundation of post punk-rock, thank you for having the courage to face this world of idiots and imbeciles who were never content, who gave little and expected much, because in between them, there were us, who appreciated you not for the way you looked or because the trend demanded us to uplift you as the god’s of the new generation but we were the ones who appreciated you because of what you brought to the melody that left us with hope so we could arrive ever so fashionably into this century thanking God for the privilege of being the 90s children.

It’s easy to get lost in this world; life is fashioned to work that way. It’s hard to understand it when you are a child, harder when you have no one there but always remind yourself tomorrow might end up better than today and pause for awhile so you can gather your thoughts and just hit play. Run through an extremely generous greatest set that revisits every chapter of their legacy because when the 90s arrived, the hearts were wild, minds were young and music was the only thing high on the agenda.

RIP

Andy Woods (Mother Love Bone)
Hillel Slovak (RHCP)
Kurt Cobain (Nirvana)
Doug Hopkins (Gin Blossom)
Kristen Pfaff (Hole)
Kent Montgomrey (D.O.A)
Shannon Hoon (Blind Melon)
Bradley Nowell (Sublime)
Jonathan Melvoin (Smashing Pumpkins)
John Baker Saunders (Mad Season)
Layne Staley (Alice in Chains)

… and all that was left unmentioned. Thank you for the music.

Yours truly – Acid Tongue

Even Rock Stars Gets Lonely Sometimes

The status ‘rock star’  itself can bring an earth shattering stroke to it largely due to the fact that it is a hard-earned and well received prestige. It’s like the triumph after a long race, the final trophy of success and most importantly a sign of security and relief. Every musician starts by trying to sell his art, share his talents and hope for some gratitude in return. It becomes a long and painful journey to arrive at a place where they feel comfortable in their own skin and once that is achieved, they have to dig deeper into their creative minds and produce an effort that they can only hope would match or stamp out  their earlier provisions. That falls in the line of maintenance, which in its own form is another kind of art, harder to tame and  even harder to manage.

They perform to thousands of spectators, endure endless of tours, insinuate their heart and soul to their craft to satisfy their fans and in doing so sometimes loose something in between without realising it. When they take a stage for performances, they adapt to the atmosphere and give themselves away in a sense of pure ecstasy fuelled by animated fans that are always hoping for a great show. No one knows what they are going through at that particular time or what they are hiding behind their smiles but the show must go on and for that reason alone, whatever problems they may be facing are cast aside.

They may or may not return to their world after the night has ended and the stadium has been cleared, but every once in awhile a friction of the sadness they carry within gets caught on camera. A moment of loneliness appears humble in their frames, like the cursory gush of an unexpected wind, a passing thread in the path of the luminous spotlights and most often than not disappears in a blink of an eye. We might not be able to catch it but at times, their appearances, eyes and body languages tends to tell a very different story. Here are some of the loneliest pictures caught on camera that somehow managed to capture a moment of sheer reality of the performer’s pain in the landscape of technology, freezing the moment of a subjective melancholy that has been projected into the atmosphere without them realising it. We list some of the most memorable and beautiful relics of the past when an artistic genius is caught in his momentary loneliness or maybe just a sense of despair.

1. Kurt Cobain of Nirvana 

So remember, it’s better to burn out than fade away.

At just 24, Nirvana’s frontman Kurt Cobain became the biggest star in the world, a spokes person for an entire generation, managed to change the rule book of radio bangers and in just 3 short years of his musical majesty, lost his life at 27. Exploding out of the Seattle underground scene where many of the early 90s seminal punk-rock band first took their stance, Nirvana erupted on the mainstream arena through their breakthrough lead single ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’  from their most notable second studio album, Nevermind in 1991. However the fame and vast attention that was placed on the band especially on its founding member and principle song writer, Kurt Cobain deposited him in an uncomfortable position. He become more reclusive and started denying his new-found fame through the display of certain careless antics. Following an endless struggle with media and addiction, which was heavily accompanied by chronic sickness that brutally engulfed his fragile state every now and then throughout his short life, the journey for the Nirvana’s vocalist ended on the unfaithful day of 5 April 1994, when Kurt Cobain took a bullet to his name. The public’s interest towards Cobain sparks a huge debate until today and it just goes to show how the candles are still burning bright in his name.

2. Sid Vicious of The Sex Pistols

I got this feeling I’m gonna die before I get old. I don’t know why. I just have this feeling.

The forefather of grunge passed away sometime in 1979 only a year after his Juliet, Nancy Spungen’s death in early 1978. Nancy was the life of 21-year-old Sid as he was to the late Nancy. Sid Vicious, the infamous bassist of The Sex Pistols’ does not need any further introduction, one look at the mass exploitation of his 3 decade old images would be able to conclude major parts of his life. The creator of the exalted ‘pogo dance’, Sid made his lush debut with Sex Pistols in the era that was ruled by the Iron Lady. Rising to the occasion with aplomb, The Sex Pistols created their own little nihilists who ran around causing mass destruction as intended. Sid took the stage spotting self mutilated wounds, heavily plastered arms trying to conceal heroin marks and would often engage in vicious fights at every gig the boys had the pleasure of gracing through their short reign. More famously known for the hype than the talent, his schizophrenic junkie American girlfriend was found dead from a stab wound in Chelsea Hotel where they have been staying since they arrived in The States. Sid was held as the prime suspect to her murder pending an investigation that was never completed following his own death within a year, which was the courtesy of his own mother, Anne Beverly. Their twisted love story would have made an encompassing theatrical trade should Shakespeare still be alive today for their love was as fascinating as it was dangerous. Was he truly the bad boy of punk? Or just a boy who got lost in the chaotic side of his own existence, desperate to love and be loved and at the end of time met another lost soul just like him. Indeed, our very own twisted love story that 3 decades after today will still be told by the new and future generation.

3. JIM MORRISON OF THE DOORS

Love cannot save you from your own fate.

Hey Lizard King, wake up! Put on some show for us, we want the ‘riders on the storm’ to show us what is so wrong with this life and what is it that you have been searching for all your life. Another casualty at 27 years old tells a very odd story of life laced with an otherwise enigma. Fronting The Doors as lead vocalist, Jim boy has also famously been noted as an extraordinary poet since his poetries has been immortalised in books becoming best sellers for modern day mystery seekers. Morrison left for Paris with wife/girlfriend Pamela and was spotted looking for a spot where he intended to be buried when he dies. Strange enough that a man who is unsure of his destiny to know exactly where he would die. So, did he truly die that day? If yes, why was the news kept private through a media blackout? No one saw his body, not his tour manager, not his band member and close buddy, the late Ray Manzarek or even his parents but only his late wife who also died at the age of 27 from an alleged heroin overdose and a doctor who refused to be interviewed until the day he too met his maker. Many tales has been told about our beautiful Mojo Raisin, another moniker he had assumed during his wild days. Took a hiatus from the band, left for Paris and now eternally resting at a famous shrine in the city of love and romance. One thing is for sure, trust the man for a theatrical show and a fully-loaded emotional deliverance. ‘Celebration Of The Lizard’ is enough of a testament to Morrison’s ability in placing his magnifying curse on his spectators. A  goose-bumps, and hair-raising listen, definitely.

4. JOHN FRUSCIANTE OF RED HOT CHILLI PEPPER 

Something like trying to protect yourself all the time, things like trying to outwit fate. Those things can be the worst thing you can do for yourself.

Remember him? Let us jump start your memory a little bit. By now you must know Red Hot Chilli Peppers who had a vast catalog of hits during their time of supremacy. With initial members, Hillel Slovak (guitarist) passing from an alleged heroin overdose and Jack Iron’s founding member of RHCP leaving the band for not being able to cope with Slovak’s untimely death, Frusciante took over the guitar duties from his previous ‘guru’, Slovak. Frusciante was the cute, adorable and sexy looking punk with skinhead cut spotting a pink ponytail who was definitely a fresh addition to the group and fresher disposition to the fans. But Frusciante playing style was somehow unlike Slovak, which drove the group to incorporate with the heavy sounds he was able to produce and perhaps that was how some brilliant tunes came out from the group’s unprecedented archives. Too much happened too fast and RHCP’s fame and popularity skyrocketed in such a short time that they lost the grip on the time vehicle. Frusciante became depressed with all the attention and committed to Heroin bender, so bad till his veins collapsed as seen through many of his previous images. Here he is spotting a melancholy so deep that the pain could almost be felt deep in our hearts. He had that deep set of eyes, the windows to his soul that often dance and flirted with the camera but never to strong, just mild enough to steal your heart and question your mind about why was there such a sadness in his beautiful persona. Oh well, right now, he has gone on to producing solo materials and we are just glad to know, that we did not loose another celebrated artist to the shameless predator who has killed many of our beloved talents.

5. JOHN LENNON OF THE BEATLES 

Guilt for being rich, and guilt thinking that perhaps love and peace isn’t enough and you have to go and get shot or something.

John Lennon once said that The Beatles were bigger than Jesus, while this was way back in the days when The Beatles were truly bigger than Rock n’ Roll as manifested by some, it seems Lennon lived long enough to pay the price of his so called words. Beatles are commemorated in the history as legends and it’s a suiting stature for the lads who broke the barriers between two cultures ultimately creating the ‘British Invasion’ pandemonium along the way. In the rock doctrine Beatles easily falls at number two below Elvis of course, but where cultural collision is concerned than they are at the top of the game in this recent century – a status that has not been defeated and never will.  What Beatles’s created was something that was never before seen for the American audience and at the time they left Heathrow, which was their second entry into the American soil, a few hundred fans gathered to bid them goodbye and good luck in taking over the Eagle of the universe. And true enough, they took over in such style that they left every Tom, Dick and Harry getting the Arthur’s hair cut. But as legends has it, they parted ways and it all happened after Yoko’s entry into the Beatle’s legendary front man’s life. Unfortunately, Lennon got shot in 1980 and left this world with a historical touchstones that will forever go on in his name and legacy. We are not the one to preach about religion but if only Lennon has put it in some other ways, The Beatles being the Jesus of Rock n’ Roll would make a far more composing title for the Beatles.  

6. LAYNE STALEY OF ALICE IN CHAINS 

I’ve always looked for the perfect life to step into. I’ve taken all the paths to get where I wanted.But no matter where I go, I still come home to me.

Layne was the frontman of the 90s seminal punk-rock band, Alice In Chains, which he started with Jerry Cantrel in Seattle during the ultimate grunge era. Layne left us in 2002 at the age of 32 after his decomposing remains was discovered at his condominium courtesy of a tip-off from his accountant that noticed he hasn’t withdrawn any money from his account for two weeks. Layne Staley’s death was fixed on the 5th of April giving Seattle more than one artistic genius to mourn over since it was the same day that Kurt Cobain passed away in 1994. It left many fans feeling devastated and the heartbreak was so intense, we almost gave up hope in music. Layne had that punk-rock bile and charisma that was extremely contagious and a voice that was superlative, transcending and incomparable. The prince of grunge carried style like poise for film score and emotions that could echo until the end of time. Unfortunately, he was too lonely in this world that he created for himself and for a boy who spent all his magnificent talent searching for his father, he made the ultimate wish in meeting the devil himself.

7. EDDIE VEDDER OF PEARL JAM 

At a certain point, you realize you have a responsibility more behind yourself and your need for adrenaline. I’m glad I did things in my 20s that were more reckless.

Eddie Vedder is the front man of Pearl Jam, ever so stunning in his youth as he is now continues to deliver extraordinary momentum in everything he produces, which reminds us, here is a living legend of our own teenage prime times. Exploding on the mainstream circuit with their first album, Ten, Eddie Vedder was one that would and could not miss the sight. Pearl Jam however became extremely remorse towards the attention that was bestowed upon them shortly after they became overly well known in their own respect. The pressure however was far more intense on Vedder as his golden baritones and exotically good-looks came into focus raising him as the new God of punk-rock. First of all let us stress this again and again because once is never enough, he was and still is painstakingly beautiful and second you would not believe that the voice came from the boy you saw (like, did you listen to Jeremy and Alive and all of Pearls Jam’s songs?). And while you were trying to digest that fact, he shocked you again and again by becoming rock n’ roll’s very own stuntman. Taking a dive into the mob like a super hero, Vedder was a tornado of movement and buoyancy and his frequent jumping and flying around constantly placed him in a risk of decapitation (wires on stage are dangerous). But for those who has seen him throughout his live performances, would not argue that he gave us a mindless act of raw emotions that was packed with thrilling intensity. He was never for the fame but always for the people, music and fans.

8. JIMI HENDRIX OF THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE 

It’s funny how most people love the dead, once you’re dead your made for life.

Another son of Seattle that succumb to an early death and became a resident member of the infamous Club 27 was Jimi Hendrix. Born Johnny Allen Hendrix, the 27 year old is hailed as the greatest musician and the principal guitarist of our time. Jimi found his fame and footing in the UK and honourable mention should go to Paul McCartney of the Beatles who first saw Jimi performing and other celebrated UK rock stars who stood in Jimi’s favour. Even before the big interference and overwhelming support from his contemporaries, the British media already gave Jimi Hendrix a solid review up to an extend of quoting him as the ‘Black Elvis’ and ‘Wild Man Of Borneo’. If you must know (we believe you already do), he could play guitar with his tongue, his teeth, back wards, upwards and in any position you wish he would plus he had the niche of setting his guitar in flames on stage as a demonstration of sacrifice. On McCartney’s insistent, Jimi was added to the Monterey International Pop Festival as the Beatle’s former suggested that the festival would not be complete if Jimi was not part of the line up. Jimi became the highest paid musician in the world in 1969, a year before his death in 1970.  Jimi had his fair share of brushes with the law but one that comes in focus is when he was apprehended at the airport for hashish and heroin possession. Jimi however denied that the illicit drugs belonged to him and cited that a fan might have placed it in his luggage without him realising it but the whole scenario was brought to the court nevertheless.  Jimi was later found not guilty and was released from the charges by a panel of juries. Besides that, Jimi was also often caught in the middle of violent streaks and many suggested that it was a result of his excessive drinking. The celebrated genius was found dead by his then girlfriend, Monika Dannemann with whom he was living with in the UK at the time. Dannemann killed herself several years later, a day before she was scheduled to appear in court for chargers brought on to her by another previous girlfriend of Jimi. 

9. JANIS JOPLIN @ PEARL 

On stage I make love to twenty five thousand people; and then I go home alone.

The late 1970s received not only one huge blow but two in less than 1 month frame. Shortly after Jimi Hendrix was declared dead in his UK apartment, our rock princess followed him at the age of 27 fundamentally making her yet another member of the 27 Club. Janis or Pearl as she was famously known among close friends was a Texas-born singer, painter and music arranger who rose to prominence through her solo career by charting 5 singles and a few other songs in the 1960s. She became well-known for her on stage persona that was electrifying, giving all out as she took the audience into a psychedelic end and leaving them hollering for an encore at the end of every performance. Janis during her time was noted as ‘The Queen of Psychedelic Soul’; a befitting title for her star charisma. Janis’s heroin addiction wasn’t anything new as she has also once took the stage in Woodstock while she was heavily influenced by dope that she had shot prior to the show. Even when she was strung out and having difficulties on focusing on the performance, she managed to leave the audience gasping for more. Janis was found dead in her hotel room after she failed to show up for a recording session and her cause of death was ruled out as alleged heroin overdose. Her death was announced exactly 16 days after Jimi Hendrix and there were reasons to believe that the heroin purity that was supplied to Janis was much more powerful than the one she was used to since a few other customers of the same dealer also overdosed in the same week. The Foxy psychedelic queen left $2,500 in her will for a wake party in the event of her demise.

10. ELVIS PRESLEY

Until we meet again, may God bless you as he has blessed me.

What’s lonely about this picture, it’s just Elvis with some elderly woman? Yes, the elderly woman in this picture is his mother and what we are missing is that moments of intimacy like this has become fundamentally rare these days. Like John Lennon once said; as usual, behind every idiot there’s a woman and for Elvis this was the woman in his life, was and will always be. In the history of rock n’ roll, we often forget to thank this woman for giving birth to a legend and the reason behind our rock n roll king’s first step to stardom. Elvis that we came to know was always so posh and extravagant, throwing money at his fans, giving them diamond ring, buying Cadillac’s for his staff but he wasn’t always the rich boy that we had the pleasure of knowing. Our legend started of with such poverty, that it would hurt those who knew how his childhood was. But he was blessed for having a mother and father who loved him so much and made a decent man out of him. You will never find another rock star like Elvis in this century, he was made only once in this lifetime and many of his sadness, depression and frustration started after the passing of the only woman he had love dearly in his life. May both mother and son have found each other in the ulterior universe. We remember one thing so fondly, the first time Elvis set out to become a musician, he was actually looking to record a song he has previously written for his mother. In his was to present a gift for the woman who went through thick and thin to raise him as the future superstar, she led him to his ultimate destiny. 

From The: Compilation Of Acid-Tounge Desk

Grunge Personified: The Many Faces Of Eddie Vedder

For the generation-X, the 90s was an ultimate musical era, priceless experience, great music and good vibes all around. Seattle became a veritable conveyor belt to some of world’s finest musical exports such as Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, and more. The cultural influences help shaped the early grunge era into the international platform simultaneously making it one of the most celebrated genres of recent history. While the world was craving for a musical conversion, Seattle underground music scene was already budding with a new music dimension while witnessing the birth of the modern day rock stars and the imposing resurgence of the grunge culture. Names like Chris Cornell, Eddie Vedder, Kurt Cobain, Layne Staley and more were already building a fortress of tunes ready to take over the world at the first light of the day. While Nirvana became the first all-imposing grunge band to rise to fame, they succeeded in pushing the claustrophobic envelope further and opened up the doors for their fellow contemporaries to push the marks of grunge culture further into the lustrous rock spectrum. One of the most memorable band of the early 90s circa that came from the Seattle underground scene was Pearl Jam and no doubt is still one of the biggest name in the rock dominion

Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament of Green River together with Malfunkshun’s vocalist, Andrew Wood or most commonly known as Andy Wood were the founding members of the early Seattle punk-rock band, Mother Love Bone in 1987. They quickly established themselves as firm favourites of the Seattle underground scene and became an attractive package to further push the subterranean sounds to the mainstream arena. However the band only managed to release one album, Apple and was disbanded following Andy Wood‘s death from heroin overdose in 1990 at the age of 23. Apple is sometimes regarded as the early influences of the punk-rock initial emergence in the Seattle underground and Andy Wood as the forefather of the grunge movement.

Andy Wood – Landrew The Seattle’s Sweetheart.

 

Gossard and Ament were devastated by Wood’s death and parted ways but got back together after Mike McCready persuaded Gossard to do so. The three boys eventually got together and were looking to complete the band as soon as they found a drummer and vocalist. They made a demo tape and passed it to Jack Irons, the founding member of Red Hot Chili Pepper hoping that Irons would be interested to join them as the drummer. Iron who left Red Hot Chili Pepper following the death of band member, Hillel Slovak from a heroin overdose in 1988 passed on the offer but handed the demo tape over to his basketball buddy, a Californian-based musician and vocalist from the band Bad Radio, Eddie Vedder. Vedder recorded his vocals on three songs Alive, Once and Footsteps on the demo tape and sent it back. Gossard, Ament and McCready were impressed with Vedder‘s vocals and flew him down to Seattle for an audition that became the start of Vedder‘s successful career as one of rock n roll’s golden child. The band initially took the name Mookie Blaylock but settled on Pearl Jam.

While waiting for the band to be completed, Chris Cornell of  Soundgarden  invited the trio to become a part of Temple Of The Dog that was form as a tribute to Andy Wood who was Cornell’s room mate. The boys started to practise songs written by Cornell as well as some existing materials written by Gossard and Ament. The band was completed once Matt Cameron joined as the drummer. Temple Of The Dog released a self-title effort in 1991 with Eddie Vedder singing a duet with Chriss Cornell on Hunger Strike and providing backing vocals for some other songs.

Following the release of Temple Of The Dog’s album, all members  went back to their  respective bands and Pearl Jam entered the studio to start recording their own materials. Pearl Jam first came to its lush debut in 1991 following the success of their first studio album, Ten. Some of Ten singles became the early testaments of Pearl Jam‘s capability as a rock band and further propelled its creators to the mainstream success. The group became one of the most highly regarded bands of the 90s simultaneously securing them as one of the most ferocious and top contenders of the punk-rock dominion.

However, the band’s initial debut was heavily latched with controversies, which first started with being criticised by British media NME as the band who was stealing money from their fans while highly acclaimed rivals and fellow contemporary band member Kurt Cobain from Nirvana claimed that Pearl Jam was sell outs and Ten wasn’t an alternative band for having too many guitar leads. The dispute between the two Seattle based grunge bands was just a drop in the bucket as the dispute faded as the band’s notoriety became more established. Pearl Jam embarked on an extensive tour in support of Ten, which further integrated the band’s success mostly due to the band’s infectious energy and onstage persona during live performances.

With no attention in settling the core, the band once again provoked publicity following their 1992 MTV award wins for the track Jeremy that secured Pearl Jam as the winners of Video Of The Year and Best Group Video. Pearl Jam refused to make a video for the track ‘Black’ despite the heavy pressure from the record label. Following ‘Jeremy‘s’ success, the band opted for fewer interviews and television appearances, which was one of the major contributing factors in band’s success at that time. It was a ballsy move to let your record to do all the talking but with the band’s extensive craftsmanship and deliverance, it could be classified as a heroic move.

The band’s outstanding success, fame and popularity placed them in a discomforting position with the pressure falling intensely on the band’s front man, Eddie Vedder. The band’s frontman was often compared to his former contemporaries such as Jim Morrison and Pete Townshend who carried the band’s vigour through his theatrical impact and fascinating persona. In 1994, the band started a waging war with Ticketmasters after finding out that the ticket vendor has overcharged Pearl Jam‘s concert goers by indicting a service charge to the ticket prices. Pearl Jam aimed to keep the ticket prices low for their fans and was unhappy towards Ticketmasters and eventually started a denunciation act towards the ticket vendor. The vendor however refused to changed its policy to waive the service change that resulted in concert cancellation by Pearl Jam and further refusal to play at any venue that had a partnership with Ticketmaster.

For a band whose initial emergence in the music network was often regarded as rip-offs, Pearl Jam was willing to bend over backwards so their fans were not being ripped off by some irresponsible vendors. For a band that was so fond in doing extensive tours and live shows, the band went up to the level of cancelling concerts in protest to the injustice it sighted against its followers.

In 1993, Pearl Jam released its second studio album, Vs. and set the record for most copies of an album sold in its first week of release ultimately surpassing all other entrees on Billboard’s Top 10 list that week combined. Vs managed to hold the forth for 5 years until it was exceeded in 1998.

It has been a long and endless fight for Pearl Jam and for a band that has hit every stumbling block over the last 2 decades, it’s extremely impressive to witness the history of Pearl Jam as the masters of ceremony still reigns heigh on the map. The band’s front man Eddie Vedder has remained as one of the reasons why we continued believing in music and became our vessel to the past, where great times were build, music was angry but undeniably beautiful and the sincerity in musicians made everything far more enjoyable. Even through endless streak of tragedies that has overcast the rock n roll books, Eddie has outlived all the stigmata and together with Pearl Jam has been our very own source of survival.

We take a trip back to the magnificent era of post-punk, where Pearl Jam first took the stance in the popular punk medium and became one of the seminal bands of the 90s circa. Through Eddie Vedder‘s golden baritone, ferocious energy and venomous flair, Pearl Jam’s status sky-rocketed into the mainstream arena and won them a militant of fans worldwide.

Emotional Powerhouse And The Vocal God; Eddie Vedder

With Chris Cornell of Soundgarden for Temple Of The Dog

With Pearl Jam

Eddie Vedder throughout the 90s

Ready-Steady-Eddie!

Eddie On Stage Swagger

We Would Totally Do That Too!!

Celebrity Stunts – The Most 3D And Acidic Moments Of Rock n Roll

Rock n Roll has become more defiant with age and just when you thought it can’t get any louder, it does. Just when you thought it can’t get any trashier, Metallica comes back with a more electrifying performances and bile. Rock remains on an endless streak of providence and its cultural influences still ranks high on the musical bill. Residing within an ancient war of being the main cost of social dejection and moral turpitude, Rock n Roll continues to prevail with a rock solid foundation and acceptance from the modern day youth. Despite of its reputation in creating some of the biggest controversies and swindle in recent times, it has delivered some of this generation’s most critically acclaimed and notable musical supremos, legendary tunes and influences. No matter how you view it, Rock is a pandemonium that will last forever, and its cultural influences will be here for a very long time.

With its continuing cult and unprecedented vibes, we track back some of Rock’s most shocking, exciting, and memorable ‘caught-on-camera’ Polaroid moments that is sure to evoke some ancient memories and will even make your grandma grasp in horror.

1. MORE THAN A BIRD, MORE THAN A PLANE, COZ HE’S METAL SUPERMAN 

 

Let me show you how it’s done boys coz it aint easy to jump and sing at the same time, oh yeah! – Corey Taylor, Slipknot

2. OH WHERE, OH WHERE CAN MY BABY BE?  

 

Look mom, i can climb, are you recording this at home? – Eddie Vedder, Pearl Jam

3. NIRVANA ON HALLOWEEN STREET PART NUMERO UNO

 

Kurt: Kris can you like find the Jack Daniel’s bottle for me? I kinda lost it somewhere in this fat ass Barney uniform. 

Kris: Jeez, Kurt. Why don’t you ask Dave to do it! There’s too much hair going on … and i can’t even see my bass!

Kurt: This is all your fault! I can’t even reach that itch i have right now!

Kris: No, it’s not! This was your idea!

Kurt: No, it wasn’t!

Kris: It was Too!!

Kurt: NO, IT WASN’T  (…to be continued!) 

4. THE NIGHTMARE AFTER THE GIG  – BREAKING BASS (The Sequel) 

 

I said, IT WAS !!!!!!!! – Kris Novoselic, Nirvana. 

5. THE NIGHTMARE AFTER THE GIG (Sequel To The Sequel) 

 

I said, IT WASN’T !!!!!!! – Kurt Cobain, Nirvana

6. THE LION OF HARD ROCK

 

Allow me to demonstrate how it’s done boys,  it was my signature style in the first place, anyways – Pete Townshend, The Who

7. CROUCHING JIMI & THE FLAMING GUITAR

Good Going, Pete. I gotcha back. I’m burning my guitar in support of you breaking one! – Jimi Hendrix

8. THE GUITAR SOUNDCHECK

‘Look Jimi, My Guitar believes he can fly.. and reach the sky’ –  Pete Townshend, The Who

9. HIT ME BAVY ONE MORE TIME!

Yeah Pete, but i bet you can’t do this – Jimi Hendrix

10. THE RETALIATION OF THE TERMINATOR

‘Been there, done that, Marshall… but never with a guitar, try flying Jimi… then come and talk… ‘ – Pete Townshend, The Who

11. THE COBAIN SUPREMACY 

Hey Pete, look at me, look look! Bet you can’t do this! Hahahahaha….– Kurt Cobain, Nirvana

12. THE NOVOSELIC PHANTOM OF BASS THEORY 

‘…and me too! You got to have some swagger to pose like me, got to pose with swagger’ – Krist Novoselic, Nirvana

13. THE INCREDIBLE WHO

‘…everyone can dance but not everyone can jump with swagger, i can jump with swagger! – Pete Townshend, The Who

14. THE EPIC PUNK-ROCK LANDING

‘Oh my tummy hurts, my head hurts….that jump made me dizzy. Alright, you win.. but payback will be sweet! I’m so gonna write this in my journals!’ – Kurt Cobain, Nirvana

15. THE POST-DYLAN ENCOUNTER, BEATLE WERE SPOTTED JUMPING WITH STRAGE DELIGHT

‘Oi mate, we had a hard day’s night, can we ‘jump’ in with some British Beatlemania, Arthur hair, drainpipe pants and silver lake shoes (the silver lake is totally made up by the writer) Cockney-thug swagger?’ – The Beatles

16. HAIL THE HELEN’s 

‘Jump all day, jump all night, jump all day, jump all night, Just do it Beatles,it’ll be allright!’ – Eddie

‘They can’t jump’

‘Why Not?’

‘The hair, the mop-top, won’t support the wind.. the hair will fly them back to London’

‘haha! Even Better… how would you know that, you never went to school’

‘I lied just to get into the band’ – Eddie Van Helen,  & Knight Robert, Van Helen

17. YOU DON’T MESS WITH THE WHO, MATE!

Mind ya own bussiness lads and go jump at railway stations. Let the adults handle the business here, go get some yoko time – The Who

18. BONNIE AND JAGGER, KEITH AND CLYDE 

So Keith, since the rest of ’em are busy fighting on who can do a better jump, i have just created what will be known as the Jagger moves. U wanna go celebrate and get drunk? – Mick Jagger, Rolling Stones

‘I was gonna write us a new song, but what the heck, let’s go on a bender’ Keith Richard, Rolling Stones

19. 1…2…3….JUMP AROUND, JUMP AROUND

‘So who said they can jump higher? who? Touch them up and go, ch-ch-chang-chang – Chris Cornnel, Soundgarden, Audioslave

20. THE HOT FIEND OF FOO..FOOH!! DAVE GROHL MAKES OUR HEART SKIP A HUNDRED BEATS

‘I’m checking my reflection in the mirror, …. lalala… (verse, chorus, verse) lalalal… I don’t know how is the weather..hmm..hmm..hmmm…’ .. what? Kurt and Krist are fighting over what? Let me know when they’re done, I’m writing some solo stuff for my future band.. that’s strictly off the records! u hear me, hey.. off the record i said! – Dave Grohl, Nirvana

21. FOCUS: ALL EYES ON QUEEN BEE 

‘Yea..yea..whatever, i brought Darth Vader so all focus on me please! In all honesty, ain’t nobody can pull this stunt but me, so i’m gonna say, die trying b*****, ain’t that right Stevey, hey Stevey can you hear me? Are you still under there? – Fredie Mercury, Queen

22. WE’ll TAKE STEVE TYLER SHAKEN AND STIRRED PLEASE! 

‘Yeap, fredy. I hear ya honey. For old times sake, i’m just gonna say ‘Dream On, baby. You are beauty queen of only 50 with some troubles in her life’ 

‘Just for the records, i can pull that of with my pinky, don’t tell Fredy’ – Steven Tyler, Aerosmith

23. THE BOHEMIAN QUEEN

I heard that Stevey! – Fredy Mercury, Queen

24. WE DISTURB YOUR CONCENTRATION WITH THIS COMMERCIAL BREAK 

Now flying you 100 times a week to Stairway To Heaven. With our newly refurbished swimming pool, tennis court, lounging area, bar, build-in casino, Chinese and Italian restaurant, you will forget all aboyt Mud Shark. We assure you that our pilots are not on mushroom. Tickets to Stairway To Heaven are limited so do your booking today and fly like Led Zeppelin! – The Led Zappelin Airways

This commercial was not brought to you by Led Zeppelin, its members, or anyone who are connected to Led Zeppelin. You are hallucinating, you had too much acid.  (repeat after me, I-AM-HALLUCINATING)

25. SWEET SON OF GRUNGE

1. Somebody better call God coz his missin’ an angel
2. Did it hurt when you fell out of heaven?
3. Do you have glue coz my heart just broke looking at you
4. Do you believe in love at first sight, or should I walk by again?
5. Can you hear that? Do you know that you are the sound to my garden

Can somebody PLEASE tell Chris Cornnel that its a crime to be this sexy!! – Chris Cornnel, Soundgarden, Audioslave

26. THE PACT OF TWO TITANS  

Jeez, i thought they were never gonna stop talking.. ok, while everyone was busy, Keith Moon of The Who sneaked out to see his pal, John Bonham of the Led Zeppelin. That’s how the story will be. I’m off to Jagger’s party! – Keith Moon & John Bonham 

27. MARGARET TATCHER HAD A DREAM BUT SEX PISTOLS TURNED IT INTO A NIGHTMARE

In the true spirits of English gentlemen’s, which literally did not exist in the Sex Pistols’ bible, the nihilist commanders in an impressive reign of 3 short years managed to pierce the Queen with a safety pin, ‘God save the queen’ shot to number one, became the greatest pandemonium in the UK, made headlines for cursing on cable network (thank God there was no twitter), Tatcher’s arch-enemies, invented the ‘pogo’ dance, started fights, chaos and everything that can go against the system and became the first and last band in grunge history to hit the top without media’s assistants! And their bassist died at 21,Sex Pistols are the ‘It’ of this generation nihilist movement. Raise your pogo hats, lads!

28. SLASHING YOU SANITY AND VISION SINCE 1981

‘…where am i? Where’s the rest of the dudes? Jeez, i forgot my pants again. Alright, this is gonna be a permanent thing from now on, the no wearing pants thing and showing up in your boxes coz you are a rockstar and you don’t give a damn. I’m not bein’ cocky or anything… but the hair needs 2 hours to get ready after a drunken night..so it’s either the hair or the pants and i choose the hair… you can enjoy my legs.. original and not shaved’ – Slash, Gun n Roses

29. GRUNGE PRINCE CHARMING & FASHION ICON  

‘I know you like my hair, i know you do. I might colour it pink next week.. sweet. I know the dude form Nirvana already done it, but Layne pulls hairstyles better, don’t i?’ – Layne Staley, Alice In Chains

30. HUMAN-DROID 

‘I tell you one thing, Jagger is no sex symbol, he is more like a mother figure’ – David Bowie

31. NOT SO HOT NAKED CHILLI CONCERT

The Most Epic Tragedy and there’s been worse – Red Hot Chilli Pepper

32. Aaaaaaaa-ooooo-aaaaaaaaoooooooooooo-aaaaa-aaa

Forget about jumping, see if Kurt Cobain can do this? – Eddie Vedder, Pearl Jam

33. 0000ooooooaaaAAAAAoooo00000aaooo000

‘Don’t mind me Eddie, I’m right behind ya, just right behind ya’, – Kurt Cobain, Nirvana

33. 6-STRING CHAMPION OF THE WORLD

‘We are the champion of the wurrrllldddd.. we keep on jumpin till the end..heyeyeyeeee’ – Eddie van Helen, Van Helen

34. Awesome As Fuck!

Am I just paranoid?
Am I just stoned? 

-Billie Joe Armstrong, Green Day

34. GIVVRRUWEY GIVVURREYWYH GIVVITEWAY NAO!

‘Ok John, so you got to jump like this..move your head up and down. Bang your hair up and down..k, k John.. u got that right? – Anthony Kiedis & John Fursciante, RHCP

35.  PEARL OF TEXAS, THE ROCK REBEL ROUSER

Guess what, I might be the first hippie pinup girl ~ weeeeeeeeee- Janis Joplin (19/01/1943-04/11/1970)

36. THE OTHER GUY IN YOUR MOMMY’S LIFE B4 YOUR DADDY CAME ALONG 

In simple English:
Saw Elvis’s shadow – faints
Smell Elvis’s perfume – faints
Overheard Elvis talking – faints

Elvis comes out: scream, scream, cry, cry ..hysteria..hysteria.. die

911, ambulance, ER, doctors, surgeons none of ’em could save lives coz the real doctor was Mr. Heartbreaker, love maker….soul shaker… and he has left the building. (thanks for the inspiration, En Vogue) – Elvis Presley (08/01/1935-16/08/1977)

37. BUFFALO SOLDIER, DREADLOCK RASTA MANIA

Everything’s guna be alright
everything’s guna be alright
hey..hey.. everything guna be alright
Jah Se! – Bob Marley (06/02/1945-11/05/1981)

38. IT’S A JUNGLE OUT THERE

‘… so kids, before you roll into the world of scremeo, learn how to jump, burn guitars or burn them. For a hint of fashion, you can always take fashion lessons from me. I give 20% discount for beginners so call me – David Lee Roth 

39. THE ROCK N ROLL PREMIUM HELL RAISER 

‘….let them play, let them have some temporary fun coz i’m goin to blow them up like me cherry bombs..muahahha..muahahah..hahha’ – Keith Moon, The Who (23/08/1946-07/09/1978)

4o. THE SUGAR RUSH WEETABIX KID

‘…haha.. that was so funny!’ – Eddie Vedder, Pearl Jam

and.. finally a 2 track-picture bonus, please close your eyes for:

Rock n Roll Epic Tragedy 

THE GAME WAS CALLED: SPOT THE TIP OF MY HEAD

Flea ‘fleeing’ away with his guitar (there’s too much tragedy here, we are completely lost for words for this extraordinary bassist’s extraordinary efforts at being extraordinary tragic. – Flea, RHCP

WHEN TREE’S PLAY DRUMS

Enough already I say. Thank you for tuning in folks, now go do your home works – Joey Jordison, Slipknot 

This list was painfully compiled by our in-house resident critic and contributor, Acid-Tounge 16 Sweetheart. She claims no individual rights to any of the pictures above and has stolen a whole lot of ’em from the good citizens of tmbr (thank you tmblr for being extraordinarily kind without the knowledge of being kind) and the creative rights falls to the photographers who has framed this extraterritorial moments for us to bear. Shortly after we published this article online (since our magazine did not want to publish Flea’s picture), we took a stage dive into the pool and started practising under-water screaming. Cheers!

The Who: The Lads From The Peak of The British Invasion Era

Growing up in the 60s as the drummer of a band that was starting to surface in the pop culture and mainstream stardom, it was hard to break free from the ‘sex-drugs-and-rock n roll pandemonium that instantly shackles rock bands till this day. In similar respect, The Who took to the world a new born crazed back in 1967 amassing a firm and solid fan base for their music and notorious stage antics. The Who, who has been inducted as the 3rd most notable British band in the Rock and Roll history following The Rolling Stones and The Beetles, were the first ever band to destroy their equipments on stage that ultimately became their most prominent signature of their performances.

Keith Moon, God rest his soul, once drove his car through the glass doors of a hotel,
driving all the way up to the reception desk,
got out and asked for the key to his room – Pete Twonshend 

My Generation

My Generation – The Who was released on 3rd December 1965 in UK and in April 1966 in US

1964 – The Who emerged around this time  with Roger Daltrey on vocals, Pete Townshend on guitars,  John Entwistle on bass and Keith Moon on drums. Today one of their most prominent milestone can be heard from TV’s popular crime scene chronicles, CSI: MIAMI theme song, Never Get Fooled Again.

Keith Moon auditioned for the drummers position and was immediately accepted thus he continued telling different version of how he initially started with ‘The Who’. Some of which are:

‘He claimed that he came to The Who’s gig dressed in ginger including his hair that was dyed ginger and bragged he could play better than the session drummer who filled in for Sandom claiming that he played until almost destroying the kits in the process’

‘He also told Paul McCartney of The Beatles when asked how he joined The Who that he has just been filling in for the band for the last 15 years and never really got an invitation to join the band officially’

1964 – While Sandom was the peacekeeper of the band, which was constantly getting into fights that was more notable between Pete and John, the structure changed after Keith as now they were fighting with each other almost all the time. Pete was particularly unhappy with the way Keith played the drums for not following the traditional time keeping later attested that Keith’s drumming style contributed to their discerning sounds. Critics continued labelling his drumming skills to be all over the place but throughout countless video clips of The Who during their hey day’s, it is almost clear that he purposely did to create a chaos within the music itself. The same chaos that gave the band the acceptance in the musical platform that they so richly deserved.

More Stories on Keith Moon here: He’s Keith Moon, What’s Your Super Power?.

Constantly described as an expressionist and attention grabber, Keith hated playing drum’s solo and during a show, Pete and John made an agreement to stop playing guitar and bass during one of the songs to allow the spotlight on Keith’s drum solos. The moment he realised that Pete and John, stopped playing, he too quit the drum’s succession, claiming that ‘drum solos were boring’ 

Besides his extraordinary skills at drums, Keith loved to sing despite of his weak vocals. During recording of vocals, Moon got himself removed from the studio for attempting to offer funny commentaries during songs announcement and making the other members laugh while recording. But Moon being Moon always found a way back into the recording studio as heard at the end of ‘Happy Jack’ where Townshend says ‘I saw ya!’ when he saw Moon sneaking in. Moon eventually contributed on songs like; Bucket T, Barbara Ann,  Pictures of Lily and a more serious tone on Bell Boy.  Moon will continue contributing his vocals on many other songs and will be credited with endless recognition for being the main propeller in certain aspect of changing the direction of Who’s music in a distinctive and versatile manner. Some of his most talked about contributions are seen through songs like Baba O’Riley for producing a violin solo, the impact on ‘Tommy’s Holiday Inn’ which was achieved through action set in the backdrop of Holliday Inn as per Moon’s suggestion and ‘The Ox’ instrumental that he co-composed.

Years later many would agree that even when all the individual members were emotional power play that supported ‘The Who’s’ structure, Moon was the soul of the band who kept them together despite of having the who banned from all principle hotel chains such as Holiday Inn, Sheraton and Hilton plus the entire city of Flint, Michigan. He aded a dramatic grit to the proceeding and was the fine line that kept the band from crossing to the monotonous land.

More pictures on The Who: The Who – The Milestone.

 

1964 – It has been reported that the whole ‘The Who’ stage antics started around this time during a performance at Railway Tavern where Pete Townshend accidentally broke his guitar. He proceeded in smashing his guitar out of frustration and Keith responded by kicking off his drum covers. What started out as a mere accident instantly captured fans interest who cited their infatuation for The Who’s knack for destruction. This will continue to become The Who’s would soon become The Who’s legendary imprint taking place on all their future shows. It has also been one of the staples of “50 Moments That Changed The History Of Rock n Roll’ by Rolling Stones.

A Quick One – 1966

1966 – Keith Moon together with John Entwistle planned to leave The Who and form ‘Lead Zappelin’ together with

The Who Sell Out – 1967

1967 – The Who embarked on their first ever US tour as a supporting act to the then main headliners Herman’s Hermitts.

– The Who appeared on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Show in 1967 and this would serve as their most defining moment of the show ultimately securing The Who number 10 ranking in the ‘100 Greatest Rock n Roll Moments On Television’. By this time, The Who were already famously known for the mild explosion in their shows through an explosive that was placed in Keith Moon’s drum kits to create a light pyrotechnic effect. Unbeknown to them, Keith Moon had bribed a stage staff to insert 10 times the usual amount of explosive into the kits and when Keith proceeded to detonate it, the explosion was so loud and intense that it injured Keith, set Pete’s hair on fire and affected his hearing (the beginning of Pete’s Tinnitus) with Tommy Smothers appearing shocked in the background. Watch clip, you will see Keith Moon lying flat on the floor.

Tommy – 1969

1970 – Keith Moon accidentally ran over his driver, Neil Bolan while trying to escape the pursuit of a group of skinheads. It is said that for years, Keith has been plunged with depression for Bolan’s death and continued to blame himself over the tragedy.

Who’s Next – 1971

Quodrophenia – 1973

1973 – Keith Moon passed out during the ‘The Who’s’ show after taking a huge amount of horse tranquillisers and had to be removed from the stage. He however, was seen being brought back to perform 30 minutes after the event.

The Who By Numbers – 1975

1975 – The Who set the record for the highest crowd to turn up for an indoor concert at the Pontiac Silverdome

1975 – Keith Moon releases a solo album ‘Two Sides Of The Moon’, which was a critical failure. Being the greatest drummer of his time, he merely appeared in 3 tracks and rendered his vocals throughout the album. A defeating failure largely due to Keith Moon being tone-deaf.

1975 – The Who became one of the first bands to venture into film and based on their hit rock opera album, the film Tommy was released. Tommy won the award ‘Rock Movie Of The Year’ in the first annual of ‘Rock Music Award’. Pete Townshend was nominated for Oscar for his role in the music adaptation and the movie’s soundtrack became a commercial success peaking at number two on the Billboards Award.

1976 – The Who played at The Valley, Charlton Athletic, which was recorded as The World’s Loudest Concert for more then 10 years in Guinness Book Of Records. It is believed that the impact of the concert furthered instigated Pete Townshend’s hearing problems.

Who Are You – 1978

1978 – The Who released their most critical album to date, which became the fastest selling album in US and the most successful milestone from The Who’s hefty catalog. It is said during this time, Keith Moon has put up a lot of weight from all the heavy drinking he did that he had to be squeezed behind a chair  just so his bulge won’t show for the cover shot. The album was released on the 18 of August and went on to receive endless awards in the wake of Keith’s passing.

1978 – Keith Moon died from an overdose on the 7th of September a few hours after attending a viewing party organised by Beatle’s Paul McCartney. The party ‘The Buddy Holly Story’ was in honour of another rock star who unfortunately passed away at the peak of his career at the tender age of 22 when the small aircraft he chartered crashed on the 2nd February in the face of a snowstorm. Buddy Holly who had 3 albums to his musical career was found with the rest of the passengers on the next day after the snowstorm has weathered. Keith Moon overdosed on a prescribed medication that was supplied to help alcohol withdrawal symptoms.

– At the time of his death, Keith Moon seems to have sobered up for about 6 months and was making a full effort of recovery and was focusing on his new job as the publicist of Shepperton Studios that belonged to the band.

Quite eerily so, the cover of the chair that Moon is sitting on read: Never To Be Taken Away and he passed away in less than 3 weeks after the album was released. 

1979 – The Who returned to the stage in May after taking some time off following Keith’s death and their return was well-received by the fans with Rainbow Theatre, London marking the first venue of a series of concerts to follow.

1979 – Following Keith Moon’s death, Pete Townshend invited Kenney Jones to join The Who and replace Moon on the drums partly because Jones was also one of Moon’s friend and was with him on the night before his death at Paul McCartney’s The Buddy Holly Story viewing party.

-The Who’s second movie Quadrophenia was released in 1979. It is reported that Sex Pistol’s vocalist John Lydon famously known as Johnny Rotten auditioned for a part in the film but did not manage to secure a part.

– In the same year, ‘The Kids Are Alright’ documentary was released capturing The Who’s signifying moments together with their final performance with Keith Moon.

-Later that year, The Who appeared on the ‘Time’s’ cover making them the 3rd band to formally do so. As stated in The Time Magazine December 1979 issue, cover story by  Jay Cocks:

Time enough, in 15 years, for three new generations and a dozen new audiences.
The Who has outpaced them all.
Time enough for a bewilderment of pop styles to flare, settle, burn out.
The Who has outlasted them all.
Too much time for most rock bands to survive.
The Who, in every sense of the word, has outlived them all, and outclassed them too

.

Full story as per below, you will need to have an account with the following to enable you to access to the archives.

http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,920745,00.html

1979 – During a tour in Ohio in 1979, a crowd crush killed 11 people and injuring 26 others who went to the concert to catch ‘The Who’s’ performance. The crowd mistook the band’s soundcheck as the initiation of the show and started to rush through a half closed door to the venue. It is believed that the whole commotion was due to the free seating concept and the efforts to get as close to the stage due to the arrangement ended in tragedy. The band members were not told about the incident until they had finished performing.  A detailed description are available in this clip:

The Who were deeply shaken upon learning about the incident and in the following evening as they set to perform to a crowd in Buffalo, New York, Roger Daltrey went on to quote:

‘The band lost a lot of family last night and this show is for them’

The tragedy left a huge blow on the band members who felt partly responsible for the death of 11 kids that were around the age of 15 to 27. The families of the victims proceeded in suing the band, the concert promoters Electric Factory Concerts and the city of Cincinnati. The legal issues were settled in 1983 and the city continued to post a 25 years ban on festival seatings with some exception which was dismissed in …

The concert was recorded as one of the deadliest concert disaster in American History at the time and no memorial was ever erected for the victims.

The Cincinnati tragedy also inspired the book: Are The Kid’s Alright? The Rock Generation and its Hidden Death Wishes.

1980 – The Who’s third film,  McVicar was released

Face Dancers – 1981

It’s Hard – 1982

Around 1980 circa to 1982, the band was going through immense pressure as Townshend marriage fell apart and he ventured into the web of addiction by taking cocaine and heroin. Once a huge protestor of drugs and a self-righteous man, his newly found habits shocked not only the world but also his band members. While the band released two equally successful albums within the frame of 2 years with hits that ranked high on prominent charts, many of their fans expressed dissatisfaction towards the band’s new sound.

1982 – Townshend eventually pulled himself together and embarked on The Who’s farewell tour to US and Canada. The tour marked as The Who’s highest grossing ever and the band played to sold out crowds.

1983 – Townshend spent time writing new material for the band but found himself unable to so he departed from The Who wishing the rest of the members best of luck. He then started writing his own materials and become the founder of radio work, Firehouse.

1988 – The Who were awarded with British Phonographic Industry’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the 1988 Brits Award held at Royal Albert Hall, London.

1989 – The Who embarked on ‘The Kid’s Are Alright 25th Anniversary Reunion Tour’. 100,000 thousand were released for their two shows at Massachusetts and the tickets sold out 8 hours from the time of its released beating previous record set by U2 and David Bowie. Their whole tour was sold out selling over 2 million tickets.

1990 – The Who were inducted in the Rock n Roll Hall Of Fame describing them as the prime contenders for the title ‘Worl’d Greatest Rock Band’

 1996 – Revival of Quadrophenia

1998 – VH1 honoured The Who with number 9 spot for 100 Greatest Artists of Rock ‘n’ Roll.

2002 – The band performed at the Madison Square Garden. The concert was dedicated to families of rescuers who lost their lives at the World Trade Centre in the September 11 catastrophe.

– The Who were honoured with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in the same year.

2002 – The show The Who played in England that year would mark as the band’s bassist, John Entwistle’s few final shows. He was found dead in his room at the Hard Rock Hotel on the 27 June 2002. Entwistle died from an apparent heart attack believed to be attributed by Cocaine.

Books written on and by the members of The Who (selected numbers only)

WHO AM I by PETE TOWNSHEND

Pete Townshend is the legendary lead guitarist and principal songwriter for The Who, one of the most influential rock-and-roll bands of all time. He is one of Rolling Stone‘s “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time” and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.

Roger Daltrey: The Biography by Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewbank

Tim Ewbank is an entertainment writer and former TV correspondent for the Daily Mail. Stafford Hildred is a television critic and entertainment writer. They are the coauthors of Jamie Oliver, Rod Stewart: The New Biography, and Russell Crowe: The Biography.

Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of THE WHO 1958-1978 by Andrew Neill, Roger Daltrey, Matthew Kent and Chris Stamp

 The book begins in the late ’50s, when the band’s musicians began playing together in “trad jazz” bands, and continues to the phenomenal success of their groundbreaking rock opera Tommy and subsequent emergence as one of the world’s most popular acts, filling stadiums on both sides of the Atlantic. Neill and Kent wisely wrap things up with the death of drummer Keith Moon in 1978. Many feel the band should have done the same thing, but it continues performing to huge crowds of loyal fans who will appreciate this painstaking chronicle.

Full Moon: The Amazing Rock and Roll Life of the Late Keith Moon by Peter Dougal Butler

“Full Moon” is Butler’s memoir of that ride: essential reading for Who fans, and a masterclass in the mayhem caused by rock ‘n’ roll excess.

“Full Moon” is Butler’s memoir of that ride: essential reading for Who fans, and a masterclass in the mayhem caused by rock ‘n’ roll excess.

Bass Culture: The John Entwistle Guitar Collection

This beautiful full-color coffee table book highlights dozens of basses and guitars from the private collection of the Who s John Entwhistle. Includes many historic and limited-run instruments.

THE WHO by MARCUS HEAM

 

Marcus Hearn is the acclaimed author of Titan’s Hammer Vault, The Art of Hammer and Hammer Glamour. His other books include authorised biographies of filmmakers George Lucas and Gerry Anderson, and Eight Days a Week, the story of The Beatles’ final world tour.

The Life And Death Of A Rock Legend – Tony Fletcher

Tony Fletcher is the author of seven non-fiction books and one novel. His biography of drummer Keith Moon has been named in many a Best Music Book list, and his biography of R.E.M., updated in 2013 as ‘Perfect Circle,’ has been published in over half a dozen countries. ‘A Light That Never Goes Out: The Enduring Saga of The Smiths’ was published in the UK by William Heinemann in September 2012, and by Crown Archetype in the USA in December 2012, with paperback editions following in the corresponding months of 2013. A memoir of his South London schooldays, ‘Boy About Town,’ was published in the UK by William Heinemann in July 2013, and is available in the USA as of September 2013.

He’s Keith Moon, What’s Your Super Power?

Had he not died on the 7 September 1978, Keith Moon, the (in)famous drummer of the British band, The Who would have turned 67 this year following his birthday last month (August 23). Today we hit the 35 years memorial of his untimely departure at the age of 32 but Keith Moon’s exceptional charisma and influence on the music industry has marked a new creative high and remains high on the agenda.

One of the most playful and eccentric of the post-Beatles ‘British Invasion’ acts, Moon is arguably one of the best drummers in the world and the man who liberally spiked ‘The Who’s’ fleeting melodies with his incredible speed and effervescent flair that made the sounds of his drums clash and echo to a soaring psychedelic conclusion. Never before had drums played a similar part as bass and guitar the way it did during Keith Moon and The Who’s era. He relentlessly placed drums at the forefront of music circa.

There was something about Keith Moon that totally segregated those who got it and those who didn’t. His fans cited his extensive and self-imposed benchmark as one of the finest in the rock history while his detractors took his whole charisma as sloppy, nonsensical antics and a self-imposed rockstar image selfishly stroking his ego under the spectacles of his audience. While there has been clashes of opinions and doubt on Moon’s ability in keeping up with time and inability to follow the tempo, the rumours has largely been dismissed by fellow band member and lead vocalist, Roger Daltrey. Daltrey has sticked his guns in Moon’s honour to ensure that the man behind ‘Who’s’ drums intention and reflexes not to be misconceived.

Daltrey in defence of Moon has clearly stated:

This was somebody without whom we might still be listening to drummers going ‘boom-cha, boom-cha.

 

Keith in 2013 is remembered as one of rock music progenitors but there’s no denying that his wild eccentric behaviour and legendary tales of blowing up toilets and driving Roll Royce’s into the Hotel’s swimming pool has also contributed to his long-lived legacy and has been a constant debate of the recent century. Due to that we track back Moon’s escapade and brings to light his best and funniest ventures as we introduce you to the man who through his gravity, ferocity and rock star charms stood behind every single word with everything he had. Keith Moon’s raw efforts and skills will and could never be replicated and here is the story of a man who was play-hard and party-hardcore apprentice.

From the tales of ‘The Hollywood Vampires’ a club that was adorned by the 60s demigod’s such as Alice Cooper, Bernie Taupin, Harry Nilsson, Micky Dolenz, John Lennon, Ringo Starr and Keith Moon straight to the bottom of 5-star hotel’s expensive swimming pool’s, Keith Moon has proved that 60s was one hellavu ferocious and wild era. Particularly to ‘The Who’ members Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey and the late John Entwistle who throughout their time were one of the biggest band in rock history, playing to sold out concerts,  and were and still are one of Rock music’s exceptional treasures – even at the peak of their stardom were forced to sleep in tour vans and friend’s houses after being thrown out of hotels has kept their love and faithful honour deep in the heart for the exuberant drummer. For all we have seen and known, we would damn straight quote that you will never find another effort as sublime as this in this contemporary history.

Keith Moon has thrashed hotel rooms, blown up toilets, set buildings on fire and more during his heydays and managed to make the whole band members to be blacklisted from prestigious hotel chains such as Holiday Inn, Hilton and more. Myth has it that they were also banned from ever entering the city of Michigan again. Keith Moon’s image has been largely popularised as a man who was constantly battling with his inner demons and the war became worst with the usage of drugs and excessive alcohol intake. Moon passed away in his sleep on 7 Sept 1978 at the age of 32 after returning from a viewing party for ‘The Buddy Holly Story’ – a party hosted by The Beatles’s band member, Sir Paul McCartney. Keith Moon is believed to have died in his sleep from prescription medicine overdose. Stories has been told that 6 months prior to his passing, he had actually sought help and had cleaned up his act. Even when he was removed from an aircraft for pulling one of his infamous stunt, some would say it was nothing compared to what he could do or have done at that time.

We remember Keith Moon for giving us some of Rock n Roll’s greatest memories be it in through the ways he savaged his drum kits or his endless enthusiasm in blowing up hotel toilet’s with cherry bombs. He will be missed even by those who never truly lived throughout his era, but for a man of his calibre he is better sooted for creating anarchy in heaven. We smile sometimes thinking how he is giving God headaches with his endless running around blowing up castles in heaven. Rest In Peace, mate. There’ll never be another Keith Moon, never.

Full story of The Who, Year by Year Events, Albums and more here:  The Who: The Lads From The Peak of The British Invasion Era.

MY GENERATION

(Above) The young guns (clockwise) KEITH MOON (DRUMS), JOHN ENTWISTLE (BASS), ROGER DALTREY (VOCALS) and in the front PETE TOWNSHEND (GUITAR)

AND

As per 2013 the remaining members of the original WHO would be Pete Townshend (far left) and Roger Daltrey (beside Pete). Drummer Keith Moon passed away in 1978 at the age of 32 followed by bassist John Entwistle in 2002 at the age of 57.

 

FLINT TOWNSHIP, MICHIGAN — IT WAS ONE SWIM THE CITY WOULD REMEMBER & A BIRTHDAY BASH OF A MAN WHO WAS 19 GOING ON 20 GOING ON 21

In August 1967, the band arrived in Holliday Inn, Flint, Michigan to a ‘Happy Birthday Keith‘ sign erected by the hotel management in line with his 21st birthday. Truth is he was turning 20 that year as recalled by the late Who basisst, Enstwistle. Keith was excited at the prospect that he could drink because he was celebrating his 21st birthday and drink he did. The photo above was taken when Keith was quite drunk.

After performing at the Atwood High School Football Stadium, Keith returned to the hotel and started a food fight. Within seconds, cake started to fly around and the evening cultivated to an already very drunk Keith knocking out his front tooth. He was brought to a nearby hospital but doctors could not give him anaesthetic due to his plastered condition so they took out the remaining tooth without the aid of any medication. The wildest birthday bash in the American history ended up with fire extinguishers being set off, hotel properties and guests’  floating in the pool and a grand piano destroyed in the process. Hence, even the police had to draw out their handguns to put an end to the chaos.

It was during this time that a very drunk Moon striped down to his underpants and released the brakes on a parked Lincoln Continental and drove it straight into the hotel’s pool with him inside. Following the incident, The Who were banned from all Holliday Inn properties for life and had to pay for damages that amounted to $24,000 or $50,00 as legend has it.

From an interview with ‘Rolling Stones’ 1972, this is how Keith recalls the wild moment:

I ran out, jumped into the first car I came to, which was a brand new Lincoln Continental. It was parked on a slight hill and when I took the hand brake off, it started to roll and it smashed straight through this pool fence and the ‘Ole Lincoln Continental went into the ‘Oliday Inn swimming pool, with me in it. Ah-Ah-Ha-Ha-Ha-Ha!

KEITH AND HOTEL TV’S

I’m banned everywhere. With my record I’m not surprised. That’s why I have to buy me own hotels. Even I ban me. I won’t allow me-self to stay at me own hotels. Ha-ha-ha-ha.

Dougal Butler once quoted that as he was driving Moon to the airport, Moon asked him to turn around and drive back to the hotel because he forgot something. Upon arriving at the hotel, he ran to his room, took the hotel’s TV and threw it out of his window into the swimming pool. He got back into the car and sigh ‘I almost forgot’

In a December 1972 Rolling Stones Interview, Keith replied on his hotel room destruction myth:

Lots. Yes. I get bored, you see. There was a time in Saskatoon, in Canada. It was another Holiday Inn and I was bored. Now, when I get bored, I rebel. I said, “Fuck it, fuck the lot of ya!” And I took out me hatchet and chopped the hotel room to bits. The television. The chairs. The dresser. The cupboard doors. The bed. The lot of it. It happens all the time.

 

THE SMOTHERS BROTHER COMEDY SHOW: MY NAME IS KEITH BUT YOU CAN CALL ME JOHN

The Who appeared on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Show in 1967 and this would serve as the most defining moment of the show ultimately securing Who’s number 10 ranking in the ‘100 Greatest Rock n Roll Moments On Television’. By this time, The Who were already famously known for the mild explosion in their shows through an explosive that was placed in Keith Moon’s drum kits to create a light pyrotechnic effect. Unbeknown to them, Keith Moon had bribed a stage staff to insert 10 times the usual amount of explosive into the kits and when Keith proceeded to detonate it, the explosion was so loud and intense that it injured Keith, set Pete’s hair on fire and affected his hearing (the beginning of Pete’s Tinnitus) with Tommy Smothers appearing shocked in the background. Watch the clip, you will see Keith Moon lying flat on the floor after the explosion and Townshend hair engulfed with smoke.

THE LONGEST ‘FILL IN’ DRUMMER IN THE WORLD

Keith was a high school drop out who became a rock star god too early in his life as the Who started to gain mainstream popularity and megastar stardom. He managed to provide quite an impact on the rest of WHO’s member when he took the drums in his ginger hair and ginger clothes to show off his skills at one of  WHO’s gigs. He was immediately accepted as the drummer of the band. Quite funnily so, when asked by BEATLE’s Ringo Star how he managed to drum with the WHO, he replied that he was just filling in for the drummers position for the last 15 years. He was quite the story teller.

Even when Moon was known to own a few fancy and expensive cars, stories has been told that he drove a tractor to all the local bars where he used to drink.

ARE THE KIDS ALRIGHT MATE? – KEITH MOON K-HOLES!

Keith Moon passes out on stage on his drums at one of  WHO’s concert after taking a whole lot of horse tranquillisers.

RIPLEY’S CANT BELIVE IT: ELVIS MAY HAVE LEFT THE BUILDING BUT KEITH MOON IS JUST ABOUT TO MAKE AN ENTRANCE – THROUGH THE CEILING 

If there was one man in the industry who knew how to make a grand entrance, it got to be Keith Moon. While the band members of Who waited for Moon to start their performance at the VAlley, London, witness recalls that suddenly there was a loud crash and bang! – Keith Moon had just dropped from the ceiling smashing his way through a pointed and barbed iron roof to land himself  flat on the stage. No one could ever replicate that! No one!

ROCK N ROLL’S PREMIER HELL RAISER

On one occasion, The Who guitarist, Pete Townshend came back to the hotel room to find that the toilet has disappeared with just an S band left  to proof that once-upon-a-time, there was a toilet in that place before Keith Moon came along. Moon blew the toilet using 500 cherry bombs.

 And of course from that moment on, we got thrown out of every hotel we ever stayed in’ recalled Townshend

NUDE MOON MOON-WALKING, SAYS’S MICK JAGGER’S WIFE 

On the night of Mick Jagger’s (Rolling Stones) and Bianca’s wedding reception, Bianca retired early to their room only to wake up hours later and find Keith Moon roaming through her sixth-floor window wearing nothing but a pair of novelty glasses whose eyeballs bounced around in front of him on springs while spotting a pair of women’s brief on his head.

THE KEITH AND GIN STORY

The late Graham Chapman recalls meeting Keith Moon at his hotel suite. Chapman was a gin drinker and there was no gin in the room so Moon called the front desk and requested for a bottle of Gin to be brought up to the room for his friend. After 15 minutes, the gin still hadn’t arrive and Keith once again called the front desk and said, If the gin does not arrive in another 10 minutes, the TV will arrive in the swimming pool. About 10 minutes after that Chapman noticed that Keith has gone missing and the window of the room was wide open. He went to the window to see if Keith had  jumped out but there was nothing below the 13 or 14th floor window. There was a tiny balcony outside but not the kind that someone would be lounging at. He proceeded to wait for Moon as panic started to settle in. A moment later, Moon climbs down from the window holding a gin bottle in his hand. He had just broken into the room next door to grab a gin for his friend. Such an amusing character and such a good friend he was.

KEITH MOON: ‘ANG’ ON, MATE, I CAN’T GO FAST ON THESE LEGS’

Keith goes on telling Rolling Stone in a 1972 interview that he was late for an interview that was scheduled at 3 and it was only at 4 that he started out. Knowing that the band members would be angry at him, he called them and said that he’d been run over a bus on Oxford Street. He then bought some bandages and walking sticks and came limping to the office and while they all agreed to cancel the interview, Moon persisted that they should carry on.

So they carried me down the stairs and we’re walking along, I’m hobbling along the street again and this bloody lorry comes along as I’m crossing the street and it screams to a halt in front of me. I say, “‘ang on, mate, I can’t go fast on these legs,” and Pete has a go at the lorry driver: “You ‘eart-less bastard, can’t you see this man’s injured! ‘ave you no ‘eart, ‘ave you no soul, you bastard! Trying to run over a cripple!”

 

ALICE COOPER: MY 18-YEARS-OLD WIFE AND MY FRENCH MAID – KEITH

According to Alice Cooper, he has just recently got married to his wife when Keith Moon came over to his house. Keith Moon proceeded to stay at the newly wed still in the honey moon period couple’s house  for a week. One day, Cooper and his 18-years-old wife came back home to find Keith wearing a French maid corset and dusting Cooper’s place while trying to imitate a French ascent.

KEITH AND BUTLER GOES TO PACIFIC OCEAN ON A HOT AIR BALLOON RIDE

Peter Dougal Butler was Keith’s PA and one who was always with him even through his rabid stunts. Butler recalls going to a 21st birthday party of a well known family in America -a party to celebrated their sons birthday. It was crazy party because they had hot air balloons and coke flying around and going around one table to another. The next thing we know, Keith and I ended up in one of the hot balloon’s floating somewhere in the mid of the dark Pacific Ocean.

KEITH MOON ACCEPTING AN  AWARD ON BEHALF OF THE BEATLES

‘We finally made it Keith and that everyone who has given us this prestigious award is enhanced by the beauty of your receiving it for us’ – Keith Moon

KEITH MOON AND HIS NEW FRIEND, MISS GLUE 

Keith Moon’s hotel stories are pretty timeless, from blowing up to thrashing, Keith has used his imaginary interior designing degree to a good use. But things were about to change because he just discovered the power of glue. He was once again asked to leave the hotel when the manager arrived to his room only to find that Keith Moon has glued and plastered all the furnitures to the ceiling. Ripley’s believe or not? You better believe it.

THE QUEEN OF MOON  VS KEITH ADOLF MOON HITELR WHO 

Being the expressionist that he was, Keith often rented suits and would wear it all day even when he went out. Alice Cooper remembers him wearing a French maid corset, Adolf’s Kampfzeit uniform and The Queen Of England’s gowns or dresses. Butler later noted that Keith rented a police man suit complete with a handgun, which he planned to wear during The Who’s gig later that night. But both of them got caught by a security at the hotel who insisted Keith to take the uniform off. He however manage to get to the show and the whole uniform thing was a hit.

HOLE IN THE HOTEL ROOM : KEITH MOON OR RATS? 

Alice Cooper recalls that one night Keith wanted to borrow Pete Townshend’s record player but he didn’t want to wake him up because it was late. Even when Townshend was staying in the next room, Moon proceeded in making a hole on the wall and entered Townshend’s room and as he came back, he sigh ‘I got the wrong one’. The hotel manager arrived at the room and was astonished to see a hole had been cut through to the next room. He asked Moon, what was that? Moon replied, ‘Oh, Rats, huge rats’. He told the hotel manager that he wasn’t going to pay his bills till they catch the rats. The hotel manager told Moon that he had to pay for the damages and Moon asked how much would that be? Upon hearing the figure he said; with that kind of money, might as well destroy the whole room. He even invited the manager to help him in breaking the furnitures, which the manager did.

KEITH AND EX WIFE, KIM

WHO ARE YOU KEITH MOON?

Moon died weeks after the album ‘Who Are You’ was released. Quite eerily so, the cover of the chair that Moon is sitting on reads: Never To Be Taken Away and he passed away in less than 3 weeks after the album was released.

REMEMBERING KEITH MOON

Keith Moon, God rest his soul, once drove his car through the glass doors of a hotel, driving all the way up to the reception desk, got out and asked for the key to his room.” – Pete Townshend

*****

I’m am not here to talk about all the things that Keith did during his time, I am here to talk about the man I have loved – Ringo Star, The Beatles

*****

“John (Bonham) had been so impressed when he saw The Who’s drummer, a young Keith Moon, for the first time on TV, that he began to experiment with fashion.” – Mick Bonham, John Bonham of Led Zeppelin’s brother. 

KEITH MOON’S QUOTES

At heart I cannot accept that I am a well-known rock ‘n’ roll star and one of the greatest drummers in the world. I can’t believe that person on the television is really me. The Keith Moon the public knows is a myth, even if I have created him. The real me is the person who sits at home having a cup of tea with his old lady, Annette. 

*****

The hotel smashing is one way I get relief from the public image. I have no temper. I do it in a spirit of amusement  rather than anger. When I’ve done damage to a friend’s house I come back sheepishly the next day and offer to put things right, which means I’m willing to foot the bill.

*****

You know, if I ever stopped laughing inside and quit believing in people then I would get very hurt and totally disillusioned. You have to treat everything – even if at that time it seems like a right bummer – as a good experience. There are things that have happened to me that have made me wonder where I went wrong . . . things of a personal nature, like my relationship with my wife. They’re the things that make you think most, because one is far more deeply involved.

*****

I love to see people laugh and I love it more if I can make them laugh. I think this comes across in my drumming. I watch a lot of The Marx Brothers’ movies and they were doing the same sort of things. You’ve seen the way Chico Marx plays the piano with that certain flair . . . adding something to the music while taking liberties within his own capabilities? It’s a question of taking somebody else’s music but not sending it up in a derogative sense, just injecting your own personality. Pete’s music allows me to do this.

 

Rock music has given us some of the best memories to cherish and the Hard Rock God’s brought their influences in enhancing music through time with a sense of credibility and diversity. Elvis Presley will always be the most exceptional son of Rock n Roll, he created a base for the rest to ride on and opened the doors for the Balck community to soar to spectacular heights. The British Invasion saw The Beatles changing the face of music further and the resurgence of the MOD era. The Beatles bridged the gap between the Brits and Americans and never has two cultures collided the way they did back in the 60s. This eventually opened the doors for bands like Rolling Stones, The Who and Led Zeppelin just to mention a few to pursue music in the typical Rock n Roll fashion with an endless string of the British influences and richness.

Led Zeppelin is the second best selling recording acts of all time and Bonham is the greatest drummer of all time. The Brits opened the doors for the rest of us to experience music like never before and for all we know they’ve been doing just that for as long as time. The Who came barging in and sold millions of tickets within hours of release and this kinda things are rare in modern times.

Keith Moon placed drums at the forefront of the band and made them as equally important as the rest of the musical elements that was needed in creating hits after hits. Regardless of being thrown out of hotels and sleeping in vans because of their eccentric drummer’s niche for blowing up everything that came between his path, never again will you see band members sticking up their guns just to ensure we cherish Moon’s memories as part of this generation’s biggest influence of modern day rock. They may have carried on after Keith Moon’s death but never once hoped to replace Keith’s memories with anyone else and never did. They still talk fondly about Keith and don’t normally pick on his infra structural drugs abuse or drinking problems. This was the sight and sounds of The Who, a band who at their times were the biggest name in rock history and music mercenaries that will never be replicated.

You love a man not because how he has portrayed himself on the outward corners of his life. You love a man for what he was in the deepest corner of his heart. Despite the self-destructive and self-imposed behaviour, he was one of the most talented chap who unfortunately like most drummers souls was overly excited, too young to know or care, too much happened too soon and the childish manoeuvres took the best out of him every single hour of every single day of his life. He is loved and remembered at how he savaged his drum kits and how insanely he beat them to dust in creating an emotional path between hearts and souls of a man that had two sides to him.

We remember him for his notoriety in playing the drums like no one could and no one will. Below Townshend and Daltrey ‘toks about Moon wusz a pio genius’ and shows off Moon’s drumming skills:

Related articles

• http://www.thewho.net/Content/Biographies/Keith_Moon.html
• UK Olympic Committee Tries To Book Keith Moon (hypebot.com)
• http://www.madmusic.com/song_details.aspx?SongID=17925
• http://selvedgeyard.com/2009/10/26/keith-the-loon-moon-rock-rolls-jackson-pollock-of-drums/